A:TLAITP: Avatar: The Last Airbender Planning Thread 1

[Morty]

At this point I'm just going to say a blank 'no' to bending multiple elements. It's kind of at the root of the setting that no one can do that except the Avatar.

Others may have differing opinions.

I agree. Fiddling with canon to provide better stories is one thing. But the fact that only the Avatar can bend more than one element is a fundamental part of the setting and the whole "system" of bending. We should not change that.
@AnimeKid: That all depends on which plot you want to get him into. Speaking of plots, the first post of mine should be up shortly.

[Lord-Cao-Cao]

Wait, what? We're having two differing concurrent timeline plots in the same thread?

my head will be done in

[Ashen Lilies]

Blame Methos H. He's the one who had to be hipster and set his plot in a different timeline to everyone else.

As long as everyone is good about tagging their posts and making clear which interactions are in the main timeline and which are in the Spiritual Shards timeline, it shouldn't get too confusing.

[Morty]

Aaaang my plot is posted. Everyone who wants to jump in, please post saying how your character ended up there and what they're doing. Feel free to have them run into each other as well.

[The Librarian]

I agree. Fiddling with canon to provide better stories is one thing. But the fact that only the Avatar can bend more than one element is a fundamental part of the setting and the whole "system" of bending. We should not change that.

*Raises hands passively*

Alright, fair enough. I'll make the changes. In my defense I thought it could be neat concept to have a character that was a hybrid-bender, especially since I had thought up some ways to keep my character from becoming broken. I also just thought a Hybrid-bender would be cool to have IC.

Regardless, my argument isn't gonna change opinions, so I'll just make my character a Waterbender, as originally planned.

[Viera Champion]

I agree. Fiddling with canon to provide better stories is one thing. But the fact that only the Avatar can bend more than one element is a fundamental part of the setting and the whole "system" of bending. We should not change that.
@AnimeKid: That all depends on which plot you want to get him into. Speaking of plots, the first post of mine should be up shortly.

What is your plot?

[Morty]

Earth Kingdom and Southern Water Tribe extremists attack the newly created United Republic of nation because they think the Fire Nation has got off easy. I elaborated upon it in this thread.

[The Librarian]

Earth Kingdom and Southern Water Tribe extremists attack the newly created United Republic of nation because they think the Fire Nation has got off easy. I elaborated upon it in this thread.

What time period is this plot set? Also made the changes to Izumi's character sheet.

[Morty]

As I said right there in the IC thread...

[Old Wounds]

The city of Tyiuan used to lie on the western coast of the Earth Kingdom - but there's noone left alive who remembers that time. In the earliest stages of Firelord Sozin's world conquest, Tyiuan fell to a massive attack by Fire Nation army. Taken by surprise, the city and the surrounding territory were taken quickly.
In the years that followed, much of the native population was replaced by Fire Nation colonists. Intially, there were uprisings, which were quashed without mercy. Eventually, the new and old inhabitants managed to reach a cautious balance that allowed everyone to live in relative peace. As such, when the Harmony Restoration Movement began, the citizenry weren't too thrilled about being returned to the Earth Kingdom - they didn't feel like they truly belonged to either nation.
Which is why they were so enthusiastic about the news that Avatar Aang and Firelord Zuko - both figures rather enigmatic and legendary to them - as well as the Earth King Kuei agreed to turn the colonies into the United Republic of Nations. Most people hope that it marks a new era of prosperity, peace and growth for everyone as well as plenty of opportunity for the scars of the long war to heal.
The City Council has declared a week-long celebration of the end of the feud between the Fire Nation and Earth kingdom and the founding of the United Republic. People are out in the streets partying, eating, drinking and participating in many events. This is the first good thing to happen to them in a long time. However, there's a shadow hanging over the joyous occassion... something is brewing.

[The Librarian]

So Morty, could we assume this plot is 2-3 years after the Hundred Year War?

[Morty]

The exact time count depends on just how long it took Aang and Zuko to found the United Republic... but either way, it's not long after the War.

[The Librarian]

Hrm...I'm in for the Old Wounds Plot. Izumi's backstory and raising will be perfect for this plot.
'

[Ashen Lilies]

Posted for Young Li Zhou in the Spiritual Shards timeline. Obviously he's joining the bad guys for this one, though there's really no indication of how. There isn't a convenient poster like the good guys have.

