That Templar Role Call...

[wizturbo]

Was freaking awesome! 

[zealus]

Seconded. Bracing for epic.

[Miradus]

Yeah, that was pretty good. A little insight into the creation of a Templar.

If only I wasn't loving my current character so much.

[Draechen]

Fourthed?

Though it did let me know that I'm nowhere near close to ready for that kind of thing.

[azuriolinist]

Though it did let me know that I'm nowhere near close to ready for that kind of thing.

Yep.

I enjoyed the writing, nevertheless! What a glimpse of what's behind the curtain.

[Miradus]

I encourage you to apply, even if you think you're not ready. Let THEM tell you you're not ready.

You don't get ready UNTIL you have those sorts of awesome roles. Those roles MAKE you ready.

It does help if you've had some exposure to some really good Templars in the past ...

[Refugee]

That was truly awesome.

[Grogerif]

Never more tempted to go for a sponsored role.  But I know my limits, and nobles, merchants, and templars are out of them.

[Hauwke]

Ugh, I told myself I would go for the next Noble/Templar rolecall when it came up. UGH! I love my current guy too much! All of the UGH!

Edit: Also, fuck yes for a Judge Dredd themed Templar.

[Vox]

Holy shit, that short-story-epic-role-call-announcement pulled me right out of shadowy obscurity.

Damnit, that was so good I have to make a character again.

**edit: looks like it was such hot fire that it was censored and replaced.. that's even more epic!

[MatisseOrOtherwise]

RIP the story. I guess that peek-behind-the-curtain was a bit too much of a peek. That's a shame.

It was awesome while it lasted.

[surveyvon]

I thought that story was both incredibly cool and incredibly good at building hype for the role. I think stories like that bring the mythos of the game alive and make the roles feel that much more epic. I would strongly advocate for more role calls of that style.

[Is Friday]

Great short!

Yeah, okay. You got me.

[azuriolinist]

+1 to surveyvon's post.

I love this type of rolecall, one that places the spotlight on storytelling. The Tablelands role call that was up a few years back (holy crap, has it been that long?) was another great example.

[MatisseOrOtherwise]

I honestly wholeheartedly agree. If you keep literally everything wrapped behind a curtain, what you have left is... a curtain. Let us have a little peek like that every now and then. It's fun. And it adds a ton to the atmosphere.

[Namino]

I honestly wholeheartedly agree. If you keep literally everything wrapped behind a curtain, what you have left is... a curtain. Let us have a little peek like that every now and then. It's fun. And it adds a ton to the atmosphere.

I echo this hard. I understand there can be some concern about people failing to keep OOC knowledge OOC, but getting some insight into how the lore works and even mechanics of certain things REALLY increases immersion in roleplay, from tabletop DnD all the way up to MUDs. As someone who is familiar with Dark Sun, applying that carryover knowledge to the game has really enhanced my immersion and improved my RP on a dozen occasions.

Keeping everything classified is a detriment IMO, for what that opinion is worth.

Also this rolecall is cool and I hope whoever plays this murders me creatively.

[Refugee]

I'm grieving the death of the first writeup.  It was pretty damn incredible.

[Dracul]

*reposts the echo of general enthusiasm*

Hell yeah.

[wizturbo]

I was literally considering coming back to the game after a year away from that piece of writing alone (just to play, not to apply for that role)... 

I didn't take it as canon, it was just such an awesome illustration of the level of awesome Shalooonsh was going to bring to the role.  It made me remember why I loved this game.  Would someone explain why it was taken down?  I'm a bit heartbroken to see something so cool disappear.

[valeria]

Posting 12 +1s.

[Riev]

Guess I'm too late to the party.

[Veselka]

I'm confused. Why the retcon?

[MatisseOrOtherwise]

I'm confused. Why the retcon?

Higher-up staff probably didn't like the peek behind the curtain. Seems they like everything to remain entirely hidden, which is a shame.

[Brokkr]

In the interest of transparency...

I thought it was an awesome piece of fiction.

Unfortunately, it wasn't just fiction in the traditional sense, but was also fiction for the game world.  In addition to a few inaccuracies, it included one element that has been retconned, and some really bad math (we haven't killed off 6,000 nobles to create the current templars).

As stuff we post is typically taken as truth about the game world by players, rather than potentially fiction about the gameworld, we decided to remove it.

[Veselka]

In the interest of transparency...

I thought it was an awesome piece of fiction.

Unfortunately, it wasn't just fiction in the traditional sense, but was also fiction for the game world.  In addition to a few inaccuracies, it included one element that has been retconned, and some really bad math (we haven't killed off 6,000 nobles to create the current templars).

As stuff we post is typically taken as truth about the game world by players, rather than potentially fiction about the gameworld, we decided to remove it.

Couldn't it have had a disclaimer at the bottom that it was a work of fiction? It's mildly ironic the post was edited to include the run-of-the-mill "do you want to be this guy" stuff. The fiction was thrilling and intriguing, which can excite people to apply. That seems to be the whole point of announcements like that and this one by Shalooonsh did so particularly well. It'd be a shame if Storytellers were discouraged from telling imaginative tales such as that one. At a certain point I wonder if we are all taking ourselves a little too seriously.

[seidhr]

Couldn't it have had a disclaimer at the bottom that it was a work of fiction? It's mildly ironic the post was edited to include the run-of-the-mill "do you want to be this guy" stuff. The fiction was thrilling and intriguing, which can excite people to apply. That seems to be the whole point of announcements like that and this one by Shalooonsh did so particularly well. It'd be a shame if Storytellers were discouraged from telling imaginative tales such as that one. At a certain point I wonder if we are all taking ourselves a little too seriously.

Stories need to be accurate to the setting, is the thing.  If Staff are posting stories that conflict with the game's real setting, those things start working their way into the game's egregore.

[Draechen]

I, for one, welcome the 5700 failed Templar to the body pile.

Welcome to Armageddon.

[Veselka]

Couldn't it have had a disclaimer at the bottom that it was a work of fiction? It's mildly ironic the post was edited to include the run-of-the-mill "do you want to be this guy" stuff. The fiction was thrilling and intriguing, which can excite people to apply. That seems to be the whole point of announcements like that and this one by Shalooonsh did so particularly well. It'd be a shame if Storytellers were discouraged from telling imaginative tales such as that one. At a certain point I wonder if we are all taking ourselves a little too seriously.

Stories need to be accurate to the setting, is the thing.  If Staff are posting stories that conflict with the game's real setting, those things start working their way into the game's egregore.

True I suppose. With Staff changing often and the lore changing as well, I wonder if the goal posts will always be in constant motion. The coming soon threads were fantastic and the tablelands fiction as well. It'd be cool to have more canon stuff like that!! We love it.

[Delirium]

In the interest of transparency...

I thought it was an awesome piece of fiction.

Unfortunately, it wasn't just fiction in the traditional sense, but was also fiction for the game world.  In addition to a few inaccuracies, it included one element that has been retconned, and some really bad math (we haven't killed off 6,000 nobles to create the current templars).

As stuff we post is typically taken as truth about the game world by players, rather than potentially fiction about the gameworld, we decided to remove it.

I'll be the person to step up and say I agree with this completely. I think that if it had been batted about with other staff members first and massaged a bit for accuracy, it would have been fantastic to post. But as it was, when I read it, I immediately had doubts and questions as to the feasibility/veracity/accuracy of what it represented. It was dramatic and had flair, sure, but needed a bit more thought and polish before being presented to the base as gameworld literature- because like it or not, whatever staff posts tends to go under the microscope, as this thread makes obvious.

[Large Hero]

I applaud Shaloonsh for putting originality and creativity into his roll call. It was a fun read and I hope he does more of it in the future! That kind of freshness and initiative is great to see from a Storyteller.

However, I also agree with Seidhr, Brokkr and Delirium. It would have been better to include other staff in the process. Getting other eyes on the piece would have helped ensure an accurate representation of the game world. While I appreciate the desire to make a splash, staff posts about lore do need to be accurate; people tend to quote and reference them for years after.

I want to reiterate that I cheer Shaloonsh for his spark, while also saying that his process will likely be improved with more collaborative temperance of it.

It was cool. Cool is great and Armageddon could often do with more Wow Factor. But we can have cool without sacrificing consistency on the altar of it. From what I've seen of Shaloonsh I'm confident that he will do lots of cool shit in the future.

[valeria]

My enthusiasm for the story had less to do with "this is behind the curtain" and more for the way it was presented as a sample of something that could be used to spark a background. A lot of times, you're applying for these roles without any idea of what your background could look like. I mean, I can't speak to whatever was the retconned element(s) from the story, but I will say that I very well could have written basically the same thing as a templar background. Because there is no avaliable lore on what templar training isg. Having such a vivid representation helps drop you into the mindset more than "Talia went to templar school and found her way to Tek" as a sentence in a background.

(As far as math goes, I didn't read it as 19/20 died, but rather 18 weren't ready yet, 1 lived, 1 died. Just my impression from a brief glance over without being able to go back and look at it.)

I would say less that I want that specific story back, and more that the way the rolecall was presented was very refreshing and exciting. Maybe that's something to consider for the future!

[wizturbo]

I read the story in the same light as Valeria.  I understand why it was taken down now, but I would encourage the staff to instead pivot that short story into something else.  Perhaps a glimpse of the selection process at some point in the distant past, or have it be merely a dream/nightmare.  It doesn't need to be canon to be inspiring and awesome.

[sleepyhead]

I wish I could have read it. Can it be posted somewhere like this thread that seems less "official"?

[Shalooonsh]

There will be another story posted which is a collaborative effort and approved by fellow staff.

Thank you.

[650Booger]

two awesome rolecalls up right now, and I'm on a brand new character that is already super interesting.

[surveyvon]

There will be another story posted which is a collaborative effort and approved by fellow staff.

Thank you.

[Miradus]

two awesome rolecalls up right now, and I'm on a brand new character that is already super interesting.

I know, right?

This always happens. Can you guys MAYBE save some of these rolecalls for when I've just rolled up random grebber #79 and haven't yet become involved in anything?

[Kialae]

>Benefits and Consequences for your IC actions!
>Templar

Yeah okay

[Miradus]

THREE really good rolecalls.

(Though I'm sure I'm not the only one saddened by the sudden addition.)

Is it bad form to apply for more than one rolecall at a time?

[seidhr]

Is it bad form to apply for more than one rolecall at a time?

No, not at all.  If you are interested in multiple options, by all means send in an app for them.