[Microscope] PbP Game On!

Nebuchadnezzar · Post by **Nebuchadnezzar** » Fri Jul 04, 2014 4:57 pm

Well, I was hoping to work in a Second Council of Trent based on that while not getting too tied down on dates, but if that's too specific then it's instead an event in The Portals Open, after Containment Zones. I'll edit the post accordingly.

Edit: ooh, that opens up the Protestant Reformation, so that's way better as an event.

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Fri Jul 04, 2014 7:46 pm

Okay, that's pregame. Anyone who wants to be the first Lens, put your hand up; otherwise, I'll just roll for it.

Longes · Post by **Longes** » Fri Jul 04, 2014 7:47 pm

Ok, wait. In what time period do we start? I thought we were going for the near future?

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Fri Jul 04, 2014 8:00 pm

Longes wrote:Ok, wait. In what time period do we start? I thought we were going for the near future?

It's a long timeline. The opening period is Early Modern (1450s) but the end is scheduled for ~2100. So, if you want to add elements in the past, that's fine, and if you want to add elements in the future, that's also fine.

Nebuchadnezzar · Post by **Nebuchadnezzar** » Fri Jul 04, 2014 8:28 pm

Random Lens order is cool with me.

Laertes · Post by **Laertes** » Fri Jul 04, 2014 9:12 pm

Nebuchadnezzar wrote:Random Lens order is cool with me.

Likewise. Although angelfromanotherpin might want to go first, to show us the way.

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Sun Jul 06, 2014 2:25 pm

Well, I did come out first in the random order.

1. angelfromanotherpin
2. Longes
3. Neb
4. Laertes

So, the first Focus is The First Immortal. All elements created until there's another Lens must somehow relate to that. On the other hand, since it's about an immortal figure, they could show up anywhere.

(Just a note: according to the game, Foci are more likely to produce good stuff when they're... focused; narrow and specific. Not to say that a broader focus won't be good, but that's the manufacturer's recommendation.)

So first we all go in turn order, then I go again at the end, and as Lens I can on my turn add two nested elements (an Event, and a Scene in that Event; or a Period, and an Event in that Period). The book suggests that as first Lens, I open with a Scene in an Event that someone else added, to demonstrate both Scenes and also building off someone else's idea.

Scenes are kind of a thing. Ordinarily, a scene is the 'role-play' segment of the game, and involves a whole procedure with a proposed question, people choosing roles, followed by in-character dialogue and described actions and all that jazz. That's probably too involved for this format.

The other presented option is the 'Dictated Scene,' where one player has full authority and simply narrates the scene. That works fine, but relying on it entirely does remove the single directly interactive part of the game.

My proposal is that Scenes be chiefly Dictated, but that each other player can (if they wish) offer a single amendment or addition to the Scene, which is then adopted or discarded by the acting player. That would hopefully inject some of the interactive quality of the full Scene procedure while not taking up too much time or threadspace. Let me know what you think.

Anyway, Scenes are defined by questions. A specific question is proposed, and the scene answers it, usually in a fairly brief fashion. My question is 'How did the person who would become the first immortal come to meet the Devil?' It's a Scene in the 'Containment zones...' Event in the 'First Portals' Period.

It is night. A pair of Ottoman soldiers walk around the ruined walls of Constantinople, distracted in conversation. As they pass, a small figure, a girl maybe ten years old and dressed in sackcloth, darts behind them, and starts scrambling over a pile of rubble that marks a breach in the wall. The soldiers hear the tumbling stone fragments she dislodges, and yell at her to stop before jogging over, but she has cleared the summit and is gone by the time they arrive.

She wanders the streets, picking through the ruins, finding little. Picking up a discarded musket to use as a walking stick, she draws ever closer to the eerie glow that marks the Constantinople portal, if only because it is the best-lit part of the city. At first, she throws a few loose chunks of rubble into the shimmering thing, but when nothing results, she gets closer and pokes at it with her musket. The portal's jagged edges shift, and one fissure runs beneath her foot. She falls.

She lands on the black-visored face of a Mosquito Knight, who was drawn by the thrown stones. It peels her struggling body from his helm and carries her by one ankle to the audience cavern of President Botis. Botis, in the form of a hideous viper, questions the prisoner, but when it becomes clear that she knows nothing of value, he quickly loses interest. 'Send her with the tribute wagons,' he says. 'Perhaps our overlord will find this novelty amusing.'

Nebuchadnezzar · Post by **Nebuchadnezzar** » Sun Jul 06, 2014 5:06 pm

Dictated Scenes with possible additions works well enough at emulating the Push action, so it's fine by me.

Amendment: Given how many outbreaks there were of the Black Death around the Fall of Constantinople, I'd add the child had just become infected.

Laertes · Post by **Laertes** » Sun Jul 06, 2014 5:09 pm

Agreed. I don't have any prior experience so this is all new to me anyway.

I can't think of any amendments I'd place on that scene.

Longes · Post by **Longes** » Mon Jul 07, 2014 9:53 am

...and the furtive pygmy, so easily forgotten...

