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“The Wall has told us many things,” the scholar said. “The past unfurls before us like a warbanner in preparation of battle, its contents spelled out like field orders. It can even tell us the future, though our small minds cannot comprehend it,” he said with the feeble laugh of an ancient man. “There is, however, one thing it can’t share with us.” He waited, looking into his pupil’s eyes for a glimmer of reckoning, but he saw only a blank face. “The present, my boy!” exclaimed he; “It can’t tell us the present!”
“But why?” the boy asked. “Something so powerful must be able to—“
“No,” the Elder interrupted kindly. “Because the present isn’t up to the wall. The present isn’t up to people like me who read tomes all night. It’s up to you. You are the present. You make history. The Wall merely records it. We merely observe it. But you have more power over this spire than any of us do.” The old man smiled at the matoran. “So what are you waiting for? Go and make the present!”
Epoch of Despair
Introduction
“Master, what can you tell me of our plight?”
“Six toa came from... somewhere else. The Wall does not tell us from whence they came or why, only that they came in boats, carrying all of us with them. Their names, however, are firmly engrained into our very being, burned into our forheads. They were Frareo, Toa of Fire; Kaccio, Toa of Ice, Antrim, Toa of Earth; Calibran, Toa of Stone; Nakaii, Toa of Air; and Chamina, Toa of Water. But they were more than toa, more than heroes. They were GODS!
“Together, they raised their hands and created our island from nothing. They made what we stand on, we live on. They shaped our homes with their hands, and it was thanks to them that we lived this long. They breathed life where there was none! Immense was their power, great their words! For thousands of years, they guided us, shielded us, helped us. Years of plenty, those were. But like all good things, it ended too soon.
“Five thousand years ago -- this date I know -- the Toa vanished. No clues were left behind, no traces of where they went. Our gods, once observing and serving, were no more. We soon realized we were on our own. But bad went to worse, and worse to terrible, as we felt the earth tremble, the slow slide, the seas roar, and nature itself seemed to have lost interest with us. Reality itself seemed to conspire against us, and our island, once round and perfect, shaped with wisdom, was shattered.
“The Kuogo Breakoff split from the mainland, and the rest of Kini Karda vanished under the sea, gone like the Toa. This was when we truly realized our situation. But we still live, and so long as we have air to breathe and water to drink, we shall continue to do so. But we remain faithful, steadfast in our belief that our gods shall return, confident that we shall see that day before we come at an end. But some among us are more realistic.
“Boy, we are old, feeble and weak. You, and all like you, must go. Go and find the Toa, go and find why we are where we are. Go and save us!”
Tl;dr
In this game, you play as a villager on the island of Kini Karda. The toa-gods who created and ruled this island have disappeared, and in their wake nature began to fracture. The island shattered in two and the villagers were on their own as the island still moans and gradually frays at the edges. The villagers of the island are getting antsy and the various factions are struggling to maintain order and hope, but time is running out and it is time for everyone to rise to the moment. It is up to you to go and make a difference. Your first and main goal is to save the island, but in doing so you will unlock the secrets of Kini Karda, find the toa-gods and alter the course of history in the game -- forever.
Gameplay
To start, you can play as a matoran villager from any of the cities and can have any profession you desire, though ideally something themed to your home city. You can also play as a hermit, though not everyone should. No other species can be played at this time, though matoran of other elements other than the original six can be played with staff approval. However, matoran can have one minor power. Details in the character sheet section below.
Play as a toa character becomes unlocked when I or members of the game staff decide to grant it as a reward to certain players, and there is a possibility that they will become unlocked in general at a later time. However, for the creative players, play as a toa is not needed. Use your heads and play creatively and there should be no problem.
This is a player-driven game, and while it does have a central plot, it is up to you to progress the game. Some of you who were familiar with games run by former RPG gamemaster Exo-Fat have an idea of what I mean by this. I will insert things here and there, sometimes clues, sometimes strong nudges, to keep the plot alive, but the speed that these checkpoints come and go is strictly up to you. This game is also immersive and interactive, so being a player is an even more fun experience.
