Roundtable Logs for the 12th of August, 2023

[Frisbee]

Pre-transcript note: This meeting was conducted on a beach that had semi-invisible chairs all around. Very cool, I thought.

Rias says, "A quick update, I'm working on getting a couple more societies ready, as well as various butterflies. I've been doing a good bit of code cleanup and bugfixes."
Gorth asks, "A player was asking about Tumble and it got us to considering. Does Tumble (in combat), get any rerolls? also, does it make an Armor check?"
Gorth elaborates, "It gains the morale roll, I presume, but does it have negatives based on anything?"
Rias says, "It doesn't look like there's any rerolls or armor skill checks involved. The latter probably should be a thing. It does have restrictions on the maximum armor level it can be performed in, but that's not a skill check or a roll."
Rias says, "And yeah, as long as there are skill rolls, there are potential morale rerolls."
Gorth says, "I always operate under the asumption that if I'm rolling something that has anything to do with movement, I'm rolling an armor check, so I'd suggest that when crafting becomes roll based, armor affect it. Also make people overheat if they're in full ridgeleather in front of forges for two hours. Just my two cents."
Rias says, "Suggestions for overheating in armor and/or lots of clothes do come up from time to time."
Gorth says, "Anyway, on the subject of morale. Does mount and PC morale operate the same in all instances? Does it drain at the same rate? Do they have the same chances to get rerolls for their actions than we do? Can you give us any scale of what morale brushing gives them? I brush with a D650 and usually get at least 600 affective roll, and I rarely see rerolls on kicks and tramples."
Rias says, "Mount morale works the same as any other morale. I don't want brushing to be able to skyrocket mount morale all on its own, so look forward to other means of raising it."
Khan asks, "Two questions, though I think you've pretty much just answered it. I was looking at armor numbers earlier and thresholds. As that is a roll, morale will thus effect it then going from what you've just said?"
Rias says, "Yeah, morale will help with armor skill checks."
Khan asks, "And second question, do the Forsaken Pantheon also have constellations, and if so, what are they?"
Rias says, "I need to update constellations, they haven't been touched in a very long time. We do at least have the Web of Aranas in March."
Rias says, "And when I say update, I mean add to, not alter what's existing."
Rias says, "But to answer the question more directly: Yes, we'll have some constellations for some of the Immortals introduced more recently."
Rias says, "The Forsaken Pantheon is a term used to encompass the Immortals that have been rallied by Balastrossa. They all have their own identities beyond that of course."
You say, "This came to mind as I was reading the recent announcements about the timelines sort of merging. Is there a reason why CLOK's Viali calendar was renamed to Aetgardean Calendar? Or perhaps it was always Aetgardean and it was very recently renamed by the administration who took over. Sorry I admittedly have relatively very little experience with that game."
Rias says, "I'm honestly not sure why the term got changed from Viali Calendar to Aetgardian Calendar."
Belladana asks, "Are we going to see a change in the weight in Padded armor, leather and scale any time soon?"
Rias says, "Maybe if some people post suggestions on what they might be changed to."
Squeak asks, "I've a series of questions: Firstly, who's the leader of the Tse Gaiyan chapterhouse in the lost lands? This Banam (?) feller? Which GM is responsible, or mostly so, to go to for TG events and the like?"
Rias says, "I've gone back and forth on who's leading Tse Gaiyan. I'm tempted to make it someone new due to all the uh... turbulence the organization has been through, both recent and just generally."
Squeak asks, "Second: (well, third) Is there a better way of rallying the troops for meetings and the likes other than checking the message board in the meeting hall and communicating over the Jade network?"
Rias says, "I'm the GM that does Tse Gaiyan stuff. You can rally your fellow PCs however you wish, including BBS posts pointing out posts or ESP calls have been made. I wouldn't necessarily expect to be able to call the entire NPC organization together however. A good example has been when player characters have called town meetings in the past, and just posted about them in-game and sometimes on the associated BBS board as well, and when GMs are able to attend with NPCs, they do. Otherwise we try to keep track of what went on by looking over the log."
Squeak asks, "Related to that, can we have the board there moved to the Also Here line, with the "new post" tag added to it? And lastly, Is there a way, when switching from channel to channel, to have it replay the last sent message?"
Rias says, "Oh, sorry. I looked for the board but didn't see it, where is it currently? Regarding the ESP thing, I've been planning a way to hear an echo of the last few minutes, so when people are made aware of activity on a channel they can hop to it and get the echo instead of having to ask 'what's going on, I didn't hear the last message(s)'."
Squeak says, "It's in the Meeting Hall, west of the main door and through the door."
Rias says, "Aha, it's got a slightly different name."
Rias says, "There we go, it's been Also Noticeified."
Squeak says, "Awesome, appreciate you."
"Oh. And the obligatory, when can I start making firearms?" Squeak says while grinning a silly little grin.
Maina says, "How are you feeling about the loot changes? are you having any different thoughts on it now that it's been out a while? There have been a few new posts on the subject of late, and there was a fairly lengthy discussion on the Discord this morning as well."
