natha: (Default)
ɴᴀᴛʜᴀ orbiters ❰ mod collective ❱ ([personal profile] natha) wrote in [community profile] nysaooc2018-01-01 07:09 pm
Entry tags:

❪ month outline + plotting ❫ JANUARY 2018

Hello and Happy New Year, El Nysa!

As always, we're glad to have such an enthusiastic playerbase sticking with us. We would like to remind everyone to follow the game plurk at [plurk.com profile] elnysa to stay informed. The game plurk tends to focus on smaller but vital details/updates, and you may miss out on information if you only follow the Dreamwidth communities.

This post will outline the overall mood and events happening in January for both Wyver and Olympia in order to help players plan accordingly. Please use this post for plotting as you see fit!

A NOTE FOR GOING FORWARD: As we continue to progress with branching plot elements and an increased focus on worldbuilding, we will be doing our best to provide a consistent schedule and style of events. Outlines, such as the ones you have seen in December and now in January, will be making their appearance in place of mod-posted logs as to provide a more flexible template/prompts for your own player plots and general catch-alls. We will still be utilizing mod-posted logs as the plot demands, but due to the scale of the game, they may not be posted each month.* We encourage players to be proactive with the information given in these plot outlines, and we are be happy to answer questions about the outlined topics for reference!

*Intro logs will still go up regularly!
ATMOSPHERE THROUGHOUT THE MONTH    
W y v e r
  • WEEK ONE. Immediately following the holiday Gala, Wyver has closed its doors to native Olympians. Refugees are still welcome to come and go as they please, but if you wore an Olympian ribbon during the Gala games, you might be surprised just how many native Wyver citizens remember... Expect more than a few cold looks and, from the extreme, poor or refused service at shops and restaurants.

  • WEEK TWO. The unaffiliated quest bulletin goes live this week, so expect to see those advertisements around. In the rest of the city, with the Olympian nuisances gone from the nearby outpost, things are finally back to normal. After the recent refugee appearance near the big skull on the jungle coast and the dragon bones more inland, the natives are mumbling more about their history. Some of them seem completely ignorant of what life used to be like before modern Wyver.

  • WEEK THREE. If Wyver seems distracted by their own history more than they're worrying about the Olympian conflict, it's because the people here are not nearly as divided about what the best course of action is. Many people think large-scale conflict is not only inevitable but correct, and those who disagree do so quietly to avoid scorn from their friends and neighbors. Wyver feels more united, and morale is high.

  • WEEKS FOUR & FIVE. Wyver citizens finally find something to argue about: when exactly they should finally deal with Olympia. Many views and opinions are present, but the two loudest are do it now, while they're weak! and wait a while and take them by surprise! Wyver debates are heated, and most of them end in physical altercations. Any refugee who comes to Wyver frequently from a home in Olympia will be actively shunned at this point.
O l y m p i a
  • WEEK ONE. After the Gala, the Olympians return home to a more somber situation. A week of preparation and celebration has raised spirits, but that means a week lost of ongoing repairs to buildings and businesses in the city. The people seem to have renewed vigor for their projects and pride in their city; however, if you wore a Wyver ribbon during the Gala, you might find the natives refusing your help and business like your offer is an actual joke.

  • WEEK TWO. The unaffiliated quest bulletin goes live, so expect to see those advertisements around (markedly more Temples request postings here than in Wyver). In the rest of the city, repairs have reach their final stretch -- by the end of the week, Olympia will be back to "normal," its normal splendor refreshed and Olympian pride high.

  • WEEK THREE. Olympian pride takes a darker turn in some pockets of the city, where people have started to whisper amongst themselves about how wise it was (or wasn't) to form a truce with Wyver even in a time of great need. A common sentiment seems to be that Olympians believe they could have fought back the sickness a few months ago themselves, without Wyver help, and that the Gala was less a peaceful truce and more spit in their faces. Some also believe Simwe was foolish for exposing Olympia's vulnerability to Wyver.

  • WEEKS FOUR & FIVE. Government approval rating is still low; many people are wary about the long-lasting consequences of showing weakness to Wyver and celebrating with them. Many citizens fear large-scale conflict, but others clamor for it, stating it's the only way to deal with Wyver once and for all. People from both sides speak to crowds on street corners, and the debates get nasty.
THE OLYMPIAN PUBLIC    
All around Olympia, those vocal groups of civilians are imploring their fellow citizens, refugees included, to make their voices heard. Some are insisting others join them at rallies in public squares or come speak with them if they have something to say to their neighbors about the conflict everyone is sure is coming, while others are taking a more... personalized approach.

