BlackBirch-Located far from any major city or towns BlackBirch is a small Hamlet community that even at its prime was home to less then one hundred residents-and even then most of the population had lived under servitude of the De La Porte family whom made their home high up on the hill overlooking the few buildings of BlackBirch. Actually the De La Porte family is the whole reason the little community exists among the once beautiful sprawling countryside and shimmering sea that rocks against the shoreline; the few shops and tradesmen drawn to the never ending flow of work that stemmed from the De La Porte Mansion.
These days the once luxurious mansion lies abandoned and in shambles while a sickness seems to fill the very air of the Hamlet community while simultaneously twisting the once beautiful landscape into something foreign and sinister. A constant pall clouds the very skies, as if a great storm is moments from finally letting lose but simply never does.
Mansion-The De La Porte Estate has overlooked the small settlement of BlackBirch for generations but has as of late fallen into a state of disrepair. The few remaining locals have almost become accustomed to the otherworldly sightings and rumors that run rampant about the once glorious family home. Many a thief have set out to rob this gilded tomb only to never be seen again.
The massive house itself sits perched atop the largest hill within the surrounding countryside-the placement giving an excellent view of both the settlement of BlackBirch and the surrounding ocean. The grand structure stretches five stories up in a classic gothic fashion; the mostly stone structure consisting of many straight pillars and impressive archways with vaulted ceilings.
Tavern-One of the few establishments still running (and thriving) in the settlement of BlackBirch is the Twilight Tavern. Ran by a charismatic but sickly man by the name of Raziq the ageing ex adventurer is well known for his fair prices and friendly demeanor. As of late his cough has gotten noticeably worse.
Despite being the oldest building in town the Twilight Tavern still stands strong; even the ever encroaching dread that seems to be swallowing up the rest of the countryside unable to touch the literal beacon in the night that is the Twilight Tavern. As far as construction goes it is a rather simple yet impressive structure: from the outside the building looks as if it was constructed entirely of mortar and hand picked stones-the four walls of which extend upwards about sixteen feat before hitting the roof that is made up of old darkened and black wooden shingles. There is almost a constant plume of thick gray smoke rising from the massive chimney that rests against the backside of the old building.
The inside of the Tavern is much more welcoming then its cold exterior; both the floor along with the six large wooden support beams that hold up guest rooms above are crafted from hardy bright oak. Both the raised floor on the ground level and the upstairs rooms have been smoothed from years of use although most people honestly tend to like the feel of the softer floors. Like most taverns the ground floor has been packed with a hodgepodge of medium sized and rather well worn wooden tables-even better none of the available chairs to sit in match. There is also a long tabletop bar with various stools to take a seat in directly on the left side of the building. Normally Raziq is seen manning the large bar while one of his handful of other employees often gets stuck running food and drink to their guests, a fact made slightly annoying as the only way to gain access to the small kitchen that serves all the food is to squeeze past Raziqs massive frame (a task that gets more complicated with a tray of food.)
Blacksmith-Doubling as both the Towns horse stables and blacksmith this somewhat small shabby looking building is owned and operated by the grizzled old Obed Marsh-or Mr. Marsh, as he insists on being called. The building itself is made of three parts causing it to look larger then it actually is-a good half of the property is dedicated to the practically empty horse stables, the large open half of the stables made up of the black birch trees that line the Old Road. All of the actual iron work is done within the old forge on the farside of the structure; the building housing all his precious metal working equipment itself being more of an open room-Two stone walls at an angle with a domed roof is all that separates Mr. Marsh from the elements as he hammers away. Between the large stable and small forging station resides Mr. Marsh's quaint little home-the old wooden structure actually connected to the stables.
Lately the fires of the forge have grown cold nor does the constant clatter of hammer on steel fill the small settlements streets as it once commonly did. No, these days old Mr. Marsh keeps himself locked away in his home as he slowly drinks himself to death. Like many of the locals in recent weeks his daughter simply dissapeared one night without a trace or hint of foul play-almost as if she'd simply vanished from her very room overnight. He has refused to work on anything until his daughter is found.
The Abbey- The formation of monastic communities dates back to pre-Christian times, the earliest known Christian monasteries consisting of groups living in huts built near the location of a famous religious martyrs or other holy persons. As these communities of disciples grew, they attracted people who desired to study the rigid doctrine of said martyr or figure and imitate his or her way of life.
