You log in one bleery morning to find Estarra and the rest of the active gods standing around a series of chairs, each one with an active God's name on it. Estarra informs you that it's time for some musical chairs: for the next irl month, you can (must) steal some other active God's persona, and play as them. You're pretty quick, so when the music stops, you snag the one you want. Whose did you steal, and why?
Everiine said: The reason population is low isn't because there are too many orgs. It's because so many facets of the game are outright broken and protected by those who benefit from it being that way. An overabundance of gimmicks (including game-breaking ones), artifacts that destroy any concept of balance, blatant pay-to-win features, and an obsession with convenience that makes few things actually worthwhile all contribute to the game's sad decline.
Easy -- I would pick Mysrai. She is so bewilderingly interesting, in every sense of the word, and has such a lush history. I was always so jealous of the immensity of that character. Despite how diverse Lisaera is and how much I've added to her over the years, Mysrai just takes the cake in terms of uniqueness and intrigue, according to my own palate of what "interesting" means.
@Ianir - So the Fates can create, in a sense? What other things can they manifest?
No idea! Think that's a question for Estarra. My knowledge of the inner workings of the Fates extends to what I can quote off the wiki and the colour of Atropos' socks.
@Ianir - So the Fates can create, in a sense? What other things can they manifest?
This is more of a Lore question, and as far as I know, the Fates themselves have no interest in creating things. I think the HELP EPHEMERALS explanation is meant to conjure ambiguity, but it is really poorly worded (in as much as it is suggesting that the Fates make the Ephemerals). In fact, I wouldn't even say that Ephemerals are made by them, but rather a manipulated bundle of strands in the great Tapestry of Fate (often made by Gods).
You log in one bleery morning to find Estarra and the rest of the active gods standing around a series of chairs, each one with an active God's name on it. Estarra informs you that it's time for some musical chairs: for the next irl month, you can (must) steal some other active God's persona, and play as them. You're pretty quick, so when the music stops, you snag the one you want. Whose did you steal, and why?
Active? @Drocilla, easily. Her characterization as one of the greatest and most dangerous Elder Gods is really neat the storylines she has been a part of (since returning) are equally fabulous. I mean, who else but Drocilla has gone from manipulative Galadriel to Darth Vader Goddess with the wearing of a mask?
@Shaddus - I would charge straight for @Lisaera's seat, because hello, badass witch goddess. About 30 seconds after having done so I would realise the magnitude of what I had just committed to, and would promptly spend the entire time in said chair communicating only through Hinagar.
@Orventa - I imagine Czixi splintering into something like windsoul genasi. Quick and a little esoteric, tremendously loyal, liable to stab you before you've even realised they've moved.
@Elryn - The best 'surprise' I've had was how well @Kalaneya went along with being held at dagger-point by Czixi during her release event. It was something I was nervous about doing but wanted to do right off the bat, so having her respond in an engaging and accepting way was wonderful.
@Dylara - One of my favourite rooms is in Isune's temple, purely for the very last line, which breaks my heart every time I read it:
Atop the Tower of Beauty.
Banks of clouds roil about here. Bordered by a frieze of avian motifs, the marbled cerulean walls
pulse gently with ripples of colour, mimicking the surface of a lake at sunrise. Astounding pillars
of polished gemstone uphold the vaulted arches of this chamber, sculpted to resemble crystalline
spires against this sky-blue mural. Here, Xyl stands upon a spire of infinite height, arm
outstretched towards gentle Trillillial from Her throne in the clouds. Every detail, from the
Goddess's gold-burnished wings, to the quiet gaze of adoration sparkling in the wizened God's eyes,
has been painstakingly rendered as if plucked precisely from the artist's memory. The stained-glass
sunrise is fast-approaching behind Them, drenching the mural's city of spires in an exuberant
shimmer of self-indulgent colour, falsely promising many more days and nights such as this one.
@Czixi really glad to hear! I was surprised by it as well, but it really gave everyone a good idea of what the character is all about and I thought it was great. Hope to interact with you more!
@AllGods What are your favourite stories or pieces of lore? And how much input do you guys have in creating the lore, both on a macro level with the History of the Elder Wars etc and on a smaller scale, such as for each newly released area?
@Isune@Jadice@Czixi This is kind of a strange question, but is there any visual file to help understand what the Sculptures in the Transphenortex Grid look like? I've never really followed the text description. =S edit: not perfectly true -- think I have a good handle on what the Ruby and Onyx Sculptures look like.
