futurologists: (Default)
Hathaway. ([personal profile] futurologists) wrote in [community profile] thirstology2016-06-26 09:15 pm
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TEST DRIVE MEME #4.

test drive 4.0


The world has shifted. Or maybe you’ve shifted? Either way, things have changed, and it’s going to be quite a while before you see them change back again.

BASICS

You were going about your business as usual until the world went white around you, and went the fog cleared: Oska. You’ve arrived in a snag of reality between worlds, the full extent of which can be read about here. But in essence, you’ve arrived in a grand, magical, almost empty castle. Outside the castle is an empty, long-abandoned village, partially in ruin. Past that, the world simply fades out into white mist. Your best bet is probably to stick to the castle and its grounds.

Suits of armor patrol the quiet hallways, but good luck getting them to speak or answer any questions. There’s absolutely nothing inside them, they move under their own power. They don’t talk, but they also go out of their way not to hurt you. You can even attack one, it will just patiently wait for you to give up and leave. If, however, you ask one for directions, it will dutifully turn and lead the way to wherever you’ve requested.

Librarians lurk in the halls of the enormous, well-stocked library, in which you can find nearly any book from nearly any world. The librarians are tall, wide, and very muscular, but they’re also not out to hurt you. Provided you play nice, of course. The usual rules apply: be respectful of the books, keep your voice lowered, and never bring any source of flame into the library. That last one might make the librarians reconsider their nonviolent natures.

Outside, there's a greenhouse with every type of flora you can imagine (and more, since they're from all over the universe) — be careful, though, because not all of them are friendly. If you'd like to take a dip, you can check out the lake; just be friendly to the fish. You can catch sight of almost any animal you'd like in the stables, real-world or fantasy. Most of them have been tamed, and won't do any real harm. However, some of them can be a bit testy. Stay away from the unicorns unless you have perfect manners — they hate impoliteness.

Current characters in game can assume that the Timeline glitched and sent them temporarily back to Oska. You are welcome to take any threads that happen here as game canon, should both parties arrive in game. Threads done here by prospective players may be used as application samples, and threads done by current players may be used as Bonus AC.

PROMPTS

ONE ✗ THE KITCHEN
The kitchen is always stocked with food, freshly cooked and ready to be eaten — although there was no one to do the cooking, and it might just be you to do the eating. That doesn’t seem to discourage the kitchen in the slightest, which is constantly churning out new, fresh courses. Some of them are more innocent than others today.

That tart you just ate? It was harpfruit, native to Cendiares, and has a pesky side effect of making the eater blurt out everything that pops into their head. The completely average-looking salad actually has flakes of Raphian wildflowers, which cause a bit of dancing fever — it isn't contagious, but it does make the sufferer want to dance with everyone they can. The choices and effects are endless and up to you, and don't worry; ALASTAIR is working on getting the kitchen under control as we speak.

TWO ✗ THE TRAINING CENTER
Maybe you find your way into the Training Center. A lot of work went into setting this room up, and it can construct nearly any scenario that you can imagine. All it takes to activate this room, still and featureless until it comes to life, is the brush of a finger against one of the glowing pads on the wall. The magitek will take it from there.

Just envision the setting and any enemies you’d like to train against, and they’ll instantly materialize. Would you rather go sightseeing, without worrying about a fight? No problem! The room is eager to provide you with a sparring partner, but it can be convinced to hold off -- just don’t think of getting into any fights. The Training Center also offers any games you can think of: soccer, basketball, literal freeze tag, etc. Every supply you need will be simulated for you.

Additionally, the following scenarios are also preloaded into the system for user convenience, each coming with a small summary of mission objectives:

ANWICK: A ruined little village with a massive, dead dragon skewered in the center of it. The goal is to protect her young in a nearby cave. The terrain is treacherous, the wyrmlings are squirmy and unhelpful, and the townsfolk are furious. But for good reason -- it seems dragons have been plaguing them for decades. Even the simulation’s enemies are programmed to say as much, and will do their best to convince you to their side.