That is to say: they're handing out paper surveys about the issues going on. These surveys are ostensibly to deliver the voice of the people to those in power in Olympia, but they won't get anywhere if no one replies! That's where you come in, refugees: Will your voice be heard?

The survey is obviously to completed IC, but OOCly, submit it under the thread HERE to gain ONE (1) Olympia REP point. Your character may submit as many surveys under as many names (or anonymously) as they like, but you will only receive REP for a single survey. Feel free to be as serious (or not) as your characters would ICly be when approached on the street with a survey! It is not required to answer every question.

Survey submission is due on January 20th, 11:59 PM EST.

Copy and paste the survey below to fill it out!

THE HILLS ARE ALIVE    

With the increasing prejudices making the cities' atmospheres too heavy to bear, the stablehands have offered a way to explore the countryside: mounts. Mounts are only sold off to prestigious members of their respective societies, but refugees are offered a trial version to quickly explore the terrain. An emphasis on quickly, because they have until sundown before they turn hostile and eject them. If they expect to be busy after dark, they are advised to dismount and walk the distance back. You might want to pack some camping gear.

Upon venturing out into the open world, refugees will find that that many citizens are displaced. Those that do not agree with the both cities closing its doors have made the choice of leaving of their of volitional, claiming that they have seen tension boil over before and they want their family lines to end over it. However, because of the path they have chosen, they face cold nights and hungry wildlife. The Sanctuary and Altar of Volkkra encourage their workers not to heal the injuries of deserters, but their families will beg those with an affinity for medical treatment for some assistance as they try to journey to more neutral territories.

Depending on where you go and which mount you take, they may react differently:
  • Murkwell Hollow: As opposed to their comfort around their ancestors’ remains, dragon-related (wyvern and flying serpent) mounts are skittish around the area and will try and steer riders away from the area. Refugees might notice that in contrast the human remains found in this area are worn and respectfully left untouched by Olympians, as opposed to how Wyver bones are unnaturally clean and in incomplete sets. Those that have gathered the latter as samples already may feel inclined to take both in for comparison.
  • Flona Cove: If you choose to bypass the train fee for a trip to the coast, Olympian mounts will appreciate the cool air over the city’s frequent snow. Tourist season is over and many boats are not scheduled to go out to sea, but the Pegasus will be more than happy to take you over a calm flight over the water. Riders will notice that large, unfamiliar ships are a ways from the coast, and if they venture to where miners usually work, they’ll find that pirates are emptying the miners' supply caches.
  • Edrathe Ruins: All mounts are uneasy the further you go into the ruins. You might hear a faint rumbling coming from somewhere, but even if you leave your mount behind and try to investigate it, it seems to always be moving further away from you, but maybe you can find something else of interest? If you leave your mount alone for too long, they will leave you and dash back to the stables.
  • In general, mounts that come from Olympia won't want to approach Wyver's borders, and vice versa. They can be urged forward, but they will be unhappy and even hostile, and their owners will not appreciate it when you return.
JOB OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE    
Tension between the two factions is ramping up at an alarming pace, but you still have to make a living somehow. Job opportunities are available in both Olympia and Wyver, and it is at this point that people are expected to stop being "refugees" and start taking sides. Does this mean you absolutely must commit right now? No! But if you're living and working in Olympia it's going to be harder to move comfortably throughout Wyver, and vice versa. Some refugees might even be considering not picking a side at all... border patrols around both Olympia and Wyver will respond to such refugees with less aggression but equal disapproval; it's frowned upon to abstain, but doable.

The business information for both factions can be found here, and the NPC contact pages here. Currently, the best way to contact an NPC is via PM to handwave an interaction. You do not need to PM the NPC account about getting a job, simply sign up on the correct page under the header. Those businesses without a sign-up header are minor and employment there can be handwaved!

FINAL OOC NOTE    
Welcome to 2018, Nysans! As we ring in the new year, some housekeeping and reminders from the calendar: the ATP meme/Test Drive is coming up at the end of the month! We no longer do formal reserves, so if you or a friend is interested in trying us out, be ready for those! Apps will be opening February 2! That's one day after January AC ends, and apps will close when we reach 60 apps.

The unaffiliated quest bulletin goes live on January 7! More information about those will be included when they're revealed. A note about quest bulletin scheduling: while it goes live for the first time this month and will have additional quests available in February, new quests will go up during app cycle months after February. This is to make them readily available to all characters as soon as they join, as they do not require faction allegiance to accept! Think of January-February as our introductory period to quests before the regular schedule starts.

