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xinoehp512

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  1. xinoehp512
    Maern snuck a quick glance at the other students of the lecture hall. Most were writing furiously, although a few appeared to be done. He quickly turned back to his work. School this first two weeks had been... not hard, exactly, but overwhelming. So many of the other students had already been here for multiple terms, and knew their way around. He... didn't. He barely knew anything, in fact. Why, he'd nearly gotten swindled by a dishonest Archives worker! That had bothered him more than he really cared to admit. He sighed as he finished up his work and leaned back in his seat. What was he going to do? He could hardly go home- not now. He'd started this journey, so he might as well finish it, right? He just needed to get used to being at University. He had another two weeks before the term ended, after all. Perhaps by that time he'd have gained enough experience to truly feel ready for what the University had to throw at him. Of course, at that point he might have already been raised into the Arcanum- and that would be a whole different can of worms. Best not to worry about that now, not when he had so much to worry about already. ----- It seems that people have beat me to the probability punch. Perhaps I can still contribute...? According to my calculations, as things currently stand (ten votes on nobles, four on commoners) each person not staying at the Golden Pony has a 44.5 percent chance of getting On the Horns. This percentage is composed of a 23 percent chance that the person will get their charges dropped, 13 percent chance of getting charged with Undignified Mischief (apology), 6 percent chance of getting charged with Reckless Use of Sympathy (lashings), 1.8 chance of getting charged with Conduct Unbecoming a Member of the Arcanum (lashings) and a 0.1 percent chance of getting charged with Conduct Unbecoming a Member of the Arcanum (expulsion). In total, each individual person only has a 7.9 percent chance of having something happening that affects them gameplay-wise. I don't have time to calculate what the chance is that any particular punishment might fall to anyone, unfortunately; luckily, the way things appear doesn't look too bad. I'm glad that so much activity is going on in this game, even if it means it could be hard to keep up. A lot of time I fall behind; I'll try my best this time to stay on top of things. (I do have motivation- I'm going to need quite a bit of tuition reduction if I want to afford my current lodgings!)
  2. xinoehp512
    Something I notice when looking at the vote count is that no one has used both of their votes except for me, which seems... interesting. Are people just used to casting one vote, I wonder? @DeTess @Elkanah @Zillah @Straw @Hemalurgic Headshot @Karnage @Elandera @Lopen Disciplinary points from the NPC Masters are nothing to be trifled with. 45 DPs will be awarded every cycle until PC Masters take over and spend less (if they so desire, which they might not). Anyone with two votes on them (uncancelled) gets 1DP; anyone with any votes at all will get an average of 45/players with votes. Right now that means an average of 5 per player- enough to bring them On the Horns, but not enough for there to even be a chance to expel them. That's without counting potential vote cancellations, however; that number could easily be only 5 if everyone still has only one vote on them. That makes an average of 9 DP per vote recipient. Not enough for an expulsion- (although someone could get unlucky). Still, I agree with Devotary that the most logical course of action is to spread the votes around on a few Commoners as well, or at least double up all the votes on Nobles. There's plenty of votes to go around, and lots of activity, so that shouldn't be too difficult to achieve.
  3. xinoehp512
    The squid apologized for his atrocious behavior. He was still insecure about his appearance.
