New NESes, ideas, development, etc

TerraNES2: No Change Necessary

This started as a RTOR, but the question of Qualitative vs Quantitative and player statisfaction and wtf alright and this is what we end up with. Will update twice a week. Orders due Wednesdays and Saturdays. Updates on Thursdays and Sundays. Interest? Concerns?
 
Would anyone be interested in a first person soldier NES about Vietnam? Just a thought.
 
I was thinking of trying to start the Game of Thrones NES I was talking about in this thread a few months ago, would there be interest in that?
 
A very popular IAAR by the name of America: Write your Own History has started to get very active with a communist v. capitalist struggle in America. I might make an NES starting in 1916 (the very controversial election of Woodrow Wilson, after which the communists attempted to assassinate him) or the very tense election of 1928, where the evil megalomaniac William Z. Foster from the communist party was elected. I will probably drop my current NES for the time being to start this one. Tell me if you're interested, and whether you'd have it start at:

1. Just before the 1916 election, which pitted Woodrow Wilson vs. Alfred Reimer and a few other candidates. There was even voter fraud (people created fake accounts to vote for the communists).
2. Just after the 1916 election, where communists threatened civil war and tried to assassinate Wilson.
3. Just before the 1928 election, which pitted the current president Stanley Bruce vs. William McKenzie King vs. communist William Z. Foster vs. democrat Al Hull.
4. just after the 1928 election, where the last-minute entry of Irish socialist Conolly tipped the balance in favor of the communists, and now capitalists are threatening civil war and assassinations on Foster.
 
You guys better prepare your tools for the hot and moist cradle NES I'm givin' up. Launching this July.
 
Throwing up two ideas that I've tentatively been working on for character-driven story NESes, and seeing which gathers more interest. Going to clarify off the bat that both of these would be run in a similar style to Core - that is, with players taking on roles as a single character, and tossing out traditional updates in favor of an elaborate world and events to explore or ignore as people wish. The closest thing to proper updates would likely be my responses to events within the story, and further details unveiling the backstories and contemporary events, although depending upon the exact direction these take, something more formal could be established.

Spoiler First idea :
Option 1 is a rather significant departure from what I've done before, being a sort of fantasy set in the contemporary world. At first glance, this world appears a mirror to our own - same history, same technology, etc. The major differences are known to few, and come in the form of the gods - not gods in the sense of most mythologies, but rather (drawing upon some elements of Samoan mythology in particular, though others as well) are born to human parents, and are identical to humans in most regards, barring their immortality.

The gods are rather divergent, representing a huge swath of powers - while some have and identify with traditional domains such as death or the ocean, others may differ from normal humans only in the sense of their immortality. Their backgrounds are similarly diverse, ranging from technology-embracing youth (at least one god blends into society as a computer programmer) to ancient beings quite possibly responsible for the inspiration of real-world deities (there's heavy support for Amarok, rendered in this world as the Lord of the North, is at least somewhat connected to the great wolf of Inuit mythology). The gods are largely unknown to the remainder of humanity, a policy very controversial, especially among younger generations, yet maintained by violent execution of those who defy it.

Outside of the gods, there also exist the Marked, normal humans who have been granted a power by a god. The reasons and benefits of marking vary extremely - some gods will mark as a gift or reward, others as a method of exerting power, and a few do so for their own amusement, or even as a method of torture (the abilities of the gods aren't necessarily a good thing to have), and the abilities of one who has been marked may vary from extraordinarily powerful to relatively mundane.

It is possible for gods to die, although killing a god isn't exactly the easiest thing in the world. Still, some have done it - most infamously the self-proclaimed Godkiller, a rogue marked of unknown origin, who has made it his mission to annihilate them from the world.

Players of this game would take on the role of either Marked or normal humans, though it would be possible for those who start unmarked to become so later.


Spoiler Second idea :
Option 2 is a lot closer to elements I've worked with before, shooting for a blend of particularly dark blend of dystopia and science fiction. In this story, set at a currently undecided date in the near future, we find the ruins of the world as we know it following widespread war, ecological disaster, and a successful alien invasions. Humanity - that which remains of it - struggles to eke out an existence amongst the ruins, constantly at odds with itself and the invaders on a planet which has dramatically changed from the one the species grew up on.

While in many regards operating on my principle tactics of a dystopia, this one would have much more opportunity to see the sci-fi side than normal, given the presence of the aliens and the ruins of a future human society. Players would take on the roles of humans still surviving on Earth in this NES.


Second option is honestly more interesting to me as a GM, from both the story and world-building aspect, though the first idea came to me earlier, and as a result, is quite a bit more developed. Would be very happy to answer questions and receive input for either or both ideas.
 
