ooc Broken World: Equestria

[Firestorm 8]

So I've been planning and writing a grimdark/adventure/friendship fic similar to RAGE with a mix of Fallout, Command and Conquer and Deus Ex. I RPed with some of my brony friends but I want to broaden the gameplay horizon. Before I go into the details, I just wanna say this isn't Fallout: Equestria. It's closer to RAGE but still an original one.

 

Storyline: The story takes place some seven hundred years into the future after the Adonis impact event. The landscape has changed and the borders of nations were erased. Seven hundred years ago, Equestria was consumed by a firestorm and everything on the surface scorched. Towns and cities were devastated while forests that weren't flattened by the shockwave were incinerated by the oncoming firestorms. Several coastlines were flooded by mega tsunamis. The ponies sought shelter in deep underground asteroid shelters known as Safes but the moving earth and earthquakes generated by the impacts meant that a lot of shelters collapsed and its occupants were killed. After the impact event was over, only fifty of the original one hundred and twenty shelters survived the ordeal. For the next few decades after the impact, darkness covered the planet and the surface was inhospitable to all but the most primitive form of life. The asteroid also introduced to the world an unusual extraterrestrial mineral: Exonite. The first shelters opened some one hundred years after the impact event to allow its inhabitants to roam and repopulate the wasteland. Others decided to remain underground where they expanded their Safes into Colonies, which were basically underground cities, each living by their own rules and customs. The wasteland itself is populated by mutants but as time passed, surface settlements began popping up and tribes started forming. The virtues of the old world were replaced with selfishness, greed and hostility as the settlers struggled to survive on scarce resources like fresh water and edible plants. They slowly adopted meat as their primary food source. As the repopulation of Equestria went on, the inhabitants of Safe-001 (located towards Equestria's west coast) surfaced during the year 290 A.A. (After Adonis). As time passed, the wasteland was divided into Hierarchy-controlled territory and New Canterlot Government territory. With fresh rebellions popping up in the Hierarchy territory, the NCG is poised to strike and free the oppressed ponies and reclaim lost lands. The battle for the wastelands is about to begin. All it needs now is a spark to set off the conflict.

 

The Hierarchy: They were a secretive military organization claiming to be the descendents of government officials and military elite. They were known as the Hierarchy. They claim continuation of the Equestrian government but most of them were blood relatives of government officials, influential business owners and military personnel. Given that their Safe was meant for very important ponies, the Hierarchy had all the technology and resources they need to build up a force strong enough to call an army. They had blueprints to secret technologies sanctioned by Princess Celestia herself but was under strict orders to use it for good. That didn't matter since Celestia was gone, killed during the impact event when she tried to shield Canterlot from the shockwave and firestorm. Princess Luna was still alive and according to old Equestrian law, she was to be the successor of Celestia but the Hierarchy locked her away and kept her in stasis. They intend to rebuild Equestria as they see fit and Luna was an obstacle to them. Utilizing the secret technologies, they created a powerful army in secret. By the time they emerged during 290 A.A., Equestria was dominated by two powerful warring factions: the Solar Brotherhood and the Lunar Legions. They were battling for control of Canterlot, both claiming legitimacy as stewards to the empty throne in the name of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna respectively. With such disorganization, wresting control of Equestria from the two factions was easy for the Hierarchy. In a blitzkrieg, the Hierarchy had most of the west coast under their control within ten years but slowed down as their expansion eastwards was met with fierce resistance from the two factions and the wasteland settlements that supported them. However, their technology gave them an edge over the less well-equipped factions. The only true threat to the Hierarchy was the Solar Brotherhood's Paladin Division, a division of elite troopers with technology equally matched to that of the Hierarchy's. Nevertheless, the Hierarchy still has the upper hoof because they had vehicles and a small fleet of skyships. For the next two hundred years, the Hierarchy waged war against the two factions, wresting control from them hundreds of settlements, including a newly rebuilt Manehatten. However, with their supply lines stretching thin, the Hierarchy halted their expansion. From there, they devoted their attention to consolidating and exerting their power on surface settlements under their control. They also started invading underground colonies, which easily fell prey to their more well-equipped forces. They reintroduced formal education to the settlements and colonies, eradicated raider threats, cleared out mutant nests and developed important places into mega trade centers. They also built two impressive superstructures as a sign of their power and authority: Capital Prime and the Pegasopolis Sky Colony. Many hailed the Hierarchy as the heroes that would liberate the settlers from the Dark Ages. Suddenly, the prospect of rebuilding Equestria seemed real and possible. Nevertheless, due to their authoritarian rule, several settlements rebelled and demanded for greater freedom. The Hierarchy was ruthless in dealing with dissenters but they could never fully suppress pockets of rebellions which continue to pop out once in a while. The areas under Hierarchy control benefitted from their technologies while the areas under the Solar Brotherhood and Lunar Legions continue to suffer from interfaction conflicts, anarchy and two devastating wars known as the Throne Wars. The Hierarchy maintained a watchful eye over their territory borders for raiding parties and raider incursions for the next few centuries. It had been that way until the Solar Brotherhood and Lunar Legions signed a ceasefire agreement. The Canterlot Concordat was signed in the year 595 A.A. and the New Canterlot Government was formed. Unlike the Hierarchy, the NCG had true legitimacy to govern and rebuild Equestria as the Parliament was composed of true descendants of the last government officials of Canterlot before the impact event. The Solar Brotherhood and Lunar Legions ceded land and power to the new government but kept a portion of land for themselves - a sign that they were technically at war because it was a ceasefire they signed; not a peace treaty. Nevertheless, they agreed to combine their forces to combat the Hierarchy. Rebels within Hierarchy territory began supporting the newly formed government and that alarmed the Hierarchy chain of command. A military buildup on both sides began and it was only a matter of time before another war started.

 

The Hierarchy is governed by a Hierarch (exclusively pegasus), supreme leader of the Hierarchy. The Hierarch is assisted by the Hierarch Senate, a group of ten pegasus senators along with the Hierarch Assembly (its members are mostly unicorns). Since the day of its formation, the Hierarch was ruled by the Hessian Dynasty until the assassination of Goodwing Hessian in the year 578 A.A.. Without an heir, the Hessian Dynasty gave way to the Archer Dynasty which continued the rule. Yvanna Archer is the current Hierarch. Hierarchy soldiers prefer to use energy and Exonite weapons though kinetic weapons are still used by them. The Hierarchy encourages big families though it's because they could use more ponies for their work force. They also regularly conscript earth ponies into their military. While they tend to look down on earth ponies as inferior, they made sure the conscripts were "pure" as they do not tolerate mutants, raiders or just about anything the Senate declares as "dirty". The bulk of the military consist of earth pony conscripts but true military prowess lies with the pegasus and unicorns. Earth ponies are cannon fodders in battle. All pegasus and unicorn soldiers wear full body power armor with advanced A.I. interface in their helmets which has a targeting system, intercomm and a variety of different visions. It also monitors the wearer's biological condition. Their suit has an in-built med administrator to provide medications for wounded users as well as antidotes for poisons. The hoof part of the suit has an extendable adamantine blade for close combat use.The suit also has hardpoints for weapons to be mounted on and used in conjunction with the helmet's targeting system for increased accuracy. Some soldiers prefer to use trigger weapons - weapons designed for creatures with fingers or claws. Hierarchy power armor is light enough so that mobility is not sacrificed and at the same time offering a good degree of protection against attacks.

 

Exonite info: It could self-proliferate at a moderate rate. It grows by absorbing ambient magic and proliferates via spreading underground veins where new crystal pods would grow and break to the surface. Exonite crystals are dangerous in a sense that it emits a special type of radiation called M-Rad or Magic Radiation. The ambient magic it collects are raw and unstable. Like nuclear radiation, Magic Radiation could disrupt cell activities and cause mutations but M-Rad causes more damage to the mana pool of a creature. Creatures with a mana pool within them allows them to use magic, no matter how subtle their magical capabilities are. Normally, the mana pools within a creature is stable but M-Rad can destabilize their mana reserves. This causes the creature to have less control over their magic powers and unleashing them without their control. The creature will also emit M-Rad which accumulates in their body and causing them to mutate even quicker. The probability of mutation is fairly high but most remain mutants for a while before dying. Creatures that survive death are classified into two mutant groups. Class A mutants are creatures that have changed drastically with notable features like Exonite crystals growing from their skins, partially crystallized bodies, lowered mental functions, feral behavior and the ability to use magic powers even when they are not supposed to have the ability to cast spells like unicorns and alicorns. Class B mutants are less drastic and mutations are often unnoticeable. They are mostly normal but the only thing that gives away their mutant identity is that they lose their Cutie Marks and seem to summon some sort of magic spell out of nowhere without them noticing. Class B mutants do run a risk of turning into Class A mutants should they expose themselves to more M-Rad. Both mutants, however, do share several common traits. They have increased spell power, greater physical abilities such as heightened senses and increased speed, a bigger mana pool and the ability to emit M-Rad. Class A mutants are immune to M-Rad and can heal themselves when exposed to Exonite crystals. While death by M-Rad is common, making contact with Exonite-laced materials or even breathing Exonite particles can cause serious injuries and death if not treated quickly since the crystals have a tendency to assimilate carbon-based lifeform and crystallizing them. Exonite, while deadly when handled carelessly, can also be useful. Utilizing harvesting methods developed by the Hierarchy research teams, Exonite could be extracted and processed. Magic energy inside the crystals were stabilized and processed into usable energy to power vehicles, settlements and even energy weapons. The deadliest use of Exonite weapons is the XM-001 Hell Buster Bomb, a powerful bomb designed to destroy underground colonies. The rebellious Anatares Colony was decimated by one of these bombs when they refused to follow Hierarchy rules. Now, the area surrounding the ruins of the colony is nothing but a gigantic crater.

