ringleaders: (Default)
Lost Carnival Mods ([personal profile] ringleaders) wrote in [community profile] livinglot2018-01-05 10:28 am
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⇨ TEST DRIVE MEME: WISMUTH

WELCOME TO THE SHOW!

Or, more specifically, Lost Carnival's test drive meme! This is an opportunity to try out your characters in the setting before you apply, or to put together samples for characters you've never played before. There are going to be options for both new arrivals and veteran characters. Before we get started, let's lay down some details:
  • You can (and should) read the full premise here.
  • Reserves and Applications are currently OPEN.
  • Recruits can be either willing or tricked this month.
  • You can apply as a newcomer or as a "veteran" character who has been in the carnival for up to three years. In the case of veteran characters, you will need to come up with an explanation of why they haven't been around the carnival recently.
  • TDM threads can be used as game canon after the fact if both characters are accepted, the players agree to it, and it makes any sense contextually.
  • If you are interested in additional IC and OOC plot responsibilities, consider applying for a Supervisor position. Head Cook and Treasurer are currently open. Otherwise, we're pretty much down for anything, roles wise.


CURRENT STOP
WISMUTH

Wismuth is a large coastal city on the east shore of what would usually be the United States. The world it's part of is an Earth variant, meaning that while some aspects may be different, overall it will contain a similar look and feel to Earth many are accustomed to, including some overlapping celebrities, corporations, and technologies. Its most notable feature is that this planet is a part of what is called a 'Pillar of Creation' - a focal point of Creation's energies in the multiverse. The effects of this feature are the only aspect of the setting that will be relevant for this testdrive, as recruits will be entirely within the carnival as opposed to out in the city.

VIBRANCY OF CREATION: The immediate effects of this trait are that everything in Wismuth, and in the carnival because of its connection to Wismuth, is filled with an unusual sort of vibrancy - colours seem brighter, sounds seems to resonate more deeply, and all other physical sensations will strike visitors as oddly intense, including their own emotions. It's a subtle effect rather than anything that will be overtly disorientating, but it's almost as if everything is more "real" here than it is anywhere else. Obviously, the locals, whom are mostly just ordinary looking humans, have had plenty of time to grow accustomed to this. On the bright side, as a tourist, you have the opportunity to experiment with this sensation as a form of recreation.

Recruits from this month will be signing on with the carnival between Day 8 and Day 11 on the season calendar.

NEW RECRUITS

You gotta start somewhere, right? These prompts are for characters who are arriving in the carnival for the first time, and who are destined to sign a contract. How they go about that is up to you, but in the meantime they can enjoy the sights and sounds of something truly out of this world. Will you become her most recent hire?

ADMISSION FEES: After crossing into the carnival's realm and passing through the trees, most visitors will find themselves at the front gate - though not all choose to enter that way. If they enter legitimately, however, they will have to pass by a clerk who will trade admission and tickets for various attractions and rides in exchange for "anything of value." What is of value may seem highly subjective, and so some may struggle to produce payment at first, though in actuality the carnival will take anything from mundane currency to items of purely sentimental value.

MIRROR MAZE: The mirror maze is a big attraction in the carnival, and stretches much further on the inside than it looks like it will on the outside. It's hard to get through, and what's more, after you've been in there for a while your reflections will start gaining a mind of their own - mostly in order to taunt and distract you with personal information. They don't know everything you know, but they know more than they should, and their mind games can be pretty hit or miss.

GAMER'S CIRCLE: Almost all of the game booths are organized in a large ring around the Cookhouse, called Gamer's Circle. Your can play just about any carnival game you can imagine here, for a variety of prizes sometimes traditional, exotic, or outright magical. Dart tossing? Got it. That game with the water guns? Got it. Most of these booths are currently manned by humanoid spirits who look like they are made of smoke. If they can trick you into earning debt, they will.

TUNNEL OF "LOVE": A brand new attraction in the carnival, the Tunnel of Love is mostly what you'd expect from such a ride - two people sit in a boat together which journeys through some glitter filled caves, complete with mood music. Unfortunately, there is also something else in there with you... in the form a moody kraken living in the waters, who has very particular opinions about shipping, and may either stubbornly interfere with any attempted intimacy, or may politely encourage it. Or they may just generally be a dick if they're in no mood for either. The Ringmaster insists it is a romance expert.

