The White Wolf LiveJournal Community - Monday Meeting Meets on Tuesday and Reports on Wednesday

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That's the way it's done, people: First you make them want it. Then you take it away. Then they need it. Who's begging now? Huh? Huh? That's right.

Actually, I just got distracted by other important work and didn't get a chance to get this finished before today. Also, I watched Goodfellas last night instead of doing this. Ah, well.

Turns out it's harder to write these things when I don't do it right then, in the room, as it’s happening. This week's Monday Meeting (on Tuesday, Reported on Wednesday) Report is being done from my notes, so I apologize if it's not so much with the funny.

First, though, a joke for you, stolen from McSweeney's online:

Knock, knock.
Who's there?
A robot.
Oh, shit.

Someone in the office is going to win a great prize: the right to title his or her autobiography The Cussist. This is a contest that never ends. Every day we battle to see who is cussy enough to win the title of The Cussist.

(Most days, it's Chaney. This is why we don't let him write the LJ. But ask me sometime about the spectral members of dead US Presidents and what Ned is obligated to with them, 'cause he lost a bet or something, and you'll see why I'm still in the running. Fair warning: the answer is NSFW.)

By the way, we also established that I am not going to have kids. I don't want to pay for somebody's college, I don't want to be at the beck and call of a screaming larva, and I don't want to give up my young hipster lifestyle and the freedom to travel just to add another unnecessary dude to this crowded spaceship. Also, impotent.

All right, then. On with it:

John is in the thick of development on Scion's second book. Chapters are going off to our editor ally, Carl, at a heroic rate. John is a scion of Bartleby the Scrivener. So is Carl.
Dean Shomshak is developing Sidereals for Exalted while Stephen "LS" Lea Sheppard is handling The West: Just Part of a Much Longer Title Not Typed Here, also for Exalted. Bax is handling authors on future books while John is wrapped up with scion. We established that Bax is essentially a freelance developer that we let hang out at the office, whose day-job is to be our professional bitch. Also, impotent.
Brian is contracting and arting Oadenal's Codex, which may or may not be spelled the way I spelled it. He's also starting the rough layout on it and doing up some nice, pretty ads for Marketing. Some kind of meeting will be happening this week, too, to discuss some good news about printing possibilities for Dreams of the First Age, also for Exalted. I imagine that meeting will go like this:
DUDE 1: "So what do you think? How was that news? Good?"

DUDE 2: "Oh, yeah."

DUDE 3: "It was good. Good news."

DUDE 4 (teleconferencing): "What did you say?"

DUDE 1 (shouting): "What did you think of the good news?"

DUDE 4: "Oh. I liked it. This set's going to be good."

DUDE 1: "Okay, everybody. Good talk."
I, me, Will, is handling paperwork and administrative stuff, squaring away some new SAS adventures, handling some revisions on the HeroLab character-creation files from our end, and doing some outlining for future books and projects. Lots of little stuff. Also, impotent.
the matt is working on a new EVE project I'm not supposed to mention yet. Inspiration struck him over the weekend like a drunkard skier tumbling down a Norwegian slope on the back of the St. Bernard sent to rescue him with a barrel of Goldschlager around his neck, and now we have a new logo for the EVE CCG expansion. (You probably had to read that sentence twice, didn't you?). Also, he says, "Jack Bauer and Chuck Norris are nothing compared to the mighty Frazetta."
Ethan tells us that Changeling is back from editing and that he's working on the demo materials this week. Also, we're ready to announce the new, full-on title for that game, which will be: C#4N631!N6 or ©H@N631!nQ. Vote now!
Aaron is Zack Walters' handler now.
Aileen has the last of the art for World of Darkness: Book of Spirits coming in. Then she's off to work getting an artist (or artists?) to do all the Changeling covers.
Bill is back from Iceland, where he ran "The Resurrectionists" for design folks at CCP. Sounds like their story took quite a dramatic turn once they opened the box – but they succeeded in reaching Pope before Vincenzo did. To anyone commenting here on the LJ, please respect the players who have yet to play these stories and keep mum about any spoilers.

