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diceofthegods ([personal profile] diceofthegods) wrote in [community profile] childrenofbajablast2025-07-01 07:56 am
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TEST DRIVE MEME #4

Arrival
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Broken Palace by Jonathan Eng
0:07 / 1:13
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During 2014 Jonathan Eng composed the soundtrack for interactive narrative experience The Sailor’s Dream, consisting of a mix of instrumental tracks and a seven-part musical story told in folk song-form.

Like all who come through the summoning circle, your arrival is heralded by a dream. Waking up is a dizzying, disorienting thing... and possibly made worse by the fact that you aren't alone.

Right after you appear, so does someone else. If you're lucky*, they'll simply blink into existence by your side. If you're not, there's a chance they spawned below or above you. That's one way to make a memorable first impression. Best untangle yourselves and get things figured out.

If you're extremely unlucky*, instead of another person being brought through the summoning circle, it's a monster. The creature buzzes menacingly and immediately darts at any potential fresh blood it can.

Some welcome this is. If you aren't the fighting type, hopefully someone nearby is. Eventually, one of the local Town guards will slay the monster before it - and you - cause too much trouble or lose too much blood.

SINK OR SWIM
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Since several people in Town by now are fully-fledged dragons, Dimitri and Hoshiko have teamed up to provide some training drills for those wanting to hone their skills. Although meant for more veteran dragons, newcomers are also welcome to observe and learn what they might be able to do! They may even be paired up with a more established offworlder of the same dragon type as a mentor.

These drills will be around the new(er) formed lake thanks to a previous offworlder's efforts. It provides the perfect place to see what someone's breath weapon can do in different environments as well as help people cool off if they need to. Either way, don't expect your trainers to go easy on you. While not an exhaustive list, the training drills include...

    Underwater Breath Attacks - No matter the situation, a dragon needs to be able to utilize their breath weapon accordingly. Sections of the lake have been sectioned off for different dragon types to practice this. See how poison or acid spreads, learn how to electrocute or freeze enemies, or even boil the water with a bit of concentrated fire. No aquatic animals will be harmed, but they can't guarantee you'll come out unscathed if you happen to fall in.

    Marksmanship - As the resident ranged shooter expert, Hoshiko will be testing people's accuracy with their breath weapons. She'll have a variety of targets around the lake set up to hit the bullseye of if you can. The most difficult though will be the moving target that's strapped to herself. For a large dragon, she moves surprisingly fast and will duck in and out of the water as well to provide an appropriate challenge.

    Conjuration Classes - Taking this opportunity, Ardyn Izunia ([personal profile] fatedfinality) is offering his services in his growing conjuration skills. Does he have permission? Who knows! Probably not! Does he care? Also no! Learn the first level spell/cantrip 'Find Familiar' and summon your own fun little daemon friend! They will not infect anyone, thankfully, but if summoned incorrectly they can harm the summoner or those nearby. All part of the training, he'll say, and let people handle it as they're meant to.

    Staying Vigilant - While parts of the lake are sectioned off, this one is clear about not entering. A painted sign reads: "Beware of kelpies." It might be easy to presume this is also part of the training drills, but it actually isn't. Dimitri is trying to keep offworlders from being drowned. Thankfully, the kelpies aren't actually that much of a threat. Why, you ask? Well...

    "Hey," says one, skirting the edge of the lake shore. "Hey, I need some help here. I'm stuck in the kelp and can't get out." This seems reasonable. It is covered in kelp and waterlogged. Besides, a talking horse surely isn't the strangest thing most people in Town have seen by now. Maybe you can assist just in case. "I promise I won't drown you," it adds, which is a bit suspicious but may still not be enough to deter someone entirely.

    However, another snout and muzzle pokes up from the water nearby its friend. "Wait- We are going to drown them though for real, right? Like, I just want to be sure-"
    "Shut up," the first kelpie hisses. "You always do this, man! This is why we never get to drown anyone!"
    "Sorry. Sorry, it's just- You said we weren't, but I thought we were so I got confused. A-anyway, right! Hello. We are totally normal horses who will not drown you. Please, come closer."

    If you refuse, the kelpies continue to bicker until they're effectively deterred and sink back down into the depths before (weakly) attempting to drown someone else again later.

Although this is supposed to be super serious training time, no one is stopping you from having a bit of fun too. The climbing structures are fun to jump off into the water. Those ropes dangling over the edge from thick tree branches make a great swing to catapult you far into the lake. Sometimes, some play is necessary even in the midst of 'work.'


THIS HEAT IS INTENTS
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It's Raining Somewhere Else by Toby Fox
2:01 / 2:54
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Robert F. "Toby" Fox is an American video game developer and composer. He is best known for developing the role-playing video game Undertale.

