doingtheuglycry | CAN CRY: FIRST TEST DRIVE

CAN CRY: INITIAL TDM
Welcome one and all to the very first test drive meme for Can Cry! If you're unfamiliar with the game, then you can check out the interest check, FAQ, world & setting info page and the powers and abilities page to get up to speed! Since the game is still very much under construction, this is just an initial test drive for people to dip their toes into the water and see which characters they'd like to consider for the game. In order to not spoil the opening of the game for players, the TDM is not canon to Can Cry and will take place in a slightly wonky little AU just over to the left. Characters have awoken in Purgatory after their deaths and been conscripted as Executors by Rei, the sole other Executor in Purgatory. The population of dangerous spirits has gotten out of control and she needs some allies to help her keep things under control. Characters on the TDM will have access to all of their starter powers as outlined on the powers page as well as two unique abiliites to play around with as you please. Some prompts and location details have been provided below for you to play around with but please feel free to go hog wild and have fun!
LIMBO
Limbo is the Executor's main base of operations as it is the top level of Purgatory and the one most populated by non-violent spirits. Distorted by the cognition of all the human souls here, Limbo has taken on the form of a hazy, dream-like recollection of a town. It's full of winding paths that go up, down and all around and the geometries of the town and its surroundings don't always make much sense. Stairs might lead loop back around on themselves or a door to the outside might end up leading right back indoors. It's a bit of a headache, so it's usually best not to think about it too hard. The town is mostly functional, mostly thanks to all the human souls here. Players are free to invent any additions to the town that they would like for their threads, but here are some to get you started: ⚝ Conbini: A seemingly normal Japanese convenience store, full of the sort of fare you'd expect from a cheap 24-7 convenience store. There's only four aisles and everything's a bit clustered together, but it's not overly claustrophobic. Things start getting a bit weird when you try and go to the back of the store, though – no matter how long you look, there is always just one more aisle for you to browse and the further back you go, the stranger and more abstract the items on the shelf will look. If you walk too far or turn around you will suddenly find yourself back at the first aisle in the blink of an eye as if you were rubberbanded back there. ⚝ Hotel: A so-called luxury hotel that towers over the rest of the buildings in the area. Even if you don't have a reservation, all you have to do is approach the desk and the Spectre there will apparently recognize you and hand over a key to one of the rooms. Except... you can't quite read the number? It seems to fluctuate whenever you try. Not that it matters, because the key will open any of the hundreds of doors in the building, though no one door will ever open onto the same room twice. The layout of each room is subtly off in a number of ways, with the dimensions of the room not seeming quite right no matter how you try to work it out. The decor is luxurious through and the extravagant room service is free, so it's a nice place to relax. Be warned, though – if you misplace your key, you'll find yourself lost in the mazelike halls until you eventually stumble out into the reception with no way of knowing how you got there. ⚝ Bathhouse: An enormous Grecio-Roman styled bathhouse for you to relax in after a hard day's work of dealing with Revenants. There don't seem to be any workers here that you can see, so feel free to let yourself in and make yourself at home. Interestingly, even without anyone around, you'll find the water is always adjusted to a temperature and a fragrance that's most appealing to you and drinks, towels and anything else you need will appear within reach by the side of the baths whenever it occurs to you that you might need it. When in doubt: Just get weird with it!
QUESTS
Since it's up to Executors to maintain order in Purgatory, this also means they need to resolve any issues that crop up for the Spectres occupying it. You can come up with any sort of quest you like, but here are some ideas to get you started: ⚝ A lost child will request your help in reuniting with their mother. It's a bit of a struggle for them to communicate with you as they are a freshly-awakened Spectre and it's also not entirely clear if their mother is, in fact, in Purgatory with them. Eventually, careful questioning of the child Spectre and some of the other Spectres around Limbo will lead you to a bookshop where mother and child will be reunited. Happy end! ⚝ Two Spectres are causing a ruckus in town with a screaming-in-each-other's-face tier argument. Calming them both down is going to be a task all on its own, but if you manage to, it turns out the first Spectre is missing a precious object and has accused the other of stealing it. The second Spectre insists the precious object never existed in the first place. Uh... good luck with this. ⚝ A uncommunicative and kind of creepy Spectre is accused by others in the town of being a Revenant in disguise after some of their neighbors disappear in the night. Investigate and uncover the truth! Feel free to NPC Spectres as you need for this TDM!
THE UNDERSIDE OF LIMBO
Though it's the most peaceful level of Purgatory, Limbo is not without its dangers. Directly below Limbo is what's known as the Underside, a darkness cast by the city above where Revenants and malicious spirits linger. It appears as a dark, mirror-reversed version of Limbo, though the geography is much more twisted and confusing. If left unchecked, Revenents from the Underside would attack the town and consume any number of Spectres. It's up to the Executors to head down there and see to them! This is a general prompt for combat-oriented testing, to allow characters to experiment with their new powers as Executors! Because of that, and because combat will function slightly differently in-game, this section is pretty loosey goosey. Like previous posts, you are free to invent locations and NPC Revenants to make things more fun and exciting! Because Revenants will function in a unique way in-game, players are encouraged to invent their own Revenants to fight for this TDM. If you would like some ideas for what sort of Revenants to battle, you can check out this video to see what sort of enemies exist in the original game, but beware that it does contain spoilers for Crystar.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Rei gives him that same sour-looking smile again. ]

