Against the Night (Mass Effect post-cycle AU)

[Phant0m5]

Okay. So, since the ship bay was redundant, replaced it with the IFV, putting us ONE POINT over, and only because the pod rounds UP for its discount. Sooo we didn't lose that second side effect after all.

Worth? Maybe? We have a vehicle bay, now. And the side effects still have a chance to be neutral or even positive.

This should be the last edit, but if anyone has complaints speak now. Considering you all voted back when we had two side effects ANYWAY, and for much smaller benefit, this shouldn't be much of an issue.

EDIT- nope, last one. Bumped the satellites up to R2 and got some rations to make a nice even 200 points spent. And thus my promise is fulfilled: the most stuff I could manage, crammed into 200 points with no maluses.

EDIT2- shit, no go. the satellites were ALREADY R2 (when did that happen? numbers check out though...) and rations would either push one of the more expensive items out of the 15 item limit... or remain up in space, where they are useless.

... Eh, whatever. We have space access already. Let's stick em up there.

 

[Keani]

Okay. So, since the ship bay was redundant, replaced it with the IFV, putting us ONE POINT over, and only because the pod rounds UP for its discount. Sooo we didn't lose that second side effect after all.

Worth? Maybe? We have a vehicle bay, now. And the side effects still have a chance to be neutral or even positive.

This should be the last edit, but if anyone has complaints speak now. Considering you all voted back when we had two side effects ANYWAY, and for much smaller benefit, this shouldn't be much of an issue.

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Side effects are cool and i await our six armed, all wise, immortal, extremely powerfu blue ladies.

an aside though, don't ya think it'd be better to take corvettes over the IFV?

 

[DeepWaters]

snip

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I'm aware that this is just a creation section to set things up, and I'm not under the impression that this quest will be all numbers and mechanics. The problem, for me, is that the only obvious theme so far is transhumanism (or, well, the asari equivalent, anyway), and I've never been very interested in stories that put the main focus on transhumanism. That's just personal taste. I realize that other themes will probably come up, particularly ones more directly related to the Mass Effect franchise, which is why I'm willing to stick around and see how things go. It remains that this particular vote isn't in my wheelhouse, though.

 

[Phant0m5]

an aside though, don't ya think it'd be better to take corvettes over the IFV?

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Not really. The Frigate should cover all our space needs for a while, being both massively overpowered for the galaxy as-it-stands and a decent size to move stuff around with, the little 'vettes would just be icing on that bit of cake. And we can make more ships as needed with the ship bay.

The IFV, on the other hand, means our initial colony is a lot more mobile and well defended after touchdown, and taking R2 on it means we have a vehicle bay as well.

 

[pbluekan]

Ok, so I've kinda had to bend my mind around these options, where and how we can save, but I think @Phant0m5 has it pretty much spot on.

Really, though, there is one thing that has bugged me about all of these plans is procreation enhancement + longevity. Y'all have to remember that we are building a society here, not just an instant war machine. The Krogan were effectively immortal with high procreation. We go well beyond that with all of these plans. Without an existing socially adapted adult population, we are going to have a society of thousands of kids and a single adult for decades. (This means that the spartoi cylinders wouldn't solve this problem, likely make it far worse, because socially maladjusted adults.) The cultural database is helpful here, but it isn't everything, IMO.

I think we should pull back on the procreation enhancement a few ranks (with the iron womb we are already well set for a good early population size) and then add it back in later when we can tinker with our own genetics.

 

[Tjakari]

I'm aware that this is just a creation section to set things up, and I'm not under the impression that this quest will be all numbers and mechanics. The problem, for me, is that only obvious theme so far is transhumanism (or, well, the asari equivalent, anyway), and I've never been very interested in stories that put the main focus on transhumanism. That's just personal taste. I realize that other themes will probably come up, particularly ones more directly related to the Mass Effect franchise, which is why I'm willing to stick around and see how things go. It remains that this particular vote isn't in my wheelhouse, though.