In the earliest age of Christian monastaries, the monks and nuns were accustomed to living alone. The involved nuns and monks would typically live near a village church, supporting themselves while also donating their excess food and time to the poor. Increasing religious fervor and persecution drove them farther away from civilization into solitude as time went on.
Thus to is the story of the men and women who dedicate their lives to the St. Dymphnas Abbey located within BlackBirch. These days the once vibrant religious community consists of less then five people, most of which devote their full time to running the Dymphna Sanitarium located next door to the large church site they call home. The church itself is the second largest building in BlackBirch-the mansion itself ontop of the looming hillside being the only building actually larger. Unlike the De La Porte Mansion however the local church holds is almost entirely one gigantic room-the dwarfing arches and elaborate stone pillars within the church give the constantly empty pews a very unsettling feeling.
Like many locals Father William Briden, the one priest responsible for leading mass each sunday, has recently been committed to the Sanitarium. He claimed to be hearing voices calling him to the abandoned De La Porte mansion each night for days until one night a pair of nuns caught him trying to set fire to the elaborate architecture that was the church. Its been two weeks since mass was held, much to the growing chagrin of the locals who long for the presence of the Lord more and more with each passing eerie night.
The St. Dymphna Sanitarium-Surprisingly this extremely tall stone structure has resided within the Hamlet of BlackBirch since well before the nightmarish horrors had been unleashed-the founders believing that the scenic surroundings would do well for the mentally afflicted. This long established sanctuary for the clinically insane is overlooked and ran by the nuns and monks of the local Dymphna Abbey. The servants of God that had founded the Sanitarium had chosen the location for its scenic views that they were all positive would help in the future rehabilitations of their many “customers.”
These days the Dymphna Sanitarium is filled to complete capacity-many of the patients now coming from the actual little Hamlet of BlackBirch. The small handful of nuns and monks left in the community struggle to properly handle these mentally damaged individuals-in the past few weeks things have gotten extremely bad as many patients have begun to try their damndest to escape and answer the unhearable call of the mansion.
-- Feel free to make these as in depth/fancy as you guys want. Just make sure you include the following:
Name:
Age:
Gender:
Class: (I'm going to allow this to be left blank or completely removed if you desire. Basically I just wanted people to check this page out darkestdungeon.gamepedia.com/Heroes on the odd chance one of you might get a character idea from what ya see there. Again though, feel free to just totally ignore all that-and if you do pick a class its not meant to box you in iether, just more sum up your characters backstory.)
Appearance: (Put a brief description-you can add a pic if ya want.)
Bio: (make sure to include why they've come to/are in BlackBirch.)
You remember our venerable house, opulent and imperial, gazing proudly from its stoic perch above the moor.
I lived all my years in that ancient rumor shadowed manor, fattened by decadence and luxury, and yet I began to tire of... conventional extravagance. Singular unsettling tales suggested the mansion itself was a gateway to some fabulous and unnameable power. With relic and ritual, I bent every effort towards the excavation and recovery of those long buried secrets, exhausting what remained of our family fortune on... swarthy workmen and... sturdy shovels. At last, in the salt soaked crags beneath the lowest foundations, we unearthed that damnable portal of antediluvian evil. Our every step unsettled the ancient earth, but we were in a realm of death and madness. In the end, I alone fled, laughing and wailing through those blackened arcades of antiquity. Until consciousness failed me.
You remember our venerable house, opulent and imperial, it is now a festering abomination. I beg you, return home, claim your birthright and deliver our family from the ravenous clutching shadows that I have unearthed. "
These were the last words recorded of the now presumably late Randolph De La Porte; although if he was in actuality dead was anyones guess: no one could find a body. Unlike his nephew who had been outcast from the family Randolph was a man with the misfortune of being born into opulent wealth and luxury garnered generations ago. This luxurious lifestyle grew pointless and repetitive in his later years as he tired of the picturesque little Hamlet his family home overlooked; despite wanting for nothing he had a hole inside himself that he desperately needed to fill-and inevitably fill it he did, with occult practices and studies that lead him down an inevitable path of both madness and discovery. Before long he was pouring his vast sums of the family fortune into unearthing an ancient doorway he had come to learn resided, almost as if by fate, beneath his very mansion. In the days prior to finally unearthing this long sought reward he was fully and wholeheartedly convinced that not only would he gain access to this portal of ancient powers but he would in fact be able to control the forces within.
