I have to apologize, collage got me again I wasn't able to do anything... I
should be a little more free on Thursday, so I can try making it then (after
that I'll have five-day vacation anyways, so I guess I'll manage to squeeze at
least a little free time to do this).
But even if I were to do this (I won't mind help, Anj), someone still should
check it out to verify if I didn't forgot something and all... like everyone
that was involved in race-creating thing so far... so if anyone wishes to
purpose another race or something, do make it before Thursday, thanks.
See ya all.
I can try making all of that during Easter, but I can't really promise anything
here, so don't take this for granted.
As for characters, the only new one is Wint, a Balthazar Children hunter... but
it's still not decided whether he's human or cyndian.
As for changes in other characters, the only one changed is really Thoe, who
became somewhat a half-demon... oh yeah, and I believe Fall became
Walderian.
And since I'm here, let me wish all the UMP crew a HAPPY EASTER!
Slack off all you want so you can get back to working here afterwards ^_-
See ya.
Well, theoretically Wint's race doesn't play any part, I just made him a human
coz the only humans in the team were... not entirely human (don't get this the
wrong way though, I meant they had some special features, like Rain being a BC
or Summer a scroll)... guess Wint can be a cyndian... that way, after he joins
the team, he could tell them about the scroll in their capitol city (if there
will be one) but of he does become a cyndian, we should also think of some
animal which features he could take (I would suggest some wild cat or dog...
kinda cliche, but such a beast seem to fit him... after all he's a warrior who
trained since childhood like Rain and having a dangerous 'animal ally' would
suit best here).
As for Wint's pet wolf I'm not so sure... well yeah, cyndian do have many
connections with animals but a wolf traveling with him... I don't know, it seems
a bit out of place for me.
And the final thing: even if we decided to make Wint a cyndian, still throwing
him out from the team would be hard (he fell in love with Fall, so unless she
were to leave, I doubt he would... it's kinda logical, right?)... but then
again, no one said he was suppose to be throw out... just wanted to remind
everyone of his crush fact...
Either way, no matter if Wint will stay human or not, we should no concentrate
on making other Rain party members not humans... oh yeah, just a question, are
we gonna make the thief I prupose join the team or not (and if yes, will it be
for longer?)... he/she is not a warrior type and doesn't have to be human (I
think I even said somewhere it could be a sylfidion)...
I'll try to think of some race or a chara from those already pruposed.
I agree with the NOT overcrowding Rain's group (I say 7 people... 9 at most...
at least for several, first chapters... later on MAYBE we could add one or two
or replace someone... after all, we're not making another 'Naruto'... in this
story everyone will travel together all the time, right?).
About the flying continent - it's quite overused in my opinion (look 'One Piece'
for example... I think there even was a manga about getting on such continent)
so I'm a little sceptic about that... then again, we could make it like Asgard
or something (like every 'island' in that continent has different climate and
such)... we just should watch out to avoid the cliche.
merged: 03-31-2006 ~ 11:14pm
Oh yeah, btw - we already have 5 people in Rain's party and so far ALMOST all of
them are humans (Fall is an exception) so maybe we should think of some charas
that aren't human?...
Well, I never really played FF, so I don't know if the cyndians really sound
like some character classes from it, but if you say so then they probably
do.
I think Falls can be either a sylfidion or walderian (both seem to fit for me,
only the name doesn't sound that... syfidionic). But I had an idea: maybe we
should make Fall a walderian and the thief I pruposed (we really should find a
name for him or her... it'd be easier) can be a sylfidion (sure, he/she is a
thief, but he/she still isn't a warrior type... and since that character would
probably wear some sort of a cloak, it could float on wind)... I think making
lithorians into dwarf wannabies is a good idea (stone pipsqueeks... sounds
cool...).
As for cyndians not having a village is nice, but I think they should have one
secret... like the last one of their once many towns in some distant forest...
the people of that town could be guardians of Gaia's scroll even (seem like the
most fitting, coz other races seem to be more attached to a certain element...
but then again walderians somewhat can fit too). Plus cyndians may not trust
people, which would make it harder for Rain to convince them to give him the
scroll...
merged: 03-27-2006 ~ 01:45am
Btw, I changed the Character's Guide (wrote a more detailed description about
those who already were there and added Fall and Wint... not sure if I got all
the Fall aspects correct).
I still didn't add the thief that I pruposed coz I'm not sure if he (or she)
finally stays nor do I know the race (in Fall's case I wrote that race is still
not decided).
I think that's all.
sylfidions: I don't know about the wind part... with all you wrote, Anj, they
kinda remind me of driads and fearies... that may just be me though
sylviadorns: well, the name is a bit similar to the above so maybe we should
change it... I like most part of this, except for two things: maybe it'd be
better for the roots in their feet to hid when they're not using them (like for
sleeping?)... and the second part is their height... I don't know, but Fall
being tall for like four meters (that's around 4 feet if I calculate right)
kinda ruins my vision of her (btw, I may be dated but if Wint is supposed to
fall for her... well, human falling in love with a giant as she might be called
seems a bit weird to me)... but above that I think it's pretty cool
lithorians: sounds a lot like some sort of golems... and I don't think we could
think of a good character from that race to join Rain's party (meaning someone
of an interesting fighting style with some message behind him... or
her).
titanus:they kinda sound like simple giants to me really (only smaller)... but
if there was a giant joining Rain's party and we'll agree to put the thief I
pruposed before in the team too, they could hae quarrels between each other (the
thief would keep complaining that the giant is too big to sneak behind an enemy
and the sort).
I don't have any special suggestions except the race I pruposed earlier, but I
kinda had another idea for a race:
cyndians (I don't have a good name for them really): they'd be similar to humans
(the same posture, the differance should be minor like skin color which could be
a little greenish and they can or maybe even should have animal-like eyes or
animal ears) but there's one BIG differance between them and humans - they're
allied to animals, thus they can talk to them and at birth every cyndian is
given a special medallion that gives him an animal ally... in this case it's the
abillity to take that animal's features (so, for example, when it's a bull the
cyndian can create horn, turn himself into a bull, get the strength equal to
that animal etc... or when it's a hawk he can grow wings, turn his hands into
claws and so on... there would be various possibilities)... also they're good
with nature magic (so controling elements or commanding plants)... of course
they're Gaia's believers... and we could make that race even deeper, like being
the first humans in the world... to explain that, lets assume Gai first created
animals, in time cyndians appeared (evolution and so on) and from them first
humans were born...
This sounds a bit like druids from some RPG game, but we could make a long
episode (meaning many-chapter adventure) when Rain and his party visits the
forest and either have to fight with them or help them (more preferable in this
case) protect the forest... with all I wrote this race gives us quite a few
possibilities of creating unique warriors... and if we decided to give on to
Rain's team, he or she can be a medic, since they naturally know things about
herbs and all (like if we make someone allied to a hedgehog he or she could
create spikes from his body, that would be used as weapons... making a mole ally
the one could grow large claws on the hands and move underground... there are
few possibilities).
Theo's features of being half-demon being magically removed is not that bad, but
doing so we may miss a good opportunity to present Rain and corps reaction to
seeing his horns or whatever... then again, scars can work as well,
so...
Thanks, but I really just wrote the first thing to my head... as for changing
races names: I'm NOT against it or anything, but if we'll decided to make
'sylfidions' exactly like elves, so we practically won't be original coz they'd
be just elves with different name... maybe we could modify the races a bit (like
their culture) or invent our own... for example, I once did an RPG system in a
fantasy world with a race that was totally my idea: grimer (I think I heard that
name somewhere, but can remember way). Anyways, grimers were something like a
mix between ogres, elves and something else: they were big like orges, their
fangs grew out from their mouth, they had spiky ears and lived in touch with
nature and their skin was completely brown. Most of them were warriors and they
disliked mages... if you like it, we can use it in our story too...
Changing 'god' is a good idea... might be a bit confusing, but overall good... I
like the 'overseer' proposition... it's just doesn't seem all that powerful...
maybe we could find something... stronger (if you get what I mean)... I had no
ideas in this matter for the time being, but I'll think about it.
I'm not sure about one god representing one nation idea... it's not bad, but
think about it: I mean, the race that would get Crinos, who is the god of
destruction could be automatically assigned as evil and those would get Meeve
and Belios, who are god completely good, would be consider peaceful and such...
and more so, the demons are supposed to be somewhat equivalents of the gods, so
each race should have a demon of their own as well...
As it's all about balance, I think it'd be better to have all races pray to the
same gods, but that's just my opinion...
As for changing the names: it's managable, but is it really necessarry? What I
mean to say is what good will it bring if we replace 'elves' with, for example,
'sylfidions'? (on the other hand, what bad will it bring?).
The idea of Thoe's feats in his body seem pretty good... but maybe we'll just
make him wear a hat all the time (to hide the horns) and such? Well, the idea of
parts grownt into body is cool, but isn't the horns and stuff inborn? I'm not
sure if a possibility to hide it is... well, lets say logical, but I was looking
for a different word...
Yeah, Fall could be an elf... if we'll be making other races that is... I think
the idea is good...
But Theo being half-demon.... I don't know, somehow it kinda bugs me... then
again, a half-demon that became a priest is quite original... but then, if we
make him a half-demon, shouldn't he have some demon features? (like small horns,
a tail or bat wings or something like that?).
Well, the races issue should be decided rather soon, since we should plan out
the team some time in the near future... Spike's idea is pretty good, but
there's just one thing: I think other races (especially such as dwarves and
elves) would have more then one village, so for every town we'd have to think of
something different... and I agree with the fact that if there will be other
races, some representants of them should join Rain's party... even to make it
fair.
Well, making my thief cocky could be fun, I have two 'buts' to that though:
1) he never really hid that he's a thief and as such he's not exactly the
warrior type (the sneak behind opponents in order to avoid fighting, so...) ...
it's not a big issue, but should be taken under consideration
2) with making him cocky I have a strange felling he'll become like Usopp from
"One Piece" too much...
The idea is not bad, but not sure if it'll be a good move in this case.
Yes, but as I said, Theo is the priest of the God of Peace so him being a
warrior seems a bit off...
I like the idea of his dark past though... like he became a priest of a peaceful
god because he did something shameful or evil in the past... that would make
this character more mysterious...
Anjhurin: when it comes to the race, I
prefer not to make a choice really... I'll leave it to you guys... your idea is
pretty good, but... I don't know, if there are different races, shouldn't Rain's
party walk into a village or something of them once in a while? (like dwarves
mines or elves forest... you know, the sort)... Julian: true that we do try to make it as
original as it can be, but Theo is still really old and above that he's a priest
of Belios (God of Peace)... how would it look for him to master the art of
battle?
Okay, so for the time being is Rain, Summer, Theo, Fall and Wint... 2 girls and
3 guys... well, I guess Rain, Wint and Fall will do most of the fighting (Theo
should be more of a mage... I mean, an old man fighting is a rather rare
sight)... we should keep in mind that not only 'fighters' can join the crew (but
in the end non-fighting types should have their battle from time to time as
well)... since all of them are human, maybe we should think of an elf or
something now (or are we doing humans only?)... READ THIS:I had another idea for a
character: he (or she, in this case it doesn't seem to make any differance...
but a guy seems more fitting) would be a thief that's extremely clumsy... he's
got no battle skills (okay, he uses daggers and he's pretty good at it, but
except that ZERO) and is somewhat a coward (think Usopp from "One
Piece"... he resembles that chara the most, I think). However he has a good
reason to steal: his village is under the rule (kinda) of a band of bandits (all
of Rain's party could get a match against one of the major members of that band)
that threaten to kill every villager if they won't pay them the right among of
money ever month (or something like that). All the villagers are scared to death
and so is this thief, however he decided to fight (by stealing) mostly due to
his older sister's illness which is incureable (I was thinking about some heart
disease), because he thinks that if their village will be peaceful, his sister's
heart will be free of worry and she'll get better.
