The last Druid of Evil

Aepas

Hello everyone,
My name is Aepas. Now.. I started him a long time ago, but due to a lack of mentorship or understanding, I went "dormant" I randomly decided to come back, much to my pleasure. Plenty of RP and story to be heard to those that listen.. but just as much hate from opposing factions

Aepas is a druid, and a "guardian of nature". But as he is a Mhaldorian, he destroys forest. Why? He betrays the very thing that gives him his power, and he meditates in a grove that tries to rend the flesh from his limbs.

Now everyone wants to be the "special flower". The child prodigy. The rising star. I am none of those things, but I do play a lot of RP to give myself life and enjoyment. With the coming of alchemists, I've even had to write a very strict set of beliefs and arguments for Aepas' druidic tendencies for evil.

The forest is a living being.
There seems to be a disconnect in what the forest is. Aepas seems to believe that the forest is it's own being and entity. So, just like a person it can evolve and grow through the seven truths of evil. Hence, defiling his own grove and the forest around it is not that big of a deal to him. In fact, it is his duty. He wants the forest to suffer as he has, and teach it the ways of cruelty and oppression. He believes that Oakstone has corrupted the forest by protecting it, and has allowed it to grow weak under their constant watch. He believes that oakstone is only hurting the forest by protecting it like they do.
Granted, that's a quick wrap up of what he might say if you met him IC. But there are... well, only eleusians, and specifically Delphinius who are massively against this. Aepas is hunted down and killed pretty religiously it seems, for the forest. I feel like the forest is the "lava" game you played as a kid. Don't touch it! or you get an eleusian gank squad. really.. I can die to like, one person. let alone multiple. Now, it was on an OOC clan, before I decided to leave all OOC clans to preserve RP, but I did talk with Delphinus about what the forest was. It's been said that the forest is turning into it's own sort of.. I don't know, religion, faction, etc. Should the forest really be like that? Aepas thinks the forest is pure neuteral, and part of his being Mhaldorian is to protect the balance with the overwhelming power of the forestals. (mainly the few artytanks on their team). But! he wants to see Oakstone go! he finds it unbalanced and not in true neutrality. Now.. help me out here guys. I have really looked for forest texts, books, and what the forest is. If Aepas' thoughts are wrong, I'll gladly rework his appearance. But I can't seem to find what the forest wants/is in the way of combat or progression. So to assume the forest wants to return all to nature seems false, and to say that the oakstone people are keeping balance is wrong. Aepas believes in true neutrality and will eventually leave Mhaldor, and even protect the forests from them, if things became balanced once again. That is just his belief, and he reflects it through his RP.

Knighting.
Aepas wants nothing more than to be a knight of the Maldaathi. They laugh at him, and lightly keep his delusions alive. Aepas feels like he has no place in Mhaldor.. which he doesn't as a druid. He wants to bea knight.. but he can't be one because he is a druid. However! he can't change. He just cant. The spirits of the forest possessed him (from RP perspective) and he is almost more hydra than Xoran. He can't just force them out or he might die. Still, he trains with the knights, friends the knights, and wishes someday to join them.
Now.. this goes under one of those suspension of disbelief things. Achaea seems like a place where -anything- can happen, not just what is hard coded into the game. To become a knight would be the greatest accomplishment for him, but only as a druid. If I were to just make him change classes to get his knighthood, would that be as worth while? I don't think so. Why not try.. over many days, many years, to work towards something that might be a form of unorthodox RP? it keeps things interesting, it makes the life worth living. He knows he is shunned, so he tries to make the best that he can, even if he is mocked within his own city, and shunned by everyone else in his attempt to be a knight

Self.
Aepas always speaks of himself in the third person. Not in the "aepas wants a cookie." but.. "This one wants a cookie. He is happy he got a cookie." wow.. that one is harsh. It seemed like a mildly good idea at first.. and he does have reasons. But many people just get annoyed and tell me oocly that doing this is stupid.
Aepas does not believe in self. he only believes in forest, evil and the Masters of Mhaldor. That is why he speaks as he does. he refuses to say "I" because that is recognition of self, and he believes if you see self, then you don't see yourself as an instrument to the lords. It is a very emotional and religious aspect he holds dear.

