TEKHNE - Part I

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U P D A T E S
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May 8 - The RP will actually begin tomorrow (that's May 9th) sometime that evening, so be ready to start.

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S T O R Y
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"Okay, um, a really really long time ago, there was this big war between people and demons and stuff. A lot of bad things happened and everyone died!"

"What?"

"Okay, okay! It didn't end like that totally. It ended differently... Um... Oh yeah, there were these people that were SORTA like us, but different and they didn't have powers or anything, so they made people like us with really cool machines and sciency stuff so they could fight demons. But um... It didn't really work so well and the people who made people like us with their weird machines and gizmos all died. Only junk and blown up stuff remained along with only a few of the people who were made by umm..."

"I get the idea, go on."

"Yeah! Umm, anyway, demons afterwards weren't evil and didn't try destroying everything. Some were even nice like ones from our time. And um, the people who survived from long ago taught all the kids how to use magic and stuff and they taught their kids and they taught their ki--"

"Sheesh, I get the point!"

"Sorry! Sorry... Um, yeah! That's the whooooole story!"

"Pft, who told you that load of crock?"

"What's crock?"

"D'oh!"

"Grammy Junka told me so."

"That old crazy woman from on the hill? Oh boy..."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

So yes. Long ago, humans once ruled over Earth in vast cities that spanned all across our world, living in a world of machines, metal, and concrete. These people were an ambitious, but war faring race that had spent countless centuries fighting one another over simple things. One day, all that caught back up with the fools when they wanted to reach the heavens by building a great tower. But throughout its construction, greed and selfishness under minded their efforts and soon, the tower was nothing more than a testament to their greed and petty differences. Wars once again erupted over who had the right to control the tower and it was through this that the greater powers grew angry with the simple minded humans and punished them by allowing demons to enter their world and destroying them all.

To counter this, humans had learned how to harness the power of magic from the demons and began to produce androids, humanoid soldiers with mystic powers in their likeness of both themselves and of demons. The power was right, but their numbers were not enough to fight all of the demons. It is supposed that all humans died after the great war between humans and demons and all that is known to remain is these androids. And we, my child, are those androids. Though we are not completely human, we are similar in many ways. What really separates us aside from the physical differences is that we are capable of the same magic our ancestor's destroyers were gifted with. And it is our duty, young one, that we preserve the remains of mankind, and prevent another catastrophe like the war of Babel Tower.

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I N F O
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You are one of these androids, living within the region of what was once Romania. As you guessed by now, this is in the far flung future after human kind has essentially disappeared from Earth. Very little remains after this "War of Babel Tower". Cities were developed from the salvageable ruins of lost cities and machines left behind after the war. Demons of all kinds roam the Earth, but have since become amicable to androids. There are good, bad, and those in between.

Magic is a big cornerstone to the android's suite of powers and potential. They have the capability of using destructive magic like the demons and the power to summon controlled demons to their aid. Some androids can be later updated to have special equipment installed to them that allows them to use unique capabilities. (That will later be explained once it comes into play a little more.)

Androids can also rely on more conventional means of combat to fight off hostiles. They can use old weapons from long ago that humans relied on or fight with swords and their own employed strength.

The term Android as most people know it is a humanoid machine. Whereas this is correct, the meaning is vague and does not necessarily mean these androids are all clunky and fully mechanical. They appear organic, only showing linking marks where their joints connect and other markings that designate specific areas of the body that enable their powers. (Like lines, dots, circles, and other various patterns.) Androids are not entirely limited to the appearance of humans. Many demons had an anthropomorphic appearance, taking relation to many animal-like features. Most demons, however, looked like a cross between a dragon and a shark with a sleek, yet well built figure. There's a myriad of forms both androids and demons have, so be creative to your discretion with whatever you design to your character.

