Post by qualapec on Aug 23, 2011 2:48:56 GMT -5
Beings of Might and Magic
Nations
Nations are the manifestations of the nationalism and unity that comes with a country. They are bound to their people in the strictest terms. Physically, their land is their body, their people are their blood. While their people influence their decisions, their thought is highly independent and they can disagree with their majority or government. They have free will, and can choose lovers and beliefs independent of that, even if they are not always capable of acting on it practically.
They cannot die under normal circumstances --- injuries caused by mundane means will heal, no matter how mortal. Should an injury result in death, they lapse into a short, temporary death lasting anywhere from an hour to a day depending on the extent of the damage. Magic poses a serious threat, as do vampires, which suck their blood and can effectively steal their powers and title (this must be agreed upon by players, as with any character death). They have a 50% chance of becoming werewolves if they are mauled to temporary death by one (the fight will be decided on by players, and an admin will determine whether or not a Nation is ‘turned’ as a result). They can be killed and controlled as a zombie by a necromancer, stalling the regular resurrection cycle until after the necromancer’s power is lifted (RPers would have to work out this arrangement, as it would technically lead to one player controlling the actions of another’s character. BOTH MUST AGREE to this arrangement).
Their purpose is heavily debated, even amongst themselves. Some look at their purpose as being archives for history, some think of themselves as being symbols of the health of the country, and some believe they are the scape-goats by which a peoples’ crimes --- the tyranny of the masses --- can be judged. Nobody really knows.
Vampires
Vampires are undead creatures that perpetuate their own existence through feeding on the blood of others. The blood acts as both nutritional supplement, and the act of drinking from a human allows for the transfer of energies to the vampire, they are not only sucking blood, but sucking ‘life energy’ as well. They do not have to kill their hosts. Feeding is addictive for the human. To become a vampire, the vampire must first drink the blood of the human, and then the human tastes a vampire’s blood (even a drop is enough). However, vampire culture strictly regulates the creation of new vampires, and transformation should not be taken lightly without the risk of serious punishment or death at the hands of their own people.
Vampires combust upon contact with the sun. Fire, beheading, and a stake through the heart are the most effective ways of killing them; grenades and bazookas would be effective as well. They can be damaged by holy water, any sort of object that people put faith in (including crosses or other holy emblems specific to the person trying to repel them), and they can be damaged by guns. Extensive damage can only be healed by feeding; depending on the extent of the wound, it is possible that they can take too much from a human.
They cannot enter a home without permission, but once permission is given they may come and go as they please. They appear much as they did in life, and tend to have a love of the finer things. They can be very vain, however, there are exceptions. First and foremost, they are predators and parasites. Their existence is dependent on people not knowing about them and subtlety is a survival trait for the individual and the community. Conspicuous vampires are often punished by the Elder.
Vampire characters do not have to be evil, but at least certain pragmatism is necessary to survive off of the blood of others. Nice people generally do not live long as vampires, and if they do, they have a hard time of it because of the nature of their existence and the politics of the group.
Werewolves
Humans that can transform into wolves. They are not like normal wolves --- they are all muscle, and more closely resemble stocky dogs with muscular frontal areas and skulls with incredibly potential for bite pressure. Because of the emphasis on muscle in their body structure, they cannot swim and easily drown. Transformation is not a simple process --- depending on the age of the werewolf, it can be anywhere from five minutes to ten seconds. It requires a great reformation of the human form, with bones breaking and stretching into place. It’s incredibly painful. They can transform at will for most of the month, but there is a mandatory change at the end of the month during the full moon.
Werewolves are made and not born.
They have a strong sense of hierarchy in the pack. There is an Alpha who leads the group, and their position is determined by inherent dominance as opposed to gender or prior position --- a newcomer could become Alpha in the event of the previous Alpha’s death instead of, say, the Alpha’s Second or mate. Unlike real wolves, they do have legitimate ambition, and occasionally you will meet one that puts their own position in the pack over the health of the pack.
Fights for dominance are highly informal, and usually only last a minute unless the wolves are trying to kill each other. Werewolves may choose to live alone, but run the risk of running afoul the local packs. Werewolf positions and the pack is looked at as ‘family’; lone werewolves are oftentimes seen as a threat to that stability.
They do not have to kill, but werewolves living in the city, like domestic dogs, must find ways to exercise their instincts. In this case, the instinct to hunt and kill, both as a group bonding activity and a way to relieve anxiety in their human lives, which can spill over into their wolf self and lead to disastrous consequences. Usually, this means the pack going into the woods and hunting wild game. The NYC pack has taken to hunting other supernatural beings to exercise these instincts and protect their territory.
If a wolf begins killing humans, they will be treated as a threat to the safety of the pack and be eliminated. If people become aware of their existence, there is the threat that they will be exterminated, and the pack cannot allow that. They are very social creatures, and the survival of the pack will usually be put above the individual’s sense of self-preservation.
