Before the world started to turn, before the stars were born, before even time began its flow, there was... Yeah, that's it. Nothing. No backstory, no mythology, not even a name for this world, nothing. This is where we begin to play. We are going to create a mythology. Setting We will begin at the void before reality, the great chaos that preceded order, whatever primordial sh*t happened to be before our unnamed world. How the world will look will be up to us. Characters You will play a god/ess, an immortal, all powerful entity who makes all other beings shudder beneath his might. You will create, destroy, do your heavenly duties, neglect them, and just have as much fun as you'd like. Your template will have Name: Titles: Gender: Male/Female/Genderless/Unbinary/Another sex you just want to add to the world/Whatever Appearance(s): Use more if your character takes docferent forms for different tasks Aspects: This is tricky. Gods in mythology usually stand for natural concepts of our world. This is your character's job in the divine world, what they stand for. Anything can be a concept; the sun, love, even the god of dog-litter. Powers and Weapons: Make sure you connect them to the god's concept. Cohorts: This includes every being under direct control of your god (excluding other gods). This will include steeds, servants, his armies, everything. Make sure to explain in the story how these cohorts came to be. Personality: History: This you will leave blank. Edit it in as the story progresses. You don't need to have all that information at the beggining. Since we will start from the birth of the world your characters can pick up aspects and powers om the way. Example template over here: Name: Odin Appearance: Bearded old man woth a broad hat, carries a spear, has a missing eye. Aspects: king of the gods, healing, death, the gallows, knowledge, battle, sorcery, poetry, frenzy, and the runic alphabet. Powers and Weapons: Gungnir, his magical spear, has great magical powers, a terrifying warrior, has creation and destruction powers Cohorts: His pet wolves Geri and Freki, ravens Huginn and Muninn, and Sleipnir, his eight legged horse. Plus he has a few thousand Valkires under his command and the million or more souls of the eidjaren in Valhalla. Personality: Intelligent and curious, seeking wisdom wherever he can. Is also battlethirsty, ofter favouring those who fall into frenzy during battle. Also, quite a manipulative jerk. History: Son of Bor and Bestla, killed the frost goamt Ymir with his two brothers and constructed the world from his corpse, created the first humans, sacrificed his eye to drink from the well of Urd, hing himself from the world tree to learn the secret of the runes, gave birth to most of the gods, bound Loki with the entrails of one of his sons, is destined to be killed at Ragnarok by the wolf Fenrir Roleplay Rules 1. GM is the power that commands all the gods. No arguments there. 2. You control your own character and his/her cohorts. 3. Godmodding, is allowed. Yeah, you read that. Your characters are gods after all. Invent any powers you like, create what you want, be just plain awesome. Bt with the following guidelines: - Anything new you add to your character needs some justification. E.g. It could be easily explained why the sun god has control over fire, but if you want him to be able to suddenly have an army of zombies, you need to give the GM a pretty good reason to make it plausible. - Any new power must be included in the character sheet. (Get used to the 'edit' button.) - You do NOT affect other people's characters directly without their permission. - Also, try not to make your character flawless and boring. If you look at alot of mythologies, you'll find the gods to be one seriously screwed bunch. - No playing other people's characters. - No turning back time. Seriously. - Auto hitting in combat is fine against lower beings or monsters. When battling god-level beings write what you try to do and I'll explain the outcome. 4. We are making this story together. So your charcters will fill the different aspects of the world. Minor additions you could do on your own, but if you want anything game-changing ask at the discussion thread first. (Non game changing moves- making your character the creator of monkeys. Game changing moves- the creator of intergalactic space-monkeys who rule the universe in your name). 5. We'll start with one character per player. If it fits the game, or on special conditions, I'll allow you to make additional characters. 6. Your characters weapons, powers, and cohorts need to be introduced in the story before you use them. Aspects don't need to, but it'll be awesome if you do. 7. Sexuality is allowed, but keep all descriptions PG-13. Cursing is fine. 8. Fun is mandatory!