Hydra.
Aepas believes the hydra is the most powerful of all the spirits inhabiting him. He is a xoran, and has gone blind and deaf from meditating in his grove that attacks him. his Tympanum are torn and he has suffered corneal lacerations. He only sees through his spirits and the empathy he has with the forest. People have asked him race.. and he always replies Hydra. so many strange looks. He is actually abandoning his own body in the favor of the more powerful spirits that co-inhabit him. So.. he is a hydra, that can sometimes turn into a Xoran.

Overall, I think that I am playing aepas very.. non-cannon to Achaean lore and history. I really don't mean to, and I look very carefully to try and find if I am doing things wrong from an objective standpoint. If the forest says DRUIDS MAY ONLY TEND AND ASSIST THE FOREST IN BENEFICIAL WAYS THAT DO NOT HARM IT, EVER. Then he would have to change his ways. But he believes he is being beneficial He is acting with a zealous passion, and he is acting strange. I really do try to keep things within the scope of reality as far as Achaea sees it, but other players are what get in the way. I am the most horrible and disgusting thing ever, being the Mhaldorian Druid.  I've been compared to a priest if they served Mhaldor. But.. the thing is, there is no anti-druid. Priests have Apostates, and infernals have paladins.. druids have.. Alchemists? no.. that doesn't work. seems like alchemists were rather shoddily put into the game.. just randomly throwing in another harvesting skill. If there was a form of -evil- drood I would do that, and attempt to corrupt and bend the forests to my will.. but druid is still a balance. So Aepas seeks for true neutrality, in forest and society.

I don't know. You tell me, folks. Where am I wrong, where am I right.. and why does such forms of RP garner so much hate? is it different? is it -too- different? help me improve myself in an RP way that is enjoyable for everyone, and thank you to those that have assisted me, and even gone along with my silly beliefs.

Vayne

The Forest as a being
The forest definitely has a whole faction behind it, a city, houses, orders, and a unique organization. I am no expert on the RP for Nature aligned players but they definitely deify Nature. In that aspect you cannot really call them or Nature neutral because they are seeking their own goals, ie the preservation of the Forests and have opposition mainly in Mhaldor and Evil.

That being said, I think your roleplay of teaching the forests of Evil by causing them to experience Suffering and Oppression are intriguing and valid options for sure. Like Adventurers the flora and fauna need to become stronger or be destroyed and you are spurring evolution through actively selecting the unfit organisms. Accusing Oakstone of coddling the forests is perfectly valid as well and is in line with Evil RP, I would say.

Knighting
That one is hard because being a knightly class is something hardcoded in, you cannot be a Druid and have chivalry. That one depends on how far an organization is willing to go in roleplaying around the hardcoded stuff. I know the Knights of Hashan accepted Serpents for a while and I HATED it, mainly because Serpent is so antithetical to the concept of knights. Again, correct me if I am wrong knight people, but it seems to me that the standard RP is that if you want to serious pursue a career as a knight then you will be devoted enough to switch classes. This could play well with you character wanting to be a knight but yet not willing to completely follow the path of the knight.

Self
See, you have a good reason to speak in the third person, but most people will not know your background for it and just think you are trying to attract attention. If that is your RP and you do it well, go for it.

Hydra
Basically, the same as my comments about self, as long as you, the player, understand that your character is not actually a hydra! :P

I'd say your character is pretty unique but from what I see here, it seems in a good way. Your character is not anti-forest, he is just not orthodox in the way he serves it. Ultimately he still wishes to see it flourish but by Evil means. I think you are fine in theory; it just comes down to how well you can execute all that.

Vasool

Question. Do you believe your character has a hydra body? Or is it just a hydra spirit? I've noticed your RP and it seems to imply that you are playing your character as physically having a body of a hydra. Would this be an accurate assessment?

As for the rest of your RP, I find no fault at all. In fact it's very intriguing, even a bit refreshing.

Regarding the knight aspect, I'm all for that idea, it's great. However, keep in mind, from a Maldaathi perspective, you would never be given the title or accolades of being a knight. You might earn much respect, and even have 'honour' but you wouldn't ever be viewed as a knight or permitted to be called Sir in Mhaldor. That's just an aside for you (the player) to be aware of. I wasn't sure if the statement "...over many days, many years..." was coming from your character's mind or yours (the player) so I just thought I'd offer that up to you.

