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So, is anyone still reading this, or...?
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Oct 16, 2017 05:07
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I'm still reading yes. It's been a little busy over here lately, but I intend to write a proper reply.
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Oct 16, 2017 05:37
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Still reading
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Oct 16, 2017 06:34
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Keeping an eye on it.
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Oct 16, 2017 09:27
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Yep. e: I hadn't replied because I was trying to think of a good answer. super sweet best pal fucked around with this message at 05:39 on Oct 18, 2017 |
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Oct 16, 2017 12:32
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I'm here, just... really not good at this complex answer thing.
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Oct 16, 2017 17:23
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dont be mean to me posted:I'm here, just... really not good at this complex answer thing.  I'll give it a try though: To be honest, right now I'm quite overwhelmed by the breadth and depth of our responsibilities and powers. I think in more general terms we need to build on the gains in productivity we've seen over the last decades due to the use of science and machines, but should work on spreading these gains more equally among the population, to avoid social unrest, that would probably also require more equal political participation. I intend no offence, but I also have to admit that I'm not sure about how well it works to have overseers only work in a specific region, as their different approaches and the different outcomes might lead to inequality between polities and conflict born out of jealousy, but obviously I know too little about the rest of the overseers and their work. Generally I'd propose an outlook that is pro-science (we are a scholar after all) with a healthy dose of liberal ideals like equality and political participation.
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Oct 16, 2017 20:14
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This should work decently well with Sheep-dodger's paragraph: "If I've learned anything from my training so far, it is that I don't know nearly enough. I could stick my nose into things with the very best of intentions, but if I don't understand what the consequences of my actions could be, then it's even odds at best that I'm going to help more than I inadvertantly hurt. Your slight adjustments to the weather have huge knock-on effects, and so too do seemingly minor loose ends in previous legislation; like the orphanage issue that was voted on. That was entirely a knock-on effect from previous legislation that either no one foresaw, or that no one wanted to solve contemporaneous lest they hamper their primary goal. The nature of human life makes us a collective of raindrops landing on a lake, and the ripples we cause surge forth to interact with each other in unpredictable ways, but Overseers are a potential hailstorm over the lake. "Shying away from trying isn't right though. If I were to do nothing it'd be just as unconscionable as acting without understanding. But studying and gaining an appreciation for potential issues isn't the same as doing nothing: it's critical preparation. So initially I would do that. I would pick a problem that seems within my capability to understand, study it, determine what small things we (that is, myself and the people supporting me) can do to push toward a better outcome, and see what comes of making an informed attempt. I'd want to ask others, experts and afflicted, for opinions and advice but ultimately what I do would be based on what I thought was the best course of action within my capabilities. "For a first attempt I would pick a smaller problem. Just what, I'm not sure."
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Oct 17, 2017 01:46
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It seems like this country's in a state of decline and I'd like to reverse that. Right now, all I'm really capable of is facilitating communication, so my only option would be to find people in the four chambers of parliament who'd be willing to put aside their personal desires and work together to form a coalition. I still know far too little about them to know where to begin but among the nobility I'd definitely look to see which houses are the worst off and would be willing to show up as a large group to go against the noble chamber's usual voting habits if they thought . Of course even that would take a lot of research just to discover who'd be most open to change. Beyond that I have no idea. I still know nothing about the current makeup of the other three chambers, their general opinion on what needs to be done or the various factions within them. Again, a lot of research since I know nothing of Colvir beyond what little I've read during my breaks between practicing my power and what you've shown me today.
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Oct 17, 2017 11:47
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You take a while to come up with a response. Ultimately, you decide that you don’t know nearly enough to confidently outline a plan of action, and instead try to form a general approach to carrying out an Overseer’s duty. After mulling things over in your head for quite some time, you ready yourself for giving your answer. “To be honest, right now I'm quite overwhelmed by the breadth and depth of our responsibilities and powers.” you start, somewhat nervous, “I think…in more general terms, we need to build on the gains in productivity we've seen over the last decades due to the use of science and machines, but should work on spreading these gains more equally among the population, to avoid social unrest, which would probably require more equal political participation.” The Overseer takes yet another sip of her tea, calmly listening to your reply, like a professor evaluating a student. “However, that’s only in general. If I've learned anything from my training so far, it is that I don't know nearly enough.” you continue, a bit more confidently, “I could stick my nose into things with the very best of intentions, but if I don't understand what the consequences of my actions could be, then it's even odds at best that I'm going to help more than I inadvertently hurt. Your slight adjustments to the weather have huge knock-on effects, and so too do seemingly minor loose ends in previous legislation; like the orphanage issue that was voted on. That was entirely a knock-on effect from previous legislation that either no one foresaw, or that no one wanted to solve contemporaneous lest they hamper their primary goal. The nature of human life makes us a collective of raindrops landing on a lake, and the ripples we cause surge forth to interact with each other in unpredictable ways, but Overseers are a potential hailstorm over the lake.” There is a slight shift in the Overseer’s expression as you speak. It might be simple wishful thinking on your part, but it looks like she is impressed by your answer. You try not to get distracted as you continue to the main part of your answer. “Shying away from trying isn't right though. If I were to do nothing it'd be just as unconscionable as acting without understanding.” you are surprised by the confidence in your own voice, “But studying and gaining an appreciation for potential issues isn't the same as doing nothing: it's critical preparation. So, initially, I would do that. I would pick a problem that seems within my capability to understand, study it, determine what small things we (that is, myself and the people supporting me) can do to push toward a better outcome, and see what comes of making an informed attempt. I'd want to ask others, experts and afflicted, for opinions and advice but ultimately what I do would be based on what I thought was the best course of action within my capabilities.” you pause, breathing in some air, “For a first attempt I would pick a smaller problem. Just what, I'm not sure.” As an addendum to your answer, somewhat apprehensively, you decide to voice some of your thoughts on the current organization of the Overseers – “Additionally, I intend no offence, but I also have to admit that I'm not sure about how well it works to have Overseers only work in a specific region, as their different approaches and the different outcomes might lead to inequality between polities and conflict born out of jealousy, but obviously I know too little about the rest of the overseers and their work.” After you finish answering, you take a nice, long, sip of your own tea. “That’s it.” you say, trying to read the Overseer’s expression for any signs of her reaction. “Very well.” the Overseer’s tone is as professional and nonchalant as ever, “Your attitude towards our work is commendable. Especially at your age, not many are as aware of their own ignorance and the dangers of acting without understanding the full repercussions of their actions as you are. Finding a problem that’s small enough in scope for you to tackle and learning all you can about it is a good approach to take. In fact, a couple of the other Overseers operate in a similar way. Nevertheless, I must warn you that, often, you’ll have to work with incomplete information, and you can never fully predict the consequences of any course of action. You shouldn’t let the fear of unintended consequences prevent you from making a positive impact. At least, that’s my opinion.” She gestures to a waiter for a refill of her tea. “The equitable distribution of the gains of scientific advances among the population is a good goal, especially in the context of this country, but you need to develop some sort of concrete plan to attain it, or at least a specific method of working towards it. As you’ve said yourself, good intentions are nothing if you don’t know how to act on them. The main purpose of this day, and, in fact, your training as a whole, is to provide you with knowledge on the various societal and political problems that plague each region and on the efforts of each individual Overseer in solving them. This should provide the necessary basis for you to develop your own methods of dealing with some of these problems.” The waiter returns with a cup of freshly made tea, which the Overseer takes gladly. “As for your comment on our division of responsibilities…” the Overseer smiles in a strangely wistful way, “…I have mentioned in the past that we weren’t always operating