FAQ

[wellie]

FAQ

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Welcome to Well! Well is a memory-loss game focused on identity and connection. Characters find themselves in the game with very few ideas about who they are except their names and the memories, skills, or relationships that you choose to apply with. Memories are regained through memory points, which are available in your application, and will be granted through various events throughout the game.

This game experiments with mechanics, and new mechanics may be introduced as the game progresses.

I have questions that aren't addressed on this page.

Please read this FAQ page first. Use control + F to search for an answer. If a question isn't answered here, consider the following before asking:

The mods trust players to make most decisions relating to their characters and how those characters interact with the setting. Feel free to ask, but know that we may ask you "what's the most fun outcome?" in response.

If you have a question about if something is available at the General Store, know that the answer is mostly likely "yes, but the novelty version of that thing". Use this power wisely, and feel free to ask if you believe something might not necessarily be appropriate for a General Store.

I have feedback or concerns.

Drop us a line on the mod contact page. Comments are screened.

Game overview ֍ Cycles ֍ Applications ֍ Character questions ֍ Memory mechanics ֍ The Town of Wellstone ֍ Lore

Game overview

What kind of game is this? What sorts of events can I expect?

Well is a memory-loss game. Events will often be horror themed or adjescent, since we find that horror events are the best as encouraging character development and relationships. Characters are encouraged to find who they are when they are tested.

Events will often have prompts that cover person versus self, person versus (or working with, usually) person, and person versus environment. We're trying to have a range of events in each bucket each month, and there will often be events that affect characters' mental state (encouraging friendliness, anger, etc). You can always opt-out of prompts if you want to.

Is there an overarching plot?

Yes, there is a light overarching plot that guides the game. It more defines the shape of the game, rather than any deep lore or plot that requires whodunit sleuthing. A lot of this game is being along for the ride.

How does time work in the game?

Time works 1:1 with our time. One day in our world is one day in-game. However, months don't line up with our months because Well works in a time loop, where time repeats.

Will my character age in-game?

No, characters don't seem to age in this setting.

How long will this game last?

We plan to run the game for around 2 years. If it's going great, we may extend it, but the overarching story and structure currently are planned for just over two years.

Is there a network in this game?

Yes, sort of. There is an ICly created network of walkie talkies, that function like walkie talkies, meaning it's only audio and only in-real-time (ICly). There is also a bulletin board in the lobby of the Staywell Manor where characters can exchange post-it note comments. You can find both of these on the wellcomms community.

What is the game calendar?

Well works in 3 month cycles. Events will be labeled for the cycle: 1.1 is the first cycle's first month. 1.2 is the first cycle's second month, etc. Applications will be open for the last five days before the 1st of X.1 and X.2, and AC will run for the first five days of X.3. Players get one invite per cycle, unless stated otherwise.

Check out the game calendar for information about the current cycle.

What is AC for this game?

AC is quarterly (every three months). Check out details of AC on the AC page.

The premise saying you're experimenting with mechanics. What can I expect?

Part of this experiment is only introducing mechanics, both ICly and OOCly, when they make sense in-game. Please keep an open mind! The goal of this game is to have fun. Feedback is always welcome, and the mods are open to improvising if our decisions aren't working out the way we intend.

THE CYCLES

How do cycles in Well work?

The cycles, or time loop, occurs every three months.

This isn’t a traditional time loop, since all the characters will remember the previous loops, and the events won’t repeat exactly. The cycles have broken down as the game progresses, and are looping less, aside from the touch points of:
- The mini events in the middle of the first two months, which often center on similar themes
- The storm, which always ends the cycles

When the town resets, it will reset to how it was at the beginning of the previous cycle, unless stated otherwise. Any damage caused in past cycles will be gone. Any changes to the town will also be gone, with some exceptions. For example, anything on your characters’ person or in their assigned hotel room will remain, if you so choose (you can also take it away if you want to).

How many cycles will happen?

Stick around and find out!

APPLICATIONS

What kinds of characters can be applied for?

