Mythos RP sign-up/interest

[muffinstud]

The ancient world. The further archeologists dig, the more they come to know of the advances of a world that accomplished things still considered impossible to this day. Pyramids appear on the continents of Africa and South America, with more pyramids buried beneath the waves off the coast of Japan. American Indians have spoken languages almost identical to Hebrew. Giant rock monoliths are meticulously arranged in England and on Easter Island. There are many evidences that the ancients not only knew more than we, but that there was a single influence that encircled the globe.

Legends and Myths are some of the evidences of this influence, this connection. In every culture there are stories of heroism, of betrayal and love, of gods and goddesses and monsters. Through the mists of time, we have decided that these stories are just that. Fairy tales to teach our children lessons, fables to remind us of what we believe in. Not a single person alive today would ever believe that any of those fantastical stories from before history were even remotely based on fact.

Oh how wrong they are.

For, unbeknownst to any of our day and age, the oddities that bind human culture together and the fantastical stories of old are one and the same. The city of Atlantis was but one of many settlements, Beowulf truly capable of holding his breath for three days while wrestling with sea monsters. Dragons and Angels competed with each other for sport, while Oni and Skinwalkers discussed politics and recipes. For the people of the ancient world, the myths and legends of today were the regular, everyday hustle and bustle of yesterday.

But something happened. Somehow, all the wonder stopped, leaving our world the dreary bore it is today. How did this happen? Why? What if...those things found a way to come back...
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Okay, so here's the nitty gritty. You will be a regular person in a world very much like ours; no magic, crazy scientific mumbo jumbo, etc. This is for regular human beings, so no starting out as cat-people or anything else but people-people. After an intro to make sure everyone is aquainted with each other, your character will be subjected to a certain situation that will awaken certain attributes within them. Think old-timey legends meets DBZ, only I plan on not getting all soap-opera-ey.

The main purpose of this rp will be exploration and discovery. I'm keeping many parts of the rp mechanic in the dark specifically so the players can discover it along with the plot as they play. You will be subjected to harsh conditions and will have to use your cunning to survive. Yes, there will be a main antagonist, but it's less a question of good vs. evil and more how you think the world should work. Who knows, maybe I'll make one of the players want to join the antagonist. There will be combat, but think Megaman or Zelda- it's all a puzzle that needs to be sorted out and when it is, everything just clicks.

Now, this is my first rp I'd be GMing, so the main plot will be somewhat short. Not to worry, for if the players are having fun with it and cooperating, I will be more than happy to add more plotlines in the future. Also, if you want to come into it later into the game, don't worry. The setup will be such as to allow for anyone to join in at any time, even if it will be more like a standard rp.

I will only have time to make a couple of posts per day, so don't do 5 pages of dialog every day. I'm perfectly fine with people getting carried away every now and then, since that is the fun of it. Just don't get your knickers in a twist if I ask you to slow down a bit so I and the other slow people can have a go.

And now, what you've all been waiting for: the character format and powers. I'm really hoping for some imagination here, since you can pull inspiration from any myth, legend, tall tale, or far-fetched story ever to be told around a fire. It can be western, eastern, asian, australian, martian, whatever folklore. I don't care where it comes from. I really hope for some variety as well. Go nuts with your character, and don't worry about god-modding. If I think you've got too much in one area, I'll have you make the proper adjustments to fit the scenario.

Essentially, your character will gain the form and influence of whatever legendary person/creature of your choosing. This influence will be a limiting theme for their powers/abilities. See the example character below for details. This legendary influence will come upon the person in levels. They are Levels 0 through 3.
Level 0 is relatively normal. This is how your person will be for the majority of the time. There is little to differentiate the person from someone without a legendary influence, but it's still there and it can be obvious.
Level 1 is used when threatened or under stress. The person becomes more competent with their influence and is more capable in combat and more durable in harsh conditions.
Level 2 is for lashing out in anger or displays of other strong emotions. The person's form changes to clearly reflect the source of their influence. Combat abilities are excellent and they are able to perform many seemingly impossible feats.
Level 3 is unattainable without training or extremely sever circumstances. No one will reach level 3 without my say so, as the person becomes a living embodiment of their influence and is closer to a force of nature or demigod than anything else. Because of the extreme amounts of power level 3 requires, it also cannot be maintained for very long, forcing the person to revert to level 2 after some time.

