On a dark winter’s night, a child signs a contract with a man dead to the world.
Promised an upbringing filled with forbidden knowledge, the two enter a strange and isolated existence together.
After nineteen years, the sanctuary and prison you have come to know as your home is discovered, and the land finally learns that the villain they believed to have perished a century prior has merely been in hiding…and that he isn’t alone.
Separated and forced to flee, you’re once again released into the world without your master’s hand to guide you. Only now, he is no longer the only one adept at the unsanctioned arcane arts.
“Unsanctioned” is an upcoming 18+ interactive Twine game where you play as the apprentice of an ostracized sorcerer. It’s set in a dark fantasy world where magic is simultaneously a symbol of status and strictly supervised.
Play the demo here!
(Please note that this version of the demo is not 100% finished; certain things still need to be added/edited/worked on but you can read the story from the prologue to the start of chapter 2.)
Progress Status:
Total Wordcount: Around 170k (as of start of December 2024)
Words Edited/Coded in Twine: Around 170k (as of end of December 2024)
Written Chapters: Prologue + Chapter 1 + Start of Chapter 2.
✢ Three backgrounds to choose from which will shape your MC and their relationship with the world, impact their pool of knowledge, their countenance, and how others might react to them.
✢ Three races to choose from: elf, human or the shunned cryn.
✢ A complicated parental relationship at the heart of the narrative.
✢ A cast of potential – and not entirely lawful – companions who you can forge various relationships with.
✢ Around five full-fledged romances, along with casual flings you may try to pursue along the way.
✢ Choices that shape your MC’s personality as well as the world around them to a lesser or bigger degree and narrative branching based on certain choices.
✢ A game of truth and deceit with you as one of the main players. You've been taught to keep your identity and abilities a secret from others, but is secrecy what you truly want?
✢ A magic system of both legal and illegal spells at your disposal. Use wisely, or you might attract unwanted attention...
Characters
✢ Elven, He/Him
If the stories are to be trusted, he is the last surviving member of the group of sorcerers unceremoniously named the “Pentagon order”. He is your master and your caretaker, your mentor and your jailor.
Knowledgeable and lonesome, he often seems to be pondering the world which he has now become a reclused observer of.
Whether you consider him family or a brute who took you away from the life you were meant to live, it can’t be argued that the nineteen years the two of you have spent together has shaped you into the person you are today.
How your presence has affected him, you cannot confidently say. His mind remains as closed off to you now as it did on that snowy winter’s night so long ago.
Perhaps leaving his side is what will finally allow you to learn the truth about him.
✢ ?, He/Him
As a being born from the very essence of sorcery, Muir’s existence threads a thin line between mortality and something wholly other. All mages rely on the energy of their Magiramús to cast their spells; you rely on this hoary eyed young man to do the same. Aside from his direct and stubborn disposition, he possesses both a palpable kindness and a sense of unmotivated ruthlessness.
You don’t know what he is, yet you know him better than anyone. You left your home together; now you must learn to navigate the world together.
Something that’s much easier said than done when your very existence marks you as outlaws.
✢ Elven, They/Them
One need only look at Wren to know that they’re one of the Institute’s agents. If the robes didn’t give it away, their demeanour certainly would.
Arrogance lies deeply embedded in their eyes, and they seem convinced that anyone who looks their way does so with envy.
When you encounter them in the troubled village of Kelmerth during their Practice of Passing, you get to witness firsthand what a student of the most distinguished academy on the continent can do, and what being a product of its teachings really means.
✢ Human, She/Her
Hailing from the southern land of Ciralor, Azora is less attuned to the laws of the arcane than a native of Aíos would be. Instead, she tends to rely on the inventions her homeland is both renowned and feared for.
Eloquent and straight-forward, her occasionally tactless phrasing might give the impression that she’s somewhat spoiled.
Spoiled though she may be, she can't as easily be described as naive. Blood stains the crown that was once destined to sit upon her head, and she is set on securing any means necessary to one day return home and claim what’s rightfully hers.
✢ Vampiric, She/Her
Astra's gaze always appears to wander, searching for something in the crowds she often surrounds herself with, occasionally locking on to someone who just so happens to catch her interest.
Although her muscular stature points to a life of strife, the poise she displays is more befitting of a high born than that of a common thug.
As a vampire, she has little choice but to shun the light of day and seek the comfort that lies in the shadows. Representing the part of her people that refuse to conform to the rules set in place by the less potent, she operates outside of the law, following instead the self-made rules of her Coven.
