larkers | PLOT ENGAGEMENT (ARCHIVED)

PLOT ENGAGEMENT (ARCHIVED)

> 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

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

Hi there mods! I've got a couple of follow-ups and questions regarding the aftermath of the last plot:

Post-event, Jughead is going to present the story of "people being kidnapped from their apartments" to the place that he's currently working at as an intern. Ever the passionate journalist, he'll want to know why they haven't already reported on it (due to the media blackout), and try to push to allow to let him publish it. It's a big story! He's got a few images to add to the story—none that would give him or the PCs away, but definitely a few people in black armor forcing their way into buildings. What would the response be to this? I'd like to play with it a little bit.
During the plot, Loki was at the UNA base. These pictures of everything from the warehouse to the corridors (before it got blown up), will be passed along to Gaby. Loki will press that even though he's not part of Morningstar, he knows that they're needed in this world, despite the symbiotic relationship that they now have with the PCs. She's free to use them however she wants.

Thanks!

Hi again, Jenna!

Unlike today, the government is more likely to protect civil files like that, as it could prove rather revealing to see what taxes are being paid - or what companies are buying up properties around the city. In fact, most government databases are heavily encrypted and firewalled to keep even the most advanced of hackers out - as they're far more experienced in dealing with them (and some of the more notorious ones are now on payroll). We mostly wanted clarification to see what she's trying!

That's not to say that she couldn't approach some smaller ventures to get more experience overcoming the encryption and firewalls in this world, leveling up all the while.

There will definitely be future opportunities for hacking in game!

Hi Kerry, thanks for the question!

As tarot cards are on a medium that requires cards to be printed on cardstock - and, as a result, paper - the traditional practice has fallen to the wayside. If she asks around, she'll get a few funny looks, but some may point her in the direction of an online card game called "Throw Aside." It contains the majority of what one would consider a full tarot deck, though some of the cards have different names. For example, "The Magician" is now "The Engineer." There are even a few low-level tournaments and an online board to keep track of high scores.

There are a few spiritual shops, but their approach to spirituality is is based on using psychological techniques and meditation to explore waking dreams and unconscious imagery. Some of these techniques use VR technology to project certain images or sounds to stimulate brain wave activity. She is welcome to work at one of those!

Hi Leigh!

These are very interesting business ventures, especially for a world like Meadowlark's. If Sniper does the market research, they'll find a place for the first and third ventures. As for second venture/the trackers - Sniper would find that a lot of equivalent research was done while neural implants were being developed. They wouldn't get much mileage because the implants are similarly small for their sophistication. Bringing in an external device like the trackers would prove unnecessary in this world, as it has advanced far past that.

The first would be much easier to get patented and released in the world given its obvious use in providing a resource that people would need. Presumably, biological fabrication isn't so far removed from replication AKA cloning, so some of that technology exists in the world, albeit obviously not explored to its fullest potential. In getting a patent, Sniper would need to prove that this synthetic process is different from cloning - and would need to work to show the difference, as otherwise the patent wouldn't be approved.

The third project would be far more difficult to pursue - but not impossible. Sniper's research would find that there are equivalent components for the technology that they would need to get started, but it may need to be modified (and improved) by Sniper. They'll find that there's a reason why a system like this isn't in place yet - primarily that travel in and out of megacities is heavily documented and controlled because of the environmental conservation efforts around the world. Much of their market research would talk about energy, fuel and other resources, and their impact on the environment - so whatever Sniper would provide would have to account for how to keep the cars running between cities, and provide that travel while maintaining 2511's clean energy standards. Again, a lot of the tech they need already exists, but in improving it, they would need to show its value, as it would prove costly in Meadowlark's world.

Other than that, they would find that it would be difficult to implement technology like this, offering people freedom to move between the cities. This is largely because travel between the megacities is heavily controlled. Sniper's political aspirations mean that they can accomplish a lot here in its implementation, but they would need to work to angle things more in their favor.

Hi Veronica! Thanks for bringing this to us.

1. The people in charge at his internship will be extremely on edge about the article. They'd point out that it's well written and well researched, but they wouldn't be interested in publishing it. While everyone there wants to report on actual events such as this one - and is even itching to do so - they can't. Jughead will get a lot of clichés in response - such as their hands being tied, about how his work is good, but he needs to keep his head down, and more. No one would outright say why they can't publish it. They aren't likely to give Jughead any information on that front.