I'll add an Event in the Last Portals Close period.

Viva La Revolution! (Light)
Mehmed XXII's victory celebration is interrupted, as a vast jagged hole opens in the obsidian wall of the Thrice Victorious Palace. A small figure in shining armor and with the blade of light passes through. Hordes of demons and men can be now be seen on the streets, as the old natives of both worlds rebel against the corrupt colonies.
A day later, the city finally grows quiet. The first colony of many is cleansed from humans turned demons. The second great Exodus is about to begin, this time even further away from Earth.

Nebuchadnezzar · Post by **Nebuchadnezzar** » Mon Jul 07, 2014 12:00 pm

No Amendments

Edit: While I guess we should wait for amendments to be offered/accepted before moving to the next player's entry, it will make things a little slower. I'm cool with moving quickly and amending things ex post facto, but that allows the possibility of having to resolve a contradiction or rejecting an amendment out of hand. How do you guys want to handle this?

Longes · Post by **Longes** » Mon Jul 07, 2014 12:33 pm

Nebuchadnezzar wrote:No Amendments

Edit: While I guess we should wait for amendments to be offered/accepted before moving to the next player's entry, it will make things a little slower. I'm cool with moving quickly and amending things ex post facto, but that allows the possibility of having to resolve a contradiction or rejecting an amendment out of hand. How do you guys want to handle this?

I'm cool with waiting for amendments. I simply didn't notice the amendment in your post, sorry.

No Amendments to the scene "How did the first immortal met the Devil"

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Tue Jul 08, 2014 5:41 pm

Black death addition accepted! I think proposing Scene additions/amendments and other elements concurrently should be okay, we're not exactly moving at break-neck speed.

As an Event, Viva La Revolution needs an outcome. I think I can see an implicit one, but it's a bit vague.

Longes · Post by **Longes** » Tue Jul 08, 2014 8:38 pm

angelfromanotherpin wrote:Black death addition accepted! I think proposing Scene additions/amendments and other elements concurrently should be okay, we're not exactly moving at break-neck speed.

As an Event, Viva La Revolution needs an outcome. I think I can see an implicit one, but it's a bit vague.

Added an ending.

Nebuchadnezzar · Post by **Nebuchadnezzar** » Wed Jul 09, 2014 11:46 am

The First Immortal's Descent (Dark)
Event during The First United Republic of Hell

A diplomatic envoy to the Hells of Mesopotamia is waylaid by Shedim separatists. Serving as the envoy's guard, The First Immortal is taken hostage as the only survivor, to be held in the heart of Kurnugi beneath the seven gates of the Anunnaki. As a result, her presence and reasoned approach is sorely missed at the 13th Infernal Congress.

Longes · Post by **Longes** » Fri Jul 11, 2014 8:17 pm

Guys?

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Fri Jul 11, 2014 8:25 pm

Sorry I've been lax about updates, my boss had a medical thing and I've been covering his shifts at work. I'll make some time for it tonight.

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Sat Jul 12, 2014 2:02 am

History updated! Longes, I've provisionally omitted the last sentence of your conclusion, because it really seemed like it was unrelated to the Event you were describing. I'll put it back if you want.

Laertes, we're waiting on your contribution.

Laertes · Post by **Laertes** » Sat Jul 12, 2014 8:37 am

Apologies. Will be there when I can.

Longes · Post by **Longes** » Sat Jul 12, 2014 11:18 am

angelfromanotherpin wrote:History updated! Longes, I've provisionally omitted the last sentence of your conclusion, because it really seemed like it was unrelated to the Event you were describing. I'll put it back if you want.

I only added it because you asked for an ending, so I don't mind

Laertes · Post by **Laertes** » Mon Jul 14, 2014 9:37 am

This is a Scene intended to be placed right at the end of the False Monarchy of Light period. I intended it to function as a bookend to the "The First Portals Open" era. It uses the Lens of the First Immortal and introduces a historical character whom I feel is just aching to play a part in our story.

The field was strewn with bodies, Croats and Poles and Austrians and mercenary German landsknechts all lying together: some in lines where they had died standing, some strewn where they had broken and been chased down. The groans of the wounded echoed horribly across the field amidst the lingering powder smoke like a scene from one of those Bosch engravings from last century.

A medical party, stumbling from wounded to wounded and avoiding the pools of demonic ichor, were the ones that found her. Even exhausted, shivering and suffering the aftereffects of hexes, she was lucid enough to demand to be brought before the King.

"You're a fool," were the first words he said to her. "You're too valuable to risk your life on these sorts of ventures. That's what we have soldiers for. We can afford to lose them but not you."

She sipped the hot broth gratefully and raised her eyebrows at him. "I recall you risking your life too."

"I'm the king," said John Sobieski. "That's what kings are for. You're our advisor. Please, in future, do what the rest of my advisors do and stay away from trouble. What would have happened had we lost?"

"We didn't lose, though, did we?"

Despite himself, he grinned, and the grin spread to the other lords and the Winged Lancers about him. "No, we didn't. We won. We paid the price but your plan worked and we won."