Also introduced Kazuko into the general Republic City setting I think we agreed on earlier in this thread. True, she's in a carriage which makes it a little difficult to interact with her, but if more people post there, I can arrange to have her meet someone.

Also remember I'm willing to run general shenanigans with Old Li Zhou and the Stone Talon Triad in Republic City if anyone wants, with possibility of some MYSTERY if it gets interest. I'm not running this as a proper plotty type thing like MethosH and Morty are doing - just general interactions with maybe some story stuff that might get uncovered along the way.

[Morty]

Just introduce your character then, Righty.
And Kris, I might throw Minoru there... Republic City is as good a place for him as any.

[Mina Kobold]

Character for Spiritual Shards, hope I have not made any mistakes.

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Name: On Ji

Nation: Fire Nation.

Description: Reasonably tall and lean with a short hime-cut hairstyle and the common amber eyes of a Fire Nation native, On Ji looks like many other rookie soldiers from the later years of the war. Although the armour has been modified with a grayish-red cloak, On Ji still dresses as a soldier of the Fire Nation Army.

On Ji has a scar on her left arm from the accident that kept the young Firebender from fighting in the war.

Personality: Still accustomed to the strict and spartan lifestyle taught in the barracks of the Fire Nation Army, On Ji is tidy and ritualistic about daily chores.
Although slowly adjusting to the new peace and attempting to be more friendly and open, the former soldier still harbours some of the jumpiness and naivety toward social complexity from the barracks. This often makes On Ji appear oblivious or short-sighted.

On Ji attempts to keep a sceptical view on the propaganda of the war, hoping to gain an understanding of the world without the lies of Ozai.

Abilities: On Ji was among the Firebenders in the Army, learning both to fight with sword and bending, although only through sparring and practise.

On Ji has reasonable skill with the blade and with hand-to-hand combat, but is predictable and lacks finesse.

On Ji's bending is above the average soldier's abilities, but also relies heavily on basics and military tactics. On Ji's bending is reserved mostly to practical purposes and fighting, rather than beauty or study.

On Ji possess some skill at wilderness survival, tracking and bartering, all learnt after the war.

Backstory: Born to a well-off family in one of the Fire Nation's cities, On Ji was second among three siblings and the first daughter of the family.

Through the years, On Ji became fascinated with the Domestic Forces of the city, who were among the more sympathetic of their organisation, and expressed a wish to join the Army from an early age.

Doing well in school, On Ji was accepted to the Army's barracks, filled with ideals about the Fire Nation's honourable fight for the betterment of the world. In the final year of the war, On Ji was among a team sent to help fight on the Day of the Black Sun.

Unfortunately, a quarrel broke out between the teammates. Hailing from different walks of life and with different worldviews, it soon escalated into an outright fight. The quarrel only ended when On Ji, who had been defending the Fire Nation's duty to wage war, was severely wounded by a teammate's Firebending.

Spending much time recovering, On Ji did not get well in time to fight for the remainder of the war. The young soldier did, however, witness Ozai's coronation as Phoenix King and the following aftermath. These events lead to On Ji's resignation from the Army and following travels.

Since then, On Ji has travelled to the other nations, serving as hired help and bodyguard while seeing the world through new eyes.

Relationships: Still on good terms with former Army teammates, but has little contact beyond occasional letters. Regularly sends letters to siblings and other family members.

I might throw Michi into Republic City as well, but that would leave me with no character for Old Wounds... Hmm, I shall ponder this dilemma while awaiting judgement on On Ji! :3

[Morty]

Righty... my plot isn't taking place in Republic City. It's taking place in a city of Tyiuan. It says so in the first paragraph.

[The Librarian]

Fixed.

[MethosH]

I'll have time to reply about all characters and events in spiritual shards tomorrow. Just leting you guys know

[Viera Champion]

So I feel Kiyoshi would work well as a hired defense measure or something in one of the expedition teams for Spiritual Shards. What do you think Methos?

[Zjoot]

Ooh, excellent! I've been itching for a good roleplay, and this is perfect.

Got a couple characters as I was reading through the thread. I'm just gonna post a little overview for now, I want to read through everyone's character sheets before actually making them, but the general idea is for a firebending factory worker who is also some sort of street musician. This character will probably just float around Republic City for a while, possibly getting involved in the triad situation. The other idea was for a sandbender or non-bender from the desert, which I think works well as a triad member. (I really like the triad plot, in case you hadn't guessed)

So yeah, gonna go get acquainted with stuff, then I'll post my character sheets.

