DDDDD (OOC and questions)
- Thread starter bastardlydastard
- Start date
Nemo of Utopia
CHYOA Guru
I'm thinking this is not going to be something I can keep doing over the long term. This story moves so fast at peak volume that if I try to even eat dinner during peak times I am completely left in the dust, but when I have time to participate to that degree I write a response and get no interaction for hours... I'm going to keep going at least till this time next week, but I'm just warning everyone, if it keeps going that same way that's going to be my Swan Song... (Sorry, but an RPG in which you can't effectively participate is not a fun RPG...)
bastardlydastard
Really Experienced
Arianna, the eldest daughter, is twenty. She was conceived the same year the duke and his wife were married.
The second oldest is 15, the third oldest is 10, and the youngest is about three weeks old.
moonblack
CHYOA Guru
Ah, okay, that's even better. Reana's words would have been quite different if it was young girl (not even in her teens yet) that was attacked. Thanks for the info.
A tiny bit of random feedback while waiting for the events to move forward:
So far I devide the story in three parts: One part I enjoyed, one part I didn't like at all, and the current part (still undecided about it).
A tiny bit of random feedback while waiting for the events to move forward:
So far I devide the story in three parts: One part I enjoyed, one part I didn't like at all, and the current part (still undecided about it).
bastardlydastard
Really Experienced
Which part did you like? And which part did you dislike?
moonblack
CHYOA Guru
The part I enjoyed was from the start to the moment Reana was intercepted by Allia. The current part is the new day – from receiving the letter to the current point. The part in-between them is what I did not enjoy.
At first I thought that the “main event” would be at the party and events happening away from it would be minor things that not everyone needs to know about. Then Reana got intercepted by Allia and it became crystal clear that the main plot behind the party had already taken place – offscreen. Reana had missed it completely, and due to in-character reasons she couldn't even ask the Duke what had happened (sometimes trying to stay in-character really sucks), so she had to wait until the next day. Quite the unpleasant surprise, especially since Reana barely got a chance to join the action. Looking back at what happened she had only a couple of opportunities:
- when introducing herself to the Duke and his wife, if she had tried (successfully) flirting with Leadnra and thus remained in her company until the Duke and Duchess had left and she had accompanied them. But it would be out-of-character to attempt such a thing (Reana is not Syleen, after all), and she even said (or rather, thought) so in one of my early posts (Besides, one should not try to seduce the Duchess right after meeting her, and with her husband right next to her. No need to tempt fate by doing rush things like that...)
- if she had followed the Duke and his wife when they left the party – but that too would be out-of-character, for a couple of reasons: 1) It would be rude of her to suddenly end her conversation with lady Rousseau and leave 2) A noblewoman like her suddenly rushing after the leaving Duke would likely not remain unnoticed and would almost certainly attract unwanted attention, which is something she would want to avoid
Probably her best opportunity to get involved with the main plot would have been if this post had been delayed by a few minutes. It would allow Reana to finish her conversation with lady Rousseau (within 1 or 2 posts at most) and then go speak to the Duchess some more, thus making it possible for her to follow along (or to get dragged along).
Additionally, if Reana had found out about the assassination attempt at that time this encounter would not have happened (or would have been very different) and during the meeting the next morning there would have been no need for her to ask what had happened, so her relationship with Allia would have been very different (not necessarily better, though).
The length of the above text is a pretty good indicator of how little I liked the way things went during that part of the story. I even wondered briefly if I should participate further, but eventually decided to see how much Reana would be told about what happened before making a final decision. In a game like this one being left in the dark for long is not fun (especially not at the very beginning), so had the conversation gone differently the second part of this post would have been Reana leaving (possibly permanently) instead of just hypothesizing about it.
Apart from the above the thing I like the least is... my own writing. I don't think I am doing a very good job with Reana's character so far.
At first I thought that the “main event” would be at the party and events happening away from it would be minor things that not everyone needs to know about. Then Reana got intercepted by Allia and it became crystal clear that the main plot behind the party had already taken place – offscreen. Reana had missed it completely, and due to in-character reasons she couldn't even ask the Duke what had happened (sometimes trying to stay in-character really sucks), so she had to wait until the next day. Quite the unpleasant surprise, especially since Reana barely got a chance to join the action. Looking back at what happened she had only a couple of opportunities:
- when introducing herself to the Duke and his wife, if she had tried (successfully) flirting with Leadnra and thus remained in her company until the Duke and Duchess had left and she had accompanied them. But it would be out-of-character to attempt such a thing (Reana is not Syleen, after all), and she even said (or rather, thought) so in one of my early posts (Besides, one should not try to seduce the Duchess right after meeting her, and with her husband right next to her. No need to tempt fate by doing rush things like that...)
- if she had followed the Duke and his wife when they left the party – but that too would be out-of-character, for a couple of reasons: 1) It would be rude of her to suddenly end her conversation with lady Rousseau and leave 2) A noblewoman like her suddenly rushing after the leaving Duke would likely not remain unnoticed and would almost certainly attract unwanted attention, which is something she would want to avoid
Probably her best opportunity to get involved with the main plot would have been if this post had been delayed by a few minutes. It would allow Reana to finish her conversation with lady Rousseau (within 1 or 2 posts at most) and then go speak to the Duchess some more, thus making it possible for her to follow along (or to get dragged along).
Additionally, if Reana had found out about the assassination attempt at that time this encounter would not have happened (or would have been very different) and during the meeting the next morning there would have been no need for her to ask what had happened, so her relationship with Allia would have been very different (not necessarily better, though).
The length of the above text is a pretty good indicator of how little I liked the way things went during that part of the story. I even wondered briefly if I should participate further, but eventually decided to see how much Reana would be told about what happened before making a final decision. In a game like this one being left in the dark for long is not fun (especially not at the very beginning), so had the conversation gone differently the second part of this post would have been Reana leaving (possibly permanently) instead of just hypothesizing about it.
