beta testing 0.1: tutorial & dungeon

[gamedevs]

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.

LOADING...
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

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 :(

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 duolingos FAQ & Game Info / Calendar / Locations / Mechanics
Taken / Applications / Hiatus & Drops

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Comments

figaro garcia / mahoyaku

[flattery]

a1.

[ of course someone with enough notoriety like figaro is going to accidentally set the game on hard mode. but the amiable-looking man with a doctor's coat billowing behind him like a cape merely smiles at the back of wolves, as if he knew just how to deal with them -- because he does. ]

Well, this should be easy to annihilate. Possideo--

[ except now his magic can only deal miniscule damage. if anything the wolves looked like they got hit with the saddest ball of magic anyone's ever seen. either way, he's going to make the wolves chase after him by booking it towards the next adventurer he sees. ]

Hey! Need any help?

[ WHY DID HE EVEN BRING MORE ENEMIES, ]

a3.

[ holding hands to heal up mana... it's a quaint way of bonding with anyone with touch, really. since he's on healer duty he's not as easily tuckered out compared to whoever's randomized to partner with him on this quest, so whenever one of his party members start to show signs of fatigue, figaro immediately rushes to their side. ]

Hey, now. No use overextending your limits on small fry like that. Here.

[ holds out his hand with a smile. ]

Let Doctor Figaro take care of it.

b3.

Wow, isn't this awkward?

[ figaro can only let out a good-natured laugh as he gestures at his own nametag. Figaro Garcia -- He's not actually 32 years old. ]

I mean, I look plenty young myself for someone who is seemingly 32 years old. Age doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things, after all. [ does it, now... ] How about we try to guess my age as an icebreaker, then?

b4.

[ figaro's been taking all these new changes in his environment pretty well, until he comes across townspeople on the street who seem to be already acquainted with him. that's fine, figaro thinks. he's well-known all across the world back home. but what's really bothering him is the fact that they keep inquiring him about a person that he does not recall being connected to in any walk of life he's been through.

"Oh, Dr. Figaro! Please send my regards to your wife. She just gave me flowers the other day and I haven't had the time to thank her!"
"Dr. Figaro! How is your wife coming along? She's been working hard despite being pregnant with your second..." ]

A-Ahaha. [ he can only scratch his head as he's being approached with all sorts of questions, looking like he needs help in getting away from all this asap. ] Well, I'll be sure to look into my wonderful wife and see how she's doing. I'm sure she appreciates all your kind words.

[ girl........... help ]

b2

[hasteful]

[buzen, who looks like he's maybe in his early to mid 20's, relates to this so hard. though his own nametag just says CAN DRIVE AND RIDE ANYTHING, APPARENTLY.

still, he's quick to answer - ]

700!

[wh

what makes you choose that number, buzen]

[flattery]

Ahaha! Oya, am I that old and decrepit to you? I like to think that I still have some life in me, you know.

[ also that's still. pretty young in figaro's book BUT SO LONG AS NOBODY FINDS OUT THAT HE DOESN'T REALLY HAVE A LOT OF LIFE IN HIM the better ]

[hasteful]

Haha, it's okay. I know older - and they're some of the liveliest people I know! It's a compliment on wisdom.

[though he does notice figaro doesn't confirm or deny?? oh well, he won't push even though he's curious]

[flattery]

Oh, now that's a good way of looking it! Unfortunately you're a liiiiiittle off the mark there.

[ he's not going to confirm or deny anything. buzen just needs to add a couple more hundred years-- ]

Who's the oldest guy you know?

b4!

[sanguinary]

[WELL. The good news is... someone's stepping in, presumably to rescue this poor man from discussions of his weird pseudo-life that they've all been saddled with! The bad news is, it's Matsui who's stepping in, and he simply does not know how to do things normally.

Heedless of the people already engaged in the chat from hell, Matsui steps over, looking very unassuming.]

Excuse me... I couldn't help but notice, but you seem to have very healthy blood. [Hm.] It is clear from the look of your skin that you drink enough water to make strong blood, but may I ask what sort of foods you eat to keep up with it? I could use more strong blood myself, you see.

[This is fine, probably.

The person who was talking to him is now looking between the two like what in the wholeass hell and looking very much like they're considering backpedalling away fastly.]

[flattery]

[ wow! that's... something new. at the very least, figaro is no longer in distress and instead is holding back tears. way to go, matsui.

but sure, he'll wing this one! he turns to the other man and crosses his arms together. ]

Oh, wouldn't you like to know? See, I wouldn't be a great doctor otherwise if I don't practice proper nutrition. The key is eating a lot of red meat, so that's beef and liver... Dark green vegetables, too. You have no idea how hard it is to convince kids to eat their spinach--

[ just going to ramble on about boring ass topics like Eating Healthy and Drinking Water until the townspeople give up and leave. come to think of it, this is a pretty good topic to discuss with someone? and so: ]

Also, dried fruits like prunes and raisins. Now, I don't eat them a lot but they're good to have every once in a while. What else do you usually eat, good sir?

