Avatar: The Cycle of the Seasons
“When I was a child, I joined Avatar Korra on her adventures around the world. She, her friends and my father accomplished so much from the day she arrived in Republic City. Avatar Korra ended up changing the world more than any Avatar in recent history – including the opening of spirit portals and the subsequent restoration of the air nation. Korra, Asami, Mako and Bolin dedicated their lives to maintaining the balance of this new world order, however, when a new and more powerful darkness than ever before appeared they made the ultimate sacrifice to protect everything they held dear.
Without the Avatar balance has been unstable for a while now, and despite the Air Nation’s efforts to help, a plight has been born anew. But conflict is not the only thing that has been reborn. Like the cycle of the seasons, a new Avatar has arisen to take up the mantle of Korra, Aang and all the other great Avatars before them. They’re still inexperienced, but the world needs the Avatar now more than ever – I…We can only pray that this Avatar has what it takes to save the world.”
Without the Avatar balance has been unstable for a while now, and despite the Air Nation’s efforts to help, a plight has been born anew. But conflict is not the only thing that has been reborn. Like the cycle of the seasons, a new Avatar has arisen to take up the mantle of Korra, Aang and all the other great Avatars before them. They’re still inexperienced, but the world needs the Avatar now more than ever – I…We can only pray that this Avatar has what it takes to save the world.”
Avatar Korra was an inspiration to thousands; she and her friends transformed the world well beyond what anybody could have foreseen for her reign as the Avatar. Once she had successfully defeated Kuvira, Korra went to the spirit world with Asami Sato for a much-needed respite. Once she returned she proceeded to help Wu stabilise the Earth Nation after he chose to dismantle the monarchy. Asami helped bring modern transport systems around the globe and the world became more connected than ever. Republic City expanded following the creation of the new spirit portal and new groups of nomads appeared to go and live in the spirit world. There was a balance. Of course, that isn’t to say that there wasn’t conflict. Many Kuvira supporters still remained at large, anti-spirit activists weren’t as pleased to be sharing Republic City as the rest of the world, and the Avatar still had as many enemies as ever. Korra, Asami, Mako and Bolin all worked together to help maintain the world order of what had been build. Tenzin continued to steer the Air Nation into doing good deeds for others and helping Korra in whatever way they could. Things seemed blissful until a new superpower appeared. A villain intent on utilising Varrick’s old spirit vine technology research to create more powerful bending enhancement weaponry began to stir. Korra and friends set to stop him, but he evaded captivity for years. Until one day they received a reliable tip of the location of this man. Setting out to stop him for good, an intense final confrontation took place. Korra and friends succeeded in stopping him, but the cost was their own lives – and the world was once again, without its Avatar.
In the absence of Korra, a vacuum of power was created. Without the Avatar to maintain balance the world began the shift. In response to the thinly spread air benders and the lack of the Avatar the newly elected president of the United Republic of Nations, President San, assembled an elite task force of benders and non-benders to deal with any threats to Republic City in the absence of the Avatar. But as time went on, the seeds of corruption were planted. As more threats rose to the city, the bigger the task force grew. Soon President San was using the United Forces as he saw fit; sending troops out to take land by force in order to “secure public safety” and “create future expansion for the spirits.” Although the people saw through his excuses, political leaders were hesitant to do anything too aggressive about the situation. It wasn’t until San made his first move into Fire Nation territory that the world began to take notice; emboldened by the success of his army and task force and his own political agenda San declared that the United Republic no longer needed the Avatar and that it was time for citizens to stand on their own two feet.
The White Lotus, fearful of what might happen to the Avatar began to sweep every inch of the Earth Nation in the hopes of finding the Avatar before San. Luckily, they were able to find the young Avatar and take them and their family to the safety of a secluded stronghold at the border between the Earth and Fire Nation.
The years marched on, but the situation only grew progressively worse. The Fire Nation has all but been conquered by President San, with only a few holdouts left. The Earth Nation has been thrown back into civil war due to individual leaders surrendering preemptively to the United Republic. The Water Tribes and Air Nation continue to remain independent, but many worry about how long will pass before San’s greed causes another strike. The Avatar has been kept away and trained in the same stronghold for their safety this entire time, similar to Korra, but with the base being so near to Fire Nation territory and the unpredictable nature of this foe it was agreed that the Avatar be taken elsewhere where a team of instructors could perfect them until they’re ready to face San and help restore balance to the world.
