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Hallowmas 1896: The Mystery of the Rosers

Hannah Flynn Administrator Posts: 491 10/24/2018	In the small, mean days before Hallowmas, London finds itself plagued with dreams of falling roses... Hallowmas has returned! The Feast of Masks, when opposites meet at midnight! This is the season of unexpected guests and dangerous revelations; a free festival, open to all players. This year, London’s Feast of Masks will take place from 24th October until the 7th of November. A Mystery at Hallowmas This Hallowmas, a mystery has set Londoners’ minds alight. Meet an Envoy from the Elder Continent, and hunt for confessions in order to answer her sovereign’s question - where did the Rosers go? To begin, find Hallowmas 1896: An Envoy from the Elder Continent, available throughout London. Confessions at the Feast of Masks Guard your identity with a mask and collect confessions: of guile, pride, impropriety, violence, whimsy or curiosity. It’s your choice to trade them to acquaintances or prominent persons of the Neath. Certain combinations of confessions will allow you to enhance particular companions, and gather clues from others also pursuing the mystery. We've set up a thread for trading confessions in the Singing Mandrake, and there’s also a channel for the festival in the official fan Discord. In order to make a trade with someone else in Fallen London, you will need to add them as an acquaintance, either by visiting their profile page and clicking ‘add contact’ or by typing in their character name during the trade. Begin trading with other players on Hallowmas 1896: Where Did the Rosers Go?, available throughout London. Will your collection make the papers? Make any decisions about the confessions you’ve gathered by the 7th of November! At the end of the festival, Mr. Huffam will be about, looking to interview festival-goers and their companions for the Hallowmas Edition of the Unexpurgated Gazette. Will your collected companions ensure you a rapt write-up? Destinies This is the season of unexpected guests… who carry terrible glimpses of possible futures. Acquire a destiny, or change yours for a new one. This can only be done at certain times of the year, so take advantage of the chance! Begin with Attract a Visitor at Hallowmas. We hope you enjoy this festival, and find satisfaction in puzzling out London’s latest mystery! -- Wields the news canon, aboard the hype train.
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Siankan Posts: 1048 10/25/2018	Turlion wrote: Think about this game as if it were an actual brick-and-mortar shop that just got in a new assortment of seasonal luxury goods. They put the new items in their display window to entice all of their customers into buying them. Nobody would be upset at the store for not giving these items away for free, they are for sale and are presented to customers for purchase. This is what Failbetter has done; they created new products in the form of content for their game (companions, lore, and a powerful item) and now they are trying to sell them to us. They are not taking anything away from us, they are just offering more, for a price; in fact, they are going one step further than a shop would by telling all of us that we can take one item out of the display case, for free, as a gift for being loyal customers. Well, not exactly. First, I want to say thank you for what was probably a much-needed check on the corporate venting. It's easy to let frustration get too strong, especially when you're around a bunch of people who are feeling the same way. We were, I think, starting to get too critical, and I thank you for pointing that out. Now, that said, it's important to note that Failbetter is not a brick-and-mortar store. Yes, their product is stories and occasional trinkets, but their business model for selling that product has little to do with the way that the local bookstore sells its stories. First of all, one of the core concepts of the game is that the core content of the game is accessible for free, including the main portion of the major events. This is true for the entire class of free-to-play games, but Failbetter has traditionally put a lot of emphasis on it. This is a core part of their brand, if we want to put it in those terms, and a core reason people love them and want to give them money. It is also why there's so much distress when people feel that something which is (or is perceived to be) part of that core content is not truly available on this side of the paywall. (Can I use the word core any more?) It would mean that they're becoming like them, like the hundreds of other game companies who are just out to make a game and a buck. If people wanted that, they wouldn't be playing Fallen London. Secondly, such a situation is a direct strike at the free-to-play business model. The core idea (did it again) of that model is that we're going to make a game that you can play for free, and you're going to like it so much that you're going to want to put money in to get various extras. Traditionally, this means bonus content or skipping ahead. Fallen London's stock in trade is the bonus content, though it dips its toes into both. The key to this, however, is that the free version of the game is satisfying in itself. If a "free" game requires a cash inlay to be playable, well, ever played one of those timer-based games that move so glacially slowly that you have to put in cash to get anything done? How long do you play those? How long do those games last? Not long, in either case. People who are willing to drop $100 on a game in the store will refuse to spend $5 on a game like that. Why? They feel tricked--and they have a right to. Thus, again, when people feel that thing labeled "free" really aren't, they quite naturally are going to become upset. Now, we have to ask, is Failbetter really steering Fallen London in that direction? No, I don't think so. They've consistently shown a desire to make the yearly events fun and accessible to all players, new and advanced, drowning in euros or (me) raising three kids on an adjunct's salary. What has happened, I think, is that they're trying to find the sweet spot for Hallowmas and have yet to hit the mark. Remember, even though there's an event every couple of months, they only get one crack at any given event per year. It's hard to iterate rapidly on that kind of schedule. One of the points that I've tried to work in is that even false perception can be as dangerous to a game as an actual problem. Ye olde developers are quite aware of this, and I have little doubt that our reactions are a topic of conversation at the Failbetter water cooler. It's our job, if we really love this game, to aim our comments toward constructive criticism rather than griping, and give them the benefit of the doubt that they are, in fact, trying to make a game they and we both can be proud of. That said: One of the core challenges with Hallowmas, and especially this Hallowmas, is that the holiday has two conflicting needs. In many ways, as I intimated in an earlier post, Hallowmas is an accountant's holiday. Unless you have very limited interest in the new companions, those of us on the free confessions plan have to allocate those confessions very carefully. We need to know ahead of time what the paths are so that we can navigate through them successfully. However, Fallen London's stock-in-trade is mystery, and mystery is precisely the element that Failbetter has added to this Hallowmas. If they told us ahead of time how the Rosers investigation was going to come out, it would spoil the fun. Yet without that, you set up for potential disappointment and ill feeling. How is Hallowmas going to walk that line? I'll tell you in two weeks. In the mean time, it's probably best to remember that this year's Hallowmas is an experiment, and to treat it as such. -- Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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Barse Posts: 706 10/29/2018	If you go and re-read the thread from last year's Hallowmas, I think you'll find out exactly why Failbetter thought they needed to fix Hallowmas this year. While I don't necessarily agree with all of the design decisions that have been made this year, these decisions appear to have been made in direct response to the slew of community criticism that Hallowmas faced last year. Criticising Failbetter for changing festivals while at the same time, every year, insisting that the festival is busted and needs changing seems to me to be a little unfair. As a community I think it is extremely important to maintain this kind of collective memory. If there had not been uproar over last year's decisions, different decisions would not have been made this year, and that's important to keep in mind. At the very least Failbetter need to be credited for hearing our criticisms and being willing to take new approaches in an attempt to address these criticisms, for trying all this new stuff in an attempt to improve an event which was received quite poorly. I think it's likely that next year Hallowmas will reappear in a yet-again different incarnation, precisely because of all of the comments in this thread here. And next year it'll be important to remember, if we don't like the changes that are made, that this time last year change was all that we were clamouring for. Failbetter are, when it matters, responsive to our feedback, and while I'm bordering on the insufferably pretentious this feels like a good time to remember where they got their name. Samuel Beckett wrote: "Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better." EDIT: I'm not saying we shouldn't point out things we dislike; of course we should! And there are a number of things that I believe could've been done better this year, which I won't go into because by and large they've been covered tenfold by other people. But it's important to be fair even when we're pointing out things that we think are unfair, and presenting the changes this year as uncalled for and unprompted (no matter how frustrating they may be - and I agree, some of the changes are frustrating) is, I think, unfair. edited by Barse on 10/29/2018 -- The Scorched Sailor, up for most social actions and RP. Not as scary as he looks.
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Hannah Flynn Administrator Posts: 491 10/25/2018	We had a few bugs in the first day of Hallowmas that caused confusion, and prevented some players from engaging with the festival. There's been more than one bug that has caused problems, and while we’ve now made all the fixes we need to, the experience has been uneven across players. In recompense, here’s an access code for five additional free confessions to help you enjoy the holiday! We’ve made a few changes this year, and people who’ve played a few Hallowmasses will have different understandings of what to expect. As always, our refrain is: please don’t make assumptions about a festival based on how it worked the previous year! It especially confuses new players, and causes worry. A few notes which might help relieve some of the worries that we've heard about: We’re giving out a total of 12 free confessions this year, aside from the additional 5 we’ve made available on an access code (above). These will be given out one per weekday (not at weekends) until the 6th (because timezones make the last day a bit dicey). There won’t be an achievement this year for collecting all of the companions. Mr Huffam will want to ask you about your favourite achievement in the festival, out of all that you've done this year. There are multiple endings to the Mystery of the Rosers. To get the most unique ending you'll need to gather all of the clues, which will require 6 confessions. To get the 'default' ending will require no confessions at all. Some players will probably want to get this ending for roleplaying reasons. There are alternative endings which will require 3 confessions to access. These endings will all be revealed and available from the 31st, and you'll be able to see what you need to achieve each before committing to any of them. We hope the above is helpful, and we are collecting feedback and data about the festival which will enable us to improve it next year. Thanks everyone! -- Wields the news canon, aboard the hype train.
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hwoosh Posts: 104 10/25/2018	The ongoing discussion has probably already covered this ground, but I'd like to distill my thoughts and say the following: The aspect of this year's Hallowmas that is most baffling to me is that the writers created an ENORMOUS amount of interesting new lore, and then overlaid a mechanical system that actively discourages players from reading most of it. Players who are at all interested in the stats side of the game are punished most for this, because you feel an enormous pressure to pick up the Contrarian's item and are left with next to no confessions for anything else. Those longterm, endgame players who probably feel that pressure most keenly, are the same players who probably have the most investment in the lore and mysteries that they're not allowed to see unless they shell out real-world $$$. This is the first time a seasonal event has felt like this, to me. I feel that the seasonal events should have a lot of content that it may be very difficult to see all of, but that you can pour a little to a moderate amount of extra Fate into if you have that happy feeling of investment and want to support the devs. Instead, this Hallowmas feels designed to milk the completionist whales for all they're worth. I've been one of those people in the past. I've given FBG substantial amounts of money (more than a dozen $, less than a hundred) to get all the unique rewards at a seasonal event. I won't be doing that this time, because the amount of money I would have to spend to get anything is an order of magnitude higher, and there's no way to mitigate that by actually, you know, diligently playing the game. It's left a bad taste in my mouth, and it's the latest in a series of disappointing incidents over the past couple years that are starting to seriously shake my faith in FBG's running the game responsibly and enlightenedly. Major sadface! edited by hwoosh on 10/25/2018 -- Persona: hwoosh R Fellow Oswho. Don't ask what the "R." stands for. The poor fellow is sensitive about it. And violent. Most social requests gladly and promptly answered.
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Azothi Posts: 586 10/25/2018	Can confirm that the access code works and gives out confessions to Seekers who have fully gone NORTH. They can't be used or traded in any way, though. London's postal service is really quite impeccable. -- Azoth I, the Emissary of Cardinals - A Paramount Presence (not currently accepting new Proteges) Away to where the Chain cannot bind us. Hesperidean.
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Dudebro Pyro Posts: 756 10/25/2018	I don't understand this one. Firstly, can anyone say what the storylet for free confessions is called? I don't have Aftermath of an Audacious Theft anywhere on the new Myself page (searching for "aftermath" gives no results), but I can't find the confessions anywhere. And secondly... Did Failbetter really learn nothing from last year? Or, worse, decide to intentionally ignore all the feedback? The near-universal consensus was that it was too hard to do everything, despite the festival being seemingly design to encourage getting everything (unlike, say, FotR, which just has a bunch of Fate-locked gifts but you're by no means expected to collect all of them). Did they really decide to just crank it up to 11, make it patently impossible to get everything without sinking literal hundreds of Fate, and add a ton of uncertainty to prevent less IRL wealthy players (i.e. almost all of them) from making informed choices? Failbetter has made some decisions I don't agree with lately, but I refuse to jump to conclusions and accusations of this magnitude immediately. I'm going to assume they're bringing a way to get confessions that will likely come next week. And if I'm proved wrong - it's hard to overstate how disappointed I will be, not just in the festival, but in FBG and their direction. Let's wait and see, optimistically for now, though it pains me to say I wouldn't put it past them. -- Dudebro Pyro, eccentric scholar Spare Starveling Kitties always welcome. I collect them. For that matter, send me your unwanted cat boxes too.
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Optimatum Posts: 3666 10/25/2018	Last year I spent both weeks of Hallowmas grinding Notability for Confessions. I didn't manage to get everything, so on the last day, I spend Fate to get the last few things I was missing. This year I'll apparently be ignoring Hallowmas aside from collecting daily confessions. I'm not going to invest real money if I can't first invest time and effort, no matter how interesting the new items and lore may be. -- Optimatum, a ruthless and merciful gentleman. No plant battles, Affluent Photographer requests, or healing offers; all other social actions welcome. Want a sip of Cider? Just say hi! PM me for information enigmatic or Fated. Though the forum please, not FL itself.
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NotaWalrus Posts: 221 10/25/2018	Turlion wrote: I've seen several posts in this topic that express frustration and disappointment over the inability to experience all of the Hallowmas content without paying fate. I shared this dissatisfaction at first; however, I took a step back and looked at this issue from Failbetter's perspective and now, not only do I not hold it against them, but am actually satisfied with the way they are handling this event. Think about this game as if it were an actual brick-and-mortar shop that just got in a new assortment of seasonal luxury goods. They put the new items in their display window to entice all of their customers into buying them. Nobody would be upset at the store for not giving these items away for free, they are for sale and are presented to customers for purchase. This is what Failbetter has done; they created new products in the form of content for their game (companions, lore, and a powerful item) and now they are trying to sell them to us. They are not taking anything away from us, they are just offering more, for a price; in fact, they are going one step further than a shop would by telling all of us that we can take one item out of the display case, for free, as a gift for being loyal customers. I can't fault failbetter for trying to sell their customers products, it's a business after all. The only thing I could fault them for is that they are wrapping a sales pitch in the guise of a holiday celebration. But then don't all stores do exactly that? and at the end of the day they are giving us a holiday gift, just not all of the gifts they possibly could. edited by Turlion on 10/25/2018 To add to what Siankan said, the big problem, I think, with this version of Hallowmass is that there is nothing to do. If you play for free you can spend one action a day collecting confessions and then less than 20 at the end to cash them in however you want. Aside from that, there is nothing to do for the entire holiday except stare at the 5 (!) useless pinned cards cluttering your regular play. Now, most F2P have stores like you describe during events. Places where people can spend money/premium currency for exclusive items, and often there are free samples, but this event is just the store. That's the problem here. There are no mechanics* this Hallowmass. They are just drip-feeding us currency for the event store throughout a week. Even if you use fate there are no mechanics here.. The investigation into the Rosers looks super interesting, but I can't interact with it in any way since I'm going for the debate lessons. Last year's grind for notability was grueling but at least it was something to do to interact with the event, and it motivated me to increase my DBR to the non-SMEN cap, which I'll grant is coming in handy for the Paramount Presence grind, but come on. *Okay there's trading, but that's pretty darn minimal -- http://fallenlondon.com/Profile/NotaWalrus Ignacious, the Fluid Professor, he will accept most social invitations, including boxed cats and affluent photographers (but only betrayals), though he is absent-minded and might take more time than entirely necessary. He apologizes.
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Siankan Posts: 1048 11/7/2018	All right. I've taken the Duchess to Arbor, I will have had Private Debating Lessons as soon as I get some actions back, and I've deeply enjoyed giving the Mayor all sorts of information after it's too late for him to make use of it. It's time for a Hallowmas retrospective. Preface: As a lover of Four Cities archaeology, a delightedly veteran explorer of the Elder Continent, and a student of the mysteries of Parabola (not to mention also someone the Duchess finds "quite exceptional!") I am utterly charmed by the content, and therefore thoroughly biased. Bear in mind as we go. 1. I must begin by echoing my old protege: This is fantastic stuff. The writing is witty and beautiful, the characters are well-drawn, and the plot flows nicely, once you get into it. A teacher of freshman composition can get both cynical and difficult to please when it comes to writing quality, so praise on that point is hard to earn. Bravo! 2. The writing also reminds me strongly of The Attendants. Now, topically and thematically there are obvious connections (as those who've played through The Attendants no doubt observed), but even stylistically it is reminiscent of that story to me. [N.B. Ye of Failbetter, I'd love to know who wrote the text for this year's Hallowmas adventure.] This was definitely a plus. Hallowmas also did one thing clearly better than that story: it gave us a chance to look around. Not long, and not much, but we at least got to see a bit of the place. Even more interestingly, we got a moment to hear our companion's thoughts on it. Again, bravo! 3. This Hallowmas's story also hit a difficult balance: giving us choices that felt meaningful, yet not in a way that left you feeling screwed-over if you chose poorly. [N.B. I did say story, not confessions.] That isn't easy to do on a good day, and certainly isn't easy to do when the consequences of those choices are unknowns. For the third time, bravo! 4. Oh, unknown consequences. The cliffhanger. You do know how to string a guy along, don't you? I am surprised that the "When will Arbor return?" speculation hasn't fired up yet, but no doubt it's only a matter of time. If it is as delightful as this, and if your Hallowmas choice feels satisfying without those who didn't participate feeling left out, then they may have a masterwork on their hands. 5. What about overall structure? Playing half the event for a tantalizingly unknown goal is exciting. Doing so with finite resources may perhaps be less so. I like the two-step process from a narrative perspective, but it may be at odds with the mechanical demands of the event. Cf. the election and Christmas, which are both two-part holidays, but in which you either can't go wrong (i.e. the latter) or there is no cap on what you can work for (i.e. the former). A choice-based event (and Hallowmas is increasingly becoming the choice-based event of the year) needs either enough information to choose wisely, or the ability to recover if you choose poorly. On its own, I do not know if this structure is conducive to either of those ends. 6. Which leads us to the thorny issue (I know; I'm sorry; I'll try to stop) of information. The first twenty-four hours of Hallowmas were, at the very least, a major PR failure. More than enough electrons have died to bring us that conversation, and I won't elaborate more on it now. [If interested, see the first pages of this topic.] Let us simply acknowledge it was a major issue, that Failbetter addressed it in a reasonable time (even if it didn't feel like it at the moment), and that information definitely wins this year's Most In Need of Improvement rosette. (Yes, did it again.) 7. The other outstanding issue is confessions. As the chief currency of Hallowmas, confessions require careful balancing. It is clearly reasonable that a person should not be able to Do All The Things without extra expenditure; this both provides us with meaningful choices (a major part of any game) and helps put food on the Failbetter table. Equally clear, however, is the need for base-level involvement to feel satisfactory. Are we there yet? I don't really think so. Now, let me be clear: I was able, without spending a single point of Fate, to get the full Arbor story, the Mayor's weapon, and even a scrubbed-up Mog (and could've gotten a second companion with a little more wisdom). I did not get all the companions I wanted, but that was my choice; I saw I could get the Lessons and ran for it. I am well satisfied. However--and this is the critical part--that was after the Goddess Athene passed by scattering confessions to the crowd, and after the Day 2 reset netted me an extra three. Would Arbor and a few carefully-chosen companions (what I would have gotten off of the original twelve confessions) have been satisfying as well? I don't know. I think it's much more reasonable in hindsight than it seemed at the beginning, and last year I happily gave up the Lance in the name of getting my chosen companions; nevertheless, the fact that getting the weapon would have cut you out of the story seems like a miscalculation. Also, of course, the fact that you end up palliating the masses with bread and confessions is a sign that something fundamental is off. I don't think were there yet. 8. All of that said, I must come back to the fact that the year's big addition--ES-level story content in an accessible format--is a major win. The sheer fact that people have stopped talking about what they didn't like from week one should be proof enough of that. This is the sort of thing that keeps us coming back, and long may it do so! So, Hallowmas may not have been entirely a bed of roses (can--not--stop--please--send--help), but its flaws were ultimately minor compared to its magnificent conclusion. This is one we'll be remembering for a long time, and unless Mr. Sacks carries us all to the top of the Mountain it will probably go down as the event of the year. If anything, Failbetter's main Hallowmas problem now might be following up its own act. That is, you will admit, not a bad problem to have. -- Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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silurica Posts: 210 11/7/2018	Leonard chose to get himself interviewed, as now he is the ambassador to a city whose envoy made such a splash, he absolutely mustn't miss the opportunity to. But to be perfectly honest, his true favorite accomplishment this Hallowmas was the many cats he has established a firmer connection with... (Also on his mantelpiece.) I've said this before, and I will say it again, thank you for the cats, FBG! I still would love to see the mog in the Bazaar. Oh, and I also edited the Wretched Mog's SSea portrait into August Feline for funsies: [spoiler][/spoiler] edited by silurica on 11/7/2018 -- Meika Osborne, the Reckless Researcher Leonard West, the Scarlet Informant Chizuru Nishiooji, the Rueful Ex-Diplomat
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Siankan Posts: 1048 10/24/2018	Excited as always for Hallowmas. Particularly excited for many of the possible companions. Most extraordinarily excited about the Rosers. (Prof. Kan isn't the only one intrigued by Neathy mysteries.) Okay, possibly extremely excited to delve into the Rosers. Not, however, very excited about the number of decisions that one has to make in the dark. Confessions are a limited quantity, as they always have been, but I don't recall so much uncertainty in the past about the effect of using those confessions. Is it better to get Clues for the Envoy, or to further the investigation of one's preferred Woman of Mysterious Background (TM)? How should I prioritize these things against picking up the companions I may be interested in? I have no idea, because the effects of all of these clues and progresses are hidden. If it were possible, with work, to Do All The Things, or at least enough of The Things that you could correct for one or two missteps, then this mysterious investigating might be exciting. As is, however, Hallowmas is more like trying to plan a family vacation on too small a budget, where you need discipline and tight planning to make sure that you get the results you want--or at least enough of them that it's not a disappointment. In that context, the Clue/Progress uncertainty is like being asked to spend that tight budget on a mystery box. It could be a free week in Venice during Carnival. It could be mucking your uncle's stables. Which is it? You may not know until it's too late to change tacks. I am worried that a lot of people are going to screw themselves over this Hallowmas. -- Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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Optimatum Posts: 3666 10/29/2018	Dudebro Pyro wrote: My personal question is why on earth does Failbetter think Hallowmas needs "fixing". They seem intent to revamp it in a major way every single year, but it only seems to be getting steadily worse and less fun, and really feels like change for the sake of change. I would very much like to know what FB actually wants to achieve in the end - at what point would they go, "ok this is exactly what we wanted to see - we're happy with how this event plays out". What's the entire point of all this? I would disagree that there's been major changes every year. The only significant revamp was changing from a social action grind to a story-focused single player grind. Everything after that was tweaks. The first year confessions were free with enough BDR, so Failbetter made them more expensive. Last year everyone felt they were too expensive, so Failbetter removed that aspect. This year the lore is in a different place, but we're still getting confessions over time and trading in combinations for new companions and lore. Granted, I don't know why Failbetter removed the ability to grind confessions. In my opinion it was a terrible decision, but I also think having Notability grinds in a time-limited event is a terrible idea* in the first place, so YMMV. * Since it locks non-PoSIs out entirely and anything doable for newer PoSIs is trivial for endgame players. Barse wrote: I think it's likely that next year Hallowmas will reappear in a yet-again different incarnation, precisely because of all of the comments in this thread here. And next year it'll be important to remember, if we don't like the changes that are made, that this time last year change was all that we were clamouring for. Failbetter are, when it matters, responsive to our feedback, and while I'm bordering on the insufferably pretentious this feels like a good time to remember where they got their name. Honestly, I hope that Hallowmas next year only changes in terms of confession sources. Failbetter did a great job with the narrative changes this year, and the complaints really show that—people are upset because they really want to experience the new content to the fullest. edited by Optimatum on 10/29/2018 -- Optimatum, a ruthless and merciful gentleman. No plant battles, Affluent Photographer requests, or healing offers; all other social actions welcome. Want a sip of Cider? Just say hi! PM me for information enigmatic or Fated. Though the forum please, not FL itself.