To demonstrate how the influences work with the levels, here is a sample character. It's also a sample of how to introduce tg if you so desire. However, tg is not necessary.
Tim-
Legendary Being- Ursa (the constellation)
Influence- motherly strength
Level 0- Tim has permanently become a woman with strong maternal instincts and a desire to protect her friends.
Level 1- Tim becomes stronger, but is more prone to take hits for her friends and let them bounce off her tough skin.
Level 2- Tim becomes a giant bear, capable of uprooting small trees. Her first instinct is still to protect those with her.
Level 3- Tim reverts to her regular self, but has a motherly glow about her. Any attacks made towards her comrades will be stopped by an invisible shield and retaliated with thrown cars, boulders, houses, etc.
(note, if I wanted Tim to constantly switch between male and female, I could just have left him male and protective for level 0 and female for level 1)

To make the levels easier on yourself, just think of what kind of theme you want your character's abilities to follow. Start small, then make them progressively more awesome. If you want any help or ideas, feel free to ask me.

As for characters, the regular spiel will suffice. Name, age, gender, appearance, short bio and personality. What will be necessary is this: the rp will begin on an ocean liner in the pacific. You'll need a reason for being on the boat. And yes, I will be making my own player character. I figure the hands on approach is the way to go if people need prodding.

[Kris_Roth]

Is there a bio sheet for these characters? Ookalf, I think I will be using the Valkyrie, complete with wings and an enchanted hammer like Thor's (Molinjir). So, what legendary character are you going to use? I'm sure there are a lot of legends to use: Egyptian, Norse, Greek, Judeo-Christian, and the like. Maybe Evil forces tap into evil legends too? I'm sure there are a lot of legends of evil, like Loki, the Norse trickster god, among others.

[Kris_Roth]

I claim the Valkyrie, muffinstud. What age group are the characters supposed to be, and will thay have to go to school or a training place to learn their special skills under the guidance of a mentor? Maybe Athena herself? She disguised herself in the Oddessy as Mentor, an older man who dispenses sage advice to Telemachus, the main character's son, a grown man who is upset by the way the male suitors are causing his kingdom harm.

You going to have the Monkey King in this (he's the inspiration for DBZ's main hero, Son Goku). Most of the DBZ legends are based off of "Journey to the West", like the Ox King, whose daughter Chi Chi marries Goku, and she has 2 kids, Gohan and Goten. Oolong, the shapeshifting pig, is based off of a character I saw in a movie called "Journey to the west" with Bruce Campbell as the Scholar. He is aided in his journey by mythical characters, including Princess Whitesnake.

[Ookalf]

Can I reserve a spot in this? I'll type up a character sheet soon.

[Brnin8r]

Name: Mike Jones
Age: 19
Gender: Male
Mike stands at about 6'2'' with dark brown hair that looks long but isn't shoulder-length. His eyes are a dark brown only slightly lighter than his hair. He's highly analytical, thinking about everything and weaving situations in his head (most of them random and irrational enough that he keeps quiet about them) He's a very D&D inclined person, playing at least once a week. His favorite characters are those that can talk their way out of anything. He enjoys Norse mythology and the entwining stories within it. He always likes to make sure that people around him regard him with at least recognition. If anyone has a problem with his personality, he tries his hardest to find out why and how he can help it. He always has a comedy sketch in his mind, able to quote any number of comedians from Bill Cosby to George Carlin (on a scale of clean to vulgar lol) and can usually diffuse a tense situation.

