[Poniverse] Crystal Symphony [Adventure Campaign] [FULL]

It's been a year since the return of the crystal empire, the overthrow of Sombra and the ascension of Princess Cadence and Prince-Consort Shining Armor. With their wedding anniversary looming, the Royal Couple have announced a festival to celebrate; musicians from all over Equestria- and beyond- have been invited to participate in an ancient tradition of the empire, celebrating love and prosperity. Dignitaries, tourists and musicians of all shapes and sizes are descending on the crystal empire to toast the happy couple and- if rumors are to be believed- to offer congratulations to the pair on Cadence's pregnancy.

What could possibly go wrong?

What does that "Poniverse" tag mean, you ask? Well, for a start, I'm hoping this is just the first game in the series, and not the last. Any game with "Poniverse" in the title will co-exist in the same world; think of it as the MCU, where Iron Man, Captain America and Thor all co-exist in a singular universe, and the effects of one movie can impact on the rest of the line.

Which brings me to my next point- the impact. There is a storyline and an adventure -this isn't a slice of life- but if you want to break off the rails to pursue your own agendas, that's fine. You have the opportunity to upend the status quo, and anything you achieve will be recorded as canon for the Poniverse.
For the record, I'm considering anything from "Gain a noble title" to "Assassinate the princesses"  as things you can try to do. If you somehow get Celestia dethroned and put Luna in charge with yourself as her advisor... well, next Poniverse game, that will be the status quo.
Basically- machinate!

Anyway, so far as characters are concerned?
As the title says, I'm looking for six players, one for each element- though if we are an element or two short, I'll adjust plans to compensate. So far as races are concerned, any race is open to you, with the exception of changelings. Given that the campaign begins in the crystal empire- a kingdom which was conquered by a tyrant and is currently being ruled by victims of the Canterlot Changeling invasion...
Well, let's just say Cadence nor Shining Armor are quite prepared to offer the oliver branch of friendship to the bug ponies just yet.

Other points- this is run in the pony tales system, since it's the one I'm most comfortable with. Characters start at level four; destinies are a really fun bit of fluff that don't get used often enough, and having more abilities is always nice.
Despite this being a "musical" campaign, don't feel obligated to take abilities or attacks that feed into that- or feel obligated for the rock star destiny. The festival in question is meant to appeal to ponies of musical talents from all walks of life, whether that means someone who practices for fun (eg: Fluttershy and her birds), a professional (Octavian) or a megastar (Sapphire Shores). While I do want characters who practice music in some way, that doesn't mean we have to have a party of music note cutie marks.

EDIT Well, as was pointed out to me, not only is there a mechanic for a seventh mane six member (via the Tenacity virtue), there's a precedent for it with Spike. So, I'm amending the recruitment a little to allow for the Virtue to get filled as well.

Honesty-
Kindness- CLAIMED
Laughter- CLAIMED
Magic- CLAIMED
Loyalty- CLAIMED
Generosity- CLAIMED
Tenacity- CLAIMED

Sign me up please. Not sure which element I want yet, but definitely going for the heavy Diplomancer build.

Potential Interest. Maybe. Have to read later.

Yay! You started this! And level 4 too!

Nightengale! Flavor to be added later!

Huzzah, the fun has been tripled!

...though I do notice I overlooked what might have been an important point. I've added it to the topic title, but for reference...
This is an adventure-style campaign, in the style of the typical season opener- which means that there is an antagonist to overcome and a goal to achieve. I don't intend on railroading; as I said, I want to try and develop a world through these campaigns. The best way to put what I have in mind at the moment is a game with decisions like Bioware, or Bethesda: you can pursue the goals in anyway you want and in any order you want, but there is still an underlying story to it.

TheCavalry wrote:Huzzah, the fun has been tripled!

...though I do notice I overlooked what might have been an important point. I've added it to the topic title, but for reference...
This is an adventure-style campaign, in the style of the typical season opener- which means that there is an antagonist to overcome and a goal to achieve. I don't intend on railroading; as I said, I want to try and develop a world through these campaigns. The best way to put what I have in mind at the moment is a game with decisions like Bioware, or Bethesda: you can pursue the goals in anyway you want and in any order you want, but there is still an underlying story to it.

So what every game is supposed to be, essentially. Minus the explicit "Combat only" or "Slice of Life everyone do what you want because even though it's never worked before I can make it work for sure" campaigns, that's essentially the point of most RPGs.

