StarDestroyer.Net BBS

DarthShady wrote:Also a few questions:

How powerful can our magic be? Since I am the Lord of Shadows, can I for example use my magical powers to create eternal night over my territory? It wouldn't have any effect on battles(except for the fact that there is no sunlight to hurt my vampires).

DarthShady wrote:Also how advanced is our technology? Are airships and stuff like that the upper limit?

The Fall

In 1095, pope Urban II called for Europe to rise in defence of the faith. Infidels trampled the Holy Land, stopping pilgrims from their god-given right to visit Christendom's holy places.

There were many who thought the Pope had another goal altogether with his call for war: European knights rampaged across the countryside, trying to find glory, fame and wealth in constant wars with their neighbors. Giving them a unifying cause would help alleviate the problem.

Whatever the real reason for the Pope's call, thousands answered it. A huge army marched towards the Holy Land, to fight the infidels and - in many cases - find wealth and personal glory.

The crusaders fought well, and quickly took Antioch and laid siege to Jerusalem. In a huge orgy of blood, death and violence, they took the city, slaughtering its inhabitants to a man.

The Lord's work was not done, however. After Jerusalem fell, a group of knights led by Ulrich of Hamburg, set out on a pilgrimage to Christ's grave. Quickly, they found out the cave locals pointed out to them was unremarkable in almost every way. While his Knights seemed satisfied, Ulrich himself was shocked at the utter lack of any spiritual experiences he felt during his visit there, and concluded that what they saw was not the real grave of Christ.

Thus began his quest: for years, Ulrich searched through arcande records and forbidden Muslim knowledge. Eventually, having spent much time and money on his investigation, he was rewarded with success: the real location of the Grave Of Christ was not some random cave, he managed to ascertain, but a tomb near the Dead Sea.

He gathered a retinue and mounted an expedition to the inhospitable place. They set out of Jerusalem and disappeared.

Nobody knows what happened during Ulrich's expedition. What is known is that the knights returned to Jerusalem eventually, but changed somehow.

They lost their weapons and armor somewhere ; They returned one by one, wearing tattered robes, covered in horrible boils, and completely blind, babbling about horrors untold and the coming doom of Man. Most were comitted to asylums where such poor souls waited to die, some were taken into care of their families. Ulrich himself left Jerusalem altogether, heading towards Constantinopole.

Barely two months after their return, mysterious things begun to happen in Palestine. Men disappeared during the night ; Entire families were found dead inside their homes, with no apparent wounds ; Strange creatures were spotted skittering on the streets. Priests went mad without rhyme nor reason, and foul heretical prophets appeared in ever growing numbers.

A special ecumenical expedition sent from the Holy See disappeared a day after coming to Jerusalem, later showing up throughout Europe, completely insane - much like Ulrich's knights.

Six months after the ill-fated expedition, a plague descended upon Jerusalem.

It was no ordinary plague, however: the people afflicted by it did not die in the streets, withered and weak. They grew stronger and insane, and attacked others on sight. It spread like wildfire, with the city annihilating itself in an orgy of violence. Some survivors of this night claim they saw the Fallen Knights lead hordes of unholy monsters, wailing in the night in obscene tongues - tongues that made men go insane.

It only went worse from there. As the Fallen spread throughout Europe, death followed them. Strange creatures appeared in forests and fields ; entire town were devoured by man-eating beasts. Children were born with claws or ragged, sharp teeth, dead or otherwise malformed.

Order soon broke down, as a thousand insane cults sprung up everywhere. Constantinopole was almost destroyed in a manner similar to Jerusalem, when insane followers of the Fallen set fire to the city and begun murdering people in the streets ; plague followed, and horrendous monsters are said to have risen from the sea to claim the very souls of the people living there.

No place was spared ; insanity and death found its way to every corner of the world, and it seemed as if every fear, every legend which made people shiver at night and look out fearfully into the darkness, have come alive.

We are not sure how long ago this was ; But we learned to live in this world. While magic creeps the Earth, and strange beasts now live in our forests, our cities and even our rivers and seas, we've learned to live here with them, and in some places, they even dwell amongst men, treated as equals.

Yet the world remains a dangerous place, with horrors beyond imagination creeping in the dark.

Darkevilme wrote:We dont buy population, unless of course you can make them into militia at the drop of a hat. Also umm Baerne. How much do your soldiers cost per hundred? I dont think it's listed.

PeZook wrote:Having an all-vampire army has...interesting repercussions when trying to invade places where night follows astrophysics

Setzer wrote:I have some forbodings about the use of magic in this game. I don't want it to be like SDNworld, where magical powers replace technical toys. Ah well. I suppose having points limits on magic can curb that somewhat.

Setzer wrote:Shady, why don't you simply have puppet rulers in the daytime, like in VTM, with their ghouls.

PeZook wrote:Having an all-vampire army has...interesting repercussions when trying to invade places where night follows astrophysics

Setzer wrote:I think he was mainly saying Vampires were the dominant race.

DarthShady wrote: I thought of a solution for that too. My armies would carry a powerful demonic crystal with them, so wherever they go the darkness follows.

This wouldn't have any effect on battles except that any fight with me happens in the night, and my vampires can fight during the day(fake night). I'm thinking it wouldn't be a disadvantage to you guys because you can create some magical lights for your troops so they can see in the dark.

PeZook wrote:

DarthShady wrote: I thought of a solution for that too. My armies would carry a powerful demonic crystal with them, so wherever they go the darkness follows.

This wouldn't have any effect on battles except that any fight with me happens in the night, and my vampires can fight during the day(fake night). I'm thinking it wouldn't be a disadvantage to you guys because you can create some magical lights for your troops so they can see in the dark.

Yes! Go with this, so that I can launch a special operation at noon, shatter the crystal and destroy your entire army in one, fell swoop!

Or you can just have humans/ghouls fight in the field

Also: Vampires are only a part of my army. Some of the other creatures will make your guys piss themselves...

Karmic Knight wrote:So, Baerne, what do you want to do with that little strip of land between us?

I was thinking of making it a dmz, with Baernish and Imperial citizens living peacefully within, but with the 10eme Armee and Ire Armee training on the border, and their equivalent on the other side.