  4. xinoehp512
    The student let out an exclamation at Maern's introduction and introduced himself. "You must enjoy music," he continued. "Are you familiar with the lay of Sir Savien Traliard?" Maern's eyes widened in surprise. "Certainly," he said. "Although, to be honest, I wouldn't have believed it could be played on the piano." Curiosity bled into his voice. "Are you saying that you can?" That would be a tune to hear, indeed- even if the piano was off-key. Definitely not something that he himself would ever dare to attempt. That was a task for a writer of music, a category to which he most certainly did not belong. He tried a little, but he'd never been able to capture the soul of the music in the same way a true composer would. The Edema Ruh might be poor in riches, he thought to himself, but they are truly far richer than us in talent. Maybe there was a lesson to be learned there. (Although he was pretty dirt poor himself, and plenty of rich people were musicians, so the lesson probably wasn’t that talent and wealth were inversely proportional.) As the musician began to play, he shelved the thought for another time and settled back into his studying. @Elkanah ----- Sure! 1/20 1/12 1/6 20x:1 1 1.67 3.33 15x:2 1.5 2.5 5 10x:3 1.5 2.5 5 5x:4 1 1.67 3.33 2x:5 0.5 0.83 1.67 I actually forgot about the bonuses being the dice changes. Oops. But it doesn't really change my analysis all that much. It may be the twenty to one is worth it for a Cealdish commoner, but i honestly still think that the fifteen for one is better anyways- an expected value of five times what you gamble is nothing to be sniffed at. (I find it odd, however, that this is higher than the benefit for the Edema Ruh, given the trend to the opposite within the social rankings). If you happen to be a Cealdish commoner, it might even be worth wagering the maximum amount of one talent-especially if you can post enough to get enough spare change so that it doesn't sink your finances. If you want minimum risk, you could go for the 5/6 odds for a easy doubling of your money. Again, though, you don't gain as much value from this, because winning twice will only get you essentially banned from The Loaded Die- so you'll probably only get one or two talents anyways. If you plan to visit Imre more than once, you're bound to get lucky with a two or three out of six chance eventually- and, unlike real gambling, the expected gain is actually positive.
  5. xinoehp512
    With the squid.
  6. xinoehp512
    The mimes investigated for Grammarly demons, just to be sure.
  7. xinoehp512
    Meanwhile, a bidding war was going on outside.
  8. xinoehp512
    The manager turned the bread into a limited edition meal that made the company thousands.
  9. xinoehp512
    Because Olive Gardens secretly had a Bag of Plenty that produced only breadsticks.
  10. xinoehp512
    A review of the rules reveal that I have made a slight error in my evaluation of the gambling mechanics. Previous cursory evaluation led me to believe that the expected value of each type of bet was about the same: further examination reveals that this is not, in fact, the case. The twenty to one and the five to one, with probabilities of one out of twenty and one out of five respectively both have an expected value equivalent to the money invested into the gamble. The fifteen to one and ten to one, however, with probabilities of three out of twenty and one out of five respectively both have an expected value equivalent to one and a half times the money invested. This makes it even more worthwhile to gamble your spare change- although the twenty to one may not be the best option after all. I would still advise you to choose the higher of the two more valuable options, for the same reason- winning more will only make you less able to gamble, so you should try to bag the highest payout you can while you’re still allowed in the establishment. This might be only a small part of the game, but I hope that this explanation helps someone.
  11. xinoehp512
    He ate through their entire stock.
  12. xinoehp512
    It just crossed my mind that now I have to wait for Elkanah in order to post another RP post. Ah, well. If votes really are 5 jots then I can make this one worth that anyways :P. And one of my other posts was just RP, so it balances out in the end. For my next vote, I will select Araris, who seems to be the only Noble who hasn't checked in yet and doesn't have a vote on them. To fill out my post, I will speak on a pseudo-randomly chosen Topic of the Minute- gambling! Since most of the gambling options have a similar expected value (except the 2:1, which is trash) and you can only win once in a row, you should probably bet on just one number in order to maximize your potential winnings over the long term. You'll likely only win once or twice throughout the game, so you want to maximize the payment when you do. Since I've not quite reached the requisite threshold in order to qualify for tuition reduction, I might as well add that you might as well gamble when you're in Imre. Even at base odds, the payout expected value is even (except for the 2:1 - don't do that one), and as long as you don't put money you need for something else on the line, the worst that will happen is that you'll lose some spare change.
  13. xinoehp512
    The man snatched the drabs out of midair, nearly dropping them by mistake. He stared at them for a moment, as if uncertain as what to do with them- although Maern could tell that he needed them very badly indeed. He looked like an Edema Ruh- unless he was some sort of secret genius, Maern was willing to bet that he would be scraping to make tuition at all. Maern might not be in the same situation, but he could sympathize. And, unlike the Edema Ruh, he had a few drabs to spare. A good tune was easily worth that, in his opinion- making it easier to concentrate would make his studying more focused and effective, which in turn would cause him to do better in his classes, which would make it more likely for him to impress a Master and get elevated into the Arcanum. At last the man looked up and returned his smile, and Maern breathed an internal sigh of relief. "What would you like to hear?" he asked? Maern shrugged. "I'm not particularly choosy. Do you have a favorite?" He hesitated for a moment, suddenly realizing that he had no idea what the other students' name was. "I'm Maern, by the way," he offered, hoping to receive a response in kind. @Elkanah -------- I must say, the differentiation between turn and term is not easy on the brain. I can hardly remember which is what is which anymore...! Although I also must say that I sincerely hope that I will get better at keeping things in order as the game goes along. Usually I post a pretty straightforwards analysis of the rules in the first cycle, composed of my basic thoughts on the individual parts and pieces. That's hardly going to work for this game, so I'm going to have to adjust my tactics if I want to gain profit for my expounding of the game mechanics. I'm not a Edema Ruh, so I'm not scrambling for money, but I'm not exactly rolling in it either. If the tuition decrease for filing a complaint really has jumped from .3 talents to .5 talents, then it's even more important that I get my votes out. I'll start off with a vote on Green Rover, because 1. They're a Noble; 2.They haven't checked in yet; and 3.Everyone seems to be going from the top of the list, so I'm working my way upwards from the bottom instead. It is important to note, however, that several of the nobles may very well be staying at the Golden Pony, meaning that spreading the votes out on only them isn't really going to work. If any Nobles would like to admit to having a vote cancellation available, feel free to my extra vote to keep things balanced.
  14. xinoehp512
    The restaurant goers were happily oblivious to his subjectively atrocious eating habits, and thus he was able to successfully make his departure within a reasonable timeframe.
  15. xinoehp512
    Let’s see… thought Maern. Nine fields of study- Linguistics, Arithmetics, Rhetoric & Logic, Archives, Sympathy, Physicking, Alchemy, Artificery, and Naming. Which to focus on…? He tapped his pencil as he considered. He liked literature and language- perhaps Linguistics, Rhetoric, or Archives? Arithmetics and Physicking he wasn’t particularly interested in, although he supposed that they would probably be useful. Both Alchemy and Artificing would give him skills that he could potentially use to earn a little extra cash. And Naming… Naming was simply fascinating. He sighed. Oh well- he had plenty of time to decide. In the meantime, he had basic school to study for. Music began to play in the background, and he hummed along absentmindedly to it as he worked. He liked music. It helped him concentrate- exactly what he needed during a long study session like this one. He played the piano a little bit himself - had even worked a few coins off it on occasion-, but he hadn't had much chance to practice for a long time. Certainly not since he began studying at the University. He admired anyone with the dedication to pursue a musical instrument long enough to truly master it, especially if they were a fellow student. Suddenly he realized the music had stopped. He looked up from his papers. "No need to apologize!" he said quickly. "Here..." He fumbled in his pockets and came out with a couple of drabs, which he tossed over. He flashed a smile. "Music helps me focus," he explained. @Elkanah
  16. xinoehp512
    Greetings, fellow students! Very glad to be finally playing this game. I have read the rules before, but I only just started my reread, so I'm unfortunately not going to have much to say in this post. What I will say will concern the monetary system, particularly the tuition reductions- which, although they're technically discounts, effectively act as though they're earnings. Of the methods given, the most effective by far appears to be the 'quality RP'. This can be done multiple times every turn, regardless of the location of the player, and requires no other in-game prerequisites to complete. Therefore, I will attempt to fit as much RP into a single cycle as the limits of my time and my sanity allow. ––- Maern’s breath condensed in the air as he exhaled, forming clouds of mist that dissipated in the air with every footstep. He pulled his secondhand cloak around him as he swiveled his head around to take in the University as a whole. He felt a thrill go through him. He’d been longing to come here ever since he was a child. It hadn’t exactly been an impossible dream- his family’s finances might be tight, but they were hardly poor- but he’d sort of expected that something would happen that would stop him from attending. But nothing had happened. And now, here he was. Ready to learn at one of the most prestigious institutions of learning in the Four Corners. Ready to learn to become an arcanist. He felt a shiver run up his spine in anticipation at the thought. It would be hard, of course. But he was willing to do whatever it took. Starting with making the best impression on the Masters as he possibly could. (Part of why he’d chosen to lodge at The Windy Tower- proximity to the University grounds would make things much easier.) He smiled. Cold it might be; he hardly felt it. Cold was hardly going to stop him now. ––– I might as well get the drabs for game related discussion as well, so here’s a few final comments. I realize that this is a game that has been played before, and that the player list of this game includes some who have taken part in those past games. To those players, I beg forgiveness for my ignorance- I unfortunately don’t really have time to reread the past games, and so my reasoning may be deeply flawed in ways that may seem obvious to you. Finally, a question. Is anyone else staying at The Windy Tower and- if you are- do you feel like doing some coordinated RP with me?
