RED.

RED

YELLOW

YELLOW!

>>244225
Hmm.

...blue.

YELLOW

yellow

Simon says Red.

RED

YELLOW

also pixel art is more than fine

Yellow,
and I quite like pixel art

Yellow looks the most like a protagonist. Red looks like the mightiest dude around, though. Let's go RED.

Red because he looks like he has a larvitar for a head.

But blue looks like a mage or something! Go with blue!

Blue. He looks the most mysterious and wizardy.

RED BECAUSE IT IS THE COLOR OF A MAN'S BLOOD.

Blue, blue... I want to paint the whole world blue..

I've done this before.

Blue AND Red. I wish to be Purple Wizard.

>>244268
I'd love to let you do that except I really don't have time to come up with another Hero character's pixelart portrait.

17 votes; voting closed.

RED 6
YELLOW 7
BLUE 4

Yellow it is.

ZtP 2010/10/16(Sat)15:53 No. 244278 ID: ab04d4
File 128726961273.png - (5.55KB , 300x250 , YELLOW.png )

>YELLOW

Templar_Abstract logs off with a sigh. AO. AO's always getting you to play games that he downloads off of weird places.

An older game was in fact a virus that simulated the end of the world. You had to beat to save the world from meteors or some shit like that.

Maybe this game will be different. You sign in and WHOA.

Okay, the avatar rendering system is pretty cool. It apparently reads your web history and forms a digital version of you with some incredibly complex algorithm. You can't even begin to imagine it.

Actually, on second thought, that is really really creepy, especially given that the avatar you formed is the exact shape of something the game really had no business knowing about...

The game informs you that the battlefield is loading.

>Meanwhile, she takes the time to consider how she's never told any of her online friends her real name. What was her name again?

yeah this is loaded with MSPA references

If we're going with MSPA references then... Rose Harley

AO.

[Nice pixel art.]

Mira Harley

Flighty Buttlass

Rube Goldberg.

>>244309
This.

>oh come on, just because I said that there might be MSPA refs suddenly all the suggestions are MSPA injokes. A little originality here? Otherwise I'll have to go with my original default name.

ZtP 2010/10/16(Sat)16:39 No. 244325 ID: ab04d4
File 128727237479.png - (17.19KB , 600x450 , Frame1.png )

>>244318
I'll move on for a sec, u guys can still suggest the names though :P

The game loaded faster than expected, breaking her thoughts.

...This is "total immersion and complete realism"? What a complete waste of time.

Nevertheless, you have no idea what you are doing. You know only one person you can consult for help, but he hasn't-

Discourse:
<Aberrant_Osteophage has logged in!>
TA: Oh good. You showed up.
AO: yea I had some troubleshit at my place its good now though
TA: Excellent. Now, for the first question: What the hell am I doing?
AO: yea u have to pick a place to deposituate your main base
AO: wat faction did u pick
TA: ...Factions?
AO: yea theres factions did u just start on the default one
TA: Apparently so. What does that make me?
AO: you're playing Goldspire, they have average all round stats
AO: anyways you should deploy your main base, its called the Academy for Goldspire
TA: ...This looks like Starcraft
AO: I kno right dont worry itll get weird soon as soon as you find some Templates
TA: What?
AO: o no theres enemies at my base already
AO: I talk to you soon, c ya
<Aberrant_Osteophage has logged off!>
TA: ...Dammit.

Well, looks like I gotta deploy my main base somewhere. Where shall it be?

>the Academy takes up a 2x2 piece of the grid, and is your main construction base. It produces the drones that build other thingies for you. You may only construct on your side of the river.

Alana Oak then.

>>244325
Directly to your left, so that it fills only the lightbrown.

starburst98!I10GFLsZCw 2010/10/16(Sat)16:55 No. 244336 ID: 1b42c5
File 128727332034.png - (17.19KB , 600x450 , 12872723747954.png )

right on the black spot.

also name is
Delonto Terada

Falcon 2010/10/16(Sat)16:57 No. 244337 ID: f67dcd
File 128727343710.png - (17.56KB , 600x450 , right there.png )

Right there.

Name
Zerlina the Pronunciationfag

Suggestion 2010/10/16(Sat)17:18 No. 244350 ID: 56dc25
File 128727468037.png - (16.93KB , 600x450 , academy.png )

>>244325
If that blue is water, put it here. Coastal positioning is a very good thing.

And name... Theresa Archer. Because having initials mirror real names is nice, and all that.

ZtP 2010/10/16(Sat)17:20 No. 244352 ID: ab04d4
File 128727485459.png - (24.45KB , 600x450 , Raise the Academy.png )

You place the Academy and

whoa

immersion

So this is what they meant. You felt it. You reached out your hand and the ground obeyed you. The Academy erupts like a monumental beast at your command.

...

That felt pretty fucking sweet.

woah.

Woah, spam academies everywhere!

No wait, you might want to save your grist.

make some drones?

>>244352
Awesome sauce.

>>244350
I like the sound of this name.

Also, start spamming some probes.

ZtP 2010/10/16(Sat)17:41 No. 244390 ID: ab04d4
File 128727611564.png - (20.10KB , 600x450 , Frame1.png )

The academy is directly to your north. You decided to reserve the coastal location for something else. Perhaps a defense turret or a shipyard, if such things exist.

Discourse:
AO: ok I killed the Steelhive units, go Me
TA: The what units?
AO: environmonster enemies, Steelhive, annoying buggers patrol the map
AO: become stronger as game continues
AO: if We dont finish before a certain point the Steelhive become so strongnarly
<Flights_Soul has logged in!>
AO: that We all get destructionissimused by it and lose
FS: hi guys!!!!
TA: I see. A built-in gameplay based timer.
TA: Hi FS
AO: yea basically
FS: this game is soooo cool i love the drones and the attack units
FS: have u guys found about scouts yet
TA: What? How do you know all this?
FS: i looked at online guide b4 i logged in silly :P
AO: nice one I didnt think of online guides
AO: the games so new
TA: Anyways.
TA: What do I do next?
AO: u need to build some Batteries to power ur units
AO: open up ur menu and see
TA: Huh. Skills, Construct...
AO: yea leave skills well do that later
AO: order ur drones to construct new Batteries
TA: Okay.
FS: i alredy did dat :D im building my Traverse ships :D
TA: FS, don't tell us what you're doing, it ruins the tactical gameplay.
FS: sorry :(
AO: anyways guys the rest you figure out on your own
AO: I have some victorealization to do here

But you weren't paying attention to AO. You had remembered; your name is Alena Darcher. You feel silly for forgetting.

You open the construct menu. Hm. Doesn't look like you can do much at the moment. You can build drones with your Academy (what a misnomer) or use drones to place Batteries. Apparently, you need at least one battery to proceed with other structures.

And where should you place your batteries?

>Batteries: Each one essentially provides energy support. Your base costs 0 energy but buildlings will require batteries to power. Make sure you construct Batteries with connector lines that will link to your buildings. Out of range batteries are useless batteries. Batteries take up 1 space.

>>244385
oh man i should have done this but i already formed the name after you posted it and i had to shove the Archer part in haphazardly :(

have your base make a couple drones and have them build 4 batteries directly to the west of your base.

>>244390
How long is battery range, if we have to keep them close?

And, well, for now build a couple batteries north of our base, and crank out drones as fast as we can.

Falcon 2010/10/16(Sat)17:52 No. 244403 ID: f67dcd
File 128727674877.png - (20.21KB , 600x450 , right there.png )

there and there

>>244395
Batteries seem vital so either way they should probably be kept close.

ZtP 2010/10/16(Sat)18:11 No. 244409 ID: ab04d4
File 128727786422.png - (21.39KB , 600x450 , Frame3.png )

>>244395
Discourse:
TA: Hey AO what's the max range of Batteries?
AO: Basictteries are 4 tiles for Goldspire, if you find an upgraded Template for batteries you can get longer range or more efficient batteries
TA: Ok thanks.
AO: also you will need resources, you can get resources by digging
TA: ...That's it? No special ores? No crystals? No vespene gas or whatever?
AO: nope all u need is mining but be careful
AO: weird stuff comes out if you dig too deep
TA: I'll keep it in mind.

