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7deadmemes2024-05-05 05:33 pm
7deadmods) wrote in 7deadmemes2024-05-05 05:33 pm
Entry tags:
TDM #002 / EVENT LOG #003
TEST DRIVE MEME #002 / EVENT LOG #003
INFORMATION
Prospective & current players are free to utilize the setting to create prompts outside of the TDM prompts if they would like to do so. If you have any questions about the TDM please feel free to direct them to the moderator toplevel!
Our reserves and applications are permanently open.
Prospective & current players are free to utilize the setting to create prompts outside of the TDM prompts if they would like to do so. If you have any questions about the TDM please feel free to direct them to the moderator toplevel!
Our reserves and applications are permanently open.
ARRIVAL & CHANGES
You aren't alone. Those figures may remain outside of your memory or they may enter the memory, but no matter what the memory itself does not change. The places and people being remembered play out their parts like a movie you've stepped into...and then the memory will repeat when you've reached the end. The wrongness and sense of others watching may increase with each repetition. City of 7 NPCs will call out vices and virtues in turn: this person is guilty of pride - or was it humility? Greed or charity? Lust or chastity? Envy or gratitude? Gluttony, temperance, wrath, patience, sloth, diligence...all the seven deadly vices and seven deadly virtues might be called out in turn. Player characters who enter the memory will be compelled to cast a vote spoken aloud, though they may use whatever metric they like to determine which of the seven deadly vices or seven deadly virtues the person at the center of the memory is most guilty of.
And perhaps that was the deciding vote. As soon as the final vote is cast the characters will witness the memory...bursting! Like a soap bubble. It shimmers and wavers and then blows apart. After this they will find themselves landing in either the city of 7 or in the Amplitheater proper.
Those who find themselves in the Amplitheater will be able to see large soap bubbles scattered around the setting which they can enter that contain other characters trapped in one of their own memories until they receive enough votes to leave. Once all the characters are freed no more of these bubbles can be found.
Upon leaving their bubble characters will discover that on their body is an emblem. This emblem is an oddly shifting mark of colors much like the Amplitheater itself, and the shape of the emblem seems to shift from moment to moment. Sometimes technicolor lights flicker through it. It will only full settle upon acceptance to the game when a character is fully sorted. The emblem should be at least the size of a quarter and in a location that is sometimes visible.
The neon colored lights that go through each district begin to flicker. Dark blue to light blue, dark green to light green, dark pink to light pink...vice to virtue. One by one the Judgements are made. The voice that asks characters to judge in the Amplitheater speaks into the minds of every living being in 7. The Amplitheater's colors pulse in time with the voice.
"What are you guilty of? Pride. Charity. Chastity. Gratitude. Temperance. Wrath." "Diligence." District by District the colors settle. Those who are in District 3 or District 6 will see the familiar colors and scenery of their current Districts shift back into place and NPCs in the area will relax. For every other district, however...
Instead of settling back into their previous colors the neon lights of the 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th, and 7th Districts alter. A deep blue and then pastel colors for the rest. Those who happened to be in any of the Districts at the time of Judgement will find that once the District they were in was called and began to shift colors wildly all of the NPCs in the District braced themselves. "I hate this part," is a common comment heard fromt hem.
All craft in the any of these Districts and any pedestrians who didn't follow the usual habit of getting to a safe location or to strap into any of the craft outside are thrown into the air and suspended high above the city, just below the dome high above their heads. The residential buildings below detach and are also thrown sky-high, with some citizens seen inside. Below the 5 changing wedges begins to lift, each in the order they were called out. Once they are high in the air close enough that suspended citizens may see the tops of buildings they rarely get to view the entire wedge will flip over. Like a pancake on a grill. They each slam back down with a thud after several spins from Vice to Virtue. At this point all craft and citizens are simply dropped out of the air. Those who followed directions and entered the craft beforehand will have much more pleasant landings. Those who did not will likely find themselves landing less nicely or even being dumped into the Amplitheater.
Anyone who chose not to exit the non-residential buildings below when warned will find themselves suspended inside said buildings and will have a bigger headache of an experience: they will be spun around and around repeatedly until they can no longer see anything and the District they were in has fully flipped. There will be a yank in their core before they sort of pop! into place again in the corresponding location of their new version of the District. They'll feel motion sick for the rest of the day.
Citizens may once again freely move between the city of 7 or in the Amplitheater proper.
ARRIVAL
The world has changed although you can't remember it changing. Wherever you were and whatever you were doing you are now reliving one of your most important memories. Good or bad, serious or silly, this was something that impacted you deeply. It feels like you're there again living through it. The temperature, the scent, the sounds - they're all exactly as they were back then...but you can hear something else, too. Voices that are muffled and indistinct and far away. Shadows cast on the scene that fall wrong from nowhere. The faintest shimmer of a purple butterfly may play at the corner of your eye.You aren't alone. Those figures may remain outside of your memory or they may enter the memory, but no matter what the memory itself does not change. The places and people being remembered play out their parts like a movie you've stepped into...and then the memory will repeat when you've reached the end. The wrongness and sense of others watching may increase with each repetition. City of 7 NPCs will call out vices and virtues in turn: this person is guilty of pride - or was it humility? Greed or charity? Lust or chastity? Envy or gratitude? Gluttony, temperance, wrath, patience, sloth, diligence...all the seven deadly vices and seven deadly virtues might be called out in turn. Player characters who enter the memory will be compelled to cast a vote spoken aloud, though they may use whatever metric they like to determine which of the seven deadly vices or seven deadly virtues the person at the center of the memory is most guilty of.
And perhaps that was the deciding vote. As soon as the final vote is cast the characters will witness the memory...bursting! Like a soap bubble. It shimmers and wavers and then blows apart. After this they will find themselves landing in either the city of 7 or in the Amplitheater proper.
Those who find themselves in the Amplitheater will be able to see large soap bubbles scattered around the setting which they can enter that contain other characters trapped in one of their own memories until they receive enough votes to leave. Once all the characters are freed no more of these bubbles can be found.
Upon leaving their bubble characters will discover that on their body is an emblem. This emblem is an oddly shifting mark of colors much like the Amplitheater itself, and the shape of the emblem seems to shift from moment to moment. Sometimes technicolor lights flicker through it. It will only full settle upon acceptance to the game when a character is fully sorted. The emblem should be at least the size of a quarter and in a location that is sometimes visible.
CITY OF 7: ALTER
Today there's a sudden silence in the background of the city. If you have dropped into it you will find that all machinery and all noises made by anyone other than PCs and City of 7 NPCs from their own bodies are completely muffled. Around the City NPCs will pause and look around. Some may start gathering their belongings together while looking annoyed. If any newcomers seem confused or ask they will be told that the Judgement is about to occur and that they should get their things together and leave any business or non-residential indoor area. Different Districts offer different advice but most say to get inside a residence or home or to get on some sort of craft. They're warned that businesses "don't count" and should be avoided.The neon colored lights that go through each district begin to flicker. Dark blue to light blue, dark green to light green, dark pink to light pink...vice to virtue. One by one the Judgements are made. The voice that asks characters to judge in the Amplitheater speaks into the minds of every living being in 7. The Amplitheater's colors pulse in time with the voice.
"What are you guilty of? Pride. Charity. Chastity. Gratitude. Temperance. Wrath." "Diligence." District by District the colors settle. Those who are in District 3 or District 6 will see the familiar colors and scenery of their current Districts shift back into place and NPCs in the area will relax. For every other district, however...
Instead of settling back into their previous colors the neon lights of the 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th, and 7th Districts alter. A deep blue and then pastel colors for the rest. Those who happened to be in any of the Districts at the time of Judgement will find that once the District they were in was called and began to shift colors wildly all of the NPCs in the District braced themselves. "I hate this part," is a common comment heard fromt hem.
All craft in the any of these Districts and any pedestrians who didn't follow the usual habit of getting to a safe location or to strap into any of the craft outside are thrown into the air and suspended high above the city, just below the dome high above their heads. The residential buildings below detach and are also thrown sky-high, with some citizens seen inside. Below the 5 changing wedges begins to lift, each in the order they were called out. Once they are high in the air close enough that suspended citizens may see the tops of buildings they rarely get to view the entire wedge will flip over. Like a pancake on a grill. They each slam back down with a thud after several spins from Vice to Virtue. At this point all craft and citizens are simply dropped out of the air. Those who followed directions and entered the craft beforehand will have much more pleasant landings. Those who did not will likely find themselves landing less nicely or even being dumped into the Amplitheater.
