Entries tagged with plotting post

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⇨ A NEW WORLD COMING (POLL)

SHE'S BACK!↴
The Ringmaster has returned, with some changes. The Red Beast aspect of her being has been fully awakened by the Huntsman's ministrations, meaning she now has some old Phoenix memories. She also retains all her memories of the carnival and recent events, though, and seems more grounded in the personality you've come to know her for than anything else.

If there's one thing she's changed her mind on, however, it's the idea of running away. That obviously isn't working, and she feels that she'll never have back the freedom she wants for herself and the carnival unless she acts. After consuming the Huntsman and ending the battle in the Wyldlands, she will bring everyone back to what remains of the carnival dimension. Everyone's personal belongings and pets are still here, seemingly having been in stasis (and any living creatures will just be waking up as they arrive) but the landscape and structures have been obliterated and reduced to fundamental realm building blocks. She'll say she knew this would happen when she sent it away briefly before dying. It's a bit melancholy nonetheless.

The moons are still here, importantly, and with little trouble the Ringmaster will collect the Blue Rose and Silver Mirror, which are now fully under control. The magical resonance between the three Miracles is very loud, especially for those already touched by them. With all of them in hand, and with the strength of the Huntsman still running through her veins, she'll make those present an offer. With all three Miracles, everything feels possible - and she is able to gift those that helped her with their power.

But there are a few qualifications.
( Read more... )

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⇨ New Location: THE WYLDLANDS

PREPARATION↴
On Day 132, preparation for battle will be in full swing. With the reminder that both Miracles are currently at stake, both halves of the Summer Court will be putting together plans to reach the Huntsman. In the meantime, carnival members will be taken back to the Summerlands to get their shit together.

On Day 134, the mission will begin. Those willing to come from the carnival, the Summerlands, and military from the Summer Court will be brought to the Wyldlands to begin their search. The Wydlands are enormous and constantly shifting in geography, which means that finding the Hunt to begin with will be a challenge, let alone without giving an unnecessary amount of advanced warning. That's where the carnival comes in.

Faerie presences are very loud, and easily detected. Too many of them getting close to the Hunt's territory will alert the Huntsman to the scale of the attack, which is not in thier favour. Instead, the suggested plan is that the carnival travel ahead as scouts, alerting the Summer forces of enemy positions, enabling them to dive in as a strategic ambush. Their lesser auras and Wyld Fae essence will allow them to blend in - with some additional magical help, they may even be able to appear as members of the Hunt themselves. With the power of the entire Summer Court at their disposal, a lot of things are possible.

A few Summer Fae will be sent along with them - most notably Ignatius and Gild. Those from the carnival that ran with the Hunt will also have the key advantage of being able to sense the Huntsman's will, leading the rest in the right direction and anticipating the Hunts movements. As long as they can avoid falling back into the Hunt's sway, of course.

SETTING↴

The Wyldlands are a massive and mostly uncharted territory of Arcadian land that lies between the two faerie Courts. Historically dominated by the Wyld Fae, it has also periodically become the stomping grounds of bouth Courts armies, and is considered a no-mans-land where dubious or secretive operations take place. Obviously, the Wyld Fae have never been a huge fan of this, and Court military is generally considered to be an unwanted nuisance. The tension has only grown thicker since the days of the Great Beast's uprising, with many Wyld Fae caught between the tyranny of the Huntsman and the disregard of the Courts.

You can find any imaginable biome within the Wyldlands, and their locations constantly and gradually shift. A desert may develop into a rainforest within a period of a few weeks, and the only stable places are powerful Wyld Fae have set up their dens, grounding the territory into reflecting their own nature. In general, the landscape is somewhat surrealist in nature, with impossibly large trees being commonplace, along with floating islands, bizarrely shaped mountains, and other alien landmarks.

All of this makes it very difficult to navigate, but also perfect for hiding out in.

( MORE PLOT DETAILS BELOW )

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⇨ DECEMBER PLOTTING & ENDGAME

SOLSTICE PLANS↴

The council with the Summer Maiden has run its course, and there were enough people interested in trying to have the Summerlands ally with the Summer Court that the attempt is going to go ahead. A couple days after the meeting, the Summer Maiden will leave to the Summer Court with an entourage of willing carnival members, with the intent of negotiating a peace between the two fragmented pieces of Summer. Of course, in real life, it is the holiday season, so the schedule will be as follows:

► DAY 127-128 (Dec 18th-26th): Free time in the Summerlands, while the Summer Maiden contacts the Summer Queen long distance and negotiates an Elysium. The Summer Queen will ultimately agree, but the exact communications they have will not be public. As of early 128, the Summer Maiden will announce that the Elysium set is to begin the next day, and anyone wishing to come along should prepare themselves. She is encouraging people to come so that they can be formally presented as part of her people and as people who cannot be trifled with. However, attendance is not mandatory, and those who don't want to come can stay in the Summerlands. The entire diplomatic mission will take place in an enclosed ceremony, and the Summer Maiden will be able to protect all attendees.

► DAY 129-131 (Dec 27th-Jan 7th): The Summer Maiden and her entourage will leave for the Summer Court. To those remaining in the Summerlands, and Summer Maiden and her party will seem to be gone for three days - however, to those in the entourage, the entire event will seem to just be one day and night cycle. The Summer Court has a timeless feeling quality to it, and so it will not map directly to the day schedule. It may feel either longer or shorter than a normal day to each individual, depending on how much stuff they do. The more active they are the longer it will feel, and the more passive and unobservant, the shorter. The opening part of the diplomacy log will be a casual mingle, and actual plot stuff will start to happen at the start of the new year.