During the day, the heat becomes almost intolerable at its peaks. While some dragonbonded were lucky to get an ice type, others may not be. Without more modern amenities, people of Town and Offworlders both are left to do what they can to combat the rising temperatures. It is recommended people open their windows at night to let the cool air in but then close it again as the sun starts to climb.

After a couple of days of sweltering suffering in the midst of a heatwave, Charlie offers camping equipment for people who may want to escape the warmth as best they can. People can camp by rivers or lakes to keep cool, fish for food, and set up bonfires at night. Slayd might be seen at your campsite, even, with a fun tune to keep spirits up.

Although not an exhaustive list, some of the things offworlders can do while camping are...

    ⁂ Chase or catch lightning bugs. They are in abundance during the early nighttime and can provide a bit of fun.
    ⁂ Cook over the campfire. S'Mores, meat, whatever! Just be careful of attracting predators if you do this. Dispose of all your food properly lest you invite raccoons, bears, or more to your campsite.
    ⁂ Foraging. Similarly, finding food out in nature is a fun activity. Although the Fae might try to trick you with dancing lights, they're easy enough to dissuade.
    ⁂ Stargazing. The constellations here are different, but it might be worth mapping them out or learning their stories.
    ( NSFW - Nudity ) Skinny Dipping. A classic camping activity once the sun sets is stripping off your clothes and going for a swim. The water is cool, no one can see, and it's kind of freeing!
    ⁂ ... and lots more! Have fun out there, offworlders, and try not to do too much damage.
While some may also worry about the previous giant mosquitos or other abnormally large bugs, the tents provided by Charlie have built-in protections against them! They are equipped with enhanced citronella oil that smells nice but keeps insects away. However, it also has an intense calming effect on those with sensitive noses... like dragons and dragonbonded! Even the most tense or uptight of individuals will feel relaxed and happy thanks to this scent.

The change in attitude is only temporary though and will diminish over time once someone is away from the tent for a few hours. Once they return to it though, the cycle will begin again and some may catch on to this pattern. But what's the harm, really? Enjoy the cool breeze, have a good sleep, and hopefully sweet dreams. You might even be more amicable to sharing your tent space thanks to your improved mood but that is up to you!
Rocky Talky
One of the things that was given to you in your welcome pack from Charlie was a summoning-stone. Although it looks like, well, an ordinary stone- It's actually magic! You can look through it and see someone else's face too if you're both viewing your stones at the same time. It can also record your speech and deliver that to someone else in a snap.

One of the other features is that you can scrawl on it. It will turn your writing into legible text that you can send others to read on their stones. Of course, you need to attune yourself to your stone first. To that end, it prompts you to set up a Rockstar Profile:

COMMENT CODE TEMPLATE
Notes
⁂ Hello and welcome to Children of Bahamut! If you have any questions, suggestions, or feedback feel free to comment here!

⁂ We have a top-level directory for ease of finding new players to tag! After some feedback, we ask that only new players link their top-levels though current players are allowed to top-level and enjoy the TDM if they so wish as well!
    (Example header: character name | canon | new/current player )
⁂ For the Arrival prompt, feel free to roll a d20 to see how lucky or unlucky you are.

⁂ Similarly, for the marksmanship prompt, players will need to roll a 15 or higher to successfully hit Hoshiko's moving target.

⁂ You can customize the the Rockstar Profile however you wish! So long as its readable, have fun. The profile image appears best when a 250 by 250 square image. Anything too tall might stretch it strangely or cause issues. If you need to edit or crop a picture to suit, we recommend using Pixlr as a free option for up to three images! We're not sponsored or anything, it's just neat and convenient.

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fatedfinality: ɪᴛ's ᴀʙᴏᴜᴛ ᴘᴏᴡᴇʀ. (Iᴛ's ɴᴏᴛ ᴀʙᴏᴜᴛ ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴜʀᴇ)

Ardyn Izunia ↝ FFXV ↝ Current Player

[personal profile] fatedfinality 2025-07-03 02:27 am (UTC)(link)
↝ conjuration classes.
While Dimitri may try to prevent him from poaching people from training drills for his classes, his success is middling at best. Ardyn just keeps coming back around eventually like an unfortunate invasive weed. The man eventually gives up and seems to focus instead on his actual pupils but the redhead is happy to rope anyone he can into his impromptu conjuration practice.

"No rune lines necessary," he explains, with a dismissive roll of his wrist. "All you need to do is focus and have the confidence to exert your will over what you summon." Otherwise, they might be in for a fight. Their lack of security in their ability though isn't Ardyn's problem. Nor will he be of much assistance if that does happen to be the case.

He demonstrates the 'proper' technique though by extending his hand and curling his fingers up like he's physically pulling something up from the earth. A glob of inky black substance starts to manifest before coming together in the shape of a gooey, panting canine-like creature. It regards Ardyn with a headtilt before coming to his side as the man whistles sharply. It gets a pet on the head for its following of the command and wags its tail in response. Despite being a sludge abomination, it is kind of cute.

