Setting & Lore

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SETTING & LORE

Table of Contents

• Printy County
• The Gru
• About Powers

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SETTING

printy county

Printy County was established on February 29th of 1851; according to the US Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 867 square miles, of which 801 are land, and 66 are water (in primarily the form of the Ribbon rivershed). It is the smallest county in the state in both surface area and population, which in 2015 was estimated at 90,000. Its county seat is Phlox, but its largest city is Larkspur. Named after Charles C Printy, who brought the area to relevance with his paper making business in the mid-1800s, the industry is still the county’s largest and most notable. MAP

phlox town

Your average suburbia; houses of similar make and red-toned roofs line street after winding street in this densely-populated town aimed toward families and family-owned businesses. The county’s best elementary, middle, and high schools are found in Phlox, along with a small community college. Its main street hosts most of its biggest business--family bistros, grocers, general and hardware stores; everything the average town needs for the day-to-day doldrum. Read More

acacia town

Known almost exclusively as a college town, this tiny town is bathed in cream-colored academic buildings and golden-leafed trees all year round. The center of town is revered for its tall clock tower, though things get less interesting the farther away from it you go. Offering a small nightlife scene for young people, it’s peppered in bars, has a movie theatre, and a handful of cafes and good hangout spots. Considering its small size, most travel by bike. Read More

larkspur city

The largest of the three towns, enough so that it can be called a city by proximity alone; it has an area worthy of being called a “downtown,” featuring shopping, entertainment, and a fair amount of nightlife that gives it a bright cyan glow after the sun sets. While easily the biggest center for business, there’s very little housing here, save for luxury apartments or narrow closet “studio” apartments. The roads have been congested with cars since the arrival of the Gru, making it tough to get around by vehicle. Read More

nullville

What was once just a long stretch of highway that connected the towns is now Ground Zero: the location of the main Gru ship that landed on that fateful day. The alien energy is especially strong here--the atmosphere has a strange heaviness that blocks out color, and much of the life here is becoming oddly unrecognizable. For the safety of the citizens, a barricade has been placed around its borders to warn anyone of entering its borders, and residents are strongly encouraged not to enter under any circumstance. Read More

changes

Since the appearance of the Gru, their alien energy has also been having strange effects on the climates and temporal presences of the towns in Printy County. Each town keeps having different effects--the effects of which seem to completely change every couple of months, seemingly at random. These interferences sometimes interrupt commuting or communication, but the county residents seem to adapt just fine.

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The Gru

who are the gru?

• Aliens from another world, they’ve landed in Printy County over the last few weeks, and have since established themselves as “new guidance” for the human race.
• They claim themselves to be a highly superior species, and often complain or remark about human society being too primitive for their tastes.
• The Gru appear in a variety of forms; their species is not bound to one strict type of appearance or physical make up. For all intents and purposes, they are what is usually imagined to look very much like what humans have previously imagined aliens to be--especially in the more cartoony sense. Be it with wiggly tentacle or long bobbing eyestalks or funky antennae or gelatinous forms, the only constant in their appearance is that they are most definitely not humanlike, and are entirely agender.
• While some Gru humor the English language (through their universal translation lobes) and adopt pronouns, they are generally referred to individually with the neutral they/them.
• As well, the Gru have their own sets of powers, similarly unique to each individual, and they aren’t shy about using them.
• The energy that they, their technology, and their ships radiate influences their surroundings, as it is an energy not naturally present on Earth--this energy is what is causing the changes and anomalies in and to the people of Printy County.
• Considering they are also a body of individually-minded people from an advanced society, they also all have their own thoughts and opinions on the human race, their mission, and what they’re willing to tolerate peacefully--some Gru are friendlier (or more oppressive) than others!
• It has become a fact that, universally, the Gru love dogs. Dogs seem okay with the Gru, but no more or less so than they are okay with humans. They just love everyone.

what are the gru doing?

• They appeared overnight, peacefully, but have since begun sharing their wisdom--a bit forcefully--claiming that they are here to further the human race; although many humans are not so interested in being furthered, especially not in this fashion.
• Their advanced technology includes offering leaps and bounds in the fields of medicine and material production, but some scientists debate if it is morally correct to accept them.
• They’ve taken over many local businesses and inserted their way into society in an effort to understand and connect with human kind, leading them to be often misinformed due to the bizarre segways of modern media and popular culture.
• Their takeover is largely nonviolent, and they as a species largely do not respond violently to provocation--however, it is extremely apparent that they definitely have the ability and prowess to, but are simply choosing not to.
• However, the one act they have strongly enforced is the banning of all weapons throughout the entirety of Printy County; the carrying of firearms and other kinds of weapons are strictly prohibited. Improvised weapons, however, tend to slip by them.

their leader

Their name is Njoyiyrkë, but for the sake of ease and the limitations of human pronunciation, they are referred to as Yrk (pronounced like Yurk). The apparent leader of the Gru, they bare a more human like appearance than any of the other of their kind; it's unclear whether this is their actual form, or one adopted to be more familiar to mankind. More than happy to be the face of the Gru, they present themselves with charisma and charm, often appearing in promotional media, as well as on the local news station. Even past the recognizability of their antennae, the leader is especially known for their vibrant taste in fine pressed, perfectly-cut suits. Though they present themselves very openly in these public appearances, they very rarely are found out of Nullville, making them rather cutoff from direct access.

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about powers

 

• Since the appearance of the Gru, people within the border of Printy County has been experiencing what have been labeled as the Changes--mutations to their being as result of the influence of being exposed to the alien energy. Very little is known about the nature of these Changes, aside from the fact that they seem to be different for everyone.
• Changes are essentially superpowers that evolve the longer your character is present within the group; it’s up to you if you want your character’s powers to evolve, or expand, or both throughout their leveling progression.
• These changes can be physical (growing wings, getting cool eyes, turning blue), internal (telepathy, super strength), or external (laser eyes, shooting fire from your hands), and you don’t have to stick to only one kind as your character progresses. Go for whatever suits them or your planned narrative best!
• Powers should ideally have some form of abstract relation to your character’s themes and development! Think of it as an extra layer to tell their story with. While you don’t have to plan all of your powers in advance from the very start, it’s recommended to at least have an idea of what you might want going forward.
• The Changes are entirely involuntary, and will stay with your character for the rest of their life.
• For more on how to design your character's powers, check out Character Creation!