► DAY 132+ (Jan 8th+): After the diplomacy mission, depending on the results, the next major plot adventure will happen with the Summer allies and carnival going to defeat the Huntsman. This plot will run for a few weeks and will be the last plot arc before the game's finale.

► DAY ??? (Feb, 2019): The finale of the game will occur and hopefully be done in a few weeks with some left over time to set up an epilogue.

If you have any questions about this timeline, ask them below! Otherwise, this post can be used for general plotting, and calling out whether your character is staying or going.

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⇨ POLARIS AFTERMATH POLL

WHAT NOW: THE POLL↴
The carnival has emerged victorious after a heated and exhausting battle with the Mother of Invention. Her soul has been torn asunder, and her body destroyed. Gild and a team of allies have arrived via airship, and will reveal that they have been camping outside of the base for days, aiding in the planning and execution of an escape plan. In total, there is Gild, Samyaza, Alyss, Reyna, Shimmer, Scald, Moss, Kerubi the fox, and Brauni piloting the ship itself. How they all got here is a long story. They were intending on breaking in with it and grabbing everyone if it came down to it, but now it seems that they have the opportunity to do more good here than that.

There are several issues that will arrive in the immediate aftermath of the struggle, and the characters will have to make some decisions on how to handle things going forward. Gild and Ignatius can provide some direction if needed, but ultimately neither of them want to force a decision in regards to any of this. (They most likely have some personal issues to work out between themselves, also.)

► WHERE TO STAY?
At the very least the carnival will have to spend the next day and night resting, so that people can get back on their feet and so that Gild and Ignatius can recover their strength enough to go anywhere. This can either be done by staying inside the section of Polaris they've overtaken, or by going down to the Wyld Lands (which are apparently below where Polaris is floating) and camping out there. The Wyld Lands are potentially dangerous, but the two fae are confident they can defend an area long enough to camp.

► WHAT TO DO ABOUT POLARIS?
In the aftermath of the Mother's death, the staff and prisoners of Polaris will be in a state of disruption and chaos. For staff, it will be really hard for them to accept that the Mother is actually gone and that this isn't some kind of test or trick, and for the prisoners, they are more or less still at the mercy of the staff overseeing them. The carnival has the choice to stick around for a few days and ease the process of liberating the station, by helping to overtake the Alphas and Betas clinging to power, and by basically spreading the news of the Mother defeat. They can also make sure the other test groups are actually released. Of course, they are not obligated to do this. They are free to just leave, as well, and hope that Polaris sorts itself out. If they do stay to deal with Polaris, most of this will be handwaved. Characters can simply declare what they are doing to help, and it will be done without challenge.

► WHAT DIRECTION TO TAKE?
Gild's immediate impression is that people will want to help the Ringmaster (though this may not be true) and based on that her recommendations are that they could either write to the Summerlands and ask for help in doing so, or they can go there themselves and be a bit more forceful. The Summer Maiden is notoriously passive, so Gild believes that she will be reluctant to help her own girlfriend, which is annoying. If they head straight through the Wyld Lands they may gain the element of surprise, of course, and go in there stealthily... but going it on their own could be difficult. Gild is willing to help either way. Ignatius doesn't seem to want to go to the Summerlands for various awkward reasons, but ultimately he will bend to the public opinion. People need a break, he thinks, and they probably won't find it in the Wyld Lands. For those not interested in dealing with the Hunt at all, the fae will recommend going to the Summerlands, because at least they can have a break there until everyone figures out what to do.

► WANT A FAERIE CONTRACT?
Once they are fully free of Polaris, Ignatius will consider the danger over and his contract with people will end. However, he will be open to offering protection for an extended period to anyone who wants it. The specifics are flexible - he really just wants the ability to look out for people in a patron sense. The Gilded Mark will also offer to be your patron, to take some of the burden off of Ignatius. Maybe this is a weird competition thing? Don't worry about it, it's there problem. Either way, both contracts will be flexible and mostly so that they can more easily lend you their power if necessary.

Given that information, here are some poll questions. This is an IC poll, so please vote once for each character. If you don't reply, you'll be assumed to be 'undecided' or 'ambivalent'.

Poll #20710 Where now?

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 28

View Respondents

While doing other things, where do you want to stay for the next night or three?

View Answers

Stay in the secured section of Polaris.
19 (67.9%)

Camp out in the Wyld Lands.
7 (25.0%)

Either's fine.
2 (7.1%)

How do you want to handle the Polaris situation?

View Answers

Stick around to dethrone the Alphas, spread the news, and make sure prisoners are released.
19 (70.4%)

Leave these guys to their own devices for now and come back later.
2 (7.4%)

Abandon ship and never come back/leave them all to die.
4 (14.8%)

Undecided.
2 (7.4%)

What direction do you want to take?

View Answers

Head straight for the Wyld Hunt and send a letter to the Summerlands asking for back up.
0 (0.0%)

Go to the Summerlands and ask the Summer Maiden for help directly/hang out.
23 (82.1%)

Something else? (Suggest in comments)
2 (7.1%)

Undecided.
3 (10.7%)

Do you want to take any fae protection?

View Answers

Sign on with Ignatius.
10 (35.7%)

Sign on with Gilded Mark.
11 (39.3%)

Undecided/Do not.
7 (25.0%)

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⇨ New Location: POLARIS

PREPARATION↴
With the Ringmaster defeated and claimed by the Huntsman, the ownership of everyone she has contracts with will have defaulted to the Huntsman himself - which means he is capable of forbidding everyone the use of their magic and powers. He does, of course, but it turns out he has little interest in keeping any of the Ringmaster's left over belongings. Soon after taking her egg, he passes off ownership of everyone else to an assembly of Winter fae that have been patiently lying in wait.

The leader of the fae in question? The Mother of Invention, a notoriously unorthodox magical scientist and researcher. While the Ringmaster is carted off to places unknown, the rest of the carnival is being whisked away to a place called Polaris for the indefinite future.

NOTE: If your character contracted with Ignatius, special rules will imply regarding their ability to use their powers. Right at the start, they will still mostly lose their ability to use powers, but as time goes on, their contract will conflict with the Mother's ownership of them, allowing minor uses of their abilities on a case by case basis.

SETTING↴

Polaris is a magical laboratory complex in Arcadia, floating just above cloud level. It belongs to the Mother of Invention, and is used by her and her technicians to study and develop magical theory. While stealing away mortals to this complex is a common practice, those taken from the Ringmaster's care are here under special circumstances.

All items, pets, and clothing will be confiscated on entry and locked away, followed by everyone having to go through a 'decontamination' process that mostly involves all the things you'd expect it to. You get scanned by various things and then sprayed with magical water vapor that feels very cold but apparently cleanses. Then, you are given new clothes - that are applied magically rather than being something you physically put on - and taken away to be individually interviewed. Please fill out this form as each of your characters, following the rules as explained. This interview will determine some things about how your character is treated during the event.

The new 'clothes' are actually just weird bodysuits in a shade of charcoal grey, with a texture somewhere between leather and silicon. It's flush to the skin and flexible enough to stay that way, but thankfully the material is thick enough that it isn't unduly revealing. You will mysterious find yourself not needing to eat or produce waste while wearing it. It's also basically impossible to take off on your own. If you are weirdly shaped, or have a lot of fur, feathers, or foliage that would get in the way of this, then the suits are custom applied and can be modded to accommodate such things. The design will endeavor to cover as much as possible while not being completely impractical. They generally won't cover things like tails or wings.

Characters will be locked up in compact cells during the night, either alone or in pairs. If your character is big they will be put in a somewhat bigger cell to accommodate their size, but there will still not be much leg room. The layouts are approximately like this, so if you have a roommate, things will be pretty intimate for your stay with them. Housing is functionally random and may change daily, irregularly, or not at all. Who you room with is your OOC choice, but in game characters are being assigned by the technicians.

( MORE PLOT DETAILS BELOW )

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⇨ New Location: SHABONDAMASHII

PREPARATION↴
On Day 92 the carnival will have fled from Eden to a new rest location. NPCs will have been dropped off in the necessary places, and then the Ringmaster is settling everyone into a space vacation while she works on dealing with the aftermath of her fight with Lilith. More specifics will be incoming, but this is what you need to know.

SETTING↴

Shabondamashii is technically a bathhouse, but the name is also used to describe the small city surrounding it. 'Shabon', as often called by foreigners who are bad at pronouncing things, predated the community surrounding it - over time, the rest of the city has built itself around the famous bathhouse's existing prosperity. The city is incredibly dense, and mostly filled with things meant to appeal to tourists. In this case, 'tourists' also includes beings from many other worlds. It's a universal nexus of a more frivolous variety, and both employs and is visited by a large variety of unique species.

The owner is a powerful being, and as such, many employees are 'paid' via room and board, plus broad magical favours similar to what the Ringmaster would offer in exchange for service. Helpfully, everyone is there willingly, and are allowed to keep tips as a secondary income source. Service tends to be excellent, given the worker's desires to earn as much wealth as possible before returning to their homes.

The layout of the city is incredibly dense, and overflowing with content. In terms of what you might see, it's pretty much anything you can imagine being in the world of Spirited Away, primarily defined by Japanese and other east-Asian culture. It isn't exactly like the earth variety, but it's close enough, and will be recognizable to people who come from those backgrounds. For the most part, as long as you aren't making up resources for your character to stockpile, if something fits the setting it's probably safe to assume it exists. The specifics of this location super don't matter.

( MORE PLOT DETAILS BELOW )

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⇨ New Location: EDEN (SPECIAL EVENT)

PREPARATION↴
On Day 79, full preparations to enter Eden will be underway. This isn't like past events where you'll just wake up in the new setting - the Ringmaster absolutely needs everyone's understanding for this. There are two major things that need to be taken care of before entering - blending in and knowing the context you're in.

According to various sources, Lilith barely visits Eden at this point. The whole set up has been spinning its wheels since nearly the beginning of time, and at this point, Lilith likely only shows up every few thousand years to see if there's been any progress. She also shows up to add more animals to the population, to replace the ones killed or outcast, but the residents all know to deal with this as a standard procedure.

This means that everyone is going to enter under the premise of being a freshly made Honorable - which means, in turn, that they will have to be in the form of an animal, and fit with the status quo. The Ringmaster will be handling the animal part, and will try to block out all of people's spiritual radiation with essence of Beast to make them blend in. There are also herbal mixtures that will suppress the carnival's auras, making them easier to hide their faerie natures. For the most part, people will have to settle on one super power that they will be able to use publicly, and the rest will have to be kept a secret. If you don't have any powers, the Ringmaster will lend you one for this mission.

Once everyone is transformed and everything has been explained, the carnival will enter Eden and pretend to be a new batch of beasts. They will integrate into society and, somehow, they will find the Silver Mirror.

