The Campaign Builder's Guild

Quote from: nastynateI love the Shogunate, and I con't wait to see the kinds of nations and deities that will spring up next. Project 1301 seems like it must be loads of fun. Advancing the meta-plot, re-aligning the political borders, the ascention of new gods, it has got to feel like a breath of fresh air for a world in which you've played for years.

-Peace-

P.S. The new gods are all interesting and unique. None of them seem boring or "standard," which is probably exactly what you were gunning for.

Yep, my thoughts exactly. My internet situation has thrown me a few days behind, but I'll hopefully catch up pretty soon... Today's only offering is the new page design and Centinia, Tricameral Plutocracy!

Country and deity: you know the drill.

A magocracy and a Neutral Good deity.

Today's only offering is the mysterious deity, Illam Niruhet.

Centinia is a country of yours that I was reading over. It is cool how the system is organized into the different entities. The Directory of Treasurery seems like a pretty boorish thing that keeps all the economy at its best by handling the loans and debts of the country. I'm just not sure how they can't be or are connected to the other two. Obviously, if the Reserve has debts then they Edmund has to try to pay them off on his own. I just don't see some of the point of having these "two" different entities if both represent the finances of the country. The COBC is a typical kind of merchant thing but I think it goes well for this country so you should just keep that or keep it to help odify the other two.

Quote from: WixmanCentinia is a country of yours that I was reading over. It is cool how the system is organized into the different entities. The Directory of Treasurery seems like a pretty boorish thing that keeps all the economy at its best by handling the loans and debts of the country. I'm just not sure how they can't be or are connected to the other two. Obviously, if the Reserve has debts then they Edmund has to try to pay them off on his own. I just don't see some of the point of having these "two" different entities if both represent the finances of the country. The COBC is a typical kind of merchant thing but I think it goes well for this country so you should just keep that or keep it to help odify the other two.

The Directory of the Treasury's primary function, at least as it was originally intended by Mohen Lorell, is an analogue to modern state treasuries. It "sells" bonds and loans to other businesses and regulates the money supply, and the reason it was specifically made a seperate entity by Mohen Lorell is that he anticipated the innate greed that a single powerful guild or council could have over the economy and did not wish for a single organization to wield supreme economic and legislative power-- by dividing the affairs into three distinct groups, he created an innate system of checks and balances. As he knew the nature of capitalism is to encourage ambition and play to greed, he reminded the Directors, the CBOC Committee members, and the staff of the Reserve that any merger into another company would ultimately decrease their personal power and dull the edge of their capacity. It was this precedent of built-in checks that he hoped would stem corruption and consolidation.

~ElDo

So, it might mean a few more red tapes but it will nullify the ability to gain supreme political power, right?

Wonderfully put. Yes.

New country: Artoria, State in Denial added-- I should be back later for a deity update.

I love Artoria, very very cool.  The last lines there were killers.

Yeah, I'm rather happy with how that one turned out. :)

New country and new deity... sort of.

The revisions to the Red Valor campaign setting are so much fun to read. New nations, newly ascended gods, and new ideas, make it feel almost like a whole new world altogether. It makes me long to revise my old homebrew of years long ago.

Pushing the timeline forward and introducing new elements must feel very refreshing, and very liberating. In my humble opinion this is one of the rare meta-plot advances that is an improvement over the prior campaign. It's like a sequel that is better than the original. Your changes feel spurred on by the need to keep things new and interesting (at least it seems like it to me) rather than to continue a storyline beyond its prime. I admire you for keeping Red Valor alive in this way, rather than moving on to a new world.

The new nations seem very interesting (one and all) though I would like to see some hold-overs from the past continue to hang on to their old methods and ideals. Too much change makes RV feel like a world that fell apart and needed to be rebuilt. RV was too good to throw away everything and start from scratch in this way. Are there any nations or cultures that have survived, and do you plan to write them up?

I do like your newly ascended gods. The old pantheon was kind of dry and the new gods are sooo much more interesting. They feel like naive young gods (well naive as far as gods go) with a much greater interest in the world, than the stuffy old deities of the streotypical genre. Bravo on their implimentation thus far, but again what is going to happen to old guard?

I think Project 1301 is excellent, but I would hate to think that nothing from the old world will survive. I have seen many cool NPC villains, and story archs that go back well into the old setting, but try to keep more of the old stuff around too. I would love to see old ideas revised to a modern modern feel, that would help the setting feel more continuous, rather than like something completely different. Speaking of which where is Red Valor (the sword) now?

In short all the new stuff is good. Not one thing has dissapointed me or felt forced, contrived, or incomplete. I would like to see more of a connection however between the world of 1301 and the world of yester year. The again maybe you already have this in works, and it simply hasn't been posted on your site yet.

-Peace Out-

Quote from: nastynateThe revisions to the Red Valor campaign setting are so much fun to read. New nations, newly ascended gods, and new ideas, make it feel almost like a whole new world altogether. It makes me long to revise my old homebrew of years long ago.

The praise is making me blush. Stop it.

Wait, don't. ;)

Quote from: nastynatePushing the timeline forward and introducing new elements must feel very refreshing, and very liberating. In my humble opinion this is one of the rare meta-plot advances that is an improvement over the prior campaign. It's like a sequel that is better than the original. Your changes feel spurred on by the need to keep things new and interesting (at least it seems like it to me) rather than to continue a storyline beyond its prime. I admire you for keeping Red Valor alive in this way, rather than moving on to a new world.

RV's main focus as a game world has always been internal consistancy, and the meta-plot has been advanced to its latest possible point that I had "planned" out. I'd like to think that by shoring up the old storylines and setting them out to dry, I've got a chance to go looking for different fish.

Quote from: nastynateThe new nations seem very interesting (one and all) though I would like to see some hold-overs from the past continue to hang on to their old methods and ideals. Too much change makes RV feel like a world that fell apart and needed to be rebuilt. RV was too good to throw away everything and start from scratch in this way. Are there any nations or cultures that have survived, and do you plan to write them up?

Little nuggets here and there are possible. All the clans from Torrinnia have been dispersed throughout the continent (several of the good-aligned ones formed House Auria, the Tigereyes are in Centinia, etc.). The Northern nations hold their legacy as well as hold onto a lot of the ideas and customs of the less-documented parts of Perann.

Looking at the map alone, there are a few nuggets in the South as well. Vestin remains, and is split again into the Southern Kingdom and Northern Republic. Meanwhile, the Siclorians have moved a bit further east and established a theocracy very similar to what was being unveiled in Arvia just before 1301 launched, while some other well-established bits of RV lore are getting into the shared spotlight.

Quote from: nastynateI do like your newly ascended gods. The old pantheon was kind of dry and the new gods are sooo much more interesting. They feel like naive young gods (well naive as far as gods go) with a much greater interest in the world, than the stuffy old deities of the streotypical genre. Bravo on their implimentation thus far, but again what is going to happen to old guard?

The new gods are basically kids with the ultimate playtoys, yeah. For beings with a potentially unlimited lifespan, they've been in existence for less than 20 years-- needless to say, there are a lot of heads being butted in the House of Kynorne.

But as for the "old guard", as you put it: Draven and Sicloran, probably the two best deities from the earlier pantheon, are already slated for appearance (Draven and his semi-theocracy already have a write-up, to boot!). To top that, gods older than the Rionian pantheon are numerous, thus adding a third level of complexity: Dethinian gods detest the usurper Rionians. Expect a few surprises with the later deity entries as well-- even I don't know who will show up.

Quote from: nastynateI think Project 1301 is excellent, but I would hate to think that nothing from the old world will survive. I have seen many cool NPC villains, and story archs that go back well into the old setting, but try to keep more of the old stuff around too.

Trust me, 1301 is about opening doors, not closing them. Many of the older and ancient foes are still around, and only the more present dangers from the 1250's have been stripped of their intrigue.

Which reminds of a point to address. The main reason for 1301 isn't for reviving the setting, a chance to redo the deities, or even to open up options for myself as a storyteller (although these are all very big benefits). The driving force behind 1301 is the expansion of options for players in the story, to shift the power from a few iconic NPCs and nations to a wide variety of choices. It allows for a more dynamic and versatile gaming experience, expanding both the potential for imagination and innovation.

Quote from: nastynateI would love to see old ideas revised to a modern modern feel, that would help the setting feel more continuous, rather than like something completely different. Speaking of which where is Red Valor (the sword) now?

Some of the Old Relics are still hanging about, most notably the Great Library of Azran (a famous spot for players to visit). A lot of stuff has been renamed due to two over-zealous continental Emperors, but the past is certainly something that will hold as much importance as it did before. The Swords of the Ancients are still lingering about, mind you, as are many other artifacts, organizations, and beings stirred up in the nearly-apocalyptic battle in 1270 RA. After that incident, though, a lot of the former people and organizations are either dead or recouping their power, and the same can be said for artifacts that have been hidden or destroyed.

As for where Red Valor is, it's wherever the plot needs it to be. Eventually, when things quiet down, I may release a "canon" location for it.

Quote from: nastynateIn short all the new stuff is good. Not one thing has dissapointed me or felt forced, contrived, or incomplete. I would like to see more of a connection however between the world of 1301 and the world of yester year. The again maybe you already have this in works, and it simply hasn't been posted on your site yet.

-Peace Out-
[/quote]

To summarize: Yes, the world will be more complete (as an aside, it feels more complete simply by having the history pages merged-- it's a big difference). I'm humbled by the praise, and I honestly feel as you do-- it's a step forward for the meta-plot, not a step back. I've gotten a lot of the "uniqueness" of 1301 out, and expect a few governments, especially in the South, that are more reminicient to the older ways and the older history. The North is something of a new frontier, whereas the South represents the Tare's history and tradition.

~Elven Doritos
A Simple Scribe from Vestin

New country added today.