Great Progress (still no title) Now I more or less have one or more themes straight. I think now I need to establish some kind of tone to it all. Does it really have to be that serious? I mean it doesn't have to be Monte Python/Hitchhiker’s Guide/other British humor that's borderline self-aware. Doesn't have to be much like a serious depressing story either. Maybe some kind of B-movie level of seriousness with a wise-cracking side kick making fun through the whole thing.

It will be more fun that way. I already came up with some character names, such as Wet-Biscuit McGee, and a punch line to a joke that has no first half (haven't seen you since the lube job). So really I need more jokes and a personality for what will become the henchman, constantly making jokes and mocking the entire premise.

What? You're expecting characters with depth maybe? Sympathetic characters you care about? It's not like I'm a real author with lots of experience here. Gee, that sounded defensive.

Ok how about an official location in which the player find this wisecracking henchman? Also what's the henchman's official name? Henry Man? Henry Hitchman? How about just Hitchman? Ok I'll come back to that later. I don't want the player to find him right away. Perhaps his partnership is an indirect consequence of a quest. Like say the old woman with the rats isn't home and old Hitchman here knows the side entrance to the basement.

So the player eventually finds Hinchman nearby Ursula's house. Almost too conveniently located (insert cheesy music here). After making their way in to the basement there in fact are no rats but another character who appears to be preparing the room for a mysterious purpose. Upon seeing the player and Hinchman this NPC attacks and is killed by the two main characters. Upon exploring the basement many clues are found as to what was going on. Not enough to reveal a secret of course but just enough indication something sinister may have been taking place.

From here the player and Hinchman will leave the basement to try to report such a happening to the original character that asked to have the rat problem taken care of. Instead a new series of quests will take place, the original quest giver will be gone.

Ok all we need now are some quests. Little ones, big ones...ok fine. I got nothin'. Some how we get from here to the ritual thing, causing the civil war.

Now all we need are some major events of the war. How will we tell one side from the other? I'm pretty sure it will be all humans. Now would a magic ritual performed without the consent of the populace really be enough to incite civil war? Well to make an unnecessary real world parallel what if scientists today just decided to perform dangerous scientific experiments that could have a direct effect of an unknown degree on every man woman an child in a particular geographic region and was discovered before it went off? What if this populace then found there was nothing that could be done one way or another about this? How severe would such a scenario be before the populace decided it was worth fighting over?

Well not that this story is really about politics but I do live in California. The govenor we had was really unpopular but the populace was indifferent at best extremely apathetic at worst. No one seemed to care what went on in the capital until it started to effect them directly. Maybe that is closer to what this is. Or maybe I'm taking a stupid digression for no reason.

At any rate this civil war will be building long before the ritual is even attempted. Long standing tensions will finally find an outlet. Of course it doesn't have to be this complicated. The plans for the ritual are discovered, war breaks out. Or the plans for the ritual are discovered and the populace learns the entire society will be transformed into something completely different sustained entirely by one young suffering child to be kept is misery infinitem. Now perhaps that would incite some strong feelings and opinions one way or another to the point of a fight, I'm sure of it.

In fact the "original story" (see top right) even gives some great rationalizations for allowing the scenario of the utopia via suffering child.

Fortunately, at least for me, the original story is rather vague on which citizens leave and why precisely they'd do so. So say the fact that this utopia, as described in the original city, would be considered hell by some people could in fact be the real reason behind some of them leaving. Perhaps not so much they can't live in a society sustained entirely on a suffering child so much as the ideal society makes them want to throw up. The normal Towz will be acceptable but the ideal one will make them want to throw up.

These will eventually make up the outsiders. Now if I were real smart I'd come up with some themes that remained constant threw all three episodes. Maybe even some setups in the first episode that isn’t resolved until the third episode. That'd be if I were really smart.

On a related topic I've decided I'm going to include a whole lot of references to different things. Everything from things in my personal life only I will get to rather obscure pop-culture references that probably still only I will get to some more rather obvious and blatant references. And I already have at least one Easter egg planned. I'm pretty sure no one at all will really get that one.

Also I have an idea for a rather limited NPC: he will be named Steve. He will be in a park or some where and have but two lines: "Don't worship Steve!!" and "Sartrean existentialism rules!!". It will be a subtle reference to a friend of mine from my former job. Also it will be the first (probably only) mention of Sartrean existentialism any NWN module player will ever see or know. What? Probably true.

Now I know that I am on a roll with this story. Why do I feel just as clueless about where this will go now as I did before I stared a few days ago? In any case I’ll continue tomorrow...

  ¶ 10:57 AM