The Intrepid Society's Joint 7-Man Application

[Senda 472]

Greetings one and all and.

Welcome.. to the Intrepid Society's joint 7-man application!

A bit of a novalty, as joint applications do not usually happen on Lord of the Craft, nevertheless, I shall explain the reasoning behind this joint application, it's structure, contents and the reasons for posting it as we do.

First up, what is the Intrepid Society?

“We” are a gaming community. A large group of friends that has formed over the course of many years, but really taking shape during the last two, where fifteen of us decided to form our own guild in World of Warcraft and we set in stone exactly how “we” wanted things to work.

Going from strength to strength, what started as a group of fifteen, today numbers around eigthy persons, playing a variety of games, ranging from the cornerstone of our community, WoW, to more exotic things such as the odd games of Dungeon Defenders.

As a community, we like to do things together.

While each of us have varying interests and skills, it is truly the combination of our efforts that allow us to aim for bigger goals and take great pride in achieving them.

Secondly, how will the joint application be structured?

This joint application will take the form of an introduction (which you are reading right now) explaining what we stand for as a group.

After the introduction will follow the seperate application forms that each and every one of us filled out, meeting the individual standards attached to it.

Finally, we will close off our application with a group screenshot of our characters, as well as a few pictures of our planned architecture, closed off finally with a “trailer”, made by our very own Goatimore.

We all hope you will enjoy reading every part of this application with as much joy as we had in making it.

And finally, why a joint application?

“We” like to do things together. I simply cannot stress enough the community feeling that we share. The people who apply to you today have been gaming together throughout various games for years now. To put it mildly, we think of each other as closer to family then friends.

Those among us that decided to form an in-character “group” made the call that if applying.. all would get onto the server.. or none of us would.

Having but one person missing out on the fun simply makes it worthless to us.

Now.. the astute among you may be wondering why Nimshae hopped onto the server before we did, her husband as well for that matter.

The answer is rather simple: They chose to take a different path. Where they chose to go for woodelves, we made the call to “go human”.

Making the choice to go for a seperate race was not an easy one, but with the choice came the realisation that we will be seperated by distance, culture and frequency of interactions.

Because of this, they decided to apply seperately.

On to “why” specifically, I had a chat with some of the admins on Teamspeak, to make sure that posting a joint application was alright in the first place.

After explaining our situation, the admins in charge graciously allowed us to do as we suggested.

The main thing to keep in mind here is that we want to do something that caters to our needs as much as those of the server (or the admins in charge of reviewing this). Of course, this entire situation is new and exciting, but can be a bit scary for people firmly established on this server.

“How will these people act in a group? Will they do crazy things? Will they upset balances, will they “assume” things and make trouble?

To alleviate some tension and hopefully put more then one mind at ease, besides structuring this application in a decent way, I will take a moment to explain how we tackled roleplaying on our previous server and how those experiences will help us “not to mess things up” over here.

*Enter Shogun Senda*

On our previous server, we took to the task of building an Asian/Oriental inspired Nation.

We built in an Asian buildingstyle (Big Japanese castle), we made sure the structure of our nation fitted that of an Oriental empire (calling our leader a “shogun”, among such things) and above all, when confronted with visiting players form other nations, we would “snap into” roleplay mode.

Important to keep in mind here is that that server encouraged roleplay, but not enforced it. We were essentially free to do as we pleased, as long as we (and the rest of the server) respected people's wish to roleplay.

We made a point of sticking in-character whenever we had visitors, but due to how our gaming community works (we chat on Mumble, our own voice-chat server), from an outsider's point of view.. we were never “out of character”.

Anything that we did that was out of character, was done via Mumble.

Suffice to say, it was not long before we were earmarked as “those hardcore Rp'rs”, even though we ourselves felt this was not the case.

It was then that we got into our first war.

Started mainly over the in-character fact that the opposing side approached us in an “out-of-character-fashion” (person walks up to our castle, does not roleplay, ignores our attempts at communication and runs circles around our walls. We ask him to leave, he turns around and points out how unfriendly we are to visitors, we kill him.).

This war, to us, was where we did something that server had apparently never seen before: Making a forum post with pictures of the siegecamp you just built to surround an outpost of the opposing side, stating that we would be there the next evening if he wanted to fight it out.

Met with universal acclaim, the opposing side included, this war went on for a bit, with little to no fighting in the game, but quite a bit of entertaining stuff on the forums, as we proceeded to demolish two small outposts over the course of nearly two weeks.

We were surprised, most of all, that it turned out we were doing something “new”. We did not expect it to be new, handling the situation along the lines of “well that seems the right thing to do.. the opponent should be having fun with this as well..”.

Alas, events on that server did not stay this “fun” for long, as the dedicated pvp monkeys in diamond armor stepped up after this little war and the repeated ganking began. As this turn of events (on which some of us elaborate a tad in their personal applications) wrecked our fun on that server, we started looking for alternatives. It would be months before we even heard of Lord of the Craft unfortunatly.

Back to group-roleplay, I feel I should point out one more thing.

When it comes to the lot of us roleplaying as a group, with for instance visitors of another nation, what we tend to do is talk about what we do, before we do it, on Mumble.

We actively coordinate the broad lines of our roleplay to make everything as smooth as possible. For instance, I will tell “my soldiers” on Mumble that I want them to form two lines, after which I put into the in-game chat: *with a gesture of his hand, Senda signals his warriors*

This coordination allows us to do alot of really interesting roleplay, making the situations both more immersive and interesting for everyone involved, especially considering the enviroment we faced on that server, where all of this was “rather new”.

Besides that, it gave the people in our community who had no previous roleplaying experience a chance to take part, while not feeling out of place or threatened into making mistakes, as they could simply stand in that line.. and say nothing.. just enjoy the roleplay that evolved before them.

(As demonstrated in the following collage of screenshots, portraying the moment Goatimore had his final talk with Shogun Senda, at the end of the first war. Later, because of this, Goatimore would depart his former nation and join the Intrepid Society, both in game and in real-life, becoming an active part of our community.)

http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx92/JoostLaanen/SomeRP-kopie.jpg

As this previous server lost its spark for us, many left Minecraft altogether, with a handfull still around of the thirty people we had in our nation back there.

Today.. we come before you with the seven of us.

Some seasoned roleplayers, others still quite “fresh”.

But as a group, keen and -very- eager to get stuck in and have some memorable roleplay experiences!

Without further ado, I present you with our personal applications:

Senda

Out-Of-Character

Minecraft Account Name:

Senda

How old are you?:

26

Time-Zone/Country of Residence:

GMT+1, the Netherlands

Do you have a good grip on the English language/good grammar?:

I would consider my grasp on the English language “adaquate”

Small 2-3 Sentence Description of yourself:

As an enthousiastic, yet oftentimes calculating “young man”, I strive to combine my passions for a subject with a desire to “get stuff done the right way”.

The bigger part of this mindset was taught to me by a former boss when I used to work at Games Workshop, a company that develops and produces miniature wargames.

The last 2 years have seen me develop and lead a gaming community on the internet called “Intrepid Society”, the succes of which continues to be a source of pride and inspiration to me.

How much time could you be on the server weekly?:

A couple of hours most evenings, depending on workshifts and other variables.

What do you know about Roleplaying? Give a definition of what it means to you:

Roleplaying to me, is the act of assuming a different persona.

To act out what this fictional character would do in the settings that are presented to him/her, while often using these experiences to develop the character itself.

What experience have you had in Roleplaying, if any?:

My first roleplaying experiences were.. rather bad, now that I have the advantage of hindsight. However, back then (more then a decade ago) I was very happy to figure out how I could do the most damage with an exotic combination of skills, while giving no regard to how my character has attained these skills, or if they even made sense in the grand scheme of things (“bringin' teh deepz, yo!”)

I would like to think that over time (and with many learning points) I have had the priviledge of many, many, different (and much wiser) people explaining to me how to go about properly roleplaying a character. Teaching me that immersion is more important then anything and that once immersed.. just how much fun there was to be had.

Sure it can be fun to be incredibly powerfull, but it is nowhere near as rewarding as being “normal” and still completing a daunting task ahead.

Besides numerous sessions of the well-known Dungeons and Dragons, I have dabbeled in a few other settings, such as Star Wars and Shadowrun.. and even a few sessions in Star Trek Online (Alongside Nimshae Ammanae Najaede), but by far, most of my roleplaying experience comes from a medieval-esque setting.

In your own Words, define what the act of Meta-Gaming is:

Meta-gaming is the act of using information not known to your character to achieve an in-game benefit, often to the detriment of other players.

An example would be:

Confronted by a Giant Magical Snake, my character (who has never seen or heard of these creatures in his life) immediatly tells the wizard to use a fire-spell on it, as Giant Magical Snakes are vulnerable to that!

In your own Words, define what the act of Power-Gaming is:

Power-gaming is the act of being too self-centrered about ones character, often leading to situations where one fails to give others the chance to react to anything the character does.

An example would be:

As a bandit jumps from the shrubbery alongside the road and demands I hand over my possesions, I reply: “I draw my sword and cut his head off with one clean sweep!”

As you can see, I gave the bandit no chance at all to react. He could have tried to parry my strike.. or even do something before I fully draw my sword. Alas, as the bandit is bleeding to death in the dirt (or stomping off in frustration) we shall never know.

What do you expect this server will be like?:

I expect it to be exactly what we (the Intrepid Society gaming community) needs: A mature, RP-centered Minecraft community.

Having played on a server that claimed to respect and encourage roleplay, we instead found ourselves on the recieving end of rather immature people who decided that “lolwar” was an in-depth reason to repeatedly gank our members.

Plus, finally finishing their siegecamp a mere 4 weeks after starting using said siege to hop into our castle on a daily basis to litter the ground with corpses definatly needs the name “Camp Awesome”.

Suffice to say, I look forward to a server where the things we like to do and were considered absolutely groundbreaking on the previous one, are the bare minimum standard over here.. such as building a siegecamp and giving your opponent advance notice about it to give them the chance to respond and to make a war about the story, more then the killing..

I expect this little rant comes across as a bit bitter, but we found ourselves hopping onto the previous server with the best of intentions and really “doing new things” that a large part of that server enjoyed seeying, only to have a small group mess it all up for us in a very childish way.

And when you are confronted with community members that simply refuse to continue playing because getting ganked to the exclusion of all else simply sucks the fun out of everything.. well. You go look for a new home.

What other server(s) have you played on and why did you leave them?:

Nations at War.

As stated in “what I expect this server to be”, We (I) are leaving Nations at War because we want to experience the sense of achievement and fun we shared in our opening days/week on said server, before “the nasty few” set their sights on us.

While Nations at War is a very decent server and has a great team of admins, I feel they lack the conviction to make a few hard calls (bans) to remove certain individuals that have an abrasive effect on their server as a whole.

When people stop playing on your server because “person X” cannot control himself, clearly something is wrong. Unless of course, you want a server filled with people like person X, in which case our leaving is a case of “weeding out the unworthy”.

I can (and gladly will) go into detail about this, but for fear of adding another 5 pages of my ranting to this application, I shall leave it at this.

Have you read, understood, and agreed to the rules?:

I have and I do.

Having a ruleset as this, with rules such as “announce your intentions and get confirmation before striking someone” simply makes sense, as well as open up a whole world of additional roleplay opportunities we never even dreamed of on our previous server.

Do you promise to abide by said rules, and laws? This includes the Server, Forum, and Teamspeak set Rules:

Yes.

In fact, if any of the people I am responsible for (being the community leader) breaks any of them, I will be the first to file a report.

How did you hear about us?:

I'll be completely honest here.

It turns out I suck at doing a google search.

Where I have been looking around for a server like this one for many weeks, Nimshae (Sarah as we know her) managed to find it in less then 5 minutes, before smugly handing me the link.

And here I am..

Have you previously made an Application? If so could you link us to your last Application?:

N/A

In-Character:

Character Name:

Gerrard Lane

What Race are you?:

Human

What Sub-Race are you? (note, you aren’t required to have a sub-race):

N/A

Biography (Please make this at least 2 paragraphs long. This must include the history of your character and his life as well as age, appearance and personality, etc.):

Ser Gerrard is a knight past his prime. Running slightly past his 50's, he has seen a little action, but swordplay has never been his strongpoint.

Instead, he is known locally for his masonry skills, finding employ in the service of lords and wealthy merchants alike, constructing their manors and keeps.

