The Free Life (Accepting Profiles)

[Randomly Gone Insane]

STOP RIGHT THERE

I see you there, looking at MY role play.
That's right. I made this up. This is my own story.
THIS IS MY ROLE PLAY.
This means that you back the heck off and leave this role play alone.
No recreating, no copying, no nothing without saying something to me and getting my thumbs up.

Get your own material.

 

[Randomly Gone Insane]

Pillage. Plunder. Rape. Murder. Repeat. That's what a pirate does.

According to Hollywood anyway. Which is a BIG, FAT, STUPID, MONEY MAKING LIE.

What? You mean Hollywood lied to me?! Blasphemy! Pirates are fun, treasure hunters and adventure lovers!

No. No. Pirates were nothing mot but a bunch of cut throat assholes who took whatever they wanted without a single ******** care in the world.

No! They were fun lovers!

Cut throats!

ADVENTURE!!

SHUT THE ******** UP BEFORE SOMEONE GETS PUNTED LIKE A SMALL, ANNOYING, YAPPING DOG WHO GOES BY THE NAME OF SHELBY AND WON'T SHUT THE ******** UP!

Good. Now that I have the attention of you guys again, I want to tell you something.
Don't give into Hollywood's bullshit.
Yes the fun loving and cut throat attitude is fun and all, but not entirely accurate. After doing my homework, I found pirates to be actually smarter (in some cases) than portrayed in the movies. And while I go could go into major details about what I've learned, I feel it's unnecessary. I will explain what I found in the most basic way I can, but if you're curious or in absolute ignorant disbelief, then go do your homework and find me a solid argument against what I'm about to say.  

[Randomly Gone Insane]

The Truth and Lies About Pirates

If you notice an error, or want to contribute to this post, send me a private message!

Hollywood Stereotype: Pirates are cut throats. They take no prisoners and will always opt to fight to the death.
Truth: Pirates always gave people the chance to surrender (and if they wanted, join the crew). If at all possible, fights were avoided to prevent injuries, causalities, and damage to equipment/ships. Shying from the "taking no prisoners" image also prevented people from attempting to rebel, thus causing trouble.

Hollywood Stereotype: Pirates are always after gold. It's all they care about. And, like the greedy awesome people they are, they'd bury their treasure!
Truth: Gold was fickle. What could be worth a lot in Briton could be almost worthless in other counties. What held more value to seamen was food and medical supplies. And seeing how most of the "treasure" is consumables, the idea of burying them away was completely idiotic. Unfortunately, pirates weren't also very smart on what is valuable and what's not, like gems. Such items could easily get them cheated, because they didn't know the true value of an item, so while riches were needed for survival, they were not seen as the prime target.

Hollywood Stereotype: Captains EARN their way to the top. They take it and keep it.
Truth: There was actually a bit of democracy on a pirate ship. Men would choose who they would want to be Captain and Quartermaster (ship navigator and leading man in maintenance). Those two in turn would appoint officers. To keep one's job as Captain or Quartermaster, they had to do it well otherwise they would replaced.

Hollywood Stereotype: It's all about one for all/all for one.
Truth: Loot was divided accordingly and evenly among men. No one is going to work without pay, and so pay had to be decent. Depending on one's job/rank, more or less gold may be given to them. On some ships, extra gold would be given to an individual if they were injured in battle to help pay medical costs. After all, a good man is worth his weight in gold, so coughing up a few extra coins was well worth saving a good man's life.

Hollywood Stereotype: The Jolly Rodger is the flag of the pirates! If you don't fly it, you're not a real pirate!
Truth: The Jolly Rodger has a very long history, as far back as disbanded thug knight Templars of the early Crusades who left the Holy Land and took to the sea. But, looking in the Jolly Rodger's affairs with pirates, the infamous skull and cross bones was only flown for certain reasons. All flags hold a meaning, either meaning a phrase or showing for whom you serve (like Briton or Spain). Jolly Rodgers usually meant that you had a chance to surrender. However, if you refused, the Rodger would be replaced with a red flag, symbolizing death for all who fight back.
Also, the Jolly Rodger isn't always just a skull and crossed bones. As long as it some sort of skeletal theme, it was considered a Jolly Rodger.  

