Shadow
Tentacle Monster
- Joined
- Dec 18, 2011
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I'm sorry, that's probably the blandest title imaginable.
But anyway, I'm doing a new CYOA! Against my better judgement no less. Don't know if I'll ever finish it, but I've got a bit of free time around Christmas and I just thought it'd be fun to try. Hopefully my writing has come on a bit since the last two, although I'll probably soon discover that isn't that case...
I also wanted to try something I've never done before in a CYOA - dice rolls for encounters. I've never played Dungeons and Dragons (that's where it comes from, right?) but it seems perfect for this kind of thing. Also, I was inspired by Cevrik777's astonishingly good Amarant: Noble's Path. I'm not going to go into all the detail of that masterpiece, but there will be stats and stuff.
Disclaimer: I have never used stats and numbers before, so it will probably all get horribly cocked up. I did warn you.
Stats breakdown:
But first and foremost, who is our heroine?
A) Amelia. An attractive redhead, brave, and quick witted - and she's certainly known a few men in her time. Whilst she's not the physically strongest on her ship's crew, her courage and fortitude can get her through some of the stickiest situations.
B) Katherine. Ferocious and strong, she's known for acting first, considering the consequences never. Perhaps not the brightest bulb in the box, but she's absolutely lethal with her blaster, and commands tremendous loyalty from those that follow her.
C) Susan. Also not the best at physical combat, but something of an absolute genius - not only does she know a multitude of alien languages, she's a maestro with any kind of technology. Short, with shoulder-length brown hair and a dazzling smile, she's had her fair share of suitors, but no-one has ever won her heart.
D) Olivia. Excellent at hand to hand combat (she took self-defense lessons as girl) she's sadly rather incompetent with a blaster. On the bright side, she is a galaxy-renowned xenobiologist - if you come across alien life, chances are she knows about it. Tall, curly black hair and a lethal punch - she's not someone to cross.
"Damage report, damage report!" Alarms were blaring, people running too and fro in a mad panic. From somewhere closeby Sam could smell burning, see the smoke seeping in from under the bank of computers.
"Shields are down, I repeat, shields are down!" came the reply from across the command room, Agent 7 staring at his monitor with a look of abject horror. "We can't take another shot like that, Captain."
"Understood." Sam ran along the bank of controls, throwing levers and punching buttons in a furious burst of energy. The ship rolled and dropped, sending anyone who wasn't already strapped in tumbling to the floor - but with imminent death so close behind them, there was no time to worry about a few broken bones among the crew.
The next laser blast shot across the front of the viewing window, missing the ship's engine by a matter of meters. Maker save us.
"Sylvia, navigation report," Sam shouted, trying to make his voice heard above the alarms. "Anything in the immediate vicinity we can use? Anywhere we can hide?"
There was a loud explosion from somewhere behind him as another row of computers combusted, throwing plastic and metal shrapnel across the room. He ignored it.
"It's not looking too good, Captain," Sylvia replied. How he admired that woman's ability to understate a situation. "But if we could just avoid dying within the next... I dunno, 70 seconds, we could make an emergency landing in one of three places. Planet Agnak - I'm sending you the coordinates now - or one of its two moons, Phoebos or Sedna."
Everything shook once more as Sam pulled the ship out of its spiraling descent, just as another green laser blast flew through the space they had been a second away from occupying.
"We can make it!" he shouted, more for his own benefit than anyone else's... but to where?
Option 1) Agnak - a jungle planet, hot and humid, and teeming with alien wildlife. There's only limited outposts of civilization.
Option 2) Phoebos - much more civilised, but also a notorious criminal plant. All sorts of malice takes place here, among the run-down cities and rusted old power plants.
Option 3) Sedna - frozen and ice encrusted, but also a previous tourist resort; people came from all over the galaxy to see the icy landscapes and beautiful scenery from the comfort of their thermally heated hotels. Unfortunately, there's been nothing but radio silence from the planet for years, and no-one's yet been dispatched to find out why.
But anyway, I'm doing a new CYOA! Against my better judgement no less. Don't know if I'll ever finish it, but I've got a bit of free time around Christmas and I just thought it'd be fun to try. Hopefully my writing has come on a bit since the last two, although I'll probably soon discover that isn't that case...
I also wanted to try something I've never done before in a CYOA - dice rolls for encounters. I've never played Dungeons and Dragons (that's where it comes from, right?) but it seems perfect for this kind of thing. Also, I was inspired by Cevrik777's astonishingly good Amarant: Noble's Path. I'm not going to go into all the detail of that masterpiece, but there will be stats and stuff.
Disclaimer: I have never used stats and numbers before, so it will probably all get horribly cocked up. I did warn you.
Stats breakdown:
Main stats:
Strength: Self-explanatory, ability to pick stuff up, grapple with monsters, wield heavy weap- wait, that's Dark Souls.
