event 01 plotting

[thestewards]

Welcome to the first plotting post of A Gentle Night.

The first event of the game will see characters arriving in Draega in the wee hours of the night—and immediately suffering an attack from the Hunter Guild. The Hunter Guild loathes the Blood, and they have decided that Queen Fayura's actions must be answered with immediate and severe violence. Meanwhile, the Queen is no where to be found and the Old Town Bazaar burns.

You can read the full event here. The post is currently locked for responses and will open at 8PM EST on the 24th. Take this time to talk to each other about what you're interested in doing and accomplishing in this event.

Questions should be asked here. As both Allairavar and Loren are out and about in this event, you may request that they engage with your character using our NPC request form. Comment to the appropriate character's top-level. For events like this, simply let us know which of your prompts you'd like the NPC to respond to. Remember that members of Fayura's First Circle appear in the event and as minor NPCs can be driven by players at-will.

This is also a good time to talk to your fellow players about the jobs and activities around Draega that will allow you to gain influence this month.

After this event…

► Players can assume that characters know all the information given in the info pages. Whether you handwave a conversation with random NPCs or assume that Loren answered your characters' questions, as of the end of the event all PCs have been informed of the landen Guilds, the Ebon Council, and the state of the world.

► Characters may move out of the Queen's Residence and establish their homes elsewhere. Many buildings in the city are empty and in need of repairs, but no one will stop Strangers from moving in.

► Any one who remains at the Queen's Residence will receive a modest stipend, enough to cover food and drink. Loren will make clear that Strangers who do not live at the residence will not be afforded this money but also that Strangers who do stay are considered part of the Queen's court in as much as actions they take will reflect back on the court.

► Allairavar reminds everyone who chooses to stay at the residence that if you live with the court, you practice with the court. He expects all the Strangers who stay to be on the practice fields with everyone else at dawn. To those who are reticent, he explains that no one needs to learn how to fight only how to defend long enough for help (he seems to imply himself) to arrive.

Comments

QUESTIONS

[thestewards]

[cmbr]

What does the condition of the earth around Draega feel like?

[thestewards]

Not great. Perhaps surprisingly, in the city itself, the land doesn't seem so unhealthy. In the parks, the trees are alive and vibrant. Immediately outside the city, the land isn't in as good shape in spite of how rigorously it's been tended by the people who live on it. It yields crops, but it yields crops with great reluctance. The land wheezes and groans, it's cracked and dying. The further away from the city anyone travels, the more obvious this slow death becomes.

[cmbr]

Is there any poison or signs of pollution outside of the city? (e.g. 'scientific reasons' such as nutrient deficiency, which Sen will try to look for)

[thestewards]

Because the population is small enough that mass production isn't necessary, there aren't huge factories belching smoke into the air. However, Sen will notice very quickly that the land is overworked and needs to rest, but people just keep pouring more fertilizer onto the fields to get less and less yield. That's clearly not the largest issue, though, since as you travel away from the city to land that can't be farmed, that land is in even worse shape but not because it's been overworked. In a way, it feels like the land has been bled dry.

Should Sen continue to investigate this, she'll hear that people are excited for the planting season this year. People say things like, "Last year's harvest wasn't so bad. Maybe this year..." and "There's supposed to be a planting festival. I heard the Queen is sponsoring it." There's an undercurrent of hope in how people talk about the planting and harvest for the coming seasons, and Sen may come away with the impression that something changed in the past 10 to 20 years

[stickypete]

Two questions.

1) In the opening bit where they wake up and there's screaming, is that them vs. possible npcing or can they find fellow PC buddies there?

2) With the farcasters, is the network they communicate to fellow Strangers something that can be accessed by other parties, like the Court or the guilds? And if so, are there ways for the tech-savvy to somehow make communicating to fellow Strangers more secure.

Thanks, mods! Event looks awesome!

[thestewards]

1. The intent was to give you guys the flexibility to choose whether or not you'd like to be attacked. If you choose to write a top-level with option i., the screams you hear could be another PC or it could be an NPC in the court. There's really no wrong read here unless you say it's Fayura.

2. The Strangers have what amounts to their own list-serve with the farcaster. Messages can be made more or less secure, or filtered to people in whatever kinds of groups you'd like. Messages that are left unfiltered can be seen by anyone.

[stickypete]

Sorry, one more question. For tdm threads that are going to be considered canon are they icly timed as being before or after this plot?

[thestewards]

TDM threads will occur immediately after this event. This is the only time (as far as we have planned!) that this will happen.

