PLOT ENGAGEMENT (ARCHIVED)

[larkers]

> PLOT ENGAGEMENT (ARCHIVED)

What is Plot Engagement and how does it work within Meadowlark? This is the page where players can come discuss with us how to facilitate plots within the setting. However, there will be occasions where a plot doesn't work within Meadowlark's world, and we'll suggest alternative routes. For small worldbuilding or gameplay details, please direct your question to the FAQ. If you're ever not sure if you're at the right page, don't worry—we'll help you get it sorted out. We know we have a load of info!

WHEN WILL YOU HEAR BACK?

◉ All Plot Engagement answers go out on Sunday, except during events.
◉ The deadline to submit a question and ensure you'll hear back from us on Sunday is 11:59 PM UTC on Saturday.

PLOT ENGAGEMENT INCLUDES

◉ Player plots! If you'd like your character to become a mafia boss, this is your place to start. Typically, this involves anything that could impact the setting or other player characters.
◉ Character career advancement that gives the character additional power or status within the setting.
◉ Metaplot exploration and information! We plan all events to give characters something to explore after the event ends. This is the place to do it!

SUBMISSION TIPS

◉ Specify what your character is looking for when they're investigating. What questions are they asking and what angle are they trying to explore?
◉ If you have a specific goal in mind but don't know how to reach it, please let us know.
◉ If you link a thread to us, please summarize it! That helps us process the plot in question.
◉ Don't worry about not knowing the setting like the back of your hand before you submit the plot—that's up to us! We're here to help you with any adjustments to get you on the right track.

NOTES & THINGS THAT YOU CAN HANDWAVE

◉ Characters always start out in entry level positions. Characters can update their skill sets to the 2512 standard through paid apprenticeships or internships.

◈ If a character is advancing within a major corporation (as noted on the Setting or Locations page) or one of its subsidiaries, we will need to approve this advancement.
◈ If a character becomes a supervisor at a local bar or other small business, we do not need to approve this advancement.

◉ Joining the police force within a city requires three months of IC training (six months OOC).
◉ We'll approve whether someone has social media fame, but we will not be providing social media follower counts. Once you have a plot for how to use those followers, that's where we step in!
◉ All Morningstar business goes on our Morningstar page. Please feel free to discuss specific plots here (including joining), and go there for signups and anything else.
◉ Characters getting jobs, finding apartments, participating in the fighting rings, getting married, making workplace friends, the creation of minor NPCs, etc. do not need to be run by us. Please let us know if these expand into player plots or other plot bits!

QUICK LINKS

◉ FAQ: For small worldbuilding or gameplay details.
◉ Setting: Our setting page! We'll update as needed.
◉ Jobs: A reference for who's working where!
◉ Locations: Both major and minor locations within New Amsterdam, as well as outlines for other megacities.
◉ Mod Contact: For wider game concerns.
◉ The Story So Far: Gamewide plot events up to current (your CTRL+F best friend!).
◉ NPC page: Includes NPC blurbs and inboxes.
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> NAVIGATION

Comments

[larkers]

Hi Jenna! Thanks for the follow up.

re: common knowledge, we meant more that it would be information that's more easily obtained! They wouldn't have to go to any extreme lengths to obtain it because Meadowlark's version of Google would provide the answer. We're happy to clear anything up on this front!

We would be happy to do a thread with either Gaby or El! This can be a log, or she can make a private post and ping them in - either is suitable! Gaby would likely be of more help, since she's on the ground every day working for Morningstar. She's likely doing what Daisy would be more interested in!

So, we advise you to have Daisy talk to Gaby about her previous experiences, go over what she's done, what she's interested in doing, and even talk about why Gaby is working with Morningstar. If nothing else, Daisy might get a better feel of the world as a former rebel hacker and it may help drive her toward some direction! After that, we'd be happy to help you out with getting Daisy established on whatever route she decides upon.

[larkers]

Hi Kira!

We answered a question about fishing in New Amsterdam here. It's possible to get fishing equipment in the world, but it's a highly industrialized activity at this point - most people who fish are doing it for industry rather than as a hobby! It's possible to get recreational equipment online, but there wouldn't be an immediate place to use it.

