Kaisou Mod Account (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
kaisoumods) wrote2022-12-25 09:55 pm
kaisoumods) wrote2022-12-25 09:55 pm
Applications v.2
Applications
Premise | Rules | FAQ | Regains | Elements
Locations | Applications | Taken | Full Nav
THIS IS AN OLD POST. IF YOU WISH TO SEE THE CURRENT APP PAGE, PLEASE GO HERE.
Okay so application is a very strong word and not entirely accurate, but it's a term we all know so bear with me. This is the page where you officially submit your character information for the game! Apps will not really be judged on its contents but more making sure everything fits into the setting of the game. If you want more information on the setting, please check out the FAQ!
To see the previous app page, you can find it here.
How do I join the game?
This app page is currently open! Apps can be submitted by players at anytime. Apps are reviewed by the mod on the first and third weekend of the month, ending at 6pm EST on Sundays (so if you submit an app at 9pm on Sunday it won't get read until the following relevant weekend). Please check the calendar to see when apps will be processed next.
To join the game, you'll require an invite from another player. Players can invite up to 2 people per month. To invite someone, have the person apping list the name of the person inviting them, and then the inviter should comment to their app confirming the invite. Apps that do not have a invitation confirmation will not be looked at by the mods. If a confirmation does not come within two app processing weekends of the app's submission, it'll be automatically rejected.
A new player must be in the game one full month from their app acceptance date before they can invite another player (meaning if their app was approved on September 18th, they can invite people starting October 18th). This is so the new player has a chance to get acclimated to the game and community enough to assist any friends they later invite to the game.
Players who were in the game but who dropped/were swept will not need an invite to rejoin the game for up to one month after their drop date. After that month, they will require an invite to rejoin.
Once you submit your app, you'll get a welcome comment confirming that everything is a-okay. Sometimes revisions will be requested if there is a need to fix with power purchases or possessions.
Is there a player/cast cap?
There are a couple caps! The first cap ia an overall player cap. Kaisou allows a total of 75 players. Should we ever reach cap, apps will close until openings become available.
The second cap is on the number of players with an OU (original universe) character. To make sure OU characters do not dominate the game, there is a current limit of 35 OU players. At the start of each month, we will make sure there are at least 2 OU player slots open so new players get a chance to app an OU. Finally, to keep one cast from dominating the limited OU slots, there is an OU cast cap of 6 OU characters per cast. There's no cap on AUs from the canon at this time, just OUs!
PLAYER SLOTS: 33/75 filled.
OU PLAYER SLOTS: 14/35 filled.
Casts near or at Cap:
Final Fantasy XIV - 4/6, NEAR CAP
What kind of characters do you allow?
Most things! Canon characters, Original characters, CRAU, AU characters - the list goes on. Double characters are also allowed so long as the doubles are notably different from one another (examples: MCU Peter Parker and Into the Spider-verse Peter Parker would be fine as they are two clearly different interpretations of the character. Alternatively, a canon version of a character and an AU version of the same character would be fine as long as the AU causes a notable difference in the character). Customizable protagonists and characters from canons with different story routes are allowed, and any characters with differing story routes would be considered AUs from one another.
The only requirement for a character is that they do require a consistent canon history. This is because many of the plot events and mechanics deal with memories and connections to their previous life (or current life if an OU). If you wish to app a mascot character that doesn't have a specific canon background (a vocalid, clippy, the trix rabbit, etc) - you are welcome to write an OC that's inspired by the character with a clear established background to work from. Characters who have multiple canon iterations (like Link from Legend of Zelda or Sonic the Hedgehog) will need to pick a single iteration to pull their canon background from. Characters must also have been properly introduced (not just a quick cameo) in their canon for at least one month at the time of apping.
How many characters can I play at a time?
You can play up to four active characters at a time! Only two of these characters are allowed to be Original Universe and there is an overall OU player cap as mentioned above. As of September 2023, you may only play 2 characters from the same canon.
How frequently can I submit an app?
There is no time restraint on the first two characters you app. If you join the game with the intent of playing two characters, you can app them both immediately or wait it out! However after you app your second character, you will require to wait one month between each new character app (so if you app your second character on March 2nd, you will need to wait until April 2nd to app a third character). This wait time applies even if you drop a character.
What type of characters can I play in this setting?
