abovegrounds | October 2015 Plotting Post

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October 2015 Plotting Post

October 2015
Here is your October plotting post! You can make use of the information here to plot what your character will be doing in the next month. Look out for the How's My Driving meme coming up mid-October. You may notice a distinctly horror-flavoured theme to the plot prompts this month. Naturally, it's Samhain – better known as Halloween. Samhain also nicely coincides with our next Test Drive Meme, which means current and potential players alike can enjoy all the spooky shenanigans.

Factions
Following the hostile takeover of Croydon by the fae, many witches have been forced to flee. Tensions in the south are running high. Unfortunate timing, perhaps, for magical power in London reaches its height at the end of this month, which means that witches are at the top of their game – but so are the fae.

The barrier between the two realms is at its thinnest during Samhain, which means that all sorts of strange incidents can occur. Ghosts are at their most visible, even if they don't want to be. Of course, the denizens of the Unseelie Court are quick to join in the mischief.

Meanwhile, in the north of London, Circle Midnight are licking their wounds after an unsuccessful attempt to claim Barnet. Despite being forced to publicly apologize for their actions, their defeat appears to have done little to subdue them as Abigail Widdowson declares herself a High Priestess and more witches (secretly) flock to her cause.

UPDATE: As of 4th October, it is now illegal to kill any witch! Yes, even the bad ones. Wait a minute, you say, isn't murder illegal already? Well, yes it is, but in practice the Night Council turn a blind eye to hunters who take down vampires, for example (with the exception of the Islington Nest who enjoy special protection), and let's be honest, fae don't count as people anyway so the law doesn't really apply to them... Anyway, from now on even if you were facing the Wicked Witch of the West, you still wouldn't be allowed to kill her. Sucks to be you. More info and plot discussion here!

Territories
The Redbright Institute has successfully put an end to the dispute in Haringey through peaceful negotiation with all sides. Theirs was the only bloodless takeover in the last month, however: the Seelie/Unseelie Court victory in Croydon and the hard-fought defence of Barnet against Circle Midnight were both much bloodier affairs.

The Redbright Institute has overtaken Circle Daybreak as the most powerful faction in the city, with six territories. Greenwich is currently a disputed territory, claimed by vampires and werewolves alike. Meanwhile, Lambeth remains a lawless territory, dangerous for anyone to enter. See the Territories page for more information.

If your faction would like to claim a new territory, please comment to the appropriate thread. Players will then have three days from the date and time of the initial claim to sign up for the conflict. Anyone can sign up, but please only volunteer your character if they are a member of a faction involved in the conflict or they have IC reasons to actively help out. Please do not volunteer if you won't be able to participate in the plot.

If the outcome of the conflict is not already guaranteed, I will then look at the sign-ups list to calculate which faction will emerge victorious. It is up to players to plan and play out the actual conflict itself. If you comment to claim a territory, then you should also take the lead in planning and organizing it.

Minions
The following lucky minions will be promoted this month:

Peter Dunn | Human, Seelie Court | Level 1
‣ A father of three with two ex-wives, Peter made a deal for a great fortune. And has to work for the fae now.

Cynthia Porter | Human, Seelie Court | Level 1
‣ The nerdy girl everyone always made fun of. She made a bargain of servitude in exchange for the punishment of her tormentors.

Celyn | Fae, Unseelie Court | Level 1
‣ Celyn is an Elf archer and expert at tracking and hunting. He moves quickly and can jump quite far. Light on his feet and very vain.

Grurg | Fae, Unseelie Court | Level 1
‣ A Troll, large and physically powerful. Trolls live under bridges and will generally leave a passerby alone if they offer a toll. Grurg is not mindlessly violent but he takes his job very seriously.

These minions will decide to leave town this month:

Hanan Saamiya | Werewolf, East End Pack | Level 2
‣ A 23-year-old veterinary student, East End born and raised, known for biting off more than she can chew. Grace under pressure and a rock-steady nature. Likes the gym and the library.

Ume | Fae, Seelie Court | Level 2
‣ A reserved kitsune who likes peace and quiet. The most likely to have a tart remark.

Elidy | Fae, Seelie Court | Level 1
‣ A very young pixie, small enough that she mostly looks like a pinpoint of pink light. She is too tiny for humans to hear but she might be seen flitting around at night.

