[Origin Cave]

Fornax, The Great Furnace!

Are You Brave Enough To Enter Fornax?

The Gembounds of the Wharrgarbl quest have discovered something interesting within the doorway of Tunnel M... it appears to be a new room! This room, known as Fornax, is literally a water world - filled with the sound of sloshing waves and the smell of fresh water, Fornax is the great source of all the water in the cave. Every body of water somehow leads back to here, making it the ideal home for water-faring species. Due to its proximity to an underground lava vein, vents in the floor heat the water to almost tropical temperatures. Will your characters be brave enough to explore this new room and the mysteries it holds?

Note: Please let us know if there are any bugs with the new forum!

New Skin

A new skin has been released to commemorate the unveiling of Origin Cave's new room!

Introducing... Feats!

Well... kind of! The results of the Feat Suggestions contest is in, and we are happy to present to you a list of all the Feats that can be chosen when the feature goes live! You can read up on the Feat list as well as how Feats will work on the post below! Now that all the details regarding Feats have been ironed out and we have a fancy new list of Feats that we'll be implementing, we are going to slowly begin adding the Feats feature to the site. This means that you may see some changes on the forum, and that's okay - don't be alarmed! It's just us playing around, making sure everything is in tip-top shape for the release of Feats. However, if you do see something acting weird and abnormal, please do let us know! This can be easily done by posting a thread in the Maintenance forum, or by sending a PM to the Origin Cave account, or simply letting staff know over the cbox or skype!

Also keep in mind that while we may be adding parts of the Feats script, it won't be fully functional until we announce it's official release in the future. When we DO release Feats, there will be an additional section in the Guidebook explaining them for the reference of current members and newbies alike! Lastly, the winners of the Feats suggestions may claim ʡ50 for every suggestion of theirs that was used! Names are listed next to the selected Feats in the post below.

Job Faire Contest

Due to the recent slowness and an upcoming activity check, this contest has been cancelled for now. Don't worry though, once our groups are active we're going to have a whole new group related contest!

Suggestions Galore!

We have opened up a few more suggestions threads! We would very much like to receive your input regarding some more Words of the Day, as well as some potential suggestions for some fun releases and events for Origin's Anniversary, which is coming up in the beginning of May! Please go check these threads out and give us your thoughts!

RCS/Mutations Revamp

The staff have decided to revamp how Rare Character Slots and mutations work. Instead of permitting random mutations to occur without an RCS based on plot viability, we are going to split Rare Character Slots and Mutation Slots into two separate items. Rare Character Slots involve introducing a brand new, first generation character, and will be available by donating ʡ2,000 to the Spire as well as in the form of contest prizes. Mutation Slots will allow you to mutate one character by sending them back to their chrysalis, and will be available by donating ʡ2,000 to the Spire as well as via monthly draws. This means that every user will have the chance to purchase a Mutation Slot or a Rare Character Slot by donating ʡ2,000 to the Spire, but are still available if you cannot afford them.

Monthly draws will take place during the OTM voting period. On the 1st day of every month, a name is drawn from a list of users who voted for OTM's. This means that you won't qualify for the draw unless you vote, and the winner of the draw will be announced alongside the OTM's. Mutation Slots appear as a special icon, just like Rare Character Slots. Finally, the qualifications for mutations have been changed such that users have a better idea of what may be allowed, though you will still be required to show staff your RCS and MS designs before registration.

These changes are going to be applied starting now; characters who previously mutated via RCS are unaffected by this. Users who have been intending to mutate their character with their RCS prior to this change will also still be allowed to do so. These changes are also reflected in the Guidebook. The section on Rare Character Slots and Mutating has been rewritten to convey these changes more concisely.

Reminders

As usual, we'd like to remind you guys about a few things...

Vote for Origin!
At the bottom of the index in our affiliates section we have a button for Animus Top 50. If you'd like to help out raising awareness about Origin, you can click that button and vote for us! Of course this isn't necessary, only a small favor to Origin should you choose to do it.

OTM Voting
Don't forget that voting for March's OTMs opens up on the 25th! We'll throw up a quicknews to remind everybody!

Coding Maintenance
The posting cooldown has been restricted to IC posts; there is no longer a cooldown for OOC posts.

Carvings
There's a new thread about the Carvings in Tunnel I!