in this way. Currently, our views on how best to carry out our duty differ far too much for us to work effectively under the sort of rigid, top-down directed system that was in place previously. Working in separate regions means that we don’t step on each other’s toes. This wasn’t a conscious decision, but simply…how things ended up. Who knows, maybe in the distant future, when you become the senior Overseer, those who succeed us will be more amenable to joining forces. Either way, I wouldn’t worry too much about countries becoming jealous because of our contributions. That sort of thing is near the bottom of the list when it comes to reasons for conflict.” She sips her tea, and her expression returns to her usual composed look. “With all of that out of the way, I have another question for you. Your answer was very general, and could apply to our work in most places. My new question is - what would you do in this country specifically? I know you said that you want to study each problem extensively before acting, but I want to hear your initial thoughts on how to improve one or more of the things that you’ve seen today.” “It seems like this country's in a state of decline and I'd like to reverse that.”, you say, after some thought, “Right now, all I'm really capable of is facilitating communication, so my only option would be to find people in the four chambers of parliament who'd be willing to put aside their personal desires and work together to form a coalition. I still know far too little about them to know where to begin but among the nobility I'd definitely look to see which houses are the worst off and would be willing to show up as a large group to go against the noble chamber's usual voting habits. Of course even that would take a lot of research just to discover who'd be most open to change.” The Overseer looks at you calmly, but you think you detect a hint of amusement in her expression. “Beyond that I have no idea. I still know nothing about the current makeup of the other three chambers, their general opinion on what needs to be done or the various factions within them. Again, a lot of research since I know nothing of Colvir beyond what little I've read during my breaks between practicing my power and what you've shown me today.” “That’s an interesting idea.” the Overseer says, “Personally I doubt it would work. The interests of the nobles are too opposed to the rest of society to bring about any meaningful positive change. The Professional Chamber is inherently concerned entirely with preserving or even increasing the Guilds’ hold over the economy, which is one of the biggest problems in modern Colviri society. The Civil Chamber is too transient to rely on. The Popular Chamber will almost always be divided. In short, in my opinion, there is no path towards long-term improvement that starts in Parliament. However, there is also no such path that fails to address Parliament at some point along the way, so your idea certainly has some merit.” She clears her throat, and adopts a determined expression. “In any event, I hope you use the rest of your training to figure out what problems you want to tackle and how you want to tackle them. I have every confidence that, with your cautious and information-based approach, you will go on to achieve many great things.” She finishes her tea with one last sip and stands up. “We should move on now. I would rather not be late to our next meeting.” You finish your tea as well and follow the Overseer out of the restaurant and into the waiting coach. Your mind is a mess, with plenty of thoughts and concerns vying for your attention. One among them is particularly prominent - are you really cut out for this? *** The coach drops the three of you off in a narrow side-street which is smeared with dirt and reeks of sewage. You walk for quite some time until you reach an even narrower alley. If you didn’t have Cecilia and the Overseer with you, you would have definitely started fearing for your personal safety. Soon, you reach the entrance to what looks to be a residential building and walk inside, trying not to step into the nearby puddles of a strange vaguely brown liquid. Inside, you go up a worn out wooden staircase until you reach the third floor, where you go down a narrow hallway covered in grime and filth. You stop in front of the fifth door to the left and the Overseer knocks in a loud and deliberate fashion. After a short delay, the door opens and the three of you walk inside, greeted by a bare room, slightly smaller than your old dorm room at the Academy, containing only a cheap wooden table surrounded by even cheaper looking chairs, with no other furniture anywhere to be seen. A middle-aged man with a short beard and a ragged shirt beckons all of you to sit down. You and the Overseer do so, as does the man himself, but Cecilia merely approaches your chair and stands behind it, on the side nearer to the door. “So, what do you have for me?” asks the Overseer, in her usual professional and somewhat dignified tone. “A lot of things happened since last time.” says the man, his voice rough and overbearing, “The gang has increased its’ local operations in Eisenstadt, and from what my boss tells me the same is true in every town we have a presence in. No one dares to oppose us anymore. Most local constables turn tail at the slightest mention of southern men. Almost all merchants pay our tax, even some of the local guild branches. Frankly speaking, your people are the only ones we would go out of our way to avoid messing with, but I don’t know how long that will last – some of the others have very short tempers.” “I imagined as much.” the Overseer’s tone has a very subtle note of loathing in it as she continues, “What about the missing women? Where are they being taken?” “We are running out of desperate families willing to sell their daughters for a few coins or some green dust, but demand is only growing, so we’ve started to just take unemployed or dirt-poor young women with no significant connections. The higher-ups think that no one will bother to do anything about it, and, so far, they’ve been right. Your people are the only ones that even bother to ask around, but everyone else is too terrified to answer them...” the man is suddenly interrupted by his own violent series of coughs. It takes him a few seconds to recover. “The women are being smuggled through the Finvarian border, since it’s too dangerous to bring them into Colviri cities, what with our Justice Ministry’s recent rhetoric, and no one wants to take any chances. What our Finvarian friends do with them beyond the border is anyone’s guess – maybe sell them to local brothels or particularly wealthy patrons, maybe pass them on to other countries – it doesn’t matter, so long as they keep supplying us with green dust at favorable rates in return. The dust is our main source of income. After all, there are no other people in the world with as high a demand for green dust as Colviri rurals. Speaking of which…” he takes on a furtive expression, “…they’ll kill me if they find out I know this, but our dust supply is rapidly running short. We can’t keep up with the soaring demand. Victims of our own success, in a way. The higher-ups have been hard at work over the last month negotiating with our sources in Finvaria. They are still ironing out the details, but it’s certain that there will be a huge shipment of dust in mid-July. Should last us for a while. I have already seen the place they want to keep it in until it can be properly distributed between each of our towns. It’s an old farmhouse in southern Groenkries. I’ve marked it on this map for you.” he hands the Overseer a folded piece of paper. The Overseer unfolds it and inspects it carefully. “As always, thank you for your cooperation. How is your health, by the way? No problems with the medicine shipments?” “I’m fine. Really, this is nothing compared to before. Your Excellency, there are no limits to my gratitude. If not for your support, I would…well, better not to speak of it. Is there anything else I can help you with?” “Not today, no. Contact me if anything else comes up, and watch your back.” the Overseer stands up and you follow suit. In a couple of moments, you leave the bare room behind. But what you’ve learned there is likely to remain with you for some time… *** As the sun starts to set, you find yourself staring at the horizon, which looks quite breathtaking from your vantage point of a gazebo on top of a giant atlas beetle, soaring through the orange sky. Emily sits across from you with her eyes closed and wings wrapped around herself, seemingly utterly engrossed in controlling the beetle, while humming some cheerful tune to herself. Cecilia is seated next to you, intently watching the landscape below you, as if looking out for some hidden threat. The Overseer is carefully reading the reports from the Supporters’ Guild, which she wanted to “look over one more time.” This leaves you alone with your thoughts. You have plenty of time to consider everything that you’ve seen and heard today, especially your conversation with the Overseer in the restaurant. Having witnessed an Overseer’s work first-hand, pushed to consider your own future in this role and what you’re truly capable of doing to improve society, you can’t help but feel inadequate. Is this training truly enough to make you into a proper Overseer? You may be making strides in mastering your power, and the Overseer may have complimented your “cautious and information-based approach”, but surely there’s no way that you’ll be able to carry all of these responsibilities? You try to ignore these thoughts, and resolve to keep trying your best during the rest of your training. It’s time to decide your main and secondary activities, as well as what to doing your free time in the next month. As always, you can choose any power aspect or ability to focus on for your main and secondary activities. For convenience, I’ve summarized the current options for free time: a) Rest. (Reduces Stress by 5) b) Spend time with Cecilia. (Provide some conversation topics, different from last time. Reduces Stress by 3) c) Spend time with Emily. (Provide some conversation topics. Reduces Stress by 3) d) Read the rest of Chronicle of the Overseers. (Reduces Stress by 2) e) Research a topic in the Estate’s library. (Provide me a research topic or a specific question to answer, the narrower the topic the better the result. Reduces Stress by 2) f) Continue your main or secondary activity. (Gain an additional point in the relevant stat. No change in Stress.) AFancyQuestionMark fucked around with this message at 11:43 on Oct 19, 2017 |
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Oct 18, 2017 12:10
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Someone? Anyone?
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Oct 20, 2017 05:14
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Weakest aspect, second weakest aspect (double up if we have exactly one aspect at zero, random if we have two); finish the Chronicle
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Oct 20, 2017 05:21
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dont be mean to me posted:Weakest aspect, second weakest aspect (double up if we have exactly one aspect at zero, random if we have two); finish the Chronicle All of the power aspects are above zero. The stats are in the second post. Regardless, this is a perfectly valid vote.
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Oct 20, 2017 05:29
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Primary: Practice making a helper construct Secondary: Physical Free time: Finish the book Also, ask about why the training is so stressful and tiring and if there's anything we can do to mitigate it beyond rest.
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Oct 20, 2017 05:30
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dont be mean to me posted:Weakest aspect, second weakest aspect (double up if we have exactly one aspect at zero, random if we have two); finish the Chronicle agreed get a broad base to work from, mix in destressers
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Oct 20, 2017 13:02
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Focus on physical and perceptual aspects, spend free time with Emily Topics for a conversation with Emily:
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Oct 20, 2017 13:15
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We will be training in the Physical Aspect for our main activity and the Perceptual Aspect for our secondary activity. We will also be finishing Chronicle of the Overseers. The next update will probably be later today or tomorrow. super sweet best pal posted:Also, ask about why the training is so stressful and tiring and if there's anything we can do to mitigate it beyond rest. There is no need to ask this. The reason you are getting stressed by your training is because you're engaged in mentally straining activities for 12 hours each day for every day of the week.
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Oct 21, 2017 07:38
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Slavery is something that's only seemed to come up more and more now, first as part of one of the starting options, then possibly with Emily's status, and now with the recent meeting with the informant who mentioned some families selling their daughters. There's also the historic private armies built with orphans (an indenture system?). There's also the defacto peonage/serfdom in the less productive rural areas, though that seems to be a side-effect of the guilds having so much control in the cities. ANYWAY, what does Veruna know about slavery laws?
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Oct 21, 2017 08:49
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John_A_Tallon posted:Slavery is something that's only seemed to come up more and more now, first as part of one of the starting options, then possibly with Emily's status, and now with the recent meeting with the informant who mentioned some families selling their daughters. There's also the historic private armies built with orphans (an indenture system?). There's also the defacto peonage/serfdom in the less productive rural areas, though that seems to be a side-effect of the guilds having so much control in the cities. ANYWAY, what does Veruna know about slavery laws? In both the Empire and Colvir, slavery is not legal and hasn't been for at least 500 years now. As far as Veruna is aware, this is the case in most developed nations except for the Sigdian Republic, which is notorious for using slavery as a punishment for criminals. Regardless, slavery being illegal doesn't really stop human trafficking via organized crime, which exists almost everywhere and is especially pervasive in poverty ridden areas like the Colviri countryside.
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Oct 21, 2017 09:12
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You’ve decided to dedicate your training sessions to the Physical and Perceptual aspects this month, reasoning that developing a basic understanding of each aspect of your power should open up a wider variety of applications for it in the future. You devote the morning and evening daily training sessions to the Physical Aspect, trying to affect the outside world via the strings you can see in your mind. At first, you are unable to do anything but making the strings themselves twitch slightly. However, under the Overseer’s guidance over many training sessions, you are soon able to bind the strings together into simple nets and move around small quantities of air, creating a light breeze. You gained 3 points in the Physical Aspect, bringing the total to 4. You also acquired a new ability - Move Air – with 2 points already assigned. Your daily afternoon training sessions are dedicated to the Perceptual Aspect. You try to distort the Overseer’s perceptual field and trick her with all manner of illusions. While only simple illusions work initially, like changing the color of the leaves in the garden and adding more fingers to your hands, eventually you are able to execute somewhat bigger deceptions like changing the color of the sky and creating noises without a source. However, you only manage to deceive the Overseer for very brief periods of time, and you don’t feel like you can comfortably manipulate perceptual fields at will quite yet. You gained 2 points in the Perceptual Aspect, bringing the total to 4, and 1 point in the Targeted Illusion ability, bringing the total to 3. Overall, you feel like you’ve made decent progress, albeit still not enough to say that you’ve developed an understanding of these aspects yet. You can only hope that it won’t take you too much more time to do so. *** During the breaks between your training sessions, you read the remainder of Chronicle of the Overseers. You manage to finish it. Unfortunately, while the book contains many accounts of historical Overseers and tries its’ best to present a reasonably accurate and well-researched picture of their influence on history, you find that it has a lot of gaps in its’ narrative as well as some sections that even the book itself admits to be “largely based on informed speculation”. Most significantly, it appears that neither the author nor any of the primary sources have a remotely accurate grasp on the Overseers’ power, its’ limits and its’ capabilities. Nevertheless, the book provides you with a good impression of the scholarly view on the Overseers and their role in history. Some excerpts: From the chapter entitled In Tragedy’s Wake: “...[The first century of the Overseers’ Era] leaves us with very few reliable primary sources, as the Tragedy had all but annihilated the ancient civilizations, which themselves weren’t bastions of literacy. Most of the writing from this period was done by the so-called chroniclers of some of the tribes, who were more concerned with recording crop yields, trade interactions with other tribes, and the number of casualties caused by diseases, famines and enemy raids than with chronicling historical events or the lives of important individuals. What little sources that exist, depict an initial distrust of the first Overseers, who supposedly proclaimed themselves as servants of the widely reviled gods, whose selfish war had destroyed all of the ancient civilizations and caused human suffering on an unfathomable scale. However, after several decades during which the Overseers’ occupied themselves with healing blighted crops, curing illness and brokering peace, they have seemingly gained the trust and admiration of most of the major tribes with surviving records. This trust has more or less remained constant throughout the centuries, and is the actual source of the respect the Overseers’ command in most societies…” From the chapter entitled The Northern Traitor: “There are many accounts of an alleged traitor among the Overseers, who, in the early years of the fifth century, had broken with his fellow Overseers and proclaimed himself the king of Long Valley – a vast lush and prosperous region located in what is today the Averian Union. The accounts diverge widely on the motivation behind his actions: some claim he renounced his duty to the gods in favor of his own self-interest, others depict him as a deranged tyrant succumbing to madness and believing himself to be a new god, while others still speak of some dispute among the Overseers and of other Overseers who took the traitor’s side. Another point of contention is the longevity of the valley kingdom, with its’ lifespan ranging from a few months to a few decades. His eventual demise is in dispute as well, with a wide variety of reasonably well-known versions: flayed alive by the people of the valley, struck down by lightning during a fierce storm, defeated in a grand duel with another Overseer, assassinated by his rivals, fled his kingdom with stolen wealth, etc. Curiously enough, there is no consensus among modern historians as to the identity of this supposed traitor, or even on whether he existed at all. One possibility is that he was Prince Maximilian the Young, a pretender to the Averian throne, whose domain included the Long Valley at some point, and who fled his own court before the arrival of forces loyal to William II of Averia, although there is no reliable evidence that Maximilian possessed the power of an