Would you like to contribute to Year 1?

[Legate of Mineta]

Now that the writing-minded amongst you have gotten to know how Random Events and Adventures are written, we will soon invite you to submit some of your own for general critique here on the forums. For each month's DLC we will choose one or two of the community favorites (possibly doing a little editing, mind you) and put them into the game.

 

For the would-be modders out there, this is not to replace a release of the Tools (or of your own Mods), but instead to allow the players a way to see stories they might never otherwise see and to encourage creativity.

 

On Monday I will publish the guidelines, but otherwise, feel free to brainstorm.

[Cailean_the_Bard]

Now that the writing-minded amongst you have gotten to know how Random Events and Adventures are written, we will soon invite you to submit some of your own for general critique here on the forums. For each month's DLC we will choose one or two of the community favorites (possibly doing a little editing, mind you) and put them into the game.

 

For the would-be modders out there, this is not to replace a release of the Tools (or of your own Mods), but instead to allow the players a way to see stories they might never otherwise see and to encourage creativity.

 

On Monday I will publish the guidelines, but otherwise, feel free to brainstorm.

 

 

In the spirit, is anyone just dying to have a small, semi-private library with rare and somewhat dangerous books named after something/someone they like? Reply with some cool names and I'll see what I can do

[Legate of Mineta]

Alright!

Guidelines, as promised:

Post your story here, in this forum, giving the Title of the Random Event.

You should write your Random Event as a block of:

Main Text

...follow by:

Exit 1 Description
Exit 1 Roll (Attribute and Skill only are needed)
Exit 1 Success Text
Exit 1 Failure Text

You can also specify an Investigation. An Investigation is an Exit that the Player can choose which does not resolve the Event, but provides insight, an additional bonus to one or more of the other Exits, or reveals an otherwise hidden Exit or Exits to the Player. Investigations are written the exact same as Exits:

Investigation 1 Description
Investigation 1 Roll (Attribute and Skill only are needed)
Investigation 1 Success Text
Investigation 1 Failure Text

...if you wish, you can suggest Benefits or Drawbacks for each Success or Failure Exit and Investigation.

If you wish to use Actors, you can specify them at the top of your document like so:

@Random Male Character@

...in text, you would write: "...coming down the stairs you see @Name@, and he does not look happy."

...just make sure to use the same bracketing character, so that it's easy to tell which Actor is which.

Otherwise, have fun in writing- If we get good submissions, we will include as many of them as possible in the DLC, as they are available.

 

Remember that by sending us your submissions you grant us a license to use and modify your work in our products, at our discretion. We'll do our best to get them all in, though!

 

Enjoy!

[Vegejor]

Is there the possibility to link multiple actions?

 

For example you have to fight a HUGE water monster and out of negation and incantation you choose incantation. You fire a wind spell to blow the monster apart and it does.

 

That would be the first part. That is how it currently is. But here is what I mean; right afterwards there is a second event, triggered by the first;

 

Perhaps negation would have been better as now the huge mass off water turns into something resembling a tidal wave and threathens to engulf child who was watching from the shore. Use athlethics to grab the girl and escape to safety? Or use negation to turn the enchanted water mass back to it's original/calm state.

[Legate of Mineta]

Vegejor;

 

Not for Random Events, although as a low priority improvement I could see about possibly getting that in. For Adventures, though- yes, that's possibility.

[Vegejor]

Title: Legacy of the Weeping Wall

 

Main Text: You are lost! "Off course you are lost, it is your first year after all... you are supposed to get lost." Mumbles the ghost hovering next to you. You can't remember where he first started to follow you, but now you just can't seem to get rid of him. Incantation, negation, bluff, deceit... nothing helps against the persisant ghost as it sticks to you like a bad case of Mudion's Disease.

 

Distracted and severely annoyed by the constant mumbling of your involuntary companion, you wander through corridor after corridor when suddenly you find yourself at a dead end. Annoyed and feeling stupid you take a quick look around to see if you recognise anything.

 

Unfortunately you don't. Aside from the strange smell like a graveyard and the almost tastable air of blood (ironey taste), you realise you haven't been here before. Strangely enough it seems as if you are the first to come here for century's. Thick layers of dust are everywhere and aside from your own footprints the dust hasn't been disturbed in it's settling process for a long, LONG time!

 

You wonder if you should ask your companion. After all he said he had been around since the beginning of the school so he might have seen it before it became so dusty. Besides that, ghosts are the only creatures that can go anywhere without disturbing the dust. After considering those and a dozen other options you turn around to ask him. Reluctantly though as you fear giving him attention might cause him to stick around even longer.

