Apr 19 01:11:21 <Kioku>	Akemi stands, head tilted in front of the notice board in the dorm, looking a little perplexed.  She's read the latest, rather prominent message several times now, and it still has yet to make sense to her.  \But... but what /is/ any of this?  What's this supposed to mean?  Maybe I should call the number and ask...?\
Apr 19 01:15:40 <Antichthon>	And something that made Akemi perplexed definitley made Athene curious. Most of her was still on the second floor when her human half encountered Akemi at the notice board of the first floor, but at this point, the San Fran students were probably very used to stepping over snake tails that went gods-knew-where. "What's that?" Athene asked. She read it herself, at her own glacial reading pace.
Apr 19 01:16:47 <Kioku>	"No idea," Akemi murmurs, then after a moment hops and half turns to face Athene, smile crossing her face.  "Oh!"  Aaaand hug.
Apr 19 01:17:51 <Antichthon>	"Oof." Athene returned the hug, still reading the notice. ...stiiiiill reading the notice.
Apr 19 01:19:22 <Kioku>	Akemi looks back at the board, leaning against Athene a little.  "I was just thinking I might have to call the number and ask... it talks about a character, so... maybe it's a play?  Is GM 'General Manager'?"
Apr 19 01:20:12 <Antichthon>	Athene held up a hand. "Hold on, I'm still reading. I can't read and think and talk at the same time."
Apr 19 01:21:21 <Kioku>	Akemi blinks and nods.  \Mmh, sorry.\  She waits for Athene, nabbing her arm and playing with the back of her hand idly just out of a need for something to /do/ while she waits.
Apr 19 01:23:42 <Antichthon>	The reason it took her so long was because there were words and word usages she had to try and understand through context. Still, slow as her brain could be, it got there in time. "Oh, um. I guess someone's running a D&D game. That's a game where you make a fantasy character and play them going on adventures. GM is the person in charge, makes the rules and controls the world. I don't know what it stands for."
Apr 19 01:24:49 <Kioku>	"It's a game?"  Akemi's head tilts the other way.  "It's presuming a lot though... is... is it fun?  You seem to know about it!"
Apr 19 01:27:07 <Antichthon>	"Well, I never got to play with anyone. But I used to make up characters and pretend they were played by my cockroach friends. I didn't get into it like I did with Battletech, but, um, yeah, it's pretty fun. More fun with actual friends, I'm sure."
Apr 19 01:28:23 <Kioku>	"So it's for playing with friends..."  Akemi hums.  "Do... do you think you'll do this?  If you used to want to, then..."
Apr 19 01:30:24 <Antichthon>	Athene blinked. She'd been so focused on explaining, she hadn't even considered actually playing. "Ohmygosh this is perfect!" She exclaimed. "I started a gaming night with a few people in my room. We can do this there!" She got out her phone to text the number.
Apr 19 01:32:06 <Kioku>	Akemi blinks rapidly and stares at Athene.  \She did?\  "Ah... great."  She smiles.  "That's really great~!"  \She'll get to experience something she's always wanted to... I'm happy for her~\
Apr 19 01:33:11 <Antichthon>	"Yeah, really recently. Are you interested in joining? Oh, shoot, I should have asked that earlier!" She gave Akemi an apologetic look. "I'm sorry things just don't occur to me when they should."
Apr 19 01:33:59 <Kioku>	"I-I wouldn't know what I was doing."  Akemi looks down.  "I've never played any sorts of games like that..."
Apr 19 01:35:12 <Antichthon>	"That's alright. Zita didn't know either. Learning is part of the fun!" Athene looked at her phone. "I just texted the person running this and they called me 'goddess.'"
Apr 19 01:35:50 <Antichthon>	"Oh, because of the name. Duh."
Apr 19 01:37:00 <Kioku>	Akemi looks up again and smiles at that.  "You wouldn't mind?"  It might be noticable that Akemi's been acting a lot more self-concious lately.  It's... weird.  REALLY weird, coming from her.  "Then maybe.... do you think I should join this too?"
Apr 19 01:38:34 <Antichthon>	Athene grinned and gave Akemi a hug, picking her up and twirling her around. "Yes! Yes, definitely!" She put Akemi down. "Maybe you can play Battletech with me as well, sometime. If you like a slow game about big robots beating each other up."
Apr 19 01:39:29 <Antichthon>	Athene looked at her phone again, frowned. "Okay, this person is starting to get kinda creep - oh, it's Austin. Nevermind."
Apr 19 01:40:53 <Kioku>	Akemi can't help but grin back at that.  It's not very often she gets to be the one that's twirled.  "Okay!  I... I will then!  Would you tell him to save me a spot too?  A-and I'll try, umm... battle tech."  She nods.  "I'm sure I'd have fun~"  \Just being able to talk to you about something you love, whether or not I end up liking the game.\
Apr 19 01:42:32 <Antichthon>	"Sure! Well, I mean, um. I'll try. I'll say it's either both of us or neither of us. Because I've accidentally insulted you a lot recently and I want to show you how much I love you." Bright smile.
