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beta testing 0.1: tutorial & dungeon
beta testing 0.1
BETA NOTE: This log is being used for Duocaeli’s Tutorial & Dungeon Beta Testing. Please note that some game features are limited and will be noted in this format on pages, and an invitation is still required to play. Thank you and have fun!
"On" Tutorial
It’s pitch black. Is the darkness an old friend or a source of anxiety for you? Who’s to say what you were doing before, but right now there’s only one thing before your eyes: an ominous word over a slowly generating bar.
All at once - you’re plunged into color.
> A1. TUTORIAL START
If you’re lucky, the first sights that greet you are lush greenery, dancing street performers, and a grand statue of an elephant with assorted birds nesting nearby. Welcome to Avisle’s Town Square.After a quick once-over, you’ll find that everything that you had on you before arriving is accounted for–so if you were barefoot and in your pajamas, you might not have much–with one notable addition: a glowing crystal in your pocket. The roughly cut gem fits in your palm and is already fastened on a chain for you. Convenient!
Soon after finding it, the crystal will begin to project information in front of you that is remarkably legible, even if you’ve never seen these particular runes before. It reads: New Worldwalker’s Checklist. Below, a series of tick boxes await you. You may need to start asking around or exploring. Seems like you’ve got things to do!
If you’re less fortunate, it seems you’ve landed just a bit outside the maintained grounds of the city itself. Somehow you’ve spawned in the middle of a pack of wolves. Huh! Well. You can see the city not too far from here, so maybe if you’re quick… Time to learn on your feet!
Whenever you do get to safety and complete the same inventory of your person, the crystal will respond to you just the same. Apparently you just decided to play on Hard Mode.
> A2. THE BUSTLING GUILD TOWN
☑️ Join a Guild
Avis Isle is a deeply uncharted place, welcoming explorers and curious adventurers. The Guilds do their best to provide structure for the city proper and for those getting a grasp of their magic; the Interguild Alliance (IGA) oversees the Guild Hub where quests are posted and dungeon crawls are organized. While there are all sorts of Guilds around, there are five main wings for each of the Grand 5.
Why not get to know them better? NPCs will call you over and try to encourage you to join them, some with challenging jeers and others with sincere, kind invitations–don’t you know that the very first guild that you join is free? Choose wisely! The guild’s mascot animal, some type of Avian, sits upon a very nice and color-coded throne in their respective wing awaiting your choice. Once you’ve made your selection, it will croon (or honk) at you, and your membership is complete. While you can’t actually hear the words, you have a feeling you’ve been told something like, “Now get to work, fresh meat!”
—Though if you're dallying, guilds aren't without mischief. A stray bird (though never The Throned Mascot Bird) may suddenly run by, webbed feet slapping on tile, and steal one of your items before ducking into the respective wing of their guild. The same goes for those that try to leave without joining a guild. Theft is a great marketing strategy, right?
> A3. BEGINNER’S QUEST: DUNGEON CRAWL
For all new worldwalkers, there is one quest that you must complete upon joining the server. Some call it fun-datory, some call it hazing. Don’t worry about it! Your crystal will blink at you before providing the details of the quest:
☑️ Dungeon Mission:
Retrieve the Hiccuping Hifloon
Retrieve the Hiccuping Hifloon
Though should there come a moment that you find yourself low on energy, whether it be from simple exhaustion or magic use, your communication crystal will flash. A new understanding will come to you: it is possible to transfer mana to one another via gestures of affection, borrowing from your traveling partner’s own energy. Why don’t you go and try it now? Holding a hand might just make you feel better, and not just emotionally!
> A4. TUTORIAL END
And with that, you’ve wrapped up the Duocaeli tutorial! Congratulations!! That said, while it's understandable to get off-track—if you outright ignore the prompts from your to-do list, you’ll find yourself respawning in front of the goal you need to accomplish! Come on, work with us a little here. Or don’t? You can be trapped in a loop if you really want.
Now you’re free to explore the rest of town. While there are some land masses in the distance, out past the wolves, it seems they're not quite open to you at the moment. Attempts to wander closer will lead to you getting turned right back around, and some glitchy text coming from your Communication Crystal that reads SERVER TRAFFIC.
If you poke around the options on your Communication Crystal, or just spend long enough logged on confused, you will eventually find it prompting you through the steps of Logging Out. Seems like there’s more still that awaits you.
