OOC Info [Lhavit OOC] The Stars Above

[Phoenix]

Welcome to Lhavit! This thread is to get to know the other occupants of this beautiful, sparkly city, to chat about ideas, to ask questions and even to have a little bit of fun! Feel free to post your thoughts here and don't be afraid to ask for help. Need a thread partner? Have a half formed idea for a thread but don't really know where to go with it? These are all perfect things to post OOC! Lhavit is a beautiful city with so much to offer and explore... so get to it!

[Phoenix]

Hey, Stargazers! I don't think I've introduced myself formally, but I'm Phoenix of the Gingers from one town over but I am here to help! I'm still the DS of Wind Reach but I am also now the RS of Kalea so... Tada! Here I am to save the daaaay! I realize that you guys have been forging ahead without any direct interaction with an AS or a DS and I am here to hopefully pick up some of the pieces and figure out where they go! It's been a long times since I was in Lhavit, since I helped out here when I first started as an AS like.... two years ago, so a lot has changed! I'm going to be going through a lot of the old threads, the old OOC's and the development stuff to help get a handle on where things were left off and where I need to start again. I'm also going to revamp the forum and make it all pretty and hopefully add some fun things for you guys to play with. While I'm doing that, why don't you all speak up and tell me what you feel like you (and/or your PC) have been lacking the most? What would you like to see happen first? Is there anything you see going on in other cities that would make you also excited to play here in this city, should it be brought to Lhavit? Be honest! And if you don't feel comfortable saying it here, then feel free to shoot me a PM and we can discuss in private. Anyways! I'm happy to be here! Looks different without all the redheads though. Write on! -Phoenix

[Albireo]

Oh, shiny and new OOC! I love it already. We can totally have fun without the redheads!

As for things I want to see, what came to mind first is: adventures. Because of the lack of constant storytellers here, we didn't get a lot these days. The last one was Quasar's Bones Do Not Keep Secrets - it's okay if you don't want to / can't continue that one, I just wanted to mention that I'd love an adventure in Lhavit-style, be it big or small.

Also, if another PC wants to visit Bharani Library, do research or get a tour of the place, my Albireo is more than happy to comply!

[Haeli]

Hi Everyone. I'm back in action if anyone wants to do any threads. But to answer Phoenix's question, I think a seasonal calendar and challenges would be really cool because that gives us RP fodder for whats going on in our city to write established threads too. I also think it would be nice to have at least one thread a season that advances Lhavit as a city and gives it some sort of RP history... something that is a big citywide event for that season. Not a holiday, but something that marks its history. These kinda things are like a famine, a disease, an invasion, etc. But since these are being done already all over, I had another thought. Since we are the city of the stars, I think it would be cool if we had something like maybe a comet visible for all of next season that foreshadows something for our community... or at least to give us all something to talk about.

[Dariel]

Hello, Phoenix of the Gingers! I can only agree with the tenor of the other posters. I'm not the kind of player who needs to 'chase the plot' but just a little something once in a while to show that the city is alive would be nice. Though it doesn't always need to be a catastrophe for me. A plague is as good as a high profile murder or a group of Symenestra ambassadors from Kalinor come to broker some kind of deal between the cities or Zintila contracting a cold and the stars all across the world flickering each time she sneezes. Something to set the mood of the city for a season or three. And personally, as a total noob, I'd like some clearer 'How Tos' on the various OOC locations and factions. A few explicitly spell out that they require moderation, others don't even though I keep thinking they should have some requirement, The various priesthoods come to mind, as well as the Towers; the Shinya do have a requirement but it's only found in their Wiki article. Might just be my general confusion as a new arrival, but an extra sentence never hurts. Well, unless it contains mean insults.

[Phoenix]

Are there any locations in particular that you're thinking of, Dariel? I would happily expand upon them but I'll start with the ones that you're using and finding frustration with. As for you girls, those are both great suggestions and I'll get to reading and catching up on Quasar's old stuff.

