memepatheias | TEST DRIVE: August

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*test drive

TEST DRIVE: August

— TEST DRIVE: AUGUST —

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 July 25th and Applications (Canon | OC) open a week later on August 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.

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: Helisium, the upcoming festival, is a celebration of daytime games and ballroom dancing. However, the sad truth is that not everyone knows how to dance, or how to play certain sports. To kill two birds with one stone, so to speak, a certain section of the party-planning committee has come up with a new sport that incorporates the best of both worlds. The name of the game? Footloose Ball, and it's the latest craze! Why not join and learn something new? There's even a tournament being held, with a big prize on the line!
1. Training: The rules of Footloose Ball are simple, it's a combination of rugby football but with a twist! The player in possession of the ball must constantly be dancing as they try to reach the goal. But there is plenty of time until the game, so the coach has instructed everyone to go out into the city and dance for a whole day. Going grocery shopping? You must dance! Waiting in line for coffee? You better dance! Talking to someone else? Get them to join!
2. Otherworld Cup: It's the day of the finals game, and now it's do or die! Literally! Maybe. What the rules forgot to say was that the player in possession of the ball must dance, or the ball will shock them with a high voltage! Can they get to the goal and score a point for their team? As for those NOT in possession of the ball, they don't have to dance until they have the ball, and they get to use whatever skills (or magic?) they know in order to stop the other player. Anything goes!
3. Victory Pose: The winners of Footloose Ball Cup have been declared! Now all that's left is a traditional team photo with the trophy. Make sure not to blink! Just kidding. The method that the group "photo" is taken by isn't with a device, but a traditional painting instead, which means the team will be posing there out in the sun for a while. You can't rush art, as they say, so make sure to stand still as the artist does their job. The good news is that players are allowed to talk to each other as they stay still, so why not get to know another a little better now that the game is over? As for those who aren't posing, they are allowed to interact with the players, too. Why not get them a drink? Or heckle them? That's also an option.
• Prompt E: Helisium is the highlight of the summer and every restaurateur in Verens is eager to see their establishment become one of those selected to cater for the festivities. Of course, there are only a few slots available, which means the only way to settle who’s the top chef in town is through some rigorous cooking competitions! These teams of chefs are going all out, and need all hands on deck, so they will be seeking volunteers to help them win their way to the top! Do you have what it takes?
1. A Pizza the Action: One round of the cooking competition asks teams to cook rather traditional dish: pizza! However, nothing is as simple as it seems, and the hosts soon reveal that teams will be required to cook their pizzas with some...unusual (and dangerous) secret ingredients. Are you given a spiky, smelly durian to work with? Are those lobsters actually alive? Or are you asked to serve your pizza while it’s on fire? The more creative you are, the more points you’ll earn your team. Things are sure heating up!
2. Piescraper: Any chef worth their salt will tell you that presentation is key, and in this event, presentation is the only key. Really, it doesn’t matter what you use so long as it’s food, but the judges want to see the most impressive food sculpture you can come up with! Just bear in mind that these creations must stand on their own and be created entirely, 100% out of food products. Your team may earn extra points for making the tallest sculpture as well. Start building!
3. The Great Verens Bake-Off: Desserts are almost as important to Helisium as the regular food is, though the judges for this event seem to be a little less...intense than the others. For this competition, participants are asked to bake and decorate a beautiful, tiered cake with sweet, edible flowers. These flowers have certain emotional effects on those who handle them, and such individuals will find themselves feeling very pleasant and agreeable, no matter how prickly they may ordinarily be! They may even try to assist other teams with their bakes. Oh, well...at least everyone seems to be enjoying themselves. The judges will be making their decisions based on which team had the most camaraderie, so play nice!
• Prompt F: The roleplaying cult of Ortheias seems to have become more prominent lately, having taken in new members from Briarlan. Today, they seem to be playing a "murder game" called Syndicate! They are also inviting people who aren't members to participate… will you join them by picking a role from the purple hat the men in cloaks have to offer, or will you just watch? It's confusing and anger inducing, either way. For those who want to play the game, the objective is to catch all the Syndicate members before they "kill" all the innocents in the game!
1. I Put On My Role and Wizard Hat: Perhaps you are forced by a man in a cloak, or perhaps you voluntarily pick a role from the various strips of paper in the purple hat. The roles are for the Syndicates are: blackmailer, consigliere, boss, and framer. As for the innocents, the roles are: janitor, spy, veteran, doctor. There seem to be neutral roles, as well, such as the survivor, the witch, the amnesiac, and the fool. The game moderators don't seem to intend on explaining what the functions are of each role (thanks, mods!) so go ahead and make up your own backstories and abilities. Of course, they key to this game is to figure out who the other person is without letting your own identity slip. Good luck!
2. Activity Check: Everyone is safe while the sun is still up… Do you have your role and have you gotten to know the other participants of the Syndicate game? Good. Because the game moderators now want you to participate in an activity! You now have to think of a lie about yourself and convince two other people that this is true. Basically - just lie to as many people as you want! Be sure you're convincing… but remember - the moderators are watching you. No unruly business!
3. The Trial: After a day has passed in the setting of the Syndicate game, a trial happens. Why? Because you've lost one person to one of the Syndicates. This person is now dead in the game and cannot be revived. It seems that everyone is suspecting you - whether it's your clothing, the way you're dressed, or just the fact that you're breathing the same air as they are, you are now the primary suspect for the "murder"! Prove your innocence to all players involved, try to pin it on the nearest person, or maybe even get into a fight with everyone? The world is your oyster.
• Prompt G: Make your own! It could include raisins and/or a skirt with holes in it.
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!