Any canon characters or OCs are applicable. Canon-AUs and CRAU are allowed. Maluable protagonists and fandom OCs are not allowed. Basically, you can apply for anyone except for characters' whose existence or choices could majorly change other characters' canons.

Can I apply for AUs or duplicates of a character?

No, we don't accept AUs or duplicates of characters who are already in the game. Canon AUs are allowed.

Is there an age limit for applicable characters?

No, there is no age limit on characters.

Is there a cap on number of players who can be in the game?

Yes, there is a cap of 30 players. Each player can play up to two characters. This may change depending on interest and the vibes.

Are there cast-caps?

Yes, because of the character cap, casts are capped at a 10th of the game, or 6 characters, per series cast. Series like MCU and Marvel comics will be considered separately. There is no cast cap for OCs.

Are non-human characters allowed?

Yes, any type of character is allowed, and non-humans will not be human-ized. If anyone is too big to fit in the setting, they will be sized down to fit.

Can I apply for a character from post-death?

Yes, dead characters are allowed in-game, and you can choose their condition on entering the game (ie. still grievously injured, or completely healed, or somewhere in-between).

This applications looks a little different. What gives?

The mods don't like reading apps, so we asked for the least possible information that's relevant for the game.

If I don't allocate all my memory points in my app, do I get to keep them?

Yes! If you don't use all 10 app memory points, note them in your comment on the Memory Mechanics page. You can use them in the future.

Why is this game invite-only? How do I get an invite?

Well is invite-only to create a safe, intimate atmosphere. To get an invite, you'll need to know someone in the game, or you can reach out to the mod account. Each player gets one invite per cycle, until the character cap is filled. We may reject invites with cause.

Are there reserves in this game? Are there app challenges?

There is no reserve system for this game. Apps are on a first come, first served basis. We don't accept app challenges.

Character questions

Why was my character brought here?

Why indeed! You, and they, will have to find that out.

Are my characters' powers nerfed?

No, powers are not nerfed. However, your character's memory of the power and the skill to use them will be lost unless you choose to regain it. This means that if a power is part of your character, like a firebender in the Avatar universe, the firebender will still be able to bend fire, but will not have any memory that they can bend fire, or any skill of how to do it, unless it's regained. If the power is not inherent to your character (ie comes from an item), the power isn't accessible.

My character has a special diet and/or requires unique medication/etc. They have chronic health conditions/issues. What do I do about that?

Your characters' needs will be able to be met through food or medicine found in the location.

How do language barriers work in this game?

Inexplicably, everyone understands each other, but they are all speaking their original language.

Can my character get pregnant in-game?

No, characters can't get pregnant.

Can I canon update my character?

Yes, you can canon update your character. However, this will not give you any additional memory points. Your character's body and mental state will update, but their memories will stay the same as they were before the update. For example, they may have new scars, or physical or mental conditions after the update. You can submit your canon update on the drops/hiatus/update page.

Memory-loss mechanics

Read more about memory mechanics.

What does my character remember upon arrival?

Characters remember basic skills (walking, talking, etc, if they already had that skill) and they remember their names. Anything else they remember must either be through memory points, or happen in game. This includes non-magic special skills. A master chef may still remember how to make a sandwich, but their vast cooking knowledge will need to be regained. The same stands for physical skills like martial arts, dancing, and swordsmanship.

How does my character regain memories?

Characters regain memories through memory points. These points are gained at application, and can be gained through events in the game. Memories cost anywhere from 1-3 memory points, depending on the impact of the memory. For example, a penchant for cooking would be 1 point, while a memory of a near-death experience would be 3 points. We recommend keeping track of your gained memories on the memory point page.

How do I allocate my memory points?

You can allocate them however you like. You can apply with five major memories, or ten minor memories, or a combination of skills, relationships, and memories. Examples of memories and skills are listed on the memory points page. Use your best judgement about what is a major or minor memory or skill if it isn't listed.

Does my character remember anything outside of the points I allocate?

