[HiFan] Dunes of Kraignor: Dusk. *Now with twice the salt!

Dunes of Kraignor: Dusk

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A moderate plot driven, full-on Magic RP, written by yours truly.

Rules:

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1. Forum guidelines and regulations.
   
2. RP guidelines and regulations.
   
3. Read the Stickies, if you already have, read them again, they are good.
   
4. Keep it real. But keep it Fantasy at the same time.
   
5. This is highly plot driven, the focus is the story not the characters. Anything and everything will be done to keep it on track.
   
6. Graphic content is not allowed, but blood and romance is allowed. No extreme gore or anything beyond kissing.
   
7. Be respectful to me and your other RPers. This is supposed to be fun.
   
8. Read this post, the whole post, and nothing but... Well no read everyone else's post too.
   
9. Literacy is a must, a paragraph of decent size please. Grammar as well.
   
10. The plot is for me and me alone, no unauthorized plot twists, timeskips, or anything else that may hinder the story in anyway.
    
11. PM YOUR SHEET TO ME, do not post it here. My PM box is always so empty...
    
12. If you feel like asking a question, do it. I doubt it will be stupid unless it is "How do I turn the computer on?"
    
13. The number one thing I hate is haters. You start hating, stop before I need to get onto you. Just don't do it man.
    
14. This is not a bureaucracy, everything will be done as quickly as I can manage with out thousands of sheets.
    
15. At the same time I am not some psychotic guy with no life. Well... yeah I am but still it will not be instantaneous.
    
16. And finally, have fun. And put "You're awesome Balu." in other, along with other stuff that doesn't go anywhere else. Yeah I know egotistical, but it is my religion and my religion is me.
    

Character Sheets:

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Code:

[b]Name:[/b] Realistic... with a first and last name, and a middle if you want.
[b]Gender:[/b] (Need I say more?)
[b]Species:[/b] (Human by default, but you can be none human)
[b]Desc:[/b] (Appearance, Personality, etc, anything that can be noticed upon meeting.)
[b]Bio:[/b] (Life story, why they are becoming an apprentice, and how much skill they currently have.)
[b]Other:[/b](Hmmm what goes here...)

Maps:

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Dashed lines are Major road,
Thick lines are used roads,
Thin lines are uncommon roads.

The Nature of Magic: Magic is used in terms of Science, But relatively low knowledge of Science. Magic users can control all types of magic, with different levels of proficiency. Death magic (Nekros), Life magic (Vivios), Water magic (Akuon), Fire magic (Pyron), Air magic (Aeron), Earth magic (Teron), Light magic (Ptokos), and finally Base magic (Karos). In reality magic is a blur of power, but through these eight principles it is focused and refined. At the moment your characters power is probably either completely focused into one or balanced over two or more. This is going to work in terms of Jedi magic (hand lift, but no complex actions) with powerful words (in a strange and ancient language of course). The hand lift and words are not necessary but it focuses the mind and body.

All magic is considered Neutral in terms of good or evil. But generally certain sides are considered better at good things, and other sides are not so good.
IE: Death magic is good for making things dead, or undead. If used correctly, though it can bring people back from the brink of death, or heal a mortal wound.
IE2: Life Magic is good for give in animate objects life, or manipulating life. If used poorly, extinguish it just as easily.
IE3: Base Magic is good for things that do not really involve things of a physical nature, like emotions, ideas, principles. Telepathy for instance. But changing a person's emotion is frowned upon.

The Council of Mages decides all Magical laws that "bind" magicians of Intaria. I say bind loosely because it is often hard to detect a mage with skill at hiding or a weak presence.

Magical "alignments"
1. Hearing recently deceased people talking. (commonly Nekros Skill but has been known to come from other skills.)
2. Flames grow brighter in your presence. (Pyron Skill)
3. The tide come is when you are around. (Akuon Skill)
4. The wind seems to speak to you. (Aeron Skill)
5. You can feel the presence of every living thing around you, even the bugs at your feet. (Commonly Vivios Skill)
6. You never become lost, no matter the terrain. (Teron Skill)
7. Things happen when your emotions run unchecked. (Base Skill, common for all others.)
Ptokos comes in two formes:
Light: Where you will feel uncomfortable in the dark and lights around you seem brighter.
Shadow: Where the light is not your friend, and shadows lengthen to touch yours. (or perhaps it is the other way around)

Please note, the Alignments are more or less starting places. Your character could display all, or none, or maybe one or two of them, or some other skill I did not list. But, no matter what alignment they have, Magic is pure and really has no alignment. Just shows what knowledge you already have, and what knowledge you lack.

