Heroes of the Jade Constellation

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Jossar: Apr 2, 2018; Current status: Angry about subs

Among the nearly uncountable glittering stars of the Jade Constellation, there stands a world.

By most standards it is entirely ordinary, for who can say how many billions of planets exist within that heavenly body? If one were to count only from among the planets blessed with life? The Sovereign of Paths granted his gift to tens of millions still. In terms of civilization? It is neither the most prestigious nor meanest of the vassals of one of the myriad states that strive under all creation. Truly it is a place that never once affected the destiny of the cosmos since it was established and only the most lunatic of diviners would tell you that it could ever produce lofty figures capable of standing among the powers of the heavens. Of course, it is often very difficult for outside observers to distinguish a madman from a prophet.

This then is the Emerald Star. Home to the similarly and appropriately named Sect of Verdant Truth, founded millions of years ago by the esteemed elder patriarch Barkheart. A quiet place where cultivators can develop their skills in harmony with nature and in accordance with the spirits...

Well, in theory anyway. When you're a martial arts sect in charge of an entire planet things tend to get messy once you go below the top few links in the chain of command. Wouldn't be surprised if you could learn ANYTHING here as long as you found the right mentor, or treasure, or y'know put some thought into things. Where were we again...?

Oh right.

Today marks the once per 99 years introduction of a number of new generation of martial brothers and sisters to the Sect of Verdant Truth. Individuals of the highest caliber taken from across the numerous cultures of the planet to become Wuxia, or "martial heroes." Even normally this is one of the most exciting events for the sect as it marks the transmission of its teachings to future generations. How much more so today, when it happens to be the case that several of the individuals in this class will truly be worthy of the name hero?

Okay that was a lot of high-falutin' nonsense, what's ACTUALLY going on here?

This is a combination Sci-Fi, High Fantasy, Wuxia RPG where 3-5 players are going to be taking the role of students in this year's incoming class of apprentices. Hopefully you'll work your way through sect politics, learn some martial/scholarly arts, and become influential figures both in the school and beyond in the greater galaxy known as the Jade Constellation. Or just mess around - I have some plot ideas in mind that'll keep people together and give some goals, but if everyone wants to follow a particular angle of their own devising I can adapt.

I realize that there's a lot of stuff to cover here that will probably require additional setting description. The simplest way to think about things for now is if you took Kill Six Billion Demons and made it a little bit less chaotic and dingy in nature, then countered that by adding laser guns.

RPG

Well, it's going to be a little bit of an experiment. A number of RPGs are good at making characters as fully fledged martial artists, but less so at developing the pathway there. So what i'm planning on doing is having everyone roll up characters from Wandering Heroes of Ogre Gate (Link here, at a "pay what you want" price - https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/191631/Wandering-Heroes-of-Ogre-Gate) absent the actual kung fu powers. You effectively have the points you'll need to make starting characters for free, but in the interests of emergent storytelling you'll have to convince the members of the sect to teach you any of the cool stuff beyond uniform basics represented by stuff like Combat Techniques and Skills.

What I want from people is a sheet with the following:

quote:

Name: While the Sect of Verdant Truth is going to have more of a traditional Chinese theme, the various cultures of the Emerald Star are wide and varied from small tribes living in the forests to dwellers in huge futuristic megalopolises. So feel free to pick as makes sense.
Sect Name: A more formal thing for people to call you in the sect, this is more of your opportunity to break out interesting titles about your strengths and exploits. Note - some people drop their regular names entirely in favor of being called by their sect name and some people choose to just be referred to by their regular name within the sect so don't feel pressured to need to take both.
Backstory: History! Who you are and where you came from. You don't need to write a novel, but it should be enough to incorporate the details mentioned in your character sheet. As mentioned above the Emerald Star can get pretty diverse in its environments, so many different types of backstories can work - as long as you're limited to a particular locale on planet or have a particularly good reason for why you're here from off-planet when this is one of the galaxy's backwaters.