Rias says, "Be sure to post any specific feedback or suggestions, as GMs don't keep up on the chat channels. I don't think it's where it needs to be yet, so feedback would be great for applying tweaks and better ideas of implementation."
Maina says, "I think there are a few posts along those lines already in the thread about the subject, but I also know a few people in the Discord were talking about compiling their thoughts as well to add to it. Other than that, I only had my usual when-questions. So I will pass it along."
Khan asks, "Are you currently content with the layer of protection plate adds for the costs (Weight/skill)? And have you had any thoughts of armor that somewhat fits the gap between ridgeleather/plate? If not an armor-style, perhaps a material one? For heavy armor users that is. Or is the next project on that kind of level going to be chain?"
Rias says, "I think plate can probably use a bit more, at least relative to other armors. The main thing there is considering whether that would make plate too good, and whether all armors should potentially be tweaked a bit. I don't necessarily think so, but thinking about it usually ends up turning into thoughts about all armor."
Rias says, "I'd love to have another heavy-class armor, I just don't know what it might be. I haven't had much luck finding other types of armor that would fit into the "large rigid pieces" category."
Rias says, "I did find myself pondering whether some kind of splint or coat of plates would fit the bill, as tempted as I am to categorize those in the medium/hybrid category."
Khan says, "I personally think some of the armors could use a bit of a downtweak. I know a lot of the numbers were put in back when crits were a lot more common, and have never really been adjusted again. A downtweak would leave further room for improvement, and more room. And it might be a spot for the more exotic. Much like the carapace/scale. Also coat of plates is basically brigandine, and we have splint armor."
Khan says, "A gentle shift across the board would also mean plate wouldnt necessarily need a tweak upwards."
Rias says, "Yeah, the armor levels did start fairly high due to the original existence of crits and, even way way back, the idea that the game might have been permadeath."
You say, "Do we know approximately how much time New Emberlight has had to recover from its last burning to the ground? Haave multiple of those happened across the last decade or so, or is it more a case that pirates frequently attack it but don't destroy it entirely, and no matter what the locals are like, 'WE ARE TOO PROUD TO RESETTLE, WE'RE REBUILDING AND REBUILDING AND REBUILDING, HAIL THE PHOENIX?'."
Rias says, "They haven't been attacked as often recently, partially due to their latest idea to leave a lot of the place in disrepair and make it a less tempting target. I don't have exact dates on the most recent attacks."
You ask, "Right, but what i mean is, has it been something like a year or two, or much longer? Would stories need to be told by grandparents to their grandchildren, or would much younger people remember such attacks?"
Rias says, "They've suffered attacks in the past few years, yes, but nothing major enough that it's been big news."
Gorth asks, "Are there any stories of people dying of old age and coming back? How long has the Undying condition been known of?"
Speaking to Gorth, Rias says, "No, one of the observable limitations of the Undying condition is old age. So we've still got Undying people searching for means of achieving immortality, knowing that even they will die one day."
Khan says, "A) Is there anything you're looking forward to working on next once you've your current load off your plate? B) What are you particularly enjoying about what you're doing right now in regards to the clear up/societies? C) What would you like to see more of in Cogg, be it from something done by players/characters/yourself and the staff, or just in terms of theme/lore? Just pick one thing. It is quite an expansive question."
Rias says, "A) I'm looking forward to some events, adding more tasks, and adding a bunch of abilities! B) I'm enjoying seeing people already getting into Societies and wanting to do more with them, that's very exciting. C) I'm already starting to see more of what I like in the form of the answer to B. I also want to poke at some of the faction stuff more."
Vazbol says, "So, I've been in some discussions with people in regards to the current active character limit. Especially with massive updates coming through for specializations. There's been a bit of a push to see if the active character limit can go up to three, to at least match the three guilds themselves. I get why people are wanting it, since some people want a bit of variety in their roleplay depending on their mood for the day. I generally stick to one character, but felt I should share that."
Rias exclaims, "Nope!"
Vazbol says, "Ha, that's what I thought."
Serity says, "Yeah, um-- in regards to S3, they currently right now IC (even if unimplemented) exist in the towns and cities and so on, right? In the-- I think in a previous roundtable you mentioned that the cities might 'allow' such a thing because it has its uses."
Rias says, "Yes, they are currently in existence and have been for some time."
Serity says, "They aren't going to just 'form' and become, um-- approved? at a later point?...I'm basically worried about getting the smackdown from the law on account of simple membership, lol."
Rias says, "Well, presumably you won't go around advertising your membership. But people won't get kicked out of their town just for joining."
Serity says, "Right-- right, okay. Thanks. Sorry for the unclearish question, but it just came to mind and didn't want to have to wait another week."
Speaking to Serity, Rias says, "No problem. It's pretty much don't make yourself a particular problem, and we can assume the appropriate bribes and wheel-greasings and what-have-you can occur to keep things smooth for members and their town citizenships."
Speaking to Rias, Belladana asks, "What Societies are you working on and what Society will be out next?"
