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beleos ([personal profile] beleos) wrote in [community profile] kenosooc2024-03-12 03:34 pm

THE ADVOCATE ORACLE - A RIP VAN WINKLE IN TIME


INTRO
Hello Kenos! Welcome to the Advocate Oracle! Did we say Stargazer? Shhh no we didn’t. As we hinted earlier in the Discord, the conclusion of this Oracle will lead to a timeskip that Bearers will be subjected to in the end. How long? Well, that depends on your choices, and how well you exemplify the Advocate Oracle.

Just like with the Exalt Oracle, and to keep things even until a little closer to the end game, this Oracle has been predetermined to go to Zenith.

SWEET DREAMS ARE MADE OF BLISS
Bearers will find themselves being pulled into a deep sleep, where the Advocate Oracle will beseech them for their knowledge of home and seek understanding. Where did you come from? What made you as you are? What were the victories and challenges of your land? How did you become the you that you are? The Advocate seeks understanding and wants to see others achieve happiness. Does your world bring you happiness, or would it be cathartic to see it lost?

As the Advocate learns bits and pieces about Bearers, it will become clear that their dream is closing in on something that the bearers who have experienced it will recognize as the Timestream. The Advocate is not a thing, but a presence, and bearers will be able to sense the force (amorphous and shapeless) reaching into the Timestream, and you know – know that they are reaching for something on your behalf. As it slides out, you can feel a calming sense of joy, because you recognize it. It fills you with joy, bliss, or perhaps frustration and disgust, as you recognize the feeling of being home.

Everything will go white, and your one-on-one time with the Advocate will be at an end.

CLICK YOUR HEELS TOGETHER, DOROTHY!
Bearers will open their eyes and will find themselves in a new world. This is not Kenos at all, but familiar or not, you know it is someplace in the scattered worlds.

Where is it? Well, it’s either your world or another Bearer’s! That’s right, it’s a world share event! Bearers will find themselves scattered either on their own or in groups (up to you!) in a new world, that could be familiar or not, depending on your CR net. The Advocate has pulled the memories and description of a world from the Timestream, and for what purpose… well, that will become clear with time. However, these are not the worlds that characters came from, not exactly. These are worlds that are AUs of your character's canon, and this can be in very minor ways that would be essentially the same as canon, or it can be in very large, dramatic ways. Up to you!

You are not required to share a world, however, bearers will feel a strong compulsion to invite the Advocate to experience their worlds in their vision with the Advocate. (This leaves you all options to opt out of sharing your own world, but for those characters who may be less inclined, this is your opportunity to do so!)

But first, the logistics! Bearers will be in worlds for 12 hours each. You will not experience hunger or tiredness – but feel free to eat or sleep your way through worlds as you so choose (we expect there to be a lot of them!) – and the scope of each world is about what is discoverable within 12 hours. (You don’t need to describe the entirety of your world, but a city or area. Please make sure it's large enough to accommodate the entire shard-bearer population. For example, the Millennium Falcon would be too small, but a Star Destroyer would be fine. It should be a place that provides significant hold over your character.) There will be an open header here for players to post a short description of their world. If your character wants to go hang out at a coffee shop and watch shit go down, feel free! (The mod team has examples, and we will be sharing those shortly!) Please have your descriptions in by 03/15/2024 at 1:30 PM so that everyone can choose participation in other characters’ worlds before they get their TLs up!

For characters that are from shared worlds, we’ll leave it up to you how you all share that, but if you choose to have different regions or cities to share, go for it! For example, Batman might choose Gotham, whereas Superman might choose Smallville. Again, this really should be what’s feasibly travelable within 12 hours – they will cycle like the rest of the worlds – and your characters will not have money or funds on them for travel, so don’t feel like you have to describe the entirety of your characters’ worlds. Just a small blurb (you can include links of course!) to give players a general sense of what they can discover.

Also, these worlds will shuffle in the order on the taken list, just so the Savants have an unsolvable puzzle to chew on. (heh)

Characters will experience every world that is submitted into the header, but the Advocate’s last impression will echo as you move from one word to another. “Is this worthy of saving?”

Your twelve hours can be spent in one of three ways. Bearers can do whatever they want, and simply experience the world as they wish, they can hunt for the soul of the world, or they cant hunt for the soul of the dreamer.

