Call For Judgment: Sickly Depressed is right...

Or at least it's how I am feeling right now. (But then again it could be what I had for lunch.)

Problem #1
There was some minor confusion concerning the mix up of the Rule 'Undeath' and the Ailment known as 'Undead'. In Satyr Eyes's proposal 'Fool of a Took!' it made changes to the Ailment known as 'Undeath'. Since there is no such thing as that ailment, the following phrase should be removed from the ailment 'Undead' in Rule 22.

and given the Ailment Undeath.

I suggest we rename Rule 27 to something less confusing; but to what I'm not really certain.

Problem #2
In Rule 2 at the end of the last sentence it states:

the Mariner's personal gamestate retains the values it had immediately prior to their idling.

Someone has accidentally removed the stats of Zebu and Strider from the GNDT which is clearly against the core-ruleset. I assume it is due to some minor contradiction in Rule 11 where it states:

any Mariner who returns to BlogNomic after being Idle since the beginning of the previous Lacuna, is placed aboard the Ship with the smallest nonzero number of Mariners.

I would appreciate to have these things addressed. Hence the purpose of this CfJ. I guess I'll comb through the GNDT and locate their stats...

Proposal: Sickly depressed [trivial]

Change

At the end of each Lacuna (at the same time Homesickness is applied)

Into

At the end of each Lacuna (after Homesickness is applied)

Failed 1 to 8 by Satyr Eyes at 6:58 GMT, 04.11.2004. -3 to Dunam; +1 to Satyr Eyes.

Proposal: Polly wants a cracker[trivial]

Add the following new upgrade to the upgrades list:

Parrot 10 supplies: During the first lacuna, the captain must designate a mariner to be the owner of the parrot. The owner of the parrot immediately gains 5 morale.
If this ship is attacked or when a mutiny occurs, or this mariner receives the imprisoned ailment, the parrot flies away and is lost. When a parrot is lost, the owner loses 15 morale. The owner of a parrot may give the parrot a name. Once per lacuna the owner of the parrot may make a GNDT or blog comment of "XXX wants a cracker", where xxx is replaced by the name of the parrot. All mariners on board of this ship then receive 2 morale.

Failed 1 to 7 by Satyr Eyes at 6:55 GMT, 04.11.2004. -3 to Dunam, +1 to Satyr Eyes.

Proposal: Row row row your boat [trivial]

Add the following to the upgrade list:

Oars 20 supplies- A captain may choose the action 'row' when a ship has oars.

And add the following to the orders list:

Row: This order may only be chosen if the ship has the upgrade 'oars'. The speed of the captain is reduced to 0. The speed of each deckhand aboard the ship is increased by (50/morale) of that mariner, rounded down to a full integer. After this speed has been updated, the effects of the 'Sail' order happen. Afterwards, all speeds are returned to their normal value. Then the two deckhands with the lowest morale on this ship receive the ailment 'depressed'.

Self-killed by Dunam; failed by Satyr Eyes at 6:52 GMT, 04.11.2004. -3 to Dunam, +1 to Satyr Eyes.

Proposal: The Board [Trivial]

Create a new upgrade in Rule 15:

The Plank 15 Supplies: A Captain may choose to have a Mariner walk the plank. This is done by a posting on the weblog with the title 'Walk The Plank: [Mariner's Name].' The Captain may add a eulogy or a reason to why the Mariner must walk the plank. Once a Mariner walks the plank they lose a maximum of 15 morale. If the Mariner has a total of 0 Morale after walking the plank they recieve the ailment Undead. Mariners aboard the ship do not suffer morale loss due to the transfer of the Undead Mariner. However, if the Mariner has 1 + Morale they are brought back aboard the Ship and the other Mariners each receive 5 Morale.

The Comments are not showing up on my browser. So I will not be aware of any comments that has been made during my posts.

Vetoed by Satyr Eyes. Failed by Satyr Eyes at 6:48 GMT, 04.11.2004. -3 to Keitalia, +1 to Satyr Eyes.

Proposal: Odds and Limbs [Trivial]

Since it is assumed that one must be afflicted with the ailment to receive the adverse effects. And the ailment is called Undead not Undeath.

So... In rule 22 under the ailment Ghost Ship
Replace: 'Only Mariners with 0 or less morale are to be transferred to a Ghost Ship regardless of distance.'

With: 'Only Mariners with the ailment 'Undead' may be transferred to a Ghost Ship.'

Under the ailment Undead
Remove the word 'of' in the last sentence.

In Rule 27 (Undeath)
Replace: Once per Lacuna, each Ghost Ship may declare an attack against any Ship with the orders of SAIL, IDLE or FEAST regardless of the distance between the two.

