http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/suinicide?fromEchoId=7952993
Here’s a link to my choice from the card. (Rewards behind spoiler) The only rewards are quirks. (But not past 10, which was disappointing)
http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/suinicide?fromEchoId=7950647
And here’s a link to succeeding by admitting this was all for your own curiosity.
edited by suinicide on 2/26/2016
[quote=yetanotherone]
I tried reading both collated research and a compromising document to the little horrors, and they gave the same (hilarious) response you can see in Ancient Drunkard’s journal in link below.
I am not going to risk my one intriguer’s compendium, and that’s only 4 ‘enthralling’ compared to 5 from the research anyway.[/quote]
I tried Proscribed Material, and got that result. So I think it’s safe to assume it doesn’t matter which item you use. Which is good- I’d hate to have to sacrifice my Political Satire to the brats.
Still an interesting new mechanic, even if there’s not a good reason to use anything other than Proscribed Materials at the moment.
[li]
edited by Gilphon on 2/26/2016
That was a top-notch story. Really marvellous.
I have only one trifling emotional thread left hanging: that I couldn’t warn the Proprietor that his goodwill has been taken advantage of at least once. He runs a fine institution and it seems a shame that these loopholes leave its services at the mercy of others’ ambitions.
Really enjoyed this story! Though I botched the end a bit. After all that waiting for the opportunity card, I ought to have read it more carefully… was hoping that I’d be able to both steam the card open, then reseal it and deliver…alas, curiosity won out.
edited by paradoxically on 2/26/2016
Discounting Flint with its distinct multipart advantage, this is the best Exceptional Story so far. Optional side bits, extra snippets for players with certain items, good use of systems already in place… and a compelling story, of course! It felt meaty. Fantastic work.
I’m now awaiting the Opportunity card. I really liked the mechanism of having to do storylets all over London to interact with servants all over London. And the final Flash Lay was fun.
I just wanted to chime in and say that I also thought this month’s story was amazing. The variety of mechanics, and the bits and pieces spread out across so many different areas were lovely. I’ve only been subscribed for a short time, but this alone makes it feel totally worth it. Now I’m thinking I’ll have to go back and slowly buy up the old fate-locked stuff as well.
edited by Leumas on 2/26/2016
Is there anybody who’s echo’d the results of the decision they made at the end? I found myself really invested in this month’s story and am quite curious to know how things might have turned out if I had made a different choice.
I have echoed the choice to steam open the letter. My main motivation was curiosity, but I feel that I regret breaking that trust. Which means that this was a very immersive story! Kudos to Emily Short.
I am not quite finished the story yet, but 0 action dialogue is truly blissful. Very much appreciated!
This was Jermion’s first exceptional story and he was most impressed.
A spiffing mix of humour and comedy with a touch of horror. He took special delight in reading blood-curdling tales to the brats and engaging their attention with his broken toys. Hah! Not sure he’ll ever forgive the scarab affair, however.
That’s a very good one, I enjoyed that. It feels like a long one (probably because it is really long or just because it sends you to many locations).
But I had a big problem with the "flash lay" part. Not being a native speaker, I cannot translate "flash lay" and "mark" properly. There are dozens of meanings for "flash", "lay", and "mark", I have no idea which is right here. So I did not really understand what I was doing in that part, it looked like a set of random actions that were not related to each other or to the exceptional story but somehow gave progress. Can anyone explain this part to me? I should note that my English is fluent and normally I do not have any problems with translation, it is the first time in the game something was not clear to me.
A "lay" is a (criminal) enterprise. "Flash" can mean "knowing" as an adjective, but here means "involving thieves and prostitutes". The "mark" is the proposed victim.
Project Gutenberg has the 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, by Francis Grose, which you may find helpful for this kind of thing. (The author Georgette Heyer discovered it halfway through her writing career and its effect was immediately noticeable in her next book. However, Jermion is too embarrassed to say more.)
http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/5402
http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/Jermion
[quote=Azuregosa]That’s a very good one, I enjoyed that. It feels like a long one (probably because it is really long or just because it sends you to many locations).
But I had a big problem with the "flash lay" part. Not being a native speaker, I cannot translate "flash lay" and "mark" properly. There are dozens of meanings for "flash", "lay", and "mark", I have no idea which is right here. So I did not really understand what I was doing in that part, it looked like a set of random actions that were not related to each other or to the exceptional story but somehow gave progress. Can anyone explain this part to me? I should note that my English is fluent and normally I do not have any problems with translation, it is the first time in the game something was not clear to me.[/quote]
There are generic Flash Lays you can try at Veilgarden - in fact, if you go to Veilgarden, the option for Flash Lay literally call it a confidence trick.
For this particular story, you are playing a confidence trick on the Proprietor, convincing him that you are hiring a servant for someone so important that you want direct access to their data instead of just getting recommendation.
Also I’d like to voice my appreciation that conversation here does not cost actions - it makes for a much smoother experience.
Yeah, that too. Especially with how you can use so many things you may or may not have with the children and servants.
edited by Estelle Knoht on 2/26/2016
Oh thanks for the explanations, now that part of the story makes sense!
At the epilogue of the story, there is an option simply called “reset this story”. The description text is “reset”, and it needs a Key of Dreams. Is that meant to be there?
[color=#e53e00] I have no idea what you’re talking about. stares meaningfully at you (Fixed, thank you. That was an inner cog flaunting itself.) [/color]
Has anybody gotten the bonus mentioned in the Bazaar Side-streets storylet? I’ve been playing that option for most of the night without any luck so far, so I’m tempted to just move on with the story and maybe try again with Delmar later.
[quote=Robin Mask]Just wanted to say this is possibly my favourite story to date, even more so than "Flint" :) I adored the mixture of gameplay elements, as well as how the story felt divided into three acts, and the story itself was superb . . . the characters were complex and easy to become invested in, while the overall rewards felt fantastic (I very much value one item in particular, which can be frustrating to get otherwise).
[/quote]
This sums up my feelings perfectly :) An outstanding story, to say the least.
Bravo!
feedback time
This story was really fun, lots of interesting mechanics, and a nice chance to explore little bits of london’s culture
I felt it was, overall, a bit too easy though. Especially the flash lay near the end, the difficulty of that seemed to be clearly set towards the lower end of flash lays, and i passed every check (even the shadowy ones, which is my worst stat) without any issue at 100% odds, without ever having to optimise gear. I expected more of a challenge.
It was also mildly odd that almost none of the storylets along the way had any material rewards, even just little things for flavour. Like when i as cleaning out the fireplace at Baseborn and Fowlingpiece, i feel like that should have yielded Inklings of Identity from poking around with fragmented documents.
But my biggest criticism of all i think, was the overall mundaneity of the story. Nothing i did, or discovered, had any real consquence, for myself or london. I went looking for a missing nanny, and I found her. With barely a hint of dark magic or deeper mysteries along the way. I kind of expected higher stakes
it was a good story though. 4/5