You can choose to play your character as a blank slate, however many players prefer to play characters with a general sense of how the world works, and some ideas about who they are (without being rooted in specific memories). We call this the Vibes. The Vibes could encompass ideas about how the world works (if your character is space faring, they can think that traveling to different planets is normal), or ideas about themselves (if they have terrible self-esteem, they can have a general sense that they're a terrible person). They may also have an idea of their age and general status in life. You can decide what's most fun for you for the Vibes, just make sure that the Vibes aren't connected to actual memories (ie actually remembering the ship tey were on in space, or a memory of a birthday). They can regain memories later that give them more information about why they feel that way.

What happens if my character dies in-game?

When a character dies in-game, their body stays where it was, until it is not being looked at. When one looks back at the body, it is a bone-dry skeleton. The skeleton becomes permanent, and can be buried.

After death, your character loses a memory point. You can record this on the memory mechanics page.

Characters can be dead for as little or as long as you'd like. Characters generally wake up in their own bed in the hotel when returning to life, or can come back somewhere else if you prefer.

The Town of Wellstone

General

What does my character have with them upon arrival?

Characters are clothed in an odd mixture of old western clothes, and outfits that would be at home at a modern renaissance fair. Think a medieval dress, but it has fringes on the arms. A brocade stetson hat. A denim doublet. Or, they can have a fully renaissance inspired outfit, or fully old west.

What's the weather like?

The weather will be specified in each month's event. The town's weather changes, but follows the patterns of a desert: very dry, with sudden periods of intense storm or wind. Generally, it's incredibly hot during the day and very cold at night.

What happens if my character causes property damage to the town?

Property damage is permanent in Wellstone. Be careful what you destroy. However, damage will reset at the time loop, so each three months it will be as if the town is "new" again.

What's the level of technology available in Wellstone??

Technology is a bit strange in Wellstone. Most technology looks to be from roughly the 1700s, but there is a jukebox in the pub, anachronistic knick-knacks in the general store, and a bulletin board with helpful sticky notes. There is indoor plumbing with hot steamy water, but there is not electricity, except as needed to power the jukebox. Strange!

How big is the town?

The entire town is roughly the size of a small town's town square. There are 6 buildings still standing, and the rest are in various states of crumble and disrepair. It's hard to get away from your fellow characters, here.

The Staywell Hotel

Where will my character sleep?

Upon arrival, your character is ICly assigned a room in the manor by the receptionist/butler. Your character does not have to sleep there, but that room is theirs for the duration of their time in Wellstone.

Are our characters assigned rooms?

ICly, yes. OOCly, no. Feel free to decide what your characters’ room is. The hotel has 4 floors, but the room numbers don't have to correspond to the floor they're on.

What happens if my character breaks into a room that isn’t occupied?

They’ll find an old, rundown room that looks like it hasn’t been touched in decades. It’s dusty and decaying.

Does the Staywell have central air? Vents? A basement? Plumbing?

The manor sure doesn't have central air. It's solid stone to keep the heat out. There isn't currently an accessible spooky basement.

The windows in your room do open, and lets in nice cool air when you do, and you can scuttle on out of those! There's also indoor plumbing for your pipe-related needs, with showers and such.

Are there books available in town?

Yes, books started showing up in cycle four, mainly in the parlor of the Staywell Manor. However, these aren't just any books. The books seem to center on the romance and self-help genres, and they're all a little bit... off. There sure are words on those pages, but the grammar is strange and the plot lines or advice never quite make sense. Think running each sentence through Google Translate about ten times, repeating for 200 pages, and then just slapping that in a book and calling it done. More books appear each month or so, all of them in this same, strangely written style. There are a lot of books oddly about yetis.

Some examples of the romance novels:
"Whispers on the Frontier"
"Yeti Tracks on the Dusty Trail"
"Karma in the Canyon"
"Sourdough Sweethearts"

Some examples of the self-help novels:
"Sarcasm as a Second Language"
"Confidence in Pajamas"
"DIY Psychic Powers"
"The Potato's Guide to Inner Peace"

Food & commerce

How does my character eat in the town?

There's a restaurant in the hotel where characters can eat three meals a day. These meals are charged to their room. If your character has special dietary or medical needs, they will be accounted for by the hotel staff.

How does my character buy things? Is there currency?

Your character can charge things to their rooms. That's the only currency! Will the bill ever come due? Nope, but the NPCs will still say that they're charging things to their room.

What can my character buy? How many can I buy? Can I buy weapons? Can I buy tools?

The General Store is the main place of commerce. You can "buy" anything that you could buy at a Cracker Barrel gift shop. Anything kitschy, a little weird, pretty useless, will be available.

You can’t buy weapons, and tools are limited to things like glasses repair kits or squeaky toy hammers, unless stated otherwise in an event.

The store restocks every day, so you can buy as much as you want.

What happens if my character tries to steal?

Nothing at all. If a character tries to steal from the General Store, the Owner will just tell them that it's charged to their room, same as if they go through the charade of "purchasing" items.

NPCs

Who lives in this town?

There are a small handful of locals. These are NPCs, and their dialogue can be found on the NPC page.

Can my character interrogate an NPC / is there an NPC contact page?

They sure can try! The NPCs do not say anything outside of their standard dialogue, unless specified otherwise in events. There is no NPC contact page because they only say those things. Think an NPC in a video game, that's what the interaction is like.

What is the emotional state of the NPCs, if read by an empath?

The NPCs' emotions are astoundingly neutral. Noticeably neutral, like they don't experience highs or lows, but just a gentle contentment that is unchangeable.

Outside Town

Can my character leave the town?

If characters try to leave town, they walk through the forest and then into the seemingly endless sere desert. It is possible to die of exhaustion, hunger, thirst, or by wild animals. When they die, follow the death mechanics. If your character can't die of exhaustion, hunger, or thirst, they will simply black out after a week of walking in the desert and you'll follow the death mechanics.

Can I explore the dead forest? What’s out there?

Yes, there are a lot of dead trees. Big trees, old trees, small trees, young trees. Tree trunks and limbs as far (short) as the eye can see. They grow sparser together the further into the forest you go, and eventually fade into flat desert. There's nothing notable out there, unless you look closely.

If my character examines the town / surroundings, what will they find?

Found so far:
- The Vibes of the town are astoundingly neutral
- The rocks in the graveyard aren’t as old as you’d assume: they’re only a few centuries old, and their age seems to change when you re-look at them. They’re all different from one another, too.

Feel free to ask if your character wants to investigate anything specific.

LORE

What kind of lore do characters know so far?

Updated: 1/17/24
The door
In cycle 3, Darin investigated the foundations of the Staywell and discovered a strange staircase to nowhere. In cycle 4, he revisited the staircase, which was now covered by a door. After busting through the door, and through the supply closet behind it, he and a team of characters found the staircase again, this time following it all the way down to a strange place: a vast underground cistern that's seemingly under the entire town. The water in the cistern burns like acid, making it difficult to explore further.

The wall behind the supply closet was also strange: beneath the drywall, it's made of living flesh.

The ghosts
Cecelia and Palamedes have been performing seances in town since cycle 1. They have learned that there are ghosts in town, and that the ghosts are trapped in the town much like the characters. The ghosts are unable to communicate easily, but do attempt to respond when reached out to by friendly forces.

In an event in cycle 4, the ghosts seemed to make another appearance, this time with voices that were heard through an aurora that came to town. Singular voices came through the walkie talkies, sometimes asking for help, sometimes speaking as if to someone else, and sometimes ruining said walkie talkies.

The doubles
At the end of each cycle, doubles of the characters appear in town and attempt to kill and replace the characters. The doubles appear to come from the graveyard. Killing a double seems to have repercussions.

The NPCs
The NPCs each have their own personality, and some seem somewhat more aware than others. When characters mess with the NPCs, if they go too far, a force seems to take control of the NPC and fight back. This happened to Alec in cycle 4, when he manipulated the Receptionist, and his control of the Receptionist seemed to be wrenched away from him and he was bodily forced back.

How do we learn more lore?

