Seasons Mods (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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seasonsgreetings2023-04-14 10:33 am
seasonsmods) wrote in seasonsgreetings2023-04-14 10:33 am
Entry tags:
Test Drive Meme #2
Test Drive Meme #2
LOGS | NETWORK | OOC | MEMES | NAVIGATION
You arrive in an unknown space, dressed in white clothes (player choice what kind of clothes, as long as they cover everything). Whatever was happening to you before no longer happens. It's like everything was put on a pause and you were transferred away from the situation without you realizing it happened.
The space that you find yourself in is one of these four options:
An empty landscape filled with snow and ice, almost like a blank canvas.
A field with cherry blossom trees and spring flowers.
A sunny beach near an ocean that seems never ending.
A quiet forest with falling autumn leaves.
All of the spaces seem to continue endlessly. No matter where or how far you walk it almost seems like you're not moving at all. There are no animals here - just those who happened to wake up there at the same time, in the same place. Everyone is wearing the same kind of plain, white clothes.
Despite the possible rollercoaster of emotions you might be feeling, the place somehow feels familiar. Like somehow you belong there.
And it looks like you're not alone.
After half an hour has passed the surroundings change as everyone is teleported into a room with all the other new arrivals, no matter what space they woke up in. It's a large place with plenty of seats to sit in and beverages to enjoy. Medical attention is offered to those who need it and the doctors here are very prepared for any challenging situations.
Here, in this room, everyone gets an answer to where they are and why. A hologram of a man appears at the center of the room, waiting to be heard. He brings a message on behalf of the leaders of Ellipsa.
The Message [ Click to Expand ]
Hello, my name is Olwen. I'm one of the leaders of Ellipsa as it currently is. I'm also one of the four who summoned you here.
Our world is in trouble and we need your help. I apologize for tearing you away from your world and forcing you to come here but I hope you understand. The magic we used doesn't let us ask in advance, nor does it let us choose who we bring here.
This world is composed of four Seasonal Segments. All of them represent one of the seasons. They were the places we used to get our resources from, but now they're dangerous places no one should go into unless they have the power to fight back. All of them have their own sets of powerful monsters and natural catastrophes.
We used to have plenty of people here who could control the powers of the four Seasons. We called them Seasonal Power Holders. Unfortunately, due to a tragedy you can read about later, we lost almost all of them. Now only four of us remain and the world is in chaos. We have done our best to protect the world, but we need more power holders to do that.
That's where you come in.
All of you have been assigned to one of the seasons. Whatever space you were in just now is what season you represent. You will learn different skills based on the season and those skills are going to help you save this world.
These powers don't interfere with your own natural powers. They use a new energy that has formed inside of you. It's harmless to your health, but it's vital to your seasonal powers. Your own powers should still work, even if the dark energy outside the city might interfere with them.
Unfortunately bringing you here wasn't as simple as it sounds. We couldn't do anything about how to keep you anchored to this world other than making a simple spell that helps with it. That is, you need to touch someone else who is not from this world ideally at least once a day. It will help you stay in control of your powers and boost your magical energy. If you don't, the consequences aren't very good. But as long as you hold someone's hand or give someone a handshake, you should be fine.
That's all I have to say about the situation. The staff of the Research Center will give you more information about housing and other necessary things. I will, however, promise that you will be sent home once the situation becomes better. That's the least we can do.
The hologram can be viewed in private in a separate room later, should someone wish to look at it again. For now, the staff of the Research Center hands everyone their new smartphones with their small flower lucky charms (the flower is anything the player decides). They're also told that the building next door is where everyone can find a room assigned to them with some of their belongings there and possibly even any animal companions. Those concerned about their mount-sizes companions are welcomed to the stables downstairs to see if their friends are there. The mounts are allowed to stay there until you find a place more suitable for them.
Once you get your smartphone and necessary information, you're urged to go out and find your apartment. After that whatever you want to do is up to you.
Part 3
The building next door is where everyone can find their new apartments. As you enter, you're told by a friendly native that for the first two months you can live anywhere rent-free and five meals a day are paid for you. After that they get a monthly payment that helps with some of their living expenses, but otherwise they have to have a job to support themselves.