It’s unknown how much of a dichotomy there is between the human and the wolf. As with vampires, werewolves who resist their animal urges too strongly run the risk of losing control of it entirely, yet the wolf cannot be allowed to roam free. They are not separate entities, but rather warring schools of survival, and the most successful, longest-lived werewolves find the balance between their human instincts and newfound wolf instincts.
Faeries
Most cultures of the world have some variation on the concept of ‘faerie’, and its exact usage comes into some debate in reference to one creature over another. They are spirits, creatures closely bound to the earth. They vary immensely in shape and personality depending on what region of the world they are from.
The world they hail from is as varied as the mortal world, from the heights of civilization to fae that are basically animals. They can be tall and fair, ruling the seasons, they can be goblins or trolls, or they can be tiny, winged folk. They can be helpful or mischievous. Overall, they are deeply different from one individual to another, even among their own clan or species. They have, in their own way, had far more of an influence on human culture and development than either vampires or werewolves, simply because of their society unintentionally bleeding into ours at various points.
Although they are not as prevalent in the mortal world as they once were, they still hold considerable sway over mortal minds and the ability to enter it because of how they remain at the center of mortal folklore.
Despite their differences, they do all share some traits in common. They have a weakness to cold steel and forged iron. It’s like a poison to them, and the fastest way to shred faerie magic is to bring cold steel to the enchantment. They cannot lie; however, they are very good at telling untruths and have spent centuries perfecting the art or rhetorical hyperbole. Deals with them are as binding as any devil, and easily as catastrophic to the unprepared. Do not let the loveliness or outward affection of some of them fool you.
Fae most commonly encountered in Europe usually fall into two categories --- Seelie and Unseelie, the Summer and the Winter, and there is a Queen for each court. They have magic deeply bound with and reliant on the Earth that connects the two worlds, and they are believed to affect the seasons. They are creatures of immense power and influence, said to rival the Old Gods. However, many fae fall outside this system, and among the fair folk it’s heavily debated whether or not they’re even considered fae, in a very mortal display of elitism and racism.
The Faerie Queens require a human male to reproduce. Since, there are no male fae of their caliber, they frequently desire to bring human men into their service through deceit or enchanted seduction. This is also why they will sometimes steal human children from their cribs at night and leave an imp in their place. Cruel fates almost always befall men that fraternize with faeries after their purpose has been served.
Nations
Nations are the manifestations of the nationalism and unity that comes with a country. They are bound to their people in the strictest terms. Physically, their land is their body, their people are their blood. While their people influence their decisions, their thought is highly independent and they can disagree with their majority or government. They have free will, and can choose lovers and beliefs independent of that, even if they are not always capable of acting on it practically.
They cannot die under normal circumstances --- injuries caused by mundane means will heal, no matter how mortal. Should an injury result in death, they lapse into a short, temporary death lasting anywhere from an hour to a day depending on the extent of the damage. Magic poses a serious threat, as do vampires, which suck their blood and can effectively steal their powers and title (this must be agreed upon by players, as with any character death). They have a 50% chance of becoming werewolves if they are mauled to temporary death by one (the fight will be decided on by players, and an admin will determine whether or not a Nation is ‘turned’ as a result). They can be killed and controlled as a zombie by a necromancer, stalling the regular resurrection cycle until after the necromancer’s power is lifted (RPers would have to work out this arrangement, as it would technically lead to one player controlling the actions of another’s character. BOTH MUST AGREE to this arrangement).
Their purpose is heavily debated, even amongst themselves. Some look at their purpose as being archives for history, some think of themselves as being symbols of the health of the country, and some believe they are the scape-goats by which a peoples’ crimes --- the tyranny of the masses --- can be judged. Nobody really knows.
Vampires
Vampires are undead creatures that perpetuate their own existence through feeding on the blood of others. The blood acts as both nutritional supplement, and the act of drinking from a human allows for the transfer of energies to the vampire, they are not only sucking blood, but sucking ‘life energy’ as well. They do not have to kill their hosts. Feeding is addictive for the human. To become a vampire, the vampire must first drink the blood of the human, and then the human tastes a vampire’s blood (even a drop is enough). However, vampire culture strictly regulates the creation of new vampires, and transformation should not be taken lightly without the risk of serious punishment or death at the hands of their own people.
Vampires combust upon contact with the sun. Fire, beheading, and a stake through the heart are the most effective ways of killing them; grenades and bazookas would be effective as well. They can be damaged by holy water, any sort of object that people put faith in (including crosses or other holy emblems specific to the person trying to repel them), and they can be damaged by guns. Extensive damage can only be healed by feeding; depending on the extent of the wound, it is possible that they can take too much from a human.
