![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Downtime Log - 04
Log 04 - Downtime
Outcome to The Mine Car
And so, Minecraftia is saved! Overall, characters opted to focus on closing the mines. Passengers will receive a summary of their results on their phone (though there's still no sender), and will see it play out around them.
- With the deep mines closed off, the fungus responsible for the plague will no longer escape to the surface. Thanks to your thorough efforts, the dynamite has exposed new silver ore and treasure that the townsfolk can live off of, and the ancient mole civilization has also been laid to rest. They pass along this message:
- Totally radalicious for ya to do us a solid like that bros. You wouldn't believe how bad those acid spores were harshin' my buzz. See ya on the flip side. Cowabunga, dudes!
- Mayor Chadsef has been slain. The people of Minecraftia are grateful that his devious plots have been revealed, but are unsettled by some of your behavior. They are left without much leadership.
- Continue to fulfill objectives. Do not dwell on completed cars.
Though passengers can stay in Minecraftia for a while, the exit door is now open! Because presumably some of them killed and ate Chadsef, the denizens will eventually chase them out for being weirdos.
Numbers: All numbers will change as a result of this log. Overall, those who focused on the mines will see their numbers go down, and vice versa. However, this is character-driven: a character that went to the mines solely to loot for treasure may still see their number go up, and likewise, those that attacked Chadsef may still see their numbers go down if it coincides with character growth.
Illness: Those who fell ill will have lingering effects, but the plague will clear without exposure to the spores. Symptoms can fade as quickly or slowly as players wish.
Then, as characters exit Minecraftia, they will receive another new message.
FROM: clownductor one
Well, that was unexpected.
Regular train cars will now resume. Please note that to end your journey aboard the Existential Express, the numbers located on your body must go down to zero. Indulging in your bad habits will cause your number to increase indefinitely and infinitely. Do not think of it as a prison sentence, but...
...A journey along the railroad of self improvement.
And from here on out, we're back to our regularly scheduled downtime log! Good work, everyone!
The Dinosaur Car
As characters enter the car, their phones will notify them of a new objective…
That's not really an actionable objective, but you probably don't have much time to worry about it because in this car… there are dinosaurs! They seem to be engulfed in a vicious turf war between bickering herbivores and carnivores, and in the middle of the fighting is a flock of baby dinosaurs separated from their parents. :( Their size easily dwarfs the passengers, but compared to the adults, they're small and helpless and could use someone to take them back to their dens.
Unfortunately, not all the babies are cooperative. Some have no sense of danger, and others have too much sense of danger. While others won't stop crying, and some have decided that you're their new mother! Navigating them through the bickering adults won't be an easy task.
All carnivores except velociraptors have poor senses, so they'll only see you if you move. The herbivores will largely leave you alone... because they won't notice your presence at all, and will stomp on you with no reservations. Both sides will react poorly to violence against their own, so be prepared to run or fight if you're the hack-and-slash type. That said, these oversized reptiles are no pea-brains, and may actually be open to diplomacy…
The Crystal Car
As the characters enter the car, their phones will notify them of a new objective…
The inside of this car is peaceful and #aesthetic — everything is made of varying types of crystal, geodes, etc, and the pink sunlight glitters across every surface. What does this have to do with the objective? Nothing! Not everything in life has a meaning, you know?
However, there is one particularly shiny crystal not far from the door here, with a few fairly obvious hand-shaped indents. When touched, the crystal will shimmer and shine to an emotional song. But not just any song — it has to have sentimental value to the singer. That's right, you can't just pick the classiest tune of your Sp*tify to pretend you have good taste to your friends. This is about a mother's lullaby, or the horrible mix tape your first boyfriend made you, or the randumb song you made up with your friends as a kid. Once the crystal is satisfied with your performance, the exit door will open.