Apr 19 01:45:29 <Kioku>	Akemi opens her mouth slightly in surprise, and her eyes widen.  "Wha-  y-you don't have to do that!  This is something you've wanted, isn't it?"  She blushes a little.  "You don't have to do something like this to show me... I know..."  \Even if it is... /really/ nice to have this happen too...\  "I'll... I'll make SURE he takes me then!"  And suddenly, all that surprise is replaced with determination.  "There's no way he'll refuse!"
Apr 19 01:47:09 <Antichthon>	"Woah, um." Athene laughed nervously. "No need to get all super-serious about it. If he fills up without us, we can make our own game. I bet there's someone else who knows something about DMing. I mean, I kinda-sorta do, but not really."
Apr 19 01:47:29 <Antichthon>	"Cockroaches don't argue about much."
Apr 19 01:48:37 <Kioku>	"W-well... ask him anyway, okay?  I wonder who else will- hey, do you know how many people something like this usually is?"
Apr 19 01:50:06 <Antichthon>	"Um." Athene shrugged. "five? six? maybe seven? ...Eight? I'm not sure."
Apr 19 01:51:04 <Kioku>	Akemi giggles.  "Want to just see if he's free to come down here and talk about it or something?"  \Have I met him before...?\
Apr 19 01:53:53 <Antichthon>	"Oh, sure! That's a good idea." <austin are you free to come down to the board and talk right now?>
Apr 19 01:56:06 <Antichthon>	<and if you havent met akemi yet be warned shes going to be hotter than anything youve ever seen before even if you dont like girls>
Apr 19 01:57:55 <Knave>	Austin bursts through the doors, "Finally! The Slick has come back to-" He spots the fox girl and his eyes bulge in recognition. In the middle of his extravagant entrance one foot slips up and away from him, and he does an undignified jig to stay upright before leaning on the wall. Apparently, he did not get the text about Akemi in time.
Apr 19 01:58:46 <Antichthon>	Athene covered her mouth to stifle her giggling, before shrugging at Akemi. "I tried to warn him."
Apr 19 02:00:05 <Kioku>	Akemi turns to see Austin as he comes in and giggles, leaning back.  "Ne, would it be alright if...?"  They're in a room full of chairs, but Akemi asks to sit on Athene.  Maybe she's just more comfortable?  "Hi~!"  She winks and waves at Austin.
Apr 19 02:03:00 <Knave>	"Hey. Akemi, right?" Austin tried to turn his lean into a casual, cool pose, rather than the recovery it was. He put on a slightly put-upon grin, giving a little wave with wiggling fingers, "Hey Athene. How can I help you beautiful ladies today?"
Apr 19 02:03:05 <Antichthon>	"Oh yeah, of course! Friends dont even need to ask." Athene - who had thankfully reeled her her body in the interim, since Austin would have had to use her like a slide to get down the stairs otherwise - offered one of her coils as a bench. And Athene, being Athene, didn't want Austin to feel like he was being insulted through omission. "You can, um. Sit on me too, if you want." She
Apr 19 02:03:05 <Antichthon>	gave him a slighy uncomfortable smile.
Apr 19 02:05:04 <Kioku>	Akemi sits on Athene as offered, putting a hand around her waist and leaning against her human half, almost as if she were a bit tired and didn't want to show it.  "That's right, 'the Slick'~"  She nods toward the notice board.  "Did you put that up?"
Apr 19 02:06:53 <Knave>	Austin shakes his head and puts up an open palm to Athene to indicate that he's fine standing, "Thanks all the same." He manages to compose himself into a respectable slouching lean against the wall and thrusts a hand into his pockets, "Guilty as charged."
Apr 19 02:07:27 <Antichthon>	And Athene put her arm around Akemi and gave her a squeeze. With anyone else it would seem very girlfriend-girlfriend, but it was Akemi. She treated everyone like a SO, and was fine being treated that way in return. And amazingly, Athene had grown used to it. "We're both interested. Akemi's never played before and she has questions."
Apr 19 02:09:03 <Kioku>	Akemi glances down and nods.  "Yeah.  If you have room in the... game, that is.  I'd never even heard of it, but Athene sort of filled me in.  As much as one can in two minutes, anyway."
Apr 19 02:10:27 <Knave>	"You two are my first applicants." Austin smiles, running a hand over his hair, regaining his composure after the initial shock of Akemi, "Happy to have you. And happy to explain anything that needs explaining - you know me, any excuse to let my mouth run."
Apr 19 02:10:34 <Antichthon>	"I've only played it with cockroaches," Athene qualified.
Apr 19 02:11:35 <Antichthon>	"Hey, why don't we go back to my room? I was going to show Austin anyway."
Apr 19 02:12:31 <Antichthon>	To Austin, "You aren't allergic to cats, are you?"
