Tartarus: The Realm of Underworld

[Silverbel]

The sage is more than willing to talk with you.

"I see you are new here." mumbles the sage.

"You have probably come, seeking life in Tartarus...
You obviously think you have talked to me.

But in truth, you probably only -thought about- talking to me.


This game is ALL about ACTIONS.
In this game, to take actions, you must post the action, in [brackets] to the thread.

So if you ACTUALLY want to talk to me, you need to post [TALK TO SAGE] on this thread.


Now, I imagine that you really want to be alive in Tartarus right now...
if that's the case, and you see the Gate there is open, you don't have to talk to me... you only need post

[ENTER GATE] on this thread,

and you will begin the journey into life in Tartarus. The GM will notify you when you have arrived in Tartarus and can play."


At this the old man softens a little.

"However, I know a good deal about that life. If you want to learn more, why not

[ASK ABOUT LIFE]?"

[Silverbel]

You ask the old sage about life.

"Life in Tartarus is often beyond your control." he speaks with authority and a hint of regret.


"You will be born into a life where you can not choose who you will be past your name. Such is the way of life - we can not choose who we are. However..."


His gaze dips at this point.

"... those who would dwell in the realm of the dead, and prove their worth to the wheels of Karma, may .. nudge their life, slightly, in the ways of their choice.
This is the power of the SOUL TICKET."


He holds up an index-card sized object. It glows white-hot with pure life energy.
"I can give you one of these... are you interested in collecting them?"


You can
[ASK ABOUT THE SOUL TICKET].

[Silverbel]

You eagerly ask about this white-hot card of energy.

"The SOUL TICKET will allow you to control roughly 15% of your character's stats when you rebirth." He swallows. "Or, you can choose your elemental affinity. That is the power of the Soul Ticket.

You earn them for clearing trials here in the Underworld.

To earn this SOUL TICKET, here in my hand, you must take FIVE actions. That means, posting, FIVE TIMES, on this thread. Each command must go in a different post.



First you must [TALK TO SAGE].
Then, [ASK ABOUT LIFE].
Then you need to [ASK ABOUT THE SOUL TICKET].

Fourth...
you need to [WISH FOR LIFE].

Wishing for life proves that you value your existence.
AFTER you have done the other three actions, do the fourth.

Spell properly, and USE BRACKETS! If you do it wrong, or skip steps, you can imagine whatever you like... but your hands will remain empty. So, if you are merely THINKING about all this... and you want this soul ticket, then NOW is the time to take these actions.

When you finish wishing for life,
come back here and [TAKE THE FIRST SOUL TICKET].

Remember, don't just click... post the action too."


The old man waits patiently.

[Silverbel]

"As to the Soul Ticket...
There are seven others.
Each one takes progressively more effort to collect.
If you have the time, you may wish to collect them, but there is something to be said for the nobility of entering life without a choice.

If you are interested in collecting the second Soul Ticket, you will need to travel.
To the North of here is another Sage. He will teach you some things and grant you the second ticket.

To reach him, you need to [MOVE NORTH] until you reach that house. It's not far. However, take note: Here, and in Tartarus, there is no such thing as a 'post order'. You can not read this topic, OR tartarus, exactly like a book, or you will miss much. Perhaps much can be gleaned of the world by reading the thread beforehand... but to learn how it all fits together, you must travel from link to link and see for yourself.

If Gaia online keeps opening new browser windows for every link, you may find it efficient to right-click and COPY the links and paste them in the address bar of your current browser. Or, use your own wisdom to find an effective means of navigation...

Of course at any time you may [ENTER GATE] to leave this place - provided the gate is open. Unlike in the real world, no matter WHERE YOU ARE in the Underworld, you can reach the gate -- if you choose the enter the gate you will immediately leave this realm.

No word or bond holds you longer than you wish in the realm of the dead beyond those taken in life. But do not rush heedlessly into life, or you may lose what little life you had."

[Silverbel]

You bravely set out on your quest to make your way to the Eastern Lighthouse.

The endless grey seems to go on forever...

[MOVE EAST]

[Silverbel]

You have reached the old man's house.

This old man looks exactly like the one at the Gate.
But he doesn't sound the same.
"I know why you've come here. You were sent to talk to me.
I am the Sage of Freedom."

[MOVE SOUTH]
[TALK TO SAGE]

[Silverbel]

"Here in the Underworld, you're free to exist, and the changes you make are no more permanent than the idle musings of the void itself.

Up there, in Tartarus, the OVERWORLD... you will find the chains of reality are heavy and taxing. Your physical body is maintained by a total called,

HP, or Hit Points.
The moment you lose your last of them, the chains that hold you will uncoil, and your soul will leave your lifeless body and return here, to the void. You will once more be free, but it will be some time before you can again assume the burden of life.

Injuries will drag you down, and some wounds never fully heal... everyone dies eventually, even of simple old age. Do not expect to stay in the Overworld forever, but enjoy your stay.

You will find your toiled efforts bear fruit there... You will be able to change your world. Building, growing, mastering skills and developing strength, you can have all these things and more. Your changes will influence those of other souls - you will not be alone in Tartarus.

This toil will surely draw upon your strength.
You also have a value called

Exhaustion.
If you push yourself too hard, whether training, traveling, building or studying, you will tire out. Know that if it depletes fully, your strength will abandon you and you will even begin to lose Hit Points. To maintain your exhaustion, you need to rest, sleep, drink water and eat food. They will each help in their own ways.

You must discover all the ways to maintain your exhaustion on your own, but I can impart this one fact to you: Each time you move, just as you moved up here to come see me, it will spend one point of exhaustion. You can recover that one point, by simply not doing anything at all for about five minutes."

The sage of Freedom holds up the second card, and it disappears like the first did.


"Now that I have told you of the chains you must bear, take this and return south to speak to the sage. When you get there, you may [ASK ABOUT THE THIRD TICKET].Bear in mind that if you do not return all the way south first, you will not have the things you seek."

[Silverbel]

"Welcome back. I am glad to see you are finding fruit in your endeavors.
To earn the third Soul ticket, you must travel South of here.

Only a small distance away is a sage standing in a pit of sand. This man seeks violence, and it is to your better should you help him find it.

[MOVE SOUTH] and you will find him."

[Silverbel]

Sure enough, some distance to the south is a man in a Grey cloak standing in a pit of sand.

"You're here to see me, aren't you." he speaks thoughtfully in a slightly gruff tone.

"My task is to teach you about combat. Tartarus is not a soft playground for dreamers. Your mission up there is to return life to a desolate place ruled by elemental forces. Those forces will try to destroy you. They are brutal in their aggression.

Unlike the other sages you have spoken to, who have demanded your attention and effort, I want proof of ability. You will succeed at defeating me in combat. Or you will NOT have the third Soul Ticket.

When you feel brave,
[LEARN ABOUT COMBAT]
and I'll teach you all about combat."

[Silverbel]

"In Tartarus, when you enter a new area you will often have a chance to encounter an enemy. You will be informed every time this is the case.

This can happen one of two ways.


Either you completely ignore the chance of an enemy being there...

Then, during the daily update, the Regulator of Tartarus will check if you encountered an enemy, and if you do, the enemy will strike first and you will be thrown into immediate, desparate combat. You won't use any special skills or be able to run away, and you could get hurt, have your actions canceled, or even die without knowing that you died until the daily update.

Obviously, this is a huge disadvantage.


Or, you actively check for an enemy when you come into an area. This involves rolling the dice. If the dice say an enemy is there, then you have seen it first . . . you can either [RETREAT] back the way you came and avoid it... or ambush it and attack first in battle.


If you decide to fight it, you will need to manage the entire combat yourself. I'll show you how to do it using the dice, it's pretty simple. Since you are in control of the fight, you can use special combat skills or even run away if things look bad. I'll put it simple. It's to your EVERY ADVANTAGE to check for enemies as you travel.

Now. I'll show you how to fight any enemy you encounter.

When you're ready, [FIGHT THE INSTRUCTOR]

[Allmacht Kunai]

[TALK TO SAGE]

[Allmacht Kunai]

[ASK ABOUT LIFE]

[Allmacht Kunai]

[ASK ABOUT THE SOUL TICKET]

[Allmacht Kunai]

[WISH FOR LIFE]

[Allmacht Kunai]

[TAKE THE FIRST SOUL TICKET]