A waterbender called Li'l Rain.
Her partner, Jason Waterfalls.

I am ready for this.

Agreed! I just want to app a mutant already and be all emo about how my extraordinary powers are ruining my life and how no one understands me.

You're the Worst (FX)

A surprisingly sharp, witty, and dark take on romantic comedies. Best one liners, awesome side characters, and all around solid writing. I love this show; also has the best depiction of PTSD and depression I have seen in a series.

I agree with Victorian Changeling, or any Changeling-focused MU*. I loved playing in the one that was made when CtL first came out.

Mutant/Superhero MU* but all OC. Something like X-Men's Marvel but with no FC characters. Maybe a bit more 'grimey' similar to The Boys or Misfits (no one gets to be the perfect Boy Scout, everyone has character flaws that would hopefully be exploited ICly.)

Avatar: The Last Airbender. Any time period. I want to play a Sand bender or Air bender, damn it!

@GreenFlashlight I kind of agree. The less books I need the more likely I'd enjoy the game without feeling like I may be missing huge swathes of book lore. Maybe something that has a lot of original history or teams we can delve into rather than pre-established ones?

I have just recently discovered the joy of Agatha Christie. I always figured that while I like the idea of the proto cozy murder mystery books, I didn't think I'd enjoy her writing. I was WRONG. Currently reading my first book, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd.

I've left 'And Then There were None' and 'Death on the Nile' for later as I didn't want to read her best ones first. I figure one more after 'The Murder of Roger Ackroyd' before I do; any recommendations?

Alright, fair enough, I just thought most games would have the same political intrigue if done right. I was thinking less War of the Roses, and more Italian Renaissance with the whole Borgias, Medici, Catholicism, etc. Where even the Pope openly has a kid despite the celibacy rule (I think established in 1130s or something.)

But yea, if it fascinates you go for it! You seem to have a firm grasp of what you want to do and I have faith that you can go through with it.

Hell yes! I am so excited for this game! I don't mind if it is post Korra or pre-Aang in order to make sure we have Air Benders.

I like the idea of maybe making it a fringe city/town to allow for 'exploration' as well as 'city feel'. Maybe even a city between the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation if we want some political intrigue; something like the Village Resort. Post Aang any border city of the United Republic of Nations can work.

I also like the idea of specialized bending being subclasses of their respective schools. I am not sure how you can do that in terms of dice. I like @Roz 's idea of attribute vs skill; and if they want to specialize in a subclass, they may end up sinking most of their skill points in that. This can help even out the skills so you don't have someone who is fantastic at just about everything, plus it matches with the theme of the show; sometimes raw power wins, sometimes finesse wins.

For example, I was thinking the difference between say Zuko and Azula when it came to fire bending. Zuko is obviously much more crafty and has way more nuanced technique than Azula. He is a character who spent most of his firebending points in skills so he has more techniques, tricks, and uses (including redirecting lightening, defensive fire technique, etc). Azula, on the other hand has raw power. She is the character who sinks all her points in the lightning/blue flame subclass, so while she comes out as a wrecking ball, she can't really do much more than that (perhaps a glass cannon of sorts?) Another character would be Combustionman - all his power is in one move, so he becomes a bit of a one-trick pony but really fantastic at it!

I really like the break down of all the bending (in terms of 'moves/tricks' and sub classes) found in the fandom wiki here:https://avatar.fandom.com/wiki/Bending_arts
Hopefully this can help when creating a skill/attribute sheet.

While I may be hated for this, I highly suggest putting a cap on how much a character can learn in terms of bending post chargen, to signal the limit of how much any person can do/learn in a life time. Keep the prodigies for the show. (...On the other hand we can just throw caution to the wind and really have fun in terms of power.)

I'm not quite sure I understand why it's so difficult to set some random rules for staff that allows them to have fun without ruining it for everyone.

If in a multi-sphere MU*, they can't have a PC in their own sphere. If they have a PC, it can't be higher than second in command of the other sphere. If they want to run a plot centered around their character, it can only be one arc/plot per whatever (so maybe every 5th/10th/nth plot run, staffers can run a plot for other staffers' PC.) Staff duties should never be done on PC-bit, and PC-shit should never be taken to Staffbit.

I always believed transparency is the key to keeping people happy. Have the plots recorded and maybe starred to show which ones are 'plots' or stories ran specifically for the Staffer's PC so people can keep them accountable. Keep detailed logs of meetings or even problem situations with players. Meetings should be posted on the website (unless discussing plots for players) and problem player logs should be saved and used when/if accused of misbehavior.

Staffers do deserve fun,. but they are also in the position of power on a game, and no matter what they will be held to a higher standard than normal PCs, that is what being in a position of power entails (with great power comes great responsibilities.)

On single sphere MUSHes, they should never app someone in power unless its second in command or it is an NPC, and NPCs should be stated clearly on the character (+Finger and Website). All NPC rp should be logged and displayed. The reason I allow for second in command is because a lot of players are flakes, Staffers tend to be less flakes - so if the guy in command is indisposed the game doesn't have to stop. Second in command can give temporary orders for a week at most but their main job would be to find a replacement for that position of power (if they want to be second in command I mean, this is just the highest they can go - not that they HAVE to do this!)

