idolpro | YOU-kai start!

Who: YOU-kai
Where: The YOU-kai dorms
When: Day 355, morning

[ You all wake up in bed with your smartphone at your bedside, all of you in your sleepwear, with a message on your phone.

Good morning, newly departed guest stars! You've got new co-stars to meet, a new dorm to explore, and the television in the main room with the "names" of everyone in your unit with flashing empty boxes next to them, waiting for you to each assign yourself a personal color as well as a mythological creature (if that is available to you—some of you will have that option grayed out). Or assign them to each other, really, no one's stopping you.

Once you've chosen your color and creature (or, once it's chosen for you), your closets will unlock with 3 sets of traditional Japanese clothing fitted exactly to your size. Additionally, upon choosing your creature, you might find yourself suddenly with some new appendages (check Player Notes).

Also, the front door is currently locked. It looks like you actually have no choice but to get to know each other for an hour or two before those open up. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

We are expendable to long-term teams. Therein lies the problem, though. We can take this 'alliance', but what do we offer? One of our members has close ties, one. They will want that one safe, but will they want that one safe over any of their established friends and 'alliances'?

We cannot look at this as only what will benefit us immediately, unless we want to be trapped in a bad deal. We need help, but we shouldn't jump at the first thing to cross our plates.

We're not going to get many offers to cross our plate at all. If we can leverage a previously existing connection, we should.

We cannot afford to lose games to the other temporary teams. It offers too much of a point bonus.

We have to play hard, but we need a better plan than that. That isn't enough by itself; we have to go in with the deck stacked as much in our favor as we can manage.

A bad alliance is not better than no alliance.

I would like to judge for myself if the connection between our one member and this unit is strong enough to carry a full alliance.

In what way is it a bad alliance? If we can extract a guarantee that at least one other team won't target us, we should take it.

We will get dogpiled if we go in without any plan. We probably will anyway, given how many other teams there are. The more we can do to mitigate that, the better off we'll be.

If they stab us in the back, we'll deal with them afterward, but they're our best option so far. We have two separate connections to them, and they were receptive to the initial offer.

It is bad when we do not have any leverage. We would have no reason to target them specifically, so why would they care about us specifically not targeting them? Spoken word, especially relayed by another, is hardly a guarantee.

Our leverage is that we will guarantee not to remove limbs or kill them when we have the opportunity. Most reasonable people want to avoid taking serious damage when possible.

We have not one connection to their team, but two. We would be fools not to exploit the chance.

If we broker an alliance and it falls through, we lose nothing. If we broker one and it succeeds, it allows us to step into a game with an advantage over the competition. We have nothing to lose here, but everything to gain.

I have spoken with our Kedamono on it, and am willing to give this alliance a chance, if and only if we agree to total non-aggression. Not in games, not out of them.

What makes you want to set those terms?

I have been engaged in combat with two people already, of whom I know neither, and one of which seemed to be trying to hint at knowing something that I do not. I do not want any more surprises devolving into fights with strangers, but I cannot know what or who will find enough problem with me to fight with me next.

I'd just as soon head it off at the pass. No fighting on my end, none on theirs.

What happened to cause the other fights?

I'm not entirely sure. He seemed to have some kind of problem with me before we spoke, and did not get an answer when I asked what the problem was.

[That was probably not a fight that needed to happen but look.]

Who was it?

Show me his profile.

[It'll take Hiroto a bit, he's still figuring phones out, but eventually he lands on this guy.]

This fellow was the second one.

[Skims over the profile for a moment or two, reading it]

Noted.

And the second?

[Gods he hates searching through profiles! This one takes even longer to find.]

It was this young man.

I would like to understand whatever made them attack me. You need not follow up on this information, but to note that I have been hunted down before, both in this world and the last, and would like that if we are to have an alliance, those who would hunt me stay their hands until the alliance is no longer necessary.

[He is absolutely following up on this information,]

It's a reasonable request.

I would of course offer the same. My weapon remains sheathed to any unit who would ally with us.

I'll make no trouble for them.

Re: ALLIANCE DISCUSS MEETING

byallmeans - 2021-04-27 14:31 (UTC) - Expand

If they agree to prioritize us above others in their decisions, and fail to uphold that agreement, then I will kill them.

If you are so quick to turn a blade on them, even theoretically, then why wouldn't they do the same for you?

Naturally, if an alliance is broken by either side, there would be repercussions. Otherwise, what purpose would it serve?

[Hiroto pauses, looking over the others. There are children here, and that does sway him a little.]

.... If we can get a guarantee of non-aggression between our units, I would be amenable.

[ in this house we all love kids ]

I'm glad to hear it. If it would help to reassure you of their trustworthiness, please feel free to attend the discussion as well.

[It's hard not to. Even for Hiroto, who is objectively terrible.]

I would like that, yes.

Then, please refrain from attacking anyone when we meet. Although I trust that you would not do anything unnecessary, it was a request by avante en garde to only bring people who would not stab them.

What makes you think I would attack anyone there?

[Maybe because he's the one starting every fight so far but that's BESIDE THE POINT.]

I'll not start anything, but I trust you wouldn't expect me not to defend myself should anything arise.