How about 'Sufficient Velocity' as our company's name? :D

[1] Science-Fiction
[2] Superheroes
[3] Horror
[X] Sufficient Velocity
 
[] Fantasy
[] Science-Fiction
[] Superheroes
[] Military
[] Mystery
[1] Spy
[] Romance
[2] Horror
[] Classical
[3] Comedy
[] Wild West
[] Write-in (possible QM veto)
[X] Undercover Comics

It's perfect. Undercover fits with the spy genre, because spies go undercover, but it also fits with horror, because you read horror novels under the covers of your bed. Plus, since it's such a cheesy pun, we'll round it off with comedy. Perfect.

Also, what's that subgenre called where the focus is on the protagonist and antagonist constantly trying to outplay and outsmart each other intellectually, You know, brilliant gambits, Xanatos speed chess, number-crunching, mindgames, that sort of thing. Sometimes it's mixed in with actual examples in real-world game theory, such as the prisoner's dilemma, or probability matrices, other times it focuses more on the psychological aspect and human nature, such as cooperation, trust, bluffing, etc. Some examples I'm thinking of are Death Note, Kaiji, and many parts of HunterxHunter. Also some of the non-fanservice-y sections of No Game No Life.
 
Last edited:
Also, what's that subgenre called where the focus is on the protagonist and antagonist constantly trying to outplay and outsmart each other intellectually, You know, brilliant gambits, Xanatos speed chess, number-crunching, mindgames, that sort of thing. Sometimes it's mixed in with actual examples in real-world game theory, such as the prisoner's dilemma, or probability matrices, other times it focuses more on the psychological aspect and human nature, such as cooperation, trust, bluffing, etc. Some examples I'm thinking of are Death Note, Kaiji, and many parts of HunterxHunter. Also some of the non-fanservice-y sections of No Game No Life.
I'm not sure about the exact subgenre but that kind of suspense and plot twist heavy thing would probably fall under the umbrella of thriller.
 
Also, what's that subgenre called where the focus is on the protagonist and antagonist constantly trying to outplay and outsmart each other intellectually, You know, brilliant gambits, Xanatos speed chess, number-crunching, mindgames, that sort of thing. Sometimes it's mixed in with actual examples in real-world game theory, such as the prisoner's dilemma, or probability matrices, other times it focuses more on the psychological aspect and human nature, such as cooperation, trust, bluffing, etc. Some examples I'm thinking of are Death Note, Kaiji, and many parts of HunterxHunter. Also some of the non-fanservice-y sections of No Game No Life.

In all seriousness, that type of story or those kinds of characters can be put in almost any genre. Whether it's a pair of spies, or a monster hunter chasing down Lord Dracula across Europe, we don't need to have that as a specific genre. Something like that just requires clever writing, which we might have.
Adhoc vote count started by CoreBrute on Dec 26, 2017 at 11:42 PM, finished with 27 posts and 6 votes.

Adhoc vote count started by CoreBrute on Dec 27, 2017 at 12:00 AM, finished with 59 posts and 5 votes.
 
[1] Science-Fiction
[2] Superheroes
[3] Horror
[X] Sufficient Velocity

It's perfect. Undercover fits with the spy genre, because spies go undercover, but it also fits with horror, because you read horror novels under the covers of your bed. Plus, since it's such a cheesy pun, we'll round it off with comedy. Perfect.
I feel Romance would fit the name better than comedy.:V
 
Sorry, guys, it's getting late here, and I can't seem to focus enough on completing the update or the character sheet. I'll do it tomorrow (no idea when, perhaps at the usual time.) Vote remains open for 12 more hours or so, in case someone wanders in by mistake.

As of now the tally is -
Odin - 1 {maybe joking/maybe not} vote
Undercover - 5 votes
Sufficient Velocity - 2 votes

In other news, I have also learnt that the thread tally counter doesn't do ranked votes... so no idea where the genre vote stands. I guess I'll be counting on you guys for that.
 
Vote Tally : Original - Untitled Comics #1 | Page 2 | Sufficient Velocity [Posts: 41-60]
##### NetTally 1.9.9
[1] Science-Fiction
[2] Horror
[3] Fantasy
[4] Superheroes
[5] Spy
[6] Mystery
[7] Romance
[8] Comedy
[9] Military
 
And votes locked with -
Undercover Comics - 5 votes.
And the genres are - [1] Science-Fiction [2] Horror [3] Fantasy.

The Horror is kind of a surprise. I was thinking it would be Superheroes, being comics and all. Update coming in 4 to 5 hours.
 
Issue 1 - The Long Awaited Beginning (Part 1)
Issue #1
Jan 1947

A few weeks before...

