In the Dojo (O.O.C. Chat - Session Zero)

[Purr]

I'll try to get to it soon, but don't think it's realistic to get there all that quickly -

Silanon Absolutely! I don't want us playing this game until we are all already to go - you included, good Sil!

I'm not ready to go either. There are at least three more steps I have to do on my end (Team Tactics, 3-step Prologue/Story Intro with PC interaction, and continuing to build Japantown/Chinatown). Much fun ahead!

 

[Purr]

Kaerri Psychie Sherwood Silanon
One of the reasons I'm asking about team purpose is because it's not clear given your team's personalities.

Spoiler: Personalities.

Haoyu and Alya sound like anger-driven brawlers to me - the kind of people who are quick to teach bad guys a physical lesson instead of talk sense into them.

Kiseko and Toby appear more laid back to me. They seem to want to think their way through problems and help people who need it, but they're not out to beat somebody up if they don't have to.

Moyo to me it seems to be on the other extreme of Ayla and Haoyu - he's not even going to raise a hand in combat unless he has to. This is not because he's afraid to fight for justice; he just knows all too well what his level of power can do to somebody and he's afraid of hurting somebody again.

I have about eight Adventures lined up for you guys, but I have no idea if all of you are going to like them or not because of how diverse your party is.

So maybe it would help if I give some examples of team purposes?

Spoiler: Examples.

I will start with a couple that I don't think will work just put them out there.

1. Crime Fighters. This kind of team is here to uphold the law because they believe laws are there for very good reason. Beating up bad guys is not the point of their action - stopping the crime is.

So, after subduing the baddies, they'll drop them off at the nearest police station if feasible in the hopes that the laws of the county/city/state/nation can help the criminals become decent law-abiding citizens.

Early Spider-man and Daredevil did this a lot in their comics. But with Alya and Haoyu in your team, I have come to doubt that you will. =)

2. Vigilante. A team like this is out there not just to battle bad guys but to put the fear of God into them while they're doing it. They do things their own way and if law enforcement doesn't like it, too bad.

If they send the criminals to the hospital with broken limbs and permanent damage, so what? The vigilantes are really here to stop the bad guys fist-first. Their message is simple - want to stop the pain? Stop doing the bad things, because I can always bring you more pain. Some eras of Batman and Punisher come to mind when I think of vigilantes.

I don't think this will work at all, not if you want Moyo, Kiseko, and Toby along. I see them as only going this far if there's no other option. They are practical and realistic towards violence, but "curb-stomp" is not among their preferred techniques.

3. Following of a Living Legacy. This is the kind of team that wants to follow some sort of great ideal. Maybe it's the example of another hero/group of heroes or perhaps it's a family thing. Whatever the case, they are out to follow a way of life because some higher power in their life promotes the ideals of serving others or stopping evil or whatever the legacy is.
This path of ilfe is very personal to them. These are not holy paladins or crime-fighting crusaders - these are people who want their role models to be proud of them. They follow said role models' way of life because they not only believe in it, but it really is part of who and what they are.

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are not crime fighters; they are ninja. Their living legacy is Splinter. Their destinies are forever linked and they do what they do largely out of love for each other and a sense of what is right.

I have no idea if Following a Living Legacy will work for your team because I don't know if that's something you find exciting.

Doing so doesn't mean you are clones of your legacy (Raphael and Splinter are in no way the same Alignment); doing so means you greatly value what the living legacy has done and is doing. You want to be like them, but also yourself. You want to make them proud of you and carry on their legacy.

These are just 3 examples. I bet you guys and gals can come up with more!

Again, I'm really eager to pin this one down because I want to make adventures all of you will enjoy together. =)

That's all for now. Back to Real Life! =)

 

[Sherwood]

I will ponder this and spitball some ideas for the group to discuss.

 

[Psychie]

I kinda like the idea of being crime fighters of some sort, with Moyo acting as a restraint to Haoyu and Ayla more lethal ways of dealing with criminals. I’m sure that given the right motivation even peaceful Moyo can be persuaded to apply some non lethal assistance in subduing a bad guy. Thwack the robber in the arm with the staff and it makes it much harder to shoot someone when you have broken bones to contend with

 

[Purr]

Oh. Haoyu is out to kill criminals?

Already, I am glad I brought this up.

Sherwood Would you enjoy playing a character who has to police his own party? His own family?

Kaerri Silanon How do Kiseko and Ayla feel about this? I specifically ask for Alya here because I don't remember her saying she was into killing anybody.

 

[Psychie]

I must rephrase my comment for clarity. Haoyu is not going to be a killer; he does not have the alignment to indiscriminately take a life. He is, however, going to be more willing to use lethal force than it sounds like Moyo will.

 

[Sherwood]

I have the mental image of Moyo being rather like a Paladin, being the voice of moderation for the family but able to be pushed to violence when it was needed. I do like the comment that Psychie made of how Moyo could use targeted strikes to disarm opponents, striking the arm to disable them.

 

[Purr]

I must rephrase my comment for clarity. Haoyu is not going to be a killer; he does not have the alignment to indiscriminately take a life. He is, however, going to be more willing to use lethal force than it sounds like Moyo will.

Thank you for the clarity! That's precisely where my mind was headed too, Psychie ("And he's Scrupulous?!")! Heh! =)

I have the mental image of Moyo being rather like a Paladin, being the voice of moderation for the family but able to be pushed to violence when it was needed. I do like the comment that Psychie made of how Moyo could use targeted strikes to disarm opponents, striking the arm to disable them.

O.K.! That's good to know too. =)

 

[Psychie]

I briefly considered changing Haoyu’s alignment, but that could cause a lot of problems that I don’t think anyone needs.

 

[Silanon]

How do Kiseko and Ayla feel about this? I specifically ask for Alya here because I don't remember her saying she was into killing anybody.

There's a part in her that does not care enough to produce corpses - a certain detachment from some of the reasons humans kill for.

There's a part that detests mankind's tendency to slaughter its own purposefully, feeling it's beneath her - the part that struggles with being human to a degree.

There's also a predator within, one that fights with the singleminded purpose to get things done, without restraints. Getting things done, however, should usually mean making sure that they're no longer a threat. Don't think she minds broken bones where she struck - their fault for enraging her enough to care.

Don't think she would kill on purpose - if, then instinctually. If there's a corpse in the end, she might be disgusted with her human nature; but unlike others, she's unlikely to mourn the loss of a stranger who called for it. She's happy to not kill, but if it happens, it happens - it'll drag her down, but not tear her apart. So - not a killer, but one with less restraints than others. That, at least, would be my first guess for now.

 

[Silanon]

When I decided on Alya's place of birth, I did some typing in the workshop - since it just kinda came up, I finished it. Her precise perspective ain't set in stone, but a few of these thoughts were at the core of her creation, so some of this will definitely be part of Alya.

Spoiler: Some typing

Home.

That's what it could've been.

Cliffs. A narrow beach between endless woods and the sea. Prey to hunt, spots to hide, and the endless sky above.

No more.

These wings have grown beyond. This body has merged to be more than it should have been. And, perhaps worst of all, the mind has awakened.

And thus, sharp eyes see what's hidden beneath those trees. See the signs of a slaughter half a century past, yet not forgotten. Even now, she spots smaller and larger groups. Here to remember mankind's nature and the many lives it took back then. They walk past old defense lines. Pass through narrow trenches. Perhaps imagine the maimed bodies of ten thousands, just like she does. Canakkale Savasi. Gallipoli. Pride of nations. Where the British Empire over-confidently struck, the ANZAC legacy was forged, and the Ottoman Empire endured. And yet she sees nothing but pointless deaths where blunt arrogance and zealous pride clashed.

Mankind's heritage, it seems, for elsewhere, the ground is similarly stained with blood. Every day, every night, men, women and children are slaughtered. In the name of capitalism, communism - ideology. For religious beliefs, revenge and pride, for food and water and for cold-hearted plans. And the groundwork for it? Running straight through her own veins as well like tainting poison. The same pride, thinking herself above the others. The same ferocity where it matters. The same selfless loyalty for those close to her. The same hardened will to endure hardships, again and again.

This could have been home. Now, it is a reminder, and a warning. And, if those are ignored, perhaps a glimpse of the future. Symbol for a similar place, elsewhere, where a bird, one day, might find a human's rest. Symbol for a pointless death ahead, encouraged and sweetened by the thought that the sacrifice would eventually matter. Ask what's left of the buried bones below - isn't mankind still at war with itself, despite their struggles?

It could have been simple. The cliffs, trees, the beach. Yet it isn't. For mankind is complicated, and now a part of her. She circles lower, as close as she dares without risking detection. To remember this moment and its lessons. To take back to America what she has seen, and heard, and witnessed. Here, she can simply keep her distance. There... there are brothers and sisters on the ground, and they lack this self-preserving distance. And their struggles? They'll draw her in, she knows. For she is tainted with mankind's heritage, and part of that is the curse to care. To care enough, she knows, to forget today's lessons, to stand in for a cause that seems worthy enough.