SETTING↴

Eden is a realm created by the Nephalem Lilith, populated entirely by highly intelligent animals. Only beasts are allowed within its borders, and any form of 'man' (that is, humans, elves, or anything that is a creator of civilization in their world, even if they are furries) is forbidden to walk free. The alleged purpose of Eden was to create the 'Perfect' being, one pristine beyond the traditional ideals of good and evil. According to Lilith, only this being would be fit to rule the multiverse, and all other ruling species are sorely lacking.

The backstory of Eden can be found in these passages, discovered in the Athenaeum and available for viewing: The Silver Mirror, Eden, and The Serpent.

The majority of Eden is comprised of idyllic forests punctuated by beautiful architecture and art installments. The animals of Eden spend most of their time creating, whether that be building structures, designing art, or experimenting with the heights of music and theater. Essentially, they are all very cultured when it comes to the arts. However, their rate of output, and the fact that there is nothing to do with the things they make, tends to result in their creations being ritually destroyed just as quickly, as offerings to their Goddess Lilith.

Otherwise, the beasts act about the same way you'd expect people to. They have hopes, fears, interpersonal dramas, and everything else. The primary different is that they know no life beyond this one, and their pious devotion to Lilith is strictly upheld - even at the cost of their lives.

( MORE PLOT DETAILS BELOW )

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MUSHI PLOT THE THIRD: FOOL ME TWICE, SHAME ON ME

YO, CHECK OUT THESE BUGS↴

Hello all! This is Casey and Maggie, players of Ginko and Tanyuu, here to bring you another mushi plot after far too long without! This one will be a lot more low-key and less disastrous, and hopefully enjoyable for this bit of recovery-downtime that the carnival is enjoying. Participation in this plot is entirely optional, and will have no lasting effects! We’re here to chill, guys, not have another mini-catastrophe.

The whole event will take place over the span of about 3 IC days, and a radio and log post will be going up for Ginko and Tanyuu’s IC alert of the infestation and for mushi shenanigans, respectively.

THE RUNDOWN↴

Where Ginko and Tanyuu are from, there are creatures called mushi - strange, ethereal organisms that exist in a state unlike that of other living things. Mushi are invisible to most people, but their effects can be quite noticeable nonetheless, and they can cause a lot of trouble for humans on occasion. Usually this only occurs when there is a very large concentration of mushi in the same place, but Ginko attracts mushi as a natural part of his existence/being/soul/what-have-you. As a result, since they aren’t really bound by the barriers between realms, they fairly frequently drift into the carnival. Most aren’t dangerous, and those workers who happen to be able to see them may have caught sight of some odd, glowing creatures clinging to walls or floating around. (There is no hard rule for who can and cannot see mushi, but supernaturally-inclined characters could be more likely to perceive them. Even the most mundane person could be able to, though, so don’t feel restricted in that sense!)

Starting on Day 66, patches of white, translucent wildflowers will start growing among the vegetation around the tents. They do not carry any energy related to the fae and look mostly unremarkable, but once everyone goes to sleep for the night the effects of their presence will become clear as everyone’s dreams get a bit...interesting.

( ”More )

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⇨ New Location: CAMPING GROUNDS

PREPARATION↴
On Day 63, the carnival will arrive a new world, filled with vast forests, and the Ringmaster will promptly kick everyone out. You guys are going camping, while she tears the carnival realm apart and expels every single thing the Faerie Courts could be tracking them with - if they go after the Silver Mirror, they can't risk being followed. So, instead of spending the week in trailors, the Ringmaster will dump a wide array of camping equipment onto everyone, including appropriate food and recreational drink. She says this place should be totally safe, but knowing the irony of that statement, she is issuing a number of safety precautions as well.

Characters are encouraged to camp all in the same area, but it's possible to slip away and be a loner. At least until the Security Team gets on your ass, anyway. Otherwise, you're advised to take some time to recover. This place could be considered pretty idyllic... even with the odd local inhabitants.

SETTING↴

The Camping Grounds are set in a vast alien forest, complete with waterfalls, lakes, and unreasonably big trees in places. The local animals are mostly benign, but on the strange side. There are various plants and insects with fluorescent qualities, including some over-sized mushrooms. There are also edible fruits and berries - the Ringmaster has provided the kitchen staff and Nightrunners a list of which ones are poisonous.

There is no high civilization here, so there won't be any performing necessary. Some of the creatures nearby come close, but fore the most part it's pure wilds. Also, notably, there are few local carnivores - the primary source of meat is fish, and most of the animals feed on insects or plants. As a result, the ecosystem is of the peaceful sort. Unfortunately, those fish also have fur.

( MORE PLOT DETAILS BELOW )

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⇨ STORY SWAP POST

YOUR STORY↴
While people are digging for meta-plot relevant information, among the Scribe's writings it is also possible to come across information about fellow carnival workers! Though it might come in the form of a morality fable, or a legendary romance, or even take the form of a simple cryptic sentence about the worst deed you've ever done. It's hard to say what the Scribe may have seen and committed to paper. See the Rewards section on the plotting post for more details about what these writings might look like.

This post is for submitting your pre-written tales based on the lives of your characters or their canons. If you would like to leave them open for anyone to come across, hit this post with a top-level!

Sign up to find a randomized story from this post here. This can be along with whatever else is up for public discovery that catches your interest, this mechanic is mainly to add a bit of randomness to CR opportunities.

Private discoveries among CR can be worked out on the original plotting post (or wherever else you like).

