—— wow, fantastic baby ; updated: 11/09/2012

[joonsexual]

So, I know that, at the moment, I'm running two other games and obligated to several more, but, those won't be a problem. I have excellent time-management and can, more or less, churn out a post every day if I needed to. I just chose not to because... well, that's really none of your concerns, lol.

In any case, lately, I've been itching to play in several settings/ideas.


REWIND
Genre: Mystery / Supernatural
Cast Size: 8-10

The story centers around the lives of individuals, who, after suffering death, find themselves unable to move on. They stay tethered to Earth. But instead of living a half-conscious life, these individuals are given the rare and unique opportunity to "live" again. There is, however, a condition. In order to stay "alive" on Earth, they are forced to do the grunt-work of the Death Gods.

Lately, on Earth, there has been a surge of "unusual" deaths. Deaths that are NOT marked in the timeline of Fate. The Death Gods have tasked these reborn humans with the job of Death Investigators. These reborn humans are to go around solving incredible deaths in exchange for Time.

Every case they solve is one hour returned to them (the clock turns back from the moment they died), so that they may go back and fix the things that went wrong in their lives—the things that are keeping them from moving on.

Essentially, the RP is about a group of strangers, who have to go around the city solving unnatural deaths. They do so without the help or the aid of the police and legals (which means they have to be somewhat sneaky about this whole thing). Characters will be assigned unique abilities (nothing super flashy, though). Characters will also retain all their memories and feelings from their previous life, but, when they are reborn, they will be given new faces, new histories, and new etc. Other people in the world will see these people as their new identities, but other Death Investigators or Death Gods (or people linked to the Afterlife) can see them as they truly are.

Additionally, the world is inhabited with demons/monsters. Not all of them are evil and out to destroy the world. Instead, most of them are simply living side-by-side in perfect harmony with humans. Death Investigators can see them as they truly are and vice-versa.


MOTIVE
Genre: Mystery / Horror
Cast Size: 8-10

A group of individuals have been invited to a reading of a will. They arrive at the isolated estate, prepared to hear what they would be receiving from their dead and distant uncle. But instead of a one night, two-day event, the gathered individuals are subjected to an extended, but unwanted stay where secrets are many and a killer is lurking just around the corner.

To be frank, the cast of the role-play are all, somehow, related to the recently deceased uncle. They were all called upon to be witnesses at the reading of his will and, also, there to receive whatever gifts their uncle had left them. When they arrive at the mansion, a faraway place, they are told to get a good night's sleep and to be ready at the Eastern Drawing room at precisely noon—sharp.

But before the will can be disclosed, someone (a NPC) is found dead in the kitchen, stabbed in the back by a butcher's knife. With the sudden turn of events, the lawyer responsible for the will, announces that "current events" have altered the original reading of the will. Instead of rewarding partitions of wealth to each attendee, the individual capable of solving a "small puzzle" will be given the whole of the estate and accounts.

So, winner takes all.

NOTE: While the mini-games are being played, there is also a killer loose and the killer is one of the characters. It is up to the cast to figure ou who the killer is if they don't want to meet the same fate!

The game itself will be somewhat monitored with an emphasis on communication between the players and me. This is not intended to be a long-term game. It will be "timed," in a manner of speaking.


THE DARK CARNIVAL
Genre: Action
Cast Size: 10+

A group of individuals (varying in both backgrounds and personalities) have been selected to partake in an event known only as "The Dark Carnival." Through a variety of means (often through coercion and other less-than-legal methods), the participants are whisked away from their homes, jobs, or schools (or wherever) and, some time later, find themselves inside a posh hotel room — with no recollection of ever having slept or wearing the clothes they, now, find themselves in or why this is happening — to them.

Winner of the "The Dark Carnival" are promised a hefty monetary reward OR the fulfillment of one wish—any wish. But, of course, there can only be one winner.

The game is comprised of a series of missions/tasks/events. Players will be prompted with certain objectives at every chapter. Failure to complete the objective results in "erasure." Therefore, it is in every characters' best interest to complete the stated objectives and to complete them fast.

This is, in essence, an assassin's game, but with a twist. This role-play will NOT have character shells/slots.


ANTIQUE SHOP 9
Genre: Drama / Supernatural / Slice-of-Life / Comedy
Cast Size: 8-10

In a hidden alleyway, tucked into a tiny corner of a dimly-lit, trash-strewn dead-end, is a mysterious-looking shop with ancient Chinese architectural touches. A tiny bell hangs above the door, ringing to alert the arrival of a potential customer. The store reeks of incense and herbs—the perfume is thick and heavy. It permeates the air, coating over everything including the store's strange, but expensively priced goods.

