New Stuff

[Nobody]

((EDIT BY ASHIAKIN: Many of the things discussed in this thread have since changed.))

I've been looking over most of the new stuff and I have a few questions.

If we don't have 20 reputation but want to be part of an Estate, it was said we could join as working under a NPC. Does the NPC only have control of the lowest tier estate or can it be as large as a custom one? If you start under an NPC can you eventually take over the estate IC if you gain enough reputation or would you need to create another one to be a lord? Also, if you are under an NPC, do you still need to pay the contruction and upgrade gold cost, and if not do you also forfeit the thread salary?

How much free reign is there in creating the estates? Are there race restrictions on what the population can be, so that they must be humans, drows, elves, ect, or can they be anything like ,for example, giant ogres? I would also like some clarification on what counts as a small building, medium building, ect. Are we talking small buildings being houses and medium being a church?

It is stated that should you join the VSC you cannot join the CES, is this permanent even if you leave one of the factions? If you have more than the first promotion's required reputation on joining, do you start at the first rank or the rank equal to your reputation?

On a separate note, beside the needed reputation to gain a promotion in each faction, there is a score for a thread. What is the purpose of this thread? Is that instead of getting that much reputation, so that you can either gather the needed reputation or turn in a thread scoring above the mark in order to be promoted? Or do you need to get both enough reputation and threads in the score range? This would make it so that you would need an estimated 18 threads with two being JC to be promoted to the top rank, which sounds to be a daunting task.

A last question on reputation, is reputation equal for good deeds and bad, and is it permanent or can it be lost?

I hope these questions get answered, and that I was clear enough. This interests me alot and I want know more.

[Ashiakin]

If we don't have 20 reputation but want to be part of an Estate, it was said we could join as working under a NPC. Does the NPC only have control of the lowest tier estate or can it be as large as a custom one?

It can be as small as a tier one or as large as a custom one.

If you start under an NPC can you eventually take over the estate IC if you gain enough reputation or would you need to create another one to be a lord?

It depends. If you're working for an NPC who has a tier 1 estate, then you can inherit it once you get 20 reputation. However, you could not do this with a tier 2 estate or above. If you worked for an NPC with a custom tier farm, you would have to work there until you had 100 reputation to take over it (or just leave them and build your own tier 1 once you got 20.)

Also, if you are under an NPC, do you still need to pay the contruction and upgrade gold cost, and if not do you also forfeit the thread salary?

Correct. Working for an NPC means you pay nothing and earn nothing (yeah, that might not make sense--but just rationalize it by saying that you're there on some noble's land, breaking even from earning and spending.)

How much free reign is there in creating the estates?

A lot, as long as you don't powergame and adhere to the level restrictions.

Are there race restrictions on what the population can be, so that they must be humans, drows, elves, ect, or can they be anything like ,for example, giant ogres?

There are none, but remember that Salvar is mainly humans, dark elves, and dwarves--so if you have a bunch of Raiaeran elves, have a reason for it. The ogre thing is more of a gray area. You wouldn't be able to get away with having ten of them, but I would be okay with you having one.

I would also like some clarification on what counts as a small building, medium building, ect.

Small buildings, I'd say one story of two to three rooms. Medium buildings, I'd say two stories of three to six rooms. Keeps probably have four to six floors. A mansion could have about fifteen rooms, a palace twice that.

Are we talking small buildings being houses and medium being a church?

Yes, that sounds right.

It is stated that should you join the VSC you cannot join the CES, is this permanent even if you leave one of the factions?

Nope. If you leave one, you are free to join the other at any time. You also get to keep all of the reputation you got working for that faction. All you end up losing is your rank. Keep in mind that the VSC is going to be far more forgiving of deserters than the CES is, though.

If you have more than the first promotion's required reputation on joining, do you start at the first rank or the rank equal to your reputation?

The rank equal to your reputation.

On a separate note, beside the needed reputation to gain a promotion in each faction, there is a score for a thread. What is the purpose of this thread?

It's supposed to be a creative thread that showed you fulfilling factions duties or responsibilities in some way. They're to show me that you're a good writer/role-player and are worthy of advancement.

Is that instead of getting that much reputation, so that you can either gather the needed reputation or turn in a thread scoring above the mark in order to be promoted? Or do you need to get both enough reputation and threads in the score range?

You need both.

This would make it so that you would need an estimated 18 threads with two being JC to be promoted to the top rank, which sounds to be a daunting task.

I realized that when I was making it that it was pretty tough, but it was supposed to be that way. I am going to consider changing it, though. Maybe I'll make it more like 12. We'll see. I may drop the two JC's to one, but you will definitely need a JC to attain the top rank.

A last question on reputation, is reputation equal for good deeds and bad, and is it permanent or can it be lost?

I know other regions have "negative" reputation. I don't really like the idea of it. I mean, you have 20 reputation, but you commit a crime and get knocked down to 15, so all of a sudden you're less famous? That has never made sense to me. I'm working on a system that will reflect "negative" reputation, but hopefully make more sense. Reputation is permanent.

