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B - Any chance for Senya to become more ruthless.
-
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[LP CYOA] Epic
- Thread starter treave
- Start date
Esquilax
Arcane
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Okay, why the fuck are we going with B? This is really stupid - it's simply being contrarian for the sake of being contrarian. Do you guys think that someone like Shulgi hasn't foreseen Senya being unwilling to play ball here? Before we try to break the rules of this world and try to turn the tables on whoever put us here, we ought to learn what those rules actually are instead of going AWOL because hey fuck it, why not. I understand that this is the Codex and we hate railroading but let's think about this for a second.
A point in B's favour that I find interesting that we are only being exposed to the memories that the creator of this place and Shulgi deem appropriate at the moment.
So, treave, I assume this means that the memories have been organized in such a way that the creator intends that we recall these memories in the order that they see fit, correct?
Going with A
A point in B's favour that I find interesting that we are only being exposed to the memories that the creator of this place and Shulgi deem appropriate at the moment.
So, treave, I assume this means that the memories have been organized in such a way that the creator intends that we recall these memories in the order that they see fit, correct?
Going with A
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My reasons for voting B are pretty consistent with what I've been trying to steer Senya towards all along. We're seeing a representation of our former self, possibly with personality in tact. Following that track is a step towards merging with the Practical Incarnation.
That said, those of you against this consequence should probably consider A.
That said, those of you against this consequence should probably consider A.
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All it means is that the memories have been arranged into areas according to the creator of this particular mod, regardless of their time or location, whereas the original, commercial program would have taken the offered memories - ones actively recalled at the time of digitization, a process that requires conscious participation - and organized them in a logical sequence with proper labeling.
You may presume that the order in which you experience the memories would be that programmed by the creator, forcing you to follow a one-track railroad, but it is also entirely possible that you might also be granted free-form exploration after the initial gate. There is no way to tell for certain from the NPC's statement. Rather than that, it means that whatever memories you will encounter might be shaped or manipulated according to the creator's whims. That is a risk you'll have to take with A.
On the other hand, with B, you're pretty much delving into the depths, going to the dark side of the moon, exploring your id etc. The risk there is pretty evident.
You may presume that the order in which you experience the memories would be that programmed by the creator, forcing you to follow a one-track railroad, but it is also entirely possible that you might also be granted free-form exploration after the initial gate. There is no way to tell for certain from the NPC's statement. Rather than that, it means that whatever memories you will encounter might be shaped or manipulated according to the creator's whims. That is a risk you'll have to take with A.
On the other hand, with B, you're pretty much delving into the depths, going to the dark side of the moon, exploring your id etc. The risk there is pretty evident.
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treave's elaboration has made me flop. 
treave's elaboration has made me flop.
Same here.
Stygian Lurker
Liturgist
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A
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Beginning
Turning away from the staircase, I walk towards the Gate of the Beginning. I grip the lever of the door and turn it downwards. The door opens. Tentatively, I step through it, the guide NPC following closely behind without a word.
I find myself in a wide hall, lined with empty, cylindrical glass tanks. Numerous segmented tubes snake about the place and disappear into the dark walls. I hear the door closing behind me, and when I turn around, I find - not unexpectedly - that the way out is no longer there. At the end of the hall is a throne, with the skeletal remains of some long-dead king resting upon it, a tarnished crown still adorning his skull. I have no memory of this place.
“Can the creator modify my memories?” I ask.
“Yes, sir. Modification is possible though limited by the awareness of the user that the memories have been extracted from. Modification beyond the limits of the parameters would result in unacceptable levels of distortion and eliminate immersion. This would cause the brain to reject the current reality and attempt to awaken.”
“Specify these limits.”
“Events that have never been experienced by the user will result in distortion.”
I pause for a while, looking down the corridor.
“What if I had once dived into a virtual game where I was a hero that fought dragons? Would that count as an event that I have experienced?”
“This program has been heavily modified. The original program was not designed for presenting fictional scenarios. My information indicates that the user’s capability to distinguish between fiction and reality is monitored by the program and used as a baseline for projecting the memories. Any fiction will result in rejection.”
“This is certainly fictional,” I say as I gesture down the corridor. “Where would I find a throne in the middle of what looks like an experimental facility in real life? Watch, once I walk down the corridor, that corpse is going to start talking to me.”
I do so, and once I get within two metres of the throne, the event triggers, just as I expected. I recall encountering a scenario like this in one of the old games I have played: Tomb of the Biolich. The corpse’s empty eye sockets glow with a pale blue fire as it stirs.
“Who… dares… interrupt my... slumber?” moans the dead king, its voice thin and reedy. It stops and waits for me to respond. It’ll wait for as long as needs be; it was a pretty shitty game.
I turn to the Kyrie NPC. There is a slightly perplexed expression on that face which smoothens out when she notices me looking at her. As an AI it is clunky, still far below what Yua is capable of, but it is quite improved from the usual fare I encounter. I wonder if it is itself customized. “It appears that the creator has made some modifications to the demarcation line between fiction and reality. There remains a limit on what the user can be presented, as it appears the system still does not allow fully fabricated events to occur.”
“I see. By the way, you said that the brain would attempt to awaken if it rejects the virtual reality. Does that mean that there is a chance it would fail to awaken?”
“There is a 5% probability of failure with standard hardware. I have no information about your method of access at the moment and as such am unable to give you an exact figure.”
“What happens in the event of a failure?”
“The user would still awaken, but their mind begins to reject the real world. Rapid mental breakdown follows subsequently, with total psychosis setting in no more than one week after awakening.” There seemed to be a movie made about this disease a while back; I never got around to watching it. Still, my curiosity is satisfied for now. I better get back to the lich.
“It is I,” I call out, “a humble seeker of knowledge.” The game had the player in the role of a knowledge hunter who sought out rare, precious tomes in a post-apocalyptic world where magic and technology coexisted. The Biolich was said to be an ancient king that once knew all there was to be known, and had turned himself into an immortal entity to preserve that knowledge. Hovering in a state of undeath, he slept, only opening his eyes and giving out instruction to those that would prove worthy. Those that were unworthy met with swift, terrible death.
“What... KNOWLEDGE... do you seek, wizard?” asks the Biolich as it shifts in its throne, parts of the ragged finery turning into dust as it does so. There are numerous tubes running from its body into the throne, which seems to act as a life support system - this close, I can hear a low thrum of machinery under my feet.
In the game, you could ask for power, riches and other more materialistic requests, but right now there’s only one thing I’m here for, and it’s a question that was not offered as a choice in the game.
“I seek knowledge of myself, ancient one.”
The Biolich’s skull nods.
“That is... a worthy quest... wizard. Finding... yourself is dangerous but... rewarding.” It stretches out one skeletal hand and extends a finger. A stairway of light descends from the ceiling on my left.
Suddenly, the Biolich shudders, and repeats its movement again. Another stairway descends, this time on my right. This wasn’t in the game - there, you just had to make your request of the lich, and it would send you to the Forest of Darkness to retrieve the Orb of Eternity before it would grant you the knowledge you sought. There wasn’t any choice. As I said, it was a pretty shitty game.
“Ascend. Pick one of two. On your left lies the path to remember what you already know. On the right you shall find what you have forgotten.” groans the lich, a lot more fluently this time. After it finishes delivering its message, the fire in its eyes go out and it falls still again.
I turn to the NPC. “Guide, what is the difference between the two stairs?”
The guide walks in front of me and starts looking up the glowing stairs. After a while, she shakes her head and looks back at me.
“Sir, each of the stairs leads you to a different part of World 0. I am afraid I cannot give you any more details than that.”
The lich’s message seems strange. Is there a difference between remembering what I already know, and finding what I have forgotten?
***
A. I ascend the steps to remember what I already know.
B. I ascend the steps to find out what I have forgotten.
Turning away from the staircase, I walk towards the Gate of the Beginning. I grip the lever of the door and turn it downwards. The door opens. Tentatively, I step through it, the guide NPC following closely behind without a word.
I find myself in a wide hall, lined with empty, cylindrical glass tanks. Numerous segmented tubes snake about the place and disappear into the dark walls. I hear the door closing behind me, and when I turn around, I find - not unexpectedly - that the way out is no longer there. At the end of the hall is a throne, with the skeletal remains of some long-dead king resting upon it, a tarnished crown still adorning his skull. I have no memory of this place.
“Can the creator modify my memories?” I ask.
“Yes, sir. Modification is possible though limited by the awareness of the user that the memories have been extracted from. Modification beyond the limits of the parameters would result in unacceptable levels of distortion and eliminate immersion. This would cause the brain to reject the current reality and attempt to awaken.”
“Specify these limits.”
“Events that have never been experienced by the user will result in distortion.”
I pause for a while, looking down the corridor.
“What if I had once dived into a virtual game where I was a hero that fought dragons? Would that count as an event that I have experienced?”
“This program has been heavily modified. The original program was not designed for presenting fictional scenarios. My information indicates that the user’s capability to distinguish between fiction and reality is monitored by the program and used as a baseline for projecting the memories. Any fiction will result in rejection.”
“This is certainly fictional,” I say as I gesture down the corridor. “Where would I find a throne in the middle of what looks like an experimental facility in real life? Watch, once I walk down the corridor, that corpse is going to start talking to me.”
I do so, and once I get within two metres of the throne, the event triggers, just as I expected. I recall encountering a scenario like this in one of the old games I have played: Tomb of the Biolich. The corpse’s empty eye sockets glow with a pale blue fire as it stirs.
“Who… dares… interrupt my... slumber?” moans the dead king, its voice thin and reedy. It stops and waits for me to respond. It’ll wait for as long as needs be; it was a pretty shitty game.