Overseer. Another possibility is that the so-called traitor was the leader of a local peasant rebellion and not an Overseer at all, but merely someone who promoted an anti-Overseer ideology, possibly on religious grounds, and was merely labeled a traitorous Overseer as a ploy to discredit him. There are many other possibilities…” From the chapter entitled Partners in Empire: “…[The Viurian Empire] is unique among modern nations in explicitly providing the Overseers with a role in its’ government. A role which has evolved alongside the Empire itself throughout the centuries, but always retained one core privilege – the selection of the successor upon the reigning Emperor’s death. Some political historians credit the longevity and relative stability of the Empire to this fact. They argue that the Overseers’ involvement in the succession has lent it a certain indisputable legitimacy in the public’s consciousness, which deterred wars of succession and sabotaged any insurrections against the reigning sovereign. While this observation is under dispute, the significant contribution of the positive relationship between the Imperial Dynasty and the Overseers to the Empire’s long-term prosperity is an accepted truth among the vast majority of historians. The beginning of this mutually-beneficial relationship can be traced to The Crimson Decade – a decade long war for succession, waged by the children and grandchildren of the late Empress Ceres in the early third century. The war is known for having one of the highest civilian casualty counts of all the pre-modern conflicts. This is in part because most of the belligerents refused to let the Overseers mediate during sieges and refused anything but unconditional surrender. They also deliberately engaged in brutality against the residents of resisting cities, in order to encourage others to surrender. Towards the end, Prince Alexander, later Emperor Alexander II, decided to exploit the resulting animosity between the Overseers and the other belligerents to his advantage. He pledged to fully cooperate with the Overseers during his rule. The conflict marked one of the few occasions in history when the Overseers themselves directly interfered on behalf of one side…” (Viurian +1) *** One morning toward the end of the month, after yet another training session, as you are about to return to your room for your break Emily stops you in the hallway. “Good morning!” she says in a cheerful and energetic tone, “I have some mail for you from the Empire. I am sorry for the delay, but I flew as fast as I could, and Lissburg is quite far from here…” she hands you a package and a sealed envelope. You’ve noticed that she wasn’t present at breakfast today, but you couldn’t possibly imagine that this was the reason. Even with Bruno, a one-way journey to Lissburg must have taken her over 5 hours, and she had to fly both ways, all to deliver some mail for you. This realization catches you off-guard, but you quickly compose yourself. “Good morning.” your tone is a bit flustered, “Thank you for spending so much of your time for my sake. I didn’t really expect you to do go that far. By the way, how did you know that there was mail waiting for me?” “You’re welcome!” she says in the same cheery tone, “It really wasn’t much of a bother. This sort of thing is part of my duties as your assistant. Besides, this is the first time I’ve been to Lissburg, so I am quite satisfied with the trip. Cecilia told me that Overseer Evelyn had some mail for you at her office, so I decided to fetch it as fast as possible.” You take the items from her and look over them. The envelope appears to contain a letter from your family, and the package doesn’t list a sender. Suddenly, Emily speaks again, in a slightly more uncertain, but still cheerful, tone. “I don’t know if this is appropriate from someone like me, but…happy birthday!” she takes out a neatly wrapped thick book she’s been hiding with one of her wings and hands it to you, “I didn’t know what you’d like, so I consulted with Overseer Evelyn and bought this book for you in Lissburg. I hope you enjoy it!” (Age +1) Several awkward moments pass, as you stare at the book in Emily’s hand – her birthday present for you. You are completely flabbergasted. Not only did she somehow find out that today – the 27th of May – is your birthday, a fact that, due to your thoughts being entirely consumed by your training, you’ve forgotten yourself, but she also went out of her way to buy you a present with what is presumably her own money. All this, despite the fact that you’ve never even had a single proper conversation with her. “Thank you…” you force out, after an uncomfortably long period of silence, “…really. I… didn’t expect any of this…at all.” You carefully take the book from her, turn it over and read the title – An Intricate Machine: Observations on the Nature of the Mind, by R. Schneider, one of the most well known pioneers of cognitive science, which is one of the newest disciplines of the Natural Sciences, and one of the fields that you were considering to eventually specialize in after completing the initial portion of your studies at the Academy. While not your first choice, the field always seemed incredibly interesting to you, when you beheld it from afar. “Once again, you’re welcome!” she replies, even more cheerfully than before, “I was unsure which book to get you from the bookstore, since there were plenty of things that I thought you might be interested in, based on what the Overseer told me. In the end, I decided to get this one, since you seemed to be focusing on the Conceptual Aspect, before. I don’t really know much about the book’s subject or even the Conceptual Aspect, so…hopefully, I haven’t made a mistake.” “Don’t worry, I like it a lot.” you say, after managing to compose yourself a bit, “When is your own birthday, by the way?” “The 2nd of February, but you shouldn’t feel obligated to get me anything. You have far more important things to concern yourself with. Well, I think I’ll go take a rest now.” You nod and she walks into her room, leaving you to contemplate this completely unexpected exchange. After some time, you go into your room to examine your mail. The letter is written by your father. He congratulates you on your new position “in the government”, though he worries about your decision to abandon your studies at the academy. He mentions that your sister, who is three years older than you, finally managed to get one of her short stories published in a local magazine. In conclusion, he wishes you a pre-emptive happy birthday and urges you to visit them as soon as you are able. The package contains a small bronze sculpture of a cat and a short note. The note reads: “Happy birthday, Veruna! I am glad to hear that you’re making fast progress in mastering your power. I made this rudimentary conceptual mechanism to aid you in your training and allow you to more easily visualize your progress. Its’ quite customizable and is designed to be extendable. I am sure it will be very helpful to you, if you decide to make use of it. Looking forward to meeting you again next month, Evelyn” The final line reminds you that the annual meeting of Overseers will apparently take place next month. You close your eyes, cover your ears and halt your breath. Once you open them again you can see the elegantly constructed mechanism surrounding the cat sculpture – on first glance, it looks simpler than some of the mechanisms you’ve constructed, but further inspection reveals a hidden intricacy to the design and plenty of features that you don’t recognize. This is to be expected, as you are a novice, while the Overseer is a highly experienced specialist. Next time you train in either the Conceptual Aspect or the Artificial Construct ability, you will gain an extra 2 points in both. Additionally, you may use the cat sculpture to aid in training other abilities related to the Conceptual Aspect, provided you can explain how it can help with any specific ability. This will give you an extra point the first time you train in that ability. You put it away for now, and start thinking about your future. The future which looks very different now than it did four months ago… As always, choose the main and secondary activities for next month, as well as what to do in your free time. You’ve finished reading Chronicle of the Overseers, and instead can now read An Intricate Machine: Observations on the Nature of the Mind during your free time, still reducing 2 points of Stress. Keep in mind that your Stress went up by 3 points, for a total of 9. If you go over 10, you will be able to choose rest as your main or secondary activity for extra Stress reduction, but will face increasing penalties, both in training and in the narrative, as long as it’s higher than 10. AFancyQuestionMark fucked around with this message at 12:15 on Oct 22, 2017 |
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Oct 21, 2017 17:08
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So if we rest for this free period we can stave off going over 10, and I'm thinking it might be best to do so, so that we're under 10 for the meeting with all the Overseers next month. It's going to be difficult enough to navigate even without the narrative/mechanical burden of being stressed out. I dislike putting off Emily again but this seems like a solid way to handle the pressure before an important meeting. We should make use of the figurine this month, so that next month when we see Evelyn we can talk about it and thank her properly (by being able to discuss the gift). Focus on connective and conceptual aspects, and rest during free time this month.
