GingerDixie
Hopes and Dreams
After Halcyon Days II: Stirring Ashes
(Gingerdixie: GM
Agent Tectonic: Co-GM)
(Gingerdixie: GM
Agent Tectonic: Co-GM)
This is the RP Thread. Discussion thread is here and sign ups are here Sign-ups do not close even after the RP begins.
POSTING INFORMATION
[This RP will be using post headers, which serve to help let other RPers know who is interacting with whom and at what time, as well as keep track of character effects that last more than one post. I believe in one rule about post headers, and that rule is K.I.S.S (Keep It Simple, Stupid*)
* no offense intended
Therefore, this is all I expect of a proper heading to an RP post:
Character Name and Species
Faction and Orientation
Location
(Optional line for any ill or beneficial effects your character may be suffering, and how long this affect has lasted for)
RPers Affected (Both character name and RPer name)
Thus, here is what it would look like in the RP:
Vernonia the Nuzleaf
Wild Faction/Terran Oriented
Route 111, Near Mauville Settlement, North Gate
(Optional Ill/Beneficial Effect: Post 1/3)
Affected Characters: Tango the Lombre (GingerDixie)
USING MANIFEST ABILITIES
As is stated in the premise below, Manifest abilities cannot be controlled with utmost precision. However, they can be used, and when the time comes that you wish to use an ability in the RP, I ask that you please quote it from your sign-up sheet and include it in your post below when it is used, like so:
[SPOIL]They had been walking since Fallarbor Town, and her feet were killing her.
It was bad enough that this particular route had a terrible paucity of trees, but today the sun had decided to shine on the two traveling companions with full force, drying out and scorching Tango's sensitive skin and making her feel exposed and vulnerable. More than once, she'd seen a Pelipper or a Swellow darting by above with big canvas bags strapped to their sides, wishing she had wings to fly away too...if it meant the difference between staying here in the open and watching her mate wince with every step he took or finally finding a godsforsaken forest already.
Vernonia fiddled with her own bag...a cumbersome, loud human thing that she absolutely hated, but as much as she didn't like how it chafed her when she climbed, Tango had insisted she get one in Fallarbor so that gathering food would be easier and quicker. No one ever knew when the rotters would attack, and when they did, it could be weeks before it was safe to forage again. So, getting as much as they could when they could was a must, and this bag would supposedly increase the amount they could carry at least twofold. We have to consider the factor of a much more dangerous enemy now, Vernonia, Tango had told her when she'd fought with him on it. Before, when you and I traveled in bands and numbers were on our side, that was enough. But now, it's the numbers that are against us now. Because there's only us. We're the only survivors. And now, it's the predators that have the home front.
She supposed he was right. Still...she hated being the one to carry it. But she was the faster of the two of them, and could easily scuttle up a tree if there was a need to. Ergo, the food would be safe and so would she. And if that didn't say something about how he felt about her, then she didn't know what did.
Suddenly, a glint of metal caught the Nuzleaf's eye in the distance, and she perked up suddenly from the first sighting of a human structure from the sand and rocks of this blasted trail. Thankfully, the ground seemed to be getting more and more vegetated as well, and she let out a whoop of relief as Mauville loomed closer, and she wrapped her arms around Tango's neck, causing the Lombre to yelp in pain as she accidentally aggravated his developing sunburn.
"Almost there, Tango! We're almost there!" She cries out, punching the air with victory as she did so, smiling back at her mate as he grins tiredly back. "Rest, relaxation, all of that just ahead! So what if it's in a stuffy human place...at least the Gallade's folk are kind!"
"Not to mention they have water..." Tango mumbles back, rubbing at his dried-out skin. "And I could use a nice soak after that walk...spirits damned, I didn't even know it was possible for a tropical place to be this hot and dry."
