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[Lore Idea, Apparently Reviewed And Voted On, Requires Confirmation By Lt] Battle Monks Of The West Lore (Redo)


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  1. 1. Want this? Please post regardless of answer.

    • Yes.
    • No.
    • Maybe if you change it a bit.


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     First off, this (redone) lore is a collaboration between myself and Lanader. Second, about the original (which was purely his work, and I will take no credit there). When he first posted it, there were multiple of us in the community whom took a great interest in the idea. First off, support mages - Wat? Since when did we have those? We want support mages! - and second, it just seemed like an aspect of RP that would be new. Of course, this received a lot of support, eventually being accepted by the old MT. However, the LT was yet to reach a verdict on the lore.

 

     When the old lore system was abolished, everything in implemented and accepted lore was moved to official canon lore. This lore, was one of them. Myself, still having not forgotten about this, one day modreq'd to have some locks removed on a building left behind by the previous owner. Lanader was the one to answer, and of course, myself, wondering, if it was official lore, why it hadn't in fact started up, asked him about it. He said that whilst the MT had accepted the lore, the LT had not, with the majority of the vote being undecided with one saying no, because it was apparently too similar to Ascended lore. I then offered to try rewriting it, in hopes of having it truly accepted.

 

     The ordinary playerbase will never know Ascended lore, apart from what was known publicly in Aegis. Of course, clerics would be the most obvious source to compare to, as they are, in essence, weakened Ascended (yes yes, technically not. I don't care, in the end, it's the closest thing). Now, I compared the two. Whilst I found similarities, it was clear that I couldn't changed Lanader's original lore without changing everything. So I added on.

 

      Lanader may or may not have already sent this in via PM. However, public interest is always important, and can help sway/quicken the decision. This is our remade lore for battle monks. I hope you enjoy, and I hope the changes we've made to the original lore will be of satisfaction to the LT.

 

And without further ado, we present to you...

 

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The Battle Monks of the West

 

~*~

 

"They will die for what they believe in.."

 

The Creation

 

A long time ago, there were four men. These men went by the name of Rezu, Zera, Saydhi, and Adi'ken. These men were born within great and large tribes that focused on self-discipline and being at peace with themselves. But these men had no great gods, no leaders, no spirits to look up to. They believed in the world, and to the world they were grounded. But as with any culture, any race or group of people, there are those who rose up to bring about change. These men were Rezu, Zera, Saydhi, and Adi'ken. These men believed they were inspired by a greater force, but what it was, none of them could give a name to. But, when they spoke up, they were exiled and banished, in a rare act of anger by the tribes. And thus, they grew to be wanderers. Alone in the realm of Aegis, they walked long and far, shunned by humans, elves, dwarves, and orcs, for various reasons. But the men, staying true even still to the basis of their culture, continued to believe in this greater being, and would eventually be rewarded for it.

 

They had been running, blindly, through a large and old forest, before they came across a great temple. They ventured inwards, and saw various artifacts strewn about. Whilst some men might have plundered the temple, these men did not. Instead, they began the process of repairing it, and picking up the pieces. They did not fiddle, nor experiment, nor fool around with the artifacts, but instead, cleaned, preserved, and honoured them. And there, they continued to live.

 

It was for many long years that they had lain, meditated, and rested there. After some time, they thought they felt a strange, but comforting presence as they walked through the ruins, and this only reinforced their beliefs further.  And so they crafted long staves, and placed upon each end, some sort of valuable crystal. These staves, they thought, were merely symbolic, and they often compared their crystals to their philosophy, but they were, otherwise, unimportant except as a symbol of their unity. And further years came to pass. And at last, the men were discovered.  Six armoured bandits came, and they rushed into the temple. In moments, artifacts were destroyed or plundered, the temple desecrated, and the men were sent fleeing for their lives, right down to the bottom of the temple. The story of what exactly happened in that deep and dark place is not known by any, for Rezu, Zera, Saydhi, and Adi'ken refused to tell, but it was believed and widely accepted that the presence (which they would later call the "Great Spirit") granted them abilities which would allow them to beat off the invaders, and so the crystals began to glow and spark. After a short battle, the bandits had either fled or died, and the monks reclaimed what they could.