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Oct 22, 2017 07:19
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 Connective, Conceptual, Rest
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Oct 22, 2017 08:40
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super sweet best pal posted:
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Oct 22, 2017 10:14
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You know, I bet Lillian will ask what we think of Emily and Bruno too.
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Oct 22, 2017 10:44
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Just caught up, this looks like an interesting CYOA, though it'll take me some time to unpack my observations on the power system and attempt innovation there. Especially for short/medium term goals. I'm kind of toying with the idea of highjacking the perceptual fields of others with the Connective Aspect, not to deceive them, but to enjoy a more intimate familiarity with their perspective. This could also extend to inducing conceptual mechanisms into inanimate objects and natural phenomenon so that we can observe them from the perspective of their own perceptive fields. No idea of the worth of those perspectives, but it's certainly an interesting angle of investigating the natural world, isn't it? At much higher levels we could design a sort of parasitic conceptual mechanism that travels from perceptive field to perceptive field freeform and relays the viewpoints back to us; an unseen headworm. As for the question we were posed about how we would, right now, tackle effecting positing change in the country we're currently in, well, the way I see it is the only advantage we have over the thousands of other people trying to fix things is our Overseer powers. I'd seek to destabilize the Guilds political bloc by creating or doing something with the powers that the guilds would really really want for themselves, enough to put short-term profit above long-term political goals. Enough to force fractious competition between them. The downside of this is there would be a rapid upswing of the guilds hiring on poor people as thuggish enforcers to put pressure on other guilds, and parties in the Popular Chamber. We'd need to have political backing of our own to take advantage of the wedge in the Guilds, but it's just about the only way to shake up parliament enough to push through change. A populist anti-guild campaign could plausibly gain steam in such a climate, but it'd have to be at least noble-neutral, if not positive, to prevent parliamentary opposition from them. Other option is using our powers to come up with some kind of industry that the rural poor can engage in profitably. Lastly, Connective, Conceptual, Rest.
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Oct 24, 2017 08:23
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Unfortunately, I haven't had the time to write an update recently, so the next one is probably going to appear in 2-3 days. Fortunately, unless there is a sudden influx of new readers, the vote looks pretty set in stone.ALogo posted:Ability ideas. I've added your suggestions to the stats post as Perceptual Connection and Perceptual Parasite respectively. I've also edited the abilities list to make it more readable.
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Oct 25, 2017 16:47
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Another month flies by as your spend your days in the garden with the Overseer, trying to expand your understanding of the Connective and Conceptual Aspects. After several abortive attempts, you finally manage to trace a thin two-way string between yourself and the Overseer, allowing you to silently communicate over what she claims to be unlimited distances. You aren’t too surprised when the string crumbles apart an hour later, and are convinced that you’ve acquired a solid foundation in this particular aspect of your power. You gain 3 points in the Connective Aspect, bringing your total to 6 and advancing to the next rank! You also gain a point in Communication Connection, bringing the total to 3. Overseer Evelyn’s gift proves to be invaluable in making the leap from conceptual mechanisms that are entirely predetermined to mechanisms that react to factors in the outside world. After “activating” the sculpture’s mechanism with your power, the bronze cat begins to roam around the garden, hunting forest birds and rodents, with mixed success. Over the course of the month, under the guidance of Overseer Alyssa, you attempt to make various changes to the mechanism. Initially, you are met with failure after failure, damaging the cat’s existing senses and making you doubt yourself even more, but the elegantly designed mechanism allows you to easily roll back your mistakes and try again. Eventually, you manage to make the cat recognize you and acknowledge you with an exaggerated gesture whenever you cross its’ path. You use this success to alter it further and make it try to hide whenever it sees a human that isn’t you. Your additions are clunky and prone to error, but you feel as though you’ve learned a lot as you were implementing them. You gain 4 points in the Conceptual Aspect, bringing your total to 15 and advancing to the next rank! You also gain your first 2 points in Artificial Construct. Your free time is spent on relaxing in your room and taking relaxing walks around the estate’s grounds. This helps you withstand the mental strain that your training puts you under. All 5 points of accumulated Stress are negated by resting. *** The 25th of June, the day of the Overseers’ annual meeting, finally arrives. You’ve been anxiously anticipating this day for a while, idly worrying about what the other Overseers’ initial impression of you might be, despite Overseer Alyssa’s repeated assurances that they already know who you are. After all, in person meetings tend to leave a much sharper impression than second-hand accounts. Who knows what they’ll think, faced with someone as obviously inexperienced as you? Per the Overseer’s instructions, you enter the estate’s wine cellar at 5:00. The Overseer is already there, wearing a contemplative expression as she goes over her notes for the meeting. There is no one else around - you’ll have to manage without the help of Cecilia and Emily this time, as no outsiders are allowed to set foot inside the Overseers’ meeting place. Suddenly, one of the ancient walls of the cellar melts away, revealing a doorway leading to a long and narrow stone corridor. The dim light emanating from the cellar’s light bulb doesn’t reach very far into the corridor, so beyond a certain point, it’s shrouded in darkness. The Overseer looks you over, as if evaluating your reaction. “Ready?” “Sure.” you reply, not feeling ready at all. “Very well. Let’s not keep them waiting.” As you follow the Overseer into the newly opened corridor, the wall behind you returns to its’ place, blocking the light from the cellar and leaving you in complete darkness. However, that only lasts for a moment, and soon the corridor is filled with a deep blue light, as the ceiling above you begins glowing softly. “This sort of thing never ceases to amaze me, even after all these years.” the Overseer says as she walks down the corridor with calm, deliberate steps. You stop gawking at the ceiling and quicken your pace to catch up with her. “I wonder what we’ll do without Theresa…” she mumbles to herself. Soon, you reach the end of the corridor and step through a doorway into a moderately-sized domed chamber with an imposing stone table arranged in a semi-circle around a small podium. The chamber is illuminated by a chandelier hanging from the ceiling, filled with luminescent crystals giving off a soft-blue light. You glance behind you and are not particularly surprised to discover that the doorway you’ve just stepped through is gone, along with the corridor behind it. Aside from the two of you, there are five people in this chamber: three of them are engaged in casual chatter near the table and the other two are standing further back, wearing somber expressions and having a conversation in hushed tones. All of them turn to look at you, clearly curious about their new colleague. You recognize one of the three near the table as Overseer Evelyn who you briefly met five months ago, though you feel as if that meeting took place a lifetime ago. She breaks away from her group and approaches you with a reassuring smile on her face. “It’s good to see you again, Veruna. I trust that Alyssa has been treating you well?” her tone is warm and cordial. “As well as I can. Veruna is the most diligent Overseer I have trained thus far. I can hardly remember that far back, but I doubt I was nearly as dedicated when I first started out.” Overseer Alyssa responds, in a casual tone you are not used to hearing from her. “Is that so? I hoped that would be the case, given her Academy background.” she gives you an encouraging look, “Anyway, it seems that two of us are late, so I think we should use this time to catch up. Tell me, Veruna, how goes your training? Have you gained some insight into our work? What do you think of it? Do you feel comfortable with your future position?” How should you respond? As always, I will try to go with the thread’s consensus. Note that your response isn’t necessarily limited to just answering Evelyn’s questions. If you want to discuss something with her before the meeting, now is the time to do it.
