The Campaign Builder's Guild

[ooc=Welcome to the City!]This thread is one of two game threads for City of the Chosen, a play-by-post strategic roleplaying game.
Rules
OOC Discussion
Characters

In this thread I, as the game master, will post the events for each turn, as well as the outcomes from previous turns.
On each turn you, as a player, should post to this thread once. In that post should be a spoiler block that specifies what characters (and items) are assigned to what events this turn, as well as any miscellaneous details like trading/picking up/putting down/moving items or using certain powers. If you change your mind or need to add something before the end of the turn, use the edit button.

On the first turn you have only one character to assign. If you improve the loyalty score of an NPC, they do not become your ally until the beginning of next turn (and they only ally if you have the highest loyalty score for that NPC).

Do not use this thread for roleplaying or in-character communication. For that stuff, use the City of the Chosen: Roleplaying thread. (soon to come)

Do not open a spoiler tag in this thread unless your name is on it! We'll be playing with an honor system, so be honorable.

The numbers associated with events on a turn indicate when the event occurs. Events with the same number happen simultaneously.
While knowledge of events is private by default, you can share knowledge of events with other players. To do so, simply copy-paste the event block into the roleplaying thread and mark it as ooc.[/ooc]


[ic=Awakening]You wake up in a dark, enclosed space. Perhaps you dozed off somewhere, you think as you rub the sleep from your eyes. Strangely, you find yourself fully dressed and unable to remember when you fell asleep. Reaching forward you can feel a wooden panel in the darkness. It budges as you touch it, and so you press harder. The hatch opens a crack, letting in a soft blue light and a cool breeze to wherever you find yourself. Gathering your wits about you, you get up from the leather cushions that you woke up upon and climb up through the hatch into the light.[/ic]

[ic=Pod Tower]They found themselves in a massive room, circular in shape and probably 30 meters in diameter. The floor was made of rounded cobblestones of all kinds of colors, worn smooth over time, and the walls appeared to be marble or some other kind of smooth, white stone. Inset in the walls were a multitude of glass beads arranged in strange spiral patterns that drew the eye upward. Each bead emitted a soft white-blue glow, that together lit the room in a way that was reminiscent of starlight. As eyes follow the spirals upward the neck would be forced back and back and back. The room appeared to have no ceiling, but to extend forever into the heavens like a great, glowing tunnel. In the room were sixteen pod-shaped objects, like eggs on stands, arranged into an uneven ring. Each of them had awoken in one such pod. Along one side of the tower there was a notable absence of lights, and instead the walls seemed embossed with inrticate designs reaching upward nearly 5 meters.[/ic]
[spoiler=Pod Description][ic=Pod]Large Size

This tan, egg-shaped structure is about the size of a refrigerator. On one side is a door with a wooden knob that leads inside to a dimly lit, cushioned interior shaped into roughly human form. The inside is warmer than the outside, indicating some sort of machinery or power source, but it makes no noise. The base (which keeps it from being truly egg-shaped) is made of wood, and the outside is made of ceramic. Parts of the exterior are set with strange patterns and textures. The first memory of one of the Chosen is waking up in one of these.[/ic][/spoiler][ic=The Chosen]Before they had the chance to investigate where they were more fully, each soon noticed that they were not alone. More than a dozen other people had emerged from the eggs and were gazing up at the strange room, and at each-other. One woman yelled out "Where in heaven's name am I?!" in Portuguese, and to the shock of the others, they were able to understand her! The people soon begin to talk to themselves and to their neighbors. And despite using a host of different languages, they could all comprehend each other with ease.

What was this place?
Who were these people?[/ic]

Publicly Known Locations:
Pod Tower (16 Pods, All PCs, All NPCs at the start of Turn 1)

Quote from: Character-Specific Knowledge+Events
[spoiler=Layla al-Zakiyya][ic=A Flood of Whispers]You awaken with a start in the dark of the pod. Your ears are filled with a deluge of noise, as though you sit beneath a waterfall. But as your mind shakes off the chains of sleep, you notice that it is not water you hear, but voices--whispers. They're all packed together and jumbled, like a basket of snakes where you can never be sure where one ends and another begins. For several minutes you don't even bother trying to remove yourself from the strange capsule. You simply bear down and try and focus on making the awful whispering cease. It quickly becomes clear that it isn't true noise, as covering your ears does nothing to the volume. Eventually you stumble upon a trick, and the voices fade into nothingness.

You climb from the pod singing a bit of a tune. The walls and height of the tower you find yourself in knocks you into awed silence for a moment, and as soon as the tune falls from your mind the whispers grow again. You think you're beginning to get a headache...

As you look at the strangers in the room, you find that it becomes possible to drop your guard just a little and let in just a few whispers. It doesn't take long to figure out that the whispers are fragments of the surface thoughts of those around you. Rarely deep, and often nothing meaningful at all, the thoughts usually consist of things drawn to the subject's attention, or passing emotions. In general you hear confusion and fear from those around you. You suspect that they're just as oblivious to their surroundings as you are.

But where are you? And why can you suddenly hear the thoughts of others. That's the really interesting question. You try and carry a children's song in the back of your mind to block out the distracting voices. Perhaps the ability to hear what's in other's heads is why you can understand their speech. That would be logical. Perhaps everyone here has gained abilities such as you have. You're suddenly stuck by the thought that someone else might be listening to your thoughts and you spend a couple minutes staring off into space trying to feel the possible presence of another mind.

Eventually you feel enough of a combination of satisfaction that no one can hear you and embarrassment at having tried something so... strange. This whole situation is strange. You wish your father were here to help analyze it with you.[/ic]

Events:

1.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=Sizing Up The Crowd]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event keep to themselves and watch from a distance. At the start of next round you gain knowledge of the following facts about events that are simultaneous to this one (including this one) and happen in the same location:
Which characters and items were applied to those events
Any targets selected as part of those events
Any superhuman abilities used as part of those events.
[/ic]

[ic=Is This Magic?!]
Private, Opportunity, Dust
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event try out their new superhuman traits, using them to do simple things and otherwise practicing. All characters assigned with fewer than one Superhuman Development token gain one.
[/ic]

[ic=Who Are You?]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain. (Layla meets this requirement.)

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1.
[/ic]

[ic=Where am I?]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Dust in the Skill domain. (Layla meets this requirement.)

Assigned characters examine the patterns on the pods, walls, and the "door" and try to think if they resemble anything that they know about. The outcome of this event depends on the background and education of the assigned characters. Regardless of assigned character, this event does not yield any immediate benefit, but it may confer long-term clues.
[/ic]

2.
[ic=We Are Lost]
Public, Cooperative, Crisis, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Many characters are confused and frightened from suddenly finding themselves abducted from their lives.

Challenge domains: Social, Political

Blood and Smoke outcome: Confusion and fear, combined with cultural barriers, boils over into anger and minor violence. Some characters accuse others of being part of a conspiracy. Next turn, an opportunity event involving intimidation will be available. All characters in this location gain one unhappiness token.

Iron and Frost outcome: Everyone involved agrees that, while there's a lot going on, that panic needs to be avoided and that a calm investigation is in order. Next turn, an opportunity event involving taking a census will be available. Winners in this event get +1 Frost in the political domain for the remainder of the turn.

Dust outcome: It becomes clear that some sort of supernatural or super-powerful force is at work, and that there is little reason to suspect that any human is responsible for bringing people here. Next turn, an opportunity event involving cataloging of powers will be available.

Tie outcome: One of the tied outcomes is selected at random.

Neglect outcome: None are bold enough to come forward and address the group. The "Follow Me!" event this turn is disrupted. Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.
[/ic]

3.
[ic=Follow Me!]
Public, Competitive, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

In this time of uncertainty, The Chosen look for a strong leader.

Challenge domains: Political

Blood outcome: The winner of this event becomes the de facto leader of The Chosen. Next turn, they gain additional events. If the de facto leader would increase the loyalty score of an NPC, it increases by an additional +1.

Iron outcome: It's agreed that the group needs an explicit leader, but that leader should be chosen by a vote, and The Chosen don't know each other well enough to vote yet. Next turn, an opportunity event to vote on a leader will be available (though prerequisites may not be met)

Smoke outcome: The winner of this event shows the losers to be foolish and power-hungry (whether or not the actually are). Loyalty scores between all NPCs and all losers go down by 1 (loyalty can be negative). Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.

Frost outcome: The winner of this event becomes the de facto leader of The Chosen. Next turn, they gain additional events. If the de facto leader would increase the loyalty score of an NPC, it increases by an additional +1. The de facto leader also gains +1 Frost in the Political domain.

Tie outcome: Observers are split regarding who to listen to. Next turn, a crisis event involving a poltical face-off will need to be dealt with.

Neglect outcome: None feel that they are up to the task of leading so soon after arrival. Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.
[/ic]

4.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=What's Your Name?]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain. (Layla meets this requirement.)

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1. This cannot target an NPC that has already had their loyalty score towards you improve this turn.
[/ic]

[ic=Worth Watching]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Dust or +1 Smoke in the Social or Skill domains. (Layla meets this requirement.)

When you assign a character to this event, target a character controlled by another player. You gain knowledge of the last event that character was assigned to this turn, and you gain knowledge of one non-public mundane trait of that character, chosen randomly.
[/ic]

[ic=Is This A Door?]
Public, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters investigate what appears to be a massive door on the side of the room. Unknown effect.
[/ic]

[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Saitoro][ic=A Mystery]You find yourself unexpectedly removed from Azukizaka. In fact, as you look around you, you suspect you aren't even in Mikawa. You'd surely have heard of this place, otherwise. You briefly consider the possibility of having been captured and taken to some sort of Matsudaira prison, but this is far too... divine to have been done by mortal men. The voices of the other people echo through the tower as you consider a few other puzzles. In the egg from which you awakened you find your longbow and a quiver full of arrows. If you're dead, and this is some sort of transcendent realm where you await rebirth, why is it that you find a weapon with you, and why do these strangers not speak as you do? You've heard of travelers from beyond China, but many of these people defy your wildest expectations. The whole thing reminds you of a koan you'd heard Master Osamu say more than once:

QuoteA Zen teacher lived alone in a small temple in the country.
One day four traveling monks appeared and asked if they might make a fire in his yard to warm themselves.
While they were building the fire, the sensei heard them arguing about subjectivity and objectivity.
He joined them and said: "There is a big stone. Do you consider it to be inside or outside your mind?"
One of the monks replied: "From the Buddhist viewpoint everything is an objectification of mind, so I would say that the stone is inside my mind."
"Your head must feel very heavy," observed the master, "if you are carrying around a stone like that in your mind."

Perhaps it would simply be best to keep your mind light, and reserve explanations until later.[/ic]

Events:
1.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=Sizing Up The Crowd]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event keep to themselves and watch from a distance. At the start of next round you gain knowledge of the following facts about events that are simultaneous to this one (including this one) and happen in the same location:
Which characters and items were applied to those events
Any targets selected as part of those events
Any superhuman abilities used as part of those events.
[/ic]

[ic=Who Are You?]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain. (Saitoro meets this requirement.)

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1.
[/ic]

[ic=Where am I?]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Dust in the Skill domain. (Saitoro meets this requirement.)

Assigned characters examine the patterns on the pods, walls, and the "door" and try to think if they resemble anything that they know about. The outcome of this event depends on the background and education of the assigned characters. Regardless of assigned character, this event does not yield any immediate benefit, but it may confer long-term clues.
[/ic]

2.
[ic=We Are Lost]
Public, Cooperative, Crisis, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Many characters are confused and frightened from suddenly finding themselves abducted from their lives.

Challenge domains: Social, Political

Blood and Smoke outcome: Confusion and fear, combined with cultural barriers, boils over into anger and minor violence. Some characters accuse others of being part of a conspiracy. Next turn, an opportunity event involving intimidation will be available. All characters in this location gain one unhappiness token.

Iron and Frost outcome: Everyone involved agrees that, while there's a lot going on, that panic needs to be avoided and that a calm investigation is in order. Next turn, an opportunity event involving taking a census will be available. Winners in this event get +1 Frost in the political domain for the remainder of the turn.

Dust outcome: It becomes clear that some sort of supernatural or super-powerful force is at work, and that there is little reason to suspect that any human is responsible for bringing people here. Next turn, an opportunity event involving cataloging of powers will be available.

