Arete World: Offline

...a popular virtual reality MMO...
...an unforeseen event...
...reality...
...becomes a game...
...an ordinary city...
...becomes populated by strange characters who wield...
...arete...

Premise

In 20X6 server technology and neuroscience became advanced enough to allow for the creation of the first truly immersive virtual reality. Arete World Online was the latest and boldest of these projects to date, with a world allegedly run on cutting-edge quantum computer servers and using the most advanced neural interface peripheral designed to date. Set in an eclectic fantasy world inspired by a melange of cultures and mythologies, it promised the opportunity to emulate any fantasy race or class made in previous games unique arete system which tracked player activity any kind and compounded it into stat growth. The game was not region-locked, but actually featured a system of geographical correspondence to the game world and local hosts so the game could develop distinctive cultures in each player region.

After a summer-long beta test, Arete World launched to great fanfare and was well-received. Then a month after launch, a mysterious event affected the local servers of a certain city, causing every player logged in to be transported out of the game and into the real world as their avatars... their original bodies mysteriously vanished. An emergency shutdown of the servers did little to prevent spreading chaos as NPCs from the game began to appear in the game itself, causing havoc as they issued quests, offered arete training and sold magical items.

As the systems of the game began to encroach on the real world, life suddenly became a lot stranger.

Character Generation

Just post concepts for now. Rules will probably be quite freeform.

Character

Shrike will do a thing: