Barondoctor
The things I chase come to me.
- Location
- The other side of the mirror
- Pronouns
- He/His/Him
[Insert "happymasksalesman.png"]
You've met with a terrible fate, haven't you?
May The Invisible Hand Be With You - (Star Wars CK2-Style Quest)
- Thread starter Dr. Snark
- Start date
- Sci-Fi
-
- Tags
- star wars canon what canon tsundere dice ck2 quest actions have consequences all the credits all work and no play makes ciaran a dull girl best sister capitalism ho! despairing qm teetotaller society member gotta catch 'em all insanity looting off the rails sage dice approaching spicy sheev tsundere asajj
You've met with a terrible fate, haven't you?
- Location
- Middle of Nowhere
Barondoctor
The things I chase come to me.
- Location
- The other side of the mirror
- Pronouns
- He/His/Him
Oh sweet mercy I hope not.
On the other hand...ciaran wears a lot of masks.
Hmm.
NexysDhyArchen
Throne Breaker
Someone commission Ciaran wearing Majora's Mask.
"This is a fully operational and joyful Peace Moon."
"This is a fully operational and joyful Peace Moon."
- Location
- Ireland
94000130FFF70000
Absolutely the Worst
- Location
- Midwest USA
this quest better not end in a tragedy, y'all. just binged all the way up to Fortune's End - Four Men in a Dimly Lit Room, not gonna read any further till turn 29 ends, but so far it sounds like shit's getting worse and worse. yeah, Palpatine is crazy powerful, but as it stands the situation looks just plain unwinnable. even critical successes all the way up to the Insane variety don't seem to be improving matters - in recent chapters, it feels like the difficulty scaling was set to ultra-hard and the rubber-band AI is cheating to ruin any chance of any victory besides the pyrrhic kind.
in particular, arranging for a Force Wound to appear in the temple with pre-prepared "everything was already terrible forever" justification and a "no you CAN'T get them out of the temple by any means because they're already compromised, go hope Yoda isn't already corrupted" feels like a big 'fuck you' from the QM and the story. am i REALLY expected to believe there was any way at all the questers could have had the level of foreknowledge and meta-knowledge needed to keep the coruscant jedi order from falling apart in a train wreck?
add to that that the foundry is apparently impossible to make significant use of in any way that won't utterly obliterate the galaxy (because APPARENTLY we can't build LIMITS or ETHICS or REASONABLE RESTRAINT into its droids), something even more awful is going to be coming which we just have to HOPE the Chiss hold off, all new Clone Troopers are apparently coming out with fully-functional inhibitor chips despite Skirata allegedly sabotaging the chip programming itself in a canon piece iirc (forget which one though), and Palpatine keeps pulling new ploys and new aces out of his ass at every juncture... is this going to turn into a "watch the galaxy burn" story? it was fun to read up to this point (excepting the temple bombing arc, which was just painful) but if this is gonna turn into a "watch the galaxy burn" story i don't think it'll stay very fun.
in particular, arranging for a Force Wound to appear in the temple with pre-prepared "everything was already terrible forever" justification and a "no you CAN'T get them out of the temple by any means because they're already compromised, go hope Yoda isn't already corrupted" feels like a big 'fuck you' from the QM and the story. am i REALLY expected to believe there was any way at all the questers could have had the level of foreknowledge and meta-knowledge needed to keep the coruscant jedi order from falling apart in a train wreck?
add to that that the foundry is apparently impossible to make significant use of in any way that won't utterly obliterate the galaxy (because APPARENTLY we can't build LIMITS or ETHICS or REASONABLE RESTRAINT into its droids), something even more awful is going to be coming which we just have to HOPE the Chiss hold off, all new Clone Troopers are apparently coming out with fully-functional inhibitor chips despite Skirata allegedly sabotaging the chip programming itself in a canon piece iirc (forget which one though), and Palpatine keeps pulling new ploys and new aces out of his ass at every juncture... is this going to turn into a "watch the galaxy burn" story? it was fun to read up to this point (excepting the temple bombing arc, which was just painful) but if this is gonna turn into a "watch the galaxy burn" story i don't think it'll stay very fun.
