TEST DRIVE MEME: JULY

[simpathis]

— TEST DRIVE: JULY —

Welcome to empatheias' first ever 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 Friday, July 18th and Applications open Friday, July 25th. Game will begin Friday, August 1st.
  
  
• 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!

Now with that out of the way, here are some prompts you guys can work from!


PROMPTS

• Prompt A: Create any scenario that could cause your character to display some kind of emotion, be it big or small, and write out how it changes the immediate area. Are there literal sparkles everywhere because they're so happy? Or is the ground starting to twist and warp due to their anger or frustration? Things exploding? Rain clouds? Since this is a test drive, don't worry about any limitations on effects—just write whatever comes to mind!

• Prompt B: The following are generic task board prompts that characters could have taken up as a job.

1. You have to collect X number of materials. Find a partner to make it easier!
   
2. There's a hostile creature attacking some of the neighboring farms. If you got a weapon, they could definitely use your help!
   
3. How about helping around the town? Delivering something, helping patch up a sign, cleaning out some of those rusted gears—the locals would definitely warm up to everyone.
   
4. Make up your own task/quest!

• 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: With the influx of people suddenly appearing, the locals are a bit on edge. So rather than having your character’s emotions affecting the environment, someone else's is affecting them! Maybe they were just passing by and someone had an emotional outbreak of sorts. Now they have to figure out how to deal with the aftermath—or will their own emotions make it worse? Needless to say, NPC godmodding granted 100%.

• Prompt E: Make your own! It can even involve booze and/or cats.

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

[teradyne]

["Beef" that's from cows, yes? She's... devoured cow demons before. "Poultry" is from chickens, and she's devoured those kinds before too. She's thinking real hard on this.]

Beef and chicken, maybe?

[selfmotivations]

[somehow, seeing her have to think so hard about this is amusing.]

Both fine choices, but clearly you need to eat out more. Well there's at least one place I've found that should be good.

[now to get that payment.]

[teradyne]

If you say it's good, then I believe you.

[They fought together, he has Argilla's trust... for now. She'll follow him to pick up that payment.]

[selfmotivations]

[ha ha ha she believes him. wow that would have meant so many different things just a few short weeks ago.]

Thanks.

[he just gives a small chuckle in response before getting the cash and handing half of it to Argilla as promised. and apparently they'll have some pork, too, though it will be shipped in later after they prepared it and everything. enough for weeks! (yay......)

and now back to town. and he'll be keeping any conversation they have light because yeesh they really went deep back there.]

[teradyne]

[Taking her share of the money, she safely tucks it away. She'll need it for supplies and food likely now.]

What else is there to eat that's good aside from meat?

[selfmotivations]

Well us humans are omnivores, so if you want a real healthy and balanced diet you'll want a good dose of fruits, vegetables, and even a bit of seafood. Grains like bread and rice are also a staple that we eat.

[teradyne]

I'm familiar with the terms and know what they are. [She's more or less talking to herself here at this point.]

Is it really necessary to eat a balanced diet?

[selfmotivations]

If you want to be healthy, but not everyone follows those rules. Some will just live off junk food and cakes while others will eat whatever they can find. But you're not exactly human...right? So I'm not sure what kind of diet you'd really need or be fine with.

[teradyne]

I don't really need anything. [Aside from meat and she gets hungry and weakened if she doesn't have... that.]

I mean, I'm just data.

[She says this like it's common knowledge...]

[selfmotivations]

[...what.]

Data?

[teradyne]

An artificial intelligence, though I feel plenty human.

[She laughs here.]

If I wasn't told that I was this, I'd swear I was human just like everyone else.

[selfmotivations]

Wait—hold on. So are you like...some kind of machine? [he's familiar with automaton, but they weren't human-like in the slightest.

he's having difficulty trying to grasp the concept that she might just made up of pure data because isn't data some kind of...intangible thing??? what is she like a spirit then, maybe!?!?]

[teradyne]

No, I'm not a machine. I'm just data. Then again, according to Roland, we're all data or something.

[She's trying to recall his conversation about how people are made of molecules, then atoms, then even smaller than that is data.]

But I'm definitely not human, though I bleed like one.

[She places her hand on her chin, thinking on this.]

And die like one, too. Even so, we're considered 'data' by those we encounter.

[selfmotivations]

Uh...huh.

[yep, slotting her with Milla.]

I think I'm just going to think of you similar to a spirit. If you ever meet Milla, you'd probably get along in that regard. [hum, should he elaborate further?] She's similar in that she's currently in a human form and due to some circumstances, she had to adapt living like us.

[teradyne]

So it's not a unique circumstance then. [How would Gale think of all this? Probably with 'I do not comprehend' as per normal.] What's a spirit, though? I'm assuming it doesn't mean a soul of the dead.

[selfmotivations]

Not quite, but some folks believe that when you die you turn into one. NO idea how true that is.

But the spirits are just beings that are made of up mana and basically provide the energy the world needs to sustain itself. Like I said before, without them, the world would die.

I don't know if I would call them "living beings" like human and animals, but they are alive in a sense and have their own forms. They also don't really make themselves visible to humans.

[teradyne]

So kind of like data, then.

[Though her world is comprised of data rather than it needing data to sustain itself.]

You mentioned Maxwell before. You said he created your world or that other world, but what beyond that? Was he angered by what you guys did?

[Maybe their worlds are alike then, since God is seemingly upset with humans.]

[selfmotivations]

I'm no historian, but from what I've heard and learned, two millennia ago Maxwell had warned the early users of spyrix of the dangers. But because spyrix was so easy, they didn't really listen. That's why he created Rieze Maxia and basically put all the spirits and his followers in that barrier, hiding it from everyone else. I'm sure he was pretty pissed about it, but rather than just destroying spyrix users, he let that population grow to eventually kill themselves off.

[a harsh laugh.]

Not sure which is worse, really.

But he had a change of heart...or rather, Milla and Jude managed to convince him that things can change and to dispel the schism. He agreed to it, but—well let's just say things got a little more complicated before that part could finally happen. It all worked out in the end.