The Storytelling of Empyrean (part 2)

In the previous post I established the basic elements, or the primary goals of designing a story-centric RPG experience.

In this one, I will continue by trying to explain how Empyrean approaches the Storytelling experience broadly.

Conceptual Design:

First off, the concept sets the stage for powerful storytelling: The characters are mortal embodiments of the Aethons. As embodiments of these spiritual beings, they are driven by powerful passions and ideals which become essential to any kind of powerful storytelling.

The players are also automatically marked by fate, which is also a very interesting concept that gives the player a lot of room of how to tackle and interpret it. Some players choose their characters to feel important and heroic, yet others like to laugh at such notions and face reality with cynicism and stoicism. The players' answers to this question shape the foundation of some of the essential elements of the stories they will participate in.

The manner of character generation, provides players with an epic background allowing them to build their character however they wish, and not forcing them on some power leveling tactic which will only unlock their character concept as soon as they reach "x" level.

Empyrean has a philosophical aspect. It has the power of letting players explore their favorite themes, by allowing them to build their favorite conceptual Archetype in the form of an Aethon, and then explore what challenges this archetype places on human terms. Players will have to deal with who they are, and this is another strong story-defining aspect.

However, what's important here, is that Empyreans are essentially human, and here is where the foundation of the whole storytelling experience lies. The players are immediately motivated to build a realistic human character, who grows and progresses according to the player's drives and emotional exploration.

Equipped with these characteristics, the concept of Empyrean begins by empowering a storytelling premise. Unlike many other settings, it commences immersed in strong storytelling concepts.

Therefore the objective of Empyrean, becomes the telling of powerful stories. To shape such stories by exploring the characters central to them is the essence of playing Empyrean.

In the next post I will establish how Empyrean specifically helps tackle each of the storytelling goals, and how it ultimately achieves its central goal.