Re-bumping this for my third anniversary! I might add some thoughts now as well.
The little stories here have been written two years ago. These are reflections from my first forest impressions.
ONE
I could have joined this game earlier. I found out about TEF through DeviantART and immediately fell in love with the whole concept, but at that time I was too afraid to download and play it because it's a multiplayer game and multiplayer games are scary. I'm glad I decided to go "I MUST PLAY THIS NOW" a few months afterwards, on 26th March three years ago.
I probably read through the whole TEF-Homepage ten times while downloading the game to make sure I wouldn't be the clueless and obnoxious newbie.
TWO
I remember that I appeared as a nameless somewhere near the ruins. It was raining and big mushrooms were scattered through the whole forest and I didn't realize my lucky timing. Everything was so magical to me, sort of intimidating but still too beautiful.
Obviously the impressions I got from the forest were completely different from now. Now that everthing is familiar I wish I could bring this old feeling back. Being aimless and lost and discovering about ten new things by turning the camera around. Visually I was looking at the Forest from a completely different perspective than now. Everything was "the other way round" before the things fell into place.
THREE
I had pretty clear ideas and expectations about the main places of the forest mostly through the official descriptions.
I believed that The Playground would be like a real playground, always full of social fawns, and that in rain all deer, friends and strangers alike, would gather in the Old Oak for shelter and sit together warming each other. The ruins were a very mysterious place and I deciced to not get too close since I saw it as a place for "experienced" players.
The pond was probably the scariest place ever for me. It was like the center of the forest, the "main square" where everyone would gather. For that reason I never went closer to the pond than where it was barely possible to see the moving silhouettes on the horizon, and I avoided that place like the plague up until my very last day of fawnhood.
FOUR
I didn't even think of waking my nameless deer up, I was just moving the camera around for a few minutes, amazed by the whole atmospheric feel of the forest. When I finally decided that it might be good to explore a bit - not before waiting for a whole 5 minutes to make sure there's noone around -- I was really hesistant with trying the emotes because I didn't want to catch anyone's attention and be the clueless idiot. I was extremely careful about that, my thoughts were litteraly going "Just don't click the Moo-button, anything but not the Moo-button."
Guess which button my mouse slipped on?
All of a sudden, out of nowhere a fawn and an adult deer were dashing towards me. Panic-mode activated, I let my deer stand there, rooted to the ground, hoping they would believe I was currently afk or something, but I didn't achieve the result that I wanted: All I got were confused-emotes. Why did they have to be so overly social?! My last move was to close the forest, hoping they would believe I had game troubles, and didn't have the guts to open it again for the next two hours.
FIVE
It took me two days to figure out how to actually log into the game.
It was on the first or second day after I found out how to log in. I was sitting under a mushroom close to the ruins (I never really ventured far, especially the first days) and noticed a deer walking up to me. He was still very far away. First thing I noticed was that he was wearing the skull mask, so my thoughts immediately went "damn this player must have been around for long. breathe in, breathe out and don't do anything stupid now for heaven's sake!"
He was walking slowly towards me, building the tension almost on purpose and it made me nervous. This guy would be the first deer to approach me! And he was experienced! I watched every single step of his like some creepy stalker until he was finally close enough to sit down next to me, under the mushroom.
I resorted back to my usual technique of "don't do anything and nothing can go wrong", but then I got unsure. What if he would think I didn't notice him? I didn't know forest etiquette. What if I was being rude? So I took the courage to press some buttons, I stood up and bowed to him. Noticing that, he stood up as well and ran away.
SIX
Eventually I got bored of always hiding in the Birch Forest, but I still was way too scared of getting near other players, but still, I must have gotten absolutely desperate to try and sozialize with someone else. I wanted to be recognized. I really wanted to catch attention. I really really wanted someone to post a "Who Are You?" blog about my fawn.
But for that I had to do something. Something that would make me stand out and yet just could not go wrong in terms of communication. So I went hunting for information and came across the TEF version with the ability to cast halloween sets.