 

(Yeah, quite detailed, isn't it? Doesn't look like FoE anymore, right? This is just the surface of a deeper story and I promise you, this will be a good game to play. However, I'm still thinking of the roleplay rules and mechanics. I do plan to feature events that require skill checks and players get a chance to increase their skills to influence events. If you wanna join, feel free to join in and offer suggestions. I look forward to playing with you guys.)

 

Oh, here's a simple political map of the wasteland in the year 700 A.A. just to get you started. It's not complete and I'm no artist so I hope that there will be a volunteer to help create a more detailed map with lands outside of the Equestrian Wasteland.

 

http://s1245.photobu...ofEquestria.jpg

 

Link to RP: http://mlpforums.com/topic/8316-broken-world-equestria/page__st__0

Edited May 1, 2012 by Firestorm

[Strong Hooves 289]

http://mlpforums.com/topic/6667-strong-hooves/

 

im in!

[Jackson Ward 1]

I thought an OOC is where you ask people too be in your roleplay

[Firestorm 8]

True but I still have a vague idea on the RP mechanics I was planning to include. I thought maybe some of you guys could help me out.

[Aureity 3,055]

Bloody hell, you put so much effort into this RP that I'd feel bad if I didn't join. I'll join once this gets started

[Firestorm 8]

Thanks and I really do hope my effort is worth it. No point making it deep when nobody wants to play.

[Aureity 3,055]

I know the feeling, when you expend so much effort into something and everyone is like, "Meh." But if you really do the best job that you can possibly do, you shouldn't be afraid if others don't like it, you should be proud of yourself for your accomplishment!

[Firestorm 8]

Thanks for the praise, it's nice to see a fellow brony saying something like that. I'm still going around looking for players.

[Mephala 2,633]

Whoa man, you out a lot of thought and effort in! Plus avi is awesome! I'll join.

[Firestorm 8]

Thanks, i'm currently planning the rules. Go get more friends so we can all play the game.

[EldarSteve 119]

SOOOOOOO In.

 

http://mlpforums.com...113#entry178113

[Firestorm 8]

I was thinking, since this game is gonna feature combat and situations that require skill checks, we need to come up with a formula, right? How should it be like?

[Strong Hooves 289]

lol dont ask me i suck at that stuff all I can do is draw lol

[Linguz 136]

I'll join in. Maybe I'll use Silver. Maybe Nidal (unmade). I'll wait and decide later.

 

I could come up with a formula if I know what's in the game.

 

Are there stats and skills? Just stats? Just skills?

[Firestorm 8]

Stats, Skills, Abilities. I will list them down here.

[Linguz 136]

And do you want this on a 1-100 scale?

 

Also, I have an interesting idea for luck so I'll show you when I do the formula.

 

Stats are like strength, agility, and the like.

Skills are like climb, swim, barter, and the like.

 

Do you want all abilities to influence chances? Or would they just influence a stat, skill, or something else?

[Firestorm 8]

Abilities may influence mostly skills, some may influence stats.

[Linguz 136]

Alright, going to try this one from Dark Heresy.

 

Stats: 1-100

Skills: Adds an amount to the stat. +0, +10, +20

Abilities: Modifies skill branches to add bonuses.

Dice: 1d100

Other modifiers: DM's choice.

Degrees of success/failure: 1 degree for every 10 points under/over (respectively) the needed amount.

The base stats would be around 20-40 and you have to roll under the stat after modifiers.

 

Example:

Steve wants to climb the rocky wall. It has a rough surface and is slanted in his advantage, so it's easy to climb (+20). He also trained in climbing a bit earlier in his life (+10). His strength is at a 30. Therefore, to be able to climb the wall, he would need to roll under a 60. Rolling anything past 60 would either cause him to start to fall or be unable to go higher. If he fails the roll with two or more degrees of success (80+), he starts to fall, which would then need an agility roll to grab back onto the wall. The more degrees of success he gets, the faster he climbs the wall.

Do you like this or would you rather a different/simpler one?

