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dervinosdoom posted:Is there anything like republics in game? All rulers are feudal, distinguished by their particular inheritance laws, the personality of their rulers, the installations on their capital, and possible special traits for their House as accumulated over time. The particular historical quirks of the various feudal titles out there might vary- for instance, I'm taking both the 'Guilds' we're aware of as being named such because they make some historical claim to inheritance of old corporate property claims, thus also the traditional 'Director-General' title for factions styled as 'Guilds'. nweismuller fucked around with this message at 23:47 on Mar 28, 2022 |
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Mar 28, 2022 23:45
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The Herring Union's leader is titled 'Governor-General', an artifact of the purported source of the right to rule of House Herring. According to House Herring's own legends, they are a direct continuation of the original civil government of the Decrux colony. Whether this is true or not, House Herring has indeed verifiably ruled Decrux for at least a century. On the coronation of each new Governor-General, it is traditional for every adult citizen of Decrux to pledge their loyalty by the means of of depositing a slip of paper pre-printed with the name of the new Governor-General in a central collection box, which then has the paper slips weighed and the number of slips turned in calculated.
nweismuller fucked around with this message at 01:03 on Mar 29, 2022 |
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Mar 29, 2022 00:49
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Oriole Weiss posted:As I recognize the need to prioritize economic concerns at this time I will not press for any immediate action. However I will remind the council that our aquired edge from the Galilaeo institute remains vulnerable to discovery. I urge the rest of you to keep this in mind and be ready to support the work of protecting our assets as soon as financially viable. Nothing from me at the moment, waiting my turn a little for money to be available after pushing hard for the tech purchase.
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Mar 29, 2022 00:54
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Director-General Jane Weiss posted:I shall be certain to have you get Security on ensuring information control on the data vault and key information from the vault as soon as we have the resources. I believe, at this point, our basic course of action is clear. I'm looking forward to more good work from all of you from here on out.
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Mar 29, 2022 01:01
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Duke-Heir Thomas Weiss posted:While I was against both how we acquired our new secrets and what we did with them, I can't help but concur that at this point, it's in for a credit, in for a mark. Any expenditures necessary to keep the secret concealed are approved. We made our choice, so it would be unbecoming not to take full responsibility for it.
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Mar 29, 2022 04:13
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Who keeps track of and disseminates "honorable" and "dishonorable" actions? I am going to broadly attribute that to religious institutions in historical feudalism.
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Mar 29, 2022 11:44
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habituallyred posted:Who keeps track of and disseminates "honorable" and "dishonorable" actions? I am going to broadly attribute that to religious institutions in historical feudalism. Over the course of the centuries. honor codes that help ensure social stability have evolved in the colonies- the 24th Century was a savage and brutal era in which unrelenting violence was commonplace, and many of the colonies came to the brink of destruction as a side-effect of this. In our more civilised era, we understand that colonies cannot stand without a foundation of honor and justice. Not that all of us so willingly abide by the laws and traditions of honor, but, nonetheless- the facts are there. This is simple history. Our pastors and preachers, of course, certainly help teach the importance of these honor codes... and there are very few indeed even amongst the highest of nobility who do not believe that God is there and has opinions on our conduct. But, to simply recognise when you hear that a baron has left his people to starve, when a raid has been launched, when a war has been declared without due and honorable cause that crimes have been committed that the victims are within their rights to seek satisfaction for? One hardly needs a religious authority to tell them that. (TL;dr: Religion forms a role in teaching people honor and morality, but the honor codes have historical roots and modern nobles are fully capable of judging honor themselves after hearing something that happened.)