But there are people around the office who will take notice. They'll ask for Jughead's article, hoping to have it sent over so they can both see what he wrote and the pictures he provided. Some of this will happen behind his back, while others will ask him personally to send it over.

That isn't to say that Jughead can't push, but he isn't the first scrappy young journalist hoping to change how it's done in this world. There are many others around him who have met the same barriers. They've had to accept this fact, so it's assumed that Jughead will do the same.

2. Gaby will thank Loki for the pictures, especially since she knew nothing about that operation. She's not comfortable going against her comrades, but in this case, she's happy to have something herself.

Thank you!

Sorry for the confusion, for the third one, they would not actually approach it from the angle of wanting to implement easier travel between cities. They may want to try that in the future, but for now they are looking to take what they know about more advanced engines to try and put some money in the bank by selling part/engine designs to manufacturers. The angle would be improvement for improvement's sake, and not tied to a broader goal. Their own world has similar environmental restrictions, so what they know conforms to that, but the engines are far more powerful while still being efficient. They'd work with an engineer to par down what they know to something better then what's on the market now, but not drastically so.

I was sort of assuming there would be competing manufacturers of vehicles, much like today, always claiming to have the better more fuel-efficient engine, so I might be off base with that.

Hi again!!

Sniper is very interested in the fate of the rescued weapons, but I am not sure how to follow up on that. Possibly a chat with Gaby? They'd want the cache split 50/50 with promises that the PCs would share what they learned, but of course I don't know if that will fly with her. I would be fine handwaving the interaction or threading it out, whatever is best.

Hello mods!

Just a quick (if stupidly late) question - in the OOC post concerning event wrap up, it was mentioned that the NAPD is looking for new recruits. Now, Aranea is super injured right now, but that's something I'd love for her to get involved in when it's ICly feasible. Canonically, she was a reasonably high ranking military official, spent some time in search and rescue and started out as combat-equipped mercenary, so the skillset is there, even if her canon resume has no realworld applications in New Amsterdam. Is there any OOC or IC steps I'd need to follow to get her there, or how would you recommend I proceed? Thank you! c:

okay, so it wasn't actually quick, whoops

Hello hello mods!

A WHILE BACK, Rey had mentioned to Ignis trying to get a job in the governor's office. While he's currently working at a bar (and I need to.... post to the job page about that, whoops) this would be something he'd try to pursue, even if it's at an entry-level. Maybe as some sort of administrative assistant, or in accounts payable/receivable-- anywhere he could start to get a feel of how the politics in this world work and operate, who talks with who about what, who holds sway with whom, or even who gets paid or files what expense reports. Just generally being nosy about how the city as a whole functions behind the scenes.

Would this be an available option for him?

Hello, mods! Some more questions re: government both local and international as Peggy settles into her job at City Hall.

• What’s the relationship with City Hall in New Amsterdam, the local UN embassy, and the headquarters in New Beijing? Is there a known hierarchy? How does New Beijing function as the centre of government?
• Peggy would express an interest in wanting to work in the UN embassy of New Amsterdam someday, likely framed as seeing the sudden changes and threats to the city and wanting to do her bit to help. What steps should she take to ensure that and roughly how long would it take in IC time for her to make the jump from City Hall, assuming she does exemplary work and is proactive and takes initiative? Nothing as grand as an ambassador or consul position, but say, as an assistant (or second assistant) or secretary to Someone Relatively Important?
• As per the calendar post re: Morningstar agents leaving certain jobs vacant, would any of those be an option down the line?
• Are there any government events/cocktail parties/etc on the calendar that she'd be able to attend for networking ~~and eavesdropping~~ purposes?

.......basically i'm shooting for her devil wears prada life in new amsterdam with a side order of #spy

Edited (SORRY LAST ONE) 2019-02-06 15:43 (UTC)

hello, mods!

as per questions asked here--

If Jason were to, a few weeks after the event, go out of his way to pick up one of the vehicles that had been owned by one of the Morningstar agents that are now missing and drive it around to see if it would pick up any attention--how would that go?

Any sign of police involvement and he'd ditch the vehicle immediately, since he's not interested in getting arrested, but considering the UNA's involvement in the attack, and their potential involvement in their original kidnapping, Jason would want to test if they'd actually come after one of the displaced if they were dicking around with things they probably should not be. His goal would be to see if the UNA soldiers would specifically come after him, or if someone directly involved with the UNA would. Or, if they'd ignore it (which he'd assume would be because he was among the displaced) entirely or ask police to handle it (therefore, potentially getting another displaced locked up and this time, with an ID attached).

hi mods!

so i spaced on this while i was thinking up names, but how uncommon are twins in this world? i realize parents need permission for one child to be born, so how does it go when one baby ends up being two?

and in that line of thought, i was thinking that tommy might end up starting some social media accounts and angling to become a social media influencer/model/etc. would having a twin be enough of a novelty to get additional attention? or would it be too unusual or too much of a risk to show that off? or is it relatively common?

Hi Shikki!

While we'll have to get back to you about the social media aspect - as that's a different can of worms considering the status of the PCs and things like the shrines around New Amsterdam - Jessi asked about twins and the rarity of them here, as well as the basic status of social media in general.

Edited 2019-02-07 04:39 (UTC)

she beat me to it, the fiend.

thank you mods!

Hi Leigh! Thanks for the clarification.

In this case, Sniper can definitely look into upgrading these engines, as offering upgrades here could also help with accelerating space travel. One of the reasons why the colonies' conditions are so poor is because it's difficult to access them on a regular basis, so many people are left to struggle while experiencing unfortunate working environments. Being able to get there and back more quickly would be the more natural next step of Sniper's research. We recommend that you have them reach out to Fitz, as he's working at Pulsar, and his research would likely intersect with what Sniper hopes to accomplish.

Hi Leigh! Thanks for bringing this to us!

Right now, Gaby isn't handing out weapons because she doesn't know what they can do. While some of the weapons are obviously weaponized EMPs or guns meant to load special bullets, not everything in there is easily identified. In order to ensure the safety of everyone - including the PCs - she wants to encourage cautious research in identifying what's in there.

It's less about splitting them and being aware of what they can do before they're handed out.

Therefore, we encourage players to bring us a plan in order to examine them!

Hi Jes!

We're going to reword a comment we left for Gaia regarding this, as the information is the same: Aranea can definitely feel free to enter the police force. When it comes to training, as long as she passes the entrance exam - which we presume she would! - she would get paid while going through the program. There's no kind of entry level job while she does this. All of her work would be training, and this would go on for a while. We know that having a character in training for a long time can be less than fun, so we are definitely open to her building a network of connections while she goes through this aspect of things. We provided a similar outline for our old Bellamy player here, so feel free to utilize that!

Obviously, there are some NPCs in the police force that have been brought into play. Detective Satou is the most significant one because of her (unknown to her) tangential ties to Morningstar. In joining up, Aranea will definitely hear about the murder suspects who had no identity and how strange it was. This would have moved like wildfire throughout the city and its police precincts.

While Gaia asked some specific questions for Dick, the whole thread where she approached is here, so please feel free to review that and let us know if you have any other questions. She can undergo the police examination while injured, as much of it is digital and would be issued via her neural implant.

Edited (html.) 2019-02-07 19:43 (UTC)

Hi Susan!

This would definitely be feasible, and Morningstar would be happy to produce credentials in other administrative and executive assistant jobs so that Ignis seems competent and experienced. His job would include a lot of odd jobs at first: fetching overpriced coffee for the governor and her deputies, helping maintain websites to keep information up to date, and lots of other odds and ends. He would have a similar position to what Peggy Carter has, so please feel free to reach out to her player for CR!

THANK YOU MODS!

but man, handling their coffee is going to be the truest test of self-control for this horrendous caffeine addict. but for the sake of information he will manage it.

Thanks so much! I am back again.

1) Thanks for the clarification! With the aftermath of the most recent event, and the NAPD's discovery that they can be rendered ineffective, and their desire to actively recruit people and push them through- I'm curious as to what effect this would have on Dick's training, if any- and what kind of hot goss is in the office regarding this, other than the general unease of it all.

2) I will see you down the line for more on this. I'm pretty excited to pick at these.