And these less fortunate minions will sadly die this month:

Aleo Heller | Meta Human, Redbright Institute | Level 1
‣ A reckless member of the Outreach team thanks to his ability to turn his skin into a metallic-like substance. He is rather impulsive but he's also endlessly loyal to his friends when not causing trouble.

Sakura | Fae, Seelie Court | Level 1
‣ An excitable kitsune who loves children. The most likely to demand presents.

Michê | Fae, Unseelie Court | Level 2
‣ A Yeti from the Himalayas. Huge, at least nine feet tall but not very bright. Mostly acts as muscle. Doesn't do well in heat so he can only visit for short periods of time on hot days unless a winter fae is around to keep him cool.

Jenny Greenteeth | Fae, Unseelie Court | Level 1
‣ Jenny is a Bogie with green hair and teeth, can appear young or old, lives in water and lures people to their death. She can move between water locations so long as there is some connection even through the tiniest fractures in rocks.

Factions may decide how and when their minions die, leave town or receive a promotion. Feel free to work these developments into any of this month's plots.

Drops
The following characters will be leaving this month:

Henry Morgan | Redbright Institute, Night Council | livelongenough | Left town 20/9/15
Clara Seville | Redbright Institute | warmheartedly | Passes on 30/9/15
Maera Perkins | Unseelie Court | goroesi | Left town 30/9/15
Ariadne Laurent | Redbright Institute | takemeinyourdream | Stays in town
Killian Jones | Islington Nest | vampiracy | Left town 30/9/15
Tinker Bell | Seelie Court | | trybelieving | Left town 30/9/15
Light "Snake" Averley | Redbright Institute | blind_badass | Left town 29/9/15

Their faction may decide the exact details of how characters leave and incorporate their exit into their plots if they wish.

Events

2nd-23rd October – REDBRIGHT FUNDRAISING. Spearheaded by the Redbright Institute with the support of Circle Daybreak, a series of charitable fundraising events and activities will take place throughout the month. The funds raised will be used to support vulnerable young supernatural people in London. Of course, it will also have the added effect of raising the Redbright Institute's profile as an organization that promotes peace and unity across London's supernatural communities. They will accept a range of donations from magical items to cold hard cash. (Nb. Please feel free to make up and run your own events or activities!)

11th October – PEARLY KINGS AND QUEENS. The famous Pearly Kings and Queens will be at St Paul's Church in Covent Garden, collecting donations to help the homeless. Their shiny coats attract Unseelie like magpies.

17th October – NIGHT AUCTION.* Taking place at an auction house in Knightsbridge, the Night Auction is exactly what it sounds like: a supernatural auction open only to those who know of its existence. Bidding opens at midnight and ends when all items have been sold or the sun comes up, whichever comes sooner. What do they sell? To put it bluntly: items that once belonged to the deceased. The Night Council confiscate a large amount of property to prevent it from falling into human hands. This is just their way of making a profit on it.

24th October-2nd November – SCHOOL HOLIDAY. Perhaps fortunately, the school half-term holidays also happen to coincide with Samhain, which does at least prevent magic-related disturbances from happening in the classroom. On the other hand, it's a dangerous time for young people to be out on their own when the fae are also on the prowl.

27th October – FULL MOON. Werewolves, it's that time of the month! This is the nearest full moon to Samhain, and as such is particularly potent. The chances of transformed wolves losing control on this night are greater than at any other time of the year, so be careful. Even a seasoned wolf can fall prey to their animal instincts.

31st October – SAMHAIN.** Better known as Halloween, a time when all manner of ghosts and demons come out to play and the human population embrace it like so much entertainment. The levels of magic in the city are at their highest today thanks to the thinning of the barrier between the mortal realm and the Other Realm, which means increased activity from fae and ghosts alike. Even less magical types like vampires, werewolves and shapeshifters will feel the change in atmosphere. Their instincts will be keener, their lust for blood greater. For witches, of course, it's the ideal time to reach out and commune with fae, ghosts and other spirits. Spooky.

5th November – BONFIRE NIGHT.** A long-standing tradition in the UK, Bonfire Night commemorates that time back in 1605 when some guy tried to blow something up. Watch out for the many spectacular firework displays and bonfires around the city. It's always a night to remember.

*There will be a mod-posted log for this event.
**This event will be incorporated into this month's test drive meme.

Plots
The following prompts are up for grabs this month:

1) There is a bounty on a rogue fae. This one is a trickster, kidnapping children in order to take them to the Other Realm. Reward: £1200 – Claimed by Teresa
2) The ghost of a girl haunts an old house in the suburbs. For unknown reasons, she has recently become violent. And she may have a connection with you or someone you know. – Claimed by adri
3) You offend a witch, who curses you by trapping you with your worst enemy for a day and a night.
4) Why are your eyes stuck shut?

About plots and events
• You may claim one plot prompt per month.
• You can also run your own plots based on the events listed above, or create your own.
• If you claim a plot, then you also volunteer to take the lead OOCly i.e. planning and organizing with other players, deciding on the outcome, setting a timeline etc.
• Once you have claimed a plot, you should introduce it ICly within the next month.
• Plots may not be entirely handwaved. You may handwave some of the plot, but you should play out at least part of it.
• Some plots will require NPCs as well as player characters to fill different roles. Please feel free to make up and play the NPCs yourselves.
• Plots are generally open-ended enough that you can make them big or small. It is up to the player who claims the plot to decide how they would like to handle it. You may want to do open sign-ups for your plot and specify whether there is a limit on how many characters can participate.
• Plots can also be self-contained or form part of an ongoing storyline. Again, it is your choice on how you would like to handle it.
• Please feel free to integrate plots and events or join plots up where appropriate. For example, if you claim a plot that involves a murder, why not choose an event during which the murder could happen? As long as the mod and other players are aware of your plans, I'm happy to accommodate.
• Do not ask the mod to explain what the plot is and what your character should do or discover. That is up to you. These plot ideas are just that, ideas, and it is up to you to run with them and decide how and why these events are happening, what your characters are going to do about it, and what the consequences will be.
• You may ask the mod questions pertaining to game mythology, to check that what you are planning to do makes sense within the game world.
• This list is not meant to be limiting in any way! Player plots are also very welcome.
• If you have an idea for a player plot, please feel free to comment here and see if there is any interest. Run it by the mod first if you're unsure of anything.

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Comment here to claim a territory! Please complete the following:

Plot lead(s): Who is going to run this plot? This should be you, but you can also list any other players who will be co-running the plot with you.
Faction: The faction that is claiming the territory.
Territory claimed: The territory that you are making a move on. It must be adjacent to a territory that your faction already owns.
When this will happen: Give the timeline for your plot. This should be in the next month. If you haven't decided on an exact date yet, a rough approximation is fine.

And here is the same information in a handy form for you to fill out:

Once a claim has been posted, players should then reply to the comment to sign up. Please specify which side of the conflict your character will be supporting.

Do not use this thread to start plotting. This thread is for claims and sign-ups only. Please start a separate thread or post to plot.

Comment here to claim a plot from the prompt list. Please complete the following:

Plot claimed: Which plot are you claiming?
Plot lead(s): Who is going to run this plot? This should be you, but you can also list any other players who will be co-running the plot with you.
When this will happen: Give the timeline for your plot. This should be in the next month. If you haven't decided on an exact date yet, a rough approximation is fine.

And here is the same information in a handy form for you to fill out:

Do not use this thread to start plotting. This thread is for claims only. Please start a separate thread or post to plot.

And finally, comment here if you are running your own player plot or event. This could be one of the events listed in the calendar. Please complete the following:

Plot/Event: What is your plot?
Plot lead(s): Who is going to run this plot? This should be you, but you can also list any other players who will be co-running the plot with you.
When this will happen: Give the timeline for your plot. This should be in the next month. If you haven't decided on an exact date yet, a rough approximation is fine.

And here is the same information in a handy form for you to fill out:

Do not use this thread to start plotting. This thread is for claims only. Please start a separate thread or post to plot.

Since Nancy is loved by nearly everyone who meets her, Kenzi is taking it upon herself to make a call to arms of anyone who gives a crap about our favorite red headed blood worker to find out whose responsible for it!

This has been previously discussed in plurk before, but since so much has changed I'm sort of throwing everything out the window save for the basic plotline of:

An angry ex-client vampire did it.

If someone wants to play the ex-client, please do claim it and we can discuss how far things go! If no one does, then the vampire will be getting axed. Er, staked.

If you want your character to help out on this hunt, please reply here and we can plot away!

