Event #3: Can't Defeat the Temple

[seasonsmods]

Can't Defeat the Temple
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Game Start

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Part 1

A new message appears on everyone's smartphones. There's been a change in the Temple of Life: the door has finally opened! No one knows how or why, but the sensors left by quest goers alerted them to it suddenly being open. Preparations are made in each guild to finally explore what's inside it.

Those interested in helping are greeted by researchers in the guilds that will provide everyone with one single use item: Escape Rope: an item they found out about while investigating the temple. Should the Temple really prove to be a place "no one can return from" they should be able to use this rope to escape. It should teleport the person using it (just one) outside of the place they're in (can only be used indoors). Of course the rope can be saved for later use if it becomes unnecessary. Everyone also gets basic climbing and survival items, just in case. They have no idea what to expect inside, but better safe than sorry, right?

The new Teleport Crystal system will get you to the Temple of Life in a minute, but no one is forbidden to use a longer route if they want to travel rather than take the easy route. Once they get to the Temple (the teleport stones take them to the surroundings of the fountain in the courtyard) they will notice a lot of natives collecting various tropical fruits as the area is safe and the fruit are nice and nutritious. Anyone eating a fruit will notice a boost in stamina, too.

All that's left now is to climb the stairs and enter the Temple of Life.

Part 2

Inside the Temple of Life is a "lobby". It's actually just an empty room made with the same stone as the temple, but it has four different doors, each with a different symbol: lightning strike, snowflake, fire and a hurricane of sand.

Characters inside will notice that the door they walked in from is now gone (of course) and they may feel different as the temple has stripped them off of all their powers, including Seasonal ones. Instead they may feel like they're lighter (their jumping ability has increased to triple their normal one) and that they have three holographic hearts on top of their heads.

There's a holographic display near the doors and a shelf for laser guns. The display says the following:

This is the Gigaman simulator. Welcome, players. Each of you have been given three extra lives. Once all of your total of four lives have been used inside the levels you will get a Game Over. For native participants this unfortunately means you Die.

However, otherworlders! You are in luck. If you die four times inside the simulator you will be thrown out of the simulator, into the courtyard of the temple and you can try again! Dying is painless. Getting hit, unfortunately, is not. You have ten regular hits before you lose a life. Your lives are indicated by the hearts on top of your heads.

Things that will instantly kill you include: lava, falling into an endless pit and spikes.

Please take a laser gun and enter the level. You may bring any other items as well, but your powers will be gone and so will the special effects of the items. Except for the legendary "Escape Rope". That is something that can bypass our system. Keep the rope at hand if you get scared. If you lose your other items inside the levels, do not worry, they will appear outside. However, if you lose your laser gun it will reappear next to you.

Oh and you may keep the laser gun afterwards.

The question is: cAN yOu deFEAt [redacted]?

Well, the choice is yours. Do you enter one of the doors or use the escape rope to get out of the temple?

Part 3

All of the levels start with a normal room of just the environment of the level. But there, in the starting point of the place, there are natives of Ellipsa sitting around with a look of defeat and desperation on their faces. They're physically fine as the simulator grants you the ability to just ignore hunger and other basic needs, but they're also stuck here. It seems the simulator is just too hard for them to get past. Most of them have no holographic hearts over their head or just one: they're close to dying and don't want to take the risk.

Escape ropes are their only hope of getting out of the place and they promise anything if you give them the item and help them escape.

If you give away your Escape Rope, the only way to leave is to either Game Over or Finish the Level. Good luck, players.

(There are also some natives in various other parts of the game, too scared to go further or go back. They can also be saved by taking them with you to the end and defeating the boss monster together but if they die, they die, so there is a risk in that method.)

The Levels [ Click to Expand ]

All basic monsters and boss monsters are weak to the laser gun. Some can even be jumped on to decrease their health.

