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Posts posted by maxfromsweden
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That sounds like a pretty cool event!
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Can you elaborate a bit on what happened during this event? It feels a bit sad to miss fun events. I would love if there was a set time during the week which was "event time" or something.
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Sazzy McHonkdydonk performing his legendary magical act under the watchful eye of two IAA agents. Sazzy was previously thrown out of the bar by the bartender while said bartender was saying "Magic is lame" "Go away Gandalf. No hobbits here".
Can you figure out how this master magician performs his trick? (Instructions for the trick below)
The trick is as follows:
Get a random volunteer from the crowd. Write down the prediction, put the prediction in a paper bag. Hand said prediction to the volunteer. The volunteer then draws a card from a shuffled and normal deck.
Sazzy then states the card number and suit. AND HE'S ALWAYS RIGHT, which the volunteer confirms.
Can you figure it out?
(Just to rule some stuff out: It's a standard deck from the station. The volunteer can be anyone from the crowd. The volunteer and the clown doesn't have an agreement before the show to just confirm what Sazzy says.)
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A shift in two pictures.
Demotion of the QM
Halfhour later
Full story:
I was HoP. QM was drunk. Warning the first time. The Second time he was drunk and also handed gave me a document for the creation of the Nation of Cargonia. He was demoted. That's the first picture.
A while after, the cargo people started getting upset that he was demoted for drinking on the job. Slogans such as "Drinking is a right, not a privilege" and "justice for QM" were shouted over comms in slurred speech.
Signs were written, negotiations were had but nothing could stop the anger of the mob.
At the end of the shift I had become captain and was faced with the second picture.
It all ended without any violence. They tried to block the shuttle but it was a sad attempt at peaceful protest.
It was a great round. It spiralled so insanely out of control due to firing someone.
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When I'm captain, I've started locking the spare into the safe and give the HoS and the Blueshield the codes in case of my demise. Then maybe increase the Blueshield access.
The spare is a bit too valuable to be held by a bodyguard who is supposed to sacrifice their life for members of command.
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Thanks!
I find the roleplaying aspect to be the main draw of the game.
23 hours ago, Timelessdaze said:For example I have a character that loves clowns, always asks them for a joke and usually starts with 1 or 2 load out items that are given as gifts to worthy clowns. I have a character that’s a vegetarian and harasses the chef for a dish with no meat.
Yeah I have similar stuff with my characters. Brent Savoir (https://www.paradisestation.org/forum/topic/20023-brent-savoir-gentleman-detective/ ) always texts the journalist or librarian to offer to do an interview since he's galaxy famous. Even if they say no it's an attempt to reach out and create something fun. Having specific food requests is also cool. It also feels way more real when people want some specific food from the chef instead of gobbling down whatever dead carrion laying on the bar.
23 hours ago, Timelessdaze said:Another good way to get characters involved is to read their description, it only takes a moment and might open up some back story information IE “what happened to your leg” or “how did you get that scar”. Anyone who has taken the time to put more than a sentence in their character description is probably on board for at least a little RP
Yes! Exactly. This is basically "Be Interested" in my guide. It's super easy to do. I can't belive that more people don't do it. It doesn't even have to be that elaborate. Just a simple "How's your day" or any common phrase to open up a conversation can work. Obviously you get bonus points if you tailor it to the person you're talking to.
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Here is one of the first "good" Brent Savoir stories I wrote for his regular newschannel "The Curious Cases of Brent Savoir". It's formatted so that each part will fit inside one newscaster article. If you want you can upload it into your newscaster channel to spice it up!
I know it looks massive, but if you get people to read it in parts, it's quite digestable.
Saving the Kings Bacon pt. 1
"BRENT! BRENT!" The king, himself crashed into my bedroom while I was taking my morning tea. I had been invited as a guest for his grand celebration of the unveiling of his portrait made by the famous lady Elsa Woolworth. Astute readers will recognize Lady Woolworth as a recurring character of my adventures. She often appears in my stories, for she often appears in my thoughts, but why that is, is for another time. After speaking to the king, it appeared that his prize pig, Jocelyn, had escaped the pen under mysterious circumstances. As the whole kingdom of space Britain knows, the King is a big fan of bacon and that is why his pigs are such prized possessions. Jocelyn was of great stock, a sturdy sow with a jolly demeanor. Giving the pig pen a careful study I came upon something strange. A note that said: "Can you solve the case of the stolen bacon, Brent Savoir - Gentleman Detective?"
Saving the Kings Bacon pt. 2
The King was in an uproar. On this auspicious day his prize pig had been stolen. I worried little, for I was a gentleman of the upper class and my massive intellect had already begin to process this magnificent mystery. A personal note to me would indicate a kidnapper with knowledge of my presence, my skill and with the brass bollocks to steal the kings prized pig. The possibilities ran through my mind like waterdrops down a waterfall. Whatever trajectory their path started on, they all landed on the same suspect. Roger Foulmoore. My arch-nemesis. One of the greatest master criminals known to this universe. If anyone would steal the Kings prize pig and get away with it, it was him. Pondering my next move I journeyed to the castle library for some meditation. The guard infront of the library asked me to show some for of ID. I handed over my business card which says "Brent Savoir - Gentleman Detective".
