( TDM | #1 )

[spellbindmods]

TDMs can be used for anyone interested in the game and/or testing out a new muse.

Test Drive samples are encouraged to be used for your application sample, though they are NOT a requirement.

Feel free to use one prompt, multiple prompts or make up your own!

These threads can be considered game canon upon game opening if you so choose.

Telepathy and magic can be used at any point in time on the TDM, from Prompt A to your wildcard prompt. A specific prompt exists, however, that makes sure all characters have an equal chance to use this mechanic within the TDM. You're encouraged to have characters use telepathy and their magic accidentally or even purposefully on any TDM prompt.

If you aren't set on your character's power yet or want to try out a few, you're still able to use the test drive. Maybe your character is a late bloomer and hasn't fully unlocked their intuitive drive yet. In the case of multiple powers, only prompts that contain the power you choose for your application will count as potential game canon threads.

While only one character can be apped or reserved during a cycle, feel free to post with more than one character if you like! This is for those who are uncertain of their first choice or who would like to try out different characters within the setting.

You blink and that's all it takes. At first the picture doesn't come in clear, like you're waiting for a screen to fully load -- more aptly, it's like you're waiting for a camera to focus so you can find image clarity. Before you happened to rapidly close your eyes and open them, your life was normal...well, normal for you, anyway. Fighting an alien, making a quesadilla, dying. And then that blurry picture suddenly takes over. Depending on your situation and ability to acclimate, you may not fully understand what's happening. A dream, a hallucination. But when you feel the trunk of the trees surrounding you, it's oddly...real. The smell is real. The moisture on the ground is real. The small grass snake you find slithering close to your feet seems very real as well. There are a few other sensations that also begin to feel a little more like reality with every passing second. Like the fact that your intuition is trying to tell you something that doesn't seem plausible. One is more obvious -- you now have a new piece of jewelry inserted snuggly between your collarbones. Maybe that's when you realize it is real. When you realize that there's no delusion here -- you aren't where you once were. But if that's the case...where are you? A ▢ Your character's first experience here will be waking up in a forest. Specifically, located here. It's up to them to traverse and try to figure out where they are, whether they make it to the beach or the main house area. There's also a mysterious trail of soft, felt bags, tied off with thin rope, leading your character to what appears to be a specific destination. These items can be as useful as a granola bar to as seemingly useless as a stapler. Let's just say that some of these mysterious objects are pretty out there. They're free to travel off the beaten path, but that comes with its own perils. Maybe your character has a power that could fend these creatures off...? They aren't exactly happy about sharing their territory.

After an hour or so of trekking through the forest, you finally come upon a break in the tree line that reveals to you an area that appears to be inhabitable. Your first stop is the large mansion that sits in the valley of the opening...if anyone is here or there's a way to get out of here, the house makes the most sense, right? There are a variety of rooms in this mansion, and you're free to explore them. You also spy a lot of crates sitting in the middle of the floor in one of the main rooms...are you curious enough to open them? B ▢ Feel free to have your character explore the mansion (the won't find much but you can take some liberties with the TDM), and they're free to open these mysterious crates. In them they'll find edible fruit and bread, modern clothing in a variety of sizes and portable medical kits. Characters who apply using the TDM are free to carry these objects into the game opening. If you want some specifics, there are a few rooms of note: the game room (containing a working pool table, non-electric pinball machines and a card table with supplied chips and multiple decks), the cellar (filled with a variety of liquor and wines, all aged quite well) and a large room upstairs that contains a glass ceiling and a variety of books in a foreign language. One more thing -- if you happen to go rummaging around, you may find tiny pin cameras. They're minuscule...you may not even notice them unless you look hard enough. At this point you notice that you aren't alone -- there are other people in the same boat as you! When they're around you, that signet you feel in your chest tingles slightly. The sensation isn't unpleasant, but instead like a warm tingle is spreading from their neck outward. You instinctively attempt to talk to your fellow kidnapping victims, and that works just fine...but what are all these voices you hear in your head now? Are you crazier than you thought you were? C ▢ Here's where you can play around with the telepathy mechanic. It's likely your character won't be used to it which can lead to accidental broadcasting. If they happen to tap the signet purposefully or try to pull it out, everyone within a radius of 100 feet will feel a throbbing pain in their head. But your character won't know that, will they? For those more inclined to adventure, there's also another building to investigate. From the outside, it looks very circular and unidentifiable, but upon entering you'll discover that it's a fully-functioning bath house. D ▢ Despite containing steamy water and luxury bathing accommodations, the bathhouse is currently being overrun with crabs. The not-so-smart members of this species have fallen into the extremely hot water, flash boiling themselves after being unable to get back out. Others are a little more intelligent but equally aggressive. Characters: watch your toes and be cautious if you really want to take a much-needed bath! They may also want to check twice before using the restroom, otherwise the experience might be more painful than they're used to.