All of the apartments are comfortable, two bedroom apartments with all necessary utilities. They are also completely soundproof. Sometimes the magic system, however, does glitch and you might find yourself rooming with a stranger. This is not the intention and the staff will immediately prepare you your own room if you ask them. But maybe having a roommate isn't all that bad?
Once you get your smartphone and necessary information, you're urged to go out and find your apartment. After that whatever you want to do is up to you.
The building next door is where everyone can find their new apartments. As you enter, you're told by a friendly native that for the first two months you can live anywhere rent-free and five meals a day are paid for you. After that they get a monthly payment that helps with some of their living expenses, but otherwise they have to have a job to support themselves.
All of the apartments are comfortable, two bedroom apartments with all necessary utilities. They are also completely soundproof. Sometimes the magic system, however, does glitch and you might find yourself rooming with a stranger. This is not the intention and the staff will immediately prepare you your own room if you ask them. But maybe having a roommate isn't all that bad?
April is the time for a strange weather effect that affects all of the districts, save for the one in the middle and Frostreign. It's not weird that it rains, but it's what the rain does that has been dubbed as the Rain of Affection.
Anyone who stands in the rain will feel the need to get close to someone. It starts with a need to gently touch someone gently, but can escalate into needing to hug someone. The ultimate craving of the rain is kissing in the rain but that's the most it can make happen. It's a very Safe For Work Rain Effect.
After a successful kiss in the rain, the cravings slowly become less urgent, but the effect can start all over again at any given time.
Of course, there are individuals who don't get too affected by the rain (at all or not as badly) and it only works if it directly hits someone. So staying in a shelter or being in Nightwake Center or Frostreign is definitely a way to avoid this whole phenomenon. Even avoiding the worst of the effect is easy by just going under a shelter or purchasing a nice, maybe even a color changing, umbrella.
It's raining very often until the end of the month at different times in each districts.
After the rain, a rainbow usually appears. Rainbows formed by the Rain of Affection are special, wish granting ones. The natives will explain that if you hold someone's hands and make a wish that wish will come true in some capacity.
Someone wishing for wealth may win a gift card for a shop while someone wishing to see a loved one they're missing may get pictures sent to their mobile devices (how? magic). Those wishing for world peace may find their very presence be calming to others. But the biggest prize is a free regain of a non-magical item or an animal companion. If someone asks for a magical item it will come as a non-magical item and the magical part of it would have to be purchased by a magical-regain, so it's cheaper to just not.
Be careful what you wish for, as each character only gets one wish, no matter how many rainbows they end up seeing during the rainy season.
Solarpeak has a new way of battling against the hot summer days (you know, when it isn't raining). Many shops along the streets sell ice cream mochis of varying flavors. You have your very normal flavors like different berries, fruit and chocolate, but also some very excotic and weird ones.
There's even a flavor called random mystery that is literally that. A randomized flavor that is a mystery to all. It can even be a flavor that no one has thought of before or even something that definitely should not be in any kind of food. Anyone who buys a pack of two mochis will get a free mystery one if they want it (and sometimes even if they don't).
Other districts also have some treats out for different climates. There are various flavors of hot cocoa in places like Amberfall and Frostreign, and nice light treats like macarons in Blossomcrown. Of course various restaurants have their own menus that fit their own season, so you could definitely have a gourmet journey all over the city of Nightwake if you wished.
One morning, on all of the bridges leading outside into the segments, round gates appear. They're portals that bring in monsters. They look normal from the outside looking in, like portals to a lovely garden. But the gardens are the problem as they are infested with different monsters, waiting to attack the city. This isn't the first time natives have seen these portals and before they had people to deal with them, but now? They need otherworlders.
All of the monsters inside need to be defeated for the portal to disappear. No one knows exactly how many there are, but with the defeat of the last one, the portal will disappear from around anyone inside of it, leaving the characters on the bridge.
The portal can be entered from both the city and the segment side and it looks flat when looked from sideways. Like it's just a random 2D structure in the middle of the world.
Those who explore the portal further will notice that they will loop around. It's very similar to the place they started in, back when they arrived, as it doesn't seem to have an end, no matter how you explore the place.