I'd say I'm used to the killing. I've been hunting Revenants for a long time before any of you got here. But that doesn't mean I have to like it.

...true. In a way, you are our superior here.

[The unspoken 'that's why I stayed my hand' is there though]

That's right. So, I suppose if anyone's really responsible for keeping order here, it's going to be me.

[ Because she clearly can't trust the rest of y'all to do it. It's like a whole cabal of Worms Off The Leash. ]

That's why we have to find the real Revenant, before it can eat any more Spectres. Who knows what might happen if more of them start to go missing.

Right.

[he pauses, thinking]

You seem... disinterested in leadership.

Mmm... it's not that I'm disinterested exactly. It's just that I've never really had to do it before, I don't think.

[ She doesn't have to tell him why she's unsure. None of them remember a damn thing and Rei's not that much different. ]

So I'm always a little worried about whether or not I'm doing the right thing.

You wouldn't be able to clear the way to the Gears on your own.

[So that's a good choice right there, right?]

But that doesn't mean I should've dragged you all into this. Maybe it would've been better to just let you stay as Spectres, while I worked out another way to fix all this...

[ But even as she says it, she doesn't sound very convinced. ]

No.

[He pauses, unsure how to speak his thoughts. or even if they should be. So he shifts from foot to foot, one pale eye darting around as if they were in danger.]

... I would be a revenant by now, I am sure. For that alone, I am in your debt.

Edited 2020-02-22 18:21 (UTC)

[ Rei doesn't have a response to that, not right away anyway. Because... well, he's probably right. She's seen Dimitri at his worst and sometimes she thinks to himself that he probably isn't that different from the Revenants himself. It's an ugly thought to have, but uglier still is the idea that it might have ended up coming true. ]

For... for what it's worth...

[ She gives him a small, uncertain smile. ]

I know you didn't have to come with us. You could've turned the offer down but I'm... glad you didn't. I do really appreciate it.

[He actually manages a weak smile in return, his eye crinkling at the corner and hinting at the kind face he might have once had]

I will clear the way to the Gears with my own hands and let the dead rest- for that, you may depend on me.

Does that mean you're going to take a rest eventually, too?

[ she... she made a funny... ]

[He looks surprised by the question, frowning]

I... I do not know.

That's the goal, isn't it?

... Yes. It is and it's– it's right. That's how it should be for everyone.

[ She trails off, like she's uncertain of her own words and looks off to the side, guiltily. ]

I'm sorry. That's not the kind of question I should be asking any of you.

It's the nature of this place- we are already dead, there's no pretending there's any other end to this.

I know that. [ She doesn't sound defensive, exactly... but almost. ] It's just...

When all this is over, I want everyone to be able to rest in peace. I want them to be satisfied, instead of just going on because they think it's the right thing to do. ... Is that selfish of me?

Rest in peace...

[something about that calls to his memories, but he can't grasp it]

And what if some of us do not deserve any peace?

[ Without missing a beat: ] There's no such thing.

[ ... and then, looking a little caught off guard by her own certainty, she continues: ]

I... I'm not sure, but I think that's why Purgatory is the way it is. No matter what, anyone here, if they want to do it... they can move on and find peace.

I've spoken to some who have regained their memories of life here. Some who died blameless...Some who are drenched in innocent blood.

[he looks at his own hands. He knows he can not be the former- he kills too easily.]

The idea that both can make this same journey as equals- I can't decide if the idea comforts me or horrifies me.

Edited (I can't type) 2020-06-29 15:27 (UTC)

It's kind of a big question, isn't it?

[ She does her best to give him a smile, but it falters pretty quick. ]

I'm really sorry I don't have more answers. I'm the only here who has any at all even those don't cover half of what we need to know. ... I know it's probably frustrating.

CAN CRY: FIRST TEST DRIVE

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject