Discussion for Der Hafen

Yes, the correct genus for the German word "Hafen" is "der". Silly me.

This is supposed to be a sort of "take two" on my previous game Die Hafen. I've developed the story and world (I've played it IRL on more than one occasion), and I would really try to play out the story again with this new, slightly altered setting. There will be less confusion about the canon of things this time around.

Now, background and characters:
In the beginning of time, here was only one will. This will knew itself as Jahwe. For reasons only known to itself, it decided to create something out of nothing. Thus, the Malach, who would later become known as (among other things) angels, were created. The Malach were innumerable, and their purpose was to serve. The first two Malach, Mikael and Lucifer, were made into Jahwes closest avisors and leaders of their brethren. Countless eons later, Jahwe decided to create again. This time it created the world, Earth, to be the center of its universe and creation. The Earth was filled with thousands of different forms of life, and the angels rejoiced in their belief that Jahwe had created this world from them.

Then Jahwe created mankind, and gave to its newest creation the greatest gift of all: immortality. The human body could die, but its spirit, its soul, could never be destroyed and would live on forever on another plane called Eden. The humans were also free to live their lives as they pleased, unbound to serve Jahwe as the Malach were.

This angered the Malach, who themselves weren't immortal, and who had now been robbed of their home by these humans who had done nothing to earn it. Most Malach accepted this after the initial shock, but some, led by Lucifer, could not ignore this betrayal and set out to destroy mankind. Jahwe then sent out Mikael with the rest of its angels to stop Lucifer, and a bloody struggle began. Lucifer was in the end defeated, but countless Malach had been slewn. Jawhe chose for some reason not to slay Lucifer, but in stead banned him to an eternity away from its light. Hell, an almost bottomless pit somewhere beneath the waters of the earth, was created and Lucifer and his surviving accomplices were thrown into it.

But Lucifers influence on the world didn't stop there. He managed to manipulate mankind into destroying itself in secret, using agents on the outside of his dark prison, and before Mikael and her fellow angels had time to realize what was happening, it was too late. Mankind turned upon itself and started to slowly kill the earth in the process. Mikael tried her best to stop the madness in the world, but to no avail.

Soon after this, Jahwe left the world and hasn't been seen since.

With his captor and creator gone Lucifer was able to escape Hell along with his followers, and the struggle began once more. Mikael and her angels believed that Jahwe would come back if they managed to restore the Earth to what it originally had been, and so fought to turn mankind back on the right path again. Lucifer, however, believed that mankind wasn't worthy of the Earth which they had been given. He and his followers were convinced that Jahwe had made a mistake in creating mankind, who had turned their backs on their creator, and sought to destroy them. This struggle has continued until today.

There was, however, a short period of time when the forces of Lucifer and Mikael were forced to cooperate in order to survive. In the eighteenth century, a man by the name of Jack Shaw began a crusade against the Malach and managed to kill scores of them before he was noticed. All who were sent after him were destroyed, and when too much blood has been spilled the two arch enemies were forced to forge a desperate coalition to put his madness to an end. Shaw was finally killed after a long battle in which many an angel met their death, but his reason for lashing out at the Malach was never learned. There was a short period of peace in the aftermath of Shaws killing spree, but when both sides had recovered the war once again ensued.

Our story begins in Berlin in the 1940s. The German capital has been turned into a war zone as the remnants of the Third Reich fights for survival, but there is one place in the city which hasn't yet been bothered by the chaos. It's a small club called Der Hafen, located in one of the darker back alleys. The owner of the club, Friedrich Schneider, is a very powerful human who has opened this club for a very special clientel: the Malach, the undead and other powerful humans as himself. The rules in the club are simple: don't start a fight lest you get destroyed. After the first few times people broke these rules, it became widely known that Friedrich was a man who could enforce that ultimatum, even on Malach. So, in the midst of the war, the participants have suddenly been able to sit down on peaceful terms and talk to eachother. This turned out to be a huge success, and people as well as Malach has come from all around the world to drink and share their stories at Der Hafen.

Things you can play as:

Malach
Malach are beings with physical power way greater than those of humans. They are extremely agile, strong and tough, and are also able to travel between the physical world and the spiritual world at will. The Malach has manipulated the human world from the shadows ever since the creator disapeared, having appeared as gods and heroes throughout history in order to control mankind. They look like humans in the physical world, but once they're in the spiritual world they take on their true form; a human-esque body with an animal head (like the egyptian gods Anubis and Isis). If you want to play a Malach, you must choose one of two factions: the angels or the fallen. The angels are led by Mikael and are trying to restore the innocence of the world by leading the humans back onto the right path, thus making Jahwe come back to them. The fallen, led by Lucifer, believe that the humans must get purged from the world before it can be made whole again, so that Jahwe can return. These two factions are at war and are deadly enemies outside Der Hafen. Malach cannot use magic. Malach are also tied to their bodies; if their body dies, they cease to exist.