The Geography of Kini Karda
Kini Karda means “Temple of the Heart,” and it was what the island originally represented. It was once a perfectly round island, but it has long since fractured and eroded away with its creators vanishing without a trace. But as an artificial island, it has things one would not otherwise see in nature, from trees that contort in off shapes to glaciers that flow uphill and sand that erupts from the ground like lava. The mainland remains called Kini Karda, but the breakoff has two names, formally known as the Kuogo Breakoff though the Po-Matoran and some others call it Kini Cordak, or “Temple of Desolation.”
The islands are split up into six wahi, each with a city corresponding to its respective element. Each city is vastly different from the other, and almost all are fortified in some respect.
The Wahi
Ta-Wahi
Ta-Wahi is the westmost region and one of the smallest in surface area, but by far the fiercest. The volcano known as Frareo’s Rage is at its core, a round but violent shield volcano with streams of lava consuming all the land north to east of it. The volcano itself is surrounded by other mountains, some even taller than it, and it is in one of the valleys between these hills that the City of Fire exists.The city is a square, walled stronghold in a large lake of lava, completely symmetrical and full of right angles. It is home to over two thousand Ta-Matoran, all of them trained part-time soldiers. The city is famed for its discipline and structure, and it is this order that preserves them in these hard times. To be a Ta-Matoran is to stand for justice and perseverance at all odds. From time to time, the blizzards from Ko-Wahi will enter the city’s area and even let snow fall in their blazing city despite the lava, giving an eerie aura in the walls of the fortress as the residents realize, if only for a moment, that their castle can be overwhelmed.
Ga-Wahi
Ga-Wahi is on the far east side of the island, and is the only wahi that is in two parts. The main portion is on the mainland, dominating the inner southern coastline. It is miles and miles of long beaches with tropical foliage. Short streams and rivers flow from the mountains the southern border of the wahi, and these cool streams are all picturesque and ideal for fishing, though none are navigable. The City of Water lies on the coastline in a small cove, with part of the city placed on huts built on pylons in the water and part of it with wooden buildings in the shaded landed part, making the town versatile and able to create and export their own goods. The city docks are the largest in all the land.
The northern portion of the wahi, however, has no streams, and instead is only a small portion on the east side of the Kuogo Breakoff. Dry grass valleys create a sort of desolate region, and nothing taller than shrubs grow there. There is only a small settlement, but it is nomadic and always searching for the best place to lay low at, since the coastline is constantly being eroded away.
Between the two landmasses lies the Bay of Hodor. This little sea was once a part of what was the largest wahi, and if one braves the dangers under the waves and searches in the sediment below, one would find the scattered remains of matoran life.
Po-Wahi
Po-Wahi controls the rest of the Kuogo Breakoff. A vast chunk of pure desert, the entire region is nearly featureless save the tall dunes that are constantly shifting, covering paths and tracks almost overnight. The City of Stone is an unwalled village on the remains of what was once a great canyon, surrounded by a natural moat that swallows the dunes that constantly assault the place. Portions of the village stand on separate rock formations, all connected by narrow bridges that look like cables straining to keep the pieces together.
The most impressive landmark of the region is the Great Sand River, a giant flow of sand that appears to miraculously emerge from a source in the middle of the desert. Although fed in part by the dunes and the canyon, the river is almost made from thin air, and there are rumors of a temple at its true source, though it has never been found. The river is navigable only by a special type of boat, and the Po-Matoran built actual docks at the bottom of their city to utilize the river as their primary merchant hub.
Le-Wahi
Le-Wahi has the longest uninterrupted coastline. Dominating the southern part of the continent, the wahi is entirely filled with thick forests filled with wetlands at the bottom and massive trees reach to the sky as if struggling to snag the sun itself. Two long rivers feed the unquenching thirst of the forest, and between these two rivers lies the City of Trees, one of the few not named after it’s respective element. It is encapsulated in a wall of hedges and wooden barricades, and cannot be found by one unless led by an experienced guide. No roads lead out of it, and the best way to traverse the wahi to the city is through the trees themselves, and a vast network of branch-to-branch causeways connect to the city. Dominated by a huge tree at the center of the settlement, the city is rectangular and organized, and rows of agriculture separate the huts the villagers call home. The lucky ones have huts in the branches of the giant tree, usually in the form of hollowed out grottoes that provide spectacular views of the wahi. Despite this, the businesses have no resident quarter, and restaurants and shops alike can be found all over the city.
