Project Vates: Races

Here are my initial thoughts for playable races. Some are pretty standard for the fantasy setting, others are less common. As I was coming up with races, calling the Half- races 'kin' seemed to fit. Not sure if it will stick, but I kinda like it.

-Humans
Your standard, well-rounded race. Also the most populous.
-Elves
The ancient and graceful First Folk. I'd like to call them something else, possibly along the lines of 'Elder.'
-Dwarves
Always seeking to improve upon the feats of the past. Building higher, digging deeper, searching further. Also want to have another name for them, but the best I have is Hewn-folk.
-Halflings
Pastoral and good-natured, with a dash of mischief.
-Gnomes
Not too much thought here yet.
-Elderkin
Half-elf, Half-human. Not as long-lived as full-blooded elves, but more beautiful and graceful than Humans.
-Kingskin
The last descendants of the bloodlines of the Old Kings. Gifted with longer life, natural prowess in battle, and more charisma than most.
-Merkin
Their origins are mostly unknown to outsiders, they are the descendants of shipwrecked sailors and Merfolk. Gifted(or cursed) with water breathing; and enhanced agility, movement speed, senses while underwater.
-Steamkin
Steamkin are organic metal constructs originally created by Dwarves. They reproduce like other races, however, and are just as alive as the other races. They are visually a cross between Flamekin(MtG) and Necrons(WH40K).


Other races I'm either still working on, or not sure if I want them as playable-

-Minotaurs
-Some sort of cat-folk
-Merfolk
-Treefolk/dryads
-Otherkin - humans touched by the spirits/angels/demons
-Elementals
-Lizard-folk

Please share your thoughts!

Follow Up: Project Vates

So, Pages don't work like I thought they did. I wanted to make it so I could post everything for Project Vates on a separate page(ie; not the main blog page.) because I wanted to keep them all together. That's not what pages do. At least, not as far as I can tell right now. I don't want to spin off another blog site entirely, so the new posts will stay here for the time being.(I do know how to use tags, though. So that's something.)

 If anyone knows more about this than I do, feel free to enlighten me, please!

So anyway. Project Vates. What is it?

It is a tabletop RPG of my own creation. It started way back in High school, I guess; different ideas I had while being introduced to the wider world of Nerd-dom, science fiction, fantasy, etc. Even before I knew what a tabletop RPG really was. I mean, I had a vague knowledge of DnD as a somewhat self-destructive pastime of socially inept teens played in dark basements, but that was as far as it went(I no longer believe this). So I had this idea to create a board game of sorts that would involve characters adventuring across a map and gaining different abilities. It never went beyond the concept stage. Some of my friends can attest to this. I still have the horribly basic character sheets and equipment lists that came from that. (I am so ashamed.)

But I had ideas that stuck around. (I think they are good ones, generally.) And then in college, this dude introduced me to the reality of Tabletop RPGs. And it was Awesome. But none of them had quite the feel i was looking for. All of them provide tools for making the game your own, but they still weren't quite right. So I got the idea to create my own setting for a game. the feel would be my own, and I could just shove whatever ruleset I wanted under the hood. Which is a good idea. But it still wouldn't be mine. So why not just build a new system from the ground up? People do it quite often. I'll be taking inspiration from other systems, to be sure, but we all take inspiration from somewhere. I get to look at all the systems that are already out there and say "Why didn't they do this?" or "Why did they do this?" All my favorite things from RPGs can be rolled into one ball of wax. So that's it. Project Vates is me attempting something crazy. Will I succeed? No clue. But i'll sure give it my best.

"Ok, so you're doing something really nerdy and huge in scale, why do we care?" I'll tell you. Because I want your input! I'm going to be posting my ideas here(Races, mechanics, locations, abilities, etc.) and i want you to weigh in. Tell me when an idea doesn't seem like it fits; if you think it does; if you think it's really silly; if you just don't like it. Offer your own ideas. Think it would be awesome for my world to have a city made of pastries? Tell me. If there's something from a game you really like, tell me about that too.(I won't copycat, but I'll put my own spin on it and include it if I can.) For instance, I always liked how White Wolf's 'World of Darkness' system used a base number of points for abilities and such at character creation. So that will be something I look at, as opposed to how Pathfinder does it.(based on dice rolls and character class). In the words of Number 5, "Inpuuuut. Need more input!"

You can't force creativity, so I don't have a planned schedule for updates. Maybe with some outside input, some people to bounce ideas off of, the creative juices will flow a little faster.

Thanks for reading!
-Kapp

Project Vates

I'm working on a new project. It's big, and it's really nerdy. I don't want to say too much just yet(Also, it's late, and I am tired.), but there will be more to come. I'd like to create a second page for it, but I'm still working that out. Uhm... yeah. That's about it. Look for more to come! (Also, bug me for more. haha)

New ink!

Coming soon.... In full technicolor.

Hebrews 4:12 For the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

Awesome new posts and stuff.

Hey, go check out Project 86.
There an awesome band, and about to release a new album. They are one of my all-time faves! And really, who can say no to free music?

An Economical Microcosm

This week has been interesting, to say the least. My perspective on my finances has changed significantly. As most of you may already know, I am living in Dubuque, IA this summer. I am sharing an apartment with a good friend of mine, Jason Bowling. This is the first time I have truly been 'On my own' with no true safety net. I have to support myself. The Army isn't coordinating anything, My mom isn't doing my shopping. I figured it wouldn't be too hard. it got off to a slow start- Jason has been gone for most of the last month and a half, I spent two weeks in fort McCoy on Army pay.

Then it got interesting. I came back from Fort McCoy to find the job I had lined up for the summer didn't have work for me for two weeks. So I sat around, being a bum. I donated plasma a couple times, but otherwise had no source of income. I slowly burned through my reserves of cash. (I don't touch credit cards.) I wasn't worried too much, I was going to be working soon, and making pretty decent money, too. I started work, going steady at 40+ hours a week for two weeks. Then came this week.

I attracted an inner ear infection at some point, causing me dizziness and light-headedness when I move around. Well, the boss sent me home(can't have me falling off the scaffold or anything...) before we even started on Monday and I spent the day resting. My symptoms didn't go away, so i made an appointment Tuesday to have myself checked out. (I got hit on the head last week, so i wanted to be sure it wasn't a concussion. He gave me his diagnosis and told me to rest up for a couple days. So it is Thursday. I haven't worked in four days. I also did not get my check this week, because I haven't gone anywhere. My paycheck next week will be nothing or next to nothing, depending on how I feel tonight/tomorrow morning.

All this to say, I can hear my bank account shrinking. Every bite I take, every time I look at the clock, I hear it. My perspective on money has changed. I realize now that I shouldn't be going and buying a new t-shirt from ThinkGeek every month. I may have to save the Bailey's brand coffee creamer for special occasions. I have to be more discerning with the cuts of meat I purchase. (they can add up quickly.) I may now have to do price comparison between the store brand and the name brand. these are just a few of the observations I have made in the past couple weeks. There may be more on this adjustment later.


*P.S. This is not me in any way asking for money. God has provided for me so far, I believe He will be faithful to continue to do so.

Sunsets

Beautiful sunset just south of Peosta, IA. I love my state.