Eliphon was alone. He wandered about, watching all around him, and could feel it, surrounding him, enveloping him, the feeling of being the sole being of the cosmos. He put on his golden mask, and looked at his sleeve, where a golden hourglass was woven. It was time.
Realitì outstretched her hand through the darkness. She could feel all the possibilities of life, and yet only one was there. Somewhere, far through the darkness she felt life. What she needed was light. Glowing, tremendous, hot. What was light? She just knew... although she never saw it. So Realitì once more outstretched her hand, this light would connect her with the other being. One word would do it. With a surge of power she whispered "star" and a star was born.
The heat and light suddenly washed over Eliphon, such a stark contrast to what had preceded it, that it filled the immortal god woth such dread that he couldn't comprehend. He raised his hand. The white star's size multiplied tenfold, but it's light dimmed drastically, and the bright white light turned dark red. One more moment and the great star would collapse on itself, and from all its splendor all that would remain would be nothing. As he was about to do so, he saw a figure through the dim light. Another being in the world; the image was beutiful beyond compare. Eliphon moved towards the being, and as he did so the cosmos became dark again, as the planet died. But as he did so, he noticed a part of the star remain. And before their eyes, a creature was born. It was a small bird, barely a chick, naked and helpless. Yet vehind its eyes was the fire of that star, burning with life. Eliphon understood. He picked it up and held it close to him, in a small pocket in his cloak. "Death and rebirth," he said. "Will you start the cycle with me?"
As the star was formed, so too was a shadow cast, mixing with the great dark of the surrounding void. For a moment, it was peaceful, the two darknesses living in harmony till eventually, an inky tendril spread out from it, joining the two. For a moment, it stood still, a pillar that seemed to absorb the light around it, before its connection to the void dispersed. Flickering like pages in the breeze. Where the connection was, now there was a head of an owl, staring down upon the chick. Arzian was silent, studying the creature before pressing his palms together and drawing them apart, his dear codex forming as they parted, made of material the same colour as his robe. He plucked a quill from his own head, and began to study the creature, drawing crude sigils in his book.
Tesni felt a burst of power ripple throughout her, the first feeling. Everything was new to her, the dying power, the increasing darkness that now surrounded her, her own body. Black flashed in front of her, she had blinked for the first time. A sound reached her ears and she spun, red hair drifting after her. There were two others, also afloat in the darkness. Tesni tried to step forward but something stopped her, a hand was curled around her ankle and a figure hung below, clothed in blue.
As light splilled and shadow fell, more beings appeared through the gloom. She watched, and watched, but dared not speak. Her robes stayed ominously still around her, and she was feeling like she stood to close to a star. Brushing her fingers over her face, wind was born. And it soothed her, made her feel lighter. But in the blackness, it was gone to quickly.
As more gods appeared an energy stirred, powerful and fresh. All the gods felt it growing in power. Arzian's book suddenly burst in flames, Tesni's body shuddered, and a burst of light flashed from within her, and Realiti felt something that was so fundamentaly opposed to her nature, she could feel its presence eating at her body. Then, as swiftly as it arrived, the energy stopped. Tesni's body stopped glowing, Arzian's book was unharmed, the sensation lifted from Realiti's body. Eliphon moved towards Realiti, ignoring the other gods who seemed to have popped up out of nowhere. He held out his hand, "Do not fear," he said. "I now realise my purpose, our purpose, and it is together."
As Arzian's tome erupted in fire, it faded from reality. Not because it was suffering damage or burning, but because he desired it not to get in the way. His head twitched for a moment, before there was a strange noise, like that of a book's spine cracking, tearing apart as Arzian began to change. His arms extended, the sounds of bones cracking filling the void as his forearm broke apart into a trio of talons, and another joint formed above the elbow. A set of skeletal wings drove themselves from his back, though his legs did not extend, giving him a hunched posture. "DO NOT TOUCH MY BOOK!"
A light from within Tesni's own body radiated out, forcing her to close her eyes and her spine tingled with power. When she opened them again the light was gone, but the other figure below her hadn't. She tried to kick the hand off her ankle but off somewhere in the gloom, someone was shouting. Tesni knew she wasn't to blame unless... no, the figure below had loosened their grip but they didn't appear hurt. No one shouting because of this person who was intent on being a shackle. No one else was concerned at all.
