Horst Cabal (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
trojanhorst) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
taxonooc2013-07-30 04:07 pm
trojanhorst) wrote in taxonooc2013-07-30 04:07 pm
Entry tags:
Not Quite Hamsterball Material
Hi, Taxon! I meant to make this post yesterday morning, but I've been languishing with The Headache since then -- but since I cried off work sick today, I'll take a minute to put it up now, and I hope you'll all take some time to chime in. This isn't meant to upstage the official check-in post below, so please answer that one before you tackle this one. <3
One thing that's been weighing on my mind recently, is how do other characters actually feel about the Taxon experience? I think we kind of blanketly assume "okay, well, no one likes being imprisoned, duh," but this isn't just any prison, and the reality is that people are more complicated and have more things going on in their psyches than that, and there are plenty of reasons why individual Taxonians might have more complicated feelings about their present circumstances than that. Do they actually all hate it here? Are there some aspects they like?
So, in hopes of each of us learning more about what other people are exploring with their characters, the following little meme:
How does your character feel about being in Taxon --
1) In general, do they like it here?
2) Do they want to stay here? Do they want to leave? Do they have mixed feelings? Do they not much care either way?
3) Is there any reason they might want to stay in Taxon? Is there any reason they might not want to go home to their own reality? Is there anything or anyone they would miss from Taxon that might make them hesitant to leave if they had the chance?
4) Does it bother them that Taxon isn't like their home reality?
5) Is there anything or anyone they particularly miss from their home reality? (Is it pizza? Be honest, admit it, it's probably pizza. Just kidding.)
6) Do they wish Taxon had more fully sentient citizens? Does it particularly bother them that there aren't many people to talk to? Are they lonely or lacking the ability to socialize with large numbers of people, or is this something that doesn't much impact their life/happiness? Or do they prefer it this way?
7) Do they like living in this particular environment (climate/urbanity-wise)? Would they be happier if Taxon looked/felt like someplace else, or does this not much matter to them?
8) How do they feel about the Taxonian economy? Do they enjoy the financial security of Taxon's job/income system? Do they dislike the limitations of the sorts of jobs they are forced to take and/or the boredom inherent in doing them, or do they not much mind?
9) Are they interested in solving The Mystery of Taxon? Are they only interested if they need to solve it in order to escape? Or do they not particularly care what the fuck Taxon is? Do they think there's any point in trying to solve it, or trying to escape?
10) What's their current guess/theory about what Taxon is?
These questions are very freeform -- I put a lot of leading thoughts in there to try and draw out some of the complexities of the questions, but feel free to answer as briefly or as lengthily as you want, or to talk about any other aspect I didn't cover.
There are no right or wrong answers -- whether 95% of all characters have the same exact answers, or every single character feels entirely different, both of those are awesome in the end because it means we have a unified group of people (awesome) or a group of people who are bound to get frustrated with each other and bicker like hell (also awesome). I just figure we should talk publicly sometimes about what's in our characters' heads, not just what they've been up to -- so I thought, what the heck, I'll ask.
TL;DR HOW DOES YOUR CHARACTER LIKE BEING IN TAXON, GO
One thing that's been weighing on my mind recently, is how do other characters actually feel about the Taxon experience? I think we kind of blanketly assume "okay, well, no one likes being imprisoned, duh," but this isn't just any prison, and the reality is that people are more complicated and have more things going on in their psyches than that, and there are plenty of reasons why individual Taxonians might have more complicated feelings about their present circumstances than that. Do they actually all hate it here? Are there some aspects they like?
So, in hopes of each of us learning more about what other people are exploring with their characters, the following little meme:
How does your character feel about being in Taxon --
1) In general, do they like it here?
2) Do they want to stay here? Do they want to leave? Do they have mixed feelings? Do they not much care either way?
3) Is there any reason they might want to stay in Taxon? Is there any reason they might not want to go home to their own reality? Is there anything or anyone they would miss from Taxon that might make them hesitant to leave if they had the chance?
4) Does it bother them that Taxon isn't like their home reality?
5) Is there anything or anyone they particularly miss from their home reality? (Is it pizza? Be honest, admit it, it's probably pizza. Just kidding.)
6) Do they wish Taxon had more fully sentient citizens? Does it particularly bother them that there aren't many people to talk to? Are they lonely or lacking the ability to socialize with large numbers of people, or is this something that doesn't much impact their life/happiness? Or do they prefer it this way?
7) Do they like living in this particular environment (climate/urbanity-wise)? Would they be happier if Taxon looked/felt like someplace else, or does this not much matter to them?
8) How do they feel about the Taxonian economy? Do they enjoy the financial security of Taxon's job/income system? Do they dislike the limitations of the sorts of jobs they are forced to take and/or the boredom inherent in doing them, or do they not much mind?
9) Are they interested in solving The Mystery of Taxon? Are they only interested if they need to solve it in order to escape? Or do they not particularly care what the fuck Taxon is? Do they think there's any point in trying to solve it, or trying to escape?
10) What's their current guess/theory about what Taxon is?
These questions are very freeform -- I put a lot of leading thoughts in there to try and draw out some of the complexities of the questions, but feel free to answer as briefly or as lengthily as you want, or to talk about any other aspect I didn't cover.
There are no right or wrong answers -- whether 95% of all characters have the same exact answers, or every single character feels entirely different, both of those are awesome in the end because it means we have a unified group of people (awesome) or a group of people who are bound to get frustrated with each other and bicker like hell (also awesome). I just figure we should talk publicly sometimes about what's in our characters' heads, not just what they've been up to -- so I thought, what the heck, I'll ask.
TL;DR HOW DOES YOUR CHARACTER LIKE BEING IN TAXON, GO
no subject
Hell no. This may not be that apparent since Johannes doesn't really seem to like anything all that much, and Taxon probably just registers as another apparent nuisance on a long list of nuisances. It bothers him a bit more than he lets on, though. Having had no existing desire to go to prison, genteel magical transdimensional prison is not much of an improvement. And Taxon possesses all of prison's worst attributes in his opinion: cruel and arbitrary wardens, weird food, scary cellmates, and, well, imprisonment.
2) Do they want to stay here? Do they want to leave? Do they have mixed feelings? Do they not much care either way?
Would be out of here like a bat out of hell given the option. As the option doesn't appear to be materializing, he supposes he'll bide his time until it does. Too personally offended by being abducted and held prisoner to have mixed feelings.
3) Is there any reason they might want to stay in Taxon? Is there any reason they might not want to go home to their own reality? Is there anything or anyone they would miss from Taxon that might make them hesitant to leave if they had the chance?
There is the tiny matter of his formerly dead brother, with whom he never reconciled before it was far too late--which isn't actually a tiny matter at all. It's not so much that Johannes thinks Horst is an acceptable sacrifice to go back home as it is that he figures that if resurrection is possible, and it seems it is, somehow, then he'll bring him back one way or another. Whether it takes taking him with him or going back for him or what. Something. He'll figure something out. He always has before.
Back home there's not much: mostly mom and girlfriend, and girlfriend has a bit of a big asterisk next to her name. Then again, so does Horst. He'll figure something out.
4) Does it bother them that Taxon isn't like their home reality?
It's a paper-thin attempt at simulating a real city with real people, but that's more or less expected from a pocket dimension, so that's no better or worse than anything else about it. The tech level and apparent alternate history throws him for a loop, though, and is more dissonant and alienating than he entirely realizes.
On the other hand, washing machines.
5) Is there anything or anyone they particularly miss from their home reality? (Is it pizza? Be honest, admit it, it's probably pizza. Just kidding.)
Even bad men love their mommas. But to be perfectly honest, Johannes does not miss his momma as much as he misses his gun and his books. ;__; Webley we hardly knew ye ;____;
6) Do they wish Taxon had more fully sentient citizens? Does it particularly bother them that there aren't many people to talk to? Are they lonely or lacking the ability to socialize with large numbers of people, or is this something that doesn't much impact their life/happiness? Or do they prefer it this way?
The Extras' foremost shortcoming is that Horst can't eat them.
7) Do they like living in this particular environment (climate/urbanity-wise)? Would they be happier if Taxon looked/felt like someplace else, or does this not much matter to them?
Being trapped in one stupid little pocket dimension for the rest of eternity opposed to another isn't much of a distinction. Admittedly, though, fluent or not, having to speak English for the rest of eternity sounds pretty unpleasant. If they were going to stick him in a pocket, they could've at least made it pocket Germany.
As before, some form of the 19th century would also have been a lot more comfortable, but that's on a more subconscious psychological level. He ought to appreciate technology, after all.
8) How do they feel about the Taxonian economy? Do they enjoy the financial security of Taxon's job/income system? Do they dislike the limitations of the sorts of jobs they are forced to take and/or the boredom inherent in doing them, or do they not much mind?
Indifferent. The worst thing about the verdammt Taxonian economy is verdammt Taxonian gun control.
9) Are they interested in solving The Mystery of Taxon? Are they only interested if they need to solve it in order to escape? Or do they not particularly care what the fuck Taxon is? Do they think there's any point in trying to solve it, or trying to escape?
It'd be nice to know, sure--especially to know what arsehole put him here in the first place and what they want with him. But not that nice. He'll take a one-way ticket out of here first, finer points of metaphysics notwithstanding.
10) What's their current guess/theory about what Taxon is?
Pocket dimension, obviously. Whoever created it has some purpose for gathering them all here and it'll be revealed sooner or later. ... closer to 'or later,' apparently. Johannes has gone from "I'll wait around to find out in short order and then deal with it" to "you know what, I don't actually care."