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Deer Country Mod ([personal profile] reddosmod) wrote in [community profile] countryclub2021-09-24 08:03 pm
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September 2021 TEST DRIVE MEME

SEPTEMBER 2021 TEST DRIVE MEME
OUR GAME IS OFFICIALLY OPEN TO THE PUBLIC ON OCTOBER 1st.
Reserves open on September 26th. Applications open on October 1st.


Welcome to another Deer Country test drive meme! Our test drive memes are open to anyone interested - regardless of whether or not you join our game!

All Test Drive Memes are game canon. Players can choose to keep their TDM threads canon or not. TDM threads can be used for AC and can be used as your writing sample for your application.

Our TDMs serve as a way to build into the actual lore and worldbuilding of Deer Country and we strongly encourage everyone to enjoy and participate! Current players are always welcome to pull prompts from the TDM to reference on the Network or bring into logs as well as tag out to new characters top-leveling on the TDM itself.

Characters will always be able to actively die during TDMs as this is an extremely dangerous world. You can still have this be game canon! Check out how character death in Deer Country works here.

If you have any questions about the TDM, please ask down below!

IMAGE DESCRIPTORS IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE

Prompt One
[Image One: Skeletons running across the beach and crashing into each other.]
[Image Two: Apples being dipped into caramel and put on a sheet.]

Prompt Two
[Image One: A sketchy film reel of a well.]
[Image Two: An undead girl crawling up the side of a well with contorted movements.]

Prompt Three
[Image One: A massive whale bursting out of water to eat something.]
[Image Two: The inside of a whale's mouth filled with water and the back of its throat.]

STANDARD ARRIVAL
WHEN: End of September to mid October
WHERE: The Farther Shores/The Boardwalk
CONTENT WARNINGS: N/A


You're one of the lucky ones. Your journey is smooth sailing and you wind up exactly where you're supposed to: on the Farther Shores. You grow out of your squid body without a hitch, either with the help of another Sleeper or one of the Wakers, and you get to discover this new world. All new Sleepers might take some time to find their bearings. It might be tricky to remember how to use your body parts the way you're supposed to. You might stumble around the beach or forget how to talk - but don't worry! It'll come back to you sooner or later.

Hopefully, you've found something to wear, either in your Welcoming Bag or otherwise, and can start familiarizing yourself with your surroundings. Maybe you help some other squids out on the beach. Waking up sucks! You feel for the little guys. And hey, maybe you're hoping one of those squids is a good friend...Stranger things have happened.

SEASONAL DETAILS ON THE BOARDWALK

The Boardwalk is quite the spectacle this time of year. Pumpkins have been stacked on spikes lining the Boardwalk with grotesquely realistic carvings of faces decorated on them. Massive white linen has been hung in the air to look like ghosts floating back and forth against the ocean wind.

Delicious smells waft from the Boardwalk as fresh donuts, candied apples, and hot apple cider are sold at every other booth. One or two booths are set up offering Face Painting, Natives explaining to new Sleepers that face paint was integral to the survival of Trench sometimes - especially during the month of October. "We do it to disguise ourselves from roaming spirits and hungry beasts."

You hear rumors of something known as The Black Parade coming soon and there seems to be a festive buzz about the event. The weather has gotten a little too chilly to enjoy the beach in bathing suits, but there are other ways to take a bit of a break before committing your life to the terrors of Trench! In the evening, natives will go out to the beaches and set up cozy bonfires in clusters. They will throw in batches of incense to keep the beaches safe and fill the air with the warm, comforting scent of cinammon. Smores are generously enjoyed around these fires. Stick around and you will hear some natives telling stories about Legendary Ghosts. They might ask you if you know any stories like that too.

But of course, they give a caution about ghost stories: "Careful. You'll never know when you'll start living a ghost story yourself..."
WELLNESS
WHEN: Always - this monster permanently exists in Trench
WHERE: Near the Wayward Station in a Well
CONTENT WARNINGS: Bodily contortion, nail trauma, being trapped, possible drowning, "child" appearing monster.