Saving the Kings Bacon pt. 3
This case was a strange on indeed. A missing pig. An empty pen. No clues besides a note left by Roger Foulmoore, the scummiest of all scum. However, knowing mr Foulmoore did this was enough for me. I had been suspecting he would try something during the kings celebration, but never something as bald faced daring as this. Because of my suspiciouns, I had carefully studied all the castle personnel beforehand. None of them had raised my suspiciouns before, meaning the culprit, who must have had free access to the castle, must be a guest. Receiving the guestlist from the kings Seneschal, Rhubart Rutabaga, I went through the names one by one, meeting each guest. The one name that stood out to me however was Regor Mummyson. It was rumored he was an eccentric who always wrapped himself in cloth, like a mummy. Perhaps a strange turn of his mind or perhaps a devious disguise by a criminal mastermind. Knocking on his door I called out "Brent Savoir - Gentleman Detective"
Saving the Kings Bacon pt. 4
A man opened, all dressed in rags. I reached out my hand for a manly handshake which he accepted. Little did he know that I was feeling his right hand for Foulmoores signature ring and just like I thought, on his right ringfinger there was a ring easily felt through the cloth. I smiled and started chatting as if I was a friend but my true purpose was scanning the room after the hidingplace of the prized pig. A sack, hanging from the ceiling, wriggling with something pig sized inside was all the proof I needed. "Whats in that sack" I asked and pointed with my oaken cane at the sack. Knowing he had been caught and trying to stall for time, he moved towards the window where the rope holding the sack was tied. I called out for him to stop, but he revealed his true purpose as he rushed towards the rope, pulling a knife and sliced it with a deft stroke. I could hear Jocelyn the pig squeal as she was falling from the ceiling. The only one who could save her was Brent Savoir - Gentleman Detective.
Saving the Kings Bacon pt. 5
My brain, thinking faster than it ever has before, realized as the pig had yet to start fall, that I could never catch it without being crushed under it's weight. However, next to me was one of the kings fluffiest ottomans. With a firm kick I sent it sliding over the floor, with the heavy pig crashing into it from above. Foulmore had removed his bandage and his evil eyes was staring at me again, knowing I had once again bested him. Readying my cane for a duel, I moved in close but the scoundrel leaped out the window. I would have given chase, if it wasn't for Jocelyn who may have been hurt. I could hear Foulmoore cursing my name as he made his escape. Jocelyn was safe, the King soon arrived and as a reward he offered me the old mansion on Coventgarden. I accepted, knowing he would be displeased if I said no. A year later I had placed my placard on the mansion door. It read "Brent Savoir - Gentleman Detective"
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I don't like perma killing. I don't think it's a big issue and it happens quite rarely to me but nevertheless, I still dislike it.
Reasons:
- Taking a player permanently out of, what a lot of the times are 1-2 hours of a round is not fun. For me, who has limited playtime, this is the biggest reason.
- Being killed is mostly in the hands of your attacker. As long as they don't mess something up, you will have no chance to defend yourself.
- Playing as a beach bum/planting diona/cyborg/other ghostrole is no replacement for my custom made character. It can still be fun, but it's not what I wanted out of the round.
I don't know how you guys play, but I rarely go around being "afraid" of being permakilled. As mentioned above, I think it's a bother to be permakilled, but I don't see how it adds "spice" or "fear" or "excitement" anymore than non perma killing. Even if permanent killing was not an objective anymore, there is no guarantee of being resurrected due to regular staion life with incompetence, lost information and missed messages.
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Blueshield is probably my most played role. I like that you put a lot of thought into this post.
6 hours ago, Lurapa said:1. Blueshield does not get AA/AF.
1.1 Instead, if a Command is targeted/ the blueshield get AA to that department.
2. Limit valid-hunting, or valid-verbally.
1. Blueshield doesn't get AA, at least not by their own volition. If the captain wants to hand over the spare ID, I think thats fine. I've never seen a Blueshield (when playing captain) ask for AA even if I don't hand over the spare.
I think the problem with the Blueshield having AA is that they are expendable and that sort of access shouldn't fall into wrong hands. I personally don't see it as that big of a problem being handed the captains spare but it does go against the spirit of "Blueshield being expendable". A better solution might be putting spare in the safe and telling Blueshield the codes so they can get it in an emergency.
2. I think this is an out of game issue more than an ingame issue. To me it's clear that the Blueshield is not a fancy Security officer. If someone doesn't understand that, they need to be reminded.
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Great initiative. I took a swing at the language page. It's a lot easier to read now.
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Putting this up since I don't play Brent enough these days. I was wondering if you had some ideas on new directions I can take him. Most rounds you don't get any interesting cases, even as the security detective. I've been pondering Ntrep and command roles but I think he is a bit to silly for them, especially since he NEEDS to constantly have his title changed into "Gentleman Detective". Any suggestions welcome!