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Oct 27, 2017 17:13
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I feel like I'm making progress, and I do have a lot of ideas for what I would want to do. For now, I'm trying to get a fertile source for new ideas. As to our duties, a lot of them seem to be mostly about protecting mankind from ourselves. Except for the dealing with storms, most of the activities were dealing with social and political problems. I think there I'll have to find some sweet spot between being too hands of and letting a society destroy itself and being overbearing and getting the resentment of a society. I'm also, curious. A lot of things about being an Overseer seem to be unknown and vague. I wonder, how much of that is us not knowing it ourselves, and how much is us keeping an air of mystery about us. Has it ever been considered to share more information about us, and what we are with the rest of society? Also, as a possibility for considerations. We were a budding student of the natural sciences. Would there be ways for us to perceive better. See things microscopic, detect the exact temperature, weight, size of something. (Work Name: Taking the Measure) And if so, would there be a way to instill an object with the ability to pass that on? Creating tools for other scientists to better inspect the world around us? (Work name: Tools of Discovery)
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Oct 28, 2017 18:58
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"Alyssa would know better than me, but my basic skills are getting to the point that I can focus on more practical applications. If possible, I hope I can start contributing during my training period so I don't occupy so much of an Overseer's focus, and I get more insight into the work we do and the abilities I need to do it my way. It seems to me that an Overseer's core job is making choices. What scale do I operate on? Who do I help and why them? How do I go about doing that? Do I emphasize personal influence or build a network of capable assistants? Competence aside, my answers could affect hundreds to hundreds of thousands of lives. Which... I'm not comfortable with, but at the risk of sounding naïve, and maybe it's because until recently I was one of those thousands, I think we owe it to them to be at least a little bit uncomfortable. I'm already impacting people just by tying up resources with my training though, so at least for now my choices are easy." Really, first choice is suicide, but that doesn't address the underlying issue of the training scheme used by Overseers existing, so it'd just be kicking the can down the road for someone else and waste the effort put into us already; also, it sucks. Second choice is be lazy and/or not take our training seriously; this also sucks. Last choice is to take our training seriously and attempt to best prepare for the responsibilities that have been thrust upon us. We're kind of stuck with the job unless we're totally irresponsible and don't value our life. "May I ask what kinds of accords and responsibilities exist between Overseers exactly? I'll get more out of this experience if I have an idea of the underlying rules everyone operates on. Are there official rules on settling disagreements between Overseers?" This is kind of important. If there's a charter or something it should inform their interaction between themselves. At the very least, we'll get to see how close to official policy they actually operate one. I'm expecting a pretty loose ruleset, but that doesn't make it any less important to learn. ALogo fucked around with this message at 09:47 on Oct 29, 2017 |
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Oct 29, 2017 09:25
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"Training is hard work, but I feel like I'm making good progress. The bronze cat has been a great learning tool. It helped me make the jump to building conceptual mechanisms that react to the world. Really, tremendously useful. Thank you for that." "I think that the part of our work that only Overseers can do is amazing. I'm fascinated by how all aspects of the gift can interact, though I'm really excited by the conceptual aspect in particular. It seems like mastering it is a good way to make flexible tools that combine aspects." "I can tell it will take me some time to really learn how to use all the tools I'll need to succeed at our work. While I'm not fully comfortable with the idea of making choices that will affect so many people, I am fully behind the goal of making life better for as many people as I can." AFancyQuestionMark posted:After all, in person meetings tend to leave a much sharper impression than second-hand accounts. Who knows what they’ll think, faced with someone as obviously inexperienced as you? Well, they have been seeing Veruna in their dreams. All of them. And we've been told that the dreams are the primary way Overseers keep track of each other, so they've got to be pretty revealing dreams. It is likely that they know Veruna at least as well as Emily does. I wouldn't be surprised if everyone here knows her better than Emily does. ALogo posted:Really, first choice is suicide, but that doesn't address the underlying issue of the training scheme used by Overseers existing, so it'd just be kicking the can down the road for someone else and waste the effort put into us already; also, it sucks. Second choice is be lazy and/or not take our training seriously; this also sucks. Last choice is to take our training seriously and attempt to best prepare for the responsibilities that have been thrust upon us. We're kind of stuck with the job unless we're totally irresponsible and don't value our life. Yeah it got thrust on Veruna, but would she think of herself as being saddled with it? Being an Overseer is a privilege too. She's going to be in a position of high responsibility but extreme flexibility. At this point I figure she'd have come to terms a little with her new role in society. The gig is for life, and Overseers live long lives barring suicide or being found unsuitable by their peers. AFancyQuestionMark posted:“As well as I can. Veruna is the most diligent Overseer I have trained thus far. I can hardly remember that far back, but I doubt I was nearly as dedicated when I first started out.” Overseer Alyssa responds, in a casual tone you are not used to hearing from her. How many Overseers have been trained under this new method?
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Oct 30, 2017 15:45
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John_A_Tallon posted:Yeah it got thrust on Veruna, but would she think of herself as being saddled with it? Being an Overseer is a privilege too. She's going to be in a position of high responsibility but extreme flexibility. At this point I figure she'd have come to terms a little with her new role in society. The gig is for life, and Overseers live long lives barring suicide or being found unsuitable by their peers. John_A_Tallon posted:How many Overseers have been trained under this new method?
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Oct 30, 2017 16:14
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ALogo posted:I could have sworn we were told four, but I can't find it. Weird. From the last update on the first page: AFancyQuestionMark posted:
Regardless, Alyssa didn't necessarily mean just those trained under the new method when she said "Veruna is the most diligent Overseer I have trained thus far." Or maybe she did. You don't have the necessary information to know for sure. Shogeton posted:Taking the Measure and Tools of Discovery Can you provide a description, even an abstract one, of how to use one or more aspects of your power to do these things? The next update should be ready in about 2 days.
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Oct 30, 2017 16:38
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Let's ask them what powers the previous Overseer used frequently and what duties she used them in.