I felt this was the perfect plan. I would download this version and, as unremarkable little fawn, surprise everyone by casting rare sets on other players, and so I did. I cast pelts on everything and everyone I came across. Sleeping fawns, sleeping adults and even other fawns!
The part where my ingenious plan failed was that I was still too scared to approach anything that moved and was bigger than me
SEVEN
This was my first pictogram. I found it to be very feminine, shy and gentle and gave it the name Kite. Later I used it for my deer Mozart.
This pictogram I got about a week after. I just picked it because it looked like a plug to me and honestly, I just wanted to have a cool picto for the community site. I didn't give it a name but I thought it was very masculine and boisterous and strong-willed.
I played these two fawns as character "prototypes" for a bit. The first one being my actual pictogram where I was being the anxious antisocial thing I was, and the second one for trying to create an actual character, plus I thought it would help me get more social in game.
Have a relic. May 14th.
Awh, happy 1 year
Happy TEFiversary!
Happy anniversary Ben! Are
@Iaurdagnire: Thank you!
@quaesting: Thank you too.
@Quezt: Thanks! ♥ And yes, imaginary partys are fun.
*beats you about head with
Happy 1-year
I am...floored by how good that pelt looks in pink o_o
I'd love a gama slider pelt, one you could change via a scroll bar in the menu...but I doubt that will every happen *sob*
I made it less spammy now
Thank you! ♥
Yes, the pelt looks amazing. And I would kill for gamma sliders.
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Tell us moar!
I love it. Keep writing.
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It's so interesting to read
I'm very happy you were brave enough to take chances. I'm so happy I met you, ok?
I don't strive to be the best, but instead I strive to do my best, and always give it my all every time.
-faunet
All of this goes back to you
I actually tried to make this entertaining and funny in an ironical way, I enjoy self-deprecating humor, re-reading these they don't seem to get that message across at all though.
Happy two year!! Rock on.
I actually found this text kind of hilarious -not to mention frakking adorable-! xD This is a lot like how it was for me, although my timidity didn't last more than a week or two, since I was lucky enough to make some amazing friends who changed the way I viewed the forest.
I often find myself missing that original vulnerability, though. It was a very powerful feeling.
Happy 2-year Anniversary!
*sends cake!*
Happy two year anniversary!
Iaurdagnire and quadraptor,
gurgelin-- haha yes I agree, you do start to miss the intensity of those feelings, but sometimes it's still there when you're with certain individuals, albeit in a different form. It's fun to look back.
I'm late but,
/Gets some cake for you ♥
/late as well Congrats on
Congrats on being an oldie : D -tosses confetti into the air-
Much to late ,
♥ ♥
♥
Vala! Thank you! We must play
KingEnvy-- Thank you very much. :D
Nopje-- Thank you too! ♥
Late congratulations from me
This was a fun read x) And if
And if I'm correct, happy third anniversary!
didn't expect so many
Starling-- ...well I'm stumped on that one. Care to explain your train of thought?
For why it was a fun
Well, I totally agree with the fact that everything has "folded into place" now that I've become so used to the forest. But the way you joined the Forest and your reaction was in my opinion weird, and yet, I wish I had reacted the same way. I'm a very impatient person and was too excited to not get up the very first second the game started and frantically run around the forest, exploring every inch. Though because of that, I quickly got to know the forest very well, and the weird thing was I had discovered Phase 2 of the forest back then, and didn't install Phase 3 until maybe a week later. But I never went into the Birch. I thought it was ugly and crowded with plants. But now I think it's a very empty place and the best spot to be. I know actually, somewhat dislike the original forest area. It's not realistic enough for me. In fact I'm actually very happy I didn't ever officially explore the Birch Forest until sometime last year I think. I didn't know my way around, and it was weird to feel lost. But now I know my way around their too because I became so attached to it /:
Reading all of this just got my brain thinking. I hate knowing my way around though. It would be awesome if every day, the forest jumbled up and everything swapped round. Like, maybe the whole forest flipped over and everything became mirrored. I would just love to be in a different place again, haha...
this is nice to read. I'm not
And a bump for this because
Thanks everyone for the continuous fun and excitement, for giving me food for thought and just generally being thought-provoking.
