Post by Seo-yeon (Vio) on Oct 30, 2018 21:23:58 GMT
- The Branded
The term “Branded” is used to refer to any person who exhibits strange, remarkable and often otherworldly abilities. They are normal human beings who have a special mark (Brand) somewhere on their body, either being born with such a mark or developing one later in life. Though many Branded learn how to use their abilities, some do not; some go their entire life without ever discovering what their Brand allows them to do, and others still use their powers without any idea of what their Brand even looks like!- Brands
A Brand is a special mark that appears somewhere on a person’s body. They are extremely varied in their design, but are never more than a few inches in diameter; never bigger than the palm of your hand. A Brand’s appearance usually has some relevance to the power it provides, but it’s often rather obscure and abstract at best. The colour of a Brand is usually black, though it may also be a light grey or even white; it always stands out on the skin of the owner and cannot be properly concealed through tattoos (the Brand will always move to the surface).
Notable designs of Brands include tribal patterns, symbols and geometric shapes. They are always simplistic enough to be easily described, never too complicated in their appearance, with perhaps the most complicated ones being written Chinese characters. A Brand cannot be removed; it’s as much a part of your body as anything and any attempt to remove it will just cause it to reappear in its rightful place soon thereafter.- Types of Ability
Brands offer strangely diverse abilities, but we broadly categorise them to help explain how they function. Each Brand has four points to use, spread among five different categories. Each point represents a single, fundamental aspect of the ability, and different combinations of categories result in different abilities.
• Projection abilities release something (usually from the Branded person’s body), such as a particular material or a form of energy. Depending on the ability in question, they might be able to produce their subject indefinitely.
• Transmutation abilities turn one thing into another, such as changing the state of matter of a particular thing, or directly altering how something functions. It can even be used to shape materials, depending on the power.
• Enhancement abilities are those which improve a target’s qualities, such as increasing the mass or volume, or otherwise amplifying the theme of the power in some way or form. In some cases, the Branded person may require an external fuel source or a particular trigger.
• Abjuration abilities diminish, negate or otherwise prevent something from happening or existing. They might simply protect the Branded from certain effects, or even be able to reduce other effects on the surroundings.
• Conjuration abilities allow the Branded to draw things in from their surroundings or move certain things around within reason, ranging from materials to energy forms to more abstract concepts. They do not function without an external source.- Points
Each point in a Brand represents an aspect of its power and, when combined, all four points encompass what the ability does. Depending on the individual power, multiple points in one category can either be one aspect, or spread over multiple aspects, while sometimes different categories combine into a single aspect of the ability. Points can represent various things, from the effective range of an ability to how quickly it can change something, or to the extent to which it can take effect. Here’s some examples of what combinations can mean:
• Projection 1 plus Conjuration 1 may allow somebody to absorb a particular thing (let’s say fire), store it, and later release it in short ranged blasts.
• Transmutation 1 plus Conjuration 1 might allow a character to touch a certain material (say steel) and cause it to form a protective layer over their body without heavily inhibiting their movement.
• Enhancement 1 plus Projection 1 could allow you to amplify the abilities of others with whatever it is you can produce, or even just add your own physical strength to theirs.
• Abjuration 1 plus Enhancement 1 may allow a character to reduce one attribute (say their size) in exchange for increasing another (such as their speed).
• Transmutation 1 plus Abjuration 1 might let somebody adjust the properties of a material they touch (let’s call it concrete) to be more fragile (like glass).
Abilities vary drastically and it’s usually the particular combination that influences the end result. You might have an aspect of the ability that has two points in one category, which could increase the volumes you produce (Projection), the level of weakening (Abjuration) or even the states you can create (Transmutation). If you’re ever unsure, just ask! Brands are so heavily varied that it’s impossible to properly pin all options down in one neat explanation!- Ability Theme
The abilities of Branded might vary heavily, but they can generally be tied down to having a particular theme that defines its general ability. For example, Brands that allow either the production of, alteration of or even strengthening of fire would all have a Fire theme. Similarly, an ability that influences metals might simply have a Metal theme. Themes are usually one word, sometimes a particular object or even the property of something, but they’re always pretty simple in what they mean and do. Some Brands might have two themes which directly relate to one another, which usually includes a medium (the ability’s trigger) and the effect. Some example themes include:
• Fire
• Magnetism
• Swords
• Insects
• Elasticity
• Shadow
A Brand always follows its themes closely and never strays far from what they entail. This means some Branded have to be a little more creative with their powers than others in order to truly master them, as some might have a very simple and straightforward theme compared to a Brand with very different or seemingly unconnected themes.- Weaknesses
Every Brand has its own particular weaknesses and limitations and these are usually linked directly with the ability they offer. As an example, it’s pretty obvious that a Fire-themed Brand is readily countered by water, and that a Brand with an electricity theme might have its powers restricted by non-conductive materials such as rubber and glass. Certain Brands might have a particular prerequisite to their power activating, such as having to produce something in advance or having to gather enough fuel, while others might have more abstract and unusual weaknesses and limitations such as only activating at night. In some cases, a Brand is limited by the scope of its ability as well, such as how Conjuration and Transmutation powers almost always require an external source for them to function.- Restricted Brands
Although Brands are generally not limited in what they can offer, certain powers are restricted or otherwise banned in order to be fair to the player base. These sorts of powers often come with effects that are immediately detrimental to the role play environment and are generally pretty hard to work around, so here they are:
• Time Travel & Manipulation abilities are restricted because of the logistical issues they create. Being able to travel back in time to kill somebody’s grandfather so that they are never born or even being able to jump into the future to grab some hi-tech weapon are straight up banned. Other Time-based abilities may be allowed (reviewed on a individual basis). In general, we assume time is a fluid thing that is not predetermined.
• Mind Control is an ability that causes immediate issues, but we’re not super strict on it for one reason. Any character on the site holds the right to resist any sort of effect that might take control of their mind or body (and thus the player’s control of the character) if they so wish to, so do keep this in mind if you want a Brand that does this. It’s generally easier to go about this kind of power in a more abstract fashion.
• Instant Death is currently banned entirely, simply because nobody wants to deal with somebody who can just make them drop dead at any moment with no hope of resisting its effects. Necrotic abilities are available, but the power to instantly kill somebody is banned because there’s no logical excuse for some people to resist its effects and others not.
• Immortality is one of those abilities that seems amazing and simple, but comes with issues. Characters aren’t immortal and indestructible, so while abilities that can heal or offer heavy protection might exist, no Brand exists that just prevents its owner from dying or being injured by any means.
• Meta Abilities are those which directly influence or have control over other abilities, such as preventing other Branded from activating their abilities, or giving or taking away Brands. These abilities are banned. However, it is possible to affect another person’s Brand indirectly depending on your own Brand’s strengths. For example, a Brand that abjures flame is a natural counter to a Brand that produces or manipulates it.
Please be aware that additional entries to this list may be added in future.