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A

[Emotion magic. Whisked and trapped in another world. No way to return home. Gosh. She's still wrapping her head around what she heard before were all a reality. But never mind about the magic and stuff- her game avatar is real flesh and blood. Which means, she's stuck here not as Karen, but as LLENN- forever a short "chibi" girl who's less than 150 cm tall. She couldn't be any happier! In fact, she still hasn't gotten over how happy she is about it. With her beloved P-chan (a pink P-90. Yes, pink) wrapped around her arms, she decides to joyfully explore the town once more, humming a tune to herself while leaving behind a trail of pink sparkling smoke. Unbeknown to LLENN, however, the smoke she's creating is filling the street she's at, obscuring people's view. But at least there's a sweet flowery scent in it, too?

Anyway, it might be best if someone stops her. Or else more people would be blinded by the smoke, including you.]

B

[It's only a matter of time before she starts to run out of sylvs. While she could find a part-time job, the taskboard should suffice for the time being. Besides, it'll be more fun for LLENN to hunt monsters or something. Now, she would set out there soloing a task right now if it weren't for a minor setback she's dealing with currently. LLENN is still in front of the taskboard, tiptoeing, squinting her eyes up at the task lists.]

Crap... I can't see much from down here.

[Welp. Guess that's the downside of being super small. Still, she hasn't given up yet and will continue to tiptoe up as high as she possibly can... Which isn't much at all. Help?]

E-1

[What's LLENN doing in a cooking competition? Who knows. Who cares.~~she was asked and dragged into it.~~ What matters now is that LLENN is raring to win this competition. And she can be quite the competitive girl when need be. Instead of her usual pink bunny hat, she replaced it with a pink bandanna tied around her head. With an apron donned and sleeves pulled, she takes a deep breath. and then she reaches into the mystery sack and pulls out a carton of...]

Strawberries? [.....] Huh?! Wh-Who would think it would be a good idea to have strawberries as a pizza ingredient?!

[You think pineapples on pizza is bad? Imagine strawberries on pizza... A sigh escapes from LLENN as she rubs her temple.]

Oh man... This is just the first ingredient, too. [It can only go up from here.]

Wildcard

[The 'do whatever you want' prompt. Feel free to come up with any scenarios if the above prompts don't work!]

Edited 2018-07-19 01:51 (UTC)

Maybe I can be some assitance~!

[ There was a cheerful voice nearby, but if she looked around at her height she wouldn't see anyone around. ]

[She automatically turns to look up with a sheepish expression.]

Ah- Really? Sorry for bothering you. I-

[Eh? There's no one... ? Not even a person around her height, too. But she definitely heard a voice nearby. Hmm. Was she so infuriated that she's gone crazy again?]

Youu hoo~! Down here~!

[ He reached out to gently tap her leg with his tiny hands. ]

[Down? She turns her head in that direction and what she sees almost surprised her. She smacks her cheeks together with her hands and lets out a loud gasp.]

Oh. My. Gosh. CUUUTE~

[She takes a step away from the small animal and crouches down to him, giggling.]

So cute, so cute! What are you? A talking, yellow ferret?

[ He gives her a bright smile and claps his hands together. ]

A ferret? No no. I think you'll find I'm more of an adorable Otter!

[ He moved closer to her and reached out his hand for hers. ]

I'm Karurusu!

[Ferret. Otter. To-may-to. To-mah-to. Whatever. What's important is that he's super adorable! Though, she'll keep in mind that he's an otter.]

Ah~ You have such a cute name, Karurusu-chan. My name's LLENN! It's nice to meet you. [...] You said you could help me, right?

Oh yes!

[ He smiles brightly and quickly dashes up to her shoulder, perching himself there. ]

I can be your eyes!

[She can't help but giggle when he runs up to her shoulder. Though she still has to hop up on her tippy toes- it's not nearly enough height to see everything on the board. She points her finger up at a specific poster tacked high up on the task board.]

I'm interested in hunting monsters... but I can't see or reach the bounty poster up there.

[Asuna wrinkles her nose at the appearance of the strawberries. She expected strange ingredients, but this is already complicating things. However, not to panic! A true chef can face any challenge!]

Don't panic! They never said in the rules it had to be a dinner pizza. Maybe there will be some chocolate or cream in the bag, and we can make an amazing dessert pizza instead!

[And she reaches into the bag and produces... a bottle of soy sauce?]

Wait, what? Soy sauce on pizza? With strawberries? [She folds her arms over her chest.] Someone involved in this competition has a very sick sense of humor.

[And she stares at the box, regarding it the same way one might a bomb or a terrarium full of venomous snakes. She slowly pushes it toward LLENN.] ...you take out the next one.

A dessert pizza... Of course! We might still have a chance to win this competition!

[LLENN doesn't know who this blue-haired girl is, but she seems to know what she's talking about. Her savior... But, unfortunately, whatever hope that was sparked within her completely vanished the instant she sees the next ingredient Asuna pulled out. Is the soy sauce supposed to act as the base for their sauce...? Oh, great. That would surely not go well with strawberries of all thing.

Now she's staring at the bag with a sense of dread- and if she stares any harder, she might literally see a poison cloud coming out of the opening of the bag. With a nervous nod, she swallows, closes her eyes, and shakily reaches both hands into the bag.]

Here goes...

[And what she takes out is a... still-living crab. It's rainbow-colored, too, for some reason. LLENN gently sets it down on the table, but she's left entirely speechless and exasperated now.]

[She'd crossed her fingers in the desperate hope that it might somehow help, that her randomly selected partner might draw something from the bag that would pull the strange ingredients together. Instead, she can only stare at the crab as it skitters from one side of the table to the other, and Asuna can only stare in exasperation.]

If I used these ingredients in the game, the dish would fail so bad the system would put a censor box over it.

[It's not even a comfort that the remaining ingredients in the bag are at least vaguely pizza-like: flour, oil, brown sugar and a few vegetables. She stares at the crab, then turns back to the other woman.]

Um... I guess we have to boil some water to cook the crab in? Though I feel bad for the little guy...

[LLENN could only laugh weakly at the joke. But yeah, she has no hope that the pizza will come up looking any good, no matter how good the chef could try to make it. Oh well... The only hope they have left is to... try their best! Don't give up!]

I still can't believe the host gave us something that's still alive. ... Boiling Crab-kun alive. How mean.

[Despite saying that, she goes to take out a pot from the nearby cabinet rack and carries it to the sink... And the pot's almost half her size, too.]

[No matter how competitive Asuna can be, a pang of guilt gnaws at her as she looks at the crab. He's not cute necessarily, but there's something strangely pretty about the multicolored little guy. Biting her lower lip, she walks over to LLENN as she's filling the pot.]

You know, the rules of the competition said we have to cook with the ingredients. And if we keep the crab by us instead of cooking him, that would still be within the rules, right?

