memepatheias | TEST DRIVE: April

Entry tags:

*test drive

TEST DRIVE: April

— 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. These threads do not count toward AC.

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: The Verens Emergency Response Teams are running drills to make sure that the Verens populace, natives and Otherworlders alike, are prepared for any and all emergencies. This means large scale obstruction of public areas, traffic delays, businesses closing their doors temporarily in the name of professional cooperation... and, best of all, Otherworlder participation!

Alpha Lava: If you asked Team Alpha, they would say they drew the short straw. They are in charge of the volcanic eruption preparedness drill! This includes cordoning off sections of the merchant’s square and residential district to conduct the following tasks: evacuation drills, where random houses are the "willing participant" of loudspeaker announcements telling them they have thirty seconds to escape their homes before they die; dunamis training exercises, to determine who would be most able to hold back or freeze incoming pools of lava; and, most helpful, the role of victim mannequin. Posing still as a statue for several minutes at a time to simulate being encrusted by molten lava is a thankless job, but someone has to do it.
Epsilon Epidemic: Team Epsilon's emergency preparedness drill is outbreak of a deadly disease! For this simulation, they will be rounding up helpful Otherworlder volunteers and distributing signs for them to wear around their necks. Following that, instructions are varied. Perhaps some people end up in quarantine, informed that Team Epsilon will shoot to kill anyone who escaped. Perhaps some people are under strict instruction to act out their sign to the best of their ability, and will be penalised if they don't! (What's the penalty? It's quarantine, or no gift bag, or both.) Perhaps they are simply dead and have to lie in the street all day. Yes, that's very boring. No, they don't have a choice. At the end of the simulation, all participants are given a gift bag filled with handmade cookies (courtesy of Team Epsilon's very own multi-talented Agent N) and gift certificate for a spa day for two. Most importantly: have fun!
Gamma Grandstanding: Team Gamma ended up with the newest preparation drill. Its official title is "People With Indeterminate Motives" (PWIM for short) to keep from throwing a wrench in the Briarlan trade deal and offending sensibilities, but make no mistake: it is about knowing exactly what to do if pirates invade Verens and conduct a hostile takeover. Some Otherworlders will be placed specifically in local business - restaurants, independently owned shops, even the zoo - and trained how to protect them from PWIM. Some businesses will be targeted; others will be ignored entirely (hope you brought a deck of cards!). Other Otherworlders will be asked to play the pirates - sorry, PWIM - themselves, complete with lame costumes (eyepatches, fancy hats, fake parrots to sit on a shoulder, itchy peglegs) for the sake of immersion. Arr! Aye, avast!

• Prompt E: Despite the rain and everybody coming down with colds during the month, everyone in Verens is still doing their best to get ready for next month's Flower Festival. And Otherworlders are definitely expected to help with prep work. After all, it's everyone's festival, so everyone should help make it the best it can be! So here's a few ways to help!

Sign Me Up: The Festival needs signs! Lots of signs. And lots of signs need lots of painters! Or one incredibly overworked painter, but in this case, they've decided to go the teamwork route, pairing up Otherworlders and having them make signs advertising various games at the festival! Sounds easy, right? But with emotion based paints in play, be careful. Too much negativity between partners and the wording will change, the paint could run, go too far in the other directions and the signs will be practically glowing, but possibly lead to claims of false advertising!
Special Delivery Flower Festivals need lots of flowers, and people to transport those flowers! And thanks to handy tech exchange with Briarlan, this year there's some fancy containment units for transporting them. They're really just crates with some fancy looking meters attached, meant to open up when they reach the festival grounds. Unfortunately, these new inventions probably could've used some additional testing and are prone to opening randomly sending flowers all over the place! Try and collect as many as possible and bring them back to the grounds, the festival organizers would appreciate it.
Flower Round Up! Or maybe painting signs and boxing flowers aren't your thing, so how about...corralling them? With all the good vibes in the air, it seems some of the flower arrangements have literally pulled up roots and are running around the festival. And you can't have a flower festival without flowers, so do your best to try and get them back where they belong before they run off to start some sort of flower civilization in the woods*.

*They probably will not form a flower civilization in the woods, but you never know.

• Prompt F: With Verens trading with more and more cities out there, some shopkeepers have gotten an idea to try and increase sales by encouraging both citizens and Otherworlders to shop local by promoting a tour of various business in the merchant district! Though the crystal has been a little negative, they're still hoping the tour goes off without a hitch! After all, it's too late to postpone it.

