Sheikdom of Mekhallah, along the border of the Jalema Sultanate 44 years After Coronation, 1st day under Full Moon "Finally." The grandfatherly old man's voice was equal parts cheerful and uneasy as the stranger entered his modest caravansary, tracking in sand and a chilly desert wind at their heels. Casting a brief glance about the place while shaking loose grains from their sandals and straightening their kaftan, the stranger could tell the roadside refuge they'd stumbled into was little more than a skeleton, eerily illuminated by moonlight piercing through thin gaps in the shuttered windows. Aside from the stranger and the keep, the caravansary was occupied only by empty chairs at empty tables, their sandstone tops dusty with disuse, much like the colorful fabrics which hung to cover otherwise bleak walls the same hue as the surrounding dunes. The stranger took a seat in an uncomfortable chair at the nearest table, a worn cushion attempting in vain to improve his luxury. "You're the first to come through in some time. I'm sure you can see," the old keep chuckled, his voice shaky with age. "It must be a rare beauty or a fool's errand that brings you to Alkhafat." Fumbling about behind the bar for an uncomfortably long period, the old man produced a ceramic jug, which the stranger could tell from the scent was filled to the brim with araq. Finally shuffling over from behind his counter, the stranger repressed a gag as the scent of araq mingled with the old man's distinct musk. The keep was perhaps as decrepit as his establishment, with deep-set wrinkles across his olive complexion dragging his face towards the floor much like the faded green cloth of his haphazardly wrapped turban. The old man poured a full cup of araq for his guest, the stranger nodding and lifting their drink in thanks. "Thank you, uncle." Shuffling to the seat across from his guest, the keep gave his feet a rest. The stranger could swear they heard the old man's back snap in two as he lowered himself into the chair. "Once it was 'The Frontier's Gem,' Gods be good!" the keep remarked harshly, shaking his head. "If your business isn't urgent I suggest you turn back now, traveler." The stranger, humoring the old man's clear lust for conversation, took another sip of their araq and leaned forward, resting their elbows on the stone table. "Tell it true, uncle. Is it as bad as we hear in the south?" "Worse," the old man said, leaning forward as well. The stranger couldn't help but feel perturbed as the keep's haggard brown eyes locked with his own. They seemed to communicate an age of suffering, decay, death. "The Waste is already here, Nafayat al-Hayya! And every day it's getting closer, like a stalking lion. They say it's just 100 miles north of our city. Farmers out that way are plowing little more than dust and dunes. The Hooved Ones tell tales, they say...no matter how far they ride, the mountains are crumbling from their very foundations, worn down into sand." A long gust of wind whistled through the window cracks then. The stranger could feel a chill roll down their spine. "People are leaving, the ones that can afford it. There's no money here, and what farms we have still producing crop at all are needed to feed our city. They say that for now, we can survive and scrape by. We're being punished," the old man declared, leaning back in his chair as if the tirade exhausted him. "And what will you do, uncle?" the stranger asked, likewise leaning back into their seat. The keep parted his cracked lips slightly, revealing a set of teeth sporting the same decay he claimed befell his city. "I'll keep greeting foolish travelers like you for as long as I can make a profit, of course." IC THREAD Here's the Skinny If you've come this far, then congrats. You and your fellow players are now characters in the decaying Sheikdom of Mekhallah, the northeastern-most province in the Jamela Sultanate. It's not a good situation, either -- as the Living Waste continues to expand, large swaths of the sheikdom succumb to desertification. Farmers are forced to abandon their land, food is becoming a critical resource, and travel is difficult for an ill-prepared individual. At the beginning of your tale, the sheikdom's capital city, Akhafat, will be the center of the Sultanate's attention as an important official arrives to either solve the issue or determine a way for the city to be evacuated. Your characters may even have a crucial role to play in that. I encourage you to make yourself involved in this central plot, but your character is not bound to it, and can pop in or out whenever they desire. Though if do this, it might be best for you to talk with me about your character's goals so I can find ways to keep them tethered to the action even if they are elsewhere. However, I also encourage you to talk with me about possibilities outside of the framework I've laid down for you. Groups I have not included in my lore that you feel would enhance the world are fantastic, and I'm willing to work with you to make them slide seamlessly into the world. I also encourage you to consider individual subplots to explore your character -- the squeaky wheel gets the grease, and I would love for my world's events, related to the main plot or no, to help your character really figure out something important about themselves. Just a couple of general notes: This is a low-fantasy setting, so even if your character possesses some kind of magical talent, don't expect to be casting fireballs left and right. Magic also takes decades of study in the most elite schools in the Sultanate to really master, so it's rare for the common man to ever unlock their potential even if they can cast. It's probably a 1 in 100,000 occurrence that anyone in the Sultanate is able to harness any form of magic at all. The most outlandish things people know are the non-human races. Things are changing, though. The weird and supernatural seem to be encroaching into the Sultanate, slowly but surely. Also, as I'm sure you can see, this world is based on cultures of the Near East and Central Asia, so I encourage you to do some research in that direction if you want to come up with a super cool and easy to translate character concept, or just to find some dope outfits and weapons for your character to have. I encourage you to talk with other players for inspiration and, if you wish, to have your characters tied together through their backgrounds. I expect players to hold themselves to a standard of decency, common etiquette, and general not-being-an-ass-ness. While I don't expect everyone to write me a novel post by post, I do encourage new players to reach out to me if they want some help refining their writing! It will help you understand your character more and make them a unique person, not to mention helping your fellow players in the same ways and giving everyone a more pleasant read. If any questions pop up as you're making a character, or at any time really, ask away. I've of course not covered the entirety of this world, and I encourage collaborative world building in areas I may have neglected. Other than that, I hope to see people make this world their own. (Actual info on factions and magic is coming by tomorrow plz don't hurt me, I've been writing for a while and am tired now ) Application
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