Undead
The undead started showing up soon after Jahwe had left the world. No one knew how or why their soul came back to the Earth from Eden, and so no one really trust them. They are stuck in their dead bodies which for some reason doesn't rot, need nothing and feel nothing. They cannot die whatever damage is dealt to them; even if they are burned, they will keep on living (however incapacitated and eternally tormented with a completely shattered mind). The undead cannot use magic and cannot travel between the physical and spiritual world. In fact, magic doesn't effect them at all.

Humans
Mankind as a species are not aware of the existence of Malach or undead, but there are some individuals hiding in the masses who are. People who have been taught how to travel to the spiritual world and use their will to bend the reality around them. These persons are oftenly called Others by both the undead and Malach to separate them from the normal human population. These Others can become very powerful, up to the point when even the mighty Malach fear them. Others can use magic and travel between the physical and spiritual world. This is dangerous for them, though, because both the travel and the magic drains their lifeforce, shortening their time on earth. Those who doesn't know how to control their powers die early deaths.

Good to know:

Magic
Humans, who have been created by Jahwe in its own image, have the ability to bend reality to their will. They can create fire out of thin air, turn invisible, change their appearance and, in s few rare cases, overcome death. Using magic, however, is very dangerous and drains the magicians lifeforce. Every time a human uses magic, their bodys lifespan is shortened. There is also pain and/or exhaustion involved in using magic.

The spiritual world
The spiritual world is a plane of reality "behind" the real, physical world. It looks just like our world with the exception that there are no living creatures there other than those who have chosen to go there (excluding plant life right now. There are trees in the spiritual world). There is little light and color in the spiritual world. It is a place the Malach can access at will, but humans must get taught how to go there. It is very dangerous for humans to enter the spiritual plane. Once there, their lifeforce is drained at a quick pace and it is never certain that one can switch back to the real world again. The spiritual plane comes is different levels, all the way from 1 to infinity. Each level is darker and has less color in in than the last. Noone has ever gone deeper than level nine. There are rumors of strange things living on that level, creatures of the darkness, and noone but perhaps Jahwe knows what or why they are. The deeper a human goes into these levels, the quicker its physical body dies. A Malach, on the other hand, can stay on any level for any period of time without any worries of death. Except for the ninth level (and beyond), of course.


Ask if you wonder about anything. Comment on what I've written. I'm not completely unable to compromise if you want to edit something (small).

Join up and lets have ourselves one really good game!

 

On the subject of Malach and the two sides;

Wouldn't it be possible with a small number of "renegade" Malach that just have abandoned the war as useless, and just tries to "live their life" so to speak.

 

DE: Hmm, I hadn't thought about that... But yes, that might be possible. Only in unique cases, though, as in that character having discovered something hidden (perhaps on the ninth level?).

I could make a separate thread for the characters. Less confusion that way.


Wobbler: No. The Malach were created with a purpose, and if one take that purpose away from them they are left empty. The Malach loved Jahwe VERY much, even Lucifer did, and they miss it like hell. So, they're currently on their missions trying to bring it back. Having said this, not all Malach are deeply engaged in the conflict. They're not constantly looking for trouble. Every Malach just does what it can to aid their side in the conflict.

 

I do have some questions:

1. What for kinds of powers does the Undead and 'The Fallen' have instead of casting magic?

2. Can you make up your own spells, or do you have to use the ones from the various RPGs?

3. Could you specific' shorten their lifespan' when humans cast spells?

4. Is it possible to play a son of daughter of an angel or a 'Fallen'?

5. How old can you character be?

6. What about spellbooks, forbidden or blessed artifacts?

7. Is it possible that there is a romance between an angel/fallen and a mere human?

8. What about occupations?

 

1. Not everyone are equipped with special powers, but you could say that each of the three things you can play have their own strengths and weaknesses. The undead can't die whatever damage you deal to them. They need nothing (doesn't need to eat or sleep) and will live forever. Also, as I've written, they're immune to magic. The fallen are just the same as the other Malach.

