“Work, man-filth!” The sound of an Uruk boot slamming into flesh could barely be heard over the clinking and clanking of pick-axes being brought down on exposed surface ore pockets. There were a dozen Outcasts here, relatives of criminals and traitors exiled from the lands beyond on the wall, trapped in Mordor. They managed to survive, and live free, until the Uruk invaded the lands of Mordor.
Now they once again labor under uncaring supervisors.
Ralor and Adel worked alongside each other. Ralor was a skinny and tall man, his lack of food almost giving him a skeletal appearance. Adel was shorter than Ralor by a few inches, but he managed to stay on the Uruk’s good side, meaning he got a little more food than the others.
They worked in silence for a long while. Finally, Ralor spoke.
“I hate the Gravewalker.”“What?” Adel responded, baffled.
“He’s no hero. He is- was, a selfish killer. He get’s his revenge, and leaves the rest of us behind.”“You don’t know he’s gone.”“It’s been months, and no one’s seen him. Where is this supposed savior of men now, huh? He wasn’t helping us. He was self-serving, the whole time. He was just doing it to get to the people he hated. Now I bet he’s climbed over the Wall and...and is living it up.”Adel shook his head, and thought for a while. His pick managed to break a stone that he had been working at for a while, and revealed a sky-blue ore. He picked up the stone and placed it into a bag next to him.
“No, I don’t believe that.”Ralor just looked at him without a word. Adel continued.
“He-...He killed The Black Hand of Sauron, didn’t he? There’s no more...leadership, of these savage Uruks. It’s just the grunts now. Just them and the Warchiefs. All Uruk. All Uruk, means no brains. Because-” He lowered his voice for his next few sentences.“These Uruk are dumb as nails, they are. They keep comin’ in, on the boats, everyday, but with the Black Hands dead, and Sauron gone, we can win this. We just gotta get to the Tribesmen of Nirn, or the Men of Udun. Someone. They’ll help us.”Ralor gave a hollow laugh at the mention of the Tribesmen of Nirn and the Men of Udun. They were two separate rebellion groups, formed under different circumstances and separated from each other by a large Uruk fortress wedged in a valley, the only way to get into Nirn or Udun.
Ralor spoke again.
"Maybe if we were in Nirn, but here? The Men are useless in comparison to the Tribe." The Men and the Tribe were spoke shorthand for the two groups. They had both made several blows against the Uruk-kind with the Gravewalker at their backs, but like Ralor had said, he had not been seen in months.
“You know what I think, Adel?” Ralor paused.
“I think the Gravewalker is dead, that’s what.” Adel stopped working and looked at Ralor incredulously.
“Ralor-”“No. No, no. I never believed that nonsense in the first place.”“It’s not nonsense, Ralor, it’s true. It’s why they call him the Gravewalker.”“You expect me to believe someone can just come back to life? No. I think he died, and now we’re waiting on a ghost to save us.”“People have see him be killed, only to come back and stab the very Captain that killed him the very next day. I think...I think it’s brilliant.” Ralor grunts and hits another stone with his pick axe.
An Uruk guard comes up behind Adel and strikes him with his fist, laughing.
Adel turned around and glanced at the grotesque slaver.
The Uruk’s skin was a pale green, his form was stocky, wide, and taller than any man. His nose was shrunken it’s head, practically just two holes, and it’s jaw was extended outwards showing off the bottom row of sharp, and jagged teeth. He was practically topless, wearing other leather spaulders and leather trousers. In his right hand was a crude but brutal looking iron sword.
“Get back to work, slave!” Another punch sent Adel to the ground. The Uruk laughed his horrible laugh.
“Pink-skins, always complainin’ ‘bout noffin.” Adel’s hands shook, his face scrunched up and turned red. To hit him for no reason? To put words into his mouth? Adel’s inner reason urged him to calm himself like he had so many times before. But no, this sudden animalistic rage overtook Adel like it never had. Practically shaking, he made eye contact with Ralor and gritted his teeth.