We get a fair bit of freedom when it comes to our own domain. Like Isune's Lightweavings were a brand new concept for Lusternia. Of course, such things still need approval by Estarra but it's great to have some creative freedom for our roles.
For the game as a whole the discussions get more varied because often we only have expert knowledge in our own cities, or cities we came from before becoming admin. So we have to collaborate and make sure anything that will be accepted as canon across the board is not violating or infringing on other organisations' lore or established premises.
As for my personal favourites, I have too many to count!
That is pretty good. But I meant the Sculptures of Harmony at the tip of each petal (the ones you can GENUFLECT to to get to their relevant Generator in the actual city). I am proud to say I did know what the Grid it self looked like, though.
@Maligorn - Ah you would have to ask a more involved question that makes me look things up!
For the Diamond Sculpture, just based on the description, I envision it to be a mandala as I showed above with a cube superimposed onto it but balanced on the tip like so:
Except imagine that's hollow with giant circular holes cutout of each side. And of course with requisite lightning and electricity shooting all around then up.
(Side note bonus: I may have to look up how Isometric is being used here, because in Doctor Who they say Isometric as an adjective to describe a 'thing' which is genetically coded to a specific individual or gene sequence)
For the Emerald Sculpture, I would envision an elongated helix shape. Perhaps something like this?
Also! I was directed to this beautiful Artisanal by one of our handy, helpful Ephemerals I adore (Note: The Ephemeral mentioned the existence of said Artisanal, not that they are the creator.)
Is @Drocilla the only Elder able to transform into other Elders? Who is to say that someone like @Lisaera is Lisaera and not some Elder in disguise? From that, is there any sure fire way to prove an Elder is who they say they are?
Oh I know this one! Dro stole Carakhan's pearl, right? Which is why she could disguise herself in the first place. But since Carakhan got the pearl back, I'd assume that all is well on the Divine imposter front.
That means @Morgfyre can become @Neos, because he stole Neos' weave.
Is @Drocilla the only Elder able to transform into other Elders? Who is to say that someone like @Lisaera is Lisaera and not some Elder in disguise? From that, is there any sure fire way to prove an Elder is who they say they are?
Oh I know this one! Dro stole Carakhan's pearl, right? Which is why she could disguise herself in the first place. But since Carakhan got the pearl back, I'd assume that all is well on the Divine imposter front.
That means @Morgfyre can become @Neos, because he stole Neos' weave.
Fight me old man.
You know damn well I can't get to the Starlit Eternity to fight you.
Everiine said: The reason population is low isn't because there are too many orgs. It's because so many facets of the game are outright broken and protected by those who benefit from it being that way. An overabundance of gimmicks (including game-breaking ones), artifacts that destroy any concept of balance, blatant pay-to-win features, and an obsession with convenience that makes few things actually worthwhile all contribute to the game's sad decline.
@Saran If Elder Gods weren't a thing, I would become the Collective and endlessly troll Hallifax until I eventually elevated it to Maeve-levels of annoyance.
@Aeldra Luckily I play a persona that can ignore lore questions. The more time I spend as an admin, the less I know about the game because with each new area release, new lore is opened up that I haven't read or experienced (and I am too lazy/busy to read it on the admin wiki).
@Rhi I don't really know anything about dragqueen gifs but the rest of Havens says that I would be Willam. I think this one is very me.
@Elryn I think the most rewarding thing for me was seeing Hallifax turn around from one of the least populated orgs in the game to an org with a strong identity that actually competed in Lusternia's conflict system. Hallifax got off to a tumultuous start and being able to be there to see it find its footing was really great. My biggest surprise was the warm welcome I got in Magnagora. I'm sure many people knew that the city had a bad reputation for its treatment of admin in recent times, but everyone was (and is!) really great to me.
@Dylara That's a hard question! I'm not the type of player (or admin) that reads room descs and I hate quests that require anything more complicated than fetching corpses or influencing mobs! I really loved Elostian's godrealm back in the day, just because it was different and cool. I also like Crumkindivia because the mobs are funny. On the admin side, I enjoyed working on Nirvana and I am a little bummed that it hasn't become more accessible.
