CATS Role-play and Setting idea

[Nox]

CATS
Introduction

Loosely inspired by the musical of the same name, the Cats RP follows the adventures of the jellicles, a colony of feral cats inhabiting the junkyard of a timeless, anachronistic megatropolis. Gifted with sentience and speech, and perhaps other more strange and mystical abilities, the jellicles must learn to overcome their differences and the obstacles of their own psyches in a world of gray days and dimmed lights where isolation spells death, and worse.

So, there’s the thing. A role-play about stray cats and their antics. Interested? Then bring your favourite feline character –be it from a show, a movie, a book, your pet, or even just a re-imagining of a different character of yours- and join the band! Everyone and anyone is welcome, and most things in the setting are left vague, ambiguous and open-ended so that you can make up whatever stuff you want or need for your storyline. Just make a cat –it can be a part of the jellicle tribe, an antagonist to them, or perhaps a neutral loner- and post it up.

This is more of an open game/setting idea rather than an actual plot-heavy game or campaign. Anyone can join and make a character to interact, and those who do are expected to provide their own storylines related to their characters (or not) in time, as they see fit. The emphasis of the game would be on characterization and the exploration of each cat’s personality and how it influences and is influenced by others, with the events that transpire providing an excuse for interaction. I’d recommend to play out important plot-lines in forum format, and using the chat for all those little dialogues and scenes that happen off-camera. Though everyone should try to interact with everyone, sometimes games will be specific for just a couple characters, so I think it’d be at least common courtesy to ask the players before posting on their thread.

Just to be clear: I’m not “GMing” a campaign here. Your characters will be part of whatever plotlines you design yourself and with others. This game is meant to be just a common ground for ideas to spring from, and if you want to add something new and original to the setting, do so! And if you’re not certain just post your idea here and then we can all decide together.


Character Guidelines

This is a light fantasy, and almost any type of cat in reality or fiction can be a jellicle cat: housecats, cheshire cats, cait sidhe, or whatever feline you can imagine. Other animal or animal-like creatures are welcome, provided they “fit the mood.” This is largely subjective concept and it’s more about how you feel and how you present your character rather than anything. You’re welcome to play your bear or your dragon, but try to find a niche for it to fill in the City. Cats, being common urban creatures, don’t have that problem. It shouldn’t be too hard anyway, considering its ambiguous and low fantasy nature, and that we’re here to have fun, not point with accusing fingers and say “omgz there r no drugunz in da city!!!1!.”

Cats are often associated with magic and mystery, and individual characters might exhibit whatever mystical abilities you choose, if so. There are no restrictions in that matter regarding joining our RP, but I would encourage you to avoid making a cat who’s all powerful for “no reason.” Guided more by character-specific storylines and backgrounds, I would say that amazing powers or mysterious, otherworldly ancestries should be played as important plot points on themselves, rather than simply taken for granted. This isn’t the Crossroads Tavern, there’s named NPCs who will probably be shocked, amazed, terrified or doubtful if you’re the child of a demon. Take adventage of that.

There is one actual rule, however: no humans, or human-like characters are allowed. This includes demi-humans such as elves, dwarves, halflings, gnomes, and more human-like orcs. Anthropomorphic animals are fine to a degree – bipedal animals who can use their paws like hands are a staple of fantasy – but try to portray them as biologically animalistic as possible. Humans and demi-humans are completely fine as a background element, however. They may play an important role in your character’s backstory, or even show up during games, but the focus should always be on the other more important characters and they shouldn’t be much recurring. This is to prevent them from getting “upgraded” and taking the spotlight.

Once you have your character ready, you should post it up here. Probably we’re gonna do it in this very thread to avoid cluttering the forums, and we can edit this first post to link to the others. Since this is freeform, there isn’t any dice rolls or technical data for you to fill in, but for the sake of order, you may use the following character sheet. It’s meant to be as a guide, and you may add or ignore whatever you like or dislike. Character information should include at least:

Name
Race/breed and age Rather than a number, this should be either Kitten for infants, and Tom/Queen for male/female adults respectively. For instance: Cheshire kitten; persian queen ---or perhaps just housecat queen, if you’re not keen on breeds.
Physical description Including coat pattern and color, size, fur lenght, scars, and whatever you feel should be included that is physically descriptive.
Special Whatever is different about your cat, be it quirks, skills, powers or abilities, goes here.