There are large vases with intricate paintings—some traditional others startlingly unconventional. There are calligraphic pieces, the characters quickly scrawled across yellowing parchment. And then other random tidbits—lanterns, glasses, and silk dresses.

But the store's customers (or the random stumbler) aren't there for the wares or the decors or the perfume-stank air. They are there for the owner—a man who promises everything and anything underneath the skies. He can grant glory and fame, love and happiness. He can give immortality—for the right price, of course. Customers often find the store by accident—opening the handle out of curiosity. But they leave feeling an eerie heaviness on their souls.

"Equal exchange" is the owner's motto.

The role-play is about the owner and his "employees." His employees are all interesting people—people who were once customers, but, by some wayward chance, became chained to his side. Saddled with a debt they can't repay by normal means, his employees, some grudgingly and some not-so grudgingly, are tasked with a variety of menial jobs. They go out into the real world, gather random objects, and do whatever it is the owner wants.

The antique shop sells dreams and hope, but the price is often steep.


NO MORE HEROES
Genre: Action / Drama
Cast Size: 8-10

The story takes place in a run-down, dried-up town. The air is stale, the streets are dirty, and the people are mean from poverty. Life in the city is miserable, but life in the dwindling country-side is even worse. In order to survive, most people go out to collect trash or work in the dead and tired fields—plowing soil that won't grow more than a barrel of plants. The lucky ones get to go off to the factories, where the fumes clog up the lungs and the soot blurs the eyes.

There is nothing here in this gray and broken city.

Most of the kids don't attend middle school and the idea of college is a faraway notion—a place that exists only in history texts detailing the lives of humans thousands and thousands of years ago.

Life, today, is nothing like life used to be. There are no environmental restrictions, fair labor laws, or anything. There is only an aged, but driving need to survive—to make it to tomorrow's miserable day.

But there is one silver lining in this mess—The Arena.

The Arena is one person's chance to make it out of the slums and into a life of luxuries, clean water, and beauty in the Upper Halls. The winner of The Arena will move into Dream City—a gated community that overlooks the prettiest of scenes—and a lifetime of unhindered, undisturbed happiness. Unfortunately, The Arena isn't so easily won.

Every year, tens of dozens of people—desperate to escape the filth and rot of hungre—apply. And, every year, tens of dozens of people are injured, crippled, or killed. After all, only one winner is chosen. Only one person can ride the golden train to happily-ever-after.

The Arena, as the name may imply, works like a giant fight-to-the-death system. Players are sent to a special complex and are given a set of items and stats. All the players fight for points and, after seven days, the player with the most points is declared the winner. Some times, although rare, people placing second or third or fourth are given jobs in the Upper Hall.

The Arena takes place in a virtual reality setting. Players wear headgears that transport their consciousness to a different system and, from there, they play the game. The game is broadcasted all over the Upper Halls as an annual sports. However, due to the implementation of "realism" and the strain the system puts the human mind in, many players frequently suffer real-world pains and problems both during and after the games.

This will be a dice-based game. Fights will be conducted with a simple dice system (it won't be very complex).


GOOD LUCK & GOOD NIGHT
Genre: Action / Drama / Crime
Cast Size: 8-10

1: Rumors have it that if there is something you want done—something you can't do yourself—you can go onto a website and request assistance.

They say that, for the right price, anything can be achieved—test answers, blackmail, assassination.

This is the story of the mysterious group behind the untraceable website and the missions they take on. While, of course, evading the cops at every turn of the road.

The role-play is intended to be easy-going/lax. It's a casual thing. The story isn't unusually moving, deep, or thought-provoking. Rather, it's just for fun. But there will be loosely defined slots (primarily ensuring that no two people perform the same duties).

2: A darker theme to the above.


BREAK EVEN!
Genre: Action / Drama / Comedy / Virtual Reality
Cast Size: 8-10

The game is based off of 1/2 PRINCE. So, if you have read it, you'll know what to expect.

(I will include greater details later!)


APOCRYPHAL
Genre: Action / Drama / Dark Fantasy
Cast Size: TBD

The theme is simple: It's about sky-pirates, bounty-hunters, and an empire on the edge of war. It's about the struggles of differing opinions, the dreams of children, and the desire to protect the things people love. It's about a lot of things—anything you want.

The storyline is, by itself, not really too ground-breaking. There are powerful people, who, predictably, want more power. A queen, corrupted by rule, seeks to expand her borders. A prince, too young to fully understand the workings of a kingdom, must step up to protect his people. And a world—caught between the tension of empires—must decide how to proceed. The world is at a dangerous point and anything can tip it into chaos.

Of course, something does—something always does.