How one uses Magic:

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Magic is an energy that is used to manipulate the world through nonphysical forces.

The unit for magic is the Rhom, one Rhom is about the equivalent of a Joule. Rhoms are created by a magicians body, in their cells is a special organelle called a Ampearl (Please note, the magicians, or anyone for that matter, of this time period do not know of it's existence, as they have not discovered cells yet.) These Ampearls use energy from the body to create Rhoms, but these Rhoms cannot be stored in the body. As such they are constantly released in small amounts. Rhoms affect other nearby Rhoms, as such some magicians can note another's presence if it is not hidden.

Artifacts are created by an object absorbing the magical power. Either from long exposure to a steady source, or short exposure to a large and powerful release (Most objects are destroyed during their creation, and a piece will only hold a small fraction of the power) Enchanted Items are items purposefully made into artifacts through controlled exposure to Magical power. Some artifacts rather than expressing their power their express an emotion. These can be helpful or dangerous. The Helmet of Rage and Fury, worn by a General during the Landsea Conquests, fills your mind with rage, making non magic users become hostile to anyone, and magic users more dangerous than that. For this reason, some artifacts when found to have extreme destructive power are sealed in the Emperors personal vault.

Emotion can trigger uncontrolled magic use, Strong emotions such as Rage, Despair or Terror (Any strong negative emotion.) can have powerful effects, but are generally ill-natured. Joy can trigger magic use as well, but like the others it is relatively uncontrolled and based on desires.

Focus, is the near opposite of emotion, and as such is a bit weaker than an overpowering emotion. Also based on desire, but is more controlled. Meditation, among other things can make focusing easier. Focused magic can be just as powerful as emotion triggered magic, but side effects are lesser or non-existent.

Lastly a person needs to be well rested and well fed to use magic effectively. Injuries, being tired, really anything can distract a person while casting a spell, and cause either a weaker spell or unintended results. (Hint: Be careful when healing yourself.)

A note on Spells
A spell is a word of power, the expression of an Idea in it's most primal form. It is unknown who created the language, the words have been used by the Old Ones, Dragons, Elementals, and have been referenced to in Ancient texts that even the Gods used the words during the creation of the world.

Spells are for the most part used only to focus the mind, (And of course for RP Mechanics) and are unnecessary beyond that. Magic is based on desire, a creature without desire cannot use magic. Magic is an instrument for a person to do their will beyond what their body can do.

And that is all I really have to say about that.

Locations:

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Intaria- The continent that this RP takes place on. The Continent, or at least most of it, is ruled by the Empire of Tyonus. It is ruled by Emperor Cyluan Tronus the 4th. He is a benevolent leader, having abolished the cruel laws of his grandfather on inter-species relations and of course helped remove the corrupt Ambassador ship that existed prior.

Lezrona- The capital of the Empire, in itself it could be a country, It is truly massive. Well, massive for a fortified city. It stretches three miles in all directions (Down is only to Bedrock and up is limited.) It's walls are made of Crimson Granite, it's gate made of Redwood, (Clearly the Emperor likes red.), and lastly it has never been conquered from the outside. But many have been laid low from the treachery that seems to come from inside this Sprawling city. Most of the city lies outside the walls, and is hollowed out of the

Archeron- The city of caves, smiths, and Quinum, a glowing crystal. Made famous for it's Pure white Quinum, Archeron has been mined for centuries, perhaps even millennia. In recent years, it has grown to hold more and more Smiths of exquisite skill. Here in Archeron, through the smoke and dust of the smiths and mines, you can find a sword who finds even a king unfitting to hold it. Most of the populace live in the ancient mines to protect them from the sand and heat of the nearby desert.

Kalimna- Also known as Hollow Mountain, is a city neatly hid away inside a large mountain. The only way to tell there was a city there is from above, as there is a massive hole dug to the top from the city below to let in light. The mountain in which the city lies within, is surrounded by a Glacier, The only way into the city is through Ice Crevasses, and the Great Ice Tunnel.