You can also add some backstory or personality traits you wish to the profile. I understand that many prefer to get to know characters by interacting with them (and that is really one of the more important aspects of this RP) but a couple details might help devise plotlines together, or provide a big surprise when they didn’t turn out to be completely true. If you want to include these details, it’s better to do it form an in-character point of view. That way, there’s no certainties and it’s more open to interpretation. Also, try not to lie a lot.

IMPORTANT I believe we will be using the Modern Fantasy forum for IC threads, because although it's not in the same universe as The Meeting Place, it's not really what I would call a medieval fantasy. It would be awesome if a mod could clarify wherether we can use them or not.

[Nox]

The Setting

The story of the Cats RP takes place in a gigantic, abandoned industrial settlement known as the City. Its original builders and inhabitants unknown, the City was before the first of the current settler’s predecessor’s ever arrived. Almost perpetually obscured by an ominous gloom, it is a place of gray days and bright nights, inhabited by dangerous creatures such as the hyena-like gnolls; the hunched, anthropomorphic wolf known as the Warg; and the story’s protagonists: a tribe of stray felines know as the jellicle cats.
Don't restrict yourself to these locations only! These are just to have a basic, common ground. If you feel like making up a whole new location or district of your own, by all means do, and let me know so I can add it here!

The Junkyard
Home to the jellicle cats, the junkyard is littered with the remains and refuse of civilization. A maze of trash, metal and broken glass, its forsaken, twisting expanse serves both as hunting grounds and a hiding place for felines and their prey.

The Cathedral
This ancient, megalithic monument of gothic design rises far above the gloom of the City, its peaks lost beyond the clouds. Legend has it that its mind-boggling height is mirrored below the ground, with vast domed halls that have never seen the light of day and house timeless curses and mystery. No living creature inhabits the Cathedral, although some whisper that the gargoyles warding its turrets and walls move and prowl its passages during the night.

The Canals
The City’s streets spread out like roots from one key location to the next, chief amongst these being the Town Center and the Cathedral. Intermingled with them is the complex canal network that channels the murky waters of the Grimholdt River, its course black and slow or silvered and powerful depending on the place and the time. Most of the creatures in the City eke out a life in here, gathering with their kin in feuding bands that vie for control of the resources and barter with whatever goods they find.

The Rooftops
The levels high above the ground comprise almost a city of their own. Felines hold the almost exclusive dominion of the crumbling roofs and rickety plataforms and bridges of rope and metal that connect them, occassionally sharing it with avian creatures too large for them to catch. This is, however, the highway of crime; and kittens who climb where they shouldn’t don’t often get the chance to regret it for long.

The Pier
Long abandoned stores and warehouses spread irregularly through the curved streets of the dock district. The canals find their way underground before reaching this territory, emerging like artificial caves there where the terrain’s gentle slope stops in an abrupt fall into the gray, salty sea. Most of the ships and barges have long sunk, although some do remain partially above the water, in terrible conditions of disrepair. A lonely and gloomy place to be, even by the City’s standards, filled with the ghastly wails of creaking metal beams and the ominous rumble of the ocean.

The Bridge
Connecting the almost isolated Grimholdt island to the rest of the City are the ruins of what once was a great bridge. Crushed long before a time any settler can remember by an unimaginable force, this mess of jutting, bent metal and concrete is littered with a score of wood-and-rope pathways that threaten to collapse under powerful winds unending. Small mounds of earth rise sparsely from the waters along the way, offering some respite to those who dare cross, yet hiding the tents and lairs of dwellers perhaps even too dark for the City to accomodate.

The Asylum
Nobody but the oldest of cats knows (or cares) wherether if the Grimholdt Asylum gave name to the river and the island where it was built, or if it was the other way around. Rival to the Cathedral in age and terror, none of those who entered it and came back report having seen a trace of a life within, yet the unearthly howls that plague it at night are not a matter of legend.

[Nox]

The Cast

Many characters inhabit the world of Cats. The following are general NPCs – meant to be used by anyone as part of their games and backgrounds. Most of them are taken from the Cats musical, or Elliot’s works, which inspired it. If you grow fond a certain NPC, well, feel free to adopt it as your own! Just let us know here, and it’ll be flagged as taken. Character names in the post will be color-coded: General, universal characters will have their names in standard black; adopted characters will be green; and original characters will be blue. A few general characters should not be adopted, instead treated like general antagonists; these will be colored in red. In case the red-colored one is a group of characters rather than a single one, then the leader of said group is unadoptable, while original characters can be made to fit in the group itself.