Speaking to Belladana, Rias exclaims, "All of them!"
You ask, "Are there particular plans anywhere down the pipeline to add the construction of locksmithing tools? If so, do you think the ability to do so will be available to *certain* people, or all locksmiths?"
Speaking to you, Rias says, "I'm not sure yet. It does seem like the kind of thing that certain groups would want to try and control."
Squeak says, "Oh. Right. Will the Tse Gaiyan... uh. For lack of better term, 'Gift Shop', be open soon-ish? I need membership swag."
Rias says, "I almost added it, but then decided it would be good to implement merit requirements for purchases first."
Speaking to Rias, Ulias asks, "I play a Treasure Hunter and realized recently that Rogues are basically just Treasure Hunters but with more abilities, in particular with combat. Was told there was a possibility of the two being merged, but I for one would prefer to keep Treasure Hunter. Are there any plans to expand on that class?"
Rias says, "Yes, I started working on a diagram of abilities for each of them. I think they'll always be fairly similar, but I'd like to keep them their own classes if possible."
Ulias says, "Very cool, I have been trying to think of ideas. I know there was some talk of giving classes their own training spots, so something facility based might be nice too. Awesome, and thank you for all your work."
Rias exclaims, "And I look forward to all the debates of "why can't Rogues get Treasure Hunter Ability X" and "why can't Treasure Hunters get Rogue Ability Y". We'll see how it goes!"
Ulias says, "I'm already a little salty that reasure Hunter doesn't get a tTactical dodge, but I also understand it because, how the hell would that even work."
Rias says, "On my skill-based trees diagram, Treasure Hunters are under Perception, and Rogues under Artifice. There's a fair amoung of crossover between the two however."
Khan asks, "I might have missed it in previous discussions, but how is the work towards the ability/skill revamp going? Is it something on the backburner currently while you focus on what you've previously mentioned?"
Rias says, "Yeah, it's sitting here waiting for me to get Societies up and going first. But I'm still playing around with said diagrams, so it's being "worked on" at least conceptually as I think of things even if the mechanical implementation isn't the focus yet."
Nobody asks, "Is the long term plan for (non physicker) scholar income still planned to be tasks?"
Rias says, "That does seem the easiest way to approach it, but I'm always open to suggestions that aren't task-specific."
Nobody says, "Oh, that'll be an exciting thing to brainstorm then."
Maina asks, "Hallo again. I lied. All the talk of societies and dev plans makes me curious where the Parlour and other guilds/psuedo-societies are in the current plan?"
Rias says, "Yes."
Rias says, "Er, rather. They are in here with the society stuff in what I'm working on presently, not being held off on."
Rias exclaims, "It was fun dusting off the Parlour facilities, I'm excited to see people in them again!"
Maina says, "Me tooooooo."
Maina says, "Awesome. Also re: scholars and tasks, I bug reported it, but copy tasks are still sending me to Shadgard - which I am banned from - though other tasks seem to have been fixed. Though I suspect that will mostly be a mostly non-issue once Warlocks are removed from the library."
Rias says, "Dang."
Rias says, "I'll take a gander and see why copy tasks in particular are being goofy."
Maina says, "Awesome, thanks."
Rias says, "Ooh, I think I found it."
Rias hits some code with a wrench.
Serity says, "You should deeeeefinitely add a copy task to the secret sorcery book place."
Rias says, "That's actually not a bad idea."
Rias says, "Fun to have options to go out to more dangerous places in the field so to speak for additional tasks."
Serity says, "Maybe up the value a little given the difficulty compared to the other copy tasks~ mhm. there's all those journals lying around too. Could be special tasks for people skilled in certain languages or whatnot."
Piekny asks, "I've just arrived, so I'm sorry if you already covered this. What's a possible loose timeline for Wyrvardn tasks?"
Speaking to Piekny, Rias says, "Not until the other Societies get their phase 1 introductions (being joinable), so it'll be a bit yet."
Piekny says, "No problem! Thanks."
Speaking to Rias, Ulias asks, "Sorry I know it's late, but had one more. Will we ever have whips in cogg?"
Rias says, "Yep, I have some ability tree nodes that have to do with whips."
Ulias says, "Fantastic, always loved tossing foools around."
Rias says, "They won't be things you should expect to go around killing things with, though."
Ulias says, "Right, I liked them the way they were in Clok, where you ust pulled people around and such."
Rias says, "More of an aid/utility than something you'd go around solely killing baddies with."
Serity says, "Katars when? (even if they're just reskinned spike knuckles)."
Rias exclaims, "When someone convinces me to add them!"
Speaking to Rias, Squeak asks, "I had one last question, but never got around to asking it. Will there ever be... secret or loot-based forging schematics that grant the ability to make a variety of weapons/tools, even if they are just re-skinned versions of current?"
Rias says, "I think some special recipes that specifically need to be learned (rather than just auto-received with enough skill) would be neat, yeah."

Sorry for the re-ordering around of some messages, hopefully this makes it all less frustrating to read rather than more so. Thank you for reading!