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TDM: Mega Throwback Edition!
✖ TEST DRIVE MEME
Ⅰ. ARRIVAL
You can read all about your character's arrival in the game lore.
The island you find yourself on is a tropical paradise. The hair is heavy and humid, and a thick flowering jungle encroaches on the white sandy beach. As far as mysterious islands go, it could be a lot worse! Maybe there’s a bar with some Mai Tais set up here somewhere…
Just a little one - it’s about the size of a small dog, running along on its hind legs. Aww, he’s kinda cute if you ignore the sharp teeth and claws! Lucky for you it’s busy chasing something else and soon darts back into the bush unless you do something to grab its attention.
Listen closely and you’ll find that sometimes you can hear sounds that are distinctly mechanical. Whatever this place is, it at least sounds like it’s inhabited by something possessing intelligence. You could definitely go and find out. Just be careful!
Or maybe you think, hey, I’ve seen this movie, I’m staying on the beach! You could, but unless you’re good at diving for fish you might have a hard time finding food.
Ⅱ. CRETACEOUS PARK
CW: Dinosaurs! Violence, possibly against dinosaurs!
The jungle is thick and it takes a lot of effort to move through it. You’ll have to crawl under vines, climb over felled trees, and just generally pay a lot of attention to your surroundings. This is the sort of situation where having someone with you certainly makes things easier. Occasionally you will hear animals calling, and you’re bound to see some of them eventually. Maybe you’ll luck out and spot a herbivore like one of the armoured dinosaurs, just chewing on plants and not likely to attack you unless you piss it off. Maybe you spot something about your size with a decidedly less vegetarian diet and you have to decide between hiding or trying to scare it off.
Eventually in your wanderings you come across an unusual sight: a dirt road. It cuts its way through the trees and ferns, and to the south you can hear what is probably a familiar sound: engines. And shouting.
It’s getting closer.
Suddenly there are cars and motorcycles rushing down the road toward you - try not to get hit! One of the cars slows and a guy with a ragged blonde beard hangs out and tells you to get in the back. At close to the same time a truck slows and another guy tells you to climb aboard and grab a gun.
Why would you need a gun? The answer presents itself almost immediately: big daddy T-Rex is stomping its way down the road towards you.
You can escape with the first car, or pitch in and try to shoot the dinosaur with the second. Or you could try and prevent them from hurting the animal entirely, or just run off into the jungle by yourself. Better decide quickly, though. That T-Rex looks hungry.
Ⅲ. SETTLEMENT
CW: Kidnapping.
Whether you throw in with the humans or maybe stumble upon it by accident, you wind up at their encampment . It’s definitely the safest place to be - there are high walls around a series of small buildings mostly cobbled together from wood and tin. But there’s cots, and food. Outside the perimeter wall are tripwires and very basic motion sensors that will alert the settlement if any sizable animals are prowling around.
You’re informed that mostly the dinosaurs leave the camp alone - too much effort for not enough food.
While you’ll be welcomed the first night, as soon as morning rolls around it will be made abundantly clear that you’re going to be expected to pull your weight. Pitch in with the cooking or cleaning, or if you have some mechanical skill you can help fix up some of the rattling vehicles parked around.
From what you can gather, this is just one of a few different settlements on the island. Some of the others have small farms, and if you can drive you will be asked if you’d mind running over a delivery to one of these.
Agree, and you’ll be handed the keys to what sure looks like a 1970s era Cadillac. The mulleted gentleman who has asked this favour of you hands you a piece of paper upon which a small map is drawn, along with written directions. A note at the bottom reads, “don’t look in the tunk.” You think he means ‘trunk.’
“Package is in the trunk,” this gentleman confirms. “Don’t open it, sunlight’ll mess it all up.”
With that he sends you on your merry way. Best to take along a buddy for safety!
Partway through your journey you will come to realise that whatever is in the trunk is making a banging noise. You can ignore it and keep driving, passing the keys off to the people at the farming settlement, or you can pull over and investigate.
If you choose the second option, you’ll find that your ‘package’ is a person. Not a human one - this person has scales and huge, bulging eyes above small nostrils. They’re bound hand and foot and gagged, staring up at you with terror.
Well, jeez. Now what?
Ⅳ. REPTILIANS
Whether it’s because you’re led there, or because you find it by accident, you find yourself in a village - the houses are smooth stone, curving elegantly under sprawling vines and beautiful blooming flowers.
Upon your arrival several humanoid lizard people emerge from their homes and watch you, silent. One of them, stooped and wizened with age, moves to stand directly in front of you. When they speak, you realise that you can’t hear them with your ears; they communicate through telepathy.
You are welcome to stay in our village if you pass our Test of Bravery.
You’re half expecting that they’ll make you fight a velociraptor or something, but no - this village elder leads you and your companion both to the center of the village where there are several large flat stones ringed around one much larger stone. You’re both instructed to sit. More of the reptilian people approach, watching you.
Tell us a story of your bravery, the elder tells you.
You’ll have to dig into your memories to find a moment where you think you acted bravely, and then you’ll have to tell everyone assembled about it. You might be tempted to embellish a little bit, or to outright lie.
But if you do…
When either your story or your memory is finished, the village elder will look at you with their strange eyes and pronounce whether or not you’re allowed to stay.
Greetings, prospective Travelers! Welcome to the POLYMYTHOS test drive meme and thank you for your interest in our game! We invite you to use this TDM to explore but one of many, many islands within the Endless Isles; use it as an opportunity to introduce and familiarize yourself with the game, form connections with other characters, and just have some fun. (Perhaps while also getting some solid samples together for your application! Apps are always open!)
Use the prompts provided below as-is or feel free to write your own set within the environment detailed in each. You're even welcome to access the network via your character's ScryWatch. While there will be some inevitable changes, TDMs may count as game canon and some islands may be revisited in the future. Be mindful of your surroundings -- you never know how you and your fellow Travelers might affect this place in the long run.
You can read all about your character's arrival in the game lore.
The island you find yourself on is a tropical paradise. The hair is heavy and humid, and a thick flowering jungle encroaches on the white sandy beach. As far as mysterious islands go, it could be a lot worse! Maybe there’s a bar with some Mai Tais set up here somewhere…
Just a little one - it’s about the size of a small dog, running along on its hind legs. Aww, he’s kinda cute if you ignore the sharp teeth and claws! Lucky for you it’s busy chasing something else and soon darts back into the bush unless you do something to grab its attention.
Listen closely and you’ll find that sometimes you can hear sounds that are distinctly mechanical. Whatever this place is, it at least sounds like it’s inhabited by something possessing intelligence. You could definitely go and find out. Just be careful!
Or maybe you think, hey, I’ve seen this movie, I’m staying on the beach! You could, but unless you’re good at diving for fish you might have a hard time finding food.
Notes:
1. Please remember to mark threads appropriately with Content Warnings when necessary.
2. These prompts are a jumping off point - how they affect your character and their development is up to you.
3. The people on the island are normal humans unless otherwise indicated. The dinosaurs are animals and can be killed. I mean, good luck with that, but.
4. Have fun!
Ⅱ. CRETACEOUS PARK
CW: Dinosaurs! Violence, possibly against dinosaurs!
The jungle is thick and it takes a lot of effort to move through it. You’ll have to crawl under vines, climb over felled trees, and just generally pay a lot of attention to your surroundings. This is the sort of situation where having someone with you certainly makes things easier. Occasionally you will hear animals calling, and you’re bound to see some of them eventually. Maybe you’ll luck out and spot a herbivore like one of the armoured dinosaurs, just chewing on plants and not likely to attack you unless you piss it off. Maybe you spot something about your size with a decidedly less vegetarian diet and you have to decide between hiding or trying to scare it off. Eventually in your wanderings you come across an unusual sight: a dirt road. It cuts its way through the trees and ferns, and to the south you can hear what is probably a familiar sound: engines. And shouting.
