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[monk12]

Winter on the Mountain
Originally by Harry Baldman on Roller's Block, developed by Monk12

High in the mountains lies an alpine resort- its name changes every time a new company purchases the property, but the locals refer to it as the Mansion. During the summer, it is a popular retreat for wealthy individuals and corporate groups seeking to escape the heat on the coast. During the winter, however, the Mansion lies empty, cut off from civilization by heavy snowfalls that arrive early and linger late.

Empty except for the caretaker, that is.

During the winter, the property is maintained by a man who appreciates the solitude and ample free time afforded him- his main responsibilities are to prevent and minimize damage that can occur during the harsh mountain storms. Unfortunately, it seems that the isolation drove him mad in the end, and he killed himself in a spectacularly gory way. The locals whisper that the Mansion is cursed, but the psychologists agree that Man, as a social being, is simply not meant to be so isolated, especially not in this modern era of social networking.

Acting on the recommendations of those psychologists, the Weatherford Group (a wealthy investment company and current owner of the Mansion) selected a new caretaker with one important criterion added to the job description: The caretaker must be a family man willing to bring his loved ones with him for the winter. A small, nuclear family should provide plenty of social interaction to maintain the mental health of the caretaker; the psychologists say so.

With the generous pay and free access to the Mansion's facilities, what family would pass up a nice winter vacation in the mountains?

Spoiler: What's this game about? (click to show/hide)

You are one of the family members at the Mansion. Your overall goal is to be happy and fulfilled, which you do by accomplishing objectives based on your character role and background. This typically involves solving everyday sorts of problems; the Dad has to do his job, the Mom has to cook dinner, the Teen has homework, the Kid needs to play, the Dog nee-SQUIRREL! Sometimes your objectives conflict, but remember, you succeed or fail as a family!

The standard action is simply as follows:

1 and lower- Critical Failure- Your action fails, and your situation worsens as a result.
2- Failure- Your action fails, but you suffer no other special penalty.
3- Partial Success- Your action succeeds, but perhaps not to the degree you might have wished.
4- Success- Your action succeeds as planned.
5- Critical Success- Your action achieves the best possible result.
6+ - Overshoot- You succeed, and as a result of that success your overall situation changes unexpectedly, for better or worse.

Circumstances may modify this roll, as well as traits and ability use. In pass/fail scenarios, 1 and 2 are fails while 3 and up is a pass. Characters may expend AP to add 1 to any action, as described under the Characters spoiler. In the event of combat the Attacker makes a roll to hit, and the Defender makes a dodge roll to determine damage. Combat is not the driving force of this RTD.

Spoiler: Characters (click to show/hide)

Role: This describes your role in the family, giving you some basic abilities as well as defining some of your personal objectives.
AP: AP stands for Action Points, which can be used at any time to give a +1 bonus to your next roll. There is no limit to the number of AP that can be spent in one turn. AP is also used to fuel any special abilities you may possess. AP supplies are limited, but are regenerated by leveling up or using special items.
XP: XP stands for Experience, which is a measure of how close a character is to leveling up. XP is gained by accomplishing objectives based on their role and personality, and at GM discretion characters may set their own objectives. When the XP meter is filled, the character levels up. Leveling up fully replenishes AP and allows the character to gain a new Trait.
Status: If you are hurt, confused, insane, sick, or have any other unusual status effect.
Traits: A list of abilities, passive bonuses, and similar mechanics available to your character.


To apply for the game, select one or more of the following Characters, fill out the Bio, and select ONE Trait. When filling out the Bio, remember that your background needs to fit into your character role and the rest of the family. You may find it easier (and are encouraged) to focus more on hobbies, interests, and vices than your specific life story.