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Aardvark Posts: 119 10/30/2018	Barse wrote: If you go and re-read the thread from last year's Hallowmas, I think you'll find out exactly why Failbetter thought they needed to fix Hallowmas this year. While I don't necessarily agree with all of the design decisions that have been made this year, these decisions appear to have been made in direct response to the slew of community criticism that Hallowmas faced last year. Criticising Failbetter for changing festivals while at the same time, every year, insisting that the festival is busted and needs changing seems to me to be a little unfair. As a community I think it is extremely important to maintain this kind of collective memory. If there had not been uproar over last year's decisions, different decisions would not have been made this year, and that's important to keep in mind. At the very least Failbetter need to be credited for hearing our criticisms and being willing to take new approaches in an attempt to address these criticisms, for trying all this new stuff in an attempt to improve an event which was received quite poorly. I think it's likely that next year Hallowmas will reappear in a yet-again different incarnation, precisely because of all of the comments in this thread here. And next year it'll be important to remember, if we don't like the changes that are made, that this time last year change was all that we were clamouring for. Failbetter are, when it matters, responsive to our feedback, and while I'm bordering on the insufferably pretentious this feels like a good time to remember where they got their name. Samuel Beckett wrote: "Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better." EDIT: I'm not saying we shouldn't point out things we dislike; of course we should! And there are a number of things that I believe could've been done better this year, which I won't go into because by and large they've been covered tenfold by other people. But it's important to be fair even when we're pointing out things that we think are unfair, and presenting the changes this year as uncalled for and unprompted (no matter how frustrating they may be - and I agree, some of the changes are frustrating) is, I think, unfair. edited by Barse on 10/29/2018 Agreed wholeheartedly. At first, I was also rather dismayed at many of the choices they made for this year's festival. Now I think that the intentions are good, if a bit mismanaged in their particulars. Chief of these is the inability to gain any Confession whatsoever, which makes the whole thing seem a bit static, even though an extremely nice bit of story and lore has been offered (and kudos to the whole team for that!). With some luck, the 5 extra confessions and perhaps a small expenditure of Fate, you should be able to cover quite a lot of what the festival offers (e.g., the Mayor's weapon plus the complete success in the story, or a couple companions). And the mechanics of Progress with the factions and their use for betrayal leads to a modicum of clever play options, allowing you to chain things around into a few more confessions. On the other hand, this wouldn't have really been viable in the first place without the extra 5 confessions to offset the complete impossibility to obtain more without Fate. So, for a bit of hopefully constructive feedback: [spoiler] Ultimately, I think what has hurt this version of festival the most is a lack of any repeatable gameplay linked at least tangentially with the festival. Most of the time, we are left to do the same things as always, with an occasional action for collecting/turning in confessions interspersed in between. Hence, people feel nothing has actually been provided for them, even if that's clearly not the case. The late-game (and likely most enfranchised and vocal) players are hit the hardest by this, because for us every seasonal event is a welcome change from the repetitive long-term grinding for goats and/or cider once you reach other content boundaries. For this reason, I believe seasonal events are at their best if they allow for some sort of repetitive activities to grind for seasonal story or resources. Best example of this have been the electoral Flash Lays, which allowed both beginning and late-game players to involve in a gameplay-based activity that provided direct feeling of engagement. It also gives late game players the incentive to go through carousels and actions which are otherwise no longer economically worthwhile for them, which currently is basically everything apart from selling children to large carnivores. I cannot overstress how beneficial for the sense of immersion it would be to add a seasonal option for existing grinds more often than that. In this particular case, Archeological Expeditions and Investigation cases would both be extremely fitting for the (very nice) story provided. Flash Lays have already been used in such way with some success and could also be rather fitting if we imagine searching for clues in a secret archive/library/some such. Heck, even adding a new seasonal Cat-and-mouse option for the Implacable Detective's Business Cards would be awesome. For each of these options, only two extra storylets would suffice, an opening and the successful resolution, which would make even the regular rounds between them fresh (at least for me, and I suspect a large number of others). Another option would be an alternative use of existing resources. In this year's Hallowmas, how cool it would have been to be able to use your existing connections with the Duchess and the Widow to gain progress with them? Certainly, it would be easy to provide an equivalent option for the Princess as well, e.g. using grindable resources such as Seeking/Investigating or even Fascinating. There is no shortage of qualities you simply generate while pursuing other goals but which you could also grind for, including A Fine Piece from the Poet-Laureate grind; Walking the Falling Cities and a number of others, possibly including the dreams. Most of these options could be quite easily tailored so that an ordinary player could manage to get approximately the amount of Confessions from these the designers would consider adequate, for instance by making people to complete a number of these to gain progress before they could cash in for a Confession. As for some late-game outliers who might have collected A Fine Piece or Connections with the Duchess/the Widow in the hundreds, would it be such a big deal giving these individuals an edge by allowing them to turn these qualities into something useful? While I personally don't mind the idea, I can understand the critique considering use of Notability/MW in these situations. Last year, I actually enjoyed immensely the hunt for more Notability, precisely because it was hard and gave me something to do frantically for the entire duration of the event, and even so I was kept in suspense almost all the festival as to whether I would be able to reach my goal. In the end, I chose to forego the Mayor's weapon and went for the companions instead, and all it meant for me is that I had that much more respect for those who were able to go for both of these simultaneously, even if it wasn't an option for me. But I see why that can lead to some griping, and perhaps would best be avoided for reasons said by others. (though I still believe it would work quite nicely as an alternative to other provided grinds, if the cost was lowered to 6 or perhaps 7). Last but certainly not least, I wish to add my voice to those disappointed by the lack of new portraits for the companions in the past two years. I realize that we had been spoiled by the festival from 2016, but for me, these new pieces of art were literally the single most enjoyable and delightful thing about Hallowmas, ever. They provided infinitely more motivation for collecting and upgrading them all. As others have said, a simple background color change would go miles and miles to provide immersion as well as facilitating distinction of similar companions in your inventory. As it is, cluttering of the inventory actually provides a disincentive to collect the majority of them, and this no doubt adds to the discontentment people feel this year. [/spoiler] tl;dr: - I believe providing seasonal options to grind for currency (progress/Confessions/...) using existing grinds (e.g. Expeditions, Flash Lays, Investigating/Seeking/Inspired/...) or by redeeming qualities/resources (e.g. Connected - Duchess/Widow, A Fine Piece or countless others) would be extremely useful and provide both new and old players with the feeling of meaningful, festival-related activities to pursue. - I appreciate that the FBG team took into account last year's outcry against the Notability grind. This year, though, perhaps the pendulum has swung too far the other way. Maybe simply setting the cost at 6/7 would have been optimal? - Please, consider reintroducing new portraits for the upgraded companions. Even the simplest recolor would increase the enjoyability and immersion of the event multiple-fold for a significant number of players/collectors and reduce the feeling of inventory clutter that also draws negative reactions... That said, I am still quite pleased with the festival and especially appreciate the new focus on lore and the personalities involved this year. Looking forward for the conclusion of the Rosers' story. Cheers all, Sir Reginald Monteroy -- Sir Reginald Monteroy, Paramount Glassman, Courier's Footprint, Poet-Laureate and Cider owner. http://fallenlondon.com/Profile/Sir Reginald Monteroy If you desire a sip of Hesperidean Cider, PM me in the game.
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NotaWalrus Posts: 221 10/25/2018	Just spitballing here, but wouldn't it be nice if there were a ton of limited sources of confessions. For instance with made-up numbers: you can get 5 for free, 5 from flash lays, 5 from investigations, 5 from some sort of social event, 5 for increasingly large sums of echoes/rare items and up to 12 with notability, with the price starting at 3 and ending at 15. That would be pretty cool, I think. -- http://fallenlondon.com/Profile/NotaWalrus Ignacious, the Fluid Professor, he will accept most social invitations, including boxed cats and affluent photographers (but only betrayals), though he is absent-minded and might take more time than entirely necessary. He apologizes.
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dov Posts: 2580 10/26/2018	I really appreciate FBG's clarifications earlier in this thread. However, I'm left still unsure what we're "supposed" to do in this event. Given that confessions are a limited resource, there's practically no room for error, so I feel discouraged from picking any option. I understand that, theoretically, with the 12+5 confessions this should be enough to both get the mayor's weapon and get the clues needed for the "unique" ending teased. But I have no idea what actions would lead me towrads said ending, and what options would cost irreplaceable confessions while not helping towards that goal. I understand there's a choice here (though I dislike it, and prefer some way to grind for everything, with cost and effort). But my point is that even if you know what choice you want to make, and even with FBG semi-explaining the mechanics, I have no idea what actions to pursue and which to avoid. (Should I go for "progress"? For "clues"? Would upgrading companions factor into this? This is the one holiday event where the mechanics seem to encourage a "do nothing for now" approach) -- 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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DeserterKalak Posts: 94 10/26/2018	There's a reddit confession trading thread here (https://www.reddit.com/r/fallenlondon/comments/9qzraq/hallowmas_1896_confession_trading_thread/) that has all the upgradable companion stats: Wretched Mog Princeling of the Wakeful Court: W+8, S+4 An August Feline: D+8, P+4 Fairly Tame Sorrow-Spider Spider of Silken Marvels: D+7, S+5 Senatorial Spider: P+7, W+5 Deshrieked Mandrake Mandrake Who Sings Haunting Lamentations: P+4, W+2, Resp+1 Very Well-Behaved Mandrake: S+4, W+2, Bizarre+1 Protective Mandrake: D+4, S+2, Dreaded+1 Scuttering Squad Scuttering Palace Guard: W+10, D+10, P+10 Scuttering Scoundrels: W+10, S+10, D+10 Unassuming Judge Very Lenient Judge: P+10, Resp+2 Assuming Judge: W+10, Dreaded+2 Special "Weapon": Private Debating Lessons with the Jovial Contrarian: P+20, Dreaded +2 edited by DeserterKalak on 10/26/2018 edited by DeserterKalak on 10/26/2018 -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/DeserterKalak
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Gillsing Posts: 1203 10/25/2018	For those of us who have received a searing enigma from an unlikely garden, don't we already know where the Rosers went? Mystery solved! Hand me my fee. What do you mean that is not a 'credible source'? Bah.
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James Sinclair Posts: 253 10/24/2018	Jolanda Swan wrote: Perhaps we will have the chance to acquire extra confessions next week? Via Flash Lays, Heists, Cases or any other mechanic? Something like this would be fantastic, if only to give us already-Destiny'd players an activity to do for Hallowmas between waiting for the daily confession drops (that is, other than building up my collection of Tiny Cave Fish. 56 and counting!). However, I'm guessing that a mechanism like this would have been noted in the initial Hallowmas announcement, so as not to upset players who spend Fate on confessions during the first week. So it seems unlikely to happen. But perhaps next week will hold a few surprises for us. Last year's Notability grind was painfully tedious and really only available to advanced players, but some way of getting extra confessions without $ would be appreciated, especially with the myriad new ways of spending them. After the backlash last year, it looks like the pendulum may very well have swung too far in the opposite direction, with the possibility of gaining additional confessions without Fate having been eliminated entirely. -- James Sinclair Curator of the Sanguine Ribbon Society 🗡 A fully-fledged rêveur of The Night Circus. Wines is red Spices is yellow But old Jack-of-Smiles Is a murderous fellow ☠
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Skinnyman Posts: 2133 11/7/2018	Well now! Seems that having 5+ progress does unlock something new! I decided to pump my alt and test things and I ended up with these options after I picked to witness the solving of the mystery! There are 3 options which all unlock with 5 progress of each 2 princess and one that requires 5 progress to all. Ask why no one has been selected The Envoy frowns. "We are at a stalemate." Learn how to reduce Progress to ensure you can enter Arbor. EDIT: Here's the link to a low quality picture. EDIT #2: Echo to the result which is the same for all: [spoiler]Arresting progress The Envoy sighs and shakes her head. "The selection is mine, but I can only bring two. I want one of those to be you. But too many of the others are close to solving the mystery. Hinder one of their progress, and we can proceed." She pauses. A look of realisation dawns on her face. "Perhaps your 'Mayor' can help." Reduce Progress from unwanted candidates by betraying their secrets to their rivals. You can also share their secrets with the Mayor from the main Hallowmas 1896: Where did the Rosers Go?' card.[/spoiler] edited by Skinnyman on 11/7/2018 -- 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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Lady Sapho Byron Posts: 770 11/7/2018	"Mr Huffam interviews you in the 'ambassadorial suite'. The real thing is still under construction ..." 'The real thing,' you say? The real thing? -- http://fallenlondon.com/Profile/Lady%20Sapho%20L%20Byron Fighting the Menace of Corsetry Since 1892.
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Azothi Posts: 586 10/31/2018	A quick announcement about the mechanics of the ending: You can both choose one of the princesses to solve the mystery of the Rosers and get the ending requiring all six confessions (which is available by trading them in for a clue from each of the princesses). Mechanically, it makes the most sense to choose the Jovial Contrarian, because otherwise you're operating at a loss of at least 1 confession. You gain 1 Antique Mystery per clue (so up to 3 Antique Mysteries) when speaking to the Envoy. This is a one-time event and cannot be repeated, even after choosing "Perhaps Not" to leave the storylet. You do not lose Progress during the story, and so you can technically betray someone after you've solved the mystery. The text beneath the princesses and the Contrarian change afterwards, each with two possibilities depending on the outcome of the story. This may indicate that Progress can be traded in for rewards at the conclusion of the festival. It may be best to save Progress until the very end just to be sure. There is not, as far as I've discovered, an ending if you raise Progress to 3 for the Duchess, Widow, and Princess. In fact, this locks you out of every available ending until you betray two of them. I've not yet tried it with Progress 3 in each and uncovering each of the clues, but based on the prerequisites for the endings, I doubt this will change anything. This is good, in my opinion, since such an ending would have literally taken all 12 originally free confessions, Fate-locking every other reward. -- Azoth I, the Emissary of Cardinals - A Paramount Presence (not currently accepting new Proteges) Away to where the Chain cannot bind us. Hesperidean.
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SamNorrey Posts: 41 11/1/2018	Harry P. wrote: Okay, let me see if I got everything straight. [...] All in all, I can either start the finale with 0 Clues and 0 Progress, 3 Clues and 0 Progress, 0 Clues and 3 Progress, or the 'best' ending with 3 Clues and 3 Progress. Am I correct? 0C/0P --> Contrarian is your companion for the ending, no special option 3C/0P --> Contrarian is your companion for the ending, special option is available 0C/3P --> the relevant princess is your companion for the ending, you get a lore snippet about her, no special option 3C/3P --> the relevant princess is your companion for the ending, you get a lore snippet about her, special option is available So, depending on RP and lore interests, you might want to pick a princess to take with you (you can still betray their progress later for a confession), and choose the special option for yourself, in which case 3/3 is the 'best' ending. If you're not interested in their story, or you like the Contrarian (couldn't blame you if you do), you can go with 3 clues, and put yourself in the limelight at the end. Conversely, if you'd like to let your chosen companion shine, you can go with 3 progress instead, and let them take the centre stage. They're not mechanically better in any sense, just different. And if you're a fan of the mayor, and have only general interest in the lore, you can still go with the default option, where you'll only miss out on a princess storylet (but you'll get one with the Contrarian instead), and you won't have the option to put yourself forward. I'd say it's very sweet lore-wise, the different options don't differ all that much, and you're not really missing out if you choose the default route. I'm especially happy that there's a default companion, because this way no matter the progress you start with, you gain snippets about one and only one character, so even that part is balanced. edited by SamNorrey on 11/2/2018 -- http://fallenlondon.com/Profile/Sam~Norrey
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elderfleur Posts: 77 10/24/2018	My favourite Hallowmas experience so far has been discovering that the tooltip on the Contrarian's Favour icon is blank so it just pulls up the icon again. It feels like asking the game, "Can you tell me more about the Mayor?" and having the Mayor reply, "No." -- —Elderfleur
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Estelle Knoht Posts: 1751 10/25/2018	Perhaps it might be prudent to make announcements well before any seasonal events (especially with noticeable changes) actually begins? I suspect that there might already be people who spent Fate to get confessions purely for the completionist's interview that no longer exists, and so on. -- Estelle Knoht, a juvenile, unreliable and respectable lady. I currently do not accept any catbox, cider, suppers, calling cards or proteges.
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Siankan Posts: 1048 10/25/2018	Hannah Flynn wrote: A few notes which might help relieve some of the worries that we've heard about: We’re giving out a total of 12 free confessions this year, aside from the additional 5 we’ve made available on an access code (above). These will be given out one per weekday (not at weekends) until the 6th (because timezones make the last day a bit dicey). There won’t be an achievement this year for collecting all of the companions. Mr Huffam will want to ask you about your favourite achievement in the festival, out of all that you've done this year. There are multiple endings to the Mystery of the Rosers. To get the most unique ending you'll need to gather all of the clues, which will require 6 confessions. To get the 'default' ending will require no confessions at all. Some players will probably want to get this ending for roleplaying reasons. There are alternative endings which will require 3 confessions to access. These endings will all be revealed and available from the 31st, and you'll be able to see what you need to achieve each before committing to any of them. This is extremely useful. Thank you. (If I could make one small request: Next Hallowmas, could you make this sort of information available at the start of the event? Not in the announcement, necessarily--I can see why you wouldn't want to clutter it with detail--but somewhere accessible? I think it would save much teeth-gnashing [and, let us be honest, bellyaching].) Also of course, thank you for the spare confession bonanza. Much obliged. -- Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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Optimatum Posts: 3666 10/30/2018	I'm pretty sure the switch from Notability 5 to Notability 8 was because the former is absolutely trivial for endgame players. With max BDR, Notability 5 is entirely free, so whenever someone drew the Amanuensis card they could get a confession in only ten actions. Most people ground further to Notability 6 because it was faster than waiting to draw the Amanuensis. If Failbetter had only increased the difficulty to Notability 6, I think people would have been fine with that. Most endgame players would have managed just fine with Notability 7, even if they didn't enjoy it. But Notability 8 didn't work well for anyone. I still think that Notability is a bad idea for a seasonal currency in the first place, though. Either it's trivial for some people or impossible for others, and no matter what it locks the newest players out entirely. Maybe if confessions just needed raw MW it would work, but that has issues too... -- Optimatum, a ruthless and merciful gentleman. No plant battles, Affluent Photographer requests, or healing offers; all other social actions welcome. Want a sip of Cider? Just say hi! PM me for information enigmatic or Fated. Though the forum please, not FL itself.
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Monara Posts: 162 10/30/2018	Exactly, the complaint wasn't lack of change for the sake of change. It was the lack of anything to persue for players that already got the items last year. It's not contradictory at all, both times players just asked for something/anything to do during the event. In one case because there was only something to do for new players, in the other case because the only thing there used to be was taken away completely. edited by Monara on 10/30/2018 -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Miranah
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Tay1or Posts: 163 10/29/2018	Not changing the art for upgraded companions is a major, major bummer. We got the cool new bat last year--but same art. And this year, to make it worse--when I have a regular mandrake it shows up right next to the upgraded one instead of above in it's "history slot" or however that used to work. So identical tiles sitting side by side for the upgraded companions. That's a huge disappointment. As someone suggested in the thread--even just changing the background color would be better than nothing. No new art last year and this year, no new items at the zee festival--it really seems like they're just going through the motions.
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Dudebro Pyro Posts: 756 10/25/2018	Well, there's our answer. However, I echo this: Jolanda Swan wrote: However,could some please answer this one question (I 'm sorry if it was answered and I didn't pick it up): will there be any way to earn confessions apart from the 12 ones? Or do we have to rely on these 12 and the Fate-locked ones? At least for me, this question is what determines how much 'play' you get out of Hallowmass. Thank you. Just distributing free confessions is a quick patch that makes the event less frustrating, but not any more fun. I'm actually rather glad to hear Huffman doesn't want all your pet's anymore, but without a way to grind confessions, this festival becomes either nothing more than one choice of which parts to skip (if there's a scarcity of free confessions, as is the case now) or a simple matter of doing everything (if they were to give out even more confessions). There's literally nothing to do until the last day, at which point the optimal course of action is to fully spoil all the outcomes to see what's worth doing, and let other people's disappointment guide you to avoiding the same. Kind of a shame, especially considering Hallowmas used to be pretty great with no major issues. Oh well, that's that then I guess. Out of curiosity, do the people who managed to get their 3 confessions in the first day still have the extra 3? I don't want to be bitter but without any way to grind out more free ones, those extra three would have made a big difference. -- Dudebro Pyro, eccentric scholar Spare Starveling Kitties always welcome. I collect them. For that matter, send me your unwanted cat boxes too.