Fine, then. Let them lit up the bonfires of purpose to guide her. Perhaps one day, they will walk the trenches and lines of her struggles, and find a lesson within. One can hope, for there is more than just mankind within them - perhaps enough distance, then, to recognize what mankind itself still fails to see. Perhaps that is why mankind should fear them the most? Not simply for being different, but for being different enough to perhaps see the pointlessness of it all. For if mankind has struggled on the same way for centuries, how scary must it be to change its ways?

 

[Kaerri]

A Ninjitsu practitioner is anyone who is studying Ninjitsu on an amateur level. For example, where anyone off the street can go in and take Ninjitsu classes from Sensei Joe on Main Street, much like any popular martial art like Tae Kwon Do, Karate, Judo. I've read that people who take Ninjitsu self-defense are practicing only the fighting style of the ninjas which is called Taijitsu, which is all they're learning in the dojo.

A would-be shinobi, for the purposes of of our game, is someone who is practicing Ninjitsu on a professional level to become, for lack of better term, a real modern day ninja. They know the facts about ninja and a great deal more about the people, the culture, and the reasons behind Ninjitsu and they see Ninjitsu not as fantasy but as fact. Many of them are completely devoted to the ninja way of life as opposed to "part-time" wanna-be ninja practitioners.

Kaerri I am wanting to know Kiseko's attitude toward Ninjitsu largely for role-playing reasons. Knowing how Kiseko feels about Ninjitsu will help me as a Game Master in a number of ways. Plus, your teammates here will certainly know how seriously Kiseko takes this one-of-a-kind martial art and that'll help you all get to know each other a little better. =)

It's probable that she'll lean more towards the "professional" level, but I can't say for sure because I still don't know what that means. I understand the difference between "amateur" and "pro" but -- the the "facts about ninja"? The "people, culture, and reasons behind Ninjitsu"? I don't have much more than a vague idea of these in real life (and what I have, is based more on TV, movies, and games rather than fact), much less in the Other Strangeness world.

For both Kaerri and Sil, what can I do to help the two of you be comfortable in posting your characters in the Character Thread?

It's not a matter of comfort in posting, it's that she just isn't finished. I need to redo her skills, or at least make sure her number of skill packages and secondary skills is right. And sit down and try to put her character into words to finish out the other tabs.

3. Following of a Living Legacy. This is the kind of team that wants to follow some sort of great ideal. Maybe it's the example of another hero/group of heroes or perhaps it's a family thing. Whatever the case, they are out to follow a way of life because some higher power in their life promotes the ideals of serving others or stopping evil or whatever the legacy is.
This path of ilfe is very personal to them. These are not holy paladins or crime-fighting crusaders - these are people who want their role models to be proud of them. They follow said role models' way of life because they not only believe in it, but it really is part of who and what they are.

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are not crime fighters; they are ninja. Their living legacy is Splinter. Their destinies are forever linked and they do what they do largely out of love for each other and a sense of what is right.

I have no idea if Following a Living Legacy will work for your team because I don't know if that's something you find exciting.

Doing so doesn't mean you are clones of your legacy (Raphael and Splinter are in no way the same Alignment); doing so means you greatly value what the living legacy has done and is doing. You want to be like them, but also yourself. You want to make them proud of you and carry on their legacy.

Of those three, this is closest to what Kiseko would choose. Looking forward to what Sherwood (and anyone else) comes up with. I'm low on ideas myself; maybe after coffee?

Kaerri Silanon How do Kiseko and Ayla feel about this? I specifically ask for Alya here because I don't remember her saying she was into killing anybody.

Kiseko would be more out to stop the bad guys than to stomp them into submission. Unless that's what it takes to stomp them. Some people need hard lessons to change their ways. Some won't change regardless of what we do. Those, she might well kill, since saving the good and innocent is higher priority to her than avoiding killing. She will remember those whose lives she's taken, but probably not mourn them. Their choices led to their demise, as far as she's concerned. But it's not likely to be her first option.

 

[Silanon]

So maybe it would help if I give some examples of team purposes?

Of those three, none hit the mark for Alya - though you already said that does would likely not do the trick.
1. means caring about the law, which she doesn't. 2. means having that as the constant agenda, whereas I want her bursts of aggression to be temporary, not her entire agenda. And 3. would require a person to look up to, which really doesn't work with her concept - if she had a clear vision to follow, she wouldn't need to struggle to find her path.

