[OOC] RP Thread: Coordination

Opening a new thread to deal with some overhead issues regarding the current Space Engineers Roleplay Thread, fully OOC. Defense of location: This is discussion on a player creation related to the game. If you can think of a better place to put it talk to your local moderator about setting up an RP section.

It sounds like we have 3 primary schools of thought at the moment. My pen and paper groups usually run on a larger, rotating stable of characters, so I'm fine with continuing as long as we get some IC resolution. My preference was for an full battle completion, but a good night's rest and FP's point about doing right, makes me willing to do a IC withdrawal by fiat if we continue this thread in the here and now.

I have two primary worry driven reasons for wanting to do so, stuff happens to other people, and stuff happens to forums. People keep telling me they're looking at changes to the forum software, and while I have the utmost faith in the admin team here, things go wrong for nice people. My story based reasons are still valid as well.

@FP
You know I'm interested in a more traditionally organized game, so if the discussion moves that direction, I'm in for sure.

@Krov
I've actually built models of the ships and am now working on full scale versions! There haven't been pictures because I only have one of several ship types on the table, and for brevity and easy access I planned on getting a single OOC spec post once the others are in play. Also, I have no ice textured block. :bawl: Glad to hear corporate skulduggery is still alive and kicking btw.

My current position: Revised to #2, IC resolution by fiat. With what you said about "mysterious" disappearance Krov, it got me thinking. If we go with no PoV from the fleet so umad doesn't have to figure out a justification on the fly in his condition, then plot armor the fleet so the current and proceeding attacks have a null effect, followed by one round of posts from the three primaries in the field (paswert, FP, and myself [eratic, you're on my boat mutha-f**ker, put your flippy floppies on]) in which we do our individual things and the SD fleet simultaneously disappears. It's not ideal, but it keeps things going.

 

If everyone really wants to continue the current story (Korv at least seems to want to go this way) and we want to have umad withdraw gracefully, i'll point to his one post about the Water-Dweller ship mining operation. When i first sprung my beacon trap, his in-character response was to get something from the wreck and bug out immediately.

Aaaand...

I get the feeling that last bit had quite a degree of snark in it, but it cues us in on his priorities. Maybe his recovery crew has a stroke of luck and accomplish their objective early. Deciding fighting for the sector was now pointless, they disengage and travel out? I suppose in character we wouldn't know why he was leaving, so that qualifies for "mysterious".

My biggest issue is losing our common enemy. I think we've at least formed some degree of camaraderie between our factions, and it wouldn't make much sense if we all started shooting each other for the lulz.

 

Hmmm, that is a good point. Krov did mention that KAE is not entirely a team player, so cue a "heel" turn from him? Haha, wrestling puns...and I'm tapped out. Oh, they just keep coming! :rof: Alternatively it might shift the tone from wargaming space combat to uneasy peace and intrigue.

This could also be an opportunity for someone new to jump in, either in an antagonist role or as a GM per your mention FP. I know someone was happily surprised to hear about an RP thread, and in any event we'd still have a big chunk of alien tech sitting there that's gotta be worth something to someone.

Accentuate the positive. :cool:

 

Im sure we can arrange something to give a great opportunity to withdraw, i as also thinking in line with FP regarding the "retreat now we have what we were here for and we will come back later much more badder than before!" - gives us time to anticipate some things too


if its a common enemy FP i could always drag everyone into some AI civil war "those that wish not to interfere with others" and "those that want your materials"


willemina: cant wait to see them ships! bet they gonna look mad


my biggest concern with pausing the rp till Umad can return is im worried ill forget to check often and would need to be reminded (however it gives me time to build new ships :3)

 

Yes Willemina, KAE is the HHH of Space Engineers, moment they can't use you, it's a Pedigree from behind.

Whatever way makes sense to get remove the SD from the story for the time-being would work, be it some kind of orders from a mysterious leader, sudden breakthrough in their objectives, sudden urge to go get Subway etc etc. It's all good. If umad can't type it himself we may simply just have to RP their sudden exodus and leave it at that until he gets back.

Far as conflict goes, the entire sector is now ownerless, and control of a sector means more resources, political influence and military strength. Plus everyone will be dying to know what the hell the SD came here for, and the one controlling the sector will be in the best position to do that. Styx is obviously the first foothold in the sector, but we could put out more facilities later to allow multiple factions to gain footholds to preach peace/launch doomsday weapons.

 

Mass retreat or something on our end in order to get that part "resolved"

 

Hehe, I'm sooo champing at the bit to get this going on! It sounds like we have a consensus regarding moving forward with a mysterious tactical withdrawal from the Sheshir. The Dominion retreat? Never!

General plan then:
One more combat round with the SD ships in play, at the end of which they warp out with no indication of why (leaving umad ample retcon room when he returns). We're all left scratching our heads unsure of what to do, or not as the character's case may be. Probably either FP or I should kick it off since we're actively engaged and likely going to do something not entirely safe.

Since I've currently got the last post in the Styx sector between the two of us I'll defer to you FP. Sound good to everyone?

