You know, Star Crusade could have done good as Shangrila In Medieval Space. P and the rest should have admitted that it was just that, instead of pretending it was about a star Crusade.
They lost their credibility some time around when the Kurgan Space Muslims mysteriously stopped attacking, Evil Sexy Space Countess Amber was thoughtfully unzipping her catsuit over her breasts at government meetings, and people were dancing in nightclubs.
@ThatGuyThere said:
For example I had the same issues with Star Crusade as Cirno did some times. I played a Questing Knight out to do stuff and found mostly social scenes.
There were more people at the strip club than at the war front, yeah.
And, yes, the Grand War Simulator that was like the movie Kingdom of Heaven, as Paulus and Co. claimed? Its Holy Space Christian Crusader City had a strip bar.
Because Raymond and the other Crusaders in real life spent time watching strippers instead of fighting the Crusades, of course.
I ain't even mad. I just wish Paulus had truthfully told us that it was gonna be Sexy Lords and Ladies in space.
Then I would have rolled a ditzy blonde Stripper-Knight-Noblewoman and created a truly garbage character - you know, like the other garbage characters there.
Instead of:
"I hope we can destroy the Kurgan menace once and for all! By my Sword I swear this! We shall not rest until we defeat the enemy!"
...My character would have been more like,
"Ehehehe, I'm Lady Sedaina, and I'm, like, really smart! Oops, I dropped my sword! Now I must bend over seductively to pick it up! I'm a real knight! Tee hee!"
Her favorite activities would have been dancing at Space Christian nightclubs, making sure her makeup is fantastic, and tanning herself at the beach.
By the way, there were, seriously, space Christian peasants starving because of the war, thematically.
However, Paulus and Co. totally forgot about them later on, which cheesed me off a little because my character was there to save them from certain death, by leading a Space Relief Convoy stocked with food and drink.
So my character became doubly irrelevant: no Space Muslims attacking for her to defend against, and no peasants to boldly save with her company of Knights guarding the food wagons.
Maybe the peasants died?
Maybe they gorged themselves on the leftover food from the Sexy Parties thrown by the Lords and Ladies?
@Ghost said:
@Three-Eyed-Crow said:
A lot of the examples of MU* campaigns mentioned here touch on something I think is important. I think it's a LOT easier to do a satisfying, game-wide story on a game that's focused on PvE, rather than PvP. This is one of the reasons I prefer those types of games, though far from the only reason.
Agreed.
That is precisely why I think @faraday BSG games worked so well. In a hobby where so many thin-skinned people are worrying OOCly about who gets this or that snowflake privilege, a game that pretty much said: "You're all fucked and now live in a shitty bunkhouse with people who fart in their sleep. Now get out there any fight on the same team before we all get GENOCIDED" worked so well.
EDIT: Also, as a side note, since all of the characters (unless you turned out to be a Cylon, which I never was, goddamnit) weren't defined by some kind of supernatural phenotype, people had to shape personalities, quirks, and hobbies to flesh out their characters. I genuinely believe this led to more meaningful roleplay.
This is what we were told by Paulus and co. that Star Crusade was going to be: a hopeless charge of bold Space Christian Knights trying to repel the relentless, brutal Space Muslims.
I genuinely expected my character to die in some tragic battle like that of Mount Badon, skewered alive by cruel Space Muslims after a tearful farewell with her Space Christian knights.
"I guess this is goodbye. Farewell, everyone!"
Instead I got:
Staff: Cirno, your character is totally out of place. Can't she wear normal clothes and look pretty instead of melodramatically wearing armor?
Cirno: But...space war...
Amber: Oh, by the way, party at my castle next week! Space Muslims are sorta attacking my fiefdom, but it's cool; they respectfully agreed to stay a hundred miles away from anywhere relevant!
Cirno: u wot, m8?
@Ghost said:
If that game were still open, I'd totally make a SpaceDouche(tm) who makes internet videos about how bad SpaceMuslims are and then (with the aid of 20-some other SpaceDouchebags) takes over a meaningless building in the middle of nowhere because he thinks he's a SpacePatriot (Spatriot? Y/N?).
You are the lmao to my ayy.
@Ghost said:
@Cirno I'm still keeping my eye on Fifth World. Long after the game closed down it was brought to my attention that the people who were running the game were writing a novel in that setting and had the characters, houses, etc written up in the novel. There was no disclaimer or sign-over of usage of contents in the game as material for their book. They have since removed everyone's access to the wiki.
I have my logs and character's embellishments, wiki, etc saved. It would have been FUCKING NICE to know that there was a chance anything I did was going to be taken as their novel fodder. It really, really would have been nice.
I have logs of Star Crusade of mostly nothing! Just like the rest of the game!
It is the ultimate example of your theory regarding Staff throwing away the story. Space Knights attack Space Muslims...by being buff, chiseled, erotic male noblemen and curvy noblewomen who stride about in catsuits.
Some peasant laboring under Space Muslim Slavery: I'm so fucking hungry. [wistfully looks at the Sexy Lords and Ladies having parties]
(actual Log of Countess Amber being a POLITICAL GENIUS and a STRATEGIC MASTERMIND)
@Ghost said:
@Cirno that kind of drove me crazy on Fifth World. Becoming a knight takes YEARS of training and dedication, right? I can absolutely understand being a knight that likes to get laid, because all that requires is hormones, but a ditzy knight that acts like being a knight is secondary to some sexy bikini photo-shoot roleplay doesn't make a lot of sense to me. There was a bunch of that on 5W, too.
"I've spent my whole life training to be a knight....but somewhere in there I also became a world-class actor/movie star/dancer/baristas/pastry chef!"
Call me a grump or a blockhead, but being an Erotic Noblewoman who hosts Sexy Parties doesn't really jive with what I imagine the commander of a Space Christian Crusader Army to be like, either.
Of course some staff members were like, "Her character is totally appropriate, there's game code for you to be a sexy Noblewoman and gain all the points, etc etc."
In a similar vein to the storyline on 5W you described that the Staff threw away, Paulus and Co. did something similar on Star Crusade - there was an NPC traitor in the Space Christian Knights, and this could have led to an amusing fraternal war between the Crusader factions. We could even have worked in the stubbornly pious Crusaders against the epicurean masquerade-hosting pleasure-seeking Crusaders. There's a whole story!
Instead, Paulus And Co. left us to do...nothing.
There were players who were all like, "It's like Space Game of Thrones! Cool! Sex and Lords and Ladies!" However, in GoT, the enemy attacks you sometimes. The Space Muslims mostly just left us all to our really cool masquerade parties.
but a ditzy knight that acts like being a knight is secondary to some sexy bikini photo-shoot roleplay
Lady Rhonda of Rousey!
The wackiest character on Paulus's Star Crusade was not actually the busty Space Battle Sister, Momoko.
No, it was Jerusalem Cross, the TV Series Actor Turned Crusader Knight Turned Reality-Show Host.
And it was Countess Amber, who increases her military power and political standing with sexy parties and sex appeal. Staff thought this was a great idea (or not, because she was unpopular with some. Either way, she carried a good deal of the plot by slinking around in tight black catsuits), and cited instances in the Fading Suns rulebook where being seductive wins you in-game bennies.
Again, had I been told that it was That kind of game, I would also have made my Space Knight Noblewoman a ditzy, busty blonde who says things like, "I've got, like, really good luck!" and "I like going to the beach!"
There were a bunch of other wacky characters, too. I, along with a few others, began to feel like we were the only ones actually taking the so-called war seriously.
Staff wouldn't hear of you launching any attacks on your own unless you were a count, which kinda makes sense, but I don't know why they were so adamant about protecting our precious little characters and keeping them out of harm. You're talking to someone who let another PC bisect their own female vampire PC and thought it was a great joke, elseMU* .
Star Crusade started out with a solid plotline, at least for a while. Things followed a similar trajectory to The Fifth World: the staff had an excellent vision (The Star Knights attack the Space Muslims holding Space Jerusalem under Space Sharia Law!).
My character was an excitable blonde white female Space Knight Noblewoman.
I expected the Staff to put us in the teeth of the front with the Space Muslims. Staff insisted we were going to fight a brutal war straight out of the Levantine Crusades. We would all die, they said. It would be ugly, they said. Tales were told of the huge, brutal battles on the old Fading Suns games.
