Assassination Academy: Red Queen Effect (OOC/OPEN)

[Atlannia]

IC

Red Queen Effect: (1) An evolutionary hypothesis which proposes that organisms must constantly adapt, evolve and grow stronger, not to gain a material advantage but simply to survive while pitted against ever-evolving, opposing organisms.

(2) Assassination Academy's central teaching philosophy

"History is written in blood. From the very dawn of time organisms have existed in opposition to each other. Competing for resources, for territory, for dominance. As history marched on and wild animals gave way to tribes and then kingdoms blood remained the ink with which our stories were recorded. Nations and individuals went to war in order to ensure the survival of their people and their ideas. Merely to continue existing requires constant effort, constant struggle and constant battle. If you want to do more than merely survive, if you want to excel then you must struggle and fight ten times harder!

That is what it means to walk the path of an assassin, to actively seek out conflict and bloodshed instead of merely enduring it. That is the environment this Academy seeks to create for you. You have all come here to improve and grow stronger, but that means everyone around you will be doing the same thing. If you remain the same then your peers will rapidly outstrip you and if you merely keep pace with the pack you will merely survive. Only the very best will go beyond that to graduate.

To this Academy unlike any other I bid you welcome. It is my sincere wish that your stay not be overly short.

Wow.

What a speech. To be honest you didn't really catch all of it, not for lack of trying you're just really excited. You’re finally here after all, you're really going to do it. Become an assassin.

Assassins are like nothing else in this world, they have power no one else can dream of, they take on the flashiest, most dangerous jobs, and their fame and infamy stretch across the globe. Hell some of them even have fan clubs. It seems almost unbelievable that you might be able to become one of these amazing people. Most assassins have unique backgrounds, they were raised in hidden ninja villages or classified research facilities, some are even interdimensional beings or mythical creatures like vampires or werewolves. It's not exactly something you can just sign up for.

At least it wasn't until the Assassination Academy opened. It was founded some thirty years ago by Abraham Richmond, the greatest assassin of his time, with an extraordinary claim. The Academy would accept any student and as long as they managed to graduate, they would be world class assassins, capable of competing with the legends of the time and becoming legends in their own right.

That's why you're here, obviously, to become an assassin. Up on stage the grand speech seems to have given way to more mundane matters of administration so you decide to instead flip through the student handbook you were given on the way in, you might learn something useful you reason and in this place you're going to need every edge you can get.

And now, a word from our sponsor OP!

Hey look we have a proper thread now! Most of you I expect will be migrating over from the interest thread so you basically know what the plan is. But let's take some time to discuss in more detail what my plan here is, I promise there is a plan!

So, Assassination Academy is an rp where tropes collide and, for the most part, try to beat each other up. The setting has some built in, multiverse-esque explanations for almost any kind of badass you want to play as. To be clear This is not a multiverse rp We will not be hopping dimensions to punch Cthulu in the face and nobody's characters will have extra dimensional origins except in a broad, ancestral sense. For example, long ago, an extremely powerful vampire managed to cross into the world of Nexus where this rp us set. So there are now vampires in Nexus, you can play as a vampire if you want. What you cannot do is play as the vampire that crossed over, he's a bit above your pay grade so to speak. Basically Nexus is where things come together and it's plenty exciting without worrying too much about what lies outside of it.

How to spend your time

So that's your character, but what will they be doing? Well by now you've probably at least gathered that combat will play a big role in this rp and that's true! There will be lots of scope for fighting both npcs and other players and lot's of freedom to develop your character's unique approach to combat. Besides combat the other core to this rp is character development, through the course of this rp you will earn points to upgrade your abilities and your character will grow and change as a person in response to the challenges they undertake. There'll be a plot, or rather a number of exciting arcs, to get involved with as much or as little as you like but you can also explore the academy at your own pace and choose from a range of exciting activities. Generally speaking you're days at the academy will fall into four broad categories.

ASSASSINATIONS

At any time, students may register a fellow student as a target for assassination. If they successfully kill their target (any student who dies on academy grounds is instantly revived thanks to the island's secret technology so these are mock battles rather than fully lethal ones) They will take a portion of that students AP and if the target held a title then the successful killer takes that as well. At the end of the year anyone who is holding a title advances to the next grade while everyone else is held back. There are far less titles then students so only those strong enough to take a title and defend it can advance. Students can register any other student as a target, including other player characters (with that player's permission) or they can be randomly assigned a target.

JOBS

The bread and butter of any student. Jobs are tasks that can be freely taken on in exchange for valuable AP. While low level jobs can take place on Academy grounds and involve things like maintenance or admin work, high level jobs are essentially mercenary contracts that take students out into the wider world. The money earned from these jobs goes towards keeping the academy running and the students receive AP as compensation. Jobs can be a great way to see outside the academy and are profitable but are not without risk, students aren't protected from death outside of Academy grounds and are fighting with their lives on the line in some cases. First Grade students on dangerous jobs are usually supervised by a higher ranked, more experienced student for this reason.

IMPROVEMENT

Naturally the reason to actually be at this Academy is to grow stronger! Once you earn AP you can spend them to improve yourself, usually by either buying or upgrading equipment or by taking classes. Getting stronger isn't easy though! However you decide to go about it spending AP will take time, time that you aren't using to gain other advantages, so you need to balance this out with other pursuits.

SOCIALISING

Getting to know your fellow students can be deceptively important. Because of the... unpredictable nature of academy life students often prefer to band together in groups or partnerships. Other students can inform you of unique opportunities or potential hazards coming your way, if you manage to earn their gratitude you may even be able to call in a favor and have their support during a trying time. Beyond that meeting and growing close others is a great way to develop as a person and gain new insight or a fresh perspective.

HAVING FUN

Okay so there's a hidden fifth category. Anything you wanna do that doesn't fit into one of the above? There's probably a way to make it happen. Casual hang outs or quiet reflection, zany hijinks that don't really result in something concrete. First and foremost this rp is about having fun. WIth that in mind I'm gonna steal my own mind and once again bid you welcome to this Academy unlike any other. It is my sincere wish that your stay not be overly short.

The rules

These are different from the in character rules further down which are more to do with how the IC will work, these are rules for you guys rather than your characters and pretty similar to the rules you'll see in most rps so hopefully they won't present any issues.

1. No godmodding: That is to say, don't determine what happens to other people's characters in your own posts, for example deciding that an attack lands and so writing the results of it in the same post as the attack occurs, deciding for someone else how much damage their character receives. You are welcome to discuss this sort of thing with other players and indeed a healthy amount of discussion is necessary to make these kinds of fights satisfying for everyone involved, if two players can't agree on an outcome together I or a Co-OP, should there be any Co-Ops in the future, will decide. You will also be going up against a lot of npcs and, broadly speaking, I will ask you to refrain from godmodding them either, some of these NPCs will be stronger than your characters and you will have to work together or use unconventional tactics. Other times you won't be able to beat certain npcs no matter what, remember this is the start of your character's journey, it wouldn't be realistic if they could do anything right from the start and it wouldn't be very interesting either, training and growth is going to be a big part of this rp.

2. No metagaming: The way this rp is structured you guys will be fighting each other quite a bit I expect but the objective of those fights isn't to win, it's to use that conflict to create interesting stories and moments, so refrain from using knowledge that you have, but that your character would not have access to, to inform their decisions. Outside of combat, keep in mind that what you know and what your character knows are different. People may want some things not to be widely known within the rp or may even rely on deception to execute their plans. IF your character can reasonably deduce information or use their skills to discover something then that's fine and fantastic but make sure that information isn't coming from behind the fourth wall.

3. Be nice: I hope I don't have to explain this one too much, just be civil with each other, it's really far more pleasant on average. You guys are totally free to discuss things among yourselves and its fine if you don't agree with each other all the time. But if you can't settle something and I or a co-op are not available to settle things officially then you may need to drop the matter and wait for us to resolve things rather then derail the thread. No when to walk away.

4. Quality and Quantity: I'm not really one to enforce arbitrary post lengths, three line minimums or anything like that, but I will talk to you if I think your posts aren't up to scratch and discuss how to improve. Generally it's important to have a certain amount of detail as it fleshes out your character and gives other rpers something to work with. If you aren't too sure how to do this then I or someone else will be more than happy to help you either in the OOC or privately by TG, as long as we're all putting up an honest effort then the rp will be more engaging and fun for everyone.

5.If you're unsure of anything, ask: Seriously, I love the attention and it's better to clear things up right away, if you're wondering about it probably it's because something I set up was just confusing and other people are wondering about it too.

6. If you have ideas, share them: I can't promise that I'll be able to implement everything but you guys are the stars of this show so if you want to go in a particular direction let me know! Want a figure from your mysterious past come back to haunt your character? Want them to face a heart wrenching moral quandary that will leave them forever scarred? Want an opportunity to show off their wicked sousaphone skills? I’ll try and work personal arcs and moments in where I can.

7. Have fun!

[Atlannia]

ASSASSINATION ACADEMY
STUDENT HANDBOOK

Welcome! To the most unique educational institute in the world. This handbook has been produced with the intention of being a one stop shop for everything you will need to know during your time at Assassination Academy, in consideration of those students who are extradimensional beings, time travellers, have been raised in total isolation to become a perfect killing machine or for any other reason lack experience with Nexus a basic overview of the world we inhabit has also been included to ease a disorientating transition into society.

Nexus. A world between worlds. This world has born many different names in many different ages but in the modern day Nexus is the most commonly used one for it is widely considered the most fitting. The boundaries of reality surrounding Nexus are weak in many places. While they are ordinarily enough to keep Nexus separated from other worlds and universes, a being, will or force of sufficient power can sometimes force its way through. Because of this phenomenon, powerful things tend to gather in this world. Monsters, aliens, magic, advanced technology, ancient martial arts. They may exist alone in their own worlds but in Nexus almost all of them exist alongside each other, struggling against one another for supremacy.

The natural consequence of this is that the residents of Nexus are strong. They have to be, in a world where your house might be trampled by dinosaurs the day after your daughter has been abducted by aliens while your significant other is ambushed by ninjas you either get strong or die out. The average Nexan is therefore incredibly difficult to kill so no matter what you think of them morally one can't help but grudgingly admire those who choose killing as a profession. In this world where only the strong survive it isn't enough to be merely cunning or opportunistic, to take lives in the Nexus you must surpass strong and become truly powerful. In this world Assassins are almost celebrities, they sign autographs, sell merchandise and have fan clubs who argue about who would win in a fight, they publicize their next targets in order to generate more buzz. More than anything else, children grow up in Nexus dreaming of becoming assassins one day.

As compared to other worlds and other realities, combat in Nexus disproportionately comes down to small unit or even one on one engagements. High level combatants can easily neutralize huge groups of lower level soldiers and so most strategists rely on countering strength with strength rather than "meat grinder" situations in which mass amounts of resources and personnel are lost unsuccessfully attacking much more capable fighters. High level combat, the kind of engagement where one or a few exceptionally powerful individuals exert immense power, generally relies on the principle of aura.

Aura: Aura is a mysterious form of energy, tied to life and sentience. Since its discovery many theories have been proposed as to its true nature but traditionally it is regarded as "Spiritual energy" tied to one's soul. Anyone or anything that could be considered sentient can generate some amount of aura but with training and focus it's possible to actively control ones' aura and generate massive amounts of it. In sufficient quantities aura enhances and reinforces the body, can be manipulated with incantations to cast spells and can even be used as an energy source to power advanced weaponry. Needless to say, aura is a vital tool for assassins, the kind of power it provides is necessary for taking on dangerous targets and their security.

Although one can improve the amount of aura they can generate there is always a cost associated with it, using excessive amounts of one aura produces exhaustion and can lead to unconsciousness. Some people even allege that excessive overuse of aura can lead to death although this is difficult to confirm, in most cases the weakening of the bodies systems bought on by aura overuse simply results in death from injuries sustained during combat. It's still something to keep in mind however, in combat even the slightest mistake or slowdown can bring death and overusing one's aura to early can lead to a sudden defeat.

Broadly speaking aura is channeled for combat purposes in three main ways.

Magic: As mentioned above, the barriers separating Nexus from other worlds are unusually thin, allowing entities to pass into Nexus from other worlds. Typically, once these entities enter Nexus they are bound by its laws of physics and reality. However in some circumstances, aura can be used to assert the laws of other worlds over Nexus, this phenomenon is known as Magic. All magic was originally extra dimensional however many, such as pyromancy or alchemy, were brought to the Nexus centuries or even millennia ago and are considered as much a part of the world as anything else. While magic sometimes occurs naturally to purposefully cast a spell two ingredients are needed, precise knowledge and aura. The spell caster must perfectly understand both the laws of the other world that they are invoking and the laws of this world that they intend to 'overwrite' the less precise the overwrite the more taxing it is to perform and so a novice mage will use far more aura than an expert mage performing the same spells. While magic can be learned by almost anyone those with extra dimensional heritage, beings such as elves and dwarves for example, often find they have an affinity for magic’s from their home plane and difficulty mastering magic from other planes. It is also important to note that branches of magic originating from different planes often mix poorly, producing unstable and dangerous effects and for this reason combing different branches should only be done very carefully.

