Seravia

[starfire]

Seravia is kingdom in which the many races of the world come together. For those who remember Verasia, Seravia will run on a similar premise. Each character is of a certain race and that character's abilities are determined by the class the player selects. As of now the character and classes are as follows:

Races:
Human: A species of creatures that are relatively short lived, with their eldest reaching a frail state around 70 to 80 years, depending on the human, and not living much longer than 100 years. Humans come in varying heights, weights, and colors. They are highly adaptive and have the capacity to fit well in any class or position. Those that become mages must be born with the innate abilities for it, and hone their skill with training.

Elf: Elves also come in a variety of sizes and coloring, depending on their origin. Silver Elves are the tallest (varying between five and a half feet to slightly over six feet in height) and by far the most physically adept. With their history of warfare between clans and city states, they have roughly two to three times the strength and speed of humans. Despite their great physical strength, they are born with almost no affinity for magic. The most magically inclined can only cast spells that would be considered minor by any standard. Gray elves, however, are different in size and capabilities. Possessing the physical strength of the average human, their capacity for scholarly endeavors and magical prowess far surpasses their other elf cousins. They tend to be shorter, and slighter than humans. White elves, can be considered the evolutionary medium between gray and silver. While stronger and faster than humans physically, they also have a keen ability to perform magic. Elf life expectancy is roughly one thousand years.

Dwarf: Dwarves are a race of warriors, smiths and miners. While physically stronger than humans, they tend to be much shorter, the tallest of their race reaching five feet in height. A few of their race also possess the ability for magic. However, the rarity of this has caused many dwarves to be suspicious of magic, and even bigoted towards the few mages that do come from their race. Dwarves live roughly between two to three hundred years, however due to their combative culture, no one is entirely sure.

Fae: Fae’s are small creatures, growing no more than a foot in height, with the natural ability to fly. Almost all fae have wings, despite the fact that they cannot always be seen. Due to their small size, a fae’s physical strength cannot be compared to that of the other races, however, their speed, ability to fly and vast capacity for magic set them apart from other races.

Classes:
Weapons Master: Weapon Masters are known as just that, masters of all weapons. However, despite their keen fighting ability they have no magic. They are known to be smiths and war leaders, however sometimes a weapons master can be something as unassuming as a priest or a shop vendor.

Ranger/Druid: Rangers and Druids are in-tune with the earth and with all creatures of the earth. They can use magic in tune with nature, but nothing nearly as powerful as what a mage can produce. They also have the ability to speak with animals and communicate with them in ways others don’t understand. They are masters of stealth and are more than proficient with bows, staffs and bladed weapons.

Lancer: Lancers are also known as Dragon Warriors. These men and women model their fighting abilities after a dragons. Typically, these warriors are akin with one element (earth, wind, fire, water) and have minor magical ability mirroring the dragon associated with this element. Lancer’s specialize in using spears with shields, and bladed weapons.

Mage: Also known as wizards, warlocks, witches, sorcerers, shamans, etc. They are masters of magic. Their time spent at study to achieve the knowledge required of a mage makes them less than proficient with weapons. After all, who needs a sword when you can just turn your opponent into a mushroom.

Paladin: Their opposites are known as commonly as Templars. They align themselves with the religion they follow, leading to both paladins who can use minor magic of the “light” (such as healing and other minor holy spells) and templars who can use minor magic of the “dark” (such as weakness, and other minor spells considered evil). They are masters of the sword and shield.

Of course cross breeding can be brought into play. Also, notice i didn't limit what spells can and can't be used. I want to make sure creativity can still be implemented. More information about the land will be forthcoming. If anyone has any ideas for races, classes, lands, etc., please chime in.

[The Demon Auditor]

I'm totally on board with this. To help people understand our aim, here's some background:

The idea of this realm would be to have sequential adventures with an over-arching story line. I believe the original intention all those years ago was to bring a structured RPG system (like D&D and what-not) into a Free-Form environment to eliminate dice rolling (though I'd totally dig doing that anyway for random effects) but keep the characters balanced with each other during quests and offer a slightly higher challenge level than just ordinary FFRPG.


Also: Rogue class. They don't get the sort of armor a ranger or a lancer and paladin get, but they're quicker and stealthier

[Blood and Roses]

Usually, I'd be into this. It reminds me of Earthdawn (which was cool if you could convince enough people to read the literature). I've done a whole lot of tabletop in my time, and I can't say I would mind transcending dice. Dunno if I wanna commit to another thread, but I'll consider it.

I did want to point out that a few classes are being neglected. Bards, for example. Light armor and weapons, specializing in lore and entertainment. Many are skilled trap-springers, poisoners, and sneaks. All races have them, be they troubadors, singers, or old guys who sit on the corner and tell stories for children.

Barbarians are another. Those that spurn the civilized lifestyle, prefering a tribal structure where a savage code of honor is the rule. They scorn the heavily-armored warrior, preferring freedom of movement and high-speed kills. They're survivalists by nature, living in wilderness and liking it that way.