Ralor went wide-eyed. Adel yelled and brought up his pick-axe violently at the Uruk. The pick-axe made a painful hollow-sounding noise when it collided with the Uruk’s forehead. The Uruk stumbled backward, and blue-black goo poured from his face. A blow like that would have killed a man. Adel followed up with an overhead strike, but the Uruk swung his sword and knocked the pick-axe out of Adel’s hand. Ralor was shocked, it was the first act of rebellion he had ever seen Adel commit, and it was a foolish one. Despite being slightly more well fed than the other slaves, Adel was still weak from hours of hard labor. Adel dropped to his knees.
The Uruk guard, blue-black blood collecting in front of his right eye, was furious.
“You don’t deserve a swipe from me old sword, slave.” The Uruk punched Adel much harder than he had before, Adel grunted and fell sideways.
“I’m gonna make a fine example outta ya.” He picked Adel up, hoisted him over his shoulder, and walked away. Ralor, hands trembling, heart racing, kept his head down and struck another stone.
---
LORE AND BACKGROUNDThe Uprising of Man takes place in the Shadow of Mordor universe, a spin-off of the Lord of the Rings franchise. You don’t need to know anything about LOTR to partake in this roleplay. The Uruk, and orcish warrior race bred only for war, have invaded Mordor, under the guidance of the Black Hand. Mordor would become to launching off point for a grand invasion that would push past a LARGE WALL separating Mordor from the rest of Middle-Earth.
Their plans were halted when a mysterious figure known as the Gravewalker began assassinating several Uruk Captains. It was rumored that, along with being able to come back from the dead after being killed, he could control the minds of the Uruk and bend them to his will, pitting them against each other. For a long while, the Gravewalker rescued slaves and killed captains, it looked as if freedom was on the horizon. But then, the Gravewalker began killing key members of the Black Hand. All three members of the Black Hand fell to the Gravewalkers blade. Eventually, Sauron, the Dark Lord of the whole operation, battled the Gravewalker, and neither the Dark Lord or the mysterious hero had been heard from since. Now the Uruk, lead only by their own Warchiefs and high ranking Uruk Captains, are the only people in charge of the invasion. The Uruk know nothing but war, and still occupy the lands of Mordor, waiting for orders to invade that may never arrive.
The Uprising of Man begins here. The human-kind who live here, known as Outcasts, are distant offspring of a large group of criminals and traitors who were banished to the then uninhabited Mordor, expected to die. But the Outcasts survived, and several generations later, are now the work force of the Uruk invasion. But they grow restless, and with the Black Hand dead, there is no better time for a rebellion than now. The Men of Udun and the Tribesmen of Nirn are beginning to train an elite force of insurgents, to follow in the footsteps of the Gravewalker, using stealth and trickery to pick apart the Uruk forces from the inside. It will be a hard-fought battle, but truly, there is no other cause worth fighting for.
The Men of Udun are lead by an ex-military strategist known as Hirgon. (Seen above.) They are based near the great wall that separates Mordor from the rest of Middle-Earth, and operate from a series of underground catacombs. They are seen as the weaker of the two groups, as they do less frequent attacks against the Uruk, instead focusing on rescuing small groups of slaves and bringing them to safety. However, now, with the Black Hands dead, their confidence has been bolstered and they are going to become more aggressive. The players will be starting in the Men of Udun’s headquarters.
The Tribesmen of Nirn are officially lead by a shamanistic queen, although most leadership roles fall unto her daughter, Lithariel. (Seen above.) She, too, bases her operations underground, although they are based in a mining shaft system. It is near the coast of Nirn, and as such the Tribesmen of Nirn have also began building up some sort of Navy, and occasionally they take their secret meetings into the sea. They have always been the aggressive faction, focusing on attempting to take out Uruk strongholds and Uruk Captains, with limited luck up until recently. It is an objective of the players to link up the Tribesmen of Nirn with the Men of Udun.
The Uruk Captains are the Uruk captains strong enough to gain a foothold in the brutal Uruk hierarchy. The Uruk’s leaders are not selected based on leadership skills or qualifications, rather they spring up naturally over time. The Uruk’s backstab, murder, and battle each other to gain power, and the one’s who do gain power often gain followers, and become Captains. This means that the Uruk who become captains are already battle-hardened, and must be more skilled than their “comrades” than other Uruk. The Uruk arrive in such bountiful numbers by boat that this strategy is actually viable. Killing the Captains is a necessary part of liberating the humans in Mordor.
The Uruk Warchiefs are the most powerful Uruk’s in Mordor. They are the ones who rose up the “ranks” of Captains, before becoming leader of a Stronghold (a fortress that the Uruks have turned into their homes), and controlling a large number of Uruk followers. Killing them greatly destabilizes the Uruk rankings, and creates an opportunity for mass Liberation of an area.
You will be playing as a Liberator, a highly skilled human warrior. It’s up to you how you got your greater-than-average skill of fighting, but something has made you stand out from the rest of the Outcast militia for you to be selected for these missions.
New players will ALWAYS be welcome. If you join after the roleplay is started, you will begin outside of the camp and will be inserted into the game with story elements. You may be a slave, or a Liberator who got lost/captured. Stuff like that.
To start off, you must acquire information about the whereabouts of an Uruk Captain. You can do this by interrogating captured Uruk Warriors, (which will happen “off-screen”, you just need to get an Uruk alive and take him to a secluded place), scouting out Uruk Camps, or maybe the Uruk Captain will reveal himself to you on their own accord.
You can also collect
INTEL, which will reveal the weaknesses and strengths along with other useful information when it comes to eliminating an Uruk Captain. These can be found as pieces of paper in Uruk camps, interrogating another Uruk Captain, and other sources.
There are many reasons for you to kill Uruk Captains:
Creating power vacuums: When an Uruk Captain is killed, Uruks under his command will temporarily battle to fill his position. You can take advantage of this.
Eliminating Warchief’s bodyguards: Some Uruk Captains will be there to protect an Uruk Warchief when you attack the Warchief, isolating a Captain and killing him before attacking the Warchief will make the ambush easier.
Eliminating rivals: All Uruk Captains want to find the Outcasts and kill them, killing the Uruk Captain first will prevent future unfortunate encounters with them.
Securing territory: Killing Uruk Captains will ensure that that particular Uruk Captain won’t lead any attacks on Liberated Territory. (Liberated Territory explained later)
Power Struggles: Power Struggles are events in which Uruk Captains interact with each other in various ways, usually ending up in one Uruk Captain either being dead, or losing respect from their followers. The basic Power Struggles that you will so the most often are:
Duels: Two Uruk Captains duel each other in front of a crowd of cheering Uruks.
Ambush: An Uruk Captain and his followers sneak attack another Uruk Captain and his followers.
Feast: A singular Uruk Captain holds a feast in a camp to gain power and respect.
Recruitment: A singular Uruk Captain will go into a camp and bully other Uruks into joining him.
Trial by Ordeal: A singular Uruk Captain puts himself through an Ordeal to gain respect.
Beast Hunt: A singular Uruk Captain leads his followers to hunt a Beast or Beasts of Mordor.
In all of the above situations, all Uruk Captains involved will be easier to take by surprise or be exploited. Acquiring INTEL and information will allow you to find out the time and place of these Power Struggles. There are a few other Power Struggles that will occur in more specific situations.
Liberating Territory: The liberation of territory is an optional quest that you and your compatriots should discuss and consider. You may launch attacks on Uruk Camps and Non-Warchief controlled fortresses to take control of them. The slaves there will be very grateful, and can then offer you some rewards. Maintaining liberated territory will grant you a foothold in Mordor, so as you can travel throughout Mordor without risk of attack. The Outcast slaves there can also potentially join you in your operations, but do not overestimate their abilities when you give them orders: They may be passionate, but they are not highly trained combatants like you are. You do not have to Liberate Territory, as eliminating a Warchief and taking his Stronghold will also Liberate all territory surrounding the Stronghold. In order to maintain all Liberated territory, you must occasionally defend it from Uruk incursions.
You must choose one of six roles for your character, each being capable of different abilities. Each Role is combination of two out of three different specialties. Be sure to vary in your Roles, as they cannot successfully function without the assistance of their teammates. Weapon Types will be explained in further detail down the line.
WARRIOR: Specialty: Combat-Combat: A Warrior is a powerful combatant, be able to hold his or her own in hand-to-hand fighting against the most Uruks. However, Warriors are poor at Stealth will all of their heavier weapons and armor, and lack any Ranged Capabilities. Without support, even they can be overwhelmed by Uruks.