They cannot enter a home without permission, but once permission is given they may come and go as they please. They appear much as they did in life, and tend to have a love of the finer things. They can be very vain, however, there are exceptions. First and foremost, they are predators and parasites. Their existence is dependent on people not knowing about them and subtlety is a survival trait for the individual and the community. Conspicuous vampires are often punished by the Elder.
Vampire characters do not have to be evil, but at least certain pragmatism is necessary to survive off of the blood of others. Nice people generally do not live long as vampires, and if they do, they have a hard time of it because of the nature of their existence and the politics of the group.
Werewolves
Humans that can transform into wolves. They are not like normal wolves --- they are all muscle, and more closely resemble stocky dogs with muscular frontal areas and skulls with incredibly potential for bite pressure. Because of the emphasis on muscle in their body structure, they cannot swim and easily drown. Transformation is not a simple process --- depending on the age of the werewolf, it can be anywhere from five minutes to ten seconds. It requires a great reformation of the human form, with bones breaking and stretching into place. It’s incredibly painful. They can transform at will for most of the month, but there is a mandatory change at the end of the month during the full moon.
Werewolves are made and not born.
They have a strong sense of hierarchy in the pack. There is an Alpha who leads the group, and their position is determined by inherent dominance as opposed to gender or prior position --- a newcomer could become Alpha in the event of the previous Alpha’s death instead of, say, the Alpha’s Second or mate. Unlike real wolves, they do have legitimate ambition, and occasionally you will meet one that puts their own position in the pack over the health of the pack.
Fights for dominance are highly informal, and usually only last a minute unless the wolves are trying to kill each other. Werewolves may choose to live alone, but run the risk of running afoul the local packs. Werewolf positions and the pack is looked at as ‘family’; lone werewolves are oftentimes seen as a threat to that stability.
They do not have to kill, but werewolves living in the city, like domestic dogs, must find ways to exercise their instincts. In this case, the instinct to hunt and kill, both as a group bonding activity and a way to relieve anxiety in their human lives, which can spill over into their wolf self and lead to disastrous consequences. Usually, this means the pack going into the woods and hunting wild game. The NYC pack has taken to hunting other supernatural beings to exercise these instincts and protect their territory.
If a wolf begins killing humans, they will be treated as a threat to the safety of the pack and be eliminated. If people become aware of their existence, there is the threat that they will be exterminated, and the pack cannot allow that. They are very social creatures, and the survival of the pack will usually be put above the individual’s sense of self-preservation.
It’s unknown how much of a dichotomy there is between the human and the wolf. As with vampires, werewolves who resist their animal urges too strongly run the risk of losing control of it entirely, yet the wolf cannot be allowed to roam free. They are not separate entities, but rather warring schools of survival, and the most successful, longest-lived werewolves find the balance between their human instincts and newfound wolf instincts.
Faeries
Most cultures of the world have some variation on the concept of ‘faerie’, and its exact usage comes into some debate in reference to one creature over another. They are spirits, creatures closely bound to the earth. They vary immensely in shape and personality depending on what region of the world they are from.
The world they hail from is as varied as the mortal world, from the heights of civilization to fae that are basically animals. They can be tall and fair, ruling the seasons, they can be goblins or trolls, or they can be tiny, winged folk. They can be helpful or mischievous. Overall, they are deeply different from one individual to another, even among their own clan or species. They have, in their own way, had far more of an influence on human culture and development than either vampires or werewolves, simply because of their society unintentionally bleeding into ours at various points.
Although they are not as prevalent in the mortal world as they once were, they still hold considerable sway over mortal minds and the ability to enter it because of how they remain at the center of mortal folklore.
Despite their differences, they do all share some traits in common. They have a weakness to cold steel and forged iron. It’s like a poison to them, and the fastest way to shred faerie magic is to bring cold steel to the enchantment. They cannot lie; however, they are very good at telling untruths and have spent centuries perfecting the art or rhetorical hyperbole. Deals with them are as binding as any devil, and easily as catastrophic to the unprepared. Do not let the loveliness or outward affection of some of them fool you.
Fae most commonly encountered in Europe usually fall into two categories --- Seelie and Unseelie, the Summer and the Winter, and there is a Queen for each court. They have magic deeply bound with and reliant on the Earth that connects the two worlds, and they are believed to affect the seasons. They are creatures of immense power and influence, said to rival the Old Gods. However, many fae fall outside this system, and among the fair folk it’s heavily debated whether or not they’re even considered fae, in a very mortal display of elitism and racism.
The Faerie Queens require a human male to reproduce. Since, there are no male fae of their caliber, they frequently desire to bring human men into their service through deceit or enchanted seduction. This is also why they will sometimes steal human children from their cribs at night and leave an imp in their place. Cruel fates almost always befall men that fraternize with faeries after their purpose has been served.