In 1982, a golden man appeared over the ocean. He was the first time the superhuman characters of comics books flew off the pages into our reality. 37 years later, Parahumans have become a staple of society, for better or for worse. Contact was made with parallel worlds. For a time, it seemed like anything could happen. For a time, it seemed like the world wasn't going to shit. For a time, there was hope. But in 1992, a gigantic monster appeared in Paris, and threw any notions of hope out the window as hundreds lost their lives. We were reminded that even with superheroes existing, the world was still a dark, brutal place. Flash forward to the current year. The PRT and Protectorate hold authority over the superheroes of the world, and villains more monstrous than anything imagined run freely.
Welcome to Iris, a roleplay based on the world created by Wildbow in the web serials Worm and it's sequel, Ward. Obviously, the the premise is pretty simple- superpowers are real, and your character is probably going to have them. There are heroes, villains, kaiju, murderers, and maniacs abound- it's up to you to find your place in all of this. If you like complex, morally grey worlds, traumatized characters, and extremely creative superpowers- well, then you've probably read Worm already. If you haven't, check it out here.
Iris will primarily center around the city of Portland, Oregon, and the heroes and villains living there under the watchful eye of the Portland PRT. Eventual plot threads and events will likely lead to characters travelling elsewhere around the world. Aside from large events, the RP will be almost entirely player-driven, with your characters being the ones to carry out goals, make alliances, fight off enemies, and whatever else you can think of.
The PRT uses the following classifications for powers, making it easy to divide the abilities of Parahumans into easily-understood categories.
- Mover- Powers that enhance mobility.
- Shaker- Power with an Area of Effect.
- Brute- Power enhancing strength or durability.
- Breaker- Shifts into another state in order to use powers.
- Master- Can control others or create minions.
- Tinker- Creates or alters devices with alien technology.
- Blaster- Ranged, offensive abilities.
- Thinker- Focuses on information gathering or enhancing one's mind.
- Striker- Power is melee-based or touch-based.
- Changer- Alters their own form or appearance.
- Trump- Manipulates powers in some way.
- Stranger- Focused on stealth or infiltration.
Characters will have one power. Multi-triggers aren't going to be allowed for player characters without permission from the OP. Unique and clever abilities are vastly preferred over generic or powerful ones. It's encouraged to go into detail on the mechanics of the abilities as much as the effects- for example, instead of just saying that you have super strength, explain how your character can lower the mass of any object they touch, but only for themselves. It's impossible to stress how important it is to be creative for these things.
A Parahuman isn't just born with powers right out of the womb- they have to be awoken by what's called a Trigger Event. A Trigger Event, also called a Crisis Point or simply a Trigger, is a traumatic experience which leads to the awakening of the Parahuman's latent powers. The Trigger Event isn't just regular depression- it arises from hitting rock-bottom, the absolute worst day of one's life. As with the powers, creativity is of utmost importance. An RP with a hundred characters who watched their parents get killed isn't going to be allowed. Any trigger event cannot lead to any power- the trigger shapes the power.
- Mover- Trigger Event involves a drive to escape, flee, or run. The exact circumstances, the nature of what they are trying to escape, and the relationship to the threat influence the type of Mover ability that manifests.
- Shaker- Trigger Event involves environmental or ambient danger, often non-human or abstractly human.
- Brute- Trigger Event involves physical harm, with the source and severity of the damage, combined with contextual factors, influencing the ability that arises in response.
- Breaker- Triggers that blur the line between mental and physical, emerging from abstract stressors or things that are hard to describe, often involving contradictory feelings.
- Master- Trigger involves isolation, alienation, exile, or betrayal. The loss of a loved one is considered a Master trigger. Isolation from a single individual feeds into having a single, fixed minion, whereas isolation from society results in numerous and/or variable minions.
- Tinker- Trigger involves problems without solutions that take place over long periods, culminating in a crisis moment. The elements of the trigger build up over weeks or months and are tied to the moment the Tinker's abilities arise.
