╰┈➤ AEVUM ISLES :: OCTOBER FESTIVAL ❂
With the autumn season comes change. All around the Isle, canopies begin to transform into canvases of brilliant reds, oranges, yellows, and purples. A cold breeze blows from the north, prompting the need for warm clothes and spiced drinks. The earth begins to grow quiet in light of the coming slumber, allowing the twin moons to shine throughout the longer nights. But just because the world slows doesn’t mean that its residents do. This year, something lurks in the shadows that has not been present in the past. Keep your eyes open and ears alert, for a new danger comes at the peak of Autumns arrival . . . Please refer to the ARCANUS ISLE COMPENDIUM for creature and plant references.
Overview.
During the peak of the autumn season comes a celebration of bountiful harvests and the memories of loved ones. The Yestereve Harvest occurs in October, featuring various fall activities with plenty of food and traditions that honor those who came before, and celebrate the blessings we have today.
Spiced and sweet foods flood the streets during this season of giving thanks. This is particularly true as the Gladus Feast approaches. A three-day celebration across Aevum Isle, where families come together to enjoy bountiful harvests and tall tales of history. Many Aercon also enjoy the Spirits Jubilee, a celebration of ancestors and the legacies that have been brought into the present day. Every family celebrates a little differently, but there is plenty of fun to be had anywhere an Echo looks.
Activities:
Spirits Jubilee
Spirits Jubilee is a two-week-long party ( from Oct. 2nd - 19th ) dedicated to honoring ancestors, legacies, and the magic that dwells in all denizens of Aevum. Participants are encouraged to share gifts of candy, celebrate with parties and events, and dedicate time to honor the lives of those who came before. Many families will build temporary memorial shrines filled with flowers, food, candles, and other decorations to remember their ancestors. Others will focus on the family members around in the present with parties and fun traditions.
During this time, children of all ages dress up in costumes. These can all range from historical figures, jobs, legends, fictional characters, and more. Some of these costumes may also include Echoes who are of Ardent rank or higher! The kids will go from door to door, collecting sweets from those who are giving them out (any household that has lights on) after they say the phrase “ Spice and Sweets! ”.
Echoes can expect little ones to make appearances at their doorsteps, though this activity is not just limited to the younger crowd. Adults and teens may participate, too. All across the city, people are hosting costume parties and competitions showing off people’s creative talents.
Some places may also offer the following kind of candy:
Effect Candies: These treats may appear to be just the same as ordinary candies at first glance, but upon further inspection, these have a rainbow, shimmering glow about them. These candies are imbued with magical properties, bringing to life parts of your costume for as long as you eat them. The originator of the candies is unknown, but it can be assumed it might have been a historical alchemist. Though their name has been lost to time, their legacy lives on with fervor! These treats are a community favorite during Yestereve Harvest, especially by those who seek the spice side of this activity. EXAMPLE: - If you are dressed as a ghost, then eating the candy may allow you to phase through walls. - If you are dressed as a pirate, you will find yourself gifted with a sword and stuck in talking in pirate speak. - If you are dressed as a dragon your wings will help you fly and you can breathe fire. Note: These candies can be received at any time and can be activated at any time during the duration of the festival. These candies do not transform the person into their costume, but rather create an extra effect to enhance the costume. They will only work while the Echo is in a costume. Candies may be saved after the event is complete, but they will lose their shine and magic and will taste bitter instead of sweet.
Downtown Arcanus.
The Fall Festival
All throughout Downtown Arcanus, the streets come alive with the celebration of the autumn season. All of the shops and cafes sell all manner of autumn decor and fall-flavored favorites, following the shifting colors and cooling temperatures. Even the Archives get into the spirit by decorating the tables with pumpkin arrangements and harvest-themed displays.
Arcanus University is hosting a widespread Fall Festival, run by the student clubs with aid from the faculty. Each club has a different activity associated with it. The art club hosts face painting, the culinary program makes pumpkin pastries, the book club passes out fall books, the chess club has a giant chess board, etc.
There are also plenty of carnival games to compete for prizes and a few small rides. There is a petting zoo hosted by the Whisperwind Hacienda for visitors to see. The Festival also has a section of booths dedicated to local artists selling home decor. There is plenty of fall fun to explore here as the university continues in full swing of its new semester.
Meanwhile, the Aurora Amphitheater will be hosting multiple locally directed and staffed performances. Everything from dance recitals to Shakespearean dramas, and even musical theater is welcome. Every day has a different show.
The St. Azalea’s Foundation is also working in tandem with Fanalean farmers to host weekly food drives to provide warm meals and materials for those in need. During the Gladus Feast, they will be hosting a massive celebration buffet style for local Aercon and Echoes alike.
Rosewood District.
Twilight Screams
Several of the clubs within Rosewood have come together to host a special event called the Twilight Screams! The buildings have been decorated and refurbished into haunted houses for the season, filled with volunteers dressed up as monsters and ghouls meant to frighten visitors. Many of the costumes have been enhanced by effect candies, though the actors are not supposed to touch the visitors. That hasn’t stopped rumors from circulating that members of the Venom Rings have infiltrated the party intent on causing a bit of a ruckus.
