Kobe Nathan Wade
One Thousand Club
Parker Branson worked a job of average pay at a hotel in Atlanta, GA. The hotel was sizable enough, but nothing to take your eye off the road if you were just passing through. You could probably yell in a room on one side of the hotel and not be heard on the other end. As such, it's silence and size gave the night auditor the creeps even after months of working there. The shifts were lonely and he rarely ventured out from the office at the front of the lobby, but never had more trouble than chasing away a homeless guy or two who wandered in to make one of the lobby couches their suite. This trend of the occasional late night check-ins and Parker sneaking out for smoke breaks was interrupted, however, by concerning experiences.
Parker confided in his online chat group friends about how paranoid he had been feeling recently about the experiences, instead of his real life ones due to their nature. The chat room's subject, in fact, was specialized for these kinds of things. It was one devoted to mages. The world in which Parker lives is quite different from our own. Magic is real and commonplace, however not more efficient necessarily than technology. Culture is basically identical to the real world we know, as well as quality of life. Magic is, honestly, inconsequential. Some mages make a living full time as fortune tellers, exorcists, or spell peddlers, but mostly it is a fringe hobby pursued by some. To some it can be a religion, others a way of life, but due to the necessity of extensive education and meditation on the subject it is not widely practiced. Those who practice it, as well, are not so quick to hand out it's secrets. This is because it can be a dangerous pursuit, and the unspoken law of the mage is to not offer up the practice of magic unless it is specifically requested. This is because it can attract unwanted attention of extrademensional nature and if one is unprepared, it is said the consequences are unimaginable.
Parker told his friends that he had not been practicing magic at the hotel, and that at his home he had noticed nothing out of the ordinary. At the hotel, last month, he heard a scream at two thirty AM on a Thursday. It was incredibly loud, and blood curdling. A cry of pain by a woman in distress. Parker shot up from his swivel chair and bolted from behind the office, swiping the emergency key and dawning his jacket as inside it's pocket was his knife. He was a paranoid guy even without the paranormal involved. He was almost positive it was on the first floor in the eastern wing, but when he knocked on the door of the only guest down that hallway, she informed him she hadn't screamed. Nor had she even heard a scream. This alarmed Parker. Nothing like this had ever happened to Parker. He was fortunate in his time toying with magic, and had only had run ins with a few specters at night of the recently deceased. Mostly once he read their obituaries, said a prayer, and sage his apartment they would go. Something this extreme was unusual, even amongst his peers on the chat room.
He checked every vacant room on that floor that night, as well as the second and third. He even had to apologize to a couple of guests who had menial requests for being away from the desk. He gave up on checking the fourth and the fifth after this. At first his nerves were calmed by his friends, them suggesting it had been the lobby TV or even sleep deprivation as Parker was known to be a tad irresponsible on that front. He protested at first, affirming that it had been too loud, too clear. He gave into their casual sensibilities over time, but no less than a week later Parker was frantically typing to record his experiences night after night on his message boards. Floating body parts which were thrown across the room only to vanish into the wall. Crying, moaning, and more disembodied sounds tormented him every time he got comfortable. The friends, concerned for their comrade's well being as well as professionally curious, flew out or drove to him to investigate the matter together. Being a mage has a cult following, for lack of a better expression. Powerful and successful mages can even have thousands of followers on social media, or do videos akin to ghost hunting shows where they seek out paranormal phenomenon and record it almost with a scientific nature. Parker was one such mage and thus had taken to documenting the phenomenon. Though the whole thing could be almost torturous at times, Parker occasionally spoke on the chats with a laissez faire attitude regarding the investigation and documentary soon to take place. He felt it was going to have monumental effects on the mainstream of the magic community, and that they'd all be famous by the end.
Parker confided in his online chat group friends about how paranoid he had been feeling recently about the experiences, instead of his real life ones due to their nature. The chat room's subject, in fact, was specialized for these kinds of things. It was one devoted to mages. The world in which Parker lives is quite different from our own. Magic is real and commonplace, however not more efficient necessarily than technology. Culture is basically identical to the real world we know, as well as quality of life. Magic is, honestly, inconsequential. Some mages make a living full time as fortune tellers, exorcists, or spell peddlers, but mostly it is a fringe hobby pursued by some. To some it can be a religion, others a way of life, but due to the necessity of extensive education and meditation on the subject it is not widely practiced. Those who practice it, as well, are not so quick to hand out it's secrets. This is because it can be a dangerous pursuit, and the unspoken law of the mage is to not offer up the practice of magic unless it is specifically requested. This is because it can attract unwanted attention of extrademensional nature and if one is unprepared, it is said the consequences are unimaginable.
