Personification Life, the Universe, & Everything [closed]

[Northwest Slobovia]

Slo delayed til Sunday evening. Out of town. I'll move it along once I'm back. If you need Amanda freed let me know.

Tomorrow is fine. The tour group will eventually come through, which will spring my characters if I want them sprung.

[Giovenith]

We were discussing this meme in Discord, here it is OOC for better relevance:

What would your characters dress as for this Halloween?


Gio: A cute 1950s roller skates waittress
Willow: Baron Samedi

[Fvaarniimar]

Fina - frickin - ly managed a post! Thalia smiles upon us, so to speak.

Rmwtyliin: An ancestor if trying simply to use the closest Fvaarniimarn custom. A butterfly or bird, otherwise.

Nick: Quite possibly a statue or a scroll.

[Zarkenis Ultima]

So, I'd like to apologize for failing to post for a few days and potentially holding back the tour group. I spent my time with my brother last weekend and am somewhat busy with schoolwork, but I should be able to post on Thursday.

We were discussing this meme in Discord, here it is OOC for better relevance:

What would your characters dress as for this Halloween?


Gio: A cute 1950s roller skates waittress
Willow: Baron Samedi

I'm not sure what Meri would dress as. She would probably be very bewildered upon learning about Halloween

[Swith Witherward]

Minerva: Little Bo Peep
Her cultists: sheep
Myra: a really poor attempt at a Pennywise costume
Marcus: a ghost. You know, just a guy wearing a sheet with eye holes cut in it.
Hans: he'd probably be on duty with the other Men
Neste: would waste an hour trying to understand the concept, then we'd all waste another hour convincing her that "trick" does not mean "intro to genocide", and then she'd spend several hours trying to come up with a costume idea... thus missing the holiday completely.
Nila: read above.
Rodney: doesn't do fun

This is creative AF!
If we ever have a NS meetup, we should do this.

Seriously, RP withdrawal aside, I've discovered just how much I used to enjoy the real world. No-tech living has its perks. We're slowly getting into autumn out here, and I'd all but forgotten how nice tea tastes when sipped in front of a rain-streaked window. I remembered how much I used to enjoy going for a walk in the early morning fog after the kiddo leaves for school. There are fall festivals and Christmas festivals coming up, and cousins and sibs have plans for winter activities. I'm probably going to be spending less time online that I used to, tasking RP and NS stuff only a few hours instead of hours on end.

[Monfrox]

Brit: Fio Germi from Metal Slug
Kafka: "Do I have to?"

[Holy Lykos]

Sigtrygg: Santa Claus. He confused holidays and gives out presents instead.

Sterling: usually a historical figure from equestria

Etzic: much like neste, etzic would spend the holiday trying to figure it out. When he did, he'd possibly dress himself up as some sorta pincushion or spider web using his quills.

Venla: polar bear?

Maghrl: he'd create an overly elaborate costume involving robotics, to play an astromech Droid.

[Swith Witherward]

Has anyone watched the Netflix series Trollhunters? If not... what are you waiting for?

Alrighty, I'm gonna get one character into the IC, and reply to Gio and Fvaar. I don't want to run too many, as I've got to divide my time between NS and RL.

[Monfrox]

Has anyone watched the Netflix series Trollhunters? If not... what are you waiting for?

Alrighty, I'm gonna get one character into the IC, and reply to Gio and Fvaar. I don't want to run too many, as I've got to divide my time between NS and RL.

We will always be here. Don't worry. I'll need some help from either of you when you get a chance though. Novel stuffs.

[Tiltjuice]

Has anyone watched the Netflix series Trollhunters? If not... what are you waiting for?

Alrighty, I'm gonna get one character into the IC, and reply to Gio and Fvaar. I don't want to run too many, as I've got to divide my time between NS and RL.

That reminds me, I need to get on watching MLP.

Never enough time, is there?

[Chedastan]

Shoot, I need to get back to plosting as I normally do, this month just hasn't been that good for productivity on the IC or even the OOC. Fingers crossed I can get something out tomorrow at the earliest.

[Swith Witherward]

We will always be here. Don't worry. I'll need some help from either of you when you get a chance though. Novel stuffs.

I don't know how helpful Cer will be. He's behind on his workload because he couldn't work from home in the evenings. January is Deadline Hell.

HA! I was looking for an angry HB gif and found this...

Change 'moderate' to 'mentor' and it's perfect.

That reminds me, I need to get on watching MLP.

Never enough time, is there?

You have to catch up with Steven Universe first.



ALIGHTY...

Fall Festival!

This is a chance for our veterans to ease people into Bielefeld. We had several players join after the move to Galli.

Basically, the rules are simple:

• NPCs can not be spindled or mutilated. Treat Bielefeld as you would any major city, and keep in mind that the citizens are used to seeing weird shit.
  
• Talk to Cer if you want to add to the universe, please. Players can open up shops and run the NPCs in them. There's an app somewhere.
  
• You can find a setting description and shop listing in the archive. There is a lot of established canon for Bielefeld, but that means you have a lot of options for purchasing goods, finding food, getting information, etc.
  City: viewtopic.php?p=32592779#p32592779
  Business directory: viewtopic.php?p=32592996#p32592996
  
• I highly recommend reading the Building description, found here: viewtopic.php?p=32592579#p32592579

And a sitrep to follow...

[Swith Witherward]

SITREP UPDATE 27 OCTOBER 2017 CURRENT IC CONDITIONS Time: 11:30 AM (1130 hours) Weather: 52°F / 11.1°C Forecast: Clear skies in the morning followed by evening fog. Low 41°F / 5°C CURRENT GAME EVENTS Fall Festival in Bielefeld Future Stories: TBA REMINDER Information pulled from https://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?p=32569328#p32569328 and https://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?p=32559888#p32559888. PREMISE CHANGE We're dialing it back. It will mean mentally redacting, or the group itself accepting that parts of established canon are no longer canon. Our characters will still know there are Greater Beings (ie Demens, Pearlelei) but we will redact canon laid out since the last damn residents' meeting. We are no longer training for the God War. There isn't a God War, as far as our characters are concerned. We are still "Chosen", but our purpose is different. THE GAME MECHANICS Posting Players were frustrated because stories crawled along. People weren't posting. Stories died or were cut short. Solution Part 1: Life gets in the way. Poor manners are not an excuse. If you can not post for a while, withdraw your character from a story. If you are simply sick or going on holiday or studying for finals - communicate with us all via the OOC and grant permission for someone in that group to run your character. Take initiative if others in your group are not posting. Do not sign up for stories just because you're bored. Solution Part 2: PL IC posting frequency is, at minimum, twice weekly. For those that work long hours, weekends are the only time they are active. However, if people post during the week, the weekend players are able to drop short posts in on a weeknight, thus stories move. Yes, three-lines are perfectly fine for short posts. Give your fellow participants something to work with. Episodes Episodes are the missions, but also the downtime. The purpose is to get in, get out, move on in a timely manner - no more short adventures that last for months on end due to slow posting and complicated elements. Characters grow and evolve through action and realization. Yes, we'll see some antagonists. They may or may not tie into the overarching plot... meaning they serve as a means for character growth, not necessarily story growth. For player-run episodes: No long stories with side stories inside of side stories. Think of Min's "Booze-Run". Very simple story. Had players been active, we could have knocked it out in 2 weeks or less. Seasons This is the over-arching story unfolding. Each episode brings us closer to a season finale. (NOT a game finale.) If you've ever seen B5... this is how Cer runs his RP. There are a myriad of different stories each episode, but they all somehow tie in to the overarching plot. Romance, a character struggling to find himself, friendly rivalries between characters, political shit back home... you don't really think of it as building into something greater... and then you begin to see the patterns, and hear rumors of upcoming strife, and discover secrets which all point towards something terrifying and potentially game-ending. Players will NOT be given advance insight into the season. This is where the fun comes from. So, no, you the player do not need to know what the future holds. Trust your OP. You see, this is where things went south in both Epic and Abyss... players demanded to know shit in advance "so they could plan". When shit got changed due to other players tweaking their story elements or setting, or because I was unable to worldbuild in time, confidence was lost in the OP. "You said it would be this, and now it's that!" Time Time in Galli matches seasonal changes IRL, though not day by day. For example, the Fall Festival. This setting backdrop will run through November, and change to winter come December. Stories taking place in Galli will need to move and transition at that seasonal pace. This is how we kept PL light in the old days. Stories taking place via Gates will be out of sync with Galli time. That means that a long story that lasts 2 days IC (but 4 weeks OOC) might see characters leave in mid-fall to return in the winter. STORY MECHANICS Player-run stories were too complex for a "side adventure". Players began to resent missing out of things when trapped in a long-running story. It felt too disjointed... the stories were not contributing to the game's overarching purpose. There were too many characters in most stories. There was way too much description and side-stories within the stories. Solution Part 1: Treat Gate stories like a TV program episode. It should fit within a short time frame and build upon the overarching premise. The purpose is "get in, accomplish objective, get out". Example: Giovenith and Marcus are asked to run to 7-11 for a loaf of bread; along the way, they run into an agent from another Demens' team, and he asks them to pass a message on to the Galli group. The pair return with the bread. Now the group can eat before the next mission... a mission that arises because of the agent's news. If Giovenith and Marcus first visit the Asian market for magic bean paste, and also buy a mysterious scroll, and then take the scroll to an apothecary to see if they have magical ingredients, then battle some bad guys that try to take the scroll, and then go to 7-11... the group back home has starved, and players are pissed because their mission is delayed. Plus, the OP can't work in that Demen's agent without making it seem like an afterthought. Solution Part 2: no more than 3 characters on a team (including the GM's character) for sake of brevity. There will be times when a large group goes through a Gate, but this is reserved for special circumstances. Solution Part 3: No more collabs as the main means of roleplaying once the new IC and OOC go up, barring a special circumstance (Zalgofests, a major time skip for the thread, etc). It takes little effort to have a conversation in-thread, provided players make an effort to have three-lines in a post. It keeps the thread in motion. Players are allowed to post more often if they're having conversations. Solution Part 4: The "novel-writing" is what keeps many people from posting more than once every few weeks. They do NOT have time to digest massive posts, nor formulate an appropriately lengthy reply. They end up giving reaction shots and then lose track of the objective. If an element isn't crucial to the story, skip it. Nobody cares if John the NPC is using a sterling silver spoon fashioned by alien slugs' acidic bubblegum... especially if the spoon is not a focal point and only just a prop to make John look busy. Solution Part 5: We go back to "Run it by the OP first". Cer determines if something will work. Also, as in the 'bread example' above, he might insert an NPC into that story to further the overarching plot. If there's one thing players always seem to miss, it's the OP treats. He tucks them in, and people don't act upon them... they get too busy with their own stuff. Here's how it works: (Absurd Level example) 1. Beckett is building a Plot Device. He needs a McGuffin. The character doesn't go on missions due to physical limitations. 2. Venla's world has a McGuffin. Lucky, that! Cer asks NA to run the story. 3. NA takes two characters through a Gate to acquire the McGuffin. 4. On their way back to the Gate, someone shoves a Doorstop Baby into Venla's arms. 5. The team returns. The McGuffin goes into the Plot Device. The Baby goes to Volker. 6. A week later, Volker asks Minerva to lead a team through a Gate to get the Doorstop Baby back to his proper Time and Dimension. It's ancient Egypt, and he belongs in a basket on the Nile. 7. On the way back to the Gate, a slave offers the team an old scroll in trade for a bite to eat. 8. The team returns, and the scroll goes to Sandy. Oooh magic potion that turns someone invisible? Sounds like an adventure to get ingredients...

[Cerillium]

I've skimmed twice but I don't see that I owe any posts. Do I?

[Primordial Luxa]

I've skimmed twice but I don't see that I owe any posts. Do I?

I need approval of my app. I haven't posted yet because I can't. I wanted to get prom done before I made insidious and Aegis.

[Giovenith]

I've skimmed twice but I don't see that I owe any posts. Do I?

I need approval of my app. I haven't posted yet because I can't. I wanted to get prom done before I made insidious and Aegis.

You can post for them before the apps are done. Most people have been.

[Primordial Luxa]

I need approval of my app. I haven't posted yet because I can't. I wanted to get prom done before I made insidious and Aegis.

You can post for them before the apps are done. Most people have been.

Well...shoot.

[Tiltjuice]

You can post for them before the apps are done. Most people have been.

Well...shoot.

*hands over a stack of bamboo shoots*

[Primordial Luxa]

Well...shoot.

*hands over a stack of bamboo shoots*

Are there any particular recommendations for what I could do with Primordial? Any events that might be interesting to involve him in or things that need to be accomplished in the meantime?

[The Templar High Council]

Inspired by Temp:

What would mean success right now for your character? Not a "I have no goals left" level of success, but a few short-mid term goals (more unique to them than "do well on missions") which would result in them feeling accomplished for a considerable while and move them forward in some manner.

Rmwtyliin: Unassisted fluency in English and an understanding of local cultural quirks.

Oh hey, I contributed without even being here yet. Woot woot.

App tough. Need help.

Sentiments echoed.

How's that for tagging while also adding something (slightly)!?

Honestly I've been mentally stuck with my character app. Promise that I'm trying but things continue to rear heads at me.

[Holy Lykos]

As I showed on the discord, have some art of Sigtrygg, all modern norse as he looks in PL right now!