I might also put some of his stories here later, so keep your eyes on this page!
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Name: Brent Savoir - Gentleman Detetive
Age: 52
Gender: Male
Race: Human
General Occupational Role(s): Looking for new jobs, Tourist (Special title Gentleman Detective or The Gentleman Detective).
Appearance: A man in his late forties, yet there is something ageless about him. A curious glint in his eyes reveal his massive intellect and his well trimmed moustache reveals his great sense of style. He speaks with a posh accent and is clearly of the upper class. Rarely seen without his walking cane, monacle and smoking pipe.
Biography:
Parts of chapters taken from " My life as a Gentleman Detective" by Brent Savoir - Gentleman Detective.
Chapter 1, The birth of a Detective by Brent Savoir - Gentleman Detective
On a dark December day, from the house of a noble family in the glorious Empire of Space Britain, the cry of a baby could be heard. Such a beautiful and rich voice had seldom been heard in all of the Empire. The proud mother and father held the child aloft and beamed of pride. "He shall be named Brent Savoir, and he shall become a Gentleman Detective, just like his father." said Burt Savoir - Gentleman Detective.
Chapter 45, The first case of the Gentleman Detective.
And thusly I had exposed my neighbour's dog as the actual thief of the prize ham hock my mother had made and not the poor homeless man at the end of the street. I had learned a big lesson. A gentleman is only as good as hist word!
Chapter 163, Protecting my marbles from the Schoolyard Bully
As I dodged the first blow of the schoolyard bully, I had estimated his reach well. His fist missed me with the breadth of a hair. My counter punch to the side of his jaw sent him sprawling on the gravelly schoolyard. Since that day no one tried to steal my marbles again. A year later, I was the marble champion.
Chapter 554, The Vox Assasination plot thwarted by Brent Savoir - Gentleman Detective
Our eyes met and our souls connected as the vox was screaming in pain from the bullet shot by the duke's assassin. I knew then that me and Lady Woolworth, although so completely different because her family supported the prince instead of the queen, would always be connected. However, I did not know that destiny and circumstance would always push us apart. Our moments together would always be fleeting but oh so sweet.
Chapter 2036, The cowardly escape and hidingplace of Roger Foulmoore
"My hiding place shall be a space station so infested with crime and incompetence that you will see my subtle hand behind everything even though I won't be responsible. These people will break you and turn you from a Gentleman, into a ruffian like me. Good luck Brent Savoir - Gentleman Detective". The note was unmistakably written by Roger Foulmoore. Besides the almost illegible handwriting, the sign of an uncultured boob, there was also the stench of his pomade and the grease he used to shine his hair soaking the parchment. I knew of the station he spoke of. The Cyberriad. I shall go there. I shall find him. I shall bring him to justice.
My Qualifications, By Brent Savoir - Gentleman Detective
- The etiquette and poise of a True Gentleman of Space Britain.
- Master of deduction.
- Encyclopedic knowledge of criminals, crime and it's execution.
- All encompassing memory where no fact escapes.
- Keen senses that misses no clue.
- Master boxer, fencer and lover.
- Famous writer of adventure and mystery novels featuring Brent Savoir - Gentleman Detective.
Notes on Mr. Savoir. Helen Partridge, Nanotrasen Security.
I can't make up my mind if this is the smartest man in the galaxy or a completely lunatic. Since I was a kid I've been reading the books about his escapades and having a chance to meet the man before he is allowed aboard a Nanotrasen vessel was a chance I couldn't refuse. He is clearly a man of mystery and has somehow managed to build his own legend. When he introduces himself, it's as if he's expecting you to know who he is. He also really likes the sound of his own name, since he keeps repeating it every chance he gets. All his books seemed based on truth with a little extra spice of storytelling but after meeting him I'm not certain what I believe. Maybe it's all true, maybe it's not. Speaking to him only makes you even more confused. He is a true man of mystery with a lot of stories to share. Nobody could fault his manners. Polite, punctual and with a certain British charm, he is quite the treat to talk to.
I do approve of his stay at the Cyberriad. Even if he doesn't find this "arch-criminal" that he's searching for, I'm sure he will be entertaining to the crew and the other tourists.
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On 12/17/2020 at 10:50 AM, Eler00 said:
I kind of liked the suggestion of making the Psychologist perform some 'experiments' on the crew. It would take the role into a very different direction though, and might make crew ignore the annoying psych with his weird demands.
Yeah, there is so much potential there. Since psychological experiments are always based on people, they would force interaction between the psychologist and the crewmembers. There could be a number of different experiments, pre-determined, similar to station goals where the Psychologist has to write a report and hand it to the captain or NTrep for faxing in or the goals could be more freeform and have no "cleared" state.
It would require some re-writes to the Psychologist and it would become a more prominent role, but as I mention in my first post, they have no purpose right now so why not try it.