Truly, mans hubris knows no bounds.
-- Hey everybody.
I have recently been wanting to start a rp up based around the idea of “The Darkest Dungeon.” Now for those of you who know anything of the game think of it as a horror story that takes place within a gothic type world of flint lock and blades-that odd period of time where armor and swords hadn't yet been out shined by gunpowder.
Plot wise the story will center around the heirs to an abomination infested estate above a small Hamlet that is suffering the effects of the recently released horrors; playable characters will be those from the very small community or mercenaries/adventure types hired on by my character-I am also fine with people who would like to be a sibling to my main character. This roleplay is intended to be very character driven and focus on the mental strains put on these characters by the otherworldly horrors they encounter.
Now for those of you who don't know what Lovecraftian horror is (mind you I am no expert myself) I am mainly wanting to focus on the shared traits of the writing style written below while at the same time keeping in mind the fact that the overall story will wind up having more to do with our characters mental decay as they are confronted from the horrors that have been unleashed beneath the mansion.:
incomprehensible.-It should feature things beyond human understanding. Ancient things, or powerful things.
alien.-Not necessarily extra terrestrial, but just totally non human. This is where the tentacles come in usually, but they aren't required. Just so long as things don't look, act, or think like humans.
Unknown.-Fear of the unknown is the key thing. For the most part the thing should be unknown and left to the reader's imagination. Nothing scares us like our own imagination.
Indifferent.-There are a couple of Lovecraft stories which feature evil or malicious things, but for the most part they are just so much more powerful than humanity, and so different, that they don't even realise or care about humans. Like ants on a road.
I have recently been wanting to start a rp up based around the idea of “The Darkest Dungeon.” Now for those of you who know anything of the game think of it as a horror story that takes place within a gothic type world of flint lock and blades-that odd period of time where armor and swords hadn't yet been out shined by gunpowder.
Plot wise the story will center around the heirs to an abomination infested estate above a small Hamlet that is suffering the effects of the recently released horrors; playable characters will be those from the very small community or mercenaries/adventure types hired on by my character-I am also fine with people who would like to be a sibling to my main character. This roleplay is intended to be very character driven and focus on the mental strains put on these characters by the otherworldly horrors they encounter.
Now for those of you who don't know what Lovecraftian horror is (mind you I am no expert myself) I am mainly wanting to focus on the shared traits of the writing style written below while at the same time keeping in mind the fact that the overall story will wind up having more to do with our characters mental decay as they are confronted from the horrors that have been unleashed beneath the mansion.:
incomprehensible.-It should feature things beyond human understanding. Ancient things, or powerful things.
alien.-Not necessarily extra terrestrial, but just totally non human. This is where the tentacles come in usually, but they aren't required. Just so long as things don't look, act, or think like humans.
Unknown.-Fear of the unknown is the key thing. For the most part the thing should be unknown and left to the reader's imagination. Nothing scares us like our own imagination.
Indifferent.-There are a couple of Lovecraft stories which feature evil or malicious things, but for the most part they are just so much more powerful than humanity, and so different, that they don't even realise or care about humans. Like ants on a road.
That's all just the basics though-wanted to see if there was any interest before I post up more fleshed out details. I have a good chunk more written up and ready to post in an official ooc but just wanted to see the interest garnered first. Gonna go ahead and tag @The Kraken@Kidd just because I'd talked to you both about the idea.
Hey guys-think im gonna go ahead and call this rp and just put it outta its misery. I appreciate everyones commitment though in the past few weeks but hate the thought of this rp lingering in the back of anyones mind when I think its obvious it will not reach a satisfyinh conclusion-but hey, that shit happens in a rp so no need to sweat it. Again, I just appreciate everybody puttin their time in.
@Tuxedo Fox@Yvain I have no problem with this being a story that had happened between your guys characters, I'm always for building character relationships. Oh Fox the idol of tsamba is a type of food, it is roasted barley flour that you can mix with Tibetan butter tea to make a sort of raw dumpling (it says that at the top of the story). I don't have any problem with it having some sort of magical property, but I shall now and forever refer to it as the magical dumpling of ultimate power. XD
When I read things like that I feel like an idiot....I totally skipped straight to the story.
