War & Wizardry II: Disparity

[woundedgoat]

It was the end of the first millennium and almost three years ago to the day that Darai Solkon, hero of the Armageddon War, slew the Grand Devil Zanzaband and brought peace to the entire world, a peace it had never know before.  Everything seemed fine until late last year when strange things began to happen.  Formerly benign creatures started acting erratically and attacking people for no apparent reason.  The weather became equally unpredictable, often going to extremes rarely seen in these times.  And the elves, a race of humanoids thought to be but a myth, have left their remote island homeland and have been seen in every human kingdom from the largest to the smallest, searching for something only they know of.  Most thought that the end of the world was at hand, others scoffed at the idea, calling it ridiculous, but secretly prayed that things get better soon.  Darai cared little for what was happening, for what does it matter if the end of the world is nigh when one lives only to await death?  His attitude would change when a chance encounter with one of the elves leads him to information he would have preferred not to know…

Name: Darai Solkon
Age: 25
Sex: Male
Species: Human
Occupation: Wandering Mercenary
Skills: Swordplay, ???? (Magic)

Since the end of the Armageddon War, Darai has been fleeing his past, wandering from place to place, drowning himself in his work in an attempt to forget the death of his true love during the war and the dark secret that has haunted him for almost a decade.  Though deep down he has a good heart, the constant emotional pain he is in has made him bitter with a tendency to lash out at people unexpectedly.  Living only to die a clean death, he thinks little of his own safety and doesn’t work well as part of a team, claiming that he doesn’t want them slowing him down, but in reality just doesn’t want anyone to get hurt because of his lack of caution.

Name: Cyradis Eldarin
Age: 157
Sex: Female
Species: Elf
Occupation: Ranger
Skills: Hunt, Monster Skill

Cyradis didn’t think she was ready for the task that the elders had given her, but not wanting to dishonor her family, she accepted it anyway.  Though she knew a lot about the humans, she had never been among them and the experience was different then she had imagined.  She, like the rest of her kind that had been sent from their island home, was sent to investigate the meaning behind the odd fluctuations nature had been showing them recently and though she’ll try her best, she really doesn’t know what she is looking for.



This is all I really have done for it yet as I'm still hammering out the details of the story in my head.  This is to be a sequal to a story I never did finish writting.  I'd have probably done a game for the first part, but I wanted to do a fresh take on the main character and I honestly don't think I have the skill to pull off a game in the scope that War & Wizardry I would have demanded.

[woundedgoat]

Took a couple of screenshots of the intro test I made while I was waiting for my ISP to get back on it's feet yesterday.  A lot of the graphics are only temporary.  I might include a similar scene in the actual game, but it won't look anything like this.

[woundedgoat]

And this is from a battle which probably will not be included in the actuall game.

[GhostClown]

Very nice!

[woundedgoat]

Okay.  Finally go the story all worked out and the characters planned out.  Here they be.



Name: Darai Solkon
Age: 25
Sex: Male
Species: Human
Occupation: Wandering Mercenary
Skills: Swordplay, ???? (Magic)
Since the end of the Armageddon War, Darai has been fleeing his past, wandering from place to place, drowning himself in his work in an attempt to forget the death of his true love during the war and the dark secret that has haunted him for almost a decade.  Though deep down he has a good heart, the constant emotional pain he is in has made him bitter with a tendency to lash out at people unexpectedly.  Living only to die a clean death, he thinks little of his own safety and doesn’t work well as part of a team, claiming that he doesn’t want them slowing him down, but in reality just doesn’t want anyone to get hurt because of his lack of caution.



Name: Cyradis Eldarin
Age: 157
Sex: Female
Species: Elf
Occupation: Elven Hunter
Skills: Hunt, Monster Skill
Cyradis didn’t think she was ready for the task that the elders had given her, but not wanting to dishonor her family, she accepted it anyway.  Though she knew a lot about the humans, she had never been among them and the experience was different then she had imagined.  She, like the rest of her kind that had been sent from their island home, was sent to investigate the meaning behind the odd fluctuations nature had been showing them recently and though she’ll try her best, she really doesn’t know what she is looking for.



Name: Takara Ryodo
Age: 22
Sex: Male
Species: Human
Occupation: Treasure Hunter
Skills: Steal, Throw
Even as a boy, Takara enjoyed exploring.  He would often visit the ruins near his hometown to look for relics of the past or secret chambers, occasionally even finding some.  As he got older, the ruins near his home just weren’t enough, so he was forced to travel farther from home to seek his thrills.  He learned in his travels how to take care of himself in the wild, arming himself with a pair of daggers he ‘borrowed’ from his father.  He has since made a name for himself across the continent for his skills and he doesn’t hesitate to brag about his fame, though his arrogance is all in jest.  Though there’s nothing he loves more the thrill of discovery, the path he treads is a lonely one and he often wishes he had someone to share it with.