Technology: The state of science is quite advanced in Nexus and technology derived from it can be quite powerful. The foundation of Nexus technology is nexite, a mysterious, crystalline resource that seems to form around the edges of interdimensional rifts. Nexite is an extremely efficient energy source but it's only really effective in very large quantities, making it impractical for mobile uses such as weaponry or personal equipment. Assassins therefore cannot rely on nexite, the amounts needed to power weapons that could contend on an even footing with powerful opponents. Instead, assassins rely on aura tech, weapons and equipment that are powered by their personal aura. aura can be used to propel projectiles, can be infused into explosives and power energy weapons or even defensive measures such as shields or armor. Aura tech requires no weighty power sources and can go toe to toe with any other style of fighting however there is a drawback. Aura tech, like any other use of aura can leave a person exhausted and less capable if overused and it requires a fair amount of skill. Aura must be carefully supplied in precise amounts to different systems and subsystems, keeping them supplied but not overloaded, an aura tech user must intimately understand their equipment and be able to make precise adjustments and repairs to it. Although it is possible to use off the shelf equipment it is less efficient and riskier, many tech users take the measure of building their own equipment from scratch or retrofitting all manner of exotic weapons from their past to use their aura.

Martial Arts: Martial arts are the oldest and arguably the simplest methods of using aura. But that simplicity should not be taken as shallowness or weakness but rather elegance and strength. Martial arts utilize aura to enhance and reinforce the body, improving muscle strength, reaction time, perception, even the bodies natural healing and immune systems. It's not know exactly why aura has this effect, some theorize that aura links the soul with the body, more aura improves the link, allowing the person's will to be manifested through their body. Interestingly aura only has this effect on the person who produced, another person's aura can wreak terrible damage when injected into a body or a delicate system. For this reason many martial artists develop the control to manipulate and eject their aura in its raw form as a ranged effect. With sufficient training its also possible to imbue inanimate objects such as weapons with aura, enhancing their durability and effectiveness.

Examples include hand to hand styles such as karate, boxing or kung fu, weapon disciplines such as kendo, elven fencing or dwarven axe brawling and even modern combat styles such as military marksmanship or Brigundish grenade arts can be considered martial arts. Martial arts work well alongside other techniques and are extremely reliable , almost all of the students at this academy have some kind of experience with martial arts to round out or enhance their other skill sets but there are plenty of specialists who focus entirely on theses ancient practices.

Nexus is home to an incredible amount of biodiversity, both in terms of plant and wildlife and sentient species afforded full rights. The most authoritative body for determining sentience and the one most nations defer to is the International Center for Sentient Rights and Welfare (ICSRW) who employ a sophisticated analysis of factors such as cultural output, language or other communication methods and nonlinear thinking to determine if a given species is intelligent. If the result is at all ambiguous the ICSRW affords the given species full rights until such time as a conclusive answer can be determined. The vast majority of sentient beings on Nexus, some 70%, are human, with Miraverans making up another 20% and all other sentient beings comprising the final 10%. Below is a list of the most common sentient races, it is by no means exhaustive, most years there are students at the academy who do not appear on this list.

Humans: By far the most populous and the race to have inhabited Nexus the longest. Opinion is divided in the scientific community on whether humans originated on Nexus or somehow migrated here from another dimension however there is no denying they have flourished here. Humans inhabit every continent to some degree and are the majority in almost every nation. In terms of natural ability humans are normally used as a baseline and so appear average in all respects however as other races are fond of pointing out this is only if you consider the matter from a human perspective. Of note, humans tend to struggle less with adapting new techniques, magic or technology from other dimensions whereas species originating from elsewhere tend to have an affinity with things from their home dimension and can struggle to utilize things from elsewhere, making humans more versatile by comparison.

Miraverans: When taken as a whole, Miraverans are the second largest population on Nexus however they are actually several races hailing from the same planet of Miravere. Miravere lies in another dimensions and was at one point conquered in its entirety by the sorcerer Nergal, who then embarked on an invasion of Nexus via an interdimensional portal, triggering the largest war in Nexus history. Although incredibly powerful, Nergal was eventually assassinated, destroying the portal he had created and stranding a sizeable portion of his army in Nexus. After peacefully surrendering the Miraverans were allowed to settle in Nexus and these days are a common site in many areas. The Miraveran races are:

Elves: The most populous of the Miraverans on Nexus, it seems as though Elvish nations were the last to be conquered by Nergal and so vast swathes of them were conscripted into his invasion forces to prevent them from rebelling at home. Elves appear similar to humans, but are distinguished by lobe less, triangular ears that tend to sweep backwards. Cultural wisdom holds that elves are lither and more agile than humans but most biologists attribute these to cultural factors, namely the importance elven cultures place on dance. Investigations into the rare instances of human children have been raised by elves reported that the children in question exhibited similarly heightened agility. Elves had a long history of practicing magic on Miravere and were considered by many to be superior mages to Nexus practitioners at the time of the first great invasion. These days the gap between other forms of magic and Miraveran magic is less pronounced but Miraveran disciplines remain highly effective and elves tend to be the most capable of wielding them.

Dwarves: After Elves Dwarves are the most common Miraveran race on Nexus, although it is not always apparent. Whereas Elves have for the most part integrated into society at large, Dwarves have tended to settle together and form new, entirely dwarven townships. Although these townships submit to the laws of the nations they fall within they tend to be highly economically productive and are often afforded a certain amount of autonomy. Compared to humans dwarves are shorter and squatter but tend to be densely muscled. They prefer smaller, enclosed spaces and sometimes even exhibit tendencies that would be considered agoraphobic in other cultures. Popular culture has long associated dwarves with mining and other underground activities however this has historical roots, dwarven culture places a profound importance on the ability to earn wealth and provide a comfortable life for one's family (typically dwarven families are much larger than other races and multiple generations tend to share a roof.) When the first dwarves settled after the war they found their economic opportunities severely limited by mistrust. One avenue that was open to them was the dangerous but relatively high paying industry of mining and so many young dwarves left home to work for human mining companies. Because the townships these dwarves came from remained isolated, for many humans the only dwarves they ever met were miners and thus the association. These days there remains a high proportion of dwarves in the mining industry as earlier generations rose to managerial and administrative positions and then encouraged younger generations from their villages to move out and follow their footsteps however the proportion is steadily dwindling, in part due to a general decline in many key mineral exports and due to modern generations of dwarves being more likely to have other aspirations. The traditional weapons of most dwarven cultures are axes and battle hammers, usually accompanied by heavy plate armour but in the modern era many dwarves have successfully adapted other styles of fighting.

Orcs: Orcs are green skinned humanoids that tend to be taller and more muscular then the average human. Orcs have a reputation for savagery that is often not properly examined. When Nergal began his campaign of domination over Miravere he began in the Orcish homelands where their decentralized, tribal governments were less capable of offering unified resistance. The defeated orcs would then go on to form the core of Nergal's army and the atrocities they were forced to inflict on his enemies to safe guard their own civilians ensured an emnity from the other Miraveran races that still has not faded entirely and went on to color the perceptions of Nexus natives. Culturally orcs tend to be mistrustful of strangers or outsiders but cleave together strongly, taking an "us against the world" mentality. The virtues they stress are directness, strength and reliability, they place a lot of stock in stating there intentions and then following through, orcish culture praises hands on, direct, careers such as workers of crafts or trades, soldier or assassins and honest manual labor. They also turn disproportionately to crime, like dwarves they dislike engaging with outside institutions but don't have the same economic opportunities and their strong social bonds do a good job of keeping the authorities out of their business. Interestingly orcs tend to identify strongly with the cultures and groups they are raised, those raised outside of orcish culture are often very different and feel more at home among other species.

Other races: Though a full list of other sentient races is beyond the scope of this hand book her are some of the most common.

Vampires: One of the earliest races apart from humans to appear on Nexus, various apocryphal stories and accounts exist of the first vampire however in truth it is completely unknown how long they have dwelled among humans. The earliest known vampire was discovered some 175 years ago when a Boronese count was thrown out of the window of his townhouse around noon and promptly burst into flames however accounts that were previously dismissed as fanciful but which match vampire characteristics date back tens of thousands of years. Opinion is sharply divided on whether vampires should be considered a separate species or a condition that afflicts other species, with vampire and non-vampire proponents on both sides. In general vampires are distinct enough in terms of their capabilities and requirements that it is expedient to consider them a different species.

Wereanimals: Another very old race, wereanimals are sentient beings that, under certain conditions transform into a particular animal, most commonly a wolf although many other variants have been recorded. While transformed wereanimals are highly dangerous and resistant to damage however diminished cognitive abilities are usually observed, especially in less experienced weres. Were transformations are often triggered by moon phases but other conditions such as a heightened emotional state or physical pain can prompt the transformation and with experience and training most weres are capable of purposefully bringing about their own transformation.

Demis: The result of military experiments with were animal DNA in order to create super soldiers. Demihumans, or more commonly simply Demis, appear as humans with some animal features such as eyes, ears or tails and often share traits like increased strength or sharpened senses with the animals they share DNA with. When the Demi experiments became public knowledge several nations had already bred sizable populations of Demis to use as soldiers and subjects, resulting in a firestorm of controversy. To this day human demi relations in those countries remain somewhat strained, with some radical members of the partial community advocating secession or rebellion from human society.

AIs: One of the more recent kind of being to emerge on Nexus, AIs were only made possible after technology recovered in the aftermath of the Second Great Invasion was analysed and reverse engineered. As this technology is classified and restricted to the member nations of EXTIRG AIs themselves are extremely rare and exclusively militaristic in design although rumours persist of other nations or even corporations developing their own AI research in secret. Despite popular fear of AIs “escaping onto the network” and growing out of control all current AI designs require specialised hardware and are thusly limited to a single system existence. AI's are able to generate aura, despite this previously being assumed to be impossible for non living creatures. The going theory is that aura generation somehow arises naturally from a sufficiently complex system such as a sentient mind, though how or why is a mystery.

Golems: Although they can in some ways be thought of as the magical equivalent of AIs Golems are much older, the art of golemancy dates back almost six thousand years. Despite this examples of truly sentient golems are extremely rare, the product of exceptional skill and experience on the part of their creators. The majority of golems are therefore automatons of varying degrees of complexity but even these simple golems have a wide variety of applications especially for manual labour and combat as they tend to be highly resistant to damage. Sentient golems, like AI's are able to generate aura but this phenomenon is rare and was never accepted in mainstream academia prior to the discovery of AI aura generation. Previously golem aura generation was thought to be a matter of trickery, with the creator somehow secretly supplying aura. The AI breakthrough prompted a re investigation of golem sentience that resulted in the discovery and also lead to a number of golems being recognised as sentient when they had previously been assumed to be merely highly sophisticated automatons.

Fae: A mysterious race, besides incredibly powerful magic Fae possess the troubling ability to pass through interdimensional walls almost at will, or at least with far greater ease than any other race. Fortunately they appear content to use this powerful ability to deceive, harass and generally act like pests rather than true threats however they have been known to carry of beings that catch their eye back to the Fae realm to act as slaves in their hedonistic, loosely feudal society. The Fae appear as exceedingly beautiful humans, at least to humans while other races report them as bearing their own appearance suggesting that the Fae project an extremely sophisticated illusion either by technique or some kind of evolved survival mechanism. No Fae currently reside permanently in Nexus although infrequent sightings persist.

Half Fae: Possibly even rarer than their full blooded cousins, half fae are naturally enough the product of interbreeding between the fae and some other race. They tend to be naturally beautiful and usually possess some insect-like features, often butterfly wings or antennas leading some to speculate that the Fae’s true appearance is some kind of highly intelligent bug like species. Half fae are often quite frail but have a natural aptitude for magic and are frequently described as charismatic but eccentric.

Demons: (written by shadowell) just this word alone conjures up all sorts of thoughts and images usually unpleasant ones. It is the same within many worlds, and Nexus is no different. What humans know about demons is true to an extent, they do indeed have a great capacity for cruelty and maliciousness, but mostly they stay within their realm. This does not apply to all demons however, as many demons unlike most beings that dwell within separate realms, can cross over to our world, by using any of several ways. The first option is that they must be extremely powerful, though demons this powerful tend to stay in their realm where they are strongest unless something really catches their eye, Option two is they can possess someone, though usually only extremely weak demons do this, most use the third option, Option three is they can be summoned or make a contract with a human, and enter our realm using the humans life energy, though this only applies if the human doesnt possess magic. Unfortunately those that summon demons tend to bring and draw the worst of their kind. What is not well known is that demons have been in this world since long before the Great invasions, they were rare but they were still here, and demons were and sometimes still are responsible for many of those who become targets for assassination. Demons are rather diverse in their abilities and appearances, while in their home realm they can change their appearances at will. Most demons possess the ability to manipulate hellfire, though this only applies to those that do'nt represent an Element. Elemental demons are monstrously powerful though they have equal weaknesses in the form of their elemental counterpart, ie darkness and Shadow demons are weak to Light, fire demons to water, etc, They can pass through realms regardless of power, though if they arent strong enough they will be severely injured and their power weakened.

Early History
Like many others, the history of Nexus is one drenched in violence and death. The first race to inhabit Nexus was undoubtedly humans, traces of human settlements stretch back for hundreds of thousands of years and well predate evidence of other sentient species. Most experts agree that humans evolved on Nexus and are native to it however a more controversial theory holds that humans migrated to Nexus from another dimension in the same manner as most other sapient species. Whatever the case, early human settlements gradually evolved in terms of size and sophistication however the frequent arrival of extra dimensional entities and threats both encouraged a natural inclination towards war like pursuits and also the means to do so. Reverse engineered weaponry or carefully replicated new styles of magic ensured that the pace of military advancement always remained breakneck. However these new advancements could appear almost anywhere, the country that was weak and insignificant one day could the next develop some new weapon or else acquire the services of some powerful mage, all of a sudden becoming a rival for even the mightiest of nations.
This turbulence lead to many bloody conflicts, as nations struggled to prove their newfound supremacy and others sought to maintain their superiority. In order to o counter these sudden developments almost every country began to develop some expertise in and reliance on the field of assassination. If a rival nation was close to developing some new superweapon or had acquired some new ally with unheard of abilities than it was often safer and more effective to quietly assassinate them rather than face them head on.

The age of shadow wars
As time marched on, wars began to be waged more and more in the shadows as assassination became more developed. Gradually public opinion of the traditionally ill-regarded art began to shift. To the common person who could expect to be conscripted and have their lives at risk in the case of a general war it made more sense that those in power should put their own lives on the line by risking assassination if they felt strongly enough about going to war with one of their neighbours. Although countries continued to maintain armies as safeguards, constant warfare was no longer the norm and the technological innovations of the military world gradually began to be turned to civilian purposes, spurring on rapid improvements in technology and living standards.

There was very little changes in borders during this time, the rulers of larger nations were less inclined to launch unnecessary wars of conquest when it was their own necks on the line. There were some exceptions, the Yokotai Shanate expanded rapidly during this era by targeting key leaders prior to their invasions. Reducing the chances of retaliation, the Yokotai Shans were also all formidable warriors and stories abound of them fighting off hordes of assassins singlehandedly. In general however, national borders tended to be much less fluid, allowing relations to normalize and trade to flourish, further spurring the pace of development and allowing much of the resentment stemming from previous to fade. This new mood of international cooperation would prove to be vital for the upheaval that was to signal the end of this era.

The First Great Invasion
For much of history it was believed that crossing into Nexus from another realm was impossible to intentionally achieve. The few interdimensional beings who could be asked about it described the experience as accidental, the result of a catastrophic error during an experiment or commonly after unleashing too much power during a battle. It was widely held amongst the scientific community of the time that intentionally crossing over dimensions was impossible and beyond that establishing some kind of permanent gateway or portal between worlds was a complete pipe dream.

The First Great Invasion proved otherwise.

The first indications that an entire world was about to be invaded were rather small scale. In the country on Elterna, the small standing national army encountered an unfamiliar scouting party, sparking a brief battle. Despite being heavily outnumbered and armed with primitive looking bows and arrows the foreign scouts put up a fierce resistance, wielding sophisticated martial arts techniques and unfamiliar magic to inflict heavy losses on the Elternans. None of the scouts surrendered but the post action investigation and autopsy concluded that they were neither human nor of any other species known to inhabit Nexus. Although it was only later that they received the name, these were the first elves to stand on Nexus. The Elternan government concluded that the scouts were from another dimension, however they dismissed the possibility that they were an early vanguard of a much larger invasion and few if any pre-emptive measures were taken so when the portal first opened Elterna was completely unprepared.

The scouts were from a realm known as Miravere, although far less technologically advanced than Nexus it was gifted with powerful and advanced magic, magic powerful enough that one particularly talented mage was able to conquer the entire planet. However having learned of the existence of other dimensions through his research, the sorcerer known as Nergal immediately began planning to expand his territory beyond even the bounds of his own world. The precise workings of the portal Nergal created are unknown, not even to those few of his high ranking officers who surrendered knew much more than that it required an immense number of souls to power it and it was linked directly to Nergal's own magic and could not be maintained without him. The portal allowed for thousands or even millions of beings to be transported from Miravere to Nexus at once, paving the way from an invasion of unprecedented scale. A significant portion of Miravere's entire population had been drafted into Nergal's army and the first invasion wave completely dwarfed any standing army on Nexus and appeared without warning in the heart of Elterna. The nation was overrun within days, with its leaders barely able to escape to allied countries even as the invaders turned their attention to neighbouring areas. Nation after nation fell to an unceasing wave of all sorts of unknown races and creatures. Elves, dwarves, Halflings, orcs and enormous monsters such as trolls, ogres and dragons all were first introduced to Nexus as soldiers or living weapons in Nergal's army. As the scale of the invasion became apparent other nations began to build up their forces and form hastily concluded alliances. The allied forces succeeded in halting the momentum of the invaders at the battle of the Iron Ring Mountains. After fighting a desperate retreat for several days, what was left of the Elternan army and its allies was finally joined by other armies from further away that were able to encircle the Miraveran vanguard and force the rest of the invaders to fall back. Although in terms of raw number the victory was a mere drop in the bucket it provided a vital boost to the flagging moral of the defenders and, just as vitally, provided them with their first high ranking prisoners and therefore actionable intelligence.

For the invaders however the battle of the Iron Ring was a minor setback for with the next offensive Nergal himself joined the battle. His magical ability was on a completely different scale to anything the world had ever seen, questioning of captured Miraverans after the war ended revealed that his abilities were powered by constantly draining the souls of thousands of slaves at a time, requiring a constant influx of new victims. Singlehandedly he destroyed entire national armies, calling down unimaginable destructive power on firmly entrenched defensive positions, obliterating everything before him and forcing the scattered remnants of the defenders to flee from the mountain pass they had hoped to bottle up the defenders behind. However as powerful as he was, Nergal had also undone himself by crossing over to take the field himself. Realising that they could never hope to defeat Nergal and his army in open battle, the remnants of the Nexus armies hatched a desperate plan to assassinate him. The elite soldiers of the armies, special forces veterans who would have been the best suited to take on this task had largely been wiped out however, in desperation the governments turned to mercenaries, putting out an open call for anyone willing to take on the sorcerer. Veteran killers from across the globe answered the call, mercenaries and hitmen of every stripe driven by the promise of incredible rewards should they succeed assembled but in the end only ten were deemed to have even a chance of taking on Nergal. While these ten prepared to infiltrate the enemy lines the remnants of the armies as well as many of the mercenaries who elected to join them created a distraction by launching a suicidal night time offensive into the enemy's centre.

The ensuing chaos had the intended effect of luring out Nergal, who joined the battle and was subsequently engaged by the ten assassins. The showdown lasted for several hours and nine of the ten assassins were killed but finally Nergal was slain, the effects of which were immediately obvious. Almost all of the monsters in the Miraveran army went berserk and started attacking the soldiers around them, apparently having been controlled by Nergal's magic rather than any training. This combined with the confusion wrought by the sudden lack of leadership was enough to rout the invading army and they retreated back to the portal only to find it destroyed by Nergal's death. The Miraverans were surrounded and after a tense standoff of three days called for a ceasefire and surrendered peacefully. With no way to get home the Miraverans were allowed to settle on Nexus, split up between several of the nations within the region and with that another age of peace was ushered in.

Modern era

The first great invasion had a profound impact on the world of Nexus. Many of the formerly powerful regions in the area around Elterna were devastated and depopulated and almost every nations sent soldiers to fight the invaders and suffered significant losses, especially Elterna and its neighbors where the fighting largely took place. At the same time various destabilising influences meant the depleted armies of these nations were needed more than ever. While the majority of the Miraverans surrendered peacefully a significant percentage escaped into the wilderness to wage a long lasting guerrilla war, in fact even though the last nations to formally end suppression campaigns did so at least thirty years ago rumors and urban legends persist of diehard holdouts sequestered deep in the mountains. At the same time almost all of the magical creatures that were part of Nergal’s army ran amok and were never rounded up. Some of Nexus' most dangerous and troublesome creatures. Dire wolves, Horse spiders (so named not because they appear near or feed on horses but because they are roughly the size of a large horse), ogres and even giants and dragons trace their origins back to the first great invasion. Their populations in the present day have been much reduced but consistent effort but for many years they required the intervention of the armed forces or increasingly the hiring of mercenaries. In fact the modern era saw increasing reliance on hired mercenaries and assassins. The shadow wars of previous eras returned but, in light of the depletion of their own special forces and the mood of international goodwill in populations all over the globe due to cooperation during the war governments began to rely on hired assassins to insure plausible deniability and to allow their own forces to rebuild. The intention must have been to rely only temporarily on private assassins but as they grew in wealth and experience the gap in capability between hired assassins and government forces only wider and eventually it became too much of a disadvantage for any one nation to return to the previous model.

Assassins began to grow in both importance and infamy throughout the modern era, the general public saw them as a necessary evil who ended wars before they started and left ordinary people alone while in between assassinations they were often hired to take on dangerous criminals and monsters that no one else could handle. These sorts of mission increased the spotlight on assassins and some of the most successful began to acquire a kind of celebrity status, it was during this period that the first assassin fan groups began surfacing in online chat groups and forums and it was during the this period that the International Assassin's Guild made its move.

The guild, or the IAG as it prefers to be known was originally a shadow organization comprised of some five hundred members, both assassins and other professionals that worked with them, brokers, suppliers and those that covered up their tracks and the like. The guild was originally formed to share information and pool resources and to settle issues such as price undercutting or oversaturation of assassins in any one area but in the modern era it emerged from the shadows to present its case to the governments of the world.

Assassins, the IAG argued, had become indispensable to the current world order. High level and freely available assassins allowed nations to maintain their interests and security with the minimum expenditure of public good will and resources however the industry was currently held back by the necessity of working in the shadows making it difficult to recruit and develop new assassins and leaving the market vulnerable to wild fluctuations in price. It was in the best interests, not just of assassins everywhere but for the nations of the world as well to legalise assassination in certain circumstances and allow the IAG to oversee and regulate assassins the world over.

The issue was initially controversial but public support was high and one by one nations began passing laws to these effects and today assassination is respected as a legitimate and important career path.

The second Great Invasion

Something of a misnomer as the Second Great Invasion was nowhere near the scale of the first it did, however, mark the second occasion on which a large scale force purposefully crossed into Nexus from another dimension with hostile intent.
Some fifteen years ago an immense object appeared in space just out of orbit above Nexus, which closer examination revealed to be unquestioningly artificial in nature. In fact it was a ship, belonging to a race known as the Firaxons and codenamed by Nexus governments as Harbinger and shortly after arriving it began probing national defenses with small raids and scouting parties.
Fortunately unlike the First Great Invasion the governments of the world were much more prepared and a taskforce was rapidly assembled to deal with the threat as had been agreed upon in secret treaties signed not long after the end of the First Invasion. Named Taskforce Omega and comprised of some of the finest researchers, engineers, commandos and assassins in the world, this taskforce immediately began taking the fight to the Firaxons. Although they themselves were limited in number, the Firaxons’ ship had the capacity to manufacture a seemingly unlimited number of sophisticated and highly dangerous robotic drones. In order to secure a final victory the taskforce launched a daring raid on Harbinger by means of a captured alien landing craft that culminated in the alien ship crashing into the Chexan desert of Culao. None of the aliens are thought to have survived the crash but the wreckage was recovered for further study. While none of the raid team survived the impact either the rest of Taskforce Omega was reformed into EXTIRG (Extra-dimensional Threat International Response Group) to permanently remain vigilant against the possibility of extra dimensional invaders.

a political map of Nexus



Prominent Nations

The following, while no means exhaustive, is a brief introduction to the most powerful and influential nations on the planet.

Alterra
The most economically and militarily powerful nation on Nexus, Alterra was formed when a large wave of Staldrish settlers set out to reach the resource rich Tooralia by way of an untested new route in order to stake a claim on its then unexplored eastern sea board. Instead the settlers made land on the undiscovered continent of Arcos. Thinking they had reached their goal, they settled down in a favourable location and founded the city of Newralia. Newralia was quickly conquered by a regionally powerful tribe of native Arcosians but allowed to maintain much of its independence and eventually became an important center of trade and technological development. Much later, Newralia would become the birthplace of the federation movement, a move to unite all the tribes of the Alterran region under one banner in response to aggressive colonization attempts by the Staldrish Crown. A war in which the seemingly outgunned federation forces squared off against the might of the Staldrish Empire saw Alterra achieve an unexpected victory and assert its independence.
During the first great invasion Alterra remained relatively unscathed as the Miraverans never made it to Arcos in significant numbers and the widespread devastation allowed the fledgling Alterran manufacturing sector to expand rapidly to fill the need for reconstruction.
Alterra used its newfound economic strength to expand its military strength and take on an increasingly prominent role in global politics. Alterra was pivotal during the second great invasion, proposing and supplying the majority of funding for EXTIRG (Extra dimensional Threat Response Group) the international team that defended Nexus from Firaxon attacks and eventually infiltrated and scuttled the alien ship code named Harbinger, resolving the crisis.
Presently Alterra remains actively involved in world affairs, using its influence to push for greater international cooperation on security and economic matters. Alterra enjoys a varied natural ecosystem and some of the largest cities in the pleasant and its citizens have some of the greatest civil and political freedoms of any populace in the world, especially in regards to their unrivalled freedom to own and exercise highly dangerous weaponry.

