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The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained herein)


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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

Dependent Non-Player Characters(aka DNPCs)

The final component of social interactions is the DNPC, a complication taken by a character to represent someone who is in some way dependent on their attention or assistance, and who may get in trouble or get the character in trouble in some way. This can be anything from a spouse or significant other, to a parent or child or friend, to a loyal sidekick who is having some adjustment issues. The key difference between a DNPC and a follower is that a DNPC is guaranteed to give a character problems on occasion, while a follower could potentially never pose a problem for a character.

Pros

1. Compatible with roleplaying--the GM roleplays the DNPC and the player plays the PC. The experience tends to enhance the gaming experience for everyone.

2. DNPC as window into the PC--the PCs feelings toward and interactions with the DNPC provide insight into how the PC may feel about life in general, and what motivates them

3. DNPC as occasionally helpful assistant--on the up side, a DNPC can be highly competent, and can provide valuable assistance to a PC or NPC(if they were only a pain in the butt all the time, players would probably tend to take this complication a lot less often)

4. DNPC as plot hook--many epic game plots have revolved around something a DNPC does or something which happens to one of them(your mom is kidnapped by a cult, your girlfriend turns out to be a double agent, your son is secretly being tutored in his mutant powers by a master villain, etc.).

5. DNPC as a stabilizer for the PC--no matter what happens to the PC, some DNPCs will always be there to comfort and support them and keep them sane("Thanks Mom!")

cons

1. The "My DNPC, my slave" problem--related to this is the "cheap follower" problem--exploiting the DNPC to do lots of useful or entertaining stuff for you can be a way of "getting paid to have a follower". GMs have to make sure the "complication" part of DNPC-dom is enforced, and that PCs don't derive more benefit than they merit.

2. The "Lois Lane, professional hostage" problem--DNPCs who constantly get into trouble, or are constantly used as a way to coerce or influence a PC are a huge pain in the butt. GMs have to avoid this syndrome at all costs.

3. The "If you loved me, you'd do this one thing for me" problem--A GM may sometimes use a DNPC to get a PC to do something the player isn't enthusiastic about doing. This may be considered abusive by a lot of game groups.

4. The "We polled the fans and decided Robin had to die" problem--killing off and/or serially abusing DNPCs, without player consent, is a good way to lose a player and piss off a whole game group.

5. The "It's my DNPC, I can treat them any way I want" problem--similarly, a PC verbally, mentally or physically abusing or exploiting a DNPC is just "asking for it", either from another PC or from the GM

 

I think that about covers it. None of these approaches is completely incompatible with or exclusive of other approaches, but you have to work out which ones you're likely to use, in which circumstances, and for what purposes. You can try to completely avoid systematization, or on the other extreme try to minimize the vagaries of free-form roleplay in favor or more deterministic approaches, but any approach is going to be susceptible to drawbacks and potential abuses, and its good to be aware of them. :)

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

The Bluebooking option is what my group's campaigns have used with regard to some romances and other situations, precisely because others aren't supposed to know what's going on, and because it keeps the relationship from eating everyone else's face time.

 

JG

 

I agree. It can be quite useful.

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

I'm happy to see bluebooking and electronic bluebooking come up. It's something we use quite a bit particularly for players that are a little nervous about role playing material like romance or character flaws at the table.

 

Yes, I'd expect bluebooking to be very good for exploring such subplots.

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

I'm happy to see bluebooking and electronic bluebooking come up. It's something we use quite a bit particularly for players that are a little nervous about role playing material like romance or character flaws at the table.

 

I agree. It's addictive though.

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

Megaplayboy is making me feel like a slacker.

 

I'm sure I've posted lots of stuff over the years that pertains to the topic, and I've been trying to gather it up (and in many cases update it)

 

Anyone know of anything of mine that I'm overlooking?

 

Lucius Alexander

 

The palindromedary is off topic but goes in the tagline anyway

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

From Webster Online:

Charm(noun):

a : the chanting or reciting of a magic spell : incantation b : a practice or expression believed to have magic power

2: something worn about the person to ward off evil or ensure good fortune : amulet

3a : a trait that fascinates, allures, or delights b : a physical grace or attraction —used in plural c : compelling attractiveness 4: a small ornament worn on a bracelet or chain

(verb)

transitive verb

1a : to affect by or as if by magic : compel b : to please, soothe, or delight by compelling attraction

2: to endow with or as if with supernatural powers by means of charms; also : to protect by or as if by spells, charms, or supernatural influences

3: to control (an animal) typically by charms (as the playing of music)

intransitive verb

1: to practice magic and enchantment

2: to have the effect of a charm : fascinate — charm·er \ˈchär-mər\ noun

 

Synonyms:

CHARM

Synonyms: allure, beguile, bewitch, captivate, enchant, fascinate, magnetize, wile

 

Seduce:

transitive verb

1: to persuade to disobedience or disloyalty

2: to lead astray usually by persuasion or false promises

3: to carry out the physical seduction of : entice to sexual intercourse

4: attract Synonyms: allure, bait, beguile, betray, decoy, entice, lead on, lure, solicit, tempt

 

Synonym Discussion of ATTRACT

attract, allure, charm, captivate, fascinate, enchant mean to draw another by exerting a powerful influence. attract applies to any degree or kind of ability to exert influence over another . allure implies an enticing by what is fair, pleasing, or seductive . charm implies the power of casting a spell over the person or thing affected and so compelling a response , but it may, like captivate, suggest no more than evoking delight or admiration . fascinate suggests a magical influence and tends to stress the ineffectiveness of attempts to resist . enchant is perhaps the strongest of these terms in stressing the appeal of the agent and the degree of delight evoked in the subject .

 

 

What's my point? I think it's to explore the nature of the act of seduction/charming someone. Is it a persuasive attempt to influence a person to open themselves up to intimacy? Is it an irresistable compulsion drawing a person into intimacy as if "charmed" by a magic spell?

 

Perhaps, at the more "normal" level, Charm/Seduction is the former--a skilled act aimed at persuading and/or influencing a target's behavior. And at the "extraordinary/superhuman" level, it's the latter--an irresistable compulsion drawing a target into engaging in intimate and possibly even taboo acts and/or sudden, deep and total emotional commitment.

 

Vis a vis the various approaches I laid out above, can you reliably and consistently simulate an attempted seduction(of either type) within the parameters of free-form roleplaying alone? I would tend to assert that the answer to that question is "probably not". It essentially requires that a player assent to something which may make them uncomfortable, or which may be disadvantageous to their PC. Because of this, it seems unlikely that all players would be equally willing to do this, even if playing essentially the same basic PC/Persona. You will wind up with "well, my character wouldn't do that" arguments popping up here and there, with the merits of said arguments being highly variable.

So, then there's a need to bring in at least some systematization, in order to head off such arguments at the pass, so to speak. You can use PRE attacks, though those are rather "brute force" and of the most limited duration. You can use Interaction skills, and give the players the ability to defend against them, and even permit them some leeway in how they RP/interpret a failed defense roll. You still may get arguments, this time along the lines of "well my psych lims should make it impossible for them to accomplish that" or "I should have gotten a bigger bonus to my defense roll for this" or "I think their roll is way too high for this campaign" or even "I don't think I should have to do what the dice say, because this isn't fun for me/makes me uncomfortable/damages my character concept/isn't fair for reason X". In the case of more powerful Interaction abilities, you can use powers like Mind Control or Mental Transform to simulate them, in which case the argument shifts from "my character wouldn't do this" to "it should be more difficult to make my character to this" or "that ability is too powerful for this campaign" or "it's unfair/uncomfortable/unfun to make my character do this, and it'll ruin the character/game for me if you go ahead and make me do it anyway".

 

The bottom line, I guess, is you can't force a player to respond a certain way to an interaction, if they are strongly resistant to responding that way(even if it fits the genre and is in character). But forcing them to do so IS NOT a problem of social mechanics being inherently abusive or coercive. It's a problem of abuse of trust, and/or of mistrust. Either the GM or player is abusing the trust of the player or group in order to impose an outcome, or the player has too much mistrust of the GM to permit an outcome they distrust or which feels uncomfortable to them.

This abuse and mistrust can happen in any of the above approaches, including freeform roleplaying. GMs and players can abuse freeform RP as noted above in a variety of ways, including getting away with things they really shouldn't, and avoiding outcomes they really shouldn't be able to avoid. It's fine to have an expressed preference for one or the other approach, but imnsho it's a logical fallacy of sorts to assume that the method one chooses is inherently superior or somehow not susceptible to problems of its own.

And, as has been noted, almost all of these approaches to handling interaction/persuasion/coercion/compulsion/people who do what you want them to(some, most or all of the time) are not mutually exclusive of each other.

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

To give a hypothetical example of what I'm talking about, let's use the aforementioned "Demon Queen seducing a righteous man" scenario and explore it as a free form roleplaying exercise:

1. Demon Queen identifies her "prey", a righteous warrior (and PC). She disguises herself as an innocuous peasant girl walking by and sizes him up as pious and chivalric.

