GojiBean
Your resident irradiated Kaiju King
Hoyo!
Fans of darker topics and the possibility of exploring the fragility of human mental health may find this idea interesting. But, before we get into the nitty gritty I'm obligated to say...
WARNING!!
This RP concept is not for everyone, and will focus on exploring and/or having your character exposed to dark and mature topics and themes including, but not limited to the following:
I will not be held responsible if you continue reading, despite my warning, and find any information which makes you either uncomfortable, upset, or both.
You have been warned.
Now, if you are a fan of angst and exploring the fragility of mental health and are comfortable with all of the above listed themes, then please continue reading!
Setting
The setting is a standard medieval fantasy world. I'm still in the process of designing and fleshing it out with nations, important cities, religion, politics, etc. But you can consider it standard including a lush and largely untouched world save for the occasional human village, town, or city. Roads are either dirt or cobblestone. There's no electricity. Flintlock pistols and muskets (and cannons) are the peak of weapon's tech. Etc, etc. Bog standard world design.
No magic, as I want to keep the world as simple as possible. Sorry magic fans.
Our characters
Okay angst and dark theme fans, your time has come!
Our character's entire purpose for existence is to have the most dark and depressing backstory your brain can possibly come up with to the point that most any sane human being would ask... "How are they still alive?"
Infer from that what you will.
To provide you with plenty of opportunities and options for making your character's backstory as dark as your imagination can manage, here are the most important details about where our characters come from:
If you can imagine any other ways we can make life more miserable for our character's hometown and everyone living within it then please do share them with me either here in the comments or in a DM. I'm interested to hear your ideas on the matter.
So, who are our characters?
There's going to be a couple things we have to manufacture and set in stone ahead of time about your character (or, at least a few choices they'll make) in order make sure we have an RP. I'll highlight these details in blue as we move forward. Everything else about your character is up to your own imagination and creativity.
My character is a rogue assassin who was born and raised in the same home town as your character. As a rogue he has no allegiance to any known guild, even the local one, and will take a job from any client so long as he receives payment up front. Any who try negotiating with him will either be abandoned immediately or killed if they push his buttons.
Your character's background and current circumstances will be up to you, but the big detail which will kickstart the RP is that your character will have found a reason to want someone dead. In order to see that desire through they'll have spent the last however long (the exact time frame is up to you) scrounging and stealing enough gold to engage my character's services. Why mine? Because the guilds are public access. Anyone, potentially your target or someone who represents them and knows they might have enemies and folks who want them dead, can walk right in to the guild building and check the bounty boards (or add a new one to it) and see if they're in danger. Your character doesn't want to run the risk of their target finding out and escaping, so they're looking for my character specifically.
Following a brief struggle to find out how to get in contact with my character, since he doesn't exactly have a home address or a phone you can dial, the two eventually meet and the gold is exchanged. The job is accepted and will be carried out. However, your character hasn't spent the last however long collecting all this gold for nothing. They see the potential in this kind of rogue/freelance work and want to work with my character to learn how to be successful so they can start earning gold and living a better life, and maybe get out of this hell hole (depending on how they feel about their home town they may not want to leave, up to you).
My character initially will reject any notion of such a partnership and leave to take care of the job which basically sends the last hope your character had for any improvement in their own circumstances up in flames. So, it's back to whatever slum/sewage pipe they crawled out of to resume their pathetic existence.
During the course of the job my character will see part of himself in your character and will come back, albeit very reluctantly, to find them (which is something he never does unless there's another job and another pouch of gold for him). However, he's not going to just teach how to be any old "freelancer." He's going to teach your character how to be an assassin (and no, he doesn't care about how your character feels about being the one to kill people). That's the offer. Learn to be an assassin, or crawl back in your hole and rot.
The choice for your character is obvious at this point.
From this point on they'll spend time training together, hunting for food together (if your character doesn't have hunting skills then mine will watch your character struggle and only help if absolutely necessary, otherwise he'll just bark advice at you), avoiding the military patrols, occasionally they'll find ways to actually just sit and chat, they'll start going on jobs together once my character feels your character is ready to join him, and slowly but surely they will grow closer and actually become friends. Possibly even the first real friends either have had since... They probably can't even remember when.
This growing connection will be a new, unsettling, and potentially even frightening experience for both of them to be in since caring about people has never gone well for them before. How will they handle this growing friendship and sense of genuine connection to another human being? How will they learn to actually trust one another in a world where trust has gotten most people they know killed, imprisoned, etc? How will they adapt to this changing dynamic while the rest of the world around them remains firmly locked in desolation and hopelessness? How their their own growth and maturity be reflected in their choices as they continue moving ahead?
