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

Wild (Rock!) Card

[maten_sutra]

[Sanzo had been outside, smoking and minding his own business, when he noticed the feathers softly falling from the sky. He reached out and let one land on his palm. Then, in his periphery, he saw a figure coming closer. It took a few seconds to place the man and then almost drops his smoke.]

Shit. Not you.

[churchbelle]

[The feathers coming down from nowhere sure are something of a surprise— but not that attitude, aw. Was he so sorely missed??]

You're gonna hurt my feelings like that, Mister Sanzo. I'm just passin' by. [He's just saying hello, that's not a crime.]

[maten_sutra]

You've been passing by me for an awfully long time now.

[It was enough that Gojyo was pissed at Sanzo for whatever reason, and Hakkai didn't want to listen to him about looking for a way out. Sanzo didn't mind going it alone, but he hadn't had the best experience with that lately. A good example of that was standing in front of him right now.]

So how did you end up here, anyway?

[churchbelle]

[Hazel makes a face, tilting his head with a perfectly amiable shrug. The street's the street, Sanzo, he's not banned from the streets.]

Surely a coincidence if I ever did encounter one. What's the big surprise? We were just travelin' together, you and I.

[maten_sutra]

That's not how I remember it.

[A pause, and a sigh.]

Then again, the other two here seem to have different memories than I do. What was the last thing that happened before you turned up here?

[churchbelle]

[The other two... does he care about them, hm-]

Well, we were wanderin' around up on a mountain, I s'pose. Not much of note, honestly.

[maten_sutra]

[So, another different point in time. Sanzo makes a 'tsk' noise.]

Last thing I remember, I was in a fight. So there's that.

[He tilts his head back and looks up to the sky. There are still feathers floating down.]

This seems to be normal for this place. So get used to it, I guess. Also apparently emotions are important.

[churchbelle]

[Okay, well— to be fair...]

Meanin' no offense, Mister Sanzo, but aren't ya often in fights?

[So that doesn't tell him much, necessarily - he shrugs right after saying this, like, never mind! Just saying, but never mind!!]

Thanks for the tip. Is that what the feathers are all about, or are we witnessin' some other sorta mystery?

[maten_sutra]

First time I've seen it.

[He shrugs, but it's difficult to be nonchalant when things like that happen.]

And fighting a youkai is one thing, but fighting a- [Wait. Did he really want to be telling Hazel what happened in the future? Did that fuck up time or something? It just ends up being an awkward cutoff instead.]

[churchbelle]

[...Well, that's. Noticeable. Hazel raises an eyebrow, looking away from the feathers to give Sanzo a quizzical look.]

Fightin' a...? [spoil him, he can take it!!]

[maten_sutra]

[What did you even call it? He didn't want to say the man's name, didn't want to think about how close he'd been to losing.]

A human. One with a lot of power.

[churchbelle]

[Well, that can only be so many people, all things considered— it doesn't take a genius to put two and two together, especially after they'd just talked about him, from Hazel's perspective.

Briefly, he's surprised, but that expression fades quickly enough into something more distant. God, if he could not get involved, that'd be excellent, but by Sanzo's stepping around the topic, he was probably still there. Will be there? Whatever.]

That's powerfully unfortunate. Must be rather ordinary here, compared to fightin' that sort of man.