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allthisshitisweird2023-05-02 05:40 pm
faderifting) wrote in allthisshitisweird2023-05-02 05:40 pm
Entry tags:
Test Drive!
TEST DRIVE MEME
While in some alternate, tidier timeline, the War against the Elder One ended years ago, you're not in that timeline. It's 9:49, and the war continues. An enemy force partially occupies Orlais and has decimated several Marcher Cities, while the Chantry, aided by the Inquisition, has marshaled Orlais and the faithful of Southern Thedas into a new Exalted March against the army of demon-bound Wardens, Red Templars, Venatori loyalists, and darkspawn Corypheus has amassed. Rifts are still scattered across the continent, periodically spitting out strangers from strange worlds with green-glowing anchors embedded in their hands. There's no Herald of Andraste to save Thedas. Someone else is going to have to do it.
You're part of (or allied with, recently hired by, imprisoned by, etc.) an organization, dubbed Riftwatch, that split off from the Inquisition several years ago. Riftwatch consists of these otherworldly new arrivals, rebels and Wardens, and other people who want to prevent the apocalypse without necessarily marching under the Chantry's banner to do it. Their headquarters is an island fortress called the Gallows—formerly a Circle of Magi, more formerly a prison for slaves, but its new occupants have done a good job removing the more grotesque reminders of that past and making the place livable. Their goal is to do what the Chantry can't or won't do, to go more directly after Corypheus and the dark magic he employs, and to keep the Veil from coming apart entirely.
Maybe you're here because you want to help. Maybe you need the money (though there isn't much of it). Maybe you acquired an anchor and sticking around is the only way to prevent your hand from killing you. Maybe you've been sent by the Chantry or some other entity to keep an eye on everyone—they're rumored to be a lot of weirdos and troublemakers. Or maybe you're a new rifter and just going where the nice people with swords tell you that you need to go.
NOTE: This is a static test drive! We post them once per year or so and continue to use them for a long time, so you're never late. Current players are encouraged to track new top-level comments.
I. THE FREE MARCHES: Hasmal, Tantervale, and most recently Starkhaven have all fallen to the Tevinter incursion, leaving Kirkwall the largest city-state in the Free Marches to remain unoccupied. For Riftwatch, that means the war is closer to home than ever, and traveling anywhere north of the mountains runs the risk of running into enemy scouting parties. Perhaps you've been sent out to find these scouts before they find the unwary, or perhaps you're just trying to pass through unnoticed to Antiva or Rivain when you run into trouble. Or maybe you're more in the thick of it: joining the Free Marches armies in harassing the occupying army as best they can from outside the city, or slipping your way into one of them to gather intelligence or meet with an ally.
II. THE WAKING SEA: When Riftwatch isn't traveling by griffon or magic mirror, it frequently travels by sea, courtesy of a small assortment of allied pirate ships. So welcome aboard. The sea is choppy and frequently violent—violent storms, violent enemy ships, or both at once—and the crew may not have much patience for incompetence, so either make yourself useful above or try not to get sick below.
III. KIRKWALL: Even when enormous evil darkspawn are trying to take over the known world and you and your colleagues might be the only ones who can truly stop him, you can't work all the time. And when you aren't working, Kirkwall is there for you with its dingy Lowtown taverns, its flashy Hightown establishments, its market stalls and street musicians and cellars hosting gamblers. (Or maybe you can work all the time, and you're in the city to do some official shopping, try to spy on a suspicious character, or show a potential financial backer a good time.)
IV. SEND A MESSAGE: Each member of Riftwatch is assigned a blue crystal, small enough to wear around the neck, that can transmit voice messages, as well as an enchanted book tied to that crystal that can be used to exchange written messages. They're secure enough to discuss the war, if you'd like to get down to business, but loosely controlled enough to ask a question or play a game with only a few rolled eyes from people who hate fun.
V. WILDCARD: From the Gallows' library to the pirate islands off the coast, from Hightown's high-priced market stalls to the bloody frontlines of the war, Thedas is yours to explore.
While in some alternate, tidier timeline, the War against the Elder One ended years ago, you're not in that timeline. It's 9:49, and the war continues. An enemy force partially occupies Orlais and has decimated several Marcher Cities, while the Chantry, aided by the Inquisition, has marshaled Orlais and the faithful of Southern Thedas into a new Exalted March against the army of demon-bound Wardens, Red Templars, Venatori loyalists, and darkspawn Corypheus has amassed. Rifts are still scattered across the continent, periodically spitting out strangers from strange worlds with green-glowing anchors embedded in their hands. There's no Herald of Andraste to save Thedas. Someone else is going to have to do it.
You're part of (or allied with, recently hired by, imprisoned by, etc.) an organization, dubbed Riftwatch, that split off from the Inquisition several years ago. Riftwatch consists of these otherworldly new arrivals, rebels and Wardens, and other people who want to prevent the apocalypse without necessarily marching under the Chantry's banner to do it. Their headquarters is an island fortress called the Gallows—formerly a Circle of Magi, more formerly a prison for slaves, but its new occupants have done a good job removing the more grotesque reminders of that past and making the place livable. Their goal is to do what the Chantry can't or won't do, to go more directly after Corypheus and the dark magic he employs, and to keep the Veil from coming apart entirely.
Maybe you're here because you want to help. Maybe you need the money (though there isn't much of it). Maybe you acquired an anchor and sticking around is the only way to prevent your hand from killing you. Maybe you've been sent by the Chantry or some other entity to keep an eye on everyone—they're rumored to be a lot of weirdos and troublemakers. Or maybe you're a new rifter and just going where the nice people with swords tell you that you need to go.