On the Clock: The first stop is Click, Clack, Clock, a clock shop that offers delivery to anywhere on the island! Unfortunately, due to the poor weather, all of the delivery staff are out with colds, so they're looking for volunteers! And yes, you're on this walking tour, but don't be surprised if you're handed a bicycle and a clock and sent on your way to deliver a clock. Hopefully they remembered to tell you where to go before shoving you out the door.
Shine On: Assuming you haven't been conscripted into the clock store's delivery force, the next stop is at Verens' very own Restoration Works, an establishment for restoring old antiques and making them look good as new. They've set up an interactive demo for everybody, so partner up and practice using your emotions to bring some shine back to some dull scraps of metal! Sorry guys, they're not going to let you work on anything really valuable during the tour, but if you show some promise, maybe they’ll hire you on in the future!
Polg-Oh No: Finally, the tour will end with a nice relaxing meal at the Sweethearts Cafe. Or it was intended to be relaxing, anyway (who would've thought the antique store would be the calmest part of the tour?), but it seems no place is safe from the Polgo plague. Better keep an eye on your plates, otherwise the second you’re distracted, the small kitten-sized blue bugs might scurry up the table and try and run off with your food!

Even if you’re paying attention, they might give it a shot anyways. So be on your guard and ready to give chase if it happens!

• Prompt G: Make your own! It could include blueberries and/or buckets.

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!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Denial is the best thing ever. So useful! Like saying you don't have the slipperies even if you do!]

Ah, well, I suppose it's been a couple months now? [Why does he feel a lecture could be coming on?] But I've had a lot of ah, duties. Royal duties and things going on. [Building useless things. VERY BUSY!]

[Zarkon definitely doesn't have the slipperies, at least! And neither does Honerva, which would be more likely, as she's an Altean. That, he's sure of. Not the same symptoms at all.

Zarkon is thoughtful for a moment.]

That's no excuse. It's our responsibility here to learn as much as possible and refine our emotional control and acuity. That is the way of this world, so you can consider it your royal duty from now on. You'll report to me for training, Advisor.

[Zarkon doesn't feel they're on a first name basis, in spite of his initial lapse. That's not how Things Are Done. Zarkon's also sure this is how Alfor would want him to proceed. (Whether or not that is actually how Alfor would want him to proceed, he's sure of it!)]

Ah- bu- um, ahhhh -- [Can he do that? Zarkon is a leader of his people, but he's not the Altean king. Can he give Coran a royal duty!?]

Al-- alright. [It probably won't be THAT bad, right? Right!?]

[He's royal, so he can give a royal order! Or that's how he sees it. Besides, he knows what's best, and he's doing it in Alfor's stead. Since that's what Alfor would want. (Or is it?)]

We'll have your form improved in no time. We can start now. We do have more trees to replant.

[Clearly, Coran needs more discipline.]

You mean right now-- right now. But sir! This was your training wasn't it? It would be incredibly rude of me to interrupt!

[And because he doesn't want to horribly embarrass himself.]

Irrelevant. Your training won't interrupt mine.

[Sorry, Coran, now he's interested, and he's as bossy as usual.]

It will be a learning experience. Show me what you're capable of.

You mean r-right now? Well, uh, I mean. I haven't stretched or anything! And ah- um, alright.

[Crap. Crap. Crap. CRAP! Can magical powers have performance anxiety? Coran finds that he's suddenly have a lot of trouble calling on emotional powers of any kind.

He continues to stare daggers at that fallen tree. Trying to will with all his might that some breeze would swell up. Even if all it could do is to shake the leaves. Anything! Just the smallest of breeze! He must be able to! Even the gentlest of--

Opps. And now that tree is suddenly on fire.] Ah.... ta da?

Coran—!

[Congratulations, Coran, you made Zarkon forget his formality and revert to a first name basis. But maybe congratulations aren't really in order, considering the situation.

They... aren't doing a great job of restoring the trees, as it turns out. It could have gone a lot better.]

This is unacceptable!

[And Zarkon's frustration causes a wind to spring up, which simply fans the flames.]

I ah, meant to do that?

[No, wait. More important than trying to save face is that those flames are getting bigger with that wind.]