CHANTES: Chantes, the previous mission world, is a typical medieval town cloaked in darkness and surrounded by a winding forest. It comes in two default flavors and difficulty settings. Fairies are the easier enemy; the objective is to collect three jars of unpleasant, glowing sap from their nests without getting your eyes poked out. The fairy goop can also cause disturbances with magical powers, unwanted levitation, and unfortunate cosmetic effects.

Demons are the more difficult setting. The task is to clear ominous runes off of various town structures, but when approached, each one releases a red, misty spirit. It will fight tooth and nail to protect its ‘home,’ but is largely invulnerable short of destroying its rune. To prevent this, it may resort to spells, violence, and possessing someone else in the simulation -- consider this a lesson in PvP. (NOTE: You’re also welcome to use anything from the previous events from Chantes as well.)

OSKA TRAINING: The goal in this simulation is simple: outlast the timer. It’s exactly the same castle, but after it’s been pelted by a firestorm, architecture ruined to rubble and ash. Navigating the half-destroyed castle is hard enough, and the earthquakes and fireballs raining from the sky will continue until characters survive for a certain amount of time (from an hour to a day) or find a full bushel’s worth of food. And just to rub salt in the wound, all the dirt, grime, and mud in this simulation will last outside of it, so you might need a shower after.

NALAWI: An island nation populated by diminutive deer people. The first setting is a mini version of the Gilligan's Island event -- it's less action-packed and more focused on survival. Marooned on the drowned island of Dakal, it's up to you to figure out where to find food and shelter. You might also want to avoid the hungry sea creatures that have made their way up on the island, too.

The second setting involves lava monsters erupting out of Nalalona, the largest volcano on the Nalawi islands. Lava imps will do their best to hypnotize recruits into following them back into the volcano, and can be defeated the normal way or non-violently lured into the water. Next comes the fire golems, hulking but fast. Their weak spot is their glowing core, but it will require some cleverness to reach. (NOTE: You're welcome to use any scenarios based on other Nalawi events as well!)

THREE ✗ HOT SPRINGS EPISODE
One of ALASTAIR's teams extracted an enormous, very hot core from a sentient and murderous AI. What better way to put it to use than to heat up the springs? It's a nice place to get some much needed R&R or just hang out. Some enterprising recruits have built wooden decks and stairs around and through the whole affair. It's a little bit of a hike to get there from the castle, but anyone who has visited can agree: it's worth it.

FOUR ✗ THE NETWORK
There is some good news, along with all these bizarre and fantastical new sights: you’ve arrived with a new piece of jewelry which, if examined, gives you access to anyone else that might be currently inhabiting Oska. You can speak into the jewelry and be heard, you can get it to project moving images of yourself and others, you can even think a message into it and have it arrive as written word to whoever you’re communicating with. It’s a useful little trinket, provided you can get it to work.

FIVE ✗ CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE
You are free to use any of these settings, or anything from the Settings Page. You may use any virtually created setting you can think of in the Training Center, even scenes from your character’s world (although they’ll be devoid of people, unless they’re brought in as opponents).
mercyful: (4)

2

[personal profile] mercyful 2016-07-05 05:24 am (UTC)(link)
Angela has no interest whatsoever in the fighting part of the training center, but is here for the sightseeing as well. But it isn't long before she thinks she may, in fact, be in over her head. She spots the fairies from a distance and keeps far away, observing, but unsure if they're friendly. Who knows? They may have sharp, pointy teeth and she is not prepared for that.

When she turns away and nearly runs into Zenyatta turning a corner, she clutches at her heart for an instant.

"Oh! You startled me. I wasn't expecting anyone else." Certainly not an omnic.
iomnic: (Cyber Buddha looks pretty cool)

support class holla

[personal profile] iomnic 2016-07-05 06:34 am (UTC)(link)
The problems with constant levitation being that he's also sneaky without intending to be. No feet on the ground means no sound of footsteps, and so he's not surprised he's accidentally startled someone. Said someone being the famous Dr. Angela Ziegler. She's done some good work in countries in need of help. An advocate for peace.