To give you a better idea of what the world's like, think of this. Ruins of major cities still litter areas of the world, reclaimed by the natural carpeting of plant life and animal domination. Some of these ruins are excavated for materials and equipment. Technology isn't entirely as it once was. Much of the world has gone back to an older way of life, using only minimalistic technology. Basically, think like in the dark ages. However, there is electricity and machines put to use, but most of such technology is relatively exclusive to special purposes. Most buildings you'll find are brick, wood, and sheet metal constructed. Those not gifted with magic rely on guns and swords to fight. Vehicles are however, still used to travel from place to place. Okay, think of it more like this. It's a good cross between underdeveloped 17th century earth meets post modern society since most of the machines in existence and use are from the 22nd century.

With ALL that aside, please consider joining!

I'll keep you all up to date with the NEWS section above.


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C H A R A C T E R S
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Just copy and paste this code into your reply, then fill out all the information within your reply and hit SEND when you're finished.

Code:

[b]Name:[/b]
[b]Age:[/b]
[b]Gender:[/b]

[b]Appearance:[/b] (Describe to the best of your ability OR replace this ENTIRE line of text with an image.)

[b]Programming:[/b] (Personality, quirks, traits, and talents.)
[b]Type 1:[/b] (Select your combat type -- Assaulter, Magicker, Summoner, or Shifter.)
[b]Type 2:[/b] (Select your combat type -- Assaulter, Magicker, Summoner, or Shifter. Cannot pick the same twice!)

[b]Background Info:[/b] (Additional details of the character's background.)

Brief tidbit of info. The types as shown in the box above are the way your character fights. You can use any combination of the three types together. I'll break down what they translate into.

Assaulter: One who uses guns and melee weapons to fight. They can continue to get better weaponry or modifications later as you play on. Weapons will start off simple and low quality, but later on, will become advanced and prestigious.

Magicker: One who uses destructive magic to fight. As time goes on, more dramatic and powerful techniques will be called your own as you play on. Magickers often only rely on one element at a time, or sacrifice potential strength in that element to diversify into other elements.

Summoner: One who draws upon the power of summoned demons rather than their own. These types can command and to some degree control a demon. As you progress, more powerful demons can be summoned in place. Some demons can be summoned to act as a defensive role instead rather than use offensive powers and can heal or shield players temporarily from certain attacks or conditions.

Shifter: One who has gained the affinity of a particular demon and can use powers matching one that they transform into. The form can vary and often, Shifter types retain minor physical traits of the demon of their affinity permanently. As time goes on, they grow in raw power and are perhaps one of the most straight forward types.

Now if there's ANYTHING you want to know otherwise, ask away.

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E N C Y C L O P E D I A
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Android: A humanoid, man-made machine that appears to be mostly organic in appearance much like its creators. These beings were manufactured over 500 years ago when the War of Babel Tower began to counter the great destructive force that demons presented when conventional weaponry proved insufficient. Androids are specially built with multiple functions that allow them to use the same magical powers the demons tap into. Later on as the war thickened, more types were released that could summon demons under their control and even morph into forms with the likeness of demons. These types used a special code based on the demon's genetic and arcane information. Androids appear human in appearance, but bear markings where their joints meet along with several other seams that open up for maintenance. Androids are also able to use special add on equipment known as modules for combat purposes. They possess AI that behaves like humans, therefore making them adaptive and capable of growing mentally. They also can physically grow like humans and have a lifespan of roughly 150 years. They appear young for most of their life until after about 60. From then on, they slowly age until their death. Androids are comprised of nanomachines and artificially generated tissue, so they can grow and even propagate sexually.

Assaulter: An android variant that relies on its own physical capabilities to fight, using their body, guns, and just about any weapon they can use. They prove to have the potential to become as physically strong as any major demon and more so when they're armed with great weapons. These types often have to go through a lot of parts repair and replacements for more upgrades and modifications.

