Lisaera, the Hallowed Crone:
Moonlight pierces the air about Lisaera, the Silver Goddess, shrouding Her within its pale glow. She wields a knotted moonhart lantern in Her left hand.
Despite the moonlit aura that glitters brightly around Her, the hunched figure
of Lisaera, the Hallowed Crone swathes Herself in a veil of darkness it does not
shatter. Where flashes of it show, Her pale skin puckers like willow bark, every
wrinkle ponderous, ancient, and deep. Though Her figure speaks of an elder's
fragility, Her every gesture is purposeful, Her every step filled with
unyielding, terrible power that belies it. Round eyes narrowed by the weight of
millennia shine with an argent brilliance; their limbal rings glow, carving
through shadows like the sickle moon cuts through the blanket of night. Her
hands are ungloved and Her feet unshod, permitting glimpses of the leafy tattoos
painting the tops of each, verdancy trapped in a cycle of withering and death.
A strict plait of braided silver hair drapes over Her shoulder, falling to Her
waist. Strewn with grey owl feathers that gleam darkly in comparison, its severe
knots allow nary a strand to slip out of place.
She is wearing:
a long, dark cloak embossed with shimmering moonlight draped around Her
shoulders and down Her bent back
midnight robes trimmed in dark furs and owl feathers concealing Her frame
completely, leaving only Her knobbly knuckles bare
a black shroud of mourning threaded with silver light cowling Her features,
letting little but Her eyes peer through
a lustrous moonglass periapt gleaming at the hollow of Her throat
You look at a long, dark cloak embossed with shimmering moonlight that Lisaera
is wearing:
This long cloak is a midnight blue, almost black in colour, with shimmering
silver patterns shifting and dancing upon its surface, causing the entire
garment to appear to be flowing. For some reason the cloak does not lift with
the wind or stir at all as the air swirls around it, though it does ripple with
seemingly no manipulation while the air is still.
You look at midnight robes trimmed in dark furs and owl feathers that Lisaera is
wearing:
Flowing layers of ethereal darkness form the elegant folds of this enigmatic,
all-concealing garment. The simple pleats and stitches of the robes shift and
waver like liquid, billowing slightly with the passing breezes that ever
surround the Goddess's form. Black furs, luxurious and practical, trim the
sleeves, deep cowl and hem of this piece, cushioning the grey owl feathers which
fall within their bristling warmth. Cascading to fall elegantly in waves and
crests, these diaphanous robes trail in gossamer rivulets that gradually fade
into mist behind and beneath Her.
You look at a black shroud of mourning threaded with silver light that Lisaera
is wearing:
Threaded through with silver light, this shroud drapes the wearer's features
entirely. The gauzy material, woven from the shadows of starlight, ripples with
its own ethereal breeze and as the wearer moves, it flexes instinctively to
prevent unnecessary tripping.
You look at a lustrous moonglass periapt that Lisaera is wearing:
Alive with the stillness and relief of an illuminated night sky, this moonglass
periapt radiates a gentle coolness that never warms, not by hand and not by
sunlight. An argent fire burns within its core, lustrous and bright, pulsating
as steadily as a heart's vital beating. No matter the time or weather, its light
never fully dims, instead waxing and waning with the phases of Mother Moon. The
cradle encapsulating it comprises the same pristine silver as the braided chain
from which it is suspended, affixed to allow it to swivel. It has been worked
with a Goddess's touch, covered with little sigils and images that ebb and flow
as water across its filigreed surface, their meanings skimming the periphery of
understanding. Perfectly round and extraordinarily smooth, glossy beads of
midnight black trail a small distance up either strand away from the periapt,
three upon the left and three upon the right, their depthless darkness catching
and reflecting the light.
Leaning Her weight onto Her snarled moonhart lantern's long and sturdy pole, Lisaera peers toward the heavens, eyes narrowing. She clucks her tongue, then shakes Her head. When She speaks, Her voice is thin and creaks like wood. "It is about time for Us to take care of this, hm?"
You look at a knotted moonhart lantern that Lisaera is wielding:
Burly with knots bulging from its length, this lantern is sturdy enough to be
used as a walking staff. Here and there, dying moonhart leaves still cling to
their tender perches, brilliant gold and crimson in hues and awaiting their
allotted time to fall. At its head, the wood crooks in on itself like the curled
tip of a fern's frond, providing a place for a lamp to dangle. Wrought from
silver with misted moonglass panes, its orb contains within an eternal lick of
moonfire, the argent flame luminous, flickering, and never dying.
! I'm missing her hair, aah!