Anyone who chose not to exit the non-residential buildings below when warned will find themselves suspended inside said buildings and will have a bigger headache of an experience: they will be spun around and around repeatedly until they can no longer see anything and the District they were in has fully flipped. There will be a yank in their core before they sort of pop! into place again in the corresponding location of their new version of the District. They'll feel motion sick for the rest of the day.
Citizens may once again freely move between the city of 7 or in the Amplitheater proper.
AMPLITHEATER: BEBOP WARS
Every month the Amplitheater puts on a grand story which the characters can enter and leave at will. This month the stage is Bebop Wars - a space-themed story that takes place in the Hephaestus Galaxy. "Galaxy" sounds large, but it has three main hotspots and the Amplitheater looks no bigger on the outside than usual. For this month we will be drawing from series like Star Wars, Cowboy Bebop, and Mass Effect and encourage players and prospective players to freely draw from anything similar or to make up their own space things. We're very open to whatever players would like to do within the setting and are happy with players expanding on what we've put down.
Characters may be warned by NPCs in 7 that items taken into the Amplitheater will take on the relative technology level of the scene, but if they simply arrive inside the Amplitheater after their bubble bursts they will instead find that all their belongings now fit the space / spacepunk theme and a sci-fi technology level. Their belongings will change back to the appropriate appearance and use once they leave the Amplitheater.
The interior of the Amplitheater does not appear to be a sphere. It appears to be an entire world. The exits to the city of 7 all have the shimmer of a soap bubble and can be found in odd places: in puddles, under rocks, in boots...feel free to have your character locate an exit anywhere should they need or want one or have fun with them having more trouble finding an exit. Any exit in the Amplitheater will randomly deposit your character somewhere in the city of 7 regardless of where they entered. You can use this to get your character into city-based prompts they might otherwise not want to join if you like. Or just to dump them on someone else. Go wild. And yes, these exits to look similar to the soap-bubble memories characters find themselves arriving in.
Please note that just as exiting is random so is entering. Your character may show up on a ship, in the main city, or in the void of space (luckily this will necessitate their clothes changing into a space suit, but now they're just floating there). This is regardless of whether or not their role is suited to that location so feel free to mess around.
Whenever they leave or enter the Amplitheater characters will hear a voice asking them "What are they guilty of?" Before them will flash the faces of one person of each role found in the Dramatis Personae section. They will know that by the 25th they must assign at least one vice or virtue to one of the roles found within this world.
"There once was a planet known as Talasi. It orbited one of the brightest stars of the Hephaestus galaxy in such a way that one side of the planet was barren as a desert while the other was a lush paradise. While each half of the planet was quite different from the other the city of Talasim was found overlapping the two and was where the government for that planet sat. There was a born to that planet a Bounty Hunter from the Stargrave. He spent much of his life trying to better his circumstances but never could seem to get ahead of his losses.
One day he came across a Droid in one of the downed spacecraft he was searching for parts to fix his own ship. That Droid relayed all the messages it had stored once the Bounty Hunter fixed it. Among those messages was an entreaty from a Space Royal who found themselves in need of outside assistance. For Talasi had long held itself as a neutral power in Hephaestus but was now being pressured to choose a side in the war going on outside its skies. The Droid's message was quickly corrupted but stuck in the Bounty Hunter's memory easily.
While he was uneasy with the idea of doing anything about this his Space Defense Force friend was eager to offer help. While many of the Space Defence Force operated inside Talasim this particular SDF member had traveled with the Bounty Hunter for some years now after receiving some help from him in the aftermath of a great space battle. Unable to say no to his friend the Bounty Hunter finally agreed to go and see what they could do. The message had told them to go and find a legendary Space Knight who supposedly lived in a space station somewhere in the skies around Talasi.
The two went to seek out the Space Knight, neither realizing they were being tracked by an Evil Space Knight who had a grudge against this particular Knight. Once they arrived at the base they were forced into battle to save or destroy the person they had come to find, for the Evil Space Knight offered them an option: side with the Evil Space Empire or with the Talasi government. Life or death."
At this point the story choice will be recited as whichever characters would choose instead of being exactly the same as it has been previously.
NPCs from the city of 7 can be found in the Amplitheater filling out various roles the same as PCs can. There also seem to be NPCs that are part of the setting itself that move about in specific patterns through their own little internal stories. It's usually easy to tell the two apart.
Characters may lose themselves in their roles in the Amplitheater. They may feel as though their roles have been their entire lives and only find themselves remembering otherwise infrequently. This is entirely optional and is simply intended to give people more to play with in the setting if they want to. They can get as lost in the role as you would like or can be entirely aware they're playing out a part. Whenever a character leaves the Amplitheater they will fully remember who they are and realize what occurred. Getting lost in a role can also occur to the NPCs from the City of 7.
BOUNTY HUNTER
Bounty hunters can be of any species you so choose. We're not going to make a list of aliens in fiction and cap you to that or being human - feel free to either make up an alien species or pick your favorite fictional type of alien and have your character change into that within the Amplitheater if you'd like them to. Bounty hunters do exactly what you'd think - they travel the (fake) galaxy looking for targets. Their targets can be from any of the other roles and can be discussed among players. Or maybe they just have a case of mistaken identity with their target? As always please feel free to interpret things however you'd prefer.
POWERS: Understanding how to fly all space craft, tracking skills, inherent knowledge of different gambling games
COMPULSIONS: Locating bounty targets and turning them in to the authorities, making the occasional smuggling deal, gambling, being really proud of their ships
WEAKNESSES: Whatever weaknesses your chosen species might have, somehow always low on cash (can be enforced by the setting with random fines and bills)
SPACE DEFENSE FORCE
Space Defense Force members (SDF) are basically military or cops but in space. As with other roles this month SDF members can be whatever species you choose or make up and you're free to give them powers or weaknesses based on those species. SDF members are expected to patrol the spaceways and Talasi and keep things moving along regularly and will periodically be drafted to have dramatic space battles. At points the Amplitheater will seem like an action movie to anyone in this role. A lot of explosions and battles and racing the clock but low on the plot explanation for it. Any full NPCs who are not from the city of 7 will railroad characters into the SDF "plot" and keep them racing through various cinematic scenes.
POWERS: Explosions appearing behind them to walk away from, uncanny aim with weapons (good or bad as per your choice), some flight knowledge but worse than Bounty Hunters
COMPULSIONS: Making cool action poses, making dramatic speeches, running into trouble
WEAKNESSES: Whatever weaknesses your chosen species might have, crime happens around them a lot, full NPCs in the Amplitheater will make a lot of dramatic leading statements around them
DROID
For anyone who didn't get enough of robots in our first event post, this is the role for you! Droids are simply robots who may work with or against other roles. In this setting they may or may not have full rights as a person depending on preference. Many do operate as full beings with their own jobs and goals but some may be sidekicks. The choice is entirely yours.
POWERS: Incredibly intelligent, doesn't need to eat, doesn't get tired
COMPULSIONS: You want to over-explain everything to everyone, might be more prone to being nosy, likes to give messages to people
WEAKNESSES: Overheats horribly whenever they're on the desert half of Talasi, no cool space ship piloting powers built in, may run out of battery
SPACE KNIGHT
Yes, you can call them a Jedi if you want. It's fine. Basically anyone with this role can be any species you choose once again with all the powers and weaknesses that might come with that. They also have access to the cool Mystical Space Force which allows them to telekinetically move things with their minds and sense certain things around them. You can play this very loose and fast - we will not be strict about how you choose to interpret the Mystical Space Force. Just assume you have cool powers and do whatever you want with them.
POWERS: The Mystical Space Force, cool lightsabers, nifty robes to wear
COMPULSIONS: Making mysterious statements about the Mystical Space Force and other such things, fighting Evil Space Knights
WEAKNESSES: Whatever weaknesses your chosen species might have, can occasionally be corrupted into Evil Space Knights, have to follow a strict moral code of your choosing
EVIL SPACE KNIGHT
The Evil Space Knight is almost exactly like the Space Knight...but evil. Characters with this role can again be of any species with the associated powers and weaknesses and can utilize the Mystical Space Force (but evil!) to their heart's content. They may also have corrupted appearances if you want to go that way. Characters who are Evil Space Knights can pretty much interpret "evil" however they might like. If these are minor acts of mayhem like not returning library books that's fine. If they want to blow up space ships that's also fine. Live your dreams.