[It's bending the rules to their very limit, but... if they made a truly exceptional pizza, maybe they'd get away with it?] I remember in a fancy restaurant I went to when I was little, they had pork with strawberry sauce. Maybe we could make a pizza like that...?

[Okay okay... she's probably reaching.]

[LLENN's turns off the faucet before she turns to Asuna, blinking up at her. That's... definitely bending the rules to their very limit. While she wouldn't oppose to her idea of keeping the crab with them, she still has her doubts, mostly about the judges. She lightly shrugs her shoulders.]

It's worth a try, I guess. I'm not sure if they would be happy with us bending the rules like that.

[And she's not sure if strawberry sauce would work well with pizza, though. But wait- Speaking of the rules, she thinks back to them, folding her arms in thought. She'd read every word carefully before the start of the competition, so she has them memorized on the back of her head.]

Hmm, the rules said that we are rewarded more points for our creativity. We don't necessarily have to cook a delicious pizza, rather a visually-appealing and creative pizza, right?

[With the odd amalgamation of ingredients they're forced to work with, yeah, maybe this is a better approach instead.]

[She takes in LLENN's idea, and a smile slowly spreads over her face. Sure, you can take a lot of liberties with gourmet style pizza, but experimenting with it could end in disaster. With what she's suggesting, they can commit fully to a different strategy.]

If they're awarding points for creativity, then they might be impressed with a... innovative take on the rules?

[She looks back to the crab and smirks, folding her arms over her chest.] With the pizza crust as a base, I bet we could make our friend a really nice stage to show off his colors! I'm pretty good with a knife, I could cut the strawberries into decorative shapes to ring the edge!

[The smoke is a little bothersome. Nobody in the area seems very happy about it anyway, so Mami takes it upon herself to say something. She doesn't think the girl means any harm, but she also gets the feeling that she might be new and unaware of the emotional effects of this world.

She tries to be casual as she approaches. However her eyes lock onto the pink gun she's holding, and they grow wide.]

Oh wow, where did you find such a cute gun?

[She stops in her tracks when she sees she's being approached by a cute girl, the smoke behind her receding a little. Although she'd gotten better at socialising in general, she's still quite sheepish when interacting with strangers. Though it helps to ease her a little when Mami calls her gun 'cute'.]

O-oh, you mean P-chan? I got her from my world, actually. [Well, virtual world, but details.] She's a P90 submachine gun that won me lots of battles before.

[She exclaims with a smile on her face- like it's normal for a ~~not~~little kid to say that.]

[Ah, it should probably be a good thing the smoke has calmed, but she feels a little bad that she intimidated her.]

A good gun can take you far...but were you forced to fight back home?

[It's a little sad to think a child would be forced to battle. It reminds her a little of Bebe.]

Aah~ Not exactly.

[A sheepish look now forms on LLENN's face and she scratches the back of her head. How to go about explaining this? This is still a bit weird to her.]

I... joined a virtual world game that happens to have guns as the main gameplay. So, there are battles against monsters and other players in the game. I had plenty of fun hunting, though!

[Especially ambushing players... before she felt guilty about it and stopped.]

Oh...uh...

[Mami doesn't get it. At all. Video games are not really her thing, and more so if she's from a game then how is she here now?? But she just tries to smile it off.]

You seem like an expert!

[It's a mystery~]

O-oh... I-I wouldn't really call myself an expert or anything like that. I just play for fun.

[Probably selling herself short since she won first place in a team battle royale tournament.]

Oh I'm sure you do great. I'd love to see you in action! Ah but this really isn't the place is it?

[You know. In the middle of the street.]

[Oh, she wants to see her gun action? She'd gladly show them off! With the idea in mind, she nods with a smile.]

No, it isn't. Um... Do you know a good place?

[She hasn't fully explored the town yet.]

I'm LLENN, by the way.

I might have an idea. Follow me.

[Mami motions for LLENN to follow her.]

Oh! Sorry, I got distracted. I'm Mami Tomoe; it's very nice to meet you.

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pinkdevilmunchkin - 2018-08-03 23:39 (UTC) - Expand

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TEST DRIVE: August

LLENN | Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online

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