- Blaster- Trigger involves some sort of animated, ranged threat. Hostile others, approaching or attacking from a distance. The circumstances, nature of the thraet, and the Blaster's relationship to it all influence the type of Blaster power that emerges.
- Thinker- Trigger involves large amounts of emotional and mental stress while a crisis point is reached in a short time. Crushing revelations, mental or emotional anguish, fear, anger, and self-loathing often lead to Thinker powers.
- Striker- Trigger involves an immediate, in-your-face threat, usually involving a singular object or individual.
- Changer- Trigger involves mental or emotional issues involving identity or body image, or from conflicts involving constraining social expectations.
- Trump- Trigger events are similar to other trigger events, but largely involve parahuman powers in some way. The triggeree's relationship to the user of the powers also factors in heavily.
- Stranger- Trigger involves a threat to emotional and mental security or social and collective pressure, usually involving unwanted attention of some kind.
It's not uncommon for Trigger Events to involve influences of multiple types, and the resulting power will be a mix of the two. For example, a Mover/Brute would have a super-speed sort of power, where they become more durable as their speed ramps up. It's also possible for a Parahuman's power to afford them subratings that are unrelated to the trigger. A Tinker who builds robotic minions might be rated as a Tinker 5, Master 3 or something similar.
Mixed powers are written with a slash (Classification 1/Classification 2) and sub-ratings are written as a list with commas. (Classification 1, sub-rating 1, sub-rating 2, etc.)
There are a series of unwritten rules within the parahuman community, which heroes and villains alike are expected to follow. You'll be expected to follow along with these, unless you want other parahumans to start banding together and ganging up on you.
The rules are fairly simple-
- Respect the secret identities of other parahumans. Private lives are a needed outlet and taking that away is asking for trouble.
- Don't attack the civilian family members of other parahumans.
- No violence and no power usage during a meeting between multiple parties.
- Avoid lethal force when possible.
- No widespread attacks against civilians.
- Enslavement via mind control is forbidden.
- No Rape or Sexual Assault of any kind. This is not Watchmen and you are not The Comedian.
- Don't use guns. If you absolutely have to use one, be careful with it. They lead to escalation and death.
- Similarly, stick to less 'lethal' archaic weaponry- swords, crossbows, things that work with powers.
A subset of rules is applied when an Endbringer or an S-class Threat is present.
- Don't attack those who volunteer their help, regardless of grudges.
- Don't take advantage of an Endbringer attack or S-class Threat for personal gain or advancement.
- Don't set up others to die.
- Medical care will be provided to all who participate regardless of past deeds.
If anyone breaks one of the unwritten rules, all willing parahumans are expected to work together to bring about punitive action. Repeated breaking of the rules is grounds for being sent to the Birdcage, or for receiving a Kill Order.
1. The word of the OP and Co-OPs are final in all matters.
2. NS rules are to be followed at all times, obviously.
3. Each player is limited to two characters at maximum for the moment.
4. Players are not allowed to control entire NPC factions. They are encouraged to band together to form factions of their own.
5. See Character Creation for banned powers and elements. Don't worry, there aren't a lot.
6. Play responsibly and realistically- the Parahumans world heavily emphasizes realistic limitations and consequences for characters, and you'll be expected to follow along with this.
7. Don't god-mod or metagame. You should know what these mean, and how to avoid them.
8. Characters will die. Your character will probably die eventually. Don't whine about it.
9. Don't argue about real-world politics. If you do start going on about your own political views or those of others, you'll probably be cruising for a ban. Leave that for parts of Nationstates that aren't Portal to the Multiverse.
And now we arrive at the fun bit. How to make your super awesome original character. Due to the Wormverse working the way it does, the restrictions are somewhat lessened compared to other superpower RPs. However, it means posts will be held to extra-strict standards to make sure no one's cheating or god-modding. Some things will be allowed, albeit heavily restricted.
