Random Event Contributions

[Zwackus]

You take a quick shortcut between some hedges to avoid <Random Low Relationship Character>. “I saw you, @Player Name@!” <he/she> calls. <he/she> is following you! Just then, you spot a hole under an old stone wall. It’s just big enough to climb through, and you know <he/she> isn’t going to follow you there and get all dirty. You scramble through on your hands and knees and emerge on the other side just in time to hear <Character> run past. You’re safe now!

 

Only then do you notice where you are . . . at the entrance to some kind of hedge maze!

 

1 – You’ve heard rumors of a dangerous maze that traps students, and you don’t

have time to deal with that now. (Exit, -1 to Curiosity)

 

2 – Memorization – Try to remember if you’ve heard something about this before.

Investigate – Success – Mysterious hedge maze, walled off, near Avila College . . . yes, you have heard something about that. Unfortunately, it was when you were listening in to a conversation between some older students, and you couldn’t understand most of what they were talking about. It definitely had something to do with geometry, though. – Result, show Geometry option.

Investigate – Failure – You remember hearing a story <Random High Relationship Character> told you about a maze that closed up behind you. The only way to survive was to run as fast as you can! – Result – show Running option.

 

3 – Puzzles – Enter the maze, and leave a trail of breadcrumbs behind you so you don’t get lost. (Very Hard)

Success – You enter the maze, confident that there’s no puzzle you can’t solve. The maze is tricky. It seems like it loops back on itself in ways that should be impossible, but you ignore that and focus on your goal. It’s a puzzle, and like any puzzle, there’s a solution. Patience, logic, and dedication eventually pay off when you emerge from the hedges into a small clearing at the maze’s center. There’s a small plaque on a pedestal. Etched onto the plaque is a map of the maze, which makes your mind swim if you consider it carefully, and a small caption explaining that the maze was built as a physical solution to Hans Edlun’s Fourth Geometric Quandry. <Insert better name/problem from lore here> Hmn, interesting. (Exit, +1 Puzzles, +1 Geometry Problems Research)

Fail – You start off confident, but quickly realize that this maze is no ordinary puzzle. Straight lines are not straight, right angles don’t behave properly, and turning around has unpredictable results. When you unexpectedly end up back at the start of the maze, your frustration turns to relief, and you leave the whole thing behind you. (Exit, -1 Confidence, +2 Stress)

 

4 – Climb – Climb a nearby tree, and try to figure out the layout of the maze.

Investigate – Success – You slowly make your way up the tree, looking carefully for branches that seem strong enough to hold you. When you look down at the maze, though, something is not right! The paths twist and fold into themselves in ways that are impossible, and seem to shift every time you blink. It makes you dizzy, and before you know it, you’ve slipped off the branch and fallen onto the soft ground below. You wake up hours later, just moments before curfew, and run back to your dorm. (Exit, Vitality -1)

Investigate -- Fail – Climbing the tree is more difficult than it looks, and after fifteen minutes you’re right back where you started. (No effect)

 

5 – Geometry Problems – Tackle the maze as a giant geometry problem.

Success – Four right angles make a squared triangle, but if you cut across the

center vertex and divide by . . . the twists and turns of the maze become less a

physical space and more an expression of profound and inexplicable geometric

laws. The twists and turns are not directions laid out on a two-dimensional map,

but rather arguments and statements in a giant geometric puzzle. Fortunately,

it’s a puzzle that was solved long ago, and you studied it in class. Seeing the

solution made into physical space is an incredible experience. At the center of the maze there is a small clearing, with a marble pedestal and a bronze plaque. The plaque shows the formal solution to Hans Edlun’s Fourth Geometric Quandry, the very same solution you just retraced in the maze. Cool. (Exit - +1 Confidence, +1 Geometry Problems, +1 Geometry Laws)

Failure – The maze definitely has something to do with geometry – impossible geometry! You quickly realize that this is simply beyond your level, and make for the exit. ( Exit - -1 Confidence)

 

6 – Running – You set off at a sprint, pushing ahead at your top speed, turning the

corners as quickly as you can. However, no matter how fast you run, you don’t seem to be getting any closer to the center. Still, you can’t shake the feeling in your gut that you’re getting closer . . . to something. Something important. Gasping for breath, you make one final turn . . . and see the entrance to the maze. All that running, and you’re right back where you started. Well, at least the maze didn’t eat you! (Exit, +1 Running)

[Legate of Mineta]

EN I;

 

Excellent! Thank you.

 

Perfect use of Geometry Problems.

[nightguard]

Oh, this is a fun event, and it does seem to let you make use of some of those skills that aren't always touched upon frequently. I think my only concern here is that one of the 'success' exits results in your character taking a point of damage and no other gain for the trouble, which might leave the player feeling as though they 'failed'. If there was a bit of a compensation, it might feel less like failure, and more like an opportunity that they had for greater gain passed up for a simpler escape.