Babel Tower: The massive complex that spears into the sky, far into the heavens. This tower was originally going to be erected by humans to reach the heights of heaven, but it became a failed project as petty war for control over this tower erupted. It is here that demons began to appear on Earth which triggered the War of Babel Tower. The tower sits outside of the ruins of Cairo in Egypt. Demons of the greatest might call this desolate monolith their home now in the barrens of North Africa.

Demon Code: The code of data that is determined by a demon's genetic and spirit information. Used by and exchanged between androids. This data can determine the powers of special androids capable of using demon forms or summoning demons. Demon codes are also used for special research conducted by androids for the better advancement of themselves. Codes become more complex with the more advanced a demon is.

Demon: A kind of supernatural creature that now roam the Earth since the War of Babel Tower. These beings possess great magical power and were the destroyers of man kind. They vary in all forms, types, and behaviors. Many of the more magic-capable demons possess a special horn at their forehead that taps into unspoken power. Androids have been known to farm weaker demons for various body parts and data in order to better arm themselves against demons. Demons' life span can vary depending on their type as well, but much like Earthly species, they cannot interbreed with other species. Much more powerful demons will appear at Babel Tower, supposedly through some sort of rift. Weaker demons are simply born and bred on Earth. Below is a picture that I think well depicts what a demon may look like in general. Sort of like a cross between some kind of canine, dragon, and shark.

(Example artwork --NOT MY ARTWORK
http://d.facdn.net/art/dragoon86/1272005740.dragoon86_rty1-1.jpg
http://d.facdn.net/art/dragoon86/1272006128.dragoon86_rty3-1.jpg
Artwork copyright Dragoon86.)

Magic: Demons and androids share this power alike, though android's use of magic is artificial. Magic is the art of tapping into a great energy from a realm we have yet to understand or grasp that the Demons supposedly originated from. Magic is a destructive force that pertains to the worldly elements of Fire, Ice, Wind, Earth, Lightning, Solar, Void (Dark), and Audio.

Magicker: An android variant that relies on the use of magic by manipulating a single element type. Some are known to use more than one, but sacrifice a fraction of their potential. Magickers have the potential to become more powerful in a single element of magic than most demons and can prove to be a great force.

Module: Mechanical devices that can be attached to an android. These devices vary in all kind of manners. Devices such as wings, small manipulator arms, guns, thrusters, and so on. These devices are often used by assaulter androids to better aid them in combat. These devices are hard to develop however

Shifter: An android variant that can take on the form of a demon and in time, grow in power. They are a flawed design, however, and lack psychological shielding from the effects of becoming an emulation of a demon. As these types continue to use their power, they grow more and more mentally hindered and even in some cases develop mental disorders. Naturally, the appear like themselves, but when they continue to use their demon form, another side effect develops, causing them to take on the physical characteristics of the demon they've aligned with. Shifters use a demon code and gain their genetic and spirit data, combining it with theirs. Only one code can be used at a time. Removing a code will gradually allow the shifter to return to normal over time, but the psychological conditions may not wane. The use of a new code becomes available once the physical effects of another have worn off. Shifters and summoners use demon codes and this ability is mutually exclusive.

Society: In this world, most android cities look like they're from an older time, but actually have a number of machines and electrically powered devices. Windmills and solar farms essentially power these tiny communities. The androids often live only in tiny little villages together. They live not much differently than modern folks, they just live in mudbrick and sheet metal villas and domes. Some cities have been constructed from the remaining ruins of older cities. Then some cities are constructed from salvaged materials of the ruins. Computers and radios still exist too and are maintained on a mass network. Modern guns and older forged weapons work in tandem within society for fighting demons too, so a little bit of everything converges in this day and age. Androids nowadays spend their time living by their interests, hunting demons and exchanging their spoils, run supplies from village to village, go spelunking human ruins, or research demons and ways of advancing android kind.