For any future questions about the general game setting, please use the FAQ - this helps other players also find that information, rather than it being tucked away on this page!

[larkers]

Hi Tona! Thanks for the questions.

1. It would take Katelin about six months to gain unsupervised access as a lab with her doing just the bare minimum! If she decides to stand out, she can easily get access much sooner.

2. At this point, Bobbi would need to join Morningstar and work her way up to agent status to get access! The reason for this is because they pass on samples to a lab contact who's joined Morningstar, and they're protecting their identity.

If she tried to manipulate Gaby into doing it, it would work - temporarily. Gaby may be persuaded, but it would go awry the moment she reached out to get access for Bobbi. Since no one's been secretive about the powers, Gaby's well aware of the range of them. "Katelin" in particular has been open - so Gaby'd clue in eventually! This would really hurt any chances she'd have to reach out to Morningstar in the future, as they're keen on protecting their own. She may also lose access to the safehouse in the process.

That's not to say she can't go about this path, but it would both be unsuccessful and detrimental to her in the future with Morningstar! Let us know if you'd like to pursue it anyway, and we'll be happy to set up a log with you.

3. That is absolutely an option! It would pay enough for her to get by.

[larkers]

Hi Lyn! Thanks for the questions.

The only foreign substance in her bloodwork would be her DNA, though we're not sure how Kryptonian DNA markers differ from human DNA markers. Either way, we assume it's safe to say that Kara would definitely not appear as if she's human - so you can have her feel free to assume that she hasn't been turned human by whatever's happened to everyone.

[larkers]

Hi Leigh! Just to touch base with you - we'll be leaving submissions open for this, so we'll get back to you after the date has passed! This will be announced on the upcoming calendar.

[larkers]

Hi Froot! Thanks for the questions.

1. Markus and Bobbi will be looking into AJJ Holdings, so you may want to touch base with their players! The link to that line of questioning is here. Otherwise, AJJ Holdings would come across as a typical apartment company that owns a number of mid-to-high range apartments. There would be nothing about their setup that would give Connor any idea that the fire was a likely safety risk, or that they were running any kind of monster carcass money laundering ring.

Poking around in the back would just lead Daisy to running into some of the people who work in the back. She would likely have to explain herself and what she's looking for, and both Connor and Daisy would get in trouble with Connor's bosses, as Connor would have to explain why Daisy was on the job with him.

2. When they left the safehouse, they set off a self-destruct mechanism. It's now just a hole in the ground that's been thoroughly scrubbed, and it isn't very safe! We wouldn't recommend that anyone live there.

[igf]

tbh, i don't know either. canon is very vague on that other than apparently kryptonian dna is hard to clone so. /shrug

thank you guys!!

[revlon]

Hi mods, thanks for this!

Naturally the biggest deciding factor in what career Peggy would pursue is how valuable and accessible the info would be to her and Team SHIELD re: finding out who's pulling the strings in this town, who's responsible for what happened to the PCs, etc — so would you say city hall and the UN embassy are worth looking into in terms of digging into the overarching plot of the game? If not, would Peggy have better luck applying to be a receptionist/secretary/assistant at one of the big time corporations in New Amsterdam? (Giles Bell, Pulsar, etc.) Or would the NAPD angle be her best shot overall?

For what it's worth, Gaby's conversation with Peggy on the intro is going a long way in helping her see the Morningstar angle and while I wanna wait to see how that chat pans out, it's highly likely she'll join up with them sooner rather than later and she'd like to be where they (MS and the PCs) need eyes.

[forcevisions]

That actually works super well! Thanks. I'd love to have her doing that w/GB.

[retravel]

one day someone willl win gaby and el’s love!!
this is all fab, especially the Venus Riots and seismic tidbits! (AND NO WORRIES RE: CASPER). Also wanted to say: The new info has really clarified things for me on the corporations and other worldbuilding things, so thank you for it!

1. Regarding the updated info for corporations and jobs: Would it be possible for Fitz to move to working in a tech/engineering lab at Pulsar? Happy for him to stay at entry level, etc., as he’s only had two months in his current, similar position. He will have been excelling at his job, given his 10+ years in advanced weapons tech and engineering at SHIELD, working on everything from aircrafts to standard spy gear there and so on. Pulsar’s space angle is just a better fit for his personal and plot interests going forward, and I’m super keen to get at it, if possible!

2. Re: the VP of Giles Bell and GB more generally. Would it be possible to investigate that pharmaceutical subsidiary through a few different routes:
2A. Having Bobbi pass through the front desk/main office, using her mojo to ask questions?
2B. Hacking the systems in search of suspicious compounds being tested? (Via El if no PCs have hit the required l33t future hacking levels?)
2C. Having PC characters volunteer for drug trials with the subsidiary?

[saviorexe]

Regarding the attempt to catch the eye of the Insomniac Ball’s owner, I’d like to leave a submission!

Markus’ bold effort was a task undertaken to snag an invite. While he performed the precursory dares that continued to grow in fearlessness and danger, the final task was the most impressive. He, along with Aranea, stood together on a metal support beam structure, situated between two twin (and very, very tall) skyscrapers, where they could both get a birds-eye view of the city. Buffeted by the occasional gusts of wind, the dare was to stand balanced for three minutes, recording the feat as proof.

Given that they both ended up waxing philosophic, they probably stayed up there for longer than three minutes before finally returning to the adjacent rooftop and sneaking back down the way they came. This earned Markus his invite (and Aranea deserves bragging rights, too), which he utilized by visiting the ball almost immediately after.

The thread for this is here for reference, still on-going. (Parent up for the top level!)

[reneger]

after having recovery and time to dig his teeth into other things--jason would like to refocus in on his new goal of absolutely destroying maeda for. uh. doing things.

so!

jason's going to see how close he can get to her, but he'll be very, very obvious about it. hitting up giles bell's office, asking for her by name. he'll insist on wanting to deliver a sincere apology in person, even if he doubts it'd be a possibility.

if he can get in to visit with her, he'll do just that: apologize for being an asshole, say he just wanted to do something nice for someone he's close to, and didn't think hideki cared much for the dog anyway, considering how easy he was willing to part with her. his id, "matches malone" has some history in construction but nothing dating passed jason's arrival: all the money he's made since he's gotten in game has come from the fighting rings. he doesn't have an apartment in his name, or anything else. he'd let her know that he came to the realization that he couldn't afford living with his job as a carpenter, but the underground had more to offer.

thus: fight rings and gambling. he'd babble a bit about how he picked up some skills from a longterm ex friend, mikhail, but wouldn't go into details about what skills or anything else about said friend--just that they helped him in the fight rings and when her goons had attacked. there'd be a few mentions about a few mistakes made during his childhood but that he's trying to stay out of it. he'd ask for a job--any kind of job, something he could do to try and earn her trust. say he'd be happy to pass on some of those skills to the men who had tried to take him down, to protect her assets better in the future.

if he can fit it into conversation without it being obvious, he'd mention his respect for governor gill-jade, mention a couple areas of interest in hideki's instagram and twitter feed. these would also be places that he has visited--she can track it down. he drinks but not too much, does very few high risk activities, enjoys glimpses of the high life from the outskirts. or at least, that's what it seems he's getting up to.

if he can't get in to meet with her, he'd try and pass on as much of that information as possible without it being obnoxious. but he'd definitely keep up trying his best to get in to talk to her, or find another way to talk via third-party--something.


(2)! fitz recommended to jason check into a couple gangs, specifically looking into joining either the kings or warlocks. what information could be get about them from flirting around the fight rings? would he be able to get in contact with some of the upper level members, ask about getting in?

[covertness]

Hi mods! Just some follow-ups and clarification in this comment!

1. Could I get an assessment how long it would take her to gain unsupervised access to the lab she works at if she
a. worked extra hours + extra hard but didn't use her powers to stand out
b. worked extra hours + extra hard + used her powers to stand out (without flat out manipulating anyone into it)

2. Bobbi is currently passing on any and all samples to Fitz, who passes them on to Morningstar, who passes them on to a lab contact and that's a+!! I meant the question more along the lines of... if she gets unsupervised access (as mentioned under 1) within a reasonable period of time (six months or less, depending), can she use that access at the lab she works at to test samples herself? Or would there be any additional hurdles beyond unsupervised access that she'd need to account for?

