[LP CYOA] Epic

[newcomer]

Ohh, so Shulgi is still there

Quite surprising that he didn't brainwash the current Emperor

 

[Smashing Axe]

Communication between cities has been expedited by the relatively recent reintroduction of the light tower network in 2758 A.C. by an Assyro-Babylonian scholar named Shulgi, who claimed to have been given a divine scroll from the First Emperor Ean containing blueprints for such towers

I smell a plot. Clearly these devices are made with sinister intent to subvert the information network of the Empire. Control information, control the world. We're just a small step away from this...

 

[treave]

Shulgi's a common name nowadays, now that it's lost its stigma of millennia past. In fact it has become a very popular name for Assyro-Babylonian families who aspire to raise scholars, seeing that Shulgi has somehow become known as a mythical king of Akkad that prioritized knowledge.

 

[newcomer]

Shulgi's a common name nowadays, now that it's lost its stigma of millennia past. In fact it has become a very popular name for Assyro-Babylonian families who aspire to raise scholars, seeing that Shulgi has somehow become known as a mythical king of Akkad that prioritized knowledge.

Damn you treave

Anyway, any signs of electricity being developed?

 

[Storyfag]

Intermission: State of the Empire (~3rd Millennium)

OH GAWD ITZ HEAVAN

 

[treave]

Damn you treave

Anyway, any signs of electricity being developed?

The Empire already knows of static electricity, and of lightning being electrical in nature, but nothing more than that. Of course you get the odd scholar or two claiming to be able revive the dead by striking them with lightning.

Intermission: State of the Empire (~3rd Millennium)

OH GAWD ITZ HEAVAN

Information overload.

 

[Storyfag]

Intermission: State of the Empire (~3rd Millennium)

OH GAWD ITZ HEAVAN

Information overload.

Not really. I simply LOVE the way our Empire turned out. Pax Shinarica seems really, really sweet. Pragmatic political adoptions are what gave us the Roman Empire, and what made it shine under the Antonine Dynasty. I can only imagine how much good the practice caused for Mankind in Ean's reality

 

[Esquilax]

All this political scheming is just too awesome. Based on this, I pretty much MUST change my vote to C. A Shulgi-like politician who is actually Ean in an Empire where plots and schemes trump everything? We have to vote for the nobleman, bros.

The problem with our decision-making is in the very nature of the LP. We're a democracy, we're a committee, we cannot into long-term decision-making, just like real world governments. This is why monarchy is the best choice.

God save the Queen.

We were fine with long-term decisions regarding empire building until we saw the rift. Yes, we are many people with different ideas, but we can make that work for us too.

The problem with the last chapter was that people encountered an obstacle with no easy solution, and they got impatient, so they jumped in without thinking things through. Then they were caught off guard by the "WTF?" nature of the rift, so they voted for sphere diplomacy because they were thinking of events based on "oh shit what do I do?" rather than "how are we going to handle this situation?" We are going to have to react to events at times because unexpected shit is going to pop up all the time, but we should always keep in mind the long-term implications of what we're doing.

Regarding all those choices that surprised treave: the funny thing is, I never voted for a single one of them. My rationale when it comes to voting is pretty simple, I just try to think one step ahead. I thought "well, if we go into the rift we're still alone, outnumbered and without any idea about where to find Vajra, so we're still screwed anyways because we have no idea about how to achieve our goal. Because we have no plan, let's gamble on Vajra and hopefully it'll work out." Sure, that wasn't much of a plan either, but a gamble with the possibility of success had a higher chance of working out than a trip into the rift.

The gist of it is that I saw a way that using Vajra could work in our favour and many ways it could fail, but I saw many ways that a trip into the rift would fail, but no way that it could succeed.

Well, usually Esquilax is influential enough to sway our votes? Perhaps you only need to push it a little bit more?

Or hey, you guys could avoid the perils of democracy by giving me veto power FOREVAR! I MUST SAVE YOU FROM YOURSELVES, CODEX!!!

Anyways, I pushed pretty hard at the time and I still wasn't able to sway your votes when it really mattered. People became really cautious when it came to anything relating to Vajra after the Zeus incident, so convincing the voters would have been very hard. To make things work, I propose the following set of guidelines for people involved in the DISCUSS!!! here:

• What's your goal? Right now it's "recover our memories without getting discovered by the spheres within the void." We should have joined up with the Masters, because that would have given us far more ability to understand them and thwart their plans, but what's done is done.
• No baseless speculation. That means you, Baltika9. If you provide a theory of some sort, back it up with quotes or reasoning.
• When you're voting, don't just tell me why you're voting for a particular choice. Tell me what you're going to do for the choice after that. So for example: "Hey, let's jump into the rift!", or "let's go for sphere diplomacy" OK, fine, but then what? What do you plan on doing once you've gone through the rift? You want to talk with the spheres, fine... but then what?
• When somebody says "hey, maybe we're in over our heads and we should run away from this dangerous encounter" don't refute their arguments with some variation of "YOU'RE A PUSSY/COWARD!!! FIGHT LIKE A MAN, GODDAMNIT!" Seriously, I hate this shit. It can come off as emotionally manipulative and it works too well in swaying votes, so cut that shit out.

To highlight this, let's look at a good decision we made at the end of Chapter 5, where we managed to narrowly escape permadeath. We realized that jumping into the fray wasn't a guarantee that we'd be able to stop Marduk/Zeus (like I said, we could step in... but then what?), and we didn't have a huge fucking ego about not being some ridiculous he-man who fights regardless of the circumstances. Likewise, zapping Marduk wasn't too bright because we already had a plan to take him out with Edem, so we had the "but then what?" aspect covered.