Goals they could have range from "candid camera" level seriousness to really dark. There could be actual scientific value for some of these things for a corporation like Nanotrasen. In todays world, many experiments wouldn't be ethical but Nanotrasen doesn't seem to be that ethical.. Off the top of my head, scaled from comedic and light to sad and dark, here are some experiments/studys:
Does the violence level of the station decrease based on the cleanliness of the station? Make sure it's clean and observe the results. Suggested method is increasing the amount of janitors, checking they do their job and correlate with amount of reports of violence or brigged subjects.
How does the different departments react to having the clown in their department, entertaining them? Perform the experiment, interview subjects and write a detailed report.
Which race responds best to a pay raise? Have the HoP call in members of different races and tell them they are getting a payraise. Obviously they can't find out this is an experiment based on race so keep it secret. Observe and write a report.
Does the level of violence increase if the station is dirtier or bloodier? Make sure it's messy and observe the results.
Is there a way to make prisoners performe productive labor for Nanotrasen? Work with security to set up simple workstations in the cells. Writing books, making sushi, crafting objects could all be useful and valuable to Nanotrasen. What motivates them best? Money, promise of freedom, encouragement or threats?
What is the breaking point for the different command members? Interview each of them and see if they behave professionally even though you are allowed to act like a baffoon to rile them up.
What is the best way to explain to an individual that they have been wrongfully arrested without them seeking revenge or becoming unproductive? Get security to arrest 3 innocent civilians and find out.
Since these psychological experiments are based on natural reactions, the Psychologist should keep them secret for as much as they can. It might lead to a closer work with the NTrep or IAA agents which I think would be good.
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Nice guide!
Something to add might be the Procedure channel, which is an easy way to get in touch with the captain and NTR, since it's usually a quiet channel with a distinct colour. When I'm captain or NTR I use it quite a lot.
I've played IAA only a little, but since you seem to know your stuff I got some questions:
What is the most fun way to play IAA?
What is the most enjoyable part of the job?
How proactive do you need to be to search out "cases" or SOP breaches to get something to do, in your estimate?
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On 11/15/2020 at 2:47 AM, Kyet said:
From an admin pov, my main concern with psych is the fact that a good chunk of the time, it is played by players who are absolutely bald, and decide to kidnap someone, straightjacket them, and force-feed them drugs. Because that's what they think is appropriate for a psych.
I've had to ban more people from psych/medical for this than I care to remember.As such, any mechanic which psychs can abuse to detain people for long periods of time, or really at all, is probably not a good mechanic.
If we're going to give psych a mechanic, something they can use to make the job more interesting/relevant, then I would suggest:
- something detection-based, like the ability to use an item to scan for abnormal brainwaves, which could reveal things like vampire thralling, mindslave implants, etc. This would require a unique neural scanner, them to hold still for 30-60 seconds, or something like that. Enough constraints that the psych can't mass-test everyone.
- something to do with curing psych abnormalities, like for example reversing abductor programming, or effectively giving someone a mindslave implant that makes them loyal to NT (OOCly, this is a reward for traitors, who get to be released 'on parole' rather than sitting out the rest of the round, as such this implant would be extremely limited supply, only one is available and only the psych can use it).
- have a system where people can opt to give their character mental disabilities, not just physical ones, during char creation (e.g. syndicate-induced PTSD) and have the psych able to dispense unique drugs to help with these... and have a unique HUD that lets them identify people whose medical records show they have these conditions (basically make it easier for them to find rp partners)
Really, we should consider just removing the straightjacket from the psych, and giving it to sec's medical wing. Psych is meant to be treating patients on a voluntary basis. Patients sent to the psych against their will should come exclusively from security - not something the psych should be able to engineer themselves.
Great points!
Regarding that psychologists are usually bald, I totally agree. I argue that is due to their current status as "civilian with medical access" and not inherent to the job. Experienced players won't choose psychologist because they know they don't do anything. This is just another argument for removing the role until it's fixed.
If the job actually had a purpose I think the "baldie-rate" of psychologists would lower due to players wanting to play it.
Coding solutions would be great but I assume they would take a while. The three top suggestions I had could be implemented today by just re-writing the wiki and SOP. They would fill a similar niche to IAA agents but can't act until someone tells them to. Obviously those suggestions don't exclude the suggestions you suggest.
My suggestions, for reference:
SpoilerPositive Psychology. Some players will become angry playing this game. The Psychologist, could try to change their emotional state by offering encouragement and compliments. Their goal would be to turn those frowns upside down. This is hard in real life and doing it over a game might be harder. But using this type of psychology might actually make people feel a bit better.
Treat it like a serious job. While a lot of beginners play IAA agents, people know when an IAA agent aren't living up to their standard. A psychologist should have a similar bar to reach for. They can't act however they want because then they would be worse than their patients.
Psychiatric session/evaluation demanded: Any head can demand a psychiatric evaluation or session by any of their subordinates if they seem angry, sad or generally unhappy. If we base the Psychologists treatment on Positive Psychology, this sessions purpose would be to make them happy or calm down. IAA might also be able to demand that non-heads do a session. The Psychologist could also get access to the Procedures channel. The two outcomes I imagine for this would be the person demanded to do the session either flipping out completely and escalating their anger, which I would consider grounds for demotion OR accepting it, realizing they may not feel allright and do the session. If they feel better afterwards would depend on the psychiatrist.