2. DQ then develops a plan for seducing this warrior. She shapeshifts into the form of a comely Lady of great virtue, and contrives a scenario where the PC happens to walk by just as her "chastity" is put in jeopardy by some ruffians. She then adjusts herself to preserve her modesty, thanks the warrior profusely, identifies herself as a widow and invites him to tea(or dinner) at her home.

3. While he is there, she tells him a very clever and manipulative "sob story" about her tragic romance and the loss of her husband and child, how an accident of fate has stained her virtue(or otherwise made her "unmarriageable") and also ineligible for becoming a woman of the cloth. Due to a facial scar(which barely mars her beauty at all), no man will look upon her with "sacred desire", and her money is rapidly running out. If only some brave, pious, kind-hearted man would overlook her social stigma and make her an honorable wife again...(the GM will periodically throw in little things to emphasize how ludicrously attractive and appealing this Lady is...a "holy warrior's wet dream betrothed-to-be").

4. Eventually the RP leads in one of two directions...either the DQ endeavors to entice the warrior into breaking their vow of chastity, or worse, to use guile to get him to promise to marry her. This is where an unwilling player can blow up the free-form RP illusion. The player is either uncomfortable with romantic scenarios and wants to back out, or suspects they are being set up by the GM and begins to act out of character. Rather than RPing a pious warrior who either understandably succumbs(if but briefly) to overwhelming temptation, or finds the strength of will/faith to resist it and preserve their chastity/marriage vows, they just "lowball" their RP and BS their way through a complete avoidance or an unlikely "aha! I knew it was a succubus all along!" sword in the belly reaction. The GM has just wasted hours(or feels like he has) of his time, and the player has just made it on his s**t list. The player just abused the freeform RP process to avoid an outcome they didn't like(but which made perfect sense from a plot/character/RP standpoint).

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

I know I have to do a bunch more character writeups, but I thought it'd be worthwhile and apropos to at least briefly discuss the RP vs. Social Mechanics debate, and give my .02. As I said, I don't think the two are incompatible, or that one is clearly superior to the other, or that one is completely superfluous and unnecessary.

 

I'm going to continue and ultimately finish the writeups for the "Fantasy Harem Hero" mini-campaign, then spend a minute to talk about options to make vampires a little more erotic/romantic, and give my own take on fembots/man drones and avatars(an artificially created perfect body that acts as a "host" for another person's consciousness). Then I'll go back to superheroics, discussing a few solo heroes, a villain team called the Pretty Young Things, Count Orgon and his interstellar slave-trader/bounty-hunter squad, the organization called SIREN with some representative members, the rest of the amazon faerie warrior princess' family and foes, a couple other Hentamari, and Captain Tentacle and the other "cast" of his "Shokushu Practical Academy for Nurturing Capacity" Epic Teen* Erotic Champions mini-campaign. Then, from my perspective, all that's left is to write a bit about each of the 20 topics I referenced upthread and in the Welcoming Women Who Game thread. A rather large amount of stuff, enough to keep busy for a while. But I think I can get most of it done before January, then assimilate it all into a word doc, then a pdf, and maybe even come up with a bucketload of HD files for all the power sets, talents and character writeups.

 

*15 to 19+(high school(10-12th grade) to graduate school, with some older characters(mostly teachers and parents))

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

Huron the Handsome, a Captain of the Bishonen Knights

25 STR 15

16 DEX 12

20 CON 10

10 INT 0

10 EGO 0

20 PRE 10

7 OCV 20

6 DCV 15

3 OMCV 0

3 DMCV 0

7 PD 5

7 ED 5

4 SPD 20

10 REC 6

35 END 3

40 STUN 10

15 BODY 5

(136)

 

Talents

12 Handsomest Knight in All the Land: +4 Striking Appearance

10 Really Well-Endowed: +2 SA, limited group; +2 with PS/KS involving intercourse

2 I can go all night: Reduced End on up to 20 STR, only for engaging in intimate activities(-1)

11 Where Did That Babe Come From?Summon 100 Point "Hot Babe"(competent female NPC with SA and Charm), Friendly and Weak-Willed(-2 to EGO Rolls)(+1/2), limited group(attractive, competent women who live in locality, +1/4), usable 4x/day, arrives under own power, must inhabit locale

6 Combat Luck(3/3)

20 Follow Through Attack: Trigger (when character kills an opponent in battle with an HKA weapon,activating Trigger takes no time, resetting Trigger requires a Half Phase Action; +½) for up to HKA 4d6 (30 Active Points); OIF (weapons of opportunity;

-½)

6 Mounted Warrior: +2 Penalty Skill Levels vs. penalties for fighting from horseback

8 Rapid Healing: 1 Body per hour

9 Whirlwind Attack: Area Of Effect (2m Radius; +¼) for up to HKA 4d6, Personal Immunity(+¼) (19 Active Points); OIF (weapon of opportunity;

-½), Requires A Sword Tricks Roll (-½).