These are just some ideas I've been brewing up. I don't think its bad to set strict guidelines and numbers to enforce rules. I also believe Players should police staff as much as staff police players.

All these rules can be dismissed in a sandbox - for those games do whatever the hell you want.

@somasatori said in What series are you reading?:

I'm currently re-reading China Mieville's Bas-Lag series.

If you haven't, you really should check it out. It's pretty incredible. While I tend to shy away from anything that's considered steampunk in any way, the fantasy and tech really works in this series. I highly recommend it.

YES YES YES. I /hate/ fantasy, especially typical Tolkien fantasy (anything with dwarves, elves or fairies makes me immediately lose interest. Even urban fantasy doesn't get me. Magic is just too broad and feels like a cop out for most stories.)

HOWEVER, Mieville is just...damn, I love his work, I love his characters. His fantastical elements are not sexy, not cute, not pretty. None of his characters are pretty. He uses the grotesque a lot and it shows - all his non-human creatures are /ugly/ and downright weird, alien-like and almost absurd. He also manages to mix science with fantasy while still giving off a dystopic, ruined world that makes sense.

He wrote one of my favorite female protagonists (Bellis Coldwine) who is a flawed woman without being weak /because/ she is a woman. She could have easily been written a man and it would have worked just as well.

Read The Perdido Street Station first, then The Scar. Those two have to be my favorite. I didn't finish the Iron Council though, I've been meaning to.

ETA: Oddly enough Dark Towers would have been my recommendation but I also haven't finished the series. I still need to read the last book but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. Stephen King is known for his lackluster endings, and since the journey was just so good to get to this point, I'm kind of scared and wary to end it.

@cupcake Admittedly I haven't seen Lovecraft County.

Another Good TV to watch, though I haven't finished it, is Amazon's 'Them'. Very good though some have described it as 'racist torture porn', but its not surprising considering the setting and the theme. Plus, in my opinion it is very much warranted that they show these things. If you want a horror series, I recommend it. Here's hoping it ends strongly too.

Man I would love an OC superhero game. I always had a lot of fun coming up with powers and concepts. There are so many new directions to take it now too; making the superhero a marketing strategy ala The Boys, or going Superhero Horror ala Invincible and also The Boys. I just miss the genre a lot.

@GreenFlashlight I kind of agree. The less books I need the more likely I'd enjoy the game without feeling like I may be missing huge swathes of book lore. Maybe something that has a lot of original history or teams we can delve into rather than pre-established ones?

@ZombieGenesis It looks pretty interesting. I never dealt with a +sheet on a website before but it does strike me as convenient.

Will you have a +roll coded into the MUSH? I like the randomness +rolls sometimes give you (failing despite being a top tier makes it for interesting RP scenes were a character gets all embarrassed or have her ego bruised.)

Agreed! I just want to app a mutant already and be all emo about how my extraordinary powers are ruining my life and how no one understands me.

@Wretched YASSSSS!! I was worried it wouldn't be obvious!

A waterbender called Li'l Rain.
Her partner, Jason Waterfalls.

I am ready for this.

@Wretched I am convinced! I want to app a Pro Bender in a team called "Just A Bear".

Hell yes! I am so excited for this game! I don't mind if it is post Korra or pre-Aang in order to make sure we have Air Benders.

I like the idea of maybe making it a fringe city/town to allow for 'exploration' as well as 'city feel'. Maybe even a city between the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation if we want some political intrigue; something like the Village Resort. Post Aang any border city of the United Republic of Nations can work.

I also like the idea of specialized bending being subclasses of their respective schools. I am not sure how you can do that in terms of dice. I like @Roz 's idea of attribute vs skill; and if they want to specialize in a subclass, they may end up sinking most of their skill points in that. This can help even out the skills so you don't have someone who is fantastic at just about everything, plus it matches with the theme of the show; sometimes raw power wins, sometimes finesse wins.

For example, I was thinking the difference between say Zuko and Azula when it came to fire bending. Zuko is obviously much more crafty and has way more nuanced technique than Azula. He is a character who spent most of his firebending points in skills so he has more techniques, tricks, and uses (including redirecting lightening, defensive fire technique, etc). Azula, on the other hand has raw power. She is the character who sinks all her points in the lightning/blue flame subclass, so while she comes out as a wrecking ball, she can't really do much more than that (perhaps a glass cannon of sorts?) Another character would be Combustionman - all his power is in one move, so he becomes a bit of a one-trick pony but really fantastic at it!

I really like the break down of all the bending (in terms of 'moves/tricks' and sub classes) found in the fandom wiki here:https://avatar.fandom.com/wiki/Bending_arts
Hopefully this can help when creating a skill/attribute sheet.

While I may be hated for this, I highly suggest putting a cap on how much a character can learn in terms of bending post chargen, to signal the limit of how much any person can do/learn in a life time. Keep the prodigies for the show. (...On the other hand we can just throw caution to the wind and really have fun in terms of power.)