Princess: The Hopeful RP Interest Check (Co-ST Wanted!).

[Templum Domini]

Disclaimer: The idea was not originally mine, but taken with permission from another game entirely; I have proof of said permission on Discord.

Spoiler: Beaux Rêve.

Beaux Rêve (Sweet Dream) is a city of clashing ideas and ideals, a microcosm of the world at large. A place radically different to most of it's neighbours, many of the customs are alien even on the global stage. Beaux Rêve has adopted a number of notably french customs and expressions, having been colonized first by the French elite when Europeans first came and claimed what they saw as the New World.

Beaux Rêve has adopted an extreme and bizarre one-school policy. A space the size of a whole city district has been carved out to make space for a truly massive educational complex, ranging from nurseries all the way up to university faculties. Kids from all over the city are made to mix regardless of their economic circumstances or housing situations. This brings a number of advantages and issues. Bullying is high, many classrooms or even whole buildings are left vacant due to issues or a lack of funding, teachers face extreme workloads and massive classes and the economy of the whole city has shifted to accommodate this. Everybody knows somebody who works at the school, and rumours spread like wildfire of the daily happenings. The district, and the schooling system is just commonly known as "The Complex" or "Beaux Rêve Educational."

Beaux Rêve has been split into a number of districts which serve various needs. The main district is the complex, residing at the centre of the city. The residential district isn't split by any official lines, but the disparity between rich and poor is clear to see, with worn-down apartments overshadowed by massive skyscrapers and penthouses belonging to the ultra-rich. It's not particularly rare for people to live in other districts above shops, in barrack-like accommodation for laborers or on the more rural and suburban city borders. Other districts include the commercial district full of bustling markets and French imports, the industrial district full of broken down warehouses and demolished factories.

The party currently in charge are the Autocrats, who have used Beaux Rêve as a testing ground for their larger plans over the years. Challenging this party are the Humanitarians, a slightly awkward and needs-must party made up of a mixture of people who genuinely want to change things for the better, and others who are simply riding the wave for power or for more cynical reasons. Rumours of more extreme elements of the party decry extremism and violent demonstrations.

The light has had a resurgence in Beaux Rêve. Others have taken up arms against the darkness, average folk becoming empowered to take the fight to the core of the issue as mundane folk squabble about their differences on the streets. This new light is delicate, however, flickering in the face of so much darkness and suffering. Individuals struggle with their burden, far too spread out and fractured amongst themselves to weather the looming storm. The chances are low, but if those standing for what is right can brook the crashing wave, the path to a brighter future could be left in the wake.

Everything is all on the verge of collapse, and that weight falls squarely on your shoulders. If you don't have to strength to lift it up, the dedication to make this place better, then it will drag you down with it, along with all you've ever loved.

Spoiler: Slums & Skyscrapers

A city divided between the extremely poor and extremely wealthy, Beaux Rêve is full of well-meaning folk, and others who just want to party and build a charitable image about themselves. So far, most efforts to improve the situation have failed to come to fruition, and the poor continue to suffer, easy prey to darkness.

The stage is set for somebody to mobilize community liaisons and build workable solutions to the problems in the way of change, but only you can pick out the right people to make waves, and brush aside those detractors and false-samaritans who are happy with the status quo.

Spoiler: Politics

Two (Fictional) parties have made Beaux Rêve the staging ground of their grand political stand-off. Utopian idealism and high values of freedom meets uncompromising efficiency and infantilising authoritarianism.

Rising tensions between partisan lines threaten to erupt and only you can tame these movements, ground the head-in-the-clouds dreamers and soften the stance of the hardliner patriarch.

Spoiler: Hope & Despair

The passionate lawyer who believes in a just world, the caring social worker who wants to bring out the best in his charges, the well-mannered waitress making her debut as a knight... There are bright, burning beacons of hope within Beaux Rêve, despite the soul-crushing reality. Despite everything, there are people who want to make a difference in their community, to improve their world for the better. Then steps in the cruel judge who took one deal too many, the corrupt politician with promises to even more corrupt corporations and the ace detective who plants evidence for a sweet bonus. The agents of darkness revel in the suffering caused by these mortal actors and sets targets on the backs of those who want to change things for the better.

The light is being slowly smothered, and only you can make sure it continues to burn bright instead.

Spoiler: Zenith

It all has to change. The supernatural can all feel it, something coming soon. The breaking point, an event which will set the city onto the right path or finally cause a total collapse. How far away this breaking point is, nobody knows, but all know it is coming, and the darkness swells in anticipation.

Everything will be different in the aftermath, and only you can make sure that this difference is for the better.

 

[Templum Domini]

Spoiler: Big 16

1. What game system are you running (D&D, Call of Cthulu, Palladium, GURPS, etc.), and if applicable what edition (Original, Classic, Revised, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 10th, etc.)?

