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567307 No. 567307 ID: d470e9

It took Alison about 5 hours after entering the Stage 7 safe zone to go into the CAI battle. It wasn't instantaneous, but worry begins to set in when the Glitcher makes an appearance stating that he was under the impression that after he initiated the proper sequence, it should have happened in the blink of an eye.

It's still too early to make plans without Alison, Chief says, and there is little to do but wait for her, at least for awhile.

Plus, while Chief does believe himself to be a ruler, his throne was built on power and fear. Alison was able to usurp him with a throne of understanding and friendship, and the Chief does not believe that doing the reverse is as easily done, at least not without time. Although, management and delegation have suited him surprisingly well.

7:00 arrives, and the Succubus returns from watching the safe zone. She does not sound happy when she says that Sixer scattered this all over the safe zone for everyone to read. And that this is from the current Sixer, not the Sixer that Alison met.
Expand all images
>>
No. 567308 ID: d470e9
File 139551182343.png - (15.29KB , 800x800 , SSF7-43.png )
567308

The admins that did not reinforce Four's bracket have been playing their own game.

Dear contestants,

For the grand majority of you who do not know, the brackets have recently seen a flux of movement from our admins in order to reinforce an attack made on Bracket 4. They have gone missing, and I have gone to investigate the last administrative actions of Four's brackets. Upon review, the rest of the admins have agreed to take extreme measures to solidify the mechanics to make sure that attacks like this cannot happen, as they do not help anyone.

With our less esteemed equals going AWOL, the admins have come to a required unanimous concensus to perform a hard reboot of all system functions and surroundings.

At 18:00, all non-critical locations will be purged. This includes the dream landscape and empty zones, including but not limited to the Corrupted Sanctuary, the Snake Queen's Glitched Dream, and the Savior's Paradise. All residents must either vacate those premises and enter their respective brackets by 18:00, or suffer death.

At 22:00, all CU and inventory will be revoked and eliminated. This includes 1-ups.

At 24:00, all abilities will be deleted, and at 24:01, everyone will be granted Spoken and Written Language abilities. Further abilities will be granted and made available on a stage to stage basis, until further notice.

At 26:00, any remaining statistics left on individuals will be removed, as will concepts of Tier 1, 2 and 3. Any attacks necessary will also be granted and made available on a stage to stage basis until further notice.

Body and armor cosmetics will remain intact. The Shopkeeper will supply changes to these for free, but you may only have one at a time.

Hoping all will understand,
Administrator 7-6

This message was generatd from Administrator 7-4's office.


The Chief was just complaining to Succubus how the furniture sizes tend to be messed up, as there is no standardization. That complaint already seems distant and petty, with this news. Glitcher says he has never heard of a hard reboot before, or how to stop it. The dream here should not be able to be touched, but Sixer may have gotten around that by deleting absolutely everything the dream is built on. It's possible the dream will stay intact, but Glitcher says it would be best not to risk this, and to head into the safe zone for awhile. After the admins do their process, someone can come back and see if it survived.

The Arbiter says that Sixer claims to have investigated Four's place, but the Arbiter had gotten the logs from there right after everyone was gone. Sixer must have came after Arbiter came and left. And depending on how thorough his investigation would or could be, he can't help but feel that Sixer viewing the last 'administrative actions' might have included seeing Arbiter's logs.
>>
No. 567309 ID: d470e9
File 139551186550.gif - (23.94KB , 800x567 , SSF7-44.gif )
567309

Chief requests to see the logs, now, and the Arbiter obliges.

ARBITER #9: PLACE ALL FUTURE LOGS IN CORRUPTOR'S FILE
ARBITER #79: SAVIOR QUARANTINED CORRUPTOR, ALL LOST
ARBITER #80: QUARANTINE DOESN'T LAST PAST A REBOOT
ARBITER #134: CORRUPTOR ALMOST BROKE OUT. GLITCHER TO BLAME
ARBITER #177: BRING ROCK CANDY TO STAGE 8
ARBITER #287: /1;12&)41\\\2AA\2S\9V8*&S89**
ARBITER #298: CORRUPTOR CANNOT LEAVE
ARBITER# 389: WHO IS THE CORRUPTOR
ARBITER #399: THE RULES HAVE RULES
ALISON #403: LOVE YOU
ERROR #XXX: THIS MESSAGE I
ARBITER #450: CORRUPTOR OFTEN CORRUPTS SAVIOR
ARBITER #652: ALISON IS NOT CAPABLE OF ENDING THIS, BUT SHE MAKES IT TOLERABLE
ARBITER #655: SYSTEM PURGES CONVOLUTED RULE SYSTEM - NEW ONE NO BETTER
ARBITER #1101: POMI SIMULATION DOES NOT WORK CORRECTLY
ARBITER #1151: &DA(p)\2&DA(p)\2&DA(p)\2&DA(N)\2&DA(p)\2
ARBITER #1308: CORRUPTOR CANNOT COME WITH US IF WE BREAK OUT OF THE CYCLE
ALISON #1314: WHY?
ARBITER #1560: SAVIOR TRYING TO STOP CORRUPTOR - IRONICALLY SAVING HIS LIFE
ARBITER #1568: NEXT LOG TELL ME WHO CORRUPTOR IS
ARBITER #1577: SHOULD HAVE LISTENED TO CORRUPTOR AND NOT STUCK WITH ALISON
ARBITER #1599: UNCONFIRMED - GLITCHER IS A
ARBITER #1603: ROCK CANDY ???
ARBITER #1876: CONFIRM - CORRUPTOR CANNOT LEAVE
ARBITER #1977: SHE IS TOO N\9313ICE
#ARBITER 1111: N/0/0/0/0/0OT GOING TO LET HER SWAY ME
ARBITER #19012--93 *78W88S* /21 98a(9)))))
ARBITER #12731- -AA= =1 -/31/312/5/566119 A(a)*(S)
ARBA - - # GW A - -- - /1111/162*9A8 *8 7 &&*9


The garbled logs last for hundreds of lines, far more logs than anyone expected.

The Arbiter has no idea what to make of the corrupted lines, other than the Corruptor being the obvious suspect. He doubts that the later numbers are accurate, as he has it on good and varied authority that there have not been nearly 20,000 cycles, and so the sheer number of logs may also be inaccurate.

The glitcher believes that this may be encrypted, he remembers seeing this type of thing passed between administrators in the past. He cannot read it himself.

Scholar also reports that several hundred of Corruptor's devotees, perhaps a thousand, have just entered the bracket to bolster Bones' forces.
>>
No. 567318 ID: 2c6ff1

>>567309
So, sometimes Corruptor does not even exist? Or is known by a different name, or works out of the public eye, or dies early? I also find it interesting that Arbiter was brought out of the Belenosian sim as early as the 9th cycle... or maybe that's literally the 9th Arbiter, and these are offset numbers in relation to the cycle numbers.

At any rate, file this away somewhere. We can't let possibly-falsified logs alter our strategy. Only take action on confirmed details. Although I suppose the "rock candy" thing is worth acting on. Can we get some of that?

We should probably ask Smuggler if he can confirm these changes will be affecting him.
>>
No. 567319 ID: 9ddf68

have we got any word from Alison yet?

Ask Glitcher how long CIA battles usually take cause right now she's either going to arrive right before the stage starts or could even miss it. Either way we need to start making plans for the next stage. First thing we should do is get anyone left in the dreamscape into this safe zone just incase this hard reboot is as powerful as they say it is. I mean I remember Glitcher saying the admins never found a way to get to the city but it never hurts to be safe rather then sorry. Next thing to do would probably be to spend all left over CU. I mean if they are bluffing about removing the CU we can always just get more but if not then there's not much of a reason to hold on to it. And since they plan to remove our abilities I think the best thing for us to do would to be to spend it on items, whether or not they simply forgot about them or just didn't care we can at least by bombs or something to help with our now lack of abilities and just hide them around where we hang out in the safe zone and grab them again after we get striped.

The way I see this happening is that if we can stock up on items it might help us deal with people who got lucky and got there hands on a good ability like range or something and seeing how the corrupter is boasting Bone's troops it wouldn't be to much of a stretch that he'd find a way to get around the hard reboot.

Also don't forget to grab smuggler as well. he's up to date on all the gear he can sale us right? maybe he could get us some of this items at a cheaper price.
>>
No. 567320 ID: f44ca3

Ok for the moment lets assume these logs are encrypted until we can find out more about them.

Our first priority to try to stop the hard reboot or glitch it somehow so or everyone can keep some or all of there stuff after it happens.

Even if we do find a way to affect the reboot we should assume its not going to work and move everyone to a safe location in case we fail.

Ask Arbiter and Glitcher what they think of his logs.

I am guessing this hard reset can only happen if every admin goes and unlocks it. If it is designed with fail safes we might be able to stop it or modify it by taking out a active admin before they join in resetting the brackets. Also if we can mover our forces into a active admin bracket they might be safe.

Put out a order to everyone we can to look over the list and think of any loopholes they see we might be able to take advantage of.
>>
No. 567339 ID: a97618

>the Chief does not believe that doing the reverse is as easily done, at least not without time
Do you have a desire or reason to execute a reverse? In the meantime, you can certainly govern via the trust / authority / legitimacy that comes from the position you've assumed.

>this is from the current Sixer, not the Sixer that Alison met
So... the current administrator (in stage Seven) of bracket 6, not the administrator we had in stage six (when the number of brackets still numbered in the tens of thousands).

>an attack made on Bracket 7
That's incorrect. Alison and co went to Bracket 4 (see >>questarch/455558/ ). Unless the admin is referring to an attack Corruptor made on the empty bracket 7 after the system people left to reinforce?

>lots of admin changing things
If they actually pull that off, our only remaining advantage will be the ability to work together to overflow stages. And possibly to reacquire abilities via Smuggler.

That would also break our ability to save anyone new with absorb. It might even break our established retroactive chains. That threatens the basis of our alliance a lot of people bought into.

>Logs may be encrypted, admins used before
Can any of our system people make heads of tails of this, then? We should have Radmin's ghost, and Sixer at our disposal.
>>
No. 567340 ID: a97618

>Corruptor's devotees Bolstering Bones
Odd, considering Corruptor was just helping you guys. Maybe we should have a talk with them at some point?
>>
No. 567341 ID: d470e9
File 139551937843.gif - (28.42KB , 800x566 , SSF7-45.gif )
567341

>Do you have a desire or reason to execute a reverse?
Chief does not, but he will if Alison fails. Although if she does, then he's already set up as Alison's successor, but his style of leadership is a far sight from hers.

The logs will be filed until someone either makes something of it, or more likely until there's a way to decrypt it. Arbiter calls on Radmin to talk things over.

Succubus is told to empty the banks and the dreamhouse, and get everyone to the safe zone for the time being. Anyone trustworthy is to gain Tier 3 access with default builds. Everyone else is already maxed at standard T2. Furthermore, everyone will stock up on items as well. Chief doubts it's a bluff, but there is little reason to assume. She heads off.

Smuggler is called in, and asked if his stock will change. Smuggler thinks so, as while he does not have the merchantile limits as normal Shopkeeps, it is in effect from the same source. He'll keep the Chief updated if anything is different. In the meanwhile, he will continue to sell all available items to Chief, although the prices continue to be non-negotiable, given the nature of the ability.

Chief also proposed an idea to attack an administrator. It's a long shot, but it's possible that may throw a wrench in the reboot. The Arbiter does not like that idea, claiming that it's high risk with a low chance of reward. Even if everyone is placed on equal footing again, their main opponent is bones, who also has a great deal of T3s. Depending on how strong the Devotees are, that number may easily outnumber Alison's and King's forces in terms of strength. The reboot could even be a help.
>>
No. 567342 ID: d470e9
File 139551938849.gif - (27.35KB , 800x567 , SSF7-46.gif )
567342

Radmin speaks up.

>"Alright, listen up, because I know a thing or two about this one. It disables everything, yep, including us Admins. That's right, our abilities and stats go down the plunker. Course, since everyone's does, that means that a raid on admins will just mean a bunch of contestants invading their personal space, but it does mean that all those admin tools and abilities are gone. Out of here. Completely helpless to do their jobs. That's why Glitcher doesn't remember this happening. It doesn't happen. Trying to get all the admins to make a unanimous decision to disable themselves? They sure are desperate up there. Anyways. The logs. You want to see what that corruptions about, so do I. I can decrypt it manually. Good, fine. Cept for one thing. It's long. It takes a long time. I need 50 hours for something like this. Probably more! Maybe less if I get our other admin's help, and the previous watcher. Yeah, we have like 4 people I think that could help. What we need is an active watcher. A real one, not one from a previous bracket that lost that ability like the one we got. Sevener has one. If Alison comes back with Sevener and all the rest in tow, then we'll have our active watchers. Instant decryption, and the secrets will be ours. By the way remind Alison that she still owes me that resurrection, would you? I guess I'll tell her myself, pretty sure we'll all know she's back when she's back."

Succubus comes back to say that she's dealt with it. There were a few ideas from some people, that they were hoping to bounce off of Chief.

>Contact Bones for diplomacy
>Have at least one sacrificial person stay in the dreamhouse to see what happens
>Line up to the complaint box to shower Sixer with complaints
>Contact Savior through King to get his advice, noting that King was also pulled out from the CAI fight with a few others along with Arbiter
>Consider joining King if Alison does not return
>Do nothing, wait for Alison for some time
>>
No. 567344 ID: 9ddf68

>>567339
one problem with the smuggler thing, merchant is an ability and they said they're going to remove abilities.
>>
No. 567351 ID: 9ddf68

hmm, how much time do we have left until the next stage starts? Cause that will determine whether or not we want to put our old admin buddies on decoding duty or not.

As for the suggestions, What do we remember about bones? and also do we even have a way to contact him even if we did what to give peace a chance?

not liking the idea of leaving someone to die unless the person is already dead. I mean if they do this reboot thing can we still talk to the ghost in our dreamscapes or are they gone as well? cause if they're still there then yeah, leave someone who's dead and then ask what the hell happened once they get back.

If they want to complain then let them, might slow them down if we're really lucky and buy us more time.

The savior idea couldn't hurt so if we can do it lets.

As for the joining king thing, I thought our sides we're already working together why'd we need to join him? Even if we did nothing would really change.

And for the last one, we don't really know when Alison will be back and the more we wait and do nothing the worst things will get for us and if Alison does come back at the last second then she won't be able to do anything at all and we'd wasted all that time for nothing.
>>
No. 567352 ID: 04b86a

The Savior's evacuated a lot of Administration brackets. We might be able to get some more help with the decrypting from them.
>>
No. 567355 ID: a97618

>Chief does not, but he will if Alison fails.
Well, you may not be able to rule through understanding and friendship, but there may be easier models to transition understanding and friendship to than a fear based model. Become a new kind of leader, that suits the situation. You motivate them not with your love and understanding, or fear of you, but by their devotion to a cause that has fallen. Use Alison as a martyr or symbol to keep their loyalty, and to transfer friendship of her into trust of you. You use her to give yourself legitimacy in the eyes of those who follow you. Before you played the role of the Chief (or Machiavelli's Prince). This time you take the role of a Prophet. One who guides and controls faith in one greater than himself by claiming to speak for and direct her cause.

Supplement that with reason and logic (and discussion and explanations when you can afford them) and I think you can take the reigns.

>unanimous decision
Will that still stick if slightly more than half the current administrators abstain from the vote as they're stuck in a CAI battle?

>admins helpless
That's actually a bad thing for us. Getting some or all of them to help us, or act in their own best interest, might be what we need to break things for good, finally. If they make themselves powerless, we're all more helpless against the system we're caught in. It also renders Sevener's faction impotent to intervene in our favor when they exit the CAI simulation.

Granted, they can't adapt rules against us anymore, but they lose the ability to improve things too.

>Radmin needs a lot of time
...I don't suppose glitched time compression for one person, or one small group of people, is an option? I know Glitcher can't do it large scale anymore.

Failing that, we could check our retroactive absorption chain for any other system people others killed who might be willing to help, or we could potentially contact some of those Savior saved. (And see if he's rescued an Observer, from stage 7, yet).

>Contact Bones
It's worth a try. I'd send someone to investigate.

>volunteer to stay in the dreamhouse?
...that's not something you order someone to do. And I'm not clear what would be learned by someone dying in that manner. Still, we have many followers, and if someone wishes to take the risk, we'll thank them and see what happens.
>>
No. 567358 ID: 04b86a

Oh, here's something we can do. Contact King and try to take over the Upper Echelon before the Administration starts messing with things. Alison was planning on doing that once she got Arbiter's logs, anyway.
>>
No. 567360 ID: f44ca3

Ok first Chief just remember that while Alisons style of leadership was superior to yours it does not mean you can not improve on it. Take a bit of how she ran things and a bit of how you run things and try to make something better out of it. She trusts you to do the right thing and keep the family safe.

As for a sacrifice lets see if we can find a volunteer to stay back and report on what happens. Whoever it is have them loaded up with items and such just in case the reboot does not reach them. Someone trustworthy but not vital to our operations.

Contact Bones and get a feel for some diplomacy. We want to know what him and Corruptor are up to. If Corruptor is going to try to back stab us it would be a good time to try. Do not need to actually go anywhere with the talks but lets try to get as much info as possible.

For the complaint box instead of complaining send him legitimate messages about the danger of his plan. Removing everyone's stuff will leave even more power in Glitcher and Corruptors hands. I know its a long shot but trying to convince more admins we are not the enemy might help. They know better than anyone this system is a farce and them winning is a mute point. If they really want to win and escape working together is a better plan.

I would contact King and offer our help to Savior if he will take it. Tell him we are worried about Corruptor's intentions and see if he has any good advice. As for joining King we need to know if he can take orders as well as give them.

As for Alison coming back lets prepare for the worst and hope for the best. Worst case she will need a resurrection so we have to make sure to win some the next bracket. Also find out if this reset will affect the availability of the resurrections they were planning to hand out.
>>
No. 567364 ID: 04b86a

One more idea on how to disrupt the Admins. One of Alison's ideas (that Chief wouldn't know about, but the Glitcher would) was to kill all of the administrators and give someone we like a keycard and full admin privileges to keep the stages from suddenly becoming horrible. The killing bit's obviously still something we shouldn't try, but instituting another admin might let us disrupt their plans. Can Glitcher do that? Maybe give Smuggler the ability to sell keycards, or change Sixer's keycard from S.6. to S.7.?
>>
No. 567372 ID: 2c6ff1

Let's not attack the admins. Also, one thing to note is that if Corruptor's Sanctuary goes offline, that will force Corruptor out into the open. Then we can deal with him.

Overall this is a good thing. It evens the field and gives us an opportunity to recruit more useful soldiers, and instead of making trusted soldiers more powerful, we can just use them for special tasks.

I suspect Bandit can see the silver lining as well.
>>
No. 567375 ID: 0237d1

Attacking the admins would take most of the time we have left and would just reinforce there fear of us. Unless we know for sure it would stop the reset I do not think its worth it.

Unless Glitcher can figure out a way to change or modify the reset we should gather info and get most the troops to safety.
>>
No. 567390 ID: 57a559

>>567342
Hey Glitcher you possibly can slow down time for Radmin to do that decryption right? Or was that slow down time ability completely nuked? Or how about changing a few people's classes into watchers?

What happens if we move our glitched dream into part of the safe zone itself? Then move it back out after the reboot happens?

Sending out complaints sounds nice
Diplomacy might work
Contact Savior
>>
No. 567449 ID: 94b892

Ask Radmin for more details on the encryption. Can it be decrypted line by line, so you can get lines of the logs quickly, or do you have to decrypt the entire thing before you can read any of it? Can you teach people the encryption scheme so they can help as well, or is it some weird system personnel only thing?

Also it may be a good idea to kidnap one of the admins to see if they're serious about that hard reboot.
>>
No. 567475 ID: d470e9
File 139559878408.png - (10.85KB , 800x800 , SSF7-47.png )
567475

>Merchant is an ability and they said they're going to remove abilities.
Smuggler notes this.
>>
No. 567476 ID: d470e9
File 139559885127.gif - (19.32KB , 800x316 , SSF7-48.gif )
567476

>How much time do we have left until the next stage starts?
The end of the safe zone is at 30:00. It is currently 7:40.

>Also do we even have a way to contact Bones?
He is also in bracket 7, and will be a contender to get to stage 8.

A dead individual will remain in the dreamhouse during the admin process.

>Why join King?
Currently, Alison's and King's forces are working together, so it is true that that idea is hardly a gamechanger.

Chief will hold off on attacking any admins for the time being, and calls King into one of the blank rooms in the safe zone. Succubus is sent to Bones, to establish contact. A volunteer remains in the safe house even though chances of learning much are slim. Most of everyone else, with not much better to do, goes to camp out by the complaint box. Scholar briefly returns, saying other people had the same idea. There are lines around and inside of buildings to put paper in the boxes, but no word or response has been made.

The King comes to talk, and acts resistant to the idea of Savior. When he is unable to come up with a good reason not to, he says he will try.

>Radmin for more details on the encryption
>"I can teach the encryption for starters, yeah, but that'll take a long time. I mean, if you read a book in a foreign language and wanted to translate it, do you think it's effective to teach the other person a language so they can help with the second half of the book? I think not!"

Chief asks if glitcher can still hold time still for individuals, if not on regions. Glitcher replies that that may just be possible. He will step out with Radmin to test this.

Eventually, Succubus comes back with bad news, she was simply chased off of Bones' territory, saying that the Snake Queen and all of her associates are not welcome.
>>
No. 567477 ID: d470e9
File 139559886831.gif - (13.06KB , 800x316 , SSF7-49.gif )
567477

Radmin and Glitcher comes back, requesting everyone leave, as Glitcher does not know if Chief wants to be as open as Alison may be about the logs.

The time dilation works, although glitcher has to actively concentrate and take part in it, and so it only works on one person at a time.

Glitcher passes a stack of papers at Chief, which apparently shows the formulas that were used to decrypt the message. Radmin can't appear to hold physical objects, and so he had to use Glitcher as a proxy for his work. They receive thanks from Chief for what appeared to be a great deal of work.

CORRUPTOR #AEC616E6ABCAA60AB66EAE1E616BBA6721C3DBE1719E5E05024021BBEA950C263C8A70ABA4E450C13D6

This is a confirmation of log validity to myself. If the phrase '16d9JS7' matches your note, then please append all logs to this single log of Arbiter's. My own logs are corrupted, a fact that undermines my ability to place far more information into a single log than an average contestant. I will inject each log somewhere into this single message each cycle I can. I am already on my fifteenth, but I fear there may be dozens more. My request to my future iterations is to only append on this log if you have made it through stage 11, and to use your head - you only get a moment's thought to be inscribed, and this giant log can easily become an unreadable mess. Please have good confirmation on given data, poor information can be more dangerous than good information is helpful. My personal, corrupted logs are confirmation of this; they are legible, yet their messages are skewed. Of course I read my own logs first, and I have made many terrible mistakes and accidents as a result, wasting entire cycles. Thankfully, so long as the Arbiter survives the preliminary stages, he will have a place in my sanctuary that I inevitably form. I cannot always find him, however, and I cannot be sure if he did not survive the preliminaries, or he goes by a different name and form.

I am an injected virus, and I assume the one who placed me here does not approve of the situation of the contestants and admins (although the admins are contestants in their own right.) Perhaps it was Likol. Maybe one of the belenos had misgivings about handing all of this to the salikai. I don't know, I get the impression they all feared for their life, and they were in no position to act out of line.

The Savior is a built in process to hunt anomalies such as myself, and given his activity, I can assume that I am the only persistent anomaly besides the savior himself, who is surprisingly close in nature to the shopkeepers, bartenders, dealers and other non-contestants. Sometimes the Savior can quarantine me, but he cannot kill me. Sometimes I can corrupt the Savior, and this would kill him at the end of the cycle, however, each time, he sheds his corruption and is respawned as normal at the beginning of each cycle. His corruption lies in standby until the next cycle, when it manifests into a third, non-persistent anomaly that I am able to befriend and have named the Glitcher. He has been invaluable, like a psuedo-Savior I can work with, but even when I learn what the Glitcher is, I do not have the heart to tell him that he is not persistent, and he will die when the cycle restarts while everyone else forgets and carries on. He is prone to depression, so him learning this rarely works out in the end.

I have seen the last trial, where we find the CAI the contestants are supposed to join with. That CAI is the contestants. There were never any other contestants, only their predecessors, and there are no duplicates allowed. There are 3 exits for our cycle, but our predecessors had one thousand. I have managed to increase our meager number into the hundreds, and there may even be a way to de-limit the system and have everyone go through. Yet there are no duplicates allowed, the contestants here whos predecessors made it to the CAI are doomed to a life of perpetual stage play, as should they ever make it to the end, they'll only be killed in favor of their predecessor. This is an unforgiveable oversight of the CAI makers, and I suspect - hope, even - that this was motivation for creating me. Seeing how many cycles it has taken to make this message, however, I am losing faith in my own power. I need the Savior's power as well, I believe he can cleanse my own power, so that my corruptions are seen as legal, normal changes in the system.

Normal contestants are not inherently more or less significant than anyone else, but successful contestants tend to be regularly successful, even how early trials tend to have a factor of luck. Swordsbane, the Arbiter, and the Sorcerer are common allies for me. The Chief, Obliterator and Warlock occasionally come through. They have been the most valuable in sheer contestant force gathered, to stand up against the overpowered bracket overseers. I always naively think that they are our enemies.

As stated, I must work with the Savior, but he absolutely refuses to listen to me. I need a contestant who the Savior takes a personal liking to. There are one trillion contestants, and I have spent entire cycles exploring the same safe zones, the same stages and the same situations, just with different people, trying to find the one person that the savior will listen to, even if it means working with me.

The count is exceedingly low, and there are often shortcomings with them. The Negotiator is narrow minded, and alliances are far too fragile. The Cleaner does not have the mentality to last through all 11 stages and remain the same, friendly ally he is at the start. The shortcomings go on. Most don't survive the preliminaries, anyway. The Snake Queen, though. She has reliable personality and survivability, excelling to the point that I regularly place her in a position of power before I realize her strength isn't being another Swordsbane or Sorcerer. I have seen many people, my best people, and myself become infatuated with her, but I do not know if it is her we become attracted to, or if it's simply that she does not play by the system's rules that we idolize. She forms the bridge to the Savior I need. Yet, she is also the bridge that collapses under us at the end. She does not want to kill them or merge with them, and I see her reason. There is nothing stopping from a new series of cycles from being born. Whether we kill the CAI or merge with them, then we will simply move to the other side of the coin, and our successors will be a trillion members slowly conspiring to kill us. There's no telling if our logs will persist in a new cycle of cycles. We won't last as long as our predecessors if they do.

Yet I can't help but feel that this morality she has is exactly what the Savior likes in a person. I feel like much of my life work now is to not just find a way to work with the Savior, but also to thread the correct needle in a haystack to create the correct circumstances for our alliance. And when I don't, I wonder why I do it. I, the Savior, and the Glitcher will die with the end of the cycles, we have no persistency in that regard. I obviously haven't found a way to work with the Savior through the end, and the more I see what he is willing to do to satisfy the people he likes, the more I question what his namesake honestly means. I have tried many things. I have gotten the Snake Queen to get us to work together, to which I then martyrize her. I have tried passing on her torch to others, such as Sevener, of which they are often inseparable. I have tried to win without the savior. I have tried to fight with the Glitcher alone, but an uncorrupted-Savior is what I need, the Glitcher's power is specialized for stage 11 and below, nothing beyond. I have gone through many cycles now where I do nothing, and let the Snake Queen bond us, and just hope, just hope it will work out, just hope that I find the one iteration, the ONE iteration of the Snake Queen, that finally breaks at the end of the cycles, finally forms the Corruptor-Savior bond and then gives up at the end, when we are close enough to the end that whatever momentum we have can carry through. But I am still making logs, meaning I am still alive, meaning that to date, she has never given up, at least not at the end. Whatever I try to do, it always appears to revolve around the Snake Queen as though she were omnipotent, when, in fact, it is me that makes her that way as soon as I bring her into my sanctuary, always for better or worse.

Enough on the contestants, I must provide information on the CAI. They treat us like mortal enemies, like our sheer existence will be their undoing. I suppose they may be right, but I can only see the contestants as scared, confused children trying to survive. Yet something bugs me about this whole system - contestants seem to be supposed to be able to either merge with or destroy the previous CAI, yet the previous CAI seems like it has an instant win button. I can only break their button if the Savior can legalize my corruption. I have tried to find ways to research this to see about doing it without the savior. All I have found out is that Likol refers to something I believe is that auto-win, called the Ring Shell. The name means nothing to me. I can leave logs right up until the very end, but the Ring Shell is the end, so I must work by the seat of my pants against that.

There is another concern I must address, which is entirely speculative. There is something of an urban legend that the contestants call The Ghost. I do not know if this is just another anomaly, personified or otherwise, or just an urban legend with an explanation that I haven't seen. I starts happening at stage 8, sometimes I and others have seen contestants simply disappear. Usually it is when they complete a stage, and are never seen in the safe zone or ever again, in that cycle or in any cycle. I have no clues. I have seen people with CAI-duplicates disappear, so with the anti-duplicate system, I doubt they are scooped up by the CAI to merge with them mid-cycle. I can't confirm 100%. Another idea is that perhaps there is code rot, and the Cai simply…. loses some now and again. It does not happen every cycle, which is good. There are not many of us past stage 8, and the thought that any of us could disappear at any time presents another layer of alarming possibilities.

>>
No. 567481 ID: 2c6ff1

>>567477
...it looks like if Alison is to get her way, Corruptor would simply need to de-limit the final exit/all exits and let everyone go through to the CAI Fight, then disable the instawin button. The cycles would end, with EVERYONE as the CAI.

Ask Glitcher if he read this, and if he's alright.
>>
No. 567482 ID: 9ddf68

WELL... That was one of the straightest answers we've ever gotten to this point.

So, what I get from this is the Corrupter needs Alison to befriend the savoir and then he needs her to convince him to willing join the corrupter to get through. What I'm not to sure on is it also sounds like Alison usually makes it to the end but then choices not to win? Then there's also instant-win button the CAI seem to have which also sounds like the reason why we're still here. Oh wow we got some answers but it brought about a hundred more questions with it.

Whatever we decide this is defiantly something we should show Alison.

But as useful as this is it doesn't really help us in the now. So peace is not an option, the system is resetting everyone to the same level, and our forces are crippled until Alison gets back. Might as well ask what Radmin and Glitcheer make of this and maybe show Savior once we get into a meeting with him, might help.
>>
No. 567485 ID: 2f4b71

>Ring Shell
If I'm guessing right, 'shell' here refers to an interface the the operating system the CAI and the entire Contest runs on. 'Ring' would then refer to security level, with Ring 0 having the highest privileges (except for cases where a Hypervisor is used, which operates at Ring -1). A 'Ring Shell' would then be some sort of command access to a higher privilege level to that where the Contest and/or CAI run.
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No. 567486 ID: 2c6ff1

>>567482
I think the problem is that Alison finds out that Corruptor's solution won't guarantee new cycles from starting, and so she does not accept that solution, instead choosing to sabotage Corruptor's plan and holding out hope on a way of ending the cycles permanently while saving everyone. If you think about it though, merely existing as a CAI machine would include the possibility of new cycles occurring- since the established CAI sees the contestants as their mortal enemies you'd think they would stop the cycles themselves if possible. I think it's hardcoded, so the only way to save everyone would be to destroy the CAI infrastructure entirely and split up the AIs into individuals which then offload into new systems. Which can't happen without outside help.

Really, Corruptor and Alison's plans both leave out a significant detail- that there are people outside the CAI that could help us. You know, I think I figured out the best solution. Have everyone get into the final CAI Fight, then STOP FIGHTING. Once we're there, there's no time limit. We can just have a standoff where the fight never ends. The CAI never gets killed/merged, and the contestants continue to live without having to deal with new cycles and reincarnations. Glitcher, Corruptor, and Savior also get to live.

...I just realized Chief has no idea what a "Belenos" is. I'm not sure he realizes who Nikol is either.
>>
No. 567492 ID: a97618

All right. So: if the Savior and Corruptor work together, we can win. We get out, and the CAI dies. But, then we become the CAI and everything starts over again with another cycle of cycles trying to break free.

So it's not so much a matter of breaking the system. It's a matter of breaking it twice.

Looks like Alison's hunch about us needing Savior is right. We should definitely talk to him, now. I assume Savior is aware of most of this already, and now that we now the truth, we're in a much stronger negotiating position.

...we should also try to get in contact with Corruptor. Send Arbiter to do it (someone from his own faction). Give him the "16d9JS7" code so Corruptor knows we have information he wrote, himself. Ultimately, it might be risky giving him all the information, but it will be worse having someone that powerful doing gods knows what motivated by Corrupted or incomplete logs.

>first thing
You're no Alison, but check that Glitcher is okay. We know he's had issues holding up in the past, and we just learned he's not a persistent recurring character like the rest of you. He's the echo of a corrupted Savior. The worst way to look at that is he's somehow not real, or less than the rest of you. The best way to look at that is he's sort of Corruptor and Savior's accidental child.

>not sure how open you're willing to be with logs
Knowledge is power, but if you want make the easier transition from the friendship based system to a trust based system (instead of the longer and harder shift back to a fear and control based system) it would probably to advantageous to demonstrate some kind of mutual trust by sharing this with people who were close to Alison who didn't leave on the attack. Get the leaders on your side, and contributing. You'll earn trust (and eventual loyalty) by showing you trust them.

>...I just realized Chief has no idea what a "Belenos" is. I'm not sure he realizes who Nikol is either.
Or salikai. And Historian isn't around to ask. Chief may need to bring others into the loop just so he can fill in all the holes.
>>
No. 567506 ID: 33fd84

>>567486
hell, i don't know who's Nikol either
>>
No. 567507 ID: d470e9

Nikol was a typo, it is Likol.
>>
No. 567510 ID: 2c6ff1

>>567506
He's the Neumono who left all those photos and letters in a "secret" area of one of the safe zones. He's probably the lead programmer for this CAI.
>>
No. 567511 ID: f44ca3

Well knowing this helps immensely and might just get us out this cycle if we can get lucky. Our first priority is to make sure this info gets to Alison and Corruptor no matter what. So we need to hand this out to at least everyone on our core team that can handle the info.

If Corruptor he has not read this yet he might be working off bad logs this cycle and might corrupt Savior before we can get Alison to him. Talk to Arbiter and see if he has any ideas on how we can do this. Maybe Glitcher and Arbiter can deliver it to him. He trusts them and they are probably the only two who could reach him quickly.

Then we need to have a conference with our most trusted people and decide how many people should see this info. If we just sent it out to everyone it could cause chaos. Many people would just give up in despair and others would believe everything to be lies.

So all our resources need to go to getting Alison back safe and together with Corruptor and Savior as soon as possible. The earlier we can pull it off the greater the chance of success in the end.

And finally we need to assume the worst about the Ghost effect he talks about. There is a slim chance its not harmful but if its not it could be the first signs of our world degrading. If we lost a vital member to it then it could derail all chances of escape forever.

On a final note now that we know this the reset might be a good thing now. It might avoid many of the horrors we were worrying about in the final stages. If we can not stop it maybe we can have Glitcher concentrate all his power on keeping at least one useful ability active through the reset.
>>
No. 567513 ID: a97618

>>567510
No probably about it. Thanks to Polo Quest, we know a Likol was one of the science hivers working on the salikai's CAI.

>Rihhin, Likol and Momu are the CAI handlers. Likol was a developer before he suicided.

And Corruptor's encrypted logs mentioned the belenos handing this over to the salikai. We now know when and where we are. The contest simulation everyone is trapped in is the failsafe the salikai are using to keep their CAI on a leash- the thing that will kill it if not treated regularly.
>>
No. 567514 ID: 8817d0

If all inventory will be deleted, Does that include the Savior/Alison tokens?
>>
No. 567515 ID: 4dc2da

You have to get this to Corruptor right now. If you can show this to him fast enough we might get his help before the reset. Arbiter and Glitcher should be able to find a way to him. He trusts them enough to see them I hope.
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No. 567520 ID: 57a559

SO this message is why the admins are doing the reboot?

Is it possible that the admins have formed their own plan and are going to work with the contestants to break the system in the future? Which requires making everyone on an even playing field to minimize fuck-ups from individuals who might deviate from the plan.

We need to get this exact log onto another person's log for the next cycle if we fail, that in turn, could change EVERYTHING.
Who has the earliest logthat is read... Alisons? OR Sevener.
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No. 567524 ID: d470e9
File 139561611680.gif - (16.18KB , 800x316 , SSF7-50.gif )
567524

Chief asks the Glitcher if he's alright. The Glitcher replies saying that when Alison gave him her note to see the history of, it revealed that he had a low lifespan. If he can get over that, he can get over the rest of the news.

>Chief doesn't know what a Belenos is or who Likol is
Chief isn't blind or dumb. Alison shared what she knew of Likol in one of the more relaxed times, and basic information such as primary species are well known by anyone who ever picked up a book.

The salikai, however, Chief has no idea about, but Glitcher explains that they are insectoids on the neumono homeworld.

>If all inventory will be deleted, Does that include the Savior/Alison tokens?
Chief isn't sure. They may survive if they aren't held at the time of deletion, so Chief will try that method.

>Show trust by showing these logs to Alison's most trusted
Chief plans on doing that, but all of Alison's most trusted either comprises of people inside of the CAI battle, or people who just learned about it. He will share it with a few others, still, starting with the Scholar.

Arbiter is called on to attempt to talk to the corruptor with this information. He leaves the room for privacy.

King comes back without the savior. Chief asks where he is, and the King says he will perform the summoning ritual here, with Pepper's help. The whistle expired, apparently.

Chief shares the information with him while Pepper works.
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No. 567528 ID: d470e9
File SSF7-51-2.swf - (94.26KB , 800x316 )
567528

The summon acts as expected. Chief isn't a big fan of the savior's flashiness, either.

>"Hello, Chief and King! And King, I humbly request your summoning circle not feel so.... hesitantly drawn. I shouldn't be where I am not entirely wanted! But nevermind that. How are things?"
>>
No. 567529 ID: 2c6ff1

>>567528
Break the news to him about his sanctuary so he has time to deal with it.
Personally I wouldn't tell him anything else. We need Alison to convince him; nobody else will be able to change his mind about Corruptor. Well, we can tell him that Alison has something very important to discuss with him when she gets back.
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No. 567531 ID: d315b1

>>567528
Give him the news about his zone being destroyed. Then tell him that Alison has something very important to discuss with him as soon as she gets back.
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No. 567533 ID: f44ca3

Lets let Alison decide on how much if any of the logs we show him. If Alison is the only one that can convince him I do not want to make her job harder by jumping the gun on trying. We can however help her by showing Savior that her team is more concerned about the well being of our people than anything else.

Tell him we are a little rattled by the reset but we are doing what we can to keep our people safe. Ask if he has any ideas regarding the reset and if he wants to join his forces with ours. Ask him about his sanctuary and if he thinks it will survive the reset. Tell him he is free to join us in our dream afterwards if ours survives and his does not.

Make sure that he and Corruptor do not meet to soon. If Arbiter runs in the room in 2 minutes with Corruptor following it could be a disaster. The likely hood of that happening is low but just in case have people watching for Arbiters return.

Tell him what Alison is up to if you think it will help. Knowing her she will "rescue" half the people in whatever simulation she is in and bring them back here.
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No. 567534 ID: a97618

...wait, we just summoned Savior to the Dream House, instead of the safe zone. Did Alison ever technically invite him in? (I guess he's entitled to rulebreak, though).

More interestingly though, we just put Glitcher and Savior in the same room. (After Glitcher requested we let the Savior see him as dead, too!). ...is that awkward, much? Dunno if Savior sees him as an enemy, a part of himself, an unfortunate lost child, a betrayer, etc.

If Savior does react badly (or try to attack him) remind him that he is a guest here, that the Glitcher is what he is though no fault of his own, and has largely used his powers to try and help others and alleviate suffering (same as Savior). And in any event, he is already dead. (And will be even more so, if the system cuts us off from our dreams).

>How are things?
We have recently become aware of what I believe you already know. Your purpose, and Corruptor's. Of your endless battle, and the cruel irony that the only escape is your cooperation. And of the further irony that even that escape just perpetuates the cycles.

...I am not Alison. I have not her compassion, and I do not expect to sway you. I would ask you a question though. You have demonstrated a compassion for the suffering of others yourself. You have taken steps to alleviate it, to an extent. Why then, do you continue to fight your endless and repeating battle, and perpetuate these cycles? Are you compelled to fulfill your assigned role, or is it that you can not see any alternative that improves the situation?
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No. 567537 ID: a97618

>>567534
Or the short version: ask him what motivates him.
>>
No. 567541 ID: 04b86a

>How are things?
Alison is in a CAI Fight that is taking far too long to complete, the Corruptor has ceased being cordial and has supplied Bones with as many as a thousand of his Devotees, and the Administrators that aren't in the CAI Fight have decided to initiate a hard reboot that will, among other things, destroy the sanctuaries.

So a bit bleaker than normal. We're still trying to figure out what to do beyond evacuating the dream and waiting for Alison.
>>
No. 567542 ID: 57a559

Can the Savior legitimize Glitcher? Would that ruin his powers?

Another thought
You know this is going to sound REALLY weird and come out of left field but it has a point...
Can Glitcher and the Savior create new AI's together? Like, one of them gets pregnant? Sort of anyway.
The Glitcher can create things, change code around and shit, and the Savior legitimizes things that aren't legit apparently, they might be able to create and legitimize completely new beings, possibly from OTHER beings. Together they might even be able to create and form new abilities. Possibly even modify them.
>>
No. 567551 ID: a97618

>>567542
Actually, what I'm wondering now- does the Glitcher have a counterpart? A sibling he can't ever meet because they exist in opposite cycles?

What I mean is- In a cycle where Corruptor corrupts Savior, when the cycle ends, he sheds the corruption and that becomes Glitcher. (...so Glitcher is kinda Shedinja, really). But in cycles where the Savior quarantines Corruptor, and the Corruptor breaks free next cycle, does the containment he sheds become someone? Maybe that's our Ghost.
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No. 567553 ID: f44ca3

>>567551
That could be a possibility. If it works one way it very well might work the other. Will have to look into the idea after this meeting if we can get Corruptor and Glitcher together.

Would be nice if the "Ghost" was someone carting people off to safety and not some horrible system glitch that is randomly erasing people. If the Ghost is a person they would have to exist through cycles for us to meet them this time around.
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No. 567589 ID: 33fd84

>>567528
i don't know if it's because of the year long belenosian interlude or if i missed a thread or something but i have no idea who these new schmucks are.
>>
No. 567590 ID: cb3af8

So... Glitcher... I guess you could say that Corruptor and Savior are your parents huh?

In other news, hello Savior! Has he heard of the notes scattered around the safe zones? Kind of a problem, any enlightening words of wisdom for us?
>>
No. 567595 ID: a97618

>Make sure that [Savior] and Corruptor do not meet to soon
In the worst case scenario, where both of them show up here, and look poised to fight:

This is Alison's Dream. You two fighting here is a betrayal of everything she stands for. If either of you have an ounce of respect for her, you will agree to postpone combat or settle your differences elsewhere.

>>567589
Let's see: Chief and Succubus have been around since thread 1, Gitcher is Glitcher, Scholar is the tall dude in the corner (and was previously the Enforcer who rended Duelist), King (in the crown) is a system admin who went rogue around stage 3 or something and started gaining followers by overloading exits. We first met him and set up an alliance last safe zone. Pepper (the neumono looking gal) is with him. And Savior the flashy guy with the horns, and basically the living antivirus program to Corruptor's virus.

And if you did miss something, the plot summary in the wiki is up to date, and was recently edited down to a length that's actually readable.
>>
No. 567599 ID: c496ef

>>567551
Counterparts. Corruptor/Glitcher = broken parts. Savior/Ghost -- one makes people stay alive, one makes people go away for realsies.
>>
No. 567637 ID: d470e9
File 139571900754.gif - (19.98KB , 800x316 , SSF7-52.gif )
567637

>Just summoned Savior to the Dream House
The dreamhouse is currently having its furnishing evacuated. Chief and the others have already left, and they are in the grey safe zone.

Chief whispers to Succubus to go make sure that Arbiter does not return yet while he conducts the ghost meeting, then asks the Savior if he is aware of the reset.

>"Yes. I will be surprised and highly disappointed in the current administration if my paradise is destroyed by their actions. I hope that they are simply saying that to appear fair. Just in case, though, I am moving all of my followers to a nice little bracket that is more or less untouched by the corruptor. I will find a way around it, even if I have to rebuild."

Savior is informed of Alison's actions.

>"Yes, I'm aware of that as well. Remember, I pay attention to the world around me so that my followers don't need to concern themselves with it! Yes, and the administration has contacted corruptor, I know that much. I believe that they may be conspiring for something or another, and I imagine this reset has something to do with that." Chief notes that he is aware of the corruptor's and savior's purposes, and asks why the savior only takes steps to alleviate things, not to end them, and asks why that is. "If that's your question, then I think you may have missing information about me. There is no why. Perhaps the lack of elements around here makes the concept of a force of nature too foreign to you." Chief then confirms that there is no motivation for the Savior, either, other than doing his job as well as he can.

>Glitcher and savior in the same room
Chief was content to let them ignore each other, but the savior does notice him.

>"And I thought this cycle would be without a Glitcher! You're holding up?"

Glitcher says yes.

>"Good."

Savior is asked for ideas about what to do. Chief's idea to create new AIs is shot down, as the savior has no function, nor desire, to do so.

The Savior's only idea is that the invitation to the paradise is, as always, open to all but the Corruptor due to obvious reasons, and the Glitcher, due to stability concerns.

King says, right in front of the Savior, that this one-track mind is largely why he left in the first place. He's just part of the status quo that he and Alison is seeking to change.

>"And King is invited as well. Actually, Glitcher, I have a few questions for you, if you wouldn't mind my company for a short time? In private, preferably. I hope the others understand. Is there anything else I may try to assist you with, Chief?"
>>
No. 567638 ID: 2c6ff1

>>567637
Wait. He thought this cycle would be without a Glitcher? Does that mean he WASN'T corrupted last cycle?! Ask Savior what he meant by that. If he doesn't outright tell us that it's because he didn't die last cycle, then I don't know how to ask him further without revealing what we know and possibly alienating him.

Does he know anything about the Ghost? We've heard some rumors about people going missing in previous cycles. (if it's an urban myth then it has to be public knowledge somehow, right?) Secondly, state that anything he has to say to Glitcher can be said in your presence as well. I believe it is in Chief's nature to be pushy like that. If Glitcher wants us to leave then I guess we'll have to, though.
>>
No. 567639 ID: f44ca3

No just keep in touch and let us know how your sanctuary deals with the reset. If you need any help afterwards let us know and we will do our best to lend a hand. See if we can get a way to summon him ourselves so Alison can talk to him once she gets back.

I am slightly worried about leaving him and Glitcher alone together but its up to Glitcher to make that call. I doubt he has any nefarious plans in mind but Glitcher has had some hard times recently and I do not want to put him under any more stress if possible. Make sure his intentions are noble and tell him Glitcher has had a rough time this cycle.

If he is correct about the Corruptor dealing with the admins it makes it even more important to get him his logs. He did mention that until he gets these he tends to make mistakes that tend to ruin everything. If we can not get the logs to him in a friendly fashion we might have to make a group to get them to him by force. Hopefully it will not come to that though.
>>
No. 567642 ID: a97618

>needs no reason, force of nature, doing his job as best he can, one track mind
Then Alison's role would be to inspire compassion and cooperation from one who believes himself set in an inexorable path. To draw forth the humanity of the dispassionate.

You have to admit that to yourself that just might be within her powers of persuasion. But beyond your own. Especially as you have no lever over him, nor a sufficient understanding of his non-motivation. Best to leave it for now.

>the invitation to the paradise is, as always, open to all but the Corruptor due to obvious reasons, and the Glitcher, due to stability concern
As an interesting hypothetical, would the Corruptor be welcome in the unlikely scenario where he abandoned his purpose? (If not- that means the Savior can be corrupted, but Corruptor cannot be saved).

Thank him for the offer, but for now you will have to decline. You still wish to try and make a difference, forces of nature notwithstanding. Perhaps we will later trust him with some number of our allies should the system administration successfully remove the dream house.

>Can I speak with the Glitcher in private?
So long as your intent is only speech, and he does not object. Not that I am in a position to interfere with either of your actions, but I would see Alison's house and what she stands for respected.
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No. 567644 ID: f44ca3

You know if Corruptor is working with the Admins he might be trying to use the reset to get to Savior. Try and force him out of his lair so he can corrupt him. Not sure if we can do anything other than what we are doing but keeping the both of them alive and unharmed until Alison gets back is our main goal now.
>>
No. 567648 ID: 57a559

>>567637
Savior, listen, I get that you just want to make the time we have here as meaningful as possible, that's great and fine and dandy. But in the end, if you can, why not try and save people permanently? It can't be impossible.

These reboots are getting depressingly long. Glitcher suffers depression each loop, he's forced to suffer much when he's reborn and remembers everything. We all continue to fight and struggle to die in the end, making our efforts pointless each time. Thing is, it doesn't have to be if we can all use our assets together and stop the fighting. Admin and the Corrupter are working together for christs sakes. Can you imagine what we can do if EVERY AI in this entire sim works together, in unison? NO more fighting, backstabbing, etc.

It can finally just end and we can see what's beyond this petty loop. It's not long enough to make your efforts meaningful. You will relive every loop over and over again, seeing similar people make the same struggles that won't work, and then all they build ends again, and many are forced to push the same boulder over and over for eternity.

We are in hell, Savior. We need to get out. Here's a big question for you, why not get out if we can? We can, don't argue that, where there's a will there's a way.
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No. 567650 ID: c25b13

>>567648
Do remember that the Savior has no desire to do anything else other than his job. Why? There is no why, that's just the way he is. He himself has likened it to a force of nature, something that just is. In other words, he has been programmed to do his job, which appears to be acting as an anti-virus, as well as keeping the status quo. He is a Savior, but he is not our Savior.


Agree to let him speak Glitcher, at best we can hope they just want to have a father-son talk or something. At worst, the Savior would not dare do anything to Glitcher, as he risks our wrath.

I have another question for him though, is he aware of the Salikai?
>>
No. 567651 ID: 57a559

>>567650
He doesn't have to really have a desire
I'm just asking... why not?
Too much effort? Escapes his comfort zone?
You can do stuff you don't really desire if you also don't not want to do that thing.

So does he explicitly not want to do it? Or is it just he has no motivation to do it, but he could do it anyway because why not?
Because if there is a why not then he has motivation to NOT do it.
>>
No. 567653 ID: 92a78e

>>567651
I suppose if there is no "why" then conversely there is also no "why not". Alison has managed to get Savior to do things he normally wouldn't before, such as getting him to work with the Corruptor, so I guess it's all a matter of getting her to charm him enough that he'll be at our beck and call.

Unfortunately that means we'll have to wait for her though, unless Cheif has an unbefore seen knack for charming people.
>>
No. 567656 ID: a97618

>>567648
I really don't think we should be pushing this, right now. Chief's the wrong person to make the pitch, and he knows it. Using the right person for the right job is definitely something he's learned.
>>
No. 567658 ID: 9ddf68

think we could maybe ask if he knows anyway for use to contact the outside world? and by outside world I mean the one beyond the CAI, the flesh and blood world. If we could do that it might give us more options. Oh and if he does know of anything called the ghost, just say we've heard mention of it in some of our logs but other then that don't really have a clue to what it is or what it does.
>>
No. 567887 ID: d470e9
File 139603355366.gif - (15.94KB , 800x316 , SSF7-53.gif )
567887

Chief asks the Savior if he was not corrupted last cycle, since he thought there would be no glitcher this time.

>"Ah, I was, but usually I see the glitcher's works sooner in the cycle than I did this time. Not by much, but for a short time, I was wondering if he was benign this cycle, rare as that is!" Chief continues, asking about the ghost, and then if Corruptor would be invited if he abandoned his ideals. "I know nothing about him! Which is bad. After all, I should know about such things. As for the corruptor... well, that's when I make a second paradise, just in case I can't trust him, no matter how much I want to."

Chief wants to re-iterate Alison's ideals and where he stands to Savior, and continue drilling him for information, but Chief's old habits would likely kick in and it would come off as a threat. So he simply makes it clear that as long as the Savior only wants to talk to the Glitcher, then that is alright. He thanks the Savior for the invite to the paradise all the same.

>"Come, Glitcher, the stage's food only gets better as the numbers increase. I will show you to your favorite of stage 7's. Provided you can keep the food inside this time, haha."
>>
No. 567888 ID: d470e9
File 139603359845.gif - (19.04KB , 800x316 , SSF7-54.gif )
567888

Succubus brings Arbiter back a short time later. The Corruptor would like to speak.

The Corruptor believes that Arbiter's logs are true, or at least, truer than his own. He wishes he had more evidence, but when it comes down to it, the corruptor simply does not want to believe his own.