He'd met Rain and the crew while they're near his village. He'd try to steal
their money and get caugh... he'll give Rain's party some hints that he may not
be all bad (mostly Summer will be convince... I kinda figure she's the heart of
the team). Then he'd escape somehow... the team will follow him (not sure why
yet... maybe due to Summer... or he could steal something important for one of
them... like Fall's cloak) and find out the truth eventually.
After the bandits get defeated, he'd join Rain's party (his sister will convince
him that she's fine, but in the end it'll turn out that she's not and she let
him go, coz Rain's team became his friends, which he never had coz he was a
thief since his early days and nobody looked beneath that... but she shouldn't
die right after he'd leave the village).
As a member of Rain's team he could prove to be useful by sneaking in places and
gathering information... also freeling his comrades from cages and the sort... I
also figured he'd be more of a comedy relief (we could make him piss Wint or
Rain off from time to time or something... since both of them seem to be rather
serious people).
As the story would develop, he'd try to fight his cowardness and be prepared to
fight for his friends... that's still just an idea though... plus, it seems that
this one should be human as well (deffinately not dwarf and elves making
villages like humans seems a bit off...), but I think it's a pretty good idea,
so tell me what you guys think.
And yeah, the other demons should react in a way when Balthazar became
powerful... hey, if he stole their powers, maybe they would want them back and
send minor demons into the human world to catch BC's? That way Rain and corps
will have a bonus enemy.
Well, that's that from me for now.
See ya.
Sorry for being out for a while... I see I missed few things... even the contest
already started...
Anyways, I went through the entries in our GB and here are my answers to most
important stuff:
-about Rain and Wint meeting: I don't mind an ambush and all but it would seem
kinda strange for Wint to simply listen to Summer when they just met...
especially since the one he tries to kill is one of Balthazar's Children which
he hates the most... and just as a bonus info, I pictured him to be somewhat
able to fight BC (lets use it for Blathazar's CHildren for short) since he's
been doing this for a while... then again, Rain is the strongest of all BC... I
don't know, maybe it's better to think about when we decided wether Wint stays
or not? propsition: maybe we should make a special (well, contest
seems stupid in this case) announcement for everyone to try thinking of some
main characters and then chosen the best out of given so we could work further
on the story development... after all, I think Rain's team should increase in
number soon after leaving the castle... maybe not in like 5th or 8th chapter,
but we should center it on just Rain and Summer (and somewhat Theo... we should
think of some interesting background and philosophy for him so that he won't
turn out as back-up character).
-I like the demons controling elements too... only one thing that is kinda of a
miss in this idea: things that Belios and Meeve look after... I mean, it seems
out of place for a demon to look after peace or life... if we can think
something pass that, it's a really good thought!
-well, for the time being we should keep in mind that Balthazar isn't/wasn't
all-mighty so (it's just my way of seeing it) I think that it'd be strange for
BC to receive all sorts of powers... and if the idea of demons looking after
something gets through, then I believe Balthazar will be Ignuss equivalent (fits
the best) so the pieces 'his children' would receive should most likely be
related to fire... just my POV though...
I think that's all... sorry if I got lost in someone's way of thinking...
I'll drop by tomorrow (most likely).
Take care y'all.
Well, so far, if all the charas are in, we have Rain, Summer, Theo, Wint and
Fall (I thought it was Autumn), so 5 people... it's not that much ("One
Piece" had seven and I won't even mention "Naruto" :wink: )...
Crall is going to appear from time to time after they leave the castle (since so
far he's the main bad guy... we still didn't decide whether Balthazar will
appear or not)... besides, with Summer and Autumn we'll still need Winter and
Spring anyways jk
As for strong opponents, those shouldn't be that much of a problem, since most
of their opponents will be demons and Balthazar's Weapon users, people that are
strong naturally...
Btw, is Autumn already accepted or is she still a pruposal like Wint? I wasn't
around for a while so I guess I might miss it...
Oh, just a thought I got in the last second... kinda weird, but might be an
interesting turn: since Autumn is a Child of Balthazar and Wint is a demon
hunter, it may be interesting for Wint to fell in love with her? (it's just a
pruposal as usual... I guess I have too many ideas in my head... well, since
we're working together, you'll have to get used to that... I always have more
ideas then I can handle ).
Best wishes and have a great day.
Bye.
@Anjhurin: as I said, I won't push it... Wint (let's leave his name like that
for the time being) is still just a pruposal and if his idea will pass, then his
fate will be decided by everyone (meaning whether he'll join Rain and co. or
not). I seem what you meant as well and it is kinda a good point...
I just had an idea that may be another alternative and kinda combains both our
ideas: Wint would see that Rain is good, but still doesn't trust him, yet he
finds out who (or more what) Summer is and decides to travel with them for her
safety (yoy know, to protect her from Rain)... and the reason why he didn't kill
Rain was because Summer asked him to or something... as their journey will
proceed he could change or not... that way we'd get a rivalry inside Rain's team
(Rain vs. Wint)... this is also just a pruposal though.
@Julian1: I like the drawing itself, but why does Rain clothes would change? I
figure they'll stay the same since Balthazar's part affects only your body...
the sword's idea is original, but for some reason I don't like it too much...
but that's just my opinion, I'm not the law here.
