Those Who Went Missing

Those Who Went Missing is an art roleplaying game for the closed species, Esks. It also self-identifies as a "collaborative world building game," or CWBG. It has a heavy emphasis on player contributions and player-made lore. There are sections on the website that allow users to submit the art, stories and creations of their characters. As of Mar 29, 2020 the group has 3,342 members.
==History==
Those Who Went Missing was opened on May 11, 2017 by Witherlings. Outside of its DeviantART page, Esks also own a weebly website that can be found here. The oldest journal on the group's page is from Jun 29, 2017, and is a page that contains external links to Esk lore.https://www.deviantart.com/thosewhowentmissing/journal/Lore-689458171 Jun 29, 2017 (Accessed Mar 23, 2020)
The group icon, which still exists as of Mar 25, 2020, was designed in a contest from Jul 2017. AlsaresLynx was the winner, with the runner up being Kipine. The winner also won a custom Esk with uncommon features from the admin, while the runner up won a custom Esk with common features.https://www.deviantart.com/thosewhowentmissing/journal/Pre-opening-Event-Icon-Winner-Announced-689795593 Jul 2017 (Accessed Mar 25, 2020)
==The Species==
The species guide on the website says: "Esk are ghostly nature spirits. They are the result of transformations bestowed upon people or animals who are lost, hopeless, or suffering. They live between worlds — able to take both physical or non-physical form to appear solid or as an apparition at will."https://twwm.weebly.com/introduction.html (Accessed Mar 23, 2020)
Common Esks are created with four legs and a tail. The tail cannot be lifted anywhere but the base, meaning it drags behind the Esk. Body types vary. The default is that plants grow on their body, ranging from small grasses to large trees. Other things include rocks and fungi. These additions are called the "nature feature." Physical features include dark, usually black eyes with no eyelids — Esk only have a nictitating membrane, — and they always deafult to three toes on each foot. Common Esk usually have natural color palettes, with more defined markings being more uncommon features..https://twwm.weebly.com/starter-myos.html (Accessed Mar 23, 2020) Esks have no ears and while some esk can have organs, the ghostly creatures do not need them to survive.https://twwm.weebly.com/anatomy.html (Accessed Mar 23, 2020) Esks are capable of telekinesis to varying degrees and are telepathic. They have no physical mouth, and no nose structure, though some can have nostrils. Depending on their creation, and if the Esk was content with the transformation, their powers may vary from creative to destructive.Behavior (Accessed Apr 2, 2020)
Esks must live in one biome, which they are tied to, expect in special circumstances. There is a badge for each biome, which player must keep in their Esks' profiles.https://www.deviantart.com/thosewhowentmissing/journal/Quick-Reference-696938379 Circa 2017 (Accessed Mar 31, 2020) They also may receive curses or blessings, but these must be approved by staff.New Game Feature: Blessings and Curses Circa Jan 2019 (Accessed Apr 2, 2020)
Esks are a closed species, which means in order to obtain one they must be bought. However, the staff also offer the ability for players to obtain one by playing the game. One may also receive an Esk in a trade or as a gift from another player.https://www.deviantart.com/thosewhowentmissing/journal/FAQ-696938442 Circa 2017-2020 (Accessed Mar 24, 2020) Some Esk sales are run as auctions, such as this guest artist sale with a starting bid of $50, a minimum increase of $5, and an auto-buy price of $250. Others are raffles with a "sliding scale" of payment, such as this guest artist raffle with a scale of $85-160. Other small raffles are free, such as with this 2020 February raffle. 
As of Mar 11, 2023, the masterlist shows 6071 Esks in general, 442 wither Made, 11 NPCs, 1146 guest designs, and 4394 make your own designs.