I like idea 1.
 
Since it was asked, no, these aren't the only ideas I have. They're just the ones I thought would most appeal to any generic sample population, and since the others all fall along dystopia, I didn't really want to bombard people with a bunch of ideas from the same genre.
 
There's no guarantee I'll run this. But I'm considering it, which is why I post this.

Would anyone be interested in partaking in this exercise?

Spoiler :
NEScenario: A Summer NES

Welcome to NEScenario!

This NES is intended to... end. As with any oxymoron, it might be kind of confusing, but it really isn’t. I consider it an exercise to me, in order to learn to commit. You players on the other hand can try out some ideas. I will give out awards at the end of the NES. :)

The NES’ scope is fittingly small. It’s about ancient peoples along a small coast; it features naval warfare, a focus on writing primitive philosophy, and a neighbouring empire stronger than any of you guys. The NES is planned to only go for about 500 years – which will be 100 years per update – and five players – chosen by their first submissions. Players whose submissions are remniscent of each other (as this setting is very local) but are still unique (making the NES interesting) will have it easier making it in. It’s a delicate balance. I suggest you coordinate with some people on #nes. (What’s most important are the lingual attributes of the five cities, however. It’d be weird if their names are the kinds of Kinquiwalda, Cersea, N’uple’eki, Üngarn and Tzm next to each other. This thing has to have some remnisence of sanity.)

Stylish-ly, consider this a fun time consumer similar to the old, naïve times of the early forum days.

I will draw the map throughoutly in Paint, for example, for fun. :)


The Setting

The NES is centered around a few islands, mostly rocky but wealthy in livestock, fish and metals. When it begins, the great thinker Talen is killed when the Phalsar Tarsephal burns the city state of Meken in which he lives. But his five students travel to the five major city states of the Karot sea, where they each found a branch of Talenian thinking.

The Phalsar Tarsephal is still expanding, however, its might unrivaled by the thalassocracies of the Karot sea. History is being written – the five states will compete, or align together against Phalsar.


Rules

This is the stat template:

City state/player:
Military:
Economy:
Culture:

Military denotes how many soldiers and ships you own.
Economy denotes your income which is spent on improving your military or your culture.
Culture is descriptive but does use a monicker as a pseudo stat:
Poor, Receptive, Mediocre, Influential, Impressive

While things such as trade details, diplomatic ties, subcultures and internal stability aren’t described, they’re still considered when doing the update. While the stats are minimalist, I imagine I have at least some common sense.

When sending orders, you act mostly as a guiding spirit of your nation, not a boardgame player. If parts of your orders are too OOC, I will ignore or rectify those parts.

Players writing stories will do much better than players not writing stories.
 
Angst said:
There's no guarantee I'll run this. But I'm considering it, which is why I post this.

Would anyone be interested in partaking in this exercise?

Spoiler :
NEScenario: A Summer NES

Welcome to NEScenario!

This NES is intended to... end. As with any oxymoron, it might be kind of confusing, but it really isn’t. I consider it an exercise to me, in order to learn to commit. You players on the other hand can try out some ideas. I will give out awards at the end of the NES. :)

The NES’ scope is fittingly small. It’s about ancient peoples along a small coast; it features naval warfare, a focus on writing primitive philosophy, and a neighbouring empire stronger than any of you guys. The NES is planned to only go for about 500 years – which will be 100 years per update – and five players – chosen by their first submissions. Players whose submissions are remniscent of each other (as this setting is very local) but are still unique (making the NES interesting) will have it easier making it in. It’s a delicate balance. I suggest you coordinate with some people on #nes. (What’s most important are the lingual attributes of the five cities, however. It’d be weird if their names are the kinds of Kinquiwalda, Cersea, N’uple’eki, Üngarn and Tzm next to each other. This thing has to have some remnisence of sanity.)

Stylish-ly, consider this a fun time consumer similar to the old, naïve times of the early forum days.

I will draw the map throughoutly in Paint, for example, for fun. :)


The Setting

The NES is centered around a few islands, mostly rocky but wealthy in livestock, fish and metals. When it begins, the great thinker Talen is killed when the Phalsar Tarsephal burns the city state of Meken in which he lives. But his five students travel to the five major city states of the Karot sea, where they each found a branch of Talenian thinking.

The Phalsar Tarsephal is still expanding, however, its might unrivaled by the thalassocracies of the Karot sea. History is being written – the five states will compete, or align together against Phalsar.


