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Post by Father on Apr 15, 2019 17:13:32 GMT 1
Because it helps me having this fresh in my mind, I'm spinning out the earlier discussion of things, emphasis mine on highlights of feedback.
-Try to get more stuff which doesn't just involve the nobles playing the game of thrones with each other.
-When there's opportunity for duels and fun, it should be equal opportunity (but earlier birds can still get fattier worms).
avoid loads and loads of NPC's in the same event (and honestly, I need to stop anyway, it seems a good idea at the beginning, but just turns everything utterly tedious).
-Try and throw in more event outcomes that isn't a faction vs faction thing.
-It's okay to keep tweaking NPC stats for the sake of balance.
-Most of the NPC's shouldn't hit on everything that moves.
-More stuff like Aladore Rescue, Abelar/Johanna Trial, Inheritance Squabbles.
-Consequences of Disposition increases/decreases, side-quest triggers.
-Event that offers hard choices (Like Riot)
-NPC participation is good as long as it doesn't just become a lot of noise (and good chances of getting crazy rolls outdoing PC crazy rolls).
-Paying real prices for whoring and orgies.
-Somewhat competitive events (like Steel and Ribbons) are fun.
-PC's having an impact on the story is fun.
Of particular interest right now being how the Phase 2 batch of events looks to be shaping up, seeing that I did try and work things that are "in demand" into them, so to speak. Lots of them still awaits resolutions of all the duels and rivalries and what-not.
Still the best stories tends to come out of the PC's doing interesting things that touch upon ideas I'm having, or just serves as inspiration.
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Post by Roland Cordwayner on Apr 15, 2019 17:42:19 GMT 1
Because it helps me having this fresh in my mind, I'm spinning out the earlier discussion of things, emphasis mine on highlights of feedback. Given the various requests for different types of combat scenes alongside 1v1 fights this is the kind of thing I can hopefully help lend some muscle towards. Easy to pilot squads of NPCs if we need lesser characters for skirmishes, as this might reward different combat styles (for example, someone with good defences might do well 1v1, but somebody willing to take risks and sacrifice some defensive power for offence might do better in a mass battle that required thinning enemies rapidly. The Abelar inspired riots gave us some sense of this). I trust/hope I've demonstrated an ability to do this in Dragon's dance and in some side scenes here.  |
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Post by Father on Apr 15, 2019 18:12:25 GMT 1
I am always open to ideas of what sorts of scenes we could see, and if I don't need to write or run them, the chance of them happening increases.
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Post by Roland Cordwayner on Apr 15, 2019 18:51:20 GMT 1
I am always open to ideas of what sorts of scenes we could see, and if I don't need to write or run them, the chance of them happening increases. Hooray! People, feel free to pitch the narrator on cool combat threads that serve the narrative and/or have interesting risk/reward, as I enjoy running them. They're also quite labour intensive (as are duels/jousts) and therefore best if others handle them as that frees the narrator for politics/schemes (which only really the narrator can handle, unlike combat). |
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Post by Father on Jul 19, 2019 11:33:48 GMT 1
So Reviving this thread a bit, since I've been starting to look at designing new stuff rather than tinkering with what I already had sketched out. Lots of blanks on the Oldtown, non-Riverlands phase 3 and phase 4 stuff. Plenty of blanks on the Blood Feud chapter, but there's cool stuff in there, too.
1. Which events/scenes would be in the category: Would really want to see a variation on this theme again.
2. Which events/scenes could be in the above category if such and such change were made.
3. Which events/scenes could be in that category that probably have not been seen yet.
4. Which NPC's have been the most fun to watch?
5. Any NPC's that might be interesting to see in more prominent roles than currently?
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Post by Aerion Flowers on Jul 20, 2019 16:36:54 GMT 1
Is there a common knowledge of Phase 3 and 4 that I don't know of? I can assume there's a conflict coming to resolve blackfyre rebellion but that's likely far off. Did I miss it?
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Post by Father on Jul 20, 2019 16:52:43 GMT 1
Not entirely sure I understand the question, but trying:
Right now we're in phase 2, which really is two phases in one, hence the 2.5 bit. 2.5 because house fortunes. OOC it's otherwise treated as a distinct phase.