==Canon==
The "lore" button on the right side of the group's page leads directly to the Weebly website. It's here a new player may learn about some of the Esk canon, though the canon of the world is not much different from the lore of the species itself. However, there is a page for just canon information on the website as well. Rather than list historical events in the lore, this is a list of canon rules that the player base has agreed upon over the course of the ARPG. This set of rules includes items like: mythical animals do not exist, TWWM takes place on Earth, Esks cannot be violent to one another, Esks cannot appear before humans or be captured, Esks exist in all periods of history, and more.the TWWM Canon (Accessed Apr 2, 2020)
Some of the most interesting bits of canon lore come from the staff created NPCs, or the Wanderers. The first Wanderer on the page is 000, an elderly Esk who tells stories. She appears when new Esks are formed, especially if they are sad or confused. Two other Esks, who have only ever been seen by 000, are the first Traveler and the first Trespasser. They are called "The Luminaries," and are the original creators of the Conservatory, a place where all Esks can meet in spirit. Their energy is what propels the Conservatory, especially the Wellsprings. Their spirits are rooted in two alters. There are a number of other Wanderers, including Ikkit the trickster, Raaga who protects his mountains, and Aevre who is heroic and strong.The Wanderers (Accessed Apr 2, 2020)
There are canon locations in the game, though players are free to design their own locations so long as they are real-life based. These include the Conservatory, which all Esks may visit in spirit so they can interact with one another, and a set number of biomes. Inside the Conservatory are three other locations: The Alters, where the souls of the Luminaries sit, the Temple of Silence, which is a peaceful quiet place, and the Temple of Sound, which is filled with glass tunnels, gardens, and other luxurious places. The Conservatory also houses the Wellsprings, which is a wishing well for the players. random wishes may be granted by staff once a month.the Conservatory (Accessed Apr 2, 2020)The Wellsprings Circa Jan 2018 (Accessed Apr 2, 2020)
There are also eight biomes players must choose from, as each Esk's soul is required to be tethered to a biome (except under special circumstances). These include: plains, developed, arid, marine, forest, polar, mountain, and fresh waters. While these biomes are canon, players are allowed to place their Esk in any part of the world that has that biome. https://www.deviantart.com/thosewhowentmissing/journal/Biome-Sign-ups-702013495 Biome Sign Ups] Circa Aug 2017 (Accessed Apr 2, 2020)
===Player Lore===
Those Who went Missing is a collaborative world building game, meaning it encourages player made lore. This lore is mostly made out of a single journal called "Calls for Lore," where players comment on the journal with their own character(s) lore. This lore, while good for character development and generally adhering to canon, is not recorded anywhere else in Esk lore. This means that the history of any single Esk owned by a player is not going to be well known by any other player owned Esk in the same way staff-made canon might. So far, it seems no one player-owned Esk has influenced the canon of the game through their personal lore. After that there is semi-player influenced lore in the form of players sending in questions to the Wanderer 000, who then answers with a staff-written story.
The most recent reply to the calls for lore journal was from player xekateus for their Esk Placid, while one of the oldest replies comes from deactivated player Silken-Angel for their Esk Aoena.https://www.deviantart.com/thosewhowentmissing/journal/Collaborative-Worldbuilding-Calls-for-Lore-new-763569108?offset=0#comments Collaborative Worldbuilding Calls for Lore] Circa Sept 11, 2018 (Accessed Apr 2, 2020)
When it comes to the stories written by staff for Wanderer 000, players have influenced the canon of the game more more. Thanks to players asking 000 questions, new canon stories have been put into the mouths of many an Esk who knows the story. For example, after a player asked 000 "Can Esks die" 000 went on to explain that an Esk could possibly depart from the land and become some form of nature, such as "phasing into the wind."A Conversation (Accessed Apr 2, 2020) Another story from 000 explains the origins of the woodlands, which gives a canon origin story to a location.A Song (Accessed Apr 2, 2020)
==Mechanics==
Those Who went Missing use two types of currency: Growth points (GP) and Aura Points (AP). These currencies are gained in different ways and are used for different things. GP is applied as a reward for any kind of artwork done of the player's Esk, as well as any other Esks in the artwork, while AP is a reward for both artwork and for commissioning others. Featuring multipule Esks in an artwork makes the artist eligible to receive a bonus reward of AP. There is both a guide for scoring artworkScoring guide on the TWWM Weebly https://twwm.weebly.com/scoring-guide.html, and a calculator to help ease the process.Calculator to help with scoring both AP and GP http://twwm.x10host.com/
Those Who Went Missing also have "levels" and "treasures." Aura Points raise the level of the player, each level comes with a special badge. Treasures are special items obtained from completing milestones and achievements, but do not affect the game. There are also treasures unique to monthly prompts, completing origin prompts, completing prompts in certain biomes, making art of the Wanderers, entering into events, and more.https://www.deviantart.com/thosewhowentmissing/journal/Treasures-and-Achievements-732253266 Circa 2018 (Accessed Mar 31, 2020) In this way, treasures are encouragement for the transformative part of the community.