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I feel you man, I wish I was around for the first round of votes because of it. But the only way this story is going to shape up a way you like it is if you put your weight behind what you want from it. I don't want to be an X-Man either. C'est la vie.

Ok, so I've kinda had to bend my mind around these options, where and how we can save, but I think @Phant0m5 has it pretty much spot on.

Really, though, there is one thing that has bugged me about all of these plans is procreation enhancement + longevity. Y'all have to remember that we are building a society here, not just an instant war machine. The Krogan were effectively immortal with high procreation. We go well beyond that with all of these plans. Without an existing socially adapted adult population, we are going to have a society of thousands of kids and a single adult for decades. (This means that the spartoi cylinders wouldn't solve this problem, likely make it far worse, because socially maladjusted adults.) The cultural database is helpful ehre, but it isn't everything, IMO.

I think we should pull back on the procreation enhancement a few ranks (with the iron womb we are already well set for a good early population size) and then add it back in later when we can tinker with our own genetics.

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*Coughs Hard*

Seriously though, did I get buried at some point. There are currently 4 plans as far as I can tell, mine is one of them and the entire point of it is to pull back on exactly those things you brought up.
My GE traits are basically there to prevent miscarriages and that's about it. No baby making factories because I recognize exactly that you can't build a sustainable society built around consuming all your resources to spread as much as possible.

No one wants to pace ourselves, except .....*points at self*.

 

[Phant0m5]

I think we should pull back on the procreation enhancement a few ranks (with the iron womb we are already well set for a good early population size) and then add it back in later when we can tinker with our own genetics.

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The problem is that the enhancements we have access to right now are completely beyond our reach, and will remain so for a long, long time.

Also, the physical ability to procreate does not directly translate into millions of babies. There are social restrictions as well. We can probably assume our starting population will have the foresight to at least not immediately flood the world with their offspring. Particularly not if they realize they'll have to raise the brats. And teach them.

 

[pbluekan]

We can probably assume our starting population

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Assuming is bad for business dude. Have you met teenagers? And the Asari, according to the wiki go through the matron phase where literally their only prerogative is to reproduce. I think we can wait a few centuries for us to get genetic engineering up to snuff. I'd rather see those points go to more databases (hell, the GE database even) or to other enhancements.

 

[Keani]

Ok, so I've kinda had to bend my mind around these options, where and how we can save, but I think @Phant0m5 has it pretty much spot on.

Really, though, there is one thing that has bugged me about all of these plans is procreation enhancement + longevity. Y'all have to remember that we are building a society here, not just an instant war machine. The Krogan were effectively immortal with high procreation. We go well beyond that with all of these plans. Without an existing socially adapted adult population, we are going to have a society of thousands of kids and a single adult for decades. (This means that the spartoi cylinders wouldn't solve this problem, likely make it far worse, because socially maladjusted adults.) The cultural database is helpful here, but it isn't everything, IMO.

I think we should pull back on the procreation enhancement a few ranks (with the iron womb we are already well set for a good early population size) and then add it back in later when we can tinker with our own genetics.

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*initiates most nasal voice*
Well actually procreation enhancement doesn't necessarily mean unsustainable pop growth and rather quite synergizes with artificial wombs. Ice the zygotes until they're ready to be iron wombed AKA control the pop growth.

Assuming is bad for business dude. Have you met teenagers? And the Asari, according to the wiki go through the matron phase where literally their only prerogative is to reproduce. I think we can wait a few centuries for us to get genetic engineering up to snuff. I'd rather see those points go to more databases (hell, the GE database even) or to other enhancements.

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*deinitializes nasal voice*

Okay this hella confused me too but the thing bottlenecking databases isn't points but that we're only allowed to take three plus a number equal to the amount we exclude. Total.

edit: Also their plans has all the enhancements maxed out.

 

[Phant0m5]

Assuming is bad for business dude. Have you met teenagers? And the Asari, according to the wiki go through the matron phase where literally their only prerogative is to reproduce. I think we can wait a few centuries for us to get genetic engineering up to snuff. I'd rather see those points go to more databases (hell, the GE database even) or to other enhancements.