The Father Figure: The one who wears the pants, as it were. This character's primary responsibility is the maintenance of the Mansion and its environs.
Bio:
AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Available Traits:
Man of the House
Mr. Fixit
Gearhead


The Mother Figure: The homemaker. This character's primary responsibility is the care and feeding of the family members.
Bio:
AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Available Traits:
Cooking Mama
Mama's Healing Kisses
Cat Herder


The Teenager: The eldest child. This character's primary responsibility is schoolwork, and while expected to help out the parents the Teenager would rather use their free time for fun stuff.
Bio:
AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Available Traits:
Open Minded
Studious
Diverse Interests


The Little Kid: The youngest child, about 8 years old. You have fewer responsibilities than the Teenager, which is good since you want to spend all your time playing and exploring! This place is cool!
Bio:
AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Available Traits:
Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Right is Right, Wrong is Wrong
Curious Little Monkey


The Family Dog: Man's Best Friend, that's you! You generally try to help out the rest of the family, when you're not off chasing squirrels.
Bio:
AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Available Traits:
Evil Detecting Dog
Neat Trick
Loyal Companion

Character applications are not first come first served. Characters are selected based on how well the application is written (e.g spelling & grammar,) how interesting the character concept is, and how well that character works with the rest of the family. The characters will not change once selected, though a small waitlist will be kept in case of terminally delinquent players. Once begun, I'm aiming for an update every 2 days, so be sure to post an action before the 48 hour mark.

[Elephant Parade]

Elephant, Family Dog.
Bio: Woof. Woof woof woof. Arf arf yip. BARK! Woof woof woof; arf yip arf.
AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Trait: Evil-Detecting Dog

[Tiruin]

Posting to play soon.

Spoiler: "Verit" ; The Family Dog (click to show/hide)

Bio: The name taken after a symbolic phrase meaning "Seeker of Truth", the first thought that people get when asking about the dog--rarely, if ever--is a quick response of his past. "Veritatis cupitor", the origin of the name, couldn't be better in describing Verit's life. She responds readily to the name, and seems to understand human intent; her responses however, are a mixture of both humorous play and that of a studying mind, given her 'stoic' temperament and her watchful glare. Her time spent with the family mostly involved play with the little ones, as well as giving the ever-useful nudge to the older ones when they needed 'someone to listen to' in their alone time.

Her past is a blur of memories. Verit was part of a small litter of St. Bernard puppies--similar to mastiffs--born near the alpine range. What happened from then until her being in a warm and safe place was a confusing blur of intangible sense: smell, sound and color mixed with her idea of family and togetherness as deep in her youth, she was separated from her family by what she best remembers as 'double rings of yellow, garish light, growing larger and louder until the night came.' In truth, it had been the fault of a moody driver that caused her 'separation', and by his atonement (for he was a pious and self-respecting man), decided to adopt the only other, present at the scene.

She responds readily to the sound of a ringing bell, or that of the steel triangle being rung, no matter how faint. Her fur is golden-brown in color, and she her irises are in the hue of amber. Her body build is...as fit as she thinks she is. Taught in the way of tacit peace and loyalty, Verit seems to be pretty much the silent sort, yet also ascribed to be a motherly figure: speaking through sincere action and not words.

The family would usually see her, on peaceful days, sitting out in the front or backyard, "basking in the sun", or pretty much just sitting down on a rock outcropping and admiring the scenery, most especially the mountain ranges and their paw-ful coercion of cold, fluffy snow.

AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Available Traits:
Evil Detecting Dog

The locals whisper that the Mansion is cursed, but the psychologists agree that Man, as a social being, is simply not meant to be so isolated, especially not in this modern era of social networking.

I can provide a long argument regarding this, if anyone's interested. ;P

Also I'm interested in any sort of family (and am willing to change my sheet to a Mother figure if needed given the...variety present).


...Note ahead: If I get to play as the family dog, expect a lot of darn body language RP and stuff like that.

[Toaster]

I was just thinking about this the other day!

Unsure if I can invest in another RP-heavy game at this time, but certainly PTW.