For noncombatants, natives have set up stations to help with first aid and making food for the fighters so they can occasionally come back from the portals to take a much needed rest.
Anyone helping with the fight, either in the portals or outside, will receive a hefty 5000 Moon Coin reward for their hard work. A good way to earn some starting funds!
Monster List [ Click to Expand ]
All of the Monsters listed here will be in all of the portals and there will be several of each to fight.The danger level is indicated with Stars. The lowest level threat is 0 while the highest is 10. From 7 and above, the likelihood of a beast going for a kill increases significantly.
| Name | Description | Stars |
|---|---|---|
| Bubblefish | Bubblefish are lumbering, two-legged creatures, with fins for arms, a long, muscular, finned tail, and a big fish face. They are fast, dangerous predators while in water, but do not count them out while on land, as regardless of whether they are above water or below it, they can blow large bubbles which capture their targets. Once inside the stretchy bubble, victims begin to go numb, their body feeling like it's on pins and needles as the Dragonfish begins to cast various debuffs on them. The bubbles are tough to escape despite their appearance, but the debuffs are lesser when shared, and can be escaped with the propper application of mint or minty treats! Mint has the effect of weakening the bubble to allow it to pop, although you may then find yourself being charged as the Bubblefish goes wild trying to get that minty goodness. | 5-8 |
| Bugboars | These are really more like rhinocerous beetles, but they are the size of wild boars, and they act similarly, roaming about in family groups together, rooting through the ground to unearth any edible material. They are highly territorial, and charge at anything or anyone who gets close. Their eyesight might be poor, but they make up for it with their antennae and the fact that these massive beetles do have wings, and they possess enough control over wind to lift themselves off of the ground at great speeds, or send powerful gales at those who come too close to their young. | 6 |
| Crockodile | Crocodiles with elemental powers of earth, leading to them being able to travel through dirt and stone as if they were water, these large reptiles often hide beneath the earth with only their eyes and nostrils peeking out, resembling the stone they hide within. They are ambush predators, popping out of the ground, large stony jaws open to crush their prey, but even once dragged out of hiding they are hardly easy to defeat. These crocks are stony in appearance and their hide is just as hard to pierce. In addition, they're a little closer to the size of a small car than your average crocodile. | 6-9 |
| Flurry Flock | White birds acting like a swarm that may deceive you into thinking they are harmless doves at first. Upon closer inspection, they more closely resemble a vengeful murder of crows with pure white feathers that they can use to reflect light so brilliantly that one can be blinded, leaving the flock's victim open to attack as they descend upon their prey like a group of voracious piranhas, claws and beaks as cold as ice as they try to tear their foes apart | 3-6 |
| Lavapotamus | These large hippo-creatures seem to be either made of or covered in molten rock that hardens over time when in the air. Usually they prefer to soak in lava and be left alone. Pulled through portals in an environment far too cool for their liking and with people so nearby has them aggressive and dangerous, charging down anyone who gets too near and leaving a red-hot trail of lava in their wake. | 3-8 |
| Minosaur | This creature seems to be a horrific mash of other creatures, similar to a traditional chimera; it possesses the body and horns of a bull, a head like a Tyrannosaurus, the plates of a stegosaurus all the way down it's powerful back and becoming spikes as they trail down it's tail, which ends in a very angry snake head. There is no end of this creature's body which is not hard, sharp, and completely pissed off. If you manage not to get bitten or gored at it's head, you will still need to contend with the powerful hooved legs attempting to stomp down on you, and take care to dodge as the snake head on it's tail spits fire. | 8-10 |
Even after the defeat of the Portals, there's still a lot of things to do! All of the Guilds are open. There's a good training space outside of them to test our powers and computers where you can learn all about what kind of powers you can unlock.
All guilds also have the same Questboard open! Why not take a look and see what adventures await?
- Ask your questions related to the TDM here.
- The TDM is available only to friends of the mods and their friends. If you're not a friend of the mods and want to play in the TDM, please leave a note here to inform us who invited you over. We will get to you as soon as possible!
- Feel free to visit the EMP/ATP - meme!
- New characters can add TDM on their subject line to indicate they're new! They can also comment HERE to promote their new top levels.