Have your characters interact with the setting, ask questions, fuck shit up! See what happens, and you may just learn something interesting.

Comments

[masculinitea]

Hi!

If I wanted to try a g-g-g-ghost with I guess you could say separate rules applying to their real world vs dream or spirit world appearance, could I pick one or the other?

Like, in the real world only some people can see them and they're semi-intangible and bound to a location. Or they're haunting an object and have little influence on the world. But in the other world they're not so different from any other character, or are a shape-changing mass of spirit particles that can resemble a regular human. And if they're bound to an object, does it come with them?

[wellie]

Hey! Great questions.

The general answer is: whatever would be most fun for you! If the ghost can change forms, and that's a power they possess, they can keep that power (ie. if they can change into the mass of spirit particles, or can possess and un-possess an object). If it makes most sense to you to pick a form, choose whichever you think you'd have the most fun playing as. There will be opportunities in the game that might make sense for a form shift, so if you want to pick one to start, you could always find a way for them to shift to the other one if you'd like.

The only caveat is: the object won't come with them, but they sure can find themselves possessing something of your choice in Wellstone! I think a big belt buckle would be pretty funny.

Let us know if we can clarify further. Happy haunting!

[wunderclone]

Hello!

Can we assume that certain articles of clothing came with the character as long as they are also covered in desert attire. Essentially this one wears an eyepatch to [PREVENT BAD THING] and an detonation collar to [PREVENT BAD POWERS FROM ACTIVATING] and I was wondering if she could come along with those since they're not exactly clothing.

[wellie]

Good question!

Short answer, yes, they can come along!

Long answer: if it's like a specific eyepatch and collar (i.e. they were specially made for this purpose and any other random eyepatch wouldn't prevent those bad things), then they'll be treated as medical items like a prosthetic and will be the same as they always were. If any old eyepatch and collar will do the trick, they'll still be there, they'll just look the part. What does an old-western eyepatch look like? Who knows!

Hope that helps!

[sighsheavily]

quick q about mempoints
if you don't use all your allocated points at time of applying, can u keep those until u DO want to use them to regain a memory or did i just lose those

[wellie]

Nah you're good! You keep your points and can use them when you want to. You can only lose them to death, or other event-related point losses.

[hedonistic]

Are there TVs in the rooms? Or any little kitchenette type things/a minifridge/etc?

[wellie]

Sadly, no. The technology is roughly 1920s level. Best I've got for you is a radio, which will play music. Sort of? Sort of music. Like, what you might think music is if you heard it once a long time ago.

There aren't mini-fridges, but fridges were around in the 1920s, so lets say there's one communal fridge in the cafeteria.

[offseers]

hi mods!!

I have a character who can generate blades from his body (somehow, don't ask me). Would that ability still be functional?

[wellie]

It sure can be! You'll need to use memory points for him to remember how to use it, but depending on how you want to play it, even if he doesn't remember, he could potentially do it accidentally.

[rubegoldberg]

HELLO I'm sure I'll be in this post often.

2 things:

1. Is there a list of any sort of materials just hanging around? Or can I assume there's basic things like buckets, wire, rope, pulley-system sort of stuff?

2. Do people have assigned room numbers? Or can I just make up a room number?

[wellie]

Hello hello, you're welcome to ask as much as you need.

1. Yes, there are materials in the rundown buildings. Assume that you can never find exactly what you want, but something slightly to the left of it. If you want a metal bucket, maybe you find a jenky wooden one, or somesuch.

2. No, there aren't assigned rooms. You can choose whatever room number you like.

[rottencactus]

Hello mods I have a few questions.

1. Can Mayoi break into unoccupied rooms in the staywell. are there consequences if so. if not is there anything interesting.

2. Mayoi would like to explore the staywell as much as he's allowed, and that includes trying to find any back of house rooms. Is there a kitchen? Can he come behind the counter of the reception desk? Is there any hint of basements or backrooms? Is he met with any kind of hostility for pushing the boundary with the NPCs?

3. Will anyone stop him from installing footholds all over the interior and exterior for easy climbing

[wellie]

Hello we have a few answers!