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⇨ New Location: THE ATHENAEUM

PREPARATION↴
On Day 47, the carnival will find itself merged with the new location, the grounds moved from their usually dimension right into the middle of the Athenaeum. This mean everyone will be waking up to a carnival surrounded by bookshelves instead of trees - the major things being left behind are the forest, lake, and menagerie, which can be accessed through a convenient tree portal made by the Ringmaster. Otherwise, it's book time now, welcome to book city.

SETTING↴

The Athenaeum is a city sized library realm comprised of absolutely nothing but hall after hall of books. Some rooms are well organized, vast and carefully categorized, while others are simply enormous piles of tomes with no rhyme or reason to their contents. Many cannot be read at all. The ones you can read, however, are a sampling of literature and history from all over the multiverse, in quantities beyond your comprehension. The catch? The only true way to find what you're looking for is to trust in fate. Literally.

The books are cared for by a pair of celestial beings called the Curator and the Scribe. The Curator focuses on collecting and sorting books, both fiction and non-fiction, from all over the multiverse. Their idea of organization is esoteric to say the least, so finding your way around can be more than difficult. The Scribe, in contrast, is primarily a writer - they have penned millions of volumes of true stories from the multiverse, covering a random array of subjects from the beginning of time to the daily anecdotes of mortals in backwater galaxies. In fact, there are almost certain a few stories about you.

The real challenge is finding them. You could spend and eternity here without finding what you are looking for. Magic meant to find specific items is non-functional, and brute forcing the process is impossible. All you can do is follow the whimsy of the Athenaeum's stores and find what you were meant to find.

( MORE PLOT DETAILS BELOW )

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⇨ New Location: SPACE OLYMPICS

PREPARATION↴
There's not much preparation to this event. At the start of Day 30, characters will wake up to find the carnival on a distant planet, underneath a biodome. In the carnival, they'll remain their normal selves but once they leave, they'll find themselves transformed into a more alien form (more details on that below!).

The Ringmaster will give the carnival members a brief overview: welcome to the Space Olympics! For the first week, the Carnival will be performing for the athletes in the athlete's village. But for the second week, the carnival can actually compete in the Space Olympics. Characters can compete in one event, with the exception of Space Beer Pong. The Ringmaster is going to get that gold medal herself, dammit.

SETTING↴

You stand on a distant planet
Skyline of red plateaus
Strange air and vegetation
You're a winner!
Welcome to the Space Olympics! The year is 3022. This year's host is Zargon, which is only hosting because the four previous hosts all dropped out. Still, Zargon's put lot of time and money into developing a complex perfect for the Space Olympics. Floating above the planet's atmosphere is a large spaceship turned athletic arena, obviously named Olympic Spaceship. Stadiums are on every corner, there's swimming pools every other block, and a large racetrack surrounds the city. Places in Olympic Spaceship that aren't arenas either cater to athletes (training facilities, locker rooms, medical facilities, saunas) or cater to those watching the games (concession stands, shopping malls, merch stands, quiet rooms where people can just sit down). Space public transit can get you from one end of the ship to another in mere seconds.

The athlete's village is on Zargon, as well as the carnival. People can either stay at the carnival or in the athlete's village. Though Zargon doesn't have any oxygen, a combination of biodomes and terraforming technology have made it so that all athletes can breathe comfortably on Zargon, no matter what their species! Just stay inside the biodome. Space shuttles go from Olympic Spaceship to Zargon at regular ten minute intervals. Those staying in the athlete's village will get a junior suite: basically a small, hotel room type set up with queen sized bed, microwave and refrigerator, and an attached bathroom. The Ringmaster will cover minor incidentals—so keep your ass out the minibar!

The Space Olympics comprises literally every sport that people can think of, both summer and winter. There's track and field, ice skating, luge, and beach volleyball, but there's also more alien sports: three dimensional chess, pod racing, space poker, mechanical bull riding but the bull's some sort of weird Doctor Who type alien, and so on and so forth. All sports inexplicably have the word 'space' in front of their name. There will be plenty of opportunities for characters to try out any kind of sport when the arena is not in session! Any fake games from character's canons will not be represented, but if you ask around you can find suspiciously similar substitutes. Want to play a game of Space Muel Donsters? How about a round of that popular card game Space Schment?

( I FORGOT THE CUT TAG )

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⇨ WISMUTH WRAP UP PLOTTING

WISMUTH WRAP UP↴

CY-Ren's planning of a charity concert has been well received - news of bomb threats and harassment from fans have painted her as a victim in the media spotlight, and her generous attempt to make amends is getting plenty of attention. She's been busy spinning things for as much focus as possible, and the threat of potential danger has the news focusing in on the proceedings. The date is set for Day 27 in carnival time. You won't want to miss it!

► BUILD UP: In the last couple days before the concert, CY-Ren will be reaching out to all of her Harbingers, regardless of where they might be at the time - yes, this means that even if you ran off, she'll come to find you! (Unless you're in the carnival like Taako, then you're fucked.) She'll tell you that her plans are coming to head, and that if you help her with one last task then the planet will be on its way to destruction. There are multiple ways you can aid her: you can help amp up her performance as evil backup singers/musicians, or you can set yourself up around the perimeter at specified locations, using your sparks as a beacon to her magic. She's certain that she's perfected her musical formula, this time - when the concert gets underway, all those present with the capacity to be a Harbinger will awaken, and the end of days will begin.

