New Moon Event Details

[somarium_lords]

Because the upcoming New Moon event is going to be a lot more involved than usual, we're going ahead and telling everyone what's going to happen and the general logistics of how it will work. This is basically just the plot post, but the actual Moon Cycle will go up sometime around Sunday so everyone has at least a day to read before the event week actually starts.

This is the very short version of the event. For those who will be actively participating, this event is actually working from two sides. Characters can either choose to be in

• Side A. The dreamscape where they will be stuck in that environment; OR
  
• Side B. Stay in Somarium and have special dreams that could help those stuck in the dreamscape.

Each has its own section with the complete details. However, fair warning: once you pick a side, you're stuck with it throughout the whole event. While characters will still be able to communicate with each other, there isn't a way to switch in between. But there should be enough activity for players to feel satisfied no matter which they pick. Each side should also cater to both the active and non-active type characters.

Note: It is possible for characters to not be involved in either side as well, so you do not need to feel pressured to participate in one or the other.

If you have any questions or want to use this post for plot purposes, feel free to do so!

event plot summary.
As we mentioned in the last moon cycle, the main focus of this event is Sylvani creating a dreamscape depicting the events that happened over a century ago in Somarium, detailed further below. Those who volunteer to (or accidentally) enter the dreamscape are supposed to just play audience and witness the events.

Of course, this won't go as planned. Evil nightmare lady will take advantage of the new moon phase and actually invade the dreamscape, altering it so that the characters within the dreamscape are no longer passive watchers but are now part of the action. Better still, they're locked in so they're stuck there and will basically have to fight or hide.

Those who stayed behind aren't left helpless, though. Characters who are still awake and not in the dreamscape will be asked to help by producing more positive dream energy to combat against the sudden influx of nightmare energy. This is mainly done via dreaming, and they will be informed on how to do it.

After several days, Sylvani will be able to fix the dreamscape and everyone inside it will be freed.

side a: within the dreamscape.
First of all, participating in the dreamscape is voluntary. Players may choose to opt out. As a note, the signal post for Side A will start in media res with nightmare lady appearing.

• Sign-Up or drop in. Characters will be asked to ICly volunteer in an NPC post, but it is also possible for characters to accidentally dreamwalk their way in. Only stipulation is that this only works in the beginning. Once nightmare lady appears, no one can enter.
  
  
• In the beginning. To keep the event post short, we won't include all the details. Instead, we'll tell you here so you can have an idea of what kind of setting environment your characters will be thrown into. The time of the dreamscape is back when Somarium was attacked by the nightmare army and the noctaere. Buildings destroyed, people evacuating, soldiers injured and dying. It's like any other "city being attacked by strong foes" scene. In addition to the normal people, there are also other dreamwalkers fighting. Characters will be able to see people dressed in special uniforms using what could be perceived as powerful magic. Some will even be flying around. Either way, it's a fierce battle. Upon entering, Sylvani will begin to tell them that this war was the start of everything, but not too long after, nightmare lady will appear and pick up from there.
  
  
• Run or fight. As stated in the summary, characters will more than likely be forced to fight against the noctaere and those of the nightmare army. We always leave the creatures up to the players' imagination since they vary in looks and types. Basically just imagine any nightmareish, black/dark, evil looking creature or humanoid, and you basically got yourself a soldier of the nightmare army! However, you don't necessarily have to fight. While you will have to keep their presence in mind, if you would rather your character avoid all possible encounters and try to find an exit or some other type of investigation or exploration, that's perfectly fine, too! Maybe try to secure a hideout or healing station. Note: Characters will at this point be able to form their weapons as well as use their own natural abilities in Dreamwalker form.
  
  
• Nightmare lady. She is there, and she actually may try to provoke your character and try to a) sway them over to her side, b) spark distrust, or c) kill them to take their power. However, characters will not be able to find her. She finds them. If you want nightmare lady to show up in any of your threads, just comment to the designated post (NOT THIS ONE-upcoming Moon Cycle post). If confronted, characters are free to try to fight her, but be warned: she is like the ultimate boss. Since characters are basically at a low, start-of-game level, they have no chance of winning. In fact, it will be Sylvani who will push her back in the end, but characters are free to try to find her or take a whack at her.
  
  
• Can characters die? Sort of. If a character gets fatally wounded, they won't actually die. They will feel extreme shock, but instead of being ejected out of the dream like they normally would, they'll fall into a coma-like state instead. No worries, they can be revived in one of two ways: 1) enough positive dream energy is supplied (to be explained below), or 2) when the event ends.
  
  
• No no need for sleeping. This is going to be a little weird for those stuck in the dreamscape. They will actually not feel tired, nor will they feel any need to sleep. Of course they can sleep, but they still will be stuck in the dreamscape. Even stranger is they will not have any dreams whatsoever, so keep that in mind! In terms of seeing other people's dreams, they can still watch passively, but they cannot interact in any dreams.
  
  
• Bonus Effects. This ties in with "Side B" of the event and that section will explain this better. But basically, throughout the event characters may feel sudden "surges" of power. Depending on what it is, they could receive a bonus effect that will be listed in another post. This could range from being healed to having a certain ability for a limited time. Those who are KO'ed can also be revived if enough dream energy is supplied to them. Characters will receive these bonuses passively, though players can pick and choose which ones to have.

And that's pretty much it for "Side A." It's really recommended for those who are in a fighting mood and just want some action.

side b: within somarium.
Those left behind aren't stuck waiting and twiddling their thumbs. Of course, just kicking back and minding their own business is an acceptable option. But they, too, can play a rather interactive role in this event, and what they do can actually affect how the others stuck in the dreamscape will fare. This is of course also optional. Just to say again, characters who are in Somarium don't have to participate in this part of the event.

• Outside audience. First, it's important to note that characters in Somarium can see what's going on in the dreamscape with their Dreamberries. Imagine the feed as one of those constant livestreaming channels, and that's basically how it works. So the characters will be able to almost immediately tell that things have turned sour over there.
  
  
• Somarium is normal. Just a quick note to say that Somarium the city itself will have no affects. All the bad stuff is happening in the dreamscape and that's like in its own bubble. The city will be safe and normal.
  
  
• Dream energy providers. There will be an IC NPC post about this, but basically the characters will be asked to dream positive dreams and dream a lot of them. Some may remember Ryan telling them to do that in a previous event. But this time it will really count. There are two ways to create the necessary type of dream energy needed:
  • General positive dream. Just have a generally happy themed dream. It can be about anything: happy memory, friends, favorite activity-anything. This can be either interactive or non-interactive.
    
    
  • Overcoming one's fear. It's new moon, we have to have some kind of nightmare theme going on, right? In this case, characters may find themselves dreaming of their worst fear or nightmare. It could be something like a tragic event or something like a fear of heights. But the object of the dream is to overcome that fear, so characters will have to find a way to do it. This, too, can be either interactive or non-interactive. If you go the interactive route, other characters could try to help the dreamer.
  You can do either or both! Completely up to you. You can also assume that your character is having dreams that are not posted. However, those that are broadcasted on the Dreamberry will have a bit more power than those that are not.
  
  
• Nightmares. As a side note, your characters do not have to actually have "nice" dreams. In fact, they could deliberately have nightmares or just not very good dreams (they might not think it's a nightmare, but the very content of the dream would make it seem like one). If this happens, then they will just be adding to the nightmare energy. It won't take away from the regular more positive dream energy, but it certainly doesn't help.
  
  
• Limitations. There are some limits. Because the characters are basically producing dream energy and will have to use more mental concentration and energy, dreaming too much will cause characters to weaken both mentally and physically. We aren't going to put any number limits for how many dreams a character could have, though be reasonable. This event is only going to last about 5 days.
  
  
• Bonus effects. As mentioned in "Side A," these dreams will help provide bonus effects for those stuck in the dreamscape. What that effect is will be up to the player. We will provide a list that you can choose from, and it does not have to relate to the dream content. It can be completely random. You will have to indicate the effect somewhere on the post, and we will also have a post to serve as a kind of "Bonus Effect Directory" where you can link your post there. It is also possible to direct the boost to a specific character. However, other characters can still receive the benefit along with that character.

As you can see, those in the "Side B" party can see just as much action as those in "Side A," and that "Side A" actually depends on "Side B" for help. Everyone plays an important role!

inter-communication.
Even though the characters won't be able to physically interact with each other, they can communicate with one another through the Dreamberries. Yes, even those in the dreamscape will have access to their Dreamberries. So characters can try to organize something through that as well.

schedule.
This is our current schedule:

• Sunday, 9/18 - NPC post alerting characters of the upcoming dreamscape
  
• Tuesday, 9/20 - Dreamscape post goes up, signaling event start for Side A only
  
• Wednesday, 9/21 - NPC post for dream energy goes up, signaling event start for Side B only
  
• Monday, 9/25 - Event ends.

That should give everyone plenty of time to get their posts in. We'll post the schedule again on the Moon Cycle post as a reminder.

And that's pretty much it. We'll post up how posting will work in the actual Moon Cycle post, as well as any other notes. If you have any questions, comments, concerns, feel free to respond to this thread. If you already know which side you're gonna be in, comment to the respective thread: SIDE A or SIDE B. If you change your mind before the start of the event, that's cool! This just helps us get a general idea of who is going where and what to expect.

Other than that, this post is free for plotting.