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Oct 31, 2017 00:53
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“Training is hard work, but I feel like I'm making good progress. The bronze cat has been a great learning tool. It helped me make the jump to building conceptual mechanisms that react to the world. Really, tremendously useful. Thank you for that.” Overseer Evelyn gives you a warm smile. “You are welcome. I tried my best to design something that could serve as a useful and flexible tool for your training, so I am glad to know that it helped you make progress. I am sure it may help you even further, if you are creative enough.” She pauses, waiting for you to resume your answer. “As to our duties, a lot of them seem to be mostly about protecting mankind from ourselves. Except for the dealing with storms, most of the activities were dealing with social and political problems. I think I'll have to find some sweet spot between being too hands off, letting society destroy itself, and being overbearing, getting the resentment of society.” Her expression turns more neutral as she responds, “That’s an interesting way to put it, but not necessarily accurate. Each of us may have vastly differing approaches when it comes to dealing with society, but ideally out interventions shouldn’t draw ire and resentment. Instead, they should attract appreciation and enthusiasm. While that isn’t always the case in practice, it is what we should strive for, in my opinion. I find that it’s much easier to help people when they want your help.” She pauses, and her tone is much more casual as she continues, “But that’s enough of my lecture. I am sure there will be plenty of opportunities to share my perspective on our duties when your training places you in my care. For now, I want to hear more of your opinions.” “Well…I think that the part of our work that only Overseers can do is amazing. I'm fascinated by how all aspects of the gift can interact, though I'm really excited by the conceptual aspect in particular. It seems like mastering it is a good way to make flexible tools that combine aspects. I can tell it will take me some time to really learn how to use all the tools I'll need to succeed at our work. While I'm not fully comfortable with the idea of making choices that will affect so many people, I am fully behind the goal of making life better for as many people as I can.” “That’s an admirable sentiment. However, let me warn you that you’ll have to get used to routinely making choices that may have a profound impact on many peoples’ lives. This is a core aspect of our position, for better or for worse.” “I thought so. It seems to me that an Overseer's core job is making choices. What scale do I operate on? Who do I help and why them? How do I go about doing that? Do I emphasize personal influence or build a network of capable assistants? Competence aside, my answers could affect hundreds to hundreds of thousands of lives. Which... I'm not comfortable with, but at the risk of sounding naïve, and maybe it's because until recently I was one of those thousands, I think we owe it to them to be at least a little bit uncomfortable. I'm already impacting people just by tying up resources with my training though, so at least for now my choices are easy." Overseer Evelyn is visibly impressed with your words, as is Overseer Alyssa – you even detect a small hint of pride in her expression. As before, Overseer Evelyn is the one to speak: “Your perspective is incredibly mature for your age. I know some Overseers that were much more cavalier about their decisions in their first years in the position. If you hold on to your perspective, I am confident that you will make a fine Overseer.” “Speaking of tying up resources…Alyssa would know better than me, but my basic skills are getting to the point that I can focus on more practical applications. If possible, I hope I can start contributing during my training period so I don't occupy so much of an Overseer's focus, and I get more insight into the work we do and the abilities I need to do it my way.” “While I admire your thoughtfulness, your training is structured in this way for a reason. Generally speaking, it’s far more efficient for Overseers-in-training to develop a solid grasp on their power, the ways they want to use it, the situation in each region and the methods each current Overseer is using to improve it, before starting to carry out their duties. As a student, I am sure you can appreciate the importance of learning from others more experienced than you.” “I understand. I have some questions for you, if you don’t mind?” “Go ahead.” “A lot of things about being an Overseer seem to be unknown and vague. I wonder, how much of that is us not knowing it ourselves, and how much is us keeping an air of mystery about us. Has it ever been considered to share more information about us and what we are with the rest of society?” “There is certainly a lot we don’t know, like the details of the mechanism that chose us in the first place, or the precise nature of our power’s functions. There are also plenty of things that we do know, like the general capabilities of our power, that we deliberately hide from outsiders. Since we are the only ones who can control our power, there is nothing to be gained in revealing it to the outside world, and plenty to lose, as we tend to have plenty of enemies in every society.” “May I ask what kinds of accords and responsibilities exist between Overseers exactly? I'll get more out of this experience if I have an idea of the underlying rules everyone operates on. Are there official rules on settling disagreements between Overseers?” “Accords and responsibilities? There were plenty of those a few decades ago, but now most of us all but ignore them, so they no longer exist in any meaningful way. Proper form today is simply to keep out of each other’s way while still lending aid if someone requests it. Any decisions that concern all of us are made via votes at meetings like these, but that sort of thing doesn’t tend to come up very often.” “What powers did the previous Overseer use frequently and what duties did she use them in?” “Your predecessor – Victoria Oak – had perfected a wide variety of applications for our power over the two centuries of her service, but chief among them was the ability to build accurate models of real regions, which included the local residents, and use them for simulations. She was the primary mind behind our response to the civil war in Vahr about 40 years ago, and I can only imagine how much worse things would have been without her at the helm…” Suddenly, a doorway appears in one of the chamber’s walls and a young woman with short hair that looks to be only two or three years older than you steps through. The doorway disappears before you can fully process the situation. The young woman looks at the other Overseers in the chamber, who are still engaged in their respective conversations, until her eyes land on you and Overseer Evelyn. She walks over to your group at a brisk pace, nodding at Overseer Alyssa as she passes her by and stops in front of Overseer Evelyn. She furtively sneaks a glance in your direction, before suddenly locking the Overseer in a warm embrace. “I missed you.” she says in a quiet voice. “I missed you too, Lily.” Overseer Evelyn says. The next minute passes in silence, as she affectionately strokes the young woman’s hair, ignoring the world outside the two of them. Eventually, the young woman reluctantly releases her embrace and takes a few steps back, now facing both of you at the same time. From up close, you can see that her skin is covered with a thin lizard-like layer. Her eyes look strange in a way you can’t quite pin down, reminding you more of a cat than a human. She has an oddly soothing smell. “Lily, this is Veruna. She is new around here, so don’t judge her too harshly.” Overseer Evelyn says in a joking tone. “Hello...I saw you in my dreams.” Lily proclaims in a playful, yet slightly wary tone, “How is Emily? Do you treat her well?” “Yes. She’s been very helpful, though I haven’t had the chance to really get to know her yet.” “That’s good. She’s a nice person.” An awkward pause lingers for a few moments before Overseer Evelyn takes charge of the conversation. “Veruna, it was nice catching up with you. You have a commendable attitude towards our work and I am sure that you have a bright future in this position. Now, if you’ll excuse us…” Overseer Evelyn and Lily leave your small group, leaving you alone with Overseer Alyssa. “Lillian can be a very peculiar person at times.” she says in her usual tone, “She was the youngest of us before you came along, but she’s done a lot in the last decade and a half. In my estimation, she had the most successful start out of all of us. I hope you can be even better when you finish your own training.” “Regardless, it seems that, as always, we have to wait for one habitually late person before we can begin the meeting. Why don’t you use this time to get personally acquainted with some of the others?” She walks towards the table in the center of the chamber and takes her seat, leaving you on your own. You look around, taking in your surroundings one more time. Overseer Evelyn is engaged in a fun looking conversation with Lily, or Overseer Lillian as you decide to call her in your head. Two Overseers are casually chatting with one another near the table, while another pair is further back, wearing somber faces and discussing something in hushed tones. Overseer Lillian’s words made you recall something important, which was lingering right beneath the surface of your awareness this whole time: You have seen all of them before, in your dreams. You only ever saw brief scenes with no context, usually involving people speaking in foreign languages, so you don’t really know what they’re like, but it’s enough to form a first impression. With that in mind, which group should you approach? a) The pair near the table: a woman and a man who look to be in their mid-twenties. You’ve seen the man leading a squad of soldiers in the midst of a chaotic battle and addressing an army as it prepares to march. You’ve seen the woman turn into a colorful bird flying through the smog filled streets of an industrial city. You’ve also seen her confronting a crowd of rioting workers. b) The pair in the back: a man who looks to be in his early sixties and a woman who looks to be in her late seventies. You’ve seen the man in various places, usually with a group of people wearing colorful robes and ornate masks. You’ve seen the woman presiding over a strange court of law in the ruins of an ancient city. Please specify some conversation topics or questions for whichever option you choose, but keep in mind that you probably don’t have much time left before the meeting starts. AFancyQuestionMark fucked around with this message at 16:54 on Nov 3, 2017 |
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Nov 3, 2017 16:48
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I'll post my vote and questions in a bit, but I had some time now and thought I'd share what I think of things: Overseers usually look younger than they are. The older ones are likely to be well past the century mark, and it wouldn't surprise me if the younger ones were around Veruna's father's age at least. The younger ones have probably been through this particular training system, like Lily. Getting more specific: The younger man is likely Gavin Ironside, who we dreamed of leading his volunteer army. We know from the book that Gavin and Victoria worked together with "Overseer H", so maybe the younger woman is her? The older woman is likely Theresa Diraneux, who we dreamed of presiding over her court. The older man is possibly Cornelius Vin, who we dreamed of interacting with The Order of the Willing.
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Nov 4, 2017 14:46
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B Definitely talk to the old guys who have weird cults. Ask them about their lives as overseers and what they think the group needs from a new overseer.
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Nov 5, 2017 04:22
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Ok I've thought about it enough. B, let's talk to the older pair. Topics:
John_A_Tallon fucked around with this message at 11:51 on Nov 5, 2017 |
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Nov 5, 2017 11:49
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You decide to approach the older pair in the back, who you suspect to be Theresa Diraneux and Cornelius Vin. They are engaged in a serious seeming discussion in a foreign language, which ceases at your approach. They turn to face you, and you detect a subtle hint of curiosity in their otherwise solemn expressions. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you in person, Overseer Twice-Blessed.” says the old man in a firm and dignified tone, as if he were reciting a speech, “I am Overseer Vin and this is Overseer Diraneux, though I expect you know that by now. As the most senior among all of us, I will be leading the meeting. This should serve as a great opportunity for you to acquire a better understanding of your peers and the position itself.” You nod, unsure on how to respond. There is a small lull in the conversation before Overseer Theresa speaks. “From what I have seen, you seem a capable and dedicated young woman, with great prospects. Tell me, have you been able to adjust to the position thus far?” her voice is quiet, yet strangely resonant, as if demanding your attention. Her Viurian has an odd accent to it that you’ve never heard before. “I think so. I am making steady progress in mastering our power, and am starting to understand what our role entails. However, I find it challenging to balance my training with rest, so I was hoping to get your advice, as the ones with the most experience.” “The proper balance between performing our duties and resting varies significantly between individuals.” she says, with an unexpectedly wistful expression, “It depends largely on your work ethic and personal disposition. The only advice I can offer is that despite the great importance and consequences inherent in our work, you must not overburden yourself, lest you burn out. If you feel that your current pace is taking a toll on you, it may be preferable, in the long term, to slow down or take a break to recover your strength.” Her words make you doubt your approach to your training. Perhaps it’s a good idea to take a break, now that you’ve acquired a solid base in your understanding of your power? From now on, you can choose rest as your main or secondary activity each month. “Thank you for your advice, I’ll try to keep it in mind. In the same vein, I also want to ask you about your expectations of me. What do you think the group needs from a new Overseer?” Overseer Cornelius looks like he’s about to say something, but decides not to. Instead, Overseer Theresa is the one to answer you. “There are many things I could name, but ultimately what you contribute towards our common cause is a decision for you to make, and you alone. As long as you genuinely strive to carry out your duty, you don’t need to mind anyone else’s expectations. In short, the only thing we need from you is commitment.” “I understand. I have another question – can you tell me about your lives as Overseers? You have the most experience out of all of the Overseers, after all. If possible, I would also like you to suggest some reference materials on your respective organizations. ” This time, Overseer Cornelius replies. “There is far too much to cover on that subject for the little time we have available. I will gladly tell you all about it when serving as your instructor in your training. In fact, giving you an insight into the way each of us operates is ostensibly one of the main aims of the current system of training. Nevertheless, if you want to read an external perspective on my Order, I suggest Albert Ren’s The Other Society. As for Theresa’s court, there is a book by a former judge…” “Processes of Justice: An Introduction to the Supreme Court, by Lia Rhe Voltor - a former Associate Justice of my court.” once more, Overseer Theresa displays a strangely wistful expression, “The book is quite old but there is plenty in it that is still relevant. If the Viurian translation is up to par, you should find the language very accessible, unlike most writing on the topic.” “Thank you. I have one more question – I recently read about the King of Long Valley in a book, so I was wondering if you could tell me more about him and the true circumstances of his reign.” An indecipherable expression appears on Overseer Cornelius’s face as he answers, “That is a sordid episode in our history, an abject lesson of the consequences of an Overseer putting their own desires and considerations above their duty. Each of us must always remember our responsibilities to society, and hold them above any other concern. It is important to note that while the incident may have been the most extreme, it is not, by far, the only one of its’ kind. We must be mindful, especially in our current structure, or lack thereof, not to repeat the mistakes of the past…” Suddenly, another doorway appears in one of the chamber’s walls and a blond woman with braided hair who looks to be in her mid-twenties steps through. You blink, and the doorway disappears. Without looking at anyone else, the woman quickly walks up to the table and takes a seat. “…It was nice speaking with you, young lady, but it seems the meeting can finally begin.” you detect a hint of irritation in Overseer Cornelius’s tone. He walks up to the table and stands behind the podium at the center. This prompts the others to take their seats, with you getting a seat at one of the semi-circular table’s edges, across from Overseer Lillian and next to the woman from the younger pair that were casually chatting before. A moment later, Overseer Cornelius loudly cleans his throat and begins to speak. “My fellow Overseers, I am honored to open 1254’s meeting. This meeting is especially important as we welcome a new member into our ranks. I ask you to make every effort to ensure that this meeting becomes a valuable learning opportunity for her. As part of that, all discussions will be in Viurian, for her benefit. Now…” he glances at the newly arrived woman who returns his glance with a smug grin on her face, “…before we begin, I would like to officially reprimand Overseer Winters who has, yet again, delayed the meeting by more than an hour.” “I would like to remind the senior Overseer,” the woman responds in an overtly derisive tone, “that in our last meeting, as in all other meetings led by him, I requested the opening time of the annual meetings be moved forward by a couple of hours to better accommodate my schedule. I make this request today as well. Seeing that the time is completely arbitrary, that from what I understand, my proposed change wouldn’t inconvenience any of the others present, and furthermore, that the scheduling of annual meetings is entirely under the senior Overseer’s discretion, I would think that the one at fault for the delay is the senior Overseer himself.” From the expressions of the others, it seems that this isn’t the first time the woman, or Overseer Winters as Overseer Cornelius called her, has done something like this. “That aside,” he continues, disregarding her response, “does anyone have any remarks before we go over the reports?” The woman next to you raises her hand. “Overseer Hark?” “I want to personally encourage our new arrival.” she turns to you with a warm smile, “Veruna, I know that all of this may seem intimidating. That your future responsibilities and the potential consequences of your choices can feel overwhelming. Perhaps you think you can’t possibly live up to the others’ expectations of you. You should know that many of us have been through the same experiences as you are going through now, and that we all came out fine. Well, more or less. Don’t worry too much about things. The position may be important and people may rely on you in the future, but it won’t do anyone any good to needlessly overexert yourself by constantly trying to meet what you think others are expecting of you. If you need any help, at any point, send me a telegram or a letter, if you prefer, and I will do my best to help you with anything you need, even outside of your training.” she pauses for a moment, thinking something to herself, “That’s all from me for now. Cornelius, you can continue.” “Thank you for your contribution, Overseer Hark. Any other remarks?” The chamber is silent. “Let’s start going over the reports. As always, we will go by age, starting with the youngest. Overseer Twice-Blessed, please proceed to the podium and give your report.” This takes you off-guard. No one told you about this! What are you supposed to say? Seeing your worried expression, Overseer Cornelius adopts an unexpectedly reassuring tone, “There is no need for alarm. The only subjects you are required to speak on are the progress you’ve made in your training thus far and your short-term goals for the future. You can also speak about anything else that you find relevant, but are by no means required to do so.” You stand up and slowly walk over to the podium, which Overseer Cornelius just vacated. What should you say as part of your report? AFancyQuestionMark fucked around with this message at 17:18 on Nov 9, 2017 |
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Nov 7, 2017 20:42
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If there are no replies within 24 hours, I will write something based on your answer to Evelyn from before.
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Nov 9, 2017 06:13
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| # ? Apr 24, 2024 14:40 |
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Keep forgetting to actually post. This isn't really a report as such, but I'd like Veruna to express gratitude for her companions and that she is looking forward to learning from, and disagreeing with, the rest of the overseers. On the power side of things, the Perceptual Aspect has me interested. It has been stated that all conceptual mechanisms, natural or otherwise, that can perceive the world have a conceptual field, and that the conceptual aspect can be used to manipulate these fields to induce specific perceptions. What I'm curious about is if the aspect can effect more general manipulations, without a specific image in mind, to alter the perceptual field and thus the sensory experience. Basically, can Veruna 'boost' a field, her own or someone else's, to increase perceptive ability? I have no doubt it would take a lot of getting used to.
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Nov 9, 2017 06:30
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