Dia's Corner - News from The Boss

[Antidia]

Just a friendly reminder for players that pae do not know what you know. If we continue to see future plans seep into present RP, we're going to start keeping any and all future plans under lock and key to prevent the temptation to put it in present RP. Also, breaking the fourth wall is invitation for one of our many shop NPCs to show up to steer the RP back on track. wink

Examples of things Pae should not know:

• about any upcoming war (with the exception of Rais' Circle)
  
• Only faun know of Earthmother, and the few present at the cave for that one ORP (that may have run in to her)
  
• anything about Hallowed or Luminary pae (there's not been any ceremony explaining this rank, but there will be when they become official.)
  
• Why Blood Pae are called "blood pae" - this is a term created by the elementals to refer to Angels and Demons (and to an extent the Fae, even though they technically aren't)
  
• Angels and Demons and Fae shouldn't know that Elementals are "ancients" and only consider them 'new' types of Pae'il
  
• Angels and Demons that live in the city will only know the elementals are terrible liars and monsters
  
• Dragnid is scary and the purple smoke coming from the volcano is to be assumed to why the creatures and plants are evil.
  
• Pae'il do not know the void, air and fire pae'il even exist. Faun are allowed to speculate.
  
• Pae'il only know of the Faunies if they've met one.
  
• Deities don't know everything, because our "canon" isn't the same as real canon.
  
• Deities cannot marry mortals or they lose their status and powers. However, they can fall in love with whoever they want.
  
• Harpies are still a mystery. No Pae'il should know what a harpie is yet. No Pae'il has bothered to investigate. So until that happens, Pae'il have to wait until the bigger reveal of the Mystical Pae later on during the Fae event.
  
• Shakira should have some answers, but not all of them. (Wolf, I'll give you any info you need if someone wants to RP learning about harpies)
  
• There is no electricity unless you live in the City.
  
• There is no running water unless you live in the City (or find a way to put it in your pae's house.) Faun do not have kitchens in their nooks. If they need water, they go to the fountains or pub.
  
• Naiad cannot live on land.
  
• Most public books are gone. Pae'il scavenged a few from the wreckage of the HQ, but most were put into the library in the City. Faun and Naiad each have their own archive system that does include 'books'. There is also a hidden library containing ancient texts, however; no pae knows of it or where it is yet.
  These are just random things I've seen in RP that I can remember. I'm not pointing them to single anyone out, but because I've seen these things come up in at least more than 1 or 2 instances, so I felt a little clarification was required. No one's in trouble, this is just a FYI post.
  

These things will obviously change as certain things are revealed.

Just think, "How would my pae learn that?"

Also, once the Knights are promoted, they're going to have a "most wanted" list, and we're going to put names of any pae who seem to have knowledge of things they shouldn't so they can be interrogated.  

[Antidia]

I will be making this an official Rule regarding RP, soon as I can find a good place to put it so it will be read, but for now, I'm announcing it here.

There are certain Pae'il characters that are created to be plot tools. They are not player characters. They do not have the creative freedom that a player Pae'il has, but instead has to follow their own strict guidelines. These plot characters drive the plot forward, resolve issues and provide foundations for many of our subplots.

If you have a Pae'il that wants to interact personally, just let us know, we'll oblige.

But these Pae'il are created for a reason, usually as leaders. They don't have to prove their leadership to anyone, they don't have to earn anyone's respect through RP, they don't have to even care. BUT the players do need to follow the directions regarding these characters. I will use Rais as an example, because he's recently been involved in an issue that sparks this new rule. Rais is the ruler for a reason. He does not need to be tested or trolled by player characters for character growth. He is an IPC played by an RP mod so he has the power to smite other player characters if they break the rules.

These IPCs have already had the research gone into their character so they are effective at their job. They do not receive RP rewards for growth like a player character. They're are there to steer the plot.

If you want to plot things with these characters, that's fine, just let us know ahead of time so we can properly plot it out so that it does not derail our story or cause frustration.

In the future, the IPC leaders will just throw the insubordinate Pae'il in the appropriate prison with a minimum 6 months sentence with no interaction, and a brand (will be added to the pae/cert) showing they are a traitor to their own kind.

This rule will change slightly when war does break out, because opposing factions will not be able to brand pae, but they can be imprisoned for breaking rules. (tho opposing faction arrests will allow for escapes and breakouts)  

[Antidia]

I'm doing my best to keep up with things, but I hit a bit of a roadblock with my health. I got a really bad infection that caused a lot of pain, and my oncologist said my tumor was showing signs of growing. I had to get another MRI (which are terrifying) to confirm it. I'm still awaiting the call with news from the radiologist's report, but my oncologist said she can't see growth (yay!). Currently I'm having difficulty with my vocal cords, (which is one of the signs the tumor is growing) so I'm scheduled for a speech therapist and a swallow test.  