These “haunted houses” are hosted all throughout the month, and are typically busiest in the late evenings. Food and drinks are served outside the venues, usually trying to promote business to the bars, clubs, hotels, and other amenities of the Rosewood District. There are four main clubs that people can visit. Each has different themes to them. The following houses are listed in order of least scary to most scary.
After Tea Party - Decorated to mimic a high-end mansion, every ghost and ghoul is invited to the mansion for a high tea. Share in spooktacular blends and sweets that will be to die for! Or partake in a ballroom dance with music that will send shivers up your spine. These ghosts seem lost in their ways, spending eternity in a happy death. The halls seem never-ending, created by illusions of mirrors, fog, and projections that make it easy to get lost.
Junkyard Jumpscare - The loudest and most eclectic of the houses. Actors pose as monsters and humans wearing thick layers of torn garments and junk armor, shouting about anarchy and rebellion and purging society of the status quo. They prefer to get into your face and utilize plenty of pyrotechnics and effects in order to make themselves known. Wars are always being fought. Will you pick a side?
Raided Temple - An Egyptian-style tomb with many of a Pharaoh’s treasures, creating a unique decor and plenty of puzzles for the visitors to solve. There’s a lot of story in this house, detailing the betrayal of the pharaoh by his best friend who stole his wife and kingdom and now his animated corpse seeks vengeance. The actors here wear long cloaks and dark masks to hide their faces, with trailing scarves behind them. Do not touch the treasure! Lest the curse of the pharaoh’s wrath fall upon you!
Nuclear Science Facility - After an accident with a nuclear reactor, this house’s whole facility has become engulfed in radiation, causing everything inside to become mutated. As visitors travel through the space, they may see some morally questionable experiments that occurred in the various rooms. Toxic goop and monsters can be found everywhere, making this house the hardest one to complete.
THIS YEAR, a brand new haunted house is being added to the roster! Every year a fifth house will be announced that will be totally unique to the year for exploration, offering brand new challenges and stories for the masses to enjoy. This year, we present:
Cirque La Terreur - A large multi tented circus with various acts and performances, hosted by the haunting clowns. This circus is rumored to have had many unfortunate accidents over the years, which have been recreated in walk through scenes for visitors to be entertained. Be prepared for horrifying hijinks on the trapeze above and the circus rings below as the clowns put on a show everyone is dying to see.
Lunar Coast.
Memirror Fog
While the cities and forests celebrate, the Lunar Coast finds itself growing dormant. Creatures retreat to warmer waters while fewer visitors make their way to the beaches. The Comet Promenade remains active (as the show must go on!), but something else stirs in the air.
Across the Arcus Cove sets a permanent fog, visible regardless of the weather in the area. The Kruptos Lighthouse is always visible during this time along Quill Pillar Shores, caused by the imbalance of Aether at play. Sailors tell stories about the Memirror Fog. An autumn phenomenon that settles over the shores of Arcanus. After watching the seas for long enough, visions of the past begin to appear. For Echoes, this can mean they can see glimmers of people, objects, or even places that belong to their homeworld. Beckoning them out to sea to follow them.
Going out on a ship will eventually lead you to Arcus Cove, where the visions will persist. If an Echo is drawn even further in, they will find themselves among the ruins of the old Aether Temple on the coast. Here, Echoes may relive experiences from their past while under the fog’s enchantment. The mists can only rely on the memories of the Echo and will replay as they were perceived at that moment. Even if the Echo behaves differently now than in their memory, it will continue onward, as if it is playing a recording. The memories are unable to be shared unless both Echos were present for the featured memory. However, anyone viewing from the outside may be able to break the enchantment.
In order to break out of a Memirror on one’s own, the entire memory must be played from start to end. Trying to break out before the memory has fully played out will result in the fog following the Echo as a shadow no matter where they go until the Echo finishes what they started.
Fanalea.
Gladus Feast
One of the most sacred and treasured celebrations of Fanalean locals is the Gladus Feast( from Oct. 28th-30th ). The Gladus Feast is a prime time for loved ones all around Arcanus to gather together and celebrate a plentiful harvest. Fanaleans go all out when it comes to the food of the feast. Most of which prominently feature local harvests such as:
Sapeng Cheeses, Mushroom Medleys, Whole Yaffle Hog Hams, Gourm Turkeys, Pecus Grain Breads, Perlbery Sauce, Star Fruit Pastries, Arcana Pumpkin Pies, and a variety of classic fall favorite veggies and dishes. Mulled wines and spiced drinks are also provided by the Honeyglow Meadery.
There is plenty more to do during the Gladus Feast than eat plenty of food. While farmers prepare the fields to rest for winter and finish up the harvests, they also utilize the space to host all sorts of fun activities.