POWERS: The Mystical Space Force (but evil), cool lightsabers (but evil), nifty robes to wear (but evil)
COMPULSIONS: Making mysterious statements about the Mystical Space Force and other such things, fighting Space Knights
WEAKNESSES: Whatever weaknesses your chosen species might have, can occasionally be redeemed into being normal Space Knights, always gets sand in their shoes
SPACE ROYALTY
Or maybe you're a space prince. Or princess. Or king. Or queen. Or whatever title you'd like! As with other roles this role can be of any species you might like that is either taken from a canon you enjoy or made up. We won't be monitoring chosen species closely or at all. Space royalty tends to work out of the capital city of Talasi and may either be visiting from their home planet or may just live there as diplomats. Or maybe they're Talasian. The world is your oyster.
POWERS: Lots of money, more cool clothes than any other role, the authority to hijack anyone else's spaceship
COMPULSIONS: Bossing other people around, taking matters into your own hands, changing outfits every hour or so
WEAKNESSES: Whatever weaknesses your chosen species might have, no cool Mystical Space Force powers
A beautiful tropically-themed planet with lots of green growing plants, lagoons, and waterfalls Talasi is a welcoming planet indeed. On one side of it, at least. On the lush side of Talasi characters may find the humidity can be a bit much especially for those who are made of metal or have metal limbs. Things can stop functioning properly very quickly. Many of the merchants in the capital city of Talasi - Taslasim - offer waterproofing services that characters may wish to make use of if they plan to explore the tropics to any great lengths.
Talasim straddles the two opposite sides of the planet and the city itself is divided into two zones: a pleasantly warm tropical half and a blazingly hot desert half that chills to below freezing at night. The architecture in the city is slightly divided to accommodate this and the residents of Talasim are quite fond and proud of the oddities of their city. There are many children and jacks of all trade who will sell tours to any newcomers although you can also find some idle citizens who may provide them for free. Some of the citizens may take you for all you're worth but many are perfectly reasonable. Talasim has a bustling market and starport and there are many crews hiring for their ships. In a few cases there are even AI ships hiring crews. These ships are very particular about who they hire but have somewhat odd guidelines. One ship only wants crewmembers who will tell it bedtime stories while another is only interested if you're taller than five foot nine. They will not explain their guidelines but they do seem to pay better than anyone else at the port so perhaps you're going to have to try to meet them...these are only two examples of types of guidelines but please be assured you can make up whatever you like here!
The opposite side of the planet of the tropics is a vast desert. During the day the desert is burningly hot. There are some settlements scattered through that side of the planet but there aren't as many as can be found in the tropics. Most people go indoors before night falls and they have highly exciting jobs that work on this half of the planet like moisture farming and scrap hunting. There's one traveling city on the back of a large vehicle that occasionally travels near to the divide of the planet in order to load up on water and food to then go and sell to various settlements. Characters are welcome to come aboard and join the caravan city if they wish.
At night the desert half of Talasi chills abruptly and becomes frozen over. Any characters outside at that time had best be prepared for the shift in the weather or should seek shelter. Evil Space Knights will find they are unaffected by this shift in weather and in fact there is in the middle of the desert of Talasi a secret Evil Space Knight city. It's full of plenty of law-breaking things like gambling, murder, and mayhem. You don't have to be an Evil Space Knight to go there but it does help. Bounty Hunters are also welcome, especially if they break the law a lot. Space Defense Force or Space Knight characters...not so much. If anyone like that finds themselves in the city they will be promptly jailed until broken out or until they break themselves out. Or until they find an exit. Whichever comes first.
Characters who try to locate the boundaries of the planet will find that it does appear to be an entire planet-sized area. If they get too far from any of the hotspots where characters spawn they may wish to look for one of the shimmering soap bubble exits to reset their location to outside of the Amplitheater and then re-enter. If they cannot find these exits they may get stuck if transportation breaks down. Luckily you can always send out an alert on the network to hire some help to get you out of it...right? There does seem to be an area in the desert half of Talasi that acts as a sort of Bermuda Triangle. Any craft that flies over that specific area will immediately go down and doesn't seem able to regain power. Looks like you're walking to meet whatever rescue party is coming for you. If anyone is coming at all, that is?
The Spaceways is the colloquial term for the cosmos that the spacecraft of the Hephaestus galaxy traverse. Most of the ships that characters can find themselves in will be the beat up junkers that can move that bounty hunters or similar rebellious types might have, but they should be able to also have merchant vessels or whatever they like. Travel can take some time or can be very fast. It seems like the passage of time can be a little strange in space. Besides that they're free to fly through the floating rings that connect them to other areas in the Amplitheater known as relay devices.
Most of the activity in the Spaceways will be located on the various ships traveling around the galaxy. These ships will be subject to various events and effects throughout their travels - or they might have perfectly ordinary trips if you'd rather that. Things to look out for include cute furry animals being found in the vents...which sounds nice and normal until they start to multiply at crazy rates. These space critters may or may not get violent depending on your preferred flavor of chaos. There's also space fever which may make your character into a knock off zombie though this can be cured fairly easily with the correct medication. You just might bite a few crew members before you get that medication. No big deal, right?
There's also always the possibility of getting stuck in the tractor beam of an enemy ship and being hauled in for questioning if you're a smuggler. Or suspected of being a smuggler. Maybe try to avoid that one unless you want a big fine! You may also want to avoid the random meteor fields that seem to pop up out of absolutely nowhere if characters seem to be having too easy a flight.
Characters may also find they receive a distress signal to what appears to be a moon without a planet. It is in fact a large abandoned space station which characters can explore to find the source of the signal. What it is comes in a variety of flavors. An evil AI trying to lure in ships for parts? A stranded smuggler who ran out of gas? A long-dead space city that happened to fall prey to mysterious space fungus? Choose your own space opera adventure. One particularly dumb option is a robot who periodically tries to call people in with a distress signal in order to have people to watch its favorite soap operas with. You cannot leave until you've seen all 12 seasons, thanks.
Perhaps the most dangerous of the three locations this month the Stargrave is mostly an area on Talasi in the far wastes where many downed starships have fallen. You could potentially be in a craft that is plummeting to the graveyard or you could simply be down there living among the craft and making your way through them. This is near to the area where all craft will mysteriously cease to function but is not entirely encompassed by that area. Those who live here tend to make their homes within the downed ships as they work on scrapping them and then move on to the next big score.
Orbiting in the skies above is a large star destroyer the size of a small moon with the ability to decimate entire planets. The star destroyer will periodically shoot down craft that it takes offense to and at least once per week during the Amplitheater's run a climactic battle seems to take place in the skies above to stop the star destroyer from blowing up the planet of Talasi. A large group of rebel fighters are scrounged up every week in order to destroy the star destroyer...although characters will realize that it simply seems to reset that part of the Amplitheater story once they've won. Characters who are lost in their roles may get increasingly confused as the story resets.
Working on board that star destroyer is also an option if you'd like to be part of an evil space empire. The star destroyer and Talasi seem to be in tense diplomatic talks for the entirety of the Amplitheater run but the destroyer itself has a population the size of a huge city and characters are free to spawn within it with their own part to play. They may find that they're now suddenly ensign in charge of monitoring deep space rays or something similarly boring and dumb. Or maybe they have more exciting jobs like operating the lasers. Try not to blow up anyone you like, okay?
Every month the Amplitheater puts on a grand story which the characters can enter and leave at will. This month the stage is Bebop Wars - a space-themed story that takes place in the Hephaestus Galaxy. "Galaxy" sounds large, but it has three main hotspots and the Amplitheater looks no bigger on the outside than usual. For this month we will be drawing from series like Star Wars, Cowboy Bebop, and Mass Effect and encourage players and prospective players to freely draw from anything similar or to make up their own space things. We're very open to whatever players would like to do within the setting and are happy with players expanding on what we've put down.
Characters may be warned by NPCs in 7 that items taken into the Amplitheater will take on the relative technology level of the scene, but if they simply arrive inside the Amplitheater after their bubble bursts they will instead find that all their belongings now fit the space / spacepunk theme and a sci-fi technology level. Their belongings will change back to the appropriate appearance and use once they leave the Amplitheater.
The interior of the Amplitheater does not appear to be a sphere. It appears to be an entire world. The exits to the city of 7 all have the shimmer of a soap bubble and can be found in odd places: in puddles, under rocks, in boots...feel free to have your character locate an exit anywhere should they need or want one or have fun with them having more trouble finding an exit. Any exit in the Amplitheater will randomly deposit your character somewhere in the city of 7 regardless of where they entered. You can use this to get your character into city-based prompts they might otherwise not want to join if you like. Or just to dump them on someone else. Go wild. And yes, these exits to look similar to the soap-bubble memories characters find themselves arriving in.
