Incorporated as the town of York in 1793 the city of Toronto found it's initial value in its access to waterways, providing clear trade and tactical advantages. Fertile land and moderate weather relative to the region allowed for prosperous growth and the burgeoning city would eventually find itself growing into place of economic and political significance for a country that wouldn't be founded for nearly a hundred years after the town was established. Today Toronto is a sprawling metropolis boasting a population over 2.6 million people with almost an additional 3 million populating the surrounding suburbs. However, things are not quite as they seem and unknown to most that walk the streets of Toronto daily is the fact that the city is called home to many more than that.
Beneath the surface of the city and in pockets space that may not be firmly attached to this plane as we know it, dwell peoples who have been abandoned by conventional society and others, not quite human, who were never part of it to begin with. These people are largely separate from the conventional population of the city. While they may on occasion step into the world of Toronto Above, they are often unnoticed unless they draw attention to themselves and even more rarely does an overworlder remember an underworlder well enough to recognize them if they happened to notice an underworlder in the first place.
But there is a sense that things may be changing. The force that allowed Toronto Below to exist separate for some two hundred years and many places around the world like it for time spans much greater seems to be weakening. A near disaster at the floating market has left Toronto Below shaken, while a precious few in Toronto Above have gotten their first hints that their city may not be quite all it seems.
A bit about Toronto Above
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Your typical large city on a water front (moderately large freshwater lake). Financial, telecom, service and tourism industries are all prominent in the city. Manufacturing for a large part has migrated to the suburbs but still happens on a small scale within the city limits. There's a fair bit of green space for a large city both in the form of large parks and minor green spaces interspersed through residential areas and a small beach on the eastern waterfront. High rises tend to be either in the downtown core or the outskirts of the city, while the majority of the city is composed of low and mid-rises and single family houses. However, in the past five years there has been a boom in the production of high and mid-rise condos.
Toronto has two main subway lines, one that runs east-west and another U-shaped one that runs north-south turning at the south end of the city. The rest of local transit is filled out by buses and streetcars and a ferry service to the islands. There are also intercity rail lines running east-west and north. There are two major airports, one on the outskirts of the west end of the city and an island airport not far from the downtown core. There is also a third airport for military use in the northern part of the city.
A note on weapons in the city. Private ownership of handguns is banned, though there are private security companies that have been issued permits for their employees to openly carry. The ownership of a long-gun requires the appropriate permit. Most police officers carry handguns and there exist two active military bases within the city limits. Toronto Police Services tactical squads carry assault rifles and from what I've seen their response time is about five minutes slower than conventional polices officers. Also based on what I've seen, an individual has about two minutes to comply to a request to surrender one's weapon before the police will open fire.
Things of note for Toronto Below
People of Toronto Below are largely people who have slipped through the cracks of society and historical cultures have been preserved to a degree. 18th and early 19th century weapons and customs will be common. This being said there are aspects of their lives that may be hard to understand at the first glance of an overworlder.
The floating market
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A tradition of Toronto Below borrowed from their European counterparts though the means that it came to these people seems to be lost in history. Time and location spread by word of mouth and the organization of each market seems as mysterious as its origins. At irregular intervals the peoples of Toronto Below are invited to gather at unoccupied sites of the city above to freely with each other. The market is considered sacred, it is a place where warring factions can meet peacefully and violence is strictly forbidden.
Trade and wealth
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While currency from the city above may on occasion make its way to the city below, it is considered of little value nor does Toronto Below employ its own currency. Trade is conducted strictly through barter of goods and services. However, this does not mean that there aren't those that are considered to be more wealthy than others. While wealth could be considered merely the volume and quality of goods owned by an individual or family, the ability to extract favours and otherwise motivate the service of others is by far one of the most valuable things that can be possessed.
Magic
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There exists in Toronto Below beings clearly not human yet just as intelligent and others seeming human enough but in subtle manners whether it be minor appearance, habits, abilities and/or lifespan that may well be something completely different from what they so closely resemble. More than this as they have spent time away from Toronto Above, some have changed. Whether it be the ability to see vaguely into the future, influence objects with their minds or in some other way impact the world around them in manners not quite fitting with our understanding of what is permitted by the laws of nature, such things seem common place to the average person of Toronto Below.