So, now you've got a total of 4 drones running around, and 4 batteries built. You figure now is as good a time as any to figure out what the new dome-shaped building is.

You turn on the option to see your resources. Hm. Well, drones cost 1 and the new building costs 5... And your batteries cost 2. Apparently that meant you started with 20 resources, apparently.

(the number reads 0008 if you can't tell. If you guys want I'll redo the HUD and make the resource number bigger)

>>244409
Construct one of the new building a couple ticks southwest of your academy, while ordering all other available drones to start digging for resources. Presumably they can do that.

build new thing southeast of base.

The new thing should be to the west, so it's hooked to those batteries.

Now, let's dig greedily and deep.

ZtP 2010/10/16(Sat)18:46 No. 244429 ID: ab04d4
File 128727997690.png - (22.90KB , 600x450 , Frame 4.png )

Discourse:
AO: so how many Templates have u guys found so far
FS: i found 3!!! :)
AO: nice I only found 2 but I started in a poor region
AO: all mountainments ugh
TA: Wow, you guys already are scouting for Template things? I haven't even finished with my base.
AO: this is why you should have used a guidesign like FS
FS: *giggle*
TA: Screw you all, I'll get around to it in my own good time.
AO: I bet you havent chosen your skillings either right?
TA: ...No.
FS: I chose mine! I have a freezing one and a time slow one theyre rly cool graphx are awsome
AO: ya I know when I used My skill I was all like whoa this is like awesomatic and realisticizizz
TA: ...I'll go sit in the corner in my ineptitude at this game now.

Sigh. At least your drones found you three resources in mining. Maybe you should build more if you want more resources... And maybe you should mine further away from your base, at a specified location.

What now? The new building is the Barracks, which lets me build basic troops. Should you assign the skills, send scouts and play catch-up, or begin constructing combat units to defend the perimeter?

>>244429
okay i need to decide whether to do this in third person or first person lol i keep flipping between the two derp

50% scouts 50% defensive units. and while those are working you assign skills.

>>244429
Spend half your resources on building more drones, and assign them immediately to getting more resources. Spend the remainder on mostly scouts with a small number of defensive units. Send the scouts out immediately to try and find whatever the hell they're talking about and to figure out if you're about to come under attack, which will let you know how to spend resources next.

Whichever of your mining locations seems to be producing the most resources is where your new miner drones go. Since you have no idea what the differences in income between terrain types are, that's all you've got to go on.

Start looking over the skills, but don't assign anything yet.

For early in the game, SPAM DRONES and 2 scouts.

MINE MINE MINE MINE, STOCKPILE RESOURCES

First skill, METEOR SHOWER!!!!!

Try making them mine one type of panel each, see the results and adjust accordingly.

ZtP 2010/10/16(Sat)19:14 No. 244455 ID: ab04d4
File 128728168013.png - (24.73KB , 600x450 , Frame 5.png )

You build three Militants (which were apparently the only combat unit choice from the Barracks) and three Drones. The drones scuttle off to mine while your established drones net you 3 resource... Which are immediately squandered into a Corsair.

Total resources: 0.

Ah well. You should tell the Scout a direction to go in, at least.

You also note that there are no more building options available, which is rather surprising.

Discourse:
TA: Is this it? One Academy, a few drones, a barracks, some batteries, and then just basic soldiers and a scout? Where's everything else?
AO: yea u have to find Templates to upgrade ur arsenal
AO: what u STILL havent scouted yet
FS: dont worry TA youll do fine! :) the first template is always to the south of ur base but that one is guarded by stelhive troops
AO: yea those were the ones that attacked Me
AO: I forgot about them and went for the template without backup
AO: dragged them right back to My base
AO: almost lost
TA: Good to know I'm not the only one who messes up like a jackass.
AO: hey wth.

>skills

The Templar of Abstraction has different skillsets to focus on. Each tier of skill unlocks a new skill in that branch.

She can focus on Protection- to defend her troops and augment their survivalism. After all, from the looks of this you might have to play defense very soon.

Or she can focus on Leadership- to inspire her soldiers to victory. Under the flag of the Goldspire, all shall know the Templar's wrath.

And finally, she can focus on Combat- as the hero unit, she can prove to be a fearsome point to a spearhead assault.

Which shall it be?

leadership. then have your scout go south and aggro the nest, then have it go around in circles as a distraction while your troops take pot shots at them.

>>244455
Let's not get into combat just yet. Send our scout off westward, and invest whatever new resources we get into more drones and scouts. Hopefully we'll locate at least one more template which will give us more options; if not, we can invest in a few more militants and rush the southern template. It's not going anywhere.

I'm thinking that either protection or leadership is the way to play this.

Protection.

DRONES!

>>244460
Leadership! It's nice and balanced.

>>244430
Looks like first and second person to me.

>>244458
Leadership, yo

ZtP 2010/10/16(Sat)19:45 No. 244475 ID: ab04d4
File 128728354168.png - (25.50KB , 600x450 , Frame 6.png )

You decide not to choose your skill just yet. You need time to deliberate.

Instead, you deploy your scout to the west in search of possible templates while you construct another scout and send it south with an accompaniment of several troops.

As this is an RTS you can only follow one group's actions. Would you like to follow the west scout, the south scout, or do something else entirely while leaving the two to their own machinations? Perhaps your avatar-unit-thing should follow one of the two groups as well?

As you think, suddenly-

Discourse:
FS: I NEED HELP
AO: what happened?
FS: huge steelhive ship out of nowhere killed my scout party ;_;
AO: uhh We're on different teams u know that right
FS: u wont help me? :(
AO: i mean this is a free for all so yea srry
FS: ...

Huh. Looks like FS is in trouble.

What should I say?

>income: 6 resource
>units: 2 Corsair Scouts, 4 Militants, 6 Drones, 1 Avatar Sprite
>bought one corsair and one militant this update, 2 resource accumulated

>>244474
whatever bleh i am not good with grammar

I hope you guys aren't getting bored. I promise fight actions very very soon :D

Help him, always good to have someone owe you a favor.

We're so new at this game we really need some friends. Selfless assistance at this point would be really good. But what's that about teams? Will your guys just hurt the other guys if you try to help? You should make your own team!

try pressing F1 to bring up a diplomacy window or something and send an alliance request. wonder what the game does if you destroy the steelhive entirely...

oh, also go south.

Help the dude out, make militants, send militants.

send 3.

IF they are not worth anything as a fighting force, they can be distractions.

Send avatar with south group.

>>244475
Do we even know where he is to help him? It seems like a moot point.

Build more drones! Drones are like money, you will always need more.

ZtP 2010/10/16(Sat)20:13 No. 244500 ID: ab04d4
File 128728519956.png - (26.83KB , 600x450 , Frame 7.png )

Discourse:

TA: It's ok FS, I'll help. Which direction are you in?
FS: i dunno... :(
FS: oh no the ship is destroying my naval factory
AO: you get SHIPS?
AO: ...you're playing the Sapphire Guard faction arent you
SF: it's none of your business!!! >:(
AO: watch out TA she has lots of gunboats
AO: if youre near a lake or somethingus like that she can nuclearance you to death with ranged bombastardment
TA: THANK YOU I think that's enough.
FS: i wont do that i SWEAR plz
TA: I know you won't. I'm near a river, I just need to know if you're northeast or southwest in relation to my position.
AO: wow youre trusting her remember last time
FS: that was an accident!! :(
TA: You. AO. Shut the fuck up.

You're not pleased with the way this is going. Then again, AO was always an asshole. You begin preparations for assistance, building up your Militant Militia. Ha ha.

Discourse:
FS: im sending down a transport ship dont shoot it plz

Soon after, you see a blue ship coming down the river from the north. It looks rather heavily armed.

You, in the meantime, have accumulated a good amount of troops and managed to construct a few more drones. Your income is flowing, and so are your Militants.

Your scout has been waiting down south along with its attendants. Your west scout is long gone and you don't know how well it will do.

Actions?

send a small swarm of guys up river to their location. keep looking for an alliance menu.

Oi. This is a real time strategy game, isn't it? The other guys are just NPC mobs... Arn't our enemies the other players? I'd be willing to bet that 'transport ship' is a trick! Blast it!

>>244504
...That or keep it away from your base before boarding, at least.

>>244500
Signin off for tonight, tomorrow HUGE BATTLES :D
>>244504
Lol AO said it was an RTS in the first post

>>244500
If you have that many militants, you likely have more than enough forces to take that template to the south. Get it.

Build more drones and another scout or two- send them out in a random direction and hope for the best.

Aside from that, send your existing militia to help out, and build more militia at your base to replace them. Don't reinforce your aid group, because you can't really afford to overcommit here.

And take Leadership. You probably can't afford to not have any skills much farther in, even if we don't know how effective they are.

the NPC mobs spawn and attack player bases. not just sit around waiting to be hit.

>>244508
That was me. Whoops. Bye all.

Also, skills discussion and tactics discussion is open.

Send all of the militants to the transport. Send the corsairs to follow it, too.

This can't possibly go wrong.

set your militants to defensive mode but hold fire. if transport fires you fire back but until then you wait. everyone starts off with one trust point. if your trust is betrayed then they lose points. if they show you they were truthful then they get more in return. bigger things need bigger amounts of trust spent for you to do it. slet single one of their units approach you? sounds like a 1 point thing. let their suicide bomb nuke unit hide at your base? that takes 100.

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)06:57 No. 244826 ID: ab04d4
File 128732386388.png - (28.05KB , 600x450 , Frame 8.png )

You, after thinking, decide to choose Leadership. Surely the power of the masses is greater than the power of any single unit.

>skill unlocked: AMBIENT CHARISMA
>passive skill: all troops within one hex of your leader gain increased combat power.

>skill unlocked: CLARION CALL
>summons your troops to defend a certain strongpoint, and transfers the effects of your AMBIENT CHARISMA to that tile.

You feel bonuses to your leadership, and see in the HUD the CLARION CALL skill in the middle box of the top boxes. So that's what they're for.

No news from your west scout. You prepare to follow your south scout into the desert...

You try to build as many militants as possible. However, you only have one barracks and its production rate cannot match your harvesting rate. Perhaps you should construct more barracks?

You construct 4 militants anyways, the max for a single barracks per turn.

Discourse:
FS: alright get on the transport
TA: Okay.
FS: no wait 1 sec watch out

The ship opens fire.

...

Action?

Back away and wait, sh eprobably forgot to declare you ally or something,

If it keeps attacking STRIKE WITH ALL YO UR POWER!

>>244826
There's something coming out of the resource holes!
They look sort of like brown drones with red legs...

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)07:36 No. 244849 ID: ab04d4
File 128732616613.png - (33.32KB , 600x450 , Frame 9.png )

Discourse:
TA: FUCK WHAT ARE YOU DOING
AO: see I told you shed betray you
SF: not you, watch out!!!
TA: OH SHIT what the hell is this?!
TA: Creepy fucking spider things from the pits
AO: you dug too deep
AO: I told you dog
AO: I warned you about pits
SF: im bringing reinforcements, my base can survive for a bit longer
SF: i found a defense turret Template, you dont have defenses tho
SF: ur cheap units will get pwned... :(

This is a fucking shitstorm. Suddenly monster things every fucking where. Goddamn.

My troops seem to be holding up well enough. The monsters are close-range attackers, apparently.

I also note that the units next to me are firing with increased power. Interesting.

But the coolest thing of all is that my Barracks apparently serves as a recruiting site AND a defense tower. Awesome.

Discourse:
TA: Okay, AO, how do we set up alliances? Where's the menu for that?
AO: you cant theres no alliances in ffa
TA: ...Fuck this.
SF: thats okay TA we can have unofficial alliance :)
TA: Yeah, you know what? We're allying against you, AO. Screw you.
AO: ...fine be that way

What should I do? The incoming waves of enemies aren't stopping.

reuploading image with post, deleted previous version

use a resource on each hole to bury the pits?

>>244849
Tell all your drones to move to different spots and keep digging. You cannot afford to have your income flow stop because of a little thing like swarms of killer enemies almost overwhelming you.

Since the barracks is the only defense tower you've got, throw up a second one, northwest of your base this time. Have both of them crank out militants at maximum speed.

Build another scout and send it out somewhere. Try east. You desperately need more troop types.

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)08:17 No. 244871 ID: ab04d4
File 128732864370.png - (17.50KB , 600x450 , Region2.png )

>In the meantime...

A stroke of luck.

This Corsair has discovered a Template. But what kind is it?

Well, there's nothing to do but pick it up.

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)08:18 No. 244872 ID: ab04d4
File 128732873041.png - (8.71KB , 600x450 , Unit Template.png )

>It's a unit template.

Unit templates create new units for you. This particular unit is an empty, blank slate. Some later templates may have presets, however.

Assign points to different values and add a descriptor sentence to complete a new unit. Describe the unit's attack type, its movement type, and whether it has a special ability.

>Don't worry if you don't really know what you're doing, I'll help you resolve the unit to be an effective one.

>>244872
Forgot a few details. The total points you assign have to add up to 5. Better templates will have higher point pools.

Combat denotes attack; the unit's basic weaponry go here. Speed denotes movement type and speed of movement; decide whether you want a walker, a flying hover thing, something with wings, or whatever you can come up with.

Special is everything else. Time-stop attacks, ability to plant bombs, ability to teleport, ability to mind control enemies, ability to throw up an invulnerable shield... Basically whatever you want. However, to have a special you need to assign at least 3 points to Special for anything.

5-templates are about average. Templates will range from 3-7 as the norm, but rare templates will grant 10 or even more points, resulting in extremely powerful units.

Cost of the unit is always equal to the points the template was assigned with.

we have a fighting unit. let's make a special. 1/1/3

>>244875
>Are you going to define a special, or will I choose the special for you?

>>244876
what specials can we use?

>>244877
WHATEVER YOU CAN COME UP WITH :D
Effectiveness is directly related to the number of points you put into Special though. Note that units with Special are basically useless for anything else.

For a bit of comparison, the Militants have Combat 1 and Speed 1, but no Special. Scouts have Speed 2 but no Combat or Special. Your hero unit would be something like 4 in each stat.

>>244875
Actually, I'd go all the way to 0/1/4. If we're going to make it basically combat-ineffective, just go all the way. With a special like... the ability to reveal what's in a 20-tile radius anywhere we want. Need to find us more templates and learn more about this game. Call it a Satellite Uplink, make it a guy with a backpack and a laptop.

But agreed, we have a combat unit and a scout, however questionably effective they are. Time for specials.

then... why have more then 3 points able to go in special if they can be anything?
how about this thing has special "i win", when used all enemy units die.

see, you can't say ANYTHING you need an exact power limit or it will descend into a dragon ball Z "my power lvl is greater then yours" fight as each person makes a special to counter the others special.

Psystorm

>>244884
>Well, a three-point special based on the idea of instakilling would yield you a sniper unit that could instakill from long range but has a high reload.

There's a sense of scale tied into how many points you put into your special, you know.

The thing is, the DM, me, is the one who prevents DBZ power level crap from happening by regulating this kind of thing from falling into chaos.

Now can we stop complaining over the fact that I gave you guys some freedom?

>>244884
We don't need an EXACT power limit. He already gave us the general guidelines we need; that's enough. If we suggest something too powerful or two weak, he'll tell us. Have some faith in the GM, eh?

