empatheias_ooc | TEST DRIVE: NOVEMBER

Entry tags:

!mod,
*test drive

TEST DRIVE: NOVEMBER

— 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.

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.
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.
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.

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.
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.
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.

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.
Flying equipment. The various medical equipment has also taken life, scalpels and needles flying everywhere and stethoscopes ready to strangle.
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!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[D is equally minding his own business when he's suddenly rudely tapped by a complete stranger, here, ah. What does he want... What kind of question is that?]

This cupcake is full of paper bits. [DESPAIR this is clearly a good enough explanation.]

I don't care about that.

[That sounds like a personal problem? Even if his eyes do flick down temporarily to the cupcake like, that's weird, before looking back around them.] Everything turned gray. That was you, wasn't it?

[Thanks, stranger, for the support. D scoffs, holding up the cupcake more insistently like, why do you think this happened??]

I suppose it was! But look at the state of this, this... abomination! [D, it is a cupcake] Such a waste...

[Again, he stares at the cupcake. Did this guy literally make things turn gray because he was sad about a cupcake? That's ridiculous. This place is ridiculous. He still doesn't see what the big deal is. Just eat around it??

As if to prove a point, he reaches out to swipe some of the frosting off the top with his finger so he can lick it off. Tastes fine to him...]

[What is he... doing... D's gaze flicks between Mikael and the cupcake a few times, apparently in disbelief. This is his horrible abomination, gosh—

Ironically, the color flickers back into the area for just a second, as he's too confused to be upset about the cupcake. Um??]

I do hope you washed your hands before sticking your filthy fingers into someone else's food. [so,]

[Washed his hands... That's funny, somehow, so there's a tiny little smirk in response before he drops his hand back to his side with a shrug.]

So you're just moody. [Good to know. Emotions are soooo lame, look how cool he is, causing no emotion reactions at all!! Yet. The leaf shifts between his lips (why did he leave that there while eating frosting) and he nods at the cupcake.]

It's only a waste if you keep staring at it like that. Just dump out the paper.

Moody? How rude! [Don't smirk at him!! But there's that color flickering back again, so apparently this is doing something for the, uh. Emotional environment?

D looks down at the cupcake with its brand new gross finger smear and neatly breaks it in half, holding the smudged piece out. Here, dirty boy.] Do help yourself, even if you decided it would be a waste to ask.

[rude......]

[Score, he gets half of a cupcake. He always gets what he wants!! Mikael has no problem reaching out to take this and angling it slightly to the side to simply urge out most of the paper. There might be a couple bits left... But he still takes a bite. This time, he takes his leaf out of his mouth first with his other hand. Thanks.]

What else can you do? [If he's this moody, he's a great target for learning how this whole emotion thing works, right?]

[That leaf is stupid... and he's just eating paper like it's no big deal? There's still some in there! Why!!]

What else can I... do? [Ah?? Oh, the colors?] Have you not experienced anything like this yet?

Not really.

[Like, probably he has, but he ignored it or didn't notice. That's the more realistic answer here. He spits out some paper bits to the side.] I've been busy.

[Stares at this display... hmm. That's unpleasant, what a truly filthy young man.]

I'm sure you have. [gross] Perhaps you should try.

[Mikael looks at him like this is the stupidest thing he's heard to date. Try??? Emotions???]

Why?

[What is with this guy?? Honestly.]

Well, you were so curious just moments ago. I merely assumed you would like to see it in action for yourself, rather than heckle me even further about my cupcake.

[Just saying.]

[He's not as emotionless as he acts, but it's not like he can just reveal that. The biggest emotion he does give in to and reveal shows right now, as his anger sparks a literal fire in D's cupcake. All that confetti bursts into flames with just a glare to match.]

[lol holy shit]

Goodness, what a temper. [And rude... D smiles thinly at him, very casually lifting the cupcake to blow out the little cupcake flame like it's a candle and not a confetti bonfire. This is fine.]

Now it's certainly a waste...

[Oh, he didn't drop it like a prissy loser, that's promising.]

You said I should try it, so I was only following your suggestion. [Uh huh... He's a brat, plain and simple. He takes another bite of his side of the cupcake.] It tastes stale anyway.

[He's only a prissy loser about his nails, thanks. And cleanliness. Right now he is eyeing the burnt cupcake, brushing off some burned crumbs as if he's still considering eating this literal piece of garbage.]

You did such a fine job, I daresay I could be impressed. Would you like the rest?

[He just said it was stale, but.]

So I can have it stale and burnt? No way.

[D can keep that one. Mikael's still eating this stale one, taking another bite to finish his piece off easily. He spits out paper again, then licks the frosting off the fingers it had gotten on before he places his leaf right back between his lips.]

Just eat it.

[What is with the leaf. As a plant, he's a little offended.]

So I should have it stale and burnt? At least one of those things is thanks to you. I've been denied my cupcake.

You should have had better defenses.

[For his cupcake, yes. Also, he holds this leaf very tenderly between his lips?? It is a form of respect, clearly.] Go take another if you're so upset.

[It's a cupcake, weird boy. D holds out the burnt piece more insistently, like it's not his responsibility anymore now that it's been terribly destroyed.]

Do I seem upset? [Look, there is color in the world, he is surprisingly fine for the same guy who just flipped out about the cupcake five minutes ago.] Please, I insist.

[Mikael doesn't want that nasty reject cupcake. He wants real cupcakes?? So, he swats that reaching hand away, careless about where the cupcake ends up.]

You seemed upset when everything turned gray.

[Wow, violence!! D isn't exactly carefully guarding this cupcake, so the tiniest hit will knock the cupcake off, and there it goes... He looks down at it, apparently mournful of this loss of sweets, but nothing turns gray again, sooo.]

Yes, well. As it so happens, I found the strength to cope with such a tragic loss. [He says all of this with a hand dramatically held to his cheek, very serious.

Hmm.] You did not have to hit.

[This guy is weird, but in a way that's not completely infuriating, so Mikael hasn't just walked away. It's not like he has anything better to do in happy fun time emotion land.]

I didn't hit anything. [He'd know if he was hitting??] Who gave you the cupcake?

[Thanks, that's flattering. D quits his drama posing, turning slightly to point a little ways down the street, where there is apparently a new cafe opening that's giving out samples to entice possible future customers!! Wow!

Too bad about how they suck.] Just there. It's some manner of advertising for their new shop.

[....] You did hit.

he's rude??

he's innocent

no he isn't

look at his innocent eyebrowless eyes

eyebrowlessness is a mark of sin

I mean that could be true

it is true

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