TEST DRIVE MEME ⚔️️ 8

[avalonmods]

✨ Greet new players on the OOC intro while apps are processed HERE! ✨

{ QUICK NAV } Premise ⚔️️ Rules ⚔️️ FAQ ⚔️️ Taken ⚔️️ Reserves ⚔️️ Apply ⚔️️ Locations ⚔️️ Bestiary ⚔️️ Top-Levels Only ⚔️️ SUMMARY: New arrivals drop into the lake and have to climb up a cliff to the Rent a Ride, where they are given their device and some headphones and can retrieve their personal materials. They travel to Camelot, which is a multiple day journey, so they stop at the Red Springs along the way and stay at an inn there. A ⦿ Soaking in Your Arrival KERPLUNK, SPLASH! Regardless of what you were in the middle of, you and your familiar have been magically pulled into the world of Avalon just above the Bay's waters. After a brief plunge into the Bay, the rush of water filling your ears and soaking up into every creak and crevice of your body, you may need to cough to clear your airways when you rise above the surface. It's still chilly, but not enough that you can't manage on your own. The Lady of the Lake is swimming around under the water, helping to rescue any wayward travelers who look like they're struggling in the water. This month's helpers are giant pillow jellies, a species of jellyfish that is capable of ballooning itself at the surface to create bouncy pads for characters to hop across to the shore, should they choose or not be able to swim. They come in a variety of bioluminescent colors, but do not seem to be very talkative even to animal magic users. Those who try may find themselves being ignored, even if they hear the jellies talking amongst themselves about this and that. If anyone tries to ask the Lady of the Lake for directions, she will direct you to Archimedes at the Rent-a-Ride. The shores themselves are littered with new arrivals complaining their way up a staircase carved into the walls of the White Cliffs. There is no railing, so be careful, but if you do fall, be prepared for a mysterious sand hand to reach out of the side of the cliffs to catch you. The hand will pat you atop the head twice before retreating back into the wall. This is the Cliff Beast; despite the name, he is quite friendly. (Though.. given how hot and muggy the weather is this first week, maybe you might want to ask him to toss you right back into the lake where the waters are still cool.) *Reminder: Your character's familiar may or may not be with your character in their initial plunge. If the familiar isn't partial to water, it may meet your character on the beach or sit atop their head while they swim. Or if they are, they might splash about and swim alongside your character. Familiars have different personalities and body specs and we leave those up to the players. B ⦿ The Caravan to Camelot Once everyone is wrangled up to the top of the White Cliffs, the handsome owner of the Rent-a-Ride, Archimedes, will distribute smart phones and a pair of ear buds (the supplier was out of the regular ones) and tell them to "Check the Shit Box." The "Shit Box" refers to wardrobe more formally known as the Wardrobe of Finding, a hammerspace-like wardrobe that opens to each person's items and pets when the person touches the handle. It was recently enchanted by Merlin to prevent people from having to fish their waterlogged possessions and pets out of the water with them. From there, Archimedes directs everyone to settle in groups into modernized carriages pulled by horses and gives them a basic explanation of why and how they've been brought to Avalon: The rest of the universe is frozen in time and your character has been brought here by a familiar that was able to bond with them. They'll have to learn magic to help save their own world from destruction, but first they've got to get them to Camelot. It is here that you have the first opportunity to decide who they will be in their new home. You'll have about an hour to wander around here, meet and greet, and pet the horses before it's time to go. These carriages use fae technology that combats weight, so your character will be able to get in regardless of whether they're light as a feather or weigh two tons. The carts have air conditioning when it's hot, heating when it's cold, and a mystical shield to protect from bugs. There is also a mini-bar that pops out of the console with nip bottles. Characters can use their smartphones to connect to Camelot's internet service, avalononline (AOL), to chat with other characters, watch dumb videos, learn about the world, contact Camelot Support (they'll answer any questions they can for you, from how to use a smart phone to where to find quests and resources to learn more about your magic). Be careful if you decide to use your phones while in the caravan-- if you don't use those earbuds and start forcing everyone to listen to your nonsense, Archimedes may make you walk. C ⦿ The Red Spring The journey from the White Cliffs to the City of Camelot is a long one, and the first evening you arrive you'll end up spending at the Red Spring, a booming resort town. Because of the volume of new arrivals and vacationers, inn rooms are assigned two-to-a-room. The rooms have two twin beds, a bathroom, a mini-fridge and microwave, and a TV equipped with a couple of entertaining video games and a few free movies. If you don't want to relax in the room, try taking a dip in the spring for another chance to meet your fellow travelers. The waters have restorative properties that help horses and travelers recover quickly when drunk. It is known to relieve stress, improve energy levels, and mildly accelerate healing. It may be a little chilly when you get out though, so make sure you don't slip rushing back indoors when you get out! The springs are also home to a large training grounds just outside town limits, where there are teachers who will teach basic magic safety and help you discover what kind of magic you have together with other new arrivals. Try target practice, obstacle courses, meditation circles, and other ways to try to figure out just what you can do... if you didn't already have an accidental discovery on the ride there. SUMMARY: Merlin has a Plan B in case Camelot failed the trials: raise a sunken ship and offer it to the Elphame Traders on their way out in exchange for permission to travel