[OOC] Pirates of the Darkening Skies

[Benzaiten]

@Excession Would it be possible for you to copy all of the RP information to this OOC? Perhaps cumulate everything in one post, a 0th post perhaps? So that it's easier to find when looking for something?

[Excession]

@Excession Would it be possible for you to copy all of the RP information to this OOC? Perhaps cumulate everything in one post, a 0th post perhaps? So that it's easier to find when looking for something?

@Benzaiten

Good call.

[Excession]

@Benzaiten Added material to the first OOC post. Have to get back to the office for the afternoon but I can find and add more later today.
As always, questions help me focus, remember things that have slipped my mind but are written somewhere, and so on.

[Benzaiten]

Currently thinking of going with a Dryad

Edit: It says as a Dryad (Treefolk) I can be a Magi, Monk or Inquisitor. Do you have more info on those?

[Excession]

Currently thinking of going with a Dryad

Edit: It says as a Dryad (Treefolk) I can be a Magi, Monk or Inquisitor. Do you have more info on those?

@Benzaiten

Oh nice. Magi are covered in the Magic doc - most Crantiré Magi are Communers or Heartwrighta.

An Inquisitor wouldn't be a great fit for this campaign since associating with pirates is a bad look, but in a nuthsell they're an extranational force established to prevent Magi and Scions alike from abusing their power and starting another war.

Monk stuff here. A Crantiré monk would be a rare and interesting thing.

[Benzaiten]

I could go for a Communer Magi Dryad which makes a lot of sense and opens up the possibility to take the Bioship for our Captain which I think is a good option.

I could also go for a Necromancy Magi Dryad as I find Necromancy interesting, especially in this combination, and it would give us a good shot at the Necroship which can warp travel with devastating side effects if it goes wrong - and who doesn't wanna go and dip their toes in the sea on the other side of life ^_^

Other interests so far include: Shadows, Seer, maybe Cryolyte

[Abstract Proxy]

How do the monk enlightenments work?

Do acolytes cycle through them all, ideally learning something from each one or is it more of a specialization deal?

[Excession]

I could go for a Communer Magi Dryad which makes a lot of sense and opens up the possibility to take the Bioship for our Captain which I think is a good option.

I could also go for a Necromancy Magi Dryad as I find Necromancy interesting, especially in this combination, and it would give us a good shot at the Necroship which can warp travel with devastating side effects if it goes wrong - and who doesn't wanna go and dip their toes in the sea on the other side of life ^_^

Other interests so far include: Shadows, Seer, maybe Cryolyte

@Benzaiten

Explaining why a Communer would leave the Wood has potential for plot. The others are easier to explain. Maybe we see what @XxFellsingxX picks first?

How do the monk enlightenments work?

Do acolytes cycle through them all, ideally learning something from each one or is it more of a specialization deal?

@Abstract Proxy

They all start with the first, but then focus on the one which resonates with them most while at least learning about the others.
Cold Hands is from a pure specialist sect.

[rush99999]

@Excession

If bioships are alive, does that mean they have minds of their own? If so, are they on the same level as people or are they closer to animals in terms of intelligence?

[Excession]

@Excession

If bioships are alive, does that mean they have minds of their own? If so, are they on the same level as people or are they closer to animals in terms of intelligence?

@rush99999

They usually have only rudimentary nervous structures, enough to manage autonomous functions and basic stimulous response. If no one is at the pilot seat and your bioship is shot, it will scream and try to escape the pain, so it's by no means a sitting duck.
The most basic control system is essentially a series of probes buried in the brain matter that use electrostimulation to give commands; speed, steering, attack, etc.
More advanced ships may have direct synaptic links, allowing the pilot to inhabit the ship and use it as their own body. These pilots are much in demand because it takes a lot of training and innate talent to pull this off well.
A few expensive variants, quite rare, have Heartwright-made control terminals buried in their brains so they can be operated like a modern ship.
Some bioships are autonomous and about as clever as a pig, making them exceptional choices if they're trained well, but they require a lot of care and can be temperamental.

Bear in mind after-market customizations are encouraged.

[rush99999]

Bear in mind after-market customizations are encouraged.

@Excession

Can after after-market customizations make a bioship even smarter than what you've described or is pig-level intelligence the maximum?

[Excession]

<Snipped quote by Excession>

Can after after-market customizations make a bioship even smarter than what you've described or is pig-level intelligence the maximum?

@rush99999

They'd be expensive, but yes. There are some wholly sapient bioships out there but they're rare.
Carnaval is a Lybarim bioship of roughly human intellect but it is chained to the will of its creator, keeping it completely loyal.
Winsome Yelena was a human but had their brain transplanted into a bioship.
Sseven is a bioship with a Constructed Intelligence housed within, kept under heavy observation in case of Rampancy.
Big Wet Billy is an amphibious bioship with approximate brain function of a human six year old, grown by an eccentric Communer.

Are you looking for something specific? I can always make exceptions when they're interesting.

[rush99999]

Are you looking for something specific? I can always make exceptions when they're interesting.

@Excession

I was thinking of having a pirate ship. And when I say pirate ship, I don't mean a ship that is run by pirates, I mean a ship that is a pirate. A very stereotypical pirate, who constantly says "Avast!" and "Arr!" and other piratey things, is quick to break into musical sky shanties about plundering booty and drinking rum, and always eagerly advocates for making any and all captives walk the plank.

[Abstract Proxy]

Maybe an undead ship can be a bound pirate?

[Excession]

<Snipped quote by Excession>

I was thinking of having a pirate ship. And when I say pirate ship, I don't mean a ship that is run by pirates, I mean a ship that is a pirate. A very stereotypical pirate, who constantly says "Avast!" and "Arr!" and other piratey things, is quick to break into musical sky shanties about plundering booty and drinking rum, and always eagerly advocates for making any and all captives walk the plank.

@rush99999

That is significantly sillier than I was aiming for, tonally. Not entirely sure I'd have the patience to write it.

[Benzaiten]

Since we're on the topic of tone, what atmosphere are we aiming for? Reading through the provided information it all seems to aim for a more serious tone but that could of course just come across that way because it is informational text written to relay lore and rules. So are we going for a serious tone? A comical tone? Or horror-esque and "doom be upon us"? Etc..?

[Excession]

Since we're on the topic of tone, what atmosphere are we aiming for? Reading through the provided information it all seems to aim for a more serious tone but that could of course just come across that way because it is informational text written to relay lore and rules. So are we going for a serious tone? A comical tone? Or horror-esque and "doom be upon us"? Etc..?

@Benzaiten

That depends a bit on characters and character motivations, but I tend to go for a serious tone with moments of levity and horror elements.
Ever see Black Sails? Not a bad match, tonally; dark with political realities and personal strife, but some really funny or tender moments. Or...
You might say I would like if we, as players, took the game and setting seriously but the characters are under no obligation to do so.

Does that make sense? I'm trying to think of some other media comparisons that match the tone I tend to go for. The Boys is going too far... Sandman-adjacent, maybe? Some of the later Discworld novels like Night Watch?

[rush99999]

That is significantly sillier than I was aiming for, tonally. Not entirely sure I'd have the patience to write it.

@Excession

Fair enough. How about this then?

The bioship would still be a pirate ship in the 'ship that is a pirate' as previously mentioned. But not a goofy caricature pirate. Instead its an actual pirate with the Vagrant Spirit mutation who died while standing too close to a bioship.

[Excession]

[Benzaiten]

I guess I don't get my Necroship dreams ^^