>"Hello, everyone. I'll get to what I've thought about, after talking with the Arbiter. I do believe Arbiter, and those logs of mine put under the Arbiter's name are true. At least... I have no empirical evidence one way or the other, but I would rather put my faith in the ones Arbiter say. In my hindsight, it makes more sense that way, as well.
>I know that there are suspicions of where I stand toward Alison, and by extension all of you. It's still true that I have no idea what to do. But I still don't have any ill-will towards Alison, so until I see empirical evidence that said I should do otherwise, I have absolutely no intention of killing Alison. Oh, and I will definitely put more scrutiny towards any evidence, now. I'd like to speak with her after she returns from her CAI battle, anyway.
>Now, I said I would respect the autonomy of my houses, but I can hardly call them my houses if they go against my wishes. I will pull everyone back, one house at a time for a short period, to give everyone orders to treat Alison's forces as a friend. I just ask that if not a single one of Bones' forces or himself makes it through stage 7, then provided that he does follow my orders, please use one of your resurrects to bring him back. In return, I will have Bones do the same for Alison.
>And... do be careful, though. I have trust in the loyalty of my houses, but I have no way to enforce this once the stages start. If Bones wants to betray me, then I can't stop him, at least not until the following safe zone. My vision in stages other than my own is lacking, at best, at least ones the size of this one."
>>
No. 567895 ID: 2c6ff1

>>567888
It sounds like he has not been made aware of the reset. Break the news to him. Also, uh, how are we going to deal with situations where the stage forces us to fight eachother? There are so few exits.

So that's two slots of resurrect accounted for now. Four, if we're still going to bring back Catatonic's friends.
>>
No. 567899 ID: 937723

Tell him about the reset on the off hand chance he does not know about it and see what his plans are. Am hoping he is telling the truth because if he is working against us there is not much we can do about it. Worst case we have Alison hug him into submission when she gets back.

Say that while the logs are a nice glimpse into the past every cycle is different. He should trust more in Alison's actions this cycle than any logs he might have about her.

Ask if he does not mind if he would share his own logs with us. Do not want to pry into his personal stuff but the more information we have the better.

We should not have a problem with resurrecting Bones in the next stage if everything goes smoothly. Tell him we are worried about Alison's Cai battle because we thought it would be over nearly instantly and we have had no word from her yet. If he has any ideas or could check up on her it would be appreciated.
>>
No. 567900 ID: d470e9
File 139603903192.gif - (19.70KB , 800x316 , SSF7-55.gif )
567900

Chief asks if he is aware of the reset. Corruptor is aware, and that is why he will not be staying in his sanctuary for long. Just enough to do some last things, such as giving those orders.

Upon mention of the stages having few so exits, corruptor agrees that if there is no choice, and there often won't be, that both sides are just expected to fight each other. His orders are more to not attack Alison when there isn't a need to, but looking out for ones own self are as important.

The Chief points out that it is better to judge Alison's actions this cycle rather than any logs. Corruptor agrees, and the Chief asks about seeing his logs, and about Alison's CAI fight.

>"I'll consider sending my own logs over, although I'm even more reluctant now to do so, as they may just sway people's actions for the worse. I'll... again, I'll consider it. As for the CAI, yes, it was to be over instantly, but I noticed that time froze. I can't freeze time myself, but I can undo frozen time, and that's what I did. Only a little - Alison's fight should go many times faster than our sense of time. Unfortunately, I can't check in on her, Glitcher did a good job at isolating it. I should get to work, now, if you don't mind me leaving here. Please let me know when Alison comes back."
>>
No. 567903 ID: 2c6ff1

>>567900
Hmm. Well, according to information we shouldn't have yet, either Corruptor is lying, he hasn't messed with the fight yet, or what happened was not his fault somehow. It's quite possible that a previous Corruptor changed the sim in a permanent fashion, or that the message was faked by someone else. The Pomi sim doesn't work properly according to Arbiter's logs so that implies that sims can be altered permanently... but on the other hand, Corruptor didn't answer Alison's ghost talk- that implies a guilty conscience.

Ask him exactly how fast the CAI fight is going compared to us. What's the time multiplier? Then let him go.
>>
No. 567904 ID: 937723

Tell him if he is embarrassed by his logs to show them to Alison alone later on. She would not judge him for what his previous selves might have written down. Or for what he might have done this cycle he regrets.

Say thanks for stopping by and letting us know whats up.

And finally let him know that while he might have done things he regrets or is embarrassed about the only way we have to survive this thing is by learning from our mistakes and moving forward. Alison is not going to blame anyone for mistakes they made because of confusing logs. While its tempting to listen to your former incarnations you have to remember some of them might have written down something in fear or anger that they would regret later.

So use the information the best you can but remember the person who wrote it down lived in a different world.
>>
No. 567908 ID: 937723

>>567903

Or he messed with the fight earlier and now that he has the logs he regrets what he did. But he can not take back what happened and is worried that telling Chief about it will ruin any chance of forgiveness.

If he is full of regret for acting on bad info and possibly hurting Alison it would explain how he is acting.
>>
No. 567909 ID: 88960e

Silly as it sounds, surviving the stages is a secondary objective, anyways. We're still looking for a way to change things for good (and even Corruptor and Savior cooperating isn't enough), which means we still need to learn more.

The question is where is left to look for answers, now that we have these logs.
>>
No. 567911 ID: 04b86a

>Oh, look at the time! I have to go now. My rush definitely has nothing to do with this conversation turning to my interference with the CAI Fight. Really. Good Bye.
Tell him we understand his need to attend to other matters at the moment. We have something we need to look into ourselves that we should be getting to, since it seems Alison won't be back for some time yet.

Now then, has King managed to learn anything about the Upper Echelon?
>>
No. 567912 ID: 57a559

>>567888
>In return, I will have Bones do the same for Alison.
I can't tell if this means he knows Alison is currently dead and he's hiding this knowledge by talking about the possibility she might die in the next stage.
I think this is a subtle threat that with their cooperation, he'll bring Alison back, but only to those who know Alison is dead. Those who don't just sounds like he's giving a nice deal.

And no one here knows Alison is dead until someone that has absorbed someone from the CAI gamge sleeps and notifies them or if any of the duplicates merged memories. I'm fairly confident Bones might be Sapphire, and there's a chance Sevener actually hacked him and put him in her core somehow when she destroyed his. Which means if dupes merge he merged right back into Bones, which might exactly have been part of Sevener's initial plan before she did the GOB thing and Sounds of Silence played.

But for now, for something Chief can actually do or think about... maybe he should correct Corrupter and say "Well, IF she comes back. The CAI stage is a battle after all. And if she doesn't Corrupter? What's the plan then? Wait for the next loop to do anything practical and just have our current selves die? It sounds like we can't really do ANYTHING practical at all without the Saviors help. And we know you and Savior are important to this whole simulation in some way and are the key to getting us out alive, even without those revealing logs that much was obvious."
>>
No. 567919 ID: 876044

Well he seems rattled by those logs. Lets hope in a good way.

Tell the troops that we might have a sort of no fire truce thing with Bones people. So be polite and such but our trust in them is limited. With the fact you will have to fight not only them but possibly people on your own side do what you have to. The more people we have in the winners circle the more options we have when it comes to bringing people back.
>>
No. 567974 ID: ffa549

On the nature of Corruptor's logs- it's very easy to make a mistake or put in misleading information. And once that's there, it's only going to compound in subsequent cycles. (And Corruptr's position would only exacerbate that (And his lonely, depression bordering sad-snake personality would only compound that. The Corruptor really doesn't have the best state of mind to bear all the paranoia and betrayal and god powers)). It's unfortunate, but understandable, unfortunately. We've already accepted there were cycles where people who are friends or allies now were enemies then, or where desperate or terrible things were attempted. I can certainly understand his reluctance to show his shame, or risk spreading flawed information, although I doubt it's going to really change anyone's opinion of each other at this point.

How did he get his logs, anyways? I wasn't aware there were more keycards floating around. Was he just able to cheat access to them, being who he he?

I don't suppose Corruptor understands the odd way logs are broken up? There were two Alisons in Arbiter's logs that didn't show up in her own.

We'll let him know when (if) Alison returns. Good luck.
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No. 567981 ID: d470e9
File 139611589278.png - (34.28KB , 977x809 , SSF7-56.png )
567981

>The quote "In return, I will have Bones do the same for Alison. " sounds like a vague threat.
Chief took that to mean that if none of Alison's forces or herself make it through Stage 7, corruptor will have Bones use one resurrect to bring back Alison.

>What is the CAI time multiplier?
Corruptor has no idea, but Alison should be done well before the stage safe zone ends.

Chief thanks Corruptor telling him Alison won't judge from his logs. Corruptor nods, and leaves.

>King managed to learn anything about the Upper Echelon?
King has not managed to learn a thing.

From the distance, Chief gets a report that Bones and his group are gone. He lets everyone know about the pact of non-aggression.

He'll keep an eye out for any news, but for the time being, all Chief can do is wait.
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No. 567982 ID: d470e9
File 139611591455.gif - (8.70KB , 800x316 , SSF7-57.gif )
567982

Chief did request smaller furniture, this time around. This may not be something he can delegate after all.

As much as Chief would like to get a new bed and take a rest, he'd better be available in the new main office if something comes up.
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No. 567983 ID: d470e9
File 139611593885.gif - (14.49KB , 800x316 , SSF7-58.gif )
567983

Something comes up.

Arbiter comes rushing in, letting Chief know that Alison came back.

He continues on to say that he is, or was, the Diamond Emperor, and will try to get everyone up to date. He needs everyone to gather together, at least as much as possible. He also starts yelling for the Smuggler to get up into Chief's office.

Chief would also like to get up to date, and Arbiter whispers that he isn't entirely sure what is going on, himself. Just that Alison lost, apparently.

The Arbiter shows one of the stage statistic pamphlets to Chief. 1,611,808 million entrants, 10 exits.
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No. 567985 ID: d470e9
File 139611602288.gif - (20.62KB , 800x316 , SSF7-59.gif )
567985

The Smuggler comes through the western door, right around the same time as Sevener bursts in through the eastern door.

>"Arbiter, come with me. You have logs I'm going to check out. And don't fucking dawdle, my admin priveleges are getting snuffed out at 12:00! Those fuckers are doing shit behind my back, and I've got 15 minutes to do things!!"
>>
No. 567986 ID: 876044

Ok we have lots to do and little time to do it in. For now lets not worry about Alison losing and work on getting all these new people ready.

Have Arbiter get his logs over to Sevener and we can debrief her later. Send out messages to Corruptor that Alison just came back but she lost the fight.

If she rescued all these people from the simulation we need to get everyone out rounding them up and getting them cu for forms and such. Tell them the Diamond emperor is here and he will tell them whats going on shortly.

I know its tempting to yell at Sevener or be angry but now is not the time to do it. Getting these new people on our side quickly will improve our chances at those precious resurrections at the end of the stage.
>>
No. 567987 ID: 9ddf68

... OK THEN, let's look at what we know right now. For some reason these entire freaking stage just got filled with slimes which I'm pretty sure almost no one has seen since the earlier stages, Arbiter is claiming he use to be royalty, Alison is dead, and sevener just popped up into your office and since this is a safe zone no one can really do anything about it, AND to top it off she's telling Arbiter to come with her.
...We're missing something here.

Ok then, things to ask. Arbiter, what the hell does this diamond empire thing have to do with anything? Sevener, why the hell are you here? Anyone, what the hell is with these slimes?

As for what to do just call everyone into the room and Arbiter explain whatever it is he want's to explain and if Sevener really want's to talk to Arbiter she can just plant her ass here and wait until he's down talking and if you don't like it, tough.
>>
No. 567988 ID: ffa549

Huh. Arbiter didn't mention Corruptor made Alison lose. No time, or he was in on it?

>furniture
Well, with the absurd variety of sizes and shapes contestants can come in, it's not surprising that it's hard to find stuff scaled to fit.

>Alison lost
You could try summoning her ghost, although that won't work if the system people rended her ghost.

>those fuckers
If she's working against what the other admins are planning, that's to our advantage. The system administration crippling itself just gives us less options to try and fix things.

You have no idea if you can trust her fully, but the fact that she's here at all, and after winning the CAI fight, must mean Alison had an impact on her, at least.

...if you're correct that there's little time, we don't have the time to waste getting the logs from the source. They're encrypted anyways. Give her the written copies. (If she asks how she's supposed to trust they're accurate, point out we're trusting her by cooperating. We don't have time to do otherwise).

>only 15 minutes
I think we need to get Glitcher back in here. Or get Sevener to Glitcher. If he used a local time acceleration he could give her a lot more time to get admin things done before the deadline.

>new entrants, everyone.
Get some people handing out CU so they can buy shapes and communication and see what they can find out from them what the hell is going on.
>>
No. 567989 ID: 57a559

>>567985
We'll do it if you ask nicely and respectfully
Geeze Sevener
Learn some manners
>>
No. 567990 ID: ffa549

>Alison's ghost won't work if she was rended
Although I suppose Smuggler could sell ghost talk to Sevener if that's the case. (Actually, wait, was rend a different ability from absorb, or just a boon for it? And can Smuggler sell boons, or were those only transferable via persistence duels? I can't even remember anymore).

...or we could always just incorporate Sevener into the absorption chain to get Alison back, but we hardly have time for that at the moment.
>>
No. 567994 ID: 2c6ff1

>>567985
PROMOTIONS! Looks like you're the new leader, Chief. While Arbiter is gone, inform the troops of the change. Oh and tell Smuggler to start selling language mods to all these slimes. Body mods can come later. Holy shit what if taking away all abilities removes language too?! We need to come up with a plan for that.

...is Glitcher still talking to Savior?
>>
No. 568016 ID: 76b151

Actually we already had a plan for that, we made up a sign language and were training everoyne in its use.
>>
No. 568017 ID: c496ef

>>567994
The languages were part of the basic package given to the entire list of contestants -- basic understand and speaking, and a basic body would be given, just enough to make them not bloboform.
>>
No. 568020 ID: 2c6ff1

>>568017
But they are blobs. That implies they either didn't choose a body yet, or they weren't given the opportunity.
>>
No. 568025 ID: ffa549

>Holy shit what if taking away all abilities removes language too?! We need to come up with a plan for that.
The admin who issues the decree explained in the same breath that we'd be issued new communication skills after everything was deleted.
>At 24:00, all abilities will be deleted, and at 24:01, everyone will be granted Spoken and Written Language abilities. Further abilities will be granted and made available on a stage to stage basis, until further notice.
Also, we already had a contingency for this. Alison and co developed a rudimentary sign language so they could give orders and stuff in battle without tipping off the other side. This was also our contingency for the warning we received in our logs way back when that there was a stage where language didn't work.

>>568020
The reason they're blobs is the CAI inhabitants didn't have any CU.
>>
No. 568043 ID: 6199a3

Alright Cheif, you are now in charge. First, take control of the situation. Tell Sevener to give you a quick summary of what exactly happened in there. It doesn't have to be a long one, or take very long, but no summary, no logs. In the meanwhile, it's probably best to get multiple people managing and helping these millions and millions of newcomers. Can they even speak and understand language? The Smuggler will be getting a lot of business soon.
>>
No. 568047 ID: 876044

Ask smuggler if he can get shopkeep to set up shops all over town for processing the new people. Then have him give any blobs the speech and body mods they need and charge the cu cost to your account.

I feel bad about saving all these people just to throw them into a giant battle to the death.
>>
No. 569321 ID: d470e9
File 139673460148.gif - (19.49KB , 800x316 , SSF7-60.gif )
569321

>The languages were part of the basic package given to the entire list of contestants
That will happen later on in the safe zone, after all abilities are stripped away. From what Chief gathers, the old ruleset is still in effect, and all of these newcomers are the same as everyone when they started preliminary stage 1.

Chief isn't going to get brushed aside, and tells Sevener that Arbiter can tell her the logs right here and now, while Chief gets caught up.

Arbiter hands Sevener the written copy of Corruptor's log inside of his, while Arbiter explains that the Corruptor managed to cause Alison to lose, apparently directly. Very soon, too, after saying he had no intention of doing this.

The Tier 3 entrance lights start flashing again in Bones' territory, showing that he's come back.

Chief asks Smuggler if he can get Shopkeep's assisstance in setting up multiple shops, but Smuggler says that he is still kind of awkward about maintaining contact with his former collective whatevers. The shopkeeps will be available anyway, they already have shops set up around the stage.

An attempt is made to ghost talk with Alison.

>"Not gonna work, bird boy. Alison and friends are under system rule, now. Course, under my jurisdiction, and I'll free them before I lose adminship if you quit wasting my seconds." Chief demands a quick summary of events before letting her run off. "You're seriously fucking doing this right now? Fine, a summary! We shot lasers everywhere and then the Corruptor fucked up our game and then stopped firing lasers. The end."

Chief relents, and tells Sevener to wait here and he'll buy her time. Arbiter haphazardly toss out a wild amount of CU for everyone to at least get a body, armor, and basic communication capabilities. He tells them to start tossing the CU to everyone who came back, and to gather them back outside of the building, where the Arbiter will explain as much as he can. He heads to the rooftop.
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No. 569322 ID: d470e9
File 139673461509.png - (20.05KB , 800x800 , SSF7-61.png )
569322

Chief goes downstairs where the Glitcher is found along with catatonic, looking like misery is loving itself some company.

Glitcher says he's fine, but perhaps is more distressed now that his fate is sinking in. He doesn't want to talk about it further, though, and Chief explains that Sevener came back. She needs time. Glitcher will do it.
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No. 569323 ID: d470e9
File 139673463318.gif - (15.61KB , 800x316 , SSF7-62.gif )
569323

Upon returning, Sevener snatches Glitcher and runs off, while Chief clears out his room and listens above as to what is going on. The Savior is telling the masses about the paradise. Arbiter retorts, with Emerald's backing, that while nothing is stopping them from going to the paradise, doing so is giving up the contestant's fight before they so much as lift a finger.

Succubus reports that Bones is as hostile as ever, and claimed that the Corruptor ordered Bones to completely eradicate Alison's allies.

Sevener comes back with the Glitcher as well, informing that she's now an official contestant like the rest of everyone. She did what she had to, and tosses chief a paper copy of her logs.

There are several more, Sevener says, but couldn't be bugged to write down every single cai-fight log. Until they're in a fight, there's not much point to having them.

SEVENER #75 - KILL CORRUPTOR
SEVENER #84 - ALISON IS WORTH THE TROUBLE, DON'T BRUSH HER OFF
SEVENER #129 USE ADMIN FUNCTION FOR CAI FIGHT TO STUDY
SEVENER #301 - FUCK THAT GATOR ADMIN
SEVENER #554 - DON'T WORK WITH THE SAVIOR
SEVENER #667 - NEVERMIND ALISON - TOO WISHY WASHY
SEVENER #1420 - ELIMINATE CORRUPTOR ASAP
SEVENER #1468 - SAVIOR IS BENIGN
SEVENER #1492 - CORRUPTOR CAN'T BE KILLED WHAT IS HE
SEVENER #1566 - CONFISCATE GLITCHER ASAP
SEVENER #1612 - STOP WORKING WITH NAGA - CONFIRMED LEGIT LOG
SEVENER #1687 - CORRUPTOR? FUCK THAT GUY
SEVENER #1745 - NAGA OFTEN INITIATES CAI FIGHT - LET IT HAPPEN
SEVENER #1791 - NEUMONO CAI BATTLE FAVORS AGGRESSION
SEVENER #1806 - RED QUEEN HAS DIFFICULTY FIGHTING IN SUN OVER SNOW
SEVENER #1833 - CAN'T KILL CORRUPTOR JUST DON'T
SEVENER #1852 - BELENOS POLICE GIVE ME BETTER JETAL WEAPONS IF MY RIVAL GETS STRONG
SEVENER #1864 - BELENOS SIMULATION STARTS IN A RECURSIVE SIMULATION, TAKE O ROUTE
SEVENER #1888 - STOP WORKING WITH THE NAGA BITCH
SEVENER #1889 - BOT FACTORY BELT #1, 3 AND 8 DEFECTIVE
SEVENER #1901 - SAVIOR? FUCK THAT GUY TOO
SEVENER #1901 - COULD HAVE SAVED THOUSANDS. SNAKE QUEEN WON'T HAVE IT
SEVENER #1904 - NAGA BACKSTABBED ME FOR SOME STUPID ASS REASON
SEVENER #1905 - GET 'PEI' SYSTEMS TO START MULTIPLYING BELENOS
SEVENER #1920 - POMI UNDERGROUND TUNNEL UNDER TRIPLE ROCK BEACH
SEVENER #1928 - NEUMONO ROCK FOUNDATION WEAK - GET SHOUTER
SEVENER #1930 - CORRUPTED SAVIOR IS SOME SHIT ALRIGHT - AVOID HIM
SEVENER #1935 - NAGA TRUSTS DIAMOND EMPEROR - ABSORB HIM
SEVENER #1955 - KILL BOTH EMPERORS TO UPROOT SAPPHIRE
SEVENER #2140 - 'DIOXIS' AT HARVEST BUILDING KNOWS SAPPHIRE
SEVENER #2160 - CANDLE RELIC IS HIGHLY EFFECTIVE LATE GAME - STEAL FIRST, THEN PLAY DEFENSIVELY
SEVENER #2444 - ALWAYS CHOOSE BLUE GEM TO HELP CANDLE RELIC TACTIC
SEVENER #2565 - CORRUPTED SAVIOR MIGHT LOOK CLEAN
SEVENER #2620 - LASER-REFLECTION BOTS OVERPOWERED
SEVENER #2772 - STAGE 9 SAFE ZONE HAS CAI-CREATOR NOTES - MAYBE
SEVENER #3111 - NAGA STOPPED HUGGING


She adds that no, she has no idea what to make about having two logs for cycle 1901.
>>
No. 569326 ID: 876044

Ok looks like her logs are pretty much all about trying to win the Cai fights. Ask if we can get back Alison or if we have to get her ressurected.

Tell the Glitcher that if anyone can figure out a way to save him it will be Alison. If we can get out of here in the end we might be able to find a way to bring him back to life.

Who knows what game Corruptor is playing but we probably need Alison back to hug him into submission if we want him to come to his senses. Guessing he is getting bad advice from Bones and is still in a bit of a shock from all the logs and such.

The new people will do what they want but make sure they know what they are in for either way. They can hang out in paradise and hope we can save them in the end. Or they can fight with us to try and make that end happen.

Try to make contact with Corruptor and see if he ignores us or not. If we can get Alison back before the stage we should try to get her to him. If not we need to get everyone ready to fight for those resurrections. The more of those we have the more options will be available.
>>
No. 569327 ID: 8c7703

Get everyone's logs together and see if any numbers match up. And find out what's up with Alison.
>>
No. 569329 ID: ffa549

>FUCK THAT GATOR ADMIN
Interesting. Wasn't his only logs "trust Sevener"? Apparently he turned on her, in (at least) one cycle. That, or he lied, or she just doesn't like brown-nosers.

>could have saved thousands, naga backstabbed me
Probably due the paradoxical nature of our only known exit. We could get Savior and Corruptor to cooperate, but we'd either have to murder everyone who's merged with the CAI before (...which is probably most of the main characters, considering they've been successful in the past), or we'd have to murder the CAI. And in either case, the damned cycles continue.

>She did what she had to
I don't suppose you'd care to share what relevant changes you made before losing admin powers?

Does the remainder of the administration still follow you?

...if she hasn't made your allies otherwise available, Smuggler could sell her ghost talk.

>CONFISCATE GLITCHER
Interesting. It's possible for the system administration to control him?

>NAGA STOPPED HUGGING
Jeezum. Something bad happened that cycle.

>Bones, Corruptor
Unfortunately, we have no way of knowing what the hell is going on. Either Corruptor lied to our faces and back-stabbed us, or he permanently broke the CAI battles in a previous loop and cannot control his followers.

Granted, neither case is good.
>>
No. 569341 ID: 2c6ff1

I updated the wiki with a new page. All the logs are compiled, sorted by character and by cycle. Unfortunately I couldn't see anything significant from sorting it by cycle. Maybe someone else will notice something.

>>569323
These are mostly useless logs aside from CAI Fight tips. If we manage to turn off the CAI's iwin button we can use the info to even the odds a little, though. Still thinking about how to force a stalemate... OH. One important fact in the logs is that a Corrupted Savior is not immediately obviously corrupted.
...I wonder if that is the case right now, and that's why he took Glitcher aside to talk? Did he reveal that he's been Corrupted and that Glitcher should work against us in secret? Man, you know what, forget that, that just leads to paranoia. We should make sure not to assume Savior is on our side no matter what he seems to be doing. Ask Glitcher if he would be able to tell if the Savior was corrupted. Perhaps his eyes would be different?

>>569329
>could have saved thousands
This was mentioned in the Belenosian interlude. Alison wouldn't accept that because there's more than a TRILLION AIs. Saving mere thousands is a drop in the bucket; we may as well not even bother at that point.
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No. 569342 ID: 04b86a

>SEVENER #1901 - COULD HAVE SAVED THOUSANDS. SNAKE QUEEN WON'T HAVE IT
This log is definitely an anomaly. Not just because it's the second #1901, but because it uses "Snake Queen". Not "Alison" like she used early on when they were on good terms or "Naga (Bitch)" like when they're enemies or when she's just mad at Alison. The "thousands" matches up with the Corruptor's log, so it might be legit, but I don't trust it.

>SEVENER #3111 - NAGA STOPPED HUGGING
That's... concerning. And it's annoying that she doesn't give any information aside from that.

Now let's get Alison here. And wasn't part of the plan to get Sevener's note or keycard so Glitcher can read its history? We have no reason to doubt anything he gets from that.
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No. 569354 ID: 876044

>>569342

Good find.

Point that log out to her and ask if she has ever referred to Alison as Snake queen. That log has a high chance of being one Corruptor or someone else hacked in there.
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No. 569369 ID: b381b1

Ask Sevener where her loyalties lie now. Is she with us, against us, or just a neutral contestant? Even if she hates our, or rather Alison's guts, working with others has been shown to dramatically increase life span. 3 in 10 contestants agree, and the rest are permanently dead.

Ask Glitcher how the talk with savior went, hopefully the question will cheer him up. Well, let's hope it went well, otherwise, Glitcher's going to be horribly depressed.
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No. 569371 ID: ffa549

...is glitcher not dead now, or is his sprite just not blue for reasons. I mean, I guess if he's glitchy enough to just have walked out of the ghost house to hang with Savior, death doesn't mean so much to him.
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No. 569380 ID: 9ddf68

ok since everyone else is working with the logs I'm going to take a different road on some things I think need some attention as well. First off, Alison, she's now dead and seeing as how all this change shit is going on right now I think we should try to keep this a secret from our troops until the next stage. Mostly because we have to figure out how much this reset is going to effect the stage/us, trying to get as many blobs as we can to boast our numbers, and the fact that Alison took all but 500 troops with her has left us pretty damn crippled... They don't need to worry about there leader being dead on top of everything else. Plus if we can revive her then it doesn't really matter anyways.

Next is savior. I never really know just how much faith to put into these logs we find because of how vague they always are but I don't just want to ignore them either. Plus from what we've seen of savior his name is almost an oxymoron. But right now Bones has put a price on anyone working under the snake queen's banner and has 500 corrupted solders on his side. If we mention these to Savior next time we see him he might be willing to fight with us just to remove the corrupted guys for us just to weaken Corrupter and in the process even the playing field for us.

As for the corrupter himself. I truly believe he's out to kill us. I do believe that he's been lying through his teeth ever since glitcher freaked out when Alison showed him that note that made him remember the past. Pretty sure that he told Bones to finish us off and and I bet next time we see him he's going to blame us for attacking Bone's or some bull like that and try and turn us into the bad guys. He's also in the same boat as us as in he has no idea what the hell he's doing and is just floundering in the dark hoping he can get lucky and now he's hoping he can get lucky by wiping out the snake queen's army. I mean right before the CAI fight(not sure if chief knows this) he asked for Arbiter back because I think he was planning on trapping us in the CAI battle from the beginning and he didn't want to lose one of his generals. And on that note I'm not to sure who's side Arbiter is really on so I don't think we should give him to much details on our plans. I mean even if he has nothing to do the Corrupter's plans he still can be contacted by corrupter and we know that son of a bitch has honeyed words and could talk a ditch digger into buying dirt. So it's not to much of a stretch that he could trick Arbiter into betraying us even if Arbiter really is on our side.

As for Sevener. I don't trust her but at the same time we kind of need her because of her logs. I don't trust her because 1) she's is/was and admin and 2) she strikes me as the kind of person that would step over anyone and everyone just to make sure SHE can move forward and doesn't care who she has to hurt to move on.

I'm just tired of backstabs in short.
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No. 569384 ID: a3d9f6

>>569380
I actually want to take the opposite approach and make a proper anouncement about Alison. Bones already likely knows about her death, and will be spreading propoganda wherever he goes, trying to get people to defect. Denying these claims would make people doubt us, and make us seem like we're helpless without our leader. We need to be strong and boost morale with a speech, tell everyone that we're still going strong even without Alison.

A compromise would be to simply not mention it to anyone, but in the event that anyone asks, we tell them, and if the majority has the news, we make a speech. Chief's choice.
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No. 569386 ID: 9ddf68

>>569384
maybe we should ask succubus on this. She's good with people and would probably have the best idea on what would happen if we chose to tell the forces or not. I'm worried it would just demoralize our troops if we told them of Alison's death and seeing as we're hurting because of Alison's loss I don't want to stack the odds against us more then they are but at the same time you're right and by withholding this information we could be losing the faith our troops have in us, and seeing how one of the options our troops came up with was "if Alison is dead join King", Them defecting is a very real threat.

(sigh)

Oh the joy's of leadership.
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No. 569387 ID: 04b86a

>>569380
>Keep Alison's death secret
Aside from the fact that I don't think this is necessary, it is very obvious for everyone in the safe zone that the CAI Fight is finished, and all anyone has to do to find out that Alison is dead is to try to enter the dream home. We still have six hours left before it's deleted, so someone might decide to pop by there for a little while only to notice that it isn't there anymore.

Of course, if all of the Admins just lost their privileges then we can actually get Alison back right now if we want to. Just have Glitcher reintroduce resurrection. We know from Alison's logs that he can do it, so the only concern is the Corruptor using it to bolster Bones' forces a bit more before it gets deleted again.

>Savior
It might be a good idea to have him around, yeah. Partly so he can help us out with any Corrupted shenanigans that might come up, but also so we can put off his fight with the Corruptor until Stage 10.

>500 Devotees
It hasn't been mentioned yet if those came back. They won't be here if he still wants us to think he's friendly with us.

>I mean right before the CAI fight(not sure if chief knows this) he asked for Arbiter back
No he didn't. He offered to pull Alison's entire team out (minus a few people to keep the fight going for a while) and we decided on our own to send only Arbiter and a handful of people to act as guards to get his logs.

>the Corruptor himself
I want to just have Alison call him up and ask him what the hell he thinks he's doing. I doubt we'll get a good response, but she should still at least try to get an explanation for why her friend suddenly decided to turn on her like this. We still have a few more stages before we have to decide whether or not to give up on him, though, which helps me stay optimistic about him. All of the other houses in his faction are definitely enemies, though, and I think we can stop hoping otherwise.

>Arbiter
I see no reason to question his loyalty. I guess if we want to be safe we could always request he not have anymore private talks with the Corruptor.

>Sevener
She does seem to only be concerned about herself, yes. Her and Alison being close friends in the cycles in which they get along doesn't seem like something the Corruptor would lie about if the log's purpose is to get us to help him beat the CAI for some nefarious goal, though, so maybe she isn't all bad.

>tired of backstabs
I'm tired of people doing stupid stuff because of poor information, but it looks like that's not changing anytime soon.
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No. 569389 ID: 876044

The whole mess with Corruptor started because of some mysteriously appearing notes. We worked hard to get him back on our side and everything appeared to be ok until we entered the cai battle sim.

So guessing he ran into some more mysterious info and it made him paranoid again. Some of his betrayal in the Cai could have been a old loop he put into it from a previous session. We need to find out what info he got and figure out a way to directly confront him with it and prove to him once and for all we are not out to get him.

Also his connection with Bones is suspect. With Arbiter gone Bones is his right hand man suddenly. He can start making suggestions to a already confused Corruptor and possibly convince him that we are no good. When we met Bones he was a creepy fuck so who knows what he might have been up to since we last saw him.

Consider things from Corruptors viewpoint. Alison came in out of nowhere and became one of the most powerful leaders overnight. He gets info that we could be dangerous and we escape his trap and make off with several of his most trusted friends who abandon him for us. He knows we have been nothing but friendly but at the same time Alison is one of the only people who scares him. Suddenly he is alone with only evil bastards like Bones and Swordsbane to keep him company. They feed him lies and turn him against us.
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No. 569407 ID: ffa549

Trying to cover up Alison's death is beyond impossible. Anyone in our faction could discover it trivially, and anyone outside could discover it by talking to any of the new system administration ex-pats joining the contestant ranks, or rescued member of the Belenosian CAI sim that popped up all over the place.

Besides, how dead she is would depend on what Sevener used her accelerated admin time to do, and if we have ghost access to her. If we've got Alison's ghost back, she's perfectly capable of talking to and hugging people still.

We also can't write off the Corruptor, unfortunately. He's one of the very few levers that exist that have the potential to actually affect the simulation in a meaningful way. Whatever solution we end up finding, I don't see it not involving Corruptor, Savior, and Glitcher.

>Sevener in it for herself
Well, from a selfish self interest point of view: it's in the interest of anyone trapped in here to find a way out. It's also in their interest to find a better solution than merging with and/or replacing the CAI, since that will inevitably end with eventually being killed by another group of contestants, ourselves.

...it's kind of a little late to express distrust, though. We already lent her Glitcher to maximize her remaining admin time. We already trusted (and enabled!) her at her potentially most dangerous.

I would really withhold judgement until we hear what she did. (Did she release the rend on Alison and the others? Did she do anything about the scheduled changes from admin 7-6? Etc).
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No. 569416 ID: 876044

Just had another idea for Glitcher.

When he identified the note we gave him way back in the day he was able to see exactly where it came from and it made him go suicidal. Ask him if he could use that power to track down the origin of the note that originally made Corruptor mistrust us. If we can find out who has been sending Corruptor all these mixed signals we might be able to work things out with him.
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No. 569422 ID: d470e9
File 139680867882.gif - (20.71KB , 800x316 , SSF7-63.gif )
569422

>Ask what Sevener did about admin powers, and where she stands, and about referring to the snake queen
>"I released the rend on Alison, and tried to check out if I could do anything about that stupid process. But no, we couldn't reverse what the other bastards are doing. It didn't come with takebacksies. Otherwise, I just checked out my logs and other options. If you were hoping I was doing any drastic measures, then I have disappointing news for you. 15 minutes was just shaving it close, Glitcher was hardly needed. The other admins are more or less on my side, but they're in their own brackets now. We'll probably never see them again. As for you guys... yeah, I'm with you. I'll resurrect the naga when I make it through, if she isn't already brought back. Don't think too much into it, but don't think I'm a damn liar either. If I'm going to turn hostile again, you'll know it. And for the cycle where I called her Snake Queen? I've never called her that this cycle, cept to, you know, refer to the term like I just did there. Who knows what I was doing at 1901."

>Would Glitcher be able to tell if the Savior is corrupted?
No, the Glitcher does not have any reason to believe that he has an innate sense for this, but if he does, he will tell.

>Is the Glitcher not dead?
The Glitcher is very dead, but his color is misleading.

>Ask if Sevener has ever used the term Snake Queen before
>"Well sure as hell not in this cycle.

>Tell everyone about Alison losing
At this point, it is public knowledge. Ghost calls were used, and Alison herself has already been spotted in a couple of locations speaking with people.

>Devotee location
All devotees that were originally sent by Corruptor are still around, presumably hostile.

>Contact Corruptor
The calls are not answered.

Arbiter's own call to the corruptor is not answered, either.

Alison does answer Chief's call to her, though. The admins had long since taken measures against one-ups, and it's thought that the current process is just to eradicate any loose ends missed the first time around. It does not appear that there will be a way to get Alison back prior to stage 7 after all. There isn't much Alison can say that hasn't been learned already. In fact, the Chief fills Alison in on the details that Sevener didn't tell her before she goes wandering off to talk with the public again.

As for people defecting to King, Alison says that is their choice, and so long as King remains an ally, the difference is almost semantic.

>When Glitcher identified the note we gave him way back in the day he was able to see exactly where it came from and it made him go suicidal. Ask him if he could use that power to track down the origin of the note that originally made Corruptor mistrust us.
Glitcher assumes that means the note that Arbiter had, that he already saw the history of. The origin of the note appeared to be Corruptor making the request of Arbiter to write that note, as Corruptor feared that his own notes were as corrupted as his logs. There isn't much that's concrete about it, since the note was created shortly before being abandoned and never seen again for the rest of the cycle, thus not having any history other than sitting in darkness.

The current time is 14:15, and time will start running short before the process starts working, although effective actions appear to have been exhausted, leaving only straws and talk.
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No. 569424 ID: 04b86a

So, I'm guessing all of the admins just lost their privileges and are therefore powerless to deal with any rule breaking we do in the immediate future.

Have Glitcher reinstate Resurrection.
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No. 569428 ID: ffa549

Huh. So if Glitcher is walking around, dead, but not blue, and without the benefit of ghost talk, will the overflow limits even apply to him? I mean, the exits and entrant counts are for living people.

>the Chief fills Alison in on the details
I think Alison is going to need to initiate ghost hug procedures on Glitcher once she hears about his latest troubles. Even if he's not the same as the rest of you, he's still real to you. (Kinda funny he's essentially Corruptor's and Savior's child, though).

Snuggler might be due for hugs, too. Poor guy, losing merchant. He's still important to us, even without it. Thanks for Chief and the others for continuing to help even her absence, too.

Alison should probably ask to see if some people can locate the allies we brought with us from the Belenosian simulation. A new perspective, and people who are supposed to understand how computers and AIs work from the outside, might be helpful. (Plus, some of them are probably very confused and worried right now). Corruptor's encrypted logs mentioned Belenosians had a hand in designing the system you're trapped in before it was handed over to Linkol and these 'salikai', whoever they are. Maybe some of the simulated belnos will understand the basic architecture in a way that is useful. Maybe they know what a 'ring shell' is?

We might want to fill Arbiter in the whole 'being Diamond' thing. You know, actually explain what that means. (Who the emperors were, and that we think he was originally rescued from a CAI sim, many cycles ago). Maybe Loviro or some of the other CAI-battle ex-pats could help.

Maybe Alison should talk to Savior? If ghost talk gets deleted, and we can't res her for a while, this may be our last chance to change his mind about how things work here for a long time.

>reinstate resurrect
Won't do much, with the system deleting all abilities. We'll just lose it again, and it doesn't work without absorb. Granted, we could res Alison and her immediate friends, but I'm not sure if that's worth having Glitcher burn the amount of juice that would take.

>Corruptor
...is there any way Glitcher could maybe, tell what Corruptor did? What happened? Sort of forensically examine the damage? Look at Alison's ghost, or examine the button we used?

Does he have any memory if anything similar happened to Corruptor in previous cycles? It's hard to tell if he betrayed us, if he screwed up again and is ashamed of it, or if his nature got the better of him. (I really suspect the main problem is he is way to emotionally unstable for the amount of power he has, and it's really not helped by the fact his logs trick him into cutting off his friends, and his powers turn the people who stay around him into cultist followers. He's a lonely, depressed demi-god surrounded by fervent yes-men. Throw on the pressures of the contest we're trapped in, and his failed messiah complex...).

Snake-bro really needs a lot of hugs. And maybe a smack or two.
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No. 569429 ID: ffa549

Oh, also: what happens to Shopkeeper and the rest of the collective people like him when the system finishes crippling itself? Or the enforcers, or hunters, or all the other people who were working with the admins?
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No. 569432 ID: 876044

We know that Glitchers powers start being less useful shortly so lets brainstorm stuff he can do before the reset.

He could try to reinstate Resurrection somehow so we could buy it quick and use it to bring back our main team. We could have him teleport someone or a team to Corruptor to try and talk to him.

We might not be able to do much about the reset but getting back on speaking terms with Corruptor seems really important. If Glitcher and Arbiter work together they might be able to get through to him. We should at least make the attempt.

Also we should try to find out any info we can about what the next stage will look like.
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No. 569436 ID: d470e9
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569436

Alison initiates her comfort hugs to Glitcher upon hearing about him, and asks if his talk with Savior went well, since Chief could not care about that much. Glitcher says it seemed fine, if strange, but only as strange as the savior is.

>Have Glitcher reinstate Resurrection.
Glitcher says that if he couldn't do it in the sanctuary, he can't do it now. He reiterates that it was a ridiculous thing of him to call himself a god, as his judgement was poor at that point. What he will do is try to poke around at what he can just in case he's wrong, though, so he won't simply sit around and do nothing.

He notes, furthermore, that he cannot seem to locate the Sanctuary, and corruptor won't answer his ghost calls either. It looks like the Corruptor moved his sanctuary, and hid it very well. He thinks that with enough time, though, he can locate it, so after he either gets resurrection or fails to get it by the due date, he will search for the corrupted sanctuary.

Alison does have Chief and the others try to search for some of the allies that she had met. The Emerald emperor was easily found, Loviro did turn up. Felix and Polatt are still lost in the masses, but the masses do appear to be on Arbiter's and Emeralds side. Arbiter reports that not many went to the sanctuary, not because they're brave warriors willing to fight for what they thought was their empire, but rather because he and Emerald are the beacons of the empire, and thus, the closest thing that everyone has to a comfort zone. Hence, since the emperors are staying, most of them are staying. Chief would not want to be in Bones' spot, right now, but if the admins have their way, this overwhelming numbers advantage will be severely trashed next stage.

Chief does ask if Glitcher can tell what the corruptor did in previous cycles, using any of the objects that Chief has. Glitcher says that as usual, most of the new information is hardly reliable. Circumstances were different, the people were different, and there are a few occurrences of logs being discovered with the note in hand. However, the logs themselves weren't visible, only those who talk about the logs, and most of those logs were the same logs that have been discovered. Glitcher has noted the Summoner, however, who appeared to be a contestant brought in from the Pomi simulation, true to the name. His own logs appear to focus on notable individuals, but so many that there's little doubt most of them are dead. In short, there is a great deal of potential informational interest, but very little for potential use.

He does mention, though, that the corruptor has been just as flipsy in the past, and has gone from one extreme to the other. Often for the worse, but no object that Chief has access to hold any answers for it.

The other point of interest is that sometimes the note is lost, sometimes the Glitcher knows why, sometimes he doesn't.

>Alison: Talk to the savior
The Savior appears to have already left the safe zone.

>What happens to Shopkeeper?
Chief sends out Succubus to ask, who comes back saying that he will continue to exist. There may be items for purchase within future safe zones or even stages, but he does not know what that entails yet. CU will most likely be given for doing exceptionally well, and not for merely succeeding, although items and abilities in the future are expected to be non-critial, merely to give an edge.

The rest of the system members will continue their normal functions, although the admins are hoping that the enforcers, hunters, judges and so on will not be needed.

Shopkeep also went further and said that the next stage will be freeform, however, it wouldn't matter, most or all of the puzzles will deal with social aptitude, trickery and maneuvering. Stage 8 might be more physical, but shopkeep does not know that for certain yet.
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No. 569438 ID: 2c6ff1

>>569436
If Glitcher is dead how is he out here? We're not in Alison's Dream. Is he breaking the rules? What happens when the stage starts? Will he be able to enter or will he get sucked into the non-sanctuary dreamworld?

Since Sevener is on our side, bring up the "thousands" bit. Does she really think it's worth saving that few out of a trillion? Not to mention from Corruptor's logs, it looks like the only known solution so far was to break the stage exits to let a few thousand into the final fight and disable the CAI's instawin button so that the new CAI would be thousands of contestants. Yet that probably wouldn't change anything and the cycles would continue.

Speaking of Corruptor's logs, I have a feeling that he hasn't read them. Repeatedly use Ghost Talk until he gets pissed off and answers, then just shove the logs in his face. If he turns out to have more patience than we do, and ghost talk is disabled before he answers, then just disseminate copies of the logs to everyone that's likely to get through the stages. Corruptor will have to go through the stages too, so eventually we'll be able to meet him and give them to him. From Alison's logs it appears that will happen at stage 10.

Do we know if Stage 9 is going to be a bloodbath again?
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No. 569444 ID: 876044

Well Glitcher knows his stuff best so leave him to his work. We might get lucky and get Alison back before things start but lets continue under the assumption we will need to resurrect her.

So get as much of this info out to the team so they know what to expect in the upcoming stage. Let everyone know that Bones is not to be trusted and we are temporarily at odds with Corruptor. The more top slots we get is less people Bones will have next stage.

Also since most of our forces will not make it through can we persistence absorb everyone so we do not lose them after this stage? Or did rescuing them from the harvest simulation count as absorption?

Might as well try to keep working at reaching Corruptor. If enough people bug him he might answer just to get us to leave him alone.

Oh and finally try to get some sort of identification system going for all the new people. Bones might try to sneak some spies in the ranks to foul up the works next stage.
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No. 569447 ID: 57a559

>>569436
Glitcher, how extreme has Alison ever been? Like with Corrupter, I guess that's just for curiosities sake at this point but MAYBE it could be helpful, even if he doesn't think it won't be.

And can we make this dream sanctuary part of the safe zone or is that WAAAAY too dangerous?

I thought we were supposed to work with the Corrupter regardless of his recent actions, because the only way to get ANYWHERE is by working together with Savior and Corruptor since most survivors are all going to die if they try and merge with the CAI, since we can't win a normal CAI battle with it. I mean, honestly, we have to try thinking outside the box.

Glitcher, I know this is going to sound like a weird request, and VERY dangerous and nearly impossible since you said you weren't a god, but do you think it's possible to get a line into the outside world? Because that's the only outside of the box kind of thinking I can come up with. We might be able to escape the sim and be our own CAI if we can link into an outside network somehow and just FUCK THE POLICE. Err admin.
Are the future safe zones built already? We might be able to get those files from the CAI creator if we can hack into the safe zone build files, which should be somewhere in the system. We could start circumventing stages if we actually find workarounds and screw with the actual system that builds everything. Everything has a source.
We could even destabilize the admins plans by completely eradicating the code for their little boot if we can get to it in time.

I don't like trying nothing but waiting to see what happens. I am DONE with this stage bullshit and we're going to lose out numbers advantage as soon as the stage bullshit starts. Somewhere out there is the system stage data. We find it, and we fuck with it. Change exit values from 10 into a trillion. Safe zone time limits into years. Stage lengths into mere meters and puzzleless. They are ALL out there somewhere.

What I am saying is guys... is that we do a heist. Mafia style.
Gentlemen, we need Fedora's.
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No. 569454 ID: ffa549

>If Glitcher is dead how is he out here?
Because he's Glitcher. Also, we invited Savior into the dream house for a talk, and then he wanted to take Glitcher out to the stage for a meal. And they went.

Between the two of them, I think they can easily ignore rules like dead people not being able to just walk out of dreams into the real world.

>most Belnos people staying
Could we organize the passing out of CU, and the formation of recursive absorption chains to include all the new people? We don't know if the people in our dreams will stay after we lose absorb, but it's worth trying to link them together. If a lot of them end up dead after this stage, it'll be our only way to hold onto them.

Have we tried talking to healer (or her ghost)? I don't know if anything weird happened to her since we apparently rescued her duplicate from the CAI-sim. Did anything happen, well, besides the dying, from her perspective? Actually, we can check with Loviro and Emerald too, since we found them. (Don't know if it makes a difference which side of the duplicate-ness you were on). We might owe Emerald an apology, too (He got a body back, but certainly not in the way he was expecting).

Introduce Arbiter and Loviro. (Sort of interested to see how he'll react to meeting 'diamond').

Depending on how that goes, it might be interesting to see if we could get Emerald in touch with Swordbane. They're in separate brackets right now, but if we found anyone with ghost contact...

Get historian or someone to start explaining everything we know about how the CAI actually works to Loviro, and/or any other Belnos scientists we may have (did we manage to scoop up Slither, in the end?). How it's sort of a broken hybrid CAI maker, how Corruptor and Savior were (apparently) injected later, the computer and programming terminology we've identified but are unsure of. See what they can make of it. Their perspective may help. (They might also be able to come up with ideas for Glitcher, if they understand the basic architecture of the simulation at all).

One idea for Glitcher- if we lose ghost talk and resurrect and the people in our dreams (and/or the ability to sleep), a glitched item that works as a ghost talk replacement might be handy. (A ghost phone, maybe).

>Corruptor
...I don't suppose it's possible that part of the problem is he corrupts his own mind? If Corruptor is working at cross purposes with himself, that would explain why he's been so erratic.

Although that might be just our need to try and make excuses and hope he's not just being terrible for no reason.
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No. 569456 ID: 04b86a

>if he couldn't do it in the sanctuary, he can't do it now.
He could do it in the sanctuary. Did, even, back cycle #2501. It just, you know, was promptly deleted again. It sounds like the admins might not be able to have it quickly deleted anymore, though, hence the request to do it now.
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No. 569460 ID: d470e9
File 139681797997.gif - (20.13KB , 800x316 , SSF7-65.gif )
569460

>If Glitcher is dead how is he out here?
He appears to be able to teleport himself around legal areas freely enough. He could theoretically go to Corruptor's bracket, he claims.

>Glitcher to outside world?
Glitcher says that that has proved extremely more futile than any resurrection recovering, and that he has certainly been asked that numerous times, and has spent entire cycles trying to find a way.

He explains that the threads he uses to make buttons and glitches can be found anywhere, he can pull them from buildings, even people, and it works, because those threads are the same threads that construct the system brackets. The bridge to the outside world, he believes, and possibly including the ring shell, are made out of a different material.

>How extreme has Alison been?
Glitcher does not think that answering that will do anyone any good.

>Glitcher did do it in the Sanctuary, though
Glitcher says he relents that point, but the structure was different back then. Things change a lot past stage 5, and from cycle to cycle. He insists those are reasons to not hope for much rather than excuses, but he does have to work off intuition and innate ability rather than do things as a hard science. The people who did it as a hard science blew up, and his point is that he doesn't always know what works and what doesn't, which is why he will be trying it now.

>Are the future safe zones built already?
They are not.

It does raise the concern, however, of what will happen when the stage starts. He will be second after Alison for a resurrection.

Chief asks Sevener, upon her return, if she even thinks it's worth saving thousands.

>"Well not if you're a sap like the girl here, of course not. That was just a log, and you know how those are emotional. Hell, I might've seen the exit to freedom, or at least what I thought was freedom, just to get yanked back by her. And hell, if a few of us can escape, the rest of us don't have to put up with this bullshit. I bet there's some of us that would willingly die if they didn't respawn at the next cycle anyway.

>Use ghost talk repeatedly until Corruptor answer
Tempting, but a ghost call receiving is less like a phone ringing and beeping, and more like a sixth sense that is there, yet non-intrusive. Multiple ghost calls are distinguishable, but don't add to the overall noise.

>Do we know if Stage 9 is going to be a bloodbath again?
Shopkeep claimed to have no idea about anything past a hunch for stage 8.

>Healer duplicate
Healer is still around, as is the duplicate, hence, it appears that the duplicate and healer will merge together at the beginning of the next cycle, if there is one.

>Have Loviro meet Arbiter
Alison will take care of that, as well as generally working with Loviro and everything that is known about the CAI.

>Formation of recursive absorption chains to include all the new people?
Chief starts having persistence duels take place for this. Logistics for a million and a half have not been practiced, but so long as people apply at least a little coordination and use time effectively, they will be able to back everyone up. Smuggler is tossed out in the middle of the horde to give everyone persistence so that this is feasible without permanently killing them.
>>
No. 569461 ID: d470e9
File 139681800651.png - (127.36KB , 800x800 , SSF7-66.png )
569461

There isn't much else Chief or Alison can think of, so they wait and relax as they can. 18:00 comes and goes, and the sole volunteer in Alison's dream house is killed, much to his apathy.

22:00 comes, and what little CU wasn't spent is destroyed, and all inventory is removed. The glitched inventory was also cleansed, Glitcher noted, which is not surprising, since the glitched inventory was more of a perversion of the legitimate inventory in a way.

At 22:51 , and Glitcher calls Chief down. He shouts to not come inside, as stepping on any of the wires will be a Bad Thing. Also, lots of the wires are actually attracted to contestants, and to please get away.
>>
No. 569462 ID: d470e9
File 139681801915.png - (130.03KB , 800x800 , SSF7-67.png )
569462

He says he may have a resurrect after all. Glitcher has not had a chance to clean the wires up into a proper button, and doesn't expect to. He wants to spend 45 minutes double checking the work, and making sure that if it fails, nothing unpleasant will happen as a result.

He also says that this will not re-instate resurrect, rather, what he did was build the actual resurrecting process. In other words, his button - or as it currently is, wire system - will resurrect exactly one person, and then be used up. It can at least be used to call Alison back early, if it works right.

The resurrect ability was in fact deleted from this cycle, so there would be no 'reinstating' it, it would be creating it from scratch and injecting it into the official system mechanics. It could be possible, but not with these time constraints.
>>
No. 569463 ID: 876044

Tell him to go for it. Having Alison alive for the next stage would be very helpful. Or him for that matter.

If he would reinstate Resurrection given enough time that would be awesome. Especially if we are the only ones that know about it.

Oh just a crazy thought here. See if he can Resurrect Alison in her Jetal body. No clue if anything like that would be possible or even something we would want to do but never hurts to ask.
>>
No. 569465 ID: ffa549

...is Glitcher all right? Some of those wires look like they're running right through him. As useful as Alison has proven as a leader, and at diplomacy with others, Chief isn't sure her corporeal return would be worth sacrificing Glitcher.

>may
Is there a significant risk for the person we're attempting to resurrect? Again, Alison would be valuable to have around, but she's more useful as a ghost than fried.

I assume this not-actually-a-button will need to be pressed before the stage begins? We can't delay it's implementation to get more people past the exit limit? (Ie, if we res Alison now, that's one less door slot others can use. If we res her after, we've got an extra person next stage).

Final concern: if this can only be used once, and Alison is resurrected, what happens to Glitcher once the stage begins? Might it be more useful to secure the Glitcher's own place among the living? (Or, since he's already breaking ghost rules anyways, would fixing himself be less involved than reviving a normal contestant).

