As usual, it would be best if only users who’ve played at least two thirds of these stories took part in the poll.
If you’re interested in previous years’ results, here they are: 201620172018
Something else: when this is over, I’m planning to make an Exceptional Stories Super-Poll, with only the best-liked stories of the past four years - and Flint - competing for the title of Best ES Ever :) edited by phryne on 5/17/2019
I voted “The Bones of London”; it wasn’t bad, but it was mundane (I missed a very exciting portion of the story, apparently). Required Repairs was goofy fun, Daylight was creepy and strange, and The Price of Loss was suffused with grief; all three of them took risks, and I think it’s important not to punish risk-taking and tonal variation. (I’d put all three of them equal or almost equal to “Noises from Upstairs.”)
This was a hard choice since none of these stories were terrible. I ultimately chose Daylight since it ended up as the least satisfying of my bottom three - it was going for cryptic, but was a little TOO cryptic, I think. I never did quite figure out what was going on. Required Repairs had a fun story despite the tediousness of the mechanics. I enjoyed sabotaging the Fisher’s plans in The Stag and The Shark even if I ended up with a less satisfying ending.
[quote=Blaine Davidson]I must confess, I don’t remember Exceptional Stories by their titles, but rather what transpired in it.
Would it be possible to have even a one-line description of each to jog my memory?[/quote]
They’re behind a spoiler tag since it got a little long and spoilery:
The Bones of London: The one where you travel around London committing illegal acts of cartography
Written in the Glim: The one where a dubious astrologer sells you out to the Starved Men
Required Repairs: The one where a friendly Councilman "repairs" your Lodgings by replacing your basement with spiders
For All the Saints…: The one where you seduce a priest and go to Hell (but not for seducing the Priest)
The Magician’s Dream: The one where a magician hires you to find his sister, who of course being an apprentice magician is lost in Parabola
A Little Pandemonium: The one with bonfire rats, a no-fun-allowed ministry official, and liberationist party poopers
Daylight: The one where a no-fun-allowed monster stalks you around a model city
The Price of Loss: The one with a group of Tomb Colonists who have unknowingly been leeched onto by a Parabolan Squonk
Cricket, Anyone?: The one where you find out why the Correspondence and sports do not mix, but not how the game of Cricket actually works
Noises from Upstairs: The one with Harry Houdini and a touch of the Upstairs
Tauroktonos: The one with the archeological dig, the devils, and a potential gallblighter wasp surprise
The Stag and the Shark: The one where you help an upper class twit find a bound shark and, if you choose poorly, THESUNTHESUNTHESUN
edited by SingingFlame on 6/2/2019 edited by SingingFlame on 6/2/2019
I’m sad to see Daylight and Required Repairs doing so badly, since I liked both a lot. I generally like stories that let you do lots of exploring. And Required Repairs was lots of fun. Also, spiders. :)
I voted for The Stag and the Shark because it was rather bland in general, promised a lot (in terms of lore) and delivered nothing. I confess I hate the Young Stags, so I probably was partial against it from the beginning.
If not for that story, I probably would’ve voted The Magician’s Dream, since I remember almost nothing about it which is never a good sign. edited by phryne on 6/23/2019