@Mojack group
(Copying and pasting everything here for convenience; @Carrots
Around 300 years ago, Earth was fighting a battle that couldn’t be won.
Not by humans, at least. The planet itself would survive.
It was the Ekzark who would win — turning the tables of a once apex predator, making us resorting to hiding ourselves away, lest we be stolen away to their facilities for unknown purposes. The Ekzark, funny enough, were initially human creations. Robots — battle drones. The automation of war and conflict and all that business was upon man when they were being built, and at that time, they weren’t even known at the Ekzark, but their original names are long gone, lost to history.
It was said that there was a glitch. It started out small, and it apparently didn’t make frontlines for the first few weeks of the glitch. The governments thought they had it all under control.
They did not.
When it became apparent that the machines were bulking up their code and defences against humans, making it impossible to remotely hack them, it was said that this became the first example of human vs. Ekzark. The story began to pick up in news, and from there, it all spun out of control.
They say that whatever caused the glitch came from offplanet. That years before, humans had been trying to send out signals, trying to find if we were truly alone out here.
Apparently we weren’t. Apparently, whatever was out there didn’t like us disturbing it that much, so it send a disease that came in the form of messed up code to deal with us.
When some people realized it was a losing war, they built an Ark — a massive ship, fleeing Earth and seeking shelter elsewhere. Of course, not 10 billion could fit on the Ark.
So that fateful day, when the Ark left, it left behind so, so many people. And it was the first true announcement, unsaid in words, but enough — “We’re losing.”
The war came to an end, with some humans still picking up resistance even 300 years later, but the Ekzark were on top. They set to work in ‘evicting’ us and building all sorts of facilities — Earth was their home now. The only reason they didn’t wipe us out was for the reason of fuel.
No, the robots didn’t feed on gasoline.
It was biomatter they wanted, and they understood humans had valuable purposes that if used correctly, could work in their favour. There were some known as traitors who sided with the Ekzark immediately, snitching on their neighbours and friends if they caught wind of a conspiracy against the Ekzark. Others, tried to take a firm stand against the Ekzark, rebelling with a strong mind.
But most could only put their heads down and go with the new way of life.
A dark age had begun.
You were born in that dark age of course; there was no way you were 300 years old. No one from the ‘old days’ was alive anymore, save for the Ekzark who could live for as long they were maintained. Human history was known only in bits and pieces, of what happened before — the war, the struggle, the fleeing of the Ark — the apparent fact that once, humans had been the top of the world, and that we had a long history long before the Ekzark came along.
You may or may not find that hard to believe.
One day, while out scavenging for parts (Not all interactions with Ekzark are violent — they pay money for machine parts; or maybe you’re getting parts for a human, or maybe yourself), you notice a chill in the air, and an odd amount of silence. Too odd. You look up in the sky and can only see clear skies with the sun beating down on you.
There’s a sudden distant rumble and a boom, and by god is it loud. Like some sort of shockwave…in the sky?
And that’s when you see it — an object in the sky, clearly having just broken through the atmosphere, descending at rapid speeds to the ground. The idea of spacecraft isn’t a new one to you; you’ve never ridden on one, or been that close to one, but you know that the Ekzark have them (mostly drones, though). The thing is, this thing is…a lot smaller.
Like, way smaller than the fighter drones or transport ships you usually see, and it’s beelining straight for the ground. Perhaps you were in your head too long, for the ship lands - or crashes rather, quite a distance away from you. But not so far that you wouldn’t be able to travel to it on foot and investigate yourself, if you so pleased.
But why would you do that?
Concern for whoever crashed, or maybe you want to see if you can harvest some rarer parts from the pod.
Maybe it’s just curiosity.
——
Sci-fi sort of RP set on an Earth where humans fought a war (and lost) with machines. The machines are known as the Ekzark, who allow the surviving humans on Earth to live under a tightly controlled society. The Ekzark were originally human creations, but since their takeover they’ve changed a little bit (some adorn themselves with special clothing, but Ekzark do not wear full clothing as humans do; others wear paint on themselves to symbolize status), not just in appearance but also their society. In the centuries they’ve been active, they’ve been able to establish a society for themselves.
Cities still exist, but certain areas are closed off to humans (Ekzark only areas). Vehicles, unless piloted by AI, are forbidden (AI being under control by Ekzark of course), meaning since the takeover, animals such as horses have become important for humans. The Ekzark are fine with this…for now. Additionally, they are fine with bikes, but anything using an engine or along those lines is off limits.
Human history is mostly in bits and pieces, but most people can tell you about the 17 month war, the war that lasted 17 months that was between the Ekzark and humans, and the results that told a tale of Ekzark victory. They can also tell you about the Ark (but don’t know a whole lot about it), as it left Earth leaving behind many humans 300 years ago.
Human resistance is still fairly active, if not highly secretive. They work in attacking Ekzark supply chains (transport vehicles, factories, etc) and disrupting their communications.
