Tea Time with Ryme

[Ryme]

Going to do my first post-retcon Tea Time this Tuesday.

The next "Tea Time with Ryme" will be Tuesday, November 23 at 8:00 p.m. US Mountain time (roughly 1:10 before rollover), for a live Q&A session about the game.

If you can't make it, feel free to post questions here.

[blackmatter615]

I wont be able to make it due to a new, no laptops after dinner rule.

ETA on next big project? (mall I think, based on that poll)

What project are you most excited about?

How smoothly do you think the transition to retcon went?

Will you ever give Muhandes a crib sheet, ham banner, and dumbbell so he can have a complete MD?

EDIT: On average how many silver stars are bought a month? rough numbers ok.

When was the last time you went bowling?

[zillow]

You have X chips in deep storage, which will be available to you when this run is over.

[Strlikecrazy]

Is there a special mechanic involved in opening the demiurge?

[Harry Dresden]

SYSTEM MESSAGE: Evening, folks, and Welcome to Tea Time with Ryme, the Q&A session about the game
[N] Ryme: I don't really have a lot prepared for this one. Just figured it was time to have a chat as sort of a post-retcon discussion.
[N] Ryme: Anybody have any questions, to get started?
[N] The Supernaturalist: when're you changing mettle values
[N] Sanjuro: Are you spending Thanksgiving with your fmaily?
[N] Ryme: I'll start with the easy one: staying home for Thanksgiving. Saw some family two weeks ago.
[N] Sanjuro: Is there something wrong with mettle values, Super?
[N] Ryme: As for SN's question, that's an "if" first. Not sure yet if I will, and until I know if I will, I won't know when.
[N] Ryme: At the very least I'd give it a few more months of people doing runs, minimum, before considering it.
[N] The Supernaturalist: are you pleased with reception to retcon
[N] Ryme: Yeah, I'm pretty happy. I love seeing so many active people in every night, all all the people participating.
[N] Ryme: It's had some glitches, but not as many major bugs as I'd feared, and it does seem to have rejuvenated the community a bit.
[N] Ryme: I like watching all new scores on the leaderboards, and seeing people find secrets, like the badges.
[N] Ryme: There's still a few of them out there, by the way. At least one more retcon one, and a couple from earlier this year. Besides the really old undiscovered ones.
[N] Ryme: How's that for a few hints?
[N] Harry Dresden: Any hints on the "impossible" badge? The really, really old one?
[N] Ryme: I don't think I'll ever hint any more about that one. It's really only there to make me feel good and tease all of you, but I don't want to be mean about it.
[N] The Supernaturalist: that sentence contradicts itself
[N] Sanjuro: Have you made any progress on the mall coding?
[N] Ryme: Yep, lots of progress on the mall. Still in testing, might still be a while.
[N] Ryme: There's a LOT involved with the mall, and more risks for item dupe and infinite chips bugs than the average interface, so we're going slow.
[N] Ryme: I'm also planning on leading up to it with a bit of a special event.
[N] Ryme: No official ETA, but sometime in December is pretty likely.
[N] Ryme: Blackmatter also asked: When was the last time you went bowling?
[N] Ryme: To which I reply: at lunch today. And before that, last night in league.
[N] Gizmet: what was your high score?
[N] Ryme: High score was a 211, last night.
[N] Mana Yachanichu: do you think you will ever make sidekick focuses for the other elements besides electric and psychic? I mean, it may not actually do much but I like seeing complete sets of things
[N] Harry Dresden: There is already one that does ice damage, but it was an IOTM.
[N] Ryme: Mana: definitely. Just kind of spacing them out, or waiting for a good theme to introduce the element.
[N] The Supernaturalist: whats your favorite lunch meat
[N] Ryme: There's a lot of good lunch meats to choose from. Not sure I have an absolute favorite, but I've sort of rediscovered roast beef lately. With some melted cheese and horseradish sauce ... yum!
[N] Ryme: Blackmatter also asked: How smoothly do you think the transition to retcon went?
