Raindrop Valkyrie

"So, you did huh? Thought I would wait and see. I didn't really have much to do or really anywhere to go." He said as he leaned back in the chair he was seated in. "Anywhere you plan on going? There is a lot of city to see out there you know. I know a few good places. You tend to find a few when you are on the run for awhile. But, I lived here most of my life too, so that helps also."

I wonder if she will do so? Would be nice. Don't want her to be so stuck up all the time. Maybe if she does I will show her around town and I can see just who she is. Viktor thought to himself as he sat in the lobby. He had wondered what kind of woman Miss Archer was, and he was very curious to see it. He did this to a lot of his employers. He liked to know who they were so he could fight for their cause. He didn't like fighting for faceless figurehead's or names that had no base in reality. He wanted to know he fought for people. Every time he fought for an organization... bad things happened. And while it was his fault his Men did die, the organization took zero responsibility for it. They didn't see they were at fault at all, and treated them like disposable tools. And they treated him as if he destroyed propriety, not lives. He wanted to know this place wasn't like that too. Maybe he had other reasons too. He was married, but his wife kicked him out of his home, and told him to never come back. He missed her for awhile, but she could only see him as a demon. She lost sight of the man she loved and only judged him for the wrong he did. It wasn't fair. Every good deed, gone and didn't matter. He put his feet up, on a low coffee table as he waited to see if this Miss Archer would leave work early for once.

I will be doing a post, just wanted you to know I was going to do that part ahead of time lol.

Hey Flux, mind if I have Viktor take Miss Archer out on the town? ((Have I have a feeling he would have waited around to see if she left or not he is like that.)). just retcon it, or we can hash out what happens via pm or something, but I don't want it to take up time in the chapter. I think it would be cute lol.

Also, I should say why I include you in a lot of these types of things. I recognize the talent you have. You are a good writer my man, and this proves that for sure. Why do I think so? Well, I know with practice and with perseverance you will be great. Your eye for detail is great. You are a bit like me in that you can say so much with so little, and yet you don;t spare the details. You weave them in make them seen but you don't over do them. Down to your characters and the worlds around them. I can get a good picture of the world because you paint it for me to see. You don't spare the details. Let me tell you something. You are your biggest critic. Yes, that is a cliche, and yes I am going to use it. Why? Because it is true. You should question your work, it is very healthy to do so. It is those that think they have nothing to learn that are the bad writer's the ones that believe they can't do wrong and know all the tricks. You never do. The longer you learn, the more your realize you have very little knowledge. Every time you answer a question about writing, 50 more appear form the darkness. As you grow the pool of your knowledge, you begin to realize how big the pool of things you don;t know is. The more you learn, the more you know you don't know very much. It is impossible to know every aspect of writing, or anything fro that matter. We are always learning and improving and getting better. And the ones who realize this are the greatest. It has been shown in studies, that people who are at the top of the study or art form they do, are the most prone to self-doubt. Because we realize just how much we don't know. We see just how much of a pool of darkness surrounds us. Those that don't understand it don't get better because they never realize just how lost they are. Sometimes you get lost in the woods. Are you the type to not admit you are lost, or the type that knows they are and tries everything they can to find a way out? The one who won't admit he is lost stays lost, the one who knows they are lost does what they need to to get out. Sometimes you get a bloody knee or lose a limb or worse, but you tried. You fought to get out. And even thought you doubt you will find your way back out you eventually will. You learn from your inexperience rather than drown in it. And you come out the other side knowing you are stronger for doing it. Your first RP died. So what? You learned from it did you not? Take it as a lesson. It is a part of your experience as a writer. Not everything works out, not every sapling you plant grows. You know that, and as such you will fight next time. You will fight tooth and nail because you know what it feels like. You learned. Take the lesson to heart and kept it there. You will remember it well and will do in your power what you can to stop it from happening again. Will it happen again? Maybe, there is no way to know. But know that you will fight like hell to stop it.

I kinda feel like I should move this to the Trainer's Journal then, but I guess I can leave it here. Anyway, if that is out of the way carry on folks.