Princess: The Hopeful

2. What 'type' or variant of game will it be (i.e. "Shadow Chasers" or "Agents of Psi" for d20 Modern)? What is the setting for the game (eg. historic period, published or homebrewed campaign setting, alternate reality, modern world, etc.)?

We'll be using the Dream edition (Templum's Note: Sadly). The game will be set in the small and completely fictional Northern American city of Beaux Rêves.

3. How many Players are you looking for? Will you be taking alternates, and if so, how many?

I'll probably take four players, five at a stretch.

4. What's the gaming medium (OOTS, chat, e-mail etc.)?

The forums are great, but probably some discord communication just to speed things up.

5. What is the characters' starting status (i.e. experience level)?

Characters will assign their stats as according to the instructions the sheet provides and the guidance given in the books. Ask if you get stuck!

6. How much gold or other starting funds will the characters begin with?

According to resources.

7. Are there any particular character classes, professions, orders, etc. that you want... or do not want? What are your rules on 'prestige' and/or homebrewed classes?

Feel free to kind of make what you want which has solid build rules existing, up to and including Shikigami. I'm willing to drop some extra dots if you're doing something weird and it's not properly designed. You can play the darker courts, just... Behave yourself.

8. What races, subraces, species, etc. are allowed for your game? Will you allow homebrewed races or species? 'Prestige' races or species?

As mentioned, you can even play Shikigami or Beacons if you really, really want to.

9. By what method should Players generate their attributes/ability scores and Hit Points?

See sheet. You may use the optional rules to choose a third charm affinity (using the chart) instead of the default three.

10. Does your game use alignment? What are your restrictions, if so?

Be good enough to care about hope and light, and human enough to have interactions with people.

11. Do you allow multi-classing, or have any particular rules in regards to it?

I have no idea how you'd multiclass in dream, but if you know how, do say!

12. Will you be doing all of the die rolling during the course of the game? Will die rolls be altered, or left to the honor system? If players can make die rolls, which ones do they make, how should they make the rolls, and how should they report them?

Roll on the forums just so everything is in one place. Some rolls may take place in the discord.

13. Are there any homebrewed or optional/variant rules that your Players should know about? If so, list and explain them, or provide relevant links to learn about these new rules.

Charm Affinity - Select your third charm instead of the preset 3. Your other 2 charm affinities must abide by the chart.

Anything theoretically and thematically playable is up for grabs.

14. Is a character background required? If so, how big? Are you looking for anything in particular (i.e. the backgrounds all ending up with the characters in the same city)?

Yes! Absolutely. Please write a background for your character's personal life, their hobbies, interests, friends, family and how they ascended. I don't want four orphans, please! Keep characters around mid-late teens and young professionals.

15. Does your game involve a lot of hack & slash, puzzle solving, roleplaying, or a combination of the above?

A mixture of slice-of-life family drama, with a monster-of-the-week feel. Expect character arcs and a soft episodic feel to how things will play out, of course with more progression.

What you do in your day-to-day life will have nearly as much impact as your activities at night.

16. Are your Players restricted to particular rulebooks and supplements, or will you be allowing access to non-standard material? What sources can Players use for their characters?

If there are charms you desperately need in Vocation that don't exist, you can ask me for them. I'm not promising I'll say yes, but, the door is open. I may work to convert them properly.

Spoiler: Intro/Disclaimer

The World of Darkness is full of grim and shocking stories about monsters trying to cling desperately to their humanity, balancing on a knife's edge when it comes to meeting the obligations of two worlds which often overlap. Gritty, edgy and perhaps obviously dark are all words you might use to describe the backdrop of these stories.

Princess follows this pattern, but in a new way. In Princess, you are not a monster or a metaphor. You are just a person, other than your ability to transform into a magical girl/boy and fight back against the darkness that threatens your home, your family, your community.

You are fundamentally a force for good, even if you follow a somewhat wayward path. Your ultimate goal is hope, maybe not directly for some, but regardless of your belief, you work to end grief in an extremely (meta)physical manner.

Belief and hope are precious resources in the world of darkness, and also scarce. Holding onto your value systems despite the horrors you regularly face up against can be difficult, but when nobody else is able to stand up, how can you ever stop fighting? Nobody will take your place if you give up, after all.

I've mentioned this before, but for anyone new to the thread... Princess explores some pretty triggering ****. I don't intend to play with this sort of theming for shock value or just for the sake of it, but it is a key theme of the books, often callously meshed with mechanics and maths.

There might be scenes in this game that test you, that might be disturbing or emotionally intense. You might find that this isn't the case. I'm not going to accept anyone teasing or harassing any other players for wanting to back out of scenes or need to skip out on the game.

I will ask that you be upfront with me instead of just dropping out because of a scene that is personally triggering or upsetting to you. As promised, some scenes will have content warning spoilers on them, but as this is taking place on these forums, don't expect anything incredibly graphic. I'm not hoping to break any rules here or make anybody purposefully uncomfortable.