The past is always with us
Aug. 30th, 2022 11:08 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
meteordustF.F. Gebrandt CORDIALLY INVITES All Londoners to participate in the Raising of a New Museum of Prelapsarian History & accompanying Exhibition, to put on Display Curiosities Historical, Palaeontological, & Philosophical.
Last year, Fallen London introduced a new, one off, experimental event in Mr Chimes' Grand Clearing-Out. It was a community event with a collaborative goal, and made extensive use of the new World Qualities mechanic, which allows gamewide status changes that make it feel like a living world. It was a great success, with the reveal of deeper lore and the excitement of saving the city from disaster. Plans were made to hold a new special event every summer (insofar as there are seasons in the Neath).
This year, the summer event was announced to be F.F. Gebrandt's Prelapsarian Exhibition, in which the foremost scientist of the city has decided to construct a museum, with the help of her fellow Fallen Londoners. A very pro-science, pro-education, and civic-minded venture, delving into the history of this layered city, and digging up its buried secrets.
What could possibly go wrong?
Highlights included:
* The event unfolding in multiple stages. It was exciting to see our efforts fill each progress bar, and unlock the countdown clock to the next stage. (psgarak: "You know how sometimes a disaster movie, it will show some happy people at like the beach or something, and then fade to a title card saying '48 Hours Before Impact' or something like that? Yeah, that.")
* First stage was constructing the museum, through contributing labour, materials, or funds. Second stage was supplying exhibits, whether relics, bones, or mirrorcatch boxes full of uncanny light. Everyone threw themselves into these activities with industry and cheer. (enail: "Now that I've got a moment to breathe, I've got to say, this event has been fantastic so far! That sense of frantic activity, but at a slightly more manageable pace than some events have been, using up our hoards in a way that feels worthwhile, and then this wonderfully celebratory break to take in the new sights.")
* Third stage was the grand opening of the museum! We got to celebrate at the opening revels, check out the new permanent exhibitions, and receive rewards in gratitude for our contributions. (This included A Bronze Plaque Dedicated to Your Good Self: "It suggests, but does not explicitly claim, that you both discovered and donated the exhibit – a single spike identified as belonging to Iguanodon. The plaque, about a foot across, dwarfs the exhibit itself.") (enail: "This and the ending of the Great Clearing Out both managed to create a really warm feeling of genuine joy and connection and pride for our little city in the Neath and its people that feels quite special. I'm excited to see how it all goes to ruin. ;)")
* Fourth stage was when things got real. The Traitor Empress might be forever reviled for selling London to the Masters of the Bazaar in exchange for the life of her beloved husband. But she already suffered for it when they betrayed her in turn, twisting the interpretation of what "saving his life" actually meant. So naturally, when F.F. Gebrandt used her new machine to distil the essence of time from sphinxstone and summon a living apparition of the Consort, it was (1) a touching reunion, and (2) a very bad idea. (psgarak: "Of all the things that couldn't possibly end well, this couldn't possibly end the best.")
* The machine overloaded and exploded, the essence of time got vented everywhere, and suddenly new buildings appeared all over Fallen London - the remnants of the Second City, which had been destroyed when the subsequent cities fell. (phryne: "I wonder what the Duchess will have to say about a Second City revival!" psgarak: "What the Duchess will say? I want to know what the Masters will say!")
* The houses were full of the Egyptian statuettes known as ushabti, except these were near life size, and seemed to move to look at you. Certain enterprising citizens decided to sell them to interested members of the public. (kaminski: "Nothing bad can come from looting the artefacts and buying the ushabti, right?")
* The option for buying the ushabti noted: "This will progress the story of the Prelapsarian Exhibition, and lead eventually to a unique reward. Buyer beware, however." (royalraven: "Rats I can handle, but if my Ushabti gets even a smidge more alive than it already is, I’m breaking out the Sturdy Pick." PoliteHat: "I cannot bring myself to regret purchasing my new stone friend." skinnyman: "That warning text even made it more attractive!" Failbetter Games: "good morning to the 94% of you who bought a stone ushabti" TheFeshy: "TIL 6% of Fallen Londoners are alts of completionists.")