 

The men eventually learnt of their former tribes' troubles. They were beginning to die out, engaged in a civil war with each other. When one tribe came to them to ask them to come back and help them end the war, and thus preserve the tribes, Zera told them no. And, in anger, the man representing the tribes said slander against Zera's "Spirit. " And so, Zera killed him, even before the masses came to slaughter him. And so came the first Monk to give his life for the spirits.

 

~*~

 

Monks in Present Day

 

The monks, after receiving the blessing, knew they had found a basis through which they could truly spread their beliefs.  They began to treasure and honour, even worship the temple, for it's spirit's saving of them. They believe they owe their lives to the Great Spirit, and so, they decided, they would protect it's holy places and name with their lives. By the end of Aegis, however, the temple was destroyed, taking Adi'ken with it. As Rezu and Saydhi continued on, they found the blessing weakening, and soon after arriving in Asulon, resolved to build further temples and shrines, and keep their religion alive. In time, with the aid of the blessing, they garnered others to worship the Spirit, and others who would even go on to become monks themselves. And so began the Battle Monks of the West, for that was where they had discovered the first temple. And when Rezu and Saydhi had died peacefully in their beds, the former initiates took over, and they continued the order until present day.

 

The current Battle Monks of Anthos believe their duties are to protect the spirit's holy places at almost any cost. They must, however, first and foremost, never let the religion die, so there must always be one person and one holy place. They do not necessarily use their powers for good, albeit most do, however, are considered more to be neutral. Most do not go out of their way to protect others except for fellow monks and, on occasion, their flock. As such, they are considered to be a lawful neutral alignment, and are simply good-natured. They do not often concern themselves with outsiders, and as such, rarely participate in wars, nor actively seek to bring peace to the world.

 

~*~

 

Appearance

 

The monks wear robes, cut short, with trousers, to allow for mobility.  Unlike many other mages, they are also able to wear small amounts of armour, most often consisting of bracers, large metal "belts," chain skirts, and so forth. They most often wield staves bearing two long, thin, crystals. These crystals may be a variety of colours, but appear to be mostly cosmetic, until a monk begins to draw on his blessing. Once a monk begins to draw on his blessing, it begins to spark, flow, and glow with energy.

 

~*~

 

Magic

(Lanader and myself thought it'd be interesting to see a support-mage rather than a pew pew mage, etc..)


(Yes, we realize we have not SAID what their magic does. Well, here you go!)

The Battle Monks, once they activate their blessing by channeling energy through their staves, gain various powers to help them and allies turn the tide in a fight.

 

Firstly, they will be able to provide a support-type of magic to their allies. For example, if Monk A is fighting with Swordsman A against Swordsman B, Monk A can buff Swordsman A with a status effect such as strength, and perhaps turn the tide in a fight.

 

How this would work RPly is this: Much like Clerics and Druii, the Monks draw power (which they call "nature energy") from a deity as well. The energy they draw from this deity can then be directed through the staff to the long crystals at the end. These crystals begin to glow and spark, and begins to collect the energy that the monk is drawing. Once enough of said energy is drawn, they can release this energy into allies or themselves, and the power drawn from the deity will allow for things such as increased force behind blows, greater strength, skin which grows tougher,  greater morale and stamina, and various other such buffs. However, these buffs drain the energy from the crystals, from the monk, and from the deity, and once it runs out, all active buffs are no longer effective, and a monk will have to pray/meditate nearby a shrine.

 

There are tiers of a sort for this magic, and it IS necessary to go through each tier before attaining some significant, new level of power.