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Mar 29, 2022 12:25
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A Good Man For all that Yardley Patton was the archon of the long-established Patton League and a ruler of considerable power, this did not shield him or his colony from the consequences of poverty and mismanagement. Famine broke out on the Patton home colony of Rotanev late in 2502, with Yardley Patton promptly responding by seizing control of Rotanev's foodstuffs to ensure that House Patton would ride out the starvation unscathed. Deaths amongst the commoners on Rotanev were widespread, and resentment against Yardley Patton began to grow in the colony.  Near the beginning of 2503, a routine state visit by Baron Merlin Gates of Beta Librae to the court of the neighboring realm of the Weiss Guild on Vega proved to be a lucky diplomatic break when Executive Director Thomas Weiss was able to befriend the visiting baron, who was impressed by the Director-Heir's keen insight and depth of historical and administrative knowledge. Although this led to little concrete benefit yet, the good feeling between Beta Librae and the Weiss Guild just might prove to be of advantage in the future. Although little-marked by most on Vega, a detonation of improperly stored munitions in the military hangars on Beta Eridani in early 2503 was still a key piece of news in that colony. The damage to the hangers and to the ships there was extensive.  While the later part of 2502 and the early part of 2503 were relatively uneventful for House Weiss, the latter half of 2503 more than made up for this. Perhaps the best news of the latter half of 2503 was the birth of Prudence Weiss's second child, conceived during a brief return visit by Romeo Weiss to Vega- a son named Allen, named after a distant ancestor of Romeo's reputed in family legend to have been a brilliant duellist in an interceptor.   Almost immediately after Allen's birth, Baron Angelo Beck of Kajam approached the Director-General with a proposal. His third child, Ova, had just reached the age of 6, and was ready to begin the process of education that would eventually bring her to her age of majority. He requested that Jane Weiss do him the honor of taking on the responsibility of Ova's education, raising the girl to adulthood. Jane, eager to strengthen relations with her vassals and knowing the prestige that being chosen for such a responsibility granted, willingly accepted. Once a child reached age 6, they can be assigned a guardian, who can influence their personality and who will help the child gain skills faster. Rulers can become guardians of members of their own house or children of foreign rulers, while council members are eligible to become guardians of members of their own House. Each character may have only one ward at a time. A council member being assigned as guardian of an important house member, or a ruler becoming guardian of a foreign ruler's child, is prestigious and boosts the general reputation of the character taking on the duty.   Shortly following the arrival of Ova at Vega, she was present in the council chamber of House Weiss listening to deliberations when metal fatigue in the structural supports for the chamber led to a collapse. As first responders from the House Weiss medical team arrived, Jane, badly injured from being trapped under rubble, ordered the responders to focus on assistance of those most badly hurt. As it proved, the most badly-injured person on the scene was Jane herself, who was rushed to medical treatment as quickly as possible, although her recovery proved to be quite slow following her injuries. Prudence promptly took personal charge of Jane's treatment, in the hopes of speeding the Director-General's return to health. With this event, Jane became Ill. Ill characters suffer a hefty 50% penalty to all skills, and have a chance of dying even if they're not normally old enough to die a natural death. Old characters are particularly vulnerable to death by illness. There's a small chance of naturally falling ill for each character each turn, dependent on the House technology rating, and a chance of recovering naturally from illness, likewise dependent on technology rating. A Medical Attention assignment can greatly boost the chance of an ill character recovering and reduce the chance of a well character falling ill. All things considered, I generally consider medical attention to aid recovery far more worthwhile than cutting an already slim chance of falling ill further.  The council meeting had been the very meeting where Director-Consort Mariko Weiss was to report that the efforts of her diplomats on Kajam had borne fruit. Although Orion Industries property claims no longer were legally enforceable and the right of House Weiss to inherit any claims Orion Industries once had was questionable, nonetheless research into old Orion Industries holdings helped provide some patina of legal respectability for House Weiss to establish a claim over Kajam. Combined with arguments about the benefits of mutual defense within the Guild, the justice and good rule that House Weiss promised, and several generous payments to members of minor Houses in Kajam, this was sufficient to help provide an air of legitimacy to Kajam's membership in the Guild and reduce resistance amongst the minor Houses and the commons to House Weiss's rule. Getting a weak claim on Kajam immediately reduces its unrest gain rate somewhat and helps make it more painful for its baron to betray us or for outside rulers to try to take it from us. Establishing claims on systems we don't have claims on is an important way to help ensure internal stability and to lay the groundwork for external expansion.  As Jane lay in her sickbed later in the year, her father, Harold, approached her with an opportunity. Charles Kelley, a minor noble Harold had known in his youth who had taken up the life of a mercenary was now seeking to retire, and hoped to take service with House Weiss. Harold knew Charles as a man of courage and resolution, but whispers had reached Jane that he was cruel and merciless, treating defeated enemies in an inhuman fashion. Harold was reluctant to believe these rumors, but Jane was unwilling to risk taking into service a man for whom such rumors had even a chance of being true.   