► THE CONCERT: By the time the concert arrives, the Star Guardians will have the idea that there's something unnatural about the way the new Harbingers were made - this isn't how it usually happens, and that sets them apart from someone like CY-Ren. Maybe that means that they can be pulled away with less drastic measures as well, given that the Void didn't have the full right to their souls in the first place. Anyone coming to help (and those who aren't Star Guardians will be encouraged to come as well, given that if they are making attempts at friendship, super powers aren't required) will gather in the area early, determined to stomp this one out before it can get too far.

► HARBINGERS: This is when they will be encountered by Harbingers guarding the perimeter, as well as a small army of void creatures defending CY-Ren's last performance. Star Guardians will become aware through the power of Creation that the Harbingers on the perimeter must be neutralized in order to disrupt the concert - CY-Ren is feeding on their negative energies, and it will make it too dangerous to attack her directly. Confrontations with any Harbingers can be worked out on an individual basis via plotting - just make up a location around the concert and have your Harbinger providing a beacon of their own design.

As the concert ramps up, however, the excess of Void energy will cause the newly made Harbingers to destabilize - mentally or magically, their powers will be harder to control, and their negative emotions will be running wild. However, with that instability, there is also room for a breakthrough - for someone to blast the darkness from their Sparks with friendship and light. Now is the time to reach out.

► STAR GUARDIANS: If a Harbinger is successfully turned away from the darkness, they will briefly regain control of their Sparks, and be able to manifest as a Star Guardian for the first time. This will allow the Guardians to outnumber CY-Ren's forces. Their look and powers will still be based around the same Spark, but purified by Creation and aimed towards positive things. Time to win.

► DANCE OFF: Given that the Spark of Music and the Spark of Dance are colliding, it is perhaps not a surprise that this all manifests as a big ass musical number. As CY-Ren and Noa have a music battle, everyone present (even if you aren't a Star Guardian) will find themselves magically inspired to join in. You can dance, sing, or anything in between - the more people who support Noa's side, the stronger she will be. There will be a megathread for this part of the conflict, and at this point any unturned Harbingers will awaken and be able to turn their Sparks towards the light. As CY-Ren begins to lose power, what the players do with her will be up to you.

Beyond that, this is a PLOTTING POST, which means you can use it to make plans! The game chat is also a great place to discuss plots, so we welcome you to pop on in if you haven't already! The official event log for this will be posted on Saturday, and will largely be a repeat of the same information.

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⇨ New Location: WISMUTH

PREPARATION↴
On Day 1 of the new season, the carnival will depart from their lunar vacation and return to the regular carnival grounds. New arrivals will be given their official trailer assignments, and veterans will be asked to go over their trades with the newbies, to get them ready for the next touring location. Performers will be expected to put together some new performance routines, security and nightrunners will be asked to do some military training, etc.

Then, on Day 6, the carnival will enter its new location. Rather than integrating itself with the new world, the carnival will be connected via portal to a central park area in the city. Of course, the "vibrancy" effects mentioned below will still be allowed to leak into the carnival itself through this connection. The intent will be to spent a couple days exploring before going into Performance Week, but the carnival will be interrupted part way through their tour by the firm hand of plot.

SETTING↴

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 significance of this term will be explained in more detail as the plot moves on.

The immediate effects of this trait are that everything in Wismuth, and in the world surrounding it, 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 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.

Wismuth won't read as overtly magical to anyone sensitive to such things, but magic will seem to flow with particular ease while you're here. It won't necessarily make a mage considerably more powerful, but it will put less strain on their efforts, and will somehow feel more "natural." While some realities may fight the presence of magic, this world seems quite the opposite.

Technology is somewhat more advanced here, allowing for better medical care, a healthier planet, and other mostly idyllic additions to society. Though the current year is still 2018, the qualities of this place seem to have resulted in things developing more quickly and positively. Make no mistake, though - people can still be assholes.

( MORE PLOT DETAILS BELOW )

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⇨ New Location: THE MOON

PREPARATION↴
On Day 6 of Winter Break (aka B6) the carnival will be... well, mostly staying where it is. Technically speaking, at least. While other times they've left the Ringmaster's realm for vacations, this time they are going to do something a bit differently. They don't have the best personal safety record when it comes to travelling for outside entertainment, so this time the carnival is staying home! Or, at least, it's staying in the same realm. The actual location they are going to is one of the carnival's two moons.

As it turns out, the moon is not actually moon sized. Instead of being a moon sized orb very far away, it is actually a much smaller orb unreasonably close to the surface of the earth - surely this would wreak absolutely havoc on the environment if magic wasn't responsible for it. According to Ringmaster, it's actually possible to fly to the moon by wing, if you're prepared to fly straight upwards for over an hour. Weird.

Lucky for you, she'll be creating a portal for everyone to go through instead. Workers will be allowed to visit the carnival grounds at any point during the vacation, but are asked to try to spend most of their time on the moon, in order to better encourage the spirit of celebration. What are they celebrating, exactly? Well, it's a bit hard to define, since everyone in the carnival comes from completely different seasons and universes, but according to the Ringmaster they are approximately celebrating the Fae holiday called the Lunar Solstice. However, you're also welcome to see it as Christmas or Hanukkah or New Years or whatever you prefer.

It's the Lunar Solstice, though, so they're doing it on the moon. Get it? Like, there are other reasons, but that's the best one.

SETTING↴

The Moon apparently has some kind of ski resort built on it now, so that's neat. Apparently it is a relatively new addition, made entirely for the occasion - practically speaking, it is frosty mountains with various cozy looking cabins scattered across them. Towards the center, there is a more densely populated area, with a number of larger buildings and living spaces built together like a little vacation town.

