Oct 31, 2018 21:13:33 GMT -6
Post by Izalie on Oct 31, 2018 21:13:33 GMT -6
♦ SPECIES ♦
• Overview: Species are one of the cornerstones of an individual here at Eldritch Academy. From those who are pure breed, to those who are half breed and beyond, a character’s species determines aspects of their appearance, their mechanical traits/flaws, and can provide baselines for plots to grow. Every character is a part of one or more Species, from the humble human to a fierce some dragon, to a tiny gnome, the choice is up to the creator.
When making a character, it’s important to think about if the character will be a pure or half breed. The difference is that pure breed characters have all the traits and flaws from their species and half-breed characters have some of the traits and flaws from a couple of the species they are made from. It’s important to note that while a character could be a mixture of 3 or more species they only receive the benefit of up to 2 of their species, this means they could have some quirks from the appearance of other races, but will only ever mechanically benefit from 2, this is to keep things simple to keep track of, and make character creation streamlined, simple, and fast.
When looking over a species to pick, always go for what fits the character best, and the ideas as this forum focuses on interaction far more then true balance or comparisons, it’s about your idea and having fun with it rather then who can beat or match up to what. With that out of the way lets look at the mechanics of races, and how to create them.
• Mechanics: The mechanics of a species revolves around what sort of traits they have, and what sort of flaws they have. Traits range from flight, to seeing in the dark, to having hard scales, etc. Flaws range from being weak to silver, to being unable to digest a certain food, to disliking a certain color, etc. While both traits and flaws should be fluffy to the species and enjoyable to write for, both should mechanically be either positive (traits) or negative (flaws), be it giving an advantage/disadvantage in battle, or an advantage/disadvantage in the classroom. There is no limit to the number of traits and flaws a species can have, simply that for every 2 traits a species has it must also have 1 flaw. The only exception allowed to this rule are humans who have 2 traits and no flaws.
For those who are pure bred they simply receive all traits and flaws from their race.
Those who are half bred are a little different; half breeds can choose up to up to half the traits and flaws (rounded down to a minimum of 1 of each) from up to 2 species that are mixed in them. Aspect points for half breeds cannot exceed 3.
Example: A Half breed character has 2 species one of which has 2 traits and 1 flaw and the other has 4 traits and 2 flaws. The character would be allowed to pick up to 1 trait from the first species and would take the 1 flaw from it as well. The character would then be allowed to choose 2 traits from the second species and 1 flaw from it as well. In total this means the half breed has 3 traits and 2 flaws, but they are a mixture from 2 different species.
• Creation: Creativity is encouraged on this forum, so naturally creating your own species is allowed. Creating a species is a simple process that mostly revolves around the species creation template. Here is the template with each category explained:
Name of Species: The species name.
Baseline Dimension: The baseline height, width, weight, etc. Note that these should be the average for the species, and naturally characters could be + or – for these dimensions.
Baseline Appearance: Eye color, hair color, skin color, and other quirky features from wings, to scales, to fur etc. Note it might be good to put a variety of options so there is more freedom when creating a character.
Culture/Origin of Species: The culture of the species in general and/or their origins. Doesn’t have to be incredibly long, but this allows characters a back drop to know where they come from and gives great stepping stones for plot and backstory.
Traits: List of traits for the species. These are inherent positive quirks of the species that almost all members should have as a baseline. For every 2 traits a species must also have 1 flaw.
Flaws: List of flaws for the species. These are inherent negative quirks of the species that almost all members should have as a baseline. For every 2 traits a species must have 1 flaw.
When making a character, it’s important to think about if the character will be a pure or half breed. The difference is that pure breed characters have all the traits and flaws from their species and half-breed characters have some of the traits and flaws from a couple of the species they are made from. It’s important to note that while a character could be a mixture of 3 or more species they only receive the benefit of up to 2 of their species, this means they could have some quirks from the appearance of other races, but will only ever mechanically benefit from 2, this is to keep things simple to keep track of, and make character creation streamlined, simple, and fast.
When looking over a species to pick, always go for what fits the character best, and the ideas as this forum focuses on interaction far more then true balance or comparisons, it’s about your idea and having fun with it rather then who can beat or match up to what. With that out of the way lets look at the mechanics of races, and how to create them.
♦ MECHANICS ♦
• Mechanics: The mechanics of a species revolves around what sort of traits they have, and what sort of flaws they have. Traits range from flight, to seeing in the dark, to having hard scales, etc. Flaws range from being weak to silver, to being unable to digest a certain food, to disliking a certain color, etc. While both traits and flaws should be fluffy to the species and enjoyable to write for, both should mechanically be either positive (traits) or negative (flaws), be it giving an advantage/disadvantage in battle, or an advantage/disadvantage in the classroom. There is no limit to the number of traits and flaws a species can have, simply that for every 2 traits a species has it must also have 1 flaw. The only exception allowed to this rule are humans who have 2 traits and no flaws.
For those who are pure bred they simply receive all traits and flaws from their race.
Those who are half bred are a little different; half breeds can choose up to up to half the traits and flaws (rounded down to a minimum of 1 of each) from up to 2 species that are mixed in them. Aspect points for half breeds cannot exceed 3.
Example: A Half breed character has 2 species one of which has 2 traits and 1 flaw and the other has 4 traits and 2 flaws. The character would be allowed to pick up to 1 trait from the first species and would take the 1 flaw from it as well. The character would then be allowed to choose 2 traits from the second species and 1 flaw from it as well. In total this means the half breed has 3 traits and 2 flaws, but they are a mixture from 2 different species.
♦ CREATION ♦
• Creation: Creativity is encouraged on this forum, so naturally creating your own species is allowed. Creating a species is a simple process that mostly revolves around the species creation template. Here is the template with each category explained:
Name of Species: The species name.
Baseline Dimension: The baseline height, width, weight, etc. Note that these should be the average for the species, and naturally characters could be + or – for these dimensions.
Baseline Appearance: Eye color, hair color, skin color, and other quirky features from wings, to scales, to fur etc. Note it might be good to put a variety of options so there is more freedom when creating a character.
Culture/Origin of Species: The culture of the species in general and/or their origins. Doesn’t have to be incredibly long, but this allows characters a back drop to know where they come from and gives great stepping stones for plot and backstory.
Traits: List of traits for the species. These are inherent positive quirks of the species that almost all members should have as a baseline. For every 2 traits a species must also have 1 flaw.
Flaws: List of flaws for the species. These are inherent negative quirks of the species that almost all members should have as a baseline. For every 2 traits a species must have 1 flaw.
Species Guide (c) TAK
table by Nightwing:tm:
table by Nightwing:tm: