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nextnightmods) wrote2020-04-20 11:03 pm
nextnightmods) wrote2020-04-20 11:03 pm
EXPLORATION.
EXPLORATION
Explorations are currently OPEN. They will close again when we run out of active exploration slots.
β’β’β’
The forest engulfing Beacon is dense and uncharted, but that just means there's never a shortage of cool stuff to discover lurking off the beaten path. There's always new locations, plot clues, or extra resources to be found, so although venturing into the woods is always dangerous, the rewards may just outweigh the risks.
Once you come up with a plan, please fill out and submit the form below. We'll respond in one of two ways, depending on the nature of your exploration:
- In most cases, we'll respond with a single write-up detailing the outcome of your exploration. For example, characters venturing out into unknown areas may discover a new location! In that case, you'll receive a full description of that new location, along with any other details worth noting, such as forest spirit encounters or difficulties along the way. If your group would then like to react to any of this or explore that location after its discovery, you can then respond with your own write-up of everything your group would investigate, and we'll let you know what happens as a result. And that's it! Then the exploration is wrapped, the location becomes available to the GPSL at large, and you're welcome to thread out any details of the exploration if you like.
- In limited cases, an exploration request will open a dialogue between the players and mods to determine the outcome of your exploration. For example, characters attempting to interact with forest spirits may get the chance to play out that encounter, whether it be a pleasant conversation or, uh, the forest spirit trying to kill you, since that happens sometimes. Explorations of this nature will not always result in a response like this, as it'll depend on our availability as mods. If you're interested in doing an exploration like this and don't want to leave it up to chance, PM us! We'll work with you to schedule an encounter.
Regardless of which type of exploration you end up with, what you do during an exploration is entirely up to you, so feel free to get creative! We always try to reward creativity in some way, even if it's not a success in the way that you hoped for.
Before you embark on your quest, here's everything you need to know about explorations:
- Exploring uncharted territory is intended to be dangerous, and there is always a risk of failure, injury, and other setbacks. If you're not on board with these risks, exploration may not be in the cards for you.
- That said, the exploration form includes an opt-in for serious injury and death. If you aren't interested in having your character(s) at risk for that stuff at this time, you can let us know upfront. Please keep in mind that opting out of serious injury/death does not mean you're opting out of the above risks of failure, injury, and other setbacks. Those risks are always in play during explorations. In addition, while opting out of serious risks doesn't mean you'll get a watered down exploration, some discoveries lurking out in the forest are reserved for risk-taking characters. For example, opting out of serious risks eliminates the chance of running into the hostile green-eyed spirits, so characters interested in pursuing green-eyed spirit plot threads will have to put themselves on the line to do so.
- If you choose to opt into the risks of serious injury and death, your character's safety is forfeit and you give the mods the right to maim accordingly (though, of course, we'll check permissions posts in doing so). This does not mean that groups opting into these risks will always be tormented and killed! It's just helpful for us to know your preferences and expectations upfront. Please keep in mind that opting into the risk of serious injury or death applies to the whole group, not just individual characters.
- Explorations into the area of Beacon currently occupied by the Parade will always be extra dangerous. Characters will run the risk of encountering the Parade itself, but besides that, the Parade's presence gets all the forest spirits in the area extra revved up, increasing their hostility. We'll give you the "danger zone warning" at the top of the exploration if you're about to head into Parade-infested territory, as characters may be seriously injured or killed at any point during an exploration within the parade route. You can check the Parade's schedule on the calendar page.
- Chance of success will be left up to a mix of mod discretion and RNG. We'll typically use a RNG to determine what you find, if anything, but we'll also take player/character ingenuity into account. In short: If you have a solid, creative plan, you're more likely to be rewarded for that. Aimlessly wandering won't always get you nothing, but it's less likely to earn you something neat for your trouble. (However, please do be encouraged to follow the dumb idea that's in your character's heart. We will reward for IC idiocy, too.)
- Having torches from the bonfire with you will also increase your chance of success, though be careful: If you lose the torches while exploring, someone will have to recover them or they're lost forever. Additionally, you must request torches through the item request page in order to take them on explorations. Torches not logged through the item requests page are not considered game canon.
- Once you receive a mod response to your exploration, you will have one week to tag us back. If that week timer runs out, we'll consider that exploration closed, and mod responses will stop. You're welcome to handwave your own IC conclusion to the exploration at that point. To be extra clear: the time it takes for us mods to respond to your exploration is not included in that time limit. The timer starts fresh each time we tag you back.