Tie outcome: One of the tied outcomes is selected at random.

Neglect outcome: None are bold enough to come forward and address the group. The "Follow Me!" event this turn is disrupted. Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.
[/ic]

3.
[ic=Follow Me!]
Public, Competitive, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

In this time of uncertainty, The Chosen look for a strong leader.

Challenge domains: Political

Blood outcome: The winner of this event becomes the de facto leader of The Chosen. Next turn, they gain additional events. If the de facto leader would increase the loyalty score of an NPC, it increases by an additional +1.

Iron outcome: It's agreed that the group needs an explicit leader, but that leader should be chosen by a vote, and The Chosen don't know each other well enough to vote yet. Next turn, an opportunity event to vote on a leader will be available (though prerequisites may not be met)

Smoke outcome: The winner of this event shows the losers to be foolish and power-hungry (whether or not the actually are). Loyalty scores between all NPCs and all losers go down by 1 (loyalty can be negative). Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.

Frost outcome: The winner of this event becomes the de facto leader of The Chosen. Next turn, they gain additional events. If the de facto leader would increase the loyalty score of an NPC, it increases by an additional +1. The de facto leader also gains +1 Frost in the Political domain.

Tie outcome: Observers are split regarding who to listen to. Next turn, a crisis event involving a poltical face-off will need to be dealt with.

Neglect outcome: None feel that they are up to the task of leading so soon after arrival. Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.
[/ic]

4.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=A Meditation on Powerlessness]
Private, Opportunity, Dust
Location: Pod Tower

Restriction: Only Saitoro can be assigned to this event

Saitoro attempts to meditate away from the group on the nature of these strange abilities that the others seem to possess. Are they linked with the power to understand each-other's languages? If Saitoro is assigned and he is unbothered, he gains one Superhuman Development token.
[/ic]

[ic=What's Your Name?]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain. (Saitoro meets this requirement.)

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1. This cannot target an NPC that has already had their loyalty score towards you improve this turn.
[/ic]

[ic=Worth Watching]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Dust or +1 Smoke in the Social or Skill domains. (Saitoro meets this requirement.)

When you assign a character to this event, target a character controlled by another player. You gain knowledge of the last event that character was assigned to this turn, and you gain knowledge of one non-public mundane trait of that character, chosen randomly.
[/ic]

[ic=Is This A Door?]
Public, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters investigate what appears to be a massive door on the side of the room. Unknown effect.
[/ic]

[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Juliet][ic=Abduction, Discovery, and Interruption]What is this place? Your hands quickly find your knife, hidden in the usual place. Your rose is here, too, you're relieved to find. But... damnit! They took your (handheld) computer. Well, somebody is clearly fucking with you; this weird room and circus of historical reenactment nerds (or whatever), is evidence of that. You must admit, it's a pretty good trick letting you understand foreign languages like this. Maybe they put a chip or something in you while you were unconscious. You brush your hair casually, feeling for stitches. All you need to do is figure out who did this to you and...

You shiver strangely. Time seems to slow down and goosebumps run along your arms.

"Are you Soviet?" The voice comes from behind and you snap around blindingly quickly. You were fast before. Very fast. But that pivot simply wasn't humanly possible. Even now, as you address the woman who spoke to you, you can feel a bizarre energy flow through you. It feels kinda like you'd never had coffee before and you just took five shots of espresso.

"I am thinking this is not Bryansk Oblast, and that you..." the woman speaking to you, garbed in an old-fashioned, green, military uniform, looks you up and down. "You are not a soldier. My name is Olga. Do you know where this is?"

Olga, like you, is blond, white, and appears to be in her late twenties. Her hair is much shorter, however, and she's plain-looking. In her hands is a battle rifle.[/ic]

Events:
0.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=Let's Play Along]
Private, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

Restriction: Only Juliet can be assigned to this event.

Juliet says that she is, in fact, Soviet. She attempts to play into Olga's expectations, and lie about who she is and where she comes from. If your Smoke element in the Social and Skill domains (+2) beats Olga's Dust and Iron elements in the Social domain, you improve her loyalty score towards you by +2. If she ever figures out that you lied to her, you loyalty score with her will drop by -2. If your Smoke elements are less (not equal), you simply lose 1 loyalty with her (putting it at -1).
[/ic]

[ic=Flip the Conversation]
Private, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

Restriction: Only Juliet can be assigned to this event.

Juliet slips out of Olga's questions and responds with questions of her own. You gain knowledge of Olga's superhuman trait. (You'll also learn this automatically for characters that are allied at the start of next turn.)
[/ic]

[ic=Play It Straight]
Private, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

Restriction: Only Juliet can be assigned to this event.

Juliet is honest with Olga, and while not telling her everything, you do tell her about your new-found reflexes and ask her about the language thing. You improve Olga's loyalty to you by +1. (But if another player gains control of Olga, they'll learn of your ability.)
[/ic]

1.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=Sizing Up The Crowd]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event keep to themselves and watch from a distance. At the start of next round you gain knowledge of the following facts about events that are simultaneous to this one (including this one) and happen in the same location:
Which characters and items were applied to those events
Any targets selected as part of those events
Any superhuman abilities used as part of those events.
[/ic]

[ic=Is This Magic?!]
Private, Opportunity, Dust
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event try out their new superhuman traits, using them to do simple things and otherwise practicing. All characters assigned with fewer than one Superhuman Development token gain one.
[/ic]

[ic=Friends To Be Made]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain. (Juliet meets this requirement.)

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC other than Olga. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1.
[/ic]

2.
[ic=We Are Lost]
Public, Cooperative, Crisis, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Many characters are confused and frightened from suddenly finding themselves abducted from their lives.

Challenge domains: Social, Political

Blood and Smoke outcome: Confusion and fear, combined with cultural barriers, boils over into anger and minor violence. Some characters accuse others of being part of a conspiracy. Next turn, an opportunity event involving intimidation will be available. All characters in this location gain one unhappiness token.

Iron and Frost outcome: Everyone involved agrees that, while there's a lot going on, that panic needs to be avoided and that a calm investigation is in order. Next turn, an opportunity event involving taking a census will be available. Winners in this event get +1 Frost in the political domain for the remainder of the turn.

Dust outcome: It becomes clear that some sort of supernatural or super-powerful force is at work, and that there is little reason to suspect that any human is responsible for bringing people here. Next turn, an opportunity event involving cataloging of powers will be available.

Tie outcome: One of the tied outcomes is selected at random.

Neglect outcome: None are bold enough to come forward and address the group. The "Follow Me!" event this turn is disrupted. Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.
[/ic]

3.
[ic=Follow Me!]
Public, Competitive, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

In this time of uncertainty, The Chosen look for a strong leader.

Challenge domains: Political

Blood outcome: The winner of this event becomes the de facto leader of The Chosen. Next turn, they gain additional events. If the de facto leader would increase the loyalty score of an NPC, it increases by an additional +1.

Iron outcome: It's agreed that the group needs an explicit leader, but that leader should be chosen by a vote, and The Chosen don't know each other well enough to vote yet. Next turn, an opportunity event to vote on a leader will be available (though prerequisites may not be met)

Smoke outcome: The winner of this event shows the losers to be foolish and power-hungry (whether or not the actually are). Loyalty scores between all NPCs and all losers go down by 1 (loyalty can be negative). Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.

Frost outcome: The winner of this event becomes the de facto leader of The Chosen. Next turn, they gain additional events. If the de facto leader would increase the loyalty score of an NPC, it increases by an additional +1. The de facto leader also gains +1 Frost in the Political domain.

Tie outcome: Observers are split regarding who to listen to. Next turn, a crisis event involving a poltical face-off will need to be dealt with.

Neglect outcome: None feel that they are up to the task of leading so soon after arrival. Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.
[/ic]

4.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=What's In This Thing?]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Construction Tools or a Blade (Juliet can use her knife.)

Assigned characters, in an attempt to gain some answers, tear open one of the pods. Unknown effect.
[/ic]

[ic=What's Your Name]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain. (Juliet meets this requirement.)

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1. This cannot target an NPC that has already had their loyalty score towards you improve this turn.
[/ic]

[ic=Is This A Door?]
Public, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters investigate what appears to be a massive door on the side of the room. Unknown effect.
[/ic]

[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Bastien "McGregor"][ic=Where In The World...]Well now isn't this strange. You awaken, fully dressed, in some strange pod. You can't remember the last thing to happen to you. And now you're able to understand Portuguese? What's going on? You take out your weapon and casually walk around the room, trying to get your thoughts in order. Does this have something to do with "the hidden face of the world"? Your amulet tingles strangely.[/ic]

Events:
1.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=Sizing Up The Crowd]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event keep to themselves and watch from a distance. At the start of next round you gain knowledge of the following facts about events that are simultaneous to this one (including this one) and happen in the same location:
Which characters and items were applied to those events
Any targets selected as part of those events
Any superhuman abilities used as part of those events.
[/ic]

[ic=Why Is The Amulet Tingling?]
Private, Opportunity, Dust
Location: Pod Tower

Restriction: Only Bastien may be assigned to this event.

Bastien investigates his amulet, getting a feel for how it effects his mind. If assigned, Bastien gains one Superhuman Development token.
[/ic]

[ic=Friends To Be Made]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain. (Bastien meets this requirement.)

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1.
[/ic]

2.
[ic=We Are Lost]
Public, Cooperative, Crisis, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Many characters are confused and frightened from suddenly finding themselves abducted from their lives.

Challenge domains: Social, Political

Blood and Smoke outcome: Confusion and fear, combined with cultural barriers, boils over into anger and minor violence. Some characters accuse others of being part of a conspiracy. Next turn, an opportunity event involving intimidation will be available. All characters in this location gain one unhappiness token.

Iron and Frost outcome: Everyone involved agrees that, while there's a lot going on, that panic needs to be avoided and that a calm investigation is in order. Next turn, an opportunity event involving taking a census will be available. Winners in this event get +1 Frost in the political domain for the remainder of the turn.

Dust outcome: It becomes clear that some sort of supernatural or super-powerful force is at work, and that there is little reason to suspect that any human is responsible for bringing people here. Next turn, an opportunity event involving cataloging of powers will be available.

Tie outcome: One of the tied outcomes is selected at random.

Neglect outcome: None are bold enough to come forward and address the group. The "Follow Me!" event this turn is disrupted. Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.
[/ic]

3.
[ic=Follow Me!]
Public, Competitive, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

In this time of uncertainty, The Chosen look for a strong leader.

Challenge domains: Political

Blood outcome: The winner of this event becomes the de facto leader of The Chosen. Next turn, they gain additional events. If the de facto leader would increase the loyalty score of an NPC, it increases by an additional +1.

Iron outcome: It's agreed that the group needs an explicit leader, but that leader should be chosen by a vote, and The Chosen don't know each other well enough to vote yet. Next turn, an opportunity event to vote on a leader will be available (though prerequisites may not be met)

Smoke outcome: The winner of this event shows the losers to be foolish and power-hungry (whether or not the actually are). Loyalty scores between all NPCs and all losers go down by 1 (loyalty can be negative). Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.

Frost outcome: The winner of this event becomes the de facto leader of The Chosen. Next turn, they gain additional events. If the de facto leader would increase the loyalty score of an NPC, it increases by an additional +1. The de facto leader also gains +1 Frost in the Political domain.

Tie outcome: Observers are split regarding who to listen to. Next turn, a crisis event involving a poltical face-off will need to be dealt with.

Neglect outcome: None feel that they are up to the task of leading so soon after arrival. Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.
[/ic]

4.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=What's Your Name?]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain. (Bastien meets this requirement.)

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1. This cannot target an NPC that has already had their loyalty score towards you improve this turn.
[/ic]

[ic=Is This A Door?]
Public, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters investigate what appears to be a massive door on the side of the room. Unknown effect.
[/ic]

[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Jens Faber][ic=An Unexpected Specter]You're a bit perplexed as to what's going on, and as you step out of the pod you rub your eyes and head, trying to remember what happened before you fell asleep. It doesn't work. You're still clueless.

As you move your hand away from your face you're startled to find it missing! You wave it around in confusion, and it doesn't take long to figure out that your entire body is invisible! You swear in shock, but seem to be unable to hear your own words! The situation is bizarre, like some sort of cruel, virtual-reality prank that turns the user into a ghost. But it's too elaborate and bizarre; nobody in your local area has a VR rig this powerful. Why would anyone abduct you for this? You have no enemies, and it's a clear violation of your rights...

