riverview: test drive meme

[riverviewmod]

riverview test drive meme

Welcome to Riverview's test drive meme! Feel free to dip your toes in on the test drive meme to try out your character in the setting, play out a mission, and get samples for your application at the same time!

● Reserves are currently OPEN.
● Applications open on April 1st.
● Providing all parties are amenable, threads on the test drive meme can count as game canon, as the plot in the prompts presented is game canon.
● TDM threads do not count for Activity Check, but they do count for Activity Bonus Points, so long as all characters involved are accepted into the game.
● Since this particular TDM is plot-heavy, current players are welcome to do their own top-levels to interact with the plot. However, since it is still a TDM intended to help potential new players get involved, there will be a special additional +25 Activity Point bonus for any thread submitted by a current player that involves a potential new character rather than focusing on existing CR, for this TDM post.

Feel free to use the prompts below or create your own scenario. The setting is built to be flexible, so feel free to make things up as you go. Thanks to player-created plots, this month's Test Drive is set to effect the game setting for the next few months, so please enjoy!

information resources
premise ● arrival ● setting ● ask a question ● calendar ● navigation

plot overview

After just over a week of increasingly serious blackouts and brownouts around the city, the team in charge of the structural integrity and defense of the wall has found the source of the problem, and posted a network entry explaining that the issue is caused by a large quantity of lizard-like monsters that have compromised the underground infrastructure of the city, and requesting volunteers to help do a full-scale manual extermination of monsters and assess the damage and do urgent repairs.

prompt i: a call to arms

The most urgent request presented is for people to help clear out the monsters in the underground tunnels - and there are a lot of them! With estimated monster numbers in the area of 500-1000, ranging from adult to juvenile, there's a lot of work to be done to clear out the underground infrastructure of the city. The Perimeter Guard will have a steady stream of transport trucks going to escort any fight-capable residents who want to volunteer out to the tunnels. They will also provide weapons of various varieties as well as short training sessions on how to use them safely in a confined space for anyone who doesn't have their own.

Whether you fight with a weapon, your fists, magic, or poison darts, your help is more than welcome down in the tunnels. The only real request is to keep seismic or explosive abilities or attacks on the mild side, and to be careful not to poison the city's water supply! Other than that, go wild.

prompt ii: into the depths

Clearing out monsters is all well and good, but they have definitely done some damage to the city's infrastructure. So it isn't just the brawn that needs to step up to help the city, it's the brains. There's a call for anyone with any kind of special ability that would help with emergency repairs. Whether it's engineers, chemists, anyone with first aid, runners to distribute supplies, or any other special ability that would help out in the underground tunnels and fix some of the damage that's been done, anyone is welcome to help. And if you think it's just scientists who are needed, think again - magic is a well-known if not-well-understood facet of life in Riverview Quarantine, and some of this stuff works on a more arcane level than a mundane one.

And, of course, all of these brainiacs are going to need a little backup, so any bruisers to act as escort and protection are also welcome.

prompt iii: trapped in a...

Not everyone has the skills or desire to head out into the jungle and fight for the city, and that's perfectly fine. Inside the Quarantine walls, life is carrying on as normally as it can. That is, aside from the ongoing blackouts.

Wherever you might be in the city, you run a pretty decent risk of getting trapped somewhere for a short period of time. Whether it's trapped in an elevator, a tram car, a store, the housing you share with someone you barely know, or anywhere else in the city, it could happen to you. This could be the start of a beautiful friendship or a meet-cute to tell your grandkids about...at least, that is, if you get along with the person you're stuck with...

prompt iv: friendr/network

Whether your character is posting up a silly word game to distract people from the dangerous mission going on, trying to get hold of a friend, or putting out feelers for people to go out into the fray with, the network is going strong.

Alternately, an offer for a new, free app is popping up on people's devices - Friendr is a friend-finder and/or dating app. If characters choose to install it, they will fill out a short bio and parameters for what they're looking for, upload a snap of themselves, and then proceed to browse for matches. This is a typical swipe-left-or-right type app.

Code to post your character's bio is in the textbox below, or you can just do a text version of the information in the app. An example of how it looks can be found here.

