[GroupDesign] - Clusters 2 and 3

[Doug Ruff]

As this still appears to be a brainstorm, I'm going to chuck out a few more thought on this.

Firstly, the players POV. I still feel strongly that each Archivist/Host symbiosis is a single 'identity'. However, given that the game appears to be tracking Archivists as they move from host to host, there still has to be a 'core' Archivist identity (who the character is when they are not possessing someone.) This should be the first stage of character creation.

Secondly, this may already be obvious, but I just want to observe the the Archivist (and not the Hosts) are shaping up to be the key antagonist for our Premise (something bad needs to be stopped, and the future of the human race preserved)

Now, bringing us back to this Premise, it follows that Archivists are posessing a particular Host for a reason. If I'm possessing Bill the Auto Mechanic, there has to be a reason I chose him instead of the other 100,000 other Auto Mechanics I could have possessed instead.

If this is a time-travel game, the obvious conclusion is that Bill is in the vicinity of a 'pivotal moment' and his skills are needed. I feel that this 'pivotal' thing should be the main factor in finding a 'Good Host.'

So I don't see XP being a measure of how good a Host you can find. I see it as a measure of how well you can use the Host you've got. This manifests as better use of powers (see below), and also cultural and physical skills learnt from previous hosts (Archivists already have easy access to mental skills, they've been around for so long.)

Pre-existing human traits: I've seen a lot of this in previous posts, but it's got me wondering: if Archivists were 'created' far enough in the future, and were technologically advanced enough to make the jump to Archivist status, and spent long enough in their new form before taking Hosts - they may have a substantially different take on what is 'human'. I think we need to consider carefully what those 'residual human traits' are going to look like.

(OTOH, if you want to have a long-repressed and fully human personality for each Archivist, which could surface when inhabiting a Host, then that could be a lot of fun. Imagine a triangle between the Host, the 'dispassionate' Archivist, and the Archivists former human self...)

Archivist Powers: I see these falling into two main categories - 'energetic' and 'telepathic'. Energetic powers are about boosting the Hosts existing physical capabilites (metabolic acceleration, pain control etc.) - this may not seem a big deal, but imagine someone on PCP, with with control over their actions. Obviously, these sort of powers are going to Burn* a Host severely, but it may lead to some Matrix-style action (I want this too, Sydney!), especially 'bullet-time' reactions.

Telepathy is already a stock ability, so I won't dwell on this here. But...

I don't think that Archivists should have large-scale psychokinetic or 'laser' powers. If they had these, then why do they need Hosts?

Lot's of stuff here, hope it's useful and not too far away from what everyone wants. Can't wait to see what you all come up with next!

*I'm thinking of Burn as physical here - 'the candle that burns twice as bright...' etc. However I agree that we need to measure 'psychic' injury to the Host as well. Perhaps 'energetic' powers Burn a Host physically, whereas 'telepathic' powers damage his mind? This feels appropriate somehow.

[Sydney Freedberg]

Alright, I'm jumping in late...

Hey, one more brain is always good. (Err, did I just come up with come up with the tagline for our game?)

...the Archivist, based on some of your initial language that I really liked, is surfing his own historical sense.  As such, he/she would probably be jumping into hosts that jive with his current intention.  I think the idea of a conflicting host is a bit repugnant...

Good points. Assuming player characters aren't evil bastards (though the system should allow for evil bastards, if only as NPCs), then there should be some kind of sympathy between Archivist and Host. That said, there needs to be some degree of tension too. Neither total harmony nor stark conflict is all that interesting; it's the grey area in the middle where the fun dilemmas lie.

[Tobias]

Dear Everyone,

I think it's good to get some of these (great!) ideas into some more concrete mechanics while the iron's still hot. This is why I've made three threads to follow up:

1. Nailing Mechanics - nuts and bolts
2. Core vs. Custom - what is essential, and what can be changed?
3. Time Travel Party! - concerns of Time Travel and player groups.

I hope you are all having as much fun with this thing as I am, and will continue to posts in these new threads.

Thanks,
Foot

[Thor]

How do the Archivists recognize each other as they are hopping from body to body?

What level of control does the Archivist have over the choice of Host?

