Microscope--The Mural of Lu the Fatherless

Microscope RPG--The Mural of Lu the Fatherless

Players: Glyptodont, Muskrat, Yadal, Tetnak

Threads:

• Recruitment Thread
• Out-of-Character Thread
• In-Character Thread
• Game's Main Wiki Page

The Palette

YES to:

1. YES to the story being told as if it were one, or more, competing histories rather than reflecting the "real" events of the world. (TV Trope's Unreliable Narrator phenomena at play) (Yadal)
2. YES to Epic-level heroes that aren't magical but can achieve as much as mages anyway. It's not that they have "powers" of any sort, but that the Laws of Physics in this universe allow for conventional warriors to be as powerful as mages without needing to have any special abilities. (Yadal)
3. YES to a karmic cycle of reincarnation. When you die, you are reborn--and you may be reborn higher or lower up the cosmic chain of being, depending on your actions in past lives, particularly the degree to which they were virtuous. This means today's gods were mortals in a past life, which could make things interesting. Truly spiritually enlightened beings would rise above the gods to an exalted state where they are no longer subject to the cycle of death and rebirth. (Obviously, Buddhist and Taoist cosmologies and mythologies are heavy influences here.) Some very powerful beings--wizards, gods, etc.--might be able to twist the cycle of death and rebirth for their own purposes. There can also be ghosts who cling to the world and are temporarily not reborn and a Bardo or Limbo, where dead souls remain for a period of time between rebirths. (Muskrat)
4. YES to secret societies playing a major role in the world's history, manipulating things from behind the scenes for their own purposes. I'm thinking something the Bene Gesserit, only multiplied several times over in terms of the societies (and with widely varied philosophies). This doesn't mean more conventional power players, like kingdoms, empires, republics, religions, etc. aren't important--just that secret societies have an equally important role. (Muskrat)
5. YES to a large diversity of non-human (and non-Tolkienian) intelligences and civilizations, e.g. caravans of intelligent raccoonoids, swamp empires of warrior-beaver tribes, city-states of hadrosaur philosopher kings, etc. (Glyptodont)
6. YES to the gods and pantheons constantly at war with each other directly and indirectly via their mortal proxies. (Glyptodont)
7. YES to magic is created like arts or crafts--anyone can do it given enough time and effort and a bit of talent. Those with lots of money, time, minions and resources can create entire schools of universe-spanning paradigms of sorcery. (Glyptodont)

No to:

1. NO to societies rooted in the traditional staples of fantasy--medieval and Renaissance Europe, the Norse and the Celts. This doesn't mean no European influences, but it would be more based on the ancient Greeks and Romans--and there would be many other inspirations from world culture and religion. (Muskrat)

Periods, Events and Scenes

• Period: Beginning Bookend - Lu the Fatherless receives the blessing of the Gods of the Jade Court. Tone: Light.
  • Event: Dawn of the Beastmen. Tone: Dark. Focus: (none - first pass) (Glyptodont)
  • Event: Dawn of the Argi. Tone: Light Focus: (none - first pass) (Yadal)
• Period: The Reign of the Invisible Empire. Tone: Dark. Focus: (none - first pass) (Muskrat)
  • Event: The Pure Thought Crusade. Tone: Light Focus: Saint Xavata (Glyptodont)
    • Scene: The Followers of Lu the Fatherless meet with non-humans to overthrow the Invisible Empire. Tone: Light Focus: Saint Xavata (Glyptodont)
    • Scene: The Massacre of the Argi. Tone: Dark. Focus: Saint Xavata (Muskrat)
  • Event: Saint Xavata captured by followers of the Invisible Empire. Tone: Dark. Focus: Saint Xavata (Yadal)
  • Event: The Great Mazadean Exodus. Tone: Dark. Legacy: The Bitter Liberation (Muskrat)
  • Event: The Fall of the Invisible Empire. Tone: Light Focus: Saint Xavata (Glyptodont)
    • Scene: Final defeat of the Order of the Great Harmonious Peace. Tone: Dark. Focus: Saint Xavata (Glyptodont)
• Period: Ending Bookend - Unveiling the Mural of Lu the Fatherless. Tone: Dark/Light. ??