Aepas

It's hard to decide if the forest spirits are real or not. It is obvious they are tangible, because i don't think that Aepas grows seven heads and just shoots fire at things, the hydra does. Yet, the hydra is only a shimmering form surrounding him, letting a very weak and frail body hang inside it's existence. I assume in most aspects, the hydra -is- physical, and -is- real, but it is still only a form of tangible spirit. you can see it, and you can feel it, yet it is only like a very potent form of spirituality and belief. Just my thoughts. Yes, I do RP as though I am in a hydra body. Kinda hard to do.

as far as the knights, I know. I'll likely never make the title "sir". I'll keep trying though.

Ruth

I can see the perspective from those who have been playing Eleusians for a lengthy amount of time that this brand of roleplay you've placed Aepas down upon is something that directly goes against what they've always assumed and formed an understanding of, about the forests. To them, I think Aepas comes off directly as a heretic who, thus, have no rights to step foot in the forests in order to preserve the sanctity of their ideology.

I'm sure there's nothing wrong with the roleplay direction you've built for Aepas; in fact, I find it acceptable. As someone who has placed a sentinel before switching to alchemist (feel free to shoot me down), I perceived the forest a living thing in need of some discipline. Preserving nature is fine and well, plants should be allowed to flourish and grow wildly. Some trees might grow to be strong, some would not. Part of allowing the forest to grow on its own means that only the strongest, hardiest plants lives, ones that do not continue to leech sunlight, nutrition or whatever else from them because they refuse to die. Therefore, the Mhaldorian forestal mentality in my opinion is that we assist in this process, but supporting those who would purge all life in a forest, so that those truly strong would rise again.

I think your main problem here, is that you cannot find anyone to actively debate or argue back and forth with regards to how this whole nature ideology should work, and you're not finding people willing enough to roleplay with Aepas, and they don't get to find out, then, that you're not just spitting in their faces because you can, and that you will eventually leave Mhaldor to protect the forests when things change.

Vasool

Okay, fair enough. Is there anyone familiar with the concept of achaean forest spirits that could chime in on that concept? I only ask because as a player I've never really understood the manifestation of forest spirits in the game before. Would Aepas' statement be fairly spot on then regarding the hydra?

As far as the rest, I'm glad to hear you respond that way. I didn't mean to be discouraging by any means. I think you offer a fine example of Mhaldorian roleplay, personally.

Vayne

As Swamp Thing teaches us, the plant world is terribly violent, all the plants competing for space and resources, it all just happens very, very slowly.

Jurixe

The main thing that jumped out at me when reading your post were these two sentences.

"Aepas believes in true neutrality and will eventually leave Mhaldor, and even protect the forests from them, if things became balanced once again."

"Aepas wants nothing more than to be a knight of the Maldaathi."

I'm not Maldaathi, so Maldaathi can feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, but as far as I know the Maldaathi RP 'build' as it were is expected to be one of the most hardcore pro-Mhaldor types in the city. Their loyalty is with Sartan (now Shaitan/Apollyon) first and foremost, and their only concern is doing his work and spreading Evil through oppression, etc, etc. There isn't (and shouldn't be) room for neutrality of any sort. These are (or supposed to be, anyway) the seriously hardcore zealots, the ones that would throw themselves on stalagmites all over again with a single look from Sartan. 

This is part of why they consider themselves elite, and partly (beyond the whole mechanics thing) why Aepas's attempt to join them will probably never be taken seriously if his mindset is as above. Their loyalty and dedication to Evil is foremost above all else, and if your main concern is 'balance' and the forest - especially the forest, since the founders of the OIA are mainly in the Maldaathi now - you'll just be seen as a pretender. Evil wants to conquer everything, it doesn't want 'balance'.

I suppose this is something that your character could realise and develop over time, though. Just saying beforehand why, in an RP sense, the most you can probably expect is people humouring you a little.

Aepas

It's very possible that is the reason they only see it as an ideal. It has been stated that Aepas is neuteral through the OIA and several other sources, yet he still has his drives and beliefs. Now.. it doesn't mean he would ever give up the truths, but when balance has been restored he would likely leave to avoid the agendas from a more political nature. It does not mean that he does not want to live up to the standards of a knight, through honor and disciplin, but rather that some day, balance will be achieved. On this day, he will have to take his graces and leave. His mind would still be in tact as far as "evil" is concerned, and he would still follow the truths and the Lords. But who he is also dictates he must protect the sanctity of neutrality.

As he said in the OIA, he will teach all that the truths have to give to the forest, and once the forest has learned, and is truly evil, he will serve with it.

I don't think it's a massive contradiction to Evil, but it may be. these are all things that will likely be learned through out Aepas' life. I think if I ever find that I choose to advance evil in much harsher and deliberate ways, Aepas will likely change his class. Until then, he is still a druid.

Jurixe

I might be tired, but I can't really grasp the meaning of your post - ' His mind would still be in tact as far as "evil" is concerned, and he would still follow the truths and the Lords. But who he is also dictates he must protect the sanctity of neutrality.'

and then 'once the forest has learned, and is truly evil, he will serve with it.'

Those two statements seem to be kind of contradictory in of themselves, to be honest. The base line is, there is simply no room for neutrality in Evil's philosophy, and - whether your character can help it or not - until he lets go of that, people just aren't going to take him seriously, particularly if he wants to join the Maldaathi.

Ruth

 Part of what makes him.. semi-insane by the feel of things in-game, imo. I don't think he wants to join the Maldaathi; instead, he wants to join the ideals driving the Maldaathi lifestyle. Reminds me a little bit of KoH.

Aepas

well, first off. RP and growth happens to a character just as much as anything else. I -know- of the contradictions of his faith and belief, and I am aware that it is something that will come up. You don't just make a perfect character when you start one. you just have a baseline and let him grow from there.

But in his/my defence, many religious philosophies are riddled with contradictions and hard to interpret passages. Yet, this doesn't stop people from acting zealously, or with just as much passion as they have always had. Aepas' return to nature is not something he actually keeps in his mind. that is MY (the player's) belief more than anything, though I'm sure Aepas feels a bit of it in his soul. For now, he knows exactly who he is and how he acts, which is evil.

The assumption of the eventual return to nature could take several RL years, so it's not like it is a major point, just one that I keep in mind. It's a long, confusing and drawn out process and even I get confused if I look too far into the ideology of it. Granted.. even the confusing strife of faith does not change who a person thinks they are or what they do. (see: many major religions in the world and how people go about their daily lives.)

I don't know if this helps explain it, and I won't go all out into my actual future plans for aepas, or if they'll even be implemented! Remember, his entire life is a paradox to the existence of nature and balance. It's bound to be a bit confusing at places, especially for people who can not see into his mind.

Xenomorph

Aepas,

You have a very unique angle and I love it. You are one in a million. Continue to come to me for support and advice, you'll continue to have it. A rogue knight of evil in a forestal sense intertwined with OIA. Sorry. I'm eating this up like chicken chow mein. Keep a good thing going, brother.

Nizaris

Aepas,

I absolutely love your roleplay, and will always remember the time that you allowed Nizaris to exterminate your grove to purge the weakness there, that only the strength there would survive, and perhaps learn of Evil. That was my first extermination, and the one that got me enemied to Oakstone. So, it's kind of special to Nizaris. I've always wanted to thank you, OOC, for that interaction.

I also love the amount of spiritual suffering that you are placing on Aepas's shoulders, and, to an extent, the suffering that causes you as a player -- you can't exactly use all of your abilities due to your forest enemy status, and that's real money and/or time down the drain. I respect this a lot, as it displays a certain maturity on your part as the player.

As to your habit of referring to yourself in the third-person, I think that it fits extremely well. I prefer when you say, "This one", rather than, "He", however. When you refer to yourself as "He", I have found myself being confused about who you were referring to. I'm thinking of the time when you had really bad lag, and an Ashtani escorted you back to Mhaldor. You started referring to yourself as "he", and for a moment, I thought that you were referring to that Ashtani. I think that if you exclusively use "This one", that small little problem would be eliminated.

My advice to you in regards to reconciling Evil with nature is this: shift the focus away from nature, and back on to Evil. We as Mhaldorians are essentially social-Darwinists. In real life, the Nazis, et al. looked to the teachings of Darwin, and applied them toward society. But, I think that Aepas should take the reverse tack: take the social Darwinist teachings of Evil, and apply them toward Nature.

