exploration

[inthenightmods]

EXPLORATION

ACTIVE EXPLORATION SLOTS: 0/8

Explorations are currently OPEN. They will close again when we run out of active exploration slots.

Building a structure may be done at any time and does not affect the active exploration slots.

•••
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 a particular part of the woods 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 game 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 game.


• Characters may only embark on one exploration at a time, no matter how small. Pretty self explanatory! One at a time, please. If you play more than one character, you may send them on concurrent explorations, but keep in mind that we might deny exploration requests like this to give other players a chance to hop in.


• We will only accept a maximum of 8 active explorations at a time. If those 8 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.


• 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!


• You can also submit an "exploration" to build a new structure on this page! Just use the appropriate form below.

To EMBARK ON AN EXPLORATION, please fill out the form below:

<b>player name(s):</b> (please list ALL PLAYERS involved with the exploration!) <b>character(s):</b> (please list ALL CHARACTERS involved with the exploration!) <b>area of exploration:</b> (please be as specific as possible! we need to know where your character is/is trying to go.) <b>date(s) of exploration:</b> (you may forward or back date by up to two weeks from the current date.) <b>plan:</b> (what, specifically, are you doing? this is the place to detail the plan in full, so be sure to include all of the relevant details so that we can factor it all into our response. consider questions like: what's the goal? are you bringing supplies or torches? does anyone have experience or training that could assist with your plan? is anyone already injured or impaired? tell us what your plan is! AS A REMINDER, EXPLORATIONS WILL TYPICALLY ONLY RECEIVE ONE RESPONSE TO DETAIL THE RESULT, so it's important to be clear about your intentions and plans!) <b>is your group willing to accept risk of serious injury/death?</b> (a simple yes/no is all we need, and please only give ONE ANSWER for the whole group. a "yes" here doesn't automatically mean you'll all die horribly, and a "no" doesn't mean you won't get anything cool. we'll check permissions posts before injuring/killing characters.)

To BUILD A STRUCTURE or ALTER THE SETTING, please fill out the form below:

<b>player name(s):</b> (please only list the names of the players ORGANIZING construction/alteration.) <b>character(s):</b> (please list ALL CHARACTERS involved with construction/alteration.) <b>location:</b> (please be as specific as possible so that we can add it to the map!) <b>start date:</b> (when does this project BEGIN? based on the details you provide in this submission, we'll let you know how long it will take the characters to complete the project.) <b>plan:</b> (this is the place to tell us how the construction/alteration is going to happen! hit us up with as many details as you have, as we'll be using this plan to determine the length of the project.) <b>description:</b> (what does the finished product look like? this is the description as it will appear VERBATIM on the setting page.)

Please note that with the recent discovery of the medical center, each player may only explore the medical center ONCE for the time being in order to give everyone a chance to get involved. If exploration requests die down and there are still areas to be uncovered, we may lift that rule. We'll make an announcement in the OOC comm should that happen.

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Comments

[pearlstrings]

They're very determined idiots so they're going to head inside. Since it's getting close to camp time, they'll go to the garage like building to make sure it's clear, to explore it and check for supplies, but also to sleep in shifts.

In the 'morning' they'll split up to look for supplies, equipment, and clues without traveling too far from each other. Bruce specifically will be looking for records, papers, photographs- anything that might contextualize this place they've discovered focusing mostly on the garage area and the boat. Vanitas's unversed will be able cover more ground for them- rooting through cars while Vanitas himself will be doing a great impression of that kid sent to summer camp who doesn't want to be there. So long as there aren't any weird doors to open or mysterious buttons to push he'll probably keep his shit-stirring to a blessed minimum. Jason, as their resident superman will definitely get asked to fly up and check out that crane. Sorry dude.

[inthenightmods]

Once inside, they won't be followed, though sleeping in shifts isn't a bad idea, either. The garage building is clear of anything that actively wishes to harm them, and it's set up like it was once used for vehicle maintenance. Or, maybe more of a chop shop, actually. There's the rusting bulk of a car chassis raised up on a lift, and parts and pieces scattered throughout. Not much is salvageable unless you're looking for scrap metal, though there is a broken gumball machine full of gum. Probably really, really old gum, but like, those things never expire, right? Aside from that, they can probably find the sorts of things one might expect in a place like this: tools, leather gloves, rags, motor oil, funnels.

While looking for clues, Bruce will locate an office within the building, probably the main "front" of whatever this business was (this is where the gumball machine is located). On the wall is a very faded calendar with sexy pinups on every month (not just women, either). The year is hard to make out due to the age and the mold, but it definitely starts with a 1 and ends with a 0. The way the months and days are arranged matches the Gregorian calendar. Inside the drawers of a desk, and scattered over its surface, are stacks of yellowed papers, most of which are too washed-out to read.

The few that Bruce can make out seem to be invoices and bills. One is from a utility company, charging for electricity. Another is documentation of the sale of an old boat to this business; the boat was once called "The Seaduction", but at the time the document was written, it was considered to be in junk condition, having run aground. There are a few more papers that detail the release of impounded vehicles from the local police to the junkyard. Because that seems to be what this place was: a junkyard.

As for the cars, they're not of much use. There might be a few bucks of change in the various cup-holders and glove compartments, but mostly they're just scrap. A few look like they could run with a little work and some gas, but the grand majority are totaled. If Vanitas wants to push buttons, he can play around with the car lift.

And as for the crane, it seems to be the thing in best condition here. The arm is thoroughly covered in a layer of rust, but the controls are all unharmed, and the keys can be found in the office. If you could find some fuel for the thing, you could probably get it to work. And then you could... hook... stuff? Listen, it's cool even if it's not very useful.

Of course, all of this motion and noise in the typically-silent junkyard seems to summon something sleeping there: a junkyard dog. A very large junkyard dog, more the size of a pony than a pit bull. The raggedy creature has a mask like any other spirit, and a chain that drags behind it. And it doesn't seem too pleased to see visitors. The first to encounter it would be Vanitas, most likely, and though he won't be attacked, he'll certainly be barked and growled at.

[pearlstrings]

Jason would be interested in snagging any tools that would be useful for the different construction projects, especially if those tools weren’t available in the general store, though mostly he would be keeping an eye out for trouble since a junkyard means lots of places for things to hide.


Vanitas will freeze at first when he sees the spirit dog, but it doesn't look like the ones that attacked him, nor like almost anything else he's seen. What makes him pause is that chain. Vanitas might have broken emotions but he can recognize a kindred spirit (no pun intended). After the initial fear, he'll summon an Unversed in the shape of a more normal sized dog and send it forward to greet the spirit. It'll approach almost nervously, but very much like a puppy interacting with a grown dog, meeting it for the first time while Vanitas watches from a careful distance.


Bruce will unfortunately now have an interest in finding the tragically named "The Seaduction" among the other junk that's found its way here. He'll collect what he can of what's legible so that he can look over it later, including the calendar and the invoices. He'll also collect a few supplies for mechanical repairs. And then, because it seems like the thing to do on his way out- he'll return to the gumball machine and wedge the slot open, manually loosening the crank inside to take all the gum. He hopes Selina would be proud.

[inthenightmods]

There aren't a whole lot of tools here that can't be found in the general store; there's hammers, wrenches, screwdrivers, and the like. There are some more car-specific tools, like tire irons and socket wrenches, but those aren't especially useful unless you're, well, working on cars. However, if he looks hard enough, Jason will find a pair of bolt-cutters! Probably not all that good for construction either, but they're kinda cool. He won't find anything lying in wait for him, though.

Meanwhile, the dog spirit doesn't seem to have anticipated this move. It does the classic Dog Head-Tilt, then sniffs at the newcomer. It lowers itself a bit and nuzzles at the smaller dog, doing the dog greeting thing. It whines a bit, but it does stop growling. So far so good, and then...

Well, good news, seems like the spirit-dog is okay with another dog. Its tail wags slightly and it sits.

As for Bruce, his search for The Seaduction won't take him too long— it's the old boat hull that's laid up on blocks. Hope you've had your afterlife tetanus shot, Bruce. Not just because of the rusty boat; who knows how long that gum's been sitting in there?

[pearlstrings]

Bolt-cutters acquired, Jason will begin making his way to Vanitas's direction, following the Unversed that'd been sent his way.

Vanitas isn't sure what he expected. Maybe for the spirit to attack because the Unversed are far from what might be considered normal. Does this mean the spirit recognizes his creatures as something familiar? The dog-Unversed drops to its belly and inches forward, almost dwarfed by the spirit— and watching them Vanitas is reminded of another spirit that treated him without cruelty. He hesitates, then takes a few steps forward- no where near close enough to touch but certainly making his presence known. The littler Unversed puts one oddly shaped leg forward to touch the spirit's paw.

Bruce will be less interested in following the Unversed than he will be in seeing if he can get inside the sad old boat and rummage around the same way he had in the office of the junkyard.

[inthenightmods]

Bruce can get inside the hull— if he does some climbing and squeezing through rusted holes. It's not a comfortable journey. All he'll find in the lower part of the old boat are the remains of wooden barrels, all broken up and strewn about. Up in the cabin is the ship's old log, but there's not much of note. Just a lot of weather reporting, records of travel distances, fish caught. Seems the fisherman who owned it had more and more trouble finding a catch as time went on, eventually going whole trips without a bite. And then, at the end, a short sad paragraph about the ship running aground.

If he's looking for it, the ship does still have its engine, rudder, and propellers, but the whole system doesn't seem to be anywhere near working condition.

Back with the dog spirit, the big beast leans down to give the Unversed's head a little lick on the top. Like a mother grooming a puppy. It then glances over toward Vanitas, tilting its head slightly once more, as if to ask what he's doing, or why he's there.

[pearlstrings]

It looks like a dog, and acts like a dog, so it stands to reason it thinks like a dog- but stranger things have happened. That's why Vanitas speaks to it like it'll understand: "We're looking for a mine," After a moment's hesitation, Vanitas steps carefully closer, watching it almost without blinking. The Unversed creeps forward on it's belly, almost in tandem, crawling between the spirit's legs like it'll hide underneath it. "Do you live here?"

Bruce, no stranger to discomfort, will take his time moving through the hull and will take the ships logs with him before climbing back out and meeting up with Jason- where they both head towards Vanitas and his New Friend.

[inthenightmods]

The New Friend is busy watching the smaller Unversed use it as a shelter. Apparently, it's okay with this. It looks up at Vanitas as he speaks, seems to be confused at the first part (there's that head tilt again) and then barks after the question.

Seems he might be right on the nose about that "thinks like a dog" idea.

It glances up to stare at the two newcomers, but they seem to be with Vanitas, and he didn't try to pull anything, so... They can stay. For now.