Learning To Climb
Where I Comment On What Is Going On In The Comments
So, I'm starting to get rather curious about Celestia. I thought she was an NPC, but the comments seem to suggest that she isn't. It makes me wonder what else she could be. I don't think that an admin (or even several admins) could have played the role effectively when the game was new. As I remember, almost all the Pony Pads were sold out on day one. Some places ran out before noon. The sheer number of people that would have been doing the quest means that having people on staff playing Celestia would be wildly impractical.
I'm also seeing that we are starting to have a split opinion on whether I should keep exploring after this cave, or head back to Canterlot and meet Celestia. I'm still not sure what to do myself, so feel free to continue debating this in the comments. I've also noticed a couple people trolling down there by offering fake advice. First, please don't do that, I'm confused enough as it is. Second, even for those that are not trolling, please don't post spoilers! I understand that you want to share your joy of the game with me, but please do keep in mind that you can only experience the joy of being surprised by something and figuring it out once. If someone shortcuts it for you, then even that is taken away.
I hope that didn't sound too harsh. I am really surprised, and grateful for all the support.
Lastly, what? No one else finds what they are doing with communication technology amazing? Am I the only one that thinks this is cool? Come on guys, this is the future! Can we get some excitement? Imagine what it will be like in five years when this technology goes mainstream. If someone doesn't pick this up and run with it, I won't be surprised if we all end up only communicating as ponies to get around language barriers.
Heh, everyone communicating as ponies... I can just see the crazy person with a sign saying, "Beware: The End Is Neigh!" :P
Gameplay, AKA The Reason You All Come Here
So I signed on, took a quick look around, and spotted Forest Trails heading up the side of the mountain to meet me. I guess she must have figured out a way to know when I go online. I walked out to meet her, and we exchanged some pleasantries while walking back to the edge of the cave.
“So,” I said. “Do you think we will need a way to see while we're in the cave?”
“Unlikely. Only the occasional cave is dark enough for you to need a light source,” She grinned and then pulled out an unlit torch. “Even if it is too dark, I came prepared!”
We headed inside and I laughed. “So, how was your day?”
“Well, not too bad.” She threw me a look. “Though you left awful fast last night.”
I shrugged, and my pony mimicked it, “I had work in the morning. I work in construction most of the time, so I have to get up really early. Also, I'm actually telling some people tales of our adventures (doing a Let's Play online) each night.”
“You'd prefer to spend time with them, rather than with moi?” tried, to look upset, but instead just looked like she was trying not to laugh, “I'm hurt!”
I laughed and knelt on the ground in front of her “Please forgive me, fair lady."
“You are forgiven,” she said in a stately manner. Then she giggled. “Come on! If you only have some much time, we need to get a move on if we want to finish exploring this cave tonight.”
As we were walking, ambient light made the cave easy to see. It's a trick I've seen done in many games, but because everything else looked so good, I was half expecting it to follow the normal rules of light and shadow. I actually paused to see if there was something that was giving off light, and found that there was a type of luminescent moss. I bring this up because I find it cool that even while conforming to the genre, Equestria Online still gives an explanation.
We quickly came to a large cavern that extended far above us. I could see that the tunnels continued on up above, but there was no obvious way up there. Not without being a pegasus that could fly, or a unicorn that could teleport. Now, on another day I might have given up, but there was someone with me and I felt like showing off. I've played many games, and used many movement systems to get where I shouldn't have been able to reach. I'm not as good as some people are (watch some speed runs of Mario 64), but I like to think that I'm decent.
So I started looking and thinking and realized that I could use the boulders and such that were sticking out of the walls to get up to the top. “I think I can get up there. You think you can manage, or do you have some rope or something?” I turned to Forest Trails as I asked.
She just shook her head with a smirk on her face, “I'm sure if you can make it, so can I.”
I promised you a screencap and here it is!
It took me about three tries, but I finally made it to the top. Forest Trails followed after me and even made it on her first attempt, but I noticed that she followed the path I had found through trial and error exactly. Who knows? I might get my cutie mark in spelunking!
“So, got it on my first try,” she said when she made it up.
I just smiled, “Eeeeyup.”
She narrowed her eyes, “And just what is that supposed to mean, mister?”
“Nothing,” I said innocently. I turned and walked away and she followed behind me, grumbling.
It wasn't long before we came to a room that was obviously supposed to draw our attention. An opening looked out of the mountain and in a nest there were several large eggs. I walked up to them, then turned as Forest Trails let out a surprised gasp. “Those are Roc eggs!”
