I would TOTALLY vote for the Tiger Keeper
Mrs. Plenty (Miriam Plenty):
Mrs Plenty would be interesting considering how many stories and factions the carnival manages to get its tendrils into. And her checkered past (regarding her old, er…intellectual pursuits) would add just enough scandal into the mix. A carnival-themed election poster would also be fun, and she may do well on the heels of games-obsessed Feducci.
The Duchess:
She would also be fantastic. After the scandal of having the London mayorship fall into the hands of a dueling, games-obsessed spy, I could see her running to bring respect back to the office. Respect. Respect and cats. The skeletons in her closet would also make the campaign interesting, along with the possibility of burying the mayoral mansion in cats. Plus I’d love to see a cat-themed election poster.
The Midnight Matriarch:
I could see her lowering herself to politics in order to run against The Duchess.
The Dark-Spectacled Admiral:
Not sure how involved he is in the Fallen London storyline, but after Feducci won, I bet The Dark-Spectacled Admiral may want to enter the mayoral race if only to bring the balance of power back to the Empire.
Presbyterate Adventuress:
Another fun contrast to the Presbyterate gaining power via Feducci would be if The Presbyterate Adventuress ran. I’m sure the Presbyterate would love that…
The Ambitious Barrister:
Would run because, well…[li][/li]
edited by Six Handed Merchant on 12/18/2017
[quote=Six Handed Merchant]Mrs. Plenty (Miriam Plenty):
Mrs Plenty would be interesting considering how many stories and factions the carnival manages to get its tendrils into. And her checkered past (regarding her old, er…intellectual pursuits) would add just enough scandal into the mix. A carnival-themed election poster would also be fun, and she may do well on the heels of games-obsessed Feducci.
The Duchess:
She would also be fantastic. After the scandal of having the London mayorship fall into the hands of a dueling, games-obsessed spy, I could see her running to bring respect back to the office. Respect. Respect and cats. The skeletons in her closet would also make the campaign interesting, along with the possibility of burying the mayoral mansion in cats. Plus I’d love to see a cat-themed election poster.
The Midnight Matriarch:
I could see her lowering herself to politics in order to run against The Duchess.
The Dark-Spectacled Admiral:
Not sure how involved he is in the Fallen London storyline, but after Feducci won, I bet The Dark-Spectacled Admiral may want to enter the mayoral race if only to bring the balance of power back to the Empire.
Presbyterate Adventuress:
Another fun contrast to the Presbyterate gaining power via Feducci would be if The Presbyterate Adventuress ran. I’m sure the Presbyterate would love that…
The Ambitious Barrister:
Would run because, well…[li][/li]
edited by Six Handed Merchant on 12/18/2017[/quote]
The Midnight Matriarch actually sounds like a really plausible idea seeing as how we just recently got out of hollowmas with a companion that as some lovely flavor text.
This also might be a good chance to get the Dark-Spectacled Admiral actually involved in Fallen London as a character. However, unfortunately while he is a an interesting character in Sunless Sea who in my opinion is in desperate need of a good storyline to really cement him into the universe since (once again) he isn’t present in Fallen London he would not be a first choice for many people.
Matriarch also falls into that same kind of trap but at least she’s a bit less of an unknown for players who are fresh off the boat and can kinda peak the interest of players that have been playing for a while.
With that said though it will be my first election and I’ve only been around for about six months so obviously I’m not a credible source for these predictions.
After Feducci became Mayor of London, I swear I could hear The Duchess’s teeth grinding. But it was my wife (who also plays Fallen London) who pointed out that The Midnight Matriarch wouldn’t stand still if The Duchess ran, and would also throw her hat into the ring if possible. But I’m not sure we’ve ever had a Companion run for mayor before, so I have no idea how that would work mechanically.
The Dark-Spectacled Admiral was another case that just made sense following Feducci’s win. I can only imagine the migraines he must be suffering right now. Although again, I’m not sure how that would work considering his current post. Would that put the city under military control? Although, I guess that is something for the voters to worry about. :)[li][/li]
[li]
edited by Six Handed Merchant on 12/18/2017
I think the election event is fundamentally flawed, because there is not and cannot be consensus about whether players should roleplay their vote, or metagame their vote. Are we choosing the best candidate for Fallen London, the city with real people and real problems? Or are we choosing the best candidate for Fallen London, the interactive story game about fictional characters and fictional problems?
In the 1895 election I saw (and took part in) rather a lot of roleplay debate, much of which was unpleasantly close to real-world political conflict. I for one was horrified by the possibility that a politician with vague, unsupported promises about how dismantling regulatory policy would improve the life of their working-class voter base might be elected in an MMO I had already grown to love when a roughly comparable, substantially more poisonous, and very very real blowhard had been let into my home country’s highest executive office only months prior. If I’d still had that attitude by the time Election ended, I don’t know if I’d still be playing Fallen London, let alone actively participating in the community. I felt personally attacked by players arguing in support of Feducci, and betrayed by players arguing in support of the Implacable Detective.