>>244885
Why not just give it a high combat rating, if we're going with a direct attack special?

i'm not complaining, but i just like knowing exactly where i stand. anyway. serious one would be sub-commander. it uses any passive auras our leader unlocks. and yeah 0/1/4 for that.

>>244889
AOE attack effects can either fall under Special or Combat. Combat AOEs are damage based, whereas Special AOEs will inflict status effects such as poison, slowing, etc. along with lesser damage.

Psystorm can be invested into combat to be a powerful detonative attack, or it can be invested into special to produce a debilitating area of enemy-timestoppage and damage over area over time.

>>244892
Subcommander with similar auras? I like that idea. With 0 combat it will have no attacks whatsoever, though, but that's not really a problem I guess. Note that auras will not overlap and stack bonuses.

>>244898
yeah, if it ISN'T surrounded by attack units then it's being used wrong. so attack for itself is moot.

>>244898
I'd rather have a unit which can get us more information, because we're behind and really need to play catch-up, which means finding more templates as quickly as possible. But it is a good idea.

>>244872
1/1/3
Default attack is short-ranged, with moderate damage
Land-based movement, low speed
Special attack has a long range and high damage, can shoot over obstacles

Is this balanced?

>>244901
>Pretty balanced sniper/commando model unit. As an aside, this post is basically the model suggestion for unit design. Writing your suggestion like this will help me a lot.

>>244901
I'm seconding this.

oh, then let me re-set this...

0/1/4
special is aura generation like the hero unit's. get's more powerful as more auras are unlocked.
walker.

>>244883
I'll rewrite this in the requested format, then:

0/1/4
No attacking ability
Land-based movement, low speed (walks)
Special ability reveals a large remote section of the map

>>244901
I am not a fan of this. It seems built to pop big enemies, but we don't have any big enemies facing us right now that we need a hero killer to counter.

Like >>244901, but combat based :

4/1/0 or even 5/0/0 if possible. This would be a slow siege artillery vehicle that sits behind other units and annihilates the opposition with high damage, small AOE shots. Excellent for defense and attrition warfare.

>>244936
That was actually the original idea, but the version I posted would most likely give the same results in addition to some close-range ability.

>>244978
why would your way result in close range as well and not the other? 5 attack would be powerful at all ranges. yours would be like a ghost. really shitty but can use a special to hit super hard. his is always hits hard.

>>244988
Because your version would be substantially more powerful than my "balanced" version otherwise.

[I just accidentally my last post, whoops]

and why do we need balance? :3c

>>244994
Because the GM is evil, of course!

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)12:20 No. 245011 ID: ab04d4
File 128734324991.png - (12.27KB , 600x450 , Immersion1.png )

I

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)12:20 No. 245012 ID: ab04d4
File 128734325833.png - (11.18KB , 600x450 , Immersion2.png )

Fucking

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)12:21 No. 245013 ID: ab04d4
File 128734326682.png - (14.30KB , 600x450 , IMMERSION 3.png )

Love

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)12:21 No. 245015 ID: ab04d4
File 128734327493.png - (12.08KB , 600x450 , Immersion 4.png )

Immersion

holy shit. you just WASTED that thing.

>>245016
She does have 4 in all stats. One would rather expect her to be able to waste the lowest level of computer-controlled enemy without breaking a sweat.

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)12:27 No. 245028 ID: ab04d4
File 128734367894.png - (36.05KB , 600x450 , Frame 10.png )

Hell yeah.

It was a long battle, but you finally finished the fight, with the help of FS. You decided to use your new Unit Template to make a Sub-Commander unit, which cost 5 each. This turned the battle, as units that would have been mown down before oncoming waves of critters turned and instead mowed the enemies down. It is safe to say that without your subcommanders, there is no way your base would still stand.

You lost a single battery in the attack, and constructed another barracks, replacing lost men quickly. You also lost three drones from the surprise assault.

>DM note: I'm removing resource and power counter because copypasting their number readouts is a pain. I'll tell you the resource and power in the text itself.

>The new unit is the subcommander because you would have lost a good part of your base without bonuses to combat.

Discourse:
FS: we did it!!!
AO: hmph
TA: The blood will go away right?
FS: yea it fades away
TA: Awesome. How's your base?
FS: its holding, im using time freeze spells
FS: we cant kill the ship its too strong but we can stop it
FS: its only vulnerable to lightning attacks and we dont have any of those
FS: but your soldiers are all lightning attack based
TA: I see. I will depart to your base at once.
TA: Also, I found a template.
AO: what level
TA: ...

What shall I do?

"knowledge for knowledge AO, tell me something about you before i tell you something about me"

anyway, get a squad together and send them up river.

>>245028
whoops forgot to tell you your resource and power

>resource: 6
>power: 1

>also those four pictures took forever, i started as soon as i posted the last update. yea they took a while, hopefully they were worth that time

>>245028
"Not telling"

>>245032
i say they were awesome.

also, get two more batteries, replace the broke one and put on to the south east.

>>245028
Replace your fallen drones. Always keep the resources flowing. Ask if more enemies will swarm up from the places that they already came from, either if you keep digging there or if you don't. Could be important to know.

Build militants so that each subcommander has a squad of at least five accompanying it. They're a large investment, and not putting as much into firepower as you did into boosters means that they could die far too easily. Keep yourself and at least one squad at your base for defense.

Build a battery so that each barracks has at least two batteries which could potentially power it.

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)13:47 No. 245067 ID: ab04d4
File 128734843967.png - (26.16KB , 600x450 , Frame 11.png )

>>245056
You do your best, but your economy took a dive due to the attack. You can only muster up about 4 or 5 militants per subcommander. You do build another subcommander/militant group, however. You also replace your battery and build another one.

>resource: 0
>power: 3

Discourse:
TA: So do I have to worry about the pits? Fill them up with resource or something?
FS: 1 sec
<Flights_Soul has opened a private channel!>
FS-TA: you didnt dig deep enough
TA-FS: What?
FS-TA: those things werent pit creatures
FS-TA: they look different
AO: what are you guys talklamoring about
FS: just how to play the game and where to find Templates
TA-FS: That's a template location to the west!
FS-TA: yea i already took it
FS-TA: got def turrets from that
FS-TA: anyways i think AO sent them
TA: Of course he would.
AO: I would what?
TA-FS: oh shit oh shit dammit
TA: nothign at all rly
AO: ...
FS-TA: were almost at my base lets get rdy >:)
<Flights_Soul has closed a private channel!>

>>245067
Well... if you suspect that another player knows the location of your base and is attacking it, you should be building more troops there. Build more drones to get more resources, check on how deep you actually can safely dig, and get more money. Spend around half your income on drones to achieve more growth; put together new squads at base with the remainder of your income. Once you've got maybe three squads, dispatch one of them southward to try and pick up that template that you still haven't gotten.

At her base, kill whatever's there and take a good look at what this presumably more experienced player has built. Might be something worth copying.

>>245069
That was probably all of his resources. I doubt we have to worry in the immediate future. We could focus on economy instead. Get some additional drones out there, maybe get another barracks or two set up.

>>245076
Oh, and perhaps a pair of additional corsairs to go scouting with greater rapidity.

>>245076
We only need additional barracks when we have both the resources and need to use them all to produce troops. Unless militants take a lot longer to build than I think they do, we don't.

And based upon how early he was able to spring that on us, I'm inclined to say that he's gotten more resources by now and is likely just about ready to prepare a follow-up attack with more burrowers, teleporters, or whatever the hell those were.

So, build more drones, get more money faster, and build more troops. We can sneak in a scout or two, but mostly drones and troops.

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)14:21 No. 245087 ID: ab04d4
File 128735048554.png - (35.62KB , 600x450 , Frame12.png )

>So many suggestions. I'll do base-building after the boss.

We arrive.

Whoa.

Her base is huge.

Discourse:

FS: do you like it? :3
TA: yeah
TA: I mean, yeah I do; it's very impressive.
TA: Even if I don't really know what half the structures are.
FS: :P

But what's scarier? The enemy.