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NotaWalrus Posts: 221 10/25/2018	Buginess aside. Even with the extra confessions (which, don't get me wrong, are appreciated) I'm still not a fan of this event. Previous complaints that there is nothing to do the entire two weeks and the interface clutter it has brought still stand. I hope they change it for next year. -- http://fallenlondon.com/Profile/NotaWalrus Ignacious, the Fluid Professor, he will accept most social invitations, including boxed cats and affluent photographers (but only betrayals), though he is absent-minded and might take more time than entirely necessary. He apologizes.
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Optimatum Posts: 3666 10/24/2018	Rostygold wrote: Optimatum wrote: Preliminary analysis on the Discord is that, without any way to grind confessions, we'll get 12 free confessions and need to buy 34 more with Fate to get everything. So the Favour gain is lower than for last year's mayor (Feducci)? The estimations are: 24 Confessions to upgrade all companions, raising progress with all three factions in the process Six Confessions for the Envoy Six Confessions to get all three clues for the Envoy Ten Confessions for the Contrarian's weapon (at 6 favour per) We get three Confessions today and one every weekday through the 6th. Unless faction progress turns out to do nothing aside from betraying for confessions, there's currently no way to get more without losing out on content. Which means doing everything requires buying 34 Confessions, or 510 Fate. In other words, if you want the Contrarian's weapon, other companions cost two to three Confessions—which is 30 to 45 Fate. If we aren't able to grind Confessions, I'll get the weapon and ignore the rest of this year's festival. If the companions require indirectly spending Fate, might as well wait for next year and buy them for Fate directly at a lower price. edited by Optimatum on 10/24/2018 -- Optimatum, a ruthless and merciful gentleman. No plant battles, Affluent Photographer requests, or healing offers; all other social actions welcome. Want a sip of Cider? Just say hi! PM me for information enigmatic or Fated. Though the forum please, not FL itself.
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IHNIWTR Posts: 346 10/25/2018	ok, so, I gotta vent a little about the new upgraded companions I know that Paul is busy with Sunless Skies and all, but having the upgrades use the exact same portrait is Bad. not even a different colored tint to indicate they're upgraded? it's disappointing -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Daniel%20Vaise
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James Sinclair Posts: 253 10/25/2018	Shaerys wrote: My first Hallowmas, the perceived "challenge" was to max out companions to get the best interview from Huffman. I spent a frenetic two weeks getting and trading confessions, and it was doable without fate. Challenge readily met, good fun! Ha, you should have seen the Hallowmasses before that! They were gloriously insane, with the goal of asking other players for confessions and to bury their confessions, or reveal them to the Masters. There was no hard limit to the number of people you could get confessions from or could give them to; the only limiting factor was the number of actions you had available (that, and the hilarious never-ending task of keeping your menaces up, so you could qualify to give confessions). The only real prize was getting Spirit of Hallowmas for a good mention in the Gazette, but players would compete to see who could get the most Spirit (NiteBrite got well over 1,000, if I remember correctly). There was a major community effort to put together lists of people willing to offer and accept confessions. I met a lot of people that way, some of who remain good acquaintances to this day. Good times, good times. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying Hallowmas should go back to the way it was. New companions are good and new story/lore is even better. But just like this year's mayoral election, I do miss the social aspect of the festivals, which have greatly diminished compared to their past iterations. edited by James Sinclair on 10/25/2018 -- James Sinclair Curator of the Sanguine Ribbon Society 🗡 A fully-fledged rêveur of The Night Circus. Wines is red Spices is yellow But old Jack-of-Smiles Is a murderous fellow ☠
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Shaerys Posts: 65 10/25/2018	Just to chime in (having navigated my own disappointment with Hallowmas this year), I think much of the root of the frustration here stems from a misattribution of sorts. Certain festivals have seemed to have had an intentional "challenge" component to them, which many of us suppose FB includes deliberately to engage end-gamers like myself. The Noman challenge is the prototype here, and I think many of us conceived of Hallowmas as being similar in that sense. My first Hallowmas, the perceived "challenge" was to max out companions to get the best interview from Huffman. I spent a frenetic two weeks getting and trading confessions, and it was doable without fate. Challenge readily met, good fun! (And cool upgraded character art which set an unfortunate expectation, it would seem!) Last year, I thought FB had upped the challenge by adding a second objective to the Huffman one, the mayoral best-in-slot, again intentionally (as with the ever-slowly-increasing difficulty of Noman). The source of much of our frustration last year was that this supposed increased challenge seemed just slightly mis-calibrated: I fell perhaps 3 or 4 confessions short of getting all companions and the mayoral item without fate. I'm not completely BDR maxed but I'm close and I did dive in whole-heartedly; it was an intense two weeks. "If only" the notability grind had capped at one level lower, I would have made it. So there was a lot of venting that it wasn't "doable" and that the cap should be lowered by 1. This year, in addition to the Huffman challenge, and the mayoral best-in-slot objective, there is now a third "lore objective". And no means at all to grind or otherwise acquire more confessions. So clearly, an "end-gamers challenge" isn't part of the design of the festival. That probably should have been clear last year when FB stated that the grinding was basically a little bonus for end-gamers so they had something to do, rather than a means to accomplish something that was supposed to be attainable by design, and that they hadn't anticipated what a drag it would cause players. I suspect they didn't realize that at least some of us had this mental model of the celebration having a "doable" challenge component. I misconstrued their comment as "we'll take another look at the challenge and rebalance, but for the moment, have some more confessions on us." Obviously now I've given up the idea that Hallowmas has this challenge attribute -- it was a misattribution to begin with -- and accept the celebration for what it is: currently a three option menu from which I have to choose one branch, where "successful" resolution of the celebration is one (and only one) of: maxing Huffman's interview via all upgrades [update: this isn't the case this year, as Failbetter clarifies in a post below!], acquiring the mayoral item, or having personal involvement in solving the mystery. Admittedly, in light of the fact that lore is so important to most of us end-gamers, it is a forced choice of sorts and we feel the sting of not being able to do the rest, because usually we can access all branch content if we are diligent, and without fate expenditure. That said, I do appreciate the new lore focus! From a story perspective it is a much more solid offering than the random "a door of confessions blew open" thing. But I kind of wish the companion upgrades and the mayoral item would go away in the future so that I could just enjoy this kind of new content unencumbered. The thing I really miss this year though is the frenzy of the festival, the intense engagement, something that was perfectly suited to Hallowmas. I'm fine with the choice aspect -- other festivals make us choose things at the expense of others -- but I do feel like I might as well pop off to the Court for a week and just hit London the last day to gather and resolve accumulated confessions, since I think you don't even have to be in town to get them the day of. What used to be an insane (fittingly!) burst of activity is now...nothing really, other than a hard choice to make. Barely a blip anymore on the festival schedule, which makes me just a bit sad. But I think I'll hang around town...just in case. :-) edited by Shaerys on 10/25/2018 -- http://www.fallenlondon.com/Profile/Shaerys Courier's Footprint, pleased to offer introductory Correspondence instruction to Orphans, Urchins, Waifs, Scamps, and other Tatterdemalions.
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Jolanda Swan Posts: 1789 10/25/2018	I share the disappointment. First, the bugs. Yesterday, I played through the first day and today I got asked to talk to the envoy all over again and got a second mog. No pinned Hallowmass card for me, just the mayor and the visitor card... all in all, a mess. Second, I always spend Fate on holidays to get the little extras. Key word, extras. During this 'holiday' I am not given an actual chance to play, I am just asked to spend if I want to do something during Halowmass. I guess I can wait till the end and see what that gets me, but this would make for the dullest holiday in Fallen London. Last year was frustrating: I had to play frantically AND spend fate just to get the mayoral item and the one impressive companion. Now I can't play at all, because there are no mechanics to do so, even though I have a third objective dangling in front of me, the mystery. I completely understand that Failbetter has to make a profit. This is the point of ExceptionalFriendship, and Fate-locked choices, and the Fate-locked expeditions and so on. But making a holiday, which for advanced players is the one thing that keeps them in the game, essentially Fate-locked is a weird choice. Sure, from a technical standpoint there are things you can take out for free but there is also so much game that you can't play right in front of you. And again, for long-term players, these holiday events are the one chance to do something different (apart from exceptional stories, for those who get them, that are once a month). Finally, even if I had a chance to play, nothing is really explained. What if I pick a choice in the widow's card and it leaves me one confession short of solving the mystery? What if I speak to the mayor and lose all my confessions for no reason? The combination of bugs, lack of a way to earn confessions and lack of explanations make the whole event completely unplayable. I am not even going in the lack of new art, the lack of actual confessions, and so on. The Rosers' story seemed enough to offset that. Then you find out you cannot actually play it, and the whole thing becomes too much. -- Lover of all things beautiful, secret admirer of ugly truths, fond of the Parabola Sun... and always delighted to role play. http://fallenlondon.com/profile/Jolanda%20Swan
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silurica Posts: 210 11/1/2018	To make this clear once and all: it's your deck that will be refilled, akin to Flash Lay or zailing. The game won't touch your hand, not even if you wanted it to. -- Meika Osborne, the Reckless Researcher Leonard West, the Scarlet Informant Chizuru Nishiooji, the Rueful Ex-Diplomat
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phryne Posts: 1351 10/31/2018	Hint: Before you go and play the ending (which takes you somewhere else) use up your opportunity cards. Your deck will be refilled upon returning to London. edited by phryne on 11/1/2018 -- Accounts: Bag a Legend • Light Fingers • Heart's Desire • Nemesis • no ambition Exceptional Stories, sorted by Season and by writer ― Favours & Renown Guide
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Monara Posts: 162 10/31/2018	Warning to everyone: this is super bugged right now. When you get your choice of ending, it tells you you can go back to change progress on the person you want to unlock specific endings. However, backing out from this storylet to do so instantly teleports you to the conclusion location without having made a choice, locking you into a bugged ending referring to a nonexistent second person. edited by Monara on 10/31/2018 -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Miranah
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dov Posts: 2580 10/25/2018	Yeah, I really miss old Hallowmas. Not just the frenzy of finding other players for confessions, but also the growth of such connections from year to year, via the Trust and Betrayed qualities. I feel that from Hallowmas to Hallowmas, the festival has gotten better and better in content/lore, but has gotten worse and worse in terms of mechanics and player engagement. -- 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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Greg M Posts: 197 10/25/2018	This is my first Hallowmas, and I'm quite enjoying it so far. On the plus side: Fallen London has not only completely redone Hallowmas from last year, they've added a substantial amount of lore and overhauled the mechanics. That must have taken a lot of effort both writing and coding-wise (compare it to this year's Fruits of the Zee festival, which had no changes whatsoever.) This is also coming just after they overhauled the website, and right before the release of another Exceptional Story (yeah, they do it every month, but it still has to be written, edited, UI tested, etc.). I think it's important to acknowledge FL put a large amount of effort into changing and expanding Hallowmas, one that probably took many person-hours, and the lore (typos notwithstanding) looks super-cool. I think, in hindsight, Fallen London probably should've kept the ability to spend Notability on a confession and just lowered the Notability cost, and I agree both that free Confessions are too limited, and that Confessions for FATE are far too expensive (15 Fate for a single confession? And the confession is random? I cannot afford that.) As Sian Kan noted, it's very difficult for FL to iterate, bc they only get one shot a year, so here's hoping they also introduce a new story next year but make it significantly easier to pick up Confessions without spending Fate. -- Profile: GregM. http://www.fallenlondon.com/Profile/GregM Available for any non-harmful social interactions.
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Lazaroth Posts: 67 10/25/2018	I'm planning to have several wretched mogs, who will serve as a retinue for my Princeling of the Wakeful Eye. Don't have a proper name yet, but I'm hoping for some inspiration from the event text. With regards to the other issue at hand, I think something that hasn't been mentioned is how Hallowmas is technically bigger this year. Unless I'm suffering from a serious lapse in my memory, previous years haven't featured anything like the Rosers investigation, which is taking up confessions which would otherwise go to companions. Now, should Failbetter have increased the number of confessions on offer to compensate? Maybe. I know that I was already expecting—planning, really—to spend FATE this Hallowmas, but the math I'm doing is coming out to a higher sum than I was expecting. I think a way of investing resources to get a few extra actions, like trading in Notability at a slightly more forgiving rate than last year, or getting a handful from Flash Lays/Expeditions/Pickpocket's Promenade—but only a limited number. Which may be the idea, eventually. I don't claim to know the minds of the dev team, but I would expect it would be easier, as a business proposition, for them to make it easier to get confessions if they also increase the number of things to spend confessions on. That having been said, I don't think they hit the right balance this time around. If I'm running the numbers right, the confessions we get for free are a third of what we need to do everything. Which, relative to the the total number of confessions, feels a bit low. The cost of confessions is unchanging, so any increased distance between "free confessions" and "maximum usable confessions" is keenly felt And who knows, maybe they'll be pulling an expansion of events out for the second week—that is the sort of thing they know we're receptive to, thanks to the elections. Or maybe not. We'll see. -- The Perspicacious Romantic — When all the world is washed away by misery, something beautiful will still remain.
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Siankan Posts: 1048 10/25/2018	Vega wrote: The scarcity of resources is driving me to risk aversion: hoarding Confessions and discouraging me from social actions, which is a real shame. I feel very much the same way. Wait and see; don't act until enough is known to make an informed decision. Unfortunately, that isn't nearly as fun. It also carries some risk, because there's a chance that once you know enough to make an informed decision, there won't be time to fully act on that decision. So, I'd recommend going ahead and trading. The confessions market is fairly liquid, so there's a good chance that you can get the confessions you need even fairly late in the game. That said, I did say the word chance. The best bet, in my mind, is to angle for the confessions you need for your preferred companions; that way, you're guaranteed something no matter what happens. You don't have to spend them yet, just acquire them. Then, if you discover further in that you really need to spend a particular confession on the Rosers, there's still a decent chance someone will make the trade. -- Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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dov Posts: 2580 10/24/2018	Saklad wrote: dov wrote: Amalgamate wrote: Apparently, +20 persuasive. And +2 Dreaded. Dreaded? Again? I know it affects almost nothing, but I’d expect something like +2 Respectable. You know, to mix it up. I don't know about you, but I'd be Dreading any argument with the Contrarian... -- 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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Monara Posts: 162 10/25/2018	So we still don't know what progress is for? After reading the explanation above (alternative endings that require 3 confessions) I think that might be it. One ending for each "progress" quality at 3. However I don't understand why the betray options exist at all. They appear to be just a sink for confessions for players who don't do a lot of research first before making decisions. The options to spend 3 progress at the mayor to gain 2 favor are especially insulting, considering spending the 3 confessions directly would have granted 18 progress instead, and even using one of the betray options to effectively gain a confession in exchange for 3 confessions is more efficient than that. And then there's the option that takes 10 favor for an answer that reveals basically nothing. Those options all just feel like unfair traps that noone would willingly use when knowing its result. I would have appreciated this event a lot more if there had been a little clarity on what each option does from the start and there weren't intentional trap choices that do nothing but waste an already limited resource. edited by Monara on 10/25/2018 -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Miranah
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James Sinclair Posts: 253 10/26/2018	dov wrote: (Should I go for "progress"? For "clues"? Would upgrading companions factor into this? This is the one holiday event where the mechanics seem to encourage a "do nothing for now" approach) Based on the clarification from earlier, the exact requirements for the Rosers story endings will be revealed on October 31. So the best course of action, for now, would indeed seem to be "do nothing for now". -- James Sinclair Curator of the Sanguine Ribbon Society 🗡 A fully-fledged rêveur of The Night Circus. Wines is red Spices is yellow But old Jack-of-Smiles Is a murderous fellow ☠
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Passionario Posts: 777 10/25/2018	Hannah Flynn wrote: As always, our refrain is: please don’t make assumptions about a festival based on how it worked the previous year! It especially confuses new players, and causes worry. There won’t be an achievement this year for collecting all of the companions. Mr Huffam will want to ask you about your favourite achievement in the festival, out of all that you've done this year. That... would've been useful to know before I bought all this Fate. Oh well. -- Passionario: Profile, Story, Ending Passion: Profile, Appearance
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Gillsing Posts: 1203 10/26/2018	Lorelai wrote: So I turned in my confessions and then oh, surprise, a storylet appears to ask the mayor what he wants when you reach a certain amount of favor? Cool! Lore! Let's find out! GUESS WHAT, IT TAKES 10 FAVOR. That REALLY could have been made cleared, because I wasted nearly 2 full confessions worth of favor on that storylet because it wasn't clear that it had a cost! Would that be the option to "Ask what the Mayor is up to"? Because that option clearly has a requirement: "You need Contrarian's Favour 10". And with Contrarian's Favour being a currency of sorts, it certainly indicates to me that asking the man what he's up to has a cost. But I'm sure I'd be grumpy too if I had done the same. And I'd thank you for the warning. But I think I already read something about that option in an earlier post. _________________________________ edited by Gillsing on 10/26/2018
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Krampus Posts: 23 10/25/2018	Please don't hate me, but I now have 12 free confessions. -- http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/qwe1
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Catherine Raymond Posts: 2518 10/25/2018	Hannah Flynn wrote: We had a few bugs in the first day of Hallowmas that caused confusion, and prevented some players from engaging with the festival. There's been more than one bug that has caused problems, and while we’ve now made all the fixes we need to, the experience has been uneven across players. In recompense, here’s an access code for five additional free confessions to help you enjoy the holiday! We’ve made a few changes this year, and people who’ve played a few Hallowmasses will have different understandings of what to expect. As always, our refrain is: please don’t make assumptions about a festival based on how it worked the previous year! It especially confuses new players, and causes worry. A few notes which might help relieve some of the worries that we've heard about: We’re giving out a total of 12 free confessions this year, aside from the additional 5 we’ve made available on an access code (above). These will be given out one per weekday (not at weekends) until the 6th (because timezones make the last day a bit dicey). There won’t be an achievement this year for collecting all of the companions. Mr Huffam will want to ask you about your favourite achievement in the festival, out of all that you've done this year. There are multiple endings to the Mystery of the Rosers. To get the most unique ending you'll need to gather all of the clues, which will require 6 confessions. To get the 'default' ending will require no confessions at all. Some players will probably want to get this ending for roleplaying reasons. There are alternative endings which will require 3 confessions to access. These endings will all be revealed and available from the 31st, and you'll be able to see what you need to achieve each before committing to any of them. We hope the above is helpful, and we are collecting feedback and data about the festival which will enable us to improve it next year. Thanks everyone! Thanks for the access code! -- 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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silurica Posts: 210 10/29/2018	Hey, you know what I like? Cats. You know what I want more? Cats! I was so happy when I got to adopt cats using my Regnant Coins, of course now I'm happy too to see I can get even more cats! So I've been thinking, please add the Wretched Mog to the Bazaar after the event is over! I don't mind it's more expensive to offset the action cost it now has. The Bazaar seems lacking in its option of regular cats, no? And I don't mean an exiled noble or a tiger, just a good ol' cat anyone can find curling in their lap or catching mice in their house. The Mog can be a nice addition to cover that niche. And I know Sunless Skies is more 'in' now, but I think it would be nice too if a player from Sunless Sea saw the Mog in the Bazaar and recognized a familiar face in it. -- Meika Osborne, the Reckless Researcher Leonard West, the Scarlet Informant Chizuru Nishiooji, the Rueful Ex-Diplomat
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Toran Posts: 193 10/31/2018	Okay, I'm being forced to unlurk to add some pence. Although I was surprised and briefly confused by this new Hallowmass, I'm going to join to say that this may well be the best-balanced Hallowmass so far. This is even though I received the maximum reward/enjoyed the hell out of the last mad social confession betrayal version. The Scuttering Squad boosts are good enough that a new player can use ONE of them to max out that slot and avoid faction or tiger grinding for, potentially, years. Everything else in the companions is flavor at best. You can get the 'max' lore and the special Mayor prize if you're endgame. So you get to see all the content and keep an overpowered weapon. Done. There's no prize for getting all companions. If you value companions more, you walk away from the lance or the lore. It's a festival of CHOICES. And Fallen London has always emphasized the importance of making choices and not being able to have your cake and eaten it... ALL SHALL BE WELL. -- I have a Hepta-Goat. Do you have a Hepta-Goat? https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Anthony%20Toran
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Hannah Flynn Administrator Posts: 491 10/31/2018	The second week of Hallowmas begins! Do you know where the Rosers went? Visit the Envoy in Fallen London with clues from your investigations, and tell her what you know. -- Wields the news canon, aboard the hype train.
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Vega Posts: 150 10/24/2018	Siankan wrote: Not, however, very excited about the number of decisions that one has to make in the dark. Confessions are a limited quantity, as they always have been, but I don't recall so much uncertainty in the past about the effect of using those confessions. [...] As is, however, Hallowmas is more like trying to plan a family vacation on too small a budget, where you need discipline and tight planning to make sure that you get the results you want--or at least enough of them that it's not a disappointment. I completely agree with Siankan. There's a multitude of things I can do with Confessions: make progress on three opposing factions (with presumably the end goal of helping the Envoy), upgrade companions, trade them with other players, earn favour with the Contrarian... and I only have three Confessions right now that I can do this with, with no apparent way of replenishing them except for waiting for a daily grab-bag refresh. And while the Confession cost of upgrading pets is clear, it's not clear to me how many Confessions I need to spend to earn enough Progress on each faction to gain the qualities needed to help the Envoy. Right now it appears that I have to choose one option or the other, eg. if I want to learn more about the Rosers' story, I may lock myself out of upgrading any pets or earning the Contrarian's favour. Because resources are scarce with little margin for error, I'm finding myself in a bit of choice paralysis as to what path to pursue next. Furthermore, I've received two trading offers from players, but I'm leaning towards rejecting both because if I trade my single type of Confession away for a short-term gain, when can I expect to receive another one again for my longer-term plans? The scarcity of resources is driving me to risk aversion: hoarding Confessions and discouraging me from social actions, which is a real shame. Nevertheless, this is my first Hallowmas, which is still exciting. I just have to hold onto my Confessions, decide carefully what to do next, and take careful steps based on limited information. edited by Vega on 10/24/2018 -- The Jaunty Mystic, Taranlei, roams the streets of London, interviewing fellow citizens. Member of the Sanguine Ribbon Society and the Temple Club (happy to send invites). Accepting all Acquaintances, lethal duels, social interactions, and opportunities for casual roleplay. The Shifty Spectre has departed on the final voyage. "I have gone down, down, my love..."
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Optimatum Posts: 3666 10/24/2018	Winthropx wrote: Were we supposed to get confessions today? I have no option to get any. I also have The aftermath of an Audacious Theft 13. Is that leftover from last year? I also never saw the starting story. I just had all the other stories right away. Anyone who still has Aftermath of an Audacious Theft 13 should definitely contact support with their character name. -- Optimatum, a ruthless and merciful gentleman. No plant battles, Affluent Photographer requests, or healing offers; all other social actions welcome. Want a sip of Cider? Just say hi! PM me for information enigmatic or Fated. Though the forum please, not FL itself.
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Guest 10/24/2018	So I can get the Contrarion's weapon without spending any fate? (I can't say as I care very much about the companions, I already have an unreasonably large personal menagerie & entourage... I might get one with the leftover confessions...) edited by Isaac Gates on 10/24/2018
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Amalgamate Posts: 435 10/25/2018	I'm probably going to play through the different options on alts, and hold off on using any confessions on my main until I know what my options really are. -- http://www.fallenlondon.com/Profile/amalgamate Social invitations of all kinds welcome, especially games of chess and deadly sparring! Also happy to help with nightmares, send sips of Cider, and plant battle.
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dov Posts: 2580 10/25/2018	Raihan wrote: Would a +20 Persuasive weapon be the best Persuasive weapon in the game? Absolutely. The best Persuasive weapons until now have been the +12 from the Correspondent or Crooked-Cross profession items. -- 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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Skinnyman Posts: 2133 10/25/2018	Optimatum wrote: Last year I spent both weeks of Hallowmas grinding Notability for Confessions. I didn't manage to get everything, so on the last day, I spend Fate to get the last few things I was missing. This year I'll apparently be ignoring Hallowmas aside from collecting daily confessions. I'm not going to invest real money if I can't first invest time and effort, no matter how interesting the new items and lore may be. I don't want to ask this, but is it me or FBG started following the trend in free online games? As hwoosh mentioned, we have a lot of new lore, but the mechanics are non-existent! You can just log once per day, get the free confession, trade with them at the end of the festival, use those and you are done! If you are aiming for the item, it's probably going to be the saddest festival ever! Everything is new, but I can't find the appeal in it! At least I won't care that I'm not able to log in a lot in the next 3-4 days! -- 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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Great Pigmeat Posts: 19 10/25/2018	Also, after playing through the Hallowmas 1896: An Envoy from the Elder Continent storylet again, my Hallowmas: The Aftermath of an Audacious Theft quality rose from 1 to 2. And when I hover over it, I can see this text: "It seems someone wanted easy access to more confessions. It isn't clear whether the resulting chaos was a side-effect, or part of their plan. Either way, this year's celebration is hectic. More confessions will follow throughout the Festival." I think the devs are trying to talk to us. I don't know what they are trying to say, but I'm sure they are trying to communicate.
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Dudebro Pyro Posts: 756 10/25/2018	Great Pigmeat wrote: Hi, this is my first holiday event in Fallen London - can you go into a bit more details about how all companions are required for a reward, please? Did this mean all different upgrades of the same companions (If so, I'm already out this year, I don't have an Unassuming Judge and I don't have the echoes for a second Scuttering Squad.)? What were the rewards for previous years? Huffman will interview you after the holiday is over, and you can pick one of the new companions to bring with you to the interview. Then the card "One's Public" gets a new option unlocked which grants a good amount of Making Waves and some other rewards. However, if you have every single new companion (yes, that includes both sides when there are alternate upgrade paths), then (and only then) you get the option to bring your entire menagerie to the interview. This unlocks a different reward on One's Public, giving significantly more MW and making the card very valuable indeed. Each of these options last a year (until next Hallowmas), and the improved one has historically been the goal of the holiday until last year additional objectives were added with Feducci offering reward for giving him Confessions, and this year the Contrarian is doing the same plus you can also spend confessions on the whole Rosers subplot. Great Pigmeat wrote: Also, after playing through the Hallowmas 1896: An Envoy from the Elder Continent storylet again, my Hallowmas: The Aftermath of an Audacious Theft quality rose from 1 to 2. And when I hover over it, I can see this text: "It seems someone wanted easy access to more confessions. It isn't clear whether the resulting chaos was a side-effect, or part of their plan. Either way, this year's celebration is hectic. More confessions will follow throughout the Festival." Oh this is fantasic. I mean that in a good way. Looks like they're acknowledging their mistakes, and the optimistic interpretation of their last sentence is that they will in fact be adding a better source of confessions later. Either way if they use this tongue in cheek comment to explain away some people getting three extra confessions and not others, I'm not even annoyed anymore, it's just great to see them listening and being aware of what their players are saying. Confidence in Failbetter! I await what next week will bring. -- Dudebro Pyro, eccentric scholar Spare Starveling Kitties always welcome. I collect them. For that matter, send me your unwanted cat boxes too.
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Barse Posts: 706 10/26/2018	Not really sure when they'll be released every day, but it is worth noting that you can't miss 'em; the way mechanically that the daily confessions work is that if you don't get your free one today, you can just pick up two tomorrow, etc. So don't worry too much about "missing" them - as long as you log in towards the end of the festival at least once, you can grab them all in one fell swoop. edited by Barse on 10/26/2018 -- The Scorched Sailor, up for most social actions and RP. Not as scary as he looks.
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Hannah Flynn Administrator Posts: 491 10/31/2018	Monara wrote: Warning to everyone: this is super bugged right now. When you get your choice of ending, it tells you you can go back to change progress on the person you want to unlock specific endings. However, backing out from this storylet to do so instantly teleports you to the conclusion location without having made a choice, locking you into a bugged ending referring to a nonexistent second person. edited by Monara on 10/31/2018 I believe this is all squared away now, but if you're still experiencing any issues please email support@failbettergames.com - thanks! -- Wields the news canon, aboard the hype train.
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Kylestien Posts: 749 11/3/2018	This was a good Hallowmas for me. Got appointed as an ambassdor for a city of romantics and dreamers, my kind of people, got private tuition from the mayor which gave my persuasive skills an edge... a good hallowmas for me. I can only hope my new position will lead to some... fun and interesting interactions with the locals. -- I will accept all actions, though I hold the right to refuse for my own reasons. However, if you explain WHY you send me a harmful action like Loitering or Dantes,And I feel the reason good, I will consider it more. http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/Kylestien Persuasive patron. You want a lesson, send me a message asking for one.
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Anne Auclair Posts: 2215 11/6/2018	I'm surprised I picked the Contrarian as my companion, but he's had me utterly charmed since being sworn in and his intentions seemed both good and sensible. Of course Anne chose to become the ambassador, her eyes are obscured by Cosmogone. -- http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/Anne%20Auclair
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Barse Posts: 706 11/7/2018	Poking my head in to say that all of the text for all of the interviews is dang hilarious. Big props to the writers on this one, I've had many chuckles today! edited by Barse on 11/7/2018 -- The Scorched Sailor, up for most social actions and RP. Not as scary as he looks.
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Yves Devereux Posts: 11 11/7/2018	My alt, Sybil Dufour, has arranged an interview with the (edit) protective mandrake. https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Sybil%20Dufour/15138864 2 - 'OUTRAGEOUS MANDRAKE', the headline declares. The article warns its readers to beware both mandrake and owner. There is a sketch of your mandrake proudly defending you. It's hard to tell in a picture, but the mandrake does look like it is shouting something obscene. edited by Yves Devereux on 11/7/2018 -- Profile - Yves Devereux
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Anne Auclair Posts: 2215 11/7/2018	I love that they reused the Contrarian's first poster for the Debating Lessons ^_^ The first election had the best poster art, in my opinion (which isn't to say the second and third elections had bad art, just that the art during the first election was awesome). -- http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/Anne%20Auclair
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Azothi Posts: 586 11/8/2018	So I'm not sure if anyone else had this issue, but I literally did not draw Visitors at Hallowmas once this entire festival. It's not an issue personally, since I have my Destiny, and making any recurring card Frequent frequency is annoying even when it's profitable, but this seems particularly strange on the part of RNG. -- Azoth I, the Emissary of Cardinals - A Paramount Presence (not currently accepting new Proteges) Away to where the Chain cannot bind us. Hesperidean.
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silurica Posts: 210 11/9/2018	I gotta say for the two weeks it was around, the Visitor card felt a tad rare. I only barely made it to get 7 Tiny Cave Fish on one character. Surely it wouldn't hurt to raise its frequency a bit next time, if Notability wouldn't be involved again? It's not like the Visitor card is as profitable as, say, Election cards... It shouldn't throw off the card economy too much within the two weeks. -- Meika Osborne, the Reckless Researcher Leonard West, the Scarlet Informant Chizuru Nishiooji, the Rueful Ex-Diplomat
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Tsar Koschei Posts: 202 11/7/2018	So I have a choice between having him interview my Very Lenient Judge, the Scuttering Scoundrels, or me on either the debating lessons or my ambassadorship. I'm rather leaning towards the last two, but wouldn't mind some spoilers as to the results. H_Johnson wrote: OH NOOOOOOOOOOO I MISSED IT Damn! I thought today was the last day as in "last chance to play the story" and I could still do everything... I was very unsure of what I was supposed to do all along and didn't want to waste any confession, didn't have time until then to read the forums thoroughly... I'm super super disappointed. And next time Hallowmas will be different once again, I will never be able to play this. Seriously, I'm sad. I feel for you, but seriously, HOW DID YOU NOT CHECK?! Aside from the announcements, it was said over and over in this thread that the last confession was yesterday, and the event was ending today. -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Tsar%20Koschei Sanguine Ribbon Society tournament champion. No chess, loitering, friendly sparring, coffee at Caligula's or Affluent Photographer, please.
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MidnightVoyager Posts: 858 11/15/2018	Jolanda Swan wrote: MidnightVoyager wrote: PETS FOR THE PET GOD, I OBTAINED THEM ALL. ...I'm fine, really. If you need me, I'll be sitting on my hoard. ...not as in, literally sitting on all the poor creatures plus the judges, I hope. It's very soft up here. Time The Healer wrote: An occurrence! Your 'Free Evening' Quality is now 5! An occurrence! Your 'Making Waves' Quality is now 6! You have discovered a mysterious confession! Someone does not want you to have this. 'The Duchess' Progress' has been reset: a conclusion, or a new beginning? 'The Princess' Progress' has been reset: a conclusion, or a new beginning? Wait, what's this about a mysterious confession I've apparently discovered? -- Midnight Voyager - A blood-cousin to predators. Collector of beasts. Affably mad.
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Tsar Koschei Posts: 202 11/4/2018	Meradine Heidenreich wrote: It looks as if the story will divide FL residents into three groups (or split off three alternate Neaths)... [snip] There are actually five options for ambassador. The three ladies, the mayor and the player. -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Tsar%20Koschei Sanguine Ribbon Society tournament champion. No chess, loitering, friendly sparring, coffee at Caligula's or Affluent Photographer, please.
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Siankan Posts: 1048 11/4/2018	Isaac Gates wrote: The Duchess isn't actually old. She's actually a gorgeous woman in her late twenties/early thirties, she just wears makeup and prosthesis. She certainly wears a lot of makeup, this I grant. As for being old... well, that's for spoiler tags. I will say, however, that few of London's citizens were around when the Duchess was in her late twenties. The Masters. The landlord of everyone's favorite hotel. Perhaps a few others. Not the Widow. And certainly not you. -- Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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Tsar Koschei Posts: 202 11/3/2018	silurica wrote: Thjazi wrote: Has anyone Betrayed any of the princesses to the Contrarian? Does that grant Favor? Doing so only gives 2 Favours, it's not worth it. Better to betray the ladies to each other and get a confession (6 Favours) for each betrayal. I still think this was a serious failure in design. It's basically a trap for unwary players. -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Tsar%20Koschei Sanguine Ribbon Society tournament champion. No chess, loitering, friendly sparring, coffee at Caligula's or Affluent Photographer, please.
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Monara Posts: 162 10/31/2018	1) Companion upgrades remain available. You'll continue to gain Progress, and you can still betray for a confession. Considering the Progress probably has no further uses, it actually makes sense to do this. You can even betray your chosen ally after playing the ending. I already got the weapon so I can't say for sure, but he is still available for turning in confessions, so I see no reason why the weapon wouldn't be available. 2) Apart from the Antique Mysteries, there is one final choice (seperate from the choice based on Progress) that requires having all three clues. Choosing this will have further implications once the story continues in the future. I'd say it's definitely the more promising ending. So you can make the choice based on Progress, and then having all clues offers something interesting on top of that. 3) I don't see any mechanical reason not to betray after seeing the ending. There is always the possibility we can turn in Progress for something once the event ends, but I highly doubt it'll be anything significant if so. edited by Monara on 10/31/2018 -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Miranah
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Aardvark Posts: 119 10/31/2018	Monara wrote: 1) Companion upgrades remain available. You'll continue to gain Progress, and you can still betray for a confession. Considering the Progress probably has no further uses, it actually makes sense to do this. You can even betray your chosen ally after playing the ending. I already got the weapon so I can't say for sure, but he is still available for turning in confessions, so I see no reason why the weapon wouldn't be available. 2) Apart from the Antique Mysteries, there is one final choice (seperate from the choice based on Progress) that requires having all three clues. Choosing this will have further implications once the story continues in the future. I'd say it's definitely the more promising ending. So you can make the choice based on Progress, and then having all clues offers something interesting on top of that. 3) I don't see any mechanical reason not to betray after seeing the ending. There is always the possibility we can turn in Progress for something once the event ends, but I highly doubt it'll be anything significant if so. edited by Monara on 10/31/2018 Thank you very much for a swift and useful answer! Much obliged. -- Sir Reginald Monteroy, Paramount Glassman, Courier's Footprint, Poet-Laureate and Cider owner. http://fallenlondon.com/Profile/Sir Reginald Monteroy If you desire a sip of Hesperidean Cider, PM me in the game.
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Greg M Posts: 197 11/1/2018	For everyone who's played the conclusion: I think congratulations are in order to Fallen London who, bumpy start notwithstanding, brought their A-GAME to the conclusion. Without spoilers: new location. New lore. New writing. Massive amount of thought. I am delighted. -- Profile: GregM. http://www.fallenlondon.com/Profile/GregM Available for any non-harmful social interactions.
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MidnightVoyager Posts: 858 10/31/2018	Jolanda Swan wrote: ...what second princess? I only got the Injurious one. I had all three clues, stuck with the Injurious Princess from beginning to end, and chose the honor for myself. Loved that - I am curious as to how it will effect future stories. [spoiler]Technically, all three women involved are princesses. Perhaps they don't hold the title anymore, but two of them once did.[/spoiler] -- Midnight Voyager - A blood-cousin to predators. Collector of beasts. Affably mad.
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Dudebro Pyro Posts: 756 10/25/2018	Akernis wrote: Great Pigmeat wrote: Guys, I'm extremely confused. I was able to play Hallowmas 1896: An Envoy from the Elder Continent again just now. I got another pet and got another Confession out of it. Not just an extra Confession, but you can collect another two as well. I have six now. Not quite sure how to feel about this. I love getting more confessions but this does feel like a bug. Huh, I was one of those people who didn't get the storylet at all but this morning it appeared for me so I finally got my three free confessions. It looks as if FB tried to fix the situation but instead might have reset the Aftermath quality of various unrelated players as well (perhaps everyone?), letting people who did get their confessions already grab them again. -- Dudebro Pyro, eccentric scholar Spare Starveling Kitties always welcome. I collect them. For that matter, send me your unwanted cat boxes too.
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Great Pigmeat Posts: 19 10/25/2018	Guys, I'm extremely confused. I was able to play Hallowmas 1896: An Envoy from the Elder Continent again just now. I got another pet and got another Confession out of it. Not that I'm complaining (hey, another free companion for upgrading!) but surely that can't be how we get extra confessions? It doesn't even make sense narratively - I met the Envoy for "the first time"...twice now.
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Dudebro Pyro Posts: 756 10/25/2018	Some people are talking about Failbetter trying to iterate to find a good design. But were there any complaints at all two years ago, when you could get Confessions for 5 Notability? Other than that is was different from the previous, social action based one, of course, but any change will always generate discontent regardless of the quality. So the "they're trying to find a good balance" excuse falls flat to me. They had a good balance, then they decided to mess with it by simultaneously making it harder and adding additional objectives, and got a lot of backlash. So this year they decided to mess with it even more, taking it to the extreme. I would also argue that Hallowmass is very much a completionist's event. There's an explicit reward for getting all the companions, and if you're just one off you get nothing - no runners-up, and this reward has been a central focus of the holiday for years. Yet it's becoming harder and harder to achieve by the year. And unlike the Feast of the Rose, which is sometimes brought up as an example of a pay-to-win holiday, Hallowmass only gives you one chance to get the new companions for free, and next year they're locked behind a paywall (whereas in the Feast, free items remain free forever, and paid items are explicitly marked Fate-locked from the very start - and there's absolutely no expectation that you'll collect every single item, much less an explicit in-game reward for doing so). And the other objectives seem equally intended to be completed. Well, let us put aside the mayoral item for now, as it might be possible to argue that it's meant to be Fate-locked. Let's just consider the Rosers mystery. We already established that getting the full Huffam's interview is meant to be completed. So does this mean we are meant to skip out on the new lore unless we want to pay Fate? It would seem like a huge waste to write all this lore, then lock it behind an exhorbitant amount of money (some smaller stories cost 15 Fate, whereas here you might need to spend a couple of hundred from what I'm hearing). It just makes zero sense from a game design perspective. The entire thing is clearly made to encourage completionism, but FB seems keen on making it harder and harder every year. It would only make sense if they looked at the event and thought "hey this looks like it'll make players really want to get everything, let's lock it behind a paywall for some easy extra dosh!". Which is really not like Failbetter to do, hence my hope that something better will be revealed in the second week. -- Dudebro Pyro, eccentric scholar Spare Starveling Kitties always welcome. I collect them. For that matter, send me your unwanted cat boxes too.
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Vega Posts: 150 10/25/2018	Jason5237 wrote: Where am I supposed to be seeing the three confessions today? Dudebro Pyro wrote: Firstly, can anyone say what the storylet for free confessions is called? I don't have Aftermath of an Audacious Theft anywhere on the new Myself page (searching for "aftermath" gives no results), but I can't find the confessions anywhere. You need to play through Hallowmas 1896: An Envoy from the Elder Continent - the opening storylet that introduces you to the Envoy and Contrarian. At the end of this storylet run, you'll gain a free Confession and the quality Hallowmas: Aftermath of an Audacious Theft (incremented to 2), which unlocks the storylet called Collect Another Mysterious Confession. This seems to be the recurring storylet where you can collect the daily free Confession. The quality Hallowmas: Aftermath of an Audacious Theft does NOT appear in the Myself tab. I've checked. -- The Jaunty Mystic, Taranlei, roams the streets of London, interviewing fellow citizens. Member of the Sanguine Ribbon Society and the Temple Club (happy to send invites). Accepting all Acquaintances, lethal duels, social interactions, and opportunities for casual roleplay. The Shifty Spectre has departed on the final voyage. "I have gone down, down, my love..."
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Saklad Posts: 528 10/24/2018	The Clue from the Injurious Princess is categorized as a “Story” quality, while the other clues are categorized under “Accomplishment”. There must be something unique about that one. -- Saklad5, a man of many talents
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aegisaglow Posts: 202 10/24/2018	Is the Wretched Mog new? (As an item in Fallen London, that is; I know it was in Sunless Sea.) -- Mx. Aglow. Glazier, hedonist, devil-teaser, Paramount Presence. Pursuing their Heart's Desire. Ms. Lilian Leith. A lady of proper standing, which seems like an increasingly ludicrous thing to give a rat's ___ about. Known (to some) for her Light Fingers.
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Saklad Posts: 528 10/24/2018	I’ve been experimenting with the API recently (with permission), and I’ve designed my script to automatically record almost anything it encounters in an object graph. This can reveal information that is not immediately apparent, as a lot of things sent by the Fallen London server are not actually shown in the browser interface. For instance, I can confirm that "Private Debating Lessons with the Jovial Contrarian” is a Weapon, as the requirement on the branch for receiving it actually says as much. And I didn’t have to waste a ridiculous amount of Fate to know that so soon. edited by Saklad5 on 10/24/2018 -- Saklad5, a man of many talents
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Saklad Posts: 528 10/24/2018	Also, I love all the new companion concepts. I just hope it is possible to get everything through clever gameplay, rather than having to pay for it. A dedicated player should be able to do it all, without paying a cent: that might require an extremely unhealthy sleep schedule without being an Exceptional Friend, but still. That being said, I’m always happy that nothing is truly Fate-locked. edited by Saklad5 on 10/24/2018 -- Saklad5, a man of many talents
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James Sinclair Posts: 253 10/24/2018	Shalinoth wrote: Noticed these errors myself and they make me cringe, because this is a world of words. Here's a comical error that may be terrifyingly revealing. It comes after selecting the Mog from the Envoy: " A visitor An attendant hands you the writhing Mog. The Envoy herself seems much relieved. This business being concluded, she introduces herself properly: *she is an embassy for her queen,* who is seeking an answer that only London can provide. " Emphasis is my own. The Envoy is an embassy? How exactly does she.. house the queen? Inside her mind? Inside her body? Geiger-like visions ensue. An embassy can also refer to the people (or, in this case, person) in an ambassadorial delegation, not just the physical building where their diplomatic office is. -- James Sinclair Curator of the Sanguine Ribbon Society 🗡 A fully-fledged rêveur of The Night Circus. Wines is red Spices is yellow But old Jack-of-Smiles Is a murderous fellow ☠
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hwoosh Posts: 104 10/24/2018	I've also been noticing TONS of typos in the new Hallowmas content. All minor so far--misplaced commas, missing periods, improperly punctuated dialogue--but disappointing nonetheless. All of FBG's new content has been getting slowly but steadily worse in that regard for the past several years, but I haven't seen this density of typos so far. -- Persona: hwoosh R Fellow Oswho. Don't ask what the "R." stands for. The poor fellow is sensitive about it. And violent. Most social requests gladly and promptly answered.
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Saklad Posts: 528 10/24/2018	dov wrote: Amalgamate wrote: Apparently, +20 persuasive. And +2 Dreaded. Dreaded? Again? I know it affects almost nothing, but I’d expect something like +2 Respectable. You know, to mix it up. -- Saklad5, a man of many talents
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Tay1or Posts: 163 10/29/2018	Jason5237 wrote: On a related note, the thread feedback about this year's "Fruits of the Zee" festival were largely negative because there were no changes! So I'm sure it sometimes can feel like there will be constructive criticism no matter what. J- Don't mix apples and oranges! "No new items" is NOT the same thing as "no changes." We're talking about changing mechanics, here, I think.