At this time, brand new players have the option of choosing between Normal AU, Paranormal AU, and Original Universe. Players who have been in the game at least 3 months also get the option of apping characters from the Black Order or POKEGO factions. Details for each category are below:
Normal Modern AUs
Normals AU are exactly what it says on the tin: they're normal people. These characters have lived entirely normal lives on modern day Earth. Up until the day they joined the Libra app (aka when they join the game), they've been completely oblivious to anything strange about the world. Even if something paranormal-related did happen to them, their memories remember it as a more mundane event (for example if they got attacked by a monster, they'll remember it as a dog attack) - and it's only once they join the app may they remember how those events occurred. For the most part, their AU backstory should consist of things that could reasonably happen in a modern day Earth setting.
Upon acceptance, Normal AUs will be allowed to pick two free regains (canon regain or an elemental power) that can be worth up to 3 points each. These regains will ICly come into effect after they join the game.
Paranormal Modern AUs
Paranormal AU characters are characters who also grew up in modern day Earth, but have experienced supernatural occurrences throughout their lives. Their experiences with the supernatural can vary wildly as long as it fits into the setting of Kaisou. Maybe they've been raised by a family aware of the supernatural, or they started as normal people and ended up crossing paths with the paranormal at some point in their lives. They may even be involved with a player-run faction (aka any faction that's not Zodiac, Black Order or POKEGO), or a new faction that you made up yourself!
These characters will get 6 extra points to be spent on elemental powers (aka Kaisou original powers) they obtained during their AU backstory. These points cannot be used for canon regains (though you are welcomed to purchase elemental powers that are similar to their canon powers, or pick something entirely new!). These points can be used for monster traits, but you need to include some explanation for why they are a monster (were they cursed? An experiment? Are their parent a monsterfucker?) and they will need to be at least half-human.
Paranormal characters can also be possessed. You can read more information about on the possesion info page.
Original Universe
Original Universe characters hail from their original world and find themselves arriving into this world through the Spirit Realm. They will not lose any memories of their canon lives, and are allowed to have any items that they could reasonably carry on their persons upon arrival without any enchantments (in other words, no cheating with a mary poppins bag). If they were carrying a magical bag, the bag will split open in the Spirit Realm and all the contents will come spilling out on the ground, forcing your character to grab only what they can carry.
Power wise, OUs can do one of the following options for their retained options. Feel free to consult the regain page for clarity on the point values.
- 3 abilities that have the power equivalent of a 1-point regain (very low level power)
- 2 abilities that have the power equivalent of a 2-point regain (medium level power)
- 1 ability that has the power equivalent of a 3-point regain (advanced level power)
Retained abilities can apply to any magical items they have with them EXCEPT for anything that'd increase their inventory or would be considered otherwise gamebreaking. Any other abilities or items that don't have their powers retained will be completely depowered and will require regain points to gain back.
Black Order/POKEGO AU
PLEASE NOTE: Due to this character type requiring a thorough understanding of the game setting, this option is only available for players who have been in Kaisou for at least 3 months
As of April 2023, players are limited to only have ONE character from each faction at a time (meaning you can have one Black Order member and one POKEGO character, but not more than one in each faction).
Black Order/POKEGO characters are AU characters who started either as Normal or Paranormal AU characters. However, unlike the other AU types who only begin regaining canon memories once they join the game, these characters began remembering their past lives and regaining canon abilities at an earlier point in their life - usually after a traumatic or high stress incident. Sometime shortly after they began remembering their past lives, they were approached by one of two factions:
THE BLACK ORDER: A secretive group devoted to protecting and preserving the Spirit Realm, particularly any realms that are considered sacred, by dispatching agents known as "Guardians" to manage supernatural incidents of note. While it varies from member to member, the Black Order aren't exactly known for being a chill group. Some Guardians join willingly while others were "strongly persuaded" to join. While you don't need to be religious to be part of the Black Order nor does it adhere to a particular religion, it is said to be funded by numerous religious denominations around the world. Thanks to that, Black Order Guardians will enjoy free housing (within reason, no mansions) and a comfortable salary to live on - though some may get a daytime job/go to school to keep up a persona. The Black Order itself is run by a mysterious council of leaders, who give orders to their Guardians to fulfill. Thanks to the constant unusual activity in Kaisou, they have decided to send members to Kaisou and join the app in order to investigate what's going on.
POKEGO: A group devoted to the research and understanding of the Spirit Realm. All in all, they tend to be less hardcore than the Black Order and all members join willingly, though sometimes it's by means as a way to avoid joining the Black Order. POKEGO is less structured than the Black Order, with the group actually being made up of several different cohorts that focus on different areas of study related to the Spirit Realm (such as flora, fauna, gate locations, gods, etc etc). For a long time they held a positive reputation in paranormal circles, but that recently took a serious hit thanks to Professor Willow and his faction's deeds. Thanks to that, a lot of sponsors (including Zodiac) have pulled out and funding has really dried up. This means POKEGO researchers will have to find their own housing and find ways to make ends meet (in other words, you're broke). These days, the remaining members of POKEGO are working towards rebuilding their organization and repairing the bridges that have been burned.
