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File 149805618693.png - (322.38KB , 800x800 , healthyperspective.png )
112766 No. 112766 ID: ceeeff

fgsfds

Thread 1: https://tgchan.org/kusaba/quest/res/807972.html
Wiki: https://tgchan.org/wiki/XenoQuest

NSFW! Slinko and Raptie's XenoQuest/Dragon Romance Non-Canon Crossover (SRXQDRNCC): https://www.dropbox.com/s/ctmbfm5vedbk0v9/Ceri%20and%20Outissa.pdf?dl=0
Expand all images
>>
No. 112772 ID: 50c95d

>fgsfds
I've had a folder on my hard drive with that exact name for like 10 years. No, I can't tell you what's in it.

Anyway, it's nice to see that you've been busy. Very busy indeed, damn.. a 65 panel marathon. There's too much awesomeness in there. So much canon mixing with non-canon that it almost made my eyes pop out. Outissa is definitely getting a bit ahead of herself with finding friends.

But yeah, dicussion threads are the right place to post non-canon stuff.

10/10
Well played.
>>
No. 112775 ID: 1c8358

This girl intrigues me and I want to get to know her.
>>
No. 112777 ID: 3373e2

This seems quite interesting, keep it up.
>>
No. 112803 ID: 50c95d

>>/quest/809866
RIP Outissa.

Off the path of loneliness,
lookin for a friendly face,
towers high she fell away,
may she rise again we pray.

Anyway, we should've known she started with more-or-less an empty stomach heh. Should've paid more attention to the fact that she said her crop was empty!
Personally I thought she wouldn't run out of strength so dramatically, or that she would consume so much just by hanging off of a wall. I guess the wall was very slick and that there wasn't a ledge under the window to stand on.
Normally, when a human body runs out of energy, it starts to convert the stored fat into energy. But in her case, it seems that, to be able to perform superhuman actions, she can only use the immediate energy, that is, from recently ingested food.
We learned a lot of important things.

But hey, Ammy's here to save the day!
>>
No. 112813 ID: fe7355

I was going to write a complaint about how we didn't get enough feedback or hints that Outissa's abilities would go away if she ran out of food or that she was nearly out, so I went back to re-read the quest thread. And lo and behold, I discovered I somehow missed that four image update block where she leaped to the tower where she basically said as much, so now I feel dumb.

Personally, I'd imagine that if we continue with Outissa she's going to be rather cross with us voices and won't so readily listen to us or follow our suggestions. Especially ones that ignore her needs or her current condition and abilities or put her in situations she knows are precarious or dangerous.
>>
No. 112815 ID: 3ce125

>>112803
>crop is empty
That was in response to "are you carrying anything", which implies she uses her crop to hold items.

Personally I think Outissa should have been a little more aware of how dangerous jumping to and climbing the tower was, considering she's had her entire life dealing with her jumpy climby superpowers. She did it without complaint, only mentioning the hunger limitation after she was on the tower, and did not comment on staying at the window until immediately before she fell.

We got all the important information too late to use it, and Outissa didn't seem to have any self-preservation instinct herself.
>>
No. 112821 ID: be0718

>>112813
If she gets any less responsive to suggested actions then she already is, then I would hesitate to call XenoQuest a quest anymore.
>>
No. 112823 ID: e5b57f
File 149826187735.png - (54.60KB , 800x800 , dis1.png )
112823

So, I'm going to try to limit how much information I give away about the quest here, but I will do my best to respond and reply to posts here as much as I can.

Basically, I won't be spoiling anything.

Finally - the info I provide in this thread is "soft canon." Consider it canon unless the quest itself indicates otherwise.

>>112772
I'm curious as to why you mentioned a mixture of canon and non-canon. Which do you think is which?

>>112775
Thank you! I look forward to doing my best to help people learn about her.

>>112777
I certainly plan to! =)

>>112803
As >>112815 said, yeah - the crop is how she carries items. And it's not that she necessarily ran out of strength.

To be clear: how it works is that food fuels certain abilities she has. Using those abilities burns up the fuel. She can still function without fuel, she'll just be really freaking hungry, and limited to her more standard abilities.

>>112813
No need to feel dumb, there's a lot going on. <3 I'm trying to run this quest in a way so that there are nearly no "filler" panels. So far, every panel contains some relevant information.

>>112815
Outissa is also not used to having voices in her head distract her by asking tons of questions and having her do things like lick windows.

>>112821
I don't understand this criticism.
So far, Outissa's done every suggestion that makes sense, and she answers nearly every question posed to her. Like - you're one of the reasons she pressed her breasts against the window. And she's responded to you specifically a couple of times.

In fact, it was a really close call between her going to the towers and her going to the lights in the distance.
>>
No. 112825 ID: be0718

>>112823
Of the 32 posts in the thread after the opener, I counted about 16 that were in response to an action. That's a much lower ratio than most other quests (generally >90%).
>>
No. 112827 ID: e5b57f

>>112825
Do you understand that I post multiple panels per update, so that I can convey a sense of action and pacing? In addition to the original post, XenoQuest has had about a dozen updates.

If you are looking for exactly one panel per update, then this probably isn't the quest for you.
>>
No. 112828 ID: be0718

>>112827
By that standard, there were 13 updates and six of them carried out actions. The ratio does not change.
>>
No. 112829 ID: 3abd97

>>112825
That seems both unfair, and inaccurate.
>>
No. 112831 ID: 2120ee

In what reasonable sense is answering questions not a response to a suggestor prompt? If there's an issue at all, and I don't think there is, it's that there is too much time spent responding to suggestors.

What is essentially being asked here is that action take priority over inquiry, but questions serve an important place in contextualizing the world we, as suggestors, are interacting with through the medium of the player character. By understanding the environment and our primary tool(No One) better, we are able to choose more effective actions in the future.

Headlong action is a valid approach, but a more contemplative pace is in no way invalid.
>>
No. 112832 ID: 3ce125

>>112828
It sounds like your complaint is about pacing rather than lack of control or non-interactivity.

The pacing did seem a little slow to me, at least at first. Outissa didn't really do much of anything until she jumped off and gave us a view of the "ruins" that we could explore. I think that's acceptable, because a lot of that established her character. Or at least, what we could see of her character, since she didn't want to answer more than one question at a time and was rather vague about a lot of things.
>>
No. 112834 ID: e5b57f
File 149827189004.png - (106.10KB , 800x800 , dis2.png )
112834

>>112828
While I appreciate the feedback, if you are looking for quests more to your tastes, might I suggest something like https://tgchan.org/wiki/A_Little_Town_Called_Coxwette ? The pacing might be more what you're looking for.

(Coxwette is A+ fucking amazing)
>>
No. 112836 ID: be0718

>>112832
My feedback is still about multiple updates in succession lacking a point of decision for suggestors to weigh in on. This being an introductory chapter, it's quite likely that trend will reverse now that introductions have been made.

>>112834
I actually prefer quests with more pictures per update, though it's more work for the author. Coxwette's great, though.
>>
No. 112842 ID: 50c95d

>>112823
>Which do you think is which?
For instance, the canon stuff like the tilde bar, /quest/ suggestions, dramatic scarf (I think!)..
And the non-canon like.. tilde bars going insane, the whole crossover, the scarf having a mind of its own..

>the crop is how she carries items
Well, she could also carry food in there. But what's important is that it tells us is that she came unprepared.

>>112832
>The pacing did seem a little slow to me, at least at first.
Heh. Some quests take literally forever to start. In this case, there was one extra update in the beginning just to answer stuff.

>>112836
Can you provide an example because I have no idea what you're talking about. Not every panel is supposed to be a response to an action, or a point of decision. There has been 14 "updates" and 100% of the updates have had a decision to weight on and contained response to previous suggestions.
>>
No. 112844 ID: be0718

>>112842
I'm not going to retread this any further, but don't just make stuff up delian. >>/quest/808333 is the first decision in the quest and far from the first update.
>>
No. 112845 ID: 50c95d

>>112844
Oh, so you're bothered by the fact that not every update is explicitly asking you something?
This may come as a surprise for you but.. it is possible to suggest things, even when the latest update is not explicitly asking you for it. In fact, it is implied that you should be doing so.
This is the same with every quest. You say that Coxwette is great, but if you check out the first thread, you'll notice that less than 50% of the time the update contains any sort of hint that you should suggest something. That's even less than this quest.
>>
No. 112860 ID: 3ce125

Raptie how does the control phrase work? If it only makes Outissa listen to whoever used it, things are going to get out of hand real fast. I mean, in general arguing with other suggesters is discouraged. You're encouraging it, making it in-character even, and tying the conflict to a heavily emotionally charged issue. Then if suggesters get to pull some magic words to have their suggestions count more than others, it's gonna be like dumping gasoline on a fire. It'll probably be worse if people do that to try to make Outissa go back home or otherwise engage in self-destructive behavior, but I expect people to make a fuss over anything that isn't the most obviously necessary use of it.

If it makes Outissa more willing to follow ALL suggestions, then it won't be as bad, but there's still gonna be a lot of anger in the thread towards anyone that takes the father's side. I didn't think there would be anyone who'd DO that, but it looks like I might be wrong. Time will tell if they're being serious about it.
>>
No. 112861 ID: a307f1

>>112860
I dont think its a total control phrase, although I wouldnt put it past this nasty mask dude. I thought it was more like... something that would upset or scare her really bad and either freak her out so bad she doesnt think straight, or make her directly afraid of suggesters enough to do what they say.

either way I think it would be bad news to say.
>>
No. 112862 ID: be0718

Does this imply that the character can 'hear' and act on the questdis thread goings-on in-quest?
>>
No. 112863 ID: 50c95d

I thought about this for a while and here's a few ideas I came up with in regards to how Outissa's reaction to those words could be made simpler:
- panic attack (acts on her own, ignores all suggestions)
- charmed (ignores all but one suggestion)
- possession (one of the suggesters takes over the body, dunno about suggestions)
- hypnosis (falls asleep, dunno about suggestions)
- hypnotic response (depends on what her father implanted in her mind, the suggestions are probably ignored?)

As far as invoking control goes, there's a few questions also:
- Can both sides invoke control?
- Can it be invoked at any time?
- If it's invoked, can both sides participate in the control? Or only the "home" side?
- Is the control emotionally taxing (would Outissa remember/be hurt it)?
- Would she build up resistance to it?

I'm quite worried about abuse. Perhaps some sort of rules about it would have to be added:
- it would have to be at least a casual suggester
- they would have to explain themselves, have a valid reason
- they would be limited to a single try and then never again

Depending on all of the above possibilities, it could turn out to be very simple, or a very complicated thing.
Here's one idea I have about making the whole invoking process simple. In case both sides can invoke control at any time, the process could look something like this:
- Suggester invokes control (it has to be apparent for which side)
- Raptie tosses a coin. 50% chance that control succeeds (it could also be 100% chance if both sides wanted it)
- If the control succeeds, Raptie tosses a coin again. 50% chance one side wins and 50% the other.
This way suggesters would be forced to only use it in a critical situation. After all, they would have 50% chance to make it better, and 50% chance to make it worse heh.
>>
No. 112867 ID: f82f4d

Outissa is fairly boring. Her father is interesting. I'll be taking that side if there's actually any chance of success (doubtful given the typical suggestors on this board these days). If not I'll probably just peter out on interest for the quest. Art is cool, but so far it's just about a semi-idiotic magic girl who happens to be covered in black fur. I have more interest in characters with depth than a "look at the cool stuff I can do" anime character. Even if the dark side never wins, attempting to subvert her goal should still shed light on the hopefully more interesting parts of her personality and history about which she has so far been stubbornly uncommunicative
>>
No. 112868 ID: 1c8358

>>112867
>> Quest just started.
>> I'm Bored
>> People arn't evil enough

Bye.
>>
No. 112870 ID: 3abd97

It's a forgone conclusion that any plan that requires concealing information from a player character who lacks an information filter is doomed.