[Randomly Gone Insane]

18th Century World Map

The world itself is old, but the people and countries are still considerably young. New lands are being discovered and conquered in the name of some thugs who appointed themselves into royalty.

The distances between lands are vast, and journeys are long, hard, and deadly. But the thrill of adventure and playing a part in something greater than oneself makes it worth it. Plus, getting a bit of gold never hurts either.


The year is 1780. The American Revolution is in the works, stirring up war and chaos on the new land's soil, and in the waters between the America and Britain. Men fight on both sides, women work hard to keep those men alive and well, and pirates are being hired by both parties to make it harder for the other (although they prefer the title privateer).

The pay is good, both in gold and in the love of being out on the open sea, doing the things a true seamen loves.
So what do you say? Will you come aboard the ship, and set sail across the seas?  

[Randomly Gone Insane]

RULES

Here it is, folks! The one post you love to hate: The Rules post!

I hold the power to remove or add rules when necessary.
I hold the power to enforce my rules when they are disobeyed/ignored.
GaiaOnline's Terms of Service are in effect and will be enforced if the terms are broken.

1.) Good spelling, good punctuation, good grammar. PLEASE. I know we all make the occasional mistake, but there is nothing more annoying than seeing post after post with numerous mistakes.

2.) There will no be killing of another person's character without their full permission.

3.) Absolutely no God modding.

4.) Control the smut (vulgar/sexually graphic/perverted scenes). I do not mind the occasional perverted conversation or joke (in fact, I slightly encourage it). I do mind, however, sex. Don't write it out. If your character must have sex with another, do a time skip. That kind of stuff belongs on other websites that allow X rated material.

5.) Please do not make random and worthless posts. Random and worthless posts are posts made to respond to someone you're in a conversation with outside of the role play without doing anything with your characters, or making a post in which your characters act, but it does absolutely nothing to the storyline or anyone else's characters. If you're going to post, please do so in a manner that does affect the story and/or other characters. If you must speak to someone, take it to the OOC thread or send them a private message.

6.) Do no race off ahead when posting. It is extremely frustrating, rude, and down right annoying when playing catch up because two people play private and make one or more pages of posts between themselves. We're here to interact with one another, so please make an effort to do so. A few posts between players is fine, but the limit is two per person.

7.) I require posts to be written in third person past tense. That means sentences are written as "Example walked across the street." and not "Example walks across the street." Nit-picky, stupid, evil, mean, outrageous, perhaps. But I have some standards, and amateur skills aren't exactly welcomed.

8.) Avoid the dreaded one liners. Yes, laziness beckons for them. They're short, sweet, and to the point. But can be annoying. All I ask is three sentences as a bare minimum. That isn't much.

IF YOU CANNOT FOLLOW THESE RULES OR HANDLE BEING WARNED WHEN YOU ARE BREAKING THEM THEN YOU ARE IN THE WRONG PLACE.
PLEASE LEAVE IMMEDIATELY AND DO NOT EVEN BOTHER APPLYING.

 

[Randomly Gone Insane]

Character Profile Skeleton

Message all characters to me, Randomly Gone Insane, for approval.
And to insure you read all the posts, give me a summary of every post I made at the end of the message.

[b]Username:[/b] What's your Gaia username?
[b]Character Name:[/b] What's the name of your person?
[b]Gender:[/b] Man or a Woman?*
[b]Age:[/b] How old are they?
[b]Appearance:[/b] A link would be nice please!
[b]Equipment:[/b] What do they have for fighting?
[b]Attire:[/b] What do they wear? Describe it, or show me a picture.
[b]History:[/b] Tell us about your person.
[b]Miscellaneous:[/b] Is there anything else you want to share?
[b]Theme Song(s):[/b] This is optional; If there's a song they fit, share it here.

