FEBRUARY TEST DRIVE

[rubycitymods]

Welcome to the Ruby City Test Drive!

The rules are simple:

• Pick your prompts and post your character, making sure to include the character's name and canon in the subject line.


• Tag around, making sure to follow the game rules. If you're not sure about something, don't be shy - check with the other player!


• We recommend staying away from "I just arrived" prompts. Instead, write your test drive threads as though your character has been in the city a while and is responding to our periodic events, especially if you're going to use your test drive threads as application samples. This will give mods a better understanding of your character, as well as make more dynamic prompts for other players to respond to.


• This one's obvious, but just in case you forgot: have fun!

KEEP RUBY CITY WEIRD

ONE ► You've been here a few weeks now, and things haven't gotten any more logical. You're on your weekly run to the grocery store and, for the umpteenth time, you notice something . . . not quite right. Maybe there's some unusual food on the shelves, something you don't know how to identify or would never have considered eating back home; edible chalk or an entire refrigerator full of ostrich eggs are more likely than you think! Or maybe it's something even stranger than that. Was that janitor's closet always there--and if it wasn't, do you really want to investigate? Have there always been seven aisles, because you really think you remember six last week . . . Whatever the weirdness this week, you're going to have to find a way to deal with it, whether that's by confronting it directly, asking another shopper for help, or turning to the network in dismay.

TWO ► While there are some reasonably fun places to hang out in Ruby City, the catacombs don't fall into that category. They're dark and miserable and terrifying, seemingly designed to trap you and draw you in, maybe even alive. The walls shift in an ever-changing maze, leading you further and further in, coaxing you towards any number of pitfalls. How long have you even been in here? Hope you brought a light, although it won't help much against the ghosts. Maybe you have a friend (or an enemy) with you; if not, you can try calling for help on the network, but let's be realistic: this isn't the kind of place that gets great reception.

THREE ► You've found an abandoned house. Again. This is a fairly frequent occurrence, given the city's eerie emptiness and tiny population. On a whim, or maybe even by accident, you enter the house and find the detritus of the previous owners. Pictures in frames of smiling friends, notes written from one person to another covered with inscrutable inside jokes, even a place on the wall where the former occupant used to hang their watch when they went to bed. Do you feel like an invader, or do you consider this place yours for the exploring? Either way, there's a lot to think about, or a lot to steal. If you're alone, you can philosophize on the network; if you brought a friend, you can philosophize in person or just get to looting.

MONSTERS ALL AROUND

FOUR ► In your time in Ruby City so far, you've seen plenty of monsters already. Honesty, you can't get away from the ghosts. This is a new one, though: there are a bunch of thestrals around this month, and while they're largely shy of people, anyone who heads into the forest is likely to come across them. If you've ever experienced someone's death before, you'll be able to see them in all their skeletal winged horse-y glory, witness them peering at you with their shining white eyes and considering you with a bit of mistrust. If you haven't experienced a death, congratulations, you just ran into an invisible dead horse. On the plus side, they're not violent; they just want to hang out being death omens, but they're scary enough to look at that you might ask for advice, either from a companion or the network at large.

FIVE ► Ah, fairies. Tiny little winged creatures that frolic in the forest and bring good fortune, probably. Right . . . ? The opposite of right. Fairies are pretty, but very mischievous and potentially dangerous. They're easily offended and quite vengeful, and if you step into a fairy ring you'll be transported directly to the land of the Fae. Take care not to eat anything or you'll be stuck there forever. On the plus side, if you manage to befriend a fairy they'll go a long way for you. If you're thinking about trying, you might take a network poll: is this a stupid idea or am I a genius? If you've already decided you're a genius, go ahead and venture into the woods, but make sure to take backup or at least pray to run into someone sensible along the way.

SIX ► You totally have a clean conscience. Absolutely. 100%. You've never done anything wrong in your life; we know this, and we love you. So then why are you seeing the Adh Seid? Every night at midnight, a beautiful woman enters your home to remind you of all the awful things you've done in your life. You could set a clock by her, she's so persistent, and you can't figure out any way to get rid of her. How do you cope with this? You can ask someone, but that would mean admitting your guilty conscience. Or you could just vaguepost. Everybody loves a vaguepost.

SOMETHING'S HAPPENING

SEVEN ► So . . . you died. How did that feel? Terrible, right? Dying sucks. But coming back is sometimes even worse. Before the vision of Death you've seen (whichever one makes most sense to you, whether that's a big skeletal dude in a black cloak or something else entirely) lets you reenter the land of the living, it tells you that you have to give something up in exchange. That something can be physical, like an item or even a body part, or something less tangible, like a memory or skill. You'll get it back eventually, but for now it's out of your reach. Hard to cope, right? Maybe don't die next time. In the meantime, you're probably going to have to ask for help as you adjust, so make sure to reach out on the network. Unless you're the stoic sort, in which case, never fear: there are enough nosy people in this city that somebody's sure to notice sooner than later.

EIGHT ► You're yourself again, but you weren't for a while. There were a couple of days when you were yourself from ages ago--back when you were a kid, or at least a young adult. Or maybe you were a version of yourself that never came to be, an alternative version that made one crucial decision differently and had totally different experiences. Now that you're back to normal, you probably feel a little off-kilter. Maybe someone who's been here for longer than you has some insight; you might as well ask. Or you can just brood. Brooding is a fine option.

NINE* ► Ruby City is not what it was. While as long as you've been here you've known it as a very strange place with long stretches of boredom interrupted by horrifying upheaval, the city it has become now is totally, completely . . . pleasant. Nothing bad ever happens. No one questions anything, because nothing bad ever happens! And if someone asks about a bad thing that may or may not have happened, they are silenced. Quickly. Which didn't bother you until you woke up this morning and suddenly remembered the old city. What do you do? Is the right choice to conform and try to stay safe or fight against this Stepford city? Be careful what you say on the network this time--but who knows, maybe someone around you has woken up just like you have.

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* This event is based off of our June 2016 Pleasantville event.