NOTE: This is a static test drive! We post them once per year or so and continue to use them for a long time, so you're never late. Current players are encouraged to track new top-level comments.
I. THE FREE MARCHES: Hasmal, Tantervale, and most recently Starkhaven have all fallen to the Tevinter incursion, leaving Kirkwall the largest city-state in the Free Marches to remain unoccupied. For Riftwatch, that means the war is closer to home than ever, and traveling anywhere north of the mountains runs the risk of running into enemy scouting parties. Perhaps you've been sent out to find these scouts before they find the unwary, or perhaps you're just trying to pass through unnoticed to Antiva or Rivain when you run into trouble. Or maybe you're more in the thick of it: joining the Free Marches armies in harassing the occupying army as best they can from outside the city, or slipping your way into one of them to gather intelligence or meet with an ally.
II. THE WAKING SEA: When Riftwatch isn't traveling by griffon or magic mirror, it frequently travels by sea, courtesy of a small assortment of allied pirate ships. So welcome aboard. The sea is choppy and frequently violent—violent storms, violent enemy ships, or both at once—and the crew may not have much patience for incompetence, so either make yourself useful above or try not to get sick below.
III. KIRKWALL: Even when enormous evil darkspawn are trying to take over the known world and you and your colleagues might be the only ones who can truly stop him, you can't work all the time. And when you aren't working, Kirkwall is there for you with its dingy Lowtown taverns, its flashy Hightown establishments, its market stalls and street musicians and cellars hosting gamblers. (Or maybe you can work all the time, and you're in the city to do some official shopping, try to spy on a suspicious character, or show a potential financial backer a good time.)
IV. SEND A MESSAGE: Each member of Riftwatch is assigned a blue crystal, small enough to wear around the neck, that can transmit voice messages, as well as an enchanted book tied to that crystal that can be used to exchange written messages. They're secure enough to discuss the war, if you'd like to get down to business, but loosely controlled enough to ask a question or play a game with only a few rolled eyes from people who hate fun.
V. WILDCARD: From the Gallows' library to the pirate islands off the coast, from Hightown's high-priced market stalls to the bloody frontlines of the war, Thedas is yours to explore.
no subject
I'm not sure what the legal drinking age is here. Something tells me it's younger than twenty one.
[Given that the bartender is serving him and that this place feels and looks medieval, if he has to guess. He also guesses that the beer here is safer to drink than the water, but he doesn't say that part out loud.
When he describes falling out of a rift, Peter nods, grinning.]
I think some parts of me are still being shaken out, honestly.
no subject
[ Which is an ounce over what seems reasonable to Tyler. Whatever happened to good old fashioned global warming? How is that not spicy enough for this world?
Acknowledging he's not home anymore provokes a spike of home sickness. Not for home as a place, but home as in the people who'd be worried sick for him here. ]
Where are you from? My brain's been imagining a watershoot between this world and mine but I guess that's not exactly right.
no subject
[Like magic, in a way. Or maybe actual magic, considering that magic exists here, seemingly in abundance, from what he's seen and been told. Which tracks with his luck, all things considered. Magic ruins his life and he ends up in a world rife with magic. Perfect.
He takes another sip, managing not to wince this time. Maybe all the nerve endings in his throat are dead now, preventing him from really feeling the burn this time.]
Queens. And you?
no subject
Something that had been coiled up tight inside him loosens a fraction. It's relief that he can feel start to uncurl in his chest. ]
Tiny backwater town in Alaska called Delos Crossing.
Nobody recognizes the name. I was on my way to Denali though. Plan is-- was?-- to train as a park ranger.
no subject
[Having been born and raised in the city his whole life, Peter is always curious about growing up in the suburbs and the country. He can't imagine not being able to run right down the block to grab a quart of milk at nine thirty at night.
He can't say that he's heard of Delos Crossing, but when Tyler mentions training as a park ranger, Peter perks up, curious.]
A park ranger, huh? That's awesome! What would that entail?
[He's grateful for the chance to focus on Tyler right now, his own life comfortably tucked away in the recesses of his own thoughts.]
Sorry this is so late!!
[ The sparkle in Tyler's eyes always seems to catch when he's making jokes. It's not that he doesn't get they're corny, he just enjoys them too much to worry how other people find them.
But the conversation so far has been pleasant enough and this kid is enthusiastic in ways he's not come across really. Ever. So Peter gets a Tyler Ronan joke he can do with whatever he pleases. Once he's sure the joke has landed, he grins and starts about answering the second question. ]
Y'know, the usual stuff. Always liked working with the land and the idea of working to preserve it sits right in my head. Plus... if I can get through to just one person about why it's important to look after our National Parks... seems worth it.
[ There he pauses momentarily before: ]
And that's a lot of space where I can avoid people totally if I want to.
No worries!
Yeah, that makes sense. Do you get to see a lot of polar bears?
[Peter would love to have the chance to travel, to visit places like Alaska. He's been lucky (or unlucky, depending on who you ask) enough to go to space but there's still so much of the world he'd like to see down on Earth. New York will always be home, of course, but Peter wants to broaden his horizons.
Although, all things considered, being here in Thedas now? Kind of technically further broadening his horizons.
As he explains about his job, Peter listens. He cares a lot, he thinks, and that is really cool. Peter admires him for wanting to work to help protect the environment; it's always awesome to come across people who want to make the world a better place.]
That's awesome! We definitely need to take better care of our national parks, that's for sure. Plus, to be surrounded by all of that nature? That's gotta be good for the soul or something right?