TRYING TO LEAF: No matter where you came from, you seemingly emerged from a forest. Obviously, to get back home you should be able to go back in the same direction, right? It turns out you can't. Worse, trying too hard to get through the wood will result in you getting lost, or turned back to the carnival. The trees here are not normal, and are varying levels of alien, including things like trees with glowing fruit or orange flowers that constantly burn like candles.

WILD CARD: Anything else you can imagine in this setting! There are a lot of possibilities and you're free to explore them. Check out the rest of the game info or the locations page for additional inspiration. Want to make a starter with your character experiencing their first theoretical change? Go for it!

VETERAN WORKERS

These prompts are tailored to the carnival's existing employees, the veterans. Odds are they've been here from somewhere between a few months and three years already, and know their way around the block. For them, this is just business as usual - and depending on their attitude towards their job, they may or may not contribute to a few people accidentally getting themselves a contract. Whatever you do, though, don't warn visitors away from the carnival - the ringmaster hates losing business like that.

DO YOUR WORK: This one's pretty simple - just have your character doing whatever you'd like to have their job be! There is a big list of ideas over here, and you could use this to try things out with a character you intend to be a new arrival, as well.

BREAK TIME: Whatever you were doing, it's break time! It's time for you to relax however you see fit. Do you enjoy some of the carnival attractions yourself, or is that old by now? Do you hang out in the Cookhouse to get a snack? Do you take a nap? Yolo, baby!

DUNK TANK: Sometimes acting like a dick will earn you the gentle reprimand of being sent to work in the Dunk Tank for the afternoon - you know that game where people throw balls at a target, and if they hit it you get dropped into the water? It's like that, only sometimes there are daunting (but harmless) critters in the water, or some other strange magical affects to spice things up. Hopefully, the visitors will have bad aim.

WILD CARD: Anything else you can imagine in this setting! There are a lot of possibilities and you're free to explore them. Check out the rest of the game info or the locations page for additional inspiration. Want to do a performance? Hang out in the Backyard? Choose whatever appeals!
worldlyafflictions: (anime020)

[personal profile] worldlyafflictions 2018-01-14 07:50 am (UTC)(link)
Haha, so ya don't care about any of it anymore? Throwing everything away ta join that circus, that's unexpected!
reflash: (*crushes my emotions w/ my bare hands*)

[personal profile] reflash 2018-01-14 08:14 am (UTC)(link)
Are you done?
worldlyafflictions: (ch067pg29p1)

[personal profile] worldlyafflictions 2018-01-14 08:30 am (UTC)(link)
No anti-nausea stuff?
reflash: (it’s not a real party until you)

[personal profile] reflash 2018-01-14 08:33 am (UTC)(link)
Drink some water and don't go on any more rides.
worldlyafflictions: (ch012pg11p1)

[personal profile] worldlyafflictions 2018-01-14 09:01 am (UTC)(link)
Eeeh, that's not what ya said earlier!
blooktunes: already cried, currently crying, prepared to cry some more (shy fly and ready to cry)

[personal profile] blooktunes 2018-01-14 10:24 am (UTC)(link)
O...kay...

[What a rousing endorsement.]

I don't really understand what that is...or why I'm here...but thanks, I guess...for welcoming me, even though I was in the way...which is the only reason you even talked to me...oh...
exaomori: (🐍 45)

[personal profile] exaomori 2018-01-14 03:53 pm (UTC)(link)
Answers?

[She wants to shake him. He wanted Mephisto to answer some questions he had, but Mephisto probably refused. Because Mephisto never answered questions, especially not direct questions that the asker thought were important. This wasn't new. What was shooting him going to do, force his hand?]
soft_focus: (-sigh-)

[personal profile] soft_focus 2018-01-14 04:08 pm (UTC)(link)
[Hmmm. 'Rousing' indeed. There's a bit of a head tilt as she tries to make sense of the ghost. He seems....a little happy but not???