She's not going to go around attempting to manipulate Gaby or anyone else from Morningstar. She might not have signed up yet, but it's definitely an option she wants to keep open for the future.

3. Sweet, thank you! I'll make up a bar and put it on the location page, wheee

4. Since I'll be hitting up the location page and job page asap... should I make up some company that has labs/blood testing equipment in their R&D department, or should I say Bobbi works for one of the big companies? If so, which one would make the most sense?

[deicider]

Sure!

I messed up that last comment; their main concern would be fomenting unrest in general, at whatever weak point exists. Since in game time that situation has calmed down, I'll just say they will continue to complete that volunteer work so that they get to be a familiar face to the other volunteers, officials, and residents. If there are any of the residents who are particularly vocal against Gill-Jade, they'll note that for later use.

So for Giles-Bell they will take what information they do have a disseminate it to whichever conspiracy group has the most resources and credibility. Their desire with this would be to put pressure on Giles-Bell to explain their involvement.

[larkers]

Hi again Ellie!

We had a plot where a plumber gained useful information, so we recommend that you pick the career path for Peggy that you think you have the most ideas for and want to play with. If she asks Gaby's advice on the three, Gaby would recommend city hall or the police force, as having more people who can access those particular avenues and databases would be helpful to Morningstar's cause, and would likely help all of the PCs in their current investigations as well.

Please let us know if she decides to go ahead with joining Morningstar! We'll give you the usual rundown.

[larkers]

Hello again Laura!

1. Yes, Fitz transferring should be fine, given his exemplary work.
2. Before we move forward on answering this, could you indicate exactly what Bobbi and Fitz will be looking for? This will help us better tailor a way to move forward.

[larkers]

Hi Jessi! Thanks for these questions.

1. Jason would not be able to get access to Maeda herself using any of those methods. As corporate execs are excessively well-protected, he'd be booted out pretty quickly and banned from the premise. Likewise, he would have a great deal of difficulty getting an actual message through, since most people on the floor don't have access to Maeda and would not be inclined to risk adverse attention.

Jason would need a more detailed and strategic plan to gain access to Maeda herself after he's banned from the corporate premises. If you'd like to go this route, you can submit one and we'll work with it!

2. From asking around, Jason would learn that both the Warlocks and the Kings have stake in the fighting ring gambling. Besides that shared interest, the Warlocks mainly traffic in drugs--particularly performance-enhancing drugs, knock-off pharmaceuticals, and high-powered hallucinogens. The Kings deal in your more typical feel-good drugs and illegal goods like stolen car parts.

As for how to get in contact with the gang, I'll paste from where we've answered this for someone else: "To get involved with any of the organized crime in the city, a character would need to start with being introduced to a gang. The best ways to go about this would be to spend time at a bar a gang frequents and befriending one of their members, or participating in one of the illegal sports the gangs run and impressing them that way. Those illegal sports are underground fighting rings, illegal robot dog fights, and street racing (hovercars, hoverbikes and hoverblades). They hold these sports for the gambling alongside the illegal card dens they also run."

It's absolutely possible that Jason performing well in the fight rings could catch the eye of the Kings or Warlocks!

[larkers]

Hi Tona! Thanks for the follow up.

1. We're happy to clarify this, and will actually do so for all three points to better explain our reasoning.

a. The original proposal was that she do the bare minimum and just worked her shifts. This would typically show a lack of initiative. She wouldn't be granted unsupervised access because her bosses would wonder if she'd want to be there every day, and would monitor her work. Flying under the radar wouldn't work out for her in a job like this, as lab tech work requires a lot of savvy and problem solving skills and a willingness to work extra to seem reliable.

b. Working extra hours and extra hard would show a great deal of initiative. Say she starts really chugging along at her job - she would be able to get unsupervised access quite sooner, with the opportunity to finish projects in off hours. This would include expanded building accesses. This would happen within a month's time.

c. Working extra hours, extra hard, and utilizing her powers would accelerate everything in B. Cut the time in half, and you have your basis for what accesses she has.