Dexterity: Ability to use small weapons, like a dagger, or ranged weapons, like a laser blaster. Comes into play when trying to hit an opponent's weakspot.
Intelligence: A representation of local knowledge, puzzle solving ability, noticing important things, etc.
Charm: Your ability to be charming to other people you meet. Wouldn't want to cause a diplomatic incident on an alien planet!
Sexual Confidence: Not really an in-game factor, more something that effects the text and role-playing aspect.
All stats are currently out of 10, and have the potential to increase or decrease during the story.
Strength: Self-explanatory, ability to pick stuff up, grapple with monsters, wield heavy weap- wait, that's Dark Souls.
Dexterity: Ability to use small weapons, like a dagger, or ranged weapons, like a laser blaster. Comes into play when trying to hit an opponent's weakspot.
Intelligence: A representation of local knowledge, puzzle solving ability, noticing important things, etc.
Charm: Your ability to be charming to other people you meet. Wouldn't want to cause a diplomatic incident on an alien planet!
Sexual Confidence: Not really an in-game factor, more something that effects the text and role-playing aspect.
All stats are currently out of 10, and have the potential to increase or decrease during the story.
But first and foremost, who is our heroine?
A) Amelia. An attractive redhead, brave, and quick witted - and she's certainly known a few men in her time. Whilst she's not the physically strongest on her ship's crew, her courage and fortitude can get her through some of the stickiest situations.
Stats:
STR:4
DEX: 5
INT:7
CHM: 9
SXC: 9
STR:4
DEX: 5
INT:7
CHM: 9
SXC: 9
B) Katherine. Ferocious and strong, she's known for acting first, considering the consequences never. Perhaps not the brightest bulb in the box, but she's absolutely lethal with her blaster, and commands tremendous loyalty from those that follow her.
Stats:
STR: 9
DEX: 5
INT: 3
CHM: 8
SXC: 7
STR: 9
DEX: 5
INT: 3
CHM: 8
SXC: 7
C) Susan. Also not the best at physical combat, but something of an absolute genius - not only does she know a multitude of alien languages, she's a maestro with any kind of technology. Short, with shoulder-length brown hair and a dazzling smile, she's had her fair share of suitors, but no-one has ever won her heart.
Stats:
STR:4
DEX: 5
INT: 10
CHM: 6
SXC: 1
STR:4
DEX: 5
INT: 10
CHM: 6
SXC: 1
D) Olivia. Excellent at hand to hand combat (she took self-defense lessons as girl) she's sadly rather incompetent with a blaster. On the bright side, she is a galaxy-renowned xenobiologist - if you come across alien life, chances are she knows about it. Tall, curly black hair and a lethal punch - she's not someone to cross.
Stats:
STR: 8
DEX: 7
INT: 7
CHM: 3
SXC: 5
STR: 8
DEX: 7
INT: 7
CHM: 3
SXC: 5
Prologue
"Damage report, damage report!" Alarms were blaring, people running too and fro in a mad panic. From somewhere closeby Sam could smell burning, see the smoke seeping in from under the bank of computers.
"Shields are down, I repeat, shields are down!" came the reply from across the command room, Agent 7 staring at his monitor with a look of abject horror. "We can't take another shot like that, Captain."
"Understood." Sam ran along the bank of controls, throwing levers and punching buttons in a furious burst of energy. The ship rolled and dropped, sending anyone who wasn't already strapped in tumbling to the floor - but with imminent death so close behind them, there was no time to worry about a few broken bones among the crew.
The next laser blast shot across the front of the viewing window, missing the ship's engine by a matter of meters. Maker save us.
"Sylvia, navigation report," Sam shouted, trying to make his voice heard above the alarms. "Anything in the immediate vicinity we can use? Anywhere we can hide?"
There was a loud explosion from somewhere behind him as another row of computers combusted, throwing plastic and metal shrapnel across the room. He ignored it.
"It's not looking too good, Captain," Sylvia replied. How he admired that woman's ability to understate a situation. "But if we could just avoid dying within the next... I dunno, 70 seconds, we could make an emergency landing in one of three places. Planet Agnak - I'm sending you the coordinates now - or one of its two moons, Phoebos or Sedna."
Everything shook once more as Sam pulled the ship out of its spiraling descent, just as another green laser blast flew through the space they had been a second away from occupying.
"We can make it!" he shouted, more for his own benefit than anyone else's... but to where?
Option 1) Agnak - a jungle planet, hot and humid, and teeming with alien wildlife. There's only limited outposts of civilization.
Option 2) Phoebos - much more civilised, but also a notorious criminal plant. All sorts of malice takes place here, among the run-down cities and rusted old power plants.
Option 3) Sedna - frozen and ice encrusted, but also a previous tourist resort; people came from all over the galaxy to see the icy landscapes and beautiful scenery from the comfort of their thermally heated hotels. Unfortunately, there's been nothing but radio silence from the planet for years, and no-one's yet been dispatched to find out why.