reddosmod: (Default)
Deer Country Mod ([personal profile] reddosmod) wrote in [community profile] deercountry2021-12-08 02:19 am

I'd go back in time and change it, but I can't

DECEMBER 2021 EVENT
Hello! We are trying a new style of event this December with archival-like entries that characters can ICly find in the Archives. This should allow characters to be able to plan against certain events that occur in-game and do research ahead of time, during the event, or after the fact.

The idea is that these prompts will provide you with all the possibilities characters could theoretically face from the prompt. We hope this leaves more open-ended opportunities for people to engage with. Anything mentioned in the excerpts could be an experience characters encounter. You can always ask for clarification on any prompt on the plotting page.

This is a way to keep all event prompts relevant since new characters would be able to "read up" on these events/excerpts by visiting the Archives or other such resources for information about past events and what they can anticipate from the setting.

We hope this new style makes sense and is fun for players to work with! They will rely on players creating more of the atmosphere than the prompts, but we think that the prompts will provide the perfect guidance as to what the atmosphere should feel like. Enjoy!

IMAGE DESCRIPTORS IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE

Prompt One
[Image One: Holiday themed antler decoration.]
[Image Two: White stag with perfect, circular antlers with bits of ice attached.]

Prompt Two
[Image One: Sculpture of white rabbit with neck caught in a snare. Non-graphic.]
[Image Two: Person in red cloak and wolf mask turning around.]

Prompt Three
[Image One: Puppet making bloody snow angel in snow.]
[Image Two: Bloodied hands wrapped in bandages clenching.]

WINTER MOURNING
WHEN: Begins in December and can last until the end of Feb.
WHERE: Everywhere
CONTENT WARNINGS: Spoilers for various canons, survival situations, forced memory share


[A passage from Rituals of Trench: Remembering Our Pasts reads the following:]

"A long-standing tradition to celebrate Bone Season is for Deerians to collect antlers and bones salvaged from natural resources and create decorative home accents. These antler-bone decors are known formally as Winter Mournings and can be found in almost every residential home throughout Deer Country. Winter Mournings can be made to look like wreaths, candle holders, or simply an antler with a bow hung up on a wall.

Winter Mournings is seen as a way to honor one's past tribulations and how one has managed to survive and overcome hardships during their life. Winter Mournings serves as a testament to survival and a willingness to keep surviving even when things look bleak and dismal.

Creating Winter Mournings is considered a blessing to the Pthumerians Dorothea, Remina, and Argonaut. You will know if the blessing was accepted once your Winter Mourning begins to glow like the moon. Touch your Winter Mourning and you will be pulled back in time to a memory of a specific time when you or someone else had to survive something physically or mentally challenging. For some, it is merely a memory that cannot hurt, but for others, you may want to proceed with caution as it has been known to pull people physically back to times of war.

One cannot choose which memory they wind up in if it is their own, a friend's, or a complete stranger's. Winter Mournings was designed to create a sense of union and empathy among residents and is meant to open your mind and heart to those who have suffered around you. It is time you explore your past, or someone else's past, with an open mind and see how the other side has lived through hard times. These memories are known to be from adolescence, adulthood, or sometimes even futures that have not yet happened or timelines you have never known. After all, Remina sees all past and all history. That means they see all of your past and history too.

No memory lasts forever though. Once the memory has been concluded, you shall be brought back to the present by the Winter Mourning Stag: a great white beast with a circle of frozen antlers. It will come to you when the time is ready, and you will return to the present like waking from a dazzling dream.

Experiencing Winter Mournings can stabilize one's mood and provide restful sleep after, even if the memories may be difficult to swallow. It truly is a tribute to honor past horrors and traumas. Some memories are painful to remember, but forgetting them will never do anyone any good either. So hang your Winter Mournings and remember what matters.

Survive another day. You are worth it."

FAQ

1. Winter Mournings can produce new memories every time you touch them or the same memory.

2. Characters cannot choose what the memory is.

3. Characters can arrive in each other's memories regardless of if they already know each other. Multiple people can experience the same memory.

4. You can either experience the memory as a memory you can't touch or experience - or you can physically be in the memory and have to survive the situation as well. If you die in memory, your body will die wherever you had been touching the Winter Mourning.

5. Palebloods are capable of altering memories or how they or others experience memories.

6. Characters can be pulled into memories at random - as long as one of the characters in the memory share is touching a Winter Mourning at first.
RUN, RABBIT, RUN
WHEN: Month of December
WHERE: Everywhere/the woods
CONTENT WARNINGS: Themes of hunting, ghosts, curses, attempts at animal violence, hunting people based on blood types.


