Shnarf
SHNARF
So this is something I have tried before and it sadly never really took off, but that was a few years ago and now we have a different list of people to pull from so I figured I would give it a shot to bring this back.
There is a lot of information in the other tabs so I'm putting this here as a buffer.
It had been a few thousand years in the past. Mages were always a common sight in and around every city that dotted the planet, they held that special power called "magic" which allowed them to accomplish various feats ranging from help in manual labor to the total annihilation of entire cities. Those who used magic always felt entitled, not all of them showed it, not all of them flaunted their capabilities, but the majority did, and part of that majority used their power to rule as they saw fit driving some of the people into fear. In its simplicity, there was no order back then, it was amazing how we were even able to progress during those times. There was never any end to the oppression, but there were only a few oppressors to begin with so how did it come to this?
2000 years ago magic was lost, with it, the power of several influential individuals. The paradigm had shifted, you could even say that for several centuries, the paradigm did not even exist. There was never a clear chain of power, not when the leaders were so mortal. They weren't like the older mages who have lived near a thousand years old, they had both the will and the power to see their ambition brought to light, but there was never any technological prowess, it wasn't that important when magic ruled the world. To top it off, the whole world revolted against their fellow magic user, regardless of disposition. Sometimes it was vengeance that drove a man to fight against an abusive mage, most times it was immense envy that drove some to slaughter the docile mages.
Who would have thought that there'd still be governance up to this day and age. Back then, it was complete anarchy, those who have not tasted equality have done so and repaid their magic-wielding aggressors a hundredfold. There were those who sought to utilize the chaos in an effort to rule, to mimic those of the magi rulers, to see what it was like to sit on the top and order people to their liking. However, in order to reach that top, one had to have more power over the rest of the populace.
The unification process began in the land in the East, it took 3 centuries before the world was under a unified rule once more. It was an easy task to annex the West since it was a fractured land, it was easy but it took time. The world then moved into a more organized state, there was a unified rule that encompassed the known world. The bad blood finally cooled off, those descendants of the aggrieved had learned to live side by side with their fellow man, those descendants of the mages have come to terms that their power and glory was forever lost.
The world enjoyed peace and prosperity for a thousand years under a unified rule, innovations came flooding in from around the globe and soon man turned his gaze to stars. Man dared to brave what lay above the sky. Space travel was initiated and the entire world poured their aspirations, their hopes and their dreams into this one big ambition. Several centuries later and the first orbital habitat "New Eden" had been finished, a chosen few had been sent to live in the New Eden. That was also where the current regime placed itself. That was also the time New Eden fell from the sky.
The world was fractured once again, though not into many shards anymore, but rather 3 large shards. Three nations that vied for power, three nations that were formed by the surviving members of the "Old World Order." The Federation in the West, The Order in the East, And The Empire caught between two Titans. The Federation gained their power through pacts made with smaller, independent lands as well as the The Empire. The Order takes pride in the zealotry of their military and faithfulness of their citizens as well as holding the larger landmasses in the planet.
The Empire may be the smallest of the three, but is also the most resilient and innovative. They have been attacked by the Order several times and are resisting total manipulation from the Federation, not to mention that The Empire had also been the first to launch another space habitat, fitted with defense mechanisms as well as an orbital weapon. It was less of a habitat and more of an orbital fortress. The three powers exchanged blows with each other for several centuries, halting domestic progress in favor military power.
Then Magic resurfaced a few centuries later, the old families have regained their power once more. The Federation kept things hush-hush, they made sure the public did not know about the mages that live among them and labelled the Empire "weak" while they slandered the Order "insane." That there were mages after a long time seemed to be proposterous. The Order began its alienation campaign against the magic users, the magic-users themselves were prosecuted and oppressed, the Order's leaders would suffer no deviants within their society, the promise was that everyone will always be equal.
The Empire suffered the worst, you could say that it no longer exists. They trusted the mages, they kept an open mind about them, then the coup happened the Empire was no more. It was nation ruled by mages now, one nation that neither of the other two wanted to recognize. This only served to put the two remaining factions into a state of unrest, the Order was more harsh with their alienation procedures, and the Federation began wiping any content that involved even the slightest hint of magic or mages from their daily propaganda but failed to do so in time.
To the people of the Federation, magic was only resurfacing now. The rest of the world knew otherwise.
Factions:
The Zeinian Order, The Power in the East -Name subject to Change-
Arcane order sounds kinda redundant because those guys are scared sh*tless of the mages and seek measures to keep them in check, they treat the mages with something like racial discrimination, in the Zeinian Order mages have no rights nor are they considered human beings for that matter, they're simply tools used and discarded as the masters please, they are locked away, they are chained, they are being scorned by the Order. The Zeinian Order believes in the power of human ingenuity rather than arcane mysticism and will take steps to make sure things stay the way it has been for the past 2000 or so years. And why wouldn't they? They have the biggest landmass, the largest army, the most faithful soldiers and are practically the equivalent of a superpower. The loss of the Melanthean Empire only sought to reinforce their paranoia and distrust of mages.
The Agrian Federation, The Titan of the West -Name subject to Change-
These guys are technically a bunch of city-states and small countries who have banded together to face the Power in the East. Due to multitude of ethnicity and societies that populate the federation, their litigators, diplomats, etc. are second to none in the entire world. "Not everyone is the same, but everyone is equal" as they always say. They have kept the peace within their borders for as long as they could remember, as well as disciplined fighting force that protects its borders. It is not as technologically advanced as the now dissolved Melanthean Empire, neither do they posses the military backbone of the Zeinian Order, but what they lack in focused endeavors, they make up for in sheer versatility. The geological make-up of the lands within this nation vary from thick jungles to high peaks which further enhances their military motto of "Any time, any place."
They preferred to keep their citizenry in the dark regarding the resurgence of magic, for reasons similar to that of the Zeinian Order. The resurgence of mages could shift the power exchange once more, and the elite are already comfortable in a niche above the rest. No one wants a completely radical change. Yet their efforts were in vain to keep the general population from discovering mages. To cover up their blunder, the government had decided to side with the mages making them look sympathetic by showing the non-humanitarian way the Order treats mages and reasoned that the same may happen to the mages within their territory who are also considered their citizens. They claimed to defend those poor souls for as long as they could against a non-existent threat.
Arcanium, The New World Order -Formerly The Melanthean Empire, Name subject to change-
Born of a coup d'etat, The Arcanium is a new nation that formed from the cindering ashes of the most technologically advanced Nation. This nation has learned to incorporate the scientific advancements of the previous residents along with the innate ability to use magic. Despite toppling the Melanthean Empire, the Arcanium has not yet gained access to the "Bolverk" the giant orbital space fortress of the Empire which houses the the remainder of the Melanthean Empire. The Arcanium is a nation ruled by mages, for mages and as such have no tolerance non-magic types. Those within their borders who are unable to use magic are threatened, extorted and generally treated as second rate citizens. Some would say that the Arcanium treats non-magic users with the same harsh severity that the Zeinian Order treats their mages. Their military power rivals that of the Order, despite the size of their nation, the deadly marriage of magic and technology make them juggernauts in the battlefield. The Arcanium was a country that could bully the other two nations into submission if they weren't busy being harassed, that is the only reason the Arcanian Army cannot leave its border. If the Army leaves the resistance comes out to play with the infrastructure, If the Army stays, the resistance burrows back underground.
The Melanthean Resistance, The Nation that lost it all -Name subject to change-
The Melanthean Resistance is the remainder of the Melanthean Empire who have not completely assimilated into The Arcanian Nation. They run sabotage operations to harass the growing superpower. They incite civil unrest within the populace of the Arcanium. All their actions hinge on the fact that the Arcanium had begun on the wrong foot and have still not fixed their public image. The Melanthean Resistance resistance knows the entire country inside and out as well as the infrastructure that keeps the Arcanian Nation afloat. They have not been able to hit the major targets within their own country, but the Melantheans have proven to be a very sharp thorn that must never be left unattended. The Melantheans still believe that their Queen shall reign holy fire from the Bolverk onto the treacherous power-hungry mages. They pray every day and night, yet the fire does not rain from the sky, neither does their Queen descended from the clouds to render judgement. Their Queen is only human, she could not hope to stand against those who possess more power than her, neither could she bring herself to incinerate her entire nation. The Empire made the mistake of intimately socializing with the Mages, the Resistance's job is get the nation back on its feet wearing the proper title.
Factions
The Zeinian Order: mageaphopbs from the east
The Agrian Federation: more open minded city-states to the west, still scared of mages and now undergoing mage persecution
Melanthean Empire: the now extinct empire that openly accepted mages
The Arcanium: The mage uprising that shattered the Melanthean Empire
Melanthean Resistance: The rebellion that formed after the fall of the Melanthean Empire, at war with the Arcanium
Weapons:
All weapons work off of a railgun system using gravity manipulation to lighten the rounds used as they are shot out of the weapon((Yes, i nabbed the idea from Mass Effect))
The Cobra: The Cobra is the standard issue anti-material rifle. The Cobra fires a hard hitting destructive 7.62 round through the gravity manipulated railgun system. One shout from the Cobra is capable of piercing up to 5 inches of solid armor plating, making this weapon the most destructive in the arsenal. However, due to the size of the round fired from the Cobra, the weapon weighs in at 45 pounds, and rounds must be carried along with the weapon, instead of a small metal block placed in the weapon.
The Longbow: The Longbow is the standard sniper rifle. Its lightweight frame and simple design make it ideal for any and all operations. The Longbow fires a thin sliver of metal shaved off of a metal block in the weapon that can be replaced when used up. The Longbow can pierce armor up to 2 inches thick.
The Crossbow: The cross bow is a DMR, or Dedicated Marksman Rifle. A weapon designed to bridge the gap between your standard rifles like the Hail Storm and sniper rifles like the Longbow
The Hail Storm: The Hail Storm is the standard assault rifle. The Hail Storm fires small metallic pellets shaved off of a small block inside the weapon that can be replaced when depleted.
The Lightning Bolt: The Lightning Bolt is the standard pistol. The Lightning Bolt shaves small wedges off of a metallic block that can be replaced when depleted.
Thunder: Thunder is the standard shotgun. The Thunder fires multiple solid cylinders shaved off of a metallic block that can be replaced when depleted
Fire Storm: The Fire Storm is the standard SMG. The Fire Storm is a small compact, weapon that fires off small pellets at rapid, but inacurate rates of fire. The rounds are shaved off of a metallic block that can be replaced when depleted.
Skill levels: Low level skills will cause external harm, stop a shotgun blast from a range of 15 feet, stop a Longbow round from 1000 feet, heal small wounds
Medium level skills will cause external and internal harm, can cause death if hit with enough. Stop a point blank shot gun blast, stop one cobra round from 1000 feet, heal large, non life threatening wounds
high level skills will cause mass amounts of external and internal damage, will result in death if hit full force by two, can stop up to 3 cobra rounds from 1000 feet, heal large, life threatening wounds
(Use your own mind to fill in the rest, such as telekenesis)
Classes: each class has a different selection of weapons at their disposal, as well as a smattering of tech based powers.
Tech Abilities:
Bino Vision: Bino Vision enhances places a pair of hard light binos in a mount that is attached to your helmet, Bino Vision does not interfer with weapon optics, simply augments them. Available to all classes
Shot Locator: Shot Locator is a compas showing direction of where shots are originating from. Shot Locator is available to all tech using classes
Recon Drone: Recon Drone is a hard light drone that will give you an over head view of the batle field allowing you to pin point HVT's. Available to Recon and Orion only
Assault Drone: Assault Drone is a hard light drone that will provide aditional fire power in the form of hard light projectiles. Available to all non mage classes other than Recon and Orion
Shield Drone: Shield Drone is a hard light drone that will project a hard light shield to provide mobile cover. Available to Juggernaut, Medicant, and Techmonger
Trip Wire: Trip Wire consists of placed sensors that emit low power beta radiation. When the beam is interupted an alarm is sounded in the users helmet. Available to Recon and Orion, up to 6 carried at a time
Hacking: Basic hacking ability available to all, can disable low level tech devices and abilities
Decryption: Advanced hacking ability avilable to Recon, Orion, Infiltrator, Techmonger. can disable high level tech devices and abilities
Light Bend: Through manipulation of magnetic fields and mass, light will now bend around the user making them almost invisible. Available to Recon, Orion, Infiltrator
Lock Down: A low level hack that targets the joints on a targets armor, rednering them immobile for a time. available to Techmonger
Shield Grenade: Creates a 15ft radius shield dome that absorbs all rounds and magic, in or out. Available to Techmonger, Juggernaut
Anti-Magic Grenade: A thrown weapon that upon detonation renders all magic inert in the area, including any already cast spells. the Anti-Magic Grenade has a effective blast radius of 15 ft
Anti-Tech Grenade: For all intents and purposes, a localized EMP burst that does not break electronics, just temporarily disables them. The Anti-Tech Grenade has an effective blast radius of 15 ft
Tech Barrier: Places medium level tech based barrier around a target. Available to Techmonger, Juggernaut
Recon: the Recon class just that, recon. They are the forward observers and scouts for and come equipped with the Longbow, the Lightning Bolt and the Fire Storm.
Juggernaut: The Juggernaut is the heaviest class as it carries the Thunder, the Hail Storm, the Longbow and the Thunder Bolt/Fire Storm.
Ground Pounder: The Ground Pounder is the common foot soldier that makes up the majority of military forces. The Ground Pounder carries the Hail Storm, Thunder and Thunder Bolt/Fire Storm into combat.
Orion: Orion is the hunter killer class, capable of taking out a juggernaut in a single shot. The Orion carries the Cobra Anti-Material Rifle, and the Lightning Bolt/Fire Storm into combat.
Infiltrator: The Infiltrator is the stealth and spy class. The Infiltrator comes equipped with the Lightning Bolt, Fire Storm, and an array of well concealed knives
Techmonger: The Techmonger is a non-magic support class capable of using tech abilities to support other members of a squad. The Techmonger carries the Lightning Bolt and Fire Storm
Mages:
Elementalist
The Elementalist is a highly mobile weapons platform capable of switching elemental attacks at will. Elementalists have access to the elements of fire, water, air and earth. They also carry the Lightning Bolt pistol as back up just in case
Catalyst
The Catalyst is a support mage that buffs allies with various effects to assist in combat. They carry the Lightning Bolt and Fire Storm in combat
Medicant
The Medicant is the mage version of the Juggernaut, capable of withstanding high levels of damage. Unlike the Juggernaut though, the Medicant's primary role is the recovery and healing of wounded squad mates. They come into battle carrying either the Cross Bow, or Hailstorm, the Firestorm, and the Lightning Bolt
Shadewalker
The Shadewalker is a master of Black Magic and as such, is rooted to the Shade. When a mage learns Black Magic, their mind fractures into two seperate pieces. One piece retains the personality, memories, and aspects of the mage. The other piece then turns polar opposite to the mage in every way possible, to include gender. This fractured piece of a Shadewalkers mind has become known as a Mana, the Mana of a Shadewalker drains the lifeforce of the mage, killing them off. When enough lifeforce has been drained, the Mana gains a physical form and granting the Shadewalker access to the most powerful and destructive Black Magic spells. Due to the life draining nature of the Mana that comes with the learning of Black Magic, a Shadewalker typically only has 5 years left to live. No Shadewalker todate has lived pass the five year mark so there is no evidence that one could possibly live any longer
Warmancer
The Warmancer is the modern day battle mage. Using magic to augment their weapons and a small selection of combat spells, Warmancers make up for a lack in military knowledge that the Ground Pounders have. The Warmancer carries the Hail Storm, Thunder, and Lightning Bolt into combat.
Spell Categories
Cat 1: This category consists of the most minor spells, things such as a small ball of light, very low level telekenesis, minor healing. causes headaches due to repeted use
Cat 2: This category consists of very low level lethals, minor AoE heals, small barriers, low level telekenesis and the like. Causes slight aches in limbs
Cat 3: This category consists of low level lethals, low level AoE lethals, medium heals, medium barriers, medium telekenesis. Causes piercing pain in every limb
Cat 4: This category consists of medium level lethals, medium level AoE lethals, high level heals, medium level AoE heals, high level barriers, high level telekenesis. Causes mental exhaustion and piercing pain throughout the entire body
Cat 5: This category consists of high level lethals, high level lethal AoEs, master heals, high level AoE heals, master barriers, master telekenesis. Causes full exhaustion, can lead to death if casted too often
