Making Virtual Children Talk

[Akaramu]

Seriously, when you have a kid, you only need to keep the kid with you for a few years.  By the time it should be active, it doesn't have to go out in public with you any more.  You can talk about the kid, but don't have the kid with you any longer.

Well, in my PC mother's case the kid had to earn her food as well, and was part of her musical VNPC troupe. She was there for any dance / performance. Not every kid can just sit at home.  

The game is about fun, and roleplay. The roleplay with a child at school age was, for me, and some of the players I interacted with, some of the most fun and memorable moments in my whole Arm career. Hands down.

[spawnloser]

Having the kid around means that you are using the kid as part of the scenes you are in...the kid is part of the plot...but the kid is proof from the plot because someone can't just up and kill it, as you control the VNPC by fiat.

It may have been beautiful, memorable and very fulfilling.  I still do not suggest it, as it can get messy.

[Akaramu]

Having the kid around means that you are using the kid as part of the scenes you are in...the kid is part of the plot...but the kid is proof from the plot because someone can't just up and kill it, as you control the VNPC by fiat.

I disagree... I have seen VNPC children kidnapped, so they can also be killed. For any PC who has a baby, the baby inevitably becomes part of their personal plot... and enemies / Tan Muark lovers / jealous ex partners might want to kill / kidnap / sacrifice / eat the baby. It can all be done.

[spawnloser]

...but requires staff intervention.  Why add to their load?  Get someone to play the kid (when old enough) and eliminate that work and need for support, I say.

[John]

Have the kid often run away from home in the morning to go play out in the streets (a common pastime of my characters). The kid can help you out in your musical troupe when you're logged off. When the kid is in your troupe controlled by you, they don't do anything improper (unless you want them to), they don't try to plot against you, they don't try to steal from anyone you or duck off to go have sex with that hot girl they just saw. IMO they should only be used extremely sparingly.

[Scarborough]

Lots of interesting ideas here, thanks.

[Morfeus]

Having the kid around means that you are using the kid as part of the scenes you are in...the kid is part of the plot...but the kid is proof from the plot because someone can't just up and kill it, as you control the VNPC by fiat.

I disagree... I have seen VNPC children kidnapped, so they can also be killed. For any PC who has a baby, the baby inevitably becomes part of their personal plot... and enemies / Tan Muark lovers / jealous ex partners might want to kill / kidnap / sacrifice / eat the baby. It can all be done.

It can all be done, but it is really complicated. I am pretty sure people who tried to work against VNPC child or steal virtual object know what I speak about.

[Akaramu]

The kid can help you out in your musical troupe when you're logged off. When the kid is in your troupe controlled by you, they don't do anything improper (unless you want them to), they don't try to plot against you

Well, the troupe was hired and needed in RPT's. It is rather hard to earn 'sid when logged off.

VNPCs are improper sometimes to spice things up, but I dont think it is so very unrealistic if there are a few common schmoe VNPCs who just want to live their lifes and dont constantly think about plotting or killing. Its mostly PCs who get into such situations, because their players would be bored with the average life of a normal commoner.

Many aspects of the game are virtual and and require staff intervention. Virtual clans. Closed clans. NPCs. VNPCs not controlled by anyone. Things happening when players are logged off. I dont think virtual children need to get kidnapped THAT often, and are probably less of a problem than a whole lot of other stuff. Let other players have their fun, and let them decide for themselves how they want to play. Or should we stop all PCs from having children because their involvement in all kinds of plots might be too difficult to handle? :roll:

[Scarborough]

Hey now... don't you all get too many ideas about kidnapping vnpc children. *chuckles*  THAT'S A TERRIBLE IDEA. *shaking her head*   The vnpc child I and two others been taken turns dealing with has gone fine.  There's been lots of involvement, much use of emotes, and all has gone well.  It hasn't involved staff in any way, and has thus far been a really defining and important addition to my character.  I think really active use of a child vnpc characters can't be lumped 100% into "bad" or "good"... it really depends on who's doing the RPing, and how willing they are to surrender the consequences and fate of the vnpc child to the actions going on around them.  I as a player am open to game fate/serrendipity even planning, so maintaining absolute control over a vnpc child isn't a huge deal.  I like sharing with agreed upon people.  The whole point of this thread was how to make one talk -- most of you feel it's uneccessary, but until I am told to flat out not do it, I'm going to experiment with it here and there in limited situations as it supports the more sanguine personality established for this child.  I'm going to experiment more with the psi communication suggestions given here too, thanks!

