Jboy's Loredev App

[Jboy2000000]

Ckey/BYOND Username: Jboy2000000

Position Being Applied For (coder, mapper, spriter): Loreman, specifically, antag lore writer, if it would please Jackboot Senpai.

Past Experiences/Knowledge: Ive put up several things for lore canonization, which have been accepted, and Im one of the few people that I know about that hold every whitelist there is, save for Vaurca.

Examples of Past Work: The Clairvoyant, Necropolis Industries I also feels like I should mention my retconned Unathi/Wizard lore, as well I did help Killer, a little, with something he was working on himself.

Preferred Mode of Communication (Skype, Steam, etc.): Steam preferred, but I made an Skype for Aurora things, so I can use it if need be.

Additional Comments: I don't know if Im allowed to be a lore person, and a forum mod at the same time. Since my mod app seems to have fallen into obscurity, feel free to scrap it for this.

[Xelnagahunter]

All staff teams are open to members of the others with the exception of the server staff and the DO Corps. This prevents server administration (Who handles the OOC of it) from influencing the Corporate administration (Which is strictly the IC). I might be wrong on this but as far as I know you could be all three, though a server mod is also given perms on the forum and I think they are equivalent to forum mod perms.

[Guest Marlon Phoenix]

You want to write lore for antags? All of the antags?

What sort of things would this entail? What do you see yourself doing? I've never really considered an antag-overseer.

[Jboy2000000]

Besides the Syndicate and the Vox, all the antags have backstories that are just glanced over. We know wizards are part of a "Wizard Federation," or part of one of the things Im working on, and thats just about it. Id start with wizards, as thats where I started, write the history and some backstory for the wizard fed. Then the Changelings, because I already have a few post-it-note ideas for them. Vampire pretty much writes itself, but Id have a few things to write about where they actually came from. Basically, a long, drawn out way of saying I want to create the lore for antags, as there isn't a lot for them.

[Dreamix]

But, weren't antags supposed to not have any 'forced backstories' or detailed lore, to encourage creativity of players to do unusual or extraordinary things? Or, if antag lore is entirely optional, what's the point of having it? Is it just a guideline, or example work? Why not just write a few guides with sample backstories? Does the antag lore have anything 'to do' with in-game, non-antag stuff (there are also antag contests/news, which are IC, but not really antaggy, +someone is already doing that).

[Jboy2000000]

I guess some of those would be questions for Jackboot. But, I don't think every single person is going to want to be something they created on their own. Its like, we have planets and charted space in our lore. But we also have ambiguous places where you can make up places where you're from, so you can make something up, if you want. So, theres lore, but you can make something up, or create your own stuff if you want. Thats what I think antag lore should, and could be.

[Frances]

Antag lore is canon but optional. It's there to prevent people from taking a dump on fantastical antag types under the guise of "but they're fantasy!/they're not even real!!!", but you're still very much free to come up with your own antag backgrounds seeing as most antag rounds aren't canon.

[Guest]

But, weren't antags supposed to not have any 'forced backstories' or detailed lore, to encourage creativity of players to do unusual or extraordinary things? Or, if antag lore is entirely optional, what's the point of having it? Is it just a guideline, or example work? Why not just write a few guides with sample backstories? Does the antag lore have anything 'to do' with in-game, non-antag stuff (there are also antag contests/news, which are IC, but not really antaggy, +someone is already doing that).

 

This coming from the same person who vehemently held the position that Seon-rin was an awful character and that it should've been deadpooled. Seon-rin was an example of what happens when we allow a bit too much freedom in backstory or setting writing.

I for one, would be interested to see what Jboy has in store for writing the barebone basics of the assorted established antagonists.

[Dreamix]

...

This coming from the same person who vehemently held the position that Seon-rin was an awful character and that it should've been deadpooled. Seon-rin was an example of what happens when we allow a bit too much freedom in backstory or setting writing.

I for one, would be interested to see what Jboy has in store for writing the barebone basics of the assorted established antagonists.

Well, Seon-like stuff can, and will be handled by admins and lore devs 'abreast'/up to date/as these appear.

And, as I already proposed, I believe that a set of "guides with sample backstories" would be a better alternative to rigid/stiff lore.Don't try to alienate/dishearten me, senpai-trooper oneonethreeeight. I'm just trying to have my own opinion.

[Guest Marlon Phoenix]

Wizards are currently being worked on by Gollee. Changelings themselves are already established. Let me provide direct snippets from our wiki.

Changelings

A Changeling has killed a crew member and replaced it before the station crew was shipped to the station. It had time to "familiarize" itself with the ins and outs of its primary victim's identity. '

Even if a Changeling has not attacked any other crew members, it has committed murder to be on the station to complete its objective.

An unknown number of changelings exist in human space, having taken up identities of victims that they've killed. There is no organization that has detected changelings. In addition, no government has any knowledge of their existence. In all reality, it's possible that most of these governments have been infiltrated by changelings.

 

Cult

In 2450 a Xenoarchaeologist expedition following explorer reports discovered ancient ruins hidden on the surface of an otherwise dead planet, labeled Xeron 4 in the Xeron star system. Alliance explorers had reported a large structure on the surface of the planet during a routine scouting mission. The following 12-person expedition discovered a massive subterranean structure beneath what was found to be a partially destroyed pyramid. The structure stretched deep underground, with probes estimating its full size and depth to be over 4 miles in total area.

From the design of the structures, xenoarchaeologist soon theorized that it was a colossal, underground city surrounding one single place of worship. The underground labyrinth of carved out living areas were surrounding a single massive chasm carved from the rock, in which sat artifacts and columns covered in an unknown language. In the center a staircase of obsidian lead up to an altar slab, which expedition members claim defied attempts to date.

What happened next is debated by Alliance investigators. According to survivor accounts, one of the scientists began acting strange, and disappeared suddenly. After an hour of searching, she was eventually found inside a library full of rotted books, showing signs of psychological distress. She was taken from the temple to the ships medbay, and the doctor for the mission discovered that she had inflicted self-harm, cutting herself with one of the blades from the complex. She then allegedly attacked the doctor when he attempted to take the weapon from her, seriously wounding him and escaping the ship. Upon the return of three of the expedition members, they discovered she had begun drawing runes from the language of the temple all over the ship, using the blood of the deceased doctor.

Inside the temple itself, two expedition scientists were investigating the library. Most of the books were rotted from advanced age, and could not be handled without being destroyed. One archaeologist did manage to recover a tome, but investigation into its contents was delayed by more members of the expedition succumbing to psychological distress after handling temple artifacts.

The only two survivors, Dr. Jamaal Farah and the ship's pilot Lilly Carmichael, managed to escape the temple after the other expedition members suddenly turned violent. Their account holds that their partners began chanting in an unknown language, and self-mutilated. They witnessed several scientists drawing runes on the walls and floors with their own blood. Dr. Farah alleges that he saw one of the other expedition members attempting to escape with them being dragged up the steps of what he originally theorized was a sacrificial altar.

Following their escape and recovery by Alliance authorities, both members were questioned about the incident. Horrified by their account, Alliance authorities dispatched a team to arrest the rest of the expedition, but Alliance officials breaching the temple and conducting a thorough search found every member left behind had died after their oxygen supplies ran out.

Sealing the temple and blacklisting the star system, its existence remains suppressed. Both Dr. Farah and Lilly Carmichael were eventually released, with Dr. Farah allowed to keep the book he discovered in the temple library on his person after an examination of it yielded nothing suspicious.

 

Wizard

Knowledge of the Wizard Federation is very limited when in character, and non-wizards will never have heard of it before. In fact, the Wizard Federation may not exist at all, at the discretion of the wizard, who as sole antag can decide on their own motivation and is not limited to the Wizard Federation lore. Are you that wizard, but don't want to use the Wizard Federation as your backstory? Then here's some ideas...

Maybe you're a superhero/villain, and your wizard powers are your super powers

Maybe you're a time traveler, and it's all advanced technological tricks using nanobots in your blood/clothes

Maybe you're a psychic with innate special powers

(Granted this one is still the basic one taken from baywiki but shhh)

Antag lore is meant to revolve around their original origins, and provide possibilities for players. Nuclear operatives Mercenaries are similarly open-ended - they can be refugees, sol alliance marines, syndicate squad, and if Skull ever implements my suggestion then they can even be Skrell commandos, unathi raiders, etc etc.

Currently the only loreless antags are, to my knowledge, borerers, the Vox, xenos... I think those are it?

Non-specific antagonists like regular run-of-the-mill traitors are intentionally extremely open-ended. We do have some criminal elements in the lore that they can be attached to, yeah, but I don't really know how a specific antag-overseer would really work, still. You are capable of providing just as much to the server and lore by creating these things as a player - a loredev is primarily responsible for wiki information, whitelist management, and meta-narrative/canon events.

(Granted this last one is lackluster since I'm the only one doing the antag contest)

[Jboy2000000]

I thought it'd be easier to help write and manipulate the lore from within, because all of my lore apps sat without reply for several months. And while, yes, they do have origins, but even those lack any actual information. Like it was said, pretty much all antaggery is open ended and up to the players if they want to be something or not that is already written. Its like the character creation lore itself, if we have all the planets, space faring nations, we have all that, but you can make something yourself as well. I just want to lay some ground work that people could use, if they couldn't or don't want to make something up themselves.

[Killerhurtz]

Just chiming in:

Your lore apps sat without reply for several months because admittedly we were a mess. But if there is any other application that hasn't been marked as processed, let me know (and you're aware that The Clairvoyant was added, right?). I've been working on it.

That being said, your ideas do legitimately have some merit and... dare I say, identity, and with a little help on how to actually write them down you would be quite a worthwhile addition to the team.

[Jboy2000000]

I know its been added, I was absolutely ecstatic to see it on the wiki, but it doesn't mean it didn't sit for several months without anything. I just think I'd be able to help better from within, and it's not like anything I do will be one, stagnant thing. I still plan on creating special lore for every specie for wizards, and more than anything, I just want to give some backstory to how the changelings actually exist, not to what they are, I'd leave that unchanged. Even if, like it's been said, everything is open, you can choose to be something thats in the wiki, something in your head, or anything else you want when you roll being a special role.

[Owen]

I know its been added, I was absolutely ecstatic to see it on the wiki, but it doesn't mean it didn't sit for several months without anything. I just think I'd be able to help better from within, and it's not like anything I do will be one, stagnant thing. I still plan on creating special lore for every specie for wizards, and more than anything, I just want to give some backstory to how the changelings actually exist, not to what they are, I'd leave that unchanged. Even if, like it's been said, everything is open, you can choose to be something thats in the wiki, something in your head, or anything else you want when you roll being a special role.

 

There were some times where things were sitting for a while. But I feel the Lore team is actually getting organized for stuff like that because I have seen some recent things starting to go through quicker. Also, as a side note I would be fine with you being on the Lore team. You have had some really good ideas.

[Guest Marlon Phoenix]

I've given it more thought and I can't see where I can fit the broad ideas you have into actual assignments or tasks at the moment. The current push in the lore-team is now on guides and other wiki necessities, and we're in a situation of too many cooks in the kitchen.

I'm going to decline this application, though I'm glad that you're invested and have the desire to join. When I have an opening sometime in the future I will PM you with details and we can discuss a speedy-application.