New Vindicators Academy of Europe (OOC - Full)

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Michuru
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe (OOC - Full)

Post by Michuru »

EnigmaticOne wrote: Tue Jul 02, 2019 4:18 pmBut don't get rid of Puck's asking who will stand up and take down Applebottom! I liked having Dennis' building realization about how we could do it.
If it's any consolation, I wanted to keep it, too. Applebottom is this dangling plot thread that I intended Puck to sort of fix eventually... which should terrify everyone, as Puck tends not to really do anything unless there's some entertainment he gets from it. He's not exactly the most philanthropic of characters...
Shock wrote: Tue Jul 02, 2019 5:08 pmMy mind started wandering last night and I got to wondering, what would happen if Black Ice got sent back to Pandora? I know they stopped using it since the truth about the Elpis came out but it has to still be a theoretical possibility. Would she then run into herself simultaneously arriving from her home dimension? Get stuck in some kind of time loop? Cause a paradox?
It wouldn't create a paradox. I have some rules about time travel that I was super duper happy to see get included in a certain superhero movie that recently came out. Essentially, it's impossible to change the past. By going back in time, all you can ever hope to do is create a branching reality. If you go back in time to kill Hitler, you create a universe where some mysterious figure showed up and killed Hitler and things happen differently, but your world is still there. The reality that spawned you and gave you the impetuous to go back and kill Hitler still exists. If it didn't, there would be a paradox.

One of the features of the Astrolabe is that is creates a causality loop. The agents it employs are capable of altering the course of history without creating a branching reality. It and it alone is capable of altering the past.

So, if Black Ice were shoved through the Pandora gate again, she would have shown up on Pandora and been with the Armada... unless someone were to reconfigure the gate. All of the gates Argus distributed were set up so that whenever someone was shoved through, the arrived at a fixed time and location. Despite being sent through years apart, people like Hessian, Granddaddy Vitesse, and Therianthrope all arrived at the same time. If shoved through, she would arrive just as her younger self was arriving.

How will this be protected? Well, for starters, as soon as it was discovered what the nature of the Armada was, the gate on 137 was destroyed. No one is going through that one. Still, it's entirely possible for someone to reverse engineer it. This is actually a plot point I plan on bringing up later. It'll also explain something the Drifter said when she spoke about Pandora to Sophie:
"In my travels, I found a dimension... I didn't stay their long, but it... It's... It's a penal colony. I met this person--Chen Lei. He was like a chieftain. He told me that he had been exiled for trying to bring down an oppressive government. They used magic to banish him to this backwater world. According to him, there were people from other worlds. I've tried to find out more about it--how all of these unrelated dimensions all know about the same penal dimension."


There's a lot to unpack there--some of which doesn't mesh up with what Jack saw. Pandora's a world I intend on revisiting (though it won't be the first world we return to) and will slowly resolve some of this.
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EnigmaticOne
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe (OOC - Full)

Post by EnigmaticOne »

Michuru wrote: Tue Jul 02, 2019 8:58 pm
EnigmaticOne wrote: Tue Jul 02, 2019 4:18 pmBut don't get rid of Puck's asking who will stand up and take down Applebottom! I liked having Dennis' building realization about how we could do it.
If it's any consolation, I wanted to keep it, too. Applebottom is this dangling plot thread that I intended Puck to sort of fix eventually... which should terrify everyone, as Puck tends not to really do anything unless there's some entertainment he gets from it. He's not exactly the most philanthropic of characters...
Well, I still had Dennis offer the basic idea anyway, so if Puck wants to offer to take care of that...
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Michuru
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe (OOC - Full)

Post by Michuru »

EnigmaticOne wrote: Wed Jul 03, 2019 1:49 am
Michuru wrote: Tue Jul 02, 2019 8:58 pm
EnigmaticOne wrote: Tue Jul 02, 2019 4:18 pmBut don't get rid of Puck's asking who will stand up and take down Applebottom! I liked having Dennis' building realization about how we could do it.
If it's any consolation, I wanted to keep it, too. Applebottom is this dangling plot thread that I intended Puck to sort of fix eventually... which should terrify everyone, as Puck tends not to really do anything unless there's some entertainment he gets from it. He's not exactly the most philanthropic of characters...
Well, I still had Dennis offer the basic idea anyway, so if Puck wants to offer to take care of that...
I think we can swing that... I wish I had the old post cached. I'd like to recycle bits of it.

In other news, in the hunt for a creative outlet, I had started writing again--campaign related stuff--and needed a brand of luxury sunglasses for a character to be wearing in order to convey that they're from money. I Googled "expensive sunglasses" and the first result was for the company I work for. So, uh... "We're number one! We're number one!" I guess...