 

As explained, a Monk cannot cast magic without his staff, as it is the medium through which a monk can draw energy without overloading his body with various buffs, and thus, destroy/severely damage it. This is due to a deity's power being far too great for a mortal body to redirect by itself, particularly when it causes temporary changes to the body. As such, attempting to draw the energy of the Great Spirit without a staff will cause the monk attempting to utilize it to die (and by this, I mean a Perma-Death. Your character is gone. Dead. It cannot come back. So yes, you are welcome to try using it without a staff. Just remember, your character does it, he's gone. Dead).

 

With each tier comes newer, stronger, longer lasting, spells. However, it's unlikely that any buff would persist throughout a long fight until at least the "4th" tier. At the fifth, it's possible a buff may last through two, but only with a lot of practice.

 

It should be noted that a monk's staff is personal and truly unique. It cannot channel any magic except for the blessings (albeit a monk can still learn non-restricted magic barring Clerical), and is indestructible, except for by an Elder Monk's severing magic. It cannot be wielded by any other monk. A monk may have multiple staves, but each can only be used by himself.

 

(When the actual order comes, the names of shown tiers may change. Also, many buffs here are based on MC status effects.)

 

Initiates: When a monk first receives the blessing of the "spirits," they must practice gathering and utilizing nature energy, and then pushing it into their staves' crystals for usage. At mid-point of this stage, they should be able to push small amounts of energy into others or themselves, allowing for a small, weak boost to stamina, and an increase in speed (increase to speed does not mean agility nor dexterity. It is quite simply a character's SPEED). (Speed I)

 

Novices: When a monk has practiced and meditated multiple times at a temple or shrine, they will be given a task to complete. This task is meant for the initiate to see their own values, their own strengths and weaknesses, and then act upon it. Their loyalty to the battle monks and to the spirit are tested as well, and if the initiate in question is found insufficient, punishment may follow, or they may simply have to wait longer. An initiate can ask for his first trial at any time. If he passes, he becomes a Novice of the Order. A Novice begins to grow to understand the Spirit, and his bond becomes closer to it. They begin to see the true nature of the energy they draw upon from the spirits, and begins to grow comfortable with it's usage. Their magic allows for them to direct energy to the eyes without damaging them, allowing the monk to enhance his or an ally's vision to the point they could see relative shapes in pitch black darkness, and see almost regularly on a moonlit night. They can also inspire others, which would increase morale in combat and give hope when one would despair. (Night Vision)

 

Adepts: When a monk believes his bond with the Great Spirit is strong enough, a monk can ask for a second trial. This trial varies per person, but it again tests loyalty, knowledge, and their own personal self. If found insufficient, he may be punished, or he may try again, depending. If he is, however, found sufficient, he begins the journey to join the Order as a true monk. He begins to learn to affect himself and others in greater ways. As such, he is beginning to learn to "toughen" skin, so that it is somewhat harder to cut, like scar tissue without the debilitations that would come with such. At this stage, a monk would truly begin to feel willing to kill or die for the spirits. (Resistance I)

 

Monks:  The final trial to become a monk is a show of prowess. A show of prowess of strength, knowledge, loyalty, and of the self. As such, it is often a dangerous expedition, and one must be careful not to fail, as, unless the monk was lucky enough to simply be given a trial by one of the Elder Monks through a duel and other such things, the trial will most likely end in the monk's death (this does not have to be PK). However, if the monk can succeed in completing the tasks set before him, he is honoured as a full-fledged monk. He is sworn to the spirits, and he has complete, unwavering faith in them. He will not betray the spirits or his order for ANYTHING, be it money, or land, or glory. They can push nature energy behind strikes, making them more meaningful and far more powerful. For an extremely short amount of time, the power derived by the nature energy can even protect against lesser burns and fires. After this point, a monk is able to do almost anything that is available to monks, and can even experiment with various abilities not listed here. They can also teach other monks. They are able to construct small shrines to the Spirit as needed, which, to believers, will exude a feeling of peace and comfort. (Strength + Fire Resistance)

 

Great Monks: These monks have done great things for the Battle Monks, or else is extremely deeply attuned to the spirits. For this, "tier," per se, it is possible to self-teach into reaching it by practicing the spells often. At this tier, one would become able to grant an even more resistant skin and immune system, and has essentially mastered all basic (listed) abilities. Also, their previous buffs become stronger and longer. They may continue experimentation with new spells, however, canonification of said spells requires a lore post. (All previous abilities gain an additional level, and Health Boost. Stronger the buff, the sooner it'd fade. Second level buffs would likely only last a few seconds MCly, maybe a quarter to a half of a fight RPly.)