Powers: As a general rule, extremely broad or generic abilities will be rejected in favor of more specific, unique ones. I'd recommend looking at Worm's cast page if you aren't familiar with the world of the web serial. Obviously, as another rule, it'd be best not to use any power that's been shown within Worm. In addition, your abilities will be assumed to follow the Manton limit unless otherwise stated. The Manton limit prevents powers from directly affecting other humans. It's why pyrokinetics don't just make fire in someone's stomach to boil them from the inside. Respect the Manton limit. Other abilities with notable restrictions are below:
- Mind Control- If you're a Master who can take control of people, try to avoid direct, complete control. If you do have that, try and mostly use it on NPCs unless you and another player can agree to let a PC be mind controlled. On the flip side, if hit by a more subtle Master power such as an emotion-affecting blast, try and factor it into your writing. Master powers that control and affect other people are allowed, but are more likely to be turned down.
- Abilities that forcibly alter another person instantly will be turned down.
- Time Manipulation- Abilities that mess with time will be turned down without sufficient restrictions.
- Precognition- Long-term precognition will not be allowed under any circumstances.
- Super Speed- Speedster abilities will be turned down without sufficient restrictions.
- Any ability found to be too bland, too absurd, or too unfitting with the character's trigger event will be turned down.
Weaknesses: Balance is fairly important to make things fair and fun. A 'weakness' will be defined as anything unique to your character that can be exploited by other players to lower their effectiveness. 'Being human' is not a weakness, don't try to use it. Most powers will have drawbacks of their own- these will be explained in the power section, so don't list them as weaknesses. A weakness should be something physical or psychological that is unique to your character. Every character should have at least one. 'Being easy to hate' or 'not playing well with others' aren't sufficient. Phobias, glaring character flaws, and physical frailties are what we're looking for here.
Species: Aliens, androids, demons, angels, and other such characters are banned with no exceptions. Even the most physically altered Parahumans were once normal people.
Magic: Magic isn't real.
Tech: You'll be stuck at modern tech level unless you're playing a Tinker. You cannot have Tinker-made equipment that you use yourself- their stuff tends to fall apart in the hands of the non-Tinker masses anyways.
Trigger Event: The basic outlines of Trigger Events are explained above. As a rule, stay away from rape and sexual assault. Other than that, you're generally free to traumatize your character however you wish.
Connections: Any notable relationships and rivalries that your character has. Feel free to edit this section while playing to keep track of such things.
- Code: Select all
[box][align=center][size=150][b][u]Character App[/u][/b][/size][/align]
[b]Name:[/b]
[b]Alias:[/b]
[b]Age:[/b]
[b]Alignment:[/b] (Hero, Villain, or Rogue.)
[b]Gender:[/b]
[floatright][spoiler=Appearance](place appearance description or image link here)[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Suit or Transformation Appearance](place appearance description or image link here for suits or transformation abilities)[/spoiler][/floatright]
[hr][/hr]
[align=center][size=150]BACKGROUND[/size][/align]
[b]Nationality:[/b]
[b]Hometown:[/b]
[b]Personality:[/b]
[b]Trigger Event:[/b] (Consider this the Bio section- focus mainly on the event that led to the character's powers awakening.)
[b]Power:[/b] (Describe in detail. Feel free to note which parts tie into the trigger event, if you want to show off your writing talent.)
[b]Weaknesses:[/b]
[b]Equipment and weapons:[/b] (List, if applicable. If a Tinker, use this section to write about what you currently have built.)
[align=center][size=150]ADDITIONAL INFORMATION[/size][/align]
[b]Skills:[/b] (Additional languages, Mechanical skills, etc. Be realistic.)
[b]Connections:[/b]
[b]Goals:[/b] (Can be as simple or complex as you like.)
[b]Theme Song:[/b][/box]