[IC] An Explorer Gets Involved

[pappou]

Possible Scenario 'A':

[pappou]

POSSIBLE SCENARIO 'B'

Leutwo has suggested this:

"Houmala: As part of Gestoypahts

Houmala is part of the old food producing facility for the old city of Gestoypahts.
The inhabitants no longer work because they have no more crates and barrels to pack their products into. They merely do enough to feed themselves."

In light of this scenario, Leutwo has suggested that the Explorer is sent from the Mother City to TwoCities in order to repair the disruption of food supplies to the MomCity.

GREAT!
I love it. Therefore, rather than Exp jumping ship because he/she escapes from the MomCity, we may instead amend Scenario 'A' to read that:
The Explorer, having been sold into slavery to the MomCity, meets the new masters and impresses them with his/her intelligence -- not unlike Jacob being sold to the Egyptians.
Learning of the dire straights of the MomCity because they have lost their trade with TwoCities, Explorer volunteers to go to TwoCities and try to repair the collapse of production there.

What do you think?

[Luetwo]

My main problem with this story is that we explorers are here because we want to be. Originally, we found the linking book and ended up helping Atrus. Now with URU, we are the ones who descended into the cavern and the old city of D'ni.

While the Bahro did kidnap some several months ago, I really have problems with the kidnapped theme.

Right now the only known entrance into the cavern is the desert of the American southwest. Do you propose another entrance from Turkey or the part of the world? Although there still is a debate going on as to whether the ages where actually created or already existed and the books just linked to an already existing location. Or do those who kidnap the explorer link after said explorer is rendered unconscious.
I would say perhaps the linking book is found there, even in Haggia Sophia, but we already require people to travel to the desert to enter D'ni originally. Are we now going to require them to travel to Turkey to explore Gestopahts.

[Luetwo]

I am sorry to say this but I still am having problems with both scenarios. I thought we wanted this age usuable by all who are exploring the caverns and discover the book. As you have it, the explorer is kidnapped and taken to Gestopahts. I truly like the idea of the book being discovered somewhere in D'ni and then the explorations begin. Granted this is like all the other books of ages, but I do not think we need to go about reinventing the wheel.
In my original storyline, the book to Houmala was found under rubble on the docks or in an office beside the docks.
Your explorer is only helping as he tries to find his way out. The URU explorer is trying to learn of a past culture that is no more and perhaps bring those lost ages back to life.
It might work if the explorer found the book for sale in the open marketplace. he bought it and began his search. Now he has handed it over for all to help in his research.

[pappou]

pappou's response to 1, 2 and 3 above:

1. Leutwo: explorers are here because we want to be.

Yes, i see what you mean. No kidnapped themes. Perhaps, i get carried away by all the intrigue that comes out of the Turkish imagination.
OK
Lets look at a different twist then [but I am seeing something that you are not paying attention to (see #2 and #3 below)];

There is a lot of pathos in the kidnapped drama. Maybe the exp arrives at Mother City as the brother/sister to a sibling which was kidnapped? Personally, I think you can play the free card of independent choice only so far here. But the twist of seeking a sibling should should cover the 'I want to be here' thing.

2. Leutwo: Right now the only known entrance into the cavern is the desert of the American southwest.

True; but we cannot use the Cavern.
This, i am sure of: We cannot modify or invent new properties for the Cavern.
Neither our island, TwoCities, nor your age, Houmala, can be in the Cavern.
So, to that extent, entrance to the Cavern has nothing to do with us.

3 Leutwo: Your explorer is only helping as he tries to find his way out. The URU explorer is trying to learn of a past culture that is no more and perhaps bring those lost ages back to life.

True again. But i think you are still thinking in Cavern terms; maybe i am wrong?

Explain to me about, “Your explorer is only helping” by finding his way out. What else should he be doing? Tell me how he should be 'helping'. You may show me something here that i have overlooked and need to pick up on.

As for, “The URU explorer is trying to learn of the D'ni culture', you are again right. But how does anyone in Houmala learn anything about D'ni? Let me speak about that in these two ways:

i. Study of D'ni history:

Many people are still very involved in studying D'ni; that has been a part of the Uru experience from the beginning; while an explorer could always just explore for the fun of it and pretty well ignore the cultural aspects, there have always been those who were seekers after the culture.
But that sort of seeking is becoming more and more esoteric; these interests cannot be expended in the Cavern through new explorations -- unless Cyan decides to go back and open a few of their own old unpublished scenarios.

To me, this makes the Cavern a dead end. Cyan has stopped development of anything new in D'ni, and this makes the future of the Uru story seem less likely too; what seems more likely is that the tools of Uru development will be expanded, but not the Ages of Uru.

ii. Creation of new ages outside and beyond the Cavern culture of D'ni:

Contrarily, Cyan, through Yeesha and others, have lately more and more encouraged getting out of the Cavern and building new ages. Greydragon has told us to exercise our inventiveness on new ages – and this does NOT mean new D'ni ages. The D'ni culture died two and a half centuries ago and cannot be involved in our own new ages.

The 'learning of the past culture' is no longer something i care about. The future of Cyan lies in new ages which are as yet uncreated. But i think the Cyan message is encouraging us to get out of the old Cavern mentality and do just that: Get new situations going, like Houmala. Before long, Cyan has promised to give us the developmental tools to model our ages. If we have a good scenarios ready to roll when that happens, then maybe Cyan will get behind us and help us put new TwoCites books on the bookshelf.

I hope that tells you where my head is.

Still, i recognize that there are many many people who are trying to revamp bits and pieces of their hoods in the Cavern, and to remodel (just a bit) the problems in Ae'gura. They still long to see the D'ni return. If you want to do that too, then i wish you well.

