TEST DRIVE MEME

[eternitymods]

A. RETRIEVAL Dreams fade slowly, and awareness returns in increments. The hum of machinery, the smell of recycled air, the murmurs of others waking up around you. The interior of the ship has been outfitted with cots for those Biggs and Wedge retrieve from the Dream Width. Outside of the makeshift infirmary, windows set into the walls of the worn lounge area offer a view of space. It’s time to meet your fellow new arrivals who have been brought together on Biggs and Wedge’s airship. None of you know how you came to be here or where you are going, and the door to the cockpit is locked as the pilots focus on navigating the treacherous obstacles of the Dream Width. You might as well take this moment to introduce yourself to your fellow travelers. B. CURTI CENTER There’s an almost overwhelming aura of excitement in the tower as researchers rush to document this unprecedented number of interdimensional travelers. Over the commotion, the leaders of the Center struggle to explain, ‘Welcome to Vaikuntha. We don’t know why you’ve been brought here, but this is your new home.’ The staff will do their best to help the off-worlders settle in. They answer the questions they can, provide maps and pamphlets about the world and the destinations within it, and even guide the arrivals to a neighborhood where housing has been provided for you. Yes, due to the strange influx of arrivals, you’ll be expected to share, but the Curti staff are doing the best they can under the circumstances. Experiences like these bring people together. Perhaps you are the only one here from your world, but at least you are not alone in this experience. Others are right beside you, learning the same information, planning trips to visit the same new cities, checking out these Job things, and settling in to their new (temporary) homes. C. UP IN THE SKY There’s a whole new world to explore. It’s almost enough to distract from the fact that there’s one place you can’t go- home. You are on an Airship, the main mode of transportation between the major cities of Vaikuntha. While the majority are owned by airlines, perhaps you hitched a ride with a friend that has their own. You can go anywhere in a matter of hours — One can only hope you don’t have motion sickness. D. GUILDS Proud representatives of the Guild are lined up, ready to demonstrate their skills for the new initiates. Make sure to stay behind the designated line, this might get dangerous. So you want a new Job? You'll have to first travel to the Guilds, sign the papers, go through the orientation and introductory lectures, and get basic training. Afterwards, you can freely chat and practice with your fellow members, celebrating your new powers, and checking out your new wardrobe. E. LET'S BE ADVENTURERS Separated from all of your material possessions, connections, and everything you know, and really, what you’re left with is time. Better try to make the most of it. Enough expository banter. It's explorin' time. Maybe instead of spending every day in your room, you'd rather spend it living it up in the city of Lavode, or betting on Chocobo Races in Sparks Goldsaucia. Or maybe you'd rather go and explore the caves and ruins near Arito. With Airships and Chocobos at your disposal, you can go nearly anywhere! F. SIDEQUESTS Maybe you’re telling yourself, ‘I didn’t sign up for this.’ But wait, you did. At least it pays. It all started when you checked the Quest Board.  All you wanted was a few gil to spend, and here you are in the wild, hunting for a Malboro Vine. Or maybe you are in some ancient and decrepit ruins looking for an artifact. Or you could be asked to be janitor for a week. Consider yourself lucky though, at least you don't have to do that alone. G. GET A JOB (THE OTHER KIND) You’ve got a Job, but Claire keeps sighing and muttering about layabout space-people not earning their keep, so it might be time to seek out Employment as well. There are plenty of opportunities to earn some gil in Vaikuntha, no matter where you choose to settle down. Your iMog slate includes listing for employment opportunities. Hopefully you can find something you can live with so that you can start saving up for an airship or the security payment for your permanent housing. H. MOGNET *Ding!* You’ve got Mog-Mail! Thankfully, you can instantaneously chat with your friends around the world thanks to you iMog Slate. And unlike old-fashioned Moogle Letters, you can even send messages to everyone in a blink of an eye! However, despite the change in technology, the old tradition of Mognet Strikes have never gone away. Nobody knows any more whether the Moogles have legitimate reasons to go on strike or if they are just lazy. But today, Mognet is down, and to get information you have no choice but going to the public boards or risk message corruption and mishandling. I. RANDOM ENCOUNTER The ground trembles, and out of nowhere, something hostile appears! Is that battle music playing? You were minding your own business walking around, and suddenly monsters attacked you! Time to put to use the skills you've learned with your Jobs! Will you try to fight on your own or seek help? And remember, you die in random battle, you die FOR REAL. There’s no shame from running from enemies that are a higher level than you! J. WILD CARD Feeling inspired to create your own prompt? The power is yours!