- Test Drive is open for current characters to make a top level as well.
- Current characters cannot access the starting area again to meet new arrivals. They can, however, be at the Research Center when the newbies are teleported in.
- The TDM is game canon so anything in the TDM can happen for your character(s) in the game as well.
- Smut is not allowed on the TDM. You can play situations leading to it, but if the thread is turning into smut, please move it to a private space such a post in your character's journal, or a locked post in the game's log community if you decide to app!
- Check Locations: City to find more areas to explore inside the city. Every place in the districts are open. Similarly, Locations: Segments is useful for outdoors adventures.
- You can find monsters to encounter on Beastiary.
- FAQ has information on characters' smartphones as well as general things about the world that might be handy.
no subject
I mean... is it something they can control? The weather?
[ Magic?? He doesn't know how that works. ]
no subject
Maybe. [ He doesn't exactly understand the concept of magic either, not yet at least. ] Or they just wait for rain and spray their shit from those flying machines.
[ Loosely gestures at the completely innocent airship that happens to be passing over their heads right at that moment. Faith in the benevolence of governments: zero. ]
no subject
Oh boy. [ He clucks his teeth briefly and wonders what to do about it. ] Mmm, think there's a nice bar around here we could duck into instead?
[ And by nice he means one that will let him smoke :) ]
no subject
Over there.
[ He gestures with his head at some dingy looking pub across the street which is about the opposite of nice, more like as rundown as it can be while still being legal, but it definitely lets people smoke at least. Just don't make eye contact if it looks like somebody's swinging a deal in the back, all good. ]
no subject
I'm Daigo, by the way. Daigo Dojima.
[ Daigo's air is effortlessly friendly, even-tempered. But he also carries himself with a lot of confidence and self-respect, it all gives notes of some kind of businessman or politician. ]
no subject
[ He still moves pretty slowly, but it could be worse. ]
I see.
[ ??? Is that it? ]
[ Well, he doesn't really do "nice to meet you"s and it often takes some prompting for him to introduce himself. He's kind of unsociable like that. He does, however, take note of the way the other man carries himself. A certain sense of importance, class, but also approachability, whether genuine or not. He's known people like that. ]
no subject
Nice to meet you.
[ He's not much for prying either, he finds it does little good. People talk when they want to, and he can wait.
They make it across the street and he pulls back the door to let the other man navigate inside easily. He gives a final, disapproving, glance up at the rain as he pulls in his umbrella and tucks himself safely inside. ]
Interested in a drink?
no subject
[ Case in point; there's not much of a reaction to the pleasantry, maybe a curt nod if Daigo is watching close enough. As soon as they're out of the rain, he's closing his own umbrella and hanging it off his crutch so he can finally have a hand free. ]
[ He does look a little interested, finally. ]
If they serve tea.
[ His idea of "a drink" is always the same, it seems. ]
no subject
[ A cup of tea wouldn't be amiss on a day like this. Neither would some hot sake. Or both. He thinks he's going to go with both. So he goes to talk to the bartender. While he waits, he glances back at Levi and gestures for him to pick wherever he wants to sit. There are a few tables and booths scattered around. ]
no subject
[ He nods and looks around. ]
[ The place actually looks quite decent on the inside, almost cozy, despite the run-down looking exterior. He decides on a table by the wall, one that gives them a good view of the entire establishment and protection for their backs without trapping them in a corner, and sits down. ]
[ About time, too. His knee is starting to hurt, protesting his refusal to follow proper recovery guidelines. ]
[ He might be watching the bartender and Daigo a little too intently, though. Look, it's not like he knows either of them so he's not going to just close his eyes while they make him a drink. That would be stupid. ]
no subject
He comes back with a pot of tea, a tokkuri of sake, two cups on a tray, and his same mellow smile. ]
There we are.
[ He takes his own seat and draws a simple glass ashtray towards himself. He takes out his deck of cigarettes and taps it on the tabletop to shake one loose. He asks with subtle humor, ]
So, are you a long-time resident?
no subject
[ (Yes, he knows about the incident with portals spitting out monsters. It's still nothing compared to back home.) ]
No. Just got here last week.
