ForeverNight Posted October 19, 2008 Share Posted October 19, 2008 The Corps of Discovery It is the year 1803, Thomas Jefferson is currently the President of the young United States of America, and Napoleon Bonaparte is the Emperor of France. In Paris, James Madison has finally closed the deal of the century, the Louisiana Purchase, buying the whole of New France in North America for about 4 cents an acre. 500 million acres of land had been purchased from Napoleon, more than doubling the land area of the United States of America. However, the question remained, just what was there to this five hundred million acre purchase? And, more importantly, does the Northwest Passage run through Louisiana? Having wanted to send an expedition out to the Pacific Ocean since at least 1792, President Jefferson was more than willing to send out an expedition. The question remained, though, who was going to explore the greatest addition to a country ever gained without conquest? --- --- --- I don't think I've seen an RP like this on the forums, I may be wrong, but I think it would be interesting. So, to summarize, you will take the role of one of seven major members of the Corps of Discovery, in our own History this was the Lewis and Clark Expedition. But, in this Universe, Lewis and Clark don't exist. It's time for us to create our own characters and explore the Louisiana Purchase and reach the Pacific Ocean! --- --- --- RULES Standard Dantooine Theatre Company Rules apply You can base your characters on actual historical people, but you're not allowed to take an actual historical figure and say that that's your character I'm sorry, but since this is a real event, you're all going to have to fit into the era Likewise with weaponry, we're not going to suddenly find a cache of AK-47's out in the sticks nor a DL-44 blaster pistol, nor a lightsaber and so on. Try to keep the attitudes of your character within the Norms of that time. Obviously there are going to be exceptions, but don't make a character with modern sensibilities, it just doesn't work out that well in 1803. (E.G. The party is captured by an angry band of Souix warriors and Bill turns to Bob and says: "You know, we should feel sorry for these people, after all we stole their land! I say that we give them everything we have and pray to whatever Gods they want us to.) Try not to tick everybody off in the RP, or I will exercise my power as the "Thread Master" and boot you from the RP, provided it gets serious and nobody can stand your character Remember, the Corps of Discovery was not an outfit made for conquest, while it contained many mercenaries and Indian fighters it's main purpose was exploration and cartography... though since this is an RP I have a feeling that that high-minded goal may not last more than a few pages... Finally, have fun, it bears saying and keeping in mind. If taking part in this RP becomes a chore, find someone you feel who could take care of your character or engineer a situation where your character dies --- --- --- Positions Needed to be Filled (1) There are several spots that need to be filled if this RP is every going to get off the ground. They are: Cartographer Naturalist Navigator Boatman (At least two) Tracker Translator (This job can be broken up among multiple people, but for translator languages we should have French and some Indian Languages -Souix, Iriquois and Lakota most importantly. In this RP, it is assumed that everybody in the group speaks English and a handful of French. (Yes, No, Where is the latrine, may I have some food, and beer please, basically.)) Forager (Basically you know what types of roots, berries and mushrooms are safe to eat) Co-Commanding Officer (This one is optional, but I doubt that everybody here wants only a single leader.) --- --- --- Character Sheet Name: Firstname Lastname Age: Character'sAge Group: Mercenary/US Military (Marines/Army)/Indian Fighter/et cetera Gender: Character'sGender Appearance: Picture or description of your character Height: HeightInInches/Feet(HeightInMetric) Weight: WeightInPounds(WeightInKilograms) Weapon(s): What weaponry is your character bringing? A Kentucky Rifle (2) is standard-issue Equipment (3):What other stuff does your character have? Skills: Does your character have any special skills that set him/her apart from the rest of the party? List up to three and include a description of each. Short History: Just a quick history of what your character's life was like prior to now Plus, add in anything else that you can think of that would be helpful to have on your character sheet. --- --- --- And, here's my character. Name: Robert McBremont Age: 24 Group: United States Army- Captain Gender: Male Appearance: On the taller side for a late 18th century man, McBremont has brown hair that is longer than he'd normally perfer, but helps keep his head warm during winter. His hands are highly callused and his gray eyes look both trust-inspiring and cold at the same time. Height: 5'8" (1.7272 Meters) Weight: 143 pounds (65 Kilograms) Weapon(s): Kentucky Rifle, Bowie Knife, Hunting Rifle Equipment:Powder horn, cartridge, field telescope, mess kit, drab green uniform, flint and steel, thirty four francs, hacksilver, 15 silver dollars, and Letter of Credit issued by President Jefferson4 Skills: Naturalist: McBremont is a trained naturalist with an eye that allows him to notice anything out of the ordinary in the area just by looking around. This skill also allows him to keep detailed records of what they've seen on this journey so far. Celestial Navigation: McBremont was trained in the skill of Navigating by the stars from a young age and is able to find his way by looking up at the sky for a few minutes to get his bearings. Trained shot: While McBremont has been shooting from a young age, in the Army he learned about rate of fire and how to use it to his advantage. He is able to fire off about five well-aimed shots in two minutes, just slower than the famed English Redcoat. Short History: Born to Stephen and Jessica McBremont of Boston, Robert knew what he wanted to do with his life from a young age. He wanted to join the US Army like his father who had joined Washington's Army during the War against King George III and Britain. He was born in Boston, but shortly his family moved to the frontier, where Robert learned to shoot a rifle and how to navigate purely by the stars. Once he left home, he bought his commission in the army and served with distinction in the defense of he frontier against several Indian raids. He made Captain in 1801 and, apparently, came to the notice of President Jefferson for his excellent navigation skills later that same year. In 14 July 1803 he received a letter from the President that asked him to lead an expedition into the new Louisiana Purchase. He immediately rode to Monticello, President Jefferson's private home, where he told the President he accepted and started working with him on the details... --- --- --- Notes 1: Each job counts as a Skill, however those are not by any stretch of the imagination the only skills offered/wanted by the Corps of Discovery. 2: A Kentucky Rifle is a flint-lock rifle that was used by the US Army during both the Revolution and until the invention of the Breechloaded and Percussion Caps. This rifle is the most accurate rifle created at the time and is said to be able to hit a horse at 400 yards. More info here. 3: If your character is one of those that engage in "that peculiar institution" (A slave owner) for the purposes of this RP you will be forced to leave your slave at home, even though the esteemed Captain Clark did not leave his slave York at home. This is done to keep any problems of cacism expressed by any PC or NPC to the lowest level possible in 1803. I wish it to be known that I am vehemently opposed to racism in any shape or form, however, as I said earlier, the social norms of 1803 are those that we have to conform to, sadly not the other way around. 4: President Jefferson did issue the Lewis and Clark expedition a Letter of Credit that could buy them anything they needed at an American Government Post at the Government's Expense. Seems only fair that we get one too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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