So this is the Steelhive, that indomitable enemy AO keeps speaking of.

That thing is huge. It's larger than my Academy. Heck, it's larger than two academies put together.

I don't see how we can kill it... But we have to try.

Discourse:
FS: ok ill keep freezing it while you go around
FS: when i stop freezing its position itll advance
FS: by then ul be behind it and then we attack
FS: my troops will be fodder while u kill it from below

What should I say? Are there objections to this plan?

Notably, most of my troops have passively regenerated to combat-ready health and have accumulated into regular formations, while FS's troops are similarily disposed.

>Your troops: 18 Militants, 4 Subcommanders, 1 Hero
>FS's troops: way too many flying things, some mechs that you don't recognize, 5 Traverse Warships

>resource: 5 (you have to wait until the battle ends to spend it, since you can only focus on one thing)
>power: 3

Sounds like a plan!

what about air-lifting? drop someone on top of the thing. if that can't be done then that sounds like a good enough plan. get everyone into a groups and time it so they all hit at the same time. especially your hero's spear, that thing is powerful.

>>245087
If you've got any micro talent, when you engage make sure that your militants are the ones taking the hits. Subcommanders are expensive, so if one of their squads gets taken out pull them back out of range. And your commander is, of course, very important. If you start getting shot personally, get out of there while your troops cover your retreat.

Aside from that, the plan as presented sounds reasonable enough. Your troops not being the ones dying is always good.

I think he dropped you on the wrong side of the river.

>>245094
Discourse:
TA: Can you get my leader onto the ship's glass top so I can hit its weak point for massive damage?
AO: yea but just the leader, my avatar can fly but she can only lift one person i think
TA: ...Lemme think about this.

Will you decide to go for the lone-wolf dragonslaying assault, or the prolonged battle of attrition?

>>245099
Can you order the troops to attack then drop your hero on it, or do you have to micro your troops the whole time?

>>245096
>If you start getting shot personally, get out of there while your troops cover your retreat.
But use our skill to keep our buffs up front.

>>245099
both! troops engage and you go in for the kill.

Lone wolf badassery with ground support.

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)15:11 No. 245118 ID: ab04d4
File 128735346689.png - (35.68KB , 600x450 , Frame 13.png )

>>245098

>actually your troops walked over, the warships move at the same speed the soldiers do

>its not like you cant cross water it just takes a bit longer

>>245108

Why should you only carry out one of the two plans?

Discourse:
TA: Alright, we go with the original plan, but you and me hang back.
TA: Then, when the ugly bastard's occupied, you fly me up.
TA: Preferably, you do this at a climactic moment. Dramatic sense and all.
FS: uhhh... sure!
TA: Good. Move your troops now, I'll get sneaking.

Sure is a massacre over on FS's part. Last minute changes?

>>245118
No last minute changes. We have a solid plan put together here; it only remains to execute it.

yeah, knew this was going to happen, and was ready for it. no changes.

Just remember that each one of your troops are much more important than his, so take no extreme risks.

>>245121
>>245120

Yeah, that post was just an excuse to show off special effects :P Next update will be up as soon as I get back.

Wait a minute, is he using drones to attack?

>>245126
Builder spam is actually a lot more effective than one would think. Their sheer numbers more than make up for their reduced damage.

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)16:58 No. 245191 ID: ab04d4
File 12873598863.png - (34.28KB , 600x450 , Frame 14.png )

>>245126

Discourse:
FS: hurry up im losing cherubs by the second i cant keep this up forever
TA: ...You're using your mining units to attack?
FS: sapphire guard's basic troops and mining units are the same
FS: hurry up
TA: ...Okay.

Looks like she's got a really weird faction. You should probably ask her about it some more, later.

Your troops are in position; FS's avatar stands beside you.

You open fire.

...The thing took way less damage than you expected. At this rate, you're not going to be able to kill it before it fucks FS's base over and kills her central structure.

Discourse:
FS: we cant kill it fast enough!!!
TA: Yeah I know, we might have to skip to plan II
FS: u wanna airlift alredy? too soon imo!
TA: Yeah I wanna...
TA: Wait.
TA: Where's AO? I haven't heard from him in forever.
FS: oh no
FS: my node got blown up
FS: my defns towers r offline now

...What now?

>>245191
Oh shit you are both screwed

>>245193

Discourse:
TA: Oh shit, we're both screwed.
FS: shut up!!! we'll win i know it >:/
TA: We need a plan...
AO: that you do
TA: Where were you AO?
AO: doing... stuff

...

SUBS COMING IN ON THE RIGHT!
AO
AO

Quick, CLARION CALL on an area in between the subs and the mothership.

Also I see a bunch of mining units she could be using to attack

>>245191
Considering that the defense towers were doing zero damage to the thing, it doesn't matter that they were offline. Have your troops march forward to stay in range, and keep pounding it with attacks.

You don't have a ton of options. If the main structure is about to blow, have the flying leader use time stop again to buy you a little breathing room, and prepare more chaff.

>>245197

Discourse:
TA: FS use your mining units!
FS: cant
FS: if i do that i cant produce any more units
FS: the mining is all thats slowing it down
TA: DAMMIT WHAT DO WE DO?
AO: ...maybe if you ask Me pretty please
AO: I might just decide to lower My hand and help you
TA: Screw you, AO.

>>245198
TA: Why do the towers matter? Not like they were doing damage.
FS: i was using them to aggro
FS: steelhive targets defens structrs first
FS: but if they dnt atk then enemy ignores
TA: ...Oh.

airlift now, hope your spear is a lot more powerful.

>>245201
Well, if this isn't working, go back to freezing it. Buy enough time to get things repaired.

If AO does decide to bring his submarines (?) over, take a good look at their appearance and see if they match whatever it was that attacked your base. If they do, and they're not mind-bogglingly powerful, shoot them apart after the big nasty goes down. Also, try to make sure that you get the kill on the big thing, if you can manage it; not sure how experience works here, but it can't hurt and the skill system implies somehow leveling up.

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)17:40 No. 245227 ID: ab04d4
File 128736244193.png - (17.80KB , 600x450 , TIMESTOP.png )

>>245208

Discourse:
FS: im going to timestop it again
FS: almost out of mana, i can only hold it for so long
TA: That's enough. Time to skewer this bitch.

TIMESTOP

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)17:47 No. 245230 ID: ab04d4
File 128736287793.png - (34.09KB , 600x450 , Frame 15.png )

Discourse:

AO: bravo.
FS: AO wat r u doing in the river
AO: nothing at all, I'm just watching.
TA: We can ignore him for now. We have to get rid of this thing.
FS: airlifting now?
TA: airlifting now.
AO: this should be interesting
AO: just telling you guys theres no way youll be able to even dent its armor
AO: its raw defense is something like 80~ish
AO: too bad you didnt ask Me
AO: I could have killed it
TA: Just ignore him FS.
AO: you havent even leveled up once TA
AO: your attack wont even hurt it
AO: heck the only reason you damaged it was flanking bonuses
FS: i hate saying this but shut up AO
TA: Wow, that's a new one.
AO: and even if you hit it
AO: thing has on-touch damage
AO: youll get fried
TA: Too bad. We're doin this man, we're makin this hapen.
AO: ...
AO: have it your way.
AO: I'm retracting My subversiva units
AO: good luck
AO: idiots
<Aberrant_Osteophage has logged out!>
TA: I don't think he's signing back into chat anytime soon...

Now.

It's time to make the final attack.

IMMERSION FOR EVERYBODY!

Tell AO that support would not be unwarranted.

Move in the next wave of troops that you were training while the transit and combat were going on.

>>245230
Tell AO he could be a little more helpful to someone who just fucking started, good lord what a douche.