* Ushabti on the loose! "Your Very Own Limestone Companion" (a home comfort decorating your mantelpiece) transformed into "A Stalking Stone Shadow of your Very Own" (a burden that reduced your stats and threw up menace cards trying to kill you). (Aardappelsalade0: "In the new event there was/is an option to buy a haunted statue, and 94% of players bought it, despite it being heavily implied that the statue was haunted." UristMasterRace: "Arrested Development Narrator: It was.")
* An exception: if the burden slot in your inventory was already occupied by Mr Transport, he and the ushabti would fight it out, and the baby alien space bat would win. There was only one way to keep the ushabti and get the unique reward: get rid of Mr Transport. A deep dilemma! (There was a poll. AurouroborosBorealis: "For those of us who already had Mr. T as a burden, I'm curious how many of my brothers held strong to their resolve and kept the adorable Mr. T, as opposed to sending him away for 'completionist reasons'." eliza_tantivy: "About a third by these numbers. So, hilariously, a decent chunk of the 6% are end-est game players.")
* As the ushabti unleashed havoc on the city, F.F. Gebrandt organised the campaign to investigate this situation. This led to a scavenger hunt all over the Neath, first for clues to the mystery, and then for ingredients for the solution. Some were straightforward, and some were very obscure. I appreciated the devs telling us in advance how many clues and ingredients were required to achieve the various rewards, since, as they said, "This seems to cause an undesirable level of anxiety for some players." (Three clues for the tangible reward, ten for the vanity quality, and eighteen for the bragging rights. One ingredient for the tangible reward, and five for the vanity quality.) (tigerfort: "As with so much in Fallen London, the reward for doing the thing is that you know you did the thing.")
* It was very creepy to learn of the disturbing origins of the ushabti. (Speculation included "horribly ill-advised attempts to survive the fall of the next city", "the process was likely involuntary", and "some kind of ascension ritual to Parabola".) I'm not sure if sending them into Parabola after their masters and then sealing the mirror behind them works as a permanent solution, since Fallen Londoners casually visit Parabola all the time. But that's a problem for tomorrow!
* In terms of story, this year's event didn't feel quite as epic as last year's, since the rampaging ushabti didn't feel as apocalyptic high stakes as the imminent rising of the Stone Pigs. But in terms of gameplay, it was more varied and satisfying. And we gained interesting rewards and learned fascinating lore. 10/10, would come back next summer to save the world again.
History of the event
Wiki guide
Forum thread
Last year, Fallen London introduced a new, one off, experimental event in Mr Chimes' Grand Clearing-Out. It was a community event with a collaborative goal, and made extensive use of the new World Qualities mechanic, which allows gamewide status changes that make it feel like a living world. It was a great success, with the reveal of deeper lore and the excitement of saving the city from disaster. Plans were made to hold a new special event every summer (insofar as there are seasons in the Neath).
This year, the summer event was announced to be F.F. Gebrandt's Prelapsarian Exhibition, in which the foremost scientist of the city has decided to construct a museum, with the help of her fellow Fallen Londoners. A very pro-science, pro-education, and civic-minded venture, delving into the history of this layered city, and digging up its buried secrets.
What could possibly go wrong?
Highlights included:
* The event unfolding in multiple stages. It was exciting to see our efforts fill each progress bar, and unlock the countdown clock to the next stage. (psgarak: "You know how sometimes a disaster movie, it will show some happy people at like the beach or something, and then fade to a title card saying '48 Hours Before Impact' or something like that? Yeah, that.")
* First stage was constructing the museum, through contributing labour, materials, or funds. Second stage was supplying exhibits, whether relics, bones, or mirrorcatch boxes full of uncanny light. Everyone threw themselves into these activities with industry and cheer. (enail: "Now that I've got a moment to breathe, I've got to say, this event has been fantastic so far! That sense of frantic activity, but at a slightly more manageable pace than some events have been, using up our hoards in a way that feels worthwhile, and then this wonderfully celebratory break to take in the new sights.")