They approached the city walls, Vernonia now walking with a spring in her step as the northern gate towered over them, guarded by several mon on the top and bottom, alert for any signs of rotter hordes that could be coming their way. Their eyes widened when Tango and Vernonia approached, and the Nuzleaf waved excitedly to them...that is, until the shriek of a Screamer pierced the air behind the two wild mon.
Then it was chaos.
First, Tango had pushed her forward, running as fast as his tired legs would carry him as the sentries immediately sounded alarms, blowing on horns and sending electricity-blast flares into the sky to warn the others in the surrounding area of a rotter attack. Vernonia ran as fast as she could, pain shooting up her legs with every step as they struggled to close the distance between them and the Mauville settlement. A Luxray sentry ran past them, his Manifested voice box sending out a roar like a shockwave that seemed to knock most of the horde back, giving them some time as the rotters in the back tripped and stumbled over the ones in the front that had fallen over. Their own ungodly shrieks and gurgles raked the air like thousands of little claws; Vernonia didn't dare look back to see how many there were.
They had just gotten to the gate when Tango suddenly shoved her off the path, gesturing to the city wall as she cried out in alarm. "W-What are you doing?!"
"Go up!" Tango shouted frantically, motioning to the side of the wall. "Up the wall! They can't get you there!"
"Are you crazy!?"
"Do it, Ve! I trust you!" Tango pants, panic and worry clouding his eyes as the Luxray sentry suddenly shrieks from behind them, then goes silent. "GO! NOW! GET UP THERE!"
Too panicked to argue and now worried that if she didn't do what he said, she wouldn't see him again, she ran as fast as she could toward the wall next to the gate, that familiar tingling feeling in her hands and feet growing stronger before she leapt full force at the wall, praying this time that her abilities would work and not leave her stranded on her *** as it did when she often needed it.
Thankfully, this time she stuck. But she knew it wouldn't be long before she didn't stick anymore, and she hurriedly scrambled as fast as she could up Mauville's facade just as a rotter swiped her backside, nearly tearing her bag from her hip as attacks fired off left and right below. She worried for Tango, worried for the sentries down below...but now was not the time to turn around and look back. If she did, she would be dead. Tango knew this...knew she couldn't afford to die now. Not with so much already riding on her.
She leapt onto the second floor of the city just as she started to lose her grip, sprawling out on the walkway as spots swam in her vision. Blood rushed in her ears as the few sentries who had remained behind rushed over to her, calling for medics as she used the last of her energy to curl in on herself, crossing her arms over her middle protectively.
She certainly hoped that Tango had made it...their child needed its father.[/SPOIL]
Story:
[SPOIL] What started out as a breakthrough in medical technology ended up becoming the end of the world as we know it.
Virion PK-RS 0-089, also known as Pokerus 89, was a strain of Pokerus that had the unique characteristic of being transmissible to humans who worked closely with Poison-type Pokemon, particularly urban species such as Grimer and Muk. Due to the abilities of the Pokerus particle (a particle that exhibited traits that closely resemble the replication and latency patterns of a retrovirus), the virion had adapted to pass from human to Pokemon due to the closeness of their living spaces. As such, this particle was a common cause for many mild, flu-like symptoms among the populaces of the world’s largest cities: Viridian, Goldenrod, Mauville, Pastoria, Castelia, and Lumiose.
Due to its effects within the human population, Pokerus 89 was isolated and experimented in an underground lab in Mauville City, Hoenn, with the goal to find a vaccine that would prevent the interspecial spread of the organism. However, during the tests, something changed. Call it a breach in protocol, or call it plain, stupid curiosity...but the actions of one scientist who knew the virion’s beneficial effects on Pokemon devised and tested a hypothesis to see if the mild annoyance that Pokerus 89 had upon humans could in fact be written out in favor of these augments: in layman’s terms, he wanted to create an organism that superpowered human abilities in the same way that it did Pokemon’s, thus creating a strain of a literal “super-hero” virus. This scientist had gotten a hold of inactive particles that were soon to be infused in an experimental vaccine mixture, introduced a gene that would both block the particle’s ill effects in human cells and allow for full human infection, and then introduced the newly mutated virus into a laboratory sample of what he documented as “willing subjects”, and waited to see what his concoction would create.
