FiguringThisOutVerySlowly
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welcome
to st. valens’ academy
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Welcome to St. Valens’ Academy for aspiring dragon riders from all around the globe! The world is falling apart atom by atom, sure—all the more reason to join! Engross yourself in meaningless trench warfare, represent your nation in pointless politics, or become a slave to paperwork, all made possible by the exploitation of the dragon by your side. It’s never too late to start a boy band with your fire-breathing friend—everything is possible at St. Valens’ Academy!
Worry not about the magical corruption that’s slowly consuming your home or the war that encroaches on the peace of Greater Bylcade. In this war-torn and Corruption-addled world, you can consider this place an oasis for all sorts (so long as you don’t mind the academic torture to get in and the academic torture to stay in).
Whether you’re new or returning for summer break, you can enjoy lush dormitories here on campus safe from the harsh landscape scratching at your doorstep while you study for the task ahead. Prepare to join an epic battle against what may or may not be the apocalypse and whatever hostile forces lie ahead, or pick up a flute and lute together with your dragon to look cool in front of a crowd!
Whatever your goal is for your future as a dragon rider, we can promise you an interesting experience here at the Academy!*
* St Valens’ Academy can promise nothing else. Refunds will not be awarded if the interesting experience** is not achieved. See attached pamphlet and seek Terms and Conditions for more information.
** If an interesting experience to you is touching a strange bush, getting cancer, and dying brutally, you are responsible for all damages, including funeral costs.
Worry not about the magical corruption that’s slowly consuming your home or the war that encroaches on the peace of Greater Bylcade. In this war-torn and Corruption-addled world, you can consider this place an oasis for all sorts (so long as you don’t mind the academic torture to get in and the academic torture to stay in).
Whether you’re new or returning for summer break, you can enjoy lush dormitories here on campus safe from the harsh landscape scratching at your doorstep while you study for the task ahead. Prepare to join an epic battle against what may or may not be the apocalypse and whatever hostile forces lie ahead, or pick up a flute and lute together with your dragon to look cool in front of a crowd!
Whatever your goal is for your future as a dragon rider, we can promise you an interesting experience here at the Academy!*
* St Valens’ Academy can promise nothing else. Refunds will not be awarded if the interesting experience** is not achieved. See attached pamphlet and seek Terms and Conditions for more information.
** If an interesting experience to you is touching a strange bush, getting cancer, and dying brutally, you are responsible for all damages, including funeral costs.
♡coded by uxie♡
intro
cirque
sub urban
overview.
Still here? You must be intrigued! If you’re into lore-heavy worldbuilding, attempts at new takes on common concepts, and story progression based on But Is It Funny, Though?, then we’d love to have you!
This RP is a semi-apocalyptic high fantasy with medieval elements, although slang and certain beliefs can be quite modernish. All architecture and aesthetics are medieval- or Renaissance-esque, with a hint of gothic modern for some spice. We’ll be following the stories of the students and professors of St. Valens’ Academy, one of the most prestigious dragon rider academies in all eight seven nations.
In this world, dragon riders are an umbrella term for a profession of people who work with dragons to do a wide range of things depending on what division the rider and dragon are trained under. Despite the amount of choice a prospective dragon rider is given, they were created specifically to be used by the government, whether it’s to take on their enemies in the usual political warfare, to act as advertisement for the military by being cool celebrities and medal-covered warriors to the common people, or, most commonly, fighting off the highly contagious magical Corruption that’s plagued the land.
Since the collapse of Majia, the Heart of Magic, none of the other nations willing to take the blame for its fall, magic has, frankly, gone absolutely haywire. Majia had fundamentally changed the core of magic in order to be easier accessible to the common man, and with its destruction, magic, once an essential part of the fabric of reality interwoven with nearly all creatures and aspects of life, shattered as a whole. Now, all creatures who partake in it may or may not become Corrupted by the slightest mistake, overuse, or even just by chance, and become brutally marred and infectious to everything and everyone around them—until their atoms are burnt to a crisp at the hands of dragon riders (or other government officers, but we don’t care about them). Even though you can cast spells, the risk far outweighs the benefits.
The overall instability of the world is fueled by the nations’ growing tensions, leaving most nations on the brink of war, if not already in the midst of wartime, for which dragon riders are exploited to the deaths of many.