1. Mayoi can definitely break into the unoccupied rooms. It'll take some minor lockpicking and maybe a bit of force, but there won't be consequences for doing so. He'll find that, weirdly, about 2/3 of the vacant rooms are just as run-down and awful as the rest of town—dust everywhere, broken furniture, stuffy and sandy and gross—and the remaining 1/3 are pristine and lovely just like the standard rooms.

2. He is welcome behind the counter, although the receptionist will stop him from taking anything with a hand and a warning look. There's a wall full of boxes that contain room keys and a ledger with everyone's names and room numbers, as well as a few boxes of sticky notes! In the rest of the hotel, there is a distinct lack of... any hint of backroom, kitchen, or basement. They just don't exist. Weird!

3. Not remotely; live your truth Mayoi

[sighsheavily]

Can characters investigate the Gravedigger's shack while she's out at work? If not, what prevents it?
If so, what can be found there?

[wellie]

You can investigate the shack. The funny thing is: there's nothing in there. Absolutely nothing. It's an empty room.

If you look close enough, you'll notice a knot in the wood over the door that looks exactly like an eye, watching you.

When she is in the shack, the door is locked and impenetrable.

[aniketos]

Hello mods! I have a question about invites.

I know that during the January round, friends of the mod(s) were automatically offered an invitation, which I replied to confirm here. However, I wasn't able to apply during the January round.

Do the January round invitations still stand, or will I need to get a fresh invitation to apply?

[wellie]

Hi Kei! You're good :) We're still buds on plurk and while we don't publicize it as much because folks got confused about the mechanics a bit, mod friends always have an invite!

[wwrench]

Hello hello! At the risk of being pedantic, I wanted to confirm the detail about languages for a deaf character who uses ASL. Would he be understood by others while signing, and would he somehow inexplicably understand others speaking as well? Or would things work differently in this situation?

Thanks a bunch!

[wellie]

That's how it certainly can work, unless there's another way that would be more fun for you! It is rather inexplicable but, hey, so's the rest of this place.

[spacetogrow]

A standard question from me... how are tabletop RPG settings counted when it comes to 'is an original character counted as a fandom OC'? Basically, if a D&D character is from the Forgotten Realms or Ebberon or something as opposed to an original setting with D&D mechanics, does that fall close enough to 'fandom OC' or 'malleable protagonist' to be forbidden?

[wellie]

Original D&D characters are allowed, we have several already. The campaign they were in doesn't really matter to us, as long as they're a character original to you.

[forgeabettertomorrow]

As requested, here are the questions for the FAQ!

Darin's going to be spending a lot of his time this loop fortifying the Staywell. Reinforcing loadbearing beams and pillars, stripping down places of excess in order to fortify the ground and first levels. Basically his goal is to see if he can keep the Staywell from collapsing at the end of this next loop to see what lies beyond (if anything). Would he be able to do that?

Would he find anything on any of part of the Staywell if he stripped away sheetrock or boards to really fortify the structure? (btw, I'm totally open to rolling for success on any of this)

[wellie]

He can certainly fortify it! Put up a "damage" report so other folks know this is going on. There isn't much new material around Wellstone, so he'll have to pull from other buildings in order to get resources.

Whether it works.... Ask us in October for the next month 3!

What would he find? Well: stone. Lots of stone! There isn't drywall or anything to go into. He may find more of those unused rooms that are dusty and very, very old. If he pulls up floorboards, he will find stone. I rolled a 19 for him just now, so he'll be able to find old metal beams and a stairwell going down to nowhere. The bottom is sealed up with concrete and seems impossible to get through.

[mediaphobic]

Hi mods.

Teacher Man will hate himself later, but I love it so I need to know:

1) are there any tool sets small enough to work on, say, a pair of glasses anywhere in town? What about tools for delicate electronics work?

2) are the toy walkie talkies easy to open?

3) what happens if player characters try to modify the walkie talkies?

And 4) if the player characters do find a way to open up different channels on the walkie talkies to use or extend their range, what sort of things could they hear in the radio static?