 

Just when you turn around to ask though you come to the startling revelation you haven't heard any mumbling since you were here. Sure enough, when you turn around you notice you are all alone in this creepy place.

Suddenly fear begins to roar it's ugly head and you feel it creeping up your spine as you realise you are all alone in this place. When suddenly the smell of death and blood becomes twice as strong and rising rapidly the urge bolt and get the hell out of there establishes itself deeply in your mind.

When suddenly something loudly starts to wheep and moan behind you can't help but run for your life before you have to put on new underwear for the third time this day.

 

EXIT 1: Curiosity: As frightened as you are, deep inside you know you will never be able to live with it if you don't find out who is weeping. Clenching your teeth and your bottom you turn around trembling so hard your teeth played three famous songs before you see who is behind you.

EXIT 1 Role: Luck & School Survival/Curiosity

EXIT 1: Succes:[/b] As the weeping grows louder you turn around only to notice there is nothing behind you but solid wall. Still the moaning is definetly coming from the direction your are looking at. Just as it starts to creep you out enough to start the need for a new pair of underwear, you notice something odd.

 

The wall is weeping. You rub out your eyes a few times, but no matter how hard you try you can't change the fact that there is a red substance oozing from the wall.

 

... A weeping wall... forget fear, forget new boxers. (you will need them afterwards though) Who cares about such trivial things when you are confronted with such curious things? Even the fact that the substance oozing from the wall turns out to be blood doesn't disturb you anymore. You start examing it with as much care and precision as a worthy scientist, when you suddenly hear a voice. Suddenly you realise you are about to make the discovery off the century! With a voice trembling with delight you answer and you are still suprised as the wall enters.

 

A few hours later you realise you are incredibly fortunate and have learned things only very few people will ever know. World fame like you first imagined is not going to happen though.

As the wall explained during your long conversation it was created using a special type of mortal. By mixing pig blood in the mortal and using the ancient "Steel Blood" spell the makers hoped the wall would be even stronger then the hardest metal and be able to withstand not only the most powerful spells, but time itself as well. The experiment was deemed a success and they made an entire room out of the mortar, meant to be the vault of the school. To be the place were the most valuable, powerful and rare items of the country would be stored and preserved forever.

 

How quickly that changed when they noticed (too late) that their experiment had a sinister side effect; the "wall" was born and wept so much blood every night it would flood the room. Disgusted by their own creation, the creators and some of the most puwerful wizards of that time tried to destroy it. Undo their mistake. However their creation, while horrible, was also a work of perfection and nothing was able to tear down the wall.

 

In the end all they could think of was create a drain around the edges and seal off the room permanently. While sealing it permanently was as impossible as destroying it, they did manage to hide the room by a bunch of mixed spells. A few of the conditions were to enter the room; to enter the person had to be completely and utterly lost. Be so annoyed for a reason they walk into the wall without ever seeing it. The person can't have any knowledge of the room. Those and a dozen other rules would effectively prevent anyone from entering the room.

 

As you leave the room feint by hungry you realise with sadness you will never be able to find the room again. So much for world fame. It is not like you to be a pessimist though and you quickly realise something.

Not only are you the only living thing who knows about it, you have learned a great many things about a number of subject. That alone would have been worth soiling every pair of underwear you own, you also gained a memento of your discovery.

 

With a tender gesture your fingers brusg around the blood red amulette hanging around your neck.

When someone in your dorm asks why your amulette seems to be weeping you can barely supress a smile. This will stay your little secret.

 

Rewards:

+ 1 courage

+1 Curiosity

+ Added: Amulette of Bloody Tears

+ Added Spell: Steel Blood

 

Amulette of Bloody Tears:

Given to you by the Weeping Wall, the amulate is made out of actual blood wept by the Weeping Wall. Using it's ancient magic it formed and hardened the blood into a beautiful red amulette. Inside it keeps moving as the core, a fragment of the weeping wall itself, keeps weeping new blood.

+1 Steel Blood (if Equiped)

 

Steel Blood:

An ancient spell long gone that was used in the wars against the dragons. In the battle with a dragon even a minor wound quickly was infected and often fatal which promted the development of the Steel Blood spell. It effectively turns the users blood into a substance that is as hard as steel the moment it comes in contact with oxygen. Hence the name. This prevents minor wounds from bleeding and safed countless lives.

When Cast: -1 damage per action is received for 3 days.

[Vegejor]

Ok this is just a first setup to see if I got the intention right.

 

If this is what you (legate) had in mind and if people like it I will add a few more options and escapes to it, as well as fix the grammer errors and little inconsistency's in the text.

 

 

However for the moment could you please give your opinion?

[nightguard]

Just a question about using actor tags...

 

Is it actually possible to have a random character involved in the event, as you seem to imply above, or are you just saying that we can choose whatever character we like and have them inserted into the event? I'm rather curious, as I've considered trying my hand at writing an event or two...

[Legate of Mineta]

nightguard;

 

You may have a Random Character- your options are pretty diverse:

 

Male

Female

of a certain College

of a certain Class

High Relationship

Low Relationship

Median Relationship

of your Clique

 

...there are a couple of others, but these are the broadest. You can also specify exact Characters, too.

 

For the Stories- please write them into a different thread, so this one can be focused on questions.

 

Vegejor;

 

I can't read it in detail until this evening, but very quickly (and unfortunately), the game is not set up to handle -1 Damage for 3 Days. A similar Effect was intended for the game, which provided something akin to Armor, but we pulled it about a year ago. What I usually suggest in these cases is +2-3 Vitality Maximum, which *approximates* the intention.

[Command]

Vegejor you had me at

 

you have to put on new underwear for the third time this day

 

I'm a sucker for toilet humor

 

What about -3 pairs of underwear as a result?

[Legate of Mineta]

Vegejor;

 

This is exactly the right spirit for the Events. I can't wait to read the other Exits.

[Vegejor]

Great! I'll get right on it then!

 

Academagia Fan: Who doesn't? Perhaps you can integrate an underwear parent skill group in the game.

[Zwackus]

Vegejor you had me at

 

 

 

I'm a sucker for toilet humor

 

What about -3 pairs of underwear as a result?

 

I can see that lending itself to a series of entirely inappropriate pranks . . .

[Vegejor]

Legate, could I ask for the average number off words that go onto a single page so I can smoothen out the final bits and pieces?

[Legate of Mineta]

Vegejor;

 

Unfortunately, our standard for that has changed with the font and text box size. In game you can see the Events and how many words they are, but we have not redeveloped the standard as yet.

[Vegejor]

Then how do you suggest I approach it?

 

I know and noticed in the game a good suspension and hanging time are crucial to keep the reading interesting.

 

In my experience cutting an solid section of text in two is bad, but also putting everything after each other reduces the overal quality.

 

 

This is no complaint though. I am seriously curious about your professional opinion how to aproach writing for the events.

[Legate of Mineta]

Vegejor;

 

The story window has room for a good sized paragraph, and you can roughly judge how much space you have by looking at Events in game. But the truth is, since we have added dynamic font changing, there is no good standard for writing- you can't know what font the Player will use, and that in itself prevents you from breaking up the paragraphs nicely.

 

In short: write the best Event you can, and don't be worried about spacing.

[Vegejor]

Vegejor;

 

The story window has room for a good sized paragraph, and you can roughly judge how much space you have by looking at Events in game. But the truth is, since we have added dynamic font changing, there is no good standard for writing- you can't know what font the Player will use, and that in itself prevents you from breaking up the paragraphs nicely.

 

In short: write the best Event you can, and don't be worried about spacing.

 

 

Damn straight, SIR! *Salutes*

 

Ok first event will be up tonight then.

[Ranielle Limeleaf]

Great! I'll get right on it then!

 

Academagia Fan: Who doesn't? Perhaps you can integrate an underwear parent skill group in the game.

 

I believe that's what the Mastery skill is all about! Stealing people's underwear.

[Cailean_the_Bard]

Then how do you suggest I approach it?

 

I know and noticed in the game a good suspension and hanging time are crucial to keep the reading interesting.

 

In my experience cutting an solid section of text in two is bad, but also putting everything after each other reduces the overal quality.

 

 

This is no complaint though. I am seriously curious about your professional opinion how to aproach writing for the events.

 

My advice here is to plan the adventures out with the thought in mind that players/characters won't always do the next part right away. I'm sure you've already noticed that while playing When I plan out my adventures, I try to make sure that each one ends with a player returning to their room so that it flows better with the calendar. Finally, watch out for too-specific times or whatnot in Adventures, since they can be undertaken at any time of day (or day of the week).