You long to talk to one of these people and get some answers, though they appear to mostly be as confused (if not more so).[/ic]
Events:

0.
[ic=A Ghostly Existence]
Private, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Restriction: Only Jens can be assigned to this event.

Jens is struggling to control his power. If assigned to this event he stays invisible for the entire first turn, and cannot be assigned to any other events. If assigned, he gains two Superhuman Development tokens, gains information as if he were assigned to the "Sizing Up The Crowd" event (see below), and overhears two private conversations (chosen randomly). If Jens is assigned, PM me instead of posting to this thread, then post to the City of the Chosen discussion thread stating that something came up in your life that requires more time than expected, and that you can't start for at least another week. (This keeps your power a secret.)

If Jens is *not* assigned to this event, he figures out how to deactivate his Invisibility power and can be assigned to other events as normal.
[/ic]
1.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=Sizing Up The Crowd]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event keep to themselves and watch from a distance. At the start of next round you gain knowledge of the following facts about events that are simultaneous to this one (including this one) and happen in the same location:
Which characters and items were applied to those events
Any targets selected as part of those events
Any superhuman abilities used as part of those events.
[/ic]

[ic=Is This Magic?!]
Private, Opportunity, Dust
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event try out their new superhuman traits, using them to do simple things and otherwise practicing. All characters assigned with fewer than one Superhuman Development token gain one.
[/ic]

[ic=Friends To Be Made]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain. (Jens meets this requirement.)

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1.
[/ic]

2.
[ic=We Are Lost]
Public, Cooperative, Crisis, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Many characters are confused and frightened from suddenly finding themselves abducted from their lives.

Challenge domains: Social, Political

Blood and Smoke outcome: Confusion and fear, combined with cultural barriers, boils over into anger and minor violence. Some characters accuse others of being part of a conspiracy. Next turn, an opportunity event involving intimidation will be available. All characters in this location gain one unhappiness token.

Iron and Frost outcome: Everyone involved agrees that, while there's a lot going on, that panic needs to be avoided and that a calm investigation is in order. Next turn, an opportunity event involving taking a census will be available. Winners in this event get +1 Frost in the political domain for the remainder of the turn.

Dust outcome: It becomes clear that some sort of supernatural or super-powerful force is at work, and that there is little reason to suspect that any human is responsible for bringing people here. Next turn, an opportunity event involving cataloging of powers will be available.

Tie outcome: One of the tied outcomes is selected at random.

Neglect outcome: None are bold enough to come forward and address the group. The "Follow Me!" event this turn is disrupted. Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.
[/ic]

3.
[ic=Follow Me!]
Public, Competitive, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

In this time of uncertainty, The Chosen look for a strong leader.

Challenge domains: Political

Blood outcome: The winner of this event becomes the de facto leader of The Chosen. Next turn, they gain additional events. If the de facto leader would increase the loyalty score of an NPC, it increases by an additional +1.

Iron outcome: It's agreed that the group needs an explicit leader, but that leader should be chosen by a vote, and The Chosen don't know each other well enough to vote yet. Next turn, an opportunity event to vote on a leader will be available (though prerequisites may not be met)

Smoke outcome: The winner of this event shows the losers to be foolish and power-hungry (whether or not the actually are). Loyalty scores between all NPCs and all losers go down by 1 (loyalty can be negative). Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.

Frost outcome: The winner of this event becomes the de facto leader of The Chosen. Next turn, they gain additional events. If the de facto leader would increase the loyalty score of an NPC, it increases by an additional +1. The de facto leader also gains +1 Frost in the Political domain.

Tie outcome: Observers are split regarding who to listen to. Next turn, a crisis event involving a poltical face-off will need to be dealt with.

Neglect outcome: None feel that they are up to the task of leading so soon after arrival. Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.
[/ic]

4.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=What's In This Thing?]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Construction Tools or a Blade (Jens can use his knife.)

Assigned characters, in an attempt to gain some answers, tear open one of the pods. Unknown effect.
[/ic]

[ic=Shadow]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have the Invisibility trait.

When you assign a character to this event, target a character controlled by another player. You gain knowledge of the last event that character was assigned to this turn, and you gain knowledge of up to two private conversations that character has this turn at the start of next turn.
[/ic]

[ic=What's Your Name?]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain. (Jens meets this requirement.)

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1. This cannot target an NPC that has already had their loyalty score towards you improve this turn.
[/ic]

[ic=Is This A Door?]
Public, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters investigate what appears to be a massive door on the side of the room. Unknown effect.
[/ic]

[/spoiler]
[spoiler=John Dante][ic=It Must've Been Quite A Night]Oof. You don't remember where you were last night, or what you did to wind up here, but it must've been quite the doozy. You suspect wiskey was involved, though you don't have a hangover... You still have your gun, though, so that's something. Oh shit! Your wallet is missing! Maybe one of these goons took it. You see some clown dressed up in armor like some kinda knight from Asia (What are those called again? Oh well. It'll come to you).

Actually, there's something really strange going on here, because you don't remember learning all these foreign languages in school, and yet you can clearly understand these strangers.

You stumble and fall backwards as a blinding pain surges through your body. Your muscles seize up and spasm and your vision flashes with light. You'd scream, but you don't seem to have control of your lungs. In between flashes and stars you see the Asian knight walk over with a concerned look.

"Do you need help?" he asks as you roll on the floor like some sorta fish. What sort of question is that? Of course you need help! Sweet Mother Mary, get a doctor! But alas, you can do nothing but shudder and babel weakly.

The man frowns and reaches down to touch you. As he does, a bold of lightning seems to blast out of you and into him. His eyes open wide and he stumbles back, but doesn't cry out. You gasp a sweet breath of air as the pain leaves your body with the electricity. Your body still tingles from the experience, but you seem to have been cured of whatever voodoo shit that was.

The Asian man strokes his beard and frowns, but appears unharmed. Without another word, he leaves you to figure out what in Sam Hill is going on.

Shockingly enough, nobody else seems to have noticed the episode. Probably because they were too busy with their own confusion. You stand up, brush off your coat, and put your hat back on. You'll get to the bottom of this, or your name ain't John Dante.[/ic]

Events:

1.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=Sizing Up The Crowd]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event keep to themselves and watch from a distance. At the start of next round you gain knowledge of the following facts about events that are simultaneous to this one (including this one) and happen in the same location:
Which characters and items were applied to those events
Any targets selected as part of those events
Any superhuman abilities used as part of those events.
[/ic]

[ic=Is This Magic?!]
Private, Opportunity, Dust
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event try out their new superhuman traits, using them to do simple things and otherwise practicing. All characters assigned with fewer than one Superhuman Development token gain one.
[/ic]

[ic=Friends To Be Made]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain. (John meets this requirement.)

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1.
[/ic]

2.
[ic=We Are Lost]
Public, Cooperative, Crisis, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Many characters are confused and frightened from suddenly finding themselves abducted from their lives.

Challenge domains: Social, Political (John, as an idealist, must be assigned here)

Blood and Smoke outcome: Confusion and fear, combined with cultural barriers, boils over into anger and minor violence. Some characters accuse others of being part of a conspiracy. Next turn, an opportunity event involving intimidation will be available. All characters in this location gain one unhappiness token.

Iron and Frost outcome: Everyone involved agrees that, while there's a lot going on, that panic needs to be avoided and that a calm investigation is in order. Next turn, an opportunity event involving taking a census will be available. Winners in this event get +1 Frost in the political domain for the remainder of the turn.

Dust outcome: It becomes clear that some sort of supernatural or super-powerful force is at work, and that there is little reason to suspect that any human is responsible for bringing people here. Next turn, an opportunity event involving cataloging of powers will be available.

Tie outcome: One of the tied outcomes is selected at random.

Neglect outcome: None are bold enough to come forward and address the group. The "Follow Me!" event this turn is disrupted. Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.
[/ic]

3.
[ic=Follow Me!]
Public, Competitive, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

In this time of uncertainty, The Chosen look for a strong leader.

Challenge domains: Political (John, as an idealist, must be assigned here)

Blood outcome: The winner of this event becomes the de facto leader of The Chosen. Next turn, they gain additional events. If the de facto leader would increase the loyalty score of an NPC, it increases by an additional +1.

Iron outcome: It's agreed that the group needs an explicit leader, but that leader should be chosen by a vote, and The Chosen don't know each other well enough to vote yet. Next turn, an opportunity event to vote on a leader will be available (though prerequisites may not be met)

Smoke outcome: The winner of this event shows the losers to be foolish and power-hungry (whether or not the actually are). Loyalty scores between all NPCs and all losers go down by 1 (loyalty can be negative). Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.

Frost outcome: The winner of this event becomes the de facto leader of The Chosen. Next turn, they gain additional events. If the de facto leader would increase the loyalty score of an NPC, it increases by an additional +1. The de facto leader also gains +1 Frost in the Political domain.

Tie outcome: Observers are split regarding who to listen to. Next turn, a crisis event involving a poltical face-off will need to be dealt with.

Neglect outcome: None feel that they are up to the task of leading so soon after arrival. Next turn, a crisis event involving increasing tribalism will need to be dealt with.
[/ic]

4.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=Worth Watching]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Dust or +1 Smoke in the Social or Skill domains. (John meets this requirement.)

When you assign a character to this event, target a character controlled by another player. You gain knowledge of the last event that character was assigned to this turn, and you gain knowledge of one non-public mundane trait of that character, chosen randomly.
[/ic]

[ic=What's Your Name?]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain. (John meets this requirement.)

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1. This cannot target an NPC that has already had their loyalty score towards you improve this turn.
[/ic]

[ic=Is This A Door?]
Public, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters investigate what appears to be a massive door on the side of the room. Unknown effect.
[/ic]

[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Bastien Assignments]
Bastien:
1. "Why Is The Amulet Tingling?" Feral Facet
2. "We Are Lost" Controlled Facet
3. "Follow Me!" Controlled Facet
4. "What's Your Name?" Controlled Facet (In order, Hong gyeong-su or Emily White or Medicine Man or Riccara Vaillancourt)
4b. if none of the them are avalible(Or already have loyalty towards me) then assign to "Is This A Door?" Wise Facet[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Actions]
1: Sizing up the Crowd
2: We are lost
3: Follow me
4: What's your name? (targeting Olga Surikov)
[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Saitoro actions]
1. Who are You (Hong Gyeong-su)
2. We are Lost
3. Follow Me
4. A Meditation on Powerlessness[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Layla Actions]
1: Where am I?
2: We Are Lost
3: Follow Me
4: What's Your Name? (Mary of the Gond)
[/spoiler]

[spoiler=John Dante Actions]
1) Friends to be made: Jéssica da Flor de Seda
2) We Are Lost
3)Follow Me!
4) What's your Name? Oryx the Exile
[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Event Assignments, Turn One]0. Play It Straight
1. Is This Magic?!
2. We Are Lost
3. None
4. What's In This Thing?[/spoiler]

[ooc=Note]Don't forget that you can share any events on your list with other players. (Just copy-paste the event in its entirety into the roleplaying thread.) Once a player knows of an event they can assign any of their characters to it, regardless of whose list it originally came from.[/ooc]

[ic=Distress]As the chosen adjusted to their strange surroundings and powers, many of them begin to raise questions about this place and why they'd all been taken from their homes. The initial shock wore off and it quickly became clear that something was deeply wrong. There was not a single one among them who could remember coming there, and none had a clue where they were.

Oryx, the African boy in the loincloth claimed that this was the afterlife and that they'd all died. This raised a bit of an uproar as various people began to passionately agree and disagree. The Indian woman, Mary, began to cry. The Native American began loudly chanting a prayer.

And then a voice yelled above the crowd, silencing the group. It belonged to a rugged looking Caucasian man who introduces himself as Jens. He chastised the others for jumping to conclusions. Other influential faces joined him in agreement: Olga the Russian soldier, Saitoro the Japanese monk, Bastein Mcgregor, John Dante, and Layla al-Zakiyya. Even the mysterious Juliet stood with them in demanding order, though she said little.