Metahumans
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Living exposed to high amounts of magic changes some people subtly and slowly. The ones affected are those gifted with some sort of innate magical ability. It is a change that occurs over a span of generations, with each new generation one step closer to becoming something not quite human. Early changes include increased affinity for magic, accelerated healing and longer lifespans. The most stunning evidence of change tends to show itself in an individual's eyes. Not necessarily visible at birth it seems to be something that grows with an individual's power. An unusual colour, a sort of glow an aura looking into the person's eyes that suggest he or she is different.
Such people have walked the earth for hundreds of years, perhaps longer. Some of them are even rumoured to have lived for hundred of years and may in fact be immortal. While Toronto Below is home to some such people, the city itself is now just barely old enough that metahumans may be starting to be born to families that have a long history there.
For the purposes of character making, I will not allow a player character to play an old metahuman that migrated to Toronto Below. If you are interested in making such a character you will be restricted to a new metahuman who's status is still unclear.
Phylacteries
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An object in which one stores a part of their soul so should something happen to their body they may be brought back to life. Uncommon enough that the average person doesn't have access to one but common enough that it's expected for adventures and mercenaries that have had great success and continue to put themselves in harms way to be in ownership of one. It's generally considered unwise to carry one's phylactery on one's person, so it is usually kept in the care of someone trusted. Should your character be in ownership of such an item please inform me of where their phylactery is kept and what form it takes.
Matrilineal Matriarchy
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Some traditions among the Iroquois and Mohawk peoples have changed while others remain firmly in place. One of the more consequential persisting traditions would be matrilineal matriarchy which I feel is best summed up by Wikipedia.
The Iroquois are a Mother Clan system, which is gender equal. No person is entitled to 'own' land, but it is believed that the Creator appointed women as stewards of the land. Traditionally, the Clan Mothers appoint leaders, as they have raised children and are therefore held to a higher regard. By the same token, if a leader does not prove sound, becomes corrupt or does not listen to the people, the Clan Mothers have the power to strip him of his leadership.
Women held property and hereditary leadership passed through their lines. They held dwellings, horses and farmed land, and a woman's property before marriage stayed in her possession without being mixed with that of her husband. They had separate roles but real power in the nations. The work of a woman's hands was hers to do with as she saw fit. At marriage, a young couple lived in the longhouse of the wife's family. A woman choosing to divorce a shiftless or otherwise unsatisfactory husband was able to ask him to leave the dwelling and take his possessions with him.
The children of the marriage belong to their mother's clan and gain their social status through hers. Her brothers are important teachers and mentors to the children, especially introducing boys to men's roles and societies. The clans are matrilineal, that is, clan ties are traced through the mother's line. If a couple separated, the woman traditionally kept the children. The chief of a clan can be removed at any time by a council of the women elders of that clan. The chief's sister was responsible for nominating his successor.
Main factions of Toronto Below
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Iroquois - The most adapted human group in Toronto Below, they are the most powerful and influential human faction. Generally warm and inviting, yet quick and firm in how they respond to perceived offences. They are the least stuck in the past of the human groups, yet still put a high value on tradition. When asked what brought their ancestors to Toronto Below most will simply reply that they found it was a place that they thrive without any interference to their own autonomy or culture. Despite living hidden away from conventional society, they are happy and prosperous.
Loyalists - The second most powerful and influential human group of Toronto Below. Descendants of people loyal to the British Empire who fled America when it was formed. These are the ones whose fervour for the Empire made it difficult for them to adapt to ever evolving British North America for one reason or another. While some have had enough stories passed down them of Iroquois that bravely supported the British Empire to have admiration for them, most hold a seething resentment towards the Iroquois people as they feel that the Loyalists should rightfully rule Toronto Below. They are generally hostile and territorial, yet put a high value etiquette and their own form of civility. They typically assert their superiority by frequently warring with the Fenians.
Fenians - Descendants of Irish nationalists that were pushed underground for the perception that they were associated with the radical group of American Fenians that desired to occupy Upper Canada by force so that they could ransom it to the British Empire. Despite frequent harassment from Loyalists they have managed to stake out their own territory in Toronto Below and remain proudly Irish. They have at times turned to the Iroquois to intervene on their behalf when aggressions have become particularly bad and some, considering safety more valuable than independence, have even joined the Iroquois.
Mohawk - Descendants of a group that decided to neither join Iroquois Nation nor assimilate to British rule. They lived on the margins of society for some time and eventually found their way into Toronto Below. Easily the earliest group of people to find the underworld, they remain a small band of wanderers. Mostly peaceful, yet wary of contact with outside peoples and willing to use force to protect themselves. Due to their lifestyle they likely know the layout of Toronto Below better than almost anyone else there.
Animal talkers - Easily the largest in number of humans in Toronto Below, yet the most insignificant in terms of power and influence. They are frequently ignored by most others, yet when the situation calls for it friendly relations between the Animal talkers and other factions are not unheard of. They survive largely in the margins between the overworld and the underworld. Animal talkers are among those that are most likely to venture into the overworld but they are underworld enough that they are rarely noticed by overworlders and when they are noticed they are quickly forgotten. While learning the language of the animals isn't uncommon in the underworld, few go to the effort of being fluent in the language of every wild animal of the city. They exist as humble servants to these animals, showing them great reverence. Animal talkers largely live in destitution any education, training or weaponry available to them is crude and improvised.
Vampires - Standard vampires, drink blood, hate the sunlight. They can go for weeks without feeding but are generally happier when they have fed recently. Civilized in their own manner, they are generally reviled and considered violent and untrustworthy by others of the underworld. Possibly the main reason they haven't been actively hunted down and exterminated is because they have had the wisdom not to anger the Iroquois and have ingratiated themselves to the Loyalists and Fenians by hiring themselves out to settle the occasional feud in particularly messy ways. They get by mostly by feeding on Animal talkers.
Leanan sidhe - Vicious rivals of the vampires as they both sustain themselves on the living. While they are feared, they are less hated than vampires as they are considered less violent, more benevolent and quite simply better company. Less physically imposing than vampires, they are still quite dangerous and an experienced Leanan sidhe can drain an average human of their life quite rapidly if they are inclined to. Wikipedia suggests they are strictly female but I'm fine with the idea of male Leanan sidhe if anyone is interested.
Fairy Collective - A collective of various kinds of generally benevolent fairy folk. While generally not malignant, members of the Fairy Collective are considered fickle and spiteful when offended. Not much is known of them and they tend to avoid the human politics of Toronto Below, however, they are rumoured to have an affection for the Fenians who are quite reverent to the Collective.
Wulver - Mysterious wolfmen of the underworld. Usually peaceful but isolationist. They rarely leave their small patch of territory, which most people don't even know how to locate. While not liking outsiders the Wulvers have taken a strong affinity for the Mohawk people and look forward to their visits when they occur.
Rules:
1. No godmodding
2. Mild meta-gaming may be tolerated but try to keep actions consistent with the character and situation even when sudden inspiration or random stumbling may be fortuitous
3. Mary Sues and Gary Stus are welcome but I will give players that I perceive to have created such a character the opportunity to edit their sheet before it is accepted. Such characters may find themselves failing at tasks they normally succeed at with unusual frequency and may be stricken with an inordinate number of trials and tribulations.
4. Not all player characters will be created equal. Given the wide range of possible player characters, it's impossible for me to guarantee equality between character strengths and weaknesses. That being said I'm more inclined to accept the sheet of an overpowered character from someone I've roleplayed with before who has demonstrated that they can act with restraint towards other players. Weaker characters will have the most opportunity for growth as the story progresses.
5. Anyone, PC or NPC, can die but killing someone will more often than not have consequences.
6. As in real life actions may have unintended consequences. Please be thoughtful in your character's actions.
7. I expect characters in the same location to move at roughly the same pace. This isn't to say that two characters can't have their own side interaction but I expect that if there is reasonable room for a third character to react to a situation then they will be given at least a day to do so if they please.