Characters apped will either be in the role of Black Order Guardian or POKEGO Researcher that's been sent to Kaisou to help investigate the situation, and will join the Libra app in the spirit of cooperation with Zodiac (and to keep an eye on everyone). It's up to you if the character had already lived in Kaisou for some time, or is completely new in town. While both of these groups are made up of people who remember their past lives, before the events of Kaisou it was well understood among these group that regaining past memories was an extremely rare occurrence (like 1 in a few million rare), that memories of their past lives were to be kept hush-hush from outsiders - and anyone who refused to comply with the rules would have their past memories erased and powers sealed. So some may not be entirely sure how to feel about these Zodiac app users that have a lot less rules to follow. Typically POKEGO/Black Order characters should be at least 16 years of age. If you wish to app a younger one, they will be considered a trainee and special accommodations will need to be made (aka you need to talk to the mod about it).
Due to their special situations, Black Order/POKEGO characters can start with 16 regain points for their pre-purchased powers (versus the 6 that paranormal AU get). These regain points can be used for both Kaisou elemental powers AND canon regains. Black Order/POKEGO characters may also be possessed, which works the same way as Paranormal AUs.
As of April 2023, POKEGO characters will be allowed 1 free pokemon that's up to horse size (and isn't a legendary) upon apping. This Pokemon will be completely depowered, but for 1 point you can unlock up to 4 of the abilities that are available for the Pokemon at Level 1 in the games. Any abilities beyond that would cost the same rates as if those abilities were on a player character. Additional pokemon would cost the same rate as a magical animal companion (aka based on size and they'd start with their level 1 abilities).
FINALLY, PLEASE BE AWARE THAT DUE TO THEIR FACTION'S REPUTATION, BLACK ORDER AND POKEGO CHARACTERS (ESPECIALLY POKEGO) ARE LIKELY TO HAVE A GOOD DEAL OF NEGATIVE CR FROM OTHER CHARACTERS EARLY ON. Please be prepared to deal with this should you choose to app from these factions. Even if your character is a nice person, they will likely have to work extra hard to gain the trust of those around them.
Applications
Please fill out the corresponding application and comment below! Subject should be "PLAYER NAME | CHARACTER NAME | APP TYPE".
| Normal Modern AU | Paranormal Modern AU | Original Universe | Black Order/POKEGO AU |
Ardyn | Final Fantasy XV | Black Order AU
Contact: seer0ftime @ discord
Invited by: th profecy
Other Characters: Waver Velvet (
Character Name: Ardyn Lucis Caelum/'Ardyn Izunia'
Canon: Final Fantasy 15
Canon History: wiki link, there's literally no way to do this that isn't a novel
Canon Personality: The initial and vital distinction to make before describing Ardyn in any detail is that he is a person whose development can be split into three sections: his past as a healer, his ingame presence as a villain, and the midpoint in between displayed in his own DLC episode.
Healer: In his past as a relatively normal human, Ardyn was intensely selfless to the point of self-destruction. Tasked by the gods with the healing of the Starscourge through divine magic, he accepted his responsibility without question and seemed to take a small amount of pride in carrying out the will of the gods. Taking his role incredibly seriously, he rarely smiled or did much else but act stoic and professional in front of the people he worked to help. Implied but only seen in the novel is a falling-out with his own younger brother over a difference of opinion in how to save the world from the plague, demonstrating that Ardyn took the matter seriously enough to leave both home and his only apparent family entirely to continue his work. More to the point on the 'self-destructive' front; his task to heal the Starscourge was actively causing him agonizing pain and deteriorating his body, but he clearly prioritized the people in need of salvation over his own life with no hesitation or question.
...What I'm saying is he's an incredibly thinly veiled messianic archetype and the only way the comparison would be less subtle would be if his birthday were on Christmas.