Word reached House Weiss that Baroness Beatrice Travis of Ross 128 sought aid in defense of her colony from a raid coming from Hyadum. As House Weiss lacked any obligation to House Travis, and Jane Weiss considered the Baroness little more than scum, the Director-General chose not to commit the lives and ships of the Guild in a fight that was none of its concern. Baroness Beatrice Travis is both Cruel and a Rulebreaker, and she and Jane basically detest each other. Barons who hold no higher title may launch raids, attacks against neighboring colonies that, if successful, damage some installations there and provide a sum of money to the raider. Raids may take place even within the same faction, where they are very annoying. We could have honorably gotten involved on the defense here, but sticking our neck out for the Evil Baroness of Ross 128 doesn't exactly seem like there's any gain in it for us on any level.  Thomas and Oriole's young daughter Alice fell badly ill near the beginning of 2504. Although, with access to House Weiss's medical care, she might recover, nonetheless there was a risk the little girl would not survive.  Meanwhile, news drifted into the Weiss Guild out of the Garrett Confederation that unrest and dissent was surging on its capital colony of Gliese 687. Were nothing to be done, Duchess Ruana Garrett risked outright revolt on her colony within two years, which would doubtless draw off some of her military forces.   While the Director-General still lay in her sickbed, Prudence Weiss was approached by a medic who wished to offer his aid in Jane's treatment, claiming he had only recently returned to Vega after a long absence and wished to be of service to the new Director-General. With his assistance, Jane rapidly completed her recovery from the terrible injuries she had sustained, and Jane and Prudence approached the man asking who he was and whether he would be willing to consider permanent service with House Weiss.  "I will gladly serve, Director-General, and I am glad to see the colony of my childhood in kinder hands. As for my name... I am Ilario Goodman. But I pledge here by my honor that I will give you faithful and loyal service if you will but have me. I wish to return home, and I do not need my brother's throne. In fact, I am simply glad to see the throne now in hands that may use it well." Ilario Goodman- he was the younger brother of King Emmanuel! He had been exiled from Vega in 2496 after speaking against his brother's brutal actions, after which he had roamed the Goodman Kingdom, Patton League, and Garrett Conferation in search of any sources he could find on the medical knowledge of the ancients in order to aid him as he served as a medic to serf, to artisan, to merchant, and to minor noble alike. Even now he might have a claim to the throne if he would but assert it. Still, after his freely-offered aid to the family that had usurped his brother's power, Jane did not believe she could honorably refuse his further service. Really, of all the randomly-generated names, we had to get Goodman here? I genuinely burst out laughing when I saw his name. Ilario is Friendly (a positive trait opposed by Reserved), which adds +20 to Diplomacy and gives the character a stronger emotional impact from events having to do with social connection with others. He is also Honorable, Intelligent, Kind, Tribal, and Dull, all of which we have seen. He also has a special trait, 'Able Medic', signified by the medical cross symbol on his bar of traits. This grants him a special 20% bonus to effectiveness in Technology assignments  Director-General Jane Weiss asked that Diplomacy make overtures of peace to the Garrett Confederation, but, for now, Duchess Ruana Garrett seemed unwilling to accept such advances. Still, Diplomacy reported that the Duchess seemed to have little real animosity towards Jane Weiss or her House, and anticipated that perhaps relations could remain stable once hostilities petered out. The Weiss Guild, Early 2504  Although the Weiss Guild's effectiveness had suffered somewhat while Jane recovered from her injuries, with the Director-General now once again in good health and high spirits things have returned to normal. Life in the Guild has remained relatively peaceful for the past two years, marred only by continuing protests against House Weiss by a minority of rabble-rousers on Vega. Even now, repair work is under way on the hydroponics station in Vega, which has proven to also have several tanks for aquaculture which could be stocked from the relatively small fish farms currently operating on Vega. Most of House Weiss's operations now proceed with a smooth and efficient competence, and even Diplomacy and Security seem to be less overstretched by their duties than when House Weiss first rose to power.   As far as House Weiss is aware, there has been little change in the basic political outlines of the colonies over the past two years, although Coordinator Walt Wang has abdicated from his throne and left the Wang Collective in the hands of his daughter, Metea. Why he would step down from the throne remains a matter for speculation.  News has reached House Weiss that the colonies at Hyadum and Alhena are being wracked by the horrific respiratory disease known as Rattle Lung, a mutated variant of influenza that periodically erupts on the colonies. Although Rattle Lung outbreaks invariably burn themselves out over time, the suffering and death inflicted in the meantime is unimaginable, with colonies barely able to function while in the grips of the disease and infected people literally drowning in the fluid that collects in their lungs. While Hyadum is receiving medics and shipments of aid from elsewhere in the Lamb Clan, Alhena has been put under strict quarantine in an attempt to prevent the spread of the disease off the colony. The despair on Alhena has led to near-anarchy in the colony, the Houses barricading themselves in their complexes while desperate serfs riot in the slums. -5 wealth will basically completely shut down any colony that doesn't have extra income-generating installations as long as the disease is running. Rattle Lung outbreaks are extremely bad news. Quarantines add an extra helping of 'massive unrest increase', while coordinating aid makes it likely the faction will soon be hit by other outbreaks.  Jane Weiss once again turns her formidable abilities to ensuring that the Weiss Guild is led as ably as it can be. Her studies have continued to hone her abilities as an administrator, while her general experience as ruler and the lessons she has taken from her council have slowly strengthened her abilities in other fields.   