8. For the most part I don't plan on explicitly enforcing these rules unless someone does something egregious like godmodding another character to death. That being the case if you find your character consistently subject to sarcastic DM posts or nothing seems to be going right for them please contact me by PM if you would like for this to change. This is not an invitation to flout the rules or troll the roleplay. I'm happy to kill a character after one post if I feel the player's commitment is less than sincere.
Combat
No dice, I may choose to flip a coin from time to time but for the most part if based on disposition I perceive your character to have a good chance of succeeding in an attack they will. Wording won't necessarily affect your chances but it might.
Examples
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Goofus skillfully aimed his gun at the assailant and shot at him with the accuracy of a master marksman.
The shot went wide likely leaving the master marksman feeling more than a little vexed.
Descriptors add a nice quality to the text but for all the words used here I know very little about what happened beyond the player clearly has a lot confidence in his character.
Gallant calmly held his gun steady aimed at the assailant's torso and squeezd the trigger.
Gallant's shot found it's mark striking his target in the chest seriously injuring him.
About the same number of words but a lot clearer about what was done. I don't necessarily expect every post in a fight to be this clear but the effort will be rewarded if done with moderate consistency.
Holding his pistol sideways Goofus aimed his gun between the eyes of the assailant running towards him and squeezed the trigger.
The shot went wide, ricocheted off the stone wall and miraculously bounced back at Goofus hitting him in the hand both injuring him and knocking his weapon to the ground.
Unlikely attacks may have unlikely results. A head shot on a moving target is tough enough, there's no reason to make it harder by holding your weapon wrong.
Also keep in mind the Tueller Drill will be in effect. Within 21 feet (6.4 meters) an assailant with a knife has good odds at striking down a man with a holstered gun. Of course some adjustment will have to be made for people faster than human such as vampires.
NPCs of note
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Iroquois Clan Mothers - Wise women of the nation who provide leadership for its people. They are lead by Orenda mother of the Bear Clan. Oldest and wisest of the clan mothers she is said to be strongly attuned to land of Toronto Below and perceptive of the mystical forces that pervade it. The other clan mothers include Skenandoa Mother Wolf Clan, Adsila Mother Deer Clan, Nadie Mother Turtle Clan and Kateri Ó Broin Mother Hawk Clan. Kateri is the youngest of the clan mothers, her grandmother took a central role in helping the Irish that chose to join the nation adopt to the Iroquois way of life. She keeps her maternal grandmother's name as a way of helping her remember her roots but none within the nation doubt her commitment to it.
Otetiani – Chief of the Iroquois nation and brother of Orenda. He is a cautious and practical man. As chief he is charged with overseeing the external affairs of the nation with the guidance of the clan mothers if need be. This includes matters such as hunting, trade and if the need arises warfare.
Coileáin Ó Cuirc – President of the Fenian Brotherhood of Canada for the past eleven years. A temperamental and bombastic man his primary virtues in public office have been seen as the ability to find good policy decisions in areas considered to be murky and the will to champion good decisions that may be unpopular among his people.
Pádraig Ó Flannghaile – Mercurial yet reserved, four years Coileáin's junior he is his closest adviser and said to be the source of much of his inspired decision making as a leader. There have however been a number of very public disagreements between the two men and for his part Pádraig has been willing to admit Coileáin usually had the right of things in these cases.
William Davies – Governor of Loyalist claim to Toronto Below charged with protecting Her Royal Majesty's interest in the region, though it's unclear that he has any formal relationship with the Crown. Expansionist in mindset, though his ambitions are tempered by the awareness that his people have few if any political allies in Toronto below. He contents himself by making sure the voice of the British is heard in matters of relevance and doing what he can to promote the ideals of British civility.
James Rose – Head of security for the Loyalists his role is as much an external one as it is internal one doing what he can to inform himself of the going ons of the undercity and developing strategy on potential threats.
Andy Thompson – General of the Loyalist army. He's never actually led any men into combat but is distinguished by the fact that he's one of the few men old enough to have participated in a war in Toronto Below. A prideful man, he tends to ignore popular speculation that his value to the Loyalist cause is largely symbolic.