Rules

This is the stat template:

City state/player:
Military:
Economy:
Culture:

Military denotes how many soldiers and ships you own.
Economy denotes your income which is spent on improving your military or your culture.
Culture is descriptive but does use a monicker as a pseudo stat:
Poor, Receptive, Mediocre, Influential, Impressive

While things such as trade details, diplomatic ties, subcultures and internal stability aren’t described, they’re still considered when doing the update. While the stats are minimalist, I imagine I have at least some common sense.

When sending orders, you act mostly as a guiding spirit of your nation, not a boardgame player. If parts of your orders are too OOC, I will ignore or rectify those parts.

Players writing stories will do much better than players not writing stories.
Click to expand...

I would be extremely interested in this, and have experience conlanging along with a massive set of data and known linguistic correlations and rules if anyone would be interested in collaborating with me for the sign-up/submission.
 
I'm thinking of creating a NES based on the colonization of a specific planet. It can be done in two ways:

-First Person: Each player creates a character, giving the NES the style of an RPG. Players would influence the course of a single colony established on a hostile planet, after the fall of their mothership. Unfortunately I've never seen a NES of this type survive for long.

-Factions: Each player take control of a colonization expedition, whether financed by governments, corporations or wealthy individuals. The NES then would focus on the struggle between the different factions for the control of the strategic resources of the planet. Alliances, betrayals, fights, exploration, etc.. This would become something like Botwawki 2.6 of EQandcivfanatic, but on another planet.

I would like to hear your thoughts, to find out if the theme is interesting, and what is the best model.
 
TNES III - The Once and Future Test

Please follow the instructions and beta test this character creation system for fun. Make some plausible sample families. Please expose any flaws in the system, or let me know if it's too complicated or unwieldy. Do try and make plausible families and don't minmax, though. I'm very open to adding additional traits! If you're outlining a problem, propose a solution, thanks. :)

Instructions:

1. Add up your adult (16+) family members and multiply by three. If you want to have 5 adult family members, you have 15 positive points to distribute amongst them. Add one point per 7-11 year old, and two points per 12-16 year old.

So if you want a family of six, with two parents, one adult son, one 13 year old daughter, one 8 year old boy and one 3 year old daughter, you would receive 3+3+3+2+1+0 = 12 points.

2. Distribute your positive and negative traits as you see fit, and take up to 5 negative trait points as extra bonus points. If you choose to take the full 5 negative trait points with the sample family listed above, you can have 17 points to spend. You *are* allowed to add additional negative traits, you just won’t get any bonuses.

3. Check to ensure you're following the rules and submit your template!

Rules:

1. All adult individuals must have at least two positive or negative traits (or one of each); if you run out of points, you must assign negative traits. No assigning only neutral traits to leftover family members.

2. All children over the age of 7 must have at least one trait. You can redistribute their points later in childhood as they learn things.

3. You can only add a maximum of 5 points to your total through negative traits.

4. Please keep your number of children to a reasonable limit. I can’t spend the entire NES keeping track of dozens of children.

5. When new children are born, they have no traits. They receive one trait point at age 7, a second at 12, and their third at 16. You can add and remove children’s traits more easily; doing that to adults takes heavy effort. You can add and remove neutral/negative traits to and from children at any time after they turn 7.

6. If you pick a neutral trait, please choose one or at most two, since most are overlapping or conflicting.

Paragon of His/Her Generation (+*) Special. Can only be added as a bonus through stories, experience, and popular recognition as a truly exceptional figure.
Brilliant (+5) - This character has an effortlessly perfect knowledge of the arts and sciences, truly a genius compared to his or her peers.
Heroic (+4) - This character is an extremely inspiring martial leader, both physically fit and skilled in a command role on the battlefield.
Dignified (+3) - This character has achieved a decent amount of prestige, and is well-respected by their neighbors. Attacking them without good cause would seem amiss.
Innovative (+3) - This character will occasionally come up with exciting and unexpected ideas; they’re not guaranteed to work, however.
Master (+3) - Through a lifetime of study, this character has mastered the art of ____.
Smart (+2) - This character has a solid overall knowledge of most things, and can pick up new information quickly.
Wise (+2) - While lacking in academic knowledge, this character has an intuitive understanding of the ways of the world.
Hardy (+2) - This character is strong, and can hold their own in a fight.
Attractive (+2) - This character is pleasing to the eye.
Kind (+2) - It is obvious to any that know them that this character does good for goodness' sake.
Trained (+2) - Through years of practice, this character has become quite good at ____.
Just (+1) - This character has a strong sense of right and wrong. This tends to improve subjects opinions of them, though it can also cause friction.
Friendly (+1) - This character gets along well with people and has plenty of friends.
Diligent (+1) - This character is a good planner and steadfast worker, and doesn’t usually make stupid mistakes.
Artistic/Musical/Literary (+1) - This character is especially skilled at music, writing, or the visual arts. Not very helpful, but adds peace of mind.
Skilled (+1) - This character is an above average ____.
Lucky (+1) - Be it fate or fortune, the little things up to chance tend to fall this character’s way.