Exploring the mansion and the bathhouse was fun and all, but aside from the crates they didn't prove to be very useful. When you came into the clearing, you also saw a row of very colorful buildings down near the beach. It makes sense that this area may be more beneficial to any escape plans you have, and taking a dip in the ocean might be nice! It's not until you reach the beach huts that you realize that murky blue color you spied wasn't the ocean. It's outter space. There goes any hopes you had of swimming to safety. E ▢ Time to explore the beach huts! Most of them are abandoned, but your characters will notice they seem to be more livable than the mansion somehow. This is in part due to a little note tacked to the door of each beach hut that reports in scrawling script "Claim your hut, please!" Will your character listen or reject the sinking feeling that they may not be leaving anytime soon? Some huts are also bigger than others, and a few even contain small sinks and softer beds. Grab these while they're available! Even though it turns out the ocean was a lie and you're precariously close to falling off the edge of the world, the area around the huts is decidedly beachy. Sitting on the beach is a lobster trap, though about 10 times the size of any you might have seen before. Inside are more felt sacks, though larger. The weirdest part is that peering through the bars, you notice each has a nametag attached. The reason you know this to be true is because you just spied your own name written on one of the labels. There's also something else underneath it. The descriptor may not mean much to you yet, but it will soon: it's the title of their newfound magic. In each felt sack is a sort of starter kit: a set of dated and drapey plainclothes, a bag of dried boar jerky, a leather flask filled with water and a small tube of sunblock (the writing is in a bizarre pictograph language, but the giant picture of the sun on the tube should explain the purpose). There's also a rolled up paper tied with a string that reads as follows: "Welcome. Things will be explained in due time. For now, understand that you have been blessed with a gift of magic. Look into your brain and feel the instinct for both. Practice makes perfect." F ▢ Here's the official prompt for playing with newfound magic (and telepathy if you want more practice). It's likely characters have already accidentally broadcast their thoughts, utilized the C prompt or used their magic inadvertently, but maybe this new information and small explanation has motivated them to try and see what they're truly capable of. Don't worry. If they're lucky enough to stick around, all will be explained. ...What if you're a wildcard, though? Someone who doesn't play by the rules and follows a different path, no matter what direction the world may be guiding you in? This island is large and contains many areas of interest, from crystal streams to hidden locations. Maybe you want to do something different...so break the mold and explore! G ▢ Wildcard prompt. Go nuts and utilize your own creativity within the setting. This can mean striking out on your own or utilizing a certain location in a different way. The world is your oyster!

GAME NAVIGATION

Comments

[windeity]

I think most people would pick door number two since it is in the middle. [Just saying. But he catches whatever Dirk is throwing to him and it's definitely a pack of blue raspberry Gushers. He looks at the candy in his hands, having a somewhat serious debate with himself before groaning softly and tossing them back at Dirk.]

What number would you pick then? [Since he's eyeing three bags now.]

[splinten]

[He catches the gushers.]

I'd open all the doors and dismantle the gameshow system that pretends at opportunity for the disenfranchised but merely makes exploitable spectacle out of misfortune and the illusion of prosperity.

[Rose's father.]

Do you hate 'em too?

[Gushers, he means.]

[windeity]

[Oh dear god why. Like okay obviously with the way that ectobiology goes he knows that all of the Strilondes are related, and he has spoken to Roxy enough to get the sense that she and Dave are more similar than he'd thought. So really, it should have been immediately obvious that Dirk and Rose would be the wordy, eloquent ones.]

That is a very elaborate analysis of a hypothetical situation, dude. [But okay.] I don't hate them, but I've lost taste for them. [Because he hates them and he hates Betty Crocker and hasn't come to the realization that there are bigger problems yet. But he's trying to play it cool? Dirk seems cool? (He has yet to realize that Dirk is not cool.) As such, he's opening another pouch, pulling out a fork and knife set.] Do you think these things are leading us any closer to where we need to go? Or are we being led away?

[splinten]

I'll try to truncate my hypothetical-situation analyses.

[that's a fucking lie

He glosses over the Gusher thing since it's too ambiguous to deal with, not realizing John is trying to pretend to be cool, and looks at the cutlery set. Fancy.]