(I will include more later)

[nero123]

ANTIQUE SHOP 9
just that title makes me think 'I can do alot of hilarious things in this shop until i accidently release a ghost into the town'

[joonsexual]

I have updated to include a synopsis of Antique Shop 9 and NO MORE HEROES.

[nero123]

Antique Shop 9

I vote that

[Xavirne]

I vote MOTIVE. It reminds me of the game CLUE. :3

[joonsexual]

Thanks for the interest!

Like yesterday, I've gone back and elaborated a bit more on each of the ideas.

[MarineViolet]

Personally, I think they're all great, but I vote REWIND. It seems fun and interesting.

[joonsexual]

Haha, thanks for all the interest guys. Do you guys have any, like, in-put? Suggestions? I don't know.


I've also updated it to, finally, include Good Luck & Good Night

[joonsexual]

I have updated more of the content (cleaned it up/explained unclear things).

[MarineViolet]

Okay, well, now, I'm still a big fan on REWIND, but also Good Night & Good Luck, Antique Shop 9, and The Dark Carnival. They all have great plot ideas, would work well with many players, are broad enough to experiment with, but not too vague as too leave everything up to the player. I'd give suggestions, but I'm blank at the moment .

[joonsexual]

I really like REWIND and Antique Shop 9 too.

But, I think I should explain some of the logistics of the games, particularly Antique Shop 9.


AS9 is a somewhat slow-opener. And everyone will play as employees of the shop (customers will be NPC'd and every new customer begins a new "episode" or case). Some of the cases will be easy (I'll escalate the cases as we progress through the game). For instance, one of the first assignments might be a teenage girl who is desperately in love with a boy at her school, but has no way of winning him over. She really wants his attention.

And, of course, the owner agrees to grant her such a wish, but only if she agrees to give up something of equal value. She doesn't know what this "equal value" object is, but figures that she is willing to sacrifice a little for the love of her life. It is then the job of the employees (all members of the shop were, once upon a time, also customers of the store, but, by some wayward trading, ended up stuck by the owner's side) to complete the trade.

There's, obviously, magic involved, but it is less flashy and explosive as traditional fantasy RPs. Rather, the magic is subtle. It's potion they have to get so-and-so to drink, it's a hairpin they have make sure the girl is wearing, it's, etc, etc, etc.

Of course, it's not always as easy as one, two, three. Some times there are other forces, which works against the employees (such as a person's guardian angel). And so forth.

But the game is rather slow and does emphasize more on the relationships shared between employees. It's not a romance story, but it's not really a here is point a, go to point b, type of thing either.

Also, in addition to having various customers, some times, the episodes revolve around an employee's mistake (one of the employee stole something, gave something to someone they love, messed with the living world etc, etc). And, in such cases, it will be up to the store's employees to fix this.

I was also thinking of setting up mild character shells (to ensure that no two characters are the same). But, all of this is up for discussion, of course.



REWIND will work in much the same way, but be more action-oriented than anything.

Both stories, I feel, are very dependent on the players being active in contributing to the game. But, I'm not sure how well this will work out.

[MarineViolet]

Well, in that case, AS9 sounds even more interesting to me. I didn't think that was possible .

[joonsexual]

Haha, thank you! I'm actually very fond of AS9.

It was an idea I had a long time ago and I've, over the years, slowly refined it. Unfortunately, unlike some of the other games, AS9 lacks a lot of predetermined cases (I only have a handful, but, even then, I'm not entirely sure if I like all of them). It's difficult to try and figure out various scenarios that would be both fun and entertaining.

Plus, so much of it is contingent on the characters (what they're like, what their histories are, etc) and the players (how involved are they? Will they contribute? Will they plot with the rest of the cast, to the side, or not at all?), etc, etc. I also don't think this will be a beginner's game because I am asking a lot from the crew.

And, from my personal experience, people on the site rarely seem to plot effectively as a group or even as individuals. :/

[nero123]

I'm still setting a ghost loose on the town XD

[joonsexual]

I've included two new titles (BREAK EVEN! and APOCRYPHAL), but it has yet to be written up. Comedy, virtual-reality, and a bit of dice-rolling to keep things in-line.


NERO: Haha, there is a chapter where an employee, unwittingly, unleashes a depraved spirit into the city.

[nero123]

And it shall be me! XD
Lol I should make my character the guy that literally knows where and what everything in the shop is :P

[MarineViolet]

Well, that makes me love AS9 all that much more.

[joonsexual]

I WILL BE PRODUCING AS9 OR REWIND ONCE I GET BACK FROM MY TRIP!


This will be around 9/10 or after.

[joonsexual]

TO BE PRODUCED: APOCRYPHAL (ANATHEMA) AND REWIND.


I will be giving priority to producing Apocryphal.

[joonsexual]

Idea removed. Apologies.