nerdelemental

I'm finding that I want to think Andromeda is the best thing ever, but that initial rush is interestingly a small boon for the Corp side, too. In order for Andromeda to maximize the potential of the hand she sort of builds immense resources, giving the Corp a turn or two reprieve before she launches. And, soon into the mid-game, any financial burst she got is expected but the Corp can set up their walls and she's lost her big advantage too quickly. I do want to love her most, but Santiago seems better balanced for an overall game strategy.

In fact, I think there's logic in building more rats in the hiring process as the summon/recursion is a bit mitigated now. Over the course of the game you might see the normal amount on the board (as before errata), but the Hamelin player may want to come packing several more to start. Especially since they're a bit longer in the tooth now that the RC can force them to lose Slow.

Correct.

LOL! Keltheos badge ninja'd me!

Companion. Maybe Reactivate.

Glad you all seem on the same page with us. We do want to do it right. Not "fast" and not "just give the loudest guy his way" - we know the crew slipped a bit through the cracks of the first playtest (Outcast models have a tendency of that) but now we're entirely focused on him and bringing him in line with everyone else. He should still be strong but not stupid. And he should have good matchups and bad. Players should not flip game tables if you put his crew on it.

Nerdelemental, any idea when the RM's will resume answering / resolving some of the more hotly debated and outstanding rules questions?

Pshuh. No idea. We're busy as a dung beetle in a pole barn over here...(and this is a good reminder of why I don't want a stupid RM badge!)

Sigh. PM me a link to any of these "Hot" topics and I'll see if my stick can reach the hornet's nest.

---------- Post added at 05:28 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:27 PM ----------

That you (Wyrd) are considering a cross model fix is encouraging to me. It makes me think he won't be "Alp'ed" with his fix. Is it to much to ask if "soon" means before third quarter 2013? :Paralyzed_Puppet:

Yes. within a year. I promise.

Be patient. Necessary revision of specific models is very much on our radar and the wheels are turning rapidly. Hamelin's revision, in particular, is very cross-model and so takes a bit more time, discussion, and testing to ensure we get it right.

Thank you all for understanding.

So: soon.

There are two Rasputinas out there. Use one as 'Tina and the other as Snow. (It's been something I've considered although I'm not against the real Snow, either - I just like messing around).

Keep plugging away, man! You're doing a great job and I hope others in the area discover how much fun can be had up there!

The Rasputina stuff is some of my favorite to write and deal with. Her combat with December nearly cracked the poor girl's psyche...

First: Very few (none, I beleive)gemstones occur in the periodic table. They are combinations of atoms in a crystaline matrix. To say that soulstones are not Gemstones is intriguing in itself. Either their atomic structure does not form crystal latices,, or they are not made of atoms--which would make them something wholly alien to our world.

Well, I was being a bit tongue-in-cheek with the periodic table ref. I'm no geologist and only peripherally care about crystal structures, but did stay at a Holiday Inn last week so that should make me an expert. [i'm still just kidding if that reference is lost on anyone. Just kidding. I kid.]

It was to say: THESE rocks aren't normal. But, some things I take for granted are not taken for granted by everyone. These actually somehow suck out and store a person's soul for crying out loud. That, at least to me, should be enough to suspend everyone's notions that they are totally normal rocks. Where did they come from? How are they there? Why are they there? How do they work? I'm not saying.

That being said, I'm certainly not trying to imply you are wrong. I assume you have the word from on high. I'm just saying that I find it very difficult to reconcile the uniformity, and apparent perfection of shape of Soulstones with suspension of disbelief, If we assume that they were not, in fact, the remnants of an earlier culture--which in turn led to the statement that it becomes not mining but archeology.

The word doesn't go much higher (I write the stuff), but, to be totally frank, I don't think many of us at this level of setting development have ever cared nearly as much as I think you do about these things. I'm not being snarky, really. You just seem to care about the nature of these rocks more than we ever did (it's my observation not criticism).

Whether it is LITERALLY mining or archaeology, the miners call it mining. If you said to one of them: "Hey, you're now part of the Archaeology and Steamfitter's Union," I doubt they'd take you too seriously. Ramos may understand the nuances of the words and the nature of the stuff they're digging out of the ground. He still refers to it as mining. And he's kinda smart, so I'm taking his word for it.

They're not gems.

They're not naturally occurring stone veins. They do not appear on the periodic table.

And, in our real world, there are many examples of stones that are not jagged that are buried that are all totally natural. If you lived near any region where glaciation bulldozed, buried, and/or dropped mineral deposits you'd know exactly what I'm talking about.

But, essentially, they're not entirely without some magical properties. I mean - duh.

How about a compromise: they're smooth edged?

Although they are mined, they are not cut. They're pulled out of the ground as smooth surfaced things. Almost all would be white. As Ratty pointed out, there are some exceptions, but it's not been revealed in the fluff as to what they are or what makes them different.

Ratty and others are working their nerdy programmer fingers raw on it!

So.... "soon"tm

Could the reason they went for Malifaux have anything to do with soulstones?

Heh.

Well, 1. No DOUBT! Those things are sexy-sauce in a tiny package. But, 2. Wait and see. There's more afoot.

I'm the doof that wrote that page 27 thing and have a hand in the development of the 10T background. Essentially, everything considered, this is a pretty simplified statement of intent:

• Abandon the notion that it's the same as OUR Earth's history. It's not. We're not even trying to make it the same.
  
• In order to survive/thrive, major emperors/warriors/leaders from emerging tribes/villages (whatevs) came together to support one another. Vestiges of individual ownership and personal goals lingered, of course. The nations in play that we might know would be China, Korea, and Japan. Smaller nations in the region may not have had a chance to ever develop like we know it. Viet Nam, for example (I just referenced Viet Nam as a "small" country. Lol.)
  
• They're one big nation and have been for a pretty long time. However, they still have a sense of cultural origins they retain even after such a long time. It's mostly aesthetic, but there has never been a full embrace of "We're one big happy nation" mentality, leading to a lot of in-fighting and political upheaval all along.
  
• Very recently, the entire 3K went into lockdown mode, shutting their borders in an unprecedented way, keeping all outsiders out and anyone in there, mostly trapped in there. Some major ports are still open but only a few and no one easily gets beyond those cities.
  
• the 10 Thunders is a Yakuza/mafia-like organization with strong political interests and connections. They've infiltrated (ninja style) a number of outworld organizations and have now, for some reason, turned attention to Malifaux.
  

Jakob won it. But it was masterful playing on both sides with some incredible Red Joker play for each side as well.

Very exciting to watch, and I don't say that lightly.

IIRC, a Beckoner killed Lilith with a Red on damage right after Lilith's totem transpositioned Mr. Graves out and Lilith right up against Jakob allowing her to cut him down with a RJ of her own on damage. It was crazy.

---------- Post added at 02:06 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:05 PM ----------

Oh, the Naked part trumps the Angry part, so I should get the naked angry ones, too.

Yeah, let him sell it now matter how he got it or who he is. I hope he sells it for a thousand bucks.

Okay. Sorry for the interruption. Back to animal pic posts, please.

One will be a doppelganger, too. That's how we handle twins- they have to be Neverborn one way or another. Our player base will be all like, "So which one is the evil one? The human or doppelganger? Which one has the goat? Aaagh! So confusing!"

Maybe they're twins.

?

Paint one with a goatee and you can be like, "And this is the evil one. You can tell by the goatee."

Well, this whole thread.

Last year's model was not the convict. Santana is an even more rare and limited model that cannot be purchased. Nothing like it has ever been made. It could potentially go higher than a LCB in its highest.

I'll give you a hug and a sharp man-smack on the ass.

Hows that?

Agh! What tournament?! How'd I miss that?