Saga of the Third Apparat War: A Fantasy n' More RP
 

…And so, following the fourth battle with none fallen, [One] realized that although their insurgence showed inferiority, their construction by [One]’s hands meant that they could not be defeated in battle by their more clear minded brethren. For the fifth battle, [One] set out to devise a solution to the problem. This is why we have never had to ask “Could [One] create a tool so powerful it could destroy something [One] made unbreakable?”…

Welcome to the world of Aukio (nee Vanua, or Dat, or Kaivosnun depending on how far removed from standardized mapping you find yourself), a now mostly-peaceful place enjoying a decently long truce between the races, and just about to enter a truly golden age. Unfortunately, the events of the RP will put a damper on things, but these things tend to get sorted out.

The Setting
Aukio is a rather humdrum world geographically, not featuring any shouldn’t-be-floating bits or such like that. There is a rather long and diverse mountain range, and areas of dense forest, but this is to be expected.

Technologically, it’s about pre-Renaissance.

A distinct magical influence is present, but magic functions more as a set of skills that must be studied and put into practice, like engineering or other learned professions, rather than an innate ‘able to do it’-ness.

Your Character
Has just obtained a rather curious object; maybe an old looking weapon, or a plaything or even a knick knack. Upon taking hold of the item, you get a strong urge to go to just outside the city of Ilog-Miers, a prominent city-state in Aukio.

The Skill System
I’m stealing Azisien’s. The skills and their definitions within the term of the RP are as follows:
Combat: How well you fight. You can determine if more points means you’re physically stronger or just a better scrapper. Note that this also includes ranged weapons.
Engineering: Also can be thought of as your ‘Tinkering’ or ‘Inventiveness’ skill, this determines your ability to diagnose, enhance, and create new devices or objects. In battle, it allows you pick out unclear weak points or overtake exotic machinery. In downtime, you can create new devices/weapons for battle or such.
Magic is split into four flavors, and points must be allocated individually to each facet –
--Elementalism - Any natural element (Fire, Water, Ice, Earth, Air, etc.) and the control/creation/manipulation thereof.
--Healing: Covers all natural and magical healing, as well as “holy” magic.
--Enchantment: In short, controlling the minds of others (broader than you’d think)
--Conjuration: Summoning objects (including creatures) and commanding them.
Attunement: How synchronized you are with the strange object you received. This is a bit of a specialized skill, with the more points you put into it unlocking more of the object’s abilities, but not necessarily increasing your personal strength.

If you don’t know the limits of your particular skill point wise, err on the side of caution and ask me if you think of something.

You’ll start off with five points. I’ll hand out more every chapter or so.

The Races
Humans – Ah, our counterpart brethren. Responsible for most of the clearheadedness in the recent age, they’ve introduced a standardized writing system into the world as well as the concept of trade being more important than war. They’re the second most numerous people, but the most spread out, with settlements and cities in most regions.
Naming Conventions: Take their father’s last name.
Humans get no bonuses nor disadvantages in stats.

Elves – Ah, our counterpart dicks. The elves were the main movers on the ground level for quite awhile, until a long war and the surge of human activity occurred. Relied on their prided gifted memory and long lifespans in the place of records, and then spent a few centuries trying to dominate the only viably ‘inferior’ race in order to make sure they got the point across. When the resulting revolt and war didn’t go as planned for a while they retreated back to their bases in the forests, where most of the major elven strongholds still resign.
Naming Conventions: After puberty, elves undergo a ritual, and then choose a name they believe describes them. For the old tree-borne this usually means something florid like “Dances Upon Fallen Foes As She Does The Leaves”, but since friendly interaction with other races has revealed that many non-elves despise spending most of a conversation on names alone elves have opted for shortening or merely using the first word.
Elves get a 1.25 bonus to any Magic skill, and a .75 disadvantage to Combat.

Dwarves – Poor guys for the most part. Spent a good chunk of time alone underground, but a few chance encounterings with elves soon meant that elves found a group that could be reliably subjugated once separated from the comfort of the subterranean. Although the dwarves did manage to rise up and throw off the yoke of oppression, the excision of the elves created a power vacuum underground, leading to infighting and civil wars that persists today, mostly unseen beneath the crust. A sizeable emigration to the surface has occurred in the recent above-peace, with above-ground dwarves being a common sight in most towns and cities.
Naming Conventions: Matronymic, where their last name is made by taking their mother’s name and adding –silf (if a son) or –illi (if a daughter).
Dwarves get a 1.25 bonus to Combat, and a .75 disadvantage to any Magic skill.

Goblins – Described as the only unchanging race, goblinkind has enjoyed relative solidarity in their mountainous abodes for centuries. Although they appear quite backwards upon first glance, what with their squalidly cramped living style, rambunctious nature, and lack of proper civilization, the goblins are grudgingly accepted as the technical masterminds of Aukio. It is said in myths that the secrets to the forge were stolen from the goblins, and it is presently apparent that the best thing to unleash in a workshop is a bored goblin, provided you recognize the subtle differences between ‘working prototype’ and ‘walking bomb’.
Naming Conventions: Goblins are named by their mothers during birth, and although their have been a few stalwart attempts, the amounts of “GUHRGAGGH!”s (or similar) quite outnumber the Gallants.
Goblins get a 1.25 bonus to Engineering, and a .75 disadvantage to Attunement.

