![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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!
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
duocaeli duologs duolingosTaken / Applications / Hiatus & Drops
FULL NAVIGATION
no subject
Only one.
[placing a hand on his chest, over his (supposedly absent) heart]
no subject
That makes sense. So what sort of non-human are you? Or I can start first, if you'd prefer that.
[She's obviously perfectly at home with her brand of "not human".]
no subject
[just because he isn't hiding the fact that he's a puppet doesn't mean he's ready to spill his ENTIRE life story to a stranger!]
[and he probably still won't, even after she gives him hers]
no subject
I'm an AI--an Artificial Intelligence. I was created for a purpose.
no subject
[he may not have a heart, and he may do his damnedest to put every single flicker of a feeling he has on lockdown. but even the sharp-tongued Wanderer isn't immune from visually expressing emotion]
[his brows raise, features going slightly slack]
. . . a puppet?
no subject
[She wrinkles her nose at that, shaking her head. She gets that this is important to him--hell, maybe it's even how he describes himself, but--]
Nah, I don't see it that way. This body might just be a construct to get some stuff done, but I'm still me. "Puppet" implies someone else is pulling my strings, you know?
no subject
[. . .]
The term isn't meant to come with any specific implications.
[lol lie better, Wanderer]
But what else could an "artificial intelligence" be called?
no subject
[Immediately, and simply. She doesn't seem inclined to call him on it if she realizes he's lying, but there's a calm confidence in her stance and her words.]
AI, Artificial Intelligence, person... whatever works. I don't really think it changes who we are.
no subject
[inclines his head to the side a bit, his expression sharpening]
A puppet without strings is still a puppet. Its nature doesn't change simply because it cut itself free from its master, just as a wolf is still a wolf even if it clothes itself in wool.
[. . . this is getting a little too deep for him, he thinks]
But if "artificial intelligence" is what you prefer, then I'll abide by your wishes.
no subject
Really? You think so?
I've always thought that a puppet has to have a puppeteer to still be considered a puppet. If they've cut themselves free, then... they've changed into something else.
no subject
A difference in opinion, then. Either way, it doesn't matter.
[he will shut everything down here. he got the answer he wanted, anyway. he's more than satisfied by that]
no subject
[Sorry, she keeps poking. She's aware she shouldn't be, she's aware he's trying to shut it down, it's just--]
... Listen, if you don't wanna talk about it, just say so, okay? Perfectly within your rights.
no subject
Then why are you still asking about it?
[he thought he made his stance perfectly clear!!]
no subject
[just sayin'!!
He just made a blanket untrue statement! That's not the way to go about things, pls.]
no subject
Fine.
We're done pursing this line of conversation. I got my answers.
[IS THAT BETTER]
no subject
Puppets don't decide on the topic of conversation, after all.]
Yep, sounds good to me!
So... what's your name? It's all blacked out on your name tag. Kinda defeats the purpose of having one in the first place.
no subject
I don't have one.
[. . . that isn't entirely true, but the name that he does have is. . . precious. and he will only allow it to be used by the person who bestowed it upon him]
Call me whatever you'd like; it doesn't matter to me.
no subject
[But she's not very good at naming things, and especially not people...]
You don't have any preferences at all?
no subject
I'm just a wanderer. If you don't want to come up with something yourself, then use that.
no subject
[Otherwise he's going to be named after a fruit like her and Figue.]
That works fine with me if you're good with it.
no subject
It's perfectly acceptable.
no subject
Great. If I think of something else, I'll let you know, of course.
In the meantime... how much of this place have you seen yet? The offline portion, I mean.
no subject
Not much. I would have liked to have a look around, but something rather. . . persistent prevented me from doing so.
[aka his phone]
no subject
Something persistent?
[Is that a riddle.]
no subject
[so instead he just pulls the cell phone out of his pocket and shows it to her with a deadeyed expression]
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)