Realitì's eyes widened as she looked up at Eliphon. Taking his warm hand in hers, she rose up to join him, gazing around into the blackness. "If you can live forever, and I live as long as space is here, we can build unto the space a land in which we rule. Yes, I will join you." She proclaimed, gazing at the other beings, while looking into their souls. "For us, we can have plains, where we can build and run forever." Raising her hand, she blasted creation into the darkness. A planet, covered in lucious forests and water spawned. With living animals, of all types and color, and a sky of pure blue. "For Arzian, a temple where he can seek his knowledge." And for everyone to see, a domed castle was erected onto the planet. With empty scrolls, and example of all living life and inanimate objects. Then she created a thriving forest, unalike to the others already their. With caves and crevices, cliffs and trees, it was perfect for woodland creatures. Finishing off the planet with the title Rephlon, she turned directly around. "Tesni may own the creature of life known as Ignus." And into exestince was the planet Ignus, overflowing with mountain rages, volcanos, deep lava runlets, ash and smoke, woodland and stone. "A crafter will flourish here." Realitì stated as into the world was carved deep mines with plentiful gems and stones. "For a balance to the fire, a ocean shall be created." And an ocean was created, one fourth of the planet turned into a raging ocean with an abundance of fish and sea life. Some days it was clear as the sky itself, others as stormy as a thundercloud, unless it had a true wielder it was unpredictable. Feeling weary and tired of her work, a second star was born, with a planet on either side of it. The star, with a perfect amount of radiation and heat for both planets was christened Meerac. And then, just before the blackness swept completely throughout her eyes, Realitì created two stone arches on each of the planets. One inside the temple of Arzian and the other on top of the highest mountain of Ignus. "The Interstellar, so may our planets live in peace and connect." She murmured, just as her eyes rolled up and she collapsed on Eliphon.
The process of creating the planets took years in himan standards, but for the gods it seemed no longer than a long hour. As each planet was created its life force took form, and an immortal was born. Rephlon was tall and lithe. His eyes were sharp, and had a distinct green colour to them. His hair was white, with green streaks to it, and a pair of pointed ears srouted from it. He was naked, covered in red-brown fur all over his body. With a laugh, the tall boy ran off into the forest, and was not seen from then on. Ignus was short And stout. Her hair and beard were flaming red, while her eyes had an orange tinge to them. Her first action was to forge her own armour from within a Pygmy and settle there. After Realiti collapsed, Eliphon took her in his arms, and walked the plains of the gods. He never stopped until he reached the right spot. There he raised his hand, and a black, marble tower rose from the earth. It had a perfect square base, with smooth ledges leading up its one thousand foot height. It didn't have a doorway at the base, windows, or any seeming way to climb up it. Eliphon didn't need any. At the top of the tower was a balcony, capable of viewing miles in any dorection. Eliphon lay Realiti down on a bed, and then sat down and created the atlas. It took the form of a gaming board, covered in ever changing symbols, from the same languadge as Arzian's Codex. Anyone who looked at it could find it incomprehensive, but Eliphon could understand it perfectly. It was a clear depiction of the worlds, as they are at each moment. The oceans in Ignus were seething with life, its hundreds of different forms living together in relative balance. And yet one of those creatures seemed to break the status quo. It was ten feet long, its rear end that of a shark, and a humanoid upper body. Its skin aas rubbery grey, his muscles toned and powerful, and its face resembled that of the monsters of the deep. Unlike the monstrous look, it was an intelligent creature, and was quickly seen to be out of order, faring all too well in the new and fragile system of the seas of Ignus.