The instructors from around the world travel to the Earth Nation and meet the new Avatar. Following a demonstration of the Avatar’s bending abilities and an evening of rest, the group set out to head to a secluded island where the Avatar may complete their training. While on route to the island via airship the group is attacked by a resistance group believing them to be members of the United Forces. Although the newly formed Team Avatar is successful in protecting themselves from the attack, the airship is lost in the conflict and they find themselves stuck in a Fire Nation town of Shu Jing – which has recently been conquered by the United Forces and is currently being headed by one of the generals of the United Forces; Gaoyun. Moved by the plight of the people the Avatar decides the group will remain and help liberate the town of Gaoyun and sent a message to the world that the Avatar is ready; as well as complete some hands on training. But with Gaoyun being recognised as one of the most skilled generals within the United Forces, Team Avatar doesn’t have an easy fight on their hands.
In the absence of Korra, a vacuum of power was created. Without the Avatar to maintain balance the world began the shift. In response to the thinly spread air benders and the lack of the Avatar the newly elected president of the United Republic of Nations, President San, assembled an elite task force of benders and non-benders to deal with any threats to Republic City in the absence of the Avatar. But as time went on, the seeds of corruption were planted. As more threats rose to the city, the bigger the task force grew. Soon President San was using the United Forces as he saw fit; sending troops out to take land by force in order to “secure public safety” and “create future expansion for the spirits.” Although the people saw through his excuses, political leaders were hesitant to do anything too aggressive about the situation. It wasn’t until San made his first move into Fire Nation territory that the world began to take notice; emboldened by the success of his army and task force and his own political agenda San declared that the United Republic no longer needed the Avatar and that it was time for citizens to stand on their own two feet.
The White Lotus, fearful of what might happen to the Avatar began to sweep every inch of the Earth Nation in the hopes of finding the Avatar before San. Luckily, they were able to find the young Avatar and take them and their family to the safety of a secluded stronghold at the border between the Earth and Fire Nation.
The years marched on, but the situation only grew progressively worse. The Fire Nation has all but been conquered by President San, with only a few holdouts left. The Earth Nation has been thrown back into civil war due to individual leaders surrendering preemptively to the United Republic. The Water Tribes and Air Nation continue to remain independent, but many worry about how long will pass before San’s greed causes another strike. The Avatar has been kept away and trained in the same stronghold for their safety this entire time, similar to Korra, but with the base being so near to Fire Nation territory and the unpredictable nature of this foe it was agreed that the Avatar be taken elsewhere where a team of instructors could perfect them until they’re ready to face San and help restore balance to the world.
Book One: Revolution
The instructors from around the world travel to the Earth Nation and meet the new Avatar. Following a demonstration of the Avatar’s bending abilities and an evening of rest, the group set out to head to a secluded island where the Avatar may complete their training. While on route to the island via airship the group is attacked by a resistance group believing them to be members of the United Forces. Although the newly formed Team Avatar is successful in protecting themselves from the attack, the airship is lost in the conflict and they find themselves stuck in a Fire Nation town of Shu Jing – which has recently been conquered by the United Forces and is currently being headed by one of the generals of the United Forces; Gaoyun. Moved by the plight of the people the Avatar decides the group will remain and help liberate the town of Gaoyun and sent a message to the world that the Avatar is ready; as well as complete some hands on training. But with Gaoyun being recognised as one of the most skilled generals within the United Forces, Team Avatar doesn’t have an easy fight on their hands.
Phew, now all of that is out of the way hopefully, I have piqued a few people’s interests to get this roleplay off the ground. Now there is information about the roles and what I’m looking for and all of that, but before that let's get all the boring stuff out of the way first.
Rules and Commitment
1) There are some GM’s who take roleplaying really seriously and while I respect that (sometimes) I will be totally upfront with you and say I am not one of those GM’s. I do not expect or want you to sign your life away or write me a blood contract to join the roleplay. I’d like a nice small group of chill roleplayers who want to…well roleplay and make a story together. Korra definitely got dark and mature in some parts and this roleplay will be following in a similar way. There will be some mature themes and moments and impactful character choices and sacrifice but THIS DOES NOT MEAN EVERYTHING HAS TO BE EDGY AND DARK ALL THE TIME.
