Brethren of the Brick Seas?

[2maxwell]

Perhaps we could make it like maybe there is only 1 island in the realm, and on the map, that the fantasy stuff is allowed. Maybe like a haunted island, where if ships get to close they turn to ghost ships, or the island is inhabited by skeleton pirates. This would just be one small island on the "map" where the fantasy elements can come in play.

Interesting thought. Such an 'enchanted region' could be a limiter. After all, we are not talking about the spiritual middle ages here, the world of BoBS would be much more enlightened, imo. But beyond the sea, in the still unknown, all kinds of things could be happening. I just have a little trouble seeing a bunch of Chima based characters or whatnot regularly walking through the capital of Corrington. But it's all a matter of explaination.

Now this I like. The closer you get to civilization, the less magical everything becomes.

[Capn Frank]

Now this I like. The closer you get to civilization, the less magical everything becomes.

That's a great idea. And those at the heart of civilization will think of fantastic creatures as myth or fairy tales.

[Captain Nemo]

Now this I like. The closer you get to civilization, the less magical everything becomes.

That's a great idea. And those at the heart of civilization will think of fantastic creatures as myth or fairy tales.

You're both right. That would create tons of story possibilities. I love the idea that the more civilized landlubbers don't trust or believe all the sea stories coming in from the sailors. And the further one sails from land the strangers the seas get!

[2maxwell]

Or perhaps the further one sails, the stranger they become! Are the stories real, or all the sailors just suffering from delusions? Are the delusions because of malnutrition and heatstroke? Or is there perhaps something more sinister afoot? WHoooOOOOoooo

[MstrOfPppts]

You mean rum?

[Dunedain]

That's exactly what I was thinking. My idea of limiting the fantasy to one island and or area, can "control" the fantasy elemants from becoming to much. I picture sailors telling tales of that "cursed" island over bottles of rum. Or imperial soldiers pissing themselves when their ambitious Captain steers to close to that "forsaken" place, during his pursuit of a Pirate. Maybe a Pirate captain is dealing with a mutiny, because he insists the tales of a haunted island are rubbish and wants to land there.

Again though, this island should be the only place we would see pirate skeletons, hidden magical items, fanciful creatures, and perhaps a certain infamous ghost ship that circles this islands waters.

[James Wellington]

That's exactly what I was thinking. My idea of limiting the fantasy to one island and or area, can "control" the fantasy elemants from becoming to much. I picture sailors telling tales of that "cursed" island over bottles of rum. Or imperial soldiers pissing themselves when their ambitious Captain steers to close to that "forsaken" place, during his pursuit of a Pirate. Maybe a Pirate captain is dealing with a mutiny, because he insists the tales of a haunted island are rubbish and wants to land there.

Again though, this island should be the only place we would see pirate skeletons, hidden magical items, fanciful creatures, and perhaps a certain infamous ghost ship that circles this islands waters.

You know what, I like that idea! But only if they can't leave. I know for one thing, my men will never go there We could have sea monsters near the island, and maybe a bunch of long amazon-like rivers on there to explore on, and were a doomed sailor might see a ghost ship, or a band of skeleton pirates, or a mysterious voo-doo island group that believe "outsiders" should be killed, for they are demons (although they're the ones on the demon island ). And all that. I like this idea, but I think it should only stay at the island, because I want kind of "real-ish" things to happen in the normal world, and those who like the fantasy stuff can just go to the island to do that. Wow. Now I REALLY can't wait for this. Wow.

[Dunedain]

How about somewhere on the evil island could be the opposite of a fountain of youth. Where unsuspecting sailors wade thru a certain cursed waterway, and are stripped of their flesh, forever cursed to walk the island as a skeleton pirate. The fountain of doom, and the only cure could be a drink of the water from the fountain of youth, to restore them to life. We could have side stories where perhaps buried on the island is a special map or key, that could lead to a treasure located somewhere else in the realm, thus making a crew have to brave the island.

I also think that there should be unchartered or unclaimed, neutral islands or lands in the realm and on the map. This would give the imperial factions missions to discover, conquer, colonize these areas. The colors on the map of these areas could be constantly changing from red to blue to green to black, and back again. Each Imperial faction should have its "home" land, but there should be whole areas of contested lands that are up for grabs. Will the Pirates rule here, or perhaps the Redcoats, or maybe an uneasy alliance of Red and Blue to keep out the Pirates. Really the sky is the limit, but by having certain areas with "undefined" borders or areas up for grabs, this gives way to tons of possibilities, and will make it a realistic environment for colonial powers and pirates to strive for.

I think an ever changing map of red, blue,green, etc. will be awesome, and give a reason to conquer!