Lately, with the fall of the kingdom of Salvus and it's subjugation by Renatus, King Godfrey managed to unite all the human kingdoms into the Holy Oren Empire.

For his role in the sieges and with an eye on the upcoming construction of Riven Castle, Ser Gerrard has been granted land west of the prospective building site to settle with his followers.

As old age caught up with him and turned his hair into shades of grey, the reality started to sink into Gerrard's mind that without a wife or children.. his name might die with him eventually.

What are your Character's ambitions?:

Long-term, Gerrard's ambitions are to really settle down for the first time in his life. Always found in the employ of another, higher ranking knight, he has never been in places longer then a few weeks, save for the occasional sieges he has been involved in.

This has recently changed when Uthor Silverblade saw it fit to grant him with a plot of land to call his own.

Thankfull for years of service, it is a reward that his superiors believe has been a long time coming.

Another ambition that has surfaced of late is a desire to settle down “to the fullest intent of the word”, meaning that Gerrard feels that it is about time he started looking around for wife.

Accompanied by a band of followers, Ser Gerrard intends to make the best of these recent developments.

What is your character’s favorite tool? (sword, pickaxe, shovel, etc):

Gerrard's favorite tool is a book.

Gerrard holds to the belief that while brawn can win a fight.. knowledge wins a war.

Having designed and taken part in the construction and siege of a few keeps and castles, his memories are vivid at the points where a specific piece of knowledge made the difference between having to assault a wall with ladders or being able to collapse the wall, evening the odds.

Logistics are as important to a kingdom as the men that defend it.. and while being part of the supply chain is often a thankless task with little to no glory, Ser Gerrard takes contentment to the lives saved because of the work he and others have done to support the main body of fighters.

These days, a pouch with a book hangs from his belt, right next to his sword.

More often then not, the book will come out before the sword.

What is one of your Character's most skilled talents?

Gerrard's main occupation is masonry and a tad of carpentry.

As an architect by trade with the title of Knight, his skills, while including swordsmanship to a limited degree, focus more on architecture and the leading of a constructionsite, rather then physical combat.

A screenshot of your skin (must be in proper format, if you do not know how to acquire one, click here: http://www.lordofthe...kin-screenshot/):

Other Information about your Character:

Ser Gerrard has a band of followers, all with him for varying reasons.

Most notably among these is his Squire, who has been paired with him to aquire some temperance, as the young lad is often hot-headed and fails to see the grander issues.

While these followers are all in his employ and will settle in the land granted to him, each has their own quirks and traits that will see them develop and strive to complete their own goals in life.

As their master, Gerrard takes a keen interest in their well-being as he knows that he relies on them as much as they rely upon him.

Open-Response-Questions

Whilst traveling from the Cloud Temple you see a small halfling, being harassed by two armed warriors. They appear to be trying to steal money from him, how does your character respond?

Gerrard walks up to the scene, where the two shouting warriors tower over the much smaller halfling.

As one of the warriors grabs the halfling and holds him, the other warrior readies his fist for a punch.. until Gerrard purposefully steps on a twig and snaps it.

Heads snapping around at the sound, the shared look of unease between the warriors evaporates as they notice Gerrard appears to be nothing more then an elderly man.

“Be on yer way now gramps, you dun want nothin' of this.” – growls the warrior who was ready to throw a punch.

“Yeah, off wit ye.” – adds the other.

A moment of silence passes as Gerrard remains quiet, eyes locked on the warrior holding the halfling, eyes steady as can be.. not a trace of emotion to be detected.

As Gerrard apparently refuses to move, the warrior that was about to throw a punch turns to face him, leaving the other warrior holding the halfling a few paces behind.

“Perhaps he is a deaf ol' man, what ya reck'n?” – He growls, spitting on the ground afterwards.

Gerrard gaze slowly sinks a foot and a half to link with that of the halfling.

The halfling returns the stare with his own, as the two seem linked somehow.

As another moment of silence passes, the warrior holding the halfling seems to become uneasy.

“This aint right, why isn't he speakin'?” – He speaks.. as his face starts to line with small traces of fear.

“Shut it, he dont wan' talk.. I'll give this old man a good shove in the right direction then!” – The other warrior growls as he starts to walk forward.

Stomping towards Gerrard, the warrior gets within four paces, but before he can take another step, Gerrard's thumb pushes his sword out of the scabbard by a single inch, revealing glinting steel.

Shocked slightly, the warrior stops.

“This ol' man is armed!” – He exclaims.

The warrior seems to reach for his sword but before his hand can close fully around the hilt, Gerrard breaks the silence.

“You will attempt to draw your sword. You will want to strike me down with it. You will fail at both tasks.”

The warrior attempts to rebuke his words, but Gerrard goes on.

“Furthermore, your friend lacks bravery. The halfling.. does not.”

Shocked, both warrior's faces turn into snarls of anger.

“You DARE to..” – the warrior shouts as he begins to pull his sword from the scabbard.

Before he can pull it out more then halfway, Gerrard's free hand, gloved in chainmail and balled up in a fist, strikes him across the face, making him stagger backwards as blood sprays from his nose.

“No sword..” – Gerrard begins as he uses the momentum of his punch to turn his body around where he stands, while his other hand smoothly draws the blade from the scabbard, coming full circle to have the tip of his sword rest a mere inch from the neck of the warrior.

“And no strike.” – Gerrard finishes.

Sword remaining pointed at the warrior, who slowly moves his hands away from his sword, as it slowly sinks back into the scabbard, Gerrard turns his face slightly to address the other warrior.

“You will let the halfling go.” – he says.

Visibly trembling, the other warrior does as he is told, then turns and runs away.

The halfling nods, then runs off as well, in the other direction.

Gerrard turns his gaze back to the warrior, while his sword is still an inch away from his neck.

“You will turn around and run after your friend. You will not come back here. You -will- learn from your mistake.” – Gerrard speaks

“You not takin' my weapon?” – the warrior mumbles, as he slowly turns and starts to walk, then stops and waits for an answer.

A moment of silence passes as Gerrard looks him straight in the eyes and the warrior meets the stare.

“You have courage. You lack direction.” – Gerrard begins.

A single leaf falls from the trees, slowly dangling down to come to rest on the ground in between the two.

“Courage cannot be taught. Direction can.”

“Seek out the servants of the King. Find your new direction.” – Gerrard finishes.

The warrior seems ready to speak himself.. but then closes his mouth before the words can come out.

He gives Gerrard a simple nod, then walks off.

Your character wanders into Alras, and comes across a small stall, behind which a well dressed man is standing. He’s offering various wares, the merchant turns to you and says in a posh accent " 'ello there, what can I do you for today?" What is your character response?

Gerrard walks up to the stall saying: “A good day to you too sir.”

Looking over the wares on display as the merchant has an increasingly more expectant look on his face, Gerrard frowns slightly in dissapointment.

“That set of coloured inks.. Would you happen to have more then the one?” He says, pointing out a small five-bottle set in a slim wooden rack of avarage quality, containing the colours black, red, blue, purple and green.

The merchants face beams with a mixture of relief and pleasure.

“Why yes indeed I would, my Sir Knight, I would.” He replies, as he dips behind the counter and produces another two of the identical item.

Nodding slightly, indicating approval, Gerrard continues: “How much for all three sets?”

The merchant takes a moment to consider it, then begins to speaks: “For a noble Knight such as yourself..”

Gerrard cuts him off mid-sentence: “Please, I am not a noble, I am a simple knight, with simple needs. How much?”

The merchant, not used to being cut off eloquently adressing someone, stammers his answer: “Uh.. that is.. well.. three score and six minas.

Gerrard eyes the man for a second, before replying: “That is a fair price, I shall take them.”

Gerrard hands over the money, as the merchant proceeds to wrap the three sets in a piece of cloth, tying it up with some string.

“Would you like anything else, sir Knight?” – the merchant asks as he hands over the bundle.

“Not today, thank you. But it will be likely that I return in the future, if my travels permit it. You strike a good bargain for ink. You have my thanks.” – Gerrard replies, then nods a greeting to the merchant, turns and walks away.

Whilst wandering in the wilds, your character comes across a small hut, which looks abandoned. Inside it you see a chest containing a few iron bars, and a golden sword. How would your character respond?:

Walking towards the small hut across the clearing that surrounds it's entrance, Gerrard can see something glinting within.

Cautiously raising the sword from his scabbard a fraction with his thumb, he cannot fully make out what the glint is.

Stepping closer in curiosity, Gerrard is almost at the entrance as he can see it clearly: A chest, top open against the wall, with a glinting golden sword and a trio of iron bars inside.

“That's odd.. Who would..” – Gerrard begins as his sentence is cut off.

“IT IS FABIOOOOOO” – A loud, melodious voice yells as Gerrard turns in amazement.

Swinging down on a rope from a nearby tree, with a fencing blade in hand, Fabio swooshes towards Gerrard, weapon coming to point straight at him as he lands nimbly on his feet, strutting the last two yards.

“Aha! It would-a seem I have you at a disadvantage!” – Fabio says as he comes to stand in front of Gerrard, the sharp point of his fencing blade pointed towards him.

As Gerrard slowly turns his thumb sideways, the blade sinks back into the scabbard.

“Indeed it would seem you do.. Fabio.” – Gerrard replies as he takes a good look at the sudden arrival.

Striking a dashing figure, Fabio stands in front of Gerrard, legs slightly apart, one hand holding the sword straight forward, the other on his hip.

Chin up slightly, his cravat is visible underneath his sleeveless leather tunic, bound across his waist with a tassled sash.

A jumbled mess of dark hair, casually drifting in the slight breeze, frames the grin on Fabio's face.

“You have-a fallen into Fabio's cunning trap. You shall-a hand over your coin to please Fabio and-a plead for your very life!” – Fabio says with a big grin.

Gerrard slowly unstrings his purse and tosses it to Fabio, who deftly catches it with his fee hand.

“Fabio, instead of pleading for my life, I would like to offer you something else..” – Gerrard begins.

“Ah, and-a what might that be?” – Fabio inquires.

Slowly pulling out a piece of folded parchment from his pouch, Gerrard unfolds it and hands it to Fabio.

“This,” Gerrard continues, “Is a wanted poster.. of you I believe.”

Fabio takes a good look at the poster, that does indeed display him, finished off with his discription and offered reward for his capture.

Fabio sneers slightly as he remarks: “This.. is a-a crudely drawn likening of the marvellous Fabio. How unprofessional.”

Gerrard smiles slightly as he replies: “Indeed it is, you strike a much more dashing figure in the flesh Fabio. How very unprofessional of them indeed.”

Fabio tosses the piece of parchment on the ground and twirls his mustache slightly as he says: “You-a think so? Fabio certainly does.”

“I will make you a deal Fabio..” – Gerrard says as he slowly unpacks some parchment, a quill and a set of inks. “I will draw a new portrait of you, a better protrait. One that encompasses your full abilities.. and -then-. Then I will make sure the local magistrate gets it, to use in the fabrication of a new set of posters, warranting your arrest.”

Fabio grins broadly as he replies: “You strike-a a convincing deal, older man. Fabio is most pleased! This unprofessional-a.. doodling.. cannot be tolerated by Fabio any longer!”

As he lowers his blade, Fabio takes a few steps back and assumes a heroic pose, tassled sash tugged at gently by the breeze.

“Fabio thinks this is his best-a side, or no.. wait-a.. this one..” – Fabio says as he turns a few times, trying to get his pose sorted.

Gerrard simply smiles as he sits down and begins to draw..

Hungry and lost in the wilderness, you stumble across a small trading camp nestled among the forest, they greet you you in the common tongue, how do you respond?

Slowly pacing towards the camp, Gerrard, slightly hunched over due to exhaustion, is approached by a resident.

“Greetings wary traveller, are you alright? Do you need help?” – the resident asks.

Stopping and attempting to stand upright, but still feeling the need to keep one hand on his stomach as it rumbles, Gerrard answers: “If you could spare a bit of food, I would be in your debt.”

Smiling warmly, the villager takes Gerrard by the arm and walks him to the centre of the camp, sitting him down on the end of a log of wood at the firepit, where a couple of others are busy roasting a pig above a gently smoldering fire.

Mouth watering, Gerrard accepts the loaf of bread being handed to him with a nod of thanks and digs in.

The resident sits down next to him and hands him a flagon of water once Gerrard finishes eating.

Taking a swig from the flagon, Gerrard hands it back to the resident, asking: “You are very kind to help a stranger as you do, is there anything I can do to return your hospitality?”