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genesis Posts: 924 10/29/2018	Siankan wrote: That said, to quote (paraphrase?) Mark Rosewater, if everyone likes your game and nobody loves it, it will fail. Since we are quoting MaRo, I feel FBG somewhat disregard his "don't fight human nature" maxim. They are very wedded to the disclaimer "don't make assumptions about seasonal events" even though clearly everyone does and will and it inevitably leads to much heartache. -- http://fallenlondon.com/Profile/mikey_thinkin Keeping track of incomplete content and loose ends in Fallen London
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Jolanda Swan Posts: 1789 10/29/2018	I won't cancel for one event when calculations didn't go as planned on FB's part, but I do get the frustration. It is one thing not to like an event (I'm not sure I like the elections, even though I get very involved in them) but this is the first time when we didn't get a chance to actually play. For endgame players, it felt like a slap. Even if in the second week the confessions become say, two daily, so we can get on with upgrading and progress and what's not, we still have nothing to do except collect - and wait. I doubt the aim was to sell more Fate, as this doesn't seem to be the modus operandi so far, but whatever the reasons for the decision, it doesn't seem to work. -- Lover of all things beautiful, secret admirer of ugly truths, fond of the Parabola Sun... and always delighted to role play. http://fallenlondon.com/profile/Jolanda%20Swan
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Siankan Posts: 1048 10/29/2018	Dudebro Pyro wrote: They seem intent to revamp it in a major way every single year, but it only seems to be getting steadily worse and less fun, and really feels like change for the sake of change. To each his own, I suppose. For my part, I am happy with the changes overall. #1: 1894 Revamp. Hallowmas is redesigned to center on companion upgrades, with Huffam-takes-all as the completionist end goal. Fun, unique among other events (since it is quite distinct in many ways from the other companion-fest in February), gives some lasting toys for everyone. Perhaps a bit linear. #2: 1895. New companions, and also new best-in-slot mayoral weapon. Budget players have to make a choice, but completionists have the option of a frenetic chase to catch 'em all. The addition of a non-companion choice broadened the appeal of the event without compromising the central companion focus; however, I do think they underestimated the completionist pressure. They acknowledged and attempted to mitigate this part-way through. #3. 1896. New companions again, and again a new best-in-slot mayoral weapon. A third option has been added, one with a broader appeal than the more mechanical options, but united through the confessions mechanic. The removal of the Huffam-takes-all goal relaxes the event some and help mitigate the completionist pressure (still there for the true completionist, of course, but not for the trophy hunter), allowing individual players and characters to decide which goals to pursue. The confession numbers are still a bit tight, but again a dose of free confessions helps to mitigate. Now base-level interaction can achieve two of the larger goals, or one goal and a substantive number of new companions. So, overall, I think Hallowmas is improving, broadening its appeal and refining its mechanics, and new changes can generally be traced directly to a weakness of the Hallowmas before. The major problem this year was the lack of information, and I suspect that will be addressed in the future. The second weakness, I suppose, is the quantity of confessions. Two years running FB has given out a shot of free confessions, and while this may have been something of a palliative (especially this year), it may also point to a perennial problem. Either someone didn't tot up the numbers correctly, or opinions about what constitutes an acceptable baseline achievement for the event differ widely inside and outside the hallowed halls of Failbetter. Let us take a closer look. 1. Companions. Intriguing and perhaps mechanically relevant upgrades to companions are the center of the event, and I think the year delivers. The removal of the Huffam Prize means that at least one goal of Hallowmas is not all-or-nothing, and I think that's a good spot for the companions to be in. The only weakness here (as was often said last year) is that they have not followed the first year's example in giving each upgraded companion a touched-up appearance, leading to the Wall of Identical Mogs effect and generally losing some of the magic. 2. Weapon. The new weapon is well-received, and (after the booster shot) affordable to combine with other actions. I will say that patterns in browser games are like government programs: the moment you create one, you have created a faction with an entrenched interest in maintaining it. I hope Failbetter consciously intends to make this a tradition, because if not then they've set themselves up for lots of angry Londoners in 1897. 3. Lore. I can't judge this, obviously, until at least 31 October, but they've dangled a mighty interesting carrot in front of us. The Rosers are often hinted at, you can get a solid general idea by putting together all the pieces, but there's much that we don't know, and many who want to. Assuming they have written satisfying endings (and that is, if we properly qualify satisfying, Failbetter stock in trade), this element is likely to go over well, and perhaps be the thing people most clamor for next year. 4. Confessions. The seventeen total confessions we got (or twenty, for those affected by the reset) allow a good range of choices in their use, and that is exactly what Hallowmas wants. I do, however, think this still requires work. An event shouldn't require a patch to run smoothly. Next year, I hope to see either the total confession requirements lowered or the number of free confessions raised so that the average player feels the available confessions allow a reasonable return for participation, and that anything beyond that is extra, for the completionist or the overachiever or the person who just has to have X things. I will also note that I have nothing personally against the collect-and-done daily cycle of Hallowmas. The Advent Calendar is a collect-and-done cycle, and so is Sacksmas. While I grant you that both Christmas events have more interesting daily moments, they also don't lead up to something outside themselves. This year at least, Hallowmas confessions do. I am happy with that. 5. Information. This was the big ball drop this year. I've spent more than enough words on this, so I will just say that I have high hopes that next year's Hallowmas will address that issue. This year's plan of upgradable companions, powerful unique equipment, and fascinating secrets seems like a winner to me, as long as the average player can reasonably expect to achieve two of those three goals. If they can solve the issues with confession numbers and reasonable information before the event (instead of during), then they may have a repeatable pattern-book on their hands. On the other hand, they may make use of the preexistent pattern and send us something entirely new. As long as ye of Failbetter keep piquing my interest and trying to improve from the year before (whether, in my own opinion, it succeed or not), I will always be game for another go. -- Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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elderfleur Posts: 77 10/27/2018	Deathjack999 wrote: Okay, so, funny story. I ended up opening the Gate of Midnight...but I forgot that I already had Authority from Last Neathmas, so now I can't get rid of the storylet and the Confession Collection storylet won't show up. The Gates of Midnight storylet will stick around until you clear your Possible Future, which should happen on its own at the end of the Festival (assuming you don't want to repick your Destiny). It's a bit clunky that it doesn't contain a "I've changed my mind" option to clear any Possible Futures (I've got it lingering around too because I like getting the €2.50 off the Visitors card). Regarding the Confessions Collection stoylet, there's no new Confession today (only weekdays) so if you collected yesterday's it's not going to appear until Monday. -- —Elderfleur
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NinjaComedian Posts: 202 10/27/2018	On the 31st when the rest of the holiday opens up and we can take our clues to the Envoy, I’m expecting to see a use for progress at that stage. I’d guess it’ll affect which options you can pick with the Envoy. I think that’s why there were so many posts saying the best thing to do with the holiday is basically nothing except collect Confessions until the 31st.
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Jolanda Swan Posts: 1789 10/25/2018	Thank you for the update. Having said that, I am still bugged and have no access to the Halowmass storylet, but I 'm filing a report for that. However,could some please answer this one question (I 'm sorry if it was answered and I didn't pick it up): will there be any way to earn confessions apart from the 12 ones? Or do we have to rely on these 12 and the Fate-locked ones? At least for me, this question is what determines how much 'play' you get out of Hallowmass. Thank you. -- Lover of all things beautiful, secret admirer of ugly truths, fond of the Parabola Sun... and always delighted to role play. http://fallenlondon.com/profile/Jolanda%20Swan
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Skinnyman Posts: 2133 10/25/2018	Hannah Flynn wrote: We’ve made a few changes this year, and people who’ve played a few Hallowmasses will have different understandings of what to expect. As always, our refrain is: please don’t make assumptions about a festival based on how it worked the previous year! It especially confuses new players, and causes worry. A few notes which might help relieve some of the worries that we've heard about: We’re giving out a total of 12 free confessions this year, aside from the additional 5 we’ve made available on an access code (above). These will be given out one per weekday (not at weekends) until the 6th (because timezones make the last day a bit dicey). There are multiple endings to the Mystery of the Rosers. To get the most unique ending you'll need to gather all of the clues, which will require 6 confessions. I must agree with the fact that we make too many assumptions about events and, as a hoarder/completions, I find myself among those. For that I am sorry and thank you for the update! Specially that you now made it possible to get the BiS persuasive weapon and the ultimate mystery ending. The other companions will have to wait! edited by Skinnyman on 10/25/2018 -- 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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MidnightVoyager Posts: 858 10/25/2018	Hannah Flynn wrote: There won’t be an achievement this year for collecting all of the companions. Mr Huffam will want to ask you about your favourite achievement in the festival, out of all that you've done this year. You say this like it'll stop me. rubs hands together (definitely thank you for the Free Confessions. My companion hoard is pleased) edited by MidnightVoyager on 10/25/2018 -- Midnight Voyager - A blood-cousin to predators. Collector of beasts. Affably mad.
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Waterpls Posts: 325 10/25/2018	So i have wasted 4 confessions on progress... And its basically useless. Haha only 2 favours from it. Nice joke, nice Failbetter. I am glad that i still have enough confessions to reach the weapon thanks to access code. Never. Never. Never play FL without wiki or / and forum. edited by Waterpls on 10/25/2018 -- Long grinds: Heptagoat 100/180; Cider Done; Correspondence 21/21; Paramount 4/4.
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Jolanda Swan Posts: 1789 10/26/2018	There is a separate thread for exchanges, it will help you more! Also, you might need to put your profile in your signature for that. -- Lover of all things beautiful, secret admirer of ugly truths, fond of the Parabola Sun... and always delighted to role play. http://fallenlondon.com/profile/Jolanda%20Swan
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Ed Rolison Posts: 57 10/26/2018	Gillsing wrote: Lorelai wrote: So I turned in my confessions and then oh, surprise, a storylet appears to ask the mayor what he wants when you reach a certain amount of favor? Cool! Lore! Let's find out! GUESS WHAT, IT TAKES 10 FAVOR. That REALLY could have been made cleared, because I wasted nearly 2 full confessions worth of favor on that storylet because it wasn't clear that it had a cost! Would that be the option to "Ask what the Mayor is up to"? Because that option clearly has a requirement: "You need Contrarian's Favour 10". And with Contrarian's Favour being a currency of sorts, it certainly indicates to me that asking the man what he's up to has a cost. But I'm sure I'd be grumpy too if I had done the same. And I'd thank you for the warning. But I think I already read something about that option in an earlier post. _________________________________ edited by Gillsing on 10/26/2018 I clicked on it. I expected a cost. I wasn't expecting to pay 10 favour for an extraordinary implication and a half-answer.
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Dudebro Pyro Posts: 756 10/26/2018	So I gather none of the companions are best-in-slot, and they're all rather useless if you have all the tiger ministers already? Other than perhaps the Scuttering ones which are better for combined challenges, or perhaps things like social duels. That's actually nice, since I can now focus on what I want for collection reasons and not worry about missing out mechanically. -- Dudebro Pyro, eccentric scholar Spare Starveling Kitties always welcome. I collect them. For that matter, send me your unwanted cat boxes too.
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Monara Posts: 162 10/26/2018	On the main Hallowmas branch the option to buy last year's mayoral weapon is now available. It costs 40 Fate. -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Miranah
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Saklad Posts: 528 10/25/2018	I really appreciate the update, and the extra confessions. I would rather there was a Fate-free way to do it all, though. Elections are my favorite festival for a reason: with a few minor (annoying) exceptions, you can work hard and reap the rewards without trading Fate. I feel every festival should be like that: Fate should only be necessary if you don’t want to drop everything to work on the festival. I see what you did with the Envoy’s offer of a free pet, by the way: that’s a good way to make sure new players can upgrade something. Very, very, very confused new players. edited by Saklad5 on 10/25/2018 -- Saklad5, a man of many talents
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Marcus Caselles Posts: 3 10/25/2018	James Sinclair wrote: Does anyone have naming suggestions for this unpleasant feline? Dobby? Maybe I'll name mine Marty Feldman, as an example of one who was good at playing a miserable. -- http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/Marcus%20Caselles New to the game, open to reasonable social interactions...
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Siankan Posts: 1048 10/28/2018	Irym Ydell wrote: Is anyone else not getting the option to get more confessions daily? The only way I can now is by betraying someone & that doesn't net many confessions. It'll appear Monday. We only get new confessions on weekdays. -- Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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Rasvarmo Posts: 54 10/27/2018	I admit I'm a little confused about the mechanics of this holiday. What is the difference between clues and progress for each of the factions (Princess, Duchess, and Widow)? My understanding is that we trade confessions to get both clues and progress. We then trade clues to the envoy to solve the Rosers mystery. So then... what is the point of progress? How much progress do we need with each faction? Is there a point to maxing out progress with each faction (and is that even possible)? Furthermore, is it better to gain progress by trading confessions, or by upgrading companions? I love this game and this is my favorite holiday event, but I'm not sure how to proceed and feel a little frustrated. Right now I'm sitting on all my confessions, unsure of what to do. -- Rasvarmo - a lady of distinction and ambition. Open to social exchanges. "No records. No writings. Words can be treacherous. If a story is important, it will be remembered."
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Dudebro Pyro Posts: 756 10/29/2018	My personal question is why on earth does Failbetter think Hallowmas needs "fixing". They seem intent to revamp it in a major way every single year, but it only seems to be getting steadily worse and less fun, and really feels like change for the sake of change. I would very much like to know what FB actually wants to achieve in the end - at what point would they go, "ok this is exactly what we wanted to see - we're happy with how this event plays out". What's the entire point of all this? -- Dudebro Pyro, eccentric scholar Spare Starveling Kitties always welcome. I collect them. For that matter, send me your unwanted cat boxes too.
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Monara Posts: 162 10/30/2018	Dudebro Pyro wrote: snip What is it you're trying to do, dear Failbetter? You said everything I wanted to say in the feedback thread but couldn't because with English not being my first language I tend to fail to get my point across eloquently. Reading back about the previous years' Hallowmas and the changes to the mechanics in the last two years has been a frustrating experience. I'd also like to know what the change from nota 5 to 8 was supposed to achieve, and why for this year things were changed again to double down on exactly the thing that players seemed to hate so much. My cynical side says it is just a way to sell more Fate. But judging from the reactions all this is also driving away players, and I want to believe their motivations did account for the long term effects. -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Miranah
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Ed Rolison Posts: 57 10/29/2018	Raccoonajr wrote: Monara wrote: On the main Hallowmas branch the option to buy last year's mayoral weapon is now available. It costs 40 Fate. Thanks! I might have missed that it had been added and I have been wanting that fancy lance since last year! Likewise. It's overpowered and expensive, and I love that. I - like others - feel that Hallowmas hasn't gone as well as I'd have hoped. I mean, I can well understand the 'fuss' about Notability - the difference between the BDR 25ish of a lategame player vs. the '2-3' of a new player (not to mention 'not being a PoSI in the first place) is quite large. But I also think it's a bit of a shame to have what feels like nothing to do whilst the festival is on. I did a turn of the Fruits of The Zee, and spent a reasonable amount of time chasing after 'strange catch' and quite enjoying it. It was somewhat profitable, but I feel accessible for both newer and older players. I'm not sure how a confessions grind could really work - but at the very least an opportunity card maybe? Or have 'extras' pop up through existing grind mechanics perhaps? So you could do a 'flash lay', expedition, burglary, have a 'hunt is on....' chase for one, or perhaps a round trip to Zee (get a bonus confession when you 'return to london' so you can just make a 'patrol' searching for one). None the less - I am glad I will probably have sufficient confessions to get the extremely tasty weapon, a companion upgrade and a few left over for 'endings'. edited by Ed Rolison on 10/29/2018
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Dudebro Pyro Posts: 756 10/29/2018	Barse wrote: If you go and re-read the thread from last year's Hallowmas, I think you'll find out exactly why Failbetter thought they needed to fix Hallowmas this year. While I don't necessarily agree with all of the design decisions that have been made this year, these decisions appear to have been made in direct response to the slew of community criticism that Hallowmas faced last year. Criticising Failbetter for changing festivals while at the same time, every year, insisting that the festival is busted and needs changing seems to me to be a little unfair. I didn't mean this year specifically - I meant both of these years. I also wasn't present for the social action based Hallowmas, so while that sounds like bloody fun and many people have expressed how they miss it, I'm going to keep it out of this argument since I have no first-hand experience. Now, what was the major complaint last year? That it was too hard to gain confessions. Only players with literally 32 or 33 BDR had a shot at getting every collectible, and that's ignoring the Criminal Record wipe and the useless titles because there's a good argument to be made that they weren't intended to be part of a completionist's goal. What about the year before that? I may be wrong, but I don't remember any major complaints. People grinded their confessions, got everything they wanted, and were happy. So my post also applies to last year; why did they feel so hard the need to change the cost so much? It was fine, mostly. I think the argument that Notability grinds are inherently flawed has merit, but then the solution would have been to replace it with a completely different grind, not to make the grind much much worse. You then say that the changes this year were in direct response to last year's complaints. Except that they took everything we complained about - confessions were too hard to get - and cranked it up to eleven: confessions are plain and simple impossible to get (unless you pay to win). As someone who was rather vocal about my frustrations last year, I would take a repeat of last year over what we have now any day. Again, 2016 was fine. They decided it was a good idea to change it, it turned out to actually be a pretty horrible idea, so next year they decided to change it even more. That's what I meant when I said they were going with change for the sake of change. It almost feels a bit like a childish way to spite end-game players: "Oh, you threw a hissy fit because the grinding that was only open to you in the first place got harder? Well, now you can't grind at all anymore! How do you like that?" Maybe it's my (and everyone else who's frustrated) attitude that's the problem. Maybe we shouldn't approach Hallowmas as an event that can give use great rewards, but rather as a fun seasonal thing and if FB is kind enough we might even be able to snag some unique items. Elections barely give you anything aside from the initial gift, yet nobody complains. However, I think that the problem is that Elections don't dangle juicy rewards in front of us then make it nigh impossible to collect them all. And looking at the other events, pretty much every time end-game and/or highly active players have no trouble getting everything there is to get: Fruits of the Zee is comfortably completable in 2 weeks unless your luck is abysmal beyond measure; Christmas is complicated but even on my first one I got almost everything I wanted, and importantly next year it's all available again and won't be Fate-locked and rotated out for a new set of rewards; Feast of the Rose has all its non-Fate-locked rewards easily obtainable in one year, and again it doesn't rotate rewards yearly; and the aforementioned Elections don't have much in the way of rewards, but the one exclusive gift that is only available for free once requires no grinding whatsoever. This, I suspect, is the source of frustration. Hallowmas used to follow this pattern too: you just need to play enough during the two weeks and you'll be rewarded! But not anymore. And following the backlash last year when this pattern was first broken, FB doubled down on making Hallowmas the one event where no matter how end-game you are and how actively you play, you can't get everything - not even the most important bits. And that's where my question of "Why?" stems from - what was wrong with 2016 Hallowmas? Why did that, out of all the other events, get branded as "too easy" and get embarked on a quest to prevent players from "completing" it? I find myself sincerely hoping the Rosers story doesn't give any unique material rewards whatsoever, because a couple of the companions are amazing this year and so is the mayoral weapon and I can just barely get them (while missing out on the companions that are "very nice" but not quite "amazing"). And if there's another good item revealed, I'll be forced to give something up, and there's literally nothing I can't do - and I don't understand why this choice is something that should be forced on me, and on everyone. Does Failbetter think it makes the game more fun? Or the items more exclusive? Or do they just want to prey on those who won't be able to resist flushing down their wallets to get the coolest virtual items? Or do they have some abstract design goal they're trying to steer the event towards but can't seem to get right? The latter seems the most plausible, hence my inquiry. What is it you're trying to do, dear Failbetter? -- Dudebro Pyro, eccentric scholar Spare Starveling Kitties always welcome. I collect them. For that matter, send me your unwanted cat boxes too.
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Jolanda Swan Posts: 1789 10/30/2018	I, for one, am not complaining because there was change. That's fine, even if you don't agree with it. And I'm certainly glad that feedback is very often heard. I also loved the Roser's story. But the rest -lack of gameplay, lack of any explanations, lack of ways to get confessions- still stands. And again, festivals are what endgame players are waiting for. edited by Jolanda Swan on 10/30/2018 -- Lover of all things beautiful, secret admirer of ugly truths, fond of the Parabola Sun... and always delighted to role play. http://fallenlondon.com/profile/Jolanda%20Swan
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Skinnyman Posts: 2133 10/30/2018	Optimatum wrote: I'm pretty sure the switch from Notability 5 to Notability 8 was because the former is absolutely trivial for endgame players. With max BDR, Notability 5 is entirely free, so whenever someone drew the Amanuensis card they could get a confession in only ten actions. Most people ground further to Notability 6 because it was faster than waiting to draw the Amanuensis. If Failbetter had only increased the difficulty to Notability 6, I think people would have been fine with that. Most endgame players would have managed just fine with Notability 7, even if they didn't enjoy it. But Notability 8 didn't work well for anyone. Indeed this is true, but... Optimatum wrote: I still think that Notability is a bad idea for a seasonal currency in the first place, though. Either it's trivial for some people or impossible for others, and no matter what it locks the newest players out entirely. Maybe if confessions just needed raw MW it would work, but that has issues too... As I suggested in the feedback thread, just increase the Notability cost after buying confession; start low and end up high (very high?). I find it fun to have a grind during seasonal events, but last year the pressure was too big! But what if FBG did the best possible thing? Completely remove Notability requirement just because many people went for PP, which is a horrible grind. Having to farm Notability to level X after PP may have been too much for some people. What ever the case, I bow to FBG for attempting such new risks with seasonal events! -- 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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Tay1or Posts: 163 10/30/2018	Jason5237 wrote: Tay1or wrote: Don't mix apples and oranges! &quotNo new items&quot is NOT the same thing as &quotno changes.&quot We're talking about changing mechanics, here, I think. The comparison is apples to apples. There was nothing new in this year’s FotZ festival at all. Aside from a few scentences by the new mayor, there were no new items, no new content, no mechanical changes. J- Hi Jason: Here's my point. You seemed to argue that folks complained that nothing had changed in FotZ, but are now complaining that too much changed here. I am stating that what folks complained about with FotZ was not that the NOTHING had changed, but that there were no new items, and there was next to nothing with the new mayor like there had been the year before. So the mechanics of FotZ had not changed--folks complained because there was no new material. Now folks are not happy with the new mechanics of Hallowmas. That's a different from what made them unhappy about this year's FotZ. That's why I called that particular point comparing apples to oranges. Thanks--Tay1or
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Ed Rolison Posts: 57 10/24/2018	Vortigaunt wrote: Does the asking him about what he's been up to give any items, or just lore? I know it costs 10 Favor, but how much Favor is a confession worth? 10 favour gets you a 2.5E Extraordinary implication and: https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Sobrique/14988577 I feel a little bit robbed. I don't feel that's worth 2 confessions, especially if they're limited.