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We've maxed out our enhancements. Literally, every one of them is R4 or R5 already, and moving one enhancement down, even all the way down to Asari baseline, isn't enough to push anything else from R4 to R5.

Also, we cannot buy another database without sacrificing yet another database. Three databases, maximum, plus one for every one we specifically exclude.

 

[Pyran]

We've maxed out our enhancements. Literally, every one of them is R4 or R5 already, and moving one enhancement down, even all the way down to Asari baseline, isn't enough to push anything else from R4 to R5.

Also, we cannot buy another database without sacrificing yet another database. Three databases, maximum, plus one for every one we specifically exclude.

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We can get another enhancement at rank 5 by changing where the freebie that gets currently gets procreation to rank 5 goes. While rank 5 procreation may not be a problem I don't think it would be any better for us than rank 4, We probably don't want to have our population explode to the point where we need rank 5 rather than rank 4 and we can only get 6 enhancements at rank 5, I think R5 enhanced senses would probably be more useful than R5 enhanced procreation. Especially in combination with R5 synapse it seems like it would result in extreme awareness of everything in a quite large radius.

 

[Tjakari]

I wonder when @Mechanis is going to get fed up and call a vote. Cause I think we can argue amongst ourselves for weeks at the pace we're going. What has it been, 4 full pages of this and it doesn't seem like the train's stopping any time soon.

 

[Keani]

I wonder when @Mechanis is going to get fed up and call a vote. Cause I think we can argue amongst ourselves for weeks at the pace we're going. What has it been, 4 full pages of this and it doesn't seem like the train's stopping any time soon.

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This is SV yo, that's the whole fun. That's like, exactly what a quest thread is suppossed to be. Dozens of pages of debate and planning with some votes and omakes sprinkled in between story updrates.

We can get another enhancement at rank 5 by changing where the freebie that gets currently gets procreation to rank 5 goes. While rank 5 procreation may not be a problem I don't think it would be any better for us than rank 4, We probably don't want to have our population explode to the point where we need rank 5 rather than rank 4 and we can only get 6 enhancements at rank 5, I think R5 enhanced senses would probably be more useful than R5 enhanced procreation. Especially in combination with R5 synapse it seems like it would result in extreme awareness of everything in a quite large radius.

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Yeah, I would switch the R5 procreation and healing for R5 senses and organs. R5 organs is like hella better than healing and with the iron womb theres no need for full R5 procreation and Senses capstone is dope as shit and has epic synergy with synapses and biotics.

 

[pbluekan]

Yeah, I would switch the R5 procreation and healing for R5 senses and organs. R5 organs is like hella better than healing and with the iron womb theres no need for full R5 procreation and Senses capstone is dope as shit and has epic synergy with synapses and biotics.

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Thats basically what I did. I get we don't get much from dropping procreation all the way down. But we get R5 Organs and drop a side effect.

 

[Phant0m5]

Yeah, I would switch the R5 procreation and healing for R5 senses and organs. R5 organs is like hella better than healing and with the iron womb theres no need for full R5 procreation and Senses capstone is dope as shit and has epic synergy with synapses and biotics.

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Thats basically what I did. I get we don't get much from dropping procreation all the way down. But we get R5 Organs and drop a side effect.

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I mean, I already changed it based on your suggestions. That's kind of why I asked earlier if anyone had any complaints.

I just don't see procreation enhancement as that much of a problem. But it's changed anyway.

 

[Keani]

I mean, I already changed it based on your suggestions. That's kind of why I asked earlier if anyone had any complaints.

I just don't see procreation enhancement as that much of a problem. But it's changed anyway.

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Me neither, like I said, if we can't deal we ice the zygotes till we can.

also, thanks for the revisions.

 

[Pyran]

I mean, I already changed it based on your suggestions. That's kind of why I asked earlier if anyone had any complaints.

I just don't see procreation enhancement as that much of a problem. But it's changed anyway.

