Race diversity among chapters

It's the word "origin" that is the worry. Like I said, we've had problems in the past with certain chapters making up crazy stuff and contradicting what was already in-game. I like a consistent world. I think it makes it more fun for players and allows for more cross-chapter racial plot.

We probably should have origin stories for all the races in the future, just so we don't contradict each other too much.

The process would be for the GM to appoint a committee to update the race packets. I'm not sure they need updating -- we actually cut a lot out of them about 10 years ago to allow chapters to create unique cultures. I do think it wouldn't be a bad idea to review them and perhaps add origin stories, but I am also worried about having it change too much. Committees aren't always the best way to do things creatively. Perhaps we could have a contest for players to write origin stories and then the committee could chose one for each race.
 
Having reread the national packets for Stone Elf and Biata I think if the Origin stories were worded more as concrete, it may be easier to follow an exact origin story.

For the Biata, as taken from the packet: http://alliancelarp.com/forum/threads/national-race-packets.16480/

"The actual origin of the biata race is lost to antiquity, but the
following tale may hold a grain of truth. Later, more recent studies
of this history are easier to confirm."

then at the end, it notes:
"As biata traveled through the mists and discovered other
biata, the legends crossed and now no one is certain where the
original biata originated."

When I read that, as a Plot person it clicks that okay, each land has it's own Biata origin. The Cave Biata(origin story Biata) met other Biata not created in the way the Cave Biata when traveling through the mist. So maybe those Biata were something else. I like Biata being Gryphon/Stone Elf mix, but the National Packet could use more clarification to make the origin more "this is the actual origin; and not leave room for interpretation". Does that make sense?
 
In regards to each chapter having their own origins stories/mythos/cosmology for various races,

I believe that there is a significant difference between "culture" and "supernatural" origins in regards to races. In the spirit of every chapter having their own local flavor, I believe that it also the good stewardship of each chapter to make sure that our stories do not infringe on each other. To this end, most races of which I have either played as, experienced, or written for, tend to have vague or obscured supernatural origin in favor of a focus on the cultural origin of the race.

In regards to every race having their own supernatural origin story. I would advocate that instead of individual contests for each race, that people could provide comprehensive cosmologies that put all of the races into a single model (made murky by time and perspective). In my opinion, this would be a bit touchy, because racial mechanics should compliment racial stories and currently mechanics are in a bit of flux.

I hope I contributed positively to this conversation,

Michael Duetzmann
 
Yes, we're arguing over different meanings of the word "origin." The packets were written specifically to let chapters write myths about their races, but those myths should be consistent with each other in a very basic way. I don't want elves from the 9th dimension, for instance, and dryads didn't come from rocks. You see what I mean. I understand that this is NOT happening now in any chapters and I'm happy, but I am also a bit skittish because it has in the past (as per the examples I gave earlier -- I wasn't exaggerating about barbarians from space).

As for a Unified Theory of Races, that might be interesting. Dryads were first, and then dragons created elves, who made stone elves who made biata who devolved into humans and later into orcs and ogres and dwarves while wylderkin were the result of lycanthropy...

You know, that sort of thing. (Do not think that what I just wrote is in any way official.) ;)
 
Poalo said:
In regards to each chapter having their own origins stories/mythos/cosmology for various races,

I believe that there is a significant difference between "culture" and "supernatural" origins in regards to races. In the spirit of every chapter having their own local flavor, I believe that it also the good stewardship of each chapter to make sure that our stories do not infringe on each other. To this end, most races of which I have either played as, experienced, or written for, tend to have vague or obscured supernatural origin in favor of a focus on the cultural origin of the race.

In regards to every race having their own supernatural origin story. I would advocate that instead of individual contests for each race, that people could provide comprehensive cosmologies that put all of the races into a single model (made murky by time and perspective). In my opinion, this would be a bit touchy, because racial mechanics should compliment racial stories and currently mechanics are in a bit of flux.

I hope I contributed positively to this conversation,

Michael Duetzmann
Click to expand...

Honestly stories are in a bit of an odd spot as well, given that I still haven't seen any reason why Sarr aren't Wylderkin and Barbarians/Gypsies aren't human cultures other than rules representation.
 
Right now, I would argue that right now their is not complete sync between the mechanics and stories behind each of the races. I suspect that one of the larger changes that has been happening behind the scenes is working on the sync between the two, with a national roll out to follow.
 
What would be very very helpful, is a statement, just for everything: 'This is where your races started from, weather they know about it or not in your chapter or have created different mythos, or beleive something else, is irrelevant, but this is where they started and that is the solid fact.' -Because then everyone knows what page they are starting with and that we are acknowledging sortof the 'Galapagos' effect the mists have on Fortannis, As well as- not even updated, but re-formatted race packets, where each one has the same format, and around the same length, each one presents the same sections of necessary info for chapters/new players to get started.

This way each race is presented equally ooc to prospective players, each has its own spark of inspiration to offer, they are all different, but the content is all equally and tightly laid out. Then each chapter will have something solid, accross the board, to base their own little fiefdoms on and tell a story with while maintaining the one solid common thread. No space aliens.

But... please dont vote on what gets selected if you you do updates. ..if I can ask this. Very good writers, with no ego to get in the way of the creative process, working together, to create a great set of cohesive world flavor packets, is what you need. But as others have voiced, it sounds like theres good developments at works already and Im interested to see what rolls out.
 
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B.Barber said:
But... please dont vote on what gets selected if you you do updates. ..if I can ask this. Very good writers, with no ego to get in the way of the creative process, working together, to create a great set of cohesive world flavor packets, is what you need.
Click to expand...

I volunteer.

.

.

Sorry, it's late and I thought it would be funny to say that and have a few people shiver. :D
 
Another option I've seen is races that are fairly "new" as their race, and thus have a separate origin from the rest of their race from other continents. HQ has a MWE culture (Children of Camulous) and a Barbarian culture (Vakkar) where an entire population of people were mass Race Changed (By a big fae and and a dragon respectively) though both packets stick exactly to the racial roleplay/costume/prosthetic requirements laid out in the rulebook and national packets.

I personally don't worry about the exact origin story for a race being tied to a singular event on one place as long as every Dark Elf I meet regardless of chapter is honorable, every Mystic Wood Elf hates slavery, every High Ogre hates necromancy and so on. If there HAD to be "origins" for the races I'd want them to be so long ago that members of that race on each continent don't remember it well if at all, and the door is till left open for things like massive ritual backlashes "creating" new enclaves of the race (or some other means) without being connected to the "true" elves or whathaveyou.

If nothing else it would set up drama cross-chapter if some High Orcs hated others because they were bred or magic'd into existence rather than being of the "First Clan" or some such.
 
The origin stories aren't as important to me as the description of the race. Biata are related to gryphons (and stone elves). Otherwise, they're not biata any more, but some other race. Stone elves were once elves, not raccoon-kin. That sort of thing. The story of how that happened isn't as important and can vary from chapter to chapter (as long as it's not "they came from outer space").
 
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