 

Elder Monks: No great differences between Greats and Elders. However, an Elder Monk is chosen by another Elder Monk, and these can take control of greater decisions concerning the Order. As such, they also have the power to sever a monk's power, if needed and only if the spirits are in accordance. (In other words, this cannot be done unless the Monk in question had somehow power-gamed or acted in a way that does not follow lore. Regulates magic and so forth.)

 

~*~

 

Requirements/General Information

 

-Monk staves are personal and truly unique. They cannot channel other magic types, cannot be used by other monks other than the one who first used it, or at least until they die, and are otherwise indestructible.


-The magic cannot be self taught until the monk has truly become a Monk. After that point, he can choose to learn until he becomes a Great Monk.


-To join, one would have to find the monk in RP. This CAN be done through forum RP, but it will not be done through apps. After that point, a monk will show them around, and let them stay so that they can observe existing monks RP. They would also likely accompany the Monks as part of the flock, until they decide to join or not.


-A Battle Monk should venture around Anthos and try to spread his beliefs, and should attempt to garner a flock.


-A Battle Monk cannot cast magic without his staff, unless the player wants to PK his character. By joining you acknowledge said fact.


-A Monk will die and kill for his spirit, and the strongest will take it to the extreme. The slightest slander of their beliefs may end with him ripping out the offender's heart, or otherwise brutally murdering him.


-The glowing staff is mainly cosmetic, however, they channel their magic through it.
-The Monks use an alternative for mana: They, like druii, clerics, and so forth, draw from an otherworldly entity, called nature energy. Unlike regular mages, they cannot regenerate power on their own, and must meditate or pray at a shrine instead. After some IC time, they will have gained the power to keep going.


-Monks are NOT protagonists. That is to say, they aren't necessarily good people, and it can be hard to move them to do something except in self-preservation or preservation of the spirit/religion. They are merely support mages, whom, if NEEDED, will use his magic to aid others and himself. So a criminal runs across the rooftop, at night, and guards can't see him? They come up to a monk and ask, "Can you grant us vision?" The monk is unlikely to do so, except for POSSIBLY as a way to show that his religion is the greater one.


-For monks to properly draw nature energy from the spirits, they must go through great amounts of training and meditation to understand the world around them as best as possible. Whilst this may not necessarily be scientific knowledge (it might be metaphysical, it might be metaphorical... He must simply have knowledge of some great sort of the world as a whole).


-Battle Monks' magic can alter the monk in question physically and mentally permanently, after great amounts of training and extended usage. This is not to say that they would be able to grow extremely overpowered (use your common-sense when you RP the long term side effects), but they would have longer life-spans, and unlike most mages, no physical retribution to the use of their magic. Their connection to the spirit, rather, makes them more indifferent to outsiders, and they become more observers than activists. They also would kill and die for their Spirit, and at "tier five," we're talking a small slander could lead to them trying to break a neck.

~*~

 

Significant Items/Artifacts of the Monks

 

Staves of the original Monks: These staves are greatly prized and held within glass cases. They were used by the original monks who were first blessed by the great spirit. No monk has used them to channel his power since, and it would be considered a crime to do so unless it were a last resort to defend a holy place.


Head of the "Spirit": One of the most prized items within the order, it was placed upon the shrine in which the original monks defended. It ranges back from Aegis. It appears to be an old skull, and was carried with the last monks to Anthos.