Executive Director and Director-Heir Thomas Weiss, already a skilled administrator, has by now firmly earned the respect of the House as a worthy heir to the Director-General's throne. Although it is hopefully many years until he must take the throne, nonetheless House Weiss stands certain he shall do his best to lead the Guild with dedication and honor when that time comes. He is currently overseeing the repairs to the hydroponics station and reserving seeds and fish with which to stock the agriculture and aquaculture in the station. He and Oriole remain a couple dedicated to one another, and take happiness from their time together. He has taken up the responsibility of educating his eldest daughter Rebecca, the next in line to the throne after himself.  Although Admiral Harold Weiss was disappointed that his daughter refused to take Charles Kelley's service, he remains a staunchly loving and loyal father. He has been remotely directing peacekeeping operations on Miaplacidus, which, although effective in staunching the disorder from the resentment from the famine that had struck there earlier, nonetheless have been hampered by the delay in orders and information imposed by his inability to take personal command of the efforts.  Director-Consort Mariko Weiss has, since the establishment of a firm claim on Kajam for the Guild, focused on directing efforts to keep diplomatic channels open with Duchess Ruana Garret of the Garrett Confederation despite the ongoing war. She has been steadily maturing as a diplomat, and remains deeply devoted to her wife Jane, another marriage, like Thomas and Oriole's, that has been continuing happily for both members of the marriage.  Commissioner Oriole Weiss has been working frantically to attempt to protect the secrets of the Galileo Institute datavault, a task which has apparently put her under no little stress. She and her husband are both deeply concerned about the fragile health of their youngest daughter, and hope to see her swiftly recover.  Since before the birth of her son Allen, Technology Director Prudence Weiss has begun to grow more and more attached to her husband, regretting that Romeo's duties keep him away from Vega the vast bulk of the time. She has been continuing to focus on acquiring materials for Jane Weiss to better instruct herself on mathematics and administration, as well as coordinating the operations of the scientific, engineering, and medical teams in service to House Weiss.  Romeo Weiss has remained in residence on Kajam with only occasional visits to Vega over the past two years, continuing to ensure the efficient operating of tax collection on that colony. The birth of a new child has at least temporarily softened his attitude towards his wife, although he very clearly does not care as deeply for her as she does for him. On his last visit to Vega, he has seemed somewhat distracted, his reports to Executive Director Thomas Weiss due to his duties in Administration not showing quite the attention to detail Thomas has come to expect.  By all indications, Ilario Goodman's service to House Weiss is genuine service, despite his claim on the throne. He is a skilled and dedicated medic and well-grounded in the sciences in general, and could greatly aid Technology in its operations. The past two years have seen House Weiss strengthen its position, and the unlikely return of a member of House Goodman who shows no indication of grasping for the throne his family lost. God willing, House Weiss will continue to thrive and to guide the Weiss Guild with wisdom and justice in the coming years. nweismuller fucked around with this message at 03:39 on Apr 10, 2022 |
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Mar 29, 2022 19:57
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I'll work on getting reports out for Administration, Military, and Security today. Mariko Weiss, Prudence Weiss, and Ilario Goodman are free to claim. As usual, if people have questions, ask and I'll try to answer. With Ilario Goodman, we now have an extra character for Technology assignments, and it may be worth asking Technology for assignments. As a reminder, the assignments associated with Technology are Training, helping a target character improve in a given skill, Provide Medical Attention, helping recovery from illness, helping prevent illness, and helping improve the chance of conception and safe childbirth for women, Shift Fleet Composition, which can adjust the ratio between bombers, interceptors, and frigates at a colony, and Monitor Vassals, which can improve the number of vassals we can manage by up to 3. Obviously, Monitor Vassals is not currently needed.
nweismuller fucked around with this message at 20:48 on Mar 29, 2022 |
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Mar 29, 2022 19:59
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Duke-Heir Thomas Weiss posted:I'd like to begin with a couple personal notes. First, a request that Lord Goodman be asked to assist in my daughter's medical care. I'm given to understand he's quite the gifted physician, and Pru has her own children to worry about, anyway. Second, while I'm sure father saw him in better days, I've heard some rumors of this Charles Kelley, myself, and to hear others tell it, torture may be the least troubling thing about him.
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Mar 30, 2022 08:10
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I wasn't really feeling any of the original characters, but the evil king's goateed good brother? I call dibs. The coincidence is just amazing, and I'm glad you rolled with it. As I joked on discord, Ilario is the evil king's evil bearded twin. So that makes him double secret evil, which somehow makes him good. Probably because three lefts make a right.
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Mar 30, 2022 09:12
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General Revil posted:I wasn't really feeling any of the original characters, but the evil king's goateed good brother? I call dibs. The coincidence is just amazing, and I'm glad you rolled with it. Evil kings with good-natured siblings they either exile, shuttle off to the rear end end of nowhere for "important duties", try to kill/imprison, etc. is actually a very common plot device in fiction, going as far back as Robin Hood (where, in that case, the good* sibling was technically the legitimate ruler, but was off fighting the Crusades and left John in charge) and Man in the Iron Mask. Such situations have also supposedly happened in real life, but many of those accounts are just as likely after-the-fact hagiography meant to retroactively justify a succession war/assassination. *Well, at least as far as the fiction was concerned; the real King Richard was, let's say, complicated.