I have no idea about where we need to go, but I'm reminded of trails of bait.

[windeity]

[There's a self-satisfied nod like he's solved everything but it doesn't last long when Dirk brings up that point.]

Like those stories where people follow trails of bread crumbs? That would mean someone purposefully set these up for us. [The cutlery goes back in the bag and he's just taking the bag with him. Oh well.] That is a lot of time spent on that.

[splinten]

The alternative is the game set this up. Which I'd buy, because it seems entirely like the kind of bullshit stunt Sburb likes to pull, but I'm not convinced we're anywhere within the structure of the game at the moment.

[windeity]

The only reason I am not convinced Sburb is involved is because none of our usual powers works anymore. Have you tried flying yet?

[splinten]

I tried. I failed.

I also failed at flashsteppin'.

[It's the BIGGEST INSULT]

[windeity]

[Oh. That is unfortunate and there is a sympathetic frown.]

I am not surprised you can do that, too. But that's not even part of your aspect or anything is it? Why would that stop working?

[splinten]

No, I was practically made doing that.

[did the baby striders flashstep around john, probably, who knows]

It's weird as all fuck. No magic, no sylladexes, and no flashsteppin'.

[windeity]

[Okay but considering that John was busy, like, giving baby Jake guns and shit he probably didn't notice? Who elected him to be ecto-dad, god.]

That makes even less sense than usual. My sylladex isn't working, the windy thing stopped and everything else I was starting to figure out no longer seems like it will matter here. But there's no answer. [A few feet away, he stops to open another bag that appears to have M&Ms in it. He'll keep those at least.]

The last time I saw you--[Wait.] We were not in a forest. Maybe we ended up on someone else's planet. [This is different then just landing on a different planet in general. He wonders if this belongs to someone they know or haven't met yet.]

[splinten]

None of our planets have trees.

[sooo]

[windeity]

Mine does. [Just saying.] A lot of them. I mean there are no leaves on them but there are mushrooms so it's capable of growing some life.

[splinten]

I meant that it isn't one of my sessions' planets. And I figure you'd recognize the ones from your session. Did you bring any planets from the trolls?

[windeity]

No, we didn't. The only planet I personally dealt with was my own? And Skaia, I guess. And Prospit. And the others? [That is still more than one planet John what the fuck. Even though Skaia isn't actually a planet either.] And anyway I am pretty sure the troll planets were destroyed and will stay destroyed.

[splinten]

So were ours.

[REMEMBER. THEY WALKED IN AND SAW THEM. SMASHED TOGETHER. DAVE AND JAKE'S WERE BROKEN ON EACH OTHER, SPECIFICALLY, DIRK REMEMBERS THAT SPECIFIC HORRIBLE FACT.]

Only Roxy's and a blue one from your session were left.

[windeity]

[Allll of those sad smashed planets. John's still trying to get his brain together because a certain troll girl definitely yelled at him enough that he started focusing on something else instead. But at the same time, he knows what Dirk's talking about.]

LOWAS. That one is mine. [The blue one. Like his blue godtier jammies? His planet sure did survive somehow.]

[splinten]

Yeah. No planets like this.

[windeity]

Okay, okay, I get your point. [He's still collecting items as they go. At this point he has racked up the candy and the cutlery, he has a can of shaving cream from somewhere and now this bag he's opening contains what looks like a package of star-shaped post-its. Okay then.] And if we can't fly, then we have to find whoever rules this particular planet I guess. Unless you have another idea.

[splinten]

[Dirk stares at John for a moment.

'I could wander into the woods and die.'

Hm.]

Nah.

[windeity]

[Eyebrow. Raised.]

Are you always this talkative?

[splinten]

Sometimes I just mime.

[windeity]

Uh. I cannot tell if you are actually serious or not. [Though...] You're not a ventriloquist too, are you? [It's not the same but. Don't disappoint him, Dirk.]

[splinten]

[He's confused a moment?]

That sounds like you thing ventriloquism is a bad thing.

[windeity]

[Shrug. He's already found another bag that he's opening and pouring out a string of Christmas lights. Give him a moment to stop because he's going to use the strand to start tying it around the handle of the Vrillyhoo? Along with a bag to shove various crap in.]

I don't think it's a bad thing, but it is sort of lame? [It's one thing to tell Dave but it's another to tell Dirk who is definitely standing right here. But it's clear he does think it's pretty weird, please don't be weird.] Dave used to tell me about his bro and his rapping ventriloquy thing.