I hope these questions get answered, and that I was clear enough. This interests me alot and I want know more.

Thanks for asking all of these questions, actually. You hit on a lot of points that I hadn't really considered, so you're helping me flesh this out. Please feel free to ask any additional questions.

[Nobody]

Some more questions on the Estates. Can you own more than one estate under that same character? If so, would that require you to split your reputation between them, so that you could have 60 rep and have a teir 1 and a teir 2 estate?

Once more time has passed and alot more people have done quests in Salvar, thus multiple people owning estates, will players be allowed to war with others or would the king step in to stop it?

To what degree can aeromancers affect the terrain? With a custom estate could you have enough aeromancers to create a tropical climate within the city?

What are the benefits of working under a PC that owns land? Would you also receive thread salary?

Onto the questions about the VSC/CES. Since you would join at whatever rank your reputation was equal to, would you still receive the promotion benefits from the previous ranks as well as your current rank's?

If you have a reputation of 20 and want to join the VSC at the position of Agent, would you bypass the thread score requirements for that rank or would you also need to have attained those scores as well?

Although you said for more information see the store, I have not been able to find what Icemold is. Granted, I didn't look everywhere or particularly hard, but I was hoping for an explanation on what it is and its relative strength.

[Ashiakin]

Some more questions on the Estates. Can you own more than one estate under that same character? If so, would that require you to split your reputation between them, so that you could have 60 rep and have a teir 1 and a teir 2 estate? Once more time has passed and alot more people have done quests in Salvar, thus multiple people owning estates, will players be allowed to war with others or would the king step in to stop it?

I've got plans for all of this to happen eventually. I just want to get the system off the ground first. Well, and make sure it works out and it's going to be something people are interested in.

To what degree can aeromancers affect the terrain? With a custom estate could you have enough aeromancers to create a tropical climate within the city?

Well, your aeromancers are going to be just like any other level one to five mage. So they're not going to have god-like powers. Aeromancy and weather control in Salvar is more for curbing the effects of harsh weather, not stopping it entirely or reversing it totally. So that's a definite no to your second question there.

What are the benefits of working under a PC that owns land? Would you also receive thread salary?

If the PC wants to pay you, sure. It's really just an opportunity for people on Althanas who have less than 20 reputation to role-play with their friends who have over 20 reputation.

Onto the questions about the VSC/CES. Since you would join at whatever rank your reputation was equal to, would you still receive the promotion benefits from the previous ranks as well as your current rank's?

Yes.

If you have a reputation of 20 and want to join the VSC at the position of Agent, would you bypass the thread score requirements for that rank or would you also need to have attained those scores as well?

Haha, that's a good question. I hadn't thought about that. This isn't a for sure answer, but right now I'm going to have to say that you'd only have to provide the required threads for that rank.

Although you said for more information see the store, I have not been able to find what Icemold is. Granted, I didn't look everywhere or particularly hard, but I was hoping for an explanation on what it is and its relative strength.

That's because I haven't posted the store yet, haha. I'm still working on getting this stuff up.

"Icemold is a synthetic material unique to Salvar. While what exactly it's made of and how it is made are well-kept secrets, it's a widely known fact that it's one of the best materials on Althanas. It is a shiny substance of translucent blue that projects a mild sense of cold, although it will never melt under direct sunlight. Icemold weapons are renowned for being able to slice straight through anything--even adamatine. However, they are so brittle that they shatter on impact, truly making them one-use weapons. Pieces of armor can also be coated in icemold, making the armor capable of withstanding a single blow from any weapon or magical attack, but also shattering on impact."

[Razor]

I see that there is now both positive and negative reputation, and you expressed that they would not cancel each other out logically. I want to know if this means that you can now have both a positive reputation and a negative one, such as heroic and criminal, instead of having a high positive rep and becoming less famous for commiting a crime.

Looking at the League of Salvic States, I saw several things that confused me. If you join with an NPC being the Noble, do you still need to pay the 1000 gold for land? Since it has been changed, I don't see any size limitations any more and wondered if those were still in effect, starting estates being pretty small or can they now be large, within reason? I'm also curious as to the seeminly random 10 upgrade limit to the estates, such as why 10 and if once reached the estates can still be changed but not upgraded?

What happens if, since you swore an oath to the king of Salvar after buying an estate, you commit a crime against the state?

That's all the questions I could think of at the moment, skimming over the new material. It's looking good.

[Ashiakin]

I see that there is now both positive and negative reputation, and you expressed that they would not cancel each other out logically. I want to know if this means that you can now have both a positive reputation and a negative one, such as heroic and criminal, instead of having a high positive rep and becoming less famous for commiting a crime.

Well, I don't like negative reputation, but after a discussion about it amongst the regions writers and regions admin, it has been decided to use it. I don't want Salvar to be the only region without negative reputation--that'd be too confusing for anyone new here. Nothing with the reputation is finalized as of yet, but I'm personally interested in having two parallel reputations liked you mentioned. Still, right now it seems like it's going to be one or the other.


