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Marked for Death: A Rational Naruto Quest

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Muer'ci said:
We all live. Otherwise it's Armageddon Initiative time :>
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Eh, just slaughter the clan of whoever killed one of teammates. That way we maintain the balance of power we have with the villagers and we send a very clear message to the rest about what happens when they kill any of us.

After all, if you kill all of the witnesses, how will tales of your vengeance spread to instill awe-inspiring fear in other stinking stinkers?
 
Dictator4Hire said:
Eh, just slaughter the clan of whoever killed one of teammates. That way we maintain the balance of power we have with the villagers and we send a very clear message to the rest about what happens when they kill any of us.

After all, if you kill all of the witnesses, how will tales of your vengeance spread to instill awe-inspiring fear in other stinking stinkers?
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You let some of the survivors live long enough to spread the word to others. Then you kill them in plain view of those others.
 
Dictator4Hire said:
Eh, just slaughter the clan of whoever killed one of teammates. That way we maintain the balance of power we have with the villagers and we send a very clear message to the rest about what happens when they kill any of us.

After all, if you kill all of the witnesses, how will tales of your vengeance spread to instill awe-inspiring fear in other stinking stinkers?
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I'm perfectly fine with languishing in anonymity, thanks :3
 
faflec said:
@eaglejarl, may His name be forever sung by the ten thousand Narutards, is there any chance we can convince you to let us make a plan for tonight?
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I'll certainly take inspiration from anything y'all write. I've already done so, in fact.

We're doing it this way because:
  • Watsonian: This is a combat situation where, for the first time in the quest, the entire team is present. Inoue is calling the shots and there's no time for discussion, so anything you come up with is probably going to get overruled.
  • Doylist: You've already made extensive plans for how to deal with tonight, now it's time to implement them.
  • Doylist: This is all part of one update -- the "take the test" update. We split it in half because @Velorien didn't have time to get all the way through, and I asked if I could write the actual test part.

Relax. I'm not going to randomly kill you off just for the sake of being a bastard. If the dice are unkind then yes, someone might die, but I'm not going to fudge the rolls to make it happen.

Many people have been saying "I hate this arc and I want it done." Well, it's about to be done. You'll be getting my drop a day or two early, then @Velorien has a sorta-kinda epilogue which will also come out early, so you'll have plenty of time to debate what to do next.
 
*horrified screaming at Akane's impending death by becoming tapir food*

*horrified screaming at impending genocide of centuries-old Hidden Village*

*horrified screaming at the billion XP we're about to get*
 
eaglejarl said:
I'll certainly take inspiration from anything y'all write. I've already done so, in fact.

We're doing it this way because:
  • Watsonian: This is a combat situation where, for the first time in the quest, the entire team is present. Inoue is calling the shots and there's no time for discussion, so anything you come up with is probably going to get overruled.
  • Doylist: You've already made extensive plans for how to deal with tonight, now it's time to implement them.
  • Doylist: This is all part of one update -- the "take the test" update. We split it in half because @Velorien didn't have time to get all the way through, and I asked if I could write the actual test part.

Relax. I'm not going to randomly kill you off just for the sake of being a bastard. If the dice are unkind then yes, someone might die, but I'm not going to fudge the rolls to make it happen.

Many people have been saying "I hate this arc and I want it done." Well, it's about to be done. You'll be getting my drop a day or two early, then @Velorien has a sorta-kinda epilogue which will also come out early, so you'll have plenty of time to debate what to do next.
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I realize you may have (were probably) been being hyperbolous, but for the record, I don't hate this arc in the slightest. It's just, uh... Well, the whole politics of the place being above our head (Hazou and us as players, and even Mari to greater or lesser extent) makes it hard to make decisions without devolving into... horrified screaming. Although I do not begrudge you subjecting us to this, it's entirely realistic to be put into social situations we aren't prepared for, it's just that this one has lasted so long (in large part due to player decision, such as not going Armageddon Initiative) that it's gotten a little tense.
 
eaglejarl said:
I'll certainly take inspiration from anything y'all write. I've already done so, in fact.
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Ok, love you, He whose name be forever sung by the ten thousand Narutards. With that being said:
  • Genjutsu on the tapirs to have them go in the wrong direction, or even calm them down, would be ideal. This assumes Inoue-sensei has AOE genjutsu that can work on these things, and also assumes she can afford to be otherwise out of the fight.
  • MEW to raise us on platforms can prevent the tapirs from taking us down. Recall that tapirs cannot climb or knock down trees, and likely would not be capable of climbing or destroy tougher platforms (i.e., rock). It ALSO has the benefit of keeping them in an obvious position (around us) but leaves us sitting ducks against any other attackers (ninja)
  • Water Release: Sticky Syrup would be ideal to keep them trapped in an area, but may result in Inoue or Aida claiming we attacked them (with the syrup).
  • Any foul-smelling perfumes or other items can be useful for warding them away. What did we do with our shit?
 
At the very least we can possibly try to steer our character's mind in the correct direction for the attack. We are are character's subconscious and our debate here on the threads are a good substitute for how our character will think and act during the time of stress. We can list what we believe to be important during the attack and what should be done in what order should we get a long list of objectives to accomplish. Keiko and Noburi will have conflicting loyalties during this attack and us I believe we should keep a close eye on them. If we can we should try and flip Yuno during the fighting into supporting Noburi with a quick truth about Akane's situation. Akane will be targeted personally by Kouta, his sense of Honor will demand him to make a third attempt on her life. We should allow Akane to handle that fight mostly on her own and intercede only if it looks like it will be to her loss right from the stay of any fight between them. Kagome should be paired with Keiko as a reminder of our loyalties and so that he can have the greatest chance of killing Takahashi when/of he comes for her during any fighting.

I will continue to try to provide ideas and ways of attack that could be utilized during the final exam. We need to think strategically and tactically about our actions and how we ration our supplies. Noburi should have his backup barrel filled in preperation and stored at the original fort within the town, it would make the most sense to have it as a backup stash of equipment pre-prepared.
 
Cariyaga said:
I realize you may have (were probably) been being hyperbolous, but for the record, I don't hate this arc in the slightest. It's just, uh... Well, the whole politics of the place being above our head (Hazou and us as players, and even Mari to greater or lesser extent) makes it hard to make decisions without devolving into... horrified screaming. Although I do not begrudge you subjecting us to this, it's entirely realistic to be put into social situations we aren't prepared for, it's just that this one has lasted so long (in large part due to player decision, such as not going Armageddon Initiative) that it's gotten a little tense.
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Oh, totally understood. I get where y'all are coming from -- your choices were either "commit genocide" or "play nice and face a lot of social roadblocks." I think you were smart to go the second route, since it got Keiko the training she needs and all of you the start of a foothold here which means maybe having a secure base to fall back on and an entire village of ninja to back you up. I'm just reassuring you that yes, it is about over.

Also, I wasn't being hyperbolic. I'll leave the names off, but here are some quotes:

"I HATE THIS GODDAMN ARC."
"Because we all (not actually everyone) hate the arc and want to get out of it."
"UGGGH I HATE POLITICAL BULLSHIT"

Let me stress again that neither Velorien nor I are offended or etc by these quotes.
 
eaglejarl said:
"UGGGH I HATE POLITICAL BULLSHIT"
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I was this one. I'll admit it. I was being kinda a dick, and I apologize for the GMs, they whose names be forever sung by the ten thousand Narutards, if any were offended. Although my emotional outburst was probably worsened by me writing three straight strategies during a "downtime" where we had very little direction beyond "Kagome's birthday" or "don't piss everyone off".
 
faflec said:
I was this one. I'll admit it. I was being kinda a dick, and I apologize for the GMs, they whose names be forever sung by the ten thousand Narutards, if any were offended. Although my emotional outburst was probably worsened by me writing three straight strategies during a "downtime" where we had very little direction beyond "Kagome's birthday" or "don't piss everyone off".
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Kagome's birthday was awesome, though, you have to admit. I love that guy. :D
 
faflec said:
I was this one. I'll admit it. I was being kinda a dick, and I apologize for the GMs, they whose names be forever sung by the ten thousand Narutards, if any were offended. Although my emotional outburst was probably worsened by me writing three straight strategies during a "downtime" where we had very little direction beyond "Kagome's birthday" or "don't piss everyone off".
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Nah, no one here got hurt by those words. It's good of you to check, though.
 
Meh, we shouldn't give into people bitching about how the quest pans out. It would set a bad precedent if anyone could whine enough to get more sway over the QM's or other players. If you don't like what the current proposed plan is you can make your own. If you don't contribute anything to the discussion nor vote you have no grounds on which to legitimately complain.