"OFF" Tutorial
> B1. HOME SWEET HOME
When you awaken in the OFF world, the pressure on the front of your face is a little more apparent. Taking off the digital visor is easy—and it can turn compact right in your hand! Getting it to snap back into your cell phone just right might be a pain, thank goodness it’s durable—oh right, did we mention you have a cell phone? Whether you’re familiar with the device or not, it’s right there in your palm, the same color as your Duocaeli crystal. A closer examination of your clothes will also reveal that while your threads are familiar, they’re not exactly what you had in Duocaeli. Ever heard of a department store? They’re a little more like what you’d find there! Finally, your phone will suddenly beep and provide you with a new checklist, starting with:☑️ Locate Domus Hosus Room
Seems like the first one is to find your room… But as you take a closer look around you, you might finally notice it—the way that the tiles on the floor seem to be shuddering in excitement at your awakening, the opening and closing of windows and cabinets to get your attention and say hi. Not only is the house alive, it seems to be happy to see you! Make your request—maybe a passing soul tells you that the house likes to be called Dodo, rather than the formal Domus Hosus—and see if it can be answered! Dodo so wants you to be comfortable here.
…and perhaps be a little mischievous? As you try to find your room, designated by your name on a plaque, you might be in for a surprise. Maybe the stairs suddenly turn into a slide, prompting you to tumble into another person. Perhaps the doors flicker and switch at the last second, prompting you to find an unfamiliar neighbor instead of your own lodgings. Is this what they call… a meet cute?
> B2. SURVIVE THE INTERNET
☑️ Post on DUONET
You have some questions, right? Don’t worry, whether for the inquisitive mind or the petty complaint, there’s always the internet! Through your cell phone, you’ll be prompted and guided through the steps of posting on DUONET, which is available to your fellow Worldwalkers. Don’t forget there’s also an Anonymous function, though it’s not without its own hiccups!
> B3. HELLO, MY NAME IS
At some point in your exploration, you’ll be interrupted by a neat little beep beep! On the screen of your phone:
☑️ Go to Dodo's Welcome Mingle
Or It'll Be Sad It Worked Really Hard On It :(
Or It'll Be Sad It Worked Really Hard On It :(
O-Oh. No reason not to drop in for a little while at least, right? Heading down to the Lobby of the Dodo House will reveal that it's been spruced up for all the new arrivals—sweet little string lights and dinky party streamers probably look a little silly against the grand art nouveau architecture, but don't you see how the lights surge happily at your arrival? It's the thought that counts!
All arrivals to the party will also find themselves with a name tag that lists one fact about them, regardless of whether it's a closely guarded secret or an actual fun fact! Those are impossible to think of when you're put on the spot—isn't it nice to have one thought of for you?
> B4. THE GOOD FORTUNE CITY
Once you're done partying, you and your newfound friends are free to hit the town. There are an unusual amount of signs that read CLOSED FOR PRIDE PARADE PREP, but you'll at least find that the local convenience stores and basic modern amenities are open.
Perhaps you should focus on the way other people here treat you so familiarly, as though you’ve been here all your life. Maybe some of it is jogging your memory, maybe not. Regardless, it seems that, for now, you’re here to stay. The question is how, or whether, you’ll make the best of it.
OOC Notes
During Beta Testing, we'd like to remind players that we're accepting any and all feedback that could help us improve the game before official start!
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duocaeli duologs duolingosTaken / Applications / Hiatus & Drops
FULL NAVIGATION
no subject
[it feels a little weird to be waited on like this, though? so he picks another perfectly normal conversation topic.]
Why do you know so much about bloodletting? Should I even ask?
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Ah? Are you interested? [The way he immediately perks up about the possibility...] I know a good deal about blood, so if you have any questions, I would be more than happy to answer. Whether it's about the makeup of blood, or how to keep the blood within your body at its best shape...
[This doesn't answer the question at all BUT IT'S FINE. He'll hold out the cup of tea!]
no subject
I wouldn't say I'm interested... [he takes the cup of tea with a nod, and sips it curiously—then sips it a little more. it tastes like strong earth. hard to tell if it's to his taste or not, but he supposes he doesn't hate it???]
Are you a doctor?
no subject
No, I'm not. [...] And I am not a vampire, either. I don't drink blood.
[He's been getting both of those quite a bit... Maybe he needs to stop being a sword and start being a phlebotomist.]
--How do you find the tea?
no subject
[high praise, probably.]
You still didn't answer my question, though.
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I'm glad to hear it.
[That he doesn't hate it?? Yeah, bar's on the floor... Anyway, Matsui looks briefly confused for a second because he's thinking about the doctor question. But then--]
Ah. Why I know so much about bloodletting. [Hm. This nametag is actually causing him more problems than anticipated.] ...I am a sword, after all. Blood is something we tend to know a lot about.
[The way that this is somehow the least complex answer he could give.]