The border of Le-Wahi to Ko-Wahi is home to the Mist Forest, a narrow strip of chilly, foggy, always wet high forest that some matoran of all sorts have hermitages and monasteries in.
Also in Le-Wahi, shrouded in the vines and roots of the understory, is a legendary temple, previously the most magnificent in all the land. Called the Kini-Toa, it was built in ancient times to honor the toa. Built on a small island in the middle of a lake, it is connected to the shore by four perpendicular bridges lined with columns, and the temple itself is four ziggurats surrounding a central plaza, where great statues of the six toa stand carved out of stone. This temple is the subject of much debate and theory, as very little is known to be true about the temple, and there are certainly many secrets to be known about it.
Ko-Wahi
Ko-Wahi is a land of mountains with glacial valleys nestled between peaks. There is always a brizzard brewing somewhere in the wahi, though it moves like a cloud throughout the region. The glaciers feed almost all the rovers and swamps in the mainland, but the longest of them all, the Erth Glacier, named after a fallen matoran explorer, flows directly into the southern ocean, making it particularly special. Throughout the wahi, cairns and minute shrines exist, each one a superstitious attempt at bringing the much-adored hero back.
The Peace of Kaccio, an extinct volcano, is named after the resident Toa of Ice, Kaccio, who according to legend silenced the volcano with his silence. In the crater of the volcano is the City of Ice, which is built around a central mound with crypts inside it. The city is built over underlying volcanic tubes that have been expanded, leading to entrances around the outer flanks of the volcano itself, making it far easier to enter and exit the area, since summiting the walls and entering the crater directly is extremely difficult.
Onu-Wahi
Onu-Wahi is the most mysterious one, however. The surface is little more than black soil that dominates the northwest corner of the mainland, filled with rift valleys and ravines that spell certain doom for those who traverse it. Below it, however, are vast caverns that make this wahi the biggest. The actual limits of this wahi are far greater than what the map says, and the system travels in all directions with entrances all over, from the mountains to the sea and from the desert to even the jungle. This can lead to many sorts of terrariums to be found in various caves and caverns, reflecting the sort of landscape placed above it, especially if there are vents allowing nature’s forces in. There are many sunken caves and caves with flora growing in great proportions in it, etcetera.
In the wahi proper, there are two dominant structures. The City of Black is built into the side of a huge cliff inside a massive cavern, so large one can’t even make out the ceiling. Inside the walls are the holes where the light from the rooms inside emanates, as it is in the wall that the city is housed for the most part. On the floor of the cavern is the main square, a huge field with a river flowing through it and gates that lead to the subterranean mazes of caves.
The Antispire, however, is the most bizzare feature. It is a tower in every sense of the word except for the fact that it was created from a giant stalactite, hanging from the top of another great cavern. In it, resident matoran elders write histories and read from the great Wall of Testimony that covers the entire outside of the Antispire, accessible by the swirling steps that wrap around the temple, or dive into the books of the vast library inside. Superimposed on its surface are great glyphs, making the entire structure’s walls into an enigmatic sort of fractal where prophesies are embedded in prophesies.
The Politics of Kini Karda
City Govenment
The only city with a centralized government is the City of Fire, which is controlled by Frareo’s Best, the Army of Fire. The other cities live without much structure, following prominent citizens instead of established masters. Although the Army of Fire has established authority in all the cities except the City of Stone, they are more of a police and security force than a government. The Elders serve as lawmakers and wise arbiters, and they are generally accepted as counselors for most issues.
The City of Stone employs a similar structure, though they use a far more democratic system in which citizens create a general assembly to solve major problems, while smaller problems are fixed by smaller assemblies of the affected group. Security and safety is done by the Disciples of Calibran, and the Elders still serve as arbiters and counselors.
Organizations
There are various organizations in the island, most of them compromised of matoran of multiple elements. Each can represent a different creed, ideology, goal or any combination of those.
The Elders
These are aged matoran who have dedicated their lives to reading the Wall of Testimony and serving as counselors across the islands. They are the closest the island has to turaga, and most are skilled mediators, counselors and scientists to fill the void of true village leaders. While there are fewer than fifty who reside in the Antispire, there are at least twice as many who live on he rest of the island, living in sparse accommodations in all the villages. Despite their monklike demeanor, they do not believe in being hermits and instead do all they can to spread enlightenment and wisdom to the people, seeking to be as useful as possible. They are not, however, priests or any other sort of spiritual guide, instead serving to present truths and give purpose to others. Members of the order wear a simple black poncho to identify themselves.