If the Archivists are from the Future what level of historical acuity do they have? Do they know that there will be a cab on the corner with the future vice president in it at 3:46? Or do they just know that sometime in the future Billy will save the world if he isn't killed by these other guys from the future?

Does the Host need to represent someone who is involved with the situation at hand or are they merely inocent bystanders? Why not jump into Hitler and stop the genocide?

What level of physicality do the Archivists have when they are not in the host? are they allways hanging around waiting to set things right or are they sent here on assignment?

Are these questions that should be front end decided or are these customizable features of your campaign setting? I have answers of my own but wanted to get other imput so we can all be on the same page.

[Tobias]

Good questions, but I don't have THE answers, of course. I'll try to wrap it up here for you for now (with what I've seen of everyone's responses), so we can continue in the three new threads.

How do the Archivists recognize each other as they are hopping from body to body?

Mystic Archivist Recognition Sight, or Secret Handshake.

What level of control does the Archivist have over the choice of Host?

This one's pretty essential, and we're getting into that on the 'nailing mechanics' post. One thought now is that with experience, skill in choosing will increase. Another thought is that the Archivist is limited by some special, possibly hard-to-recognize aspect of the Host in relation to the key moment/fact the Archivist is searching for.

If the Archivists are from the Future what level of historical acuity do they have? Do they know that there will be a cab on the corner with the future vice president in it at 3:46? Or do they just know that sometime in the future Billy will save the world if he isn't killed by these other guys from the future?

Time travel is its own whole ball of wax - see the 'Time Travel Party' post. Suggestions have been parallel worlds to avoid paradoxes, or a meta-agreement that time scenes are framed for coolness, not for paradox-creation issues.

Does the Host need to represent someone who is involved with the situation at hand or are they merely inocent bystanders? Why not jump into Hitler and stop the genocide?

There's been talk of 'special' Hosts that are in some way extra suited to event/fact under investigation. They might just be relevantly skilled people, though.

Why not jump into Hitler? Because you do not know the ramifications? Because you might wipe out your own timeline? Because Hitler was neccesary to arrive at the future as you know now? Because your superiors have declared Hitler 'off limits'?

A key point, I think, is that Archivists are researchers (or cameramen, if you would). Jumping into Hitler would be like jumping from behind the camera into the movie - probably a no-no.

What level of physicality do the Archivists have when they are not in the host? are they allways hanging around waiting to set things right or are they sent here on assignment?

'Incorporeal' is the thing decided upon - but we've already seen AI's in a computer with 'meat-downloads' as options, as well as mystical or technological posessor spirits/astral entities. Probably will be left up to the Customisation we want in this game.

Are these questions that should be front end decided or are these customizable features of your campaign setting? I have answers of my own but wanted to get other imput so we can all be on the same page.

Please put the answers you've come up with on these issues in the Core vs. Custom follow-up thread.

Thanks!

[TonyLB]

How do the Archivists recognize each other as they are hopping from body to body?

Modus Operandi?

[Jediblack]

I've been away for a while and now what I see? You guys are great! So let me steal here and there and get my thoughts...

Balance
Archivist has this slide that shows his "Archivistness". Host has a limit, NOT known to Archivist. Archivist can use his power to boost a host, but he lose a part of his soul. So, archivist can increase all host stats, skill, attribute and trait and can use them at will.

Drawback. He lose Archive point and slowly burn the host. So At any time Archivist can fade away from the host, that slowly lose stats while the Archivist regains his pure energy power.

Host has limit. If an Archivist push host over this limit, host starts to decay. Illness, crazyness, loss of sanity and the like. If Archivist go away suddenly he loses his pure energy points.

When things go bad
Ok, burnout time!
When things go really bad Archivist can sacrifice host and shows his really power. He can manipulate through the host mind all the nature forces such gravity, magnetism and the like and do interesting stuff.
Nevertheless host dies a little later.
Obviously he mustn't go and kill hosts at will... (balance stuff)

Archivist rigeneration
Archivist can regain his pure energy points by staying a while in his office at the Great Library and doning office work.

[Tobias]

Jediblack,

Thanks for that. That 'host limit' thing sounds pretty good.

Everyone: For further posts about this game, may I invite you to use the three threads I created (a few posts back in this thread?).

Thanks,
Foot

[Jediblack]

Done and done.

See ya, Da