The resident remains silent for a moment as he ponders Gerrard's question.

“Actually, there might be.. are you on your way to the local township?” – the resident asks.

“I suppose I am, although I confess.. I am a bit lost out here. Is there something you need in this township?” – Gerrard replies.

The resident nods before going on: “Indeed there is. We sent one of our own to gather a number of things from the town but unfortunatly, she has not returned, though she has been gone a long time..”

“We can give you directions to the township.. we would be gratefull if you could check on her for us.”

Gerrard nods.

“It would be my pleasure to repay you in this way.” – Gerrard replies.

As the resident packs a small number of foodstuffs into a bag for Gerrard to take with him, another resident explains how to find the way to the township.

Shaking hands, Gerrard and the residents wish each other the best, as Gerrard then turns and begins his journey towards the township.

You hear word that bandits occupy the road outside the town in which you have been staying. The town guard have gathered, and are asking for assistance to help eliminate them. The leader of the party is offering a reward for any who offer their support. How does your character act on this information?:

At the town square, the guards had gathered, forming two slim lines of five, with their captain standing on a crate in front of them, rousing the gathered throng of townsfolk with a speech.

“We will cleanse this filth from our road!” – the captain shouted as the crowd cheered.

“We will protect this village and the road that feeds it!” – he went on, as more cheers erupted from the crowd.

“Any man bearing arms may join under my command and take part.. in this great venture!” – He shouted, as slowly, a select few stepped forwards from the crowd.

Now fourteen strong, a silence fell among the crowd as an elderly man made his way forward.

Stepping past the crowd, out into the square, Gerrard looked up at the captain, as a stunned silence took hold of everyone.

The captain, surprised to see a knight.. and an old one at that, stepping forward, looked unsure what to do.

Gerrard simply nodded at him and took a place in the line.

Still slightly stunned, the captain nevertheless ordered the two lines to fall into formation and marched them out of the towngate.

A small amount of time passes as the group marches along the road into the forest, before taking a small rest.

During the rest, the captain walks over to Gerrard.

“I suppose I should.. salute you?” – he begins.

Gerrard dips the whetstone into a small pond as he replies: “Why would you have to do that, captain?”

“Well..” – the captain replies. “Are you not a knight? You outrank me. Naturally.. you should assume command.”

Gerrard stops the motion he was making with the whetstone and looks up at the captain.

“What is the composition of our enemy? What is their mode of operation? How would you anticipate their next move?” – Gerrard asks.

Taken aback slighy by not getting a direct answer, but instead, more questions, he straightens his back and replies: “The enemy are assumed to be no more then a dozen strong, lightly armed and unarmoured. Typical banditry, but strung together into a small warband to succesfully prey upon the larger caravans that sometimes use this forest road.”

His face visibly relieving of some of the previous tension as the captain begins to understand Gerrard's answer, he goes on: “Brazen from recent succes, they will stage an ambush to overwhelm this patrol. They will have failed to anticipate the overpowering difference in military strength between a merchant and trained townguards aided by professional warriors. We will use this overconfidence to lure them into a battle they cannot win, then turn back their ambush and shatter their resolve with one one quick, decisive engagement.”

Putting away the whetstone and sheathing his sword, Gerrard gets up to face the captain.

“Brawn may win a fight, but a clear head and knowledge will win a war. Your town has fought many a battle and the bandits have won their fair share.. but now.. -you- will win this war captain.”

Nodding in understanding and thanks, the captain mentions for Gerrard to take his place in the line, then orders the advance.

As the group heads off, the canopy of leaves closes above them..

Anything else you would like to say?:

I would like to extend my sincere thanks to the various people on this server that I have had the priveledge of talking extensively to.

First off, to Respiren and Dusk: Thank you for answering a plethora of questions I had and showing me a tons of things I never even thought about, as well as helping to make it possible for us to post a joint application, as this is apparently something of a novelty.

I do hope that we approach this novelty in an appropriate way and that our efforts convince everyone involved that we have made good on the trust they bestowed upon us by letting us make a joint application in the first place.

Second, my thanks to Braxis and Mogroka, for kindly answering our questions when we dicided humans would be the best place for our intrepid group to start.

Thanks in particular to both for allowing us to work with them to iron out many details that showed up, mostly because we approached a number of issues from our background of group-centrered activity (as we do within our gaming community) and as this is not something that often happens during applications, as they mostly concern a single person, my thanks once again for their patience, understanding and willingness to make this work for all involved parties.

Last, my thanks to the random admins/players/assorted folks that have been involved in the scenario's described above. Though your time spent in these dicussions was fleeting and short, your contributions certainly were not and I hope to get reaqainted with all of you in-game!

Goatimore

Out-Of-Character

Minecraft Account Name:

Goatimore

How old are you?:

16

Time-Zone/Country of Residence:

Eastern Standard Time(EST)/ United States

Do you have a good grip on the English language/good grammar?:

Yes, I do have a good grip on the English language. It is my first language.

Small 2-3 Sentence Description of yourself:

Hello, my name is Eric Golden II and I like to roleplay. I use my vivid imagination to create things that others may see as impossible. I like to build things, create music and videos, cook, and make everything I do enjoyable.

How much time could you be on the server weekly?:

I’m on summer vacation at the moment, so I could be on everyday. If there was school, then I could probably be on three to five times a week.

What do you know about Roleplaying? Give a definition of what it means to you:

To me, roleplaying is an idea that allows someone, no matter age, race, or gender, to take on the persona of an alter ego, or imaginary character, and bring it to life. This persona develops emotions which allow the creator to express another side of themselves to others without fear of judgment.

What experience have you had in Roleplaying, if any?:

I have had experience roleplaying throughout my life so far and I plan to do so in the future. I’ve roleplayed many storylines and movies with my sister, when I was younger. I’ve created characters and gave them all unique personalities that truly express their behavior. I’ve recently been roleplaying on another Minecraft server with the guild that I joined, The Intrepid Society. (You’ve met my Guild Master, Senda). The Intrepid Society is a gaming community, and when I first joined them I was roleplaying on the last server that I was on.

In your own Words, define what the act of Meta-Gaming is:

Meta-Gaming is when a person uses information that their character doesn’t know, to hold an unfair advantage over other gamers. For example:

I was farming and minding my own business in-game, but my friend, who is not in-game, gives me information that I’m going to be raided by an approaching enemy. For me to use that information and armor up would be meta-gaming, because I wasn’t supposed to know about the approaching raiders.

In your own Words, define what the act of Power-Gaming is:

Power-gaming is when you give your character an unfair advantage and you don’t allow the other character to do anything about it. For example:

I was about to go into combat with another character but then he says he took my sword, tied me up and stabbed the sword through my skull. It makes his character so powerful and doesn’t allow me to retaliate.

What do you expect this server will be like?:

I expect it to be MUCH better than my last server. I expect to see amazing roleplaying from all of the new faces that will be encountered, a great user interface with little to no bugs, epic battles hailing between nations and a never ending box of surprises. I’ve read the Wiki, the forums, and have watched many videos on how the game works. I just hope that you can bring a new adventure for me to enjoy, and nothing less.

What other server(s) have you played on and why did you leave them?:

I’ve played on the Nations at War server, which is okay, but they don’t focus on the roleplaying aspect of the game. It gave too little rules to PvP monkeys and had many errors and bugs that needed fixing. Overall, it was a decent server but it was, and still is, under development. I am leaving the server because my guild master has found us a better server that is well developed and tends to the roleplaying aspect of the game.

Have you read, understood, and agreed to the rules?:

Yes, I have. The rules are sensible and are well structured.

Do you promise to abide by said rules, and laws? This includes the Server, Forum, and Teamspeak set Rules:

I promise to abide by said rules and laws. Including the Server, Forum, and Teamspeak set Rules. If I disobey any of these rules, I will abide by this oath and willfully accept my punishment.

How did you hear about us?:

I heard about this server from my guild master.

Have you previously made an Application? If so could you link us to your last Application?:

No

In-Character:

Character Name:

Skylen Nedlog

What Race are you?:

Human

What Sub-Race are you? (note, you aren’t required to have a sub-race):

None

Biography (Please make this at least 2 paragraphs long. This must include the history of your character and his life as well as age, appearance and personality, etc.):

Description:

Skylen Nedlog is a 15 year old boy whose mind is still in need of shaping. He is 5 feet and 6 inches tall and his skin color is a mild brown. Skylen has black hair and a small goatee. He has a very friendly personality. At first, when he enters the world of Asulon, he will most likely be astonished by all of the booming cities and bustling townspeople. It will be understood why once you read the back-story.

Back-story:

"Sky" as his friends call him, is a 15-year old boy who's parents are some of the poorest farmers out there. He wanted to care for his family’s farm and have his life in the serenity of nature. But, he also wanted to help his family pay off the ridiculous amounts of taxes. One day, his father walked up to him and said, “Son, I want you to live a life better than this. I just hope that we can get you out of this situation before we damage your future.” Those words touched Skylen’s heart and he had promised to help out with whatever he could. But, even after two years of aid, the taxes bleed his parents dry and he watches as his family’s land was being confiscated little by little. That day, Skylen became very frustrated and he sat in a tree. He contemplated on what he could do to stop his family from losing their home, and then it hit him. Sky takes a big step and opts to try thieving to generate a better income. He believed that since he was already somewhat trained in archery and swordsmanship, he could pull off a successful robbery.

Sky, the nimble little scoundrel that he is, starts to walk down the wrong path as a cutpurse… until he tries to rob what appears to be an easy target… an elderly knight. Earlier that day, he knew he had had a few nights of success before. Skylen started becoming cocky and believed he could rob anyone. So, as he’d usually do, he snuck out of the house and hid behind a large tree. He pulled out his dagger and waited for someone to walk by. Then, he saw him. His first victim of the night. The passerby was an elderly looking man, who looked near to useless in defending himself. Skylen prepared to jump out towards the old man. The old man was just a few feet from him and then… Sky jumped out, pointing his dagger fiercely at the man’s face. Not expecting this old-looking person to do anything, Sky is taken by surprise as the old man twists Sky's arm and pins him to the ground in a heartbeat.

As it turns out, Sky tried to rob Ser Gerrard, who is a bit wiser in the ways of the world than Sky anticipated.

Pressing Sky for the truth, Ser Gerrard takes pity on the young boy as he learns about his parents… and decides that instead of handing him over to the local authorities… he will instead take him under his custody… and make him his Herald. Sky accepts the man’s offer with no choice and apologizes for what he had done. Ser Gerrard walked Sky to his house so that he could inform his parents of the man’s offer. His parents had bittersweet emotions but knew they had to let their little boy grow up. Sky then walked off with the old man who had just saved his life from even further damage. Sky will now serve as Ser Gerrard's messenger, travelling the lands to do his master's bidding, while earning a wage high enough to support the rest of his family.

What are your Character's ambitions?:

Skylen’s ambitions are to do what he can to help his family, become a better and stronger person by learning what Ser Gerrard has to offer him, and return a favor to the old Knight.

What is your character’s favorite tool? (sword, pickaxe, shovel, etc):

Skylen’s favorite tool is the quiver and bow. He likes the feel of the stillness of the world when he’s focused on one target. He likes to use his bow for hunting but he will shoot a man down if it becomes necessary.

What is one of your Character's most skilled talents?

Although Skylen is a poor farm boy, he was taught well in the skill of archery. His mother mostly tended to the growth of crops and the cooking of foods, but his dad tended to the animals. Sky’s father was a very skilled huntsman, so Sky was taught by his father the trade of “a life for a life;” Listening to the soul of the land and its inhabitants. Always being respectful to those that provide you nourishment. Sky quickly learned what his father knew and trained to become the best archer in the world.

A screenshot of your skin (must be in proper format, if you do not know how to acquire one, click here: http://www.lordofthe...kin-screenshot/):

Other Information about your Character:

Open-Response-Questions

Whilst traveling from the Cloud Temple you see a small halfling, being harassed by two armed warriors. They appear to be trying to steal money from him, how does your character respond?

*Sky draws his bow and quiver. He aims for the head of one of the warriors. Then, he slowly walks out into the open.*

“Why are you tormenting this poor Halfling?” Sky asks bravely.

*The warriors turn towards Sky and stare him down.*

“This is none of your business kid!” says one warrior.

“But if you must know,” explains the second warrior, “We are the Knights of King Geoffrey and this little Hafling has stolen from a merchant. We were ordered to find him and arrest him.”