I don't see the point in keeping the role as it is now. As you say, it's mostly played by baldies more abusing it than helping people. This is why I want it to change.
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Hey!
Right now, the Psychologist has no purpose, mechanically speaking. If they were removed the game would not be different in the slightest. Compare this to other heavy RP roles like:
- Librarian: Some people really like reading the books, and I would personally miss the books. They have a unique mechanic, even if it's shallow. Removing them would remove a feature.
- Chaplain: Can bless people and are actually mechanically useful during some rounds (cultists and vampires). Removing them might actually affect balance in some modes.
- IAAs: Has a clear purpose on the station. Recently got their own comms channel which I love. When playing a command role, I always stay in touch with IAA to find any SOP breaches or direct them to stuff that needs investigating. If directed, they can be a great asset. If removed, SOP wouldn't be followed and adherence to Space Law might also suffer.
Then we have the Psychologist. According to their SOP, there is no one who they can actually treat, without the permission of someone else. This makes sense, since their treatment doesn't actually do anything mechanically. Treating criminals is also, due to the nature of the gamemodes, useless. Traitors are working for the syndicate either willingly or forced and a good therapy session won't change that. The rest of the gamemodes force criminals that are impossible to help (vampires/changelings) for a psychologist. Even if they can be helped, they can't be released due to their status as EoC.
The only criminals left are the small scale ones. The greytiders and shitters. I suppose the psychologists job could be to try to deal with those but as a psychologist you're coming at it from the wrong angle. They need information about rules of the server and how to act, not psychological help.
Psychologist SOP for reference:
Spoiler1. The Psychologist may perform a full psychological evaluation on anyone, along with any potential treatment, provided the person in question seeks them out;
2. The Psychologist may not force someone to receive therapy if the person does not want it. Exception is made for violent criminals, if the Head of Security or Magistrate orders it;
3. The Psychologist is not permitted to administer any medication without consent from their patient;
4. The Psychologist is not permitted to muzzle or straightjacket anyone without express permission from the Chief Medical Officer or Head of Security. An exception is made for violent and/or out of control patients;
5. The Psychologist may recommend a patient's demotion if they find their psychological condition to be unfit;
6. The Psychologist may request to consult prisoners in Permanent Imprisonment. This must happen inside the Brig, preferably inside the Permabrig, and only with Warden and/or Head of Security authorization. This should be done under the supervision of a member of Security with Permabrig access
In a short summary, they can't do anything assumed by their job without permission from someone else. Which would be fine, if they had some sort of dangerous or great power, but they don't. However, I don't think the psychiatrist should be able to force people into treatment against their will. I do think others should have that power though.
So how do we solve this? Personally, I think features that lack purpose should be removed. By that logic, the Psychologist should be removed. On the other hand, I like the idea of the Psychologist so I wanted to bring some suggestions to make them able to do stuff.
Here are some suggestions to give them a purpose:
- Positive Psychology. Some players will become angry playing this game. The Psychologist, could try to change their emotional state by offering encouragement and compliments. Their goal would be to turn those frowns upside down. This is hard in real life and doing it over a game might be harder. But using this type of psychology might actually make people feel a bit better.
- Treat it like a serious job. While a lot of beginners play IAA agents, people know when an IAA agent aren't living up to their standard. A psychologist should have a similar bar to reach for. They can't act however they want because then they would be worse than their patients.
- Psychiatric session/evaluation demanded: Any head can demand a psychiatric evaluation or session by any of their subordinates if they seem angry, sad or generally unhappy. If we base the Psychologists treatment on Positive Psychology, this sessions purpose would be to make them happy or calm down. IAA might also be able to demand that non-heads do a session. The Psychologist could also get access to the Procedures channel. The two outcomes I imagine for this would be the person demanded to do the session either flipping out completely and escalating their anger, which I would consider grounds for demotion OR accepting it, realizing they may not feel allright and do the session. If they feel better afterwards would depend on the psychiatrist.
- Research: The Psychologist can perform actual psychological research, just like in real life! CentComm, since they sometimes do odd stuff, might want to try some strange experiment. I assume this would be heavily based on the admins on at the shift start, but I'm also wondering how hard it would be to have a rotation of 10 different "experiments" similar to station goal that the Psychologist has to perform. Checking for completion would not be necessary, as long as they have a clear task. They could give their findings to the captain who could fax it to CentComm. Examples: Can (antagonist) be cured by 10 minute exposure to the clown? Will the happiness level of the station increase if the tiles are changed to wood? Will violence increase or decrease, based on the amount of flowers placed in the hallways? If a "calm area" is constructed near dorms, will people visit it to find inner peace? If the mime start acting out peaceful and happy scenarios, will the crew calmness increase?
These are some thoughts I trew together in like half an hour so I'm sorry they're a bit confused.
I'm sure there are plenty of better suggestions out there and I would love to see a job I love IRL get some more purpose in this game! So keep the suggestions coming!