*I will accept and allow female pirates. Do keep in mind though of the time era. Women were seen as property during this time. A woman's job was to cook food, clean the house, birth and raise children, and entertain through sex. If a woman wanted to be treated equally on a ship she had to show she was equal. Mercy was not shown to anyone, including the women.
Oh, and I don't mind if there's a little bit of lying. It wasn't uncommon for women to pose as men, that way they avoid all the sexism of being a woman on board.

Needed Characters

Some roles and characters will be key for this role play to work properly. Some roles are less important than others, but I would like to see them filled if at all possible.

Captain: The person in charge of leading the crew wisely and bravely. Randomly Gone Insane
Quartermaster: The person in charge of keeping the ship going in the right direction, and making sure the ship is clean and in working condition. It helps to get along with the Captain, as they are equally ranked. Position is unoccupied
4 Officers: Officers help the Captain and Quartermaster do their job in any way they can. Each Master gets two officers. No more, no less. There are three officer slots available. Captain Officers: 1 (Zahzi); Quartermaster Officers: 0
Rival Captain and Ship: OPTIONAL; The seas are not friendly, both in weather and in company. Whether it's a blood feud between pirates, or simple lawmen trying to bring down the lawless, I do not care. I would just like if we had some rivals. Should anyone want this job, I will also participate so you're not doing it alone. madametrixie

If you wish to fill in one of these roles, please speak with me first. I would prefer that I got to talk to you about some things. While I do have some expectations on the roles, I am open to any and all possible ideas you may bring for these roles as well. I'm interested in exchanging and discussing ideas with these possible roles and would like to have that opportunity.

Special Characters

If you wish to have a unique kind of character, please speak with me first. The chances of rejection are low, but I would like to discuss the character's role and uniqueness before I allow approval of the idea.  

[Randomly Gone Insane]

The Crew of Neptune's Cannon

Username: Randomly Gone Insane
Character Name: Julie "Julian" Clinton
Gender: Woman
Age: 20
Appearance: Julie/Julian
Equipment: Sabre and Flintlock Pistol.
Attire: Torso - White Tunic, Brown Leather Coat, Black Vest; Legs - Black Pants, Dark Brown Leather Boots; Head - occasionally a Blue Bandanna
History: Julie's life started in the sea, as she was born upon a ship sailing to the newfoundland. Her parents, like many others, were seeking a new and better life, and sought that life in the land of new opportunities. Her father worked as a blacksmith, earning a small but steady pay, while her mother worked with sewing, handling small tasks as to not occupy too much time away from the young child. When she grew older, she began to sew along with her mother, earning the family a bit more money.
When she turned twelve, her parents were arrested by British soldiers for the crime of treason. Despite knowing nothing, she too had been thrown in jail as well. Wanting to spare Julie's life, her parents confessed to their crimes in exchange for their daughter's freedom. The government complied, and left Julie out to the streets while her parents were publicly hung.
Still young and shy from hitting puberty, Julie started working in the pubs located near docks. While serving out food and drinks to pirates and sailors alike, Julie's interest in sailing began to grow. After a year of being a young bar maid, she started volunteering for work on the open sea. Because of her young age she had been mistaken for a boy often. After correcting potential employers a few times, she quickly learned that employers weren't interested in having girls aboard, so she began posing as a boy.
At age sixteen, she was recruited onto Neptune's Cannon by the aging Captain. She did her best to hide her true gender, but her secret was soon revealed accidentally to the Captain. Admiring her determination to work, and the skills she had earned by working, the Captain decided to keep her secret as it was her's to tell alone. Shortly after, the Captain appointed Julie as an Officer and had her work under him very often, thus teaching her how to lead and be strong for others when they couldn't be themselves for the next four years. Julie started to have a father-daughter/son relationship with the Captain after the time they spent together, and after the Captain passed away due to severe battle injuries she was the most saddened by his death.
With the old Captain gone, the crew needed a new leader. While there was plenty who wanted to be appointed Captain, Julie herself didn't. However, the crew felt differently. They knew the Captain had been personally working with Julie so she could take this role. Not wanting to disappoint the Crew, nor the old Captain's wishes, Julie accepted the crew's vote to make her the new leader.
Miscellaneous: Though she has been aboard Neptune's Cannon for four years (and going), Julie still feels uncomfortable about revealing her true gender to the crew. It's not a matter of her not trusting the crew, as she does trust them with her own life. She just sees no point or need in telling everyone her name is Julie, not Julian. It would literally take the threat of her crew's life for her to tell the truth.
Julie (known as Julian by everyone she comes across) is the current Captain of Neptune's Cannon. And she's not planning on stepping down anytime soon.
Theme Song(s): Dirty Little Secret

