01. Plot

['Souls Assemblage]

Game Plot & Backstory

Game Specifics

Type of Roleplaying Game: 'Souls is a "play-by-post" Roleplaying Game. Roleplay is in third person (he, she; not I, me), past tense (walked, howled; not walks, howls) only.

Genre: Wolf & werewolf, post-apocalypse, human extinction

Rating: Boardwide PG-13 rating; however, properly marked mature and explicit threads are permitted.

Minimum Player Age: You must be at least 18 years old to register and play on 'Souls.

Founded On: November 18, 2001

Location: Maritime Provinces, Canada (See the Areas topic)

Time & Time Passage: Present-day (2021). 'Souls is set in the present day and the passage of time is normal -- one day is equal to one day. Liquid time structure facilitates multiple concurrent active threads per character.

Historical Divergence: 'Souls has a post-apocalyptic setting with an alternate history. 'Souls history and real history diverge in 1988.

Word Minimum: For joining purposes, members must fill three designated profile sections with 200+ words each. After joining, 'Souls does not enforce a word minimum; members are encouraged to write what is comfortable for them. 200-300 words/post is average.

Backstory & Game Plot

During the Cold War, scientists and researchers in southern California began experimenting with genetics, attempting to splice creatures and men to one another. In 1988, near the end of the war and their research, something went horribly wrong—their end-product, a young man infused with animal genes and intended to work for the military's ends, became infected with a highly contagious virus of unknown origins.

The virus, nicknamed "Z456" in the brief days of media exposure it received, spread incredibly quickly. Z456 was particularly insidious due to its brief but silent incubation period, during which it was fully contagious. Unknowingly infected humans traveled and brought the sickness with them; global transportation only facilitated the spread of the virus. Once the virus became symptomatic, infected humans died within three days. Six weeks later, contemporary society was decimated, replaced by a nightmarish and bleak place. Over ninety-nine percent of the human population was killed, though a tiny fraction survived through natural immunity. These remnants blockaded themselves in small communities around the world, including New York, Tokyo, and Seoul, but eventually, lack of resources and encroaching wilderness led these pockets of humanity to fail as well.

As the years passed and the cities fell to decay, the animal populations began to thrive again, and some discovered additional benefits. The Canis genus in particular profited greatly: wolves, dogs, and coyotes found themselves with the ability to shapeshift from their natural form to a humanoid two-legged form with dangerous, cat-like claws. From the wreckage of human society rose the Luperci. Canines of Europe and Asia adapted to humanized lifestyles, mastering fire and living in old human buildings. Canines of North and South America, generally retained the typical canine lifestyle, living in traditional packs as their ancestors had for thousands of years prior, though many have gradually adopted humanized habits to some degree.

In 2001 in Canada, a cluster of packs developed; these three packs became the foundation of what would be known as Bleeding Souls. A number of packs and a coyote clan flourished in this area for some time, but in the early spring of 2008, a wildfire erupted and destroyed the land. This forced the canines to move westward to Nova Scotia and settle in and around the Halifax area. Here they would establish 'Souls and attempt to rebuild, reforming some of their former ties and establishing new ones.

Ongoing Plot?

At 'Souls, we don't have an ongoing, board-wide plot -- players are generally free to spin their own tales how they'd like, with minimal interference from the general flow of the board. Occasionally, however, there are larger board-wide plots -- e.g., in 2008, the old territories were burned and all characters moved southward, and in 2016, a meteor smashed into the peninsula, breaking up much of the western coast. Generally, these larger plots last a few months and players are free to opt out of participation, should they so choose.

Notes

• Characters' ages are measured in actual years. If you want your character to have the maturity of a 17-year old human, they would be around 12 months old. Your character's age should be given as 12 months, not 17 years. Click here for an age chart. If your character is four years old and it is 2012, they were born in 2008.
  
• Luperci do not have human forms; Luperci were born as four-legged canines. Humans have been assumed extinct since 1988 in 'Souls universe, and players cannot include living humans as a part of their characters' past.

More Information

1. Questions? -- Check the FAQ!
   
2. Active Pack Summary -- The current roster of packs, organized for your browsing. If you're not sure which pack is right for you, check this out! It provides a list of the packs as well as short summaries of what they're all about.