City of the Chosen: Discussion

[Raelifin]

I had a player ask whether it's possible to assign no characters any events in a certain timeslot.
All events, unless otherwise specified, are optional! Even if there's no alternative events, you can just have your characters sit things out.

[Raelifin]

I'd also like to clarify that if your loyalty score with an NPC increases mid-turn, they do not become your ally until the start of next turn. You cannot assign NPCs that were not your ally at the start of the turn.

I'll amend the rules thread to emphasize these points.

[Raelifin]

Superbright, TMG, and Nomadic, don't forget that City assignments are due tomorrow. :) It'll probably take me a couple days to update, but I can do more if people assign early.

[TheMeanestGuest]

I will try to have something up later today.

[Nomadic]

I wasn't able to get my update in before the cutoff time, thought I could but I guess not. I'll go ahead and bow out, it's looking like getting my orders in on time is going to be a major issue for me. Sorry about this :/

[Raelifin]

Are you sure, Nomadic? I'm happy to extend the deadline a bit if you need. I was also simply going to not assign characters for players who don't post. It'd put you a little behind, but it'd mean you could post more if you become less busy.

Due to some confusion with another player's orders I'll be extending this week's deadline until noon tomorrow. (EST)

Regardless, thanks for giving it a shot. ^_^

[Raelifin]

Okay, Nomadic, I'll withdraw your character from the game. Let me know if you ever feel inclined to rejoin.

It may take me a bit to post everyone's events this turn. I expect to be done by Saturday.

As always, please give feedback! Several players posted assignments only at the very end of the week. Would extending the deadline help? Do you have any complaints? I'd be happy to address them!

[Raelifin]

The turn 3 deadline is less than a week away! This is because it takes me a while to update (lots to write) and I want to keep a decent pace. People will be free to roleplay or whatever for the days between the deadline and the update, so it's only a deadline for gameplay decisions.

PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF IT'S TOO SOON! I would be happy to extend it out to, say, the 28th if people need that much time. In general I can't imagine it taking more than an hour to make assignments, but I could be naive.

[BasnetI]

so if someone ends up on the control room he can't be assigned to the "hold them" events?

[Raelifin]

That's correct. Characters who either explicitly investigate the control room or are pulled there out of necessity are safe for the turn, but cannot contribute to the battles as a consequence.

Edit: I should clarify. You are still free to assign characters to the battle events, even if there's a chance that they'll go to the control room. In the case where they don't go to the control room they'll fight, if they do go to the control room then they end up doing nothing for those time slots.

[Raelifin]

One player asked me via PM:

I'll admit I'm still somewhat confused by how City's element system works. Why is it that a Blood outcome in combat seems to possibly portend negative consequences for the victor? As traits that lend advantages in offensive combat seem to routinely grant increases in Blood, should it not result in a positive outcome for the victor?

I've been concerned that the element system is not adequately explained or clear, and I think I should adjust the rules thread to help this. Any suggestions will be welcome.

Blood is the element of violence, chaos, and rage. Blood victories in all domains tend to be higher risk and higher reward. In combat, Blood represents ferocity, unchecked power, and raw aggression. Not all event outcomes are universally "good", and blood and smoke are elements that tend to make things more bloody and confused all-around. Some combats are such that blood is universally good, but some are such that blood is a risky choice. (In the replica battle, for instance, there's a chance that a Blood character would accidentally attack a "real" person rather than a replica.)

That said, I think I'll make a slight change to the event this turn that probably prompted this question. The change will make a blood victory slightly better for the victor.

Also, I think there are a couple traits and items that I did not design correctly. Early in the development process I think I used blood as kind of a catch-all for combat (which is not how it should've been, despite being the element of violence). Specifically, if I were to re-design things, I'd change:
Physically Fit: +1 to all domains in Strength domain (from +2 Blood in Strength domain (there's no reason to assume fit characters are more aggressive))
Super Strength: +3 to all domains in Strength domain and an additional +2 Blood in Strength domain (from +6 Blood in Strength domain)
Lightning Reflexes: +3 Blood and +3 Smoke in the combat domain (from +4 Blood and +1 Smoke in the combat domain)
Impervious: +2 Iron in the Endurance domain (from +2 Blood in the Endurance domain)
Hand grenade: 1d4-1 Blood in the Combat domain (from 1d4-2 Blood)

I apologize for not having the rules ironed out well, here. Obviously this is the first time I've used this system, and as the rules are so unorthidox I'm still somewhat trying to figure out how to make things work. How would players feel about "patching" the traits and items above? I certainly won't force anyone to change their characters against their will.

[TheMeanestGuest]

I would support this measure.

[BasnetI]

supportive mode on

[Xathan]

Seems good to me!

I'm trying to get something RP to post, it's just tricky; I'm not sure if I want people to know my assignments, but it also feels strange to try and RP something from last week that has already happened, you know?

[Raelifin]

You can always react to last turn's events. Flesh them out or whatnot. For instance, it's now clear that Layla is the de facto leader. You could comment on that or talk with the other players about it. Other players also know you can shoot lightning, so you could write something about that. Or you could always do the old standby of interacting with your allied NPCs and give them more personality. The way they're written they have a little depth and character, but it's really up to the players to make them fully interesting.

For instance, what would Jessica, a character who can copy herself, think about seeing a feral, violent copy of herself along with everyone else?



Seeing as people are generally in agreement, I'll change the traits and items this turn unless I hear an objection (in which case I'll talk about it more).

EDIT: Oh, and if anyone wants to get to the control room, that's a good thing to post to the roleplaying thread. Absence of coordination has already hurt the group in divvying up the NPCs (to Layla's benefit).