Parker told his friends that he had not been practicing magic at the hotel, and that at his home he had noticed nothing out of the ordinary. At the hotel, last month, he heard a scream at two thirty AM on a Thursday. It was incredibly loud, and blood curdling. A cry of pain by a woman in distress. Parker shot up from his swivel chair and bolted from behind the office, swiping the emergency key and dawning his jacket as inside it's pocket was his knife. He was a paranoid guy even without the paranormal involved. He was almost positive it was on the first floor in the eastern wing, but when he knocked on the door of the only guest down that hallway, she informed him she hadn't screamed. Nor had she even heard a scream. This alarmed Parker. Nothing like this had ever happened to Parker. He was fortunate in his time toying with magic, and had only had run ins with a few specters at night of the recently deceased. Mostly once he read their obituaries, said a prayer, and sage his apartment they would go. Something this extreme was unusual, even amongst his peers on the chat room.
He checked every vacant room on that floor that night, as well as the second and third. He even had to apologize to a couple of guests who had menial requests for being away from the desk. He gave up on checking the fourth and the fifth after this. At first his nerves were calmed by his friends, them suggesting it had been the lobby TV or even sleep deprivation as Parker was known to be a tad irresponsible on that front. He protested at first, affirming that it had been too loud, too clear. He gave into their casual sensibilities over time, but no less than a week later Parker was frantically typing to record his experiences night after night on his message boards. Floating body parts which were thrown across the room only to vanish into the wall. Crying, moaning, and more disembodied sounds tormented him every time he got comfortable. The friends, concerned for their comrade's well being as well as professionally curious, flew out or drove to him to investigate the matter together. Being a mage has a cult following, for lack of a better expression. Powerful and successful mages can even have thousands of followers on social media, or do videos akin to ghost hunting shows where they seek out paranormal phenomenon and record it almost with a scientific nature. Parker was one such mage and thus had taken to documenting the phenomenon. Though the whole thing could be almost torturous at times, Parker occasionally spoke on the chats with a laissez faire attitude regarding the investigation and documentary soon to take place. He felt it was going to have monumental effects on the mainstream of the magic community, and that they'd all be famous by the end.
So, if the tone of that story interests you let me give you some context. I just started a new job at a hotel and work the night shift sometimes. Let me tell you, is it fucking creepy lol. Mainly the being alone and my own smoking habit not doing the paranoia any favors. Or maybe it is doing the paranoia favors, just not me? Anyways, the inspiration for this comes from that feeling, of large corridors of doorways all too quiet for comfort. As well as tabletop games like Call of Cthulhu, DnD, and the entire survival horror genre. Also I just rewatched the Junji Ito Collection, so expect some absurdism as well. I've also wanted to test out a concept for a simplified stat system which could translate to other rps, so you'll be helping me adjust that if you join.
I would prefer you be able to write two paragraphs per post, and will be looking for a writing style which will best compliment the story type. Depending on who all applies, I may not accept everyone. No hard feelings on this, this specific project is just a bit close to my heart and I'm debuting it here specifically because I'm hoping to find eloquent writers to write a complete story. If you get a DM you'll know you're in.
No autohitting whatsoever. I know no godmodding should go without saying, but I've been in rps (not on here, yet) where this has been stated as a rule and yet still someone will make a post in which someone is automatically knocked to the ground, grabbed, stabbed, or something similar. Make your attack, wait for the reply of what happened in response to your attempt. The stats are meant to somewhat streamline the process of deciding who gets hit when, but hopefully won't take away from our creativity in how we use our abilities.
A big pet peave of mine in RP is reading comprehension. I expect you to read all the posts, and not interact with or miraculously be in a different location each post. Continuity matters, pay attention to what characters are where. Obviously, mistakes will be made, myself included. Edits are always possible.
I apologize if this comes off with a rather strict tone. I like to lay down what I dislike in an RP right off the bat that way there are no hard feelings later when we have to discuss changes.
I will be allowing a rule in combat known as the "trap" rule. This will involve moves that will not be outright stated, but hinted at in a post by your character. The effect and trigger of your trap must be stated in a PM to someone before your adversary replies to ensure the effect and trigger was predetermined.
I would prefer you be able to write two paragraphs per post, and will be looking for a writing style which will best compliment the story type. Depending on who all applies, I may not accept everyone. No hard feelings on this, this specific project is just a bit close to my heart and I'm debuting it here specifically because I'm hoping to find eloquent writers to write a complete story. If you get a DM you'll know you're in.