I turn to the Kyrie NPC. There is a slightly perplexed expression on that face which smoothens out when she notices me looking at her. As an AI it is clunky, still far below what Yua is capable of, but it is quite improved from the usual fare I encounter. I wonder if it is itself customized. “It appears that the creator has made some modifications to the demarcation line between fiction and reality. There remains a limit on what the user can be presented, as it appears the system still does not allow fully fabricated events to occur.”
“I see. By the way, you said that the brain would attempt to awaken if it rejects the virtual reality. Does that mean that there is a chance it would fail to awaken?”
“There is a 5% probability of failure with standard hardware. I have no information about your method of access at the moment and as such am unable to give you an exact figure.”
“What happens in the event of a failure?”
“The user would still awaken, but their mind begins to reject the real world. Rapid mental breakdown follows subsequently, with total psychosis setting in no more than one week after awakening.” There seemed to be a movie made about this disease a while back; I never got around to watching it. Still, my curiosity is satisfied for now. I better get back to the lich.
“It is I,” I call out, “a humble seeker of knowledge.” The game had the player in the role of a knowledge hunter who sought out rare, precious tomes in a post-apocalyptic world where magic and technology coexisted. The Biolich was said to be an ancient king that once knew all there was to be known, and had turned himself into an immortal entity to preserve that knowledge. Hovering in a state of undeath, he slept, only opening his eyes and giving out instruction to those that would prove worthy. Those that were unworthy met with swift, terrible death.
“What... KNOWLEDGE... do you seek, wizard?” asks the Biolich as it shifts in its throne, parts of the ragged finery turning into dust as it does so. There are numerous tubes running from its body into the throne, which seems to act as a life support system - this close, I can hear a low thrum of machinery under my feet.
In the game, you could ask for power, riches and other more materialistic requests, but right now there’s only one thing I’m here for, and it’s a question that was not offered as a choice in the game.
“I seek knowledge of myself, ancient one.”
The Biolich’s skull nods.
“That is... a worthy quest... wizard. Finding... yourself is dangerous but... rewarding.” It stretches out one skeletal hand and extends a finger. A stairway of light descends from the ceiling on my left.
Suddenly, the Biolich shudders, and repeats its movement again. Another stairway descends, this time on my right. This wasn’t in the game - there, you just had to make your request of the lich, and it would send you to the Forest of Darkness to retrieve the Orb of Eternity before it would grant you the knowledge you sought. There wasn’t any choice. As I said, it was a pretty shitty game.
“Ascend. Pick one of two. On your left lies the path to remember what you already know. On the right you shall find what you have forgotten.” groans the lich, a lot more fluently this time. After it finishes delivering its message, the fire in its eyes go out and it falls still again.
I turn to the NPC. “Guide, what is the difference between the two stairs?”
The guide walks in front of me and starts looking up the glowing stairs. After a while, she shakes her head and looks back at me.
“Sir, each of the stairs leads you to a different part of World 0. I am afraid I cannot give you any more details than that.”
The lich’s message seems strange. Is there a difference between remembering what I already know, and finding what I have forgotten?
***
A. I ascend the steps to remember what I already know.
B. I ascend the steps to find out what I have forgotten.
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B - No real reason. It just seems likely to give us more information.
We've forgotten who we were before waking up in the start of the Senya plotline. We've forgotten the person Rei remembers. The bastard to who planned the Lothal incident.
Remembering this might turn us more into the psychopathic, "pragmatic" self. Or it might simply shed light on that entity. Depends on what we do with the knowledge.
I would deem remembering forgotten knowledge dangerous (was probably forgotten for a reason),but also necessary here.
B
Nice quote by lambchop. We must review what we already know. A
Remembering this might turn us more into the psychopathic, "pragmatic" self. Or it might simply shed light on that entity. Depends on what we do with the knowledge.
I would deem remembering forgotten knowledge dangerous (was probably forgotten for a reason),
Nice quote by lambchop. We must review what we already know. A
B, I should think.
We made a choice, and it had consequences. 
Jester
Arbiter
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- 1,493
thx to Esquilax and Lambchop
Let me guess, memories we would find after following young Senya wouldn't be modified in any way and now we must be aware that they can be twisted by CJ or we lost possibility of making young Senya our Bro. Hope its former.
So they can be modified to creator will as long as they are based on original memory. Exactly the thing i was afraid on last crossroad, we got ourselves flawed source of information. I guess that finding out who is creator and whats her/his plans are should be one of our main objectives, by doing that we will be able to make some assumption about truth. We can be pointed in some very annoying direction, if we are being led by our enemy or rival. Sound like quite easy way to make Senya a pawn.
Btw Esquilax im not sure but judging from this its not Shulgi world we are now in but someone else and that mean that we cant assume that Shulgi goals and personality are any marker here still he could look at that person hands so mby not.
a cut of domestic sheep prime
Guest
A - We should have gone after the kid if we wanted to delve into our past first thing. Let's figure out what we already know.
Meh. Nice quote. Let's get railroaded by Shulgi. I'll flop.
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