Wixard
Thinkerer
Yeah, he functions best when fully exhausted
Out of Character (OOC) Chatter
- Thread starter Syrenrei
- Start date
Yeah, he functions best when fully exhausted
Syrenrei
Connoisseur of Romance
@Wixard - The only character that speaks Slavic in the campaign is Novalie (that option was available to everyone but no one chose to take it). Your character can read minds, but projecting thoughts to anyone besides a psion is a big no-no. You can have your character waltz off by himself but there will be a major language barrier so he will get very limited information as much of the populace speaks rudimentary English at best except some of the hotel staff. Feel free to pantomime though!
Additionally, I noted a page back (I think?) that if the group wants to split in two that's fine but characters that wander off on their own will be subjected to in-game consequences. I can totally accept pride and naivete will probably mean some foolish decisions for characters, but as the player/mundane I want you to be aware there will be negative consequences to abandoning the group indefinitely in-game. Your characters should not and will not know this, but I will tell you as players/mundanes that there is something not entirely benevolent afoot in Black Rock. Make your choices accordingly!
Additionally, I noted a page back (I think?) that if the group wants to split in two that's fine but characters that wander off on their own will be subjected to in-game consequences. I can totally accept pride and naivete will probably mean some foolish decisions for characters, but as the player/mundane I want you to be aware there will be negative consequences to abandoning the group indefinitely in-game. Your characters should not and will not know this, but I will tell you as players/mundanes that there is something not entirely benevolent afoot in Black Rock. Make your choices accordingly!
Wixard
Thinkerer
I won't be out long.
Syrenrei
Connoisseur of Romance
Okay, but the other characters are not obligated to wait for your character to return before they venture out. They may elect to wait for him or they may decide to go in a group or two to investigate whichever way pleases them. I just want you to be aware of this because I really don't want anyone getting upset at me if things don't play out the way they expect- thus all the warnings!
I'm going to give everyone a chance to chime in (who they want to interview, what house they want to try to search, records they want to peruse, places they want to see, etc.) before I do another post for Leon and Novalie or a full GM post. I don't want to push you guys one way or another because there are lots of good choices here where you go!
Wixard
Thinkerer
I don't expect them too.
Syrenrei
Connoisseur of Romance
I have to admit I'm not sure what the characters trying to "learn the area" are trying to accomplish. You're going to need to be a lot more specific. Are you basically sight-seeing or looking for something in particular? There aren't psions running amuck on the streets or anything so without some guidance of what you plan to do, I'm afraid you're going to be wandering through a very unexciting environment with very little to discover. Not that there aren't clues in more than one place but wandering aimlessly the clues won't be dropping out of the sky!
simj26
Awful, Terrible, No-good Layabout
Isnt this also situated in a rather rural area? I doubt that theyeven have street names or road signs and such.
Syrenrei
Connoisseur of Romance
Somewhat rural? It's a decently sized town but there are less than 10,000 people in the town so you'll find find one school for primary and one school for high. There is one library, one bakery, one hotel, a few restaurants, etc. Don't expect to find a lot of anything basically! There are street names and road signs but it is far from elaborate. My husband grew up in a small town with exactly one stop light, but all the streets still had names. =)
Wixard
Thinkerer
My character is an expert in urban planning, of all the 'useless' skills
he's mapping out the towns infrastructure. Water, electricity, ect. To rule out environmental factors.
Syrenrei
Connoisseur of Romance
My character is an expert in urban planning, of all the 'useless' skills
He could try to map that out, and I won't stop you, but I am not sure how he would rule out environmental factors as a reason for the spontaneous psions. If he suspected the shared water supply, knowing the routes would not be as helpful as testing the water itself and they do not have a lab on-site, though they could certainly send some away for testing.
For basic utilities you might be able to get some of the maps, but... I can tell you in a town like this there is one company that provides power, they use the same water pipes, etc. They simply aren't large enough to have diversity that comes from competition in markets. The only way you might be able to find out with absolute certainty who uses the utilities, and to what extent, would be to talk to the psions and/or their families themselves. For example, my aunt used a well rather than her town's water supply but the only people that really took note of it were the town's billing department I think because they didn't bill her for services she didn't use. You might be able to get someone to look that up for you, but you won't find it from paper maps.
The people on that list did not have addresses listed, so you'll need to ask around although they are far from impossible to find! Keep that in mind too.
Wixard
Thinkerer
Okay fine to 'explore' environmental factors. Or just to get everyone else to start moving. Or whatever. If I write myself into a corner I'll write myself out of it.
simj26
Awful, Terrible, No-good Layabout
Provided that corner doesn't have sharp, jagged glass that would cut you to ribbons before you do.
Wixard
Thinkerer
I'm unclear as to whether characters can be killed or maimed without permission. Initially I thought we were going with the standard 'no they can't' but I'm hearing a lot of vague warnings about stuff. If that happens to Percival without him getting a chance to respond to it, whatever. I lose the character, I go play somewhere else. He gets roughed up, captured, story goes on.
Syrenrei
Connoisseur of Romance
Syrenrei
Connoisseur of Romance
@Wixard
The RP Rules are here: https://www.rpnation.com/topic/256426-rp-rules/
Characters will not be killed without player consent and approval, but is entirely possibly for them to be injured and/or temporarily incapacitated.
If/when an antagonist surfaces and attacks you, or if there is an action that could hurt you, you will have a chance to elude/dodge/fight back, but this is where advantages come into play. If I made a character that has no real fighting advantages, I'd probably lose to an antagonist that was a brawler, but if I was an expert with pistols I might be able to take out an antagonist that was caught unaware. It depends a lot on the situation. I'm warning everyone about wandering out by themselves because I want you to be aware (even though your character might not be) that there are not entirely benevolent circumstances at play here. I don't want someone to make a choice in character that leads them to a place where that character is damaged and then have the player be upset, you know? So if I see anyone planning something potentially dangerous I'll give them lots of warnings so they know what they are getting themselves (and their characters) into. Ultimately they may be able to wiggle out of it, but they might not, but it's an informed decision they need to make.
The RP Rules are here: https://www.rpnation.com/topic/256426-rp-rules/
Characters will not be killed without player consent and approval, but is entirely possibly for them to be injured and/or temporarily incapacitated.
If/when an antagonist surfaces and attacks you, or if there is an action that could hurt you, you will have a chance to elude/dodge/fight back, but this is where advantages come into play. If I made a character that has no real fighting advantages, I'd probably lose to an antagonist that was a brawler, but if I was an expert with pistols I might be able to take out an antagonist that was caught unaware. It depends a lot on the situation. I'm warning everyone about wandering out by themselves because I want you to be aware (even though your character might not be) that there are not entirely benevolent circumstances at play here. I don't want someone to make a choice in character that leads them to a place where that character is damaged and then have the player be upset, you know? So if I see anyone planning something potentially dangerous I'll give them lots of warnings so they know what they are getting themselves (and their characters) into. Ultimately they may be able to wiggle out of it, but they might not, but it's an informed decision they need to make.
Kiroshiven
Shadow Cursed
Minerva wants to basically memorize the town like she would a map. Know which roads lead where, where major buildings are, and small things like where people group together. Also, can Minerva respond to our French friend's statement or should I wait for the others?
shatteredxfrost
Chaotic Neutral
Sorry! I'm not home until tomorrow D: apologies for making everyone wait!
simj26
Awful, Terrible, No-good Layabout
I feel kinda weirded out that the characters are so uptight and tensed out about something they have no idea about. If anything, the doc's movements are more logical than the others, since they really have nothing to be wary about.
It's a run of the mill search and interview. What's got everyone so worried?
It's a run of the mill search and interview. What's got everyone so worried?
Wixard
Thinkerer
:') Thank you!
Kiroshiven
Shadow Cursed
My character is just coming up with excuses to go search and experience the town. She knows that if she runs off it'll get reported to the preservers and she'll get in trouble.
Emiya Shin
Just a dumbo
"If it's a run of the mill search and interview, why that fidgety researcher doesn't tell us more? And why Psydrium has to send in a fidgety researcher instead of a proper briefing master and basically tell us what Black Rock is like rather than 'oh we will keep in touch later'? I mean, multiple psions in one location yo, rarest occurrence yo! And where's that welcoming party anyway? I know Authors like me can read minds and breach through the language barrier, but wouldn't a local translator would make the whole interviewing thing much better? So yeah, I wonder why you guys didn't feel that this BREG thing is a big huge conspiracy?"
- Sophie, after glasses of red wine.
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simj26
Awful, Terrible, No-good Layabout
We're going to leave it for Syren to answer this, but I'm going out on a limb to say that
1) the personality and sketchiness of our 'briefing master' can be chalked up to a personality issue. Maybe he's just underpaid, and doesn't want to deal with all this shit with BREG.
2) this is a volunteer job. The most expenses that were used were for pamphlets and papers being printed to be sent out for psions who could be useful for this expedition.
3) furthermore, if they could have wasted money to buy translators, why not just buy a good lot of more, actually qualified, psions to do the job instead of an animal woman, a photographer, a misplaced doctor, and a French baguette?
Wixard
Thinkerer
Hehehehehe
Syrenrei
Connoisseur of Romance
Ok to answer a bunch of questions:
1.) The characters have to report in at the end of the day. If several of them go off and do basically nothing, the Preservers will just send them home. They aren't sending them to explore and vacation, they are being sent on this expedition to investigate. Since the characters don't really have allegiances to each other, so if Bob thinks Sue is just being worthless, he can report that and if she has nothing to show for it, yeah, she could be sent home.
2.) Yes, your briefer was an anxious guy. The other researchers didn't see value in briefing a bunch of strange folks to go on an expedition they aren't even sure is worthwhile.
3.) Sims is right, Preservers are largely volunteer. And a lot of Preservers want to just be saving people, not trying to figure out why there is an anomaly of psions appearing in more frequency than they should be. You can safely assume some people think this is just a freak occurrence and aren't actually concerned about it. It's some of the scholars that find this significant, but not all of Psydrium would be interested.
4.) No welcoming party because basically no psions because... why would there be? Why would a lot of psions live here? Why would they suddenly tell a bunch of non-psions about the psion world to welcome you? Why making a ruse when you're all a bunch of adults that can navigate the world (and this town) on your own?
5.) There really isn't anything culturally exciting or significant about Black Rock. Imagine it's like a small town in the country you live in that's in the near vicinity. How would you explain it to someone visiting? Would you really think it needs to be explained? Probably not. I'm not saying Slovakia is like Psydrium, but just that they don't see anything significant in Black Rock on a whole that you really need to know. That's part of the reason this is so mysterious!
1.) The characters have to report in at the end of the day. If several of them go off and do basically nothing, the Preservers will just send them home. They aren't sending them to explore and vacation, they are being sent on this expedition to investigate. Since the characters don't really have allegiances to each other, so if Bob thinks Sue is just being worthless, he can report that and if she has nothing to show for it, yeah, she could be sent home.
2.) Yes, your briefer was an anxious guy. The other researchers didn't see value in briefing a bunch of strange folks to go on an expedition they aren't even sure is worthwhile.
3.) Sims is right, Preservers are largely volunteer. And a lot of Preservers want to just be saving people, not trying to figure out why there is an anomaly of psions appearing in more frequency than they should be. You can safely assume some people think this is just a freak occurrence and aren't actually concerned about it. It's some of the scholars that find this significant, but not all of Psydrium would be interested.
4.) No welcoming party because basically no psions because... why would there be? Why would a lot of psions live here? Why would they suddenly tell a bunch of non-psions about the psion world to welcome you? Why making a ruse when you're all a bunch of adults that can navigate the world (and this town) on your own?
5.) There really isn't anything culturally exciting or significant about Black Rock. Imagine it's like a small town in the country you live in that's in the near vicinity. How would you explain it to someone visiting? Would you really think it needs to be explained? Probably not. I'm not saying Slovakia is like Psydrium, but just that they don't see anything significant in Black Rock on a whole that you really need to know. That's part of the reason this is so mysterious!
