This is a meta-question, I guess: I’ve been working assiduously at this game for a while (though less so in recent months due to ongoing personal issues), and 2 of my 4 stats have reached 200, with the others ready to catch up with more work. I was wondering what people tend to do next-- or is one ultimately destined to go North?
Most people went NORTH with alts, not main character.
edited by Waterpls on 9/7/2017
who the d___ is scraeming "GO NORTH" at my lodgings. show yourself, coward. i will never go north
Failbetter adds new content all the time; the ambitions continuations, closing the unfinished storylines, adding new storylines, new events, there are Exceptional Stories every month.
So if you’re patient enough to wait for the updates, you will never run out of content, theoretically.
I’m far too pretty to go North.
edited by Lady Sapho Byron on 9/7/2017
I’ve run out of content so NORTH it is. Of course, I won’t actually be staying there. Gotta get those unique items.
This is a minor seeking spoiler, but there is more than one possible ending. And one of those possible endings involves abandoning the quest at the last minute, forgoing the chance to ever learn the Name, and returning to London. That choice locks you out of ever seeking again.
The reckoning may not be postponed indefinitely, but the trip NORTH certainly can be. I got my last candle months ago but have not embarked yet.
I am never going North. Lovely writing from what I have seen, but there is so much to do in London and more gets added every few months.
No, I will sit here and bask at Lady Sapho instead.
edited by Jolanda Swan on 9/8/2017
I refuse to Seek the Name, as doing so requires monstrous betrayal and despicable immorality. It doesn’t merely harm you, it harms everyone around you.
I want that 4 BDR weapon.
After I get my cider.
Yeah, that’s why I won’t do it either. Although it’s in character for my character to want to end himself, it isn’t in character for him to hurt all his loved ones doing so.
Exceptional Stories, new upcoming content, seasonal events, backlogged Fate content, ludicrous goals, and Ambition updates usually keep players occupied. Though Fate is a limited resource, and some people get into a rut from time to time. If you ever feel burnout from the game, try taking some time off so you can come back to it later on with fresher eyes, and hopefully new content available depending on how long you wait.
Instead, some people use Seeking as either a last goal to reach or an official way to have a satisfying ending to the game rather than just getting tired and quitting. If that’s the case for you, then going all the way NORTH may be what you’re looking for. Though, I’d have to strongly urge trying out the prior suggestions in this post and the rest of the thread before doing it. It’s a big permanent decision, after all.
Yeah, that’s why I won’t do it either. Although it’s in character for my character to want to end himself, it isn’t in character for him to hurt all his loved ones doing so.[/quote]
I think I remember most betrayals in SMEN to be potentially mutual and wanted, whether it be outright said in the game or agreed upon between players. Though, even if you didn’t have to hurt anyone outright, I’d say seeking one’s own end is a harm of sorts for those who cared about them. For Whom the Bell Tolls, and all that.
edited by Sir Joseph Marlen on 9/9/2017
Nobody cares about Flesh-Stick. Not even Flesh-Stick :P
I imagine other ultimate endings will be added eventually, considering we have destinies. I’d like an option for a selection of grand-finales for our characters, and official in-game closers to their stories.
I’d like to see one where we get to sail East or return to the surface with Hesperidean Cider.
edited by Addis Rook on 9/9/2017
I would love to have the 4 BDR item, but I don’t love the idea enough to scar, stain, and chain myself all to turn back at the last moment.
That being said, my alt is happy with her choice. But then she chose the right path to her end; certain other paths would have been unsatisfying.
I went NORTH with my main because I’m a madman. I’ve since raised a new main who’s much more well-adjusted, but he does have the dubious distinction of being betrayed enough times to get Freed from the Name 7.
[quote=Addis Rook]I imagine other ultimate endings will be added eventually, considering we have destinies. I’d like an option for a selection of grand-finales for our characters, and official in-game closers to their stories.
I’d like to see one where we get to sail East or return to the surface with Hesperidean Cider.[/quote]
IIRC official word on the subject is that conclusive endings won’t necessarily be A Thing, with SMEN of course being an exception. This was specifically in the context of destinies; even though your character receives a set future, your character’s story in the here-and-now can continue indefinitely in whatever direction you wish. Similarly, Sunless Skies represents just one possible future for London, rather than shoehorning the High Wilderness into every FL character’s life story.