Humans are the dominant species on the emerald star, but if you want to be some other species there's nothing wrong with that. But you probably belong to one of the more cosmopolitan areas (ie the ones which actually have had people come in from off planet at some point in the recent-ish past).

Not necessary but something to think about : A good common theme is "plucked from whatever you were doing, appropriately or not, by one of the disciples." Were you picked at random? Was there a lengthy selection process? Were you aware of the Sect's existence or did this all come out of nowhere? Do you even WANT to join or were you recruited against your will?

Skill Groups: Remember, you all had lives before you came to the Verdant Sect. Primary skills are those that define what you did beforehand and what you are good at even now! Follow the creation rules in the handbook as normal: choose 2 of the 6 skill groups and allocate 12 points among these, while applying 6 points to the other 4 (or Secondary) skills.
Expertise: Some skills are specialized! You can spend a skill point from the relevant skill group to give a higher level bonus in a narrower circumstance than an ordinary skill would cover.
Reputation: Two words, each summing up how a particular group of people feel about you. The first is for your friends/positive relations and the second for your enemies/negative relations.
Flaws: Nobody's perfect. Flaws give you an extra skill point in exchange for penalties. You may only have 2 flaws at maximum unless otherwise stated in the rules.
Martial Discipline Ranks: Even though you're not using Kung Fu yet, you have natural proficiency with certain types of Kung Fu. Spend 4 ranks (0-3 on each Discipline) on Waijia (typical martial disciplines including weaponry), Qinggong (lightness and dexterity techniques), Neigong (chi techniques), and Dianxue (pressure point and status techniques). Having imbalanced skill ratings allows you to specialize, but can be risky as the overflow of chi can lead to you being possessed by a Qi Spirit. Having 0 skill in a Discipline means you cannot learn skills of that Discipline.
Combat Technique: Well you don't have any teachers or kung fu yet, but the sect is going to guarantee that you have a good foundation to learn those things. Alternatively, you picked it up when gaining experience in the world. Perhaps this might even be why the sect noticed you in the first place!

Goal: Twofold - one should be a goal your character wants to accomplish and one should be a goal that you want to accomplish with the RP.

Final Comments

I am new to running games on SA and this is somewhat messy. Therefore, do not hesitate to approach me with comments or questions. I can be contacted either in the thread or at discord here: https://discord.gg/gnXGaC9

Deadlines are a week from now (the 23rd) and I hope to get started on the following Sunday.

Jossar fucked around with this message at 04:21 on May 18, 2018

# ¿ May 16, 2018 23:29

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# ¿ Apr 26, 2024 21:10

Jossar: Apr 2, 2018; Current status: Angry about subs

Thanks to Waador for the sheet writeup. As discussed in the Discord, the various branches of Knowledge (History), Knowledge (Classics), and Knowledge (Religion) are going to be collapsed into singular skills because given the scope of the game trying to memorize a particular set would be impractical.

# ¿ May 17, 2018 20:39

Jossar: Apr 2, 2018; Current status: Angry about subs

Applications are closed!

Since we ended up with 6 applicants, I have decided that for the scale intended, I might as well take everyone.

Just let me get a few days to organize my thoughts and then i'll make a starting post.

# ¿ May 24, 2018 05:12

Jossar: Apr 2, 2018; Current status: Angry about subs

Your gear (presumably at least some of which is metal) is standard. My original idea was to have you show up with nothing but the shirts on your back, but at least one character sort of needs the money for a mount so it seems unfair to have that be the case for one and not all.

# ¿ May 25, 2018 01:48

Jossar: Apr 2, 2018; Current status: Angry about subs

There is a problem that exists with the Inauguration Ceremony of a class of the Sect of Verdant Truth - the vast majority of the sect members are at least somewhat interested in the proceedings, barring those who have utterly shed all forms of worldly attachment after a long period of existence. But a large proportion of the sect does not reside on planet, either serving in the armies of the Qilin Hegemony, or adventuring through the stars in order to gain experience for themselves. A solution has been devised for this, albeit one that is rather clunky in terms of execution.

Hovering far above the proceedings is something that could be most accurately described as the Emerald Star's most demented teapot. It is truly a marvelous treasure, as any cultivator of the Sect of Verdant Truth who wishes to attend the ceremony from far off need only use a projection technique to cast their spirit from wherever it may be into the teapot. This is the function of the actual teapot, most of the various gizmos and gadgets attached to it allow for a secondary function, the projection of those spirits in the form of hard-light holograms to stand in the bleachers and observe the ceremony. In practice this is rather pointless as all of the individuals within the teapot can communicate with each other and through the teapot, with the local sect dwellers. Instead this serves the much less important, but still necessary goal of providing pomp and circumstance to the ceremony and impressing the hell out of the entering class as the sect members take their place in a manner more impressive than even the biggest light show on the rest of the planet.

There nevertheless remain a number of individuals here in the flesh. The remaining members of the class above the entering one, as well as the full sect members in residence. Sadly this does not include the Sect Leader as he has quite literally rooted himself to his current spot somewhere on the mountain and very rarely moves except in the case of exceptional circumstances. Nevertheless, as the slightly over a hundred disciples sit in the field adjacent to the pavilion it is clear that this is probably among the biggest ceremonies they are ever going to see in their time here at the sect.

After the preemptory hubbub and settling down, a young woman, dressed in a bright yellow robe and with a sword seemingly made of solid gold at her side, walks out of the pavilion to address the various disciples.

"Greetings, young disciples! I am Resplendent Jin and it is my honor to welcome you to the Sect of Verdant Truth. Know that you stand at the very height of the world, for not only is this ceremony conducted on its tallest mountain..."

A brief moment of laughter can be heard from several of the disciples and the members of the previous class. If those older laugh at the joke or have found it to lose its humor... well, they are too far away to tell for certain.

"But serves to mark your entry into its guardians and protectors. For that is the First and most important Law of the Sect of Verdant Truth - 'Those of the Sect shall place, as their highest priority, the protection of the Emerald Star.' For this reason, to ensure that the Emerald Star shall have protectors in perpetuity, we have and continue to take all kinds of exceptional individuals. Those with the capacity to become heroes, who in performing deeds of valor shall bring peace and honor to our home..."

At this point you, yes YOU disciples, notice that the majority of the upperclassmen have stopped paying attention to the speech and have begun to talk among themselves. As it often turns out, the concept of the ceremony is supremely important but among wuxia, who are the freest and most spirited members of society, the actual execution is a bit more chaotic than one would expect from normal hierarchies.

So to each of you, I ask the following questions in general as you respond to the ceremony:

Is there anything in particular that you are looking to hear from this speech or would notice by its absence?
Does anyone try to start up a conversation with you during the speech. If so, do you address them or ignore them?

quote:

Yue Lixue, the White Fox

Given what you were doing before you came here, this sounds perfectly in accordance with your philosophy. Perhaps Three-Lives Jade Phoenix was right and this is fate after all? Or would you rather be at home helping your brothers with the harvest?

quote:

Guo Songyang, the Laughing Magpie

Lofty sentiment indeed, but you know better. But the Titanium Fist, those Bloody Peacebringers, also had lofty sentiment and their deeds were harsh and cruel. You were brought here for your morals, but do you think the people here truly have any?

quote:

Aiman Batyr, the Clear Skies Thunderbolt

By the standards of many you are bizarre, but the experiences here are equally so to your own eyes. What is the most amazing thing here to you? What is an otherwise mundane thing you'd like to see present on the mountain?

quote:

Sheh Li, the One-Armed Cat

Your persistence has finally paid off and you have made it to a place where you can truly devote yourself to swordplay. But you find yourself in the company of many strong warriors. Let's not focus on the people who can explode boulders with their fists, though. How do you think you measure up to the other members of your class?

quote:

Zhen Zijing

The spectacle is nice... but you came here to be a hero! Regardless of whether the sect believes its words or not, do you think this place is a good crucible for producing heroes?

quote:

the Iron Cobra

You only meant to deliver a message, not get involved with the Sect of Verdant truth. Have you delivered the message already or were you whisked away to the ceremony before you could do so? If the latter, do you have a plan for approaching someone to inform the Sect of Pious Serpent's death? Do you have any plans for your future here, now that it appears to be set in stone?

# ¿ May 27, 2018 19:01

Jossar: Apr 2, 2018; Current status: Angry about subs

It is a well known joke, at least among the various members of the Sect of Verdant Truth, that despite the Commencement Ceremony being the highest profile event commonly participated in by all Sect Members it devolves into a social event after the first few speeches. An old sect legend goes so far as to claim that one of the students of the introductory class accidentally stepped on a garden rake, raising the handle directly into her face, and the ceremony had to be postponed for a day until everyone else stopped laughing.

In this, all involved are meant to learn several things: the world of sophonts often demands rigid pomp and circumstance, but in nature majestic scenes arise organically and spontaneously, without effort. That learning comes in many forms, not just the strict transmission of knowledge from teacher to disciple, but wherever you can find it, including from your fellows. The speaker learns that they cannot rely on their prestige or the combined prestige of the sect to awe students but must earn it through having something interesting to say. The middle level members of the sect take it as an opportunity to catch up with those they have fallen out of touch with and be reminded that they too can be surprised.

The duel turns out to be rather surprising. Usually unless there's some kind of pre-existing rivalry, most people have at least enough propriety or desire to enjoy themselves, or something that holds things back until after the ceremony.

_____________________________________________________________________

quote:

Iron Cobra

You've gotten some strange looks so far, but in what appears to be an amazing stroke of luck you're not the center of attention. In fact quite the opposite - instead of the battle royale you were expecting things seem to have focused down to a single fight occurring roughly in the center of the disciples. It's clear that you've been thinking about how others see you - but you're not in the spotlight. What is left when the lights go dark? If you plan on finding that out, now is as good a time as any to figure it out or at least start thinking about it!

quote:

Sheh Li

You've wandered and gotten a look at several of the people floating around here, is there a particular type that are your favorite or particularly noteworthy? Do you remain alone when watching the fight or have you joined others in observing? Do you observe from a safe distance or try to take a closer look? If everyone here deserves your respect as an opponent, what do you respect of the people at the center of the action?

quote:

Aiman Batyr

The woman introduces herself as Ai of the Red Strand, and points out that while your curious displays have their own sort of "rustic charm", you will likely have a lot of work ahead of you in fitting in here on the mountain. After all, even a sect out in the middle of the wilderness still adheres to the norms of cultured civilization, whereas sadly... you are lacking in it. Of course, she and her friends are willing to help you get acclimated, so long as you are willing to accept their humble assistance. You think you catch a glimpse of one of the other bohemians snickering.

B�rte continues to drink from the teacup trough. Such things as social fencing are below her, and it is important to get good water while it is plentiful.

The challenge breaks out and they offer to have you accompany them, so long as you stand back and refrain from acting. Do you want your future efforts to have such obvious foils or would you prefer to be surrounded by those equally as wild as yourself?
_____________________________________________________________________

As Guo Songyang approaches to disarm the situation, his comments only bring an angry shade of red to the scholar's face as he perceives himself being made a fool of. He blurts out: "I, the great Shao Fang, know exactly what she is!" and then attempts to somewhat lamely shove Songyang away before turning back towards Lixue. He raises his golden jian and brashly poses while addressing her.

"It seems that your carelessness has already escalated this to the point of causing trouble. As the elders have not minded so far, perhaps they would be entertained if this was settled here and now!"

quote:

Guo Songyang

Well, that didn't work: it turns out that some people are too dumb to fool. Do you think Shao Fang is going to remember that you butted in on his glorious moment here or are you just a minor stumbling block on his path to success? Do you double down your support for the white haired maiden, even now that the con has come to an unsatisfying close?

(Since you said you were rolling Deception, I rolled on your behalf and Songyang got an awful, awful roll of 2,1. Not even close enough to hit the basic Wits score.)

quote:

Zhen Zijing

Well you suppose that Perfidious Su was right, in the most unfortunate way possible. So far you've been taking a backseat to the proceedings which means... hmm, you've actually been paying attention to more than thing unlike many of these rubes. Do you want to stay here where the action is hottest or does it better suit your information gathering purposes to try and interact with the barbarian and/or the coterie adjacent to her?

quote:

Yue Lixue

Well this is it, the worst possible outcome - the idiot didn't back down and now everyone's staring at you. Though at least a few are doing so with pity or the barely concealed hopes that you'll take this conceited brat down a peg or two. Do you accept his challenge here and now? If so, are you fighting fair or are you fighting dirty? Is the crowd a source of strength or an unwelcome distraction.

Oh and for EVERYONE:

An intrusive thought penetrates the confines of your minds - Intentional killing or the intentional infliction of permanent mental trauma absent the prevention of a catastrophic threat to the Sect is forbidden on the mountain. Anyone who does so will meet with an unfortunate demise.

# ¿ Jun 2, 2018 04:14

Jossar: Apr 2, 2018; Current status: Angry about subs

Waador posted:

pre:

The 'flexible mind' trait lets me perform "up to six mental tasks at a time."
In combat this seems to be limited to two rolls as one action, but in a passive
scene like this I will likely hit the limit quickly.

Detect (hearing) for the first roll is 9 and 9.

In this case I am going to circle around the crowd, and eavesdrop on conversations.
This might be a good way to pick up on a party member or two, as well as anything
else going on that might be interesting.

You manage to pick up quite a lot from the various conversations!

Running the collected data through a simple representativeness heuristic (well you picked up a lot of data relative to your circumstances, not in an objective sense), you come to the following conclusions about the local population. Probably needs to be tested more rigorously but serves as a good enough start.

Approximately 90% of the disciples are unorganized. Out of a class of 145, 130 do not appear to have found any stable long term communicative partnerships.

Of the remaining 15 - those individuals possessing self confidence, brutality, or social skills, such as Ai of the Red Strand, Shao Fang (also known as "Starlight Fang"), and "Mount" Tai (appearing to be some kind of rock creature approximately one and a half times the size of the average humanoid here and of a particularly 'punkish', 'delinquent', or 'gang-like' character) have each managed to obtain two followers a piece. Followers being individuals who will tend to move in their social orbit and make decisions in accordance with the preference of the more charismatic individuals. One pair appears to Shou Bai and Wan Cheng, two similarly armored humans males - probably as a result of them coming from the same village, who have bonded over the shared home town. The other two pairs are more odd couples - though you cannot tell whether they have aligned as a result of similar interests or just fortuitous coincidences.

As mentioned, the calculations are on the basis of sustainable partnerships. A number of individuals also appear to be gravitating towards a couple of 'freaks' - individuals who are for some reason perceived as being extremely powerful or talented. But it's clear that they do not relish the attention or will effectively be leaving those individuals to fend for themselves soon enough. How powerful these 8 or so are is unknown to you, but it was certainly hyped up a lot:

Platinum Planet

Astral Cyborg

Yang Chao

Hundredlotus Li

Angry Revenant

Floating Machine Zhen

Kordun

Wu Hua

Of course, other names are mentioned as potential nodes around which things could spring. The girl who Starlight Fang challenged, Yue Lixue, will probably become memorable if she wins or at least manages to put up a good fight. The barbarian girl Aiman Batyr promises to bring a great deal of chaos, as does the inventor Shang Redshift. And this is not event counting those individuals who have yet to make a splash!

Jossar fucked around with this message at 19:44 on Jun 2, 2018

# ¿ Jun 2, 2018 07:19

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# ¿ Apr 26, 2024 21:10

Jossar: Apr 2, 2018; Current status: Angry about subs

Shao Fang is many things, and among them is that he is extremely proud. He refuses to comment on this defeat and yield, even as it brings him to the limits of consciousness.

# ¿ Jun 2, 2018 07:48

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