Also, from a purely utilitarian perspective, "Daddy" hasn't actually offered us anything we don't already have. He offered us a physical body to drive around and do things with if we return... the physical body we're currently guiding and doing things with.

I mean, come on, if you're paying someone to betray another, you need to make a decent offer, dude. There's a premium on betrayal.

There's also basically no incentive to hurry up and give him what he wants. We could take as long as we pleased and if and when Outissa ends up in his grasp we could claim it was a long con to get her there, or that we were slowed down by the voices in our midst working against his aims. There's no failure clause in the contract he offered us.
>>
No. 112873 ID: e5b57f
File 149842429336.png - (45.11KB , 800x800 , sketti.png )
112873

>>112860
I can't tell you how it works, sorry. What I can do is tell you that Outissa's father is extremely crafty, and that nothing he says is by accident.

>>112862
Outissa cannot hear what happens in /questdis/. Only things said in the thread while in her presence.

>>112863
That's a lot of really interesting stuff!

>>112867
You are certainly entitled to your opinion, and I ask that you give it more than just the first chapter before judging it, but - hey, fair is fair. If it's not your thing, it's not your thing.

>>112870
To clarify. He says that if you return Outissa to him, then he will force her to do whatever the suggesters want. If there are...things... that require the presence of a second individual, he is saying that he will provide that.
>>
No. 112875 ID: 3abd97

>If there are...things... that require the presence of a second individual, he is saying that he will provide that.
Which are things we can almost certainly get without him, based solely on what Outissa has said.

It remains a poor offer in that he's offering us what is already within our reach.
>>
No. 112876 ID: 91ee5f

>>112873
Well that's just great, now you've made me hungry for spaghetti! Thanks a lot!
>>
No. 112877 ID: 3740b1

>>112873
Hey that probably came off more negatively towards you as an author than intended. To be honest I am very hopeful about the quest going forward and excited about the twist you've just introduced. IF you are indeed adding a new mechanic to your quest which will pit reader vs reader with two very different objectives to vie for, and IF we either have enough parity between the opposing camps for an even contest or at least a balancing force in the form of her father's influence.

If instead this new development is merely a way to introduce the villain in what will be a fairly linear quest then I personally think the quest would be the lesser for it. There is obvious potential for good storytelling in learning about the relationship between father and daughter and I truly hope readers and authors come together (in moral combat!) to delve into histories and psyches of the protagonist and antagonist. The protagonist seems only interested in running away and hiding things from us. Therefore I, at least for now, hope a few readers will take up the mantle of "evil" and take the opportunity you have provided to add a fairly novel dimension to a new quest. Readers are often very divided in their suggestions - having two "camps" that we can support should focus our efforts while still allowing us all to somewhat express our own mores.
>>
No. 112878 ID: 3740b1

Also, I don't want to slow down updates; but if you're in the mood some time, it would be nice to see some art of her father here or in a draw thread. Unless of course you want to keep glimpses of him at a minimum for the purposes of storytelling.

A thought: you could allow her father to speak to us here. He could offer extra incentives like lore blurbs or lewd pics of their history in return for progress his followers make in the main thread. A near-cheating way of influencing and corrupting readers to his side seems appropriate to how I'm reading his character so far. Though you would of course know best.
>>
No. 112886 ID: a307f1

>>112878
in the interest of providing a voice of reason so that creepy shit cant just be said and left in the open to seem normal and uncontested: thats creepy
>>
No. 112889 ID: 3740b1

>>112886
To each their own, Mr. Sane. The meta elements of this quest are what I find most intriguing thus far and I was only making a suggestion in that vein that occurred to me mid typing. Besides, creepy is fun. Vanilla is for children
>>
No. 112896 ID: a307f1

>>112889
never said I was sane, just that asking for lewds of father-daughter presumed-abuse is creepy.

(I'm presuming the abuse not only because of the inherent nature of... That, but also because of outissa's reaction to the rapey suggestion earlier in the thread. it was notably serious, so it does seem like she has some negative history around it. which I think everyone in general could stand to keep in mind)

anyway, I think

>Show us your scars. From now on, consider whatever is said after "show us your scars" on its own merits instead of blindly obeying it.

is an interesting suggestion... maybe "cheating" but definitely evens things out if it really is a brainwashing phrase. I'm interested to see the reaction. I'm still worried though that its just something that would upset her.
>>
No. 112897 ID: be0718

>>112896
You have a funny definition of 'evening things out.' But yes, all her father said was that it would make her 'listen.' He gave no guarantee she would obey.
>>
No. 112903 ID: 3ce125

On further reflection, I think it's just going to reduce Otissa to a miserable wreck for a while, and she'll do whatever we want her to do in exchange for us not pushing her button again.

I mean, considering Aubrey's mental problems and how Raptie kept bringing up PTSD in Sunfish, I don't think she'd treat this like some kind of mind control thing. It's gonna be an emotional trauma thing. I kinda doubt it's gonna be dissociation again like Aubrey though, that'd be a bit one-note.
>>
No. 112911 ID: 3740b1

>>112897
Yeah seriously. The moral majority clearly is going to oppose any attempt to work with her father so negating the only tool given to his side is hardly "evening things out".

As to requesting lewds of the incest, I actually wasn't. I'd like to get a better look at her father's design and asked to for pics of him, which since I was pondering the quest made me think of the second bit as an interesting possibility to expand his character's tools of corruption. Rather than only having the supposed reward he'd give us on her return he could piecemeal out smaller rewards here when we make progress against the goody goods. It wouldn't have to be porn even. Telling us more about the world, more about what we are, what they are etc may also be an enticement for some to flip sides. More knowledge would mean being better able to direct our charge to a successful resolution. And yes, I'm sure lewds would entice others - whether of just her, or him or both. Creepy yeah, but I think that's clearly his mo.
>>
No. 112912 ID: 3ce125

Well I guess it was straightforward after all.
>>
No. 112918 ID: e5b57f

I thought about whether or not I should say something. Decided I should at least give some kind of warning, although I'll keep it here so I don't break the flow of the quest.

You guys are perilously close to fulfilling the "Bad End" conditions I had set.

Here is a hint: The end can be avoided if even just one person posts the kind of thing in the quest that Outissa needs the most right now.

At least for this moment, stop thinking of her as an object or puzzle, and think of her as a person.
>>
No. 112919 ID: 47160d

>>112918
so uh... if that happens will you be starting another quest in the same universe or...what?
>>
No. 112920 ID: e5b57f

>>112919
Doubtful.
>>
No. 112921 ID: 47160d

>>112920
This feels like a dangerous game to play to me, like... I like the quest so far, I am interested to see where it goes, but we don't know her. We barely have met her in the slightest, it's going to be pretty hard for anyone to figure out what to say to someone they have barely met and refuses to talk about themselves
>>
No. 112922 ID: 3d2d5f

>>112918
Give us at least a few hours before bad ending things, okay? Waiting for every suggestor on every update isn't usually practical, but if it's that dire you might want to wait for the folks who are currently at work (like me) or asleep to have a chance.
>>
No. 112925 ID: be0718

>>112918
Please carry through with this threat, rather than just using it as a ploy for attention. We're spoiled for good ends. One can always load an old save after screwing up, no?
>>
No. 112926 ID: e6c6b6

Eh, I shot all over the place. It's also possible I made a grave mistake by giving her that name, in case it was a name she was intentionally trying to forget.
I can't write any more now because it was starting to make me feel sad D:
Hopefully, it will be enough.
>>
No. 112927 ID: 3740b1

>>112925
Sometimes bad stuff happens. Sometimes we fail. Authors never want to risk losing readers so there are rarely real consequences.
>>
No. 112933 ID: 3ce125

>>112918
I'll be honest, when you say suggest as if Outissa is a person, I think you mean something completely different than what people think you mean. Most of the suggesters are currently speaking to Outissa as if they care about her and want to help. We can't read her mind, we can't hear her voice, we can't look at her body language. We just have text to work with so it is very difficult to tell exactly what her emotions are and we don't operate in real time so we can't react to her either. We just have this single panel of her crying.

I *think* you expect us to figure out her thoughts and emotional state and tell her comforting things but there is just no way for anyone to actually do that correctly based on the scraps of information we have so far. It'd be like trying to comfort a stranger; you're more likely to offend them than help them.

Also uh, from the sound of it we only have this one chance to say the right thing. You keep saying you're new to quests but it really feels like you're repeatedly setting us up for failure, especially how you've got that salt to rub in our wounds every time. This time it's "You didn't talk to her like a person".
>>
No. 112935 ID: 47160d

I love this quest so far and I love that you are trying to give us real stakes but:.. how the hell do you expect us to know her well enough to do this right from what little we have scene?
>>
No. 112936 ID: 3ce125

Oh, right, and this puzzle wasn't even presented as one until you posted that here in questdis. There is actually no reason in the main quest thread to think we're one update from a bad end. That's just crazy.
>>
No. 112937 ID: 91ee5f

>>112936
He never said we were 1 update away from a bad end. He said we were close to a bad end. Close could mean 3 updates, if people don't make any sort of change.
>>
No. 112944 ID: 3ce125

>>112937
Well, we were. It looks like naming her was the solution? Or reminding her of what her name should be? A bit weird considering "Outissa" is present all over the quest and the disthread, and Raptie refers to her as Outissa all the time. I figured it was more likely that she was already named Outissa and didn't want to tell us that.
>>
No. 112945 ID: 1c8358

>>112925
>>112927

>> Spoiled for "good-ends".

Maybe this isn't the place for you.

The vast majority of people don't enjoy misery or suffering. We'd much rather go on an adventure and see the protagonist succeed.

If half the quests here ended in one or two threads because of bad-ends this board would be dead.

If any of the polo-verse quests had a legitimate bad-end this board would also be dead.

If "Real Consequences" means "dead protag (or a similar equivilent), story over" yeah, most of us will gladly pass.
>>
No. 112950 ID: e5b57f

>>112944
The solution was "show her some sympathy because she's crying and feels horrible". Even something like, "Hey, are you okay?" would have done it.

And it had to sound genuine, i.e., not be in a post that was trying to tell her what to do or pump her for info.
>>
No. 112951 ID: 37e5bb

>>112945
Wow you're really full of it. Stop telling people they're having the wrong kind of fun.
>>
No. 112952 ID: 47160d

So as a random question... did her father know it would end like that? Because... showing us her breaking down and need help and friendship is super not an effective way to make anyone want to send her back to him.
>>
No. 112953 ID: 3ce125

>>112950
Oh, alright, I completely misinterpreted the situation.

>>112952
Maybe he expected it to break her spirit and keep her from getting any help from anyone, which would make her easy to catch up to and capture? I mean, I really doubt we're the only plan he has to get her back.
>>
No. 112954 ID: e5b57f

>>112952
Her father was very confident that nobody would see Outissa as having any real value. That, at best, people would see her as a tool or asset. Not as a person.

The crazy thing is that he was so close to being correct. I... I hadn't counted on him being right.

As it stands, I've had to change things around a little to accommodate what's happened. There's no way I'm letting her escape unscathed after such a close call.
>>
No. 112955 ID: e5b57f

>>112936
>>112937

It wasn't supposed to BE a puzzle! It was supposed to be a neat dramatic moment, but... well, as you can see from the update, if there weren't any posts for her to rally herself around, it would have been over.


(Also, it's "she", not "he" <3)
>>
No. 112956 ID: be0718

>>112945
The majority of quests *do* end in one or two threads because they go on "indefinite hiatus." And yet, life goes on.
>>112954
Well, we'll take what we can get in terms of "lasting consequences."
>>
No. 112957 ID: 3740b1

>>112954
So when you introduced her father you had no intention of actually letting the readers take his offer. It was either kneejerk react with hate for him and spew love for her or else we get a bad end. That's a shame, it could have been something special to be able to rp the bad side against the good. Would be a whole new dynamic brought to the board. Ah well, it's your quest. Wish you the best with it.
>>
No. 112958 ID: 3740b1

To everyone else acting like those of us who tried to play for the bad side are all rapist murdermonsters - get a grip and don't take imaginary stuff on the internet so seriously. This is all just for entertainment, and if you think you actually have a right to judge others for the way they play pretend then you're the monster.
>>
No. 112963 ID: 3ce125

>>112954
I think you might have a bit of a problem reading between the lines. Most of the suggestions were trying to help! Some others (like mine) were trying to get some straight answers. That doesn't make her a tool or an asset, it simply means we're worried that she might be lying about a few things, which could either screw us or her over. It'd be fair to call it disrespectful, but it's still approaching her as a person. Again, we knew almost nothing about her and she was unresponsive or tight lipped about everything. Still is, really.

I don't really get how you quoted some things from people who were clearly trying to help as if these were bad things to say. Heck, you quoted something from one post in the bad end section and then more stuff from that post in the recovery section. That's really confusing! Does context not matter for what we say to her? Is she really that alien? Do you have that problem to? That could explain a few things.
>>
No. 112969 ID: 3ce125

>>112955
Do you mean you turned it into a puzzle because you didn't like what people were saying? I mean, what you said here strongly implies that the situation is a lot like a puzzle, even if Outissa isn't:
>Here is a hint: The end can be avoided if even just one person posts the kind of thing in the quest that Outissa needs the most right now.

Giving out a hint, or requiring only one person to post what's needed-- those are the kinds of things you'd expect in relation to a puzzle update.
>>
No. 112971 ID: 47160d

Erm, I would like to preface this with the fact that I really am enjoying the quest so far and the art style is hella fun. However... I don't think most of us think of her as a tool? We were trying to figure out literally...anything! We have been given nothing but very vague hints as to anything that is going on so of course many people latched onto the father because it seemed like he was giving us an actual direction and purpose. Everyone else though posted almost exclusively to apologize to her or explain why someone said something like that... I don't think that is treating her like a puzzle or a tool, it was treating her as a mature being that can understand the concept of the board not being a solid entity and that many of the parts of it want to help her but they need information to do so. Don't let me or anyone else dissuade you from continuing, no one would be saying such things if they weren't invested just... perhaps don't expect people to try to have one on one conversation with a person who just sort of grunts at us, at least after only maybe six, I'm not going to go count at the moment, posts
>>
No. 112972 ID: c0bafe

>>112963
>Does context not matter for what we say to her? Is she really that alien? Do you have that problem to?

Outissa is highly deficient in what's known as "theory of mind" - she has significant issues in intuiting what other people are thinking/feeling. It's why she's so literal.

She's incredibly alien. Note the title of the quest.

And...yes, I do. Outissa is an exaggerated version of myself. In my case, I've been able to learn enough about how people think so that I can fake theory of mind, but Outissa has not.

The quest is essentially an allegory about my experiences as an individual with high-functioning autism.
>>
No. 112973 ID: c0bafe

Also - Outissa isn't trying to be tight-lipped or whatever, guys. From her perspective, she's answering what people ask her (except in cases where she's asked too many questions in a single post.)

She's not human, and doesn't think like one normally would. I understand that you have layers and shades of meaning to what you ask, but she doesn't.
>>
No. 112975 ID: 3740b1

Huh, well that's kind of interesting. I honestly thought she was being deceptive. It might be fun to try to figure this out as I'm hypersensitive and sort of run at the other end of the spectrum. Nothing is ever simply the words that are said. I tend to over analyze even the most innocent statements and try to imagine all the possible hidden meanings and subtextual intentions - even when they're not there. It's something I've learned to sort of set aside in most day to day conversations as it can sometimes lead me to take things the wrong way. I also sometimes give the wrong impression because I make a crude joke or something, relying on subtle tone and body language that to me screams "I'm just kidding", but to the other party I just seem like an asshole. I imagine that if we tried to communicate face to face it would either be hilarious or tragic.
>>
No. 112989 ID: 3ce125

Can Outissa go HISS or GRONK?
>>
No. 112990 ID: 01764f

>>112989
She may or may not pass the Harkness test.
>>
No. 112993 ID: 47160d

question I don't want to ask in the main thread because there are too many questions already but like how long has she been running? I don't mean exactly but is it like a matter or weeks or a matter of hours?
>>
No. 113000 ID: 01764f

>>112993
That is the kind of thing that you'd have to ask in the main thread, heh,

Also, it's not that asking too many questions is the problem - it's when one person asks too many questions in the same update.
>>
No. 113048 ID: 91ee5f

I was kinda wondering when yinglets were going to make an appearance in a quest, since I always see them over in the draw threads. I was just expecting them to star in their own quest instead of guest starring in a quest that was already going!
>>
No. 113060 ID: 2173c9

>>112993
I'm an idiot who forgot to answer this, so I'll do it in the next update. <3

>>113048
They've never shown up in a quest before now? That's really surprising!
>>
No. 113061 ID: 2173c9

>>112878
>>112911

I'm not certain if you noticed, but her father didn't really respond to people asking questions. He's not the kind of person to acknowledge the ideas that others have.

From his perspective, he's provided you with exactly enough to do what he wants, and any failure is on your part, not his.

Also, the mask is to get people to focus on that and not him. He'd never provide pictures of himself.

Having said all that, I'm very flattered that you like his design! If enough people are curious, I might be able to post pictures about what the rest of him looks like.

Hell, I might even be able to be bribed into drawing him and Outissa. If you're really interested, shoot me a note on Furaffinity. My name there is Caedere.
>>
No. 113105 ID: 3373e2

This is gonna get very, very, interesting.
>>
No. 113119 ID: add027

The way you're handling the pledges makes me think that anyone who hasn't pledged will get double votes with Outissa.
>>
No. 113121 ID: be0718

>>113119
The author has not so subtly implied that Outissa will outright ignore suggestors perceived by the author as not helping Outissa.
>>
No. 113122 ID: 3abd97

>>113119
>>113121
Outissa seems to be pretty clearly not bound to majority rule.
>>
No. 113123 ID: ba56e6

>>113119
My guess is that making a (possibly literal) deal with the devil will limit their options in the future.
>>
No. 113124 ID: 01764f
File 149911554758.png - (675.28KB , 800x800 , dis3.png )
113124

>>113105
I certainly hope so!

>>113119
>>113121
>>113122
>>113123

I would be very careful about making assumptions!

Outissa stated, "I will no longer listen to the voices that tell me terrible things. I have worth."

Outissa doesn't hear the things you say to her father. She does know who asked her to show her scars, and she knows who has said shitty things to her.

If you decide you want to double-cross either Outissa or her father, I suggest you be careful that neither finds out.

Just remember: Outissa's father knows if you're lying or not. If you betray him, you'd better hope that a more loyal voice doesn't snitch on you.
>>
No. 113128 ID: 3abd97

>Outissa's father knows if you're lying or not.
Pedantic, but no, he doesn't. The limits of his knowledge stop where the limits of the other players and the author's do, and none of those persons have the means to confirm if a given suggestor is lying about their intentions or playing a long con. Only when we're repeating facts that have been established prior is the information verifiable (and maybe not even then if we have unreliable narrator(s) / viewpoint perspective(s)).
>>
No. 113129 ID: 01764f

>>113128
To be even MORE pedantic, he does.

The context of the post refers to "you" as in "your role as a voice", i.e. the character that each of you plays in this quest.

Your characters only exist in the context of the quest, and only through what you type.


From a more meta standpoint, I have no way of verifying things like people using multiple IPs or whatever, so I just treat each different ID as its own entity.
>>
No. 113130 ID: 47160d

>>113129
So outta curiosity what would you of done if no one played along with the father? Would he of just made all these choices himself and forced us to watch?
>>
No. 113131 ID: 01764f

>>113130

That's a very good question! The quest would have been VERY different if no one played along with him initially.
>>
No. 113132 ID: add027

>>113129
Samefagging is an issue in many quests. Some QMs only accept votes from IDs that have already posted in the thread. I normally don't save cookies from this site, but if a QM starts using IDs for anything, I might keep them.
>>
No. 113170 ID: b1b4f3

>>113129
>He does
That's not possible. If someone pledges loyalty but lies, he wouldn't count that vote twice if he knew. You are in charge of counting votes, which means you need to know if someone is lying, and that is often impossible.

Truth detection only works in a quest if it's an NPC whose lies are being detected or players say when they are lying.
>>
No. 113171 ID: 01764f

>>113170
If someone tells Outissa's father something that contradicts what has happened in the quest, then he considers that a lie.

Don't overthink it - I'm not trying to read motivation or whatever. I'm HORRIBLE at that.
>>
No. 113202 ID: c88e6d

We should definitely have our discussions here, in the discussion thread, and not the main thread between chapters.
>>
No. 113204 ID: ed8729

I'm going to ask: Do you have permission to use Yinglets or are you just copying?

I'm not judging or anything, I found out what a Yinglet was from this quest thread.
>>
No. 113205 ID: 01764f

>>113204
Yep! Full permission from Valsalia!
>>
No. 113216 ID: 094652

>>113205
Sweeeet, you could effectively write the Kama Sutra for Yinglets in this quest.

Does the setting take place near a trans-dimensional hub, or did someone discover gene mods to create Yinglets?
>>
No. 113237 ID: 6b1d95

I think that the benefit from Amaranth is a bit imbalanced in some cases. For instance, you could betray Laertes and then immediately pledge loyalty to Amaranth and there would be no consequences. So I would suggest a limitation, that is, Amaranth should reject those who have proven to be disloyal. Or something else. Just like how there are some limits to who can pledge loyalty to Laertes, there should be some with Ammy too to make betrayal a bit less simple.
If you take a side, then you should have some backbone and try to stay there is my opinion.
>>
No. 113255 ID: ba56e6

>>113237
I dunno. A Starscream can have their place in a story.

Even if it's just to reveal some of Laertes' abilities and get owned.
>>
No. 113259 ID: 01764f
File 149938174548.png - (547.65KB , 800x800 , dis5.png )
113259

>>113216
Not quiiiiiite. Close.

>>113237
Remember: Only people who have pledged loyalty to Outissa's father can give suggestions to Dzi. Also, there aren't any restrictions on pledging loyalty to her father, other than needing to have voted if you're doing it when not in his presence.

>>113255
I have considered and accounted for people who are going to backstab.
>>
No. 113297 ID: 7cdf1e

I look forward to seeing just how many people have CBD.
>>
No. 113298 ID: 6b1d95

There's a lot of stuff that we learned in the last update.
-Outissa has a brother
-He also distanced himself from their father
-He's here to hurt or kill her
-He rejects reality

But there are a few things which have ambiguous meaning and I'm not able to assume the correct one with high probability.
>We sing
What does singing mean? I would assume it means to talk/communicate without words. Or it could be a metaphor for something else. A projection of something? Are they singing right now?
>stole words, stole songs
Are words part of the songs? Or do words refer to the voice? Or thoughts? Outissa's belongings that can be stolen, but are they items, or abilities, or even memories? And were they taken from her, or did Outissa give them to him and he never returned them? My best guess here would be.. childhood fantasies or memories. He took nice ideas and turned them wicked? Btw, Outissa mentioned before that she only recently learned how to think in "words". I'm assuming she meant a different type of "words" here.
>I never had a voice.
Has she never had it, or did she simply forget that she did? Outissa's father did mention something about her being able to erase memories. And the way her brother says it, one would assume that she used to have a voice.
Anyway, "voice" and "singing" seem to be two unrelated things. He keeps asking her to sing, but he also says that her voice is silent. Considering he expects her to sing without a voice, we can assume that she doesn't need a voice to sing.
>I ate my name
Umm.. yum? Does the name refer to one's reputation? To eat reputation. To get rid of reputation. To start anew? But again, it could also have something to do with memory erasing. Heh, eating memories.
>Even with a name
So a name gives him certain abilities? Or is it just reputation to use others to help him catch her? One thing's for certain. There is power in a name! And since she lost her name, that made her weak? Is this why he says her hands are tied? But she has a name now, doesn't she? So it doesn't make much sense.
>>
No. 113325 ID: c88e6d

>>113298
Names are bindings. Lacking them grants freedom.
>>
No. 113326 ID: 01764f

>>113325
:D
>>
No. 113327 ID: ba56e6

>>113325
Names are also purpose. The proof that you exist.
>>
No. 113329 ID: 91ee5f

>>113325
>>113327
Sounds like a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" kinda situation!
>>
No. 113330 ID: 6b1d95

>>113325
This is entirely false. Outissa's brother has a name and he got the same freedom she did.
>>
No. 113357 ID: 6b1d95

>>113330
I take that back. The name does refer to Outissa's name, and not her brother's. So.. that makes more sense.
>>
No. 113365 ID: 6b1d95
File xq109-110.mp4 - (146.50KB )
113365

A poor attempt at video editing.
>>
No. 113374 ID: 01764f

>>113365
Whoa! That's really, really cool!
>>
No. 113380 ID: c88e6d

>>113374
I agree.
>>
No. 113381 ID: ba56e6

>>113365
That's really smooth for what it is. Impressive work.
>>
No. 113414 ID: 3ce125

Seems like Outissa and Khoros's real father is dead. Laertes either "adopted" her while she was a captive, or he stole that role like Khoros steals songs.
>>
No. 113419 ID: ba56e6

I don't trust the word of father dearest, so I'm going to bite the bullet and take the risk here. There's a chance he's telling the truth about overwhelming Khoros with many voices, but perhaps one voice would not.
>>
No. 113423 ID: 6b1d95

>>113414
Outissa's father has white facial fur, same as Outissa. Based on this, there's a high probability that Outissa is the real daughter of her current father.

It's a lot more likely that Khoros was the one that was adopted:
Pros:
- Khoros said that he named his sister. If it was his real sister, then he would've known her name from the start and there would've been no need for the naming.
- Khoros said that his "papa" is dead. Thus Outissa's father isn't his real father.
- Outissa's father was very interested in what name Khoros chose. It's natural that he'd only adopt someone who he'd be very interested in. Especially since he's unhappy with his current "foolish" daughter.
Cons:
- Khoros said that he named his sister. If Outissa's father doesn't give names to his children then that would explain why Khoros had no name. Polyphemus was simply a lab name the staff gave him.
- Khoros said that his "papa" is dead. It's strange that only his papa died, and not his mama. It could simply have been his father faking his own death as a test for Khronos, to see if he can handle it. Or to convince Khoros into developing his powers. It would make sense, considering how he just tricked Khronos into thinking he's alone.
- Outissa's father was very interested in what name Khoros chose. It would make sense for a father to want to hear a name of his son. He respects a smart son that is able to choose his own name.
>>
No. 113426 ID: 3ce125

>>113423
Khoros would've recognized Laertes' voice, wouldn't he?

We could narrow down some of these possibilities by asking Outissa about it. Though I guess she might have some reason to lie.
>>
No. 113429 ID: f076ad
File xq121.mp4 - (948.96KB )
113429

Not so poor attempt at video editing.

You should set the video to loop.
>>
No. 113464 ID: 01764f

>>113429
This is also really awesome. I thought about doing something like this myself, but figured it would have been too much trouble
>>
No. 113470 ID: ba56e6

I notice a great deal of Beatrix hate. As someone who doesn't know what a yinglet is, can someone explain why they warrant such disgust?
>>
No. 113471 ID: 91ee5f

>>113470
I don't know either. I find Beatrix adorable!
>>
No. 113479 ID: 3ce125

>>113470
Yinglets are basically raptor-rats who act like hyperactive 6 year olds most of the time. They're a sapient pest species, similar to some renditions of kobolds.

Read the comic "Out-of-placers" for more context.
>>
No. 113488 ID: f076ad

>>113470
I've nothing against them. And most people don't. I think that those choosing Khoros are doing so simply because this is an important operation and Khoros has a useful skill.
Actually, I would go as far as to say that those choosing Beatrix have a significant preference for yinglets, voting to bring her despite her not bringing anything useful to the table. Or at least no one wrote any reasons for doing so yet.
>>
No. 113492 ID: f076ad

I also want to mention.. did anyone think about what would happen if we didn't bring Khoros? The way I see it, he's feeling extremely good being together with his sister again. If we suddenly separate him from her again, that could have.. dire consequences. He might attack her the next time they reunite. Or he might simply decline to be separated and go crazy right away. I mean, just a bit ago we saw that he would rather die than being separated again.
>>
No. 113507 ID: 6e59e3

I voted for Beatrix because we cannot wholly trust Khoros.

Do not underestimate ratptors, either.
>>
No. 113508 ID: ba56e6

>>113507
She has things she can contribute, but I would rather rebuild rapport between Outissa and Khoros. He will not improve if simply ignored.
>>
No. 113510 ID: 91ee5f

>>113507
Really? I voted Beatrix because I was expecting Outissa was going to be pissed at us for wanting her brother to come with us and she wouldn't want to be around him.
>>
No. 113511 ID: cc5ab4

The yinglet is our party face, and is small and theoretically capable of stealth which is also Outissa's strength.

I don't think anyone in our group here is immune to bullets.
>>
No. 113514 ID: be0718

>>113511
>The face character is a yinglet
We're doomed.
>>
No. 113535 ID: 094652

... That's it?

Is this quest the prologue, or are the rest just side stories?
>>
No. 113537 ID: 8cb228

...What just happened??
>>
No. 113538 ID: ba56e6

>>113537
I think Outissa won?
>>
No. 113543 ID: 01764f

This quest is indeed complete. Yeah.

I know it's sudden, but hey! You won!

THERE WILL BE MORE STUFF IN THE FUTURE THOUGH I PROMISE SERIOUSLY seriously there will, just in a different quest

Outissa will be back!
>>
No. 113545 ID: be0718

>>113538
Outissa won, Khoros was made whole, and Pam's task was completed! Truly, this was a win-win-win situation. Yes. Nobody walked away from this unhappy. Nobody...
>>
No. 113546 ID: 3ce125

Well Dzi probably didn't walk away at all.
>>
No. 113549 ID: ba56e6

>>113545
With factions of suggesters attempting to sabotage one another, it's probably one of the better ending scenarios for Outissa's side.
>>
No. 113551 ID: 3373e2

Welp GG, this was a truly interesting quest. I hope to see more of your work in the future. Good luck with your future projects.
>>
No. 113552 ID: efcc58

This ending was unsatisfying. The last suggestions used were nowhere close to what was written. It feels like Raptie just became tired of the story.

There's no point in distinguishing myself from the other anons, so I won't be using the name "Add27" anymore. Goodbye for now,
everyone.

>>
No. 113553 ID: 214cda

Well, that was bullshit.
>>
No. 113554 ID: c9f250
File 150018764341.gif - (162.05KB , 1000x625 , khoros.gif )
113554

...
>>
No. 113559 ID: f076ad

>>113552
>It feels like Raptie just became tired of the story.
I feel like this was a punishment. For not heeding Outissa's father's warnings.

In fact, it was my fault as I was the one that prodded Khoros. It was my fault that the quest took a wrong turn and Raptie had to kill it. Sorry guys, the quest ended because of me. I blame myself and I feel absolutely terrible.
>>
No. 113561 ID: f076ad

Some questions:
Was Laertes Outissa's father's real name?
Were Outissa and Khoros both adopted?
and..
>>113490
>>
No. 113562 ID: ba56e6

>>113559
I made my share of mistakes and misinterpretations, one of which contributed to that. Ultimately, you can't go back knowing what you know now. The only solutions to be found are ahead.

My only set goal remains to kill Laertes.
>>
No. 113564 ID: 01764f

>>113561
Nope! Not his real name.

Dude doesn't actually have a name. He knows intimately just how much having a name lets you control someone, so you can bet he doesn't have one. Never did, actually.

Outissa and Khoros weren't adopted, not exactly. Their real father died, their mother vanished, and "Laertes" stole them, basically.

As for how Beatrix managed to get a ticket - that's a good question! You'll have to find that out later.
>>
No. 113567 ID: 3740b1

>>113552
Gonna mostly agree with that. The big epic suggester battle just kinda of got killed before it could go anywhere. I guess it was never meant to be a fair fight?

The whole Khoros thing was messed up from the get go. We were told that we shouldn't overwhelm him with a bunch of suggestions but that he would help Laertes' supporters capture Outissa. Then the first time we have a combat situation with him we're told by the author that he's going to help Outissa?? Like, seriously?

It's just a shame that it ended so abruptly when the promise of suggester faction battle was finally coming to fruition. I could deal with losing better if I felt like it actually went down the way suggestions directed. Most people were suggesting different tactics for fighting. Yet all that happened is Outissa ran away.
>>
No. 113572 ID: 03a48d

>>113567
So, the thing with their father is that he was a liar.

Everything he promised you was essentially a lie.

He had no intention of rewarding you. He used you.

It's what people like him do.

Having said that, I meant to announce that your suggestion that got Dzi moving was the best suggestion in the whole combat thing, so you win the free sketch. I'll get in touch with you on FA later about that.
>>
No. 113573 ID: 6f3ff0

>>113572
Yeah I figured there was a good chance he was. It's just fun to rp evil. I was hoping down the line we might be able to out-con the conman and gain some sort of leverage on him. Anyway, despite my disappointment in the abrupt ending, take satisfaction in knowing you ran a very engaging quest. The suggestion factions idea was especially great. Hope to see more like that down the road from you. And more Outissa. And more No Name. Maybe not more Beatrix. ;P
>>
No. 113574 ID: ba56e6

I think what disappointed people is how much was glossed over. They didn't get to see Outissa narrowly escape from Khoros' hunting jaws. The Laertes-supporters didn't get to direct Dzi in a fight against Khoros. Nobody got to see a panel like >>113554 with Khoros hiding away from the world, stewing in his guilt, anger, and madness.
>>
No. 113577 ID: be0718

>>113573
Like communism, the suggestor factions is a great idea in theory but impossible very difficult in practice. I think Questroid with its non-zero-sum competition has found a workable solution, but it does double the QM's workload. (That, and the factions were about the same size from the start.)
>>
No. 113578 ID: 23500f

idk it all was rly contrived

r u saying the whole quest was outissa writing in her journal??? 📖

thats almost as bad as it all being a dream or smething
>>
No. 113588 ID: 01764f

EPILOGUE:
https://tgchan.org/kusaba/quest/res/814273.html#816385
>>
No. 113589 ID: 3740b1

>>113588
Well played.
>>
No. 113594 ID: 3ce125

>>113588
pfff. Laertes had to learn how to talk from somewhere I suppose!
>>
No. 113603 ID: ba56e6

>>113588
Is the link next to the hidden text supposed to lead somewhere besides the first post of the thread?
>>
No. 113606 ID: c9f250

>>113603

No. Because it's the first few posts that change.
>>
No. 113610 ID: ba56e6

>>113606
Interesting. The target parameters have changed, then.
>>
No. 113611 ID: 3ce125

>>113610
If you're thinking Khoros and Laertes are somehow the same person, you'd be wrong. Pam directly contradicted that and everything else we know about the two of them contradicts it too.

It was just a deeper flashback, to when Laertes was growing up.
>>
No. 113612 ID: ba56e6

>>113611
Who Laertes and Khoros are, or if they're the same or different, is irrelevant. Khoros was the one manipulating us, therefore he is the one I wanted dead.

>you are just different enough that you can cross the wall, but enough of me that I can follow behind.
He was unable to enter, so he sent us in with Outissa. Because we are not him we could enter, but we were also a part of him, allowing him to cheat the system and follow us into the ruins. It can't stop him from entering if he's already there.

It turns out that our bumbling idiocy is what thwarted his plans. Which I suppose means he was thwarted by his own bumbling idiocy. It's kind of funny.
>>
No. 113616 ID: 01764f

>>113611
They are the same person.

What Pam said didn't contradict anything.

>>113612
>He was unable to enter, so he sent us in with Outissa. Because we are not him we could enter, but we were also a part of him, allowing him to cheat the system and follow us into the ruins. It can't stop him from entering if he's already there.

Exactly this.
>>
No. 113618 ID: 3ce125

Oh, more than the first few updates changed. QUITE A LOT OF THEM CHANGE. So okay I got it wrong. This means Khoros and Laertes are two parts of the same entity-- Khoros is made of the voices that changed a bit after he wiped their memories, which let Khoros get through the wall. When he cracked from hearing too many voices, it let loose his true nature.

My understanding of the epilogue is that the new text is the truth, not a deeper flashback or anything. It's what we would have seen during the flashback if it weren't for Khoros/Laertes being able to alter our memories/perception. The changes end with him expecting Dzi to show up soon.

I've got some problems with this new twist though.
A) Pam would've known immediately that something was wrong. Maybe she just wasn't paying close enough attention, but figured things out after Khoros went berserk and Outissa ran away. That's why Khoros is in the deep ruins and is effectively a freak show-- he's being contained down there.
B) Outissa ignored most prompts about her father or brother that would have revealed this deception. Either telling her information about what "Laertes"/her father said which would have tipped her off, or asking her if her brother was trustworthy. I can think of a couple explanations for this but I'd rather none of them be the case.
C) Outissa said that her father broke/tainted the voices. Only way this could be true is if her father was responsible for Khoros being the way he is. Maybe that's why he killed him?

Anyway, this means the ending we got was very lucky. Breaking Khoros was a good thing and Outissa breaking ties with him was also a good thing.
Sadly the impact of this is lessened somewhat by the fact that it's a bit of an ass-pull.
>>
No. 113624 ID: fe7836

>>113618

it doesnt make sense

is it a jrnal entry or not???

if outissa sez that ammy hlped her with the parts she didnt rmembr then khoros and laertes twist is dumb 😝😝😝
>>
No. 113627 ID: f076ad

>>113588
A funny attempt at a twist from Dylan but, funny is all it is. He would've needed to change a lot more to make it work. Pretty much every interaction with Laertes and Khoros in fact. It just leaves too many inconsistencies in actions, personalities, and roles.

So yeah. Nice try Dylan. Nice try.
>>
No. 113628 ID: 6f78be

My take is that Khoros and Laertes are different individuals who came from the same source. A was trapped. A is the father of B in that he split himself in order to escape his prison. When he split he lost control of B and B developed new personality traits. In the split there were also fragments lost who further individualized - they became us, the voices. A, who was called Laertes by the scientists studying him - but who named himself Khoros - was the source of us and B. He was also the one who killed his family and abused his sister. He engineered all this and maybe even his sister's escape as part of his plan. Inconsistencies can be explained by the fact that A has the ability to alter memories. His song perhaps? We, Khoros and Outissa at the very least were altered. Create a "father" they are both running from and Outissa will help even her tormenter. We got outplayed.
>>
No. 113631 ID: 01764f

>>113627
Dude.

I'm the one who wrote and created the epilogue stuff. Dylan implemented it, but I'm the one who made it.
>>
No. 113633 ID: ba56e6

>>113628
We almost got outplayed. We were just too chaotic and uncoordinated to listen to his advice, and we made him lose it. Doing this and then running away is apparently one of the best things we could have done.

To my understanding, Laertes never existed. It was a manipulation of our perception created by Khoros. He wanted us to believe that it was Outissa who was the source of these mental changes. In truth, Outissa was likely also under his influence. Possibly even through us feeding her false information. She believed what we believed to be true.

Khoros wanted to make himself a sympathetic character. tgchan being what it is, when he surrendered and asked to go with her, most of them decided to let him. It would have been smarter just to kill him there, but I had no support in that. So I decided to try and use Khoros as a weapon against Laertes instead of Outissa, who had proved too merciful to serve that purpose.

Unfortunately, that's now nearly impossible, aside from driving him to suicide.

If there was ever a part of Khoros that regretted his actions and cared about Outissa the way he pretended to, it was us. Or rather the suggesters who did care about Outissa. If he removed us from himself, he may have done so to rid himself of that conscience. If it was Director Aeolus (their real 'Father' perhaps, the scientist(s) who were researching their powers?) who initially caused us to break off, it may be the Director who is responsible for Khoros going full obsessive rapist.

Even Khoros is aware of this.
>You do not consider yourself loyal to me, you are loyal to my sister.

The 'good' faction suggesters are the only 'good' part of him. The entity we know as Khoros was likely irredeemable. That's why he had to trick those good suggesters into believing he was also a victim. That he was redeemable.
>>
No. 113634 ID: 01764f

>>113633
Very well-said!

It's probably worth pointing out that flashback Khoros was like... 11 or 12 years old. There's no curing him, no fixing him. He doesn't see himself as flawed, so there's no way to help.

>In truth, Outissa was likely also under his influence.
Did you notice that the name she chose for herself - the name that she was convinced was her own idea - was the same name that Khoros gave her?

"Aletheia."
>>
No. 113636 ID: ba56e6

>>113634
The only way to 'help' would be to overwrite Khoros' identity with ourselves; or oust him into the role of disembodied voice and take his body for ourselves. Considering we are a part of him, and he has some form of mind-altering powers, it may not be entirely beyond our grasp in the future.

>Did you notice that the name she chose for herself - the name that she was convinced was her own idea - was the same name that Khoros gave her?
I did. It's also why I choose not to use that name as a matter of policy.

It was also the fact that Outissa only ever referred to a 'Father' after we told her about it. In fact, she seemed confused at first when we used that word. She only began using that terminology of her own accord after she Showed Her Scars.


Amaranth is also still a mystery. It was Amaranth who introduced the name 'Laertes' to us, which we now know was the term Aeolus used to refer to Khoros before he chose his own name.

This, combined with her appearance being moderately similar to the siblings, leads me to believe she is another project of the Director. Perhaps a more loyal one sent to ensure Khoros didn't fuck things up too bad. Aeolus did say he had a way to stop Khoros if he was going to harm Outissa. Or rather Anticlea, which is apparently their designation for her. Amaranth could well have been that contingency.
>>
No. 113637 ID: 01764f

>>113636
This didn't really get elaborated on in the quest, but basically...

Khoros does in fact rule over a pretty significant population outside of the wall. He's a leader and inspires many things in his subjects.

Since he knows how powerful names are, though, he keeps his name secret and just goes by "Laertes."

Ammy knew of him by that, as did Pam.

Now that he's basically roaming the Ruins, though, his people are left without a ruler to watch over them, which means there's a power gap.

And whoever fills it may not have the same restrictions as to leaving that realm as Khoros did.
>>
No. 113643 ID: f076ad

>epilogue is canon
Time to pelt Raptie with questions!

Why do we see Laertes so clearly, much more clearly than Khoros, if they're one and the same?
Why does he look the way he does - bigger and different than both siblings?
How did he contact Dzi? And "work" on him? At that time he was already inside the ruins, while Dzi was far outside.
When choosing Dzi, who was the one poking the food?
Why is the personality of Laertes so different than that of Khoros?
How did Ammy know Laertes was calling us?

>the name that she was convinced was her own idea - was the same name that Khoros gave her
It makes me wonder if anything she knew was true at all.

Wait.

...

In the beginning, she said she was tired of being alone.

Alone..

What if.. both Khoros and Laertes are a figment of her imagination?
What if she's the mastermind behind it all?
And they were her regrets, her old self, her consciousness battling with itself, whether she should stay or move on?
The name that Khoros gave her.. really was a name she chose herself ;)
>I will save you.
She had killed Laertes, whatever that name represented. And she finally saved killed us too.
>>
No. 113655 ID: 01764f

>>113643
>Time to pelt Raptie with questions!

>Why do we see Laertes so clearly, much more clearly than Khoros, if they're one and the same?
>Why does he look the way he does - bigger and different than both siblings?
All of the scenes with "Laertes" took place in Khoros's mind, with him holding the voices there long enough to do what he needed to do. He looks different there because he altered your memories of the interactions so as not to give things away too soon.

Again - none of the scenes with "Laertes" took place in any kind of physical sense.

>How did he contact Dzi? And "work" on him? At that time he was already inside the ruins, while Dzi was far outside.
Khoros has the ability to control people using their names.

He makes the habit of knowing the names of every one of the people who live in his realm.

>When choosing Dzi, who was the one poking the food?
That was a mental representation of his process for going through everyone he has the name of. Again, all in his/your head.

>Why is the personality of Laertes so different than that of Khoros?
The only real times you see Khoros's personality are during the flashback scenes - when Khoros was 11 or 12. Still a kid.

"Laertes" is how Khoros truly is.

>How did Ammy know Laertes was calling us?
Ammmmmmy is kind of really fourth-wall aware. Like, really, REALLY fourth-wall aware.

She wasn't talking to the voices. She was talking to the suggesters themselves.

I can't really say anything more without spoiling stuff.

>What if.. both Khoros and Laertes are a figment of her imagination?
>What if she's the mastermind behind it all?
>And they were her regrets, her old self, her consciousness battling with itself, whether she should stay or move on?
>The name that Khoros gave her.. really was a name she chose herself ;)

Okay, so here's the deal here - the entire quest was hinted to be something she wrote down in a journal. (>>113624 Cass, it makes total sense, you know that Ammy's weird sometimes, hush).

One of the conclusions you can draw from this is that it's all her struggling with feelings and thought she has, and writing them down to help better understand herself. Or, you can feel that it literally happened as she stated.
>>
No. 113656 ID: 3ce125

>>113655
>entire quest is a journal
What about all the parts where we were talking to "Laertes" then?

Shit, does he know Beatrix's name?
>>
No. 113657 ID: ba56e6

>>113656
We told it to him, so yes.
>>
No. 113667 ID: f076ad

>>113655
Thanks for all the explanations.

>hush
Shh! I want to hear more from Cass haha. She's so awesome.

4 more questions!
Why didn't Dzi recognize Khoros when he saw him with Outissa?
Who's the one depicted on the panel here? >>112766
What would've happened if we didn't break Khoros? The lyrics seem somewhat ambiguous but they do mention victory. I guess only Outissa would know the answer to this question hehe.

And lastly, they say that what we did was a good thing and that we were lucky. A coincidence? I don't believe in coincidences. So let's see if you can answer this. The epilogue that we got. Was it the only possible one? (not the ending, but the past that was revealed to us)
>>
No. 113668 ID: 01764f

>>113667
>Shh! I want to hear more from Cass haha. She's so awesome.
Don't. You'll only encourage her.

>4 more questions!
>Why didn't Dzi recognize Khoros when he saw him with Outissa?
Khoros's subjects have barely seen what he looks like in person. And, well... he wasn't wearing his mask. It's like knowing someone with a really crazy hairstyle - if they cut their hair, you might have trouble recognizing them.

>Who's the one depicted on the panel here? >>112766
That's Outissa, back before I decided I like the white being just down the middle.

>What would've happened if we didn't break Khoros? The lyrics seem somewhat ambiguous but they do mention victory. I guess only Outissa would know the answer to this question hehe.
I honestly don't know, other than the quest would have kept on going.

>And lastly, they say that what we did was a good thing and that we were lucky. A coincidence? I don't believe in coincidences. So let's see if you can answer this. The epilogue that we got. Was it the only possible one? (not the ending, but the past that was revealed to us)
I definitely believe in coincidences - they happen all the time!

And yes, that was the only possible past to have been revealed.
>>
No. 113877 ID: f076ad

>>/quest/818008
If we don't wake up Outissa now, there's a good chance the quest is over. Game Over!

When we see Beatrix, she looks very sketchy. Thus, there's a good chance that the badly-drawn Beatrix is a dream or half-dream inside Outissa's mind. And when we wake up, we get to see the actual quest, that is, from Outissa's PoV. The PoV is an important hint.

Based on this, we can assume that Outissa is the Main Character. So when you tell the MC to go to sleep, you're pretty much telling her that you don't want to play a quest with her.

If she's the MC and you don't want to play the quest with the MC, then there's nothing left. Xeno Quest 2: Beatrix Quest. You would be rejecting the "Xeno Quest" part of the title and "Beatrix Quest" is just a subtitle that cannot exist on its own.

Also, the final hint. Outissa said "Until next time.", which is a common expression used by a host when the show is over. So Outissa literally just told you the quest is over. Are you guys fine with that?
>>
No. 113878 ID: 3740b1

>>113877
Seriously. Who wants to watch a show with just the face character?
>>
No. 113879 ID: 9c5432

>>113877
So this is, what, the third time the author has threatened to end this quest over not liking the suggestions? Why even bother taking suggestions at that point?

I figured this would lead to either Outissa getting up anyway or silly Beatrix adventures, not the quest ending abruptly.
>>
No. 113880 ID: f076ad

>>113879
I don't think it's got anything to do with liking the suggestions or not. It's simply what the suggesters choose. If suggesters choose to jump into a death trap and die.. would you consider that the author's fault? And that their hints about quest ending are threats?
I mean, I'm pretty sure that the quest won't just end abruptly as long as the suggesters have a sense of sanity. Sometimes you just have to take a hint, you know, and understand that MC here does not have a plot armor.
>>
No. 113881 ID: 91ee5f

>>113877
You make a good point.

However, try putting yourself in Outissa's position. Would you want to get out of your comfortable bed just because your friend wants you to or would you rather stay in your comfortable bed?

There's also the fact that it could be, I don't know, 1:00am or sometime way too early in the morning for adventures.

And let's not forget that Beatrix is a Yinglet. For every 5 hours a Yinglet is awake, they need at least 1 hour or so of sleep, otherwise they risk passing out in the middle of the road or something. Which means that Beatrix probably just now woke up, while Outissa still needs a little longer to get some proper rest.

Basically, I don't want the quest to end. It's just that Beatrix and Outissa require different amounts of sleep and I think that while Beatrix has fulfilled her sleeping needs, Outissa still needs a little more sleep before she's ready for an adventure.
>>
No. 113882 ID: ad0b7e

>>113880
I would, actually, consider it a failing on the part of the author if a quest abruptly ended on a death trap, because that's not a good story. The suggesters too, of course, but ultimately the author is in charge of what happens.

But that's not even what we're talking about, here. I don't see how "death traps" or "plot armor" are involved in XQ2 apparently ending.
>>
No. 113884 ID: f076ad

>>113882
>I would, actually, consider it a failing on the part of the author if a quest abruptly ended on a death trap
I would consider it a failing on your part, not author's, if you suggest the MC to kill themselves.
>that's not a good story.
I dunno about you, but I find a story, where your suggestions have greater consequence, to be more engaging.
>ultimately the author is in charge of what happens.
Ultimately you're in charge of your suggestions.

>But that's not even what we're talking about, here. I don't see how "death traps" or "plot armor" are involved in XQ2 apparently ending.
It was already demonstrated in XQ1 that you can get a bad ending at any time in the quest. Thus, it's reasonable to assume such a thing can also happen in XQ2. If such a thing can happen, it means MC does not have a plot armor. That is, a character critical to the plot may become permanently incapacitated, ending the story with them.
>>
No. 113885 ID: 01764f

The reason the parts with Beatrix are badly drawn is because she's drawing them on Outissa's computer. It's where she's sitting when she wakes Outissa up from being too loud.

I'm not "threatening to end the quest because I don't like the suggestions."
>>
No. 113886 ID: 01764f

Also, the sun is shining through the curtains - it's not 1AM.

Outissa is just a lazybones.
>>
No. 113887 ID: ad0b7e

>>113884
I guess we just have different philosophies on quests, then. In my mind, a quest that doesn't produce something worth reading after it's over was not worth running, full stop.

But you're still talking about something other than what I'm talking about, which, to make myself totally clear, is the fact that this quest has apparently ended because the suggesters didn't wake a character up.

>>113885
That's also not even what I was talking about.

But if you're posting in this thread, then maybe the quest isn't actually over and I won't feel like I wasted my time reading it, which is where I'm at right now.
>>
No. 113889 ID: ad0b7e

>>113887
That sounds too harsh. I'm sorry.

A lot of your output has been genuinely frustrating for me to read and I don't know to fix that.
>>
No. 113890 ID: ba56e6

We told her to go back to sleep and she did...

I'm not sure why people are so triggered that they got exactly what they asked for.
>>
No. 113892 ID: 91ee5f

>>113890
Basically, one person somehow came to the conclusion that the author is going to end XQ2 just because we told Outissa to go back to sleep and is frantically telling everyone that we need to wake Outissa up or else the author is going to end the quest and we're not gonna get a XQ2.

I honestly think that person is worrying over nothing. Especially since Outissa will eventually need to get out of bed because she's hungry and/or needs to go use the restroom. When that happens, that's when we'll tell her to go adventuring with Beatrix!
>>
No. 113893 ID: 01764f

>>113889
Try this:
1. Tell me some things that I did well that you like.
2. Tell me some things that you don't like, and why.
3. Provide possible solutions/ideas for fixing the parts you don't like.
4. Finish by providing one more thing that I did that you enjoyed.

Classic "feedback sandwich", and it's really useful for giving constructive criticism.
>>
No. 113894 ID: 91ee5f

>>113893
With emphasis on the words constructive criticism!
>>
No. 113897 ID: f076ad

>>113892
Worrying over nothing? The only person who can answer that question is either the MC or the author herself.

You don't seem convinced, so let me try explaining in a different way. Consider the following facts:
1. Outissa is aware of the suggesters
2. Outissa is aware that she's in a quest
3. Outissa says goodbye to the suggesters
Now, don't you think it's a bit strange that she's saying goodbye? She knows she's in a quest and she knows the suggesters would still be there when she woke up. If the quest was going to continue, then there would be no need for any goodbyes. She's not moving anywhere - she's staying right there. But she doesn't say goodnight, sweet dreams etc. She says goodbye! A parting farewell. You still don't see it?

Read her goodbyes again very carefully. Do you know what they sound like? They sound EXACTLY as if it was the last panel in the quest. If the story was complete and there was nothing left to say except goodbyes, those words are the exact words I would use.

She would only say goodbye if she knew that when she woke up, the suggesters would not be there anymore. And suggesters would not be there if, well, only if her part in the quest was over.

It may sound a bit silly but, this is the only logical explanation I could come up with. Maybe I'm wrong. But are you willing to risk everything on the fact that I'm wrong?

Psst, Cass, what do you think about this?
>>
No. 113898 ID: 91ee5f

>>113897
Well, if you looked at the author's posts: >>113885 and >>113886 , you'd see that they aren't going to end the quest and Outissa is just lazy and doesn't want to get outta bed.

So, like I said, you're worrying over nothing. Just wait for Outissa to wake up to eat and/or use the bathroom, then tell her to go adventuring.
>>
No. 113899 ID: f076ad

>>113898
>they aren't going to end the quest
She doesn't say that anywhere.
>Outissa is just lazy
That sound more like the author telling you that you should be encouraging Outissa to get out of the bed.
>>
No. 113901 ID: 8760ff

>>113897
???

maybe she is saying gdbye because youre going with beatrix 🛏🛏

i have no clue
>>
No. 113908 ID: 91ee5f

>>113899
>She doesn't say that anywhere.
Just because she doesn't say that anywhere, that doesn't mean that she will shut down the quest.

I still say you're worried over nothing.
>>
No. 113920 ID: 01764f

As I mentioned in passing at one point, Outissa essentially has high-functioning autism. In her case, what we've seen so far is that she's:
-Nonverbal
-Sensitive to light and touch
-Extremely literal thinker
-Severely impaired with cognitive empathy/theory of mind
-Has very poor grasp of appropriate social behavior

Is there anyone out there who either is on the spectrum, or maybe has a loved one on it? I would love to hear your thoughts on Outissa and how she relates to ASD.
>>
No. 113941 ID: f076ad

Now that we're past the first hurdle, may we get to know what would've happened if we didn't wake up Outissa?
>>
No. 113942 ID: 91ee5f

>>113941
How many times must it be spelled out for you? Nothing was going to happen. Outissa would've just stayed asleep until she needed to eat and/or use the restroom. If we didn't get her up, then her own body would've gotten her up.
>>
No. 113943 ID: 01764f

>>113941
You would have been stuck with Beatrix drawing the quest again, like at the beginning. Woulda made lewds a lot more interesting, that's for sure!
>>
No. 113946 ID: f076ad

>stuck with Beatrix drawing the quest
Beatrix art.. oh god. Yeah, that would've been really bad. Almost as bad as the quest ending (maybe even worse). It's a good thing we evaded that!
>>
No. 113953 ID: ba56e6

>>113943
I liked the Beatrix art.
>>
No. 114939 ID: ad94f3

Theres a problem with XQ2: Beatrix Quest. What happened to the cliffhanger at the end of XenoQuest, Where Siphon said something.
I could claim theres a possibility where it is still in XQ, but thats obviously wrong due to the non-existance of our lovely Fourth Wall to hide behind. Anyways, If you cut XQ off when Outissa finds Beatrix, than you still have her father to deal with. So yea, that possibility is out, obviously.

So, since that rant is done, the real question is what do we do now. XenoQuest never happened, so how is Outissa different? Why haven't we asked so many questions the author simply can't keep up. The possibilities are staggering.

Also, if XQ2 will ever pick up steam, it should do so soon. Usually how a sequel works when bound to one story before is that where the first story places you in a new world to learn the Sequel has a story to wrap up and reveals to be had, However, This isn't really that much of a sequel.
>>
No. 114940 ID: 3ce125

>>114939
>people should be asking questions
Why aren't you, then?
>>
No. 114941 ID: ba56e6

>>114939
Father never existed, Khoros was the demons
>>
No. 114942 ID: ad94f3

Nevermind then. I reread the ending and understand everything now.
XQ2: Beatrix Quest is literally Beatrix trying to make a quest like Aletheia did.
Evidence?
>>821925 "No! Surprisingly no! I'm waiting for it to happen but zey refuse to take ze hints! Zey ask neizher me nor Outissa anyzhing!"
We immediately asked 50ish questions around the start of XenoQuest, so Beatrix expects that and since he thinks that has to happen for a normal quest and eventually even says it. He obviously isn't following the example of Xenoquest (XQ2 started in a city). What he did wrong is use the words XQ2 as in a Sequel and confused the readers. He obviously loves adventures just like he does in the story, so this is probably going to be a good adventure, the real question is when the shoe drops that propels an adventure in a direction other than all of our suggestions just saying random things because we don't have a guide for where to go.
>>
No. 114943 ID: fe7355

>>114942
...Um, dunno where you got the idea Beatrix is a guy from, but she's actually female.
>>
No. 115048 ID: 642897

>>114943
TBF it is canon for yinglets to be hard to tell sometimes what with all the girly gay yinglet men
>>
No. 115050 ID: fe7355

>>115048
Oh, yeah, I knew that already. It's just that Beatrix has been explicitly stated as being female in-quest, so I dunno where >>114942 got the idea she's a guy.
>>
No. 115127 ID: ed67d9

>>114939
Good question! It's not exactly clear what has and has not happened, due to the extremely meta and strange nature of my quests, but basically:

XenoQuest is implied heavily to be a heavily embellished story of how Outissa and Beatrix met.

XQ2 takes place in the "real" world, several months after the end of XQ1.
>>
No. 115128 ID: ed67d9

>>115127
Oh! And to make things even MORE confusing, alllllllll of this ties into Aardvarks Need Love, my MAIN quest (which is currently on hiatus), where a lot of the universe-hopping shenanigans that the XQ series uses get explained.
>>
No. 115291 ID: 3ce125

Raptie did you change the setting of XQ3 from D&D to Paranoia? If so,

whyyyyyyyyy
>>
No. 115320 ID: 3ce125

Alright I for one am not interested in another quest thread full of suggesters yelling at eachother. Especially Delian.
>>
No. 115323 ID: e8f4bd

>>115320
I heard Raptie likes conflict. Won't you be kind and endulge her?
>>
No. 115331 ID: fe7355

Posting this here so Friend Computer won't hear it: Outissa's scarf, being BLUE, is far above her RED clearance level, so her possession of it is a major violation. We need to subtly find another clearance level appropriate piece of clothing for her to wear and get her to ditch her scarf before Friend Computer notices, or get special dispensation to possess a BLUE clearance item.
>>
No. 115333 ID: 91ee5f

>>115331
>Outissa's scarf, being BLUE
Her scarf is PURPLE, you fool!
>>
No. 115334 ID: a363ac

>>115331
not being mean but are you color blind to the color purple?
>>
No. 115338 ID: ed67d9

>>115291
Now that I can answer your question:

Nope! Didn't change the setting. It wasn't really D&D to begin with.
>>
No. 115341 ID: 91ee5f

So the green text was supposed to be a hint that green masked guy was coming back? That's unfair, since green is a common color that anyone could use! So claiming color of text is a bullshit leap of logic that no one could be expected to make!

However, the "follow the voices loyal to me" line was an actual hint on who the Friend Computer actually was, so I will admit that we missed that.

Also, was starting a 3rd XenoQuest thread really necessary to finish part 2? You could've finished it in thread 2 and then started part 3 in a 3rd thread. It just seems weird to end something at the beginning of a new thread.
>>
No. 115362 ID: 41c9bc

>>115341
Raptie expects us to be Sherlock Holmes, you gotta pay mega attention.
>>
No. 115365 ID: e8f4bd

>>/quest/828058
My immediate thoughts are.. are we controlling Outissa, Beatrix, or Aubrey next? Will it be in that thread, new thread, or ANL thread?
My overall thoughts would be.. that we have a lot of uncovering to do. We don't know if Outissa is on the station or in some 'verse. Is she still together with Beatrix. When did this even happen and how much time has passed. How does this connect to XQ2?

As far as Aubrey goes, she certainly never showed any signs of being a detective, and her visit to the Station seemed entirely natural. Due to this, I'm led to believe that the actual detective is Aubrey's other personality and that this phone call is done during the blackout. But for now, it seems that rescuing Outissa is a job given to Aubrey due to her Social trait.
>>
No. 115368 ID: ed67d9

>>115365
Believe it or not, Aubrey diiiiiid show signs of being a detective! She has a network of contacts, she's good at investigating and tracking down things, she's not afraid to back down in a fight, she has a some-what checkered past...

...hell, when you right down to it, her love of metaphor and cute ladies practically pushes her into "noir detective" territory.

In terms of timeline, Delian... what's happening now takes place quite a bit after the end of Aardvarks Need Love. Aubrey has now established herself fairly well in Station in her position as a detective.

Consider ANL to be a prequel to what's happening right now, basically.
>>
No. 115369 ID: ed67d9

>>115362
It's less of me "expecting you to pay mega attention" and more of a "this is a plot reveal that you had a very small chance of catching and it would have been cool if it had been caught but since it wasn't then things go as planned."
>>
No. 115374 ID: 41c9bc

>>115369
On the subject of paying attention, I sometimes don't notice when there's a new thread. The XQ3 thread I never actually noticed and caught up reading on until it was already over.

Would it be possible to make a little post here in the Disthread when things move to a new thread?
>>
No. 115380 ID: ed67d9

>>115374
Sure! I tried to link to it in XQ2, but I can post here next time I put up a thread.
>>
No. 115386 ID: 41c9bc

>>115380
'preciate it.
>>
No. 115394 ID: ed67d9

Snoots and Shadows launch!
https://tgchan.org/kusaba/quest/res/828311.html
>>
No. 115492 ID: ed67d9

Hey, everyone! So! I don't like simple majority/plurality systems - they tend to make a lot of people miserable. It sucks when you vote for something and it feels like it didn't count for shit.

That is why S&S is using a "level of certainty" system. Basically, any time there's a clear winner by a significant margin, then that result goes on just like in any normal voting system.

However, if there's ever a situation where the voting is neck-and-neck, then the losing vote modifies the winning result.

For example - at the beginning of the thread, "Try the back door" just barely squeaked a win. As a result, Aubrey still checked the front door since she was standing right there, and then headed over to the back... where she still had the option to go to the front again.

If "Try the back door" had won by a decent margin, then Aubrey would have just assumed the front door was locked, and would have ignored it entirely in favor of figuring out a way through the back. The choices at that point would have been different.

Tied votes are resolved on a case-by-case basis, but tend to favor whatever is more interesting/adds more conflict.
---

tl;dr - even if an option you vote for still "loses", it'll still have an effect if the voting is close enough.
>>
No. 115633 ID: c9f250

Okay, in the interests of not looking like it's a callout thread, argument posts have been moved to >>/meep/28651 instead of their own thread.

To make sure they don't miss it: 41c9bc is banned from Raptie threads at the author's discretion.
>>
No. 115650 ID: 3ce125

Hmm. If Khoros is able to hear suggestions we give to Aubrey then he's basically monitoring the investigation. It might be in Outissa's best interests for us to abandon Aubrey. It'd be nice if we could slip her some hints as to Khoros's true nature though. I'm just not sure how to do that without him blocking it!
>>
No. 115655 ID: 3ce125

Hmmmmmm... maybe if we sabotage the investigation repeatedly and in obvious ways she'll figure out that the suggesters are working against her. That might get her to start investigating the suggesters themselves, which would lead her to the truth.
>>
No. 115664 ID: 3740b1

>>115655
Naughty naughty.
>>
No. 115665 ID: 2870fe

>>115655
I don't see why we'd need to sabotage the investigation. I mean, if we can't talk to Amaranth directly, then we can simply tell Aubrey what she should tell Amaranth.
>>
No. 115707 ID: c88e6d

>>115665
I am pretty sure it's just the Khoros-tainted that can't communicate with Amaranth.
>>
No. 115708 ID: 3ce125

>>115707
I'm not tainted, I haven't pledged to Khoros.
naileD outright pledged to Amaranth.

I think we can safely conclude that Khoros is able to block all suggestions.
>>
No. 115713 ID: 6509bf

>>115708
We're perceived as thoughts in Aubrey's mind, not as voices like in XQ. So it's logical that Amaranth can't hear us.

At least at first glance. We were also Aubrey's thoughts in Aardvarks Need Love except that Amaranth was able to hear us there. So the thing that changed from ANL to S&S is that in S&S we're formally restricted to only being Aubrey's thoughts.

This restriction can be natural.
It can also be a result of outside interference.
Or perhaps we ourselves are imposing this restriction on us. The fact that we were parts of Khoros in XQ lingers inside us and as we get closer and closer to Khoros, the power of his domain becomes more and more influential.
>>
No. 115851 ID: 2b3198

> >>/quest/831115 >her lisp
So, we just learned that Aubrey has lisp and stutters. This opens up a theory that Aubrey may not be experiencing things as they truly are.
In her own mind, she has no lisp. But if we apply this sort of perception on other things, things could get quite interesting. For instance, it's possible that Aubrey's only imagining that she's a detective, let alone the best one, where it's only a coincidence that she got hired for the job. Perhaps Amaranth is the one in charge of the investigation and that Aubrey was supposed to help her, not vice versa as Aubrey perceived it.
>>
No. 115897 ID: a363ac

>>115851
I doubt Aubry is that delusional. when you grow up with a lisp sometimes you just ignore that it is there because the brain precives it as useless information if someone actually pointed it out to her she might take note and realize she has it
>>
No. 115933 ID: a363ac

Dog! Heaven(quest)! NOW!!!
>>
No. 116143 ID: ed67d9

Interesting if this works.
>>
No. 116429 ID: 100607

>>/quest/831988
I was somewhat surprised here at the fact that Amaranth says that Khoros doesn't have power over names. In XQ1 Outissa said that she "ate" her name with an attempt to hide from Khoros, which implies that he did have such powers. Although we never saw him directly demonstrate such powers. Something definitely doesn't add up. Either that part of XQ1 was false, or Amaranth does not remember correctly.
>>
No. 116434 ID: 100607

>>/quest/831989
It was frustrating to learn that Ammy could see a lie that was made in the post (>>/questarch/810047), while I myself could not guess what it was. Wasn't it Khoros who was there? Did Laetres perhaps exist at some point? Was Outissa really alone? There's unlimited possibilities of the things that could be changed.
Still, Aubrey's lisp and her clunkiness, where she almost drops the phone, made me grin quite a bit.
Other than that, a lot of important info was revealed here which made me think quite hard. Enough to make my brain hurt haha.
>>
No. 116435 ID: 100607

>>/quest/833605
Why did Amaranth allow us to interrogate her, but then she's so scant with her answers?! Such a trickster. Well, she still provides some very important answers. For instance, telling me that my theory (>>115851) about Aubrey being delusional is false. But more importantly, the clue about the Select Class Orbs. >>/questarch/827237 here Beatrix states "This ITEM will transport us to the 'verse in question!". But Amaranth flat out denies that. This proves that XQ2 has been tampered with as well! And that there may be a part of that quest missing.