Midhir – Leader of the Fairy Collective. He is typically jovial in disposition though his reputation is more for his cunning and brutality. In truth very few of the rumours that attribute heinous acts to him are accurate but he does little to correct these falsehoods as he wants people to remember that the hand that can give generously also has the strength to take away.
Morena – Leader of the vampires. Ancient and strong she is said to be among the early vampires that migrated to North America bringing vampirism with them. The name she was born with is long forgotten, having adopted the name of the Slavic goddess of death there is no one walking the Earth that seems to have known her by anything else. She is most well noted for her self-policing of her ilk, typically bringing brutal death to vampires that do something that might upset the current balance that leaves vampires as being tolerated for the most part instead of hunted without restraint.
Maeve – Another ancient migrant from Europe she leads the Leanan Sidhe. Though never to her face many refer to her as the Red Fury. The irony of this appellation being no one living can be said to have ever seen her visibly angry. As rumour has it the reason for this is that seeing anger on her face is not something any individual has managed to do more once.
Karl Magnússon – Arrived with his family to Toronto Below in the late 60’s. At one time he was known for being exceptionally involved in the politics of the undercity despite having no direct affiliation with any of the societies there within. In time he fashioned himself to role of sometimes mediator sometimes advocate getting involved in disputes between factions and at times representing those who had no faction to defend them. Though rarely seen he seems to have the ability to create and direct electrical energy. The full extent of this ability is unknown as he uses it sparingly. In recent years he seems to have become reclusive and detached himself from the goings on of Toronto Below.
Dan Richards – Well decorated detective in the Guns and Gangs Task Force. Dan boasts a fourteen year career of exceptional service with the Toronto Police Service. Given his record of being able to follow through difficult cases he has most recently be charged to head up the investigation of what seems to be a black market operation dealing in unconventional firearms, hand crafted goods and other items seeming to be unusual in the trade of illegal weapons.
Fauna of interest
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Mice – Numerous and evasive the mice of Toronto have become well respected to people of Toronto Below. Having developed a role as messengers and spies most factions have developed at the very least a polite relationship with the mice of the city, those who haven’t keep a vigilant eye for their presence.
Foxes – Predominantly present in the city above the foxes of Toronto are known to keep a watchful eye on current events from a distance. More fickle and prone to deception in comparison to the mice, foxes are still considered valuable as there have been instances where they have been able to provide information with greater insight than the mice.
Raccoons – Clever, resourceful and prone to violence. The Iroquois and Mohawk are reverent to raccoons for their virtues but no group has really been able to forge a positive relationship with these animals who seem to have a good memory of a time where their kind were popular game.
Coyotes – The bulk of their presence seems to be in the North and Eastern parts of the city. Similar in disposition to foxes but seem to show much less restraint in their toying with people who cross their paths.
Ravens – Present throughout the city not much can be said about them. If they have an interest in what goes on beneath them they hide it well as interaction between people and ravens have become more a matter legend than something that could be confirmed through experience.
Further elaboration of magic available upon request
List of places of note pending
Character sheets
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Name:
Species: (note that while factions list is largely done on racial and non-human species divides the list isn't exhaustive as to what lives in Toronto Below and is honestly somewhat vague)
Age: (Going to cap age at 500 to prevent any super powerful super ancient entities)
Appearance:
Toronto Above or Below:
Abilities: (Magical or otherwise)
History: (If the character is more than two hundred years old please put some thought as to where they were before they came to Toronto)
Affiliations:
Starting inventory: (things of use that the character would likely be carrying on their person on an average day, not everything they own)
Family and close friends: (because I need leverage over your characters)
This roleplay is inspired by the book Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman. It should be noted that Gaiman was actually pretty vague about the details of his world so I've done my best to fill in the gaps to create a playable world. So anything that turns out stupid, cheesy or just plain horrible should be attributed to me and not held against Mr. Gaiman. If you haven't please do read his books, they're quite enjoyable.
Last edited by p-sto on Tue Jul 15, 2014 10:04 pm, edited 6 times in total.