I____.Population: XXXX_ I
I_____.Economy: XXXXX I
I_Military Power: XXXXX I
I___.Civil Rights: XXXX_ I
I___.Technology: XXXXX I
I_Magical Power: XX___ I
I__Martial Arts: XXX__ I



Yokotai
Second only to Alterra in terms of overall power, Yokotai has been the largest and most populous nation on the planet for over two centuries. Yokotai was formed when the wealthy and advanced empire of Shai Tan was conquered by a tribe of fierce horse people from the Yakan plains. The combination of hardy nomadic warriors and the economic and logistical prowess of the Shai Tan peoples proved exceptionally powerful and the new empire expanded rapidly. Fearing the corrupting influence of Shai Tan decadence, the Yokotai Shan mandated that both the core of his army and his nobles alternated their time between residing in Shai Tan, overseeing their profitable holdings and returning to the plains to live in privation and hone the skills that made them so deadly. This also had the effect of making sure difficult nobles did not have the time to solidify their power bases and rebel, keeping the central power of the emperor strong. Although Yokotai had periods of decline as well as ascension it remained a power throughout much of history. However by the beginning of the age of Shadows the empire had been in a long period of decline, fostered by weakening imperial power, widespread corruption and effective control by the officials and servants of the court. Finding the situation intolerable, a small group of military officers marched on the capital with popular support, ostensibly to restore true power to the emperor but effectively installing an efficient military dictatorship. Although nominally Yokotai remains a monarchy to this day it is in truth run by high ranking military officers although the emperor remains an important symbolic figure.
The military government reversed many of the court faction’s isolationist policies, allowing Yokotai to benefit from the aftermath of the first great invasion and develop its economy as Alterra had. Although it has been historically reluctant to engage in joint operations the Yokotai Command recognised the threat of the second great invasion and contributed heavily to EXTIRG, earning it much of the international good will it enjoys to this day. Presently Yokotai is struggling with a general economic downturn and several separatist and secessionist factions which the government has responded to with harsh use of military force however it remains a significant and influential world power.

I____.Population: XXXXX I
I_____.Economy: XXX__ I
I_Military Power: XXXXX I
I___.Civil Rights: X____ I
I___.Technology: XXX__ I
I_Magical Power: XXXX_ I
I__Martial Arts: XXXXX I


The Council of Seven
The Council was formed in the aftermath of the First Great Invasion, the seven nations most affected by the invasion who had been notable powers before the war were afterwards were left shadows of their former selves and struggled to fend off old rivals. Out of desperation these seven nations entered into a multi-lateral alliance, although they are technically separate nations, in defence and international matters they act as a single political entity. Although they struggled to recoup their losses, the newly formed council had one great advantage. The vast majority of the captured Miraverans chose to settle within these seven nations and to this day the Council of Seven is home to the vast majority of the world’s Miraveran peoples. These new arrivals were happy to contribute their knowledge of the powerful magic of their home world in return for fair treatment and this allowed the Council to far outstrip other nations in terms of magical research, an advantage it maintains to this day. Like Alterra, the Council is strongly in favor of international cooperation and the two are good allies although the Council is somewhat infamous for being secretive and conducting espionage on other nations to maintain its magical advantage.
The member nations of the Council of Seven are: Cerias, Belendania, Fanice, Jernea, Lupo, Lusignan, Merrous. Information about the member nations can be found in the supplementary section under Council of Seven information.



I____.Population: XXX__ I
I_____.Economy: XXXX_ I
I_Military Power: XX___ I
I___.Civil Rights: XXX__ I
I___.Technology: XXX__ I
I_Magical Power: XXXXX I
I__Martial Arts: XXXX_ I


Byzena
The historic and present day rival of Yokotai, prior to that nation’s rise Byzena was far and away the largest and most powerful empire the world had ever seen and even during Yokotai’s heights Byzena presented a stubborn barrier to westward expansion. Ancient Byzena was originally centred on the Green Sea, the large body of water surrounded in modern times by the Council of Seven to the West, Yokotai to the East and the Bysakion coast to the south. In fact the majority of Byzena’s modern territory was only incorporated at the very height of its power after which the empire entered into a steep decline that saw the conquest or secession of most of its key territories. Originally a small city state on the coast of the Green Sea, Byzena expanded at a steady pace through conflict and careful diplomatic maneuverings until it controlled the entirety of the southern and western coasts of the green sea, bringing it into conflict with Yokotai as the two empires battled for naval dominance.
The conflict was a drawn out stalemate for long periods of history but eventually ended with Yokotai superiority. The resulting deficiency in Byzenan naval strength allowed many important cities and territories to be conquered or rebel and the imperial family was forced to flee south into the cold and sparse Laksana region where it managed to cement a new, if weaker power base. Although it never regained its full imperial glory, the new Byzena remained a powerful entity and would even colonize significant overseas holdings, including large swathes of the distant continent of Tooralia. However the modern age saw Byzena struggle to keep pace with modernizing rivals as longstanding social problems related to the inequality between the transplanted northern nobility and the much poorer native Laksanans, culminating in the Red and White war, a vicious civil conflict between the royalist white faction and the populist, socialist red faction. The war was bloody but inconclusive and after twelve years of exhausting hostilities the two factions agreed to a truce and Byzena transitioned into an uneasy democratic government in which both sides had equal rights to appeal to the populace for election. Presently Byzena remains politically tense, the white faction has held power for four straight election cycles amidst swirling accusations of vote rigging and endemic corruption while protests and media reporting on these issues have been suppressed.


I____.Population: XXXXX I
I_____.Economy: XXX__ I
I_Military Power: XXXX_ I
I___.Civil Rights: XX___ I
I___.Technology: XXX__ I
I_Magical Power: XXX__ I
I__Martial Arts: XXXX_ I

Tooralian Socialist Union

A far off and exotic land, Tooralia has always had an air of mystery and adventure, at least to the people of other continents. Tooralia is rich in may resources but is known for its harsh deserts and lush jungles and rare and dangerous creatures that call them home. It was the subject of colonisation efforst by the rival empires of Byzena and Yokotai, sparking a decades long conflict known as the scramble for Tooralia. The two empires seized control of much of Tooralia, enslaving the locals, enforcing their own cultures and exploiting the resources to fuel their conflict with each other. The colonies never established control over the central region, where the terrain and wildlife was most dangerous, but the more populous coastal regions were firmly controlled. During the modern age Byzenan, socialist theory was imported to the colonies and found fertile ground, eventually growing into the a resistance movement that first threw off the Byzenan rulers weakened by civil war and then conducted a long guerilla war to evict Yokotaian influence, giving birth to the Tooralian Socialist Union. Currently the TSU is considered the weakest of the major powers but still very much a major power, it is struggling to modernize and improve standards of living, infrastructure is a particular challenge with the central regions being particularly challenging to travel through to this day. The TSU armed forces actually make use of the local fauna to navigate through these areas, these fearsome beasts serve a variety of roles and can compete on equal footing with modern military vehicles, indeed they actually outperform them when fighting in their home territory. Despite appearing monolithic to outsiders the TSU is actually a patchwork of former guerilla groups turned governments all with differing regulations and laws. They are nominally all sub committees that answer to a central government but in practice have a great deal of autonomy and some TSU terriotry is effectively ungoverned/

I____.Population: XXXXX I
I_____.Economy: XX___ I
I_Military Power: XX___ I
I___.Civil Rights: XX___ I
I___.Technology: XX___ I
I_Magical Power: XX___ I
I__Martial Arts: XXX__ I

Kai Nen

A far off and remote archipelago, Kai Nen is shrouded in mystery even to its neighbours and that is exactly the way the secretive nation prefers it. Separated from the powerful and expansionistic Yokotai Shanate by only a short channel, the Kai Neni have had to struggle to maintain their independence by any means necessary. By far their most powerful weapon in this fight has been the clans, secretive organisations bound to each other by blood and tradition, training in seclusion to master the traditional arts of assassination and sworn to defend the nation from all threats. In fact Kai Nen has grown to rely so much on the clans that most acknowledge the national government, a decentralised constitutional monarchy, to be little more than a figurehead for the Kage the heads of the clans to wield true power from behind. It is certain that the Kage hold a great deal of influence but the true extent of their power is not fully known, many suspect that they have made inroads into other nations through shell companies and branch organisations acting on behalf of the major clans. Whatever the truth is Kai Nen is an undeniably beautiful country, if rugged, known for snowy mountains and misty forests. The standard of living seems high and technology is widely available but in many respects the Kai Neni way of life holds onto the traditions of centuries past.


I____.Population: XXX__ I
I_____.Economy: XXX__ I
I_Military Power: X____ I
I___.Civil Rights: XXX__ I
I___.Technology: XXX__ I
I_Magical Power: XXX__ I
I__Martial Arts: XXXX_ I

[Atlannia]

Part Two: The Academy!

Founded in the early stages of the modern era, Assassination Academy was created with exactly one purpose. Creating world class assassins. The academy is located on Princip Island in the Varos Ocean, roughly equidistant between the continents of Varona and Arcos. The island is not a part of any nation and is owned entirely by the Academy itself, though there are private enterprises and residents who are neither students nor staff present the entire island is technically academy grounds. Students can travel to the academy by their own means at any time if they wish to study there but promising potential students, particularly those that do not have the resources to reach the island themselves, are extended invitations and should they accept their travel expense are covered. Naturally, world class assassins are exceptional people and to produce them reliably the academy must employ some exceptional means, as detailed in the rules below.

One: The academy accepts no upfront payment of fees nor does it accept student loans. In fact, enrolment in the academy is completely free and subject to know restrictions whatsoever. Once enrolled students must pay for everything else, board, utilities, school books and equipment, extracurricular activities, even the classes they wish to attend. However none of these things can be paid for with typical currency, instead students must earn Academy points, an internal currency issued for scoring highly on tests, winning various competitions and, most importantly, accepting and completing job requests, mercenary work offered by various outside groups and people. Once a job request is complete the client pays directly to the school in normal currency, which goes towards teacher salaries, maintenance and other costs associated with running a school. Meanwhile the student receives a proportionate amount of Academy points that they can spend on everything from better accommodation and food to more lessons, more powerful weaponry, or even outlandish items like robot servants or personal vehicles.

Two: Students may, at any time and any place within the academy grounds attempt to assassinate other students. This isn't a strictly accurate term, advanced (and highly classified) technology within the academy's off-limits lower levels somehow prevents any students from dying within the grounds (fighting other students outside the academy is grounds for immediate expulsion). Upon defeating another student in this fashion the victor receives a certain percentage of their aced my points as a reward, dependent upon the relative ranks of the two students, defeating someone higher ranked grants a larger percentage while someone lower down will naturally be less (Higher ranked students also tend to have more academy points at any given time.) There also special privileges which can only be earned by defeating particular students.

Three: In order to graduate, students must earn and retain a title. Students to do not progress from year to year and then graduate from the Assassination Academy by simply attending class or by meeting a certain academic standard. Instead students must earn and retain until the end of the year a special title: in order for first years to graduate to second year they must become a Count, for second years to graduate to third year they must become Dukes and in order for third years to graduate fully from the academy they must become King.

A title can be earned by placing high enough during the assassination tournaments held at the start off every school year, there are always 100 count titles, 20 duke titles and one kingship up for grabs. However, at any point after that a title can be stolen by assassinating its current holder, whoever holds the title at the end of the year graduation ceremony is the one who graduates. It should also be noted that a title can be held by any year levels below the one it is intended for, i.e a first year may hold a dukeship or the kingship, a second year can also hold the kingship but not a countship and third years can only hold the kingship. Holding a title above one's year level will allow one to graduate and award a hefty bonus in academy points however it is exceedingly rare for lower year students to retain a title in this fashion until the end of the year, they are often the target of coordinated assaults by their seniors who consider it a point of pride not to let their precious titles languish in the hands of less experienced students for very long.

Four: Anything that causes lasting harm is grounds for expulsion. Because students can revive from death and heal any injuries sustained within academy grounds are relatively few ways to really inflict permanent trauma on someone. Actions that do, such as inflicting mental trauma, harming another student while outside academy grounds or attempting to circumvent the academy's safeguards. the academy is intended to be a place where anyone with the will to improve improves, if someone loses part of themselves as a consequence of their time with the academy it represents a fundamental failure of that ideal.

Five: Apart from these rules there are no other rules. There are no consequences for failing to pass a year except that it will take a year longer to graduate (some students have taken as long as thirty years to graduate). There are no consequences for failing to earn enough academy points except that anything students cannot pay for will be rescinded, even with zero points students can sleep in the Academy Park and receive a subsistence diet. Teachers may expel students who they consider disruptive from their own classes (students may appeal these decisions to have their points refunded if they feel the teacher's decision was unfair) Every consequence unfolds naturally as a result of one's actions, most students who fail to earn points and pass years simply drop out, those who fail but stick it out and remain often improve and go on to become some of the academy's finest students. Nothing at Assassination Academy is given freely but nothing is taken unfairly either.

Unlike in most educational institutes, the student of Assassination Academy are free to do as they please with their time, in general however to be successful students must acquire Academy points and invest them wisely in lessons that will be beneficial to their style of assassination and so in practice the lives of most students tend to revolve around those.

Classes: It is exceptionally rare for a student to enter into the academy already possessing the skills and experience sufficient to see them through to the end of their third year. Therefore if a student wishes to graduate they must spend some of their precious Academy points on classes. While not cheap, the classes at Assassination Academy are taught by some of the finest assassins in the world and there is no substitute for the expertise and experience they bring to the table. The Academy has experts on a wide array of disciplines, both those directly related to assassination and other more esoteric subjects for those students wishing to round out their education. If it happens that a student wishes to study something that no one already on staff is able to teach to the Academy's stringent standards then a teacher will be located and temporarily hired through the Academy's contacts at the IAG, although this requires the payment of an additional fee of Academy points. Students can register for an upcoming class at any time and most teachers structure their classes in such a way that each lesson is beneficial even without attending the others. Some teachers do offer more structured, long term courses and in these cases it is recommended that students save up and book all of the subsequent classes at the same time. Naturally these classes are not cheap and so most students devote a certain amount of time to the task of earning Academy points to finance them.

