mickilennial

Steal Away The Light

_{Players: 4
Pace: Flexible, so be committed long term.
Writing Level: Casual+}

Can hunters even defeat the void?

Or is it a twisted fairytale that we’ve constructed. Illuminous hope can do a lot of things and it is said that the strongest of humanity aren’t even really human anymore. This is all gossip, of course. Anything to combat the void, those wretched creatures from beyond the dimensional veil.

Steal Away The Light

About Steal Away The Light

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In conjunction with ideas presented by a friend of mine, I’ve been thinking on this one since the build-up to the Halloween Season.

Inspired by Code Vein, Bloodborne, Tales of Berseria, and a variety of other anime-related content this RP is an amalgamation of ideas of dark fantasy, adventure, and action-horror. Characters within the setting are survivors in an apocalyptic era on the planet Asyl.

Creatures known as the void have taken hold of much of the planet and created turmoil of which that has never been seen. The sun is eternally eclipsed and the cost of human lives has been collossal. These creatures are magical in nature and humans have tried their best to combat them. There are several kingdoms left on the world in their wake, though to some they seem to be mostly barely standing holdouts from a horde of creatures from origins unknown. Humans have come to utilize special magic that has a huge cost on the bearer in order to create warriors known as hunters to drive the creatures back and restore the light on the planet and make the world whole again.

Will your hunter succeed?

Surviving the Void

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Before sorcerers from the Kethiline Order harnessed secret magic to turn humans into living weapons, humanity turned to the tools they knew to combat the Void. Sorcery and Steel.

Steel was useless alone as the Void took on many shapes and no matter how clean the strike, the creatures would always regenerate and heal, while only corpses piled up against their onslaught from humanity’s side of the struggle. In time, sorcerers who worshipped the flame—Pyromancers—would become key into combating the Void. It was a reality that was learned through heavy sacrifice, including one of the great kingdoms known to the world falling into the abyss. The eternal, agonizing eclipse that blocked out the sun gave the creatures full rein to molest the kingdoms of Asyl. It was simple math. The creatures fed off the darkness and themselves were completely absent of heat, so it became clear that only the Pyromancer’s flame could aid humanity’s plight.

Still, solitary pyromancers were rarely strong enough to combat the void and with the void encroaching on civilization like it had on their sister kingdom of Kelathaneia, the nobility and aristocrats hiding in the cities of olde made a decision. Giant obelisks known as hearthfires were constructed, to be fed by pyromancers to ward off the void from the great walls. Many feared this would be a war of attrition with favor to the monsters that wished to devour them.

With pyromancers being needed to tend to hearthfires solutions became dire. The four remaining great kingdoms sought to find alternatives. There weren’t enough pyromancers, especially ones who were strong enough to burn a voidling into nothing, to do both jobs. Some of the ideas other sorcerers, clerics, and scholars came up with were damning. Those who poured into forbidden magicks or plundered the vaults made to contain ancient cursed weapons were playing a dangerous game, but they needed answers to the void fast. Even with the hearthfires, they only had so much food they could produce and keep safe. It wasn’t enough. It was never enough. However, as years turned into decades an answer came to light after a long time of research. The sorcerer-monks of Kethiline had finally had a breakthrough with the first successful infusion of a pyromancer’s ember with the soul of a human being. It was a process that had been sworn to silence for years. A process to destroy the void while the pyromancers stood by to tend to the hearths. It was a necessary one, though the loss of human life, albeit mundane humans, was a saddening price. It was here they finally had a working theory on how to counteract the void’s ability to corrupt any living being it devoured. The price was transcending humans who were strong enough into living weapons, inhuman beings that could harness the power of a pyromancer’s ember to protect themselves as well as turn voidlings into ash.

It has been five years since Rimaeria Saldosius became what we now known as hunters of the void. There were two hundred others who have followed her since, and over two thousand more who were reduced to ash for trying to do so. The War against the Void will be won in due time. That is the hope.

Hunters of the Void

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Hunters are necrotic human weapons that can harness power from the forbidden magicks that have not only infused their soul with a pyromancer’s ember but also sacrificed their humanity. They cannot age and in theory should not be able to die. The ember within them is as restorative as it is destructive, it will reform the hunter’s body if critical, fatal damage is assessed and burn out normal wounds passively. However, if an ember goes through this process too many times in relative succession it will burn out the hunter’s soul so it cannot be corrupted by the void.

A hunter lives in constant pain and ruin, the ember from within burning their insides in an eternal agony, to become one is as much of a curse as it is a boon.

Hunter Types

Hunters are classified by three rudimentary vocations depending on how they combat the void.

Wardens deal damage with light weapons, relying on speed and precision. They are the most well known of hunters given they are the easiest to throw against the void.

Sentinels protect people, other hunters, and objectives. They are the “heavies”, the chevaliers you call in when the scariest and biggest void rear their heads. They will either have a great-weapon or a heavy shield on hand.

