Test Drive: April

[empevents]

— TEST DRIVE: APRIL —

Welcome to empatheias' test drive meme. This test drive is to help interested players test their characters in the game's environment. We've included a few prompts that incorporate specific elements of the game, though you'll find all of them have a lot of leeway for players to get as creative as necessary. Before diving in, here are a few things we'd like to remind everyone about the game in general:

• Date reminders. Reserves open March 25th and Applications (Canon | OC) open a week later on April 1st. Apps will only be open for four days!
  
  
• OC Reminder! Just a quick reminder that original characters are allowed. Those interested can also use the test drive. OCs do not need to be reserved.
  
  
• Emotions are key! Empatheias' premise focuses on how anyone's emotions can affect their environment, be it big or small. While not every emotion will cause a reaction, significant ones definitely will. How much effect a character will have will ultimately be up to you, the player. Also, while we're giving a lot of leeway for the test drive, keep in mind that there will be some limits in the actual game.
  
  
• Everyone has an amulet. All characters have a unique amulet that is specialized for them. It will contain all of their emotion drops and it serves as the network device. Remember, communication is telepathic. Otherwise, it works basically the same.
  
  
• Assume the character is already in the game. Because "OMG WHERE AM I IS THIS REAL LIFE" threads aren't going to be very helpful in this test drive! Plus, those are going to happen in-game, anyway. So to make things easier, just assume that they've been around at least a week or so. Still learning the ropes, but not a complete "first day" experience.
  
  
• First or third person allowed. Your threads can be in either first or third, but we'd advise being flexible about it. Remember, these threads can also be used in your application for samples! Reminder: We only require one sample and it can be done in either format. We have also made a change to our sample requirements, so look over the Applications page!
  
  
• Transfer to in-game. If accepted, you can assume threads made on the Test Drive happen in-game if the scenario can reasonably fit. For new characters, these threads do not count for activity check. However, these can be supplementary threads for players already in-game.
  
  
• For your threads, put the Character Name and the Canon in the subject line to help readily identify them. You're also welcome to use more than one prompt for respondents to choose from. If you have any questions or want to brush up on the game information, refer to the Game Information entry. Otherwise, tag around and have fun!
  
  
  Now with that out of the way, here are some prompts you guys can work from!

PROMPTS

• Prompt A: How about giving the emotions a try?

• Prompt B: Refer to the Task Board and choose a task your character may be interested in taking up. For this prompt, you could have your character ask for help, already be in the middle of the job, or react to it in some way. Perhaps they were an unfortunate victim or want to create a job countering an existing one. You could even have a prompt making a job request. Creating jobs for the purpose of the test drive is absolutely doable.

• Prompt C: How about giving the amulets a go? Start a telepathic conversation and see how it works. Remember, the amulets are sending out the owner's thoughts so might want to be careful about how the stream of consciousness goes...

• Prompt D: Arehtei Amusements is a new company in Verens seeking to bring Arehtei themed festivities to the people of the city. This might've not been the best idea as it's not endorsed by the creatures themselves and coming up with festivities for some of them can be a bit of a stretch, but they've already incorporated, so it's a little late for that now. Anyways, first up is Piphron, which might not be the best or the easiest choice, but it's too late to change their focus now. So visitors to the Piphron Party will find a few activities awaiting them:

1. Catch of the Day: One of the first activities people will notice resembles a game of frisbee. But with blindfolds! What better way to build trust if you can't see or at least that's the line of thinking here. Participants will be grouped together and whoever's turn to catch will be blindfolded and have to rely on their partner's directions to catch the flying disc. Everything about this seems like it was a better idea than on paper, but it's probably too late for that now. Especially if one of them is flying at you!
   
2. Leap of Faith: For those who want to try out something with less of a chance of getting hit in the face with a frisbee, there's also a trust fall activity going on. But unlike the regular team building exercise, this one seems to have been taken to the extreme and mixed it with bungee jumping. After a brief lesson in Dunamis, one person will be escorted to a platform to fall off it and work with their partner on the ground to slow their descent using emotion magic. And don't worry, it's completely safe! The area under the platform seems full of what looks like foam padding, so there's nothing to worry about if someone messes up or falls too fast.
   
3. Paper Trail: The Arehtei have two sides and since balance is important, they've also tried to incorporate feelings of distrust into today's activities (besides the feelings of skepticism one might have from watching this nonsense and learning the event organizers are planning on more things like this). The organizers were trying to set up a mock murder mystery to try and sow feelings of suspicion or distrust in good fun, but it seems like someone's stolen the sign up sheet listing all the roles! So now they're asking for help to recover the sheet and the culprit responsible! It could be anyone, but odds are they're still in the park somewhere. Or more likely, the wind blew the paperwork away when someone wasn't looking, but they don't seem to be considering that one, so good luck hunting for the mystery thief!
   