[Bebop~]

I don't think expecting everyone to have a shy kid is logical or much fun.  What I would do is this.

You are the friendly, round mother

Your VNPC kid is the mop topped kid. (age

Code Select Expand

>emote sitting on a stool at the bar beside @ the mop-topped kid says, "Ayeah!  Mum just got me a knew elfie figurine!." With that the mop-topped kid drops a firm, proud nod seemingly to himself.

>Sitting on a stool at the bar beside the friendly, round mother the mop-topped kid says, "Ayeah!  Mum just got me a knew elfie figurine!"  With that the mop-topped kid drops a firm, proud nod seemingly to himself.

Just use emotes.

[Bebop~]

That was supposed to be age eight people.

[mansa]

I totally disagree with words in emotes.  I think your character should be the translator of the vNPC.  Using words in emotes is definitely a no-no.

[Agent_137]

following from mansa, it's a no no because it bypasses the language code. Which is always bad unless you're using psionics

[Scarborough]

I did that once with my very first character and was told not to do it since it bypasses the language system.

[Cenghiz]

If I'm in a room where everyone speaks the same language, I make the VNPCs talk with the emote. I don't make them speak when there's someone who does not know the said language, but still...

It's not 'that' important. No virtual family member told me: "We will meet an hour later, the nilazi will perform a specific chanting to summon Lord Templar Hardass then we will all tickle him to death with hawk feathers." ever. They speak mostly about weather, the food they want, about VNPC's virtual life "Mama! Grandma taught me to use a sling today!"... Chaaracter X heard it clearly even though he shouldn't have? Eh. Let him. He won't manage to make use of the information already except very very extreme conditions.

We're asking for player trust in many situations. We ask them to use a lot of skills with common sense. We ask them to be realistic while hunting, we ask them to use skills sparingly and realistically. Is it unvelieveable to ask for a d-elf player's trust that he does not hear my child on my lap telling me: "Mama I am hungry." in Sirihish?

Bah.. We're exaggarating the rules sometimes. Really.

And... Especially with a VNPC for a h-giant who had noone to spar half of his time in Byn and a VNPC I made up for my Borsail Slaver, I made VNPCs speak with emotes without a stop. I have logs of complete conversations, training sessions and dinners taken together. I haven't been warned or asked to change this usage of emote even once. As I said, they said nothing but useless blubber for the atmosphere and I don't think it was a fault to do so at all.

[Akaramu]

I dont remember where, but at some point at least one imm said that speaking in emotes is a no-no, even for VNPCs. Thats enough of a reason for me to hope for a better solution in the future.

[spawnloser]

Yes, the staff has said that speaking in emotes, even for VNPCs, is a no-no.

I think we already have a solution, though...don't make VNPCs such a HUGE part of your roleplay.

[Naiona]

Please remember that you have no way of knowing who is in a room with you at any given time.  There may be an elf under the bed listening.  Or there could be a dwarven magicker standing there invisible just laughing to themselves as you go on about your daily business.

The reason for the rule is to prevent those who shouldn't understand from 'hearing' things they should not - even when you don't know the person who shouldn't understand is there.  I hope this clears up the question.

[Bebop]

Please remember that you have no way of knowing who is in a room with you at any given time.  There may be an elf under the bed listening.  Or there could be a dwarven magicker standing there invisible just laughing to themselves as you go on about your daily business.