Casters are spellcasters who control the battlefield through support or offensive versatility, they often wield firearms like a clockwork rifle or sorcerer’s equipment like staves and wands. They are also the least common of all hunters.

Gifts

Otherwise known as a Hunter’s Boon, Gifts are the extranormal abilities that an ember-imbued soul has brought to a hunter. While universal gifts like additional speed and strength are mundane for hunters, it is how the transformation has reacted to their body and magicks is the most interesting. Every hunter is different and Lethiline sorcerers theorize it is based as much on personality as it is latent affinities.

Forbidden Weapons

Forbidden Weapons are ancient, previously secured weapons from rogue sorcerers, abominations, and other such things. Some contain the souls of ancient heroes, confined to a weapon to feed off the souls energy to create devastating and powerful weapons, others are more complicated. Some kingdoms have unearthed vaults to pair such weapons with a hunter in their fight against the void.

It’s a dangerous path.

The Kingdoms of Asyl

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Many kingdoms have dotted the landscape and history of Asyl for centuries, however only a handful have survived. Some of them still bear the scars of the war that many believe drew the void to Asyl in the first place.

Prentis

“We must remain, and we must do so without shirking our morals to our people.”

Prentis was the largest and most prosperous kingdom on Asyl for at least three centuries. The Renaissance of culture came when Prentis was on the downswing and the rise of Scila, Midnos, and their aged old rival Ldrant took center stage. The Grand Library of Prentis is still the central wonder of the world. Through its inventiveness, diplomacy, and artfulness it still remained so before the Great War.

Plural: Prentisian(s)

Scila

“Survive by any means necessary, that is our creed.”

Scila was once the right arm of Ldrant, until it broke free. A Kingdom built on creation, some could say it has been heading into the direction of a new Prentis for some time now. Scila transcended the hand cannon and has had the finest weapons crafted for two centuries now. They are shrewd, distrusting; having been slaves to Ldrant and Midnos after them. It is a bitter irony they only earned their independence through aligning themselves with Prentis in the Great War, and here and now in the apocalypse are finally free. The void is a double-edged sword for the Scilari people, though they do believe they should be stopped, they truly fear Ldrant and Midnos far more than them.

Plural: Scilari

Midnos

“Only the flame can protect us from eternal damnation.”

Midnos is the most prominent and powerful of the great kingdoms since Prentis began to loose relevance. A kingdom ruled by pyromancers with a religion designed by pyromancers, Midnos has always seen themselves above the other great kingdoms. It was through their zealous actions that the war supposedly started, though few remember that since it is the pyromancers that keep the void from infecting the cities they inhabit. The Emberdawn Keep stands at the top of the city, overlooking the denizens on from on high. Some claim the pyromancer-queen is unreasonable, vindictive, and cruel. Others say she is rational, spiritual creature that only does what needs to be done to protect Midnosians.

Plural: Midnosian(s)

Ldrant

“We are defined by our virtues of strength and resilience, and those with those virtues always win.”

Ldrant has been a military powerhouse since one put a club in an Ldranti’s paw. They don’t play nice and they get what they want. Not even the height of Prentis could destroy them, so what difference is the void apocalypse? It’s just another opportunity to show that Ldranti are the strongest and hardiest. Pyromancers from Ldrant are considered heretics to the ones in Midnos, due to their refusal to follow any sort of rules that they have not made themselves.

Plural: Ldranti

Bestiary

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Void Goblins

Void Men

Void Ogres

Void Roc

Void Spiderlings

Application

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Steal Away the Light is a invite only RP.

Applicants will be provided entry to a discussion channel on discord and given access to the character sheet.

Pariah Online: A Voyage into the Intangible Aether

Location: The Laughing Worg Tavern -- The City-State of Thorinn, Aetheria

---

“Seems like we got a lot of ideas.” Rael said, not deciding to give any comforting words to the girl she had run into the sewers.

As far as she was concerned it was pointless. She was bad with those kind of things, save for once in a blue moon like back in the dungeon with Kalie. Not to mention, Graves had already seemed to give her the boost she needed all by his lonesome. Of course he did. A small tinge raised up into the Japanese girl’s brain before waving it off, focusing on the task at hand.

“Mr. Moneybags over here has us covered, at least.” She scoffed at Kazuki, but not in a cold way. It was an ironic remark, though, given who Rael was back in Japan. “Anyway, Benkei’s right. Can’t cower in our boots thinking Aaginim Part 2 is going to happen. World’s not going to adjust to us not being leeches if we keep sitting around. Don’t forget about world quests either. Not always a dungeon that needs doing.”

Snowed "Inn" - A Wintery SoL RP [Full]

Right; now that morning errands are now out of the way, I am formally closing applications as of this time. I'll be looking over sheets tonight to get back with who I'll be accepting for this RP, with an official start date in a few days give or take.

I do have one question, however: Would people prefer the RP to start before the snow storm, with people settling in for the night, or waking up on the day after the blizzard hit?

@Ortfinne

I can make a cold open with any of the scenarios, but I think the first two are the most ideal with the third being kinda eh.

Pariah Online: A Voyage into the Intangible Aether

Location: The Laughing Worg Tavern, The City-State of Thorinn, Aetheria

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“Don’t worry about it. A little yelling doesn't bother me much.” The middle-aged bartender laughed, as he set down a plate of flatcakes in front of Alja.

“Y'know, I used to be an adventurer. Might not be from another world, but I did the jobs. I know the weight, what it means to have a close call with death and everything feeling different. Still remember when Arie dragged me out of the dungeon with what was left of our group.” The denizen smirked wide as he ran his rightmost hand through the wayfarer's hair, like a father scuffing a child's mane to cut the tension. It was patronizing. Probably. Rael would've certainly punched him in the throat, but Alja was not Rael.

His eyes went over to the matron of the tavern, whom had kept the whole thing from falling apart at times. It felt like yesterday when the two of them were just trying to solve the pandemic of dungeons and monsters across the world. It must’ve been two years before the wayfarers showed up when they opened up the Worg. The wayfarers, in part, had helped the success of the tavern. Turned it into a hub in Thorinn. He was grateful for that. Over the last few weeks he had heard things that he couldn’t quite make sense of, but if there was one thing he knew it was adventuring and the stress that came with it.

“You lot, seems like you lost that feeling of invincibility. I know it sounds dumb, but you just gotta keep going.” His eyes moved from wayfarer group to wayfarer group within his sight range. “Adventurers are an essential commodity, like air or water. Without it, you just can’t.”

[ dead prairie ]

Yeah, outside of doing a post at the Hardware Store I'm at loss, too. I'll figure it out.

Pariah Online: A Voyage into the Intangible Aether

Location: The Laughing Worg Tavern, The City-State of Thorinn, Aetheria

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“Yeah, a rebellion would definitely make our lives a lot safer.” Siegfried rolled his eyes, but not long before Graves went off to talk to another person. One of the survivors of the rat dungeon no doubt.

The ginger-haired male looked toward the four ‘masterminds’ of the group in that of Kazuki, Benkei, Sif, and Seele. Someone had to have the brains for these kind of questions since he was definitely not going to be one of them. Profession values changing, weirdo disappearances, dungeons underneath cities, meetings with the Queen—it was all a bunch of shit he didn’t sign up for. When the game came out he intended to use it to spend time with his little sister and maybe talk to some cute girls. Since the glitch everything was a little too real. Taxes? What was next, some political voting bloc asking him to vote for the next Queen?

Another sigh left him as he rubbed the sand from his eyes, “If I get the right metals and crap I can mend and craft whatever armor and weapons we need.” He looked toward the morning crowd in the tavern, “To me, it seems like we have a lot of work to do. How’d you wanna handle it? You guys are the smart ones.”

Pariah Online: A Voyage into the Intangible Aether

Location: The Laughing Worg Tavern, The City-State of Thorinn, Aetheria

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“You can’t go out questing with gear that’s out of service.” The brown-haired girl commented.

Her brother had adapted well enough to the process of blacksmithing without toolkit pop-up menus, so she figured they had gear maintenance in the bag between him, Kazuki, and anyone else who took an interest in forging and crafting. Sif herself knew how basic potions could be crafted but not much else. It was amazing that she was almost inept at such a baseline function of the game.

“And that’s probably going to be our main way of getting money. Our profession skills can only do so much going forward, like, do we expect the same kind of revenue from denizens now that they basically think for themselves? And worst of all, think lowly of us? And that's without this whole missing wayfarer stuff that Seele mentioned...”

Sif mused as she wrote something down on the parchment paper in front of her. Another note to take.

Siegfried didn’t really want to adventure, and she knew that he knew that it was the best way to get back on the good graces of the common everyday denizens around them. The investigation, if it netted positive conclusions might help their personal anxiety but she didn’t see it helping their general reputation and to her, that was number one in terms of things that needed to be solved immediately.

Enter: Into an Isekai World

To clarify, I was only done with pbp in the sense of full-on tabletops in a forum setting, like 5e. I was vibing with this, but I'm cool with us taking a break if you aren't up for it anymore.

@Cu Chulainn

Yeah, think its for the best. Thanks for the clarification, though!

Enter: Into an Isekai World

Wild that life just keeps shitting on you wew.

My original vibes for my character’s basically gone now, but I can still post so why not. Dunno where most others are though.

Time to resub ey.

@ERode

Cu is mostly done with play-by-post (only really up for another RP we are in), so it does present an issue there. I think it might be best to shelf this one for some time in that case. Honestly, I want to work on other projects myself so it tracks. Love this setting but it is very situational in when and how it can work.