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LABYRINTHS
Apr. 20th, 2015 10:42 pm
LABYRINTHS
Characters will be alerted of a labyrinth that's ready to explore by the sound of an obnoxious horn; oddly enough it can be easy to miss it from time to time, or confused for the ship's arrival horn. Upon arriving to the location, characters might find resources that have been set out for them, the other characters who will be exploring, and naturally the entrance that descends into the labyrinth. In some cases the exploration starts with a brief mingle/exchange/introduction, and other times you dive right on in!
Once the characters are ready, they can enter the labyrinth. Each labyrinth typically consists of 2-10 rooms (depending on the complexity) and most of the time the party will have to "clear" each room in order to progress to the next; the qualification will typically be a game/challenge/exploradora/task/etc. Doors leading to the next room will not unlock, or in some case not even appear, until qualifications are met. At the end of it all is the treasure that, upon being collected, will complete and eradicate the labyrinth!
Each labyrinth can differ greatly from the other, so it's not easy to describe every single thing about them! In any case, here are some general things it'd help to know:
★ Labyrinths are not very time sensitive.
Meaning, you don't have to show up at 8am sharp and expect to play in this labyrinth for the five hours following. Not how it works! Yes, some labyrinths will indicate the starting time so players can know when the post is going up and when they can start playing, but it's just a helpful indicator. In most cases, you can join in whenever! Furthermore, labyrinths can last anywhere from a few days to a week, give or take. All of this is determined by the runner of the labyrinth.
★ At the end of every labyrinth is treasure.
Treasure denotes the completion of a labyrinth! The treasure is something the party who made it through the labyrinth can enjoy. It could be something for everyone individually or something to be shared. Your party could discover lost technology, or magic doodads, or a pile of booze, or lots of pillows, or... two dozen twinkies. Eh, sometimes the treasure is useful, and other times it's plainly not.
★ Not every labyrinths consists of intense exploring or monster fighting.
Your character will have numerous opportunities to swing swords n' shit at things. They will also have many opportunities to explore and get their feet wet. But also, there are actually many labyrinths that don't involve physical strength or creative exploration strategies, instead requiring wit, decision making, bonding, creativity, and more. These can be challenges, games, activities, and tests that involve your characters in many other ways. Sometimes there are spirits possessing the room in question that requests a task completion before you move on, or a guardian demands you answer their dumbass riddle, or maybe the room itself has decided that it will not give up unless you people do a thing like confess feelings or cry about something. These labyrinths can be really weird yo.
★ Some labyrinths will pit characters against one another.
As a party the characters are expected to cooperate—that's how it should be! But some rooms or entire labyrinths will require quite the opposite. It could be splitting them into teams or pairs, requiring them to make decisions against one another, or even sacrificing someone. It's not always BAD though! It can be harmless opposition, too, like a board game or a ridiculous cooking challenge.
★ The rooms of a labyrinth can be anything.
That's right—you might find a labyrinth that's actually just a large winter wonderland held in a room. There will even be times when labyrinths don't have proper "doors," requiring you to be a little more creative with your escape to the next. In a labyrinth, most rooms will follow a "theme" of some sort, even if it's not very obvious or remarkable. Basically ANYTHING is possible and it's crazy to imagine the possibilities of what might be hiding behind a door!
★ What works in one labyrinth might not work in another.
Your character might happen upon a labyrinth where eating the rulebook meant NO RULES APPLY HURRAY! However, that isn't to say it will work with every labyrinth. They might go to another labyrinth and coincidentally find another rulebook to eat, and... nothing happens. Except, well, now they don't know the rules. Anyway, that's the thing about workarounds and game-breaking strategies in labyrinths—while some labyrinths might allow for creative solutions and witty exploitations, there will be others that require characters to follow the setup. There could be times where either thing is awarded or punished. It comes down to this: what can be said about one labyrinth can't necessarily be said about the next!
★ Anachronisms can be found in labyrinths.
You can find things ahead of its time in the labyrinths. Things like technology, pop culture references, etc—none of it will touch the fourth wall and call your character fictional though, so you don't have to sweat that. Just don't look at me funny if there's a radio playing Backstreet Boys somewhere.
★ Labyrinths can be the source of anomalies for the kingdom.
Sometimes a labyrinth can abruptly cause an anomaly of any kind for the kingdom above ground that can't be resolved until a party has explored and reclaimed said labyrinth. For instance, there might be a sudden shortage on all things sweet and sugary that is being caused by a Candyland labyrinth. Sometimes the anomalies are stranger; there might be a period when nobody can tell a lie. Better watch out!
★ You do NOT have to make it to every labyrinth.
Labyrinths in and of themselves aren't very "plotty" (unless otherwise noted) aside from the fact that the exploration of each one helps redevelop the kingdom; in other words, if you're missing the occasional labyrinth you're NOT missing something detrimental to understanding the game's grand plot. And it's ok if your character can't make every single labyrinth either—that's why the queen invited this many people to help. While your character is anticipated to take part in a labyrinth exploration from time to time, it's not something that you should stress about as a player!
★ You will always OOCly have a vague idea of what to expect from a labyrinth.
Which is to say, you won't end up tossing your character into a labyrinth SOLEY FOCUSED ON FIGHTING or FULL OF WACKED OUT TRAUMA when you never want to.
When an announcement post goes up saying "HEY GUYS WE GONNA JUMP INTO A LABYRINTH" that post will always mention what to expect ("there will totally be lots of fighting" vs "well we're looking at friendship challenges here") among other details, such as how long the runner anticipates it lasting and any warnings that need shared!
★ You can have your character "drawn" to a labyrinth.
Say you want to toss your character into this particular labyrinth adventure, but they don't feel like they have any reason to explore it, especially after their weird experience at their last. You can give your characters a pull towards it; labyrinths work wonders on affecting the people above and around them, after all. This pull can be like an emotional tug at their heart, or an insistent echo in the back of their mind, or a swelling desire that draws them to it!
★ Characters can die in labyrinths.
...assuming the labyrinth possesses a threat, that is. It depends on the nature of the labyrinth (whether those falling knives will only comically impale you or actually murder you), but it is certainly something that could happen. When your character dies they can be revived, but in most cases it won't be until the labyrinth's completion.
SETTING | THE INN | LABYRINTHS | BUSINESSES & JOBS | ANOMALIES | PLAYER TOOLS | MOD CONTACT | QUICK INTRO ~