Every hundred years or in the event that their master dies in office, the Elders hold a conclave in the Antispire to select their leader, called the Great Master. Their order is due for an election very soon.
The Order of Calix
When the toa disappeared, the priests went underground, starting the Order of Calix, or Fate. The sole purpose of the Order is to investigate and bring back the toa, and the members of the organization stand by the belief that they will one day return. They scour the temples, travel to the corners of the island and devote time and effort to arcane rituals to summon their gods, but their faith has so far not seen any grand reward. While many of the matoran are sympathetic to their cause and support them from afar, very few can respond to the rigorous demands of the Order and cannot take part in their activities.
They claimed possession of a monastery in the mountains, and there they live like warrior monks. In their possession is one of the famed Toa Tools: a torch with a flame that never dies. A highly desired artifact, they are convinced it holds a powerful secret that can summon the toa again and seek other tools, certain the ancient artifacts are hidden across the islands and contain the answers to their prayers.
Frareo’s Best, the Army of Fire
Built as the Coty of Fire’s native army, it has since become the best and most prepared fighting force on all of Kini Karda. Trained to near perfection, members of the Army of Fire are experts at tactics and weaponry. They are not just found in Ta-Wahi, however. When the toa vanished, the Army of Fire was called upon by almost all the cities to establish garrisons there and become a sort of islandwide army and police corps. Seeing it as an opportunity of spreading order and justice to all parts of the mainland, they eagerly spread their influence. All officers of the Army of Fire are Ta-Matoran, and while all other sorts are welcomed superficially, they cannot advance past enlisted ranks and commonly serve as specialists. The City of Stone is the only city that refused their aid, causing a sense of distrust and antagonism between the two cities, since that caused the Army of Fire to not have any power on the Kuogo Breakoff.
Their home is a quarter of the City of Fire, a citadel within the monolithic fortress. From here, their commanders and generals send dispatches to the outlying garrisons. The senior general lives in a highly protected level near the top of the castle.
Disciples of Calibran
Created as the City of Stone’s response to the Army of Fire’s advance, the Disciples of Calibran, named in the honor their patron toa and his philosophies, are known to be masters of ambush and use of their environment, which they developed because they had to make do with nothing to start with. Although substantially fewer in number, they are never unarmed and always have a plan B. They are extremely resilient and skilled in hand-to-hand combat, employing a heavyhanded, bonebreaking fighting style to crush their enemies. The Disciples believe in individualism and democracy, breaking free from the highly organized and orderly dogma of Frareo’s Best. However, despite this, they do not recruit members outside of their own kind. Their base is a hollowed out network of caves in one of the pillars in the canyon the City of Stone. Humble and lacking royal trappings of any sort, soldiers live like rodents curled up in burrows in the caves.
NPCs
Arrys
Affiliation: Elders
Position: Great Master
Arrys is the current leader of the Elders. Residing deep underground in the Antispire, he has spent many years reading texts and gaining wisdom, and people from across the land come to pay respects or request divination from him. An inviting man, he welcomes all pilgrims with open arms, regardless of motive or background. Arrys may also be more than great host that he seems to be, though, and some among the Elders murmur that since his election over 99 years ago, he became more and more erratic and mysterious, whispering to himself in hallways and disappearing from time to time. He dispels such rumors, though they persist.“The Prophet”
Affiliation: The Order of Calix
Position: High Priest?