Jobs: Certain individuals, companies and even governments are authorised to offer mercenary contracts to the student body of the academy. Compared to hiring a fully-fledged IAG assassin hiring academy students and the students gain invaluable, on the job experience so the situation is one of mutual benefits. The fees from these jobs go towards maintaining the Academy and paying staff wages while the students themselves are reimbursed with Academy points to spend on lessons, board, food or luxuries. Jobs are ranked in difficulty from F through to A and above that are restricted S rank jobs. To ensure the academy's reputation remains intact students must prove themselves capable before undertaking higher ranked jobs, usually be earning a certain number of Academy points from assassinating other students or excelling in various tournaments or other competitions. Jobs can be viewed and accepted at the notice board in the centre of Port Bonnier.

Assassination: At any time students may engage their fellow students in combat, the highly advanced and classified technology at the heart of the academy prevents these engagements from ever being lethal but they are a good way of earning experience and academy points. It is important to note that before an assassination can be attempted one must normally register their intended target at the admin desk, defeating unregistered targets will be counted as collateral damage and result in a point deduction except for under special circumstances however students may register anyone as their target at any time and register multiple targets at the same time, students can even ask for a random target to be assigned to them or for staff to select a target of roughly equal strength. A registration fee of points must be payed when preparing an assassination and in the event that the assassin is defeated this fee is forfeited. However after a successful assassination the fee is not only refunded but a percentage of the target's academy points are deducted and given to the victor as a reward, the percentage depending upon the relative strength of the target and assassin, attacking a lower ranked student will result in a smaller payout while punching above one's weight is rewarded with more risk but a greater reward.

Tournaments: Although infrequent, tournaments are an important part of the academy's culture and a useful source of points and experience as well as being fun. The academy hosts all sorts of tournaments throughout the year, some are focused on assassination in the normal manner, participants are organised into a bracket with opponents simultaneously registered with each other as targets, the victor moving on and the defeated dropping out until only one assassin is left standing. Many tournaments have different rules however, some are focused around particular disciplines, such as the Winter magic league or the Spring festival of swords, although the goal is still to defeat one's target participation is restricted to those who practice the relevant art, making them suitable for students who wish to test their skills against similar opponents, often times these tournaments have more stringent rules than the more freeform assassination tournaments, frequently focusing on an honest, head to head fight inside a ring, making them popular spectator events. It should also be noted that student organised tournaments are becoming more common, these typically involve paying an entry fee, with the winner taking the combined fees as a prize and are usually organised through the standard registration fee. The academy does not discourage students from these sorts of activities although it does warn these can sometimes be traps for inexperienced students.

Extracurricular clubs: By paying a small fee, students can register an extracurricular club and invite other students to join. The academy does not oversee clubs in any fashion, instead leaving such matters to the club president but they can be an excellent way of meeting like-minded students. Typically most clubs have a membership fee, with the proceeds going towards purchasing or renting equipment or renting out space to use to pursue club activities however plenty of clubs don't charge membership fees and either come up with creative ways to perform club activities for free or else centre their club around something free, a few clubs are actually paid for largely by the generosity of a few wealthy students while others still organise fundraisers such as bake sales or maid cafes.
Academy clubs are frequently tight knit, targeting a club member for assassination can result in being hunted for retribution by all of its members and many clubs have fierce rivalries with other clubs that occupy a similar niche, the weekly skirmishes between the pastry club and the baking club for example, while exceptionally bloody, have been accepted as a part of daily life by most students.

Princip Island


Key

Brown: Richmond Hall: The academy's main building and the heart of the island. Richmond Hall is host to a sizeable auditorium for presentations and assemblies as well as dormitory accommodation for beginner students, classrooms for theoretical lessons and general purpose use, administrative buildings, staff living quarters and state of the art medical facilities. While typically only beginner students reside there, all students must frequently return their to attend important classes, to formally make appeals against staff decisions or register a new club, to simply admire the beautiful and well maintained gardens or most importantly to register their intent to assassinate another student, meaning it is almost always busy. The hall is also home to a rather impressive library, boasting volumes on a wide array of subjects.

Yellow: Brutus athletic and fitness centre: A state of the art facility including both indoor and outdoor provisions for almost any activity imaginable, including a running track, sports field, indoor pool, gym, firing range, indoor courts and many others. A great deal of practical lessons are held in the athletic centre and it is a popular recreational destination for students in their free time, especially those belonging to one of the academy's many sports clubs. Students should note that using most of the centre's facilities outside of class requires paying a small fee of academy points.

Blue: Lugovoy Science and Technology wing: Every bit as advanced, some would say even more advanced, as the athletic centre, the Lugovoy building is home to a variety of specialised equipment for the use of students attempting to further their understanding of science in the name of assassination. The wing also includes facilities for the modifying and construction of weapons and other equipment as well as an observatory for astronomy. Many student clubs take advantage of the advanced facilities on offer in their spare time and the wing also has digital access to the Academy's extensive library.

Red: Sukesada Dojo: Lovingly constructed with traditional techniques, the dojo is a tranquil sanctuary ideal for mastering one's body and mind. Although as its name suggests the dojo is primarily used for instruction in martial arts, of both western and eastern variants it is also used for many other purposes, it is home to a rather elegant Zen garden where magical oriented students typically report that the mental focus and inner calm necessary for improving ones magic is easy to find. Unlike most facilities on the island the dojo is completely free to use although receiving instruction from one of the Academy's many masters is typically quite expensive.

Teal: Port Bonnier: A small, seaside town. Port Bonnier includes Docking and Immigration facilities so is naturally the first destination for any visitor to the island however it also includes a rather pleasant shopping district where students, teachers and civilians alike can purchase all sorts of items through a number of approved vendors or dine out at one of the many eateries and restaurants dotting the district. Port Bennier also has a small residential district where most of the civilians on the island elect to live as well as some staff. Students can also rent accommodation here with Academy points if they wish to invest them in privacy and comfort, this is a particularly popular option with second years who do not wish to share dorm space with first years but are not yet eligible for residence in Artabanus Manor.

Purple: Artabanus manor: Located on a smaller nearby island, Artabanus manor is a small but well-appointed residence exclusively available to third year students to ensure they can complete their final and most challenging ordeal in comfort, the isolated location of the dorm also minimises the risk of less experienced students getting caught up in the destructive battles of their veteran seniors.

[Atlannia]

Student Bulletin Board

This handy message board is your one stop shop for all news, updates and announcements relevant to your student life here at the academy, please refer back to it frequently.

Student Enrolment Forms

Would all new students please take and fill out one of the following forms for administrative purposes. If you are uncertain about any section of the form please refer to your student handbook or ask a member of staff.

Code: Select all

[u]Personal Information[/u]

[b]Name: [/b]
[b]Appearance: [/b](Pics are usually best but you can describe them in detail if you prefer. If your character differs from the picture you use in any way, e.g different, eye color, a tattoo, scar or birth mark not present in the pic, describe the changes in text.)
[b]Age:[/b] (The academy typically does not accept students younger than fourteen.)
[b]Birthplace:[/b](Where was your character born, if you aren't sure, refer to the lore tab and see what feels right for your character. If nothing catches then you can work with a co-op to fill in some of the blank areas with something that works for you)
[b]Nationality:[/b] (Again, consult the lore tab and the world map and see what feels right for your character, feel free to ask for more details about a particular area or work with a co-op or me to create something)
[b]Personality:[/b](What sort of person is your character? What do they like? dislike? What motivates them, what are some traits unique to them, that kind of jazz. We'd like a fairly good picture of who your character is so this should be at least a paragraph or two. Keep in mind that everybody has strengths and flaws, that's what makes em interesting)
[b]Biography:[/b](Hopefully fairly self-explanatory, what has shaped your character into the person they are today? Where did they come from and how did they acquire the skills, traits or equipment that gives them the potential to be an assassin? You can go into as much detail as you like but at least one or two paragraphs is probably necessary)
Theme Song: (a piece of music that suits your character or speaks to some aspect of their personality, entirely optional)

[u]Combat Information[/u]
[b]Equipment:[/b] (Anything that your character habitually carries into battle including weapons, armor, familiars, consumables and utility items and basically anything else you might think is relevant. You may wish to provide pictures or write descriptions for especially important pieces of equipment. It's important to note that your equipment is factored into the stat sheet below, it doesn't confer a material advantage on top of your stats unless the terrain or some aspect of a particular fight are well suited to your equipment. A long range battle favors a sniper rifle while cramped quarters suit melee weapons for example. Also, no copyright infringemenet please. Although it is possible for weapons and other items from different dimensions to end up in Nexus it is quite rare and it is rarer still for such items to be practical choices for budding assassins. The vast, vast majority of AA students use weapons and technology created on Nexus)
[b]Fighting style:[/b] (How does your character actually go about fighting? What kind of weapons or abilities do they use and what's their approach? Are they patient and methodical? An all-out berserker? Do they focus on extreme range or prefer to close in with stealth? Once again, your combat style is factored into the stat sheet below and does not usually confer an advantage on top of them unless you can argue it is particularly well suited for the situation you find yourself in.)
[b]strengths:[/b] (List the advantages your fighting style has, ensure these balance out with its weaknesses)
[b]weaknesses:[/b] (List the advantages your fighting style has, ensure these balance out with its strengths)

[b]Special moves:[/b] (Look this is a heavily shonen inspired RP okay? Your an assassin. Special moves come with the territory Your special moves should be powerful but come with drawbacks and limited use. You can have more than one special move if you wish but that's going to entail a trade-off between flexibility and power. The number and power of special moves you can have is determined by your special move stat and can temporarily influence your other stats.)

[u]Combat Statistics[/u]
(BE SURE TO READ THE COMBAT STATISTICS EXPLANATION TAB FOR INFORMATION ON HOW TO FILL THIS OUT. In addition to your numerical scores, please provide a short sentence or two justifying these scores, what techniques or equipment gives your character these capabilities? What weaknesses have resulted in their lower scores?)

[b]Power:[/b] (The raw ability to deal damage, both to enemy combatants and inanimate objects or even fortifications. This can include physical strength or skill with weaponry or raw magical power. A certain amount of power is usually necessary to assassinate any significant targets but should be balanced with other abilities. )

[b]Endurance:[/b] (Sort of the opposite of Power but not quite. Endurance is the measure of well one is able to keep fighting efficiently as a difficult fight rages. This can mean having high defensive capabilities to minimize incoming damage but someone who has high tolerance will also rate better in endurance as the damage they receive will impact their ability to fight less or at least take longer to do so. Endurance also factors in energy levels, assassins with high endurance are able to keep fighting for longer, whether through stamina or high levels of mental fortitude or aura.)

[b]Agility:[/b](Explained most broadly, agility is a measure of one's ability to be where you want when you want to be there. It takes into consideration speed naturally but also acceleration, deceleration, reflexes, turning speed, flexibility and capabilities such as controlled flight or teleportation that allow one to freely move around the battlefield.)
[b]
Intelligence:[/b](As measured by the academy Intelligence is the product of one's ability to effectively and rapidly use one's intellectual resources to alter the course of a battle. Someone who is highly knowledgeable in chemistry or even the theory of assassination but unable to think on their feet and bring that knowledge to bear against an enemy would not score highly in intelligence whereas someone with little formal education but a talent for reading opponents and quickly settling on a strategy that exploits enemy weaknesses and plays to their own strengths would score highly. Thusly Intelligence can refer to many different sorts of cognitive abilities but the common theme is that they are of use on the battlefield.)
[b]
Special Moves:[/b] (An assessment of the capability of one's special techniques to alter or even end outright a battle as well as the ability of one to employ them multiple times and execute them well. Students who score highly might be able to end an otherwise equal encounter in one strike under favorable conditions while those that score poorly tend to focus on more consistent abilities and strategies and their special moves, if they even have them, are weaker and have greater drawbacks.)
[u]
Odds and Ends[/u]

[b]RP example: [/b]Link me to a SPECIFIC POST that showcases your L33T rp skillz. If you don't have a good example to link to for whatever reason just write a couple of paragraphs about whatever you want, your character maybe. Don't stress out about this too much, it's more to help me learn about you then anything else and you won't be rejected solely on the basis of your rp example. If I have rped with you before you can probably skip this, you might have to remind me though.

[b]I Read the rules and am a cool person who agrees to abide by them:[/b](Say yes here, humour me.)

#NUMBAT (This is so I can easily search for apps that I missed, don't delete it. The numbat thing, not this text. This text you can delete and in fact you should do so. It isn't to be trusted this text. It contains dangerous secrets, why are you still reading it!? Quickly! Delete it now! Before you doom us all!)

(Allocating Statistic Points: Assassination Academy has transitioned from a simple, letter grade system to a more granular one hundred point scale. A score of 25 is considered the average human baseline, the equivalant of an adult human with no notable aptitude for the area in question but no real disadvantage either. Scores below 25 represent increasingly less capability until a zero which is someone totally incapable of anything related to that attribute. Scores above 25 represent increasingly closer to peak human performance and scores above 50 are increasingly super human. There also exists a special S rank for the student with the highest score in that attribute.