You already do this, of course. But, you claim that Aepas' first loyalty is to Nature (not to Evil), and that he will leave Mhaldor when "nature learns". As @Jurixe pointed out, this is anathema to the Maaldaathi, and indeed to Evil (neutrality really isn't an option, as @Jurixe noted). Perhaps you want this to be part of Aepas's internal struggle about becoming a Knight, or perhaps you don't. That is the question: how much internal struggle do you want Aepas to have? Considering Mhaldor's stance on Suffering, struggle's a pretty good thing, RP-wise. And, you're one of the few people brave enough to have such a big struggle that so utterly defines their character.

So, if you want to remove this part of Aepas's struggle, shift the focus away from Nature, and on to Evil as your first allegiance. Apply Evil's teachings toward Nature to strengthen it. Or, if Aepas can't do this, accept that it will always be part of Aepas's struggle.

In any event, join the Adikoi.

Aepas

Well, I guess I underestimated how far RP can reach. I'm glad to see that some of what Aepas has done or is trying to do is worthwhile to other people, and has brought a bit of enjoyment about. Thanks to all of you for supporting my choices and my char, it does mean a lot.

I do wish some of the opposition would poke their head in and offer some feedback, as I'd like to see it a decent and well rounded conflict point on both sides. I think I saw big D in here, but seems he got bored and walked off. Any other forestals willing to throw some feedback my way?

I'm glad that my original character's flaws have been discussed, so I can start going about a way to remedy them. (mind you, don't take Aepas' thoughts in game, cause you don't know any of this unless you met him personally!) But still, it's good to keep that mindset at all times of playing, so I'll start working on some new stuff.

And nizaris, I'll look into it :P

Sherazad

My problem was you weren't like this before and then one day, I got a letter where you refer to yourself in the 3rd person. I was like, wait, who is this again?

And I'm also confused about metamorphosis. From what I knew, it was supposed to be a spiritual change rather than physical. Someone correct me on this? I haven't really interacted with forestals and the ones who were Mhaldorian were usually sylvan.

As for Aepas' RP, I think I just need to catch him more these days and see.

Sena

How I picture metamorphosis: http://www.achaea.com/artisanal/morning-haze

Aepas

@sherazad well that's true! after I went on the long dormancy, I came back and decided that I should really create a persona for my character. That's essentially what all the above is. Before I decided to really go do combat or try and make rank, I decided to make my person uniqe in some way, have drives, passions, likes, dislikes, and the above is essentially what came from that.

@Sena Yeah, me too for the most part, but as I said, it still has a very physically attribute, because I don't think that person, holding a spear goes and mauls people.

Ellodin

i was just interested in seeing what this thread said, if it was a poem or particular story or something like that.  i already noticed these traits in the relatively short interaction time, but good to see.

how have you dealt with your absence, things being much different on your return?  naturally, people would be surprised to see what you are on the superficial level, a mhaldorian druid, and an initial reaction to a seemingly hypocritical existence will often be unpleasant.

Aepas

I am actually quite fearful of my return with all this talk of how the "forest" combat is going to work. Have a feeling I'll randomly get a forest excom, or lose my ability to morph or something like that. I have noted the very quick hate on my return, and I do really think it was people assuming I was lolplaying or something to just run around and be a dick. Burn forests, plaugh eleusis, and generally say "hello world, look how special I am. I'm the last evil drood."

I think that I am very lucky to actually be the "last" one. There is still Anouk, but she is dormant. That is the realisation that made me want to try and play something unique and different, as well as generally enjoying playing in Mhaldor despite how quiet it is. I've a few other alts in other cities and really.. I prefer the silence and srs buisness, rather than all the debates on cookies and pies, and all that stuff. What I see in other cities is horrible to an RP 'atmosphere'. I like mhaldor, Aepas was a druid.. the stars just seemed to align just right to allow me to try and create an interesting story.

Speaking of the actual return.. I'm very sad to see all the changes that were very poorly put into achaea. I feel like some bad calls have been made, and what is worse is the posts that follow them. (see thievery post, sounds like a billy mays or whatever his name is)
Alchemists seemed very.. random, their combat seems random. It doesn't seem to synch with the rest of achaean combat practice.. but hey, blademasters had some unorthodox things at first, that seemed to be handled just fine in the end. I was sad to see that was the fix to the 'having forestals in mhaldor' problem, because now it seems eleusis single handedly owns three -great- support and damage classes. It's very different! but I am still enjoying what I am doing, hope to see some changes in the future. This is not a rant form, it's an RP one.. so I'll stop here :P

Chrydala

Xenomorph said:

Aepas,

You have a very unique angle and I love it. You are one in a million. Continue to come to me for support and advice, you'll continue to have it. A rogue knight of evil in a forestal sense intertwined with OIA. Sorry. I'm eating this up like chicken chow mein. Keep a good thing going, brother.

