The Prisoner's Tale

[Tom-Pen]

Introduction
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The life you lived was not so bad, it was a life of work, but work you enjoyed.  You had gone to the citadel, taken a job at the cities finest butchery, and started on a path that would eventually lead to your financial stability, and inevitable rise in society.  You were of middle class, but looked down on by only those of extreme wealth and royalty.  The place you called home was small, but quaint, and your neighbors were kind (save for the local Lord and his daughter, who could be quite rude).  All was well, and looked as though it could only get better... until they came.
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The citadel was taken, many died, but you survived.  It seemed fate had looked kindly on you, but in surviving you lost what freedom you had.  You were seized, knocked unconscious, and carried away, to an unknown fate.
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The start of your Journey
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You awake in a cold, damp room lying face down on a wooden floor; the air about you smells strongly of mold and sea water (with a hint of piss).  The room rocks and sways methodically making a creaking, moan like, sound.  From above you can hear distant voices yelling, but the echo of heavy footsteps and whine of gusty wind makes it impossible to pick out any discernible words.  There are no torches to light the room, however, your eyes adjust to the dimness granting you some visibility. 


The room you are in is relatively small - though not altogether tiny - and of a rather unusual design.  The walls are strangely curved, and the ceiling appears wider than the floor.  Everything (save for a barred gate at one end) seems to be made of wood.


You have been stripped of your belongings and dressed in thin rag garments.  They are faded, tan in color, and very uncomfortable.


You are not alone, there are several others - dressed in the same fashion as you - scattered about.  Two young ,meek and taunt looking men - for instance - are whispering together at the far end of the room, away from the gate.  In the middle of the room there are two more - one man, and one woman - though they don't appear to be together.  The man looks to be middle aged and is both large and burly, with broad shoulders and big arms.  He sits with his back against the wooden beam, his eyes are focused on the gate.  The woman appears young, perhaps close to your own age, and quite scared.  She is tall and fair, with soft features, but her eyes are hollowed, and her body is bruised.  Just outside the gate, a tall man (armored in boiled leather and a metal half-helm) stands with his back to you.  A short sword of unknown make hangs from his belt, sheathed in leather.

@Asperix0
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[Asperix0]

[That was great]


How exactly should I narrate my actions? I will try one way and you can tell me whether or not it's acceptable. 


I attempt to move myself off the floor, slowly, I try to stand up on my two feet.


Or am I also able to narrate 'some action'.


I move myself off the floor, using my hands, slowly I stand up onto my feet. The others seem to pay me little attention, other than a quick glance from the burly man at the opposite end of the room. I wasn't stupid, I knew I was in a dungeon, but where?


Is the 1st or 2nd acceptable? 

 

[Tom-Pen]

Thank you!


You can narrate "some action,"  but anytime you are going to interact with another character, or make a fairly important action (like attacking/killing someone, dodging something, stealing, sneaking by someone, ect.) do it in a way where I can narrate whether or not it is successfully done.  And avoid any control of other characters, even like saying they turned their head, or did or didn't see you, I'll describe how the different characters react to the things you do (sometimes I'll even say how they will or won't likely react to things you might do).


So more like the 2nd one, minus the part about the burly man glancing at you.  Make sense?


Also, I forgot to mention some things early, like...


You can die... I don't want to kill you, but I think the possibility of death will help keep the choices you make some what realistic.


Not unrelated, there is a sort of leveling system in place.  The way it works is pretty simple, if you are a butcher, with no fighting experience and try to fight a soldier or mercenary... you're probably gunna get whooped.  The way you would "level up" to fight them is just by having your character gain experience doing things.  For instance, if say your butcher joins up with a knight, and said knight offers to teach you how to fight, you'll probably be more suited to fight with people (though there will always be other ways to win fights/accomplish goals).  And keep in mind, any weapon you pick up, you'll need to learn how to fight with to really make use of it.  (to some degree I will allow your character to learn how to use things on there own though, so you don't always need to find people to train you).


And lastly, there will be a bit of a weapons system, I.e. certain types of weapons will be more or less effective against different people/doing different things.  I'll make that clear as you acquire them though, giving brief (detailed) descriptions of weapons you pick up.