20 Blademaster: +1d6 KA with daggers and swords

(104)

 

Skills

2 Proficiency with Charm, 10-(14-)

3 Oratory 13-

5 WF: Common Melee and Missile Weapons, Sword and Shield

15 +3 with Sword and Shield

5 Tactics 12-

3 Teamwork 12-

4 AK: Kingdom of Varda 13-

2 AK: Schwarzwald Forest 11-

3 KS: Cheesy Pickup Lines, 12-

5 PS: Bishonen Knight, 14-

3 PS: Captain, 13-

3 KS: Sexual Technique 12-

3 PS: Perform Sexual Technique 12-

3 Riding 12-

7 Sword Tricks 14-

2 Proficiency with Navigation, 10-

1 Familiarity with Paramedics, 8-

3 Language: Orcish(Vardic Native)

2 Language: Troll

2 Language: Amazar

3 Analyze : Style 11-

3 Animal Handler(equines), 13-

2 Persuasion, 10-(proficient liar)

1 Familiarity with High Society, 8-

(85)

 

Perks

4 Money: well-off

4 Captain of the Bishonen Knights

2 Knight

6 Rep: Handsome, Brave and Mighty Knight, +3, medium sized group

9 Contact: Bishonen Knights, 11-

50 Follower: Heavy Warhorse Firpon(250 + complications)

(75)

 

Equipment

Bastard Sword(+1 OCV, 1.5d6 KA(STR min 15, 3d+1 with WM and STR))

Plate and Chain Armor(7/7 rPD and ED)

Metal Kite Shield

Plate and Chain Barding for Firpon

Money and trinkets(medium-grade jewelry and perfume to lavish on women)

 

400 total points

 

Complications

20 Lecherous and a little perverted(VC, Strong)

10 Negative Rep--lecherous and perverted knight

15 Watched by Order of Bishonen Knights

10 Romantic Rivalry with Goran Elf-blooded

5 Social Complication: Bisexual(or at least bi-curious)

10 Romantic Unluck 2d6

10 Distinctive Features(very tall and extremely handsome, concealable with effort, causes major reaction)

 

Motivations: Protect and Defend the weak and defenseless; Seduce and Ravish the comely and beguiling;Advance to the head of the Knights through glorious deeds and shameless self-promotion; find a few women who'll put up with him

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

Snu Snu, the War Troll

 

35 STR 25

12 DEX 4

25 CON 15

10 INT 0

10 EGO 0

20 PRE 10

5 OCV 10

4 DCV 5

3 OMCV 0

1 DMCV -6

9 PD 7

9 ED 7

3 SPD 10

12 REC 8

40 END 4

44 STUN 12

19 BODY 9

(120)

 

Powers and Talents

6 Very Attractive, as 4 armed, 9 foot tall green female war trolls go: +2 Striking appearance

6 OMG! Big Green Bewbz! 4 of them!: +3 SA, limited group

2 I Can Go All Night: Reduced Endurance on up to 20 STR, only for intimate activities

10 Bear Hug: NND for up to 20 STR (defense is Life Support [self-Contained

Breathing] or rigid covering over the torso [Hit Locations 10-12]; +1) (20 Active Points); MustFollow Grab (-½), Requires A Brawling Tricks Roll (-½).

21 Regeneration, 1 BODY per turn, may regenerate lost limbs

15 Four Arms to Hold You Tight: Extra Limbs, +2 Levels with Hand to Hand combat

3 Skilled Brawler: +1d6 Hand Attack

6 combat Luck(3/3)

12 Tough Hide: 4/4 Resistant Protection

4 Tight Grip: +10 STR, only for grabs, doesn't add to damage

1 +1 meter reach

4 +4 m running

(90)

 

Skills

15 3 levels hand to hand combat

5 Climbing 12-

3 Tracking 11-

1 Familiarity with Charm, 8-

2 KS: Sexual Technique, 11-

2 PS: Perform Sexual Technique, 11-

3 Survival(forest), 11-

5 AK: Schwarzwald Forest, 14-

3 Language: Orcish

3 Language: Elvish

2 Language: Vardic

3 PS: War Troll Leader, 12-

3 Stealth 11-

3 Shadowing 11-

2 Proficiency with Tactics, 10-

(55)

 

Perks

5 War Troll Leader

65 Followers: 8 other Female War Trolls(same writeup, minus the 3 Hand to Hand levels)

 

Equipment

None

 

335 total points

 

Complications

10 DF: Tall Green War Troll

15 Horny

15 Limited Understanding of Other Cultures

10 Size: 9 feet tall, slightly impairing

10 Negative Rep: Rapacious War Troll Leader

10 Trusting(common, moderate)

5 1d6 Unluck

 

Motivations: Snu Snu!

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

Not sure whether this should be a Talent or a LS Category, but...

Shorter Refractory Period: 5 minutes(base refractory period is about 20 minutes), 1 point;

1 minute, 2 points; 1 Turn(or less, down to zero), 3 points

Longer Refractory Period: Physical Complication: 1 hour, 5 points; 6 hours, 10 points; 1 day(or longer), 15 points

 

According to wiki, for adult males, average period is 30 minutes, for 18 year olds it's about 15 minutes, and for 70 year olds can be as long as 20 hours.

Most females have no refractory period and can experience multiple orgasms within minutes of each one. However, some experience increased clitoral hypersensitivity and effectively do have a refractory period. For women who do, allot them a 5 point physical limitation(for 20 minute refractory period), +5 points per time increment as noted above.

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

Not sure whether this should be a Talent or a LS Category, but...

Shorter Refractory Period: 5 minutes(base refractory period is about 20 minutes), 1 point;

1 minute, 2 points; 1 Turn(or less, down to zero), 3 points

Longer Refractory Period: Physical Complication: 1 hour, 5 points; 6 hours, 10 points; 1 day(or longer), 15 points

 

According to wiki, for adult males, average period is 30 minutes, for 18 year olds it's about 15 minutes, and for 70 year olds can be as long as 20 hours.

Most females have no refractory period and can experience multiple orgasms within minutes of each one. However, some experience increased clitoral hypersensitivity and effectively do have a refractory period. For women who do, allot them a 5 point physical limitation(for 20 minute refractory period), +5 points per time increment as noted above.

 

Why should women get a physical limitation for what's the default for men?

 

Why should men have to pay for what women get as a default?

 

What about characters who are neither men nor women?

 

Lucius Alexander

 

what about palindromedaries?

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

Why should women get a physical limitation for what's the default for men?

 

Why should men have to pay for what women get as a default?

 

What about characters who are neither men nor women?

 

Lucius Alexander

 

what about palindromedaries?

 

It all depends on whether it's ever going to be an issue in game, and whether it therefore is beneficial or detrimental. I'd assume hermaphrodites would have a refractory period for their male parts and none for their female parts.

I would say that men have to pay for it because it's a substantial benefit(socially speaking) to be capable of an encore performance on shorter notice. Women get points for it because it may inconvenience them during intimacy and may be some slight hindrance socially.

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

Snu Snu, the War Troll

 

35 STR 25

12 DEX 4

25 CON 15

10 INT 0

10 EGO 0

20 PRE 10

5 OCV 10

4 DCV 5

3 OMCV 0

1 DMCV -6

9 PD 7

9 ED 7

3 SPD 10

12 REC 8

40 END 4

44 STUN 12

19 BODY 9

(120)

 

Powers and Talents

6 Very Attractive, as 4 armed, 9 foot tall green female war trolls go: +2 Striking appearance

6 OMG! Big Green Bewbz! 4 of them!: +3 SA, limited group

2 I Can Go All Night: Reduced Endurance on up to 20 STR, only for intimate activities

10 Bear Hug: NND for up to 20 STR (defense is Life Support [self-Contained

Breathing] or rigid covering over the torso [Hit Locations 10-12]; +1) (20 Active Points); MustFollow Grab (-½), Requires A Brawling Tricks Roll (-½).

21 Regeneration, 1 BODY per turn, may regenerate lost limbs

15 Four Arms to Hold You Tight: Extra Limbs, +2 Levels with Hand to Hand combat

3 Skilled Brawler: +1d6 Hand Attack

6 combat Luck(3/3)

12 Tough Hide: 4/4 Resistant Protection

4 Tight Grip: +10 STR, only for grabs, doesn't add to damage

1 +1 meter reach

4 +4 m running

(90)

 

Skills

15 3 levels hand to hand combat

5 Climbing 12-

3 Tracking 11-

1 Familiarity with Charm, 8-

2 KS: Sexual Technique, 11-

2 PS: Perform Sexual Technique, 11-

3 Survival(forest), 11-

5 AK: Schwarzwald Forest, 14-

3 Language: Orcish

3 Language: Elvish

2 Language: Vardic

3 PS: War Troll Leader, 12-

3 Stealth 11-

3 Shadowing 11-

2 Proficiency with Tactics, 10-

(55)