The reason for the rule is to prevent those who shouldn't understand from 'hearing' things they should not - even when you don't know the person who shouldn't understand is there.  I hope this clears up the question.

The only other option it looks like to me though is to have a kid that doesn't talk openly, or doesn't talk at all.  That kind of sucks.

[mansa]

Please remember that you have no way of knowing who is in a room with you at any given time.  There may be an elf under the bed listening.  Or there could be a dwarven magicker standing there invisible just laughing to themselves as you go on about your daily business.

The reason for the rule is to prevent those who shouldn't understand from 'hearing' things they should not - even when you don't know the person who shouldn't understand is there.  I hope this clears up the question.

The only other option it looks like to me though is to have a kid that doesn't talk openly, or doesn't talk at all.  That kind of sucks.

You can make kids scream and laugh and cry out loud.  You can make them wander around the tavern and cause a rukus.  You can do a lot of things, but you cannot let them carry on conversations through the emote command.

Example:

say (Laughing after the blue-eyed girl speaks)  Ha!  Did you hear that!  She said that you're a bad father and she wants a refund!

I don't know about you, but in real life, I am constantly repeating what people say, for fear that I'm going deaf and that I misunderstood them.  What's wrong with repeating (and with your own character's emphasis in intrepretation)  what your vNPC you've created said?

[picklehead]

You can always just carry on a one-way conversation with your VNPC child. It's not perfect, but by what you are saying and how you are reacting towards the child one can infer quite a bit about what the child is probably saying and doing back to you.

[Bebop]

Please remember that you have no way of knowing who is in a room with you at any given time.  There may be an elf under the bed listening.  Or there could be a dwarven magicker standing there invisible just laughing to themselves as you go on about your daily business.

The reason for the rule is to prevent those who shouldn't understand from 'hearing' things they should not - even when you don't know the person who shouldn't understand is there.  I hope this clears up the question.

The only other option it looks like to me though is to have a kid that doesn't talk openly, or doesn't talk at all.  That kind of sucks.

You can make kids scream and laugh and cry out loud.  You can make them wander around the tavern and cause a rukus.  You can do a lot of things, but you cannot let them carry on conversations through the emote command.

Example:

say (Laughing after the blue-eyed girl speaks)  Ha!  Did you hear that!  She said that you're a bad father and she wants a refund!

I don't know about you, but in real life, I am constantly repeating what people say, for fear that I'm going deaf and that I misunderstood them.  What's wrong with repeating (and with your own character's emphasis in intrepretation)  what your vNPC you've created said?

Doesn't seem to flow to me.  It reminds me of pikachu sitting on Ash's shoulder.

Pika Pika.

What's that pikachu?  You don't like being in your pokeball and you think I am the leetest training evar?

I just don't like it.  I would mutch rather some way be able to bring life to the child and the VNPC family members I have.  Be able to talk with them animately let people hear what they are saying and be able to chat back between them, not have an OOC responsibility to repeat things or have a shy/mute kid.

[Cale_Knight]

Be able to talk with them animately let people hear what they are saying and be able to chat back between them, not have an OOC responsibility to repeat things or have a shy/mute kid.

I would prefer to interact with your character, not your character's props.

[Jherlen]

I think the best approach to VNPC family is to use them primarily in an "off camera" fashion. You can talk about them and such all you like (past characters of mine would talk about their families constantly), but generally, don't bring them into the scene, especially not to the point of them making active dialogue.

I agree with Cale.

[WarriorPoet]

I think the best approach to VNPC family is to use them primarily in an "off camera" fashion. You can talk about them and such all you like (past characters of mine would talk about their families constantly), but generally, don't bring them into the scene, especially not to the point of them making active dialogue.

This sums up my feelings perfectly.

I like the atmosphere that having children and virtual family creates, as long as they're out of sight. Bringing your virtual teenage child to the tavern and having a conversation seems cheesy to me. Roleplaying with virtual family is all well and good in your apartment or compound, but in the tavern, with other PC's, I think -they- should be getting first dibs on your rp.

-WP