[phykios]

so

how would it go over if percy possibly broke some old town fountains to control the water for putting out the fire purposes?

also: can he wreck havoc on some fountains/plumbing to put out the fires?

i assume the river's too far away for him to feasibly try waterbending without, uh, maKING A MESS

[thestewards]

The locals are gonna be so shocked and confused. He should definitely do this. As an FYI, in terms of world consequences, if he destroys fountains on personal property, the owners will likely be displeased. Little will come of this except that Percy might notice side-eyes from a handful of people, should you want to include that conflict in a future thread. The Queen may eventually have a word with him about destroying public property, but he'll realize very quickly that she (and her Court) isn't displeased because the destruction was for a good cause.

He sure can wreak havoc.

The river is probably about half a mile from the pavilion at the center of Old Town.

[phykios]

i am so happy, thank you!!! i definitely want the side-eyeing and maybe some queen talking-tos, omg.

[phykios]

for after the fires and after things settle down --

are there jobs available at the docks? i assume characters not staying with the queen will be expected to earn their own cash?

[mollymocked]

Okay since Molly is a dual-wielder but he only came with one of his swords is it possible that any of the assassins would have any light dueling blades that he could steal off a corpse so he's not off-balance?

Also because this is a D&D character and I have to freaking ask... Do the assassins have anything interesting on them if their bodies are looted. I promise I will not ask this every time this happens.

[championbittersweet]

r u sure Molly, r u really sure

[thestewards]

The assassins are more likely to have daggers. Their MO is to break a Jeweled shield and then get in close and stab. However! The court is happy to provide a second blade for him, and you're welcome to assume that happens almost immediately.

Each Hunter has a Breaker that looks a good deal like a pistol, spare ammo for the weapon, and a Seeker (these are not considered exceptionally expensive by the locals, but it doesn't hurt to pick one up for free). Hunters typically travel light, but one has a map of the Queen's Residence tucked in his pocket (quite useful since the residence has a very confusing floor plan). Another has some spare marks, enough to purchase a meal.

[mollymocked]

Oh bless you.

And thank you, mods!! That's very helpful. I'm excited.

Re: QUESTIONS

[playing_hearts]

That unshielded conversation between Allairavar and Loren can be overheard by anyone, right? So then would it be possible to approach Loren after Allairavar storms off? Basically can I use the npc request form to request a thread specifically regarding that or is it intended for more general things?


And, far less importantly, how do you pronounce 'Allairavar?'

In other news this looks like a really cool opening for the game. Looking forward to it.

Re: QUESTIONS

[thestewards]

You're correct! You can approach either male immediately after the conversation, and the NPC request form is the place to go.

His name is pronounced "ah-LARE-ah-var," where that middle bit sounds like "flare" if you dropped the "f" and all the other "a" sounds are like the one in "father."

We like to come in hot.

[consecrates]

can we just assume that the flora in Draega is pretty much the same on Earth? like herbs and plants and all? or does Davina need to find similar plants for her spells and potions while she's in Draega?

[thestewards]

Some flora will be the same but known by a different name, and so will be easy for her to find in apothecary shops. Others will not. Precisely how you want to play that is up to you.

While staying in the Queen's Residence, Davina will have access to the Queen's personal library which has plenty of books on herbs and plants that would be of use to Davina should she like to borrow some. The library in River East also will have plenty of books, and Loren, Verim, and Fayura herself would all happily assist her in finding analogs. Well. Verim and Fayura will be pleasant about it. Loren will likely be fussed that his attempt to make a dent in his paperwork has been interrupted.

[consecrates]

what a supportive queen! though Loren needs to chill ...

thank you as usual, mods!

[championbittersweet]

Can Jonathan be excused from dawn training due to, uh, medical reasons

[thestewards]

Not the first time.

The NPCs in Fayura's Court will all react very strongly to Jon's aversion to sunlight. He will find them a bit perturbed, and they'll treat him like he's some kind of strange myth come to life. Allairavar and Loren will be an exception to this, largely treating him like a normal person, but the rest of the court will be noticeably uneasy even though they will never be outright rude.

As soon as Allairavar understands that sunlight harms Jon, he'll reschedule Jon's training for the evening hours. But luckily for Jon, it is currently winter in Draega! The sun doesn't rise until nearly 7 in the morning. Allairavar is much more likely to drag him down to the training yard around 6 for a go-round in the dark.

[championbittersweet]

w e l p he's gonna have a lot of questions.

At least it's not a 'wooden stakes and flaming torches' reaction. thank you mods!