Yea, looking forward to this getting moving again. I actually kinda like Vixen a lot as a character and really want to see her grow. RIght now she is still the rather cold. She wasn't always like that, so I really wish to show that side of her.

I will be doing an overhaul of this thread as soon as I get a chance. I want it to be up to snuff. Probably going to bang around in the other threads like this in this forum. Mostly doing this cause I am getting a lot of questions on it so I want to make sure things are super duper clear.

[Journal] - A personal place to lay down one's experiences. I would appreciate any readers to refrain from posting in journals -here-, as they could also be placed under the forum known as the 'Trainer's Journal.' In a writing forum, I would encourage reading other threads and asking permission to post, unless it's granted in the first post by the original poster. Will be leaving this alone for now, give Flux a chance to see it, but please know this for the future. Journals here aren't meant to be commented on as it conflicts with the Trainer's Journal's Sub-forum. SO Flux has to give the go ahead for others to past. Will be delteing this if Flux wants me too, but if he would rather I leave it up I will do that as well.

The thing about being too old for something is created by society. It is just some old outdated social construct that has affected almost ever single type of media that has ever existed. Video games are the new kid on the block in the eyes of media, they are very new and young in their life span. They have been around maybe 30 years at most, which in media is not a long time. ((they have come a long way from what they were at first, but it doesn't change the fact that they are very much a new piece of media.)). Everything in media has it's growth period. Video Games just got a start where being considered toys or for children was super reinforced by the games that originally came out. Old games had their limitations and as such it was hard to tell anything other than simple stories, and this further led to the assumption they were for children. Similar happened to Tabletop/Board Games as well. But try having a kid play some of the crazy shit like Talisman(( very mild example.)0 or Twilight Imperium ((which is basically a 4x strategy game like Civilization, but in Boardgame form.)). Hell, even games like the Battlestar: Galactica Boardgame and other defector games would be tough to grasp. The gist here is, things are targeted at audiences, and since games were largely targeted at children at first people assume they are only for children. But this isn't true. Something's targeted audience isn't it's only audience. Plenty of games these days are aimed at Teenage Males. Does that stop older folks, or even people of the lady persuasion from playing? Hell no. Targets are only there fro marketing teams. Society clings to them way to much imo and it is where the games are only fro children thing coems from. I should note, the average age of gamers period is around 35, so more adults play games than teens even do. The info people use to say they are for kids is maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad outdated and it is mostly an excuse other media forms use to bash it because they realize they are being hurt by Video Games for sales etc... So, love games. They do so much for people. They are proven to show actual increases in problem solving skills, and spacial awareness. SO they really do help you understand the world around you funnily enough. But they also bring people together that would otherwise never met. If I t wasn't for my love of the pokemon series I would have never come to Reborn, and I would have never met some of my best friends in the entire universe. I also met another super good friends through League of Legends. Games bring people from around the world together just to enjoy themselves and have fun. We get so much from gaming. And the more gaming becomes ingrained into our culture the more other media pushes back. They realize what gaming does with people. They realize just how much it catalyzes in people, how much it resonates with them. and as the media grows it gets more and more competent with story telling. Some games I have played have affected me just as deeply as a good book, or a powerful movie. Something like Brothers, that game with the 2 brothers you controlled. It told a story through it's game play, and while it was short, I felt so glad that I had played it. I truly cried at the end of that game. It showed me something beautiful through it's game play. The interactive nature of games has the chance to allow them to be the most powerful narratives ever created. Through their gameplay that can make us feel in a way no other media can. Gaming could possibly be one of the most powerful art forms if given the chance and I believe it too be one. It only needs to be unlocked, and the taboos of it being a child's toy or pastime must be expelled for it to truly spread it's wings and flourish.

Hukuna X DANCE!!! You can't stop the DANCE!!! Also grats Sev lol.

You are all insane...