Arzian stared down at the temple before chuckling to himself. He would not inhabit that place. No, he would find his own land, but, till then, he would find one use for it. He went to the same, inky blackness that had birthed him, and took a fragment of it, before descending onto Ignus, placing it with the largest ocean of magma he could find. For some time he held it there, madness spreading into the core of the world, before he retrieved the glowing hot fragment, and began to cool it, shaping it into The Black Chime. His eyes then turned to the temple constructed in his name, which he entered into the centre off, hanging his creation. "Those who carve their way beneath the surface of Ignus shall know my word. Those who stay on the surface of this land shall be blessed by my whispers." He stated, before once again flying upwards, overseeing the two worlds, and causing the first winds with the flap of his wings. The corrupted magma started to whisper to itself, gather itself, and so it thought it had found its purpose. They carved their hole with their molten bodies into the earth, creating great halls for them to dwell in, and a forge so that they might make tools for them self. One travelled to Tesni and asked to be taught the craft of the forge so that they might better understand the world. Another would travel to Eliphon and ask if their existence held any purpose in the great plan. They were very excited to know. Yet none would travel to Arzian, for their father stayed between the worlds, beyond their reach. With the birth of nature, Khaline was drawn into existence. Slowly at first, as the plants absorbed the light of the sun, and the stag and deer at the plants, who were then consumed by the wolves in turn. She would make her bow from the same tree as her accidental creator's staff, which she gifted with her blessing, smelling it to a great size while she worked and watched over it. Over time, she would to so to other creatures, creating her Menagerie and blessing plants with intelligence, though one that was fundamentally loyal to her. She was a joyful being, spending her time with her pets and hunting when it suited her.
While Realitì was sleeping, she dreamed of a new being. One who hunted, one who was at peace. Realitì despretly wanted to meet her, but she didn't know where the be in was located. With a final vision of an arrow piercing a deer's heart, and the warmth of a star, Realitìs eyes blinked 3 times before everything finally came into focus. She was lying down, and a soft breeze was blowing over her face. Birds were chirping and the sun was shining. "Hello." Realitì said slowly to the other being in this new room. "Did you make this place?"
Tesni finally detached from the person who continued to hang in space without a word. Their hand hung open, as if still attached to her. "You, who are you?" Tesni whispered. The figure stirred, stretched their arms out and yawned, eventually opening their eyes. "I don't quite know, I believe I am Marama, but what that means..." they shrugged and turned away looking at the planets below. "Thank you." Tesni sighed, the lumps of rock were boring to her, but Marama seemed entranced by them. They drifted down on to Ingus, far away from Tesni's vision. She felt bare and alone in the cosmos, the sun being the only thing in her vision that was calming. There she forged herself armour that made her feel safe and a blade that made her feel even safer. Her craft was great and she was proud of it, boastful even. And so Tesni descended onto Ingus, eager to see what Marama had done and show off her might but instead came across a lesser being made of magma. They spoke strangely but were passionate to feel greater warmth again and pleaded to learn the ways of the forge which pleased Tesni. She walked with them through the molten land as an equal until she knew simple lecture and tutoring would not be enough. With Tesni's help, the being of magma made weapons of increasing quality until the day came that their skill matched hers and she knew she must build upon the feeling she once had when she first met them. With the last sword they made for her and named Vulcan, she pierced their hardened and rocky shell, warming their centre. Fire burst to life within them and they stooped down onto all fours, thankful for the new power within them. "You are the dragon," Tesni commanded "And you shall be known as Ryuu, the first dragon."
Arzian continued to stare down from the void, observing as the Tensi converted one of his creations into a dragon. He was tempted to laugh but decided against it. The creature's form was similar to his own when he was enraged, though much less skeletal. Ryuu returned to his kin, helping them to shape their own forms of rock and steel and gold. Now, the halls were filled with the creatures, their libraries filled with knowledge, while they used their own gouts of flame to forge weapons and armour. Yet still, one had not returned to them, the one who ventured to Eliphon. They hoped for its return so it too could be blessed with its form. The Maddening God now turned his attention to creating something of his own, an object to grant him companionship while he observed the world, and so, he returned to the void. This time, instead of merely taking a silver, he took three fistfuls, two of which he combined. He placed the largest amount next to Meerac, the young star eventually bleaching it white. This proved disappointing for Arzian, though he still hung it in place. As for the other piece of the void, for now, he would keep it to himself.
