orientation.
[ INFORMATION POD BETA MARK 01.02 ]
WELCOME. I AM SHADE. DO NOT BE FEARFUL OF ME- I am only here to help you and regain the world that has been taken from us. The following is everything you need to know about the world- be it a new place to you since I have taken you from your old planet, or an old world to you but you never learnt of it back in the Dorms.
I hope this can be of use to you.
Learn well, my children.
[ THE MAP ]
A basic map for your benefit- most of this is made up by the mod, with as much information as she can gather from the book itself. Yes, it is basic, but it should help in the long run. The map is not to scale: for example, from the Sub, it'd take roughly an hour to reach the Fort, and for the Meat Factory, a day or so including breaks and sessions hiding from the monsters. It takes a long time to get anywhere in the city.
The white sections, save the river/freeway, is all city and mostly consist of buildings.
[ THE SUBMARINE & MISSIONS ]
The submarine you are currently residing in is our home, and your home until death do your part and the world is restored to what it once was.
Before entering the sub via the hatch, you will undergo a standard procedure of checking you are one of Shade's children. This involves a scan with one of Shade's Eyes (literally, an eye on the end of a wire), and should cause you no alarm. This also again occurs upon every re-entry and every entrance to Shade's office.
The submarine is very large and wedged into an embankment, and escapes the eyes of the monsters around it. It is highly advised you take care when leaving the sub to make sure no monsters are present that could find a way of entry. The sub itself spans various levels- the entry hatch leads to the room where you will change accordingly after a mission into dry clothes, and you are expected to shower before leaving this room. From there onwards are the main corridors.
• The level you are currently on contains the recreational and food areas, along with Shade's office.
• The first level above contains the sleeping quarters and some of the bathrooms.
• The second level above contains the information booths and the training areas.
• The basement contains the hospital suite and several out of bounds areas, only accesible by the spider robots.
You must not enter Shade's office without given permission from him beforehand. Usually, you will be given missions every few days, to assigned teams or whoever voulenteers. Sometimes, the missions will be large- other times, the missions will be small and require only a few people. You will be briefed by Shade beforehand in his office.
[ SHADE ]
Shade is in charge, and there is no dispute about that. What he says goes, and you must follow. If you disobey, the door is clearly marked and you will most likely be thrown out to the Wingers.
The children have mixed opinions on Shade, and for good reason. The older they get, the more questioning they become, and the more they wonder about his motives.
Shade is the oldest human you will probably see that naturally came from this world- around about thirty years of age, with the appearence of a famous actor. However, he is not human- he is an A.I, of artifical intelligence, with only the memories and genius of a long dead man embedded into the computer mechanisms of the submarine.
In this sense, he has no emotion, and goes with logical plans and explanations. And he is often wrong or his calculations are inacurrate to a certain degree when it comes to missions. He never discloses his motives and most likely never will- your only job for him is to fight, and in return he'll provide you shelter on the submarine.
Shade has a set of robots at his disposal- spider robots which assist him on the ship, and rat robots that he sends out in the departed city to investigate and bring him back information. Not only that, but he can watch your every movement on the submarine. Think of him as Big Brother in that regard.
There's a lot more to Shade than first appears, but that will be brought out as the game progresses.
[ THE WORLD & WATERWAYS ]
The world outside is very much like an everyday scenario, but frozen. Think of a world bustling with life, people working, cars starting, everything- and then think of everyone being swept away at the exact same moment. That is how everything now is- left to rot, still and silent.
All the buildings and objects are derilict, and serve as hiding places. That's what people from the world know them as unless they have been educated by Shade.
Some places have been taken up by the Overlords as bases for their troops, and these are usually avoided. Some of the old equipment, such as alarms, still works and is monitored, so is used by the Overlords to track down children who are hiding or fleeing.
Obviously, the monsters roam above ground, so it is well advised to avoid crossing open country. This is why the children use waterways. The waterways run under the entire city, and as much as a hazard as a hindrance. They are partial to flooding from lack of maintenance, but if the tide is too low they may house a Ferret or two which spells death.
The waterways are used for all missions, and are referred to as by the pipe number and the direction, which is visalbe on the walls of the waterway. There are twelve waterways in all, leading to different areas.
[ TECHNOLOGY ]
Technology in the world is limited. All the technology is what we are used to in our everyday lives- such as computers, televisions, elevators, cars and so forth, but the knowledge on how to use them has been lost, so they are only used as a means for hiding, escaping, or to make equipment. Nothing to do with technology is taught onboard the sub, or back in the dorms. Some people, however, may be taught small pieces and show they have an apt for it, so usually find out more about it than other children.
Electricity is something that comes and gos, as for some reason the Overlords like to switch it on and off and make things work for a while. It is the only reliable source that is around, and the only thing the children are vaguely taught about and how to make use of.
The atmosphere and weather is also made by the Overlords using technology, using their own technology. Fog is usually iminent of a battle, as is rain or any unusual weather pattern.
Shade is probably the only person from the world who knows how to use such technology, but given he can't move from the sub, is not able to adapt any of it for use. The only thing given to the children by Shade relating to technology are flashlights.
If someone has come from another world and knows how to use the items, then they will be able to use them for weapons if needed. There are no guns aviliable, so all the children use swords, and, if they have the power, create powerful weapons such as grenades.
[ THE DORMS ]
If you started off life on Shade's world, you will have come from the Dorms.
The Dorms are exactly as they sound- dorms. A large concrete building where all the children of the world reside and live and learn the basics needed for a healthy brain before they are killed on their fourteenth birthday. They can never go out, and there is never any escape.
Each child in the Dorms has a tracer in their wrist. Some cut theirs out with a knife; some imagine it out; some manage to unlock it with a key; there are various means of removing the tracer. No child can escape without removing their tracer. Once the tracer is removed, it is quite easy for the child to escape and get a fairly decent headstart before the miles upon miles of monsters start up after them.
All the children that are with Shade will have escaped the dorms and have been found by other children on patrols before the monsters picked them up. Others of course, will have escaped- but not all of them will be found before they are carted back to the Dorms, and, if old enough, to The Meat Factory.
Each child dies at fourteen, and there are only two exceptions. Boys can be taken to training grounds where they are given steriods to enhance their bodies from an early age, so the muscle can be used to create monsters as well. Some girls are given an exstension on life till roughtly eighteen so they can be bred. There are no other exceptions, and all children in the dorms meet the same end in The Meat Factory if they do not escape.
[ THE MEAT FACTORY ]
Not much is known about this place inside, save for the fact this is the place the children who are fourteen go to become monsters. It is advised you never set foot anywhere near this place. If you go in there, you will never come out as a human.
The Meat Factory is easily spotted, and was once an air hanger in the olden days- now, it's a kaleidoscope of colours to represent each Overlord.
[ MONSTERS ]
There are several groups of monsters. Depending on the intelligence and usefullness of the brain provided, depends on the monster. To known knowledge, it seems possible to be able to kill or at least harm each one; and they all bleed blue ichor. The only reason they can do what they do is thanks to the domes scattered about the city- which gives them power to do impossible things.
Their main goal is to look and seek children who have escaped, but they are also under the command of an Overlord. Overlords tend to fight with one another and so have their own set of monsters.
First are the Trackers, which always travel in groups of three. They are the same as their namesake- they track children and other Overlord's groups. The Myrmridons are second, and have slightly more intelligence and speak in battlespeak, screeches and whistlings. They carry swords. They always travel in groups of seven, unless their is a Master among them, who can command several groups at once. There are known ways to kill both. Both types only come out during the day.
Ferrets resemble ferrets, save for they are much bigger and have sharper teeth. They tend to travel in groups of five. They detest water and have a fear of heights, and will never go any higher than a second floor on a high storey building, unless instructed by an Overlord. Still, they will never approach the edge if they emerge on a roof. Ferrets too, can also be killed. Ferrets hate sunlight and only come out willingly at night.
Wingers are like a floating head with a body, who have large wing spans that cover wide areas. They travel in groups of nine with no exceptions. Wingers are, the top notch of once-children, and are very difficult to defeat. They prefer flying at day, but can also appear at night, but rarely.
The highest level is a Screamer, though these are very rare and only one has ever been seen, so nothing is known about them save they travel solo.
[ OVERLORDS ]
Overlords are what started the entire mess the world has become. Think of them as a general in a battle- who are playing a game with other generals to see who is stronger. There are roughly seven Overlords, and they are very rarely seen as they keep to themselves.
When a battle is won, a marker is sent up over the area, declaring the victory by many marked flags. No creature is allowed to enter the area for two days, so this is a prime time when Shade will sent you out on a mission. However, if a patrol group is spotted by the Overlords, the markers will be ignored and you will be attacked.
The Overlords and their base locations are as follows;
• Red Diamond - Global Trade Centre (Tower 1) and Fort Robinson
• Black Banner - University Great Hall
• Gold Claw - Global Trade Centre (Tower 2)
• Blue Star - St. Mark's Cathedral
• Emerald Crown - Prince Albert Base
• Silver Sun - South Shore School
• Grey Crescent - New College
[ CHANGE POWER ]
Like the monsters who can use the domes, so can you. After the change, some children gained a 'Change Power'. Some can will things into being, some can move objects with their minds, some can see the future. Some have no powers at all.
If your character has a power before coming here from their world, that power will remain, but will be dulled down to fit the surroundings, as it will rely on the domes. After using a power, a character will become tired and drained for a period of time, the more so the closer they are to the domes.
The powers seem to dull and lessen under water, so in the submarine, are not all the useful, and in the waterways, are a hit and miss situation.
synopsis | applications | taken | reservations | hiatus/drop | faq | orientation | comments/feedback | moderator contact
WELCOME. I AM SHADE. DO NOT BE FEARFUL OF ME- I am only here to help you and regain the world that has been taken from us. The following is everything you need to know about the world- be it a new place to you since I have taken you from your old planet, or an old world to you but you never learnt of it back in the Dorms.
I hope this can be of use to you.
Learn well, my children.
[ THE MAP ]
A basic map for your benefit- most of this is made up by the mod, with as much information as she can gather from the book itself. Yes, it is basic, but it should help in the long run. The map is not to scale: for example, from the Sub, it'd take roughly an hour to reach the Fort, and for the Meat Factory, a day or so including breaks and sessions hiding from the monsters. It takes a long time to get anywhere in the city.
The white sections, save the river/freeway, is all city and mostly consist of buildings.
[ THE SUBMARINE & MISSIONS ]
The submarine you are currently residing in is our home, and your home until death do your part and the world is restored to what it once was.
Before entering the sub via the hatch, you will undergo a standard procedure of checking you are one of Shade's children. This involves a scan with one of Shade's Eyes (literally, an eye on the end of a wire), and should cause you no alarm. This also again occurs upon every re-entry and every entrance to Shade's office.
The submarine is very large and wedged into an embankment, and escapes the eyes of the monsters around it. It is highly advised you take care when leaving the sub to make sure no monsters are present that could find a way of entry. The sub itself spans various levels- the entry hatch leads to the room where you will change accordingly after a mission into dry clothes, and you are expected to shower before leaving this room. From there onwards are the main corridors.
• The level you are currently on contains the recreational and food areas, along with Shade's office.
• The first level above contains the sleeping quarters and some of the bathrooms.
• The second level above contains the information booths and the training areas.
• The basement contains the hospital suite and several out of bounds areas, only accesible by the spider robots.
You must not enter Shade's office without given permission from him beforehand. Usually, you will be given missions every few days, to assigned teams or whoever voulenteers. Sometimes, the missions will be large- other times, the missions will be small and require only a few people. You will be briefed by Shade beforehand in his office.
