Anchovies
Posts: 421
5/23/2017
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I think the best place to expand social actions is outside the Lodgings. "The Neath's Mysteries" is a card I am always delighted to see, because it has a variety of interesting options which all give a chance to interact with other players in a way that feels not only Victorian but proper spooky Victorian. It's boring for social actions to all be just invitations to another's Lodgings for dinner. I want forbidden plays! Shared secrets of cities past! Strange things in the mirror!
Here's some ideas for places to add social actions.
1. "A Sporting Sort" opportunity card. At present there is one option, "worth a flutter?", in which the player bets some deep amber on a 50/50 Luck test against some nameless NPC. But what if we could invite a friend to the races, and offer them a wager? the winning player could receive 150-350 deep amber (or perhaps 200-400, to encourage the social action over the solo option), and perhaps the loser could get a Hastily Scrawled Warning Note as consolation. The card is fun as it is, but it'd be even better if losing the bet meant someone else walked away with your amber in their pocket. Sore losers could get back at their friends by using them as dupes for scandal or suspicion. Revenge is a dish best served petty.
2. Preparing for an expedition in the Forgotten Quarter. I have a small pile of expedition supplies gathering mildew in my attic, but I'm a ways off from trying the Nadir expedition. There's no pressing need for me to get rid of the supplies in short order (other than the smell), but if I could spare some of them to an aspiring archaeologist, I'd gladly do so... for proper compensation, of course. Perhaps a player gearing up for an expedition (the buyer) could ask to purchase supplies from another player (the seller) who has extra crates and no ongoing expedition. Crates cost between 2.5 echoes each at 1 crate per action (show me the money), and 1.18 echoes each at 2 crates per action (hire a porter from the docks, compared to calling the favor in at wolfstack), so perhaps the buyer could send a set payment up front alongside the appeal for aid, and the seller, should they accept, could then choose to be generous, fair, or stingy. Ex: buyer sends 8 echoes payment (or equivalent goods), seller sends 3, 4, or 5 crates. This could also lead to further social actions, whether dinner invitations to thank charitable patrons or social/criminal duping to scorn a miserly associate.
edited by Anchovies on 5/23/2017
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Perhaps our role on this planet is not to worship God — but to create Him.
—Sir Arthur C Clarke
Lionel Anchovies. Character on indefinite hiatus.
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Ginneon Thursday
Posts: 265
5/24/2017
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Siankan wrote:
As to actual social actions, the first thing that comes to mind is the ability to invite multiple PCs to a dinner party. I love this idea. There's so much wonderful RP in the forums - and it would be great to encourage more of that in-game.
What if there was an option to host an event where you could invite multiple people? During, say, a week of play each guest and host has a thread to RP in (or people receive messages as each person makes a contribution).
Events could include:
+Salon
+Dinner Party
+Ball
+Some Ale-Stained Tables Pulled Together
(Locations for events could also be made contingent on one owning a corresponding property.)
A week after the invitation is first sent, all participating players can vote for the person whose contributions they enjoyed the most (e.g. "Salon Luminary," "Guest Of Honor," "Belle/Beau Of The Ball," or "Carouser In Chief.")
The winner could receive some bump in rewards along with a badge of distinction. Badges could then be displayed on one's mantle (perhaps in a third slot?), and could also serve as an indicator in-game that one is interested in RP-ing.
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Ginneon Thursday: Revelrous Professor of Benthic
Departments of Mycoenology, Lepidoptery
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Catherine Raymond
Posts: 2518
5/24/2017
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Ginneon Thursday wrote:
Siankan wrote:
As to actual social actions, the first thing that comes to mind is the ability to invite multiple PCs to a dinner party. I love this idea. There's so much wonderful RP in the forums - and it would be great to encourage more of that in-game.
What if there was an option to host an event where you could invite multiple people? During, say, a week of play each guest and host has a thread to RP in (or people receive messages as each person makes a contribution).
Events could include:
+Salon
+Dinner Party
+Ball
+Some Ale-Stained Tables Pulled Together
(Locations for events could also be made contingent on one owning a corresponding property.)
A week after the invitation is first sent, all participating players can vote for the person whose contributions they enjoyed the most (e.g. "Salon Luminary," "Guest Of Honor," "Belle/Beau Of The Ball," or "Carouser In Chief.")