The results: he had made a gross miscalculation.
By the time the Mauville research facility had known what one of their own had done, said scientist and ninety percent of the original test group was dead, and the virus was on its way to a slow burn around the Pokemon world. One foreign gene had mutated the virion into something unseen by scientific communities before: it retained its ability to infect both humans and Pokemon, but the consequences of infection in both hosts had become something so much deadlier. In humans, it caused a systemic infection of malignant and rotting tumors, liquefied whole muscle groups and finally drove their victims mad until their death, while in Pokemon it caused the same flu-like symptoms as it had in humans, with a 50 percent chance to kill.
For five years, what was left of humanity raced to find a cure, but in the end, the ever-changing, retroviral nature of what had become known as PXH-334, or the Pokecross virus, had completely wiped out humanity and eliminated half of the Pokemon population across the known world. Cities and general society crumbled as humans died by the droves, and whichever of their Pokemon survived their own infections were soon tossed into a growing wasteland to fend for themselves, spreading Pokecross into the wilds. Eventually...there was nothing left of the six thriving regions but burning husks of what had once been, and the chilling wraiths of Pokemon long forgotten were left to pick about the scraps, fighting for survival over what little remained of the land.
That was twenty years ago.
Since then, the Pokemon world has begun to rebuild itself bit by bit, in part thanks to the discovery of one of the virion’s Pokemon side effects: Manifests. Every Pokemon who survived their infection discovered that their bodies never really got rid of the virus. Instead, it simply concentrated in certain places of their bodies, granting them augments to the powers they already possessed or in some cases gave them completely new powers altogether. The exact body part on the Pokemon in which the virus was contained and therefore the new powers Manifested in seemed completely random, though they could all be easily sorted into three basic categories: Shallow, Mesenteric, and Deep.
At first, Pokemon used these Manifests for war. Trained Pokemon actively sought and snuffed out weaker wild Pokemon to keep them from overrunning the cities, while wild Pokemon retaliated for those who had been killed and attacked the trained in droves. At the epicenter of it all was a trained Sawk that went by the name of Apchagi, who had founded a settlement of trained Pokemon in Mauville that had one goal: snuff out the weak to pave the way for the strong. As time went on, however, and trained Pokemon were beginning to even out the wild population, an unexpected third variable entered the equation: humans, or more specifically, their corpses.
Nicknamed “rotters” by the trained Pokemon of Mauville, these super powered human zombies began attacking Pokemon, wild and trained alike; again drastically reducing the numbers of both sides. While the rotters had no sense of cognition and were relatively harmless when confronted singly, the problem came from the fact that one almost never saw a lone rotter, especially in former cities like Mauville. They always traveled in discernable packs, and in this manner, their danger increased tenfold. A single pack together could scale a wall, break a window, and tear apart a Pokemon piece by piece, destroying all that Apchagi and his privileged few had taken days to set up in a matter of hours. Eventually, these packs increased to hordes, and it wasn’t long before the angry ferals of the wilds as well as the hungry, empty minds of humans long past mounted enough pressure for the Sawk’s “utopia of the elite” to finally crack and shatter with the strain.
Almost overnight, the largest city in Hoenn had gone through a complete metamorphosis. Gone was the unspoken war of trained versus wild. Gone was the notion of living off of what scraps of civilization remained in an increasingly dangerous, wild world. There was only one enemy of life on earth, and that enemy was the undead. If another world was indeed meant to rise from humanity’s ashes, then it required that all pull together and do their part, each mon helping the other in areas they lacked.