It’s getting closer.
Suddenly there are cars and motorcycles rushing down the road toward you - try not to get hit! One of the cars slows and a guy with a ragged blonde beard hangs out and tells you to get in the back. At close to the same time a truck slows and another guy tells you to climb aboard and grab a gun.
Why would you need a gun? The answer presents itself almost immediately: big daddy T-Rex is stomping its way down the road towards you.
You can escape with the first car, or pitch in and try to shoot the dinosaur with the second. Or you could try and prevent them from hurting the animal entirely, or just run off into the jungle by yourself. Better decide quickly, though. That T-Rex looks hungry.
Notes:
1. You determine your level of dino encounter! And what kind - nobody is going to get on your ass if you pick one from the Jurassic period instead of the Cretaceous. It’s a magic island for crying out loud.
Ⅲ. SETTLEMENT
CW: Kidnapping.
Whether you throw in with the humans or maybe stumble upon it by accident, you wind up at their encampment . It’s definitely the safest place to be - there are high walls around a series of small buildings mostly cobbled together from wood and tin. But there’s cots, and food. Outside the perimeter wall are tripwires and very basic motion sensors that will alert the settlement if any sizable animals are prowling around.
You’re informed that mostly the dinosaurs leave the camp alone - too much effort for not enough food.
While you’ll be welcomed the first night, as soon as morning rolls around it will be made abundantly clear that you’re going to be expected to pull your weight. Pitch in with the cooking or cleaning, or if you have some mechanical skill you can help fix up some of the rattling vehicles parked around.
From what you can gather, this is just one of a few different settlements on the island. Some of the others have small farms, and if you can drive you will be asked if you’d mind running over a delivery to one of these.
Agree, and you’ll be handed the keys to what sure looks like a 1970s era Cadillac. The mulleted gentleman who has asked this favour of you hands you a piece of paper upon which a small map is drawn, along with written directions. A note at the bottom reads, “don’t look in the tunk.” You think he means ‘trunk.’“Package is in the trunk,” this gentleman confirms. “Don’t open it, sunlight’ll mess it all up.”
With that he sends you on your merry way. Best to take along a buddy for safety!
Partway through your journey you will come to realise that whatever is in the trunk is making a banging noise. You can ignore it and keep driving, passing the keys off to the people at the farming settlement, or you can pull over and investigate.
If you choose the second option, you’ll find that your ‘package’ is a person. Not a human one - this person has scales and huge, bulging eyes above small nostrils. They’re bound hand and foot and gagged, staring up at you with terror.
Well, jeez. Now what?
Notes:
1. If you open the trunk and discover the Crazy Frog-esque figure within you can continue on to the settlement and deliver him as promised. If you choose the former, the people at both settlements will be angry and turn on you unless you can spin a very convincing lie about your prisoner escaping.
2. If you choose to free your froggy friend, they will indicate that you should follow them through the jungle to their home.
3. If you skip the delivery mission, you can still stay at the camp. It’s very bare bones, but there’s food and cots and bathrooms at least.
Ⅳ. REPTILIANS
Whether it’s because you’re led there, or because you find it by accident, you find yourself in a village - the houses are smooth stone, curving elegantly under sprawling vines and beautiful blooming flowers.
Upon your arrival several humanoid lizard people emerge from their homes and watch you, silent. One of them, stooped and wizened with age, moves to stand directly in front of you. When they speak, you realise that you can’t hear them with your ears; they communicate through telepathy.
You are welcome to stay in our village if you pass our Test of Bravery.
You’re half expecting that they’ll make you fight a velociraptor or something, but no - this village elder leads you and your companion both to the center of the village where there are several large flat stones ringed around one much larger stone. You’re both instructed to sit. More of the reptilian people approach, watching you.
Tell us a story of your bravery, the elder tells you.
You’ll have to dig into your memories to find a moment where you think you acted bravely, and then you’ll have to tell everyone assembled about it. You might be tempted to embellish a little bit, or to outright lie.
