Catherine Raymond
Posts: 2518
5/27/2016
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Optimatum wrote:
For anyone who hasn't seen in the current ES thread, the bonus will be arriving next week.
Excellent! Something to look forward to after the (in the US, anyway) holiday weekend.
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Cathy Raymond
http://fallenlondon.com/Profile/cathyr19355
Catherine Raymond aka Mrs. Rykar Malkus http://fallenlondon.com/Profile/Catherine%20Raymond (Gone NORTH)
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The Duke of Waltham
Posts: 150
5/28/2016
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I finished this story last night, later than most people as is my wont. I loved it! The mansion was a very rich and complex self-contained environment and I spent a couple of days in there, exploring the various options. I'd never even heard of Pentecost Apes, so this aspect of the story was lost on me, but I didn't sense something was missing from the narrative on those grounds. I assume the emphasis on itching is not a carry-over from previous content, but merely one of those universally understood horrors that make a story feel more visceral. I found it effective here.
I'll agree with some fellow players that, although the Flash Lay fit the story in theory, it didn't in practice. It certainly felt like padding for me at the time it came up, not only because it was generic but because there wasn't much of an introduction to the mark. In "The Frequently Deceased" there was extensive set-up woven throughout the story that prepared us for the establishment we were meant to target, thus making the Flash Lay feel like something of a culmination of one's efforts; here, on the other hand, the Flash Lay was close to the beginning and there was perplexingly little content before it. When I reached the mansion and felt the story come into its own I began to enjoy myself more, though, and at that point I thought of the Flash Lay more charitably as something of a pacing mechanism, to stop people from going through the story too fast. In any case, I actually found the Flash Lay enjoyable in and of itself because I hadn't played many of them lately and I thought it greatly improved since its introduction last year.
Generic spoilers follow.
I also appreciated the way that the body of the story, with content more or less common to all players, set up such an explosion of options and strategies at the endgame. I ended up having all of them open to me, so I was spoiled for choice (and was actually a tiny bit disappointed that I didn't get to use the weapons I'd readied), but there were options for many types of player character that covered all sorts of discoveries in the game. The number of alternatives also mitigated what might otherwise have taken away from the narrative's power: that important challenges seemed meaningless to me because they were geared towards players with low stats. The final conversation did strike me as being too short; we'd already learned a lot about the Empire of Hands, but I liked the character of Vespasian and might have preferred to spend some extra time with him.
Although all players saw the same content in the mansion, the experimentation with interactive storylet text continues. I found it very novel that the text now incorporated a quality (the clock); I think it was only with archaeological expeditions in the Forgotten Quarter that something similar was attempted before, and not nearly as elegantly. The problem from "The Seven-Day Reign" hasn't been solved, but it doesn't actually matter here that the clock isn't visible in the journal, and only in the Study's recorded echo does a false time appear, which is also a clue in its way (Hark DeGaul got it right on page 2 of this thread). By the way, the choice to incorporate the time at the beginning of the text in the Study was brilliant, because it allows the time to be seen even in the mansion's hallway (the general view), which is where the clock is supposed to be. Very effective use of the new mechanic.
And the clock really was put to good use. Although I was apprehensive in the soirée as far as the available time was concerned, I really liked how the time mechanic functioned at night, and how new options opened up occasionally. The overall atmosphere was beautiful, and the information about the apes and their origins was nicely spread around. (I even found two rare successes, which in itself is rare in Exceptional Stories; did anyone find more than two of them?) This attention to detail extended all the way to the little bits of colourful content given through the "Trespassing" quality. I understand it was an "Airs-style" quality that dictated when the two main threats in the mansion would appear; I kept checking it in the Myself page, though its purpose would have been clearer (at first, anyway) if it were placed under "Randomizer" rather than "Story". (Even if it didn't seem to be completely random, in that only certain numbers appeared to be available.)