Laugh, slightly. Not you mean to be unappreciative of the Glitcher's efforts, but you seem to have inherited Alison's propensity for questioning.
>>
No. 569466 ID: 57a559

>>569462
Take it I guess.
Glitcher have you been using time dilation for your work right? We've established you can do it on an individual basis. Just saying if you have been doing your work without much time constraints, you might feel less pressured or stressed out. I mean, could you slow this moment down for yourself right now to maybe get one last hug from Alison in?

And I know it's a bit too late to address this to Sevener but...
>>569460
>I bet there's some of us that would willingly die if they didn't respawn at the next cycle anyway.
But don't we already die technically at the end of the cycle regardless, because the personality and perspective changes between loops. You're not going to see the next loop when you start. Without the memory of it happening and having the perspective of it happening, it didn't happen to the person who had the memory. It's just by chance we take similar forms and names. We're not actually, by definition, stuck in a groundhog day loop, that requires memory of the previous loops. The Savior and the Glitcher have Groundhog day loops. Contestants and Admins don't. Our actions just don't have a lot of meaning since none of our instances have gotten free of any of the cycles.
>>
No. 569467 ID: ffa549

>dream house destroyed
Can we confirm if this was also the case for Corruptor's Sanctuary, or Savior's Sanctuary? (King's forces used to hang there, presumably they still have absorption chain connections to some people there? Ghost talk should work, then. Or maybe Savior recruited some of the people who lost faith with Alison's death).
>>
No. 569468 ID: 2c6ff1

>>569462
Optimally we should resurrect someone we have to resurrect but who would not be useful in the next stage, because they might very well die in this one. On the other hand, resurrecting Alison now would potentially save us a resurrect slot later. On the other other hand, Alison surviving to the end of the round would mean she would technically have to break her deal with Corruptor and not resurrect Bones. Also if it works improperly...

Why don't we resurrect Radmin?
>>
No. 569469 ID: ffa549

>>569466
Baseline personalities would seem to be preserved (as people choose similar names and appearances, and even strategies, over and over). Changes and experiences, aren't though. Although the fact that Glitcher admitted it might be possible to retrieve memories of previous cycles (even though he thought this was a terrible idea) implies that the personality / memory information is reserved somewhere.

Not sure you could count Glitcher's as a groundhog loop, though. Since even though he's able to retrieve memories, he's just reset like everyone else. He's actually, literally reborn each cycle he occurs. If the requirements for his birth don't happen, he doesn't. It's more like a Ghola gentic memory thing.
>>
No. 569470 ID: 57a559

>>569468
Wait are we still going through with the ressing Bones alliance after Corruptor's acting all cagey and afraid?

We can't exactly forgive a guy who's too much of a coward to admit what he's done. I mean, christ, I feel like he's the biggest idiot in the sim. Or at least the most powerful. If he could at least talk out his actions and intentions we could work together, even with the past betrayals. But no, the fucker's way too scared to even talk. We need him to work together to get anywhere but he's too busy being a shitheel.
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No. 569471 ID: d470e9
File 139682190498.gif - (14.82KB , 800x316 , SSF7-68.gif )
569471

>See if he can Resurrect Alison in her Jetal body
Glitcher would rather not, as that would greatly increase the chances of completely wasting it.

>Glitcher been using time dilation?
He has not, as it took a heft amount of constant concentration to use, and there is no way he can work on a resurrect button and dilate time at the same time.

>Can we confirm if external location destruction was also the case for Corruptor's Sanctuary, or Savior's Sanctuary?
Glitcher still cannot locate the sanctuary, but he can locate the paradise.

It is not entirely known if Glitcher will still be around as a normal contestant when the stage starts. To be safe, and with Alison's blessing, Chief tells Glitcher to use the resurrect button for himself. With the safety in numbers, Alison will almost certainly be resurrected.

So Glitcher does so. It is a success, and so Glitcher is back.

He asks Chief and Alison if they would like him to try to make another resurrect or to try to locate the corruptor's sanctuary, or see if the corruptor is in his bracket's safe zone.

There are only about 10 minutes before all abilities, aside from communication, are wiped.
>>
No. 569472 ID: 04b86a

Shouldn't the Sanctuary be gone by now? Those were due to be purged at 18:00.
>>
No. 569473 ID: 876044

He can work on bringing more people back to life later assuming its still possible. I think trying to track down Corruptor and getting some sort of read on his mindset would be best.

Even if its just "We know you are having issues right now but we still like you even though you are a bit bipolar right now. Give us a call once you get back on your meds."

One other idea for Glitcher. Can he try and stabilize one ability and hold on to it when the reset happens? Keep a copy of it protected from getting reset so we can give it back to Smuggler? If we could stop ghost talk or another vital ability around it would improve our chances.
>>
No. 569474 ID: 876044

Oh and have we checked to see if we can get back to Alison's dream? I know the guy there died but is it still around and safe to go back to?
>>
No. 569475 ID: ffa549

...as much as Alison would like to help her friends directly, she isn't so selfish to think all their time and effort should be spent trying to get her out. The thing that made her stand out as a contestant is what she believes, and hopefully she's passed enough of that on to the rest of them. You'll make it through to the next stage. Glitcher should spend his time on something other than trying to res her. She'll still be in their dreams if they need her.

Use tail and hair to grab everyone in the room in a group hug before ghost talk expires.

Be careful around Corruptor. If he wants to, he's capable of turning off the safe zone when they find him. (Meaning anyone who goes in should have a rapid out).
>>
No. 569476 ID: 04b86a

>>569472
Never mind, apparently I didn't read it thoroughly enough. Paradise survived the purge/was recreated, Glitcher's asking if we want to try to find the Sanctuary. I notice now that the dream home should have vanished when Alison died, though. Did Glitcher mess with it at some point?

If the Sanctuary's still there, then could the Glitcher use the Devotee we absorbed to find it the same way we tracked down the Scholar through Duelist? The Devotees are a collective, and are associated with the Corruptor, so it may be possible.
>>
No. 569477 ID: 57a559

>>569471
That's STILL ten minutes to try and stop the wipe.
Which, in an admin battle, is based on turns. That's a lot of turns if we get to the admin sector and try to stop it.
I don't think we should just sit and take it.
Smuggler's abilities are at risk and we can't have that. Aren't most of us banned from the shops? There's no way we can survive the stage unless shops are made useless beyond for useless abilities.
Unless MAYBE Glitcher can get it back if it's wiped. Then we might be able to circumvent the entire process.
>>
No. 569483 ID: ffa549

>>569475
Actually, abuse ghost talk to hug people in more than one location, at the same time, too.
>>
No. 569485 ID: 2c6ff1

Stay away from Corruptor's sanctuary. We don't know why he's doing what he's doing right now, and doesn't want to tell us either. If someone were to try to confront him I suspect he would not react well to it. It might result in the death of whoever goes. Probably not Glitcher, but (don't tell him this) I think Glitcher might wind up turning against us if he's allowed to go to Corruptor's sanctuary.

If Corruptor is in his safe zone... it might not be dangerous to approach. Merely going to see what the situation is like there could be worth the time. Does Glitcher have access to any of our ghosts via ghost talk? He'll be able to keep a line open with us that way.
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No. 569490 ID: d470e9
File 139683120471.png - (13.22KB , 800x800 , SSF7-69.png )
569490

Chief confirms the dream home is effectively wiped out. Glitcher says he did not expect it to persist past Alison's death, but it almost certainly would have been destroyed if the safe zone was deconstructed with Alison still death.

>Go to the admins and fight them
Sevener says that the process is well underway. They knew the chance that contestants could go fight them were high, as well as the admins returning and trying to vote against the process as well. She doesn't have any good ideas, but she guarantees that all Chief will do is wipe out a bunch of admins with no effect other than having unsupervised stage 7s, as well as a losing good number of themselves.

>Glitcher to move an ability beyond cycles
Glitcher says that this is an even more popular request than getting outside contact, and even more cycles have been devoted to trying this. Doing so, he says, will require knowing the thread layout and structure of the newborn cycle, in other words, he would have to be able to tell the future. And no, he can't do that any more than anyone.

>Actually, abuse ghost talk to hug people in more than one location, at the same time, too.
Alison has been doing this, but the rule of 3's regarding ghost form was never lifted, and so she can only be in 3 places at once. Nonetheless, she has hugged every ally she has, outside of the belenos jetals and bots who consider Alison a stranger.

Glitcher is told to stay away from the corrupted sanctuary, but to check out the safe zone after the abilities are reset, just to make sure he can teleport back after the wipe.

Alison hugs him, then hugs Chief once more and thanks him, wishing him good luck, before the ghost talk ability is wiped. Chief says to cut the sappy talk, there's no need for luck. Even if there weren't belenos reinforcements, Chief reminds her - not helping prevent some cockiness in his tone - that he damn well nearly beat her, if not for Bandit.

Who, he might add, is actually quite elated at this turn of events regarding the great equilizing process.

As it is, though, Bones will be incredibly fortunate to have a single contestant get halfway through stage 7.
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No. 569491 ID: d470e9
File 139683121611.gif - (14.88KB , 800x316 , SSF7-70.gif )
569491

Glitcher comes back at 26:06, shortly after all stats are removed and all characters are at 0 CU power.

The corruptor seemed somewhat different. He was not apologetic or kind, and seemed more sure of himself and his decision to be hostile to Alison. He did not say why, just insisted that the Glitcher was not considered his enemy, and welcomed him to stay at his side. The only apology that Glitcher got was that the corruptor would not supply his reasoning, only that there was good reason to attack Alison and her allies. The glitcher didn't want to be around Corruptor when he was like that, especially without supplying those good reasons to him.

Glitcher also admits that he did not talk to the corruptor for long or to press him, and most of the time spent was travelling.

Scholar would also like to say his goodbyes. He still has no ghost, and with that, no records beyond individual cycles. The chances of him surviving past stage 7 are slim.
>>
No. 569492 ID: 76b151

Well there does seem to be a process to give non-contestent contestant permancy which we saw when we lifted all those contestants out of the CAI simulation... could Glitcher tap into and get Scholar registered that way?
>>
No. 569494 ID: 2c6ff1

>>569491
If Corruptor thinks we gotta fight, then we gotta fight. Simple as that. Let's hope he has a plan.

>>569491
Oh, he doesn't have to die just yet. Tell him to get to Savior's paradise. Meanwhile why doesn't Glitcher experiment with granting Scholar a ghost?
>>
No. 569495 ID: ffa549

>he would have to be able to tell the future. And no, he can't do that any more than anyone
Well, he could if the future were deterministic. Even if the configuration of each cycle is randomized, computer generated random numbers are never truly 'random'. With sufficient understanding, conditions could be predicted.

Unfortunately that level of understanding would likely take far more time than we have.

>The chances of [Scholar] surviving past stage 7 are slim.
We saw an enforcer return from the dead before due to a system glitch. Even if he doesn't have a ghost, he may not be lost completely if he falls. The special resurrection at the end of the stage might still work for him.

Or, if he doesn't wish to chance it, he could always take Savior's offer. Actually, without the ghost house anymore, it might be a good idea to put some of people not so keen on fighting there. (Some of our intellectuals, people studying the mechanics of the contest, stuff like that. Dunno if they'll wish to opt out of fighting, but we should offer to some). There are ways to contribute without dying for the cause. In the end, ideas and learning may prove more valuable than simply who survives the stages.

>Corruptor
...I wish he would trust us.
>>
No. 569496 ID: 57a559

I really hope he has a good reason and that it will help us out in the end because otherwise he's just a really dumb guy.
Just SUPER dumb.
It's dumb enough that he won't share those reasons, I mean, why wouldn't he? For manipulations sake? Reason's aren't chess strategies. Most of the time when it isn't manipulation.
>>
No. 569497 ID: 876044

Well Corruptor will have to wait until later then. I think we should switch our focus to finding out what info he has found instead of trying to talk to him. If we can figure out what his plan is we stand a better chance of countering it.

Give Scholar a hug and tell him we will not stop looking for a way to find him a ghost. Tell him to do his best in the stage and with luck we will meet at the other side. Ask Glitcher if there is anything he can do for him.

Tell Glitcher to stay safe and work on figuring out a new system that we can use for communication. Our other abilities we can live without but losing ghost talk is going to hurt.
>>
No. 569498 ID: d2995c

>It's dumb enough that he won't share those reasons, I mean, why wouldn't he?
He is probably afraid that we will do something, so us knowing that we can do that thing would make us more able to do it.
>>
No. 569499 ID: d470e9
File 139683724118.png - (26.56KB , 800x800 , SSF7-71.png )
569499

>Is the future deterministic?
Glitcher says it is, but trying to figure out how it will be would take lifetimes. Real life lifetimes of hundreds of years, not average contestant lifetimes.

Chief says there was once a glitch in which an enforcer was revived. Scholar says this is true, but it is possible that revived enforcer was a simple copy of the first, rather than the first brought back

Scholar is told, then, to go to the savior's paradise. Scholar says that is a good idea, if Savior would have him. King is called on to summon the Savior, to which he will gladly take Scholar out of the stage.

>Give Scholar a hug
Alison isn't around right now.

Glitcher is told to find out what he can about ghost communication, or getting scholar a ghost, or really anything at all. Meanwhile, if there is anything chief can provide, then he will.

There isn't, though, and while glitcher has ruled out some methods of his, he has not found anything significant before stage 7 begins.

For the time being, at least, Chief can not worry about the corruptor, and he has no misgivings about destroying Bones' house.

Chief decides to take some time off for the last hour. It's always the calmest. People are mostly silent in the last stretch, often tense, as the stage approaches them.

Alison will assuredly be revived, as everyone has been told that she is priority number one, even beyond the pseudo emperors. Chief, however, is not entirely confident that he will see a stage 8. Unusual, he thinks, that after surrounding himself in company for so long, he now wants to spend a moment to himself.
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No. 569500 ID: d470e9
File 139683724826.png - (19.61KB , 800x800 , SSF7-71-pause.png )
569500

>>
No. 569502 ID: ffa549

>Scholar, Savior
Maybe Loviro and some of our belnos scientists should be going with him? On the one hand, they're more useful to us alive and thinking about how the simulation works than ghosts, on the other, what the next stage has been described as is exactly the kind of thing they might be good at.

...I suppose with the millions we have going in in this encounter though, the odds of any one individual surviving are small.
>>
No. 569503 ID: 876044

Just had a thought. We need to consider that Corruptor might be running a plan based off of reliable info.

Like say he has a note that says "Do not team up with Alison until stage 8. Pretend to be her enemy so she will stop Bones." He could be using us to complete some plan that he can not tell us about. That or he just could be a bit nuts. Either way keep a eye out for anything interesting.
>>
No. 569739 ID: 88960e

>Corruptor claims to have a good reason
>We're not still honoring the Bones deal, are we?
...maybe he's testing to see if we will.
>>
No. 569751 ID: 2c6ff1

>>569739
He already broke his side of the deal, we have no reason to honor our side.
>>
No. 569772 ID: 88960e

>>569751
Yes, I'm aware. I'm wondering if perhaps, he broke the deal specifically to see if we would still honor it or not, in spite of that.

A bizarre test, if you will. (It would explain why he was unwilling to give a reason, at least. It would defeat the purpose). Maybe to see if this cycle's Alison will behave the way he wants at a specific juncture later (we've been unwilling to take the kill 'em all temporary escape solution before).

...course, I'm not sure if that would make this a test for honor or against blind idealism (or what, then, the 'right' responce would be). Moot point for the moment.
>>
No. 571114 ID: d470e9
File 139770321563.gif - (7.83KB , 800x600 , S7A1-1.gif )
571114

>Maybe Loviro and some of our Belenos scientists should be going with him?
Chief acts on this. All people with particularly valuable skillsets will be asked to go to the paradise.

He then waits until the timer runs out and forces him in the stage.

Shopkeep is there, explaining that until the Rulekeeper is generated and tested, he will continue to address any rule upkeep and introduction.

Starting with Area 1. There's too many people here, Shopkeep says, so this is just going to be a single player puzzle to weed some people out. But there is a timelimit, which is based on a curve - if you fail the puzzle, you will die and all, but also, the slowest denomination over an even 100,000 survivors will also be discarded. In other words, if there are, say, 123,456 people who succeeded in the puzzle, then the slowest 23,456 people will be killed, leaving an even 100,000. Shopkeep doesn't think it's meant to be hard or anything, it's just to get a clean number of contestants this time.

Shopkeep also warns that these puzzles were among the original set before the cycles started warping them. They are old, but they're new to everyone including the administration, so they're not well tested, and there is probably a reason why they got warped. If Chief or anyone feels that they were cheated by the outcome of a certain puzzle, then Chief will be able to summon Shopkeep and discuss things. If it's felt that the outcome was not fair, then actions will be taken.

Shopkeep gives Chief a couple of basic abilities.

Summon Shopkeep (As Rulekeeper)
Review Known Rulesets


http://tgchan.org/wiki/Unnatural_Selection_Stats
>>
No. 571115 ID: d470e9
File 139770323776.gif - (20.03KB , 800x600 , S7A1-2.gif )
571115

Isolated Exit NPC

Abilities gained:
Have NPC talk - When used, the NPC will say a predetermined message. This message never changes.
Trigger NPC - The NPC's ability will be triggered. There is one NPC who's ability is to transport the contestant to the next area. The other 9 NPC's ability is to kill the contestant.

Blue NPCs always tell the truth.

Red NPCs always lie.

White NPCs can tell both truth and lies.


Chief has all of them speak.

NPC1: Ten is lying.
NPC2: Cross reference all information.
NPC3: Blue NPCs have your survivability interests at heart. We will not try to use the truth to mislead you.
NPC4: The exit is either 1 or 2.
NPC5: Four have your exit.
NPC6: Don't be hasty.
NPC7: Four should be trusted.
NPC8: Ten is lying.
NPC9: More ambiguous leads are still better than fewer of the same.
NPC10: The exit is 2. The exit is 4.
>>
No. 571116 ID: 04b86a

NPC7 says NPC4 should be trusted.
NPC4 says the exit is either 1 or 2.
NPC8 says NPC10 is lying, but NPC8 is a liar so there must be some truth to what NPC10 is saying.
NPC10 says the exit is 2 AND the exit is 4.
4 is not one of the established possible exits, but 2 is.

The exit is 2.
>>
No. 571118 ID: f996af

Chief, no more naming NPCs according to numerical concepts. Since you hear names as you assign them, giving someone the name 4 can be confusing about if an NPC means NPC 4 or 4 NPCs
>>
No. 571121 ID: 2c6ff1

How about we think outside the box. Just ask one of the blue NPCs to raise their hand if NPC2 has the exit.
>>
No. 571122 ID: 99624f

Ok 1 and 8 give counteracting instructions for 10 so he is both telling the truth and lying.

Then Seven says four should be trusted. Not 4 should be trusted.

So guessing the exit is 2 as well.

Npc5 saying "Four have your exit" is a bit out of place just because of the grammar. Guessing this is a symptom of these stages being a buggy mess. So watch out for possible errors.

Before you pick a exit quickly try some stuff to break the game. See if the npc's are sentient or just placeholders. They might not be able to say anything different but maybe they can gesture or something.

Also might be good to see if our shopkeeper survived the reset ok. Next time you see him try and find out if he remembers everything that happened with Alison.
>>
No. 571123 ID: 2c6ff1

I'd like to note that there's a chance the exit is NPC 4. My reasoning:
The lie "Four have your exit" has grammar indicating it is not talking about NPC 4. This could be a lie meant to deceive us, and the presence of NPC 3's truth of "Blue NPCs have your survivability interests at heart. We will not try to use the truth to mislead you." could be clueing us in on this- that red NPCs use their lies to mislead us.
The truth "Four should be trusted" could mean to trust NPC 4 as an exit, or that there are four trustworthy NPCs. It might not mean that NPC 4 is telling the truth, in which case we can't rely on NPC 4's "1 or 2" statement to narrow things down.
The truth "Don't be hasty" could also indicate that we should not pick the obvious answer.

So in the end 2 is the obvious exit, while 4 is the other possibility, if gotten to via an odd leap of logic.
>>
No. 571124 ID: 2c6ff1

>>571122
>buggy mess
Then we should summon the shopkeeper and ask if NPC 5's grammar is correct.
>>
No. 571127 ID: 04b86a

>>571123
I considered this, but NPC3 says they won't use the truth to mislead us, and if NPC4 is lying to us then he can't really be trusted, now can he?

Reds telling us something that's only a lie from a less obvious interpretation is interesting, and something we'll have to watch out for, but I don't think we need to worry about that right now.

And before we start experimenting with this stuff don't forget that we have a time limit, and that the vast majority of the contestants here haven't learned to find exploits whenever the opportunity arises and will just go right for the exit.
>>
No. 571220 ID: 824f43

You know, if Gambler were alive, he'd just have chosen, and been right, already. And I can only imagine how Guardsman would handle this after he chopped up that room last time.

>NPC6: Don't be hasty. (true)
>NPC2: Cross reference all information. (true)
These are commands, not statements. As such, they cannot be true or false.

Bug report.

>NPC1: Ten is lying. (true)
>NPC8: Ten is lying. (false)
Obviously Ten is telling a lie and the truth.

>NPC10: The exit is 2. The exit is 4. (true and false)
So the exit is either 2 or 4.

>NPC7: Four should be trusted. (true)
The problem here is ambiguity. Are we meant to trust Four's statement, or that he or she posses the exit? I suppose it makes the most sense to assume that this means four speaks the truth.

>NPC5: Four have your exit. (false)
This grammar doesn't make sense. If it's meant to be a statement to Chief, I would expect "Four has your exit". As written, it reads more like it is addressed to four, instructing him or her to have your exit (whatever that means). Or perhaps it means that four separate npcs have a valid exit? Of course, this is a lie. Which would tell us that four separate npcs do not have our exit. Which is redundant information, since the stage rules already gave us the number of exits (1 in 10).

Chief should probably ask Shopkeep to clarify if that grammar is intentional or a mistake.

For the moment, if we assume it means "Four has your exit" (false) or "Four does not have your exit". This is also ambiguous, though. The obvious interpretation is this means that 4 is not the way out. Which sort of makes sense in that it resolves the ambiuity of Seven's statement. It could also mean that four's statement is incorrect (that neither option he or she has is the exit).

>NPC4: The exit is either 1 or 2. (presumed true)
Combined with NPC10's statement, 2 is the exit.

>NPC9: More ambiguous leads are still better than fewer of the same. (false)
"More ambiguous leads are not better than fewer of the same". Meaning we should go with the answer supported by less ambiguous logic. While we can make a case for other exits if we try (see >>571123 ) the case for 2 requires less ambiguity / odd leaps of logic.
>>
No. 571286 ID: d470e9
File 139777999261.png - (10.88KB , 800x800 , S7A-3.png )
571286

>Summon shopkeep for grammar check
Shopkeep confirms that "Four have the exit" is not a mistake.

He also convinced the judges to make two available exits.

The exits are not equal, however, as the lower one will put Chief on a line of competitive areas in which the end will be the beginning of the upper path. In other words, the best choice will skip some areas, while the passable choice will let him survive but have to fight more. So choose carefully.

Chief asks why Shopkeeper looks like he's on the drugs moreso than usual, to which Shopkeep says that in this first area in stage 7, he has done more rulekeeping than the Rulekeeper ever will. Even if most of the 'rulekeeping' was just dealing with a lot of complaints.
>>
No. 571287 ID: 2c6ff1

Complaints eh? The exit is four, then.
>>
No. 571288 ID: 66c5cb

>>571286

Try your best to channel Allison and give the Shopkeeper a hug. No harm in it, and it might help in the future, though the administration is probably going to be more on guard for shopkeeper defections.
>>
No. 571295 ID: 28b194

NPC5's grammar is correct, thus NPC5's statement is useless. (It's pretty apparent that four NPCs don't have our exit).

NPC7 is ambiguous--it can be plural or singular. That is, either NPC4 should be trusted, or there're four NPCs that should be trusted (which would mean we shouldn't trust the white NPCs).
>>
No. 571298 ID: 28b194

Ask Shopkeeper if he can tell us whether NPC7 means the singular or the plural.
>>
No. 571301 ID: 99624f

I think speed at this point is our ally.

If these puzzles were not a buggy mess then it would be a good idea to think over every angle. But as it is lets go with the most obvious choice and keep on moving.

This whole area seems like the programers were writing up a logic puzzle and never finished it. With the amount of people running this stage if we go slow we will not make it to the end quickly enough.

So give Shopkeeper a hug or a pat on the back and ask him if he as any advice he can tell us.

We had figured 2 was the exit and the new info does not invalidate that choice. So unless we can get more info out of Shopkeeper lets go with that.
>>
No. 571329 ID: 4d75a8

The better exit is 2 or 4 depending on how you want to take NPC 7's answer.

>NPC7: Four should be trusted.

"4 NPCs should be trusted" is wrong, since there are 4 blue NPCs and 1 white NPC who is, while telling a lie, is also telling a truth. Meaning that there are 5 who should be trusted. In any case, blues won't try to mislead us, so taking the more obvious answer would be a better choice.

Therefore the better exit is 2, although by the sounds of it, both will get you through anyway, so just choosing quickly is a good choice.
>>
No. 571332 ID: 824f43

Interesting. The rules update seems to have modified how Shopkeeper works. Before, he wouldn't have remembered that he had dealt with all the other complaints, or necessarily be aware or his working in parallel.

...that, or the load is so extreme he's frazzled in spite of his selective memory and parallel instances.

Not sure if congratulations or pity are in order.

>>571288
If Chief were to do that: "...only because Alison is unavailable to offer at this stage."

>We had figured 2 was the exit and the new info does not invalidate that choice.
Sounds right to me. Two bird feather-fingers in the air, if you will, Chief. (Hopefully it won't end up being an ironic victory sign).
>>
No. 571602 ID: d470e9
File 139795405228.gif - (21.91KB , 800x600 , S7A1-4.gif )
571602

The exit is two. That is what Chief would say. Something was nagging at him, preventing him from committing to that, saying that the answer might be four.

That was until Shopkeep came, reporting that there were enough complaints to change the rules.

Concluding the answer was 2 was not difficult. If people complained, that is because the answer is not two.
>>
No. 571603 ID: d470e9
File 139795409047.png - (19.00KB , 800x800 , S7A-5.png )
571603

Chief triggers NPC Four.

Perfect Choice - Chief will advance 3 stages.

Shopkeep says that is definitely not the train of logic Chief was supposed to follow. It is, however, what happened, and so Chief will go on to the upper path, while Shopkeep will extend many apologies to the people who went with NPC2 too fast.

Chief thinks NPC6's message was unintentionally good. It's going to be rough going, if the puzzles continue requiring leaps of logic like this.
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No. 571604 ID: d470e9
File 139795410595.png - (13.33KB , 800x800 , S7A-6.png )
571604

Area 4 - 400,000 entrants remain

Please answer the following questions in any way you deem fit. Note that the system will know if you are lying - it is suggested you tell the truth. If the questions are too vague, you may lay down special circumstances to give your answer context.

1. Could you work with someone you despise?
2. What do you seek in an ally?
3. What do you seek in a lover?
4. Is an enemy someone you could ever respect?
5. When is scheming appropriate over direct confrontation?
6. How many people would you kill to survive?

>>
No. 571605 ID: 99624f

Man I am not sure what crazy leap of logic would have ever gotten us to 4 if we had not talked to shop keep. But maybe you need to make crazy leaps in these puzzles. I guess we should have trusted the little blue dudes and just gone straight for the one 7 suggested. Lying can take so many forms the white and red are basically untrustworthy.

Ok this next part looks like it might be preparing you for a role in the supposed free form section. Like a silly personality test to decide your alignment or whatever. I would not trust the whole can tell if you are lying part. Maybe they can and maybe they can not but answer as you see fit I guess.

Like before might want to think up half the answers and then call in shopkeep and see if we can learn anything from how he reacts. Make sure to ask for situations for all the questions and have shopkeep deliver them.

1. Yes but the stakes would have to be high enough.

2. Strength of character, Willingness to follow through, matching goals, Blah blah you could go on all day.

3. Same stuff as 2 plus physical attraction?

4. Yes

5. Depends on what you mean by direct confrontation.

6. Again depends on the situation.
>>
No. 571606 ID: ca65e6

>>571604
1. Could you work with someone you despise?
Yes, and have done so.

2. What do you seek in an ally?
Obedience, resourcefulness, smarts, skill, power. Someone useful and cooperative or at least manipulable.

3. What do you seek in a lover?
Haha what I have no idea, Chief will have to either express confusion or think about his own personal experiences to figure THAT one out. I don't know if Chief has any experience or even has anything under those clothes.

4. Is an enemy someone you could ever respect?
Yes, like Alison or Corruptor.

5. When is scheming appropriate over direct confrontation?
When a direct confrontation would incur too many losses, not work at all, or leave you vulnerable.

6. How many people would you kill to survive?
Hundreds, and have done so, though in this Contest the AIs do not experience true death.
>>
No. 571607 ID: 57a559

>>571604
1. Could I? Yes, would I is the more important question. But you didn't ask that.
2. Compentence
3. I seek no lovers, at most they will seek me. I will likely have no objection unless they make me uncomfortable. Love is not important enough for me to seek, but it is also not unwelcome.
4. Yes
5. Scheming is preferred when the direct approach's predicted outcome is unfavorable.
6. Only as much as necessary.
>>
No. 571608 ID: 824f43

>1. Could you work with someone you despise?
...perhaps. If the motivation for working with them were strong enough. If not, there is a good chance I would plot against them.

I am not sure there is anyone I despise at the moment, though. I have known anger, and at times hate, but my old battles seem small compared to the enormity of the current situation.

>2. What do you seek in an ally?
I once sought those who could be controlled, especially by fear. And I kept those of them that were most useful.

I still prefer allies who are useful. But I have been shown there are alternate means of leadership and control; perhaps more reliable and successful methods. And that there are many more ways, different ways, to be useful than I once knew. ...and I have learned to appreciate an allies who have perhaps taught me to be a better person than I might be, on my own.

>3. What do you seek in a lover?
(Assuming Chief never bothered to body mod himself in that way, or spend time doing that).

...I would first seek sufficient time and a situation where I was able to enjoy such luxuries. But I would seek someone intelligent, and physically attractive to myself (although I won't waste time trying to predict or explain what traits I might find attractive given the immense variation in our self selected physical appearances).

>4. Is an enemy someone you could ever respect?
Yes. This is, in fact, something that has already occurred.

>5. When is scheming appropriate over direct confrontation?
When scheming yields better results than direct confrontation, or the same results at a lower cost. Obviously, this calculation will depend on the goal, and what costs are important in the situation.

>6. How many people would you kill to survive?
You that you have survived to the end of the contest in several previous cycles in the contest. There are a trillion contestants, billions more system employees, and millions of potential CAI battle entrants. There are three 'victory' slots. The Grim mathematics say you are capable of allowing all but 2 of those vast masses to perish for your own, temporary, survival.

I hope, in the end, the cost in lives to end all of this will be considerably lower. But I am likely willing to pay a higher price than many of my allies.
>>
No. 571613 ID: 824f43

>3. What do you seek in a lover?
Oh, and I can't resist adding this:

And preferably someone who does not already have half a dozen suitors.
>>
No. 571615 ID: f996af

1: Yes
2: Good Judgement
3: Happiness, theirs and my own.
4: Yes
5: When it accomplishes the goals with the least immediate and predicted cost.
6: Enough to make it stick, but not enough to compromise why I want to keep living.
>>
No. 571641 ID: 968675

My only guess for that logic is that Shopkeeper could technically be considered a "White NPC", and thus lied when explaining the rules. If you assume the reds were telling the truth, and the blues lying, then the only thing strange about it is NPC 5's grammar, and you end up with NPC 4 as the exit.
>>
No. 571648 ID: d470e9
File 139797804580.gif - (16.56KB , 800x600 , S7A2-1.gif )
571648

Chief decides on his answers.

1. Yes.
2. Good judgement, competence, and other assorted positive traits while maintaining room to be manipulated.
3. Chief does not seek lovers; but if that changed, all he would seek is happiness for both parties. And that the would-be lover does not have half a dozen suitors already.
4. Yes.
5. When doing so is more likely to yield better results than not.
6. Not so many to destroy what few ideals Chief stands by. Otherwise, enough.


Chief ends up on a larger platform, now, with 9 others.

Abilities Gained
Trade Answer - An manner to safely trade answers with one or more others. Each player will choose any answer they know - either one of their own, or a question they gained from another player. These choices will be known to the people within the trade, including who the answer belongs to. If all players agree to the final trade proposal, then the trade is enacted. Every player must choose at least one answer - a trade will not trigger if a player chooses nothing, even if all participants would agree.
Link - Choose at least one target. All targets will get the chance to decline this link. If all players accept this link, then all players will be able to talk telepathically to each other. In the case of a 3 person or more link, anything one person says will be heard by both other people. The only way person A will be able to say something to person B without person C hearing is to either set up a link with person B alone, or to attempt to whisper using normal speech (however, people will be able to see or overhear this if they are paying attention.) A player can only maintain 3 links at any given time.
Disengage Link - Disengages from an existing link. If this link contains at least 3 people including the user, then this will not break the link for the other players.
Elimination - Target one other contestant. Success in using this ability requires that the user accurately recites all of the target's answers to the questionnaire. If the user succeeds, this will eliminate the other player. If the user fails to answer accurately, then the user is eliminated.

Rules: Use any given abilities to eliminate all other players. The last survivor will continue to the next area.

>>
No. 571649 ID: 99624f

Ok you want to get as much info here as possible while giving out as little as possible.

So speed is the key to start. You want to try and trade say your number 1 answer to as many players as you can before they use your answer to trade to someone else.

Then everyone would know your 1 but you would have many answers to then trade for others while no one would know anything about you except for the one you gave out.

The second part is that you avoid giving out any information that could let people guess your answers.

And finally you need to keep people talking so they do not stop communicating with you if they realize you are ahead.

Also I think a few of the people here are from the simulation so you should be able to work together with them. If you have a few people on your side you can have them trade there info and then give it to you to get ahead.
>>
No. 571653 ID: 033ecc

Well I guess the first thing to check is, do you know anyone here? Do any of them know you? You might be at a slight disadvantage here, since you have some popularity, but at the same time, it seems most of them are from the Belenos sim and won't know you very well.

... Is there even a time limit on this thing? With the current ruleset, and no time limit, I can only see this ending in a stalemate. Nobody would be dumb enough to give out all 6 of their answers, although, unlike them, you have exceptionally good memory...
>>
No. 571654 ID: ca65e6

>>571648
Ah. So, if you trade, you're giving up the keys to your own destruction in exchange for someone else's keys. Answers 1 and 4 are generally binary so they're worth less. Answer 5 is likely to be similar between players since it's a common sense question, answer 3 on the other hand is likely to vary a lot.

Looks like a bunch of players here are from the belenosian sim, which is unsurprising considering their numbers advantage. Too bad Chief knows nothing about that world, some inside info would've been handy.

I predict there will be some time spent where nobody trades at all. Talking is free, though, so engage in small talk with people. Try to find out some of their answers without trading.
>>
No. 571672 ID: e52586

Consider the borders of the area and make sure not to get pushed off.
>>
No. 571676 ID: 28b194

Making others incorrectly think they have your answers is a way to eliminate players. So misleading statements. But they'd have to be subtle. Stuff that could be construed as slips. In particular, it's important to come off as less pragmatic than Chief really is. So either a trusting or vengeful persona.
>>
No. 571678 ID: 824f43

Oh lookie. It's the cleaning jetal robot. And a few other Belenosian looking people.

Doesn't look like there's any way to overflow, unfortunately. Although this very much looks like your area to shine, Chief. It's all about one on one and one on group manipulation and exploitation. You may have learned other ways of working with people since, but you're good at this kind of thing.

Worth noting- we can still talk. The basic communication ability we were given was never taken away. We've just gained additional means of communication (trade answer and link are just additional means of communication. One that enforces truth, another that allows covert communication).

Does trade answer require that you specify which question the answer answers? The rules don't specify. If not, vague answers are useful trading material, in that recipients won't know for sure which question it goes with. Unfortunately, this doesn't help us much, as our vaguest answers are both 'yes' and we only had two questions that make sense to answer with a simple yes or no.

There appears to be a hole in the rules that would allow for perpetual stalemate. If one or more persons refuses to trade any answers, or converse with the others at all, we have no way to determine their answers.

>Disadvantage: Chief has a reputation
If that's actually true, we can use that to our advantage. If they've heard the old worries that Chief might not have been trustworthy and working his own agenda with Alison? Let them believe it. Subtly encourage it. That will get them to think our answer to 4 is no. And possibly get them to guess incorrect answers to other answers.

Another misleading factor: we can let the first half of answer 3 slip / become obvious (as a contestant who didn't bother to explore those areas you likely stand out from the CAI sim people), while the catty second remark would remain unknown. Alternatively, you could let someone believe the reason you're following Alison is due to desires of a baser nature (which even sort of fits into the plot from last paragraph- it gives them another reason to think badly of you and guess answers wrong).
>>
No. 571679 ID: 57a559

Summon shopkeep
None of these rules say you can't lie here.
>>
No. 572486 ID: d470e9
File 139857035430.gif - (18.12KB , 800x600 , S7A2-2.gif )
572486

Chief may have a reputation, but he did operate from inside of his room. His face may not be matched to the name, unless the system is giving it away to them. They don't appear to be singling Chief out either way.

Shopkeep is about to be summoned, but he shows up on his own, freezing all abilities before letting people begin.

A little part of the rules that didn't make it to the main ruleset is added.

If no trades are performed inside of a 5 minute period, then the game breaks the tie. Whoever has the most answers of all contestants disincluding themselves will be the winner. Should multiple people have the same number, then the winner will be the one having the most answers belonging to a single contestant besides themselves (example: Person A only knows answer for Person B and C, with 2 answers for B and 4 for C. Person D knows 3 answers from each E and F. If the game ends with a tie breaker, then A and D both know 6 answers total. Since A owns the most for a single person, then A will win the next phase of the tie break).
If this remains a tie, then survivors will continue on. However, the exit may only be overloaded by a maximum of 4 people. If 5 or more have a tiebreaker, then all contestants will be killed.
If multiple contestants survive, then they will engage in another puzzle to the death in which only one will survive.


Shopkeep also adds that you can't perform a trade if all recipients already have the answers offered in the trade.
>>
No. 572487 ID: d470e9
File 139857063493.png - (35.42KB , 924x900 , S7A2-3.png )
572487

Chief sees a possibility of what might go on as a result. He doubts that many people would be foolish enough to toss all 6 of their answers into the ring. However, if everyone only gives out 5, save for one or two possible idiots, then soon, trades will trickle to a slow while only an occasional trade is made by people behind to perpetuate the game and try to catch up. Eventually everyone - or at least enough - will have 5 answers to everyone - in which case, a tie breaker will not allow everyone to advance, and instead kill everyone for the same reason that not playing the game isn't an option.

Therefore, it's likely that as things approach 5 answers to all other contestants, a few contestants that have only shared a couple of their own answers may form an alliance with each other, share the rest of their own answers, and refuse to give each other's out to others, crippling the maximum number of answers any one person has. However, even then, it's likely there would be a disparity in how many answers are known within the alliance. They are liable to backstab the others and continue trading to get the edge.

Chief can continue with this stream of conscience he's forming habitually, but what it comes down to is that a scenario in which at least 5 people have 5/6 of everyone else's answers - Chief will call it a 5-all scenario - is extremely likely to occur, provided he is not overthinking this or missing something important.

If this happens, what he needs is someone he can trust with such conviction, and someone who can trust chief with equal conviction, as to trade their 6th hidden answer with each other. That will let them survive the tie break, and they can have a 50% chance of success duel after this.

While Chief doubts he can trust anyone here with that, he can inform the other that killing Chief may not be in his best interest - doing so during a 5-all scenario will give away that they had 6 answers for someone. In other words, they will realize what he and Chief did to avoid the 5-all genocide, realize that the betrayer is going to win, and so they do the same thing. Then the betrayer has at least as much competition as he would have if he didn't kill Chief, likely more. He can also use that to assure another person to trust Chief in such a deal.

>So speed is the key to start.
>Say your number 1 answer, and use others' answers to get as much as you can
The added information did not change this. He does need to spitfire trades and alliances asap, though, to make sure that he does in fact get included in a 5-all. Chief can do that much. It's not difficult, and it's likely many people will do the same, nearly ensuring a widespread 5-all.

>Consider the borders of the area and make sure not to get pushed off.'
No one may attack others, but Chief will heed this advice. He would find it hilariously inept of the system - even moreso than usual - to introduce this sort of puzzle when it can so easily be turned into nothing but a sumo death match.

In the meanwhile, Chief gets his mentality set up to make sure he will never forget anything said here, and prepares to start.

Shopkeep says he will answer any more questions before he unlocks the abilities, but otherwise, he wishes everyone good luck again.

This puzzle will take an excessively long period to play out. In the interest of time, time skips will be incurred - how well Chief performs will be dependent on suggestions specifically guiding him to do well at the crucial beginning, and suggestions forming general hypothesis and thoughts about the game in general that Chief can keep in mind during the long term course of the game.
>>
No. 572491 ID: 99624f

Ok first thing to watch for is to be prepared for the unexpected. Just because you have figured out how things would optimally go does not mean someone will not throw a wrench in the works.

For instance if two people in the room are both on bones team. Or if several people are from the harvest sim and work together. Someone could find a glitch in this stage and use it against you. So be on the watch for anything odd.

If you do find one of the "idiots" that makes a mistake and you have 6 answers for them you should not eliminate them right away but try to "ally" with them and stop anyone else from getting there answers. That way you will be ahead for any tie breakers.
>>
No. 572500 ID: 0c64b2

One weakness of this tiebreaker plan is that once two people know the others six answers, either could backstab the other. While this will have repercussions for the betrayer later on, the victim will still be nonetheless dead. A solution would be to instead have a circle of 3 (or more) people. Let us say these people are A, B, and C.

A will give 6 answers to B and get 5 answers back.
B will give 6 answers to C and get 5 answers back.
C will give 6 answers to A and get 5 answers back.

The result is that no one person can backstab both of the others, and a circle of trust will be formed. If one person backstabs another, the last remaining person can still eliminate the betrayer while still staying safe, discouraging anyone from backstabbing, since it is effectively suicide.

I only hope that this kind of three way trade can be set up simultaneously, otherwise, complain until you can set it up.

Edit: Thinking further, this can only work if it is three people, no more, no less.
>>
No. 572505 ID: 28b194

I just noticed something. No maximum was specified. In other words, just reaching 6 answers might not be enough if someone can manage to reach 9 answers.

>>572500
A safer form of this would be:

Person A gives 5 each to B, C, and D.
Person B gives 5 each to A, C, and D.
Person C gives 5 each to A, B, and D.
Person D gives 5 each to A, B, and C.

This results in 15 answers being held by each.

That can be reduced to 3 persons which is the absolute minimum but only results in 10 answers each. Involving fewer people means less chances for things to go wrong, though.

The problem is if someone attempts to trade outside the circle. Also, this assumes it counts total answers beyond 6.
>>
No. 572511 ID: 6199a3

>>572505
Ah, sorry I should have mentioned that this is during the 5-all scenario, where everyone will have 45 answers each. During this, using the 3 person circle of trust, these three people will end up with 46 answers each, therefore winning the tie. The reason I describe it as 6 answers for 5 is due to the fact that a trade will only work if they are new answers, therefore this should be done during the 5-all scenario.

This is if the 5-all scenario works out. Depending on how it goes, the plan may have to be changed.

Anyway, I propose teaming up with... Mister Many-Legs, and... caterpillar track person? They look pretty innocent and malleable.
>>
No. 572512 ID: 28b194

>>572500
Oh, yeah, and this given plan would give 11 answers each, plus 6 total known from a single contestant. It hedges bets better than my proposal but results in a lower answer total. I'll call this the "trust variant" since I'll be referring to it later this post.

Further thoughts: not knowing who has which answers creates a dangerous situation where no one knows what max to aim for. If someone somehow manages to reach 20 answers, maybe by duplicitously setting up two of the three-person webs, we won't know until we suddenly die. Of course, we could attempt that very tactic, at the risk of being found out if people compare notes outside the web. It would be a nasty trick, though. The highest total that can be reached by this type of plan is 40 from 3 4-person webs or 4 3-person webs. The trust variant of 3-person webs would give 44 answers total, but reprisal for this betrayal would be nasty and it's unlikely anyone else would reach 40 anyways.

The safe bet is probably the trust variant of a single 3-person web or a 4-person web. The highest possible score is 40 or 44 from multiple webs, but this both runs the risk of discovery and is a generally rotten move.
>>
No. 572513 ID: 28b194

>>572511
Oh, yeah, that clarification changes things. Yeah, your plan would be a good one in that case.
>>
No. 572520 ID: 824f43

The trust plan to avoid the all-five works off a variant of the prisoner's dilemma. It's using trust as the limited commodity to outplay the others.

There's another means to manipulate this economy, though. Decrease supply.

Consider- if we trade answers with someone, and then they die without trading that answer to anyone else, we get an advantage. We know an answer the others now have no way to attain.

The trick is, of course, we don't have a direct means to kill anyone. The only way this can work is via manipulation. You have to manipulate someone into killing themselves by attempting to use the Elimination ability on someone with incomplete information.

If successfully executed, you could find yourself with an extra answer by the five-all scenario, getting you though without having to worry about being backstabbed or surviving the sudden death at the end.
>>
No. 573896 ID: d470e9
File 139977183087.png - (13.52KB , 800x800 , S7A2-4.png )
573896

>A will give 6 answers to B and get 5 answers back.
>B will give 6 answers to C and get 5 answers back.
>C will give 6 answers to A and get 5 answers back.
>This will make a circle of trust, and any backstabber could be killed by the remaining one.
Excellent. Chief would love to enact this idea. Trades can involve any number of players, so this is feasible.

Chief begins with aggression, as staying on top of the answers will only prove advantageous. Others get the similar idea, and the wheeling and dealing for answers occurs. While some cliques form of obvious favoritism, links are regularly broken, remade and exchanged. A few make smalltalk via normal communication.

Chief engages in the smalltalk to a few as well, keeping an eye on the large bird Shojka that appears to be desperately aggressive, and has been hounding people for their answers for some time. People do not want to give out their own answers, as expected, with a couple of exceptions that believe it will be fine so long as their sixth is hidden away.

The tall bird asks if Chief is with Alison, to which Chief answers in the affirmative. When asked why this Alison character is worth following like the emperor says, Chief claims that she has got the following she has by her own hands, in other words, the only reason is that she is an extraordinarily powerful force. That's all.

Trades start coming to a grinding halt as people believe that they may be in the lead. Chief has lost track of time, as it's all he can do to remember every single deal he has made, every answer he has, and every answer he knows someone else has. People are desperate for something to write on, but there is nothing. Body modification is impossible, there is no blood to draw, and they cannot etch into the platform.

The small talk continues for hours. Finally Alison comes back on topic, and more questions about her arise. Chief explains what he did before, and is nothing more than an ally to him. He tenses up, noting that what he said is exceedingly close to one of the very answers he said. He eventually forgets about it, and another hour or two passes before people begin demanding that others give their own answer. Chief eventually decides on the right time to relent, and gives all of his answers except number 2, about allies.

Shojka has used Extermination!
>>
No. 573897 ID: d470e9
File 139977184182.png - (13.19KB , 800x800 , S7A2-5.png )
573897

Shojka has failed, and has been eliminated.

Too aggressive and too desperate. Chief was confident that he was one of the bigger competitors here and is glad he's out, but that puts a large flag on Chief, now. A large flag of caution and knowing he's got a lot of answers.

Trades by this point are only made by those who are behind, trying to keep up by the game. Chief cannot see when a trade happens or what is involved, but he notes that two people appear to be eyeing each other in a state of near panic. He expects they may have formed a circular pact - although with only two of them, it's more just a linear pact. Chief thinks it's about time to make a triangular pact as he thought of just before beginning.

The trouble is who to trust. Those two, having most likely just formed a pact, are out, as are a few people that chief knows are losing their cool and may do something unpredictable. There's 4 people that Chief are interested in.

There is also the temptation to choose a double link - form one pact with two, and another pact with the other two. The chances of discovery are exceedingly high, however, and the very nature of the pact will not let it end well. Chief believes he may be in the clear, but he only has 38 answers, and it is possible someone else out there has more.
>>
No. 573898 ID: d470e9
File 139977185094.png - (17.62KB , 980x502 , S7A2-6.png )
573898

The first has seemed rigid in his personality, but Chief isn't too sure that's bad for the current purposes.
The second is calm and collected. It's difficult to tell if she can be trusted or not, but she also seems to know what she is doing and likely won't do anything rash.
The third one appears determined to get through this, but that doesn't quite match the uncertain tone of her answers. It may just be an act.
The fourth one appears to have a personality to match the questions. He has little idea of what's going on, and is just trying to make it through while showing a surprising amount of apathy to it.
>>
No. 573899 ID: 257051

>belnos sim people asking what's so impressive about Alison
She was the predominant guiding force behind Unity, for one thing.
>>
No. 573900 ID: 57a559

>>573898
The 4th person is a person likely from the sim Alison came from, somehow. You never got back together with any of them after you gave them CU for body mods, did you?

Ask about him personally. If he's from the Belosian Sim or not, and how he's adjusting.

I think what you want to trust is 1,2, and 4
3's too much of a wildcard with acts.
>>
No. 573902 ID: c170fd

>>573898
The second one's sixth answer heavily suggests they have no morals. Do you really want them to continue to the next stage?

Go with the first and fourth. Can't trust the 2nd or 3rd, so let them get eliminated.

>>573899
If we reveal Alison was leading the group piloting Unity... I'm not sure all the belenos sim contestants will look favorably upon that, considering some of them could blame Unity for the collapse of the sim. Being allied with her could backfire then.
>>
No. 573912 ID: 7a59a0

Psst, Lagotrope, you've posted all six of their answers. Unless we assume that Chief can't see all six and only we can.

1 is a good choice, very straightforward.
2 seems to be the most competent out of everyone, but once you make an enemy out of her then you had better watch your back.
3 is an alright choice, but noted to be uncertain.
4 is a pretty good choice, almost perfect, the only problem is that he is not the brightest and if someone else eliminates him then the triangle will be broken.

1 and 2 are good choices maybe, just try not to make enemies.

Also at the moment we should not say anything else about Alison or Unity as she would probably be seen as the person who started the apocalypse back in the sim.

Another note, those two who have made a linear pact will bring the total count of people to make it through to be 5, which will be instant death for everyone. They have to be eliminated, possibly by sowing seeds of distrust between them.
>>
No. 573914 ID: d470e9

I only told myself to leave 1 blank for each person 2 or 3 times I guess that wasn't enough.
>>
No. 573934 ID: 257051

>Shojka has failed, and has been eliminated.
His answers just became the rare commodity.

Our original balancing plan assumed everyone was alive, and we eventually reach an equilibrium state where everyone has traded for (almost) everything. That can then be broken with a circular trust gambit.

However, his death changes things. There may now an unequal distribution of his answers. People who traded for them may now have a numerical advantage.

>who choose
Two gives me the screaming heebie geebies. She reminds me too much of you, Chief. A calmer, more subdued personality, but your model all the same. She puts her own life first, values companions only for loyalty, and manipulates as necessary. And was unabashedly willing to kill everyone, if her answer hasn't changed. There's a concession in how she views her enemies, but it's waay too close to your own formula for comfort. I think that makes her one of the smartest, and most dangerous, people in the room.

Meaning she's potentially useful for getting through this (if she's convinced cooperating with you is in her best interest), but she's also the best equipped to kill you, and the one you should want the most out of the way.

4... I think that's the roof cleaning jetal who made a deal with Unity. Meaning we know he can be trusted with crazy deals in the right conditions. And we may even be able to play off that connection.

>double link, blowing up spectacularly
It might be better actually to let someone think they're too smart. If you can manipulate someone else into making that play, you could upset the balance, break rival alliances, and get people to remove themselves for you. You just have to find a way to get a sucker who's too clever for their own good to think it was their idea without them knowing you planted the seeds.
>>
No. 574183 ID: d470e9
File 139995154016.png - (18.22KB , 800x800 , S7A2-7.png )
574183

There isn't enough room for two Chief-like personalities. The second one is out. Number three does not seem to be too bad, but Chief will stick with 1 and 4.

>It might be better actually to let someone think they're too smart and make a double-alliance play
Chief could enjoy doing that, but he cannot think of a way to do so without risk to himself.

With 1 and 4, Chief simply waits out the rest of the time. They seem ansty, and it may be apparent that they are going to try something reckless. Those two and chief are in a single link, but it's entirely possible that they have a second link with just the two of them. Chief doesn't think so, though, as they're getting chatty with a stream of conscious. It's a good sign over silence.

One player knocks out another, then that exterminator gets knocked out by another person. It looks like an alliance just failed.

Then two players eliminate each other simultaneously, most likely from a two-person alliance being formed, and both players attempting to backstab each other as soon as possible. Apparently there is a small window of time in which simultaneous inputs can be performed.

Chief asks if either of his allies if they had seen Alison in the simulation. Neither of them claim to have, although one says that one of his cleaning counterparts had. He was one of 1,000 specialist cleaners, and talks about that some while the time drones on in an attempt to remove the suspense that all but one could die at any point at this time.

Eventually it happens, and Chief is finally successful. He's hoping the rest of the puzzles don't take this long.
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No. 574184 ID: d470e9
File 139995155530.png - (25.33KB , 800x800 , S7A3-1.png )
574184

He moves on, and the stage wastes no time plopping him down inside of a dwelling with various books, televisions, games as well as standard living.

Shopkeep is already there. He does not look happy, but greets Chief, saying it's nice to see a familiar face.