This. I think getting encouragement and ideas is a valid way of doing things but realize that it's your character in the end and it's absolutely a breath of fresh air to rp with you. Take what naysayers say with a grain of salt, just because they don't, doesn't mean you shouldn't and just because they won't doesn't mean you can't. You keep up the work and effort, and the rest of it, I already told you. 

Sherazad

I think Eleusis' defense to people "losing" 3 forestal classes is that they don't have extra aligned classes such as apostate and infernal. I don't think we have something against astralform tho. 

Delphinus

Pardon the delay in writing this. I appreciate the time and consideration you've invested in fleshing out your character's motives.

Some of this is a response to prior discussions. Forgive me if some of it seems off-topic.


Neutrality and alignment:
It seems as though good and evil are being mapped to a false dichotomy here. You're saying that forestals are neutral, but the truth is, Achaea's alignments don't work across a one- or two-dimensional matrix. TV Tropes' article on Blue and Orange Morality explains it well.



Now, Achaea's approach to classes is basically the D&D lawful-good paladin writ large, in which the aligned classes draw strength from their own morality... and lose their powers if that morality should slip. In a tabletop game, an alignment change would be up to the GM. But Achaea's GMs (the gods) don't have the time to devote that kind of oversight, and so it's delegated to trusted players: the Archprelate, Oakstone, the Dread Eclair. Regardless of whether one's character believes that's how it works, that's the role they're designed to play.

Achaea's alignments go a step further, though: they're represented by organisations. The result is "aligned classes" specific to certain groups, and its broad application is crucial to balancing the game's opposing sides. If the forestal classes are restricted to Eleusis, those are its main factional advantage. Balancing the game around that idea is much, much easier than accounting for the classes' presence in every city, and it encourages risk-taking and the breakup of old alliances.


Forest as a living being:
The forest isn't a single entity, but rather a gestalt consciousness arising from its individuals.

However, focusing on the forest is missing the big picture. A few months ago, in a small, player-driven event, Eleusis and Oakstone destroyed the remnants of an unnatural forest. Where once it was forested, the area is now ruins. It's good to remember that Team Green isn't about protection, per se, but more about keeping the "big picture" sustainable and healthy.


Animal spirits:
We've interacted with animal spirits in certain events, and those spirits were conscious entities, but the nature of those entities is unclear. It's more likely that we dealt with some kind of amalgams of the animals in question, but to be honest, I doubt it's written that far. This is just me trying to make sense of what we're given.

Whatever we've interacted with, they do have Nature's best interests at heart.

Aepas

The blue and orange mortality is very interesting, and seems to only justify Aepas' behavior. What is considered evil by one faction is not by the other, simply because they can not comprehend it. While aepas acts in what is pure "evil" it can be assumed that many of the forestals or eleusis have never experienced or felt such a thing, as they have only been on one side of it. This still allows for the other side to exist, with one side only believing what they have experienced. now, when you refer to players owning specific class based factions, and having hte power to enemy or remove. (oakstone/archprelate/dread eclair) You are saying that the players are in direct control because the GM's have not had a chance to fully express what each side, or the morality of each person is.

This is still somewhat faulty in what forest is. Let's take for example the drakenwood. This place is -specifically- and noted to -not- be any part of oakstone, or the forest. It is Lord Twilight's domain, and nothing else. In fact, it is a travesty for oakstone or eleusis to go to it or defend it.
Here is the kicker for Drakenwood. It still acts as though it is a normal part of Oakstone, meaning it attacks forest enemies. That means that physically, in game code, oakstone is in control of more than they should be from an RP perspective. This is where disconnects start happening.
As far as the RP where Oakstone destroyed the remenants of an "unnatural forest". Is it not any more plausable that a specific person or faction caused that unnatural forest? perhaps a corrupt druid? All things should have recourse, but now it seems you say that they were in preservation, yet something this horrible to the forest still managed to happen. There does seem to be forces that ARE that of the forest, but not part of the beneficial oakstone/eleusisan type. Is it too much to assume such a thing is caused by evil?