With: Once per Lacuna, each Ghost Ship may declare an attack against any Ship regardless of the distance between the two. However, the Target Ship must have the orders of SAIL, IDLE or FEAST.

Append to the end of the second paragraph:

An attacking Ghost Ship must allow at least 12 hours for a successful Ritual to be performed by the Targeted Ship's Priest.

Replace: An attack by a Ghost Ship may be countered by a successful Ritual. A Priest aboard the Target Ship has 12 hours to perform the Ritual after a declaration of attack has been made. The Ritual is considered to be in effect for 12 hours after it has been successfully performed by the Priest.

With: An attack by a Ghost Ship may be prevented by a successful Ritual. Any Priest aboard the Target Ship has 12 hours to successfully perform the Ritual. The Ritual continues to be in effect for 12 hours after being successfully performed.

Timed out on 04.11.04 at 2:34 GMT; enacted 5 to 3 by Satyr Eyes at 6:37 GMT, 04.11.2004. +2 to Keitalia, +1 to Satyr Eyes. And because I feel evil and because Morales are "too high" according to my unobservable subjective criteria, -5 to nonvoters Aaron, Est, Josh, Kevan, Octave, and Truman Capote. Muwahaha!

Proposal: Fool of a Took! [trivial]

If the Proposal "Drums, drums in the deep" passes, amend the Ailment "Depression" by changing the phrase "his or her normal speed" to "the Speed he or she would otherwise have". Further, amend the Rule "Depression" by changing the phrase "at the same time" to "immediately before".

And as long as we're plugging holes...

In the description of the Ailment Undeath, rephrase the first sentence to read:

Once a Mariner has reached 0 Morale they are transferred to a Ghost Ship of the Poet's choosing regardless of distance and given the Ailment Undeath.

(Do not include the emboldening of the text in the amendment.)

Enacted 10 to 0 by Cayvie @ 16:44, 04.09.2004. +2 to Satyr Eyes +1 to Cayvie.

Proposal: Drums, drums in the deep

Add a new ailment to the list of ailments:

Depression: A Mariner with Depression has a speed of 1 less than his or her normal speed, and a -1 penalty to any rolls he or she makes.

And add a new rule to the ruleset, Depression:

When a sailor is out on the open sea, staring at miles upon miles of flat, blue waters and rocking, rocking, incessantly rocking, it can be tough to keep one's spirits up. At the end of each Lacuna (at the same time Homesickness is applied), the Poet should give the ailment, Depression, to the mariner with the lowest Morale who does not already have the Ailment Depression or Undead.

And add to rule 15, Actions, under the action Feast,

All mariners on the ship with the Ailment Depression immediately lose that ailment.

Enacted 11 to 0 by Cayvie @ 16:44, 04.09.2004. +12 to Cayvie.

Chapter 4 Concluded

The epilogue to Chapter 4 has been posted. Enjoy!

Proposal: No, Really, Clear the Deck [trivial]

Take two! Let's clean up a bit. Removing some stuff we don't use or don't need.

First, get rid of the deadweight Gods.

Enact the following paragraph if and only if no Mariner posts a comment to this Proposal containing the sentence "I do hereby object on the strongest possible terms to the excision of the Gods Ares and Artemis, in spite of the fact that they aren't affecting Gamestate in any material way right now."

In Rule 13, remove the Gods Ares and Artemis. Any Mariner worshipping Ares or Artemis no longer worships a God.

Next, get rid of Docking, a cumbersome procedure involving a small and easily lost GNDT comment.

In Rule 19, reword:

There are zones marked on the Map where a ship can dock to resupply. These zones are Islands and Ports. In order to dock a Captain must make a comment in the GNDT of 'Dock: (Name of Island or Port).'

to:

There are Islands and Ports marked on the Map; Ships within an Island's or Port's distance parameters are said to be in a Zone.

Replace both instances of the word "Docked" in Rule 15 with "in a Zone." Remove the words "Dock and" from the description of the Isle of the Sun in Rule 19.

Good, we're making progress! Now, let's deal with those other pesky GNDT comments.

Add to the end of the second paragraph of Rule 13:

If this GNDT comment or any other GNDT comment is posted in such a way that the identity of its poster cannot be definitively verified, or it is not formatted as may be required in the Ruleset, then it can have no effect on the Gamestate.

In Rule 17's description of the Sailor, change "Sailing: DICE" to "Ropes: DICE". This is to keep me from getting confused; every time I see Sailing: DICE I think "holy cow, did someone end the Lacuna without me?"

No one's using Loud and Quiet, and the Captain's special enough for other reasons that he doesn't really need this ability to make him worthwhile.

Delete the first two paragraphs of Rule 17's description of the Captain, excepting the initial italicized word "Captain".

Whew, that about does it! Bear in mind that you can always make a GNDT comment verifiably yours by (for instance) changing your Speed to whatever it already is at the time you make the comment.

Enacted 10 to 0 by Cayvie @ 23:56, 04.07.2004. +2 to Satyr Eyes, +1 to Cayvie.

Proposal: Clear the Deck [trivial] SELF-KILLED

Let's clean up a bit! Removing some stuff we don't use or don't need.

First, get rid of the deadweight Gods.

Enact the following paragraph if and only if no Mariner posts a comment to this Proposal containing the sentence "I do hereby object on the strongest possible terms to the excision of the Gods Ares and Artemis, in spite of the fact that they aren't affecting Gamestate in any material way right now."

In Rule 13, remove the Gods Ares and Artemis. Any Mariner worshipping Ares or Artemis no longer worships a God.

Next, get rid of Docking, a cumbersome procedure involving a small and easily lost GNDT comment.

In Rule 19, reword:

There are zones marked on the Map where a ship can dock to resupply. These zones are Islands and Ports. In order to dock a Captain must make a comment in the GNDT of 'Dock: (Name of Island or Port).'

to:

There are Islands and Ports marked on the Map; Ships within an Island's or Port's distance parameters are said to be in a Zone.

Replace both instances of the word "Docked" in Rule 15 with "in a Zone." Remove the words "Dock and" from the description of the Isle of the Sun in Rule 19.

Good, we're making progress! Now, let's deal with those other pesky GNDT comments.

Add to the end of the second paragraph of Rule 13: "If this GNDT comment or any other GNDT comment is posted in such a way that the identity of its poster cannot be definitively verified, then it is assumed to have been posted by the last Mariner to have made a GNDT post under a verifiable identity. If the format of the comment is not as may be required in the Ruleset, then that comment cannot affect the Gamestate."

In Rule 17's description of the Sailor, change "Sailing: DICE" to "Sailor: DICE". This is to keep me from getting confused; every time I see Sailing: DICE I think "holy cow, did someone end the Lacuna without me?"

No one's using Loud and Quiet, and the Captain's special enough for other reasons that he doesn't really need this ability to make him worthwhile.

Delete the first two paragraphs of Rule 17's description of the Captain, excepting the initial italicized word "Captain".

Whew, that about does it!

Failed (self-kill) by Cayvie @ 23:55, 04.07.2004. -3 to Satyr Eyes, +1 to Cayvie.

Proposal: The Lost Weekend [trivial]

In the rule "Jobs", under the heading "Captain", replace the text:

At any point after the end of those 7 days

with the text:

At any time after the end of that Lacuna, but only once for each such Lacuna

This proposal started out as cleanup of the old 7-day Lacunae, but while I was here I found a loophole of sorts.

Enacted 9 to 0 by Cayvie @ 23:55, 04.07.2004. +2 to Octave, +1 to Cayvie.

Proposal: Passing the Olive Branch Crown

In Rule 10, Victory and Ascension, revise the last sentence of the paragraph:

If a Mariner believes that they have achieved the victory conditions for the current Dynasty, they may post a Declaration of Victory to the BlogNomic weblog. At this point, BlogNomic immediately goes into Hiatus, during which no other game actions (including other victory claims) may be taken.

to read:

At this point, BlogNomic immediately goes into Hiatus, during which no other game actions (including other victory claims) may be taken, except as specifically outlined later in this Rule.

Between the third and fourth paragraphs of Rule 10, add a new paragraph:

The winner of the Dynasty as determined above is called the Victor. The Victor may choose to become the next Poet. If he chooses not to do so, he must post a Blog entry during the Hiatus with the subject line "Who Wants to Be a Poet?" Any Mariner other than the Victor who replies to the entry with a comment containing the text string "I do" is an Applicant. Before the end of the Hiatus, the Victor must select an Applicant (if one exists) to become the next Poet. Upon so doing the Victor gains 20 Morale and may not post another blog entry with this subject line for the remainder of the Hiatus.

This is more of a thought than a strongly-held position. I'm a bit concerned that people aren't playing as competitively as they should because they don't want to have to run the next Dynasty. This proposal would give such people a lucrative "out" and encourage playing to win.

Failed 5 to 7 by Cayvie @ 23:53, 04.07.2004. -3 to Satyr Eyes, +1 to Cayvie.

Proposal: The Return Of The Dead

In rule 22 reword the ailment Ghost Ship to:

*Ghost Ship: Once a ship has contracted this ailment, the ailment 'Abandoned' is no longer in effect. Only Mariners with 0 or less morale are to be transferred to a Ghost Ship regardless of distance. Ships with this ailment are under the control of the Poet and do not have a Battle Strength regardless of the Morale of its Mariners.

And create a new ailment in Rule 22:

*Undead: Once a Mariner has reached 0 Morale they are transferred to a Ghost Ship of the Poet's choosing regardless of distance. Upon the transfer, the remaining Mariners that are left behind on the Ship lose 10 Morale each. Mariners with this ailment are immune to all other ailments including homesickness and starvation (Morale loss due to lack of supplies). An 'Undead' Mariner aboard a Ghost Ship may perform the 'Curse' once per Lacuna. This is done by making the comment in the GNDT of 'Curse You: DICE'. The Curse is successful if the dice rolls a 4 or 5. If the Mariner has 15+ Morale and rolls a 6 they are instantly transferred to the Target Ship and lose the ailment of 'Undead'.

Create a new rule:

Undeath

Ghost Ships have been known to wander the open sea. Ghost Ships do not have Captains or Battle Strength. Instead the Poet is in control of the Ghost Ship and may issue a declaration of attack or may order the Ghost Ship to sail at any integer of speed. The crew of a Ghost Ship is made up of Mariners with the ailment 'Undead'. (See Rule 22 under Undead.)

Attack: Once per Lacuna, each Ghost Ship may declare an attack against a Ship with the orders of SAIL, IDLE or FEAST regardless of the distance between the two. Ghost Ships may not be attacked by non-Ghost Ships. Ghost Ships can only use Massacre as its only attack type. When attacking, Ghost Ships do not roll for attack or defense.

The Ritual: An attack by a Ghost Ship may be countered by a successful Ritual. A Priest aboard the Target Ship has 12 hours to perform the Ritual after a declaration of attack has been made. The Ritual is considered to be in effect for 12 hours after it has been successfully performed by the Priest. If the Ritual is still in effect or if it has been successfully performed within the allotted time, the Ghost Ship may not attack the Target Ship.

The Curse: A Ritual may be countered by a successful Curse. Once a Target Ship's Priest has successfully performed a Ritual, a Mariner aboard the attacking Ghost Ship may perform the 'Curse'. This must be done within 12 hours of the performance of the Ritual. If the Curse was successful, the Ritual is ignored and the attack by the Ghost Ship continues upon the Target Ship. If there is more than one Ghost Ship in play a Priest may react to a successful Curse with another Ritual.

Passed 8 to 0 by Keitalia @ 17:56, 04.07.2004. +12 to Keitalia.

Chapter 4: The Arrogancy of the Proud (With Epilogue)

Ever-pious Josh elbowed his way through the throngs of the bustling port. The crowds in Ismarus were unbelievable - everyone yelling and pushing, in the devil's rush to get seemingly nowhere. The high-pitched calls of a butcher, a fishmonger, a jeweler, echoed above the heads of the multitude, each hawking his wares. Josh listened but could not hear the sales pitch of the stonemason whom he sought in this city. He stoically continued making his way through the crowd towards the center of town; the Palladium would have its marble altar to Athena.

Seeing a middle-aged housewife hanging out clothes at the roadside, Josh stopped and cleared his throat. "Pardon, ma'am," said the deckhand in his sonorous voice, "but would you be able to direct me to Peter Lithypsuchros' storefront?"

The homely woman looked at him in disbelief. "Omphala the Omnific - the woman who pronounces with justice that her prowess at the martial arts rivals that of Pallas Athena herself - is displaying her divine talents in the town square in ten minutes, and you're looking for a stonemason?"

The woman's last few words fell on deaf ears; ever-pious Josh was fighting back a surge of anger at hearing a mortal woman compared to his patron goddess. He imagined the look kind Brother Cayvie, traveler of islands, would wear if he heard of such an atrocity. Josh decided impetuously that the altar could wait; Athena had greater work for him today. Turning his back on the housewife, he stormed off toward the town square.

Josh arrived just in time to hear a deep female voice resounding over the swarm of locals crowding the town square. "Ladies and gentlemen!" bellowed the commanding voice. "I'd like to introduce myself to the fair city of Ismarus! I am but a humble monk who, through long years of training, has gained total mastery over her body and soul. I have defeated armies and amazed kings with my skill in battle - with my fists that can crush the mighty rock of Olympus itself - with my daring and dexterity before which even the Goddess of War must cower. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the world's greatest martial artist - Omphala the Omnific!"

With a raucous cheer, the crowd parted in a circle around the speaker. A tall woman, Omphala wore her black hair in a swept-back ponytail, complementing her dark skin and flashing gray eyes. Her fists were raised. "Come, then!" she roared. "What man thinks his strength can best mine?"