“Oh?” I asked.
She walked up to me looking at them with excitement, “They can be used in a lot of special recipes, and go for a really high price.”
I went to pick them up and got a message from the game that told me that they were still warm, and I could feel something shifting around inside. I put it down and took a step back, “Uh...”
“What?” she asked looking at me curiously.
I looked down at the eggs again, “I think they're about to hatch.”
“If I remember right, that should mean that they are worth more. There are collectors that want to raise them as pets” She grinned at me, “We could fly around on Rocs! I'm sure I can find a book on how to hatch them.”
I shook my head unsure, “I'm really not sure how I feel about this. I know this is new to me (just a game), but I'm not sure I feel right about killing them just to get some money or something. Can I think about this overnight?”
“I guess if you feel so strongly about it,” she said, looking a bit confused. “I don't need the bits right now, and I think they should still be here tomorrow.”
“Thanks,” I said. “Sorry for being weird.”
She shrugged. “No worries. See you tomorrow?”
“Sure.” I replied, then turned off the pad.
After Action Report And Thoughts On The Night's Session
So, a few things to put here today. I'm not sure what to do with the egg. I mean, on one hand it is free bits, or maybe even a mount. On the other...
Even if it is a game, I kind of feel like I don't want to do it. I was never comfortable hunting or trapping growing up, and this pushes the same buttons for some reason. It's strange when I think about it. I've killed hundreds of thousands of NPCs in games over the years. I'm sorry, I don't know. I'm going to sleep on it. Feel free to post comments arguing over what we should do. I'll probably feel less mixed up in the morning.
It's really easy to forget, but I want to put it in here one more time. The game translates my facial expression amazingly well onto my pony. I can easily tell what Forest Trails is thinking just by looking at her face, something that I always find a bit tricky with just over the phone discussions. I wonder if maybe there would be a use for this in criminal investigations. With body and facial recognition this good I wouldn't be surprised if you could use it on cameras and cut out the middle man to call the police on crimes in progress.
Eh, that would need an AI capable of understanding how humans act. I guess it isn't possible. Still would be kinda cool, though.
Also, didn't seem to get any achievements today guys. Sorry 'bout that.
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3205044
Oh, it was code, I thought it was just an error. Nice on decrypting it. I'm also going to have to agree with book burner here. Forest Trails can't be an NPC. AI's aren't good enough to hold conversations. Everyone knows that!
Hey book burner, I thought I recognized you. You write some stories on this forum don't you? I Kinda enjoy them. Glad to have you around on my Let's Play. Hope to see you online if we end up in the same shard (however that works, is there even anyway to know what shard I am in?).
Also what is with the lack of love for the humble earth pony? I'm sure they can do many things like.. Well. I'm sure they can do many cool things.
3205141
Math is always useful. And never discount the usefulness of an well programmed spreadsheet to make minmaxing easier!
I'd leave the egg. Think of mamma roc and how upset she would be on seeing her eggs gone. Think about how she might be on her way back and what would happen if she discovered you tampering with her eggs. Think about how it reflects on friendship to satisfy your greed at the expense of the innocent creature. I am frankly kind of surprised Trails would suggest such a thing.
if my knowledge on mythology is right..then the roc is a giant crow large enough to carry a bull elephant in each talon..at least a fully grown roc anyway..to have that as a mount...
Pass, leave the egg, the mother could come back and yeah...bit early for a boss battle don't you think?
If you take the egg, keep the roc. A pet is way cooler than bits.
Yeah, it's a very sandbox game.
When you say you're smiling, do you mean in game or real life? Or both?
When you say you're smiling, is that in real life, in game, or both?
3205190 I always thought that the three tribes form a kind of rock-paper-scissors dynamic. Unicorn magic generally outclasses pegasus flight, pegasi can use their flight to outpace Earth ponies, and Earth ponies are too tough for magic to handle, plus their natural earth abilities are a kind of magic itself.
Mind, that's all theoretical. I don't PVP much myself.
3205456
I smile in real life, and the camera picks it up and has my pony mimic the action. That's why I'm grinning in the screen shot.
3205348
Good point, not sure if I'm going to take it though
3205262
Well, if it showed up I would probably just run and get to a part of the cave it can't follow. I'm not about to take on a high level monster when I'm only lvl 1 and don't know how to fight.
3205196
Those are some fairly good points. That said, I wouldn't blame Trails. She's nice enough, she is just a bit less of a bleeding heart then I am.