The Otome Car
As the characters enter the car, their phones will notify them of a new objective…
The assorted NPCs of this neo-noir world are occupied with solving grisly murders. Passengers will find themselves in roles such as jaded private investigator, lackadaisical forensics tech, vigilante hacker, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed dame, etc... but more importantly, above every character's head is what looks like a progress bar.
When someone encounters another passenger, the bar will fill up according to how much they trust and/or like them. (Yes, this will out anyone who's been sneaky or dishonest about their feelings.) In order to fill this 'trust gauge' to max, characters must pick the right dialogue options with each other (i.e. not piss each other off, flatter one another, etc. You may also interpret this as literal otome dialogue prompts, if you like), or otherwise convince all the NPCs that they care for each other. Maybe it's by holding hands, or fake dating, or pretending Wheatley is your beloved son orb (sorb).
Once both bars are completely full, characters will abruptly discover the murderer was the cop all along. They'll receive a bag of Sn*ckers for their detective work. Good end! If characters do poorly at this get-along task, they may get various Bad Ends, which will usually result in them nearly dying (or actually dying) before starting over from a previous checkpoint. Successive bad ends will turn more and more ridiculous over time.
The GBBO Car
As the characters enter the car, their phones will notify them of a new objective…
Upon entering the car, passengers will find themselves in a large tent. The tent contains rows of baking stations, equipped with ovens and a variety of kitchen equipment. Along the sides of the tents are fridges and freezers, and at the back of the tent is a pantry which will manifest any ingredient a passenger can think of. As passengers bake however, they'll find that they need to work together as access to the gadgets and ingredients is split between individuals. Whether it's the oven refusing to start, or eggs consistently slipping from their grasp, passengers will need to rely on a partner regardless of skill level. Characters that try to work on their own will consistently end up with a terrible tray of brownies, no matter what they're trying to bake.
Passengers will have 3 hours to create the dish listed on their station before being subjected to the scrutiny of celebrity judges: Haul Pollywood and Bary Merry. Ready... set... bake!
The Hand Holding Car
As the characters enter the car, their phones will notify them of a new objective…
Upon entering this car, passengers will find themselves in total darkness. There is nothing around them except, visible by the light of their phones, a single torch. They'll find that they can't light it using magic or matches, and that it only blazes bright when they hold the hand of another passenger. As soon as that contact is lost, the torch will go out.
There is no path or indicators as they trek forward—nothing but the black nothingness, their fellow passenger and the torch. But eventually, whispers. A cold sensation crawling up their spine, and the sudden, unshakeable fear of the person whose hand they're holding. A voice will warn them of the evil hidden in their partner's heart, the weapons they carry, and describe to them in vivid detail all the ways they could end their life, or worse. There's nothing more terrifying to you than this person, but if you let go, then there's only darkness.
One final catch: this connection goes beyond fear. Characters will find themselves able to read each other's thoughts while holding hands.
The Vacation Car
As the characters enter the car, their phones will notify them of a new objective…
The vast interior of this car is filled with a white, sandy beach. Clear water stretches as far as the eye can see, and the shoreline is dotted with everything you'd find at a popular boardwalk: food stands, cool drinks, tacky swimsuit huts, a brightly lit ferris wheel. Vendors don't accept money, but will gladly share their goods in exchange for good deeds. The beach is open to all, and sports all manner of coral and sea creatures.
(This may include flying sharks and giant octopi.)
And to top it all off, there's an enormous seaside spa! There are various different rooms, providing all kinds of treats to relax: bathing pools both hot and cool, luxurious showers, wet and dry saunas, lounging areas with refreshing drinks and snacks, and even several outdoor hot springs! Above them is always a clear night sky, with auroras dancing against the darkness if you get lucky. How does this all work in the same climate? Don't worry about it.
The spa is largely autonomous: bathing products automatically replenish themselves, food and drink appears and cleans itself up on its own, and there are somehow always warm towels and fluffy robes. This also means that no one is actually running some of the stations — namely the manipedi and massage rooms — so you may have to lend a helping hand or two.