[sanguinary]

[His best skill is replacing one problem with another! He's doing god's work.]

All of these things produce a good amount of iron. [Nodding along sagely as this doctor man explains basic nutrition 101... On the plus side, the townspeople are indeed starting to inch away and be like "WELL ANYWAY I SHOULD FINISH MY SHOPPING HAHA NICE TO SEE YOU AGAIN", but Matsui isn't paying them any mind! Why would he when he's got a much better topic to focus on??]

I was not aware of the benefits of dried fruits, though. Produce isn't my area of expertise. [That's Kuwana.] --Ah, but if it's about the foods that I eat, I enjoy things like fresh tomatoes, cherries, rhubarb chiffon cakes...

[They're all red...]

b4.

[equillibriums]

[ oh, doctor figaro sure is popular wherever he goes. he's so incredible. except the odd nature of the conversations he's surrounded with and his mild discomfort makes rutile tilt his head a little and pause before he actually approaches.

kind doctor figaro wouldn't hide something as important as a wife from him, would he!! or anything important!! haha.

but okay. okay, here is not!son to Help. and by help i mean make it worse, because the moment rutile enters stage right, the excited chatter turns even more animated, more detailed; from wife to a son. which son? him. he's the son.

"speaking of your second, here is your first! rutile! here to check up on your father? we were just talking about your mother."
"how's school, dear? your dad must be so proud that you want to follow in his footsteps." ]

A-ah? Um... Mother's...

[ unlike figaro, casually playing into a role doesn't come as naturally to rutile, who finds the polite and casual exit plans disappear from his mind with all of This. father... mother...?

oh, he's looking at figaro now. girl........ you help. ]

[flattery]

[ there's no saving them from this situation. it's hella awkward, and figaro has gone through a handful of awkward situations over the millenia. it'd be fine if it were only a mere case of mistaken identity (except no, it wouldn't be fine and he'd kill the schmuck who would dare parade around in figaro's handsome likeness), but no. they recognize rutile, but as someone's else -- as someone's mother.

but that's impossible, isn't it? tiletta was dead; even rutile was there to witness it all as a young boy. but now these people claim that she's alive...? assuming that she's the one they're talking about in the first place. there's also the fact that the one who's following figaro's footsteps isn't the brother next to him right now...

this isn't the time to be dwelling on that, though. figaro will do what he does best and wing it, flinging an arm around rutile's shoulders with an amicable smile. ]

Ahaha! She's doing well, thanks for asking. [ he squeezes rutile's shoulder and gives him a Nod, signaling him to just go with it for now. ] We were just going home from running errands for her. We're kind of in a hurry right now, actually. Isn't that right, Rutile?

[equillibriums]

[ the squeeze of rutile's shoulder and figaro's proximity at least somewhat wards off the multitude of feelings that the sentence "she's doing well" just gave him, though his ever-so-transparent heart shows in the furrow of his brow, the moment where he hesitates when he's given the unvoiced instructions.

technically, it isn't a lie... not to rutile. he thinks (and hopes) his mother, up in heaven, is doing well? but that's not what figaro means, nor what the townspeople imply. still... he follows figaro's lead, trusting him enough to feel certain that this is the best way to go about it for now. ]

Yes. I'm sorry to leave so soon, but... Mother is... [ IS DEAD! just kidding. not kidding. his next words he really does have to brace his heart for, and they come out so quietly: ] Mother is waiting. May we please talk later?

[ no, that's definitely a lie. he doesn't know how to twist it into something it's not, as he smiles politely to the understanding responses of

"oh... of course! you wouldn't want to make her wait too long. let's chat again, dr. figaro, rutile."
"do tell her we said hello!"

and he looks, again, to figaro so they can Leave Nicely. rutile's probably ended up leaning onto him a little without realizing; this is overwhelming in a different way than following the paths his mother's already travelled.

wew! just wew!! ]

a1

[duskspear]

[The hood of Roland's ragged cloak is down as he contends with his own share of wolves, spear drawn. Angling his head toward the voice, his eyebrows arch smally at the surprise speeding his way when a wolf lunges at him. He parries the swipe with trained flourish, driving the critter back, and backsteps to join Figaro.]

They outnumber us greatly. Can you fight?

[Figaro must, else he wouldn't have offered. To be more precise, he's welcome to act now, if possible.]

[flattery]

Normally, yes.