No Changelings? Best game ever. That's just about enough to get me to sign up. I wish the other games I've signed up for in the past month would start already, but hey, I'm sure the cascade of all of them hitting me at once won't be too much worse with one more added in.

No time now, but I THINK I'm going to repurpose a character whose game just ended. I would have tried for Flashpoint, but due to his track record and the Musical theming, probably no dice. So for now, as a taste, get a load of Citrus Twist, fresh off a game in which she became a Demigoddess of Fortune. She'll need to be downgraded to level 4, and her Element might change, but at least it's all there. Just needs to be stripped and polished.

Oh, also the Board/Non-Board combat switch.

So, I'm guessing you don't like changelings brony. May I ask why? Just curious.

I'd also like to say that Nightengale's element isn't set in stone; I imaging her growing into it more

I don't like changeling characters much in the same way I don't like most Deadpool or Cthulu references- they're used too often and generally too popular in a way I tend to disagree with. While Deadpool and Cthulu are slightly different in reasoning, for Changeling characters its mostly a matter of headcanon, and what I feel to be taking too many liberties. I always figured Changelings to be mindless or hiveminded drones, generally incapable of most of the free thought and will, let alone personality, that PCs generally require. Every Changeling PC must, by general rule, fall into the trope of the "Favorite" or the "Unique" individual out of a race of thousands, and only by the grace of headcanon is that possible. So mostly I just disagree with it, and find the overuse of it distasteful.

Were there to be a Changeling PC that was played strictly as a drone, that has no free will or thought outside of the hive, then I'd be more receptive to it- but then, often times a Player might say that's what he's doing, but then turn around and give him a wacky or off-center personality.

tl;dr:
It just bugs me. Ha ha.

Okay, I still need to fill just about all of the mechanical aspects, but I have decided to drop the diplomancer idea in favor of Blitz Load!

I'm interested in joining, but I do have one question related. How, if at all, would you mechanically justify a vehicle?

I'm interested in taking part, but just wondering how the RPG will be done, whether it be post by post, Skype, or any other means?

For the record, I don't dislike Changelings- heck, I'm playing one in Zamuels Fever Enigmatic campaign! I think they have a place, but...
Well, like I said; considering how extra-security conscious the Crystal Empire should be, coupled with the fact it's rulers were at ground zero for a changeling invasion... They just don't fit in here.

Which does remind me to clarify what 'here' means. To wit:
- This is set between season three and four...ish. I haven't seen any of season four besides Twilights Kingdom, so this is kind of a grey area... Twilight is an alicorn, but the elements of harmony are still in play. Of course, "elements of harmony" can refer to the mane six, not just the jewellery, which gives me a back door for evasiveness. I'll iron out wrinkles as necessary.
- The game is play by post using Skype rules.
- You'll have access to a level 3 boon if you want it, but it won't come into effect until the "prologue" is done. feel free to discuss what you want whenever the game starts though.

Elacular... I'm a little confused by what you're asking. Sorry for the derby moment! And double sorry if the following doesn't answer any of it.
Vehicles are going to come into play at some point, if only because the game will open with the players on the Hogwarts Express to the Crystal Empire. Whenever vehicles appear,mI'll probably treat them the way Bioware treats the Normandy, or the Grey Warden travelling party; movement at the speed of plot, with x chance for a wrench to come up (or a train to skip the rail and careen out of control).
If you mean for a character... I'd assume vehicles could be made using some clever rejiggering of abilities, like using the companion ability to build a Herbie or something, in which case I guess they would be treated the same way anything else on your sheet would be.

What's your opinion on playing a roadie?

Have to be roadies for metal bands, or they don't count.

...seriously, though, a roadie is fine. They still fall under the "elements of music" theme, they are just a little... further back than most others. And hey, if they are good enough for Brütal Legend, they should be good enough for Princess Cadence.

Sweet. Think I've got part of a sheet for one laying around somewhere. Probably go for Loyalty, if it's still available, with lots of assist others and repair sort of things.

Actually, so far the only element that has been claimed is Honesty, by both mjh and Brony, so if you want to make the element of Loyalty, go right ahead.

...though that does kind of make me bring this up. Flavouring, de-levelling and filling in blank spots aside, I'm fine with having Citrus, Blitz and Nightengale as characters. I haven't added them to the top yet though, which... I will be doing soonish. Sorry for the delay!

Well, he isn't finished yet because I need to get some sleep but I would like to claimed the spot as the element of Kindness with Silver Tongue. I'll finish him off tomorrow.