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Jolanda Swan Posts: 1789 10/24/2018	Perhaps we will have the chance to acquire extra confessions next week? Via Flash Lays, Heists, Cases or any other mechanic? -- Lover of all things beautiful, secret admirer of ugly truths, fond of the Parabola Sun... and always delighted to role play. http://fallenlondon.com/profile/Jolanda%20Swan
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Jolanda Swan Posts: 1789 10/24/2018	I love the setup. I am going to miss the invdividual confessions, but this is another way to get lore - the confessions themselves feel more mechanical, but the Rosers' story will probably offset that. Now, how can we grind confessions? I am sure something will come up; I doubt the festival will consist of us waiting for the free confessions. -- Lover of all things beautiful, secret admirer of ugly truths, fond of the Parabola Sun... and always delighted to role play. http://fallenlondon.com/profile/Jolanda%20Swan
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Zarremgregarrok Posts: 29 10/24/2018	Be careful on "Let Slivvy Speak" storylet. You can buy a last year's companion you already own. (until devs fix it) Those options cost Fate, so... Tread carefully. edited by Zarremgregarrok on 10/24/2018 -- Main and a professor of some note: Zarremgregarrok No Affluent Photographer requests, or healing offers; all other social actions welcome.
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Ed Rolison Posts: 57 10/24/2018	earthbourn wrote: In terms of getting all companions...wouldn't the Unassuming Judge upgrades be mutually exclusive? Only if you can't get another one after upgrading. The storylet is locked by owning an unassuming judge, as far as I can tell? So if it's gone it might work again?
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Optimatum Posts: 3666 10/24/2018	earthbourn wrote: In terms of getting all companions...wouldn't the Unassuming Judge upgrades be mutually exclusive? Once you upgrade the Judge, you can get a new one for five Society favours in the Palace. Isaac Gates wrote: So I can get the Contrarion's weapon without spending any fate? Yes, at the cost of doing basically anything else. Saklad wrote: I still don’t see any storylet for acquiring confessions. I did, however, notice that the storylet explaining how to get them mentions that you can trade progress with a faction for more. Hopefully, this means that we’ll be able to increase faction progress without using confessions as the festival progresses. Looks like you get one progress for one confession or from upgrading one companion. The question is whether progress has any uses besides betrayals, in which case three progress for one confession is a waste. (There should be a separate storylet to get a couple free confessions, like last year.) -- Optimatum, a ruthless and merciful gentleman. No plant battles, Affluent Photographer requests, or healing offers; all other social actions welcome. Want a sip of Cider? Just say hi! PM me for information enigmatic or Fated. Though the forum please, not FL itself.
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earthbourn Posts: 149 10/24/2018	In terms of getting all companions...wouldn't the Unassuming Judge upgrades be mutually exclusive? -- Tenterhook - A sun-seared creature learning to be human. The Mechanist, L. - Found what she was looking for. Gone now.
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Saklad Posts: 528 10/24/2018	I still don’t see any storylet for acquiring confessions. I did, however, notice that the storylet explaining how to get them mentions that you can trade progress with a faction for more. Hopefully, this means that we’ll be able to increase faction progress without using confessions as the festival progresses. -- Saklad5, a man of many talents
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Turlion Posts: 8 10/25/2018	I've seen several posts in this topic that express frustration and disappointment over the inability to experience all of the Hallowmas content without paying fate. I shared this dissatisfaction at first; however, I took a step back and looked at this issue from Failbetter's perspective and now, not only do I not hold it against them, but am actually satisfied with the way they are handling this event. Think about this game as if it were an actual brick-and-mortar shop that just got in a new assortment of seasonal luxury goods. They put the new items in their display window to entice all of their customers into buying them. Nobody would be upset at the store for not giving these items away for free, they are for sale and are presented to customers for purchase. This is what Failbetter has done; they created new products in the form of content for their game (companions, lore, and a powerful item) and now they are trying to sell them to us. They are not taking anything away from us, they are just offering more, for a price; in fact, they are going one step further than a shop would by telling all of us that we can take one item out of the display case, for free, as a gift for being loyal customers. I can't fault failbetter for trying to sell their customers products, it's a business after all. The only thing I could fault them for is that they are wrapping a sales pitch in the guise of a holiday celebration. But then don't all stores do exactly that? and at the end of the day they are giving us a holiday gift, just not all of the gifts they possibly could. edited by Turlion on 10/25/2018 -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Turlion
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The Ambivalent Dynamo Posts: 41 10/25/2018	Curious. After you get at least 2 "clues" is there any point to increasing the princess/widow/duchess' 'progress on investigation'? I'm being rather frugal with my confessions so I rather not use them up willy nilly when I could give them to the mayor. -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/The%20Ambivalent%20Dynamo Happy to take most social actions except plant-related ones. Don't hesitate to send one.
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Raihan Posts: 41 10/25/2018	Would a +20 Persuasive weapon be the best Persuasive weapon in the game? If not, I'll probably not pursue it. More relevant to my interests, will the free confessions be enough to unlock all the lore material for the Rosers? Is there any way to figure that out at this point?
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Deathjack999 Posts: 140 10/25/2018	Great Pigmeat wrote: Guys, I'm extremely confused. I was able to play Hallowmas 1896: An Envoy from the Elder Continent again just now. I got another pet and got another Confession out of it. Not that I'm complaining (hey, another free companion for upgrading!) but surely that can't be how we get extra confessions? It doesn't even make sense narratively - I met the Envoy for "the first time"...twice now. This just makes me think FBG has dropped the ball spectacularly. -- Send me anything social, My FL account has the same username as this one. Ambition Status: Waiting for new content in Bag A Legend.
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Raihan Posts: 41 10/25/2018	dov wrote: Raihan wrote: Would a +20 Persuasive weapon be the best Persuasive weapon in the game? Absolutely. The best Persuasive weapons until now have been the +12 from the Correspondent or Crooked-Cross profession items. I should have realized that since I equip the Pot of Violant Ink. That makes it a much harder decision than it would be. Now I have to decide between lore and equipment, or spend money I can't afford. Bummer.
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Akernis Posts: 255 10/25/2018	Great Pigmeat wrote: Guys, I'm extremely confused. I was able to play Hallowmas 1896: An Envoy from the Elder Continent again just now. I got another pet and got another Confession out of it. Not just an extra Confession, but you can collect another two as well. I have six now. Not quite sure how to feel about this. I love getting more confessions but this does feel like a bug. -- Vena's profile - http://fallenlondon.com/Profile/Akernis
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Suhe Gul Posts: 200 10/25/2018	I only got a confessin from mayor, no extra two confessions today like some people mentioned I need moreeee or some way to grind for them. -- http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/suhe%20gul I am open to social actions except affluent photographer and loitering. Correspondent and willing to make orphanage calls. Want a sip of cider? http://community.failbettergames.com/topic20425-want-a-sip-of-hesperidean-cider-heres-how.aspx
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Kharsirr Lynx Posts: 318 10/25/2018	Where can I find this Hallowmas: The Aftermath of an Audacious Theft quality exactly? -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Kharsirr%20Lynx
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Azothi Posts: 586 10/31/2018	Easily the best part of this Hallowmas. And, of course: [spoiler] *This concludes the Mystery of the Rosers. but the story of Arbor and its Embassy will continue in the future.* [/spoiler] -- Azoth I, the Emissary of Cardinals - A Paramount Presence (not currently accepting new Proteges) Away to where the Chain cannot bind us. Hesperidean.
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Lot Posts: 2 11/1/2018	Dudebro Pyro wrote: I'd appreciate if somebody completely spoiled everything that happens depending on how many confessions you have, probably in a PM. What exactly do I get to choose if I have all 3 clues? And are there any significant middle ground choices if you have only one or two clues? Finally, of you don't have Progress 3 with anyone and end up with the Contrarian, does that lock you out of anything else? I realise that I'm asking for a lot, but I'm definitely getting this year's weapon and then there are some companions I really want, so this choice is extremely difficult for me and I want to make sure I make the right one, and don't end up regretting it. Well, without spoiling anything, there's a line of text related to each character's clue. It's basically a reminder of what that clue was, in case you forgot or didn't understand how it fit into the big picture. Of course, there's the antique mystery (1 per clue) that a fellow mentioned earlier. Apparently there's a separate dialogue for getting all three, (I don't know for sure which that might be, although I can hazard a guess). So, you would miss that for not getting all three. Choosing the Contrarian or anyone else will lock you out of the other three's respective endings; that's it. There's no mechanical loss, you can still continue to trade confessions for companions or the favor of the mayor. There are no middle ground choices, the Contrarian is the closest to it. To get one of the ladies to reveal their ending, you need three progress from them and only them. I hope this clears some things up for you or anyone else~
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Felixnyancat Posts: 4 11/2/2018	So I rummaged through the internet to find the images of some companions involved in this year's upgrade. Only got 100x130 ones. Took me 5 minutes to alter the colors. Results are blurred but theoretically given higher resolution things should be cakewalk. Maybe our beloved FBG will be interested? https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=1zvdhMHg24uPKSuoxvxz5joFUiQ1fROKC (Didn't mean to take matters into hand. But given the opportunity, why not?)
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Azothi Posts: 586 11/5/2018	Dunecat wrote: Siankan wrote: ...I will say, however, that few of London's citizens were around when the Duchess was in her late twenties... And certainly not you. Are you certain, Professor? Are you _quite_ certain? Not the "professor", but yes, quite certain. The full context is important here: Siankan wrote: few of London's citizens were around when the Duchess was in her late twenties. The Masters. The landlord of everyone's favorite hotel. Perhaps a few others. Not the Widow. And certainly not you. With a sufficiently loose definition of "citizen", nothing about that is incorrect. -- Azoth I, the Emissary of Cardinals - A Paramount Presence (not currently accepting new Proteges) Away to where the Chain cannot bind us. Hesperidean.
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Siankan Posts: 1048 11/5/2018	d.m. wrote: - In this strange world, where physical age does not make sense, the concepts of old and young are more likely a characteristic of the soul. Well, if you want to know about souls, you'll want to call up the Devils. However, we are talking about very real, very literal age. The Duchess was born [spoiler]roughly 3,200 years ago, give or take a few decades.[/spoiler] Of course, you are precisely right in implying that the Duchess is much more than just an old lady with cats. Not that belies the fact that she is, in fact, an old lady with cats, of course. edited by Siankan on 11/5/2018 -- Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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Krysin Posts: 34 11/6/2018	I've liked this Hallowmas! The Mayor taking the Lady's Progress was a bit of a curve ball, but ah well. The companions are phenomenal, though unique portraits would spice things up. Where's the bow on the August Feline? Love love love the Rosers story! I'm waiting with bated breath for more. I appreciated that grinding for confessions wasn't a part of it this year. I admit, I have mixed feelings about grinding and Christmas. I love the stories with the Mayor more and more. Mysterious character. Every interaction with him seems to speak new volumes. -- I am Krysin.
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Jolanda Swan Posts: 1789 11/9/2018	MidnightVoyager wrote: PETS FOR THE PET GOD, I OBTAINED THEM ALL. ...I'm fine, really. If you need me, I'll be sitting on my hoard. ...not as in, literally sitting on all the poor creatures plus the judges, I hope. -- Lover of all things beautiful, secret admirer of ugly truths, fond of the Parabola Sun... and always delighted to role play. http://fallenlondon.com/profile/Jolanda%20Swan
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Pnakotic Posts: 266 11/4/2018	[spoiler] "Does she remember how she came to this place? No." [/spoiler] Oof. That drew some goosebumps. edited by Pnakotic on 11/4/2018 -- J. Ward Dunn, Glassman Book of All Hours 9:99: Journey's end in lover's meeting. Progress is ascendancy.
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Optimatum Posts: 3666 11/9/2018	That's definitely some severe RNG. I drew it almost every day. -- Optimatum, a ruthless and merciful gentleman. No plant battles, Affluent Photographer requests, or healing offers; all other social actions welcome. Want a sip of Cider? Just say hi! PM me for information enigmatic or Fated. Though the forum please, not FL itself.
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Ragnar Degenhand Posts: 197 11/8/2018	Lady Sapho Byron wrote: "Mr Huffam interviews you in the 'ambassadorial suite'. The real thing is still under construction ..." 'The real thing,' you say? The real thing? That whole passage with "ambassadorial" dropped in wherever you could fit an adjective (and some where you couldn't) was an absolute hoot. -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Ragnar%20Degenhand
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MidnightVoyager Posts: 858 11/8/2018	PETS FOR THE PET GOD, I OBTAINED THEM ALL. ...I'm fine, really. If you need me, I'll be sitting on my hoard. -- Midnight Voyager - A blood-cousin to predators. Collector of beasts. Affably mad.
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rahv7 Posts: 294 11/7/2018	We have collected all the echoes over at reddit. If you want to take a look, you find everything here: https://www.reddit.com/r/fallenlondon/comments/9uz58y/collection_of_interview_results_work_in_progress/ edited by rahv7 on 11/7/2018 -- It's possible people have forgotten that there is an actual devil in the actual Lord Mayor's office. A devil who is promising to look after people's souls. What is wrong with everybody? https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/rahv7
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Μαρσ Posts: 49 11/7/2018	You can find the interview and gazette edition for the Very Lenient Judge my profile page. (I haven't got any experience with wiki editing) -- Μαρσ, A Londoner, Zubmariner, Chef, a Doctor, and an Invisible Eminence. All social actions are welcomed.
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Barse Posts: 706 11/7/2018	phryne wrote: On the topic of The Attendants: -snip- [spoiler]If the Roseate Queen isn't one of the Duchess' sisters then she's at least a descendant/from the Second City, 100%! I wanna believe that the Queen is one of the Sisters, but if she is then she isn't the same person as the Obstinate Adoratrice. The Adoratrice is the second eldest sister, and the one that went South to the Elder Continent and ended up in Arbor is the fifth.[/spoiler] -- The Scorched Sailor, up for most social actions and RP. Not as scary as he looks.
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Skinnyman Posts: 2133 11/7/2018	Update: Betrayed the Princess and the Widow, got some help with some confession exchange and I ended up with Duchess progress 12, but no new options. -- 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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Shalinoth Posts: 493 11/7/2018	My main went with the Widow to Arbor. The text to speak with her says she's nowhere to be found (rather conveniently, considering she's always in a darkened room when we meet her in London) but surely while preparing to depart, and whilst crossing into Arbor together, we caught a glimpse of her? Where is the shocking reveal of her true countenance, illuminated by a honey-hued false-sun and the light from the South? -- Profiles: Shally, Chimes & Jack~of~Smiles . . . Current Goal:
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GluestickGenius Posts: 5 11/7/2018	I could not resist to give the interview myself. Echo Who did you let Huffam speak to? -- Profile
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d.m. Posts: 17 11/6/2018	Siankan wrote: d.m. wrote: - In this strange world, where physical age does not make sense, the concepts of old and young are more likely a characteristic of the soul. Well, if you want to know about souls, you'll want to call up the Devils. However, we are talking about very real, very literal age. The Duchess was born [spoiler]roughly 3,200 years ago, give or take a few decades.[/spoiler] Of course, you are precisely right in implying that the Duchess is much more than just an old lady with cats. Not that belies the fact that she is, in fact, an old lady with cats, of course. edited by Siankan on 11/5/2018 Thank you for this particle of knowledge. The image acquires third dimension. So it’s not for nothing that I didn’t trust this Old Lady . Just want to note that I was talking not about that soul that can be sold to the devil. I simply do not have enough words for such stuff. -- It's me, Drawen.
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Tsar Koschei Posts: 202 11/4/2018	Shalinoth wrote: Am I right that there's no point getting Clues from just 1 of them if we don't plan to get all 3 clues? I have enough confessions to get 3 progress with one of them, but not 3 clues, so I think that lets me walk the Arbor with them. For the alt with random unhelpful confessions that can't be turned into progress.. I assume just hold on to them and see what event's end offers. I think I can walk with the Mayor for 'free' on the alt, so long as I have no Progresses at 3. Having a 1-3 clues lets you choose to solve the mystery instead of witnessing the solving. Each clue then gains you 1 antique mystery, and each also has a short text passage associated with it. You need all three clues to become the ambassador yourself. 3 progress, on the other hand, is needed to take anyone other than the mayor with you to Arbor, and to see them appointed ambassador if you prefer them over yourself or have less than 3 clues. -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Tsar%20Koschei Sanguine Ribbon Society tournament champion. No chess, loitering, friendly sparring, coffee at Caligula's or Affluent Photographer, please.
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Optimatum Posts: 3666 11/5/2018	According to the friendly code wizard, items being rearranged is an unintended result of some back-end changes and will be fixed (hopefully) soon. -- Optimatum, a ruthless and merciful gentleman. No plant battles, Affluent Photographer requests, or healing offers; all other social actions welcome. Want a sip of Cider? Just say hi! PM me for information enigmatic or Fated. Though the forum please, not FL itself.
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Siankan Posts: 1048 11/5/2018	Dunecat wrote: Siankan wrote: And certainly not you. Are you certain, Professor? Are you _quite_ certain? Let me put it this way: How many Cities have you seen Fall? -- Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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Jolanda Swan Posts: 1789 11/2/2018	Shalinoth wrote: Turns out I don't need any upgrades, having best in slot from things like Laconic Prodigy and Newly-Born Frost-Moth.. can I earn the Mayor's Private Debating Lessons weapon before picking which companions to flavour-upgrade? If I can, how? Is this weapon entirely separate from the 'special option' default ending I've been reading about here? You can go to the Halowmass storylet and talk to him. DON'T ask him what he is up to, this consumes his favor. Start giving him favors. Once you give him 10, that will be enough for the weapon. Just be careful: the mayor will take any confession you give him, but companions need specific confessions. So make sure you give him speifically the ones not needed for companion upgrade. -- Lover of all things beautiful, secret admirer of ugly truths, fond of the Parabola Sun... and always delighted to role play. http://fallenlondon.com/profile/Jolanda%20Swan
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Raihan Posts: 41 11/3/2018	Tsar Koschei wrote: silurica wrote: Thjazi wrote: Has anyone Betrayed any of the princesses to the Contrarian? Does that grant Favor? Doing so only gives 2 Favours, it's not worth it. Better to betray the ladies to each other and get a confession (6 Favours) for each betrayal. I still think this was a serious failure in design. It's basically a trap for unwary players. I, for one, fell for it. Beating myself up over it, because this means I'l miss his Weapon by just 2 favours. Really annoyed.
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Jolanda Swan Posts: 1789 11/2/2018	I did the full mystery, and got two companions (all from the same princess, so it still counted towards mystery progress). To get the weapon, I still need Fate. I would need even more if the companions I wanted belonged to a different Princess. So yes, you don't have to be a completionist to need Fate here. -- Lover of all things beautiful, secret admirer of ugly truths, fond of the Parabola Sun... and always delighted to role play. http://fallenlondon.com/profile/Jolanda%20Swan
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Tsar Koschei Posts: 202 11/3/2018	Skinnyman wrote: We don't know how/if progress will affect this event's ending. I find it best to just sit with 3P and wait for any official words. If any, you can adjust your plan accordingly. After all, Mr. Huffmans may require some material for his interviews! edited by Skinnyman on 11/3/2018 Well, I would view this business with Arbor as the actual ending of the event, and whatever might still lie ahead with Huffam or what have you will be epilogue. In any case, I brought the Widow along with me to Arbor, but I'll still have to betray her to get the Contrarian's lessons. -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Tsar%20Koschei Sanguine Ribbon Society tournament champion. No chess, loitering, friendly sparring, coffee at Caligula's or Affluent Photographer, please.
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Siankan Posts: 1048 11/1/2018	Dudebro Pyro wrote: Alright, one last question: how much effort is required to get Progress 3? I assume each action (getting a ckue, upgrading a companion, donating a confession) gives 1 progress, correct? Yes -- Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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Raihan Posts: 41 11/1/2018	I made the mistake of asking the Contrarian why he was interested in the confessions, and lost a whopper of favours. And now I'm going to be short one confession of getting the Contrarian's weapon. Sigh.
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SamNorrey Posts: 41 11/1/2018	Dudebro Pyro wrote: Alright, one last question: how much effort is required to get Progress 3? I assume each action (getting a ckue, upgrading a companion, donating a confession) gives 1 progress, correct? Betraying another faction also gives 1 progress. -- http://fallenlondon.com/Profile/Sam~Norrey
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Guest 11/1/2018	Welp, given that I spent a bunch of confessions to get lessons from the Jovial Contrarian and companions on my main account, my alt (a seeker) got the ending first. Went with the Widow (who he toasted at the end of the shadowy storylets) and let her be ambassador given that he's got an obsession to sort out and can't really take on any other responsibilities. Think I'll go with the princess on my main (given we role-played marriage and bloody conquest together) then become ambassador myself- only fitting that someone with a backstage destiny has political connections in the land of dreams. edited by Isaac Gates on 11/2/2018
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Jolanda Swan Posts: 1789 11/1/2018	I got the 3P/3C ending, took the special option. I wonder if I "betray the princess" now for the mayor's favor, do I destroy anything in my story? -- Lover of all things beautiful, secret admirer of ugly truths, fond of the Parabola Sun... and always delighted to role play. http://fallenlondon.com/profile/Jolanda%20Swan
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Azothi Posts: 586 11/2/2018	Dudebro Pyro wrote: This is hurting my brain. 1. Sanity check - how many free confessions are left after I write this? 3, right? Yes; one on Friday, Monday, and Tuesday. Dudebro Pyro wrote: 2. If you pick the Contrarian, does he also go walk with you in Arbour or does that mean you ultimately go at it alone? He joins you in Arbor. -- Azoth I, the Emissary of Cardinals - A Paramount Presence (not currently accepting new Proteges) Away to where the Chain cannot bind us. Hesperidean.
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Monara Posts: 162 10/31/2018	The bug I mentioned above has been fixed. And support has been awesome as always and let me redo the ending. -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Miranah
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Skinnyman Posts: 2133 10/31/2018	Thank you both, Hannah and Monara! If someone has more free time, I would love to see the full mechanic implications of this event explained! -- 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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Monara Posts: 162 10/31/2018	It's an opportunity card, but it seems fairly rare this year. It should be noted that the card can be drawn even without meeting the requirements listed, but you will not be able to choose any of the options on it. -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Miranah
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Hannah Flynn Administrator Posts: 491 10/31/2018	Monara wrote: NNNnobody wrote: I lost track of how many confessions we're still to get. Could someone remind me? Is it enough to do some solving? Five more if I'm not mistaken. Tomorrow, Friday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and that's the 7th which is the last day. edited by Monara on 10/31/2018 There's no confession on the 7th because the event will end at noon, which would leave people in incompatible timezones in a bit of a flap. -- Wields the news canon, aboard the hype train.
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Dudebro Pyro Posts: 756 10/31/2018	I'd appreciate if somebody completely spoiled everything that happens depending on how many confessions you have, probably in a PM. What exactly do I get to choose if I have all 3 clues? And are there any significant middle ground choices if you have only one or two clues? Finally, of you don't have Progress 3 with anyone and end up with the Contrarian, does that lock you out of anything else? I realise that I'm asking for a lot, but I'm definitely getting this year's weapon and then there are some companions I really want, so this choice is extremely difficult for me and I want to make sure I make the right one, and don't end up regretting it. -- Dudebro Pyro, eccentric scholar Spare Starveling Kitties always welcome. I collect them. For that matter, send me your unwanted cat boxes too.
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DNA Cowboys Posts: 10 11/1/2018	Golver5 wrote: Could anyone link the echo for making the princess or the widow ambassador? We expect the Widow will perform her duties with all appropriate tact. https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/dna_cowboys
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Arcengal Posts: 196 10/25/2018	Glad it wasn't just me who was confused by replaying the storylet. -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Arcengal
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Optimatum Posts: 3666 10/24/2018	Official word is that after today's three free confessions, it's one free confession every weekday through the 6th. If you don't get the confessions you want, you can always trade with other players though. -- Optimatum, a ruthless and merciful gentleman. No plant battles, Affluent Photographer requests, or healing offers; all other social actions welcome. Want a sip of Cider? Just say hi! PM me for information enigmatic or Fated. Though the forum please, not FL itself.
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Saklad Posts: 528 10/24/2018	earthbourn wrote: In terms of getting all companions...wouldn't the Unassuming Judge upgrades be mutually exclusive? A previous Hallowmas upgraded the Rubbery Bellringer. You could just play the storylet to get another one afterwards. In this case, you’ll be able to upgrade the Unassuming Judge, get another one, upgrade THAT one, then get another. -- Saklad5, a man of many talents
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Optimatum Posts: 3666 10/24/2018	Preliminary analysis on the Discord is that, without any way to grind confessions, we'll get 12 free confessions and need to buy 34 more with Fate to get everything. edited by Optimatum on 10/24/2018 -- Optimatum, a ruthless and merciful gentleman. No plant battles, Affluent Photographer requests, or healing offers; all other social actions welcome. Want a sip of Cider? Just say hi! PM me for information enigmatic or Fated. Though the forum please, not FL itself.
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Azothi Posts: 586 10/24/2018	Is there a place to procure Confessions through Notability this year? -- Azoth I, the Emissary of Cardinals - A Paramount Presence (not currently accepting new Proteges) Away to where the Chain cannot bind us. Hesperidean.
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James Sinclair Posts: 253 10/24/2018	What's the difference between spending confessions with the Princess, Widow, and Duchess to gain Clues (which uses 2 confessions) and spending confessions on them to increase Progress (which uses 1)? I know the Envoy is looking for Clues, but what exactly does increasing Progress do? -- James Sinclair Curator of the Sanguine Ribbon Society 🗡 A fully-fledged rêveur of The Night Circus. Wines is red Spices is yellow But old Jack-of-Smiles Is a murderous fellow ☠
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NotaWalrus Posts: 221 10/24/2018	Can we get confirmation on whether there will be a way to get extra confessions without fate? -- http://fallenlondon.com/Profile/NotaWalrus Ignacious, the Fluid Professor, he will accept most social invitations, including boxed cats and affluent photographers (but only betrayals), though he is absent-minded and might take more time than entirely necessary. He apologizes.
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Deathjack999 Posts: 140 10/24/2018	Me: When the option to acquire Confessions disappares completely. "Well this is garbage." Seriously, why does this Hallowmas punish you for having hight MW? -- Send me anything social, My FL account has the same username as this one. Ambition Status: Waiting for new content in Bag A Legend.
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Parvorus Posts: 42 10/24/2018	Isaac Gates wrote: Alrighty then, I guess I'll use my secret obsessed alt to figure out the mystery then. Unless... I was told recently that you can use hallowmas as a way to bypass a significant amount of grinding SMEN, if that's the case- how so exactly? Assuming the same action exists this Hallowmas, you also can find someone else with SMEN 35, St. Cerise's Candle and not St. Destin's Candle, who has to sacrifice one of each Confession to cause massive stat damage to you both (halved stats for them, -200 CP each for you) to give both of you St. Destin's Candle. edited by Parvorus on 10/24/2018 -- Feel free to send me anything other than Photographers. ►My Profile◄
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dov Posts: 2580 10/24/2018	Amalgamate wrote: Apparently, +20 persuasive. And +2 Dreaded. -- 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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Evariste S. Crumbledon Posts: 138 10/29/2018	I still regret sharing secrets with the Mayor: 3 progresses for 2 favours only is a 16 favours loss... Hard-paid lessons... -- Evariste S. Crumbledon
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Jason5237 Posts: 298 10/29/2018	Barse wrote: If you go and re-read the thread from last year's Hallowmas, I think you'll find out exactly why Failbetter thought they needed to fix Hallowmas this year. While I don't necessarily agree with all of the design decisions that have been made this year, these decisions appear to have been made in direct response to the slew of community criticism that Hallowmas faced last year. Criticising Failbetter for changing festivals while at the same time, every year, insisting that the festival is busted and needs changing seems to me to be a little unfair. As a community I think it is extremely important to maintain this kind of collective memory. If there had not been uproar over last year's decisions, different decisions would not have been made this year, and that's important to keep in mind. At the very least Failbetter need to be credited for hearing our criticisms and being willing to take new approaches in an attempt to address these criticisms, for trying all this new stuff in an attempt to improve an event which was received quite poorly. I think it's likely that next year Hallowmas will reappear in a yet-again different incarnation, precisely because of all of the comments in this thread here. And next year it'll be important to remember, if we don't like the changes that are made, that this time last year change was all that we were clamouring for. Failbetter are, when it matters, responsive to our feedback, and while I'm bordering on the insufferably pretentious this feels like a good time to remember where they got their name. Well said. I think it's also important to remember that the forum members represent a small contingent of the overall FL population, along with being the most vocal. The challenge any designer has is to balance this feedback with the goals and evolution of the game/universe. On a related note, the thread feedback about this year's "Fruits of the Zee" festival were largely negative because there were no changes! So I'm sure it sometimes can feel like there will be constructive criticism no matter what. J- -- H.G.R.: Adventuer, Explorer, Paramount Londoner https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/User766505
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Tay1or Posts: 163 10/29/2018	I think the best upgraded art was the Tigress with the Tiara! I moved heaven and earth that year to get one for myself and all 3 of my alts. If I had to choose just one critter to get new art--it would be the four kinds of bats, but that's for another thread. I do love upgraded companions--the descriptions that go with them, etc. are so fun. I must say this year, I'm really enjoying what each of the three ladies is doing to the various critters!
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Tsar Koschei Posts: 202 10/26/2018	So... the optimal companion play here seems to be Scuttering Scoundrels and Very Lenient Judge, which adds up to 10 in every attribute. If I've understood right, it should be possible to get both of these plus the Mayoral weapon with no fate, right? -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Tsar%20Koschei Sanguine Ribbon Society tournament champion. No chess, loitering, friendly sparring, coffee at Caligula's or Affluent Photographer, please.
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Ed Rolison Posts: 57 10/26/2018	Tsar Koschei wrote: So... the optimal companion play here seems to be Scuttering Scoundrels and Very Lenient Judge, which adds up to 10 in every attribute. If I've understood right, it should be possible to get both of these plus the Mayoral weapon with no fate, right? weapon will cost you 10 confessions, scoundrels 3, judge 2. You should get 12 'normally' and another 5 from the code. So you _should_ have enough. But you might not have the right combination. The judge I'm not so sure about, as .... well, Overgoat and Ubergoat are considerably better, but there's not really any companions better than +10 in the other stats. edited by Ed Rolison on 10/26/2018
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Catherine Raymond Posts: 2518 10/25/2018	I got three free ones today through the storylet, PLUS the five from the access code. (I've already used two of the ones I got, however.) -- 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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Kaigen Posts: 530 10/25/2018	Just an FYI to anyone out there like me who's looking for ways to have their cake and eat it too this Hallowmas: Betraying someone's Progress to the Contrarian only gives 2 points of favour, or 1/3rd the value of a confession, so it's not even close to a worthwhile thing to do unless you ended up there by accident through hasty donations from a confusion of options coughcough. Edit: To make matters worse, if I had betrayed one of them to the other, it looks like I'd have gotten a full confession that I could have turned around and given to the Contrarian for 6 points rather than a measly 2... edited by Kaigen on 10/25/2018 -- Just a simple doctor with a chess habit. Publisher of The Flit Dispatch. "One must remember that the impossible is, alas, always possible." -Jacques Derrida
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earthbourn Posts: 149 10/25/2018	Dudebro Pyro wrote: Akernis wrote: Great Pigmeat wrote: Guys, I'm extremely confused. I was able to play Hallowmas 1896: An Envoy from the Elder Continent again just now. I got another pet and got another Confession out of it. Not just an extra Confession, but you can collect another two as well. I have six now. Not quite sure how to feel about this. I love getting more confessions but this does feel like a bug. Huh, I was one of those people who didn't get the storylet at all but this morning it appeared for me so I finally got my three free confessions. It looks as if FB tried to fix the situation but instead might have reset the Aftermath quality of various unrelated players as well (perhaps everyone?), letting people who did get their confessions already grab them again. I met the Envoy again and my Aftermath quality was reset to 2, but I don't have the storylet to pick up more confessions. -- Tenterhook - A sun-seared creature learning to be human. The Mechanist, L. - Found what she was looking for. Gone now.
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Jolanda Swan Posts: 1789 10/26/2018	I would also like to know how much progress/clues you need to get the 'ultimate' Rosers ending. Is it three clues? 6 progress? All of the above? The soul of my firstborn? edited by Jolanda Swan on 10/26/2018 -- Lover of all things beautiful, secret admirer of ugly truths, fond of the Parabola Sun... and always delighted to role play. http://fallenlondon.com/profile/Jolanda%20Swan
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Optimatum Posts: 3666 10/25/2018	Monara wrote: The options to spend 3 progress at the mayor to gain 2 favor are especially insulting, considering spending the 3 confessions directly would have granted 18 progress instead, and even using one of the betray options to effectively gain a confession in exchange for 3 confessions is more efficient than that. If I understand the mechanics correctly, you get 1 progress for every companion you upgrade. So giving confessions for progress and betraying is absolutely a poor choice, but you can eke out a few extra confessions from progress obtained by upgrading. I would think that 3 progress would become 6 favour though. -- Optimatum, a ruthless and merciful gentleman. No plant battles, Affluent Photographer requests, or healing offers; all other social actions welcome. Want a sip of Cider? Just say hi! PM me for information enigmatic or Fated. Though the forum please, not FL itself.
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NinjaComedian Posts: 202 10/26/2018	When does the daily story to get a new confession appear? I got my 3 on Wednesday evening (and now the five from the access code) but I never saw any way to get the daily confession I expected yesterday at all. So I want to make sure I don't miss today's one either. With the five extra, I don't too much if I missed one but missing two would make my plans for the festival a little hard to complete.
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Honeyaddict Posts: 501 10/26/2018	Jolanda Swan wrote: I would also like to know how much progress/clues you need to get the 'ultimate' Rosers ending. Is it three clues? 6 progress? All of the above? The soul of my firstborn? edited by Jolanda Swan on 10/26/2018 It shall most definitely require the soul. The devils shall give you Confessions for it that you can turn in for Clues and Progress! -- Honeyaddict, Scarlet Saint, Paramount Presence pleasure to meet you. Has some ideas the Masters won't approve of like some items and establishing a Colony in Parabola. I will accept most social interactions (not duping). I do enjoy role playing as well. Have some possibly still active codes!
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Deathjack999 Posts: 140 10/27/2018	Okay, so, funny story. I ended up opening the Gate of Midnight...but I forgot that I already had Authority from Last Neathmas, so now I can't get rid of the storylet and the Confession Collection storylet won't show up. -- Send me anything social, My FL account has the same username as this one. Ambition Status: Waiting for new content in Bag A Legend.
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Jolanda Swan Posts: 1789 10/25/2018	Same here. -- Lover of all things beautiful, secret admirer of ugly truths, fond of the Parabola Sun... and always delighted to role play. http://fallenlondon.com/profile/Jolanda%20Swan
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Catherine Raymond Posts: 2518 10/25/2018	Catherine Raymond wrote: Hannah Flynn wrote: We had a few bugs in the first day of Hallowmas that caused confusion, and prevented some players from engaging with the festival. There's been more than one bug that has caused problems, and while we’ve now made all the fixes we need to, the experience has been uneven across players. In recompense, here’s an access code for five additional free confessions to help you enjoy the holiday! We’ve made a few changes this year, and people who’ve played a few Hallowmasses will have different understandings of what to expect. As always, our refrain is: please don’t make assumptions about a festival based on how it worked the previous year! It especially confuses new players, and causes worry. A few notes which might help relieve some of the worries that we've heard about: We’re giving out a total of 12 free confessions this year, aside from the additional 5 we’ve made available on an access code (above). These will be given out one per weekday (not at weekends) until the 6th (because timezones make the last day a bit dicey). There won’t be an achievement this year for collecting all of the companions. Mr Huffam will want to ask you about your favourite achievement in the festival, out of all that you've done this year. There are multiple endings to the Mystery of the Rosers. To get the most unique ending you'll need to gather all of the clues, which will require 6 confessions. To get the 'default' ending will require no confessions at all. Some players will probably want to get this ending for roleplaying reasons. There are alternative endings which will require 3 confessions to access. These endings will all be revealed and available from the 31st, and you'll be able to see what you need to achieve each before committing to any of them. We hope the above is helpful, and we are collecting feedback and data about the festival which will enable us to improve it next year. Thanks everyone! Thanks for the access code! EDIT: I might have had more than 3 today because I have 8 now, and I did upgrade a companion this morning. I can't really check because I'm in the ES, and probably will be for a while. -- 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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Raihan Posts: 41 10/27/2018	Tsar Koschei wrote: I was hoping that might be the case. So it seems my best bet is to trade for the Widow's clue before betraying her to the Princess. If I'm not mistaken, that should make it possible for me to get both the mayoral weapon and all 3 clues? For my own understanding, the Investigation requires a total of 3 clues? And the Progress for each character is separate from those clues?
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Deathjack999 Posts: 140 10/27/2018	elderfleur wrote: Regarding the Confessions Collection stoylet, there's no new Confession today (only weekdays) so if you collected yesterday's it's not going to appear until Monday. Well, now I just feel stupid. Edit: Also now that we have the Arguing Lessons, the only Stat not to get a +20 modifier Item is Shadowy, isn't it? edited by Deathjack999 on 10/27/2018 -- Send me anything social, My FL account has the same username as this one. Ambition Status: Waiting for new content in Bag A Legend.
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Tsar Koschei Posts: 202 10/27/2018	Rasvarmo wrote: what is the point of progress? How much progress do we need with each faction? Is there a point to maxing out progress with each faction (and is that even possible)? Furthermore, is it better to gain progress by trading confessions, or by upgrading companions? This is exactly what I was getting at in my posts above. As far as I can tell, progress has no value in itself. It's just a by-product of acquiring other things, and the only use it has is to be traded in for something useful via betrayal. If there IS some other use for progress, I don't see what it could be. -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Tsar%20Koschei Sanguine Ribbon Society tournament champion. No chess, loitering, friendly sparring, coffee at Caligula's or Affluent Photographer, please.
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Tay1or Posts: 163 10/29/2018	Drake Dynamo wrote: Tay1or wrote: Not changing the art for upgraded companions is a major, major bummer. We got the cool new bat last year--but same art. And this year, to make it worse--when I have a regular mandrake it shows up right next to the upgraded one instead of above in it's "history slot" or however that used to work. So identical tiles sitting side by side for the upgraded companions. That's a huge disappointment. As someone suggested in the thread--even just changing the background color would be better than nothing. No new art last year and this year, no new items at the zee festival--it really seems like they're just going through the motions. I totally agree with you, but as I understand it, some people who definitely don't enjoy fun actually complained about the new art, and so they got rid of it. So blame the other players for that poor decision. I don't mean that new art--I mean slightly changing the old art to go with the upgrade, like the new accomplice got new hair and earrings, and I think a new henchman got a scar etc. The bat, the BWA, the Utterly Livid, and the Thunderwings Batling all have the exact same tile! Though to be fair, the the BWA was always the same as the sulky one. I so with for different bits of bat art--even just a little change would be so awesome.
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Siankan Posts: 1048 10/29/2018	Dudebro Pyro wrote: And that's where my question of "Why?" stems from - what was wrong with 2016 Hallowmas? The lack of anything interesting if you don't care about the companions springs to mind. I assume that was at least partly behind Feducci's lance. (Also, it was redeeming the promise that we'd see the Mayor appear through the year.) I suspect, but cannot confirm, that the addition of the Rosers to this year may have had a similar thought behind it. After all, if you do not care about companions, or about equipment, or about the story of the game, I have to start asking whether you are, in fact, playing Fallen London. Even if, for argument's sake, I grant that there may not be something for everyone this year, I think it's safe to say that the approach is pretty close. Jason5237 wrote: On a related note, the thread feedback about this year's "Fruits of the Zee" festival were largely negative because there were no changes! So I'm sure it sometimes can feel like there will be constructive criticism no matter what. Well, yes. Perhaps without the "constructive" part. If you do anything publicly, you are going to get feedback, and you will almost certainly get negative feedback. It's something one has to learn to deal with, and one has to learn how to sort out useful feedback from griping. You will never, ever make everyone happy, and you will fail miserably if you try. That said, to quote (paraphrase?) Mark Rosewater, if everyone likes your game and nobody loves it, it will fail. His example was the "rare poll," where potential card designs were circulated through the company. If one card gets half 10/10 and half 1/10 and a second gets all 7/10, which will be successful? The first. If you're doing something right then people are going to be passionate about it, and some of those people are going to passionately hate it. That is, in its own way, a measure of success. -- Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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Vortigaunt Posts: 51 10/24/2018	Does the asking him about what he's been up to give any items, or just lore? I know it costs 10 Favor, but how much Favor is a confession worth? -- http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/Vortigaunt
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Suhe Gul Posts: 200 10/24/2018	and I was so prepared for another notability grind I was also holding back from getting cider just in case we needed something else at hallowmas and there is no way to acquire extra confessions this year -- http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/suhe%20gul I am open to social actions except affluent photographer and loitering. Correspondent and willing to make orphanage calls. Want a sip of cider? http://community.failbettergames.com/topic20425-want-a-sip-of-hesperidean-cider-heres-how.aspx
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Deathjack999 Posts: 140 10/24/2018	My problems with the current set up are that we will most likely only get three goes at grabbing Confessions a day...and the fact that they are dictated through something similar to the Airs and Openings. Also I talked to the Mayor before I grabbed any Confessions and apparently that counted towards my three. Also it's mildly annoying that grabbing a Confession sends you back to the Main Story tab. -- Send me anything social, My FL account has the same username as this one. Ambition Status: Waiting for new content in Bag A Legend.
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Shalinoth Posts: 493 10/24/2018	I stand corrected! But continue to be amused by its plural implications. edited by Shalinoth on 10/24/2018 -- Profiles: Shally, Chimes & Jack~of~Smiles . . . Current Goal:
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James Sinclair Posts: 253 10/24/2018	Shalinoth wrote: I stand corrected! But continue to be amused by its plural implications. Honestly, I prefer your unsettling interpretation. -- James Sinclair Curator of the Sanguine Ribbon Society 🗡 A fully-fledged rêveur of The Night Circus. Wines is red Spices is yellow But old Jack-of-Smiles Is a murderous fellow ☠
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Rostygold Posts: 346 10/24/2018	Optimatum wrote: ...the Contrarian has a +20 Persuasive weapon for 10 confessions. I don't know how to feel about this. How did you know the stats for it??
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Saklad Posts: 528 10/24/2018	OK, seriously, where is this storylet? What is it called? -- Saklad5, a man of many talents
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Ed Rolison Posts: 57 10/24/2018	Isaac Gates wrote: Alrighty then, I guess I'll use my secret obsessed alt to figure out the mystery then. Unless... I was told recently that you can use hallowmas as a way to bypass a significant amount of grinding SMEN, if that's the case- how so exactly? To get a destiny of torment I believe, and thus earn St. Destin's candle? https://fallenlondon.fandom.com/wiki/The_Name
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dov Posts: 2580 10/25/2018	Kharsirr Lynx wrote: Where can I find this Hallowmas: The Aftermath of an Audacious Theft quality exactly? It's a hidden quality, but you can still see it by putting it in your scrapbook and then viewing your profile. -- 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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Kharsirr Lynx Posts: 318 10/25/2018	dov wrote: It's a hidden quality, but you can still see it by putting it in your scrapbook and then viewing your profile. Weird. Still no avail here. Just checked all scrapbook items. -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Kharsirr%20Lynx
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enail Posts: 8 11/1/2018	Just a lurker popping up to give my thoughts on this year's Hallowe'en, since it seems to be such a controversial one, and I've really loved it! Aside from the lack of information and low number of confessions early on, it's had a satisfying amount of reward available even as a pretty end-game player, some fantastic story, and adding the promise of future new story really brought it over the top. I do miss having the ability to grind to get even more goodies, but between a panicky grind for stuff I don't really need and brand-new story touching on mystery and new regions, I'd definitely take the new content. I hope the controversy doesn't scare Failbetter away from trying more new stuff like this in the future.