[James Wellington]

How about somewhere on the evil island could be the opposite of a fountain of youth. Where unsuspecting sailors wade thru a certain cursed waterway, and are stripped of their flesh, forever cursed to walk the island as a skeleton pirate. The fountain of doom, and the only cure could be a drink of the water from the fountain of youth, to restore them to life. We could have side stories where perhaps buried on the island is a special map or key, that could lead to a treasure located somewhere else in the realm, thus making a crew have to brave the island.

I also think that there should be unchartered or unclaimed, neutral islands or lands in the realm and on the map. This would give the imperial factions missions to discover, conquer, colonize these areas. The colors on the map of these areas could be constantly changing from red to blue to green to black, and back again. Each Imperial faction should have its "home" land, but there should be whole areas of contested lands that are up for grabs. Will the Pirates rule here, or perhaps the Redcoats, or maybe an uneasy alliance of Red and Blue to keep out the Pirates. Really the sky is the limit, but by having certain areas with "undefined" borders or areas up for grabs, this gives way to tons of possibilities, and will make it a realistic environment for colonial powers and pirates to strive for.

I think an ever changing map of red, blue,green, etc. will be awesome, and give a reason to conquer!

Another great idea! I love this. The "Fountain of Doom" kind of reminds me of The Black Pearl's crew in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. They found the treasure, got greedy and were cursed. Only a bit different. I really hope some of these ideas come to life when BoBS comes out.

[Dunedain]

In fact, what if as contests are held, the winners of these contests, like best MOC or best mini-figures, get to color an area on the map for their faction. In other words, if the winner of the latest contest is a bluecoat, then the area in contention goes to the blue empire. If a bunch of bluecoat faction members keep winning contests, well guess what, the map is gonna start to look bluer and bluer. This will drive the other factions into "action", creating bigger and better MOCS to "win" ther lands back, and color the map their factions colors. If the latest and best MOCers are Pirates, well guess what, there is gonna be a lot of black shading on the map.

This gives a reason to enter and build better, and creates a game within a game.

[Kolonialbeamter]

Hey, did you notice? The thread title got changed... aaaaand we have a new Pirate Moderator on board! Glory to Phred!

Now this I like. The closer you get to civilization, the less magical everything becomes.

+1

That's a great idea. And those at the heart of civilization will think of fantastic creatures as myth or fairy tales.

+1

You're both right. That would create tons of story possibilities. I love the idea that the more civilized landlubbers don't trust or believe all the sea stories coming in from the sailors. And the further one sails from land the stranger the seas get!

+1

In fact, what if as contests are held, the winners of these contests, like best MOC or best mini-figures, get to color an area on the map for their faction. In other words, if the winner of the latest contest is a bluecoat, then the area in contention goes to the blue empire. If a bunch of bluecoat faction members keep winning contests, well guess what, the map is gonna start to look bluer and bluer. This will drive the other factions into "action", creating bigger and better MOCS to "win" ther lands back, and color the map their factions colors. If the latest and best MOCers are Pirates, well guess what, there is gonna be a lot of black shading on the map.

This gives a reason to enter and build better, and creates a game within a game.

Definitely interesting concept! That way territory could be won/defended long term. Additionally, some kind of mechanism could be implemented, making it harder to 'attack' long possessed territories than newly discovered lands, tributing the cultural heritage of regions. For example the 'quality' of a victory, like you would need a combined effort of MOCs to be able to achieve some sort of 'overwhelming' victory in a battle/challenge to take away core lands.

I'm looking forward to what the development team comes up with.

About that 'one island only'... I'd rather go with a concentric circle idea, the further away from the beacons of civilization, the more unknown and mythical. Works both for islands and sea regions. One island might not carry all the storylines possible. And after all, who has sailed all the seas knowing there wouldn't be other, even stranger realms far far away

Edited March 20, 2015 by Kolonialbeamter

[Dunedain]

The concept of the "one" island, was only a thought to convey the idea of limiting the fantasy element. I also agree that it doesn't need to strictly be one island per se,but an area far away,or confined to a corner of the realm. The closer to civilization, the less they believe, would be the logical progression of the story.

[Lord Vladivus]

Confining the area would make it hard for people to integrate- would I be restricted to this area if I wanted a ghost pirate crew or a tribe of alligator men as my sig fig race? It limits creativity, which I think GoH has right- pretty much anything goes as long as it's technologically viable for the era. If you don't want to use it, don't, everyone can admire a great Moc, and might help attract other builders who might pass otherwise.

[Dunedain]

Not that you would be confined to the island/area, Lord Vladivus, but you would have certainly originated from there. You could indeed sail the seas as you wish, but try landing your Aligator crew, or ghost ship, anywhere in the civilized realm and you would surely be met with volley, upon volley, of thunderous fire!!!!

