Revert the removal of the Aut'akh subspecies.

[Codename: Bear]

3 minutes ago, Marlon Phoenix said:

Yes, theyre one if the two radical religious movements born directly from the apocalypse the unathi dealt with. Doomsday cults after the doomsday.

Okay I thought that was them.

I'll probably just DM you some lore questions about that since I feel it might take away from the topic of re-implementing them.

[Guest Marlon Phoenix]

 DM sleepywolf and the deputies about stuff friend; I'm no longer on the lore staff; I can only talk about the history and stuff. And as we see all that is being subject to change.

Edited June 8, 2020 by Marlon Phoenix

[SleepyWolf]

What Schev's said is completely how I feel - I have so much trouble writing anything for Aut'akh. I've been attempting to write rewrites of them for YEARS, and the MASSIVE problem holding my reworks back was their full body prosthetics. I just can't find a way to implement it without what feels like ass-pulls, and compared to everything else in Unathi lore that has GREAT answers and amazing connections between everything, I just can't work with what Aut'akh have myself. 

For a roadmap, I have been mostly focusing on the main aspects of Unathi lore instead of Aut'akh. With NBT coming up, I want a smooth transition into the new era of Aurora, in terms of lore. I've been working with the guild system to expand it, planning to integrate women into more of society, and update every single little piece of character lore (we have some characters in notable-unathi page that aren't updated to the lore movements, like High Priest Unzi.)

 

If not for everything going on, I definitely WOULD have asked for feedback - I've shown I do this consistently in the past, not just with Unathi lore but with Skrell and Diona lore. As well, I apologize for my bad handling of the situation. Real world situations have effected my life in various different ways, from quarantine to the protesting that I've had to be active in.

[SleepyWolf]

To address the main subject of this thread - I don't plan on returning the full body prosthetics. 

I want augments and little gadgets that would be on the character, such as an iron jaw, half metal face, wires, Aut'akh clothing that has mechanical use to it...

But I don't want the full body back in the way it was, as a subspecies. The Aut'akh are definitely going to get less of a focus on them, temporarily, as I work on other areas of Unathi. I want to make the central strong culture of Unathi stronger so that the Aut'akh will seem relatively weaker - less like a few towns and more like a movement that lives under, or exiled from, Unathi society. Although you could argue they already are that, I don't feel it's properly displayed, and doesn't subvert Unathi culture in the RIGHT way. 

The removal of the FBP allows me to build UP from a less augmented Unathi, instead of building DOWN from a fully augmented Unathi - giving me more room to be flexible, if that makes sense.

[Codename: Bear]

10 minutes ago, Marlon Phoenix said:

 DM sleepywolf and the deputies about stuff friend; I'm no longer on the lore staff; I can only talk about the history and stuff. And as we see all that is being subject to change.

Thank ya kind sir.

Though with what Sleepy just said, I might be more interested in their history than re-implementation right now. Still I will remember who does what and shoot them a message with other questions related to the species.

 

[Guest Marlon Phoenix]

Those all make sense to me and i understand your reasonings. I think I'm primarily worried then about having to choose between augments i want and some tshirts i want in the custom loadout. The prosthetics modular nature were an appeal for people and the ones that cost points came with a theme and mechanics for a specific department. It also removes our ability to play autakh that have fully undergone the rituals to become a FBP. How augmented do you want to see unathi on station and how much sacrifice do you want in terms of loadout for it? Character customization is one of the only major avenues of character expression.

[SleepyWolf]

1 minute ago, Marlon Phoenix said:

 How augmented do you want to see unathi on station and how much sacrifice do you want in terms of loadout for it? Character customization is one of the only major avenues of character expression.

I agree completely about character customization, and I'd like to find some way to allow it. An idea I had was lowering the cost of the augments by giving them huge negatives in some way - 

A leg augment that lets you run at high speeds without the cost of stamina, but damages your legs with its use.

Changing the adrenal system to a new one, that forces your stomach to digest itself for a boost of adrenaline. Damages the stomach organ as it does so, enough to give a good amount of pain after the adrenaline has worn off.

Changing the haemodynamic control system to inject not only stabilizing agent, but also soporfic - doping the individual with 10 units. 

These adverse effects are to fit into the Unathi's view - short term goals, brute force, and that noble view of 'I will do it so others do not have to' that I think a lot of unathi players have in dire situations. They'll do these things, even if it hurts them, because they want to protect their ideals, family, or something greater.

 

I'll definitely see about a lot of this, and push for a better Aut'akh mechanic system. Hopefully lowering the augments price with adverse effects is a good way to balance it.

[Skyglazer]

Sleepy, thank you for your post in this thread and the update in the Unathi Discord. I know we spoke briefly about the same issue in this Discord prior to me making this thread, but I made it because I wasn't too assured by your reply. Seeing what you've said here and in there all together gives me some peace of mind. I may not agree with what you're doing or why you're doing it, but the important issue I meant to raise with this thread is more of communicating exactly what it is you intended to do openly and honestly, which I feel is what you've done now. I hope that the solution you eventually implement is good enough to win back the players that have been alienated by the changes as they are now.

[Carver]

If loadout customization is a concern, wasn't there a separate idea to make apparel cost nothing or near-nothing as a whole?