OOC: The Dying Light

[K9Guardian]

What if mankind, on the brink of extinction, were forced to fight for its life…

… against an enemy impervious to death?

What if victory rested on the choices of one man…

… and that man chose wrong?

Will the sun set and the candle burn out?​

In response to rising pressure on the Bulwark, Raymus Night called upon the Convention to gather to discuss a truce with humanity’s enemies, the Mist-cursed. Much argument ensued, but it was decided that a delegation from the Children of the Mist would be allowed into the Settlements. However, a coup caused the negotiations to backfire, and the Mist-cursed tore the Convention apart, leaving all balanced on a dangerous point.

Meanwhile, Tuan Caladren, scholar and son of a long-dead hero, has been living a quiet life on the outskirts of remote Celdon Settlement. When entreated by his mentor to aid the Settlements, Tuan refuses, saying that the people can make do without him. But when a new and vastly dark threat arises, one that even Tuan cannot ignore, he must decide. And this is not the end…

What part will you play in this story?


(Please see subsequent posts for detailed background.)


CHARACTERS

Mountaindog
Tuan Caladren
Dionys Redanther
Kaur Solinas

LightofHeaven
Haven Pelkent
Reena Kamya

White Wings
Raymus Night
Jane Bardsley
Bastian Friel
Celeste Nostiel

GodFlute2
HiKie

Locket
Jane Symbelmine Whitten
William "Dog" Owen

MissCellaFane
Jonas Zohar
Scarlet Bardsley
Darcy Townsend
Austin Townsend

 

[K9Guardian]

Rules

Follow all CF and RPing rules. If you don’t know them, leave. Come back when you do know them.

Read the information in the following posts carefully. While I don’t expect anyone to imagine things exactly as I do, please keep to the constraints of the setting. This world is like colonial America without guns. Keep the previous sentence in mind if you get lost.

Post one paragraph, minimum. I am serious. 4-5 sentences = 1 paragraph. If you absolutely cannot manage that and must use a one-liner, all right. But I’ll be counting, and I have a finite number of fingers to count on.

If you like combat more than character development, this is not the thread for you.

Magic is restricted. While it does exist, it is subtle and intricate. I would have to write pages to explain its exact nature, but to keep it simple, there are no mages. There are objects of power, though… If you want to give an object special properties, PM me and I will work with you.

No races. Even Mist-cursed are human.

Last, but importantly, if you have questions, ask. I care deeply about these stories, and I feel it is important that everyone involved have a place to be and a direction to go. So by asking for help, you help me.

 

[K9Guardian]

History

Nalmros was a great kingdom until the mist crept in from the sea. No one knows from whence ultimately the mist came, nor why it chose that particular point in time to manifest. Perhaps some dire form of witchery had been in practice in lands beyond the waves. Perhaps it was punishment brought by divinity for the many sins of the people. And perhaps it was just cold fate, that impersonal force which ever weaves the loose threads of possibility into the cloth of reality. But whatever its origin, the mist came, and it destroyed. All the cities of Nalmros and their teeming streets vanished from sight beneath the gray haze, and all its beautiful countryside was awash with it. Seven weeks it took the mist to cover the land, and seven years it held all in tyranny.

Those who breathed of the mist died instantly, but there were a great number not so fortunate. In this select populace a terrible change was wrought. The change was of a subtle nature, not apparent, for they retained their semblance of humanity. But it was discovered in later days that they, the Mist-cursed, could not die, and must always hide their bodies, for light is torment to them. In panic they set upon their brothers, and murder mingled with the passing of the mist.

At the end of the seven years, the mist subsided and Nalmros lay desolate. Only a scattering of its people remained alive, and these gathered over time into various settlements, many located in the hills and mountains. Not all was safe, for the Mist-cursed walked free, but the last of humankind had little choice but to rebuild. And so they did.

One hundred and fifty years since the mist, our story unfolds…

 

[K9Guardian]

Setting

We begin the story in the Keyes Settlement area, on and around Mount Celdon. The time is toward the middle of fall.

Mount Celdon is a large mountain, located inside the curve of a chain of similar peaks which runs north to south. Its lower slopes rise gently up to a point, where it becomes progressively more treacherous, and its peak is lost in cloud most days. From its higher slopes one can see its brother peaks in the middle distance, overlaid by a bluish haze. Forests cover the lower slopes and the hills below, comprised primarily of pine and evergreens. Life abounds in the forests and the springs that feed them; songbirds and raptors, wolves, foxes, rabbits, deer, fish, turtles, etc. The ecology is relatively undisturbed.

Two settlements exist in this area. The larger, by far, is Keyes Settlement, located right where the hills give way to the mountain proper. The houses are sturdy and well-spaced, made of wood skillfully crafted for strength and serviceability. Gravel pathways connect the buildings, and at this time business has just began to take root. There is one massive structure at the center of town which is where the town council is held. Twice a year, at the spring and fall equinoxes, this is also the site of the Convention, where representatives from all settlements west of the Bulwark gather to discuss political matters. Small farms speckle the hills around Keyes, providing whatever can be coaxed from the stony soil.