their waters. Characters prepare for ritual magic to raise a sunken ship and travel underwater at the empty Camelot docks to gather ritual ingredients for it. After they've done all they can, Merlin sets up a little beach party with a bit of master magic for anyone who came along for the trip. After arriving, people may have heard about recent events-- the people of Camelot voted against war and to instead accept the trials of the people of Celliwig. The trials are now concluded, and a good number of people are emotionally exhausted and taking time to recover. Word from Celliwig has not yet arrived, but across multiple social media platforms, including AOL, there are clips of Merlin's cryptic addendum to Arthur's announcement along with notes that the meeting date was delayed a couple of days due to the awful weather and a need to rest after how bleak the trials were to some people. With people down and out, it won't hurt to have the new arrivals pitch in and learn a thing or two. "Lucky me, we've got a decent group. Celliwig's out of our hands now, but what isn't is a back-up plan. Vote was close enough I figured we'd have enough people to get a head start. Celliwig is closer and much less dangerous to deal with, we'd be able to communicate much faster with the faeries' queendom. They're not big on internet. Big followers of the Old Ways. T-L-D-R, we can't just text the queen and ask if drop-bys are on the table. We'd never make it past the leviathans without permission, so here's the plan: There is a... fixer-upper of a vessel sunken about a hundred yards from shore tossed out from Bermuda. We tried to build docks here forever ago, but you can guess the Bermuda triangle spitting out stuff in the lake all the time didn't go great. We just keep it up for visitors now, but there's plenty to explore in the immediate area that we can magic back into business." A ⦿ Shipwreckers He goes on to explain that the fairies value items that were once lost and refound, so step one is exploring the shipwreck with fellow magic users to find what amounts to a scavenger hunt list of items from the ship. He sets everyone off with a quick spell that essentially transforms their clothing into swimsuits that best fit their preferences and personality-- that means no one's going to get a swimsuit that makes them horribly uncomfortable, he's not harassing anyone. After that, magicians will be directed to use their magic to get down to the ship. It's not as convenient as underwater breathing and not as easily sustainable, but there's definitely different ways to go about it. Light magic users will find they can create a forcefield above the surface of the water and go under the water, though they may run out of oxygen quickly. Elemental users can find they can create a similar bubble by pushing water out of the way, though may run into the same diminishing air without a more advanced elemental user already in the game who can pull oxygen out of the water or an alchemist who can create chemical reactions to generate oxygen. Animal mages may be able to convince local lake life to help push bubbles along, and healers will be instrumental in healing oxygen deprivation if anyone stays under too long! (Note: If two characters can't create a bubble, you can put in a third NPC to do the bubble while your characters handle other roles during the search.) No matter what, make sure you bring someone who can watch your back. Rumors have it that the Fuath are harassing anything that comes near the area. Fuath are intangible spirits that may present as giant humanoids at about 8-9 feet each, but with the mane and tail of a yellow horse, with no noses and keen eyes. They hold grudges against anyone who takes advantage of their surroundings, even if not their own, and will come to attempt to throw those who try to take from the ships and flying through the air to land somewhere else in the water. Be very cautious about using names around the Fuath, as though they do not speak in human tongue, they have a particular ability to draw people and animals in using names that makes them very difficult to escape once you've been found. They've been known to turn familiars against their partners. They can be deterred, dissipated through attack to buy you time, but they'll keep coming so get in and out of the ship as fast as you can and definitely stick to more combat-heavy magics like dark and cognitive mages! *Note: These magics are all examples of ways to use primary magic, but feel free to get creative with your character's magic if you think of something else! B ⦿ Hoist the Flags Once all the ingredients are gathered, the ritual is underway! With the mementos from the ship, swim to a protective circle formed at the top of the water by Merlin that will keep the Fuath out. There, you need to take whatever item you gathered from the ship and try to find someone with a similar item. This "sister" item will allow you to pull the essence of the item up from the ship. It takes a load of people to raise a whole ship, but pouring your magic into the item and chanting the spell will cause the ship to resurface and restore itself to its original state before the crash, using residual memories from all the different items on the ship. Of course, finding a partner with a matching item while swimming around could be a challenge, especially if you don't get along-- it may take a while for everyone to get on the same page. It certainly won't clean up all the algae and kelp and wayward flopping fish, it brings the ship back to a livable state.. and a much cooler, more explorable one. Get a quick exploration of the ship and help clean up some of the lake slime before Merlin flags over the traders. Or goof around until then, and learn a sick free spell called (Recipe) Cool Firework: create a rocket firework from your fingertips. Make sure you're aiming it into the sky when you cast this spell, or Merlin will set off a Camelot totem right beneath your feet. No sinking the ship when they just got it up. The fireworks will attract the Elphame Traders, who are leaving the day after they close up shop to head back to Elphame, before the set out to leave. Merlin negotiates offering the ship to them as an offering for Queen Elphame to give them permission to travel in the Elphame territory. At that point, the ship is pulled into the docks and Camelot citizens are ushered out for the fae traders to take over the ship. C ⦿ Beach Episode Once everything's said and done it.. really only took a couple of hours, so the whole group is done around 4pm. There's plenty of time left for dinner and a good time at the beach a short walk away from the docks and the sun doesn't go down until around 9pm. Before Merlin leaves everyone to themselves, he conjures up a buffet-style table with loads of fresh food and drink, watermelons and bats for smashing. The swimsuits provided earlier wear off at midnight, though you'll probably want to leave before then since it still gets chilly in the evening, especially if you're all wet from playing with the chest full of waterguns or the beach balls distributed around the beach. The docks are nearby, so feel free to call your friends over to come hang out with you, even if they didn't help. It's a beach party, enjoy it! SUMMARY: Unseelie faeries and unseemly humans have teamed up to kidnap a small number of otherworlders in the chaos of the trials to fight in an underground fight ring. Play as a victim or be part of the squad to put an end to it if you're more good-leaning, or villains can choose to participate as audience and pay for "gifts" to be given to their favorite fighters during matches. CW: These prompts contain kidnapping, illegal and forced fighting, and inhumane treatment of fighters. Just because people are tired doesn't mean that the world stops for them... crime certainly doesn't. Throughout the start of the month, people are going missing. Exactly what's happening.. well, finding the truth out about that is going to depend on your perspective. A ⦿ Cursed Kidnapees Kidnapping victims will find themselves suddenly blinded by a spell, and then chloroformed by a floating cloth pressed against their face. (Smart kidnappers don't touch their victims if they have magic, you know!) When they wake up, they'll find themselves in a dungeon with at least a dozen other people. There's definitely not room to lay down, and sitting down as you had been propped up immediately starts you with a potentially uncomfortable view. Don't worry, someone's peeks in from a window at the top of the room-- an extremely handsome-looking man with long, wavy hair and pupils slitted like a cat's. "Let's see.. You two, you'll be the first fight of the night. Winner gets dinner, gyahaha!" It's a fighting ring. You've been kidnapped into a fighting ring and there's no obvious escape! Fight against fellow captives and monsters for your dinner and to buy time to figure out what you're going to do... At least you start hand to hand, so there's nothing lethal... right? (See Audience for more details.) B ⦿ Audacious Audience Maybe you're a less scrupulous sort and saw an invitation to this event hidden on the dark web, or got invited by a particularly sketchy friend. Either way, you've got cage-side seats close enough to chat with either fellow audience members or interact with the cage fighters. As a bonus point, audience members can spend some of their G on betting or on purchasing "boons" for their favorite fighters, such as weapons or enhancement spells. They can also bid against other audience members for special sabotages that make it harder to fight-- foot weights, strange masks, roller skates, hinderance hexes.. get creative with it! It's the biggest fight show that you can interact with your wallet... newbies may find it's a very lucrative way to make a pretty penny very fast. (As always, remember to communicate with anyone you're helping/sabotaging so you don't go past anyone's OOC comfort level.) C ⦿ Roaring Rescuers Thankfully, the fae who want nothing more than to sow discord and the greedy humans who joined in their venture are a bit disorganized. Even the beginning-level heroes among us will be able to track them down and topple them with a little bar hopping to gather information from the locals. Eventually, one of them will give up having overheard some "scary looking fellows" talking about which of the patrons of the bar looked like they'd be good in a fight before getting extra hush-hush. Follow all the leads, and you'll find yourself at an outlying, smaller-scale castle with a dungeon tower and an underground fighting ring built beneath its floors. Sneak in and unlock individual fighter dungeon doors while the fights are providing a wealth of distraction. Maybe you'll find a grateful Fogueria who casts a temporary fire-immunity spell on you to allow you to do ride them into battle to bust up the fight going on right now. There's definitely gratitude going on, regardless of moral compass, and you may find gifts of food and drink (non-alcoholic if you're not old enough) placed at your door over the next week for your deeds. MOD NOTES: • All test drive prompts are open to anyone in the game at any time to create your own logs with, but this post should have top-levels by potential new characters only. Current characters may reply to any threads, but should not top-level comment on this post. • If your application is accepted, you may accept TDM threads as game canon as long as both players consent. Characters may begin threading as soon as their journal is accepted to the communities. • We are testing out formats for key points displays, to be voted on for player preference based on what seems to work best for the most people. The other options were used here (end of post summary format) and here (start of post preview format). The format featured on this post is the last option, which will provide small summaries under the banner of each prompt set. A poll will be put up before the next event to see which format will be used going forward, so please keep in the back of your mind which seems most comfortable/makes the content more easily accessible. •If nothing here tickles your fancy, try one of this month's Quests for your TDM prompt. • The first "Arrival" prompts are present on every TDM, but contain seasonal tweaks for flavor. All other prompts will change monthly. • Questions about this TDM's content? Comment here! If you have a question about the game at-large, please head over to the FAQ.