Eliphon looked down at the now waking Realiti. "Yes," he said softly. "This shall be our palace. And from here we shall rule the cosmos for as long as Realiti exists. The cycle has begun." While Tesni was living among the creatures of magma, for about fifty years, the goddess Ignus followed them around, keeping to the shadows. She wanted to join them, and boast about her own creations just as the goddess who came from the sun showed them hers, but she was shy, and scared that her own inventions would put her to shame. When the magma creatures made the sword Vulcan, Ignus was filled with such jealousy that she retreated back to her hole. She made an oath to herself, that she would not show her face to the sun until the day that she had come out with something worth showing to her. Eliphon also watched Tesni with curiousity. His own creature was waiting down by the bottom of the tower, waiting and waiting. Finally, after forty eight years, Eliphon took pity of the creature, and gave it wings of fire so that it could reach the top. When the sun goddess pushed her sword into the creatures' bodies and made the dragons, Eliphon decided to do the same. He left for the moon, now freshly created, and from the bleached piece of void, he forged his staff of fate. Then, he appeared back at his tower, and stabbed the magma form with the pronged part of his staff. Fire filled the dragon's body, and, unknown to Eliphon, also a fraction of the Fateweaver's essence. And so, Goria, was born. Without anyone to keep them in check, the monstrous sharkmen of the oceans of Ignus multiplied, and took control of vast portions of the seas. They called themselves the Yammu. One day Rephlon was wandering through his forests, when he saw the goddess Khaline, running with her Menagerie. Rephlon was swept away by the goddess' beauty, by her primal nature and savagery that he saw in her eyes. Creeping out of the bush, he approached her, baring his teeth with a snarl. He knew that he had to appear strong in order to impress her. He filled with fear, not fear of her beasts who would tear anything in the forest apart without a second thought, but fear of rejection.
Marama had slept in the seas of Ignus, the seas being like a blanket and the waves a lullaby for many years dreaming of the creatures that surrounded her. They weren't noisy like the goddess Tesni, they did not disturb them from their slumber. However, eventually, something did. It pulled on Marama's blankets frequently and when they looked up there was a pale orb hanging in the sky, a beauty Marama wished to capture and tame. From the moon, Marama made links one by one until the seas of both planets were chained to them and the moon. "No one shall awake me again," Marama announced and went to return to the oceans of Ignus. However when they returned there were dragons roaming the land and Yammu in the seas. Marama was not happy. The Yammu ordered around the other creatures of the sea and acted as if the sea was their's. "Who made these creatures?" Marama raged, shaking their chains. "If no one claims them, I shall rule them as they rule my seas, harsh and cruel. Unless they change their ways." Marama stood by the shore offering both the Yammu and other gods the ultimatum.
Arzian titled his head as the new goddess appeared, chuckling before diving to where she stood. He hovered in the air, staring down at her. "You link your dominion to that which I cast away? By the void, you are a silly little creature. I would contest your claim if I had any care for them, so instead I shall bless them. A gift to mark your birth in the world." With that, he took the handful of the void he had taken and compressed it, then heated it with the magma. After a moment he revealed a small spearhead, before casting it into the water. "Whoever wields it shall know my blessings. Able to hear all the thoughts of their kin, and all the madness." He murmured, before continuing to stare down at the new god. Khaline starred at Rephlon, tilting her head to one side in a curious manner. She then pointed to him with a smile on her face. "Hunt." She stated, before drawing her bow and starting to run towards him. She had never seen something like him before.
Realitì smiled. "The cycle will end, one day. Until then it can be our palace." As time passed, as Eliphon grew wings atop of the Phoenix, as the creatures of Ignus waters grew restless, Realitì started getting confused with all of the gods and time in which creatures were created. So she decided to call upon Arzian. Realitì knew his tome his many secrets, and explained many more secrets. She wanted to talk to him, and ask him for his knowledge. "Eliphon?" She asked a day after deciding to visit Arzian on Ignus. "Would you be opposed to me traveling to Ignus? I must seek the wisdom of Arzians time."