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Winthropx Posts: 166 11/1/2018	I sided with the Duchess and brought her with me because I had a suspension that [spoiler] Her sister would be somewhere in Arbor. I was not disappointed. I do wish to know what happened if you let the Duchess be the Embassy. [/spoiler] edited by Winthropx on 11/1/2018 -- Bishop Winthrop, a kind-hearted soul A Paramount Presence I accept all social actions His Appearance http://community.failbettergames.com/topic9363-your-characters-appearances.aspx?messageid=229809&Page=10#post#post229809
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theonie Posts: 77 11/1/2018	Gillsing wrote: phryne wrote: Hint: Before you go and play the ending (which takes you somewhere else) use up your opportunity cards. Your hand will be refilled upon returning to London. My hand? Not just my deck? I thought the hand of cards in London was supposed to always remain intact, and not be replaced, like it used to be when entering a different location. Oh, I hope not; I've been saving two mood cards for a while and I'd hate to lose them! -- theonie, an inescapable, midnight, terrifying, and irresistible lady. All social actions except Affluent Photographer welcome. As a Midnighter, will gladly accept all invitations to Orphanages.
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Azothi Posts: 586 11/1/2018	theonie wrote: Gillsing wrote: phryne wrote: Hint: Before you go and play the ending (which takes you somewhere else) use up your opportunity cards. Your hand will be refilled upon returning to London. My hand? Not just my deck? I thought the hand of cards in London was supposed to always remain intact, and not be replaced, like it used to be when entering a different location. Oh, I hope not; I've been saving two mood cards for a while and I'd hate to lose them! No, only the hand will be refilled. It's just a normal mistake; don't worry. -- Azoth I, the Emissary of Cardinals - A Paramount Presence (not currently accepting new Proteges) Away to where the Chain cannot bind us. Hesperidean.
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Raihan Posts: 41 10/31/2018	Azothi wrote: You can both choose one of the princesses to solve the mystery of the Rosers and get the ending requiring all six confessions (which is available by trading them in for a clue from each of the princesses). Mechanically, it makes the most sense to choose the Jovial Contrarian, because otherwise you're operating at a loss of at least 1 confession. Does choosing a princess mean maximizing their Progress before going in to visit the Envoy? And does choosing the Contrarian mean giving him the confessions? Or is it something in the context of solving the mystery for the Envoy? I just would rather not go to the Envoy blind about what I'm giving up. Thank you for any clarification.
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IHNIWTR Posts: 346 10/31/2018	[spoiler]I feel like the duchess has a greater personal connection to that story than the Princess - but I could only discover that connection once I actually made a choice, one way or the other. Knowing what I know now, I'd go with the Duchess over the Princess because of that personal connection[/spoiler] -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Daniel%20Vaise
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Optimatum Posts: 3666 10/31/2018	Raihan wrote: Azothi wrote: You can both choose one of the princesses to solve the mystery of the Rosers and get the ending requiring all six confessions (which is available by trading them in for a clue from each of the princesses). Mechanically, it makes the most sense to choose the Jovial Contrarian, because otherwise you're operating at a loss of at least 1 confession. Does choosing a princess mean maximizing their Progress before going in to visit the Envoy? And does choosing the Contrarian mean giving him the confessions? Or is it something in the context of solving the mystery for the Envoy? I just would rather not go to the Envoy blind about what I'm giving up. Thank you for any clarification. The Contrarian is the default, so he comes along if you don't have 3 Progress with any princess, at no cost to yourself. -- Optimatum, a ruthless and merciful gentleman. No plant battles, Affluent Photographer requests, or healing offers; all other social actions welcome. Want a sip of Cider? Just say hi! PM me for information enigmatic or Fated. Though the forum please, not FL itself.
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Jolanda Swan Posts: 1789 10/31/2018	Ι am waiting for the candles to reload, so far the writing is beautiful. I am following the injurious princess. -- Lover of all things beautiful, secret admirer of ugly truths, fond of the Parabola Sun... and always delighted to role play. http://fallenlondon.com/profile/Jolanda%20Swan
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Catherine Raymond Posts: 2518 11/2/2018	Raihan wrote: I made the mistake of asking the Contrarian why he was interested in the confessions, and lost a whopper of favours. And now I'm going to be short one confession of getting the Contrarian's weapon. Sigh. Sympathy. I made the same mistake. If I had not, I'd be able to collect clues from all three of the Princesses....And I refuse to pay Fate to remedy the consequences of my carelessness. -- 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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Gillsing Posts: 1203 11/1/2018	Skinnyman wrote: Let's see if I got it correct: 1) Pick on of the princesses and donate 2 confessions 3 times; 6 confession 2) This takes me to 1C and 3P 3) Pick the other two princesses and donate 2 more confessions for the other clues 4) Now I'm at 1+1+1C and a princess with 3P 5) Now, after using 8 confessions, I can dream about Elsewhere and pick one of the princesses to get the X walks with you in Arbor quality ... Is there any flaw in this? Yes, kind of? The steps look wrong, but it still leads to 8 confessions, 6 of which need to be specific, 2 of which need to be of the two types your chosen princess accepts. Only the Mayor accepts all six kinds of ancient confessions. 1) Pick one of the princesses and donate 2 confessions 2) This takes you to 0C and 2P 3) Donate 2 confessions to each princess for all three clues 4) Now you're at 1+1+1C and a princess with 3P 5) Now, after using 8 confessions, you can dream about Elsewhere and pick one of the princesses to get the X walks with you in Arbor quality (I haven't done 5, so I don't know if that's how it works, but I can look at the princess storylets and see how much each clue and progress costs.)
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Harry P. Posts: 116 11/1/2018	Okay, let me see if I got everything straight. If I were to solve the mystery without a single Clue, or 3 Progress with a faction, I get the default ending with the mayor. Having Clues results in a reward, with having all 3 Clues resulting in an unique dialogue option. Having 3 Progress with one Faction results in a special ending featuring that faction during tbe finale. Both Clues and Progress are mutually exclusive to one another, with neither affecting the other's route in the finale. All in all, I can either start the finale with 0 Clues and 0 Progress, 3 Clues and 0 Progress, 0 Clues and 3 Progress, or the 'best' ending with 3 Clues and 3 Progress. Am I correct? -- Harry P.: http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/HarryP22h A Magnanimous Gentleman Author with a tendency for melancholic monologues. Elizabeth K. Broker: http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/Elizabeth%20K%20Broker A Socially-Awkward Dueling Trickster with a thirst for vengeance and a soft spot for urchins. If you are ever in need of any assistance, do not hesitate to ask either of them. The second one is still finicky, though.
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CountOrlock Posts: 2 11/1/2018	Could someone just make a guide for this, and mention all the endings, so I can figure out what they are and which one I want before I commit? I'm scared of getting an ending I don't like. edited by CountOrlock on 11/1/2018
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Skinnyman Posts: 2133 11/1/2018	CountOrlock wrote: What is this 'special option'? Also, if you choose the Contrarian, do you get lore about the Contrarian? edited by CountOrlock on 11/1/2018 Bit confusing because of the many redirects, but Wiki helps! This is the special option (spoilers, of course!). -- 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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Monara Posts: 162 11/1/2018	john sledge wrote: Where i can trade confessions? I have too many of curiosity... Find people to trade with here: http://community.failbettergames.com/topic26882-hallowmas-confession-trading.aspx In-game, the option is the second one under the top-level storylet 'Hallowmas 1896: Where Did the Rosers Go?'. Apparently there's a separate dialogue for getting all three, (I don't know for sure which that might be, although I can hazard a guess). Just to be clear, the reward for getting all three clues is not just dialogue, but also something else with possible future implications. edited by Monara on 11/1/2018 -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Miranah
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Gillsing Posts: 1203 11/1/2018	Harry P. wrote: If my understanding is correct, the 'best' ending requires 3 clues, one from each faction, and 3 Progress with one faction, totaling around 5 confessions. Am I right in assuming so? Also, do we need one of each confession, or will any do, as long as the total amount is correct? Doesn't each clue cost two confessions? And then you have to at the very least donate two confessions to the faction you want to bring to Progress 3, so that'd be 8 confessions in total. More if you want to upgrade a companion to increase progress instead of just donating a confession. ________________________________ edited by Gillsing on 11/1/2018
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Kaigen Posts: 530 10/31/2018	@Jules Asimov: At the moment, there are no mechanical effects from either choice that I am aware of. It seems likely that there will be some effect in the future, but it is impossible to know what that might be at this point in time. -- Just a simple doctor with a chess habit. Publisher of The Flit Dispatch. "One must remember that the impossible is, alas, always possible." -Jacques Derrida
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d.m. Posts: 17 11/2/2018	Jolanda Swan wrote: ... I would need even more if the companions I wanted belonged to a different Princess... Sorry but this is mistake. You may spend exactly the same amount of confession using betrayal. Remember that betrayal gives one confession and one progress. You begin with progress 0+0+0 After all clue you have 1+1+1 After two companions 3+1+1 or 2+2+1 In the first case you are ready. For the second case you must add 1 confession to get 2+3+1, then betray and get 3+0+1 and confession. First you use the confession then get it back. <<Here was my mistake, sorry>> edited by d.m. on 11/2/2018 edited by d.m. on 11/2/2018 -- It's me, Drawen.
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silurica Posts: 210 11/3/2018	Thjazi wrote: Has anyone Betrayed any of the princesses to the Contrarian? Does that grant Favor? Doing so only gives 2 Favours, it's not worth it. Better to betray the ladies to each other and get a confession (6 Favours) for each betrayal. -- Meika Osborne, the Reckless Researcher Leonard West, the Scarlet Informant Chizuru Nishiooji, the Rueful Ex-Diplomat
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Dunecat Posts: 6 11/5/2018	I had referred to the "certainly not you" part specifically. [spoiler] Urchin ancestor tribes date roughly to the Second City. They had access to Nadir. Admittedly, I do not know how long ago Knotted Sock tradition of diamond-in-a-sock appeared. [/spoiler] Siankan wrote: Dunecat wrote: Siankan wrote: And certainly not you. Are you certain, Professor? Are you _quite_ certain? Let me put it this way: How many Cities have you seen Fall? Oh, I don't recall. edited by Dunecat on 11/5/2018 -- Dr.
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Bobblehead Posts: 7 11/5/2018	Good time of the day, delicious friends! It happened so I've been out of the city for most of the Hallowmas, and thus require assistance. What are the ultimate companions this season? Are there any particularly cunning,ferocious or charming (11 or more) among them? I humbly await your answer and wish to repay the favour in any possible way. Thank you beforehand. -- A brute, a charmer, a loyal friend and an amateur Zee-captain. Bobblehead's mantelpiece
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Bobblehead Posts: 7 11/5/2018	Then a weapon it is! Thank you very much, delicious friend! -- A brute, a charmer, a loyal friend and an amateur Zee-captain. Bobblehead's mantelpiece
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Tay1or Posts: 163 11/5/2018	Not only that, but somebody's moved all my companions around...
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Tsar Koschei Posts: 202 11/5/2018	Gillsing wrote: It's well past the time when I would have expected an opportunity to acquire another confession on this weekday. Did the Mayor notice that confessions were being tossed into an incinerator, and decided to interfere, forcing someone at Failbetter Games to write up a new storylet? I just picked up my confession for the day, same as last week. Last one tomorrow. -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Tsar%20Koschei Sanguine Ribbon Society tournament champion. No chess, loitering, friendly sparring, coffee at Caligula's or Affluent Photographer, please.
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Tay1or Posts: 163 11/5/2018	Yep, mine came at last. Don't like the rearrangement of my companions, though. Did I miss something?
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Tay1or Posts: 163 11/5/2018	Perhaps--but it should happened next week! Making it tough to keep track of which I've upgraded and which I still need to upgrade this time around-- Also the old way was kind of a history of what order stuff came in-- edited by Tay1or on 11/5/2018
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Tay1or Posts: 163 11/5/2018	Oh--that's good! I really preferred the old order.
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Skinnyman Posts: 2133 11/5/2018	Siankan wrote: *snip* Ah. You mean that she appears to be a young-ish woman? That makes rather more sense. Young-ish, ancient, what's the difference? Want to pop here and say that the story from this event was more that I thought we will get! As a dream-lord, I adored this intro and can't wait for the continuation of this story! This adds to the 77 mogs and two new exquisite felines! Well done, FBG, well done! -- 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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d.m. Posts: 17 11/5/2018	Isaac Gates wrote: Siankan wrote: Isaac Gates wrote: The Duchess isn't actually old. She's actually a gorgeous woman in her late twenties/early thirties, she just wears makeup and prosthesis. She certainly wears a lot of makeup, this I grant. As for being old... well, that's for spoiler tags. I will say, however, that few of London's citizens were around when the Duchess was in her late twenties. The Masters. The landlord of everyone's favorite hotel. Perhaps a few others. Not the Widow. And certainly not you. I meant physically. Thanks. I have not advanced as far in this game as you, but allow me some remarks. - In this strange world, where physical age does not make sense, the concepts of old and young are more likely a characteristic of the soul. One can be born already old and one may die still young. - There is some lore and there is an avatar, and all this together creates a character. If something looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then undoubtedly it is ... a cat. Simply it is well disguised. But inside it is white and fluffy. - When you hide under the mask who are you? The mask or the one who is inside. And if it goes on for so long? It is likely that a year later I change my mind because I'll know much more. But for me here and now the duchess appears in the image of "an old lady with cats". By the way, in our real world, this role can be played in twenty, there would be a desire. -- It's me, Drawen.
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Tsar Koschei Posts: 202 11/4/2018	Solving it just means giving the envoy the clues you've gathered. Bit of extra text and the mysteries as rewards. It all leads to the same ending in Arbor. So it comes down to whether you prefer the Widow or the Contrarian as ambassador. edited by Tsar Koschei on 11/4/2018 -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Tsar%20Koschei Sanguine Ribbon Society tournament champion. No chess, loitering, friendly sparring, coffee at Caligula's or Affluent Photographer, please.
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Dunecat Posts: 6 11/5/2018	Siankan wrote: ...I will say, however, that few of London's citizens were around when the Duchess was in her late twenties... And certainly not you. Are you certain, Professor? Are you _quite_ certain? -- Dr.
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Lady Karnstein Posts: 278 11/7/2018	This Hallowmass was a lot of fun. I would have liked to have had Caroline be able to use her Notability but still, good all around. -- Lady Caroline Karnstein, The Moral Hedonist (Description) Infamous writer, artist, and courtesan. Unrepentant Invert. Hesperidean. Paramount Presence, Correspondent, Nocturnal. Poet Laureate of the Neath, Ambassador to Arbor
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PSGarak Posts: 834 11/7/2018	Shalinoth wrote: I just finished escorting the Princess to Arbor. It seems her progress, despite being cashed in, can still be 'betrayed' mechanically. Is that worth doing, or might there yet be rewards for that progress? It seems more like a mechanical oversight that we even still have this Progress after returning from Arbor. Betraying gives a random confession. We have no way of knowing what rewards might be available for unused progress, but personally I would put a rather high value on a 1/6 chance for a Confession of Violence. -- http://fallenlondon.com/Profile/PSGarak
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SamNorrey Posts: 41 11/6/2018	Jolanda Swan wrote: Am I correct in assuming we're getting one last confession today? Yes, it was announced that we'd get the last confession on the 6th. -- http://fallenlondon.com/Profile/Sam~Norrey
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Anne Auclair Posts: 2215 11/6/2018	Does picking the Mayor raise liberation of the night? -- http://fallenlondon.storynexus.com/Profile/Anne%20Auclair
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rahv7 Posts: 294 11/6/2018	Anne Auclair wrote: Does picking the Mayor raise liberation of the night? No, it doesn't. -- It's possible people have forgotten that there is an actual devil in the actual Lord Mayor's office. A devil who is promising to look after people's souls. What is wrong with everybody? https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/rahv7
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Diptych Administrator Posts: 3493 11/7/2018	Sir Fred went for Duchess interview; Hubris for self-as-ambassador; Juniper for Haunting Lamentations; Esther for Debating Lessons. Results in their respective profiles! -- Sir Frederick, the Libertarian Esotericist. Lord Hubris, the Bloody Baron. Juniper Brown, the Ill-Fated Orphan. Esther Ellis-Hall, the Fashionable Fabian.
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Tsar Koschei Posts: 202 11/7/2018	Sir Frederick wrote: Sir Fred went for Duchess interview; Hubris for self-as-ambassador; Juniper for Haunting Lamentations; Esther for Debating Lessons. Results in their respective profiles! And what of the rewards? -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Tsar%20Koschei Sanguine Ribbon Society tournament champion. No chess, loitering, friendly sparring, coffee at Caligula's or Affluent Photographer, please.
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Diptych Administrator Posts: 3493 11/7/2018	A Sworn Statement and a decent chunk of Making Waves each - enough to go from ~8 to ~10. -- Sir Frederick, the Libertarian Esotericist. Lord Hubris, the Bloody Baron. Juniper Brown, the Ill-Fated Orphan. Esther Ellis-Hall, the Fashionable Fabian.
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dov Posts: 2580 11/7/2018	For all: If you'd be so kind, besides the echoes of the different results, can you please check your qualities and find under Accomplishments the new quality "The Unexpurgated Gazette: Hallowmas Edition of 1896" (you might need to refresh the page) and find the quality's value (can be seen when hovering over it) and unique text? Help us fill the gaps here. Thanks! -- 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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Tsar Koschei Posts: 202 11/7/2018	Looks to be the same 25 MW as in previous years, I went up most of the way from 37 to 38. -- https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Tsar%20Koschei Sanguine Ribbon Society tournament champion. No chess, loitering, friendly sparring, coffee at Caligula's or Affluent Photographer, please.
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silurica Posts: 210 11/7/2018	dov wrote: Thanks. Do you have the resulting text echoed? Yeah, here: https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/Aster%20Belmont/15137690 -- Meika Osborne, the Reckless Researcher Leonard West, the Scarlet Informant Chizuru Nishiooji, the Rueful Ex-Diplomat
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CameoAppearance Posts: 146 11/7/2018	I have inflicted the Contrarian upon Mr Huffam. I got stuck on whether to take the ambassadorship myself or give it to him, but on reflection I think I made the right choice both because I think he'll genuinely be good at it and because just about every interaction he has with other characters is hilarious. -- Dr Cameo “Scary Teeth” Thurlow, that toothy androgyne with the wickedly sharp curly quotes
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Siankan Posts: 1048 11/7/2018	phryne wrote: On the topic of The Attendants: -snip- [spoiler]The Duchess's clue made me think it was a possibility; however, once we got her it is clear that this sister has been in Arbor for many, many years. As of 1895, the other sister had been in a palace by herself, so deep into dream that only one person had found her, for many, many years. Thus, it seems that we have the location of a second sister. Somewhere, at some point (was it during The Attendants?), the Duchess said something relevant about her sisters and their fates. I can't lay may hand on the text, but she did say something about one of her sisters on the Elder Continent. My early guess is that this is that sister.[/spoiler] edited by Siankan on 11/7/2018 -- Prof. Sian Kan, at your service.
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phryne Posts: 1351 11/7/2018	On the topic of The Attendants: [spoiler]This has probably been speculated about somewhere already, but is the Duchess' sister from that ES the same person as the Queen of Arbor we meet now? Is the Queen a different sister of the Duchess? Or not a sister at all?[/spoiler] I'd also love to know who wrote the whole Arbor content for this Hallowmas! -- Accounts: Bag a Legend • Light Fingers • Heart's Desire • Nemesis • no ambition Exceptional Stories, sorted by Season and by writer ― Favours & Renown Guide
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rahv7 Posts: 294 11/7/2018	NinjaComedian wrote: Will the storylet for the interview hang around, or do we have to do the interview within say a week? It'll not be around forever. About a week may be right, but I don't think we have any official word on the exact time. -- It's possible people have forgotten that there is an actual devil in the actual Lord Mayor's office. A devil who is promising to look after people's souls. What is wrong with everybody? https://www.fallenlondon.com/profile/rahv7
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NinjaComedian Posts: 202 11/7/2018	Will the storylet for the interview hang around, or do we have to do the interview within say a week? I'm not currently on the Notability treadmill though I am due to start another run to overcap another stat to 215. And a single action generating 25 MW might be useful to bank until I get to the higher Notability levels.
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lolahighwind Posts: 27 11/7/2018	Crap, I didn't see any options for the Princess in the interview, I must not have raised her progress enough (there was just the Princeling of the Wakeful Court and Myself) Was the interview the only place to conclude the story, or will there be something else? -- Aquila Highwind, the Adamant Monster-Hunter Dionysus Highwind, the Lost Wastrel (Gone NORTH) Ruby Valdez, the Opulent Operative
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dov Posts: 2580 11/7/2018	lolahighwind wrote: Crap, I didn't see any options for the Princess in the interview, I must not have raised her progress enough (there was just the Princeling of the Wakeful Court and Myself) Was the interview the only place to conclude the story, or will there be something else? Progress was not a factor in Huffam's interview. The completion of the story was by talking with the Envoy and solving the Mystery of the Rosers. Now it's just the epilogue. Basically, with Progress 3 you could have taken that person (e.g. the Princess) with you to Arbor, and potentially have her be appointed Ambassador. That would have given you her option for Huffam's interview. -- 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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Shalinoth Posts: 493 11/8/2018	The princely mog is so snooty, and spiteful, I love it ! -- Profiles: Shally, Chimes & Jack~of~Smiles . . . Current Goal:
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Daisy MacRae Posts: 19 11/9/2018	I drew the visitor card multiple times on the two accounts that already have a destiny -- but not at all on the two that don't have one yet despite having adequate MW/nightmares. I feel most thoroughly taunted by the RNG. -- The Disquisitive Writer. Correspondent. Dawnburnt. Slightly Mad.
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Dudebro Pyro Posts: 756 11/9/2018	And the way I see it card economy doesn't even matter that much. Like last time when they made all the faction cards Frequent for the whole event. -- Dudebro Pyro, eccentric scholar Spare Starveling Kitties always welcome. I collect them. For that matter, send me your unwanted cat boxes too.
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Hallowmas 1896: The Mystery of the Rosers