Phase 3 is where Blackwoods and Brackens go to war against one another since they haven't really done that for a generation (although given some people's backstories, I'm somewhat ambiguous on that, but not likely anything on this scale, more like "bandits" hanging out in one lord's domain and raiding the villages of the other, the lord claims that he hasn't sanctioned such and promises to make arrests and blahblahblah, but will absolutely not allow a single man from the enemy to cross the border in pursuit), which also serves as a chance for the two factions to put people's loyalties to the test and gauge the strength of one another.
Phase 4 is where some stuff might happen, probably Roland+Alicent wedding, probably all other weddings that PC's manage to set up in phases 2.5 and 3. It's fairly blank as far as ideas goes, and I'm inclined to mostly let that phase deal with the result of PC efforts.
Oldtown is chronicle 2, where your good friend Willas is getting married to a Hightower.
Mentally I'm thinking that the actual rebellion might be chronicle 3, but I have absolutely no ideas jotted down for what comes after Oldtown, and right now I'm not spending time on it either, still a long way to go there.
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Post by Aerion Flowers on Jul 20, 2019 17:36:14 GMT 1
Gotcha, yes that pretty much answers the question. Wasn't sure if we knew yet what was to come other than speculation on reactions to events (bracken/blackwood conflict, Likely something to do with eldon since melee might have interesting consequences, etc.).
Thanks!
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Post by Trystane Sand on Jul 23, 2019 15:49:50 GMT 1
1. Which events/scenes would be in the category: Would really want to see a variation on this theme again.
Vying For Favour, personal social scenes with threads to tug on (not necessarily big plot stuff).
2. Which events/scenes could be in the above category if such and such change were made.
A Toast..., Fun of the Fair, the various weddings, stuff where everyone can take part in some way.
The sort of change I'd be interested in is being able to have better direct interaction with named NPCs. For example, and only speaking for my own experience, I feel like my Disposition increases are kind of meaningless because I have no idea what the interaction that caused them was about. It widens the gulf between player and character knowledge in a way that feels a little unsatisfying at times. I am fully aware of the pressures on your time and energy, I hasten to add. But I feel like there's a culture of not interacting with NPCs at all unless it's for big plot stuff, and it makes the world feel a bit small. I find the fact that so many people call the RP component of this RPG 'fluff' quite telling. It implies (to me) that it's seen as extraneous and less important than the mechanics, which is kind of the opposite to how I feel about and approach RPGs. The RP is the interesting bit for me, and it's flavourless and colourless without it. But I feel a bit of pressure (possibly self-imposed) to not do anything that would require you or other players to do any work unless it's part of a big plot line, though it's often the smaller interactions that give us the motivations for bigger plot things and develop the characters into individuals we can care about. I have actively avoided interacting with a lot of NPCs (and some PCs) for fear of being perceived as frivolous or a nuisance, but it's the interpersonal stuff that makes things interesting for me, and I don't feel like an interaction necessarily needs to 'achieve' anything other than character development. I feel like I can't build meaningful connections with NPCs, this way, because I know so little about most of them that I can't even refer to them in detail as all I have to go on is an abstract Disposition number.
3. Which events/scenes could be in that category that probably have not been seen yet.
I would like to see events that use some less common skills that challenge players to be inventive with their lesser-used abilities that they maybe don't get much chance to use. I haven't seen a hunt yet so I'd like to get a shot at that sometime. And I love a good mystery to solve where people co-operate on it.
4. Which NPC's have been the most fun to watch?
Marq Durwell, Redtusk, Bloodraven, Butterbumps
5. Any NPC's that might be interesting to see in more prominent roles than currently?
Just going through the Cast of Thousands and picking out people I've not seen much of but am curious about;
Shiera Seastar, Amerei Tyrell, Lord Florent, any of the Hightowers, any of House Rowan, Ser Aubrey Ambrose, Maegelle Cordwayner, Ulbert & Allyria Starkwood, Lyonel Baratheon, Robb Reyne, Kyle Daverhyl.
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Post by Father on Jul 23, 2019 21:46:19 GMT 1
Mmmm, interesting points.
You mean like my occasional habit of having NPC's say hi to PC's?
Specifically the bits with +1 disposition from dancing, drinking buddies or whatever?
In principle, I'm not opposed to doing threads with those NPC's (even if it's not made official until event wrap-up, players can calculate their results and figure out who they'd like to build rapport with), but some NPC's are easier to do than others. But there's also variation on style that can be done for expediency, if you'd mostly just like some references as to who they are and under which circumstances you bonded, that's easier to do than doing full conversational scene. I can also cut corners by not giving them lines but rather summarize their opinions. I think Redtusk has mostly been treated in that manner whereas others tends to get full lines. It's also easier for me in these "lesser cases" if PC starts with the scene, dancing, sharing drink, maybe asking some questions, indicating their approach, throw me stuff to work with. I'm getting fairly good at prioritizing things and jumping to a no-lines style if I need to. I should be able to handle scenes structured in a way that doesn't require more of me than to drop a post to flesh out the NPC's involved and move on should be a problem when dealing with the event style +1 disposition approach.
Special PC's are generally approachable, because I had at least some idea about why they are given a portrait at one time or the other. Though some are just floating around because of some legacy idea I've forgotten or abandoned. Kyle probably won't feature much because he's 13 years old and created as part of Lynesse's backstory, his main contribution to the story is for other characters to worry about him getting murdered by his evil uncle.
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Post by Trystane Sand on Jul 24, 2019 1:00:55 GMT 1
You mean like my occasional habit of having NPC's say hi to PC's? Yeah, I do like it when they look in on us. It makes me feel like the PCs are part of a wider world/plan. Specifically the bits with +1 disposition from dancing, drinking buddies or whatever? I do quite like those, especially when there's balance between stuff for the martial characters, stuff for the social characters, and stuff for the cerebral characters. And it means that for generalists like myself, there's a little bit of everything or an interesting choice to make. It's easy to feel discouraged, in my own experience, when outclassed by the specialists, so it is nice to be able to have events and scenes where it pays to have a broader skill set. In principle, I'm not opposed to doing threads with those NPC's (even if it's not made official until event wrap-up, players can calculate their results and figure out who they'd like to build rapport with), but some NPC's are easier to do than others. But there's also variation on style that can be done for expediency, if you'd mostly just like some references as to who they are and under which circumstances you bonded, that's easier to do than doing full conversational scene. I can also cut corners by not giving them lines but rather summarize their opinions. I think Redtusk has mostly been treated in that manner whereas others tends to get full lines. It's also easier for me in these "lesser cases" if PC starts with the scene, dancing, sharing drink, maybe asking some questions, indicating their approach, throw me stuff to work with. I'm getting fairly good at prioritizing things and jumping to a no-lines style if I need to. I should be able to handle scenes structured in a way that doesn't require more of me than to drop a post to flesh out the NPC's involved and move on should be a problem when dealing with the event style +1 disposition approach. Special PC's are generally approachable, because I had at least some idea about why they are given a portrait at one time or the other. Though some are just floating around because of some legacy idea I've forgotten or abandoned. Kyle probably won't feature much because he's 13 years old and created as part of Lynesse's backstory, his main contribution to the story is for other characters to worry about him getting murdered by his evil uncle. Thank you for clarifying your stance. |
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Post by Lynesse Daverhyl on Aug 25, 2019 2:32:58 GMT 1
For events where NPC's need to be present to be "targetable" but can also be invited by PC's, can I suggest staggering the invites and the main event so it is clear who is present before PC's lock in their choices for how to influence the event? Goldengrove and the Great Hunt have both added this complexity.
EDIT: I do like the opportunity to invite NPC's as it adds another way to subtly influence major events. A second suggestion would be to add disposition modifiers to invite rolls.
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Post by Father on Aug 25, 2019 12:52:14 GMT 1
It's always possible to do invites first and other actions later.
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Post by Father on Sept 12, 2019 11:27:43 GMT 1
Pork Sausage is a bit jumbled, but in general, what is the opinion on events that comes in stages, like:
1. Gather information.
2. Act on the information.
I've got one for phase 3 which is looking like it's going to be a more tangled beast, with four stages at current draft, with more time allowed for choices and most of the time you can do the same things in stage 3 instead of doing them in stage 1 without much trouble. General idea being that NPC's will do their stuff early and PC's can then react to what they're up to.
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Post by Trystane Sand on Sept 13, 2019 1:10:49 GMT 1
Not averse to them, necessarily, but the more mechanics/maths involved in an event, the longer it takes me to complete a post in it.
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