Well yeah, I've decided to leave the discription of the surroundings to the
drawers so they'd have some freedom (especially since the way the areas will
look isn't that important).
Yeah, I think it's a good idea in combining that tree part and then them going
to the fair... we'd only have to place something between them I think (mostly
because one minute they'll talk to each other in the woods or whatever was the
place they talked and in other they're going to the fair).
I too figure Theo revealing all the secrets would be strange... my plan was for
him to only tell Rain he is a 'Child of Balthazar' (I can't recall, but I think
that's how me named them) and that Summer is the scroll of Belios (actually, in
the next chapter I figure he'd tell her to calm Rain down with her power, thus
making him back to normal). The fight was supposed to be a draw (I mean, Rain
would've defeated Crall, but the change made a huge presurre on his body and so
Summer had to help him... then Theo would take both teens away to safety and the
adventure truly begins)... but that's just my vision.
I haven't checked the profiles, sorry... I'll do that tomorrow I guess (today I
won't have that much time to do so).
Well, is you really want the characters to be named after seasons and the sort,
Arkon can become... I don't know, Wint? (short for Winter)...
Anyways, I'm not pushing on him becoming one of the main characters, before the
final decision will be made, let me just point out why I wanted him to be in
Rain's teams:
1) since he's hunting Balthazar's Children, it's kinda natural he can fight by
Rain's side against them
2) he's human and I'm not sure whether there will be elves, dwaves and the sort
in the story, but I think that this race should have the most places in the team
taken (it's just seem kinda natural)
3) THE MOST IMPORTANT ONE: he's chasing Balthazar's Children, because he thinks
they're all evil... when he was suppose to see that Rain isn't, it was suppose
to make him change his ideology... I think that this character will give us a
lot of opportunities to place deeper thoughts into the story (like the fact that
who you are isn't determinated by just your origins and race... kinda like a
rasist issue)
4) he doesn't know magic nor does he uses any of the Balthazar's tools, so all
his battle skills are based on simple weapons (like knives, swords and the
sort)... as I said, we don't have the whole team planned, but I'm somewhat
afraid that most of the characters will be either Balthazar's Children,
Magicians or those special weapon users, so he'd present an original fighting
style compared to them... plus I've already had some ideas for action scenes
with him
5) his background can be a mystery for quite a while which could make the
readers get interested in his past
6) lastly: you said that him tunring bad will show that not only Balthazar's
Children are evil, but do keep in mind that most (if not all) those who'll use
the tools given by Balthazar are humans (they're all Xzar believers) so Rain and
others will fight a lot of evil humans anyway
Well, that's that I think... I'll ready the character profiles tomorrow.
Best wishes and have a great day you all.
ANNOUNCEMENT!:
Okay, I've gotten more free time today then I thought I will, so I was able to
finish my version of the 1st chapter already... I've already send it to our
mailbox, so it should be there... just one thing before that: I can't remember
if we finally decided to make Rain one of Balthazar's children or not, so just
in case he is one in my version (that's why Crall wants to capture him)...
everything else stays as was agreed I believe.
ALSO: I've got an idea for a main character that could appear later on in the
story... if Rain is one of Balthazar's children, then we may pull that of... the
idea is that it's a boy (around Rain and Summer's age) who's somewhat a demon
hunter (he hunts Balthazar's children) who uses a chain... first he'd try to
kill Rain of course, but then noticing that Rain's not evil (he could save a kid
or something like that) he'll decided to join Rain, Summer and Theo in their
quest... I'm not too good with names so for the time being let's just call him
Arkon... tell me what you think of that please.
Okay for now I'm over and out!
merged: 02-22-2006 ~ 12:26am
Oh yeah, forgot to mention that the reason why Arkon is chasing after
Balthazar's children is the fact that he lost both parents during the time
Balthazar was defeated by the Five Gods.
So he cannot be younger then Rain or Summer. But that's just a bonus info, I
guess.
Oh... I'll go and check it when I'll find some time then.
merged: 02-21-2006 ~ 07:19am
Okay, read it already (damn, I have nothing to do ).
Well, it's almost completely different from my vision of the 1st chapter to
start off...
I may be picking, but I think it's not the best idea to give away all the
secrets of Rain so soon (plus, since Theo is Belios believer, who was a God of
Peace, it seems kinda out of place for him to practically encouraging Rain to go
and fight Crall)... and wasn't Summer the reason why Theo travelled?
Anyways, the first chapter seems to be done... but if the works on it haven't
started yet, I can write my version of it anyways and we can pick the one all
the members will think is better or something (like try to combain the best
ideas... it's just my proposition though, if everyone likes Spike's version I'm
not gonna push it or anything)... if you want me to write my version I think I
should easily manage to finish it before Sunday.
At any rate I'll drop by her tomorrow in the afternoon...
See ya all.
Yeah, but we should think about making the announcement to anyone who'd be
interested in entering... I think asking DSC for placing a 'commercial' of the
conest would be a good idea, since that group gathers the most artists,
right?
merged: 02-17-2006 ~ 08:56pm
Oh yeah, sorry for acting on my own, but I added myself to story development
department... since I suck at drawing it's the only thing I can do anyways. Oh, and on that note: if anyone
wants me to, I can write the first chapter or something anytime... the sooner
the better actually, coz collage is about to start for me soon (in three
days)... of course, once it's done, the other writers will check it... just let
me know somehow...
Over and out for now
I hope I'm not too late... I was totally out for the past, 3 months and just got
to read my notifications... if this is still on I'll be glad to be a part of it
again!
Don't know if there was a page count... actually, I'm mostly asking coz I had
like three first chapters planned a bit and wanted to know if someone already
writting it or should I start working on them.