Man after man of Ismarus entered the circle with clenched jaw, bent on proving his prowess against this Amazon. But Omphala took them all on - one, two, three at a time - downing each in seconds with blows and throws of fiendish ferocity, and with every strike the crowd oohed and aahed in astonished approval.

With an arrogant smirk on her face, Omphala fended off an assailant with one leg, and turned to scan the crowd. For a moment, Josh could swear she was looking straight at him.

Ever-pious Josh, how do you defend the good name of slighted Pallas Athena?

1. Do nothing. Hubris is for the gods to punish.
2. Look around for a way to strike Omphala down from beyond her reach.
3. Enter the arena with fists raised, knowing that your goddess will give you the skill you need to beat this pretender at her own game.

In a flash all the stories of Athena raced through Josh's mind. Never would Athena be found fighting on behalf of cowards too pusillanimous to defend what they believed. Josh knew his goddess would want him to act -- and to act quickly.

The ever-pious one sized up his predicament. Clearly this Omphala was a brilliant martial artist; she would probably defeat even a seasoned warrior like Josh in hand-to-hand combat. The mariner dismissed the thought of relying on Athena to protect him as hubris tantamount to Omphala's own, and cast about for a more cunning way to throw her to the floor. He scanned the area around him, but it seemed devoid of anything he might throw at his adversary. Just a bunch of gawking onlookers, from local drunks to middle-aged women taking a break from hanging up their laundry...

Laundry. Of course. As Omphala continued her blasphemous exhibition, Josh rushed to a nearby clothesline -- a sturdy rope some locals had strung between two poles adjacent to the town square. A swift yank and he'd torn the rope loose from its moorings. With the speed of an Athenian soldier who could tie any knot you named in his sleep, Josh fashioned the clothesline into a crude lasso in seconds. Holding his weapon behind him, he returned to the anonymity of the throng, and waited for an opening.

It came. Omphala the Omnific turned her back to execute a painful head-butt against her latest challenger, a burly lumberjack type. Josh didn't think twice. He raised his lasso, and hurled it expertly at Omphala. And to the astonished gasp of the crowd, the lasso fell true.

In vain did Omphala struggle to free herself from the lariat's embrace. Her attempts to slacken the rope by charging toward the radiant Josh met with failure, as the confused masses milled around in front of her. She stumbled into them off-balance, and with a final tug from Josh, fell forcefully onto the stony ground.

Looking back on it later, Josh had trouble remembering exactly what happened next. He knew he'd said something about Omphala's arrogance, about the dim view Athena took toward being compared unfavorably with a mortal. The crowd must have dispersed, uninterested in religious talk. All Josh remembered was how he'd walked toward the prostrate valkyrie, thinking he'd make sure she wasn't badly injured... and how she'd looked up at him. Looked up at him with piercing gray eyes. And smiled.

He'd fallen on his knees then, realizing too late that only one in all of Greece had eyes like that.

"My lady. Forgive me."

"There's nothing to forgive, Josh. You acquitted yourself admirably here today. I couldn't have asked for better."

Tears ran down Josh's face. "Thank you, my lady! I did what I did for your sake alone."

"Of course. I am well pleased. Your nightly prayers are truly more than so many empty words. Know that I smile upon you, and upon your noble craft; and know, too, that you shall see Ithaca again."

***

Somehow Josh managed to stand up after that, to tear himself away from the lariat that was suddenly empty, to drag his dazed body inch by inch to fetch the altar for his captain. When at last the altar was secured aboard the Palladium, Josh made it a point to be the first to genuflect before the marble slab.

He prayed as he'd never prayed before.

Josh's wise choice causes every Mariner on the Palladium to gain 10 Morale, in joy over Athena's personal interest in their odyssey. No matter which option he chose, he would have realized Omphala's true identity. Had he chosen the first option, he would have lost 15 Morale, ashamed that his goddess should see him hearing her name debased and doing nothing. Had he chosen the third, things would have been yet worse; Athena would have been furious at his arrogance in taking her favor for granted, and would have shattered the marble altar the moment it was installed.

Lacuna 5: You Will Breathe a Heavenly Breeze

“Ee,” cackled the old woman. “Mark my words, cap’n, there be great reward in it for they who spread the love of Poseidon to all corners!”

Kevan, the great tactician, wasn’t in the mood for this. “Look, Sister,” he replied in dismissive tones, looking her in the eye over the desk of his private cabin. “Ever since you had your epiphany you’ve been talking about spreading the love of Poseidon. A couple weeks ago you tried to incite the crew to sack ‘heathen Ismarus’ and practically got us chased out of town. Just the other day you tried to convert a school of trout, and Royce the long of hope says he’s getting uncomfortable with the way you have animated conversations with the mast all night.”