If you have any further concerns, feel free to PM us directly or use our modbox for other ways to get a hold of us. Thank you!

panzersoldat: (old knight)

[personal profile] panzersoldat 2018-01-02 02:31 am (UTC)(link)
Upon venturing out into the open world, refugees will find that that many citizens are displaced. Those that do not agree with the both cities closing its doors have made the choice of leaving of their of volitional, claiming that they have seen tension boil over before and they want their family lines to end over it. However, because of the path they have chosen, they face cold nights and hungry wildlife. The Sanctuary and Altar of Volkkra encourage their workers not to heal the injuries of deserters, but their families will beg those with an affinity for medical treatment for some assistance as they try to journey to more neutral territories.

As a man with his own personal horse, Reinhardt would likely be venturing out himself. He's likely to come upon these sorts of people. If he was to help them (protect them from the man eating beasties) and get them to a neutral territory, how would he be treated back in Wyver (as this is where he's decided to had his home)? How about in Olympia, as he would help those fleeing refugees too.

Mostly because Reinhardt sees himself as "a knight of the people". He would go out of his way to make sure "the people" regardless of side are safe, protected, fed, etc.
panzersoldat: (pounded beef)

[personal profile] panzersoldat 2018-01-02 03:15 am (UTC)(link)
follow up question, because we know this man can't be quiet about things he sees as "unjust". How quickly would the shunning happen? I'm assuming it would be things like "your business is not welcome here", "don't accept his trades" and if they do, he's charged like 4x the actual amount. Just to give me some idea of a rough timeline before his White Knight tendencies really bite him in the ass.

(As he is willing to and going want to help anyone who wants to leave, leave)
panzersoldat: (Default)

[personal profile] panzersoldat 2018-01-02 03:29 am (UTC)(link)
thank you for the quick answers. This helped a lot and gives me an idea of how to proceed and what to expect/write. One more question, for those that do leave, how willing will those refugees be to allow him to guard them/help them to safer less war-hungry areas?
panzersoldat: (Ham not beef)

[personal profile] panzersoldat 2018-01-02 03:46 am (UTC)(link)
*whips out the ham icon*
A FREE KNIGHT TAKES NO SIDES. ALL PEOPLE IN NEED ARE WORTHY OF HELP.

Now that I got that out of my system....

Yes. He will likely take his horse and sally forth to help all those he can that are trying to get out of dodge, regardless of faction. So this definitely gives me a direction to go. Thank you.
shashka: icon credit <user name="roflskate"> unless otherwise indicated (Default)

[personal profile] shashka 2018-01-02 04:39 am (UTC)(link)
A question about the surveys!

how seriously will they be taken, and can characters use them to raise their own standing (i.e. "wow that Ocelot is a great guy, he's a real stand-up Olympian citizen).
personalwar: face (pic#11621372)

[personal profile] personalwar 2018-01-02 04:26 pm (UTC)(link)
Hi, mods! A couple questions.

1) Going off of the idea of mounts being uneasy in other territories... Jack got a horse as an ACP reward back in Olympia, but the horse was left behind during the move to Wyver because Jack was in custody at the time. If he were to have a friend bring his horse from Olympia to Wyver for him, would his mount be open to that/comfortable with it? Or would there be problems?

2) If someone were to join the Knightryders, would they still be allowed to do unaffiliated quests? Also, would these quests be enough to support someone on their own, or would they need another kind of job to supplement?
personalwar: visor (pic#11621339)

[personal profile] personalwar 2018-01-02 06:08 pm (UTC)(link)
Great, thank you!

I also was wondering if more information could be given on the process of joining the Knightryders, and what would be expected in terms of daily work, if you don't mind! How would it compare to Olympia's guard, for instance. Jack would be wary to join given his past experiences, so I'm trying to figure out if he'd go for it or not.
hedonistic: (pic#11567978)

[personal profile] hedonistic 2018-01-14 10:39 am (UTC)(link)
If a character was wearing a Wyver pin during the holiday ball, would they be able to borrow an Olympia mount (e.g. for Flona Cove) or would they have to stick to Wyver mounts?
nysan: (Default)

[personal profile] nysan 2018-01-15 05:10 am (UTC)(link)
They would be able to borrow an Olympia mount! However, the stablemaster would not let them have the mount for as long a time; they would demand the mount's return after about half the time that Olympians are allowed.
meinwaifu: (How can the devil be this cute ♪)

Plot with meeee

[personal profile] meinwaifu 2018-01-02 02:31 am (UTC)(link)
Let's make plans for the month!! Mephisto will be staying chiefly in Olympia, particularly this month while he settles in, but I'm always up for meeting Wyver people either out exploring (probably sans mounts considering they don't like going near the border and Mephisto doesn't mind staying out all night since he doesn't really need to sleep) or on Thesa station. I'll have an open log up sooner or later depending on how much plotting I get done!