[mccoyed]

A mysterious island or chain of islands makes sense for a pirate era pseudo-fantasy role-building game. It's in keeping with the kinds of myths and flavor we'd be going for with Brethren. That said, we'd want to avoid too many artificial limitations or "boxing in" of fantastical elements. If we do it that way, there'll be some discord in the lore/world-building with some builders doing their thing as if those fantastical elements don't exist at all. This is convenient for people who don't like that stuff, or prefer not to have it here, and it's also a strategy for being inclusive and not overly limiting anyone's fun with the setting... but it's also pretty contrived. It's like seeing the pixels on a digital image.

A general note about good social responsibility in works of fantasy which we should observe here:

And although the distinction between "civilized" and "uncivilized" was inherent to the imperial/colonial period, I think we ought to be aware of the ugly history of that in our work. This doesn't mean avoiding issues like slavery, genocide, and othering in the imperial/colonial context, but it does mean taking some responsibility for portrayal or reference without condoning or promoting. I think this is probably an issue that's been discussed sometime in the development of GoH, but I think it's very important to remember it since our current era is very much still recovering from and reconciling with the uglier parts of this chapter of history.

Edited March 20, 2015 by mccoyed

[Captain Braunsfeld]

Hey, did you notice? The thread title got changed... aaaaand we have a new Pirate Moderator on board! Glory to Phred!

Yepp, I noticed.

And I had the feeling that something has changed around Phred - and it's a good thing!

And although the distinction between "civilized" and "uncivilized" was inherent to the imperial/colonial period, I think we ought to be aware of the ugly history of that in our work. This doesn't mean avoiding issues like slavery, genocide, and othering in the imperial/colonial context, but it does mean taking some responsibility for portrayal or reference without condoning or promoting. I think this is probably an issue that's been discussed sometime in the development of GoH, but I think it's very important to remember it since our current era is very much still recovering from and reconciling with the uglier parts of this chapter of history.

Good point. I agree.

But as I like the monkeys, the parrots and the Islanders I am probably already on the "uncivilized" side ...

[Dunedain]

I think most of us here, including myself, when we use civilized/uncivilized, it is mostly tongue in cheek. Almost rather jokingly when thinking that a bunch of grown men in powdered white wigs and "skirts" bent on subjugation, are "civilized", while a peaceful society that lives in harmony with nature, are "uncivilized", is very tongue in cheek, lol.

[2maxwell]

And although the distinction between "civilized" and "uncivilized" was inherent to the imperial/colonial period, I think we ought to be aware of the ugly history of that in our work. This doesn't mean avoiding issues like slavery, genocide, and othering in the imperial/colonial context, but it does mean taking some responsibility for portrayal or reference without condoning or promoting. I think this is probably an issue that's been discussed sometime in the development of GoH, but I think it's very important to remember it since our current era is very much still recovering from and reconciling with the uglier parts of this chapter of history.

Well put. I'd tried to broach the matter earlier on, but you've gotten to the core of the issue much better than I ever managed. Personally, I'm still disappointed that the only "real" factions are going to be colonizing powers and pirates.

Edited March 20, 2015 by 2maxwell

[Ardelon]

Hm, maybe an Islander faction could work?

Otherwise, all very good ideas, with the integration of the fantasy elements, and the game dynamic of occupying new lands.

[Captain Braunsfeld]

Islanders!!!

[Kwatchi]

I like the direction this discussion took over the last few days. Either concept (1: Mysterious island/archipelago where things are more fantastical, 2: further you get from civilisation, the more fantastical it can get) is something I believe I'd enjoy being part of. As a fan of the CS Forester and P. O'Brian books my initial preference would have been historically driven only tbh, but I can appreciate how some would like to be more creative. As long as the world doesn't simply become a high fantasy-on-water, I'll be happy to join in as my first foray into "serious" MOC'ing.

Edited March 21, 2015 by Kwatchi

[Lord Vladivus]

To be honest, I think I'd quite like the idea of a ghostly band of pirates. Perhaps when they go to Corrington they use disguises like masks etc. Or even a cursed band of Redcoat/Bluecoat soldiers. Oooooooo. Ideas!

[Sigolf Brimabane]

To be honest, I think I'd quite like the idea of a ghostly band of pirates. Perhaps when they go to Corrington they use disguises like masks etc. Or even a cursed band of Redcoat/Bluecoat soldiers. Oooooooo. Ideas!

I can picture the soldiers with zombie or skeleton heads <3 In fact... Maybe I'll try it out at once x)

[Captain Braunsfeld]

To be honest, I think I'd quite like the idea of a ghostly band of pirates. Perhaps when they go to Corrington they use disguises like masks etc. Or even a cursed band of Redcoat/Bluecoat soldiers. Oooooooo. Ideas!

Ideas!

It seems that a lot of people are getting ready for this!

I'd be happy.

[Mencot]

The halloween CMF that is coming next fall, based from the leaked images, it is rumored to have some nice zombie figs and A zombie pirate .

I am also with the idea that if there is a certain area for the more fantasy/magic then it should be bigger then just an island.

Really looking forward to this and nice to see so many intrested in this