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I don't really see it as a problem, just a waste of one of the 6 R5 enhancements we can get, after all it would only be useful if we wanted to produce more children than R4 would allow for, which I don't really see us needing.
And thank you for the revisions

 

[Alayne]

[X] We Can Rebuild Her

Available ASAP: 284*0.65=185 pts
[X] R2 2x Hydroponics bay: (6*2=12 pts)
[X] R2 Survey Satellites (6 pts)
[X] R2 Industrial Nano-forge (8 pts)
[X] R2 Kinetic Streamers (20 pts)
[X] R2 Frigate (80 pts)
[X] R2 Fabrication Bay (18 pts)
[X] R2 Drone Bay (20 pts)
[X] R2 Active Camouflage Field (10 pts)
[X] R2 Mass-Effect Field Baffles (15 pts)
[X] R2 Reciprocal Mass-Effect Core (10 pts)
[X] R2 Adaptive Design Intelligent System (15 pts)
[X] R2 True Geth (20 pts)
[X] R2 Indoctrination Sensor (24 pts)
[X] R2 T-1580 'Vanguard' IFV (26 pts)

[X] R1 Colony Pod (10 pts total)
(Basic pod: Most systems remain in orbit. You may select up to fifteen technologies that are equipped to your pod, all others will remain in orbit until you have the ability to retrieve them. All technologies not equipped to your pod refund 35% of their point value, rounded up.)

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I like the plan but I'm a bit confused about the pod though. It says we only get a discount on the techs that isn't on the pod which means that they wouldn't be available ASAP like you wrote at the top of the tech list though?

 

[Tjakari]

This is SV yo, that's the whole fun. That's like, exactly what a quest thread is suppossed to be. Dozens of pages of debate and planning with some votes and omakes sprinkled in between story updates.

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Yeah, I know. I just want to get the story moving, the backstory for the research team already sounds great and I'm always down for a depressing story. It's my bread and butter.

 

[Keani]

Yeah, I know. I just want to get the story moving, the backstory for the research team already sounds great and I'm always down for a depressing story. It's my bread and butter.

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I hope the story isn't depressing. I'm really hoping for some hope, that bright beacon of goodness in the sea of defeat and ruin.

 

[pbluekan]

mine is one of them and the entire point of it is to pull back on exactly those things you brought up.

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The issue with your plan, as I see it, are the Ardat Yakshi genes, black thumb, r1 forge, lack of a frigate, removed Toroidal Reactor, removed food reprocessor, addition of thermal camo, active camo, and a distinct lack of leveraging the genetically designed background that was picked. It pulls back on the reproduction and genetics angle, but it pulls back so hard that I think it would have had just as many problems. I liked everything else in @Phant0m5 's plan, just not the bum rush for repro. Even then, maxing our genetics as best we can is good, IMO, with the background we picked.

 

[Tjakari]

I hope the story isn't depressing. I'm really hoping for some hope, that bright beacon of goodness in the sea of defeat and ruin.

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Well I wish you luck in the wars to come.

@pbluekan

What's wrong with camo, I would like to not be blitzed cause we're being loud in the stellar neighborhood.

 

[Mechanis]

Right. ze vote, she is called. (edit: linked the post with the plan in it, mostly for my own convenience. also this threadmarked now.)​

[X] We can Rebuild Her
(full accounting to follow)

Database uplink... successful.
System links within tolerance.
Colony Site located.
Activating platforms...​

 

[Tjakari]

Right. ze vote, she is called.

[X] We can Rebuild Her
(full accounting to follow)

Database uplink... successful.
System links within tolerance.
Colony Site located.
Activating platforms...​

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Thank you, you wonderful person.

 

[Phant0m5]

Right. ze vote, she is called.

[X] We can Rebuild Her
(full accounting to follow)

Database uplink... successful.
System links within tolerance.
Colony Site located.
Activating platforms...​

Click to shrink...

F5...

...

F5...

...

F5...

F5... F5...

F5.. F5..

F5.. F5.. F5, F5, F5, F5,F5,F5 F5 F5 F5F5F5F5F5F5F5F5F5F5F5F5F5F5F5F5F5F5F5F5

Are we there yet?



/Hype