All partners must be at least 18 years old.
All characters must be at least 20 years old before the RP begins (or aged up to 20 if they're not already older).

1. RP Mediums: I'm only able and looking to RP over E-mail.

2. Post Length/Frequency: 1-3 paragraphs per post is my general average and what I ask from partners. (That said, if you want to write more, feel free.) Don't be stingy with detail, be able to reply at least every three to five days--if nine days pass without a reply or status update, I put the RP on ice--and be on point with spelling, grammar and punctuation. A rather lengthy writing sample is viewable below.

So, this is the Crystal Palace.

His feet crunching on the fresh snow, the sorcerer and self-professed "Master of Secrets" Noah ever-falling powder concealed his footprints just as swiftly. Not that he had to worry about others following him; no one from Arenvelle would dare make the dizzying trek up this path. Even dressed in fur and sheathed in a heating spell, he could feel the chill mercilessly bite at his skin. Had it not been for that charm, no doubt his his fingers--or other body parts--would had long withered in the ruthless chill. How could people live like this? In this realm of constant winter, the massive castle of ice before him was truly amazing to withhold. Though the sun rose directly above it, highlighting the crystalline material and giving it a truly radiant sheen, not a single droplet fell from the castle. Yet, for all of its delicate beauty, it was said to have been there for centuries, and no army had ever broken through its walls. Noah could believe it; it was indeed a beautiful edifice befitting royalty and its silent guardian. All the more appropriate given the tales he heard since stepping foot in Arenvelle.

"The Snow Queen," he murmured, closing dark brown eyes after a particularly strong wind gust. It seemed too unbelievable. Granted, there was often a seed of truth in old legends; as one who reveled in uncovering secrets, he knew that far better than most. The historians he conversed with spoke of an incalculable bounty of diamonds and gems hidden away within that castle, enough so a mere handful would ensure a family's fortune for generations to come. But, they also warned of its guardian. A swiftly muttered spell had much needed warmth race through his blood, his mind went back to the discussion in the libraries. For within that palace, keeping a lonely vigil within its frigid halls, was said to be some sort of winter spirit. A creature as beautiful as a snowflake, yet as merciless as a blizzard, able to freeze a man's very soul with a look and shatter them with a mere touch. The greedy and desperate tried to lay hands on the treasure, while the bold and ambitious sought the glory slaying the Snow Queen would bring. All had fail. The most fortunate returned merely chilled but chastened. The less fortunate, it was whispered, were turned into frozen statues with the souls trapped within, their faces contorted in eternal horror and added to her "collection" of sculptures.

Only the foolish and suicidal would travel that way, young mage, the loremaster had cautioned. Turn back; the secrets you seek aren't worth your life.

That gruesome reveal almost put Noah off of this journey.

Almost.

Surely, he theorized while struggling against the howling winds, this "Snow Queen" was more myth than reality. Frozen statues and winter spirits? More than likely a bunch of winter wolves and wild animals took the place as their own. Maybe this Queen was more no divine--or demonic--than he, just some middling witch using the legend to lay claim to the palace and casting a cold-based spell on occasion to keep people away. Or perhaps the treasure itself was the myth, and the castle was merely an immaculately-kept ruin. But if that was the case, why spend such effort on what was effectively nothing? So many possibilities and theories. There was only one way to learn the truth and the palace's secret.

Eyes closed, at one with the perfect stillness around him, he carefully approached the overwhelming castle. The earlier cold was almost balmy compared to the arctic stillness radiating from the walls, an intensity that completely encased boulders in foot-thick ice. This wasn't some natural cold; he knew magic well enough to know that. And this definitely wasn't some low-level mage's work. This was a supernatural chill formed by someone--or something--who had the cold as a lover and mastered it in a way archmages would drool over. And if that was the case, then what other secrets--and delights--awaited him within?

 

3. Favored Mood: I have a general preference for fairly lighthearted noblebright stories with a healthy blend of plot, highspirited action/high adventure, humor of various types, levity, meaningful conflict, character growth, optimism, and copious amounts of erotica/smut. (To quote one of my favorite authors in A. Lee Martinez, bad things may happen and the story might have a number of bittersweet moments, "but the characters can make it to the other side without being broken and—if not completely satisfied—become better people for the experience".) Am I against the setting being rough sometimes? Certainly not. I’m just not interested in gratuitously dark settings of monotone shittiness and tragedy for its own sake where everyone's amoral, emotionally-retarded or horrifically cruel, genuine decency's always punished (while unfettered malevolence and brutality rarely is), and the bleakest/most miserable outcome always happens.

4. OOC Communication: Wanna shoot the breeze OOC whilst RPing and plotting? By all means, let's. Are you longer able or interested in continuing the line? Just tell me (a simple "I'd like to drop this story/line for [reason]" will suffice); I'd rather end the RP outright than it just be fun for one partner instead of both. No harm, no foul, no pressure.

5. Regarding Real-Life "Faceclaims": I'm fairly uncomfortable with the use of real-life PBs/"faceclaims", the main exception being for smut-centric modern-day lines (see the "Various Prompts" page). If not using real-life PBs is a dealbreaker for you, I understand.