Plot with me! I HAVE IDEAS FOR ONCE OMFG. They're mostly rough ideas and half-thoughts, and I've outlined them below.

-So, while Kenzi is busy trying to get revenge for Nancy ~~against her wishes~~, Nance's gonna have her hands full with fae this month. Most business will be a direct result of anything Fagin sets up, and a good amount of her time will be spent with the boys'.

-You can bet, as well, that where there's something shiny, there are also pick pockets about, so she'll be showing up at the Pearly thing. Samhain, of course, is a thing, and I'm not fully sure what she'll be doing, there should certainly be a thing done.

-She's also absolutely furious with Redbright, right now, and everything this woman stands for. Tiny redheads are dangerous, you guys.

-Fae on the prowl? This means Fagin is up to no good and she's being rolled into that. So looking for small school children? She'll be trying to actually keep them out of fae hands. While multitasking and pretending she's helping. Don't be shocked if she looks more ragged than usual. If anyone wants something to do with that let me know (hell maybe he's involved with the trickster in one of the mod-plots above?)

Other than that, I'm always looking for any sort of CR.

-clients (blood and-or sex)
-fronds
-negative cr
-etc., etc.

Anything else? Drop me a line here or on plurk (

sheakespeare)

PLOTTING TIME~

So Kenzi is going to be a dummy this month. Like a REAL dummy.

- Revenge of the Sister plotting post if you wanna be involved in that bsns

- HALLOWEEN POSSESSION PLOT! ITS TIME. It ain't Halloween without some possession bs, right? Kenzi is going to try summoning a Fae inside a haunted house (The Widdowson house in particular) and there is, unforntunately, a Fae guarding the house. He doesn't take too kindly to Kenzi breaking the one rule in that house, so he forces her open to possession for 3 nights. It's going to be some Paranormal Activity and I'd love to get some more people involved in it for angsts sake.

- NIGHT AUCTION IDK WHAT TO DO WITH THIS BUT I WANNA DO SOMETHING

And obviously, I'm open to new CR and shtuff. Negative and positive alike!

And since Kenzi is lacking in the bodyguard department now, I'd like to get a new one of those. Taking all sorts for that. It's a paid position too!

Abigail will be hosting a Samhain party open to the general public.

This is not a Halloween party. There won't be any costumes, loud music, etc.

What it will be is a time for remembrance and honoring the dead. There will be a focus on the loss of Midnight witches, as the Harvest Festival had a memorial for Daybreak. However, during the month, Abigail will make her best attempt to actually tally how many of the supernatural community have died over the last year.

Two dining rooms will be set up for the party. The first will be for those in attendance. The second will have places and name cards for each of those who died this year. White cards with black writing will be for those lost to natural causes or accidents. Black cards with white writing will signify those lost through violence within the supernatural community.

It will be a somber event but one that everyone is welcome to. Sort of the Midnight expression of a desire for peace to answer the Harvest Festival of Daybreak.

Who even likes Croydon? Croydon is old news! Daybreak are totally over Croydon!

However, Norrell has -- very kindly -- decided that clearly everyone is doing it all wrong that what they need is TRUE leadership! They need someone calm and logical, like him, to take charge. To show them how things are done! Then, well, they will learn to respect him! He will get the recognition he deserves! And on the heels of a great victory obviously be invited to join the Night Council as is right and proper!!!

He isn't advertising the last thought.

What he is advertising is this: Gilbert Norrell intends to bring Lambeth into the Daybreak Safe zone. He wants to make it peaceful, kick out all the criminals and generally make the area respectable and a nice place to be.

His plan is thus:

~ Teach witches who offer to help a spell to make those who appose Daybreak, are troublemakers or generally a nuisance really want to leave London entirely. This is a spell he knows canonically too! It will cause them no physically harm, just make it increasingly distressing to stay.
~ HIRE THUGS. He won't word it this way, but Norrell will offer large sums to members of Hillingdon who wish to offer assistance. They will be encouraged to quickly and quietly 'persuade' those who oppose Daybreak or make trouble to leave London. The how is up to them. He won't ask, and probably won't think about it either. Just make them vanish. FOR THE GREATER GOOD. In the name of peace!!

Obviously he will be open to help from other factions too, like Redbright etc! He can offer other incentives, or if you character would not deal with Norrell they can go through Childermass. Childermass is a little... less... difficult.

