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riverview: november test drive meme

Welcome to Riverview's test drive meme! Feel free to dip your toes in on the test drive meme to try out your character in the setting, play out a mission, and get samples for your application at the same time!
● There are currently 22 Character Slots available.
● Reserves are Open. Applications will be open from December 1st until December 7th.
● Providing all parties are amenable, threads on the test drive meme can count as game canon, as the plot in the prompts presented is game canon.
● TDM threads do not count for Activity Check, but they do count for Activity Bonus Points, so long as all characters involved are accepted into the game.
● Threading on the TDM is intended for prospective new characters, so top-levels should only be posted by players of these characters. Since the events in the TDM are considered game canon, characters currently in the game are free to use the TDM prompts for logs and posts on the regular communities.
Feel free to use the prompts below or create your own scenario. The setting is built to be flexible, so feel free to make things up as you go.
information resources
premise ● arrival ● setting ● ask a question ● calendar ● navigation

After the reawakening of a hydroelectric power relay station in the Abandoned City last month, due to the power surges sent through it by a resident, there have been multiple scouting parties out to the station to try to get it permanently up and running. Getting this set up would really help with making the power grid more stable and would be a solid first step toward expanding the size of the livable city. The only problem? The path along the transit spur is still not properly secured, and any trip out to the station is liable to draw animal attacks from the surrounding overgrown buildings.
Each team that has headed out to help get the station up and running has had ample bodyguards and fighters to protect the techs, but those kinds of expeditions aren't exactly sustainable. This month's focus is on setting a temporary but solid perimeter fence around the length of the spur line to allow for regular transit trips out to the power station. Anyone who volunteers will join one of the small teams that will clear the area around the track, or will follow a clearing team with a small hover-sled that carries 10 posts. Once the each post is set up (through being driven into the ground or attached to a tree trunk or other structure), a force shield and line of laser beams will engage between the newest post and the one before it, allowing the teams to slowly erect a zone of relative safety for anyone who wants to travel along the spur line.
Have your character start up a team or join an existing one and help get things moving toward expansion of the city! This mission will be assumed to be completed as of December's Test Drive Meme.
It isn't just security that's needed along the tram spur line - the whole thing needs to be activated and made to work so it's a quick and easy train ride from the Inhabited City to the power station. That means that the tracks and tram cars need to be repaired and the whole thing needs to be cleared of debris and plant life. It also means that supplies will need to be run along the spur line to aid anyone working on the repair.
Whether your character has some kind of technical, mechanical, or construction expertise that would allow them to help with repairs, is a fighter that can help protect teams on the semi-secure train line, or is just willing to help cart hover-sleds of supplies along the tram line for the teams, every little bit helps!
The upcoming holiday in December is called Hygge and it is a celebration of familial love and found family. Characterized by meals with family, time spent together, and cuddling up around bonfires with found family, it's very focused on a close-knit group that already exists.
But what about the newcomers? People who've only arrived this month or last month and haven't had a chance to put down roots and make those connections? It certainly isn't fair for them to be completely left out!
To deal with this problem, the Government of Riverview is hosting it's annual "More Alike Than Different" convention, an event where anyone who hasn't had a chance to develop a warm, comfortable circle of found family or close friends to celebrate Hygge with can come and find people who may be like-minded, share problems or interests. The convention lasts from November 20th until Hygge begins on December 1st, and features an open space full of cozy half-circle couches where people can settle in and create a sign or other indication of the shared experience being discussed there. This is a quick and easy way to find groups of people that you have things in common with, for better or worse!
How It Works:
● This prompt works in a slightly unusual way, and will happen in the prompt iii sub-thread. Players can post an OTA top-level for each individual character but use this sub-thread for prompt iii specifically.
● This sub-thread will work similarly to the Bakerstreet "Support Group" meme, where a player can post a blank top-level under the sub-thread with something about a character that they might have in common with other characters. Then they can post up a conversation starter with their character that other characters with similar experiences can join in on.