✢ Cryn, He/Him
The order of The Aelesh is enveloped in mystery. Worshipping the world of the unknown, they have chosen to cast aside the Faith in favour of the Truth – and in their eyes, the truth lies beyond that which mortals can comprehend and perceive with their senses.
With the simple mask he insists on wearing, your only clue as to Kirin’s true character lies in his voice and body language. Each sparse movement has a purpose, every phrase a veiled meaning.
He’s vowed to express his beliefs by following in the footsteps of the “Unsanctioned” and to serve them in any way he can.
In his opinion, this is currently best done by aiding you.
Magic System
You will be able to access a “book of spells” (codex) from the game's menu whenever you wish. The spells that your MC has learned, or learned about, will be displayed there along with some information regarding what each spell does.
There are key points during the story where using magic might attract attention or be more risky than other times. Know that there are no bad endings in this game, but that choices do have consequences, and that includes your use of magic.
There are spells which are considered “lawful” and spells which are labelled as “forbidden”. You will have access to both, though due to the nature of the MC's upbringing, they will have a wide range of forbidden spells at their disposal.
Even when using a “lawful” spell, this is still considered a crime unless you have a permit to do so.
There are moments in the game where you will be able to go to the spell menu and select the spell you want to cast (if any). Not all spells will always be available at all times simply because of branching reasons, but I’m striving to make it as free-choice as possible and add flavour-text in most cases at the very least.
Character portrait credit: @holyantenna (upper portraits + Cirern portrait) and @mooreaux (lower portraits + Kirin and Azora portraits)
The demo is out! Or rather, the initial version of the demo. As stated in the intro post I still have things I need to fix and edit both writing and coding wise + the planned spellbook, codex and profile are not there yet.
Some information that might be good to know:
Stats were never something I thought about much when writing this, and it's only recently through a conversation with a friend of mine that I started rethinking the statsystem I had implemented and what I wanted to do with it. What was originally designed as "pick your strengths and you get the options to use them now and then" is being reworked with more focus on magic usage and revealing certain content to the player depending on background and studies/areas of interest. For ex. persuasion you will have to (in the future) pick the "right" kind of option for that particular character to try and convince them rather than choosing a persuasion skill.
There are currently a few hidden dice rolls at certain points of the story. This is to make up for the success/failure system I had before, but they will most likely not come up more apart from these instances and might get reworked as well (most of them are very inconsequential).
The profile, codex and spellbook sections are currently not in this version of the demo because I encountered a very stubborn coding issue only yesterday that I haven't been able to solve yet. It will take some time to finish them but they will be added to the demo ASAP.
If you notice any errors or anything else or simply want to share your thoughts I'd be really grateful if you could send me an ask and let me know!
I'm Amal, a mother of three children, living under the weight of the genocide taking place in Gaza. 🍉
Here’s my story, and I’m reaching out with a hopeful heart 💔✨, hoping someone will feel what my family and I are going through.
My son is suffering from a severe and life-threatening injury after being shot by Israeli drones. He urgently needs medical treatment outside Gaza.
Time is running out, and we are facing a critical situation. I am asking for your generosity to help us save him either through a donation or by sharing this urgent plea with others
I beg you, i kiss your feet, to help my son. My son may die at any moment
I lost most of my family. I'm afraid to lose my son too 🥺
Mohammed deserves to live a happy and healthy life, just like every other child on this earth.
So I humbly ask you to donate even a little or at least reblog this appeal.
Please Donate now:👇
https://gofund.me/2f20a398
Ddonate Via Paypal 👇
https://www.paypal.com/donate
Hello everyone, my name is Elham' Abdelrahim I live in Los Angeles, … Elham Abdelrahim needs your support for In the Face of War: We Need Yo
I’m gonna be straight to the point, if you have the means please donate to these campaigns, they’ve all reached out to me this week asking for help, and unfortunately I am just one medical student and I can’t always afford to help
Hello, I hope you and your family are well. Is it possible to donate? If not, please repost. Thank you 🙏🇵🇸🌹🍉 I'm back after a long hiatus from the internet. Please help as much as you can.
