Polybius

These Dark Stars: A Feudal Space Roleplay - M+18 -

These Dark Stars

A Feudal Space Roleplay

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_{Alliance | Betrayal | Treaty | Sabotage}

It is the 12th Millennium since galactic pacification, the era of the Darkstar by the Imperial Calendar...

You are a feudal Lord in service to the Emperor Reva Xem III. Long has the sword of the Imperial Arm hovered over your neck, long have you scraped at his feet for Imperial favor-more planets to add to your dominion, more weapons and ships. The era of the Darkstar is upon us, and certain Seers & Mystics have prophesied that the end of the Empire is at hand...Lords have risen to oppose the might of the Imperial Forces. Many more have condemned these flagrant and foolhardy traitors, either reaffirming their allegiance to House Xem or surreptitiously awaiting a more proper time to strike...

_{The Divine Emperor Reva Xem III}

The halls of the Imperial Palace glistened with the blood of those men still loyal to his brother. Prince Reva Xem stepped cautiously over the bodies, limbs blackened by pulse-beams and severed by vibro-blades. He paused, drew his pistol and leveled it at the head of a still breathing man.

"Oh, it's you," said Xem. His brother lay prone on the marble floor. A perfectly circular hole had been opened in the chest of his flak jacket, and his crown lay a few feet from the dying man's body.

"Gods, I thought you would have fled dear brother. Really, I would have exiled you-Pity." Shaking his head, Xem fired his pistol and became Emperor of the Galaxy.

Meta // Game Notes

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Welcome to These Dark Stars. This is an open-galaxy free form sort of roleplay that will always be open to new players to create new lore, characters and canon. I am not seeking the role of 'GM' specifically as I want this to be more in the spirit of collaborative fiction writing. I only want to provide some background and setting information for players to use as they wish.

Having said that, I will be playing the role of Emperor Reva Xem III at the start of the game. If you are interested in taking over the role at some point, send me a PM.

I'm also asking quite a bit more of participants in this roleplay in that you can control an entire feudal kingdom. Your responsible for creating plot threads and keeping up with other players stories as well. If you want to drop in for just a few posts, that's fine too, but anything you create will be available to other players to use as they wish-short of killing off characters or other major plot manipulations. Here are some basic guidelines for keeping things nice and orderly:

Roleplaying

• Give other players an [@mention] in your post when you wish to interact with them. Anything from sending diplomats to armed battlefleets should include a mention. That way players know when action is required to move the story forward.
• You may not kill off characters without their owners' permission. Large scale battles should be resolved in the OOC first.
• New characters, races, technology etc. must be submitted in the main OOC thread first.
• Strict guidelines for writing character sheets are in effect. If you have ideas for lengthy character backgrounds, you should write it into your IC posts and update your sheets as we go.
• This list subject to update frequently so check back every once in a while.

These Dark Stars: A Feudal Space Roleplay

I'll get a proper thread together, see where this goes!

The tales of Calradia

@Polybius

Alright! But I'll have to warn you though. This isn't really what I would call fantasy. It's a realistic medieval setting (with some unrealistic things) in a made up world.

@Hazy

Thanks I'll just lurk for a bit then.

The tales of Calradia

@HazyI don't know what Mount & Blade is, but I'm itching to get into a fantasy rp.

'Misthophoroi' - Sci-Fi Mercenary RP

Love the idea @Jbcool. Considering providing the role of chaplain/medic, sort of the experienced combatant character with moral ambiguity and conflicting faith. I guess I'll wait to see what other people come up with to see if that sort of character would suit the RP.

The Official Unofficial RPGuild Star Trek RPG

I'm still interested. In your OOC you should have a basic plot outline, maybe describe the ship, mission, any relevant NPCs (like if your playing the captain) as well as any timeline/era information that might be helpful in developing characters.

To Teluval, Farewell

@Gunther I understand completely. During the move I found four boxes of notebooks going back to middle school. The urge, and need to write is something I'm well familiar with my friend. I wish you the best of luck in your writing!