- Location
- Qc, Canada
- Pronouns
- She/Her
You really haven't been reading the thread if that's your stance on this.
I see where you're coming from, and I agree that Dr. Snark recently ramped the difficulty level way up, but I agree with Dr. Snark that having Ciaran run roughshod over Palpatine and the Jedi Order would lose any sense of challenge or fun unless he did increase the difficulty level. He's been throwing challenges at us left, right, and center for almost the duration of this quest -- the Palpatine Tax, the Honoghr false-flag, the Temple Bombing, the Wesker expy, the whole thing with Mother, the three fleets now rampaging through CNS. Unfortunately (for him; awesomely for us) we've been able to deal with almost all of those obstacles in very short order thanks to a plethora of omake bonuses and critical rolls. The Force Wound is the first challenge we've seen where we don't see an immediate solution, and where it will take a whole bunch of crits over a whole bunch of turns to deal with. I'm okay with that.
Given how this quest has gone, I really don't think Dr. Snark will push the limits of grimdark by taking all of our toys away from us. He's tried to keep the narrative interesting, but I suspect he's as invested in Ciaran having a happy ending as the rest of us.
Skywalker_T-65
Writer with too many ideas.
- Location
- United States
- Pronouns
- Plural/They/He/Her
Re: The Foundry
The issue isn't the droids. It's that Rakata tech is inherently corruptive. This isn't a bug, it's a feature. The Foundry isn't the Star Forge, don't get me wrong, but it's built with the same technology. Using it, really using it, opens one up to that corruption. You can start with an altruistic goal, but it will twist it eventually. If you make battle droids with it, you'll eventually start thinking 'I could make these droids better killers and make more of them' and then you end up like Revan.
I, personally, like this because it fits canonically and keeps it from being an 'I win' button in any but the worst case scenarios.
The issue isn't the droids. It's that Rakata tech is inherently corruptive. This isn't a bug, it's a feature. The Foundry isn't the Star Forge, don't get me wrong, but it's built with the same technology. Using it, really using it, opens one up to that corruption. You can start with an altruistic goal, but it will twist it eventually. If you make battle droids with it, you'll eventually start thinking 'I could make these droids better killers and make more of them' and then you end up like Revan.
I, personally, like this because it fits canonically and keeps it from being an 'I win' button in any but the worst case scenarios.
94000130FFF70000
Absolutely the Worst
- Location
- Midwest USA
I've been reading the threadmarks. Admittedly a bunch of stuff isn't threadmarked, that's mostly omakes though. Also, I'm leery of anything that suddenly swerves from relatively lighthearted toward grimmer features because in my experience that usually ends in a permanent and terminal-stage Cerebus Syndrome case (or a dead quest/fic).
I don't expect Palpatine to go down without a set of extremely advanced plans or a whole fuckload of luck. Unfortunately, quests are not terribly conducive to long-term planning.
Part of me agrees with you: the Foundry is way OP, and I'm glad Dr. Snark found a way to nerf it.
The rest of me was annoyed that we weren't told he was going to nerf it until after we'd spent quite a few turns on reclaiming it. I mean, there's plenty of other consolation prizes to be had in this quest, but it really felt like a bait-and-switch to see so many actions (including most of HK-47's efforts since he joined us) go to waste.
...Should I tell him?
BungieONI
Seven gremlins in a trench coat
- Location
- Lickwidget
- Pronouns
- She/Her
@Dr. Snark Read through everything except for the non-canon omake index and most of the canon non-story omakes and I had two questions as someone not really aware of the wider EU and Legends lore beyond what this quest has shown in places.
Has there ever been a Force-sect who specialized specifically in the transference of remembered sensation(sight, smell etc) and full memories? And has there ever been a Force-sect which used the Force for performance art with orchestral music?
Has there ever been a Force-sect who specialized specifically in the transference of remembered sensation(sight, smell etc) and full memories? And has there ever been a Force-sect which used the Force for performance art with orchestral music?