[nightguard]

@Cailean

 

I think Vegejor was asking more about the layout of how much text appears on the screen at a time; he's hoping to avoid cutting paragraphs midpage. I definitely agree with your suggestions about time and flow from adventure step to adventure step, but I don't think that's what we're writing now. I was under the impression that we're mainly just writing single 'random event' suggestions/examples.

[Legate of Mineta]

nightguard;

 

Correct. Events first: they are simplest and are the building blocks of Adventures. If you can write an Event, you can definitely write an Adventure.

[mecharm]

Professor CogSpring

 

This is the best day of your life! You have been waiting for this moment for days...no, for weeks!

 

Finally, your collector's edition Professor Cogspring BattleMace miniature has arrived! With this beautiful centerpiece, your army will finally be complete. Sure, BattleMace is expensive, and for some they are just pieces of enchanted plastic, but for you they are much more...

 

Now you just need to assemble it, paint it, let it dry, paint it again, and it will be ready to crush your plastic enemies beneath its plastic heel!

 

You carefully unpack and clean each piece (all 67 of them) take a big (yet careful) sigh, and prepare for the task ahead; BattleMace figurines are notoriously hard to assemble, some say even impossible without magic...

 

Skill: Incantation

You think of all the figures you've successfully put together (and those you haven't) with the help of some Incantation spells (and the useful, yet slightly expensive BattleMace accessories), so this shouldn't be any harder, right?

 

Success: After 25 minutes your masterpiece is almost ready! Professor Cogspring already looks menacing with the +2 battlewand of Revision and his enchanted +1 Goggles of Negation! A few more well placed spells and he's good to go. You proudly hold your little creation in your palm, he is a truly fearsome plastic wizard.

You gain: Professor Cogsrping

 

Failure: After 25 minutes of sweat and tears you are just unable to put it together. The figure has so many details so many little parts, that whenever you put two of them together with a spell, another three falls apart. With a sad sigh you take apart what you've managed to spell together (not much to be honest), then put the parts carefully back in their box. Professor CogSrping will just have to waita little longer...

You gain: Parts of Professor CogSpring

 

Skill: Forge

Sure magic is fine, but BattleMace is not about magic! It's about feeling each part with your fingers, finding out how each limb should bend...it's more of a journey than a task! You ready your (slightly) expensive BattleMace accessories and dive into it.

 

Success: After countless minutes you are almost finished, the only thing remaining now is the +3 Backpack of Blackmail and Botany. You carefully glue the little plastic artifact to the back of the Professor then let it dry for a couple of minutes. With a smile you put the finished figure next to your bed...

You gain: Professor Cogspring

 

Failure: You should have used magic. Your fingers are just wasn't ready for this journey...you sadly (but carefully) put the pieces back in their box.

You gain: Parts of Professor CogSpring

 

Skill: Brute Strength

Some say BattleMace figures are almost impossible assemble without the aid of magic, but you say that's nonsense. What you need is some good ol' fashioned bravery, skill and patience.

 

Success: After two and a half hours you manage to glue the final piece to the Professor, his +2 Mechanical Arm of Metallurgy, but as soon as you ready yourself for your well-deserved victory cry, you break off the arm. Well...he still looks awesome...

 

You gain: Professor CogSpring injured in Battle

 

Failure: Bravery, skill and patience. You seem to lack all three today. You've managed to glue all the parts together, but what stands before you is deffinetely not Professor CogSpring. Well...it still looks kind of cool...

 

You gain: Plastic Figure with Glue on it

 

Professor CogSpring: The fearsome leader of your BattleMace armies, equipped with more gadgets than limbs, you are sure to beat anyone on campus with him!

+ 1 courage

+ 1 school survival

 

Parts of Professor CogSrping: The highly detailed resin parts of Professor CogSpring. All 67 of them. You still need to put them together somehow...

+ 1 materials knowledge

+ 1 concentration

 

Professor CogSpring injured in Battle: The fearsome leader of your BattleMace armies, equipped with more gadgets than limbs, especially now that you have broken off his arm.

+ 1 courage

 

Plastic Figure with Glue on it: This was supposed to be Professor CogSpring, but now it's a huge pile of menacing looking plastic parts held together by the ridiculous amount of glue you have used. The only use you can think for it is to throw it at someone who is chasing you...

+ 2 escape artist

[Legate of Mineta]

Hahaha, what, no BattleMace tournaments?

 

I wonder which other Students at school play?

[mecharm]

Hahaha, what, no BattleMace tournaments?

 

I wonder which other Students at school play?

 

@Random Male Character@ probably plays