No autohitting whatsoever. I know no godmodding should go without saying, but I've been in rps (not on here, yet) where this has been stated as a rule and yet still someone will make a post in which someone is automatically knocked to the ground, grabbed, stabbed, or something similar. Make your attack, wait for the reply of what happened in response to your attempt. The stats are meant to somewhat streamline the process of deciding who gets hit when, but hopefully won't take away from our creativity in how we use our abilities.
A big pet peave of mine in RP is reading comprehension. I expect you to read all the posts, and not interact with or miraculously be in a different location each post. Continuity matters, pay attention to what characters are where. Obviously, mistakes will be made, myself included. Edits are always possible.
I apologize if this comes off with a rather strict tone. I like to lay down what I dislike in an RP right off the bat that way there are no hard feelings later when we have to discuss changes.
I will be allowing a rule in combat known as the "trap" rule. This will involve moves that will not be outright stated, but hinted at in a post by your character. The effect and trigger of your trap must be stated in a PM to someone before your adversary replies to ensure the effect and trigger was predetermined.
Naruto: *the classroom door is cracked*
PM: Naruto left an eraser on the top of the door. When Kakashi opens the door, the eraser will fall on his head and get dust on his face.
Kakashi: *Opens the door*
Naruto: *The eraser Naruto prepared in the last post dropped on Kakashi's head and got dust on his face.*
PM: Naruto left an eraser on the top of the door. When Kakashi opens the door, the eraser will fall on his head and get dust on his face.
Kakashi: *Opens the door*
Naruto: *The eraser Naruto prepared in the last post dropped on Kakashi's head and got dust on his face.*
Strength - Will relate to any physical exertion. Punches, wrestling, lifting heavy objects, etc.
Agility - Will relate to the finer points of physicality. How fast can you run, climb, or react.
Endurance - Will effect how much damage you can take
Intelligence - Will count towards awareness, mana pool, and sanity.
You will have twelve skill points to spend on each of these stats. One being below average, two being average, three above, four an expert. No more than five into any given stat, and you must spend all your points. In addition to these twelve points, each person will have enough mana to cast each of their spells once. This will make more sense once you look at the character sheet section. Now, how will this play into RP? Let's say I throw a punch at you. My strength is three, while your agility is two. We both roll a six sided die, and add our skill values to that number. Higher number wins. The rpers have the option to ignore this system if they would rather play something planned, but in most combat scenarios this is what we'll use to keep it fair.
Sanity Meter - as we play out the rp, you may be unlucky enough to discover just what it is that is haunting the hotel. As the mystery is unraveled, I'm going to ask you to roll a six sided die to decide how much of this meter you lose. When it hits zero, you'll likely have a mental breakdown and try and kill anyone near you or yourself. You'll start at twelve. This may not be a done deal if it happens sooner than expected, and likewise all of these rules are fluid.
You will have access to one of these types of magic:
Witchcraft - Also known as elementalism, witchcraft deals with controlling the natural energies of the universe. Each witch has access to the four elements, fire, water, earth, or air, but has the most affinity to one and can only cast minor spells of the others or use them to augment their main choice. For instance, combining earth and fire might cause an explosion. Combining water and air a thick fog. Combinations often are less powerful, but more versatile than a standard fireball or boulder throw.
Alchemy - Control of the material world, and their interactions, on a magical level. Again requiring it's users to pick a specialty such as metallurgy or electromanipulation, it is capable of more specific effects than witchcraft. One could make anything they desired with the effects of alchemy, so long as they had the raw materials and knowledge of it's structure at their fingertips. A metallurgist could do something as simple as make a metal spear from the hood of a car, or even a computer if they had the materials and the know-how. Why would one do the latter, however, when they could just buy a computer? This where the question of magic's actual usefulness comes in. Sure you can have wondrous spells and effects, but balancing their cost is at the discretion of the mage. And remember an alchemist does not materialize, but manipulates.
Daemonology - The study of and ability to summon spirits, demons, fae, or other extrademensional beings to aid one in the combat of, or indeed study of, similar entities. Perhaps the most dangerous of magical disciplines, it requires the user to have enough mental willpower to overwhelm a weaker spirit with their own energy, effectively enslaving it to their intent.