[ SHADE ]
Shade is in charge, and there is no dispute about that. What he says goes, and you must follow. If you disobey, the door is clearly marked and you will most likely be thrown out to the Wingers.
The children have mixed opinions on Shade, and for good reason. The older they get, the more questioning they become, and the more they wonder about his motives.
Shade is the oldest human you will probably see that naturally came from this world- around about thirty years of age, with the appearence of a famous actor. However, he is not human- he is an A.I, of artifical intelligence, with only the memories and genius of a long dead man embedded into the computer mechanisms of the submarine.
In this sense, he has no emotion, and goes with logical plans and explanations. And he is often wrong or his calculations are inacurrate to a certain degree when it comes to missions. He never discloses his motives and most likely never will- your only job for him is to fight, and in return he'll provide you shelter on the submarine.
Shade has a set of robots at his disposal- spider robots which assist him on the ship, and rat robots that he sends out in the departed city to investigate and bring him back information. Not only that, but he can watch your every movement on the submarine. Think of him as Big Brother in that regard.
There's a lot more to Shade than first appears, but that will be brought out as the game progresses.
[ THE WORLD & WATERWAYS ]
The world outside is very much like an everyday scenario, but frozen. Think of a world bustling with life, people working, cars starting, everything- and then think of everyone being swept away at the exact same moment. That is how everything now is- left to rot, still and silent.
All the buildings and objects are derilict, and serve as hiding places. That's what people from the world know them as unless they have been educated by Shade.
Some places have been taken up by the Overlords as bases for their troops, and these are usually avoided. Some of the old equipment, such as alarms, still works and is monitored, so is used by the Overlords to track down children who are hiding or fleeing.
Obviously, the monsters roam above ground, so it is well advised to avoid crossing open country. This is why the children use waterways. The waterways run under the entire city, and as much as a hazard as a hindrance. They are partial to flooding from lack of maintenance, but if the tide is too low they may house a Ferret or two which spells death.
The waterways are used for all missions, and are referred to as by the pipe number and the direction, which is visalbe on the walls of the waterway. There are twelve waterways in all, leading to different areas.
[ TECHNOLOGY ]
Technology in the world is limited. All the technology is what we are used to in our everyday lives- such as computers, televisions, elevators, cars and so forth, but the knowledge on how to use them has been lost, so they are only used as a means for hiding, escaping, or to make equipment. Nothing to do with technology is taught onboard the sub, or back in the dorms. Some people, however, may be taught small pieces and show they have an apt for it, so usually find out more about it than other children.
Electricity is something that comes and gos, as for some reason the Overlords like to switch it on and off and make things work for a while. It is the only reliable source that is around, and the only thing the children are vaguely taught about and how to make use of.
The atmosphere and weather is also made by the Overlords using technology, using their own technology. Fog is usually iminent of a battle, as is rain or any unusual weather pattern.
Shade is probably the only person from the world who knows how to use such technology, but given he can't move from the sub, is not able to adapt any of it for use. The only thing given to the children by Shade relating to technology are flashlights.
If someone has come from another world and knows how to use the items, then they will be able to use them for weapons if needed. There are no guns aviliable, so all the children use swords, and, if they have the power, create powerful weapons such as grenades.
[ THE DORMS ]
If you started off life on Shade's world, you will have come from the Dorms.
The Dorms are exactly as they sound- dorms. A large concrete building where all the children of the world reside and live and learn the basics needed for a healthy brain before they are killed on their fourteenth birthday. They can never go out, and there is never any escape.
Each child in the Dorms has a tracer in their wrist. Some cut theirs out with a knife; some imagine it out; some manage to unlock it with a key; there are various means of removing the tracer. No child can escape without removing their tracer. Once the tracer is removed, it is quite easy for the child to escape and get a fairly decent headstart before the miles upon miles of monsters start up after them.
All the children that are with Shade will have escaped the dorms and have been found by other children on patrols before the monsters picked them up. Others of course, will have escaped- but not all of them will be found before they are carted back to the Dorms, and, if old enough, to The Meat Factory.
Each child dies at fourteen, and there are only two exceptions. Boys can be taken to training grounds where they are given steriods to enhance their bodies from an early age, so the muscle can be used to create monsters as well. Some girls are given an exstension on life till roughtly eighteen so they can be bred. There are no other exceptions, and all children in the dorms meet the same end in The Meat Factory if they do not escape.
[ THE MEAT FACTORY ]
Not much is known about this place inside, save for the fact this is the place the children who are fourteen go to become monsters. It is advised you never set foot anywhere near this place. If you go in there, you will never come out as a human.
The Meat Factory is easily spotted, and was once an air hanger in the olden days- now, it's a kaleidoscope of colours to represent each Overlord.
[ MONSTERS ]
There are several groups of monsters. Depending on the intelligence and usefullness of the brain provided, depends on the monster. To known knowledge, it seems possible to be able to kill or at least harm each one; and they all bleed blue ichor. The only reason they can do what they do is thanks to the domes scattered about the city- which gives them power to do impossible things.
Their main goal is to look and seek children who have escaped, but they are also under the command of an Overlord. Overlords tend to fight with one another and so have their own set of monsters.
First are the Trackers, which always travel in groups of three. They are the same as their namesake- they track children and other Overlord's groups. The Myrmridons are second, and have slightly more intelligence and speak in battlespeak, screeches and whistlings. They carry swords. They always travel in groups of seven, unless their is a Master among them, who can command several groups at once. There are known ways to kill both. Both types only come out during the day.
Ferrets resemble ferrets, save for they are much bigger and have sharper teeth. They tend to travel in groups of five. They detest water and have a fear of heights, and will never go any higher than a second floor on a high storey building, unless instructed by an Overlord. Still, they will never approach the edge if they emerge on a roof. Ferrets too, can also be killed. Ferrets hate sunlight and only come out willingly at night.
Wingers are like a floating head with a body, who have large wing spans that cover wide areas. They travel in groups of nine with no exceptions. Wingers are, the top notch of once-children, and are very difficult to defeat. They prefer flying at day, but can also appear at night, but rarely.
The highest level is a Screamer, though these are very rare and only one has ever been seen, so nothing is known about them save they travel solo.
[ OVERLORDS ]
Overlords are what started the entire mess the world has become. Think of them as a general in a battle- who are playing a game with other generals to see who is stronger. There are roughly seven Overlords, and they are very rarely seen as they keep to themselves.
When a battle is won, a marker is sent up over the area, declaring the victory by many marked flags. No creature is allowed to enter the area for two days, so this is a prime time when Shade will sent you out on a mission. However, if a patrol group is spotted by the Overlords, the markers will be ignored and you will be attacked.
The Overlords and their base locations are as follows;
• Red Diamond - Global Trade Centre (Tower 1) and Fort Robinson
• Black Banner - University Great Hall
• Gold Claw - Global Trade Centre (Tower 2)
• Blue Star - St. Mark's Cathedral
• Emerald Crown - Prince Albert Base
• Silver Sun - South Shore School
• Grey Crescent - New College
[ CHANGE POWER ]
Like the monsters who can use the domes, so can you. After the change, some children gained a 'Change Power'. Some can will things into being, some can move objects with their minds, some can see the future. Some have no powers at all.
If your character has a power before coming here from their world, that power will remain, but will be dulled down to fit the surroundings, as it will rely on the domes. After using a power, a character will become tired and drained for a period of time, the more so the closer they are to the domes.
The powers seem to dull and lessen under water, so in the submarine, are not all the useful, and in the waterways, are a hit and miss situation.
synopsis | applications | taken | reservations | hiatus/drop | faq | orientation | comments/feedback | moderator contact