- Explorations over two weeks old will be wrapped in the next mod response. This is to prevent explorations from dragging on for too long, which will slow up our system, but more importantly, it'll make for awkward timing issues in the game! We don't want to leave players waiting on exploration outcomes to be able to engage with the rest of the GPSL.
- Characters may only embark on one exploration a month. This is to allow all characters to have equal opportunity to make an impact on the setting, as well as to foster more cooperation between characters! With only one explore a month, we implore you to collaborate with other individuals and complete explores as a group when possible.
- We will only accept a maximum of 4 active explorations at a time. If those 4 slots fill up, we'll close the queue to new submissions until we're able to wrap some of the active adventures. This number is based on mod availability, and we are looking to get comfortable with the system before we up the number in the future.
- Explorations will always be closed during events except under rare special circumstances. Similarly, explorations can't be forward- or back-dated to happen during an event. Go do event things instead!
- We have recently moved setting and building updates to the Setting Page. If you're interested in doing that, head on over that way!
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no subject
Soldat and, if not needed for spirit first-aid, Minimus set about gingerly poking at the radio controls. The goal is to find the Helix frequency and try to send a response back: a query, whether using voice or Morse, for an updated status.
no subject
It takes some fiddling, but Minimus and Soldat are able to find the frequency the station is broadcasting from. As they begin to send out their messages, quite abruptly the loop cuts off entirely. It seems as if that's all they're going to get until suddenly, a message comes through, though it is incredibly quiet.
no subject
-.-. --- .--. -.-- / -.-. --- -.. . / --- -. .-.. -.-- .-.-.- / ... --- .-.. .. ... / -.. . .- -.. / .-.. .. --. .... - .... --- ..- ... . / ..-. .- .-.. .-.. . -. .-.-.- / .-- .. .-.. .-.. / - .-. -.-- / - --- / -.-. .- .-.. .-.. / ... ..- -... ... .-.-.- / .... --- .-- / -- .- -. -.-- / ... - .. .-.. .-.. / .- .-.. .. ...- . .-.-.- / --- ...- . .-. .-.-.-
Over in the corner, Misty continues her tending with Javert as an extra pair of hands, both for the arm and any other wounds she can see, until she's out of bandages or the spirit is no longer dripping spirit-blood anywhere. Once finished, she will give them some space again.
no subject
As for the contact with the Helix Station, they get another response, only slightly delayed:
no subject
Soldat writes out the response as it comes, for anyone else who can't translate Morse, and responds immediately and rapidly:
..-. --- ..- -. -.. / .-.. .- -... / .-- .. .-.. .-.. / .-.. --- --- -.- / ..-. --- .-. / -.-. --- -.. . ... .-.-.- / .-- .. .-.. .-.. / -.-. --- -- . / - --- / .... . .-.. .--. .-.-.- / -... .- .-. .-. .. -.-. .- -.. . / -.-- --- ..- .-. ... . .-.. ..-. / .-- .. - .... / ... ..- .--. .--. .-.. .. . ... .-.-.- / ... . -. -.. / .. -. - . .-.. / --- -. / - .... .-. . .- - .-.-.- / ... .. --.. . / .--. --- .-- . .-. ... / .... --- .-- / .. - / --. --- - / - .... . .-. . .-.-.- / --- ...- . .-. .-.-.-
no subject
Once again, the response is delayed, though this time, the morse taps through rapid-fire. Soldat will have to flex his morse code muscles on this one, as it will not be easy to follow.
Sadly, there will be no other responses, no matter how many more questions are sent. That is all their informant from the station is able to send.
no subject
- .... .- -. -.- / -.-- --- ..- / .-- . / .-- .. .-.. .-.. / -.-. --- -- . .-.-.- / -... . / ... - .-. --- -. --. .-.-.- / --- ...- . .-. / .- -. -.. / --- ..- - .-.-.-
And then it's time to go. Soldat pauses by the spirit to check on them, then everyone picks up to head back, and figure out how best to tell the others about all this.
Also, over the next two weeks until they leave for Helix station, Soldat adds the radio station to their patrols once every other day, to check on the spirit, change bandages if needed, and (once there's food again) bring them snacks. Calories help people heal, right? Sure they do.