Weapon Types Available: Two Handed Weapons, One Handed Weapons, Shields, Throwing Items.
ASSASSIN: Specialty: Stealth-Stealth: An Assassin is the most capable of eluding the detection of Uruks, allowing them to quietly eliminate individual targets with considerable efficiency. On the other hand, they carry no Ranged weapons, and in some situations will not be able to sneak up on Uruks. If they are detected, they can be defeated quite easily due to their lack of heavy weaponry and expertise when it comes to those situations.
Weapon Types Available: Stealth Weapon, Throwing Items.
MARKSMAN: Specialty: Ranged-Ranged: A Marksman carries powerful Ranged Weaponry, capable of eliminating Uruks from afar. Because of their focus on ranged, enemies that are too close prove incredibly dangerous for a Marksman. But, one should never underestimate the power of a well-placed headshot: It is very rare for Marksmen to miss their shot under undisturbed situations.
Weapon Types Available: Bow and Arrow, Crossbow, Throwing Items.
--The following roles diversify their specialties. They are competent in multiple fields of battle, but spend so much of their time diversifying their abilities, they have not developed a true expertise in either of their two fields. Do not expect to get the same quality results in certain situations as you would in the three focused roles, but at the same time, be sure to take advantage of your ability to effectively use two specialties.--
ROGUE: Specialty: Combat-Stealth: A Rogue is capable of stealth and combat, proving valuable in a multitude of situations. They are capable of tactical insertion, and potentially fighting their way out.
Weapon Types Available: One Handed Weapons, Stealth Weapons, Throwing Items
RANGER: Specialty: Combat-Ranged: A Ranger is a tool of assault. Enemies who are far away can be taken down by their light ranged weaponry, and enemies who get too close can be eliminated by their blade.
Weapon Types Available: Crossbow, Bow and Arrow, One Handed Weapons, Throwing Items
SCOUT: Specialty: Stealth-Ranged: Scouts are capable of sneaking into an enemy base to find a vantage point within the enemy’s front lines, and supporting their comrades from there.
Weapon Types Available: Bow and Arrow, Crossbow, Stealth Weapon, Throwing Items
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When interacting with Uruks, there are several factors that will result in the outcome.
The most important factor, is the actions of the player. What you say your character attempts to do is the basis that every other factor is built off of.
The Uruk’s level of expertise is the second factor. For example, an Uruk Hunter might be able to sniff out a sneaky Rogue, but a basic Uruk Soldier would be oblivious to their oncoming doom.
The third factor is the players combat Role. Sometimes, you may not be able to pull off a particular move if your Role is not fit for it, or it is too advanced for one of the mixed specialty classes. A Marksman may be able to land a long distance headshot, but a Ranger, on the other hand, may miss it.
How will these factors play out in text form? As a player, you make a short-term play during combat. This could be taking a shot, sneaking to a certain point, deflecting two Uruk strikes. Write the play as if it was successful, including character reactions.
Here’s an example post:
Adel violently struck the Uruk upon the forehead, stunning or killing the guard. Wrenching his hands once again, he raised the tool up and impaled into the Uruk’s forehead, sending a shower of blue-black blood everywhere. “Ralor, run for it!”
Here would be a potential repost from me. My repost is based around quoting your original post.
Adel violently struck the Uruk upon the forehead, stunning or killing the guard. Wrenching his hands once again, he raised the tool up and
---COUNTERED--- impaled into the Uruk’s forehead, sending a show of blue-black blood everywhere. “RALOR, RUN!” The Uruk guard smacked the pick-axe aside with his sword, and went to pick Adel up.At this point, the Player Character Adel would attempt to survive the Uruk’s counter and turn the situation to his advantage once again. This continues until the battle is over.
--
Bad Luck:
Sometimes, something will just go wrong. I’ll be rolling some virtual dice every once in awhile to see if there will be a stroke of bad luck soon. So, please, keep that in mind when a clueless bird intercepts your arrow that was on a crash course with an Uruk’s head. (Probably not, but you get the idea.)
Player Character death:
Your Player Characters can die due to a multitude of factors, some of which may not entirely be in your control. If a teammate does something wrong, it can affect YOU. Fighting an entire race dedicated to warcraft is not going to be a walk in the park, as such one of your characters may bite the dust.