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Mar 30, 2022 10:39
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Director-Consort Mariko Weiss posted:With our claim established on Kajam, the Weiss Guild actually has at least some claim to rule over every colony within its borders. There's really nothing more we can do for our legitimacy at this point other than wait for time to soften the impact of how we founded the Guild. Raising taxes on the outlying colonies would be a major impact on the opinion of our barons, but relations are good enough that it could at least be a viable course of action. The barons of Kajam and Beta Eridani will grumble, and I'd be concerned about the possibility of somebody raising a sufficient bribe to sway them, but I think they'd accept a tax increase in good enough humor. Given my read of Baron Kirabo Martin and Baron Brinley Hayes, though, I'm not seeing any real risks with them if we increase taxes, so Miaplacidus and Kapteyn's Star should definitely be secure. nweismuller fucked around with this message at 11:35 on Mar 30, 2022 |
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Mar 30, 2022 11:31
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Duke-Heir Thomas Weiss posted:My opinion on the tax rate is that it should be increased to 20% around the time the corporate tower is finished being repaired and all of our vassals have at least four functional installations, assuming circumstances don't change significantly in the meantime. By that point, our rule should be firmly established, and our vassals reasonably comfortable, not to mention the increased efficiency our tax collectors will enjoy once the tower's up and running.
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Mar 30, 2022 12:37
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The Old Man, Admiral Harold Weiss posted:At the moment, I feel it the most prudent to continue monitoring the situation at Miaplacidus.
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Mar 30, 2022 12:39
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Family Man Romeo Weiss posted:
Lady Jaybird fucked around with this message at 13:28 on Apr 11, 2022 |
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Mar 30, 2022 13:37
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Director-General Jane Weiss posted:First off, let me commend our Administration team for beginning work to restore the hydroponics station here in Vega. This is, I am certain, only the first step towards a prosperous new future for Vega and for the Guild. We all know how critical our hydroponics yields are to every man and woman in the colonies. We'll review tax policy when the time comes, but my inclination is to keep our demands limited, as a means to help cement the Guild's stability and order. In general, though, my very highest commendations to Administration and to its Executive Director. Thank you, Thomas. nweismuller fucked around with this message at 16:34 on Apr 5, 2022 |
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Mar 30, 2022 16:52
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Senior Scientist Ilario Goodman posted:It's good to be back home. I've been in exile for over eight years, following some quarrels with my late brother. That's a story for another time though. I'm very happy with how well technology is being run here on my old home world. I had feared the worst when I heard that my brother had been overthrow, and assumed that my dear home planet would fall into civil war and anarchy. I was pleasantly surprised to find that it had been left in capable hands, and it is far less dysfunctional compared to when I was exiled, and especially the years after my exile. General Revil fucked around with this message at 00:09 on Mar 31, 2022 |
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Mar 30, 2022 23:49
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While we're here, anybody have questions either about the situation with the Weiss Guild and House Weiss or the setting in general they'd like to see me address? I'm certainly willing to provide more information if people want it.
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Mar 31, 2022 01:20
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So what is our inheritance laws? I know now that there are no republics, but is there elective monarchies?
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Mar 31, 2022 13:22
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dervinosdoom posted:So what is our inheritance laws? I know now that there are no republics, but is there elective monarchies? There are twelve possible inheritance laws in game, which can be summarised as four 'base' laws with sex-biased versions of all four. As a ruler only ever really has one piece of inheritable property (since you can only directly control a single colony, so all other colonies and all vassal factions belong to other houses), there's no equivalent of Crusader Kings gavelkind/partition- the inheritance laws just designate the default heir. These laws are 'oldest child' (and its variants 'oldest son' and 'oldest daughter'), 'oldest sibling' (and 'oldest brother and oldest sister'), 'closest relative' (and 'closest male' and 'closest female'), and 'youngest child' (and 'youngest son' and 'youngest daughter'). The Weiss Guild is running on 'oldest child', which I think is biased by the game to be the most common inheritance law. It was certainly the only inheritance law before alternate inheritance laws were introduced. You do, however, have the option to disinherit the current heir (normally a fairly significant crime, largely because you're almost automatically wronging close kin, which makes crimes worse), making it so they will no longer exist in the line of succession (but allowing their children to still inherit). Given the unpermitted birth of Thomas' youngest, the dishonor to disinherit him would be pretty minimal at this point, if so we choose- doing so would leave his oldest, Rebecca, as Director-Heir. You can also designate a specific heir, which is a crime of a similar magnitude on top of a little added dishonor, but sometimes you find that some younger child or niece or something has a really good mix of traits. With a designated heir, the normal line of succession still exists past them, in case other people in the line of succession outlive the designated heir. Now, the idea of elective monarchy is interesting, and I think it might be worth talking to Glen about that as an option for organising leagues... in that I don't think that would particularly conflict with many of the basic assumptions of the setting and would still work effectively with the way each ruler only directly rules a single colony. Point of fact, I think I'll go drop him a message related to that now. Having a league where members are expected to be members, but where the master faction can shift could be distinctly interesting... E: For what it's worth, the sex-biased inheritance laws don't entirely disqualify the opposite sex from inheriting, but make it so the given sex inherits first along a given line. If the Weiss Guild had 'oldest daughter' inheritance, the line of succession would go Prudence-Alice-Malachi (since Prudence has no other female children)-Thomas (defaulting to a brother if somehow all of Prudence's line got wiped out)-Rebecca-Emily-so on. nweismuller fucked around with this message at 14:12 on Mar 31, 2022 |