It's insane to think that a bunch of strangers trying to enjoy themselves should cater to your whims when said whims primarily involve stopping those strangers from doing what they consider fun without offering any alternatives other than "not what y'all are doing now."

You have a better idea?
Make a plan.

No one voted for it?
Try to win some voters over to your ideas.

No one is guaranteed anything; every major decision happens through a vote. If you can't deal with a fair democracy, maybe you should try a different form of entertainment.

/Rant
 
To be clear, I have nothing against anyone who has differing opinions on what we should do. Whenever someone can contribute anything proactive to the discussion I'm happy. If you defend your ideas (which I never hold against someone as a person (for me, attacks on any idea are not meant as attack on the thinker's character)) I am ecstatic.

The only people I have an issue with are the ones who offer nothing, yet demand everything. That said, as soon as you contribute however/whatever you can to this thread, I'll forgive you.

Sorry if that's not PC, just voicing my thoughts on the matter.
 
Dictator4Hire said:
The only people I have an issue with are the ones who offer nothing, yet demand everything. That said, as soon as you contribute however/whatever you can to this thread, I'll forgive you.
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@Dictator4Hire: Take a breath. You're out of line.


No one is pandering, and the GMs have not been influenced by people's comments about disliking the arc, nor have we been influenced by the comments about liking it. This is where we intended to end it right from the beginning -- we had a plan for what behind-the-scenes politicking would happen, we stuck to that plan, and now we're getting to the end.
 
eaglejarl said:
@Dictator4Hire: Take a breath. You're out of line.


No one is pandering, and the GMs have not been influenced by people's comments about disliking the arc, nor have we been influenced by the comments about liking it. This is where we intended to end it right from the beginning -- we had a plan for what behind-the-scenes politicking would happen, we stuck to that plan, and now we're getting to the end.
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Breath taken; perhaps that sounded harsher than I intended.

I am not accusing anyone of pandering. I simply wanted to highlight my concerns about setting a precedent in regards to future catering to complaints when the majority wants to do something else. I'm relieved none of you are swayed either way.

What concerns me more is the latter half of the above quote. To me, (and I may just be interpreting it incorrectly) it sounds like "No matter what you did, no matter how clever or creative, this is how the arc would have ended. There were absolutely no moves you could make to change this ending. It was decided long ago. No matter how you respond to the ending, the arc in the village is over."

I realize that we decided to let Keiko lead and Mari has our best intentions at heart. It raises a bunch of questions, though, about what we as players can choose to do that hasn't been anticipated by you, the QM's.

Even if you think bad things will happen, can we still choose to go off (for lack of a better word) the script?

Do we have to separate Hazou from his team to have the complete freedom necessary to choose his own fate?

This just seems so different compared to when the quest first started. Well, now that I think about it, perhaps this is the same as in Iron. Was Mari running into an old stalker as unavoidable as the upcoming ending to this arc? Do all arcs have a predetermined end? Are our only completely free choices deciding which arc to start next?

None of these questions or statements are meant as an attack; I'm honestly curious and confused.
 
Velorien said:
"I am not a sophisticated man," Takahashi replied drily, "and struggle with complex metaphors..."
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Bahaha. Good lord, this is hilarious from the ant man.

Please tell me you rolled for Inoue not laughing out loud? I mean the DC should probably have been 100-200, but you still should have rolled for it.

eaglejarl said:
Many people have been saying "I hate this arc and I want it done." Well, it's about to be done. You'll be getting my drop a day or two early, then @Velorien has a sorta-kinda epilogue which will also come out early, so you'll have plenty of time to debate what to do next.
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On my part, I've been complaining about the arc being stressful rather than unenjoyable. I'm invested in the characters, and the relatively small amount of influence we had was profoundly frustrating.

eaglejarl said:
This is where we intended to end it right from the beginning -- we had a plan for what behind-the-scenes politicking would happen, we stuck to that plan, and now we're getting to the end.
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... Aargh.

Please tell me that you're not saying that we didn't have influence because you already decided what happened and railroaded us.

Please?
 
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It did not help that we kept to a stance of non intervention through all of our time within the village. By behaving as we did, I felt that, we invited the village leaders to act with little to no challenge beyond what Inoue has done beyond Hazou's prodding into politics. I feel like I have learned something from this experience and wish to never be as passive and feel like I am powerless again. We will bare the results of our efforts and strive to better ourselves so that a better result can be obtained.
 
Jello_Raptor said:
Bahaha. Good lord, this is hilarious from the ant man.