Mike finds himself on this cruise liner in the Pacific as a family vacation that his family accidently failed to share. He was on the boat and they were staring at a live show and forgot what time the boat was departing. They called his cell and yelled obscenities asking why he couldn't have told them the ship was leaving, "I had told you earlier, the ship was leaving at 12 and you felt the sincere urge to listen to that barbershop quartet. But it's not like I can turn the boat around." a long conversation followed and the cell was hung up. His reasons were a lie, but he didn't get a long with his family too well. It was ironic, that the only people he didn't worry about whether they liked him or not were the people he lived with.

((Do you want me to list the kind of Mythos progression thingy I have in mind?))
EDIT: Lol...took so damn long to type this and someone's already typed up a norse-esque character. I'm looking at Loki though *wink*

[Kris_Roth]

So, when does this wonderful rpg start up? That would be cool at later levels to introduce Krystia's family, which are actually Norse-related characters: Thor and Freyja (her parents), Aunt Hilda becomes Brunhilde, Captain of the Valkyries, and grandfather, Odin. Of course she could be tested like Yuuki was in SGVY (Odin sends his birds, then his legendary wolves, and then Sleppnir, the eight-legged horse, Herrmon, the guide/mentor role. Imagine a gateway to Valhalla and private training centers for the heroes. Imagine the stories the Norse Pantheon can tell about their adventures. Explain how Odin lost his eye, the death of Balder may cause some reservations with Thor and Freyja around Loki.

For those who don't know, Balder was a strong man, and Thor's brother (Krystia's uncle). He was protected by Freyja, who was able to make sure no weapons would hurt him. Loki discovered a spring of Mistletoe was not part of the protection vestments and then went in disguise to trick one of the Warriors Three (or something like that) to use the sprig to pierce Balder during a contest. Balder died as a result....

Loki is also resposible for Thor's rams (who pull his chariot) coming up lame when they were sent to defeat some Frost Giants. I think the story goes, they stop at a family's home, where two children, a brother and sister and their mother lived...and Thor provided his rams for food. He warned the kids not to crack open the bones for the marrow, as the rams came back to life and they'd be on their way to their destination. Loki then basically told the kids to go ahead and eat the marrow from the bones, and the kids broke the bones and got the marrow. The rams the next day were lame, and Thor blamed the kids and the kids said Loki told them to. Of course, the kids went with Thor and Loki on foot as punishment til they got to the Frost Giant King, who ended up putting them in contests of strength, eating, and speed, as well as a giant panther. These contests were about Man is always hungry for food and knowledge, but never satisfied (the eating contest with the boy and the frost giant. The girl participated in the running contest, and it was about man's race in life would he always come up short, and the giant panther vs Thor was about aging.

Would Athena have Bubo, her owl, as a mechanical construct or a living owl?
Bubo is from "Clash of the Titans."




Battle Frost Giants and to be warned later of Ragnarok ( i think there is some wolf named Fenrir who's supposed to eat the moon or something).

[Ookalf]

I'm thinking of going with something Greek. Hopefully, this doesn't lead to my character being a sex maniac. Seriously, how many wives and kids did Zeus have?

[muffinstud]

Ookalf: Spot reserved. Don't hesitate to ask me if you have any questions.

N8: I like the character. It would be awesome to have a valkyrie AND Loki in the same group, since they're kind of complete opposites. Yay for conflict! (Note: if you want to avoid the Norse affect, you could always be Coyote, the Native American or Puck, the Anglo-saxon version) As for the progression, you can list it here if you want. If you prefer to surprise the other players, you can pm me and get approval that way.

Kris: The character is mostly okay, but I should have clarified a bit for the bio. The characters will be gaining their powers while on this cruise. I have no problem with having an aunt Brunhilda, but that will have to come in after the initial plotline.
Also, in response to your questions, your character can be any age from 2 to 102. Since they'll be on a cruise ship (initially), there won't be any regular school environments. However, once the initial plotline is finished, there will be plenty of opportunity for legendary teachings so every character has the opportunity to eventually reach level 3. Here's a sample bio sheet. Please feel free to break from it at any time, as long as you still give a smattering of the requested info.

Name:
Age:
Gender:
Appearance: (description or picture)
Bio: (short or long, don't care)
Why the Cruise:
Legendary Being:
Influence:
Level 0:
Level 1:
Level 2:
Level 3:

On a general note, your characters will not know exactly how they gain their specific influence. Finding out how you got it is part of the mystery and the fun

[Kris_Roth]

Let's see:

Zeus's kids are legends in their own right: Hercules/Heracles, Perseus (from the Medusa/Andromeda story), I think. Athena came from Zeus's head, and Aphrodite is Hercules's sister, Ares is god of war, Hephestus/Vulcan is a metalsmith and he is married to Aphrodite. Hephaestus had a limp in his leg as he was cast from Olympus by Hera. He later has a workshop at Mt. Etna, making all kinds of weapons, armor and golems for the big war against the Titans. He made Zeus's thunderbolts, Poseidon's trident, Ares's armor, Athena's weapons, Artemis's bow, and a mechanical representation of Bubo, Athena's pet owl, in Clash of the Titans.

[Ookalf]

And that's probably less than half of them. Anyway, I hope to have my character ready by the end of the day.

[Kris_Roth]

Name: Male: Kristopher Moljins
Female: Krystia Moljins
Heroine name: Krystiel

Age: 20 (male) /(female - 18)
Gender: Male (as Civilian Krystia, female), Valkyrie - female
Appearance: Short brown hair, blue eyes, 5'11" 185 lbs, Athletic build, wearing blue jeans and t-shirts.
As the Valkyrie, Krystia wears her typical light blue sleevless top, white gloves and boots, a blue sash, and has long brown shoulder hair, b cup breasts, athletic build, a light blue winged Valkyrie headband. Around her neck is her medallion she found, with the artifact of the Moljinir symbol (Thor's hammer) and a lightning bolt on it. Civiilian form Krystia usually wears light blue and white clothes. Her weapon of choice, in honor of Thor, is her very own Mojinir, given to her by her "aunt" Hilda aka Brunhilde.

Bio: Kristopher didn't know his parents much. He was always fascinated with the Norse mythologies, ever since he discovered the family crest, which has Thor's hammer with a thunderbolt on it. Since only females can don the mantle of the Valkyrie and assume the responsibilites of a Valkyrie, a strange woman, named Brunhilde, captain of the Valkyries, began to teach Kristopher about the powers and the legends of the Valkyrie to Kristopher, in her disguise as his long lost "Aunt Hilda".
Why the Cruise: Kristopher got a ticket from "Aunt Hilda" and with her insistance, he boarded the ship, and decided to meet people and find out what this cruise is all about.
Legendary Being: Valkyrie (Norse)
Influence: Justice, a need to protect the weak
Level 0: - Transforms initially into female form to accept mantle and title of Valkyrie (permanent)- New girl is given new name, Krystia Moljins, age 18. Enhanced speed and agility, as well as hightened senses.
Level 1: - Krystiel receives her Mojinir hammer, 1st attack, Valkyrie Lightning Strike, achieved (basic Lightning channeled from hammers mystical force. Able to channel the very element of lighting through her Moljinir hammer, known to her as Moljinira.
Level 2: - Krystiel sprouts wings to fly -Flight of the Valkyries achieved, more knowledge of Norse mythical creatures learned through mentor, Brunhilde/Aunt Hilda.
Level 3: - Fully unlocked full Valkyrie powers. Ascends from trainee Valkyrie to full Lieutenant of her aunt's army, complete with mystical armor, wings and new upgrade of hammer with longer handle.

[Zoey]

Reserve me a spot please. I'll try to get a sheet up as fast as I can.

[Haylie]

Hmmm... would an angelic character be totally out of line?

