Bifröst Café
Before there were tall skyscrapers, airplanes that flew through the sky, malls and computers and all the comforts of the contemporary age, when mankind was carving homes out of mud and sticks, there were beasts called monsters, and they were feared as demons and hailed as gods.
Mankind lived under the whims of nature, afraid of forces outside of their control. But one day, a great hero rose up against their wicked ways. Known today as the Pontifex, he bound the humans together in a crusade against the beasts.
Yet, their efforts were fruitless. It seemed monsterkind was too powerful, too supernatural, too agile, too much. The Pontifex fell to his knees in defeat, and cried out to heaven, "Shall you not save your children?"
It is then that it is recorded that God sent his angels to gift man with the power of thaumaturgy, the ability to use magic. With this, the Pontifex cast all of monsterkind into the underworld, from where they still reside.
From his lineage and his teachings of the ways of thaumaturgy, the Pontifex founded the bloodline of Uriah, who became priests, healers, or evil sorcerers. But such power was kept secret, and mankind eventually forgot both of monsters and of the Pontifex, like they were both mere dreams.
But that which is not can come knocking at your doorstep.
Yo.
We're doing this again, huh?
Bifrost Cafe is another monster-person game in the vein of Twilight Academy. If you're still not sick and tired of this genre that has been beaten to death on Bay12 more times than an alcoholic's submissive spouse, welcome aboard!
In any case, you will be playing the role of monster people. But not just any random monsterperson - you will be acting as negotiators for the human world, as well as other species, representing your race and seeking to improve their conditions and lot in life, residing in the underworld. Of course, that's what you're supposed to do. Sitting at the bar drinking and partying is fine too.
Said bar, of course, is located within the titular Bifrost Cafe - on the outside, an innocent coffee shop placed in what seems like the quietest neighborhood around. To the humans outside, no one can ever remember someone going in, yet strangely it always seems full.
Despite its humble appearance, the cafe is fully equipped for its supernatural patrons. Anything a monster could ever need is served there, or, at least, that's what they always say. It is bigger on the inside than the outside; with rooms to stay overnight, refreshments and food whenever one needs, and a staff full of anti-demonic weaponry in case any unsavory business is attempted. For one's safety.
So, come on down - take a portal, have a drink, and let us talk business.
Name: What they call you, not your true name.
Age: Physical age and, if different from it, mental age.
Description: Physical appearance; describe multiple forms if necessary.
Race: What your supernatural type is. Due to the nature of the game's plot, duplicates for the same or incredibly similar races will not be accepted together.
Personality: How you act.
Backstory: Your story. Include reasons for becoming a representative for your race.
Ancestral Spirit: Long ago, a defining member of your race had a presence in the Divine War. Describe their name, their title, and their deeds. You are encouraged, though not required, to have them in some way relate to the Pontifex or be another famous mythological figure. An example of an Ancestral Spirit for a dullahan would be the Headless Horseman.
Don't worry, here's a loredump.
HUMAN HISTORY
After the Divine War, the Pontifex' disciples spread out into the world, becoming the various magic priests of myth. The largest and boasting the most direct lineage from the Pontifex were the Uriah clan, the stereotypical western-style "holy priests." They were primarily the ones responsible for cleaning out the world of stray monsters and demons, as well as ones that somehow managed to appear in the human world. They were ruthless, and rarely did supernatural beings escape their grasp. It was in the 1100s when they began to capture and study monsters and demons, at first in secret. A century later, however, the practice proved too useful to remain illicit within the secret society. Such was the founding of demonology.
As the practice developed, they began to see the monsters in a new light. In captivity, ill-treated and abused as they were, it was common for demonologists to grow attached to captured demons. Their wisdom, their personalities, and their surprising nobility. This connection between demonologists and demons were the seeds for the uprising of monster rights, and by the late 1800s, talk of "supernatural rights" rose within the community.
Those that argued that monsters were just as noble as humans, and deserved to be treated with the same rights as them were called Typhonists, and those that still saw them as angry, dangerous beasts were called Jingoists, and terms such as those are still tossed about today.
After a small yet bloody civil war (The Winchester Affair) It was decided that monsters would be given some, though unequal, rights within the human world. They were to be treated like foreigners, dangerous yet respected somewhat. Additionally, a new way to discuss such topics was needed, and representatives of the underworld required for true democracy. Thus, the Styx Bar & Grill was constructed, as a sort of forum/safe haven for monsters.
However, with their newfound freedom came revolutionists. Such unequal rights caused an uproar in the monster community, and a minority group formed that opposed amicable foreign relations. During the late 1990s in a tragic event, they destroyed the Bar & Grill in what is now known popularly as the Disharmony Bombings, nearly shattering the uneasy alliance in a mere day.
Only twenty years later, the Bifrost Cafe has finished construction, and new human-monster negotiations can begin.
THAUMATURGY
Magic, sorcery, whatever you want to call it - the act of fundamentally reshaping the world through magical energies is primarily called Thaumaturgy. There are many different types of thaumaturgy, though, generally, it is the ability to work miracles through the natural world.
In the beginning, no humans were able to manipulate the world in such a manner. During the Great War, Heaven gifted humans with this ability, and natural thaumaturges have been born, seemingly randomly, ever since. With it, one can shoot great gouts of fire, ice and lighting, construct grand monuments through willpower, change one's appearance, travel distances unknown, and, the most powerful of which - banish evildoers into hell.
Monsters suddenly developed this ability sometime within the 1600s, without anyone knowing why. The only ones that know are the higher-ups of Heaven, and attempting to communicate, much less interrogate such beings has obviously proven extremely difficult.
Thaumaturgy always involves some form of internal energy, though one would seemingly never be able to cast higher-level spells without tutelage and much research into every single mechanic and component. To put it simply, low-level thaumaturgy cast quickly and often, often called Lesser or Minor Thaumaturgy, is a skill like running or swimming, whilst higher-level thaumaturgy, often called Greater Thaumaturgy, is a science like engineering, or perhaps programming.
MONSTER HISTORY
Up to the players!
As you'll be acting as representatives and major political figures of the underworld, forcing you to read and learn about a strict system is seemingly both unnecessary and difficult, for both of us. Instead; make up any lore you want! Create locations, cultures, anything you'd like, as long as it is reasonable, interesting and does not conflict with any "canon lore," such is stated above.