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Mar 31, 2022 13:55
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nweismuller posted:Now, the idea of elective monarchy is interesting, and I think it might be worth talking to Glen about that as an option for organising leagues... in that I don't think that would particularly conflict with many of the basic assumptions of the setting and would still work effectively with the way each ruler only directly rules a single colony. Point of fact, I think I'll go drop him a message related to that now. Having a league where members are expected to be members, but where the master faction can shift could be distinctly interesting... That sounds pretty cool! For the game map, is there more colonies out there past what is shown in the first update? Or is that it for how many colonies are in the game? I'm trying to get a sense of map size. For gameplay mechanics, when do children get their traits? If they get them when they're born, what are Romeo's children's traits? Speaking of children, I know the limit is 2 without getting penaltized in the Guild, but can it be set higher before dishonor?
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Mar 31, 2022 14:22
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dervinosdoom posted:That sounds pretty cool! As of game start, you absolutely do not know the whole map, but I can tell you the total number of inhabited colonies as of right now, because it tells you on the victory tracker. Checking quickly, there are currently... 115 inhabited colonies. This number can fluctuate a bit, because although it is impossible to build entirely new colonies, old colonies can occasionally have to be abandoned due to damage, and abandoned colonies can have the main settlement fixed up and resettled with new colonists. Children gain traits slowly throughout childhood, particularly after they hit age 6 and their education begins. It's a little hard to tell how Malachi and Alice will turn out at such an early age, but they're likely to share some traits of their parents. As for children, it's not actually 'the first two'. Each couple automatically gets permission to have their first child, but each further child requires requesting permission from the House head or having the House head grant this permission, or, like Thomas, having an unpermitted child which is considered a crime against their House head. On Romeo's, Thomas', Oriole's, and Prudence's character screens, you can a white 'woman' silhouette icon with a question mark in its belly- this indicates that they have been granted permission and are trying for a child. It slipped my mind to grant childbirth permissions earlier, and Thomas didn't proactively ask me in-game (which is a thing couples can do). But, following that unpermitted birth, I actually went to the trouble of granting permission for a new child to both those couples... and Romeo and Oriole proactively asked for permission after Alice's birth, which I granted. E: There's some considerations about not 'showing favoritism' in childbirth permissions which can be a little opaque to me when it kicks in as something that's a (minor) honor consideration for the ruler granting permissions, but that's not been an issue yet. I'll see if I can't figure out the logic about what's favoritism and what isn't. nweismuller fucked around with this message at 14:43 on Mar 31, 2022 |
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Mar 31, 2022 14:29
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nweismuller posted:As of game start, you absolutely do not know the whole map, but I can tell you the total number of inhabited colonies as of right now, because it tells you on the victory tracker. Checking quickly, there are currently... 115 inhabited colonies. This number can fluctuate a bit, because although it is impossible to build entirely new colonies, old colonies can occasionally have to be abandoned due to damage, and abandoned colonies can have the main settlement fixed up and resettled with new colonists. The favoritism really applies when you have house members who are not dynastic members, basically you should not be favoriting someone not related to you to have a third child when another unrelated couple only has one. Your heir can have as many as they want because "OBVIOUSLY" they should get favoritism, other members of the dynasty get better preference as well. I am not 100% sure this is correct but default 1st is automatic 2nd you need to grant but is never favortism 3rd+ is where it matters, but it doesn't matter if you are granting EVERYONE permission as long as you remember to grant permission to the couples who have less children first or do it with immediate family.
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Mar 31, 2022 15:29
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nweismuller posted:As of game start, you absolutely do not know the whole map, but I can tell you the total number of inhabited colonies as of right now, because it tells you on the victory tracker. Checking quickly, there are currently... 115 inhabited colonies. This number can fluctuate a bit, because although it is impossible to build entirely new colonies, old colonies can occasionally have to be abandoned due to damage, and abandoned colonies can have the main settlement fixed up and resettled with new colonists. So the map is bigger! Not Stellaris big, but big enough. Like Master of Orion size So children follow the Crusader King style then when it comes to traits, good to know! I'm guessing Romeo and Prudence are raising the kids themselves then? Is there any chance that the Director-General or her wife can have children with wacky space science? I was wondering what the white woman question mark symbol meant! It's an interesting mechanic with having to ask permission to have more than one kid. It makes sense in the context of the game, but it's something I never really thought about. Do minor houses do anything? I know Romeo comes from House Kelley. I know I'm asking a lot of questions, but I'm bored at work and have a lot of time to think of things.