Looking at the League of Salvic States, I saw several things that confused me. If you join with an NPC being the Noble, do you still need to pay the 1000 gold for land? Since it has been changed, I don't see any size limitations any more and wondered if those were still in effect, starting estates being pretty small or can they now be large, within reason? I'm also curious as to the seeminly random 10 upgrade limit to the estates, such as why 10 and if once reached the estates can still be changed but not upgraded?

Yeah, there are still some mistakes with that, and I am still working the little details of it out. The information is now going to stay the same, more or less, though. Basically, I'm going to hold off on approving anyone else until I get the chance to figure all of those things out. I'm still deciding on the NPC noble thing, so I can't give you an answer on that yet. You're correct, there are no longer size limitations. They can be any size within reason. The only limit is on the number of military units. Eh, it's a pretty arbitrary level cap, just like the level cap we have for players now. I did it because 10 upgrades runs even with the max amount of reputation, 100. I figure it's going to take years to get to 10 upgrades. We'll worry about it when we get there.


What happens if, since you swore an oath to the king of Salvar after buying an estate, you commit a crime against the state?

This is why I don't like negative reputation. It's going to depend on the severity of the crime, really. Being a noble will buy you a lot of legal leeway. If your reputation gets too low, however, there will be reprecussions (such as the king encouraging and financing other nobles to attack you.)


That's all the questions I could think of at the moment, skimming over the new material. It's looking good.

Thanks, I appreciate it.

[Lian Vas'Garth]

Is there going to be a list of specialty goods sold only in Salvar, like there is in Fallien? Aside from Icemold and the specialty composite materials given out by the VSC and CES, are there other materials unique to Salvar?

As for the positive and negative reputation, since it doesn't make sense for reputation to cancel, I might have a solution. You could have a positive/negative alignment score, good or evil, and a total reputation score for fame. Such as +3 and -3 would give you neutral alignment and a total of 6 fame.

If you decide to get an Estate once you already have 20 reputation, would you start with an estate at upgrade level 2? Or would you start at level 0 and need to gain the upgrade amount in addition to what you already had, such as needing to gain 10 for a total of 30 to get to level 1? Or would it be a level 0 and you just needed to submit upgrades and be able to pay for them to raise the level up to your current reputation level?

I thought I saw this somewhere, but today I couldn't find it after a brief search. What is the religion, the church of the etheral sway, about? Is it polytheistic? To they have a name for their god(s)? Are there any ritualistic practices of note, like human sacrifices or something?

[Ashiakin]

Is there going to be a list of specialty goods sold only in Salvar, like there is in Fallien? Aside from Icemold and the specialty composite materials given out by the VSC and CES, are there other materials unique to Salvar?

I might add some other stuff later, but right now it's basically just the VSC/CES stuff, Icemold, and slaves. Keep in mind that you're going to get much better prices on all the materials I listed in the store thread.


As for the positive and negative reputation, since it doesn't make sense for reputation to cancel, I might have a solution. You could have a positive/negative alignment score, good or evil, and a total reputation score for fame. Such as +3 and -3 would give you neutral alignment and a total of 6 fame.

I appreciate the suggestion, but I'm actually working on a system for it now. It's kind of similar to what you've mentioned.


If you decide to get an Estate once you already have 20 reputation, would you start with an estate at upgrade level 2? Or would you start at level 0 and need to gain the upgrade amount in addition to what you already had, such as needing to gain 10 for a total of 30 to get to level 1? Or would it be a level 0 and you just needed to submit upgrades and be able to pay for them to raise the level up to your current reputation level?

If that happens (i.e., you buy an estate when you have 30 rep,) you'll have to pay the five hundred plus upgrade fees, but you'll be able to get it all at once. It might be possible that the crown will waive some of your fees if you've been active enough in Salvar.


I thought I saw this somewhere, but today I couldn't find it after a brief search. What is the religion, the church of the etheral sway, about? Is it polytheistic? To they have a name for their god(s)? Are there any ritualistic practices of note, like human sacrifices or something?

Info on all of the following is forthcoming: Religion, Culture, History and Current Events, Geography and Climate, and Rifting Mining and Weather Control. Maybe some other stuff if I think it's needed. Here's a condensed lesson on the religion, though: During the War of the Tap thousands of years ago, spacial rifts to other planes of existence were opened due to the high and frequent amount of magical battles being fought there. Invisible, formless beings known as the "Ethereal Sway" came through these rifts and possessed the leaders of Salvar--generals, statesmen, kings and queens, etc. These leaders, under the mysterious infuence of these beings, led Salvar to greatness. However, for inexplicable reasons, they all vanished one day and those that they had possessed died. This caused a collapse of civilization in Salvar for thousands of years. The Church today found relics from the past about these beings, and it was established to basically figure out why the Sway left and how to bring them back. Practices and stuff I will get to in the religion thread.