Thread for Brainstorming and Planning Games/Proposals

[Brinniel]

What ideas do people have for an object?

Well, let me point out some earlier quotes.

dragoneyes:

I like the idea of looking for a staff though.

Vanima:

I was thinking: maybe the item should be some precious item made by the Dwarves around the time the Nauglamír was forged that was lost or something...would that work?

Both of these ideas are very good. I'm actually reading about the Nauglamir in the Silmarillion right now. An item similar to the necklace would be interesting...

[dragoneyes]

Would someone please tell me what Nauglamir is? I would look in the Silmarillion myself but I can't find the book (my sister has informed me that it is somewhere in the house but that isn't helpful at all).

[Amanaduial the archer]

The Nauglamir was a necklace made of mithril, and was commisioned by...*argh, I should know this, but I cant remember his name!*...and elven king, of Lorien, but was made by dwarves. It contained one of the Silmarii.

[the real findorfin]

The Necklace made by the Dwarves of Nogrod and Belegost for Finrod Felagund.

[Brinniel]

Here is a direct quote from The Silmarillion about the Nauglamir:

And in that time was made for him [Finrod] the Nauglamir, the Necklace of the Dwarves, most renowned of their works in the Elder Days. It was a carcanet of gold, and set therein were gems uncounted from Valinor; but it had a power within it so that it rested lightly on its wearer as a strand of flax, and whatsoever neck it clasped it sat always with grace and loveliness.

[Amanaduial the archer]

Thanks Brin!
Anyway, now we all know what the Nauglamir is...but what object are we going to use? And will the dwarves there acrually be the bad guys?

[Brinniel]

We could create an item similar to the Nauglamir (perhaps a crown, staff, etc), made around the same time, but it was lost and forgotten until 50 years ago. We would also need a name for the item (don't ask me; I haven't a clue what it should be).

I was thinking of wargs, goblins, and trolls as our enemies rather than dwarves. The dwarves have no clue that this expedition ever happened, as the elves kept the expedition secret to prevent any future wars with them.

[Amanaduial the archer]

I vote staff. Staff of Earth maybe...but something to do with at least one of them...

[dragoneyes]

I vote staff too, actually, what Aman said.

[VanimaEdhel]

A staff sounds good. Also fairly portable (and useful) for when we get it back. Not like if it was a throne of gold or something (not that I'm saying I wouldn't like one of those, but it would be impractical to carry around Middle Earth).

[Amanaduial the archer]

Right, so it seems staff has it. What will be special about said staff then?

[VanimaEdhel]

Would it have to be magical? It could very well just be very expensive and treasured as the crown piece of some nobleman/noblewoman's collection of jewels.

[Amanaduial the archer]

It wouldnt have to magical, but people do tend to put more worth in magical things. I dont really have a preference. Why, do you have an idea?

[Bêthberry]

Hmm. Slippery ground here.

*coughs* magic = superpowered = Tolkien NOT *coughs*

Now that my throat is cleared, let me say I am sure all of you are such good writers that such exaggerated qualities will not mar your game.

Your friendly neighbourhood Moderator of Rohan,
Bethberry

[Amanaduial the archer]

You know, Bethberry, the sarcasm in that sentence was almost tangible, even sitting here on a different continent... [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

Ok, so we have been 'advised' to leave the magic factor alone. So jewels it is. Elven or otherwise?

Bethberry, just a note; this RP may not stick strictly (oh, thats a tongue twister!) to Tolkiens boundaries. But if you so wish, we will of course leave magic alone. BTW when is The Ride going to the Elvenhome? It deserves to go there.

[dragoneyes]

Seeing as it is the Elves which are going after it, I think that Elven jewels would suit it best. It also needs a good name, I have no (decent) suggestions though, were it left up to me the thing would probably end up being 'The Jewelly Stick' especially this late at night.

[DayVampyre]

I may not even be in the RPG but I am quite fond of "Jewelly Stick" [img]smilies/tongue.gif[/img]

[Brinniel]

Elven jewels, definitely. Perhaps there could be some kind of fancy stone planted into the staff. As for a name, it probably should be some Elvish name (I may need some help with that one).

[VanimaEdhel]

Well, mîrnad literally means "Jewel Thing", if you want to go with that. [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]

In Quenya, Silvandl could mean "Shining Staff".

I think that Tâkala is good. It means "High Shine". Silmevandl means "Starlight Wand". That's good too. If there is a meaning, I can try to look it up for you (ah the joys of the Council of Elrond site).

[Bêthberry]

Ah, me. My tone missed its mark. My comments were straight, not dry, Aman, and honestly meant. I do not use irony or sarcasm when talking with gamers here in Rohan. *mumbles with bemused frustration*

Please do remember that this game will need to be reviewed by Gandalf the Grey and SusanDelgado. Here is one of the criteria they will be using, taken from the thread The Golden Hall

Tolkien: Keep your stories within the bounds of Middle-earth and realistic to the world J.R.R. Tolkien created. Hobbits don't use magic, orcs don't have guns, female dwarves don't travel, and there are no half-elf/half-dwarf characters. Having read Tolkien's books (rather than simply seeing the movies) is pretty much a given in Rohan. Knowing the books will familiarize you with Tolkien's style of writing (which you are not required to emulate) and, better still, keep you knowledgeable of the type of characters and events that would be 'realistic' in Middle-earth. *(There is the rare chance that a story that breaks this rule will be allowed, but it will be restricted to the highest standards found in Gondor).

Debates about magic can be found in the Books forum, but in Rohan, magic should not explain or explain away or empower anyone or anything. Escapist fantasy does not become the Perilous Realm.

Bethberry

[Amanaduial the archer]

Ive kept to every one of those rules but one in all the time Ive been here, and that was only....light(ish)ly broken. Lol, I know Bethberry, I was only joking before.

I would go for Silvandl, or silmevandl; Shining staff and Starlight wand seem somewhat more proffesional than 'wand thing'. Besides, I cant get the hand of the marks over letters. *sheepishly smiles*

Shall we just have it as a general, beautiful, elven, jewelled staff and stop looking for connections, simply doing it on the basis of completing a dying elfs last wish, and wanting some old friends to do it with?

Hey, it works for me.

[ElentariGreenleaf]

WOOO! "Jewely Stick" rocks! Hehe... I've been talking to dragon eyes about this RPG..... um.... thinking up thing.... and I read some of the old RPG. I'd very much like to join when it opens ^_^ cause I'm not in any RPGs yet (but hoping to own one in the Shrei... hint hint Child.....) ^_^

[Amanaduial the archer]

Possibly you could own one in the Shire, but Im not sure about the Shrei.... [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

Hmmm. Must cut down use of sarcasm...

[ElentariGreenleaf]

Yes, you really must cut down on the use of sarcasm.... and it's not my fault i can't speel (and that was on purpose)

Hehe.... I'm gonna kick up a fuss. Who's owning this RPG? (MWAHAHAHHAHAHAHA!!!!)

[Amanaduial the archer]

It will be joint owned, I should say. Its really the only fair way.

[dragoneyes]

That's what I said wasn't it Elentari? Anyway, I too like the name suggestions without accents (Silvandl mostly) because I can't do them either.

[Amanaduial the archer]

I think Silvandl has it then, an jewelled, elven staff which has got lost in the mountains. I think it should be from Mirkwood, a staff of honour or something, awarded to a courtier for a high honour long ago maybe. But when the courtier had to...'leave in a hurry', the staff fell into the wrong hands, orc hands, until the orc too came under unfortunate circumstances (man, its starting to sound like theres a curse on the staff!) and, lost for a while in the wilderness, it then was found by a dwarf, one of a race of appreciaters of fine gems and crafts. And.....

would someone else care to carry on the story? I dont know where that came from, it was a random strong of thoughts put together...

[ElentariGreenleaf]

MAn, it sooo want to bring Elentari into this... but I will resist the temptation! If I am alowed to join, I will create a new character, called Kari. <-- love that name ^_^

It could be some Itsari's staff..... or it could just be what aman siad :P

[dragoneyes]

It can't be magical Elentari. And continuing with Aman's idea: perhaps the dwarves left it in some hoarde of treasure which was then lost (trolls, orcs again, something along those lines) and it's been locked away in some cave in the mountains ever since.

[Amanaduial the archer]

Excellent, but may I just add 'long lost' in front of cave; having a war between the entire mountain of dwarves and...five or six elves (and humans? Do we have huma characters? Im sure we can.). Striking me as not such a good plan for the whole life deal.

If everyone approves of that plot then...

We have a plot.
We have original characters.
We have a non magical object.
We have a quest.
...and we do not have a name.

Anyone? Maybe just 'Silvandl' or 'The Quest For (The?) Silvandl' ?

[ElentariGreenleaf]

I think there are too many "Quest for the..." How about..... hmmm....

From the Shadow of the Cave? That's dumb though....

Cave of Wonders
Silvandl from the Past
Silvandl of hope
Silvandl hunt
Hunt for the Silvandl

I must have missed the part about non-magical stuff ^_^

[Amanaduial the archer]

Out of those, I would say Cave of Wonders. Or maybe we could have that in some form of elvish...

Brinniel? Vanima? What do you think? Are you still there?