Comments

[checkmate_past]

"That would be perfect, actually. They're both a little similar to things I've encountered; in my own world, that is. Still feels a little odd to say that out loud." She'll get used to it though.

Also, good to see that there's still a constant of children being fully capable of grabbing adventuring gear. For half a moment Robin has the thought of 'who's time traveling child is this, this time?' Though she manages to dislodge it quick enough and remember the rules are SUPPOSED to be different here.

"There's a few classifications of magic users in particular, that I wonder how this measures up against. When I first heard the name, I wondered if they might be similar to dark mages... though there seems to be no affiliation with a particular country. And a bit more... ah, coverage in the wardrobe department."

[conniemaheswaran]

“...I’m guessing I don’t want to know the context of that last comment.” Shaking her head, Connie says, “Anyways, Black Mages here are experts on elemental magic, most often used for its offensive utility. The way I learned it, you focus on a particular emotion or state of mind and channel that psychic potency through your arcane focus of choice to cast a spell related to that mental reagent. For example,” Connie conjures a small orb of flame in the palm of her hand, “Fire, Fira, Firaga, and Firaja all work best with anger or other hot emotions.”

Dismissing the spell, Connie continues. “Obviously, Black Mages are one of the best jobs out there in terms of sheer power, but the job does nothing for you physically, leaving you weak to weapon techniques. As such, it’s generally a good idea to keep your distance, have a party member between you and the enemy, and have a secondary job more focused on the physical side of combat, like Sword Master.”

Connie takes out her iMog Slate and fiddles with it for a few moments. In a flash, her robes are replaced by light leather armor with a dented iron breastplate, vambraces, and greaves. At her side hangs a well-crafted longsword. It’s clear that Connie’s spent most of her gil on that blade. “Sword Masters are exactly what they sound like: we don’t have much magical capability, but in terms of raw skill with the blade we’re unrivaled. A Sword Master’s primary offensive option are combos that can hamstring the enemy—sometimes litetally—in addition to dealing a respectable amount of damage. As far as defense goes, well, it’s basically just more offense. Every time we get hit, we can unleash a counter-combo back. More experienced Sword Masters have access to attacks that can hit all enemies at once or do moderate elemental damage, but we’re pretty limited in our techniques otherwise. We’re also vulnerable to magic and other sources of elemental damage. Any questions?”

[checkmate_past]

Scratch scratch, and her pen moves at a near blur to keep up with the explanations. (Along with drawing one or two short references that might, if someone was feeling very generous, be described as fire balls. Or maybe angry and static charged hamsters. Hard to tell.)

There's a thoughtful look on her face as both classes are described, particularly when it comes to weaknesses.

"Sounds like it's either one or the other. I was always used to being able to switch to a sword or a spell on the fly, when the need called for it. But now, it looks like I need to be more... decisive. And hope that I have others who can help cover my weak points."

She pauses, and writes down a few question points.

"...Actually, that is still something we do, right? Since we can switch between strong points, none of these guilds are making it a rule that only the same, ah, job can work together?"

[conniemaheswaran]

Connie shakes her head. "No, we can all work together pretty easily. Having rules against that would be incredibly stupid. And actually, you can switch between jobs in the middle of combat, as long as you can get your slat."

[checkmate_past]

"Really?" Robin's eyes shoot up at that... and one can almost picture the magitek light bulb going on above her head.

"That... is incredibly useful to know. And makes my choices a little easier, at the least. Both that help is allowed, and that one can switch out. Sadly, you never know for sure."

She's seen the strengths of team work, silly sounding as that would be to admit it out loud. But then, she's also seen what happens when division and fighting among the ranks happen, and when a nation allows such a thing to happen.

"Thank you, by the way. For letting me know all of this; it pays to say that again."

[conniemaheswaran]

“It’s really no problem! I’ve, um, become something of an expert on the subject with how often I explain this stuff to new people.” She rubs the back of her head, blushing slightly. “I think Ganeshan might be a bit ticked I’m doing his job for him.”