OOC Notes
Car Order: While the cars are linear and in the order shown, characters can freely move between these six cars for the next three weeks — players may assume 1:1 IC:OOC time ratio.
Locks: Passengers may follow other characters out of cars after they've been unlocked — so in general, players can assume optional cars on downtime months are unlocked if they don't want to play in them. Likewise, if your character ICly would not participate in a car but you still want to play with those prompts, you can assume they're locked in and must complete objectives. Feel free to pick and choose what you'd like to play from any downtime log!
Update: We will also have a small update in the coming weeks — the setting won't change, but there will be a few more (optional!) aspects to play with later.
Feel free to direct questions to our Discord help channel. Have fun!
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
locomo e2 traincationFAQ & Game Info / Calendar / Taken
Applications / Reserves / Hiatus & Drops
FULL NAVIGATION
no subject
[Congratulations Claude. He's snapping his fingers and pointing at you instead of Making a Scene and Being a Meanie. It's that olive skintone or darker solidarity... And the fact that the other guy is nice enough. Friendly. Almost suspiciously so.]
Dude! I felt the same damn way!
I even tried to steer clear of the birdseed 'cause I wasn't sure if any of those feathery fucks decided to shit in it when we weren't looking. Hey! My last girl had canaries once upon of time! I don't care how pretty they are, birds are fuckin' disgusting. I swear to god if you've ever looked one in the eye, it's like they've got no souls or somethin'...
[It is at this point in the conversation where he heats up the other cucumber to take a bite of it, in a similar fashion to the last.]
no subject
Still, he goes along with it, humming thoughtfully but still not opening his eyes. ]
They were much bigger than your average bird, so the size of their shit would probably be hard to miss if they did decide to play around with the food. [ Can't believe Rex has a Nintendo character cursing.
In any case, Claude does open his eyes to look over at him. ]
I'm Claude, by the way.
no subject
[Rex sounds impressed... That's smart... Too smart...
bruh u are a douchebag???he is such a himbo im gonna light myself on fire i promise he has a brain in there somewhere he has lived thru many a concussion]
Clod? Like a big ol' ball of dirt?
[There are just so, so many times when he should think and not speak, butt alas.]
Oh! Uh, I'm Rex. Rex Splode?
[He pauses for a moment, as Claude's reaction will... Seal this particular impression.]
Formerly of the Teen Team, currently a Guardian of the Globe. Long story short? I recently got a big-time promotion, and fuuuuuck. I'm in way over my head! But you know what?
Iiiiii don't have to think about that right now. Yeah! I can just drown myself in more booze.
[The thing is, whenever he states his title, he's usually quick to boast and overcompensate for the insecurities he's carried with him throughout his miserable life, but Claude feels like a friend. In many regards, this is probably worse than having Rex despise you... it means u will never b free of him, clod]
Look, I'd never volunteer myself to downgrade to one of those fleshy, meat-prison bodies that normies are usually stuck with-
[He says that last thing, "normie," with such disdain you'd think he were discussing a stinky bug.]
But boy, do they get drunk fast! I'm kinda jealous.
no subject
And then refers to him as a "normie" in that derogatory tone. Claude has to wonder if Rex has clued into the fact that he is talking to someone normal? Maybe not?
But he also called him a genius for making a simple observation... He seems like the type to experience things in extremes. ]
Guardian of the Globe sounds like quite the title. [ Ugh, work. The thought of it makes him sink further into the water. ] I take it you're responsible for the fate of the world?
[ In any case, he's happy to listen to Rex chatter on about himself. ]
no subject
Most of the others simply have no idea what that title means or dismiss it entirely. This guy, despite being from another world or potentially time period, has managed to put two and two together, which you'd imagine would be far more common, seeing as the title is pretty straightforward.]
Yeah.
[Constantly talking and talking and talking, that one syllable holds more weight than anything he's said so far. He doesn't want to remember how Samson and Monster Girl looked after getting mauled by that Extraterrestrial Hairball, much less Invincible. Thankfully, the later is alive and well.
