TEST DRIVE: NOVEMBER

[empevents]

— TEST DRIVE: NOVEMBER —

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 Tuesday, October 25 and Applications (Canon | OC) open Tuesday, November 1st.
  
  
• 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!

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 Boreas Harvest Festival is fast approaching, and the farmers are trying hard to work through the bleak weather conditions to get their crops in before they go bad from all the apathy. All hands on deck—but there may be too many unwanted hands roaming around.

1. Scarecrows. The scarecrows that have been set up as a festive reminder of the time of year have unfortunately come under the influence of some errant strong emotions from the farm hands that work in the fields. Unfortunately that includes trying to ward off anyone who enters the fields with pitchforks and is one of them carrying a torch? Maybe if they can be convinced that you are trustworthy they will calm down.
   
   
2. Invading rabbits. There are ton of rabbits ravaging the carrot patches. They're easily frightened, but some are more tenacious than others. Beware of the white rabbit with red eyes.
   
   
3. Save the crops! Several batches are already starting to spoil! The only thing that can save them is dumping as much positive emotions into them. Joy of good food, hope for a bountiful meal, love of eating—whatever will work. Just be careful. Too much and those things might grow and explode…

• Prompt E: Aiada, the Arehtei of appreciation and jealousy, has sent a personal request for those who are interested. There is a small island just beneath Empatheias that she has been cultivating over the many centuries. She wishes to contribute to the Harvest Festival with some seeds and spores. However, the recent atmosphere has also reached down there, and now it's all a mess! Giant mushrooms replaced the trees and there's slime and mold everywhere. The cure? Aside from getting a lot of heavy duty cleaners and pushing it off, appreciation will go a long way to help.

1. Goop brigade. Grab that bucket and shovel and clear the goop out! Just be careful not to have too much get on you—jealousy might take over.
   
   
2. Appreciation balls. To help hasten the effort, Aiada has given several tubs filled with light, green orbs. Once channeled with enough appreciation, they can be used as mini-grenades to help explode and wash the area with more positive energy. Those caught in the blast won't be harmed. If anything, they'll just be very thankful.
   
   
3. Watch the ledges. Careful, it's a fairly small island and the goop and slime has made things slick. If you fall… That's not a good way to go, let's just say that.

• Prompt F: Various parties are interested in the emotion shards scattered all over Thera. But this time around, the focus is on the medical laboratory as the equipment and potential research there is also of interest. For three days those who volunteer are sent back to try and gather as much as possible—but of course this won't be easy.

1. Skeletal Scientists. The remains of the scientists who once worked in these rooms are still lurking, ready to protect their work. Fortunately they're relatively weak nerds, so not too difficult to dispatch. Just be careful.
   
   
2. Flying equipment. The various medical equipment has also taken life, scalpels and needles flying everywhere and stethoscopes ready to strangle.
   
   
3. Questionable liquid. Most of the easy shards have already been taken, leaving the more difficult to retrieve ones left. In particular they're found in strange, dark pink liquid. It's mostly harmless—except that upon contact intense waves of grief and suffering will course through. The longer the exposure, the worse it is. So hopefully a bucket full of it doesn't fall on you…

• Prompt G: Make your own! It could include feathers and/or confetti.

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!

Comments

[thirdprogenitor]

[ His words cause her to laugh a little under her breath, eyes falling shut for only a moment before she tilts her head as she looks to him with those crimson eyes of hers. ]

And do you meet many vampires in your daily life?

[ Regardless of what or who he happens to be, Krul feels no threat towards him. If he's a human? She's already better than him. Another vampire? Better than a human as far as she's concerned. An angel? Well, that might be a little bit of a problem. Though he doesn't seem to strike her as the kinds she's seen back in her world; who knows what they might look like here. ]

You don't seem too bothered by it.

[ Because typically, to even hear the word vampire causes humans to either run or freeze in terror. ]

[malignans]

[It would be impossible for Dio to miss Giorno's presence in the audience. That doesn't mean he particularly reacts to it, of course. Dio never feels as though he needs to prove himself to be anything to anyone, let alone would he ever feel the particular need to prove or appease his son. But he's keenly aware that Giorno is present and can hear his quiet, polite clapping without once having to take a moment to particularly glance in his direction amid the crowd.]

[It's only once he's been approached and Giorno speaks that he spares him a glance. One corner of Dio's mouth pulls itself up into a smile as he hums in quiet amusement.]

And yet you didn't appear to be enjoying yourself.

[gr1m]

The cat, at least, is so very happy to just soak up all of that attention. If Reaper brought this person home it must mean something good, right?

"There is nothing alive under this mask, that you saw for yourself." Stubborn, even if McCree may not be as much of an ingrate as he believed. Most things still held true, and he could ignore any feelings that didn't belong with what he was now. "You're talking with whatever's left over from that gunk," so what if most believed this to be a place of second chances? "Sleep it off, I'm not going to make you leave."

[tropism]

[ giorno shakes his head. ] You were never in trouble. What else is new.

[ indeed, dio didn't even look like he'd been in the ring. he might've been a guest or a judge for all anyone knows - just some random nobody with a pretty face and a scary form - but that was always the mistake people have where dio was concerned.

he leans against the sponsor's ads wrapped all over, ankles crossed, slipping his hands inside his pockets. ] There are less troublesome ways of exercising, you know.

[porte_bonheur]

I wouldn't mind doing either. If I did get a job at a bakert it would at least keep me in practice making croissants and cookies. [Because even though she wasn't a fantastic baker, she'd picked up a few tips and tricks from her family.]

That's a good thing about this place, at least! You get to try out things that you normally couldn't back home. So why not try something that would be fun? [A beat.] Uh, just as long as it's not, like... crazy dangerous or anything, at least.

sorry for the delay! got sick and wasn't able to focus on anything rp related ;;

[lukeim_yurlin]

Hmph, I'm no ray of sunshine most of the time...

[Despite the projected thoughts, however, the pleasant feelings created by his focus on work in the kitchen continue to spur on the growth of the crops in his immediate vicinity.]

Cooking and quality food just happen to be things I appreciate. Makes it easy for me to focus my thoughts and feelings in this case and use them to the crops' advantage. Especially since the last thing I want this winter are lousy ingredients to make use of when preparing food.

apologies for taking so long... I got sick and wasn't up to getting tags done for a few days ;;

[lukeim_yurlin]

[Once the majority of the rabbits have fled the carrot patch (for now, anyway), Dezel whistles shrilly to get the dogs' attention, calling them all back. Their return is a little more leisurely than their trip out to the edges of the carrot patch, though, the three stopping here and there to sniff about as they trot toward the seraph.]

I'm still here. About twenty paces to your left.

[Which is where that energy signature seems to be generally emanating from. With the telepathic response comes a light breeze, the air moving around Megaman, almost as though the wind itself is curious about him.]

That you can't see me is typical. [...] Though you don't read as human to me...

[nanoscope]

Oh, I wouldn't think that making trouble was all you were good at.

[Said with a bit of a tease to her voice. It was a skill he was rather good at, sure. Rowdy, rough-and-tumble, definitely fit the outlaw persona. But it wasn't his only skill, that much was for sure.]

You were a hard worker, and you had a very strong sense of justice. A clear idea of what was right and what was wrong.

[McCree had been a well-meaning kid, even if he had a criminal record the size of his home state. And Gabriel had seen that; he wouldn't have taken such a liking to the young outlaw if he hadn't, taken under his wing the way he had.]

And you still do, it seems. Common criminals don't normally do vigilante work, do they?

[nanoscope]

And how did that go? [Because considering how his last meeting with people he knew ended up in bullets and fists flying, she's genuinely curious]

[gardenboxed]

[Even if he says all of that, she finds herself incredibly conflicted and frustrated over this new knowledge, which manifests with a silent and subtle pout.

She doesn't like that he's hunting vampires. And she doesn't like that he's doing something so dangerous, too. She doesn't like that the chairman knows this kind of stuff, and never mentioned it either.