 

Perks

5 War Troll Leader

65 Followers: 8 other Female War Trolls(same writeup, minus the 3 Hand to Hand levels)

 

Equipment

None

 

335 total points

 

Complications

10 DF: Tall Green War Troll

15 Horny

15 Limited Understanding of Other Cultures

10 Size: 9 feet tall, slightly impairing

10 Negative Rep: Rapacious War Troll Leader

10 Trusting(common, moderate)

5 1d6 Unluck

 

Motivations: Snu Snu!

 

That's great! :D

 

"To make Snu Snu more powerful add: "The spirit is willing but the flesh is spongy and bruised": +15 Strength, 1/2 Endurance, only to Crush/Squeeze Trigger: Occurs during intimate acts, 0 Phase to Reset)".

 

EDIT: With a few cosmetic changes this CS could serve as a pretty good write up for Sheeva from Mortak Combat. :D

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

I know you said "no pictures" but I can't help feeling that Wonder Woman and her Bracelets of Submission have a place in this discussion somewhere....

 

 

Attachment 36384

 

 

Lucius Alexander

 

The palindromedary notes that Lucius is working on options for the Hyborean Dancing Girls

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

An interesting hypothetical question, vis a vis fembots/mandroids/sex drones might be, what would the pricing be(in terms of dollars/euros/credits, not character points)?

It seems like you could define an incredibly broad range, from a floor of say 10,000 dollars(a good used car or highly tricked out luxury desktop PC/entertainment center) to a ceiling of 10million or more(a private jet, mansion or luxury yacht). There might also be a secondary market, for preowned, obsolete and refurbished models(maybe even going below the 10k floor, sold "as is"). The low-end model would presumably provide an "adequate" companion, albeit one who was markedly inferior in many ways to a free-willed human companion. The highest-end models, OTOH, might provide superlative companionship(bordering on true AI/"humanity") as well as capabilities not possessed by real people.

A secondary question would be, at what price point and capability level would such a product gain mass acceptance/popularity/consumption?

A multi-million dollar artificial companion is going to be a very "niche market" product, as is a barely adequate, markedly inferior "animatronic love doll" that costs 100,000 dollars. I'm guessing the price point is somewhere between "mid-priced new car" and "mid-priced home" level, and the capability level would have to be in the "adequate" to "comparable" range. At that point, a critical mass of consumers is both interested and capable of purchasing the product(which no doubt would be advertised extensively, I'm assuming a catalog would look like something from Victoria's Secret or perhaps GQ).

Another question: what effect would mass ownership and availability of artificial companions have on the dating scene and human relationships more generally?

If 10% of upper-middle class single females, and 30% of upper-middle class single males own such companions, how does that skew or distort the "dating market"? Do people have to "up their game" in order to deal with their new and artificial competition? Or does it not tend to affect that, and instead it's seen as a sort of "supplement" to regular relationships? Perhaps the existence of artificial companions reduces the rates of "real" adultery and infidelity. Perhaps couples are more willing to "experiment" with quasi-polyamorous lifestyle arrangements involving such companions. OTOH, you could wind up with a quasi-Stepfordian dystopia, where a patriarchal or matriarchal society develops, one where artificial companions are considered far superior to real ones, and the real ones become just another type of companion available for purchase(complete with "behavior modification" options).

A final thought is that, in a world of celebrity endorsements, it would seem like a "celebrity lookalike/actalike" companion would be highly sought after, both in the legitimate retail market and perhaps on the black market as well.

While the idea of endorsing "sexbots" branded with their likeness on them would likely seem repugnant to many or most celebrities, the royalties and licensing fees could run into the tens of millions, which could tempt more than a few to do it(I already assume adult film actors would do so without any hesitation, since they already endorse sex dolls which resemble themselves(or parts of themselves)), and perhaps once it came to be seen as "acceptable" to do so, the dam would burst, and most of them would be doing it. I'd assume some sort of price premium for a lookalike, and an even greater one for a "lookalike/actalike" celebrity companion.

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

Allot would depend on the campaign tech level and social/cultural set up. In some future world a robotic servant might be as common as a microwave oven in others a totally one of a kind thing. A conservative future might frown on "Robo-sexuals" as perverts (which might not make robotic sexual surrogates less popular just less talked about).

 

Another thought that occurred to me is the use of robot sexual partners as psychological tools, surrogates in the medical sense to help people with different psycho-sexual issues due to different traumas and past experience that are impairing their sex lives. The robot wouldn't judge, they'd have total control of the experience and the treatment regimen could overseen by a trained sex counselor or psychiatrist. There's a scene in A.I. that touches on this when a woman goes to a robotic "gigolo" to help get her confidence back after a traumatic assault and long period of celibacy. though it's a professionally run therapy.

 

In a truly open minded future, robotic companions might be a common (or even mandatory) first experience(s) for teens or young adults to guarantee a mostly positive, education first time. It could be a part of Sex Ed.

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

The one thing a fembot or mandroid clearly cannot do is produce human children. Secondarily, they will be less "broad and deep" in many areas, not having personal stories to tell about their youthful misadventures or their travels abroad. They may lack a bit in real human empathy and connection, being able to merely simulate it at best. Occasionally the owner may get a jarring reminder that their companion isn't human(replacing power packs, uploading new software, taking one in for repairs, switching them off and on, dealing with a "glitchy" model, etc.). A drone companion, being a modified human clone, may feel more natural and human in many ways, but still show up their shortcomings in others.

 

 

Another potentially interesting high-tech development to explore in-game might be designer scents and drugs. Pheromone-attractant sprays, or "scent lures", might do anything from attracting increased attention from the opposite gender to establishing "alpha male/female" dominance over others in their vicinity. There might be designer drugs which enhance the sexual experience, or which raise a person's libido, lower their inhibitions or even make them highly submissive/suggestible. Or they could boost the person's confidence level and amplify their social intelligence, making them a much more successful socializer/seducer.

Euphoria is a designer drug originally intended as a behavior modification drug to be used in conjunction with Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, but subsequently repurposed and remarketed as a "safe" recreational drug. The general effect of "E" is to make the user feel more relaxed(anxiolytic) and less inhibited. Most frequent side effects include excessive euphoria(go figure), impulsive behavior, social suggestibility, elevated libido, sleeplessness, and a sort of dazed "fried" expression common among long time users when coming down off the drug. Excessive and long-term use will tend to make some of these side effects more or less permanent. A mild therapeutic dose is equivalent to about a "half dose" of the recreational variety. The maximum "safe" dosage is roughly triple the recreational dosage level.

(+1 to ego rolls to overcome anxiety and inhibitions, +1 to Libido level, -1 to resist impulses and strongly worded suggestions of others(single dose), up to +3 for triple dose, lasts about 1-6 hours for single dose, up to a week for triple dose; SE may include 1/2 d6 EGO Drain per dose, 1 pip cumulative Major Transform(to E-Head: horny, impulsive and suggestible) per dose(Act. roll chance, 8- for single dose, up to 14- for triple dose))

Submission is a stronger "cousin" of Euphoria, which is popular on the BDSM scene(and among criminals engaged in human trafficking). It has a much more direct effect on lowering inhibition levels and maximizing suggestibility. With higher dosage levels and continued use, it can be used to directly modify behavior, rapidly turning users into submissive "slaves" of whomever chooses to imprint their dominance on them. Side Effects include mild catatonia(when not being directly commanded or acting upon a command), reduced pain sensitivity, and impaired emotional response to some stimuli(generally, anything they're not conditioned to respond to).

(Per Dose: -3 to resist strongly worded suggestions of others and +1 to libido levels, 1 dose lasts for 6-24 hours, triple dose up to a month, ; SE include 1d6 EGO drain per dose, 1 d6 major transform(to "Submissive Toy of X"(VC, Total), Act. 11-(automatic with triple dose), Partial transform))

Bliss: Another stronger cousin of Euphoria, this drug was originally designed to help patients overcome severe sexual phobia or dysfunction. It raises libido fairly dramatically, nearly eliminates sexual inhibitions entirely, and makes subjects nearly as suggestible as they are under the influence of Submission. Side Effects include persistent sexual arousal syndrome, sex addiction, hypersexuality/nymphomania and the development of kinks, fetishes, paraphilias and/or a preference for sexually taboo behaviors.