Please note that just as exiting is random so is entering. Your character may show up on a ship, in the main city, or in the void of space (luckily this will necessitate their clothes changing into a space suit, but now they're just floating there). This is regardless of whether or not their role is suited to that location so feel free to mess around.
Whenever they leave or enter the Amplitheater characters will hear a voice asking them "What are they guilty of?" Before them will flash the faces of one person of each role found in the Dramatis Personae section. They will know that by the 25th they must assign at least one vice or virtue to one of the roles found within this world.
TALE: BOUNTY'S PRICE
"There once was a planet known as Talasi. It orbited one of the brightest stars of the Hephaestus galaxy in such a way that one side of the planet was barren as a desert while the other was a lush paradise. While each half of the planet was quite different from the other the city of Talasim was found overlapping the two and was where the government for that planet sat. There was a born to that planet a Bounty Hunter from the Stargrave. He spent much of his life trying to better his circumstances but never could seem to get ahead of his losses.
One day he came across a Droid in one of the downed spacecraft he was searching for parts to fix his own ship. That Droid relayed all the messages it had stored once the Bounty Hunter fixed it. Among those messages was an entreaty from a Space Royal who found themselves in need of outside assistance. For Talasi had long held itself as a neutral power in Hephaestus but was now being pressured to choose a side in the war going on outside its skies. The Droid's message was quickly corrupted but stuck in the Bounty Hunter's memory easily.
While he was uneasy with the idea of doing anything about this his Space Defense Force friend was eager to offer help. While many of the Space Defence Force operated inside Talasim this particular SDF member had traveled with the Bounty Hunter for some years now after receiving some help from him in the aftermath of a great space battle. Unable to say no to his friend the Bounty Hunter finally agreed to go and see what they could do. The message had told them to go and find a legendary Space Knight who supposedly lived in a space station somewhere in the skies around Talasi.
The two went to seek out the Space Knight, neither realizing they were being tracked by an Evil Space Knight who had a grudge against this particular Knight. Once they arrived at the base they were forced into battle to save or destroy the person they had come to find, for the Evil Space Knight offered them an option: side with the Evil Space Empire or with the Talasi government. Life or death."
At this point the story choice will be recited as whichever characters would choose instead of being exactly the same as it has been previously.
DRAMATIS PERSONAE
NPCs from the city of 7 can be found in the Amplitheater filling out various roles the same as PCs can. There also seem to be NPCs that are part of the setting itself that move about in specific patterns through their own little internal stories. It's usually easy to tell the two apart.
Characters may lose themselves in their roles in the Amplitheater. They may feel as though their roles have been their entire lives and only find themselves remembering otherwise infrequently. This is entirely optional and is simply intended to give people more to play with in the setting if they want to. They can get as lost in the role as you would like or can be entirely aware they're playing out a part. Whenever a character leaves the Amplitheater they will fully remember who they are and realize what occurred. Getting lost in a role can also occur to the NPCs from the City of 7.
BOUNTY HUNTER
Bounty hunters can be of any species you so choose. We're not going to make a list of aliens in fiction and cap you to that or being human - feel free to either make up an alien species or pick your favorite fictional type of alien and have your character change into that within the Amplitheater if you'd like them to. Bounty hunters do exactly what you'd think - they travel the (fake) galaxy looking for targets. Their targets can be from any of the other roles and can be discussed among players. Or maybe they just have a case of mistaken identity with their target? As always please feel free to interpret things however you'd prefer.
POWERS: Understanding how to fly all space craft, tracking skills, inherent knowledge of different gambling games
COMPULSIONS: Locating bounty targets and turning them in to the authorities, making the occasional smuggling deal, gambling, being really proud of their ships
WEAKNESSES: Whatever weaknesses your chosen species might have, somehow always low on cash (can be enforced by the setting with random fines and bills)
SPACE DEFENSE FORCE
Space Defense Force members (SDF) are basically military or cops but in space. As with other roles this month SDF members can be whatever species you choose or make up and you're free to give them powers or weaknesses based on those species. SDF members are expected to patrol the spaceways and Talasi and keep things moving along regularly and will periodically be drafted to have dramatic space battles. At points the Amplitheater will seem like an action movie to anyone in this role. A lot of explosions and battles and racing the clock but low on the plot explanation for it. Any full NPCs who are not from the city of 7 will railroad characters into the SDF "plot" and keep them racing through various cinematic scenes.
POWERS: Explosions appearing behind them to walk away from, uncanny aim with weapons (good or bad as per your choice), some flight knowledge but worse than Bounty Hunters
COMPULSIONS: Making cool action poses, making dramatic speeches, running into trouble
WEAKNESSES: Whatever weaknesses your chosen species might have, crime happens around them a lot, full NPCs in the Amplitheater will make a lot of dramatic leading statements around them
DROID
For anyone who didn't get enough of robots in our first event post, this is the role for you! Droids are simply robots who may work with or against other roles. In this setting they may or may not have full rights as a person depending on preference. Many do operate as full beings with their own jobs and goals but some may be sidekicks. The choice is entirely yours.
POWERS: Incredibly intelligent, doesn't need to eat, doesn't get tired
COMPULSIONS: You want to over-explain everything to everyone, might be more prone to being nosy, likes to give messages to people
WEAKNESSES: Overheats horribly whenever they're on the desert half of Talasi, no cool space ship piloting powers built in, may run out of battery
SPACE KNIGHT
Yes, you can call them a Jedi if you want. It's fine. Basically anyone with this role can be any species you choose once again with all the powers and weaknesses that might come with that. They also have access to the cool Mystical Space Force which allows them to telekinetically move things with their minds and sense certain things around them. You can play this very loose and fast - we will not be strict about how you choose to interpret the Mystical Space Force. Just assume you have cool powers and do whatever you want with them.
POWERS: The Mystical Space Force, cool lightsabers, nifty robes to wear
COMPULSIONS: Making mysterious statements about the Mystical Space Force and other such things, fighting Evil Space Knights
WEAKNESSES: Whatever weaknesses your chosen species might have, can occasionally be corrupted into Evil Space Knights, have to follow a strict moral code of your choosing
EVIL SPACE KNIGHT
The Evil Space Knight is almost exactly like the Space Knight...but evil. Characters with this role can again be of any species with the associated powers and weaknesses and can utilize the Mystical Space Force (but evil!) to their heart's content. They may also have corrupted appearances if you want to go that way. Characters who are Evil Space Knights can pretty much interpret "evil" however they might like. If these are minor acts of mayhem like not returning library books that's fine. If they want to blow up space ships that's also fine. Live your dreams.
POWERS: The Mystical Space Force (but evil), cool lightsabers (but evil), nifty robes to wear (but evil)
COMPULSIONS: Making mysterious statements about the Mystical Space Force and other such things, fighting Space Knights
WEAKNESSES: Whatever weaknesses your chosen species might have, can occasionally be redeemed into being normal Space Knights, always gets sand in their shoes
SPACE ROYALTY
Or maybe you're a space prince. Or princess. Or king. Or queen. Or whatever title you'd like! As with other roles this role can be of any species you might like that is either taken from a canon you enjoy or made up. We won't be monitoring chosen species closely or at all. Space royalty tends to work out of the capital city of Talasi and may either be visiting from their home planet or may just live there as diplomats. Or maybe they're Talasian. The world is your oyster.
POWERS: Lots of money, more cool clothes than any other role, the authority to hijack anyone else's spaceship
COMPULSIONS: Bossing other people around, taking matters into your own hands, changing outfits every hour or so
WEAKNESSES: Whatever weaknesses your chosen species might have, no cool Mystical Space Force powers
TALASI
A beautiful tropically-themed planet with lots of green growing plants, lagoons, and waterfalls Talasi is a welcoming planet indeed. On one side of it, at least. On the lush side of Talasi characters may find the humidity can be a bit much especially for those who are made of metal or have metal limbs. Things can stop functioning properly very quickly. Many of the merchants in the capital city of Talasi - Taslasim - offer waterproofing services that characters may wish to make use of if they plan to explore the tropics to any great lengths.