[N] Ryme: Only real answer is, "A lot smoother than anticipated."
[N] Ryme: Honestly, I expected to feel pretty beat down by the end, but instead I came out pretty enthusiastic about a lot of new projects.
[N] Ryme: There's been a huge spike in bug reports, which is a bit of a grind, but it's for the good of the game.
[N] Ryme: But it's great seeing something new on the forums every day. Back before retcon, we could go days without a serious post, and that always made me sad.
[N] Mana Yachanichu: another question: is there a point at which constant comparison to KoL would bother you? I mean, everything I see in the game I think of in terms of KoL, but that might be annoying to some people
[N] Ryme: Mana: Dunno. I readily admit I started TH because I liked how KoL worked. I do strive to do some things that are different, but the framework is always going to be similar.
[N] Ryme: I try not to make decisions based on comparison to KoL, but rather just what I think makes for good game here.
[N] Mana Yachanichu: did "ascension" influence retcon besides the basic idea (if that)?
[N] Ryme: Well, ascension was my favorite part over there. I like the speed game, and I like collecting skills, or the fun rewards, like the stainless/plexi items.
[N] Ryme: Or just being able to replay things as a different class, or with a different strategy.
[N] Ryme: But I think the "roll your own" retcon system took us into some different paths.
[N] Mana Yachanichu: yeah I do like that
[N] Garfnobl: That replay value is what's got me back now; I like the options available.
[N] Mana Yachanichu: especially because some people might be able to make choices that give them more mettle but don't slow them down
[N] Mana Yachanichu: I may choose to play with skills someday but for now, it's just more mettle for not accessing something I don't have
[N] Ryme: yep, that's certainly the kind of choice we were gunning for.
[N] Zillow: Are there still unfound unlockables in the nocturne?
[N] Ryme: Not sure, Z. I haven't really paid attention. I think there's one, at least.
[N] Ryme: Blackmatter also asked: What project are you most excited about?
[N] Ryme: There's a pair of zones I've been working on for at least a year, and kept putting off because of retcon. I've picked them up again and am having a lot of fun with them.
[N] Ryme: In between working on the mall and the level 12 quest (which is also fun).
[N] Mana Yachanichu: how's the level 12 going to work, is it retcon-necessary?
[N] Mana Yachanichu: can you tell us yet?
[N] Ryme: I think the plan is it'll be optional, but provide bonus mettle, plus its own rewards, if you complete it.
[N] Ryme: Levels 12, 13, 14, and 15 will all continue where level 11 leaves off, but until I've got them all put together there's no intention to include them inside retcon.
[N] Ryme: For the forseeable future retcon will continue to end with the fight with The Mick.
[N] Mana Yachanichu: you say "until" - does that mean that you do see retcon going to level 15 in the future then?
[N]Ryme: Not sure, Mana. It's possible that at some point we'd shift the whole retcon process to level 15, but that's probably a couple of years out, minimum, and I'm not even remotely sure if it'd happen
[N] Sanjuro: That reminds me. Was it planned for the Ranch quest to have no bonus mettle?
[N] Ryme: Yep, Sanjuro. All the B-Quests are more optional and completely outside the main story line. None of them will include mettle.
[N] Mana Yachanichu: do you have plans to add more B-Quests?
[N] Ryme: Definitely. I've actually got one completely mapped out, another sketched loosely, and some rough ideas for one or two more.
[N]Ryme: Mostly the B-Quests are designed to provide useful level-appropriate rewards, but completely optional ones. I'm hoping they'll provide strategic choice in-run, or just fun outside of it.
[N] Garfnobl: Any hints on what the replacement level 5 gadgeteer skill will be?
[N] Ryme: I'm looking at a sugar enhancer. Actual details have bogged me down on that one.
[N] Gizmet: about the sugar enhancer: what's wrong with something like "+10% time from sugar use”?
