In the beginning, there were no humans. Laguz roamed the land, masters of it, hunting and eating to their contentment. As their numbers grew, and their societies grew more complex, the weakest among their number were faced with abuse from those above them. Those least capable of holding their transformation were less desirable and had difficulty hunting prey of their own, and were forced to find whatever food they could. As time went on, it came to such a point that there were those born who could not transform at all, and these people were cast out.
These people, the first humans, roamed the wilds, trapping and hunting what meager game they could, and forcing themselves to eat plants when they had no other option. Often, these people would meet in the wild and band together, forming primitive tribes and clans. These people would go on to discover agriculture and metallurgy in the northernmost reaches of the continent, where the Laguz rarely went as prey was more scarce there. By this time, the Laguz had not produced children incapable of transformation for nearly a thousand years, and those dark times had been mostly forgotten. What tales of such births remained were seen as stories meant to frighten expectant mothers and fathers, or to scare young children into believing they might never assume their bestial forms. Their connection to the humans was long forgotten. But by this time, Human populations were growing, and beginning to outgrow the meager strips of land that they had claimed for themselves. Armed with metal tipped spears and carved knives, the humans pushed south, claiming territory from the Laguz with walls of stone and threats of violence. At first, the Laguz were, if not happy to leave the humans to their land, at least compliant. While humans were weak individually, their tools and armor made them difficult to kill quickly, and were dangerous to a Laguz who had not transformed. As the humans continued to push south however, the Laguz began to lose valuable hunting ground, and eventually sought greater societal structure in order to push back against the humans. Feline Laguz were the first to combine beneath their own banner, followed swiftly by the Canines and to a lesser extent by the Avians. The dragons had long since cut off all other races from the territory they had claimed, and the human race was not remotely close to their borders, and so they took no part in it.
The War of the Walkers lasted almost thirty years, and untold numbers of dead piled on each side. The Avian Laguz were the first to withdraw from the war, and they retreated to the region now known as Yeon, where they remain even now. The Canine and Feline Laguz struggled against the humans for some time after, but eventually all parties came to the mutual agreement to bring the war to an end. The human nation of Morcia was established then, and the great Laguz nation of Bestia was established.
For a time, there was peace. The bloody War of the Walkers had left so many of both sides dead that the space available was more than enough to meet the needs of hunting and food production. In the years to come, however, the Canine and Feline Laguz drifted apart, breaking their nations into the modern lands of Sampia and Geumho. Human lands were rocked by strife as well. Internal power struggles led to another east/west split, and Morcia was cut in half, leading to the formaion of Dashun.
Today, war has risen once again. Morcia, starved for resources, has declared war on Sampia, their southern neighbor. For now, the war is in low gear. Neither side has committed a great number of troops to the effort, and skirmishes rarely advance past the border. Despite this, King Himos of Sampia has called for a band of human mercenaries to visit his domain with the promise of work...
Remember when I said I'd never run more than two of these at a time? I'm a goddamn liar.
Sampia: Capital-Pianta An enormous nation claimed by the Feline Laguz, and ruled by the Lion clan. The current King is King Himos, an aggressive leader who has been pushing back on human encroachment on his nation. The wide plains and dense forests of Sampia are home to the trickiest game in the world, and they are hunted by the sparse populations of the nation. The people of Sampia are strict carnivores, and while the poor make do with cattle and fowl they raise, the elite sup only on the wild game on their lands, either hunted personally or given in tribute by those below them. Those elites serve as warriors and arbiters of the king's justice. Apart from woven cloths and leathers, the Laguz of Sampia do not produce finished goods, and do not engage in trade.
The Laguz of Sampia are defensive and hostile to any but their own kind, and are cold even to those outside their own communities. Few things unite them beyond external threats, and they do not suffer the presence of 'lesser races' within their borders. The Sampians value strength and skill primarily, though wit and guile are also prized, even if the general view is that the stronger opponent will win the day regardless of deceit or tactics in battle.
Geumho: Capital- DaesonThe smallest and arguably weakest of the Laguz nations, the Geumho are a race of Canine Laguz, led by a young Queen Shira. They enjoy the closest relationship with humans of all the Laguz. While, like their kin, they eschew weapons and armor made in favor of their claws and own hide, they have begun to take up certain technologies created by humans such as farming equipment and advanced building construction, and seek to engage in trade with their neighboring states. Sampia has no interest in such things, but Dashun is more than happy to trade finished good for excess grains grown in Geumho, and the bird laguz of Yeon are fond of trinkets and will happily trade for them. Though their own numbers are small, the Canine Laguz are equals in combat with the Feline Laguz, and they have allies on many sides.
The people of Geumho are generally friendly and open unless provoked negatively, at which time their mood can turn violent quickly. While they're happy to adopt the mannerisms and cultures of others, their hearts always belong to their family at home. Few choose to live abroad, and they have a tendency to return to their families after only a few years. Unlike other Laguz nations, Geumho allows those of other bloodlines to live among them as equals, though humans are not treated as equals under the law. Geumans value peace and prosperity above most principles, and disdain any course of action that prolongs war.
Yeon: Capital- None A region of thick mountains and deep forests nearly impossible to traverse on foot, Yeon is the home of several different types of Avian Laguz. Unconcerned with the politics and strife of their neighbors and secure in their territory, the Avian Laguz engage only in petty squabbles with each other. Content to make alliances that last only weeks, the Avian Laguz constantly fight with other clans over prime hunting spots and territory.
The people of Yeon have the sparsest off all Laguz populations except possibly the dragons, but to find one who is not a talented hunter and fighter is a rarity. As Avian Laguz age, they tend to move south toward the coast, or toward the inland sea, and live their elder days fishing. Yeonese value their own independence and freedom above all other things, and will never compromise it for any reason. This aggressive individualism often leads them into conflict with others.
Vendumia: Capital - Unknown The fiercely defended home of the Dragon Laguz, Vendumia is ruled by an ancient Emperor said to have been around since the dawn of the human race. Dragon society is a mystery to the rest of the world, as the dragons suffer no outsiders within their borders. What little is known is that Dragon society is stratified by color hierarchies- Bronze, Crimson, and Azure dragons being the lowest, Emerald, Amethyst, and Gold dragons being upper class, and the highest manner of dragons being Black, Silver, or White. No outsiders are suffered within their borders, and the dragons are either unable or unwilling to leave those same borders. Thus, Vendumia's society is shrouded in mystery.
Morcia: Capital-Pres One of the two human nations, Morcia is home to a strong and innovative people. While their lands are fertile, metal and wood are scarce, leading to a reliance on magic for their military might and attempts to expand to the south to obtain more materials from the mineral rich lands of Sampia. Morcian society is very socially mobile, to a point. A common person may attain land or titles by purchasing them from the state, but only if that person has completed a minimum of five years of military service, and one child of each household is required to serve at least two. In practice, until recent years, access to even low ranking titles was heavily restricted as sitting nobles retained their titles generation after generation despite contributing little apart from administration in their own regions. With recent reformations from the young King Ascendant, all children of nobles except those with birth defects must serve the five years in order to retain their family title. It will likely be some time before these changes bear fruit, but with the war against Sampia growing fiercer by the day, one of two outcomes are certain: Either the boots of slain nobles will soon be vacant, or newly conquered Sampian soil will be in want of nobles to rule the territory.
The people of Morcia are generally distrustful of Laguz as a whole, and outright hatred of Feline Laguz is common due to historically heated relations between Sampia and Morcia. The Morcian people value duty and honor, and decry selfishness seen in others.
Dashun: Capital- Pinguo A region home primarily to humans, Dashun is unique on the continent in that all races are permitted to have full legal status and the same rights within their borders. In practice, their population is still heavily weighted to Humans (about 95%), with some Canine and Avian Laguz (3% and 2% respectively), and almost no Feline Laguz. Regardless, all species are equal under the law, and Dashunites are prolific traders, exporting livestock and finished goods, generally in exchange for either raw materials or grain. Trade caravans regularly travel to Morcia and Geumho, and some ships circle the coast to the near sections of Yeon to trade for rough stones common to those mountain regions. Some attempts to trade with Vendumia have been made, but all offers have been rejected, sometimes violently.
Q: Do Laguz live longer than Humans?
A: Not particularly. They have children at a slightly greater rate but succumb to disease or injury more often due to lack of access to curative magic. Under ideal conditions, Laguz might live 5 more years than humans.
Q: Are Laguz visually distinct from Humans?
A: Yes and no. Avian Laguz are the easiest to spot, as they all have wings on their back. Beast Laguz can have animal features, such as ears, nose, or tail, but can just as easily appear fully human at a glance. Laguz all have a subtle scent however, that betrays their nature. Most humans have difficulty identifying it unless they're in a Laguz's personal space, but Beast Laguz can tell the difference from about ten feet if they're looking for it.
That does not account for clothing, however. Most Laguz rely on simple hide clothing, and if they wear any metal, it is purely ornamental. Humans wear armor and more processed clothing.
Q: What do Laguz eat?
A: Laguz are obligate carnivores, and require a steady diet of meat. They can persist for short periods on plants, but it makes them terribly ill. They also have very low alcohol tolerance, which some of them exploit.
Q: Can Humans and Laguz have children together?
A: Yeah, they can, but conception between a pair is very rare. Such pairings generally result in Human children.
Q: What happens if you refer to a Wolf Laguz as a Dog?
A: By and large, that's going to piss them off, as dogs are considered lesser froms of the wolf. Worse, dogs exist only to serve humans. So yeah, it'd be similar to calling someone 'slave'.
Q: What happens with spawn between two types of Laguz?
A: The child will just end up as one type of Laguz or another.
Q: Can Laguz speak while transformed?
A: No, though they can make the usual noises. Nonverbal communication is possible, but usually difficult to interpret correctly between social groups.
Apart from general amusement, the point of this game is to test a ruleset for Laguz. While they've been discussed, they have not been used at all to this point, so these rules may be altered mid game several times. That said, the game will last several chapters and probably reach mid-level promoted class for humans, or 30-35 total level.
The Laguz reference book we will be using may be found here.The core ruleset we will be using may be found here.For effective testing, I'll be taking one dozen players. You guys will be getting one NPC, a Mercenary-> Commander with Ignis. If you notice an inconsistency in Laguz Chargen, please let me know! It's still early days with this, and I didn't have anyone proofread or edit the handbook, so there may be mistakes or missing information.
New players don't have to worry about that and only need to grab the standard handbook, because
only veteran players will be permitted to apply as Laguz. If I'm not familiar with your play history, please supply it to me. The reason I'm making this call is to make sure I can get a player's perspective on the differences between playing Laguz and playing normal classes, and players new to the system will not be able to make a meaningful distinction there due to a lack of experience. Also the list of transformation bonuses is not exhaustive, so if you have an idea for one that's not overbalanced, I may allow it.
Regardless of Class or Race,
All Players will begin the game at level 5. Trainees will not be in use. If you want a different weapon from your starting class, talk to me, we can make something happen.
Blank Character sheet. Please use this format for submissions. The human players will be part of a small mercenary group led by Grae Steelhart, contracted by King Himos of Sampia to infiltrate Morcia for a purpose to which they have not yet been told. Laguz players will be a small team of skilled Laguz Warriors tasked by King Himos to join the human mercenaries to assist in their goal, and will join after the first map.
Sample Laguz Sheet
Grae SteelhartElla, Princess of the CatsWolfgang Gault, Crown Prince of MorciaHuman Players:
1. Claire Carvalho (Gaterhyme)2. Iris von Grimmelshausen (Emral282)3. Milos Crawford (RedMageCole)4. Sheyra "Clover" Travies (Sheyra)5. Vanessa Shiel (Kansa)6. Godric Osmond (randomgenericusername) (Laguz Players
1. Aurelia Iris Chenoa (Twinwolf)2. Aya Hikasa (IamanElfCollaborator)3. Heledd Baines (KingMurdoc)4. Joachim del Navarre (SeriousConcentrate)5. Jupi Tchangou (rokubiraijuu)6. Raajak Khan (Sirus)Gold: 1550
StorageIC ThreadDroplist
1. Alys Seikatsu (KitRougard)2. Kawri (GiglameshDespair)
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Topic: Fire Emblem on Forums: Laguz Test Game OOC Thread (Beastmode) (Read 25100 times)