"Now, your turn."


↝ staying vigilant.
"Totally normal horses, you say?" Ardyn questions, crouching by the lake shore to be more 'eye level' with the completely inept kelpies. They've got the spirit though. He can respect that.

"Yeah, absolutely," one answers.
"What do horses eat then?" Ardyn asks.
"Uh..."

Rather than be frightened by the creatures wanting to pull him into the water and end his life, Ardyn is now coaching them in how to be more convincing. Horses eat grass! They sleep in barns or stables! They'd also be a lot more panicked about drowning, like a person they're dragging down would- You know, the important things. The kelpies are listening intently and nodding along injecting with 'yeah, makes sense' or 'totally, man,' here or there.

Someone might want to... stop? Him? Before he gets people killed?


↝ beating the heat.
( █ cw for: he's gross )

Ardyn happens to be one of the lucky dragonbonded that has ice as his breath weapon. As a result, he rests in his fully draconic form and stretches out with a loud yawn at his own campsite. Anyone that approaches will notice it is several degrees cooler around his designated area. However, they'll also be promptly nudged back into the heat by a large dragon paw.

"Ah, ah," he says, a low rumble of a noise. "Using this ability really takes it out of me. I can't just do it for anyone. What are you offering me in return, hm?" He's waiting as he watches the other person sweat.

Or, if you're someone he just happens to be fond about, he won't immediately send you away. Instead, Ardyn will pull the person close and lick them like a disgusting heathen. "Hm," he growls, "salty." About what he expected, of course, but still somehow worth commentating on. He gives another snuffle before licking them again. You know, just to be sure.


↝ wildcard / plot with me.
(( hello hi once again it's chai! if you aren't sure if Ardyn is fond of your character, you can hmu to hash things out. otherwise, if you have any other ideas or wanna plot something out find me @ tentamenace on plurk/discord or PM this journal! ))
errant_knight: (My heart and hands collide)

Beating the heat

[personal profile] errant_knight 2025-07-03 02:53 am (UTC)(link)
"Ugh. Why are you like this?" Ravus grumbles as he is hauled up against Ardyn's snout to be licked like some sort of human popsicle.

If it bothered him so much, he could very well just push away. It's not as if he isn't unnaturally strong or without a dragon form of his own. But he can't deny the temptation of dragon-powered air conditioning isn't strong in this heat. Or that he... Actually doesn't mind being licked that much. It's only a little gross. Which is a mortifying thought that he keeps to himself as he half-heartedly pushes at Ardyn's muzzle. Which may stray into a pet or two if he continues to be licked.
fatedfinality: ɪs sᴜᴄʜ ᴀ ʙᴏʀɪɴɢ ᴛʜʀᴇᴀᴛ. ('Yᴏᴜ'ʟʟ ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ ғɪɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴏᴅʏ')

[personal profile] fatedfinality 2025-07-03 05:40 am (UTC)(link)
"Heh," is the only initial reply in the form of a low chuckle. While Ardyn expected a bit more push back, he isn't going to be too upset about not actually receiving it. Being able to get away with things like this is fun. And, he admits, it's been a bit since he allowed himself just a bit of harmless mischief. Gross, sure, but ultimately harmless.

"A lot of reasons. But that didn't exactly sound like a complaint either," Ardyn notes, unable to refrain from teasing a little. Still, he isn't entirely cruel. Instead of warm breath and tongue tickling Ravus next time, it's cool to the touch. Not ice cold just yet but he knows too drastic a temperature change could cause some issue.

The shove of his snout gets a huff of icy air through his nostrils. He reaches out his long tongue to waggle at Ravus just out of reach now from the (admittedly feeble) push. The dragon draws it back in though and instead bunts his head into Ravus' hand when he pushes again.
errant_knight: (Will lead me anywhere)

[personal profile] errant_knight 2025-07-03 08:18 am (UTC)(link)
Ravus is rather easy to bully, all things considered. Especially if it comes from people he's fond of. While he'd never admit to enjoying it, it's not a great defense he puts up when that weak shove barely does anything. He doesn't look impressed about Ardyn sticking his tongue out, either. He's got half a mind to grab it and pull just to get back at him, but mentally insists that's too childish.

When the chilled air puffs against his front, it makes a shiver of goosebumps rise along the back of his neck as the cooling vapor ghosts over his skin. It's not too cold, but any sort of relief is a welcome contradiction to the heat. This time, he doesn't even shove. Instead, when Ardyn pushes his head into Ravus' hands, he sighs, and scritches along the hairline of his fluffy mane.

"It wasn't a complaint. Merely musing aloud how I've managed to find myself with an oversized fool who can't keep his tongue to himself."