From the Shadows of Ul'dah, We Rise

Beneath the glittering veneer of Ul’dah’s wealth, the forgotten masses toil and suffer while the monetarists grow fat on their misery. We remember what it is to go hungry, to be nameless, to be told our lives are worth less than coin. Some of us clawed our way out of the gutters; others stepped down from gilded halls, shedding titles and finery to stand with us. Together, we are the Agate Union. We are bound not by blood nor birth, but by purpose.We move quietly, striking where greed festers and the law turns a blind eye. We hunt the slavers who profit on chains, dismantle the schemes of those who prey on the weak, and place coin and care in the hands of those left behind. The law is a fine thing when it serves justice. But when the law will not act, we will.

For the lost. For the forgotten. For the free.

Why Would You Join?

Mateus | Crystal DC | 18+ Roleplay Free Company

Not on Mateus? That's OK! People are not required to join the actual Free Company to be part of the role-play Free Company, though when that's possible, it is preferred. We use a Cross-World Link Shell (CWLS) to maintain conversation.

Who are We - OOC?

The Agate Union, formerly the Urchin Army, is a justice focused and anti-slavery organization within the world of Final Fantasy XIV Online. Though we're not your traditional "criminal free company," our anti-establishment nature but ultimately more heroic storylines mean we operate in the same gritty underworld we stand against. Our roleplay explores themes of resistance, injustice, and survival, which means members may encounter dark or criminal storylines.With that in mind, you are always able to hit the pause button when uncomfortable. Working together, we can find a way forward that respects both the player and the roleplay. Don't suffer in silence -- if something bothers you OOC, speak up.Out of character, we are a respectful, inclusive community. All players are expected to follow local laws and community guidelines. Exploring dark themes in-character does not reflect personal preferences out-of-character. Consent, communication, and comfort are paramount.

History

Structure

Like many free companies, Agate Union has some structure. Not a lot, but some.At the top is its founder, Nyte. Following her the structure is as below.

Facets - These are your top ranking officials. In character they help call shots and wrangle problems that arise. Out of character they are often in charge of important tasks like MSQ dungeon mastering (DMing), moderation, task delegation and more.

Stewards - These are members of the union who have been with the group for a long while, are the head of a certain specialty, or are a good voice to have in discussion. Out of character they also help with moderation, answering tickets, and other around-the-fc tasks.

Agates - They are the shining sparkling center of the union. The vetted members of the group. Out of character, they can do anything, including leading adventures or DMing, starting up random rp, and bringing in new members to join!

Guests - These are friends (or villains) to the FC or High Nunh bar customers. This is mainly for the sake of the discord but these members may consider joining the FC eventually.

On Alts

Alts are welcome to join the FC! Sometimes the main is for doing content or busy with another adventure so that isn't any worry. We do want to keep the number of alts from each person down to 1-2. There is only so much crossworld linkshell space.
If you have questions about bringing in alts for certain quests or events, just send us a line on our discord at #get-in-touch and we can make things work.

Talk about our MSQs, sell them as a good yay point
Talk about character-driven non-MSQ FC quests
Talk about the bounty board
Talk about F'redLink bounty board

Combat Role-Play in the Agate Union

• About BOLT
• Stat Breakdown
• Combat
• Bonuses & Skills
• Create a Charsheet

About BOLT Into BATTLE

DISCLAIMER
We use a custom built role-play combat system developed by Friday. We have been live-testing it now for more than a year, and continue to tweak and adapt it to suit our role-playing needs.BOLT BASICS
Bolt uses a simplified D&D style system with both enemy and player AC (Armor Classes). D20 rolls that meet and beat the AC number for successful punishment. Player AC is determined by how you create your character - are they a tank, a support, or a damage-doer? At its very most basic, Bolt is a game of beating thresholds and using your specific advantages to help yourself and your teammates.PARTY ROLES
Characters are broken down into four basic roles: Tank, healer/support, ranged/magical dps, and melee dps.Note: You're not restrained to your job as it would guide you in FFXIV. One could play an alchemist specializing in being a healer by throwing potions and tonics or a great-sword wielding melee DPS. If your character has multiple skills they can use, you can keep a couple load-outs ready to use whenever it's time to go adventuring! Try not to overdo it though -- there's teammates with different skill sets too for a reason.

BOLT Breakdown: Statistics

At the beginning of every campaign, your character must declare the role he, she, or they will fill during the campaign. This doesn't mean the role can't change later on, but a starting stat sheet must be prepared for every character.It should be noted that your role will affect your character statistics. Traditionally, a tank has more health and more armor class, for example, at the cost of DPS; a ranged DPS does more damage at the cost of armor class and health.AC
Armor Class. To take damage, the d20 roll must meet, or beat, your AC value. I.E. AC is 12, a 12+ will be a hit, an 11 or less is a miss.HP
Health! When you reach 0, you either die or are dragged off the field unconscious/grievously injured. We do not insist on death, but if you reach 0, you are now a burden and cannot participate in combat.ATK
This is the amount of base damage your attack will cause if you successfully land a hit. This number may be affected by buffs from yourself, other players, attackers, or environment.Heal
Only healers can heal during combat. It does not require a success/fail roll. Non-healer healing is traditional field medicine and is unlikely possible during the heat of battle.

Note: You may be locked into a build during a campaign, but between campaigns you can switch roles. You are also not required to be aligned with any in-game role. i.e. role-playing a healer while your character in-game is a reaper is entirely fine.Finally, while AC is important and the basic crux of hit/miss, just keep in mind the DM may make adjustments to suit the particular mission -- including forgoing AC altogether for a set of simple threshold rolls everyone has to beat to survive an attack for example -- like a large boss AOE (Think of it like raid-wide damage!).

BOLT Breakdown: Combat Organization

How we sort who goes when during combat is determined by DM preference, and can factor in different variables like group size, make-up, mission details, or more. In The Agate Union, we usually work with Initiative, though we have used Grouping before. Regardless, this is up to your DM, so pay attention when they advise you about the combat methodology.Initiative Style
All players roll for initiative (which order they will go in) with the highest going first. Enemies will also be rolled for and mixed up within the player's turns. The DM may respond to attacks in groups/one at a time depending on their style and choice for that mission.Grouping Style
Players and Enemies will go in separate phases based on role. Here is how this order is broken down. Healer/Support, Ranged & Melee DPS, Tank, Enemy/Enemies.Grouping style might be selected for larger groups and adjustments can be made as needed for event style. On the first turn Healers/Support can use this time to prepare for oncoming damage, support opening DPS, interact with environmental hazards or just attack!

BOLT Breakdown: Bonuses & Skills

Combat may involve extra elements - special skills, rebounds, limit breaks, potions/poisons, and more - what is or isn't allowed is determined by the campaign DM and the preparedness of the team!If you want to bring special anything to the event - grenades, magical abilities, special strengths or weaknesses, etc. - please review them with the DM prior to the event taking place. Preferably several days in advance.Potions
An adventurer's best friend! Every player should be outfitted with an X number of these at the start of the mission. It's the DM's duty to let the group know how many potions they have on hand and how they work. A basic potion would heal 5 HP for a single target. A DM might need some wiggle room based on the number of healer/support characters in the mission. These are used on your turn.Rebound
Every player is entitled to two free re-rolls with a bonus an encounter. The DM can adjust this number as they like. For example: Rhel first rolls a 12 for a miss; he can rebound and give it another roll with a +1 to their second attempt. So if Character A rolls a 12 again, it's a 13 this time with the +1.Limit Break
The secret counter you’ll be building up through battle! By either landing three hits, taking three hits, or a combination of both, you will fill up your Limit Break bar.Here are the two options for what you can use this full bar to do!* One single strike on an enemy for twice your usual Just ATK, no AC roll required.
* One AOE Heal across the board for allies, healing 6HP for each.Special Skills
After picking a role, every player gets to pick two special skills from the chart below to outfit their kit. Some of these have restrictions on number of uses and can be adjusted by the DM for an event (example: your 2-time use skills will have 3 uses in this mission). All of these can be adjusted to whatever role-play flavor you like so this a place to really shine and make your character unique! Some may be specific to a roll and will be noted if so.

The Faces of the Agate Union

Votya

Merci

Marcian

Union Bylaws. IC rulesOOC rules will follow