[ he isn't THAT useless, even if he really wants to act like he is for the sake of self-preservation. but he may as well show what he's capable of while he's still gathering his bearings in this unfamiliar world.

so he summons his magic artifact -- an elaborate glass orb. ]

And normally I could take them down in a couple of hits, but this world did a number on my magic, it seems. [ not just in a couple of hits, mind. he could literally obliterate them into dust in seconds? but alas. ] I don't wish to be a bother to a complete stranger, but two is better than one, as they say.

[duskspear]

[A glass orb? "This world"? And the man's magic . . . His thoughts race, but his mind snaps to attention at the growls around them.]

. . . Then I shall round them up. Pray strike when the opportunity presents itself.

[The magic to which he's accustomed is elemental and vast. Any assistance is far better than nothing, so Roland chooses to make a bait out of himself by leaping toward the pack for the purpose of shepherding the wolves into a cluster with calculated thrusts of his spear.]

a1

[murrvelous]

[ whoa, figaro brought more friends? that makes the two of them--- murr's own little parade of wolves seems to merge pretty well with the doctor's, though his are differently colored. namely, pink. also covered in glitter. they don't look none to happy about it either, as the western wizard's own smile seems to be made from habit and not from the pure unadulterated excitement of an impromptu party... ]

You look like the one that needs help! Here, Eanul Rambul!

[ bam. now figaro's wolves are sporting a coat of fur that would be best described as mossy green. they also look mad. ]

Hm. That's not what I wanted to do, but... close! It's close.

[ he's not sure if he's proud of himself or not but. he's. helping~ ]

[flattery]

[ just standing here like 🧍‍♂️ before bursting out laughing at murr's magic fucking up. ohh murr, you silly cat. ]

Really, Murr? Thought you had something up your sleeve for a moment there!

[ at least the wolves look mighty fine and nonthreatening at all. thanks.

...now hang on a minute. ]

Is Shylock not here with you?

[murrvelous]

[ 🧍 HE'S TRYING HIS BEST but also how could he be upset with his second round of failures/successes... maybe he should just become an artist. these sparklewolves will be proof of his future career!

their fangs look a lot more white, too! ]

No, no Shylock! But I'm sure if he's around, he'll find me. Or I'll find him and then we'll be together again!

[ and then murr can be even more himself. ]

They don't seem really friendly. What did you do to them?

[ also, they're surrounded. like. help ]

b3

[humainity]

... If it doesn't matter, do you still want me to guess?

[ It's a very earnest question, coming from SOPHIA who is NOT HUMAN. Maybe this is like Zenkichi, who everyone just called "Gramps" even though he was far from elderly. ]

[flattery]

Mm! Just wanna see whether people think I'm old or too young for my actual age. It's all in good fun.

[ he does take note of that curious description, though. ]

Not human, huh. Can you do magic?

[humainity]

Mm... well, I'm equipped for combat and I suppose some of those things would be considered magic?

[ Maybe?? ]

a3

[heroicpolonaise]

[ fighting isn't exactly her forte, but as part of the warriors guild, of course she was put on the front lines for it. it's been... an interesting experience! yup! one can only grow from the surprising circumstances they're put into, and that's exactly how she's going to frame this in her mind! ]

Oh, thank you... [ yes she'll. take his hand. oh goodness. ] I'm not really used to fighting, so it's hard to tell when I'm going too far.

[ though she doesn't seem to have a problem smacking the absolute shit out of the adorable creatures they've been facing, no matter how sticky the cottonballs were. ]

You're a natural though, huh? I'd definitely expect nothing less from a doctor, Figaro-sensei.

[flattery]

Hehe. I did a pretty good job back there, didn't I?

[ he preens. god. ]

We've got no time for magic lessons right now, however. We've got to get out of here and regroup. Luckily--

[ with a flick of his wrist, he summons his broomstick and gets on. ]

We've got this. Hop on!

b3

[pyojeol]

[Sooyoung has no room to criticize Figaro and his apparently mysterious age, considering her own weird one, but she'll go along with this icebreaker anyway. It's fun? She points at him,]

This is your fifth time being 32.

[assigns figaro regressor]

[flattery]

[ he sure is regressing, but sooyoung doesn't need to know that! that curt comment did give him momentary pause before he starts laughing. ]

Fifth? When were the other times?

[ girl he's lost count on how many times he's fooled people into thinking he's young and hip, please cut him some slack, ]

[pyojeol]

Your past lives.

[She sounds soooo confident, where is this confidence coming from. It's the confidence of a 31 year old clocking a fellow young-oldie, that or she's just used to interacting with fresh-faced youths who are actually a thousand times older than her. Or maybe it's not even anything mystical, and actually mundane?]

But you bit it early in some of them, so that's why you're younger than you look.

[SHE'S JUST WRITING A NOVEL NOW]