dagung | TDM: January

Test Drive: January

All threads can be considered game canon,

the prompts and test drive itself will be

• Reserves Open Today! If you're interested in securing a spot, put one in! We accept applications without reserves too, of course. Reserves will expire three days before the end of the application period, on the 28th.
• Applications Open The 24th! These will last until the end of the month, the 31st, with the intro log going up on February 1st. The application page can be found here. As a reminder, this will be our last uncapped application round!
• If you have any questions about the game or the world, please refer to the FAQ page; if you still have questions, feel free to ask them! For questions specific to the test drive, please ask them on the appropriate thread.
• For the purposes of the test drive, your character will have access to all magics taught by the Coven if they're a Witch, and as much of their shifted form as you'd like if they're a Monster. Feel free to play around and experiment with each!
• Test drive threads can be used as samples for your applications!

You feel like you're floating. Around you, colors and sounds and smells swirl as if trapped in a whirlpool, vibrancy and hue ever shifting. The more you watch them, the less solid they are; they only become clear out of the corner of your eye. The area around you begins to feel more solid as well, until your feet are on the ground, the wind brushes playfully against your face -

and you know one thing, and one thing alone: this is a dream, and an incredibly realistic one at that.

The Prehistoric Wilde

Thick summer heat hangs heavy over the uninfected landscape like a damp blanket, smothering. The jungle around you is thick and wet, full of the sounds of chittering animals and the high-pitched drone of insects. The flora and fauna are like nothing you've ever seen before, large and alien in colors and shapes, though they bear no signs of the Cwyld. Flowers the size of a man's head and brightly colored in rainbow hues curl their tendrils invitingly, and giant mosquitoes buzz through the air seeking a meal. You can barely see the glow of the twin moons through the thick canopy above. There are no signs of civilization - at least, not the civilization most will be used to; only the distant sound of the river, compelling you to follow its winding path. But will you go forward, or will you go back?

Rumble in the Jungle
Making headway through the jungle at night is a chore. The foliage grows thick and the humid heat is oppressive for even those who enjoy the warmth. There are no clear paths here, no easy way through. The canopy of the ancient trees far, far over your head is just as dense, but the faintest moonlight filters through the holes left by the huge leaves in stippling patterns across the musty forest floor. 'Large' seems to be the theme - lining whatever path you pick your way through, there are pitcher plants massive enough to swallow a grown man, with small animals and giant insects being digested down inside the sticky liquid that fills them. The flowers are as big as a man's head, and come in a rainbow of colors, their venomous tendrils curling toward signs of life. The trunks of some of the trees are as thick as houses, and shade the ground beneath them with leaves like umbrellas. The hand-sized mosquitoes thrive in the sticky heat and if not killed first, can make off with a full pint of blood from an unsuspecting person.

At some point in your journey, the ground begins to rumble beneath your feet. The farther you go, the longer you walk, the more signs of life become visible: thick, winding trails of crushed foliage, huge, animalistic footprints in the mud. Luckily, to this world, you are small and insignificant, and may escape the notice of the local Monsters - the massive, prehistoric ancestors of today's Monsters.

They seem like giants, colossal Titanoboa Nagas with hollow fangs like swords, towering Fauns with the lower halves of mammoths, sabertooth Turnskins, pterodactyl Harpies with leathery wings. Even the parts of them that resemble humans (and they have far fewer human-like parts than their modern counterparts) are larger than any actual human being. They operate primarily on instinct, made even stronger by the full moons above, and perceive the strange new creatures as threats - or food.

Sticking to the river seems safest - at least until you run into megalodon Merrow, singing an alien, but alluring, song to draw in prey, or the apex predator of this prehistoric world - Dragons, bigger and scalier than the ones Mirrorbound may know, stopped to drink at the river. All other Monsters flee from the huge reptiles, lest they become food themselves. Luckily you can defend yourself with your new abilities, or your neat changes - you're small, but not totally helpless.

Interesting to note... while all other Monster types are represented, there are no Fae or Chimeras in the Wilde here, and the Vampires are more like huge bat-monsters that traverse the jungle on all fours than humanoid bloodsuckers.

The Natives
Going backward, away from the distant sounds of the sea and against the current of the river, leads you through dense jungle. How long have you traversed the landscape? Hours? Days? Time passes funny in dreams. Eventually the trees thin out, grow taller and less leafy, and the air becomes drier. Instead of loamy soil beneath your feet, you start to feel rocky, harder earth, and spot outcroppings of stone. The sun begins to rise, which makes it easier to spot people on the horizon, a little settlement coming to life in the morning, nestled where the river forks into two.

They're much hardier than the familiar people of Aefenglom, sunburned and dressed in natural, rough fabrics. Their homes, if one can call them that, are shoddy little structures made of sticks and leaves and mud, pressed up against the sturdiness of the stone formations. And, when they spot strangers approaching their village, they scramble for their weapons - crude clubs, stone axes, even just large rocks snatched up off the ground.

The translation magic works on them, thankfully. Their speech is halted and simple, but they get their point across. Tell them who you are, or they'll beat your brains in. Monsters might get their brains beat in anyway if they aren't careful, even though they're much smaller than the Monsters these humans are used to. And Witches? May the gods help you if you use magic in front of these terrified, unevolved people, lest they mistake you for a Fae (the word is whispered with fear and revulsion in their voices) and swarm you with simple iron tools. If you're an actual Fae, an obvious Fae? They'll whisk their children into their huts protectively and then run you right out of the village. Violently.

The truly observant, or those who can see through illusions, among you may notice something strange, though. Some Fae actually seem to live among them, heavily cloaked in natural illusions, with the primitive humans none the wiser. There are just a few, but all of them look young, twelve or thirteen at the oldest, and they are all scared of their secret coming to light. Fae who get caught tend to be burned at the stake around here.

The Invaders
Perhaps you chose to go forward, with the current and toward the distant sound of ocean waves, where the river pours into the sea. More long-time residents of Aefenglom may notice that the shoreline is familiarly-shaped, but wider, bigger, not yet worn down by thousands of years of erosion. There is no bustling Harbor, only the waves crashing on the rocks, small islands dotting the water near the shore. There is no Bright Wall - there is no city, even, only an expanse of beach transitioning gently into an idyllic grove dotted with gauzy, pointed tents, and a beautiful, gilded ship half sunk into the sandy earth.

It seems safer than the jungle, at first - until you notice all the Fae. They're more insectoid than the ones many are familiar with, with big, glittering eyes and either bright, jewel-toned wings like dragonflies or butterflies, or delicate, leafy wings in greens and browns. They're also taller than modern, lesser Fae, though not by much, and they're thin and angular, standing on spindly limbs that barely seem able to hold them.

Characters receive a warmer welcome here, by the band of true Fae that have made their camp in the grove, though the alien-looking beings have a tendency to treat them like toys, children, or both, cooing over their sizes and their magic.
"Look at the little Monsters! Aren't they cute!"
"We should make some of our own! And oh, the little humans have magic! Delightful!"
It's hard to have a conversation with one - they're condescending at best, and at worst, flit off to another entertainment out of boredom while you're mid-sentence.

And entertainments abound in their camp. They're served and tended to like emperors by collared humans - adults and young adults do the heavy labor, including pulling grand little chariots for transportation, though there are some highly-supervised human children running about fetching drinks and fanning their Fae masters with palm leaves.

Farther out, a large, deep pit has been dug out of the earth, ringed by a waist-high barrier of logs, a few Fae gathering at the barrier and leaning over, talking in conversational, happy voices. Down below, Chimera gladiators fight for their amusement, while the Fae keep up running commentary, discussing each warrior's chances, new breeding prospects, interesting crossbreeds their fellows have come up with ("She's trying an Arachne and a Turnskin together, how delightful!"). Trying to disrupt the proceedings will only result in the Fae turning their magic on you - illusions and curses, nasty little tricks. Sit down, silly little ones! The fight is just getting good! Or maybe... Maybe they'll toss you into the pit to see what your chances are in battle.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

So...games are really just lessons that children want to attend.

[ Leslie's surprised but curious look shifts to one that's almost guilty. ]

If I'd had a tutor like Brother Ruenti when I was a child, I'm sure that I would have wanted to attend his lessons, but I don't know how things are for other people.