All these questions and many, many more will be explored in this adventure.
Now, this is not going to be first-come, first-served.
Depending on how many people raise a hand for this RP I will either have to ask for a writing sample of your past work so I can get an idea of your writing style, or I will have to create a prompt for you to reply to. In reply to the prompt you will respond to the setup using whatever ideas for a character you have for this RP. That way I can get at least a glimpse of who your character might be and what they might do which will help me complete the design of my own character (as he's still a WIP).
With all that said, I look forward to hearing from anyone interested in this idea!
Cheers!
Fans of darker topics and the possibility of exploring the fragility of human mental health may find this idea interesting. But, before we get into the nitty gritty I'm obligated to say...
WARNING!!
This RP concept is not for everyone, and will focus on exploring and/or having your character exposed to dark and mature topics and themes including, but not limited to the following:
- mental illness
- physical/mental/emotional abuse
- NOTE: Any/all of these may be part of your character's backstory. If at any time any such abuses take place during the course of the adventure they will be fade-to-black moments where the return from the fade implies the aftermath of what happened. The abuse itself will never be visible in our posts.
- abandonment
- isolation
- indoctrination
- death
- NOTE: This includes suicide (or suicide attempts) which would preferably be locked to your character's backstory only, providing it's part of their history at all. If at any time during the RP your character is driven to attempt suicide it will be a fade-to-black moment where the return from the fade implies what happened during the failed attempt (the only detail which may be provided is the relative location of the wound). The act itself, and any other more precise details about the nature of the attempt will never be visible in our posts.
- famine
- poverty
- imprisonment
- slavery
- NOTE: This is something which can be part of your character's backstory if you so desire, and will be a feature of the worldbuilding/history/culture in this RP. However, it will not be something our characters endure during the course of the RP itself. They may bear witness to the existence of slaves along the way. But that's as far as it goes.
- sexual themes
- NOTE: The medieval times were a different beast, and sex slaves and an underground sex slave trade are staples of darker medieval fantasy storytelling. Just look at Game of Thrones. HOWEVER!! Themes like these are going to be very strictly moderated, and limited to implications and context clues ONLY!! For example:
- An ugly, pretentious, wealthy nobleman struts about the desolate city streets followed by a throng of beautiful and finely dressed women... You know why those women are following him. It's not by choice. And it's not because they like him.
- A wealthy nobleman escorts a beautiful and finely dressed woman into the home of another wealthy nobleman, but that first nobleman leaves by himself a few minutes later with a pouch of coins he didn't have when he entered... You know what just happened and what's likely happening to her right this very moment, or what will certainly happen to her later whenever her new master decides he's ready to partake.
- Implications and context clues like these are as far as this RP will take it.
- There will be ZERO visible sexual acts or events. PERIOD!!
- NOTE: The medieval times were a different beast, and sex slaves and an underground sex slave trade are staples of darker medieval fantasy storytelling. Just look at Game of Thrones. HOWEVER!! Themes like these are going to be very strictly moderated, and limited to implications and context clues ONLY!! For example:
I will not be held responsible if you continue reading, despite my warning, and find any information which makes you either uncomfortable, upset, or both.
You have been warned.
Now, if you are a fan of angst and exploring the fragility of mental health and are comfortable with all of the above listed themes, then please continue reading!
Setting
The setting is a standard medieval fantasy world. I'm still in the process of designing and fleshing it out with nations, important cities, religion, politics, etc. But you can consider it standard including a lush and largely untouched world save for the occasional human village, town, or city. Roads are either dirt or cobblestone. There's no electricity. Flintlock pistols and muskets (and cannons) are the peak of weapon's tech. Etc, etc. Bog standard world design.
No magic, as I want to keep the world as simple as possible. Sorry magic fans.
Our characters
Okay angst and dark theme fans, your time has come!
Our character's entire purpose for existence is to have the most dark and depressing backstory your brain can possibly come up with to the point that most any sane human being would ask... "How are they still alive?"
Infer from that what you will.