It's Walpurgisnacht, which isn't much better.Adagium: In being rejected by the gods, executed by his brother, and sealed away for two millennia, to say Ardyn's mental state took a hit would be an understatement. In his confinement he retreated into his own head, living in his own hallucinations of the past as resentment and hate fueled by the Starscourge built within him. Despite this, when released by Verstael his prevailing emotion seems to be apathy. He's largely indifferent to Verstael, the world, and everyone in it--briefly thinking that just being left alone in Angelgard would have been preferable. While the resentment fostered in his imprisonment is still present, it is also directionless; with Somnus dead, Ardyn finds little point in revenge. He spends several months in Niflheim sleeping; ostensibly as recovery, but it's equally likely he simply felt he had nothing better to do. While he is a barely-human passing avatar of malice and hatred, enough of his original human self remains that though he resents his own mistakes in working so hard to accomplish basically nothing, he won't simply destroy everything indiscriminately in vengeance. At this stage he's very tired and very mentally unwell--he's prone to nightmares and, when under significant stress, outright dissociation and waking hallucinations (both auditory and visual) centering around both Somnus and Aera alike. Ultimately, at that point he wasn't even an open threat at all--while he did in fact kill several of the Crownsguard on the island, it was done in self-defense and also one such hallucination implied a genuine sense of guilt; a spectral version of Somnus taunting Ardyn over having killed an innocent man and Ardyn claiming 'my calling is to save lives, not take them'.
Ardyn Izunia: The tipping point of finally shattering a fractured grasp on sanity lies with Verstael convincing Ardyn to daemonify Ifrit; pushed into seeking power he swears vengeance on the line of Lucis and in sublimating a god Ardyn also sees fragments of memories implying it was he and not Somnus that was chosen. That, specifically, is the point that causes him to utterly snap and decide to take his vengeance on gods, kings, and everything else on the planet. In the years that followed he killed people indiscriminately in order to steal their memories and learn more about the world, as well as contribute to creating Niflheim's magitek and highly unethical cloned daemon army. In his DLC episode preceding the game itself, he proves to be a force even Niflheim can't hope to actually control; he goes rogue on an already violent invasion mission, seeking to kill the then-reigning king and only being stopped by the intervention of both his spectral younger brother as well as Bahamut himself, learning of the prophecy that names Ardyn as nothing but an agent of darkness whose purpose is to suffer as an immortal plague until the true Chosen King can arise and kill him. Depending on player choice, Ardyn either completely gives up and accepts this as an inevitability, or rages against the draconic deity and is summarily harshly punished for the hint of rebellion. (It isn't clearly stated ingame which option is game canon, but the second is explicitly canon to the light novel/alternate timeline.)
Which leads into his role in the game itself: a manipulative chessmaster who orchestrates the fall of both Lucis and Niflheim, kills several named characters either directly or by proxy, and spreads the Starscourge to the point of creating a ten-year-long night over the planet only ended with Noctis defeating Ardyn and sacrificing himself to bring back the light. He is constantly bitter to the point of vicious mockery to everyone around him, ally and enemy alike. His bitterness at having been cast out is projected clearly on those who had nothing to do with it--specifically Noctis more than anyone, being Somnus' identical-looking descendant. Ultimately, it may all just be a decades long lashing out in anger and vengeance, and once the prophesized end does come about Ardyn seems content with the idea. After a fierce final battle in the destroyed streets of the crown city he accepts his defeat quietly, and is eradicated from all existence with little more than a bow to the true Chosen King who saved the world as neither brother could.
AU Name: Same as canon; he's probably gone by a lot of names, but settled on 'Ardyn Izunia' while with the Black Order.
AU Age: 2000+ (physically 33)
AU Birthday: April 30th
Faction: Black Order
AU History:
-Firstborn son of a politician in the Roman empire circa the first century, Ardyn Lucis Caelum was known as a wise and charitable man. Charming, very focused upon matters of justice and fairness, and with a mind to enter into politics himself for the betterment of the people around them, he was never one to put himself or his ambition first. Unlike his younger brother, who sought wealth and power for their own sake. As with quite a lot of politicians of the time, said father was of course assassinated by his second son over a matter of inheritance, with Ardyn swiftly following when he discovered his brother standing over their father holding a knife.
-Utterly shattered by a betrayal he had never suspected or anticipated, on the brink of death the prevailing emotion he felt turned from sorrow to rage; demanding to understand why his own blood hated him so, cursing him in turn for so ruthlessly destroying all in his path, and feeling a small spark of vengeance spring to life at the very end of Ardyn's own life. At which point a devil came to him from the Spirit Realm and offered a chance to live again; to right the wrongs of the world by whatever means necessary. Accepting the contract, Ardyn awoke in exhaustion to a home reduced to bloodied rubble in the wake of his own demon mode rampaging briefly.
-[cw: suicide] Presumed dead along with the rest of his family, Ardyn quickly left the city and indeed the country in short order, hiding among shadows and constantly shapechanging with the powers he found his nameless devil had granted him. Finding himself deeply conflicted between his innate compassion and the contracted devil screaming revenge, not long afterwards the memories began to surface in tiny shreds; memories of a creature slaying humans indiscriminately, sublimating them body and soul. Horrified by the glimpses of a life that was and wasn't his own, Ardyn sought to put an end to himself...only to find he couldn't. In his impulsive and angry decision to accept a chance to live again, he had been made an immortal creature of shadow exactly like the monster now in his memories.