Name: Shoji Mirana
Age: 21
Sex: Male
Species: Human
Occupation: Imperial Prince
Skills: Miran Blade
Heir to the Miran Empire, Shoji takes his responsibilities very seriously.  He overhears Cyradis talking to the Emperor about the current state of the planet and requests to join them on behalf of the Empire, seeing the problems as a threat to it.  Serious to a fault, Shoji has little sense of humor and become irritated when things get delayed, though he is always polite and formal and rarely shows any kind of cruelty.  It is widely believed in the Empire that when his father retires that he will be just as good or possibly even better an emperor then his father.  He is an expert at his families sword fighting style, called the Miran Blade, and he used it well in the Armageddon War, fighting alongside his father in the northern province.



Name: Sinou Jinsei
Age: 23
Sex: Female
Species: Human
Occupation: Priestess
Skills: Faith
The daughter of religious parents, it was inevitable Sinou would become a priestess as well.  Because he father was the High Priest of Miran, she grew up in the castle and ended up becoming Shoji’s best friend.  When he isn’t busy, the two of them are always together.  Her feelings for him go a little deeper then just friendship however and she often drops hints on him, but as he is a bit thick headed and so serious about his responsibilities as Crowned Prince, he fails to notice.  When Shoji joins Darai and Cyradis in their journey, she insists on going as well.  Though he protests at first, he quickly relents after realizing that she would be of great aid.



Name: Saiku Jinkai
Age: 20
Sex: Female
Species: Human
Occupation: Fortune Teller
Skills: Psionics
When Darai and the others come to her to have their fortunes read, Saiku finds that for the first time she is unable to clearly read the future.  Catching only unintelligible glimpses of what is in store for them, she becomes curious and decides to join them.  Having no training with any kind of weapon, Takara lends her one of his old daggers and begins teaching her how to use it effectively.  They discover that they have much in common and quickly become friends and can be frequently found together chatting about various things.



Name: Artamis Ambaril
Age: 162
Sex: Male
Species: Elf
Occupation: Elven Magician
Skills: Magic
Artemis and Cyradis both were schooled in the same establishment and because they worked well together they eventually became friends.  Being an orphan from an unfortunate accident, when he hears that Cyradis was sent out alone to the land of humans, his disobeys the orders of the elders and follows her to Mirana to help her.  He and Darai often get on each others nerves, but because he loves Cyradis like a sister and Darai is her friend, he puts up with it without making a fuss over it.



Name: Zenashi Zoku
Age: 25
Sex: Male
Species: Human
Occupation: Swordsman
Skills: Swordplay
When he and his partner are ambushed by a group of monsters thought to be friendly, Darai and the others arrive just in time to save him.  They were too late to save his partner however, and when they tell him that they are on a quest looking for answers, he joins willingly, wanting to avenge his friends death if possible.  He and Artemis become good friends as they compliment each others skills quite well and they have similar tastes despite their completely different upbringings.  Though he fights with honor and bravery, sometimes he acts a little odd which the others figure is due to the grief for failing to save his partner.

[woundedgoat]

Updated the plot synopsis thingy a bit to reflect the fact that I've got the storyline down now...  And here it is...  Woo...

War and Wizardry II: Disparity

   The end of the first millennium was at hand.  It had been almost three years since Darai Solkon, the hero of the Armageddon War, slew the Grand Devil Zanzaband, ending the war and bringing peace to the world.  It seemed humanity could finally rest, or so it seemed for a while…

   It was late in the last year when things started going downhill.  Travelers were being attacked by creatures who had always before been benign and harmless.  The weather became nearly unbearable, ranging from extremes never before seen in all of history, often appearing erratically out of nowhere.  The birthrate had fallen off with many stillborns and hideous mutations not living for more then a few moments.  Disease and famine spread like wildfire all over the globe sometimes killing entire villages.  Strangest of all, the elves, a race of humanoids thought only to be legend, have been showing up in every kingdom in the world, searching for something only they know about…

   Some thought that the end of the world was nigh, others thinking it was just a phase and that it would pass.  Darai heard them all, but little did he care, for what is the end of the world to a man who lives only to await death?  His journey has taken him to the Province of Mirana, the heart of the Miran Empire.  There’s plenty of work for one such as him, especially in these troubled times and Mirana is ripe with problems.  But unknown to him, these problems would lead him into a struggle the likes of which he never though he would experience again, and this time the stakes were higher then life and death…