Instead, we got to hang out at a city miles away from the front, go to masquerade parties, have sex with each other, and play dress-up at our castles.
A few of the more important Space Christians got to do things, but they were usually closely controlled by the staff.
I said fuck it and left for a month while they figured out what they were doing. I'm not saying I don't want to play a pretty pretty little noblewoman who has sex, but I was under the impression we were there to fight a war, and if I'd known that, I would have desced my character wearing a dress, not full plate.
I came back and they closed a little later.
@Ghost said:
A long while ago, I played on that future Lords and Ladies game, The Fifth World
That game had a hefty thread at the old place. Thanks for reminding me about it, I remembered the wackiness that went on there instantly. ayy, lmao.
I wanted to roll something there, but then it shut down in a blaze of glory.
@Coin said:
the only time this really annoys me is when people insist on typing long poses in big group scenes. I don't care how well you pose, if there's more than a few people in the scene, fucking trim it down.
I used to be that person, but I didn't do it on purpose.
After studying a few manuals of the english language, however, I began to trim my poses down. And now I don't RP at all. I may have overdone it a little. 
@Arkandel said:
@Cirno said:
... They are crappy movies, agreed, but that's a whole different story.
Why does he get to make crappy movies when Tommy Wiseau doesn't?
I'm not sure what you're asking. Isn't it obvious that if your product consistently turns out a tidy profit someone will hire you to make more of whatever it is?
Ah, yes, I forgot that The Room didn't make a profit.
@Arkandel said:
@Thenomain said:
Or at least his career.
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/people/chart/?view=Director&id=shyamalan.htmHis movies are turning out $154 million on average adjusted after inflation. His career is fine, which is why he keeps getting to make more movies.
... They are crappy movies, agreed, but that's a whole different story.
Why does he get to make crappy movies when Tommy Wiseau doesn't?
@Coin said:
@Cirno said:
@Coin said:
@Cirno said:
@Coin said:
I get just as annoyed with people who make me wait fifteen minutes for a very long pose that I have to actually read and which contains absolutely nothing of note.
Just page-roleplay with other people during the 15 minutes. Or keep a book handy. Or watch something on YouTube. Or vape some weed. I do all of the above.
These people don't bother me at all. I enjoy having lots of time to consider what I'm going to do next, as well.
You're missing the point, though (or you're trolling). Let me be even more explicit:
I get just as annoyed with people who make me wait fifteen minutes for a very long pose that I have to actually read and which contains absolutely nothing of note.
It's not the wait, it's that the wait is worthless. At least in @Arkandel's case, his wait finalizes in a short pose he can read in a few seconds. If I have to read two paragraphs of nothing of note, then it's considerably more annoying.
No, I don't even care about that. Because, like I said, I'm usually doing other things while MU* ing, or, at least, I did when I used to MU* .
I am actually more annoyed with people who harass me nonstop with rapid-fire poses, to be honest.
You mean we have different preferences and your solution and attitudes to things are not always applicable to things I experience and vice-versa? Gasp, it's almost like this very same thing has happened with you involved in this very same thread..!
If you don't care about something that someone else finds annoying, then your solutions are probably not going to address their problem.
I'm explaining how I respond to this stimulus; it wasn't really a directive from me to you. Sorry if you thought it was.
@Coin said:
@Cirno said:
@Coin said:
I get just as annoyed with people who make me wait fifteen minutes for a very long pose that I have to actually read and which contains absolutely nothing of note.
Just page-roleplay with other people during the 15 minutes. Or keep a book handy. Or watch something on YouTube. Or vape some weed. I do all of the above.
These people don't bother me at all. I enjoy having lots of time to consider what I'm going to do next, as well.
You're missing the point, though (or you're trolling). Let me be even more explicit:
I get just as annoyed with people who make me wait fifteen minutes for a very long pose that I have to actually read and which contains absolutely nothing of note.
It's not the wait, it's that the wait is worthless. At least in @Arkandel's case, his wait finalizes in a short pose he can read in a few seconds. If I have to read two paragraphs of nothing of note, then it's considerably more annoying.