● The subject of the top-level can be traits, life experiences, interests, or anything else broad enough to encompass more than one character. Examples: "Underappreciated Geniuses," "Troubled Mech Pilots," or "People Who Love Pets More Than People." The mod account will post a couple of generalized top-levels to get the ball rolling and spark some ideas.
With the increase in rainfall in the Quarantine lately and the dropping temperatures, a bit of trouble has been brewing with some new delivery drones used by an online shopping conglomerate in the city. The drones have been malfunctioning due to leaks in their outer core, and have been functioning in a way they're not quite supposed to.
Instead of picking up items from the depot and dropping them off to the intended recipients, the drones have, instead, been taking items from random places - whether it's stolen directly off of a casually shopping resident in the marketplace or taken from an open window or a house balcony, things are going missing all around the city. And where are they ending up? Well...anywhere that's been delivered to by the online shopping conglomerate in the past year, which means pretty much anywhere!
Whether your character is losing a personal item to a rogue drone and chasing it down, or finding an item that might belong to someone else, just include a note for anyone who might like to lose or find the item, and see what kind of random new friends can be made while returning the items to their rightful owners!
Whether your character is posting up a silly word game, trying to get hold of a friend, or putting out feelers for people to go out into the fray with, the network is going strong.
Alternately, an offer for a free app is popping up on new arrivals' devices - Friendr is a friend-finder and/or dating app. If characters choose to install it, they will fill out a short bio and parameters for what they're looking for, upload a snap of themselves, and then proceed to browse for matches. This is a typical swipe-left-or-right type app.
Friendr base code is by photosynthesis.
The code in the textbox is for the default color scheme, but the Friendr app has a wide variety of themes, so feel free to customize with colors and patterns as you see fit, but do not remove the credit line out of respect for the creator of the code.
Use the wildcard prompt to choose your own adventure and do whatever else you like in the setting!
no subject
"No." There was a long pause before Ivar spoke again. "I was born a cripple." Something hard entered his eyes, a challenge of sorts, as if daring Ragnar to ask the question that he knew must already be swimming around in his mind. Ivar knew exactly how fortunate, or unfortunate depending on the point of view, he had been.
On his worst days, he sometimes wish his father had gone through with abandoning him in the woods. But love for his children had always been Ragnar's weakness.
no subject
A death defying injury in battle or a tragic sailing or horse back riding accident was one thing, a birth defect, however, was quite another and the look he gave Ivar was probably exactly what he'd expected. Tilting his head slightly, he seemed to take a moment to actually process it all, looking half lost in thought.
After a moment, he gave Ivar a single slow nod.
"It is difficult not to see every child as a blessing from the Gods. If you were not meant to be here, the Gods would not have made it so," That he'd survived this long seemed to be some sort of testament to the will of the Gods, something beyond their understanding.
no subject
"The Gods' will is to keep me alive until I have carved out my name in the world." Something that he knew Ragnar could understand quite well. Ivar had already made a good start on it, but he wasn't going to stop until all of England had been razed to the ground.
no subject
"'Misplaced sentiment'... It would be no easy task to take the life of your own child. Even one born like yourself," He'd tried to imagine what he would've done, what he would've been able to do, if Bjorn had been born with similar defects. Still, did a parent's weakness doom a child like that to suffer more because of what the parent could not bring himself to do? Maybe.
Ragnar couldn't help but give Ivar a wicked smirk. That kind of ambition was most definitely something he understood all too well.
"Then it would seem they do have great plans for you," A pause, "And yet, both of us have arrived here."
His only guess was that he was supposed to learn something here, in this strange place with their strange technologies, and use it to his advantage once he's returned home.
no subject
Sometimes, Ivar had honestly hated him for it. But he never could fully hate his father, not when he'd been the one to give him purpose in life. Ragnar was an easy man to love, it was true, even for someone as psychotic as Ivar.
"Because we both felt out of place if what they say in this place is true. No need to guess why I felt as such." Ivar's felt out of place among the Vikings every day of his life. Did he fit in any better here? Well, that was debatable. At least he'd carved a life out for himself. Now, it seemed, the gods had seen fit to have a sense of humor and bring his father here.
no subject
Maybe... maybe this had something to do with his most recent requests to the Gods during the festival. He felt the all to familiar feeling welling up, the feeling that he'd accidentally kicked a hornet's nest of fate and destiny.