Following a few feet behind him, she ultimately remains quiet. Not sure what to say or think entirely. But it's clear she's bothered by the new information, too.]

[bloodyrose]

[Of course he can tell from the start that she was unsettled. However, there isn't much else he can tell her. Which is something that honestly does bother him, but he simply can't.

So, in silence, he reaches out to rest his hand on her head.]

I didn't have anywhere in mind I was heading to after that fight, but you're welcome to keep following me if you want to.

[Although he already knows she will.]

. . .Maybe we can have something to eat. I have a bit of money for it.

[staredown]

[It's not that Abi can't argue the claim that Zeno behaves better... it's just that there's no logical basis for him to do so. That's all.]

Don't be stupid. The other two idiots can fight back, and anyway, you're not fool enough to go about provoking me.

[...though speaking of provocation. Zeno.

Abi fixes him with his undivided attention. Physically turns his entire body to be facing Zeno, and looks him directly in the eyes.]

What's inconvenient about your power? Besides the... lengths you have to go to before showing it off.

[backstory]

[While the warm breeze and words pacify him a little, he still fixes him with an unhappy frown.]

I would rather you not use such an ability to defend us with. [He can't believe he is saying this.] If you become injured for our sake, then none of us will feel good about that. Please refrain from trying to do so in the future.

[gardenboxed]

[Naturally her feet continue to follow after him. She doesn't know many other people in this place yet, and she doesn't really want to wander off alone, either. When he puts a hand on her head, she peeks up at him from beneath it.]

Go and get something or make it ourselves?

[tensaibishounen]

[If that was meant as a backhanded compliment, Yun chooses not to take it as one. He is proud of where he came from, and what he had to live in darker years of his life. It made him who he is. It taught him to be frugal, cautious, shrewd, and resourceful; to be grateful for what he had; to find peace living a simple, unglamorous life; and to be independent from a young age.

He doesn't cower from the stare, but feels no need to challenge him with one in return either. After a pause, he looks back at the pumpkin.]

I'm a little surprised, though... When I saw the Blue Dragon's village, it looked--

[He hesitates to think carefully about how to phrase himself.]

What I mean is, it sounds like the village I saw isn't one that would be familiar...

[bloodyrose]

[Even while he knows it's nothing to question, that trust is all the more important right now.]

We can go somewhere.

[It would just be easier. He's not quite acclimated to the shift in technology yet, here. Not that it's all that difficult, though.]

What would you like?

[bloodyrose]

All the time. It's a part of my job.

[There's enough to make up an entire (and sizeable) society of them. Not that he's in contact, or crosses paths, with each and every last one. Partly seeing how he's never left the country, though they're still all over Japan. Much to most of the oblivion of the most of the human race.

He watches her while continuing to speak. At present he, just as well and in turn, isn't feeling any solid animosity or blood lust coming from her.]

It wouldn't do well if I were. I never have been.

[He's always known of their existence, while his training as a hunter began when he was around five years old. Although he has gone through differing opinions of vampires; from innocently worried and wondering why they would want to hurt humans, to a scathing hatred, to something more up in the air, as of the present.]

[thirdprogenitor]

[ Krul blinked the moment Mika knelt before her and for a moment, she stared to him with an almost curious expression. It was only when he lifted a hand and wiped away whatever she had missed in terms of confetti that her gaze softened and she stared to the blond who now shared the same pair of red eyes with her.

Fingers slowly combed through blond strands of hair and rested at the back of his head after a moment. It was then that, gently, she pulled him towards her and embraced him on his knees just like that. There were no words whispered, no heart beats quickening, no flush of colour to cheeks. All there was in the moment was silence and a gentle caress of fingers through his hair.

Moments like these were often kept between the two of them but with how empty the street seemed to be at the moment, it was almost as if they were within the confines of her room and she can't help but recall those earlier days for a second. This difficult "child" of hers who struggled against his acceptance of her ultimately saving his life and granting him immortality had finally become a full-blooded vampire and while she hadn't been there when the transformation had finally been complete, she felt a sort of relief that he had accepted his fate (regardless of the circumstances) and chose the life of a vampire rather than waste away to a mindless, crazed demon.