Please read and help save 15 kids living a horrifying active ge… Rawda Harb needs your support for Please help Shamaly family SURVIVE Gaza &
This is Amal and her family. My children are living under bombardment in the war 😭 Please consider them your children and help them 🙏🙏 Stand by my side to save and protect my children. They haven't gone to school for a year 🙏😢😢 Donate to save my children's lives 🍉 🙏🇵🇸 We live in very difficult and desperate circumstances, and what is worst of all is that the fear that haunts me increases day by day. Help me provide them with basic life needs. @gazavetters is verified, my verified number on the list is (#55)
Hello, my name is Brooke Coke and I am organizing this fundraiser o… Brooke Cole needs your support for Support Amal's Family in War-Torn Ga
tumblr just deleted a huge swathe of palestinians who were on here trying to fundraise. if you've been helping any of these fundraisers please take this time to 1) check in with palestinians you're in contact with 2) help them submit support requests if needed 3) keep these campaigns circulating while the beneficiaries are being silenced. these campaigns are life or death, this isn't just social networking. do not let these fundraisers languish.
Since I'm incredibly anxious and very much annoyed, I'm compiling this post as a sort of master list of relief organizations and individual fundraisers for those in the path of Hurricane Helene.
Many of the links I post on this won't be individuals, but I encourage those within the path to add their links to this post in reblogs! Likewise, if you have any organizations / volunteer / grassroots efforts y'all would like to share, please do so!
My list is particularly focused on widely accessible resources, as well as Florida specific resources since... I'm from Florida.
(INTER)NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
American Red Cross - The American Red Cross is on the ground helping people as Hurricane Helene approaches land as a very dangerous storm. Helene may produce winds over 150 mph, a massive 20-foot-high storm surge and as much as a foot of rain. Prolonged power outages and tornadoes may occur. The effects will be felt hundreds of miles inland including in Georgia and the Carolinas.
FEMA Disaster Assistance Improvement Program - The Disaster Assistance Improvement Program’s (DAIP) mission is to provide disaster survivors with information, support, services, and a means to access and apply for disaster assistance through joint data-sharing efforts between federal, tribal, state, local, and private sector partners.
Roll Mobility - An application that equips wheelchair users with reliable information about the accessibility of restaurants, public spaces, businesses, trails, and parking areas. Good information to have on hand, especially for those evacuating from their home areas.
Warmline Directory - Providing extensive yet accessible resources that empower individuals to find the mental health and wellness resources they need through a directory containing accurate and in-depth information. For those unfamiliar: Unlike a crisis line, a warm line operator is unlikely to call the police or have someone locked up if they talk about suicidal or self-harming thoughts or behaviors. A good resource for individuals in mental distress due to natural disaster circumstances.
Food Not Bombs - Recovers food that would have been discarded and share it as a way of protesting war and poverty. They also reduce food waste and meet the direct need of communities by collecting discarded food, preparing vegan meals that they share with the hungry while providing literature about the need to change our society. Food Not Bombs also provides food to protesters and striking workers and organizes food relief after natural and political crisis.
FLORIDA
Volunteer Florida Disaster Fund - The Florida Disaster Fund is the State of Florida’s official private fund established to assist Florida’s communities as they respond to and recover during times of emergency or disaster. In partnership with the public sector, private sector and other non-governmental organizations, the Florida Disaster Fund supports response and recovery activities.
State and Local Level Referrals - When a disaster occurs, local governments often work together with community leaders and organizations to provide on-the-ground emergency management. Curated by FEMA. (Has 52 Organizations Listed)
GEORGIA
State and Local Level Referrals - When a disaster occurs, local governments often work together with community leaders and organizations to provide on-the-ground emergency management. Curated by FEMA. (Has 60 Organizations Listed)
TENNESSEE
State and Local Level Referrals - When a disaster occurs, local governments often work together with community leaders and organizations to provide on-the-ground emergency management. Curated by FEMA. (Has 49 Organizations Listed)
NORTH CAROLINA
State and Local Level Referrals - When a disaster occurs, local governments often work together with community leaders and organizations to provide on-the-ground emergency management. Curated by FEMA. (Has 45 Organizations Listed)
SOUTH CAROLINA
State and Local Level Referrals - When a disaster occurs, local governments often work together with community leaders and organizations to provide on-the-ground emergency management. Curated by FEMA. (Has 44 Organizations Listed)
I hope you look at our situation and our condition with the eye of the test and help me and my family to buy a new tent because our current tent melted from the summer heat, and now we are trying to collect donations to buy a new tent to protect us from the cold of winter 🍉🍉🍉😭
https://gofund.me/d926679d
Do not hesitate to donate every dollar that contributes to buying a new tent 🍉🍉😭💵
Please do not ignore my message. I am in dire need of you and your help. It will make a huge difference in my life.🤍🫶🏻
Hello, my name is Andy. I live in Ohio, but I am organizing this fundraiser for Abood and his wife who … Andy S needs your support for Help
Help my family in northern Gaza survive and escape safely from Gaza. 🍉🍉🇵🇸
Dear Humanity,
I am Saba Mohammed. We are a family of 27 members for more than nine months, and we are in war, suffering the most severe hardships. We have been displaced more than ten times in northern Gaza💔 under shelling and fire.