Oh, and while Bill was Iceland this time, he ate ram's testicles and the pee shark.
Petur is working with CCP programmers on tournament software for EVE: Second Genesis and with other Icelandic computer-types on some kind of online version of the EVE CCG… online. That's all exploratory right now, though, I guess. Also, he's going back to Iceland. For the record, he lasted about a month. I owe somebody US$20.
Chaney is art-directing signature characters for Monte Cook's World of Darkness now that they've been squared away. Then he's moving on the art issues for the EVE CCG expansion and World of Darkness: Asylum. He's also doing amazing things with the maps for the Necromancer Games boxed set, City of Brass. (Brass what, Chaney? Oh.)
Craig is wrapping up the Scion demo and searching for a bunch of available artists for Bloodlines: The Chosen and The Blood. He and I will also be working on the look of the schema in Damnation City sometime soon. Somewhere in there, he also has to start the rough layout on Magical Traditions for Mage.
Rich is working on a lot of stuff that I just can't tell you about yet. No news about the novel contest yet, but it sounds like something'll be happening there soon-ish. I don't know what, though, 'cause it's not my corner of the workshop. I just like to tease you. But you knew that already.

We'll see you next week.

Current Music: Underworld, "Confusion the Waitress"

From: ravious	Date: February 21st, 2007 05:17 pm (UTC)		(Link)
The Wait was Excruciating

I have two questions:
(1) Will RSB be writing some Sidereal goodness again? I know she is quite busy, but I am hoping.
(2) When will we hear something about Monte's WoD? Obviously, by now some things have been nailed down... throw a dog a bone, pretty please!

Other than that I am frothing at the mouth for Book of Spirits...

	From: mandan	Date: February 22nd, 2007 02:48 am (UTC)		(Link)
	Re: The Wait was Excruciating

I would like to second question #1. Will RSB be working on the Sidereals? I'm hoping for a yes :)

	From: wordwill	Date: February 23rd, 2007 05:34 pm (UTC)		(Link)
	Re: The Wait was Excruciating

John Chambers tells me that he'd love to get Rebecca Borgstrom on future Exalted books, but that her schedule's been too tight lately for any solid commitment. Suffice to say, for now, that we feel pretty the same way you all do.

From: (Anonymous)	Date: February 21st, 2007 05:44 pm (UTC)		(Link)

What guages who is the cussiest? Is it the sheer volume of cussing, or the quality/vulgarity of the words used?

	From: chaney_insaney	Date: February 22nd, 2007 05:56 am (UTC)		(Link)
	....

The true mastery lies not in just the volume and quality, but in the combination of all the vulgarities into a seemingly endless rant.

To reach the level of cussiest sensei one must:

a. be threatened with arrest by a cop for their language usage.
b. make small children cry profusely.
c. make Matt leave the room with his ears covered.

	From: nekosluagh	Date: February 21st, 2007 05:55 pm (UTC)		(Link)

It was hard to wait for this, but so worth it, if just for the knock knock joke ;)

Thanks Will!!!

(p.s. So want to know how you are still in the contest :P)

	From: tashiro	Date: February 21st, 2007 07:05 pm (UTC)		(Link)

I am freaking aching to get my hands on Scion. The concept sounds damn cool, and I just want the bloody thing. Changeling, from all the spoilers I've gotten, sounds damn cool as well.

Why don't I just give you my monthly cheque, and you just ship everything to me directly, huh? Not like I need a house or food or anything. :p

	From: wordwill	Date: February 23rd, 2007 05:34 pm (UTC)		(Link)

"Why don't I just give you my monthly cheque, and you just ship everything to me directly, huh?"

Since you mention it...

	From: cwricheson	Date: February 21st, 2007 08:31 pm (UTC)		(Link)

I find myself to be surprisingly excited about Eve. I really want some more good science fiction RPGs out there, and very much enjoyed the feel of the MMO. I look forward to hearing more!

	From: wordwill	Date: February 23rd, 2007 05:36 pm (UTC)		(Link)

We've played a couple of alpha RPG sessions in it and it's a terrific setting for adventure, action, intrigue and bloody horrific violence. I can't wait to get that game into players' hands.

	From: theliel	Date: February 21st, 2007 08:49 pm (UTC)		(Link)
	Vote!

©H@N631!nQ hands down.

Seriously, that's some mighty fine 13373 there.
mighty fine.

I once wrote a story all in that scrawling mewling text. Just to see if i could. Turned out that not only could i, but i swear it moved of it's own accord like some horrid mould-y wallpaper stuff if i let my eyes unfocus just even a little bit.

anyway, can't wait to hear about new 'stuffs'.

	From: jedi_mario	Date: February 21st, 2007 10:00 pm (UTC)		(Link)

Well, I'm looking forward to everything you said dealing with WoD (Most importantly, ©H@N631!nQ), Scion (Only a little more than month away!) and Exalted (Which I'm just getting into).