Apr 19 02:12:36 <Kioku>	"Mm, and I don't know /anything/ about it, like I said, so I'll need to learn everything from scratch.  Feel free to talk quite a lot about it!"  Akemi turns her head to Athene and nods.  She's fine with that, certainly.  \Plus the dorm rooms have carpets, while the common room floor is wood, so that must be better for her too, heat-wise...\
Apr 19 02:14:00 <Knave>	"Sounds like a plan." Austin nods, smiling lopsided, "And no, I'm not allergic to cats. As far as I know." He shrugs, "Lead the way."
Apr 19 02:15:57 <Antichthon>	Akemi was right about that, though Athene tried not to let her cold-bloodedness inconvenience others. "Okay. Follow the tail." Akemi was free to ride her as Athene headed back to her room. She slipped in, held the door open for Austin, while most of her coiled up at the center of the huge 20' by 20' room. "I wanted to get a table anyway, so my gaming group doesn't have to sit on the floor. Any idea where we can get a good one?"
Apr 19 02:17:39 <Kioku>	Akemi perks up a little at the question.  "Ah- the shrine didn't have a very good one at first, it sort of broke because Warren was... hasty about picking it out.  I had to replace it, I can point you to the same place I ordered from?"
Apr 19 02:18:25 <Antichthon>	"Do we still get orders with the lockdown?"
Apr 19 02:18:39 <Knave>	Austin shrugs happily, "If not, there's gotta be someone in this madhouse with the power to make tables."
Apr 19 02:19:29 <Antichthon>	"Oh, right! Andrey. If we want a metal table."
Apr 19 02:19:36 <Kioku>	"Yeah."  Akemi nods.  "I've seen a guy from Amazon drop by a couple of times with packages, they still come in."
Apr 19 02:20:14 <Kioku>	"The woodshop club is still pretty well supplied... actually, there's still a lot of sapwood left from the tree I used to make my second body."
Apr 19 02:20:33 <Kioku>	"If you want a, you know, magic table, that is."
Apr 19 02:21:04 <Antichthon>	"Anyway, welcome to my room." Athene gestured to it, as if presenting. Standard bed, standard desk, with a chair that was never used by Athene. Dressers full of clothes on one side of the room, bookcases full of battletech stuff on another. A cat box in the corner, and a kitten currently rubbing all up on Austin.
Apr 19 02:21:23 <Antichthon>	"I have about two thousand dollars saved up. But, um, if we can get it without paying, that'd be great."
Apr 19 02:21:47 <Antichthon>	"Also something I can move to the side when we're not using it. I really like my rooms, um. Room."
Apr 19 02:22:18 <Knave>	Austin squats down to pet the kitty, a slight smile on his face, "Well hey there, little guy."
Apr 19 02:23:14 <Kioku>	"A low table like I was thinking of could fit under your bed, maybe?  Or under the desk!"  Akemi shrugs and squeezes lightly.  "How big should it be, anyway?  I mean, how much space do we need for something like this?"
Apr 19 02:23:48 <Antichthon>	Hope was a good kitten! Ever since she turned orange, at least. "Also, I guess we need chai-" Athene broke off, blinked at Akemi still on her back. "Actually, we don't need chairs, do we? I can fit like, twenty people on me."
Apr 19 02:24:50 <Kioku>	Akemi giggles.  "I'm used to sitting on a cushion on the floor~  You're nice too though~"
Apr 19 02:24:50 <Antichthon>	"I'm not that uncomfortable, right?"
Apr 19 02:25:19 <Knave>	"If people aren't comfortable sitting on you, I guess it's not the worst thing for them to bring their own chair." Austin says, still enamoured with the cat, "And for table space, we don't need any more than enough room to seat everyone. Shouldn't be more than five, six people, I'd say."
Apr 19 02:25:55 <Antichthon>	"Do you think you can be in charge of making or getting the table, Akemi?"
Apr 19 02:27:58 <Kioku>	"Mm."  Akemi nods.  "I know people and have the materials.  No problem.  Any preferences?  Square?  Round?  Some other shape?  Leg in the center?  At the corners?  Tall enough for you to fit under?"
Apr 19 02:28:32 <Antichthon>	Athene looked to Austin to answer that question. He'd know what would work best.
Apr 19 02:30:11 <Knave>	"Well," Austin straightens up from the cat and taps his chin, "There's a lot to be said for the inclusiveness of a round table, and I'm a sucker for an Arthurian reference, but I don't, square tables always feel more practical. And if it's a rectangle I get to sit at the head of it like a glorious monarch."
Apr 19 02:31:49 <Antichthon>	Athene blinked. "Sooo...square?"
Apr 19 02:32:10 <Kioku>	Akemi snickers.  "Tall enough for chairs?  I guess Athene and I are probably the only ones who would feel more natural without one... didn't you say five or six people?  Why not a hexagon?"