“Now be on your way!” Says the other guard.

*Sky disarms himself and walks towards the Knights.*

“What if I paid for whatever he stole?” Sky says.

“Hm,” one guard says. “A chivalrous boy.”

“Fine we shall accept,” the other guard says.

*Sky hands them the minas needed to pay for the stolen item. The Knights look at him, then walk away.*

“Thank you very much!” the Halfling says.

*The Halfling runs off into the forest heading for where ever he needed to be. Once the Halfling disappeared from Sky’s sight, Sky headed off to finish his Master’s duties.*

Your character wanders into Alras, and comes across a small stall, behind which a well dressed man is standing. He’s offering various wares, the merchant turns to you and says in a posh accent " 'ello there, what can I do you for today?" What is your character response?

“Hello, kind sir. I do not plan on buying anything for I am only a poor herald. But I’d like to see what valuables you have, just so I can see if I want to save up for something.”

*The man stares, giving Skylen a strange look, and then he shows Sky his various wares.*

*Skylen gazes at all of the magnificent items, but only one caught his eye. A red cloth embroidered in gold.*

“How much is the cloth?” Skylen asks with interest.

“This costs a hundred minas. It’s an ancient cloth from our past king’s throne room.”

*Skylen thinks to himself*

Hm. This would be a good gift for Ser Gerrard. But, I don’t have enough minas. I guess I will save a bit for this cloth. I just hope he’ll save it for me.

“Um… Sir? I really like this cloth. Would you mind saving this for me until I get enough for it?”

*The man stares at Sky, then shrugs his shoulders.*

“I don’t see why not,” He chuckles. “But if someone comes to me with a better offer I’ll have to sell it.”

“Thank you very much kind merchant,” Skylen expresses happily.

*Skylen walks away to continue his master’s tasks.*

Whilst wandering in the wilds, your character comes across a small hut, which looks abandoned. Inside it you see a chest containing a few iron bars, and a golden sword. How would your character respond?:

*Thinking to himself*

An empty hut with useful materials? I don’t think I can leave its side. I will guard it for a day to see if someone owns it, if no one claims it, then I shall bring it to my master’s blacksmith. Besides, its getting dark.

*Skylen waits for hours, and then he falls asleep. But, he is immediately awakened by a man staring him down with a pickaxe.*

“Who are you and why are you here?” the man says suspiciously.

“I am Skylen Nedlog. Herald of Ser Gerrard. I was passing by this hut and I saw that it looked abandoned. I saw the sun going down and I decided to camp in here in order to hide from the creatures of the night. I looked through the chests to see if there were any blankets but instead… I found some goods. I decided to stay here and watch over them until someone would claim them…”

“But what if someone didn’t claim them?” The man interrupts.

*Skylen stutters.*

“Um… I… Uh… was going to… um… Take it… to my master’s blacksmith.”

*The man stares him down, making Skylen very uncomfortable.*

“Kid…” the man pauses. “You’re alright!”

“What?” Skylen says confused.

“Here, take this to your master and put it to good use, besides I won’t be needing it.” The man says happily while handing the golden sword to Sky. “You can go to your master now since the sun is rising. And make sure you stay safe.”

“Thank you I will,” Skylen says gladly.

*Skylen walks away fromm the hut, continuing his journey.*

Hungry and lost in the wilderness, you stumble across a small trading camp nestled among the forest, they greet you you in the common tongue, how do you respond?

“Hello there. May you have food to spare? I am willing to pay you in whatever I can. I will even give you a bit of free labor. I’m lost and I can’t find my way home.”

“Hm… no need for paying us,” the camp leader says. “Just take this map and here is some bread. We have plenty to spare. Also if you don’t mind, I’d like to share with you a few map reading secrets and a few trading secrets, so you can always get a nice bargain.”

“How could I refuse?” Skylen says ecstatically.

“Good,” the man says.

*He shares with Sky how to read maps and go by the topography of the land. Then he told him a few bargaining secrets. Skylen listened to everything this man had to offer*

“You head off now. And enjoy your travels,” the man says while waving.

“Thank you again and I shall,” Skylen says while waving back.

You hear word that bandits occupy the road outside the town in which you have been staying. The town guard have gathered, and are asking for assistance to help eliminate them. The leader of the party is offering a reward for any who offer their support. How does your character act on this information?:

“I shall aid you.” Sky says enthusiastically.

*The guards look at him, and then begin laughing. Sky becomes embarrassed.*

“Ha ha ha ha ha! This foolish boy thinks he can help.” The head guard says.

*Skylen smirks*

“Well, I don’t see any of your men, or any other man for that matter, stepping up to this challenge,” Sky says.

*The head guard looks at Sky angrily*

“Fine, help as you wish,” the guard explains. “But, what do you suppose we do?”

“Well, I’m an archer so the sky is the best place for me and any other archer,” Sky explains. “I propose that guards with swords, axes and spears sneak around the bandits through the cover of the woods. Then those guards will push the bandits into the city.”

“But…” the guard says while being interrupted.

“Then the guards that are archers, and myself, will hide on the rooftops of buildings waiting for the bandits to run into the city. Once they are in the city, the archers will pick them off from above, eventually killing all of the bandits.” Sky finishes.

*The leader stares at Sky, amazed by his method.*

“How are you so young and yet, so wise?” The head guard asks.

“I am not wise, but I am intelligent. For I listened to a wise old knight who took me under his arm in order to save my family,” Sky says.

*The lead guard bows to Sky, showing a sign of great respect. Eventually, all of the other guards follow.*

“We are under your command young Sky,” the guard says.

Anything else you would like to say?:

Fabio for the win!

Fireitup2k

Out-Of-Character

Minecraft Account Name:

Fireitup2k

How old are you?:

26

Time-Zone/Country of Residence:

GMT + 0, United Kingdom

Do you have a good grip on the English language/good grammar?:

Yes, although my sentence construction at times can be not that great

Small 2-3 Sentence Description of yourself:

I am 26 year old PC gamer who likes to chill and and relax when not working. My real-life job is making chocolate desserts all day, so to get away from it all I like to immerse myself in different games, ranging from Minecraft to World of Warcraft and hanging out with my fellow community members when doing so.

How much time could you be on the server weekly?:

Anywhere between 5-20 hours a week, depending on work shifts and real-life issues, as well as WoW obligations.

What do you know about Roleplaying? Give a definition of what it means to you:

I define roleplaying as a person immersing themselves in a different personality. This gives the roleplayer unparralled diversity in taking this personality whichever way they want to. They could be a heroic warrior that fights for justice or could even be a villain hell-bent on taking over the world. The great joy is that anybody can take part no matter who they are and the only limits are the limits of your imagination!

What experience have you had in Roleplaying, if any?:

I've played Dungeons and Dragons a few times with friends but nothing too serious. I played on a RP-PVP server of minecraft, where I had great fun and really learned how I want to roleplay my character(s).

In your own Words, define what the act of Meta-Gaming is:

I define meta-gaming as OOC references and information being used to gain an in-character advantage.

In your own Words, define what the act of Power-Gaming is:

Power gaming is when you walk around as your character and give no opportunity for the other person to roleplay back. An example of this would be that I would walk up to someone and say "I raise my sword and you die". This leaves no opportunity for the other person to take part.

What do you expect this server will be like?:

I expect the server to be heavily focused on RP while offering great opportunities for PVP. I expect to explore new lands and meet lots of friendly people and have a great time interacting with the various nations of this server.

What other server(s) have you played on and why did you leave them?:

I've played on the Nations at war server, and i left because i personally felt that their pvp system was broken. I thought there was too much focus on been elite and "i killed you so i'm the best" attitude rather than a RP/PVP experience that everyone could enjoy

Have you read, understood, and agreed to the rules?:

I have read the rules and agree to them. No use of “1337-speak” I particularly like as it makes sure that everyone stays in character ensuring a more immersive RP situation for everyone.

Do you promise to abide by said rules, and laws? This includes the Server, Forum, and Teamspeak set Rules:

Yes

How did you hear about us?:

I heard about it from the Intrepid Society leader, Senda

Have you previously made an Application? If so could you link us to your last Application?:

N/A

In-Character:

Character Name:

Viro de Martenaire-Fulloire

What Race are you?:

Human

What Sub-Race are you? (note, you aren’t required to have a

sub-race):

N/A

Biography (Please make this at least 2 paragraphs long. This must include the history of your character and his life as well as age, appearance and personality, etc.):

Squire Viro "with the excessive surname" is a young, impeteous knight-to-be from a rich merchantile family.

Eager to prove himself, he has tormented countless teachers with his lack of insight or restraint, always opting to rush headlong into battle with no regard for anyone's safety.

Displeased, but not willing to give up on their investment, the parents of Viro have managed to aquire him a position as Squire with an elderly knight.. who's main occupation seems to be masonry. Perhaps an enviroment with less excuses to draw one's sword, as well as a teacher known for his level-headedness, will teach the young lad some temperance.

Viro himself is eager as always, confident that his new master has plenty to teach him, for a knight that old must surely have seen it all.

What are your Character's ambitions?:

Viro's overwhelming ambition is to be raised to the rank of knight. He will do whatever it takes to achieve this and this is partly why Viro jumps into every situation without hesitation because he can only see the glory at the end of everything.

What is your character’s favorite tool? (sword, pickaxe, shovel, etc):

The sword is Viro's favourite tool.

What is one of your Character's most skilled talents?

As part of Viro's roaming around the world, usage of the sword would be his most skilled talent.

A screenshot of your skin (must be in proper format, if you do not know how to acquire one, click here: http://www.lordofthe...kin-screenshot/):

Other Information about your Character:

Viro is a reckless character who will throw himself into any situation as long as there is glory to be had. He tries to stay level headed like his master is trying to show him but every now and again he can't resist the temptation to throw himself into the fray!

Open-Response-Questions

Whilst traveling from the Cloud Temple you see a small halfling, being harassed by two armed warriors. They appear to be trying to steal money from him, how does your character respond?

Viro spots 3 figures in the distance and judging from the look of things there is an argument in full swing.

Viro debates whether to follow the teachings of his master, Ser Gerrard, but this debate does not last very long. Viro draws his sword and walks purposefully towards the two armed warriors. As he approaches he sees that one of them is holding the halfling up off the ground.

"hello there!, what seems to be the problem?" Viro asks.

"This does not concern you" said one of the two.

Viro looks over the two warriors and does a few calculations in his head. The leather tunics that these two people seem to be wearing will be no match for his sword. The straggled beards and unkempt hair smell of desperation and Viro decides that these must be bandits harrying a wandering halfling.

Viro asks "Why do you trouble this halfing so?"

"He has money that will feed and arm our friends for a month!" came the response.

Viro sighs ever so gently "Have you ever thought of earning your way in this world, instead of plundering innocents?"

"If you choose to make this your business we will gut you and feed you to our dogs" snarled the one holding the halfling.

"have it your way" replied Viro.

The bandit holding the halfling throws him to the floor. He reaches behind his back to draw a rather crude but deadly axe from his back. The other bandit draws two daggers from his belt and crouches low.

Viro draws his sword as he contemplates which one to take out first. Out of nowhere the bandit with the two daggers jumps and slashes for Viro's throat.

Viro blocks, does a quick spin and disarms the bandit with the daggers. Behind him the other bandit raises his axe and brings it down in a deadly arc, but Viro turns around and parries it to his left and brings his sword around in a murderous backhand that opens the bandit's throat.

The remaining bandit rallies and picks up one of his daggers, the other being out of his reach. He comes in low and aims for Viro's stomach. Viro moves aside swiftly to avoid a killing blow but not fast enough as the dagger opens a cut on Viro's unprotected arm. Bleeding freely Viro turns around and approaches the other bandit.

"leave the halfing and you will have your life, if not then prepare yourself"

Viro watches the bandit's face as the fight or flight emotion kicks in. Eventually the bandit chooses fight and with a yell rushes for Viro with his dagger in his hand. As he reaches Viro, the bandit's stab is blocked and Viro guts him with his sword.

As the bandit lies on the floor Viro mutters "you brought this upon yourself"

The halfling rises from the dust of the road and begins to stammer out a thank you to Viro

"Th....thank you.......stranger"

"No thanks neccesary" Viro smiles

"I would offer you some minas for your trouble" the halfling says

"A kind offer but i must press on for my master is waiting for me, Good luck with the rest of your journey"

As Viro walks away a smile creeps upon his face. His master would not have approved of the way Viro went in sword drawn, but if one thing was certain, Viro would always stay true to his heart.