The temperatures are just low enough to keep snow on the ground, and never get oppressively cold. Day or night, it always feels like a perfect winter afternoon, good for a stroll as long as you have a coat or heavy sweater on. The small size of the moon is apparent from the horizon by its heavy curve, but thankfully the area the cabins are built in is facing up towards the sky, and not facing the carnival grounds down below, which would probably cause most a fair bit of vertigo. Of course, you can take a hike to the other side of the moon if that's your jam.

For most of this vacation, no work will be necessary, besides any voluntary training or practice. Food and cleaning are being temporarily handled by a commissioned group of allies called the World Walker Caravan, a merchant group whom the Ringmaster has helped out on a few different occasions. For once, the party is coming to the carnival, and not vice versa.

( MORE PLOT DETAILS BELOW )

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⇨ Special Event: BEAUTIES AND THE BEAST

PREPARATION↴
On Day 170, the Ringmaster will announce that she will be leaving the carnival for a visit to an 'ally', and that in the meantime everyone should just stay in the carnival grounds and wait for her to come back. She will shrug it off as being a simple matter, and say that it shouldn't take much time at all, and that it is something for the good of the carnival.

Of course, a few hours later, she will return with another announcement - actually, her... "ally", has "requested" that all of her underlings join her in visiting his castle while they negotiate the terms of a potential agreement. She will insist that it's a diplomatic affair, and that while really all that is required of everyone is to behave themselves and to not provoke the Prince's ire, it's extremely important that they listen to her this time. This announcement will be made by radio.

The evening of Day 170, everyone will be brought to an enormous manor house, apparently suspended in some kind of twilight void. They'll all be randomly assigned rooms in pairs of two (OOC RNG time!) and instructed to arrive for breakfast at 8AM sharp. Follow the schedule, be polite, and everything will be great.

Right? Right.

SETTING↴

Heartstone Manor is a spooky looking cross between a castle and a monastery, floating in the middle of realm filled with nothing else but empty twilight. Specifically, it is the home of a High Fae called The Prince - or so the Ringmaster will explain. He's one of the Wyld Fae, like she is, and when he fled from fae civilization eons ago, he hid himself away here to live in solitude as he saw fit. No one and nothing else lives here except for the Prince and his servants, and there is no visible sun - only stages between twilight and darkness.

The Manor itself is a massive stone construction, filled with old fashioned looking architecture and filled to the brim with art. Frescos, statues, and engravings line every hall, ranging from classical to abstract. The subject matter is almost always that of beautiful humanoids - in the form of fae, angels, and the more seductive forms of demons. The servants mostly appear to be traditionally beautiful as well. This seeming obsession with beauty is tied directly to the desires of the Prince himself.

While you are in his home, formal attire is mandatory. He will be gracious enough to provide everyone with appropriate wardrobe - that is, formal wear that could ambiguously fit anywhere from the 1500's to 1800's on Earth.

( MORE PLOT DETAILS BELOW )

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⇨ New Location: GREYSOL

PREPARATION↴
After leaving the previous location, and a few days before coming to Greysol, the Ringmaster puts a massive spell on the souls of every member of the carnival. Greysol is in a world where the souls of every human or sufficiently humanlike person takes the physical form of an animal. Plenty of characters wouldn’t qualify, but what’s the point of going to a dæmon world if not to show them what their inner selves look like?

The spell causes dæmons to form for most characters. They will wake up, either from sleep or a daze, with what appears to be an animal pressed against their hearts or equivalent important symbolic organs, but they will almost immediately understand that this is not an animal. This is part of them.

As dæmons are souls made physical they will have some element of characters’ soul color. At minimum their eyes are that color, and they may reflect some carnival changes, angelic/demonic nature, etc. For about a day their forms can change instantaneously into those of different animals. Children will remain like this, though there will probably be several preferred forms rather than randomness. Adults will ‘settle’ by the time the carnival arrives in Greysol, the number of forms they take dwindling until they become fixed on a single one. Look to the first comment for a more thorough explanation on dæmons.

The spell doesn’t work completely evenly. Some souls are more heavily insulated and do not become external. Players can opt out of dæmons this way and have a few options for their characters. A glamour butterfly in their souls’ colors can follow them while they’re in Greysol. Alternately, they become witches wearing bird pendants to symbolize dæmons supposedly far away. Characters with significant animalistic aspects may take the forms of panserbjørn - slightly anthropomorphized polar bears.

(If you don't want to type out dæmon - d & a e l i g ; m o n - all the time, daemon works too. It’s pronounced “demon”.)

SETTING↴

Can you imagine my astonishment at learning that part of my own nature was female, and bird-formed, and beautiful?

Greysol is a large coastal city that seems to roughly equate to late 20th century Western culture and mores, with a vaguely Victorian teslapunk-influenced aesthetic and somewhat uneven technology. Horse-drawn vehicles and just plain horses are common, but horseless automobiles and strangely 21st century-looking bicycles don’t cause too much of a stir. There are paved streets, skyscrapers, and electricity even if they call it "anbaric lighting". Hot air balloons and dirigibles can be seen in the sky. There are many moving picture theaters, black-and-white and with somewhat questionable sound, but small portable radios are common. Watches that bear a suspicious similarity to smartwatches are all the rage, though they are in fact simply watches and require winding.

