Welcome to the remote world of Venuza, a great land populated by a race much like our own. Humanity in Venuza, unlike us, finds itself in a completely different era of technological development, owing to its distinct ecological and geographical differences. But let us now cast aside our presuppositions about what Venuza is like, for it is not like Earth. In Venuza, great forces fight each other amidst a landscape of extreme mountains and islands looming over the clouds. The grim sea of clouds amidst a dark sky forever obscures the mysteries that lie below the human level. No sane soul would ever toss his life away by going down there, as in such a world of extremes, there is no telling what dark horros and powerful magics await.
As the title suggests... you and others are about to find out!
This world is meant to have
some scientific elements. What this means is:
-The game takes place on a planet with planet-like properties such as having a mantle, atmosphere, and a moon (referred to as Luna).
-Geology is far-fetched, but not so ridiculous as to have floating islands and huge natural overhangs. The island-continents rise up far above the ocean of clouds, but have stable foundations below.
-The magic of the world takes priority, however.
-So basically, everything you do is scientifically accurate unless the world's magic is involved in the process, or unless science would render the world completely uninhabitable. Exceptions are made for
Acceptable Breaks from Reality.
As for the planet, here are the basics.
- The atmosphere is mostly Neon, with tiny levels of Nitrogen (~1.11%) and minute levels of Oxygen (~0.36%). The partial pressure of Oxygen is slightly higher than Earth's, enabling humans to perform slightly higher physical feats of endurance due to increased oxygen supply.
- Atmospheric pressure is approximately 90 times that of Earth's atmosphere (totally survivable!). Various implications of this are: Water has a boiling point of over 300°C, regular Venuzian air can be used to breath at any depth in water (no narcosis and such), and liquids tend to not evaporate as readily. Humans tend to inhabit more temperate regions as a result because of the reduced effectiveness of sweating.
- Due to said atmospheric pressure, the density of Venuzian air at ground level is about 50 times that of our own. This means that blimps can be 1/50th the size, and a lot of wildlife on the planet is adapted to these conditions. Furthermore, ranged weapons are limited by air drag (even guns are very short-ranged), and fast vehicles require a lot of energy to keep going. This means that planes are out, helicopters and blimps are in!
- The planet has had a history of volcanism, resulting in the current archipelago of raised islands. Magical forces have influenced this part of the planet's history, and as such standard scientific rules and such might not apply. However, the specifics are a mystery even to the most esteemed scholars of the world. So just roll with it.
- Bodies of water are present primarily in seas on continents. There is no proof that there is water beneath the cloud layer, but most scientific models (in-universe) predict that there is at least one large reservoir beneath. The planet has fairly active storms over the continents, mainly owing to the huge currents produced by varying elevations.
RULES AND MECHANICSFirst off:
- Bold your actions! I cannot stress how important it is for the GM to know what people actually want to do. Please edit posts that are no longer relevant.
- Quote people when you are talking to their characters, just to avoid confusion.
- Major actions include: combat, crafting, entering a conversation (the GM can continue conversations out of a roll post), etc. Minor actions are simple things such as moving about, looting containers, banter, etc. You can have one major action and several minor actions per roll.
- If you do not post within a week of the last roll, your character will be auto'd. After the first auto, I will no longer wait for an action before rolling. After three autos your character becomes an NPC and you must enter the waiting list to rejoin.
- Conversation with player characters does not require a roll. Please interact with players that are talking to you! I tend to avoid 'possessing' player characters with the voice of the GM as only the player truly knows how the character would speak.1
- OOC chat should be marked with ((double parenthesis)). If you have a lot of OOC to post, please include a spoiler.
Thanks for reading!
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1: Epic fail
2: Fail
3: Mixed
4: Success
5: Epic win
6: Overshoot
This game uses a variety of dice types for combat mechanics and spell descriptions. However, for basic actions, a simple d6 roll is used, but with a slight twist. Every action in the game falls under one of the main attributes of characters. These attributes are:
Diplomacy: Social skills and interaction
Force: Direct intervention and use of force
Cunning: Plotting and deception
Wisdom: Learning and crafting
Each attribute also has an application in combat! Whenever you engage in combat, you may choose to fight with a particular virtue of combat, granting you a possibility of special attacks if you roll well. If you do not pick a virtue, you will not roll for the attack and simply strike with the weapon.
Honor: Gain prestige and glory
Might: Quick and powerful strikes
Craft: Prediction and counterstrikes
Efficiency: Exploit vulnerabilities
Each point in an attribute gives you an extra dice for that action. You always pick the highest value for the action. The system never prefers a 5 over a 6!
MAGICAL FORCESThe known world is caught in a crossfire beween vastly conflicting forces! Because each force works differently, each one has a special roll effect associated with it!
The Spirits (
)
The spirits of the world are vast and innumerable, but pay little heed to the demands of ordinary humans. However, some individuals are naturally gifted in the art of communicating with the spirits, befriending them and calling on their skills. Some, such as pixies, are utterly useless to a mage. But others, such as the Elementals, can prove to be valuable allies in both their direct aid in combat or the skills they grant you.
