King

KING

Keys: Master key (all access), etc.
Difficulty: Very hard
Supervisors: The Hand, Queen, Court and Church
Duties: Do whatever you want, ideally make sure Rockhill doesn't explode.
Guides: This is the guide

"Make Decree: All kobold and verminfolks are sex property now, go rape them!"

You're the King. You command, demand, and control all of Rockhill and it's population. That doesn't just mean your own peoples—anyone who steps into your territory is on your terms now.

You should have some experience leading people. Don't worry too much about the specifics; you're here to make the round interesting!

It's Good to Be King

The Basics

The first thing you should do once you find yourself on that mighty throne of yours is say hello to the people beside you. They will be knights, castle guards, and your family (queen, prince, etc.) alongside your more trusted advisors, such as the Hand and Steward. You'll also see your Court Magician once he's done with his orb in the tower. Get familiar with them, ideally be friendly, because if they turn on you, there's not much for you to do except run or shock them with your magical staff.

Next, get ahold of your bearings. You spawn with a crown and master rod, plus a keyring and plenty of money. You also have a ring of null magic, which will nullify spells used against you with a cooldown between each. The crown is the most important thing on your person. Without it, you can't make announcements, decrees, declare outlaws, or set taxes. You're just a nobody with a fur cloak.

After that, your master rod is a powerful tool to use, especially on your lonesome. By holding it in one hand and selecting "use" intent, anyone you click on will be shocked. This does no damage, but puts them into a hard stun for roughly 10 seconds. This is great for disciplining insubordinates, opening them up for your men to attack, or making a getaway if you happen to find yourself on the other end of a sword. Of note, the master rod will only work if you have the crown on your head. If you don't, you're better off wielding it like a staff.

Your keyring and money are fairly self-explanatory. Use the former to open doors, and the latter to bribe or pay anyone you want.

Next to your throne is a lever. While sitting on the throne, you don't have to wait for the action to finish to pull it. Anyone standing on the platform when you do will fall into a pit of wolves and the greater dungeon, and they'd kill for a pork chop right about now.

My Land, My Rules

You have the ultimate authority over Rockhill and its inhabitants, and we do mean the ultimate authority. You think all the beggars should be working the farms or enlisted as your personal servants? Let the people know! Want to declare a small races as property? Do it! Your land, your rules. It's as The Throat says, speak and they will listen.

Just keep in mind that poor decisions may lead to your untimely dethroningcapitation. Play it by ear, and expect to be the first one to die.

The Throat

While sitting on the throne, you have access to something called The Throat. It is, effectively, the announcement system. You use it to set taxes, make public statements, declare outlaws, and anything else that you'd need to be done with words and not blades. Simply state the command you're looking to execute, and The Throat should respond to let you know it's listening.

Below is a list of commands. If you ever forget them, you can say "Help" while on the throne to hear them in-game.

Make Announcement - Once you hear the confirmation ("Speak and they will listen.") say anything you want and all of Rockhill will hear you, even if they're sleeping or on another Z-level (citation needed). Make Decree - This is similar to Make Announcement. Instead of being a broad announcement to the public, this is a decree that is considered law. This can be, quite literally, anything! From ordering the peasants to work, to outlawing elves, to demanding everyone wear a hat while outside, whatever you say, goes. Unlike Make Announcement, the SCOM system will list these decrees to read if interacted with, and will occasionally parrot them to remind citizens that you're the BMFOC. Set Taxes - Allows you to set taxes. Every day, accounts in SHYLOCKs will have a portion of their funds taken out and put into yours/your treasury. Declare Outlaw - Lets you set an outlaw. When examining this person, it will say they're an outlaw and remind guards to kill arrest them and citizens to kill avoid them. Summon Crown - If you're the King without your crown, or one of the trusted advisors (Court Magician, for instance) you can summon the crown to the throne, in theory. This doesn't work a lot of the time. Note: Commands are case sensitive! That means “Make announcement.” won't work, but “Make Announcement” will.

The Rock-Hall of The Mountain King

Remember how we mentioned you have people in the court next to you that you probably shouldn't anger? Let's talk about them now. How much love and/or care you give to each of these people is up to you, but you don't want the court conspiring against you!

The first is your family. The queen, prince, or princess, sometimes more than one prince or princess. They are in a special place compared to other roles; the queen is the only one who is just under your level, whereas your children are more subordinates to be treated nicer than swine. You might let them do their own thing, or give them orders, but either way, they're in your corner.

The second is the Hand. Per its description, they are your right-hand man (pun intended). You should delegate anything you can't to anyone else towards them. They are your personal problem solver, protector (not counting castle guards, of course) and overall best friend. If you have a narrative in mind, they might have served with you in the war, been a childhood friend, or anything else—but they're there to make sure whatever you have in mind gets done.

