arc ii: taravast | arrival

[groundrules]

ARRIVAL

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Welcome to Taravast! Spend some quality time with the the brief of the citadel locations & team assignments. The below events should keep characters busy until around 31 August. Feel free to make your own posts and logs, though some mod-led log posts will be put on for certain events. Don't forget to share your character plans here!

The Story So Far page has been updated with a summary of the Stairs of Sighs interlude happenings, and a new NPC inbox featuring Taravast's who's who is now up. You can find a link to the old inbox and all your threads there.

Lastly: questions.



8-11 AUGUST

Mazyar leads the caravan into Taravast in the footsteps of a grandiose convoy of large animals, carts of gold, artefacts and spices — the retinue of the foreign princess Odile, come to persuade young Macaluso to pick her among the dozens vying to become his consort.

■ Yes, characters are effectively Odile’s back-up dancers when Macaluso receives her in the main piazza of Taravast. Characters will receive local garments, their upgraded communicators and masks, as per Taravast custom. Anurr and his undead go mysteriously missing.

■ Earn an ally by supporting Odile's marital cause. Macaluso enjoys gifts and exotic act performances, and he might think better of Odile for an exceptional offering. Alternatively, there’s good old-fashioned wingmanery. Let Odile be your muse.

OBJECTIVE: Figure out three gifts or hustles to raise Odile in Macaluso's graces. Or she can go back to swiping right. Masks will keep Macaluso from recognising you later...!




11-20 AUGUST

Pride once tattered, the party falls in the sticky hands of eccentric and influential Lady Rigarda, a friend of the Merchant who reveals the game:

■ Macaluso and his cousin Vannozza will soon begin their electoral campaign to win the Conclave's support to succeed their grandfather Bonaccorso as Doxe.

■ Bonaccorso cautiously refuses to restart the ancient beacon of Taravast, but gratitude could compel his heir. To cover all bases, characters have been divided to support both contenders, but those assigned to Macaluso have been told to discreetly sabotage him so Vannozza triumphs.

■ Rigarda allocates characters their Taravast identities, introducing them to key noblemen and their benefactors. For good or ill, many in Taravast have already heard of their reputations. Characters will be put in Macaluso or Vannozza’s wing of the Palace of the Doxe. Rigarda will warn them against public contact that betrays their collaboration. The communicator channel is private to the party.

■ Bonaccorso’s kin will prove scarce: Macaluso busily receives his suitors, flaunting his marriage as a recourse to strengthen Taravast's foreign ties. Vannozza hunts or visits the healing and necromantic districts. Gossips say she is often indisposed.

■ Attaryl witches will be apprehensive distant from fire magic practitioners, while Bessis adepts will lure them into their fold, or begrudge them the liberal use of 'their' arts.

■ Over three-four days, characters can roam Taravast, explore court, start befriending the districts or poke and prod at various magical and art institutions. 'Borrow' local garments and guard uniforms to infiltrate the academies, the inner areas of the healers' district, or the reception rooms of Macaluso and Vannozza. Careful of curious glances: you may find yourselves followed by invisible eyes, amid a fleeting sinking feeling.

■ On day three, demonstrators will invade the gardens of the Palace of the Doxe, objecting to Macaluso for 'selling out' Taravast with his marriage plans. Macaluso sends guards out, escalating the largely peaceful demonstration to violent clashes. Help the poorly armed protestors escape — discreetly, if you work for Macaluso — seize them, or watch on. The floor is yours.

■ Some protestors (...or even characters) will end up imprisoned with shackles and magical wards in the jailhouse of the Rooms of Justice. You could break these folks out.

OBJECTIVE: figure out your stance on the protesters, set up base and explore. You'll need it.




20-31 AUGUST | MOD-RUN LOG WILL BE UP

Macaluso will welcome his visiting royal suitors at a masquerade ball, with beloved cousin Vannozza and her allies also in attendance.

■ The pair's electoral champions — that's you! — will receive top seats at two separate tables, with Macaluso even bringing a delicate celebratory confection to his guests.

■ Enjoy that sweet tooth while you have it. Those who consume the confection will find their senses and their strength gradually sapped, threatening to kill them within three days. The poisoning, which will not affect characters assigned to Vannoza, will be blamed on a protestor found dead in the kitchens.

■ Macaluso will bring in healers to address the sickness. Stumped, one of them will suggest a superstitious all-cure: the feathers of a magical owl, whose kind was last seen in the Spina hunting grounds. Alas, only the lady Vannozza enters the site freely, keeping the ground keys in her quarters. Another healer will recommend the necromantic district and its underground 'potions' brewers.

OBJECTIVE: ...stay alive?
NOTE: Sign up your character to get poisoned here, with caution: unless characters work to find an antidote, one might not be discovered.
Any member of either team can look for the cure, though Vannozza’s people should be discreet in their pursuit or package their attempts to save the enemy as somehow benefitting the lady.




INDIVIDUAL QUESTS

Some pre-discussed quests or custom plot opportunities emerging from previous involvement:

■ Archeval
■ Eleven
■ Five & Zhou Zishu
■ Lily Evans & Wei Wuxian
■ Wen Qing

Comments

GET ODILE OFF DATING APPS

[groundrules]

Help this girl help herself.

[topoiran]

Xunxian can whip up a very exotic dance performance with as many odd animals as exist in the city. He will make sure everyone is safe and pets are returned to their owners (unless they REALLY don't want to).

[groundrules]

All right, going to spam everyone with the same instruction: I'll need a post, log or rp comment of some kind (I'm flexible!) to count in the contribution. Once at least three add up, we're getting our girl noticed, and the contributors can receive some tokens of Odile's uhm, affection? Support? The ropes.

[wenderer]

Zhou Zishu and Wen Kexing are gonna do synchronized fight-flirting-dancing to amaze and impress!

[groundrules]

All right, going to spam everyone with the same instruction: I'll need a post, log or rp comment of some kind (I'm flexible!) to count in the contribution. Once at least three add up, we're getting our girl noticed, and the contributors can receive some tokens of Odile's uhm, affection? Support? The ropes.

[foxable]

Fox will offer to enchant Odile's clothes for seductive benefit - gold and silver will glint brighter, movements will smooth and look more graceful, her steps will appear to look as if she is walking on air, and her clothes will always drape gorgeously and never awkwardly. He will also offer to make her gown draw more attention - the opposite of his personal stealth spells that keep eyes from finding him, hers will draw more eyes than they normally would, and be strangely captivating.

[groundrules]

All right, going to spam everyone with the same instruction: I'll need a post, log or rp comment of some kind (I'm flexible!) to count in the contribution. Once at least three add up, we're getting our girl noticed, and the contributors can receive some tokens of Odile's uhm, affection? Support? The ropes.

[foxable]

sounds good!!

[foxable]

https://eastbound.dreamwidth.org/16095.html boom baby

[descendency]

Mingyu can play a mournful erhu solo so full of love and longing that all who hear it are drawn to those in their vicinity. Lets hope the audience is the good princess and her suitor alone.

[groundrules]

All right, going to spam everyone with the same instruction: I'll need a post, log or rp comment of some kind (I'm flexible!) to count in the contribution. Once at least three add up, we're getting our girl noticed, and the contributors can receive some tokens of Odile's uhm, affection? Support? The ropes.

[groundrules]

So, because we've hit (at least!) three people performing to help Odile's cause, contributors (that's you!) will receive a money gift of 10,000 coins each from the Lady Odile. Spend it wisely

[scrapgege]

Xie Lian can.... smash boulders with his chest. that's it.

(not, technically, he can sword dance, but he doesn't have a sword and he hasn't done it in literally centuries so he wouldn't think of it)

[paperbutterflies]

Veils, too... he got distracted doing that during a case, after all.

[groundrules]

All right, going to spam everyone with the same instruction: I'll need a post, log or rp comment of some kind (I'm flexible!) to count in the contribution. Once at least three add up, we're getting our girl noticed, and the contributors can receive some tokens of Odile's uhm, affection? Support? The ropes.

[groundrules]

Annnnnd since I saw the log — for his great efforts, the lady Odile will reward each successful performer (that's you, Xie Lian!) with 10,000 coins each. Use your new wealth wisely!

[scrapgege]

Cool, he can now go spend it on feeding all the beggars he comes across and basically become penniless in about a week.

[inferus]

Some old fashioned wing-mannery after speaking to Odile to see what sets her apart/what she has to offer from a political standpoint and within the marriage itself. He has some experience with setting up political marriages given he was working on bringing Pride a wife for a long time, and he would do his best to read Macaluso in terms of what he values/wants most so he would try to find the exact right words to say. Satan can be pretty convincing.

[groundrules]

So, our newcomer Jin Guangyao is entering by showing up with Odile's party and has some of the good downlow on her feelings about a prospective match with Macaluso — might be worth checking in with the player! Their intro & CR meme post, if they help!

Also, heads up, Wrath's wingmannery might be going up against Allison's ruthless sabotage and attempts to matchmake Odile with... gasp... a third party.

[inferus]

LMAO omg I love it. If he finds out Odile does not actually want to marry or is unsure about it, he would probably pull out of wingman-ing, cause choice is important to this demon of hell. I will have to hit up both about these shenanigans.

Thanks for the heads up. :)

[rumorate]

So coming in to be not helpful is going to be Allison (with some help from Emilia, she's going to lend her one of her suitors, it's fine.), she's going to set up a fake dating situation with the intention of "making Macaluso jealous" and but then she's hoping that it will follow traditional rom-com tropes and they will fall in love.

Because she's working for Vannozza so subtle sabotage is the name of the game.

(I'm sorry.)

+1

[valeas]

Emilia will indeed be helping and finding Allison a bland suitor to complement Odile.

I'll laugh if this ends up in a runaway bride situation tbqh.

[groundrules]

I just have to reiterate: Allison, why are you like this.

[chaoswitch]

Alina will be wondering why she's debasing herself YET AGAIN and will put on a light show. Really just some pretty dancing orbs and maybe some cuts on some classed up looking dummies


here is Alina's performance!

[groundrules]

So, because we've hit (at least!) three people performing to help Odile's cause, contributors (that's you!) will receive a money gift of 10,000 coins each from the Lady Odile. Spend it wisely!