Then I stopped throwing my heart into policy discussion, and took a break for a few days, and reminded myself that Fallen London is an interactive story game. The creation of stories in which the people of Fallen London suffer is okay because that’s not the same as the creation of real material suffering. I thought about which of the possible fictional mayors could be the basis for the most interesting and enjoyable story. I settled on the Dauntless Temperance Campaigner, because I saw potential in the conflict between her moderate practically-minded reform agenda (fewer honey-dens! Less alcoholism!) and her more radical and idealistic supporters (the liberation of night!). I was also at ease about the prospect of either Feducci or the Detective as fictional mayor of this fictional city, because I knew that no matter the result, the material outcome was the same: Failbetter would continue doing their best to write top-notch interactive stories. I think Mayor Feducci has been narratively interesting; the administrative headaches and bureaucratic floundering of a man used to getting by on personal resources and abilities makes for a nice internal conflict and gives Feducci a much-needed character flaw.
So I think the election should be metagame. Stories could be written about each of these three characters as mayor of Fallen London; which do we most wish to see?
All of them. I want to see all of them, eventually. Currently there are four mayoral candidates who have not been elected. If we take two of them, change the wrinkles in their campaigns, add a newcomer, and have an election between those three, at the end there will again be four not-yet-elected mayoral candidates. This process can be repeated indefinitely, and Failbetter won’t have to worry about letting a good potential mayor go to waste or about quickly running out of good potential mayors.
The current pool is the Bishop of Southwark, Jovial Contrarian, Implacable Detective, and Dauntless Temperance Campaigner. The Contrarian and Campaigner both have revolutionary ties, and the Campaigner and Bishop both have a morals-based platform. And so, I come at last to a proposal for this coming election’s candidates.
The Bishop of Southwark! The Jovial Contrarian! The Gracious Widow!
Would the Bishop be able to peacefully deal with Hell or other unsavory types in the course of mayoral duties? How would the Widow’s criminal - and foreign - associates feel about her apparent surge of civic pride? Can the Contrarian hold a consistent policy platform for more than three hours?
This is a trio which I really cannot choose between based only on existing content. I like the Bishop’s energy and dedication, the Contrarian is very clever and prudent, and the Gracious Mayor could be a gateway to delicious Khanate fluff.
[quote=Amsfield]Admittedly, FL does seem to do a better job of crushing unionist sentiment than it’s historical counterpart[/quote]I think this has a lot to do with the fact that we only see bits of Fallen London which Failbetter has time to write about. The Battle of Wolfstack Docks the Battle doesn’t often come up, but when it does it is regarded as a watershed moment, the first real indication of something more to come. I think the loss of Mayor Jenny has been a step back from that part of the world, because her mayor card involved her efforts to provide education for often-illiterate laborers. Personally I’d love to see some endgame content for the Battle of Wolfstack Docks and the larger conflict between labor and capital. Maybe a carousel at Wolfstack Docks with options varying based on the player’s choice of motive and methods in each run through the loop, like Business in Wilmot’s End. Could be a nice foundation for a lengthy, involved storyline similar to Affair of the Box.
I don’t think a companion should run for Mayor. Either they shouldn’t have time to help you in your skulduggery, or there would be a question of why they weren’t potentially a lot more help. I guess they could give everyone a replacement companion instead, but taking away players’ things rarely goes well. So far all the candidates have had only limited and universal personal relationships with players before running, and whilst it could be interesting to have a Mayor who potentially lived in your house, it could get complicated.
That said, I do think the Duchess could still be a good choice, and the Matriarch could definitely play a role in that story. It’d be interesting to see if any of The Duchess’s enemies ‘mysteriously’ suffered final death during the campaign.I’d also be very interested in how the Widow responded. I’d love to see those two against each other in the race.
[color=#c2c2c2]That would be an excellent idea, it’s content I know a lot of player’s are very interested in. Choosing between Rhetoric or Violence, and a possible choice in how dirty you are willing to play. The only difficulty I see (which I do feel FL’s writer’s could solve) is in having satisfying results. Both Wilmot’s and the Box have you play a part in an essentially never ending political game, where as it feels to me the concerns of the dockers are more immediate. Whilst certain Labour concerns are longer reaching, and you could certainly just address the ongoing struggle, it’d be nice feeling that each turn of the carousel mattered to someone directly; a family that won’t go hungry or a contract fulfilled for example. I’d also like to see if they can find a way of you not fighting for the workers have some justification beyond ‘I’m a heartless bastard mwhahahaha!’, but I can’t think how.[/color]
edited by Amsfield on 12/18/2017
The New Sequence really ought to run a candidate. It’d help them build and coordinate support for their moral and political values, potentially leaving a strong social impact on London even if they don’t win the seat. They wouldn’t have to get all Dawn Machine about everything, but empowering the elements of London society most receptive to their long-term goals would be a worthy activity.[li]
Inconvenient Aunt 2018: Neither the mayor London wants nor the mayor London deserves, but you’re not going to tell her that, are you? Not to her face, surely.
Now that I think about it, the Midnight Matriarch would be a splendid candidate. Who knows London as a cat does?
A Finger-King-possessed candidate would be fun: ‘Making Our Dreams Become Real’
I apologize if this has been raised in comments pages 2 through 8, but…has anyone suggested that A Merry Gentleman run? He clearly has supernatural powers of some kind, he’d be immune to all non-supernatural assassination attempts, and he’d be much more accessible than your typical mayor, as not that many people would want to raise their Nightmares to 5 just to complain about the mail being late.
This is an insane suggestion, but then Fallen London is a gloriously insane game…
+1 to @Anne AuClair’s 3 urchins in a trenchcoat proposal and–I believe it was @Six-Handed Merchant who nominated Midnight Matriarch?
Urchins vs. bird vs. literal man of nightmares. Not the candidates Fallen London needs…but surely the ones it deserves.
By bird do you mean the Midnight Matriarch? She happens to be a cat, not an owl - common mistake.
- A representative from Hell (Perhaps a Spirifer, s.a. Virginia?)
- A representative from Church (as a reaction to Hell’s candidacy; perhaps again the Bishop of Southwark or even the more debatable Bishop of St. Fiacre (his nature might just make him even more resolute in fighting anything inhuman).
- A status quo guy (i.e. voting for the Bazaar; perhaps an alias or Vazal of one of the Masters)
After the last (populist) political struggles, there certainly is a need for another type of ideological struggle.
If we’re talking urchins and those connected to the Bazaar, how about the Guttersnipe Princeling of the Fisher-Kings? An experienced leader, resourceful, knows the ways of the city and the Bazaar, and they have a remarkable memory.
- F. F. Gebrandt: a trustworthy and successful businesswoman, though we must make sure her business interests do not interfere with a mayoral post…
- The Tentacled Entrepreneur: a trustworthy and successful businesssomething, who greatly charmed me at a party
- The Presbyterate Adventuress. Cool as hell and a minor character that would be fun to explore or even meet.
- The Tiger-Keeper. I’d like to offer him as a slightly less frightening and more reasonable alternative to the Matriarch. Also, I absolutely loved the keeper-who-is-a-tiger as opposed to the keeper-who-keeps-tigers you assume.
- Miriam Plenty. Sharp, reliable(ish), a woman of the people, and mysterious. I’d like to see more of her and also like her as a mayor.
I’d kind of like to see the Lady in Lilac be a contender. She already works behind the scenes to bring people together. I don’t think it would be that hard to use the same influence to run in an election. I have no idea why she would want to run though.
[quote=vinceren]1. F. F. Gebrandt: a trustworthy and successful businesswoman, though we must make sure her business interests do not interfere with a mayoral post…
2. The Tentacled Entrepreneur: a trustworthy and successful businesssomething, who greatly charmed me at a party
3. The Presbyterate Adventuress. Cool as hell and a minor character that would be fun to explore or even meet.
4. The Tiger-Keeper. I’d like to offer him as a slightly less frightening and more reasonable alternative to the Matriarch. Also, I absolutely loved the keeper-who-is-a-tiger as opposed to the keeper-who-keeps-tigers you assume.
5. Miriam Plenty. Sharp, reliable(ish), a woman of the people, and mysterious. I’d like to see more of her and also like her as a mayor.[/quote]
Those are VERY interesting suggestions. Here are my thoughts about them.
a, F.F. Gebrandt. A very plausible Mayoral candidate. Not the most fun of candidates, though. She’d be too conventional.
b, The Tentacled Entrepreneur. A very implausible Mayoral candidate. (Not that that eliminates er… it…from consideration; FL is a game with a highly implausible premise after all.) The TE’s limited communication skills would be an enormous handicap in politics, especially London politics. But if it had an assistant who could do the speaking for it? Perhaps the Deluged Docent would be interested in that job?
c. The Presbyterate Adventuress. Possibly too intelligent to want the job, but if she were suitably motivated to run, I’d be delighted to vote for her–I think she’s tough and smart and my character and I think she would be a splendid Mayor.
d. The Tiger Keeper. I would have loved the TK as Mayor UNTIL Port Carnelian (and now the Court of the Wakeful Eye) opened. The problem is that the TK is essentially a member of an alien race. He has his own interests to foster and they may not include the welfare of the human inhabitants of Fallen London. My character would spare no effort to keep the TK from winning. Now, mind you, the risks implicit in electing the TK may be a reason to have him as a candidate… :-)
e. Mrs. Plenty. Having played through SMEN with another character, I think Mrs. Plenty is tougher, shrewder, and more knowledgeable about both the ordinary and the extraordinary hazards of Fallen London than most of the other possible candidates, and that spells Mayoral timber to me.
edited by cathyr19355 on 3/20/2018
edited by cathyr19355 on 4/3/2018
What do you mean? London would never elect Feducci as…! Wait…
I would love to vote for Virginia the Deviless, she always dabbled around influential figures.
Or Your Inconvenient Aunt, she’s family after all.
Or maybe a drownie, or Clay Man or even a Rubbery Man, just for the Controversy of it!