I expect the closest we’ll ever get to conclusive endings will be the ambition finales, but I expect even those will let our characters continue life in London after the fact. Endings with more finality, like in Sunless Sea, are highly unlikely in FL. They wouldn’t work from a story perspective: SSea is built around each character’s time as a captain, a very dangerous profession, focused on the adventures away from home with the set endpoint of death or permanent retirement. FL focuses on the character’s everyday life at home, both the major events and mundanity; death is explicitly not relevant in London and there’s no retirement from daily life.
I doubt that (non-SMEN*) methods of permanently leaving the FL setting will ever be provided for mechanical reasons too: SSea is designed around short character lifespans and passing on resources, while FL is designed for a single long-lived character who slowly accumulates resources over time. As a one-time purchase, SSea also makes Failbetter money regardless of a player’s playtime; as F2P, FL is more likely to make money the longer a player’s playtime. Providing permanent ways for players to leave FL without any ability to return is counterproductive. If someone really wants to they can always Seek or just delete their account, but the first is not to everyone’s taste while the second isn’t a satisfactory end.
*I personally suspect that a big reason for SMEN’s return was player draw. While Seeking provides a permanent method for players to leave, one especially attractive to veteran players, it also is unique enough to become known outside the playerbase and to attract more players. SMEN is both a selling point for new players, who may choose to stick around afterwards, and another thing to spend money on (Cerise as the most obvious example).
[quote=Optimatum][quote=Addis Rook]I imagine other ultimate endings will be added eventually, considering we have destinies. I’d like an option for a selection of grand-finales for our characters, and official in-game closers to their stories.
I’d like to see one where we get to sail East or return to the surface with Hesperidean Cider.[/quote]
IIRC official word on the subject is that conclusive endings won’t necessarily be A Thing, with SMEN of course being an exception. This was specifically in the context of destinies; even though your character receives a set future, your character’s story in the here-and-now can continue indefinitely in whatever direction you wish. Similarly, Sunless Skies represents just one possible future for London, rather than shoehorning the High Wilderness into every FL character’s life story.
I expect the closest we’ll ever get to conclusive endings will be the ambition finales, but I expect even those will let our characters continue life in London after the fact. Endings with more finality, like in Sunless Sea, are highly unlikely in FL. They wouldn’t work from a story perspective: SSea is built around each character’s time as a captain, a very dangerous profession, focused on the adventures away from home with the set endpoint of death or permanent retirement. FL focuses on the character’s everyday life at home, both the major events and mundanity; death is explicitly not relevant in London and there’s no retirement from daily life.
I doubt that (non-SMEN*) methods of permanently leaving the FL setting will ever be provided for mechanical reasons too: SSea is designed around short character lifespans and passing on resources, while FL is designed for a single long-lived character who slowly accumulates resources over time. As a one-time purchase, SSea also makes Failbetter money regardless of a player’s playtime; as F2P, FL is more likely to make money the longer a player’s playtime. Providing permanent ways for players to leave FL without any ability to return is counterproductive. If someone really wants to they can always Seek or just delete their account, but the first is not to everyone’s taste while the second isn’t a satisfactory end.
*I personally suspect that a big reason for SMEN’s return was player draw. While Seeking provides a permanent method for players to leave, one especially attractive to veteran players, it also is unique enough to become known outside the playerbase and to attract more players. SMEN is both a selling point for new players, who may choose to stick around afterwards, and another thing to spend money on (Cerise as the most obvious example).[/quote]well, in any case, I think being able to go to the Surface would be a nice little bonus for getting Hesperidean Cider. There’s lots and lots of story potential on the Surface.
There is indeed potential, but it will never happen. Why? Because Cider-owners are a vanishingly small percentage of players, and that’s a lot of effort to put into Surface content when barely anybody will see it. It’s a similar reasoning to the postponement of the later stages of the Ambitions - only a small amount of people have reached the current content boundary for them, although naturally it’s larger than the number who have Cider.
edited by JimmyTMalice on 9/9/2017