@Shaddus I would just log out and come back when it was all over. I'm not confident in roleplaying another god or goddess and wouldn't want to mess up anything. Now, if you got to take their persona and get their privs and authority, I would steal Estarra's chair and lord it over everyone.
@Kaleneya I really like the history behind Project Peacemaker (from Shallach) that tells the story of how some parts of the Basin were brought into the Empire in the early years. Estarra wrote that when I was an ephemeral and it just seemed so mindblowing at the time that has stuck with me. Estarra guides a lot of the lore but we have a lot of awesome admin who brainstorm and work out a lot of the details. That's definitely not me, though. I just want to be told the lore so I can build an area or quest around it, rather than have to write the lore myself.
@Danquik Nope, but now that you said that, I will!
@Ayisdra Because I can edit items directly, I've never even looked in the divine cartels for anything other than bookbinding for a lore book. All I wear right now is a cloak since Thax's body is essentially a suit of armour anyway. In the past OldSune and OldMys used to dress me.
Okay, topical question of the month. How do you Havens-dwellers feel when watching Final Ascension unfold?
Having participated in many ascensions previously, my general thought about the unfolding of Ascension was generally 'laaaaaaaaag.' This was my first ascension in the Havens, and during it, my thought was "Why is there so much traffic? I'm missing ascension and letting everybody down." I hope to catch the next one though, and we gathered a huge amount of data so we can try to reduce the lag further next year!
@Kaleneya I really like the history behind Project Peacemaker (from Shallach) that tells the story of how some parts of the Basin were brought into the Empire in the early years. Estarra wrote that when I was an ephemeral and it just seemed so mindblowing at the time that has stuck with me. Estarra guides a lot of the lore but we have a lot of awesome admin who brainstorm and work out a lot of the details. That's definitely not me, though. I just want to be told the lore so I can build an area or quest around it, rather than have to write the lore myself.
What's this? A thing I haven't read? Now I'll need to go searching for it. Thank you, @Thax and @Isune for answering earlier!
Okay, topical question of the month. How do you Havens-dwellers feel when watching Final Ascension unfold?
Some years it is boring, and we spend the hour coming up with clever ways to troll those who aren't participating, and then never do it, 'cause of rules or something.
This year it was like watching a football match, with boos and cheers echoing through the Havens. I will let you decide if I am referring to American football or Everywhere-else Football.
As a followup to that, were you even able to follow us at all? I can't even begin to picture how much like two competing anthives that must've looked from outside
As a followup to that, were you even able to follow us at all? I can't even begin to picture how much like two competing anthives that must've looked from outside
With difficulty, and a lot of checking WHO and similar. We can also tell what afflictions you have, and what your vitals are, which helps get an idea of how things are going. Plus there is deathsight of course. The bravest amongst us, meanwhile, went and stood in the room with the big fights.
@Manteekan - Who made your forum avatar? It legit scared the crap out of me when I made it bigger. Regret, 10/10. Would not look again.
@AllTheGodsOfTheSouth - What "evil," "bad," or "dark," thing that your God did THAT YOU RPed made you stare at your screen and go, "I can't believe I just did that?"
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SylandraJoin Queue for Mafia GamesThe Last Mafia Game
I have a question I've wondered about for some time. @Everyone can answer.
What misconception do you think people from other orgs most have about your org, and why? In a similar vein, what misconception do people most have about your Divine, or your order?
"Oh yeah, you're a naughty mayor, aren't you? Misfile that Form MA631-D. Comptroller Shevat's got a nice gemstone disc for you, but yer gonna have to beg for it."
I think most people think Hallifax is pretty strict and no-fun-allowed, while also being unnecessarily complicated -- that's just the portrayed flavor, so I can't really blame them. I think everyone loves Isune, so I can't answer the next question. : ^)
edit: oh, right, this is the Divine AMA. I just saw the Everyone and figured I should chime in. Oh well, statement still stands.
Comments
You log in one bleery morning to find Estarra and the rest of the active gods standing around a series of chairs, each one with an active God's name on it. Estarra informs you that it's time for some musical chairs: for the next irl month, you can (must) steal some other active God's persona, and play as them. You're pretty quick, so when the music stops, you snag the one you want. Whose did you steal, and why?
Easy -- I would pick Mysrai. She is so bewilderingly interesting, in every sense of the word, and has such a lush history. I was always so jealous of the immensity of that character. Despite how diverse Lisaera is and how much I've added to her over the years, Mysrai just takes the cake in terms of uniqueness and intrigue, according to my own palate of what "interesting" means.
