TEST DRIVE: JANUARY

[empevents]

— TEST DRIVE: JANUARY —

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 Friday, December 25th and Applications (Canon | OC) open Friday, January 1st.
  
  
• OC Reminder! Just a quick reminder that original characters are currently 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: A new card game is sweeping through the streets of Verens: "Magica Ex Arehtei." Players take on the role of an Otherworlder and form battle decks out of minions, monsters, dunamis, and even the Arehtei themselves. It’s insanely complicated in its details, but this hasn’t stopped a seller from handing you a starter deck and all but pushing you into a chair to face an opponent… who may have just been conscripted themselves.

• Prompt E: After a long period of quiet (something about ‘emotional and physical harm to Empatheias’ and ‘manufacturing plush weapons without a Class E(X) license’), toy manufacturers have flooded merchant stalls and storefronts with a new offering, the hyper-cute stuffed Thras. No negative emotions, they promise! Plush Thras is so full of bravery, he’ll inspire anyone who holds him to new heights of courage and valor!

Naturally, magiscience has gone too far, and picking up the doll instills you with vigor, energy, and fearlessness past the point of recklessness.

• Prompt F: Thundersnow! A phenomenon in which a snowstorm is accompanied by lightning and thunder, and not a terribly uncommon one in Empatheias. But today’s thundersnow is more like an apocablizzard -- lighting lashes through the sky and lances down to catch buildings and trees with its fury, all hidden behind whirling sheets of billowing snowflakes that have blanketed the city in a foot of snow with no sign of stopping.

The outside is cold, windy, miserable, and potentially dangerous. Are you trapped in a building you didn’t expect to be in? Or perhaps you’ve joined up with an emergency emotion squad, trying to impose calm or cheer on the raging storm?

• Prompt G: Make your own! It could include lumps of coal or moose.

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

[explodewiththerage]

[That would be quite amusing to see her breath smoke when he's the one with the dragon theme.]

Yup this is the best I've had in a long while~

[Cooking monster meat and eating it is not what one can call luxury eating after all.]

Yeah we can figure that out tomorrow.

[celestial_wizard]

[ Burning her face off aside, she still smiled as she watched him enjoy the food. Resting her chin in her palms for a moment or two, she shook her head a bit when she caught herself staring. ]

Well good - as long as you're enjoying it then I'm happy.

[ Even if she felt like there were small flames jumping about in her mouth and having a party. She took another bite of the bread, which at least helped more than the water did! Pushing through the spice and heat, she had to agree - the food came out incredibly well. Even better than she'd prepared it before! ]

Right. We might be stuck here a while... [ She grimaced slightly at the thought, a pang of worry making her mouthful of curry taste sour for a second. She glanced at him, quickly shoving that thought aside. ]

Or we might not! Who knows what tomorrow will bring - besides another adventure, right?

[explodewiththerage]

[He grins back at her point blank, the corner of his mouth stained from the spicy sauce off of the curry.]

This is the best I've ever had so no way I wouldn't enjoy it!

[Lucy has to have some kind of special ingredient to make it this good! He's almost convinced that's the case.]

Well yeah there's a lot of places to go to and ask around. At least the king of this place isn't out to use us for Lacryma this time.

[celestial_wizard]

[ She giggles at the praise, the room warming with those happyfuzzy feelings again. She couldn't help herself when he praised her - or looked at her like that. Although he was such a messy dragon! ]

Heehee, good - that just means I'm still improving in cooking too. Hold still... [ She licked her thumb and reached over to brush that spicy sauce away from his mouth. ]

Haha, you're so -- [ She paused, realizing that that gesture ... ohgod. She quickly pulled her hand away, now that the corner of his mouth was clear of sauce. Glancing away abruptly, she cleared her throat. ]

Um. So what do you want for tomorrow? [ She absent-mindedly tucked her saucy thumb into her mouth to lick it clean. ]

[explodewiththerage]

[Well she's not the only contributing to the happy fuzzy feeling. Natsu's own joy is starting to influence the place as well, slowly spreading like a blanket of warmth and safety.]

Huh?

[Oh wow she came close now....and cleaned his mouth which makes him look back at Lucy with a bewildered lookj on his face for the moment. THe spell only breaks when she finally turns away from him.]

Tomorrow? Well more exploring you know.