Children & Organs -- Miscellaneous Workshop

Idea B: The 'Organs'

• Another combat-oriented RP with elements of magic, though the main draw revolves around the ability to either summon entities or activate mystic spells by temporarily sacrificing a bodily organ. The longevity of the summon/activation, as well as its ferocity, is all dependent on the necessity of the organ. If a character sacrifices his heart, for example, the effect would likely be powerful, albeit short-lived. And, of course, the character would get his heart back in the end; something that would adequately supplant a heart, at the least.
• I imagine a fantasy setting taking after either feudal Japan or Hindu mythology though I can't necessarily explain why; I suppose the aesthetics of either and possibly recurring themes would coincide. That, or it could all take place in Hell. Constructing a world inspired by it has always fascinated me.
• Death or some universal idea incorporating it would definitely be a recurring theme and motif.

@Juicy

Hi Juicy. I like this idea and would love to see it advanced to some degree. You could even throw in pre-spanish meso-america as a cultural influence to draw from, soaring ziggurats where powerful shamans literally sacrifice limbs to achieve some sort of magical effect. Maybe ancient babylonian or Sumerian or a mash-up of all of them would be a good place to start. So many fantasy worlds rely on the Medieval European staples that have come to dominate fantasy in film and books, it would be really something to create something unique. I wish you the best of luck in finding some writing partners, I'll be around as well.

These Dark Stars: A Feudal Space Roleplay

Ah man. I love this a lot. I'm watching, but cautious.

What sort of posting pace do you expect?

@Gisk

I should note that I will be doing a fair bit of worldbuilding and providing a handful of NPCs to interact with, but beyond that I wish this roleplay to have the spirit of cooperative writing rather than strictly GM & Player.

@Polybius

As often as you can? I don't know-I'm not specifically looking for 'players', just some like-minded dudes that want to write stories in the same universe. There is no main linear plot, just the over-arching theme of an Empire in decline due to decadence. Hope this answers your question...

@Elgappa@rush99999

Here's a sample race to further set the tone of the setting.

Phageon

Phageons
_{(Sanguiaphagia Dominus)}

"Who would have thought the mere by-product of an archaic bio-engineering protocol would evolve into their own species?"

A race of humanoids that act as diplomats, spies, ambassadors, assassins and negotiators at every level of the bureaucratic hierarchy. They possess immensely powerful psychic abilities, and a preternatural insight bordering on precognition, skills that have made them indispensable to the empire despite their monstrous appearance and barbaric customs. They are greatly mistrusted, feared and hated by the common citizen of the Empire.

They are also effectively immortal.

In the earliest eras of the Empires founding, the scientist-sorcerers of the day still fiddled with the preposterous notions of immortality, and after countless centuries of tinkering and meddling with the nature of nature itself, they created the phageons. Hailed as a scientific leap forward in the realm of empathic research, yet discarded for their biological limitations, the phageon project was halted almost immediately after it began (probably due to a reshuffling of resources to fight one of the countless wars of the early eras of Empire). However, an isolated colony of the species survived the immolation of the purge-squads and so began a self-imposed path of evolution that continues to this day.

Whatever door to immortality was unlocked within the phageons biology also holds the species downfall. Without the continuous consumption of blood, a phageons biological functions begin to deteriorate rapidly. Some phageon approach this problem clinically, through complicated blood transfusion operations while others prefer a more...primal approach to their disposition. Ancient folklore has turned the layman and ignoramus against them, the common folk insisting they are demons or monsters. To them, the Phageon are simply 'darklings', (a colloquial term meaning demon or monster), a creature to be mistrusted, hunted, or even killed.

These Dark Stars: A Feudal Space Roleplay

These Dark Stars

A Feudal Space Roleplay

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In this roleplay you will take control of a feudal lord either in allegiance to the Emperor, or in open rebellion against him. The galaxy is a dark and foreboding place, where science and technology mingle with sorcery and witchcraft. It's a bit over the top grim-dark, almost to the point of parody. I think it will be a lot of fun. Here is a sampling of the type of stories I wish to tell in this universe. I should note that I will be doing a fair bit of worldbuilding and providing a handful of NPCs to interact with, but beyond that I wish this roleplay to have the spirit of cooperative writing rather than strictly GM & Player. Thank you for reading.

Eclipse

The Lord of the molten planet walked the web work of titan-metal bridges spanning the volcanic ravines of his domain. A black cloak flapped at his back in the thermal winds, and he carried a long, thin, cruel blade on his hip. Orange light cast strange shadows along the walkway, and gleamed across the runes engraved on the blade.

"Yori mu kravni il Xor."

"I am the sword of the Emperor," thought the Lord. "and a sword must seek a foe lest it rot in it's sheathe...

Close at hand strolled his steward, a native of the fiery planet. It waddled beside his master, the trait of some cruel disfigurement inflicted upon him by the last Lord of the Planet, which he carefully concealed beneath dour robes. From his pointed ears hung a breathing apparatus that covered his churlish face. A single oculus of glowing red peared out beneath its' dark cowl.

The Lord wore a breathing apparatus as well, this one adorned with gold and platinum and carved in the likeness of a lampreys' jaws. Spiny teeth embossed on the mouthpiece gave the man a demonic appearance. "Come along Greely," said the Lord through his mask. The syllables he spoke were digitized, and rolled out of speakers concealed beneath the decorative lampreys' teeth in a rattling tone.

Nearby, the rocky ground cracked and a fissure of magma erupted a hundred feet into the air. To touch it was death. The Lord paused and extended his hand towards the fiery column. Greely paused just as he was about to collide with his master, and pulled from his robes a rectangular data pad with a slick glossy green glow. His fingers tapped expertly across the runes displayed.

"Forgive me, m'Lord. The eclipse is almost upon us. It may be wise to make a public appearance before the event. You know how superstitious the peasants can be," rasped the beast.

A hundred rivers of lava cut ravines across the heavily shadowed valley and gathered in immense lakes that extended for hundreds of miles. The Lords factories straddled these lakes and stole their heat to power his forges. The bulbous structures produced titan-metal through a carefully guarded process and were powered by cheap local labor.

"Much cheaper than artificials," thought the Lord.

As Darkstar to his Holiness, Emperor Reva Xem III, it was his duty to produce, profit and to pay taxes. Heavy taxes. For this, the Lord suffered the superstitions of his peasant workers. As long as he gave them leeway to perform whatever primitive rituals they required for peace of mind, the better they would perform in his factories.

"An eclipse you say Greely?" said the Lord through his breathing apparatus. He pulled the face mask free and breathed deeply the searing hot air of his dominion. White-hot tendrils of pain shrieked down his lungs. He coughed, and put the mask back on as tears gathered at his eyes.

"...four-hundred and seventy five years since the last triple eclipse, m'lord. I could record a simple broadcast if you wish to address your subjects. It may help to assuage any superstitions your subjects may hold about the eclipse. Prophets of doom and all that..." Greely bowed his head deeply as he spoke, not wishing to offend his prickly master.

The Lord raised a black gloved hand and the servant fell silent. Iron studs adorned the knuckles, and the servant knew at least two vibro-blades were concealed within-one for each hand. Maybe even an atomic-dart...

"Let them have their superstitions, Greely. I rather enjoy it. I wonder if they'll work up such a fervor as to initiate a panic-induced pogrom." said the Lord chuckling. His laughter chirped digitally through his breathing harness.

Greely cringed. "I certainly hope not, m'Lord. Production of titan-metal was down 35% last quarter and our workforce is still recovering from the last riots."

Greely bowed his head so low he nearly scraped the metallic gangway. Softly he spoke, "An envoy from the Emperor is due to arrive at the morning meal m'Lord. Our spies tell us the delegation has been sent to inquire about the delayed shipments of titan-metal..."

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