2. You shouldn't use spells from, say, DnD in this game. Don't go throwing fireballs. Be modest but creative.

3. Whenever humans cast spells or enter the spiritual world, their physical life is shortened, i.e they will not live as long as before. They don't age, but they will die prematurely.

4. I should have brought this up. Malach can't reproduce. The once that Jahwe created at the beginning of time are the ones fighting in the war today. There aren't that many left (in comparison to how many they used to be before the war), but they are numerous enough to manipulate and control humanity as a whole.

5. It depends on the character. Malach are ageless. They have existed since the beginning of time. Undead can be very old as well; everything from several thousand years to only a decade or two. Humans have their own natural lifespan.

6. Yes, these things exist. But do remember that only humans can create and use them.

7. Malach have on occasion seducted humans in purpose of manipulation, but a Malach cannot love a human other than of friendship. The Malach love eachother as brothers and sisters. Humans are, on the other hand, capable of loving Malach and there are quite a few who does.

8. Yes, what about them? It's not uncommon for the undead, malach or humans to have jobs in this world, but then again it isn't that common either. Some choose to have it in order to blend in. Others because they're bored.

 

Well this seems very interesting and I will have to consider this RP very seriously as since uni is over for the year I have a lot of free time. Expect my reply in the character thread if I do choose to create one very soon.

 

I do have some other questions:

1) Can anyone see the Undead and the other creatures for what they are, or only theirself and wizards?

2) Are all the spells equally draining the life force of a human?

3) Is there any way to regain the lost life force?

4) Real-life organisations, such like Thule, RAF, Luftwaffe, etc?

5) The Undead can't reproduce as well?

6) Which weird creatures, monsters can be used?

7) Pets and Familiars?

 

On the subject of undeads.

If at all, how well does the undead regenerate?

I mean, if I as undead got my face cut open 200 years ago, is the wound still there? Or do they actually heal?

 

1. You couldn't tell from looking directly at a malach, undead or human that they were any different from normal humans (unless they had some sort of tell-tale sign). A malach would, however, know one of its own from a human. A magician could probably spot malach using magic.

2. No. More powerful spells will drain more life.

3. Nope.

4. Yes, what about them?

5. They're dead, so no.

6. None, except (maybe) the mysterious beings of the ninth level.

7. I'd rather you didn't use such things but if you desperately want to have a pet, you may. Familliars are out of the question.


Wobbler: The wound remains. They don't heal at all. If you sever an arm, though, the arm won't go limp. It is still a part of the undead and will continue moving on its own. Therefore, if they loose bodyparts, they can always just stitch them back on.

 

Is it possible for undead to be 'resurrected' through the course of the game? Didn't say it had to be easy, maybe they need a mage and the chronicles of doom from the 666th realm of the 32nd degree of infinity within the spiritual world or something. Just a 'yes' or 'no' will do.

What happens to a human or Malach's physical body when they enter the spiritual realm? I'm guessing by your description of life force that a human body will remain in the real world; do they appear comatose, unconscious or what?

 

I was going to say "no" at first but, you know, that could get interesting. It could open for some neat roleplay, and if you want to do it then go for it.

Malachs transport themselves completely when they enter the spiritual realm. They disapear in the physical world. It's the same if you go the deeper levels, you vanish from the previous ones. Humans, on the other hand, must leave their body behind and traverse the spirit realm with their souls. While they're in there, their physical body stands or sits or lies perfectly still as if in a coma.

 

Is there a safer way to enter and survive all the levels of the spiritual world as a human being, because its quite unhealthy for them?

 

No.

 

Questions.

Wobbler, Charonte and Zanza: Will you participate? And, if you will, would you like me to wait for your characters or is it ok for me to initiate the game now (in which case you can jump into the story at your own pace, after you've finished writing your character)?

Short fact about the physique of the Malachs: Malach are strong enough to lift big boulders. They can run as fast as cars and can jump up to the roof of a two-storey building. Shooting a Malach with a hunting rifle will have the same effect as a mediocre punch on a human.

Is there anything else anyone needs to know?

 

I'll participate, at least for a while. Will be posting my character up tomorrow with any luck, but go ahead and start without me if you want.

 

You can start without my character, but I intend to join in.

 

I intend to join, just had things on my mind lately, not going to lie, new content patch for wow is amazing and has taken a lot of my attention. I'll join in after you start.

 

Ok. I'll wait until tomorrow. If you haven't posted your char then, Charonte, I'll start it up anyway.

 

I'm thinking of participating too, Wolfsbane.

May I?