[An excerpt from Legends of Trench: Curses and Causations reads the following:]

"One of the most notorious legends of Trench is without a doubt the tale of The Huntress and the Hare. Most Trenchies have been told this tale since they were children, but for those unfamiliar, settle in.

This story begins with a mischievous god and an ambitious huntress. The Pthumerian Dorothea loved to play tricks on hunters trying to survive the Bone Season, setting animals free from traps and remaking the traps to catch the hunters instead. One day, a darkblood Huntress was fed up with Dorothea preventing her from catching food for her family and decided to settle the score. The Huntress began to hunt for Dorothea specifically, but it is no small feat hunting the god of trickery and survival.

The Huntress started to rely on her darkblood powers to alter reality to make the perfect traps. Innocuous trees turned into glue traps that anyone would stick to until they were freed by a darkblood or death took their pain from them. Walking through bushes would snag legs and necks, effectively trapping whatever creatures were unfortunate enough to wander for food. Magical snares and beartraps lock around victims with unrelenting force, leaving people and animals to try for help until they cry no more. While this took many innocent lives in the woods, animals, and people alike, it never seemed to work on Dorothea.

Dorothea continued to outwit the Huntress until she eventually drove the Huntress insane. The Huntress died without ever catching Dorothea, but they say her vengeful spirit awakens in winter and begins to set her traps yet again. The Huntress sends her traps and her dead animals after vilebloods and warmbloods to spite Dorothea and hope to maybe catch the god's attention. But Dorothea is no passive god. Dorothea spurs vilebloods and warmbloods to defend themselves against darkbloods and coldbloods.

Infamously, this has created enormous tension between the blood types during December some years, and it is said that the blood lust has caused the types to begin hunting one another regardless of old friendships and alliances. Beware the Huntress's curse. Some believe darkbloods and coldbloods can still hear her haunting commands and cries from the Trenchwood.

They say there is no ease for the tension between the bloodtypes until December has passed, but some believe palebloods may provide relief if they are willing."

FAQ

1. Characters will increasingly feel the urge to actively hunt one another using traps/etc.

2. The Huntress's curse includes undead animals/beasts chasing after warmbloods and vilebloods and magical traps. Players can invent unique traps for their characters.

3. There will be an innate urge to chase/hide from one another.

4. The curse can be broken by paleblood intervention, character death, or a gradual wearing off by the end of the month.
LOCKJOINT
WHEN: All of Bone Season
WHERE: On Sleeper bodies
CONTENT WARNINGS: Mild body horror, blood magic curses, physical curses, cures through blood ministration/blood letting, possible skin removal, injuries, possible death via starvation/exposure.


[An passage from The Sleeper Condition; Chapter 13: Bodily Aches and More. Found exclusively at the Lumenarium:]

"Generally speaking, Sleeper blood allows Sleepers to navigate this world without the fear of illness and disease. However, no organic body is perfect, and Sleeper blood has its own set of ailments to fret over. Blood Ministers have studied the phenomena of Lockjoint for years now and believe that it is linked to the crystalization found in Sleeper death, though the exact connection remains unknown.

Lockjoint tends to begin and last throughout Bone Season. Some Sleepers may never experience it, but for many, it becomes a reoccurring issue to dread each season. This condition forces blood magic to gather at the joints and effectively lock up. Sleepers find it difficult to move their bodies at the bends, fingers, knees, shoulders, etc without some form of discomfort. Minimal lockjoint can be painful and annoyance, but critical lockjoint can be fatal.

The most severe cases of lockjoint documented have shown Sleepers to have crystalization form over their joints, rendering parts of their bodies completely immobile. Some Sleepers have been found dead in this condition, all their joints crystallized, and it is believed most died from natural causes thereafter.

One can determine they are experiencing lockjoint when the coloration around the joints begins to darken in color, typically looking like a bruise. Calcification may occur rapidly the more magic a Sleeper uses or the more they expose themselves to outside elements. It is imperative that Sleepers remain properly clothed during Bone Season, even if they are coldbloods, and to invest in enchanted clothes that can lock in heat.

A known cure for lockjoint is the art of bloodletting. Puncturing the joints with small incisions seems to allow a release of the built-up magic and can provide immediate relief to the Sleeper. Catching lockjoint early is imperative. Alternative methods are soaking in hot springs and salted water.

Those who are in a more severe state will have to carefully have the crystals removed. This will likely remove the skin as well. Local anesthesia is highly recommended for the procedure. This process is known to leave scarring. The crystals can be saved and used as bloodstones from whoever they were harvested from. If you find a Sleeper dead from lockjoint, make sure to harvest the crystals as they are incredibly valuable.

This curse is believed to stem from Sleeper blood magic congealing within the body in contrast with the atmospheric magic of Bone Season. There is no known prevention for lockjoint. Lockjoint can impact all Sleepers regardless of bloodtype or the material their bodies are made from."

FAQ

1. This impacts characters regardless of blood type or their body - meaning it can impact characters with metal/plastic/plant/wood/etc bodies.

2. Players can choose how rapid or severe this gets and how quickly they can be healed.
CODING
asas: (pic#15159777)

[personal profile] asas 2022-01-16 05:17 am (UTC)(link)
[ this feels like something out of a freak horror movie, the kinds shōyō could hardly ever sleep after— there’s something strange going on, and the smile that doesn’t seem to be part of the other boy gives him enough eerie foreboding that his agitation stills, and so does his swinging. even if the rope keeping his ankle in an injury as much as a vice doesn’t stop swaying him, at least his eyes try to maintain contact no matter where he went. ]

Why wouldn’t it?
Edited 2022-01-16 05:20 (UTC)
kingofsarcasm: (nogitsune2)

[personal profile] kingofsarcasm 2022-01-23 04:04 am (UTC)(link)
[Nogitsune chuckles, loving the taste of that fear and pain trickling off of the boy in his trap. He strolls at a villainous pace towards him and calls upon the powers Stiles barely understands to manifest a katana in one hand. He only has limited access to his powers and Stiles' but even with that he makes better use of it than his bumbling host.

The katana is spun expertly and casually around his hands as he shrugs and replies with the ease of someone teaching simple maths to a child.]
I'm not shackled by those kinds of petty concerns.

[The blade is plunged to the ground right by the boy's ear, creating a small cut in his skin. Then he crouches down before him and his crooked smirk widens.] We're going to have fun.
asas: (pic#15423965)

[personal profile] asas 2022-01-24 12:25 pm (UTC)(link)
[ we’re going to have fun, said with dark, dark eyes and a blade with its tip lodged into the earth. it left the smallest of splits at shōyō’s cheek, only telling that he’s been cut by the amount of stinging it brings. otherwise, he would’ve thought that what was rolling down his face was sweat. he wasn’t wrong, but a small bead of blood trails down, mixes and drips with a wet pelt to the ground under his hanging head.

his heart races, but he tells himself to calm down. the panic swells in his chest and he wants to keep moving, belting and swinging, but he quells his feelings to stay quiet. calm down. breathe. don’t waltz out of control. the predator, the fox, would easily see that shōyō is indeed scared, by now like a young buck caught in sudden headlights—

but he manages, with the little amount of self control he has, to not say a word, to not panic so soon. he does, actually, bare a glimpse at the katana by him, brings his eyes back to the other, and considers: it’s close enough. he should make a grab for the katana.

it’s this that probably unmasks the fact that he isn’t thinking, and is in more panic than he lets on. ]
kingofsarcasm: (nogitsune5)

lemme know if broken bones is cool, if not i can change it!

[personal profile] kingofsarcasm 2022-01-30 07:18 am (UTC)(link)
[Nogitsune clocks that move for his sword and like a viper his other hand comes out to grab Shōyō's wrist like it's nothing, his grip is strong and punishing as he slowly twists the boy's arm at an awkward angle with seemingly no effort required. The sword is casually swung to the side just as effortlessly and the fox 'tsks' a couple times, ignoring any cries of pain and discomfort as he breaks his wrist with a casual flick of his own hand.]

It's only in moments like this do humans get to know who they truly are. And lucky you, you're a fighter. [He chuckles gleefully as he bends down to be face to face with his prey. Then shrugs.] Too bad that means little when faced with me.

[And with that, he yanks the boy's arm with another twist so it breaks at the elbow. Tendrils of black move up the Nogitsune's hand where he's holding onto Shoyo's arm as he feeds on his pain. Unfortunately, that doesn't take pain away.]
asas: (pic#15159769)

i’m here to ride or die fam 😈

[personal profile] asas 2022-02-01 01:10 am (UTC)(link)
[ shōyō has had the blessing to have never broken a bone. inflammation, sprains and the like were an occupational hazard when one was an athlete— hurt was a part of growth at the right amount. the ugly crack his wrist gives off reverberates in his ears, in his whole body as the pain came and hit him like a wall in the way of a run. nothing could describe that blasting ache other than completely halting and chaotic. if he screamed, nothing came out, even with his mouth agape. his heart raced and threw buckets upon buckets of adrenaline to the point that he didn’t know if he was feeling anything at all.