Exorcism - sometimes also known as holy magic. A kind of magic specifically meant to combat evil spirits. This often manifests as religious iconography relating to the caster's will, and comes from the goodness inside of them. Perhaps the most versatile it can be anything from constructs to prayers with banishing effects. It is slightly crippled, however, as it does not effect humans. Only evil spirits.
Anything that fits these guidelines works, I'm open to interpretation.
Agility - Will relate to the finer points of physicality. How fast can you run, climb, or react.
Endurance - Will effect how much damage you can take
Intelligence - Will count towards awareness, mana pool, and sanity.
You will have twelve skill points to spend on each of these stats. One being below average, two being average, three above, four an expert. No more than five into any given stat, and you must spend all your points. In addition to these twelve points, each person will have enough mana to cast each of their spells once. This will make more sense once you look at the character sheet section. Now, how will this play into RP? Let's say I throw a punch at you. My strength is three, while your agility is two. We both roll a six sided die, and add our skill values to that number. Higher number wins. The rpers have the option to ignore this system if they would rather play something planned, but in most combat scenarios this is what we'll use to keep it fair.
Sanity Meter - as we play out the rp, you may be unlucky enough to discover just what it is that is haunting the hotel. As the mystery is unraveled, I'm going to ask you to roll a six sided die to decide how much of this meter you lose. When it hits zero, you'll likely have a mental breakdown and try and kill anyone near you or yourself. You'll start at twelve. This may not be a done deal if it happens sooner than expected, and likewise all of these rules are fluid.
You will have access to one of these types of magic:
Witchcraft - Also known as elementalism, witchcraft deals with controlling the natural energies of the universe. Each witch has access to the four elements, fire, water, earth, or air, but has the most affinity to one and can only cast minor spells of the others or use them to augment their main choice. For instance, combining earth and fire might cause an explosion. Combining water and air a thick fog. Combinations often are less powerful, but more versatile than a standard fireball or boulder throw.
Alchemy - Control of the material world, and their interactions, on a magical level. Again requiring it's users to pick a specialty such as metallurgy or electromanipulation, it is capable of more specific effects than witchcraft. One could make anything they desired with the effects of alchemy, so long as they had the raw materials and knowledge of it's structure at their fingertips. A metallurgist could do something as simple as make a metal spear from the hood of a car, or even a computer if they had the materials and the know-how. Why would one do the latter, however, when they could just buy a computer? This where the question of magic's actual usefulness comes in. Sure you can have wondrous spells and effects, but balancing their cost is at the discretion of the mage. And remember an alchemist does not materialize, but manipulates.
Daemonology - The study of and ability to summon spirits, demons, fae, or other extrademensional beings to aid one in the combat of, or indeed study of, similar entities. Perhaps the most dangerous of magical disciplines, it requires the user to have enough mental willpower to overwhelm a weaker spirit with their own energy, effectively enslaving it to their intent.
Exorcism - sometimes also known as holy magic. A kind of magic specifically meant to combat evil spirits. This often manifests as religious iconography relating to the caster's will, and comes from the goodness inside of them. Perhaps the most versatile it can be anything from constructs to prayers with banishing effects. It is slightly crippled, however, as it does not effect humans. Only evil spirits.
Anything that fits these guidelines works, I'm open to interpretation.
FC: (Required, drawn, modern clothes.)
Name:
Age:
Occupation:
Magic:
Subclass: (your chance to specify on what I've laid out)
Spells: (for Daemonology, you get one NPC/summon per spell slot. One of these can also be a magical weapon.)
C1: (your 1 cost spells, you barely notice the dent in your mana pool.
C2:
C3:
B1: (medium 2 cost spells, shouldn't fire off too many without counting or you'll find yourself out of breath.)
B2:
A: (Your hail mary. If you cast this, let's hope it hits. Costs 3)
Mana: (10+your intelligence)
Strength:
Agility:
Endurance:
Intelligence:
Sanity: 12
Backstory: (how did you get into the occult)
Name:
Age:
Occupation:
Magic:
Subclass: (your chance to specify on what I've laid out)
Spells: (for Daemonology, you get one NPC/summon per spell slot. One of these can also be a magical weapon.)
C1: (your 1 cost spells, you barely notice the dent in your mana pool.
C2:
C3:
B1: (medium 2 cost spells, shouldn't fire off too many without counting or you'll find yourself out of breath.)
B2:
A: (Your hail mary. If you cast this, let's hope it hits. Costs 3)
Mana: (10+your intelligence)
Strength:
Agility:
Endurance:
Intelligence:
Sanity: 12
Backstory: (how did you get into the occult)
Everyone Dies.