But what will happen to Houmala? It is a good age because it is having good puzzles plugged into it. It is good because it is becoming a primary part of a vital island Oeconomia. Perhaps, a new empire will develop out of the Mother City, and it will be expanded accordingly. Much potential lies here.

Houmala is starting to thrive precisely because you are lavishing good inventive problem solving upon it. It will thrive as a vital part of the Island culture. It will thrive because it has nothing to do with D'ni – which died 250 years ago. I hope you stick with it. In any case:

Blessings for this glorious New Year.
January 2008

[Nadnerb]

The player/explorer cannot be "kidnapped" because they have the constant option of reltoing out any time. Even if you disable that, they can kill the game and restart it, thereby returning to Relto. (through a much more annoying route) For that reason, limiting the explorer/player's ability to escape is not possible or advisable.

You say you are not thinking about the cavern, but even if you don't touch anything in the cavern itself, you still need to have the entrance there. You mention cyan getting this age on the bookshelf, but at the same time talk as though you were not developing an age for uru. A Riven-Like storyline where the explorer/player can be trapped is not possible, and this tends to limit gameplay to exploring the age (usually hindered to some extent by puzzles) and learning about it's history, rather than affecting current events.

It is true that you can't "discover" the age in the cavern in the sense that it is an old D'ni book, but you can "discover" it in the "newly written age" sense.

[Luetwo]

Thank you. I now understand your thinking a little better on this. I will have to sleep on this to get a better idea, but what if...(1)exp could find the linking book in an old bookstore or bizarre,eventually links there, and seeing a stranger on their lands- the inhabitants capture exp and take his relto book, similar to the way the book was stolen in MystII (I think it ws 2 anyway) Then, before he will be given his book back, he must help the people in Gestoypahts. Personally I consider the ability to go home a powerful motivator and as long as they control your book, you are stuck there.
Second, I am still hoping Cyan will eventually allow a place for player ages to be a part of URU. I do realize this is wishful thinking, but I can't help myself. Since they have set up the new guild system adn that includes the Guild of Writers.

[pappou]

Possible Scenario 'C'
edited 09jan08: 09:40pm cavern time

01 StBd Shemansky BkStore -2.png (272.7 KiB) Viewed 5680 times

Shemansky looked up from his stack of letters to absently contemplate the graduate student staring through the small panes of his front window. He did not have to wonder about her being an architecture student because they were the only ones who bothered to personally find his book store.

She was tall. All the young ladies were so tall these days. It reminded not so much of his own short stature, as of a time when all Europeans were no taller than himself. She had Northern European blood in her, not Mediterranean. Wearing those puffy pants lined with flannel that New Englanders wear in the snow, it was clear that she was not all that concerned with mere appearances. He liked that. And she was wearing those funky looking Bean's ankle high rubber lace up moccasins. But why not? Here, they are the uniform. Enough musing. He had to finish these letters so he left the front to go to the upstairs computer.

Being a student of architecture, she did not mind the two hours she had spent in Shemansky's shop searching for the Beaux-Arts bible, Julian Guadet's, Elements... These old book stores were such mysterious places; besides, no one would want to go back out into that awful Nor'easter outside. And Shemansky did not keep his shop at 80 degrees like so many Bostonian shopkeepers do. She was thinking that it must be better storage for his books to be in a cooler climate; then too, it saved a bit of fuel cost.

Sipping the book store's coffee, she focused upon the small panes of the window. Must be actual 18thC fenestration, judging by the jointure of the muntins around the small wavy panes. It seemed more comforting to be looking out upon wicked squalls behind this window than being exposed through the ubiquitous plate glass.

Ah well, she sighed. Couldn't spend all day here, no matter the weather. Bending over to retrieve her heavy coat and muffler, she noticed they had been tossed over a crate of new books which Shemansky had not gotten around to cataloging. The lid was loose.

Cradling her foul weather gear over one arm, she laid aside the lid with her free hand and looked at the large folio sized book beneath the oil paper wrappers. The title was in Greek , maybe Cyrillic – the difference was unimportant to her because she read neither language.

She pushed aside the oil paper sheets to lift the cover of the top volume and – wow! In the center of those large folio pages was a neat hole let in, about six by nine inches, containing another book. She looked up to ask Shemansky about this curiosity, but he was upstairs.

The young architect pried the encased book out of its nest with her free hand and opened it atop her coat – the opening fell naturally to a thickened part in the middle. It appeared to be a hologram picture of some oriental city. And then she became seriously startled. Without realizing it she had touched the hologram and it began to move. Watching in total disbelief as the picture swirled around, she grew dizzy and nauseous before blackness enveloped her.
........

She could not have known that it had been this very same experience for previous explorers, century after century.

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see next: [B1] MOTHERCITY

[Luetwo]

I really like this. I mean REALLY like this. You have done a great job!

Do you mind if I make a sugggestion. These first puzzles should be quite basic in nature, just so they can get a sense of the explorers intellegiance. Perhaps a circuit type puzzle or something that could test spacial aptitude.

I will finish this tomorrow. I am having a terrible time spelling tonight. I think I have corrected most of my errors, but I wouldn't swear to that.

[pappou]

Thank you, thank you, for your kind words; and what do you mean: Mind if you offer suggestions?

I sorely need your suggestions and corrections. Please do tell me what you think -- else i will sink into my sea of errors.

Yes, i am starting simply. These puzzels i have been developing for years and i have a lot of response on them. But i had not really zeroed in on the 'circuit' thing. I think i know your meaning, but could you talk some more about it?

Also, Leutwo, have you had time to look at jordd's puzzles?