Multiple Characters:
You are allowed to have multiple characters, but only two at the same time can go on a mission together. I’ll ramp up the difficulty to compensate if two characters go at the same time.
Each class has types of weaponry exclusive to it and types of weaponry unavailable to it. Each character has THREE (count ‘em!) THREE weapon slots to fill out their beginning loadout. It can change over time, if you’d like it too. Here’s a rundown of all available types of weapons.
Two Handed: Great Swords, Great Axes, Great Maces, etc. Big, powerful weapons that require two hands to carry. Not slow or cumbersome by any means, but you’ll need a little more of a wind up in order to connect effectively. A Two Handed Weapon takes up TWO Weapon Slots.
One Handed: Shorter weapons designed for faster and more precise swings. They aren’t capable of dealing as much damage or creating as much impact as Two Handed weapons, but they are more portable and maneuverable. A One Handed Weapon takes up ONE Weapon Slot.
Shields: A shield is a defensive item capable of deflecting blows and particularly blocking ranged attacks. A Shield takes up ONE Weapon Slot.
Stealth Weapon: Any small, one handed weapon, such as a a small blade. While ineffective in combat, with stealth, it is capable of efficient one move kills. ONE Weapon Slot.
Bow and Arrow: A quickly reloading, relatively accurate and overall versatile ranged weapon. Capable of dealing lethal attacks from a distance. TWO Weapon Slots
Crossbow: A slower reloading, accurate and powerful ranged weapon. A greater penetration and range than it’s counterpart. TWO Weapon Slots.
--The below items are all considered “Throwing Items”.--
Throwing Knives: A short ranged projectile that can be used to deal damage without getting quite into melee distance. ONE Weapon Slot.
Blast Powder Bomb: A fuse-lit hand grenade that can be thrown at enemies. It will detonate, dealing damage to enemies caught in the radius. ONE Weapon Slot.
Smoke Bomb: An impact activated device. Upon hitting a surface at high velocity, it explodes into non-lethal but almost completely opaque cloud of white smoke. It’s capable of obscuring players and disorienting enemies. ONE Weapon Slot.
Fire Bomb: A fragile impact activated item. Upon hitting a surface at medium velocity, it erupts into a flaming liquid that ignites enemies and structures. Limited use against Uruk houses as the wood they are constructed out of is fire resistant. ONE Weapon Slot.
Madness Poison: A satchel full of a poisonous powder. When ingested or otherwise entered into the bloodstream, causes temporary paranoia and aggression. Can be placed in Uruk Grog (a drink Uruks drink frequently). You may also be able to come up with other creative uses for it. ONE Weapon Slot.
Paralysis Powder: A sack of powder that, when breathed in by enemies, severely limits their movement capacity. Useful for taking enemies in for interrogation. ONE Weapon Slot.
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If you have a weapon that takes up two weapon slots, just type its name twice. Describe what weapon you have and anything special about it.
You have to be at least 17 years old and below 65. We may be a militia, but we’re not desperate enough to recruit actual child soldiers. And if you’re above 65, chances are you’re not in fighting-off-a-horde-of-Uruks shape.
Keep your armor light, we don’t have any full plate-mail sets. For Physical Appearance, describe your height, weight, and facial features. I’d still like at least a small written description even if you use a picture.
As for the brief biography, you should most likely be an Outcast and have been captured by the Uruks before being liberated before the events of the RP. You could also be someone from the other side of the wall that has somehow gotten stranded in Mordor.
Name:
Age:
Gender:
Armor:
Physical Appearance:
Combat Role:
Weapon Slot 1:
Weapon Slot 2:
Weapon Slot 3:
Brief Biography:
Anything Else?:
--
If you have any questions, feel free to ask. I’m more than willing to go over things or add stuff I’ve missed. I would be surprised if I didn’t forget to leave at least ONE thing out. You don't need to know anything about LOTR to join this thread. Wanna know why? Because I created this thread and I don't know anything about LOTR.
Anyway, if you do decide to join, thanks. I'd like to get around 4 or 5 people before we start, but I could go at less if it comes to it.
Member