Instruments – Around the world, predating even elven memory, lie grand devices, inscribed with obscure runes and working ceaselessly, even if their apparent task is unclear or long vanished. The goblins distrusted something they couldn’t tear apart and investigate, and the elves and dwarves were too busy to bother. Recently the humans decided to build living areas upon or around such devices, but curiosity drove them to recreate. Through guesswork and trial the clergy and engineers managed to work out a sequence of runes that, once imprinted onto a device, would allow for the sentience-ing of the inanimate. When applied to the human form it essentially created an un-alive Instrument that would obey the will of its creator. However, due to mistakes in the inscribing process or perhaps an unexplained attribute of the runes themselves, some Instruments attain a measure of true sentience, able to speak and decide tasks for themselves. These beings of wicker, or clay, or other such material find themselves in a world of new opportunity.
Naming Conventions: Many Instruments are unclear of how they should be named, especially since their true sentience occurs after being assigned tasks. Many choose to stick with their original identity, leading to a variety of Mr. Threshers and Miss Sweeps variants.
Instruments get a 1.25 bonus to Attunement, and a .75 disadvantage to Engineering.

The Sheet
Name:
Race:
Appearance:
Biography:
Equipment:
'Object': The special thing you received. Could be a sword, or a yo-yo variant, or a deck of cards, or what have you. You need to be able to carry it.
Skills: Remember, five points.

I’m sure there’ll be some questions or clarifications needed as I tried to slit open my brain and write this all in one go, so don’t be afraid to ask if something isn’t as clear as it could be.

How far before the Renaissance is this set? Also, do they have guns, and, if yes, can I have one?

What are the base values of skills?(1?)
And what exactly the bonus/disadvantage means?(1,25/0,75 instead of 1?)

What influence do we have on the object powers?

Well, there won't be a proper Renaissance, I just like the technology level present in Discworld and I remember reading something that described Discworld as Renaissance-y so I'm going for that.

Guns, of the single shot pistol variety, as a concept exist, but are mainly relegated to schematics on paper. They're seen as weapons for the unsavory, since they have no historical pedigree and are intended solely for the sake of murder. You'd have to come up with a good backstory on how your character found the plans and an inventor willing to make it, and you'd need a decent Engineering score to maintain the weapon and make sure it doesn't explode on you during battle. Also, a reason why a nominally sane person is carrying around such an uncouth weapon.
The skill system is more of a comparative helper for me and you to gauge how battles and such play out, and as such there is no real 'base'. There are aren't any formulas or anything to worry about; If I throw an enemy with Combat II at you and you have Combat III, you'll win the battle, simple as that.
Think of it as a multiplier. Say you're a Dwarf and you put four points into Combat. You'd have Combat IIII, but I'd apply your 1.25 bonus and you'd be functionally Combat (V). Likewise, if you put four points into Elementalism as a dwarf you'd be Elementalism (III) once the .75 disadvantage is applied.
You think them up, I decide if they're appropriate for the amount of points you've put in. I might also offer suggestions or examples if you can't think of any.

Right, and swords are intended for diplomacy and pleasant conversation.

Wouldn't goblins have guns? You described them as insane engineers, so I assume they wouldn't care about a weapon being uncouth.

A question and a filled out sheet.

Question: Do you plan us to gain additional skill points during the game?

Sheet:
Name: Mr. Future
Race: Instrument
Appearance: A tall bronze humanoid having three spider-like legs and a smart looking yet simple facepiece. Wears a deep-purple robe with green spiral and scale-like symbols and gold/yellow stripes at the edges of the material.
Biography: Once a machine to drain money out of naive people, began to feel guilty of the abuse he was made to do when his tarot card holder was replaced.
Equipment:
'Object': An body attachable card holder, that enchants tarot cards with spells.
Skills:
Attunement (III)
Enchantment (II)

Basically my concept is of a character being unaware of doing "wrong" and given the power to make it up to the world.
Enchantment is a remain of what he was doing, Attunement is based on the fact that the object is related with what he was doing and being actually a part of his body.
Hope Ya like it. ;)

That's the general mindset towards guns.
Goblins have gunpowder and fireworks and such, but they have no need for a small weapon designed to kill a single person at a time. The mindset it would take to craft and refine a gun in order to kill some goblin that you're angry at is time you wouldn't be merely fighting with them physically.

Depending on how my neogtiations with Naqel go over his Summoner RP, I may join. This is the interest post. I'm also showing off my observation and memory skills by answering Naqel's question.

Speaking of which... Naqel... Don't you have a PM to respond to?

Also, Lumenskir, isn't two RPs at the same time a bit much?

Could you pay a goblin to make you a pistol?

Naqel: Is the object the deck of cards, or the 'card holder'? Also, what is a card holder exactly (I mean, what would be the real world equivalent)? Other than that the gist is ok. I'm assuming he was intended as a carnival attraction or somesuch?
Unfortunately, I think the Digimon RP is just experiencing a little dead cat bounce at the moment. I do plan on revisiting it later on though.
You could pay any adequately skilled engineer to make a pistol. Again, the true acid test for the gun is to create a character who wants such a weapon and doesn't come across as an unsympathetic murderer.