I'm presuming that traditional gender-roles, i.e., gender-roles circa 1880, are being enforced within the various real-life factions? If so, would it be possible that characters might have been exposed to more modern influences?
I'm going to say that traditional gender roles are going to be enforced but flexible. A woman hunter/warrior/adventure isn't going to be unheard of for anyone in Toronto Below but people being critical of her will be a pretty normal response. My expectation is that people among both the European and Native American cultures would frown upon this though the reasons would likely be different.
I was hoping to create a character reminiscent of first-wave feminist suffragettes, or perhaps even more radical. She'd have come into contact with such ideas above (a brief excursion's possible, right?), and carried them back below - much to the, I assume, disgust of her Fenian contemporaries.
I think that would work fine. Even though I want to be flexible on gender roles I wasn't intending on women having much political or economic power in the Fenian or Loyalist camps. I think between having an idea of the sort of influence that Iroquois women have and getting some information from the topside there would be a lot of room for radical feminism.
You've explained the world very well thus far and I'm interested in making a character, but I don't think you've disclosed what the RP will be about. What will we be doing, what will be the objective? How far ahead do I need to design my character in order to provide a good narrative for them? Will I be writing my own story, or telling my character's story as they react to the events you orchestrate?
Boss makes a dollar
I make a dime
That's why I'm forum posting
On company time
I thought about delineating more but I feel there is a certain charm to being purposefully vague. But if a number of people object I suppose I will have to be more up front.
What the RP is about is the fact that a precarious balance has been disrupted which will likely lead to incredible chaos. Players will be expected to cope with strange happenings as they occur. PCs from Toronto Above will be drawn into the plot more directly but are free to walk away from it at their own risk. Initially PCs from Toronto Below will have a better sense of what is happening and closer links to resources that might help them but will largely be working on hints and intuition. The overarching goal is to find out what is happening and put a stop to it but riding out the storm and doing what you can to survive is also a fine choice (though if everyone does this things will get really bad eventually).
Also I'm not sure if anyone noticed that I didn't offer any clear details on the nature of non-humans available in the roleplay, such as vampires or leanan sidhe. I kind of like this approach. These are creatures that most people consider mythical and even those that have met them don't understand them very well. I will PM anyone who chooses to be such a character will additional details. I think it may create an interesting dynamic if players are just as surprised as their characters on certain things.
That being said if you have any magical abilities in mind for a character that you would like to keep as a surprise, feel free to PM me.
At the moment it looks like there's two people showing a strong interest in this roleplay and another two including yourself expressed a mild interest. I'd like to get at least four or five sign ups before I start this but I'm willing to go forward with less. Soonest start date would be the end of next week so there's no need to rush.
I'm still interested as well, I'm just trying to decide on exactly what kind of character to make. The fact that I still have 3 exams left to do for school is definitely not helping.
If you're patient enough to include somebody (me) who is very new to this sort of thing, I wouldn't mind giving it a go for myself. I think I'd catch on quick enough. I'll pen up a character or two after I get home from work today.
After being on the fence with this for a bit of time I'm going with Velvet's suggestion on enforcing a one character per player rule but I look forward to seeing your submission, Link. Epic, considering the current number of people interested I don't think it would be an issue to wait until things settle down for you until we start.
Because I've already talked to a couple people that seemed confused on this I think my wording has probably been fairly unclear. Hissien seems to have been able to sum things up a lot better than I could.
Hissien wrote:Its like these two worlds are layered directly on top of each other but do not intersect except in specific instances. Its the society of the world that is stuck in the past, not the actual underworld itself. Which begs the question, what time period is the Overworld actually in?
And to answer that question the roleplay will be set in current day.
Species: (note that while factions list is largely done on racial and non-human species divides the list isn't exhaustive as to what lives in Toronto Below and is honestly somewhat vague) Dokkalfar
Age: (Going to cap age at 500 to prevent any super powerful super ancient entities) 50
Appearance: A youthful looking slender fellow, with young features and an almost innocent face that belies a cunning characteristic of the Unseelie. He has eyes that glow the color of moonlight and hair of stark silver, with skin an ashen grey he is quite beautiful to look upon as due his heritage of one of the fair folk.
Spoiler:
Toronto Above or Below: Native to Toronto Below, he frequently visits that world that is so foreign to him of Toronto above. Abilities: (Magical or otherwise)
Spoiler:
HIDDEN
History: (If the character is more than two hundred years old please put some thought as to where they were before they came to Toronto)
Spoiler:
A little over fifty years ago a child was born under the light of a Full Moon and bathed in the waters of a pure freshwater spring. The population of fey in Toronto grew by at least one that eve. His name was Azarias, his mother spoke his name as he drew his first breath and the contract was bound.
Life as a wandering Dokkalfar is not always easy, but in this case, it was. Full of the animation of a new life burning brightly in the night, Azarias was always a troublesome little scamp. He was well known for causing mayhem and chaos everywhere he went, seemingly out of sheer fun. Humans may not have ever seen him but they certainly knew he was there. Things were going quite well for the young fey, being the only child of a well-off and prestigious fey family had its perks. Apart from soul crushing loneliness and the inability to connect with other children his own age, everything was fine. Peachy. Eventually his antics from acting out became too much for even his whimsical parents, and they sent him off to be apprenticed to some old Fey witch to learn a craft, or specifically THE craft. It was under the apprenticeship of this woman that he made his first and truest friend, Runvir.
After many years of training under his master, he was finally allowed to leave and return home only to find that there was really no home to return to. His family, being dark fey were of course wanderers, but it was as if the people he had known his whole childhood had vanished without a trace.
As a result, he and Runvir live together for the time being. While Runvir is a Seelie fae and as such has a home to go back to, he could not bring himself to abandon his friend. The two live at the bottom of a small pond in Rouge Park, using magic they constructed a cozy home for two.
For a living, Azarias tells fortunes, summons spirits of the dead, and has, on occasion, been hired to perform magical tasks both illicit and honest.
Affiliations:
Spoiler:
Fairy Collective: Amiable and elevated status, as a highborn he has an unspoken preeminence over lesser fae.
Fenians: Friendly, like a shepherd to his sheep, that is how Azarias views Fenians. Like sheep that drink.
Leanan sidhe: The Leanan Sidhe being fey themselves are on good terms with their fellow unseelie
Vampires: Predator-Prey Relationship, the blood of a fey is a rare treat for one of the night walkers, while the fey are powerful in their own right they have long avoided the vampires for this reason. The reason that vampires lust for fey blood is due to their innate ties to life and death that manifests in their blood.
Wulver: No real opinion, there is little interaction between the fair folk and the Wulver, both get along well as they respect nature and her rules. They are both long-lived and watch the humans with mild interest.
Human politics: he occasionally watches with mild disinterest. As befits a fey noble.
Starting inventory: (things of use that the character would likely be carrying on their person on an average day, not everything they own)
Overcity clothes:
Azarias actually just makes himself look like the first human he sees when feels the need, staying invisible most of the time. He prefers the look of modern clothes but would never admit it..
He carries around a thousand Canadian dollars on him. He usually just makes it *look* like he has money, usually illusion nothing more.
Undercity clothes: Azarias has a strange taste in clothes, his preferred outfits have some kind of magical flare to them, here is his current outfit
Spoiler:
Family and close friends: (because I need leverage over your characters)
Name: Runvir Sunstrider
Gender: Male
Age: 50
Species: Alfar (light elf)
Appearance:
Spoiler:
Notable Facts: Like Azarias, Runvir has a high affinity for the mystic arts, but unlike Runvir, he is not a noble and has a humility about him that has allowed him to succeed in areas farther than anyone expected a commoner to reach.
Has a special affinity for wind magic specifically beyond illusion and the other fey skills.
Loves to dance, and is graceful even among a people who pride themselves on that feature.
Is pure of heart.
Relationship to Pc: The light to his dark, the purity to his corruption, the kindness to his cruelty and the justice he so desperately sought. They are both more and less than friends, lovers and everything else involved.