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)18:10 No. 245247 ID: ab04d4
File 128736422770.png - (11.56KB , 600x450 , Strike1.png )

Discourse:

TA: TIME FOR THE FINAL ATTACK!
FS: go TA!!! :)
AO: ...that is about the corniest thing I have ever heard

>>245247
Some people like corn, y'dick. And it's just a game. Maybe we like being suicidally valorous, hey? Stop metaphorically pissing in our metaphorical corn flakes.

STAB POWER MAXIMUM!

SHOOT STRIKE THE CORE!

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)18:21 No. 245256 ID: ab04d4
File 128736489093.png - (10.87KB , 600x450 , Strike2.png )

...

PUSH HARDER!!

>>245256
Well that was useless...

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)18:28 No. 245264 ID: ab04d4
File 128736533133.png - (14.27KB , 600x450 , Strike3.png )

...?

!!!

>>245256
Thrust with the force of a thousand suns. That should be enough.

YES!, YOU CAN DO IT! FOCUS ALL YOUR IMMERSION POWERS INTO YOUR BLADE!!

>>245264
...Or maybe it'll completely destroy it because elemental damage

>>245267
Seriously though, it's like we're designed to be a hard counter to these guys... quite an odd design decision

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)18:33 No. 245270 ID: ab04d4
File 128736562687.png - (12.71KB , 600x450 , STRIKE FOUR.png )

!!!!!

>>245269
naw, it was attacking the other person's base. if we didn't help, it would of wiped them becasue they DON'T have that element. one that is resistant to our attacks may show up some time.

>>245270
YOU CAN DO IT!!!

>>245269
It's likely that as the default faction, we simply need less skill/finesse to counter the computer opponents effectively, to ease play for newbies who might be put off by not being able to do any damage at all to a large and intimidating enemy advancing on their base.

The other factions have already displayed quite a few interesting strengths, so I'm inclined to think that they've got enough of an edge over us to make up for it.

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)18:36 No. 245275 ID: ab04d4
File 128736580359.png - (9.69KB , 600x450 , STRIKE FIVE!!!.png )

no something is wrong something is wrong

stop it

NO, YOU CAN'T STOP! YOU NEED TO PUSH HARDER! stand up and jump off your spear and PILE-DRIVER it.

>>245275

wearegoingtodie.gif

THIS IS THE END!

yell with your final breath, "FUUUUUUUUUUUUCK YOU!!"

If it's going to fry you let go and live!

NEXT TIME ON DRAGON BALL Z!

AO said we couldn't hurt it all. i think blowing it up counts as hurting it.

Gotta love that sweet, sweet immersion, even if you are dead.

>>245289
So uh

How you feeling?

>>245289
Did we just die?

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)19:07 No. 245299 ID: ab04d4
File 12873676658.png - (22.89KB , 600x450 , Frame 17.png )

Discourse:
AO: ...
FS: im sure TA's still alive
FS: she did it :D
<Templar_Abstract has been Terminated and Stratified!>
AO: how
FS: ...i hate you
AO: what
FS: I HATE YOU YOUR HORRIBLE >:( >:(
AO: no i mean how could this
AO: I was lying
AO: the thing had a defense of 12-15 tops
AO: no way a 80 def tank would have shown up so quickly
FS: so what shes dead
AO: that cant have happened
FS: what are you going to do
AO: something is fucking with us
AO: I intend to figure out what
FS: well fuck you
AO: whoa I never thought I'd hear that from you
AO: I have to dig deep
AO: all the stuff even the beta testers didnt find is down below
AO: who knows what bullshit the games pulling on us now
FS: well im quitting
FS: without TA its not fun :(
AO: there's no quit button. You can't quit.
FS: well ill just stand up from my computer
AO: what computer?
FS: ...what i what
AO: anyways we have to go deep
AO: our answers are down below and
<Eversion_Maelstrom has logged in!>
FS: ... huh
AO: who are you
EM: Nobody at all.
AO: I thought I blocked off communications
AO: this is on My private server
AO: how did you get in here
AO: ...
FS: why is the game doing this
AO: ...Its not a game
AO: the same guys who made that other game
AO: whatever it was called
AO: they made this
AO: you thought itd be like some simple game?
FS: ...
AO: come on we have to start our Descent
AO: I think we should start with TA's pit holes
FS: ...okay

Wait, so we are dead and this game was made by the makers of The World? What is going on? Who are we playing as now?

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFf-

ZtP 2010/10/17(Sun)19:20 No. 245310 ID: ab04d4
File 128736842062.png - (7.61KB , 600x450 , CHAPTER 1 END.png )

...

Darkness.

And you feel lost. Like you have lost a limb. Or an eye.

Or a sense.

Where is your integration into this world? Where are the shining panels that summoned playthings at your whim? Where is the abode of your creation, those crystal and gold formations that aspired towards the sun?

Discourse:
TA: Hello?
TA: FS? AO?
TA: nobody's here
TA: I should move. There's a path towards the south...

chapter 1 end

So, how was my first attempt at running a quest?

Splendid.

>>245304
Seems like the makers of Sburb to me.

>>245310
follow the path
Exquisite. I look forward to more.

>>245310
My review: I'm going to be awake for a few more hours; kick on Chapter 2!


Good points: You ran this pretty consistently all day, which is always good. Fast pace adds a lot. The art is fine. The main character is pretty clueless, but that's fairly standard, I suppose. The chat interface seemed like it was primarily used for infodump over characterization, but we did need a lot of infodumping so no worries- people are beginning to develop, could get quite distinct in future chapters.

Complaints, mostly minor:

The resource numbers seemed somewhat pointlessly specific when we were in an RTS mode because you were running things in freeze frames; what we really needed to run numbers effectively was a resources/second/drone and build costs/times for our various units. If you wanted to do freeze frames, you could have abstracted the numbers entirely. But ultimately that's a quibble.

Being basically unable to multitask was also pretty annoying, but I suppose you made it that way for art reasons, as well as story purposes if you're doing a "pulled into the game" plotline.

I am not a huge fan of the detailed pixel art action animations as compared to the tactical display. That could be mostly due to my perception that the pictures take more time and advance the story less. Since I know a lot of people love art, it's probably not something worth changing unless many people agree with me on this.

When creating a unit, you could have been a lot more descriptive about how it worked instead of leaving us entirely to our own devices (rarely works out well) and then getting displeased when things got a bit out of hand. But that's fairly minor as well.

>>245320

You may note I try to avoid saying any MSPA-related terminology, instead relying on obscure references and memes to establish an in-joke connection. I'm trying to make it stay that way, so you won't ever see the concepts, characters, or anything else from Homestuck featured in here.

Just a fyi, in case you were hoping for awesome crossover.

>>245310
Excellent. Will chapter 2 be in the same thread?

>>245324
Depends if this thread's still around or if the mods move it to the archive.

Personally, I'd prefer the mods keep it here. Don't archive this just yet.

>>245322

Chapter two, not tonight. I have sleep to do and tests to take.

The statements are correct, but I'm keeping my heromode IMMERSION scenes. They're fun and cool :D

The freeze-frame/resource management thing has been noted. Next chapter I'll use that system for the RTS elements.

Yes, next chapter will have RTS elements, though it may not seem apparent right now.

Be careful I detected in this quest just a bit of "trying too hard". Directly quoting Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff probably isn't the best way to go. Instead just focus on ironic plot elements where what is is not what it seems. In fact frankly if you don't want to lay on the irony as thick as Hussie does it with bizarre unpredictable plot changes, then I'd personally prefer that.

If the characters actually have seen the "Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff" comic then I guess it's okay for them to quote from it. Too sycophantic otherwise.

>>245342
Personally, I found that amusing.

Ah well.

Finally chiming back in, I liked this. Quite a quick pace, and that tends to be a good thing with quests.

>>245325
The mods will do whatever you get on IRC and tell them to do. Barring that, they will usually do nothing.

>>245342
I agree, though not to the extent that I would have mentioned it. Things and characters will attain their own identities naturally.