  • The first is self-explanatory, of course. Each world is full of life, from creatures to people, to everything in between. (Conspicuously missing would be anyone of significant “closeness” to the character who manifested this world – think of it as the difference between a friend/family and an acquaintance.) Characters can create chaos, go to a café, find a precious spot you’ve heard about, and go wild! This is your opportunity to learn about your CR’s homes in a first-hand experience kinda way! This is your have fun and deepen connections sort of prompt.
  • The second, the Soul of the World will be a shard to be found by any who are searching for it. It is something that anyone can simply find, but it will be hidden. We ask that our players choose the location and list it in the description of their world, so players can actively plot for it! This is your opportunity to sneak, steal, fight, and destroy each other over the soul, it will come with a distinct benefit as you move onto the next world! They will be somewhere that is difficult to find, surrounded by shadows that creep closer and closer to the shard.
  • The last is the Soul of the Dreamer, which is, interestingly enough, a second Shard that matches the person who dreamed it up. The odd thing about these shards in these worlds is that they are of a different Aspect of the character that exists in game. (For example: Amos the Harbinger, or Hayame the Advocate) The character it belongs to will feel a pull toward it, but it is no guarantee that they will find it. Maybe someone else does! And maybe that’s a kind soul, or maybe it’s someone who would think to shatter that this Shard. Or maybe you keep it!


There will be a header on the turn-in post to list if your character chooses to keep the different Aspected Shard of themselves. If you find someone else’s Shard, and you keep it to the next world, it will return to that Bearer to decide what to do with it. Essentially, if you don’t shatter this Shard, they’ll be able to do with it as they see fit before you leave their world. If you do shatter the Shard, there will be no consequences to the owner. Or at least none that will appear in this event.

It goes without saying, but please plot this with that player, so there are no surprises!

AROUND THE WORLDS IN 60 SECONDS 12 HOURS
As you close your eyes, in that last moment, the Advocate will reach out to all of the Bearers that have made it to the end of this world, and beseech them to make a choice. Does this world have something of value? Something to be preserved? Do you understand the Bearer who dreamt of this world better, now? Do you think that this world has enough value to continue its existence? Before you open your eyes into the next world, Bearers will be compelled to answer yes, or no. This will be on a separate header post that will go up on the turn-in log. You will have until Wednesday March 27th at 10:00 PM.

As an aside, whatever bearer has captured the soul of the world will count to double their action's choice. (For example, if they choose to destroy, the total destroy votes will be doubled.)

We’ll be tallying the results, so there will be some extra exciting consequences to your choices as Bearers! Always keep in mind the tenets of your faction as you make your choices, bearers. Now that you have lost your leaders, the members of your faction back home are looking to you for victory. Of course, your choices will also determine the state of the world when you return, and how long it has been. Stay steadfast, and understand that you will have to make choices based on what your character believes is the best path forward. Your leadership trusts you – or if they don’t, they will have no choice, now will they? It’s up to you now, Bearers.

FAQ AND QUESTIONS
This Oracle is a touch more free-form than previous Oracles, and that is intentional! You are not required or expected to explore or have major action in every world. In fact, it's strongly discouraged, since this will provide opportunities for all players to have an opportunity to make big decisions! Even if you do not thread in the world, please still vote for them before 3/27/2024 so that we can have an accurate tally! The votes will make a difference in what our world looks like moving forward.

And finally, since they didn’t fit in the above, here are some quick FAQ style questions and answers about things we figure might be asked:

Are these really our worlds?
These are versions of bearer worlds. They can be very close (ie: identical) expressions of your character's worlds or they can have one event change such that the world is rather different. So they are alternate universes, but not so far that you're making up a whole world on the fly! The Advocate, unfortunately, cannot bring back your worlds. There's a lot of options out there in the Timestream. :(

What About Discord?
Characters do not seem to experience heightened Discord. Weird!

What happens if my character dies in the event?
They will fall into a deep, deep sleep and can no longer participate in the world-hopping adventures! They may be asleep for some time, depending on when they are dissipated, as they won’t revive early compared to their fellow Bearers. Whatever votes your character made leading up to the point that they died will count toward the goals of the faction. The Advocate accepts you for your efforts, even if they draw short.

Please make sure to post your deaths to the death page! You're gonna be sleeping a long time, and there may be things your Bearer discovers as they dream...

Are characters depowered?
Your powers will work perfectly fine! Oddly, if you are in a world where powers don’t exist, the denizens of the world may stare blankly, as if they Do Not Perceive. You gotta protect those little minds somehow.

We hope you have fun, and happy plotting!

CODING
picketship: (Default)

[personal profile] picketship 2024-03-13 03:27 am (UTC)(link)
LOCATION NAME: General Systems Vehicle Sense Amid Madness, Wit Amidst Folly

WORLD SHARD LOCATION: Embedded on top of an elevator car in a faithful recreation of a primitive (read: modern day) skyscraper elevator shaft, complete with not just one, but five working elevators. Just like a real old-fashioned elevator shaft, there is no surveillance or high-tech nonsense within to save you if you fall down the shaft or get crushed by a neighbouring car. Use caution if you force your way in there!