"Good day Miss Archer. You ask too many questions you already know the answer to." he said as he got up from the chair he was seated in. He took draw from his cigar and puffed it into the air. He turned on his heels and began to march towards the door. However, he turned around as he reached the doorway and popped his head back in. "And I know since no one else has the balls to tell you for fear of offending you somehow, don't overwork yourself. Your mortal too you know. Also Paperwork has to get boring sometimes, no?" and with that he closed the door and went on his way.

Not sure on that yet lol. I have yet to decide on that issue.

I may make it so Wizards don't even need to be affiliated. ((like Sorcerer's don't have guilds.)) however, they would have to be a Mage or a generalist, that doesn't have a specialty. My main problem is that in a forum setting, magic is harder to quantify. Like with D and D, we have the known spells and their levels etc... we know the exact measures of them, and every aspect of the spells. Here it is kinda impossible to do it well, or in a meaningful way. That is why wizard's and Sorcerer's don't have much of a difference other than semantics wise in this RP. ((with Wizard's typically using foci or objects and sorcerer's not needing too.)) As a result, I think I might make the Forums version of Graterras different from other versions in the sense of magic of Wizard's and sorcerers. Not significantly different though... it is all being worked on is all that needs to be known currently.

Alrighty, and just so you know, I might be totally revamping the Wizard guilds etc.... They were kinda badly put together imo from a lore stand point. I will let you know if any of those change dramatically in anyway. ((the Rose guild and the Crystal Isle based one will be staying for sure, but I need to figure out if I want to keep the others.)) this is all just a part of me revamping the lore of Graterras, cause a bit of it was outdated. ((speaking of which I need to change the Wind Templar thing in the OP along with the Power of Fire Templars.)). And no characters will be joining until AFTER this current chapter anyway no matter the answer from Notus if he can continue or not. ((and yes, that is what I am waiting for lol.)) Until then let us continue on our way for Chapter 4 and get stuff done lol.

"This is an Orb of Silent Winter" he said holding it up a little so Dorian could get a better look at it. "It whispers the names of demons, fae, and yet other magical and mystical beings names. Each piece of snow represents a spirit of great power within the world, and it's colour represents it's mood, condition, and other things about it's status. Only I can read it, though I could teach you. It would take millennium though. Either way, I read the flake of the spirit I wish to summon and I can compel them to come to me. How familiar I am with the spirit makes it easier if I know them well, and harder if I don't. Their power can affect it as well too. Powerful spirits tend to be... less than cooperative. I usually have to directly control them. But, I don't like doing that. They have free will. They should be allowed to choose what they want to do. Though if in times of need I won't hesitate to do so, so don't worry."

((just moving this along so it doesn't stall out)) The mood was very somber around camp. There wasn't a lot of talking other than Cookie saying prayers of healing. Curfew passed out a bowl of gumbo to everyone, hoping they would eat up, but he figured some of them wouldn't be hungry after what had just happened. The rest of the gnolls stayed away from the group, hoping to give them their space. Jupiter stayed with Helze and her father, she had stayed her tears for the moment. She hadn't removed the emerald rose from her hair though. It stayed there, partly tinged in blood. It lay right next to the Aelia's Beauty she had put in her hair before. Even that flower now had a few flecks of blood on it. *** Odin took the vial of ash he had given to Marcus. The vial that held the ashes of his son Magni. He broke it over Marcus's body and spread the ashes around him. "You go to wear my son rests. I hope you give him good company until the day the rest of us arrive to the door step of the afterlife. We have to carry out the mission still, we must end the Gentleman's reign of terror so that good men like you needn't die like this." ***

"Speed doesn't grant us any advantage, it matters not how quickly we get there if we are not prepared Though, I imagine we are." He said attempting to climb into the wagon. His talons clicked against the wood as he pulled himself up. The chains he wore hit each other making a cacophony of noise. He could got it eventually, but it was clear the chains most definitely weighed him down. "Haven't ridden in one of these, feels nice to choose to get into one. Though, it is a bit more cramped than I thought it would be. They look much more roomy from the outside. Zix plopped down, and then removed an orb from soemwhere in his robe. "Don't want to sit on it funny. Probably would make my butt numb." he said in a rather flat tone. It would be hard to figure if he was making a joke or entirely serious. It sat in his lap. a rather strange orb. it was a perfect circle of what seemed to be a very think glass. Inside it swirled a blizzard. It was mostly definitely snow of some sort, even though it changed colour rapidly. It went fro metallic greens to silvers to whites, and every other colour one could think of. It seemed to change without rhyme or reason.

That was pretty much my point lol, It doesn't need to be reiterated really. It would be best to hash out other stuff from here rather than keep restating the same thing lol.

Yea, keep in mind I had a very good idea with what you are going for, I am just trying to make sure it is clear building around it will be a pain in the ass XD. Humans in other settings aren't the baseline because they truly are, they are out of necessity and simplicity's sake. but yea, Insectoid is probably best for speed, they are built for it. I would imagine they even think rapidly and quickly. Probably are good problem solvers in a pinch. I will probably be back once this is hashed out a bit more lol. That ends to be when I am good at hammering out kinks. I like messing with the small stuff, like why a race is motivated to think or act a certain way. Why their culture is the way it is etc... That is what I like in world building. I don't like the grunt work so to speak lol. The sloppy meaty stuff, like banging out the raw form. ((and sorry about the strange metaphor I used up above, I tend to do that. I find it easier to explain in metaphor what I mean rather than just like straight talk it sometimes. Or at least I think a visual aid helps a bit.))

I would recommend making the strength one none bipedal, or at least partially none Bipedal. Like it can use it arms, to both walk and manipulate.)) Bipeds aren't built properly for strength. Also, not saying this has to be, this is just a world-building thing in general. There is a reason Humans are the bog standard. One, people know exactly what a human is like, and therefore the easiest baseline to judge other races. This plays into the second point. Humans are very much bog standard. We are jacks of all trades, and not really built for anything in particular. This makes us rather well rounded. Because of this base-line it becomes hard to put anything below humans as this baseline because well, they are simply too foriegn for players to understand the proper balance of the universe. With humans being the Knowledge power, they are skewed towards this number. It makes the access point form a player muddling and confusing. How does one compare something built for intelligence to one for another purpose? It is hard to look into a tinted window and not have it stained by whatever colour it is. The baseline would have a clear window. This is usually the window players look in through. Humans are they tie to reality and the thing they can easily relate to to see into the world. However, here they are put behind a blue window, rather than a clear one. Everything on the other side is now stained in that blue, and it is hard to read it properly. There is more muddled noise from looking through the blue window, and then trying to look through the base line window through the blue window. As such, the picture is pretty horrid especially of the other races set apart for our point. We can't even get a good eye on them, because they are so different to the window we get to look trough. If the Strength race had a Red window, it would look purple to us instead of red. Basically it is hard to run a world when having the Humans be an exemplar of something, rather than the baseline. Because they are so different to the other races that uphold something, that they can't be properly understood without a lot of reaching and extrapolating. While I agree humans are boring, there is a reason they are in every single sci-fi and high fantasy. They are our view point into the world, and if they have a bias, we are tainted by that bias and it makes it hard to judge the world without it because it is all we have. Trust me, the world building will be a giant headache alone as it is hard to understand without a baseline that you can understand very well. ((to make up a race that frankly doesn't exist yet and tell people to try and base the world view on something they don't even properly understand is the recipe for disaster, no matter how good the world building is. Because the disconnect will ruin pretty much all of the good work, because players won't be able to easily wrap their heads around it.)) Basically, they are going to be playing from behind and that isn't good. That is the big concern I have with this lol. Feel free to totally ignore me, but trust me it will be so much harder working with it this way.

"How should I know? I am just muscle. If I would have to hazard a guess it was something or someone important. Exact motives I can't really say, but an explosion is usually used as a distraction. However, that covers both theories. An Object, you want people out of the way. People, you want there to be crowds, easier to slip away with a person in one. But, it is hard to reckon what they would want. A bio-weapon? That could be both a weapon...and a person. A VIP. All that stuff lies in their interest. Whatever it was is damn important to them. You don;t blow up a team member let alone explode anything for nothing." He said blowing smoke out his nose.