 

Other than that minor concern, I have to say that I really like this event. It's a very fun way of combining math and magic, and written very well. I can't wait to see what other ideas you have in you!

[nightguard]

Alright, here's my first submission. Admittedly, it doesn't quite hit the same mark as Norton did previously... He certainly set a high bar to start us off!

 

This event includes one @random male character@ in the setup. No actual change to your relationship with said character will result from the event; the character is simply used in the description of how things started.

 

------

 

You had never meant to cause any harm, really. It all started off with an innocent dare from @name@, challenging you to try casting a spell at a random inn patron subtlely. Unfortunately, while you succeeded in your spell, things got out of hand as your unsuspecting victim found himself on the receiving end of a number of questioning stares and half-muffled laughs. Tossing his supper to the floor as he stands, he quickly spots you, grabs you by the arm, and drags you out of the inn while flagging down a member of the local town watch.

 

Now, with the watchman threatening to take you in to the local constabulary for a night in the cell, you quickly realize just how serious this situation has become. How will you get out of this now?

 

1 - Plead with the watchman for leniency.

You are obviously in over your head this time, and beg the watchman to have mercy. You are just a first year student at the Academagia, and never intended to cause any trouble. He promises not to lock you up, but he dispatches a messenger to the Academagia, waiting for one of the professors to come pick you up.

 

You probably won't hear the end of this for a long time. (-3 merit)

 

2 - Persuasion - Try to reason with the patron that you have wronged, and hope that he will withdraw his request from the watchman.

 

*Charisma/Persuasion test

 

Success - Over the course of several minutes, you explain to the patron that you never intended to cause him any trouble, that it was just a juvenile prank. In time, calmer thinking prevails, and he agrees that he made more out of this situation than he really needed to. The watchman agrees and releases you, but not before warning you against engaging in any similar pranks in the future. (+1 Persuasion skill step, +1 Patience skill step)

Failure - While you try to convince the patron that you hadn't meant any harm, he refuses to budge. No one will make a fool of him and get away with it! The watchman, realizing that your accuser is unwilling to let the matter go, suggests a compromise in which you reimburse him for his ruined meal. He grudgingly accepts, and you reluctantly hand over the price of a meal at the inn. (-10 pims)

 

3 - Criminal Law - Cite case law stating that since you were not the direct cause of his loss, you did not actually commit a crime.

 

*Intelligence/Criminal Law test

 

Success - You cite the ruling now remembered as "No Harm, No Fowl", explaining that since your actions didn't directly cause any injury or loss of property to the patron, your actions are not actually criminal. In the original case, the injured party had also lost a duck, which the accused was not required to pay for, as the injured party had killed the duck by his own actions. By the same token, you aren't responsible for the price of his meal, as he ruined it himself.

 

The watchman considers for a moment, then nods his head in agreement. He tells the patron that there is no case against you, and you are free to go! (+1 Criminal Law skill step, +1 Patience skill step)

 

Failure - You know there was a case in which a magical prankster found himself confronted by the law, but you can't quite remember all the details. You're positive it had something to do with a chicken, but you don't really see how that applies here. After floundering with a defense for a few minutes, the watchman finally tells you that you'll have to come with him to the constabulary and give a report.

 

After several hours spent writing up your report of the events three times, you are released to return to the Academagia. Clearly, playing magical pranks on the townspeople is more trouble than it is worth. (+2 stress)

[Legate of Mineta]

Draigh;

 

We here at Black Chicken always approve of fowl puns.

 

This is great!

[nightguard]

Draigh;

 

We here at Black Chicken always approve of fowl puns.

 

This is great!

I think you have me confused for someone else, Legate.

[Legate of Mineta]

Ah, apologies, nightguard.

[Cailean_the_Bard]

Oh, this is a fun event, and it does seem to let you make use of some of those skills that aren't always touched upon frequently. I think my only concern here is that one of the 'success' exits results in your character taking a point of damage and no other gain for the trouble, which might leave the player feeling as though they 'failed'. If there was a bit of a compensation, it might feel less like failure, and more like an opportunity that they had for greater gain passed up for a simpler escape.

 

Other than that minor concern, I have to say that I really like this event. It's a very fun way of combining math and magic, and written very well. I can't wait to see what other ideas you have in you!

 

I personally love the idea of a "success" leading to damage and nothing else at times; it just goes to show that playing to your strengths won't always leave you smelling like a rose! I have no qualms about making someone lose something like a Skill Step in a failure, but I don't think I've ever done that as a consequence of a success. Damage and Stress are easily overcome; I say put 'em in!