Thus was the philosophy of the new Mauville Settlement, and thus this atmosphere of camraderie began to spread throughout the region...a call to war not against each other, but against the monster that impeded their ticket to a new beginning. [/SPOIL]
Setting:
[SPOIL]Though PXH-334 has been widespread throughout the Pokemon world, the RP will focus primarily in the Hoenn Region, concentrating mostly in Mauville and the areas around it. As it was the epicenter of commercial and trade in human times, under the Mauville Settlement regime it has become both the tactical headquarters of the ongoing zombie-eradication efforts as well as a haven for Pokemon traveling from all corners of the region. All NPC letter-carriers will base themselves in Mauville, and fly to other areas of the region to collect information and postage from other Pokemon (See Side Missions and Pokemon Postal below). A list of other major settlements in the region include:
Lilycove Settlement (Based out of the abandoned Department Store, with a few fortified areas located in other major buildings of the old city)
Mt. Chimney Settlement (Based out of Fiery Path, but postage lands on the peak of the mountain. Also encompasses areas of old Lavaridge and Fallarbor)
Slateport Settlement (Based out of the Slateport Shipyard)
Moss-Topolis Network (Half-based in Mossdeep Space Center, half based in the Cave of Origin, and encompassing the wide swatch of ocean and trenches between the two)
Travel during daylight hours is often preferred, as the Pokecross zombies are light sensitive and less likely to attack during the day. Occasionally, travelers will run across small hordes of zombies during the daytime, and during this time, zombies can be avoided by staying out of their line of sight. However, at night, all Pokemon, trained and wild, will hole up far out of reach by sundown, which is when whatever is left of the human population coalesces into large hunting packs containing hundreds of individuals. It is HIGHLY stressed by members of both factions that night travel is essentially suicide unless one can dig or fly, so take caution when accepting side missions that require doing so.
[/SPOIL]
Side Missions and Pokemon Post
[SPOIL]Every ten or so posts, there will be an update post put together by either one of the GMs. The main point of this post is to keep track of who is doing what and where, but the other purpose is to make known any Side Missions brought in by the Pokemon Post, a world-wide coalition of Flying-Type Pokemon who have opened up channels of communication both intra- and inter-regionally by flying letters written by Pokemon all over the world. Correspondence from other parts of the region flies in to all the major settlement bases, and any missions will be recorded and placed under the “Pokemon Post” heading in the update post in the following format:
To: (Insert Character name here [Player’s screenname in brackets]. “To whom it may concern” will indicate a Side Mission that can be taken by anyone.)
From: (Name of employer, often NPC or Elite NPC)
Subject: (Header that has something to do with the job at hand, i.e. “Escort” or “Rescue”)
Body: (Description of job)
Reward: (Can be anything from extra food rations to rare items such as Potions or Status Heals, and buffs such as +1 Inventory space in the form of a bag or belt.) [/SPOIL]
Inventory:
[SPOIL]All characters, Trained or Wild, will have a limited inventory. Bipedal Pokemon with no accessories will have a default Size 2 Inventory (can hold one thing in either hand/paw/tentacle) and all quadrupedal Pokemon with no add-ons will have a default Size 1 Inventory (hold 1 thing in their mouth). Water-bound Pokemon have a default Size 0 inventory, therefore making them unable to carry things without an accessory.