3205350
So far it feels like it. I'm really enjoying it.
3205517
!
Huh, I never looked at it like that. Yeah, I bet I can survive longer than the other classes if I mess up. Thanks for the encouragement
Heh. There's a thought. Now I'm trying to think of a good pony pun for Skype. Sklop?
Also, that screenshot... I don't know if you managed a between-blinks "bedroom eyes" moment with Forest Trails, but it almost looks like she's checking out your avatar... Bah, I've been on Derpibooru too much.
As for the eggs, I say do what feels right. If that means leave them be, then leave them be. Bits are easy to come by.
And Celestia... yeah, that's a spoiler and a half right there. You need to see her for yourself. Be sure to mention the Let's Play. I may have mentioned it to her offhoof. Hand. Derp.
3205529
No, seriously I do blame Trails. Maybe you did run into another player.
If you decide not to take an egg, make sure she doesn't either
I find it interesting that you're having conflicting feelings about the Roc egg, when you say that in any other game you would take the more profitable option without hesitation. I encourage you to do what you feel is right in this situation, and will exclude my own thoughts on the matter.
I'm perplexed as to why you would want to ask others what you should do in your game. If you find that satisfying, then I have no protest. It's just somewhat unusual.
In regards to the comment on AI that can understand human behavior not being possible, well... never assume anything to be impossible that you don't have sufficient knowledge of.
In most RPGs, this would be a simple test of character - a plus or minus to your karma meter for taking the obviously good option or the obviously bad option. I've found EQO seems to like to make me think about which is the good option and which is the bad option though.
Maybe if you knew more about rocs you'd find that taking the eggs would save the local village from months of attacks by the nesting parents or something. Try asking Forest Trails if she knows anything about rocs that would affect the decision, since she seemed confused that you'd leave the eggs there and you didn't really give her a chance to talk about it. If taking the eggs is the good option, you might as well profit by it. If rocs are harmless... well, you seem close to deciding to leave them, so being told that directly will probably convince you to leave the eggs alone.
Personally, I think you should try taming it, rocs are cool!
BTW: Not surprising considering the voice chat, but I'm pretty sure the spelling is 'roc', not 'rok', and definitely not 'rock'!
P.S. What is up with that mid-conversation editing? It's some freaky scifi stuff going on I tell you.
P.P.S. And it's totally forcing you to be in-character the whole way. I don't know about you but I'd probably want to chat OOC at least some of the time.
Let's Play? Weird - I like that. You buy this MMO game designed to be played with other people and you run off into the wild. Great. I guess you weren't stupid as me and got yourself lock up the first day. Yeah. I know you want to do a "blind run" ... anyway, here is some unwanted advice: Don't misbehave. You'll get jailed.
If you do, breaking out is tricky but doable. Makes some friends first (which I didn't but do) or have family (which I did and do). With combo of some brute force (breaking stuff IS fun), stealth (get you some wing-pony or horn-pony friends) and magical fire power (go little sister! yeah!), you can break out in 3 hours or so. Not too sure what would happen if you wait for sentencing, though. I guess you would not be on the run.
Anyhow, I got some plans to make to re-steal some fancy... uhm... right. No spoilers you wanted. That whole think before you act thing you got going on will take you far. Talking to people works pretty well. You're a pony-pony. Plants and rocks are going to be no problem for you. You'll see. And buck things because you'll get better at it. Just don't be dumb. I got to run.
P.S. Try to pull up stats and skills on your ponyself. I think you'll be surprised. *giggle* Unwanted advice... sorry. This game kinda does odd things to me. Like trying to be helpful.
Concerning the voice chat thing:
It's certainly amazing, but it's not perfect.
I personally found out that if you say too many things in a row that need to be filtered, your pony stutters out and just sits there doing nothing.
All the awkward moments were deliciously funny; I think I broke a lung from how hard I laughed.
Then my pony laughed along with me, and I almost died of oxygen deprivation.
Here's the thing, if you do take it, and it hatches, it's ends up imprinting. You pretty much can't get rid of it then without massive debuffs. Still, who doesn't like a pet roc?
Hrm. If your first instinct is not to take the roc egg, I'd opt for leaving it. You're probably feeling so conflicted because you're used to killing things in games, but also used to protecting innocent things IRL. However, there's a difference killing an egg that contains an innocent and harmless creature and killing an egg that will hatch a monster that can and will bite your face off if you don't slash/blow it to pieces in three seconds.