Dezrat- The city of sand, thieves, and merchants. It is filled with the wares of tradesmen, the bartering of buyers, and the screams of those chasing the street thieves. Here is where the Gan's Grimace lies, an Inn famous for making Grilled Gan, a most delicious dish. It is often the place Cray goes to meet people, and the Owner is very knowledgeable in the affairs of the tradesmen.

The Karagor Desert- A desert of Reddish, acidic, and unpleasant sand, It is a wasteland, and few go through here. Only the Kalisca can live here without feeling the sting of the deadly sand.

The Kraignor Desert- In the South Karagor, The desert grows more fertile, with it's darker sand, reliable semiyearly rainfall, and numerous cacti. Here the Karne, a desert Tribe known to hunt PsuedoCacti, are found, often celebrating a successful hunt around a burning prey. PsuedoCacti are numerous here.

The Falton Desert- A rocky, canyon filled, mountainous landscape upon a plateau that overlooks the north eastern section of the central deserts. It is a popular place for bandits, as it is filled with caves. Overall, one could call it Arizona.

Cray's Castle- Wait for More, IC


Plot important Creatures:

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Non-Sapient:
Karza- An avian like reptile used to travel through the desert, It is very fast, and it's diet consists mainly of cacti. It is feathered on its head, and has a beak as well. Its scaly back is very hard, yet easy to ride, it is also very comfortable.

Gan- The great sand serpents, they are large venomous snake that travel through the sand like a fish through water. They are blind, but see using vibrations.

Kalisca- A desert crab that looks like a massive spider, but doesn't have eight legs. Its shell is spiked and its claws are needle like. They are very docile, and are known to be ridden.

PsuedoCacti- (I know... Horrible name) It is a creature that disguises itself as a cacti to get prey. Very dangerous, and are well known to attack hungry Karza, and their riders.

Karew- A large desert feline. It has no tail, long fur, and yellow eyes that can see in absolute darkness. They hunt Kalisca and wander the desert. They are often seen along the horizon, and can live for long amounts of time without water.

Dwakus- A moderately sized winged creature, which feeds mainly on carrion. It is covered in leathery skin, and tiny scales. It is very dragon like, but saying so to a dragon would bring about your demise. They live in the desert, sleeping in the few trees that stand. They will rarely attack travelers, usually when in times of long drought, where it is difficult to find food that was not eaten long ago. They fly in flocks of two or three.

Human branch Species:
Karne: Desert Nomads with thick dark skin small lengthy bodies, and excellent knowledge of the Desert. Their skins are rough from the desert sand, and their feet are light and made for running. They are Quick and known for their hunting skill.

Dark Mages: They used to be standard humans, they just relied on forbidden sides of magic to do what they want. That and they were overall corrupt. Slowly this corruption seeped into their bodies, and their connection to everything around them. They look like standard humans, but radiate an aura of ill will. They have slight shape shifting abilities, and are generally steered clear of.

Old Ones: Not much is known about them, except that they used to inhabit Intaria, then left across the Eastern Sea. Few if any live in Intaria any more. They are told to have powerful magic, and abilities unknown to the world.

Humanoid Sentients: (Mostly Furries I suppose)
Elementals: Fire Water Earth Air etc, they are made of a pure element and are fairly rare in Intaria, long ago thought to be Gods, early species of Human and Intarian (which is the name given to everything else) alike bowed to them. But infighting lead to the decimation of nearly all of them. The most often seen now are Water variants, who were fairly safe from the fire, air, and earth. They are a magical species but so few show themselves to the mortals finding one as a mage is rare. With orbs of sapience which holds their minds. It is not known what the orbs are made out of.

Kobold: A lizard-like humanoid who lives near the Archipelago of Tallin, which is actually more of a delta. Not often known for magic beyond the occasional Base magic. Kobold Mages are few and far between. Crocodilian by nature the temperature of their Egg distinguishes between the sexes. They are usually a kind species, thoughtful and caring for their members. Their heights vary, from 2 feet up to a full 6 foot. Height usually displays their caste, tall ones are warriors, shorter ones go into the work force. Because of the rarity of magicians they do not actively look for magic, almost all magicians are "accidentally" discovered.