Second-sighted Keitalia was impervious to the captain’s words. “There was a time,” she said, waggling her finger, “ween I could see through earthly things and speak wi’ my mind alone. E’en now I wot I still hear th’ voices o’ th’ gods theyselves!”

“I don’t care if you’re the Oracle at Delphi,” replied Kevan coolly. “You are not wasting our valuable cargo on a ship with no one on it.”

“Eh?” Keitalia scratched her head. “‘Tis your will ta hamper Poseidon’s chosen in ‘er duty? Can’t say that seems oversharp of ye, cap’n…”

Kevan groaned inwardly. Crazy she might be, but Sister Keitalia had a cult following among the superstitious crew. Picking a fight with her would not be a smart political move. Fine. He’d cooperate for a while longer. It wasn’t like she was asking for half the hold.

***

An hour later, the ostensibly second-sighted one stood on the deck of the abandoned Calypso, tethered to the Odyssey by a strong rope. Foodstuffs from the hold were piled at her feet (“enough to feed us all for days,” thought Kevan wistfully). A small crowd watched from the Odyssey – but were careful not to stand too close. Keitalia hushed the crowd, and, with an authority that would have made Alexander proud, began the ceremony.

Even rational Kevan found himself oddly captivated by the passion with which Keitalia spoke, by the flamboyant arcs of her arms as they seemed to take in the entire derelict ship. The wild-haired old woman alternately exhorted as though to a mob and cooed as though to a child, in a voice which Kevan had to admit seemed somehow otherworldly. Converting the ship to Poseidon, he supposed. The men around him looked at each other in fear and reassurance, as if to say, “Good thing she’s not our enemy.”

“When someone behaves irrationally, you laugh at them,” reflected Kevan silently. “But when someone behaves that irrationally… well, you have to wonder whether maybe they really do know something you don’t.”

***

Not long after, the Odyssey had left the Calypso well behind. Kevan had finished administering the resetting of the sails, and was about to check on the steerage when Keitalia’s voice came from behind him. “Ye cannae tell me ye dinnae feel summat alongsides the Calypso,” she breathed slyly into his ear, giving the tactician a mild start. “That ship, she be on our side now, don’tcha know.”

“Whose side is that?” Kevan wondered.

“Poseidon only knows,” Keitalia replied serenely, and with that, she wandered off.

Proposal: Oops, we missed Ithaca! (trivial)

Add to the rule entitled Distance:

A ship's Distance may never be less than 0. If, at any time, it would be reduced to less than 0, it is reduced to 0 instead.

Just to make sure things don't go crazy when people get near Ithaca. I realize that Captains may opt to move less than their ship's speed, but, you know, what if they forget to e-mail the Poet?

Passed 8 to 3 by Keitalia @ 17:53 GMT, 04.07.2004. +2 to Cayvie, +1 to Keitalia.

Proposal : Propheteering [Trivial]

Reword the effects of the "Prophet" career from strange supply-donating things to the more thematic:-

The Poet may, at any time, privately contact all Prophets to announce that the Lacuna is coming to an end; the Lacuna should then end within the next twelve hours (although nothing happens if it does not). A Prophet may also privately contact the Poet regarding a particular Option of any pending Chapter - the Poet may choose to respond, revealing the effect of that Option. A Prophet also counts as a Priest. This is an advanced job for Priests.

[ Weak but prophetic effects, inspired by recent Lacuna-deferral, and the only other deterministic game aspect I can think of. Kept very vague and penalty-free, so that the game doesn't explode if unexpected real-life issues delay Lacunae or email. ]

Passed 8 to 0 by Keitalia @ 12:23, 04.07.2004. +2 to Kevan, +1 to Keitalia.

Proposal : The Poseidon Indenture [Trivial]

In the prayer effect of the god Poseidon, replace "by the Prayer Roll" with:-

by two less than the Prayer Roll

The two Morale earned from this Proposal, if it passes, shall go to ChinDoGu (who suggested this in comments).

Passed 9 to 0 by Keitalia @ 21:38 GMT, 04.06.2004. +2 to ChinDoGu, +1 to Keitalia.

Proposal: Will You Marry Me?

ChinDoGu's right. If Poseidon's going to have a speed advantage (which still needs to be mitigated), Athena's morale advantage has to mean something. And it's time to revisit the victory condition anyway.

Create a new Ailment:

Suitor: Mariners with this Ailment are said to be Suitors. They are exempt from the requirement that all Mariners must belong to a Ship. Suitors may not use any abilities which refer to their Ship; nor may such abilities be used on them. At the end of the Lacuna, Suitors gain 5 Morale. Suitors who transfer to or are transferred to a Ship lose this Ailment immediately; for the purposes of transferring between Ships, Suitors are considered to be on a Ship with Distance 0.