Aside from that, it's very possible that this is a hidden test of character that may influence lots of things later on. I mean, we're talking about a game by Hofvarpnir here. Those guys breathe revolutionary game design.
As for the talk about the game's Princess Celestia and her being/not being controlled by an AI - remember what Fall of Asgard did with procedural generation and smart game enemies. I wouldn't think it to be completely impossible (albeit unlikely) for them to have achieved Turing's goal, especially with the amount of money they got from Fall of Asgard which they didn't yet have when designing that game. Then there's also the thing about their CEO being (or having been, my Google Fu hasn't found a clear answer for that yet) one of the lead researchers in the field. As long as I haven't seen it I won't believe it, but I'm not dismissing it out of hand either.
In other news, my PonyPad just arrived! I got a Pinkie Pie one, also known as the Best Pone Version(tm). I won't be able to play it till tomorrow or late this night though, since I have an important appointment today. I'll notify you when I start playing though!
I just thought I would mention that there are a few sort of dumb, but easy to get achievements. I got them just by messing around.
You know how the camera follows you, kind of like Super Mario 64, only better, because it doesn't get trapped? You can still goof with it if you try to turn around really, really fast. You can get:
- I Feel Dizzy
- Dancing Queen (you have to rear up as you spin to get this one)
- I Faw Down Go Boom (if you spin enough, your pony will become dizzy and have to sit down.)
If you find a mirror in the game, you can get:
- I Like Me (stare at your face - the camera will zoom in - for longer than three minutes. You have to smile though.)
- Narcissus Not (make funny faces so that your pony makes funny faces. You have to do it for a while.)
- Staring Contests Confuse Me (stare at your own pony eyes for a fairly long time without blinking.)
Oh... and if you find a small round stone and kick it between two trees standing alone, you get
- Hoofball Is My Life (this one is funny because you can hear 'Goooooaaaalll' in the distance if you listen carefully.)
Oh, and there's one weird thing you can do - lick stuff. Seriously. Stones, trees, leaves, doors. Just tap your pony's mouth, then the thing. After a while, your pony will start saying little short asides without you saying anything. Things I've heard are:
"Mmmm."
"Okay, this is weird."
"Needs salt."
"EWWW!" (Don't ask.)
If you taste 31 different inedible things (I think it's a reference to 31 flavors) you get an achievement:
- Taste The World!
Look at it this way:
Equestria, in the show at least, runs on the Magic of Friendship. Therefore, you don't steal or sell the Roc egg. That would be dumb.
Instead, you do take it as your pet, and raise it with love and care, or at least the in-game equivalent of old-fashioned TLC. Why? Well for one thing, a pet roc would be a way to fly: you'd get the class benefits of pegasi without even having to be a pegasus. For another thing, it's a pet! Pets are awesome and cute!
Hell, if you don't take it, at least tell me where it is. Being able to get a pet/familiar roc, or maybe even a phoenix (like Spike and Owlowicious got in the show?), would basically tip me over into definitely playing unicorn. FEAR ME, EQUESTRIA, FOR I AM THE PONY WITH A PET BIRD! BURN IN THE EVERLASTING FIRE OF OUR WINGED SNUGGLES!
Yeah, the clerk definitely shouldn't have given me the Fluttershy Pad.
Comment posted by CDAWG deleted at 7:42am on the 15th of September, 2013
Just to reiterate — Ignore your own morality at your own peril. You do not have your cutie mark yet. Do you really want to risk getting a cutie mark in thievery or in animal rustling, or worse, cooking?
I recommend saving any questionable act for AFTER you get your cutie mark at the very least.
3205348
Giant legendary Storm Birds are the best pets (except when they eat the neighbour (that was a joke (not really)))
Also, the arrival in Canterlot chapter will be amazing.
GAAAAAAAH. NEVER. PONY. WHILE. DRUNK. Or you will end up a sea-green unicorn stallion called Tidal Pool. But I admit, his mane is so... peaceful.
Meeting Celestia was freaky. She speaks at least as well as the P2P ponies; whoever they've got voicing her obviously learned well how to sound like a highly educated millenia-old pharoah-queen. The question is: who are all these people who just get paid to stay up at all hours of the day voicing Princess Celestia?
She did say I could try to find a phoenix egg, but that if I don't want to end up "showing you value selfishness over friendship" I have to persuade the mother bird to part with her child. Kudos to the game designers for latching straight on to my Munchkining urges!
I can't afford the space or food for a pet in real life, so this is pretty cool. I'm gonna name him Izzy the Ziz.