Electricity
Design: A factory with plenty of platforms and conveyor belts over bottomless pits (or spikes) that change directions occasionally. The main hazard of the level is the beams of electricity that will damage players. They can be switched around with buttons, but deactivating one beam will activate another.
Instant Deaths: Bottomless Pits, Spikes

Basic Monsters: Ufo Catcher (a claw with googly eyes that will try to drop characters into a pit or spikes), Small Robot (small robots that throw wrenches at players), Slinky (slinkys with googly eyes that won't stop for anything)

Final Boss: Squirmle: A slinky minion mass-producing machine (looks like one of those Worms on String with googly eyes, but mechanical). Occasionally fires electric shocks that stun players for 5 seconds while the minions attack them. Weak to Smokescreen as the sand jams its machinery and makes it temporarily lose the ability to produce minions.
Boss Loot: Laser Gun Upgrade: Electric Shock (damages and has a chance to stun the opponent)

Snowflake
Design: A snowy mountain cave with active waterfalls. The ground is slippery (ice physics!) and some of the platforms have a limit as to how many times you can jump/walk on them (they reappear after a time). Occasionally, while on a normal platform, a strong stream of water will fall on it, intending to push players into a bottomless pit (it can be predicted by a few drops of water before it).
Instant Deaths: Bottomless pits

Basic Monsters: Snowmen (throw very sharp carrots at players), Skeletal Fish (fish that appear from the waterfalls and spit out lasers), Yeti (a monster that will try to stomp on players)

Final Boss: Frosty: A bipedal monster made of spiky ice (doesn't have a distinct form to refer to, just looks like a giant block of animated ice) that breathes a frosty breathe that both damages and makes players go slower. Tries to stomp players by jumping high in the air. Weak to Fire Bullets, as they will melt it little by little.
Boss Loot: Laser Gun Upgrade: Ice Beam (damages and has a chance to slow down an opponent)

Flame
Design: Inside of a volcano where all bottomless pits are lava pits. Platforms are mostly normal, until a notorious section where the only way to get over a lava pit is to jump on disappearing blocks. Learn the pattern and follow it. Occasionally lava rocks will fall from the ceiling (but luckily not during the disappearing block section).
Instant Deaths: Lava

Basic Monsters: Demonic Fireballs (fireballs that jump around from spot a to spot b and hurt a lot when they hit), Lava Bomb (occasional lava rock with googly eyes that can move towards players like a homing missile), Fireman robot (a robot that will try to douse fires with scorching hot water).

Final Boss: Lavadoom: A volcano headed monster (a volcano with eyes, mouth, arms and legs) that shoots fire bullets and lava rocks at players. Occasionally makes part of the floor be literal lava that burns players health little by little. Weak to Electric Shock as it will stun the monster for long enough to turn off the volcano on its head and then you can jump on it.
Boss Loot: Laser Gun Upgrade: Fire Bullets (damages and has a chance to cause burn damage over time)

Sandstorm
Design: A desert area full of bottomless pits and rocks with spikes. The floor is mostly quicksand that can only be crossed if you stay constantly in movement. Late in the level massive sandstorms will block players' view and push them towards the pits and spiked rocks, making movement during it very dangerous.
Instant Deaths: Bottomless Pits, Spikes

Basic Monsters: Walking Cacti (cactus that shoot spikes at players), Angry Missiles (ride the sandstorms and try to hit players), Sandworms (appear from the sand and try to bite the player)

Final Boss: Hurrisand: A bipedal sand monster (looks a bit like a it could be a human, but at the same time has animal features, not to be mixed with a certain Looney Tunes character) that will turn into a literal sandy hurricane that makes it hard to see anything and makes bullets miss. Weak to Ice Beam because it slows it down so that it can't turn into a hurricane.
Boss Loot: Laser Gun Upgrade: Smokescreen (enables easier escape from situations)

You're free to challenge all of the levels and gain all of the upgrades to the laser gun, which you can then use outside the temple as a weapon. Even after all of the natives are rescued or all of the levels have been beaten, you can re-enter the levels and do them again. You won't get the boss loot again, however.

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When Your Heart's Not Open

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Part 1

Back in the city, the weather is strangely cold in every district (except the central one that's safe due to the artificial weather there). Even the hottest of them, Solarpeak, is advising people to wear long-sleeved shirts, just in case, even if the temperature only drops to +10 Celsius/50 degrees Fahrenheit at worst.

The reason for the unexpectedly cold weather is simple: a cold breeze travels through the whole city. Sometimes the wind even appears white, as if it's laced with snow and ice. It's easy to tell that this is not a normal sort of wind, but a very magical one.

The wind indeed has a special effect: there's a chance of the wind freezing someone's heart. This doesn't instantly kill anyone, but instead it starts to freeze people from inside out. This effect especially targets people who either have secrets or have feelings that they hide. The freezing is a slow and painful process, taking two weeks to completely encase someone in ice. Once that happen they will end up breaking into pieces and die.