Talasim straddles the two opposite sides of the planet and the city itself is divided into two zones: a pleasantly warm tropical half and a blazingly hot desert half that chills to below freezing at night. The architecture in the city is slightly divided to accommodate this and the residents of Talasim are quite fond and proud of the oddities of their city. There are many children and jacks of all trade who will sell tours to any newcomers although you can also find some idle citizens who may provide them for free. Some of the citizens may take you for all you're worth but many are perfectly reasonable. Talasim has a bustling market and starport and there are many crews hiring for their ships. In a few cases there are even AI ships hiring crews. These ships are very particular about who they hire but have somewhat odd guidelines. One ship only wants crewmembers who will tell it bedtime stories while another is only interested if you're taller than five foot nine. They will not explain their guidelines but they do seem to pay better than anyone else at the port so perhaps you're going to have to try to meet them...these are only two examples of types of guidelines but please be assured you can make up whatever you like here!
The opposite side of the planet of the tropics is a vast desert. During the day the desert is burningly hot. There are some settlements scattered through that side of the planet but there aren't as many as can be found in the tropics. Most people go indoors before night falls and they have highly exciting jobs that work on this half of the planet like moisture farming and scrap hunting. There's one traveling city on the back of a large vehicle that occasionally travels near to the divide of the planet in order to load up on water and food to then go and sell to various settlements. Characters are welcome to come aboard and join the caravan city if they wish.
At night the desert half of Talasi chills abruptly and becomes frozen over. Any characters outside at that time had best be prepared for the shift in the weather or should seek shelter. Evil Space Knights will find they are unaffected by this shift in weather and in fact there is in the middle of the desert of Talasi a secret Evil Space Knight city. It's full of plenty of law-breaking things like gambling, murder, and mayhem. You don't have to be an Evil Space Knight to go there but it does help. Bounty Hunters are also welcome, especially if they break the law a lot. Space Defense Force or Space Knight characters...not so much. If anyone like that finds themselves in the city they will be promptly jailed until broken out or until they break themselves out. Or until they find an exit. Whichever comes first.
Characters who try to locate the boundaries of the planet will find that it does appear to be an entire planet-sized area. If they get too far from any of the hotspots where characters spawn they may wish to look for one of the shimmering soap bubble exits to reset their location to outside of the Amplitheater and then re-enter. If they cannot find these exits they may get stuck if transportation breaks down. Luckily you can always send out an alert on the network to hire some help to get you out of it...right? There does seem to be an area in the desert half of Talasi that acts as a sort of Bermuda Triangle. Any craft that flies over that specific area will immediately go down and doesn't seem able to regain power. Looks like you're walking to meet whatever rescue party is coming for you. If anyone is coming at all, that is?
SPACEWAYS
The Spaceways is the colloquial term for the cosmos that the spacecraft of the Hephaestus galaxy traverse. Most of the ships that characters can find themselves in will be the beat up junkers that can move that bounty hunters or similar rebellious types might have, but they should be able to also have merchant vessels or whatever they like. Travel can take some time or can be very fast. It seems like the passage of time can be a little strange in space. Besides that they're free to fly through the floating rings that connect them to other areas in the Amplitheater known as relay devices.
Most of the activity in the Spaceways will be located on the various ships traveling around the galaxy. These ships will be subject to various events and effects throughout their travels - or they might have perfectly ordinary trips if you'd rather that. Things to look out for include cute furry animals being found in the vents...which sounds nice and normal until they start to multiply at crazy rates. These space critters may or may not get violent depending on your preferred flavor of chaos. There's also space fever which may make your character into a knock off zombie though this can be cured fairly easily with the correct medication. You just might bite a few crew members before you get that medication. No big deal, right?
There's also always the possibility of getting stuck in the tractor beam of an enemy ship and being hauled in for questioning if you're a smuggler. Or suspected of being a smuggler. Maybe try to avoid that one unless you want a big fine! You may also want to avoid the random meteor fields that seem to pop up out of absolutely nowhere if characters seem to be having too easy a flight.
Characters may also find they receive a distress signal to what appears to be a moon without a planet. It is in fact a large abandoned space station which characters can explore to find the source of the signal. What it is comes in a variety of flavors. An evil AI trying to lure in ships for parts? A stranded smuggler who ran out of gas? A long-dead space city that happened to fall prey to mysterious space fungus? Choose your own space opera adventure. One particularly dumb option is a robot who periodically tries to call people in with a distress signal in order to have people to watch its favorite soap operas with. You cannot leave until you've seen all 12 seasons, thanks.
STARGRAVE
Perhaps the most dangerous of the three locations this month the Stargrave is mostly an area on Talasi in the far wastes where many downed starships have fallen. You could potentially be in a craft that is plummeting to the graveyard or you could simply be down there living among the craft and making your way through them. This is near to the area where all craft will mysteriously cease to function but is not entirely encompassed by that area. Those who live here tend to make their homes within the downed ships as they work on scrapping them and then move on to the next big score.
Orbiting in the skies above is a large star destroyer the size of a small moon with the ability to decimate entire planets. The star destroyer will periodically shoot down craft that it takes offense to and at least once per week during the Amplitheater's run a climactic battle seems to take place in the skies above to stop the star destroyer from blowing up the planet of Talasi. A large group of rebel fighters are scrounged up every week in order to destroy the star destroyer...although characters will realize that it simply seems to reset that part of the Amplitheater story once they've won. Characters who are lost in their roles may get increasingly confused as the story resets.
Working on board that star destroyer is also an option if you'd like to be part of an evil space empire. The star destroyer and Talasi seem to be in tense diplomatic talks for the entirety of the Amplitheater run but the destroyer itself has a population the size of a huge city and characters are free to spawn within it with their own part to play. They may find that they're now suddenly ensign in charge of monitoring deep space rays or something similarly boring and dumb. Or maybe they have more exciting jobs like operating the lasers. Try not to blow up anyone you like, okay?
CITY OF 7
Welcome to the city of 7, a floating technological metropolis that seems to be suspended in the midst of an infinite void of space. The city is divided into seven more or less even wedges centered around a huge iridescent multi-colored sphere at the center known as the Amplitheater. You can read in-depth about the city on our setting page.
Early on in the month the city is bustling and citizens are leaving and entering the Amplitheater very frequently, trying to generate more power for their city. Many are willing to direct new characters to Charimedic clinics where members of the Charimedic order are willing to explain how things work in the city of 7. The Amplitheater generates the power their entire city runs on. It's called a soul-weighing ceremony, although many people refer to it as simply the ceremony.
Characters are encouraged to participate in the ceremony but aren't obligated to do so. There's plenty to do and see within the city itself, and each district is celebrating the current ceremony in their own unique ways.
The previous eternal summer of District 1 has now become an eternal winter. Gone are the water slides and rivers. Now everything is iced over and chillier in nature and somehow all the more pristine for it. Many robot-driven sleighs are available for transportation now and some of the longer term residents of District 1 have taken to ice-skating as a means of recreation as well as travel.
Characters may notice that the often-falling snowflakes of District 1 are in odd shapes. When examined closely they're actual shapes...dogs and flowers and books...but you can also see the brief outline of people you knew and things you once saw in your past before they immediately melt away leaving your character doubting themselves.
The previous ever-present jellymechs are nowhere to be found. Their devotees are absolutely devastated and wander the district wailing about their lost idols. Most people totally ignore this and say they'll probably calm down within a week or so. There doesn't seem to be a concentrated effort to get people to be more humble as the Jellys are perhaps the most poorly organized faction in the entire city.
The Perfectionistas are back in power and loving it however. They will assign demerits to anyone caught littering or otherwise making their beloved district anything less than perfect by their subjective standards. These demerits do nothing but they're pretty bossy about giving them out. Most residents of District 1 seem to be used tot his.
You can read more about District 1 over here.
One of the most drastically changed districts is District 2. Gone are Greed's almost too much holographic displays to be replaced instead with only the occasional holographic shows projected mostly onto billboards and playing out movies and dramas. There is no advertising to be found and no one is selling anything...or if they are, it isn't for much. All the buildings have a pale yellow sheen that sometimes appears to be white.
There is free housing offered although the workers do caution anyone who stays there that it will only last as long as Charity is ahead. There are also many medical clinics to be found, and shops that offer either free items or very low prices, and meals provided cheap or free. Occasionally the locations will run out of what they offer, but they do try to make sure they give what they can to anyone who asks it of them. The Charimedic clinics in other districts continue running as usual but many of their number also work at the clinics now in District 2.
This month the District 2 clinics will be offering first aid seminars and organizing welcome packages for any new characters. They're better equipped to reach out and make certain everyone has the information and tools they need to prosper in 7 when Charity happens to hold sway over the city.
You can read more about District 2 over here.