The Jellicle Cats
A band of stray cats, most of which live in the junkyard. The jellicles are a nice, if a bit mistrusting bunch, but they’re ready to help those in need and take them in, and once you’ve earned their trust, you’ve earned valuable allies. Every year, they gather for the revered Jellicle Ball, in which Old Deuteronomy may choose one to ascend nto the Heavyside Layer and be cleansed of his burdens and reborn into happiness.

Old Deuteronomy
Old Deuteronomy is an ancient, wise cat who has "lived many lives in succession" and is respected by the other cats and humans (and perhaps even dogs) in his environment. He is the leader and patriarch of the Jellicle tribe, providing comfort and guidance to the other characters. Deuteronomy also has the task of making the "Jellicle Choice" and choosing the cat who can ascend to the Heavyside Layer. Despite his positive and benevolent nature, there is a sadness to the patriarch: He has been mated numerous times (supposedly, anywhere between nine and ninety-nine) and has outlived his partners. He's has had numerous kittens, but a sensation of loneliness always accompanies him. His fur is long, gray and shaggy.

Munkunstrap
A large, silver tabby cat, Munkunstrap is the protector and second in command of the jellicles after patriarch Old Deuteronomy. He is a good natured and adept leader, but can be very mistrusting of strangers and judgemental with those who dissappoint him. Flamboyant and charismatic, the hosting of the yearly Jellicle Ball is one of his most cherished duties; but he is always on the watch for whatever danger may lurk and will spring into action in a second to protect a fellow jellicle.

Alonzo
Alonzo is a black and white tom, and is often considered the 'second-hand-cat' to Munkustrap. The most flirtatious of the cats; he is often seen flirting with many of the kittens and queens, acting cocky and arrogant around the males and mischievously calling to the females. However, his duty always comes first, and he’s always ready to fight and defend the other jellicles when neccessary.

Bombalurina
Bombalurina is a sassy red queen. She is very flirtatious with the other toms, especially Rum Tum Tugger, and is also very close to another queen, Demeter. Considered one of the most beautiful cats of the band, there’s a sinister past behind Bombalurina’s coy smile, one that can be seen in the uneasy glimmer of her eye and her instinctive search for Demeter whenever Macavity is mentioned.

Carbucketty and Pouncival
A bicolor tabby and white kitten, Carbucketty is young and fluffy, and full of energy. Known to the others as an "acro-cat", he spends most of his time practicing tricks and acrobatics with his brother Pouncival. Pouncival is, much like his brother, a playful, bouncy young male kitten. He is a brown, white and grey tabby colour with a triangular brown mark around his left eye. Found in the Canals by Alonzo, they have become very close to him, though like the other stray kittens they spend most of the day on their own.

Cassandra
A brown and cream abyssinian queen, with a short wig and braided tail. She is aloof and somewhat mysterious, very elegant and dignified, and also the most beautiful female cat of all, with unusual markings and an exotic short-haired appearance.

Coricopat and Tantomile
The psychic twins. Coricopat and Tantomile are inseparable, identical twins, who move with choreographed, perfect unity. They are the first to notice any changes to their world, the arrival of a new cat.

Demeter [Adopted]
Demeter is a black and gold tabby queen, with a few patches of white and orange. She is very skittish and cautious of Macavity. Some believe she had a past with him and is now paranoid as she always seems to know when he is around. Mated with Alonzo, she usually runs off to Bombalurina in uncomfortable situations ad shares a close relationship with her.

Electra and Etcetera
Electra is one of the youngest female kittens in the tribe. She is striped and dark, with a tortoiseshell coat. A solemn, quiet kitten, Electra often fades into the background and observes from afar, being part of the group in her own shy manner. She’s very close to the much more excitable Etcetera who, along with the other kittens, is a huge fan of The Rum Tum Tugger, though she is much too young to be romantically linked with him. She is mainly a dark white, with black, grey and gold stripes on her sides.

Grizabella
Grizabella is a very old cat, withered by her age to the point that she no longer resembles the proud, carefree, flamboyant dancer of her youth. Her fellow jellicles are quite repulsed by her dishevelled condition, and taunt her. She was once known as the Glamour Cat, but her wanderlust and desire for adventure made her leave the tribe to explore the outside world, despite knowing that she would never be allowed back in. The other cats shun her for leaving them, despite the fact that she wants to be with them again.

Gus
Gus, whose full name is Asparagus and is known as the Theatre Cat, is a retired actor. He is an old and frail, yet revered cat, who "suffers from palsy, which makes his paws shake." His coat is described as "shabby" and he is "no longer a terror to mice or to rats."