Anyways, since you're on the job, Spike, I'll wait to see what you made.
Let me know when you'll finish.
I have to apologize, collage got me again I wasn't able to do anything... I should be a little more free on Thursday, so I can try making it then (after that I'll have five-day vacation anyways, so I guess I'll manage to squeeze at least a little free time to do this).
But even if I were to do this (I won't mind help, Anj), someone still should check it out to verify if I didn't forgot something and all... like everyone that was involved in race-creating thing so far... so if anyone wishes to purpose another race or something, do make it before Thursday, thanks.
See ya all.
I can try making all of that during Easter, but I can't really promise anything here, so don't take this for granted.
As for characters, the only new one is Wint, a Balthazar Children hunter... but it's still not decided whether he's human or cyndian.
As for changes in other characters, the only one changed is really Thoe, who became somewhat a half-demon... oh yeah, and I believe Fall became Walderian.
And since I'm here, let me wish all the UMP crew a HAPPY EASTER!
Slack off all you want so you can get back to working here afterwards ^_-
See ya.
Hey, is anyone still alive over here?
Come on people, Easter's coming, none of us wants to work during the holidays, right ?
Well, theoretically Wint's race doesn't play any part, I just made him a human coz the only humans in the team were... not entirely human (don't get this the wrong way though, I meant they had some special features, like Rain being a BC or Summer a scroll)... guess Wint can be a cyndian... that way, after he joins the team, he could tell them about the scroll in their capitol city (if there will be one) but of he does become a cyndian, we should also think of some animal which features he could take (I would suggest some wild cat or dog... kinda cliche, but such a beast seem to fit him... after all he's a warrior who trained since childhood like Rain and having a dangerous 'animal ally' would suit best here).
As for Wint's pet wolf I'm not so sure... well yeah, cyndian do have many connections with animals but a wolf traveling with him... I don't know, it seems a bit out of place for me.
And the final thing: even if we decided to make Wint a cyndian, still throwing him out from the team would be hard (he fell in love with Fall, so unless she were to leave, I doubt he would... it's kinda logical, right?)... but then again, no one said he was suppose to be throw out... just wanted to remind everyone of his crush fact...
Either way, no matter if Wint will stay human or not, we should no concentrate on making other Rain party members not humans... oh yeah, just a question, are we gonna make the thief I prupose join the team or not (and if yes, will it be for longer?)... he/she is not a warrior type and doesn't have to be human (I think I even said somewhere it could be a sylfidion)...
I'll try to think of some race or a chara from those already pruposed.
See ya.
I agree with the NOT overcrowding Rain's group (I say 7 people... 9 at most... at least for several, first chapters... later on MAYBE we could add one or two or replace someone... after all, we're not making another 'Naruto'... in this story everyone will travel together all the time, right?).
About the flying continent - it's quite overused in my opinion (look 'One Piece' for example... I think there even was a manga about getting on such continent) so I'm a little sceptic about that... then again, we could make it like Asgard or something (like every 'island' in that continent has different climate and such)... we just should watch out to avoid the cliche.
merged: 03-31-2006 ~ 11:14pm
Oh yeah, btw - we already have 5 people in Rain's party and so far ALMOST all of them are humans (Fall is an exception) so maybe we should think of some charas that aren't human?...
Well, I never really played FF, so I don't know if the cyndians really sound like some character classes from it, but if you say so then they probably do.
I think Falls can be either a sylfidion or walderian (both seem to fit for me, only the name doesn't sound that... syfidionic). But I had an idea: maybe we should make Fall a walderian and the thief I pruposed (we really should find a name for him or her... it'd be easier) can be a sylfidion (sure, he/she is a thief, but he/she still isn't a warrior type... and since that character would probably wear some sort of a cloak, it could float on wind)... I think making lithorians into dwarf wannabies is a good idea (stone pipsqueeks... sounds cool...).
As for cyndians not having a village is nice, but I think they should have one secret... like the last one of their once many towns in some distant forest... the people of that town could be guardians of Gaia's scroll even (seem like the most fitting, coz other races seem to be more attached to a certain element... but then again walderians somewhat can fit too). Plus cyndians may not trust people, which would make it harder for Rain to convince them to give him the scroll...
merged: 03-27-2006 ~ 01:45am
Btw, I changed the Character's Guide (wrote a more detailed description about those who already were there and added Fall and Wint... not sure if I got all the Fall aspects correct).
I still didn't add the thief that I pruposed coz I'm not sure if he (or she) finally stays nor do I know the race (in Fall's case I wrote that race is still not decided).
I think that's all.
Okay, about the races:
sylfidions: I don't know about the wind part... with all you wrote, Anj, they kinda remind me of driads and fearies... that may just be me though
sylviadorns: well, the name is a bit similar to the above so maybe we should change it... I like most part of this, except for two things: maybe it'd be better for the roots in their feet to hid when they're not using them (like for sleeping?)... and the second part is their height... I don't know, but Fall being tall for like four meters (that's around 4 feet if I calculate right) kinda ruins my vision of her (btw, I may be dated but if Wint is supposed to fall for her... well, human falling in love with a giant as she might be called seems a bit weird to me)... but above that I think it's pretty cool
lithorians: sounds a lot like some sort of golems... and I don't think we could think of a good character from that race to join Rain's party (meaning someone of an interesting fighting style with some message behind him... or her).
titanus:they kinda sound like simple giants to me really (only smaller)... but if there was a giant joining Rain's party and we'll agree to put the thief I pruposed before in the team too, they could hae quarrels between each other (the thief would keep complaining that the giant is too big to sneak behind an enemy and the sort).
