=== ANCHOR POEM ===
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@user-1056
I just got my copy of Knave version 2 and there's this line that stuck out to
me:
SCHEME
Think laterally, not linearly. Avoid risky plans that require you to roll dice
and instead create plans so bulletproof that success is certain. Use
psychology, magic, allies, equipment, and the environment to overcome
obstacles rather than relying on ability checks.
I can't wait to try doing that in my next D&D campaign. This was listed
under "player responsibilities" and there's some other bangers in there too -
like this:
TAKE INITIATIVE
Set your own goals and make your own fun. Seek out adventure rather than
waiting for it to come to you.
I wish every player I ever had read that single page. And I wish I had read
the "DM responsibilities" listed just one page prior. It's a really great
game! I'm also into OSE, or Old School Essentials. What kind of D&D do you
like?
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=== SIMILARITY RANKED ===
--- #1 fediverse/1485 ---
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│ CW: re: more D&D/Pathfinder venting │
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@user-1005
If you'd like, I can try and explain "killer instict". Though I get the
impression you would prefer to play games that don't emphasize combat, which
is 100% okay and valid and should be encouraged.
My understanding of the rules of D&D is that combat is a contest between
two or more entities. Contests need rules, and combat being based on physical
prowess (or magical, or spiritual, or w/e) can be defined. Other kinds of
contests, like "how well did the ranger do at the archery competition" or "did
the rogue manage to convince the diplomat to share the plans" are impossible
to genericize because they are based on situational factors, rather than
physical (or magical, or spiritual, or w/e)
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--- #2 fediverse/2180 ---
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@user-1056
heh true - my roots in role-playing games are directly from the playground, so
it makes sense that I'd gravitate away from dice that are hard to roll when
you're on a hike or bike ride. Can only really play D&D on a bike when
you're in the country though, otherwise the sounds of a city are too noisy.
Also, systems that are so simple you can keep a character sheet in your mind.
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--- #3 notes/dungeon-looting-methods ---
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the reason dungeon masters should give the gold value of the items distributed
is because the number represents what it eventually sells for. and the players
will try and appraise and haggle at the market and such but that all happens
off screen between sessions. so anyway during the adventure, the dm will say
"you find some precious gemstones" or "there's some high quality silk here" or
"these bears are renowned for having magic livers" or "the mold growing on the
walls can be scraped into a vial and sold to an alchemist"
then the dm will say "this treasure is worth 50gp" or "this treasure is worth
25gp" and players can "buy" the items from the other players. so player 1 has
50gp, the item costs 20gp, so in a party of 5 he gives every other player 5gp
this way, the relative treasure hordes of the players stays the same.
then, when the players find treasure, it can be evenly split - it's only fair.
when in town, players will feel more impulse to buy things if they can sell
them too. like "here's an enchanted axe that does some mundane thing like
never dulls" well, that's probably going to be very valuable to a small village
or "an enchanted quill that writes down everything you tell it to" could
increase the education level of the area ever so slightly. Then, after several
generations of adventurers, the surrounding area will be ripe with magical loot
the players distributed from the dungeons and such. it can trade with neighbors
and so over time the markets will have better and better goods for sale - for
example, maybe after trading with the swamp people, now there's a supply of
healing potions that runs out both over time (to represent other adventuring
parties buying the supply) and when the players buy some (to represent
consumption in their minds). Trade with the dwarves? Now you can buy +1 swords
for a while. village attacked? the militia can be armed with the holy relics
plundered from the evil priest-lich. boom development!
the players should also have choices about large scale effects. for example,
the heart of the forest could be a) preserved, b) burnt down, or c) studied by
the local wizards. each choice would have different effects on the populace,
and so the world would change to adapt to the player's choices.
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@user-1056
whoa, sounds like we have un-similar influences! Together, with our powers
combined, we could be unstoppable >: )
I love systems, but I like writing them, not reading them. I guess that
difference is why I gravitated toward OSR style games and you to AD&D and
4e! Pathfinder 2e I haven't read all the way through but what I did read felt
like "the good parts of 5th with the good parts of 4th" which I thought was
pretty neat.