Of course, you can't forget monks. Men and women who devote their lives to contemplation and enlightenment. They're typically peaceful, though some of the mightiest warriors hail from the monastaries and secluded temples where they spend their time in persuit of physical and spiritual perfection.

What about priests? Would they get lumped in with paladins, or get their own class?

Okay, so I could go on with this for days, so I'll just cut it out now. Just thought I'd pitch in.

[starfire]

Blood & Roses thanks for the input. I had thought about those classes, but kept in mind that a general classification of combatant can be tailored and shaped into whatever story line the player wants to. Since people do like to shape their chars in directions that they would personally find entertaining, do you think that having alot of classes could restrict a character's story line? For example... A priest can be a weapons master, or a druid or a mage, and still lead the lifestyle of a preist. Or a bard can be a rouge (a class definitely going to be added to the list) and still have unique abilities for that bard. Or a lancer can be general, a paladin/templar a nobleman or weapons master that also lives off the grid in the same barbarian lifestyle. What are your thoughts on this method of gameplay? Verasia went too close to D&D style i think, but of course, thats merely an opinion.

D.A.: How would the dice system work in a board RP context?

[The Demon Auditor]

There's an add-on code I can install and it works like regular BB code and looks like this: [dice=3], with '3' being the number of sides. you can also do [dice=3+4] where '4' is a modifier and is added to the roll. The result is displayed as an image, can't be edited, and stays the same after it's been posted regardless of how many times you modify your post.

But, implementing dice in gameplay would require a ton of extra rules... *shrugs* But, maybe it could be used for NPC's.

[Ouranos]

"Hi, I'm Gary Gygax it's a.. 'rolls dice' pleasure to meet you"

[Blood and Roses]

My thoughts? Hoo boy, you asked for it. :-)

I agree that defining character classes in broad definitions is the easiest way to allow free-form character design. Not everyone wants to play a "generic fighter" or "vanilla mage". For those of us who've done it to death, being crammed into a pre-set progression path gets real old in a hurry. Indeed, a bard can be a rogue (in fact, the defining line between them is rather thin and blurry), a lancer a general, and a paladin a weapons master. I personally believe that, with a good enough back story, just about any character can be any combination of class, race, social status, and capability.

However, some players like to take this to an extreme. Being different and unusual is what makes characters fun, and pulling plot-hooks from their back story is what allows Storytellers to create a feeling of connection between player and character, which in turn further enhances the story. But when EVERY aspect of your character is extraordinary, the character becomes thin, a two-dimensional caricature that gamers may enjoy, but role-players find comical. Every time I encounter an Undead Drow/Centaur Level-0 Demigod/Level40 Master of All Spells Ever Created, I want to tear my hair out.

But that's going to the extreme.

From a more "realistic" perspective (and I use the term VERY loosely), character classes define a character's lifestyle choices by their very nature. Certainly, a priest can be a weapons master, but why would he want to be? As a man of the cloth, he's more likely to spend his time pursuing spiritual closeness to his chosen deity than fine-tuning his spinning backhand nunchuka strikes. That same priest is also unlikely to be a druid or mage, as druids are often considered "priests of nature" and mages spend far too much time in study and not enough in worship. The bard is more likely to enjoy spending his time beguiling crowded taverns with his stories than skulking in back allies. Why cut a man's purse when you can charm him into giving it to you? And a solitary man living in the wilderness has no one to practice his sword-play with, so how could he hope to master it?

You could say, "Uh, yeah, my guy's a weaponsmaster. I can kick your ass with anything, even your own shoes. But I'm also a mage, so I'll set your shoes on fire before I kick your ass with them. But since I'm also a priest, I'll heal the burns when I'm done." Really? Wherever do you find the time to master every weapon (or at least the 7 classic weapons), bend the laws of the universe to your will, AND convince a god that you're his most worshipful disciple?

In essence, character classes are there to give a player a sense of who their character is. You're playing a fighter? Then you already know he spends most of his time with a weapon in his hand, not a spellbook or prayer beads. He probably has a physically demanding job, like a smith or carpenter, which lends to his great strength and endurance. He's probably not THE smoothest-tongued guy in the room, because he devotes his voice to inspirational battle-cries, not pretty words and meaningless idle chatter. He's straight and to the point, like the edge of the sword he wields.

Classes are, at their most basic definition, a structure, a skeleton upon which your character's story and personality add flesh and bring to life. That same skeleton helps to maintain a continuity of form. The more complex and articulated the skeleton, the more detail is already provided without the need for cosmetic alteration through back story and character detail. They streamline the creation of interesting characters by creating a template for players to build on, while keeping their capabilities within one, maybe two spheres of influence.

Of course, certain classes are bound to cross over. A rogue would certainly enjoy learning minor magics to assist in his trade (wouldn't we all?). A barbarian is likely to find companionship in the creatures of his chosen land. A priest could be an expert with his warhammer, and a mage could use their lovely singing voice to earn coin in the lean times. If you stretch it, a monk might attain such perfection of thought that he can warp reality to match his perception. A priest may be so very pious and devout that his patron has granted him magical aptitude to better serve him. A warrior may grow so famed for his skill with weapons that he's drawn the lust of a shape-shifting dragon who wants him to sire its bastard half-breed children. Anything's possible.