I don't have any special suggestions except the race I pruposed earlier, but I kinda had another idea for a race:
cyndians (I don't have a good name for them really): they'd be similar to humans (the same posture, the differance should be minor like skin color which could be a little greenish and they can or maybe even should have animal-like eyes or animal ears) but there's one BIG differance between them and humans - they're allied to animals, thus they can talk to them and at birth every cyndian is given a special medallion that gives him an animal ally... in this case it's the abillity to take that animal's features (so, for example, when it's a bull the cyndian can create horn, turn himself into a bull, get the strength equal to that animal etc... or when it's a hawk he can grow wings, turn his hands into claws and so on... there would be various possibilities)... also they're good with nature magic (so controling elements or commanding plants)... of course they're Gaia's believers... and we could make that race even deeper, like being the first humans in the world... to explain that, lets assume Gai first created animals, in time cyndians appeared (evolution and so on) and from them first humans were born...
This sounds a bit like druids from some RPG game, but we could make a long episode (meaning many-chapter adventure) when Rain and his party visits the forest and either have to fight with them or help them (more preferable in this case) protect the forest... with all I wrote this race gives us quite a few possibilities of creating unique warriors... and if we decided to give on to Rain's team, he or she can be a medic, since they naturally know things about herbs and all (like if we make someone allied to a hedgehog he or she could create spikes from his body, that would be used as weapons... making a mole ally the one could grow large claws on the hands and move underground... there are few possibilities).
Theo's features of being half-demon being magically removed is not that bad, but doing so we may miss a good opportunity to present Rain and corps reaction to seeing his horns or whatever... then again, scars can work as well, so...
Thanks, but I really just wrote the first thing to my head... as for changing races names: I'm NOT against it or anything, but if we'll decided to make 'sylfidions' exactly like elves, so we practically won't be original coz they'd be just elves with different name... maybe we could modify the races a bit (like their culture) or invent our own... for example, I once did an RPG system in a fantasy world with a race that was totally my idea: grimer (I think I heard that name somewhere, but can remember way). Anyways, grimers were something like a mix between ogres, elves and something else: they were big like orges, their fangs grew out from their mouth, they had spiky ears and lived in touch with nature and their skin was completely brown. Most of them were warriors and they disliked mages... if you like it, we can use it in our story too...
Changing 'god' is a good idea... might be a bit confusing, but overall good... I like the 'overseer' proposition... it's just doesn't seem all that powerful... maybe we could find something... stronger (if you get what I mean)... I had no ideas in this matter for the time being, but I'll think about it.
I'm not sure about one god representing one nation idea... it's not bad, but think about it: I mean, the race that would get Crinos, who is the god of destruction could be automatically assigned as evil and those would get Meeve and Belios, who are god completely good, would be consider peaceful and such... and more so, the demons are supposed to be somewhat equivalents of the gods, so each race should have a demon of their own as well...
As it's all about balance, I think it'd be better to have all races pray to the same gods, but that's just my opinion...
As for changing the names: it's managable, but is it really necessarry? What I mean to say is what good will it bring if we replace 'elves' with, for example, 'sylfidions'? (on the other hand, what bad will it bring?).
The idea of Thoe's feats in his body seem pretty good... but maybe we'll just make him wear a hat all the time (to hide the horns) and such? Well, the idea of parts grownt into body is cool, but isn't the horns and stuff inborn? I'm not sure if a possibility to hide it is... well, lets say logical, but I was looking for a different word...
Yeah, Fall could be an elf... if we'll be making other races that is... I think the idea is good...
But Theo being half-demon.... I don't know, somehow it kinda bugs me... then again, a half-demon that became a priest is quite original... but then, if we make him a half-demon, shouldn't he have some demon features? (like small horns, a tail or bat wings or something like that?).
Well, the races issue should be decided rather soon, since we should plan out the team some time in the near future... Spike's idea is pretty good, but there's just one thing: I think other races (especially such as dwarves and elves) would have more then one village, so for every town we'd have to think of something different... and I agree with the fact that if there will be other races, some representants of them should join Rain's party... even to make it fair.
Well, making my thief cocky could be fun, I have two 'buts' to that though:
1) he never really hid that he's a thief and as such he's not exactly the warrior type (the sneak behind opponents in order to avoid fighting, so...) ... it's not a big issue, but should be taken under consideration
2) with making him cocky I have a strange felling he'll become like Usopp from "One Piece" too much...
The idea is not bad, but not sure if it'll be a good move in this case.
Yes, but as I said, Theo is the priest of the God of Peace so him being a warrior seems a bit off...
I like the idea of his dark past though... like he became a priest of a peaceful god because he did something shameful or evil in the past... that would make this character more mysterious...
Anjhurin: when it comes to the race, I prefer not to make a choice really... I'll leave it to you guys... your idea is pretty good, but... I don't know, if there are different races, shouldn't Rain's party walk into a village or something of them once in a while? (like dwarves mines or elves forest... you know, the sort)...
Julian: true that we do try to make it as original as it can be, but Theo is still really old and above that he's a priest of Belios (God of Peace)... how would it look for him to master the art of battle?
Okay, so for the time being is Rain, Summer, Theo, Fall and Wint... 2 girls and 3 guys... well, I guess Rain, Wint and Fall will do most of the fighting (Theo should be more of a mage... I mean, an old man fighting is a rather rare sight)... we should keep in mind that not only 'fighters' can join the crew (but in the end non-fighting types should have their battle from time to time as well)... since all of them are human, maybe we should think of an elf or something now (or are we doing humans only?)...