[Tsuchigumo550]

Derya Levni((Someone else come up with a last name and I'll use that, unless people like Levni.))
The Teenager

Bio: Derya is an intelligent, quiet 17-year-old high school student. She's somewhat agile, participating in a few sports clubs, but spends most of her time reading and studying. She has little trouble with tests, and is sometimes the envy of her peers. While somewhat socially awkward and shy, she's very friendly and warm with those who know her. She enjoys science fiction and horror novels, and has read a little Lovecraft. She enjoys thinking outside of the box, and toying with the notion that things aren't always what they seem. Having never put any real stock into such thoughts beyond a fun distraction in boring classes, she uses her talent of complete BS to seem more knowledgeable and lie about having homework. She's secretly a smoker, though she went with electronic cigarettes recently because they were much easier to hide.

She wants to go into a technical field and has done some light programming. As a hobby, she likes to take apart older electronics and try to put them together, she one day hopes to get enough funds and resources to build a home-made drone. Some of the family worries that she's less social than others and cares little for gossip, and others are proud at her efforts to put education first. She can be loving, but if annoyed, she'd much prefer to leave, ignore, or assault the annoyance with sarcasm.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Available Traits:
Diverse Interests (Electronics)

[Fniff]

Angelo (Wilkerson, unless there is a predetermined family name/nobody likes the name), Father Figure
Bio: Angelo used to have a sketchy past, but he's settled down now. He has skills in engineering and repairing, making a personal hobby of modifying his vintage car and explicitly advertising it hoping that potential employers will ignore his criminal record. Indulges in a marijuana habit that he tries to hide from his kids and wife. Possesses a Brooklyn accent, and tries to do his best to provide for his family even though he knows that all the shady stuff he's done in the past has probably ruined his life permanently.
AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Available Traits:
Mr. Fixit

[Lenglon]

Interested
Maryn Levni (I like Tsuchigumo's last name, but am fine with it being something different. It's not like Maryn got to pick her own last name after all!)
The Little Kid: The youngest child, about 8 years old. You have fewer responsibilities than the Teenager, which is good since you want to spend all your time playing and exploring! This place is cool!
Bio: Eager, wholehearted in everything she does, and highly capricious. Maryn sees no reason to do thing halfway, leading to some... issues... when caution would be well-advised. still, she's always come out okay, and the adventures she ends up in are always really neat! She's no stranger to mud and minor scrapes, and she doesn't have any problem with heights, though certain older people seem to freak out if they catch her at it. Maryn is really looking forward to sifting through every nook and cranny of this new place. Sadly, she had to leave behind her collection of odds and ends she gathered on her past adventures, but that's just even more reason to start a new collection while she's here!
AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Trait: Curious Little Monkey

[Powder Miner]

Interested.
Will likely use my time doing homework as a teen making a character doing homework as a teen. You monster.
Will make a char for each slot, starting with the teen, so Monk picks which he likes best of my apps or MAYBE I DONT EVEN GET IN AT ALL PLOTTWIST.

Spoiler: Teenager (click to show/hide)

Garen (Haig), The Teenager:
Bio: 16 years of age, Garen is a mix of sociability and anti-sociability. On one hand, he's particularly social when he's not busy with anything, and will gladly take a moment to speak with most people who would like to. He generally has a laid-back personality, and rolls with things the best he can, doing the best he can not to step upon any toes. This lax personality garners him few incredibly close friends, yet very few enemies. However, Garen has issues actually committing to more than one friendship at a time, and as such friends may tend to drift from him extremely easily.

Garen's fine with this and being with himself though, as when he's focusing on something, he simply loses all will to pay attention to anything outside of his world of concentration. And while he could perhaps use this directly for school, he uses it on his own particular hobby: Garen's a geography nut. Now, while this may be strange, Garen has certainly made something of it, showing that he has a rapidly developing talent for cartography. When not map-making or -studying, Garen's hobbies include reading, the occasional game (Nintendo), and often just relaxing.

While it takes a lot to annoy Garen, it can happen. Garen hates the heat, and doesn't much like it when people can't leave him alone when he wants to be left alone.
AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Available Traits:
Diverse Interests (Geography)

Other sheets incoming tomorrow.