Also, I'd like to make one request. treave, I love the amazing pace you've been able to pull off here, and I don't want to come off as ungrateful given how much of this good shit you've spoiled us with, but when we get a crucial choice with lots of long-term implications (i.e. the choice at the rift, sphere diplomacy choice) could we have an extra day to think about it?

Perhaps it wouldn't have changed anything, but then again, people might have come to their senses too.

 

[treave]

Also, I'd like to make one request. treave, I love the amazing pace you've been able to pull off here, and I don't want to come off as ungrateful given how much of this good shit you've spoiled us with, but when we get a crucial choice with lots of long-term implications (i.e. the choice at the rift, sphere diplomacy choice) could we have an extra day to think about it?

Perhaps it wouldn't have changed anything, but then again, people might have come to their senses too.

Oh, I noticed that, but I pushed forward anyway once most of the votes came in because in such a scenario Ean wouldn't have the luxury to think about it for a day.



Well, it's no problem with me. From now on I'll let voting remain open as long as there is debate going on about the choices.

edit: Let's make the choices even more attractive.

The main difference between A and C regarding intrigue is probably that if there's a plot going on, if you're a Watcher you're most likely several steps removed and playing/cutting (depending which side you're on) the puppetmaster's strings, while if you're a young noble you will be scheming right in the thick of things, your face known to the world, where alliances may change from day to day, and the risks are greater but the rewards even more so.

Option B will have you be feted as a hero of the Empire (if you make the right choices), with all the politicking that surrounds it as people attempt to gain your favour. You might just surprise them by showing that you're more cunning than the average soldier.

Option D is basically what you should pick it if you want to tear down the Shinar Empire and rebuild it in something more fitting for the Codex. Plenty of lulz will be had there, for those who love the lulz.

And yes, all roads lead, eventually, to Ean (note: title of this chapter).

 

[Storyfag]

Option D is basically what you should pick it if you want to tear down the Shinar Empire and rebuild it in something more fitting for the Codex. Plenty of lulz will be had there, for those who love the lulz.

Eeeek

Definitely not a choice I want! Fortunately both A is two and C is one vote ahead of D, if my count is correct.

 

[a cut of domestic sheep prime]

Or hey, you guys could avoid the perils of democracy by giving me veto power FOREVAR! I MUST SAVE YOU FROM YOURSELVES, CODEX!!!

Didn't you just vote earlier to send us back into the rift? :/

Anyway, I'm voting A because my goals are:
To keep the Empire strong for Ean's return.
To gain as much knowledge of the present game and its players as possible so that when Ean is found/returns, we know who to trust and who to kill.
Also, I like the idea of playing someone with brains for a change.

The issue with C is that we may be too much in the thick of things to get an idea of what's really going on. Forest through the trees and all that.

 

[Esquilax]

It was a joke, I like the DISCUSS!!! Anyways, I wanted to flop back to joining up with the Masters because it was a very good opportunity, but I didn't know that the vote count had stopped. treave works fast.

 

[Tigranes]

So based on treave's latest post, D is definitely out. Our empire-building has borne fruit and that is a pretty fucking awesome empire. Surely our goal this chapter is to regain control of Ean (whether that is us-with-memory-loss or we're playing a proxy character that finds him) and return to our place as God Emprah.

I like all three options, but someone with brains getting info might be a good way to prepare for Ean's return as lambchop says - and gives us a chance of finding Sekhenun or others (it seems Athena and Artemis must have gone incognito / died / etc the first few centuries after our disappearance, where records are scarce). We will also be close to the current emperor and learn more about who they are exactly. A, and if not A, I think hero of the people B can be more interesting than the risks in C of getting used and spat out.

 

[Bloodshifter]

Aye D would be fun but I don't want trolls on our Empire in this

Flopping to B


Hero of the Empire and putting snooty Nobles in their place before the Might Of Tha Emprah *and horrible spelling mistakes* goes along the lines of a good Military Dictatorship

 

[Baltika9]

treave, is the soldier's name, by any chance CIAPHAS CAIN!?
Esquilax, I'll bite, again, as soon as I get something better than a 250 word cellphone. But I'll piss in your porridge here and say that you're not perfecr either. Post-Theseus meltdown

 

[TOME]

Anyways, I pushed pretty hard at the time and I still wasn't able to sway your votes when it really mattered.

Damn you Esquilax, it's your fault we almost died! Next time you fail, there will be coming after you!

 

[Baltika9]

treave, serious question: can we choose to play as a character in Rus? Building another mega empire sounds useful and it'd be awesomw to play as Muromets or Nevskiy.
Edit: if the character is Ean, would reliving accelerate memory?

 

[Azira]

No thank you. This is an Epic, immortal centered COYA. We don't want a sudden change to a russian wannabe.

 

[RedScum]

D

 

[Tigranes]

Lynch Baltika9

: x

 

[Storyfag]

treave, serious question: can we choose to play as a character in Rus? Building another mega empire sounds useful and it'd be awesomw to play as Muromets or Nevskiy.

Go die in a fire. It's fucking cold there!

D

That dying in a fire... that goes double for the likes of you!

 

[Omicron]

A

 

[RedScum]

Storyfags gonna storyfag.

Great CYOA by the way treave!

 

[TOME]

Lynch Baltika9

: x

That dying in a fire... that goes double for the likes of you!

The atmosphere here is getting warm and acceptive

 

[Storyfag]

The atmosphere here is getting warm and acceptive

Madness? THIS! IS! THE KODEX!!!