Genres, Worlds, Prompts & Plots

From Acolyte to Archdevil

"Tales are spun time and again of the endless war between the holy and the unholy; between the followers of the divine and the devils of the Hellplanes. Murals decorate ancient cathedrals, illustrating grand battles of light and darkness, and hymns are hummed of the clash of good and evil. Yet the real war—the war beyond the reach of the commonfolk—is told with plans and subtlety.

A tale is told of the Mad Paladin, the once-proud Maryse Dawnsong, Knight-Commander of the Order of Dawn, and her gradual spiral from the peaks of the divine to the pits of the Abyss. In decades past, she was the light that excised the darkness and sent creatures of the deepest caves scrambling back to their shadows. With age, her mind began to erode like the cliffs beside an eternally storm-laden sea. It began with a snap, and ended with the loss of her children.

A paladin's oath is their life, and Maryse's oath was to see undeath banished from the plane of the living. When her son fell under a progressive curse of undeath himself to late to be cured, she had only one option; an option a mother can never choose on her own.

A paladin's oath is their life, and pride is a sickening motivator. Despite words of reassurance from her peers—that it didn't have to her hand, and that she didn't have to be present—she took it onto herself to take the young man's life, claiming her husband's alongside his in defense of their son.

Their daughter was shepherded off in the night, lest she be doomed to grow up in the light of that blighted sun.

What life could a woman of such a cursed lineage live?"

---

In reality, Maryse had become inflicted with a slow-burning curse of madness years past that whittled away at her mind. She'd become given to zealotry over sound thought, and the bastion of kindness she'd once been had withered to a husk.

Her adversary—an archdevil—had given her this curse that she would eventually unwind herself, and that he would eventually be able to claim his daughter for his own under his patronage. The tale I'd like to tell here is that of a warlock starting at the beginning and moving through a written campaign on into her eventual turning on her patron and ascension to a throne of the Hell planes.

Star Wars: A Young Force-sensitive

I'd love to explore the rise (fall?) of a young Force-sensitive. Where and what sort of life she comes from is up for discussion, but I would love her to find some connection to the thriving history of Dark Side Masters, whether it be a connection to Palpatine's personal archives she stumbles upon, to a holocron from thousands of years in the past, to a Lord who has skirted attention for much of the Imperial high. The details are less important than the premise of someone learning what she can be in an era very much anti-Force-user. She would start either as nothing, or early in on her training, depending.

Star Wars: Distant Future

Set in the far future, hundreds or thousands of years beyond the original trilogy, what might the galaxy look like? Have the Jedi and the Sith been long forgotten? Has the New Republic crumbled to dust, or has it risen to a golden age? Who supports them? What threatens the piece? This is very much a blank slate prompt in which we will craft what the world looks like. The thought of a 'rediscovery' of Jedi/Sith history and a resurgence in Force users interests me here.

Wrong Time, Wrong Place (Nobody)

Your traditional 'wrong place, wrong time' story! Someone from the slums of the city is swept into something bigger than herself. Perhaps she falls into a back-room dispute between rival corporations? Gangs? Someone learns about her proficiency in computers and forces her to work her magic until credits spit out of the soda machine? A little tongue in cheek, but the possibilities are endless!

Wrong Time, Wrong Place (Corporate)

Similar to the above, but from a corporate perspective. A bright-eyed young corporate aiming for the stars in her career, finds herself in possession of information that endangers her life and the lives of everyone she cares about. What lengths will the corporation go to keep her silent? Will they try to end her? Bribe her? Give her a place among them, if they find some use in her?

A Near-human Android

A life-like android/cyborg, a la Ghost in the Shell. Why was she made? Who was she made by? To all but the most invasive, advanced scans she'd appear completely human. Does she know she's anything more than every other person on the street? Where did she wake up? In a lab? In a pile of trash on the street? Does she have any memories? Tons to discuss and decide!

Open-world Space Adventure

This is more your generic sci-fi prompt, though I'd liken it to Mass Effect, or other 'open world' space settings. I care less for the specifics, and more for the opportunity to become involved in debauchery and the wild worlds the galaxy has to offer. Consider this prompt more open than others!

The Culture

Are you a fan of The Culture series? If you're experienced in the lore of the world, this is something I've never written in and would love to. Front of the line if you fill the requirement and have an interest.

From Riches to Rags

A poor soul finds herself in the wrong place at the wrong time. She feels the life leaving her body, tastes the coppery brine of her own blood in her mouth, and sees her once-snowy sweater stained crimson; yet, some time later, she wakes with acuity to her senses. How will she adapt to her new life? What's going on in the world? How do vampires survive? I'm open to past, modern, or near-future for this, and this is left vague because the details usually end up being rather specific to the local context of the city.

I've had some enjoyable success taking a character who was born into a live of privilege, who ruined her chance at a life of lax and luxury and wound up on the streets, prime prey for the creatures of the night.

Demonic / Witch Ancestry

A character learns that she has a connection to a world she'd only ever considered fictional. What does this mean for her? What will she think when she learns what it really means to invoke the black arts? Is it a promise of her soul to the burning pits? Will she forgo her innocence for power? What will she do with it? This is another fairly open prompt.

Endless Wishes

The ability to snap your fingers, wrinkle your nose, and remake the world as you see fit with only a thought toward what it will become. This is a prompt with almost infinite possibility, and has an opportunity for some of the darker themes to come to light. What would happen if you were given a free pass to become God? Would you maintain your humanity? How long would you see your peers as the same species? Would you keep your good heart, and leave those who wronged you alone? What clever end would you have for them, if not?

A Demoness, Scorned

The child / a favorite soul of one of the rulers of the Abyss sends their child to the mortal world as an amusing punishment. What will she do when reduced to something mortal? This prompt has yielded some interesting ideas and some amusing scenes in the little I've played it out.

A Vengeful Ghost

A ghost tied to the living world! Possession and depravity abound! If we can craft this story into something purposeful and less short-term fun, I'd be very interested. Is the focus on possession? On redemption for the ghost? Are they benevolent, or malicious? Do they encounter ghost hunters? Are the hunters real, or just filming a show? The inverse of most paranormal-horror movies!

Building a Business!

Writing a young entrepreneur who wants to start a business! An inn? A tavern? A brothel? The possibilities are largely open with this. The enticing piece is the variety of people, races and creatures that she might hire or engage with!

Recovering a Space Station / Space Prison

A new director lands upon a failing experimental research station / prison. Perhaps it's one, perhaps it's both. I envision this prompt to focus on the many problems going on that have pushed this station to the edge of failure, how my character addresses them, and how she bonds with the crew. In darker versions of this prompt, perhaps prisoners are used for experimentation.