The winner could receive some bump in rewards along with a badge of distinction. Badges could then be displayed on one's mantle (perhaps in a third slot?), and could also serve as an indicator in-game that one is interested in RP-ing.
I really like the idea of an event named "Some Ale-Stained Tables Pulled Together", though it's probably more in character with newer/poorer characters.
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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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Harlocke
Posts: 506
5/25/2017
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Anchovies wrote:
I think the best place to expand social actions is outside the Lodgings. "The Neath's Mysteries" is a card I am always delighted to see, because it has a variety of interesting options which all give a chance to interact with other players in a way that feels not only Victorian but proper spooky Victorian. It's boring for social actions to all be just invitations to another's Lodgings for dinner. I want forbidden plays! Shared secrets of cities past! Strange things in the mirror!
Mediocre lodging cards could also be improved by adding a social option. Imagining getting to invite a friend to peruse the bookshop you live over, or to pay a visit to the observatory to conduct some research with the blind astronomers.
I'd also like some new location specific cards. I usually just hang out in my lodgings to draw cards, in order to not miss out on the Neath's Mystery. It'd be nice if other zones of the city also had unique cards that could only be drawn there. For example, if you're in Spite, perhaps you could draw a card that lets you invite other players to join you in some thievery. In Veilgarden, you could ask people to assist you on an artistic project. Etc. It would provide a bit of strategy as to where to draw cards, depending what reward and roleplaying you prefer.
I'd like some social actions for players outside London entirely. For example, if you and another player are both in Polythreme, perhaps you can invite them to explore with you. If you're on Mutton Island, maybe you can send a postcard to people back home in London. When you're on the boatman's barge, and you're thinking of reasons to return back to life, maybe one card would have a social action that lets you remember the player of your choice, and that person would receive a message like "You have the odd sensation that So An So is remembering you fondly right now, wherever they are" along with a romantic notion.
When you visit The Mind Of A Long-Dead God, there actually is a social action that lets you request aid from people in London. That's a really fun way of adding some roleplaying to a rare and special experience. I sent a message to a friend madly raving that I was the rain and the wind, it was great. More stuff like that peppered through the game, where you get to directly involve other people in your own adventures as they happen, would really make the world come to life.
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I welcome social actions, and can visit your salon as an author.
http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/Harlocke
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Jamilah S. Wolf
Posts: 122
6/2/2017
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I've always longed for a way to send and receive objects to and from others. Like Optimatum mentioned, only objects with market--erm, Bazaar value can be traded so the trade is regulated. This'll be a big task, but maybe start with things that are difficult for some players to attain or things that have high Echo resale prices. I'm taking inspiration from Eyeless Skull trading.
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Jamilah, a most fascinating Lady of the Neath who finds herself mingling with Society and aligning with Criminals. This Licentiate Extraordinaire would love to align with the Masters, given the chance. A Shattering Force.
Huarwar Ceiswyr, a Welshman and detective lured to the Neath to Seek. The toll it has taken does not hide itself, nor does he bother to. On hiatus.
Open to all actions, delicious friends. Messages required prior to harmful ones. PM for hints Enigmatic.
She wishes for nothing more than to be close to the Masters, for who else can unlock the Mysteries of the Neath?
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Siankan
Posts: 1048
6/2/2017
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Jamilah Sauvage G. Wolf wrote:
I've always longed for a way to send and receive objects to and from others. Like Optimatum mentioned, only objects with market--erm, Bazaar value can be traded so the trade is regulated. This'll be a big task, but maybe start with things that are difficult for some players to attain or things that have high Echo resale prices. I'm taking inspiration from Eyeless Skull trading.
The chief problem here is that the moment you allow people to send objects - especially objects that can be sold at the Bazaar - then you open the door for people to abuse alternate accounts. One of the reasons Failbetter has not had to clamp down on multiple accounts (as so many games have) is that there aren't many ways that one could abuse them. If we start being able to farm alternate accounts and having them send all their Echoes to the main account in the form of tradeable merchandise, then a lot of things quickly become unbalanced. That is why options to send items or spend money on people are either very random (e.g. surprise packages) or very narrow (e.g. eyeless skulls).