3) I'm gonna root for those two crazy kids. I have nothing else for this right now, other than to see if the aftermath of this event, with the MS connection, would have changed or altered anything about her in or around the office.

4) As for the networking previously mentioned, what exactly are my options with this?

As always, thanks so much!

Thanks, mods. I've got a follow up re: Jughead's article!

Jughead will spread it around to anyone that asks, and keep his ear open for those who get it that don't ask for it. He's got a hunch that he might be putting himself in the line of fire, but he's really not the type to back down when it comes to honest journalism. To those who'll listen, he'll tell them that there are testimonials from the neighbors, and a path of destruction left by those that have gone missing. He'll also toss in the explosion at the UNA base along with the words "isn't it convenient?" hoping to get anyone interested and fueled up about the possibility of the UNA kidnapping whoever they want.

He'll want to know if anyone in the office was potentially shot down for trying to report articles that were both politically charged by possibly reporting on misuse of power by the UN. He ask while his story is rotating through different hands, and try to gather opinions on why.

wow wow wow I forgot to follow up. God, sorry about this. (Also thanks for hanging in there with me.)

1. He'll definitely be running some races to show that he has, uh, a lot of crazy nerve. He's got a ride or die streak in him that makes street racing his jam. He's loyal and will very willingly talk about unfair treatment. He'll even start to think of new ways for the gang to make a name for themselves in the street racing circuit.

3. Is it possible to use the neural network or document archives to search for any of these geometric symbols? He'll be looking for associations, and possible meanings of them, specifically the ones that are similar to the ones at the Insomniac's Ball. If there are any on his invitation, he'll be looking into those, too.

Wonderful, thank you! o7

I have no questions at present but if I do, I'll get back to you.

Actually! I know that the real world police academy takes six months - is NAPD's academy reflective of this, or is it more streamlined for RP purposes? The timeline I'm roughly working with is she'll take the exam and enter the academy in a month OOCly / two or three weeks ICly, so having a clear idea when she'll be done will satisfy my date-driven, control freak soul.

Additionally, what is the general climate with the other academy trainees / higher ups re: Morningstar agents? Is it overwhelmingly negative, just murmurs, immaterial, etc.

Thanks again!

Hey mods! Sorry I’ve left some older threads dangling, but I have a few newer qs:

1. Following the event, if Fitz went to check in with Ishani afterwards to talk samples, asking if she has any personal thoughts on what she’s been looking at from the PCs (their bloodwork, the monster samples, the residue from the fire), would she have anything to add? Specifically, he’d ask if she’s ever seen anything like their samples at her day job or while working with Morningstar. He’d also inquire about how she stored their data and sent reports back, with the aim of scoping out whether there’s a data trail the PCs need to wipe.

2. PULSAR CHAT:
— Can employees involved in their respective corporations get further details on the UN/corporate partnerships in play? Specifically, Fitz would look into which departments at Pulsar work closely with the UN and if there are any key individuals in the company that liaise with them, so he knows who to schmooze.
— Similarly, is Pulsar involved in defence/weapons technology at all? Again, Fitz would seek this information out online and in person. If not, are any of the corporations? Does a particular corporation overtly work with the UN/UNA on their tech?
— A while back I asked about spacetime/interuniversal travel projects! Now that Fitz works at Pulsar, can he get more detail on the projects/research in progress there? He’d trawl their databases, chat up coworkers, listen for gossip, and straight up ask his supervisor if they’ve considered it, as it’s something he finds compelling for the next great capitalist frontier, amiright. If he can find any researchers on the subject within Pulsar, he’d reach out to them to begin cultivating a relationship, if that’s a possibility!
— Can Fitz find information online or at work about where Pulsar’s other offices are located? Specifically, he’d like to check if they’re operating in New Beijing, New Oslo, and New Venice? And if so, if they’re small offices or large endeavours?

3. UNRELATED TO THE PULSAR CHAT: Would it be possible for Fitz to get a secondhand hoverbike? Either on the legal or illegal market; he’s easy. Older model, kind of scrappy and in need of repairs is fine. He’s just looking for a basis that the PC geek squad can build on and get zooming.

Thank you!

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

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PLOT ENGAGEMENT (ARCHIVED)

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