Steampunk Event - World/Class Description + Sign-Ups
Greetings from the Underground
Welcome to the city of Libertās, capital of Albion.
First founded some few decades following the Great Undoing, Libertās began life as nothing more than a shantytown. Built from the remains of now fallen nations, Libertās stands at the forefront of a still struggling international society. Surrounded by what some call the Wastelands, Albion's capital is an oasis for those unable to live a fruitful life. Filled to the brim with shops and streets bustling with the descendants of those that survived The Great Undoing, recent arrivals would assume that Libertās truly was, in every sense of the word, a paradise.
The internal strife between the nobility and military, however, is quick to make itself known.
Initially, Libertās began as a safe haven for those unable to move on. But over time, new technologies and the construction of a class system soon transformed from a tight knit community of vagabonds to one dominated by those that quickly established themselves as alphas. To do this, the beginnings of the nobility and military joined forces to bring proper stability to the then still flourishing society. Overtime, however, the nobility would soon forcibly establish itself as the sole monarchy of Albion, thus subjugating the military beneath their new rule.
This change, then, spurred on periods of near civil war, sporadic moments of peace and camaraderie, to both classes finding themselves targets of a dastardly rogue class simply known as Pirates.
Unwilling to submit themselves to the two alpha classes by joining the seemingly and internally submissive classes that make up the rest of society, various pirates find themselves instigating further violence and tension between the nobility and military as a way to gain control of the city for themselves. Because what better way to slip into power than by having your two main obstacles destroy each other in fits of (ultimately unsuccessful) coup d'états and petty spats? Of course, even amongst the rogue class, these countless pirates and their crews find themselves embroiled in their own internal conflict as well known and feared captains fight for full control.
And for the best loot, of course.
Presently, the nobility can be described as being a complete patriarchy, with men situated at the top and women, though respected, as aids to keeping noble blood alive. The military, however, has transformed itself into a more matriarchal system of power, much to the annoyance of many a nobleman. Pirates and the rest of society, law abiding or not, find themselves acting in a more carefree and almost apathetic manner, choosing to instead issue respect and authority to those that deserve it, regardless of their gender.
Thus, as a member of this fine city, you may find yourself tinkering with the fleet of ships within the military’s hanger, or even ordering around your own squadron. Perhaps you’ll find yourself at a gala event, about to begin a duel to protect your family’s honour and, not to mention, its assets. Or, perhaps, you hold no love for a life of duty or the toll of the upper class, choosing to immerse yourself in a more rebellious lifestyle on board a fearsome pirate ship.
Or maybe, just maybe, you find yourself detached from the chaos of power struggles and choose to instead live the life of a supposed commoner, running your own business, struggling to make it in this flourishing city, hiding a dark past (or certain familial relations), or just trying to uncover the secret behind why ovis aries (the majestic beats once known as 'sheep') went extinct centuries ago.
The Classes
Pirates: Rulers of the sky past the limits of the city guard, these pirates roam the Wastes between cities, plundering any ships or passenger vessels that they happen across. Most of them work for themselves but a few select crews are run by cities and these privateers often are used for skirmishes on warring cities
Please note: Captains can only be empires or countries that had colonies, unless you have a sweet crew… or something.
Vagrants
Thieves: The black-market is an essential part of the city and the thieves that pick pockets, run errands and generally keep things running smoothly. These bandits know the city better than anyone else and often will use the city’s labyrinth like streets and alleys to evade the authorities. It’s also said that there is a base for these lawbreakers somewhere deep in the city but only those who are part of the underground know of its location.
Gunslingers: With the discovery of gunpowder, guns and other weapons have become very common, however, those that can use them properly are even rarely, and those who can shoot a can 300 meters out without batting an eye are one in a million. Being a little not-up-to-snuff, most guns and rifles shoot to the left, fire short or even backfire and it takes a keen hand to tend to the weapon as well as a sharp eye to fire a steady shot. People with these talents are few and far between and the few that aren’t taken up by the military usually find themselves living job to job, usually being paid quite handsomely to either guard a ship or eliminate a much too nosey neighbour.
Barbarians: Some people have not embraced the flying ships and other marvels the new technology have brought. These ‘barbarians’ stick to the ground mostly and tend to roam about causing trouble and acting as thugs to many merchants and lords of the underworld. Occasionally a few may be coaxed onto merchant ships since a little brute force can always do it in for pirates. These people are not always thugs but for the most part they embrace the lifestyle.
Military
Officers: Since someone needs to run the show, there are a few select high-ranking officers who are usually of a female persuasion and most well known among these is the Madame. Besides that, these generals keep everything running smoothly, conducting training, keeping ranks in check and competing against the nobility for positions in the government. They’re often seen at the fancy galas, attempting to get more of the gentry on their side or roaming around the hangers making sure their little military dogs are staying in line.
Pilots: One of the key elements of the military is the Air Corps. Since most of the world is now wasteland, a land army is rather useless thus whoever controls the sky controls trade and transportation. Most militaries stick to protecting their cities but a few use them to gain control of nearby cities or the few resources that remain. Pilot training takes around three years and most don’t make it through the first month of training but the few that do are highly trained and disciplined… For the most part at least.
Mechanics: For every great pilot, there’s a great mechanic. The ships are vital and keeping them running efficiently is of even greater importance. Mechanics go through the same first year of training as the pilots before going off to the hangers and finding themselves under the great flying beasts learning the machines from rudder to tail. After two years apart, a mechanic and pilot are paired together with a plane and will work together until their service is finished. Most of a mechanic’s day is spent fixing ships and telling pilots to stop ruining the engines.
Artisans/Workers
Doctors/Nanotechnicians: With the advancements in weaponry there also came huge advancements in the medical field. Doctors or ‘nanontechnicians’ as they’re known now have discovered the usefulness of tiny machines in helping the healing process. This is usually reserved for very serious injuries, bandages and herbs are more commonplace for simple cuts and bruises. Doctors are very important and can be found almost anywhere from the military to the houses of the gentry or even the underground.
Alchemists: Since science has been making great leaps so have the chemicals. Ever since the Great Undoing, much of the matter in the world change, creating new reactions to be made. Alchemists are the masters, well, mostly testers of these reactions. Known for being a little foolhardy and with nerves of steel alchemists don’t have much to go by but their own observations so they have no idea how two chemicals will react, but there is thrill in that for them. Their advancements are used for bombs, new medicines for doctors and can even be used for entertainment.
Tinker-er:Technology has made its advancement and those who don’t want to use their talents for their military or who weren’t… qualified enough. Many of these tinkers find jobs working at factories or building things maybe even working on ships and if a real job doesn’t suit them, many just do their own thing, usually working another job while continuing their building and machines.
Aristocracy
Old Nobility: Since the very early days of the city, the nobility has had their hand everywhere, slowly building up a following and power from the very beginning. They hold much sway in the city, their bloodlines are long and detailed, making their families large and powerful. However, many of them are losing hold over the city and the few that remain will fight tooth and nail to keep their power.
Nouveau Rich: Along with the old families a new nobility has emerged, ones made mostly from rich merchants. These families can usually trace their grandparents but they don’t need blood to speak for the cash they bring into the gentry efforts. Usually the older families would kick these nouveau rich out but their money is the only thing keeping their fight against the military going.
Duellists: Within the upper class, there are a few select swordmasters that will duel as an act of entertainment for the gentry. They will sometimes be hired to defend a family’s honour but mostly they are used as gladiators, often for money and to settle large debts. Sometimes a duellist will be attached to a family and will teach the kids how to fight, but on top of that they are usually very well-educated and can teach other languages, mathematics and literature.
Merchants: These people hold all the power in the cities. Trade lines, prices, food supply and what comes in and out of Liberty, it doesn't get in without these people noticing (unless it happens to be a black market trade). Only a few families are in control and these large enterprises provide jobs for pilots, shopkeeps and, if their trade route is is threatened by pirates, a few thugs to help thing run smoothly.
Sign-Up
Thus. Please use this post as a preliminary sign-up for the event - putting down which characters will join in and their tentative class. We won't hold you to whatever class you put down, but we want to note if there's any major trends in terms of class population and possibly prevent say, everyone becoming pirates. Also, we ask that you refrain from posting any major information about your character. We have a character homework in the works and would like you to save it until then.
Feel free to also use this as a discussion post for anything regarding the event.
Lastly - the event will start This Monday at Noon (PST). Any threads posted before then will be asked to be taken down. We will have the character homework up shortly~
Oh yeah. Ignore our typos. They do not exist. We do not care what you say.