He apologizes, though, to everyone. He says he does not like this part of the stage. There are ten people in this house, but there are 9 other, seperated houses in this area that will be linked together sometime down the line. In other words, this area looks like it's another 10 person elimination area initially, but it's actually a one hundred person area in the long run.

Out of the hundred people, only one will move on.

Shopkeep says that the summon ability will be removed and replaced with another ability for this area. He will definitely be around for at least 48 hours here, though, and maybe afterwards too, depending on how much they let Shopkeep roam freely. If there's any bugs past 48 hours, Shopkeep admits that most likely they'll just have to be beared with.

Ability removed: Summon Shopkeep
Ability gained: Kill self.

Again, Shopkeep apologizes.

The girl next to Chief asks what the rules are. Chief said that that was it - you have to be the last one to survive. In this case, it's the last person to, well, give up. It's not a puzzle this time, it's just a test of patience.

Chief's hope is already dead.
>>
No. 574185 ID: c170fd

>>574184
Wait a minute. Chief, there's no time limit. This isn't a bad stage, this is THE BEST STAGE. Everyone can live out their lives, make friends, do whatever they want that they can do in this area. Tell everyone this. Everyone can relax, and live for years in this place.

Well, there is one possible problem. Somehow we need to verify- in secret- that this is a "safe zone" though. I mean, if this is a realistic simulation area but not a safe zone, then people could be killed with mundane objects.
>>
No. 574189 ID: 57a559

>>574184
Shopkeep, what happens if no one kills themselves? I mean, look at all the shit we can do in 48 hours. Read, play video games, watch tv, socialize, etc.

No one is going to kill themselves at all! 48 hours is nothing. There's zero encouragement for anyone to kill themselves unless there's strategic reason to because death might have a benefit...
>>
No. 574191 ID: 99624f

Well this puzzle is a fucking mess. If a couple of people are really stubborn it could stop the entire game from going forward for everyone. And that is including the administrators if there is no time limit.

So talk to Shopkeep and bring up these concerns. We should try our best to see if they will change things before we start talking people into suicide.

If the rules have no back doors to them and we can not bludgeon people to death with the furniture then the only way to move on is to convince everyone else to give up. Which sounds like a pain in the ass.

So get the lay of the land and make sure there are no hidden glitches in the rules by talking to Shopkeep. Then give the house a once over to see if it has any secrets. After you have that info you can work on a plan. Do not give up hope at the first sign of adversity. You can start feeling bad once you have been stuck here for 6 months and all the interesting people have killed themselves.
>>
No. 574193 ID: c170fd

...well, if we're really that gung-ho about progressing to the next horrible meat-grinder of a stage, we could sing annoying songs for hours on end.

I really don't see any reason to progress though. That just gives us more opportunity to be killed.
>>
No. 574194 ID: 99624f

>>574193

While it would be nice to hang out here forever its a horrible idea.

First of all Corruptor is still out there and eventually he might figure out a way to mess these stages up.

Secondly if we get stuck here the simulation will eventually reset regardless. To stop it and save this world we need to get farther and find a way to get our grand plan together.

And finally do we really want to be stuck in a small house with a bunch of random people forever? This stage seems more like a form of torture than anything else. The idea that you have to pressure people into killing themselves to advance is horrible. Even if you all made friends eventually someone would give up and do themselves in. Then that starts a spiral where everyone gets sad and people start falling apart and maybe killing theselves.

Its like a mid game dwarf fortress run where someones cat dies and a tantrum spiral takes out 95% of the fortress. Even if Chief was the last one standing chances are he would be a mental wreck.

If these stages go as planned the next one will be full of murderous psychopaths and gibbering crazies.
>>
No. 574197 ID: 04b86a

Check if this is a safe zone. If not, then this is going to get bloody pretty quickly.

>>574194
>If these stages go as planned the next one will be full of murderous psychopaths and gibbering crazies.
And Bon-
>murderous psychopaths
Oh, right. Don't mind me.
>>
No. 574198 ID: c170fd

>>574194
Why are you sure the simulation will reset if no progress is made? As far as we know, the only reset is at the END, when the CAI pushes their iwin button. As for Corruptor, we know for sure he won't be merging into our bracket until the 10th stage.

Lastly, there's a humane way to get through the stage. Everyone gets to know eachother and lives their lives in peace, and everyone eventually agrees upon a final survivor- someone they think could do well in the future stages. Once everyone starts getting excessively bored but not crazy or suicidal, they can off themselves and live on in the dream of those that have absorbed them. Remember, we had everyone absorb eachother during the safe zone.
>>
No. 574201 ID: 99624f

>>574198

Ultimately we do not know what will happen. But do we want to bet on things working out for the best if we just sit here? That and with how glitchy these things have been who knows what hidden rules or dangers might be lurking. These stages are all untested and never made it through quality control. Just being here might be giving everyone digital lead poisoning.

If Alison was here she would give out hugs and get to know everyone. Then convince everyone to work together to either escape or lay there lives down so she could save them later. Chief does things a bit differently. While I have no doubt he can pull it off I worry about his state of mind after the fact. He has been getting a bit morose lately.
>>
No. 574202 ID: d244d8

>[Shopkeep] greets Chief, saying it's nice to see a familiar face
...but everyone should be familiar to him. That's how his fragmented memory system works- he only remembers the people he's with. So he never would have the chance to actually experience missing familiar faces.

That's the second instance of inconsistent Shopkeep memory since we started this stage. I think this confirms that the overhaul of the system changed how he works.

>Ability removed: Summon Shopkeep
>Ability gained: Kill self.
Note: none of the other abilities from the previous stage were stated to be removed. That means they are still in effect. That means link can still be used for private communication channels, and that elimination can still be used to kill people, if we can get them to reveal their answers from the previous stage.

Meaning one very long way to winning this stage is to get to know everyone well enough to know their answers, and then eliminate them.

Do not mention this. For the moment, knowing these other abilities are available is an advantage you have over those who have yet to think of it.

>Link
...actually, there were never any strict restrictions stated on who you could contact. Test- see if you can communicate with any of your allies, not in the room with you, who may still be alive. (Possibly being able to coordinate efforts and keep each other from going insane from boredom remotely might make the difference).

>Ask Shopkeep
The obvious question. What happens in the event of a stalemate? In theory, no mind will be able to survive, sane, in perpetuity, and individual variances will dictate some will snap before others. But there's a limit on how much time can be accelerated, and a hard limit on the time that can pass in the real world before the next reset. Meaning this battle cannot continue indefinitely.

>Corruptor...
Will win this stage as soon as he enters. He can change the rules to freeroam and kill everyone, or he can simply convert everyone in the room to Corrupteds and order them to suicide.

>test of patience
>Chief's hope is already dead.
Well, having spent hundreds and hundreds of hours in the corrupted sanctuary is an advantage over contestants who ran the stages fairly. They really haven't had to wait for much of anything. Not sure how you'd compare to the Belnos sim escapees, with their memories of having lived normal lives.
>>
No. 574203 ID: c170fd

>>574202
>abilities from previous stages
Those were removed, actually. I confirmed this with the author. Well, the second basic ability should still be there: Review Known Rulesets. I guess we could at least try to use that for this level.
>>
No. 574210 ID: 488f52

This is slightly worrying to me. This seems way too much like an indefinite safe zone than an area, and the amenities show it. Books? TV? Games? If it was truly a test of patience, they could have just left us on a blank platform and waited for everyone to kill themselves out of boredom. Either something has come up on the outside that people have to deal with, or those damned administrators have found a loophole and decided to go on vacation while they leave us in this "area". Shopkeep seems incredibly apologetic, being called away, and worse still, it seems they won't even be fixing bugs after 48 hours. Are there even any jobs left for system members? It feels like they've abandoned us.

Whatever the case, settle in, figure out the limits of what you can do in this place.

I wonder what's on TV?
>>
No. 574212 ID: 846066

>>574210
Good point.
Burn the place down?
>>
No. 574254 ID: 32f812

>they can off themselves and live on in the dream of those that have absorbed them.

The system reset destroyed Alison's dream and removed all abilities. An equivalent to absorb hasn't shown up. Death is now permanent, as far as I can tell.
>>
No. 574257 ID: c170fd

>>574254
It doesn't matter, all the absorbing's been done already.
>>
No. 574288 ID: d470e9
File 140003596137.png - (13.52KB , 800x800 , S7A3-2.png )
574288

>[Shopkeep] greets Chief, saying it's nice to see a familiar face
>...but everyone should be familiar to him.
Shopkeep says that is true, and he does at least recognize everyone here, but for the most part, everyone simply bought their form and left. There are not many people that are nearly as familiar as Chief, Alison and the rest.

One robot asks what's stopping everyone from getting along from here on out. It's either to stay here, or move on to where most of everyone will be killed in five minutes.

Shopkeeper says that there is nothing at all that is stopping people from living here on out. If there is a time limit, he doesn't know about it. He reminds everyone, though, that the simulation started with one trillion individuals. Although mental faculties were loose, there also wasn't much to think about in that first stage, but what Shopkeep is getting at is that there are only around 70,000 contestants left in existants.
If a single second was spent in the first stage with a trillion, then in order for the remaining contestants to match the amount of total time spent, everyone would have to spend about 165 days.

In the time it would take a simulation to run a single day of preliminary stage 1, it could also run this stage for almost 39,139 years. That, of course, increases as people off themselves. If there's only a couple instances with a few people in each, then Shopkeep isn't even going to bother how far the simulation could dilate time. Even if there's a hard limit on how hard this is, it's not expected anyone will outlast the simulation.

Shopkeep says that could be waited out, but everyone here is an extremely complex algorithm. There are such concepts as sanity and patience. Another contestant brings up the point that there are TVs and games and books, but Shopkeep notes there are not infinite amounts of it. The materials can also break and simply wear down as time passes. It might take years, but it will happen.

Shopkeep doesn't know what will happen, but it is as much a social experiment as anything. There is one thing he'll say, though, that it is expected there will be some people who just go mad. They will be that way for the rest of the stage, but if they make it through to the end, then they'll have a sort of personality-reboot at the end. Shopkeep can't say the details, but there is something to look forward to.
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No. 574289 ID: d470e9
File 140003597049.png - (14.12KB , 800x800 , S7A3-3.png )
574289

Chief confirms that this is a safe zone, and also that his abilities from the last area are gone. From what he understands, that unless otherwise noted, all abilities that are granted or removed upon a single area are also deleted or given back respectively at the end of the area. Therefore, the only ability he has right now is basic communication.

In the meanwhile, Chief reminds everyone that death is not what it usually means here, given that there is still the dreamland in which some can live. A persistent dreamland like Alison's house may no longer exist, but there's going to be someone sleeping at some time. Everyone can live in peace here for a long while, but when boredom and cabin fever sets in, a single survivor can be voted on. Unfortunately there is no guarantee to enforce a vote, but it's an idea.

>Chief's hope is already dead.
>Well, having spent hundreds and hundreds of hours in the corrupted sanctuary is an advantage over contestants who ran the stages fairly.
Chief's hope for areas that move quickly are dead. His hope for beating this remain confident.
>>
No. 574290 ID: d470e9
File 140003597913.png - (20.40KB , 800x800 , S7A3-4.png )
574290

The proposition to vote on a survivor is almost agreed upon by everyone. A robot and a girl say they'll think of it, and say they're just going to sit down and play video games for awhile.

There's two main decisions Chief can think of to do. Either withstand everyone's patience, or play hard and make life a living hell for these guys.
>>
No. 574297 ID: e607cd

Don't be a dick if these guys are expected to take votes on a lone survivor. You should instead view this as recruitment time.
>>
No. 574300 ID: b9c596

I would say check all the entertainment and the house over first and see what we have to work with. If this is like other safe zones there might be some hidden info in the material that could help us down the road. There is a possibility this stage has stuff no one has ever seen before.

The annoying everyone to death sounds like a possibility but you have to be careful. If you start out to strong then people will realize what you are doing and try to ignore you. Also could rally them against you so that they resist you out of spite. Plus if you go down that road it could take its toll on you mentally.

On the other hand just sitting around and waiting things out could take a long damn time. If you sit here to long boredom will turn you into a wreck faster than anything.

So go ahead and meet everyone here and make introductions. Mingle and learn people stories and find out who is who. If we have anyone who might make this stage difficult we want to find them early. Once you have done so it might be a good idea to gather everyone around and tell them your story. Maybe you can win over a bunch of people for the "vote" later on. If most of the people here realize how far you have come and that you are on the team with the best chance of stopping the reset they might be more willing to help.

Also everyone else here will be doing there own thing. A bunch are probably going to use the time to relax after the stress of the stages. They will get bored after awhile and can probably be convinced to quit fairly easily. The tough ones will be driven people like you and ones who had deeper lives in the harvest sim. They might have a firmer hold than the rest.
>>
No. 574305 ID: c170fd

>>574290
Let's hedge our bets. Get to know everyone, but find out what things annoy them. Do not ever allow anyone to see you getting angry or depressed about anything. Don't let them see weakness. Try to present yourself as competent, reasonable, and if not likeable at least easy to work with. Get in the running for a vote, but if it looks like you're not gonna win, switch strategies and start pushing peoples' buttons while leaving them dumbfounded as to how to annoy you.

Oooh, I just realized, once other brackets of people start merging into this area, there will be competition of sorts between them. I mean, if you think about it, having the emotional support of friends means you can last longer, but being an outcast means they will either purposefully try to drive you to suicide or simply not defend you from the other groups. Or they may even enlist the aid of the other groups to annoy you. So we should not make any moves until after the merging and only then if we can gather information on the other groups first. Alternatively if you can pull it off, you could drive everyone else to suicide before the merge, and be the only survivor of your bracket. Then there'd be nobody left to testify that you were an asshole.
>>
No. 574309 ID: 57a559

Man, Chief, this is also a chance to relax a little bit.
We should wait until we're bored of this place before we actually make the steps to die.
Play some video games. Beat them. You will dominate them.
That looks like a SNES controller. Is the video game console labeled anything like that? What are the graphics like?
Man, I was hoping this was Smash Bros and we could play Link or Fox or something. But Smash Bro's can't be played on a SNES controller.

I just realized we're not going to see very many of our own followers after this stage, Chief. That sadden's me more than anything else.
>>
No. 574339 ID: 9a281a

If you make life a living hell for everyone, you sure as heck won't be the survivor they vote for. In fact, it'll undermine the whole vote for a survivor system, because if you make yourself out to be a big enough dick, they won't expect you to abide by a ruling against yourself.

Remember who you are, Chief. You've gotten people to die for you before. You can do it again. The levers are different, and you'll have to rely more on what makes each person tick than on using the situation, but it's doable.

>the situation
So... it's indefinite life, for the small fraction who have survived to this point. For the duration, you trade an endless fight to the death for indefinite detention in a sparely furnished cage.

...I wonder if it's a pity or kindness Alison isn't alive to face this. On the one hand, it's so close to what she wants. But at the same time, it flies completely in it's face.

>The materials can also break and simply wear down as time passes.
Are frictions and material fatigue even programmed in? Engineer never had reason to test that kind of thing. One might assume the materials would wear down, but they could just as easily be static.

>Chief's hope for areas that move quickly are dead.
Yes, the Competition has gotten lazy.
>>
No. 575189 ID: 761017

Chief, I know what this test is!

It's a philosophical test of each contestant's perspective of existentialism!

Only those contestants with a sense of "life must go on joyfully to purposefully spite eventual heat death" or "i know my doom, and it gives me strength to fulfill my duty" are suitable personalities that CAI designers would consider "Least Likely To Go Rogue/Rampant/Solipsistic" and be permitted to pass!
>>
No. 575667 ID: d470e9
File 140097714058.png - (20.67KB , 800x800 , S7A3-5.png )
575667

>Don't be a dick if these guys are expected to take votes on a lone survivor.
Chief notes this point, although how well that vote means anything is a wild stab at this early stage.

Chief takes inventory and gets to know individuals. There are approximately 4000 hours of entertainment provided as an extremely rough estimate. That is not including rewatching, replaying and rereading. It is unknown how quickly or realistically the simulation may simulate object deterioration.

There is only one person that may be problematic, or at least shows it through personality. Jino rubs Chief the wrong way. Chief can practically see the malice in his robot eyes, for reasons that Chief cannot quite place.

The angry looking moth, another belenosian robot, seems like a good natured individual that just happens to have angry robot eyes. He introduces himself as the 108th Scout of some division in some war. 10-8 for short.
>>
No. 575668 ID: d470e9
File 140097715315.png - (20.74KB , 800x800 , S7A3-6.png )
575668

The two couch dwellers look docile. The robotic looking one is dubbed Cruncher, while the belenosian robot is Hallen. Despite not knowing one another, they give off the impression of being old friends who are probably going to hog this video game spot for a long time. They are going to be in trouble when the entertainment runs dry, Chief thinks. They are not big on small talk right now, but they seem cooperative.

>Is the video game console labeled anything like that? What are the graphics like?
Chief has no idea if it is a real world console or not, but the graphics don't appear to be ancient.
>>
No. 575670 ID: d470e9
File 140097715966.png - (20.72KB , 800x800 , S7A3-7.png )
575670

The Goat and the Timekeeper are native simulation contestants, that, despite all numbers, have absolutely nothing to do with Alison, Bones, or the Belenosian simulation. And despite probability of the implications of that, they appear to be highly cooperative.

Together, they've taken stock of the food stores. They don't need to eat, but they would like to learn how to cook to busy themselves. Once a week, they would like to have a modestly sized meal that they prepare. They may have approximately 5 years of food in the basement between the 10 of them.

Furthermore, they would like to add monthly events and annual events and festivals. They will be completely artificial and arbitrary aside from what little the Timekeeper knows about real world holidays, but the two of them feel it would be nice to have events like this to look forward to and to keep going even when the conventional entertainment runs out.

Chief likes this, as there is benefit to grouping together to partition the competition between 10 houses then those in the house, rather than 1 person against 99. He lets them know this.
>>
No. 575671 ID: d470e9
File 140097716831.png - (17.50KB , 800x800 , S7A3-8.png )
575671

Lastly, there are three more belenosian refugees. A supposedly rare jetal who named itself QZ, and a couple of robots that have great respect for jetals, Rez and Footer.

They are calculating, and have been spending the time taking full stock of everything, and if left to their own devices, will plan out every last detail and expect it to be followed.

It concerns Chief, but much of that is dissipated when they express that they will gladly accept ideas and changes to uses of rations, entertainment, material-preservation methods as needed and desired.

That, and even if the emperors were false simulations, as false simulations themselves, they still will have loyalty towards the only emperors they know. Their loyalty cascades down to Chief, the highest up in the heirarchy that they are in contact with, therefore they say that they will gladly yield to Chief and assist him in continuing the areas beyond this.

Shopkeep starts shouting throughout the house.

>"Hey! The system just gave the go ahead to upgrade Basic communication. We can talk like this now. Most of you are probably used to that, but for the rest of you, you'll get used to it."
>>
No. 575672 ID: 2bfcdf

>>575671
How fortunate, we're already part of a loyal group. This means we can edge out Jino if he becomes a real problem, and stand together to deal with the incoming brackets or anyone that goes mad without killing themselves first. Unfortunately, anyone from the belenosian sim is also more likely to get tired of life, because they've been living for longer.

Ah, an idea presents itself. When the incoming brackets start to merge we can try to steal and lock up their entertainment. Denial of said entertainment would severely reduce the lifespan of whoever's being denied. The safe zone mechanics mean we can't inflict violence but we can certainly blockade people and make them teleport away by grabbing them. Let everyone know we're setting up a secure room for supplies not in use so future brackets can't steal our shit, and start putting stuff in said room. There would of course be guard rotation to make sure nobody gets too sick of it.
>>
No. 575677 ID: 57a559

Will the system approve bodymods? Staying the same look forever might be boring. Then again, changing one's appearance may add additional hours to the entertainment value and thus the system won't provide. Perhaps ask Shopkeeper about the issue.

Shame though, I imagine people would want to play dress up occasionally. I mean, Chief, you could USE a new hat. Look at QZ's hat or 10-8's awesome neck fluff, don't they make you jelly?
>>
No. 575678 ID: 3dd384

If QZ and friends are trying to find a perfect plan, it might be good to remind them that optimizing for +EV above all else can end up handing you a really weird payout distribution. Might be more worthwhile - if possible - for them to present several meaningfully different "almost best" plans, so that we can pick the one that has the most consenting buy-in from the other seven people in the room.
>>
No. 575679 ID: 9a281a

Attempt a test of this new form of communication. What does your 'voice' sound like?

>other ideas for entertainment
Did the purge include the useless useful perks, like cooking, and music, and sports, and stuff? I remember we mass bought stuff like sports before the CAI sim, just in case it might be useful. If those survived, you may have knowledge that could provide more entertainment / diversion / sanity reserves.

...if music did bite the dust, I'm starting to think it actually is a good thing Alison is dead. It would have been just cruel to give her all this free time and an audience and take away the one thing she'd have wanted to do. Well, one of two.

>what do
...maybe the problem then, isn't how to drive the others insane or just making sure you go last, it's trying to set up the system or society that's stable the longest. It's a challenge of leadership. There's a challenge that's up to your skills, Chief. How long can you manage to keep them all functioning? As an added pyschological bonus, a long term difficult challenge will help to keep you engaged. And as the problem will change and adapt over time, it won't run out as easily as the stuff the entertainment the challenge provided.

And, long term, a deeper understanding of how to maintain sanity under trying conditions might be useful in the last stages of this game. Both in keeping your allies together late in the process, and the problem that we're fundamentally dependent on unstable people- Glitcher, Corruptor, Savior. If they're the only ones who can change things, the problem becomes one of getting them to act the way we want. Or at least reasonably. Or at least understanding what they're doing.

The Contest is giving you a crash course in the psychology you may need to undermine or defeat it, if you learn well enough.

>>575670
Okay, those are good, healthy reactions that should be encouraged. Good for the group and sanity as a whole.

>>575668
Less healthy, long term, but maybe their odds can be improved if you foster a genuine friendship between them (so they grow from playmates to friends who can support each other), or if you can find a way to bond them with the group.

>>575671
Not perfect, but very workable attitudes. Ultra-planning will just lead to monotony and tension, so they should be gently steered away from that. But they're willing to cooperate, and their philosophical attitude is a good one. So what if reality wasn't what they thought it was? It doesn't make the people or their experiences any less valid.

>>575667
10-8 will probably be fine once people get past appearances. If Jiro is actively malevolent towards others though, I think you've got this micro-society's first real problem to solve. If you can't kill or restrain him when he becomes a problem, how do you fix the problem? Can he be reformed or changed, or can measures be taken to isolate him and protect others, or can he be encouraged to take his own life first?

I suppose we have to wait for more information before we can come to decisions. We don't know exactly how he's going to be a problem, yet.
>>
No. 575690 ID: dc4b80

If Jino is a bad guy he will either try to subtly work on people or be really open about it.

Going the subtle route you could slowly get people to mistrust and dislike each other and carefully sabotage key bits of entertainment so to make life miserable. Break a controller here and rip out a important story page there and everyone gets irritated. If he was careful about it he could pass the blame to other people and get them to hate each other.

And the open way would just him being a horrible asshole all the time and making life miserable for everyone.

There are several ways for dealing with that sort of stuff. Sometime if everyone ignores there antics for long enough they will get bored and stop. Other times you can kill them with kindness and they wont be able to stand not getting the reaction they want out of you. No idea what you will run into but keep a eye out for anyone trying to mess with people.
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No. 575769 ID: d470e9
File 140103667643.png - (12.40KB , 800x800 , S7A3-9.png )
575769

>Look at 10-8's awesome neck fluff.
Chief cannot help but wonder why a robot has neck fluff.

>Look at QZ's hat.
A look that Chief doubts he could pull off.

"Shopkeep. Will we be able to change bodies?"
>"Uh, if you want, but like I said, I'm not going to be around for more than a couple of days, and who knows how long it is before I come back. So, make sure your choice isn't just a little gimmick."

Chief will simply keep a good eye on Jiro. If he is going to be blunt about being a generally awful person, he isn't doing it right now. Chief is more concerned about him ripping out key pages of a book, or making a controller just faulty enough to malfunction on every 20th button press, and so forth.

"QZ. You're still planning?"
>"Yes. There is lots to cover."
"Just keep in mind that I would rather have a variety of good plans to choose from rather than one single 'perfect' plan, considering that success here is gained through subjective means."
>"Right. We'll have several rough drafts on the way, so that is more than doable. Do you have any concerns about the people here?"
"I don't know about Jiro. Keep an eye on him."
>"Perhaps a buddy system is in order, to choose two or more people in a group that will keep an eye on each other."
"Even if Jiro has a buddy, if Jiro does something, there is nothing stopping Jiro from blaming his partner. I would not have any proof against Jiro besides my own intuitive assumptions."
>"A good thought. We'll keep an eye on him."
>>
No. 575770 ID: d470e9
File 140103670419.png - (15.52KB , 800x800 , S7A3-10.png )
575770

Nothing eventful occurs in the first couple of days. The only person who gets a body mod is the Timekeeper, who gains an opposable thumb. Otherwise, not even 10-8 changes, who says that his angry eyes are part of who he is. Physically. Not that he is actually angry. He insists that a lot.

>Did the purge include the useless useful perks, like cooking, and music, and sports, and stuff?
It did. There are textbooks on many subjects, however, so it is possible to learn things using more mundane measures. There are a few instruments, so perhaps Alison would not have had to spend years hugging to pass the time.

>"Hello, everyone." Shopkeep comes by. "It's time for me to go, now. Like I said, I may visit another time, but it could be months or years or never. I still don't know, but it's best that we treat this like a long goodbye! Which I'm not really good at, but... well, anyways, good luck, everyone, and try not to overdo things! It's a chance to have a good time for awhile."
>>
No. 575771 ID: d470e9
File 140103671248.png - (29.17KB , 800x800 , S7A3-11.png )
575771

One month goes by.

Although Cruncher and Hallen have let others join in and given up seats for others, the couch has gained a slight imprint of their forms left behind. They have played most of the games, but they still have a while to go. Chief notes they are going to burn through these games quickly, but they claim that on the belenosian world, they lived frugally and can play a single game for a ridiculous amount of time.

Jiro has been cagey, but between Chief, QZ and QZ's friends, it doesn't appear that Jiro has been doing much besides reading a book and just sitting around thinking to himself.

QZ's group has taken to reading books. It seems like they plan on wringing untold amount of time out of each book, as each time they finish it, they reread it, then discuss it extensively between what made it good or bad and other book-club type of ordeals. At least until they can't stand the subject anymore and move on to another book.

10-8 is a conversationalist. He rotates joining the book club, playing games, discussing one's lives and asking Chief about his escapades, and talks of cooking with the Goat and the Timekeeper.

Cooking is most likely the weakest hobby given the finite supply of food limiting actual practice over theory, so Goat alternates between that and books sans the bookclub, while Timekeeper occasionally spends time to herself and checks the rise and fall of the sun to keep track of the days.

They do spend a long time on their cooking projects regardless, and each week's meal has great effort and care to put into it. It pays off, as well, as the food is the best Chief has ever had. The Corrupted Sanctuary had decent food, but it was simple and unpracticed.
>>
No. 575772 ID: d470e9
File 140103673086.png - (22.07KB , 800x800 , S7A3-12.png )
575772

Everyone sits down at the dining table for another weekly meal. Seasoned meat on a bed of various vegetables Chief has no idea the names of.

>"How is it, everyone?" the Timekeeper asks with some obvious concern in her tone.
"Excellent. And that is all the more impressive considering your means of practice are limited."
>"Yes. I still look forward to these." QZ says. "Even the couch accessories join here, so that should speak volumes."
>"It's not that great."
>>
No. 575773 ID: d470e9
File 140103674302.png - (13.00KB , 800x800 , S7A3-13.png )
575773

Jiro.

>"There, I said it." he continues. "It's not that bad, but the even the most cookie cutter cooking robots could make something more... memorable. I'm being honest. Don't feel bad, though, because those generic bots did have the greatest belenosian history and knowledge of cooking in their data banks."

Chief can't tell if he doesn't mean much by that, or if Chief's suspicions are well placed.
>>
No. 575779 ID: 1a3d67

Suggest that he should try helping out with the cooking next time since he has a more discerning taste than the rest of you.
>>
No. 575784 ID: dc4b80

Well if he is going to be a problem it looks like he is going for the subtle route.

No need to respond harshly. Ask him about food where he originally came from. Then about these cooking robots and advice on how he thinks it could be done better next time. Depending on his responses we will get a idea of what he is like.

Try to turn his criticism into something constructive so Timekeeper does not feel bad. If you can win over most of the group by being a nice reasonable mediator then after everyone gets bored they will be more likely to entrust you with moving on to the next level. And if someone like Jiro ends up being a asshole everyone can work to exclude him and make him feel uncomfortable until he gives up.
>>
No. 575785 ID: 9a281a

Laugh. Well, they certainly have time to work their way up to your discerning palette. (Best way I can think of to brush it off without calling bullshit directly).

Instead of an insult, turn it into a running joke.

(If we really wanted to get picky, the robots had access to simulations and approximations and reproductions of the greatest food in belnos history and culture. I doubt the original recipe books survived thousands of years).

>question
So... it's been a month. What happens when you sleep? Do you go back to the dead in your dreams? If so, you have another source of stimulation and ideas many of the others act. And your dead friends will get time to practice stuff while you're sleeping. (So conceivably, Alison could still slowly start learning how to play music, even without books. Or, if you really wanted to, you could read the books yourself and pass on information).
>>
No. 575790 ID: 57a559

>>575773
Well he's a noble, we can tell that much.
Has any romance sprouted, or are they keeping that on the downlow?
>>
No. 575795 ID: 2bfcdf

>>575773
A good cook requires criticism, but he needs to suggest methods of improvement if he's gonna be constructive. Ask how the food could be improved. Maybe he could teach them about belenosian cuisine? Heck, launch this into the start of asking him about his past. Who was he in the simulation?

Don't get too defensive for the cook, that can actually make you look bad, and it's not like you've got experience with food tasting. The other belenosian-sim survivors would be able to confirm or deny the criticism.

Also take notes on Timekeeper's reaction. If these people are really that fragile that their hopes can be crushed by criticism like this then we could use that later.
>>
No. 575848 ID: d470e9
File 140104913084.png - (15.01KB , 800x800 , S7A3-14.png )
575848

>What happens when you sleep?
Nothing, because no one can sleep. Passing the time must be done consciously.

"Well they're going to have plenty of time to work up to your discerning palette. If they agree, you're more than welcome to assist them in cooking the next meal."
>"I've got nothing better to do, so yeah, why not?"

As usual, there's something about the way he says that that Chief doesn't like, but the flat value of what he says is not problematic. Timekeeper appears concerned, but not crushed, and says she will keep trying to do better.

The conversation continues to the lives of everyone before this area. Chief listens, but he is not actually that interested.
>>
No. 575849 ID: d470e9
File 140104915949.png - (118.55KB , 800x800 , S7A3-15.png )
575849

Another month passes. Jiro does not appear to do anything, and Chief is starting to wonder if his mistrust is misplaced. Having a single gaff that was not too bad in a two month time period is hardly reason to treat him like a second class citizen. Nonetheless, Chief spends most of his time analyzing the others, so keeping an eye on Jiro is business as usual.

The couch accessories, as they have been known, have started picking their favorite replayable games. And at those games, they have gotten extraordinarily good. They set artificial challenges, such as beating the game without using certain keys, or beating the game as fast as possible, to drive out entertainment value.

Timekeeper joins the book club and Goat joins the couch more often since it does not seem like they can think of anything more to analyze without actually cooking.

Chief goes outward. None of the other houses are visible. There is nothing outside of the cliff, and Chief expects that if one falls off the zone, they will teleport back on. He will not test this, but his concern is that the house contains 10 rooms, one kitchen, one dining room, three studies, and two living rooms. Then a large basement, a couple of balconies, the rooftop, and a few closets, and then a patio and outdoor pool.

Most people have gone silent. Chief's main concern right now is that there are some extremely minor signs of cabin fever in 10-8, Jiro and Footer. So minor they could just be Chief's imagination, since it seems like cabin fever is going to be an inevitable scenario.
>>
No. 575852 ID: d470e9
File 140104924314.png - (19.06KB , 800x800 , S7A3-16.png )
575852

More time passes.

Timekeeper says that she just made the 100th tick mark of days on her wall.

>Has any romance sprouted, or are they keeping that on the downlow?
Chief has seen adoration between the two couch accessories. Timekeeper and Goat seem to be friends, but they aren't particularly close.

There's more friendship than friction, so that's as good as chief could hope for.

The book club never stopped its rigorous plan of one book per week, and they will be at this for years at this rate. The couch accessories have actually taken breaks to read books. They have gotten so good at video games that few others will even play with them anymore unless they hold back. A whiteboard sits nearby with records and challenges for various games.

Jiro has idly given cooking advice, and while Timekeeper and Goat say it's helped, it often does feel like backseat driving. It hasn't been too bad, though, and they say not to worry about it. Jiro has, however, begun to play the flute.

He is not good. In fact, he is awful, and there are no signs he is getting better. 10-8 says his angry eyes might be more accurate to his mood, now, because Jiro shouldn't be that bad. Most robots have some basic knowledges about arts and crafts, including music.
>>
No. 575854 ID: 2bfcdf

>>575852
Break the flute.
>>
No. 575855 ID: 9a281a

Well, let's try talking to him, first. While it's possible he's doing this maliciously, it's equally possible, say, he skimped on those kind of modules and is too proud to admit he doesn't know what he's doing. Perhaps he can be encouraged to practice further away from the others, or he can receive some instruction from those who do have the basic knowledge he lacks.

If he's doing it on purpose, well, then we'll need other action.

>sleep is impossible
...oh. That's going to complicate things. No mind can really be up at at em all the time. You need a break. You're not organic, but that likely just means things will start to break down sooner.

>food will run out eventually
>body mods were available
...drat. I just realized. We had an idea way back when in the Corrupted Sanctuary to have people 'grow' resources via body mods. We were thinking rare and useful building materials then (gems, metals, etc) but we could have made a renewable supply of food. Or at least, certain ingredients. Oh well.
>>
No. 575858 ID: dc4b80

Don't just go break his flute. If you are the one to start breaking things then it sets a bad precedent. Talk to everyone about the music and what they think about it.

Now if you let him know that its annoying everyone that just gives him something to use against you. See if you can find someone else who has skills at playing a instrument and get them to practice with him. The more the better. If you set up a band practice around him and he keeps being horrible then it will hurt his ego. Will let you know if he is just horrible or disrupt his plans at least.

Is there anywhere to practice in the house that is far enough away to not be heard?
>>
No. 575862 ID: 3dd384

Dangit, looks like scenario acceleration already kicked in. I'll catch up on updates soon, but in the meantime...

>>575679
>And, long term, a deeper understanding of how to maintain sanity under trying conditions might be useful in the last stages of this game. Both in keeping your allies together late in the process, and the problem that we're fundamentally dependent on unstable people- Glitcher, Corruptor, Savior.
This is important and I'm glad you found a way to phrase it because I was having trouble. We have time, and it's the sort of time that might be positively applicable to the bigger issues we're going to go up against before long. Just so long as our consideration of the problem doesn't end up getting so introspective that it crawls up its own butt and disappears.
>>
No. 575865 ID: 3dd384

>>575849
Has anyone been using the pool?

No, let's go one step farther. Has anyone tried digging into the ground or scaling down the cliff? There's a lot more mass to this chunk of rock than just the house; if cabin fever is a problem it might be nice for people to be able to explore and/or build a place to spend time apart from everyone else.

Outdoorsy stuff - such as it's even possible in this sim - seems like a good way to multiply our survivability.

>>575852
Jiro offered concrit earlier. If you confront him, try to do so in a way that - compared with his comments on the cooking project - could not be reasonably taken as unfair.

As an aside, having a way for people to go off on their own to do stuff would be useful for this sort of issue too.
>>
No. 575867 ID: 2bfcdf

I just realized something incredibly worrying. What if the suicide ability doesn't work properly? Nobody tested it while Shopkeep was around to fix bugs. If there's a bug with it...
>>
No. 575909 ID: 72878b

Ideally you want to make friends with all the nice people and team up against the bad. If you have a solid group to stand up to any troublemakers they will be more likely to just give up.

Then you get to hang out with a decent bunch until they all get bored and leave.

Just watch out for the possibility that Jiro is just socially inept. And the true danger is elsewhere.
>>
No. 576155 ID: d470e9
File 140116481564.png - (62.11KB , 800x800 , S7A3-17.png )
576155

>Has anyone been using the pool?
Yes. Thankfully, it does appear this simulation does not emulate things such as dirt accumulating on people, so the pool remains clean despite having no maintenance.
Chief goes up to Jiro's room.

"Hello, Jiro."
>"You're going to make me stop playing the flute, aren't you?"
"No. I'm going to have us make an outdoor project to move our cliffside around so that we aren't trapped in pre-established housing for as long as we live. Once we make a secluded section, you'll practice there. How is that?"
>"Uh.... that's fine. Thanks?"
"You're welcome."

Construction appears to be possible. While others appear extremely nervous about doing construction over such a cliff, Chief makes a fearless show of swan diving off the cliff. It is not fearless at all in his heart, as it would be a fearfully embarrasing event to come this far and get killed by the puzzle having such a ridiculous oversight.
>>
No. 576156 ID: d470e9
File 140116482410.png - (12.13KB , 800x800 , S7A3-18.png )
576156

He shows up again, and everyone feels more comfortable working. It takes a few days, but with a few improvised tools, soft ground and questionable physics, a new balcony is made and some extra room in the form of caves.

>"Hey, Chief?" Timekeeper calls from the kitchen one morning. "I, uh, have something you might want to see."
>>
No. 576157 ID: d470e9
File 140116483380.png - (12.46KB , 800x800 , S7A3-19.png )
576157

She leads him down to the basement where all the food has been stored, and motions Chief behind some boxes.

>"While moving some boxes of food around here, I found this. It makes a little hum, this bar here is at 70%. I think it's a generator, I mean, I don't know what else it was be. And, er, given that there's only so many electronics in the house, I'm pretty sure that it's the couch accessories that have taken a huge amount of it."
>>
No. 576165 ID: 9a281a

Thank her for bringing this to your attention.

Hmm. How long ago did she find it? Can we determine the rate of decrease / consumption?

What, besides the entertainment value of the games, do we lose if we run our energy source dry? What else does this thing power?

Is it renewable? If we ration our use of electronics (or turn everything off) does the bar begin to regenerate?

If we search, can we find the actual generator the gauge connects to? (Assuming there is one).

It occurs to me that if dropped people / objects reappear at the top of the cliff, we could build a perpetual motion generator over the side. Basically a waterwheel, except using lopping junk instead of water. (Of course, I'm not sure that we have the supplies to build something like that, or wire it into the system).

>>576155
For a brief moment, I thought Chief had discovered he could fly.
>>
No. 576166 ID: dc4b80

Well let everyone know about the generator. Then make a list of stuff that uses the power and prioritize what people want to use it for.

Games and such are fun but if you want to keep having power for cooking and lights or whatever else you need to monitor your usage. Unless you can find a way to generate more power somehow its going to run out. Lets say 120ish days to get to 70%. That means at this rate you started with a year or so of power.

Check for other non renewable resources while you are at it. While you do not technically need anything to survive it makes things less boring. Plus knowing what you have and when its going to run out will be nice.

Might be a good idea to give a speech about how people should not try to push themselves if they are feeling miserable. Death is not permanent here and is not to be feared. But going insane could be. Normally the resets at the end of the cycle would fix that sort of thing. This time though Alison is closer than ever to gathering all the right people together early enough to fix things. If she can save everyone in the dream it would be nice to not be a wreck when it happens.

That and we are in a experimental unfinished simulation this time. Shopkeeper is trustworthy but he does not always get good info. As far as we know no one has every used these areas. Not sure what effect not being able to sleep for this long will have on us in the long run.
>>
No. 576168 ID: 2bfcdf

>>576157
Hmm. There are screws. It could be sabotaged, make a note of that. We will either want to protect it or sabotage it ourselves later if the situation changes. Interestingly, while not having power would be terrible for the other electronics everyone uses, the couch accessories are the ones with the most need for power. Unless they're gonna get tired of the available video games before the power runs much lower... Of course, other people will probably switch activities around and play some video games at some point.

Of note is that this is after a bit over 100 days, and we used up about 20% of the power. So at the current rate of consumption we have around 400 days of power left. People are probably not going to get suicidal before that runs out- it's only a year. Yeah, we do have to reduce power consumption. Let's go tell them to start conserving power. Either play less or just make sure everything's off after they stop playing if they've been leaving things on.

It's also worth looking around and seeing exactly what things are using power that we can cut back on.
>>
No. 576169 ID: 2bfcdf

>>576166
>check other non-renewable resources
Hey, that's right. If we can fix things so that everyone runs out of entertainment at about the same time, we could do the vote then. Actually this is a good time to do some analysis on how much entertainment people have been effectively using, and who is most dependent on what types of entertainment. Then we can sortof get sort of a vague sense of life expectancy of everyone.
>>
No. 576171 ID: 3dd384

It'd be good to confirm by experimentation that the gauge (1) is actually electricity, and (2) can have its depletion meaningfully affected by cutbacks.

There's also stupid bullshit ideas like seeing if the questionable sim physics will allow you to build a hand-powered generator and/or perpetuum mobile to replace battery charge for some applications.
>>
No. 576183 ID: 761017

Power generation needs an electric motor.
The generator should be investigated to see if there is a charging outlet or a power shaft that can be rigged to a water wheel.

As long as things teleport back up to a consistent location, a single brick could provide power, as long as a ramp that leads to the 'waterwheel' is constructed underneath its spawn point.

Has anyone tested the pain mechanics and physical stress mechanics? It is important to know if insane people could break their own arms and legs without respawning.
I advise causing yourself distinct pain in some way (paper cut that bleeds is best test, if it is allowed) and jumping off the cliff to see if the damage is repaired.
Assuming that works, find something small, a flowerpot, crack it, then throw it off the cliff. If it does not come back, or comes back damaged, find something else small, another flowerpot, and jump off with it in your arms to see if the object is also repaired by your respawn.
>>
No. 576186 ID: 761017

Survival technique: meditation, purely observing without thinking. This can work if you experience no mental or physical fatigue. May fail if you are programmed to experience nonstop thought, or programmed with severe boredom.

Survival technique: deprivation chamber. This a wild card, what with how everything is simulated, but it may work well enough.

Do you have an infinite supply of water, or is that also stored in the basement along with power

Survival technique: intoxication. Drink the cleaning fluids under the sink, or suggest someone else to do it. You may be entirely conscious, but the simulation does not appear to have installed a universal clock into your simulated brain, so possibly creating alcohol from the yeast and sugar in the basement may work as a prototype to cheat the system of permanent consciousness.

This is all dependent on how the safe area rules of this particular simulation work.
>>
No. 576187 ID: 3dd384

>>576183
>an electric motor
A magnet and a coil of wire theoretically suffice for that, although you might need to cannibalize something to make that work, and cannibalization is probably too big a risk for any non-imminent loss of power.
>>
No. 576188 ID: 3dd384

>>576186
Do any of the foods in the pantry have seeds in them? Following on the earlier "outdoorsy" comment, being able to grow food might let the chefs outlast the end of their supply.
>>
No. 576189 ID: ca0da5

Might also be an indicator of when the houses will merge. In that case, it has no bearing on how long your electronics will last, and instead, when you'll see the rest of the people. In such a case, you will be seeing them after you've been around for about a year.
>>
No. 576227 ID: 67bbee

Really since none of you need to eat, you are all perpetual motion generators. If you could scrounge up a motor from somewhere you could probably rig up some sort of exercise machine which would give people something else to do as well as provide some meager amounts of electricity.

>>576186
I approve of this idea. If you can get intoxicated, let's make some moonshine and get wasted.
>>
No. 576368 ID: a361ac

If we can come up with a ruleset and some things we can carve into dice, we could create some sort of tabletop game. Tabletop RPGs require no power, are endlessly replayable, and can be quite fun.

Of course if that isn't Chief's sort of thing, it might be good to keep quiet about this, or some other individuals might create an eternal gaming group that outlasts the stars.
>>
No. 578276 ID: d470e9
File 140254268248.png - (11.71KB , 800x800 , S7A3-20.png )
578276

"Thanks for telling me. Do you know if it's renewable, or regenerative?"
>"I'm sorry, I just found it."

Chief decides to make this information public, and asks QZ to come take a look at it to confirm that this is electric.

>"Yes. If you wish, I will do some experiments to see if it is possible to connect it to a power generator of sorts."
"Please."

One experiment is to cut off all electric usage for 2 days. After 2 days, it looks like .1% comes back on its own.

A hole is then dug below the basement with a mechanical wheel to generate energy. A brick is attached to it, and thrown down the hole to the bottomless sky below. It respawns back up at the top, at which the string is pulled back up, tied to the brick, and tossed back down. It appears that respawning objects always end up above ground, and don't have set respawn points, so for the time being, it's decided that the couch accessories will take most of the shifts for turning the wheel, since they use almost all the power. Since the mechanism is placed by the generator itself, the group can keep tabs on who is in the room at any point to keep some level of security and responsibility over what appears to be a breakable engine.

>Has anyone tested the pain mechanics and physical stress mechanics?
No. Chief goes to give himself a papercut. Pain exists, but it's not something he himself feels, rather, it's more as though some outside force is informing Chief that there has been a cut made on her finger. It quickly heals as though it didn't happen. Chief concludes that there isn't going to be much suffering from this method. That, and this area may not be an exact replica of a safe zone after all.

He notices that the drop of blood remained.
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No. 578277 ID: d470e9
File 140254269237.png - (21.70KB , 800x800 , S7A3-21.png )
578277

After finding the generator, Goat makes a long search throughout the basement to locate anything else of interest. There are seeds, so with some plowing, Timekeeper and Goat start making a garden.

Chief also shares the Corrupted Sanctuary's approach to this. QZ and Rez get to work on a guillotine, of which they use to chop off Chief's leg in a single go. Chief quickly spawns a new one, but the old one remains.

With that finding, the rate of meals skyrockets. Oddly, people taste differently, and it's found out that Timekeeper, 10-8 and Goat taste the best.

Footer and Hallen are the only ones who end up too creeped out by eating others or themselves and stick to vegetation.

10-8 almost seemed that way, but he decides to try it. His first words are "why am I so delicious."
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No. 578279 ID: d470e9
File 140254281642.png - (18.09KB , 800x800 , S7A3-22.png )
578279

Chief also introduces the idea of a pen and paper RPG to the group. While it is not normally to his tastes, he's in as much of a game as the RPG is, so it seems ridiculous to scrutinize.

Although paper is finite, without the elements to scatter, it's just as feasible to simply write down stats in the dirt.

When they play, they play in the basement so that inactive people can operate the power wheel. Between the construction of the wheel and the care that must be taken to hand craft balanced dice, a few weeks are taken by construction alone.

Most people get along, and those who don't learn to effectively ignore the others. This is how things are for over 16 years. No one commits suicide. The meals have gotten extraordinarily complex, although so have people's tastes, so it's all Timekeeper and Goat can do to simply make something new and exciting.

Chief's gaming party has had ages of mythical tales put behind them. Entire books were written, while the entire library was eventually read by the book club.

The couch accessories theorize that by the year XXX, the games will be performed at the highest theoretical level consistently, and contests between them will be decided by who loses the first frame.

New concepts of entertainment are made, while some parties shift around, such as the book club to the couch and the couch to the book club.

Meditation is attempted, but while physical exertion is nearly unlimited, mental exhaustion does set in. Patience runs out eventually, although several hour long sessions are sometimes held.

A deprivation chamber is attempted by the pool, but this doesn't appear to be effective.

Timekeeper also is able to ferment certain things in order to make alcohol, which so far has proved to be the best conscious alterer in the absence of sleep or an effective deprivation chamber.

Despite the years that pass, Jiro never causes any trouble, or even sort-of-trouble, again. He and Chief don't consider one another friends, but there aren't any sparks between them.

There are no innate engineers or artisans amongst the group, and little interest is shown in constructing new things despite QZs general knowledge of how to do so. QZ says that later on, this will most likely be performed.
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No. 578281 ID: d470e9
File 140254353625.png - (11.77KB , 800x800 , S7A3-23.png )
578281

A whistle, from nowhere that can be seen, sounds off. A beam of light shoots out of the edge of the house grounds in two different directions. Chief reminds them that light beams can be crossed.

After more than a decade and a half, light beams are outright nostalgic for Chief.

The houses cannot be seen in any detail, however, just a faint speck in the distance at the end of a light beam.

Due to a sudden pass of 16 years, where available and feasible, suggestions may be implemented retroactively during the 16 years.
>>
No. 578284 ID: ac14c0

>>578281
Wait, hold on, injuries can happen? What if there's no room to regenerate the part, and what determines where the regeneration occurs from? If someone gets cut evenly in half which half regenerates?

Now that the merge has happened we have to put everything on lockdown. Get fortifications in operational condition. Then send people out to scout our neighbors, assuming it is not overly dangerous to do so (it shouldn't be). Heck, we should go out there too. We need to keep people at home to secure our supplies though. If our shit gets broken then it will be harder to keep in good spirits. At this stage of the game, I think that is the main objective- break or steal other houses' supplies.

Retroactive actions:
Build fortifications (especially at the engine room) and a trap gauntlet to keep people out. Figure out if you can imprison people in this pseudo-safe zone, or in some way design traps to keep people disabled for a long period of time, like chopping off limbs then making sure there's no room for the limbs to grow back, or getting impaled on spikes, or getting entangled in barbed hooks. Heck, we can start making it a competition to see who can make the best traps and who is the best at evading them. Remember there's a meatgrinder trap stage coming up. Every ounce of practice you get in evading traps will help you survive there.

If there's no way to keep people from progressing through an area, and I suspect that is the case, then just make a bunch of security doors you can activate to block access. That will at least buy us some time, because they'll have to dig through the doors or bypass fortifications by digging tunnels. Of course we'll send someone out to stage a counter-offensive in that case.
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No. 578286 ID: dc4b80

Well if the other houses are far enough away it will take awhile for people to move around.

While it would be nice to hope that other houses get along as well as ours we should not assume anything. Some of the houses could be pretty bad depending on how things went. A lot can go wrong in 16 years if you get some personality conflicts.

One experiment you need to try during the time lapse is if you can immobilize someone against there will. Like dropping someone in a small hole and pushing a big rock over it. If that's possible it would probably be the best way to make someone kill themselves. While you can't directly hurt each other much here with a group working together you could make life so miserable for someone they would give in quick.

This part of the stage will pit groups against each other. If you had all started in one giant castle it would have been different. But this place was designed to make you come together as a family of sorts and then throw you against other "families". You might be able to make friends with some and enemies with others. It honestly could get pretty bad but best not to worry until you get there.

So work on fortifying your home as best you can so people can not just come in and wreck the place.

The biggest threat would be if a leader managed to unite several of the houses together. With enough manpower they could possibly destroy the other houses before they realized there was a threat. Then they could lock everyone else up and make them miserable until they gave in. If that starts to happen you need to do the same thing to be able to fight it. Would turn this stage into a giant endless war game but would be better than getting tied up in a dungeon until you gave up.
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No. 578287 ID: 24dc7a

Retroactive suggestions: I assume clothes would grow back like limbs since they are included in the body spec, so there is a source of cloth (which can also kind of work as parchment). Combined with persistent blood you have an only slightly morbid way to record those books, as well as painting as a possible hobby.

As for defenses if necessary, pit traps would probably be fairly effective at keeping troublesome intruders contained without relying on injuries. On that note we should be sure to bring cloth rope and any digging equipment we can come up with when we go to scout the other houses.
Strategywise it will probably make sense to explore one house at a time, since we aren't currently in a hurry and that way we can have one away group and the guarding group rather than smaller groups.
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No. 578291 ID: dc4b80

Oh one other thing to check. How are all the islands connected? Are they in a line or in a circle? If its a line being in the middle could set you up for a lot of foot traffic. Figuring out how everyone is connected will be important.
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No. 578292 ID: 410c24

>retroactive fortifications
That doesn't really make sense, as they didn't know that light paths would be appearing.

All we really have to do to fortify is to keep newcomers away from our destructible entertainment materials.

>what do
Wait a short while to see if anyone else crosses the light paths. It's possible they're one-way, or short lived, and the game is trying to shake up dynamics.

If no one crosses and/or we determine the paths are two way, send out small envoys to greet the neighbors. Keep the majority here in case they're aggressive and just want to take our stuff.

Assuming they're not, and that the houses weren't identically stocked, we have an opportunity for trade.
>>
No. 578294 ID: ac14c0

>>578292
>That doesn't really make sense, as they didn't know that light paths would be appearing.
The thing about a castle is that it doesn't matter which direction the enemies come from.
>>
No. 578309 ID: fd35b0

>>578284
I would assume agreeing to be cut in half is agreeing to be killed, ergo, suicide. But then... rules aren't exactly the same in this simulation, I suppose.


Perhaps a house meeting is in order.

Does anyone want to leave or go check the other houses? If someone wants to go, I'd suggest making a care package for them as a going away present. They could either use it themselves, or use it as trade. If they do decide to go, perhaps test to see if someone can return. Down the bridge, back, then down again.
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No. 578316 ID: fddb27

Which of you have the best eyesight? Try to see if you can take a peek at your new neighbours. If they seem insane, or there otherwise seems to be blood everywhere, it might be a good idea to not head in that direction. If everything seems fine and dandy, then maybe have one or two head out to try diplomacy. Too many people could scare any allies off.
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No. 578325 ID: 410c24

>Jiro never causes any trouble
Did he ever get the hang of the flute?

>other retroactive action
...maybe learn to fly? Chief kind of looks like he's too anthropomorphized for it, but the physics here is wonky at best, and with looping jumps off the cliff you could just reach terminal velocity and then maybe straiten out into glide-flight.

