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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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1. Since Ardyn now the Chairperson of the Economic and and Financial Affairs Council for New Amsterdam, I thought it might be prudent to clarify just exactly what his day-to-day obligations would be. Some on-the-fly research has led me to believe that Ardyn will be overseeing the "economic policy coordination, economic surveillance,… financial and capital movements and economic relations…” of the city, and possibly in conjunction with other megacities. What sort of tasks can be expected of him, and are there any big name NPCs that should be noted in which he’ll be working with on the regular?
1b. Ardyn wants to have Prompto as his personal assistant for this job, leaning on the hopes that working with him in the dreamscape would make this more viable of a proposal. This is mostly to open up further OOC plotting avenues, and for IC shenans. Would this be possible?
2. For Markus, would it be reasonable to add him to the list of people Gaby and El direct individuals to sign up for Morningstar or otherwise learn more about the organization? This was briefly discussed in the CR meme here, and the idea is that it would split the OOC/IC load more evenly. And in a related question, are there any NPCs of note that Markus might be able to convince to join the cause, in the interest of expanding the NA Morningstar network? For reference, his usual social circles include: the management and clientele at the restaurant where he works, his art contacts (which include many who are a proponent of social/political change), and anyone who frequents the places where he’s keen on volunteering, including various museums and galleries focused on art or history.
3. This question is more related to an on-going plot thread, and how to approach it a certain way. As I understand it, there has been some IC interest in making contact with the mysterious third party that aided in getting Jake and Hei out of detainment during the Murdergate fiasco, but with these characters no longer here, some of the information regarding this is no longer available to the Displaced as a whole. Recreating this situation is one way to open up that avenue again, I assume, though I was wondering what the consequences were if the reason for detainment was a little more lowkey.
So basically my question is this: if a newly-arrived character (with an implant still unregistered with no ID linked to it), approaches or is found by the authorities (for any number of reasons that a confused newcomer might do so, probably causing a ruckus), what would the consequences be? Especially if they are far more open about being confused and having no clue about what’s going on?
Admittedly I realize this is hard to plot for too far in advance, as this would require taking into account a character that hasn’t yet been accepted. However I do have a character in the app queue that I wouldn’t mind subjecting this to, with the stipulation that this doesn’t step on too many toes and wouldn’t completely upend the game by doing so. It would be mostly exist in order to see where this avenue would lead, and if it would unearth more answers and opportunities for the Displaced.
My heart will not be broken if this is an idea that doesn’t work on various levels — timing, logistics, OOC planning, etc. Just a bit of brainstorming because I had been curious!
Thanks!
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1. Most of Ardyn's duties will involve chairing meetings, but he will also be doing a lot of policy review and policy writing! He will be in meetings with Governor Gill-Jade, and most of his other daily activities will include the following three people:
As for the NPC network, this is definitely possible. Right now, Gaby and El would recommend that he reaches out to them to establish them as contacts before looking at them to join Morningstar. Right now, it's hard to have anyone join Morningstar without the Displaced becoming known, and they want to make sure operations are moving.
Otherwise, feel free to come up with a couple NPCs as contacts within these circles and let us know who they are!
3. The results will largely be the same! The murder was bad, but having an unregistered implant is much, much more alarming for the police and they will absolutely detain anyone with one. The release would also be similar. We recommend either following up with this with V, or having someone try to get in touch with Riko. Doctor Strange is aware of who she is, so the information is out there if anyone wants to find it out. Loki also knows where Gaby lives with her, and where Gaby works. It might be easier to follow that lead if you'd like, and we'd be happy to work with you to make that happen. V could still lead to Riko without going through these avenues and let people know about Riko's curiosity once he's released.
From what we've seen, this lead hasn't been publicly spoken about, so it's likely that the opportunities to follow up with it haven't made themselves available. If we're wrong - we may be! - we're definitely eager to work with you to have V set up for the fall guy.
This would obviously still involve a lot of lengthy investigation to get back to the source of all of the characters, since they have a lot of resources available to them.
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I’ll have more thoughts/questions for Ardyn and Markus a little later once I get a chance to mull over this info! But I can confirm that Markus will be primarily aiding with MS recruitment!
And also — since I assume this is more time-sensitive — I’m definitely down for making V the very confused fall guy. Of course, I’m more than happy to collab with any of the aforementioned characters (or anyone else who might be interested) after the fact, as well, in regards to furthering the plot or just sharing information. How would all this work, then, going forward?
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The arrival log will be during some Halloween festivities, and he may need to wander away a bit. Given that he won't have a cane, it might be hard for him to get anywhere, so we'd need you to figure out how he's found and how he moves around on his own. But since these festivities can get rowdy - and, as you'll see, are encouraged to be that way - there will be police patrolling the area to keep things from getting too out of hand. Even if he's not "out of hand" - his lack of registered implant would force them to bring him in.
From there, we'd do an NPC thread with Riko and play it by ear from there, though he won't be detained for more than a day. Whoever's coming to rescue him will be showing up much faster this time, and since he won't have committed a crime, there won't be as much red tape involved in his release. That will be enough to get Riko permanently involved in finding out why this has happened with three separate individuals in a short period of time, so we'd see how the plot goes from there. Without a "major UNA operation" happening at the same time, she'll have more freedom to move.
We can set up an NPC log that's separate, or do it on the arrival log itself! It's up to you.
Otherwise - we'll be leaving everything after his talk with Riko and eventual release open ended to see how the characters take it.
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And a separate log would be fantastic!
As for the rest, I’m all on board for an open-ended continuation of this particular plot! If you need me to write/incorporate anything specific in his top level when the intro log goes up, just let me know and I’ll plan for it ahead of time!
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We're looping back to let you know we'll set up the log with Riko by the end of today or tomorrow. We recommend not setting any prompts in the safehouse and making sure people know that V won't be going back to the safehouse with anyone! If you have any other questions, let us know. He'll be out by the evening of the 22nd, but please wait until we tell you how that goes since we want to see how his conversation with Riko proceeds.
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We wrote the warnings as if he was, just in case - but if you want the effects to have faded before Riko managed to show up, we're fine with that, too!
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I didn’t have anyone in mind, but there are a couple of individuals who would be aware of V being taken away by the police in the first place. Dick (because he works at the NAPD and might have seen him taken in?) and Prompto (who literally saw him get arrested by the authorities in his intro log thread). Maybe they would make the most sense? I spoke with the players and they expressed interest, as well.
Otherwise, I don’t have a preference if Gaby would reach out to anyone else specific!
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Those two sound great - and we'll maybe pull in Doctor Strange if Gee has time. We'll be reaching out to her and starting threads with Gaia and Kira in the meantime, as well as putting up a log for his release.
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SORRY HAHAH sweeps in at the last minute as the extra party only to realise I don't have a clue how to group log thank you for including me sorry that I'm This Way 😂
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Beyond that, even though I assume V was drugged during the transfer process from the station to the haunted house, did he overhear or see anything on the ride over that might’ve stuck with him?
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They wouldn't have said much, and it's likely that if they were communicating, it was via their neural implants.