[Alses]

I agree with Dariel on the whole 'How To' thing, definitely. Since we've had a bit of a turbulent time with Storytellers as of late it's been a bit difficult to know what we can and can't do . Personally, I'd very much like to see the whole apprenticeship system the Towers have going on fleshed out a little more. I mean, I have the basic idea of lessons followed by assessment, but a bit more info on the instructors (I posted a writeup of Chiona Dusk in the old Development thread with Colombina's blessing) and methods of teaching wouldn't go amiss, along with who we could self-mod and who would require a Storyteller. Just my two pennies .

[Dariel]

Alses hit the mark regarding the Towers, I think. Out of all the locations in Lhavit only the Bharani Library, Sakana's Alchemy Lab and a few of the shops clearly state that they require moderation. However. The existing writeups of the Towers specifically and the various Temples to a lesser degree all suggest some underlying structure. There's a very detailed writeup of the Shinya but that's about it. Of course, we can just assume that such a structure is whatever we make of the scattered hints and play it by ear. But I personally would rather contribute to a harmonious and homogeneous Lhavit rather than one that might as well be Alvadas cause everyone sees it very differently. Now, nobody can expect a single person, especially a RS already stretched thin, to just make that all up in detail. But a few more pointers might be helpful in those areas. Alses already mentioned the Towers as one thing. Is everyone admitted? Is tuition free (and if so, how do the three families support themselves)? Are there classes and is there a curriculum or is everything designed around personal teacher-student relationships? Thematically they strike me as akin to martial arts schools as portrayed in historical movies, but the existence of what is essentially a dorm makes them seem more like austere colleges. The mixed signals make the nature of the Towers kind of hard to nail down. Same goes for the Temples, specifically of Leth and Syna. There's some indication that there is a structured ritual worship taking place but little beyond 'tend to the fire' or 'tend to the pool'. It's far less critical as religions can have many and varying customs, if need be changing with the time of day. But considering the relatively high density of Ethaefal in the population there might still be a need to define those two temples a bit more closely. There might be more but that's what was on my mind. Though again, I'll admit that some might just be my ignorance of harder to find information.

[Albireo]

I second Dariel on the temples thing. Since I'm playing an Eth PC, I'd very much like to have more information on Syna's and Leth's priesthoods (in case she decides to join one day). I'd be happy to brainstorm something too... Surely they rely a lot on the cycle of sun and moon, what position they are in, and in case of Leth if he's waxing or waning. I imagine their rituals would depend on that a lot and it'd also be kind of exciting for Eths who feel seasons to also be in tune with the time of day...

Haeli - Do you mean a comet that's only visible to Lhavit? Is that even possible? If the rest of Miz sees it, that's not limited to the city anymore... It's definitely an interesting idea though! Could also be something that falls from the sky near Lhavit and is brought there for examination. Nobody knows what it is / does, but it gives people something to chat and discuss about. Just a suggestion.

[Alses]

I would expect that the three families support themselves partly through the magical services they provide for the city, ie the general citizenry, as well as one another and the rest of the city organizations, such as the Shinya. I would also hazard a guess that the Towers own quite a lot of land around Lhavit, and so probably collect rents of some kind from the farmers actually working it. (see the Price List entry for 'Farmland'). They may also own considerable properties inside the city itself, and again support themselves through rents and dues. Tuition, as far as I can see under the current system, seems to be paid for through accommodation fees at the Towers Respite; I expect that the income from that is apportioned out according to how many students each Tower has, minus the actual costs of running the Respite. I expect that if you use your own housing, they'll levy some sort of charge . I would suggest that the Towers are something of a mix of your two ideas, Dariel; the Novices and Competent apprentices of the Tower live in the Respite and are (special circumstances aside) taught in quite small groups overseen by a more experienced instructor. As they become more skilled in whichever field of magic they've chosen to pursue, they might then progress to being personal students of one instructor or another, able to take advantage of the master-student rooms in each of the Towers and complete their instruction in that more personal manner. After all, magic is difficult and demanding and I doubt many students make it to Expert, let alone Master. I may be basing this rather too much on my own university, but I think that blends the Respite accommodation and the mentions of private master-student rooms in the Towers fairly well.