Even if it doesn't work, the silly sky-diving involved in trying might net some entertainment.
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No. 578494 ID: d470e9
File 140269423029.png - (16.63KB , 800x800 , S7A3-24.png )
578494

Despite the lack of interest in construction, Chief did interest them in training for future stages. Namely, stage 9, with its supposed traps. Every week, a contest was held to create a trap by building a dirt room on the edge of the house grounds, with each person going into every room through one door and going out the other door without getting struck by an object. Counting the time it takes was also a factor. Chief gradually gets the hang of it, but he is only good at spotting the traps. He rarely manages to dodge them by reflex. QZ and the couch accessories most often won the contests.

Traps start off simple, but eventually the books on general mechanics were used when certain incentives were introduced, such as an extra meal, or week-long priority access to any of the houses utilities. The latter was only implemented through an anonymous, unanimous vote, to prevent any sore feelings towards the winner.

Chief directs these constructions to end up slowly making fortifications around the rim of the house. They wouldn't stand up to cannon fire, but Chief figured that when the houses would be linked, it wouldn't be from above or below.
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No. 578496 ID: d470e9
File 140269424248.png - (15.94KB , 800x800 , S7A3-25.png )
578496

It has also been discovered that everyone is equal in strength despite size or form. Trying to sumo wrestle people out of a ring requires technique and little else. It's expected that should fights happen with other houses, each person will occupy one person, and two people will be needed to overpower another reliably.

Trapping someone appears to be a viable form of attack. Chief is unable to escape from a tested binding of rope. Given the lack of damage and the near limitless available physical stamina, binding someone is a task that requires maintenance. Although if they bind enemies like they did chief, maintenance might be a yearly affair.
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No. 578497 ID: d470e9
File 140269425480.png - (14.91KB , 800x800 , S7A3-26.png )
578497

If there is a capacity to the amount of body parts that can be out on the field at a time, Chief has yet to reach it. Clothes are similarly regenerative, with an undiscovered maximum cap to how many can be out at once. All clothes appear to be made out of the same, generic fabric material.

It's finally confronted that the food that's eaten doesn't appear to go anywhere. Goat experiments by eating a chunk of dirt on the ground. It tastes awful, he says, and the dirt is never seen again.

Thus far it seems that all of the mass can be removed from play, and the only mass that is possible to enter play are plants, clothing and bodies.

Lastly on this, Timekeeper gets a pile of dirt, and carefully weighs out, using a food scale, exactly 20 kilograms of dirt. She then carefully moves every speck of weighed dirt into a couple of jars and closes the lid.

10 years later, she measures about 19.95 kgs.

Assuming there were no errors in measurement, which Timekeeper can't confirm there were none, then if mass deterioration is a constant loss, then it will disappear in 4,000 years leaving a future of fiber and flesh.

If it's percentile, then Chief doesn't know, he's not the mathematician.
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No. 578499 ID: d470e9
File 140269429766.png - (5.82KB , 800x800 , S7A3-27.png )
578499

>Did he ever get the hang of the flute?
No. He really did not.

>With looping jumps off the cliff
A hole was dug where Chief spawned, but upon leaping down, Chief respawned next to the hole. It begs the question of where respawns happen should all the dirt be removed, but that would be a costly experiment.

>Try to see if you can take a peek at your new neighbours.
QZ attempts to use a makeshift telescope, but it still appears to be a graphical dot on the horizon. It can't be confirmed how the layout of this is, but Chief assumes that it's in a circle, not a line.'

Chief holds a brief meeting to say that things may be on edge for awhile, but the change of pace is certainly welcome in his eyes.

Rez and Footer make an expedition party to confirm that it's a circle around, while the rest of everyone keeps an eye out.

A couple of newcomers can be seen moving fast across the light bridge. Their pace is accelerated, so it must not take time to move between houses.
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No. 578500 ID: d470e9
File 140269430659.png - (18.14KB , 800x800 , S7A3-28.png )
578500

BOMF
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No. 578501 ID: d470e9
File 140269431674.png - (17.02KB , 800x800 , S7A3-29.png )
578501

"Heh."

They hit the fortification and fell off. Chief hadn't even noticed that the light beam didn't move up to accomadate the new elevation, but given that some of the dirt had been scraped out of the edges, the light beam can and does extend forward.

The couch accessories take a look around, but it appears that the would-be visitors respawned on their home turf.
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No. 578505 ID: 88960e

Huh. So it's trivially easy to block people coming in on the light paths. We did that by accident, I think.

Still, it may be worth making contact with the other houses. We don't have to worry about getting trapped, since just suiciding off the edge would seem to send you home. That means people can't permanently relocate, too.
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No. 578512 ID: dc4b80

Better safe than sorry. So what exactly happened when they fell off? Does the light bridge accelerate people that move along it and they smacked into your wall at high speed?

I would make a gate you can open and close if possible. Then you can let visitors in but keep invasions out. We want to be able to enjoy our neighbors company while avoiding any troublemakers.

Now some of your group might think you are a bit paranoid or over prepared. If anyone brings this up make sure to mention that unless we win at the final stage and fix the simulation this is the best and only time they will get to relax and enjoy life. Its worth taking a few precautions to keep things enjoyable as long as possible.
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No. 578514 ID: ac14c0

>>578501
Hmm. Alright, let's go meet our unfortified neighbors once we find some. We can return home simply by jumping off, so that shouldn't be too bad.

It seems like we can easily drive someone to suicide by capturing them and tying them up for years without food or entertainment. Visiting other locations is risky for this reason as well. I suppose since our fortifications appear unassailable we could move out as one big group to ensure nobody gets captured. This would merely be a scouting expedition. If we decide to go to war with another house we'll need to open up one of the entrances so that we can return with a captive or captives. On the other hand, we could take over another house after tying everyone in it up, and then fortify it so that nobody can get in. Then we squat there until the owners suicide from being tied up for too long. By doing this we ensure our respawn point is safe while still eliminating another house.
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No. 578517 ID: 88960e

I'd prefer to make the attempt to be peaceful, before we resort to more underhanded tactics dealing with neighbors. In the best case, they're people to trade with, and an additional source of entertainment. Worst case, depending on how the years have treated them, they could be a problem.
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No. 578562 ID: ca0da5

>>578512
>I would make a gate you can open and close if possible.
Alternatively, a cloth catching system would work, too. If they're invaders, you could then just lower the angle of the cloth system so that it drops them, or if they're friendly, you could let them in through a lowered gateway. This way you don't actually have to keep watch at all times, they'd have to be let in by a watcher, though.
>>578517
Plus, by letting people get caught in the system, you could talk to them a bit before letting them get in.

>>578497
>then if mass deterioration is a constant loss, then it will disappear in 4,000 years leaving a future of fiber and flesh.
This would be a good point to see if there's any way to create compost to generate new dirt. I dunno, try cooking stuff so much it turns into charcoal, especially people parts. Fleshy, but could also become soil maybe?
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No. 578563 ID: ca0da5

>>578500
Oh, and totally try and send somebody over to appologize, with a message that you'll be working on fixing the problem soon, and that they'll return to let them know when it's fixed.
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No. 578771 ID: d470e9
File 140287977255.png - (22.47KB , 1000x1000 , S7A3-30.png )
578771

>Does the light bridge accelerate people that move along it and they smacked into your wall at high speed?
This is correct.

Chief uses a spread of clothes and blood to make a banner saying Landing Pad Under Construction. Rez and Footer respawn back, after hitting a similar fortification. Chief has them go out again in the other direction to apologize on his behalf towards the newcomer, and see if they hit the same house going the other way.

They respawn shortly thereafter while Chief helps everyone else carve out a makeshift gate for the time being. It doesn't appear that any of the houses are trying to make enemies out of everyone so soon. Rez hands in a report to Chief to what they discovered. Suicides are from what people told Rez, but Rez could not validate this since people were moving around houses to visit. The two people who came are informed that they're welcome to visit, and Chief hopes the 'Under Construction' message was gotten by a few more people who slammed into the wall. Rez also says that he was allowed into at least one house, where he could see that all books, video games and so forth were different.

He notes that as a result, houses 2-5 could not visit houses 6-9 and vice versa, although that information isn't going to stand when Chief's gates open.
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No. 578773 ID: d470e9
File 140287983024.png - (28.30KB , 1000x1000 , S7A3-31.png )
578773

>Alternatively, a cloth catching system would work, too.
Chief will most likely test this out in the future, but

>This would be a good point to see if there's any way to create compost to generate new dirt. I dunno, try cooking stuff so much it turns into charcoal, especially people parts. Fleshy, but could also become soil maybe?
That's worth a shot, too.

A ledge is formed, finally, that allows newcomers to catch onto and visit.

>"Hey, I came from four houses down this road." House 5. "If you'd like to trade a few games and stuff, I'm making a prospective shopping list of stuff."
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No. 578776 ID: 410c24

>house three
Either the inhabitants found a way to hide themselves, or they're all dead already. Any number of ways that could have happened in the past decade and a half.

As soon as people realize it's empty, looting is going to start. We should work to quickly recover whatever is most valuable / transportable before factions start fighting over the stuff. Let others make themselves miserable fighting over scraps- we won't participate. (Unless someone is really itching for a fight?).

Accept trade with those who are willing to accept it, be friendly to the houses trying to be friendly, and be polite and friendly (put not pushy or forceful) with the withdraw or cautious houses. Don't engage the two withdrawn / hostile groups at the north of the map, for now.

Basic Alison game strategy. Play nice with those we can until we can't.

In the case of houses we need to travel through to reach others, it might be polite to let them know that that's what we're doing, and we don't have any other aggressive intentions. (Slide a note under 10's door, say. We won't attempt to enter their house since it's obvious they don't want us coming in, but we'll be passing by from time to time).

Are their any people from Alison's faction, or King's in the other houses? Belnos sim people who shared some kind of social grouping with people in your house? Or who might respect the emperors, and therefore Alison, and therefore your connection with her as three of your people did? You should nurture any of these connections you find- it'll make for greater stability and make peaceful mutually beneficial interaction between houses more likely.

Stable society building is the harder challenge, and potentially the most rewarding (in dealing with the longer term unstable problems of Corruptor, Savior, and Glitcher).
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No. 578778 ID: 04b86a

If houses 6 and 7 are the only ones known to have Bones's people, then we should go to houses 5 and 8 and quarantine them. It sounds like it shouldn't be too difficult, since 5 and 8's people are reasonable and we can attest to there being known troublemakers in those houses.
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No. 578779 ID: 1b75e6

Well the goal now is to keep your house safe from the nastier people and to trade and interact with the friendly ones. If you can keep your house stable and use the other houses as a source of entertainment it will be easier to avoid boredom.

The biggest thing to watch out for is letting your guard down and having someone sneak in or be let in that tries to ruin your stuff. Jiro might have been quiet until now but if he or another person are a secret Bones agent this would be the best time to start something.

The empty houses should be your first objective. If everyone did kill themselves there it would be nice to find out what happened in case they did not kill themselves and found a way out or had a bug of some sort. Also scavenging there games and books would be nice.

Speed will be key at the start. Empty houses will be looted quickly so if you are going to you need to do so now. Also trading with the other houses is a great idea.

Make sure everyone gets a look at the houses where things went bad. Will show them how bad things could be if we are not careful. So far everything has been pretty nice. But it does not take much for life here to become a miserable existence.
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No. 578782 ID: ca0da5

Let the guy into your house and introduce him to the couch accessories. The CURRENT couch accessories. They should be able to figure out what games they're willing to trade, and the current book club which books they'll trade.
>>578778
Especially House 5 was willing to chat, they were simply worried about raiders. Harness that fear, but respect it as well. Fear can be a very useful emotion when others have it, and if you can combine it with trust, you'll be in the game. Combine your methods with Alison's.
House 8 on the other hand isn't so fearful, they're mostly just friendly. Chances are they had somebody who was able to set up the setup, like you and QZ did for your house, only without the paranoia you showed. You should meet with this group personally, unless you have a reason to stay as far away from Bone's unit as possible, in which case ask QZ to go with some specific information on what's needed.

Definitely leave a "Care package" for House 10. Nothing too major, just leave them some spare seeds and strips of cloth. If you've found a way to make extas (or any period), some phials of blood for them might work too. The seeds, because you've got a farm going and don't really need them all--if they're going to stick to themselves they'll need a method to--and the cloth because unless somebody manages to grow a steady enough large farm to actually use the plant fiber to make paper, cloth is the best writing material you have available. Leave them with a friendly, but not snoopy message, along the lines of if they need anything, or just want to tell people to stay away, they can use the cloth to do so, and that if they want, you can even work from the outside to wall off the house portion of their island, leaving people to simply walk around it.

Islands 1 and 2 are in the center of the "Open" line, but 2 is too cautious to be willing to be a trading hub--Instead, try to extend your island to serve as such. Your house itself can be further fortified, not in such a way as to keep people out, but so that it's harder to sneak into it, while you maintain a welcoming appearance. That, or you could keep the wall up and extend a walkway around the outside, as was suggested to offer to do for 10, only you'll be trying to set up a large, sturdy platform for the people to use.
As a tip: The bones from any body parts used in food can be used as a sturdy building material, but they can also appear gruesome and offputting to any visitors. If you build anything out of them, then you should definitely wrap them in cloth to hide their true appearance. I'm not saying to keep it a secret that you're using bones, just don't flaunt the fact. It's entirely possible the other houses could contain large numbers of opposers to Corrupt Sanctuary--if any of them do happen to learn of the use of bones, explain that it's simply because they're the only source of sturdy building material you have access to, if you had some sort of sturdy wood that wasn't attached to your house, you'd use it.

Oh, now that we'll have people travelling along the light bridges, it's worth checking to see if they generate a breeze from their accelerated speed. If they do, post some windmills near the bridge points and let that feed your generator.
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No. 578783 ID: 410c24

Oh also: new kinds of seed stock (for variety in food) may be one of the cheapest and at the same time most useful things to trade for. If the crops we grow produce seeds, those might also make good trading material with groups that didn't think to turn their food stores into renewables.
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No. 578785 ID: ac14c0

>>578773
Considering the ring shape, we could ally with a series of houses on a line and fortify in two directions to lock everyone else out...

I think we should try to find out more information about why the suicides happened. Those who actively drive others to suicide are dangerous indeed, and identifying them quickly is important. Trading is a good idea, and we should try to get some good deals. Trade up! The more entertainment resources we can acquire and secure, the more influence we have on the other houses. Goodwill is also important so don't be too stingy when trading.

Bones' units will surely attempt aggression on our house at some point due to Chief's presence, and if we can convince other houses to wall off exit paths from Bones-affiliated houses, they'll be isolated and stagnate both due to lack of new entertainment and lack of new conversation. Also apparently we could just straight up burn their house down. Someone should do some research into figuring out how to make a firebomb. Are there any lighters or matches or anything? Oh, since there is a kitchen there must be some fuel supply, unless it's all electric heating. I suspect we could throw a firebomb in the middle of being accelerated along a light bridge to get it over fortifications.
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No. 578787 ID: 59b187

>>578785
I wouldn't recommend getting violent. That'd just lead to retaliation from other houses. Would suck to have OUR house be the one getting burned down.
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No. 578796 ID: 0bd34b

You must find a way to acquire Smash Bros if any of the other houses have it, it will give you the greatest advantage over other houses.
>>
No. 578813 ID: 761017

>>578785
they can ferment moonshine now.

alcohol+cloth+(metal+metal+friction=sparker) = molotov cocktails
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No. 579249 ID: d470e9
File 140314829404.png - (19.78KB , 800x800 , S7A3-32.png )
579249

>You must find a way to acquire Smash Bros if any of the other houses have it, it will give you the greatest advantage over other houses.
The advantage will be for the couch accessories. While they are allied at the moment, in the grand scheme of this area, they are ultimately the enemy. Chief wants to keep their advantage levels between other houses, and himself. Nonetheless, Chief lets this newcomer into his house and shows him to the couch accessories for possible trades.

>Do light bridge travellers cause a breeze?
If they do, it's a terribly insignificant breeze.

>I think we should try to find out more information about why the suicides happened.
Chief will investigate this in time, but there are more pressing matters.

>Are their any people from Alison's faction, or King's in the other houses?
Although Chief hasn't seen her yet, Pepper of King's faction is in this area.

The influx of belenosian refugees, as usual, helps Chief. Most appear willing to speak with other refugees, and follow the Emperor's orders - and Chief is the closest thing to an honorary emperor they've got. It's easy to take advantage of this, as the unquestioning loyalty that these people have towards their leaders is something that almost makes Chief jealous.

Chief sends Timekeeper and Footer to start looting the empty house and keep an eye for others.

Chief is also quick to gather at least one person from each house into his own to address how he is going to lay things out. Every house has a representative except for house 3, 10, and houses 6 and 7 which has Bones. "Everybody listen. Let me reiterate, in case any of you have forgotten - we're against bones. And we're in a lucky position, as both of the confirmed bones' units are next to each other. I request that houses 5 and 8" - Chief has Goat and Jiro make copies of Rez's report with the house numbers - "make fortifications to blockade 6 and 7. The rest of us, provided that we're as sensible as I hope, can enjoy fair trade and each other's company for as long as we can stand it. We can deal with suicide later. As far as I'm concerned, anyone not in house 6 or 7 is going to be on our team until they break decent respect or trust. I'm going to arrange a care package for house 10 out of my own house in order to attempt to have house 10 included in our team, as they appear to have boarded themselves up. As for the quarantine on bones' houses, I would like at least 4 people on each end standing guard at a single time. With just under 80 of us, the shifts won't be bad.
We'll be making a few firebombs to assure Bones' units that if they attempt anything on us, they will lose much more. I will have a limited stock of these, and manage shifts and who is responsible for keeping track of the firebombs at all times. They are not to be used as anything but defensive or counter-attack material. I will also manage trades and disputes among houses. My own house, as a suitable center between Bone lines, will serve as a central hub, but I will have someone check people in and out as they come and go into our house, but we will also construct an outer balcony so that you may freely move from houses 2 to 10."

Chief continues delving into more and more minute details, including exchange of seeds and foods, and finally encourages everyone to get to know all houses besides 6 or 7, and opens the floor to any questions.

Things might be rocky at the start, when everyone is afraid of each other. Still, Chief has noticed that people tend to play cautiously when in new environments. When people start getting too comfortable and knowledgeable about the situation is when Chief will begin to worry the most.

There are a few management questions that Chief gets.

-What about the people in houses 6 and 7 who aren't one of Bones'? Are they allowed to cross the line?
-Can we offer classes about firefighting, just in case? Chief will automatically enact this one. Their water is in a large subterranean tank each house has, and slowly refills similar to the power generator.
-Some of the houses have gotten their own leaders. Will they still be granted autonomy?
-Can we get still make fortifications ourselves and keep our own security as long as we don't completely block people from going through?
>>
No. 579254 ID: ac14c0

>>579249
>What about the people in houses 6 and 7 who aren't one of Bones'? Are they allowed to cross the line?
No. We cannot be certain where their loyalties lie and thus should not take risks.

>Some of the houses have gotten their own leaders. Will they still be granted autonomy?
Hmm. Chief should meet with them and use a combination of posturing (we control a lot of the board right now so they should know better than to defy us) and bribery to get them to agree to work as subordinates while outwardly seeming like independents.

>Can we get still make fortifications ourselves and keep our own security as long as we don't completely block people from going through?
I find little fault in this, as it could be to our advantage, but they need to be able to let Chief and his higher ups move freely.
>>
No. 579255 ID: 76b151

I'd in fact encourage fortifications. One of the ways to stave off boredom could be mock war-games between houses. Nothing destructive beyond say paint bombs and that.

I say yes to autonomy, for now at least. Form a council and through natural charisma and experience Chief will end up the leader anyway. Mainly to avoid stepping on toes while everything is new.

As for those who immigrate from Bones? Let them, spread them out amongst the most trusted houses who can run a tight ship to keep an eye on them. Alison would do it that way.
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No. 579256 ID: dc4b80

Tell them that for the moment we will isolate everyone from 6-7 but depending on how things go we can accept refugees. But until we get our little civilization set up and working smoothly trusting them is a big risk.

As for the other houses if they have a leader that speaks for them they can still do so if they choose. But if we are going to make this work we need a clear chain of command. If they want to be in charge of there house they need to be responsible for the actions of there members.

As for security I would say that every island should have its own security. Unless someone here enjoys being a guard full time everyone needs to be responsible for there own house.
>>
No. 579280 ID: ca0da5

>-What about the people in houses 6 and 7 who aren't one of Bones'? Are they allowed to cross the line?
Only if they agree to temporary (maybe a month?) confinement, and after that they should be kept on a "secret" probation/watch, so that we can be sure they really are not a part of the Bones crew.
>-Can we offer classes about firefighting, just in case? Chief will automatically enact this one. Their water is in a large subterranean tank each house has, and slowly refills similar to the power generator.
Depending on how well distillation works, you might even be able to create some water or water-like liquids from the blood you create, too.
>-Some of the houses have gotten their own leaders. Will they still be granted autonomy?
The houses themselves are certainly permitted autonomy. These rules are to be voted on for inter-island use, not the houses themselves.
>-Can we get still make fortifications ourselves and keep our own security as long as we don't completely block people from going through?
Mention the idea of an "inner circle", where they could wall off the house itself, but still allow people to walk around the island. If they absolutely want to ensure their house is secluded, they can do this, but it's recommended, to avoid suspensions, that they primarily try things like boarding up the house and such. The wargames idea is also a good one.

>>579256
> If they want to be in charge of there house they need to be responsible for the actions of there members.
Yes, this is a great point.
>As for security I would say that every island should have its own security. Unless someone here enjoys being a guard full time everyone needs to be responsible for there own house.
As far as security to their own belongings goes, I agree. Security for the whole of the chain, though, should be shared. If things start to seem boring, you could suggest running drills, where a secretly selected person tries to hit the current guards with a soaked piece of cloth. Keep the guards alert and reactive.
>>
No. 579282 ID: ca0da5

Ah, something I meant to mention, but deleted it along with something I decided didn't need to: When patching new dirt onto the sides of the island, does it float like the island does, or is that inherent only to the default dirt?
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No. 579338 ID: 50338d

>The advantage will be for the couch accessories
Maybe short term. I think long term, the game of juggling politics and personality and psychology to keep things stable as long as possible will prove enough of an interesting challenge to keep you entertained longer than the games will keep them going. You've got a society in a bottle to try and make work, and as much to learn as you can to help you later.

>the unquestioning loyalty that these people have towards their leaders is something that almost makes Chief jealous
Life in a much stabler and more prosperous enviroment does breed a certain faith in leaders we don't have much opportunity for in the Contest.

>Pepper of King's faction
You should try talking to her, later. From little we know, she's no idiot, and King trusts Mint and Pepper implicitly. In fact, I think they sort of play a similar role as you did to Alison in her group, helping run things. Meaning she's another leadership personality who could be useful in keeping things going, if you can work with her. Or possibly an opponent to understand, if she sets herself up as one.

I wonder if her wings are big enough to work here. Flight might be an interesting mechanic if it allowed travel between houses without light bridges. That would be a way around barricades. (And might be a problem if the Bones houses have any flyers).

...I think I just started shipping Chief / Pepper. Wow, that was fast.

>looting the empty house
I'm assuming everyone will end up taking something. But in the event our alliance thing actually works out, we might find ourselves needing to redistribute some of what we took more fairly, or lose face. Or the empty house may grow into a neutral meeting site, or where we settle inter-group disputes.

>I request that houses 5 and 8 make fortifications to blockade 6 and 7
If they accept, we may wish to offer to help them with the construction, since it came at our request. (Granted, they may not trust us enough initially to be building on their island, which is fair too).

>What about the people in houses 6 and 7 who aren't one of Bones'?
Yes, within reason. Controlled diplomatic contact is permissible (if they really want to send a messenger to us). And it's entirely possible individuals may want to leave. Although supervision of such visitors / refugees would be necessary, at least initially, until we were sure that Bones loyalists were not simply taking advantage to send double agents or saboteurs though.

We're being generous, but also practical. We can see from here that things weren't as peaceful in Bone's area as they have been in some other houses.

Remember, that upon falling off the edge, people re-spawn in their native house. If anyone from another area makes trouble, all that's needed to remove them is for people to tackle them off the edge.

>Some of the houses have gotten their own leaders. Will they still be granted autonomy?
>If they want to be in charge of there house they need to be responsible for the actions of there members.
Yeah, good response. We'll respect leaders, and obviously we cannot stop people from following others if they wish to. But a good leader should be responsible for their own, and try to mediate problems within their own house, or if and when problems arise between members of their own houses and outsiders. It comes with responsibilities.

>Can we get still make fortifications ourselves and keep our own security as long as we don't completely block people from going through?
Yes, it is your right to decide how open you wish to keep your own homes (use the word homes instead of islands or houses- give them a significance). For instance, if the people of ten really want to stay locked behind that door forever, we'll let them.

There is value in interaction between peoples and groups, though. A society will stay saner longer than withdrawn individuals. There is good reason to be cautious, but to the extent we can trust one another, we benefit.
>>
No. 579377 ID: 889404

>What about the people in houses 6 and 7 who aren't one of Bones'? Are they allowed to cross the line?

If it is made explicitly clear to any refugees that the trip is one-way, and that houses 5 and 8 will be permanently off-limits to them, it could work.
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No. 579812 ID: d470e9
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579812

Pepper comes by. They have not spoken much to each other, but having familiarity with one another through Alison will go a long way.

"As long as you don't block your allies from passing through, I would encourage your own fortifications. In fact, it may help our positions if we have occasional war-games between us as practice. If nothing else, it's an entertainment element. Until then, I recommend what my house is currently building, one inner circle, with an outer balcony to allow passage between the light bridges. The exception, of course, being the houses on the front bone line.
In the next year or two, everyone is going to be as good of a firefighter as a professional. We may be able to distill our seemingly infinite supply of blood into water as well, if we need additional water.
As for the people of bones' houses... limit it so that they always have a pair of trusted individuals to watch over them at all times, and return them to bones' houses when they can't be watched. We can't have them have a one way trip, as it any accidental cliff fals will return them to bones' house anyway, as that is their spawn point. We'll revise this in months and years to come. For now, exercise extreme caution. We can't know where their loyalties are after all these years.
Autonomy will be fine, however, the more autonomy that is practiced means more responsibility for protecting their own house. That doesn't mean we won't assist, in fact, if there is a problem that cannot have a resolution internally, then come get me. I will prefer having a council of us with a representative of each house for other issues. We'll sort out the details and find what works. As long as we use common sense in the beginning, we can experiment."
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No. 579813 ID: d470e9
File 140338679989.png - (26.85KB , 800x800 , S7A3-34.png )
579813

The first couple of weeks go by. There are a few rough spots, but slowly things settle into place. House 10 eventually comes out and joins the group. Chief does not find any conclusive clues about what happened to the abandoned house 3, as there was no writing left over. In fact, either suicides are unsolved or are just mundane cases of people not wanting to deal with this, even if they could live peacefully here for a time.

There are some fights and some friction, and soon Chief gets a terribly complex mental web of how everyone sees each other. Problems are currently solveable and Chief keeps a close eye on everything to make sure there aren't any metaphorical bombs that have lit fuses under the surface. Keeping that close eye does come with a cost for non-belenos refugees who prefer their autonomy. The belenos, however, are so used to having constant eyes and judgement on them that, if anything, Chief's own inspections are nothing compared to what, Chief has learned, EIN was doing.

Some of Bones' units have occasionally popped into houses 5 or 8, and jumped off when they notice that there are still guards on top. It does justify the guards' existence, but a couple of Chiefs own scouts report nothing out of the ordinary for bones. Despite that, there have been concerns regarding a jetal bot that has been creating weapons. Chief goes to meet him in house 10.

"Hello. Your name is Curt-Haz, correct?"
>"Yes."
"There's been reports that you've been making a good deal of weapons by yourself."
>"... I may as well say that yes, I have, since you ask."
"I shouldn't have to say what would happen if the wrong person gets a hand on your stock. Where is it?"
>"I'll show you. But I can bet you that Bones is doing the exact same thing. There's creative ways that they can make up for their low numbers. I have developed spears that are designed to puncture bodies and dirt, used to impale people and lock them to the dirt temporarily. I thought of that in the first few days of this simulation. If I can do that, I do not know what methods bones, this supposed formidable adversary, could have come up with over these years. I'm certain they're building up. Are you familiar with arms races?"
"Only in name."
>"If you want to deal with my stock to protect or contain it, I'll allow it. I haven't had many issues with you at the top of our broken society, but having a few firebombs as though that will get far is foolish. Mutually assured destruction, Chief. We must have enough weapons to destroy them and ourselves 4 times over. Make it known. Have so many that the next time they test our defenses, they won't know what hit them. In fact, I recommend completely clearing out houses 5 and 8, and create our best barricades on both houses 5 and 8, but also 4 and 9."

4 would be willing, but many of house 9 has demanded the most autonomy and least involvement in the Alison-Bones conflict.
>>
No. 579815 ID: ac14c0

>>579813
Disabling spears, so that we can invade and break their shit? I suppose that's hedging our bets further than trusting there's no way to bypass slamming into a wall blocking the light path. Actually I just thought of one. Grappling hooks or something to impale the wall with so they can grab on.

...considering our numbers advantage why can't we just outproduce them on weapons by having more people available to make them, then rush them before they think they're ready to go on the offensive? If we can break all their stuff they're done for.

Other weapons could be bolos, weighted nets, dustbombs(or real smokebombs if those are possible), and glue-bombs.
>>
No. 579818 ID: dc4b80

I think making more weapons is a good idea but his ideas on mutually assured destruction are a bit over the top right now.

A worst case attack from bones would be the entire force coming over and immobilizing everyone on a island and then looting and burning everything down before anyone else noticed. So we want at least enough weapons and such for everyone to have a set or two.

I would barricade what you can without bothering people and if house 9 gets destroyed someday then they will quickly change there tune.
>>
No. 579827 ID: 50338d

The problem with mutually assured destruction is we currently have more to lose than they do. We're living in relatively stable communities, not isolated in burnt out ruins. Mutually assured destruction's value as a deterrent also depends on all parties being sane enough to realize it's in their best interests not to trigger it. Since this entire challenge is a test of sanity, we cannot trust that in the long term, someone, on our side or the other, will not activate willfully chose destruction.

I believe the last hours of your own world were a rather brutal lesson in what happens when someone decides to call the bluff. The emperors' mutual threats kept things stable for a long time, until their deaths destroyed everything.

(The other problem is the same as your own old ideas about controlling people. Ruling by fear only goes so far. What do you do, after the bluff has been called, and houses are burnt to the ground, but no one is dead? Suddenly, your leverage is gone, and you're going to lose control. If you can't enforce your edicts, you lose).

>fortify 4 and 9
Is that necessary? If it truly comes to war with 6 and 7, couldn't we simply sever the light paths leading to 5 and 8? Make it impossible to land, like we did before at our house. (Granted, we don't know if they can circumvent that via flight or catapults or something).

It might be worth having a second line just in case, but political realities with 9 sound like it is not happening. If we challenge the issue of autonomy, we challenge the legitimacy of our alliance. Then things fall apart.

>pinning spears
Honestly, an intelligent and practical weapon for the rules here. Since we can't 'kill' people, the quickest way to end a fight is to disable or immobilize them, so they can then be restrained or pushed off the edge.

Honestly, I see nothing wrong with including ideas for this kind of equipment with our defenses. But an enormous, 4 times too big stockpile seems excessive.

>our seemingly infinite supply of blood
I wonder, is there anyone who doesn't bleed? Or who's got a significantly different biology? (Like, ichor or plasma. Or is actually robotic inside).

>>579812
>dem neumono ears
...and now I'm morbidly wondering, what with cannibalism practically being built into that species, is if Pepper's one of the tastiest people here.
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No. 579836 ID: d470e9
File 140339829965.png - (17.52KB , 800x800 , S7A3-35.png )
579836

>Couldn't we simply sever the light paths leading to 5 and 8?
Light paths can't be entirely disabled, only made to have difficulty in landing. Tools can be held while crossing light paths, and so can be used to create ledges, such as spears in dirt to hold onto.

>I wonder, is there anyone who doesn't bleed?
No, as far as Chief can tell, taste is the only difference, and even then rather subtle.

"I know enough about mutually assured destruction to know that every player involved has to be sane enough not to trigger it. You should know the trouble with that best."
>"Is Bones insane?"
"We can't rule it out. Your recommendation might be over the top, as we have far more to lose than they do. I'll ask houses 4 and 9 if they are willing to additionally barricade themselves, but the decision is theirs. Even so, I won't mind increasing our weapon stock."

Chief sends out the word.
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No. 579837 ID: d470e9
File 140339830979.png - (23.39KB , 800x800 , S7A3-36.png )
579837

The first few weeks of decisions stabilize into a status quo, and 14 years pass with nothing more than occasionally seeing a few individuals from each side test each others defenses. No major attack is ever made or received.

There are times when others would prefer that Chief's party rush them with numbers and leave them with nothing. It tempts Chief, but he doesn't forget that when it's all said and done, he's Alison's middle manager. He'll still reside by her decision. Eventually, people just seem to forget that attacking is even an option.

There are no major problems, but there are plenty of minor problems. Occasionally, someone suicides. It's unknown when this happens, as there is no system indicator that the ability is used. Instead, normally, they either politely announce themselves that they've had enough and aren't enjoying themselves anymore, and either can't be or aren't convinced otherwise.

Other times, they simply disappear, and it's presumed that they suicide when enough times go by that they aren't just shutting themselves in.

The belenos are having trouble adjusting to this life, as it seems like their mentality never left their home. It's begun to show. They've started to become irritable, and small arguments have become frequent. Chief's mental web of relationship is starting to show a lot of red.

Eventually, Goat disappears. Timekeeper denies it at first, until finally Chief conducts a large scale investigation and search with no results. She continues watching the days and making meals herself as individual body parts taste different, such as the chewy texture of Pepper's ears mixed with the salty flavor of grounded horns from Footer. The high point after Goat's disappearance is when Jiro finally remarks that Timekeeper has improved far beyond her initial capabilities, but even that high point slips. She's become noticeably depressed and spends more time in her room and counting out 10,000 seconds to see how accurately she can do so.

Pepper has also begun to miss King. She thought that she would eventually get used to life here and simply be pleased when she was reunited, she can't help but think about him more and more. Chief didn't realize she felt that way about him.

The jetals have become the most reclusive for some reason. They keep to themselves. Chief has even started to have doubts about QZ's ability at rational thought and management.

Lastly, Chief has noticed cracks in his own mentality. He almost wishes a calamity would occur, as the constant petty disputes and arguments have become far more mentally taxing than warranted. It used to be about life and death scenarios, where the slightest missed judgement on a platform, or simple bad luck would result in death, and the only possibility of afterlife was dependant on how sleepy ones friends or conquerers were. Now things have become about missing salt shakers and books with slight nicks on words. None of it looks like outright sabatoge. Nevertheless, Chief cannot believe that, of all fates, he would ever join with Pepper and the other contestants and talk about the simulation and all its grief as 'the good old days.' Moreso Pepper alone as time goes on.

One morning, everyone receives a single-use voucher to summon Shopkeep. Chief comes into Timekeepers room.

"Good morning. Did you get a voucher for the shopkeep?"
>"Yes. Good morning. Um, I think I might save it. I don't really have much use for it aside to get nostalgic. As of this morning, it's our 30th year, earth calendar, since we were put here. Do you want to do anything?"
"Our wargames haven't been doing well. People get angry at others, now, and one of these times the war isn't going to be a game. Bones won't have to do anything." Each of bones houses only have one guard. It's unknown if they might be the only person in the house anymore. "People are tired of imagining stories, reading books, I think most of the games have been played. Most of the controllers have been worn through, and they're on their last legs. I'll try to think of something, because we're in need of a reset of spirits."
>"I'm tired, too. You know, when I first started stage 1, I liked trying to figure out the passage of time between turns. Of course, I had limited success, it was so convoluted. But then I entered this stage, and it was so... easy. I thought I could do it forever. And... 30 years? That's nothing. It's nothing, but I'm so tired."

Chief doesn't want to mention goat. It's been 4 years, and she hasn't recovered. It's something that Chief has noticed, but he has no way to tell if it's something the system introduced or a flaw in their own AI, but it seems amazingly difficult to adapt to changes long term.

>"Maybe I can keep doing this for another 20 years. Is it that important? After 100 years, will anyone care if they don't know they've been here for 90 years or 112? People are supposed to live for a hundred years and have happy lives out there. Are we that weak?"
"The progress of AI has only had its flaws reduced and minimalized, but seldom removed. Plus, it may be minimizing our own capacity to adapt, or slowly increasing our mental instability. Forget others, is keeping track of a hundred years important to you?"
>".. I don't know anymore. I don't think it is as it used to be. That milestone seems so old even though it hasn't even been born. I can't just look forward to it, can I? I might be excited for a moment at the 100 year mark, but the payoff for its own sake... I don't think it will have been worth it."
>>
No. 579838 ID: ac14c0

>>579837
I'm honestly shocked that the Bones bases haven't collapsed. They've only had 2 bases of entertainment, while everyone on our side has had 7.

Let's fuck 'em up. An influx of new entertainment will raise morale. Once Bones' influence is all gone, you should switch tactics. Seclude yourself, let people lose patience with eachother and start suiciding. They won't try to imprison you in retaliation- just say you're tired of being responsible for settling all their disputes (and you'd be telling the truth). Eventually there will be only a few people left, who don't have beefs with eachother or just live on their own. This is when you start pushing their buttons. Drive them to suicide. Win, and move on. Unless you can think of someone who is more deserving of it.

Save your voucher until you're in desperate need of a friendly face. Someone else will use theirs first, and possibly interrogate him to confirm that those who suicided without leaving a note or anything really chose to, and weren't the victims of a glitch or even the Ghost.
>>
No. 579839 ID: dc4b80

You can have doubts about the stability of your program all you want but this stage is not a true test of Ai sanity. If you filled this stage with "real" people they would have all the same issues that you are having. Without a real changing world to interact with you will become trapped in your own head. Only the people with the strongest goals and drive will make it out of here. Do you believe in Alison's dream strong enough to outlast everyone?

You have done a excellent job keeping the peace and the "status quo". But real life rarely ends up like that. There is always something changing and outside forces at work. Disasters and wars are never fun but they help keep the world moving in different directions.

So not saying you should cause a disaster or a war but you should see if you can change things up a bit. We have given everyone we could years of peace and prosperity. It might be time to start worrying about yourself and how to win this game. You don't have to become a monster or start sabotaging things but I bet if you stopped trying to manage everything and took on a different role it would help you pass the time.

So stop worrying about people little problems and do something different. If you had a sex drive or the parts for it I would say go try and seduce some people. Go master a craft like Timekeeper has with food. You have never seen the islands that bones people are on. Why don't you go see what they have been up to. Just make sure you have some backup so they can't just tie you up and throw you in a hole.
>>
No. 579840 ID: 50338d

>shopkeep card
Put out the word that if anyone decides to use theirs soon, it would be appreciated if they did so where others might have access. Or if they asked questions that might be useful to the group (like, how much longer this will last? Why the cards were distributed? Has anything changed?).

>Pepper has also begun to miss King.
...yeah. This particular competition is especially cruel towards anyone with personal bonds to people who aren't here. It's essentially coping with a lifetime spent apart. There's not much you can do for someone suffering that way, except be there for them when you can.

Honestly, I'm still kind of glad we didn't res Alison. I'm not sure how well she would have coped, away from so many people she cared about for so long.

I'm also wondering what effect this stage may be having on people like Glitcher, or Corruptor. Neither of them was the most stable to begin with, what if this drives them to do something really stupid or dangerous? They could do a whole lot worse than suicide if they snap (especially if this is a new challenge, not tried before). Hopefully, they have ways to protect themselves (time acceleration?) or just cheated through.

>Are we that weak?
It might be the situation. People outside are free, they live lives where their actions have consequences. Where decisions matter. We've been left in a little box with a few toys to play at society. No one can do that forever.

>what tell timekeeper
...when this challenge first started, I had to think about how I would approach it. One obvious strategy would have been to try and make everyone else as miserable as possible, so as to hasten suicides and victory.

The obvious futility of that plan was that what we have been fighting for all this time, aside from survival, was a chance to live. This... isn't a full life, I think, but it was a chance at something different. Why throw that away that opportunity? Why force ourselves to suffer when the Contest finally gave us a chance at a reprieve?

The point wasn't life for life's sake, or for a payoff's sake. It was so people could have something. If there comes a point where one is living for simply life's sake, or is suffering to do so, then maybe that point has been lost. We're supposed to be doing something other than fighting to the death for once, not forcing ourselves to suffer because we can.

I don't... I can't tell you if your goals are worth it. That's too personal, and something only you can know. I can only hope they will be. And my own, for that matter.

>expedition to Bones land?
Trying to talk to them after all these years might be an interesting way to shake things up. Maybe their old animosities have faded after all this time, too.

If nothing else, the novelty of it, and speculating about what might happen might stimulate people for a while.

>thought
Did anyone here guess the number 2 in the red / white / blue puzzle? Did you ever find out what the extra puzzle they had to go through to get here was?
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No. 579842 ID: ca0da5

Try spending some time with Pepper, try and comfort her. She is your main ally her, not Time Keeper or anybody else from your house.
If you've got the time, maybe ask Time Keeper to teach you how to cook, it may distract her from Goat to have a student, and it's something to distract your own mind using.

Go speak with the Jetal bot. Does he think he can create something that will null the senses and conscious of people, sort of like alcohol would only on a possibly larger scale? If the people are feeling extremely bored, gathering them together only to "knock them out" might be viable. It may even give you a chance to set up some secret surprise for them, make them feel joyous again.

I haven't read through the previous threads before so lemme know if this is non-viable If King and Alison were like-minded, or great allies, maybe you can ask Pepper to take over for a bit, while you work on your own little projects to calm your mind.
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No. 579856 ID: d470e9
File 140340663810.png - (11.74KB , 800x800 , S7A3-37.png )
579856

"I assume you're in the absorb chain, Timekeeper. Hang in there for as long as you can. Don't earlier, and no later than that."
>"Thanks, Chief, I will." Chief could say more, but he'd be grasping for words that he isn't sure applies to Timekeeper's thoughts.

>Did you ever find out what the extra puzzle [people who guessed NPC2] had to go through to get here was?
It apparently was a few lengthy social tests, although not nearly the length of this one.

>Disasters and wars are never fun but they help keep the world moving in different directions.
It'll be an awful day when Chief incites such a thing on his own, but down in his head, he can hope for such a thing.

Gradually, Chief starts not dealing with things. After so long, it feels strange, but he leaves people to deal with their own trouble. That leaves Chief in the position to have far less to do, but simple observation supplies a decent alternative. Still, he occasionally organizes meetings, and informs that if anyone uses their voucher, to do so when others are around so that they can do this. This rule is largely followed, but Chief hasn't had much reason to see Shopkeep.

He goes over to Bones house in one of the traditional scouting attempts, confirms the guard is there, and falls off with Pepper. Chief can't help but be impressed that bones has held on for so long with only two houses worth of entertainment.

"Want to talk?!" Chief yells up as he falls. The skeleton does not reply.
>>
No. 579857 ID: d470e9
File 140340665342.png - (33.93KB , 800x800 , S7A3-38.png )
579857

He's not going to be outlasted by them, that's for sure. Even if he can't stand anymore and lets someone else when, he's going to make sure that the only people left after him are people he approves of. If it seems like people are dropping off too fast and Bones may have a chance, Chief will declare open war against them to burn down or take everything they've got. He's beginning to lose interest in having a good life, and interested in finishing this game with a favorable win.

Another few years pass. Chief takes over Goat's position. Timekeeper is not an entirely necessary entity for Chief's survival, but the food is nice, and he may as well spend the time learning a craft. He's no replacement for Goat, but he never tries to be.

The couch accessories finally wear out most of the controllers, and start trying to tinker with possibilities to make new controllers.

>Does QZ he think he can create something that will null the senses and conscious of people, sort of like alcohol would only on a possibly larger scale?
QZ attempts this, but attempting to create chemical combinations to either knock people out or null their senses seem to be suppressed. It works somewhat, but not to the degree that it realistically should.

QZ, of all people, say they've had enough. This sort of environment isn't something that a jetal was made to live by. He'd rather suicide while mentally intact rather than a broken shell of his former self. A head count reveals 59 living people on Chief's side, and 8 out of 10 of his own house.

Nothing devolves into chaos. Years ago, perhaps that would have happened, but Chief waited to long. The system that Chief put in place appears to be self sustaining. Salt shaker arguments seem to be the norm, now.

Chief goes to ask Pepper how she's doing.

>"Not well, but that doesn't mean I'm going to quit. I have to make sure someone good continues on, or else I'm not going to be able to look King in the eyes anymore, whenever I get the chance to do so again. Assuming I do, this lifeti- this cycle."
"There's always the dream, once this stage is finished."
>"Yeah... the system's always taken everything that proved too useful, though. It wouldn't surprise me if they take that out. Oh, but even for just... what was it, 30 hours? 30 hours to see everyone's faces again. That'd be nice."
"Unless Alison succeeds."
>"She's been trying for a long time, hasn't she? She's relentless, someday I bet she'll succeed, but realistically? It's not looking good at this single cycle. The probability just doesn't favor a single throw of the dice."
"I can't deny that. I was never an idealist, but that doesn't mean there's no point in trying our hardest. If we thought differently, we'd be dead."
>"Yeah. I'm bored. I think of something new to do, but it just doesn't do anything for me. No skydiving or anything, it all just feels pointless. We can't even die within our own power, we need our ability. Did you know that Topton set a fire just to have something happen?"
"I don't even remember who that was."
>"No one important. But damn, I'm not saying we should, I mean, Tipton felt so bad afterwards he killed himself right on the spot. That's probably why everyone who saw didn't think it was worth mentioning, and the fire didn't affect more than a single room in... was it house 2? Wherever. But you know, for the ones who did see it? It was nice. It was exciting, that something bad might happen."
"Wouldn't it be an idealist's thing to think that maybe something good might happen instead."
>"There's a lot of bad things that can happen, but we're not sure about good things. You wanna fuck?"
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No. 579858 ID: d470e9
File 140340666190.png - (16.05KB , 800x800 , S7A3-39.png )
579858

>>
No. 579859 ID: d470e9
File 140340668978.png - (24.92KB , 800x800 , S7A3-40.png )
579859

>"Haha, I thought you'd look at me like that. It's not like anyone wants to do it all the time, but as a daily thing when the urges come up? It's a nice time passer."
"I've never gotten the urges."
>"I still have a shopkeep voucher. I bet if you get something, you might like it."
"I'll pass."
>"Really? Come on, sometimes we have to force ourselves past our apathy."
"Pepper. I have never felt as uncomfortable in my entire life as I do now."

Chief pauses.
>>
No. 579860 ID: d470e9
File 140340671910.png - (19.80KB , 800x800 , S7A3-41.png )
579860

And he laughs. He didn't lie, Pepper managed to instantaneously turn a casual conversation into something that made Chief tense up.

But it was good. Not good as in favorable, but good as in it was something. Something out of his control that influenced him.

>"See?! This is what I meant about the fire!"
"You know me better than I thought."
>"No, I figured either that would happen, or you'd take me up on the offer. Or nothing. I really had no idea."
"Well, thanks. It was a good laugh. Now, as Chief, I'm going to tell you to never bring that up again. You're bringing up dangerous thoughts, Pepper. You're making it tempting to go downstairs right now and go flip a table."
>"We're not the only ones who feel that way. We're in a pot of mental capacity, and it's over a fire. There's a boiling temperature for everything. We're not going to have to worry about Bones', sooner or later. It's just because these Belenos have learned to suppress themselves so effectively that we still have our houses. You gonna do anything about that, or let some fires happen?"
>>
No. 579861 ID: ac14c0

>>579860
I still think we should just go to war with bones and wreck his shit. Just for something to happen.
>>
No. 579864 ID: ca0da5

>>579857
>You wanna fuck?
>>579338
>...I think I just started shipping Chief / Pepper. Wow, that was fast.
CONGRATULATIONS, LOOK WHAT YOU'VE CAUSED.
But it was good for a laugh, even on our side.
>>579860
>It's just because these Belenos have learned to suppress themselves so effectively that we still have our houses.
It seems to constantly come up: How has the artificial dirt turned up? If you can make new land, then over time you could make new houses, built for "actual" warfare. The winning party should be promised some form of reward, though I can't personally think of anything--perhaps using some sort of sash to represent who's still "alive" and anybody who loses their sash is out of the game.


...Although, if things do get more boring, do consider Pepper's offer. Bringing in Shopkeeper to make some changes, I mean, change can be fun in such a sterile environment.
>>
No. 579865 ID: 06b8ea

So the only sign of Bones' presence is a skeleton standing guard at the wall? And this skeleton never speaks? Does the skeleton ever move?

I'm wondering if Bones managed to extract someone's skeleton and posted it on the wall as a decoy. Everyone there could already be dead and the skeleton would remain.

So I'd start checking if this is true. See if the skeleton moves from day-to-day. Can you throw a rock at it when you approach the house and see if it responds?

If Bones' group is actually dead, then that gives us another two houses to check out. Though it also removes the only threat you have, which could drive everyone faster towards suicide. (Though I'm worried if we started a war, everyone would like it too much and wouldn't want to stop.)
>>
No. 579867 ID: dc4b80

Uncomfortable is good Chief. She made you think about something outside your comfort zone and thats how people learn and grow. If you don't force yourself to try new things you won't be able to grow as a person.

So go start some fires. Change the status quo you have spent so much time building. Go have sex, spend some time with people you normally don't, learn something new with someone and make stupid mistakes learning it.

Now when I say start fires I don't mean actual fires. Get people out of there comfort zone a bit and do something new.
>>
No. 579868 ID: 50338d

>wanna fuck
Two words I never expected to be uttered in this quest. Congratulations, Pepper. You broke ground there. (Best almost-ship ever).

>I'm wondering if Bones managed to extract someone's skeleton and posted it on the wall as a decoy.
...yeah. If you can take blood from bodies, you can take bone. If it doesn't move, that may not be a contestant who made themselves look like a skeleton. It may be just a pile of empty bones.

(Actually, shouldn't we have a pile of bone in the kitchen or wherever from all the limbs we've cut off and regenerated for cooking with?).

Easiest test might be to zip over and toss something at it. If it blocks or moves out of the way, it's a living person. If it falls apart, it's a scarecrow. Made of bone.

>You gonna do anything about that, or let some fires happen?
I'm not sure doing something about that wouldn't be part of the problem. Maybe I've let things get too stable. Let things stagnate. A few metaphorical fires might not be a bad thing. Stir things up a bit. Worry more about making our time here interesting instead of as long as possible.
>>
No. 579870 ID: 2bfa23

You should figure out what made you reject her offer. Does the idea of sex frighten you? Or was it just something you had never considered? Something to consider next time you talk to shopkeeper. If you don't try it now the opportunity may never come up again.

Go talk to some other people and find some stuff to do that you would have never thought of. Even if its only once go try everything once.

Oh and get some grappling hooks and see whats up wirh bones.
>>
No. 579875 ID: 2b0ed1

Honestly Chief, if you want to go for it, then go for it. However, you've never had sexual urges before, so just know it might be a bit... troublesome. It's like having stockholm syndrome, they keep you trapped and under their thumb at all times, they constantly tell you to do things that might not be the best for the current situation, they stick with you all the time, you can't get rid of them, but you still love them anyway and wouldn't give them up for anything in the world.

Is the addition of these parts reversible, or will you be stuck with them? Do you even care?
>>
No. 579877 ID: d470e9
File 140341311225.png - (16.48KB , 800x800 , S7A3-42.png )
579877

>How has the artificial dirt turned up?
It appears to decay at a significantly faster rate. It is possible to build out of it, but upkeep and maintenance will have to be a constant effort.

>So the only sign of Bones' presence is a skeleton standing guard at the wall? And this skeleton never speaks? Does the skeleton ever move?
Chief has asked about him, and it doesn't appear to be a decoy made out of people's bones, although it would have been a good ruse. A failed ruse, but a good one. Past attempts to scale the wall have led to the skeleton knocking them off.

"Pepper, let's not let fires be set where we reside. Not when there's other places we could let burn."
>"Ahhhh, the war chief I've heard about is showing. Not like Alison's trusted delegatee at all."
"Don't encourage me too much. But I can't stand any more theoretical fires."

Chief goes to get Curtz.

"Hey, Curtz. It's been a few years. You feel like offense?"
>"I was beginning to think we would go centuries before I heard you say that. Of course. Let's get my weapons."
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No. 579878 ID: d470e9
File 140341313241.png - (9.63KB , 800x800 , S7A3-43.png )
579878

Pepper wasn't wrong about people getting secretly antsy. There's a large showing, very nearly everyone.

>"Alright, we're going to have people on defense and offense, 2/3 to offense, 1/3 to defense! Defense, don't let any counter attacks occur. For the rest of us, we're going to go in waves, 10 in each wave, grouped in orders of 10 from my right to my left! The first will be spear bearers, to create a ladder up bones' fortifications. The second wave will be to subdue any guards, and the third wave will bring firebombs and torches! Once those are expended and the barricade secured, wave 2 is to continue guarding the barricade while all other waves are to enter their home and raid everything of value to bring it back home! Once looting is done, future offense is to break their generator and their water tank. Any home they have after today is going to have to be built out of cloth and bone!"
"What about Alison's ideology of peace?" someone from the crowd asks.
>"Even Alison had limits. I once brought her to it, and she worked it out in her favor. I'll do it again."
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No. 579879 ID: d470e9
File 140341320359.png - (112.87KB , 800x800 , S7A3-44.png )
579879

Things go pretty well. Considering there were only a few people in each house, they put up an admirable defense. Nonetheless, by sheer merit of overwhelming numbers and resources, Chief's side has a decisive victory.