Summoner: An android variant that relies on the the power of another demon to fight on their behalf. These variants can make a special contract with a demon under agreements and circumstances to work together or using a demon code extracted from a destroyed demon. Ones that use demon code summons don't summon the same demon, but instead take one over and draw it out for temporary command. The summoner and the demon of this summon type therefore share no rapport and cannot bond. Ones that summon demons through a contracted demon can summon that same demon over and over and can therefore befriend or gain the demon's trust, developing a relationship. These types of summons tend to grow in much greater power.

Vehicles: On Earth, there are only a few kinds of vehicles remaining. Not many own their own vehicles and therefore, they're very rare to boot. Most are motorcycle, transport vans, and helicopters that all run off of some kind of renewable resource. Older vehicles that ran off of fossil fuels at this point are far beyond saving to operate since all fuels degraded and broke down.

War of Babel Tower: The war that erupted over 500 years ago when mankind tried building a tower to reach the heavens. It was almost complete, but because humans could not agree on who controlled it, petty arguments and even battles erupted between the nations working on it. Suddenly, the tables were turned and humans had to defend themselves from countless demons that appeared suddenly. None of the humans could come to a complete agreement to fight off the demons. One nation began developing androids after researching the demons they could defeat and developed androids to fight back, using the same power as the demons. In 12 years however, humans were all completely wiped out and only a few hundred thousand androids remained. These androids spread across the world in search of any survivors of other humans and soon filled their place. Demons now roam the world neurally while the androids adapt and live in an ambivalent coexistence with the demons. It is supposed that the demons stopped attacking after the last humans were destroyed. Since androids were only the product of man, not their enemy, they ignored them and left them be. Historians theorize that the demons appeared because of the great amount of strife between humans.

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And as always, ask me a question if you have one. Got a suggestion for something? Fire away.

This looks great and all, Pontius, but I can't begin to count the number of issues this character background has. Namely the time paradox that his background presents since he had to have been born/built before the War of Babel Tower to have been assigned to a shelter. The war took place over 500 years ago and he's only 133. Go ahead and read through the updates and encyclopedia entries I've added to go ahead and make necessary corrections.

Name: Zarim
Age: 37
Gender: Male

Appearance:

Programming: Prefers to do things alone or with his summoned demon partner. If he does end up doing anything with someone else he tends to be his typical self, which is being cocky, full of himself, and likes to show off his talents. Said talents being his summoning and shifting abilities. He has nicknamed his demon summon partner;Snow, which she(yes, she) does not really like the nickname because Zarim only calls her that to make fun of her snow white 'fur'/skin(whatever the normal demons have). As for his shifting ability, his current(and as he says, his favorite form) is the same type of demon as Snow yet he has a red color to him and is obviously male. (Note: both him and Snow are just different colored versions of the pic modd posted of the demons on two legs) He has an odd quirk where he refuses to leave his bike behind. He is a skilled biker in general. Back to his personality, he does have the lone wolf feel about him but is far from the typical 'quiet' type lone wolf.

Odd like quirk, he has a 'love/hate' relationship with Snow, note most of the 'hate' comes from her.
Type 1: Summoner
Type 2: Shifter

Background Info: Zarim is a young man originally from a village/town in Bulgaria, he didn't really get along with anyone else around him except an elderly man in the village, whom he got along with and spent alot of time with when he could. None the less, he had a good upbringing in his village. At the age of 18, the old man had revealed to Zarim that he was a shifter and wanted Zarim to have his demon code he had held onto for some years, this however did not bode well with his relatives that Zarim was now a shifter when his parents were assaulters and magickers.

Over time the people of the village started to hound and distrust Zarim due to his shifter abilities causing him to spend more time alone with the old man whom was his one real friend. Sadly for Zarim, the old man had died when he was 25, leaving him with no else to relate to in his home. So he hopped on a motorcycle, which was the last gift given to him by the old man and took to a life on the road to get away from the village that hounded him and he simply thought they were jealous cause he could be, as he put it, "as cool as him". On the road he mostly kept to himself and stopped in towns/villages only to trade anything he might've found that might be worth anything, or just to have a good place to rest...if he stayed in a town for more than a day.