But if you do…
When either your story or your memory is finished, the village elder will look at you with their strange eyes and pronounce whether or not you’re allowed to stay.
Notes:
1. Whether or not you are allowed to stay is not based entirely on how brave you were - how you react to having to share (willingly or not) these stories also plays a part. For example, if you ran away from a fight but in the present you don’t try to justify it with bullshit reasons, you will still be invited to stay.
2. The Reptilian village is a blend of nature and advanced technology. Frankly, it’s a nicer place to stay than the human settlements. They have a lot more creature comforts, like nice deep baths and soft beds.
Greetings, prospective Travelers! Welcome to the POLYMYTHOS test drive meme and thank you for your interest in our game! We invite you to use this TDM to explore but one of many, many islands within the Endless Isles; use it as an opportunity to introduce and familiarize yourself with the game, form connections with other characters, and just have some fun. (Perhaps while also getting some solid samples together for your application! Apps are always open!)
Use the prompts provided below as-is or feel free to write your own set within the environment detailed in each. You're even welcome to access the network via your character's ScryWatch. While there will be some inevitable changes, TDMs may count as game canon and some islands may be revisited in the future. Be mindful of your surroundings -- you never know how you and your fellow Travelers might affect this place in the long run.
no subject
but oddly enough, the things that clue her in to things she'd already known but kinda-sorta willfully forgotten is the terminology he's using. talk of New York City and a rich cousin and whatever the fuck 'instagram' is (something to do with the internet, which is where the lightbulb starts going off).
so Ellie's standing there, looking up at this giant ass man who has somehow shrunk himself into looking like the world's lankiest kicked puppy on Dinosaur Island, and it's just beginning to sink in this whole... different worlds thing might actually be legit. ]
The Boston QZ? [ okay, she's getting a tiny bit freaked out. internally. ] I mean, I did, that's not where I was before... this. Whatever the hell 'this' is.
[ he's heard of the Boston QZ and will be able to tell her why his cousin has some swanky pad in New York and money where money doesn't really mean shit anymore, right?
right, Greg?? right? ]
no subject
and ellie. this is the impression ellie's been giving off to greg from the beginning. just a wee bit too intense and self-sufficient for a kid her age. weird, to put it in her own terms. something finally clicks as they're exchanging unsure, comically uneven gazes during this awkward moment -- ellie just got here and she hasn't once asked or talked about her parents, has she? hell, greg kept calling his mom after he moved to the big city. and he's pushing thirty. and that was nothing like this.
brow wrinkling, he purses his lips, shakes his head. sorry, kiddo... ]
Right. Okay. I know of Boston, yes, the city of Boston? There is quite the rivalry between our two cities, the baseball teams and such. The teams or the fans, or- not that I, uh, follow that sort of thing. [ not a sports guy. might be obvious. just the first thing that comes...to mind. ] Anyway, I guess you left?
[ she left the B-QZ... QZ? it's obvious on his face that he's trying to understand or guess at what she means, until finally he brings himself to ask the direct question he has no choice but to ask.
it's hard for him to ask. it really is. he doesn't want to cause her any distress by not knowing. or himself, for that matter -- he's not sure -- he's just not sure what it means or how she'll react, if he doesn't understand her background. especially given her suspicious nature.
but his palms lift up in helpless defeat: ]
You left the Boston QZ? What exactly is the Boston QZ?
no subject
[ not the most poignant of replies, admittedly, nor the most helpful? but it's what leaves Ellie next, followed by the colorful addition of a: ]
Oh, fuck. You've got to be fucking kidding me.
[ she's pacing a few steps away with a nervous energy behind the motion before backtracking, swiping anxiously at her nose and staring up... waaay up at Greg. it's got the same sort of accusatory gist as before, but this time the intensity isn't radiating 'i could kick your ass' energy as it is 'holy shit please tell me you're joking' vibes instead. ]
Are you, like... from before the outbreak? Or something? Is that even... possible? [ she isn't even giving him a chance to respond before shaking her head impatiently and gesturing with her hands as if she expeCTS ANSWERS IMMEDIATELY, ] Hello?! Is this real life happening right now?!