[ He takes the tea pot and, after a moment of contemplation, fills both cups. Look! He can be companionable! It still takes him a moment to figure out this is probably where he can return the question and learn more about the guy across from him. ]
...You?
no subject
[ He's very chill for a man uprooted from his life, but there's nothing quite like a crisis for hitting flow state. ]
Thanks.
[ He smiles, leaving his cigarette cradled in the rim of the ashtray to take his cup of tea. He holds the warm cup, just to enjoy its heat. ]
But I guess if I can still get a hot cup of tea on a rainy day, I'm not too disoriented.
no subject
Couldn't tell.
[ He takes the remaining teacup and puts it in front of himself. He holds it a little oddly, by the rim. The man has a point; as long as there's tea it's really not that bad. Then again, even without it, this place seems pretty peaceful. ]
...Yeah.
no subject
That was not the most convincing '...yeah' I've ever heard, but I'll accept it.
[ It is the most harmless acknowledgement of the other man's reticent disposition. Daigo can handle it. He even remembers that Mine had been very serious and deadpan to talk to most of the time, and they were very close. Much to their own misfortune. ]
I do quite a bit of travelling and I talk to a lot of people, I'm just trying to look at it from that perspective.
[ From the perspective of scoping out new territory that he may or may not at some point control. Sip. ]
no subject
...We don't know anything about this place.
[ Yet. Some weird shit could get thrown at them any moment and disorient them. So he's not going to celebrate after a few days in just because they happen to be able to get tea here. ]
[ (He should probably relax a little, but who's going to tell him that?) ]
Sounds like you're in your element, then.
[ Erwin would be, too, he thinks. Levi, not so much. Scoping out new territory is more than fine, but his talking to people who are not from very specific circumstances tend to not go over too well. He just doesn't do that whole pleasantries and social games thing that people not hustling on the street seem to prefer. ]
no subject
[ There is some very minor evidence of ghosts, aliens, and yokai in his world, but nothing that would have everyone suddenly believing in it. ]
But maybe working under pressure.
[ It's a choice that yakuza make. They give up the privilege of a docile, peaceful life in exchange for defiance and living on their own terms. There romanticism of it all is definitely part of their recruitment strategy. Daigo tries to live up to the more romantic notions, but... well, crime is crime. ]
And I guess it's time to start asking some questions.
[ Not right now actually. He's still drinking his tea in cheerful comfort. ]
no subject
[ Especially when you're a criminal, but who's keeping count? ]
[ This place... he hasn't even figured out what to ask, honestly. It's all just so different from what he's used to. And the explanations given do make sense in a weird way, especially with all the... well, magic and monsters thing going on. ]
[ Doesn't mean he's not all for someone figuring it out, though. ]
Got any in mind?
no subject
Well, suppose that we're here for... years. Do we just exist on the outside? Or are there opportunities for us to contribute to the neighborhoods and economies? And if we can, what that's going to look like.
I'd rather have a sense of that now than play catch up trying to understand later.
[ Yakuza life is a lot of... identifying resources and then inserting yourself into their distribution. He's a person of action, and you need resources on hand to accomplish anything meaningful.
That's what he's thinking about a few days into town: longterm strategy. ]
no subject
They do seem to have tasks for us, at least. [ He pretty much just knows this because he's rooming with Eren; he hadn't really been to explore all the questboards himself just yet. ] Paid ones. Does that count?
[ Levi himself has never exactly been employed either. Went from working for himself (though most people would probably just call it theft and muggings) to being blackmailed into joining the army. So his job interview skills are "rusty" at best. ]
no subject
[ This is a rhetorical, he can go research it on his own. He just thought he'd try to relax a few days before he went digging into local business licensing law. ]
Or run for mayor?
[ Fucking hardly. He laughs to himself. ]
It will just take a little time and observation.
no subject
You've got an interest in that sort of thing?
[ He's mostly amused by the mayor thing. Business, well. He doesn't think anything this place has established about itself suggests anybody would stop someone trying that, but it might be a good idea to check anyway. Nobody wants surprises when it comes to that. He used to have a similar thought too, back when he still lived in the Underground, how it might be nice to run a shop one day instead of stealing and killing for a living. It's been years since he's had time to even give it a passing thought though. ]