@Asperix0
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[Asperix0]

I like that, okay, I'm feeling a little more confident now. Just one short question.


Say I want to stand up, but standing up will cause me to get hit. But I have the ability to control my character to a certain extent, so how would you force me to get hit if I'm already standing up. 


(Not sure if I made that very clear)


Example:


I move myself off the floor using my hands, slowly I manage to get onto my feet. I look around and smile at the people in the room.


This was a very simple example, but if I'm meant to get hit and I don't know it? Wouldn't that cause some catastrophe. Because when I'm confident I can write A LOT. And by a lot, I mean, a shit ton. But I don't want to write 6 paragraphs only to find out the first two actions (minor actions) took place. It would be kind of annoying . 


And that's pretty much the last question, everything will go smoothly from here onward, I'm okay with my character dying, I love realism, so please kill me if I do anything that guarentee's it/unlucky/etc.

 

[Tom-Pen]

I'll do my best to make it clear enough if something may or may not happen, for example.


"You are on the ground, weak and tired.  An angry guard stands near by, he'll likely confront you if you try to stand.  you could probably crawl away without him noticing, but the ground is rocky and will likely tear your shirt to pieces as you go."


Just look for subtle hints like that and you'll be fine.  If things don't work out as we try them, though, we can always change things up.  (also, if you do something and move on past a point where I wanted something to happen, I'll do my best to make it fit with what you've written, or just forget about it and move).  Just take things slow, avoid big jumps in time, or stringing too many actions together.

@Asperix0
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[Asperix0]

That sounds great. Alright, I got to go to sleep now. But I'm glad we set everything up today. (You wouldn't want me writing right now anyway, I am tired). I already have half a post written (but can't finish it right now obviously) so it will be up tomorrow morning. I have school but I'm permitted to use computers and access RpN.


And I won't string too many actions together. 

 

[Asperix0]

.------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Imprisoned-----------------------------------------------------------------


Using my arms, I slowly prop myself to the side, to get a better view of the room around me. I was lucky to be alive, all things considered. First knocked unconscious, and now in a dungeon in god-knows where. I heaved my legs and just managed to stand up, straightening my back, I heard a loud crack and winced at the pain. From the stories I'd heard of about dungeons, this wasn't too bad, the people in the cell seemed to be minding their own business, which was a good thing. I looked down at myself, I seemed to be in okay condition, a few cuts and bruises that would heal in time. I turned my attention back to the people in the cell, and then to the guard that stood outside the gate. It was a futile attempt to engage the guard, but perhaps I could ask some questions? Maybe he has nothing better to do? Stretching my limbs, I walked over to the gate and softly spoke through the gaps, I didn't want to frighten him after all.


"Excuse me, do you know exactly where we are?" I said in a calming voice, or at least what thought to be calming. "I was just wondering, I have no idea why I'm here in the first place". 


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Do you mind this length? I mean, due to the action system, I can't go on forever describing how nice the floor looks, that would be pretty boring.

 

[Tom-Pen]

"Shut your mouth prisoner," the guard says in a gruff, hoarse voice, "And stay away from the bars!" he adds, turning to face you.  His words are bitter and angry, much like the twisted expression on his face.  He looks to be middle-aged, with hard features and menacing eyes.  The hair on his face is a deep black - like the hair beneath his helmet - patchy, unkempt, and relatively short (as though he might normally shave, but hasn't been able to recently).


He draws his sword and hits it against the bars, "Back!"  The clamorous echo of the sword hitting the iron bars is startling, and forces you to recoil away.  The guard turns around and sheaths his sword, continuing to stand as he did before, once again with his back to you.


The woman in the rooms seems more distraught after your provoking the guard, but remains where she is (near the beam in the center of the room).  The man sitting against the beam still stares forward, looking in your direction, but in a way that suggests he is looking through you rather than at you.  The two men furthest away, in the back of the room throw dirty looks your way, but then go back to whispering amongst themselves.


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The length is perfect, mate!

 

[Tom-Pen]

@Asperix0 Not sure if you got the notification for this post.

 

[Asperix0]

Ah thanks @Francis Stickmin I probably did but was swamped by notifications.