* Third stage was the grand opening of the museum! We got to celebrate at the opening revels, check out the new permanent exhibitions, and receive rewards in gratitude for our contributions. (This included A Bronze Plaque Dedicated to Your Good Self: "It suggests, but does not explicitly claim, that you both discovered and donated the exhibit – a single spike identified as belonging to Iguanodon. The plaque, about a foot across, dwarfs the exhibit itself.") (enail: "This and the ending of the Great Clearing Out both managed to create a really warm feeling of genuine joy and connection and pride for our little city in the Neath and its people that feels quite special. I'm excited to see how it all goes to ruin. ;)")
* Fourth stage was when things got real. The Traitor Empress might be forever reviled for selling London to the Masters of the Bazaar in exchange for the life of her beloved husband. But she already suffered for it when they betrayed her in turn, twisting the interpretation of what "saving his life" actually meant. So naturally, when F.F. Gebrandt used her new machine to distil the essence of time from sphinxstone and summon a living apparition of the Consort, it was (1) a touching reunion, and (2) a very bad idea. (psgarak: "Of all the things that couldn't possibly end well, this couldn't possibly end the best.")
* The machine overloaded and exploded, the essence of time got vented everywhere, and suddenly new buildings appeared all over Fallen London - the remnants of the Second City, which had been destroyed when the subsequent cities fell. (phryne: "I wonder what the Duchess will have to say about a Second City revival!" psgarak: "What the Duchess will say? I want to know what the Masters will say!")
* The houses were full of the Egyptian statuettes known as ushabti, except these were near life size, and seemed to move to look at you. Certain enterprising citizens decided to sell them to interested members of the public. (kaminski: "Nothing bad can come from looting the artefacts and buying the ushabti, right?")
* The option for buying the ushabti noted: "This will progress the story of the Prelapsarian Exhibition, and lead eventually to a unique reward. Buyer beware, however." (royalraven: "Rats I can handle, but if my Ushabti gets even a smidge more alive than it already is, I’m breaking out the Sturdy Pick." PoliteHat: "I cannot bring myself to regret purchasing my new stone friend." skinnyman: "That warning text even made it more attractive!" Failbetter Games: "good morning to the 94% of you who bought a stone ushabti" TheFeshy: "TIL 6% of Fallen Londoners are alts of completionists.")
* Ushabti on the loose! "Your Very Own Limestone Companion" (a home comfort decorating your mantelpiece) transformed into "A Stalking Stone Shadow of your Very Own" (a burden that reduced your stats and threw up menace cards trying to kill you). (Aardappelsalade0: "In the new event there was/is an option to buy a haunted statue, and 94% of players bought it, despite it being heavily implied that the statue was haunted." UristMasterRace: "Arrested Development Narrator: It was.")
* An exception: if the burden slot in your inventory was already occupied by Mr Transport, he and the ushabti would fight it out, and the baby alien space bat would win. There was only one way to keep the ushabti and get the unique reward: get rid of Mr Transport. A deep dilemma! (There was a poll. AurouroborosBorealis: "For those of us who already had Mr. T as a burden, I'm curious how many of my brothers held strong to their resolve and kept the adorable Mr. T, as opposed to sending him away for 'completionist reasons'." eliza_tantivy: "About a third by these numbers. So, hilariously, a decent chunk of the 6% are end-est game players.")
* As the ushabti unleashed havoc on the city, F.F. Gebrandt organised the campaign to investigate this situation. This led to a scavenger hunt all over the Neath, first for clues to the mystery, and then for ingredients for the solution. Some were straightforward, and some were very obscure. I appreciated the devs telling us in advance how many clues and ingredients were required to achieve the various rewards, since, as they said, "This seems to cause an undesirable level of anxiety for some players." (Three clues for the tangible reward, ten for the vanity quality, and eighteen for the bragging rights. One ingredient for the tangible reward, and five for the vanity quality.) (tigerfort: "As with so much in Fallen London, the reward for doing the thing is that you know you did the thing.")
* It was very creepy to learn of the disturbing origins of the ushabti. (Speculation included "horribly ill-advised attempts to survive the fall of the next city", "the process was likely involuntary", and "some kind of ascension ritual to Parabola".) I'm not sure if sending them into Parabola after their masters and then sealing the mirror behind them works as a permanent solution, since Fallen Londoners casually visit Parabola all the time. But that's a problem for tomorrow!
* In terms of story, this year's event didn't feel quite as epic as last year's, since the rampaging ushabti didn't feel as apocalyptic high stakes as the imminent rising of the Stone Pigs. But in terms of gameplay, it was more varied and satisfying. And we gained interesting rewards and learned fascinating lore. 10/10, would come back next summer to save the world again.
History of the event
Wiki guide
Forum thread