All Monk Staves: As each staff is personal and truly unique, each staff is thus an artifact of the Order. These staves can - and many of them HAVE - channelled the Spirit's nature energy.


The Chalice of Hope: One of the original artifacts, it is said that Zera drank from it after successfully defending the original temple.


There are no other artifacts or any important items at this time.

 

EDIT: Please give feedback and how we could further improve this, playerbase. We want to hear your opinions.

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Da +1

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Snowshovel, I'm guessing it's something to do with coding? Fire away how we could try and fix this up.

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I'm getting people whom vote but don't give feedback as to WHY they voted that. Please post, whether it's positive or negative. Particularly negatives, we can't improve anything if they don't post.

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I find this lore somewhat... well confusing in a sense, i'll explain.

 

These monks that you are creating are in the world "battle" monks, yet as I see they give themselves and other "strength" and than "Healing" type boosts with strength of a orc and fire resistance, ect?, although I find that they are also bias in a sense which brings me to ask.

Why is this lore needed at all?

 

The monks already into play which are being role played at this moment can do all of the things you've suggested and such more so, although why don't we? Why have you not seen it before? To answer we are not bias, nor do we get into personal affairs of people, in turn you've not seen it since it has not been required to see or be shown. This being said the monks already can perform such things.

I am not against your lore at all, I quite did enjoy the read although it is un-needed in the sense of that the monks can already do so, although with your lore, the monks you present in the sense are bias in a sense and can kill if they wish towards doing so, ect. So than I ask is this lore needed at all after the reason that the, well I am not sure how to place it hmmm, the already existing monks I will say already have this magic and more so.

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I find this lore somewhat... well confusing in a sense, i'll explain.

 

These monks that you are creating are in the world "battle" monks, yet as I see they give themselves and other "strength" and than "Healing" type boosts with strength of a orc and fire resistance, ect?, although I find that they are also bias in a sense which brings me to ask.

Why is this lore needed at all?

 

The monks already into play which are being role played at this moment can do all of the things you've suggested and such more so, although why don't we? Why have you not seen it before? To answer we are not bias, nor do we get into personal affairs of people, in turn you've not seen it since it has not been required to see or be shown. This being said the monks already can perform such things.

I am not against your lore at all, I quite did enjoy the read although it is un-needed in the sense of that the monks can already do so, although with your lore, the monks you present in the sense are bias in a sense and can kill if they wish towards doing so, ect. So than I ask is this lore needed at all after the reason that the, well I am not sure how to place it hmmm, the already existing monks I will say already have this magic and more so.

 

There are no healing type magics in this thing. There is the health boost buff (which you may have misinterpreted), which is what causes you to gain extra hearts (think of the golden apple w/o regen). Also, as far as I or Lanader (and apparently the old MT) know, monk magic is not support. Its pure healing. Fire resistance is part of a support mage's role, which is what I and Lanader were looking for. PURE support. Not healing. As for the strength of an orc, i didn't say that, now, did I? :/ I said it made their blows more meaningful. This does not mean they'd be able to suddenly able to lift heavy stuff. It works with momentum and force, not strength. Finally, I don't see how you say they are biased, they are no more so than the current CT Monks, as they stay out of others' business except for when it benefits them or their religion.

 

Think of it this way:

 

CT Monks + Orenian Soldier + Traditional Support Mage = Battle Monks. They're a bit from all of those, I guess. These all work from MC buffs, but as you can see, there is no regen. They don't have healing powers. Only augmentational powers.

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I like this idea because its a rather "innovative" type of group for this server, its not hack and slash (Human) but its not a pacifist (Elf's in my experience), but its not a race so its not the best comparison, if this gets implemented lets just say im finding the nearest monk ASAP

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Here's the deal. Do what you want, however, would you mind changing the name? I don't care if you call them Lunar Warriors or Edgy Masters of Support, I just don't want this group associated with the same terminology as the monks.

As to what us Cloud Temple monks can do... well, I like to let rumors spread.