The dirigible and others are indeed a little bit slower, we're talking about seconds though. I think it's possible that nobody analysed whether how custom beasts/dwellers do it matches how other things do it. When we get to doing a review of all beasts/dwellers to add new functionality, we can take a look at logs for them and deliverers to see if they are being used in spammy ways. Then take steps to make their timers more uniform.Jolanthe said:Not sure if this was brought up/asked elsewhere, but would you consider an upgrade for the basic purchaseable deliverers like the dirigible that has the same speed as custom beast delivery?The dirigible is noticeably slower, and each time I go down the rabbit hole of wanting a beast it is usually inspired by witnessing/seeing how much faster it is in practice. But then the issue always is that I'm pretty happy with all my beasts and things as is, and I'd rather do as many things as I can with customisation all at once, and then there's temptation to go over the top and so on and so forth...But at the end of the day, all I really want is that same base functionality.
I think it's kinda that everything you can do in game that's not purely creative (writing/plays/designing/etc) benefits in some way from you being a demigod or even requires it on some level. (i.e you have to be a demi to actually claim domoths, you need it to get a cult in an order, you need the choicepowers to get those order/org/guild/class specific customisations)Selia said:My favorite part of the game experience is when you're between like...levels 40-70. It feels more grounded at that point. You are an adventurer, there are some dangers, your skills are kinda...there but not wholly developed, in a more fleshed-out/populated world it'd be easy to imagine yourself as...ugh, all I can think of is Naruto so forgive me, but like...chunin level.
Sadly there's not a *whole lot* you can do to meaningfully contribute at that point; like Saran says it's kind of a "yeah you're there now but you should be grinding to demi". And when the fun of being just another face in the (supposed) crowd wears off and you do strap down and get to grinding...well, it hurts to do past 70 or so (powerlevel ur'bashes notwithstanding).
I'm not sure what my point is or what I would propose to change this but that's my 2 cents.
Copying Q/A from Discord.
These are out of order from the original chat to facilitate searching by subject.
Kalliope:
Do I need to itemize the costs of the things I'm requesting in the email?
Uilani:
No. But at some point either you or us will need to clarify that we both understand the price of what you are requesting before we begin the work. So doing that helps us, but is not necessary at all.
Esei:
I know this is probably something I've already been told/asked about BUT. Because I keep forgetting, when finding a typo in a beast/dweller/etc description, is it better to TYPO, or email about it? Especially if it's something minor like an incorrect adjective or missing punctuation or something.
Uilani:
Generally we say to always e-mail about that because what may seem like a minor fix, could be a bigger one, and then should be dealt with by customisation folks (that is Orael and I). Also if you e-mail, we definitely see it immediately. If you typo, it may well sit and wait till new bugs are being sorted and then if the bug does not specifically mention it is a custom beast, the sorter might think it's just a random typo and it will sit in typos category, waiting.
Ein:
customize Syntax: CUSTOMIZE LIST - list all your customization requests CUSTOMIZE <span> REVIEW - review your customization CUSTOMIZE <span> SUBMIT - submit for approval CUSTOMIZE <span> SHORT_DESC - i.e., 'a sharp sword', 'a purple pack', etc. CUSTOMIZE LONG_DESC - how it appears on the ground (i.e., 'A sharp sword is dropped here.') CUSTOMIZE EXTENDED_DESC - what you see upon probe CUSTOMIZE RESETS [YES/NO]- change a nonresetter to reset to you (automatically stops decay) CUSTOMIZE NODECAYS [YES/NO] - stop decay CUSTOMIZE DELETE - completely remove your customization request</span></span></span>
Ein:
The troublesome one [add-on feature] as per the post was the mob reaction system - specifically the player-side one
Gurashi:
So if you emailed to have your pet do a reaction and that got approved it's still safe/active, [but] if you yourself set up a reaction on your pet it's been disabled/pending review?
Ein:
At this time, the reactions are still active but pending review. They will either be moved to our system or refunded on a case-by-case basis
The ability to create or edit them is disabled
Selenity:
Uilani... if you send in a request for a manse dweller, can you later add on certain things to it (like reactions) or is it set-and-done once it's made?
Uilani:
Absolutely can add more later.
"- You may purchase add-ons, either at the time of buying the dweller or any time afterwards."
Eritheyl:
Sentience - 250 bound credits
- For beasts that make sense to be sentient.
Question on this. Is it possible, or could it ever be possible in the future, for sentience to be split into speaking and emoting? It makes sense for just about every beast/dweller to be able to utilize emoting in some form, but speaking is trickier. I don't want to have it commonplace for things to be denied sentience because they shouldn't be speaking when emoting is really what's desired.
Uilani:
We considered that but arrived at the inevitable assumption that if we were to do that, people will use emotes to speak anyway. And then if we add code limitations that prevent things with "" in them from being emoted, they will use ''. And then if we remove that. They will use -, or nothing, and so on.
Eritheyl:
Makes sense! Continuing with the honor system that we aren't making certain things talk?
Uilani:
Yes, continuing on with trust. Mostly the "make sense to be sentient" is reserved for things that really make no sense to emote or speak.
We can consider it in the future if necessary, absolutely.
For the moment, continuing on with the simple solution
---
Luce:
I can't remember from the newspost, so clarification? Will sentience be stripped and refunded from creatures that it wouldn't have qualified for under the new system?