Apr 19 02:34:51 <Knave>	"It was foolish of me not to consider the full range of regular polygons available." Austin breathes, then smiles up at Akemi, "Sounds like a good idea."
Apr 19 02:37:18 <Antichthon>	"So, a six-sided table. Am I on the same page?"
Apr 19 02:37:55 <Antichthon>	"And yeah, I think most people are used to chairs. Sorry, Akemi."
Apr 19 02:38:28 <Kioku>	"Mhmm!  Well, it's a table for your room, so I guess we should be sure you have a good place to store it too, right?  I'm going to be sure that it's high enough to fit my legs under when sitting on you then, though."  Akemi sticks her tongue out.
Apr 19 02:40:19 <Knave>	"Yes, six sides," Austin says quietly, as if to himself, sitting down on the floor and petting the cat. Then, proceeding as if talking to the cat, he adopts a faux-dramatic voice, "Yes, six, all the better to serve our dark masters..."
Apr 19 02:40:41 <Antichthon>	"Hey, I'm not that fat," Athene said, mock offended. "I can fit through the door."
Apr 19 02:41:41 <Kioku>	Akemi blinks at Athene, confused, then looks between her and Austin.  "I never said you were..."  \He's going to end up leaving major decisions to the cat.  I just know it.\
Apr 19 02:41:59 <Antichthon>	She stared at Austin. "...Have you been listening to that weird preacher at Ellie's shrine?"
Apr 19 02:42:40 <Knave>	Austin looks up at Athene with a dopey open-mouthed expression, as if snapped out of a train of thought, "Who on the what now?"
Apr 19 02:43:30 <Kioku>	\Wait, didn't Cass say I was the dark one now?\  Akemi narrows her eyes at Austin.
Apr 19 02:44:38 <Antichthon>	"Some person sometimes starts preaching really creepy things at Ellie's shrine sometimes." She looked from Austin to Akemi. "I thought everyone had heard that by now?"
Apr 19 02:45:33 <Kioku>	"I met them, if it's who I think you mean.  I'm right near there every day, after all."
Apr 19 02:46:00 <Knave>	"I haven't been back that long." Austin says with a little absent smile, one hand stroking the kitty. "Maybe I'll swing by there sometime."
Apr 19 02:46:17 <Antichthon>	"...Yeah, I've avoided them since they swore at me and called me names."
Apr 19 02:47:08 <Kioku>	Akemi sits up straighter, expression suddenly blank.  "They what."
Apr 19 02:48:44 <Antichthon>	"Um. Nevermind." Athene tried to return to the subject at hand. "Do you have any other questions about the game, Akemi?"
Apr 19 02:49:55 <Kioku>	"Other?"  Akemi leans back.  "I haven't even gotten to ask anything since finding out it /was/ a game!"  \Well no, I got to ask how many people, but that's it!\
Apr 19 02:50:47 <Antichthon>	"Oh, right." Nervous giggle. "Sorry. But now's the time to ask them."
Apr 19 02:51:11 <Knave>	"Ask away, foxy lady." Austin grins, leaning back with one of his hands on the floor.
Apr 19 02:51:46 <Antichthon>	Hope was still rubbing all up on him, since he'd given her so much attention already.
Apr 19 02:53:34 <Kioku>	"I don't know what to ask!"  Akemi wrinkles her nose a little.  "Where do I even start?  What is it?  How does it work?  What's it like, what do we do?  If it's a game, are there rules?  If there are characters, is it like a book or a play?  Do we have to write for them?  Athene said something about fantasy, so what's the setting like?"
Apr 19 02:55:30 <Antichthon>	Wow. Those were a lot of questions. Athene watched Austin to see how he'd answer that.
Apr 19 02:56:40 <Knave>	Austin thinks for a second, "It's a roleplaying game, which consists of all the players taking on the roles of a single character except one - that's me. I'm the Game Master." He sits forward, "The players all tell me, the GM, what their characters do and say. If its something that's not easy, then they have to roll dice to see if their characters succeed. It's more like a play than a book, because it involves improv acting through the action. You don't have to write, just talk." Austin grins, "I'm still thinking about the setting."
Apr 19 02:59:06 <Kioku>	"So... it's like a reverse play?  We're performing it, and writing the script while we do?  We say the dialogue like normal, but also say the actions instead of performing them?"
Apr 19 03:00:14 <Antichthon>	These analogies were confusng. "Didn't you ever play pretend when you were little? It's the same thing, just with someone who makes the rules. And dice."
Apr 19 03:01:57 <Knave>	"A reverse play works, if it helps you." Austin nods approvingly, one finger scritch-a-scratching at Hope.
Apr 19 03:03:01 <Kioku>	"Play... pretend?"  Akemi blinks at Athene.  "Ah... maybe... I see.  Okay!  Umm... how do we start?  If there's rules, I guess I should learn them..."
Apr 19 03:04:44 <BobaFettuccine>	At this point, Austin receives a call on his phone.
