Alright people, i'm not going to lie, but the degree of narrative complexity i'm seeing thus far, both from design document and what proposals that myself and others have made...
This is going to be a programming nightmare... or is it?
You see, while I haven't seen this mechanized explicitly, one of the features of Apocalypse World (and all other titles that built on it, including Blades in the Dark) used to define the fiction NARRATIVELY was through keywords. E.g. when creating a cohort in Blades in the Dark, players give this cohort qualities and flaws drawn from a pool of descriptors. E.g. a gang can be LOYAL, but SAVAGE. Now, this doesn't have any mechanical implications per se, but if you've watched people GM/play games like this, you've seen instances where, when decisions to be made in the fiction, people will often call up these keywords for reference.
This, imo is a powerful concept, because it allows us to
1. Break down otherwise complex actions into simpler components e.g. Using a ritual murder to set an example would have VIOLENT and RITUAL and PUBLIC as potential descriptors
2. Have a progression system that boosts certain type of actions based on their descriptors. Taking the example above, the player would get bonuses to his/her success based on any bonuses they have to these specific keywords.
3. It's important to note that keywords don't have to be limited to descriptors, but stats and resources as well e.g. FOLLOWER or WEALTH as keywords
There's probably a few i'm missing, but off the top of my head
4. Programming wise, this should make selecta's life INFINITELY easier (tag keywords to decisions rather than individually having to build every decision point as a unique choice instance with unique mechanics and checks)
Qualifiers
PROMISCUOUS (Action that is sexually explicit in nature, or relies of loose attitudes to sexuality)
VIOLENT (Actions that result in visible and tangible physical harm, including death)
RITUAL (Actions that involved a tangible religious element that goes beyond the practical nature of the task itself)
PUBLIC (Actions that take place in the public, or are devised to appeal to public attention eventually)
SECRET (Actions that take place outside of the public eye. Bribes, for example, would be CIVIC and SECRET)
CIVIC (Actions that involve the civil service in one form or the other. Resisting a police enquiry would be CIVIC, but resisting a police arrest would be CIVIC + VIOLENT)
PATRIARCHAL (Actions that invoke/enforce male ascendancy)
BENEVOLENT (Actions that are explicitly charitable in nature)
Resources
WEALTH (All actions involving Wealth, either acquiring it, or spending it)
INFLUENCE (All actions involving Influence, whether to check if you qualify for access, or acquiring more of it)
FAITH (All actions involving Faith, whether to check if you qualify for access, or acquiring more of it)
CHARISMA (All actions involving Charisma, either acquiring it, or spending it)
FOLLOWERS (All actions undertaken by followers, or with follower involvement)
PERSONAL (All actions where the PC is actively involved)
Others
RELICS (all interactions involving relics)
RIVAL (all interactions involving rival faiths)
FRINGE (all interactions involving criminal/extremist NPC groups - Generally signals unique decision chains, like the one mentioned in the choice/consequence thread)
ICON (all interactions involving major named female NPCs (the ones mentioned in the design document)
This is going to be a programming nightmare... or is it?
You see, while I haven't seen this mechanized explicitly, one of the features of Apocalypse World (and all other titles that built on it, including Blades in the Dark) used to define the fiction NARRATIVELY was through keywords. E.g. when creating a cohort in Blades in the Dark, players give this cohort qualities and flaws drawn from a pool of descriptors. E.g. a gang can be LOYAL, but SAVAGE. Now, this doesn't have any mechanical implications per se, but if you've watched people GM/play games like this, you've seen instances where, when decisions to be made in the fiction, people will often call up these keywords for reference.
This, imo is a powerful concept, because it allows us to
1. Break down otherwise complex actions into simpler components e.g. Using a ritual murder to set an example would have VIOLENT and RITUAL and PUBLIC as potential descriptors
2. Have a progression system that boosts certain type of actions based on their descriptors. Taking the example above, the player would get bonuses to his/her success based on any bonuses they have to these specific keywords.
3. It's important to note that keywords don't have to be limited to descriptors, but stats and resources as well e.g. FOLLOWER or WEALTH as keywords
There's probably a few i'm missing, but off the top of my head
4. Programming wise, this should make selecta's life INFINITELY easier (tag keywords to decisions rather than individually having to build every decision point as a unique choice instance with unique mechanics and checks)
Qualifiers
PROMISCUOUS (Action that is sexually explicit in nature, or relies of loose attitudes to sexuality)
VIOLENT (Actions that result in visible and tangible physical harm, including death)
RITUAL (Actions that involved a tangible religious element that goes beyond the practical nature of the task itself)
PUBLIC (Actions that take place in the public, or are devised to appeal to public attention eventually)
SECRET (Actions that take place outside of the public eye. Bribes, for example, would be CIVIC and SECRET)
CIVIC (Actions that involve the civil service in one form or the other. Resisting a police enquiry would be CIVIC, but resisting a police arrest would be CIVIC + VIOLENT)
PATRIARCHAL (Actions that invoke/enforce male ascendancy)
BENEVOLENT (Actions that are explicitly charitable in nature)
Resources
WEALTH (All actions involving Wealth, either acquiring it, or spending it)
INFLUENCE (All actions involving Influence, whether to check if you qualify for access, or acquiring more of it)
FAITH (All actions involving Faith, whether to check if you qualify for access, or acquiring more of it)
CHARISMA (All actions involving Charisma, either acquiring it, or spending it)
FOLLOWERS (All actions undertaken by followers, or with follower involvement)
PERSONAL (All actions where the PC is actively involved)
Others
RELICS (all interactions involving relics)
RIVAL (all interactions involving rival faiths)
FRINGE (all interactions involving criminal/extremist NPC groups - Generally signals unique decision chains, like the one mentioned in the choice/consequence thread)
ICON (all interactions involving major named female NPCs (the ones mentioned in the design document)
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