In Rule 20, replace "If a Ship has reached Ithaca and has a Captain, then that Captain may declare Victory." with:

When a Ship reaches Ithaca (defined as having Distance 0), its Captain gains 20 Morale and the Ship ceases to exist. All Mariners formerly aboard the Ship get the Ailment "Suitor" and are considered to be aboard no Ship.

When at least one Mariner first has the Ailment "Suitor," a contest begins at Penelope's estate. While the contest is occurring, every post by the Poet declaring the end of a Lacuna must state how many Lacunae the contest has been going on for. When the Poet declares in such a post that the contest has been going on for 5 Lacunae, the Suitor with the highest Morale (other than the Poet) wins and may Declare Victory.

I'm prepared to have to repropose this a couple times to hammer out any kinks -- or not, if you feel it's a bad idea in the first place! The idea is: The sooner you get to Ithaca, the better, since you've cemented yourself Suitorhood and begin gaining Morale for being a Suitor. You can arrive later than someone else and still be eligible to win -- but you've missed out on one to five end-of-Lacuna Morale bonuses for Suitors, so you'd better have high Morale for other reasons!

Passed 9 to 2 by Cayvie at 17:33 GMT, 04.06.2004. +10 to Satyr Eyes, +2 to Cayvie.

Announcement

I'm writing Zebu out of the epic for being asleep on duty. Quorum drops to 8.

Edited to add:

At this moment, there are no pending Proposals in BlogNomic. This calls for some kind of celebration!

Proposal: Catch the saboteur [trivial]

In rule 6 "Enactment" add the following line:

When the proposer votes against his or her own proposal, that vote may not be changed.

To prevent self-killing and then just before the end change that vote to push through an undesirable proposal. This prevents necessity of everybody voting against a self-killed proposal.

Passed 9 to 1 by Satyr Eyes at 23:52 GMT, 04.05.2004. +2 to Dunam, +1 to Satyr Eyes.

Proposal: Calm Down [trivial]

Watching Brother ChinDoGu and Sister Keitalia working their magicks, I can't help but feel that Poseidon may be... how do I say this... way too powerful.

In Rule 13, revise the sentence "The result is known as the Prayer Roll - on a 4, 5 or 6, the prayer is answered, as defined in that God's description." to read:

The result is known as the Prayer Roll - on a 4, 5, or 6, the Prayer is successful. The Prayer may be answered as defined in the appropriate God's description.

Revise Poseidon's description in Rule 13 to read:

Poseidon, the god of the sea. A successful Prayer to Poseidon allows the Praying Mariner to increase or decrease any Captain's Speed by the Prayer Roll, until the new Lacuna starts. An unsuccessful Prayer to Poseidon, however, reduces the Praying Mariner's speed by twice the Prayer Roll.

Gaining Distance is a very potent thing, and Poseidon is known for his temperamentality. This Proposal would reduce the average Distance gained by a Prayer to Poseidon from 2.5 to 0.5, which seems much more on par with the effects of the other Gods (increasing everyone's Morale by 4 to 6, for instance).

Failed 5 to 8 by Satyr Eyes at 23:47 GMT, 04.05.2004. -2 to Satyr Eyes.

Proposal: More Fun With The Dead

In rule 22 reword the ailment Ghost Ships to:

*Ghost Ship: Once a ship has contracted this ailment, the ailment 'Abandoned' is no longer in effect. However, Mariners with 0 or less morale must be transferred to a Ghost Ship regardless of distance. Ships with this ailment are under the control of the Poet and do not have a Battle Strength regardless of the Morale of its Mariners.

And create a new ailment in Rule 22:

*Undead: Once a Mariner has reached 0 Morale they are transferred to a Ghost Ship of the Poet's choosing regardless of distance. If a Ghost Ship does not exist then that Mariner afflicts the other Mariners aboard their ship with -5 Morale each lacuna until a Ghost Ship is created. Mariners with this ailment are immune to Homesickness. An 'Undead' Mariner aboard a Ghost Ship may perform the 'Curse' once per lacuna. This is done by making the comment in the GNDT of 'Curse You: DICE'. The Curse is successful if the dice rolls a 4 or 5. If the Mariner has 11+ Morale and rolls a 6 they are instantly transferred to the Target Ship and lose the ailment of 'Undead'.

Create a new rule:

Undeath:

Ghost Ships have been known to wander the Sea. They are like every other ship except they do not have a Captain or a Battle Strength. Instead the Poet is in control of the Ghost Ship and may issue any order of attack, dock or any order under Rule 15. The crew of a Ghost Ship is made up of Mariners with the ailment ‘Undead’. (See Rule 22 under Undead.)

