Showing posts with label scenario. Show all posts
Showing posts with label scenario. Show all posts

Sunday, June 10, 2012

Angel and Imp


I brushed up my rusty pixel art skills and created two placeholder monster sprites. The angel looks pretty cute already, but the imp needs some work.

Angel


Magical creatures of pure good. They strictly adhere to the moral rules written in their "Holy Codex" which encompass pureness, chastity, humility, abstinence, kindness and peacefulness. The last one with one notable exception: Anyone who does not adhere to the rules of the Codex is considered a sinner, and sinners must be opposed with all means necessary. Destroying the sin is a cause which justifies all means necessary. The angels prefer to make a sinner repent and abandon their sinful ways, but when this turns out to be a futile attempt, they often decide to destroy the sin by destroying the sinner.

At first, other creatures usually consider the berating of the angels about their "sinful ways" amusing at best and annoying at worst. But it is foolish to not take them seriously. Angels are not allowed to bluff or lie. When they say that your adherence to a sinful life will have "dread consequences", they mean it.

Angels are also intelligent, educated, organized, polite and well-spoken. As the self-proclaimed moral guardians of the kingdom, they are very interested in politics. The angels openly trusting someone has a very positive influence on the public opinion.  That's why many politicians employ some angels as officials for image reasons. Besides, they are smart, diligent, hard-working and frequently even work for free. Unfortunately, closeness to the angels has the disadvantage that any "dirty business" must be hidden from them at all cost, because they will not hesitate to make it public, abandon you, or even outright attack you when they doubt your moral integrity.

Fallen Angel

An angel which willingly commits a sin, or which enjoys performing a sinful act when forced to do it, immediately transforms into a fallen angel. In contrast to angels, they are hedonist creatures whose only concern is their own well-being. They only cooperate with others as long as it gives them direct gain or pleasure, and they will abandon any ties to others as soon as they become a burden. That's why most fallen angels are solitary creatures.

Ironically, they are often less dangerous than their good counterparts. They don't care much about the business of others, unless it directly interferes with them. Although fallen angels do not hesitate to use violence to get what they want, they will usually back off when the resistance they have to bother with outweighs the potential gain.

But still, when there is something they really want, they will not have any moral qualms about using any means necessary to get it. There is also a faction of fallen angels which can indeed be very dangerous: Those who discovered the pleasures of sadism and domination. A fallen angel who enjoys to cause suffering is someone you don't want to meet.

Imp

These evil creatures strive on the hate and anger of other creatures. They need hate of others to survive. When nobody hates an imp, they starve to death. To get people to be angry on them they will use insults, practical jokes or even violence. They can be considered the "bullies" of the kingdom. Fortunately, they are small and not very powerful, so they are more of a nuisance than a real threat. But being a nuisance is a skill they trained to perfection.

The best way to deal with them is either by ignoring them, or by trying to have a positive attitude towards them. While hate of others is food for them, affection is pure poison and will drive them away. Considering them cute, feeling sorry for them that they must be mean to survive or believing that they are really nice beneath their outer shell is a sure way to drive them away.

Friday, February 24, 2012

Another scenario concept: Technology vs. Magic vs. Religion

A world in which magic, powerful gods ad science fiction technology coexist.

Technology
The followers of technology try to understand the world around them through research. Their enemies are the religious, because the technologists perceive their dogma to understand the world through the holy scriptures instead of verifiable facts as dangerous for the mind.

Government: Democratic
Values: Objectivism

Religion

The religious worship the gods - incorporeal beings of incredible magical power - and get favors from them in return. They believe that the magic users are stealing the magic which rightfully belongs to the gods. In their opinion it is a grave sin for mortals to use the power of the gods directly. For this sacrilege the magic users must be purged.

Government: Authoritarian
Values: Fundamentalism

Magic

The magicians are striving to control and shape the magic powers radiated from all living beings. They realize that ecological damage caused by the technologists is slowly destroying the ecosystem of the world and thus reducing the worlds magic. Their goal is to stop the technologists from harming the ecosystem and thus harming both the magicians and the gods.

Government: Anarchy
Values: Environmentalism


NoviceTankDamage DealerSupporter
TechnologyStudentMutant
A walking biomedical experiment. Mutants always seek to improve themselves through genetic modification, cybernetics and dangerous pharmaceuticals.

Weapon: Maces
Engineer
Gadgeteers always experimenting with new inventions. An engineer takes pride in designing and building their own equipment.

Weapon: Guns
Scientist
The theorists among the followers of technology, always wanting to understand the principles of the world around them.

Weapon: Emitters
MagicApprenticeRune Knight
These magical warriors - while physically merely average - use the arcane powers to enhance their combat abilities. They can conjure magical weapons and use auras in battle to distract and hurt their enemies in melee combat. 

Weapon: Amulets (used to conjure weapons)
Wizard
Masters of directing magic in form of destructive spells.

Weapon: Wands
Sorcerer
These magic users use their power to heal and empower others.

Weapon: Orbs
ReligionAcolyteTemplar
Fanatic warrior monks who defend their church with heavy armor and swords. In combat they pray to their gods for strength and protection.

Weapon: Swords
Exorcist
The exorcists duty is to find the enemies of the church and direct the wraith of the gods onto them.

Weapon: Knives
Priest
Demagogues who preach the word of the gods. They instill fanaticism in their followers and bless them with their gods powers.

Weapon: Staffs