Well, I noticed that there is a bit of overlap between me and Brony, and I've rethought my character a bit. Changing my Element to Generosity, for one. I'd als like to ask if it'd be ok for her to focus on Crazy Contraption, since I know that can be hard to work with on the PH's side.

Ok, its the first day of a 4 day weekend, so now is a good time to begin decompiling CT into a level 4 character.

Its actually funny, despite her having honesty, she went through an entire campaign without ever using it, and was generally one of the more dishonest characters I've played. Or at least, she wasn't old enough to know she was lying.

For the DM, before I strip her completely, was there anything on her sheet that I should just get rid of outright? For example, she was allowed to have all 6 Elemental resistances in the last game.
Relink for reference: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1WLCHVveuNo9eqHdUzQtFAzwpkXIPXqZHudDYYoKQkO0/edit?usp=drive_web

Ok new plan. Turns out CT is heavily gimmicked, theres a bunch of stuff going on with her character that were houseruled for her other game, and I'd essentially have to tear her down to level 1 again anyway in order to rebuild her. So new plan, I'm going to scour my other sheets to see who I can use, like Door Kicker or Copious Sacrament, and try to make them fit. Unfortunately most of them are built in Genetic Engineering, not Abilities, so I'm in for a lot more work than I was hoping in any case.

Erm... Best of luck, Brony? I have no idea how genetic engineering works, especially compared to abilities, but if there's anything I can do to help let me know!
...btw, was Citrus old campaign on this forum? Couldn't find it anywhere (felt like doing some reading on the side).

Senshuken- howdy, and welcome! I'll add Silver into the Kindness slot then.

mjh- honestly,I'm be kind of curious to see how crazy contraption works in the hooves of a player who knows what they're doing (ie: not me) so I'm fine with it.

Citrus was in a Skype game, and it was also a tabletop game over Roll20, so it would have required swapping all her combat for the non-board version as well. I've decided to repurpose Door Kicker. I've already made changes, but he also had every resistance, as well as a few other things that no longer exist (namely, spending Utility talents on Racial Ability points). Genetic Engineering was fairly more complex than Abilities, and in my opinion, more fun.

Anyway, I just have a few Ability points to fill out, and the combat is thankfully the same, minus one level.
EDIT: Ugh, also a bunch of extra money for combat items I got during the game...
EDIT2: Also his element is a total tossup. He can have any of them, so if you all have specific ones you want, I'll take whats left.

Okay my character, renamed Lark because it's shorter, is now an Earth Pony scientist hoping to provide special effects for pony pop star's in their shows. So yeah.

Huzzah! Seven players are interested in my-
Wait. Seven?

Yeah, in checking the numbers, I just realised we have seven applicants for six slots. That's a little embarrassing.
(Gratifying, too, to be semi-popular, but still).

So, I'm thinking how to handle this. Any advice from pro's on that would be appreciated, because right now... Well...
Honestly, right now, I think I'm going to have to enforce the six element limit. Besides not having planned on getting more than that, my trying to juggle too many players was one of the problems that helped derail the circus wagons. So...

I had a second option in mind, of running a second game parallel to this one; same Poniverse continuity, same timescale, just with a different storyline- one focused more on Canterlot. I don't want to say too much- since it might not be necessary- but then, I brought up the MCU comparison in the first place, and those films tend to have some action/movies happening simultaneously so...

Door Kicker is complete, save flavoring and setting specific backstory:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1g9vUT8B-RRgGKSDtpdNiyUu0FC9wdkkvNxLKm3N2zNE/edit#

General backstory:
Door Kicker was a football (pony equivalent) player at his high school in White Tail Junction, but didn't get the attention needed to go pro. So, after his parents got divorced during his Senior year, he moved out and after graduation he followed along with some friends who decided to move to Manehattan for whatever reasons. There they found jobs, blah blah something something something hey look Door Kicker is in the Crystal Empire!

Assume anywhere from 3-7 years between him leaving home and game start. Other details will be filled in when absolutely necessary.

Ninja Edit:
Parallel games could be good, but you'd have to get even more players to fill out the other set of elements. I would suggest not taking any more applicants just yet- there are only 6 Elements, but there's also one official Virtue too. Hence and therefor, the party can hold 7 Ponies- the Mane 6, and Spike. Or Power Ponies and Humdrum, for added metaphor. Though, obviously in this case we would want to ensure the 7th is a little more important than Humdrum or Spike.

Silver Tongue is now finished. Please tell me what you think of him.

For those who may have seen him perform before, they might remember some of his greatest hits:

This is the Moment.
ALIVE!
And of course, Confrontation.