You are pulled beneath Trench and into the currents that circulate throughout the city. You are jostled through the complex sewage system or waterways and get tossed between the stone tunnels until finally you're spilling down into a deep, deep well. You hit the still water at the bottom, easily a hundred feet down, and everything is finally quiet. The water here is quiet and still: nothing like the hurdling ocean water and channels you were pulled through. Up above you can see a perfect circle of light: the opening to the Well.

Another soul is plopped out next to you. Perhaps a familiar face or someone you've never met before. It's good to know you're not alone. Still - how to get out? There's some low pressure in the Well weighing down on you, but more than that, the pressure seems to dull abilities almost completely. You can't just fly out or zoom up the walls as you might normally be able to. The walls are made out of wet cobblestone and they are slick and difficult to get a grip on. You're sooner to destroy your nails than make it even halfway up. And it's a long way up.

Maybe there's something around you that might help? Being thrown into the Well at least comes with the benefit that your Welcoming Bag is floating in the water with you. Maybe there's something useful inside or you can use your new Omni to send a distress call. Or use your Omen to try and help someone find out where in this godforsaken place you are.

Your Welcoming Bag isn't the only thing floating around in the water with you. A human skull bumps into you before sinking down under the water. Something slides through the water beneath your feet, wisps of hair glancing over your ankles.

Suddenly the heavy sound of stone sliding against stone comes from above. Someone is sealing up the Well. Your light is running out and just as the last sliver of light casts across the water, you see a humanoid-looking creature peering at you from the other side of the Well. Then everything goes dark.

Torn fingernails rip across your arm and you're yanked underwater. The moment your blood surfaces, even just a drop of it, you're revitalized with your power (if you have any). For those who are warmblooded and common, you will find that you can suddenly at least see in the dark almost perfectly. You can also see a distinct pattern along the stone wall that could be more easily climbed than anywhere else. Now the challenge is to just try and get there.

The girl in the Well with you is violent and ferocious. She will try to drown you or break your body as quickly as she can and will use the dark and the water against you. She cannot be killed, but she can be temporarily stunned and thrown back. Once you begin climbing, she's quicker out of the water, crawling up the wall after you in spastic, contorting motions. The only true way to stop her is to get out of the Well and seal it back up. You realize that whoever had originally closed the Well wasn't doing it because of you...They were doing it because of her.

If you fail to seal the Well afterwards, the girl in the Well will haunt you. She will endlessly stalk people and drag them down into the waterways of Trench. She travels primarily through water and must be confined to the Well or else. The Well is located in the Trenchwoods close by the Wayward Station.
SWALLOWED
WHEN: Can happen any time someone goes too far out into the Pthumerian Ocean
WHERE: Middle of the Pthumerian Ocean
CONTENT WARNINGS: Being swallowed alive, travel inside a beast, possibility of killing a beast, organ-centric horror.


Like many Sleepers, you might get swept further out into the ocean before you're swept towards the Farther Shores. It's not the ideal scenario and immediately puts you in a vulnerable position. When you break the surface this time, you're in the middle of an unusually calm ocean. Where are the waves? Where is the commotion of the ocean? Although you're completely alone, you don't feel alone.

Pressure is building up beneath you. Something is coming towards you. You can feel the water beginning to churn about and you need to start swimming. Now. Still too disoriented from reincarnation, you probably don't have enough sense of self to use any sort of powers to get out of the situation. There's a tremendous roar, and suddenly, the world is going dark all around you, walls of red coming up on every side. Massive white stones jut out at you and it takes you a moment before you realize what's even happening.

A monster is about to swallow you whole. It's significantly bigger than you to the point where you've washed down its throat without a single injury. You don't even know what swallowed you, but you're sliding down the throat and through its body within seconds. You somehow get tossed to a strange part of its body and land on a fleshy surface and discover you're not the only thing this creature has eaten. Other Sleeper(s) are nearby, and maybe even some pets, all more shocked than hurt.