[Antidia]

Things are chugging along at a decent pace these days. My health is good (for now) so I'm going to try to knock out as much as I can.

We're working on setting up for the Squire finale (finally) so anyone with a Squire, I urge you to start working on those RP requirements. Also a reminder, not all Squires will survive this trial. (yes that means they may die, permanently)

With the Squire finale coming, that means the Dark Faction will be opening up soon.

We're already plotting the upcoming Vday event with new parties, new choas and new deity. wink

We are also reworking the Pae'il death policy. Of course, player permission will always be required for permanent death, but since Pae'il are heading towards war, we need a way to make actions and choices really matter. So death will be a real consequence. (don't worry, there will be a way to be redeemed and resurrected, provided the death wasn't due to cowardly hiding.) If this topic bothers you (any player) feel free to let me know.  

[Antidia]

This is just a heads up from me, because I've seen a large influx of bribe offers that are just barely over the custom prices (with requested edits), so I'm setting a new standard. All bribes to me must include a GC bundle (They are usually $10 in the cash shop or 6-11m on the MP). This isn't because I'm trying to gouge people, its because I can't afford those items, and I want them. And I feel a bribe should be more than just barely over custom prices. And custom prices were set before the insane inflation, so they're rather low for what they are in the current economy. Remember, a bribe's purpose is to convince me I want to set aside my normal work to do extra work, and what better way than to offer stuff I want!  

[Antidia]

Lots of stuff coming up!

We are busy backstage planning and plotting for the year's events.

For January
• We're starting some Notices to get the demigods acquainted with their powers and domains. And someone else is gonna sneak in there and make a request of each one. wink
  
• We're also getting the Squires and Guardian Loyalists ready with a scavenger hunt so they can safely enter the final battlefield for their training. Guardian Loyalists will be able to participate in a "second chance" event to join the ranks of the Holy Knights.
For February
• We have our annual Valentine's Day chaos. Lots of fun things planned for this, including the return of Dancing with the Erotes (with a couple tweaks and twists). There's a special party to follow with surprise announcements, arrivals and of course, the Erotes back to their old tricks. wink
For March
• We've set the 1st as the date to start the Squire finale. It will be an epic, game-changing event. Pae'il will never be the same after walking away from the Citadel--if they live long enough. Lots and lots of new features will be unveiled during this event, as well as the final establishment of leadership for the Angels and Demons.
Coming up in 2014!
• Naiadapalooza! We have some Court positions to appoint, some past heroes to awaken, and a special welcome party. We even have some new villains coming to the lake.
  
• Aynurlet! The Faerie event that will reveal what really happened to the Faerie Pae'il all those years ago, and why they came back. This event will be huge and introduce many new sub-types of Pae'il, and also reveal the origins of the Harpy Pae'il. This event is themed to Alice in Wonderland so there will be tons of new cosplays available, along with many games, prizes and lots of fun!
  
• Final Battle at the Monster Cave! Tensions will reach their zenith at the conclusion of this event. Lives will change forever, and Pae'il will finally have to make their choice on who's side they're on.
  
• More meta-plot advancement complete with betrayals, past enemies resurfacing, mortal challenges, devastating consequences, vengeance, new beginnings and even some joyful news among the tragedy.
  
• And the return of an Empire!

 

[Antidia]

As another event winds down, I want to thank everyone involved who made this among the best events ever. I am thankful for my staff - Teigra, Sieana_ZI, Menelie, and Amasis, for all of the effort and energy they put into a small event that turned massive. All together we made over 60 new Pae'il, and most people ended up adding 2-3 new characters to their repertoire. We introduced Naga and Fallen angels in addition to beginning the story of the Flutters and Sprites. We had over 15 couples involved with the oops!breedings. Telrunya is experiencing her biggest baby boom ever!

Thank you to everyone that played in our games and to the Erote players for being such good sports. Thank you to Twitchapher the 3rd and Wolfs Heart for hosting games with your Spartan Graces and still hitting the pae at the party.

As we all start settling in with our new characters and work on wrapping up the loose ends, we move into our next event soon. After a break so we can all tend to sorely neglected family, our focus will be on completing the Knight event. Due to the amount of times we've pushed that back due to timing with other events, its been a couple years since significant advancement has taken place. Many players of the original squires are not around anymore so many have gone inactive. As per the rules of the contest, inactive squires will sadly not survive the final trial.

Because of the workload staff underwent for February's madness, we were not able to complete our own requirements for the scavenger hunt. A few players also did not meet the requirements. So we've extended that portion of the pre-trial so we can get as many participants we can. A bonus will be worked out for those who completed on time. The reason we can't just continue on with the few folks who completed the task is because there is no guarantee those few will even make it through. It's a trial where character and player decisions decide who makes it, and who doesn't.

We also need to finish up writing the trial, because we were focused on the February events and didn't have time to work on such a complex RP event.

