I was thinking today that it would be interesting to start an RP that took place within a genre that is not normally ever put in an RP environment. After a bit of thought, I decided on the setting of Judea at the time of Jesus.
Although the environment of the RP would be loosely based on first-century Judea as described in the Gospels, there would be a significant difference between it and the traditional Christian conception. In the RP, Jesus would be only one of the many individuals claiming to be the Messiah, and many of the others would have abilities just as remarkable as those Jesus displayed. There would also be various pagan magicians belonging to the many mystery cults popular in the Roman Empire at the time.
Players would be allowed to take on the role of actual mythological/religious figures such as The Wandering Jew, John the Baptist, Simon Magus, or even Jesus himself, as well as creating totally new characters to play. Just keep in mind two things:
- Characters such as Jesus wouldn't actually be as powerful as the Gospel depicts them. Jesus, in this RP, is just one para among many.
- You don't have to stick to the orthodox interpretation of these characters. John the Baptist, for example, could hate Jesus in this RP. Jesus himself could have radically different views than those attributed to him by conventional Christianity. Important events, however, will be the same as in the Gospels - i.e. Jesus is still going to be crucified, John the Baptist will still have his head cut off, etc.
So, anyone think this is a good idea?