-With no choice but to accept that fate, he took to wandering; rarely staying in any one settlement or even country for too long, the world gradually changed around him...and yet it didn't. No matter where he went, the pervasive nature of humanity followed. Injustices, cruelties, conflicts, and betrayals were all intrinsic to human nature, and the more he witnessed the more he felt the need to make sure justice was done. Oftentimes where he went, particularly cruel or disliked individuals simply 'disappeared' only to turn up as a corpse covered in bloody claw marks or stab wounds. Except when it wasn't the particularly cruel or disliked and instead just the mildly assholish. Or someone who just looked at him wrong when the bloodier memories began to creep back up again.
-Needless to say, as the ages passed and Ardyn adapted time and again to different places and eras the human that he used to be faded, and he largely forgot why he even cared in the first place. There certainly didn't seem to be much reason to, when humankind was seen to have nothing worth caring about in the first place and his memories painted him as some kind of murderous apocalyptic monster anyway. What good was a world that only ever let one down?
-At some point (likely a number of decades ago) he encountered the Black Order somewhere in Europe, and while letting himself be sealed probably would have been sensible to him in the past he instead signed on readily and with very little hesitation. In his twisted logic, maybe guarding the Spirit Realm however necessary felt like something justified, or maybe it was just that he wanted an excuse to continue on as he already had been doing. Maybe even a warped combination of both.
-Whatever the reason, Ardyn Izunia eventually became the Guardian no one actually wanted to see dispatched--the kind that handled problems needing handling. His abilities to shapeshift and travel between shadows made him an ideal assassin, and his complete lack of hesitation in that regard made him terrifyingly efficient. Which isn't to say that every assignment he's sent on ends in bloodshed, but he's definitely the solver of (and sometimes causer of) the Order's more persistent headaches. Hence why he's getting assigned to this complete mess. For the sake of...well, November, I'd like to assume he's been here since late October shapeshifted and under the radar, if that's possible?
AU Personality Differences: The major difference is that canon Ardyn's incredible anger management issues are a perfect storm of eternity in solitary confinement/a rebellious god's memories in his head/knowing he's fated to be a literal dictionary-definition scapegoat. Because of that, he's far more indiscriminate and wide-ranging in the damage he cheerfully causes, knowing absolutely nothing he does matters on a cosmic scale (because that's what prophecy does!) so he can in fact destroy and kill whatever he likes as long as it isn't Noctis. AU!Ardyn, however, is moderately narrower in his approach and wider in his experiences: he believes having traveled the world gives him perspective, and in the words of a different antagonist: 'there are no innocents'. Would he kill indiscriminately, probably not. Does he believe that the people the Order tasks its Guardians with handling probably did something to deserve it in a karmic sense? Absolutely. Not only does he lack any ability to conceptualize most people as innately good, he believes for a fact that he certainly isn't--so far his past life memories are only of himself as a full-on murderous scourge on the planet, which colors the issue considerably.
Element: Shadow
Purchased Powers:
Immortality - Full (8)
Shapeshifting - Medium (3)
Shadow Jump - Low (3)
Shadow Claws - Low (1)
Basic Markings - (1)
Possession: Rakshasa - a shapeshifting illusionist demon with a thirst for blood. The contract price is 'seek vengeance by any means necessary'; failing to specify 'vengeance for what', Ardyn simply feels a constant undercurrent of hatred and need to lash out against perceived injustices in ways ranging from passive aggression to outright violence.
Welcome!
Please take the following steps before you get started:
Additionally, if you want to make a personal inbox for your character, feel free to do so!
At some point recently Ardyn received orders to investigate the situation in Kaisou. Today, they will be sent an invite to join the Libra app in order to help with their mission. It's up to them if they wish to disclose their affiliation with the Order, but other Order members will know their identity. All Black Order members are issued a uniform - tailored made and customized to fit their personal aesthetic - that they can wear as much or as little as they like.
You are welcome to make a network post, an intro log, or just start tagging around! Officially Zodiac will welcome them to the network on their next post (which will be on the 1st/15th), but you are more than welcome to post and comment before then. You can still tag into the most recent Zodiac network post, which is here! The event log will be posted November 3rd.
You now have 4 points that can be spent on any Regains for the month. These regains will ICly take effect after the Libra app appears on the phone.
A note: Since vengeance is his possession price, Ardyn will not be able to purchase the Vengeance flaw from Gacha Goodwill. Thank you!
no subject