Places to Play: Serenity Lost

Since I had featured so many sims with a twist toward the darkside, I had planned on doing one that was a bit more light of heart. That idea went down when I was asked to drop in on the new Serenity Lost. Sim owner, Trina Carlsson, had just finished a redesign and since I have an affinity for the type of roleplay featured there, I had to see. Needless to say, I liked! If free-style Predator/Prey play is your kink, or you need a place to snap some shots with a hint of menace, you just might like it too!

SERENITY LOST: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/isle%20of%20misfits/252/16/25

Trina Carlsson, owner, Serenity Lost

Tell us about the SL journey of Trina Carlsson that led to the creation of Serenity Lost?

    Trina -"You can take the girl out of the trailer park, but you can't get the trailer park out of the girl" was an often heard saying where I grew up and coming from the wrong side of the tracks automatically earned you a 'White Trash' title.  My problem was that I had some smarts hiding behind a pretty face, and quickly learned that I could make a lot of money living up to arbitrary title bestowed on me.  So I spent some time working the clubs and escorting before I had enough money saved up to where I thought I could make a better life for myself somewhere else.  'Best laid plans' and all you know. 

Anyway, long story short, I ended up in some dive bar, in a no where town called Serenity Lost.  The bartender there must have slipped me a roofie or something because the next thing I know, I'm locked up in a cell in the local asylum.  Eventually, I was able to buy my way of out of there, but since I already 'knew too much' I was a risk to their operation.  Some fast talking and a couple of romps later, and I was running the show!  I mean seriously...behind every successful man there is a woman telling him what to do!

Ayara Illios in the Town

How, and why did you create Serenity Lost? By the way, it is huge!

    Trina -Serenity is big!  It is a full sim sized playground above ground, and most of the buildings have multiple levels.  We also have an area of the sim, about 1/3 of it, that we call the 'Underground'.  Basically, this is a catacomb type area that lies hidden beneath different parts of the sim.  The 'how' of Serenity is easy....time, money, and a lot of work!  The 'why' on the other hand....  Serenity started out on a private homestead and was originally planned to be more of a personal playground.  I couldn't find anywhere I really enjoyed playing.  As it started to come together, I realized there really wasn't anyplace quite like it, and decided that it should be shared for everyone to enjoy.

Ravnous Black, at one of several shacks

What are some of the must see highlights?

    Trina -Its really hard to single out different parts of the sim as 'must see's.  Serenity is more of a 'package deal'.  Everything here has a reason for being where it is, from the elaborate to the seemingly insignificant.  Just walk down main street.  The stores do not stand out as anything particularly significant, but you know they are, and you feel like you are really there as you walk down this deserted street towards the only, seeming, sanctuary you are going to find in this place.  But, if I did have to pick something in particular, I would definitely recommend the underground....it wows most everyone that find their way down there.

Krystal Steal outside the Asylum

I noticed there are no balls to hop, and the items for play are loaded. What went into doing that, and what designers do you use?

    Trina -That was a major project and it took a lot longer than we had hoped to complete.  Basically, we had to build or rebuild every piece of furniture on the sim from scratch.  We have a number of items from HSF Erotics, BH Animations, and Sadiana, just to name a few.  However, you wont be able to buy most of these items as you find them at Serenity, besides having their balls cut off (lol), you wont find much here with cuddles in it.  We also have a ton of stuff that you wont find anywhere else in SL. We built it ourselves; to fit a specific need we had when we remodeled the sim.

Valeria Feiri, yes, more buildings!

How long did it take to build Serenity Lost, and how much help did you have?

    Trina -I think the better question here would have been 'Will it ever be done?'  Serenity has been here for just over 2 and a half years, and I do not think a single day has gone by where we have not been working on something to try and improve the sim, our processes, or our guests enjoyment.  We recently remodeled the entire sim, so what you're seeing now is all new within the last month or so.  We spent roughly 6 months building the remodeled version at a remote location.