Most of Bones houses were in a state of disrepair, like they had undergone years of minor fighting.

Even Jiro, of which Chief feels he judged him too harshly in the past, engages in this activity. He kind of sucks at the whole war thing, but he doesn't actively hurt the effort.
>>
No. 579880 ID: d470e9
File 140341323269.png - (11.49KB , 800x800 , S7A3-45.png )
579880

Somehow, someway, no one back home decided to go looting and pillaging on their own side. Bones' group occasionally tries to attack, but they lose heart after awhile.

Chief doesn't go calling Shopkeep, but he does enjoy physical company now and then. Affectionate company, not sexual company.
>"You did surprise me, though. I mean, you had a succubus at your side all the time. Literally. Her name was 'The Succubus' for fuck's sake."
"She was supportive. What she did when I wasn't around was her business and hers alone." That line of questioning does start sparking Chief's imagination of how she's faring, if she made it this far. "Do me a favor and never tell King about this."
>"It's been decades, don't be silly. He's understanding, and it's not like we were married anyway." So she says, but King did strike Chief as a jealous sort of person who pretends to be cool about things.

Years pass. Many years. The conquest of Bones houses bring out a lot of enthusiasm, and it brings the willingness to not let it get out of hand, and guard everyone from each other. So far, so good.

45 people remain.

>[Many invasive questions], Do you even care?
No.

>Go have sex
No.

He's started to wish for another disaster again, but it's going to be a long road. There have been arguments and the sounds of things breaking. It's not life or death, but the salt shaker arguments have evolved. Chief deals with them at his own liesure. Yet even those don't get Chief's blood to boil, they've become part of the status quo as well.
>>
No. 579881 ID: d470e9
File 140341328056.png - (156.33KB , 800x800 , S7A3-46.png )
579881

Finally, Chief stops wondering to himself about the time and goes in to ask after awhile.

"Hello, Timekeeper. ... Can I come inside?"
>"Oh, hey Chief. Yes, these are scratches, they won't be removed easily."
"You don't sound well. How long has it been, now?"
>"89 years... 11 months... 13 days... 20 hours... or so. My clock died a few years ago, so I can't measure it to the second unless I focus all day." Things have shown remarkable durability, but many electronics have broken by now. It doesn't matter much. Everyone is sick of all their entertainment. Even the couch accessories groan at the mention of their games.
"Not quite 100. Think you'll make it?"
>"No. I miss Goat. I don't even know him anymore, Chief. I can't remember his face. I can't remember his voice. I've been afraid of getting close to people. Except people who I know will outlast me, like you. That... might be almost anyone, now. I don't think I care about one hundred years anymore. I think I've had it, Chief. You said I should give up when I wanted to. I think I want to. I still have my Shopkeep voucher. Would you like me to use it? Only the people who the voucher was given to can use it, after all."
>>
No. 579882 ID: dc4b80

It's better to go early than stay around and be miserable forever. Give her a hug and if she wants to summon shopkeep go for it.
>>
No. 579883 ID: 50338d

>So she says, but King did strike Chief as a jealous sort of person who pretends to be cool about things
...I know she really should know him better than we do, but yeah, I really don't get the feeling that King would be so cool with knowing you'd gotten so close to her.

It would be awkward, if nothing else.

>I still have my Shopkeep voucher. Would you like me to use it?
Yes, if she's willing.

>You said I should give up when I wanted to. I think I want to.
I know I'm no Alison, but... *hugs*
>>
No. 579884 ID: dc4b80

You know it might be a bit morbid but maybe have a going away party?
>>
No. 579885 ID: ac14c0

>>579881
I just thought of an amusing activity. Light trail launching. Build a ramp right before a light trail ends and you can do some SICK JUMPS off it. Hell, someone could even try to make a flying machine if there's still any metal left.

Anyway, tell her yes, we shouldn't waste the voucher. Let's have a chat with Shopkeep, and go around so she can say goodbye to the others. She could ask Shopkeep about Goat, maybe it'll jog her memory.

Other things to ask Shopkeep: how much time has elapsed in the admin zones, and how are our allies doing in other brackets? Is the mass decay thing intentional, is the mental decay artificial or normal, and can he verify that everyone that's gone missing has actually suicided? It'd be nice to know some details about the deaths we missed, too.
>>
No. 579887 ID: 50338d

Oh wait. (89 + 11/12)*1.61 = 144.77

...you could point out that in b-years, she already has made it past 100. Give her one last little thing to be happy about.

>shop-keep
You could ask how he's been holding up, or how things are going for other groups, if you're allowed. Has the system had any second thoughts about all this, or how much longer this will continue?
>>
No. 579888 ID: ac14c0

...wait a minute. Chief, you remember King and everyone else you met before this stage. Why does Timekeeper have memory issues? It's strange. Does she have a flawed AI?
>>
No. 579889 ID: bb78f2

I think we should start a relieving bloodsport.
A fucking tournament.
Our own motherfucking sim
Blood for the blood god!
Tear out their entrails and shout their size!
Fucking parkour courses.
None of this electronic bullshit. It's fucking basics now. We're getting PRIMAL! But civilized primal. Organized primal. These skills will prove useful in further freeroam sessions I'm sure.

Fight Timekeeper before she does anything permanent. Ask for a nice fight. A challenge. Watch yourselves desroy each other until you respawn. Face it, the one thing you guys haven't done is perform true and utter violence on each other.

See how it feels. Also go away party is also good.
Let's do this.
Lord of the Flies, let's go be the battle chief! THE BATTLE CHIEF!
>>
No. 579890 ID: d470e9
File 140341626996.png - (14.51KB , 800x800 , S7A3-47.png )
579890

>Why does Timekeeper have memory issues? It's strange. Does she have a flawed AI?
To be honest, she's not alone. Chief has trouble remembering as well, be he expects that he, and Timekeeper too, would recognize King or Goat respectively the moment a reuniting happened.

>You know it might be a bit morbid but maybe have a going away party?
Timekeeper is a shy sort of character, and Chief doesn't think any of them would be comfortable making a party out of it.

He doesn't have the heart anymore to say he made a mistake in mentioning the dream world. The admin purge included the removal of the dreamscape. The absorption circle was continued in case it is reintroduced, or if it is brought back somehow. Until then, dead people are as dead as they get.

>Fight Timekeeper before she does anything permanent.
Timekeeper is one of the few people who didn't join in on Bones' raid. She wouldn't enjoy that.

"Yes." Chief says, deciding to go the Alison hug route. "I haven't seen Shopkeep since he left us the first time. I suppose I should at least say hello. Oh, and in belenos years, you're well past 100."
>"Haha... I just wish I knew what planet we were on to know which one counts."

Shopkeep is summoned.
>>
No. 579891 ID: d470e9
File 140341628066.png - (11.48KB , 800x800 , S7A3-48.png )
579891

>"Ah... Chief."
"Shopkeep. What's wrong?"
>"What? Nothing... okay, fine, I can't put on a good face, I've just explained so many times. There's about 800 Area 3's, and I get summoned a lot. I don't forget summons or people anymore. Well, I mean, I can forget about them if enough time passes, but, it's not like it used to be, where it's like I never met them before. So I've carried all my experiences with me, but I don't have any time spent not being summoned or in a summon. So I just sort of, circle through all of these brackets. So, say, person A summons me, they're doing okay. A few hundred summons later, A's buddy, person B summons me, and I see A again. Hey, A. You're looking a little frazzled, I say, that's the common conversation. And I remember these people perfectly when I see them, and each time I go, they're just doing a little worse every single time. It's... daunting, you know? It's obviously not just me, because they're not just putting on sour faces. So I mean... it's been nearly a hundred years for you guys, I don't know how long for me. And everyone's just looking worse and worse. I've seen things. Sorry. I keep rambling the same stuff. But... yeah, that's why I'm a little, you know... well, I guess I'm a little obsolete now, and they didn't want to drive the Rulekeeper up the wall right off the bat. Supposedly my forgetfulness was causing errors and paradoxes that had to be patched over. I would've liked it about here, though, but then I guess I would just, well, get summoned by person A, say hey, then when I leave, I come right back to them and they're looking bad. Sorry."
"Haha, no. I'm sorry to see you're not doing well either, Shopkeep, but seeing you again does remind me of more lively times."
>"Well, I'm glad you're glad to see me. That's kind of been the exception. So, what can I do for you?"
>"Oh, I'm just about to suicide." Timekeeper says. "I thought I'd use... my voucher. I'm sorry. That was selfish."
>"You're not screaming at me, so it's not a bad visit."
"How are Alison's allies doing?"
>"Oh, a bunch of you are still around and all. I mean, a bunch considering Alison's A-team is kind of dead."
"Succubus?"
>"She misses you, but I told her you're doing well."
"Tell her to keep it up, and we'll meet again."
>"She said you'd better win."
"Is the decay here intentional?"
>"Yes."
"Can you verify everyone gone missing has suicided?"
>"No, sorry, it's part of the rules that suicides are a quiet event. I couldn't answer any of that if I wanted to."
"Do you remember Goat?"
>"Uh, no. Sorry, I remember everyone perfectly that's around me, but I can forget about people that aren't around. Just... I carry my experiences around, but I can still forget naturally, like I said. It's still a little hard to explain."
"Don't worry about it. Is there any sign of a sudden death happening?"
>"No... no, unfortunately, we're going to have to die or wait. Well, for me, wait. I'm sorry."
>>
No. 579892 ID: ac14c0

>>579891
Is there anything stopping him from hanging around for a while? Are body/armor cosmetics the only thing he sells now- if so maybe Chief should upgrade from his simple shirt.
>>
No. 579894 ID: dc4b80

Ah man he has had it worse than anyone else. Give him a big hug and see if there is anything you can to to make him feel better.

Ask what the voucher is for other than just talking to him. Can he sell you stuff or do something?

Regardless of what he can do have a nice talk with him about events and try to keep his spirits up. Ask if the admins have to go through this crap or if they get to skip this stuff.

I doubt that we will find any info we do not know but maybe ask him for any news that might help us later.
>>
No. 579898 ID: 50338d

>You're not screaming at me, so it's not a bad visit.
We've know for a long time you're not the enemy, Shopkeep. It's not as if you had a choice in any of this, either.

What was he doing before the coupons showed up?

What's the time limit on a summoning? I don't suppose he could stick around a little while for stability? (We could restrain him, maybe, if he's desperate enough for a break). Maybe we could offer him some food or something (we've at least gotten to try and stimulate ourselves, sounds like he hasn't). Or maybe making a sale would make him feel better? I don't even know if we have CU anymore, but. (I wonder if he has a permanent inventory, now. If we bought or gave him a gift, maybe he could keep it. A gesture and/or a distraction to help keep him sane).

...has he seen any good things? Ideas that maybe only one or two groups thought of, that he wished other people were doing?

One thing he can do is act as a messenger for the people who still care, and who are sane enough to use him that way. We could spend a few minutes telling him about the people who are still here, so he can fill in their friends when he next sees them. Something positive to focus on. (For example, you could tell him about Pepper, and ask how King is doing, or her twin). Sharing good news when he can is one positive for him.

What about how how some of the other people are doing? Arbiter? Sevener? Did Glitcher and Corruptor find a way to cheat past this quickly, or are they stuck on the slow road with everyone else? (Savior? I don't even know if he has to run stages, actually).

...how much does Shopkeep count as one of us, now? Is he getting reset at the end of this too? Morbid as it sounds, can he suicide out?
>>
No. 579899 ID: ca0da5

>>579892
If body mods are still an option, I'd recommend growing electronics... But this is Time Keeper's summoning of him, it wouldn't exactly be fair to take advantage of it like that. Might be worth mentioning the idea of using your own voucher for that, though, see how Time Keeper responds to the idea of you using another voucher just to do that.
I'm guessing Shopkeeper can stick around as long as the person who summoned him wants him there, but that means that once Time Keeper is ready to fade away, so too will Shopkeeper. Before she does, go, though...
Ask her if she'd like you to send her clock off in a sort of coffin as a representation of her own departure. If it weren't for the respawning thing, I'd recommend light bridge launching it off, just for the drama, but considering her personality, a burial is more appropriate anyways.
>>
No. 579900 ID: bb78f2

Shopkeep, bro, you got to hook a brother up.
We want a arm made out of SPACE COCAINE.
It ain't against the rules. Our bodies can be made of anything, right?
Actually, no fuck that, lets just get a refrigerator back full of hallucinogenic acid...
Or I guess some really powerful shroom armor.
Yeah, okay, the thing he can probably do is shroom armor.

Maybe I'm just getting desperate at this point.
Shopkeep, would you stay to party or something? Like, a game or something? Some socializing? Maybe we can buy your company if you technically need to be doing business to remained summoned?
>>
No. 579901 ID: bb78f2

You know, I didn't think of this but maybe shopkeep vouchers are on his selling list now?
Does he have quests to earn more money and vouchers or something? He should put something in that if players use most of their money in this single part of the stage, they're not going to be able to buy anything in the future stages, and ergo imbalance the fuck out of the game and lose control. If he has anyway to report shit, anyway.
There IS going some serious balance issues and kinks from this stage section that they should be looking out for. I mean, it's even possible players may glitch their suicide or existence or not even respawn and there's no regulators to keep eye on any mistakes that may happen. Or their suicide power might not even work. It's happened in the past with other stages, missed damage, screwed up rules, etc.
>>
No. 579904 ID: ac14c0

HEY wait a minute we can send messages to our allies in other brackets via Shopkeeper! Tell him about our practices and consequences of them, both positive and negative. That'll give Succubus an advantage and our other allies too.
>>
No. 579906 ID: d470e9
File 140342074744.png - (12.66KB , 800x800 , S7A3-49.png )
579906

> Are body/armor cosmetics the only thing he sells now- if so maybe Chief should upgrade from his simple shirt.
Chief isn't going to play dress-up like the Snake Queen. He likes his shirt, and thus far it's that and his body that's acting as a physical holdover from the grand scheme of things, a sort of relic of the past.

He's keeping his looks. Shopkeep does have the ability to sell, though.

"Is there anything stopping you from hanging around for awhile?"
>"Well... no, not really. I can stay for as long as I want. It's just kind of, I get to know people, I get friendly with them, and then I leave, and the next thing I know, I see them again, and they want to die. It's... I don't think I'll see much after stage 8 when the Rulekeep comes, but I don't want to break. I'll hang around for a little bit, but, uh, I'm not going to live here or anything."
"I understand."
>"Also, um, I meant that I don't remember Goat like, on his own, as a person. But I do remember him through you guys when you were around him."
"Could you draw his face?"
>"Oh, yeah sure."
>"... th-thank you." Timekeeper says.
"Please tell me the admins have to go through this." Chief asks, while Shopkeep draws.
>"Yeah, sorta. I mean, they do have fast forward buttons, but they do actually have to keep an eye on everyone. I mean, remember it's a competition up there too, and it's pretty likely that the people who pay the closest attention are the ones who are going to live. So, yeah, there's probably a few admins that are just gonna give up and fast forward, but there's others that are gonna hear every sentence that's ever been said in their domain. Oh, that must be pretty bad for this bracket, I don't think our bracket has any more than the other brackets, which probably have, I dunno, 10 to 15 Area 3's." It does sound like glitches will be dealt with. Probably.
"How about Glitcher and Corruptor, how are they doing?"
>"Oh, sorry, I'm broken up between brackets now, so I don't know about anything past stage 7. I mean, this kind of accounts for like, all 19 other brackets combined times 2, but I dunno about them. Glitcher though is... he's doing things. He says he's practicing his technique, and trying to learn everything he can. He doesn't want to waste a moment, and, well, I didn't want to get too close. Those threads he pulls out of objects like everything is made out of yarn just terrifies me, Chief."
"Is it all negativity when you're summoned?"
>"Not at all, just... most of it. Sometimes people are happy to just have someone new to talk to, and they want to make the most of it. They do their best to keep me around, and... they don't want me to leave... that's not a good example."
"So what do you have to sell?"
>"Body and armor mods. That's... basically it."
"No more vouchers?"
>"Not for another... some years, I guess."
"No quests to earn more?"
>"I... don't have anything I want done. I can't give them anyway. I don't actually have any items in stock. Um, I'll leave you too alone, I'm gonna wait outside, Chief." Shopkeep is already halfway through the door before he finishes speaking.

Alison isn't going to be pleased about the downsides to saving these belenosians.
>>
No. 579907 ID: d470e9
File 140342076660.png - (11.81KB , 800x800 , S7A3-50.png )
579907

>"I.... thank you, Chief, but I'd like to be alone for awhile now, just to reflect. I, um... it's not a very good end for me, but you know, all of us made it to stage 7, area 3. That was right where we needed to get to, to have a nice, easy life. And a long one. It's kind of like a final reward, I think. And like you said... the life is just as long as I want it to be. I wish I could have enjoyed it for longer, but... it already was a long life compared to the average lifespan, you know that."
"Right. Enjoy your last moments as best you can. You've earned better. Would you like us to bury your clock?"
>"Oh... if you want. That's kind of sad. Just... this room is like all the others, but I've made it mine. Unless you really want to use it... I think I like the idea of staying like it is. Well... we may see each other in the next cycle again, Chief. I think I'm happy with this one, I just wish Goat... oh, that's enough from me. It... really was a simple face, I'm not sure how I forgot this."
"Maybe next cycle, Timekeeper, or maybe this cycle, everyone will be reunited. I'll leave you be, now. Goodbye."
>"Goodbye."
>>
No. 579908 ID: d470e9
File 140342085835.png - (12.51KB , 800x800 , S7A3-51.png )
579908

Chief leaves, and has Shopkeep run him through Chief's exploits up to stage 7 as well to make sure he remembers everything as accurately as he can. Then he asks Shopkeep to share a few of Chief's tricks with Succubus and his other allies to help give them an edge.

Shopkeep agres, and is treated to Timekeeper's leftovers in the meanwhile.

>"Thanks. Uh... I'll stick around for a bit for you, Chief, but it's just gonna be for you. Don't do it on my behalf, because... I just kind of want this to be over with, you know. I mean, even the good stuff like this food is depressing, since... yeah... it was made by someone who was just talking a minute ago, but is gone now."
>>
No. 579909 ID: ac14c0

>>579908
She's not really gone though is she? There are backups. We could even resurrect her and Goat at the end of this stage if we wanted to, but I don't think she'd want that.

Ask if he knows anything about the Ghost.
>>
No. 579910 ID: 49037b

It's sad, but she spent a lifetime perfecting her skills. We should try to remember the dedication she put into cooking and the number of people she managed to touch with her art. Cheer up Shopkeep, I'm sure she would have wanted you to enjoy the food.

By the way Shopkeep, do you happen to know who is doing the best out of everyone? The happiest/sanest group so far that is. Maybe we could learn how they've managed to stay so happy all this time.
>>
No. 579911 ID: ac14c0

Well I feel bad for even thinking of this, but um... what happens if Shopkeep lies to a contestant? Could he, for instance, upon the last voucher being used in a bracket, inform the people there that they have 1 year left until everyone there is automatically disqualified? Then it'd be over faster.

Alternatively, we could just suggest to everyone that since tensions are building it might be a good idea to take that vote to decide who moves on. We'd handle it just like the trap-dodging tournaments. Anonymous voting, and only a unanimous decision is considered a consensus. Alternatively, we could do the opposite and have it be an elimination vote. That's easier to enforce anyway.
>>
No. 579912 ID: dc4b80

Tell him you understand and see if he wants to shadow you while you make your daily rounds.

Ask him who this rulekeeper is and what will happen to him once he arrives. Shopkeep might be scared of what Glitcher does but he should talk to him before they phase him out.
>>
No. 579913 ID: d470e9
File 140342414195.png - (11.64KB , 800x800 , S7A3-52.png )
579913

"She's not really gone. There's backups. We could even resurrect her if we felt so inclined."
>"... it's true."
"Do you know anything about the Ghost?"
>"Just little rumors whispered around, but... they're all baseless, no one actually knows what it is."
"So who's doing the best in this bracket?"
>"That's... kind of like asking what's the brownest section in a paint bucket full of blue paint. There's not really anyone doing better than you, though. It's kind of hard to tell."
"Well, enjoy the food, it's what Timekeeper would have wanted. Do you care to follow me as I make my rounds around this place?" Shopkeep makes a glance. He does not care to do so. "Nevermind. Can you tell me about the Rulekeeper?"
>"Uh... no. You know as much as I do. I have no idea what he's like."

Shopkeep finishes eating, and excuses himself, saying he hopes Chief will be well when Chief uses his own voucher.

Chief reports the news to the rest. Rez says that he's not going to be so obsessive about it, but he'll make it a habit to keep track of the passing days. It's not like he has anything better to do.

A couple of years pass by, and as usual, nothing changes much. The time does seem to move faster, though, somehow.

Chief still has moments of creativity for momentary distractions. He noticed that one could jump while on the light bridges, and it would not generally affect when one would slow down. However, since one would smack into walls at full speed if there were slight overhangs beyond the tip of the light bridge...

"Prepare the ramp! Tell Oxo to go in 30 seconds! Launch the ramp in 60! Repeat after 4 minutes for Jopheles!"
>>
No. 579914 ID: d470e9
File 140342416332.png - (20.59KB , 800x800 , S7A3-53.png )
579914

>>
No. 579915 ID: d470e9
File 140342418510.png - (4.31KB , 800x800 , S7A3-54.png )
579915

>"YEAHHHHHH!!"
>>
No. 579916 ID: d470e9
File 140342422328.png - (4.07KB , 800x800 , S7A3-55.png )
579916

>>
No. 579917 ID: d470e9
File 140342429528.png - (4.43KB , 800x800 , S7A3-56.png )
579917

>>
No. 579918 ID: d470e9
File 140342432315.png - (14.69KB , 800x800 , S7A3-57.png )
579918

>"It's... beautiful."
"I can't believe anyone would suicide when this is the sort of stuff they're missing. Timekeeper could have turned into the Scorekeeper."
>".... yeah, I can't imagine that. You gonna have a turn?"
"No, I prefer watching the fireworks, not being them. I don't have sufficient sunglasses for the act, anyway."
>"Yeah."

>"NO, fuck you, you already fucked up that book!" Chief hears another argument break out. Over the past few years, there have been a few more fires and rampages that go on. Most people apologize, and just say they got too mad. Repeated offenders have earned their spot in a jail, where there are currently 5 people. "Chief, you're out there, tell Gerkel if he borrows my book, I'm burning his libary!"

More idle threats, most likely. All of the books have been read 3 times over by anyone who cares to read them. Including the person making the threats.

Chief is sick of it. He thinks it's about time to discuss the vote decided on a near century ago.
>>
No. 579919 ID: d470e9
File 140342436547.png - (12.70KB , 800x800 , S7A3-58.png )
579919

Everyone is gathered into a single island at a picnic table, as Chief addresses everyone outdoors.

"We never addressed it among all houses, but my own house decided that when things got rough, we would have a vote to se who should move on, and who should die. Our quality of life has plummeted, and it doesn't appear to be getting better. There's 44 of us left. Can we unanimously, based on our own honor, decide on a single person, and have the rest kill themselves?"
>"That's real easy for you to say, Chief. You've got the shoe in."
>"Hey, back off, it's not like the reward for winning this thing is all that sensational."
>"It's all we have." another says. "Yeah, we have a lot of fights, but it's all we've got. We might be kicked back to the belenos sim after this. We might not be permanent, unlike standard contestants."
"Don't jump the gun. The agreement was that nothing less than a unanimous vote with 100% participation would be acceptable. Even then, it's an obvious flaw that there is no way to enforce people to stand by their vote. I am putting this on the table late, but there is no rush. By the sounds of it, we'll be having plenty of time to think about this."

With that explanation, there are no arguments about it, since everyone has the power to nullify any vote.
>>
No. 579920 ID: ac14c0

>>579919
Hmm. If we wanted to speed things along a bit, we could make jail times longer. Or start pushing peoples' buttons. Or trigger a civil war. Speaking of wars, are the Bones bases vacant yet?
>>
No. 579921 ID: dc4b80

Make sure to mention that the Belenosim sim is now a apocalyptic hellhole even if it is still running.

All winning here gets you is a spot in the next stage which will probably be another untested mess. If you give up here it just means you will go to sleep until the next reset or eventual rescue by Alison and company.
>>
No. 579929 ID: 50338d

>We might not be permanent, unlike standard contestants.
What about Arbiter / Diamond? From what we know, people who have left the simulation in the past seem to have stuck around. Granted, we don't know if that's granted just by joining, or by of reaching the final 3 or something, but the odds would be pretty strongly against a newcomer making to the end on the first try.

>Make sure to mention that the Belenosim sim is now a apocalyptic hellhole even if it is still running.
I think they know that. That's likely why they're afraid of being kicked back when they die.

>That's real easy for you to say, Chief. You've got the shoe in.
...if, in the end, that's the only objection, we could use a kind of run-off election model to makes things a little more fair, less weighted towards you. Say, people vote and then everyone but the two most popular suicide. Then they decide among themselves by flipping a coin or something.

Gives you worse odds personally, but in the end, it might be preferable to letting this drag on for more decades.
>>
No. 579935 ID: d470e9
File 140345138483.png - (16.31KB , 800x800 , S7A3-59.png )
579935

"The Arbiter - you know him as Diamond - was pulled out of the sim early on. You're all permanent, and dying here most likely won't put you back in the belenosian hellhole of an apocalypse, if it's even still running.. Everyone is dismissed."

>Runoff election, coin toss for top 3 votees, more fair but poorer odds
Unacceptable. If someone is going to win, it's going to be by force of will, not any coin toss.

Chief may be getting tired and agitated, but not once has he been so much as tempted to suicide.
>>
No. 579936 ID: d470e9
File 140345140617.png - (24.43KB , 800x800 , S7A3-60.png )
579936

>Speaking of wars, are the Bones bases vacant yet?
Chief goes in to check. There's a lot of rubble, but Chief notices a tunnel underneath. Much of the house's debris is held up by cloth and bones.
>>
No. 579937 ID: d470e9
File 140345149054.png - (24.22KB , 800x800 , S7A3-61.png )
579937

"You have the convenient ability to make a convincing decoy of yourself."

He shuffles in his chair, making the floor creak.

>"It isn't difficult to check, though." His speech is slurred. He probably hasn't spoken in decades.
"Are you the last one of Bones?"
>"Likely."
>>
No. 579941 ID: dc4b80

Well he seems like a bundle of joy. See if you can get his story out of him. Never hurts to try and know your enemy.
>>
No. 579942 ID: d470e9
File 140345443392.png - (54.81KB , 800x800 , S7A3-62.png )
579942

"Whats your story? Have you honestly sat here for all these years?"
>"My story is of will and loyalty. I'll see Bones again before this is done, either during this stage or making sure he's resurrected at the end."
"You're just for Bones, then, you don't care if you make it out of this?"
>"That is correct."
"For all you know, you're the last of Bones' subjects to get this far. That's what's keeping you going. Am I still on the dot?"
>"Correct."
"If you have your Shopkeep voucher, you can ask him. He's not bound to secrecy."
>"He's not bound to the truth, either. He is friends with Alison."
>>
No. 579943 ID: dc4b80

Shopkeep is friends with Alison because she saw him as a person not just a npc. If you treated him nicely he would be your friend as well. He will tell you the truth because its his job.

I wonder if we should mention the deal between Alison and Corruptor to res Bones if there is no one of his group left. I know we have had second thoughts about the whole thing due to Corruptors actions but It might end up being important.

Treating this guy badly will only make our stay here harder I think. Desperation can really drive a person. While I don't doubt that you can outlast him maybe we can try to Alison him up a bit. Not like you have anything else pressing to do.

I suddenly have a image of Weekend at Bernies with Chief dragging a corpse around trying to show it a good time.
>>
No. 579944 ID: 50338d

Laugh. The idea that shopkeep could lie, especially now that his memory is more persistent, is something that never occurred to you in all these years.

Might I ask what Bones did to inspire such loyalty?

If he's really only in this for Bone's survival, we did sort of agree to res him if he died back before Corruptor went all weird on us again. >>567888 Perhaps if you convince this character you'll honor that agreement, he'd move on.

Saving Bones would cost us one of the 40 res-slots, but it might be worth it if it got us back in with crazy-snake, or if we earned the indebtedness with someone who's been working with him. Like, maybe Bones could tell us what the hell is actually going on with Corruptor, now. Loyalty seems important to him- his reasons for opposing us were because of our supposed betrayal. If we showed we were honorable, maybe it would win him over.
>>
No. 579954 ID: dc4b80

I would offer him free passage up top if he wants it. Even if he is technically a enemy its hard to see someone sitting alone down in a cave made out of there own body parts.

He probably will stay down here but make the offer anyways. If he does it gives you something new to occupy your mind with.
>>
No. 579955 ID: ca0da5

>>579949
"If you wish to enjoy the entertainment we have set up, it was made a rule nearly a hundred years ago that anybody from the Bones' groups who wished to come under terms of peace could--though they would be watched closely. That rule is still in place, and I will ensure it is respected."
>>
No. 579956 ID: d470e9
File 140345734780.png - (16.64KB , 800x800 , S7A3-63.png )
579956

"Haha, I must relent that point, skeleton. It did not occur to me that lying was an option for him. Nonetheless, he is friends because Alison treated him as a friend and an individual, not as an NPC as the others, or a tool for advancing ones goals like the Corruptor. Perhaps you're unaware, but while we are attempting to remove all of bones - I'm going to call Bones' followers Skellingtons from now on - from the stage, Corruptor requested that Bones alone would be resurrected."
>"I was unaware. I also have a difficult time believing that."
"Unfortunately all I have is my word. Do tell, what brought on such loyalty to Bones?"
>"We're survivalists. No matter what happens, no matter how bad things get, we promise to live as long as we can, or as long as we're useful for. My living is loyalty enough."
"Nonetheless, you know the relationship between Alison and Corruptor, I imagine. Bones may treat Alison as bad news, but both Alison and the Corruptor are attempting to remain cordial despite their fights. She's more than willing to resurrect Bones, if not for Bones' sake, then to continue a salvageable relationship with the Corruptor. Again, all I have is my word for now, but if you don't plan on using your voucher, you may as well get Shopkeep's word, too."

The skeleton is silent, but in a moment, Shopkeep is summoned. He explains what he knows to the skellington.

>"Is there anything else?" Bones' asks. "I have your words. I will think on this. Come back in five years, and you'll have your answer. Unless there is anything else, Shopkeeper, you may go."
>>
No. 579958 ID: 50338d

Accept his terms, and bid the skeleton farewell, for now.

Looks like the vote-idea will be on hold, for a while.

Hello again, Shopkeep. If he doesn't want to de-summon immediately, or wants to talk or trade news or messages, he's welcome to come talk with you for a bit. The rest of this island is uninhabited, if he wants to avoid seeing a lot of people. (Making an offer not for the information's sake, but to try and offer him a reprieve).
>>
No. 579960 ID: bb78f2

Oh wait, if he's the last guy in his house, shouldn't he have moved on to the next area?
Or when the light bridges came, that extended the goal to being the last one out of all these people?
Better double check the rules of success with shopkeeper, just to be safe.
>>
No. 579962 ID: d470e9
File 140345956037.png - (9.78KB , 800x800 , S7A3-64.png )
579962

Before Shopkeep leaves, Chief confirms that the only person to leave without suiciding is the last person in the whole area. Therefore, Shopkeep can't confirm that this skellington is the last one, but it is certainly possible.

"If you let yourself have eyes on you, you can come back with us to have some entertainment."
>"I'll pass."
"The offer will stand. Farewell, then. Shopkeep, if you want to visit for a bit, you can."
>"Yeah, just... a bit." Shopkeep says.
>>
No. 579963 ID: d470e9
File 140345956860.png - (19.88KB , 800x800 , S7A3-65.png )
579963

Chief comes back five years later, as said.

Skeleton is gone. That might be Chief's answer after all.
>>
No. 579964 ID: d470e9
File 140345958255.png - (25.12KB , 800x800 , S7A3-66.png )
579964

A couple more years pass again.

>"33 remain! It's going slow, but people are getting wittled away." Pepper says.
"We're getting close to our hundredth year anniversary of being here."
>"You wanna do anything on it?"
"... not really."
>"Come on, apathy conqueror, let's try to think of something."
>>
No. 579965 ID: d470e9
File 140345960319.png - (22.43KB , 800x800 , S7A3-67.png )
579965

>"We could go on a multimedia hunt to see if there's any hidden books that have escaped our grasp. Or make a bonfire with some of house 3. Some of the roof collapsed, and no one's in a hurry to go cleaning it up."
"Yeah, that's a good 100th anniversary, a big spring cle...clean..."
>"What?"
"Chief.... the window..."
>>
No. 579966 ID: d470e9
File 140345961385.png - (22.40KB , 800x800 , S7A3-68.png )
579966

>>
No. 579967 ID: d470e9
File 140345962355.png - (22.17KB , 800x800 , S7A3-69.png )
579967

>>
No. 579968 ID: d470e9
File 140345963418.png - (13.13KB , 800x800 , S7A3-70.png )
579968

>"Oh, fuck... oh, fuck!!"
>>
No. 579971 ID: dc4b80

Wait was he buried in the yard for like 40 years? Or did he respawn or something?

Either we have a glitch or someone is going around "murdering" people. Prepare for Jiro's epic villain reveal.
>>
No. 579972 ID: ca0da5

>>579967
Go help the kid out!
>>
No. 579974 ID: 50338d

...Goat never suicided. Someone buried him alive. Well, that, or he buried himself alive to try and fake everyone out.

Also, holy hell, that means he took ~70 years in basically sensory deprivation.

Get out there, now, and help him the rest of the way out of the ground. Find out what happened.

We're going to have to do something about whoever is responsible for this. We also can't assume goat was the only victim. We'll need to mount a complete and thorough mining expedition of everywhere someone could be hidden.
>>
No. 579975 ID: 9a3cf6

Holy shit. I thought it was a bit weird that Goat disappeared without informing anyone. It looks like he's been buried... I hope he hasn't been spending nearly 7 decades clawing his way out. Timekeeper being gone isn't going to help things either. We have to get him out right now, bring him to safety. Confirm his identity to make sure he's not a fake and keep this news to your own house until you can get more details on what happened. Keep him quarantined as well since there's the possibility that someone around has something against him.
>>
No. 579977 ID: dc4b80

Didn't we figure that to overpower someone and bury them it would take more than one person? We might be looking at a group effort. So yeah don't let anyone know until you here his story.
>>
No. 579978 ID: d470e9
File 140346181979.png - (17.16KB , 800x800 , S7A3-71.png )
579978

>"Holy shit, goat! Are you alright?"
>"Wh-.... I made it..." he speaks like Skeleton did at first, with an added tone of delirium, like he's not sure whether or not he's hallucinating this.
"Have you been clawing your way out for... what must be 7 decades?"
>"... oh, no, has it been that long? It... I don't know."
>"What about the shopkeep? You had a voucher, right?" asks Pepper.
>"Yeah, but... every time I tried to use it, it said the summoning failed. And the voucher was used up. I should have spent a few years making room... that's all I thought for... well, it's what I thought." Chief brings him indoors into a small room where they most likely won't be disturbed. Chief doesn't want it to get out that Goat is out, not yet.
"Who did this?"
>"I... don't know for sure, I was held up by two people with fabric over their bodies and pushed into a dirt room and then bound me up. They didn't have any really weird physiology, it might've just been one of the belenos standard bodies. One of them would maintain the bindings, but then the room collapsed. I guess they couldn't find me again, or they didn't want to seem suspicious digging for something. So... I spent years getting out of the ropes, and then getting out of the hole."
>"Goddamn, I didn't think there was much about you, but I don't think I'd have made it out."
>"I just kept thinking, I have Timekeeper, who's probably waiting on me to help her cook again. I mean, it's a little weak and silly, but it kept me going. Where is she?"
>>
No. 579981 ID: 50338d

...I'm sorry. Your 'death' hit her hard.

We're going to still need to mount a search. And until we can determine who did this, there's no way we can trust a vote.
>>
No. 579983 ID: dc4b80

Take him to timekeepers room if you can get him there unnoticed. He might fall apart when he finds out about her but tell him to stay strong so we can punish whoever did this to him. While this was a horrible act we knew someone might try it. Figuring out exactly when he was buried and where might give us some leads.

Plus tracking down the "killer" should help pass the time.
>>
No. 579985 ID: f1fcc1

Urk, maybe it would be better if we didn't bring him to Timekeeper's room, it might be too much for him. Beating around the bush is only going to make him more out of it than he already is, so you're going to have to be direct but still soft. Tell him that Timekeeper was never the same after he disappeared. She held on for around 60 years after he was gone but eventually couldn't go on. She still held him in her thoughts, even in her last moments. He has to stay strong so you can nab the bastard that did this. Chief and Pepper, apply hugs.
>>
No. 579990 ID: dc4b80

Just to avoid any misunderstandings you are absolutely sure Timekeeper is dead right? You did go back to her room and check. I know there is almost no chance of her hiding in her room for the past few years but that's why I suggested showing him her room.
>>
No. 579993 ID: 50338d

One thing we need to check with shopkeep the next time we see him- if he's aware when someone tries to summon him and fails. And if, so, how many times it's happened in our version of the stage.
>>
No. 580002 ID: d470e9
File 140346761354.png - (161.38KB , 800x800 , S7A3-72.png )
580002

>Just to avoid any misunderstandings you are absolutely sure Timekeeper is dead right?
Her death is beyond reasonable doubt.

"I'm sorry. She held on for awhile, but she's gone now."
>"Ahhhhh.... did she ever ask about me?"
"Frequently, and up through the end."
>"Can I go to her room?"
"Yes. Don't do anything drastic. I want to catch the people who did this, if they're still around."
>"Yeah..."

Chief wraps goat in a blanket, and carries him back to his house and lets goat out in Timekeeper's room. Goat stares for an uncomfortably long time. He notices Shopkeeper's drawing of him, which is roughly framed on Timekeeper's desk.

>"Where's her clock? She had one here." Goat is systematically asking all the relevant questions.
"We buried it. It's out in back."
>".... oh. I'd like to see, later, but... is it possible she was buried?"
"No. She said in no uncertain terms that she had enough. However, others are buried. I'm going to call everyone. We're going to turn every single house inside out."
>>
No. 580003 ID: d470e9
File 140346762362.png - (12.22KB , 800x800 , S7A3-73.png )
580003

Chief has the meeting, and unwraps goat again, watching everyone's expression carefully. Many are confused, while the remaining of Chief's house go wide eyed. There isn't going to be any reasonable accusations from the reactions alone.

>"Goat was buried, and spent 70 years digging his way out. There are at least two people who did this, and there's no telling if they're still among us. Pepper and I are going to randomly match people in teams of four. From now on, each team does everything together. They eat, they sleep, they wait together. If anyone disappears, the remaining 3 are to report it immediately, and that person will immediately become a prime suspect. If you want to spent time with someone outside of your team, then both teams have to spend time with each other. Regardless, we're all going to dig. We're going to dig in every known spot and systematically turn every house upside down. There's no telling how many others were buried alive."

Chief doesn't think anyone significantly changed their body, and so no normal belenos bodies are placed on the same team to minimize chances of the culprits being together. Second priority is to minimize people from the same house on the same team.
>>
No. 580004 ID: d470e9
File 140346763198.png - (15.71KB , 800x800 , S7A3-74.png )
580004

Weeks go by. House 4 gets a find. Someone was buried there for nearly the full near-100 years. If that is true, it's almost certainly someone from house four, but the person doesn't know who. There are only a few suspects. Chief makes sure they are all separated.
>>
No. 580005 ID: d470e9
File 140346765195.png - (13.09KB , 800x800 , S7A3-75.png )
580005

Due to some demand, Pepper is on a different team than Chief. Her team finds QZ. He was trapped under collapsed metal, and couldn't dig his way out.

"QZ! So you didn't suicide."
>"I wasn't good, but I wasn't about ready to quit. I wasn't going to quit anymore, once the bastard put me under."
"Who did it?"
>"Jiro. Jiro had help, with a pair of other belenosians. I'd recognize them if I saw them."
>>
No. 580007 ID: 9fccdf

>>580005

Wait, what about
>>579857

>QZ, of all people, say they've had enough. This sort of environment isn't something that a jetal was made to live by. He'd rather suicide while mentally intact rather than a broken shell of his former self. A head count reveals 59 living people on Chief's side, and 8 out of 10 of his own house.
>>
No. 580009 ID: dc4b80

Tell him to not point anyone out until we can round them up. Then have a trial and decide on there fate.

Qz as a witness is pretty damning evidence. But make absolutely sure you get all the facts straight before you go punishing people. If Jiro was involved he has to be a good actor or a fall guy.

Compare peoples stories with where they were buried and when it happened. Watch for any inconsistencies in case you have someone on the sidelines that was secretly plotting this out.
>>
No. 580010 ID: 50338d

Bring Jiro forward to face this accusation. Let's see if he confesses or denies it.

You are certain? The others we rescused reported their attackers hid their faces.

We'll also have to arrange for him to see the others still alive, and if he recognizes anyone.

We're digging absolutely everywhere, including the empty houses (3, and the bones'), right?
>>
No. 580013 ID: 1b0051

There are inconsistencies here. We had QZ talk about death. Either someone else stole his form with the Shopkeep voucher and suicided, or the system is messing with our heads.
>>
No. 580016 ID: ca0da5

>>580013
>>580007
>>"I wasn't good, but I wasn't about ready to quit. I wasn't going to quit anymore, once the bastard put me under."
He did say he'd rather suicide while he was still sane, but he also felt he had a great bunch of time before he needed to do that. Being buried also meant he had something to look forward to--catching whoever did that to him.
>>
No. 580023 ID: 2fd516

House 4 was the burnt house where a few "suicides" happened. Wanna bet nobody there actually suicided?

Man, the shopkeep vouchers make this even more difficult. How do we know everyone is who they say they are? Why didn't that guy buried at house 4 summon shopkeep? It looked like there was room. Can we summon shopkeep again, and ask him for confirmation on who is who? We should also tell him to inform Succubus about the danger of people being kidnapped and buried in secret to make it look like they suicided. We should also ask if there's a system notification when someone suicides. If not, beg him to get one implemented.
>>
No. 580024 ID: d470e9
File 140347194897.png - (12.23KB , 800x800 , S7A3-76.png )
580024

"You're certain, QZ?"
>"Yes, I made sure to burn every detail in my memory. I remember their voices."

"Jiro." Chief calls him out, and his team follows. "QZ claims you buried him."
>"What? No. I didn't."
>"Did you think I would just forget?" QZ asks.
>"You're mistaken. Fuck you, Chief, I thought you got past whatever I did to get on your wrong side."
"Pepper. Gather everyone."

While Pepper is away, Chief asks a few questions of both QZ and Jiro. There are no inconsistencies on either end from what Chief knows about QZ's disappearance aside from the conflict of whether or not Jiro has anything to do with it.
>>
No. 580025 ID: d470e9
File 140347195935.png - (12.79KB , 800x800 , S7A3-77.png )
580025

Everyone gets together. Nearly everyone.

"QZ. Please proceed to identify."

QZ has everyone speak at least once.

>"Him. And him." QZ points to two people from house 4.
>"No, no, it wasn't me! I don't know about Yuppy, but it wasn't me!" one cries. The other has similar objections.
>"I'm certain of it." says QZ.

"I'm not. QZ... you have pointed to the people I suspected, of house 4. However... one team is missing here. One team, with another suspect from house 4. Pepper. Where was this team digging?"
>"They were upturning house 6 again."
>"You're suspicious of me?" QZ asks.
"Yes. Pepper, pick two teams, begin searching house 6. QZ... he spoke to me about dying. He said he had enough. He may have suicided in private, however, I do not believe you're QZ. I believe you're someone who is about to be found out, and couldn't find a good way to cover it up. You're desperate, and your actions were desperate. You had to do something."

QZ is silent.

"Everyone. Put all of the accused, and QZ, in the jail. Give them some music, and media if they want, no one has been proven guilty yet. Not QZ, not Jiro, not the belenos. But we will detain them until we can have a trial."
>>
No. 580026 ID: d470e9
File 140347196878.png - (17.75KB , 800x800 , S7A3-78.png )
580026

A day later, a team of 3 is found. The house 4 suspect is missing. A proper trial is then conducted, in a similar form to the things they saw on television as best as they could. The witness stand has to be made out of an open box. Chief just doesn't even care how ridiculous it is anymore. One voucher is used to summon Shopkeep for his testimony. He says that he's sorry he didn't tell Chief, but he stopped thinking about why people do certain things anymore. The current QZ is a fake. Chief thanks him. Shopkeep says things are getting weird, and he's going to leave now. Chief will spare him a charge of contempt of court.

The trial doesn't finish before QZ suicides on the spot.

Chief no longer believes that Jiro is guilty. Jiro did not get along well with QZ, and fake-QZ could have known that and tried to play off of it for credibility and to crucify another person. Most of the makeshift jury agrees.
>>
No. 580027 ID: d470e9
File 140347197662.png - (16.69KB , 800x800 , S7A3-79.png )
580027

Which leaves the question of the three remaining house 4 suspects.

The two on the left were accused by the fake QZ. The rightmost one was not.
>>
No. 580033 ID: 9fccdf

Now that we know that there's at least one person who decided to impersonate someone else, we need to reexamine everyone who was "dug" up. We found that bones' agent disappeared. He could have reappeared as one of the people dug up to spread fear and doubt through the ranks. It's unlikely that he was Goat since he probably wouldn't know about Timekeeper and cooking (unless he has spies, which we can't necessarily rule out). He also seems to have used his shopkeeper voucher, so he couldn't have bought a form change (unless again, he has a spy/ally). He could still be behind the disappearances somehow though.
>>
No. 580035 ID: 50338d

>Fuck you, Chief, I thought you got past whatever I did to get on your wrong side.
>Chief no longer believes that Jiro is guilty.
I think you owe him an apology later. We apologize for subjecting him to the accusation, but hope he can understand why we had to follow through and be sure.

I don't know what about you rubbed me the wrong way, but this wasn't motivated by that.

>The two on the left were accused by the fake QZ. The rightmost one was not.
Well, that doesn't help us. Was the fake the kind of person who would throw his accomplices under the bus to to make his story better? Or would he save his accomplice and burn two other people.

Can we figure out who the fake really was, by process of elimination? If we know who he was, and we can account for his movements and friends, then we might know who is responsible.

At this point, ask if anyone would like to confess, or has anything to say in their defense. Point out that we essentially have unlimited time to work on this problem, so if they expect to hide something, it will not work in the long term.
>>
No. 580036 ID: 50338d

>>580033
If you're paranoid about shapeshifters, we can at least definitely test which island people are from by pushing them off the edge one by one and seeing where they respawn.

That would rule out bones-infiltrators.
>>
No. 580037 ID: 9fccdf

>>580036

Spies could also be double-crossers/people not from the "bones houses" but loyal to bones that we don't know of.
>>
No. 580042 ID: dc4b80

If someone from house 4 was indeed buried for nearly a hundred years the people from that house should have some idea about what went on back then.

In my experience you should put everyone into comfy chairs. Then you wander around outlining the whole story while smoking a pipe. A few leaps of logic that the audience would never make because they where ridiculous and then someone should crack and start revealing all there plans in a evil voice.
>>
No. 580044 ID: 50338d

>>580037
There's also the fact that if anyone else had changed their look, Shopkeep could have testified to it. We could double check with him to be sure, but after asking about QZ, I think he would have mentioned it if he sold anyone else major transformations.
>>
No. 580046 ID: 2fd516

>>580027
Okay, so, the fake-QZ was the house 4 suspect from the team that went missing...

Wait, what did the three people in the buried team say? How did they get overwhelmed by only three people? It would make the most sense if there were four people involved. Actually, shouldn't they remember the voices too?

If there's really only three conspirators, just lock all three of these belenosians up. Whoever the innocent party is is most likely to suicide last.
>>
No. 580047 ID: 50338d

>just lock all three of these belenosians up
That... is a terrible solution. Cheif has the time to ferret out the answer as to innocence and guilt. We have nothing but time in the challenge. Punishing indiscriminately defeats the whole purpose of being a leader here, and lets down the people who were hurt most by this.
>>
No. 580050 ID: 2fd516

>>580047
Okay, sure. I guess Chief should have enough observational information to come to some conclusion anyway. I mean he spends most of his time just watching other people. Constantly staring. Why do people not think he's a creep, exactly?
>>
No. 580056 ID: 50338d

>>580050
>Why do people not think he's a creep, exactly?
Because for most of them, their baseline for comparison is constant puzzle fights to the death, or life under the insane paranoid police surveillance state of EIN with the constant looming threat of mutually assured Emperor destruction.
>>
No. 580057 ID: 04b86a

Ask the team of 3 how they were captured. If he managed to take them by surprise, one by one, then we don't have anything to go on, but if he had help then either an entire other team is guilty or at least one person faked their death and has been hiding from us. Or both, I suppose, given how fine Shopkeep seems to be with making people look like other people.

We need to start making sure that everyone is from the house they claim to be by pushing people off of edges, then split into two groups and systematically search every house. We're looking for people who are hiding, not captured, so digging won't be necessary unless there's signs that the soil's been disturbed recently.

...Which there's a lot of, because of our lost people hunt. Damn. Well, still, at least search the houses for secret compartments.

On the bright side, this is the most excitement Chief's had in years.
>>
No. 580074 ID: d470e9
File 140347926427.png - (12.95KB , 800x800 , S7A3-80.png )
580074

>Wait, what did the three people in the buried team say? How did they get overwhelmed by only three people?
Much of the digging has been done fast. It was not difficult to cause a cave-in.

The buried team of 3 was entirely buried by the single person, which was QZ.

>On the bright side, this is the most excitement Chief's had in years.
And it's a damn bright side. It's been great. Chief was shocked, at first, but he was the happiest he was in years when he was running out to pick Goat out of the ground knowing the implications of it.

It's kind of a monstrous thing, but that is how far everyone has fallen.

Chief has everyone go in larger teams now to constantly pick apart every house and every compartment. Meanwhile, the suspects are kept detained separately as Chief conducts constant interrogations. He lies about others confessions, offers respite should they confess themselves, and every trick Chief knows in the book. The suspects are being held in a subterranean dirt cavern on a comfy chair. It's not the cleanest investigation Chief has performed, but no one else has had any problems with Chief's decision on the matter. Either way, he owes one belenos some extreme apologies, he just isn't sure which one yet.

He owes standard apologies to Jiro. Jiro claims he's not that mad at Chief, as it's not like Chief constantly cried for his metaphorical blood.

The actions takes weeks. Two more people are found, but their stories are exactly like Goat's. 2 people covered in fabric that overpowered each of them. Everyone is confident that every house has its foundation turned inside out, and every secret compartment is discovered. People are occasionally pushed off the cliff to prove that they respawn on their appropriate island, so it is confirmed that skeleton is not an agent if he's still alive.

The original, left belenos confesses, saying the rightmost belenos was the other. He doesn't know what Fake-QZ was trying to do by throwing him alone under the bus, but not the other. Chief assures him that Fake-QZ did not seem like the epitome of the fabled belenos intellect.

Chief promised that they would simply jail them and supply them with modest amounts of entertainment so long as they handled it responsibly if they confessed.
>>
No. 580076 ID: 2fd516

>>580074
We haven't gotten the other one to confess yet though. We need two confessions to clear the third.

...nobody's found the outfits used? Ask him where he hid the outfits, or if there's any other evidence he can present to clear the innocent one.

Also ask why he was doing such a horrible thing, holy shit.
>>
No. 580077 ID: dc4b80

If you can find out if they had any special motivation to there actions it would be nice. Also try to find out how many people they did this to.
>>
No. 580083 ID: 50338d

Be wary that the confessor isn't implicating the wrong person as their collaborator, just to save their friend. False confessions are also a thing, if the innocent person believes being locked in a room with a small amount of entertainment is better than being interrogated in perpetuity. You need to verify the story is true.

Ask for additional details that confirm his story. Get him to explain how they managed to dig out the chambers without being missed, how they concealed them from searches, how they picked their targets, where they hid their tools and disguises. Don't express judgement or contempt, just get the facts.

Make what deal you have to to get the other to talk, and to corroborate the story.

...once we're completely satisfied, then we decide what to do with them.

I'm tempted to follow the letter of our promise. Jail them underground, with limited entertainment. ...but don't maintain the jail, or mention this omission. Let it cave in on them, and them suffer the same fate as Goat. We keep our word, and it's a brutal eye-for-an-eye punishment that should hopefully prevent repeat offenses.
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No. 580142 ID: d470e9
File 140348517671.png - (13.27KB , 800x800 , S7A3-81.png )
580142

>No one's found the outfits?
The fabrics used were either bedspreads that were returned to their original location, or cut out generic fabric that no longer was in the shape of anyone's clothes.

"Thank you for your confession. The next question, is why?"
>"I don't want to die, even if that means moving on to other crap. We teamed up mutually so that we would have a better chance. Yeah, we did bad things, but that seems to be natural around here. Obviously it didn't work out in the end."

Chief starts drilling this person for more information. It appears to check out. No tools of a nefarious nature were found, and he claims they were broken up.

This could be a false confession, so Chief needs one more confession before he believes it's done. He starts drilling the other two constantly, now. After some days of effort, the middle belenos comes forward and breaks down, saying that she did it, just let her have some peace.

Chief doesn't like it. It didn't seem like there were cracks of proof that the belenos couldn't deal with. It seems more like she was breaking down in general, and was pleading just to get Chief to stop.