Almost nothing is known of this enigmatic figure. He is known to exist, but his identity and true powers are the subject of nothing but debate. Only members of the Order of Calix can meet him, but he still refuses to tell them who he is.Kondam
Affiliation: Frareo’s Best
Position: Senior General
The most senior captain in the Army of Fire, Kondam singlehandedly made the army the strong force it is today, securing embassies all over the mainland and personally overseeing the rigidity the army enforces. His full title is “Kondam, Frareo’s Best, Lord Commander of the City of Fire, Senior General of the Army of Fire,” and in formal situations he is simply known by “Frareo’s Best.” More of a doer than a thinker, his strong personality betrays his personal inability to strategize brilliantly, and he is constantly living in the shadow of the intellect of his predecessors. This insecurity manifests in the form of paranoia, and he is incredibly cautious, rarely travelling without a heavily armed and trained escort and typically sneaking across the island to supervise instead of announcing his arrival to make preparations. His ultimate goal is to abolish the need for toa and claim the island for himself and his own – as Emperor.Basilli
Affiliation: Disciples of Calibran
Position: De-facto Commander
A short, stocky, blank-faced matoran of stone, Basilli was never officially put in charge of the Disciples, though he has been recognized as the first among equals and reluctant commander. He is cunning, sly and quick-witted, but shy and soft spoken. Nevertheless, he is famed for his bravery. He lives like the rest of his men in a burrowlike cave in the same stone monolith. Credited for the strength of his city and the solidarity of his men, contrasting Kondam’s personality, despite his importance, he refuses escorts and is protected by his men out of adoration instead of necessity.Sheets and Game Rules
Matoran Powers
Matoran can access one power through the use of a disk. It is a round disk that possesses a power, granted by the toa-gods, to the matoran who owns it. Power Disks, as they are called, cannot be used by anyone other than the original owner, and it is a powerless plate to anyone else. To use the disk’s power, it must be in physical contact with the matoran user, and the user must consciously activate the power. Unlike Kanoka, however, the Power Disks cannot be activated by being thrown or launched, and must have contact with their user. However, that is a moot point if the power of the disk is, say, a timed sonic strike. Also, if the matoran uses a tool, this can serve as an extension to the body and be used to have contact with the disk.
While the disks can be forged into Kanohi, the process in which this is done is unknown and it is very rare to find matoran wearing powered Kanohi. This was previously done as another way for the Toa-Gods to honor select villagers, and it is an exceedingly great honor to have it done. So far, the Elders alone have the ability to forge Kanohi from the disks, and they don't take that knowledge lightly.
When selecting the power for your villager, keep try to keep it original and exercise a common sense test to it. If it seems too powerful or subject to abuse, chances are it is, and if it is, I'll take action, so just be aware of this.
Character Sheet
To join, you need to fill out this form and submit it in the profiles topic. If something needs to be changed, the game staff will PM you with suggestions and the profile might be put in the not-accepted list. If accepted, no communication will occur and the profile will just be placed in the accepted profiles list. All parts need to be fleshed out as much as your imagination allows you, and the staff reserves the right to put any character, tool or ability into question and make a final call on it.
Name:
Gender:
Element and Species:
Character Appearance:
Power Disk:
Mask and Tools:
Character Biography:
Faction Sheet
Factions cannot be created yet, but will be unlocked to the players shortly after the game is thoroughly under way. For now, this section is only for reference.
Faction Name:
Description: (Goals, purpose, etc.)
Members: (At least three belonging to at least two players)
Game Rules
- · All forum rules apply. No flaming, trolling or any other activity that breaks the laws of the land.
- · Use IC for “in character” and OOC for “out of character” when posting in the game topic.
- · If what you have to say is an OOC and directed at a single person, send it in a personal message instead of posting it in any of the topics.
- · No OOC-only posts. At least post a promise of an IC in the future and make every post count.
- · When battling another player, you must communicate via PM to decide who the victor is. No pointlessly long, drawn-out battles.
- · Be realistic and don’t pull powers out of your butts. Stick with what you’ve got. You also can’t be everywhere, can’t know everything and definitely can’t do everything, so no abusing powers you don’t even have.
- · Listen to all staff instructions and be excellent to each other.
- · Have fun! This is all about building a universe together and enjoying it, so seriously, don’t be afraid to break out and carve your own path. You guys are why this game was made.
Karma System
Be GOOD in the RPG and you might:
- · Be able to play as a toa.
- · Be given a special weapon or secondary ability.
- · Have your disk made into a powered kanohi.
- · Be bestowed special in-game privileges.
Be BAD in the RPG and you will:
- · Be warned by staff.
- · Be suspended from gameplay.
- · Have a random character killed by my whim.
- · Be banned from play.
Game Staff:
Gamemaster - EmperorWhenua
Game Assistant - Vacant
Special thanks to Swert for some conceptualization and naming help, and thanks to all potential reviewers and players.