Specific spoilers:
[spoiler]Playing a story four weeks late means one is being spared the occasional crippling bug, and the problem with the smoking room was therefore something I only read about. However, there were a few elements that didn't make sense. For example, the mansion's keys were always taken away from me when I returned to the cage and there was no apparent way to hold on to a key and use it to open my cage at the beginning of a night. The branch was there, but perfectly useless as far as I can tell. It didn't matter to me because I was unlucky with the cage only once or twice in total, but others were not so fortunate and would have had more use for the key. Also, I was not forced into a loop after trying to talk to the child-butler, but I still had the option to "try again", which didn't feel right.
On another note, I expected a little more from the estimable Agatha Treadgold once I realised she was in the house. Her book did most of her talking for her, though, and perhaps it makes sense that she would be useless in person. I met her in Apis Meet for the first time, but I understand she has featured in another story before that. By the way, it is a common complaint that there is no more interconnection between different stories, and characters we've met before seem not to recognise us. I'm sure it's a lot of work for the benefit of relatively few players, but it is very satisfying when it happens (as it did for the players who came into this story with a Pentecost Ape). The Delightful Adventuress didn't recognise me at all here, and although this may actually be in-character for her (I don't know), there have been similar cases in previous stories.
As for the ending, I went with persuading Vespasian to return to his homeland. I disliked the Captain and hadn't wanted to give him the satisfaction of beating the apes, so I was pleased that he would suffer for his choices at the end, and it was also plausible on a character level that his family would turn away from him (though he clearly cared for them).
[/spoiler]
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The Duke of Waltham welcomes requests for assistance from those troubled by menaces, and His Grace's townhouse is always open to visitors who will not attempt to steal the silverware or extract support for yet another ill-advised scheme concerning photographers.
H. Cartwright, secretary.
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lucentrip
Posts: 2
5/28/2016
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I never could figure out where to start this story... maybe I didn't meet some kind of precondition. When the June story showed up near House of Chimes I was able to snag it right away.
The case of the missing Predicament!
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"Innocence, Once Lost, Can Never Be Regained. Darkness, Once Gazed Upon, Can Never Be Lost."
— John Milton
http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/vuur
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absimiliard
Posts: 759
5/28/2016
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Just finished this.
I don't really have anything to say others have not said better already so I'll simply note: I'm in the camp that really enjoyed the bits in the house and especially the clock, but I also stand with those who found the flash lay uninspiring due to it's rather generic feel. But damn, loved the bits in the house.
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"Because, Parabola!" -- the Curious Captain
Eating nightmares from friends -- and I'm easy to befriend.
Absimiliard: the Black Rose of Wolfstack Docks
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Wicker
Posts: 14
5/29/2016
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It's still may, but it's has been replaced by Junes story... If I finish Junes will Mays reappear?I find it kind of strange that I was wrong to assume I had all of May to play the *May* story...
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Wicker
Posts: 14
5/29/2016
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But then why not make it so it lasts longer, and starts earlier, make it so the story of the month is actually tied to it's month? What does this accomplish other than being confusing?
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Mr Sables
Posts: 597
5/29/2016
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Wicker wrote:
But then why not make it so it lasts longer, and starts earlier, make it so the story of the month is actually tied to it's month? What does this accomplish other than being confusing?
No clue, I don't work for FBG to know, lol.
My guess would be consistency: if you started a story on the 1st and finished on the last of the month, you'd have some stories available for 28 days, others for 31, and - when you're paying for a service - you like to have some idea of 'worth'. £5 is 30 days subscription, so people might get a bit miffed if that went up-and-down (bearing in mind EF subscription is tied to the EF stories). You'd probably have issues with some dates falling on bank holidays (which is an issue for Mondays and Fridays, at least in the UK) . . . weekends are a problem for some, as banks are closed Sundays and half-closed Saturdays . . . this way - every Thursday - people have access to their bank accounts, it's unlikely to be a holiday, and you know exactly how long your money/subscription will last.