BungieONI
Seven gremlins in a trench coat
- Location
- Lickwidget
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Interesting. I had in mind an omake where I write about the last of a Force-sect clan of humans called the Atred who specialize in memory transferal down genetic lines of ancestry similar to the Bene Gesserit of Dune. The idea was that they were a Sith derived (because of their focus on personal attachment and the senses) Force-sect after the fall of the Sith pure-bloods who were a colonization attempt of a habitable planet near Korriban. Splitting from the main Sith due to differences of doctrinal interpretation they left in secret to a secret destination discovered by one of their Masters, but suffered a serious malfunction on their small colony ship and then crashed. The consequence of the crash was some pretty significant casualties and the loss of all of their holocrons, as well as anyone who knew how to build them.
Given their isolation they also couldn't get the information to build more elsewhere. Due to the basics of their doctrinal differences, which had to do with blood relations and the apprenticeship model, and the loss of their Sith Masters they ended up developing full memory transfer as a holocron replacement and new track of Force specialization.
And over time they ended up suppressing they were Sith descendant and eventually rejoined the galaxy after some significant cultural drift, and much reduced population. Due to their isolation they were also institutionally paranoid much like the Baneites, though their familial focus had them develop a Clan First mindset instead of the Rule of Two.
The other force sect idea is based on my observation that most Force sects seem to be militant, or anti-militant, in some fashion. People like the Blackgaurd, Sith, Jedi, who develop fighting techniques with the Force. And then people like the Fallanasi who are pasifistic in the sense of being anti-militant and developing abilities that help them avoid combat as a protest of the combative mindset of the other orders. And there's not really any sects where someone sat down and basically cooked up a Force religion of performance art, and devised Force abilities which had no origin in self protection or conquest.
So, it's been a week since the last post, and about a month since the last update. @Dr. Snark, how's the update coming?
@ everyone else... anyone up for contributing a few more omakes? If you're looking for unresolved plot threads:
@ everyone else... anyone up for contributing a few more omakes? If you're looking for unresolved plot threads:
- Dr. Snark dropped some tantalizing hints about Cheriss and how she came to inhabit a organic-replicant body
- There's the super-crit we rolled for our diplomacy teams visiting Ossus, which gave us a free archaeology action to explore the Great Library there next turn. Considering that our personnel (presumably including Abyss Agents) have received diplomacy training from Lorrdian specialists,perhaps you could turn this omake into an introduction for a new potential Abysswalker, who specializing in diplomacy & archaeology rather than combat. After all, if the Jedi Order have an entire branch of Consulars, why can't we?
- We ousted Shu Mai from the Commerce Guild, but we still need to pick someone to replace her. We don't have many options. Write an introduction for a new character, perhaps an up-and-coming auditor who works for Karada (or from Borvo's business empire, or any of our other business partners), that we can assign to oversee the Guild later in the turn.
- Same deal with Baron Papanoida and our new galaxy-spanning media network. There are a whole bunch of planets whose natives specialize in PR (the Lellish, the Vurk, the Ongree, and of course the Lorrdians), so perhaps one of them might work for us as an 'image consultant' or publicity manager. Frankly, given that our reputation spans the whole of the Republic and the CIS, we own multiple megacorporations and run one of the biggest charities in the galaxy, I suspect we have multiple teams of PR specialists on call -- perhaps one of them could be promoted to help us out with this new venture?
- I know @Barondoctor still has the 'Riphath trains with the Disciples of Twilight' omake on the backburner, but all of our other Abysswalkers (and Agents) were brought to Dyspeth for training, and some of them might have stories to tell of Force-empowered ninja.
- Aliston Nor? The legendary planet of Force Builders? We sent a team of Agents & archaeologists down, and they came back brimming with schematics for a deployable field hospital? Come on, people, this is prime omake bait.
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Small Nerd
Meganekko
- Location
- Out There
- Pronouns
- She/Her
What exactly did the good GM say again? I must have missed it the last time I read the update.
Here were the results from this turn (relevant lines bolded):
So... who else knows what Cheriss is? Who built her frame, who trained her as a proper engineer (she left Orax as a 'teenager', after all), and why is Dr. Snark making this into such a mystery box?