Active? @Drocilla, easily. Her characterization as one of the greatest and most dangerous Elder Gods is really neat the storylines she has been a part of (since returning) are equally fabulous. I mean, who else but Drocilla has gone from manipulative Galadriel to Darth Vader Goddess with the wearing of a mask?
Ever watchful bobbleheads, appearing benign, but be careful if you get them angry.
@Orventa - I imagine Czixi splintering into something like windsoul genasi. Quick and a little esoteric, tremendously loyal, liable to stab you before you've even realised they've moved.
@Elryn - The best 'surprise' I've had was how well @Kalaneya went along with being held at dagger-point by Czixi during her release event. It was something I was nervous about doing but wanted to do right off the bat, so having her respond in an engaging and accepting way was wonderful.
@Dylara - One of my favourite rooms is in Isune's temple, purely for the very last line, which breaks my heart every time I read it:
@AllGods What are your favourite stories or pieces of lore? And how much input do you guys have in creating the lore, both on a macro level with the History of the Elder Wars etc and on a smaller scale, such as for each newly released area?
@Yomoigu - Are you jealous that @Thax is Lusternia's Iron Man?
@Lisaera - Players are jerks. Don't listen to them.
Tonight amidst the mountaintops
And endless starless night
Singing how the wind was lost
Before an earthly flight
I appreciate the info, though!
https://www.lusternia.com/artisanal/over-the-edge-of-the-transphenortex-grid
Signature!
@Aeldra Luckily I play a persona that can ignore lore questions. The more time I spend as an admin, the less I know about the game because with each new area release, new lore is opened up that I haven't read or experienced (and I am too lazy/busy to read it on the admin wiki).
@Rhi I don't really know anything about dragqueen gifs but the rest of Havens says that I would be Willam. I think this one is very me.
@Elryn I think the most rewarding thing for me was seeing Hallifax turn around from one of the least populated orgs in the game to an org with a strong identity that actually competed in Lusternia's conflict system. Hallifax got off to a tumultuous start and being able to be there to see it find its footing was really great. My biggest surprise was the warm welcome I got in Magnagora. I'm sure many people knew that the city had a bad reputation for its treatment of admin in recent times, but everyone was (and is!) really great to me.
@Dylara That's a hard question! I'm not the type of player (or admin) that reads room descs and I hate quests that require anything more complicated than fetching corpses or influencing mobs! I really loved Elostian's godrealm back in the day, just because it was different and cool. I also like Crumkindivia because the mobs are funny. On the admin side, I enjoyed working on Nirvana and I am a little bummed that it hasn't become more accessible.
@Shaddus I would just log out and come back when it was all over. I'm not confident in roleplaying another god or goddess and wouldn't want to mess up anything. Now, if you got to take their persona and get their privs and authority, I would steal Estarra's chair and lord it over everyone.
@Kaleneya I really like the history behind Project Peacemaker (from Shallach) that tells the story of how some parts of the Basin were brought into the Empire in the early years. Estarra wrote that when I was an ephemeral and it just seemed so mindblowing at the time that has stuck with me. Estarra guides a lot of the lore but we have a lot of awesome admin who brainstorm and work out a lot of the details. That's definitely not me, though. I just want to be told the lore so I can build an area or quest around it, rather than have to write the lore myself.
@Danquik Nope, but now that you said that, I will!
@Ayisdra Because I can edit items directly, I've never even looked in the divine cartels for anything other than bookbinding for a lore book. All I wear right now is a cloak since Thax's body is essentially a suit of armour anyway. In the past OldSune and OldMys used to dress me.
EDIT: Also, obligatory congratulations to @Flareon... er, @Falaeron
This year it was like watching a football match, with boos and cheers echoing through the Havens. I will let you decide if I am referring to American football or Everywhere-else Football.
@AllTheGodsOfTheSouth - What "evil," "bad," or "dark," thing that your God did THAT YOU RPed made you stare at your screen and go, "I can't believe I just did that?"
What misconception do you think people from other orgs most have about your org, and why? In a similar vein, what misconception do people most have about your Divine, or your order?
edit: oh, right, this is the Divine AMA. I just saw the Everyone and figured I should chime in. Oh well, statement still stands.