[ what do you mean "when I was a child" you twelve year old who is small enough to be mistaken for ten. (This is a familial brother, not a monk. Translating Korean or other honourific-filled languages to English is hard.) As she starts searching the ground for good rocks to use, she glances back up at Akechi. ]

What's a sport? Is it some specific kind of game?

That's a good way of putting it.

[ He actually means it, too. He'll have to remember that metaphor if he ever ends up explaining the origin of games again.

He won't comment on whether or not she's still a child, but her next question certainly catches him off guard. Akechi blinks, suddenly entirely unsure of how he should answer. ]

Well... yes, they are. Sports are competitive games centered around physical activity. Seeing who can run faster, or swim a certain distance in the least amount of time. Some of them are played in teams, too.

A competitive physical game....

[ She sounds thoughtful, but not like this sounds even slightly familiar. There are probably sports in her world, but not any that she knows. Granted, she's pale enough that it looks like she's basically never gone outdoors. ]

Then...is this a sport?

[ She places a few stones on the log as she says it, setting up the rock-tossing game. ]

[ 'Looks like she never goes outdoors' is a conclusion Akechi has already made about Leslie, though he can't someone imagine just not knowing what sports are. Even the most reclusive, shut in nerd he's ever met has heard of baseball and soccer. ]

Perhaps, but I don't think most people would consider it a sport. Tag involves running around and trying to catch or evade other players, but it's still thought of as just a game.

[ Hopefully she at least knows what tag is. ]

Do you need help setting up?

[ Unless she is actively trying to hide something, Leslie wears her heart on her sleeve. The somewhat blank look she gives him followed by a dawning understanding suggests that this is the first time she's heard of tag, but she's able to guess approximately what he's talking about from his description. Hmm. Some physical activities are sports, and some are games, and this current game is not a sport. ]

Is it like the difference between contracts and pinkie promises? Where they are both promises, but one is used more by adults and the latter is more something children do?

[ As for his offer to help.... ]

I think I can do this part myself. Though...I don't really know what would be a fair distance to stand away when throwing. Do you have any ideas?

[ That's... certainly a comparison a child would make, and between that and the fact that she doesn't even seem to know what tag is Akechi finds himself really wondering exactly what sort of life experiences this girl has had. ]

I'd say it's more a matter of organization. There's often extra rules in sports, like what sort of field you can play on, or if you're allowed to touch the other player and what types of touch are allowed if you can.

[ This is actually kind of fun, if he's being honest. He's never really had to think about it like this so far. As for Leslie's next question... ]

I say.... let's compare how far each of us can throw a rock normally, then say whoever throws further has to stand further back from the tree stump.

[ If it's an experience you expect a child to have, she probably has no idea what you're talking about. ]

Then a game is something you can learn in a short period of time, while a sport is something that takes longer to learn...is it? Oh, but sports have to involve physical activity, too....

[ She's looking thoughtful as she makes sure she has the right grasp of the difference between game and sport, but once it turns to the subject of this specific game, her expression changes to an awkwardly concerned one. ]

Would that be fair to you, though? It's more likely that you're going to be the one who can throw it farther, so you'd have to start at a disadvantage.

[ She may not like that she's a wimpy shrimp when it comes to specifically physical prowess, but she can acknowledge it. ]

Having extra rules and physical activity seem like the best way to distinguish them.

[ He's never actually put this much thought into what makes a game a sport, and it's not like he can just look it up now, so those two criteria will have to do. ]

I don't mind - and it's not uncommon in games to give one player a handicap to level the playing field, anyway.

[ And while Akechi is egotistical and competitive, he's not 'crush a little girl in a friendly game' levels of egotistical and competitive. ]

Oh, it's a normal thing. That would be helpful for people of different abilities to play together. ...Thank you.

[ When the kids were making fun of her and cheering on the people who did it well, she quickly came to dislike being outdone quite so hard. A bit of evening up for even just their height differences. And also probably skill difference but she doesn't have to think about that. It's a friendly game!!

Leslie stands by the stump and throws a test stone. Thanks to having a few opportunities to cast an earlier stone, her underhand pitch does not end up going practically straight up in the air, but it still careens off to the left (her effort to not hit her own torso is making her swing in more of an arc around it rather than something straighter) and is propelled by Leslie's approximately zero muscle. The results...could be more impressive.

Leslie says nothing. She just sighs. ]

TDM: January

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