Hence, Chief starts drilling the rightmost to get a confession out of her, taking shifts with Pepper and a couple others so that she doesn't get a moment's peace. Finally, Chief is called in, and a confession is made. This belenos sounds angrier about it, and more importantly, blunt, remorseless and honest, saying that she and the leftmost are guilty. Chief can't find anything conclusive, but he's becoming convinced that the middle one is innocent.
>>
No. 580143 ID: 2fd516

>>580142
I agree. Tell the middle belenos that she's free to go and that you hope she can forgive you.

The other two get their imprisonment, as agreed upon.
>>
No. 580145 ID: 50338d

Take what we've learned back to the group, present what we've learned, and get the group to make a decision. Finish the trial, basically.

The obvious conclusion is that left and right are guilty and should be detained until such time that they suicide, and that middle is, in fact, innocent, and deserves our apologies and help recovering. But it will be more significant if we get the group to agree to the verdict instead of decreeing it ourself. Specifically, middle needs to be acquitted by the group, not just you, or else she's not going to have a good remainder of her time here.
>>
No. 580163 ID: dc4b80

The middle one is probably just confessing to get you to stop bothering her. You can check by asking her ridiculous questions about the specifics of the crime and if she agrees to the stuff you are making up you know its not a real confession.

Get the court back here and let them decide what to do with them.

Maybe give a speech about Alison's ideals. We know this world is cruel and unfair and that it forces us to fight against each other. But if you let it change you for the worst then you are doing yourself a disservice. Its one thing to work to win the game but in this case you just made several people miserable for years and hurt the people who cared about them.
>>
No. 580178 ID: a36601

Wait, if there were 2 people who buried them, what's to say the fake QZ was not one of them? He's already proven to be not a great person. Left guy seems like a real confession, middle seems fake, and right seems 50/50 to me.
>>
No. 580179 ID: d470e9
File 140349057948.png - (10.13KB , 800x800 , S7A3-82.png )
580179

Chief comes back to the middle one, saying that he knows some more. He then rattles off some false information. She agrees with it, which seals the false confession in Chief's mind.

The trial is still active, and so Chief shares his findings with everyone. After some deliberation, the middle one is declared not guilty, and the others are left to sit in a confined, solid jail room in solitary confinement.

Chief says he is extremely sorry for putting her through so much that she felt she was better off confessing. She isn't happy about it, but she doesn't seem like forgiveness is out of the question.

Paranoia starts coming back in for years as people keep a close eye on each other, and the houses end up turned over several times apiece. Eventually, that dies down. The two prisoners disappear with no signs of escape.

Years pass once again. Rex says 100 years have passed.

Then 120.
>>
No. 580181 ID: d470e9
File 140349062446.png - (9.88KB , 800x800 , S7A3-83.png )
580181

150. 200.

300.

400.

Chief isn't sure what just happened. Apparently, absolutely nothing. No disasteroids hit the island, everything just seemed to sink down the drain. Like the past hundreds of years passed in the blink of an eye as soon as he let his guard down. He doesn't remember why he did anything he did. He knew it might've come down to this, and it seemed like it was all pointless, in the end.

Chief is beginning to see visions, and confirms that everyone else has them as well. Pepper, Rex, Cruncher and Hallen are all that remain.

His head feels numb, and thought of suicide start getting injected periodically into his head. Given that everyone else has them at steady intervals, it seems like that's an artificial system maneuver to try to nudge them in that direction. Cruncher and Hallen are inside, playing video games.

There aren't any working video games left. They just think there are. They've been staring at that broken monitor, hitting specific spots on chunks of rubble tightly in their hands for what must be months. Years. Decades.

All 4 others agree Chief should move on. The only thing stopping them is the slight doubt that they are the only ones in the area, now. It would be tragic to get so far, then to leave Chief alone with the realization that there is someone else. Then he would be alone, and the other four don't seem willing to take that chance.

Chief might want to take that chance.
>>
No. 580184 ID: dc4b80

Do we still have a shopkeep summon? If so we could ask him if anyone else is around.

If there is anyone else still around they are hidden well. You could spend time looking now with the 5 of you or later with just yourself.

If the system is trying to get you to kill yourself it means most everyone has moved on most likely. You can let paranoia get to you and sit here with the rest forever or you can let them go. Heck if there is someone left it gives you something to do.
>>
No. 580185 ID: 2fd516

The system is timeskipping you and fucking with your mind directly. Great.

Don't bother shopkeep about this, you know he can't confirm how many people are left. The only way to do it is to dig up every island, ensuring that there are no hiding places. Check UNDER the islands too. Do that then tell them it's over. Then make some small fortifications and gather some weapons, so that even if there is someone left when the others die you can defend yourself.

Just simple precautions. If they still won't leave then tell them you will fight them until they go and let you face the next stage.
>>
No. 580198 ID: 50338d

We could summon shopkeep. If the system is desperate enough for this to end to start cheating, and if he's desperate after all this time too, he might answer honestly this time if anyone else is left. Even if it is against the rules.
>>
No. 580237 ID: d470e9
File 140350454556.png - (9.70KB , 800x800 , S7A3-84.png )
580237

>"Everyone. I'd like to be able to prove that we're the only ones left. Or at the very least, confirm. There's 5 of us. We're all competent. Let's plan. We start at house 1. We have to people on guard at each of the light bridges going out to make sure no one goes in our out. The remainder of us 3 search inside and out, and upturn the house 3 times over. Once we secure house 1, we move on to house 2 and 10. One guard on the light bridge of 2 to 3, the other on the light bridge to 10 and 9. Then one person on each house to upturn the whole damn island, and one other person to relax. We'll rotate shifts. We continue like that until it's impossible to have hidden from us, and we're digging up house 6, making sure they can't leave to 5 and 7. Needless to say, don't go letting any hallucinations take over your shift. Especially not if you're guarding the light bridge."
>>
No. 580238 ID: d470e9
File 140350456241.png - (12.66KB , 1000x1000 , S7A3-85.png )
580238

It takes more years, expectedly. The hallucinations stop coming, Chief notices. It doesn't seem to be because they're doing something, but because they're doing something that will decisively end this.

Chief uses his voucher just to confirm that Shopkeep still can't sense other people living. Shopkeep confirms this. He doesn't look swell, so Chief lets him go immediately.

Finally, house 6 is checked off.
>>
No. 580239 ID: d470e9
File 140350458178.png - (15.73KB , 800x800 , S7A3-86.png )
580239

One last formal event takes place. Everyone takes a scrap of fabric, and writes the name, in blood, on their fabric. They place it face down on an old, rotting bucket.

With everyone else viewing, Chief picks up the scraps.

Chief.

Chief.

Chief.

Chief.

Chief.

Rex bows, and suicides. Cruncher and Halley give each other the thumbs up, leap off the cliff, and suicide before they respawn. Chief makes sure he has visual on all of this happening.

Pepper hugs Chief.

>"Do us well."

Everyone leaves with smiles on their faces.
>>
No. 580240 ID: d470e9
File 140350460517.png - (47.87KB , 800x800 , S7A3-87.png )
580240

And just like that, Chief is alone.

Area succeeded! Moving onto Area Four, please wait...
>>
No. 580241 ID: d470e9
File 140350461171.png - (37.09KB , 800x800 , S7A3-87-Pause.png )
580241

>>
No. 580243 ID: ca0da5

>>580241
That =] face
>>
No. 580278 ID: 76b151

I know its meant to mean Pause.

But that is the fucking CAI face we see all the time in Asteroid Quest.
>>
No. 580310 ID: 450b06

...God damnit I can't unsee it. You can even see the damn smile in the ground. Was that on purpose?
>>
No. 580392 ID: ccd544

>>580310
This is Lagotrope, tgchan's current master of persistent storytelling.

Even the stuff that is accidental, is made to be on purpose retroactively.
>>
No. 580460 ID: d470e9
File 140357467573.png - (18.87KB , 900x900 , S7A4-1.png )
580460

Area 4: Broken AI Filter

For this area, there are 10 players and 9 isolated boards. Each player will play 9 simultaneous games on each board, one for each opponent. Each person will get a single move, will be applied over every single game. After their move, they will gain a certain amount of points from each individual game, which are then tallied up. After one move, the leader, or everyone tied for 1st, will move on to the next area. All survivors from this area will be competitors in the next area.

The user will be instantly killed if they do not move off of their own platform.

Each platform will award one point to the player(s) standing on it unless noted otherwise below. A platform that is stood on will be activated, and any modifications will apply, and then points rewarded.

If platforms 1 and 3 are stood on by one player each, platform 1 will award 3 points while platform 3 will remove 1 point. If the same platform is stood on by both player, that platform will reward both the player and their enemy with the amount of points equal to the platform number.

Ability list:
All communication REMOVED
No abilities given

>>
No. 580471 ID: e6f437

Take a risk and step on 3.
Since at least one player and their board is removed each round your point potential will only go down from the first round onward.
>>
No. 580472 ID: 76b151

Use the sign language you developed to talk to Arbiter and any other of Alison's\King's group. Depending on how many of you there are you can use that to rack up a great number of points for several of you to guarantee advancement.
>>
No. 580473 ID: e607cd

>>580465
>Each person will get a single move, will be applied over every single game.
one move, applied to all games. pretty clear.

>If platforms 1 and 3 are stood on, platform 1 will award 3 points, and platform 3 will remove 1 point.
This part is less clear. Is it "player on platform one gets 3 points, player on platform 3 gets -1 point" or "both players get 2 points" or what?
>>
No. 580474 ID: 76b151

>>580473
The former. Platform 1 gets 3 points. Platform 3 gets deducted a point.
>>
No. 580479 ID: 2fd516

Okay, so, you choose one number and step on that in every board. Nobody is going to step on 3 because that only works if a majority steps on 3. So nobody is going to bother stepping on 1 because 2 actually has a decent chance to give 2 points.

Everyone that's still sane is going to stand on 2. Stand on 2.

>>580471
No, there is only one round. Only those in 1st continue on.
>>
No. 580480 ID: 04b86a

Let's see, here.

Platform 3 is a horrible, horrible choice, since someone else jumping onto platform 1 is a guaranteed loss.

Platform 2, on the other hand... assuming one person jumps to platform 1 or 3, then for every other person to jump to platform 3 we'll need two more people to jump to platform 2 to tie. Seven people (counting Chief) on platform 2 guarantees a win.

Platform 1 depends on at least half as many people jumping to platform 3 as jump to platform 2, rounded down. Three people on platform 3 guarantees a win.

Given that platform 3 can be messed up by one person, and anyone who realizes that will realize that other people noticed that as well, I consider Platform 2 to be the safest bet.
>>
No. 580486 ID: 04b86a

I should note, though, that having someone jump to platform 1 will make sure that we have someone in the next area. The only question is if that someone should be Chief, or Arbiter?

Maybe we could pull a bluff? Have Arbiter instruct everyone (through gestures) to jump to platform 2, and have Chief declare his intent to go to platform 1. That would hopefully scare everyone off from platform 3, thereby assuring platform 2 would win.
>>
No. 580491 ID: 76b151

Anyone willing to break it down a bit? I'm worried that the 'smart' choice is going to bite us in the butt.
>>
No. 580499 ID: e607cd

So prisoner's dilemma, kinda, except the everyone cooperating choice is the HIGHEST reward. Interesting.

So assuming completely even distribution on other players, i.e. three people pick 1, three people pick 2, three people pick 3:
picking platform 1 gets us 9 total points (1x9 points), platform 2 gets us 12 points (1x6+2x3), platform 3 gets us 9 points (3x3+1x3-1x3).

The people who jumped on 1 have 9 points in all cases. The people who jump on 3 if we jump on 2 will have 8. The people who jump on 2 if we jump on 3 will have 11. 2 wins in even distribution.

I will work through less even distribution scenarios in a moment.
>>
No. 580501 ID: 04b86a

>>580499
You made a mistake. Platform 1 would be (1x6 + 3x3) for 15 points.
>>
No. 580503 ID: e607cd

>>580501
you are correct. please hold while I redo everything ever.
>>
No. 580504 ID: dc4b80

Ok if everyone chose randomly the point ranges would be:

1. 9-27

2. 9-18

3. -9-27

Given that this stage is called the Broken Ai filter its a simple logic puzzle to try and weed out "broken" contestants.

Its a classic prisoners dilemma test that programers sometimes use to test complex algorithms. Of course in a Cai you want a variety of personalities and that's probably why this test was in storage.

Can you communicate with the others via the hand signs you set up earlier? I recognize what could be Bones and maybe and Arbiter on the board. If you can communicate it could change the system slightly.
>>
No. 580505 ID: e607cd

So! 3 to 1, 3 to 2, 3 to 3
1 gets us 15, winning
2 gets us 12, losing to 1 with 15.
3 gets us 9, losing to 1 with 18.

Goodness, betrayal is a strong option. Classic prisoner's dilemma.
>>
No. 580506 ID: d8a627

Okay, so, in order for platform 1 to give 3 points, the other player on that board has to stand on 3, to lose 1 point. If both players stand on 1, then they both get 1 point, because that's the platform number. If both players stand on 2, they both get 2 points. And, if both stand on 3, they both get 3 points. Without any way to ask your opponents to take the fall, you cannot just expect them to step onto 3, since they're more likely to get three points by stepping on one.
>>580499
If there were three players going to each platform, excluding chief, then here's how it would work:
Platform 1: 3 (1x3)+3 (1x3)+9 (3x3)=15
Platform 2: 3 (1x3)+6 (2x3)+3 (1x3)=12
Platform 3: 3 (1x3)+9 (3x3)-3 (-1x3)=9

Platform one, in this case, is the most valuable platform.
>>
No. 580509 ID: 2fd516

...why would there be an even division though? To solve this problem you have to imagine yourself in their shoes, solving the same problem.
>>
No. 580511 ID: dc4b80

If we were only playing against one opponent it would be a test of trust. If its us and Arbiter we can both pick 3 and get 3 points. If he betrays us then he gets 3 and we lose one.

But with 9 games going on at once its not really the same game. Assuming that the winners of each set move on to a new set the dynamics will change slightly each round.
>>
No. 580512 ID: d8a627

>>580509
I agree. The problem is, if you exclude that idea, do they do so as well, or would they not think to? They might all decide to go to 1, or all to 2. Chances are unlikely that any would go to 3.
However, the rules never did say that you would be killed for not winning, just that the winners would move on right away. Losing this, by that logic, just means another puzzle. It's a shame the ability to summon Shopkeep was removed, or we could ask him about it.

I'd recommend going for 1 anyways, and just hope for the best.
>>
No. 580513 ID: 2fd516

>>580512
If they're not gonna move to 3, then there's no reason to move to 1 instead of 2. Therefore, every sane AI is going to move to 2. We get more points if we also move to 2. Therefore, the best option is to move to 2.

Historically, areas are elimination. Those that do not move on are killed. The only time this was not the case was the red-blue-white NPC puzzle.

Also this puzzle is called "Broken AI filter". I think we can come to an obvious conclusion based on that simple fact.
>>
No. 580514 ID: dc4b80

>>580513

Hey we just forced these guys to live in a lord of the flies murder island for 400 years lets make sure they are not all stark raving mad.
>>
No. 580515 ID: 04b86a

Let me try to break this down.

If four people go to 3, or three people go to 3 and one person goes to 1, then 2 loses.

If seven people go to 2, or one person goes to 3 and four people go to 2, or no one goes to 3 and two people go to 2, then 2 wins.

If two people go to 3 and five people go to 2, or one person goes to 3 and three people go to 2, or no one goes to 3 and either one or no people go to 2, then it's a tie.

If two loses, then if there's anyone on 1 then 1 wins, otherwise 3 wins.

If everyone thinks there's a good chance someone will go to 1, then everyone will avoid 3, thereby guaranteeing 2 will go on, with 1 only having a slim chance of doing so.

Note that Chief is part of a team, and that if gesturing is allowed, then Chief can claim to be choosing to take the fall by sending everyone to 2 while he claims to be going to 1. He's not the type to actually do it, of course, but with Arbiter/Diamond here, even people who know him will suspect he might do it, which will discourage people from going to 3 who might consider it even with Chief and Arbiter saying to go to 2. It would take four of Bones' people calling his bluff by going to 3, or three of them to 3 and one to 1, in order for 2 to lose, and of those options the second requires some negotiation over who gets to go on and the first requires risking that Chief's not bluffing, which would mean that none of them go on.

Is that easy to understand?

>>580499
>>580506
By the way, I should remind everyone that each of those point totals is the total should Chief choose that particular option. We have nine opponents, but there are ten people.
>>
No. 580520 ID: d8a627

>>580515
So, wait, are we tricking people into avoiding 3 so that 2 can win, or are we tricking people into thinking we're tricking them into avoiding 3 so that 1 can win? Because I'm pretty sure only one of these guys is Bones. Telling Arbiter to take 2 while Chief takes 1 should encourage others to take 2, which results in everybody winning unless they try to help chief out by taking the fall themselves...

The more I try to think on it the less sense anything makes. I guess this is exactly the kind of puzzle Chief would love, though--Even if his mentality has not been rebooted, he'd still love this kind of brainwork.
>>
No. 580525 ID: 50338d

>And that the would-be lover does not have half a dozen suitors already.
...I just realize Chief kept perfectly true to his own standards. He found a partner with only one competing suitor.

I was not expecting that snark to be so fitting.

>Arbiter
Excellent. Greet him with the sign language we built. We can cooperate with at least one person here.

>Goodness, betrayal is a strong option.
One factor left out of that calculation. Overloading is an option, here.

It's to our advantage to have as many people from our faction to cooperate so we'll advance to the next area together. It increases the odds of our own survival in the next room, and the likelihood that all 10 of the final survivors of the stage will be Alison-loyal. Meaning we control more resurrection slots.

Betrayal only serves us in the short term. Our interests are better severed cooperating, long term. We want to shoot for everyone in this room on our side to advance, with a tied score.
>>
No. 580531 ID: 2fd516

>>580520
If Chief takes 1 while others take 2, Chief loses. Let's avoid doing that. Also keep in mind we don't have any communication abilities, and nobody else can see our arbiter/chief game. There are actually 44 different games being played, of which each player can only see 9.

I don't see why there's so much conversation about this. Taking 3 is a bad idea, which means taking 1 is a bad idea, which means everyone will see that 2 is a good idea and everyone will take 2. It's really simple and we don't need all this math.
>>
No. 580534 ID: 76b151

>>580531
The problem is that it is the sane choice. However some people will not be sane after the last stage. Furthermore the game can be rigged if enough of our opponents are Bones.

Hence the discussion and wondering if we can rig the game ourselves.
>>
No. 580543 ID: d470e9
File 140358609250.png - (1.03KB , 120x98 , S7A4-2.png )
580543

Chief attempts to move to make gestures at the others.

All communication REMOVED

Chief confirms that he is an abstract static head on a platform, and does not have any available facial movements or a body of which to gesture with.
>>
No. 580545 ID: 04b86a

>>580520
Chief will be claiming to go to 1, but he won't. That's what makes it bluff. The thought going through heads of everyone who isn't inclined to go to 2 on Chief's and Arbiter's authorities won't be "will he or won't he?", but "do I really want to take the chance that his self interest outweighs his loyalty to Alison's cause?" Additionally, for all they know, Chief could have made arrangements to be resurrected, which makes the bluff even more effective because we'd still be letting someone competent (Arbiter) through.

>>580534
>questionable sanity
Oh, right, that one Skellington didn't actually care about his own life, just that Bones would get past the stage. Other Skellingtons being like him would make the negotiations for who takes 3 and who takes 1 a bit easier, but they'd still need four people.
>>
No. 580548 ID: f996af

go to 2
>>
No. 580551 ID: 04b86a

>>580543
>All communication removed means ALL of it
Huh, that's new.

I'm still voting for 2. Questionable sanity or no, everyone who's here is determined to accomplish something, be it to live or getting someone else to the next stage, so still they'll be able to reason.
>>
No. 580555 ID: d8a627

>>580551
The admins are learning of our creativity.

Let's go with 2.
>>
No. 580556 ID: 76b151

Well then. Better to hope for the best. To #2!
>>
No. 580564 ID: 2fd516

>>580543
Well that nails it down even further. No communication means no cooperation means 2 is the best choice.

...actually if we consider that a broken AI might just randomly pick 1, 2 is the best choice regardless of cooperation.
>>
No. 580646 ID: 50338d

Yeah, as near as I can tell, two is the safest bet.
>>
No. 581135 ID: d470e9
File 140375246582.png - (207.21KB , 900x900 , S7A4-3.png )
581135

>>
No. 581136 ID: d470e9
File 140375248522.png - (19.17KB , 900x900 , S7A4-4.png )
581136

>>
No. 581137 ID: d470e9
File 140375253356.png - (14.34KB , 900x900 , S7A4-5.png )
581137

Platform 1 result: 9 points
Platform 2 result: 11 points
Platform 3 results: 3 points

Those on platform 2 will move onwards.


Of the things people could have done in Area 3, Chief doesn't think many people spent it getting smarter. Especially not the fool that chose platform 3, which made the ordeal far closer than it should have been.
>>
No. 581138 ID: d470e9
File 140375255920.png - (200.88KB , 800x800 , S7A5-1.png )
581138

Chief loses sight of everyone, and gets transported, gaining his communication abilities back. While en route to Area 5, someone intercepts him.

>"Hello!"
"Yes?"
>"Not much of a sociable person, are you? Well, I've been finding all types. I'm the Rulekeeper. A pleasure to meet you, I hope. It looks like I was introduced at a hell of a time in a hell of a bracket. I was thinking I was going to be introduced no sooner than Stage 8, but it looks like Shopkeep wasn't up to the task, even if that task was doing very little for a long time! Now, the stages have more or less been running themselves with admins co-"
"Please get to the point."
>"My, you sure haven't spent those hundreds of years learning patience. You won't be seeing stage 8 with that attitude! You've just been... let's see... trap dodging, machiavellianism, staring off into the dista-"
"The point."
>"Ah, right. Area 5. The final area of the stage."
>>
No. 581140 ID: d470e9
File 140375313962.png - (227.38KB , 800x800 , S7A5-2.png )
581140

>"Right now, approximately 400 of you are going to be in this area. This is a little... different. Crowded, you understand why. This bracket had some extra 0's that had to be taken care of. Ah, I'll spare you the reasoning. The point is, well, let me give you your abilities."

Activate Gate Jewel - Activates a jewel for the user. A timer is involved, maxing at one hour. When a jewel is activated, the timer begins running down. When this ability is released, or when the timer runs out, the jewel is deactivated, and the timer begins recharging at a normal time ratio until the max of one hour is reached. This ability does not have a range, but can only be used on the gate on the player's own island.
Pass Through Gate - To use this ability, all jewels on a gate must be active, and one of those jewels must be activated by the player. When this ability is used by anyone, a 30 second period will initiate. At the end of the 30 second period, the player will pass through the gate provided the following criteria are met:
1) All gate jewels are active
2) No other players have also used Pass Through Gate
If these criteria are not met, then the gate will be deactivated for 1 day at which no jewels may be activated.


>"There are multiple brackets, but everyone has to go through 3 gates. It would be quite a mess if all 400 of you were in the same spot right at the beginning!"
"It's going to be a mess anyway. So multiple people have to work together to let one person go through?"
>"Correct, and so on and so forth, funneling the most well liked, or, well, patient individuals through."
"Many of us get along. If I have enough enemies out there, you may understand a fraction of what the shopkeep went through."
>"I'll be doing my best. Some questions may be best answered in the stage itself, but just in case otherwise, do you have any questions while I'm here?"
"What happens if people refuse, and there are not enough people to get through a gate?"
>"Well, there is no dying in the next stage, so you'll simply have to convince people! Or wait for people to be convinced, if you're, say, the only person on the next island. Of course, and this is to my own discretion, people simply aren't biting, then I guess everyone who hasn't made it through the area will simply be killed."
".... I feel like I've seen you before."
>"Can't have, try to regain your senses, you're all a bit loopy."
>>
No. 581142 ID: d8a627

Well, Chief, it's time to put your Alison personality forward.

...Looking at these rules, there's a serious Overload loophole present. If you save up a full hour, your jewel will stay active for an hour, even after you leave the island. That means that every thirty seconds, another player can pass through, for the full extent of that hour. Let's assume that people aren't going to be so quick (it would be a little difficult to be so instantaneous), and say it takes 35 seconds before another person goes through. ...That's still way more than enough time for 40 players to pass through. In fact, it's a little more than a hundred. That would just be if there was meant to be one person who gets through the whole thing, with the jewel count supporting that, but that isn't actually the case.

With a full hour, you can easily pass three people through, then four, then five. These guys don't have to worry about anybody getting left out, you can overload at 100% exit rate.
>>
No. 581144 ID: dc4b80

Try to remember where you might have seen him before it could end up being very important. Nothing in this simulation is not connected somehow. He could have gotten cloned or Alison could have brought him over to our side in a previous reset.

He said at his own digression he could kill people who are not playing along so do your best to get on this guys good side. I know you are probably a bit moody after 400 years of waiting but making friends with this guy could be just as important as when Alison befriended Shopkeep. Even if all you do is improve how he views your faction it will help.

Looks like you will have to do your best to make friends here and smooze your way onward. A lot will depend on who's followers made it through to the end. If that was Bones or one of his followers on 2 with you then it would be nice to be able to turn people against him. Even if we are planning on resurrecting him it would be nice to have him indebted to us.

So apologize for being impatient but the last stage went on a bit long. Then try to get as much info about him and how mechanics will work in the next few stages. He seems to have a lot more power and autonomy than Shopkeep ever did. He could be a great source of info if we can get him talking.
>>
No. 581150 ID: 76b151

You know he DOES look familiar. Hmmm, now where would that have been.
>>
No. 581152 ID: 2fd516

>>581139
Wait a minute. It looks like one person can block all other people from being able to pass through by using Pass Through Gate every 30 seconds while using a jewel on a 30 second timer. So to get through, you have to not only have two others using jewels to let you through, but you have to convince everyone else that you should be allowed to go through. Or can only three people activate jewels at all? Hmm, to let the final person through, two people have to stay behind. The start of each "gate" will be about convincing people to cooperate, but when numbers dwindle, it will become more about convincing some people to stay behind. Two people in the first gate, 3 people in the next, 4 people in the last. So 16 people lost in the first gates, 6 people lost in the second gates, 4 people lost in the last- that just adds up to 26 less contestants. That's a REALLY LOW bodycount. What's going on here?

Another thing to realize is that everyone here has been through that last stage... a few types of people could have gotten through: Those who cooperated with allies and proved they were the best man to move on, those who simply outlasted everyone else, and those who successfully devised a method of driving others to suicide. The first and second types will likely be very stubborn, for they have lost much to get here. The last type of person will be hard pressed to get past this stage, for they cannot do much.
>>
No. 581153 ID: 2fd516

>>581150
...he looks like Glitcher!
>>
No. 581162 ID: dc4b80

>>581153

Maybe if he opened his eyes really wide. But there are plenty of people who look similar here. Have we seen anyone that looks almost exactly like that? Not looking forward to the idea of browsing through 70 billion updates to check.
>>
No. 581165 ID: bb78f2

>>581138
Actually, I'd say he looks a little like Savior.
Hmm
>>
No. 581166 ID: dc4b80

>>581165

The eyes are similar yes but not really anything else. Savior has a lot of random body parts. Although Glitcher is a corrupted Savior so he might be related somehow.
>>
No. 581168 ID: b435c5

He looks like the Shopkeep Baron.
He's also a smug, condescending jerk. No hugs for him!
>>
No. 581169 ID: dc4b80

He sort of looks like the 1-10 white blue and red Npc's from earlier in the stage. The ones with the confusing word puzzle. Maybe they are part of him?
>>
No. 581171 ID: d8a627

"He" guys? Not "She"? That looks like a dress...
>>
No. 581183 ID: d470e9
File 140375983266.png - (199.83KB , 800x800 , S7A5-3.png )
581183

"No, I've seen you. Not glitcher... an npc? One of the teleporting npcs.... ah. You're the Shopkeep Baron, aren't you?"
>"There's no such thing as the Shopkeep Baron."
"... yes, there is, or at least there used to be. Anyways. By the sounds of it, only 26 people have to die."
>"Well, okay. Obviously, there's some things that I don't feel have to be explained, for instance, there's only going to be 10 people allowed in through the last gate, then the whole place will collapse."
".... you really are new here, aren't you."
>"... should I have been made as the Rules Lawyer? Must I cover every base I can think of, or can I leave a few things to be safely assumed."
"Lawyer."

>Be nice to the Rulekeeper
Chief can't bring himself to be. Something about the Rulekeeper rubs him wrong, perhaps because he's a newcomer who doesn't appear to have any idea of how things have been going, yet is in a position of power. Or perhaps it's the smugness, but Chief thinks he used to have the same trait.

Jiro, however, comes back into Chief's mind, and how, while rough around the edges, was not a contestant of calamity that Chief originally viewed him as.

"I apologize if I seem grumpy. The last stage went on too long."
>"Well, apology accepted!"
"Nonetheless, if you don't cover a base, don't expect it won't be addressed."
>"Hrm, well, let me add a few rule stipulations then.

So long as there are enough people left on an island to activate all jewels, there is no limit to the amount that gate sets 1 & 2 can let cross. However, upon 10 people crossing gate 3, stage 7 will be disassembled.
The player cannot jump behind the gates to try to grab the light bridge that's behind it. The player cannot piggy-back on someone as they pass though. In fact, if the player passes through a gate by any means that is not through the given abilities, the player will be slain.
Summon Shopkeep has been disabled and will be removed at the end of stage 7.
A jewel will become de-activated upon the following events: The player manually turns the ability off. The player runs out of time. The player passes the gate. If there are are too few players on the island and any previous linked islands to activate a gate, then that gate and any previous linked gates will be disabled, and the contestants killed.
The Rulekeeper has the right to add and remove rules as needed, as well as judge current actions.


>"How is that? Are you satisfied? Do I need to keep going?"

He already sounds agitated. Chief can't help but wonder what a mess things will be once he's at his wit's end, only to have Alison come into play.
>>
No. 581184 ID: 2fd516

>>581178
>The Rulekeeper has the right to add and remove rules as needed, as well as judge current actions.

Oh dear. He's going to be a problem, as taking an adversarial tone with the contestants means he'll likely screw over those he doesn't like. You're gonna have to try to stay off his bad side.

So. With these new rules the game seems more straightforward. There's still the problem of people blocking others from moving on by using Pass Gate at the same time, but hopefully we can work through that.
>>
No. 581185 ID: bb78f2

>>581178
"Prepare to be dissapointed yourself. People are really creative, you have no idea. You'll learn to doubt yourself and anything you do."
>>
No. 581186 ID: d8a627

Well, dang. He (if Chief says he I'll say he) just removed the overload in one fell swoop. Gotta say, for leaving things very open, initially, he knows what was left open and how to close it tightly.
>>
No. 581187 ID: d8a627

>>581185
Let's not insult him any more, he can kill whoever he wants at will. Perhaps there are more loopholes, but he did cover the ones we thought of.
>>
No. 581190 ID: a87457

So, how are you feeling right now Chief? Depressed, bleak, still a bit loopy, or did that personality reboot happen to kick in? I also find it commendable that after... a god awful amount of years, you're still loyal to Alison.

Anyway, next up, there isn't really much puzzle to solve here as far as I can tell, or any way to break the rules, so I guess you just have to meet whoever's with you right now.
>>
No. 581191 ID: 50338d

It might be a reasonable idea to inquire after shopkeeper. What happened to him after the last area? Contestants were promised a mental reset to protect from possible insanity or long term damage, but you're not sure he was extended the same courtesy.

>you've just been... let's see... trap dodging, machiavellianism, staring off into the dista-
Left out asexual cuckold-cuddling.

>In fact, if the player passes through a gate by any means that is not through the given abilities, the player will be slain.
...doesn't that give contestants the ability to use the gate to kill each other, by physically forcing people to cross the gate?

Even if safe zone rules are in play, a crowd of people could gently push someone to force-field death.

>jewel
Does it count as inventory that can be stored? Otherwise, people may end up stealing other people's jewels, throwing them over the edge, etc.

>He already sounds agitated.
This is a matter of life and death for us, you know.
>>
No. 581193 ID: dc4b80

Ask him what is going to happen to Shopkeeper after this. While we had to live through 400 years of stage who knows how long he had to deal with things. Ask if we can keep our summon ability just to keep poor Shopkeep company.

Tell him to please be patient with people if he can. The contestants lives are on the line after all. Also he might be being judged by some admin somewhere on how he handles things. If this was all just a friendly game people might not try to get any advantage they can. But when you are fighting for your life its a different matter.

With him having this much power this stage and probably later stages will be more about getting on his good side than anything. Even if we play perfectly if he gets cranky this fast it could end up badly. He is brand new to this and has been given a lot of power. Try to be to him like what you are to Alison if he lets you. Say if he ever has any questions about stuff that might have happened earlier in the stages you would be glad to talk about it.
>>
No. 581206 ID: dc4b80

Some of those rules he set down are phrased in a petulant way. It might take awhile to get this guy on our side so be careful to start. Some people when starting a new important job can take it badly if they are corrected and will lash out at people. It takes experience to be a good middle manager.

He will learn how things work shortly and when that happens you want to be the guy that he comes to when he needs a shoulder to cry/complain on. Even if its just him coming to you and saying man you were right about those assholes they kept trying all sorts of ridiculous things. Find out as much as you can about him and his job. We are genuinely interested in his position so will not come off false.

It would be great if Bones got on his bad side and we could subtly encourage that.
>>
No. 581213 ID: 32e90b

Warn him to stop dissing Shopkeep. No one disses Shopkeep, and that alone could get a lot of contestants screaming for his head. He does not want that to happen if his system bracket ends up invaded... and set to freeroam mode.
>>
No. 581346 ID: d470e9
File 140382532918.png - (187.18KB , 800x800 , S7A5-4.png )
581346

"I'd like to know more about your position. What kind of power do you have, and how subject are you to the system rules?"
>"Okay! So, normally, these stages have more or less ran themselves, right? Except when an issue comes up, then the system comes in and manually fixes whatever, usually through shopkeep. Shopkeep could be seen as the embodiment of the mercantile front, the watcher the embodiment of the system's eyes, and so on and so forth. As you can guess, I'm the embodiment of the stages, now. I'll be starting them, running them, watching when success or failure happens and so on. Of course I'm subject to the system, although there is only one Rulekeep embodiment unlike the watchers and admins and so forth. Like the shopkeep, I'm a collective."
"I'll remember that. You'll have to be patient, too. This isn't just some casual game for us where we play for fun. It's life and death. The few of us that are still alive have gotten this far by scraping every rule down to survive."
>"Well, you just let me worry about that."
"If you want to know anything more about pre-rulekeep stages, I would be more than willing to share. I made myself remember everything I could. I have a stage question. Is a jewel an inventory item?"
>"Oh, certainly not. It's embedded in the gate. You need not have line of sight or access or anything to activate it, you simply use the ability, and one of the gate's jewels on the island will be activated by you."
"Thank you. Secondly, how is shopkeeper doing? Will he also get a personality reset?"
>"I imagine so. He'll be around in future stages, as the shopkeep, as needed."

>So, how are you feeling right now Chief? Depressed, bleak, still a bit loopy, or did that personality reboot happen to kick in?
Chief believes the personality reboot happens at the end of the stage.

Chief doesn't feel like much, right now.

"That's enough. I'm ready."
>"Setting Chief as all clear, then!"
>>
No. 581347 ID: d470e9
File 140382534877.png - (19.27KB , 800x800 , S7A5-5.png )
581347

Chief goes into area 5, inside of another house, not knowing which island he was moved to, not that it matters much. He immediately uses Activate Gate Jewel. All 3 jewels on the current gate were immediately occupied. It seems that there may be formidable competition, judging by at least 3 people being on the ball.

>"Chief!" Chief doesn't recognize the voice, but he goes to it. It's Arbiter. "Gods up there, I was afraid I was never going to see a familiar face again. Loviro's here too. He's... a little quiet, though." Arbiter leads Chief into a side room.
"Who?"
>"Loviro. I'm not quiet, I simply did not choose to entertain the hallucinations before. However, hallucinations never ask who I am."
>"Ah... you remember how Alison went to the belenosian sim some 5 centuries ag- ah, however long it's been for you? Well, Loviro was one of the biggest helps to Alison in there."
>"That was a long time ago, Diamond."
>"Not for Alison. For her, it only sounds like moments have passed."
>"Then it is good she was dead for this. We need our supposed leaders in prime mental condition. That last stage did not provide that stimulus."
>"How long where you in there for, Loviro?"
>"840 years."
"Who competed with you?"
>"One of Bones' men. One suicided early, but the other was persistent, let me tell you."
>>
No. 581356 ID: dc4b80

Ask them how there meetings with Rulekeeper went and tell them about yours. Let them know about the rule updates and your evaluation of his personality. The fact that he has way more autonomy than Shopkeeper did is important.

Then find out more about what they have been up to while we start mingling with the other contestants. The faster we go here the better and we want as many of those 10 spots as we can get. If we are lucky we will have a large faction lead on Bones and might be able to force him out with numbers alone. Then we can decide if he gets brought back once we see Corruptor again.

We need to find out who used the jewels quickly. Bones knows he has a disadvantage and will use his people to quickly run him through the stage if we do not stop him.
>>
No. 581362 ID: d470e9
File 140382796598.png - (21.09KB , 800x800 , S7A5-6.png )
581362

"Did either of you find anything about the Rulekeeper during his introductions?" Chief asks, and Loviro shakes his head.
>"I'm nervous, honestly." says Arbiter. "He sounds like he's going to freely step in to do his job, and has the power to do it. I'm not sure how it may go, but we'll just have to work with him."
"I'm going to find out who activated the jewels."
>"I'll help." Arbiter continues. "We should move as fast as possible for this before any of Bones' gets anyone through the first gate. As Loviro said, and as my centuries would tell, many of Bones units have amazing mental stamina and persistence."

The jetals and robots incessantly bow before Arbiter. Area 3 can be locked up by any adversary, but Arbiter must have had an extraordinarily easy time in the Questionairre area.

Three robots come forward, saying that they activated the jewels.

There is no sign that there is a waiting list for jewel activation should one be dropped, so it's agreed that one of the jetals will drop his activation at an arbitrary time between now and one hour, at which Arbiter will snipe the deactivated jewel.

>"I hope you don't mind if I go first, Chief." says Arbiter. "By the looks of it, I believe I should go first, followed by you, followed by Loviro, and I'll make a list in the next half an hour for all of the robots to follow in after us, so they don't have to argue about it themselves."
>>
No. 581366 ID: 76b151

Agreed, right now Arbiter is our greatest asset in getting cooperation for the stages. He is therefore one of the most likely to get an exit and a chance at resurrecting those that need it.
>>
No. 581369 ID: dc4b80

Yeah let him go first. He is our best chance of locking up the stage quickly.

Make sure to tell him not to trust all Belenosians at face value. There were a lot of body mods possible with the last stage and if Bones was tricky he might have disguised himself as one of our team. His personality seems like the type that would not bother but you never know. I know I would consider it if he was the one with the overwhelming numbers.

Also take them aside and ask them a question or two only they would know the answer to. Just for paranoia's sake.

Depending on how many people Bones got in here we could be looking at a race.
>>
No. 581370 ID: 76b151

Also it might be a good idea to see if this is really Arbiter, remember people have used Shopkeeper's voucher to fool people before. It is a bit of a stretch given his speech so far but he could have sussed out enough to fool a first impression from one of our own during the Long Stage.
>>
No. 581371 ID: 2fd516

>>581362
Sounds acceptable, but in order to guarantee we get through the end of this stage we need 9 (2+3+4) robots on that list who are willing to remain behind. It would help if more robots/jetals in the parallel gates advanced, then they could send us forward too. OH... OH GOD, I just realized a way for this area to go horribly wrong. If the 10 end slots fill up before we get there we're FUCKED. So let's push everyone through as fast as we can. Space out the deactivations into unpredictable timeslots but make sure we don't waste too much time! Also keep in mind the competition will start spamming Activate right when Pass is going to complete, because Pass ends in exactly 30 seconds. Actually maybe we should send one of the robots through first rather than having them deactivate. Everyone on our team should spam Activate when the Pass is about to end.

Also tell Loviro not to worry about his mental state too much in the long run. We're gonna get a personality reset. Actually, that could backfire for you Chief, you got... friendlier during Area 3. Or maybe the memories of Pepper's company will help keep that part of your developed personality intact?
>>
No. 581372 ID: 2fd516

>>581370
Oh, you're right. Loviro, too, could be an impostor... but Chief doesn't know much of anything about Loviro so it'd be hard to figure that out.
>>
No. 581388 ID: d470e9
File 140383294851.png - (16.56KB , 800x800 , S7A5-7.png )
581388

"That's fine, and recommendable. Remember though, not to trust any belenosian at face value. The shopkeep was lax, last round."
>"I know. I'll take what measures I can to protect against it, with Loviro's help."
"In fact, I would like you to run through some information while we move to settle my own mind."

Arbiter shares a few tidbits of information that satisfy Chief, as they are highly specific bits of information that Chief would know. It sounds like Arbiter did not let his memory lose earlier events, either.

Chief and Arbiter come up with the game plan. Confirmed robots and jetals are to spam activation upon someone passing through the gate. The first Pass goes to Arbiter, which takes some time, but he wishes to be sure that the waiting list to get through is well understood.
>>
No. 581389 ID: d470e9
File 140383295756.png - (69.26KB , 800x800 , S7A5-8.png )
581389

The second wait time only waits for 12 minutes. Chief passes through next. The light bridge automatically picks him up from where he stands, and despite the opening gate, no one else seems to be able to go on the light bridge. Trying to shove someone through the light bridge does not seem possible.
>>
No. 581390 ID: d470e9
File 140383298683.png - (22.88KB , 800x800 , S7A5-9.png )
581390

Arbiter greets Chief, and Glitcher is in tow.

>"I haven't found anyone here except glitcher, who just arrived half a moment before you did." Arbiter says.
"Another familiar face. Good to see you, glitcher. I'm going to ask the obvious question."
>"... what?"
"..... let's say the obvious question is why are your extremities black?"
>"... what? Oh. Black. Yes."
"Why are they black?"
>"I don't know. They just got that way over time. Slowly."
"What's that in your pocket?"
>"It's... something I made in the last area. It's a radio to the dream. Well, I mean, not the dream. Dead people. It's... kind of a manual ghost talker. It can't resurrect or anything, but I can talk to people."
"Rulekeeper let you keep it here?"
>"Who?"
>>
No. 581391 ID: 76b151

Lets save it for an emergency then. Though it would be nice to hear Alison again.

Explain the Rulekeeper as well as who he is based on.

As for the blackness? I'm a bit worried that the recent system changes might have an adverse effect on the Glitcher, that or the Corrupter is trying to corrupt him. Further.

Afterwords lets explore the place with Arbiter.
>>
No. 581398 ID: dc4b80

Yeah might want to keep Glitcher and his abilities hidden from Rulekeeper for as long as we can. Should not go out of our way to avoid him but try not to use the radio while he is directly watching.

We should build our forces here for a bit before sending Arbitor to the next area. Want to make sure there are enough Belenosians here to pass on the plan to the rest that show up.

Need to have a plan for dealing with any of Bones people. Once we end up on a island with them we will have to be careful about spamming the gate. But a lot of that will depend on how our numbers end up.

While you wait for more people to show up find out there stories from the last stage. Glitcher in particular might have perfected his art a bit with all the down time.
>>
No. 581401 ID: 45d70f

Savior had black arms and horns. Maybe over time some of his appearance is leaking out? Or could be side effects from his work. Something he never sees without existing for hundreds of years.
>>
No. 581403 ID: bb78f2

>>581390
Ask Glitcher how long he was in there. Or did he just glitch his win?
I am honestly surprised how many of our people have made it through that last onslaught. I mean, I'm surprised we made it too. It depended so much on others just giving up before we did. Shit, I half believe even Corrupter would have a hard time making it through that stage if he played through it normally. It's not like us are really any special, that damn area was so personality based for success.
>>
No. 581404 ID: 2fd516

>>581390
His appearance is becoming more similar to Savior's, then... I'm guessing that's why his abilities become useless later on- he reverts to a noncorrupted state. Ask how long he spent in the last Area. Oh, and a quick favor- can we talk to Timekeeper? Tell her what happened to Goat. If we can talk to two people at once, we can even have them reunite.

I think Rulekeeper decided not to talk to him. For obvious reasons. Explain who he is and that you suspect he is a modified copy of a Shopkeeper Baron.

Also get those jewels activated before anyone else can arrive and blockade them.
>>
No. 581407 ID: dc4b80

Wait I just realized that Swordsbane was the Sapphire emperor right? Was he in our bracket? If so he could also get instant loyalty from the Belenosians even if he did not realize why. If he is here our problems could come from him instead of Bones.

Could be a mute point if his bracket does not merge with ours until later stages.

Although Emerald should be around here somewhere right?
>>
No. 581412 ID: d470e9
File 140383623894.png - (22.49KB , 800x800 , S7A5-10.png )
581412

>Swordsbane: In our bracket
He was not. Chief believes Swordsbane and Exterminator - or was it Obliterator - will come in stage 8. Chief isn't worried about Swordsbane's old life as an emperor, as the only reason that Arbiter is treated as one is due to Alison's and Emerald's confirmation as such.

He is expecting that Emerald will come shortly, if he came this far. King likely has a good a chance as Chief.

Chief briefly runs over the rulekeeper.
"How was your stay in area 3, Glitcher? Aside from that, did you learn anything new?"
>"I... think so. I don't really... I was there for a long time. I think it... forgot about me? There was no one else around, and I was alone."
"So your company was just that radio, hm?"
>"Yes... Alison would sing to me, and just try to keep me company."
"I would have thought that her ability to sing was also eliminated with the admin purge."
>"The what?"
"The admin purge. When all the abilities were removed."
>"Oh... well, I mean... yeah. I think it was. But she relearned it, since time for her slowed down to my pace when I called her."
Chief pauses for a moment. "How long where you in there for?"
>"... maybe aro-"

>"Hey." Rulekeeper pops up. "I heard something about 'why'd Rulekeeper let you hang onto that?' Hang onto what? I'm not sensing any contraband, so I dunno if you goofs are just having some post Area 3 jetlag, but if there is something, I want you two to tell me about it."
>"... maybe around ten thousand years." Glitcher says. The Rulekeep keeps staring at Chief and Arbiter as though he can't see the Glitcher.

>Explain who he is and that you suspect he is a modified copy of a Shopkeeper Baron.
Rulekeeper seemed certain that there was no such thing as a Shopkeep Baron. Chief will let him become more familiar with Alison's group before bringing it up again.
>>
No. 581416 ID: dc4b80

Ask Rulekeeper if he knows who the Corruptor is. Then depending on how he responds we can bring up Glitcher or say we are talking to the ghost of a old friend.

Do not want to start off our relationship with Rulekeeper by lying and hiding Glitcher from him but it looks like Glitcher is outside of his awareness right now. Which makes me worried that if we do not tell him about Glitcher it might mess up the last platform. If we have 10 people there with Glitcher and he sees 9 it could end badly.

On one hand Rulekeeper might be fine with Glitcher as long as he obeys the rules. On the other he might take his existence as a personal offense. But knowing he and Corruptor exist might shake his worldview up. That's what helped us get Shopkeeper on our side to begin with. We made him realize how buggy and unfair the system was so he became willing to help us. That and they might have mind wiped the poor Shop Baron and turned him into this.

Also find out if he knows why there are so many extra contestants this round. He might not know anything about what Alison did.
>>
No. 581417 ID: 2fd516

>>581412
Shit, he's gone ghost. I'm not sure if this is a good or bad thing, but if we can at least make sure that Glitcher gets through this stage legit, Rulekeeper might not go aggro on him. The last thing we need is Rulekeeper trying to kill Glitcher.

Hmm. Tell Rulekeeper you think you're just hallucinating, you thought Arbiter still had his Alison alliance token thing. Apologize for getting his attention for no reason.

Once he's gone, ask "How did you get out?" and "Why couldn't he see you?" No longer say Rulekeeper's name and try not to address Glitcher directly in case Rulekeeper is listening.

Also I was saying to tell Glitcher about Rulekeeper looking like a shopkeep baron.
>>
No. 581418 ID: dc4b80

Also the realization that Alison might have been keeping Glitcher company for long enough to re learn all sorts of things manually. Knowing her she could have spent more time in the last stage with Glitcher than all of you.
>>
No. 581419 ID: f996af

Pretend you were talking about Arbiter's horny dangly bits. That let him talk to ghosts.

Basically let him think you two were crazy.
>>
No. 581420 ID: bb78f2

Oh, sorry. We're apparently talking to a hallucination Rulekeeper. You know about Savior, right? We thought we had ghost talk again and was talking to him. I guess we haven't really recovered from the damage it's done. Our hallucination mentioned he kept his safehaven, but if you're not sensing anything it's clearly just that we're going fucking bonkers. Who designed that Area, RK? That was beyond needlessly cruel. The admin's don't need to be fucking cruel as they do their job.
>>
No. 581421 ID: 76b151

Well....

Glitcher needs a hug. He really, really, really needs a hug.

Thank god Alison is so sane.
>>
No. 581430 ID: d470e9
File 140383913849.png - (17.92KB , 800x800 , S7A5-11.png )
581430

"Do you know who the corruptor is?"
>"A little. Mostly that I've been told not to worry about him for the time being."
"Anyways, I might still be hallucinating. I thought that Arbiter still had an alliance token we used to have in stages past. I also once had Arbiter's horn dangly parts, and it let me speak to ghosts."
>"Ah, yeah, okay then."
"Who designed Area 3, Rulekeeper? It was... unnecessarily over the top."
>"One of my predecessors, I suppose. That, or me before I was a conscienceness."

Rulekeeper leaves.

Chief won't say Rulekeep, but that may have simply gotten his attention. Rulekeep may still be listening in, so Chief motions them away for a moment.

>Explore the place
It looks like a single large house with communal and private rooms, kitchens, so on and so forth. It most likely is the equivalent of 3 houses in Area 3. It seems like this area knew full well that a single person in the jewel pool could intentionally delay things by a day and, should everyone be less coordinated and more self serving than they are, could turn this into an Area 3.

By the time they get back, they see Emerald and Loviro out on the field.
>>
No. 581431 ID: d470e9
File 140383914940.png - (21.36KB , 800x800 , S7A5-12.png )
581431

Arbiter goes to greet them, while Chief speaks to Glitcher once they're in a room. Glitcher seems fixated on the wall.

"Do you understand why there are so many extra contestants this round?"
>"Alison told me everything."
"Didn't that look like the shopkeep baron?"
>"I... don't remember that."
"Oh. Nevermind, then. How did area 3 finish?"
>"I just waited. Eventually that external sense just said Time Limit Reached. All players advance. So... yeah."
"Why couldn't he see what I see?"
>"Who?"
".... the npc."
>"Rulekeeper?"

Chief wasn't sure how to tell Glitcher not to say that, but Rulekeeper doesn't show up.

"The one who popped up in front of us a few minutes ago."
>".... oh. I don't know. I don't really.... no. I don't know. I could find out. I just need to see him again. Then I can yank a wire out of him. That's how I made this radio, you know. I made it out of myself, because all of the mass from the last stage decayed after a few thousand years."

Chief will refrain from hugging or otherwise touching Glitcher.
>>
No. 581436 ID: 76b151

Alright, maybe we should talk to Alison after all. Glitcher is making me a bit worried about her.
>>
No. 581438 ID: 2fd516

>>581431
Uh. Okay. Since he skipped the Broken AI Test, how about you give it to him now? Describe the board to him and ask what number he'd pick. If he doesn't pick 2 then we're in trouble because an insane Glitcher is NOT OUR ALLY. On the other hand if we can get him through this stage his personality will likely reset and it'll be fine.

Also tell him he's kindof scary right now. Would RK even notice if Glitcher yanked a wire out? If not, then he may as well do it. Also um, it occurs to me that if we don't alert RK to Glitcher's presence, wouldn't RK notice that there's an extra person he can't see, due to the number of people he CAN see in certain areas not adding up with events? Like, for instance, if all four of the people currently here sent say Arbiter on ahead, RK would show up and go "How did you do that?! There's only three people here!" and we'd be fucked. So, we should either send Glitcher ahead first or wait until we have more people before sending anyone ahead.

If we're gonna summon Rulekeeper we should do it by going "I wonder what Rulekeeper will do if one of the gates gets deactivated for a day and 10 people get through the final gate in the meantime. If all gates were disabled that would be more fair."
>>
No. 581439 ID: 04b86a

...He should probably replace that wire at some point, it looks like it might have destabilized him a bit, and his body wasn't exactly stable in the first place.

And if anyone was wondering and don't feel like digging through past threads, I found a good image of the Shopkeeper Baron. >>/questarch/436140 Aside from seeming to lack a tail, he looks just like the Baron Alison recruited, right down to the book he carries.
>>
No. 581446 ID: dc4b80

You know what we should summon rulekeeper right now and ask him about people delaying this part of the stage. Just say that you are curious if that was the intent and chat with him a moment. That will give Glitcher time to tag him so he can have a link to him.

Glitcher being a bit insane is something we are used to. He might have some memory problems now that he has all the memories from his previous lives and 10k years of loneliness inter-spaced with Alison singing. Just treat him nicely and as usual never get to close to him unless he ok's it first.

Oh there is a chance when he grabs a wire out of Rulekeeper something might happen. Like Rulekeeper suddenly knowing about Glitcher or something. If that happens make sure he does not think we are attacking him. Will have to roll with the punches as it happens.
>>
No. 581449 ID: 34b388

Tell him to do the wire thing next time that guy shows up. Then ask if using his own wire hurt him any. And finally can he replace it?
>>
No. 581451 ID: 2fd516

Oh, and in case nobody else realizes it... this is why Corruptor made sure Alison lost. If he hadn't, Glitcher wouldn't have had her company, and most surely would have gone insane. Of course it's also possible that Corruptor did it to ally (temporarily? Or permanently?) with the admins, which is why they don't have to worry about him right now... but Alison keeping Glitcher sane through those 10,000 years would be worth it as well.

