what is your modus operandi ?
Ebonguard
what is your modus operandi ?
Ebonguard
WELCOME!
EBONGUARD is a lore-compliant RP Cross-world Linkshell and Discord community on the Crystal Datacenter. We operate in North American timezones and focus on criminal, intrigue, and character-driven RP.We do not have any associated Free Company on any server.
MISSION STATEMENT
Ebonguard is a cross-world RP community that strives to bring together RPers of diverse backgrounds under an ever-evolving, unified narrative framework. Established in 2016, we are a diverse, inclusive, and laid-back community that is focused on RP as a form of collaborative writing.Here, we value characterization, narrative, and player freedom:
CHARACTERIZATION ⸻ The holistic creation and exploration of a character, including elements such as their backstory, their motivations, and their ambitions.
NARRATIVE ⸻ The manner in which various character threads intersect and interact to create overarching storylines and opportunities to explore specific themes.
PLAYER FREEDOM ⸻ The freedom of players to interact with all sorts of other players, characters, and narrative frameworks and bring the whole of their character's experience to the table; freedom from constraining expectations regarding requirements as far as activity or involvement in order to have opportunities to explore their areas of interest.
OUT OF CHARACTER RULES
| ONE. | All players and characters in our spaces are expected to be 18+. The themes that Ebonguard explores are not usually suitable for minors and may include things like violence, alcohol and drugs, extortion, etc. Players under 18 will be permanently banned from our community; no second chances. |
| TWO. | Ebonguard is a safe space for BIPOC and LGBT+ players. We will not tolerate hate speech, and any instances of bigotry will result in being removed from our space. Additionally, as a community we believe All Cops Are Bastards. If this makes you uncomfortable, we aren't the group for you. |
| THREE. | Please be normal. We deal with some fairly heavy content and themes including but not limited to those inherent in exploring organized crime, but we have lines we won't cross. We do not welcome slavers in our space, nor do we welcome those who sexualize Lalafell or underaged characters. If we find that you create or encourage the creation of incest/rape-focused/underage content on any platform, it is grounds for immediate removal from our community. |
| FOUR. | Communicate. No one in our community is a mind-reader, and it being that our focus is on collaborative writing, communication is essential. |
ROLEPLAY POLICIES
| ONE. | Lore-compliance and tone. While Ebonguard encourages player freedom, in order to facilitate a unified narrative framework within our community, it is necessary to ensure that everyone is operating on the same page. Ebonguard is a lore-compliant, low-powered RP community, and as such we only work with characters who are well-grounded in the setting of FFXIV and are feasible as "everyday" sorts of people who you might find inhabiting the world of Hydaelyn. (For example, characters who are "non-human" or deal heavily with supernatural entities such as Voidsent are not allowed.) |
| TWO. | IC actions can and will lead to IC consequences. There is no such thing as a perfect crime; your character's actions have consequences! Those consequences may include being opened up to being blackmailed by other criminals, or being arrested. However, these consequences should never be leveraged as a form of OOC retaliation, which leads us to: |
| THREE. | IC ≠ OOC. HOWEVER: if your character oversteps an established OOC boundary, then that is on the writer, not on the character. "That's just what my character would do!" is never an excuse for doing something that your RP partner has asked you not to do. |
Mark the Shadows
⸻ They Call Themselves The Ebonguard⸻
WHAT IS YOUR MODUS OPERANDI?
There are those who favor a silent blade; others, silver tongues, the embrace of night, or the sweetest kiss of poison. For each occasion, a suitable tool, and the black linkpearls are no different—a weapon to be wielded by those who belong to the shadows of the Eorzean underworld.These black linkpearls are the thread that constitutes the fabric of a clandestine criminal network operating in Eorzea's shadows. They can be anyone and be anywhere. They require no oaths to a common cause, no loyalty to a central authority or even to each other.
