Tower of Valor, open AU RP post

[anoceanofatma]

"What do you desire? Money and wealth? Glory? Honor and pride? Authority and power? Revenge? Or something that transcends all of them? Whatever you desire - You'll find it at the top."



One hundred floors, connected to each other in a row, from Floor 1 to Floor 100. You could spent your entire life exploring each one, which is a world unto itself.

Most people do just that, never leaving the floor they were born on. But some lucky few get chosen for The Ascent.

It is a grueling process, and most give up or die long before they reach the top, but those who do. Those who make it to floor 100 get to meet god, who will grant them anything they desire.

That's what they say, anyway.

AU ROLES

1: Citizen - Normal people. 99.9999% of the people in The Tower are citizens. They can be anything, from common retail slaves to mighty heroes. There is only one unbreakable law for Citizens: No Citizen can ever travel to a Floor higher than the one they were born on.

If you're a citizen, Regulars and Rankers are just transient figures in your life, if they enter into things at all. You're just trying to make it another day like any other working scrub.

2: Regulars - Those rare, exceptional souls who have a wish, a desire so powerful that it transcends common sense, just might get lucky and be chosen to become Regulars. Regulars lose their status as citizens and are sent to floor 1. From there, they can start climbing the tower. Each floor has a gate to the floor above it, but to gain access to it you must complete grueling tests, often at the expense of other Regulars. This is the only known way to get to a higher floor than the one you were born on. The only way to meet god. Most Regulars die or give up long before they reach the top, and the ones who do are never the same person they thought they were when they started.

How much are you willing to sacrifice for your wish?

3: Rankers - Regulars who reach floor 100. They have met god, and have sworn absolute loyalty to the Tower Authority. They administer the tests Regulars have to go through. They punish those who try to break the inviolate laws of the Tower. They generally form the backbone of the Tower Authority. They are powerful and mysterious.

And they NEVER talk about what it was like to meet god.

4: Archangels - As Rankers are above Regulars, Archangels are above Rankers. The direct servants of god themself, Archangels are figures of unimaginable power, forever traveling the Tower on their own inscrutable errands.

There are very few Archangels. Eight, total

5: The Great Houses - While ostensible made up of Regulars and Citizens, the Great Houses none the less have massive influence that spreads across the entire Tower up to floor 99 (but never floor 100. That is the realm of God.). Their scions are met with awe, respect, or fear. Every Regular would do well to remember their names.

6: Irregulars - Regulars who have defied the Tower Authority and lived to tell the tale. Officially, no such people exist.

999: Wildcard - Make your own shit up. I'm not the boss of you.

SCENARIOS

1: Administering a test - The Ranker has absolute authority over their test. They can decide the rules, as well as who ascends and does not. Explain the rules to the poor Regulars, then sit back and watch them suffer.

2: Surviving a test - You're a Regular, and you know that not everyone is going to win at this test. If you want to Ascend, there's only one path forwards, and that is over a mountain of bodies. Prove yourself the one worthy of ascension, whatever it takes.

3: Cheating - The laws of the Ranker are absolute, the power of the Tower Authority is immeasurable. Cheating on a test is beyond dangerous.

But if you can get away with it, somehow, then maybe it will be worth the risk.

4: Traveling - Each floor is big. Enormous, even. An entire world full of cities and nations and people of all sorts. Regulars have to spend a lot of time just trying to get to the test cite before they can even attempt it. It's a time to get to know your fellow Regulars, to meet some of the locals, and to maybe even relax a little bit.

5: Ambush - Breaking the rules of the test to take out your competition is frowned upon, but rare is the Ranker who cares what happens to Regulars BEFORE they reach the test. There are all kinds of reasons for Regulars to fight outside of tests.

6: The Elevator City of Babel - This miraculous city transports itself from Floor to Floor on a regular schedule, and is the most reliable way for non-Regulars to travel between Floors. Of course, they don't allow Regulars aboard (Can't have them skipping tests, after all), but Citizens and Rankers use it frequently. It's the single greatest point of commerce within the entire Tower.

7: Pockets - All Regulars (and some citizens) gain access to a Pocket, a small device that hovers near the user at all times and can turn itself invisible and intangible as needed. The Pocket acts as a smartphone, and can also store small items to be retrieved at a later date. Weapons, snacks, etc. Consider this to also be a general sort of Texting Prompt.

8: Powerful people being mysterious - Rankers and Archangels, scions of the Great Houess, the Tower is full of absurdly dangerous people with their own complex agendas.

9999: Wildcard - Anything else I didn't think of goes here!