When creating a character you start with a score of 25 in everything and 50 points to allocate as you wish. So you would start with this.

Power: 25
Endurance: 25
Agility: 25
Intelligence: 25
Special moves: 25

and distribute your 50 points, perhaps like this.

Power: 45
Endurance: 45
Agility: 35
Intelligence: 25
Special moves: 25

You can also subtract points from your initial 25 and allocate them else where. Like so perhaps.


Power: 55
Endurance: 55
Agility: 35
Intelligence: 15
Special moves: 15

There are two important limitations here. One: Points subtracted from your starting score of 25 that take you below 15 are only worth half a point when reallocated elsewhere. So an arrangement like this.

Power: 56
Endurance: 55
Agility: 35
Intelligence: 14
Special moves: 15

Is invalid, there are no half points, so you would need to free up at least another point from below 15.

Power: 56
Endurance: 55
Agility: 35
Intelligence: 14
Special moves: 14

This is a valid arrangement.

The other limitation is that scores above 65 cost twice as many points for each point above 65. The arrangement below is not valid, I would need ten free points to reach a score of 70.

Power: 70
Endurance: 40
Agility: 35
Intelligence: 15
Special moves: 15

The arrangement below is valid.

Power: 70
Endurance: 35
Agility: 35
Intelligence: 15
Special moves: 15

In general the effect is that excessive specialization has a disproportionate effect on your overall capabilities. Do not that these limitations are only for your initial values, once you are improving your stats in the rp one point will always equal one point. If this all sounds somewhat confusing then starting with stats between 15 and 65 would probably be simpler

Enrolment Process Feedback Forms

What do you guys think of the app? Want something added? Removed? Just need something explained? Let me know what you think. Also if you happen to spot any typos or grammar errors, a lot of this was typed up late at night on very little sleep.

2017 Welcoming Committee
The welcoming committee was formed with the intention of helping new students integrate into the academy. New students are encouraged to direct questions towards and seek advice from any welcoming committee member.

These people are me and my co-ops and so constitute the law of this land so to speak. Direct any questions this way and respect their rulings when they come your way.

Atlannia

Drakmah / Novetta "Diesel Sky

Sonitusia / Koronian Robotics, Series L, Model 3

2017 New student intake.
Would all current students please give a warm welcome to our new arrivals. If you are a new student and your details are not listed below please contact administration.

The Knockout Gun Gals / Shizuka Minamoto

Truth Incarnate / Kyle Parker

Hothnia / Eva WIndsower

The Burning Sun / Octavia De Cadenza

Penguinia Tempor / Willow Lawniczak

Arkandros / Jack "Hammer" Stark

Kingdom of Irhk / Landon West Harling

Caltharus / Maurice Rubicon

New Finnish Republic / Matti Susi

Monopolgrad / Aiden "Switch" Brady

Dramatis Npcae

This is a list of all the npc's you've met, or some of them anyway. Some will be important contacts who give you unique opportunities. Others will be dangerous enemies. Some won't really be all that important. You'll also be able to create npcs although you won't necessarily be able to control them at will.

Code: Select all

 
[b]Name:[/b]

[b]Age:[/b]

[b]Year level:[/b]

[b]Appearance:[/b][spoiler]put the picture in here, for standardization purposes use spoiler tags even for a text description.[/spoiler]

[b]Personality:[/b]

[b]Known history:[/b]

[b]Known abilities and fighting style[/b]


Staff

---


Students

---

The History and Geography Club Wants You!

current members

Hank J Wimbleton

Sonitusia

The Burning Sun

You may have noticed that there are some gaps in the world building, I prefer to think of these as opportunities rather than gaps, if you want your character to have a background that isn't really covered by what's already here or you just have some cool ideas feel free to come up with some stuff and we can work it in probably. Lots of these countries on the world map don't even have names so there's plenty of room.

[Atlannia]

Handbook Supplementaries

The following information, while not included in the base student hand book, has been identified as potentially useful to students and thus included in this supplementary section

Technology, weaponry and equipment of Nexus


a list of prominent firearms manufacturing companies

Council of Seven information

Author: Hank J WImbleton

Britannian Institute of Ordnance Technologies

Author: Sonitusia

Yokotaian political structure

Author: Burning Sun

[Turmenista]

Hello tag?

[Shadowwell]

Will take a look at everything later, and rewrite the demons blurb.

Would a demi-half fae be allowed?

[Atlannia]

Hello tag?

Hi.

Will take a look at everything later, and rewrite the demons blurb.

Would a demi-half fae be allowed?

Sure, why not?



On that note though I really need to get some sleep. I'll be up in the morning to answer any other questions people have. If Drakmah and Sonitusia are around in the mean time they can answer as well.

[Turmenista]

Hello tag?

Hi.

Good. Tag machine fixed. I think I might've already discussed with you my plan for this on discord.

[Shadowwell]

I have been looking over the countries, trying to tie demos into the lore more in some way.

I was thinking that they could have been involved in the First Invasion, also what countries would most likely be involved in teh summoning of dangerous entities?

[Vulnier]

Tag.

[Drakmah]

Hey everyone, I've completed my application (I had access to the formatted app before the OOC was posted) and am posting it for people to reference if needed. Just a few notes about my application that need to be considered: Being that I am a Co-op, this character is both a second year student, and was given 90 points to invest in skills. Please continue to reference the OP in regards to the creation of first year students, along with the 50 points that are to be used for skills.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask them! I'll do my best to answer what I can.

Personal Information

Name: Novetta “Diesel” Sky

Underneath the mask Novetta has calloused facial impressions, the soft lines that once existed having grown rough over the years of her work into a tougher, more experienced expression. Small scratches and nips still exist as small white lines or dots, the history of her reputation painted onto her face like an autobiography. She has a small nose, and thin lips, with her only real noteworthy feature being her deep green, mirror like eyes. Seemingly visible for miles if one takes the time to look and if the light is right, Novetta’s eyes are the reason she now wears her mask while she works, the pale scar that runs down the side of her head being a reminder that her most redeeming quality would be in danger should she not keep them protected.

Age: 24

Birthplace: Rek’suun, Alterra

Nationality: Alterran

Personality: Novetta is a very straightforward, thrill oriented kind of person. She comes ripe with jokes, energy, and an attitude that is an awkward mix of optimism and sarcastic nihilism. Having not much care for her own well-being when off the island, the fact that death is not permanent at the academy has only increased her risk taking tendencies, leading to a very enthusiastic, danger prone assassin. This kind of mindset had ended in some not very fun infrastructure issues, however she always manages to come up with someone to help pitch into their reconstruction.

When not working in her machine shop, or when she’s not actively trying to blow things up, Novetta is a very cheerful person who loves the smell of gasoline in the afternoon and smoke in the evening. Her fascination with this kind of technology is what earned her the nickname “Diesel” and it's one she answers to and wears proudly. She gets along with anyone who wants to get along with her, and she is normally pretty good at scoping out those who are only there to play games with her. She’s never been much of a planner, and as such spends most of her life thinking on her feet. This has the tendency to leave her in poor positions, which she sometimes solves by blowing herself up.

Biography:

Novetta is the product of a complete lack of parental oversight combined with extended exposure to the Rek’suun death races. This might seem like something savage, the word death bringing with it a whole slew of connotations that present a very grisly mindset, however this mindset is one that belongs to outsiders. Having grown up in this environment, Novetta learned the ins and outs of this system, and thrived in the face of adversity, and understanding what that adversity was is key to understanding who she is as a person today.

Rek’suun is an infamous city that is located out in the Alterran desert. Buried beneath mountains of sand, the city carries its bad reputation by the fact that it has failed to modernize with the rest of the country, or rather, chosen not to. Being that it is located so far out in the desert, wicked sandstorms course all throughout the surrounding area, making getting to the city by most methods extremely difficult. Traditional intake jet engines are inoperable due to the sand that is constantly whipping around at high altitudes, and modern renewable vehicles are either blocked by the difficulties of travelling in the sand, or are not sealed well enough to keep the sand out of their electronic systems. While there are many modern vehicles that can get through the sand, many of them with great ease, the cost of operating those vehicles makes it infeasible for the masses who live in the area. Being that the sand makes modern technology so hard to use, the inhabitants of the desert, and of Rek’suun, chose instead to continue the use of more primitive technology, at least relative to their advanced neighbors, and rely on rigid, simply designed vehicles and structures, and on the powers of gasoline. The entire city is run on power that comes from either oil or gasoline, the fuel itself being taken from the still plentiful desert deposits. Being that the rest of Nexus has no real use for oil or gasoline now that they have advanced beyond that, the people of Rek’suun are free to take it and use it for their everyday needs. This includes using it to create electricity, using it to power their transportation, and using it to make their weapons.

These weapons are not the most advanced, most powerful contraptions available, however they are the only ones that can function in the conditions that they live in. It’s these conditions that allows the city to stay so autonomous, as the rest of Alterra has no real interest in keeping an eye on what goes on in this technologically forsaken desert. This is where the Death Races began, young people with far too much love for adrynalyne taking the cars that they had built, putting weapons on them, and racing around in a big circle whilst trying to shoot at each other. This complete lack of oversight didn’t last too long, however due to the difficulty, or more so the expense of enforcing anything more than basic law in the city, the Alterran government elected to allow the races to continue as long as they were completely optional, and that no innocent civilians were hurt in the matter. This lead to the races being hosted farther in the desert than the city was, and even a an enclave being set up that evolved into a small town where the races happened.

Now that they were officially sanctioned, the city of Rek’suun began to advertise the city, and the races, as a tourist event. People could take a break from their high tech lives, get in a gasoline powered car, take a long drive out into the desert and watch the Death Races, where people volunteered to get into decked out cars, before driving around and shooting at each other. Cars exploded, people died, and while the public denied their enjoyment of them the Races became the guilty pleasure of many Alterran people. They never made it to public television, what with people being killed in them, however this only increased people’s desire to go out and see them live. It became a culture, a culture that Novetta was born right into.

Novetta’s parents were young when they had her, or rather when her mother had her. By the time she was born her father had been killed driving in the races. Her mother was only 20, having had a very enjoyable night with her father after he had won the race he had been driving in. No thought had been put into what they did that night, and 9 months later Novetta was born. Her mother was a good women, but not strong enough to stick around, and so when Novetta was born her mother decided it was high time she move on with her life, and make something better for herself. That plan, unfortunately, did not include Novetta, and so when her mother left Rek’suun, she left behind her daughter.

Life was tough, as far back as she can remember at least. She somehow survived infancy, likely because someone took enough pity on her when she was a baby to take her in and feed her. Whoever that was saw their charity run out before Novetta was old enough to start remembering, as her earliest memories are of begging for food and money on the street. Now, despite what she went through, she was actually very lucky in a weird sense, mostly for the customs of Rek’suun and the traditions of the Death Races. Being that the desert city was able to run itself, they took a very strict policy on abuse, directing people to relieve their violent, or sexual urges out on the Raceway and not on each other. That translates to her luck because growing up, her pleas for food and money were always met with offers for work, never anything that no one her age should ever go through. This work, mostly using her small frame to get into places inside of cars and engines where bigger men could not, was the way in which she fed herself.

The core lessons you learn when you are young are the ones that stay with you for the rest of your life. For Novetta, those lessons were how to think on your feet, and how to know your way not only around an engine, around the rest of a gasoline car, but around weapons and ammunition as well. She slowly gained a real appreciation for the ways in which things exploded, and the process in which you can increase that explosive power. Being that she would do contract work for practically anyone who would hire her, she became well known around the Death Track and within the city. She never drove, being that she watched way too many people lose their lives on that track, but she herself always loved taking risks, and being able to tote the line between life and death was what always gave her the biggest thrill. This love is something that would only become more apparent at the academy, where death is no longer the final note, and is instead now just another line to cross.

Once she reached the age of 17, she stopped doing contract work for people and chose to open her own machine shop. This timing was not arbitrary, and was chosen because one of her most frequent employers left her a small building and many of their tools when they died, and being that they were a Death Race driver, that was something that was always approaching. She used the building and tools to make a name for herself, bigger than she already had, and the freedom of doing her own work, on her own terms, was a liberating feeling. When she wasn’t fixing up someone’s car, or machining new weapons, she was spending her time experimenting with all different kinds of explosives, something she gained a unmatched thrill from. No kind of proposed method of explosion was out of her comfort zone, and she would spend hours in the dunes trying to get the smoke to go higher than she’d ever have. It was a life that she enjoyed, a life that she felt she’d earned through her skill, and her hard work. She was happy, and it was a good thing. This happiness, like all good things, would eventually come to an end, and that end was dubbed the “Great Disaster”.

The Great Disaster was a product of the lack of oversight on the Races. While the specifics of how it exactly happened are unclear, an unknown explosion caused the deaths of 56 viewers, one of which was an important Alterran business executive. While the executive was not known to be there until his death was reported, the fact that he did perish in the scene caused on onslaught of criticism as the truths of the Races came to the public eye. This forced the Alterran government to take action in order to make the Races safer, and when you have to make something call a Death Race safer, the appeal is pretty much lost. With the vast appeal of the Races finished, Novetta found herself pretty much out of work. Her reputation would bring repairs on transport vehicles every so often, but in the end she was forced to close her shop and move out of the small town that had formed around the track and into the main area of the city. She attempted to reopen something similar to what she had, but there was simply too much competition, and being that so many race mechanics had moved back before her, there were no jobs in the existing shops either. She took a job as a secretary in one of the transport companies, and while it paid the bills she found her life to be so unfulfilling. She yearned for the freedom that came from running your own life, doing what you wanted and not being a slave to an employer. After only working there for less than a year, she left the job and in the end, left the city.