In District 3 there are many space themed lanterns and kites to be found in the sky almost constantly depending on whether it is night or day. These sometimes float entirely free on the breeze that blows constantly through the district but many times can be found being released or flown by the residents of District 3. Denizens of the 3rd district can be found making and painting these kites or selling them. The price is fairly cheap and reasonable and mostly citizens seem to be making a lot for fun and then just asking a few credits for all the extras they end up with. This is a monthly activity for them that everyone treats as a group effort and this month they're trying to make one huge lantern that they want to send off into space. Some of the more technology-inclined members of the 3rd District can be found arguing about how best to do this and it appears they may set off some sort of rocket kite before the end of the month...?
There are flowering trees found all throughout the district. Cherry blossom, Magnolia, Crabapple, and strange alien options that characters may or may not recognize from home or from other worlds. The scent of it is heavy but pleasant - unless you're not into florals. It's pretty common at this time of year to find various people picnicking under the trees. Various hobby groups will put on demonstrations of skills or will have storytelling time in order to entertain anyone who happens to pass by. They're also putting on multiple demonstrations of stage fighting this month, encouraging characters to really study up for their roles. There's additionally face painting stands which seem to be space-themed. Galaxy swirls decorate the faces of many District 3 residents.
Music can constantly be heard. Most of it is pleasant and joyful, but there are some sadder tunes to be found particularly for one of the ongoing drama sagas put on in the central park. It seems that District 3 has leaned into the Space Opera theme to put on their own Space Opera...and they're taking audience suggestions for the story. Every few days the next part is put on and people can shout out suggestions to progress the scenes. Characters may be brought up on stage to play parts suddenly created or may find that many District 3 residents want to discuss the saga like a favorite soap opera.
There are various small open-topped airships that fly through the district. Several offer rides to the Amplitheater if you don't wish to walk, passing through the bubble with no trouble and transforming instantly into a scene-appropriate ship. For this month that means small spacecraft. One of the NPCs seems particularly enthusiastic about it and requests anyone who comes on his ship stick to playing their roles closely even if they don't get lost in them - he wants to be called "Captain" and playact dramatic space-themed scenes. He'll get sad if you don't accommodate this.
You can read more about District 3 over here.
District 4 is far more cooperative and low-key this month. There are still multiple holographic streams broadcast around the area but this month the theme is displaying multiple people's achievements and treating people more equally. The competitive reality games and constant Envidol streams are nowhere to be found and there are many helpful streams showing the best ways to play new VR games or offering strategies for the current Amplitheater setting.
The once constant shopping malls are no longer anywhere to be found. Instead there is a focus on fixing anything broken and using what you have to the fullest. Things purchased from the small shops that pop up when Gratitude is in control tend to be built to last and don't mess around with new versions and fancy features. The virtual reality arcades are still active but there are no player rankings in anything any longer.
The Envidols have some bitter streams going but you have to actively seek these out. None of them are broadcast freely any longer. The Thankfools are currently more active than ever in the district and can be found cheerfully complimenting anyone who wanders into the 4th District and offering their help in all matters big and small. They're also organizing groups to enter the Amplitheater together in order to generate even more energy for the city. If asked they will explain they do this periodically and the Vice or Virtue in charge of a district should always make certain people are participating.
You can read more about District 4 over here.
District 5 is heavily plant and growing focused. The river that flows through District 5 has more plants and growing things to be found in it and has a larger wildlife populace than it does when Gluttony holds sway and there are some small river craft that focus on occasionally fishing or making deliveries. There are many fields which offer up recreation and the basics that will become meals across the city of 7.
There's are boats running off one of the tributaries of the river and straight into the Amplitheater run on perfect schedule by the Rationals. These mostly robotic devotees are keeping things running on time and never overtime. The work day ends promptly when it should and never runs over and boats run as scheduled and have mandated breaks. Similarly the vending machines and stores all have strict purchase limits.
If you want to buy anything over the limit you should look for one of the people with silly food themed hats (mostly cheeseburger) who are running a black market for as many goods as you'd like.
While the food stands of the previous months are gone there are a few nice restaurants in their place which have themed menus for the current Amplitheater setting. Portion sizes are all very reasonable and having seconds is not encouraged.
You can read more about District 5 over here.
Wrath is interested in one thing this month: space battles. This shouldn't be surprising to any old characters, and new ones should get used to District 6's battle theme sooner rather than later. As usual many District 6 denizens are mobilizing to enter the Amplitheater in groups. Characters are welcomed - and in some cases forcibly press-ganged - to join any of these groups to march into the Amplitheater and acquire ships in order to have elaborate and deliberate space battles. They're not exactly playing it safe and easy so be careful of injury...or death, but that's best avoided.
The weapons shops are as usual all selling period-appropriate weaponry in addition to the usual stuff - though the merchants will clarify anything technologically advanced will simply morph inside the Amplitheater. Still, some people really want the authenticity! There's a huge difference between a lightsaber you buy and a lightsaber that you get inside the Amplitheater after your wooden sword transforms, okay? It's just less cool if you don't have the real thing. Some Wrath devotees will look down on people who don't purchase the actual weapon.
Inside the Amplitheater it seems that many of the Brewers are in Talasi looking for new exotic blends of tea to try. They'll happily invite any characters along to taste test teas and seem to be cooperating in order to make certain any members of their group or tag alongs who get lost in their roles are able to stick with the group on their little outtings.
You can read more about District 6 over here.
Currently in District 7 the the days are twice as long as the nights. This does put the District somewhat out of sync with the rhythms of the rest of 7, but devotees of Diligence barely pay that any heed. You, however, may notice that you can step from night into daylight when coming from another district, or may experience the opposite when going.
Perhaps suiting the strange hours and cycle of long days and short nights, shadows inside District 7 behave strangely. Occasionally they will slip free of their owners and move independently, a pantomime of work played out on the streets and walls of District 7. These shadows can affect the actions of their owner at times, forcing the owner to work in District 7, or may be (semi?) permanently lost if citizens aren't careful. Shadowmen consume lost shadows although they also will steal the shadows of loiterers within the district. If you aren't behaving in a diligent manner your shadow is at risk. A new shadow can be gained through an extreme act of Sloth or Diligence.
Hovering and walking and rolling throughout the district are the Schedulebots (their members with working biological limbs walk). They can be found in nearly every district offering to help anyone who needs assistance or providing free labor. Many can be found going into the Amplitheater and working in the city within. Many will periodically offer to run errands for characters inside and outside of the Amplitheater.
The electric lazy river that serves as the major street(s) of District 7 is anything but lazy. There are various control craft that direct traffic and ensure everyone is moving according to schedule and plan. Deliveries are made efficiently and transportation is easily among the fastest across the entire city. There are regular scheduled transports offered going into the Amplitheater with stops at each hot spot.
You can read more about District 7 over here.
Welcome to the city of 7, a floating technological metropolis that seems to be suspended in the midst of an infinite void of space. The city is divided into seven more or less even wedges centered around a huge iridescent multi-colored sphere at the center known as the Amplitheater. You can read in-depth about the city on our setting page.
Early on in the month the city is bustling and citizens are leaving and entering the Amplitheater very frequently, trying to generate more power for their city. Many are willing to direct new characters to Charimedic clinics where members of the Charimedic order are willing to explain how things work in the city of 7. The Amplitheater generates the power their entire city runs on. It's called a soul-weighing ceremony, although many people refer to it as simply the ceremony.
Characters are encouraged to participate in the ceremony but aren't obligated to do so. There's plenty to do and see within the city itself, and each district is celebrating the current ceremony in their own unique ways.
DISTRICT 1: PRIDE
The previous eternal summer of District 1 has now become an eternal winter. Gone are the water slides and rivers. Now everything is iced over and chillier in nature and somehow all the more pristine for it. Many robot-driven sleighs are available for transportation now and some of the longer term residents of District 1 have taken to ice-skating as a means of recreation as well as travel.
Characters may notice that the often-falling snowflakes of District 1 are in odd shapes. When examined closely they're actual shapes...dogs and flowers and books...but you can also see the brief outline of people you knew and things you once saw in your past before they immediately melt away leaving your character doubting themselves.
The previous ever-present jellymechs are nowhere to be found. Their devotees are absolutely devastated and wander the district wailing about their lost idols. Most people totally ignore this and say they'll probably calm down within a week or so. There doesn't seem to be a concentrated effort to get people to be more humble as the Jellys are perhaps the most poorly organized faction in the entire city.