Inventory can be increased by trading items for Bags at any settlement, with the general rule being that the larger the Bag, the more “expensive” it is. Below is a general list of bag sizes, the recommended “price”, and the inventory increase it gives:
Small Bag (Pouch size)- Can be bought by trading berries or other useful common tools, +2 Inventory
Medium Bag (Satchel size)- Can be bought by trading rarer types of berries or low-tier medical supplies, +4 Inventory
Large Bag (Knapsack size)- Can be bought by trading rare medical supplies or intact human technology for study (such as Pokeballs that still work), +6 Inventory
Postal Bag - Only available for members of Pokemon Postal, +6 to +8 inventory, depending on the size of the Pokemon (contact a GM for details)
Your character may start with a bag that grants you only 1 extra inventory space (space of 3). Larger bags must be bought. 1 item = 1 used inventory slot, no exceptions. Also keep in mind that full inventories can weigh down a Pokemon and affect their ability to run or evade zombies, so use your inventory space wisely. [/SPOIL]
Faction/Orientation Information:
[SPOIL]Factions:
Trained
These Pokemon were part of a Pokemon trainer's team before PXH-334 started its course of destruction, and as such are far more powerful and have access and knowledge to use a variety of man-made devices that they may or may not find around the city. However, keep in mind that while they may know how to use certain devices such as Potions or Status Heals, they do not possess the knowledge to operate vehicles or elevators, as many Pokemon were often in their Pokeballs when humans performed these duties. They are also, barring whatever Manifests they may have, more powerful than a wild Pokemon, meaning more powerful moves and generally being physically stronger in general, due to the many vitamins and extensive training a typical Pokemon trainer does with their Pokemon.
Due to their training these Pokemon also hold the idea that they are a "civilized" group, and as such, try to recreate human customs and courtesies when meeting in groups amongst each other; in contrast, wild populations in their eyes, are uneducated, uncivilized, and there is little hope for them to become anything but. Their lacking power levels only further prove to the trained faction that they should be considered separate and superior to the wild Pokemon, and once the Pokecross zombies began to appear, their picking off of the abundant wild populace is considered a form of natural selection in the trained faction's eyes.
Wild
These Pokemon were born and raised in their wild, natural environments, whether it be in an urban setting or the wilderness. In this case, however, most wild Pokemon regardless of their natural origin (or orientation as it will be called below) have now been forced to live in the outskirts and wilds around formerly populated areas due to their being systemically driven out by the trained populace, and are forced to make do with whatever they're given to make out a living. Unlike the trained Pokemon, wild Pokemon cannot use man-made items and must depend on natural plants such as medicinal herbs and Berries...the upside to this, however, is that many of them are very good at identifying the differences between these plants, and can utilize them in much the same way trained mons can use Potions.
Wild Pokemon are much less organized than trained ones, but that simply means that their numbers at any given moment cannot be predicted. Given the high population density of the wilds post-infection, wild Pokemon are never alone, even if they prefer to be. Their attitudes are Machiavellian in nature, but if a common enemy is spotted, chances are they will all form a temporary bond and pull together (especially if it's a trained Pokemon as they are all aware of how much more powerful those Pokemon are) until said enemy is defeated; their bonds will then dissipate and the pack will go their separate ways. Wild Pokemon are also known as notorious hoarders, and any items they can get from cities (whether they actually know how to use them or not) will be hidden away in hard-to-reach areas and heavily guarded until a use for them is found.
Orientations
Urban
If a Pokemon is urban-oriented, this Pokemon's natural environment (i.e. their Pokedex-stated location) is in man-made structures and settlements, whether it be ancient or modern. Urban Pokemon are incredibly adept at making their ways through city streets, and many of them are even active rebuilders, making what repairs they can to buildings crumbling from neglect if only to make the Pokemon who now occupy them safer. They will recognize Pokemon Centers and Marts, prime places for scavenging coveted necessities, as well as know how to pick their way into houses to hunt for food. However, these Pokemon do not do well in natural environments, tend to be less aware of their surroundings, and tend to be the worst at differentiating between edible and poisonous flora, often finding more comfort in the use of man-made products despite their increasing rarity.
Terran
If a Pokemon is terran-oriented, this Pokemon's natural environment is in natural biomes, such as forests, deserts, mountains, caves, or tundra. Like urbans, terran-oriented Pokemon know the wilds like the backs of their hands, are always ready to run or fight at the first sign of threat, and are generally the most adaptable of the two orientations, provided one does not leave the wilderness. They have no troubles making food and medicines out of natural plants...but sticking a terran in any city environment is sure to confound them, as they will immediately become lost at the absence of many familiar smells and cramped over the proximity of buildings. Terrans are often singled out fairly readily by both those familiar around the city and zombies, making them easy targets when exposed should they be unable to get to a suitable shelter in time. [/SPOIL]
Manifests:
[SPOIL]Pokemon who survived the initial Pokecross infection have developed "manifests", or augmented abilities, that passively enhance their powers for a limited amount of time as well as grant them three additional powers that are exclusive to both the type of manifest that they have inherited and the type of Pokemon they are. Currently, there are three recognized categories that a Manifest can fall into, which will be briefly explained below.
Keep in mind that Manifests are still poorly understood by the Pokemon that possess them and are thus rather hard to control, making their use limited and sporadic. That being said, I am trusting you all to not abuse the powers I am otherwise giving you full creative freedom over...do NOT ruin that trust or I will not hesitate to remove you from the RP.
Shallow Manifest: A Pokemon with a shallow Manifest stores the latent PXH-334 virion in their cutaneous tissue, meaning that the sources of their Manifest powers and ability can come their skin, hooves, horns, fur, mane, paws, etc. An example of a Shallow Manifest ability would be toughened and super-protective skin, supernatural speed, a horn or set of horns (depending on how many the manifested had before their infection) that can be protruded and retracted at will, etc. Powers relating to this manifest must relate to the part of the body that is manifested, an example being able to exude a protective aura or dispel a harmful explosion from manifested skin.
Mesoteric Manifest: A Pokemon with a mesoteric Manifest stores the latent PXH-334 virion in their musculoskeletal system. Signs of this type of manifest include incredibly quick reaction times, supernatural strength, bones that remain unbroken even under ungodly amounts of pressure, and supernatural endurance, and powers that relate to it can range from attacks guaranteed to shatter natural or devised barriers or shatter the bones of any Pokemon who does not also possess a mesoteric manifest.
Deep Manifest: A Pokemon who posesses a deep Manifest stores the latent PXH-334 virion in their brains and, consequentially, their minds. These Pokemon have become clairvoyants, mind or aura readers, and empaths, with Pokemon who already possessed these abilities gaining a sharp increase in their skill in using them. Powers that relate to these manifests can range from psychic attacks on another Pokemon's mind or making another's brain literally explode from sheer mental power alone, making this one of the deadliest Manifests currently known. Unfortunately, not many Pokemon possess this Manifest as Pokecross was known to have a high mortality rate once the brain was reached; not to mention it didn't seem as though the virion cared much for neural tissue. [/SPOIL]
Rules
- Of course, all Serebii rules apply.
- Given as both GMs are college students as well as a part-time employees, we understand if you cannot post here every day, on the day. That being said, please at least try to remain somewhat active. The story doesn't go anywhere when no one is participating.
- Though we are lax about bunnying and will permit it given permission from the other RPer is given and acknowledged, We will absolutely NOT tolerate godmodding, and all complaints of such will be investigated and could lead to you being kicked out of the RP. Simply put, don't do it.
- Agent Tectonic and I will gladly take suggestions or critiques from fellow players, but in the end, we are the GMs and we have the final say in things, so I politely ask that you respect the decisions we make.
- With that being said, do not hesistate to come to us with questions, comments, or criticisms! Just do it in the discussion thread, please. We have one of those things for a reason.
Cast List
Trained
Roland the Gallade - GingerDixie
Reserve - Agent Tectonic
Zelda the Charizard - TheCharredDragon
Anubis the Lucario - Andydemon
Nina the Gardevoir- Andydemon
Lyra the Lopunny - Huntress Wizard
Eris the Delphox - Meeker
Viola the Shiny Gardevior - cmats4020
Wild
Shoshone the Mightyena (Reserve) - GingerDixie
Lorelei the Serperior (Reserve) - GingerDixie
Bismark the Nidoking - Agent Tectonic
Mason Sootburrough Stoneworthy the Camerupt - SilentMemento
Ricket the Heliolisk (WIP) - ChaosCaptain
Luno the Growlithe - Kukanisis
