AUGUST INTRO LOG: MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE

[asgardmods]

Who: EVERYONE
What: the August intro log and first god house competition, More Than Meets the Eye
When: August 8
Where: Gladsheim Palace for breakfast, around Asgard for the game/curse
Rating: PG-13; please take anything higher than this to a private log!

morning: a warm invitation

Everyone wakes up to a friendly invitation to breakfast at the castle with the gods. For most of you, this comes as a message on your bracelet, reading:

Join us at the castle today to welcome some new Wanderers into our midst. Breakfast will be served and a lively game will be available to all of our guests, both new and old.

New Wanderers are curious on their own, and this is the first there's ever been mention of a game. Perhaps it's enough for you to make the trek to the castle, to see what all the fuss is about, or maybe even to see if there's someone you know. Perhaps you want to learn more about the game, or maybe you just want the food.

For our new guests, this comes as a bit more of a surprise. Wherever you were before in your world, without even realizing it, you wake up in a strange new place. No time or space inbetween, just an awareness of There and then Here. A matronly figure tries to explain your circumstances with a sympathetic smile, but ultimately invites you meet them all for yourselves: the Gods of Asgard, and the Wanderers that arrived before you.



The sight that greets you on the castle grounds is a rather festive one, regardless of where you're coming from. Colorful streamers and flags are draped above large tables with room for several guests. Natives bustle about, cheerfully offering food and drinks to anyone that wants some. Everyone is welcomed to mingle and greet the new Wanderers on this bright summer morning.

the game: a friendly competition

Among the brightly decorated tables are ones highlighted in a specific color for a specific god house, and most of the gods themselves can be found sitting behind it with a few of their district's natives. They are here to welcome the new Wanderers into Asgard - but they're also here to explain the rules of today's game. There are coins hidden throughout the city and disguised as mundane items, and the god house that returns the most of their coins will win an upgrade to their god housing! No hints will be given, but the natives are excited to help facilitate the activity and happily invite you to wander through their districts to find what you can.

But you don't have to know about the rules to be playing the game! The coins are already hidden throughout the city, and no one knows what they are until they've been picked up. Whether you're banding together with friends to find as many coins as you can or blindly stumbling over an unpleasant surprise, the game and the curse are in full swing!

evening: a fair prize

At sundown, all of the coins in the city disappear at once, whether they're in your pocket or still disguised as a bowl. Points will be tallied and a winner will be announced (OOCly, on August 17) - but Asgardians are keen to celebrate regardless of who wins a rather inconsequential game. The same colorful display of tables and chairs is still spread across the castle grounds, although now they twinkle with fairy lights haphazardly blinking throughout the air. Snacks and drinks are made available, as well as more dinner-shaped meals for those that request it. Mostly the natives simply want to bask in the strangeness of these Wanderers from other worlds for a moment longer - but they're also eagerly listening to any stories from the day's mischievous game. Relax, enjoy yourself, or again, just stock up on some freely served food. Whatever suits your needs today. Welcome to Asgard, dear Wanderers.

[ OOC NOTE: This is the intro log for August, as well as our first god house competition/curse: More Than Meets the Eye. You are free to play with the curse prompts and searching the city in any way you want! If you would like to submit a map to earn points for your god house, please check out the rules to learn what to do. We will accept maps until August 17, at which point a winner will be announced and members of that god house will be allowed to vote for an upgrade to their god housing. As always, please let us know if you have any questions or need any help on the mod contact page. Enjoy, friends! ]

Comments

morning

[ikanteven]

Oh, the...the afterlife.

[ Chidi doesn't believe in lying, though he knows his answer is a bit strange. Hopefully he doesn't have to go into all the details for that to be good enough. ]

[polydeukes]

[It's not that Josie doesn't believe he came from the afterlife. Literally all her parents plus her aunts and uncles have died and come back in some shape or form. But at the same time, she is going to be a bit curious.]

Which one?

[Where she's from there's ... a lot.]

[ikanteven]

The...the...

[ He pauses and looks at her with curiosity. ]

You know about more than one?

[polydeukes]

Yeah. I mean ...

[Well, she needs to stop because she's never died. So it's not like any of this experience is first hand. And most of these are also kind of negated so who knows really?]

Well, where I'm from there are a lot of like ... pocket afterlives? Each of them were created by super powerful people to serve a purpose and usually to punish people, but there's something that's referred to as being "at peace" which is kind of like a Heaven, I guess?

[A beat.]

Granted, none of this I know from first hand experience, just ... other people who had first hand experiences? Which kind of sounds a little insane now that I say it.

[ikanteven]

Oh.

[ He seems to consider this for a moment. ]

Where I'm from there's a Good Place and a Bad Place, except I was told I was in the Good Place without it being true. They just made it seem pleasant and cheerful, but they filled it with lots of little, mundane ways to torture us.

[polydeukes]

Oh.

[Though the way she says it, it kind of sounds more like "ew." Then she takes a deep breath, because there were a lot of places like that.]

I'm sorry. That must have really sucked.

[ikanteven]

It was awful. Though I ended up being told there were a lot of attempts at it that I don't even remember. So it's possible it could have been worse.

[ His voice kind of trails off at the end there. ]

[polydeukes]

[Her face actually looks pretty horrified at that because that sounds like just ... being repeatedly compelled over and over again, only on a way more massive level.

That's terrifying.]

Are you okay?

[It feels like the thing to ask.]

[ikanteven]

[ Chidi doesn't shrug, but his mannerisms seem to be of someone who's confused why she's asking. ]

I don't remember it.

[ He does shrug then, just slightly. ]

It's all right. I'm out of there now.

[polydeukes]

Well, that's good at least.

[Though she's not sure how better or worse here is.]

It sounds like anywhere is better than there.

[ikanteven]

Well, it wasn't entirely bad. I did make some good friends. Partners in crime, I suppose you could say.

[polydeukes]

That's always an upside. A good group of friends can make all the difference.

[She pauses, before shrugging.]

Though I'm a twin, so I always had a built in best friend.

[ikanteven]

Oh, that sounds like it must have been fun growing up. I don't suppose your sibling is here with you, though, are they?

[polydeukes]

[She shakes her head sadly.]

If she's here, I haven't found her yet.

[And it sucks.]

[ikanteven]

I'm sorry. Unless you prefer for her not to be here...?

[polydeukes]

[She shakes her head, because no, she always prefers a Lizzie to no Lizzie.

... And then she shrugs because Lizzie is still Lizzie.]

It's complicated. She's ... a really strong personality?