The first thing that catches your when you walk into William Taft Library is a bust of a rather odd looking Santa Claus on the counter. As you get closer, you see it's not Santa, but rather Taft himself with the distinctive hat. You admire it for awhile (even without a beard, it's flawless) before turning to the somewhat harried, irritated looking blonde who's glaring at you. "I won't let you borrow any books until you return them all," Alice shakes her head resolutely. "And I won't let you talk me into it doing so again."

You knew she absolutely would. Alice never seemed to remember anything for every long, and with a few minutes of gossip, you knew she would happily let you clear away a shelf and take it home. But it wasn't like you were always doing it.

"Relax, Alice," You put your bag on the counter. "Who do you think I am?"

"You really brought them back?" The dimples break out on her face as she smiles. "Gee – I really can't believe it!" She squeals as she puts them away. "You made my day, Emmy! Come on here!" You wince slightly as she pulls you into a hug. You're not much of a hugger, but Alice is the huggiest person there ever is. You're lucky though, this time she only holds on for a minute before letting you go.

"Can I now borrow some books?" You finally ask.

Ideation and Plot Research Unlocked! You can now visit the library to research new genres and other techniques for the ideation phase. Ideation Research takes time, so please schedule it carefully!

***​

The Intellectual's Pleasure is a little shop tucked in between 7th​ Avenue and Main Street. While there's books crammed in every nook and cranny inside, the comics are left unattended in the front, forced to share space with all types of newspapers. You pick one (Horrific Comics #16), and leaf through it.​

"You read it, you pay for it." Donovan Smith, cankerous old man and owner briskly walks into the room with a newspaper in hand and sits down by his spot without sparing you a glance. "What if I was the one who wrote it?" You ask your usual question.

"The only ones who can buy without paying can be the sitting president, a Pulitzer winner, or Bette Davis." He pointed to the ridiculous sign behind him, his finger landing exactly on the N of the No. "No other exceptions."

"Isn't she a little young for someone like you?"

"Love is not bound by age or causes," He folds down the newspapers and looks at you. "Now, I think you're here for a reason?"

"I recently became an owner of a publishing house." You explain, and he sagely nodes. "I have heard. What of it?"

"And I was hoping for some advice."

"Get some good editors. Pay your authors well. Don't publish more than you can pay for." He tritely replies.

"You know I will be publishing comics, right?"

It had been a point of contention between the two of you since the first time you came here. Donovan didn't believe that comics could be good literature, while you were ready to say that it was his biased old age views talking. The debate would continue for an hour or two, after which you both would grudgingly settle down.

"You might be the most adamant idiot I have ever seen." He huffs. "But I guess I did promise." He had been sympathetic to your tale of owning a publishing company on that day.

Initially, you had brushed him off as another old know-it-all. It was only later that you came to know that the man behind the counter was once the owner of Reimhart & Co, one of the biggest publishing and book selling companies in the country. Even though he disdained comic books, you had seen some eerily accurate predictions on what would be popular and what wouldn't. The man knew the audience better than any other guy you could ever find. It was the obvious choice.

You wait for a while. "Well?"

"Alright, the first thing you need to know," He pauses meaningfully and peers at you from the top of the newspaper. "If I am to really give my expert insight, I'll be charging consultation fees."

Market Research Unlocked! You can now visit the bookshop to find out the market trends and other events that would help during sales. Market Research costs money, so please budget it carefully!

***​

Fred is hard at work – which is to say, he is shouting really hard at others to work harder - when you find him. The printing presses were a sight to behold, a crowning achievement of modern science. Paper went in on one side, and after various pressing by some chemicals, comic books came out the other. It was simply glorious.

"What do you think of it?" He asks.

"It looks good." You understate your feelings somewhat.

"It could be a lot better," He enters the office and ushers you inside. The noises die down once he closes the door. "We're far from the standard level here, you know?"

"But we are fine for the moment?" You press.

"Oh yeah, absolutely," He agrees as he opens the door to shout at someone before closing it again. "Where was I? Oh, the bibles are always selling, but most of that money is used to keep the presses running. Nearly even operation. As for distributing the comics, I managed to snag a contract. Local area only, but at least we'll be making sales."

You frown slightly when you hear the news, but that's to be expected. While owning printing presses might make you a publisher, you still have a long way to go.

But you'll get there.

Publishing Events Unlocked! There'll be new publishing events from time to time.
Distributing Deals STILL LOCKED! The QM hasn't managed to figure them out yet! But they'll be here someday...
Advertising Deals STILL LOCKED! Is the QM just showing off mechanics but didn't bother to create them? Surely not...