<center><blockquote style="width: 220px; margin: 0; padding: 0px; background-image: url('http://i42.tinypic.com/2uf53s4.jpg'); font-size: 12px; font-family: verdana; border-radius: 20px; text-align: center;"><div style="padding: 10px 0 0 0; text-align: center;font-size: 25px; font-weight: 900; font-style: italic; color: #528887; text-shadow: -2px 2px 2px rgba(150, 150, 150, 1);">F<span style="font-size: 16px;">RIENDR</span></div> <center><img src="ICON URL HERE" style="border-radius: 50%; width: 70px; height: 70px; box-shadow:-3px 3px 2px 0px rgba(82, 136, 135, .75);"></center> <center><div style="width: 210px; background-color: #528887; color: #fff; padding: 5px; font-size: 14px;">Name of Character</div></center> <center><div style="width: 210px; background-color: #528887; color: #fff; padding: 5px; font-size: 11px; text-align: left;"><b><small>AGE:</small></b> ## <b><small>INTERESTED IN:</small></b> Male/Female/Any <b><small>SEEKING:</small></b> Type(s) of Relationship(s) <b><small>ABOUT ME:</small></b> Blurb goes here, can be as long or short as you wish.</div></center><br> </blockquote></center>
Many thanks to mistojen for coding this especially for Riverview!

prompt v: wildcard

Choose your own adventure and do something else in the setting!

navigation

Comments

[flowlikewater]

[ Genji fiddles behind his 'ear' for a moment longer, adjusting the lights for a moment before dropping his head. He shakes his head slightly. ] No, but thank you. I do not need to eat that much.

[ And he doesn't take the face mask off around strangers for the most part. ]

[greyjane]

Well, in lieu of a steak--

[She tosses him one of those energy bars from her pack at him. Mr 'I'm mostly muscle' can, no doubt, catch it easily.]

-- Enjoy that. And yes, I've been finding this whole affair quite invigorating. Marvelously hospitable, our kidnappers, aren't they?

[kuyamu]

[ he still can't process any of this, but hearing the word anija makes him respond automatically: ] Genji.

[ and although Genji is doing everything he can to make this peaceful, to appear non-threatening — Hanzo stutters back a half-step, too late for it to be a surprised instinct. it's deliberate. this is such a strange reversal of roles, but Hanzo... Hanzo still doesn't understand this Genji, this stranger. he doesn't know what he's thinking or what he intends, and a significant part of Hanzo expects that Genji will kill him, eventually if not now. it's only right; it's the only way this should go. he simply doesn't know when to expect it.

but for the moment, he has to play along with acting as though there could be any other resolution. he struggles, again, to manage speaking. Genji has him at such a disadvantage, which would annoy Hanzo if he could summon up the presence of mind to actually feel anything at all yet. ]

I— [ his voice croaks, and then sticks in his throat. he can barely think, he doesn't know what to say. ] I did not expect to see you...

[ ... here. so soon again. ever again, because maybe that encounter had been a delusion from Hanzo finally losing his fucking mind after a decade of guilt. ]

[leadintheyoung]

It's no trouble, stranger.

[ And an enthusiastic shake of her head confirms that well enough. Then, she's looking up again, resting a hand on her hip. It can't be any more difficult a climb than scaling the great trees of the forests back home. Plenty to work with, that's for sure. As for how high they should go -- ]

I can get the doors open, but the roof sounds like more fun if you ask me. We'd get a view and maybe a better idea of just how big this place really is. What do you say?

[signifies]

[ This mysterious magic is cropping up too often for it to be made up. It's hilarious coming from an alien, but aliens are something Clark understands. Not magic.

He's not averse to finding out more. This stranger looks the no-nonsense kind. ]

There's three ahead of us. You're welcome to them.

[signifies]

[ She doesn't honestly care, is why the question is met with a minute shrug.

Clark isn't interested in the bait. ]

I'm only doing an informal survey on the different worlds people come from. I'd ask you the year, but I think you use a system I won't recognise.

[ If he genuinely was prying into her past, this would be a different conversation. ]

[signifies]

[ Clark nods. This technology is incredible. The servos are so quiet, and Genji seems at ease with his body. ]

A cup of tea?

( please let me know if anything he hears is not all right by you )

[flowlikewater]

[ He has enough sense and control of his cybernetic limbs that he won't crush someone's hand unless he intends to, so he gets the impression that she is much the same.

Genji chuckles and pulls his hand back, crossing his arms loosely. ] I am a bit out of the loop, as they say, when it comes to that sort of thing. But meeting an interesting person is always fun, as far as I am concerned.

[ There's a voice in the back of his head, which sounds suspiciously like his brother, going "ugh." ]

[kuyamu]

Interesting. There are no such powers in the world I know. Although an ability such as electrokinesis could likely be achieved with ease through technology.

[girlexmachina]

Aloy tilts her head, looking no more believing than she was before. "That doesn't make any sense," she says. "You can't just change reality. It exists whether or not we're looking at it."

[signifies]

This is a bar after dark.

[ It's a cosy place. He squeezes her hand again, offering the waiter a small apology for leaving so quickly. They can come back anytime.

Outside, he looks around. ]

Your apartment?

[morganknight]

That was the logical counterargument. To which Morgan spread his hands, and said, "How do you know it does if you're not looking at it? If you're not observing it in some way?"