THE NETWORK
The Ebonguard is a clandestine network of indeterminate origin. Nobody knows who founded it, or for what reason. It has been present in various forms as a thread through the Eorzean underworld, nameless and formless, until a period of internal turmoil stemming from the network being infiltrated, during which an ambitious figure known only as Crow appointed himself the head.It has continued operating in the shadows of the Eorzean underworld, though the turmoil resulted in many of the "Old Guard" turning coat, being captured, or otherwise vanishing. They left their black linkpearls behind, scattered across the realm for others to acquire...
THE BLACK LINKPEARLS
Members of the Ebonguard can be identified by the special black linkpearls that they carry. Nobody knows who originally created these linkpearls or for what purpose, but certain special properties have made them suitable for the formation of a clandestine network, such as:
Operating on special frequencies that can only be accessed by Ebonguard linkpearls ensure that the only way to listen in on conversations is to possess an Ebonguard linkpearl.
Distinct yet innocuous appearance: the black linkpearls themselves have come to be synonymous with the network, but those who are unaware of its existence are unlikely to think anything of the objects themselves.
Decentralized acquisition structure: the black linkpearls aren't difficult to find, but nor are they easily replaceable. A finite number of linkpearls exist, and nobody knows who possesses the means to make more. As a result, the linkpearls are extremely precious and warrant protection from those who would take issue with the activities taking place on the network lines.
The Speakeasy
The Cloak & Dagger is a high-class speakeasy located on the edge of the Goblet's Brimming Heart, owned and operated by an unseen proprietor known only as Crow.The rumors that circulate about it are as numerous as the drinks are plenty, up to and including that it offers sanctuary to those who are interested in conducting business under the table. The venue provides those who can prove their membership of the network by producing one of their black linkpearls favorable treatment and service, including (according to rumors) an upstairs lounge normally strictly reserved for VIPs.
how to join
⸻ enter the shadows ⸻
Interested in joining us?
There are numerous ways to get involved in our community as either an associate or a member of the Ebonguard network.The following is general information about different levels of involvement afforded to different kinds of characters and what types of character we look for.
ebonguard is not a free company, nor does it have an associated free company on any server. our community is run solely as a discord community and cross-world linkshell.
dramatis personae
what we look for
As a criminal-themed RP community, Ebonguard welcomes mob bosses, murderers, and thieves—and most things in-between. This applies to not only characters who are currently criminals but those with former ties to crime as well, such as ex-cons and otherwise reformed characters.Please note: We're looking more toward the mundane side of crime such as thievery and heists, organized crime, hired hits, black marketeering, etc. As such, we consider things like forbidden magic to be outside of our area of focus.Involvement in with these things is fine and will not disqualify you from participation unless it is determined to be incompatible with what we go for with regards to lore and tone.
associates
Associates are players who have posted a profile for screening in our Discord server and passed initial checks. They may participate in all of Ebonguard's RP except for anything specifically set aside for members of the network only, such as any interactions taking place over the CW LS.Characters who are associates do not have black linkpearls and may not be aware of the Ebonguard as an entity, and indeed they might not necessarily be involved in the criminal underworld at all.
members
Members of the Ebonguard are players who have submitted an application and had it approved by the officer team. These players have access to our in-game CW LS and have characters who are more deeply involved with crime and the criminal underworld.Given that the characters have access to the linkpearls, they are able to participate in and run RP related to the driving questions underlying the network of black linkpearls. They are typically 'in the know' regarding the network, but given the ease of acquiring a linkpearl, they may still have some learning to do.
how to join
As a Discord-based RP community, membership of our Discord is required to participate in Ebonguard's RP. You may find the permanent link to our Discord at the link below. Further instruction can be provided if needed by the officer team or other members of our community.
what is your modus operandi ?
Ebonguard
OF ALLIES & ADVERSARIES
CROSS-COMMUNITY INITIATIVES
Be it allies or antagonists, we enthusiastically welcome the prospect of working with like-minded writers, be they solo players or other groups on the Crystal Data Center. As a community, we are of the opinion that it is better to work with other players and groups than utilize DM-controlled NPCs and dice systems in the process of crafting plot arcs and storylines.Our goal for our cross-community initiatives is to encourage an expansion of scope with regards to the stories told by both Ebonguard and the collaborating group, and in doing so foster further organic RP between and within groups.Accordingly, we expect any such arrangements to be a productive, collaborative experience for all parties involved! We are not looking for our characters and players to be bullied into submission because "the good guys always win." (Accordingly, Ebonguard players should understand that crime doesn't always pay and that there is always the possibility of their character being caught and punished.)