Notable Facts:
Quite possibly the most advanced witch in the last thousand years that survived the various witch hunts over the ages, Llathasa is not her true name it is just her adopted name she took when she moved into Toronto. When questioned about her reasons for leaving the old world and coming here she simply says that she is waiting for something or someone.
She trains those who she finds that have innate ability and she decides need more out of life. She never trains more than two at a time and often does so for decades at a time. She releases them when she decides that she has produced a seed, which will grow or wither on its own.
Her age is unknown, she says that time matters little to her and it has been speculated that she is not bound to a specific time or place but exists in multiple times at once.
Hard to say since I've only got one sheet submitted officially and another tentative sheet given, though I haven't heard from Mars in more than a week. I'm going to try to get the outline complete in the next day or two, after that I guess we start when it looks like everyone who is interested are ready with their characters. I will probably start hounding after people next week.
Name: Sadhbh Ó'Peatáin (pron. Sive Oh Pah-tawn) Species: Metahuman Age: 23 Appearance: Sadhbh is a rather petite girl standing at just under 5' 2" and being of a slight build: though, her exact dimensions are concealed beneath the early 1900-esque garb she reluctantly wears when amongst her peers. She's blue eyes, parted evenly by a thin nose, and topped each by a a similarily thin eyebrows. Despite a red-headed father and sister, Sadhbh herself has raven black hair: though, unlike her peers she refuses to tie it back into a strict bun, allowing it to flow long and free down her shoulders; it might seem a small rebellion against the rigid social structure she finds herself within, but personally it's a significant one. Toronto Above or Below: Below. Abilities: Sadbh ages physically at a slower rate: whilst 23 she still only has the aspect of one in their mid- to late-teens; whether she also possess a longer lifespan as a result is unknown. History: Sadbh might have been perfectly accepting of her traditional upbringing had she not encountered the woman of the Iroquois; it was the first time she ever imagined that things could be different than they were, and she hasn't given up on that hope since. Her struggles against the structure she finds herself bound within have resulted in her becoming a social outcast amongst her Fenian peers. Affiliations: Iroquois: Sadhbh sometimes feels closer to the Iroquois than she does her own people; warm and inviting, she found them, and as such became fast friends with many from the clan; Genesse is perhaps her closest friend: a bright, inquisitive girl, who Sadhbh considers as much family as any blood-relative.
Loyalists: Whilst not as steadfast in her nationalist sentiment, Sadhbh nonetheless deals the Loyalists a wide berth: she sees them as aggressors; such stemming from the stories past down about their war-like tendencies.
Fenian: Sadbh holds an overwhelmingly mixed relationship with her own people: she still considers herself a proud Fenian, and holding cultural-nationalist sentiment; but, at the same time, has become a strong critic of some of the values that deemed, by some, an integral part of the Irish national-identity. She's found that most in the camp avoid her when possible; which, whilst hurtful, she's come to consider understandable.
Other: It is only through stories that Sadbh knows of those from the other camps; her feelings towards them range from reverence, to fearful; though, she's had few interactions with them, and so such feelings are underdeveloped and highly susceptible to change.
Starting inventory: Sadbh carried naught but the clothes on her back; a long dress and worn shoes, a silver pendant received from her late mother; and a small pocket-knife for protection whilst she doubts it might be useful in an engagement with Loyalists or Vampires, it does make her feel safer. Family and close friends:
Spoiler:
Relation: Father Name: Dáibhéad Ó'Peatáin (pron. Dot-E Oh Pah-tawn) Sex: Male Age: 48 Other: Fenian. Widower. Strict. Traditional. Nationalist.
p-sto, I'm considering (as one of two options) making an 'ordinary' character from Toronto Above. Given your plan for how the RP will progress, is there anything I should know if I go through with that idea?
Thinking about where your character would be on an early evening during a weekday would help me with my opening post since I've already figured what the characters of Toronto Below will be doing. It would help if your character wasn't at home. Also if people do opt for playing from Toronto Above they're going to have a fairly special role in the plot so I while I hope that everyone who joins has a strong commitment it's going to put me in a bit of a bind if someone from Toronto Above bails on the roleplay.