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Here's the deal. Do what you want, however, would you mind changing the name? I don't care if you call them Lunar Warriors or Edgy Masters of Support, I just don't want this group associated with the same terminology as the monks.

As to what us Cloud Temple monks can do... well, I like to let rumors spread.

 

 

:P Well, was never my idea for the name. That was the original name as made by Lanader. I'll take it up with him as I can understand your concern there (Btw, you didn't have to vote no, there was a maybe if you change it a little. :P). I do understand either names could be mixed up and cause association when they are completely different. We'll see if we can change up names. Whilst they'd like as not still call themselves monks (lower case m, not upper case, do not fret my dear cloud temple peoples! :3) informally, we could have the actual order's name changed to something else, Lanader willing.

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Seems ok to me. A little work would be nice, pay attention to some minor details. Overall intriguing.

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  The ordinary playerbase will never know Ascended lore, apart from what was known publicly in Aegis.

 

Hmmm... Isn't most of their original lore on the Wiki? I think it is the whole wandering of the first Battlemonks that make it appear alike. Anyway.

 

I find it to be good as a whole and a with a new take on magic it is always interesting to say the least.

Yet I would like to ask a question. Why?

Well. An obvious answer would be because it's cool. But why?

 

Alright, fair enough. They'll wander around, preach and add a new dimension and presence to our roleplay realm.

Which in some way is enough in my opinion.

But what is their purpose?

(other than defending their own temples which right now doesn't seem to have any influence on anything)?

And in a sort of sense they almost seem as a private army, how will you evade letting that happen?

 

 

These are just some thoughts of mine that I don't need answered, but just something that you maybe should just think about before you start this up. :)

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Hmmm... Isn't most of their original lore on the Wiki? I think it is the whole wandering of the first Battlemonks that make it appear alike. Anyway.

 

I find it to be good as a whole and a with a new take on magic it is always interesting to say the least.

Yet I would like to ask a question. Why?

Well. An obvious answer would be because it's cool. But why?

 

Alright, fair enough. They'll wander around, preach and add a new dimension and presence to our roleplay realm.

Which in some way is enough in my opinion.

But what is their purpose?

(other than defending their own temples which right now doesn't seem to have any influence on anything)?

And in a sort of sense they almost seem as a private army, how will you evade letting that happen?

 

 

These are just some thoughts of mine that I don't need answered, but just something that you maybe should just think about before you start this up. :)

 

Let me ask you something: What is the purpose of religion? Any at all?

 

In truth, there is none. Religion is faith, which is a purpose unto itself. Religion has no true defined purpose. It is up to the faithful to determine the purpose that religion has for them. So in other terms...

 

There is NO purpose. It is there to exist, just as Christianity and Buddhism and Taoism and every other religion in the world. What happens from there is up to those who follow. Certainly, it could be argued that these religions are or were based around peace, but they were not. A religion and our faith is what we make it to be, and nothing more.

 

So the purpose becomes up to the follower.

 

I'm not certain what you mean about the private army thing. They work for their religion and for themselves. It's relatively simple. Certainly, it seems very one track minded, but that is half the point: They stay out of others' affairs. They are no more a "private army" than the Malinor Sentinels (or whatever they're called now) or any of Oren's ridiculously countless military groups. And owing to the fact that these monks would stay out of affairs, I doubt they'd ever truly come into conflict unless they were provoked. They serve their own. That's it and that's all. These aren't cloud temple monks, don't think of them like they are.

 

Also: To those whom have voted, actually post something. I might just remove the poll because you guys aren't offering any feedback whatsoever. The point of the poll was so I could see opinions quickly and easily, but I expect a post detailing SOME reason as to why you chose that. Plus, I can't improve nothing if you don't post. You don't like something? Tell us. Even if you don't think we can fix it, you never know until you shot us a reason. I don't know about the LT, but I will disregard any votes unaccompanied by a post. This includes yeses, nos, and maybes. I don't care, please make the time to post if you're going to even have an opinion of it. 

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