2) I’m not a fan of GM phrases like “MY WORD IS LAW” and things like that, but the general roleplaying standard applies. I will, 99% of the time, always listen to something if you want to make a case for it. Of course just because I listen doesn’t mean I’ll say yes. But if something is decided on then please be mature enough to respect the decision. Please be mature in general. Follow roleplayer guild rules, don’t be a dick, please don’t cyber in the thread – if you get to a sex scene then please fade to black and take it to PM’s (do people actually do that?) and nothing excessive. And of course, no god-modding, metagaming, etc. etc.
3) When it comes to activity all I want from you is an OOC post once every four days. I, personally, am pretty terrible when it comes to keeping up with OOC’s and so I respect that not everyone may feel the need to spam the OOC with conversation. But talk to your fellow roleplayers, establish ideas for plots and connections. Stir up conflict, do whatever it is you want. But don’t just sit blank and ignore everyone because it’s rude. I’m not asking for world sage discussion. Honestly, you can just post a meme in the OOC once every four days and I’ll be happy. Just so we all know we’re here and everyone gets the chance to talk to one another.
4) When it comes to the IC things are a little different. I’d like posts to be around 450 words or so in length. Also, proper BBCoding to make the post look pretty would be appreciated, but I won’t be screaming at you if it isn’t done. Just make sure it’s a good quality post with minimum typos and we’ll be fine. I’ll be running a weekly activity sweep to see if everyone has posted once if you have then yay! If not, then the first offence is a warning and the second one will result in me booting you. All I’m asking for you is 450 words once a week and if you can’t meet that then honestly you’re probably too busy to be roleplaying, but you’re certainly too busy for this one. Of course, I’d LIKE for you to post more than that. There will be plenty to do and I hope you’ll find it engaging and WANT to post as often as possible – if not then once a week I can live with. I’d rather have the roleplay run longer with quality than follow a current trend of a ton of posts quickly and then the death of the roleplay. THAT ALL BEING SAID please don’t be a heavy cinderblock to the roleplay; if everyone is posting and we find ourselves constantly waiting on you and you don’t get a post out until the end of the week consistently then you might find yourself being asked to step up or step out because it’s just inconsiderate.
5) Now, what happens if you can’t post or just want to drop out? Just tell me. Like I said I don’t take roleplaying that seriously, it’s a secondary hobby and it is supposed to be fun. If you wanna drop because you’re not enjoying the roleplay then feel free to drop. Similarly, if you can’t post then just let me know. You don’t even have to give me a reason. Just let me know. Of course, don’t abuse this trust but I’m not going to BBQ your first newborn if you can’t post for a week because of writers block or whatever.
6) There are six roles and since I’m going to be filling one of them that means that there are only five roles available to you guys. While I highly doubt I will be adding more anytime soon if you happen to arrive late to the party and we’re full, feel free to let me know and I’ll put you on a waitlist. If the roleplay happens to generate enough interest, that is. There is almost always someone who inevitable drops in the first few pages of the roleplay, the good thing about this roleplay is that no matter who the character is there is still purpose for them in the story and so the group has every reason to seek out a replacement. If you’re interest and a slot opens up I will be happy to give you a shot at joining!
7) There is going to be some information about characters and the roles down below and that basically consists of everything I’ve thought of. Which means if you have a question and it isn’t already answered then I probably don’t have one. Of course, you’re still free to ask me anyway but this is the Avatar world. I’m going to work off the assumption that we’re all familiar with it and this is where the magic of interactive world building comes in. We’re telling this story together and so you’re free to contribute ideas, locations, stories for books, villains, NPC’s whatever you want to add to the story. If I think something is out of place or is just plain ridiculous then, of course, we can work something out, but we’re in this together! If I wanted to do nothing but control what everyone does and how it all folds out then I may as well write a fanfic. So feel free to contribute whatever ideas are bubbling away in those brains of yours and have fun!
Characters
1) Original Characters only. No Canon characters. Of course, they all exist and you may even mention them in your own histories, perhaps they inspired or motivated your character or maybe the even met them! Provided it is reasonable that they would have crossed paths with them. (For example, if you’re a new airbender who has joined the new Air Nation then it’s pretty reasonable you would have crossed paths with Jinora/Tenzin/Ikki/Melo/Pema but I’d want a pretty convincing tale for why a firebender had tea in the swamp with Toph)
2) One character per person for the sake of fairness to everyone.
3) I will not be accepting any reservations for spots in the roleplay. The roles are not first come first serve, I will accept the character I feel brings the most to the team and the roleplay as a whole. IF more than one person happens to apply for a role then the character I think bests fit. Once I officially accept a character though the role is closed.
4) Please try to keep your characters as unique as possible. The Avatar universe is a fan of the “whole orphan due to an evil firebender” trope but I am not. I don’t want five edgy orphans who are all really sad and consumed by hatred and darkness. Similarly, I don’t want a bunch of Mary-Su’s and Gary-Stu’s. Characters will have positives and negatives and if your character happens to be a carbon copy of someone else’s or a canon character I will be rejecting it. Of course, this IS a group roleplay and that means that undeniably certain character aspects will overlap and some will clash and that is fine! After all these people are six strangers there will definitely be a bit of tension and people who are similar in some ways.
5) I don’t feel like anyone really ever talks about how much of a nightmare it can be to find a face claim for an Avatar roleplay. I’d like to be clear that I want high-quality art of your character – whether it’s from an anime or an OC or whatever but please just don’t give me anything poorly drawn that is hard to make out. I’d like it to look nice but if they don’t look exactly like a firebender or whatever it isn’t the end of the world. There is a physical description section of the sheet where you can talk about features that make your character more like a part of whatever nation they’re from. I’ll say upfront now that the group is getting a uniform in the opening part of the roleplay anyway so you don’t need to detail any clothes. Use your best judgement as for what would be appropriate. (If you apply with something like a screencap of Kirito or Naruto or that picture of Revy where she is smoking and holding a can, you know the one, then I will ask you to change.)
The Avatar
o Well, it is my roleplay AND BELIEVE IT OR NOT…I actually have zero interest in playing the Avatar. I’m leaving it opening to one of you lovely people. I’ll be playing the waterbending instructor myself.
o The Avatar should be somewhere between 18-21 and is a native Earthbender.
o In terms of starting power level somewhere between Korra and Aang? This Avatar is considered too inexperienced for any real danger at the moment. So I doubt they’ll have MASTERED any elements yet, but as for how many you can have? I’ll leave it up to you. The fewer elements they’ve focused on then obviously the stronger the elements they have will be. Learning subsections of bending is fine, but it will come later in the roleplay.
o They were taken in with their family by the White Lotus since the Avatar was a baby.
o The rest is entirely up to you.
Instructors
o The open instructor roles are Earth, Fire, Air and a Martial Arts/Weapons instructor. The bending instructors are self-explanatory and the martial arts/weaponry instructor is a non-bender who has been drafted in to teach the Avatar non-bending forms of self-defense and offence should they find themselves in a situation without their bending.
o The instructors should be 22-29 and can originate from all over the world.
o They are all affiliated with the Order of White Lotus and have performed a feat great enough for them to be recognised as a worthy mentor for the Avatar. The particular details are up to the individual but please be sensible and leave room for growth throughout the story!
o In terms of power level, our instructors should be a master of some form of their bending and can be an expert in the other aspect. For example, if you’re making a firebender then you may choose to have your character be a master of firebending and an expert at lightning manipulation, you may choose to have it be the other way around. You may opt not to have any speciality outside your main bending, the choice is yours. The non-bending instructor should be on the same level as the other instructors, but what combat form they use outside of bending is up to the individual.
o The instructors were given a months’ notice about becoming the Avatar’s mentor and did not get a say in whether or not they would like to go. How they feel about this is, of course, up to you.
Special Bending
Ah, the bit everyone loves. Bloodbending and combustionbending are instantly off the table. Spirit projection is fine provided it suits the character. As for Lavabending…eh, I’m iffy on it. I’ll say for now Lavabending is fine for an earthbender who has a firebender for a parent. However, if you make a Lavabender then they cannot also be a metal bender. Psychic bending I will judge on a case by case basis, but I’d probably need a fairly convincing argument. If you’re looking to create a special bending ability then feel free to type it up and send it my way – but no guarantees. If I think anyone is abusing their special bending then I’ll slap it with the nerf bat or just remove it entirely.
If I have somehow managed to avoid scaring you off and you're interested in joining then yay! Below is the character sheet and I look forward to hopefully hearing from some of you. Feel free to color it any which way you like or leave it blank if that is what your heart desires.
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