[morganknight]

[Morgan snatches the energy bar out of midair, then looks at it -- as if he only now was just realizing she tossed it to him. Then, a slow smile spreads across his face.]

You know, I normally don't profess eternal love till at least one date in, but...

[He's teasing, honest. A quick rip with his teeth and he has half the bar in his mouth, chewing it eagerly.]

I owe you one, seriously. This sort of thing normal for you?

[flowlikewater]

[ It's hard for that stumble back to not hit him right in the chest, a vice like squeeze. Not out of anger or betrayal, just out of sheer sadness. Their lot in life was not a fair one, he understands that now, and what it has done to his proud big brother is a wound he still nurses deep in his heart.

He reaches behind himself and links his hands, holding them below his waist. ] I did not think their portal would pull us both through. [ I have missed you is what he thinks but does not say. Instead, ] I assume these lizards have not given you much trouble.

[ He still isn't quite sure exactly what his brother needs. But talking normally is the only way he can think of to show that he's— okay. Okay with everything. ]

[trashmammal]

Mae. My name's Mae.

[She adopts the same stance almost unconsciously, both hands planted on her hips, nodding like this is a totally normal thing that people do casually. She's never climbed anything this tall, but it should be no big, right? What's a few extra stories?]

I say we have ourselves a roof party! It shouldn't be that far from here actually. C'mon!

[With that, she grabs the nearest cable and gets to climbing. It's slow at first, just one hand over the other, but soon she's picking up speed, switching from rope-climbing to balancing on jutting pieces of machinery and whatever footholds she can find. Whether or not this lady can catch up isn't really her problem, at this point.]

[exter]

You sleep a lot because you like it, or because you need to?

[ Either way she won't judge. Mia tends to sleep way more than necessary at times, but that's more on the side of "crippling depression" than need or anything. ]

It really is. I'm still not sure this isn't some dream that's getting scarily long winded by now.

[exter]

I wouldn't call the things in my world "supernatural" but I guess I know where you're coming from. You're all fiction back there, but I don't have any reason to judge you differently from anyone else.

[exter]

It's a common pattern that people tend to rely on things that have worked before, as they often tend to keep on working. Small decreases of returns aren't enough encouragement for everyone to suddenly try something else. It's... frustratingly logic, really.

[ Reading people is kind of her job anyway. ]

And besides, if you were pregnant this wouldn't be a sitcom, it would be sci-fi with a touch of horror.

[exter]

Oh. Oh. Sounds dangerous.

[ Also not very good at its actual job she thinks, but maybe saying it out loud isn't a good idea. ]

I guess wet is better than dead.

[kuyamu]

[ when they last met, Genji had barely said a word to maintain his anonymity, only needling Hanzo about his motives in coming to the shrine, and maybe that's what Hanzo had expected this time too. that Genji would be cryptic and cold and certainly not engage Hanzo in conversation. since when has his little brother ever made things easy for him, though — and the thought strikes him like a blade.

no. he will do this. he will maintain whatever facade Genji is trying to... to mock him with, but when Genji's sword turns on him, he won't pretend to be surprised. ]

No. [ that old Shimada pride is still there, arrogance too deeply sown into him to have been pulled out by exile. ] They are only animals; hardly a challenge.

[ he's still holding an arrow nocked in his bow, his knuckles white with tension on the bow's handgrip. but they are in no immediate danger, so he lets his firing position fall away at last, and he fidgets with the arrow in his right hand instead, his thumb stroking mindlessly along the metal shaft of it. ]

I imagine the same is true of yourself. You handled yourself rather well— [ when Hanzo had tried to kill him (again) under the impression that he was an assassin? ] —the last time.

[morganknight]

Yeah, I really don't have the hips for it. [Morgan brushes his coat back, the better to run his hands over said hips. True enough, they are not shockingly prominent.] How about we both stick to not being pregnant? I feel like that somehow works out best in the short term, call me crazy...

[trashmammal]

I think both? I don't know.

[Just gonna very carefully step around any implications that may have. Mia seems cool and they just met and please God Mae don't start dumping all your baggage on her at once.]

Nah. My dreams get way weirder than this usually. I think I might've actually met God, the one time?

[greyjane]

[She leans forward, elbows planted on the table.]

And what other interesting tidbits have you uncovered so far?

[exter]

Neither do I, really.

[ She'd argue that her butt is cute and of the perfect measurements for her body type, but she doesn't have his confidence. ]

I don't really like kids that much, anyway.

[exter]

I'm quite familiar with the feeling of being too tired after sleeping half a day, don't worry.

[ She's a psychiatrist. She's the best person for that sort of stuff. ]

Really? There are things back home that are claimed to be gods of some sort, although it might be a problem of translation.

[ she's actually kind of one of them! Not that she knows. ]