Looks like you've been had. But it's far from the worst. Everyone's okay and there doesn't actually seem to be anything inside of the monster that's interested in hurting you. Avoid the stomach acid and figure out the insides and you might actually just make your way out of the creature without incident. Most of the monsters who swallow Sleepers don't seem to even realize what they did, and you can usually find your way out the way you came in. Along the way, you might discover some other interesting things inside of the body such as swallowed ships with interesting resources, some of your items from home or other people's homes...And of course, you'll probably find a lot of skeletons of creatures swallowed long before you. Not everything can figure their way out of a massive creature.

You can always hack your way out of the creature but that's gory and tough work. These are behemoth beings and even cutting your way out won't necessarily mean you killed it - but it probably does mean you're going to really piss it off. Then again, it's so big, will it really even bother to fight back?

The situation can be admittedly disgusting. There's nothing fun about swimming up a creature's bloodstream or having to navigate its intestines. Some creatures are bigger than others, making the journey far more complicated. Others are smaller, easier to escape. If you upset someone's stomach, you might even just get puked up and that might be one of the simplest ways to get out of dodge.

The monsters can look like anything and be nearly any size. The Pthumerian Ocean is massive and contains massive beasts and lesser Pthumerians. Once your character has gotten out of the beast, they will find that they are much closer to the Farther Shores. They might even wind up beaching the creature they're in if they're really lucky! Navigating the creatures isn't too unlike navigating a complex cave. The only difference is the walls around you are some sort of organ.
CODING
faithfulson: (Not willing to accept this.)

[personal profile] faithfulson 2021-09-30 12:49 am (UTC)(link)
So...

[ Luke hesitated, pursing his lips. He wanted to ask what was the last thing he remembered, but part of him was afraid of that answer. A sigh finally escaped from him after a moment, his shoulders slumping. ]

You know, this just adds to what I want to know, but at the same time, I'm not sure if I should know.
jedies: (The Lost One)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-30 12:50 am (UTC)(link)
[ obi-wan nods curtly. ]

That is a decision only you can make. I have . . . been told of some events in the future, but I prefer not to hear it all. And carve out my own.
faithfulson: (Controlling myself...)

[personal profile] faithfulson 2021-09-30 01:25 am (UTC)(link)
I just...

[ He hesitated a moment, reaching shakily to the Force for calm, before he finally continued. ]

What was the last thing that happened for you? Before here?
jedies: (Voices)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-30 01:31 am (UTC)(link)
[ obi-wan hesitates briefly. ]

It was the end of the Clone Wars. I had just reached Utapau and was about to dispatch General Grievous.
faithfulson: (...I guess.)

[personal profile] faithfulson 2021-09-30 01:39 am (UTC)(link)
[ Luke stared for a moment, like he was trying to determine if he was lying or not, before he deflated, letting out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. ]

Oh... I see.
jedies: (The Men Who Stare At Goats)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-30 01:40 am (UTC)(link)
[ his expression softens. ]

However, I am somewhat aware of Palpatine's mechanisms and I know the future was not kind to us. And . . . it was not kind to you, I believe.
faithfulson: (I think I swallowed a bug)

[personal profile] faithfulson 2021-09-30 01:47 am (UTC)(link)
[ Luke shrugged sheepishly at that, offering him a faint smile. ]

I turned out alright in the end, though it wasn't easy to get to that point.

[ The fact that he absently rubbed at his arm at the mention of Palpatine was a pretty big clue that things definitely weren't easy. ]
jedies: (Overlords)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-30 01:50 am (UTC)(link)
Regardless.

[ it is always a shame when the next generation inherits the problems of old. there are questions still in obi-wan's mind, but he must contend with what he knows. focus on the present. ]

I had hoped it would have ended on Utapau.
faithfulson: (Sure if you say so)

[personal profile] faithfulson 2021-09-30 01:59 am (UTC)(link)
What happened there?

