Category: Moderation

Important moderation posted here.

Tower of Callisto: The Book

The complete record of the game is now available as a print-on-demand book or downloadable PDF. Printing the book is a tad pricey, since it’s a full-color 340-page volume with lots of pictures, diagrams, and notes. But the PDF is free and has the exact same content.

In addition to the letters sent by the players, the book has maps of places in the game, graphs from the communication management system, and the character sheets and scenario setup information.

Also, sign-ups are now available for the next Callisto game I’m running: Revolution of Callisto!

Behind the Scenes: The Data

callistomanager

No, the letters aren’t ready to read yet, but I do have something that you can look at: the complete data visualization of the letters sent during the game. Well, almost complete: if a letter was mistakenly not sent to the moderator, and was forwarded later, it usually doesn’t show up in this. Out of character messages are also not displayed.

The visualization is interactive. Click on the names of the characters to toggle displaying them–I suggest turning the moderator off if you just want to see communications between the players. Drag the handles on the timeline to filter by day. Hovering over things will usually display more information.

(The code for this is at https://github.com/ikarth/arktikos)

End Game Moderation Notes

We’ve moved into the end game. Expect that I’ll be a little more aggressive about getting things into the news and extrapolating from events in motion.

Also, at this point there are no limits on how many letters you can send. Send as many as you like to whomever you want.

I’ll pay particular attention to letters sent to players who haven’t posted in a few weeks: if you happen to ask someone for something that’s within their narrative authority and I think will move the game along, the result may show up in the news at my discretion. (If you want a say, write the response yourself, or let me know that you’re planning to. If you’ve sent a letter in the past month, this probably doesn’t mean you.)

Once this cycle concludes next Friday, you’ll have a chance to write some epilogue letters, from any point in the timeline (past or future) to wrap up. Write as many of these as you like.

Open Questions

How will the discoveries from the ruined tower near Chayi affect the Basin?

What old symbols or legends have new significance now that the tower is discovered?

What other desert places have a connection to the ruins near Chayi? 

Anyone can search for the answers, according to their narrative authorities.

State of the Game

I’ve updated the player list on the State of the Game page based on the feedback I’ve gotten so far. We’ve had one player withdraw and a few more say that they’ve been stressed for time but plan to get back to the game soon.

The current plan is to run for at least three more cycles, working toward a player-generated climax. You may get some character updates from me, as I adjust a few things to amp up the tempo.

If you feel that you don’t have enough other player contacts to talk to, please let me know. I’ve tried to make sure everyone is likely to get replies, but it’s hard to know for sure on my end.

Do note that even if you don’t get a reply, all of your letters are part of the game and can make it into the news. Though the lack of feedback can certainly be discouraging.

State of the Game

callisto_message_matrix

Here’s a fun metric: this is the matrix of the communication that has taken place in the game so far. The light grey squares mean that no letters have been sent between those two players. The darker the square, the more messages have been exchanged. Blue squares means that the player on that row has sent more messages to the player in that column, while red indicates the player has received more than was sent. Purple, of course, indicates a balance.

From the Imperial Archives

From the Imperial Annals of the Middle Kingdom:

In the 115th Year of the Dynasty, the Green Banner Army of the West was deployed on the frontier. The general of the army, popularly known as the Wheat Scythe of the West, was noted for his accomplishments and quickly brought order to the ranks of the glorious imperial army.

In the midst of a conflict with the horse nomads from the northern wastelands, the general was felled by a quarrel fired from a crossbow, and so passed from the service of his Emperor.

This was reported to the Court of The Emperor of Ten Thousand Years in the Withering Season of the 115th year of the dynasty, long may it endure.

The player of Zhang Hansi, Frontier General has withdrawn from the game, due to time constraints. I’d like to thank him for his participation and the many creative ideas that his letters have spread throughout the game.

Cycle: Year 115, Season of Harvesting

The fields are dotted with laborers; the harvest time has need of them. At the peak of the day, they pause in their work to seek relief in the shade of the olibanum trees, speaking of the far off events they have heard discussed by the pilgrims who follow The Way of the Road.

This ends Cycle 3 and begins Cycle 4…