 

sounds good :3 also if you wish to fire everything you have at SD i have a few tricks to let them escape (just dont calculate hits without me =P)

 

I had sequence of events somewhat like this in mind:

Only with nuclear weapons and spaceships instead of swords and giant skinless monsters.

 

i was thinking "nuclear weapons have computers" and "guidence systems" and i have large amounts of signal power at my disposal but this works too

 

Well, some times you've gotta get it done personal like, even if it harelips everybody on Bear Creek.

 

Well then, any ideas on the technobabble excuses for what happened?

 

"Stuff happened, then the Sheshir Fleet warped out without warning, ceding control of the sector to the remnants of their opponents."

Don't really want to directly ascribe motivations to umad's forces in character, but of course theorizing about whys and wherefores would make sense. It's a mystery.

 

So i guess the biggest question is how much time do we want to give umad a final post before we take matters into our own hands?

I'm willing to be the guy who makes the post where the Sheshir actually vanish and take the flak if someone later has a problem with it.

 

FP, I'd remembered you mentioning a con this weekend so I wasn't sure how available you'd be. I think a couple days is probably enough, figure we take him at his word that he's out for a while. :bawl: Sometime tonight or Sunday? I'll shoot you a PM with what I was thinking about writing.

 

Oh, another thought.

With OOC information that Korv would want to stake a claim in the system (I.E. impose his tyrannical corporate authority) we should think about who should be the one to control the actions of the actual Styx station until an active player can occupy it. Its original owner was Conradian, who i don't believe has been to the RP thread in quite some time, and eventually it seemed to be commandeered by our good buddy umad, so right now that leaves the most important thing in the system in the same nebulous situation that the Sheshir fleet is in.

Would really be nice to get a neutral third party to resolve some of these issues, or at least snip off some of the hanging plot threads left by the inactive players.

 

Well, it's full of people who may or not know too much about what was on board that Sheshir ship. I know what I would do if I were a reptilian overlord with a captured population of degenerate ape-like beings, privy to sensitive information, and entirely under my control were I ordered to immediately withdraw from the area... It's not hugs.

 

not even hugs with explosives?.....



what if SD jump out with some kind of unseen super weapon that destabilises our ability to "jump" causing us to have to work together to get out of the sector (and rendering it a dead zone for a while) help from outside could be effected too (slowing recovery)

 

Sheshir retreat for unknown reasons is my favourite option right now.

So if that happens I'll have to find someone else to DERP, or I can just DERP some more pirates.

 

I've been mulling over options all day, and i came up with one that i think has a degree of workability.

Instead of having just the Sheshir disappear mysteriously, deus ex machina'ing the bajessus out of the story, what if, for some reason or another, we all had to leave the system suddenly? (Admittedly also potentially deus ex machina, but what about all this isnt?)

As for the cause of the sudden exodus, natural disasters come to mind, some kind of system-wide solar flare or EMP burst perhaps. Essentially the thought is to completely level the field, letting the active players come back in as they choose to survey the aftermath, with a "first come, first serve" attitude toward describing whatever is found. It gets the Sheshir clear of the engagement without needing umad, plus it gives us the chance to work with elements that the older players have left open.

If we can just come up with a good reason for doing so, i think it gives us the most legitimate free reign to keep things going.

 

ironically I already have a ship on its way to the system =P (just so happens to be designed for that level of mass destruction too with pictures ready to go)

 

FP, I like the idea of something forcing us all out. It's maybe a little more deus ex machina than just the Sheshir needing to leave, but it has the advantage of hitting a reset and tying off some of the loose ends currently dangling. Basically at this point anything short of an attack by space whales is fine by me.

Do we feel it's possible to get things back on track in a day or two? If eratic has a superweapon inbound I'm good with bringing that sucker out and letting the ensuing chaos resolve itself.

Let's get this moving!

 

I can do it today when I get home from work if you like (5 hours time ish) ill give a way to tell that something is coming in time to let everyone attempt to escape or bunker down if they are not the primary targets

 

Lol, eager one! I like it.

Anything IC needs to wait until we've got everyone involved on board. My desire to get things going in a day or two is mostly because I've learned that if no schedule is set things tend to lapse. If we're still hemming and hawing in a couple days, then we need to take radical action. The thread has already languished for about two weeks now, a third hurts, but keeping everyone engaged is more important, since this is a painful readjustment.

 

well im down for anything =P the more plausible the better so whatever is decided you can assume I vote yes :3 (saves time waiting for my replies that way ) so far ive been more just adding options to facilitate your ideas anyway

 

No space whales then? That puts our plans back by 3 years.

 

I'm cool with space whales, some of my best friends are even space whales. An attack by space whales though? That's soo not their style. Maybe genetically engineered space manatees...

 

Ayy if y'all need a setting for a more relaxing part of the story, the Calico Waystation is open for business.

 

Leonhardt, that is a cruel way to send me scrambling for my phone. Damn thread subscriptions teasing me.

 

This thread dead for a while now that the guy running the alien occupation has left?

If someone could possibly fill me in on details that would be nice.