2. Assuming she qualifies under B or C, she would be able to run the tests herself! That said, Bobbi would need to use her spy savvy in order to monitor the likely hours in which she may be working alone without supervision. Any of her side projects would need to take place alongside any actual work, at least so that there are some results for her to show. Certain tests would be logged, but we have a feeling that most of her tests won't require that. Just check in with us on a case-by-case scenario so we can let you know if she had to be extra sneaky with it, and what the results would be.

4. Let's say it's a subsidiary company of one of the big three! We recommend Giles Bell, but it can be one more tenuously linked to the other two (perhaps a subsidiary they acquired to expand interests). We know that there's a lot of IC interest in Giles Bell right now, and we wouldn't want to complicate things for you by making them the overhead company right now. If it wouldn't be a problem, though, they'd be a great fit!

[larkers]

Hi Leigh!

All of this sounds great right now, especially the continued volunteer work. Please feel free to come to us in the future about any ideas you have for antagonizing Giles Bell, and we'll help you with that plot progression.

[revlon]

Omg mods bless you.

Given that there are a few PCs already going the police force track with some involved in Morningstar, I think I'll shoot for city hall — and eventually the UN — and see what sticks! Also, would her salary from a job like that be enough to get by and get her own (small) place?

And yes, I'd say that she'd come to Gaby by the first week of September to say she'd like to join up.

Thank you!

[larkers]

Hi again!

The salary from that job would be enough for her to get by and get her own place, but it would definitely be on the small side!

Since she's interested in joining up, Morningstar would begin to call on her to begin to do various small jobs and the like to prove that she's reliable. She won't be asked to do anything big at this time, but we're open to players bringing us plots and ideas for tasks that Morningstar can help with!

[revlon]

Awesome, thank you so much!

[preceded]

Hi!

Now that I've gotten my feet wet and a little more settled, I do end up feeling with his heroic tendencies and past employment history as a cop (that of which, he'd have been forthcoming about when setting up his ID- even if he understands at that time he can't use it) as well as admitting to a more mechanical tinkering as a hobby, and the events he's undergone in the game (thanks u random dog nappers?) this is the most IC route for him to take in the game.

I understand he'd have to sign up to start the training processes with NAPD, and has the option of picking an entry level job with them to begin with? Initially so far he's been making an income following Fitz around the Vyonation subsidiary they work for as baby lab techs and acting as his assistant because Fitz put in a good word for him with his tinkering background, but that was always meant to be temporary and with Fitz switching to Pulsar and no longer doing the heavier lifting, he doesn't want to stay. So I'm mostly looking to figure out feasibly, how long training would take- and what entry level jobs are there for him to start moving into.

Thank you!

[covertness]

Thank you, mods, this is great!

1. Bobbi will put in extra hours and work extra hard and use some of her natural people skills and spy skills and manipulation skills to make sure she gets unsupervised access reasonably soon, but generally avoid using her powers to do it. If it's cool with you, I'd like to say that within 3-4 IC weeks, she'll have unsupervised access.

2. Also: is it cool if I assume that she can test blood samples herself without major hurdles? For anything beyond blood tests I'll hit you up again on a case-by-case basis whether she needs to be sneaky, etc.
... I can also hit you up for blood tests ofc, and obviously will when the results are unknown.

4.. Giles Bell works for me, so I'll go with that.

5. Bobbi has taken a blood sample from Peggy relatively soon after her arrival and asked Fitz to ask MS to ask their lab contact to look at it. I assume it'll show the same combo of drugs as for the first wave of arrivals?

6. Same story for Prompto except not soon after his arrival but because he's worried about accelerated cell decay because he's a clone ig. I assume the results would be... whatever is normal for clones in his canon?? I have no idea.

[dipolar]

alright, so jake and hei both killed a guy — as indicated in this question on the intro log. the murders committed happened in two separate threads, one witnessed by heine. this was a huge mistake on their parts, considering murder is actually bad and shouldn't be done and happens to have major plot significance. so they're going to prison for the foreseeable future (most likely half the month or the entire month, to be determined based on their interactions with their interrogator).

that's how we apparently roll here in meadowlark.

there'll be a resulting interrogation by an npc-directed log with hei, jake, heine, and the mods, but let me know if i should add anything to this or offer bits of our conversation from the direct messages! if anyone has any questions, let me know via this comment. thanks for everything!!