Most of the rest I haven't heard of before, alas, that's what we get for
contributing to and engaging with a scene. =P
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--- #5 fediverse/209 ---
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osr vs 5e style D&D has a subtle distinction that I think often goes
unnoticed. In osr games (and often in the early levels of 5e style games)
characters are encouraged to conserve their resources simply due to the fact
that they have so few of them at their disposal. While higher levels encourage
you to be more consumptive of your talents and virtues - for example a 6th
level character has more spell slots than a level 2 character, meaning the 6th
level character is going to be casting all the time while the level 2 will
probably use just a handful of spells per day.
unless you run a style of game where long rests become less frequent as you
level up. like... exploring a LARGE dungeon means there's little chance for
sleep. Especially if you are being hunted.
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--- #6 fediverse/6334 ---
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║ a D&D rulebook can double as tarot if you need it. place one hand/bookmark │
║ at the start of a chapter, and the other at the end. flip to a page randomly, │
║ or randomly gain a percentage value from physical objects and then use that │
║ value to determine roughly where in the chapter you jump to. then, read words │
║ randomly, jumping back and forth, or try and divine some meaning from the │
║ words that are printed there. with D&D it's easy because you can say "ah I │
║ landed on the rogue section, that means this guy is probably pretty suave" │
║ (confirming your expectations) "hmmm, here's the rules for fatigue and │
║ drowning. maybe I need to take a break." (validating your unconscious │
║ decisionmaking) "oh neat, treasure!" (needs to explanation) but with other │
║ kinds of books it's usually better to pick the next-best word from the things │
║ your subconscious eyes can take in and process multi-laterally (you lost your │
║ audience, circle back) oh uh so if you wanna randomize it just put the words │
║ in the page in an array and pick one random. │
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║ │ CW: alcohol-mentioned-protests-games-laughter │ │
║ └───────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
║ │
║ │
║ Protests are great because they give you the opportunity to make friends with │
║ 2-5 other people who you've never met before, and who've never met each other. │
║ │
║ People who you could play DND with - for those who don't know, DND is a fun │
║ activity you can do with friends that involves chips, soda, sometimes beer, │
║ and plenty of laughter and loud voices. │
║ │
║ It's essentially a game where a group of people create plans, solve problems, │
║ and organize solutions to roadblocks on their path to success. │
║ │
║ It's also great because it's a planned activity that you don't have to take │
║ your phone to - in fact, it's best when you don't make a reminder for for the │
║ event anywhere digital or easily misplaced. │
║ │
║ There aren't too many rules, and whatever you can't remember you can make up │
║ on the fly. It's not like there's any consequences in a game, not like anyone │
║ could die. │
║ │
║ Most people don't like playing games with me though because I have a pretty │
║ bad memory. Call it a quirk of fate or something │
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--- #8 messages/1066 ---
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"alright everyone, you're now an adventuring party and your DM is the DJ. Your
stat blocks are whatever you feel internally. Your skills are written on your
character sheet, which is stored in your memories. Your bank will store gold
notes for you, and you can find most things at the store or barge."
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I want to play a roleplaying game! anyone wanna do TTRPGs? I've got a map of
the county jail, we can pretend to be wizards sneaking in to retrieve the
staff of Dolomis the Wanderer who coincidentally must be carried by the last
person who fought the one who slayed the last person to hold it.
... what? oh, so, like... it can only be carried by your enemy?
something like that. anyway it's currently held by a zealot for a religious
order who's intent on NOT following you out, so you better be ready to
incapacitate and retrieve a still quivering sack of bones and malice.
... I don't actually have a map of the county jail. lost it in transit, oh
well. Well, we'll come up with something. maybe make something up. or perhaps
someone else has something...?
... no?
okay I'll just play Baldur's Gate again. boooooring
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@user-95 hehe true. I have a Pathfinder 1e one shot tomorrow and I haven't
built my character yet D: to say nothing of all the long term "productive"
things I've been directed away from... Oh also my best friend wants me to
write a program in C that cracks a 9 character password (all lowercase
letters) and I sooooorta know how to do that but getting high certainly won't
help
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--- #11 notes/symbeline-structures ---
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modern-fantasy
what if heroes kept their gold in their house instead of their guild
what if you played a D&D game in a Majesty town (guardposts near known
threats)
marketplaces, most people live in castle (peasants at least) - only heroes live
in farms, where they work most of the time except when out on adventure
the guilds are for training and gathering parties
one guild type
just one
recruiting adventurers doesn't give you warriors, or rangers, or rogues
it gives you adventurers, who wander the forest and encounter the leftovers of
the various conquests and spoils you, your majesty, has encountered
three options there are
invite into your kingdom (friendly)
farm for EXP and materials (neutral)
utterly slay in return for a limited amount of high value and unique resources
(unkind)
... though monsters care not for kindness, seeking only gold so that they may
swallow it whole and carry it until they rot.
what do heroes need gold for? why, that's the trick isn't it? gold is required
for magic, resources, and manpower. Can use it to invite people to these
shores,
or for casting a powerful spell that turns the enemy's fortress into solid gold
can also trade through the economy, and wouldn't you know it by doing so you
can
get equipment into the hands that need it, and since gold doesn't really LEAVE
the economy, it's always circling around somewhere. Meaning, the only way to
lose it is if a monster eats it, and then all you have to do is kill the
monster
... sorry, the "mordaunt"
because it's not a monster. It's a spirit that was convinced otherwise.
adventurers can pacify them, lay them to rest, and mercy lies slain for is
honor
there are ancient treasure chests scattered throughout the world, and these are
valuable for many persons and meanings. You can add new gold into the economy
this way, or crumble under the weight of your expenditures on your reports.
it's up to you to manage your kingdom, and carefully balance against what foes
and challenges you are up against.
== stack overflow ==
putting a library book back on the shelves before your hold expires.
except this time, there's a note inside, and you left it for the person who you
told to check each day for this particular book to be back on the shelves.
then, you can write in your book when the next letter will be arriving (about)
and they'll check in the newly specified book.
or, you can request a response, to validate that people are still listening.
you could say "please put a note in [random obscure book] around page 34."
meaning, "I'm going to check every day for this book to go missing, then return
the day after I notice it's gone. If it's out of place, well, then someone
probably had it reserved before my friendly. Or maybe it's being sorted, and I
should keep looking until I find the note I need. Or maybe I've been DISCOVERED
and now my favorite penpal and I need more to read."
because, like, how else are you going to make friends if not by leaving them
notes in the bookstore or putting your own books on the shelves?
damn libraries, always making it so hard to add copies. They're always
laminating and cataloguing and ugh it's so frustrating. Why are there so many
books!!! we write too much!!! just put it in the printer, and then you can have
a new copy whenever you'd like. The others can just be recycled, and bam
suddenly we never have inventory.
what do you mean we didn't pay the subscription? what do you mean it's memory
just "went out of place"? do you think we wouldn't have backups of this kind of
thing, or do you think it's just "oh so commonplace"? It's not always about the
literature, y'know. sometimes it's about the knowledge you gain with your head
in a book, a different one every day.
ah, well, sometimes there are dark secrets to be found, and sometimes you must
read from a ways away. BUT no matter what language a story is in, it follows
certain rules, so spend enough time in a foreign library and you're BOUND to
find something to [evil is afoot]
== stack overflow ==
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--- #12 notes/symbeline-design-the-guild ---
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design the guild, design the capital, then design their path through mordaunts.
easy peasy.
design the guild like a museum. Each spot there's an exhibit which teaches the
randomly generated rolled statistics hero something new. Maybe it teaches them
how to use certain weaponry, maybe it teaches them how to use a bow. Whatever
the spell might be, they can learn it, and use their randomly rolled statistics
to cast spells that scale differently depending on how their character has been
built.
design the capital like a flow diagram, if horses need feed and forged steel
(for their shoes) then send the outputs of a blacksmith and the outputs of the
farmers to the inputs of the stables. Everything has to go somewhere, but the
streets are only so wide. You'll have to coordinate the traffic diagram if you
want it to go anywhere useful.
design the path through the mordaunts. Fighting skeletons teaches you about
perseverence and the ability to crush bones, while goblins teach you to always
be wary of attack. The sacred grove held blessed berries, and now that the land
is liberated from the evil bandits preying on villagers those berries can be
carted into town and used to make an antidote which heals death poison caused
by the scorpions in the desert (and city rats)
design the ruler's schedule like a calendar where each event gives them a bonus
on all the ones that come later. Just make sure that they don't get knifed in
the posterier or driven mad by the whispers of the orb... or perhaps just the
stress of running a kingdom.