Moral (+0) - Has a personal code of values they will not betray if possible.
Amoral (+0) - Will do anything necessary to achieve their goals, reprehensible or not.
Patient (+0) - Prefers to wait before acting.
Proactive (+0) - Prefers to seize the initiative.
Idealist (+0) - Prefers to believe that the world can be a better place.
Cynic (+0) - Prefers to see individuals and the world as flawed and selfish.
Pious (+0) - This character is a firm believer in the power of the gods.

Temperamental (-1) - While not constantly boiling over with rage, this character has a tendency to get cross when crossed.
Shy (-1) - This character has trouble meeting new people, and lacks personal charisma.
Arrogant (-1) - Justified or not, this character has extreme confidence in his or her abilities, to the point of belittling others at times.
Depraved (-1) - This character has a slight overenthusiasm for certain unorthodox sexual practices. Not necessarily a problem unless word gets out.
Homosexual (-1) - This character prefers the company of the same sex. A public embarrassment and a hindrance to procreation, but not crippling.
Vain (-1) - This character cares a little too much about their personal appearance.
Dishonest (-1) This character isn’t afraid of bending the truth where necessary. But cheaters never prosper...usually.
Rebellious (-2) This character dislikes authority, whether legitimate or illegitimate, and will constantly have conflicts with their superiors.
Cruel (-2) This character takes a certain amount of pleasure in the exaction of pain, or is simply used to inflicting it.
Cowardly (-2) This character flees at the sight of battle and conflict, or at the least is extremely ineffective when facing it.
Lazy (-2) - This character is seriously lacking in motivation.
Ugly (-2) - This character has not been blessed with a perfectly symmetrical face.
Stupid (-2) - This character is seriously slow on the uptake.
Sickly (-3) - This character suffers from a serious, incurable illness. Though they endure for now, they are very weak and could die anytime.
Crazed (-3) - This character has a serious mental disability like schizophrenia or epilepsy that regularly impairs their ability to govern and may threaten their health.
Incompetent (-3) - This character suffers from an overarching lack of ability that inspires pity in neighbors and terror in subordinates.
Diabolical (-4) - This character is a vicious psychopath who lives to terrorize others, and will almost inevitably be hated and feared by all around them.
Incapacitated (-5) - This character cannot speak coherently or otherwise act; for all intents and purposes they are a vegetable.
Scourge of His/Her Generation (-*) Special. Can only be added by particularly egregious acts of infamy leading to popular recognition as a universal menace.

Custom (+/- ?) - Talk to me if you want to add a unique trait.
 
Lardon Family



Three Adults:
Brendon Lardon (52) (Just, Friendly, Dignified, Pious, Stupid, Lazy)
And
Jessica Lardon (49) (Dignified, Moral, Innovative, Smart, Shy, Cowardly)

Their Children:

Steven Lardon (17) (Artistic, Musical, Just, Literary, Cynic, lazy, rebellious)

Jamie Lardon (12) (Artistic, Friendly)
Zoe Lardon (12) (Musical, Diligent)

Cassandra Lardon (5) (Diabolical)

Total points to spend at start, 15.

I think I understood the process...?
 
The LeDouche family: 2 adults, 2 older children, 1 younger child, 1 infant = 11 pts

Big Daddy LeDouche (43, M)
+Smart
+Attractive
_Cynic
-Vain
-Arrogant

Momma LeDouche (39, F)
+Hardy
+Diligent
-Depraved
-Dishonest

Jackie LeDouche (15, F)
+Brilliant
+Friendly
_Idealist
-Shy

Johnny LeDouche (14, M)
+Attractive
-Vain
-Lazy
-Stupid

Cindy LeDouche (9, F)
_Amoral
_Dishonest
_Patient

Babby LeDouche (3, M)
+Just
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Gori the Grey
Splitting a new thread off from an existing one
Replies
3
Views
694
Aiken_Drumn
Aiken_Drumn
Thlayli
pre-TNESVII - Signup Thread
2
Replies
24
Views
4K
Terrance888
Terrance888
Recursive
VP Community Roadmap/Vision Brainstorming
2 3
Replies
54
Views
4K
N.Core
N.Core
Recursive
Vox Populi Congress Proposal Workshop
29 30 31
Replies
604
Views
39K
Recursive
Recursive
S
Espionage Updates - Lets talk planning
2
Replies
29
Views
2K
Siegfroh
S
Top Bottom