[wellie]

1. Yes, there are glasses repair kits in the general store. This loop, they have cute little star patterns on them.

2. Sure! They're old fashioned back when you were encouraged to repair things yourself, so they're accessible.

3. Nothing untoward will happen. You can modify them however you want. If you're unsure if a character has the aptitude to do it right, you can roll for success (or we can roll for you).

4. Most of the waves are pure static. However, on certain channels, you can hear a low chatter with some words coming through more clearly than others. If you try to communicate on this channel, you may have varying levels of success depending on when you do it (so let us know!). On some of the lower channels, you can hear a strange, terrible squelching sound and a low hum.

And on one channel, you can access all the other walkie talkies and broadcast a message.

[anglophone]

Following up on an answer from here.

1. Is there anything specific the waiter says when pleading for mercy?

2. Would I be assuming correctly if I assumed that the waiter and the gravedigger retain their emotional states of scared/angry when puppeted?

3. Do the NPCs have a. muscle memory related to their jobs (i.e. the bartender's hands 'knowing' how to pour an appropriate amount of liquid for a shot) b. muscle memory related to anything outside of their jobs?

4. Is the gravedigger physically capable of speech?

[wellie]

1. "Please, don't do this, you don't have to do this. I didn't mean to--I didn't want to-- please! I don't want to die! I didn't ask for this!"

2. Yes, if that's how it works in Alec's canon. They can retain the underlying emotional state when puppeted.

3. Yes to their jobs. No to anything outside of their jobs, except the gravedigger who has muscle memory for combat.

4. No.

[hallucinogem]

heyyyy y'all so uh. emerald's gonna be subjected to some eye trauma near the end of cycle 3. i know that bodies reset after a death, but going on the Unofficial Rule of Vibes, would it be cool to have her just keep on missing an eye for a while, even if she dies and comes back? if that mucks with the cosmology too much then i'm totally fine with standard body regeneration rules, but i wanted to check with y'all nonetheless.

[wellie]

The Rule of Vibes can certainly apply here. Let's say, for the body regen rules, when cycle 4 starts it looks sort of like she's never had the eye. That's how she's always been, hasn't it? (if that works for you, of course)

[lunartes]

Will the sheriff let Estelle pet him

Can she give him skritches and tell him he's a good boy

[wellie]

Yes, he will allow her to pet him. He'll be tentative at first about it, but once he trusts her, he will accept ear skritches and his tail will wag.

[outofsynth]

Dear Mods. I know you have previously ruled the only reading material is Farmers Almac, but will you allow for the occasional other find so long as it's something that there's no possible way to misconstrue as good?

[wellie]

Hello hello you make a compelling point and I am convinced.

Slowly over the next few weeks / months, characters can start finding books. They'll be in the parlor, mostly, but also some in the General Store.

They're all in the romance and self-help genres, but they're all... not good. They could make sense if you don't think about it too hard, but the moment you do, the plots aren't coherent at all. For the self-help books, they're about things you really shouldn't need any help with. Think airport reads, but truly about nothing.

Some examples of the romance novels:
"Whispers on the Frontier"
"Yeti Tracks on the Dusty Trail"
"Karma in the Canyon"
"Sourdough Sweethearts"

Some examples of the self-help novels:
"Sarcasm as a Second Language"
"Confidence in Pajamas"
"DIY Psychic Powers"
"The Potato's Guide to Inner Peace"

[sighsheavily]

SEANCE INVESTIGATION CONTINUING!!!

A couple questions:

1. Can Pal and Cece make any contact with ghosts in 4.2? If so, what would the vibes be?

2. When, during contact attempts, Cecelia mentions the names José Burch and Sherman Navarro, what would happen? (Hopefully it's been enough time - i got those names back in September)

[wellie]

1. Pal and Cece can make contact with the ghosts in 4.2, and they seem very eager to talk. They'll practically flood into seance time with almost overwhelming force that makes their answers a little hard to parse because of the energy behind them. They seem frantic and eager.