I'm happy to see that my english has improved over that timespan. :B I hope the quality of these little texts doesn't take too much of the enjoyment away. I find it entertaining, if also painful.
Happy three years. ♥.
Thank you Misako! It's funny
It's funny how three years still doesn't feel like a whole lot.
Happy 3 Tefyear ...It was a
My first ones were really just like yours lol
First i was too afraid to approach anyone lol .
I was hiding behind trees so no one could see me .
But soon it become impossible to hide because every fawn was stalking mine
It took a little time to be less afraid ...and then the game got really wonderful ...i could't stop anymore lol .
And i am still there ...soon 2 years lol .
Thank you flyleaf! Haha yes.
Haha yes. I didn't walk towards any adults until my deer grew up
In other MMORPGs I wouldn't even have bothered trying to stay long enough for me to feel comfortable. TEF is different in that matter because I actually loved the concept enough to go through that bother.
Happy three years!! Wait,
Happy three years!!Wait, what?Happy four years!!
LOL I'm uber confused, you wrote fourth in that comment, butbut--
.. Happy three years!! :'''D
Three! Three done fourth
Normally i am really not a
But tef changed this ...i think it will be my only online game lol.
Other MMORPGs don't interest me .
Sadly i don't remember how i discovered this treasure ...
My Brain sucks lol .
-blonde moment pls- {Edit} I
{Edit} I often read about people being very timid when first joining, it seems I was the very opposite... After I read that fawns communicate by "running fast and roaring loud", that is exactly what I did. 8|
Lmao
Happy 3 years, Unplugged :> I
I was the same way when came to the Forest- didn't want to be that noob that didn't have a clue! Glad none of us sacred you off in those early 'anxious antisocial' stages. :'D The community wouldn't be the same if you weren't here, ya know?
<3
--[e] Was wondering when someone would say that they were the opposite of all the shy fawns. Gods know that every fawn wasn't a quiet, shy thing~
.
On the community I did spend
I'm not even sure how I managed the forest, actually. I think it's because I had an actually solid base of three or four forest friends (all of which aren't around anymore) to bridge the gap. I'm not sure how I would've done without them.
I think it's really funny how you get all these stories of shy newbies and then have all these curious fawns in the forest anyway!
Also lmao @ LittleNo. It makes sense though.
Half a year? Pfft, that ain't
^ Yus. I think I met a fawn that did the scared emote back at me instead of mooing at me. lol
.
Happy TEF anniversary~!! 8D
By Leuvr ♥
Happy TEF-anniversary!
Yay! Happy tefday♥
I find it interesting reading
Happy anniversary, Unplugged. <3
Happy third year. Thank you
I don't strive to be the best, but instead I strive to do my best, and always give it my all every time.
-faunet
Such a wonderful story and
Really magical! :3
Happy 3rd TEF Anniversary!
Dragon Scroll.
Avvie by me, siggy by Saosin
Apparanza-- Thanks! I already
GB-- Thanks!
Dinamo-- Thank youuu!
Lung-- Isn't it! I'd love to hear some stories of other players too at some point. Thanks.
eyestrain--
Deerth-- Haha thank you. : )
Baw, Unplugged, I am feeling
But, happy anniversary~
You're such a nice person whom always help everyone, thank you for that.
Maybe on my own 3rd year,
Happy three year anniversary!
I loved reading through your TEF memories. I remember that 'new' feeling and I would love to get it back too, everything seemed so much more I dunno... Mysterious? Interesting?
I still remember being convinced only stags could get up onto the playground rocks, since I could never figure out how to get my fawn up onto them. Thinking back on it just amuses me now, heh.