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Mar 31, 2022 15:41
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I don't have the concentration power to play the game myself. But I like to get really informed for some reason. I'm weird like that.
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Mar 31, 2022 15:44
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dervinosdoom posted:So the map is bigger! Not Stellaris big, but big enough. Like Master of Orion size At this age, children have no mechanical guardian. At age 6, they can be assigned a guardian for intensive education- otherwise, we can assume they stay with their parents (and have a slightly less intensive education experience; the reason a council member only has one ward is because that ward basically gets to sit in on a great many things as the council member works to get more experience). There is no wacky space science that allows gay couples to have children; Jane is just going to have to rely on Thomas and his children to ensure the House has heirs. Minor Houses don't do a lot, but they serve as pools of potential marriage partners, form resentments and attachments and occasionally have members of them caught murdering people or getting into affairs, can get involved in events on a given colony, and, under the right circumstances, launch revolts. Unrest hitting 100 on a colony automatically has a minor House chosen on the colony to lead the revolt, splitting local colonial fleets for the coming battle and with both the ruler and the rebel leader getting a chance to try and call in support from neighboring colonies. The duke of a well-run faction can probably count on their barons supporting them over a random upstart, and even a baron will generally tend to have better ties with their neighbors than a random minor House upstart. On the other hand, if you're widely loathed, a ruler may well not get the support he wishes from his barons when a rebellion crops up... as Emmanuel Goodman found. E: Given the role of Technology in the education process in general, I think we can assume the standard upbringing for a noble child is living with their parents, while getting a basic education by some staff from the Technology team for overall general education supplemented, potentially, by guest courses on specialist subject matter from other teams (since each department is supposed to consist of a staff of 'officers' beneath the nobles the game actually tracks; nobles take top supervisory roles but they'll have staff and aides for carrying out other work). So you'll get basic literacy, numeracy, and general knowledge handled by Technology team tutors, with guest appearances by an officer from Administration discussing the fundamentals of accountancy and logistics, somebody from Military talking tactics and doing piloting lessons, an officer from Diplomacy who gives guest lessons on protocol, decorum, and who's who in regional politics, Security handling the basics of personal self-defense, information hygiene, and the like, and more experienced people from Technology going over deeper dives into the sciences, medicine, and engineering. nweismuller fucked around with this message at 16:00 on Mar 31, 2022 |
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Mar 31, 2022 15:54
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Nothng to see here
AtomikKrab fucked around with this message at 17:29 on Mar 31, 2022 |
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Mar 31, 2022 15:59
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AtomikKrab, could we avoid spoilers for events we haven't seen yet? Please redact.
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Mar 31, 2022 16:01
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Oh yeah, ANOTHER thing minor Houses are good for is they serve as convenient pools of nobles that you can appoint to rule a colony if you had to depose somebody or if a vassal dies with no natural heirs.
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Mar 31, 2022 16:09
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So can council members rule their own colony? You're playing as Jane, but say Prudence can be the ruler of Kapteyn's star? Also I was reading the intro about diplomacy and public relations, second post of the LP posted:Diplomacy, symbolised by green clasped hands, increases the public reputation of the all members of the House- the greatest amount for the House head, followed by a smaller boost for 'important' House members, and a yet smaller boost for other House members
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Mar 31, 2022 17:26
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nweismuller posted:AtomikKrab, could we avoid spoilers for events we haven't seen yet? Please redact. Done, sorry about that
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Mar 31, 2022 17:29
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dervinosdoom posted:So can council members rule their own colony? You're playing as Jane, but say Prudence can be the ruler of Kapteyn's star? If I appointed Prudence to rule a colony because I was in a position to appoint a new colony ruler, she would leave House Weiss, establish a new House (in this case, 'House Weiss of Kapteyn's Star' would be the name), bringing her spouse and children, and no longer be available for the House council of House Weiss. As a general rule, I tend not to appoint direct members of my House as colony rulers unless I'm very flush with House members and can afford the vacancies in the org chart. Far less disruptive to appoint, say, Lady Devon Kelley as a baroness and let House Kelley move wholesale into their new baronial digs. dervinosdoom posted:Who are the 'important' house members? I'm guessing council members? Council members are important, yes. Other classes of characters that are important are the ruler's siblings, consort, parents, and children, even if not on the council; I'm not sure if that extends to 'close kin' generally, I don't have a convenient save to check but we could figure it out once Rebecca came of age. Of the adults in the House, everybody but Romeo and Ilario Goodman is currently considered 'important'. Incidentally, speaking of 'close kin', you may note that everybody in the House except for Ilario Goodman has a 'blood drop' icon on their status bar, which indicates that they are kin to Jane by blood or marriage. A red blood drop indicates close kin, which reaches up to two steps away by blood (so, grandparents, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, uncles, and aunts, as well as closer relations) or a single step by marriage (i.e., only your own consort). An orange blood drop indicates 'normal' kin, while a yellow blood drop indicates distant kin. Given Romeo is one step away by marriage from somebody one step away from Jane by blood, he's thus 'normal' kin. AtomikKrab posted:Done, sorry about that No worries, I'm guessing you just missed my request on spoiler policy in the OP. I'm glad you're reading! 