Your character wanders into Alras, and comes across a small stall, behind which a well dressed man is standing. He’s offering various wares, the merchant turns to you and says in a posh accent " 'ello there, what can I do you for today?" What is your character response?

"hello there, what can i do for you today?" A merchant asks Viro

"hello there, i was wondering if you happened to have any weapons for sale?" Viro enquired

"I sure do" replied the merchant " what kind of weapon are you looking for in particular?"

"A sword if possible, my own is getting a bit used and i could do with a replacement"

The merchant then begins to show Viro many different swords ranging from great two-handed long swords to short swords and bucklers none of which Viro shows any interest in. The merchant is vexed as he was sure to have had something that Viro would have liked but to no avail.

The merchant suddenly says "wait, i have one more sword for you to look at!"

The merchant comes back with an iron sword that Viro looks at with great interest. "I like the look of this blade" Viro admires. The merchant agrees " Yes this blade is made from the choicest iron, it will serve you well in whatever you need it for"

"how much for the blade" Viro asks.

"250 minas" the merchant replies. Viro looks at the sword longingly and hands over the money.

The merchant hands Viro the sword and says "farewell and good luck. May your blade never break. "I don't intend it to" grins Viro as he walks away with his new purchase.

Whilst wandering in the wilds, your character comes across a small hut, which looks abandoned. Inside it you see a chest containing a few iron bars, and a golden sword. How would your character respond?:

Viro had been searching for what felt like an age. He needed to find shelter quickly or he would never survive. As the light was fading Viro spotted what seemed to be an abandoned hut in the distance and hurried over to it.

As Viro approached he scouted around to make sure nobody was there and when it seemed as if he was alone he headed inside.

Viro peered around inside at the cramped surroundings and found a chest. Inside the chest were a few iron bars and a golden sword. Viro wondered who would have left such valuable items here all alone. Viro reached in to pick up the iron bars but just as quickly withdrew his hand.

"stealing is not a virtue becoming a squire" Viro said to himself.

However his mind was playing with the idea of using these iron bars to repair some of his damaged armour. Viro went and settled down on the bed in the corner and began to think about things.

"This iron would go to good use"

"I could leave some money in payment for it"

"Nobody is apparently here and it wouldn't be missed"

These were just a few of the things going around in Viro's head until suddenly his masters voice and image appeared in his head.

"Viro, stealing is wrong. Under no such circumstances should a knight or squire steal from anyone"

Viro remebered these words from when he was first apprenticed to Ser Gerrard. A few hours had passed and as such the weather outside had turned for the better. Viro got up of the bed and made his way outside. As he gathered himself together ready for the journey, understanding dawned on Viro. He had learned a powerful lesson. No matter the temptation or the situation, he could always gain clarity from sitting and thinking peacefully.

As he walked off into the distance he couldn't help but think that Ser Gerrard would be proud he had used reason instead of emotion.

Hungry and lost in the wilderness, you stumble across a small trading camp nestled among the forest, they greet you you in the common tongue, how do you respond?

As Viro wanders into the clearing, the occupants of the trading camp eyed him warily.

One of them walks up to Viro and asks in the common tongue: "why hello there!, you look like you need a drink!"

Viro nodded vigorously a reply forming in his mouth.

"thank you for your kindness, stranger" as he drank the cool water down. "I have nothing to offer in payment i fear as i had not counted on getting lost".

"Do not be troubled, for it is just water" replied the trader. "where are you headed to?"

"I am heading back my castle which is three days travel from here although i do not know in which direction it is"

The trader nodded thoughtfully "the only castle which lies three days travel from here is in that direction" the trader points towards a different way than Viro had been heading.

"Thank you" replies a very relieved Viro. "I would be grateful if you would be able to give me food and water for the journey"

The trader looks at Viro weighing him up and announces "We will give you what you need, however you must do something for us in return"

"that seems fair. What would you have me do" says Viro

"We would like you to deliver this letter, unopened, to the leader of your castle"

"Deal" Viro answers. "you have my word that this shall be accomplished"

"Until next time then"

"Indeed" as Viro walks on towards home

You hear word that bandits occupy the road outside the town in which you have been staying. The town guard have gathered, and are asking for assistance to help eliminate them. The leader of the party is offering a reward for any who offer their support. How does your character act on this information?:

A bell rings out. Viro wakes up at the sound and instantly knew there was trouble. He dresses quickly and walks out of the inn and into the road. Guards are rushing all around him, clambering over each other as they struggle to arm themselves. Viro casually walks over to the town guard captain, yawning as he goes.

"GUARDS TO THE SOUTH GATE" cries out the captain. Viro asks the captain what is going on.

"There are bandits to the south of the village we need to defend ourselves". "i am offering a reward to anyone who wishes to join us in the defence" Viro doesn't hesistate and offers his assistance at once.

"I will join but may i offer some advice?" says Viro

"certainly" replies the captain

"let me lead a sortie from the East gate and launch a suprise attack" Viro says gleefully.

"agreed, take these five men see what you can do"

Viro shouts at the men to follow him and they all leave through the East gate

As they skirt the town they spot the enemy approaching the South gate. Viro turns around to the group and details the plan. "we go in and slaughter them, catching them completely by suprise!"

The other men look doubtful but nod their acceptance.

"lets go then!"

Viro and the guards start running towards the bandits and yell at a war cry as they reach them.

The bandits are taken by suprise as they never expected this. Viro starts hacking and slashing his way towards the bandit leader who is shouting out orders to try and regroup. All of a sudden the South gate opens and the remainder of the guard pour out to overwhelm the bandits. Dispatching an enemy with a thrust Viro turns to look at the bandit leader who has the captain of the guard on his knees.

"kneel before me and die!!!" the bandit leader cackles. The captain looks at the bandit leader square in the eye and says "do it then or i will rise and slay you". "as you wish" grins the bandit leader who raises his sword.

Viro steps in behind the bandit leader thrusting his sword through the bandits heart. The bandit topples over and Viro helps the captain to his feet.

"Thanks for keeping him talking" Viro says.

"And thank you for coming to my rescue" replied the captain.

"No problem, i will be off on my travels now so take care of the wounded and farewell" Viro says.

"Do you not want to wait for your reward?" the captain asks incredulously.

"It's ok, the fight itself was it's own reward" Viro grins as he saunters away.

Anything else you would like to say?:

I would like to say thank you for reading my application and i hope you enjoyed it. If there are any problems feel free to contact me so I can fix it. I hope to have a really great time immersing myself in this world and to have contact with all the different races and players. All in all im hoping to provide a positive experience not just for myself but for other players too.

Freddy99000

Out-Of-Character

Minecraft Account Name:

freddy99000

How old are you?:

32

Time-Zone/Country of Residence:

GMT+1 Germany

Do you have a good grip on the English language/good grammar?:

Well i'm British by birth but Scottish by nature so my spelling and grammer can be off at times, but I understand English just fine.

Small 2-3 Sentence Description of yourself:

I'm a older gamer, well traveled around the world. Only my friends know what I do for a living as I like to keep my work and personal life as far apart as possible. I enjoy the better things in life and feel I have lived life well, from my earlier skydiving days to my later 10 pin bowling hobby (226 personal best).

I enjoy gaming and have done for many years from old fps games like Battlefield 1942 upto World of Warcraft, World of Tanks and many others I have played over the years, I enjoy my games but prefer to have company I enjoy while playing them. I'm married for the 2nd time and my wife is a gamer as well (although not as into minecraft as myself). Anything else you'll just have to ask me, I'm fairly open and don't mind questions.

How much time could you be on the server weekly?:

Anything from 3-5 hours upto 20-30 hours depends on my work shedule, most time I'll play is at the weekends.

What do you know about Roleplaying? Give a definition of what it means to you:

Rolepaying to me means someone taking a active control of a player created by a person and using the background, history and who that character is and engaging that character with other characters within a game enviroment to activly play be that trade, diplomancy, war or just general conversation.

What experience have you had in Roleplaying, if any?:

I played on the nations at war server during season 2, I quite enjoyed it. I like to find out the background and listen to other things going on as well to help devolop my own character.

In your own Words, define what the act of Meta-Gaming is:

Meta-gaming is where someone or a party uses something out of character that there in game character has no way of possibly knowing, i.e. someone telling you that a person is about to arrive at you that is far away from your current place. Meta-gaming can be avoided by good role play.

In your own Words, define what the act of Power-Gaming is:

Power-gaming is where someone uses a god like status within the game, something like, "I saw a patrol from the woods, sneaking up behind them I killed them all before they could draw their swords" although it sounds good its very unlikly to happen and doesn't give the other side a chance to respond to the situation. Something like "I drew my sword and approached the partol from behind hoping to get the drop on them" would be much better and much more fair, it also give the other side a chance to respond to the situation.

What do you expect this server will be like?:

I expect to have to be in character and if I get accepted to this server and i'm looking foward to that, I know it will be quite a bit of work to get going initally but i'm no stranger to that or hard work. As for what I expect, I don't like to have expectations, I prefer to just see how it goes and how it is for myself and then make a informed decision based more on facts.

What other server(s) have you played on and why did you leave them?:

Nation's at War server, played during season 2 there, found the lack of Roleplay a little dull and the fact the plugins made the server lag for myself terribly causing any PvP to be very unbalanced. Also found that others exploiting the plugins and, when pointed out to the admins, very little if anything was done even when proven to be a breach of the rules.

Have you read, understood, and agreed to the rules?:

Yep, fully read and although quite long found them to be quite simple and very straight forward, generally applying good common sense in most cases. If I do breach any rules I will accept any punishment the admins decide as I have agreed to all rules here and its my responabilty to keep to them.

Do you promise to abide by said rules, and laws? This includes the Server, Forum, and Teamspeak set Rules:

I agree, they all seem very fair.

How did you hear about us?:

Senda our community leader pointed this server out to us and we all got together and looked over the server, forums, wiki and came onto the server and that lead me and the rest of us here.

Have you previously made an Application? If so could you link us to your last Application?:

No previous application.

In-Character:

Character Name:

Frederick Bolton

What Race are you?:

Human

What Sub-Race are you? (note, you aren’t required to have a sub-race):

None

Biography (Please make this at least 2 paragraphs long. This must include the history of your character and his life as well as age, appearance and personality, etc.):

Frederick Bolton has been in the employ of Ser Gerrard for nearly a decade now, as his personal blacksmith.

Picked up after Ser Gerrard rode into the small hamlet Frederick lived in, the blacksmith got to talking to the knight as he shod his horse.

Having seen action in a siege once before as a man-at-arms, the topics quickly turned to masonry and the interesting ways in which stones could be connected with metal rods during construction, to strengthen a bond.

Suitably impressed with Frederick's work, Ser Gerrard offered him a place at his side, to travel with him from place to place, to have a hand in building manors and castles and equipment for lords across the land.

Such an offer only comes once in a lifetime.. and Frederick gladly accepted. Being only now 29 years of age he is quite young for a blacksmith, but this does not pose a challenge to him at all, his skill with a hammer speak more than words every can. The knowledge passed down to him from generation to generation, Frederick hopes one day to raise a family of his own and pass his knowledge onto his children as it was passed to him.

What are your Character's ambitions?:

To be the best craftsman of the land for his lord and provide what both the lords and the people require, for seeying the people using the tools i'll create will be the greatest honour. Also, to raise a family and teach my trade to the next generation to pass along the knowledge passed down to me by my father and his father before him.

What is your character’s favorite tool? (sword, pickaxe, shovel, etc):

A touch choice as a craftsman has many tools of his trade .. I would have to say that the pickaxe favours my personal style to the fullest.

What is one of your Character's most skilled talents?

A master craftsman, a blacksmith able to create the finest tools using only the best materials and using techeques passed down throught the ages.

A screenshot of your skin (must be in proper format, if you do not know how to acquire one, click here: http://www.lordofthe...kin-screenshot/):

Other Information about your Character:

Quite a quiet person Fredrick knows his place well, one to always speak his mind when asked even if that will upset someone he never backs down from a challenge and holds honor high within him, both within what be builds or creates and with how he views life.

Open-Response-Questions

Whilst traveling from the Cloud Temple you see a small halfling, being harassed by two armed warriors. They appear to be trying to steal money from him, how does your character respond?

While walking back from a good days crafting Frederick notices the 2 warriors trying to steal money from the halfling. "excuse me sirs" Federick says as he approaches the warriors..

"Go away, unless you wish to be next" replies one of the warriors "This does not concern you, be gone" snaps the other.

Frederick pauses for a moment to study the situation in a little more detail, realising that the warriors are not paying him much attention, he draws his sword out of his sheath and points it towards the warriors, "In the name of honour its now my buisness."

The warriors look at each other and one lets go and draws his sword to engage Frederick, a small duel ensues and is broken by the warriors sword breaks during one of the parrys during the duel, shocked the warrior is stunned and Frederick places his sword beneath the warriors chin..

"Please don't kill me" the warrior says in fear.

"Release the halfling" Frederick demands.

The other warrior releases the halfling shocked that his partners sword broke in combat, the halfling kicked the warrior in the shin and rushed away as fast as his short legs could carry him.

"Now" Frederick said clearly "I will let you live IF you do not pick on the halfling again, because IF i catch you then next time you may not be so lucky to walk away with your life."

The warriors picked themself up and bolted away as fast as they could, once clear Frederick sheaths his sword and continues on his journey home, happy that he has done his part for honour this day.

Your character wanders into Alras, and comes across a small stall, behind which a well dressed man is standing. He’s offering various wares, the merchant turns to you and says in a posh accent " 'ello there, what can I do you for today?" What is your character response?

"Greetings good sir, I am a Frederick a traveler from afar." Frederick responds

"'Ello Frederick, what can i interest you in today, some fine cloth? How about some fine tools or ore?" the merchant replied.

"Well i have come in search of some items i can make a gift for my lord with and i heard that this was the place to come for that."

"Interesting" the merchant scratched his chin, eager to make a good sale "what type of items are you after?" the merchant said after a small pause.

"Well i'm after something strong but elegiant, fit for a lord of the land" Frederick replied.

"Hummm.... interesting, I know of a merchant nearby that may be able to help you here as i'm currently out of stock of high end items of which you are asking" the merchant pause waiting to see Fredericks responce.

After gauging the merchant for a few moment Frederick spoke "If you can point me in the right direction and I find what i'm in search of I shall return and reward you for your helpful infomation."

The merchant wasn't quite sure especially at losing a sale but offered Frederick the infomation he was after. A short while later Frederick returned. "My good sir, your helpful nature got me exactly what I was in search of and at a good price here is a token of my thanks for your honourable nature" Frederick handed over a bag of money to the merchant as thanks, shocked the merchant remained speachless and just nodded.

Pleased Frederick returned to his lands to make the item for his lord.

Whilst wandering in the wilds, your character comes across a small hut, which looks abandoned. Inside it you see a chest containing a few iron bars, and a golden sword. How would your character respond?:

Looking around the hut for a while Frederick noticed the hut does apear to be abandoned but because of the honour he holds to so dearly, he decides that it would be wrong for him to take anything, as the hut may not be abandoned.

He walks away from the hut knowing he has done the right and proper thing in not taking anything away from someone.

Hungry and lost in the wilderness, you stumble across a small trading camp nestled among the forest, they greet you you in the common tongue, how do you respond?

"Good day, my name is Frederick. I apear to be lost is there any chance you can direct me towards Riven?"

"Greeting Frederick, your honesty is refreshing to me. We are a peaceful people and would be happy to help you along your way" one of the traiding camp people spoke, he apeared to be of high standing as he was better dressed than most "but I do have one request of you before we give you this infomation."

"If you require something in return I would be happy to help in exchange for the way home."

"On the contray Frederick my request is that you stay here for the night as you look hungry and weak from your travels, i would ask you remain as my guest."

"That is a most noble request and I would be very greatful for the rest and a small bite to eat."

You hear word that bandits occupy the road outside the town in which you have been staying. The town guard have gathered, and are asking for assistance to help eliminate them. The leader of the party is offering a reward for any who offer their support. How does your character act on this information?:

Frederick aproached the town guard leader "good day sir, my name is Frederick and I would like to ask some quetions if you don't mind?"

Disgusted that someone would ask questions of the town guard the leader spoke harsly "be careful what you ask as i will NOT tolerate dis-respect even during this time."

"Indeed that is not my intent sir, I wish to ask I you know the enemy strength?" Frederick replied.

"About 10 we beleve" the leader was a little more settled with the tone and questions being asked so far.

"And how many do you have to engage this threat to the town?"

"Only 5 plus myself i'm afraid" the leaders tone dropping slightly

"And you will engage the enemy regardless of the numbers you have in the name of peace and freedom of those that live here?"

"Without fail and with my life if required" the leader spoke with great conviction.

"Then I wish to join you and your men in the name of honour and freedom, but I do have one request" frederick repied.

"Go on" spoke the leader.

"That my reward be given to the townsfolk for loss of trade due to these bandits" Frederick replied.

"I accept these terms sir and request you fight by my side."

"FOR HONOUR AND FREEEEDDDOOOMMM!" frederick yelled with a drawn sword held high.

Anything else you would like to say?:

I am not the best at writing long applications but once you get to know me I think you'll see I can bring an interesting playstyle to the server, and my ability to keep an open mind will help with anything that will come up.

Sempp

Out-Of-Character

Minecraft Account Name:

Sempp

How old are you?:

I am 23 years old

Time-Zone/Country of Residence:

GMT +1/Denmark

Do you have a good grip on the English language/good grammar?:

I have an okay grip on the english language but my grammar could be better.

Small 2-3 Sentence Description of yourself:

I am guy that enjoys sports alot, i watch almost all the sport my tv can show ;) I play handball myself on a fairly decent level (2nd division in Denmark)

I also really enjoy gaming, mostly with friends because that to me is more fun then on my own, where I get bored real easy.

How much time could you be on the server weekly?:

That depends on how much I have to do at work. Sometimes there isnt much to do and I can leave early, while on other days, there is loads to do

and I have to stay late. So i can most likely be on the server 10-20 hours a week.

What do you know about Roleplaying? Give a definition of what it means to you:

I actually don´t know that much about roleplaying, only what I have heard from friends. To me, with my little knowledge of it, roleplay is to

play as/act out a personality that is exactly as you want it to be.

What experience have you had in Roleplaying, if any?:

I haven´t had much experience first hand but on the Nations at War server I was witness to a lot of roleplaying and learned from that, while my task

within the roleplay was to be the silent gardener, who didn´t speak the common language. This inability to speak gave a chance to observe and learn.

In your own Words, define what the act of Meta-Gaming is:

This would be if your character acts on something that YOU know but your character really has no chance of knowing. i.e. someone telling you that

an army from another continent is about to make an attack on you and you then start on making traps and other preperations to withstand them.

In your own Words, define what the act of Power-Gaming is:

This would be someone who roleplays in such a way that the other roleplayers have no choice in their roleplay. Like someone saying: "I sneak my way into

their house in the night and slit their throats in their sleep.”

What do you expect this server will be like?:

I expect this server to be filled with friendly and nice people that know what they are doing when it comes to roleplay, aswell as being able to

build some real nice stuff.

What other server(s) have you played on and why did you leave them?:

I have played on two other servers. First I played on the Intrepid Society´s own server but we all felt like trying something new, which is when we went and joined Nations at War. Officially I have not left Nations at war but as they are between seasons at the moment, I can´t really play there at the moment. My descision to leave or not leave Nations at War really depends on how many Intrepids go back there.

Have you read, understood, and agreed to the rules?:

Yes, I have.

Do you promise to abide by said rules, and laws? This includes the Server, Forum, and Teamspeak set Rules:

Yes I promise to abide by said rules and laws.

How did you hear about us?:

I heard about the server from Senda the Intrepid Society "leader"

Have you previously made an Application? If so could you link us to your last Application?:

No I have not.

In-Character:

Character Name:

My name is Howard Semp, Just Semp to most people.

What Race are you?:

I am of the human race.

Biography (Please make this at least 2 paragraphs long. This must include the history of your character and his life as well as age,

appearance and personality, etc.):

Howard Semp, now 34 winters old, is the son of a very skilled lumberjack. The Semp family lived in the forest, only visited by people that came to buy

different kinds of wood. Even though they lived in the forest, which was quite far away from any city, the skills of Thomas H Semp had made him quite famous,

so when people needed quality wood they would seek out the Semps to get the best. Howard Semp had learned almost everything his dad knew about lumberjacking, was quite skilled with an axe and though he was young he was almost just as skilled as his dad. On his dads 40th birthday, Howard, 14 winters old, went out into the forest to find mushrooms and fruits, and possibly a gift for his dad, for the family dinner his mom always made when one of their birthdays came up.

Howard, the skilled lumberjack that he was, never left the house without his axe and today was no different. You could never know what you would encounter

in the forest, with all the wildlife in there. Today though, Howard didn´t come across any wildlife but he found a very rare tree, only a sapling, he knew

that his dad would love having a tree like this close to their house, so he dug around it, so he could take the tree home with him. So he filled the bag,

that was for mushrooms and fruits, with dirt and the placed the tree in that so it would stay alive for the journey back to the house.

Travelling home, young Howard comes upon the single most disturbing scene in his life: the murder of his parents.

A small band of soldiers took it upon themselves to overpower Howard's parents and as tears fill his eyes, Howard steps into the clearing in front of the house, just as the soldiers kill his mother and father.

Enraged beyond reason, Howard drops his bag, pulls out his axe and charges forward, swinging it wildy into the back of one of the soldiers, killing him instantly.

Screaming, Howard is then dragged to the ground by the other soldiers. Desperatly, his grasping hands search for a weapon as one of the soldiers starts to choke him to death while the other two hold him pinned down.

His hands find the sapling, discarded from the bag.

Barely half a foot long, Howards hands nevertheless close on the stem of the sapling as he musters his last bit of strength.. and rams the sapling into

the eyesocket of the warrior that tries to choke him, who falls over screaming, then spasming on the floor with the sapling protruding from his face.

Howard is then knocked unconcious.

When he comes to, he finds a single figure standing in front of him.

It is Gerrard Lane, who, as it turns out, heard the cries of battle while wandering the forest and came to Howard's aid.

As he looks around, Howard can see the bodies of all 4 soldiers, dead.

Without a word, Gerrard helps Howard to bury his parents and discard the bodies of the soldiers, after which howard gives the older knight

a nod of gratitude, then follows him.. off to wherever it may take him.

Many years later, Semp is the only surviving man-at-arms from Ser Gerrard's early days.

Having travelled with the Knight for nearly two decades, he has seen most of the horrible things the world has to offer a lowly footsoldier.

As a consequence, he has little faith in most things. least of all his master's ability to cook a decent meal.

Nearly always bitter about something, Semp has taken it upon himself to put the food on the table each night and even though he wasn't born a

farmer, he has had plenty of time to learn the trade and even though it has for the better part been forced upon him, Semp has taken a liking to the

quiet task of farming and cooking all sorts of food.

The two decades of continous service have bonded master and servant together through hardship.

When Semp one day caught a life-threatening illness during a campaign, Ser Gerrard went out of his way to procure a medicine to treat it, ultimately

saving Semp's life.

And when Ser Gerrard was heavily wounded in battle, it was Semp who rushed into the line of battle to drag his master clear.

What are your Character's ambitions?:

To lead a very simple and quite life, to rest from all the horrible things I´ve seen.

What is your character’s favorite tool? (sword, pickaxe, shovel, etc):

My favorite tool would be my trusted axe.

What is one of your Character's most skilled talents?

My most skilled talent is lumberjacking, followed by a keen interest in farming now that we finally get to settle down a bit.

A screenshot of your skin (must be in proper format, if you do not know how to acquire one, copy and paste this link into your browser: ( http://tinyurl.com/Lotcscreenshot ):

Other Information about your Character:

Due to some of the horrifying things that he has seen on his journeys with Ser Gerrard Lane, he rarely speaks nowadays and he doesn´t really trust

anyone but the people in his master's service.

Open-Response-Questions

Whilst traveling from the Cloud Temple you see a small halfling, being harassed by two armed warriors. They appear to be trying to

steal money from him, how does your character respond?

Howard Semp stood 12 feet away the two warriors and the haffling when he cleared hes throat and the two warriors turned around and looked at him. "this dosn´t concern you" One of them said.

"Ithink it does" Semp replied standing still just looking at the warriors. The warrior that spoke stood up and walked towards Semp while he drew his sword.

In that second Semp withdrew hes big axe which hang on hes bag. The warrior stopped dead in hes track, sword only half out of the sheed.The second warrior now stodd up with hes hand on hes sword exchanging looks with hes

partner in crime. A few moments later they both drew their swords and advanced on Semp. The silent one of the warriors took the first swing, striking from high right going low left, Semp did one side step and half ducked to

dodge the swing, and spun around in the same motion, axe swinging, making it a really hard hit.

*Crinch*

That was all the sound it made when the axe hit and broke the warriors sword. The warrior, now with just a hilt and 1 inch of blade, took two steps back and looked stunned. The other warrior looked bewildered, like he couldn´t belive what he had just seen. Semp looked at him, tilted his head a bit and smiled at him. "Im not fighting you" he said and dropped hes sword before he ran away as fast as his legs could cary him. Semp took one step towards the remaining warrior who was still standing stunned just looking at the remains of his sword."do you value your life warrior?" Semp asked. "ye-yes" the warrior studered. "THen you should rethink how you come by your minas and how you treat people" Semp said before he added "if I ever see you again, I hope for your sake that you have taken these words to heart". The warrior nodded and then ran away in the opposite direction to that of his partner. Semp swung his axe on his back and went over to the halfling, who had been laying on the ground watching the whole thing. Semp reached out a hand and helped the halfling to his feet.

"are you okay?" he asked.

"Im fine thx, had em right where i wanted them though" the hafling replied with a big smile on hes face.

Your character wanders into Alras, and comes across a small stall, behind which a well dressed man is standing. He’s offering various wares, the merchant turns to you and says in a posh accent " 'ello there, what can I do you for today?" What is your character response?

Semp, the silent type as he is, nodded politely at the merchant, "Im not hear to buy stuff" he thought while he kept walking.

"I have some very fair prices sir" the merchant said a little louder now that Semp was further away.

Semp paid no atention to this and kept on walking.

"You wont find anyone cheaper" the merchant shouted just as Semp turned a corner.

Whilst wandering in the wilds, your character comes across a small hut, which looks abandoned. Inside it you see a chest containing a few iron bars, and a golden sword. How would your character respond?:

Semp, after having looked inside the hut, walkes all around the hut taking a very good look at as he walks.

After studying the hut very closely he notices some very thin strings connected to the goods in the hut. "Interesting trap, could be a good challenge" he thought while he continued to look inside the hut.

"Unfortunately I dont have time for this right now" he thought after giving it considereble consideration.

Hungry and lost in the wilderness, you stumble across a small trading camp nestled among the forest, they greet you in the

common tongue, how do you respond?

With great effort, Semp meets the greeting with humble respect and with all the sound he can muster from his dry vocal cords he says: "Can you spare some

food and water?"

The man who seems to be in charge gestures to one of the woman in the camp, who quickly disapears into one of the tents. "What buisness do you have all the way out here?" asks the man in charge.

Still very quite and reluctant to tell the man the real reason hes there, Semp says: "I took a wrong turn somewhere in the forest and so I got lost".

You think me a fool do ya?" the man in charge said with raised voice and look on his face saying that he felt very much offended.

In the next moment the woman came back with water and a loaf of bread. She gave the water and bread to Semp who quickly drank the water, making his soar throat feal a lot better before he answered the man.

"No good sir, i do not. I am really telling you the truth".

"Okay then. The man in charge quickly answered, a litlle less insulted but still on the gaurd for any lies from Semp.

"What where u doing in the woods out here then? There are plenty of woods closer to your cities. And answer quickly" he added, so he could better tell if Semp was lying or not.

"I came out here to find some wood for a knew shaft for my axe". Semp replied quickly and continued, "wild trees are stronger then the trees we have close to the cities and make much better shafts". The man in charge sat silent while he took in what Semp had said, trying to figure out whether or not he should trust what he had been told or not. After a great time of consideration he spoke:

"Your words seem true and i choose to believe them. You can stay here for the night and then be on your way tomorrow.”

You hear word that bandits occupy the road outside the town in which you have been staying. The town guard have gathered, and are asking for assistance to help eliminate them. The leader of the party is offering a reward for any who offer their support. How does your character act on this information?:

After having heard the town guards speech, Semp stood in complete silence, thinking about the words he had just heard. A minute or two went by and still

there was complete silence. These people have been very kind to me and they are not fighting people, Semp thought.

"I shall help you defend this town and its kind people", Semp said, breaking the complete silence.

Anything else you would like to say?:

Not much. Im really looking forward to this.

Ayissa

Out-Of-Character

Minecraft Account Name:

Ayissa

How old are you?:

31 years young

Time-Zone/Country of Residence:

GMT/The Almighty Nation of Angletopia (or England)

Do you have a good grip on the English language/good grammar?:

Well I thought I did until I met this bunch I'm applying with and found Dutchies and Danes with better grammer than I. Sad panda :(

Small 2-3 Sentence Description of yourself:

I work hard and play hard. Currently I work a lot trying to futher my career (sucking corporate ass can be tiring) and as such tend to only be on during the evenings/weekends.

Out of work I enjoy gaming (ofc), drinking, and music. I've just returned from the Download Festival (headliners included The Prodigy, Metallica, and Black Sabbath), and although it was an awesome time, it has taught me that festivals are a young persons game.. and next year I will be getting a hotel!

How much time could you be on the server weekly?:

Well I live on my own so anywhere from every night, through to just weekends, I find gaming a very cyclical phenomena, and my game time often depends on "whether stuff be occuring".

What do you know about Roleplaying? Give a definition of what it means to you:

Right from an early age I have been interested in RP, from my early DnD days where I roleplayed Tanis the half elf (yes horrendously unoriginal name - dont pretend you haven't read them), with my dad who RP'd Cherrek the barbarian (again, a blatant ripoff). As I aged my interest veered off to single player RPG videogames (FF7 anyone?). Despite the change of medium I always enjoyed immersing myself in the law of the world, and experiencing total immersion (after a 48hr non stop Oblivion session I once threw my hand in the air trying to summon light on the way to the bathroom).

To me rolepay is quite a personal experience, the very nature of it means no two people will RP the same - for me it involves creating and understanding your character (not just HULK SMASH, but all the little foibles that make up the human experience, so it would be HULK SMASH... due to an overiding anger problem stemming from childhood trauma, that left him unable to express emotions and desires through the normal way).

What experience have you had in Roleplaying, if any?:

Well my time from DnD, WoW - although I wasnt on an RP server I originally created all my toons with an overiding theme (Ayissa my main was given the lightest skin and hair colours as possible, as she spent her early years as a prisoner of conscience deep in the bowels of Undercity. Upon reaching the age of 13 Ayissa found her cell door open, without greater knowledge of the outside world she took her first tentative steps into the world of Azeroth and... blaaagh Im getting sidetracked).

Also I have spent some time on the Nations at War server, and although our RP was universaly met with acclaim, Im hoping that on this server we will be the ones in awe!

In your own Words, define what the act of Meta-Gaming is:

The act of using information sourced from anywhere but your characters own knowledge - completely unacceptable.

In your own Words, define what the act of Power-Gaming is:

An act by which you give other players little if no control over the outcomes of events/senarios - acceptable in certain situations (i.e., 2 characters could be acting in a very powergaming manor to one another in the eyes of an outsider - but if this had been pre planned, and gave the "outsider" nothing more of a grand spectacle to observe, then I see no problems).

What do you expect this server will be like?:

I hoping awesome, enthralling, encrossing, immersive etc. However I will reserve judgment as i have already been let down by other servers.

What other server(s) have you played on and why did you leave them?:

N@W - great to start with, but the lack of RP was frustrating, and it was geared to PVP diamond monkeys who would spend every evening greifing you.

Our own community server - not left just dormant

Have you read, understood, and agreed to the rules?:

Yes, Yes, and Yes!

How did you hear about us?:

From our illustrious Community Leader who has been searching for a new home for us.

Have you previously made an Application? If so could you link us to your last Application?:

N/A

In-Character:

Character Name:

Father Jack "Ayissa" Hackett

What Race are you?:

Human

What Sub-Race are you?

N/A

Biography (Please make this at least 2 paragraphs long. This must include the history of your character and his life as well as age,

appearance and personality, etc.):

Little is known about Father Jacks background. Abandoned on the local churches steps as a baby young Jack was raised by the towns preacher. Often a difficult child Jack learnt his ways from the back of a cane rather than from the loving embrace of a family, so often was he in trouble that the townsfolk would come to use him as an example to pacify their own children, "If you don't go to bed right now you will be spending the night digging the graves with Jack".

Whilst still young of head Jack stumbled upon something that would radically alter his own perception, and set him on a path he would walk for his entire life - BOOKS!

Hours he would spend, tucked away in any corner he could find, pouring over ancient text, and modern poetry alike, fuellling a sudden insatiable urge to devour any and all knowledge. Through this radical change, Jack was given the chance to scribe for some of the churches more elderly ministers, and with that, was given access to one of the churches most prized assetts - the Grand Library.

What are your Character's ambitions?:

Father Hackett has grown past the point of mere ambition, and seeks only to enrich the lives of those around him by spreading the word of the Almighty. Despite this life of piety if you were to top up his flaggon at the end of a long night he may tell of stories of an ancient text, thought lost for many years that he aims to uncover.

What is your character’s favorite tool?

The Good Book of course - I am a messenager of the Almighty, all I need are my words of truth and the ears of good men, and with those I shall never need to draw metal.

...For the ears of bad men, i have my trusty shortsword "Fallen Bane"

What is one of your Character's most skilled talents?

Persuasion - you wouldn't go against the wisdom of your pastor.. would you?

A screenshot of your skin (must be in proper format, if you do not know how to acquire one, click here: http://www.lordofthe...kin-screenshot/):

Other Information about your Character:

Father Hackett has recently come into the service of Ser Gerrard, who himself was in need of spiritual guidance for his band of followers (the lord works in mysterious ways eh?). The church (in a rather quick turnaround) dispatched Father Hackett unto the aid of Ser Gerrard (although in typical church fashion they got the details wrong, as they had described the priest to be much younger).

Little is known of Hackett and what he does tell of his past endevours is often contradicted in favour of the more grandeur (especially after a mug or 10 of ale). A quick witted fellow, he often has to rely on his tongue and his unassuming physique to worm his way out of trouble, rather than resort to actual violence. As a priest Hacketts life is filled with civic duties and religious ceremonies, which despite his apparent dedication often seem to irritate Hackett more than placate him.

In order to travel under a less auspicious manner Hackett has taken to posing as the Blind Begger Ayissa, as he has often noted that under the gaze of the rich, the strong and the powerful, the old, infirm and poor and no more a threat than flies round dung.

Open-Response-Questions

Whilst traveling from the Cloud Temple you see a small halfling, being harassed by two armed warriors. They appear to be trying to steal money from him, how does your character respond?

*Hackett hangs back surveying his surroundings, trying to read the situation before him. In a flash he pulls the hood of his overcloak around his head, and starts to sing*

Annnnnd she was the lover of a dirty orc saaaailllor, and oh boy how he aways liked to naaiill

*Hackett stops singing and looks up at the warriors*

Spare a minas for an old blind begger?

*the larger of the two warriors eyes the begger up and down, before marching towards him*

be gone old man, this is not your business

Ahh maybe it is maybe it isnt, I once saw a spiderbaby, with the head of a baby, and the body of a baby, some would say that was non of my business

Hmm, a drunk.. and a begger.

*The large warrior spits at the beggers feet, and motions to the smaller warrior*

Get the harflings purse, we are done

*With that the smaller thug grabs the halflings coin purse and pushes him into the mud before joining his colleague and riding off over the hill laughing and jesting*

*The old begger turns to the halfling*

Stole ya coin did they?

*The halfling nods, tears whelling up in his eyes*

Weeeellll"*the old man chuckled*"If what is yours is theirs, then surely what is theirs is yours

*And with that he pulls out a much larger coin purse, embroided with the same crest that had been on the burly mans breastplate and throws it into the hands of the halfling.

Your character wanders into Alras, and comes across a small stall, behind which a well dressed man is standing. He’s offering various wares, the merchant turns to you and says in a posh accent " 'ello there, what can I do you for today?" What is your character response?

Good day my fine fellow, may the peace of the land rest among your family and the wealth of the oceans bring a bounty to your table

*The tradesman smiles falsely, as if to say your words are empty, only minas talks*

I'll cut to the chase dear fellow, what i seak you cannot provide, and what I desire you cannot produce, but you as a trademan, and myself as a *The priest grunts* customer, can dance our dance, shall we not.

Im listening *said the tradesman*

I have recently acquired a locket of some value *he holds up a silver locket inlaid with jewels of various worth*, being as I have little need for it I wish to trade it. Nothing to fancy of course, some wheat for my flock is all I ask.

Wheat *splutters the trademan* Of course, of course *the words barely have time to escape his pox scarred mouth in the excitment* 2 bags, no 3, hell 4 bags of wheat and with that you are robbing me.

No need for bags *the priest smiles* All I ask is for one stem today, and tomrrow you will double it.

So 2 stems *snears the trader*

yes, and the following day you will double that, and so forth for one full month.

Of course *rasps the trader, holding out a grubby hand to seal the deal*

Whilst wandering in the wilds, your character comes across a small hut, which looks abandoned. Inside it you see a chest containing a few iron bars, and a golden sword. How would your character respond?:

What does a simple priest want with gold or iron, I will however scribe the directions down to pass on, the next time I need leverage.

Hungry and lost in the wilderness, you stumble across a small trading camp nestled among the forest, they greet you you in the common tongue, how do you respond?

LO travellers, may the will of the devine bless you all with all that you desire, yet non of you have earnt.

*the traveller snigger at the priests comments*

Come *a man of orcish decent grunts* break bread with us priest.

*the priest stumbles forward in hunger, almost forgetting himself. Within a second the priest regains composure, straightens up, and moves towards the group taking note of their faces and sounds*.

You hear word that bandits occupy the road outside the town in which you have been staying. The town guard have gathered, and are asking for assistance to help eliminate them. The leader of the party is offering a reward for any who offer their support. How does your character act on this information?:

I am no fighter, and the bandits are unlikely to heed the word of my God. I shall however bless the my Holy warriors in the will of the devine, and pray their blades fall upon weak bodies. For i am the wrath of the devine, the will of the Almighty and the vengence of the Lord.

OOC ((plus always good to have someone on hand that can put the fun in funerals))

Anything else you would like to say?:

Just that I am looking forward to becoming part of this server, and becoming established in the lore behind the game. On a personal note, I love making adventure maps and puzzles in game, so presiding over a church and its catacombs is giving me some really knarly ideas for future "trials!

Colossis

Out-Of-Character

Minecraft Account Name:

Colossis

How old are you?:

I'm 31

Time-Zone/Country of Residence:

GMT Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England

Do you have a good grip on the English language/good grammar?:

Modestly excellent. I confess to being a little bit of a grammar nazi.

Small 2-3 Sentence Description of yourself:

I am an artistic type. I like to draw, sculpt and also the odd bit of 3d modelling at one time. I also enjoy climbing and have an interest in psychology, particularly social dynamics.

How much time could you be on the server weekly?:

I will probably be on 1-2 hours nightly, work overtime depending, and more over the weekend so i estimate about 10-15 hours weekly

What do you know about Roleplaying? Give a definition of what it means to you:

To me, it is to invent a character befitting a particular theme and act out the part in given situations, staying true to the characters personality throughout.

What experience have you had in Roleplaying, if any?:

Very little actually. I roleplayed on out old minecraft server but there was so much 'out of character' dialogue flying around over there that we found it frustrating. It seemed everyone there were roleplaying as themselves.

In your own Words, define what the act of Meta-Gaming is:

It is staying true to the character and what they would know. not letting your OOC knowledge affect your in-character decisions.

In your own Words, define what the act of Power-Gaming is:

It is roleplaying your character in such a way that would make you over powered and give you an unfair advantage. eg, "he donned his cloak of invisibility and ring of invulnerability before drawing the sword of unstoppability. Within 30 seconds he had killed the 100 men who surrounded him" - or something equally as silly.

What do you expect this server will be like?:

Some proper, in-character roleplay the likes of which I have not seen. Also some genuinely nice folk who actually give a shiz about what they are doing.

What other server(s) have you played on and why did you leave them?:

I first played on the Interpid Society server aroundabout 1.7 time onwards. we build some pretty cool stuff including a medieval village in which we had our own unofficial partly RP roles. We then went to Nations at War for what we thought would be some proper RP. There was a lot of RP going on but sadly some meta-gaming too. It is still a good server though and the admins have some good ideas. Currently, I play on a private creative server with my close friend and a select few others. No roleplay, just building. I do enjoy survival most as it is the most rewarding.

Have you read, understood, and agreed to the rules?:

Yes indeed.

Do you promise to abide by said rules, and laws? This includes the Server, Forum, and Teamspeak set Rules:

Yes absolutely.

How did you hear about us?:

As usual, Senda our dedicated Intrepid Society "leader" found you and told us.

Have you previously made an Application? If so could you link us to your last Application?:

Nope

In-Character:

Character Name:

What is in a name? A mans actions are where his true value lies. A name is meaningless. Oh, very well. My given name is Calvin Olward, Though some prefer to call me Eagle.

What Race are you?:

I am of the Humans.

Biography (Please make this at least 2 paragraphs long. This must include the history of your character and his life as well as age,

appearance and personality, etc.):

"I came to this land many years ago, leaving behind a past I'd rather forget."

The wound over his eye has long since healed to a scar but the memory of it still runs raw.

"I was nought much more than a boy when I had a sword shoved in my hand. 'you will fight with your countrymen in glorious battle', 'glorious', *hrumph* There's nothing glorious about battle. It's a bloody, cruel mess. There are no winners in war. Only those who lost a little less than their enemies."

Calvin Olward is a man who's face you could not gaze into for too long. But even with one eye, he could hold your gaze for days from a thousand meters away.

With jet black hair covering his head and a closely trimmed beard on his chin, standing over six feet tall and half as broad you would not want to meet this imposing figure close up either.

Yet he would not harm you unless you had harmed one of his. A bowman by trade, a hunter by necessity, his aim with an arrow is hard to rival.

He was born during the winter 39 years ago to a loving mother and a stern father. He learned hard lessons about life, respect for oneself and others, and respect for the earth that sustains us.

He learned to be thankful to the animals, for the meat from their bones and the warmth from their pelts. When he was a young boy, word soon spread of the 'boy who was born with a bow in his hand'. He was recruited by the soldiers of his land, given a longbow, and thus his destiny was decided.

Fighting many battles in his twenties, Calvin soon became embittered by war. Seeing no point in the petty squabbles of rich men, he left his homeland in search of himself. Travelling farther than many could dream, he found himself in an inn one night, purchasing some drinks and board with the game he had so easily hunted that day, he sat down next to an old knight. Drinking into the night and swapping stories of battle, they came to realise that though, opposites in many ways, they shared common ground -two warriors trying to find their place in the world. Thus, Calvin agreed to take a place among the old knights entourage.

A solitary man, Calvin now wanders woods for game by day and the battlements of the keep by night. A man with simple needs, he is very honourable but also very blunt, seeing little need for the 'pleasantries of rich men'.

What are your Character's ambitions?:

To live out his life in service to his friend, confidant and master, Gerrard.

What is your character’s favorite tool? (sword, pickaxe, shovel, etc):

My most faithful friend is the bow in my hand.

What is one of your Character's most skilled talents?

If I am not fending off bandits with my bow, I am hunting my meals with it. I am an archer, through and through.

A screenshot of your skin (must be in proper format, if you do not know how to acquire one, copy and paste this link into your browser: ( http://tinyurl.com/Lotcscreenshot ):

Other Information about your Character:

With no desire for battle, Calvin is comfortable in the employ of Gerrard, a man with few enemies. Thus he is happy to live out his days here serving as protector to his friend and living off the land.

Open-Response-Questions

Whilst traveling from the Cloud Temple you see a small halfling, being harassed by two armed warriors. They appear to be trying to

steal money from him, how does your character respond?

Calvin stood fast, bow in hand, prey in sight. The first arrow whistling past the first mans head.

He did not miss, this was merely a warning shot. Before the man had time to turn around and draw his sword, Calvin had readied another arrow and brought it to bear.

"I must make clear to you that I wish you no harm, however, if you do not let the boy go, I may change my mind"

"Who the hell do you think you are?"

"My name is not important. The bow pointed at your neck is."

"He stole from us."

"I didn't ask. You are two grown men, he is a boy. Let him go"

The second man releases his grip on the halfling who runs away.

"Now start walking"

"And why should we do that? Why don't we just kill you where you stand for you're insolence?"

"There's 40 feet between us, I'm holding a bow and you two have swords. That a good enough reason for you?"

The two men look at each other sheepishly.

"Not complete morons then. Now back away"

The two men, clearly in a no-win situation, begin to back away. Calvin lowers his bow, takes the apple he had been eating out of his sack and takes a bite.

"Watch yourself in future boy"

The boy, who had circled back and been watching from the treeline came forward.

"Thankyou mister"

"Be gone with you boy"

Calvin puts his bow on his back and continues on his journey.

Your character wanders into Alras, and comes across a small stall,

behind which a well dressed man is standing. He’s offering various wares, the merchant turns to you and says in a posh accent " 'ello there,

what can I do you for today?" What is your character response?

"Afternoon. I have no need of your wares, I am here for my master who requires mead."

"Ah sir, you have come to the right place. Tell me, will it be coin or trade?"

"I have some wolf pelts to trade. Fresh yesterday"

Calvin produces three pelts, flayed from the wolf as only a trained hunter can.

"Ah, good good? I can give you two cases of mead for them"

"Sounds fair. Farewell"

Calvin leaves with the mead

Whilst wandering in the wilds, your character comes across a small hut, which looks abandoned. Inside it you see a chest

containing a few iron bars, and a golden sword. How would your character respond?:

Calvin is a simple man, with no need of a golden sword.

"a waste of a useless metal", he says

Calvin is also no thief and without any real reason to take the items, he leaves them be.

Hungry and lost in the wilderness, you stumble across a small trading camp nestled among the forest, they greet you in the

common tongue, how do you respond?

"Hello. If I may ask if you have any food going spare"

"And why should we give any to you"

Calvin thinks back to the abandoned hut and replies: "I can tell you where to find some iron bars and a golden sword"

The traders look suspiciously at him for a moment befor bursting into a big belly laugh.

"Hahaha. I like you my friend, you look hungry, come share with us and rest, tomorrow we travel to Alras. Golden sword indeed.."

You hear word that bandits occupy the road outside the town in which you have been

staying. The town guard have gathered, and are asking for assistance to help eliminate them. The leader of the party is offering a reward for any

who offer their support. How does your character act on this information?:

With no need for the reward, no ties in this town and no desire for a fight, Calvin goes about his business. With his background hunting wild animals, he slips past the bandits and goes on his way, leaving the town guard to do their job.

Anything else you would like to say?:

Nope, thinking I will enjoy this if I am accepted

To close off this joint application, I would like to give you, the reader, a brief overview of our initial plan.

We intend to form a small band, centered around an elderly knight.

This knight, who has a background in masonry and architecture, travels the lands, working for other knights and lords, designing and building keeps, manors and other buildings.

In his following are the young squire whom he intends to teach a bit of temperance, as well as his herald, two men-at-arms, one of which he has known for a very long time, while the other is a recent addition (and very lazy).

After the recent war against Salvus and with the imminent construction of Riven castle, the King himself has seen fit to gently nudge the Silverblades a bit and make sure that Ser Gerrard recieves a small plot of land for him and his following to get settled, so they can properly stick around for the construction of the big castle.

(Cunning man, this King, giving us the impression we “get something” when really, he is chaining us down to a piece of land to make sure we are conveniently close to help get that big castle built.)

Aside from finding a place to call home before we are even on the server, we played around a bit with building styles and have settled on the following:

And if all of this is not enough, then the following teaser, made by our very own Goatimore, will likely only depress you further:

[SDJFDSJNFDSLKJVNDFBN 315]

Accepted

[Haelphon 407]

ACCEPTED.

(Please wait for a Game Moderator to implement you in-game)

[Neri 3590]

Accepted! INB4 storm of 'Accepted!'

[Thu'um 530]

Accepted

[color="#00FF00"][size="7"]Accepted[/size][/color]

[TRAY 162]

Accepted

---

Please be patient for a GM will Implement you soon.

Good Luck, and Safe Travels.

[Alan 1815]

Accepted!

[Ursolon 197]

ACCEPTED!

[SDJFDSJNFDSLKJVNDFBN 315]

Moved to Accepted Forum

[Neri 3590]

Implemented