"So now what?"

Sobieski stood up slowly, his body aching from the fatigue of wearing armour all day, and walked over to the map. "We send messages to King Louis and to the Mohammedans. We find out how they did. And then, unless one of them lost, we can start the real business."

For a moment this placated her; then she realised what he meant and looked up in alarm, spilling her broth. "No. I warned you. I warned you not to do this. It's more dangerous than you can imagine. Defending earth is the important thing."

He grunted dismissively, his huge hands gripping the map table. "I didn't march from Warsaw to Vienna to defend myself or to be safe. Louis and Mustafa can stay and guard the home front like women if they wish. We still have strength enough to march on hell, and while we have that strength we will use it."

The smell of sulphur, both from hellfire and from gunpowder, lingered on the camp all night. She spent that night recuperating in her tent; but as soon as dawn came she stole a horse from a Hungarian huszar unit and rode away unnoticed from the camp of the last Crusader king.

Longes · Post by **Longes** » Tue Jul 15, 2014 2:44 pm

Even exhausted, shivering and suffering the aftereffects of hexes

This is the only thing that I'm not sure about. Didn't we agree on lack of magic?

Laertes · Post by **Laertes** » Tue Jul 15, 2014 3:47 pm

I'm happy to change it if people want, I had merely assumed that demons would fight with intangible infernal powers rather than just hooves and claws.

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Tue Jul 15, 2014 6:21 pm

What we banned was no non-Hell supernatural elements. Demons can totally hurl curses, and humans can learn Hell-based sorceries and such. You can even have demons repelled by crosses and bound by Hermetic circles and such if you want.

What doesn't exist is magic that doesn't come out of Hell that can affect Earthly things. No humans can curse other humans with their folk rituals or predict the future by eating earthly hallucinogens, or change the weather by dancing, or anything like that. There were no secretly real magic traditions before the gates opened.

Again, sorry about the delay, I'm still recovering from a work week with a lot more hours than usual. I'll get my second Lens contribution in at my earliest convenience. When I am properly conscious.

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Fri Jul 18, 2014 2:43 pm

Okay, finally!

Laertes, looks good, although remember that Scenes are about answering a specific question. You can retrofit the question in, obviously. Also, needs a Light/Dark tone descriptor. I also propose that John have been clearly altered in some way by Hell-exposure. I leave the details to you, but I kind of like the idea of riffing off of 'huge hands.'

Also, I just realized that TFI's actual name didn't make it into the version of the scene I posted. As no-one has given her one in the meantime, I've done so now. If anyone wants to put her name into an Element they've submitted, let me know.

So, here's an example of nesting, which is a thing the Lens can do on their turn(s).

The First Colonies Form (Dark) – an Event between Containment Zones and False Monarchy. Dark for the blood shed.
Wars between the various nations of Hell and Earth result in several chunks of territory in each realm being held by forces from the other, depending on who prevailed in the conflict, but most are unstably held, and back-and-forth is common. Consolidating and expanding these areas consumes a lot of effort.

How Did The First Immortal Escape From Hell? (Light) – a Scene in The First Colonies. Light for the escape, despite mitigation.

Eleven attempts, and eleven should-have-been-fatal punishments. How long she had been an enforced guest in the Devil's house, Melania once-of-Achyraus, the First Immortal, did not know. But it ended today, if days had any meaning here.

This time, nothing had been left to chance. The Devil's various vassals mostly hated their overlord, and their envoys had been paid with information she'd stolen from the vast revenue records in Its vaults; those whose tribute rates were lightest had revealed Its secret allies, given the aristocracy of the hells a leverage they'd never had before. In exchange, they had bribed, diverted, waylaid, and disabled the security around the Blade of Light. They thought she meant to attempt an assassination of their overlord, a plan they all approved of, but dared not attempt themselves.

Instead, as Melania's fingers closed around the emerald hilt, she invoked the strangely-formed weapon's greatest power. She had seen the Devil use it to travel between Hells without using the common portals, to visit Its retainers by surprise, and she had heard the incantation It used to do so, for It had no caution against the ears of such a lowly subject. And so Melania spoke the words and cut the air, feeling something within her slice and part as well. She never remembered the memory she paid for that passage, the moment of forgiving her father for beating her for laziness.

She emerged into air that tasted so clean that she gagged in unfamiliarity. The Devil's home knew many forms and flavors, and the air was different in each, but though some of those vapors were sour and some were sweet, none of them were clean. The landscape seemed strange, but she supposed that she had spent more years in Hell than she ever had on Earth, and that was only to be expected.

A sharp blow to her skull felled her. 'Wait,' she cried, 'I've come from Hell, I know... so much about their lords and ways... I can tell you...' A second blow silenced her.

'<What was that foreigner's babble?>' asked the ashigaru who had staved in her head with the butt of his yari.

'<It was babble to me,>' said his companion. He stooped to retrieve the Sword from where it had fallen. '<But I know a treasure when I see it. Leave her for the birds and let's get this to Lord Mōri Okimoto. I bet we'll get a fat reward for it.>'