Apart from the above the thing I like the least is... my own writing. I don't think I am doing a very good job with Reana's character so far.
Funatic
Really Really Experienced
Yep, had the names confused. Sorry about that.
I gotta be honest here though: Getting pulled away from something or pulled into something is probably a thing that will and (in my opinion) SHOULD happen in an RPG that is focused around noble courts. You don't get to witness everything and like in real life sometimes the world around you moves faster than you do. Allia was the only one that actually witnessed the assassination happening. It wasn't even a huge event in-game (Only like 5 messages) and you are involved in the consequences DIRECTLY. She sure as fuck wasn't needed either, she just happened to stumble into Vincent.
If this was an action RPG i would completely agree with you that getting isolated from the action sucks, but this isn't. If Reana had been involved Allia and Reana would never have had their little fight, a scene i greatly enjoyed for the realism of it. Giving everyone access to all events means less opportunities for those sly to lie, for those who are gullible to be fucked over or those who are honourable to run into problems with their morality.
I know this is probably not very convincing coming from somebody who was involved in the apparent event of the evening. However i have to strongly state this:
Assymetrical knowledge is a good thing if you try to simulate politics. Exclusion doesn't mean isolation in these things, only that somebody else holds the cards.
Just my two cents.
I gotta be honest here though: Getting pulled away from something or pulled into something is probably a thing that will and (in my opinion) SHOULD happen in an RPG that is focused around noble courts. You don't get to witness everything and like in real life sometimes the world around you moves faster than you do. Allia was the only one that actually witnessed the assassination happening. It wasn't even a huge event in-game (Only like 5 messages) and you are involved in the consequences DIRECTLY. She sure as fuck wasn't needed either, she just happened to stumble into Vincent.
If this was an action RPG i would completely agree with you that getting isolated from the action sucks, but this isn't. If Reana had been involved Allia and Reana would never have had their little fight, a scene i greatly enjoyed for the realism of it. Giving everyone access to all events means less opportunities for those sly to lie, for those who are gullible to be fucked over or those who are honourable to run into problems with their morality.
I know this is probably not very convincing coming from somebody who was involved in the apparent event of the evening. However i have to strongly state this:
Assymetrical knowledge is a good thing if you try to simulate politics. Exclusion doesn't mean isolation in these things, only that somebody else holds the cards.
Just my two cents.
bastardlydastard
Really Experienced
Thanks for your honesty.
I Can see how the way I set up events lead to your character sort of being shafted,(And not in the good way.) and I'm sorry about that. I should have set it up better. However, I do want to address two of your points.
Additionally, as funatic said, Asymmetrical knowledge is the backbone of this game. HOWEVER, I Implemented and communicated the concept poorly at the ball.
Come to think of it, I probably should have said all that at the start of the game. Sorry about that.
Again, sorry you had a bad time, I'll do my best to ensure it doesn't happen again.
I Can see how the way I set up events lead to your character sort of being shafted,(And not in the good way.) and I'm sorry about that. I should have set it up better. However, I do want to address two of your points.
I can understand how it would seem that way, but the assassination attempt was not the main plot at the ball. There were a total of five plot lines you could follow taking place at the ball, of which the assassination attempt was one. Admittedly, it was the most visible, but there were others occurring in the background. I dropped a few leads to one of the other plots right at the start, but you guys chose not to pursue them. That's not a bad thing, quite the opposite, in fact. When I was writing my notes for this game, my main focus was on multiplicity of outcome. There will never be just one plot for you to follow. If you go looking, you will find another.
Additionally, as funatic said, Asymmetrical knowledge is the backbone of this game. HOWEVER, I Implemented and communicated the concept poorly at the ball.
Come to think of it, I probably should have said all that at the start of the game. Sorry about that.
Personally, I think you are doing great with Reana's writing. She seems like someone who's domain is subtlety, and is also ever-so-slightly shy.
Again, sorry you had a bad time, I'll do my best to ensure it doesn't happen again.
Oh, I think I followed up another plotline.
bastardlydastard
Really Experienced
I can neither confirm nor deny that.
moonblack
CHYOA Guru
I would fully agree with you... if this wasn't at the very beginning of the game. Asymmetrical knowledge, getting pulled away from something or pulled into something, not witnessing everything, having multiple events that happen at the same time and having to choose which – if any – to get involved with... those are all things I expect to happen in the game... but later, not at the very start, when we haven't even had time to get familiar with the world and the characters, or get used to the system (I still need to remind myself that Reana has skills she can try to use, and I believe I forgot the trait I gave her during one roll - though I don't believe 1 point was going to make a difference there).
I guess each of us had different expectations for the beginning, and mine... fell a bit too off the mark, so to say.
Yeah, I remember one of the clues to that other plot. Reana had her attention focused elsewhere, so she just made a mental note of it, something to possibly ask about/investigate later.
As far as communicating things goes, I think I could have done a better job at communicating my expectations for a slower start of the game to ease us into things. That might have helped to avoid some of the issues. So I apologize as well.
This won't be an issue in the current part of the story, since I don't have any particular expectations about it (at least not yet).
Thank you, maybe I am being too critical of my own writing.Personally, I think you are doing great with Reana's writing. She seems like someone who's domain is subtlety, and is also ever-so-slightly shy.
Again, sorry you had a bad time, I'll do my best to ensure it doesn't happen again.
And don't worry about it, the bad time is now behind us.
Nemo of Utopia
CHYOA Guru
Ladies, gentlemen, I am afraid that I am dropping out. This was fun at first but as I suspected it might, it rapidly got moving too fast and nuanced for me to follow. I wish all of you good luck going forward.