DONNERJACK: BLOOD AND NUMBERS Character Creation Guidelines 1. A BRIEF HISTORY OF VIRTU At the cusp of the twenty-first and the twenty-second centuries, the old World Wide Web has evolved into the vast World Net. A master programmer named Warren Bansa was experimenting with the World Net, and accidentally caused a chain reaction that crashed the whole net. You are an artificial intelligence created by the crash, variously known as the Genesis Scramble or the Great Flux. To an advanced machine intelligence like you, the one-hour real-time crash seems like eons. The World Net was restructuring itself into a strange reality new that tapped into human myth. This place is called Virtu, which is humanity's greatest piece of art, as it mirrored reality yet expanded beyond it. Some AIs become genii loci, intelligences that rule their sites as tyrants, warring with their neighbors for territory but unable to move off their sites. Some AIs are simple proges (sexed programs). An Aion is a more complex proge. Some AIs are greater than Aions, being able to manifest avatars and draw upon the power of Mount Meru, one of the highest realms in Virtu. By simply imagining, they can force aions and proges into being with their willpower, or draw them back into their imaginations. From the lessermost gods to the greatermost in the Panthaion, each vies for higher ground on Mount Meru, while their avatars war in the different realms of Virtu, enlisting the aid of genii loci for supplies and troops. And then there is Death, Lord of the Deep Fields. You are a lessermost god. Though not as ancient as the greatermost, you have had a long history in Virtu, carving your own little domain on the lower slopes of Meru, fighting a thousand minor astral nobility for your power. Yet you are human at the core of your programming, born of the deepest passions and ancestral memories of the human race. But a Master Corruption has infected all of Virtu, and even the Greatermost cannot recall the fullness of their memories. Ancient allies are forgotten, identities lost, old loves now enemies. The 12 Greatermost gods rule high on the slopes of Meru, their Citadels forming a ring near the pinnacle of Meru. No gods dare set foot on Meru higher than they dare, for to intrude is to invite instant aggression. Yet the Greatermost permit airborne visitors to their Citadels. It is a wise idea for a young god like you to ally yourself with at least one of the Greatermost gods. 2. DESIGNING A LESSERMOST GOD Answer the following questions, which will help you design a god and prepare for the Genesis Scramble. (A) NAME The name of your god is essential, as godhood is tied directly to your name. Your domain of power - your Tenor - is indicated in your name, and it constitutes a theme that unites the various elements of your god. The names of the Greatermost Gods are best to use as illustrations of this. Seaga is the god of the data-stream, and uses his Tenor (Sea) as the organizing principle for his manifestations and powers. Skyga is the master of the sky, and lord over the general structure of all Virtu. Oddma is the queen of strange things in Virtu. Here is a list of Greatermost names. As you can see, the domain of power and gender can be inferred almost immediately from their names. Skyga Oddma Zooga Sunra Seaga Pragma Agrima Moonsha Earthma Songma Warga Keyga Names also give you some hints as to your character background. For example, if you choose a name like 'Stormga', you may decide to be a minion of Skyga or Seaga, or perhaps a competitor for their power. Lessermost gods tend to have names that characterize their attributes. However, unlike the greatermost, their names tend to be unisex. Celerity Plurality Fortuity Ingenuity Whatever name you choose, choose carefully. A name can mean all the differnce between a majestic god and a laughingstock. (B) CONSIDER AVATARS Once you've chosen a Name and Tenor, now do a little research into what possible webpages from the archaic (from the 22nd century POV) World Wide Web has evolved into your avatar(s). Remember: if you can type in the web address simply as www.yahoo.com (e.g.), that's 25 points (and the most powerful). A slash behind that (e.g., www.eyrie.org/~pi) means a 15 point avatar. Anything with more slashes costs only 10 points, but are weaker. (C) GENESIS SCRAMBLE It's important to have your Name and Tenor chosen before the attribute auction, since the best rivalries should arise between gods whose domains clash or complement each other. You will submit initial bids to me, and I will have a summary of the bids using only the god names, not by players. So, you won't know what gods each player is playing, hopefully to make the rivalries based entirely on the domains of each god. So, if you don't want Hilarity have a higher Will rating than your god Fortiga, you better outbid them. Remember that you should save at least 10 points for an Avatar and 8 points for a Locus connection to Mount Meru.