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Seems exactly like the level of detail one would expect of a job on Space Station 13. This is a pretty cool idea to spice up the janitorial life!
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11 hours ago, Smokincheez said:
A little addition I thought would also be interesting: the kid gets to leave before the rest of the crew, most likely depending on admins, such as running out of RP stuff to do, excessive danger to the kid, or some other thing that means it's time to end the event.
Afterwards, the crew gets a moment to breathe, the kid most likely tells his parent about his time there, and then the crew gets a response, and then has to deal with the consequence of their actions for the last bit of time before the emergency shuttle is called or arrives.
Overall, I think more events such as this should exist; they allow for unique and rare stories to be created. By having more options for stuff like this, they'd probably happen a bit more often, as there would be less worry about using it too much, since each would offer a very different experience while still giving the crew a curveball for what they're doing on a station, and events that are more RP focused allow for more creative input from all parties.Great idea! Getting feedback from the top dogs after the kid has left would be pretty cool.
And to your second point: Yeah. It really saddens me that you have this amazing sandbox with such in-depth and creative systems being used but the stakes in all the gamemodes basically boil down to if you will be eliminated or not. The potential for RP is so immense, it makes me sad that most gamemodes revolve around destroying/murdering/fighting. I wanna see way more events.
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Reserved for character creator.
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Hello!
This is my Roleplaying guide based on my time on paradise combined with a lot of tabletop roleplaying experience. I hope it can give some interesting ideas. If it doesn't, I'm still happy you took the time to check it out.
This guide doesn't dwell a lot on what you SHOULD do but rather HOW you do it. It's easy to tell someone to roleplay. It's harder to tell someone how to roleplay. This guide tries to amend this by providing traditional roleplaying and improv techniques. It also gives a lot of examples on how you could accomplish the three steps detailed below.
The guide in 4 words: Build, do not destroy.
The three things that make you a good roleplayer in this game are the following, in order of priority:
- Create interesting situations
- Be Interested
- Be Interesting
Creating interesting situations
Difficulty: Hard
Note: As always, any interesting situations you create should follow the servers rules.
The hardest, but also the most interesting part. It's hard to define an interesting situation but it's something that involves player characters somehow interacting with something. The classic example is an antagonist trying to kill you. It is immediately interesting because it's your character being hunted by a threat. You wanting to survive versus the antagonist wanting to take you down. However, interesting situations can be bigger than this. The bartender can throw a date night for the lonely hearts, the librarian could have a poetry competition, a civilian could try to get a permit to build something in the maints. The possibilities are endless, it just requires imagination. They also require initiative and work. Creating something means you have to try and risking failure. This is, combined witht he imagination required to come up with interesting ideas, is what makes this the hardest thing in this guide. Push yourself and go for it.
Examples of creating interesting situations
Here are some suggestions for different jobs to initiate interesting situations.
Note: This skill depends heavily on the round and whats going on. If you're currently to busy doing your job to initiate interesting situations, do your duties first, then start getting creative. If you got skills, you might be able to do both.
Captain:
SpoilerHold different events and order the different departments to help out. Many captains just sit around being very passive, this would actually give you a project you could manage yourself. I do this every shift when I'm the captain. Some suggestions: Eating competition, Poetry competition, Celebrate a holiday or one or several peoples birthday, (department) appreciation day. Only your imagination sets the limits but remember that it takes skill and gumption to pull this off. You need to be very active to get the crew going.
HOP:
SpoilerLike the captain but on a smaller scale since you don't have the same power. However, getting the captain to help you out is a great idea. You could use the service department, especially the jobs that usually aren't that busy like Librarian and Chaplain to create some sort of event. Some examples: Chaplain vs an atheist scientist debate: "Does God exist?", special drink day, laser tag competition in the VR thingy.
Sec Officer:
SpoilerBecome more of a "neighborhood" officer. Walk around, talk to people. Many have minor crimes they don't report due to bad experiences with security. Make sure to heal those bleeding wounds and make Sec more trusted.
Detective:
SpoilerThis is one of the best jobs for this, because you can do your job proactively while creating interesting situations. Go around to different heads, ask them to provide information about their employees. Is anyone missing? Should they be investigated? What do the other people in the department know about them?
Therapist:
SpoilerDo housecalls. Try to get permission from the captain to pro-actively search out any mental issues among the crew by deep conversations. Perform your own psychological experiments: What happens if a prisoner is put into a cell with a clown? Will the happiness level of the station change if you put out flowers everywhere? Maybe hold a class in therapeutic techniques for everyone interested.
Civilian:
SpoilerCivilians have a lot of openness for this but it's usually on a smaller scale than a captain. Some cool ideas I've seen is that someone created a "scientific expedition" to Lavaland and had to get approval from the captain and recruit a guard, a journalist to document and a doctor to keep everyone healthy. Private investigator is always a classic.