Somehow this wind doesn't affect the plant life or animals at all.

Part 2

Scientists are quick at work to work on a cure. They have found that there are certain ingredients in all four of the Segments that when mixed together into a potion will undo a frozen heart. So, to help those affected, there are some options that you can do.

Stay in the City to take care of the affected. The key to healing a frozen heart is not only the potion that they will make but also affection. So those brave enough to touch someone who feels cold as ice to touch are encouraged to hug and cuddle, tell them positive things about them and making sure they're comfortable. This will ease the pain and slow the spreading down.

Head to one of the Segments to find the ingredients. The guilds are helping with the preparations to go outside and providing anyone interested clear instructions and maps on where to find them:

• Winter Segment: Bottom of the Unfrozen Lake, a coral that can survive in cold temperatures
• Spring Segment: Breeze Hills, the eggs of a monstrous Firebird (a bird that has wings made of fire that spits out fireballs, not to be confused with a phoenix)
• Summer Segment: Deserter's Desert, a special cactus flower that only blooms during a sandstorm
• Autumn Segment: Mushroom Sanctuary, a special mushroom that only grows on top of the mushrooms that are a size of a house

Once all the necessary ingredients have been found and delivered, people can also participate in potion making. The more people helping with making potions, the quicker everyone affected can get their potions and be cured. The potion is successful if it smell like a warm fireplace during a winter night.

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The Towering Jenga Heights

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Part 1

The VR Arcade of the Underground is holding a special event: they have managed to come up with a technology where you can minimize yourself and enter board games! They're looking for volunteers to test this new way of gaming.

For example, there are games like Jenga, Monopoly, Chess, Hungry Hungry Hippo, Checkers, Scrabble and many, many more! The games are made to fit the tiny people, but are also very realistic. Oh and Monopoly has an actual jail, but the money is as fake as can be.

It seems Jenga in particular is at its regular size and people will have to climb to push pieces out. That definitely seems like a fun challenge? Everyone gets a safety rope that's attached to poles around the Jenga towers, that will act as sort of a safety bungee jump rope.

Usually the minimized effect wears off once you end the game and leave the game board, but occasionally the technology glitches and leaves players small. The unexpected side effect wears off between 2 to 12 hours.

Anyone who did participate in the experiment will either get a month of free VR gaming time or a handheld gaming console with classic 8-bit games like Tetris.

Part 2

Those stuck in a tiny form longer than expected may discover jumping platforms to the fairy mall. It's located in the ceiling of the Underground Mall and is fit for small people like fairies. Here the fairies are all visible as they go about shopping and relaxing. They're all friendly and will make sure you have a lovely time relaxing in this small fairy oasis. Be warned, however, that the food here is strictly for fairies so if you eat it, you might end up sprouting fairy wings for a week. And not necessarily on your back.

Don't worry, you can't turn back to your regular size in the middle of the fairy mall. The magic there prevents that for the duration. Once you return by jumping onto one of the cushions left below the mall, you will return to regular size.

For souvenirs, why not buy a little bit of fairy dust? It's useful for potions, as it gives them stronger magical capabilities but used as is will make anyone be able to fly for 24 hours. The problem is you cannot use it on yourself or else it will horribly backfire and turn you into a talking frog for 24 hours.

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OOC TIPS

• Ask event related questions here.

• Smut is not allowed on the event post, so if your thread is heading that way, please move it to a private entry of your own (your own entry or a new locked post on the comms).

• Remember to content and spoiler warn as necessary!

• All of the prompts happen around the same time but you can get affected by the frozen wind after visiting the Temple of Life or the other way around.

• All natives will be rescued by the end of the month, but the Temple can be accessed later just for fun.

• The frozen hearts potion will be done by the end of the month as well.

Temple of Life
• More Escape ropes can be picked up from the guilds to save more natives, but there's no way to tell there's someone trapped inside until someone goes in, so they'd have to get back after the first visit.
• Smartphones do not work inside the Temple of Life.
• You are very much allowed to work together inside the temple.
• The boss door will only open once the previous group of players has defeated it and have been transported out of the Temple. Then the boss will respawn.
• No one will have basic human needs inside the temple. It's basically a simulator so it doesn't matter how long you spend in there. Once you get out you might need to refuel on touch energy and food as soon as possible, but other than that all one needs to worry is surviving the temple.
• We admit the inspiration for this came from "I can't defeat Airman" without shame.