***​
And now, back in the present.

"As I was saying," You begin anew. "We'll have to decide what kind of comics we'll be printing next month."

"I know the answer to that one," Fred pips up from behind. "It's got to be an anthology, right?"

"'S right." Finn nods his head. Louisa just seems lost. It's true, though. The answer was an obvious. Every comic book publisher had begun with an anthology issues. With a variety of stories, they could see what worked or didn't, try out new characters, and appeal to many readers at once. Later, once they figured out their strengths and weaknesses, they could print the series.

"Then the next question would be: how many stories should we include?"

"Shouldn't we figure out the number of pages first?" Fred asks.

"Oh, right." You think of it. Most of the big publishers kept it at 60 pages, but recently, there was a new trend of 36 pages. There were rumours that even Atlas might switch to it. Anything less than might leave a few people wanting. But it wouldn't matter if your business failed, would it? After some thinking, you say "Why don't we keep it at -

Please vote by Plan! (Money in hand: $85,000)
[] 60 pages - $30,500 (base publishing cost)
[] 36 pages - $20,500 (base publishing cost)
[] 25 pages - $15,500 (base publishing cost)
[] 22 pages - $12,500 (base publishing cost)
[] 20 pages - $10,500 (base publishing cost)
[] 18 pages - $7500 (base publishing cost)

"I think that sets a fine balance between cost and quality.". Everybody nods in agreement. Wait – are they going along with it cause you're the boss? But then Fred should have spoken up, right? You vow to get to the bottom of the matter later.

"Well, with that m-many pages," Louisa speaks up, "we could do a- at least three stories!"

"Well, one major story and two small ones, yes." Fred assents.

"'An be equal too." Finn points out.

"Or two major stories?" You think. Hmmm, this was proving to be a tough choice.

Choose the number of stories you want to publish, and assign them the pages!
Pages ≥ 18 means a main feature!
18 > Pages ≥ 11 is a major feature!
11 > Pages ≥ 5 is a standard feature!
5 > Pages is a minor feature!
Please vote by Plan!
[] No. of pages (from before)
-[] {Main Feature} No. of stories, and the pages for each
-[] {Minor Features} ….


After some discussion, everybody once again agreed with your decision. Is this what it meant to be The Man? You could get used to it.

"Well, now all's that left is the stories themselves." You continue on. "Anybody has any opinions?"

"I li-like Jane Austen…" Louisa interjects, you suppose, for the sake of interjecting. Finn just nods broadly as if to show he's fine with anything. Fred is the one who comes to your rescue. "You're the sole writer in here, so you should be the main contributor."

"Well, I'm good with Science-Fiction, Horror and Fantasy…" You muse. "So I guess I'll be suggesting based on that…"

Ideation Genres Set the Same As Personal Genres due to Jobs Matching! You can research more Ideation Genres at the Library, but Personal Genres will be developed when you level up!
Ideation Genres have a lower threshold and no. of successes required!
Personal Genres get a bonus when you write stories based on them!

You can vote for any genre with the format -
[] Genre:
-[] Plot
-[] Protagonist
-[] Antagonist
And roll a 10d10. If you are voting for a Ideation Genre (i.e., Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Horror), you get an extra voting bloc (and again roll a 10d10).
[] Genre:
-[] Plot
-[] Idea (Extra Idea about Setting, Theme, etc)
-[] Protagonist
-[] Antagonist

***​

A/N: A few requests. Don't give too much complicated stuff right of the bat. Too many tropes spoil the broth and whatnot. Also consider the time period and whether the concept would exist or not. Second, I hope the differentiation about Ideation Genres and Personal Genres are clear. Third, if you have any suggestions/questions, feel free to go ahead and ask. Next update will be sometime on Sat/Sun. I had the character sheets typed out, but then some site error ate it up. It'll be out soontm ​, I promise.

Also, I have a few questions: Does anyone know a good dice roller site, one that stores results and you can perhaps display them here (except the in-thread one, obviously)?
Second, do you guys prefer to make/see all the rolls of the MC, or should I do it in background and show it to you narratively? (Personally, I prefer the second one, but I might change if a lot of people disagree. You won't be seeing the rolls of your employees in any case. You'll figure out the bonuses too easily, and I prefer a much more narrative based explanation system.)
 
Last edited:
Also, I have a few questions: Does anyone know a good dice roller site, one that stores results and you can perhaps display them here (except the in-thread one, obviously)?
Does it really matter if you go with the don't post option?
You can just write them down.