Also, some very emotional backstory between Ammy and Aubrey. Ammy protected Aubrey from a storm. How cute! Oh. Ammy was the one that made it. She can control the weather. wtf :D
>>
No. 116437 ID: 100607

>>/quest/833622
Haha, I knew that Amaranth could steal PoV, but I laughed so hard to learn that she could also just leave it lying anywhere at any point.
>>
No. 116440 ID: 100607

>>/quest/833661
I really was speechless when I read this. Like, it took me at least an hour for my brain to go click at what just happened. Such a huge reveal all of a sudden! Why is there a noxan here? Why is she a female? Wasn't Outissa's mother supposed to be dead or missing (>>/questarch/814411)?
Anyway, this was super interesting. New character (which also for some reason looks so sexy). Lots of interesting info. And more brainfuck! Gah! Why is she here?! And why so soon! I hardly recovered from the past few updates and now this. It's just non-stop deep plot action. Don't worry, I loved it.
>>
No. 116475 ID: 3ce125

I don't think we're currently talking to Outissa's mother. It's Laertes.
>>
No. 116476 ID: a363ac

>>116475
who knows they could be one and the same. :)
after all Laetes did lie to us in XenoQuest
>>
No. 116477 ID: be0718

>>116476
Outissa did more lying than anyone else in XQ.
>>
No. 116481 ID: 100607

>>/quest/834506
I like the sorta puzzled look Aubrey has here. Like she's thinking about how to handle this situation for maximum benefit. Altho she doesn't seem particularly lovestruck yet. Well, I think she's right to be cautious!
I don't like how Aubrey immediately reveals that she's a detective. Mostly because that way it's gonna be much harder to seduce Eurydice heh.
I wonder if Eurydice is snickering at the lisp, or at the collar. Because if it was me, it would be the latter!

>>/quest/834507
Haha, what was in the freezer? I'd really like to know!
Other than that, I find Eurydice's choice of words interesting, where she says what to call her, rather than saying that's her name. It would imply that that's not her actual name.

>>/quest/834508
A mind game. Seems like an interesting challenge. It doesn't seem like it's gonna be very easy to both seduce and gather information at the same time, but for now, there hasn't been any indication of any specific risks or a chance of "game over" heh.

There's a few things I'm confused about. Like, should we only be choosing pressure points, or should we be writing dialogue suggestions also? And what happened to "seducing" the lady? Will the seduction be done regardless of the pressure point chosen?

Anyway, I've already made some predictions since the start of the game. Let's see if they turn out to be correct, or if someone else is able to come to the same conclusions.
>>
No. 116482 ID: 100607

>>116475
Aubrey sensed that Eurydice wasn't lying tho.

>>116476
But Laertes was Khoros. That is pretty well supported by XQ.

>>116477
I don't think Outissa was intentionally lying? It was pointed out at the end that she didn't remember a lot of things. And in the recent update Eurydice says that Outissa forgets things.
>>
No. 116489 ID: ed67d9

(The following all pertains to XenoQuest, and is not a comprehensive list)

-Why does Outissa call the city a "prison"? In fact, later on she claims to not know what a prison, a zoo, or a pet is.
-If green is such an important color, then what was the significance of the woman in the tower with the green shirt?
>>/questarch/810442 - Outissa claims to never have had a name, but clearly she did!
-What is with her face marking showing up out of nowhere?
-Outissa claims to have never had friends, and that no one was allowed to touch her, but how did she have sex?
-In FACT, she mentions that she enjoys having sex - "It is a thing I have done before that I like doing" which rules out the possibility of rape being her only sexual contact.
-Amaranth was the first person in XenoQuest to use the name "Laertes"... where did SHE hear it from?
>>
No. 116492 ID: be0718

>>116491
You think I don't see that for the jab it is? Your grasp of "reasoning" killed two disthreads in a row.

We'll just have to wait and see if an in-universe explanation is ever found for these mysteries fallen by the wayside. Until then, nothing is true, everything is permitted.
>>
No. 116493 ID: 100607

>>116492
I wasn't.. Ok, let me edit my post.

>>116489
Some of the possible explanations that I could come up with (which I'm not directing at anyone - these are just my personal opinions as means of providing feedback to the author) for these facts would be:
-Prison: Association. The word "prison" may be associated with the word "home", so she may use the word even if she doesn't remember its meaning.
-Woman: We will never know if the green on that woman was anything more than a coincidence.
-Name: She forgot that she had it. It's common that, if you don't remember something, that you'd say it never happened.
-Sex: Doggy style
-Ammy: Laertes is a very popular (feared) guy. So she probably heard it from someone in his domain.
>>
No. 116494 ID: 100607

Oops, missed one.
-Markings: When asked to "show her scars", the markings appear. So my best guess would be that Outissa is able to hide the white patch of fur whenever she wishes. And that the white fur seems to be associated with something traumatic.
>>
No. 116595 ID: 3ce125

Aubrey fucked Outissa's dog, then her mother... what's next? Khoros?
>>
No. 116596 ID: 91ee5f

>>116595
Probably.

And that'll end up being how Aubrey convinces Khoros to release Outissa and Beatrix! XD
>>
No. 116599 ID: 3740b1

>>11659
I am okay with this.

If we get to see it.

Nsfw quests forced into sfw renderings are cute, but get a little strained and tedious. Raptie is so good at detailed nsfw. Shame to lose all these moments to forced sfw silhouettes.
>>
No. 116600 ID: 91ee5f

I can't believe Amaranth-So-Thicc is dead! And all because of a little head pat! That's so unfair! )-':>
>>
No. 116601 ID: 600f38

So, Amaranth, how is death treating you?
>>
No. 116603 ID: ed67d9

Ammy isn't dead.

She's... uh... in a happy place. Yes. Exactly that. There's candy and ice cream and rainbows and puppies and all of the pats and pets she could ever want. She'll be in that happy place for a long, long time!
>>
No. 116604 ID: 91ee5f

>>116603
That's exactly the kind of lie someone tells a little kid when their pet dies!

We are not little kids and Amaranth is not a pet!
>>
No. 116606 ID: 3fb646

>>116603
She's going to become Amaranth-so-Lonely :c
>>
No. 116613 ID: a363ac

>>116603
SHE WILL LIVE ON WITH THE DANKEST OF KUSH IN HER CAVE! T.T
>>
No. 116684 ID: 100607

>>/quest/836498
Oh, a new thread. I was looking for the old one but it was moved to the archives too fast so I didn't get any notification of new posts therein.

Let's see. So Beatrix is narrating Snoots and Shadows to Outissa. And she's doing it in real time.
...
Interesting. So this new layer of abstraction tells us that no one's actually getting hurt, and that in the end, all the characters will be fine and may appear wherever they want in the future. This makes the quest more light-hearted. The important thing to note here is that it doesn't really matter who's writing the quest. Whether it's Raptie, or if it's from a PoV of one of her characters, the end result will be the same. An interesting quest with interesting characters.

Heh. I hope the next scene has Khoros entering the room and bringing everyone drinks.

>>/quest/836498
I laughed at how Outissa screams at Beatrix here, except that it's not screaming but chirping, and how Beatrix looks like an animal crossing a road and getting startled by car headlights.

>>/quest/836500
Back to the story, I'm not sure what to suggest here, since there's no options and we haven't gotten any obvious clues which we should follow. Any sort of decision would be based on conjecture. For instance, we know very little of who could be the gaslighter or how to reach them.
>>
No. 116795 ID: 100607

>>/quest/837455
I have a theory about the candy.

The theory is:
She brought precisely two pieces of candy for a reason. One for Outissa and one for Khoros. I bet it's their favorite kind!
>>
No. 117314 ID: 66a4ca
File 150926363841.png - (321.42KB , 1050x1190 , outissaday1.png )
117314

>>
No. 117317 ID: 66a4ca
File 150926380065.png - (326.09KB , 1050x1190 , outissaday2.png )
117317

Outissa getting cake from her mother for Outissa's birthday!
Even though Eurydice couldn't make the occasion in the quest, there's nothing stopping her from celebrating with her daughter behind the scenes. <3

Artist: Qaizer
Commissioner: me
>>
No. 117419 ID: ed67d9

Thank you again for those, Del. They are incredibly adorable!
>>
No. 117425 ID: 794730

>>117419
SUCCESS
>>
No. 117445 ID: ed67d9

I sincerely appreciate everyone who is a fan of my quests. Each and every one of you have been amazing and wonderful and I am so thankful.

Having said that, all of my quests are on hiatus until further notice. I think it's for the best for now.

If you'd like to continue to see my work, follow me on FurAffinity: https://www.furaffinity.net/user/caedere or feel free to watch me on Picarto, where I stream fairly often - https://picarto.tv/Raptie .

Don't worry - I plan to continue telling the stories of Outissa, Aubrey, Beatrix, and all of my characters. I'll still draw them! And I still have plans for comics.

And... hey, there may be intermittent quest updates too. Just, nothing on a regular schedule.

Thank you again to everyone; love you guys. <3
>>
No. 119150 ID: ed67d9

Hey! Should be clear that I'm still questing! While the previous quests are still on a semi-hiatus, my plan is to update XenoQuest at least once a day for 30 days.

...the fact that I go to a convention in the middle of this throws a wrench in things BUT OH WELL.

Also! If for some reason you haven't yet seen the new XenoQuest, it's right here! https://tgchan.org/kusaba/quest/res/852936.html
>>
No. 119209 ID: 6cc25a

>>/quest/854757
I can't notice any defects in the eye. Khoros seems perfectly whole. Hmm.
Could that part of XQ1 be false? Or did his eye heal up?

> >>/quest/854492 >Amaranth isn't dead.
> >>/quest/854757 >I do not know who or what Amaranth is.
Wait, what? One moment he knows she's not dead, the next moment he doesn't recognize the word anymore.
Is this what he meant with "remembering what has never been"? Or is something going on with his mind? Or does he perhaps present different facts to different voices?

>>/quest/854762
Why does Khoros recognize Siphon's voice? How could Siphon, who was never a fragment of Khoros, communicating with him?
Was she his fragment all along? Or is this just a game and she's one of the players?
>>
No. 119220 ID: c9f250

>>119209
>Wait, what?

Oh, right. That Amaranth.

Fixed! :siphon_cat_48:
>>
No. 119797 ID: 91ee5f

Really? You’re railroading us just because we didn’t want to go with the strange noxan we knew nothing about? And you’re gonna just blame it on “that noxan must’ve had an ability that did this”? Come on, don’t be like that, Raptie.
>>
No. 119799 ID: 6cc25a

>>119797
Our suggestions weren't ignored.

Anyway, to me it seems logical that the noxan that approached Astarte had a backup plan in case she wouldn't want to come along. The backup plan being, knocking her out.
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