DREAMER SHARD LOCATION: Harbinger aspect; hiding in some bit of food or drink in the war bar inside the Hidden Income.

A BRIEF DESCRIPTION: A giant, sapient starship containing a hedonistic utopian paradise “city” of roughly 200 million people. The ship’s top surface is lush parkland, complete with weather and a day/night cycle, while the city itself sprawls beneath the surface.

This world provides a good stage for fun times and fuckery, particularly between characters who are normally inclined towards traditional warfare, since the ship will not allow any of its passengers to harm each other (non-consensually). Since most areas of the ship are constantly surveilled, drones will be teleported in to stun and restrain the murderously-inclined, after which point offending parties will be chaperoned for the rest of their stay.

WHAT TO DO IN THIS WORLD:
🌳 Enjoy nature! Explore hundreds of square kilometres of lovely parkland, or hop in a flier and fly around the ship’s “sky.” Fliers come in too many shapes to count, from single-person rigs to multi-passenger craft. Of course, it goes without saying that they can fly themselves, and will take control to prevent any crashes.

🍸 Explore the ship! Visit one of the innumerable bars, clubs, and other entertainment spots filling the ship. Drinks and drugs of every possible variety are available. Find someone to hook up with, or just join an orgy. Go surfing or water-sliding. Watch nude people fight with swords, or with their bare fists; or try it yourself.

💭 Any entertainment you can dream up can probably be found in the ship, as long as it doesn’t involve the suffering of nonconsenting beings.



More Info—
A Culture of Plenty
The Culture civilization, of which the ship is a part, has no need for either laws or money. Hyper-intelligent Minds run the ships, orbitals, and other non-planet Culture worlds, keeping the citizens safe and happy. The SAMWAF is just one of many such ships, and as a GSV Mind, it is always happy to help; clothing, living space, information, recommendations, all are easily provided to anyone who asks. As the Culture adage goes, money is a sign of poverty, and there is no poverty to be found anywhere onboard. The only rule is that you mustn't harm other passengers against their will. Rule-breakers will be stopped by a ship drone, then chaperoned by the drone thereafter to ensure their wanderings don't involve any more violence.

A Paradise Ship
The SAMWAF is a Plate-class GSV, nearly 100 kilometres tip-to-tip when measuring its outer field structure, four kilometres high naked hull. It has a population of roughly one fifth of a billion people, and about ten thousand named ships currently docked, including two smaller GSVs that contain populations and shipyards of their own. The human-habitation portion of the ship takes up 50 by 20 kilometres across, and a solid kilometre of the ship’s depth. Luxurious underground rapid transit allows quick access to all parts of the ship. Above, a glowing, yellow-white line traverses the sky in place of a sun over the course of the day.

Demographics
Most residents of the ship are panhuman—that is, roughly human in appearance, but varied in evolutionary origin. People may have different numbers of fingers or joints, strange proportions, weird skin colours, missing nipples, fur, or other unusual traits. They may have augmented their bodies with grafted-on horns, laser-tattoos, or other whimsical alterations. There are also plenty of drones floating about—sapient robots that generally look like little floating briefcases. Coloured aura fields around them flash to display their emotions while they chat. And, of course, though a minority, there are aliens from all parts of the galaxy, with all the diversity and strangeness that implies.

Example Locations
Divinity In Extremis is described as a semi-regular social event, performance space and drug bar. It is on the wilder, less reputable side of gathering places within the ship, and everything from orgies to nude swordfights can be found within. Loud music throbs through the space, interspersed with areas of quiet created by faintly-glowing sound fields. Ship avatars are known to spend time there.

You can go body-surfing in a great, half-dark hall overlooked by bars and party spaces. The hall itself contains a great curved slope of upward-charging water, down which people are encouraged to throw themselves, be it on their front, their back, or (if they're coordinated enough) on their feet.

The war porn bar hiding the Dreamer Shard is housed within a stubby, worn-looking ship called the Hidden Income in one of the SAMWAF’s smallbays. It is a private bar, and a small drone floats outside to vet attendees. Another of the Hidden Income’s drones will escort guests inside to a dim space lit only by screens and holos, and sheets of finely-ground lead falling from slots in the ceiling. The amphoteric lead fills the space with a flickering orange glow, a sticky heat, and a strange, bitter smell. Large round tables sit scattered about, around which people sit or lounge with drinks, drugs, and food. At the centre of each table is a number of screens or a holo-display, displaying grisly scenes of warfare from planets around the galaxy.

GSV fan art (source)



Edited (added info) 2024-03-13 14:14 (UTC)