Apr 19 03:05:42 <Knave>	"Well, that's the kind of complicated part." Austin says, looking up thoughtfully as he works out where to start, "So your character has a race and a class - that's what species they are, and what role they fill. And-" A MIDI version of the Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers theme starts playing, "Sorry." Austin pulls out his phone, puts it to his ear and says "Yello?"
Apr 19 03:06:13 <Antichthon>	To Akemi, "The best way to learn is to play. There's a lot of rules."
Apr 19 03:07:00 <BobaFettuccine>	A female voice with a heavy Irish accent comes through the phone. "Hi! I'm calling about the D&D game? My name's Mary."
Apr 19 03:08:17 <Antichthon>	Athene's ears perked up. "Is that Mary?"
Apr 19 03:08:42 <Kioku>	Akemi blinks and smiles.  \Oh?\
Apr 19 03:08:45 <Antichthon>	She couldn't hear the words, but she knew the voices of her friends.
Apr 19 03:09:00 <Knave>	"Cool." Austin smiles down the phone, "I'm with a couple other people who wanna play right now." Austin's eyes go from their blank on-the-phone wandering to Athene, "Yeah, that's who she claims to be."
Apr 19 03:09:42 <Antichthon>	"Oh, is she interested in playing?" Athene asked, growing excited. "Tell her to come to Athene's room, she'll know where that is."
Apr 19 03:10:03 <BobaFettuccine>	"Awesome, is it cool if I join you guys?"
Apr 19 03:10:30 <Knave>	"It's very cool. Athene says to come to her room, and that you'll know where that is." Austin repeats in a smarmy tone.
Apr 19 03:10:56 <Antichthon>	Athene's smile fell. "Please don't make it weird, Austin."
Apr 19 03:11:50 <Kioku>	Akemi snickers and rolls her eyes.  "I guess I'll wait for her to get here before asking more~"
Apr 19 03:12:23 <BobaFettuccine>	Austin will hear a laugh from the other end of the phone before Mary hangs up. A few moments later and there's a knock on the door.
Apr 19 03:13:37 <Antichthon>	A practiced tail snaked over and opened the door. "Hey, Mary!" Athene waved. "Come in, we're talking rules. We're going to get a six-sided table too. This is gonna be great."
Apr 19 03:15:32 <Kioku>	Akemi gives a little wave from her place sitting on Athene, sort-of cuddled against her.  "Tell me that you know more about this than I do, please~?"
Apr 19 03:16:53 <BobaFettuccine>	Mary laughs and floats into the room, glowing blue and dressed in her usual sleeveless band Tee, jeans, and boots. "Hi Athene, Akemi." She floats over to Austin and extends her hand for shaking. "Nice to meet you, what's your name?" over her shoulder to Akemi. "Yeah, I haven't played before but I've read a few of the books and made characters."
Apr 19 03:17:48 <Antichthon>	"Yeah, that's basically where I am, too."
Apr 19 03:17:51 <Knave>	"Austin Silver," He takes the hand warmly with a casual smile, "Dungeon Master Extraordinaire."
Apr 19 03:21:16 <Kioku>	"I'm so glad I finished all of this month's homework the first week," Akemi murmurs to herself.  "It sounds like I have a lot of studying to do suddenly."
Apr 19 03:22:23 <Antichthon>	"Oh it's not so bad," Athene giggled. "If I can understand it, anyone can."
Apr 19 03:22:40 <BobaFettuccine>	Mary laughs and smiles at Akemi. "It's pretty easy to pick up, honestly I mostly did by making a character."
Apr 19 03:23:55 <Knave>	"All you really need to get is that for most things, you take an ability - that's one of six basic things your character has - and a skill - which are things your character's learned - and adding the scores to the roll of a twenty sided die, and seeing if the number's high enough." Austin pauses, "That sounds complicated when I say it out loud."
Apr 19 03:24:54 <Kioku>	Akemi lifts an eyebrow at Austin.  "... No it doesn't.  It sounds like statistics."
Apr 19 03:25:36 <Antichthon>	"If you were a character you'd have a charisma of twenty." Athene grinned and nudged Akemi.
Apr 19 03:25:44 <BobaFettuccine>	"Do you have any of the books? Or character sheets printed out?" Mary asks, looking to Austin
Apr 19 03:26:17 <Kioku>	"Mmm?  Is that good?  What's the scaling like?  I might have to prove you wrong if that was too low~"
Apr 19 03:26:51 <Antichthon>	"I, um. Don't actually know. I'm going off memes. I think twenty is absurdly high."
Apr 19 03:27:00 <Antichthon>	"Like James Bond is an eighteen?"
Apr 19 03:27:25 <Knave>	"Statistics come into it." Austin grins, "It's simulating fantasy worlds with numbers. This is deep nerd stuff." He turns his attention to Mary, "No books or sheets, just a laptop." Then Athene, "20 is the highest most mortals can achieve."
Apr 19 03:28:01 <Antichthon>	"Oh, well. Akemi isn't mortal. Maybe she's higher."