Which is how we come back to generalized classes. They're fantastic for role-players. Without that structure, you can assume any of these things. You don't have to have a "class" to determine that your character likes to hike in the woods and shoot a bow, but devotes his life in service to The Great Wooden Monkey Spirit Shimmy Ho-Ho. That's player forte. By leaving out the "advanced" classes, you have a more fluid character creation method that easily accepts these cross-overs classes. A free-form creation method is preferred by experienced role players because they can create exactly what they want, without being told, "I'm sorry, you've spent your entire life swinging a mace at people, so you never actually learned to cast Fireball". It's like being given a list of skills and abilities and an highlighter.

Actually, the entire White Wolf d10 system is built on the principle of free-form character creation. That's where I've done most of my role-play. I've always preferred it to the d20 class system. Who says I can't be strong and smart, or analytical yet charismatic? It's based on personal experience that I feel that if you MUST be defined by character classes, break them down into their most basic elements.

Fighter - You prefer weapons (Fire)
Mage - You prefer magic (Earth)
Rogue - You prefer stealth (Water)
Priest - You prefer divinity (Wind)

Mix and match as desired.



Do I have a lot to say about it? Yes. Have I spent too much time in analyzing this? Yes. Have I just talked myself in a complete circle? Absolutely.

However you decide to play, I look forward to following the story.

[The Demon Auditor]

I don't have any idea what the difference between the d10 and d20 systems are, lol... I've only ever played D&D 3.5.

I'll have to think on the rest of your post, though. Maybe Dan will have some thoughts.

[starfire]

Wow, well i am glad to have your opinion on board. I actually read this not to long after you posted it and have had some time to stew what I think we should do. To respond to your post, I think we're on a similar page when it comes to classes. From your lengthy discussion, i am guessing that you agree that we should have a class system. This class system i have proposed puts very limited requirements on what the player should keep in mind when designing a character for this world. The only highlighting you would do, so to speak, would be to select your character, their class, and build spells and abilities as you want, within the class. There is no predetermined list they can or have to choose from. Also, I don't think there are any progressions, level ups, etc to be fully concerned about. A person can have their character grow as they wish, in the direction of the given class they have chosen. I don't see this board becoming something like a table top rpg. Finally, I have full faith that the players that come to this board are mature and want to actually play in a civilized manner. That "kiddy" stuff dealing with characters who are mages/warriors/kings/pronstars/carebears/angels are why ( i think) we stay away from the old chatrooms that many of us got a start doing this RP thing in. That, and seeing Goku2983439874 pop in got annoying for most people i'm sure. Unless you were that guy... ... ... in that case this is me laughing (*laughing*). Ahem.. apologies...

With that being said, the race/class system we are going to use will suffice. It's simple and I think that it allows plenty of free form character creation and RPing to be had. If things get too complicated, or special requests are had, we can always tweak what we have and simplify or complicate as necessary. After all, the key to success is flexibility... (insert perverted joke here).

I will post the final list of Races and Classes soon. I will also have up a short description about the region. That won't be restrictive either. I intend to leave a lot open so players can make their own backgrounds for their characters that will be personal for them. As always opinions and thoughts are welcome. So is criticism, as well as special requests.

[Blood and Roses]

lol Actually, I don't think character classes are necessary for this medium of role play. This style of play is an exercise in creative writing, and putting in restrictions such as character classes is a simple and fun way to challenge players to think within a certain frame when designing, and posting as, their character. I think classes are good for defining each person's role within a story, but experienced players don't really need them. And seriously, just about everyone here is here because they're at least moderately experienced.

That said, your decision to use character classes in your story is not an uncommon one for Morthika. Every realm has its rules. Deepdwellers, for example, is cowboys and vampires. Anima is werewolves and vampires. Vampires' Tavern is... okay, a little obvious. ((And do we have a theme going here? Or just a bunch of hemophiles in one place?)) Race and class are actually a refreshing change. I applaud your decision.

Oh, and Style Points for including the Lancers. I'm a bit of a FF buff, and they were always one of my favorite jobs :-D If you find yourself with an open spot, put me down for Human Lancer. As in, a Lancer who is Human, not a Lancer of Humans. Okay, so it may turn into that, but you get the picture.

[The Demon Auditor]

Oh boy! Another lancer! I've had my character Night Warrior sitting out from Morthika ever since I got here simply because I held out hope something like Seravia might come along.

[Ouranos]

Yeah, I've always like the spear wielding classes when done right, is why I made my character in Desert one

[starfire]

F yeah. So far everyone wants to be a lancer. And why not? We have long spears... heh.

So the list of races will be:

Human
Dwarf
Fae (Fairy)
Silver Elf
White Elf
Gray Elf

The list of classes will be:

Mage
Rouge
Weapons Master
Paladin
Lancer
Ranger/Druid

There will be a story line that will take place within the general world, which will be used to spin off quests, battles, etc. Of course, general RP within the world would be awesome. Descriptions of all this will be posted soon.