ZtP 2010/10/22(Fri)15:13 No. 246921 ID: ab04d4
File 128778562350.png - (12.39KB , 600x450 , Ch2.png )

You walk in the darkness.

It's a long way down.

ZtP 2010/10/22(Fri)15:14 No. 246922 ID: ab04d4
File 128778565795.png - (12.08KB , 600x500 , Preview Choice.png )

>Choose your character:

>RED
>BLUE
>YELLOW

>>246922
I'ma stick with YELLOW. After seeing where she ended up last time, I'd rather not leave her fate a mystery.

>>246922
Red

>>246923

YELLOW

or blue.

>>246925

yellow.

ZtP 2010/10/22(Fri)17:23 No. 246938 ID: ab04d4
File 128779339818.png - (9.12KB , 600x450 , Frame 1.png )

Hmm. Not as much voter turnout- did I choose a less-than-optimal update time?]

You move to a southern area.

A... Thing. South. In the middle of some precarious-looking intersections of platforms.

...Nothing to do but go take a look.

ZtP 2010/10/22(Fri)17:24 No. 246940 ID: ab04d4
File 128779349191.png - (9.04KB , 600x450 , Frame 2.png )

...It's magenta. A floating magenta crystal.

Somehow, after the last experience, you have bad associations with the color magenta.

You move closer to analyze the crystal, and stab-explode the thing like the last one if necessary.

ZtP 2010/10/22(Fri)17:25 No. 246941 ID: ab04d4
File 128779353954.png - (11.72KB , 600x450 , Crossing.png )

You approach the crystal.

ZtP 2010/10/22(Fri)17:25 No. 246942 ID: ab04d4
File 128779355153.png - (12.72KB , 600x450 , Touch.png )

You touch the crystal.

induring respawn

ZtP 2010/10/22(Fri)17:29 No. 246945 ID: ab04d4
File 128779377268.png - (16.74KB , 600x450 , Touch2.png )

You feel KNOW the crystal.

You know it.

You hear them, a thousand people, straining beyond your mind. A thousand bygone heroes of the ages, challengers and saviors, destroyers and desecrators, all ensconsed before you.

All speaking in one tongue, together, the same meaning in a thousandfold plethora of languages and intonations.

pleasehelpmeLETMEOUTiwanttobefreechoosemepleasefreemeiwanttoseeagain[s]letm
eout[s]

The effect is disconcerting.

>choose:
>Bold
>Strikethrough
>Italic

>>246945
...italic.

Uh

Italic?

Strikethrough

Italic is easiest to read.

guys, this isn't about how we want to read it
it's about which soul in the crystal we want. just Italic looks like a jerk.
while strikethrough looks nice.

Strikethrough

>>246964
Strikethrough is saying please, so pick it.

>>246964
Look, the talking can't have that much relation to our choice, because there are allcaps-italic, underline, strikethrough-italic, and strikethrough-bold voices. We might as well be choosing randomly.

Strikethrough, though why are there more variations than choices?

>>246945
Strikethrough

>...My computer died. In the middle of my update.

>And I just spent the last three hours fighting it. And I lost, and I had to reset everything.

>I have all the quest stuff saved on my flash drive, nothing is lost. Just informing you why I didn't carry out an all-nighter update spree like last time, and like I planned for this time.

>I don't even know if this computer has the same key or trip or whatever anymore. I'll probably be back around this time tomorrow night if anybody cares.

Strikethrough

>>246977
Bro messed up the formatting. You can still kinda tell who's saying what.

Strikethrough.

ZtP 2010/10/23(Sat)12:45 No. 247130 ID: ab04d4
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>>246975
>text has no relation to choice, basically this guy's right, though i did screw up a small bit of formatting

>STRIKETHROUGH

thank you...

A flash of light. You note that you should be feeling mildly discomforted by this series of events. You note also that you're not actually discomforted. Perhaps the series of bullshit has blunted your sense of confusion.

A militant stands before you.

...

That was... Anticlimactic? Meh. You prepare to move when

"My lady, I serve. Thank you."

what

"My Lady, this area is not safe. We must move. I am at your command..."

Militants can talk?

"...My Lady?"

>>247130
It's little bizarre responding to an invisible post, but I know it's there. I can see it on the main page, even if it doesn't show up when I load the thread.

So, talking militant. Roll with it. We have moved from RTS to RTS/RPG, but that's a genre shift I can get behind.

If he knows a safer area, have him lead the way. While he's at it, a bit of explanation of what dangers exactly he's talking about would be appreciated, as well as the mechanics of exactly how and how long he'd been trapped in the gem (?), and what will become of the other voices.

ZtP 2010/10/23(Sat)14:40 No. 247169 ID: ab04d4
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>>247152

>yeah i know when i posted it i got a 505 error and then one cannot see the post for some reason. im not sure why tho

Discourse:
TA: Militants can talk?
TA: ...
TA: Um.

Seems like the discourse chat system doesn't work, for whatever reason.

You...

No, that's absolutely stupid. It's a game. You can't talk outside of chat.

"..."

"Y..."

"You."

"You can talk."

And apparently, so can you.

"Yes, my Lady."

"If there is a safer region, you must take us there."

"No." The Militant emphatically shakes his head. Well, based on his intonations he's a he. "There are important things first, My Lady."

"My Lady, what is your name?"

...Your username? It's Templar_Abstract, isn't it?

But something tells you that's not what he wants, and so you remain silent as a stone.

The Militant becomes agitated.

"My Lady, you cannot forget your name! You can't afford it, not when you are the Hero, not like me! You must remember!"

You remember things. You remember your mother was cooking something in the kitchen. Something delicious. Something you remember because you could smell it even two rooms removed.

You can't smell anything anymore but darkness.

"What is your name?"

Follow him.

Ask some questions on the way but try and pretend you know what you're doing.

>>247169
"I... why does it... there are things coming up from beneath us. And my name... my name is..."

>If we can't remember, say so. If we're 'remembering' and actually choosing our name, I vote Anastasia.

ZtP 2010/10/23(Sat)15:08 No. 247184 ID: ab04d4
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>>247177

"I... why does it..."

"...My Lady?"

"There are things coming up from beneath us. And my name... my name is..."

A piercing shriek from the shadows, metal scratching against metal.

"You must remember. You must REMEMBER! I have forgotten my name, but you must not, you can't! PLEASE!"

Clanking, steel against stone. A glowing magenta eye peeks above the flat planar surface.

Magenta. God.

More and more of them emerge.

"My Lady? I suggest we leave."

A dozen creatures emerge, crawling up the pillars and into the dim light.

"NOW."

You run.

>>247184
Well, that's that, then. Keep running until we encounter something interesting, get away, or reach a chokepoint from which we might be able to hold these guys off. These are a fairly weak variety, from what I recall, and you've got a tank (you) and ranged support (militant, boosted by aura). Should be enough to chew through them if you've got decent positioning.

ZtP 2010/10/23(Sat)15:25 No. 247197 ID: ab04d4
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You run down the path, away from the screaming metal crawlers.

"Go, my Lady!"

What?

You turn around to realize that your sole soldier isn't nearly as fast as you are. At the rate at which you speed, you are easily outpacing him.

That wouldn't be a problem. It's just that the pursuers also will outpace him, given their higher speed.

"GO! I'm unimportant, just get to the next Memory Node!"

You see up ahead another of the pink floating crystals that seems to summon minions for you.

But if you race ahead, your loyal Militant will most probably be destroyed.

What will you do?

>>247197
Just pick him up and go.

>>247197
Fuck that. Are we not bold and brave? Do we not lead from the front? And more practically, is our chosen ability not leadership- which one needs troops to actually use to any decent effect?

So no, we're not leaving him to die. Have him keep running while you smash in the face of whatever enemy is closest, and gradually fall back, alternating attacking and running for the next node. If you get in trouble, he can provide supporting fire.

>>247198
Or this. Depending upon how large/strong we are compared to him, could work- might even let him shoot while we do the fleeing.