This is not a very confident ghost, is it-
] ...I would have still said hello if you weren't on the ground, I think.

...It just wouldn't have been because I poked you, that's all. [Which was sort of mean in hindsight.] Even though that didn't hurt, I'm still sorry about the poking, too. [And she means it, even if it doesn't sound like a very upset apology.]
superwaifu: (cherry pie)

[personal profile] superwaifu 2018-01-14 06:29 pm (UTC)(link)
[Polite! The sweets do look tasty. She accepts one, careful not to touch any of those others.]

Kushikawa Hatoko! Hi, Shima-san.

[She giggles and sits next to him. It's okay to share a bench if they're sharing food, right? Fast friends. She takes a tiny bite to taste-test.]

Mm~!

[Whoever baked these must be amazing!]

This is yummy! You can count on me to pay you back some day.
exaomori: (🐍 46)

[personal profile] exaomori 2018-01-14 07:38 pm (UTC)(link)
Well, it wouldn't be the first time--[Demonic possession tended to produce some weird results, even if said possession was part of a willing contract. Shura's seen some strange stuff over the years.

But that was going to happen to her if she couldn't get out of this contract? No. That's not cool. Whatever she had done to annoy the head honcho here, it couldn't be worth getting exposed like this--

Her lips press into a thin line, rage quietly boiling as he continues to speak. It isn't his fault. She has to repeat that a few times, inhaling deeply to try and calm herself.
]

Fade away... It had better.

[how could this guy be so casual about it???]
betheman: (:0)

[personal profile] betheman 2018-01-14 07:39 pm (UTC)(link)
It...wouldn't? [Boy, he is Made of questions now. But anyway. He nods.] Aaauh. I, the man Gongenzaka, have no doubt there would be at least one here who could prove it, in fact.
exaomori: (🐍 11)

[personal profile] exaomori 2018-01-14 07:49 pm (UTC)(link)
You don't? Well, ain't that just convenient!

[just going to eat another puff... because he hasn't taken the bag away yet...]
genice: (huh | were you talking to me?)

[personal profile] genice 2018-01-15 12:18 am (UTC)(link)
Carnivals are magical places of confusion, illusion, and often also some degree of genuine skill.

Not that Victor's all that aware of it; he reaches a hand out to find they've come to another intersection, tapping a finger on the mirror in front of him before turning to the right. "Living includes making mistakes. It's learning from them, and what you learn, that usually matters most. I'm not sure I follow you about the not knowing. Like..." He glances back, giving Cole a considering look. "A difference in culture?"

One of the things he'd learned about international travel when he was young was how much he didn't know that he didn't know, contrasted against what he thought he knew from his own home city. He can imagine something like the carnival having its own culture shock on some smaller level.
genice: (huh | were you talking to me?)

[personal profile] genice 2018-01-15 12:24 am (UTC)(link)
( Victor's turn to consider. He frowns, flexing his fingers in remembrance. )

I was handing it back, but it ended up falling down. There was a bunch of loud talking about debts for damages, or something like that, but I couldn't make much sense of it since nothing had actually been damaged.

( Except he'd taken what he'd been given and failed to "play" properly, which was a debt of a sort, when looked at through a certain warped lens. Victor has a sinking feeling all that shouted nonsense in the end actually means something, which is half of why he studies Childermass in turn, his own features neutral. )

I feel like I should be wondering who's behind the running of that carnival.

( A question not always worth asking, where he's from. )
atouts: (035; ace of pentacles)

[personal profile] atouts 2018-01-15 01:53 am (UTC)(link)
I see...

[ That might do it. It's a stretch, in Childermass's own opinion, but he isn't actually allowed to interfere with the hows and whys of involuntary recruitment. As for Victor studying him in return, well, he really does look more human than some of the other 'actors' had within the carnival itself.