Edited March 2, 2012 by Linguz

[Firestorm 8]

I think for the benefit for other players who aren't familiar, we'll go with a simpler one.

[Linguz 136]

Okay. I'll remove parts of that one. Then just roll 1d100.

 

The stats are 1-100.

The skills raise their main stat by 0 to 20.

Abilities modify the skill branches further (for example, maybe a +10 for climbing vines but no bonus for climbing cliffs).

 

Full Success: 20 points under the modified stat.

Partial Success: The modified stat or higher.

Partial Failure: Lower than the modified stat.

Full Failure: 20 points above the modified stat.

((Simplified the degrees thingy.))

 

Truly, it's not complicated all that much. One just needs to take a moment to learn it and after you try it out, it can quickly become second nature.

 

By the way, will you be doing all the rolls?

[Firestorm 8]

Yes, I will along with the results of the roll. I think they can be done online, right?

[Linguz 136]

http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/

This is what I recommend. It allows you to link the results as well. It's a little more complicated than the next one I'll link, but it gives you a lot more freedom, even allowing you to make notes if you have an account. Example: http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3398552/

 

http://www.d20srd.org/extras/d20dicebag/

If you want faster, then there's the d20 bag thing. It gives you options instead of you having to put in the roll.

 

----------------------------------------------------------

 

((I do not suggest using a really simple stat system, for it would limit things a lot. But if you want one...))

 

Stats: 1-100

Skills: Adds 0-20, depends on how trained it is.

Abilities: Modifies skills.

 

Rolling the 1d100 below your stat makes you succeed. Rolling above your stat makes you fail. Simple as that.

[Firestorm 8]

Alright, thanks. Oh, here's the skill list I promised along with the stats.

 

Skills (1 - 100)

 

Alchemy - The higher the skill, the better the potions and poisons crafted and increased ability to identify unknown potions.

 

Armor - This skill determines the proficiency of all armor types.

 

Barter - This skill determines buy/sell rate and chances of a successful trade.

 

Chemical Weapon - This skills determines the damage dealt and accuracy when using chemical weapons (flamethrower, gas sprayer).

 

Crafting - The higher the skill, the better the items and equipments crafted.

 

Demolitions - This skills determines the damage dealt and accuracy when using demolition weapons (grenades, mines, explosive charges).

 

Electronics - This skill determines the chances of success when hacking electronic locks and computers. Used in conjunction with Repair skill to fix electronic equipments.

 

Energy Weapon - This skill determines damage dealt and accuracy when using energy weapons (thunder gun, harmonic disruptor rifle).

 

Explosive Weapon - This skill determines damage dealt and accuracy when using explosive weapons (missile launcher, flak gun).

 

Flight (pegasus) - Determines chances of success in any event that involves Flight skill check

 

Kinetic Weapon - This skill determines damage dealt and accuracy when using kinetic weapons (assault rifle, shotgun, guided assault weapon).

 

Magic (unicorn skill) - This skill increases magic proficiency and reduces chances of broken concentration when casting spells

 

Mechanical - The skill determines the success when dealing with mechanical objects such as vehicles and augmentations. Used in conjunction with Repair to fix mechanical objects.

 

Medicine - This skill determines the efficiency of healing items and chances of a successful cure of poisons.

 

Melee Weapon - This skill determines damage dealt when using melee weapons (energy saber, power claws, crowbar).

 

Pilot - Determines chances of success in any event that involves Pilot skill check.

 

Repair - Repair is used in conjunction with Electronic and Mechanical skill to determines the chances of a successful repair

 

Security - This skill determines the chances of a successful lockpicking

 

Sneak - This skill determines the chances of success when sneaking past enemies or when pickpocketing

 

Spot - This skill determines the chances of success when spotting for traps or other characters trying to pickpocket you

 

Speech - This skill determines the chances of success in events that require a Speech check

 

Throwing - This skill determines the chances of hitting targets with thrown weapons (throwing spear, shuriken, throwing knife)

 

Unarmed - This skill determines damage dealt when fighting without weapons

 

Stats (1 - 10)

 

Strength - Influence damage dealt for unarmed and melee attacks, needed when equipping certain weapons

 

Endurance - Influence damage absorbed from incoming attacks

 

Intelligence - Influence magic proficiency, EXP gained

 

Agility - Influence dodge rate

 

Charisma - Influence Barter, Speech skills

 

Luck - Influence critical hit rate

 

Dexterity - Influence accuracy rate

 

(Details are still a bit rough and all. Feel free to modify and improve it to fit the game)

[Strong Hooves 289]

do we roll for each skill and stat? I have never used the stat system before, only action within reason, so I may need help with all this :/

[Firestorm 8]

Don't worry, you're not the only one.