Be interested
Difficulty: Easy
Be interested in other characters. Ask them about stuff. Ask them about their backgrounds and whatever else comes to mind. This is appreciated by everyone who has made a Character. They want people to know about their character. Let them show it off. By being interested, you can also show off your character. I've heard SS13 being called a "glorified chatroom" and it struck quite a cord with me. Talk to people. Ask them about their day. Being able to smalltalk as a made up character is a pretty high level of roleplay.
The 4 techniques used to be interested are:
- "I heard a rumour"
- Yes/Yes And/ Yes But
- Have an excuse to start a conversation
- Join in on the action
"I heard a rumour"
One of the easiest and best conversation techniques to use in this game. As long its harmless, you can make stuff up about OTHER player characters like rumours or facts. Bonus points if you make this flattering or interesting tailored to their personality. They could play along using yes/yes and/ yes but or just say you're totally wrong. Either way, they get a chance to small talk about a possible previous event. Maybe even add something to their backstory. Try it.
Examples
About a Badass:
SpoilerI heard a rumour you took out the greytide gang all by yourself back on Earth. How did you do it?"
About a Captain:
Spoiler"I heard a rumour you got into trouble for refusing a controversial order from CentCom. Can you tell me more about it?"
About a Detective:
Spoiler"I heard a rumour you solved the case about the Jupiter Changeling. How did you know the Captain had been replaced?"
About a Quartermaster
Spoiler"I heard a rumour you once declared your own state on another space station. Why did you do it?"
About a Clown:
SpoilerI heard a rumour you once entertained the most serious member of the Nanotrasens board. What did you do you make them laugh?
About a Mime:
Spoiler"I heard a rumour you were trained at the special mime college in Paris. What was that like?
Fill in the blank examples:
Spoiler"Oh, you're (That characters name). I heard you (make up a fact or rumour here)!"
"Didn't you use to (fact or rumour here)?"
"I heard (name of someone aquainted with the one you're talking to) is (fact or rumour here). Is that true?"
Yes/ Yes and/ Yes But:
This is a classic Improv technique. Someone comes to you for something. Clown wants all access, the chaplain wants to bless you, Sec wants to arrest you, Captain wants you for a special mission. In most cases, you should avoid saying no (Unless you really don't want to do it). It's better to say Yes/Yes and/ Yes but. All these answers will lead to MORE roleplaying and MORE interactions. A No will in most cases lead to less roleplaying. However, you should obviously still follow the server rules and apply common sense to the situations. Examples below.
HOP example:
SpoilerThe clown asks you, the HOP for All Access. Instead of denying them outright (which is usually smart), just say Yes, but only if you get a signed and stamped form from the captain. You hand them the form. They now have a "quest" they must complete. While the captain is most likely to say no, you created an interaction between the clown and the captain. Who knows what it will lead to?!
Chaplain Blessing you example:
SpoilerLetting the Chaplain bless you. A Yes result would lead to the same amount of interaction as a No result but a Yes would make the chaplain player happier so I would usually go for a yes. A yes but is also interesting. "Yes you can bless me, but then you have to give me your holy sword, since I will be the knight defending your religion." "Yes but I also want to be made a Chaplain first. I have some other ideas about your religion".
Sec Arresting you example:
SpoilerSec wants to arrest you. The classic is "Yes but only if you catch me first". Other options could be announcing over Comms: "I'll agree to the arrest, but I want a lawyer present." "I'll surrender myself but only if you bring a pizza to the interrogation room". These two examples both lead to another interaction. The first one leads to sec having to talk to an IAA agent. The second leads to them interacting with the chef. In some cases they will say no, but then they haven't read this guide!
Captain wants you example:
SpoilerCaptain wants you for a special mission: "Yes but I want a parade in my honor when I'm done." "Yes and I want my best friend to come with me" "Yes but I want to be captain for five minutes after I'm done".
Have an excuse to start an interaction
When you make your character, consider how they interact with certain people. Different people want different things out of an interaction. What would your character be interested in finding out? Some are focused on the job/personal life/love life/interests. More detail on how to create excuses for your character is in the character creator in the next post.
Examples, based on types that can be found on the station.:
The young CentCom goldenboy/girl
SpoilerOnly interested in talking business and about centcom. Asks everyone about their position in the company. Wants to know the hierarchy, and who is the most important person so they can suck up to them. Typical conversation starters: "Hey, did you hear the latest rumor about John Nanotrasen!?" "So who's the big boss around here?" "Who do you think is in line for that promotion?"
The Gossipy Grandmother
SpoilerMostly interested in peoples love life, especially if they're about to be married. Also likes being reminded of her younger days. Can pinch young men and women on the cheek and say they're adorable. "Aw you're adorable. Are you married yet?" "Oh you're such a strapping lad. Is there a girl on the station that catches your fancy?" "You remind me of my second husband. Do you also talk in your sleep?"
The Naive Newcomer
SpoilerMostly interested in the station and how it works. Will ask tons of questions about everything on the station and what it's purpose is. Is impressed by people who know a lot. Will sometimes seem a bit stupid. "Whats that?" "Why is there blood everywhere?" "Why does your arm look like a blade?"