[celestial_wizard]

[ NOT LOOKING BACK. Instead she focuses on her food. Tasty tasty food. ]

No, I mean.. for dinner. What do you want to eat? I'll keep it in mind so when we go out I won't forget to pick up key ingredients for it.

[explodewiththerage]

[Awww but why not look back? Just feel that radiant warmth from around his whole body! Or more accurately his immediate vicinity.]

Oh that? Well something grilled sounds pretty good.

[celestial_wizard]

[ You know darn well why~! Lucy grinned, the warmfuzzies and radiant warmth from the vicinity around him making her feel quite content and relaxed. ]

Hmm. Grilled Steak then, or fish - I hear there's a beach outside of town. I bet you could go fishing there.

[explodewiththerage]

[Nope he's innocent as a babe.]

Oooo fishing sounds like a great way to see what kind of animals live around here.

[celestial_wizard]

[ Innocent her foot! ]

Hehe, yeah, I thought you might think so. We'll look into it tomorrow.

[ And since it usually took a while to catch something, she could sit and read or write while he fished. She glanced at him, her meal mostly finished. ]

Do you want seconds still?

[explodewiththerage]

[SHe has no proof otherwise!]

Mmmm yeah I'll have seconds. Would hate to let it waste.

[celestial_wizard]

[ Maybe not BUT SHE KNOWS. ]

Well don't force yourself if you're full! I can still salvage this for tomorrow.

[ Or well, she could if anything was left over. Though with Natsu wanting seconds, that would finish it off quite nicely, as she pours the rest of the curry into his bowl. ]

[explodewiththerage]

[He knows he's innocent tho!]

Not forcing myself at all. This is so good~

[celestial_wizard]

[ She totally knows he isn't! Being innocent through cluelessness doesn't count. :> Lucy smiled softly as she watched him enjoy the food so much. ]

Haha, it's funny, it even tastes different from how I made it back home, but I didn't really used anything different ingredients. Maybe it's just the way they're prepared here before they're sold.

[explodewiththerage]

[You just made that rule up didn't you?]

Yeah I noticed that too. Maybe the ingredients just work differently in this place. Either way I can't complain really.

[celestial_wizard]

[ Who me? Nevah. It was just in the uh..fine print. ]

Mm, same here. Help me clean up the dishes?

[ By which she means 'don't lick them clean'. ]

[explodewiththerage]

[Suuure it is.]

Huh? Oh okay. I'll even dry em off for you.

[celestial_wizard]

[ Well did you read the handbook? Huh? Didja? Didja? ]

Yeah? Okay then, I'll wash, you dry.

[ That was a pretty fair plan - and it wasn't like there was a lot to wash. Gathering up the bowls, she trotted into the kitchen with him, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye. ]

[explodewiththerage]

[What handbook? wonders if the pile of ash was that thing?]

Sounds like a plan!

[He quickly takes up his place by Lucy's side and starts flash drying the bowls and plates as they are handed to him. Literally flash drying.]

[celestial_wizard]

[ This is why we can't have nice things; you burn up the rules and handbooks all the time! XD ]

You're such a show off.

[ She can't help but tease him for flash drying the dishware, though she appreciated it. It made doing humdrum chores like this less tedious. ]

Just don't get too fancy when you're doing that - I don't want to turn and see you start juggling these or something.

[ ... she shouldn't give him ideas. Can he even juggle? ]

[explodewiththerage]

[HE just chuckles and shakes his head.]

I'd need more bowls to pull off a cool routine with that.

[Seems the idea is not that unlikely though. Oh no~]

[celestial_wizard]

[ Oh that's all she needs, having enough dishes in the sink for him to flash dry them while juggling. ]

You can put THAT idea out of your head, Natsu~!

[ She chuckled, nabbing a towel to dry her hands and giving a stretch. ]

[explodewiththerage]

What you think I can't do it?

[Oh dear is she making it a challenge? This might not end well. The last thing he does flashdry is his hands before padding up closer to Lucy to poke at her side while she's stretching.]

[celestial_wizard]

[ That's not what she meant! ]

Wha... T.. That's not what I said at Aa-ckk!

[ No fair poking her in the side when she's mid-sentence! Her words end abruptly with a squeak and she hops back, protecting her poor ticklish spots. ]

Quit that!

[explodewiththerage]

I don't think so~ That was too fun just now~

[He suddenly makes another poke this time at her other side]