Kushiel's Debut
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Okay! I was not gonna post anytihng but I've an adorable Valerian (I think she's adorable) in the KD 'Verse that needs a nobleman. Valerians are the do as they are told types and all that, submissives. She has a heir for him all sorted. He won her Debut, he bought out her marque, and she has been his consort since she was 18. She is a terribad mother. That is about all that is set in stone on her nobleman. I left all the things vague so he could be anything. PM me if curious!
Also! I totally want more Le Blancs for Corinne's family. I've been gradually putting up information for the family page so it is not a blank slate anymore.
Um.. Alyssum people would be awesome too (Alyssum House are the perpetual innocent Courtesans).
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I did not put this on the game 'needed' and maybe I will get to that soon, but what we are SUPER needing in terms of courtesans is Dowaynes. The Mont can be a TS factory if left to become that, but it can also be incredibly political as well (and chars can also engage in other types of more -serious- rp, we even have some going off to war as healers and etc)
Dowaynes and Seconds though are the ones that fuel the politics between houses, whether alliances or competitions, and also bridge the gap between Mont politics and noble politics. There have been plots where courtesan characters set serious story into motion...I mean the first series of books is all about that. But the training and mentoring and machinations that come from the leadership on the Mont are pretty crucial in making this happen. So that is an option to consider too, and presently we have about zero active Dowaynes or Seconds.
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Okay so!
I am making this first post a quick one and will add some more details later. Many of the plots that we had either going on or coming up got mildly fizzled as August became a crazy out-of-nowhere busy month for our staffers and for many of our players too who would have kept things stirring in the meantime. Thus, some stories may have seemed briefly stagnant during the end of summer (We managed to avoid a summer slump but hit a small 'August slump' and the game was quieter as we had students going back to school and teachers (see me) suddenly realizing they hadn't started their 'self paced summer class' that was due August 21st until...August 2nd. Ooopsie. /excuses.
Now that things have begun to settle both for staff and many of our players, we are starting to add more support from staff to those who are off working on the war plot. (Which has been going strong in terms of battles and dice, but might need some chances to get some nice in person scenes rolling to represent the character development that goes with all the pretty numbers) We're also creating some more intrigues back at home so that players can have politics to sink into while the war finishes up, and alternate approaches to some of the supernatural plot that has been progressing slowly as well.
Thus! If summer saw you drifting away due to personal distractions, we get it, we did to, come back we miss you! If you got bored because not a lot was going on, we get it, it wasn't, but come see if that has changed, or talk to us about plots that you'd like to run yourself if that is your cuppa! If you've never checked us out before and enjoy political intrigue, interesting religious/supernatural things to unravel/ 'lords and ladies' (frock drama!) type rp, or any combinations of the above (you don't have to engage in all!) come and check us out. Take a break from vampires and werewolves and mages to put on your favorite pseudo Rennfaire outfits and hobnob in fake France with a bloodline descended from sexy angels! (No really!)
The game is pretty laid back and low maintenance, so even if you are very involved in another, this can be where you come now and again for a breath of fresh something else. I (Asherat) and the Headwiz (Skaldia) are willing to help new players find concepts they'd like, or old ones find new ones they'd like. If you've tried before and found that you couldn't make what you wanted happen, I encourage you to try again. We'll work with you to find something that is fun and fits in with our theme.
http://www.kushielsdebut.org/index.php/Main_Page
Happy Fall!
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Anything that doesn't involve Werewolves, Vampires, or Mages, I welcome.
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I cannot say enough good things about Ash and Skaldia. If you're interested in the theme, I really would encourage you to take a look at the game.
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I tried. I even read the first book, but the setting and themes just didn't do it for me. My impression from trying it was pleasant overall, however, and anything non-WoD generally gets a thumbs up from me too.
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@Glitch As did I. My experience is very similar, as in it was pleasant, but I also quickly discovered the setting and theme weren't my thing, and didn't hold my interest. Only difference is I didn't make myself read the books, for which I am quite grateful.
That said, you (and by you I mean the rest of you out there) never know if this is your thing or not till you tried it; you might end up thinking it's the greatest thing since sliced bread.
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I tried kushiel's debut, Ash and Skaldia are great, but they aren't what keep you in the game. RP is. That i'm afraid I found lacking. Most people were downright unapproachable. Attempting to talk to the person in charge of my particular section of territory in a manner of saying 'Hi, I exist, what's up' got me a finger and no further reply. So I was like 'Well let's go to an event,' but I found that I was quickly ignored. The game is cliquish, which is, to be fair, what you expect with any game like this, but when you rely on other players for RP and go to a scene to RP with others only to be ignored completely in favor of other people in the scene, well it isn't a very compelling reason to stay. Regardless, I was okay with that, because I found two players who seemed to resonant with my goals and wanted to interact further. Then one was promptly killed and the other was pushed out of interaction with anyone because of an NPC post that basically made it a crime to interact with foreigners. And while I was willing to ignore it, the PC in question was not. Which put me back in to a lacking RP mode with no way to get it. There certainly weren't an overabundance of rumors in my chosen fields, so little to investigate there.
So basically, my advice to you is: Ash and Skaldia will be great, but unless you find yourself in one of the cliques, give up.
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So what is this game in a nutshell? Fifty shades of thrones? Is it more socio-political with sexi times or is it more adventure? Most importantly is it one of those games that restrict women from being a badass?
I try to stay away from games that are a little too historical, because you often have limited choices...before someone is like "nuh uh, that couldn't have happened it's against canon."
I'll read up on it, because I'm looking for a good place to play.....that isn't WoD.
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I read Jacqueline Carey's novel Kushiel's Dart a few years ago. Take A Game of Thrones, Fifty Shades of Gray, and the Da Vinci Code, mix them in a blender, bake, serve with a French dip and a chilled Sauternes for dessert.
Essence of the story: It is an alternative historical fiction setting where Christianity didn't prevail throughout Europe. Christ and Mary Magdalene had a supernatural lovechild named Elua who caused a second rebellion with the bodiless powers (Angels) in Heaven. Angels went down with Elua, mated with the Gauls, and established the Kingdom of Terre d'Ange. Instead of Christian morals they based their society on the simple premise, "love as thou wilt" (sounds like Aleister Crowley?). They have state sponsored prostitution, polyamourous relationships, sadism, masochism..as Cole Porter says, "anything goes!"
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@Big-Daddy-Amin kind of has the books/theme in a pretty solid colorful summary. It's an interesting world, and the books have a lot of sex, I won't say they don't. Fifty Shades of Thrones is an amusing title too. That being said, from my observation there isn't a whole lot more TS, either kinky or non, on this game than o a WoD or WhateverElse game. Some people do that and only that, some people do some of that and some politics, some socializing, some whatever, and some people set themselves at 'rated R' and do none of the sexytimes and only the plotty times. You have choices. The first books DID have a hooker save the world because of how much she loved spankings and that is NOT how our 'saving the world' plots have gone, we figure its time to go a new way.
You don't have to worry too much about 'historical' canon because one fun (?) part about Jacqueline Carey's world is it is impossible to pinpoint when it took place. Alternate history! Fashion is its own entire thing, technology seems kind of Renaissance-y except no guns, its piecemeal. The easiest way to avoid being 'against canon' is to play someone from the target country (alternate France) because the foreign countries she wrote are sort of all over the place.
If you came by and found it cliquish...I know all games can be at times and sometimes it can be really hard to break through that. If there's another time to give it a try though, it's probably now/in the next few months. We had a spot where a -lot- of new players came in with groups of friends to play with and it seemed hard for people coming in solo to find their niche, but over time that dynamic has changed a lot. If it wasn't for you I totally get it, but I will say for sure that there's been a shift in groups and there are some gaps in 'power' that can allow for someone new to find something cool to do straightaway.
As for the foreigner thing: tension between locals and foreigners /is/ part of the current storyline but players can do with that what they will. Just fun times with Xenophobia!
To those who tried but just couldn't get into the theme, thanks for giving it a whirl! I will be the first to admit it is a 'unique' setting. We inherited this game from someone else, I am not a die-hard fan of the novels, I liked some and hated others, I certainly didn't write them, so if they aren't your thing I am the last person to take it personally.
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Not a lot of TS? Aren't there people who play courtesans?
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@BigDaddyAmin They're more like serenity courtesans. Expert aides who have been trained in sex but may not only focus on that.
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Ehhh. I am suspicious. Don't think the majority of people are going there to drink tea and hear the shamisen.
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It's not that there isn't a lot of TS. It's that there's no more TS there than there is on, say, WoD games. Which is accurate.
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Ahh.
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@BigDaddyAmin said:
Ehhh. I am suspicious. Don't think the majority of people are going there to drink tea and hear the shamisen.
I don't play there so I don't know about there, but considering I managed to pull off the above on Shang for two years solid, it's possible. And if it's possible on Shang, it's definitely possible on not-Shang!
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Yeah I did not say there was not TS, not plenty of TS. (how much here is a lot?). I think there is the same amount of TS as on a WoD game, on a GoT game, on basically any other kind of game where there is plot but also people doing their own storylines, and where TS is not banned from the game. It happens, it happens plenty enough, its just not the only thing there is to do.
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@Gingerlily said:
...TS is not banned from the game. It happens, it happens plenty enough, its just not the only thing there is to do.
It's not what you do, it's who you do. Ba-da-bum!
Goes sit in a corner
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The only thing worse than being done, is not being done.
flees from Oscar Wilde
As I read it, the courtesans are closer to Venetian courtesans. They sell sex with companionship. The particular flavors depends on the House they belong to. However, the main character for the first three (?) is a masochistic avatar. But everyone has a tattoo that when completed is their freedom to stay with the House or go do something else.
I think you could make a group, ignore everyone else, go to a place where there are no others, and set up your own (in theme) adventures. Sadly they are more medieval than swashbuckling in the books, though the KD setting has moved on by a few centuries.
I think I'd rather try 7Th Sea again, but I feel the need to swash about with my buckler.
I have a waggish sense of humor.
