Event 5: To Wed a King

A kingdom by even its name needs her King
But every King needs a Queen by his side.
For companionship, to rule in his absence...
to be a beacon to which the citizens can look up to.
== The Cutscene ==
Gaius is pacing about King Alaric's throne room. He seems rather excited about something, yet he also is showing some nervous twitches. It is then that Alaric enters, a bewildered look upon his face as he holds up a letter to the Krickitune.
: ...Gaius, would you care to explain what it is that I've found tacked onto the bulletin board in town?
: Ah... It is a letter, my liege. I wrote it up and had the scribes send several copies all across our fair land. I had... hoped to attract a potential noble to the kingdom that one might become your new Queen.
: W-What!?
: Why had you not told me of your plans of this?
: Because frankly sire, I knew you would not approve. But like it or not, this kingdom -and you- need a Queen. When you go gallivanting across the continent with every mission, Aether has no one to rule her.
: Ah... Point taken...
: Regardless of that; however, I can't say I want this. I have already lost two Queens since I have taken the throne... It has worn a hole in my heart... I can't say I am ready for love once more. Not yet.
: I am aware, and understand that you've been hurt. Still, this is what is best for the kingdom. Please, if not for yourself, then for your people. Maybe you could even, in time, mend your emotional wounds.
: ...
: Fine. If only for our people, I will allow you to carry on with this little pageant. However, I hope you know that I expect you to orchestrate the majority of this event. It was your idea, so you have to take responsibility for it.
: Of course, sir, just leave it all to me. I shall come up with a way to test which of the maidens would make for the best Queen.
== The Journal Text ==
: As King Alaric's royal advisor, I am pleased to welcome each and every one of you wonderful women to our Kingdom of Aether. For those of you who are not aware already, I am Gaius, and I will be the one mostly in charge of assisting you during your stay. Perhaps King Alaric himself or Prince Nicholas will show up at some point to say hello and ask you a question, but don't be too surprised if they don't come very often. I'm afraid both of them are a tad anxious about welcoming another Queen into our halls...
While you are all here, we shall be testing you with a variety of different small challenges to test if you are truly the best of them all. You will earn points for each task you complete and how well you do so. If you cannot participate in a challenge, then you will not be earning any points for it, simple as that. After all, if we are to choose one of you to become a permanent addition to the royal family, how could we do so as effectively without getting to know you?
The tasks and point system shall be as follows. I ask that you take the time to understand each task asked of you and figure out what you can do for them to the best of your abilities. I wish you all the best of luck, but do remember, don't get too disappointed if you aren't the victor. After all, there can only be one...
== Objectives ==
Points:
½ point - You started a challenge but didn’t finish in time...
1 point - You finished the challenge but it was half hearted… We learned only a little about your suitor.
2 points - You finished the challenge well! We learned a good deal about your suitor!
3 points - You finished the challenge with flying colors! I don’t think we have any more questions for your suitor about that!
Tally Challenges:
# Show me ya Moves: We are Pokemon after all. Please display what moves you know and how you would use them from day to day. Feel free to get creative.
# Dress to Impress: How do you dress? In public? In the court? In the bedroom~?
# First Rate Decorator: The castle is a dump… How would you spruce it up? (An empty room will be provided.)
# Sing to Me Angel of Music: Royals are people of art~ Create a piece of poetry or draw your character playing their musical instrument of choice. Feel free to also write about how your character came to write/play that poem/instrument. Why did they choose that?
# Handy Maid: Queens need to get dirty too, you know; what can your suitor fix? (Can they sew? Can they bake/cook? Can they write? Do they know basic carpentry/blacksmithing?)
# Iron Maiden: Kings may go to battle, but queens are still strong. Display what weapons your suitor is proficient in.
# Diplomatic Deeds: A queen will need to help the people. Show your suitor helping and overall interacting with the peasants of Aether.
# Innovator: A queen needs to be active in the kingdom; what would your suitor like to change/add to Aether?
# JKOMG: A queen, well, any person in general, should have a sense of humor! What makes your suitor laugh? 
# Baby Mine: Alaric is not the only family member you will be gaining. Show how your suitor interacts with Nicholas, the prince. What kind of activity would she to do with him for some mother/son bonding?
* -This event is a very special one, as you will not be participating using your main characters. Instead, you will be tasked with creating a temporary SNPC who will compete with the others for Alaric's hand. They may be a Princess, Noble Woman, Duchess, or any maiden of a higher class (This does mean that they do not HAVE to be of royal blood to eligible.); may be shiny or normal colors; and be from anywhere you choose. However, we do ask that this SNPC do in fact be a MAIDEN. We need a Queen, not another King.