No, I don't even care about that. Because, like I said, I'm usually doing other things while MU* ing, or, at least, I did when I used to MU* .
I am actually more annoyed with people who harass me nonstop with rapid-fire poses, to be honest.
@Coin said:
I get just as annoyed with people who make me wait fifteen minutes for a very long pose that I have to actually read and which contains absolutely nothing of note.
Just page-roleplay with other people during the 15 minutes. Or keep a book handy. Or watch something on YouTube. Or vape some weed. I do all of the above.
These people don't bother me at all. I enjoy having lots of time to consider what I'm going to do next, as well.
@Alzie said:
@Apollonius Which? Cirno's? Or mine?
I assume yes and Already happened in that order.
My FS project is on hold as @Songtress and I are busy working on the World War 2-themed game we mentioned a while ago. It's mostly on hold because I have been ill and unable to relay 100% of my energy towards our project, as well, but this should change.
It's now more like a 1950's Alternate Universe Magic/Steampunk period piece, rather like the book series His Majesty's Dragon, or Leviathan, or Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials. It's also kinda like Kohta Hirano's "Drifters" in that there are magical creatures fighting !Nazis. You could potentially say it's like One Piece played straight, without the ridiculously overpowered people. I'm not sure how @Songtress stands on people doing wacky shit like causing earthquakes or chopping battleships in half.
She's doing most of the work with the fantasy element, at any rate; I'm busy drawing political lines on the map of the world, and figuring out what the Not!Nazis use for money, what imports and exports their country has, if they should have a Reichstag or not, and if they did, how it would work (because Not!Nazi land is a monarchy and not a dictatorship).
@Alzie said:
Oshiete! Gyaruko-Chan (AKA Oshiete! Galko-Chan): This is the season's mini-series. Short 7 minute episodes that feature a teen girl in high school and her friends. She gets asked weird questions during the course of the series and it details her reactions and answers. It's hilarious. Highly recommended.
I'm glad to hear this series is good. I wanted to see it just because of the blonde schoolgirl with big breasts.
Nice to see my intuition was correct and that it's not a garbage show like Lucky Star.
EDIT:
I found a picture of the blonde girl. I saw her first, you guise. That is mai waifu right there.
EDIT2:
Also, that girl belongs to the Gyaru subculture. It's kinda difficult to explain without going into detail, but they're kinda like the Japanese equivalent of Candy Raver girls that were popular in the USA and the UK in the 1990's. The series appears to be about how wacky their lifestyles are in comparison to ordinary schoolgirls.
I know a fair amount about the Gyaru subculture because Eurobeat (a genre of hi-NRG electronic dance music) features heavily in their subculture, and as anyone who is familiar with me knows, I listen to a lot of Eurobeat. Like, a lot.
Okay, I started watching Active Raid. It's pretty good. The policewoman was using her Oculus VR helmet on the train and was reading people trolling on the Internet. Very snazzy. Very topical and current.
The OP is very nice, too. It's got a heavy soul-inspired beat and vocals, reminiscent of Erykah Badu or Macy Grey.
Is anyone else watching Ansatsu Kyoushitsu - the show about the kids trying to kill the friendly neighborhood tentacle monster? I expect there'll be lots of shots of girls (and perhaps boys) wrapped in tentacles, which will be neato.
Dolly Pop / Take My Gum https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkh8TGwUjHU
Princess F. / Technotronic Flight https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyOtP9T4CP4
Mako / Shellfire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00uab81O6WI
Dee Dee Wonder / Mayday https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZkqEYnbY-Q
Nikita Jr. / Dancing In The Jungle https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDheVSXNRZU
Tipsy & Tipsy / Simon Samurai https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K50n6G6T-qk
Lupin / Black Cat (Miao Miao mix) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jglFOlE2us
E Nomine / Mitternacht https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKOspnXvILU
E Nomine / Vater Unser https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHahMGj657Q
E Nomine / Das Tier In Mier (Wolfen) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSNTS8pZx14
E Nomine / Das Omen https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtM7BuCuEV0
E.S. Posthumus / Pompeii https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GusLypfx7OQ