Apr 19 03:28:28 <Kioku>	Akemi narrows her eyes and smiles slyly at Austin.  "Mortals, you say~?"  She giggles at Athene and kisses her cheek for the comment.
Apr 19 03:29:35 <BobaFettuccine>	Mary smiles and seems to have an idea. "We should make characters today since we're all here."
Apr 19 03:31:03 <Antichthon>	Athene blushed a little, because there was no completely getting used to Akemi's ungodly beauty and flirtatiousness. "Should we? Um. Maybe we should give Akemi time to study. And like, do it one at a time so Austin isn't overwhelmed? Or me. I'd be overwhelmed."
Apr 19 03:31:36 <Knave>	Austin rolls his eyes at Athene and Akemi. "I think talking character concepts together would be a good idea. We can make them one-on-one."
Apr 19 03:32:56 <BobaFettuccine>	Mary nods at Athene and smiles. "Oh! I'm sorry, I'm just excited, I've never actually gotten to play before."
Apr 19 03:33:33 <Antichthon>	"Oh, sure. We can do that. Lets see...would it be boring for me to want to be a character that protects other characters?"
Apr 19 03:35:35 <Kioku>	"What sort of characters /can/ there be?  I still don't know much about the setting or the game, you know?  Mmmh... but I think I might like to try someone sneaky.  Oh!  Are there ninjas?"  Her eyes light up at the thought.
Apr 19 03:36:26 <BobaFettuccine>	Mary smiles mischievously. "I want to play someone who's big and buff and has a huge sword!" Mary makes little sword motions in the air
Apr 19 03:36:27 <Knave>	Austin nods sagely, "There are ninjas." He puts out a hand in explanatory gesture, "There's also the more traditional rogue, if that's your bag."
Apr 19 03:37:45 <Antichthon>	To Akemi, "Should I try being a protector, or should I try something different since that's kinda what I am in real life?"
Apr 19 03:39:35 <Kioku>	"I run along rooftops in real life."  Akemi giggles and shrugs.  "So if I'm doing that in a game too, why can't you be what you like?  Do you think it would be fun?  Ooh!  Hey, these characters all have like... they've been around a while, right?  They're not amnesiacs or something.  Can we write backstories for them?"
Apr 19 03:40:44 <BobaFettuccine>	Mary has an idea and gets noticeably brighter. "And if people describe their characters to me I can draw them!"
Apr 19 03:41:09 <BobaFettuccine>	to Athene "You should play a healer!"
Apr 19 03:41:14 <Knave>	"Yes, you can write backstories." Austin says, "I'd appreciate it, in fact." Then he smiles at Mary's offer.
Apr 19 03:41:50 <Antichthon>	"In that case I want to be someone tough, someone who can take damage in the place of others." She brightened at the healer idea. "Yeah or a healer! Or both? Austin, what's best for me that can heal and protect?"
Apr 19 03:42:41 <Knave>	"Paladin." Austin says knowledgeably, "Holy knights of order and justice." He grins, "Very righteous."
Apr 19 03:43:40 <Antichthon>	"Awesome. I'll be a paladin. How about race? I'm open to any race besides Lamia."
Apr 19 03:43:52 <Kioku>	Akemi wiggles in glee and hops off of Athene, takes a knee, and bows, an illusion rippling over her to make it look like she's in a black outfit with a wakizashi across the small of her back.  "[Your command is my wish, my lady.]"  It may be Japanese, and thus incomprehensible to Athene, but she says it so seriously and it can't be mistaken for anything but a vow of fealty or something similar.
Apr 19 03:45:07 <Antichthon>	Athene was delighted at that. "Ohmygosh I'm a paladin with a ninja servant. Evil doesn't stand a chance."
Apr 19 03:45:22 <Kioku>	Akemi breaks out giggling, and the illusion fades as quickly as it came.  "Any good ninja needs a lord or lady to serve, silly~!"
Apr 19 03:45:42 <BobaFettuccine>	Mary laughs at that doing a little spin in the air. "So a ninja, a paladin and... I'll be a barbarian!" She smiles and does a loop-de-loop
Apr 19 03:46:17 <Antichthon>	"Does that mean you're going to wear skimpy clothing?" Athene was teasing.
Apr 19 03:46:51 <Knave>	Austin sits with a smile plastered on his face, watching the girls bounce ideas off each other and petting the kitty.
Apr 19 03:48:53 <Kioku>	Akemi climbs back onto Athene.  "Hey yeah, what races are there?  If it's fantasy, then..."
Apr 19 03:49:11 <BobaFettuccine>	"Yeah,  I'll play a half-orc and be 7 feet tall and buff and wear a loincloth!" She flexes playfully.
Apr 19 03:50:11 <Knave>	Austin starts counting off on his fingers, "Well, you got humans, dwarves, elves, half-elves, half-orcs, halflings. And that's just the standard stuff." He makes an expansive gesture, "There's all sorts of things you can play as. Tieflings are a personal favourite."