Mickey: *Opens the fridge to find it empty* I just went to the grocery store damnit!
Oh thats fine man, but I have to warn you in return: the one thing Mickey cares about above all else is Yen Sid's well being. The fear Boogie would see radiating off of him is loneliness-more specifically losing Yen Sid. All that being said hes gonna be...demanding when it comes to finding the master.
--
As for what you said earlier Saarebas, im down for startin the rp whenever myself.
Hey guys-sorry I aint got anything up yet. I was wanting to ask @Mr Rage and possibly @The Kraken to colab this next post with me-ill post up what I've written and just respond as if it was a small post/say whatever you want and do what you need to. Here goes for what I have so far-wantin to colab just so I can move things further by the enda the post.
Oh and if anyone else wants to jump in on the colab just shoot me whatever you'd like your characer to say or do-I will write it in accordingly.
"All clear down here, send it down." The familiar voice of Kennedy crackled to life within Bushwhackers ear.
"Vir-iiiiiiiiiiiip" The distinct noise of the catwalk Bushwhacker stood upon could be heard as he made his decent down to the ground floor. More then once he had to keep himself from stopping the lift.
Eventually the large window cleaning unit came to rest mere inches above the blackened asphalt the entire group of newcomers stood upon. Before hopping off his detective like mind couldn't help but take a few key notes, most importantly of which were:
1-Minuteman, arguably one of the physically most threatening members of the group, followed behind Lillah like some kind of animal she had been kicking each day for the better part of a month-that is to say his eyes spoke of some unfathomable loyalty. At least that's what Bushwhacker though in his quick nanosecond like assessment of the man. He made a mental note to bring it up with Lillah later. 2-His old friend(?) The Maker was in fact not only unscathed from the previous battle moments ago but had also survived the previous massacre at The Star Hotel-something Bushwhacker had been agonizing over for the better part of two weeks; wholeheartedly blaming himself for The Makers apparent death that had takein place in the ensuing chaos weeks ago. 3-Sign post girl struck a cord in him-quickly he knew he would be spending the remainder of the night poring over his vast database on criminals in the attempt to satisfy this sixth sense that said she was indeed trouble. 4-Liam (Although he didn't know that was his name yet) looked like some kid doing his best to play soldier-but then again he was still alive when over three fourths of the city was out shambling on the streets eating people. He hated to admit it but he had to give the nervous looking kid credit. He was also 90 percent sure this kid had no powers-there was just a certain way non powered individuals carried themselves and he had long ago mastered the art of spotting the differences. And then there was his partner- 5-David. Bushwhacker recognized the man immediately-he had a particular disdain for rogue heroes afterall. But this was a different world and he could use all the fire power (no pun intended) to help the community he envisioned. So if he was willing to follow rules Bushwhacker decided he was more then willing to allow him to stay.
All these thoughts seem to simultaneously barrel through his head like a bullet train in the blink of an eye.
In a somewhat impressive display he hopped over the railing on the lift with one arm while his other hand clutched his deadly rifle. Quickly straightening himself up as his boots hit the ground he leveled the rifle up without pointing it at anyone directly; the message was clear though, he was ready to shoot.
His eyes focused solely on The Maker. “That...That really you?” He reached out as if to touch William, but then seemed to change his mind and instead pointed his rifle Williams way-his eyes looking at his old friend in a way that could only be described as accusing.
–
Tod had been staying behind Lillah during the whole encounter with Bushwhacker-when the man finished his sentence by raising his rifle towards the man he now knew as William every part of him wanted to stand in the path of the possible bullet. Instead he stood glued in place, his eyes just visible over Lillahs shoulder. The way he stared at Bushwhacker looked like a madman fully coming to the realization of true danger in front of him.
He clenched his fists while gritting his teeth. “You just say the word...” He whispered for only Lillah to hear.
Read the story man and if Sarrebas is ok with it I'm totally down with that haveing takein place in the homeworlds-only I would prefer if we gave a magic spin to the idol of tsamba that the rabbit eats? I've tried my best looking up exactly what an "idol of tsamba" is but haven't had much luck yet-iether way I'd love to bounce around the ideas of what exact magic the Idol possesed. At the very least our characters can already know each other in a slightly funny way-and if he knows shes an info broker in fable town he would totally be hitting her up to see if she'd heard anything about Yen Sid.