From Keyes, a path leads up the mountain for about a day’s climb and reaches the other settlement in the area. Celdon Settlement is neither as populated nor orderly as Keyes. The paths are foliage beaten down or cleared, and the residences are scattered wide and in a haphazard manner. Said residences vary in size and build, but all are basically log cabins. There has not yet been a need for a council here; cooperation between families is the rule. Celdon is mainly a hunting and trading settlement, its environment is companionable and quiet.

One other feature of note: In the valley on Mount Celdon’s north side lie the remains of a great city. It is one of many that once thrived in the land. No one goes there, and because it is west of the Bulwark, even Mist-cursed haven’t been in there since the mist lifted.

 

[K9Guardian]

The Mist-cursed

On the easternmost sweep of the hills, where the forests scatter away into open plains stands the Bulwark, the name given to a string of fortified settlements which stretches from Murkwater Lake in the north to the River Siege in the south. The sole and explicit purpose of the Bulwark is the defense of the Settlements from attack by the Mist-cursed. As such, it is the only place where men of combat are a common sight. Children are taught to defend themselves from before they can walk, and everyone who visits here is asked to carry a weapon and know how to use it. Readiness is imperative.

The purported enemies of the Settlements are the Mist-cursed – those who inhaled the mist without dying one hundred and fifty years ago. It is uncertain how many Mist-cursed dwell in the ruined cities of Nalmros, but there are severalfold more than there are Settlement folk. Most do not wander anywhere near the Bulwark, but there is a fraction of the Mist-cursed who do frequently move against the Settlements. Accompanied by their mysterious black-furred hounds, these attackers will burn and slaughter whatever they can. The only exception is young maidens, virgins between the ages of sixteen and twenty-five. These they carry away. Nothing much is known about their motives, and no one dares speculate too deeply.

Mist-cursed are for all appearances and purposes, quite human. There is nothing obvious to indicate that they are anything but ordinary people. The one defining trait that can be seen is the sadness in their eyes. This is universal. Even the most exuberant, hop-up-and-down, sing-and-dance Child of the Mist has sad eyes. This, too, is a topic of speculation.

Mist-cursed must cover their skin. Hands, feet, faces – not one inch of their bodies may be exposed to light, any light, ever. Firelight and moonlight are tolerable enough to them, but anything brighter will cause them extreme pain. As a consequence, they seldom come out during the day. Black and grays are their preferred colors, and they may have multiple layers of clothing.

This is the least of it, though. Mist-cursed do not die. Not by age or artifice. If you chop up one of them in little pieces, each individual piece retains its life-force. Similarly, if you burn those little bits, the ashes continue to live. Also, if you leave any dismembered parts of a Child of the Mist lying around, they will inevitably reform over a few days into their original shape, with no sign of anything having happened. There are many methods for keeping them away from the Settlements, but there is no way to permanently remove a single Mist-cursed. They will always come back.

(If you need clarification or have a question, please ask.)

 

[GodFlute2]

Are there any restrictions on what a character can consist of. I got only human and no guns, is there anything else?

 

[LightofHeaven]

I hav Haven and unmodified Reena

 

[K9Guardian]

Are there any restrictions on what a character can consist of. I got only human and no guns, is there anything else?

There's also no mages, but that's it. The only limits I put on characters are setting-related.

I hav Haven and unmodified Reena

You might want to adjust Reena a bit. It is not the norm for women to wear pants in this culture. Or carrying around daggers. If she came from the Bulwark, that would explain it, but give her trousers unless she likes being seen as loose.

EDIT: That is to say, dresses are the norm.

 

[LightofHeaven]

Bulwark, where, what?

 

[K9Guardian]

Post 5, first paragraph, bro.

 

[LightofHeaven]

'kay, she's from the Bulwark.

Ulgmork and Gorhoughust still here?

 

[K9Guardian]

Shut up, you. Those are classified names.

 

[GodFlute2]

What's the night life like in Bulwark?

 

[K9Guardian]

Nearly the same as the day life. Half the families sleep during the day, the other half at night. This is carefully regulated so that activity goes unabated. a cobbler's shop may be owned by two families, a night and a day wner. This ensures that there are no weak points along the time axis.

 

[GodFlute2]

Ok. good.

 

[Nella Fantasia]

Do they have any sort of transportation besides walking?

 

[K9Guardian]

Some horses. This is in pine forest. There's gotta be horses to pull lumber... Donkeys, mules, whatever can be ridden in hills. On the mountain, they have wagons that have to be pulled by hand.

 

[LightofHeaven]

TIGERS! Ride 'em, catboy!

 

[K9Guardian]

Go ahead. Just be sure you have enough body left to post with.

 

[LightofHeaven]

Here's Haven...sans limit breaks.

http://christianforums.com/showthread.php?t=6386861