Striking out into the rest of the world, Novetta spend time traveling around, however outside of Rek’suun, she found that her skills were not very useful. The technology here was all electronics, and her knowledge wasn’t enough in order to get her any jobs like the one she used to have. Eventually her travels brought her to the Alterran city of Newralia, where despite her troubles still continuing, she heard about a place where she might be able to use her talents. She had no money, she had no connections, but from what she could discover the Assassination Academy required no such things, and her can do attitude and unique skills would do her very well there. While she wasn’t interested in necessarily becoming a world class assassin per say, the atmosphere of the academy sounded like a place she really wanted to be. With death no longer a fear, she could cross the line she never dared to at last, and do so to such degrees like she had never imagined.

Her recruitment and incorporation into the academy went just like it did for most inexperienced people who showed up at the beginning of each year: She was killed. They had gathered everyone up by the dockside, and played what she later discovered to be their usual game. Having no idea what she was doing, she followed the main group up the central road, however the person assigned to her orientation was not very keen on going down with the newbies, and so when the shit hit the fan, they were nowhere in sight. She had no armor, no experience, and at this time no weapons. She had nothing to offer in the fight, being that she had not expected it, and as such was quickly left behind. It ended up being a rifle shot to the head that put her down that first night, Novetta only knowing this because the first shot had punched through her shoulder. She had turned to face her shooter, twisting her torso from where she had been kneeling on the ground, doing so just in time to see the muzzle flash, the crack of the gun, and to remember the subsequent blackness of death. She was only 19, and this would start her very long, and very slow tenure at the Academy.

From here on out she kept a relatively low profile. Being that she only held onto enough Academy Points in order to live there, go to class, and to eat, she was never really targeted by people. There were a couple during the first years, maybe a boy who thought she was cute and felt offended when she turned down his offer for a date, maybe someone who expected her to have more points than she really did. Those people were scarce enough that it didn’t bother her, and she kept this low profile for 2 whole years. This was because the whole time she was learning, taking classes about how to do so many things she had never before learned how to do. While she had never gotten good at electronics, she learned her way around more modern and complex machinery, more advanced weaponry, and best of all, new kinds of explosives. After two years, she had passed all the classes she could take about these kinds of subjects, and while there was still swathes of information for her to learn, she began to relax on taking classes, and spent more time experimenting. This, of course, brought more attention to herself and thus more assassination attempts, and over the course of this time she began to become adjusted to death. Having been someone that always rode the line between life and death, having become adjusted to the feeling of dying was something totally new to her, and she soon stopped fearing it all together. This prepared her for what she would do next.

This is a story that many, many people know, and most of the people who know Novetta will refer to this as the reason they met her. Having just finished creating what she hoped to be a wonderful new explosive, she was walking through the central part of the academy on her way to a small, secluded testing area she had been using. It was the last day of the academic year, and so while most people who held titles were hiding and clutching them tightly to their chests, there were always a few of the people who held the Count titles that would go out and celebrate their perceived victory. Novetta saw just that as she walked through the center of the academy, a group of boys who were all crowded around a single boy in the center. After taking a quick peek at who it was, she realized it to be someone she had turned down when they asked her for a date, someone who had subsequently gotten their friends together to assassinate her. Getting a big smile on her face, she walked to one of the general stores and bought some nice wrapping paper and a bow, using it to wrap up her new explosive like a present. She then walked across the square and took out an assassination order on the boy with the title, walking directly from that office and over to him. Of course they all thought she was crazy, or maybe she was the type of girl to turn him down when he had nothing, and then come back when he had something. They were all wrong of course, and by the time they realized what she had done, she had handed the boy the wrapped present before incinerating all of them right them right there. Due to the fact that the bomb had killed him before it had her, she was awarded a successful assassination and held onto her title through the night, bringing her to a second year status.

Advancing onto her second year meant that she had a load of Academy Points, however instead of waiting for them to be taken from her in an assassination, she spent them all, including the ones she had gotten from assassinating that boy, as well as the ones she had saved, all on having a building erected in the southern portion of the island that would serve as a sort of base/shop for herself. She was responsible for maintaining it, for paying points to power it, and for making sure nothing against Academy policy happened in the area. This was all fine by her, and so after suffering through some of the retribution assassination attempts, some successful and some not, she settled down, going back to what she was good at. Now that she had somewhere to work, she spent the next 3 years growing her reputation, slowly expanding her little building, and building bigger and better bombs, some of which she sells and some of which she keeps for herself. Her love for all things gasoline and oil has earned her the nickname “Diesel”, and it is one that she always will answer to. She is the resident mechanic for anything robust enough to be within her field of expertise and loves building things for people in exchange for points. While she doesn’t really have any ambitions of rising above where she is now, she didn’t before, and so if the opportunity presents itself in the future, then she surely will take it. For now, however, she has agreed to show the next batch of students the ropes of the island, and she is intent on not leaving anyone like her orientator did.

Theme Song: Killin’ Floor - Blues Saraceno

Combat Information
Equipment:
Gas Mask - Something that she has kept with her through her time in Rek’suun until where she is today, the mask is something she wears in the shop in order to keep sparks, bits of metal, and any debris from hitting her in the face. It’s a very valued possession of hers that she takes everywhere.

The Hot Potato - Having nothing to do with potatoes, this is a magazine fed rocket launcher that serves as Novetta’s main means of dealing damage. The homemade rockets that she makes for it can do a number of things, from being highly explosive, to sending fragmentation bits everywhere, to even incinerating small areas. She keeps them in seperate clips, and can switch them out depending on what she’s carrying on her at the time.

Frisbees of Fun - These are essentially hurled discs of explosive death. Novetta has actually gotta very good at throwing these at interesting angles to hit some hard to reach spots. They aren't as effective as some of the other bombs she has, but they can get the job done when needed.

Novetta’s 8-Pounder - While not being an actual weapon she takes into combat, Novetta owns a home forged cannon that fires 8 pound explosive rounds. She made it as a final project for one of her classes, and it’s something that she adores. Every once and awhile she wheels it out if people ask her too, or if she knows that created fortifications will be a problem. It’s not nearly as explosive as her missiles or bombs, but it packs a hell of a lot more force behind it.

Surprise! - These just encompass any of the traps she creates and leaves behind for anyone who is chasing her. Most of them are very primitive in their triggers, being that trip lasers and motion detection are all things she isn’t very good at. If you do set one off, however, you are likely very, very dead.

Makeshift Explosives - A lot of what Novetta fights with is just impromptu explosive devices that she has on her. Maybe she hits a timer and throws it, maybe she sticks it to a tree and leaves, or maybe she put it under her arm before sneaking up behind people and setting it off on everyone. Either way, this includes any random device she comes up with.

Fighting Style:
Novetta’s fighting style is very a much a kill or be killed style. She has very, very low endurance, terrible melee combat ability, pretty bad aim with guns like sniper rifles and such, and only a medium amount of actual strength. Anyone with formal martial arts training can beat her in a fist fight, and without her explosives she had no real method of bringing death.

This means that she focuses largely on the use of her fun and outlandish weapons in order to obliterate people from existence. Whether it be through fire or flames, it takes a tough son of a bitch to live through everything she has to throw at people. In addition to this, she takes a lot of pride in having fun while she fights, and might take the losing end of an interaction if it seems interesting. The girl owns a home built, gunpowder artillery cannon that she frequently enjoys using. That about sums up her style.

Strengths: Novetta’s biggest strength is not only her attitude, but her blindness to danger. She is willing to put everything on the line, if not for victory then for enjoyment. She can do a heck of a lot of damage, and doesn’t mind getting close in order to do it.

Weaknesses: The most glaring issue with her fighting style is that she wears no form of protection whatsoever. This means it is incredibly easy to take her down in a fight, which leads to a race to see how much damage she can inflict before she is inevitably killed.

Special Moves:
Raining Death - Novetta proceeds to set off every remaining explosive in her arsenal, which normally leads to her death.

Fire in the Hole! - This is just what Novetta shouts whenever she fires her 8-Pounder Cannon.

Combat Statistics
Power: 80/100 Power is Novetta’s greatest asset, using her explosives to their maximum capacity whenever she fights. Not only is her ability to deal damage to people at great heights, but her structural damage capabilities are exceptional as well. Created barriers, shields, or even natural walls crumble and shatter before her, and those behind them are not long for this world should she remain untouched.

Endurance: 15/100 Remaining untouched, however, is the caveat to her fighting style. Novetta does not wear any armor to battle, nor does she have a body that is capable of taking much damage. While her skin might know the touch of sparks, dirt, and smoke, her lithe form crumbles under force, leading to the race in which she attempts to do as much damage as possible before being taken down.

Agility: 35/100 Being that her weapons are made out of lightweight alloys and other similar materials, she maintains a very decent agility rating, being able to dash and move quickly in order to somewhat make up for her abysmal endurance.

Intelligence: 25/100 While she is practically unrivaled when inside her shop in terms of knowledge and skill, she relies on her gut and playing things as they go when in a fight. Her eyes are not one for strategy, and any reading of opponents is normally in the form of tracking someone’s movement when she aims. While she’s not incapable of adapting, she is no better than anyone else at it.

Special Moves: 40/100 Her special moves are nothing to get excited over, and their effectiveness is better explained by her skill in power. None of them are particularly special, and they are all variations on ways to blow people up. They can have some sway on the battle, but in general they are simply extensions of her power.

Odds and Ends
Rp Example: As a Co-op I reserve the right to cite my previous experience as proof of competence.

I read the rules and am a cool person who agrees to abide by them: Absolutely!

#NUMBAT

[The GAmeTopians]

Tagggggg

[Sonitusia]

It's time to introduce Koronian Robotics as a rival to B.I.O. Tech.

[Shadowwell]

I have been looking over the countries, trying to tie demos into the lore more in some way.

I was thinking that they could have been involved in the First Invasion, also what countries would most likely be involved in teh summoning of dangerous entities?

Drak, possible answer?

On another note, i know my character will be animalistic in appearance if not in nature, a demi half fae or possibly a demi Were, depending upon wereanimal mechanics.

[Drakmah]

I have been looking over the countries, trying to tie demos into the lore more in some way.

I was thinking that they could have been involved in the First Invasion, also what countries would most likely be involved in teh summoning of dangerous entities?

Drak, possible answer?

On another note, i know my character will be animalistic in appearance if not in nature, a demi half fae or possibly a demi Were, depending upon wereanimal mechanics.

I don't see a reason why they couldn't have been involved, and being that the lore surrounding the Council of the Seven speaks of races from the First Invasion having settled within Council territory, It would make sense that they be involved with them as well. I would also think the Council of the Seven would be the most likely nation to have issues with the summoning of dangerous entities, with its history and the high concentration of magic and all.

[Atlannia]

Drak, possible answer?

On another note, i know my character will be animalistic in appearance if not in nature, a demi half fae or possibly a demi Were, depending upon wereanimal mechanics.

I don't see a reason why they couldn't have been involved, and being that the lore surrounding the Council of the Seven speaks of races from the First Invasion having settled within Council territory, It would make sense that they be involved with them as well. I would also think the Council of the Seven would be the most likely nation to have issues with the summoning of dangerous entities, with its history and the high concentration of magic and all.

The council of seven was formed after the first great invasion and their member nations didn't have the edge in magic they do now. That doesn't mean a talented enough mage couldn't have existed there though, and that war was certainly desperate enough to nake summoning demons seem like a good idea.

The Byzenan civil war is also an option, they have a strong tradition of magic and that was a fairly grim war with extreme strategies on either side.

EDIT: I think the way to handle wereanimals is for them to take their transformation as a special move and have higher special move scores provide better control over their transformation.

[Shadowwell]

I don't see a reason why they couldn't have been involved, and being that the lore surrounding the Council of the Seven speaks of races from the First Invasion having settled within Council territory, It would make sense that they be involved with them as well. I would also think the Council of the Seven would be the most likely nation to have issues with the summoning of dangerous entities, with its history and the high concentration of magic and all.

The council of seven was formed after the first great invasion and their member nations didn't have the edge in magic they do now. That doesn't mean a talented enough mage couldn't have existed there though, and that war was certainly desperate enough to nake summoning demons seem like a good idea.

The Byzenan civil war is also an option, they have a strong tradition of magic and that was a fairly grim war with extreme strategies on either side.

did those events happen at the same time?

I ask, as that got me thinking, that possibly it was during the Byzenan Civil War, that the knowledge of how to properluy summon demons was released. As prior to that most summonings were accidental, until an unnamed amge was trying to summon something and became possessed.

[Atlannia]

No the civil war was about twenty years earlier.

[Shadowwell]

No the civil war was about twenty years earlier.

ok, so what i proposed is possible then?

[Atlannia]

Um yeah, sorry I'm still waking up. That sounds good.

[Truth Incarnate]

Personal Information

Name: Kyle Parker

Appearance: Kyle is 177 centimetres tall, has brown eyes, black hair, Caucasian somewhat tanned skin, is of an average weight, and has nothing else too respectably notable about him. Just imagine a normal young-adult Byzenian. That's him. He has a normal haircut. He has trimmed fingernails. Stop looking at me.