Attack: Once per lacuna, each Ghost Ship may declare an attack against any Ship, regardless of the Distance between the two. Ghost Ships may not be attacked by non-Ghost Ships. Ghost Ships cannot use Beheadment as an attack type. When attacking, Ghost Ships do not roll for attack or defense.

The Ritual: The only way for a Target Ship to counter an attack from a Ghost Ship is if a Priest aboard the Target Ship successfully performs the ‘Ritual’. (See Rule 17 under Priest) This Priest has 12 hours to successfully perform the Ritual after a declaration of attack has been made. The Ritual is considered to be in effect for 12 hours after it has been performed. If the Ritual is still in effect or if it is successful the Ghost Ship may not attack the Target Ship.

The Curse: A Ritual may be countered by a successful Curse. Once a Target Ship's Priest has successfully performed a Ritual, a Mariner aboard the attacking Ghost Ship may perform the ‘Curse’. This must be done within 4 hours of the performance of the Ritual. If the Curse was successful, the Ritual is ignored and the attack by the Ghost Ship continues on the Target Ship. If there is more than one Ghost Ship in play a priest may react to a successful Curse with another successful Ritual.

Self-killed by Keitalia; failed by Satyr Eyes at 23:39 GMT, 04.05.2004. -3 to Keitalia, +1 to Satyr Eyes.

Proposal: Purge Routine

Amend the last paragraph of Rule 2: Mariners to read:

Some Mariners are idle, and should be marked as such in the sidebar. For the purposes of all rules excluding the rule that this paragraph appears in, idle Mariners are not counted as Mariners. Admin may render a Mariner idle if that Mariner has requested it. Admins may un-idle a Mariner at their request. An idle Mariner retains all of the GNDT values they had at the moment they became idle; however, they are subject to the normalisation of GNDT values that takes place at the beginning of each new dynasty, as described in Rule 10.

Add the following to the bottom of Rule 2: Mariners -

The Poet may, at any time, post a Register proposal to the BlogNomic blog which begins with the paragraph "Register" in bold text. All non-idle Mariners are required to reply to the Register by commenting within 48 hours. After those 48 hours, any non-idle Mariners who have not responded may be deleted as Mariners from the BlogNomic gamestate.

If a Mariner has not voted on an active proposal for a period equal to or greater than 2 weeks, then they may be deleted by any Admin.

On the passage of this proposal, all non-idle Mariners who have not voted on it are set to idle.

Getting tougher on non-participating players. Firstly, being idle is a privilege. As has been observed in Kevan's proposal, it involves becoming functionally immune to all game effects; while this is a big advantage, it's also virtually unabusable, as it requires the player to sacrafice their right to vote. Thus it exists as a useful tool for those who would like to participate, but can't due to other concerns. If such a system exists, it should at least be restricted to those courteous enough to request it. Also, formalising a method of sorting wheat from chaff.

Self-killed by Josh; failed by Satyr Eyes at 23:34 GMT, 04.05.2004. -3 to Josh, +1 to Satyr Eyes.

Proposal: Captain's Log, Stardate...

Create a new rule, "Logs", which reads:

Not more than once per two Lacunae, each Mariner other than the Poet may post a Log Entry in the form of a comment to the Blog. Log Entries are clearly denoted as such in the comment's title (e.g. "Noman's Log: Dude, Where's My Ship?") and must describe some maritime happening involving the Mariner posting it (its "Protagonist"). If, at the end of the Lacuna, comments to that Log Entry contain a For vote from either the Poet or the Captain of a Ship other than the Protagonist's, the Protagonist gains 2 Morale.

If during a Lacuna all Mariners aboard a Ship post Log Entries that receive such For votes, the Captain of that Ship gains 10 Morale; additionally, all Mariners on that Ship are exempt from Homesickness penalties at the end of that Lacuna, as the ship's community is so intimate that its crew barely misses home.

I don't want this Dynasty turning into a one-man literary journal, and I for one am dying to see what's happening on these Ships without having to come up with it myself!

Passed 8 to 2 by Satyr Eyes at 17:53 GMT, 04.05.2004. +12 to Satyr Eyes.

Chapter 3 Concluded

The conclusion of Chapter 3 is up, but there's no narrative, just a description of the upshot. (Octave didn't make a choice, so I didn't write an epilogue per se. Besides, I'm sleepy.) Octave's probably idle. My bad; I really should've made sure the protagonist of the chapter was active before deciding to make him the protagonist.

I've gotten very little feedback about Chapters. Are they good? Bad? Repetitive? Heavy-handed? Flavorful? Way too long? Or does no one care?