Eturi: Black mammalian creatures which resemble Felines. Thought of as thieves they are one of the least trusted species in Intaria. They have a unique prehensile tail, like that of the Apiuns of the Subtropicals. These small bodied felines, can be found nearly everywhere in Intaria, and though magic is not unheard of it is uncommon. One with skill in the arts is exceptionally determined. Through a condition they can turn white or gray. They are smart, crafty, and clever. More often they are Pickpockets or Con'men'

Grellia: A tall race of magic imbued creatures, they are very plant like. One could call them Dryads. Generally humanoid in appearance, they have a large variation of skin colors, ranging from Deep brown to a flaky white, and to a brilliant emerald green. They have hair that falls from their scalps in the form of ivy or strands of flowers, even seaweed (Not a plant but...) There skin can be hard like bark, or soft like flower pedals. They are revered as guardians of both the Ravik Forest and the Subtropicals.

Character Sheets:

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Major Characters

• Cray Status=
  
• My other character Status=
  
• Faerial Bareidi (Ji) Status=
  
• Klaena Tzarreth Jeik (Eo) Status=
  
• Niarhaanin (Jac) Status= Awaiting confirmation.
  

Minor Characters

• None yet
  

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Unecrosus
Cray - In Progress.

My second Sheet - In Progress

SirJi
Name: Faerial Bareidi
Gender: Male
Species: Eturi
Desc: Standard for his kind, he's short, roughly 2 feet and 8 inches tall, and fairly lanky. His body is covered in a thin pure white fur coat, which is abnormal, as Eturi are normally blackish, which is one of several features that give his kind a reputation as sneaks. Others, of course, include the soft pads on his feet and hands, which make little if any sound as he uses them, and definitely prohibits clapping. His hands themselves contain only four fingers, each tipped with a small, now mostly vestigial claw, and are proportioned fairly similarly to a humans. His feet, much like his hands, contian only four digits and are tipped with claws, though these are large enough to support him upright, and the claws are capable of digging into things like tree bark, to facilitate climbing. his legs themselves double back, like a cat's, to maintain a springloaded posture while standing. On his head, he has two forward facing grey eyes, with narrow slits, and a slightly pressed out muzzle, which containes fairly sharp, entirely predatory teeth. His ears are pointed, and fairly large, which allows him to hear better than a human, and more to allow him to hear his own kind, whose voices are whispery quiet. His compartively (to his arms) and powerful tail is fairly long, and entirely pensile, which he can use to manipulate objects, or simply hold more things.
Bio: He grew up in the city of Kalimna, trying to be, for lack of a better term, as un-Eturian as possible. He rather hated the reputation his kind had as sneaks and thieves, a reputation that was less racism, more legitimate fact, in their culture it was more or less done for sport as much as it would be done for actual wealth. He of course, spent his time trying to avoid this reputation, keeping to the light, and trying to hone his mind, rather than his body. He spent much of his life reading books on magic, finding no account of a Eturi who ever wielded a magic other than Ptokos, or rather, of one who prefered anythign else, and even then only ever for more shadowy intents. Magic, yes... magic had begun to fascinate him at an early age, and he wanted nothing more than to prove that his kind could do other magics. He began to spend as much time as he could, either alone, or in the presence of local mages, practicing his magical skill. Very little, however, came naturally to him, aside from Ptokos. He was different though, he wanted to be different, and agianst all natural inclinations, and the way other mages commented on his shadow, reaching out to touch the darkness, he studied how to empower light. If he could do nothing else, he was going to champion light, be the light in the darkness of his kind. To this end, he knew he was going to have to stand out, he dyed his fur white, and continued practicing, hoping to catch the eye of someone... anyone important who could train him.
Other: You're awesome, Balu. I mean... Captian Balu.

AlaskaWyvern
Name: Klaena Tzarreth Jeik (goes by Jeik, because it's the least derogative.)
Gender: Yes. Oh wait, you said "gender," not "sex." Male, then.
Species: Kobold
Desc: If you ignore the tail, and he puts the hood of his robe down, he could be mistaken for a young child. He's two feet, eleven inches tall and built like a string bean. His skin is finely scaled and pale green mottled with dark brown, fading to tan in all those places where creatures are typically lighter-colored (the underbelly, just a bit around the snout, in a faint mask around the eyes, etc.). His head is sort of saurian, sort of canine - that sort of hard-to-classify shape that goes with dragons sometimes. He has a long muzzle coming out from between large, expressive blue eyes, flowing from prominent eyebrow ridges and extending his mouth back behind his eyes. He has no ears, at least not on the outside. There's a hole just over where his jaw connects, though. The scales on his eyebrows are tall and prominent. They make little horny appendages that look like horns but are actually mobile. He's got the usual assortment of limbs and number of digits. His legs are digitigrade, and his feet are rather dextrous. He has a tail that's about ten inches long.
As for what he's wearing… He's got a naturally-colored turban that started out whitish and then got all sandy since he started traveling. Actually, everything he's wearing is pretty dusty. Kind of a shame that washing isn't a bigger thing in this time period. He's wearing lightweight traveling clothes, very Bedouin in style. He's got an ornate woven sash/bandolier that has his waterskin and various pouches tie onto. He also carries a dagger made from the claw of a large desert animal (a castoff from his brother after he got a steel knife) and a wooden staff with a thick piece of flexible leather on the end. This serves as a hiking staff, self-defense tool, and riding crop.
Bio: He's a bit short. Like, for a kobold he's a bit short. His siblings all came in around the three and a half foot mark (an inch or two above average), and his father was a legendary four feet tall (four and a half if he was wearing sandals). But Jeik is only two feet eleven (two feet ten in sandals; they make him slouch). When you come into a family like that as the runt of the litter, you naturally have a hard time. Everyone's got such high expectations for you, and they whisper their grandiose predictions for your life over your egg. But then you come out, and everyone in the room breathes a collective sigh of disappointment. It only gets worse from there, especially if you're actually not good for anything. Jeik's primary skills seem to be poking things with sticks, sneaking around,* and occasionally being self-deprecating enough to be worth a laugh. Flames occasionally go nuts when he's too close (Especially with his natural pyromaniacal tendencies. If he were a mammal, he'd have lost quite a few eyebrows by now. He is now marginaly competent, but harboring a hidden talent for fireballs). It's also entirely possible that his tribe's distaste for him is a vicious cycle brought on by self-pity and Base magic. The letter was actually sent to Jeik's elder brother (whom I will find a name for later), but he dismissed it as useless (Jeik's tribe isn't particularly known for magic). Thus, they sent Jeik along to get rid of him. Ironically, his brother did actually have more talent than Jeik did, but Jeik was a much more persistent person. Jeik's been sent off to Dezrat on his pet Karza. (Life story, why they are becoming an apprentice, and how much skill they currently have.)
Other: You're… I'll just be blunt, those socks really don't do you justice.

Jac
Name: Niarhaanin of clan Aquamancy
Gender: Male (At least, in the sense that an elemental can be)
Species: Water Elemental
Desc: On land, Niarhaanin appears in a very odd way. His upper body is much like a humaniod creature, having two arms, a vaguely human shaped head, and a thin body that leads to his much stranger lower half. One could say it looks like a moving wave on the ground, about 2 feet wide or so. The back of his wave-like lower half appears to even break, like the waves of the ocean against the beach, and he leaves a wet trail wherever he moves. In heigth, he's around 10 feet tall, though being that his body is like a normal creature's, it can be many different sizes and shapes, but what you see here is how he normally appears about 97% of the time. His watery body is a light blue, and perfectly transparent, though any image that passes through him is distorted slightly. Despite that, you would find him quite solid to the touch, though his body is typical moist feeling and cold. The reason his head was refered to as vaguely human is due to the shape, like a thin, bald person, but there are no eyes, no mouth, and no nose, giving the front half of his face(if you can even call it that) a flat appearance. Floating inside this creature is a yellow orb, like shining glass, that is typically in the chest area. This is the real Niarhaanin, the soul of his elemental body, and his voice as well, which often leads people to wonder why it sounds like he talks through his stomach.
Bio: Niarhaanin was born to the Western Coast Water Elementals, near one of the major fishing cities. His clan was one of the two major ones that lived in the two oceans bordering Intaria, two very different and distant clans. His clan valued aiding people more then the Eastern one, and often aided lost fishermen and sea-go-ers from certain death. Niarh was taught no different, and from a young age no less. His people lived in the ocean, not far from the coast, venturing onto land every so often. It wasn't to say that his kind were rare to see on the West Coast, and well they were certainly not a common sight, they did not like stay land-bound for to long. Niarh however, went on land much more often than his kin, trying to do his best at what he'd been taught; help the mortals. Of course, it wasn't only this desire that kept bringing him back, but his curosity as well, his want to learn more about the land-based lifeforms. Even though his clan was much more dedicated to helping people, their strange appearance often forced the young elemental to keep his distance, having seen how frightened or violent some could be towards his kind. It was due to his time spent watching the people of the continent that he choose to assume the form he still has today, whenever on land, hoping it would make people a little more accepting of him over his old form, which could more or less be described as a sentient puddle of talking water. Niarhaanin also showed quite a bit of talent with magic as well, even though his people were naturally magical with water, their lack of land-going to go onto the land prevented most of them from really training it outside of what others already knew. He has shown more than above average skill with controlling outside water from his own body, able to bend and shape it, though he is still incapable of turning it into a deadly force. Of course, it wasn't really his level of magical ability that got him noticed, but more so that he was a Water Elemental who spent most of his time on land. Of course, well he had learned many things about the creatures of the land, he wasn't quite sure what to make of the letter he received. Didn't stop him from answering it, partly out of curosity, and partly out of his need to help, and this certainly gave him that feeling.
Other: You're awesome, Balu. And mildly conceded.