Uilani:
No.
We are also not setting off to round up all the dragons in light of the new dragon lore.
Tonatiuh:
can shopkeeper dwellers be set to homesteads or only manses? And Im a bit confused. A shopkeeper dweller requires a manse shop (ok), and then can be set to only to the manse? So does that mean the manse will now have a fulcrux where you can do 'wares'.. and then somewhere else.. a dweller than also sells stuff from the same manse?
Uilani:
Manses only for the moment. That is a compromise to the original intention of removing them entirely. Their use is rather niche if they are manse-only, but it still allows for an inn manse where a barkeep sells you drinks at the bar, or other such creations. There has been very little interest in shopkeepers, but they require a lot of effort to implement. They are also common sources of bugs and complaints about empty shops and insistent shopkeepers who continue to try to sell you nothing. If we add any additional checks in the form of how large the remaining stock is or how active the owner is, we're micromanaging it and adding extra upkeep work. If they're out somewhere public, they are deemed irritating. If they can follow you, you are effectively walking into combat with an invincible walking shop your side can use to refill/buy. If they are in an organisation, said organisation has no say over when they want them out (or again, upkeep).
As outlined in the post, anyone with a shopkeeper will have the choice whether to confine them to a manse or receive a refund. Most are in manses already. Very few are anywhere public.
If you own a non-org homestead, e-mail and ask. We'll need to review it because doing it that way circumvents a bit the content of the [recent] auction which is a homestead, not a homestead/shop.
---
Gurashi:
Does this mean Shara-Mae is no longer ambling around the Aetherplex...
Uilani:
Yes.
Uilani:
All dwellers that did not have a dwelling set up, received a dwelling. If you own only one dweller and their dwelling was your inventory or a manse or homestead, nothing has changed. If you own two or more dwellers, they had their dwellings set up in one of their owner's manses.
clarified [in news post]
Esei:
(Also, what would the best way to go about requesting a dwelling change for dwellers you already had? Just email? Issue?)
Ein:
Email support @ lusternia
---
Esei:
And, while presuming you now need to own a manse to some degree to have a dweller, I do have a few questions - not for myself but simply because idk if someone else needs to know the answers:
1. Can you set a dweller to reside in a family manse if you do not own the manse?
2. What happens to dwellers that originally belonged to people who did not have a manse? i know if it was just one they'll be automatically companion (?_?) so they may not have moved...
3. Can multiple dwellers share the same dwelling? or is that not a thing?
Uilani:
1. The dwelling is decided with us by us upon creation. We have never before allowed dwellers to reside in manses that do not belong to their owners. That hasn't changed. It could, but the level of permissions, possible refusal of permission, etc, would all need coding to remove the issue of us having to interfere all the time.
2. The owners of all existing dwellers had at least one manse each, and in some cases multiples. All pre-set dwellings have been hand-picked to make the dwellers cosy. If the owner only had one dweller, nothing has changed for them.
3. Multiple dwellers can share the same dwelling.
Uilani:
The short of it is that the 'dwelling' is what the system considers the dweller's home. When you select them for a companion, their reset room changes to inside your inventory. When you unselect them, they get moved back to the pre-set dwelling.
---
Esei:
Would it be something possibly considered in the future to change the dwelling ourselves? Or submit a change for approval if needed?
Uilani:
Anything that cuts down on paperwork is desirable but there are a few things to consider. Perhaps you requested a dweller with reactions that only really make sense to exist in the room they are in. They are intricately tied in some fashion. We then have to add an extra flag which makes it impossible to move those dwellers. We have to consider all such situations before we put the power in player hands.
---
Uzriel:
If you have a dweller and have it reset to a family homestead, would its loyalty show as to you or to the family?
Uilani:
Homestead deeding does not affect anything within the homestead. Dwellers need a specific owner. That kind of customisation is still personal so you cannot buy a dweller for the whole family to use, effectively. But you could ask that something the dweller does (like perhaps emotes serving pretend tea) to be usable by the family/group/etc.
Uzriel:
I also know class mobs can't be dwellers, but what if you didn't use the classmob alias? Eg an imp servant named Servo with the aliases servant and servo but not imp so it doesn't have conflicts with pk?
Uilani:
Yes, I was just thinking about that yesterday. Possibly so. The only potential issue there is a player leaving the org in which they would potentially have access to having a personal demon. Angels, demons, etc, they are specifically sent as part of service to Celestia/Nil. You're not exactly doing that if you're chilling in Hallifax. There's also the potential for a demon dweller carousing through Celestia and not exploding, like it should. So need to think it through, worst case scenario though it could just become a dweller that cannot be made into a companion, ie. cannot leave their dwelling. So if you want to have a demon in a homestead, sure, they just stay there.
Uzriel:
I was largely thinking of an imp homestead servant.
Uilani:
If it's the latter case, I don't see any problem there.