The Perfectionistas are back in power and loving it however. They will assign demerits to anyone caught littering or otherwise making their beloved district anything less than perfect by their subjective standards. These demerits do nothing but they're pretty bossy about giving them out. Most residents of District 1 seem to be used tot his.
You can read more about District 1 over here.
DISTRICT 2: CHARITY
One of the most drastically changed districts is District 2. Gone are Greed's almost too much holographic displays to be replaced instead with only the occasional holographic shows projected mostly onto billboards and playing out movies and dramas. There is no advertising to be found and no one is selling anything...or if they are, it isn't for much. All the buildings have a pale yellow sheen that sometimes appears to be white.
There is free housing offered although the workers do caution anyone who stays there that it will only last as long as Charity is ahead. There are also many medical clinics to be found, and shops that offer either free items or very low prices, and meals provided cheap or free. Occasionally the locations will run out of what they offer, but they do try to make sure they give what they can to anyone who asks it of them. The Charimedic clinics in other districts continue running as usual but many of their number also work at the clinics now in District 2.
This month the District 2 clinics will be offering first aid seminars and organizing welcome packages for any new characters. They're better equipped to reach out and make certain everyone has the information and tools they need to prosper in 7 when Charity happens to hold sway over the city.
You can read more about District 2 over here.
DISTRICT 3: CHASTITY
In District 3 there are many space themed lanterns and kites to be found in the sky almost constantly depending on whether it is night or day. These sometimes float entirely free on the breeze that blows constantly through the district but many times can be found being released or flown by the residents of District 3. Denizens of the 3rd district can be found making and painting these kites or selling them. The price is fairly cheap and reasonable and mostly citizens seem to be making a lot for fun and then just asking a few credits for all the extras they end up with. This is a monthly activity for them that everyone treats as a group effort and this month they're trying to make one huge lantern that they want to send off into space. Some of the more technology-inclined members of the 3rd District can be found arguing about how best to do this and it appears they may set off some sort of rocket kite before the end of the month...?
There are flowering trees found all throughout the district. Cherry blossom, Magnolia, Crabapple, and strange alien options that characters may or may not recognize from home or from other worlds. The scent of it is heavy but pleasant - unless you're not into florals. It's pretty common at this time of year to find various people picnicking under the trees. Various hobby groups will put on demonstrations of skills or will have storytelling time in order to entertain anyone who happens to pass by. They're also putting on multiple demonstrations of stage fighting this month, encouraging characters to really study up for their roles. There's additionally face painting stands which seem to be space-themed. Galaxy swirls decorate the faces of many District 3 residents.
Music can constantly be heard. Most of it is pleasant and joyful, but there are some sadder tunes to be found particularly for one of the ongoing drama sagas put on in the central park. It seems that District 3 has leaned into the Space Opera theme to put on their own Space Opera...and they're taking audience suggestions for the story. Every few days the next part is put on and people can shout out suggestions to progress the scenes. Characters may be brought up on stage to play parts suddenly created or may find that many District 3 residents want to discuss the saga like a favorite soap opera.
There are various small open-topped airships that fly through the district. Several offer rides to the Amplitheater if you don't wish to walk, passing through the bubble with no trouble and transforming instantly into a scene-appropriate ship. For this month that means small spacecraft. One of the NPCs seems particularly enthusiastic about it and requests anyone who comes on his ship stick to playing their roles closely even if they don't get lost in them - he wants to be called "Captain" and playact dramatic space-themed scenes. He'll get sad if you don't accommodate this.
You can read more about District 3 over here.
DISTRICT 4: GRATITUDE
District 4 is far more cooperative and low-key this month. There are still multiple holographic streams broadcast around the area but this month the theme is displaying multiple people's achievements and treating people more equally. The competitive reality games and constant Envidol streams are nowhere to be found and there are many helpful streams showing the best ways to play new VR games or offering strategies for the current Amplitheater setting.
The once constant shopping malls are no longer anywhere to be found. Instead there is a focus on fixing anything broken and using what you have to the fullest. Things purchased from the small shops that pop up when Gratitude is in control tend to be built to last and don't mess around with new versions and fancy features. The virtual reality arcades are still active but there are no player rankings in anything any longer.
The Envidols have some bitter streams going but you have to actively seek these out. None of them are broadcast freely any longer. The Thankfools are currently more active than ever in the district and can be found cheerfully complimenting anyone who wanders into the 4th District and offering their help in all matters big and small. They're also organizing groups to enter the Amplitheater together in order to generate even more energy for the city. If asked they will explain they do this periodically and the Vice or Virtue in charge of a district should always make certain people are participating.
You can read more about District 4 over here.
DISTRICT 5: TEMPERANCE
District 5 is heavily plant and growing focused. The river that flows through District 5 has more plants and growing things to be found in it and has a larger wildlife populace than it does when Gluttony holds sway and there are some small river craft that focus on occasionally fishing or making deliveries. There are many fields which offer up recreation and the basics that will become meals across the city of 7.
There's are boats running off one of the tributaries of the river and straight into the Amplitheater run on perfect schedule by the Rationals. These mostly robotic devotees are keeping things running on time and never overtime. The work day ends promptly when it should and never runs over and boats run as scheduled and have mandated breaks. Similarly the vending machines and stores all have strict purchase limits.
If you want to buy anything over the limit you should look for one of the people with silly food themed hats (mostly cheeseburger) who are running a black market for as many goods as you'd like.
While the food stands of the previous months are gone there are a few nice restaurants in their place which have themed menus for the current Amplitheater setting. Portion sizes are all very reasonable and having seconds is not encouraged.
You can read more about District 5 over here.
DISTRICT 6: WRATH
Wrath is interested in one thing this month: space battles. This shouldn't be surprising to any old characters, and new ones should get used to District 6's battle theme sooner rather than later. As usual many District 6 denizens are mobilizing to enter the Amplitheater in groups. Characters are welcomed - and in some cases forcibly press-ganged - to join any of these groups to march into the Amplitheater and acquire ships in order to have elaborate and deliberate space battles. They're not exactly playing it safe and easy so be careful of injury...or death, but that's best avoided.
The weapons shops are as usual all selling period-appropriate weaponry in addition to the usual stuff - though the merchants will clarify anything technologically advanced will simply morph inside the Amplitheater. Still, some people really want the authenticity! There's a huge difference between a lightsaber you buy and a lightsaber that you get inside the Amplitheater after your wooden sword transforms, okay? It's just less cool if you don't have the real thing. Some Wrath devotees will look down on people who don't purchase the actual weapon.
Inside the Amplitheater it seems that many of the Brewers are in Talasi looking for new exotic blends of tea to try. They'll happily invite any characters along to taste test teas and seem to be cooperating in order to make certain any members of their group or tag alongs who get lost in their roles are able to stick with the group on their little outtings.
You can read more about District 6 over here.
DISTRICT 7: DILIGENCE
Currently in District 7 the the days are twice as long as the nights. This does put the District somewhat out of sync with the rhythms of the rest of 7, but devotees of Diligence barely pay that any heed. You, however, may notice that you can step from night into daylight when coming from another district, or may experience the opposite when going.
Perhaps suiting the strange hours and cycle of long days and short nights, shadows inside District 7 behave strangely. Occasionally they will slip free of their owners and move independently, a pantomime of work played out on the streets and walls of District 7. These shadows can affect the actions of their owner at times, forcing the owner to work in District 7, or may be (semi?) permanently lost if citizens aren't careful. Shadowmen consume lost shadows although they also will steal the shadows of loiterers within the district. If you aren't behaving in a diligent manner your shadow is at risk. A new shadow can be gained through an extreme act of Sloth or Diligence.
Hovering and walking and rolling throughout the district are the Schedulebots (their members with working biological limbs walk). They can be found in nearly every district offering to help anyone who needs assistance or providing free labor. Many can be found going into the Amplitheater and working in the city within. Many will periodically offer to run errands for characters inside and outside of the Amplitheater.
The electric lazy river that serves as the major street(s) of District 7 is anything but lazy. There are various control craft that direct traffic and ensure everyone is moving according to schedule and plan. Deliveries are made efficiently and transportation is easily among the fastest across the entire city. There are regular scheduled transports offered going into the Amplitheater with stops at each hot spot.
You can read more about District 7 over here.
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But something catches his ear, something that renders his excuse until this point ineffective.]
What do you mean, he wasn't lost in the role?
[Because clearly that is what would make Yazoo act like that, right?
Act so different to how he was around him previously, during their time together in that simulation in which Yazoo was his AI.]