Pumpkin Patches - available for Echoes to purchase pumpkins. Carving stations are also available to create fun and unique designs into the pumpkin’s face. Each participant’s pumpkin will come with a complimentary candle.
Corn Mazes - mazes with varying levels of difficulty. Participants who get to the end of the maze will be given snacks of their choice!
Bulb Beetle Gazing - Join sightseers across the Fanalean Fields to watch the Bulb Beetles fly and sing their mating songs.
Hay Rides - pulled by falcaniform-drawn wagons, these hay rides travel all around Vesper Town Farmlands to marvel at the fall decor and wheat fields.
S’more Making - Join the Fanaleans in Vesper Town Plaza as they share spooky stories and old legends around the central bonfire!
Wreath Making - Echoes can make a beautiful fall-themed wreath with materials supplied by the locals including ribbons, wires, and other wreath accessories.
Candle Making - Echoes can make custom, wonderfully scented candles to give to their friends or keep to remind them of their loved ones.
Everyone is invited to participate, especially when it comes to cooking!
Aether Reserve.
Totem Poles
“Find yourself through the eyes of another. “ the ancient texts say.
Throughout Silverbrook Hollow, totems stand scattered across the forest, each bearing carvings of all manner of creature. The origins of the Totems are unknown to locals, and all denizens will claim that these totems have always been there, and certainly have heard warnings to not get too close. Particularly when their eyes mimic candlelight.
Exclusively during October, the totems’ Aether stir once more. Echoes who venture into Silverbrook will eventually note that the eyes of each animal seem to always be following them. This is true no matter where they walk. Should an Echo make eye contact within five feet of the pole, or should they touch the carvings, the Echo will find themselves face to face with their own personal Alter. Soon, they will become engulfed in the totem’s light. Above the canopy, a small orange-and-gold aurora borealis lights, filled with the silhouettes of animals and other creatures..
When the aurora diminishes, the Echo will find themselves transformed into their Alter. Without an Alter Totem, the transformation lasts for three days. After which, their normal form will be restored.
Echoes with shapeshifting powers will also find themselves unable to restore themselves.)
Echoes who are already anthropomorphic in nature (or otherwise animalistic) will find themselves with a humanoid form for the duration of the effect.
However, for Echoes who have an Alter Totem from the Tent of Wonders, they will be able to freely shift in and out of this form.
Merchant Town.
The Tent of Wonders
In the middle of the market a mysterious red tent, draped in ornate purple fabrics and lanterns, has appeared. This is run by Maxamillia La Mystica, an eccentric woman who speaks exclusively in rhymes. Upon entering the tent, hanging all along the walls are various wooden carvings of all kinds of creatures and beings. These are called Alter Totems and are made partially from Echo Wood. Curiously, she already has a totem just for you.
Alter Totems
A piece of wood with mysterious symbols carved into it. All echoes may be allowed to receive a totem with or without explicitly venturing into the tent in threads or drabbles, but they may only ever receive one.
Upon contact, the wood will shift and morph into the likeness of the Echo’s Spirit Creature. Also known as an “Alter”. These can be real, or mythological creatures. Examples of mythological creatures can include dragons, mermaids, centaurs, gorgons, griffons, pegasi, unicorns, phoenixes, sphinxes, banshees, and more!
These may also be animals found in the Aevum Compendium (marked with a plant, fire, or star emoji) or common animals from the echos homeworld.
The Totem itself does not appear to do much in your hands, apart from you feeling yourself drawn to Silverbrook Hollow…
What each totem manifests into is entirely up to mun discretion.
Each Echo can only have one Alter Totem at any given time.
If the choice of creature changes during the events of the Festival, the Totem will shift accordingly.
If a mun changes their mind about their Muse’s Alter after the events of the Festival, the Totem may be changed once by visiting the Totem Poles in Silverbrooke. After that change, it cannot be changed again until the next Yestereve Harvest.
Alter Totems cannot be destroyed, traded between, or gifted to other Echoes. If a Totem happens to get lost, it will reappear on the bedside table of Echo’s house.
NOTE: While all Echoes will be given one for the duration of the event, if members wish to keep their muse’s totem beyond the event, they will need to submit a Totem Voucher to the Marketplace (with proof of participation in this festival). Upon voucher submission, the Alter Totem will come with five charges that, in-universe, would last up to ten minutes. The Echo will see the totem’s power diminish by the candlelight in its eye. More charges may be purchased for 100 emblems after the voucher’s submission.
COMING SOON.
This year, a new way of participating in festivals will be introduced. A HALF MOON EVENT featuring a deeper exploration of a festival activity in tandem with the VICES will be available for echoes to participate in the seasonal event.
Stay tuned for more details coming OCT. 15th.
Submissions for the TOTEM VOUCHER will be processed from Oct. 22nd till Nov. 1st. If you received a totem last year but wish to change your animal, the voucher may be used to do so.
All questions regarding the festival should be submitted to the masterlist. Happy Autumn, Aevum!