Please tell me you rolled for Inoue not laughing out loud? I mean the DC should probably have been 100-200, but you still should have rolled for it.



On my part, I've been complaining about the arc being stressful rather than unenjoyable. I'm invested in the characters, and the relatively small amount of influence we had was profoundly frustrating.



... Aargh.

Please tell me that you're not saying that we didn't have influence because you already decided what happened and railroaded us.

Please?
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I believe what's being stated is that they decided on what the village's baseline reaction to us would be. We could have decided to do other things (retreat, Plan: Armageddon), which would have necessitated different responses, but from the point Keiko became Takahashi's apprentice, our path to this point was laid out and would require a great deal of effort to stray from which none of us were willing to do. I don't really see that as railroading, personally, as we could easily have decided to do differently.

e: I can see several ways this could have gone.

We could have cooperated more thoroughly with the Yoshida, in which case Keiko may not have gotten the training of Takahashi, but we would have the opportunity nonetheless at the scroll; perhaps it would be Hazou to take the trial with their backing, or perhaps they may have given Keiko over to Takahashi's training.

We could have taken a more diplomatic approach from the beginning so as not to create so many faux pas, and so have gotten along a little bit better with the Inoue and Aida; perhaps in the amount of time we were here we might have been able to get an in with them.

We could have befriended the villagers rather than the elders, avoiding politics altogether in favor of making everyone BUT the elders love us; Keiko could easily have spent more time with the non-ninja villagers, helping out there.

Lots of things. But in the end, if we're working with the village, we would have ended up taking the trial in some fashion, right? I think that's what's meant.
 
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Dictator4Hire said:
There were absolutely no moves you could make to change this ending. It was decided long ago. No matter how you respond to the ending, the arc in the village is over.
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Jello_Raptor said:
Please tell me that you're not saying that we didn't have influence because you already decided what happened and railroaded us.
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*headdesk*

I said that we had a plan for "what behind-the-scenes politicking would happen", not that we had a plan for "what would happen." The difference between those is pretty significant.

Cariyaga said:
I believe what's being stated is that they decided on what the village's baseline reaction to us would be. We could have decided to do other things (retreat, Plan: Armageddon), which would have necessitated different responses, but from the point Keiko became Takahashi's apprentice, our path to this point was laid out and would require a great deal of effort to stray from which none of us were willing to do. I don't really see that as railroading, personally, as we could easily have decided to do differently.
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This. Except it honestly wouldn't have taken all that much effort.

Y'all chose to be passive. On the occasions when you did try to do something active, you tried to do something that you should have realized wouldn't work -- e.g. voting to talk to Takahashi to get permission to talk to the other elders when you had just been told that you couldn't talk to Takahashi and had been repeatedly told that he would not okay you talking to the other elders. Had you simply voted "Hazou goes and talks to the elders without asking permission", that would have been fine. It would have blown up your deal with Takahashi and carried consequences, but you could have done it. Likewise, you could have voted "let's just steal the damn thing and forget all this"; had you come up with a convincing argument we probably would have had Inoue go with it. Honestly, I was a bit surprised that you went the route you did; I was expecting you to (try to) steal and run.


In short, no, there were no rails.

As to the arc in the village being over, that too is up to you. The arc of "do what is needed to get the scroll for Keiko" is about to be over, one way or another. After that, you can choose if you want to blow the place up, ingratiate yourself so as to have a base here, leave, or whatever else.
 
Cariyaga said:
Lots of things. But in the end, if we're working with the village, we would have ended up taking the trial in some fashion, right? I think that's what's meant.
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Not necessarily. There were a limited number of ways that you could reach the "one elder proposes letting you do the trial and the others vote yes" state. You could always have tried a smash-and-grab, though.

All the other things you point out, however, are things you could have done.
 
eaglejarl said:
No one is pandering, and the GMs have not been influenced by people's comments about disliking the arc, nor have we been influenced by the comments about liking it. This is where we intended to end it right from the beginning -- we had a plan for what behind-the-scenes politicking would happen, we stuck to that plan, and now we're getting to the end.
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eaglejarl said:
I said that we had a plan for "what behind-the-scenes politicking would happen", not that we had a plan for "what would happen." The difference between those is pretty significant.
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In the first quote "it" referred to the arc in the first quoted sentence. When you used "it" again in the second sentence I presumed you were still talking about the arc. I agree that the difference is significant, but the wording of 'it' (pun intended) could have been better.
 
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