At some point in his wandering, he had stopped at a remote village in Romania that was was recommended to him on his travels as a good place for trading. However things took a bad turn for him when he stumbled onto a group who found out he was a shifter and wanted to take him and use him for demon capturing purposes, this of course didn't sit well with Zarim because he did not want to be a tool. He got out of the village, albeit after causing a bit destruction in a scuffle he got into before leaving, though to his surprise he inadvertently saved a captive demon who was going to be used for 'parts, this demon, whom he dubbed Snow, began to follow him thinking he was a 'good man', she even gave him her 'code' making him a summoner at that point. Much to her disappoint and annoyance, he turned out to be a cocky show off that tended to get into alot of trouble, she had thought about leaving him and taking her code back but she couldn't help but like him as much as she started to hate him. This 'relationship' however soon budded into something that's a bit of a taboo in this age...none the less, the pair wandered the country just keeping to themselves, usually, and were just getting by like anyone else.

Ah, my apology. I was under the assumption that Androids had an off switch / programming, and thus the shelter's occupants could be 'cycled' in periods of activity (such as 3 awake, 23 'asleep' for a five year period, those three go to sleep as another three awaken, and so on). I assume that this cannot be the case?

Well, they can, but they break down badly and age even faster than humans at that point when they're in an off state. They are semi-organic and a degree of activity is necessary for them to sustain life. The limbs can sustain longer, but the body and head doesn't hold out so well as these contain the two cores necessary for an android to remain functional. In the end though, it would be extremely detrimental to go into a prolonged offline state seeing as these human facilities would inevitably not be sufficient in maintaining any androids.

Also, having a character who lived as far back as the war has some impact issues on the story. The character knows far more than actually intended for the characters.

Name: Trigger
Age: 23
Gender: Male

Appearance: Has a sort of off-white complexion with a heavily contrasting head of shaggy, dark teal hair. His markings appear to be colored an even darker teal throughout his body, two lines running from his lower eyelids straight down his face and connecting to ones at his lower neck. He has rather intelligent, wary eyes that have a sort of receptiveness about them, colored a very bright, icy blue. When in the dark, his irises appear to glow, allowing him to see slightly in the dark. He's normally found wearing a red, short sleeve hoodie made of canvas with a design on the back that looks like a metal bevel rectangle with four bolts on the back and the words in large print "IRON BOND" with a tiny heart between the words, a black tank top, a rather baggy, even sorta poofy pair of red pants made also from heavy duty canvas that have pockets and pouches all over them, some trigger gloves, a red and white hat that appears to have a message band at the top also can sometimes have different text at the top, usually indicating a single thought or word, and a pair of black street shoes with a star logo on the ankles.

Programming: For whatever reason, Trigger doesn't seem to talk very much, but is nevertheless, very receptive to communication. His uncle, who taught him how to use a gun believes that he was born with a lesser developed communication module, so this is the supposed case. He's actually quite intelligent in spite of this flaw and learns very quickly from others' examples. Trigger also has this knack for getting himself involved in people's problems without any real motivation other than desiring to help. Sometimes, he's known to do odd gestures to communicate like spinning his head or other simplistic behavior to indicate what he's trying to explain. Rarely will he ever rely on speech as a means to communicate for whatever reason. It's not understood entirely why, because he can articulate his speech rather well when he does talk. His hat is also seen as a means to communicate as he'll have a single word appear unexpectedly on it. No one exactly knows how this hat works really. Often, it'll have a single, witty or sarcastic word or one-liner to express his sense of humor.

Type 1: Assaulter - Uses rocket launchers, large hammers, and halberds.
Type 2: Magicker - Uses ice variety magic.