Frozen Hearts
• The event can affect anyone, not just those with secrets and hidden feelings.
• At the same time, the event can completely miss people as well.
• Samples of the wind can be collected and analyzed but it will turn out as a classic "it's magic" explanation.

• Reminder that this month is Activity Check-in month and check-in ends on July 31st, at 23:59 PST.

code bases by tricklet

Comments

ii. When your heart's not open - part one

[moonstriking]

[ Judith has never felt the chill before. Certainly not like this, where it seems to sink into her very bones, freezing her all the way through. She glances up at Qifrey's offer and smiles, taking the the snugstone, as she moves a little closer ]

...thank you.

[The stone does nothing to chase the chill away and she shivers, gripping it tighter]

It's warm.

[Liar.]

[pedagogies]

Is it? A friend of mine made this. Usually, it works quite well, haha . . .

[ he wishes olruggio was here. he would . . . find a way. say the right thing. qifrey just feels cold. like . . . he was back. back in the coffin, in the dirt. ]

[moonstriking]

If this were a normal cold...I think it would be quite remarkable.

[Like something her father would make.

Her chest gives a throb and she frowns, trying to flex her fingers. She exhales softly, and glances over at Qifrey and promptly scoots closer. There are no ulterior motives here. She's simply a practical person]

But with a cold like this, normally body heat helps.

[pedagogies]

Oh, I'm . . . Maybe I'm not good for that.

[ not good to olruggio. barely good enough for his students. he shivers and adjusts his glasses. ]

[moonstriking]

For sharing warmth?

[Gently questioning, not trying to press too hard too fast]

[pedagogies]

. . . Sometimes I think all true warmth was leeched from me years ago.

[moonstriking]

[ Qifrey gets a glance and then Judith sighs softly and moves, leaning against him properly. It won't do much since she's already cold, but it's better than before]

What an odd thing to say. Aren't you a person?

[pedagogies]

Well, I never had a family. Or if I did, I cannot recall them.

My name, my life . . . They were all lost to me long ago.

[moonstriking]

[Frowning ]

That doesn't make you any less of a person. Who we are...we build that from what's around us.

[pedagogies]

And how long does that last? Without any roots?

[moonstriking]

Those roots will grow. And stretch out. Finding where we want to plant them might take time but...[Funny, she feels like had this conversation before] Nothing lasts forever. We'll grow old. Move apart. Die. It's what we do with the time in between that counts.

[Recalling the time she found him babysitting a group of unruly teens]

Why did you try helping those teenagers when no ond else would?

[pedagogies]

[ qifrey considers his answer. ]

I suppose I remember a little of what it's like. To be that young. Feckless and independent, thinking the world is against you. Unmoored as you toe the line of childhood and adulthood.

[moonstriking]

I thought that was kind.

[ Judith nods, in understanding]

You had shown them kindness, regardless of their character. That takes a certain warmth.

[pedagogies]

I wonder.

My friend, Olruggio . . . he always outshone me in kindness. I only hope to capture a little of that light.

[moonstriking]

[Humming as she tries to lean in]

You have a lot of kindness already, I think.

[pedagogies]

[ he smiles faintly. ]

You think so?

[moonstriking]

[Smiling back in turn]

Yes, I do.

[pedagogies]

Then I will do my best to embody it.

[moonstriking]

Ah, there's the spirit.

[And is it just her imagination or is it less cold now?]

[pedagogies]

[ qifrey smiles, holding the snugstone. ]

It seems that talking has done wonders. How unusual!

[moonstriking]

[She brings a hand up to her mouth to hide a laugh]

Ah, it must also be the magic in this place. I believe talking through your feelings truly helps here.

[pedagogies]

It . . . does?

[moonstriking]

You don't think so? Why, I feel like everything about this places screams "open up your heart and talk and you'll eventually feel better."

[A mischievous grin]

Don't you think?

[pedagogies]

Oh.

I must have . . . missed those vibes.

[moonstriking]

Were you busy with research? [Mages??] I could offer a hug too, if you think that would help.

[Touching. Talking. Honestly, what a world]