The group agreed that before anyone could or should say what had happened that they needed to learn more about each other and this place.[/ic]

[ic=Six Voices]And who better to lead this band of confused strangers than John Dante, who surely knew what was best! Why, Olga Surikov, of course; she'd be damned if she let some idiot American tell her what to do. Or Jens Faber, who wore a sense of charisma about him. Saitoro threw his name in the ring, as well. But with so many appealing to lead, the rest of the chosen seemed more confused than anything.

It was then that Bastien Mcgregor spoke up. Handsome and bold his words carried the weight of Jens but without the seeming as distant. Bastien was a man that many could trust, and he seemed almost unnaturally good at choosing what to say, and when. Some, such as Olga, seemed suspicious, but it was clear that Bastien had gained the support of the group.

But when all seemed clear, a young woman spoke up. It was Layla, the middle-eastern girl. For a long time she had watched and listened and it was now that she struck. She pointed out how this man, Bastien, seemed trustworthy on the surface, but how none truly knew him. She wielded her words like a spear, poking and puncturing his clean image. She had seen him, as others had, acting strangely when he had first arrived. She pointed out that the strange ability to understand each-other may extend to other domains, and used Jéssica, and her clones as an example. This led to questioning whether Bastien himself might have some sort of supernatural influence over the group.

At first being surprised by the young woman's words, Bastien soon gathered his wits about him and came to his own defense. As always, his words were well chosen and he seemed to offer controlled rebuttals to each assault, even offering jabs of his own. Minute after minute passed, and it slowly became clear that choosing a leader would be no simple endeavor. Many seemed to favor Layla, while others stood by Bastien. The conversation reached a stalemate and dissolved without resolution.[/ic]

[ic=Gathering]Unsure of how to proceed, many of the chosen broke off into smaller groups to discuss the situation. The only real agreement was that it would be best to survey everyone and find out more about each person's background and what powers they possess.[/ic]

Bastien Mcgregor appears to have gained the Natural Leader trait.

Publicly Known Locations:
Pod Tower (16 Pods, all PCs, and all NPCs at the start of Turn 2)

Alliances:
John Dante leads Jéssica and Oryx.
Layla al-Zakiyya leads Mary.

Quote from: Character-Specific Knowledge+Events
[spoiler=Layla al-Zakiyya][ic=Investigation]Though the prospect of hearing the minds of others is intriguing, you knew that the higher priority is figuring out where exactly you've found yourself. The patterns on the nearby surfaces seem intricate and intentional. The pods are mostly smooth, white, and featureless, but around the edges and base are areas that have been sculpted (for surely the surface of the pods is ceramic) and painted with greens and browns. The patterns involve twisting, knotted shapes that remind you somewhat of stylized plants or vines, but the particular style is unfamiliar to you. The floor and walls are incredibly smooth as well, and have surely been polished. You find it remarkable that so large a room has not a trace of dust, especially given that it seems old-fashioned in some vague way. The cobblestones in the floor are colored with soft dark tones; blue, grey, purple, red-brown. The arrangement of colors seems intentional, but it doesn't follow a pattern that you can tell.

The walls are the most interesting part of the tower, being pure white marble (or so you guess) punctuated only by the little lamp-beads. You approach some that are low enough to inspect. The beads seem to be uniform in size, approximately 1cm in diameter, and perfectly circular. You can't tell whether the glass or the light is slightly blue, but they certainly cast a slightly blue tone on the room. You try to see what could be causing the soft glow, but all you can see is a uniform glow. Each bead seems connected to its neighbors in some great pattern, but it's unlike any you've seen in the city. Composed mostly of spirals, the pattern has a kind of self-symmetry where the smaller spirals build into larger spirals which build into larger spirals. Despite this symmetry you can see no overarching path. Each time the pattern starts to make sense you can see a deviation higher in the tower. The thought occurs to you that perhaps the architect designed it to perplex the mind, but it seems too perfect to have been made by random drawing. You wonder if there might be some kind of way of expressing the overarching shape using a starting point and some kind of logical formula. It'd be a fun project for later, perhaps.

The "door" is really more akin to an arch of sculptured patterns. Careful inspection shows no seam between it and the floor, thus ruling out the idea that it might swing open. The patterns seem similar to those on the pods, but with more variation in the width of lines and forms and more points and ends. Like the walls, the sculpted arch is made of pristine white stone.[/ic]

[ic=The Minds of Others]
As the others began to raise concerns and panic you return to the group. The tune in your head is sufficient to block out the maddening whispers, but you decide that it's important to master this talent by letting go and trying to swim in the sea of noise. At first it's almost impossible--painful really--to withstand. Such close proximity with others seems to amplify the ability and you're forced to stay back for a while. Others seem capable of keeping things from boiling over. As the minutes pass you learn to sift the thoughts and tie them to people.[/ic]

Thanks mostly to your Good Judge of Character trait you learn that Juliet and Olga are hiding things, but you can't exactly sense what. The others are more transparent:
Mental Traits of Saitoro: Watchful, Focused
Mental Traits of Bastien: Natural Leader, Cunning
Mental Traits of Jens: Natural Leader, Focused, Medic, Intelligent
Mental Traits of John: Profession: Investigator, Idealist

[ic=A Foolish Man]Having defused the building panic, nearly everyone seems to want to lead the group. You see an opportunity yourself, as it seems your sex is less important in this band of strangers. Perhaps you can be the chief of this strange band. You're certainly clever enough, and wise beyond your years. The trick will be in showing them that.

You keep your voice down for a while, letting each of the others have their turn in the spotlight. You know that they'll be forgotten once the real charisma appears. Jens seems to have the head of a leader, and when he speaks up you consider letting him have their attention. You could always run things from behind the scenes...

But then Bastien appears. His mind is confused and strange and you do not like it one bit. Something is wrong with him, and you wish you knew what it was. But his smile is bright and charming, his face is handsome, and his words are brave. Many seem to heed his words and you can hear the whispers of support within them. You refuse to let them be duped by whatever trick this stranger with the sword is pulling. You speak up and challenge him. The whispers distract you, but you soon learn to ride atop them, using them to guide your words. Small thoughts in the minds of observers become points of leverage from which you can strike.

And despite it all, he returns, as charming as ever. You've gained the attention of the crowd; they've forgotten everyone but you and Bastien, but you sense that they're suspicious of both of you. Many dislike the idea of following a young woman, but your accusations of supernatural trickery have them less than sold on the pale-skinned stranger.[/ic]

[ic=The Plight of Mary]Rather than wear everyone out in an extended contest, you decide to work at the sides, gathering allies in a one-on-one environment. You start with a woman in a strange but beautiful dress. Between her eyebrows is a red dot that appears to be painted on and she seems generally distraught. You speak to her, asking her to share her troubles with you. She introduces herself as Mary, but you sense an uneasiness with the name and a whispered thought of inventing something else. She's a mother of four children, the youngest of which is only one year old. From what you can tell she's Hindu from the hills to the east of the Indus river (though you're not clear on how far east). She lives on a farm that's part of a large tribe called the Gond, which you've never heard of.

She shows you a strange device that she calls a "pocketwatch" that she says was a birthday gift from a Christian missionary. The device is fascinating to you, and with some prodding you discover that she thinks the year is 1353 AH! You're amazed to discover that her life is comparable to your own (if not simpler and more ignorant) after more than a thousand years. She also tells you that your hunch that others had powers beyond language was correct. Mary rubs her fingers together and dust spills from them as if from thin air. She collects some of the dust in her palm and strokes it. Magically it seems to collect into a stylized image of the sun and turn to bronze. She lifts the trinket from her hand and frowns as it disintegrates back into dust. She tells you that she's sure she can make more interesting things if she spends enough time at it.

She has an unspoken suspicion that she's been tainted with some sort of dark magic, but she keeps that to herself. She seems generally unhappy and preoccupied with thoughts of her baby and other children. She wishes desperately to get home and agrees to support you if you'll help her do that.[/ic]

Mary of the Gond's loyalty to you is 1 and she is your ally. You may assign her to events just as you would Layla.

[spoiler=Mary's Traits and Items]Mundane Traits:
* Good Judge of Character
* Supportive
* Watchful
* Depressed

Supernatural Trait: Conjuration

Items:
* Small silver statue of Ganesh
* Pocketwatch[/spoiler]

Events:

0.
[ic=Make Me A...]
Private, Opportunity, Dust
Location: Pod Tower

Requirement: Only Mary of the Gond can be assigned to this event.

When Mary is assigned, choose an object of small or medium size. Mary spends the next hour conjuring it. If assigned here, she cannot be assigned to any other events this turn before "Attention!".[/ic]

1.
[ic=Hello, My Name Is...]
Public, Crisis, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event voluntarily provide information about who they are and what powers they have. Riccara Vaillancourt, The Medicine Man, and Emily White automatically assign themselves to this event, despite not being allied.

When you assign a character to this event you may choose for them to either reveal their power or to claim to not know of any power. Characters with Power Vampire, Late Bloomer, Eternal, Body Thief, or Latent Power must take the second option. All characters gain knowledge of assigned characters' origin locations and times. If a character reveals a power, they must provide a demonstration of it.

Characters who lie about not knowing their power are treated as initiating a 1v1 attack in the Social and Skill domains against each other character assigned to this event. (Attacks are just competitive events that automatically assign defenders. A 1v1 attack is one where both sides have only one character.) The aggressor gains +4 Smoke element and the defender gains +1d6 Dust. If the aggressor's Smoke is greater, the defender is oblivious to the lie. If the defender's Dust is greater they suspect the liar, but have no evidence. Ties are resolved by coin flip. Defending characters with telepathy learn the liar's power if they win the contest.

Characters who do not participate in this event are marked as suspicious (reducing ability to influence NPCs and increasing potential for violent interactions). If a character does not participate, they forfeit their ability to become de facto leader.[/ic]

3.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=We Need To Stick Together]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain.

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1. Keep in mind that the NPC may already have a loyalty score toward you. If you assign multiple characters to this event, each character assigned may target their own NPC. Multiple characters targeting the same NPC can improve their loyalty more than 1.

If Layla or Bastien, but not both, target an NPC, that NPC will publicly endorse the assigned character.[/ic]

[ic=Mind Probe]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke, Compeditive, Attack
Location: Pod Tower

Requirement: Assigned characters must have the Telepathy trait.

Challenge domains: Skill, Stealth, Observation

When assigning a character to this event, choose another character to attempt to telepathically eavesdrop on. The targeted character is automatically assigned to a 1v1 challenge in the Social and Skill domains. The defender gains 1d4 Blood for this challenge.

Aggressor outcomes:
Dust outcome: The aggressor learns the superhuman traits of the defender and all the superhuman traits that the defender has learned of. If the character has a secret identity you learn it.

Defender outcomes:
Iron and Dust outcome: The aggressor learns nothing, and the defender becomes aware that there is a telepath trying to read them (though they do not learn the telepath's identity).
Blood and Smoke outcome: The aggressor only learns the superhuman traits that the defender has discovered other than their own (the defender is still opaque). The defender is unaware of the attack.

Tied outcome: The aggressor learns nothing, but the defender is unaware of the attack.[/ic]

[ic=Know Thy Self]
Private, Opportunity, Dust
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event practice their new superhuman traits, using them to do simple things and otherwise testing their abilities. All characters assigned with fewer than one Superhuman Development token gain one.[/ic]

[ic=Trust Would Be A Mistake]
Private, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost or Smoke in the Social domain.

When you assign a character to this event, target any NPC (aligned or unaligned). That NPC's loyalty score drops by 1 with regard to all players (including you). Multiple characters targeting the same NPC can reduce their loyalty more than 1.

NPCs targeted with this event will not support anyone in the Taking Sides event, even if they were allied and assigned to by their controller.[/ic]

7.
[ic=Taking Sides]
Public, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

When you assign a character to this event, target a PC. The assigned character publicly endorses the target as who they think should lead (it need not be an explicit call to leadership; any sign of support will do). When a player character is assigned, they are free to target themselves.

At the end of the turn, whomever received the most endorsements becomes the de facto leader of the chosen and all unaligned NPCs improve their loyalty score with the new leader by 1 (this loyalty is not additionally adjusted by the benefit of being leader). Bastien and Layla are each considered to have +2 endorsements for this purpose. If there is a tie, no leader is chosen and the group becomes fragmented and distrusting.[/ic]

9.
[ic="Attention!"]
Public, Opportunity, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

All characters in Pod Tower must be assigned to this event.

A mysterious voice, seemingly coming from nowhere (or everywhere) begins to speak, interrupting all activity. The voice is rough and deep and speaks in an unknown language, not even sounding particularly human. But just as you can understand each-other, you can understand the voice. It says "Attention! Kixthish buildup in Building 29 is critical! Replica spillover will occur in 148 seconds unless the building is flooded!"

This even has no impact. It only serves to serve as a reference point in the course of the turn.[/ic]

10.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=Let's Get Out Of Here!]
Public, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by focusing on finding an exit to the tower (probably involving the "door") as soon as possible, and prioritize finding a safe refuge. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities than others.[/ic]

[ic=We Need To Prepare!]
Public, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by working together to come up with a plan in case of emergency. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities than others.[/ic]

[ic=Only The Fittest]
Private, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by thinking of ways to betray the group (if it comes to that) and generally prioritizing their safety over others. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities.[/ic]

[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Saitoro][ic=Disconnected]This whole place feels wrong. False in some way. Perhaps it is a dream.

Hong Gyeong-su seemed reasonable enough. A hard man to like, but an easy man to respect. He told you of his life in Korea fighting in the war of the three kingdoms, which you remember being told happened hundreds of years ago. He seemed uninterested in determining how it was possible that you and he could both be in this room, separated by time, and much more concerned with who rules this palace that you've come to.

When the call for leadership came, you stepped up but were soon outclassed by the more charismatic members of the group. Hong-san seemed to support you initially, but it seems to you that after hearing the words of Mr. Mcgregor he is unsure whom to follow.

The words of Layla al-Zakkiya struck you. Until she pointed it out, you had been unaware that the others had supernatural power beyond the ability to comprehend the strange tongues. It seems clear to you now, however. Jéssica, the dark-skinned woman with the indecent dress, seems to be able to copy herself. Another girl, one with pale skin, you've noticed hovering and floating in the air at times.

Worn out by the bickering, you retreat to an isolated edge of the room and practice zazen, hoping to clear your mind. With effort, you block out the voices of the others and find your center. The strangeness of the powers is dreamlike, but you've never had a dream where you've achieved meditative clarity. If this is a dream, it's a new kind.

As you sit you notice the sensations of distance and disconnection move across your mind. There is more here than meets the eye. You get the strangest feeling that you're in the sky right now. No, that's not right. It's not a sensation of sky. It's a sensation of being disconnected from the earth. Shivers run down your back as you feel a breeze. The question of how a breeze enters a windowless room drifts into your mind, almost disturbing you. But you are centered. Calm. Distant.

After many minutes you decide to return to the others. As you stand you feel a strange tingling wash all across your body.[/ic]

Saitoro now has 1 Superhuman Development token.
Hong Gyeong-su's loyalty towards you is now 1, but he is not your ally.

Events:

1.

Quote from: Simulteneous
[ic=Hello, My Name Is...]
Public, Crisis, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event voluntarily provide information about who they are and what powers they have. Riccara Vaillancourt, The Medicine Man, and Emily White automatically assign themselves to this event, despite not being allied.

When you assign a character to this event you may choose for them to either reveal their power or to claim to not know of any power. Characters with Power Vampire, Late Bloomer, Eternal, Body Thief, or Latent Power must take the second option. All characters gain knowledge of assigned characters' origin locations and times. If a character reveals a power, they must provide a demonstration of it.

Characters who lie about not knowing their power are treated as initiating a 1v1 attack in the Social and Skill domains against each other character assigned to this event. (Attacks are just competitive events that automatically assign defenders. A 1v1 attack is one where both sides have only one character.) The aggressor gains +4 Smoke element and the defender gains +1d6 Dust. If the aggressor's Smoke is greater, the defender is oblivious to the lie. If the defender's Dust is greater they suspect the liar, but have no evidence. Ties are resolved by coin flip. Defending characters with telepathy learn the liar's power if they win the contest.

Characters who do not participate in this event are marked as suspicious (reducing ability to influence NPCs and increasing potential for violent interactions). If a character does not participate, they forfeit their ability to become de facto leader.[/ic]

[ic=Seek The Breeze]
Private, Opportunity, Dust
Location: Pod Tower

Restriction: Only Saitoro can be assigned to this event.

Saitoro investigates the source of the mysterious breeze. This event has no immediate effect. Saitoro can only be assigned to one Seek The Breeze event this turn.[/ic]

3.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=We Need To Stick Together]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain.

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1. Keep in mind that the NPC may already have a loyalty score toward you. If you assign multiple characters to this event, each character assigned may target their own NPC. Multiple characters targeting the same NPC can improve their loyalty more than 1.

If Layla or Bastien, but not both, target an NPC, that NPC will publicly endorse the assigned character.[/ic]

[ic=Listen In]
[note]Players targeted with an attack automatically assign all characters they control to defend unless otherwise specified.[/note]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke, Compeditive, Attack
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Dust or +1 Smoke in the Stealth or Skill domains.

Assigned characters spy on another group.

Challenge domains: Skill, Stealth, Observation

When assigning any characters to this event, target another player to attack (spy on).

Aggressor outcomes:
Dust and Smoke outcome: The aggressor learns the superhuman traits of all allies of the defender and of characters that become allied with the defender this turn. The aggressor also gains knowledge of one private conversation the defender participated in this turn (if any).

Defender outcomes:
Iron and Dust outcome: The aggressor is caught, increasing the potential for violent interaction with them in future turns.

Tied outcome: The aggressor learns nothing, but is not caught.[/ic]

[ic=Seek The Breeze]
Private, Opportunity, Dust
Location: Pod Tower

Restriction: Only Saitoro can be assigned to this event.

Saitoro investigates the source of the mysterious breeze. This event has no immediate effect. Saitoro can only be assigned to one Seek The Breeze event this turn.[/ic]

7.
[ic=Taking Sides]
Public, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

When you assign a character to this event, target a PC. The assigned character publicly endorses the target as who they think should lead (it need not be an explicit call to leadership; any sign of support will do). When a player character is assigned, they are free to target themselves.

At the end of the turn, whomever received the most endorsements becomes the de facto leader of the chosen and all unaligned NPCs improve their loyalty score with the new leader by 1 (this loyalty is not additionally adjusted by the benefit of being leader). Bastien and Layla are each considered to have +2 endorsements for this purpose. If there is a tie, no leader is chosen and the group becomes fragmented and distrusting.[/ic]

9.
[ic="Attention!"]
Public, Opportunity, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

All characters in Pod Tower must be assigned to this event.

A mysterious voice, seemingly coming from nowhere (or everywhere) begins to speak, interrupting all activity. The voice is rough and deep and speaks in an unknown language, not even sounding particularly human. But just as you can understand each-other, you can understand the voice. It says "Attention! Kixthish buildup in Building 29 is critical! Replica spillover will occur in 148 seconds unless the building is flooded!"

This even has no impact. It only serves to serve as a reference point in the course of the turn.[/ic]

10.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=Let's Get Out Of Here!]
Public, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by focusing on finding an exit to the tower (probably involving the "door") as soon as possible, and prioritize finding a safe refuge. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities than others.[/ic]

[ic=We Need To Prepare!]
Public, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by working together to come up with a plan in case of emergency. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities than others.[/ic]

[ic=Only The Fittest]
Private, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by thinking of ways to betray the group (if it comes to that) and generally prioritizing their safety over others. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities.[/ic]

[ic=Walk Without Stepping]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Requirement: Only Saitoro can be assigned to this event. Saitoro must have been assigned to Seek The Breeze earlier this turn.
This event cannot be communicated to other players.

Saitoro sees an opportunity to leave the tower by an unconventional passage. If assigned to this event he takes it, wherever it might lead. Unknown effect.[/ic]

[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Juliet][ic=Discovery]You decide to be honest with Olga, and tell her that no, you're not from Soviet Russia. You ask if she has any idea what is going on, or why you can now move like lightning, but she seems just as perplexed. She tells you that she has no special powers like you seem to (beyond the ability to comprehend languages), and is generally reticent.

For a while you practice your newfound talent by yourself. Your reflexes let you draw, slice the air with your knife, and stow it again in the blink of an eye. You notice that these reflexes essentially amount to being able to slow down the rest of the world and you think that with practice they may let you *think* at an accelerated rate or maybe even move so quickly that you could steal something out from under someone's nose without them noticing. Further practice seems important, but you find yourself soon interrupted by the commotion of the others.

Many of these strangers seem confused or angry. The premise, you suppose, is that they've disappeared from their lives just as you did. You're not sure you buy it, though. Someone must know what's going on. The trick is to figure out who it is. For the meantime you play along and join with the the most charismatic of the bunch. No sense in drawing attention to yourself. You watch with mild interest as the others fight over who should be in charge. It seems foolishly preemptive, really.

You return to the pod you woke up in. People may lie, but tech tells the truth. There must be something more to these things than just being tacky beds. You take out your knife and cut into the soft cloth cushions. You take a look around to make sure nobody is watching (they aren't) before cutting deeper. The cushions are filled with cotton, and you quickly pull it out of the way. Cutting the primary cushion away you find a wooden surface underneath. Hardly the most comfortable thing, you suppose. Interestingly, it's warm to the touch.

You cut away at the edges and you're rewarded with a gap in the wood. It appears that it's been glued together or something. Though it pains you to use a good blade as such, you pry at the wood, eventually causing it to splinter and crack. The others are done arguing now, but they all seem preoccupied with their own things. You continue cutting into the pod. As you pry away the wood (ick, splinters) you're rewarded with a dim red glow. Hells yes, you knew there was tech down here!

As you make a hole big enough to fit an arm through you get a good glimpse inside. There appears to be some sort of opaque liquid down there. Floating on the liquid seems to be a disc with a strange symbol that's glowing an ominous shade of crimson. Knowing that the disc is almost certainly valuable, if not the key to your escape, you reach down through the gap towards it. As you grab the disc, your finger brushes the liquid. It's hot and has the texture of honey, but much more importantly you can feel it begin to *crawl* up your hand. You react by releasing the disc and pulling your hand out of there as quickly as you can, which considering your reflexes, is really damn fast. Unfortunately, the liquid seems to accelerate as you do, and in a fraction of a second you can feel it slide up your arm. As you rip your arm out of the gap you're surprised to find it completely dry. Not a trace of the goop can be found, even on your clothing.

You look back down into the hole. Deep inside is the disc, still glowing, but the liquid is entirely absent. You're positive that you didn't imagine it! After a few minutes of calming yourself down and tripple-checking the pod you decide to at least try and get the disc again. It's now at the bottom of the basin and is harder to reach, but you get it after a bit of struggling.

In the light of the tower the disc barely seems to glow at all. It's about 20cm in diameter and maybe 5cm thick. It feels a bit like plastic or maybe carbon fiber, but is quite heavy. Most of it is dark-grey and smooth like a hockey puck, but both sides show a sharp, shallow engraving that glows faintly red. Interestingly, the red portion does not appear to be a different material or whatever than the base; it's almost like it was stained with some sort of luminescent paint. The engraving seems to be in the shape of a stylized wing or perhaps a hand with many fingers pointing roughly the same way. To your disappointment you can find no seam or latch or anything that indicates the disc can be opened.

It still seems valuable, however, so you tuck it away in your pocket. Oddly enough, the arm that touched the goop feels really good. Whatever that stuff did, you don't suspect it was bad for you...

Oh damn. The others seem to be inviting everyone to share their stories. They'll probably expect you to join in.[/ic]

Juliet now has 1 Superhuman Development token.
Olga Surikov's loyalty towards you is now 1, but she is not your ally.
Juliet has absorbed 1 pod of unknown goop.
Juliet adds a Crimson Disk (small artifact) to her inventory.

Events:

1.
[ic=Hello, My Name Is...]
Public, Crisis, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event voluntarily provide information about who they are and what powers they have. Riccara Vaillancourt, The Medicine Man, and Emily White automatically assign themselves to this event, despite not being allied.

When you assign a character to this event you may choose for them to either reveal their power or to claim to not know of any power. Characters with Power Vampire, Late Bloomer, Eternal, Body Thief, or Latent Power must take the second option. All characters gain knowledge of assigned characters' origin locations and times. If a character reveals a power, they must provide a demonstration of it.

Characters who lie about not knowing their power are treated as initiating a 1v1 attack in the Social and Skill domains against each other character assigned to this event. (Attacks are just competitive events that automatically assign defenders. A 1v1 attack is one where both sides have only one character.) The aggressor gains +4 Smoke element and the defender gains +1d6 Dust. If the aggressor's Smoke is greater, the defender is oblivious to the lie. If the defender's Dust is greater they suspect the liar, but have no evidence. Ties are resolved by coin flip. Defending characters with telepathy learn the liar's power if they win the contest.

Characters who do not participate in this event are marked as suspicious (reducing ability to influence NPCs and increasing potential for violent interactions). If a character does not participate, they forfeit their ability to become de facto leader.[/ic]

3.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=We Need To Stick Together]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain.

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1. Keep in mind that the NPC may already have a loyalty score toward you. If you assign multiple characters to this event, each character assigned may target their own NPC. Multiple characters targeting the same NPC can improve their loyalty more than 1.

If Layla or Bastien, but not both, target an NPC, that NPC will publicly endorse the assigned character.[/ic]

[ic=Listen In]
[note]Players targeted with an attack automatically assign all characters they control to defend unless otherwise specified.[/note]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke, Compeditive, Attack
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Dust or +1 Smoke in the Stealth or Skill domains.

Assigned characters spy on another group.

Challenge domains: Skill, Stealth, Observation

When assigning any characters to this event, target another player to attack (spy on).

Aggressor outcomes:
Dust and Smoke outcome: The aggressor learns the superhuman traits of all allies of the defender and of characters that become allied with the defender this turn. The aggressor also gains knowledge of one private conversation the defender participated in this turn (if any).

Defender outcomes:
Iron and Dust outcome: The aggressor is caught, increasing the potential for violent interaction with them in future turns.

Tied outcome: The aggressor learns nothing, but is not caught.[/ic]

[ic=Let's Get Another]
Private, Opportunity, Dust
Location: Pod Tower

Restriction: Only Juliet can be assigned to this event.

Juliet finds an unguarded pod and tries to cut it open and collect its disc (if it has one). Unknown effect.[/ic]

[ic=What The Hell Is This Thing]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Restriction: Characters assigned to this event must possess a crimson disk (even if it's loaned to them).

The assigned character spends a while just searching their crimson disk and trying to figure out if it does anything. Unknown effect.[/ic]

7.
[ic=Taking Sides]
Public, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

When you assign a character to this event, target a PC. The assigned character publicly endorses the target as who they think should lead (it need not be an explicit call to leadership; any sign of support will do). When a player character is assigned, they are free to target themselves.

At the end of the turn, whomever received the most endorsements becomes the de facto leader of the chosen and all unaligned NPCs improve their loyalty score with the new leader by 1 (this loyalty is not additionally adjusted by the benefit of being leader). Bastien and Layla are each considered to have +2 endorsements for this purpose. If there is a tie, no leader is chosen and the group becomes fragmented and distrusting.[/ic]

8.
[ic=Don't Look At Me Like That!]
Public, Opportunity, Iron, Attack, Competition
Location: Pod Tower

Restriction: Only characters with at least 1 Smoke or Blood in the Social domain can be assigned to this event.

Challenge domains: Social

When you assign characters to this event, target a character to pick a fight with. If that character is controlled by a player, all of that character's allies join that character reacting to the assigned characters. The outcome of this event depends entirely on the defending elements.
Defender Outcomes:

Blood and Iron Outcome: The defenders rise to the challenge and nearly get involved in a battle with the aggressor.

Frost, Dust, and Smoke Outcome: The defenders brush off the provocation and back down. Each defender gains one unhappiness token.

Tied Outcome: Same as Frost, Dust, and Smoke Outcome.

Regardless of which outcome is dominant, the aggressor(s) lose two loyalty from any NPCs who were attacked, each member of both groups marks the characters in the other group as their enemies, and the aggressors gain a reputation for being violent. (All of these increase the potential for future violence between both parties.)

The interaction is interrupted by the following event before anything serious goes down.[/ic]

9.
[ic="Attention!"]
Public, Opportunity, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

All characters in Pod Tower must be assigned to this event.

A mysterious voice, seemingly coming from nowhere (or everywhere) begins to speak, interrupting all activity. The voice is rough and deep and speaks in an unknown language, not even sounding particularly human. But just as you can understand each-other, you can understand the voice. It says "Attention! Kixthish buildup in Building 29 is critical! Replica spillover will occur in 148 seconds unless the building is flooded!"

This even has no impact. It only serves to serve as a reference point in the course of the turn.[/ic]

10.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=Let's Get Out Of Here!]
Public, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by focusing on finding an exit to the tower (probably involving the "door") as soon as possible, and prioritize finding a safe refuge. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities than others.[/ic]

[ic=We Need To Prepare!]
Public, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by working together to come up with a plan in case of emergency. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities than others.[/ic]

[ic=Only The Fittest]
Private, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by thinking of ways to betray the group (if it comes to that) and generally prioritizing their safety over others. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities.[/ic]

[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Bastien Mcgregor][ic=Shards]The tingling in your amulet inspires you to familiarize yourself with how it functions You can feel your mind shift as you manipulate it. Each personality feels like *you*, but they also feel very different from each other. You notice that each facet feels incomplete, and suspect that with enough time and energy each might grow in strength. The tingling slowly fades as you hear some of the others start to raise concerns about what this place is.

Your controlled side soon gains the attention of the group. Just as you've been naturally talented in countless areas you find that you're a born leader and the right words just seem to flow to your mouth without effort. Olga Surikov, the Russian soldier, seems to watch you more than the others, no doubt impressed by your skill and perhaps a bit attracted to your handsome physique.

When it comes time to decide who will take charge, you seem a natural first-choice... at least until the Arab girl, Layla, stepped in. She seemed to know just the right things to say to get the crowd to turn against you. If it weren't for the quick responses and charming personality of the controlled facet you'd have been upstaged like the rest of the pretenders. Instead the contest seemed to end in deadlock, with neither you nor Layla coming out ahead.

Thinking that perhaps you could gather support from the stern Asian man in armor, you started a conversation with him. He is stiff and to the point, introducing himself as Hong Gyeong-su of the Goryeo kingdom, though you've never heard of that place. He seems impressed with you, and says that the other people will come around to his way of thinking sooner or later. He certainly won't follow some woman around. He admits that he suspects some strange spirit-magic is at work here, and that he won't pick sides until he hears a little more about everyone and what they can do.[/ic]

Because Olga was assigned to We Are Lost, an event where Bastien was a winner, her loyalty to him improved by 1. Because Bastien is attractive, this increased to 2.

Bastien now has 1 Superhuman Development token.
Olga Surikov's loyalty towards you is now 2, but she is not your ally.
Hong Gyeong-su's loyalty towards you is now 1, but she is not your ally.

(Both Gyeong-su and Olga were targeted by other players last turn, tying up their allegiance.)

Events:

1.
[ic=Hello, My Name Is...]
Public, Crisis, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event voluntarily provide information about who they are and what powers they have. Riccara Vaillancourt, The Medicine Man, and Emily White automatically assign themselves to this event, despite not being allied.

When you assign a character to this event you may choose for them to either reveal their power or to claim to not know of any power. Characters with Power Vampire, Late Bloomer, Eternal, Body Thief, or Latent Power must take the second option. All characters gain knowledge of assigned characters' origin locations and times. If a character reveals a power, they must provide a demonstration of it.

Characters who lie about not knowing their power are treated as initiating a 1v1 attack in the Social and Skill domains against each other character assigned to this event. (Attacks are just competitive events that automatically assign defenders. A 1v1 attack is one where both sides have only one character.) The aggressor gains +4 Smoke element and the defender gains +1d6 Dust. If the aggressor's Smoke is greater, the defender is oblivious to the lie. If the defender's Dust is greater they suspect the liar, but have no evidence. Ties are resolved by coin flip. Defending characters with telepathy learn the liar's power if they win the contest.

Characters who do not participate in this event are marked as suspicious (reducing ability to influence NPCs and increasing potential for violent interactions). If a character does not participate, they forfeit their ability to become de facto leader.[/ic]

3.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=We Need To Stick Together]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain.

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1. Keep in mind that the NPC may already have a loyalty score toward you. If you assign multiple characters to this event, each character assigned may target their own NPC. Multiple characters targeting the same NPC can improve their loyalty more than 1.

If Layla or Bastien, but not both, target an NPC, that NPC will publicly endorse the assigned character.[/ic]

[ic=Trust Would Be A Mistake]
Private, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost or Smoke in the Social domain.

When you assign a character to this event, target any NPC (aligned or unaligned). That NPC's loyalty score drops by 1 with regard to all players (including you). Multiple characters targeting the same NPC can reduce their loyalty more than 1.

NPCs targeted with this event will not support anyone in the Taking Sides event, even if they were allied and assigned to by their controller.[/ic]

7.
[ic=Taking Sides]
Public, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

When you assign a character to this event, target a PC. The assigned character publicly endorses the target as who they think should lead (it need not be an explicit call to leadership; any sign of support will do). When a player character is assigned, they are free to target themselves.

At the end of the turn, whomever received the most endorsements becomes the de facto leader of the chosen and all unaligned NPCs improve their loyalty score with the new leader by 1 (this loyalty is not additionally adjusted by the benefit of being leader). Bastien and Layla are each considered to have +2 endorsements for this purpose. If there is a tie, no leader is chosen and the group becomes fragmented and distrusting.[/ic]

9.
[ic="Attention!"]
Public, Opportunity, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

All characters in Pod Tower must be assigned to this event.

A mysterious voice, seemingly coming from nowhere (or everywhere) begins to speak, interrupting all activity. The voice is rough and deep and speaks in an unknown language, not even sounding particularly human. But just as you can understand each-other, you can understand the voice. It says "Attention! Kixthish buildup in Building 29 is critical! Replica spillover will occur in 148 seconds unless the building is flooded!"

This even has no impact. It only serves to serve as a reference point in the course of the turn.[/ic]

10.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=Let's Get Out Of Here!]
Public, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by focusing on finding an exit to the tower (probably involving the "door") as soon as possible, and prioritize finding a safe refuge. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities than others.[/ic]

[ic=We Need To Prepare!]
Public, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by working together to come up with a plan in case of emergency. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities than others.[/ic]

[ic=Only The Fittest]
Private, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by thinking of ways to betray the group (if it comes to that) and generally prioritizing their safety over others. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities.[/ic]

[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Jens Faber][ic=Strangers]Managing to shake off your invisibility, you take stock of this strange group of people. They seem to be dressed in historical costumes and believe that they're on ancient Earth. You still suspect that this is some sort of elaborate trick, but you suppose it's possible that someone kidnapped you and stuck you in a great big experiment involving false memory implants. For a strange moment you consider the possibility that you have false memories and that perhaps your entire life has been some kind of simulation. You shake off the thought as an unnecessary complication of what surely has a simpler explanation.

One handsome man seems to be wielding some kind of sword and muttering to himself. As you watch him he manipulates the amulet on his chest, and as he does so he seems to shift in mannerism. Later on you would learn the man calls himself Bastien Mcgregor, and you suspect that his charismatic display is somehow the product of the amulet.

Another man, dressed as a monk and carrying a bow and arrows, seems to be discussing things with an armored warrior. Perhaps they have a shared story in the weird drama.

You spot a young woman moving along the edges of the room investigating the patterns on the walls. Though she has a similarly ancient appearance, her movements convey a sense of intelligence and insight.

A Caucasian man in a suit and brimmed hat (ancient America?) appears to be chatting with a pair of beautiful, dark-skinned twins. You do a double-take as the twins turn into triplets and then appear to merge back into one person.

Finally, you spot a woman whom you'd later identify as Juliet. She stands alone, practicing combat moves. Every now and then she seems to burst forth with blinding speed, swinging a knife with the control and ease of someone who'd used it in combat before. With her skill and reflexes she'd make a deadly foe or perhaps a powerful ally.

As the shock of the awakening wears off, some of these people begin to panic. With a few stern words and a strong voice you set them into place. The others which you'd seen join you in agreeing that a calm and ordered approach is best. After barely any time had passed the group seemed to demand that someone take charge. A few others, including the woman named Olga, whom you had briefly met earlier, came forward with the intention to lead. It seems only fitting that you, as the most knowledgeable person around, should lead, and you begin to offer yourself as a natural leader, but in mere seconds you're upstaged by Bastien, the man with the amulet from before. Though you think you're a pretty likable guy, Bastien outshone you; younger and more fit, without seeming naive and more cunning without seeming devious.

You'd assumed that he'd lead for the time being until the woman who had been investigating the walls came forth. She introduced herself as Layla al-Zakiyya, and she proceeded to counter Bastien's charm and wit with a stunning flurry of observations and carefully worded appeals. In the end the group seemed honestly divided as to whom to follow.

You decide to take the time to get to know this Olga woman better. She proudly says she's "Soviet" which she confirms means she's from some part of Russia. She remarks that it's odd that you're unfamiliar with the Soviet power, and asks what your own nationality is. You admit that you don't belong to any "nation" and that from where you're from there hasn't been a nation in a very long time. You decide that this is better than trying to explain the whole time-difference thing. She doesn't seem particularly satisfied with this, but she says that at least you're white, giving a narrow-eyed glance at the darker-skinned members of the strange group.[/ic]

Because Olga was assigned to We Are Lost, an event where Jens was a winner, her loyalty to him improved by an additional 1.

Olga Surikov's loyalty towards you is now 2, but she is not your ally.

(Olga must've gained loyalty to other players last turn, tying up her allegiance.)

Events:

1.
[ic=Hello, My Name Is...]
Public, Crisis, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event voluntarily provide information about who they are and what powers they have. Riccara Vaillancourt, The Medicine Man, and Emily White automatically assign themselves to this event, despite not being allied.

When you assign a character to this event you may choose for them to either reveal their power or to claim to not know of any power. Characters with Power Vampire, Late Bloomer, Eternal, Body Thief, or Latent Power must take the second option. All characters gain knowledge of assigned characters' origin locations and times. If a character reveals a power, they must provide a demonstration of it.

Characters who lie about not knowing their power are treated as initiating a 1v1 attack in the Social and Skill domains against each other character assigned to this event. (Attacks are just competitive events that automatically assign defenders. A 1v1 attack is one where both sides have only one character.) The aggressor gains +4 Smoke element and the defender gains +1d6 Dust. If the aggressor's Smoke is greater, the defender is oblivious to the lie. If the defender's Dust is greater they suspect the liar, but have no evidence. Ties are resolved by coin flip. Defending characters with telepathy learn the liar's power if they win the contest.

Characters who do not participate in this event are marked as suspicious (reducing ability to influence NPCs and increasing potential for violent interactions). If a character does not participate, they forfeit their ability to become de facto leader.[/ic]

3.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=We Need To Stick Together]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain.

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1. Keep in mind that the NPC may already have a loyalty score toward you. If you assign multiple characters to this event, each character assigned may target their own NPC. Multiple characters targeting the same NPC can improve their loyalty more than 1.

If Layla or Bastien, but not both, target an NPC, that NPC will publicly endorse the assigned character.[/ic]

[ic=Listen In]
[note]Players targeted with an attack automatically assign all characters they control to defend unless otherwise specified.[/note]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke, Compeditive, Attack
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Dust or +1 Smoke in the Stealth or Skill domains.

Assigned characters spy on another group.

Challenge domains: Skill, Stealth, Observation

When assigning any characters to this event, target another player to attack (spy on).

Aggressor outcomes:
Dust and Smoke outcome: The aggressor learns the superhuman traits of all allies of the defender and of characters that become allied with the defender this turn. The aggressor also gains knowledge of one private conversation the defender participated in this turn (if any).

Defender outcomes:
Iron and Dust outcome: The aggressor is caught, increasing the potential for violent interaction with them in future turns.

Tied outcome: The aggressor learns nothing, but is not caught.[/ic]

[ic=Know Thy Self]
Private, Opportunity, Dust
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event practice their new superhuman traits, using them to do simple things and otherwise testing their abilities. All characters assigned with fewer than one Superhuman Development token gain one.[/ic]

7.
[ic=Taking Sides]
Public, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

When you assign a character to this event, target a PC. The assigned character publicly endorses the target as who they think should lead (it need not be an explicit call to leadership; any sign of support will do). When a player character is assigned, they are free to target themselves.

At the end of the turn, whomever received the most endorsements becomes the de facto leader of the chosen and all unaligned NPCs improve their loyalty score with the new leader by 1 (this loyalty is not additionally adjusted by the benefit of being leader). Bastien and Layla are each considered to have +2 endorsements for this purpose. If there is a tie, no leader is chosen and the group becomes fragmented and distrusting.[/ic]

9.
[ic="Attention!"]
Public, Opportunity, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

All characters in Pod Tower must be assigned to this event.

A mysterious voice, seemingly coming from nowhere (or everywhere) begins to speak, interrupting all activity. The voice is rough and deep and speaks in an unknown language, not even sounding particularly human. But just as you can understand each-other, you can understand the voice. It says "Attention! Kixthish buildup in Building 29 is critical! Replica spillover will occur in 148 seconds unless the building is flooded!"

This even has no impact. It only serves to serve as a reference point in the course of the turn.[/ic]

10.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=Let's Get Out Of Here!]
Public, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by focusing on finding an exit to the tower (probably involving the "door") as soon as possible, and prioritize finding a safe refuge. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities than others.[/ic]

[ic=We Need To Prepare!]
Public, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by working together to come up with a plan in case of emergency. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities than others.[/ic]

[ic=Only The Fittest]
Private, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by thinking of ways to betray the group (if it comes to that) and generally prioritizing their safety over others. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities.[/ic]

[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Saitoro actions]
1. Seek the Breeze
3. We Need to Stick Together (Hong Gyeong-Su)
7. Taking Sides (Layla)
9. "Attention"
10. Walk Without Stepping
[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Bastien Turn 2]
1. "Hello, My Name Is..." Wise Facet,    Changing facets to demostrate the power. Says the true about his power.
3. "We Need To Stick Together" Wise Facet    [Targeting Hong]
7. "Taking sides" Controlled Facet.    If there are two or less supporting him,Then he will support Layla arguing a divided group will only make the things harder and choosing Layla is the best option for the sake of the group. Otherwise he will support himself.
9. "Attention" Wise Facet
10. "We need to prepare" Wise Facet[/spoiler]

I'll apparently need to use multiple posts for future turns. This was cut off due to character-limit.

[spoiler=John Dante][ic=Jéssica]Recovering from the episode with the lightning bolt you put your thinkin' cap on and try and figure out what's happening. In fact, you think you'll start by questioning the cutest little flapper in this bizarro room. Okay, yeah, she's foreign, negro, and probably a pro skirt, but she's a doll too, and a man can dream.

Turns out she's just as much in the dark as you, and yeah, she's a whore. Name's "Jéssica" (no last name) and she says she's from Brazil--São Paulo to be exact, though you don't know much about South America. Poor dame just woke up here without a clue, just like you. One interesting tidbit is that she's able to copy herself! Like, one moment you're lookin' at a sweet girl and the next you're looking at two! You can think of more than one way that'd come in handy...

Jéssica seems to be having a great time at all this. She says it's like a great big party with an added mystery twist. She says she'll stick with you, if that's okay. (Hell yeah, it's okay!)[/ic]

Jéssica da Flor de Seda's loyalty to you is 1 and she is your ally. You may assign her to events just as you would John. Keep in mind that Jéssica's power lets her be assigned to any number of simultaneous events, but does not let her be assigned to the same event more than once.

[spoiler=Jéssica's Traits and Items]Mundane Traits:
* Friendly
* Naturally Happy
* Attractive
* Lazy

Supernatural Trait: Clones

Items:
* Cloth handbag containing:
* Birth Control
* Cigarettes[/spoiler]

[ic=Oryx]After the whole kerfuffle with Bastien and Layla it becomes clear to you that nobody round here knows Jack. The negro kid in the loincloth keeps following Jéssica, who in turn keeps following you, so you decide to maybe extend the olive branch to the guy.

He introduces himself as Oryx. Or rather, he introduces himself as Yulugo, but whenever you hear him say "Yulugo" you think "Oryx", and he seems satisfied when you say "Oryx". That's what Jéssica calls him, too. She says it's the name of some kind of animal from Africa (her mother taught her lots about Africa, apparently). It makes sense that Oryx would be from Africa, but he doesn't understand the question. There's actually a lot he doesn't understand. Seems like the poor kid is from some backwards land where nobody knows up from down. You offer to take him under your wing.

Oryx seems not to really trust you, though he agrees to do what you say. He says that you are a ghost-man, and you get the impression that he's mostly hanging round you because of Jéssica. He shows you that he can lift one of the pods off the ground with just one hand. You wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of one of this guy's punches.[/ic]

Oryx the Exile's loyalty to you is 1 and he is your ally. You may assign him to events just as you would John.

[spoiler=Oryx's Traits and Items]Mundane Traits:
* Young
* Physically Fit
* Berzerker
* Ignorant

Supernatural Trait: Super Strength

Items:
* A bundle of raw meat
* A stone knife (short blade)[/spoiler]

Events:

1.
[ic=Hello, My Name Is...]
Public, Crisis, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event voluntarily provide information about who they are and what powers they have. Riccara Vaillancourt, The Medicine Man, and Emily White automatically assign themselves to this event, despite not being allied.

When you assign a character to this event you may choose for them to either reveal their power or to claim to not know of any power. Characters with Power Vampire, Late Bloomer, Eternal, Body Thief, or Latent Power must take the second option. All characters gain knowledge of assigned characters' origin locations and times. If a character reveals a power, they must provide a demonstration of it.

Characters who lie about not knowing their power are treated as initiating a 1v1 attack in the Social and Skill domains against each other character assigned to this event. (Attacks are just competitive events that automatically assign defenders. A 1v1 attack is one where both sides have only one character.) The aggressor gains +4 Smoke element and the defender gains +1d6 Dust. If the aggressor's Smoke is greater, the defender is oblivious to the lie. If the defender's Dust is greater they suspect the liar, but have no evidence. Ties are resolved by coin flip. Defending characters with telepathy learn the liar's power if they win the contest.

Characters who do not participate in this event are marked as suspicious (reducing ability to influence NPCs and increasing potential for violent interactions). If a character does not participate, they forfeit their ability to become de facto leader.[/ic]

3.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=We Need To Stick Together]
Private, Opportunity, Blood
Location: Pod Tower

Prerequisite: Assigned characters must have at least +1 Frost, Blood, or Iron in the Social domain.

When you assign a character to this event, target an unaligned NPC. Your loyalty score with that NPC improves by 1. Keep in mind that the NPC may already have a loyalty score toward you. If you assign multiple characters to this event, each character assigned may target their own NPC. Multiple characters targeting the same NPC can improve their loyalty more than 1.

If Layla or Bastien, but not both, target an NPC, that NPC will publicly endorse the assigned character.[/ic]

[ic=Know Thy Self]
Private, Opportunity, Dust
Location: Pod Tower

Characters assigned to this event practice their new superhuman traits, using them to do simple things and otherwise testing their abilities. All characters assigned with fewer than one Superhuman Development token gain one.[/ic]

[ic=An Impromptu Education]
Private, Opportunity, Smoke
Location: Pod Tower

John takes some time to give Oryx a crash-course on the "modern world", telling him about things like cars, guns, even about farming and nations.
If John and Oryx are both assigned to this event, Oryx gains +1 loyalty to you and gains 1 knowledge token. (With 4 knowledge tokens Oryx can remove his "ignorant" trait.)[/ic]

7.
[ic=Taking Sides]
Public, Opportunity, Frost
Location: Pod Tower

When you assign a character to this event, target a PC. The assigned character publicly endorses the target as who they think should lead (it need not be an explicit call to leadership; any sign of support will do). When a player character is assigned, they are free to target themselves.

At the end of the turn, whomever received the most endorsements becomes the de facto leader of the chosen and all unaligned NPCs improve their loyalty score with the new leader by 1 (this loyalty is not additionally adjusted by the benefit of being leader). Bastien and Layla are each considered to have +2 endorsements for this purpose. If there is a tie, no leader is chosen and the group becomes fragmented and distrusting.[/ic]

8.
[ic=Don't Look At Me Like That!]
Public, Opportunity, Iron, Attack, Competition
Location: Pod Tower

Restriction: Only characters with at least 1 Smoke or Blood in the Social domain can be assigned to this event.

Challenge domains: Social

When you assign characters to this event, target a character to pick a fight with. If that character is controlled by a player, all of that character's allies join that character reacting to the assigned characters. The outcome of this event depends entirely on the defending elements.
Defender Outcomes:

Blood and Iron Outcome: The defenders rise to the challenge and nearly get involved in a battle with the aggressor.

Frost, Dust, and Smoke Outcome: The defenders brush off the provocation and back down. Each defender gains one unhappiness token.

Tied Outcome: Same as Frost, Dust, and Smoke Outcome.

Regardless of which outcome is dominant, the aggressor(s) lose two loyalty from any NPCs who were attacked, each member of both groups marks the characters in the other group as their enemies, and the aggressors gain a reputation for being violent. (All of these increase the potential for future violence between both parties.)

The interaction is interrupted by the following event before anything serious goes down.[/ic]

9.
[ic="Attention!"]
Public, Opportunity, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

All characters in Pod Tower must be assigned to this event.

A mysterious voice, seemingly coming from nowhere (or everywhere) begins to speak, interrupting all activity. The voice is rough and deep and speaks in an unknown language, not even sounding particularly human. But just as you can understand each-other, you can understand the voice. It says "Attention! Kixthish buildup in Building 29 is critical! Replica spillover will occur in 148 seconds unless the building is flooded!"

This even has no impact. It only serves to serve as a reference point in the course of the turn.[/ic]

10.

Quote from: Simultaneous
[ic=Let's Get Out Of Here!]
Public, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by focusing on finding an exit to the tower (probably involving the "door") as soon as possible, and prioritize finding a safe refuge. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities than others.[/ic]

[ic=We Need To Prepare!]
Public, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by working together to come up with a plan in case of emergency. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities than others.[/ic]

[ic=Only The Fittest]
Private, Crisis, Iron
Location: Pod Tower

Assigned characters react to the voice by thinking of ways to betray the group (if it comes to that) and generally prioritizing their safety over others. Next turn, these characters will have different opportunities.[/ic]

[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Assignments]
1) Hello, My Name Is(All 3, Will Be Honest)
3) We Need to Stick Together (Jessica, Targeting Emily White)
    An Impromptu Education (John and Oryx)
7) Taking Sides (All 3, or 4 if Emily's alligence is gained): Layla. Sure, she may be a dame and probably a Mohammedan, but that Bastion strikes me a being a bit shifty - strikes me like a Chicago politician, and we all know how that type turns out. If I had a chance I'd try to take control, but everyone else is leaning one way or another, lets not shake things up too much.
8) Can I chose to NOT start a fight here? Do I have to assign to this event? Seems like a bad idea.
9) "Attention" (All)
10) Let's Get Out of Here! (All) Sorry, but critical don't sound like "Sit around and wait to see what happens next." I'm all for figuring out how and who and why, but let's do that AFTER we get away from whatever is critical? We can always come back if we need to, but right now sticking around seems insane. Plus, this Oryx kid is crazy strong, but he's still a kid, and though she's a streetwalker Jessica's still a woman, I gotta keep them safe.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Event Assignments, Turn Two]1. None
3. What The Hell Is This Thing
7. None
8. None
9. "Attention!"
10. Let's Get Out Of Here! (Juliet knows when to make a retreat! Years evading rival cartel members and the law was time well spent.)[/spoiler]

OOC: I swear I will have some IC material next turn, I've just been way busy. 

[spoiler=Assignments]
1. Hello, My Name Is...: Be Truthful (Layla)
3a. We Need to Stick Together: Emily White (Mary)
3b. Mind Probe: Bastien (Layla)
7. Taking Sides: Endorse Layla (All Characters)
9. "Attention!" (All Characters)
10. Let's Get Out of Here! (All Characters)
[/spoiler]

[ooc=Aside]Turn 1 took 1 post. Turn 2 took 2 posts. Turn 3 takes 3 posts. Will this trend ever stop?! I hope so. :huh:

Many of these blocks are locations descriptions, so please forgive any flip-flopping with regard to narrative voice. I'm considering building an interactive map with hover descriptions as the city grows. Feedback would be appreciated.[/ooc]

[ic=Exposition]In light of the major conflict selecting a leader, many of the chosen came together to share their backgrounds and abilities. Bastien spoke of how his amulet guides his abilities and personality. Layla admitted to being telepathic. Perhaps most interestingly, Emily White, a Chinese-Australian woman demonstrated her ability to temporarily remove others' abilities.

Many of the chosen, however, stayed out of the spotlight, including Olga and Gyeong-su.[/ic]

[ic=A Leader At Last]After some socializing, many of the chosen, including Emily, John, and Saitoro, expressed their support of Layla al-Zakiyya. Even Bastien, once he realized saw how others felt, acknowledged Layla in his own way. Hong Gyeong-su seemed to be the only one voicing disagreement; saying that women were unfit to lead, but he soon became quiet as he realized that he was alone in this opinion.[/ic]

[ic=Evacuation]What semblance of order had been achieved in the last couple hours quickly began to fray as the chosen heard the ominous voice, projected from an unknown direction.

"Attention! Kixthish buildup in Building 29 is critical! Replica spillover will occur in 148 seconds unless the building is flooded!" it crackled in it's strange language.

Most of the chosen rushed to the carved archway, seeing no other escape from the tower. Though the archway bore no knobs, or even doors of a normal sort, as the chosen rushed to it in fear, the stone itself seemed to peel back as if a wound had been made in the wall. Out they flowed through the opening, some faster than others. Many spoke to each-other in hurried voices as they did.[/ic]

From this point onward the chosen are no longer all together. I will provide brief bits of information that I think are important to keeping all players informed, such as room descriptions, but keep in mind that these may not apply to your character(s) specifically.

[ic=Spiral Hall]This hallway is curved to match the wall of the pod tower. One doorway leads into the tower itself, while a doorway opposite it leads to the tower control room. As one follows the hall clockwise around the tower it descends, such that one leaving the tower can go down and to the right, or up and to the left. After a ways down, the hallway leads to a door that opens to the balcony of shards. If one follows the hallway up instead, they arrive at the honeycomb chamber.

The hallway is made of white stone, with colored cobblestone floors and is lit by a dim band of yellow light set into the ceiling.[/ic]

[ic=Kixthish]Presented with three different directions to go, the chosen hesitated for a moment. A quick glance through the doorway to the room opposite the tower (the control room) revealed no exists, so it was quickly discarded by most, as a non-option. As decisions were made, the 148 seconds ended and the world faded into blackness. The voices of the chosen were muffled and faded into nothingness...

The chosen awoke, and those with time-pieces saw that only a few seconds had passed. They each felt strangely charged after the experience, as though they'd taken some energy-boosting drug.

The same alien voice soon echoed through the hall once again: "Attention! Kixthish in Building 29 has spiked! Evacuate the building until replica control teams have cleared it!"[/ic]

[ic=Balcony of Shards]Extending from the side of a titanic building is a balcony made of a silver metal. The balcony is shaped in a great half-circle with a radius of about 40 meters. The building it's attached to is covered with the same metal, and in the light of the sun it would surely shine brilliantly. The floor of the balcony is etched with a strange pattern of triangles that all point in to the central doorway from which the chosen spilled. The triangles each have a smaller triangle inside them, facing the opposite direction, and these smaller triangles have even smaller triangles, on and on, as finely as the eye can perceive. Every other triangle appears to be a gap in the floor, creating the appearance of being less than solid. Apart from a few obvious gaps, however, the surface is sturdy and traversable.

Aside from the primary portal at the center of the balcony (leading to the spiral hall), there are two doors of the same etched white stone on either edge. The building out of which the balcony extends is flat on this side, and the balcony is not adorned with any sort of railing, making both doors dreadfully close to the edge. (One door leads to The Wooden Workshop, while the other leads to Blackslime Bridge.)[/ic]

[ic=The Heavens]As the chosen spilled from the building onto the balcony, even the most reserved could not help but gaze in awe at the sight before them. The night sky extended in a glistening explosion of light. There was no moon, but there were stars. Or at least, that's what they appeared to be at first. But they're far too bright, and most have a soft coloration. As the chosen watched them they could see them drift slowly across the sky. Those of the chosen with more stargazing experience than others understood, and their whispers reached the rest of the group.

"Planets. They're all planets."

It was true. The sky held no moon, no sun, and no stars. But it held thousands, if not millions, of planets. Close planets.[/ic]

[ic=Three Things]The chosen on the balcony, coming out of their reverie, soon noticed three things:

The first was that the balcony was not empty. Near the far edge was a great shape, smooth and glossy in the planet-light. As they approached, the humans could see that it was a kind of structure, or statue, or craft. Perched on three pillars, the craft was shaped like a great black scarab, though it had no legs and wasn't so obviously jointed. In its side was an opening approximately two meters high. It seemed to be designed to be entered, though who knew what lay within. On either side of the opening were two great protrusions, each with a vaguely cylindrical shape and some sort of mechanism inside. The opposite side of the craft was identical; it possessed the same entrance and pair of cylinders.

The second thing that was soon noticed was the ground below the balcony. Hundreds of buildings lay out arranged below like toys. The wind near the edge of the balcony reminded them that they weren't actually toys, and that they must be at least a couple hundred meters above the ground. Thousands of tiny lights could be seen on the buildings below, complementing the planets above. But where the planets were chaotic and disorganized, the lights had a regularity to them that spoke of floors and rooms.

And lastly, the chosen remembered that they had been running, for they heard again the jeering cries of the ugly voices. The split doorway that led to the winding hall opened once again, and from it poured a mob of replicas.[/ic]

[ic=Dangerous Replicas]From honeycomb chamber atop the spiral hall came a horde of strange humans. These humans moved and behaved like crazed beasts, howling, screaming, and laughing but never speaking. Their eyes are solid black, and some brandish melee weapons. Most strange is how they appear to be copies of the chosen. You can see black-eyed clones of Olga, Bastien, Rikki, and Mary, all of them crazed and violent. When injured or slain, the replicas explode into a cloud of smoke that quickly dissipates.[/ic]

[ic=Blackslime Bridge]Through one of the side doors on the Balcony of Shards is a rectangular room filled with a fog. The fog smells chemical in nature, and seems to glow with a sickly green light. A path, wet from the fog, made from the shiny metal of the balcony carved in intricate designs extends out into the room, but otherwise there is no floor to the left or right. About a meter down is an opaque slime that sloshes around slowly. The goop seems to radiate heat and the whole room is uncomfortably hot. The path is a bit over a meter wide, but like the balcony it has no railing, making the ooze below seem even more dangerous.

The side walls of the chamber are obscured by the fog. At the far end of the bridge, the path splits in two, forming a Y shape. Down one fork is a hallway (Dead End), and down the other is a room (Vision Chamber).[/ic]

As part of last turn's events, the following powers have been publicly revealed:
Riccara Vaillancourt -- Flight
The Medicine Man -- No Ability
Emily White -- Power Nullification
Jéssica -- Clones
Oryx -- Super Strength
John Dante -- Energy Projection (Electricity)
Layla -- Telepathy
Bastien -- Fragmented (Amulet Focus): {Naturally Happy + Berserker} OR {Natural Leader + Cunning} OR {Intelligent + Watchful}
[spoiler=Fragmented Details (Public)][ic=Fragmented]Mind Trait, Superhuman, Blood

This character is really more like three people in one body. When selected, choose two mental traits for each of three facets. When you apply this character to an event, select which facet they embody. Ignore mental traits from facets other than the one that's selected. This character also unlocks events which can lead to the development of superhuman abilities for each facet.

When selected, also choose an item to control this character's facets. If this character ever loses that item they lose all traits associated to their facets and cannot be assigned to events that do not pertain to the recovery of their item.[/ic][/spoiler]

Publicly Known Locations:
Pod Tower (16 Pods)
Spiral Hall (All NPCs, all PCs except Saitoro and Jens at the start of Turn 3)
Balcony of Shards (Strange Craft)
Blackslime Bridge

Mysterious Locations:
Honeycomb Chamber
Wooden Workshop
Vision Chamber
Dead End
Wherever Saitoro went
Wherever Jens went

Alliances:
John Dante leads Jéssica and Oryx
Layla al-Zakiyya leads Mary, Emily, Rikki, Vitus, and the Medicine Man.

Olga and Gyeong-su are the only remaining unaligned NPCs.

All characters who are not (even temporarily) Naturally Happy gain an unhappiness token at end of turn from stress.