Plus, I'm half-sure the FBG don't work weekends, so - again - a Thursday gives them two days to fix bugs, take in feedback, make adjustments, answer queries, etc. - as you can't always guarantee things will go without a hitch, and people expect fast customer service when money is involved, so they need to be around to sort things out.
To be fair, a lot of companies do the same thing . . .
A magazine I read often uses the following month's name in its title, as it's release mid-month . . . so this month's would be June's, and the one release in June would be July's . . . it's just a thing people do.
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Wicker
Posts: 14
5/29/2016
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I just want their to be a timer, or an indication of how long it will be available, right on the page. Sorry if that's there already...
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Jermaine Vendredi
Posts: 588
5/29/2016
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Actually, once you start it, there is a notice saying that the story is yours to play at leisure now. I have three of them sitting like that, because there is so much else to do.
But as someone said upthread, if you are new to the party, drop them a line. I've found them to be generally very fair.
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No plant battles, please.
https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Jermion
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Kittenpox
Posts: 869
5/30/2016
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I'm on mobile so I haven't scoured the forums for this first (sorry in advance for the ignorance - I'm certain I've read the answer before), but a friend of mine played through this one but had a rather unsatisfying ending (building burnt down) as well as not managing to notice clues about which bottle to spike.
When this Exceptional Story becomes purchasable for Fate, will it be available to be re-played by those of us who have already done so? :-)
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Kittenpox
Current [Fabulous Diamond] count: Twenty-Five (of 50). Halfway there! ^_^
Metaphysical Caprice: 11.
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Currently: Returned to the Neath, and regaining my footing in this place. :-)
NO PLANT BATTLES PLEASE.
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suinicide
Posts: 2409
5/30/2016
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Yes, at a cheaper price than just buying it.
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http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/profile/sunnytime
A gentleman seeking the liberation of knowledge, with a penchant for violence.
RIP suinicide, stuck in a well. Still has it under control.
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Kittenpox
Posts: 869
5/31/2016
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suinicide wrote:
Yes, at a cheaper price than just buying it.
Thankyou! Just didn't want to be all like "Don't worry - you can replay it again when it comes out for Fate!" to them, if that were not actually the case. :-)
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Kittenpox
Current [Fabulous Diamond] count: Twenty-Five (of 50). Halfway there! ^_^
Metaphysical Caprice: 11.
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Currently: Returned to the Neath, and regaining my footing in this place. :-)
NO PLANT BATTLES PLEASE.
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The Duke of Waltham
Posts: 150
6/2/2016
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suinicide wrote:
Yes, at a cheaper price than just buying it.
Ooh, I hadn't noticed that. There are only two non-Flint exceptional stories on the Fate tab that I've already played, but they have a nice 45% discount compared to the ones I haven't bought yet.
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The Duke of Waltham welcomes requests for assistance from those troubled by menaces, and His Grace's townhouse is always open to visitors who will not attempt to steal the silverware or extract support for yet another ill-advised scheme concerning photographers.
H. Cartwright, secretary.
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Anne Auclair
Posts: 2215
6/25/2016
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Something I only just realized from playing Sunless Sea, but Vespasian is [spoiler]actively recreating the Wildweald Court in the merchant's house. In the Wildweald Court you have a really high souled ape served by an aristocracy of somewhat lesser souled apes, who are in turn surrounded by a motley army of low souled apes. The result is a bubble of carefully cultivated civilization surrounded by dirt, noise, and animal behavior. Not surprising, as this is the only sort of civilization Vespasian knows.[/spoiler]
This subtle continuity between the two games is pretty cool.
edited by Anne Auclair on 6/26/2016
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http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/Anne%20Auclair
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Absintheuse
Posts: 348
9/7/2016
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Hello delicious friends! Just dropping in to say that this story is now available for Fate. Enjoy!
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Mr Sables
Posts: 597
9/7/2016
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Absintheuse wrote:
Hello delicious friends! Just dropping in to say that this story is now available for Fate. Enjoy!
Ah, excellent news!
I can't wait to replay this on my alt, as it was on of my all-time favourite stories :')
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