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He wasn't. He remembered me from when we met before. Remember that guy I told you about, the sketchy one I was trying to get an arm from as a bot? Who insulted me and wanted information about my friends for probably nefarious purposes? Yeah, that was fucking Yazoo, and since he remembered me from that interaction with that little nickname of "Sunshine," that means he couldn't have been lost in the role, at least not while he was talking to us. Cause when you're lost, you don't remember shit that happened in the city or in previous amplitheaters. He remembered you, too. And he still pointed a gun at you when you weren't even trying to hurt him. You were trying to help.
[His voice is still simmering with anger, but hopefully this knowledge paints a better picture of what an asshole Yazoo is acting like.]
So yeah, I don't want my friend with someone who treats him like that. Sue me.
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He talked about his brothers after all.
Fuck, how could he have been this blind?
He drags a hand over his face, sorting his own thoughts.
Yes, Yazoo threatened him with a weapon, but he didn't shoot. And he knows that Yazoo doesn't hesitate when he wants to shoot something, he has seen this much first hand. So Sebastian was right: Yazoo didn't want to shoot him at any point after recognising him.
Whatever his problem with Finnick might've been, he has no idea.]
He didn't treat me like that before. And he didn't want to shoot me, I mean what I said.
I don't know what exactly is going on, but I am planning on figuring out what it is, alright?
[he sighs]
I think he left me a message of where to find him.
If he's still going to be an asshole then, things might change. But he wasn't one to me before, and we both know how things can mess with our heads, don't we?
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He's also still mad that Yazoo was a complete dick to him with no acknowledgement or defense from Moran, and that Moran would choose this loser over Finnick. It's frankly insulting to him.]
Whatever, Sebastian. Have fun with that. Just don't get yourself killed.
[He turns, starts to walk away.]
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I won't get myself killed, Finnick. Nor would I have let him kill you.
It was all show, and if he had tried to shoot or harm you, I would've stopped him.
[he gets up, but he doesn't run after Finnick.]
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How?
[He makes his finger into a gun pointed at Sebastian, miming pulling the trigger as he speaks.]
How... Would you prevent him from pulling the trigger... On a gun that was already loaded... And aimed at me or you?
[Finnick doesn't trust that Yazoo didn't intend to hurt them. Not for a second. To Finnick, he's slimy, and has no morals to speak of.]
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[Sure, he sees where Finnick is coming from. But he also hasn't seen Yazoo the way Sebastian has.]
Besides, he didn't hurt us just now. We did. Cause we were lost in the roles, and shot and threw our weapons at him after chasing him through half the city. Anyone would've lashed out after that, and you can't tell me otherwise.
[there is an underlying anger in his voice, but he tries to keep this a calm discussion. He is sincere, has seen enough humans and animals alike lashing out after being hunted and cornered, and Yazoo seems to somehow be a bit of both.
And Finnick of all people should know what it means to be hunted against his will and forced to act in extremes, just to survive.]
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Still, this wasn't Finnick's only run-in with Yazoo, and he still hates the dude. He crosses his arms and sighs, still far from happy, but not wanting to argue anymore.]
All right, fine. Let's get out of this stupid place and get a drink, shall we?
[He heads back in the direction they came, looking around on the rooftops for a portal back to the city.]
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He has seen people get angry and defensive over less, to be fair.]
I wouldn't have let him hurt you, okay? Believe me when I say that. There are lines.
[And it will be one of the many things he'll have to talk about with Yazoo, once he finally sees him again while not being inside this hell hole of theater, playing a role to amuse someone they can't even see.
In District 3, if Sebastian caught this right.]
Yeah. Fuck, I need a drink. Badly.
[Sebastian nods and groans, rubbing his face once again.
All of this turned into such a mess, and he isn't sure which is thanks to them being trapped in here and which is just ... thanks to themselves.
Not like he doesn't have a habit for getting himself into dangerous situations on purpose, anyway.]
Seen any other bubbles around, or did he take the only one?
I rng'ed district 4 but we can go elsewhere if u like
Who knows. The situation was so complicated and weird. He's still a bit confused.]
Me too. You still have those cigarettes?
[He looks around behind a giant vent, and finds a portal.]
Over here.
[He grabs Sebastian by the wrist, not his hand as he usually would, because he's still kinda mad, okay. He pulls his friend into the portal.]
nah, totally works for me!
And to a degree, Finnick has every right to do so. But only to a degree.
But for now that drink and cigarette sounds too tempting not to follow.]
You bet,
[Finnick's hand around his wrist is different, but he gets that he needs to calm down first, so he doesn't commment on it.
Green lights blind him as he stumbles through the bubble, raising his hand to shield his eyes.
They are definitely back in the city, all cyber enhancements gone and they are back to their old selves, apparently in the middle of Gratitude.]
Huh. That's a new one. But looks like we can get a few drinks over there.
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Gratitude. Can't say I've been here much.
[He looks to where Sebastian points and heads toward it. It's some kind of arcade-slash-bar. He goes inside without a second thought, figuring if the vibes are rancid they can just leave.
Inside it's somehow even darker, with just the neon pink and purple outlines of arcade machines and the bar counter. However, it's not loud, as everyone at the machines is wearing a headset, plugged into virtual reality, the sounds of the games only playing through those headsets. They make strange movements, miming fighting or grabbing or kicking or who knows what the fuck that guy is doing. Aside from these gamers the bar is pretty much empty, so Finnick takes a seat at the counter and orders whiskey on the rocks.]
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[but to be fair, he hasn't been to many of the districts yet, mostly when visiting Finnick, but there hadn't been much of a reason for him to leave his district yet, except for exploration purposes.
So Gratitude is a whole new experience, and he can't help but look surprised at the arcade games and screens, the lights and headsets and overall set up, none of which is anything that he knows from his own time and world.
Even as he slips into the seat next to Finnick, and orders a scotch whiskey pure, his eyes still travel to the rest of the room, watching these people apparently play something that happens on those screens in front of him.]
Sorry 'bout the whole thing,
[he finally mutters, once he has his drink in his hand, holding it out to let his glass meet Finnick's, if he wants to]
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Finnick says he'll have what Moran's having, and sighs as it's served and his friend apologizes.
He clinks his glass.]
It's fine. You can't help who you like, and it's not like I have much better taste anyway.
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It's been a long and exhausting day, and he definitely didn't think it would end like this.
The theater truly has a cruel way of playing with them.]
Yeah.
Well, don't think your boyfriend threatened your friends, did he.
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No, and I'd like to think he wouldn't, but I definitely wouldn't be surprised if he did. He's not the sunshine and rainbows type. Not quite as rude as Yazoo, though. He has some tact.
[Yazoo's been a condescending dick to Finnick since the moment they met.]
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So what would you do. If your boyfriend threatened one of your friends?
[He doesn't hope that it will happen, or happen again in Yazoo's case, but he wants to hear Finnick's opinion on this.]
Sorry he's been so rude to you. Like I said, can't say he was to me the two times I met him before this. And the time during the month in which he was my home AI felt like .. I don't know, like we were in there for three months at least.
This thing really fucks you up.
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[He accepts Eren for who he is, but there are behaviours he won't accept. He doesn't actually think Eren would do that, though.]
Yeah, it's all consuming. My battle angel run felt really fucking long, too. So much happened.
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[He nods. So not really anything different to what Sebastian did and is planning to do. Once he finds Yazoo again, that is.
He sighs and downs the rest of his drink, ordering two more drinks for the two of them.]
Yeah. Don't ask me why or how, but I feel like time moves differently in there. It's not just having memories that aren't your own, it's also that it moves faster in there so that every new scenario feels longer than it really was out of the theater.
cw rambling about smoking/drinking? lol
[He downs the rest of his drink as well and makes a significant dent in the second one. Maybe after this one they can have that coveted buzzed smoke break where the rush from the nicotine feels incredible combined with the drink...]
Man, and I was really hoping not to get into shit this time.
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[He throws his pack of cigarettes on the table, his silent offer for Finnick to take one if he wants to.
Sebastian definitely lights one for himself.]
Wonder if there's a way around it. Not playing the game and following their will.
Showing these people in power that we're not some sheep that do as they want.
[he fought a system like that once, he'll do it again. Even if it costs his own life.]
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[Finnick does take a cigarette, finishing off his second drink before sticking it in his mouth. He leans toward Sebastian for him to light it for him.]
Other than bringing people in with you who will wake you up, I have no idea. If you figure it out, let me know. I'm so done with this shit.