Quest: Dungeons & Dungeons
Pieces of the statue are scattered around Origin Cave! Don't forget to make threads in tunnels and rooms searching for them, and to make a GM request to see if your characters have found any!

Activity Check
An activity check will be taking place on March 1st.

The Cave Report

Quest: Wharrgarbl P3
Totum leads the Gembounds into the mysterious Fornax!

Threads you should totally post in // Look at all these precious babies!!!
Reminder: If you're looking for open threads to post in, check out the Open Threads List!

Knowledge is Power-- Deep in the marshes of Cetus, life begins for a new anaconda named Deathstroke. Despite the name sake, this boy seems like he might actually be quite friendly. Wanna find out?

Chapter One-- With death comes new beginnings. The gem that had once belonged to Dark has come alive again with a completely new body... And a completely new mind. Someone has taken the stone to Pisces, and today, the owl-deer hybrid is hatching into the world... How did this strange creature come to be? Does it remember what it was once like, being Dark?

The Dawn of a New Day -- No where else in the world is their a storm like Monoceros. It seems only fitting that a stormy creature, one with the power of lightning, would be birthed hear. Tesla, an electric alpaca, has come to be in the windy cavern... Who will find her?

The Emergence of the Majestic -- Ah, what better place for someone destined for brilliant plumage to be born? Polaris is home to many creature's starts-- but as everyone knows, Golems are running rampant. If no one comes and finds this tiny grey puff of a creature destined to grow up into a bright, obnoxious pink Flamingo, then who will?

This is not a Home -- Okay, Zevruu, I'm pretty sure the Bonebound will disagree. But anyway, last but not least is a thread in the lovely bone-strewn, barren (and occasionally crystal strewn) wasteland of Canis. For once, this isn't a baby hatching, but instead a thread including the five cycle old serval, Zevruu, clearly lost and uncomfortable among all of the dust and bones.

If something interesting is happening in your thread, send a PM to the Origin Cave account or alert the staff in the cbox. We'd love to cover it in the current or next issue of The Cave Report!

[Origin Cave]

Feats!

So we have decided on an approach to Purchasable Skills, which will be called Feats instead. The way they are going to be implemented is that they will appear from a dropdown in the profile instead of skills you can purchase in the Magicka Shop. Every character starts with 1 Feat Slot for free, and with it they can select 1 Feat. Additional Feat Slots can purchased for ʡ1000 up to 2 more slots, giving a character a total of 3 Feat Slots. You can only ever select a Feat once, and then you're stuck with it for life - the only way to remove a Feat Slot is to purchase a Feat Slot Removal for ʡ500. It's pricey only to discourage people from abusing this feature, which means that if you want a new Feat or want to change your Feats around, you'll have to work for it.

Feats can be applied automatically or manually, depending on the Feat. We will be taking great care to implement as many of these Feats as automatic bonuses as we can in order to decrease the amount of work for both you and the staff, however some of them will have to be manually added.

The purpose of Feats is to improve gameplay for a singular character in an extremely minor way. This allows a range of skills and benefits that are unique to each character, introducing different approaches to the game between players and characters alike. It will introduce the idea of using strategy in your character development, and is just plain fun to play around with, adding new dimensions to character development. Feats will not have icons, and will appear as text underneath spells beside posts, and as text on character profiles.

Below is a list of Feats that the staff have already brainstormed:

Bloodthirsty
Upon winning a fight, you gain an additional ʡ20.

Energized
Each IC post nets an additional ʡ1.

Shields Up
Gain an additional +1-5 on a roll spent defending or dodging. Can only be used once per fight.

Fast Fighter
Gain an additional +1-5 on your first roll in a fight if you attack first.

In My Element
Gain an additional +1-5 to any spell roll of their own element, once per thread.

Scribe
Grants your character the ability to read and write.

Leather Crafting
Your character can manipulate leather and cloths they find in the cave to form armor, trinkets, etc without the use of magic.

Metal Crafting
Your character can manipulate scrap metal they find in the cave to form armor, trinkets, etc without the use of magic.

C-C-Combo Breaker
Gives +1-5 (depending on level) to roll of second attack if character combines two different elemental spells AND possesses the achievement for that specific elemental specialty. Both attacks must roll minimum of Barely Successful

Animal Whisperer
The behavior patterns of the lesser Gembounds are memorized such that your character can track their movements, identify vocalizations, etc.

Elemental Disciple
Reduces the cost of spell borrows by ʡ100.

Physical Prowess
Gain an additional +1 to your Physical Combat rolls, but experience increased exhaustion via Magic Level.

Tactical Prowess
Gain an additional +1 to your Other rolls, but experience increased exhaustion via Magic Level.

Area Burst
Your attack can affect a secondary target, gaining additional points of half the roll. Can be used only once per battle when fighting two or more opponents.

Bounce Back
After failing a roll, you gain +2 to your next roll (if made in the same thread).

Healer's Transference
This character can transfer the effects of the Recover spell to another character, but only once per thread.

New Feat Additions, courtesy of the Feat Suggestions contest:

Seer (Azooka)
Able to roll again if first roll displeases them. Must keep second roll whether it is better or worse, once per thread only.

Natural Swimmer (Elizabeth)
A character whose species isn't naturally aquatic can now swim without struggle in deep waters. (no longer need to use other to swim successfully)

Cook Like a Pro (Elizabeth)
The character now has the ability to put ingredients together to make a meal instead of just eating meat raw or leaves off of a plant. They can tend a fire low enough to not burn everything.

Luck of the Dice (Kay)
Either adds a +1-5 or a -1-5 to any given roll, max of 20.

Nature's Sympathy (Kay)
Have the inner charisma to charm any lesser gembound you encounter. This lesser gembound can perform tasks for your character through the duration of the thread.

Robust Health (Kay)
Gain +1-5 to a recover roll. Cannot be used along with Healer's Transference.

Wood Crafter (Kay)
Your character can manipulate pieces of wood they find in the cave to form armor, trinkets, etc without the use of magic.

Elemental Offensive (Cosmic)
Once per thread, roll an element. Your character does x1.5 the value of the roll AGAINST that element for that roll. Can only be used once per thread.

Opposable Thumbs (Cosmic)
Your character has a physical mutation that allows them to accurately manipulate objects in a non-specialized way. This is not the same as crafting feats.

Love At First Sight (Kenkou)
Gives +1-5 to a Sensorial Link roll once per thread.

Natural Sync (Kenkou)
Gives +1-5 to a Familiar Forge roll once per thread

Can We Keep Them? (Kenkou)
Allows the user to obtain a second familiar through the use of Familiar Forge.

Nature's Call (Briar)
The character seems to have a natural affinity for the plant life of Origin. They seem to have an innate ability to identify a plant's use and how to properly care for them.

Sneak Thief (Briar)
The character naturally has quiet feet and are able to move about without being seen. They naturally seem to know how to lurk in the shadows and keep themselves hidden from others. When using abilities such as Camouflage, Chromatophore, or using the "other" ability for sneaking they get a +1-5 added to their roll, can only be applied once per thread.

Spider Climb (Shafaer)
Your character has a knack for climbing! Any gembound with this feat can climb without needing to roll, including climbing sheer cliffs or clinging to overhanging ledges/ceilings.

Poison Use (Shafaer)
A character with this feat can identify natural poisons and use them with limited risk to themselves. Once per thread, when rolling a critical fail when interacting with poisons, the character can avoid poisoning themselves.

Charged Up (Shafaer)
A character with this feat conducts electricity with ease. After being hit with or rolling critical failing with an electric spell, they can attempt to discharge the electricity on another with a physical combat roll, once per thread.

Blessed (Shafaer)
Once per thread, a roll of 19 can be considered a Critical Success.

Lasting Magic (Shafaer)
All spells last twice as long as they usually would, however a character with this feat can only cast spells every other post they make in the thread.

Imbued (Shafaer)
A character with this feat is more strongly imbued with their primary magic than usual. When entering a thread, a character can be assumed to have cast a single Low Intensity, self targeting spell barely successfully before hand. (For example: An animal element gembound may enter a thread with Red Sense activated without having to roll or have cast it in the previous thread. This is entirely for fluff purposes and cannot be used offensively in any manner.)

Hunter's Glory (Shafaer)
A character with this feat who successfully defeats an NPC (primarily Lesser Gembounds or Golems) in combat can claim an additional ʡ20 when claiming magicka for their thread.

Please keep in mind that these Feats aren't set in stone and may be altered. Likewise, once these Feats are implemented, if your character has already demonstrated these skills IC (for example, Scribe, Leather Crafting, Metal Crafting, and Animal Whisperer) they are no longer allowed to use them unless they possess a Feat for them.