Age: 19

Birthplace: A rural city in Byzena.

Nationality: Byzenian.

Personality: Kyle is generally quite open and welcoming, clearly not quite understanding that the Academy attracts people who, you know... Specialise in killing, want to do so, and generally are very much capable of doing so as well. He is, however, likely to quickly judge a person based on merit and trustworthiness, making him very likely to distrust those he believes have proven themselves to be untrustworthy. He has an IQ of 104, enjoys a sedentary life and is rather casual about the whole "killing" business. He generally holds a rather detached philosophy about life, and enjoys the arts more than anything else.

Biography: Born in a rather small but focused rural city in the Byzenian countryside, Kyle had a lot of time to toy around with his capabilities at a young age. It was a mutation that had run in his family since the first invasion, probably through some form of inter-species mingling of some sort (I.E, breeding). He was, however, the most overt about these abilities out of any of his predecessors - with the gene or otherworldly... "thing" that allowed him to use his abilities having grown stronger through each successive generation. He attended a private school anyways, and did quite decently in school, quickly picking up music, but not exactly excelling academically.

After some time, Kyle was told by his parents that he was not a confident enough academic to manage the company. As such, he could either take several courses in business and corporate management, or he could do something else. Choosing to go to the Academy, his parents first spent a few months teaching him how to use his ability, as his father was the source of his capabilities. After they were confident that he was of age, they sent him off with some very lofty expectations.

Combat Information

Equipment: An empty snickers wrapper in his pocket (at least when he arrived). A ballpoint pen filled with 9,000 cubic centimetres of ink - about as much as a bucket (30x30x30 cm, 0.9 times a 10 litre bucket). Most of that ink is held within hammerspace. Byzenian magic, don't question it - Jack's parents were rather well of, and he spent his entire departure grant on buying a sweet pen. It functions by connecting two points in space, so the inside of the pen is connected to a big bucket of ink he keeps wherever he's living. If the pen is damaged, the spatial connection will spill out and sever itself, dragging everything nearby towards it, then cleanly severing anything caught inside. Luckily, it's made of very sturdy materials, and is unlikely to break. He's taken some fencing classes, but I don't think he's going to rely on a sword when firearms and magic exist.

Generally, he'll just bring his pen, a firearm and a bottle of water in case he gets dehydrated into combat.

Fighting style: Kyle has the capability to control water, so long as he maintains contact with it. Thus, if his connection to a body of water is severed, then he loses control over that body. He can otherwise control up to three cubic metres of water with approximately 500 Newtons spread out over the body, making it as impactful as a human punch if used offensively. He is able to pull water from any surface such as paper or sponge, though he has difficulty pulling it from more absorbent materials. Furthermore, he is able to hydrate and dehydrate water at will, allowing him to either make dry water fresh again, or remove the moisture from fresh water in order to turn it into a much denser, brittle material with the consistency of glass and the tensile strength of floorboard wood.

He is also able to jump "into" absorbent materials, meaning he can effectively exist within a sheet of paper as a human-shaped splodge of water. This is instantaneous, so long as he moves towards it with sufficient force. He exists within the material as a silhouette of a human, and cannot vocalise, but is able to communicate by "drawing" on the material with water. He cannot inhabit a material shorter than or thinner than him, though thickness does not matter. Whilst inhabiting a material, any further markings made on it besides water (graphite, leaded paint) will act as a physical object to him within the medium (as if two dimensional). Whilst inside any material, any damage incurred upon the material will similarly damage him. He can only inhabit the surface of a material, and cannot move into the inside in order to "hide" from external attacks.

Kyle tends to focus on defence, since his abilities (mostly control over a somewhat viscous fluid) do not lend themselves to combat very well. He doesn't have the cohesion and focus necessary to drown someone with water, so he can pretty much just fling it at them or attempt to use water as a combative appendage. He generally just forms films of semi-hydrated water, acting like rubber, that he absorbs or blocks attacks with, and waits for his enemy to spend all their energy before moving in. He is reluctant to use his ability too often however, since he can quickly ruin whatever clothes he was wearing at the time, and force the owner of the premises where he was fighting to clean up the enormous messes he tends to make.

Any water that is detached from his control stays in the form that he left it in.

Strengths: Kyle is supremely skilled at deflecting and redirecting attacks, and has enhanced mobility in that he can travel inside and across absorbent surfaces, allowing him to avoid his enemy and wait for them to tire out. His ability also allows him to often take ammunition for common sources, such as painted walls and printed documents, meaning that he almost always has something to use.

Weaknesses: Kyle, whilst good at defending against sustained, strong attacks, is generally vulnerable to "all at once" barrages which can easily get through his flexible little mesh. He is, otherwise, a perfectly normal human, and can easily be surprised and killed. Furthermore, his fluid is susceptible to dilution by water, breakdown by acid or ethanol, and very flammable in some cases, all of which will break his control over the body of water in question.

Special moves: Kyle can, at any time, begin to draw blood from his body, with his blood acting like an incredibly viscous water. He can shape and control it at will, hardening it to become as strong as steel, and moving it with enough force to smash concrete bunkers into rubble, or pierce through a bank vault. He can't reabsorb this blood however, and it quickly decays into non-controllable gel, making it unsustainable and quite self-damaging. This causes symptoms similar to acute blood loss, and although painless, is only used to gain a temporary advantage (albeit a very large one) over the enemy in order to end fights or equalise them. He generally does not like to essentially give himself a hangover in the middle of a fight.

Combat Statistics

Power: 20

Endurance: 50

Agility: 30

Intelligence: 25

Special Moves: 50

Odds and Ends

RP Sample: https://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=383281&start=6197

Theme Song: (Lots of people were doing this - so hey, why not?)

I Read the rules and am a cool person who agrees to abide by them: I read the rules, but I can't guarantee I'm a cool person. I'm just too fabulously hot, you see?

#NUMBAT

[Shadowwell]

Um yeah, sorry I'm still waking up. That sounds good.

Woulod the Red and White war be the same as the Byzenan civil war you mentioned?

[The Knockout Gun Gals]

Personal Information

Name: Shizuka Minamoto

Appearance:

Age: 19

Birthplace: Balakan, Yokotai. Culturally mixed and small in size of populations.

Nationality: Yokotainese

Personality: Determined, positive and somewhat idealistic. She is not the most outgoing nor the quietest, but at the very least she's talkative enough to not be considered a very talkative one. Friendly, as well. She spent most of her life in her father's dojo, so to be fair she is also disciplined, with her idealism came from the romanticized idea of knights and warriors. Also loyal, but that comes with a price of sometimes not questioning orders with questionable...goals.


Biography : Born in Balakan, Yokotai. The city is a small-sized one, though it can be more classified as a town. Minamoto family has been in the town for the last century and became nominally the family that owned the city, but it has been eroded within the century and especially with the establishment of military dictatorship in Yokotai they lost their nobility status, though they still managed to own about half of the city with their industrial factories on consumer goods and their Minamoto-style dojo. Shizuka Minamoto was one of the latest descendants from the Minamoto family, a noble family who've been established for the last century. The first Minamoto, Kira Minamoto, was a warrior who was elevated into nobility status because of his fame as a celebrated warrior in the past. Minamoto-style is a swordmanship style that emphasizes on the flurry use of fast strikes, thrusts, and slices, agility, and speed.

Minamoto had been known for their fame as a family of warriors, though with the removal of the emperor and the restoration of military dictatorship and the role of emperor as symbolic figure things have been bad between Minamoto and the military, with them seriously attempted to gained Minamoto's support since they basically is a group of warriors. They have been pretty much strained in relationship, but cordial enough to work together for the Yokotai's greatness. Shizuka was trained supposedly to be in military, and thus been trained in Minamoto-style martial arts speed-type except for firearms which they showed disdain as it is not a warrior's weapon, but coward's but also realized the necessity of firearms in desperate situations.

Shizuka grew up to be nice young woman, who have been home-schooled in Minamoto and to be fair, they have good educations. Things changed, however, with the appearances of separatists in Yokotai and with half of Minamoto family sent out to helped the nation and the government, it generally took some considerations on Shizuka's future, whether she should be sent to military for further Yokotai military training, or to Assassinations Academy for a change of skills to assassinations. In the end, she was sent to the Academy. She already received training and skills, but she needs to proved herself that she deserves more and she could gained more as well.



Theme Song: Shizuka's Theme

Combat Information
Equipment: A metal sword made from light material. AUCS 10, a white headband.

Fighting style: Utilized generation-long Minamoto-style swordmanship and martial arts, she utilized close-ranged combat and flurry of fast strikes. But at the same time she accommodates her style on stronger enemies with the use of dirty tactics. Minamoto-style itself is a swordmanship style that emphasizes on the flurry use of fast strikes, thrusts, and slices, agility, and speed.


Strengths : Skilled in close-combat, such as martial arts and swordmanship.

Weaknesses : The glaring issue is that while she is skilled with swords and martial arts, she is not terribly skilled of firearms or ranged weapons. And thus while she is strong in close-combat, she is lacking but the basic skills in long-range combat and firefighting, generally speaking.

Special moves:

Blue Strike - When she does this, shades of blue was produced and at the same time she delivered a fatal strike to her enemy.

Counter-Strike - A counter-attack in the case that the enemy delivered a strong blow of force to her, in which she would counter it and delivered a fatal strike blow of her own. Unfortunately, it can only be used one per battle since it requires high amounts of stamina to counter and deliver the strike

Combat Statistics

Power: 30/100 Her strength is not quite up on the score, but that's fine, since her strength plays up little on the combat, though the higher her strength is, the more fatal the blow she delivered.

Endurance: 25/100 She is still human that, despite endurance training, still as strong as peak-fit human. Then again, she is more of an agile striker who depends on speed and not quite on endurance and toughness.

Agility: 45/100 With her slender body-type, light armaments consist of her weapon and nothing much, as well as physically trained to move as fast as possible to avoid enemy attacks, to balanced her low strength.

Intelligence: 35/100 She isn't quite trained in the assassinations, to be fair. But she has been trained enough to avoid stronger enemy and to find holes on their flaws. Also to use dirty tactics to counter the enemy's strengths.

Special Moves: 40/100 Her special moves has been honed to the point where it could deliver fatal blows to those with low toughness and since the numbers of those with high and with low toughness are balanced, well...there's plenty to kill. Or to wound.

Odds and Ends
RP example:

viewtopic.php?p=31543194#p31543194
viewtopic.php?p=31388149#p31388149

I Read the rules and am a cool person who agrees to abide by them: Yes

#NUMBAT

[Shadowwell]

Just this word alone conjures up all sorts of thoughts and images usually unpleasant ones. It is the same within many worlds, and Nexus is no different. What humans know about demons is true to an extent, they do indeed have a great capacity for cruelty and maliciousness, but mostly they stay within their realm. This does not apply to all demons however, as many demons unlike most beings that dwell within separate realms, can cross over to our world, by using any of several ways. The first of the most common options is that they must be extremely powerful, though demons this powerful tend to stay in their realm where they are strongest unless something really catches their eye, Option two is they can possess someone, though usually only extremely weak demons do this, most use the third option.

Option three is they can be summoned or make a contract with a human, and enter our realm using the humans life energy, though this only applies if the human doesnt possess magic. Unfortunately those that summon demons tend to bring and draw the worst of their kind. What is not well known is that demons have been in this world since long before the Great invasions, they were rare but they were still here, and demons were and sometimes still are responsible for many of those who become targets for assassination.

Demons are rather diverse in their abilities and appearances, while in their home realm they can change their appearances at will. Most demons possess the ability to manipulate hellfire, though this only applies to those that don’t represent an Element. Elemental demons are monstrously powerful though they have equal weaknesses in the form of their elemental counterpart, ie darkness and Shadow demons are weak to Light, fire demons to water, etc, They can pass through realms regardless of power, though if they arent strong enough they will be severely injured and their power weakened.

The Country/Nation of Nexus that knows the most about Demons, is probably the Council of Seven. This is mostly due to their usage of them during the most desperate times of War. Unknown to most, demons were partially involved in the downfall of the countries that originally existed before the Council was formed. The Council of Seven, was not the first country to summon or know of demons. Demons had entered Nexus long before the Byzenan Civil War, and most notably during the conflict with Yokotai. Several demons were accidentally summoned during a last ditch effort against the Yokotai forces.

However, it was only during the Byzenan Civil war, that the knowledge of how to summon demons was obtained. Prior to that, most demon summoning were accidental, demons still could force their way into Nexus, but Summoning was more beneficial for at least one side. A certain mage, whose name has since been forgotten, was attempting to summons something, when he summoned a demon instead. In his excitement, he lowered his guard and was possessed. This demon was different from others, caring little for warfare, direct warfare at least.

This demon was tricky and manipulative, and was responsible for the spreading of the knowledge on how to summon demons, properly. The rest as they say is history, The knowledge spread, and now demons are present in Nexus. They are still a rarity, but more common than the Fae. Most can be found in or around the region governed by the Council of Seven. This is one of the reasons that the Council is the most knowledgeable on the subject of Demons.

The Council has discovered that the region Demons come from is complex, to say the least. There is no single place taht demons call home, rather their domain is made of many realms. The hierarchy and the like changes per realm, but generally tehre is no set hiearchy that demons follow aside from the strong rule.

Here it is.

Is there an age cap, or max age for characters?

Also could a Were-Demi be a thing?