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Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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Kaijyuu
Posts: 1047
6/2/2017
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Hypothetically one could have an army of alts to send first city coins and surprise packages, but this would be so cumbersome that no one does it. Also it'd be obvious to failbetter.
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Be of good cheer. Our contacts have assured us that your sins are forgiven.
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Siankan
Posts: 1048
6/2/2017
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Kaijyuu wrote:
Hypothetically one could have an army of alts to send first city coins and surprise packages, but this would be so cumbersome that no one does it. Also it'd be obvious to failbetter.
Precisely so. The fact that it is cumbersome and that you'd have to put a lot of effort into it to reasonably expect a decent return is the reason that such opportunities are fairly safe for the sort of game they want Fallen London to be. It's not something that you can reasonably grind. Being able to turn Echoes into whatever Bazaar merchandise gives the best rate of return, on the other hand, is much more open to abuse.
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Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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An Individual
Posts: 589
6/2/2017
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Honestly, the biggest enhancement I would like to see in social actions is for them to ALWAYS have a link you can click to see the profile of the character that sent them. If you really want to you can do that at the moment with some copying and pasting but lower the bar to just clicking a link would make it much more appealing to find out something about the characters you're interacting with. After that, some kind of enhancement of the profile page so we can share more about our character with other players. One item, one quality, and whatever you happen to be wearing at the moment is a pretty small set of info and the Journal, while cool, is rarely worth looking at if you want to get a picture of a character at a glance. Those 2 things would go a long way toward enhancing the social experience.
While I am primarily a solo player, I am interested in seeing where you're going with these changes. It might be interesting to see some multi-step social actions sort of like what we saw with the Moon League but less confrontational. A dinner where what the players get out of it depends on what the host and guest do at each of a few steps or something.
On the flip side, I'd be careful about introducing anything that people would want to grind without a non-social alternative (even if the non-social one is less efficient). Those things really encourage players like myself to create alts so they don't have to bother other people. Which might not be a problem but is a temptation I'd rather avoid.
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An Individual's Profile
The RNG giveth and the RNG taketh away.
Goat Farming or Cider Brewing? This browser extension may help.
Want a Cider sip? Please refer to this guide before requesting.
Scholaring the Correspondence? A Brief Guide to Courier's Footprint.
Contemplating Oblivion? First Steps on the Seeking Road.
Gone NORTH? Opened the gate? Throw your character in a well.
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Absintheuse
Posts: 348
6/5/2017
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The first part of our Lodgings Reworks are now live!
We look forward to your feedback, and, as always, if you find any bugs the best place to report them is support@failbettergames.com
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Siankan
Posts: 1048
6/5/2017
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I like the way the options mirror the old "heal/poison" dichotomy, and that you can help someone else with nightmares. I'm not sure I like the consequence (that you can no longer proactively ask for help); I suppose it'll have to wait and see how it works out in practice.
Overall, the reorganization is helpful.
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Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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lady ciel
Posts: 2548
6/5/2017
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Where has Name a Pet gone?
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ciel
Sorry RL means I am not a very active player at the moment. No social actions unless you are prepared to wait and definitely no sparring or other mult-action things.
No Calling Cards or boxed cats please. Will take dupes on the affluent photographers. Other social invitations welcome. Parabolan Kittens usually available, send me an in-game social action saying you want one and I will get one to you as soon as possible.
storynexus name - reveurciel
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Siankan
Posts: 1048
6/5/2017
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lady ciel wrote:
Where has Name a Pet gone?
Hmmm... you're right. It looks like it slipped through the cracks. Perhaps you'll have to just keep calling it "You" for a little while.
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Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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Chronos
Posts: 135
6/5/2017
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lady ciel wrote:
Where has Name a Pet gone?
Write letters.
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Please don't send me harmful social actions
main: https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Chronos78
alt: https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Chronos2
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cwoac
Posts: 1
6/5/2017
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Also, the time in bed / going to church options seem to be misplaced?
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lady ciel
Posts: 2548
6/5/2017
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Thanks, I must have missed looking at the Write letters option.
Time in bed is under Invite a friend to join you in something dangerous!
Going to church is under Invite a friend to join you in something artistic!