So the next event to look forward is the Squire Final Trial. There will opportunities for those not directly involved to still help out and possibly win a new Pae'il, including one of the new special healers.  

[Antidia]

Squire stuff is coming up. We're busy working on the meat of the RP prompts so it may look like not much is getting done shop-wise. This RP is going to be huge and game-changing so we're making sure all the details are worked out.

This has been over 2 years in the making, so we're going to pace ourselves and schedule the RP challenges weekly. This will give players time all week to respond and solve their task. This won't be a simple prompt--then-respond type RP challenge. Each squire will be given a challenge that needs to be solved with a partner or in a group, and will require more than just one reply.

These Knights be among the most important characters in our metaplot, so we want to make sure the players we choose are in it for the long-haul.

Inactive players' squires will not survive. That was in the original contract and I know it's sad. But its part of the story. Inactive players will not be eligible for any of the other special roles either. (Like our spirit healers we requested interest for) Players who do not participate in any given week's challenge will lose, and their squire will not survive, UNLESS special permission is given for extenuating circumstances that must be discussed with staff ahead of time. We will account for emergencies, but pray they don't happen.

While we continue to prepare this massive group RP event, players can prepare their characters by finishing the scavenger hunt, or by having their characters pray, meditate and make peace with their Guardians. All squires must go into this finale with a clean conscience and spirit. I encourage everyone to continue to RP, because the more developed the squires are, the better prepared they'll be for the challenges.

And we have a lot of surprises for the conclusion, so I hope everyone is excited and eager!  

[Antidia]

I know Teigra mentioned this in thread, but about a week ago, my computer died. Hard drive failure. I managed to save most of my files, but not all. I'm still in the process of getting everything settled and installed. Photoshop is up and running so while I get stuff straightened out, I can still work on pae whose files I know were saved.

We are still working on the squire stuff. We had to go back to ground zero because our original concept was proving too complex and difficult. So we've simplified things. We just have some art and prompts to work out before it can start.

We've been trying to work out some stuff for our summer event, so expect some news about that in a couple weeks.

Growings are trucking along steadily as we see the involved Pae RP'd. We're doing things a little different this year with the Vday growings since there are so many of them. The growths are staggered and priority is given to those pae that RP'd any aftermath at all. (either acknowledging pregnancy, or that there are babies... the babies themselves don't have to be RP'd, and players don't even have to RP with the babydaddy, just have to have the aftermath acknowledged in some way via RP.) All non-active tots will be grown before the summer event starts, which is planned for mid-July.

Artists are working on their work lists, getting customs and overdue prizes done and delivered while we are between events. There's still lots going on and lots coming up!

Also a reminder: any ongoing metaplot RP should be wrapped up prior to the Squire event starting because that event is going to be a game-changer. We'll give warning when it will start, but don't wait till the last minute. wink  

[Antidia]

It's been a while since my last real backstage update. I apologize.

Things are trudging along at a slow, but steady pace as we try to complete all the prizes from the events over the past year. We've got some good ideas for holiday events and activities, so those should be popping up soon.

• Valentine's Day breeding kids are slowly growing. The demigods from that event will grow at a slower pace mainly because of who and what they are, and because of how customized they will be.
  
• Sprites and Flutters are all on me, and I haven't completed the teen templates yet for the teen sprites, so they'll be last on my list to become teens, but before the demis. Flutters should become teens following the oops!babies growth spurts. I do apologize for leaving them in the pupa stage for as long as they have been; that wasn't ever intended. I just got overwhelmed with priorities above them.
  
• Naga will likely be last to grow from the events of Spring
  
• Summer event prizes are still being worked on. Even if it looks like they're not, we're trying to squeeze them in where we can. To be truthful, we ended up handing out far more prizes than we intended, so it's a lot of extra work. I appreciate everyone's patience with this.
  
• Halloween ToT is mainly something I was tallying, so bear with me as I try to get everything organized. I am aware of how behind I am, so I am trying to get everything in order so I can complete it. I've had some major set backs since September in all aspects of my contributions to the shop.
  
• The most recent breeding slots are still being worked on.
  
• I will RP when I can. Please don't feel bad or take offense if I respond to one over the other, because I am struggling at the moment with brain stuff.

Now, having said that, I also want to add that my health hasn't been the greatest. I had an MRI last friday (14th) to check the progress of my tumor. It isn't growing (which is great news) but there were a couple other issues found. Neither of which can explain the massive headaches I've been dealing with on a daily basis. Headaches so bad I can't do anything but just lay down when they hit. Pain meds only helped a little. When my head hurts this bad, I can't form actual thoughts to RP, nor am I able to draw.

One last night item:

I want to reward some of our older players who have stayed with us, loyal through all the bumps along the way. It's merely an RP reward, but it's something I hope will be a lot of fun. So any players with a Pae born prior to 2010, if you'd like to participate, send me an IM either AIM: frasdeldc or skype: Antidia