Roleplaying: The Dustmen

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*Bloodlines
Posts: 139
Joined: Thu Jan 01, 1970 12:00 am

Posted by *Bloodlines »


A more morbid philosophy you'll not find this side of the Grey Waste, cutter. The Dustmen believe that the inhabitants of the Multiverse are already dead. Some are more dead than others, perhaps, but even the living are actually dead. "If this existence was whole the point of life, then someone's got their sums wrong", as Qaidaonce said. Some Dustmen reckon that this stage of the great cycle -- that which most cutters view as 'life' -- is in fact a low point. Maybe that's why they're so sodding miserable all the time.


Presumably, after a body passes through this particular phase it'll emerge into "life", as the Dustmen would understand it. "So why don't the Dead just up and hang themselves from the leafless tree", you might well be asking, "It's not like we'll miss the depressing sods".

Well, the Dustmen would take issue with this. You can't just put yourself in the Dead-Book or let someone else do it for you; that's like trying to cheat the Multiverse. No, you've got to live your "life" and die naturally, or you'll be recycled and made to do it all again. And as for them being depressing; that's the Dustmen trying to move themselves closer to the state of True Death (as they call it) by shedding their emotions, the last semblance of life.
And if you've ever had to share a drink with one of the Dead, you'll know full well just how good at it they can be..

Roleplaying the Dustmen

What’s a body to do among the Dead? Depends on a few things, like race, profession, and ethical inclination. Yet despite the differences among the faction’s various alignments, classes, and races, Dustmen hang together. They all respect death and seek knowledge. Disputes in the faction seldom last long - ’cept for one. 

See, some Dustmen hope for a return to Life. These so-called Hopeful agree with the Dead‘s primary philosophy: Everyone exists in a multiverse of death. The celebration of Life occurs only in a universe that bashers on this side of the fence can’t find. The Hopeful, stuck on the wrong side, reach for the passionless state of True Death because just beyond it lies the reward: Life. Other Dead consider the Hopeful view foolish and see the group as just a quiet splinter sect. A return to Life might come in time. If not, who cares?

RACE: Most Dead are humans. Some factions say that’s because only humans are gullible enough,to follow Dustman beliefs, but that doesn’t explain the fninority of nonhuman faction members from other short-lived species. Seems folks with short life spans tend to sympathize with the Dustman philosophy; they see death more than others do, so they feel closer to it.

Most other prime races seem too connected to life to consider the Dead philosophy. For instance, it's a rare thing to see a Dustman elf, since elves're a long-lived and generally life-longed bunch. A prime elf who joins men. However, bariaur prove too carefree, outgoing, and happy for this faction. A bariaur has to get awfully depressed to even consider joining the Dead, and usually that depression keeps him out, as such an emotional tendency would make him unsuitable.

CLASS. Many wizards, as scholarly, intellectual types, favor the introspection of the Dustmen. This quality also attracts clerics, though the ones who actually join have devoted themselves mainly to gods of death. Dustmen clerics all eventually hit the blinds, however: Religious devotion requires some amount of passion, yet progressing among the Dead means letting go of that passion. Clerics (like Oridi) slowly become less devoted to specific gods and more devout to Death as a force.

The Dead attract few rogues or warriors, since these professions encourage flamboyance and emotion. The infrequent Dustman warrior, a guardian rather than a crusader, becomes a strong, implacable foe. Though the Dead thief loses the passion for stealing, he still can skulk with the best of ’em. The unusual Dustman bard - in demand at funerals - devotes himself to odes and dirges that honor death rather than celebrate life, and he analyzes music and lyric, instead of enjoying it.

Now, some claim druid don't "belong" in the Dustmen any more than bards, yet a surprising number of them do join. See, druids revere nature and see death as a natural progression from life. All life ends in death, right? Once a druid looks at things this way, he's ready to accept all "life" as merely a stage of death.

ALIGNMENT. Druids also lean toward Dustman views 'cause they don't get distracted working toward good or evil, law or chaos. This neutral position proves common among the Dustmen. Fact is, the longer a body stays in the Dead, the more his alignment shifts towards true neutral, and only neutral characters can achieve True Death. Chaotics may try to play Dead for a while, but any group whose philosophy centers on “we” (as in “we are all dead”) can’t attract chaotic folks long. Revering death ain’t popular with good people, for that matter.

Still, a few Dustmen remain chaotic, or good, or both. A chaotic Dead believes that each person must find a separate path to True Death. And, as thinking everyone is dead doesn't exactly conflict with good, a good Dustman guides himself and others patiently along the path to the next stage of existence. The Dead's belief in an orderly pattern to the multiverse attracts many who favor law, but the group's apparent lack of respect for "life" attracts the evil. Well-intentioned Dustmen want their neighbors to advance in death - but most folks believe in evil to hope for someone's demise. Go figure.

FACTION ABILITIES
RP Abilities only: Requires consent of a DM/EM or all players involved/affected by its use if no DM/EM is present. (per Server Rules)

Priests of the Dustmen get a +4 bonus on all attempts to command undead.
 
When on a faction mission, A Dustman may call upon the aid of other undead to help him (total HD no more than twice his own level). However he must convince his superiors (a DM or EM controlled Dustman NPC) to allow this and is required to pay the undead for their services.
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