  17. xinoehp512
    Luckily for him, he had a few abilities that would help with that.
  18. xinoehp512
    He gave her a mysterious expression, finished his food, then departed.
  19. xinoehp512
    Right- that's their name for us. He knew that. Still, he didn't appreciate being called evil. "I'm afraid I don't know of any sort of being exactly like the one you describe," he said innocently. "Although perhaps a few of the Enlightened might fit the bill."
  20. xinoehp512
    Sheln's eyes shifted to the the newcomer as he entered his room, and lingered there for a moment. Something about the boy tickled his memory, but he couldn't quite put a finger on what it was. The boy spoke, and suddenly recognition sparked in Sheln's mind, and he remembered exactly where he'd seen Everest He.attuned Joy. This was perfect. He'd only dropped the other sphere on a hunch, a faint hope that his target would be amenable for Enlightenment. But Everest... Everest was a completely different story. Sheln had seen the flash of horror in the boy's eyes when they met his own. Those were the eyes of someone keeping a secret. A secret that Sheln knew- and that Everest knew that he knew. Half a year ago, Thade had approached him with a proposal. He'd explained that he'd had enough practice with Sha-thoexis, and he was ready to put what he'd learned to use. Find me a Radiant, he'd said. Capture someone they care about. I will show you. And so, Sheln had found him a few. It had actually been surprisingly easy. The hardest part wound up being matching the Radiants to their families. Many of their searches had been frustrated by a discovery that the Radiant in question either had no close kin or had unstable relationships with them. Their perseverance had paid off eventually, however, and after they'd found a few matches it was smooth sailing. Most Radiants apparently relied on anonymity to protect their loved ones- actual guarding on them was sparse to nonexistent, and so kidnapping them was a piece of cake. It was simplicity itself to use them as bait against the Radiants, to draw them out so Thade could start to work his magic on them. It was at that point that Sheln had gotten involved with Everest. He'd been resisting Sha-thoexis as of that point, but seemed quite willing to go along with whatever he was told in order to protect his family. Thade had given the boy to him to help him with an attack on a Radiant- one that, with his help, wound up ultimately being a success. The boy had fled shortly thereafter. They'd sent messengers after him, offering him his family's safety in exchange for his allegiance. He'd refused, and eventually they'd lost his whereabouts. Not lost anymore, he thought with delight. This was exactly what he needed. Everest was hiding his past from the others, and that gave Sheln leverage over him. And that wasn't even taking into account his family. While the boy had proven his willingness to abandon them in the past, he'd also proven his willingness to bend his standards in order to save them. And - critically - he didn't know what they could do to his family. What they had done. Not kill them, of course- not since they had Thade's abilities of... persuasion. After all, why kill his family when they could, instead, convert them? One way or another, Everest was theirs. He was sure of it. Sheln suddenly realized that the boy had asked him a question. He blinked. "Voidbringers?" he blurted without thinking. "What are those?"
  21. xinoehp512
    "Wait," said the squid a moment later. "I don't have cats. I've never even had one cat!"
  22. xinoehp512
    "Whoops," murmured the squid. "Sorry- tentacles..." James waved it off and sighed again. "It wasn't supposed to be like this," he said. "Indeed," said the squid. "I mean, just look at me!" He flailed his tentacles disconsolately. Jacob let out an unexpected laugh. "Don't worry," he said. "We'll get you turned back. Eventually." His smile faded. "But after that... I don't know."
  23. xinoehp512
    James and the squid watched from afar, concerned. "Things are getting out of hand..." murmured James.
  24. xinoehp512
    But that didn't faze him in the slightest, as he was incorporeal.
  25. xinoehp512
    He was quickly brought up to speed by a passing cannonball.
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