• Prompt E: Whether he finds you on a random street corner, inside a grocery store, or at the library, a butler who introduces himself only as Benson is handing you an invitation and informing you that the illustrious Count Dunnit has invited you to stay at his manor for the weekend with a few other select guests. The Count has yet to name an heir for his abundant fortune, and he apparently has decided to bequeath his estate to whoever he enjoys spending the weekend with the most. How can you possibly refuse? However, should you choose to join Count Dunnit and his other guests at the manor, you may find that this weekend is more than you bargained for...

1. Curious Cuisine: Upon arrival at Count Dunnit’s manor, all guests will be invited to partake in a sumptuous dinner of all sorts of rare and exquisite Verenthian delicacies. The food comes in all sorts of strange varieties and colors and aren’t the sort of things that one can find at any restaurant in town, though perhaps for good reason. Whether or not any of this is appetizing is debatable. Have you ever tried grilled wyvern tail? How about bat wings? Snakes? Just snakes? Well, if the cuisine isn’t to your liking, towards the end of the meal, the lights flicker out and when they return, Count Dunnit has crumpled down into his seat, dead as a doornail. Things just took a turn, didn’t they?
   
2. In the Dining Room with the Candlestick: So, Count Dunnit is dead, and everyone in the room is a suspect. You’re a suspect. Anyone here might have killed him to steal his fortune. So it falls to you and your fellow guests to analyze the evidence and discover who the culprit is! Dunnit was poisoned, ostensibly, so starting your investigation in the kitchen and interrogating the staff may prove fruitful. However, it also appears that Dunnit has a stab wound in his back, leaving you to find a knife. To complicate matters further, there is also an injury from blunt trauma to his head. Anything might have caused that. How will you investigate the murder? And moreover...can you trust your fellow guests?
   
3. Goodnight Sweet Prince: As your investigation continues, it becomes clear that there are simply too many variables in this situation for there to be any one culprit, and all clues point to the murder being a joint effort by the members of the staff in an effort to prevent any of the guests from receiving the fortune they feel they rightly deserve. Once the jig is up, however, they release a sleeping gas into the manor and make their escape before anyone can pursue them. These sleeping gas has some extra special properties that make those under its influence particularly cuddly and snuggly when they lie down for a little nap. You may wake up closer to someone than expected. Maybe they’re a complete stranger and you can both agree to never mention this again...or maybe not!
   

• Prompt F: As the years go on and more people begin to get a grasp of their Dunamis magic, Mr. Bubbly, a man with a vision wants to start training exceptional children to become the island's first official superhero group. He believes that by teaching them to harness their Dunamis by an early age, as well as instilling in them a strict moral code, they'll be ready to defend us from anything in the future. The name of this class? The Umbra Academy. Meanwhile, another man with a different set of ideals, Lord Saline, wants to begin his own program, The Astra Academy. While his school teaches young minds to control their Dunamis as well, he is viewed more as an extremist who wants to tear down the wealthy. While the schools are aware of each other, they have agreed not to clash directly.

1. First Class: As both academies officially begin class, they are going to need both students and teachers. Anyone aged 17 and under is welcome to join either group, be it as a student or a teacher. Anybody over that age will have to apply as a teacher/guardian, as the students are largely made up of ten year olds. Either way, whether you're a student or a teacher, you are tasked with standing in front of the class and introducing yourself. Talk about your world and most importantly, what it means to be a hero! Be prepared to take questions, too.
   
2. The Clash: Astra Academy's first mission is underway! Lord Saline has tasked both students and teachers to break into the vault of a museum, using only Dunamis and non-lethal methods when disposing of guards. Ideally this is meant to be a stealth mission, so it's best not to get caught at all. The target? A pink diamond, belonging to a corrupt owner, which Lord Saline intends to sell and distribute to the poor. Meanwhile, the Umbra Academy has a mission of their own! Their students and teachers are to stop an ongoing burglary of a popular museum. If it wasn't obvious so far, it quickly becomes clear that both groups are sent to the same location, with the goal to prevent the other from succeeding. Looks like it's the clash of the academies!
   
3. The Last Stand: Eventually, it's revealed that Mr. Bubbly and Lord Saline are in fact the same person, a legendary con man known as Jet. He created both academies and pit them against each other so he can steal the pink diamond for himself, which he succeeds. Now, even though they're officially disbanded, it's going to take the full force of both academies to catch this criminal mastermind before he gets away. Jet commands a luxury airship full of well-paid guards and mercenaries, which is easily tracked down by our heroes. Using your lessons of stealth and combat from either class, it's time to find your way around his cronies and get that diamond back!
   

• Prompt G: Make your own! It could include spiders and/or capes.

Comments

no problem! hope things get better!

[ultimatelynothing]

[Rantaro doesn't press, but he's appreciative for the help as Saihara nears. Touching a dead body wasn't exactly high on his list of things he'd expected to do this evening, but it's better to get the facts firsthand while they can.]

Yeah, let me just...

[He's careful to only touch the clothing, steadying the man by his shoulder as he rolls him, wincing a bit at the way he moves and what it reveals. He didn't know a ton about injuries or murder, despite what Monokuma would have him believe his Ultimate title was. He tried to keep a firm grasp on dinner, despite what his stomach wanted to do. At least it wasn't someone he'd known. He could only imagine how hard it would be to do this for his classmates in that awful murder game.]

Pretty ghastly. Any idea which one killed him? I can't imagine why they'd need to use so many methods... do you think they were just trying to disguise which it was?

[Maybe it was something else entirely, hidden among the obvious. He wasn't keen on looking closely, but...]

thank you! if you need any help with an app or anything, lmk and i'll do my best to assist! c:

[exponere]

[ shuichi isn't very keen on touching a dead man either but he can't exactly have rantaro do it on his own. so, he takes the other shoulder and gently moves the dead count into a position so his back is fully exposed. he lets out a held-in breath after they finish rolling the man over. ]

That might be the reason. It'd make it harder for us to figure out the actual murder weapon that way.

[ there could be a number of reasons why someone would want to conceal the actual murder weapon and cause of death. he has a few ideas in his mind, but nothing that he can actually count on right now. luckily, the count is wearing a white suit so it's easy enough to see the stab wound on his back without having to poke around, though shuichi still hesitates to raise the brim of his cap to get a closer and fuller look. he takes a second or two to steel himself before he finally starts to examine the injury. he looks at it for a few silent seconds, thinking about what he's seeing, and then speaks up. ]

... I don't think this stab wound was the cause of death.

Nice!! Thank you!! I'll try to start working on it asap! >w<

[ultimatelynothing]

[It was good to have his suspicions confirmed, but it still didn't tell them why. Clearly there was motive enough. The count didn't have an heir, was going to announce who was to inherit later that evening. Greed was a hell of a motive, and a difficult one to trace. If it was personal, it'd be easier, but just about everyone here could potentially be desperate enough to kill for money.]

Without knowing who the count was going to name, it's hard to tell who had the most to gain from the murder or why they'd need to hide the cause of death like this.

[He sighed, shaking his head a little as he waited for Saihara's verdict. Not the stab wound? He added the fact to a mental checklist of what they knew so far, hoping he'd remember it all.]

How's the head-wound?

feel free to send a pm to this account and i can help! c: i can also help if you need more icons!

[exponere]

[ he nods in agreement. he's already thinking about all the problems with solving this crime, such as the fact that they can't concretely determine what was the cause of death and there is nothing stopping these people from leaving the scene. they can get out, get rid of any evidence that they might have, and maybe even flee the city if they really wanted to. it's honestly kind of frustrating and shuichi has to push those thoughts of his head to focus on the corpse. one problem at a time, right? he needs to learn to keep his thoughts at bay... ]

[ he moves from behind the count towards the side, grimacing as he now has to examine a rather graphic head wound. when he left his apartment today, he really didn't expect that he would be spending his evening like this. he remains quiet for a few more seconds as he tries to absorb what he's seeing and formulates the details in his head. ]

I can't say for certain... but I think this might have been the cause...

[ shuichi might be a detective, but his field is more aligned with missing people, cheating couples, and lost pets. asides from that one murder case, he has absolutely no experience with dead bodies, so he sounds unsure. he's basing his last assumption about the stab wound and this head wound on all the murder mystery books that he has read and general knowledge of how the body works. ]

It can't be the stab wound because there's not enough blood. That means he was stabbed after his heart stopped, but his head...

[ he trails off, letting rantaro figure it out. there sure is a lot of blood covering the count's head and his surroundings. it's quite the mess, really. ]

Oh dang, thanks so much! <3 (also yes icons would be awesome!!)