Sir- SIR! Fire! Ah, um! I think there's a river around here somewhere! Or- or maybe I could stomp it out! [Coran dashes forward with gusto to do just that. Only to nearly immediately jump back again.] Ow! Hot! Hot! Hot!

[Did Coran just—yes, he did.]

Stay back! Allow me to handle this, Coran.

[He's the paladin here. And so thinking, he pulls out his bayard. What's necessary is to quash the flames. He can do that. Focusing, he creates an axe with the bayard to chop down the newly replanted tree. Once it's down, he creates a broad shield, not only to protect himself, but to crush the flames, which he begins to do with great force, heedless of any danger to himself. He has to put out the fire before it spreads.

It's a crude method, but he feels sure it will work.]

Is that really necessary? [How is one going to put out a flame with a weapon? Oh! Like that! That big shield is working much better than his foot did!

Coran happily claps as Zarkon starts to put out the flames.] Ah-ha! Good show, sir! You've really shown that blaze who's boss! [That was such an amazing show of display he doesn't even care that he was the cause of the problem to begin with.]

[Zarkon doesn't feel that clapping is necessary, though he agrees that he has soundly defeated the blaze. Still, he's not going to tell Alfor's advisor not to clap. Although he's perfectly willing to boss him around in some ways, that isn't one of them—as his manner and customs are Altean. Zarkon has very strict rules about what is and is not appropriate, and he holds himself to those rules, too.]

As an Emperor and paladin, it's only to be expected that I should triumph.

[He has proved the victor in much more treacherous situations.]

Yet this convinces me that you need more practice—in a controlled environment.

[Not in the middle of the woods. Definitely not.]

Yeah, controlled might be a better idea. Although, I'd hate to bother the great Emperor Zarkon with my petty training. I could probably find a different teacher. [Someone he'd feel less horrible about doing possible embarrassing things in front of.]

[Coran does make a good point. Ultimately, Zarkon isn't exactly a tutor.]

It is true that I have many demands on my time, and I mean to represent the empire here as I would on any planet. I need not personally direct you. But I want your assurances that you will apply yourself to this new task with great discipline—and learn to control yourself.

Yes sir! I vow that the next time we meet I will have much better control over these powers! ~~[Unless the rule of funny says otherwise.]~~

See that you do. Don't think that I won't inquire.

[Zarkon is fairly implacable.]

Now, we must deal with the damage we've caused.

[Now they're both responsible for the damage to the trees, so Zarkon can share the blame.]

Well, I might be able to re-purpose some of the burnt wood. I've been working on an extension to the house anyway.

In that case, at least it can be used for some benefit.

[He'd prefer not to waste resources, if it can be avoided.]

What is the extent of your experience in building?

[He might be acquainted with Coran, but they haven't discussed all of this activities and skills at length. He doesn't know him nearly as well as he knows Alfor.]

Well, my grandfather showed me all the plans for the Castle of the Lions. [He's pretty sure it was called that from the time that Zarkon is from.] And I've been keeping the castle up to date and fixing any problems that have arrived so far.

[So no experience building from the ground up.]

Perhaps you would be willing to assist with consulting on our building project.

[By our, he of course refers to himself and Honerva.]

We are establishing a base here, and I would appreciate your input. There are few here who are familiar with Galra or Altean technology or architecture.

[If Coran were Galra, Zarkon would just order him to help, but he's not, so it's phrased as a request.]

I would be honored to assist you with such a task! [And he honestly would.] Having a base of operations is an important foundation!

I agree. Honerva needs space in which to work, and I require a point from which to monitor the situation in Empatheias—from which I can depart quickly and efficiently, when events require that I take action.

Oh? Would it be inappropriate of me to ask what kind of work she's doing at the moment? It might help me understand what sort of design she may need in terms of a work space.

[He's totally not asking just because he's worried about what the zombie woman is up to.]

The question is not inappropriate.

[Considering Coran's connection to Alfor, he has no problem with answering it.]

Her work is currently general, to lay groundwork for more specific studies in the future. She is studying the natural laws of this world, and its energy sources.

That makes sense. Just like a building you can't get very far if you don't have a sturdy base.

Hm, so she would probably want a good size room. So she could safely run experiments. I've seen some of what these emotion based powers can do and some are very small, but other when used in mass can be quite large. [He tugs on his mustache in thought. Yes, they would probably prefer a smaller bedroom area if it meant having more space for her to work in.] An area for you to practice would be good too if we can find the space...

TEST DRIVE: April

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