* Compete in as many of the challenges as you can, but be aware this will only increase your odds of winning, not guaranteeing it. And be careful not to rush either; a single very well drawn or written piece can be worth more than a couple of hastily thrown together ones.
* At the end of the event, voting will take place to tally out the points earned to each contestant. The person with the highest score will be declared the official Queen of Aether! Those who do not win will need to simply do away with their designs. It is unfortunate, but that is the only way this can be done.
The event will end by April 1, at which point any additional contributions will not be tallied. Please do your best to finish everything on time, as we no longer have super group status and a count-down timer to warn you of time remaining.
Please use the new SNPC App for your character's entry art so it may be easily distinguished.Writers may use the normal NPC Written app, but mark it as SNPC.
== To Wed A King Winners! ==
: Hello hello! I'm sure you all have been eagerly awaiting this day! Our king has chosen a suitor!! I knew my plan would work, it always does~
: Even if it did go against my wishes...
: Eh heh... quite right...
: But in this case I am pleased to say it worked out quite well!
: As you well know by now, we have had some wonderful ladies staying with us in the castle. I have enjoyed my time with each and every one of them and I think I speak for Nicholas as well when I say that, though this event brought up unhappy memories for us, we are pleased to have all of these new friends and ultimately welcome one of these ladies into our family.
: Sadly, only one may stay as our queen...
: But I certainly hope the rest of you return again to visit, or perhaps even stay here in Aether with us!
: And now to announce our lucky winner!
----
(Due to an overwhelming amount of ties in the count, we will list off the characters who tied for each place rather than picking one for each.)
Runner Ups:
Nerida Ashworth!
One of the first entries, and certainly a heavy contender, Nerida showed great compassion and depth of character. Though she didn't win, we hope to see more of her in the future!
Amanda Pyralis!
One of the few commoners in the event, Amanda was an amazingly interesting character. I enjoyed reading her entries and learning more about her past. Her video entry almost made me cry... I hope we get see her around more!
All Finalists will receive art of their characters from one of the admins!
Third Place Finalists:
Sophia the Hopeful!
Gift Art
The entries for this suitor were superb and showed off Sophia's personality and history while also completing the event requirements. Though she did not win, I look forward to seeing what she does in the future as I know her owner wishes to keep her as an NPC.
Rhea Kallas!
Gift Art
Rhea is such an adorable character and captured the heart of many an admin. The delightful artwork showed off her personality very well and the short blurbs allowed us even further insights into her character.
Sylvi the Graceful!
Gift Art
There were a surprising amount of dragonair in this competition, but Sylvi managed to make herself stand out. Well written entries interspersed with some adorable artwork made Sylvi a keen contender.
Second Place Finalists:
Quetzal Teothihuacan!
Gift Art
Who DIDN'T love this spunky little meowth? Quetzal captured our hearts with her antics and chocolate. The entries were inventive and certainly over and above! We've already incorporated the Aether Anthem onto the front page! Not only this, but the character was deep and opened doors to perhaps keep her around for the future. We hope that she will stick around, or maybe even come back for a mission!
Dalila Thorn!
Gift Art
This sexy little leafeon certainly didn't let you ignore her! The adorable art style, mixed with Dalila's island appearance definitely made her an appealing entry! But beyond all of that, the entries gave great insight into her character and history. These entries, too, went over and above at times to create a very engaging suitor. I hope to see her come around again, maybe for a mission?
FIRST PLACE
This was a VERY difficult decision, but ultimately the votes decided:
Tara Nic Nessa!
Character art
Nessa's character was utterly engaging! There wasn't a single entry that didn't develop her character more. We felt for her, fell in love with her, and followed her story with keen interest. Nessa's entries flowed so smoothly into each other that it was almost incredible that events were being completed. There was no forcing issues, just a story of two snakes falling in love. We look forward to seeing what our new queen has in store for us, and who knows! With her history and stubborn will, maybe we'll see some fun new missions popping up!
Congrats to all of you for your hard work! You all did VERY well in this competition!
For those who didn't win, don't despair! Your characters could still be considered for S. NCP positions! If you think you have a good mission or event idea surrounding your suitor, feel free to submit it via Note and perhaps it will show up as a real mission in the future!
Category:Events
Category:Arc 1
Category:Aether