At least for now, and physically. Mentally, Rex isn't so sure.]
I guess I am. Zippity-fuckin'-doo-da.
[Rex spins an index finger in the air with nothing but a scowl on his face. Disgruntled as he may seem, Clod (c-claude) is certainly earning himself favor by being easy to talk to.]
So... What do you do?
no subject
It's a lot of responsibility... Claude would much rather live his own life than give it to the world. ]
I'm just a student. [ He salutes lazily. ] The school year had just started when I ended up here...
I've always been a bit of a slacker, but I gotta say, this takes it to another level.
[ He pauses for a moment, thoughtful. ]
Seems like there's plenty of impressive people here, but somehow we weren't able to escape the clutches of the clownductors.
cw: child abuse, murder
Then he was given a gift and used for it. But oh, how he paid the price for power, with the blood and livelihoods of others. He listened to the wrong person, desperate to prove that he wasn't the kind of kid who deserved to be thrown away, vulnerable and isolated.
If Rex was not a hero, he would be homeless, in jail, or most likely, dead. Then again, his background could serve as the perfect origin story for a great and even deeply sympathetic supervillain, and despite his temper or tendency to slack off and be selfish...
To convince him to hurt an innocent person, to end their life forever-]
They've got dirt on all of us, too.
[No matter what the cost to himself personally?
He'd take the bullet with one big, emphatic, "Fuck you."]
Do you buy it?
This whole redemption arc hippie hoo-hah.
no subject
[ And Claude is obviously talking about himself. He's never yielded to the trend of self-flagellation that's so popular among heroic types.
But he can still admit that he has flaws. Some that he wants to address, though he doesn't have much confidence in this train. ]
But do I believe this train thinks it's leading us on a journey of self-reflection? Sure. [ He rubs his chin, thoughtful. ] It's an interesting way to go about it, to say the least.
Right now, I'm just hoping this'll make me more agile when I get home.
no subject
[Even though his language is harsh, the tone behind his words is nonchalant, much like a snort in response to a joke that wasn't quite funny enough to let out a full chuckle for.
How nice it must be, to be the kind of person fortunate enough to not have had to debase himself to survive, to put food on the table. For Rex, the story was even darker, uglier, and even worse, he can't say that he'd take it all back. He can't say that he'd tell his thirteen year old self to run and never give up his life in service of his "country," because the murder and the trauma and the tragedy were all better than being poor and without an education, doomed to a life of hopping between prison sentences and dead end jobs, never feeling anything other than sadness, frustration, and exhaustion. Rex is pretty much guaranteed to die young, but at least he'll be beautiful, and even then, he'll go out with a bang. It'd be better to have his last moments detailed on the front page of the Chicago Tribune than spent on the cold, wet street, dying with an empty stomach and a broken heart.]
Yeah? You havin' trouble with your-
[Rex whistles in tandem, waving his hand from a position where it is horizontally flat to facing upright. Yes. This is a boner gesture. Thank god he isn't clothed, standing up, and capable of doing many more lewd, mobile things.]
Or is it more of a, like, uh... You're just really bad at running, thing?
no subject
He lifts a brow. ]
That's the second time you've referenced my dick. Are you hitting on me and I'm just not noticing?
[ Claude is good at running too. He meant mentally agile. ]
no subject
[Whereas anyone else would earn themselves a burst of anger or more, literally fiery, temper tantrums, Rex finds that Claude may have a point. They are also naked in a hot tub, it's a fair assumption.]
Nah. You're not really my type.
You don't get to put your feet up much, do ya.
[Rest. Relax.
It seems to be something that most of the passengers on this thing have in common. Duty. Busy lives. It's either that or misery, or both.]
no subject
Rex's personality is kind of jarring, but he's handsome enough. He's probably popular? Maybe? Sometimes looks do overpower personality.