155 The seas of Ignus shook and frothed, as all life in them was terrified of Marama's wrath. The Yammu clans gathered together and for three days they discussed and cowered. They knew that unless they acted right, their short days of control will be gone forever. But on the third day, one of the creatures, the most bold of these creatures wam above the rest. The specimen's name was Gulp. "Hear me, oh mighty being Glumgburg (for that was their name in the gutteral Yammu languadge)," he called. "Please, oh mighty ruler of the sea and the light that shines above, forgive us, for we in our ignorance chose to take the seas for our own, for we thoughtwe were alone swimming here. Oh, mighty Glumgburg, allow us to rule these waters in your name, and I upon my gills and fins swear, that we shall make your name great, and you will never be disturbed in your slumber again." Eliphon considered Realiti's request for a moment. "Of course," he said, and held her by the shoulder. The next second they were already hovering above the waters in Ignus, right after Arzian dropped his spearhead. As Khaline charged towards Rephlon, he didn't run, as any sane creature would do. Nor did he flinch, or feel the slightest fear. All he felt was pure delight, that the goddess hadn't turned away from him. He ran at her, and grappled her to the ground. He snarled, his teeth inches from her throat, then jumped off her, daring Khaline to do the same to him.
Marama considered the beings offer carefully. Marama was a divine being, the Yammu were nothing compared to them. "Bring me the first teeth of your first borns and then I may deliver an answer." Then Marama looked towards the land, the dragons caught her eye when returning to Ignus. Pulling on the chains, they managed to hook a dragon that had surfaced and dragged it below the sea. It would serve as another bargaining chip in time.
Arzian chuckled as both the goddess and the creatures ignored him. This was to be a fun day. Then he saw them take his dragon, no, the dragon and a spark of contempt was fueled within him. What right did they have to take his creature from its home? Oh, he would give them something joyous for this. They would know their true place beneath the gods, and beneath his works. By the time he was done, they would regret venturing to the surface, and forever fear being beneath the waves. He retrieved his spear head and knew what he would do. He travelled beneath the waves, passing unnoticed to where they kept his child. He started to whisper within its ears as he worked. He started to flay the beasts arms, letting him access the bones which he started to rework and reknit. The wings were drawn down to the shoulders, making them more like fins. Afterwards, he bound its legs together, before flaying the skin there as well, this time to make fins. Finally, he did the same to her neck, giving it a frill of scales, and placing the spearhead, which he been using for his work, in the throat. "Now my daughter, haunt the seas. Remind the creatures of their smallness, their insignificance, and take pleasure in it." With that, he freed it, allowing it to take vengeance. Now, its fire was tinged green and would whisper to those it burned. Upon returning to the surface, he turned to face the newcomers. "I assume you have come to see the new kin?" He asked, gesturing to Marama. Khaline was not as infatuated with Rephlon as he was with her, and, as such, felt no worry in headbutting him, driving her antlers head first into his head and knocking him to the ground. While she did enjoy wrestling, she vastly preferred the thrill of the chase and, his refusal to oblige her caused her to frown. Afterwards, she gave a feral snarl before starting to walk away, stepping into a small yew tree and appearing in some distant land. The majority of her menagerie dispersed, returning to their homes as the peak of their kind, though Khavanda flew off in the direction of his mistress.
As they teleported, Realitì looked at Eliphon. The time for him was even much of a second, but for her it seemed like at least ten sixty seconds. (10 Minutes). She watched Eliphon and her being was filled with an unfamiliar feeling. As she tried to puzzle it out, she almost didn't realize they had teleported to Arzian. She looked at Eliphon and opened her mouth to gratitude him for taking her such a great length through space, the ground beneath her dissipated, as if she was supposed to hover. Surprised by the sudden change, she plummeted into the sea, and started sinking downwards. Bubbles spilled from her mouth as she struggled to breath, and in the processes of trying to get up she accidentally created minnows and sharks. Water filled her vision, and the feeling she was puzzling over whisked away as something vile bubbled up, and blacked out her vision.