Plot Information:

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Introduction:
One day before the possible apprentices are supposed to meet Cray in Dezrat. They should already be in the city by now, staying in one of the many hotels and preparing for the meeting at the Gan's Grimace. The market is a very exciting place, but filled with pickpockets and dangerous criminals. But the risk is also filled with reward, for the market is famous for its fine wares and rare delicacies.

Someone's getting fancy with the text effects.

Is there anything taboo with the non-human races, or any sort of guidelines?

Not really, except no shape-shifters. Those guys are evil in my story. Just make sure the species is balanced and describe them... Why am I explaining this, you are pro. You know what right is.

Minor updates that pretty much just made everything uniformly fancy. Someone look at this. Please.

I intend to join, once I get some RL business out of the way.

No problem Eo, I intend to make it possible for people to jump in this time instead of Gungho lets go from the beginning.

I also dont plan on starting for a while. So get rl sorted up nice and somewhat straight ya know?

How many sheets do we have so far? I'm working on mine now.

None except mine/Cray, but he is kinda a constant.

I also have all of the plot important's, but they are kinda sorta undeserving of sheets.

So yeah. AMAZINGNESS! This won't die unless I tell it too. Or someone of higher rank tells it too. Dun wanna undermine authority!

Uh, still looking for members I expect? Because color me interested.

I don't have that color... But yeah, members will be welcomed till I allow this to die some point in the distant future. Grab a seat Ji, your welcome and so is anyone else.

*glares at the lurkers* I see you, don't you hide.

So how do they found out our characters have aptitude?

I assume the authorities don't know all of us personally or anything.

Well, most of you will not be extremely skilled, but you will still have enough magical ability to be noticed. Some more so than others. Enough so that a somewhat competent high magician of any village would notice you.

Now, if your characters an Exile, I would also assume it would be the talk of the land, if they were to meet anyone while they wandered. It's not exactly a perfect system, but it is the best they have at the time.

Most people will also know that they have Magic. Some species are inherently magic, and some are rare, so rare it is frowned upon by their society.

So, is the magical alignments section there to help us describe how we know our magic type?

Either way, I should probably just get on my sheet now, see you when it's done.

Well, yeah. But it is only really for the Biography and maybe meeting Cray. After they start training, Cray will pretty much try to blur the alignments. Though skill in certain types will remain, the whole Only fire or only water will be pretty much abolished.

Remember to PM it to me.

@Everyone:
At the moment I am working on the Plotline, so Updates will come without really changing the Op much.

The main changes that will come are in the location, magic, and creature sections. As such these are mostly unimportant.

*SirJi has been Accepted*

7 Spots left. /Random limit.

Yay!

Oooh with that kind of random limit, I might not be a minor character!

Like more than that number will join anyway. :/

They might. You said you had five.

It's kinda four with you done.

Ah, well... uh... four other people, though... 5/7 is still over half.

Hmmm... Math.

If it gets to that point, I will accept other characters with equally important roles.

I have an important role?

Anyway, so then, how goes yonder update to the plot?