--=Foreward/OOC Notes=--
~ Spinning The Tale
This is a combination fan-alt, swarm-alt, and setting-alt. It is directly based on the Etrian Odyssey/Sekaiju no Meikyuu series, presenting itself as if it were the setting of a new game in the series. It is available for two forms of play.
The first, and more /intended/, is having a group of characters (Whether from someone's swarm-alt, or multiple players' worth, or even a player on more than one of their own alts) delve into the labyrinth. This can either be a one-shot where everyone is intended to meet their end one way or another, or a multi-session campaign of sorts where the characters either survive most of the time, or can be revived after gruesome or vorish ends. In the case of the /latter/, though, I might even ask for a party purpose-made for the adventure and make it an actual 'campaign' in the true sense of the word.
The second, however, is having a pred or other hostile character (or multiples) provided by you turn up somewhere in the Labyrinth and run into some of the NPC adventurers that will be listed later. Or, failing that, some combination of other prey/switch characters and NPC adventurers... though I'd question the point of my involvement if /no/ NPC adventurers are involved!
As an additional aside, the italicized phrases under each section title are the names of songs from various EO games! Check 'em. (And in the case of "Unknown Menace", I strongly recommend instead looking up the phrase 'stardust fear' on youtube to get a kicking remix of it).
--=Greater Pyrelia and the World Beyond=--
~ The Lounge Where We Speak of Tomorrow
Greater Pyrelia is a prosperous city, and capital of the self-same country. The age of steam has truly returned to the world by now, and much of it is thanks to technology harvested from the ruins around the Yggdrasil Labyrinth. However, the safer ruins nearer to the city have been picked clean. The call has sounded for adventurers to come to challenge the Labyrinth proper. Because of this, almost overnight, Greater Pyrelia's economy has shifted violently to support the adventurers diving into the forest, sometimes coming back with treasures... other times, not at all.
Greater Pyrelia is currently ruled by the Most Serene Doge, Aurille Franzino. He is getting on in his years, and many elders figure it will be another decade at most before a new Doge must take his place. However, he is still an utterly brilliant politician even as he's grown old, and much of the adventure-town infrastructure was set up under his orders, making the economic shift actually mostly painless for the city. In fact, he has a very, very strong interest in getting capable adventurers to explore the Labyrinth...
The city itself is bustling with industry, and features a number of high-class services for citizens, and more importantly to you the reader, adventurers. Great foundries headed by master smiths who still churn out lovingly-made gear with a mix of the latest technology and artistry... Shops with essentials that no adventurer should be without, from the valuable Nectars, to the truly vital Ariadne Threads that allow instantaneous escape... World-class medical centers... and full-featured inns.
Beyond Greater Pyrelia, there has been something of a heady revolutionary air in the world. Many countries have gone through messy political turnovers, but at the same time, communication has only improved, and the promise of maybe gaining some of the old world's glory is becoming a bit more real. It's, in many senses, an exciting time to be alive.
--=Exploring The Labyrinth=--
~ Forbidden Forest
-Intro-
Standing beyond Greater Pyrelia is a vast forest, yet rising from it are towers set aglow with blue light, as well as fallen technological buildings of some other form. In the heart of the forest is a massive tree, the namesake Yggdrasil. Circling the forest are guard stations, and nearest to the city itself are solid walls, all to keep its monsters inside.
-Session Flow-
Exactly how this happens, depends greatly on the kind of play you've been setting out to have. For the purposes of this section, a one-shot will be assumed. Generally, exploring the labyrinth in that form of play is done off-the-cuff, with whomever is playing the dominant or predatory figure mostly acting as 'GM' with say over the setting and non-player-characters - though if that person isn't me, there may still be some general setting notes to deliver.
If there are multiple adventurer players, they'll be given time to prepare in the city, RP amongst one another, that sort of thing. Often they'll be given /some/ sort of mission, since the lack of continuity makes constant labyrinth dives for the sheer sake of exploration rather flat story-wise. Then, naturally, they'll enter the labyrinth. From there, it depends, naturally, on who's playing, what the players agreed upon as likely major aspects of the RP, and so on.
-Elements of the Labyrinth-
The Yggdrasil Labyrinth is, almost invariably, either a forest or fraught with wild vegetation, no matter how many strata away from the entrance you may end up being. It is often rife with monsters, though certainly not to the point that you cannot even lift a foot without meeting some. That'd be silly. However, there also exists treasure, the bounties of nature, and the ruins of the old world. On top of that, there exist a number of concepts one may want to understand about the Labyrinth, as well...
FOEs: Formido Oppugnatura Exsequens, Field-On Enemy... whatever you think it actually means, the fact remains. They're here. They're deadly. You probably don't want to meet them (...though maybe your player does...). For the purposes of this game... an FOE is something that is well beyond the current adventurers' means to deal with, and may even be the PC predator themselves. Though if this alt is being played with a party of PC adventurers and no PC predators, the difference between 'common' monsters and 'FOE' monsters will be /noticeable/ and you'll actually meet enough critters to tell the difference.
Geomagnetic Field: A strange EM anomaly found at the entrances of deeper strata of the Labyrinth, it creates a stable warp-gate to and from the entrance of the Labyrinth outside the city proper, but only for those who have touched the field they intend to reach before. Normally just used to save some time.
Stratum: A different level of the Labyrinth, where the surroundings are usually quite unlike that of the other strata. In the Yggdrasil Labyrinth around Greater Pyrelia, strata are generally found as one goes further back towards the heart of the forest... then, following that, in their own realms /below/ the roots of Yggdrasil.
-Strata-
Stratum 1 - The Shadowed Verdant Reach: The first stratum encompasses the entirety of the surface forest, and in absence of knowledge of the others, might be assumed to be the largest. In it, a great variety of life lives, and it is here that foreign beasts are most likely to appear, though it is not known why... Either way, most exploration is focused on reaching the tree at the center, but exploring around the forest's radius is certainly /possible/.
Non-Stratum Area 1 - The Azure Spire: A great monolith still lit by now centuries-old machinery. Its purpose is unknown, and few have gotten very far up its height to be able to comment more on that question. Many monsters from the forest have nested in there, but what other horrors await...?
(( There are 5 other strata, and an unknown amount of added Areas. They have not been revealed yet! ))
--=Epic Journeys=--
~ Calling That Detestable Name
-Premise-
This would be the section covering an actual long-play campaign in the Labyrinth. In this case... PCs are meant to keep going, and a number of conventions are in place, even without considering mechanics.
1) PCs can and will be revivable from even the worst of fates. If at least one PC survives an adventure that goes badly, they can bring back the others, whether through the use of Nectars, a special ability, or failing all of that, the medical facilities in town. Don't ask how. My answer will be "It's magic. I don't got to explain /shit/.". In the event of a /wipe/... I'm not sure whether I'll restore to the last entry into the Labyrinth, or ask for new characters.
2) Since this will be multiple sessions of play, the PCs don't need excuses to enter all the time, as they'll have a long-term one: Mapping the Labyrinth and reaching deep enough to unlock the secrets of Yggdrasil. Not to say they /won't/ get special missions from time to time, though...
3) There will be a coherent plot. I expect character development. I expect seriousness. You'll get your smut, don't worry. If I was gonna make a clean RP, I wouldn't do it here, even if I recruited players from here. But take the game seriously, please!
4) One campaign, 5 players, max for both. This is non-negotiable! Were we on IRC or something where I could split OOC away from IC, it wouldn't be as big a deal and I'd up the player count slightly. But... we're not. Campaign times will have to be sorted with potential players.
5) I will be /far/ pickier about PC predators for this, and will insist on still GMing with them as guest stars even if I say yes. They, sure, will be treated as FOE-class enemies and are likely to get their meal/fuck/seedbed/whatever if the party doesn't turn tail and run immediately. However... this being the end of the line forever for the party will be /highly/ unlikely.
-Mechanics-
W-I-P! W-I-P! *IOSYS being tapped to make a remix as we speak*
...In seriousness, this is mostly relying on me finding interested players and figuring out how the /hell/ to proceed with the matter. You might be able to tell by tone that I'm starting to like this more, though...
--=Bad Ends=--
~ Unknown Menace
There will be times where things go poorly. Sometimes, even, very poorly. The monsters of the labyrinth are hungry. The monsters of the labyrinth are also lusty. It's not entirely certain why they seem to be the latter as often as they are, but it's just something that ends up, all the same, happening. As such... these fates will befall you, too. It's only a matter of /time/.
In the event of a one-shot, it's largely expected that the entire party will fall, whether to multiple separate monsters, or one very talented (and multitasking!) monster. What it does with you is limited only by your consent and my twisted imagination... You might be corrupted into a monster of some sort, have eggs laid inside of you or just be impregnated in general for its use as breeding fodder, or of /course/ just eaten whether normally or lewdly. Not to say there aren't even worse fates waiting out there...
In a long-running campaign, these things will still very likely happen to each PC at least once, but the difference is that they'll be brought back afterwards - even if their last body has since become a stain of something nasty (or lewd) on the ground, corrupted into a horrible abomination, or bursting from eggs. However, the /catch/ is that the PC has to die to be brought back, and as such... non-lethal Terrible Fates (tm) have to be discussed somewhat in advance to let the GM know how to deal with them.
--=Secrets Revealed=--
~ Throne of Creation
None Yet! Will you be the first to reveal the secrets of the Yggdrasil Labyrinth...?
--=Adventurers=--
~ Engrave Thy Name
--=Monsters=--
~ A Sudden Gust of Wind That Calls For Death
Typical monster types one might encounter in the Labyrinth vary wildly depending on the stratum or area one is exploring, but there are some types that just aren't as common, and others that are more common.
Monstrous variations of a number of animals exist. Most reptiles and amphibians, many mammals and birds... Even a vast array of carnivorous plants! Beyond that, monstergirls are rather common as well (Scyllas and Alraunes are even quite canon to the games this alt is based on), as are fantastic beasts like dragons or manticores or the like. Finally, it's honestly fairly likely that biologically-dubious entities like tentacle monsters or massive macroscopic amoebas can eventually be encountered as well.
--
All unshown sliders assume Sacred_Bells preferences. Any type of vore, sex, or otherwise can potentially happen in and around the Labyrinth.
(( The Verdant Tone amidst the
Sacred_Bells. ))
