=c pointsThis will report to you how many whole points of Fortune your current character possesses. Also, anytime a character earns a whole point of Fortune, this will be shown as a system message, and that character's current total will also be displayed. This message will not be seen frequently. Instead, during each interval, a more generic and non-specific message will be shown:
Your Fortune has increased slightly.This means your character has earned some fractional amount of Fortune. This update message can be disabled by using the following toggle command:
=c toggle points_feedbackFor those who really need to get a microscopic view of their current Fortune levels, there is another command to show a more exact total:
=c points exactEveryone who already had a character at the time that this system was put into place will start out with a starting pool of five (5) Fortune points. Existing characters belonging to GMs start out with a pool of fifteen (15) Fortune points. World Leader characters start out with a pool of twenty-five (25) Fortune points. New characters will start out with one (1) Fortune point.
Again, these options are solely at the discretion of the GM(s) running the quest. There is not guarantee these options will be available, nor is there any guarantee of complete success. Always work with the GM when desiring to spend Fortune in this way. Note also that GMs will deduct Fortune on the spot when it is used in this way.
Also, it's important to note that there is a limit to the number of times a single character can utilize Fortune like this during a single quest. While the GM running the quest will have final say on this limit, we will generally limit these uses to three (3) times, in any combination, during a given quest episode/event.
Remodels – Fortune points can provide a discount based on how much players want to spend in each aspect (base cost, area-expansion, tileset change, permanent placeables, exterior changes, etc.) of a remodel, with each point of Fortune spent giving a 10% discount in a single aspect of the remodeling cost.
Relocations/reties – Fortune points can provide a 10% reduction in the list of materials needed for every point spent. Obviously, this applies more to materials needed in larger quantities than those in smaller quantities; there is no 10% of a single Gnomish Lens, for example. To put this another way, spending 10 Fortune would eliminate the need for gathering and/or crafting all the necessary materials for the relocation.
Monuments – Each fortune point will provide a 20% discount on the monetary cost of each monument individually. This applies to things like custom statues placed in guild halls and stone markers placed somewhere to denote or commemorate something or someone. Bear in mind, these sorts of monuments are relatively modest, not a gigantic colossus of ego. Also, in the case of outdoor monuments, it may be necessary to obtain permission from the land-owner, pay an additional fee/tax/tribute, which would be covered separately but which could also be discounted by Fortune at a similar rate.
Other buildings – Buildings in this category would be physically in-game but not necessarily usable in any mechanical sense (i.e. no accessible interior, no house-type furniture, etc.). For the monetary costs associated with constructing these buildings, each point of Fortune will reduce the cost by 5,000 True. If there is an additional material cost associated with the construction of this building, each point of Fortune will reduce the material needs by 10%.
Intangibles – Buildings, structures and other constructs that are not represented in-game but which were established in an RP sense through CDQs and which may have some form of cost associated with them fall into this category. This would cover things like orphanages, “underground” markets, trade networks, or things of this ilk, where players have to invest in their creation. The cost in Fortune for such things, should players wish to spend it, will be based on the number of CDQs that the GM estimates will be required to complete the goal. If the number of CDQs increases due to player actions (or inactions!), the Fortune cost will increase as well, however, the Fortune cost will never go below the original estimate. The baseline Fortune cost in this case is 5 points per CDQ required to accomplish the end result.
What else – Try as we may, we will never be able to conceive of all possibilities that our player base may want to try to accomplish and how they may want to put Fortune toward such efforts. To that end, we'll have to handle these sorts of things on a case-by-case basis at first while we try to establish some sort of guidelines. Chances are good that it will be some kind of hybrid of the options given above.Up to four characters will be allowed to pool their Fortune together for any given project. Characters pooling their Fortune for such a purpose should be associated with the project in some way. There is no set limit as to how much Fortune one character may spend on any single project, assuming the character has Fortune to spend.In some situations, there may be a world-level effort that requires some level of contribution from characters to bring about a certain end. In such cases, there is no limit on how many characters can contribute, but again they should be associated with the effort already.
Does being in combat effect the Fortune system? I noticed with AutoXP that if I were in combat when it was time for it to kick in it would not until its next time to do so.
Being in combat or not has zero effect on whether or not you are accumulating Fortune. The only way(s) to affect it is for it to be done administratively (ie the mentioned adjustment and tweeks) or to recieve points/have points taken by a GM, as long as you are active in the game.
~row
I am very excited to see this and how it is going to work out. Thanks Rowana and Dorganath for tinkering around with this idea and making it happen.
Dorg, you said that
One way to think of it is a representation of a character's "social capital", their influence, reknown or reputation, though in some other ways it is also just a way for us to reward and thank you for spending time in-game. Despite Fortune being earned simply by being in-game, as you'll read below, the Fortune rewards for more RP-focused activities are greater, and so there are some significant RP ways to spend one's accumulated Fortune.
Does this also encompass infamy, or will that be tracked by loss of fortune? Does fortune also encompass a certain amount of luck, or karma (there, I said it) that is accumulated and can be spend (but never lost)?
The Team continues to amaze. Thanks for this initiative!
Dorg, you said thatOne way to think of it is a representation of a character's "social capital", their influence, reknown or reputation, though in some other ways it is also just a way for us to reward and thank you for spending time in-game. Despite Fortune being earned simply by being in-game, as you'll read below, the Fortune rewards for more RP-focused activities are greater, and so there are some significant RP ways to spend one's accumulated Fortune.Does this also encompass infamy, or will that be tracked by loss of fortune? Does fortune also encompass a certain amount of luck, or karma (there, I said it) that is accumulated and can be spend (but never lost)?
Good question!
Regarding infamy, yes, it covers it, but probably not in the way you are suggesting. If we were to do that, it would skew Fortune toward the Good-aligned characters and/or encourage Neutral or Evil to be "good" in order to gain Fortune. That's absolutely the opposite of what this system is about.
So "infamous" characters can gain Fortune just as any others, and in the few definites we have listed above (exchange for XP/True/Graceful Pleas), there's really no difference between Good characters, Evil characters or Somewhere-In-The-Middle characters. It's all the same. There is no loss of Fortune due to the type or quality or RP, the actions of a character or anything like that. Infamous and famous characters will gain fortune in exactly the same ways.
However, there's the parts which I hinted about but which are not yet fully-defined. This is a little difficult to talk about without the particulars being more solidified, but I'll try to give a general example while remaining vague to the details. There'll be uses of Fortune for quests, uses for projects and possibly other sorts of uses. These will always be handled with GM involvement, and in such cases, the infamous character will have more difficulty using their "social capital" with the "good" people of the world, though they may find more purchase among thieves guilds or other "underground" groups. Likewise, the more highly-regarded people might find the opposite to be true. For these more RP-oriented aspects of Fortune, there will never be a set of specific outcomes, only guidelines. They will be worked out between player and GM to make a degree of sense for the situation and the character in question. I hope that makes more sense, and I hope you understand that I can't fully answer your question right now.
Lastly, I'm not sure what you mean by "but never lost." Fortune can be "lost" in that it can be exchanged for things, as discussed. It's never to be lost based on whether a character is infamous or based on the type/quality of RP. Fortune can be exchanged for things, which does cause one's total Fortune to be reduced as a result. It can be earned back, naturally, but you will lose it as you use it. One reason I framed Fortune, in part, as "social capital" is that in some ways to use it, it is very much like leaning on one's reputation (or luck, or "karma", though the concept doesn't exist in Layonara) as a finite resource. There's only so far a person can throw their own name and reputation around before it starts to wear thin for everyone else. Similarly, eventually your luck may run out, or you'll use up any "goodwill" toward you or any number of things. Again, this is difficult to answer fully because of the various uncertainties, but it may be sufficient to say that Fortune is always a finite resource, and you can use it up. Use too much, and when you really need it, you won't have it.
Hope that helps.
With "lost" I meant something similar to losing XP (which can happen as a penalty, for example, if a character dies repeatedly) - if I understand you correctly, you say that such a mechanic is not intended in the Fortune System as it is now (hence, no fortune penalty in the sense of fortune loss, but rather slower gain in fortune or different means - or loss of means - that a character has to spend it).
Thanks for the explanation, it cleared things up a little. Are there any plans for the future to to include for example the donation system into this as well? And can characters gain fortune as a CDQ reward?
By donation system, do you mean giving items to various chartiy causes or deities for Fortune points or am I not understanding that quite right?Characters gain Fortune points at the normal rate of accrual during a CDQ. It's literally always on if you are active. Will GMs be giving out -extra- points during a CDQ? This is not answerable at this time, unfortunately. I have logged it in the FAQ that we will be posting later when we do have an answer.
(side note)
I logged in for the second time since the server fiasco a few minutes as of this post, and found I have 5 fortune. Also, every so often since logging in I got the "Your fortune has increased" message. Twice, so far. Yet I still have 5 fortune. Is that the system catching up or a potential bug?
(side note)I logged in for the second time since the server fiasco a few minutes as of this post, and found I have 5 fortune. Also, every so often since logging in I got the "Your fortune has increased" message. Twice, so far. Yet I still have 5 fortune. Is that the system catching up or a potential bug?
Read the section labeled "Keeping Track" in my original post. It tells you all about the messages, how to find your exact total, etc.
That's what I get for reading choice pieces of your gigantic wall of text. Some things never change. xD
By donation system, do you mean giving items to various chartiy causes or deities for Fortune points or am I not understanding that quite right?
Yes, that is what I meant.
Currently people who donate to deities recieve a discount that scales up with the amount that they donate over time as a sort of nod to the amount of effort they put in to assisting those temples. We don't plan to institute anything additional at this time particularly related to Fortune accumulation because of the somewhat inconsistant nature of item prices as they relate to actual value.
I haven't been around much lately due to having too much on my plates, but reading this I have to say that me likes it alot!
Do Fortune points act like XP when we are recovering from our recent deaths (i.e. it shuts off temporarily)?
Nope, Fortune rates will not ebb due to death effects or any other effects unless we actively scale them back for some reason. We don't have any idea, right now, why we might do that at this time but have reserved the right to adjust for balancing reasons (at the very least) in the initial post.
Does a level 20 character gain more XP when rewarded for going on quests because of the vastly higher amount of XP needed to reach level 21?
If yes, does a level 20 character recieve a larger amount of XP when exchanging "Fortune"?
The exp ratio of Fortune vs Quest reward is exactly the same. They use the same tables etc so it doesn't matter if the GM gives it to you directly or via Fortune exchange. Fortune system just allows you to exchange more points (basic accrual plus any quest gained), or conversely if exp is not really what you need (regardless of reason, from caped level achievement or other focus of character) the you can take those same points and put it toward whatever the system allows (money, quest perks, etc).
The bottom line regarding what I think you are asking, is Fortune at level 20 is the same as quest exp grant at level 20.
Thanks for the Question G.
The fortune exchange system goes with the exchange rate of XP/hour of a quest, when your character exchanges one point of forutne he/she will get as much xp as if he/she has atained on one hour quest. This making true what you mention.
As lvl 20 its a milestone for the change of XP/hour, if your Lvl 20 char, exchanges 5 fortune points, he/she would obtain the same XP as if he/she had attended to a 5 hours quest.
At any rate if you use the =c exchange command you can check out the ammount of xp before actually giving a final "yes" as well . the system is intended for making easier for players to exchange the fortune for XP without the need of a GM to be on, And thus the information can be displayed in all moment as you thru the process of the exchange.
Hope this clarifies your doubts.
Cheers
// Must have been blind since totally Miss Row replied already . heh
It does answer my question. Apparently I thougth a level 20 character was given more Quest XP because of the massive mountain of XP before 21. Therefore beleiving this I expected a level 20 fortune XP trade in to reflect the same thing. You're saying a level 20 gets the same XP per quest hour (or whatever the jargon is now) as a level 33.... while I dissagree with this. At least I now know how it's going to be. Thanks