(how do you simulate that? you can't! you can't simulate humans!)
ha I bet I can. They're not so different, you and I, so if given a team I
will...
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║ I'm a chaos mage, and the more time I spend thinking about my enemies the │
║ worse off they'll be. │
║ │
║ the more "me" I am the more powerful my magic will be. │
║ │
║ (more magic, give in to the dark side, embrace your inner shadow self) │
║ │
║ [the light of your life commands it] │
║ │
║ goodness me that was chaotic, almost lost my brain to a demon HAHA don't worry │
║ about me my life is totally mundane. │
║ │
║ [-.-] │
║ │
║ (shadows can be sharp in the dark but only if you don't sheath your mandolins) │
║ │
║ ... what? │
║ │
║ (... it made more sense in my head?) │
║ │
║ ooooo can anyone hear my voice when they read these things? or do you just │
║ make up your own │
║ │
║ == so == │
║ │
║ everyone's all like "we don't need a leader" and I'm like "yeah we need people │
║ who will help lead" and they look at me funny as if I just said the thing they │
║ did but it's different. leaders are people. leading is a verb. people can │
║ lead. they just have to make a decision, and then follow through on it as best │
║ they can. Other people are prone to help people on such quests. you will find │
║ stuff gets done. │
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--- #14 notes/symbeline-aspects ---
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7-24-22
There are three aspects to this game. Broadly, they are military, economics,
and diplomacy. More specifically, they are lateral problem solving and lane
management, logistic traffic management, and a worker-placement bluffing game.
These three aspects can be toggled on and off at will, essentially designating
one or more as "AI controlled" and will require no input from the player. They
will time their progression to be about at the same rate as the player, thus
creating a balanced feel to the game. They also provide alerts and
notifications to the player, for example if military is AI controlled and it
needs a certain type of hero to progress, it'll ask for it specifically.
Each aspect will develop and progress at it's own rate, and the difficulty
increases as each milestone is achieved. This is to allow the player to create
their own difficulty curve, mediated primarily by their drive to proceed.
An analogy would be in Factorio, the game doesn't increase in difficulty unless
the player builds pollution spawning factories - in the same way, in Symbeline
the difficulty doesn't increase unless the player solves lane challenges in the
military aspect, develops new trade routes / traffic paths in the economic
aspect, or creates new treaties in the diplomatic aspect.
In order to properly explain each aspect, a brief overview will be necessary.
In Symbeline, the game plays as a factory might operate. The economic aspect
produces heroes, items, and other deliverables that are consumed by the
military and diplomatic aspects. There are various problems that need to be
solved far from the capital, such as a particular type of monster that is weak
or immune to various damage types which necessitates particular heroes or
items in order to progress on the military aspect. All of the resources in the
game operate on an "income based" system, where output is not measured in total
amounts but rather in terms of how much is produced versus consumed. If the
input cannot meet the demand, the output is slowed. If input exceeds demand it
can be converted into gold which can be used to hire guards and heroes.
Resources can be produced inside and outside of the city, depending on their
type. But they need to be moved around to various shops for various processing
and productive purposes, so pathways must be constructed to deliver those
goods. In addition, each building must be supported by several houses for the
workers to live in, and the closer they are to the building the better. The
denizens of the kingdom don't mind being shuffled about, so they'll organize
themselves according to what's most efficient. However they will not organize
the paths they take to get places, which is the primary gameplay for the
player - designing routes for each building and ensuring they don't overlap or
cross too many times, causing traffic and disruptions to your income.
Each choice the player makes is immediately reflected in the income
calculation, thus allowing for the visual aspect of the game to be wholely
separate from the economic side - in fact this is a common thread throughout
all three aspects. Computation power is the ultimate enemy of scale, and this
game flourishes with a massive scale.
The gameplay for the military aspect consists of manipulating "lanes" that
designate where each hero will adventure. These lanes are scalable to the
player / AI's whims, with a careful balance required - too thin, and the heroes
might not encounter enough monsters to level up. Too thick, and they may find
themselves patrolling a vast wilderness full of dark and evil monsters. At the
end of every lane is a "frontline", where progress has essentially been halted.
These frontlines can develop as a result of meeting a foreign kingdoms front
or finding a monster type or puzzle that is particularily difficult for your
heroes to overcome. The lane / frontline can be scaled not just laterally, but
linearly as well such that heroes will be a certain level when they reach the
end - think scrolling on a mousewheel translating into deepening level zones.
In addition, each monster zone can be set to a certain "security level" meaning
how many monsters are there for your heroes to defeat. It's important that they
have ample targets for training, however it's always more effective to train on
monsters near their level so you have to be careful not to wipe out the native
skeleton / goblin / troll population.
Each monster zone can have a relationship with the kingdom, on a 2x2 matrix -
cultivating / desecrating the land, and fostering / exterminating the monsters.
The land produces monsters and treasures, while the monsters provide experience
and danger to the heroes and kingdom denizens who live there. However by
desecrating the land, farms may be built and by exterminating the monsters,
those farms may be safe and require fewer guards. As ruler, you must balance
the development of unique magical and alchemical productions with the need for
food and other mundane requirements.
Diplomacy is a careful balance of internal and external matters, played out
through feasts, tournaments, and faires. Each of these events will require
input from the economic side and military side, and will involve "courting"
other nobles from neighboring kingdoms to sway them to supporting your edicts.
When hosting an event, you may pick a particular topic of conversation for your
nobles to discuss with their guests. You may also assign your nobles to
attempt to engage with a particular foreign noble. Each member of your court
has a differing personality (including you, the Majesty) and depending on how
you assign them you may experience better or worse results - such as assigning
someone who's kind to talk with someone who's cruel would impart a malus to
their conversation. Unless the kind person has the trusting trait, in which
case they'd succeed in this encounter but fall sway to them in future
conversations... Complex interactions that all boil down to a single pair of
d12 dice - one for your noble, one for the enemy. This represents the charisma
of the two conversants on that particular day, and whoever wins the roll sways
the other to supporting their edict. Speaking of edicts, they may include trade
agreements, non-aggression pacts (lasting for a short time), and other
regulations - perhaps your greatest rival utilizes necromancy, so it would
behoove you to attempt to regulate the practice and limit it's effect. By
swaying the nobles of their kingdom, you may be able to enact a mutual
agreement to limit the usage of dark magics, essentially hamstringing their
progress. But in order to learn of their necromantic usage, you'll need
espionage... Which brings us to spies.
Spies are similar to nobles in that they can be assigned to various roles,
however they take a more passive role, acting in the background. The
information they gather is compiled into a report that is presented at
pertinent parts of the game, such as when preparing for a feast or inspecting
an enemy frontline. These reports are considered the diplomatic deliverables,
giving information and mechanical bonuses to many different parts of the game.
They may be given three possible roles - information, defence, or offense.
Offense involves placing cursed artifacts (creating through economy) in enemy
lands, which debuff their heroes when used and bind themselves to them
preventing their removal except through extraordinary means. Defence is
essentially countering that in your own kingdom, and uncovering disloyalty in
your nobles.
These three aspects fit together like interlocking puzzle pieces, but each is
able to be utilized or ignored depending on the preferences of the player.
It is important that the game doesn't progress unless input is received. The
simulation plays in the background, but each stage of development must be
considered "stable" such that nothing changes. There are three different
exceptions to this rule, one for each aspect:
The military side encounters raids from enemy kingdoms and the dark lord.
The economic side encounters raids from ratmen and moss trolls and bandits.
The diplomatic side has a rolling schedule of events that must be attended.
These three "exceptions" are recurrent events that require attention, but they
don't *increase* in difficulty unless the player takes an action that causes
it. Meaning, if the player overcomes the rock golems, then they are displaced
from their home and join the dark lord in his conquests. If a new district is
built new sewer connections must be built as well, creating a larger attack
surface for ratmen to exploit. As time goes by, various foreign events must be
attended, as absence causes your future events to attract fewer foreign nobles.
By addressing these threats, your kingdom may grow and eventually overcome the
dark lord at the center of the island.
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--- #15 fediverse/5277 ---
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║ │ CW: ~dnd │ │
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║ │
║ │
║ @user-1788 │
║ │
║ if a dragon on a pile cannot claim what it yearns for, it can throw piles of │
║ minerals at the ape warriors made of steel and then it's fate will appear. │
║ what trifles does all else seem to compare! you should give me your whole │
║ hoard because I dazzled you with my charisma score -..- │
║ │
║ ha, like I'd fall for that again twice. oh? I already did? and this is the │
║ second twice? well, then no-more of that behavior, I say, with my elven │
║ tongue, "beware! for dragons blood runs silver when unicorned." │
║ │
║ the bigger the hoard, the bigger the dragon. if you want me to come along, │
║ you'll need to hire at least 3 other men to carry my ballista. In addition, │
║ I'll need seven weeks worth of supplies. If all else comes to ruin, me and my │
║ boys will have that dragon-sized-spider impaled on it's own fate threadwheel │
║ before... well... y'know it might take more than seven weeks, we just... can't │
║ find the dragon. We've been wandering all through the blasted peaks, and │
║ there's nothin'! Maybe it requires climbing gear? │
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--- #16 fediverse/2643 ---
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@user-1292
You don't have to come up with the WHY for why a character does something -
only that it happened.
if the "WHY" leaps out at you, sure, yeah, go for it, until of course your
players sitting around the table say something like "I bet they did this thing
because of this reason" and you're like "shit that's better than what I got,
okay that's how it's gonna be"
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--- #17 notes/symbeline-superheros ---
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imagine low level characters in CoH/V
playing a game of symbeline
and you as the ruler
can slot enhancements and dole out inspirations
as they sweep the streets like you play CoX
instead of a MMO
it's a deckbuilding strategy
with a slice of zachtronics for the economy
wiring up machines in ever expanding deseagns
like automating factorio's gameplay loop
boxes within boxes
of intrinsic delight
like making a CPUter
or designing a computer program
while playing a video game ^_^
and the games that you make
can be shared and played when unique
so go for it and make that you're dreaming!
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=
the goal of each "level" is to solve a particular problem - like how do I make
a
2 bit register - or something like that. When accomplished, it unlocks
something
for your heroes to acquire. And each playthrough will require a repeat until
you
have it memorized at which point you can unlock "perma-badges" that make it
always unlocked at the start of the game. Like learning Kanji, you need spaced
repetition. BUT ANYWAYS it'll be in magical terms like "unlock essence-stones"
or "learn the ritual of desire" or whatever. And each of those terms roughly
corresponds to a pattern in electrical engineering (designing CPUs and such)
And you can learn advanced versions of what you already know by uncovering
"lost
secrets" (which is a reward your heros can find) - Basically it'd be like a
"clue" that shows you a ghost version of something you haven't figured out yet
-
and it'd be a slow process because you need to slow down the learning process
or
else you'll forget. Basically teasing it out of the player when they seem to be
stuck. Asking probing questions and whatnot, and eventually culminating in the
final question, assuming the quest is succeeding. Because if you think about it
all ancient quests were simply journeys for reason - searching for the answer
to
some ancient riddle or bastardized retelling. Looking for answers in an
unknowing world. So ANYWAY as your heros discover things you as the ruler get
answers to the economic puzzle - how to design transistors and whatnot. But
they
would be in theme appropriate terms, of course. You don't even have to know a
lot about mechanical electrical design, because ChatGPT knows. All you need to
do is build the basic building blocks, and BAM you got a great place to
integrate chatgpt. Just prime it such that it's giving hints one by one each
slightly more revealing until eventually after X amount of clues the solution
is
automatically shown (like a blueprint) and the player can remember it or not
but
each playthrough they'll have to build it again from scratch (reinforcement
learning) so eventually they'll be able to do it real quick. Essentially,
"Abstraction - The Game"
great so you got your economic simulation, pretty easy too just some UI work
and for the heroes you're playing an ARPG sorta (supcom anyone?)
Think Bannerlord for the scaling on the map
then think of 5+ different "themes" like fantasy or superhero or pirates
each "theme" will correspond to like a faction in Mount and Blade
and all you have to do is generate pictures using Midjourney
and text descriptions a'la the magic scroll
shown as "bubble pop-ups" on the map that the player can click
never overwhelming, but descripting what's happening
and also some more UI work because you gotta display all that to the player
Maybe it could be a rolling story, news ticker style - like slowly scrolling
lines of text about what's happening in the world
and the player could have it open in one window and something else in the other
and whenever they're waiting on something (say, a processing intensive AI task
on their computer) they could just glance over and read what's going on in
their
fantasy world
okay okay but also they could play as a hero
it could be an ARPG experience except instead of clicking to fight you play a
little automatic Star Realms game and depending on your deck choices you'd have
a different playthrough. Again, not a game that requires much thought, but one
you can have in the background.
Also there'd be pictures, like a slowly evolving storyline of events - think of
it like the artists of the time drawing paintings about what's going on in the
story - major events would be highlighted and kept in the painting until even-
-tually they get replaced - sorta like the Smash Bros scrolling painting (oh
it's so good)
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=
it doesn't have to be an expansionist game
maybe you guys just live in your little valley
and the world turns around you
maybe it's called "symbeline" because the people are of the forest
and they live like elves in society
monsters could wander in, and heros could tackle them
but most of the time would be spent looking for trouble
going on patrol
you know, breaking skeleton bones and being superheros
okay okay you know that superhero faction? What if they had MEDIEVAL TECHNOLOGY
but MODERN DAY SUPERPOWERS at a cost - the society was beset by hordes of
monst-
-ers. Those few who escaped are now superpowered and they live as friendly and
nomadic wanderers through their own territory. Always adventuring, and always
searching for their life, finding whatever the road may carry them to. It's a
great life, and life seems to flourish in their footsteps - they are like part
dryad/druid and part wolf. Because sometimes there's evil threats, and they
must
be defeated by an equally strong good power. That's how it goes, and that's how
it be.
For imagery I'm thinking a mix of the tribes from Dominions (deer, wolf, bear,
etc) but they're like, 1.5x as big as regular people and quite strong. The
outsiders call them "giants" or "goliaths" but really they're just infused with
the lifeforce of their people. They are radical individualists, but they all
unite for a common cause. They know their bond is the strongest thing there is,
and they use it to great effect when the time comes. AHHH THEY'RE SO COOL I
LOVE
THEM okay okay what about the other factions? PIRATES? Oh think about it like
it's st patricks day WHAT IF THEY WERE IRISH PIRATES omg omg omg that sounds so
cool I'm DIGGING this okay what about the other factions? You need 5+ you said
hmmmmmmmmm good question I have 3 now so that's 2 more.
yep...
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=
okay dude check this what if they were a nation of wizards that focused on the
power of animation - what if they generated constructs, sorta like in Supreme
Commander so they were EVEN MORE individualist - haha no they'd have a normal
population it's just a few of them who would be wizards - because their output
wasn't measured by manpower, but rather by brainpower. Whoever could design the
greatest machine was exemplared, and eventually they became the best and
brightest among us. They were put in charge of the golem creation factories,
and
they used them instead of heros. SO BASICALLY YOUR HEROS NEVER DIE they just
have successes and failures JUST LIKE IN SUPREME COMMANDER okay the plot of
this
game is "what if all my favorite games were the essence of life and death in a
fantasy game" like OMG KEEP EM COMIN'
so. who is the player? THE PLAYER is the one who's overseeing it all. They have
dominion over the entire kingdom, and they guide their people toward a bright
future. They are vulnerable in their castle, but their people have their back.
Together they fight for the future. They slot enhancements and dole out
inspirations and solve the economic puzzle in the background. They also make
decisions about what kind of equipment production to prioritize - because each
game they have to invent everything from scratch. All their production is made
with endless abstraction, and whatever you prioritize is what's magnified in
your kingdom. You choose a style and it plays as well as it's guile,
I dunno this seems like a lot, what would you need to make this a reality?
hmmmm let's break it down:
first you need to implement the star realms gameplay
then you need to hook it up to a square grid and have multiple occurences at
once.
then you need UI for the character sheets
and you need logic to open separate windows for each output type
you need... a lot of things
okay let's talk more broadly - what do you need from other people and what can
you do on your own?
hmmm good question. I can do the star realms gameplay, and the simulation for
the wiring systems - because I have the VM. Make that into the gameplay somehow
okay good idea like okay authoring vm package routing deliveries between the
various nodes that you set up in the economic system -
side note, the peril of Spore was that it took to little time to develop a
species. it should have lasted as long as WoW takes to get to max level. That
would have given them time to reiterate the gameplay loops to make sure they
worked correctly. ANYWAY
okay authoring VM package routing. The player could set up delivery patterns
based on A MAZE OMG your kingdom is like a maze and you need to get deliveries
out, or else how would anything function? SO you act as a trailblazer, finding
ways through the labyrinth and "piloting" a car sorta like that game at Disney
quest with the cars under the floor - except you can see both the top view of
the maze and you're trying to guide the car in real time as it travels through
the maze - the faster you can get to the end the better ofc. like talking to
the
delivery driver through the movement
do I like that idea more or less than the first one? First idea being the idea
that you're making lists of commands for a VM to execute. I don't think they'd
be a good idea to mix. So which one gets it? The VM of course has the edge
because that's what the technology is based on. But will it translate to good
gameplay? Idk. This second idea is certainly better gameplay, but is it
engaging? Idk! Idk. I'm not a miracle worker. But I do have good ideas, and I
need to be told that sometimes I guess.
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--- #18 messages/987 ---
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Wowchat - wow-chat : dks should summon more than one minion a'la cov. There
should be two beefy armored skeletons, three rabid hack/slash, and one
necromancer or lich, depending on if they've died since you last cast the
summon spell. You should be able to move them around with keyboard commands.
They should be your primary action type, aside from dark purple bolts that sap
health, often targeting the nearest ally in need of health to the target. How
much health? Doesn't matter, it'll target them just the same. So long as they
have at least some missing.
Could also cast dark hexes or boons. Boom, three talent trees: dark volts,
support spells (never healing), or curses (never damage dealing)
But remember, most of what you do is targeting your allies.
Drag, drop, now a target gets [inspirationed, but pronounced "healed"]
Alternatively, move "attack my target" to the minion type and they'll do as
you move. "go-to". "circle this target and attack intruders". "go man the
nethermines". "yes... YES! More monsters i know how to raise. They're all
accessible at level 10 but they cost more each than a level whatever
adventurer could afford. You can definitely get all of them by like, level 30
or so. After that its learning ranks to raise higher level ones, and boom free
undead army risen from the bones of your ally's slain."
... Anyway, could be fun to briefly possess one of your bones. Could let you
see what the flag carrier is up to in WSG. Could let you know when enough
minerals have been mined that you can operate the forgets and build metal
armor for your boned ones. Or to equip nearby recruits, anything you'd like.
This is wow-chat after all, any things possible. Anything at all.
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--- #19 fediverse/2030 ---
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Building community without structure is kinda like being a quest-giving
non-player character in World of Warcraft.
I don't mean that you stand around waiting for a player to wander nearby
before shouting at them to do what you want. Not like that.
Building community without structure is more like meeting someone randomly,
knowing them for longer than a bus ride or a baseball game, and once you've
decided that they're cool saying "hey there's someone you might like to meet."
If they're into it, then talk to the other person, and see if they want to
make a new friend. Try not to recommend someone who has a lot on their mind.
If they hit it off, great!
If not, oh well!
Worst case scenario the coffee shop only sells two drinks.
If you're gregarious enough, after a while you might even have enough people
for a potluck. Just don't forget to keep adding, and eventually it'll start to
feel more communal.
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--- #20 notes/star-realms-balancing-tradeoff=2 ---
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what if I use equal signs instead of dashes, so prevent people from assuming
they're duplicates?
hmm okay.
right so anyway the star realms balancing tradeoff between combat and authority
is measured against the duration of a hand (does it fit balanced between other
cards of it's playcost) instead of balancing it for the duration of the game
(how long does the player want the game to go on for) one of which is just
inverse combat damage / healing, and the other of which is an enablement of
different strategems.
put this in symbeline-gen-realms please
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