Also this is certainly a scary looking vote. I'm thinking that as a player base we break this down. We see how many good story ideas we can come up with and base the size of the anthology off that. As a starting point, lets rip off Night Vale:

[] Genre: Horror/Sci-Fi/Slice of life
-[] A never seen narrator details the comings and goings of a strange people in a strange town that is plagued by mysterious events.
-[] Protagonist : Carlos the scientist with the perfect hair.
-[] Antagonist : There is no antagonist, just the ceaseless march of entropy as the universe decays. Also the tiny civilization that lives under the bowling alley.
 
Oh dear. I was afraid this might happen. Initially, there were even more votes, but I decided to reduce them.
And yeah, you all can come with as many plans as you want, but in the end, only the top X would go for scripting, while the rest would be kept for the next time. So, feel free to go crazy..cause if not today, your idea will certainly be printed tomorrow.
 
Last edited:
I'm a bit confused by the plan process for the genre creation. Please let me know if I've made a mistake below.

[X] Plan: Go big or go home

[X] 60 pages - $30,500 (base publishing cost)
[X] 3 Main features-20 pages per story

[X] Genre: Horror
-[X] Plot-Vampires rise from the Trenches to hunt our brave Allied Soldiers
-[X] Idea-Vampire Lord Dracula makes a deal with Adolf Hitler-in exchange for the souls of German soldiers, he will them into vampires to kill the Allied Forces and help him win WW2.
-[X] Protagonist-Captain Jack Helsing and his squad of brave soldiers are the first to realise what's happening, and swear to stop the vampires.
-[X] Antagonist-Vampire Nazis that stalk No Man's Land at night. (Dracula will be saved for future issues as an overarching villain)

[X] Genre: Fantasy
-[X] Plot: A scholar and adventurer Al Vadi-Vadi arrives in a fantastical land, where he must trick a dark Djinn out of his magic carpet
-[X] Idea: Basically an Arabian Nights setting, with the option to explore more mythological settings in future issues.
-[X] Protagonist: Al Vadi-Vadi is a scholar who challenged his teachers that there was more to learn from living life than in their ivory towers. So he travels the world,surviving on his wit as he discovers impossible things during his adventures.
-[X] Antagonist: A dark Djinn name Nufara-Tor, who hordes treasures from those he tricks with riddles, before burying them alive in sand. His greatest prize is a magic carpet.

[X] Genre: Science Fiction
-[X] Plot: An evil empire is holding two inhabitated planets trapped in an orbit by a Solar Ring. Only Rocket Force can free these people from these enforced rotations.
-[X] Idea: Rocket Force is a group of intergalactic space heroes, fighting monsters, stopping super weapons, etc. (Think Lensmen or Green Lanterns).
-[X] Protagonist: Rocket Force's newest recruit Roger Tuck from Earth is our POV, as he learns what it means to be part of Rocket Force, and be a hero.
-[X] Antagonist: An Evil Empire has been ruling this system from afar, starving it of it's resources, while keeping the two inhabitated planets locked together-the proximity driving them against each other, rather than it's true enemy the Evil Empire. When they send our forces to fight, it's usually Robotic Beefeeters.


That's all I've got. Let's see what takes.
CoreBrute threw 10 10-faced dice. Reason: GENRE Total: 53
6 6 4 4 8 8 9 9 4 4 2 2 6 6 3 3 4 4 7 7
 
I'm a bit confused by the plan process for the genre creation

Please take a look at the mechanics, in the first page, for those in similar straits.
Also, you got to roll a 10d10 to see how much of it gets across. You'll have very high threshold and successes required, Im afraid.
The plan itself is alright.
 
Last edited:
Please take a look at the mechanics, in the first page, for those in similar straits.
Also, you got to roll a 10d10 to see how much of it gets across. You'll have very high threshold and successes required, Im afraid.
The plan itself is alright.
Oh, they need to be simpler than that? I thought the Idea part was to elaborate.

That's fine, I'll make them simpler in a new post.
 
part was to elaborate
It's supposed to be like the flash of inspiration that strikes when you start thinking, a one liner that you can tease your story from.

For me it was seeing a thread that said - Create the Dc universe! and it started listing all the origins of the Superheroes.
I thought hey, man,... really? But people seemed to like it, so i thought, what if i do the same for Marvel?
Then I went, dammit, I could be more original! Create your own superhero universe, like Dc and marvel!
And then I started thinking about how to frame it... and the idea came of a comic book artist... and it snowballed from there.

that as a player base

One day, man. I promise I'll run this quest long enough you'll have a proper player base with loads of people willing to discuss. Right now though, it's a bit like a every man for himself before the house crumbles down (analogy for qm quitting midway). But we'll get there.
 
Back
Top