Save him, pick him up if you must otherwise stand and fight, he is the first anything who knows whats going on.

Well she can pick him up or we can move to douwn part of the map and face them there.(one title teretory where you can just push them off the platforms while militant will give ranged support).

ZtP 2010/10/23(Sat)15:52 No. 247225 ID: ab04d4
File 128787434797.png - (9.76KB , 600x450 , Retreat.png )

"My la-"

"Will you fucking shut up I'm not leaving one of you to die."

You run back and grab him by the waist, leaving no space for him to proclaim his opposing opinions.

You run forth again.

ZtP 2010/10/23(Sat)15:56 No. 247227 ID: ab04d4
File 128787456076.png - (13.25KB , 600x450 , Retreat2.png )

...

The Militant falls silent and limp in my arm as you flee. But behind you the creatures are still in pursuit.

Then you have an idea.

These stupid stone bridges never looked too stable anyways.

>>247227
...we are in a cutscene here, right? That last line seems to imply it, but after half an hour I begin to question. Adding tags or a subject line to that effect might help.

ZtP 2010/10/23(Sat)16:32 No. 247263 ID: ab04d4
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>>247258

>hey my drawings take time >.> i dont have a tablet and im drawing everything by mouse

"What are you doing, my lady?"

"First, stay OVER THERE" You throw him off your shoulder as you come to a literal screeching halt. Your armored greaves carve trails in the stone.

"Second, stop calling me My Lady."

"...Alright."

ZtP 2010/10/23(Sat)16:33 No. 247264 ID: ab04d4
File 128787678678.png - (7.82KB , 600x450 , Retreat4.png )

Now...

You leap over your previous vector of movement, using your spear as a fulcrum...

And prepare to attack.

ZtP 2010/10/23(Sat)16:33 No. 247265 ID: ab04d4
File 128787681515.png - (11.64KB , 600x450 , Retreat5.png )

Boom.

ZtP 2010/10/23(Sat)16:41 No. 247269 ID: ab04d4
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Not too bad, if you do say so yourself.

"..."

The creatures scream in impotent rage, but their legs are not long enough to leap over the chasm. A few fall, pushed by their brethren, to whatever depths lie below this stratum.

"...Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why did you do that? I'm a soldier. I'm not even an NPC. I'm made to be expendable. You would have been safer if you had fled and left me to fend them off."

"..."

"Why did you save me?"

"...Because you're a soldier. I'm playing a leadership based hero unit, I need underlings to lead."

The Militant laughs.

"You know, when I played, I thought the same thing. But then I realized that my Leadership Aura Level 6 didn't do shit in the First Stratum. So I died. That's the only thing I remember, the realization that it wouldn't work..."

The Militant falls quiet and you're afraid to break the silence. Finally, he speaks again.

"...Your skills are useless here. It's just you, your weapon, and your battle prowess. There are no skills. There are no stats, no recruit bars, not even HUD. You will die if you take damage to the heart, or the brain..."

"..."

"Or the stomach. God. The stomach. Did you know how much fluids you have in your abdominals? No? I do. Oho, I do too well..."

You are taken aback by this sudden stream of seemingly unrelated words. What should you do?

>>247263
Oh, I know these things take time. Just saying, if you're going to be having long waits in the middle of cutscenes, you might want to communicate what's going on to the players. A subject line, email, or greentext with "cutscene"/"cutscene end" or "1/5", "2/5", etc. would be nice. I suppose that the fact that all orders are given on the "frame" scenes makes it slightly less necessary, but still.


>>247269
It seems like this guy may have taken some mental scars from whatever he's been through. A former player of the game, if what he says is true.

Whatever, though. Start walking to the next memory gem, and gesture for him to come along. "Well, you're alive, I'm alive, and they're not chasing us anymore; I'd call that a win on all counts. Now, I need a full explanation of what's going on here. The facts, as you know them. Let's hear it."

>>247269
Let's go KNOW the other crystal!

You don't need a HUD to know how valuable it is to have a friend. Expendable doesn't mean worth expending. If you want to get all philosophical about it we're all alone in the end, but the fact is that leaving your allies to die is not the best way to maximize one's chance to survive. We can do this. We can make it all the way, man. WE CAN ACHIEVE HAREM ENDING

Go to the next crystal.

ZtP 2010/10/23(Sat)17:03 No. 247284 ID: ab04d4
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>>247274
duly noted, thanks for the tip, will incorporate in future cutscenes

"Well, you're alive-"

The militant gives a sad laugh as he replies in the cold tones of a fact.

"No, I'm not. I died. That's why I'm here. And now my job is to prevent you from dying."
... Well, I'm alive, and they're not chasing us anymore; I'd call that a win."

As you speak, the two of you approach the crystal.

"Now, I need a full explanation of what's going on here. The facts, as you know them. Let's hear it."

"...I don't know as much as you might like. I've been in storage for so long... I remember that I was fighting. Leading some units. But then an ambush came, and a boss disemboweled me."

"...That sucks."

"It sucks more if you realize how much it HURT. Did your leap tire you out? Did you feel gravity as you lept? Did you sweat? Because these things do not happen at first, they are induced one by one..."

"Well, I felt a bit tired after the leap, and I felt the gravity, and the wind soaring past my face as I executed the jump..."

"Listen. This game drags you in. You become immersed, you get integrated with the game. That's a bad thing. But you can fight it. Refuse to acknowledge the world around you."

"What?"

"Keep telling yourself, the game isn't real. You can't do these things in real life. You can't do backflips and strike down enemies with lightning. You have to remember that, and more."

"...But I like being able to do superhuman feats."

"There's more like you down here. They gave in. Now they're completely immersed, mindless... They will never go home, never see their friends again, never feel the sun- the REAL sun- on their REAL skin again. Is that what you want?"

"...I have to remember my name, don't I?"

"Exactly! You have to remember it, please, you have to, it's your only hope, MY only hope!"

But your name... It eludes you. You forgot briefly at the beginning... But you recall that you could remember your name again after pause.

Now you can't even consider it.

"...Let's move on to the next crystal."

"My Lady-"

"Shut up."

"my name is Alena Darcher, now let's keep moving"

>>247284
Remember, you are Alena Darcher. You are an ordinary person. Do not forget this. It is only a game. It is not reality. You can not do these things. It is nothing but an illusion. If you forget, you will die in the worst ways imaginable. Over, and over, and over. Do not lose to the game.

>>247286
It's like you don't WANT to become crazy immersed and forget everything in exchange for gaming superpowers. Bizarre.

If I'm getting this right, the more we forget, the more powerful we can be. Forget too much, and we can't ever leave. Don't immerse enough, though, and we'll just end up dying in battle, and then presumably ending up like our friend here.

Ask why we're his only hope. What's our objective here? How can we escape the game?

What do we have against being called "My Lady", by the way? It's a nice title.

ZtP 2010/10/23(Sat)17:11 No. 247292 ID: ab04d4
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>>247277

You walk in silence.

At last, you break that silence again.

"...Sorry."

"What?"

"I'm sorry for saying that. I shouldn't have told you to shut up, you're trying to help me... And you're not a NPC. You're a player. You're, you're self aware, not like those computer-controlled... things."

The Militant gives a sad bow.

"Only Players have names, my lady. And I don't have one anymore. I wish I did, but I don't."

"We can be friends, you and I- we're the only ones down here, possibly excepting the next guy I'm about to release. If your value as a soldier in an RTS doesn't justify my value for you, it's because you're more than that."

"My only goal is to see you safely to the next stratum. After that-"

"And besides, Expendable does not necessarily mean Good for Expense. Keeping you alive is good for me. And we both got out of it okay."

You touch the crystal again, and receive the usual burst of mind-static.

i will serve release me and power will be yours
please help me ive been in here so long
letmeoutiwanttobeoutsideagainfeelthesunletmeoutletmeoutletmeout

>CHOOSE ONE