"I apologize," Zenyatta replies, "I did not intend to startle. I also was not not expecting anyone else." Let alone someone who is certainly as busy as she is.
mercyful: (11)

patching you up as you pass into the iris

[personal profile] mercyful 2016-07-05 05:18 pm (UTC)(link)
"At least we're each seeing a familiar face, aren't we," she replies, heart rate returning to normal. "Should we press on together? I'll admit, I did not come as prepared for exploration as I should have." Usually she doesn't make such miscalculations, and admitting to it is a bit of a pain, but pride will get her no where here. She'd rather be safe than superior.
iomnic: youtube shitpost comments are my keywords (Default)

[personal profile] iomnic 2016-07-05 07:33 pm (UTC)(link)
"It's alright. If you are feel worried, we can end the simulation at any time." This room, after all, is just a simulation. And given that the two of them aren't really great at huge confrontations, leaving the simulation might be easier than trying to do something and getting hurt.
mercyful: (10)

[personal profile] mercyful 2016-07-05 09:49 pm (UTC)(link)
"Well, that depends." She pauses to peek around the corner. "I'm curious about these fairies, but I'm not sure if they're friendly. Have you come up to any yet?"
iomnic: youtube shitpost comments are my keywords (Default)

[personal profile] iomnic 2016-07-05 11:41 pm (UTC)(link)
The fairies? Ah, right. Zenyatta had seen them, but also left them on their own.

"I have not. But if you would like to see them, I will accompany you." He doesn't exactly have a great feeling about them, but hey, if Angela wants to, he'll have her back.
mercyful: (7)

[personal profile] mercyful 2016-07-06 06:17 pm (UTC)(link)
"I'll admit to a bit of fascination with them," she says. "From a biological point of view. Of course, I am not about to go ask for cheek swabs from any of them, but perhaps we could try for a closer look?"
iomnic: youtube shitpost comments are my keywords (#BuffZenyattaSquad)

[personal profile] iomnic 2016-07-07 05:34 am (UTC)(link)
"Of course." It's alright to admit you like fairies, Mercy. You dress up like an angel, and a demon, on occasion. Being interested in fairies is one of the least weird thing you do.

And off he goes, floating on towards the objective area where the fairies seem to be gathering- there must be some kind of nest nearby, maybe? They don't notice him right away, but... who knows how long that will last.
mercyful: (10)

[personal profile] mercyful 2016-07-08 05:13 am (UTC)(link)
She follows behind him, though not too far back. It's easy to be intrigued by the creatures that don't exist on their world, and she wishes she had a notebook or a recording device of some kind to take notes, but alas, she does not. Committing this to memory shouldn't be too hard, but she worries she'll forget the minor details.

There may be a nest, but she doesn't see it, or a hive, or a burrow, or however else these fairies might choose to live. As they get closer, she walks more quietly, since she's the only one of the two of them actually walking. And that's when something catches her eye. It's off to their left, and glowing. She doesn't want to say Zenyatta's name aloud and startle any fairies, so she tries to quietly move up beside him to gain his attention.
iomnic: youtube shitpost comments are my keywords (Default)

[personal profile] iomnic 2016-07-09 11:32 am (UTC)(link)
These forests seem peaceful, although there's still something strange enough about them. He's seen forests before, all with their own slight differences- certain flora that only grows in some parts of the world than others, and certainly the fauna always changes. But this particular forest feels even more different, as if to solidify the fact that this was absolutely not Earth.

Strange, but interesting.

"Hm? Yes, Doctor?" Zenyatta says as Angela approaches, because he has no idea that perhaps he shouldn't be speaking out loud. Whoops.
mercyful: (Default)

[personal profile] mercyful 2016-07-09 04:00 pm (UTC)(link)
"Shh!" she shushes, casting a wary glance around before whispering, "To our left. What is glowing, hmm?" It's worthy of further investigation.
iomnic: (Cyber Buddha looks pretty cool)

[personal profile] iomnic 2016-07-09 04:48 pm (UTC)(link)
Silent now except for the quiet hum of his internal machinery, Zenyatta slowly looks to his left. Glowing? Oh, yes, he can see it now... Glowing liquid. Like syrup? It looks really unappealing. He is always in favor of nature being nature, of course, but that doesn't mean he has to go ahead and explore every aspect of it.

And yet, of course, she probably wants to see it. "Bioluminescent sap, of some kind. I have never seen something like this before, but I would not recommend touching it."