[ Luke paused a moment, frowning to himself. ]

I've heard a 'Grievous' mentioned by some members of the Alliance that used to be Separatists, but I don't know much about him.

[ A lot of everything about the Clone Wars was either covered up or edited, and first hand accounts only went so far if the person wasn't there in the specific part of the war one was curious about. ]
jedies: (Unfinished Business)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-30 02:03 am (UTC)(link)
[ obi-wan runs his fingers down his beard, contemplative. ]

There isn't much to say. Grievous was one of the last surviving leaders of the Separatists. Count Dooku was killed not long ago and the war was nearly over.
faithfulson: (Whatever you say...)

[personal profile] faithfulson 2021-09-30 02:31 am (UTC)(link)
Dooku?

[ He frowned at that, not recalling if he had heard that name before or not. After a moment, he shook his head, silent assurance that Ben didn't need to elaborate. ]

Clearly, I'm going to need to sit down for a history lesson.
jedies: (Ambush)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-30 02:35 am (UTC)(link)
It is a very long tale, I'm afraid. Count Dooku was a jedi long ago. My Master's master, in fact.

But he chose the dark side and helped start the Clone Wars. For years, we were embroiled in it.
faithfulson: (I learned a lot...)

[personal profile] faithfulson 2021-09-30 02:48 am (UTC)(link)
Three years, right? I remember Leia said that much.

[ Ducking and running and fighting around the galaxy for years at a time was hard. He had looked for adventure and excitement for years, had been able to keep up with it for about that long. Everything changed at Bespin, though; Bespin was certainly the point where he was done with war. ]
jedies: (Czerwony punkt)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-30 02:49 am (UTC)(link)
[ he sighs. ]

Yes. Three years, across multiple planets and places. Playing the part of a soldier.
faithfulson: (It seemed like a good idea...)

[personal profile] faithfulson 2021-09-30 03:26 am (UTC)(link)
[ Luke gave him a sympathetic look; just from that reaction alone, it was no wonder that Ben had been content with laying low on Tatooine for nineteen years. Even with how dangerous the wastes could be, it still had to be peaceful by comparison. ]

I'm sorry; I know there's nothing I can do, but I wish you all hadn't had to go through all that.
jedies: (Our Kind of Traitor)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-30 03:34 am (UTC)(link)
[ obi-wan blinks, surprised before he smiles. ]

Well, even though I have no fondness for war, if I can save a life, then it is my duty to do so.
faithfulson: (I'm just pretending to listen)

[personal profile] faithfulson 2021-10-10 09:36 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Luke nodded in understanding; he certainly started feeling that way after Bespin, and the last year hadn't exactly helped. ]

I would still like to know more, but I'm sure we have plenty of time to talk about it in time.
jedies: (Tales from the Crypt)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-10-11 12:29 am (UTC)(link)
[ he nods. ]

Of course. I'd be happy to share what I know.
faithfulson: (Why are you breathing my air?)

[personal profile] faithfulson 2021-10-11 12:53 am (UTC)(link)
[ Luke nodded in kind, before a faint smile came to his face. ]

By the way... I did meet my father here first. He's... a little paranoid about telling you about me. I don't think he realizes you already know, but he also wants me to move in, so...

[ As usual, this is a Skywalker Level Mess. ]
jedies: (The Lost One)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-10-11 12:58 am (UTC)(link)
[ ah. hmm. obi-wan resists the urge to rub his forehead briefly. it's true, he had been avoiding this conversation as much as anakin would be. for obvious reasons. ]

I would be happy if you moved in, certainly. We'd be honoured to have you.

I will speak to your . . . father about the rest.
faithfulson: (I think I swallowed a bug)

[personal profile] faithfulson 2021-10-11 01:03 am (UTC)(link)
Good luck.

[ He knows Obi-Wan doesn't believe in luck, but considering his father? Yeah, he would need it. ]

Please let me know if there's anything I can do to help.
jedies: (Trainspotting)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-10-11 01:07 am (UTC)(link)
[ he smiles. ]

I appreciate that, Luke. Thank you.