So I had this big long reply to everyone written up, and then lost focus on the text input area and hit backspace. This causes most browsers to go back to the page they were on previously. When I got back to the comments section my entire post was lost. I'm a little annoyed at the site right now.
3205619
Yes, and then if I lost my Pony Pad I would have to do a Search for Sklop (Sorry sorry).
That half lidded look is how Trails looks whenever she's amused. I highly doubt it's bedroom eyes. I mean, it's just a game, and anyway, who would think a pony was sexy? They are cute sure, but making come hither eyes would just be strange.
When I run into Celestia I'll be sure to mention my LP. Whether it will be censored or not is another story.
3205717
Ah, don't blame Trails. And what do you mean you think she's another player? What else could she possibly...
...
Hold on to that thought, I'll get back to you later.
3205868
Mostly I'm doing this because I find that my reactions to others peoples suggestions tells me a lot about how I actually feel. Also they can point out things that I had missed. For example Doppler points out that leaving the eggs could have unexpected consequences and I never considered that. I'm also enjoying meeting new people through ponies and making new friends.
As to your second point; I'll get back to you on that later. I have some things that I have to look up.
3205964
And this is one of the best parts of doing a LP, people giving awesome suggestions or insights into the current situation. I honestly hadn't considered the threat they could pose, and that leaving them might cause problems.
3206893
Yeah, I've gone through and fixed my spelling. Also another vote for taming. Depending on what Trails says tomorrow it looks like a very good option.
I agree that the mid conversation voice editing is very strange. It does make me think of science fiction, but it's happening so I guess the future is here. And I agree, I think a little OOC would be nice. Maybe there's a place where that's allowed that I haven't found yet.
3207000
I'll keep that in mind. I would rather not end up in jail. Well, unless this was like Skyrim. I found a way to easily lvl my sneak skill to max in the Whiterun Jail. I might end up looking at how hard it is to be a thief, because I've enjoyed that type of play style before.
I'll definitely look into checking out my stats. I guess I got carried away and never thought too. Thanks for the tip!
3207382
That was a horrible pun and you should be ashamed for making it. (Translation: That was awsome!)
3207480
Again thanks for the alternative prospective. I was thinking about it like a cute little chick, and not thinking of it a potential monster that could cause havoc. Now that you mention it, I seem to remember something about Fall of Asgard being particularly awesome. I just never looked into it too much because I don't play MMOs.
Congrats on getting your new Pony Pad. If we can we should see if we can meet in game at some point. Shards depending of course.
As for Celestia. I'll get back to you. That said thanks for giving me some information to try hunting down. That will make this research a bit easier.
3207522
I'm not too much of an achievement hunter, but some of those sound really funny. I might try for the Dizzy one.
3208350
Your two posts are giving me a lot to consider. For example on the show, chickens give up their eggs willingly. Maybe I misunderstood what Trails was suggesting. Maybe diplomacy is an option, and that would be awesome if it was. I usually love playing a diplomancer. I just didn't think it would be an option in an MMO, but so far, Equestria Online has been nothing like I expected.
About who is playing Celestia. After doing some looking on the web, that is proving to be a very, very good question.
3208020
And another vote for having a pet. If I go that route I'll be sure to raise it so that it doesn't eat my neighbours. I think I'll be starting back to Canterlot as soon as I am done figuring out what to do with these eggs.
3208572
First off I was hoping for a reply on the cutie mark thing. As for the egg, if you are so torn on the matter, leave it and then ask Celestia what you should do about it. I think you might get an interesting response.
As for Trails I thought she was an ___ initially because... stupid game censor... I thought she was a native because she stiffly wanted you to head back for Canterlot. That felt like a construct of the game. There we go, I can relate it that way...construct of the game as opposed to a player.
3208641
Bleh, some stuff got lost and I guess my comment on cutie marks was one of them. Well, even if I did get my cutie mark from this (which I doubt), I don't think it would be for animal rustling so much as hunting or foraging. That said I'm not sure how they do cutie marks, but I doubt my cutie mark would rest entirely on this one decision. I figure it's more likely that it will be based around the collecting of achievements or something. When I get a certain amount In a certain area I'll get assigned a cutie mark in that area. At least if I was programming the game that is how I would do it.
And you thought Trails was an NPC?
I'll get back to you on that.
3208641
You're commenting on the Let's Play from inside the game? Woah, how do you unlock the apps minigame?
Sadface on your pics: your hosting site no longer has them. No pic of your pony, etc.
No screenshot of your parkor.