Oh, and I'm assuming Rich is working on what you let slip last week and are reluctant to tell us due to what you said on SnE. >=O)

	From: wordwill	Date: February 23rd, 2007 05:39 pm (UTC)		(Link)

Actually, Rich is working mostly on big behind-the-scenes company stuff and long-term creative decisions for the future of our games. There are also some secret EVE products in there that I'm not supposed to be talking about yet. Rich oversees everything that happens in our department, so his section always seem short when, in fact, it includes pretty much everything you see mentioned before his name. He's a busy, busy dude.

	From: jedi_mario	Date: February 25th, 2007 09:04 pm (UTC)		(Link)

Huh. Interesting, if a bit mysterious. Thanks for responding, Will!

	From: septembervirgin	Date: February 21st, 2007 10:23 pm (UTC)		(Link)

I remember this computer game where my kingdom made an alliance with another kingdom. They wanted me to attack their enemies which I did readily and successfully, but they did not hold their portion of the agreement and attack my enemies. I imagined that their armies were assembling along the border. I weakened their enemy to the point where every single civilised region was easy to take but not damaged so as to be unworthwhile.

What ouccrred is they hit their enemy, easily took the entire kingdom, and then used their new won power to cancel the alliance and ignore me. As a result, I had to focus on naval power for a very long time thereafter.

I wonder: does the same thing happen in EVE or even (perhaps) with the designers who work for EVE? Hopefully the union with CCP will prove fruitful. I look forward to an immensely brilliant World of Darkness MMO, something not quite so stupid as the MMOs presently existent.

And hopefully WHite Wolf will find a way to reaffirm progress, possibly through transmission of working portions of gameplay and graphics, sequestered and serialised articles. A secure connection should be used.

I'm sure it will all work out splendidly. Take care!

	From: cernunnos	Date: February 21st, 2007 11:12 pm (UTC)		(Link)

I'm extremely curious about the Storyteller Adventure System.

First and foremost, I'd like to assume that games for Mage and Promethean are also in the works, to show off just what can be done (and so I can get a few more of the people I know into those particular parts of the World of Darkness from being only into Vampire).

But, more than that, I was hoping that there would be some more mid-to-high level games. I have this odd yet sincere hatred for playing a neonate vampire, preferring characters with a little more time under their belts.

I can't say much for the current three, as I have yet to look at them (wanting more information before dropping the cash), but I must say I'm looking for games of a more political slant rather than "here's an enemy, beat them up".
How would the current ones measure up on that, and will the next crop be different?

Of course if all this is far too "hush-hush" for us regular people to hear just yet, I'd understand. :)

	From: wordwill	Date: February 23rd, 2007 05:50 pm (UTC)		(Link)

Without treading into spoiler territory, I'd say every one of the three current SAS stories has a pretty good balance between non-combat scenes and action. I hesitate to say, political per se, though. In fact, the Vampire story, "The Resurrectionists," was specifically designed to show people how Vampire can be more than goth posturing and politics -- but how politics are turning the wheels behind everything. It's part a story of physical confrontations and part a puzzle-solving race through a Victorian-style garden cemetery.

Naturally, we expect to have SAS adventures for all of our game lines eventually. (Both Scion: Hero and the Vampire book Fall of the Camarilla will have SAS elements in them.) Right now, though, our goal is to focus on the stories we're immediately passionate about, and to experiment with the format, rather than to give an equal share to every game line just 'cause. That said, "Chicago Workings" is a pretty solid story for mortals or low-XP mages.

We'll have stories for more experienced characters, too, of course. If you haven't looked at the adventures yet, though, it's hard to really describe what their future is like. We do have sample pages of each story up now, which you can find on the White Wolf SAS page and on their pages on DriveThru.

	From: jedi_mario	Date: February 25th, 2007 09:13 pm (UTC)		(Link)

Fall of the Camarilla? Nice name drop.

From: (Anonymous)	Date: February 21st, 2007 11:45 pm (UTC)		(Link)

HeroLab?

Mathias Jack

From: (Anonymous)	Date: February 22nd, 2007 05:21 am (UTC)		(Link)

http://www.wolflair.com/

They've licensed WoD to make a character generator. Check out the forum at http://support.wolflair.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=MDForum&file=index

	From: karleeneedsleep	Date: February 22nd, 2007 01:45 am (UTC)		(Link)

	From: dawngreeter	Date: February 22nd, 2007 06:39 am (UTC)		(Link)

My vote says ©H@N631!nQ.

Also, legend goes that one of these days I will wake up and read one of these monday meeting reports. It will mention a grand opening of WoD MMO. Then I will be able to die happy.

	From: cernunnos	Date: February 23rd, 2007 01:03 am (UTC)		(Link)

You know, when I saw that EVE Online and White Wolf were joining forces, this is all I thought of.

	From: wordwill	Date: February 23rd, 2007 05:51 pm (UTC)		(Link)

You know, it takes quite a while to make an MMO.

