Life After Death

In a conflict that has spanned a generation, the outcome of the Battle of Ettermoor Hill meant little. It is what happened after that could shift the course of the world.
This is a fantasy adventure campaign with a twist. You’re already dead. You were involved in the battle near Ettermoor and you died there. However, sometime after, you got back up. Now you must decide what that means and what you are going to do about it.
I prefer to be a hands-off GM. I present situations for the players, but they need to decide what they are going to do. I also like to include plot twists. There is always more going on than the players know about and if you don’t ask questions you will never find out. I am looking for players that will take the initiative to explore the world and try new things. I love it when my players find unusual methods of overcoming obstacles. Hitting the monster over the head is fine, lassoing it to 3 horses riding in different directions is much better.
Casting is now officially closed. Check the forum post (www.nextgenrpg.com/forum/life-after-death/casting-closed) for the cast list.
The Setting: The noble houses of Vatril and Anaheer have been fighting on and off for about the last 65 years. The exact reasons for the conflict have become muddled over time. The Anaheer claimed that the Vatril stole land from them, including several sites of religious significance. The Vatril blame the Anaheer for the death of King Alric Vatril. The Anaheer say he died of natural causes, the Vatril say it was poison. Regardless, the fighting has ravaged both kingdoms, atrocities have been committed by both sides, and both sides hate the other.
The Characters: You were all involved in the battle one way or another. Perhaps you were a soldier, a mercenary, or a conscript fighting in the battle. Perhaps you were a healer tending to the wounded or a noble commanding your soldiers. You could have been a merchant or a peasant, caught up and trying to escape.
I’ll need a basic background, an idea on your motivations, and a description of your personality. Who are you? What do you do? Why were you at the battle? Which side, if any, are you on in the Vatril/Anaheer conflict?
Races: Humans are by far the dominate race. Orcs are the second most populous race. They are tribal and regularly fight against humans. Elves and dwarves exist but are rare. They don’t associate much with humans, sticking to secluded areas.
Magic: Magic is a clear and present aspect of the world. While still rather uncommon, mages are an essential part of armies. Even peasants are aware of magic and there attitude towards it varies from awe, to reverence, to terror.
Magic is very unique to the caster. Two fire mages may learn spells the same way, but their will be slight differences in how they cast. There are 3 common types of magic, elemental magic, dark magic, and nature magic, plus the use of raw magical energy.


Comments
More Please
I'm interested a bit more in the situation surrounding the deaths. ...I mean, will the game actually begin as we arise from being dead? ...or will the event and death tie us together somehow, but time has passed?
Was each of our deaths unique? ...or, was it a spell or mass effect that caused our demise? OR...is all of this a secret until game start, cuz we don't know we're dead yet?
Thanks!
The game will begin as you
The game will begin as you arise after dieing. Some time will have passed, but you won't be sure how much. You won't be directly tied together, but being the only walking corpses that retained their minds will at least give you all something to talk about.
Each death was unique. Large area spells were used in the battle, but that isn't necessarily what killed you. The manner of your death will be determined after you have finished your character.
Now in stompy size!
Two more questions
1. Are you encouraging submissions from both sides of the battle? Or are you preferring them to all be from one or the other.
2. What tense will you be using when you start writing the game. I know that might seem like a really silly question, but I'm used to 3rd person past tense and the fact that I stink at some of the other tenses, makes it a concern of mine. *grin*
Having people from both sides
Having people from both sides would be good. I'm not requiring it, but I'm not encouraging you to pick a particular side.
I don't really have a preference for the tense used. The first post is still skipping around in my mind and hasn't solidified itself in a particular tense. 3rd person past tense will probably work well.
Now in stompy size!
The Sides
Can you give any detail on the possible differences between the sides, are they practically identical and just hate each other for silly reasons?
Races
nod nod.
What he said. I kind of assumed they were both made up of predominantly humans, due to some of the reading I've done. But other races were possible if you could find a good reason to place them there.
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They aren't identical, but I
They aren't identical, but I haven't expanded upon them that much yet. Both sides have wronged the other over the years.
I originally based the war on the Hundred Years War. To the common person, there is little reason for the war regardless of what the nobility says.
Now in stompy size!
Races
Yes, both sides are predominently human. Both sides have employed orc mercenaries from time to time. The elves and dwarves want nothing to do with the war (but then, they don't want much to do with humans in general). There are small groups that might work with one side or the other, but that would be rare (and therefore perfect for a PC
).
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Races Updated
Racial affiliations have been updated. Check the OoC thread (www.nextgenrpg.com/forum/life-after-death/lad-ooc-chatter) for details.
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Differentiation has arrived!
Differentiation has arrived! The sides are no longer identical. Check the OoC thread (nextgenrpg.com/forum/life-after-death/lad-ooc-chatter) for details.
Now in stompy size!