MSRP on these is $329.00, which is... ridiculous... but digging a bit deeper, I found things like Dolce and Gabbana DG2027B sunglasses ($383,000) or Cartier Panthere sunglasses ($159,000) and it's making me question a lot of things. For starters, who the hell pays six figures for sunglasses? What is wrong with people? I find it ridiculous people pay three figures for ours, and that puts food on my table.

More alarming, however, is that my employer showed up at the top of the search results... despite being waaaaay behind these other brands in terms of price. Odds are, Google is skewing the results because it's heard me answering my work line this way, or I tell people where I work (I literally told a tow truck driver about my job around 1am today) and I'm left wondering... am I really that comfortable with how my phone is obviously eavesdropping on everything I say? I mean, I'm a little alarmed... but this is nothing new. I knew this happened. I've had weird things like this crop up before. At what point do I decide that I've had enough and actually make an effort to keep tech companies from listening to everything I say?
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Shock
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe (OOC - Full)

Post by Shock »

Are we going to skip Violet's call to her dad for now? I'm cool either way if you want to move things along
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe (OOC - Full)

Post by EnigmaticOne »

Michuru wrote: Tue Jul 02, 2019 8:58 pm
MSRP on these is $329.00, which is... ridiculous... but digging a bit deeper, I found things like Dolce and Gabbana DG2027B sunglasses ($383,000) or Cartier Panthere sunglasses ($159,000) and it's making me question a lot of things. For starters, who the hell pays six figures for sunglasses? What is wrong with people? I find it ridiculous people pay three figures for ours, and that puts food on my table.
It's called conspicuous consumption - paying that amount of money to show you can, to demonstrate your wealth. And the associated brand designer cachet for increased social impact.
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe (OOC - Full)

Post by Shock »

They probably list that price but actually sell for much cheaper
Michuru
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe (OOC - Full)

Post by Michuru »

Shock wrote: Thu Jul 04, 2019 12:01 am Are we going to skip Violet's call to her dad for now? I'm cool either way if you want to move things along
Can't we do both? Seriously, we can do both. I wanted to do it, but also walk things forward a bit, as I felt the other groups were encroaching on their next phase. Plus, thanks to someone... *cough*me*cough* ...this session has gone on for almost a year and I'm expediting things a bit because I am perpetually eager for the next session. I'm always eager to show you all what I have planned next. It's a problem. I need to be stopped.

Though, to be honest, as much as I'm looking forward to the next session, it's four sessions from now that I'm really excited about.

NVAE #30 I had some help with the overall plot. One of you all sort of inspired the basic outline of it and then I just ran with things. If you guys hate it, feel free to blame him and not me. :-p

NVAE #33 is another one I'm anxious for. I need to actually PM about 50% of you with what's going on during it, as certain players (Arkrite, McGuffin, Shock, Tattooedman...) will be actively working with me to mess with everyone else's heads. Seriously, for the past two years or so, I have been resisting the urge to jump the gun and tell you four what's going on during that session so that you can begin planning...
EnigmaticOne wrote: Thu Jul 04, 2019 12:10 am
Michuru wrote: Tue Jul 02, 2019 8:58 pm
MSRP on these is $329.00, which is... ridiculous... but digging a bit deeper, I found things like Dolce and Gabbana DG2027B sunglasses ($383,000) or Cartier Panthere sunglasses ($159,000) and it's making me question a lot of things. For starters, who the hell pays six figures for sunglasses? What is wrong with people? I find it ridiculous people pay three figures for ours, and that puts food on my table.
It's called conspicuous consumption - paying that amount of money to show you can, to demonstrate your wealth. And the associated brand designer cachet for increased social impact.
A few years ago, I watched this documentary at TIFF... I think it ended up on Netflix, actually. The Ivory Game, for anyone curious. Any road, they brought up that this was one of the things leading to the extinction of the elephant. If ivory is illegal, then having ivory demonstrates your wealth. I mean, you have to break some laws to get it. You risk a run in with the law. You have to smuggle it out of the country. There's a lot involved, so... the price goes up to the point that only the ridiculously wealthy can own it. They want that status symbol. They want to have ivory on their shelves when they have dinner parties, so their friends can ooo and aah. Now, because they're paying that outlandish price, demand is up, but supply is low, so... more elephants get hunted down, and there we go.
Shock wrote: Thu Jul 04, 2019 12:57 am They probably list that price but actually sell for much cheaper
It's seriously ridiculous. As an employee, I can buy our glasses for around $40. We've actually had a problem with employees buying them and selling them on eBay at just slightly below MSRP. Which is brilliant and I wish I'd thought of it before they started cracking down on the people doing it.
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EnigmaticOne
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe (OOC - Full)

Post by EnigmaticOne »

Michuru wrote: Thu Jul 04, 2019 3:58 amCan't we do both? Seriously, we can do both. I wanted to do it, but also walk things forward a bit, as I felt the other groups were encroaching on their next phase. Plus, thanks to someone... *cough*me*cough* ...this session has gone on for almost a year and I'm expediting things a bit because I am perpetually eager for the next session. I'm always eager to show you all what I have planned next. It's a problem. I need to be stopped.

Though, to be honest, as much as I'm looking forward to the next session, it's four sessions from now that I'm really excited about.

NVAE #30 I had some help with the overall plot. One of you all sort of inspired the basic outline of it and then I just ran with things. If you guys hate it, feel free to blame him and not me. :-p

NVAE #33 is another one I'm anxious for. I need to actually PM about 50% of you with what's going on during it, as certain players (Arkrite, McGuffin, Shock, Tattooedman...) will be actively working with me to mess with everyone else's heads. Seriously, for the past two years or so, I have been resisting the urge to jump the gun and tell you four what's going on during that session so that you can begin planning...
Looking forward to it too! Dennis has no questions and I'm ready to roll.
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe (OOC - Full)

Post by McGuffin »

Likewise looking forward to it and yea, Otso's got nothing more to add before moving further.
Otso Karell/Ursa, student at the New Vindicators Academy Europe.
Kriv of Clan Myastan, Dragonborn Noble Paladin in On the Road.
Shock
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe (OOC - Full)

Post by Shock »

Michuru wrote: Thu Jul 04, 2019 3:58 am
Shock wrote: Thu Jul 04, 2019 12:01 am Are we going to skip Violet's call to her dad for now? I'm cool either way if you want to move things along
Can't we do both? Seriously, we can do both. I wanted to do it, but also walk things forward a bit, as I felt the other groups were encroaching on their next phase. Plus, thanks to someone... *cough*me*cough* ...this session has gone on for almost a year and I'm expediting things a bit because I am perpetually eager for the next session. I'm always eager to show you all what I have planned next. It's a problem. I need to be stopped.
Do you want to do that conversation by PM and then post the full thing once it's done? That way the game can keep moving without everyone having to wait for the two of us.
Michuru
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe (OOC - Full)

Post by Michuru »

Shock wrote: Thu Jul 04, 2019 2:07 pm
Michuru wrote: Thu Jul 04, 2019 3:58 am
Shock wrote: Thu Jul 04, 2019 12:01 am Are we going to skip Violet's call to her dad for now? I'm cool either way if you want to move things along
Can't we do both? Seriously, we can do both. I wanted to do it, but also walk things forward a bit, as I felt the other groups were encroaching on their next phase. Plus, thanks to someone... *cough*me*cough* ...this session has gone on for almost a year and I'm expediting things a bit because I am perpetually eager for the next session. I'm always eager to show you all what I have planned next. It's a problem. I need to be stopped.
Do you want to do that conversation by PM and then post the full thing once it's done? That way the game can keep moving without everyone having to wait for the two of us.
We can. I'm also cool with running both scenes simultaneously. Maybe I'm being naive, but I don't think that Augustus can add anything that will influence the action. I view it as more character building, and think we could be safe running them as parallel scenes. Sort of showing what Violet is dealing with while also showing how she deals with this.
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Shock
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe (OOC - Full)

Post by Shock »

That's cool with me. My thoughts were the same
Michuru
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe (OOC - Full)

Post by Michuru »

Shock wrote: Thu Jul 04, 2019 4:28 pm That's cool with me. My thoughts were the same
Just a friendly reminder that Augustus Lear's prime focus is to go to countries with the worst water supplies, use his power to generate a lot of ice, and establish clean drinking water for the people who reside there.

Also a note that Ethiopia--where we just found out Augustus is at--is considered to have the second-worst water supply out of any country. Who holds the top spot? Why, that would be Uganda, of course.

Also a friendly reminder that Uganda is home to a loose plot thread called the Ugandan Unity Brigade and while Augustus may be trying to bring them water, Otso will likely be bringing beef... of which he has some for them...

Also a friendly reminder that I've been tying up some dangling plot threads lately, while also putting a spotlight on individual PCs.

On a related note, there may be a session the focuses on Otso and Violet in the near future. I can't imagine what it's going to be about, though... Carry on!
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Arkrite
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe (OOC - Full)

Post by Arkrite »

I imagine it will be about race cars to showcase Otso and Violet's drive to be the best drivers in Europe. ;~)
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe (OOC - Full)

Post by Michuru »

Arkrite wrote: Thu Jul 04, 2019 6:18 pm I imagine it will be about race cars to showcase Otso and Violet's drive to be the best drivers in Europe. ;~)
Helicopter pilots, actually, but close!
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