Once we had everything how we wanted, we closed Serenity, moved everything over from the remote sim, and opened up again inside 48hrs!  As for help, I used to try and do everything myself, but I've learned that my way isn't always the best, so without the help of my staff, various creators of items on the sim, and ideas from the group, Serenity would not be what it is today.  I've had a lot of help, and thank everyone that has had a part in making Serenity.  You know who you are! =)

Shadow Heinkel in the massive dungeon

What are your future plans for Serenity Lost?

    Trina -Every day at Serenity is a new adventure for us, giving us new ideas, new challenges, and struggles to overcome.  Over the last two and a half years, I would like to think we have learned a lot, and that we have done our best to make changes that help improve Serenity and our guest's experiences here.  Obviously we intend for that to continue, but its more of an ongoing thing than a future plan I guess.  Since we completed the sim remodel, our focus has turned more towards the capture system.  What we have is unique and works well, but its not perfect, and we have found a lot of things that can be improved upon.  I can't really elaborate on any new features yet because...the new system has not been fully realized in our minds yet.  Usually, we will ask for suggestions and try and keep our members informed about whats going on through group notices and the website, which can be found at www.test.serenitylost.net/home

Shadow and Nakuru Bergamasco

Spirit Demure-Rust, the Asylum

The sim is really nice for photography. Did you take that in consideration while creating it?

    Trina -Nope, not even for one second.  We spent a lot of time trying to make something that feels real, something that you could maybe stumble across in real life.  Really, we're building an experience here I think, its not one that many of us would probably enjoy in RL though.....its scary...dangerous...and something you might not come back from.  Even in a virtual world, the scariest monsters the ones that don't really look like monsters!  Being nice for photography was just a bonus I guess. =)

You are chained to a post and out of the shadows emerges that last person on Earth you would want to see...who is it, and why? :)

    Trina - Just one?  I'm pretty sure it would only take a minute or two for a group to form.  As much as I love them, I would have to say.....any of my staff members.  Payback is a bitch, or so I'm told....and most of them have something to get me back for I'm sure!  I am also reasonably certain one in particular is already plotting her revenge for my repeated group calls and offers to keep her tied up and ready for anyone that wanted a turn at her! =p

SERENITY LOST SNAPSHOT

Fees:
    Group membership is 250L$.  After that everything is provided for free with the exception of a few optional items.

Type of Roleplay: 

    The RP is generally of a forced nature.  Rape, forced sex, abuse, kidnapping, ect.  We don't really have an 'official' back story that people are required to learn or follow....I've never been one to try and tell people what they have to RP here....or make them follow some story we created....I don't feel like its my right to tell them what they should enjoy.  However, a lot of our guests have suggested that they would like to see that kind of thing...so...we came up with the idea, that we would leave some vague, little clues around the sim as to what happened here....what led to the demise of our quaint little town....from there they can formulate their own ideas as to what the back story to Serenity is.

Equipment:

    We use a custom capture system that gives our predators the ability to easily control their victim without any knowledge of RLV.  There is a hud for victims, and one for the predators. 
    We have free cuffs available for our victims that do not have their own, and a free plugin for Mesmerize Dungeon V4 cuffs and Real Restraints cuffs for those that wish to use their own.  We will be bringing back support for OpenCollar cuffs with a free plugin in the very near future, that plugin should also provide support for OpenNC cuffs. 
We have some optional dart guns that can be used by both predators and victims.  These come in both paid and free versions, the free ones being hidden around the sim.  All of our guns use the same ammo and the darts can be purchased at various spots around the sim.

Music:
    Always some form of rock or metal.  As of late, the stream we are playing varies from classic rock, to the 90's 'hair' bands, to modern metal.
   
   
Events:
    Typically, we do not have a lot of events at Serenity unless you consider some of spontaneous group orgies, or a member of the staff getting captured and offered to the entire group, an event.  I guess I feel like, if we do a lot of events, that is what we start to become known for, and that is what people start to coming for.  Of course, that doesn't stop us from throwing a big party every now and then!  Just a week or so ago, we had a post Halloween/Grand Re-opening party to celebrate the remodel of the sim.  That one lasted a little over 9hrs, from the time we turned the stream over to the DJ until we took it back and resumed our normal activities!

Rez Rights:
    Rez rights, scripts, and the ability to set Serenity as 'Home' are limited to group members.