The only apparent strangeness is black feathers worn like someone might have sideburns. There's more of them than just there, but he dresses in a very old-fashioned way — undershirt, vest, housecoat, a cravat, and all — and it covers up a lot of it. That said, he looks like he might belong to a "people from the past" exhibit rather than out here, chatting with Victor in a forest.
]

It might be a good idea to do more than just wonder. I can take you to meet her. She may have a little more insight into your current dilemma.
genice: (neutral | considerations)

[personal profile] genice 2018-01-15 03:28 am (UTC)(link)
( Ah, but could it be part of costuming still? He knows about all kinds of strange costumes worn for performance reasons, though feathers as an accent like that is a bit odd. It wasn't his place to say. It seemed perfectly suited for the strangeness of the moment, and so the contemporary man wearing his coat and workout sweats underneath adjusted his hold on his back and held off on sighing.

He was tired, which was irrelevant. So he smiled, perfect public relations material, and inclined his head to Childermass.
)

Thank you, I'd appreciate that, Mr...? ( Trailing off, he allowed his smile to temper back into a pleasant expression. Not happy, perhaps, but he didn't feel like investing in that pretense when civility was easier and more genuine. He held out a hand for shaking. ) I'm Victor Nikiforov.
Edited 2018-01-15 03:29 (UTC)
hurtcomfort: (oh my godddd hurry up)

[personal profile] hurtcomfort 2018-01-15 04:50 am (UTC)(link)
"A difference in people," Cole explains. "Most people are human here except when they aren't."

He's downright confused when he mentions that most people are human. Coming from a fantasy setting that includes humans, elves, dwarves, and giant bull men who sound like Freddie Prinze Jr., Cole's not used to the majority of people being the same race to begin with. Likewise, there's something unfamiliar about people at the carnival, some sort of changes that seem to make everybody less human at the same time.

It's confusing.

"There's also lightbulbs," he helpfully adds. "I know what they do, but now how they do it. And I can't ask them."
reflash: (*crushes my emotions w/ my bare hands*)

[personal profile] reflash 2018-01-15 06:33 am (UTC)(link)
I changed my mind.
worldlyafflictions: (ch019pg15p2)

[personal profile] worldlyafflictions 2018-01-15 06:58 am (UTC)(link)
Is it really okay ta just change your mind about treating someone??
reflash: (assert your dominance)

[personal profile] reflash 2018-01-15 07:00 am (UTC)(link)
As a medic, I am required to use my best judgement. [And currently, he doesn't feel like helping Shima.]
worldlyafflictions: (anime002)

[personal profile] worldlyafflictions 2018-01-15 07:03 am (UTC)(link)
How is that your best judgement?
reflash: (assert your dominance)

[personal profile] reflash 2018-01-15 07:39 am (UTC)(link)
I've assessed your condition in conjunction with the medication we have available and decided that the best treatment for you is to drink water and avoid any more carnival rides. [Do you want to keep pushing your luck, Shima?]
blooktunes: i don't have one. i'm literally always uncomfortable. (i can't get out of my comfort zone)

[personal profile] blooktunes 2018-01-15 10:48 am (UTC)(link)
[What is a "confidence"? Can you eat it?

The ghost continues to just float there awkwardly, but seems surprised at the apology. 'Isn't apologizing for stuff what I'M supposed to be doing??'
]

Oh.........

That's......nice of you to say. Since it was my fault for being in the way...you don't have to be sorry or anything...but... thanks.
soft_focus: (extra 10)

[personal profile] soft_focus 2018-01-15 01:48 pm (UTC)(link)
[As far as Reira is aware...Sure.

IT IS A DELICIOUS SNACK. At least she's smiling a little.
] ...Even if you were the one lying down...you were lying down for a reason, right?

Sometimes the reasons we have to do things are more important than making it someone's fault. ...It was probably important, why you were there, [She concludes. In any case.] Umn... ...if you didn't know what the Carnival was for though...

...Did you just come to see the Ringmaster, then? ...Because of how she helps people?
reflash: (*sees spider*)

[personal profile] reflash 2018-01-15 04:38 pm (UTC)(link)
If he won't tell me, Lucifer will. [He says, after a breath. His voice is steady and determined, despite the way his shoulders still shake and how he isn't looking up at Shura, his eyes fixed on some vague point near the ground.]

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