Apr 19 03:51:01 <Antichthon>	"I'll let you pick my race then," Athene said to Austin, beaming. "Whatever would be best for protecting others."
Apr 19 03:52:18 <Kioku>	"Half orc...?"  Akemi tilts her head, trying to imagine it, but she doesn't have any sort of visual reference for such a thing.  It ends with just a shrug.  "What could I be to blend in?  Mmh, I'll get on one of the school computers and look up that site you listed.  So much research to do!"
Apr 19 03:53:11 <Antichthon>	"Halflings are tiny and hard to see, if I remember right."
Apr 19 03:53:12 <Knave>	"Uh..." Austin thinks, "Dwarves are good at being protective, I guess."
Apr 19 03:54:53 <Kioku>	"Halflings?"  Akemi shakes her head.  "That doesn't sound quite right.  Something that can walk through a crowd and blend in, never be suspected, that's what I meant.  Just a human?  Well, I guess it depends on the setting, doesn't it?"
Apr 19 03:55:42 <Antichthon>	"Yeah. I guess we can determine this stuff when we make our characters with Austin, one-on-one."
Apr 19 03:57:41 <BobaFettuccine>	Mary nods "Yeah, that'd probably be easier for him." She floated over to give Athene a hug, realizing that she hasn't done so yet.
Apr 19 03:58:10 <Antichthon>	And Athene happily returned the hug. No such thing as too many hugs from friends.
Apr 19 03:58:30 <Knave>	"And I still haven't totally decided on the setting yet." Austin says, rubbing the back of his neck, "Although I'll probably end up building it around the kind of characters you wanna play."
Apr 19 04:01:07 <Kioku>	"I want to build a backstory together with someone," Akemi notes.  "For an extra layer of depth.  And so we can figure out the details of my service~"  She grins and giggles again, almost as if she /meant/ for it to sound that way.  Today's goal is clearly 'make Austin blush.'
Apr 19 04:02:16 <Knave>	"Sounds like a good idea." Austin says, straightening his back as if to rise above, "If you come up with anything, I'll work it in."
Apr 19 04:03:19 <BobaFettuccine>	"Oooh, we could all tie our backstories together!" Mary says excitedly. "Athene could be some kind of royalty and be in charge of our characters."
Apr 19 04:04:09 <Antichthon>	"Well, it's clearly got to be my character you share a backstory with," Athene grinned. And then Mary made it better. "Hey yeah! I can be your noble and wise leader."
Apr 19 04:07:39 <Kioku>	"Mmm?  A barbarian who answers to a noble?  How intersting of events must have lead to that~!"  Akemi grins.  "Look out Austin, you might end up having to deal with all of us at once after all~"
Apr 19 04:08:40 <Knave>	Austin grins right back wickedly, "I'm sure I'm up to the challenge of you ladies."
Apr 19 04:09:12 <Antichthon>	"Maybe I saved her life. And even though she's hard and seen evil, deep down she still has a heart, and a sense of honor?"
Apr 19 04:10:44 <BobaFettuccine>	Mary harrumphs and feigns offence. "I'll have you know, barbarians aren't all evil."
Apr 19 04:11:40 <Kioku>	"Just uncivilized, right?"
Apr 19 04:14:03 <BobaFettuccine>	"Well yeah," Mary smiles warmly at Akemi. "I don't think I've ever heard of a civilized barbarian."
Apr 19 04:14:06 <Antichthon>	"Yeah, and I guess being civilized or not doesn't have anything to do with evil," Athene admitted. "My mom's real civilized and real evil."
Apr 19 04:14:56 <Knave>	Austin raises a hand, "Here we come to a crux of the game. Barbarians are always Chaotic." Austin moves his hand to one side, "But can be Good, or Evil," He raises it, then lowers it. "Paladins are always Lawful Good."
Apr 19 04:16:12 <Kioku>	"I don't think I'd really like being categorized that way... 'good' or 'evil'.  And what does lawful and chaotic even mean in this sort of context?"
Apr 19 04:16:55 <Knave>	Austin shrugs, "Lawful just means you prefer order, Chaotic means you prefer liberty." He smiles at her gently, "You can be Neutral to both axes if you want."
Apr 19 04:18:14 <Antichthon>	"Oh. but laws are sometimes not good, right?"
Apr 19 04:19:23 <Knave>	"Yeah, Lawful Evil is a thing, like you said. Civilized and evil." He gets a kind of excited look, "In fact there's a thing in one of the settings called the Blood War, which is an eternal war between Devils which are Lawful Evil and Demons which are Chaotic Evil."
Apr 19 04:20:16 <Antichthon>	Athene was still caught up in alignments. "So, what if my paladin comes across an evil law? If she's lawful and good, what does she do?"
Apr 19 04:21:40 <BobaFettuccine>	Mary watches this talk of alignments intently, turning her head to each person as they speak.