"Bo- Ivar. How long has it been since you arrived here?" There was a lot not being said between them and Ragnar was curious whether the young man had been here long enough to really reflect on this place compared to the world they had come from.
no subject
Mentioning the length of time it had been out loud made Ivar go quiet for a long moment. Ivar was beginning to wonder if he'd ever get back home or if he'd have to go through the full five-year period before the portal would take him back through. Well, Ivar had never been one to passively sit around, and wait for things to come to him. Others had gone back through the portal to their own or different worlds. He'd find a way.
no subject
"Do you miss it? Did you feel 'out of place' enough to prefer this place to your home?" There was an accusatory undertone to the questions and a well hidden judgemental glint in his eyes. Like most of his people, people's homelands and roots were something to be fiercely proud of and Ragnar was no different.
no subject
No matter how long he'd been here, the desire to return home and finish his revenge has never left Ivar. He wants to see things through and crush all of England under his heel. He had big plans, this son of Ragnar, ideas planted into his head by the man before him.
no subject
"Ah, yes. England. I also have plans to return. Plans for England and her Kings.
Your daughter is here though? She... also felt out of place? Can you take her with you? Not to England. Back to... I don't think you said where you were from," Ivar was Viking, obviously. They'd established that. And he'd heard of Ragnar, but many knew his name these days. Part of him, admittedly a very small part of him, was curious for Ivar's sake, but he was mostly asking the question for himself and Gyda. Not that he would admit that.
no subject
"Winter was actually born here. As for taking her back with me--" Ivar just changed the subject. Revealing he was from Kattegat was just going to open up too many questions. "--that's where I feel conflicted. I can't go off to fight a war and take care of a child at the same time. And her mother...left."
No elaboration as to what that meant, though the flicker of pain that went over his face showed it hadn't been pleasant whatever occurred. Letha had up and left them both, right after Ivar had told her he loved her, and they'd had sex for the first time. Almost four months and he still was hurting.
no subject
"Mm... That is a problem. You have no one you trust who you could ask to watch her? Although she is quite young to be left in someone else's care. Even someone you trusted," The conversation had his thoughts turning to Athelstan. His situation had been quite different, his children much older, but even so, if it had not been for Athelstan, Lagertha would have had to remain at their farm instead of raiding.
"Who watches her now? While you are doing things like this?"
no subject
As for the second question, Ivar merely shrugged. "People." One could always tell when Ivar didn't want to talk about something anymore. His answers either became sarcastic and biting or he almost stopped answering completely, just giving out laconic, one-word responses. He disliked having to leave Winter with caretakers so often, but what else could he do?
no subject
"People?" He wouldn't even be pushing the subject if it hadn't been for Ivar's tone, which was just begging to be mocked in return, "Alright. Well, I'm glad people are watching her and you haven't left her to be cared for by goats."
Ragnar was actually happy to drop the topic and busied himself by loading the last few things onto the sled.
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"At least I return home to her every night. Some men abandon their families when they decide it's too hard and they need an easy way out." There's more venom in his voice than the situation should warrant when being discussed with someone near enough to being a stranger, but Ivar can't help it. The ten years worth of bitterness he felt towards his father's disappearance hadn't been wiped out just by his brief return.
Still, if Ivar had truly resented his father, he would have been like Hvitserk, with his talk of killing him. Ragnar, with his charm and charisma, was an easy man to forgive when it came to his many shortcomings.
no subject
The strange retort obviously puzzled him. He had no idea what the young man was going on about.
"How about you do something useful," Apparently, he wasn't about to let up, "And tell me how this sled works. Is it just pushed?"
no subject
They had a job to do. Right. He could focus on that instead of the turmoil of emotions that came from having his father here and back in his life. "Just push it and it moves through the air. Something about an engine in it." Even after all these months, Ivar's knowledge on advanced technology is a bit spotty.