The Flirt
SpoilerMostly interested in different romantic partners. Will start conversations with some cheesy pickup line directed at someone they're interested in. Will ask deep personal questions and engage in flirty banter. "How you doin?" "Do you know how much a polarbear weighs? Enough to break the ice." "I got us ticket to the Mime show. Want to go?"
The Badass
SpoilerMostly interested in really dark experiences they share with other people. Can start conversations by mentioning some horrible event that happened in their earlier life. They will ask other people if they have similar experiences. "This reminds me of when my parents were murdered with a broken bottle by a crazy clown. How did you lose your parents?" "Have you ever been face to face with death, knowing that only you or them are getting out of this alive?" "You wouldn't have lasted a second back in the slums of Kelnarr IV. How did you make it here?"
The Preacher
SpoilerMostly interested in if you can achieve salvation and if they can convert you. Often starts conversation trying to expose a desire in their conversation partner such as "Are you feeling fulfilled in your life? Is there something you're missing".
Some classic examples are the gossipy grandmother who wants to know about everyones love life. The older man who wants to know if younger men are interested in the same sports he was interested in when he was young. The flirt hitting on everyone to catch their eye. The preacher asking if someone has found their lord and saviour.
Join in on the action
If you see someone announcing something, like a private investigator, a fun religion or a scientific experiment being announced, interact with it in some way. Just stopping by is good but if you can contribute, taking it in a different direction or building upon what's already there, it's even better. Create interaction. By talking with someone, you can start a series of events that could make someones round a lot better. Don't be afraid to ask people for things or ask about things.
Be Interesting
Difficulty: Medium.
To be interesting means you have a character people are curious about and want to interact with. Your character changes you from just your job to an actual person. This step also happens before you've actually started playing the game. In my next post I'll post a character creator, designed specifically for Paradise, to help you create an interesting character.
Some shortcuts to be interesting are the following:
Have a unique or odd style/appereance.
Speak in a distinct manner.
Off hand mentions to previous events in your life.
If you came this far, thanks for reading. I truly hope it gave you one or two ideas!
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13 hours ago, robveelben said:
in all honesty this sounds like on of those things you have to do on school but noone really wants to do it so it becomes a akward mess
That is a really good way to put it. CentCom is forcing the crew to run a race to stop rascism. The idea itself is not very thought through and more of a PR thing than an actual solution.
Some will like it, some will not. It's allright. It's always going to be that way on a server with 100+ people. However you feel about it, there will be some different interactions created due to the new situation the crew needs to deal with.
Some potential ideas for those who think it's stupid:
Complain to the IAA about the stupidity and uselessness of this excercise.
Write up a sign and protest the event.
Become morbidly obese, get a sick note from a doctor proving you don't have to participate.
Throw bananapeels all over the racetrack.
On a completely different note, I find it very interesting that the events get a few comments like, "this event wouldn't work because (something bad) would happen in the game."
Having events set up for bad stuff to happen is intentional. An event is just a starting position. There is no "right" way for an event to go. Whatever happens, happens. If the race is an awkward mess (which it most likely will be) then that's what happened. The point is to provide a different starting position for everyone to give more and new opportunities to roleplay. There is no "wrong way" to play in an event (as long as you adhere to the server rules of course), in the same way there is no wrong way to play in a normal game of SS13 (again, as long as you stay within the rules). If the nukies get the nuke and blow the station, then that's what happened. That doesn't mean the round was played "wrong". There will be another round in a few minutes where another story will take place.
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I rarely play hijack antags but the one thing I've really wanted to try, and I know this is a long shot, but I would love to try to make it happen based on deception. Here are some off the top of my head:
Impersonating an NT official. I know this sound unlikely but I've seen a captain give All Access to the clown based on a note a borg dragged in which ordered that the captain get all access. The note was signed John Nanotrasen.
Blackmailing the captain somehow. Maybe framing them for a crime or some big offense.
Becoming HOP, somehow removing the captain from power, call the shuttle. This one would be pretty hard to do but powerhungry HOP is one of my favorite types of HOPs.
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Great idea. Seems like there should be some protocol on how you dispose of terminated ID:s and PDA:s.
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As a lover of paperwork, I like this idea. It bugs me that this company hires some heads that show no regards for paperwork at all, when the company themselves seem to worship it, based on the hiring forms in the IAA office and the guide to writing faxes. It's also, for me at least, a guilty pleasure to make someone fill out a form as HOP when they want a jobchange. It takes like 1-2 minutes but it makes so many people completely pissed off. "What? I have to fill in a short form to change career completely!? THATS INSANE!".
I think putting pre-formatted paperwork in easy to acces places for jobs that could use it will encourage people to use it. Exposing newcomers as soon as possible to the wondrous world of paperwork is a good idea in my mind. I think the eliminating the extra hurdle of going to the wiki, finding the right paperwork, copying it and pasting it, would make paperwork more abundant.
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Port CereStation as a new highpop map
in Suggestions
Posted
Not sure if there is a sperate thread for the review of this station, since it was tested yesterday, but here are my thoughts:
Props for making a new map! I think it can be really great.