salt(ernate)
Level 0
OOC (Out-Of-Character) Information:
What is your In-Game-Name (IGN)? Please include ALL your alternative accounts:
My IGN is saltuu!
Do you have Discord and a microphone? If so, what is your username?:
My discord username is @d0gtqgs - and yes, I am available to converse over voice if needed, but please do note that a lot of the time I will be unable to VC.
List your timezone and country:
I live in India, my timezone being IST (Indian Standard Time).
Describe your activity:
I am still 14 years old and a student, so sometimes activity may drop but I am primarily very active! I’ve laid out my availability times on a table.
BELOW TIMES ARE IN IST
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
| 3PM - 11PM School and a one (1) hour class afterschool | 3PM - 11PM School and a one (1) hour class afterschool | 3PM - 11PM School and a one (1) hour class afterschool | 3PM - 11PM School and a one (1) hour class afterschool | 3PM - 11PM School and a one (1) hour class afterschool | 3PM - ??? 3 classes, all one (1) hours long. | 5AM - 12PM 3 classes, all one (1) hours long. |
Link any significant applications (e.g., Roles/Teams, exclude languages):
N/A.. This is my first faction/team!
What is your motivation to apply for reporter?:
Over my year and a half on the server, I’ve seen spots for each and every faction open and close, yet never participating in a single one due to a straight up lack of interest. Reporter really does catch my eye, though. It’s a faction undeservedly primarily glossed over in my opinion. I began to actually READ reports way later in my playtime than I’d like to admit, and all I’ve seen is this fascinating immersion into Karakura. Reports helped me perceive this city as a living and breathing environment, completely captivating.
That’s really only half the reason, though. I’ve had a manic obsession forced onto me since nursery school, considering how it’s a weak point in a lot of Indian students’ academia (My parents literally didn’t speak to me if I didn’t talk in English.). I’ve maintained this proficiency and won an award for a state level writing competition, first place. This would, in my opinion, be the second-on-the-pedestal (The first being shrine, I can’t deny that) faction that requires the most roleplay but not in an overbearing sense. You’re pushed out and need to tread the social landscape to hook onto stories.
I’ve also had my fair-share of interactions with reporter characters in-game, and MAN! These characters, even in mundane streetside interviews, are so fleshed out and unique. Just hoping I can join the bunch :).
Do you have any experience with writing? What is your relationship with writing?:
As afformentally mentioned, I’ve been tangled with writing since I was a bit over a toddler! I’ve been practicing semi-regularly since I was in kindergarten, and have been dabbling in fiction ever since. I’ve had experience with writing for school articles and editing them, along with writing in depth articles regarding ancient history for the internet. I’ve entered a few exams for english as a language and managed to secure the top position in my zone, school and city, even moving onto the second round. I’d believe I’m cut out literacy-wise for this position, and will improve myself if I’m not.
Are you aware of - and will follow - the set of rules provided to you?:
I’d say I’m well acquainted with the reporter's rules and will, of course, strictly follow them!
Why should we accept you over others?:
I don’t believe I’m superior to any other applicant as a journalist. I have my flaws and those I will work on. But I can ensure that I’ll take the position seriously, even if it may seem like I’m doing it solely for the adult tag based off of a lot of my roleplay history. I stick to my projects and teams and my consistent efforts to maintain high involvement in whatever goes on within the faction will, in my opinion, prove to be valuable. I stay loyal to my teams and groups and try to put in my 110%, everytime.
Do you understand you have to stay completely neutral with all reports? (Your report can't have any OOC or IC bias towards a specific group.)
Any sort of bias in this field could be pretty detrimental to what I put out, I completely understand
Do you trust that you will be able to stay active and complete the monthly quota?:
I am what many would call a no-lifer, so yes! I will push for as much activity as I can, and fulfill quota.
Summarize what you imagine work as a reporter is:
I’d expect it to be researching and digging through my own RP to find any points that I could hook onto, then running it past a few test audiences with a rough summary of the article. If it catches on, I flesh it out with references from real life news articles and publish! If not, I start from the beginning.