Basically: we learned from the other Shards that Cheriss's position (using an organic-like frame, with an organic name and backstory) is entirely unprecedented in Shard history, and that she must have received some help to construct her Togruta body and receive training as an engineer before coming to work for us. But, despite the years we've worked with her, we never actually got around to asking, and Cheriss never got around to telling us any of those details.
So... who else knows what Cheriss is? Who built her frame, who trained her as a proper engineer (she left Orax as a 'teenager', after all), and why is Dr. Snark making this into such a mystery box?
More importantly: how the hell did she become the best droid designer in the entire history of the galaxy? She created an entirely new kind of learning AI by accident. She took HK-47, one of the most lethal droids ever created and who was made using a combination of mechu-deru, sith alchemy, and all the resources of the Star Forge, and easily upgraded him in dozens of ways. Galen fucking* Erso was openly astonished by her frame's design innovations. Her designs are so far advanced that you might as well just declare them Magic and move on.
And we likely employ engineers who have.
* Walton actually
I don't think she has learned of Sith Alchemy just yet, have we interacted with the Jensaarai yet? If we haven't we should to get a kick-ass suit of armor.
- Location
- United States, CA
This might seem really dumb, because it's entirely possible we already have this and I just missed it, but does anyone know where Mandalor the Preserver's mask went? Seems like a good thing to give Jango.
I dunno, HK might. He's usually the best source on where to find Revan's old shit. And yes, the Mask of Mandalore would certainly be something Jango would appreciate.
Well, that send me down a rabbit hole.
Okay, the Mask of Mandalore was last seen in the possession of Mandalore the Preserver (aka Canderous Ordo) at the end of KOTOR II. Then, about 4000 years later, treasure hunters discover a very similar 'Mandalorian Mask' as buried treasure... however, this was basically a one-off easter egg in Star Wars Galaxies, and the mask was a random loot box on a random planet. So, that's no help.
BUT, if the Mask of Mandalore was in Canderous Ordo's possession, then if we figure out what Canderous was up to, then we might figure out where it went.
So... yeah, he dead. And specifically, Canderous died fighting the Sith Empire, and his skull was found on board the King's Ransom, a Sith treasure ship first seen in a mission from The Old Republic. It's possible that the Mask remained on the ship when it was destroyed over Nar Shaddaa -- so, find the shipwreck somewhere in the undercity, find the Mask.
On the other hand, the Sith probably had some idea of the Mask's significance, and given that their next step was to try to prop up their own puppet-Mandalore (called 'The Lesser'), it's possible that they gave him the Mask to shore up his legitimacy. But Mandalore the Lesser died during the Great Hunt killed by his successor, called 'The Vindicated', so the Mask would presumably have passed to him. Then Mandalore the Vindicated fell during a battle against the Eternal Empire of Zakuul -- I was unable to find any details of the battle, besides the fact that Mandalore died 'swarmed by skytroopers', droids built by the Eternal Empire.
Leadership of the Mandalorian clans was then taken up by Shae Vizla, called 'The Avenger'-- but at that point we start to see familiar names like 'Vizla' and 'Fett' and it seems like this is the point where succession of Mandalorian rulers is pretty well attested. If the Mask was lost, it either happened during some other much later event (most likely the Mandalorian Excision, since that marks the end of unified militarized clans) or it happened before Shea Vizla, either with the death of Canderous or the death of Mandalore the Vindicated.
So, the Mask is either a) in a shipwreck in the undercity of Nar Shaddaa, or b) in the shipwreck somewhere in space where Mandalore the Vindicated fell in battle, or c) on Zakuul in the Unknown Regions, after the Eternal Empire took it off the Vindicated's corpse, or d) in a pile of rubble somewhere on Mandalore, after it was turned into a desert via orbital bombardment.
Personally, I prefer the Nar Shaddaa story, if only because we already have salvage teams working the problem (and the idea of a 'Sith treasure ship' makes me really interested to figure out what's on board), but any of the four are plausible, depending on what @Dr. Snark would call canon.
- Pronouns
- She/Her
I'm sorry, I know you said things after 'Sith treasure ship' but I was gone after that. That sounds like not only something Ciaran would want to pursue, but something she'd want to give her personal attention given her