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ciel
Sorry RL means I am not a very active player at the moment. No social actions unless you are prepared to wait and definitely no sparring or other mult-action things.
No Calling Cards or boxed cats please. Will take dupes on the affluent photographers. Other social invitations welcome. Parabolan Kittens usually available, send me an in-game social action saying you want one and I will get one to you as soon as possible.
storynexus name - reveurciel
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suinicide
Posts: 2409
6/5/2017
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The church option is under something artistic. Maybe they only appear when you have enough menaces to use them?
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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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Skinnyman
Posts: 2133
6/5/2017
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Having some fun via Discord!
There's an option to plague someone's Nightmares instead of curing them! Similar to wounds, but when receiving an invitation you got 3 options now.
[spoiler]
After accepting to plague his nightmares:
https://images.discordapp.net/.eJwNycsNwyAMANBdGAAHzK_ZBhFEoiY2Akc9VN29edf3Vfc41ap2kT5XgO2Yhcemp_DIrerG3M6a-zF14QuySC77VUkmWLQOfYwpoH0540MCtMYGDNGb5cmEycFNb-IP6U5N_f4HdCLd.voRx3wpZLBMy9uGo-gl85q7v6I8
Confirmation:
https://images.discordapp.net/.eJwNx1EOgyAMANC7cAAaW0DwNgQJmmlLoGYfy-6-vb_3Mc-4zGYO1T43gP2cRcZup8rIrdom0q6a-zltkRuyai7HXVknIKEjv64xECa3-BCBcMFAKbkY0__oAzz8Ynmz7dzM9wcJ6iL5.w3NIT_zf-VKnb11n5VNsgXhcMGE
Result:
https://images.discordapp.net/.eJwNyEsOhCAMANC7cAAaPhbwNgQJmlFKaM0sJnN3fcv3U_c81ap2kcErwHZwoblpFpq5Vd2I2lnzOFgXuiCL5LJftQuDdda7JYSIziZvFozgrLHoTUQfML2PCe7-6fTtevSm_g8JOyL0.NnaT6AQD1wM7JipiOVQ0LROMQA4
[/spoiler]
edited by Skinnyman on 6/5/2017
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ESs items and quality requirements sheet. Please check if there are errors or if something is missing
Achievement list if you're feeling bored!
I am accepting Plant battles, Neath's Mysteries card, Starveling Cats and boxed cats.
No suppers, no second chances gain and no need to cure my menaces!
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dov
Posts: 2580
6/5/2017
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FYI: the new options introduce a new mechanic which might confuse people, so here's how it seems to work:
You can choose to offer help to a friend (e.g. with Nightmares). This increases a quality of your character called "Tending a Friend with Nightmares [friend]".
Your friend will get a message, but without the regular "Accept/Decline" options. Instead it will have "Respond. Clicking it will redirect your friend to a new storylet in which they can choose if to accept your help offer or not (each such choice is its own auto-accept social action directed at you - the one who offered to help).
The wiki's current templates aren't ideal for these (we'll need to update them), and it's all a work in progress, but for now you can take a look here to get a sense as to how this is constructed:
http://fallenlondon.wikia.com/wiki/Assist_your_friend_with_their_Nightmares
edited by dov on 6/5/2017
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 Want a sip of Hesperidean Cider? Send me a request in-game. Here's an_ocelot's guide how.
(Most social actions are welcome. Please no requests to Loiter Suspiciously and no investigations of the Affluent Photographer)
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An Individual
Posts: 589
6/5/2017
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lady ciel wrote:
Thanks, I must have missed looking at the Write letters option.
Time in bed is under Invite a friend to join you in something dangerous!
Going to church is under Invite a friend to join you in something artistic!
Having solo options under a heading that explicitly says "invite a friend" seems like a poor choice. This isn't 100% new as the second chance trade in options used to be there anyway. But that doesn't mean it doesn't still annoy me and won't confuse new players.
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An Individual's Profile
The RNG giveth and the RNG taketh away.
Goat Farming or Cider Brewing? This browser extension may help.
Want a Cider sip? Please refer to this guide before requesting.
Scholaring the Correspondence? A Brief Guide to Courier's Footprint.
Contemplating Oblivion? First Steps on the Seeking Road.
Gone NORTH? Opened the gate? Throw your character in a well.
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