This Test can permanently increase your Dexterity.
You may notice in your travels, ornate cages, spread across the land.
Coming from the cages can be heard a distinctive sound.
When you find one of these cages, gently remove a singing cicada from it.
Collect enough, bring them to the University of the Human Body, and you'll be given a cage of your own.
You may place this cage anywhere you think the little creatures will be happy.
You get points toward passing in two ways...
Each time you take a cicada from a cage, you get points based on how long it has been since someone else visited that cage.
When you have enough cicadas that you have collected from other people's cages...
And place a cage of your own...
You get a continuous stream of points, until all the cicadas are removed by other people.
Once per day, the three people with the highest scores get one point of deterity, permanently.
And in doing so, "spend" all their points.
Scientists have already placed about 150 of these cages across the land.
When the final cicada is removed from a cage, that cage crumbles to dust.
In the Test of the Singing Cicada, you'll be honing your dexterity by quickly finding an ever-changing collection of Singing Cicadas hidden in cages across the land. Score points each time you find a cicada cage, and automatically spend them when you advance your dexterity by having the highest score in Egypt. When you find enough cicadas, place a cage of your own for an effortless and continuous stream of points.
You can only take one cicada per cage. When you collect between 5 and 9 cicadas (It varies. See comments at the bottom of this page. Currently 8.), you can build your own cage at a UoB. The scientists then give you 7 cicadas to fill the cage. It takes 1 linen and 4 boards to place a cage.
Each cicada you collect is worth X points, where X = teppyminutes passed since last visitor. So, if someone finds a cicada cage, and a teppyhour later you find the same cage as that someone, a cicada from it = 60 points. When you set your own cage up, you will get 1 point per teppyminute, until the cage crumbles (all cicadas taken).
It is highly encouraged that you do not hide the Cicada Cages under large buildings like a Pyramid of the Distant Plains or a guild hall. This is not very cooperative with the community of Egypt - and may freeze any further progress towards passing this test.
On the other hand (evil) Pharaoh has been heard to state that cage owners are expected to hide them in unexpected locations, during testing placing cages within buildings was actually encouraged, although a better strategy is probably to place them in isolated locations, as a hidden cage in a built up area is actually fairly easy to locate by sound alone.
Pic on forums: http://www.atitd.info/forum/showthread.php?p=19379#post19379. Thanks Hawkeye.
Listen to the Cicada Sound: http://www.digitalarcanum.com/ars/atitd/cicadas.mp3. Hosted by olofath.
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comment: I thought hiding buildings under buildings was considered an exploit? -- silver
comment: In IRC, Teppy indicated that hiding in a building was fine. Something like, "Why do you think they make sounds?" Then, right after that he said, "No, scratch that. They must be visible." I dunno. --Jaby
In system tonight (June 20) said that he would be increasing audible range of cages tomorrow. -- Solalique
Additional: Range of sound is around 100 coords. You will likely hear the sound before you see the cage. -- Tribisha
I tested the range on one today (June 21), and it seems to be between 60 and 65 coords, about the same as the sight range. --Akh-Menhed
comment: Hiding them under buildings was certainly encouraged during testing... there was even an option in the "tests" menu to move a cage that you were standing close to (and could hear but couldn't see) out into the open - so that people wouldn't need to mess around with camera close-ups to grab a cicada from within a building. Not sure if that's made it into the live game or not - Shep.
comment: On IRC teppy said that placing a cage within a building, so it can't be seen, IS illegal/not allowed. Placing a cage within a vineyard, or a bonfire where it is partially visible was said to be ok, and even disgusing the cage (possibly with the use of a sculpture) is also allowed, as long as part of the cage is visible. At least that's what I understand from his comments in IRC. Similar in respect to "hiding" altars for bedouins. -- Tribisha.
Teppy's vacillating comments from IRC:
Jun 19 21:27:31 <Gentry> the longer your cage stays untouched, the more points the next player to remove a cicada will get
Jun 19 21:27:59 <Devalin> so build it, then move a buildign on top of it
Jun 19 21:28:26 <Gentry> devalin: that's not game-legal
Jun 19 21:29:08 <Teppy[eGenesis]> There's an option on your special menu to yoink a cage out from under a building, when you're near it.
Jun 19 21:29:30 <curtkram> oh. so its fair to hide the thing under a tent or gh?
Jun 19 21:29:30 <Teppy[eGenesis]> And why do you think they're SINGING cicadas?
Jun 19 21:29:39 <Teppy[eGenesis]> Yes, that's allowed.
Jun 19 21:31:04 <Teppy[eGenesis]> Actually, scratch that. We'll say that cages must be visible. (Though disguising them is fine.
Jun 19 21:32:05 <curtkram> it would have fit so well inside the gh
Jun 19 21:33:27 <Aidenn> Teppy, you'd better put something in the code to check visibility then... putting them inside buildings is the obvious strategy.
Jun 19 21:34:18 <Tamutnefret> Covering things is an exploit isn't it?
Jun 19 21:34:54 <Musk111> same rules as altars should apply
comment: The menu option to move a nearby cage made it into the live game. Also, when placing the cage, the build box with reposition and rotation buttons appears, but these buttons do not function. It places the cage where you stand. -- Solalique
comment: Teppy said the following during release of the test in Kemet. -- Alya
It seems in light of the "exploit" nature of placing entirely in buildings some players have taken it upon themselves to announce the coords of such cages they find. I'll be adopting this policy and I highly encourage people to play by the rules --Rhyddereh
Pharaoh: When you have enough (either 5,6,7,8,or 9, depending on the climate), you can make a cage of your own by going to the University of the Human Body.[...]
Pharaoh: And when you get to 7, you pass the Test. (You can actually go much higher than 7!)
You must wait 5 hours after you get a cage from a UBody before you can get another. ("The scientists want to be careful not to stress the bloodlines. Wait another X hours before starting another cage.")
Current speculation is that the test regulates itself to prevent outrageous gaming. When there are a low number of cages in Egypt, the university only ask for 5 cicadas to give a cage of 7, but when there are a large number of cages the university will require up to 9 cicadas before they give a cage of 7. See the 'climate' quote above from Teppy. --TpcT--
Please post your dexterity point progress on the Who Has Dexterity page.