Overview
The House of the Crimson Wings RP is a Asian based horror/myth RP set in modern times based in Secondlife and also on [http://www.rpol.net ]RPoL. The story is centered around the events that occur in a large Asian home turned bed and breakfast for the weary traveler. The House can appear anywhere, and disappears just as quickly. Those who find themselves to be guests in the house are often times become permanent. The House itself dictates who it does and does not allow into it.
There are many elements of contemporary horror as well as asian mythology ( with a liberal flavor from other sources such as anime.) in the RP. It is primarily a horror based game, violent, with undead, ghosts, demons, human sacrifice, torture, etc. However, because of our hosts, we have to ask that if you intend to RP anything sexual that would require you being naked, that you do so elsewhere. People found doing naughty things on the premise beyond kissing or holding hands will be removed. The island we are on is PG, but we have an okay for graphic blood and violence.
Premise Simplified
I get a lot of people asking about what the premise of this RP is. Realistically, the premise has as much to do with your character as it does the environment, but here is a very quick and dirty breakdown.
The House of Crimson Wings is a ‘haunted house’ environment. Depending on the type of character you wish to play, your personal motivations will be different. There are three main ‘factions’ in the house: Humans (and their various subgroups), Undead (spirits and anything that was once alive and now isn’t.), and Youkai. (demons). For each of these groups, the main goal is ‘survive’; the secondary goal is usually ‘get stronger’ or ‘escape’. But the actual ‘goal’ for you will depend on what your character wants.
Regardless of your character type, or status as living, dead, or supernatural, you are trapped in the house. The house is setup a little like a bed and breakfast by the people who’ve become trapped and can’t figure out how to leave, or don’t want to leave for whatever reason and have struck a deal with the Caretaker to work for her in exchange for being left alone by her. However, other entities in the house have to be bargained with individually or bribed on an individual basis. Some are simply unreasonable or downright evil. There are parts of the house where the dead or supernatural have no sway, and this is where humans are encouraged to stay, however, the only answers to why the house has lured your character and how they are being held captive lie within the ‘haunted’ sections of the house. Of course, not all characters are there ‘accidentally’, some come looking for loved ones, and others come looking for power, wealth, or fame. Indeed objects that grant power and knowledge that would grant wealth and fame are there, but can you obtain them and live to tell about it?
Rules
There are several rules and guidelines to follow in terms of behavior, conflict resolution, and roleplaying in general that should be followed by all participants, official characters or not. A lot of how well an RP area performs is dependant on its players following the rules. Please see the rules section for the specific guidelines and rules of the RP as how they partain to both the Secondlife setting and the RPoL setting.
Time frame/Period
The actual time frame is ‘modern’, however, the house itself exists in a separate time and space which allows it to exist in ‘all past times’. So it can’t exist in the future, but it can exist in any time it has already existed. The house itself seeks out the souls that it calls to, be they living, dead, or demon in every moment of its existence from the time it was built to now. Thus, characters from any historical timeframe from the 1300’s to present day in any country, could have found their way into the house. However, we ask that you try to respect the environment, and remember it follows Japanese rules, regardless of if your character is American, English, Indian, etc. All staff and permanent residents are ‘acclimatized’ to Japanese lifestyle and customs over time.
In the house itself, time 'moves strangely'. People who stay in the house do not age, however, time does seem to pass in terms of people getting tired or hungry, or taking time to heal or talk. Time passes, but yet, it does not. If a person does manage to leave the house, sometimes only hours or minutes will have passed at the point where they 'leave'. However, if a person has been trapped a long time, it may have been centuries. When a person leaves the house, time begins to move as normal for them, biologically, from the same point where they entered the house.
How the house works
Nothing is untouchable in this world. While undead and youkai can’t ‘die’ truly, they can be banished or trapped, or ‘consumed’ which is about their equivalent of death. Humans who actually die usually transition to undead of some kind (of which, there are several flavors..), or in some extraordinary cases can become Youkai upon their death.
When a human enters the house, they are trapped there. The house does not randomly trap people. It only traps people who are trappable. That means that they have a reason to be there that keeps them there. The trap is as much in the mind and desires of the person as it is physical. This mental link is called a 'sin'.