That said, I don't have much to offer myself - one problem being that Alya does not come with a strong agenda, other than perhaps ripping apart whomever tries to create the next gloomy birb. She is designed in a way to join someone else's crusade rather than lead her own; and I don't know enough about the others to have a clear idea what they'd fight for. Some ideas, sure, but not enough to find one that unites us all.

 

[Sherwood]

For some reason, I’m getting an A-Team vibe from this. We get into Chinatown and along the way, someone that knows our Saviors somehow gets word to us that they need help because one of the gangs that run the area are doing some shady stuff to ruin them and we come in to protect these people.

Word starts to spread and soon enough we get other requests to help a family do something like recover a kidnapped child and we may not be human, but we all have a heart that won’t let us sit back and do nothing. Eventually we become the de facto guardians of Chinatown, a well known secret kept by all the people we help.

 

[Psychie]

While I’m not familiar with the A Team reference other than as a movie from a few years ago that I never saw, I like the idea that Sherwood just mentioned. Having to stay hidden from the ‘legit’ law enforcement people that want to apprehend us because we are breaking the law, but being sheltered by the people we are protecting from threats that are not just gangs, but include supernatural challenges that the police just can’t understand or cope with.

 

[Silanon]

The idea sounds promising, though I can already smell the betrayal - nothing good will come out of that, folks, mark my words...

For Alya, simply jumping at opportunities to help works better than starting our own anti-crime campaign, I'd reckon. Though that might change over the course of the game, of course, when she starts to be more invested in the local problems.

As for the reference: I'm about as clueless as you are, Psy - heard the name, but that's it. Oh well, better young and ignorant than... old and ignorant, I suppose?

 

[Sherwood]

The A-Team was a action show in the mid-80’s that was about an army special forces unit that was falsely accused of being criminals and in every episode there was someone that needed help in some department that law enforcement wouldn’t or couldn’t aid them in, you might be able to hire the A-Team to save the day. They were not killers (this was in the 80’s after all) but were always able to do the job and be the unsung heroes of whatever was the problem.

 

[Silanon]

Sounds fitting, I'd say - thanks for the description!

What I'm wondering is whether just being available to help out would be sufficient for all of our characters - or whether some of us would need to work towards a grander vision than that - like, not just helping out, but also building towards something. Alya would probably be fine just with the occasional "hey, let's help out there", but others might need more than that to be happy.

Like, just helping is very reactive - some might need a more active role instead.

 

[Sherwood]

Of course! This is just one idea that came to mind. There are certainly many other options out there to look at.

 

[Kaerri]

I like the A-team concept, as described by Sherwood (I haven't seen it either, hehe). Kiseko would be good with taking on one person-in-need job after another. Maybe later, if we find out two or more of our customers are having troubles caused by the same person/group/organization, we could aim a little higher and go directly for them? Go from reactive to proactive, as it were, in that case. I don't think Kiseko is the type to need a big overall goal, but a story-arc type of big bad could be fun to track down now and then.

 

[Sherwood]

That is the exact kind of thought that I had for us.

 

[Purr]

I briefly considered changing Haoyu’s alignment, but that could cause a lot of problems that I don’t think anyone needs.

Psychie thinking of everybody as usual! =) Psychie The Khans are largely Scrupulous to Unprincipled. I can't think of a Principled or Anarchist-aligned one of them, though depending on who you talk to, you might get folks who believe the Khans are either of those too. They're cats - they do as they damn well please. But they're also good-hearted Demon Quellers - who also do as they damn well please. =)

There's a part that detests mankind's tendency to slaughter its own purposefully, feeling it's beneath her - the part that struggles with being human to a degree.

Just to provide a viewpoint - by and large, the Mutanimals do not see themselves as human. This is in large part because they are outside of human society and are treated so very differently, often feared on sight! Mutant animals have a wide array of perspectives on this subject - some like having anthropomorphic bodies and that's where their link to humankind ends. Others love having opposable digits, the gifts of language and learning, often powerful bodies, and most of all - a brain of the likes they did not imagine even existed when they were animals!

 

[Psychie]

I like the A-team concept, as described by Sherwood (I haven't seen it either, hehe).

Old Sherwood is old.

 

[Sherwood]

Old Sherwood is old.

Watch it, Missy! Don’t make me shake my cane at you! lol

 

[Sherwood]

Purr do we have any kind of idea just how many mutant animals there are out there?