[ apparently Dinosaur Island she takes into stride, but this, this one is the brain melter?? alright. now they're both Losing It this is going so well, ]
no subject
he does this helpless sort of reaching out gesture once she starts pacing, but it's so weak and ineffectual that he abandons it. instead, clutching at his chest when she directs that energy AT him. when she DEMANDS EXPLANATIONS. oh dear god he has no answers. what is she talking about??? no, we're not from before the outbreak, we'd never do that, of course not. we are pro-outbreak? all of us here? no, that doesn't sound good. that doesn't sound right. ]
I don't, uh, uh, I don- I think that- maybe not, I'm still hope, hoping not? Uh, that is to say, that's, that's not to say that-- [ ellie u broke him. ] When you say outbreak, that sounds like it could be bad? Please don't tell me that the, um, the plague is coming? Or something of the sort?
[ "outbreak", don't like that word very much. outbreak, outbreak, outbreak. he's stuck on it now.
yeah, it's a word you'd expect to hear at the beginning of a horror movie. fearful energy builds until he suddenly begins gesturing with both hands right back at her, desperation kicking him into high gear. JUST A MESS THEY ARE SO MESSY... ]
Do not tell me that, man, no! Come on! You can't do that! Do you get what I have going on back home?! It's big stuff! Big deal type of stuff!
[ ellie?! why would you do this, how could you do this to ME, this PERSONAL ATTACK
and only a couple of people from back home flash through greg's mind. tom is one of them. deep wrinkles etch into his forehead. he's surprised by how much he wants him around, how much he already misses having him to go to... don't kill him with the plague!! ]
no subject
the fact he has no idea what "outbreak" she's talking about pretty much seals the deal on that one. then maybe what they'd said at the High Temple was true? maybe this isn't some elaborate, weird dream from eating something that may have been canned a little too long for one's safe consumption. maybe she didn't take a fall climbing over the ruins of where someone's nice ass fence used to be once upon a time. maybe she's on Dino Island, and Greg Tall Fuck is from before the outbreak, or maybe he's from a world with no outbreak at all.
...holy shit is seeming real poignant a thing to have said, in hindsight.
oddly enough, him spiraling into panic seems to kick her back into some semblance of control, because Ellie's reaching out for those madly gesturing hands and grabbing them in her own to try and get him to CHILL OUT. ...as if she is not single-handedly responsible for this descent into madness, her bad. haha, whoops, happens to the best of us. ]
Okay, first of all, maybe don't raise your voice and lose it in the middle of dino jungle? [ this is shout-whispered. helpfully. ] Just -- just chill out, okay? I have no idea what the hell is going on either! Obviously! Fuck. [ fuck.
there is so much to unpack here??
...like something rustling in the brush in the distance to their right, maybe. ]
no subject
he'd almost tuned ellie out completely while working himself up into a frenzy, hearing nothing but a high-pitched sound at the back of his mind for a bit there. so when she stills his hands, greg startles -- but it does work to recenter him. hunching low, he blinks rapidly to refocus. he bobs out anxious nods to show that he's listening, that he's trying to get a hold of himself.
and then.
he hears it, too... head turning slooowly to the right... ]
Fuck. Oh, fuck. [ and he's whispering now, too. thankfully. clearly terrified again, but without the shouting. greg's hands have begun to tremble. ] What should we do?
[ run? try to fight it? use what's in their packs? at the very least he should -- when he tugs an arm out and across to sort of gesture at shielding ellie from the source of the sound, greg does surprise himself. not much confidence in the move, he knows he's a poor imitation of a protector, but. but.
she's so small and he's so. not. and did he just doom them both? it's the life or death of it all, really, that shocks him into thinking: this is why you're here, idiot. trying to con some little kid into being your dinosaur jungle tour guide, then relying on her for everything?
do something. anything. ]