READ THIS:I had another idea for a character: he (or she, in this case it doesn't seem to make any differance... but a guy seems more fitting) would be a thief that's extremely clumsy... he's got no battle skills (okay, he uses daggers and he's pretty good at it, but except that ZERO) and is somewhat a coward (think Usopp from "One Piece"... he resembles that chara the most, I think). However he has a good reason to steal: his village is under the rule (kinda) of a band of bandits (all of Rain's party could get a match against one of the major members of that band) that threaten to kill every villager if they won't pay them the right among of money ever month (or something like that). All the villagers are scared to death and so is this thief, however he decided to fight (by stealing) mostly due to his older sister's illness which is incureable (I was thinking about some heart disease), because he thinks that if their village will be peaceful, his sister's heart will be free of worry and she'll get better.
He'd met Rain and the crew while they're near his village. He'd try to steal their money and get caugh... he'll give Rain's party some hints that he may not be all bad (mostly Summer will be convince... I kinda figure she's the heart of the team). Then he'd escape somehow... the team will follow him (not sure why yet... maybe due to Summer... or he could steal something important for one of them... like Fall's cloak) and find out the truth eventually.
After the bandits get defeated, he'd join Rain's party (his sister will convince him that she's fine, but in the end it'll turn out that she's not and she let him go, coz Rain's team became his friends, which he never had coz he was a thief since his early days and nobody looked beneath that... but she shouldn't die right after he'd leave the village).
As a member of Rain's team he could prove to be useful by sneaking in places and gathering information... also freeling his comrades from cages and the sort... I also figured he'd be more of a comedy relief (we could make him piss Wint or Rain off from time to time or something... since both of them seem to be rather serious people).
As the story would develop, he'd try to fight his cowardness and be prepared to fight for his friends... that's still just an idea though... plus, it seems that this one should be human as well (deffinately not dwarf and elves making villages like humans seems a bit off...), but I think it's a pretty good idea, so tell me what you guys think.
And yeah, the other demons should react in a way when Balthazar became powerful... hey, if he stole their powers, maybe they would want them back and send minor demons into the human world to catch BC's? That way Rain and corps will have a bonus enemy.
Well, that's that from me for now.
See ya.
Sorry for being out for a while... I see I missed few things... even the contest already started...
Anyways, I went through the entries in our GB and here are my answers to most important stuff:
-about Rain and Wint meeting: I don't mind an ambush and all but it would seem kinda strange for Wint to simply listen to Summer when they just met... especially since the one he tries to kill is one of Balthazar's Children which he hates the most... and just as a bonus info, I pictured him to be somewhat able to fight BC (lets use it for Blathazar's CHildren for short) since he's been doing this for a while... then again, Rain is the strongest of all BC... I don't know, maybe it's better to think about when we decided wether Wint stays or not?
propsition: maybe we should make a special (well, contest seems stupid in this case) announcement for everyone to try thinking of some main characters and then chosen the best out of given so we could work further on the story development... after all, I think Rain's team should increase in number soon after leaving the castle... maybe not in like 5th or 8th chapter, but we should center it on just Rain and Summer (and somewhat Theo... we should think of some interesting background and philosophy for him so that he won't turn out as back-up character).
-I like the demons controling elements too... only one thing that is kinda of a miss in this idea: things that Belios and Meeve look after... I mean, it seems out of place for a demon to look after peace or life... if we can think something pass that, it's a really good thought!
-well, for the time being we should keep in mind that Balthazar isn't/wasn't all-mighty so (it's just my way of seeing it) I think that it'd be strange for BC to receive all sorts of powers... and if the idea of demons looking after something gets through, then I believe Balthazar will be Ignuss equivalent (fits the best) so the pieces 'his children' would receive should most likely be related to fire... just my POV though...
I think that's all... sorry if I got lost in someone's way of thinking...
I'll drop by tomorrow (most likely).
Take care y'all.
Well, so far, if all the charas are in, we have Rain, Summer, Theo, Wint and Fall (I thought it was Autumn), so 5 people... it's not that much ("One Piece" had seven and I won't even mention "Naruto" :wink: )... Crall is going to appear from time to time after they leave the castle (since so far he's the main bad guy... we still didn't decide whether Balthazar will appear or not)... besides, with Summer and Autumn we'll still need Winter and Spring anyways
jk
).
As for strong opponents, those shouldn't be that much of a problem, since most of their opponents will be demons and Balthazar's Weapon users, people that are strong naturally...
Btw, is Autumn already accepted or is she still a pruposal like Wint? I wasn't around for a while so I guess I might miss it...
Oh, just a thought I got in the last second... kinda weird, but might be an interesting turn: since Autumn is a Child of Balthazar and Wint is a demon hunter, it may be interesting for Wint to fell in love with her? (it's just a pruposal as usual... I guess I have too many ideas in my head... well, since we're working together, you'll have to get used to that... I always have more ideas then I can handle
Best wishes and have a great day.
Bye.
@Anjhurin: as I said, I won't push it... Wint (let's leave his name like that for the time being) is still just a pruposal and if his idea will pass, then his fate will be decided by everyone (meaning whether he'll join Rain and co. or not). I seem what you meant as well and it is kinda a good point...
I just had an idea that may be another alternative and kinda combains both our ideas: Wint would see that Rain is good, but still doesn't trust him, yet he finds out who (or more what) Summer is and decides to travel with them for her safety (yoy know, to protect her from Rain)... and the reason why he didn't kill Rain was because Summer asked him to or something... as their journey will proceed he could change or not... that way we'd get a rivalry inside Rain's team (Rain vs. Wint)... this is also just a pruposal though.
@Julian1: I like the drawing itself, but why does Rain clothes would change? I figure they'll stay the same since Balthazar's part affects only your body... the sword's idea is original, but for some reason I don't like it too much... but that's just my opinion, I'm not the law here.
Well yeah, I've decided to leave the discription of the surroundings to the drawers so they'd have some freedom (especially since the way the areas will look isn't that important).