Prompts are used to encourage players to develop their characters and their characters' backstories while also gaining AP and GP. There are a set number of prompts as well as a set of rotating monthly prompts to be completed https://www.deviantart.com/thosewhowentmissing/journal/Prompts-696938084 Circa Sept 2017 (Accessed Mar 25, 2020)
Transformations are essentially make your own (MYO) character slots that allow someone already in the Esk community to "transform" an animal, human, plant, object, or other Esk into a new Esk or new kind of Esk. These slots are obtained by playing the game and earning its currencies. https://www.deviantart.com/thosewhowentmissing/journal/Transformations-696938332 Circa 2017-2020 (Accessed Mar 29, 2020)
This is the Esk marketplace where the currencies can be traded for modifications to designs. There are a number of cheap options for making minor alterations, such as a 10GP modification that can change the location of a marking. There are also slightly more expensive items to buy, such as the 60GP large accessory, which can add a large accessory not found in nature.https://www.deviantart.com/thosewhowentmissing/journal/Energy-Exchange-696938154 Circa 2017-2020 (Accessed Mar 29, 2020)
==Community==
There is a gallery for advertisements in the group, and while journals requesting collaborations are allowed, the majority of the submissions seem to be for commissions rather than roleplay.Advertisements, DeviantART Apr 5, 2020 (Accessed Apr 5, 2020) Outside of this there is a Discord.
===Events===
Staff host a number of events for players to participate in. As of Mar 25, 2020, their event archive lists 14 events since 2017.https://www.deviantart.com/thosewhowentmissing/journal/Events-696938109 Circa 2017 (Accessed Mar 25, 2020) The first event was simply for the group's icon, and did not involve player characters. the first true character-based event was on Aug 2017, which marked the true opening of the ARPG. Participants had to draw an official Esk to receive points, and would be entered into a raffle to receive a unique Esk. Pockettebees was the winner.https://www.deviantart.com/thosewhowentmissing/journal/CLOSED-Opening-Event-696942025 Circa Aug 14, 2017 (Accessed Mar 25, 2020) The most recent was from Dec 2019. This was essentially just a secret Santa event, and could only be joined by owners of an Esk. Participants would get double the AP and GP for their artwork.https://www.deviantart.com/callmeflo/journal/Holiday-Gift-Eskchange-2019-DEADLINE-JAN-7TH-820884074 Dec 2019 (Accessed Mar 25, 2020)
===Comments===
==Artwork==
===Visual===
File:Esk species guide by witherlings.jpg|Species Guide by Witherlings
File:Chi chi and lavender field by nasajourney.jpg| By NasaJourney
===Literature===
*Ice Gazing by Argetl
*Haiku by Calum07
*Some Esk Gothic for the Soul by Cjr09
==Links==
*Gallery
*Masterlist
*Administrative Account
*Discord
==Archives==
*Group on Mar 14, 2019
==References==
Category:Original Species
Category:2017 Communities
Category:2010s Communities
Category:2020s Communities
Category:CollaborationCategory:DeviantArt