Edited 2015-10-04 15:54 (UTC)

Right! I've got four things I want to pick up on from the last month. Let's plot!

1) Law change: It is now illegal to kill any witch
This was Circle Midnight's faction reward. A truce has unofficially been in force between Circle Midnight and the Redbright Institute/Circle Daybreak since Sylvia spoke with Abigail just before the Harvest Festival. At that meeting they also agreed on one other thing: no more killing witches.

I'd like to make this law change official as of today, 4th October!

What does this mean? It means that killing a witch is a crime punishable by death, and that the death of any witch will prompt a serious investigation by the Night Council. Guardians, you are the first point of call for enforcing this law and making sure that everyone knows about it. Faction leaders and everyone else should hear about it through the grapevine after the Night Council make the official announcement today.

2) Circle Midnight issued an official apology for their attack on Barnet.
We can probably assume that this went out at the end of last month/beginning of this month. It is a written apology from Abigail that would have been sent out to the supernatural residents of Barnet and to everyone at the Redbright Institute, along with reassurances from Sylvia that she has taken steps to ensure that this will never happen again.

Sylvia is framing this as having successfully forced Circle Midnight to apologize in public and promise that they won't try any aggressive moves on Redbright territory again. Tail between their legs, etc etc. The overall message to her people being: We will protect you. We've got your backs. And to everyone else: don't mess with us.

3) Sylvia knows who you are, Midnight witches, and she's watching you.
The same extremely productive conversation with Abigail also gave Sylvia the names of all the Midnight witches in Abigail's coven. Naturally, Sylvia isn't just going to sit on this information. Actually, what I'd like to suggest is that the Night Council Guardians are sent to spy on the Midnight witches. In particular, Sylvia wants to find out who Kenzi and Nancy are because she only got their first names.

Are you guys up for this? Let's talk!

4) Screw those fae, like, seriously.
Obviously Sylvia is still mad about losing Croydon to the Seelie/Unseelie Court. What she'd like to do is find out more about the fae occupying that territory with a view to eventually taking it back. This is a task where she'd be very happy to employ characters who aren't from her own factions, because why risk her own people where she can risk someone else's, am I right.

Let me know if you have any questions about any of these developments or want to get involved at all! I'm very open to plotting with anyone. Basically I just want to throw you guys at each other and watch the drama unfold...

One more point! I just want to clarify something. You might have noticed that this plotting post makes no mention of Islington claiming Greenwich, which was a claim on the last plotting post. This is because as far as I can tell it didn't happen ICly, which means it didn't happen in the game. Please correct me if I missed something while I was away on hiatus!

So the werewolves had a hard time of it during the Blood Moon, but the vampires weren't able to take advantage of that. Everyone in the Islington Nest/East End Pack, would you say this is a fair summary?

FINALLY PUTTING UP A TOPLEVEL FOR THIS

ALRIGHT, so, I haven't worked out a ton for this plot but these are the details so far:

- the old house is actually on the market. it belonged to the bereaved parents of the ghost but they moved out after her death. she didn't die there but obviously she has a pretty strong connection to the place, what with being her childhood home.

- the girl was killed by a rogue vampire/werewolf/WHATEVER that Arthur hunted down about a year ago.

- she has just now gathered up the strength to start manifesting and moving objects around etc. this may have been caused by something triggering her anger or she may have just been trying for the past year and has only just now managed it.

- she's strong enough that she and arthur can have limited communication but obviously he's gonna need some SUPERNATURAL HELP both to figure out what's wrong and to help her find a resolution

- there are lots of blanks to fill in here which is why I gave myself til later in the month but if you have any suggestions feel free to hop in! the plot should probably only take place over like 3-5 days and I'll work on the basic timeline but I'd love to take this opportunity to both gather up new CR and explore more of my current CR!

Edited 2015-10-08 03:08 (UTC)

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QUESTIONS

CLAIM A TERRITORY

CLAIM A PLOT

RUN A PLOT/EVENT

KARMA IS A BITCH

no subject

no subject

GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN

DAYBREAK VS LAMBETH

CALLING CIRCLE MIDNIGHT, GUARDIANS, AND EVERYONE WHO HATES FAE/CIRCLE MIDNIGHT

ISLINGTON NEST & EAST END PACK

GHOST STORY IN THE SUBURBS