Jennyanydots
Jennyanydots is an old Gumbie cat who teaches the mice music, crocheting and tatting. Although many see her as a lazy cat who spends the night sitting or laying down, when they go to sleep, she goes to work, forcing the mice to learn music, crocheting, and tatting. She even thinks the cockroaches need employment to counter their destructive habits, and so she created a beetles tattoo, teaching them how to tap dance. She is also very protective of the kittens and she will not let any of them come close to the outcasted Grizabella.

Kittziel [Original]
A lost bengal kitten. One might call her a stray. Her coat is coal black and sleek, and marked with the shadow of silvery rosettes that betray her hybrid heritage. It is rumoured that her father was a wild, and her size, large ears and paws would alienate her further from those that sniff her on the wind and usher their young away. Her eerie yellow-gold eyes are large and as keen, and sharp as the razor blade claws that flex beneath her soft, padded paws.

Mistoffelees
Reserved and elusive, Quaxo (more often known by his stage name, Mr. Mistoffelees) is a mysterious quiet and small black feline capable of performing feats of magic and sleight of hand. Despite his introspective nature, Mistoffelees acts as a subtler, more indirect guardian of the tribe, helping Munkunstrap in matters he doesn't understand - often with counsel and ideas, and a few times, with actual magic. The rest of the jellicles are unaware of this, and see him as a pleasant mystery, a kind and funny magician that entertains them with his skill.

Nox [Original]
A stray kitten found in one of Alonzo’s forays, Nox is a young black cat who makes an effort to convince the other jellicles that he is in fact a wizard. He is friends with Carbucketty and Pouncival, and has a childish crush on Bombalurina.

Rum Tum Tugger
Rum Tum Tugger is a black tom cat with leopard spots on his chest and a wild mane who cannot help but be difficult. He is notoriously hard to please and sets himself apart from others by trying to be different. He always does the opposite of what is expected of him, is deviously self-centered and relishes in being so. If he was to be described in three words, they would be perverse, preening, and independent. This does wonders to impress the females, and he's considered a ladies' cat. He may be self-obsessed, but he has great respect for those who deserve it, such as Old Deuteronomy, Munkustrap, and Mr. Mistoffelees. The younger female kittens and even some of the male ones are in awe of him as well as some of the older queens, chiefly Bombalurina.

Skimbleshanks
Skimbleshanks is an orange tabby cat who's taken residence out of the junkyard and in the nearby train station. He is a figure of great importance in the train's operation; it will not leave without him, and he frequently looks in on the passengers and crew to ensure that everything is running smoothly.

Victoria [Adopted]
Victoria is the most graceful and elegant cat in the tribe. She also is the most flexible. She does not speak, but her body language is enough for her to communicate fluidly with the rest of the cats, specially Mr. Mistoffelees and Jemima, to whom she's very close to. The other jellicles call her The Pure White Kitten, although she has since outgrown at least the last part of the nickname.


Macavity’s Band
Led by the nefarious mastermind Macavity, these criminals don’t form a group in the common sense, but fancy themselves independant agents who just hire themselves to the insidious cat.

Macavity
Macavity (also called the Mystery Cat, the Hidden Paw and the Napoleon of Crime) is a master criminal, too clever to leave any evidence of his guilt. A ginger cat with a suave demeanor, very tall and thin with sunken eyes, he "sways his head from side to side with movements like a snake", and "his brow is deeply lined in thought, his head is highly domed; his coat is dusty from neglect, his whiskers are uncombed." Some say he has mystical powers that rival Mistoffelees', and that allow him to get away with virtually any crime.

Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer
Mungojerrie and his partner in crime, Rumpelteazer, specialize in petty theft and mischief. Though sometimes mistaken as siblings for their almost matching calico coats (Rumpletezer's being a bit paler than the male's), they are not related at all. Charming and cunning Mungojerrie usually distracts victims while agile and acrobatic Rumpleteazer performs the felony, though they are almost equally skilled and might often switch places. Mungojerrie's skill at dissappearing from the crime scene while Rumpleteazer makes the run has led some to speculate that the tom is descended from, if not part, a cheshire.


Growltiger’s Raffish Crew
A group of thugs and self-styled pirate cats have made their lair in an old yet functional barge in the Pier. Led by the nefarious Growltiger, they scour the Grimholdt river, terrorizing its inhabitants, including "cottagers", canaries, geese, hens, and whoever they find in their way. They, however, hold a special hate for what they call “foreign races”, which mostly includes minorities to which no member of the crew belongs to.

Growltiger
A large, corageous and merciless cat, Growltiger prowls the Pier and the river in his barge, the Sabertooth. Missing an eye and one of his ears, he is one of the strongest felines in the City, and equally feared and respected by most of its inhabitants.

Griddlebone [Adopted]
Griddlebone is a white fluffy Persian queen, mated with the dreaded captain Growltiger. Extremely vain and petty, she is one of the most beautiful cats of the city, and those who lay their eyes on her risk her suitor's terrible wrath.

Grumbuskin and Tumblebrutus
Grumbuskin is Growltiger's first mate, a grayed and scarred beast of a cat who's slowly lost his love for brawling and pillaging and replaced it with a love for alcohol. Tumblebrutus, the barge's brown-coated boatswain, is still quite the violence lover, and relishes the opportunity to exercise it on smaller creatures.


Others
Other creatures inhabit the City, not all of them felines, and most of them unfriendly to them.

The Gnolls
Though they’re bigger than the jellicles, the sapient, quill-backed hyenas known as the gnolls are not a significantly superior adversary and evenly matched when fighting one-on-one. Their relationship with the cats is tense, a memory from old hostilities, however Old Deuteronomy’s efforts and the hyenas’ dwindling number thanks to depredation from other creatures have synergized to create a tenuous pact between them. The jellicles offer them whatever valuable objects they find amongst the junk, and the gnolls pay with news, rumors and tips on places to hunt and places to avoid.

The Siamese Gang
Led by the lethal and vengeful Genghis, the siamese cat gang prowls the Canals, taking every opportunity they find to sack and sabotage the other City dwellers. They have a long standing feud with Growltiger’s Raffish Crew, but Genghis never dares to deal the first blow, for he knows the pirates would beat them in a direct assault. Of course, the Chinks know other ways of fighting...

The Rumpus Cat
The great Rumpus Cat is a solitary feline, with blazing eyes, great jaws, and a fierce and hairy presence. A dangerous and feared hunter, his territory is forbidden land for the jellicles – though he is not an active antagonist of the tribe, his temper is short and unpredictable, and he’s quick to resort to heavy violence.

The Warg
Perhaps the only creature more dangerous than the great Rumpus Cat is the legendary Warg. An enormous, hunchbacked anthropomorphic wolf with a bestial, blood-thirsty mind and huge claws to match, few have seen it and survived – and those who did were forever traumatized by the experience.

[Jessybel]

Allright..

Kittziel. A lost bengal kitten. One might call her a stray. Her coat is coal black and sleek, and marked with the shadow of silvery rosettes that betray her hybrid heritage. It is rumoured that her father was a wild, and her size, large ears and paws would alienate her further from those that sniff her on the wind and usher their young away. Her eerie yellow-gold eyes are large and as keen, and sharp as the razor blade claws that flex beneath her soft, padded paws.

[Jessybel]

And have one more:

Zeb:

A slinky, sleazy siamese tomcat. Ever the gentleman, he comes well dressed in a rich cream coat with large seal pointed ears, paws and tail. Juxtaposed against his pale evening wear is his black-brown mask, as deep and enchanting as his exotic tanzanite-blue eyes. His coat is immaculately groomed, but bares the mark of a deep red collar at his neck. Old and worn it holds a bell to his throat that has long lost its ability to chime.

A cat of the Canals, Zeb runs with Ghenghis and his band of ruthless Siamese. Always found nose deep in trouble, Zeb has had his fair share of close calls; it is said that he has lost more than a few of his nine lives. It is well known that his flair for excitement and danger is rivalled only by his weakness for beautiful queens. Rumour has it among the queen cats that his purr alone could tame the fury of the Warg itself.

[Wereteddy]

He who Walks the Green Shadows; Washer of Secrets, Brother of the Moon Bear

Raccoon Boar

He who Walks the Green Shadows is large, even amongst his own kind. A foot tall at the shoulder and two feet long, plus his foot long tail, he weighs in at a heavy twenty-eight pounds, and he only gets heavier as winter approaches. His most distinct characteristic is black fur around his eyes, dark as a moonless night, contrasting with the silvery moon white fur of the surrounding face, giving him the appearance of wearing a mask. His coat is silvery brown, long and dense to protect him from the cold, while his tail is bushy, alternating bands of silvery-brown and black.

Walks the Green is a spiritual brother to the cats, but the paths he walks are not the same. Bound in the dark primeval shadows of the wilds, he knows secrets and workings that the cats can only dream about, just as they know ways that he could never work. He speaks little about his motives within the city, but he's friendly enough and often willing to lend a hand.