She had already lost her brother that way, to think that Mika had been close to doing the same...

Flecks of glitter fall around them from the sky, causing her to glance up and fingers to still in his hair. Was this a result of what she was feeling with having Mika here like this? ]

How annoying.

[ Fingers slipped out of his hair and she glanced off to the side, gaze falling to the empty packet of blood that she had discarded after the confetti disaster. ]

Keep an eye on him. Trouble seems to enjoy following him.

[thirdprogenitor]

[ Part of his job. That has Krul wondering what sort of man (if even that) he is to have meeting vampires be listed as part of ones job description. The thought alone has her eyes narrow some, not a stranger to the "job" that the Demon Army does to her kind. ]

But rabbits bother you? [ With a pause, she smiles a little then. ] Or from the looks of it, you bother them.

[ The fact that the rabbits seem to flee from him was enough for Krul to gather that they could sense something about him, though she's not entirely sure what, and that alone makes her curious but also wary. ]

I suppose all that's left to do is leave then. Unless watching rabbits is also part of your job.

[ She begins to walk through the carrot patch as she speaks, strands of pink blowing through the gentle breeze around her as she goes, keeping a bit of distance between them but always being aware of where he is. ]

[bloodyrose]

[Ah. There's the more conflicting sort of question. He could be straight up with her, on one hand. It isn't the same as needing to keep silent about what he is, as is how he is at home (set aside all other hunters, while not exactly all vampires). Although he also doesn't really care at all to get into his life's story.]

I only recently got here. They probably pick up the presence of vampires that's still around me. And back home, well. Animals are inherently skittish and fearful of them.

[. . .It's enough of the truth. Setting aside the fact that animals really have never had an issue with him, except during times where he was unstable.]

[thirdprogenitor]

Then we have that in common.

[ She doesn't elaborate on what exactly, rather, gives him a sidelong glance as she passes by him, stopping a little ways from him. ]

Why choose to catch rabbits then if you know they'll only run from you?

[ Curiosity is the reason for her being here. As for why he is, that's why she asks considering he doesn't seem to be very good at catching the furry little carrot thieves. ]

[heartsome]

Oh. This.....? Maybe I could help. If it stops someone else tripping like I did.

[She. May or may not have a shovel on her but. She's willing to do her best if it keeps everyone safe, assuming her guess is right and it is this goop.]

[againstdespair]

[Munakata never really thought of himself as having a bad temper; while he could certainly be stressed out and driven, lashing out was not ... natural to him.

And yet he was being told to calm down, time and time again, in this world. Was he truly so off-balance that it was necessary?

He glances down at the katana he had reached for, working his jaw restlessly before flicking the switch to collapse it back into its hilt. It's the least he can do at the moment before turning his attention back to the girl.]

There. Is that better? [His tone is dry--perhaps even faintly sarcastic, considering how tense he still is.]

[griefedlightning]

You're on.

[He can't stop the small laugh that follows. This kind of dork banter is exactly what he's been needing since showing up in Verens. She's in charge of the flag start for the race, so as soon as her cape goes up Barry's just a Flash once more.

He's zipping around Kara as much she is around him. Poor hens don't stand a chance. It may be handful of seconds for the poultry but catching the egg from one of the last stragglers feels like a long time.

As as embarrassing since Supergirl can see it in real time. Good news is that's the only mishap!]

That's certainly a new game of chicken I've never played before. [He vibrates and steps out of a Barry Allen shape made entirely of feathers and confetti, which falls apart soon after.] I'm batting a hendred, how about you?

[fistfulofbullets]

[ He can't help the snort of a laugh at that comment. True, maybe it wasn't all he was good at- he was a damn good shot, and it was true that he had a strong sense of justice. In all his mercenary work, he only takes jobs that benefit people- good people, who had been wronged. ]

Suppose they don't.

[ He grins softly as he rearranges some things around Gabe's candle, not quite ready to look back at her just yet. She'd always been able to talk some sense into him, and for that he was grateful. ]

So what have you been up to all these years...?