Anyway, it would've been flattering, but Claude doesn't really care. ]
No, but I don't know that I have the right to complain to a Guardian of the Globe. [ Besides, Claude knows that he's privileged, so it would be a little tasteless.
He glances up, the open air bath revealing a starry sky above them. ]
I'm not going to abstain if this train is trying to show us mercy though. The beach is nice... Apparently massages are available too.
no subject
Okay, now I can't tell if you're makin' a pass at me. You have the um... Perpetual bedroom eye thing goin' on? But maybe that's the smoke, or, uh, astigmatism.
As for the whole beachy, vibey car? It's nice, but I kind of don't get the point of it all. Are we in a purgatory? 'Cause I don't remember bein' dead.
[Rex leans on one elbow, raising his other hand as if he's asking about the weather. Instead, he inquires:]
Speakin' of which? Has anybody died yet? This all seems pretty dangerous, and there's a whole lotta idiots on this thing.
no subject
Not that I know of. But I think it's more due to the fact that we have a bunch of super humans here than any safety precautions put in place by this train.
I feel like, as far as this place is concerned, death is just a necessary risk on the road to self-improvement.
[ Which is neither here nor there. Claude isn't quite sure that he buys that any of this will actually make them better people. It feels more like being trapped in a social experiment than anything else.
But he's willing to play along if it means getting out of here. ]
And no, you're not my type, but I can pretend that I am if you need the ego boost.
no subject
I'm everybody's type.
[The response is spat out with such quickness, and such volume, that one would think it was the worst thing Claude has said thus far. The flaring of those already expressive nostrils would support this observation. Luckily for the swordsman, Rex doesn't stand up to, err... Assert his dominance? Prove his worth? Scar a poor stranger for the rest of his life? But he considers it briefly.]
no subject
That's really more important than everything I said about death, hm?
[ He has to admire him being so straight about his priorities at least. ]
no subject
[Every word in that sentence is over-enunciated.]
But, to me? Yes.
[Guess whose number is skyrocketing... Thankfully it's on his lower back and facing the wall rn...]
I-! Am an eleven out of ten, Mister!
[Or well, physically speaking. Rex is aware that his personality might need some work.]
no subject
Anyway, he's not really sure what to say in the face of Rex's assertion... ]
Okay? [ ? ] So... you want me to hit on you?
no subject
[It most certainly is not. Now, back to the dying for self improvement thing-]
This whole hero's journey nonsense? Total. Hogwash! I mean, why would they put a bunch of combat-ready and/or otherwise resourceful and/or super smokin'-sexy-hot people through all these challenges? I wouldn't be surprised if these clown-douchebags were buildin' an army!
You can say that I've got my tinfoil hat on, go ahead! But, oh! I've been through this shit before. I know what happens! They try to break you down and feed you a bunch of half-truths that seem logical! All in the name of "justice!" Or whatever the fuck.
no subject
Neither of these is pretty remarkable, both qualities in line with the troubles that most people face, but Rex is the most in-your-face about it person that he's encountered lately. Sylvain aside.
Anyway, he's not here to unpack Rex's issues, and he's more interested in his tinfoil hat theory about the train. ]
It is pretty hard to believe that all of this abduction and trauma is done in the spirit of self-help. [ He runs a hand through his hair, wetting it and pushing it back. ] But even if this is sinister, what do you suggest we do about it?
I don't see many options other than continuing through the cars in the hopes that we find whoever's in charge. [ He thinks about it. ] Though, there are some people whose numbers are pretty low. If they get to zero, we could see if that last message holds any truth.
no subject
[Rex bounces back and forth between overly confident blowhard and pathetically self loathing traumatized brat on the daily. Your identity becomes confusing after you've had more than two aliases.]
Yeah? Well, even if they do get to zero...
How are we supposed to know where they go? None of us can call home from here.
[They could be escorted to a new training facility.]
Why does someone else- Presumably, a person who hasn't lived a day in our worlds or lives- Get to decide how fucked we all are in the inside?