Spirits must be befriended before they are loyal to you. To do this, you must find a way to call upon the spirit you wish to befirend, whether that means sitting in a river to call the local water Elemental, or meditating in the forest to consult the Spirit of nature. Being a shaman is a game of relations rather than might, and one must be careful to make friends, and not enemies.
Roll Effect: You may keep a dice you rolled for your next action, other than the highest.
The Runes (
)
Ancient stones bearing unspeakable power can be found inside ancient temples and ruins of empires long past. These artifacts contain power far beyond the comprehension of mortals, but when controlled properly a single rune can be used for great good--or great harm. The nature of these powerful stones allow one to power machines without a hint of human input. This makes them ideal for all sorts of magitek and other human inventions.
Runes come in two varieties: Runestones are artifacts that can hold a variable number of Runeshards. Runestones can be activated by sufficient gripping force, causing the Runeshards within to unleash their effects. Different Runeshards have different effects, the results of which are uncontrollable but highly powerful. No mental input is required, but Runestones and Runeshards are artifacts that must be recovered or fought over.
Roll Effect: All dice with a number identical to the first are discarded.
The Ancients (
)
The Ancients are a force incomprehensible to mortal minds. Their actions in the world of mortals can be summed up as spontaneous. However, some go out of their way to respond to human requests. They have left tomes in the temples of man, left for worthy hands to discover.
To summon the Ancient's wrath, one must learn magic words used to wake ancients and call them to use their powers. Magic words are usually stored in a spellbook, which is a type of rare artifact that magically binds its contents to its holder's memory as long as it is held. Ancients are immensely powerful beings, and they may be summoned to fight or even turn on their owners, wiping them off the face of Venuza without effort.
Roll Effect: All 3's become 6's
The Order (
)
Perhaps the most mysterious of all magical forces, the Order is just as powerful as it is fundamental. Anyone can stand in the light of the Order, as long as their actions are just and their intent pure. The Order does not truly favor any man, and even the slightest abuse will render one's skill in the Order invalid.
To use the Order, one must be granted spells based on merit and virtue. Spells of the Order can only be used in defense of truth and justice, and attempting to misuse them results in them disappearing from your spell pool. A spell cannot be used in the same turn that it is granted, but calling on the Order for a spell to be granted may be done alongside any other action.
Roll Effect: The first dice with a 1 or 6 is discarded. This may only occur once per roll.
...
As you can see, each magical force has a certain attribute associated with it in parenthesis. This means that they are generally inclined toward those with skill in their respective attribute. However, this does not mean that you cannot use other types of magic if you are not specialized in their respective attributes! Attributes are separate from
what force you choose, although your skill in the force's respective attribute affects all rolls. You can still be a Shaman of the Spirits with high Wisdom, even though the primary attribute of the Spirits is not Wisdom. This means that you should focus on befriending wiser spirits that respect your level of Wisdom rather than the more impulsive spirits that act on instinct.
Rolling to use magic will use the respective attribute of that magical force.
NATIONS AND FACTIONS--The North--- (cold climate, feudal states)
The Federation is a loose system of states united under the tenuous rule of Emperor Atticus III of Letvua. While his De Jure empire is much smaller than the extent of the federation, he is seen as a protector and guardian of all of his lands, and allows no foreigner to infringe upon the lesser states.
The Republics (the largest of which are: Nova, Taros, and Dunland) are governments led under the guidance of a patrician (AKA the Serene Doge). The Doge simply exists to guide development and public works, focusing on establishing trade and forging deals with military powers. Nova is independent, while Taros and Dunland are under protection of the Federation. The Republican trade routes mostly operate by airship or by train.
The Outliers are outlying kingdoms and governments directly the outskirts of Federation lands. While some of them are civilized nations with legitimate ruling families (Kingdom of Bertony, Lordship of Lommar, City State of Kryos), others are dictatorships, mob rule, or worse.
---The South--- (temperate/hot climates, dynasties and city-states)
The Heathen Lands is a blanket term for the southern portions of the world that have not yet been fully contacted by explorers of the North. They have not yet learned of the Order and are mostly city-states, ruled over by chieftans and ruling parties.
The Kingdom of the Stars is an empire perched atop one of the highest continents of all. Bordered by wasteland continents and forced to build upward rather than expand outward, they reject the Church of the Order for their own church, led by regency-appointed bishops and a council of three. The Kingdom of the Stars is currently mobilizing for a conquest of neighboring tribes in the wastelands, hoping to bring order to an otherwise impoverished people.
While there are many lands still unmapped, and many civilizations, both pagan and reformed by the Church, the Church of the Order wishes to spread the benefits of modern society to all humans. Internal factions, on the other hand, reject foreigners and see them as unworthy of modern advances, citing their unstable governments as an example of their lack of progress. Tensions are rising!
CHARACTERS + SIGN-UPSSign-ups are closed due to lack of interest.
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Topic: The Second Sky Awaits! EDIT: Closed (Read 903 times)