There’s this week’s thread for quick questions!
If I fail the options that increase your Master Thief quality, do I gain on my Criminal Record? I’m a bit peeved that I went instantly to jail, but didn’t catch if it raised my criminal record or not . . .
It’s been a pain reducing my criminal record, but I need to go from 5 to 10 Master Thief, and I’m trying to work out if it’s work it if I’m constantly risking a huge criminal record.
Failing to rob the brass embassy does not increase your criminal record. If you ever need to get into prison (to pick up the Criminals’ renown 40 item, for instance), that’s the best way to get there.
What are the best ways to grind/raise the lategame stats? (Mithridacy, Player of Chess and so on) They require few CPs compared to the Main 4, but looking around seems that most of their challenges don’t increase them so…
Mithridacy:
[ul][li]If you have the Unassuming, Assuming and Very Lenient Judges and have reached the Evenlode on the railway, this card has an option which gives +1 CP of Mithridacy and 5 Dubious Testimony (needs you to draw cards in the Hinterlands)
[/li][li]If you play Black or Red at the Chessboard, these cards have an option which gives +1 CP of Mithridacy (needs you to draw cards in Ealing Gardens, raises Liberation of Night on success)[/li][li]Otherwise, you can compose Corrective/Revisionist Historical Narratives (either in Moulin or the Waswood). You get +1 CP per attempt. Corrective Narratives cost an Incisive Observation and 4 Identities Uncovered to make, Revisionist Narratives cost an Incisive Observation and either 4 Extraordinary Implications (in the Waswood) or 4 Nicatorian Relics (in Moulin)[/li][/ul]
Player of Chess:
[ul][li]If you’re a member of the Parthenaeum, there’s an option on their card which gives +1 CP.[/li][li]During the opening of a game at the Chessboard, following the movement of the pieces gives +2 CP on success (or +3 on rare success). It’s a difficulty 200 Watchful challenge.[/li][li]You also get +1 CP at the end of a game if you win.[/li][li]If you slight someone and they hire the Minacious Marksman to kill you, there’s an option on his card which gives +1 CP.
[/li][/ul]
Glasswork:
- Sneaking away from your wounds in your Parabolan Base-Camp gives you +1 CP, as does applying your own knowledge while searching/hunting in Parabola.
Monstrous Anatomy:
- Ambushing your quarry while hunting in Parabola gives you +1 CP.[/li][li]Observing a gilled lamp-cat or studying drowned architecture while diving in the Evenlode gives +1 CP (airs dependent), as does letting the Light-in-Exile study you.
Shapeling Arts:
[ul][li]Making Withered Tentacles in Helicon House gives +1 CP.[/li][li]Stopping for a more careful search on the Rubbery Trench card on an expedition in Moulin gives +1 CP.
[/li][li]If you slight someone and they hire the Gloomy Guttersnipe to kill you, there’s an option on his card which gives +1 CP.[/li][/ul]
Kataleptic Toxicology:
- Using the Fungal Dangers and Poisons book (buyable at the Upper River Exchange) gives +1 CP at the cost of 10 Hand-picked Peppercaps.[/li][li]If you slight someone and they hire the Polite Poisoner to kill you, there’s an option on her card which gives +1 CP.
Artisan of the Red Science (this is the hardest to increase):
[ul][li]If you’ve completed Bag a Legend! and have April in your lab, you can get +1 CP per action from her card.
[/li][li]There’s a research project you can start in Parabola (once you’ve discovered the Missing Block) which gives +2 CP on completion (needs 500 Research and 15 Parabolan Research).[/li][li]Once you’ve got Artisan Studies to 1 (first overcap), you can make a Device for the Duplication of Bones. You can then use this to duplicate the skull of John the Baptist when making a skeleton, which gives +1 CP (costs 500 Bone Fragments and 10 Hand-picked Peppercaps).[/li][li]Examining an Unlawful Device when writing a Monograph in Moulin gives +1 CP.[/li][li]During Whitsun you can get +1 CP by researching an Aged Egg (costs 125 Research). I have heard (but cannot confirm) that you can also increase AotRS by researching the Experimental Device.
[/li][/ul]
Thank you for the in-depth reply! It’s interesting, albeit a little disconcerting, that late-game content is heavily secluded from the rest of the game, as almost no term you used is recognizable from my experience as a stat-capped character 5 years ago :D
A question about the Acquintances system if anyone knows: I was just curious, is the limitation on how many Acquintances you have an inherent limitation of the game’s system or a deliberate game design?
I can’t find the reference now, but as I recall* it came up a couple of years back and someone at FBG said that it’s basically a real-world computational constraint. Larger acquaintance lists cause problems because they become rapidly more demanding (ie allowing each list to have twice as many entries causes it to consume more than twice the resources).
Since most players don’t need to be in routine contact with 100+ other players, the current system doesn’t really limit most of us, and so there are always higher priorities for people to work on.
*but human memory, time, etc. I could be misremembering something completely different.
[quote=Tigerfort]
I can’t find the reference now, but as I recall* it came up a couple of years back and someone at FBG said that it’s basically a real-world computational constraint. Larger acquaintance lists cause problems because they become rapidly more demanding (ie allowing each list to have twice as many entries causes it to consume more than twice the resources).[/quote]
It was so bad that my social actions broke completely. All I ever got was a blank screen. Just because I had too many acquaintances and processing the list (with requirements) took too long. I had to contact support, which ended up purging my list (by removing contacts who were incative for a long time)
I’m probably just an idiot that can’t see it, but I broke into the safe in Hurlers and got the note, and I remember that the note had an option to equip/use it, but I put that off to run a side errand. Now I can’t find it at all? Any idea where I’d look or what to search for?
At Charity 5 the Opulent Railway Carriage card is available. You can either enter with the note or return the note to Mr Stones.
I’m not sure if I’m misremembering the FB blog, but are the Hurlers the last station to go before the Railway finally reaches Hell or are there a few more left?
I think there is at least Marigold station, although I am not sure, whether it is “station before Hell” or “gateway to Hell”