Every human and witch in this world has an external soul which most cannot go more than about twenty feet from, and non-consensually touching someone else’s dæmon is tantamount to assault. This presents some logistical difficulties in a big city, but humans have built Greysol to accommodate their other halves. Doorways tend to be wide, stairs broad and shallow, there are huge freight elevators in most buildings, and sidewalks are quite broad with human and dæmon lanes, though small souls are usually carried and flying ones can easily just stay above. Slick floors are never seen without hoof-friendly traction rugs and the like. Some of the street traffic consists of people riding their horse or similar dæmons, and you may see a giraffe soul at a lope, keeping pace with the carriage carrying his body. City life is harder on people with especially large dæmons, but they manage okay.

( MORE BENEATH THE CUT! )

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⇨ New Location: THE SUMMERLANDS

PREPARATION↴
This time, there is no preparation. When the Severing was broken, the Ringmaster immediately returned everyone to the carnival, no matter their earthly location - only to then drag the carnival's realm all the way to the Summerlands right after. As the workers arrive, they will have been scattered around the carnival grounds, back in their original bodies - including their old faerie changes, of course, plus perhaps a few new ones. Bodies and memories will return to what they were before Portland, and while the life they lived there will stay with them as memories, they will only now be left to fully contemplate what they just experienced.

SETTING↴

The Summerlands are an idyllic realm of glorious mountain-top cities and vast fields of flowers and grass. It is inhabited almost entirely by the Summer Fae, a faction of the Summer Court which broken ties with their Arcadia homeland a long time ago. Veterans that have been with the carnival since the vampire's first attack will remember staying here for a couple months while everyone was recovering. The fae here will remember those workers as well, with an accuracy that is sometimes eerie.

There is plenty to do in the Summer Fae's city - though there is far more space than there is people, given that there are only a few hundred fae present here. There is no shortage of good food, music, and dancing - with plenty of other amenities like waterfall-side pools and gardens filled with small miracles. All workers will be offered rooms they can stay in within the city if they prefer, but they are also welcome to stay within the carnival grounds if that makes them more comfortable. There is magical wildlife of various sorts, but none of it is particularly aggressive beyond basic predatory tendencies.

The days and nights and both of pleasant temperature and weather. It's only major downside is that the peaceful and unchanging nature of civilization can come across as unsettling to those unaccustomed. Once you have been welcomed here, it's like you never left.

( MORE PLOT DETAILS BELOW )

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⇨ New Location: THE TOURIST TRAP

PREPARATION↴
Events leading up to this location will be as normal. After Mainframe, the carnival will go into its usual travelling/transitional period for a few days, with no particular warnings or expectations. Normally this would be where I explain how the characters will entering the setting and what they will immediately see, but this is not a normal occasion.

Mostly because no one will have any idea how or why the carnival entered this universe - in fact, they may not remember entering anywhere at all.

SETTING↴

Portland, USA is similar to the one of our modern earth in many ways, even if some of those are purely superficial. Importantly, it is the urban fantasy equivalent, meaning that standard city life is underlain with a complex civilization of 'supernaturals,' whose actions have the tendency to shake the world in unseen ways. It's a common formula in the multiverse, and some carnival workers may even come from a world much like it. The major difference here is this world in particular has managed to pull the carnival into its snare in an unprecedented way.

From the start of this visit an onward, the carnival will be rewritten into this world's rules - and in more than just a superficial sense. On day one, your characters will find themselves having awoken into completely new lives, with potentially no memory of anything that came before. How exactly this transition took place will start out unclear, and this will be a plot heavy narrative centered around investigation and the discovery of what has happened, and how those trapped here can leave.

Twenty five years ago, this world underwent a process sometimes know as "the Severing", in which a magical ritual of great power was used to severe the ties between earth and a number of otherworldly realms that had been cross-inhabiting it. The realms of faerie, heaven, and hell were disconnected entirely, stranding many of their members on earth with no way of returning home. The details of this ritual and its purpose are elusive, but its effects have spanned the globe.

Most supernatural stuff in this world is simply referred to as "magic", which is built upon an animistic reality in which all living creatures and all objects have some essence of "spirit" that can be interacted with. Casting and ritual magic is primarily centered upon esoteric means of interacting with these spirits in order to invoke various effects, while the magic of many supernatural creatures are considered to be innate traits of their species.

NOTE: This is a setting where magic is basically a "known secret", in that many people are factually aware of the supernatural, but it doesn't get talked about in public. Most people have probably seen something weird at some point in their life, but the supernatural is not officially recognized in society. Most of humanity does its best to try to pretend it doesn't exist, in order to avoid gaining the wrong kind of attention. So, you couldn't talk about doing magic on live TV, but there are a lot of places where you could get away with people seeing your supernatural traits if you keep to the 'underground.'

( A LOT MORE INFO TO FOLLOW )

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⇨ HELLBOUND HALLOWS: A PLOTTING POST

GAME CUBE PLOTTING↴
As mentioned in the Mainframe location write up, during the carnival’s stay there, some unfortunate carnival members are going to end up having to play A Game. Simplistically put, this means that those pulled into the Game will have to take the part of the NPCs in a computer game, with their goal being to stop “the User” (also known at the Player) from winning. How do they do this?

Mostly by making the Game hard enough that the User can’t beat it. If you’ve ever been so mad at a video game that you rage quit or run out of lives, that’s what the characters inside the Game will be trying to inflict upon the User. Unfortunately , most people will be without their powers, and the Users will be designed to be proportionally a lot more powerful than the carnival workers and programs that will be fighting against it – and the cost of failure is permanent nullification. That is, turning into a rainbow slug and losing all sense of self.

The Game NPCs will have to work together in order to defeat the Users. Fortunately, they also have the advantage of being able to REBOOT.

( Honestly, canon Reboot is otherwise irrelevant to this. )