The main thing is, it was still never actually set in stone what the forest was, and it is being assessed and implemented by the player base via oakstone/eleusis. (which honestly, should they be the same thing? I don't really think so, but maybe) It only says that the players that were offered such a position of power by slow decisions get to make the calls, instead of a direct cannon or deliberate form of Rp or story based upon gods/lore/history. I'm sorry, but I don't trust the players, especially in something that is specifically unfounded. Despite the way Achaea has to "work" because of the lack of divine/GM, meaning that stuff like oaskstone is hard coded in, I want to believe there is a way to RP anything you want, as long as it is not a direct cannon issue. So far, there is nothing besides speculation and force of player based RP that has decided nature has a "side" in anything that happens. Really, the destruction of corrputed forest only proves that oakstone has it's "own" goals in mind, and it's "own" form of nature to be sought and implemented. (Edit. Okay, that's what you said. Oakstone is not neuteral, it has it's own views how things should be. But -why- it just sees corrupt forest as corrupt? Corrup forest is still a lifegiver, and still forest. It means that oakstone has no concept of what it is, rather than just destroy anything that might seem evil. It seems a true druidic council would assess and study a form of corrupt forest for much longer, as long as it was not overwhelming the forest surrounding it. It simply means that someone was calling shots, based on assumptions, to assume a form of RP. at least that's what it seems like.)

So once again, I have to ask if any form of RP that Aepas has persued or will continue to persue is too far off from specific achaea history, or nature. Mind you, when i say acahea, I mean what is fact in the world, not what is player assumed or created.

Jiraishin

I think the unnatural forest had to do with Chaos, not Evil.

Tvistor

Screw it, there was a forest, they burned it, props to Eleusis.

Aepas

while I appreciate both posts, something valid to say would be enjoyable.
@ Jirashin, does that make my post any less relevant.
@Tvistor all your posts are troll comments. please don't troll the RP section. the rest of the forum is fine though

Jiraishin

I understand what you are saying. I am merely pointing that out because it is likely to come up should you refer to that unnatural forest.
I think the Scriptorium may have a book containing information about it, if you want more, though I may be thinking of a different library.

Arador

I have to say I have found Aepas very interesting to interact with. Arador has been running around a lot but I have always found Aepas a bit refreshing between the silent, vanilla Mhaldorians. He is VERY respectful (which scores high points with Arador), yet still maintains an interesting spark. His ambition makes him admirable and I think you can really get some interesting things out of his RP.

As for how you fit the ideas together, I think you have the right idea. Almost Maldaathi attitude on the one side, with a twisted kinship with nature on the other side. But as Jurixe warned, if you want to aim his style to reflect the Maldaathi approach be aware that our servitude to Evil is at our core and that would slay our own mothers should it be required of us. The thing that makes the Maldaathi is that level of dedication and if you switch to "balance" that could really come and bite your character in the ass.

While I understand that balance idea, you might more easily get away with and Ebon Fist or Naga approach (not that you are any less evil guys, relax) than a Maldaathi one. Swicthing and Maldaathi do not go well together.

Apart from that, who cares if it is a spirit or a real form. You are what you feel in your mind to be. You see yourself as a Hydra, you believe it, so your mind's eye might very well look down and see your own body as that of a Hydra. The spirit vs physical form argument is irrelevant.

Keep up the good work man, you will always have a brother in Arador.

Vasool

To clarify, my earlier questions regarding the spirit vs physical form were more for me to better understand how to interact. What does -my- character see when looking at Aepas, what does -my- character feel. Those questions make it important to distinguish between the spiritual and physical. I know I was having a hard time responding to Aepas' emotes because I wasn't sure about the answers to those questions.

Sherazad

Yeah, it's still hard to agree about Aepas' form changing. I have a sentinel somewhere and I sort of remember that you get overtaken by a spirit and you have uhm invisible wings or something or spiritual claws, whatever.. I thought it was also the reason why we get to keep our description, instead of being like a dragon where the description really changes to a dragon. I like that Aepas RPs with people, it's really just I feel weirded out when he emotes those sort of things.