test drive 5.0
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. BASICSYou were going about your business as usual until the world went white around you, and when 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.
PROMPTSONE ✗ 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, Audentes' first mission, 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!)
ZETA-12: Oh boy, a whole planet to explore! The objective here is simple: protect your delicate goo baby at all costs. Luckily for you, the simulation has seen fit to skip over the frozen wastes! Your first challenge is crossing the deep forest: carnivorous plants try to get a bite out of you, but that isn't the worst part. Eventually, you come to a deep chasm, and have to choose between forcing your wailing, distressed squidge across, or soothing it for several hours until it's willing to go with you.
Scenario two is a thick bog inhabited by an aggressive plant monster. It spits a crippling neurotoxin, so anyone attempting to fight it should be wary. Outsmarting or avoiding it would be best for the squidges' well-being, but some people are too hot-blooded for that. What will you do?
Finally, there's the desert; it's picturesque, but only if you can ignore the dehydration and punishing heat. There's a cave network for you to seek shelter in, but make no mistake: pretty soon a freak meteor shower causes a cave-in and leaves you trapped inside with an increasingly aggressive squidge. Are you out there dodging meteors or navigating caverns? THREE ✗ HOT SPRINGS EPISODEOne 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 NETWORKThere 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 ADVENTUREYou 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). |
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futurologists) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
thirstology2016-09-24 10:21 pm
no subject
[As they're led to surmise that their recruitment is accidental, it's strange that they haven't been able to repair, change, or influence whatever systems are in place. Their communications equipment had been taken down temporarily and fixed in due course, but not whatever powers brought them here. It may be that they don't even know what is going wrong, but it remains surprising all the same]
When I was new, for instance... I was sent into some lava tunnels underground, along with others recruited around the same time. That wasn't where we were meant to be dispatched, and this has happened again recently with other new additions.
[All this is to say that ALASTAIR's system does seem to have some bugs in its workings. Not just the random way in which they're plucked from different places and times without consent, but the simple fact that they're not always sent to the right destination after the fact]
no subject
He follows along with the boy's tale with a miasma of distaste emanating from him. More than nearly anything, Elias despises being placed underneath the thumb another. Being placed underneath an utterly incompetent thumb was even worse.]
And there is nothing that can be done about this? [He stands up a little bit taller in indignation, which is an impressive height considering he already stands a head and a half taller than most humans.] If we are to be the cogs that allow their machine to run, a "jam" might be enough to at least catch their attention. With how little maintenance they supply, it might not even be surprising.
no subject
Haise's eyebrows knit together for an instant as he mulls the notion over]
I wonder if, in an organization this large...something like that would truly be advisable.
[ALASTAIR is massive in terms of its scope of influence, and for all their team's large numbers, they're only one among countless many. What would even be done about them if the were to cause trouble?]
no subject
A short exhalation of breath escapes his nose at the response, caught somewhere between a sigh and a snort. There is a brief pause before he responds in a gruff undertone,] You are probably correct. [Thinking of how he works with the church, it would benefit no one to cause problems for no reason. It would most likely only make things more difficult for them.
He turns his attention from these thoughts back towards the individual in front of him.] How long have you been in this employ? Have you noticed anything else of the way this group seems to operate?
no subject
As to this new line of inquiry, it's easier to address]
Let's see here... It's been about five months now.
Folding his arms, he mentally reviews what he has learned before he elaborates further. What he had picked up on was very little, and far between. It had given him a distinct impression of ALASTAIR on the whole though]
The highest-ranking operatives we've met are more senior recruits. A while back we were given a brief history of ALASTAIR, and this fragmented world is the sort of outcome we're meant to prevent elsewhere... As best I understand it, they use a combination of magic and technology, and we're grouped in rather large squads.
[Squads, because Haise is predisposed toward viewing their team of eighty-some -odd people in these terms]
no subject
Months. That was concerning. He's briefly reminded of when he took Chise to the realm of the faeries so that they might help with her weakened state after she used so much magic to return from Iceland; time had passed slowly there, in comparison to home, so they returned after an entire season had passed. He hadn't thought much of it, except that the silver lady had been uncharacteristically happy to see their return (he had chalked this up to Chise's involvement). Now he was beginning to understand what the silky might've gone through, worrying for them as they remained absent.]
Outcome... ["Fragmented" was an interesting way to put it. Elias had most been concerned with the forest outside of the castle, how devoid of life and magic it had seemed. Was that the issue with this area, or was it more than that?] Do you happen to know what exactly happened to this place?
[The combination of magic and technology was not strange to him, though. He worked very closely with an artificer who was talented in exactly that. What ALASTAIR had to work with seemed on a vastly different level than what she could do, however.]
no subject
[Haise recalls it, once surprised that they were given something of a lecture on the subject after returning from Nalawi. It was so reminiscent of a mission briefing or report that he'd been thrown off by it. Had it been under more mundane circumstances, he'd have almost felt at home, but ALASTAIR's population wasn't quite so recognizable as that]
The woman who spoke on the subject said that this as once a large world known for music and breeding hunting animals. This world's energy was thrown off balance, which seems to often be what we're meant to correct... But by the time they found out the animals were taking in too much of that energy, this is all they could save.
[He spreads his arms demonstratively, a brief, sweeping motion of their surroundings. It's far from grandiose, merely an indicative gesture before he lets his arms drop to his sides once more]
Moving their base of operations here serves as a cautionary reminder...so it was said.