[Fvaarniimar]

Inspired by Temp:

What would mean success right now for your character? Not a "I have no goals left" level of success, but a few short-mid term goals (more unique to them than "do well on missions") which would result in them feeling accomplished for a considerable while and move them forward in some manner.

Rmwtyliin: Unassisted fluency in English and an understanding of local cultural quirks.

Oh hey, I contributed without even being here yet. Woot woot.

App tough. Need help.

Sentiments echoed.

How's that for tagging while also adding something (slightly)!?

Honestly I've been mentally stuck with my character app. Promise that I'm trying but things continue to rear heads at me.

We feel your pain.
We definitely feel your pain.

[Giovenith]

*hands over a stack of bamboo shoots*

Are there any particular recommendations for what I could do with Primordial? Any events that might be interesting to involve him in or things that need to be accomplished in the meantime?

BP's the scholarly type, he could join the Research team in the library.

[Monfrox]

I think now would be a good time to mention that I’ve been planning that mind trip side story and, with approval, I’d like to run it soon. I’ll ask if anyone wants to come along now, here, for the sale of the announcement. I don’t have any total restrictions or rules except for the following:

1. The mind trip does not require you to know Brit as a character ICly but would be preferred both ICly and OOCly.

2. The mind trip is exactly what it sounds like and while I’m keeping everything in a vague sort of line, there is an honor system here since accessing one’s inner psyche can allow you to do a lot to that person. I feel like this goes without saying, but I’ll say it anyway: please do not fuck with anything that can have dire consequences like using powers to change things outside the cognition.

3. I’m keeping this a very small group with a maximum of four, maybe five characters to go on. A smaller group means less waiting and faster posting (theoretically at least).

If you have questions and desire to know more, please contact me via PMs over Discord. I can reply in a much timelier fashion that way as I’m about to go tonsleep.

Do we still have that app for stories anymore or no?

[Swith Witherward]

*hands over a stack of bamboo shoots*

Are there any particular recommendations for what I could do with Primordial? Any events that might be interesting to involve him in or things that need to be accomplished in the meantime?

Bielefeld is right outside the door, and it's festival season.

I think now would be a good time to mention that I’ve been planning that mind trip side story and, with approval, I’d like to run it soon. I’ll ask if anyone wants to come along now, here, for the sale of the announcement. I don’t have any total restrictions or rules except for the following:

1. The mind trip does not require you to know Brit as a character ICly but would be preferred both ICly and OOCly.

2. The mind trip is exactly what it sounds like and while I’m keeping everything in a vague sort of line, there is an honor system here since accessing one’s inner psyche can allow you to do a lot to that person. I feel like this goes without saying, but I’ll say it anyway: please do not fuck with anything that can have dire consequences like using powers to change things outside the cognition.

3. I’m keeping this a very small group with a maximum of four, maybe five characters to go on. A smaller group means less waiting and faster posting (theoretically at least).

If you have questions and desire to know more, please contact me via PMs over Discord. I can reply in a much timelier fashion that way as I’m about to go tonsleep.

Do we still have that app for stories anymore or no?

Run the details by Cer. He'll want a story overview.

I recommend no more than 2 characters/players for it. The larger the group, the greater the chances of your story getting fucked over because someone doesn't post. We're trying to keep Galli time in sync with real life (mainly holidays), as that was one of the issues players brought up when Cer polled them, so a gate might be a good alternate if you think things will move slowly.

Some Minty advice...

These game story types/arcs aren't bad, but we have to be careful that our character doesn't become the star/hero. For example, when Charu died and characters had to go to the Void to find matrix material, they were the center of the story. Charu went from character to plot element. In Gio's recent story, we were to help with Willow's timeline but each character stood apart as the hero while having the chance to not only fight but also examine their own psyche. When Marcus was ill, Gio had the opportunity to focus on her character's feelings and growth, as she was exploring Giovenith's maturing factor at the time. The reverse of that... when Septimus had his breakdown, Neste focused on him but it was tit-for-tat... Agy and I traded the spotlight between us several times to lay down char dev and backstory and, later, Neste's death was a planned tool to reset old canon that didn't work for PL.

Those last examples aside, our focal/plot point character becomes a quasi-NPC so we can create an entertaining game where the players' characters should at all times be the protagonists.

The approach I use when I'm working on a story that singularly serves to develop my character: I make it clear that I need help, and that this will be more of a collaborated story than a game. I'm the lead on it, as it's my character. My fellow collaborators and I talk things out before posting. "This is what I need your character to do" etc. Everyone is aware of the plot and upcoming elements. It's not "played" as much as it's written and rewritten.



Why does autocorrect turn "arcs" into "archs"? I just noticed that.