then came his elbow, in another direction it shouldn’t go— that cracks in his ears, too, a crunch that could’ve made his gut wrench if he wasn’t so absolutely terrified of what was going on. shōyō couldn’t respond to the fox; he could only wordlessly pool his tears, bite into his lips and howl as he protected his arm, a mess now, and kicked out his free foot in a sorry attempt to get away. sorry attempt, because when the wave of dolor came with everything it had, with pulsing and hurt over the rush of numbing to try and get free, it only swings him away a few feet before bringing him right back to where he was.

his omen appears in a flurry, a panic: a feathered bird that goes as black as the night around them. it’s a crow that bellows and dives at shōyō’s attacker, barking and crowing all the while— it’s too bad that omens aren’t that detrimental. it’s like the wind flurrying at his face and nothing more. ]
kingofsarcasm: (nogitsune7)

eyyy

[personal profile] kingofsarcasm 2022-02-02 10:39 pm (UTC)(link)
[Nogitsune is familiar with the omens. Stiles' own is distraught and confused, not sure of what is happening but more aware than his host. They can be helpful if properly utilized and depending on the Sleeper they are attached to. This one is as panicked as his partner, and the fox knows it cannot kill it or even really attack it and cause harm.

But it is annoying and he'd like it to stop, so his head cats to one side in an eery, predator-like assessment of the boy in his grasp. Then he hefts his blade and lays it against Shōyō's shoulder.]


I can remove it completely, if you prefer. [He looks pointedly at the bird in his face, not flinching or backing down from its wings and talons. When he's in control, any wounds on Stiles' body heal over quicker and these are superficial.]
asas: (pic#15159808)

[personal profile] asas 2022-02-04 04:36 pm (UTC)(link)
[ was there any way—? upside down in such a sorry state, shōyō does his absolute best to cradle his injury as close to his body as possible. gravity was against him, it hurt to even move it an inch and a any possible moving was beginning to fall stiff; fractures cause great loss in most of a limb’s mobility, hit and inflamed by the chips and shards prodding fibers of flesh they shouldn’t be. at least it wasn’t exposed— not only would would the pain be more of a nightmare than it was, but shōyō would pass out. ]

Don’t, [ he breathes out, choked and desperate and whimpering through a voice too strained. the crow backs off almost immediately with a short-cut u-turn into the tree shōyō is trapped beneath. she was no longer being a menace, but she had her beak open, breathing through there, with her chest flaring up feathers with each panicked inhale. she can’t do anything and neither can shōyō, even if he was a fighter. he was a fighter by spirit, maybe, not by anything else. ] please— Don’t .

[ he pleads, now. because that’s the only thing he could think about. it’s not honor or pride or anything of the sort— he wants it to stop, and he hopes it doesn’t get worse. ]
kingofsarcasm: (nogitsune4)

[personal profile] kingofsarcasm 2022-02-06 07:10 pm (UTC)(link)
[Nogitsune lets out a breathy chuckle when the omen retreats so quickly.] Ah, that's much better.

[He crouches before Shōyō as he pleads, seeming to not hear him at all.] Don't you think?

[Then he stands straight and starts to casually walk around him, taking his sweet time to make the circle when he's out of the boy's line of sight. It's not just physical pain he feeds on, but emotional, and the mental torment should be delicious if he can get it to build. As he goes, he taps the flat end of the blade against random parts of Shōyō's body, humming in contemplation. Then he falters in step as his control slips again. He snarls and slashes Shōyō in the side with the blade out of frustration, the wound is non-fatal but certainly painful.]

Looks like I shouldn't waste time.
asas: (pic#15423943)

[personal profile] asas 2022-02-09 09:45 am (UTC)(link)
[ with his shirt already hiked by gravity, it was easy access to his rib cage— a slice goes right through fabric and to his skin, jolting with the seer of a cut that, thankfully hadn’t gone to deep. the rusty warmblood slips from the open gash and fill the air with a rusty scent, like tar, or sulfur. the tapping, the torture of time and waiting for this man to decide what he’ll do next was agonizing. how long would he keep waiting?

knife, he cries in thought to his omen: get me a knife. the bird crows and takes off, but who knew how long it would take until she returned with the proper utensil (or help) to cut him loose.

shōyō, on the other hand, continues to breathe quick, heavy and shaken, too busy holding his arm in place to touch upon his new wound, but he can feel the wetness seeping into his clothes where it touched, and dripping to his neck— where it would hit the floor. ]


Y-you should just— [ a thick swallow, ] do what you’re gonna do.

[ oh, god, the way the world is spinning. his nausea. his stomach lurches with the amount of anxiety and nervousness he can’t quite keep up with, and out of panic: ]

I’m gonna be sick—