Yeah, I think it's a good idea in combining that tree part and then them going to the fair... we'd only have to place something between them I think (mostly because one minute they'll talk to each other in the woods or whatever was the place they talked and in other they're going to the fair).
I too figure Theo revealing all the secrets would be strange... my plan was for him to only tell Rain he is a 'Child of Balthazar' (I can't recall, but I think that's how me named them) and that Summer is the scroll of Belios (actually, in the next chapter I figure he'd tell her to calm Rain down with her power, thus making him back to normal). The fight was supposed to be a draw (I mean, Rain would've defeated Crall, but the change made a huge presurre on his body and so Summer had to help him... then Theo would take both teens away to safety and the adventure truly begins)... but that's just my vision.
I haven't checked the profiles, sorry... I'll do that tomorrow I guess (today I won't have that much time to do so).
Well, is you really want the characters to be named after seasons and the sort, Arkon can become... I don't know, Wint? (short for Winter)...
Anyways, I'm not pushing on him becoming one of the main characters, before the final decision will be made, let me just point out why I wanted him to be in Rain's teams:
1) since he's hunting Balthazar's Children, it's kinda natural he can fight by Rain's side against them
2) he's human and I'm not sure whether there will be elves, dwaves and the sort in the story, but I think that this race should have the most places in the team taken (it's just seem kinda natural)
3) THE MOST IMPORTANT ONE: he's chasing Balthazar's Children, because he thinks they're all evil... when he was suppose to see that Rain isn't, it was suppose to make him change his ideology... I think that this character will give us a lot of opportunities to place deeper thoughts into the story (like the fact that who you are isn't determinated by just your origins and race... kinda like a rasist issue)
4) he doesn't know magic nor does he uses any of the Balthazar's tools, so all his battle skills are based on simple weapons (like knives, swords and the sort)... as I said, we don't have the whole team planned, but I'm somewhat afraid that most of the characters will be either Balthazar's Children, Magicians or those special weapon users, so he'd present an original fighting style compared to them... plus I've already had some ideas for action scenes with him
5) his background can be a mystery for quite a while which could make the readers get interested in his past
6) lastly: you said that him tunring bad will show that not only Balthazar's Children are evil, but do keep in mind that most (if not all) those who'll use the tools given by Balthazar are humans (they're all Xzar believers) so Rain and others will fight a lot of evil humans anyway
Well, that's that I think... I'll ready the character profiles tomorrow.
Best wishes and have a great day you all.
ANNOUNCEMENT!:
Okay, I've gotten more free time today then I thought I will, so I was able to finish my version of the 1st chapter already... I've already send it to our mailbox, so it should be there... just one thing before that: I can't remember if we finally decided to make Rain one of Balthazar's children or not, so just in case he is one in my version (that's why Crall wants to capture him)... everything else stays as was agreed I believe.
ALSO: I've got an idea for a main character that could appear later on in the story... if Rain is one of Balthazar's children, then we may pull that of... the idea is that it's a boy (around Rain and Summer's age) who's somewhat a demon hunter (he hunts Balthazar's children) who uses a chain... first he'd try to kill Rain of course, but then noticing that Rain's not evil (he could save a kid or something like that) he'll decided to join Rain, Summer and Theo in their quest... I'm not too good with names so for the time being let's just call him Arkon... tell me what you think of that please.
Okay for now I'm over and out!
merged: 02-22-2006 ~ 12:26am
Oh yeah, forgot to mention that the reason why Arkon is chasing after Balthazar's children is the fact that he lost both parents during the time Balthazar was defeated by the Five Gods.
So he cannot be younger then Rain or Summer. But that's just a bonus info, I guess.
Oh... I'll go and check it when I'll find some time then.
merged: 02-21-2006 ~ 07:19am
).
Okay, read it already (damn, I have nothing to do
Well, it's almost completely different from my vision of the 1st chapter to start off...
I may be picking, but I think it's not the best idea to give away all the secrets of Rain so soon (plus, since Theo is Belios believer, who was a God of Peace, it seems kinda out of place for him to practically encouraging Rain to go and fight Crall)... and wasn't Summer the reason why Theo travelled?
Anyways, the first chapter seems to be done... but if the works on it haven't started yet, I can write my version of it anyways and we can pick the one all the members will think is better or something (like try to combain the best ideas... it's just my proposition though, if everyone likes Spike's version I'm not gonna push it or anything)... if you want me to write my version I think I should easily manage to finish it before Sunday.
At any rate I'll drop by her tomorrow in the afternoon...
See ya all.
Yeah, but we should think about making the announcement to anyone who'd be interested in entering... I think asking DSC for placing a 'commercial' of the conest would be a good idea, since that group gathers the most artists, right?
merged: 02-17-2006 ~ 08:56pm
Oh yeah, sorry for acting on my own, but I added myself to story development department... since I suck at drawing it's the only thing I can do anyways.
Oh, and on that note: if anyone wants me to, I can write the first chapter or something anytime... the sooner the better actually, coz collage is about to start for me soon (in three days)... of course, once it's done, the other writers will check it... just let me know somehow...
Over and out for now
I hope I'm not too late... I was totally out for the past, 3 months and just got to read my notifications... if this is still on I'll be glad to be a part of it again!
Hey guys, can any of you send me the first chapter that Spike wrote?
I can't get in our group mailbox for some reason.
Don't know if there was a page count... actually, I'm mostly asking coz I had like three first chapters planned a bit and wanted to know if someone already writting it or should I start working on them.
Anyways, since you're on the job, Spike, I'll wait to see what you made.
Let me know when you'll finish.
It's alive, alive!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A dlaczegoby nie z Atlasowym bocianem?
Te swiry z reklamowek wciaz sie chwala, ze, cytuje, 'Atlas klei caly swiat!'.
Nawet barw zmieniac nie trza