	From: dawngreeter	Date: February 23rd, 2007 07:00 pm (UTC)		(Link)

Yeah, I know. I'm not actually holding my breath to see it start with beta testing before 2008. and even that might be overly optimistic. Yet for some reason, every Monday I hope to see it mentioned. I'm obsessive like that, I guess.

From: (Anonymous)	Date: February 22nd, 2007 07:07 am (UTC)		(Link)

As long as you're thinking about covers, I think that the covers for VII, Belial's Brood, Guardians of the Veil, and Free Council have been far and away the best stuff for the nWoD, cover-wise, in my humble cover-judging opinion.

PAS

From: (Anonymous)	Date: February 23rd, 2007 02:06 pm (UTC)		(Link)
SAS?

Any chance of some teasers about the upcoming SAS stuff? I have and like all three of the current ones, and am eagerly waiting for more :)

	From: wordwill	Date: February 23rd, 2007 05:56 pm (UTC)		(Link)
	Re: SAS?

We have several of them being written and developed right now, but it's hard to know just yet which one(s) will make up the next batch of releases. Strangely, at least two of the stories currently being written are unusual sort of one-off style stories (one being easier to integrate into an ongoing story than the other).

One of these, "Ruins of Babylon," I ran for a packed table-full of players last year at Origins as part of the early playtest cycle, and even includes modified character-creation rules (because not everyone has military characters in their chronicle already). That's a real one-shot or chronicle-starting story, and is utterly shameless about it.

I'm also writing a new Vampire story right now (like, it's open in a window behind the one in which I'm writing this) which is designed to be fit into any chronicle after a character frenzies, as a kind of dramatic consequence for that all-too-often neglected horrific and dangerous part of the Requiem.

That's just two of the various stories being put together right now.

	From: ohendless_night	Date: February 25th, 2007 08:38 am (UTC)		(Link)
	Re: SAS?

...designed to be fit into any chronicle after a character frenzies, as a kind of dramatic consequence for that all-too-often neglected horrific and dangerous part of the Requiem.

YES! This has peeked my interest. In fact, let's say I am uber-peeked. Yes, let's go with that.

From: codybye	Date: February 23rd, 2007 05:23 pm (UTC)		(Link)
Woot Novel Contest!

Can't wait for the contest results!

	From: septembervirgin	Date: February 24th, 2007 01:20 am (UTC)		(Link)
	suggestions retriax

As one who grieves over nevermade computer games, usually because what impact such a computer game would have had on the computer game industry, I mourn the loss of Majesty 3, Dungeon Keeper 3, and the company Elixir too. This is of little importance to White Wolf, however.

Of stronger importance might be that while grieving by sifting through Cyberlore affiliate Minerva Software, I found that their Empathy Engine might be suitable for consideration by any MMO designer seeking a unique and plausible way of handling PC:NPC interactions.

http://www.minerva-software.com/

Now, as the someone who suggested White Wolf take a look at the James Cameron sponsored MMORPG enterprise Multiverse ( http://www.multiverse.net/index.jsp ), this suggestion might not be considered a likely lead. However, if simulated combat in WoD MMO has a real-time component and elements of tactical conflict, surely interpersonal interaction could as well.

Also of consideration: NPC in fantasy games which feature supernatural powers that might effect NPC reaction usually do not take into consideration that PC or NPC might operate under a varying condition. Important NPC might see fit to use varying effects on a PC, and these situation should not be excluded from consideration to include as a parcel of gameplay.

It might even be useful to consider a quest as an "item" that might be traded between PC before expiration, given to an NPC to accomplish, altered or crafted by PCs and game state, locked to certain PC types (and potentially unlocked through sufficient skill), or even forcibly pressed upon a PC who may ignore it only at peril of temporary willpower or status loss (with accompanying temporary willpower or status maximum).

Also, what mortal organizations exist within WoD now? There should be mortal organizations the equivalent of The Arcanum, The Inquisition, Pentex, and Orpheus.

I made a suggestion on the White Wolf forum that Pentex be revised in the New World of Darkness as a self-help company/"philosophical" personality cult, something like a mix between The Golden Dawn and the seventies self-help cults. Of course, it would just be a front for The Arcanum who attempt to gather power within the supernatural cliques of the World of Darkness for mortal uses and who provide actual and effective supernatural security assistance for the wealthy and well-connected in exchange for favors.

Of course, I am sure White Wolf can come up with their own ideas on mortal organizations, and they have proven rather competent at doing so except on occasions when they apparently get caught up in dice sale potential (through super-powered NPC and weapons and powers).