Name: Andy Mathis / Amethyst (or "Amy")
Age: 18
Gender: Male (later female)
Appearance: A young man with black hair that falls down into his plain face. He usually wears a leather jacket that's too big for him, loose jeans, black shoes, and the occasional chain necklace. He doesn't smile often, either, so more than one person would mistake him for an emo.
Bio: Despite his appearance, he's actually a pretty good guy to know. He'll tell jokes, and even pull the occasional prank, but nothing too serious. The fact that he doesn't smile a whole lot is just a misconception. His face is just built so it looks like he's frowning when he's neutral, and therefore looks like he's smiling less. He was kicked out of his parents' house after they couldn't afford his insurance anymore (one too many car wrecks) so they dumped him on the street. His defense to this is his sense of humor. Some miscellaneous things to know is he's lazy, and isn't above stealing a man's seat if the spot's good.
Why the Cruise: He bought a ticket off a man on the street saying he didn't want it anymore. Seeing an opportunity to get away from his problems for a little while and postpone having to find a job, he climbed aboard and laid back.
Legendary Being: Arch Angel
Influence: The Good of Others.
Level 0: Just... Andy. No obvious change. About 6' tall.
Level 1: Andy switches genders, gets a bit taller (6' 6"), gains a longsword and the ability to shoot very small, very weak dots of light from her hands. They have enough power to knock a man off his feet and leave a good-sized hole, but not much else. Andy's clothes become white leather, like an archer. She can take a bullet, but she still feels and reacts accordingly.
Level 2: Andy gets wings, slightly taller (9' 3" and a 15' wingspan), the longsword gets bigger, and the light darts get powerful enough to kill a man. Naturally, with the wings comes the power to fly. The leather armor becomes chain-mail. She's less likely to even notice being shot. She can hold up a car with one hand after using both to lift it up.
Level 3: Amethyst shows her true power by basically getting bigger everywhere (12 feet tall with a 25' wingspan), and the darts are now more like mortar rounds that can bend reality. The armor is now full-plate that glows yellow, her sword's as long as she is tall, she's strong enough to lift a semi with one hand and throw a force field with the other.

[Ookalf]

Name: Tyler Hartford
Age: 17
Gender: Male
Appearance: Thin, pale Caucasian with redish hair and green eyes.
Bio: Tyler's pretty much your average nerd. He spends most days inside, either sitting in front of his computer or playing videogames.
Reason for the cruise: His parents hoped the cruise might be some fun, and help Tyler get out more. It pretty much backfired, and he still spends most of his time in his room with his laptop.
Legendary Being: Artemis
Level 0: Heightened senses and agility, nothing exactly superhuman.
Level 1: Transforms into a woman who looks to be in her 20s with long black hair in a ponytail and a medium figure. Clothes, unfortunately, stay. Senses and agility are further improved, and she gains the ability to summon a bow and full quiver of arrows, which she's fairly skilled with.
Level 2: Body stays the same as in level 1, though she gains a form fitting hunting outfit. Senses and agility become even greater, as do her skills with the bow. Tyler also gains various trick arrows.
Level 3: Body still more or less the same, because I'm lazy. Special abilities reach their peak, with Tyler/*insert female name here* being able to so things like dodge point blank bullets, hear and see things a mile away. She never runs out of arrows in this state, and the arrows gain special properties like changing targets mid-air. Tyler's arsenal of trick arrows grows larger.

This work?

[muffinstud]

Kris: I've said a couple times---this is a world like our own. Your character won't already have valkyrie heritage because they don't exist (well, not any more). Your aunt Hilda will have to start off as being normal as well, however she will gain the same powers, yet in more of a mentor theme. She will be given all the knowledge necessary to give your character training, and her levels of power will influence how much she knows and how effectively she can pass it on. Essentially, she has become a "Weird Sister" in Norse Mythology. I hope this works with how you want your character to progress, but seriously, I have to nix the whole past with valkyries and stuff. Sorry. PM me if this is an issue, or if you'd like to throw some other suggestions by me. Everything else is just fine. Surprised you didn't name her Yuuki.

Kaizer: Spot saved!

Hailey: What kind of force field will it be? If you give her those kinds of strengths, it might need to be toned down from the standard "invisible impervious wall" concept. Will her flying skills will differ between levels 2 and 3? I would assume so...

Ook: Approved. You could get the trick arrows at level 2 if you wanted, as long as they're things like nets, small explosives or the like. Things that could be feasible in the real world. Level 3 trick arrows could be anything short of nuclear warheads or too god-moddy like that.