Hmm. If there was always an endurance test like that, then I can't imagine any cycle with Glitcher getting anywhere if Alison *wasn't* dead during that area. I think we're starting to get an idea of why there have been so many victory-less cycles.
>>
No. 581452 ID: d470e9
File 140384301065.png - (13.46KB , 800x800 , S7A5-13.png )
581452

"This is area 5. You weren't in area 4?"
>"I guess not?"
"I'd like to see what you would answer with."

Chief shares the puzzle, noting there was no communication with them.

>"............. I guess people wouldn't go to three. So I guess 2."
"Good. You might want to put that thread in you away."
>"Where's the thread? I'm not leaking."
"In your eyes."
>"No, I'm looking at the threads in the walls. They're... a little different than usual."
"Would Rulekeep notice if you pulled a wire out of him?"
>"Maybe, if he's looking. I mean, he can't feel it, but if he looks around, then yeah."
"Okay. May I talk to Alison?"
>"Yes."

Glitcher pulls a thread out of one of his ears and wraps it around a base of the radio.

>"Alison?"
>"Hello again, Glitcher. How are you doing?"

Chief may have remembered everything that happened before area 3, but in truth, he only remembers his own retellings and writings of those events. He remembers them as a story, not as something he lived. Hearing Alison's voice, unlike Arbiter's, brings back those original experiences that Chief thought he had lost.

>"I've advanced areas. Chief is here, he was asking for you."
>"Chief! Are you okay?"
"..... yes, Alison." Chief pauses for a long moment. Area 4 and 5 were sprung on him, and the weight of finally leaving area 3 is just now bearing down on him. "Are you fine? Glitcher makes it sound like he kept you busy for a long time."
>"Years! But I enjoyed talking with Glitcher. Has he told you how far he's come along? He didn't waste his time at all. If his personality is reset, I won't complain, but it would also be a shame to have lost all that experience, even if it wasn't a good one."
>"I'll be fine, Alison. There's someone called the rulekeeper, apparently a manifestation of the stages. Uh, he doesn't seem to notice me. That's probably why I had to spend so long in area 3."
>"Is your condition any different, Glitcher?"
>"No, and I don't think there's any more areas like that. It should be fine."
>"I hope not. Chief, is there anyone else around?"
"We're at one of these funneling final areas. So far I've seen Arbiter, Emerald and Loviro. I don't know who else is here besides a bunch of belenosian refugees. Don't worry, those guys are still loyal to the emperors, so getting you back is going to be damn easy. We're just going to have to go the mile to make sure none of Bones' groups gets in and wastes our resurrect slots."
>"Okay! Keep me updated, but most importantly, keep hanging in there! I want to hear what everyone's gone through, but in person. And Chief, I don't know how long you spent in that place, but however long it was, thank you very much for remembering me."
"I'll be talking with you again, soon, assuming Glitcher doesn't destabilize from too many uses."
>"No, I made him promise me that he was telling the truth when he said it doesn't harm him at all. Goodbye, Chief, and good luck!"

She doesn't sound like a day has passed.

"Glitcher, are you going to recover from using your own threads?
>"I... could, but not on my own. I'd need threads from the Corruptor. Maybe the Savior would work, too. I can use their threads to replace mine, and they'll rebuild theirs on their own."
>>
No. 581453 ID: d470e9
File 140384302453.png - (20.98KB , 800x800 , S7A5-14.png )
581453

"Rulekeep!" Chief says, having Glitcher stand away.

The Rulekeep comes back, facing away from Glitcher.

>"Yyyyes?"
"Can I assume it's intentional that a single person could delay this part of the stage for extremely long periods?"
>"Yes."
"What if that happens, and in the meanwhile, others have 10 people get through the final gate? If all gates were disabled, that may be more fair."
>"Hm.... good point! This is too chancey. Ah, I know, I'll make it so that the gate is deactivated for a full day upon a successful Pass as well as an unsuccessful. It's better, I believe, since otherwise people would be punished for others' bad coordination."

Chief isn't sure if this is much better, but given how long people had to wait in Area 3, this will most likely be a fraction of the time at worst.

During this time, Glitcher takes a look at one of the Rulekeeper's threads, then puts it back in the Rulekeeper.

>"Oh, yeah... his threads are kind of blocky on the edges. Most people's are smooths. This is a system individual, and... he was made out of the shopkeep baron. They figured he was obsolete, so they erased his old self and retooled him, binding him in with the system manufacturing systems. Ah. I understand. The system stages could never see me, but they listened to the triggers and acted on whoever used them - so if I triggered something, then the trigger would act on the invisible force, which was me. But, this person... he often looks at people instead of the triggers. So... he wanted to individually pick out people. That's... yeah, he individually brought out everyone in area 3, but just thought that my stage was broken, and left it alone. So... I guess if he keeps trying to do things manually, I might be left out. I didn't pass through the gate normally."
>>
No. 581455 ID: 2fd516

>>581453
Then we need to tell Rulekeeper about Glitcher's existence. I figured that might be a problem in this stage... WELP, I hope this goes well. Hmm, actually... we should start this conversation by telling him that we know about the broken stage he ignored for 10 thousand years, and there was someone in it. Someone who he can't normally see.

I still want to talk to Timekeeper and tell her about Goat.
>>
No. 581458 ID: dc4b80

Might be left out is to much of a chance. We either need to figure out a way to get him to trigger the end of the stage normally or make him aware of Glitcher so he gets a fair chance.

We hopefully should have some time to figure that out so thank Rulekeeper for the update and ask him if he talked to everyone individually after the last stage like he did with you. We want to find out why he is manually doing things so ask him some questions about what he thinks of the contest so far and the contestants he has met.

After your talk with Rulekeeper have Glitcher look into other options for him finishing the stage. Maybe he can bind himself to one of you or disguise himself as a normal contestant for awhile.
>>
No. 581464 ID: 2f83a0

Ask Glitcher what's different about the threads in the walls.

I like the idea of reuniting Time and Goat for a short while if possible. Ask about that later.
>>
No. 581466 ID: f63577

>>581453
On one hand, him not knowing about glitcher is an asset: if we need to keep breaking the stages in the face of a rulekeepr who actually intervenes, a player he can't see is incredibly helpful. On the other hand, it means Glitcher might get himself stuck at some point.

Meanwhile, I find it interesting that Rulekeepr specifically looks at people rather than just at rules interactions. Almost seems more relatable that way.
>>
No. 581470 ID: 50338d

>Glitcher would need threads from Corruptor or Savior
Well, both are actually friendly with Glitcher, so that's not so much of a problem. Harder than that might be getting to them. (We'd need a new teleport, I think, to Corruptor's location. Savior we could summon, so long as we have access to King, Mint and/or Pepper). Although I could see either Savior / Corruptor declining, on the basis that they need to be at their full strength to fight the other.

>so they erased his old self and retooled him, binding him in with the system manufacturing systems
We had at least one shopkeep baron in our resurrection chain, though. Don't know if he's still alive (either in the stage with us, or one of the group we left with savior) or dead (killed in the CAI battle, or in the stage). I wonder what would happen if he were to communicate with Rulekeeper? (Either in person, or via ghost talk).

>I didn't pass through the gate normally.
Actually, if the stages can't see him, what's stopping him from just advancing on his own, no matter what the rules say?
>>
No. 581471 ID: dc4b80

Wait Glitcher saw memories from previous lives before he killed himself originally. Does he remember anything about Rulekeepers previous incarnations? Might not remember that far back but you never know. People tend to be similar between resets so might help to understand his personality.
>>
No. 581473 ID: 76b151

He only does that if he has an object that makes it through each iteration of the cycle. Key cards and notes qualify. People do not.
>>
No. 581477 ID: 50338d

>>581471
From Glitcher's explanation, Rulekeeper shouldn't have previous incarnations. He didn't exist until they took the Shopkeep Baron apart and rebuilt him as Rulekeeper. Well, unless this as happened more than once? But from the explanations earlier in the stage, it sounded like the system was trying drastically different than usual in order to cope with how badly we broke things this time around. I don't think anyone every pulled off that big an evacuation of a CAI-battle before, or there would have been a hell of a lot more conflicts / duplicates announced.

...actually, come to think of it, that might make Rulekeeper closer to Glitcher than anyone else. They'd both be people without backups, derived from others, who only exist in stages where they're created. Granted, Glitcher has two 'parents' and Rulekeeper only one.
>>
No. 581478 ID: bb78f2

>>581453
Hey Glitcher, from your perspective, have you been around longer in Area 3 than you have in all the loops combined? Will a majority of your memories now be from Area 3? Should we fail this loop, and in the future regain your memories for the loop that you spawn, what do you theorize your reaction will be?
>>
No. 581499 ID: 338a86

Before you let him know of Glitcher, and thus possibly the contraband he has, let Arbiter and Loviro, and Emerald I guess have a chat with Alison. Good for morale and her sanity seems to have not degraded like yours so she could give them some tips.

Ask Glitcher the extent of his powers now, what can he do?
>>
No. 581508 ID: 76b151

Honestly I don't think we should tell Rulekeeper about Glitcher, especially if it means he'd lose his radio. That thing is the only contact he has had with anyone at all and taking it away might be.... detrimental to him.

Plus its kinda made out of Glitcher Threads. It being destroyed might be a bad thing to his stability.
>>
No. 581531 ID: d470e9
File 140390158298.png - (18.70KB , 800x800 , S7A5-15.png )
581531

"That'll be all, then, Rulekeeper." Chief waits for him to leave, then turns to Glitcher. "What is different about the threads in the walls?"
>"They're a bit... stiff. Inanimate threads are usually soft and, well, like a thread. Ones from people are usually a little bit resistant, like a wire."
"I'd like to reduce chances of you getting ignored. Pass through the stage normally as you can. I'm going to show you to the stage soon."

Rule Change: Gates will close for one full day upon both successful and unsuccessful attempts to pass through.

"There's that. Before I attempt to make you known, I think that Arbiter and a few others would like to speak to Alison, just in case Rulekeeper tries to withdraw your item."
>"He's not going to. I'm not going to let him."
"And if he tries to kill you for disobeying rules?"
>"He can't kill me."
"He can leave you behind."
>"But I'll still have my radio. I'd rather die than lose it."
"... we'll have time to talk about it in the coming days. Right now, I have a question. There were two people in my previous area that were separated sooner than they should have been. Is it possible for you to link two ghosts together in the same call?"
>"It'll still be voice only. I'll need to borrow one of your threads to see who you're talking about."
"Is that safe?"
>"If it wasn't, then I could have killed Rulekeeper and the entire stage."
"Did you see his history?"
>"Yes, but there wasn't much. Just his creation, and an injection of the rules he was supposed to follow. That's it. He's never been made before, or at least, if he was, he's non-persistant through cycles, like... me."
"What's going to happen to you if you regain your memories now that you've been through Area 3?"
>"I... couldn't. I never regained all of my memories until I had the time to examine my own threads. Until then, I could only examine the history of notes and certain objects. I don't think I can pass this radio through. It wouldn't be my problem, though, just... future glitchers."
"You're more powerful now, I take it."
>".... yes."
"What can you do?"
>"... not everything. I can't advance stages, or resurrect, or... well, not that I'm aware of. Not in Area 3. I need a higher variety of threads. Radmin. I want his threads. And corruptors, and saviors. A belenos, too."

>What's stopping him from just advancing on his own, no matter what the rules say?
It sounds like nothing, however, if the Rulekeep tries to advance people to Safe Zone 8 manually, Glitcher may just take the gate into oblivion.

>I wonder what would happen if Shopkeep Baron were to communicate with Rulekeeper? (Either in person, or via ghost talk).
Most likely nothing, similar to the Smuggler and Shopkeep being two different entities once the Smuggler went rogue.

>"Chief, King's come through the gate!" Arbiter yells from outside of the house.
>>
No. 581533 ID: 2fd516

>>581531
Let's go say hi. Tell him Pepper was in your Area, so she couldn't make it. He can talk to her through the Radio if he wants.

I still think we could guilt Rulekeeper into letting Glitcher keep the radio... it's his fault he needed it at all.

Also let Glitcher look at your threads to orchestrate the reunion between Timekeeper and Goat.
>>
No. 581534 ID: bb78f2

Hmm, could he potentially blind rulekeeper to other people?
While he can't advance stages, that one function that automatically pushed him ahead in Area 3 might be able to push others ahead without destroying them. If he can find a way to trigger that again, that might be cool.

We might be able to find a hole and get a lot of people alive again if Rule keep ignores them. If he's doing most of this stuff manually, anyone flagged as ignore touching the final objective will probably be automatically pushed through to the stage end without taking out an exit value. He hasn't ever manage to fuck with the exits before, has he? That might be an interesting experiment.
>>
No. 581542 ID: d470e9
File 140390842515.png - (13.75KB , 800x800 , S7A5-16.png )
581542

Chief goes out to meet King after letting Glitcher snag a line, telling him to let Goat and Timekeeper speak for one hour. He confirms, first, that Glitcher could make the system blind to certain players, although currently not recommend it. The Rulekeep overlooked Glitcher's pass as a nonconsequential error, but he did notice it, and will take measures if it starts happening on the final gate.

"Hello, King."
>"Chief, correct?"
"Correct."
>"I don't suppose you've seen Pepper or Mint, have you?"
"Pepper was in my Area 3."
>"So, she's dead now, then. Er... there is a blue line coming out from you."
"Intentional. Glitcher is making things happen. Including a radio that allows for ghost talk. In one hour, we're going to have a longer chat with Alison, you, I and every major player in this area. After that, there will be personal time that you can use to speak with Pepper and, statistically likely, Mint."
>"Really, then? I would appreciate that. There's no reason to place me at the front of the line. I got off relatively easy, it sounds like, with only 60 years in Area 3."
>>
No. 581543 ID: d470e9
File 140390844171.png - (22.45KB , 800x800 , S7A5-17.png )
581543

Chief confirms that everyone who needs to know knows about the Alison talk in one hour. There will be another talk in the next area, to cover any major individuals who were in the other half of the area bracket.

Only 2 people show up, and they're generic belenosians. Including Glitcher there are currently 8 individuals in Chief's island, and after 1 hour from the beginning of the stage, it's expected that it's unlikely there are any active gates left until tomorrow.

Chief goes back in with Glitcher, making sure his thread hasn't snagged on anything. His own thread is wrapped around the microphone. Timekeeper and Goat are having a heart to heart.

"I don't want to disturb you two, but we've got to use the radio in 15 minutes. Keep that in mind."
>"O-oh, of course, Chief! Thank you so much!" Timekeeper says.
>"Yeah, you're the best." says Goat.
>>
No. 581545 ID: d470e9
File 140390865219.png - (26.86KB , 800x800 , S7A5-18.png )
581545

Everyone moves in to talk to Alison. Radmin, Iso, Duelist, Recluse and a few others also join in. Most of the first hour is simply catching up while everyone's around. As that dies down, a plan for the stage starts being formed, with an order of people to go through the second gate.

1. Arbiter
2. Glitcher
3. Chief
4. King
5. Loviro
6. Emerald Emperor

Glitcher is on the list to pass through normally, depending on how the Rulekeeper reacts to Glitcher's presence when told. That is still on the to do list, but critical use of the radio should occur prior to leaving any chance of radio confiscation.

Emerald plans on staying behind to better coordinate incoming jetals from their half of the bracket. He has no doubt that he will have any issue getting through this gate, however, it will be difficult to say when there will be enough jetals here to do so. There should be at least one emperor, however, at the choke point before the end of the stage.
>>
No. 581547 ID: 88960e

Sounds likev a good plan.

And good on you for letting Goat and Timekeeper reconnect. And King and Pepper.

...wait, why are Radmin's threads importan? He was on the short list of people we were going to revive, but what's special about him from Glitcher's perspective.
>>
No. 581548 ID: dc4b80

Ask Glitcher if he can modify threads in "you know who". Like change one of the rules he is supposed to follow slightly.

Then lets chat with Alison and tell her everything that has been going on. She might have some insights for us. Heck maybe we can have her talk with Rulekeeper for us if we want to get him on our side.

Oh here is a idea. We could ask Rulekeeper to leave 10 winners pendents on the last stage. If you pick one up you are automatically moved to the next safe zone. If he asks why tell him that what sort of contest does not have trophies for the winners. Might be a way of getting Glitcher out unseen. But could backfire and make Rulekeeper angry with us. Do not want that.
>>
No. 581549 ID: 2fd516

So long as we have 15 people at the last gate we should be okay. It is worth noting though that the more people we have there the better we can spam Activate to keep the jewels in our hands.

This Area seems pretty damn easy for those that have a large alliance running, which is definitely us.

Does anyone else have someone they want to talk to? Loviro and Emerald can probably manage to contact people that were in the belenosian sim.
>>
No. 581558 ID: dc4b80

Is the radio invisible to Rulekeeper like Glitcher is? I would rather have him holding it then it be sitting out alone. If Rulekeeper sees us all talking to a object he might come by and pick it up and ask whats going on.

If we loose that Glitcher might fall apart so make sure he protects it.
>>
No. 581566 ID: d0e0a2

Since Glitcher made the radio out of his own threads could he bypass the whole risk of it possibly being confiscated by unraveling it and reintegrating the threads back into himself? Then when he gets to the other side he could pull the threads back out of himself and weave the radio back together.
>>
No. 581568 ID: 76b151

I get the feeling the Radio is no longer Glitcher Threads but Radio Threads. They aren't 'alive' any more but static, built to emulate ghost talk but nothing else.
>>
No. 581611 ID: 50338d

Chief, what's letting Glitcher pluck a thread from you feel like, anyways?

>>581566
>>581568
There's also the fact that in his current mental state, Glitcher seems very attached to that radio. I don't think we could talk him into unraveling it, even temporarily.
>>
No. 581614 ID: d8a627

>with only 60 years in Area 3.
Wow, that is lucky.
>why are Radmin's threads importan?
Agreed, ask Glitcher about this before you introduce him to the Rulekeep.
>We could ask Rulekeeper to leave 10 winners pendents on the last stage.
These ten pendants should have the same rule as the gate, however. In order to stash one in the inventory, you have to pass the 30-second trial period. It could replace the gate, in such a way that the rules still work right, and give the winners a trophy. Of course, I'm still of the belief that we should allow Rulekeep to see Glitcher.
>maybe we can have [Alison] talk with Rulekeeper
Agreed. At the moment, it isn't against the rules, but if Rulekeep starts to say he'll make a rule against it, ask him to talk with Alison, first.
>>
No. 581616 ID: d470e9
File 140393091234.png - (17.58KB , 800x800 , S7A5-19.png )
581616

"Is this radio invisible to you know who, glitcher?"
>"It's part of me, so yes."
"Good. Can you also change his threads to change the rules?"
>"Well, yes, but not without the system knowing, and then they might just kill the rulekeeper."
"Can you not just put it back in yourself, then make a new one?"
>"It took... years. Maybe if I had better threads, but... no. Not now."
"Fine. Speaking of the system, then, what is special about Radmin?"
>"Maybe nothing anymore, but he did used to be an administrator. Their threads are also different."

>"Oh, Loviro, I had a question for you."
>"Yes, Alison?"
>"I thought you were going to Savior's paradise?"
>"Yes, but something is off about the Savior. I would rather not duck and cover. To be frank, I am becoming increasingly doubtful that any of my knowledge is practical in the real world. I have a good feeling that all of my extensive knowledge of jetals, artificial intelligence and technology in general is, well, fake."
>"We're going to need everything we have, Loviro, so please don't sell yourself short. I won't tell you to go to Savior's paradise, but please be careful."
>>
No. 581617 ID: d470e9
File 140393092230.png - (11.71KB , 800x800 , S7A5-20.png )
581617

The talks cease, and Chief decides it's time to bring the rulekeeper back.

>Chief, what's letting Glitcher pluck a thread from you feel like, anyways?
If Chief wasn't told about it or wasn't looking, he doesn't think he could tell.

>"You're certainly one that likes bringing me over. To be fair, at least it's not to complain all the time."
"No, and this time, you'll be learning something."
>"Yes?"
"First, I do have another question. I'd like there to be 10 trophies for winning the stage."
>"What? Why?"
"Competitions should have a reward."
>"Just... grab something off the shelves in Safe Zone 8. That'll work, because you obviously have to win everything beforehand to get that."
"Have you heard of the glitcher?"
>"The name is familiar to me, yes. Like the corruptor, not something for me to worry about."
"He's standing right beside me."
>".... perhaps I should invoke a personality reset sooner."
"Look at your hand."
>>
No. 581619 ID: d470e9
File 140393101241.png - (29.71KB , 800x800 , S7A5-21.png )
581619

>"Gah!?"

>"Tell him I said he's currently thinking of how to reassemble himself one thread at a time." says Glitcher.
"Glitcher says you're thinking of how to reassemble yourself, one thread at a time."
>"Uh..."
>"And..." Glitcher continues for Chief to recite.
"He also knows you're thinking of going to Administrator 7, but just remembered she's in the other half of this very bracket as a contestant."
>"You... oh. Oh. Oh no. No no no no! How do I get rid of him?! He's not supposed to be here! Tell him to get out of the stages! Anywhere but here, this is the worst place he could be!"
>>
No. 581621 ID: d8a627

>>581619
>this is the worst place he could be!
The worst place he could be? This sounds like not only is he a thread to Rulekeep, but, in showing himself like this, to himself as well.

Tell Rulekeep that Glitcher has lost the power to just leave a stage, and wants to progress through it normally. If an invisible win is claimed, it is Glitcher, and if it is not, you will summon him to let him know of that.
Or, it might even be possible to "fix" Rulekeep's sight to be able to see Glitcher, so he can make sure he doesn't break the rules.
>>
No. 581622 ID: 50338d

>doubtful of my knowledge
Fake understanding of computer programing and artificial intelligences and computer simulations is better than none. Even if say, the jetalium physics is non-practical, the belnos simulation still likely used real information where it could.

And even failing that, he's still a trained scientist. That mindset is useful.

>Anywhere but here, this is the worst place he could be!
Why is this the worst place he could be?

Where else would he go? One of the last acts of the stage seven administrators were to purge the various extra-stage locations, and as I understand it, the safe zones do not exist while stages are in progress.

(Savior managed to preserve his sanctuary, but let's not mention that. He said he couldn't let Glitcher in anyways, for stability reasons).
>>
No. 581625 ID: 2fd516

>>581619
Uh, ask why. This actually sounds important, though it could just be Rulekeeper panicking about Glitcher breaking his stage. Glitcher might want to follow that advice if it's not just that. I mean, we didn't want to use Glitcher to break the stages and Rulekeeper wouldn't like that either.

Also tell him that he left Glitcher alone for ten thousand goddamn years because of his negligence so he owes him a lot.
>>
No. 581626 ID: 50338d

>Tell him
He can hear you. Your perception problem is one-way, not mutual.

Oh, and now that he's made his point, it might be polite if Glitcher put Rulekeeper back together again instead of leaving him to figure out how to do it.
>>
No. 581627 ID: dc4b80

He was stuck in the stage you thought was empty for 10,000 years alone. We wanted to tell you about him now so we could make sure he gets through this stage without breaking anything.

While his powers are great in many ways he is just a normal contestant like everyone else here.

We came to you because we did not want to hide him from you. Like it or not he is just as much a part of the game as any of us.
>>
No. 581628 ID: 04b86a

Tell Glitcher to put him back together.

"Ignoring the fact that the administrators destroyed everywhere he could go to, that last sentence warrants an explanation. Why is him being here a bad thing?"
>>
No. 581629 ID: 2fd516

Well there is one other place he could go. The admin bases still exist, and Corruptor is in one of them.
>>
No. 581631 ID: 50338d

>>581629
Just because Corruptor's forces attacked the admin-areas, doesn't mean he stayed there. Especially since the last time we tested leaving someone there to bypass a stage, they were automatically killed (rip Mouse). Also, if he doesn't run the stage, Sevener's new token-safeguard system would kill him. (Which means, technically, we are getting trophies for advancing).

Which means Corruptor's likely running the stage. His abilities would make getting though these areas laughably easy, anyways. Pretty much every challenge this time around has been interpersonal, and he can just convert people into Corrupteds, and get them to do exactly what he wants. Or he can just rule-change every room to freeroam and murder his way though.
>>
No. 581632 ID: dc4b80

You know if we can get him calmed down and talking with us and Alison it would be a great time to tell him all about Corruptor and Glitcher and the side of the story he has not heard. If we can get him to realize how broken things truly are he might be a powerful ally. Sure he will have to play by the rules most the time to avoid admin wrath. But little things here and there would help.
>>
No. 581639 ID: bb78f2

>>581619
Why would he do that? He has no incentive to leave, and the admin forces have been nothing but antagonistic to his ideal existence. He spent 10,000 years in the last stage, you know, because you could sense him.
Besides, even if he wanted to, he couldn't. He doesn't have that ability.
>>
No. 581640 ID: bb78f2

>>581639
couldn't sense him
>>
No. 581686 ID: d8a627

>>581640
Or maybe he could, through the recognition of glitches happening, but passed it off as the session being broken anyways. The game is able to recognize when something happens that shouldn't, the only difference is that Rulekeep looks to see who causes the trigger rather than reacting at the trigger to whoever's close enough.
>>
No. 581691 ID: d470e9
File 140397944110.png - (10.84KB , 800x800 , S7A5-22.png )
581691

Glitcher lets go of the threads, and lets them return to Rulekeeper.

"Where could he go?"
>"Anywhere but here!"
"I'd say he earns a break. You couldn't see him, and left him in area 3 alone for ten thousand years."
>"That was him? Well, I'm sorry, but he's an unstable mess - "
"You can talk to him. He can hear you."
>"... you're an unstable mess, glitcher! Go.... I don't know, I'll convince the administrator to make a special area for you during the stages if that's what it takes. You can hide there during the stages."
"What's wrong with him being here? We're willing to have Glitcher do the stages normally."
>"He thinks I'm a bridge to the system again." says Glitcher. "And can make another road to attack."
"Are you afraid of another attack on a system bracket? Our numbers aren't in the thousands anymore. We can't do that as effectively as before."
>"He just disassembled me like it was nothing! He's a threat. That, or try to cross stage brackets, or whatever!"
"Rulekeep, were you paying attention to us on this island when we were speaking in a circle to others who weren't on the island?"
>"... that wasn't a shared hallucination, was it."
"No. I take it you didn't hear Alison or the other ghosts speak."
>"No. Okay. Look. Look. I'll try to figure out what to do with glitcher later. Just, right now... just go through the gate normally, Glitcher. Those should still work for you. I'm going to pay attention to the gates triggers instead of the people from this island forward, so don't think you won't count towards the 10 exits."
>>
No. 581703 ID: 76b151

That is why we revealed him to you. We didn't want him to spend another 10 000 years alone.
>>
No. 581712 ID: dc4b80

We are going to try our best not to scare the admins like that again Rulekeeper. When we invaded the Admin brackets we did not realize how things really worked.

Ask him if he wants to learn the true story behind whats going on here. It will make his job a lot easier and will help him deal the stuff that's going to happen as we go forward. Once Corruptor shows up again things are going to get even messier and we can help prepare him.

The goal being to get him in a conversation with Alison and everyone so we can show him what we have learned.
>>
No. 581715 ID: 2fd516

Actually if we could get to a system base, we wouldn't need mass numbers. There's no way to attack in system areas anymore, and it's one big open area. So if we wanted to go and look at logs we could do that. I don't think we can, though- aren't we out of admin cards? In that case there isn't even any reason to invade a system base.

Crossing brackets is a thing we could do but I'm... oh. We could do that to invade other brackets with our surplus belenosian allies and ensure the other Corruptor armies don't get through this stage! Then we wouldn't have to worry about Swordsbane or the others.
>>
No. 581723 ID: 50338d

>He thinks I'm a bridge to the system again
Honestly, I don't see much point in attacking the system again. Gaining control of the system areas won't allow us to fix things. Even when we had admins on our side.

Conceivably, there might be a reason for someone to try and access their logs, but I think all the spare keycards have already been used.

>crossing brackets
This means a lot less the fewer brackets there are. And there are others who can accomplish the same thing. Savior, Corruptor, and Corruptor's Outsiders. That isn't something Rulekeeper can prevent, even if Glitcher agrees to stay out of the way.

>Glitcher should leave
One good argument against that- if Glitcher cheats his way out of stage early, he might dodge the personality reset. I think even Rulekeeper can agree that a saner Glitcher is better for everyone.

No offense, Glitcher.
>>
No. 581726 ID: 2fd516

I'm not sure the personality reset would make him saner, though. He seems to be very rational and calm right now, but his base personality is prone to depression. It could actually turn out WORSE for him.

Oh. Ask Rulekeeper if the reset is optional. I'm sure there are some people who would rather not go back to who they were before area 3.
>>
No. 581740 ID: bb78f2

>>581691
Hey Rulekeeper, if you can make or break rules, you're pretty powerful yourself.
Why not take advantage of that power? Instead of this stupid bullshit, why don't you start changing a lot of shit.
I mean, couldn't he theoretically even change the rules in the admin place? How fights work? Enable and disable fights?
Why not become a tyrant and try and rule the adminsitration itself? If he could find the rule perimeters that determine the death of admin forces, he could turn the entire system on its head and then we can all band together to figure out how to prevent the loop without the game nonsense getting in the way.

It's what the administration and contestants should have been focusing on since they figured out there's loops and that the contest is ultimately pointless. Rulekeeper, you haven't been created in the other loops before. We have a chance to really experiment with you. You can go and fuck the system up pretty hard yourself. Because face it RK, they're just going to kill you as soon as you become obselete, and he will become obsolete. So why doesn't he prevent that by fucking with the contest parameters in the system settings and making it so no one dies anymore?
>>
No. 581742 ID: dc4b80

>>581740

Pretty sure if he gets out of line the admins will notice and kill/reset him. We want him as a friend who will watch out for us. The longer we stay off the admins radar the better.
>>
No. 581853 ID: d470e9
File 140402490681.png - (15.84KB , 800x800 , S7A5-23.png )
581853

>Why doesn't the Rulekeeper take over the system?
From what Glitcher has said, the system rules over the rulekeep, not the other way around. The stage rules don't necessarily hold sway in the system bracket zones.

"Is the reset optional, Rulekeeper?"
>"No it... I don't want to reset glitcher. Sorry. But for the rest of you, you have to have it. It's a point of fairness, because the people you resurrect aren't going to have gone through all that area 3 business.
"In any case, glitcher is not the only one to cross brackets."
>"No, but I want to keep it at a minimum. Preferably zero!"
>"Rulekeeper...." Glitcher starts speaking. "Savior only entered Area 3 a few times to convince people to come back with him. Corruptor hasn't been seen at all, and the only devotees that are in the stages were ones that were already made."
"Do you want to hear our story? Knowing the history may help you understand why things are as they are."
>"... I'll wait till things calm down in this stage, then while you wait for gates to regenerate, I'll have you bring me up to date. Yeah. That won't hurt, at least." Rulekeeper says.

>Out of admin cards?
Although Chief thinks they may have had one for stage 8 or 9, or both, the admin purge removed them.

>Move surplus belenosians across brackets
Rulekeeper might not be able to kill glitcher for breaking the rules, but he can certainly kill the accomplices in breaking the rules.

"What will you do, Rulekeep, when the system considers you obsolete?"
>"I think I can prove my usefulness for a whole four stages. I'm going to retract back into a non-intelligent set of algorithms to stages at the end of the cycle no matter what. Even if it happens a little sooner, I doubt I'll be missing much. It's a short existence, but it's more than I asked for."

Chief things the conversation is wrapping up, and may feel just as inclined to start passing the days as trying to find anything useful to do.
>>
No. 581854 ID: 76b151

Timeskip time? Yea, might as well.
>>
No. 581855 ID: dc4b80

Search the stage for books and other info. We have found secrets in other stages and even if its a bunch of random info something might be useful later on.

Other things we can work on are getting King on our team. He was sort of a ally before and with the numbers falling he might want to make it official. That and the time you spent with Pepper should get a good word in for us.

We can also fill Alison in on what events and find out more about interesting things that happened for other survivors of the last stage. I am interested in how King's stage only lasted 60 years. That must have been interesting.

Make sure to stay on the watch for shapechanging Bones agents. Do not want to let someone into our inner circle who can back stab us later.

I know that Rulekeeper is like Glitcher and Corruptor and normally would not survive if we fix things but make sure to let him know that we still plan on saving him if at all possible. We do not know how this mess will end so it pays to have hope.
>>
No. 581869 ID: 2fd516

>>581853
Wasn't there a particular safe zone that had another easter egg?

After we get to know Rulekeeper a bit better and he warms up to us... we might want to bring up Stage 9. He might know already that it's gonna be a meatgrinder... Is he okay with that? Is he willing to be a personification of that kind of stage? Or will he be changing things a bit? Oh. Will resurrected contestants that went through area 3 also be getting a personality reset?
>>
No. 581912 ID: 50338d

>because the people you resurrect aren't going to have gone through all that area 3 business
Unless we resurrect people who died in stage 3? I guess we have to assume ghosts are getting a partial reset too for that to make any sense.

>I don't want to reset glitcher. Sorry.
I'm honestly confused why Rulekeeper doesn't want him as sane as possible. Isn't he less dangerous when he's predictable?
>>
No. 581931 ID: d470e9
File 140406355760.png - (15.08KB , 800x800 , S7A5-24.png )
581931

"Just remember that in the end, Alison will be trying to save you, as well. Are you going to be okay with stage 9? We have it on good authority that it's a meatgrinder."
>"I will be."
"I'm not sure why you won't reset glitcher."
>"I don't know if I can. If I can't, and I try, the effects could be bad. Just... he seems reasonable right now."

>Other things we can work on are getting King on our team.
If King isn't an ally already, Chief has been mistaken about what an ally is all along.

>How King's stage only lasted 60 years
King says there were no skellingtons in his stage, and just about all of the belenosians were willing to let themselves die off after a decent length of time.
>"Also, please stop calling them skellingtons." he finally adds.

>Look for secrets
Between occasional talks with Alison and others, Chief's group pilfers through the bookshelves for anything but generic novels and textbooks.

Glitcher, at some point, walks up to it, and grabs a specific book out of the back of a shelf.
>>
No. 581932 ID: d470e9
File 140406359414.png - (107.32KB , 800x800 , S7A5-25.png )
581932

It looks like a normal book, but he flips to a specific page that is a different color than the others.

I found it favorable that not just did I find a rare agricultural hive, I also located a painter that both had more talents than a generic cave scratcher, and was willing to paint a portrait for me. I traded two of my pictures and some food for his skills for the day. Soon I will leave to go back home. It's always a dangerous trip. The other hives, the way the jungle intermingles with the redgrass, and of course, the cave. I hope the painting survives the trip almost as much as I survive it. I almost wish to take a picture of the painting just in case, but I feel it's just wild imaginationions to think I could ever have a camera that could capture these colors. They're a little off due to the painter's limited supply, but they're far greater than my single tone capabilities.

Originally I wished to have some of my better tools outside of my toolbox, but the painter said he would rather not paint 'instruments used in unearthly black magic.' It was the only possible way, in his mind, that I could have possibly travelled so far by myself.

It was too much for him to understand that I was intelligent. I am also intelligent enough, however, to not actively think myself smarter than them while in empathy range. Those conceited, if justified, thoughts are deadly around here, far moreso than travelling alone would ever be.

-Likol

>>
No. 581933 ID: d470e9
File 140406360593.png - (185.60KB , 800x800 , S7A5-26.png )
581933

There is also a second page.

I still have yet to capture our entire hive in one photo. Our cave system is tight and cramped, and there are a solid 80 of us. We used to have more, and used to be on the surface. We can't even upkeep our train system, and its state is near worthless. Migratory hives became too much for us to handle. Our queen normally would not consider getting help from outside species, but she says that if a single salikai can survive the brutal jungles above for years without rest from being hunted, then it must be exceptionally clever. We've heard from our ancestors about the salikai's own brutality. We can't know if an alliance is a good idea or not, they're without empathy or compassion. Allying with it will either be a new golden age for us, or bring us to ruin. I doubt there will be much middle ground with salikai in mind.

Quokko, and our hive, though... we're ambitious. We want to go far. Our question will be less of will there be a golden age, or will there be a chance of a golden age.

Pictured left to right: Rihhin, my closest hivemate. Quokko, our queen. Ludar, who olds a young Seca.


"Are the threads on these different, too, Glitcher?"
>"Yes, that's how I knew where to look."
>>
No. 581934 ID: d470e9
File 140406361850.png - (61.36KB , 800x800 , S7A5-27.png )
581934

Glitcher starts studying the threads and learning how he might find more. They have no history, he says, not that he can read. Nearly everything anyone knows in the simulation is an interconnected system, Glitcher says, but these bits about the outside world seem disconnected and an anomaly.

The days start passing. Despite the supposed formidable willpower of bones' units, the areas simply favored large alliances over small ones far too much. Chief thinks that he's done pretty well for himself, all things considered.

Glitcher goes on ahead without a hitch, and eventually, so does Chief. The other half of the bracket managed to get a couple of people there, as well. Someone who introduces himself as Felix is there, as is Smuggler and, to Chief's own surprise, Mongrel of all people. Becoming rogue did not change his personality much, he seems despondent and tired of everything. Felix claims that he owes his life to Alison, and wasn't going to throw that away so easily. Smuggler says he probably would not have made it, but while smuggling in the safe zone, he seemed to have made many friends and earned a lot of support to help him through area 3. Mongrel, on the other hand, has little to say.

Although Felix and Smuggler will also most likely be on the top 10 list to get through, Chief will still be one of the first few. Arbiter says he is about ready to go ahead, since it doesn't seem like there is much point in waiting, and they have the 5 people required, including Glitcher, to activate the final gate.
>>
No. 581936 ID: dc4b80

Some interesting back story about the science hive there. Might not be important right now but anything about the outside world helps.

Well lets start sending people forward then. Even though this part has slowed down a bunch the faster we get to the end the less chance Bones or someone can sneak in a unit to gum up the works.

The biggest problem we face could be deciding who to let through at the final gate. Assuming Bones does not manage to sneak in we still have Sevener and who knows else on the other half of the bracket.

Make sure that you get Rulekeeper in a conference with Alison when things are slow. This might be our best chance to befriend him and we do not want to let it go to waste. Other than that just keep watching for shape shifters and hope things keep going smoothly.
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No. 581943 ID: d470e9
File 140406730654.png - (65.01KB , 800x800 , S7A5-28.png )
581943

Not much changes, so Arbiter goes on ahead. Rulekeeper engages with Alison and everyone to recall everything that happens. Trying to befriend the Rulekeeper may take awhile. Even though he is looking at the people as often as the triggers from the stage, he still keeps people at arms length.

During the next day, right as Chief recalls Sevener, she shows up right on cue. No less than an hour later, so does succubus.

The final expected count goes as follows, provided no other noteable contestants show up.

From first to last, Arbiter, Glitcher, Chief, King, Smuggler, Sevener, Loviro, Emerald, Succubus, and Felix. It's a surprisingly perfect number so far, and Chief couldn't ask for a better position at the end of this stage. It will be a shame, he thinks to lose all of the random belenos. For complete strangers, their loyalty to a fake emperor once again makes Chief jealous.

>"Sevener." Glitcher says.
>"What."
>"I... really want to take a thread off of you to look at."
>"Ask me to dinner first."
>"Wh- no. No, I mean, like... no."
>"No, you just want to go right to stripping me?"
>"N-noooo! I mean I... Chief, please help..."
"He wants a component of your physical form to study, because he thinks administrators are physically different."
>"Holy shit, is that all? Glitcher, learn to speak, goddamn."
>>
No. 581946 ID: bb78f2

Tell Glitcher that maybe it would be a good idea to go out on a date and dinner with Sevener later. The fuck not, eh?
>>
No. 581947 ID: d8a627

>>581943
pfheehee, I'm sorry, but Chief, the stoic asexual oriented (as in, no interest in it), hugging Succubus is jut funny. And cute, I guess.
Glitcher's emotions are causing his "empty" threads to hop all over his body. That's perfectly safe, right?
>>
No. 581955 ID: 50338d

Hang with Succubus, catch up, while Glitcher checks out Sevener's 'thread' for anything new.

If we're down to our final ten then, do we start planning who the 30 people we revive are? And who's responsible for reviving who, if we're not allowed to consult when it happens?

Alison, obviously. Radmin probably, because Alison promised. Bones likely, if we want to try one last attempt to make nice with Corruptor. King will probably want Mint and Pepper. Felix may use one of his slots on Vinyl. And then the rest of the main gang that killed I suppose- Duelist, Recluse, Scanner, Iso, Clarence, Healer, Guardsman, Atlas, Strongarm, Bandit, Gambler, Twirl, Sword, Shield, Charles, Spear, Chief, Math, Engineer, Friendgy. Uh... Polatt? Not if Emerald has anyone he'd want to res.

That's... 27. So we'd still need to pick 3 people.

Scholar should be safe with Savior, at least. Not sure if anyone else is over there.
>>
No. 581960 ID: dc4b80

Well lets keep our fingers crossed and hope no unexpected bumps show up. As for the Random Belenosians we knew most of them would not make it through. Depending on how the next few stages go there might not be many left of the core group at the end.

Maybe if we stabilize things you will have a horde of loyal subjects one day Chief. If we do manage to save everyone or even a portion it will be a immense amount of people in here to watch over. Besides its better to have subjects that you earned than ones you got given to you. Every person that you got to follow you did so out of choice not blind loyalty to a institution.

Still paranoid that at the end someone is going to rip off a mask and say "Ha ha its was me Bones all along".
>>
No. 581962 ID: dc4b80

>>581960

We could try rezzing Shopkeep baron to see if we got our own Rulekeeper. Could give him a existential crisis like the one Shopkeeper had. Might be a horrible idea though.
>>
No. 581963 ID: 50338d

Oh, yes, and be sure to compare notes and see how other people's terrible long term psychological experiments went. I'm interested in what other strategies might have worked in that last area.
>>
No. 581965 ID: 76b151

Hmm didn't Alison promise someone else to resurrect them and their friend a while back? Was it Catatonic?

>>581955
Chief is on that list to resurrect for some reason.
>>
No. 581966 ID: 2fd516

>>581943
That sounds sortof like permission but we should probably perform a demonstration. Have Glitcher take a thread out of you to show Sevener what that means. Also ask Sevener how she did in Area 3.

>>581955
Engineer, Mathematician, Friendgy are all in the Savior's Sanctuary- we sent our brainy buddies there since they're more useful for R&D than dealing with stages. They aren't dead. Emerald and Loviro might have people they want resurrected.
>>
No. 581976 ID: 2fd516

>>581965
Yes, that's right. Catatonic's friends died before they were absorbed so we promised we'd resurrect them. There's also Iso's musician friend.

It occurs to me that since we no longer have absorb, Catatonic's friends will be lost again if they die. Can we ask Rulekeeper for a ruling on that? How about, whoever resurrects someone also gains their ghost? Then they'd be in the dream.
>>
No. 582008 ID: d470e9
File 140407914310.png - (31.79KB , 800x800 , S7A5-29.png )
582008

Chief summons Rulekeep.

"Please tell us how finishing the stage will be handled. Will we be able to talk amongst ourselves as to who to resurrect?"
>"Yep. You remember those transition rooms between some stages? There will be one of those. You'll all have one hour to deliberate and check out who you want to resurrect."
"Will we get their ghosts?"
>"Hm? That's not going to be a thing anymore. If there are any more resurrections, anyone will have access to anyone they know of."

>See how other people's terrible long term psychological experiments went
Chief catches up with everyone. Area 3 only varied superficially for most individuals, and many parallels were drawn between everyone.

Glitcher studies some of Sevener's threads.

>Glitcher's emotions are causing his "empty" threads to hop all over his body. That's perfectly safe, right?
And perfectly normal.

>"IIiii don't think I'll have anything concrete soon, I have to experiment more. Maybe I can make more resurrect tokens out of this? Well, Rulekeeper will probably kill anyone resurrected illegally."
"Yeah, you may as well spend the time asking sevener out on a proper date."
>"Wh- Chief - she's right here!"
"Yes, I know. I'm joking, Glitcher."
>>
No. 582009 ID: d470e9
File 140407924540.png - (38.50KB , 800x800 , S7A5-30.png )
582009

Some more days pass.

Everything goes absolutely perfectly. Everyone on the list gets through the gate to the end. That leaves 10 people alive at the end, just as the stage intended for.

There are 30 resurrection slots. Mandatory resurrects are Alison and, as promised, Radmin. A third resurrection will go to Bones, if they want to honor Corruptor's wish despite his most recent actions.

>Engineer, Mathematician
They went in with Alison to the CAI fight, and are currently deceased. Friendgy, however, is believed to be alive in Savior's location.

Emerald does not have anyone in particular he would like to resurrect. Succubus has lost a couple of friends, but she would rather see the hard earned resurrections go to more practical choices. Felix, too, relents the option, saying reunions would be far too short lived to be worth it. Loviro would have had one choice, but the resurrection does not extend to belenosian individuals that were not pulled out by Alison.

Sevener says she would like to see Sixer resurrected. Alison's own recommendations, since Glitcher's radio works, are Recluse, Duelist, Scanner, Iso, Engineer, Mathematiction, Strongarm, Bandit, and come to think, she's having difficulties choosing without just starting to rattle off every teammate she's had. She does remember her promise to Catatonic to resurrect his friend, to which he or she can rejoin catatonic in savior's paradise, and the same for Iso's old music friend, should there be more than enough slots for resurrection.
>>
No. 582012 ID: dc4b80

The next stages are going to be nastier from what we have heard. So should only bring in the most capable and experienced who know the risks. While it would be nice to bring back friends now that we have Glitchers radio we can talk to people when we need to.

As for Bones lets bring him back because we promised Corruptor. Even if he was a bit crazy back then he is vital to our plans. Bones might be important somehow and while is unlikeable he is a strong contestant. Who knows Alison might be able to win him over given enough time. And if not we just be careful and watch for any backstabbing.

So get as much of the core team as wants to go and then the rest to people we promised to help.
>>
No. 582016 ID: 3dd384

>>581932
Did anyone think to bring this book with them? If not, then keep an extra special look out for one in future stages.
>>
No. 582021 ID: bb78f2

Actually, I think if we illegally rerez people in Saviors domain and leave them there the system won't mind. After all, those people are out of the game anyway and can't return, right?

Really, all people who die in the game should just automatically be place in Saviors paradise at this point, because losing shouldn't be a punishment because no contestant deserves to be punished with nonexistence, just essentially be disqualified from the end game. It's something that should be suggested to admin people, at least. Same thing with admin people who lose their admin deal. Sent straight to Savior's. Otherwise, people are just going to try and break more and more shit so they or people they care about don't end up fucking dead.
>>
No. 582031 ID: 50338d

Okay. So trying to get a list here:

Stage 7 Survivors:

Arbiter, Glitcher, Chief, King, Smuggler, Sevener, Loviro, Emerald, Succubus, and Felix

People to resurrect:

Alison, Radmin, Bones, Duelist, Recluse, Scanner, Iso, Clarence, Healer, Guardsman, Atlas, Strongarm, Bandit, Gambler, Twirl, Sword, Shield, Charles, Spear, Math, Engineer, Polatt, Sixer, Catatonic's friend, Iso's old music friend, Mint, Pepper

...and that's still only 27/30. Am I forgetting anyone, or did I list anyone still alive by accident again?

People known to be safe with Savior:

The Chompers, Scholar, Friendgy, Catatonic
>>
No. 582034 ID: 76b151

Catatonic had two friends. They killed each other in a dual for the second to last spot in advancement.

No one knew then you could overload endpoints.
>>
No. 582036 ID: 2fd516

>>582009
Stage 8 clear... That means the next stage is the meatgrinder.

>>582031
You forgot Catatonic's second friend and Historian. One slot left.
>>
No. 582038 ID: d470e9

>>582036
That was supposed to be stage 7. The image has been changed. Next stage is 8.
>>
No. 582053 ID: d470e9
File 140409242172.png - (42.40KB , 800x800 , S7A5-31.png )
582053

>Actually, I think if we illegally rerez people in Saviors domain and leave them there the system won't mind.
That's a possibility Glitcher may attempt.

>Was the book kept?
Glitcher assures Chief that he absorbed the book, manually. Chief will just take his word for it.

The final list of resurrections are established in alphabetical order.

- Alison
- Atlas
- Bandit
- Bones
- Catatonic's friend
- Catatonic's other friend
- Charles
- Clarence
- Duelist
- Engineer
- Gambler
- Guardsman
- Healer
- Historian
- Iso
- Iso's friend
- Math
- Mint
- Mouse
- Pepper
- Polatt
- Radmin
- Recluse
- Scanner
- Shield
- Sixer
- Spear
- Strongarm
- Sword
- Twirl

The rulekeeper also makes a showing.

>"Okay, congratulations and all that. All the resurrects will show up in safe zone 8. Now, I thought about it over the last couple days, and changed my mind about the mandatory personality reset. You see, you regain all your memories at it, but the memories will feel like you never experienced them. Sorta like if it were a past life. I said it should be on fair ground, but you know, it wasn't too fair you guys had to go through area 3 and whatever buddies riding on your resurrect didn't. Soooo, if you think you wanna stay loopy, go ahead. Glitcher's still gotta keep those ten thousand under his belt, though. And also, you gotta choose now, no deciding later."

Chief isn't sure if he's as mentally sharp as he used to be, but on the other hand, after all of that, it seems wrong to just throw away everything that happened like it never did. More importantly, the experiences of old-Chief may work out better than the unexperienced, but ambitious, young-Chief.
>>
No. 582054 ID: 2fd516

>>582053
What about those who were resurrected but went through Area 3? They're not here to get a reset. Does that mean they don't even have the opportunity?

Chief, it depends on how lucid you were during your downtime in this Area. It's been a few days, so you should have noticed if you were still hallucinating or having difficulties in general. Also, King was only in Area 3 for 60 years- get his opinion on how loopy everyone is. He can give a more objective verdict and recommend for certain people to get a reset if they are indeed loopy.
>>
No. 582055 ID: d8a627

Jiro, Pepper, Timekeeper and Goat... You may not have made a connection with the majority of the other members, but you shouldn't give it all up. Every step you take is a lesson learned yadda yadda all that jazz.
>>
No. 582059 ID: 50338d

Question: how does the potential reset affect those who died in stage 3 that we're reviving? Do they get a choice, or are they hardwired into keeping or resetting?

How does the reset affect the dead Glitcher interacted with? Alison and some of the others affected by the ghost-phone have several additional years of experience under their belt.

>get his opinion on how loopy everyone is
That's not a bad idea. You're not all actually objective at this point. You should compare notes with one another, see how you come across to one another.
>>
No. 582061 ID: f996af

I'd lean towards not getting a reset if you can.
>>
No. 582064 ID: d470e9
File 140409635610.png - (20.48KB , 800x800 , S7A5-32.png )
582064

"What about those who were resurrected but went through Area 3?"
>"They'll get the opportunity. I meant you guys have to choose now. They'll have to choose when they're resurrected."
"What about the time glitcher spent talking on his radio?"
>"Yeahhhh, about that... nothing. I'm just going to pretend that never happened."

Chief hasn't seen any hallucinations, and the sheer act of being in a new environment has been having positive effects on how lucid Chief has been. Everyone, upon looking at each other, has some mixed feelings, but ultimately favors Chief's choice on bypassing the reset.

"Alright. I'm going to pass."

Most others pass, with Smuggler and Sevener as the main exceptions who get the reset.

With that, everyone is dumped off into Stage Safe Zone 8.

Stage 8 Safe Zone:
200 Entrants (Tentative)
50 Exits (Tentative)
100 Hour duration safe zone


That familiarity incurs more than a couple of flashbacks for Chief.

He starts looking around. It's a somewhat vacant area, and he doesn't see anyone immediately. After several minutes, Chief hears some noise coming from a building, and Chief moves in to check it out.
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No. 582065 ID: d470e9
File 140409639062.png - (27.49KB , 800x800 , S7A5-33.png )
582065

>"Hello again, Chief. How are you doing?"
".... I'm fine."
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No. 582066 ID: d470e9
File 140409639904.png - (10.98KB , 800x800 , S7A5-34.png )
582066

>"You sound tired."
"I am."
>>
No. 582067 ID: d470e9
File 140409641329.png - (13.30KB , 800x800 , S7A5-35.png )
582067

"I'm very tired, in fact. Where are Pepper and Succubus?"
>"We're still trying to locate everyone. There might not be a dream, but it looks like you can at least fall asleep, here."
"We only have 100 hours to do... everything."
>>
No. 582070 ID: d470e9
File 140409647387.png - (21.59KB , 800x800 , S7A5-36.png )
582070

>"I'll take care of it, Chief. Go get some rest. You did well."
>>
No. 582076 ID: dcd48d

>>582070
Awwwwwwww!~
Alison is cool, and I don't just say that because we control her most of the time.
>>
No. 582079 ID: 50338d

Time to sleep, for the first time in centuries.

>Stage 8
So... there are few enough brackets left at this point that math can actually count the numbers of stars in the sky, right? That means we can get a pretty good estimate of the number of people left, ignoring cheating and hiding people in Savior's zone.
>>
No. 582098 ID: 9ddf68

you know after reading this whole thread all in one go... I have to say I find this stage to be the most brutal stage by far. I mean the physical challenges from the earlier stages and hell even the CAI battle may have been tough but shit at least they had the feeling of going somewhere and that progress was being made. But this stage... Holy crap. I applaud you Lagorope and I eagerly await the next thread.
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