Apr 19 04:21:45 <Knave>	Austin smiles benignly, "Lawful Good is just a guideline, really. There's lots of ways to play a lawful good character. But probably you'd believe that the law should be just, and that unjust laws are a perversion." He glances momentarily at Akemi, "But you can play your character however you like."
Apr 19 04:26:02 <Kioku>	"So if I'm playing someone who follows a strict code, but disregards the laws of the land, where would that put me?  She doesn't act out of malice, but she'll readily kill for her oath sworn.  She wants to feel free and do whatever she chooses, but her lady's word is law first and foremost.  Do we have to be on the good-evil law-chaos axes?  Are they actually part of the rules?"
Apr 19 04:26:39 <Antichthon>	Athene nodded along with Akemi's questions.
Apr 19 04:27:32 <Knave>	"Yes." Austin nods, "But don't worry about it too much. Just go with what seems to make the most sense for your character and their priorities, then play your character."
Apr 19 04:29:00 <BobaFettuccine>	Mary smiles and pays attention to the conversation. She really doesn't care /too/ much about her character, she mostly just wants to play with her friends.
Apr 19 04:31:32 <Antichthon>	"Well, then my paladin will be following her heart, to bring her superior and compassionate brand of order to the world. That sounds right, right?"
Apr 19 04:32:18 <Knave>	"Sounds good to me." Austin flashes a smile up at the snake girl, "Sounds like my kinda paladin."
Apr 19 04:32:53 <Antichthon>	Athene pumped her fist. "Yessss."
Apr 19 04:32:56 <Kioku>	"I'll try to come up with something, then~!  Mmm..."  Akemi nods sharply.  "I'll come up with something that makes sense, work out a backstory that fits, and bring it to you.  It'll probably be a mess, but it's a good way to see how much I understand after looking things over, right?"
Apr 19 04:33:22 <Antichthon>	"And we're all going to have a shared backstory?"
Apr 19 04:33:50 <Knave>	Austin nods at Akemi, "I appreciate your enthusiasm."
Apr 19 04:44:08 <BobaFettuccine>	"Yeah," Mary responds to Athene, "Shared backstories!" She does a little spin in the air from excitement.
Apr 19 04:46:52 <Antichthon>	"Well, um. In that case, I suppose my character will have picked all your characters up somewhere along the way, gained their trust and loyalty, and made them into a force for good?"
Apr 19 04:47:12 <Antichthon>	To Austin. "We have room for two more players, right?"
Apr 19 04:47:17 <Kioku>	Akemi giggles.  "I can think of a few different ideas that might work for that even, for what I'm thinking up~"
Apr 19 04:47:59 <Knave>	"Yeah," Austin says, blankly, "Why, did you have someone in mind?"
Apr 19 04:48:01 <Antichthon>	"Shoot. Who else are we going to invite? I want Leah and Ellie and Zita and we can't have them all."
Apr 19 04:48:47 <Antichthon>	"And Lisa and Andrey and - aagh. Too many people!"
Apr 19 04:51:08 <Knave>	"I'll let you guys think about stuff. I should probably go work on setting things up so I can tell you something about the setting." Austin gets up from the floor, giving a little smile.
Apr 19 04:51:31 <Kioku>	Akemi frowns a little - just a little- at the idea of Leah being involved.  Then again, it could help repair things between them, so it might not be all bad.  "So many friends, right~?  Just which ones would be interested..."
Apr 19 04:53:13 <Antichthon>	Athen returned the smile. "Yeah, okay." To Akemi and Mary, "I'm also a bit scared of hogging this all to our friends. There are kids here who don't have the advantage of being part of the popular side of things like we are. Is it really right to hog it? It feels cliquey."
Apr 19 04:56:48 <Kioku>	"Mmm... well, it's on the notice board for everyone to see.  Is it wrong to let them know that we're in it, in case that tips whether they might want to, too?"
Apr 19 04:58:10 <Antichthon>	"I just don't want anyone to feel excluded."
Apr 19 04:59:04 <Knave>	"Let me worry about members, okay?" Austin says, "I'll update the poster and stuff." He steps towards the door, "I'll catch you all 'round. Feel free to call me if you need me."
Apr 19 04:59:53 <Antichthon>	"Alright. Thanks for doing this, Austin. It's going to be real fun."
Apr 19 05:01:23 <Kioku>	Akemi nods in agreement and blows a kiss to Austin, then waves and... barely refrains from bouncing in excitement since she doesn't know how Athene would take that.
Apr 19 05:02:01 <Antichthon>	Back to Akemi, "Hey, would you see how I'm progressing with my psychic powers sometime this week? I've been practicing a new ability. And I think I've gotten better at controlling the whole, 'crawl into my belly, you'll love it in there' thing."
Apr 19 05:02:15 <Knave>	Austin gives a salute and a wink, "You know me. I live to serve." He bows deeply and elaborately, then slips out the door.