Written Stories & Tales
Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2016 12:36 pm
I've put a huge amount of effort into creating the world in which CLOK takes place, and now that I'm no longer involved in the game, I need another outlet to help this world in my mind exist in some greater capacity. I've got a bunch of ideas for short stories that can occur in the world, and I've even started writing a few. I thought I'd pop in here and ask if there was anything in particular that people would like to read about at some point in story form. It can be in the Lost Lands or elsewhere.
One thing to keep in mind is that the story world will be very similar to the CLOK world, but slightly different, and should be considered an "alternate reality". There are a lot of things you do differently for a game than you would for a written story. There's also the matter of my no longer being in charge of the game lore, so there are certainly going to be differences between the game and any stories I write. Here are a few of the primary questions that players of CLOK might ask upon reading the stories I'm writing:
Q: Why did you rename the Church of Light and Knights Templar?
A: When people hear the terms "church" and "Templar", they bring a lot of preconceived notions, judgments, and criticisms with them. This was a big (and highly frustrating) problem in the game, and I'm trying to avoid that with the stories. That, and I always thought "Church of Light" sounded pretty cheesy. It was a placeholder name that ended up sticking, for better or worse (similar to "Grum" and "Grummers").
Q: What happened to elemancy?
A: Elemancy never quite sat well with me in the game from a lore standpoint - it was mostly there because it was too fun not to try my own take on in a game environment. In the stories, elemancy doesn't exist, but it has been sort-of replaced by a more alchemy-like take on things.
Q: What happened to the Fasa people and the Tse Gaiyan organization?
A: These were concepts invented by a friend of mine who was working on the game with me. Seeing as I had virtually no involvement in their conceptualization and never managed anything to do with them through all my years working on the game, I wouldn't feel right writing about them, as they're 100% someone else's creation and labor. I've written in some groups that are similar in purpose (particularly a group dedicated to combating the infested, though the differences will be more than just in name).
Q: Why do some of the Immortals seem to be missing?
A: Mostly likely because, as the above, they were the creations of someone else which I knew relatively little about, and I would feel wrong trying to accurately represent and write about them.
Q: Some of these stories involve events that I recall from the game, and my character was involved in those events! Why isn't my character in the stories?
A: Once again, I wouldn't feel right trying to accurately portray someone else's creation or character. Sometimes I've made vague allusions to a character from the game being involved while never having them actually "on screen".
Q: The characters in the story just had a real tough time dealing with creatures that were wimps in the game. Are the characters in these stories just unskilled?
A: Not necessarily. In the game, we need weak, easily-overcome threats that the players can mow through on a continual basis so that they can feel accomplished and powerful, and so they can advance their skills and power through the game's mechanics. In a story, any threat that is nigh-effortless makes for a boring story. Thus it is that while in the game world a phantom can be dealt with easily in a few moments with a lit torch, in the stories a phantom could potentially be a significant obstacle to even a whole group of protagonists.
Q: Where is the ESP network?
A: The ESP network existed in the game to help players communicate with one another easily, regardless of location. In a story setting, I feel constant long-range instant communications would contribute significantly to cheapening any sense of suspense or mystery.
Q: Why has magic use been toned down so much?
A: Because I feel that magic should be special, not commonplace.
One thing to keep in mind is that the story world will be very similar to the CLOK world, but slightly different, and should be considered an "alternate reality". There are a lot of things you do differently for a game than you would for a written story. There's also the matter of my no longer being in charge of the game lore, so there are certainly going to be differences between the game and any stories I write. Here are a few of the primary questions that players of CLOK might ask upon reading the stories I'm writing:
Q: Why did you rename the Church of Light and Knights Templar?
A: When people hear the terms "church" and "Templar", they bring a lot of preconceived notions, judgments, and criticisms with them. This was a big (and highly frustrating) problem in the game, and I'm trying to avoid that with the stories. That, and I always thought "Church of Light" sounded pretty cheesy. It was a placeholder name that ended up sticking, for better or worse (similar to "Grum" and "Grummers").
Q: What happened to elemancy?
A: Elemancy never quite sat well with me in the game from a lore standpoint - it was mostly there because it was too fun not to try my own take on in a game environment. In the stories, elemancy doesn't exist, but it has been sort-of replaced by a more alchemy-like take on things.
Q: What happened to the Fasa people and the Tse Gaiyan organization?
A: These were concepts invented by a friend of mine who was working on the game with me. Seeing as I had virtually no involvement in their conceptualization and never managed anything to do with them through all my years working on the game, I wouldn't feel right writing about them, as they're 100% someone else's creation and labor. I've written in some groups that are similar in purpose (particularly a group dedicated to combating the infested, though the differences will be more than just in name).
Q: Why do some of the Immortals seem to be missing?
A: Mostly likely because, as the above, they were the creations of someone else which I knew relatively little about, and I would feel wrong trying to accurately represent and write about them.
Q: Some of these stories involve events that I recall from the game, and my character was involved in those events! Why isn't my character in the stories?
A: Once again, I wouldn't feel right trying to accurately portray someone else's creation or character. Sometimes I've made vague allusions to a character from the game being involved while never having them actually "on screen".
Q: The characters in the story just had a real tough time dealing with creatures that were wimps in the game. Are the characters in these stories just unskilled?
A: Not necessarily. In the game, we need weak, easily-overcome threats that the players can mow through on a continual basis so that they can feel accomplished and powerful, and so they can advance their skills and power through the game's mechanics. In a story, any threat that is nigh-effortless makes for a boring story. Thus it is that while in the game world a phantom can be dealt with easily in a few moments with a lit torch, in the stories a phantom could potentially be a significant obstacle to even a whole group of protagonists.
Q: Where is the ESP network?
A: The ESP network existed in the game to help players communicate with one another easily, regardless of location. In a story setting, I feel constant long-range instant communications would contribute significantly to cheapening any sense of suspense or mystery.
Q: Why has magic use been toned down so much?
A: Because I feel that magic should be special, not commonplace.