IC (In-Character) Information:
Treat this section like it is your own character answering it
[!] The blue-haired man emerged from the crack in the door, settling comfortably (a bit.. lazily?) in his seat. His posture was undeniably not a formal one. [!]
Full Name:
[!] He kissed his teeth. [!]
“I can’t guarantee that I’ll stick with this one, but Igarashi Hikāru for the time being.”
Preferred Name/Nickname and Title (e.g., Ms, Mr)
“Call me anything, I couldn't care less. Mr. Hikāru works, if you wanna’ be formal.”
Current Age (25+):
[!] He.. counted on his fingers?? Yikes. [!]
“28 years old, yeah.”
Past job/work experience:
[!] He took a sigh of regret, maybe? [!]
“I’ve been doing whatever to survive. Cashier, lawnmower, Taxi driver. Everything really went to shit after highschool.”
Degree/qualifications:
"Uh, highschool. I didn't do college. I was in the journalism club, though."
Nationality and born location:
“Born and raised right here, Karakura hellhole.”
[!] He took on a suffocatingly annoyed and sarcastic tone. [!]
“You can just FEEL the patriotism in me!”
Phone Number: 030-671-0743
How would you describe yourself in under 150 words?:
“I don’t like talking about myself, but.. I’m 6’3, pale skinned and with the most faded ‘blonde’ hair dye you can imagine. I don’t even take care of my hair, truth be told. I have scars around my body, most of which you can’t even see. And if I’ve completely misunderstood your query, which I most probably did, I could be classified as.. Childish. Not in my mannerisms, more-so how I approach things.”
[!] In a slightly muffled tone, [!]
“And apparently, not taking bullshit is ‘Childish’.”
[!] Hikāru’s tone rose once more. [!]
“I take my jobs seriously. Being all gloomy and ‘serious’ is a bunch of nonsense, putting on a facade is virtually useless. I get shit done and I have a good time doing it, yeah? All you needa’ know."
What are you interested in writing about? How will you achieve this, and would you consider going out of your comfort zone?:
“The inner reachings and structures of this society. Things many are way too afraid to break the skin of. I’m not afraid to do what I needa’ for my work. I mean delinquent social cultures, cold criminal syndicates. Anything of the sort, I’ll be educating civilians on. No nonsense.”
[!] A brief pause. [!]
“I just.. I just wanna’ make sure there’s not yet another kid stepping into this city with the expectation of being safe. Slice the cycle. I don’t want history to repeat itself like it did with me. I’ll push lines if it takes.”
What are your expectations for the job?:
[!] Hikāru kissed his teeth in thought. [!]
“Interviews and writing- I dunno’ what to tell you, man. I just.. I need something. I write- well, used to, write papers for the school paper. The fights, the drama, the scandals, everything.. Got jumped for it a few times, too. Might be a bit more than that this time around, but I can handle it.”
Do you have a criminal record? If so, list the crimes below:
[!] A subtle snicker escaped his lips. [!]
“I’m clear.”
Fluent Languages (Underline your native):
“Japanese. You got me fucked up if you think I’m gonna’ try and speak anything else in Karakura.”
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
PROMPTS:
#1 - General report:
-
13 December, 2024. ||| Hikāru.
There’s really no denying that Karakura is absolutely infested with criminals.
Nine times out of ten, the person you’re speaking to is probably engaged in some sort of criminal activity, I think that's a given.
But, have you ever wondered how they communicated? If you have (Let’s be real, you probably haven’t. .), fret not, for I’ve sunk my teeth into this juicy, layered rabbit hole of a story!
Upon initial inspection of the site upon login, IKIGAI seems very. . out of character for a so-called ‘criminal’ forum. You can find jokes, greetings, arguments, EVERYTHING.
You’d expect it to be a bit more malicious, no? Maybe talks of violent crimes, or planning to do so. . but no. It’s almost comparable to sites like 4chan, even. Why so?- why is it so innocent, so legal, even? Weeelll. . I read back. It’s not very demure.
[!] Kohaku’s corpse would be blurred. [!]
Upon further inspection, I found gruesome imagery. Maulings, kidnappings, straight up DEAD BODIES. . . And the guidelines, which are quite literally just-
Oh well. I can handle some 2-bit thugs, even if Saola couldn’t.
Did I not mention that? YEAH, THEY TOOK A REPORTER CAPTIVE. Might just be me on there someday. . .
“It’s not the most organized in the sense of the word, what with the people who take it less than seriously and those who are the exact opposite. Definitely a good place to get the right information though if you’re looking for that - some users aren’t the best with keeping their secrets close to their chest” was the summarized IKIGAI experience of long-term user ‘ATHANASIA’, whom I interviewed over an anonymous meeting.
I bet you thought this was the end of the article, didn’t you? Just a silly little website with some quirks. . . NO! Stay tuned, for I’m going to release a series of articles poking at some threads that I’ve seen kept up on the forum, it’s a doozy.
#2 - Interview:
Big thanks to realsheepy for helping me understand their character!! Everything was written via OOC consent.
[!] A dimly lit room. It looked like a double studio apartment in half the condition of a regular one, yikes. . We’re really counting on that paycheck. [!]
[!] Hikāru stepped onto an office chair by his wall-mounted desk, gesturing for someone out of the camera’s peripheral to take a seat on the office chair beside him. [!]
IGARASHI: “Goooood MORNING, Karakura! Today, we have RIU from IKIGAI in our hotseat, here to give us insight on the inner workings of the site from the eyes of a long time and well loved user..”
“Yo.” :‘RIU’
“Yo.” :‘RIU’
IGARASHI: “We’re gonna’ start off with something mild - Are you fine with having your name revealed? If not, why so?”
"Jeremiah Thorne. I'm not scared, never have been. If someone wanted to hurt me from Ikigai, I would assume it would've happened already." :JEREMIAH
IGARASHI: “How did you discover the forum?”
"I found out about the forum through a friend, told me it was a great forum to rage bait on." :JEREMIAH
IGARASHI: “Is Ikigai really a criminal forum?”
"That really depends, I mean, shit, there's definitely criminals on it thanks to the anonymity part, but I think if you really want to reach 'criminals' you gotta' appeal to 'em. Not much appeal in a bunch of weirdos just flexing." :JEREMIAH
IGARASHI: “Have you made any significant relationships from the site? If so, describe them.”
"Fuck, I guess so, made friends with a few people who've helped me out've a lot worse than I can handle." :JEREMIAH
IGARASHI: “What exactly does the site do to the city, really?”
"What does the site do to the city? It provides a central connection. Regardless of set, regardless of beef, everyone can chat freely. It's like a fucking social experiment in there." :JEREMIAH
IGARASHI: “Have you seen anybody being significantly impacted, for better or for worse, from the site?”
"Oh, definitely. People die. It's not like it's some joke to be on the forum. People take a lot of their issues with others to the grave, not some first blood shit. I mean, most of it stems from outside drama, but it carries over. A lot." :JEREMIAH
IGARASHI: “I believe you produced music on the forum? do you think that helped your image among the users?”
“Yeah, I make music. I'd say it probably made me less of a stranger, people connect with you if you make yourself easy to connect to, you feel me? If I came in with my attitude and didn't show that other side of me, people would see me as a dickhead. The music is just a way to show that I'm another human. Someone with ambition, a love of art. It connects us." :JEREMIAH
IGARASHI: “Any additional remarks?”
"Additional remarks? Shit, I guess I'd say that you should never judge a book by its cover. I know that sounds cliche as fuck, but you hear about Ikigai and think 'crime forum,' and there's so much more than that. It's a community of people with similar backgrounds coming together to discuss aspects of what is genuinely their daily life, regardless of legality. Just remember that everyone around you is human. Ashes to ashes; so make the best of the time you have and treat everyone with love. You'd ask for the same, you know?" :JEREMIAH
[!] Hikāru craned his tired eyes to the camera, putting down his notebook. [!]
“That’s all, folks. Thank you, ‘RIU’, for your cooperation.”
ADDITIONAL:
PLSPLSPLSPLS IGNORE MY BANNERS, I MADE THEM BACK DURING THE LAST WAVE AND I CAN'T FIND THE ORIGINAL SCREENSHOTS I USED.
THANK YOU FOR CONSIDERING, SALTY OUT!!