[N] Ryme: Nothing wrong with it, on the surface, Gizmet. Except "how does that work with 10 steps of skill points?" And "now I have to recode everything sugar related."
[N] Ryme: strlikecrazy asked on the forums: Is there a special mechanic involved in opening the demiurge?
[N] Ryme: And I'll partially confirm what Valera answered on the forums, which the demiurge is tied to your other victories in the zone. I suspect that zone is more complicated than the spades suspect, though.
[N] Ryme: But that's a quest I'd like to clean up a little, too.
[N] CDMoyer: Any thoughts on the scarcity of some older IotMs, now that more people are concerned with optimizing retcon? (And maybe more people playing?)
[N] Ryme: CDM, that's really tough. I don't have a good answer yet. The promise not to repeat old items still holds, because it was necessary to get the game this far.
[N] Mana Yachanichu: when the mall is up it may give you a better idea of how many old IotMs are out there
[N] Ryme: Likely I'll do some items with similar key features, while mixing up other benefits and flavor. For instance I repeat a cape-like just about every year.
[N] Ryme: Some of the others, like the *ouch items, are scarce, but were designed from the start to be tradeable, and have their summonables also tradeable.
[N] Mana Yachanichu: speaking of which, what does *ouch even mean?
[N] Ryme: * is computer-code for "insert any character here" = wildcard
[N] Ryme: so, pouch, couch, crouch, grouch, etc.
[N] Mana Yachanichu: do you have enough words that end in ouch to continue for the near future?
[N] Ryme: at some point I'll probably stop doing the *ouch-style items and transition to something like permable skills. I avoided skills thus far because I knew early items would be really scarce.
[N] Mana Yachanichu: do you think you will add more sidekick focuses as well?
[N] Ryme: yep, certainly.
[N] Patojonas: Will you be implementing some more skills to work with skill points in the near future?
[N] Ryme: Probably. I know there's demand for more permables. Mostly a matter of figuring out how they can be acquired.
[N] Patojonas: what about fully implement the current ones?
[N] Ryme: yeah, yeah
[N] Mana Yachanichu: another question: do you think you will bring back recurring events (such as the Battle of the Bands) and/or adding new ones?
[N] Ryme: Battle of the Bands does repeat, and will repeat again. I've wanted to add a few more to the mix, but haven't had the chance.
[N] SeventhCross: any plans to finish passing out rewards for the welding contest from way back when? ^_^
[N] Ryme: yeah, I feel pretty bad about how long that's been
[N] Ryme: I love doing contests for all the great things, but the administrative follow-through isn't my strong suit.
[N] SeventhCross: maybe you just need to delegate...
[N] Ryme: well, when nobody else has the power to create items from nothing, that's difficult
[N] Ryme: Another player who will remain anonymous because I'm not sure if he wants otherwise has convinced me there are logistic issues with the paradox naught, and I need to change how that's flagged per run
[N] Ryme: It's a small thing, but by saying that I can end on a high note, and y'all will be convinced I listen.
[N] SeventhCross: "Logistics issues"?
[N] Patojonas: you can't make paradoxes with one on your iventory
[N] Ryme: issues with the logic = logistic, right?
[N] Sanjuro: Yes, that sounds logistical to me
[N] SeventhCross: I was given to understand "you can't make one with one in your inventory" was the point of them...
[N] Ryme: that's how it's coded. In theory it was "you can only make one per run"
[N] SeventhCross: not that I can see a need to make a second if you already have one...
[N] Patojonas: call it retcon trophies
SYSTEM MESSAGE: Okay, folks, thanks for coming out for Tea Time with Ryme. Today's episode brought to you by the number XVII and the other number i

[Strlikecrazy]

[N] Ryme: I like watching all new scores on the leaderboards, and seeing people find secrets, like the badges.
[N] Ryme: There's still a few of them out there, by the way. At least one more retcon one, and a couple from earlier this year. Besides the really old undiscovered ones.
[N] Ryme: How's that for a few hints?

How good is that!