Hello world,,
I am Saba Mohammed. We are a family of 27 members for more than sixth m… Sabah Mohammed needs your support for Help my fam
We still suffer from shelling, displacement, and hunger until this moment. We have miraculously survived several times from shelling and numerous injuries, but thanks to everyone, we are still safe until now.
We hope that I and my family remain safe without losing anyone. Due to severe food shortage, I have developed severe dehydration and increased heart rate, which forced me to go to the hospital despite the lack of hospitals and medical facilities for treatment.
The endless crying of children out of fear and hunger, 😢💔 their crying makes us adults cry a lot because of their need for food. The fear of children as they move from place to place and from house to house in search of a safe home cannot be described.😢😢
Their living now amidst destruction is very sad, in addition to the shortage of food and water, and when a vailable, it is unclean and contaminated.
This is How we prepare food now..
Therefore, I implore you to help us provide food, water, and a safe place outside of Gaza for me, my children, and the children in my family. Your support for me and my family is the way out of darkness into light, from death to life.
From our family ❤️🇵🇸
Dear Tumblr Community,
I am grateful to be part of this wonderful community and seek your support in Reblog and sharing a post I have created. This message is not just a text but a crucial part of a fundraising effort to assist my family during these difficult times.
Hello world,,
I am Saba Mohammed. We are a family of 27 members for more than sixth m… Sabah Mohammed needs your support for Help my fam
I hope for your help so that we can secure at least a small amount of food and a decent living as we once had. I would appreciate it if you could help spread this message to reach a wider audience.
Palestine campaigns with under a thousand donations
Trying a new tactic with the fundraisers on my pinned list. These campaigns appear to gain a lot more traction when the number of donations hits a thousand, so here's a way to highlight those that could use more. Just like the main list, I'll keep you all updated with how things progress, and as always, if you can't donate, reblog.
A poem written before the author's death in an airstrike by the Israeli military.
The Toronto Public Library has removed "If I Must Die" by Palestinian writer, poet, professor and activist Refaat Alareer from its display.
If you're an author, writer, academic or reader you can contact TPL to voice your opinion on this decision to censor Palestinian poetry. Who to email here and here.
The U.N. warns that 1.1 million Palestinians are at imminent risk of death, as the crushing toll of the siege reaches its lethal and final stages. In North Gaza particularly, there is little time left before hundreds of thousands of people will die of hunger.
Time is almost up for over a million people. The US and its allies bear full responsibility for what can only be described as an impending holocaust. Without an immediate change of course that includes the provision of mass amounts of aid into Gaza and sanctioning Israel, mass death from starvation is a guarantee.
It is extremely important that this isn't just "more of the same" here. They're out of food, it is getting worse. Integrated Food Security Phase Classification is an organization for studying food insecurity, and they have a scale for how bad food insecurity is. Gaza has BEEN in phase 4 for a long time now, and that's already what is called "emergency". Its bad. But they only now have been upgraded to phase 5, outright famine.
Gaza is the only place in the world to have this level of food insecurity right now.
This isn't "more on-going cruelty" like I have heard from so many. This has changed to "no, this community is currently collapsing, and will completely die out if we do not do something NOW to at least take them from 'dying' to 'starving'". This is acute food insecurity on an unimaginable and unsurvivable scale. Contact whoever you need to immediately, because it literally does not get worse. This is the part where the genocide could fucking its goals if you do not do something to spurn your government into action.
Digital illustration of a brown woman holding her fist up to the sun. She is wearing a green abaya that has text that reads “honor the dead and fight like hell for the living” with a smaller text bubble that reads “cease-fire now’. there is also a dove in the image.
hi. go buy esims for gaza. go preorder a kufiya from hirbawi. buy insulin for palestinian diabetics who need that help. if you live in the states use this to email your reps (this takes maybe 5 seconds to do). check out this massive list of resources where you can educate yourself in a meaningful and actionable way even if you don't have the financial means right now. from the river to the sea palestine will be free. 🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸
