Rhona W

SPEARHEAD - A military, special forces RP in the almost modern-day

SPEARHEAD is an idea for an RP I have that is inspired by fiction such as Ghost Recon: Wildlands, Tears of the Sun, Blackhawk Down, Rainbow Six and other such fiction and stories about small units of highly skilled military and paramilitary personnel undertaking high-risk, high-impact operations behind enemy lines to disrupt the operations of hostile organizations.

The RP will have some larger-than-life elements and themes, much like the fiction that inspires it, rather than being religiously adherent to reality - after all, the purpose of an RP is escalism, not slavish simulation of reality. However, it will specifically have some grounding and basis in realistic concepts such as tactics, weapons, and the like.
There will be no magic, super-powers, aliens, mechs, etc etc. There may be some hints or minor inclusion of some minor fantastical elements in the background or as minor flavouring or spice - but do not count on them to be front-and-center or a huge focus. More abstract mysteries or things that happen that your characters will be as confused or terrified by as anyone else.

Player characters will be members of the titular SPEARHEAD team, a multinational special operations team ala Rainbow Six, using military tactics, force, and weapons in a (fictional) country to disrupt the corrupt, religious extremist regime that has taken control.
Characters would be from military, law enforcement or other backgrounds where they have experience of direct action, as well as military weapons and tactics, from which they have been headhunted and recruited to be part of the Spearhead team.

As well as heapings of action, there will also be plenty of room for character and story development as part of the RP so that it has significant substance, as well as flashy style.

I am looking for a small group, for a relatively casually-paced game. No more than six players at maximum who can reliably post on about a fortnightly schedule.
While you don't need to have an extensive knowledge of military weapons, tech, and tactics, some knowledge and understanding of such things would be incredibly helpful and useful, and probably one of the things that would attract to this RP in the first place.

Shattered Steel - An Ace Combat/Project Wingman/etc inspired aircraft-based RP

Name: Jan Van Straaten

Callsign/Nickname: Strat

Age: 30

Gender: Male

Appearance:

Jan

Jan is not overly tall; standing at around 5'5". He keeps his sun-bleached, sandy-blonde hair short for convenience. He is usually clean-shaven, though his stubble doesn't take long to show.
He has a relatively powerful, broad-shouldered frame and build, and his musculature reflects his regular exercise routine. He has medium blue eyes.

Nationality: South African

Personality:
Jan is quite excitable, eager, and vibrant in his personality. He speaks quickly, especially when warming to a subject and excited about it. His body language and movements will also become animated and lively when he gets excited and eager.
He is something of a quick-witted, fast-talking charmer and a bit of a confidence man, often using his confidence and charisma - such as it is - to bluff through problems, and defuse situations with wit, humour, and bravado. He is quietly confident in his own abilities and appearance - as in, he knows he is good looking - but not given to bragging or boasting.
However, this outward facade of bravado and cocksure confidence hides a more bitter, hollow core of a man who is unsure of his place in the world, and his direction in life. While he claims with casual, airy confidence to fly as a merc for money and prestige, the truth is he is not sure where he fits in, and is searching for belonging and a purpose and hopes that by flying as part of Shattered Steel he can do something that might have a lasting, positive impact on the world.

History:
Jan was born in 1984 and grew up in the waning years of Apartheid in South Africa. While his memories of his youngest years are cloudy, he has vibrant memories of dangerous and turbulent times during his teenage years. The transitional period was marked with violence across the nation - and he was on the frontlines of it.
Jan's father was extremely strict, formal, and conservative in his views. Deeply rooted in the traditional White Supremacist views of Apartheid and a commanding officer in the South African Police, he ran a very strict household and was a domineering personality. As such, he was very reserved with his emotions, and his affection to his sons and his wife.
Jan was very different, following more after his mother's side of the family. He related more to her, and her nurturing affection lead to him being more questioning and open than his father. He increasingly found himself at odds with his father's views and ideals, something he kept secret at first, but found harder and harder to hide behind - especially as the country around them changed and his father's increasing bitterness at the change in ways grew, and Jan grew into more of his own man.
Jan's father and he eventually came to a massive disagreement after Jan found himself in a romantic relationship with a black girl. His father was so outraged he beat Jan, and only his mother putting herself in the way stopped him from going further - and he threatened to beat her, as well. Jan left home immediately, though kept in touch with his mother after the fact through letters.

Jan was unsure of what to do with himself following this. His relationship fell apart after his lover found out who his father was, something that left him even more bitter at his father's influence over his life, even without him being present.
Hoping for stability and order in his life, he enlisted with the South African Defence Force, which was in the middle of reorganization into a new form following the end of Apartheid.
Surprising himself, he showed aptitude for the military life and found the routine and sense of duty helpful to his mental and emotional state, and the learning of new skills something he threw himself into.
The world of aviation lured him in, and he quickly found himself in the air wing of the forces. Showing great aptitude, situational awareness and possessed of a sharp mind, he was nudged toward a career as a pilot, and a fast-jet pilot at that, something he found he enjoyed the challenge and status of.
After two years of flight training, he graduated in 2004... just in time for the world to implode after the Heavenfall.
With so many coastal cities and settlements, South Africa was hit hard, and the SADF was heavily involved in disaster relief efforts. Violence further erupted along borders and internally alike. The government managed to hold onto the reins and keep things together, albeit with much stress and difficulty.
With so many operations, including insurgencies and border wars, Jan very quickly found himself an experienced pilot with numerous combat sorties under his belt. Sometime during this period, he was informed his father had died of a heart attack by his brother.
He attended the funeral, seeing it as something of a reconciling moment to put things to rest, though he was one of very few people there.
After this, Scott decided to cash out of the SADF, as budget cuts forced changes. Still looking to fly, and still unsure of where his life was headed. He briefly enlisted with a mercenary unit in the African continent, invited to by one of his former colleagues. However, after finding out that they were much more of the 'old guard' than he was, quickly decided to leave their employ - especially after more or less openly rebelling against them to sabotage an contract issued by a megacorporate employer that was a thin excuse for displacing people from their homes and land to exploit them for resources.
Sometime after this, he heard about Shattered Steel and approached them to join. He served in another squadron briefly, before being transferred to Scott's command as part of Cobalt Haze.

Personal Gear:

• H&K USP Compact .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol; underbarrel flashlight.
• Vektor R6 Compact Rifle with ACOG sight
• Combat/Survival knife

Personal Aircraft:
IAI Kfir NG (New Generation)

Modified as follows:

• Elta AESA Radar
• Helmet-mounted sight
• Thrust-vectored engine
• HOTAS controls and full Glass cockpit
• Compatibility with precision-guided air-to-ground weapons
• Compatibility with BVR Air-to-air missiles
• Compatibility with modern targeting and reconnaissance pods

Jan's Kfir is painted in the distinctive blue-grey camouflage scheme as used on US aggressor aircraft.

Shattered Steel - An Ace Combat/Project Wingman/etc inspired aircraft-based RP

"Heartbreak, question: How long have the Italians known about this? It seems hard to believe that'd they just miss some airports and harbors being taken over, unless there was literally no contact between them and the mainland."

@Smike

Scott nodded to acknowledge Fuka's question, before he answered.
"Excellent question, and one I had myself when I saw the mention of the islands being all-but taken over in the briefing materials. The Italian government hasn't missed them being taken over, as such. Our operations here on Malta and the reconnaissance information we'll provide, along with any follow-up actions will act as the first strike, with a more permanent N/UN force to follow our initial deployment to hold the territory and act as a more permanent solution to our initial strikes to 'break the back' of the hostiles, as it were. Shattered Steel doesn't have the resources or manpower to hold anywhere long term. We deliver the initial strikes and provide a first, immediate response while the larger force is organised and deployed with a more long-term solution".

Scott gave a tight, small smile, hoping that answered her question, but was distracted as another message came through on his personal device, and shook his head with a frustrated grumble.
"More bad news, I'm afraid. Clown; looks like your Typhoon is unserviceable, and will have to be returned to intensive-level maintenance, more than can be carried out here. The next heavy transport that comes in, you and your plane will be on it, and heading back to the Island. On the upside, replacements for our missing pilots - Clown included - will be arriving, but not in time for this Op. So, we're going to have to do our best with who and what we have"

Dark Space - A Mecha-Focused Space Opera RP (RP Suspended)

Going to put the RP in a hiatus for now, as it seems to have died for the meantime as activity has dropped off utterly.
It's killed my interest and inspiration for the moment, so I'm going to put it on the shelf and come back to it, and probably retool it a bit - especially since the original concept has gone wildly off-course from what I originally had in mind anyway as well, and I kind of want to get back to that original concept more as well.

Falling Skies (Mecha, Military, Space Opera)

I remember this RP from before. Good to see another Real-Robot style mecha RP on the forums, and one with an original setting at that.
I don't have the spoons to join right now, and I see you've also closed off to applications - but I'll be eagerly watching and hoping it goes well.

Dark Space - A Mecha-Focused Space Opera RP (RP Suspended)

Lorei Corben
CSNS Spirit of Adventure

Lorei drew to a stop as she reached the rest of the group of assembled pilots. As her optics glided across the assembled faces and her other senses took them in, recognition dawned; the lanky, feathered form of a male Zarrah-Kul. This one was etched well into her older memories, and she couldn't help but smile, the graphics of her eyes turning to a happy crescent.
"Anka," she called out as the captain moved away. "It's been a long while; I'm glad to see you here". Her attention shifted across faces and she had another surge of recognition as her eyes fell upon the pretty Lepizari currently engaged in conversation with a female human who seemed almost to be hiding her appearance. She recognised the Lepizari immediately - and well she should; the rabbit-like woman had got 'hands-on' with the synth's body in ways that very few people other than lovers or surgeon/mechanics had. Mii had tended desperate repairs to Lorei's body and likely saved her life in the process. It had been the basis of a friendship that had been somewhat at a distance, but friendly nonetheless. She smiled and waved to Mii once the Lepizari's gaze moved her way, but not moving to interrupt her conversation.
She gazed around further, hefting her bag on her back and adjusting the pack strapped around the base of her tail, until-