2. Mild confusion, at first. Candles flickering. If they are they doing this seance with their walkies near them, and particularly during the auroras, static-filled whispering erupts from the walkies, growing louder and more intense. Eventually, a candle will indicate "yes" and then more forcefully "YES"

[go_loud]

Forgive me if this is stated somewhere, I didn't see it -- if we kept tagging a plot-worthy thread after the end of a month, can the tags that rolled over into the October 1-Dec 30, for example, cycle be used for AC?

[wellie]

Generally we would prefer AC to be from the current set of 3 months. However, if you need to, you can use backtag from the previous three months to count for up to half of AC. So, you can use threads from July-September for up to half of AC, as long as that thread was not used for the previous AC round.

[d9x]

Regarding Alec's signal plot: Alec's shard and Ezri's symbiont are going to communicate directly; they speak a similar native language of 'sharing memories back and forth.' As part of communicating-via-memory during telepathic links like this, Dax (the symbiont) can surface or outright trigger memories in other people (in this instance, in Alec). When memories are triggered this way, Dax/Ezri would also experience the memory in the moment as if it's her own.

Question is: Can I spend/donate Dax's points to trigger one of Alec's memories?

[wellie]

Yes, in this situation Dax's points can be used on Alec's memories.

[steelfeathered]

I've got a character here who's... well, technically she's a canon character who has multiple exchanges with a major character but she isn't named and nothing about her specifically is known, though some things can be extrapolated. I have basically made a Fandom OC, who aside from those exchanges hasn't interacted with any of the canon characters save for another very minor one. Would Hisako be appable?

[wellie]

Since it sounds like Hisako does have a basis in canon, even a heavily-extrapolated one, she would be appable. She falls into a gray area, but we aren't worried about characters constructed the way she is.

[sightstosee]

India can see things for what they really are. Is there anything in town that would appear differently to her?

I have already read up on the death energy/spirits side of things, since we were already talking about Sokta's abilities. As well as what's available on this FAQ page. Definitely not trying to make you repeat yourself on those points.

Just curious if there's anything that hasn't yet been pinged on this account by other abilities, essentially. And not disappointed if the answer is no! Just crossing my t's before I start threading about it.

(I am a Bloodborne weirdo, so the image in my head is the things you can see once you have too much insight.)

Thank you very much for letting me verify with you!

[wellie]

She won't get anything new ambiently, but let us know if you have specific questions on events or situations that come up in game!

[sighsheavily]

Question about the dusty old tomes Cece & Diluc have unearthed from shipwrecks!

At least one indicates sketches of town: Are there indicators of more of the town besides the mainstay buildings?

(reasoning: Cece & Darin want to try rebuilding parts of the town that have just been shambles over every cycle and see how that impacts future cycles the way that fortifying the staywell did)

[wellie]

There was, indeed, a much larger town here at one point! There are a couple different sketches of the town in a few of the books, and while most are of Wellstone more or less as it is today, there is one, labeled in faded, unreadable writing, that indicates a sprawling, thriving town with many more buildings. This book is the oldest of the lot and the pages with those sketches are quite decayed, but the buildings that can be made out are:

-the last building on the edge of town, just before the stretch leading to the diner: a gleaming stable for many horses. This corresponds to a ruined pile of wood at the moment with a few rotting timbers left.

-between the bathhouse and the General Store used to be another wooden building with the sketch of a little marquis with letters out front. It looks very like an old theater, and a large sketch a few pages later confirms that it did used to be a theater-slash-dance hall.

-in what is now the desert between the town and the graveyard are many little buildings that look like personal houses.

[andreadallover]

I keep meaning to ask this for wild ic speculation purposes...so at the very least the jukebox does use electricity- if someone looks could they find the power source? or is it a Mystery?

[wellie]

Someone could, at the very least follow what is definitely a plug coming out of the machine and plugged into the wall! It's present, it just doesn't really... make sense, because even when it's unplugged the jukebox still sporadically works, although less reliably than when it's plugged in. The plug itself is a normal, functioning plug, plugged into what at least looks like a normal outlet.