Suffice to say, our characters have to worry about a lot.
Despite this, many strive to try to live as normally as possible, adapting along the way, distracted from the turmoil of their surroundings with fun activities and homework to do or grade—with only the occasional reality-checking event mingling in. Perhaps, if all goes well, the students of the Academy will graduate with intact limbs and professors will finally get their research grants.
roles
roles (no limit per).
prodigy
open
An elite group of students chosen directly by the Headmaster to represent the school and be an example of drive and excellence for fellow students. The exact qualifications one must have to become an Academy Prodigy is unknown. The criteria appears eclectic and varies greatly. A student from any year and any division can become a Prodigy. Common traits noted in Prodigies are exceptional drive and wit. Academic performance, surprisingly, seems to not be taken into account, though Heads state it can impact a student’s likelihood to be chosen. The Headmaster is not transparent with the maximum number of Prodigies the Academy can have, but he appears to keep the number under 9. He tends to favor odd numbers of Prodigies.
A chosen student will remain a Prodigy until graduation, transfer out of the Academy, when the Headmaster decides they no longer fit the role, or when they no longer want to be a Prodigy. Prodigies have sway over any decisions the Headmaster and Heads of Divisions make and have tuition and extra fees entirely paid for. Students who achieve and later step down from a Prodigy role keep their full ride.
Within Academy culture, most students know of the Prodigies. They’re treated with either awe or extra judgment by their peers.
FRONTLINER UNITS
offensive frontliner
open
Graduates have (FLO) attached to their title or replacing their title. Their ability is in raw strength, expected to either incapacitate or kill the enemy. The expectations of offensive frontliners tend to differ the most, as some work best purely at the forefront in order to overwhelm and overtake the enemy, while some work in tandem with defense or support units in order to ensure their safety as they chip away at the enemy. They’re typically the role children think of when they dream of becoming a dragon rider.
defensive frontliner
open
Graduates have (FLD) attached to their title or replacing their title. They’re expected to be able to hold the line on the battlefield and push the enemy back, as well as ensure minimal casualties and injuries. They’re the centerpiece in ensuring the front lines don’t ever get overwhelmed in the case of a frontal assault, and are also essential in protecting the offense as they fight.
frontliner bodyguard
open
Graduates have (FLBG) attached to their title or replacing their title. Their job is to defend the helpless in extremely hostile situations, such as transporting hostages in warfare, guiding asylum seekers to cities, and saving survivors in corrupted regions, and being able to identify and eliminate threats in any of the situations they may experience. Due to the nature of most dangerous situations in today’s day and age, students are taught how to identify stages of corruption in individuals and taught how to make tough calls if corruption is identified.
PUBLIC RELATIONS
representa- tive
open
Graduates have (PRR) attached to their title or replacing their title. They’re the most actively involved in politics, known for their silver tongues and their abilities to get anything their country needs them to get. In a dangerous world where everyone is on the brink of war, a mix of sensitivity and a show of power is needed in just the right quantities in order to navigate this world, and representatives have that sense of reliability, intimidation, and charm in order to get just that. Their courses are majorly political ones, and they typically wind up war negotiators, politicians, or interrogators in prisons after graduations. Practice comes in the form of representing the Academy in debates with other dragon rider schools, or representing clubs as the club founder and/or leader.
public figure
open
Graduates have (PRPF) attached to their title or replacing their title. “Public figure” is the fancy word for celebrity in this case, as this course is for the students who joined in order to become one. Dragon riders are beloved in the community and the warriors whose stories are spread are cheered in whichever room they enter, earning a celebrity status, and many left the battlefield in order to ride this hype and become singers, actors, boy band players, and so on and so forth. This was extremely profitable, both for the economy as well as for the glorification of the country’s war machines, and people seem to adore this genre of celebrity, so a course was opened specifically for those who wanted to become popular alongside a dragon with similar ideals. Dragons and riders are taught the craft of their choice and are sent out in the world in order to chase fame and further hype up their profession.
spy
open
Graduates have (PRR) attached to their title or replacing their title for safety reasons. This course is only available to Representative PR students who are scouted after at least three to four years in the academy depending on their performance in the Proficiency test. For the sake of concealing their identity, their paperwork will still list them as representatives. Once scouted, students are taught the art of deception, stealth, and charm, but majorly deception. Students are expected to be incredible liars, evaluate, understand, and fit into a situation perfectly and efficiently, and be able to subtly coax needed information out of others. They’re also taught how to remain undetected, depending on which type of spy the student plans on becoming. Due to agreements and numerous contracts signed with the country regarding the sensitivity and danger of this course, students have constant contact with military officers and are typically sent straight to Greater Bylcade’s military after graduation.
SUPPORT UNITS
medical support
open
Graduates have (MeS) attached to their title. Riders and their dragons are taught emergency first aid and (physical and mental) trauma care in case worst comes to worst on the battlefield. Note that these individuals are not doctors and cannot give medical advice or diagnose conditions and ailments, though they are trained to identify symptoms of magical Corruption. They’re akin to trauma nurses or EMTs, except dedicated to the field of dragon riding. They assist every division, but most often are assigned to the frontliners for healing practice.
support bodyguard
open
Graduates have (SBG) attached to their title. This course developed after those with a lot of money and a lot of enemies began vying for military protection and another avenue for profiting off of the dragon rider profession was identified. Here, students are taught how to effectively secure the area, keep an eye out for danger, and otherwise ensure the safety of those around them. They have nothing to do with the war, but still have a somewhat dangerous job protecting those with a lot of targets on their back. They’re typically assigned to guard other students not trained in offense, such as the PR students, as a stand-in for whatever public figure they may guard post-graduation.
public relations support
open
Graduates have (PRS) attached to their title. Commonly given to those with low confidence or those unable to secure a better course but desperate to become a dragon rider, they’re essentially highly intelligent glorified assistants, often given the duty of sorting and managing overwhelming amounts of paperwork. They have, to be frank, the knowledge of historians and the reputation of a McDonald’s employee. They are being trained to assist government officials of the nation, with Public Relations Representative students as their stand-in until graduation. This subdivision has the least number of members.
rules
rules.
Roleplay Notes.
- Our lore and academy info will be in separate docs, and each is very, very long—thousands of words long. If you’re the type who’s into that, this is for you! You’re not expected to get through all that text right away (we don’t expect you to read everything ever), but feel free to skim it until you think you have a grasp on the world or at least enough to have an idea for a character. At least go over the Greater Bylcade, Magic, Dragons, Dragon Riding, and Corruption sections, and have a look at the map.
- We expect you to have a moderate to proficient understanding of prose and grammar. There’s no posting limit or word count minimum, since we’re all busy people, but all roleplayers are expected to contribute to the plot and plot progression at least sometimes!
- We will most likely be a small group, since smaller ones are easier to handle, but we would prefer if everyone in it has interesting characters and an ability to contribute. If we see enough interest here, our sign-ups will be open for a while until we see a sufficient amount of roleplayers to begin.
- Those who are already in the roleplay can have as many characters as they want. We have a lot of slots to fill, after all
- OOC discussion for accepted roleplayers will be in a discord server, while OOC for roleplayers who have questions and wish to discuss but have not yet been accepted will be done in an on-site OOC thread.
- We have a lot of world lore in this roleplay undeveloped, particularly the politics and art aspects of Greater Bylcade (the nation where this story takes place), since @/FiguringThisOutVerySlowly, @/dokjacore, and @/Ebanon are focusing majorly on the academy and general world lore. This is code for “you’re allowed to make up whatever the fuck you want so long as it makes sense with whatever’s in the current docs, and if you aren’t sure it does, ask for our thumbs up.”
- Speaking of that, we’ll typically give you the thumbs up for anything if your ideas run by this line of thinking: “does it make sense? --> “only kind of” –-> is it funny? --> “yes” --> yea go for it dawg lol”
- For the most part this roleplay will be free-form interaction, but we’ll occasionally have events come up for your characters to participate in together! This can include festivals, personal plotlines, and so on and so forth. You can also make up plotlines amongst yourselves as long as they make sense for the lore. I’d recommend brushing them by myself and Fig in the OOC thread first just in case.
- We’ll also have events that only a few characters will be involved in, such as patrols and whatnot. We’ll put up a post when we want a patrol to go out and the first ones to volunteer will go in.
- Since this roleplay is so free-form, we would really prefer that everybody is able to contribute to the events! Don’t just leave it to the hosts, please help come up with things to move the plot along and make sure the roleplay doesn’t stagnate! It’s more fun for everyone that way
- Since there’s no solid A to B in an academy-based roleplay, this is most likely going to go by arcs -- we’ll come up with things that’ll occur for all of us to participate in together, and once the arc is over, we can come up with the next. Progression happens event to event.
- There will be no word count minimum and there will be no post deadlines (!!!!!), but try to keep the RP moving. If you think you’ll be unable to make a post for a week or longer, communicate. We understand—life happens. Same goes for if you can’t come up with something to carry the plot forward, if you’ve lost interest, etc.
- I, @/FiguringThisOutVerySlowly or Fig, am the creator of this roleplay and co-host. @/dokjacore is the host. @/Ebanon is the co-creator. Fig and Dokjacore are responsible for accepting roleplayers. Fig, Dokjacore, and Ebanon are responsible for making major lore and story decisions. Please note that we are not common RPN forum users! We have done forum roleplays (and are quite experienced with roleplaying as a whole) but only on different, smaller-scale sites, so we may be somewhat confused or do somewhat unusual-to-the-culture things when navigating this one. Let us know if we do anything wrong, or if you’d prefer something to be more the RPN style!
Character Notes.
- You can play as a human or a dragon. If you wish to play as another creature, that’s fine, but you might have to come up with your own lore for them that fits the information in the doc. You’re always welcome to do so, note; it’s a general rule in this roleplay that you can make shit up so long as it fits everything else and is fun for you. Still, if playing as a creature other than a dragon, I, @/FiguringThisOutVerySlowly, recommend you play a character that is at least 80% human until the lore is more established.
- Dragons are as intelligent as humans and have their own culture and customs, although these often revolve around and are restricted by humans’. Most dragons cannot communicate clearly with humans. The only ones that are known to via telepathy are the magically powerful dragons, and those have been banished elsewhere to reduce risk of Corruption. There are exceptions, which will be discussed in the lore doc.
- Dragons communicate with each other through beastly vocalizations and body language. They have complex facial expressions. Some humans are able to vaguely understand what a dragon is attempting to convey with their sounds and movements, but this takes experience. In the RP, to make things easier, when depicting dragons communicating with each other or to individuals who can understand them clearly, dialogue will be used.
- Both dragons and riders are considered students in the academy.
- Riders and dragons are assigned to one another in their second year. Assignments are decided by the academy’s Headmaster.
- If you play anything past the second year, you can sort out dragon-rider pairings amongst yourselves (both pairing with yourself and pairing up with other students who want another student to pair with is acceptable, though we suggest the latter). Please run pairings by me and @/dokjacore, though! We’ll most likely say it’s fine, but pairings all need to be ones that would realistically be made by the Headmaster.
- If you play as the second year, when the time comes, you can suggest a pairing to @/FiguringThisOutVerySlowly and @/dokjacore and you can veto our decisions as you please, but pairings will be primarily decided by us.
- Prodigies are open to whatever roleplayers are in here, but prodigies are typically only those who are a. skilled and b. quote unquote “interesting” by the headmaster’s standards, so we may say a student wouldn’t be promoted to prodigy by the headmaster if need be. Your character is still allowed to keep their skill level as long as they’re not God in OP levels, though!
- On that note, having incredibly powerful characters is fine, but give them certain drawbacks and make sure they’re balanced. The general idea is if I train 2 solid years on how to kill your character, I should be able to kick them off the census with a decent amount of effort no matter how powerful they are.
- You can have as many characters as you want and can handle.
- You may make characters outside of the Academy once introductions have passed and you have a good understanding of the world.
- Our lore and academy info will be in separate docs, and each is very, very long—thousands of words long. If you’re the type who’s into that, this is for you! You’re not expected to get through all that text right away (we don’t expect you to read everything ever), but feel free to skim it until you think you have a grasp on the world or at least enough to have an idea for a character. At least go over the Greater Bylcade, Magic, Dragons, Dragon Riding, and Corruption sections, and have a look at the map.
intro
roles
rules
help!
i touched
a strange bush and got
turbo cancer
genre
high fantasy, war-centric, very lore-heavy
status
open!
gms
@/figuringthisoutvery- slowly, @/dokjacore
spots taken
0/10
♡coded by uxie♡
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