Username: Zahzi.
Character Name: Chekondai.
Gender: Male.
Age: 28.
Appearance: Chekondai.
Equipment: Two Hatchets, one Throwing Spear, a Bow, and the knowledge of making arrows and 'flame-water'.
Attire: While his lower body is covered in leather, (Pants and moccasins), his upper body is draped in an open fur coat, covered in the bones of several animals. Some parts human.
History: An American Indian hailing from the Pensacola Tribe, Chekondai is one of their fiercest warriors, taking down a bear on his own when barely old enough to hold a weapon. Chekondai, like many in his tribe, makes sure no one finds their lands. This is carried out by making sure any who trespass never make it out alive.
Miscellaneous: As most Indians, he has a knack in survivability. This means going for weeks without food and still fight like anyone else. He also has a way with animals, seeing as he spent most of his life near them to begin with.
Theme Song(s): Same Direction

Username: Randomly Gone Insane
Character Name: Arthur Kirkland
Gender: Man
Age: 30
Appearance: Arthur
Equipment: Pistol Sword
Attire: {See Appearance}
History: Once, Arthur was a respectful and strong ship captain for the royal British navy. In 1770, while out on an exploration mission, Arthur's ship came across a rough storm while out in sea. While trying to search for land to anchor by, the ship's hull was ripped apart by rocks and rough waters, and the ship sank, leaving the men aboard to drift in the waters. Those who didn't drown in the unforgiving waters washed up ashore, like Arthur. His once large and strong crew was thinned down to a small and weak number. After days, perhaps even weeks, of being stranded, Arthur and his men were picked up by Neptune's Cannon. Having to choose between life or death, Arthur sided with the pirates, in hopes or surviving and getting the chance to return home, while his men chose death rather than betrayal to the British empire.
Miscellaneous: Although he serves on Neptune's Cannon, Arthur still has a bit of pirate hatred because of his loyalty to the British navy. He would never sacrifice or turn against the crew, but he doesn't have to like them.

Arthur is rather sour towards Captain Julian. When the previous Captain had passed, he expected to get the position. With his history and longer service, it only seemed logical. But when logic failed, he became bitter.
Theme Song(s): Just Like You

Username: Zahzi.
Character Name: Antoine Pierre.
Gender: Man.
Age: 48.
Appearance: [X]
Equipment: Anything a Chef would need.
Attire: Refer to Picture.
History: Antoine was a good friend of the previous captain, ever since childhood, the two were seen as brothers, even though the Captain was British, and Antoine was French. Nevertheless, the two could not be closer.
When the Captain started his crew, Antoine was right there to offer his skills as a Chef. Which, when you can actually feed people correctly, you'd be surprised how many would join.
Miscellaneous: Being one of the oldest members of the Crew, he knows almost all there is to know about the others, including a certain new Captain's secret.
Fortunately, while the previous Captain acted like a father for Julie, Antoine acted, and still does, as her uncle.
Theme Song(s): N/A