RULES OF ENGAGEMENT
| ONE. | Prospective groups and players must be 18+ Due to the themes Ebonguard works with in its RP, we are not comfortable working with minors or spaces that may contain minors. |
| TWO. | Prospective groups must be safe spaces. We will not work with any group that has any tolerance whatsoever for hate speech or bigotry, or which prohibits marginalized persons from expressing/defending themselves based on the assumption that discussions of race/sexuality/gender identity/etc are automatically "political." |
| THREE. | Prospective groups and players must have a compatible ethos with regards to overall tone of RP and their approaches to lore. Basically, they must comply with our own tone and lore-compliance policies as outlined here. |
| FOUR. | OOC communication is mandatory. As such, at least one representative from the group's leadership must remain in consistent contact with Ebonguard with regards to the collaboration. |
modus operandi
casting call
THE LAW SAYS THERE ARE THREE ELEMENTS TO A CRIME⸻
Mens rea, or the "guilty mind," which refers to the culprit's intent of committing a crime;Actus reus, or the criminal act itself, or the physical elements that constitute the crime;and causation between act and effect.
The Premise
MODUS OPERANDI is a major collaborative plot arc centering around a heist being planned by the self-proclaimed leader of the Ebonguard and proprietor of the Cloak & Dagger, Crow.The main body of the story will center around the heist and will be divided into two parts: "mens rea," the planning phase, and "actus reus" which covers the heist itself. Along the way, side stories centering around different characters and concepts will open up for relevant characters to participate in.We are seeking collaborators for the main body of the plot, which covers the heist itself. Ideal candidates are lore-compliant RP groups with a vested interest in a long-term campaign with multiple player character factions in play, who are situated in such a way that they would stand in opposition to the Ebonguard. Ideally, this would not be a one-sided arrangement, so if you are interested please be prepared to brainstorm and consider what you would want out of a plot like this!
Seeking:
Heist Mark
The main story's cornerstone. A suitable heist mark may be an item or information of value, which might become a target for criminals to the extent that it would necessitate protection.Mundane items or information are preferred, though magical artifacts are not out of the question. However, marks which would violate Ebonguard's tone and lore-compliance policies will not be considered.As the cornerstone of the plot, heist marks must be based out of one of the following regions: Ul'dah, Limsa, or Ishgard or their associated territories.Preference will be given to items or information held by groups of 3 or more players.
Seeking:
antagonists
A small party of lawfully-aligned characters who would be working against the criminals (us!) and likely working with the heist marks to protect the item or information being targeted.This small party would need jurisdiction to investigate threats up to and including detaining individuals for questioning (or making arrests, if only to turn these individuals over to the authorities).Characters and groups based out of Ul'dah, Limsa, or Ishgard are greatly preferred, but international parties are welcome. As individual characters are welcome for this role, characters may not be lone wolves and must be able to work with others.
TO EXPRESS INTEREST
Please contact us via our Discord server, linked below. We do all of our plot coordination that way, and the final line-up must remain in contact with Ebonguard anyway in order to facilitate the plot and ensure that everyone remains on the same page throughout.
Partnerships
PARTNERS IN CRIME
Partner communities are other groups that have reached out to us (or we have reached out to) in the interests of mutual support. These communities may come in many forms; they may be Discords, CWLSes, Free Companies, or even standalone RP Venues/Events.Formally partnered communities are communities that Ebonguard works with, IC and OOC, on an ongoing basis. While collaborations may be one-off, partnered communities are family! (And family means nobody gets left behind!)Partner communities must adhere to all of the expectations for cross-group collaborations above, even if we do not plan to make a partnership an in-character affair.
OUR PARTNERS