(Per dose, -1 to resist strongly worded suggestions of others, plus -3 to resist strongly worded sexual suggestions of others, -3 to resist sexual impulses, +3 to overcome sexual inhibitions and +3 libido levels; SE: 1d6 EGO drain per dose, 1d6 major transform (into "Sex Toy Mentality"(VC, Total)), Act. 11-(automatic with triple dose), partial transform)

 

Another therapeutic drug, Detromazine, was developed to help mitigate the effects of "instant" traumas(such as deaths of loved ones, sexual assaults, violent assaults, being held hostage, etc.). The drug works by "adjusting" new memory clusters(and related responsive regions) in the brain, "softening" the memory and mitigating the trauma response. A standard dose can reduce the traumatic effects of most events by up to 90%. There is a slight risk of some memory loss, however(5 or less?). A stronger version of the drug, Hyperdetromazine, is sometimes administered in cases of extreme trauma(violent gang rape, witnessing mass murder, Cthulhu stopped by for tea, etc.). It can reduce traumatic effects by up to 99%, but the risk of memory loss and "cloudiness" is much higher(8 or less), and therefore it is used sparingly and only in extreme circumstances. Rumors of this drug being abused as a sort of "date rape" supplement to the aforementioned 3 recreational drugs have not been statistically substantiated at this time.

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

Allot would depend on the campaign tech level and social/cultural set up. In some future world a robotic servant might be as common as a microwave oven in others a totally one of a kind thing. A conservative future might frown on "Robo-sexuals" as perverts (which might not make robotic sexual surrogates less popular just less talked about).

 

Another thought that occurred to me is the use of robot sexual partners as psychological tools, surrogates in the medical sense to help people with different psycho-sexual issues due to different traumas and past experience that are impairing their sex lives. The robot wouldn't judge, they'd have total control of the experience and the treatment regimen could overseen by a trained sex counselor or psychiatrist. There's a scene in A.I. that touches on this when a woman goes to a robotic "gigolo" to help get her confidence back after a traumatic assault and long period of celibacy. though it's a professionally run therapy.

 

In a truly open minded future, robotic companions might be a common (or even mandatory) first experience(s) for teens or young adults to guarantee a mostly positive, education first time. It could be a part of Sex Ed.

 

That'd be one heckuva public debate: "Should sex bots be used in Sex Ed?"(cue the "I was up all night cramming for the final" jokes...)

I agree that sex droids or drones as psychological surrogates/healing tools would be an interesting use, and you might also have them as de facto "service companions" for people with various disabilities("I'm an agoraphobe, and I was wondering, will Medicaid pay for my Elizabot?")

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

Another high-tech concept is one embodied in recent films such as Avatar and Surrogates: an artificial non-human "host" for a human consciousness to "ride" in(or even occupy permanently). It could be done in order to allow the rider to move around in an environment hostile to humans, or perform tasks a human being would be incapable of. Or it could be done to allow a rider to experience life, particularly sexual and other hedonistic experiences and vicarious adventures, as "someone else"(typically an idealized self, or a member of a different ethnicity, gender or species). The host could be a completely blank slate, or they could have a "baseline persona" that provides assistance to the rider in various ways. One variant might involve using the host to "upload" the consciousness of a seriously injured or dying human, until their blank slate cloned body is ready for "transference". The host could be inorganic, organic, or a hybrid of the two. It could even be gifted with superhuman and psionic abilities, a sort of "god or goddess on demand". It's also a concept that could permit alien beings who are vastly physically different from humans to interact and socialize with humans.

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

That'd be one heckuva public debate: "Should sex bots be used in Sex Ed?"(cue the "I was up all night cramming for the final" jokes...)

 

Yeah, true. "Realistically" that probably wouldn't be something in the realm of possibility for quite awhile or after some major social change/upheaval, more of a fairly distant future sort of thing or an alien culture. OTOH, sexual attitudes have change drastically before.

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

Okay' date=' what is this "bluebooking" I keep hearing about?[/quote']

 

Well, basically, it's sort of like "closed-channel roleplaying". A player writes a note to the GM, or to another player, often using a little "blue book"(similar to the ones they hand out for college exams sometimes). The more modern version basically just involves e-mailing or texting. E-mails and longer notes are typically written "in character", and dialogues between PCs and NPCs may vaguely resemble a collaborative work of fiction. Blue Booking allows players and GMs to explore certain subplots and interactions in a more in-depth sort of way, and it may be more comfortable or convenient for exploring more sensitive or controversial sorts of situations(romance, a PC doing something they don't want the rest of the team to know about right away(or possibly ever), exploring a character-specific subplot that might eat up too much time at a live session, etc.).

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Re: The "Essay"(ESSE/UEH) Project(Warning: mature/controversial content contained her

 

You know, I could actually see that as being a HUGE market for sex droids. Market them specifically to the late-teen crowd, allowing them to work off all that sexual energy in a completely consequence-free manner. There would certainly be a lot of support for that idea.

 

Of course, there'd be a LOT of opposition for it, as well, mostly from the anti-sex ed, anti-condoms-for-teens crowd.

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