The Crew of Highwind

DEAD
Username: cHesHiRe_CaT_0013
Character Name: William Xander
Gender: Male Age: 27
Appearance: William
Equipment: A pistol and a saber
Attire: [The white haired man in picture link above]
History: William Xander came from a poor merchant family. His life was a struggle since he had to work every meal. Their lives were so destitute that William's parents resorted to selling their own son to slave traders just to survive. William was to be shipped off to the New World but the ship he was on was confronted with pirates. They easily took over the ship and took all their goods that were of some worth. The captain then allowed some of the slaves to become part of the crew, as long as they proved their worth. William saw this as an opportunity and proved himself to the captain; this was the day he became a pirate. William was 14 years old when he entered the world of piracy. He started at the bottom and throughout the years he made his way to the top, becoming a captain of his own ship, the Highwind.
Miscellaneous: His hair is prematurely white and he has grey eyes. William is a notorious pirate wanted for stealing precious cargo and setting slaves/prisoners free. However, despite being a pirate, William is an honest man who does not take lives needlessly. He is an ambitious man and is quite eccentric. William may seem arrogant and foolish to others but he is a smart, rational person.
Theme Song(s): N/A

Username: Randomly Gone Insane
Character Name: Solaris
Gender: Woman
Age: Unknown
Appearance: Solaris
Equipment: A pistol and a mysterious blue whip
Attire: {Refer to Appearance}
History: A woman of secrets, many which she keeps closely guarded and to herself, little is known of Solaris' past before her pirating days. All she will reveal is that she grew up somewhere in England, but left as a teen to pursue her current life. Anything beyond that are nothing but unconfirmed rumors and superstition among the others.
Miscellaneous: No one knows why Solaris wears her mask or gloves. These are yet only more secrets which she keeps to herself. Rumors say she's hiding her true identity from someone and wants to remain anonymous with the mask. Others say that she's hideous and wants to hide her shame. The only confirmed thing about her mask and gloves is that they are never to be taken off nor handled by another, unless they want a swift beating or death.
Theme Song(s):

Username: madametrixie
Character Name: Rob Lex
Gender: Man
Age: 24
Appearance: Text, I guess...He's tall and of average build. His hair is blond and his eyes are a blue-gray. Some might describe him as handsome, others as very boyish looking.
Equipment: Rapier and a pistol
Attire: Usually, he wears a black jacket with some gold threading. He also wears black pants and boots. When it's hotter, he sheds the jacket and wears a white cotton shirt. He also wears a gold earring which he says was a gift from an old girlfriend in Spain.
History: Rob was born Robert Lexington. He was from a good, rich family who had his life planned from birth to death. First, have a slew of nannies and tutors. Then Eton, followed by two to three years of bachelorhood. Then, he'd get married, live in a nice country estate, and manage the family business a bit.
Rob followed the plan until the bachelorhood part. He had no interest in settling down. His parents were desperate. Their son had to do something respectable. So, they suggested joining the Navy. Adventure, travel, beautiful women in various port cities? They caught Robert hook, line,and sinker.
Well, adventure ain't that great when it just might be trying to kill you. Travel? Try that with a few lovely holes in the ship. As to beautiful women? The only one Robert saw was manning a cannon, which was just plain wrong, if you ask him.
The ship was gaining water fast and Robert saw that going over to the pirates might be his only chance of survival. So, he joined them, to his ship's chagrin. He introduced himself as Rob Lex, as he figured that some hoity-toity name wouldn't exactly impress pirates.
He wasn't exactly sure how, but his old ship somehow managed to make it to land. They got to word to Rob's parents, who, needless to say, were not pleased. Rob discovered that pirate life wasn't all that different than navy life. He did have the trouble of getting into battles with old friends, but most of them barely recognized him. The ones that did hated him. He didn't care anymore. He'd made new friends now.
One day, when Rob was 24,his ship was attacked. His captain was wounded and died a few days later. A friend asked Rob if he would consider being the new captain. Rob was a little surprised that anyone wanted him to lead, but he agreed and was voted Captain. He's still new to the job, so he takes a lot of advice from the quartermaster.
Miscellaneous: He definitely has a taste for the finer things in life because of his upbringing.  