[The Librarian]

Excited to see some new blood, welcome to the RP man

[Lord-Cao-Cao]

My apologies, actually-I reread Wu Ming, and cringed at how terrible that idea was. I'll make another character-For Old Wounds.

Name: Chen Yi-Fong
Nation: Fire Nation
Description: A short, broad-shouldered man who appears in his late twenties or early thirties, he constantly appears tense and frequently looks over his shoulder. Possessed of dark hair and intense, possibly semi-crazed amber eyes, there is little to physically distinguish him from the average Fire Nation citizen; save the numerous burn marks which trail their way down his body, obviously the result of firebending tussles. Other than this, he dresses simply; thick, trailworn travelling clothes and a wide-brimmed hat for the most part. His one concession against utility are his black leather boots which are of unusually fine quality; Chen hates walking barefoot on rough ground and good shoes were perhaps one of the very few good things which the town that he grew up in produced.
Personality: Chen is ....Intense, to put it simply. For him, his quest to find the 'perfect' Firebending style consumes his entire life; while he isn't entirely insensitive to the plights of others, they are usually peripheral to learning and developing new firebending techniques. Despite this, he can possess a fierce charm when it is necessary, projecting his sizable ego backed up by his many years of experience. That being said, he is also capable of assuming a different persona and lying glibly, Understandably, this has meant that he fits in quite well with the various gangs in Republic City...
Abilities: Chen possesses a journeymans' level of knowledge in almost all the various styles of firebending, both armed and unarmed, that exist not only in the Fire Nation, but all over the world. This has resulted in Chen employing an eclectic and highly unusual form of firebending, apparently changing stance, footwork and attacks on the fly and often combining many of them together to create a style which leave many at a loss as to how to respond. Still, despite the wide variety of schools that Chen has attended and the various credos that they ascribe to, Chen believes that the true power of Firebending lies 'at the moment of impact' and he does possess one signature technique of his own-A simple jab, producing a simple blast of fire, but thrown with such speed and power that this one technique has overwhelmed many an unprepared opponent in a fraction of a second.

Even so, Chens' personal, raw bending power is nothing special, and as a result he usually seeks to end fights quickly, before his opponents have a chance to deploy their full strength. This can include dirty tricks-Chen is quite fond of throwing a small pouch full of black powder at them and then setting it ablaze with his signature jab.

Outside of battle, Chen is capable of adopting a different persona and lying with masterful ease, to the point that even people who have known him for a long time are unsure of his true nature.

Backstory: Chen Yi-Fong, likely not his real name, was born the son of a pair of metalworkers; sadly, his parents died very early on in his life after having been caught in an explosion in the factory that they worked in: as a result, Chen does not even remember them.

He was then brought up by his uncle Zhao Huo, a strict man many years his mothers' elder and a Firebending master near the heartland of the Fire Nation. From there, he was taken as a (fairly average) pupil, with an interest in Firebending but not necessarily in Zhao Huo Chuan and often punished for deviating from the norms and trying out many new things, often unsuccessfully. Most unnervingly, he seemed to have a fascination with explosions; a curiosity that Zhao tried to stamp out of him after having learned what had happened to his parents.

Simply put, Chen was not happy there; the rigid confines of the Zhao Huo school firebending, both figuratively and literally continually set his teeth on edge and bored him out of his mind. He wanted to go somewhere, do something, but he didn't have a goal to work towards, so he just stayed where he was, being a totally average student in every way.

That is, until he followed his uncle to a regional Firebending tournament at age fourteen for the first time, where he finally found a goal he found worthy of attaining after seeing his uncle get knocked down as well as all the various styles of Firebending; their strengths and weaknesses thereof and their differences in all their glory. He decided that would experience Firebending in its' entirety and create the 'perfect' Firebending style-One that would have no weaknesses and could adapt to any situation, any target.

That week, much to his uncles' ire, he stole money and valuable goods from his school and fled into the night, emerging under a different name and identity in a different school in a different province, learning a different style. When Chen grew bored with what they had to teach him, he repeated what he had done this his uncles' school, stealing money and items and assuming a different identity as a student somewhere else. Eventually this would catch up to him and as a result his stays at schools never lasted very long before he was forced to move somewhere else, eventually having to flee the Fire Nation altogether, where he would repeat the same activity in her colonies, often spending time in between as a wanderer challenging other Firebenders to fights and learning on the road. In time, of course, his misdeeds would catch up to him yet again, but by then he was no longer the inexperienced boy that he was. And, of course, like any other man, he had heard of Republic City.

