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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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no subject
1. Scott can express his interest in helping Morningstar to either Gaby or El, and they'll pass his name on to the higherups. They'll start tapping him for jobs, which he will need to complete successfully in order to earn more trust from the organization.
2a. Please could you clarify which site? We're not sure if you mean the site of the large creature's carcass, the wall where it broke through, or elsewhere - our answer will obviously depend on which one!
2b/c. Universities are very few and far between, and there are none in New Amsterdam! Most students seeking higher education do it through the internet instead. As such, research facilities are largely associated with corporations or the government. For the specific of the monster research, Scott will find that he won't be able to get his hands on any information about the ongoing research, or which corporations are leading the charge. It's all shrouded in quite a bit of mystery, and even if he asks Morningstar, they will say they're working on finding out who's involved, but haven't been able to find any solid leads as yet.
As for Scott's employment, you can feel free to assume that El forged the certification for him to become a plumber. El would absolutely recommend that Scott take the certification course online if he's never done this work, as it'll be very obvious if he doesn't know what he's doing. El would recommend that he gets in with a plumbing service that aids a lot of the larger corporations, and would provide the information needed for this route.
3. In order to successfully pursue vigilantism, Scott would have to get his hands on some of the technology used to scramble neural implant tracking and facial recognition, such as the masks Morningstar use. Unfortunately Morningstar are unlikely to provide these outside of their specific operations, and getting his hands on anything similar elsewhere would be incredibly difficult. However, many of Morningstar's activities do border on vigilantism, if not the type typical for superheroes, so he may be able to get his fix through that avenue if not being a general do-gooder citizen on the streets.
As you expect, vigilantism is not encouraged either by the government or Morningstar. The assault on the giant creature was considered to be an act of vigilantism by the local police, and Morningstar, while grateful for them helping the city, considered in an extreme risk in potentially exposing their presence to the public.
no subject
2a. Ideally, what I had pictured was the place where it arrived, specifically to do some detective work. But I imagine that there might be a logistical problem to that. The place where it fell might also be ideal.
What Scott essentially wants to look for are clues to how the monster got here- its origins, in other words. Is it something somebody made, or did it come here from another dimension? With Kylo's report out it's clear that something funky is going on wrt its origin. His assumption will be either radiation accident, or intentional construction, in which case searching the sites for stuff that might lead back to something (some poorly stored radioactive waste, some left behind gear or trace chemicals from the clean-up that could be followed back to someone.)
2b/c. My poor academic little heart breaks to hear of this set-up. Corporate-driven research, the stuff of my nightmares.
If he can just use the plumbing aspect to ferret out/get access to those companies or labs directly in some way (as the on-site maintenance man or whatever) that would work for me.
But if it's not currently feasible to find the people specifically conducting the research on it right now for plot reasons...idk, this is where I'm stumbling a bit with what to do, so maybe you can help me figure out the right direction. Do those corporations/labs contract with people to do cleaning, or specifically haz waste/biological materials that would mean a third-party was involved in cleaning up chunks of monster or cleaning up those laboratories? (I'm asking because that's how we do it in my university- cleaning anything is outsource to third-party contractors so there's not a bunch of idiot researchers forgetting to take out their haz waste or doing something stupid with it. It's my understanding that this is industry standard, too, with corporate bio/haz research. So it'd occur to Scott to pursue this line investigation if possible.)
Also El is a peach. I'm pretty sure even Scott can manage to pull off coveralls.
3. Okay, this is all good information. I think Scott will stick to helping Morningstar for now, and then maybe transition to acting more on his own as he becomes familiar with the city or identifies some specific issue that he feels he has to address
in costume.Once again, I'm very sorry this took me so long to answer (I definitely should have hiatused these last two weeks.) Thank you for your patience.
no subject
2a/b/c. It would be difficult for Scott to get to the site of the monster's arrival, as it was available through the wall at a point that is far more secure. However, if you would like to have Scott begin to piece together which corporations are working on the monster over time, we would definitely be interested in helping you toward that.