[Randomly Gone Insane]

Reserved

 

[Randomly Gone Insane]

Between two warring countries busy in the chaos of revolution laid one vast, open sea. Travel was long and hard, and not for the weak of heart or balance and stomach. Currents and winds were strong, but they were also fickle and could leave ships stranded for days, putting schedule and supplies in a tight pinch.
But, despite all the troubles and dangers, people still went and made livelihoods on the big blue sea.

"Fifteen men on the dead man's chest...Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum! Drink and the devil had done for the rest...Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum!" One voice sang quietly to themself aboard one ship with the name, Neptune's Cannon, carved into the back.

"Sixteen chests on a dead man's rum...Yo-ho-ho, in the bottle of the chest! Drink to the devils and done for the rum...Hoooooooooo!" The Captain continued, only breaking the lyrics to hum to themself as they went across the deck to a small trap door. They opened the door and went down, continuing the song and humming as they went to the very bottom and to the hull of the ship, where the kitchens were.

"Good morning, Antoine~" They sang, purposely putting on a bad fake French accent at the name.

Elsewhere on the sea...

A tall and heavily dressed figure stood on the front of the ship at the end of the deck, their boot right on where the bowsprit attached onto the ship. They were quiet in their watch, leaning over their raised knee as she looked out into the open sea, searching for something with the naked eye..

((I am using this image as a reference to all the ship names/terms [link]))  

[Zahzi]

"Hmm...?" Antoine looked over, raising an eyebrow towards the door, expecting it to be another crew member trying to sneak food.

When he saw it was the Captain, his expression changed to a smile.
"Ahh, good morning to you as well, Julie." he said with a chuckle.

"And what brings you down here..?"  

[Randomly Gone Insane]

Though Julie had smiled at the chef when she walked into the kitchen, it quickly faded and turned into a glare after the Frenchman had used her female name.

"You know I don't like that name being used." She growled lowly at him as she closed the door for privacy.
"Last thing we need is someone finding out.." She grunted quietly, her normally low and manly voice taking on a more feminine tone, her actual tone of voice.  

[Zahzi]

"Oh please, when is there anyone down here when they knows what happens..?" Antoine chuckled, turning back around, preparing a meal already.

"Besides..Why would anyone listen to an old chef like me?"  

[xxxCheshireCat]

The sound of exploding gunpowder could be heard, smoke and fire rising in the distance. A white haired man stood on the deck of his ship, clearly being the captain, as he looked through a looking glass.
"Those fools, they were too careless," he grumbled angrily before puting the scope away.
He ran a hand through his white hair even though he looked fairly young; it did compliment his appearance though; white hair seemed to suit this man.
"Solaris," William barked.  

[Randomly Gone Insane]

"That's besides the point, Antoine." Julie argued, again using a bad French accent to pronounce his name.

"You throw that name at me while someone's around and they'll get suspicious. And if they get curious, then so will the others. And then, if the whole crew starts second guessing me, Arthur will jump on the opportunity to either expose me or make himself captain. Maybe even both." She gave a stressed sigh as she ran her fingers through her hair, leaning over the kitchen counter as she tried to calm her nerves. Captain Ronald had made this job look so easy before he passed away (may he rest in peace). At least, that's how he portrayed it to Julie while he was keeping her under his eye and wing. Maybe he made a mistake on tutoring her for this job. Maybe the old man just attached onto her because she was the first thing to pop up in his line of sight when he went captain hunting..

"Damn b*****d.." She grumbled, before giving a heavy sigh.

At the sound of her name, the masked woman immediately turned her head in the direction the voice came from. Dull eyes locked onto the captain as she stared at him for a moment, before she stepped down and made her way across the deck between the men and scrambling they made as they busied themselves with the cannons. None of this seemed to bother her. She was walking as if on another world.

"Captain." She spoke quietly as she approached him, stopping just before him and looking up only slightly as he stood a few inches taller.

"You seem angry, William." She commented, tilting her head to the side. "What bothers you?"  

[Zahzi]

"It's not wise to insult the dead, Captain." Antoine told her, continuing with the meal he was making.
"I'm thinking something.......Soupy." he said aloud, looking through his ingredients.