To provide you with plenty of opportunities and options for making your character's backstory as dark as your imagination can manage, here are the most important details about where our characters come from:
- [To-Be-Named Home Country] has been at war with [To-Be-Named Country] for over 20 years, non-stop, leaving the populace mentally and emotionally fatigued and frustrated (translation: everyone's always on edge)
- The economy is in shambles, and outside trade has been all but abolished
- The royal family has implemented martial law
- A strict curfew is in effect at all times
- Leaving one's home requires permission from the military personnel guarding your front and rear home entry ways
- Violation of curfew, even as a first-time offense, can result in prison time, public lashings, public humiliation, or all of the above (it's entirely up to the whims of whomever caught you)
- The purchase of food, clothing, and other basic necessities is strictly moderated due to the shortages of materials thanks to the economic state
- Water is limited, and what's worse is the country has entered a now 4-year record breaking drought period
- Medicinal supplies have all but run out leaving doctors and nurses with little option but to give moral support and what little comfort they can provide for the sick and injured as they struggle through their conditions and circumstances
- Schools have long since shut down
- Orphanages are basically a forgotten memory leaving homeless children of all ages wandering the slums and sewers to try and avoid the military patrols who would imprison them if caught
- Festivals, holidays, and other events of merriment and cultural tradition now exist solely in the hearts and memories of those old enough to recall them as they are no longer practiced openly
If you can imagine any other ways we can make life more miserable for our character's hometown and everyone living within it then please do share them with me either here in the comments or in a DM. I'm interested to hear your ideas on the matter.
So, who are our characters?
There's going to be a couple things we have to manufacture and set in stone ahead of time about your character (or, at least a few choices they'll make) in order make sure we have an RP. I'll highlight these details in blue as we move forward. Everything else about your character is up to your own imagination and creativity.
My character is a rogue assassin who was born and raised in the same home town as your character. As a rogue he has no allegiance to any known guild, even the local one, and will take a job from any client so long as he receives payment up front. Any who try negotiating with him will either be abandoned immediately or killed if they push his buttons.
Your character's background and current circumstances will be up to you, but the big detail which will kickstart the RP is that your character will have found a reason to want someone dead. In order to see that desire through they'll have spent the last however long (the exact time frame is up to you) scrounging and stealing enough gold to engage my character's services. Why mine? Because the guilds are public access. Anyone, potentially your target or someone who represents them and knows they might have enemies and folks who want them dead, can walk right in to the guild building and check the bounty boards (or add a new one to it) and see if they're in danger. Your character doesn't want to run the risk of their target finding out and escaping, so they're looking for my character specifically.
Following a brief struggle to find out how to get in contact with my character, since he doesn't exactly have a home address or a phone you can dial, the two eventually meet and the gold is exchanged. The job is accepted and will be carried out. However, your character hasn't spent the last however long collecting all this gold for nothing. They see the potential in this kind of rogue/freelance work and want to work with my character to learn how to be successful so they can start earning gold and living a better life, and maybe get out of this hell hole (depending on how they feel about their home town they may not want to leave, up to you).
My character initially will reject any notion of such a partnership and leave to take care of the job which basically sends the last hope your character had for any improvement in their own circumstances up in flames. So, it's back to whatever slum/sewage pipe they crawled out of to resume their pathetic existence.
During the course of the job my character will see part of himself in your character and will come back, albeit very reluctantly, to find them (which is something he never does unless there's another job and another pouch of gold for him). However, he's not going to just teach how to be any old "freelancer." He's going to teach your character how to be an assassin (and no, he doesn't care about how your character feels about being the one to kill people). That's the offer. Learn to be an assassin, or crawl back in your hole and rot.
The choice for your character is obvious at this point.
From this point on they'll spend time training together, hunting for food together (if your character doesn't have hunting skills then mine will watch your character struggle and only help if absolutely necessary, otherwise he'll just bark advice at you), avoiding the military patrols, occasionally they'll find ways to actually just sit and chat, they'll start going on jobs together once my character feels your character is ready to join him, and slowly but surely they will grow closer and actually become friends. Possibly even the first real friends either have had since... They probably can't even remember when.
This growing connection will be a new, unsettling, and potentially even frightening experience for both of them to be in since caring about people has never gone well for them before. How will they handle this growing friendship and sense of genuine connection to another human being? How will they learn to actually trust one another in a world where trust has gotten most people they know killed, imprisoned, etc? How will they adapt to this changing dynamic while the rest of the world around them remains firmly locked in desolation and hopelessness? How their their own growth and maturity be reflected in their choices as they continue moving ahead?
All these questions and many, many more will be explored in this adventure.
Now, this is not going to be first-come, first-served.
Depending on how many people raise a hand for this RP I will either have to ask for a writing sample of your past work so I can get an idea of your writing style, or I will have to create a prompt for you to reply to. In reply to the prompt you will respond to the setup using whatever ideas for a character you have for this RP. That way I can get at least a glimpse of who your character might be and what they might do which will help me complete the design of my own character (as he's still a WIP).
With all that said, I look forward to hearing from anyone interested in this idea!
Cheers!