nweismuller fucked around with this message at 17:58 on Mar 31, 2022 |
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Mar 31, 2022 17:51
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nweismuller posted:Of the adults in the House, everybody but Romeo and Ilario Goodman is currently considered 'important'. Romeo will always be important to me!  Thanks for answering my stream of bored at work questions!
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Mar 31, 2022 18:06
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dervinosdoom posted:Romeo will always be important to me! Hey, I'm always glad to chat about this game. In case you couldn't tell, I honestly really like it.
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Mar 31, 2022 18:08
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Of course, I thought of something else. Are there any inhabitable planets? I mean are there any that can be terraformed or have been? Because the setting seems to be hard sci-fi with no aliens.
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Mar 31, 2022 19:01
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dervinosdoom posted:Of course, I thought of something else. As far as we're aware, there are not.
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Mar 31, 2022 19:03
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Diet and Intoxication in the Colonies The backbone of diet in the colonies is supplied by basic hydroponic agriculture; vegetables, beans, and, with proper use of nutrients from wastewater, some grains (particularly barley) are produced in sufficient quantities to keep the population fed. Leafy greens, berries, barley, tomatoes, lentils, and peas are common staples. A supplemental protein source is fish farming in high-density tanks; rapid generational turnover and good space efficiency makes fish the most common animal protein source in the colonies. Particularly in more prosperous colonies, serfs may be able to occasionally supplement their diet with fish, while skilled artisans, traders, officers in service to a House, and the nobility have more regular access to fish. More expensive still is 'synthmeat', cultured vat-grown animal tissue cultivated in relatively small quantities by specialised artisans. A synthmeat grower must carefully ensure the survival of their 'seed stock', or, in the event of contamination, acquire a seed stock from elsewhere. Synthmeat is almost exclusively reserved to the nobility, although the wealthiest of the independent traders or high-ranking officers in service to a House might occasionally find the opportunity to include synthmeat in a meal. Likewise rare and expensive are fruits and vegetables that are not easily grown via hydroponics, generally cultivated via tiny gardens catering to the nobility. Gardens in Vega catering to the nobility notably include a few lemon trees and a patch for potatoes; other exotics must often be imported from other colonies with different garden patches. As may be expected from the harsh and difficult life of the colonies, intoxicant use is common. Most common is 'synthohol', alcoholic beverages similar to traditional Terran beverages but taking advantage of techniques for accelerated fermentation to speed production. Quality of synthohol varies widely, from high-proof barley moonshine cooked up on the side by serfs and served in informal taverns in the slums to carefully formulated vintages of wines and ciders brewed from berries or fruits by prized experts and served at the tables of the Houses. Various synthetic drugs of varying degrees of safety periodically erupt into popularity in the slums, although many of these are legally suppressed because of their potential lethality and impact on serf productivity leading the Houses to try to keep serf efficiency up. One drug that is immensely popular, particularly in the Patton League, is 'Blue Dust', a complex lithium aluminum borate compound too difficult for modern chemists to synthesise but found in some deposits in the asteroid belt of Rotanev. Blue Dust is a powerful euphoriant with remarkably few side effects, which has led it to be both popular and legal wherever it has been introduced. Exploitation of the deposits of Blue Dust in Rotanev has thus far been quite limited, but doubtless widescale mining and distribution would be a valuable asset to House Patton if it could be managed.
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Mar 31, 2022 19:42
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nweismuller posted:Diet and Intoxication in the Colonies So most serfs eat healthier than modern 'Mericans! Are there any animals other than fish in the colonies?
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Mar 31, 2022 20:16
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dervinosdoom posted:So most serfs eat healthier than modern 'Mericans! There are a few animals in the colonies, although keeping pets is an immensely expensive luxury. There's a few dogs, a few cats, a stubbornly persistent and troublesome rat problem, assorted pollinator insects used in hydroponics, and others. Also, it's only 'healthier' if you don't suffer malnutrition from insufficient caloric intake.
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Mar 31, 2022 20:18
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