In general, Mephisto is living under two aliases that he switches between depending on what sort of person he's dealing with (Mephisto Pheles and Johann Faust), and will only be open about being a demon in cases where he thinks it would be more fun to do so! He can also transform himself into small animals that are virtually indistinguishable from the real thing, including a few that are native to Nysa thanks to a good deal of practice. He's pretty flexible with plotting, and is easily drawn to people he finds interesting in some way.

I'd love to do some exploring prompts, especially around Murkwell Hollow because it's spooky and that fits Mephisto's aesthetic perfectly. Also weird shit grows there and there are lots of funny possibilities for threads! Or weird possibilities. I mean, there's giant hallucinogenic mushrooms, a tree that eats people, and a tentacle monster plant?? And also bears. And other spooky monsters. I know I'd love for Mephisto to lose a few days of memories to a Minnu because I love being mean to him, but I'm basically down for anything!

He'll probably be going all over while they've been given the chance to travel so freely, but seeing as he can also just straight-up transform into a bird, he might explore further on his own as well -- and use the element of surprise to scare people by seemingly appearing out of nowhere like the creep he is.

General Olympia stuff, he'll probably answer one survey genuinely and then do a bunch of prank ones to mess with the ones collecting them for shits and giggles. Around Olympia, he'll be making an effort to fit in with the locals and publicly will be more inclined to talk favorably of Olympia over Wyver regardless of how he actually feels on the subject. He can also be found hanging around the red light district some nights because #thirst.

I'm also planning on a network post sometime where Mephisto will be publicly seeking out students interested in learning magic (under his Johann Faust persona) as part of his research with the institute. Students will mostly be limited to those living in Olympia, but he'll include a clause for refugees willing to meet on Thesa if he finds them to be an interesting candidate. Anyone is welcome to attend to his lectures at the institute regardless of whether he's interested in them as a private student. This can also be an IC explanation for how characters learn new abilities through ACP (but is obviously not required).

If you wanna do any specific plotting you can also hit me up on plurk at [plurk.com profile] randomsnarfle (it's locked to keep out spambots but anyone from the game can add me!) or Discord at randomsnarfle#6881!
catfident: (Default)

[personal profile] catfident 2018-01-02 04:29 pm (UTC)(link)
hey hey, i'd be interested in hitting up mephisto sometime! i think it'd be fun to toss a demon who can turn into small animals together with a shinigami that can turn into a small cat. i don't have any solid plans for this month since yoruichi's still fairly new and isn't too deeply involved in all the conflict, but i'd be game for doing some exploring if you're up for it!

or if you have any other ideas, i'm game for those too!
meinwaifu: dog (Do you like it ruff ♪)

[personal profile] meinwaifu 2018-01-02 08:20 pm (UTC)(link)
Omigosh what a pair they would be -- especially when Mephisto's main animal of choice is a small dog! Which he turns into pretty often, since he's living with Yona as her pet dog as an excuse to live somewhere rent free... he has weird hobbies...

I'll be putting up an open log soonish I think that'll have a few exploring prompts, but I can put up a closed prompt for catdog shenanigans while exploring! Maybe somewhere somewhat safer like Flona Cove...? But they could still get carried away by a giant bird or something, which could be a funny way to out each other as not actually being a cat/dog.
catfident: (Default)

[personal profile] catfident 2018-01-02 09:01 pm (UTC)(link)
mephisto no.......but tbh if she could live somewhere rent-free as a cat, she'd probably do it too

animal shenanigans sound hilarious to me and i'm definitely down! i'm happy to wait for your open log, and if you've got enough energy to put up a closed prompt that would be fantastic! but if you can't, i can wildcard something onto your log.
meinwaifu: (MFW my waifu loves me ♪)

[personal profile] meinwaifu 2018-01-03 12:32 am (UTC)(link)
He's living the cushy life of a lap dog, it's pretty good tbh, A++ would recommend.

Also I got a prompt up over here for you! Let me know if there's anything about it I should change!
catfident: (Default)

[personal profile] catfident 2018-01-03 09:02 pm (UTC)(link)
Looks perfect! I'll hop to it in a bit.