Comments

[starshower]

[Everyone has their likes and dislikes, and Tifa isn't one to question them. Kids can be a handful—she would know, she'd always have to watch Marlene when the others went out on missions, sometimes for days at a time. At least there were no squirt guns involved.

She leans forward a bit when the smoke disappears, as if trying to get a peek through his teeth to what she thinks is inside.]

Does that help with the humidity?

[gunmettle]

[ Hello??

Of all things, she leans closer, and Juzo’s sub-brain nearly shorts out. He leans away suddenly, jaw falling open as he lets out a rather undignified yelp of surprise.

Well, there’s certainly not a person in there. It looks kind of like… a mouth? ]

Geez, lady! You ever heard of personal space?

[starshower]

[Ah, he's like that, is he?

She feels a little bad for getting up in his personal space like that, but she also can't help the small giggle when she takes a step back, putting some distance between them again.]

Sorry! It's just that...

[How does she even put it without sounding rude? Is there a way to point out something like that? She doesn't want to be inconsiderate about it, but she's curious!]

Not every day you see someone with such an impressive... helmet?

[Ehhh, could've been better. Even she knows that.]

[gunmettle]

[ He looks less likely like he’s going to blow a gasket once she steps away, taking a second to busy himself with smoothing out his shirt and fussing with his cigarette. It’s fine. He’s fine. ]

This again?

[ Clearly he’s heard similar “compliments” before. He sighs, flicking a bit of ash from the end of his cigarette into the sand. ]

It’s my head. Yes, my real head.

[starshower]

[Well. That's an unexpected response... Though she isn't sure what she was expecting from him when she'd said that. Perhaps for him to remove it so that they could talk without a helmet obstructing their conversation...

But she feels bad now and shrinks back a bit.]

Oh. I didn't know.

[Tifa falls silent, and through the corners of her eyes, she peers at him. She's a bit at a loss for words, embarrassed that she had made a wrong assumption like that, but... what do you even say to someone after that???]

So then... [Another few beats.] Are you a mech of some kind?

[gunmettle]

[ He truly didn’t mean to upset her - how was she supposed to know it’s his head? Here in Camelot, there’s no such thing as extension technology, no reason for people to get cybernetic enhancements in droves. Someone like Juzo is an uncommon sight, more than usual. ]

Ah, hey. It’s fine. No offense taken. I get what I look like.

[ Mech is a good guess, and one that makes him think of old comics he sees blowing around the streets. It draws a soft chuckle out of him. ]

You’re a little off the mark. I’m human, more or less. Just been stuffed full of what we call physical function extensions. Extensions for short.

[starshower]

And I'm guessing those extensions include the guns.

[He doesn't seem to be pressed about it, so she sees no reason to either, but her head had naturally gone to worse, darker places at first. She pushes them away, replacing it with the keen interest she had before she blundered.]

What do you need them for?

[gunmettle]

[ It’s just now that it hits Juzo how he’s going to have to explain his existence to people. Even if GSUs like him are rare back home, everyone there understands why extension technology and those who make use of it, the extended, exist. Here, no one has that context. How awkward. ]

Ah. I’m an old wartime model. War’s been over for years now, so someone like me is just a relic of the past.

[starshower]

[She still has... so many questions... like why whoever did this thought it would be a good idea even for war? But at the same time, she isn't going to start bombarding the poor guy with them at a beach party of all places! Tifa thinks she understands what he means, a little bit, and that's enough for her for now.]

So now you just get to live your life, huh? I'm guessing it isn't such a... different thing to see back where you're from? There a lot of people with extensions?

[Whoops. Here she goes again.]

[gunmettle]

[ Don't look at him. He didn't have any hand in the design process, but despite how utterly bizarre he looks, there's no denying he was an effective soldier.

Perhaps too effective. ]

What is this, twenty questions?

[ Said dryly, but there's an edge of humor somewhere in that gruff tone. Her questions are innocent enough - though he might be singing a different tune the thirtieth time he has to go over this crap. ]

Sure. We call 'em the Extended, and they're everywhere. Hell, some people have had their entire bodies replaced.

[starshower]

Must've been some war...

[She tries to keep the heavier notes out of her voice, breaking off the tension with a light, breathless laugh, more at the dryness in his tone than anything else.

She's fully aware that she's bombarding him with questions he's probably had to answer more than once already, so...]

Sorry. I'm done with the questions for now. [Well...] So, have you had anything to eat yet? The food looks way too good to pass up.

[gunmettle]

[ It really was some war, but Juzo would rather not talk about it, least of all what part he and his had to play in that bloody conflict. Sometimes the past is best left there, especially here, on a whole new world. ]

Can’t say I have. I didn’t wanna scare anyone away from the buffet.

[ He is hungry, no matter how much he’d tried to convince himself he wasn’t. ]

[starshower]

Why not? More food for you.

[Tifa laughs and slaps a hand gently against Juzo's back before urging him closer to the table. Thankfully, most of the crowd has dispersed, having already grabbed some food earlier. Most people have taken to the water now that the day has hit its hottest point.]

Don't worry. I'll make sure you don't scare anyone away. Everyone's gotta eat, right? Including you.

[And here's a plate for Juzo!]

[gunmettle]

[ Typically, people he's just met don't touch him so casually. The second her hand lands on his back, he jerks in surprise, gun barrel swinging around in her direction as he looks at her.

He's not sure if this is going to be his new normal or not, and if it is, he's not sure how he feels about that. It's easier to keep people at arm's length if they find him intimidating.

He goes where he's lead without protest, awkwardly accepting the plate offered him. ]

Um. Thanks.

[ Time to load it with food he supposes??? ]

[starshower]

[Tifa does indeed notice the sudden awkwardness that he carries, but she leaves it be. Bringing any more attention to it might just make it worse, so she takes up her own plate instead and mulls over the wide selection, feeling her eyes growing bigger than her stomach as she grabs a few strawberries, and then a few more, for her plate.]

Been a while since I've seen stuff this fresh.

[Some vegetables, too. Maybe a meat skewer or two! And she sets a couple down on Juzo's plate too.]

Here. These smell amazing...!

[gunmettle]

[ Fresh food is a bit of a rarity where he comes from too, so it's a bit overwhelming to see so much in one place. His new friend(?) has no problem diving right in for the both of them, and before he knows it, he's got a plate full of food. ]

Maybe we should eat what we've got first?

[ Please, before she foists more on him. ]

[starshower]

[Her embarrassment comes out as a laugh, face going almost as red as one of the strawberries she picks up off her plate.]

I guess so. Can't remember the last time I ate food that looked this good, though.

[She bites into it and savours the sweetness for a moment.]

Guess I got a little carried away... [As she eyes his plate.] Sorry.

... But hey, at least you've got a good selection now? I like to think I'm something of an expert on food.