He had intended to go to that place last, to test his newfound 'Style of Many Styles' against benders of other elements and see what he could learn from them, but with his back against the wall and the authorities closing in on him, he figured that then was as good a time as any.

Relationships: Chen is a solitary figure, ever on the road and as such all of his bonds up to that point have been fleeting and transient; truth be told Chen was never very close with anyone, not even his uncle or his fellow students and as such never formed any real relationships with anyone, although he has feigned friendship and even love many times before.

[The Librarian]

Looks like a pretty good character Cao-Cao. Unless anyone has any big concerns I'd say your good to post in the IC.

On that note, I would really like to encourage anyone who hasn't made a character, or hasn't introduced their said character to go ahead and join the fun when able.

[The Silence]

Sweet!! Atla is my favorite thing ever!!
I would like to join with my character, hope that she's exceptable.

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Name Norie Ariwara
Nation Earth Kingdom
Description Norie is a young 16 year old earthbender from Ba Sing Se. She has dark maroon hair in a 'late zuko' haircut. She doesn't wear traditional earth kingdom clothing, but instead prefers the loose, light clothing of the sand benders and will commonly be seen in that. Her eyes are a light, pale blue and her skin is very pale and flawless.
Personality Norie is a naturally calm girl. She never had any family problems and was raised well, giving her a very pleasant personality as well. At times, however, she can be a bit naive and independent.
Abilities Norie has very standard earth bending skills. Her parents signed her up for classes and she thought herself the rest. She also picked up some beginner sandbending while on vacation in the dessert.
Backstory Norie grew up in a good family in middle class Ba Sing Se. She was an only child, so she became very spoiled, but never acts it. When her mother was pregnant with her, she got attacked in an alley, one night, returning from a late party. She lost a few belongings, but from a blow to the stomach, infant Norie developed a slight stutter. Not only does her voice stutter, but her body seems to stutter as well, when certain muscles tense up. She doesn't let this bother her though.
After 16 years with her parents, Norie became bored with her average life in the city. She set out on a journey to Omashu to stay with her Uncle, who would teach her more advanced earthbending.
Relationships Norie is very close to her parents, and writes them often, but has no other relationships.

I would like to change my character's name to something more earth kingdom-y. She is now Jun Lee.

[gunnar11]

I there still place in any of the games? (Preferably Spirit Shards?)

My char (submitted also on page 1)

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Name: Zeph Kaye

Nation: Earth Kingdom

Description: Zeph is well-build, broad shoulders, with a slight tan. He is average height for someone of the Earth Kingdom. Zeph has green eyes and brown hair. He wear's clothes of the Earth kingdom, although sometimes he swaps his clothes for an alternate 'night' version, meaning the colors yellow become black.

Personality: Zeph is quite calm. Like a real earthbender he tends to look at his opponents and analyze their movements, before choosing a way to fight them. He prefers to discuss things with everyone before having to fight things out. Of course, like a real earthbender, he never chooses to submit, to give ground. He instead fights like no other.

Abilities: An earthbender who already learned sandbending.

Backstory: Zeph was quite a good earthbender. He started very young, placing himself as one of the most promising earthbenders. Even so, he slacked off. He stopped perfecting his own earthbending, but instead wanted to learn every possible way of earthbending. After having learned to sandbend, and having discovered tremorsense by himself, he now searches for the ultimate earthbending, something only one person had achieved untill then: Metalbending

Relationships: His parents and siblings are all earthbenders (except for his mother), and support Zeph in every way they can. Zeph had a girlfriend when little, but seeming how she moved away, he is currently single.

[Morty]

There's still room in both of the plots. My plot can fit two more characters, I think.

[The Silence]

I would love to join Ryoto's side of the Spiritual Shards plot if that is ok...

[MethosH]

I would love to join Ryoto's side of the Spiritual Shards plot if that is ok...

That would be great : ) just hop in

[The Silence]

That would be great : ) just hop in

Well then I'll proceed to hop! Thanks!

[Viera Champion]

That would be great : ) just hop in

You never responded to my post.:small frown:

So I feel Kiyoshi would work well as a hired defense measure or something in one of the expedition teams for Spiritual Shards. What do you think Methos?