Next, the Steward. They handle your finances and treasury, give money to people who ask and make sure nobody bitches about a lack of zennis. Instead of walking back and forth to the SHYLOCK to pay whoever's in front of you, send them to the Steward, and have them relay that you sent them.

The Court Magician is sort of like a second Hand if you so wish. Unlike most sorcerers, they have two fireballs instead of one, drastically shorter cooldowns, and one of the two can blow up walls! In terms of raw power, they're perhaps the best you can have next to you in a battle, able to stun with Lightning Bolt, pull people away with Fetch, and destroy or ignite anyone and everyone with Fireball and Greater Fireball. They also have a scrying orb, and so long as you speak the name of someone you want found, they can locate them with relative ease by looking into it.

Sometimes you might have a Sheriff, which can be a gods-send during the more combative rounds. Sheriffs have amazing combat qualities and are essentially the Head of Security role. Treat them like a Hand that you send to kill things, because if you want someone dead, the Sheriff will make sure you never see them again.

The jester is your personal clown. You can tell him to do anything for any reason at all, or even throw him in your wolf pit at the start of the round if you want to send a message.

Lastly are your castle guards and maids. The castle guards make sure no one comes wide at you and the maids make sure you're fed and that your keep is clean. They're more than ordinary townsmen, they're loyal to you and you alone. In a pinch, they can be pawns to put around the board.

Ye Olde Clergymen

The Church of The Pantheon is the only other power that rivals yours. Like any other medieval monarchy, the church can have just as much or even more power than yours. Angering them is very unwise, as the church has the most competent healers and acolytes, capable of bringing people back from the dead or ensuring crops grant a better harvest/undead aren't roaming around the streets. While you might be the ultimate authority, they are the place of respite for anything and anyone you discard, and they have to pick up after your mistakes. Similarly, the Priest can make announcements and shame heretics, their version of declaring outlaws, including you.

Don't give the Church, The Ten, or anyone in either of those an excuse to hunt you down without good reason. The Church and The Ten do away with Zizo and his foul spirits. Without them, the kingdom would be full of beasts and acts of terror, where every wound is a death sentence and comradery is a thing of the past. Work with the Priest to determine what's right for you and Rockhill. An uneasy alliance is far better than a tepid rivalry.

Help, I'm Being Killed!

As mentioned earlier, you're probably going to be the first person on someone's shitlist, no matter how you play the King. You need to watch out for bandits, revolutionaries (or "rebels"), vampyres and the occasional wandering idiot with a sword. You shouldn't be afraid to kill or at least beat whoever opposes you into submission, but ruling by love and support isn't a bad way to get someone's attention either.

Remember that you should really never frontline except for funsies. Send your guards and knights, then your magician, then your hand and sheriff after them first. When all else fails, then you can step in, if you really want to. Staying alive as the King is usually common sense. Don't stand near broken windows, make sure nobody enters your court with a weapon, and don't be afraid to flee if you value your own life. By making friends and not being an all-around tyrant, you'll have plenty of people willing to take an arrow for you.

Perhaps, This Is Hell

This all seems like a lot to process, and let's be honest, it sure is if you're looking to play an actual "King" King. But let's face it, you're probably not here for the spectacular narrative experience, are you? That's an experience better left to the barkeep or queen. Like it or not, you're the cornucopia from which all fun, or unfun, may sprout. You have tools to keep yourself alive, but one misstep can have anyone, anywhere come after your head, even your own court.

With this in mind, you should be playing to have fun. While King is no doubt a very difficult role even if you just plan on ordering non-humans to have their heads lopped off, channel this stress into making interesting decrees and spicing up the round. You might think you're integral to the round, and on many fronts, you are, but you aren't the be all end all. If you have a choice between dying while making the round as fun as possible, and staying alive to make it boring and samey, choose the former! Anyone can pick up the crown and keep ruling if needed, and maybe they'll improve it long after you're gone.

TL;DR You're going to suffer through a lot as a King, but you have the ultimate power over everyone else. You aren't even subject to RDM rules! You're here for a good time, not a long time. Prove to all of Rockhill why you're the best/funniest/coolest King, because you've only got one shot.

Tips and Tricks

You should always have the crown on your head, unless you're going into battle, and even then it should be in your bag. The crown is the most important thing! If you know you're going to die, give it to someone you trust. Don't go and run off by yourself. You may have a stun rod and the power of the crown on your side, but even three measly beggars can beat you to death surprisingly quickly. Always travel with a friend or someone combat-capable. Remember that you're here to make things fun. This is repeated a lot because that's what you're here for! You might be a unifying presence with absolute power, but try to use those powers for good or humorous purposes. Put bounties on random things, ask people to tell you a joke, even just ramble over the announcement system about how much you hate being king.