Good stuff Nicephorus! A couple of things to bear in mind. Anything that you come up with will also be subject to the GMs 'secret problem generation' which i have just done. No need to take any notice of that, but be aware that these probelms may alter or change the context of any conflicts you come up with. Appearances might be decieving and all that. Don't stop coming up with stuff, but the context may change a bit as you discover new problems during play.

Secondly, remember that you are going to be playing together, so don't go overboard too much on rivalry or double-dealing between your features or you'll have trust problems.

When i've got some NPCs to report on, i can post on them and the problems that your PCs know about. We can then start tying in the features, their problems, your PCs and your affiliations & rivalries.

I was thinking a working relationship with a bit of tension, not a cold war.  All the groups need each other but there's some concern over if new wealth is going to come in and who is going to get the lion's share and a general idea that none of the groups are working as hard as one's own group.

Quote from: NicephorusI was thinking a working relationship with a bit of tension, not a cold war.  All the groups need each other but there's some concern over if new wealth is going to come in and who is going to get the lion's share and a general idea that none of the groups are working as hard as one's own group.

Groovy!

Quote from: NicephorusThe trailblazer guild has come in to try to go about making use of this new wealth and how to deal with issues such as terrain that is now uncrossable or unsafe, animals gone feral, and fraudulent claims of ownership.  The observatory has been put into use to figure out optimal paths and concentrations of wealth - how much info they have given to the trailblazers and how much they have kept to themselves is a matter of much speculation.

Originally, I'd vacillated between the Tower Top Observatories and the Cartographer's Guild House, all with a particular idea in mind.  Years ago, a friend of mine who was traveling in Morocco was telling me about how, in the city of Fes, archaeologists were discovering small portions of the city that had been walled in over the centuries -- closing a window here, building a wall there, sealing off an unused door, etc.  Before long, a whole block might have been accidentally sealed off and forgotten as the residents just became accustomed to operating around it.  Without an accurate survey or map, or even just a bird's-eye view, no one could tell that anything was missing.

Now, the Cartographer's Guild seemed a little too adventurous at the time -- too likely to want to pick up and move on.  I'm re-thinking this now, but with little regret.  I like the notion of a celestial philosopher who should be looking to the skies, but has been pressed into service by the Trailblazers.  Maybe it's too soon for the Cartographer's Guild to set up shop here, but they're needed.  In the mean time, a lower functionary or two of the Celestial Philosophers (let's go ahead and formalise their organisation) have lowered their eyes from the skies and onto the Horizon instead.  In due course, certain logical anomalies have been identified -- portions of the castle that should be accessible from traveled paths, but aren't for some reason.

!i!

Quote from: Ian Absentiasmall portions of the city that had been walled in over the centuries -- closing a window here, building a wall there, sealing off an unused door, etc. Before long, a whole block might have been accidentally sealed off and forgotten as the residents just became accustomed to operating around it. Without an accurate survey or map, or even just a bird's-eye view, no one could tell that anything was missing.

I could totally see that when you have continents sized structures.  Plus, if there isn't population pressure locally, it might be easier to seal off problems than deal with them. Can't figure out what that smell is?  Simple, don't go in there any more.  Generations later, no one remembers (correctly) why no one goes down that hall.  
 
Ian also brings up another good point.  There might be minor tension within the tower.  Some might resent being pulled from their true higher calling and some might have grown to like looking at real things and having a measurable effect on their community.

Okey-dokey. I've created problems for the features and NPCs and Authority Figures for each feature. What remains is to tie them into the local area. Once you guys have hashed the area out (maybe naming organisations, features and local areas, customs, size of features etc), i'll post more about these personages and what you know of them.

Then, we can get to the nitty gritty of chargen, including stats, skills, affiliations & rivalries, status and goals & ambitions. All of these are tied into the local area, so once we've got that down pat, we can get those done.

For now though, just the names of the Authority Figures...

Charlatans Market Stalls - Master Deep-Pockets

Arm-breakers Guild House - Mr. Greengrass

Whorehouses - Madam Red-dress

Trailblazers Advance camp - Captain Farstrider

Tower-Top Observatories - Mr. Stargazer

One thing I'm thinking of is that the Whorehouse will need the services of the Arm-breakers Guild on a semi-regular basis. If a customer gets out of hand, or one of the "girls" gets mis-treated, they'd need to call on the arm-breakers fast. Perhaps there's even a rotating guild member on call in the house? Seems like a nice job if you can get it.

-clash

Excellent ideas so far.

Right now I'm seeing the Charlatan's Market Stalls as a parasitic subcommunity that has sprung up in the shadow of the Observatory, populated by purveyors of bogus good luck charms and prophecies of dubious provenance. In the wake of the recent impact disaster this parastitic rabble has nearly trebled in number, offering all the false hope and ephemeral promises their desperately shaken clientele can afford.

Unfortunately the proximity of these shysters to the Celestial Philosophers has endowed them with a faint veneer of respectability, and many is the "Astrologer Puissant" who will claim intellectual and spiritual lineage from the nearby August and Venerable Brotherhood of Astronomers and Bacheleors Physic. To the ruck and run of the population there is no tangible difference, save that the charlatan's are offering something in the here and now that will salve a person's worries in such uncertain times...

Good idea Clash. In practice, the job would mostly entail standing around and exchanging gossip so it would be a good spot for either a PC or NPC.

Quote from: flyingmiceOne thing I'm thinking of is that the Whorehouse will need the services of the Arm-breakers Guild on a semi-regular basis. If a customer gets out of hand, or one of the "girls" gets mis-treated, they'd need to call on the arm-breakers fast. Perhaps there's even a rotating guild member on call in the house? Seems like a nice job if you can get it.

-clash

With that in mind Clash, how about swapping out the Kisses special ability for the Protected ability? Nice and simple and would reflect what you are talking about here.

Quote from: NicephorusGood idea Clash. In practice, the job would mostly entail standing around and exchanging gossip so it would be a good spot for either a PC or NPC.

Right, Nicephorus! Most of the time he'd be just there, making his presence known, but when you need an Arm-breaker, you really need one fast.

-clash

Quote from: One Horse TownWith that in mind Clash, how about swapping out the Kisses special ability for the Protected ability? Nice and simple and would reflect what you are talking about here.

No problem.

-clash

Right, i'm offline for a few days now, so if you want to hone your game area ideas until then, we'll continue chargen when i get back!

Does anyone have any thoughts on physical layout?  What's the terrain/climate like?
 
Does anyone have a strong idea where their character is from?  I don't think we need to have one character from each area and I don't think we need to fill roles or niches to an extreme degree.

I'd like my character to hail from the Charlatan's Market Stalls. I chose the Feature as a suitable environment for the Faginesque con-man astrologer concept I had.

Incidentally, does anyone have any thoughts on the Stalls as I described them? I'm quite happy with the idea of my character being the sole individual whom inhabits his niche, but thought the idea of a rowdy "futures market" made for a interesting twist on the conventional set-up. Almost a physical representation of the many psychic hotlines that compete for gullible peoples money, but smellier and more profane.