[DarkArtemisFowl]

Weynor Wilkerson (Supporting Fniff's name)
Bio: Her past is very scarred. She was one of the Guardians a long time prior, but now she's older and mature, so she decided to marry and have kids. She has brown-golden hair and orange bright eyes, and although she's often haunted by nightmares of the last battle of the Iridescent Army at Mount Megiddo, she manages to smile for her kids and husband. She wears a brown coat, a maroon dress shirt and black pants, a flame-colored scarf, and sometimes a cap.
AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Available Traits:
Mama's Healing Kisses

[SeriousConcentrate]

Floyd (fine with whatever the last name turns out to be, but suggesting Merrill), The Father Figure
Bio: "Always wanted to be a NASCAR driver, y'know? Only problem is I've always had sort've a knack for fixing up cars, not driving them. Though, I did get to work at the Daytona 500 for a few years - pit crew for #91, Godfrey Kendrick - before I opened up my own repair shop. Speaking of fixing up cars, this baby right here? She's going to purr like a kitten when I'm through with her. Best damn muscle car you'll ever see, I guarantee it."
AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Available Traits:
Gearhead

[Gamerlord]

Sean, The Teenager
Bio: Hates his younger sibling for being annoying. Irritated by overbearing parents and stupid dog. Prefers to stay in his room and listen to heavy metal and plot his eventual escape from this hell of a family. Fascinated by Satanic imagery and Lovecraftian horror.
AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Trait:
Open Minded

[Draignean]

Mary-Anne Merril (Supporting SC), The Mother
Bio: Employed as a nurse before her first child came along, Mary-Anne has since transformed into the gold standard of housewives. Granted, her cooking can leave something to be desired, and she has a mild addiction to exercise videos, but her heart is solid gold. She thinks the mountain air will help ease her oldest's adolescent moods, and she always makes a point to mention the beautiful scenery. She loves the outdoors, at least until she gets to thinking about the wildlife. If she lingers too long on thoughts of the mountain fauna she starts picturing bears in her kitchen and begins hyperventilating. She does well under stress, but tends to blow things that haven't happened yet out of proportion.
AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Trait:
Mama's Healing Kisses

[Harry Baldman]

I'll sign up as well.

Harpo, the Family Dog.
Bio: a fiercely loyal, yet also very mild-mannered and playful Rottweiler, Harpo has been with the family for about five years now. He's gotten a bit fat over the years, which makes him a bit more easily tired, but hopefully a winter in the mountains might solve that issue. He's never quite gotten out of a puppy's state of mind, though this, to his owners, is quite alright as long as he remains housebroken. He loves squeaky toys and pretty lights, but is not really the greatest fan of playing fetch, as it is difficult for him to sustain a sprint for very long. He also greatly enjoys digging holes and burying things, usually bones but occasionally other things as well - once he found and buried the man of the house's car and house keys, not knowing what they were aside from a really jingly set of metal objects - they never caught him.
AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Trait: Loyal Companion

[Cheesecake]

Victor (Going with any last name), The Little Kid:
Bio: What's right and what's wrong? Apparently, no one knows. Except Victor. Bullying? Wrong. Helping? Right! Helping someone cheat? Wrong. Bullying someone who's cheating? Right! It's this view of the world that has left Victor with few, if any, friends. The odd friend he makes while defending from a middle school thug is just as soon lost as is gained from Victor's poor moral vision. But now that they're at the Mansion, there aren't any children to make friends with, and if you can't make friends, you can't lose them either!
AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Traits
Right is Right, Wrong is Wrong

[darkpaladin109]

Signing up.
Josh, The Teenager (any last name is good)
Bio: Unlike the typical teenager, Josh doesn't dislike going to school. He likes reading science-fiction and mistery novels. He also likes reading about history, mythology, and various legends. He doesn't like doing much work, and instead prefers to stay in his room reading books or listening to music. He likes his parents and younger sibling. He can get angry very quickly, and he doesn't like it when people interupt him. He also dislikes being alone in places he isn't familiar with. He read as much of the mansion's history as possible before his family left.
AP: 3/3
XP: 0/10
Status: Normal
Traits: Diverse Interests (history)