As long as a person desires what trapped them there in the first place, even just a little, they cannot leave. The house will produce things that feed an individuals desires and lusts for that person/object/situation to the point where they become so strong they build a spiritual prison called a 'sinchain' that binds their soul with an unbreakable spiritual chain to the house itself. Eventually the house will work a sinner into such a frenzy that it will complete the chain and then kill them, generally this is where a 'transition' will end up occurring. Transitions are when living people become spirits/undead, or demons(youkai). Depending on that strength of desire will depend on the undead type or youkai they become upon their death. This usually ensures the human is quite insane by the time they become a ghost or demon, so much so they often forget who they originally were and focus almost exclusively on their reason for being here.
Survival
You might be wondering exactly what in the house is out to get your character. The answer is pretty simple; everything.
The main ‘villain’ of the house is the ‘Caretaker’; a greater demon who has acquired a taste and need to consume the flesh of human beings. However, the Caretaker is the least of ones worries as one is just as likely to be slaughtered by a supposed fellow human as they are a demon or ghoul. The house brings out the worst in everyone, driving them to acts of cruelty and madness they never imagined themselves capable of. As time does not appear to move in the house, people do not age, so they can live literally until they are killed, and then, they don’t always die, and don’t always stay dead depending.
Demons and ghosts are spiritual beings, and as such, humans cannot normally see, hear, or touch them unless they are psychic or partially demon themselves (hanyo). Demons and undead fight amongst themselves all the time, demons consuming the energy of ghosts, or vice versa, forcing the drained party to seek the life energy of humans to replenish or simply gain more. A human that is being drained will not die if their energy is consumed, but they will fall unconscious for a period of time. Only certain demons actually consume flesh, and those are the most dangerous of them, however, there are subtypes of human, hanyo, that have been turned into a living monster which will eat human flesh and drink human blood. (see vampires and werewolves section)
Japanese Mythology
The house and mythos of the game are seeped in Japanese mythology and superstitions. As such, it works a little different than western cultures. In Japanese myth, ghosts are always bound by a strong emotion. This is most often one or more of the following: revenge, duty, loyalty, mortal lusts, fear, regret, sorrow, or love. Japanese ghost stories are often morality tales, warning against certain behaviors that would be detrimental to the individual or society for a variety of reasons. There are some more modern tales that are very much like modern western ghost stories, but the older ones are almost always warnings. As such the ghosts are generally consumed with a particular emotion, need, want, or drive. They are always seeking to fulfill this drive, and in the HoCW, the need is always fed, but the fulfillment never comes. If it did, the character would find themselves released from the house and could not return. Much like a drug to a drug addict, the house feeds the desires of its inhabitants so that they cannot leave, even if they think they want to.
Death in the RP
Because this is a horror RP, people die. However, not every time you are reduced to zero hit points are you dead. A ghost for example, can’t kill you by draining your life energy, nor can a youkai, as you simply fall unconscious. You appear ‘dead’, particularly if you were using the DCS2, but it is considered a KO. True death has to be consensual. Some characters may experience ‘death’, but any unwanted death may be written off as a ‘dream’ after the death timer expires (or the person decides to get up.). If a character dies physically, they may also choose to rise as a ghost, in which case, their physical body is dead and they join the many spirits in the House. True death is when the character decides they no longer wish to play that character and wants them to be truly gone so they can chance characters or leave the game. Death means different things to undead and youkai. To undead, it means their spirit somehow manage to pass on, escaping the House of Crimson wings. For Youkai, it means they return to where they came from, banished back to the world beyond the well.
Things to do
Obviously different types of characters have different things to do. Your character should have personal motivations which flavor all of your dealings, particularly ghosts and other obsessive undead, but there are other things to do. Depending on your role and race, you’ll probably get involved in other things. If you aren't sure exactly what that means or how to get involved, I highly suggest that you look at the character_types page for ideas on the stereotypes of characters in the environment that you can build off of. It is also good not to base your character too much on any of the canon (such as relationships with Aiko or the Caretaker) so that you can be independent and still function without other characters having to be around. Try to look more at the general history of the house and your own characters motivations and goals. Remember, they are trapped in the house and most likely trying to get out, but they will be confronted with their sin, and other people with the best or worst of intentions.
Character Creation
Interested in making a character? Go here: character creation