Her gaze landed on the only Mon'nnari that was there. That the horned, cloven-hoofed woman was there at all was enough of an unusual thing; there were barely a handful of the species at large within Confederation space, and even less of them in the military. But this woman.
Her appearance was exotically enchanting; beautifully scarlet eyes and dark hair. Dusky skin contrasted with gleaming jewelry and a fit, firm figure that was still enthrallingly feminine. Had Lorei had breath, it would have taken it away; instead it sent a surge through her bodies' systems.
...And a stream of frantic questions and thoughts as she looked at that beautiful face. Recognition, but no understanding of why, or where or who. Memories of touch, and closeness, but not of context, no understanding of how these moments had happened, where or how. What was the history of those moments, how had she ended up close to this woman, when had they been together-
She pressed one three fingered hand to her head-visor, the displays of her eyes flashing orange and screwed up closed. Her long tail lashed and she let out a strained groan as the cybernetic equivalent of a migraine crashed into her brain module.

Dark Space - A Mecha-Focused Space Opera RP (RP Suspended)

So, I saw this and thought of the RP, a little bit

@CitrusArms

I'd be lying if I said it wasn't partly inspiration. It's certainly the right tone and vibe I'm going for.
I love the video, and the song completely

Dark Space - A Mecha-Focused Space Opera RP (RP Suspended)

As Captain Gavren met the assembled faces of the newly arrived rangers, the ship around them lightly shuddered, the sensation moving up through their feet on the deck. The Spirit had cleared dock and her engines fired up, moving the ship away from the docking arms of the rotating station. Finally, she had cast off and was underway on her first voyage. The ship glided silently away from the station, picking up speed as her sublight engines flared to life and she made for the nearest safe jump point.

In the hangar, Gavren spoke up as he stood before the Rangers, the cetanui's clear, strong voice commanding their attention as he spoke.
"Welcome, Rangers. If I might have your attention for the moment; I'd like to introduce myself and give a brief overview. I am Captain Ralana Gavren. I'm familiar with your backgrounds; some more than others. But I look forward to working with you all. As a Ranger ship, our missions will vary, and take us all across ConFederation space, and maybe even beyond. But our first operation is to head to the Western Fringe. Heavy raiding activity has been reported along the frontier in that area, and it's more than the colonists can handle alone, so we're going to find out where they're based, and then take them down. Something that - at least on the first account of it - sounds simple and routine."
He eyed them all to gauge their reaction; he didn't expect much - it was a simple, run-of-the-mill mission, nothing big for a Ranger unit, but at the same time; the bread-and-butter of their role. Dealing with problems too big for colonists, but too small for the Navy.
"The location of your quarters has been uploaded to your personal data devices, along with full primers and briefs on the Spirit of Adventure and her facilities and capabilities. We'll be transiting to Hyperspace shortly, but you'll hear the alerts over the system before we jump, so you'll have a chance to prepare. I'm sure we'll all talk more soon enough, but thank you for your attention, and welcome aboard. As you were".

He excused himself, leaving them to go about their business, and the activity around them resumed. Messages sounded over the ships' PA, informing all of the crew of their progress, and the bustle of people at work, securing their mecha went on. Voices shouted to one another as crews communicated needs for parts, tools, and other such things, leaving the newly arrived rangers in the middle of a sea of activity.

Shattered Steel - An Ace Combat/Project Wingman/etc inspired aircraft-based RP

Scott's Loadout

Full load of 20mm Vulcan cannon ammunition

2 x AIM-9X Sidewinder short-range AAM
2 x AIM-120 AMRAAM medium-range AAM
4 x GBU-31 'quicksink' JDAM
2 x Droptank

Shattered Steel - An Ace Combat/Project Wingman/etc inspired aircraft-based RP

So, since we're about to actually head into a mission where we'll be using live ordnance, I thought this is a good time to explain how I'm going to handle that aspect of things.

Obviously, as we should all be aware at this point, modern warplanes can carry a wide variety of weapons, and the profiles you all posted for your jets have a good indication of what some of those are, and what they can do.
I'm not going to dictate to you all what you should be carrying for each mission, but give you free reign to pick - within reason, anyway; and as suits the purposes of the narrative and the setting. No one will have access to nuclear/biological/chemical weapons freely, and using anything of that scope would naturally be a serious and dramatically story-relevant, world-affecting event and not a casual thing.
If you like, you can post what your loadouts for a mission will be here, so we can keep track and for the fun of it, and if you want/need any help picking and choosing, or over on the discord group too.

I'll post what I've got in mind for Scott shortly as an example.