[ultimatelynothing]

[Curiosity makes it hard not to lean in as Saihara inspects the wound, cringing a little at the broken bits of bone and sticky blood pooling into the carpet. Something about the injury makes him distinctly uncomfortable, though he can't place why. Did head-wounds really bleed this much?]

Yeah, there's a huge difference between the two.

[He looks away a moment later, though he still helps hold the body in place. Somehow, it makes him feel a little better that Saihara seems to be struggling too.]

I wonder if the poison was only meant to slow him down? Or maybe it wasn't as effective as they thought it would be?

[There was an awful lot that didn't add up. He let the count down carefully, once Saihara was done looking, and stood, dusting his hands off with a slight shudder.]

i'll send you a pm in a moment with some links for icons! c:

[exponere]

[ something about this head injury makes rantaro uncomfortable, huh? the audience laughs and shuichi is blissfully unaware of it all. despite being here for eight months, he still unaware of what happens beyond his little canon point in setting up the cameras in the library. he knows that he survived to the "final" trial and that there were only five of them left, including him and maki, but asides from that vague detail, he has absolutely no idea who is alive and who is dead. part of the reason is that no one wants to talk to him about it but also because he doesn't want to find out. that's not a truth that he's ready to learn about. ]

[ and he has the audacity to start accepting his ultimate title... ]

Mm... it's hard to say without a proper autopsy...

[ and who knows if detailed autopsies even happen in this world. they certainly don't seem to have any proper forensic science. now that he's done examining the body, he stands back up straight and takes one of the napkins from the table (one without any of the count's blood) to wipe his hands with. he glances at rantaro from underneath his hat. ]

... are you all right? This must be a lot to deal with, especially right after your arrival...

[ shuichi knows if he had to deal with this as soon as he arrived in a brand new world, he'd probably be having a Real Bad Time. ]

Thanks!! <3

[ultimatelynothing]

[Rantaro had dealt with a number of worries when he'd first arrived, concerns about why and how, of course, but also what had prompted the sudden change. His last memories of that school had been hard to parse. Between the loud obnoxious music, the hidden door, the camera flash, and the sudden thud of a shotput beside him, a distant pain that he couldn't make sense of, little of it added up.

There was no real reason for the head-wound to get to him more than the other causes of death, and he couldn't really put his finger on what bothered him about it, other than the fact that they were dealing with a dead body. Though really, that should be reason enough, right?

He should be focusing on what came next. Establishing alibis or finding the murder weapon or... whatever they were supposed to do.]

Yeah... Sorry, I've just never seen a... real corpse, y'know?

[The statement rang as an absolute falsehood to him, even if he doesn't have any of those memories. With the Survivor's Perk, there was no way he hadn't. No way this was the first time. You can't trust anyone, his own voice reminded him.

Even himself apparently. But they weren't in the game anymore.]

I'll be fine. What's next Detective?

you're welcome! ╰(*´︶`*)╯

[exponere]

[ shuichi nods. he can absolutely understand where rantaro is coming from. it's not every day when you come across a corpse, especially as graphic as this one. shuichi hopes that this will be the last one he'd ever have to see or at least the last one for a while... ]

[ after he finishes wiping his hands, he places the napkin back onto the table and puts a hand to his chin. hmm, next move... ]

Well... we should probably start looking for the murder weapon.

[ that seems like the next logical step. they could also do something else but... ]

I'd want to keep everyone here so we don't lose any suspects but it's not like we can force them to stay.

[ultimatelynothing]

[Find a weapon. Right. Rantaro nods in agreement. It's nice to hear he's not totally in the dark about it. Saihara probably has a much better idea of the details than he does, but...]

Any idea what we're looking for? I'd guess something blunt, maybe a hammer or a wine bottle, but I'm kind of out of my depth here.

[People always argued that those guilty tended to run, and it was true, to a point. But those who just seemed suspicious and wanted nothing to do with the fortune were likely to have run too. Unless they had a burning need to prove their innocence, it was just as easy to cut and run.]

Tracking everyone down would be hard, but... the motive should be the money. I'd think whoever did it would want to stay, at least long enough to secure their fortune.

[exponere]

Um...

[ any idea on what they're looking for... shuichi thinks back to the wound and how it was shaped (though he'd like to forget that and never remember it after this day). ]

... maybe something more like a hammer. The attack seemed too concentrated in one spot to be from something as wide as a wine bottle or cane.

[ which still doesn't really narrow things down so he begins to apologize. ]

Sorry, that's the best I can come up with...