Background Info: Trigger grew up in a small house just up on a hill outside of a village not far from the coastline at the Black Sea. His parents could only watch over him for a short while, but as if possessed by some voice, they left him in the care of his unkle, Mek, and traveled south, supposedly to western Cairo. Trigger's folks have never been heard from since. They use to be well respected demon hunters. Trigger grew up, learning how to use weapons like his parents used. His father was an assaulter / summoner while his mother was an assaulter / magicker, but he inherited his mother's abilities. His uncle, Mek, works on manufacturing weapons and restoring old ones into new, more useful weapons. He quickly grew to prefer the rocket launcher oddly enough, so Mek taught him how to maintain a launcher and how to build rockets of his own. He also took to liking the use of very heavy melee weapons and often carries with him a massive mallet. At his own interest, he learned how to use ice magic only recently and is still perfecting his abilities. Oh, and somehow, he can make really great tasting sandwiches. He seriously makes the best ham and turkey on rye...

Name: Grossbart
Age: 15
Gender: Female

Appearance: Short frazzled blue and white hair with side burns and pale skin that is tinted a faint almost non existent blue. Where the joints come together she has tried to replace the coverings with copper on failing on that she painted them a copper color out of what she could She has pants that she has wired chains to the loops on the back and placed zippers on the sides, inside and outside. to adoptable to any shifts or need for cool air about her legs. Her shirt is a tank top with sleeves sown on just enough so a bit of her shoulder are showing and many pockets sown into the shirt it's self with many pockets over laying another making it bulge out. She has bracers that are clopped together with wire and leather. She has a top hat that she just has because she can, other then it is a great place to have some hidden tools, just like the monical that has ultra violet spectrum of sight. She carries around a crowbar on her pants as a weapon and tool. Her boots have a metal band about the outside near the bottom of her boots but about half an inch off the ground. In side her boots under the padding and above the sole there is a layer of aluminum due to her theroy you can use electricity to stick on mental walls if you got metal in your shoes. SO far it has failed.

Her demon form has 6 limbs that it uses to climb, the snout is more broad then a ferrets looking a bit like a kangaroo's. It has 8 eyes like a spider, and humanoid like hands. The demon form can glide by spreading out the skin on it;s back with the bones under the lose skin that runs the lenght of the flying squirrel flat tail that is prehensile into holding onto a perch or branches that splits at the last fourth part of the tail into two, but the ligaments on the 'wings' do not have the muscle nor can develop the muscle needed for flying. the skin is like a cats where its lose and not connected to the muscle and allowed for freedom in the skin to a point.

Programming: She always goes back for her hat if she can find it, very reluctant to leave it behind. She always trys to create ways or useful additions to her clothing that either helps to increase her magic potential through designs that are very simuler to old worn down devices she has examined from machines that are falling apart or seen open at one point or another. She is rather quiet till she finds a topic that sparks her interest where she will twitter away with the utmost enthusiasm. She loves to see how things tick as she will watch things going on about her, and disassemble the old rusted devices that are unsalvageable. Not the greatest at putting things back together but when it comes to creative uses of junk and environment to good use, she is relatively good at making something happen. Which comes to the next point, her good running legs because something happening, some times that means going up so she has gotten good at climbing as well.
Type 1: Shifter
Type 2: Magicker Lighting

Background Info: She is a child from a village between the Black sea, and Sea of Azov. Her father was a summoner and magic user while her mother was a Assaulter and magic user. There was the vague hopes she would be a summoner and shifter but only vague hopes. relatively young age she was able to show sparks of her magic and not to long after that she adopted a code she found squirreled away on a shelf at home revealing her self to be a shifter. Wasn't a powerful coded demon but it was a demon code none the less. She developed her magic through trial and error for the most part. Seeing how dangerous her way of learning magic was they sent her to her aunts who worked at putting things together and channeled the over enthusiasm into making things well most of it. Still doesn't mean something does not blow up or melt about her from experimentation.