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Do you know Buzen Gou?
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I do. Buzen is very important to me. [HIS FAVORITE PERSON IN THE WORLD!! The levels of fond adoration are truly impossible to miss, unless you're Buzen and thus a fuckin blockhead.]
I take it that you have already met him as well, then? He enjoys being around others, so I wouldn't be surprised if he already met every person in this house.
[Truly the vibes are just (FOND) (FOND) (FOND).]
no subject
I've met and fought him. He's an interesting one.
[interesting in this case being used literally and not in the derogatory sense, shocking for felix.]
Were you... forged together, or something?
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Matsui just automatically assumes that he means it in the literal way, in any case, because Buzen is very interesting! Interesting and wonderful and perfect, hell yeah.]
Ah, you did? You must be strong, then. [Swords don't fight against humans who can't stand toe to toe with them... roughly, anyway. No human can ever truly compete with something that isn't human, but, y'know.
He shakes his head at the question, though.]
We are both works of Gou no Yoshihiro, but forged at different times. [And though he views all of the Gou swords as cherished comrades and friends, there's no doubt that he favors Buzen above and beyond the rest. HIS BIASES...] Still... The difference in years is not much for a blade. I suppose you could say that I have been familiar with Buzen for as long as I've known myself.
no subject
[he lost. anyway.]
So you're like siblings, then? Or is it different for... swords?
[despite himself, he's deeply interested in the lives of these blades made human]
no subject
[He looks thoughtful, like he might say something for a second, but apparently decides against it. HE KNOWS BUZEN WOULD HAVE WON... Anything he could say about it would probably just wound a local warrior's pride, Felix seems like he might be that type.
So he just gently skips over that and focuses on the question instead, shaking his head again.]
We are not. What a sword considers "family" will depend on each blade, I suppose... if they consider any to be like family at all. Many from the same smith never meet. Many from the same school do not even exist in the same era.
[Sometimes you're Awataguchi swords with your Big Brother Ichi-nii Who Is Younger Than You, and sometimes you're Gou swords, a bunch of unrelated aliens who are just a big poly clusterfuck. Swords really just do whatever.]
Buzen is... To me, Buzen is as important as the blood in these veins. Something vital that I can't be without.
[He can't put the intensity of his infatuation and love into words but he sure is trying, unfortunately.]
no subject
[felix stares, entirely unsure how to follow that up. were the swords... courting each other? or simply an elevated level of war partners? it wasn't something he had even thought to consider. were his swords like this?
he hazards another question, a shadow of confusion playing on his features.]
Were you wielded by the same person, maybe?
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No, that is not the case. [Though there's a little barely-there twinkle of amusement in his eyes now...] We have been together through a good deal, though. Throughout the years, I've passed through many hands, but he was with me during the important times.
[ENOUGH ABOUT HIS FEELINGS THOUGH he wants to talk more about Buzen.]
What did you think of his skill?
no subject
[all this touchy feely stuff... is does my sword gay??? he decides to just. move on.]
Not bad. I guess it's to be expected of a sword to be skilled at swordsmanship, but it's another thing to see it. But I'm still not clear on how you can be a sword and use the sword that's still you...
no subject
Matsui will just gesture to himself - his human body - with a gentle and elegant sweep of his hand.]
These bodies were given to us by the one who summoned us. These- [A gesture to the sword at his hip, now.] -are our true bodies. There is no better person to wield us than ourselves, but of course, we needed a little help to get there. A blade does not have hands, after all.
no subject
[hmmmmm]
I guess it goes without saying you wouldn't let anyone else touch the sword, then.
[does he sound a little disappointed at the conclusion of boundary he's drawn? must be your imagination.]
no subject
[This is also hilarious but terrible too because Matsui is a bigger bully than Buzen by far, and he will almost always take the chance to tease when he sees one. THERE'S A TWINKLE IN HIS LITTLE DEMON EYE...]
It would be a very intimate thing to allow, but I suppose such intimacy is second-nature to a swordsman.
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Any swordsman's blade is a precious extension of their being. You have to be careful who you let hold it. For example, I know a beast of a man who snapped a sword in two just from swinging it.
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Just from a swing...? I've never come across a human with that kind of strength. [His tone implies He Is Glad For It.] I don't think any of us would expect that to happen by letting someone borrow us, but all the better that many are already very, very cautious.
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[casually destroying nu's cr in her own game...]
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I will be sure to keep this in mind... And let Buzen and Tsurumaru know, as well. [THE SWORDS ALL RUNNING FROM DIMITRI.] I have yet to see anyone matching such a description for now, at least. He is someone from your world then, I take it?
no subject