[Brinniel]

Maybe just 'Silvandl' or 'The Quest For (The?) Silvandl' ?

I like them both, though Elentari may be right; the word quest is often used in titles. The word 'search' is definitely out of the question (I'm already confused enough by the two 'search' RPGs that exist).

Here are some more ideas:

The Hunt for the Silvandl
Pursuit for the Silvandl
Expedition of the Silvandl

Ok, those aren't too great, but whatever the title is, it should definitely include the Silvandl.

I'll volunteer to send in the proposal, though I think Aman should write the history of the Silvandl since she seems to have a good idea about it.

Once we have a title, I'll send one last PM to Helka, giving him five days to agree if he wants to join us or not. If he doesn't respond or says no, I'll leave the spot for Dimithil open for others to play.

I'd prefer if we kept this RPG small, as it is supposed to be a secret quest. I'd say no more than 4 or 5 new characters, plus perhaps a new Dimithil.

How long do you think it will take to finish this RPG?

[Amanaduial the archer]

I think Aman should write the history of the Silvandl since she seems to have a good idea about it.

! I do?! Hey, I didnt know anything about that, but ok.

Maybe we should just leave the title at simply 'Silvandl'. Heh heh, Simply Silvandl...ahem, sorry. There are many variants on this, but there are hundreds of 'Quest for-'s and 'Search for-'s, and we want something a little more original. How about that?

Brinniel, that sounds good. Just one thing; how about five or six players? Six at the most. I don't want it to be too big either, obviously, but I don't want it to get too small, or there's a massive gap if a player can't continue for whatever reason.

This will be a Rohan RPG, won't it? That means we have more time allowance. The Shadows of Umbra went from October 27th- March 8th. That was pretty exceptional though; it sort of collapsed at intervals, for periods of up to two weeks at a time, so there were long spaces of doing nothing, and then at the end time was pushed as Piosenniel wanted to get it finished- fair enough, it shouldnt have lasted five months, no way. The at other times there were up to four posts a day! So that isnt actually a brilliant measure of how long this will take....shall we say two or three months maybe?

I will send the history of the Silvandl to all members of the game, as soon as I have it solidified.

[ElentariGreenleaf]

PLEEEEEEEEEEEEASE! Tell me when this starts so I can join! I'd hate to be left out of yet another limited space RPG! ^_^

[dragoneyes]

and humans? Do we have huma characters? Im sure we can.

They'd need a good reason though, unless someone goes around advertising. I'm getting that vision of an elf with a cheesy smile and slicked back hair handing out leaflets again... oh dear. It would be mostly Elves though.

Excellent history by the way.

[ April 11, 2003: Message edited by: dragoneyes ]

[Amanaduial the archer]

Yeah, thats a worrying image....

Thanks sweet. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

[Brinniel]

So, the title 'The Silvandl RPG' works?

Just one thing; how about five or six players? Six at the most.

Don't forget we already have Raye, Tallin, Hwesta, Bereth, and Dimithil (whoever will play him). That's five already. I say we accept no more than five others, plus someone to play Dimithil.

shall we say two or three months maybe?

I was thinking 3-4 months. That seems like enough time.

Aman- Thanks for the PM of the history. It looks good. I'll probably edit the last paragraph to add more info, if you don't mind. I'll be needing to keep the PM.

[ElentariGreenleaf]

Can I join? When it opens i mean. <---- that's obvious ^_^

[Helkahothion]

I'm here. I'm here. Don't have the nerve to leave without me. Sorry for my long absence, but I will play Dimithil. I'm sorry I did not respond sooner. I have been at school for a long time and homework got the best of me. I'm sorry for that. About the Raye Corrowin thingy. I can remember that Raye was the last thing that was holding Corrowyn to her old live and Dimithil had managed her to leave that name. So it would be very odd, if she started to use the name Raye again. Ill continue reading the tread, it was just that after being halfway page 2 I had the feeling that I was going to be left behind. So ill go read the posts again. Byebye.

Greetings,

Anuion

P.S. Happy 9ooTH post Brinniel.

[edit] Okay done reading. I don't think we need more additionel players though. We where going to keep the group short so we would not get too many involved. Ofcaurse ElentariGreenleaf has too come. She has been cheering for it and I'm quite fond of her writing skills. But except her, I think only we don't need anymore good guys. The group before us was not much different in number than we are now, so that should be enough. In my opinion we now only need some baddies. But that is ofcaurse my opinion. It's just that too much writers can be a B**ch for the discussion, since it will get flooded. Not that the writers here are bad. What do you think?[/edit]

[ April 12, 2003: Message edited by: Helkahothion ]
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Herbalaire review