Physically, the Ekzark are rather tall, with a very long (almost serpentine) neck; on average they are about 8ft in height. While having two legs and two arms, and a humanoid body plan, that’s where their similarities end. Their head is composed of one big sensor/scanner, no facial features beyond that, and they have a long tail utilized for balance. Additionally, they do not walk standing straight up, but tend to go hunched over slightly. Ekzark can speak a variety of languages to accommodate whoever they’re with, but they are known to have a secret ‘machine language’ impossible for humans to understand. Their legs are digitigrade.
This RP is based around 300 years after the “17 Months War”, where you play a human, a descendant of one of the people who would’ve been left on Earth during the takeover (as of course, no one alive 300 years ago would be around now…right? Except for the Ekzark of course, who can live for as long as their data remains stable).
You’ve lived your entire live in a society far different from the humans 300+ years ago. Ruled by the Ekzark, you can resist — but don’t get caught, lest you be whisked away into their prisons, never to be seen again. Or just keep your head down.
One day, while out collecting machine/scrap parts, you see some sort of ship (escape pod?) descending towards the ground. Do you decide to investigate, for reasons that could be your own, or do you do something else? The choice is yours, it’s your character after all.
Nobody knows what happened to the Ark after it left, other than the fact it was going off to some other habitable planet.
Thing is, you might find out with this mysterious pod.
Anyways! Rules!
- I am not very active — I can be, but I tend to go on random bouts, so please remember this when joining. If I appear to ghost the RP, it is 100% not your fault; I likely either forgot or lost motivation (I can regain motivation however)
- Mature RPers preferred; this does not mean the content of the RP shall be mature, just my preference. There might be violence/blood present in the RP, but it won’t be actively everywhere, so keep it in mind that there is a time and place for everything!
- Adding to the above, I greatly appreciate punctuation and good grammar. Everyone makes mistakes sometimes and English isn’t everyone’s first language, so I can be forgiving (as I make mistakes too. if you see me edit a post no you didn’t). Relating to this rule, I will ask for a writing sample if I do not know your style before you join! If I deny, please note I am pretty selective with my one on ones compared to other RPs; it’s not against you!
- andrew (Our Supreme Lord and Overseer)’s rules all apply! Any sexual content should it happen will be implied/fade to black as I am not comfortable writing that content.
- Swearing is allowed, just try not to overdo it (and no slurs).
- In fights, play to your strengths and remember your weaknesses. It’s okay to take hits and deal them! Don’t autohit, but don’t dodge/block everything either. A balance — remember.
- Ask questions as needed — remember to ask before joining however!
Now for some notes for character creation and the world:
- rich, upper class humans still exist; but are seen as ‘sponsored’ by the Ekzark - hence the only reason they are there, in that status is due to the Ekzark allowing them to be there.
- 300 years in the future in a world ruled mostly by machines. Depending on where you live, your clothing could be built to last. Stores haven’t stopped existing, though they are monitored by the Ekzark.
- Horses are important as transportation for some people, but others prefer bikes (occasionally, motorcycles though rare can be utilized by humans). Anything beyond that general line is viewed as illegal by the Ekzark for humans to use.
- The technology is advanced, but humans are forbidden to use much of it. Resistance members acquire weaponry and other materials through various means; if they were caught with these materials, the Ekzark would raid them.
- In most major cities, there is a curfew where all electricity (save for the ones in the upper human districts and Ekzark only districts) shuts off at a certain time at night (11:30 PM but it can vary from town to town), and goes back on during the day (6:00 AM, but again can vary). Candles and other traditional ways are commonplace.
- You might notice that humans have gone back to some older ways of doing things; this also applies to sending messages; pigeons and other birds are not uncommon for those hoping to send a message that won’t be investigated by the Ekzark.
- The Ekzark are not aliens, though what sent the corrupted code into the Ekzark was. That ‘thing’ never came in our solar system, and never has; most of its existence remains a mystery, and many people aren’t aware of it (therefore, the corrupting signal source is a debated topic for many).
- The Ekzark have orbital stations in space built off of old human ones; few humans have set foot in the new Ekzark ones. They’re only a rumour to many, their purpose — unknown.
Remember: You are the human on earth, descended from those who survived the original war. This RP can take place anywhere on Earth where humans live, and you can chose to be a human resistance member, or if you’re feeling like a bit of a traitor (/j) you can be an informant for the Ekzark. The choice is yours!
Ask before joining, and ask questions as needed!
Character template
Name:
Age: (21-25)
Gender:
Pronouns:
Orientation:
Personality:
Appearance:
Clothing:
Background: (brief or as long as you want it, point form or slideshow or paragraphs, I’ll take it in any form)
Other: (fun facts, details about relationships they might have, conditions, beliefs, etc. Whatever you feel like can go here!)