HTML Inner Empire [v1.7] [Defiant Explorer]

[Defiant Explorer]

Finally got around playing the new update, I might be alone with this but I'm throughly enjoying Cadonis' scenes.

Spoiler

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Judging by the comments I see I'm not alone with being intrigued by Yuturna & Sargon though!

Something tells me that you are not alone in your feelings about Cadonis. I think some people project their attitude to what's going on based on "right" or "wrong". And Cadonis looks like a problem, looks wrong. Huh, but he is a problem, conflict. Intermediate, but still a curious one. Anyway, without conflicts, any story would turn into a boring recounting of what happened, like some summary, some... meh.

Also, many see him as a one-dimensional character, a kind of womanizer, and nothing more. Ahem, do my other characters look like functions? If so, I'm not doing my job well. If not, well, that's cause for reflection for those who see Cadonis only as a function. This is the only character whose past players, so far, know nothing about. Even the mysterious Sargon's past is better known. After all, the source of most of the information about other characters is Iolanta. And what does she give out when it comes to Cadonis? Only her attitude toward him.

P.S. The scene with him in the next update, if it works out the way I envision it, will be hot, like, yeah... smokin' hot ^^ Not so much even by itself, but because of new, additional context around it.

 

[damnedfrog]

Something tells me that you are not alone in your feelings about Cadonis. I think some people project their attitude to what's going on based on "right" or "wrong". And Cadonis looks like a problem, looks wrong. Huh, but he is a problem, conflict. Intermediate, but still a curious one. Anyway, without conflicts, any story would turn into a boring recounting of what happened, like some summary, some... meh.

Also, many see him as a one-dimensional character, a kind of womanizer, and nothing more. Ahem, do my other characters look like functions? If so, I'm not doing my job well. If not, well, that's cause for reflection for those who see Cadonis only as a function. This is the only character whose past players, so far, know nothing about. Even the mysterious Sargon's past is better known. After all, the source of most of the information about other characters is Iolanta. And what does she give out when it comes to Cadonis? Only her attitude toward him.

P.S. The scene with him in the next update, if it works out the way I envision it, will be hot, like, yeah... smokin' hot ^^ Not so much even by itself, but because of new, additional context around it.

I don't think Cadonis is a one-dimensional character. But let's say that he don't give us a good first impression, unless you like womanizer.
It's true that for now, almost all the information we have about him came from Iolanta. That she seems to really dislike him, and so, her words are driven by her contempt for him.
But, the first time we can see him, he had is way on a woman, and then discard her once he got what he wanted. Clearly, he didn't care at all for her feelings.
Maybe later we will know things that make him more likable. But for me, it has a big hill to climb...

I have no doubt that Iolanta may want to manipulate Selene, and is not totally honest with Selene.
But, if I understand well the lore of this world, she take a great risk to propose the Blue Kiss. I suppose such drug could be see as a sacrilege, going against the will of the Goddess of Fertility. And I suppose the punishment for such thing should be very hard (maybe even death?). So I don't think Iolanta can be totally dishonest to Selene, because Selene know one of Iolanta dangerous secret.

 

[Defiant Explorer]

I don't think Cadonis is a one-dimensional character. But let's say that he don't give us a good first impression, unless you like womanizer.
It's true that for now, almost all the information we have about him came from Iolanta. That she seems to really dislike him, and so, her words are driven by her contempt for him.
But, the first time we can see him, he had is way on a woman, and then discard her once he got what he wanted. Clearly, he didn't care at all for her feelings.
Maybe later we will know things that make him more likable. But for me, it has a big hill to climb...

I have no doubt that Iolanta may want to manipulate Selene, and is not totally honest with Selene.
But, if I understand well the lore of this world, she take a great risk to propose the Blue Kiss. I suppose such drug could be see as a sacrilege, going against the will of the Goddess of Fertility. And I suppose the punishment for such thing should be very hard (maybe even death?). So I don't think Iolanta can be totally dishonest to Selene, because Selene know one of Iolanta dangerous secret.

Oh, I'm certainly not going to defend or advocate for Cadonis. He is what he is. I'm just about to write the dialogue on his route, where the protagonist will have the first opportunity to pry into his past. Another piece of the puzzle for seeing a bit clearer picture. Iolanta's route is already brought up to the update's core (middle), by the way.

Regarding the Blue Kiss. All below are just hypothetical speculation about what if, of course. It's not a common poison in the Republic. And in the Dominion, only certain professions know about it. Oh, and people who know about poisons, yeah. So as a blackmail secret, it's doubtful... Unless the protagonist goes directly to Melea's temple to report on Iolanta and somehow avoids questions like how she's involved in all this... And there's no modern justice in this society, so they'll probably both get arrested. But a nobleman (Sargon) can intercede for Iolanta. And who will stand up for the protagonist? Pitchy?

Spoiler: :)

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[unocrus]

I can tell from the way this is written that the author is talented and probably has a ton of unseen backstory already laid out. Maybe I'm reading too much into it though, but I also kind of pick up the vibe that the author would rather be writing a D&D module than smut. The scene early on in the bar with the fat rich guy for example felt almost like a self-referential commentary on how the author feels about those kinds of scenes.

 

[Defiant Explorer]

I can tell from the way this is written that the author is talented and probably has a ton of unseen backstory already laid out. Maybe I'm reading too much into it though, but I also kind of pick up the vibe that the author would rather be writing a D&D module than smut. The scene early on in the bar with the fat rich guy for example felt almost like a self-referential commentary on how the author feels about those kinds of scenes.

Generally speaking, I don't consider sex as "smut." Nor do I consider the detailing of sex as such to be pornography by default. Porn is when all parts of a work serve only one purpose: to justify the presence of sex scenes. I have long wondered what if... make a "normal" game, with a "normal" story, but also with sex? Detailed, without the embarrassed fig leaf of a conditional black screen or ridiculous (and because of this) toothless erotism? That kind of thought started crossing my mind years ago when I was playing Skyrim with 18+ mods. Like, a regular game, but with sex. Detailed sex. And for some reason, the sky doesn't fall on my head. And because I didn't overdo it with sex mods (nothing that ruins lore I didn't install) Skyrim still was Skyrim.

Since then, I don't understand why detailed murders are okay to work with, but explicit sex automatically drives the artwork into the "porn" ghetto. What was that Gilgamesh dude doing in one of the first known written epics? Walked the earth and killed things. What does the average player do today, thousands of years later? Walkes the [name_game] and kills things. What is the focus of most movies and books? Violence. One way or another, it's most often violence. Against this backdrop, I don't understand why showing violence is ok, but sexual violence is not ok. I understand even less why detailing consensual sex is bad, is "smut", and is something, that should be hidden or be ashamed of.

So no. I didn't want to do a DnD module or something. I'm doing exactly what I wanted to do from the beginning.

 

[MrAnarchy]

Generally speaking, I don't consider sex as "smut." Nor do I consider the detailing of sex as such to be pornography by default. Porn is when all parts of a work serve only one purpose: to justify the presence of sex scenes. I have long wondered what if... make a "normal" game, with a "normal" story, but also with sex? Detailed, without the embarrassed fig leaf of a conditional black screen or ridiculous (and because of this) toothless erotism? That kind of thought started crossing my mind years ago when I was playing Skyrim with 18+ mods. Like, a regular game, but with sex. Detailed sex. And for some reason, the sky doesn't fall on my head. And because I didn't overdo it with sex mods (nothing that ruins lore I didn't install) Skyrim still was Skyrim.

Since then, I don't understand why detailed murders are okay to work with, but explicit sex automatically drives the artwork into the "porn" ghetto. What was that Gilgamesh dude doing in one of the first known written epics? Walked the earth and killed things. What does the average player do today, thousands of years later? Walkes the [name_game] and kills things. What is the focus of most movies and books? Violence. One way or another, it's most often violence. Against this backdrop, I don't understand why showing violence is ok, but sexual violence is not ok. I understand even less why detailing consensual sex is bad, is "smut", and is something, that should be hidden or be ashamed of.

So no. I didn't want to do a DnD module or something. I'm doing exactly what I wanted to do from the beginning.

Here Here!!!

 

[Necrosian]

Just finished the available content. Like it very much so far. Only gripe i have is that you need Willpower just to tell certain person to fuck off. Had to cheat just to get rid of him.

 

[Defiant Explorer]

Just finished the available content. Like it very much so far. Only gripe i have is that you need Willpower just to tell certain person to fuck off. Had to cheat just to get rid of him.

Glad to hear.

About Willpower. It's not quite "just say no", but it's been discussed on several pages here (somewhere around pages ~13-15 if I'm not mistaken). On the whole, it's an RPG. To notice something you need Perception, to throw something heavy you need Vigor, to trick someone you need Intrigue, etc. Willpower is no exception.

About cheats. I turned them off not without a reason... If you turned them on by editing a certain line - be careful. Changing stats is safe. But changing the Origin, for example, can corrupt your save and make the game impassable in the future.

 

[Exceeder96]

Is redhead girl romanceable now? If not, will she be romancable in future?

 

[Defiant Explorer]

Is redhead girl romanceable now? If not, will she be romancable in future?

Now? No. In the future? Huh, and how am I supposed to answer that question without spoilers? All I can say is that I have big plans for Murella, and Selene will be able to make a big difference in shaping her.

 

[damnedfrog]

Is redhead girl romanceable now? If not, will she be romancable in future?

Sweet Murella isn't romanceable for now.

But Defiant Explorer already reply she should be latter. But it will be a long run.
Which totally makes sens with her.
Unlike Cadonis who is a womanizer, and Iolanta who is an experienced woman with an open sexuality, Murella is young and very shy. For what we know, she has no sexual experience at all. And I suspect she never has even a platonic lover (well she could has been secretly in love with someone, but I don't think anyone has express their love to her).
Not to mention that in this world, homosexuality is a major sin. Lesbian love is punishable by 20 lashes.
So, it will take times before she could express her feelings (and probably even just accept them).
Well, I could be wrong, but it's how I see things about Murella for now.

Oops, Defiant Explorer was faster than me

 

[Defiant Explorer]

Sweet Murella isn't romanceable for now.

But Defiant Explorer already reply she should be latter. But it will be a long run.
Which totally makes sens with her.
Unlike Cadonis who is a womanizer, and Iolanta who is an experienced woman with an open sexuality, Murella is young and very shy. For what we know, she has no sexual experience at all. And I suspect she never has even a platonic lover (well she could has been secretly in love with someone, but I don't think anyone has express their love to her).
Not to mention that in this world, homosexuality is a major sin. Lesbian love is punishable by 20 lashes.
So, it will take times before she could express her feelings (and probably even just accept them).
Well, I could be wrong, but it's how I see things about Murella for now.

Oops, Defiant Explorer was faster than me

The next update will give light on some of the questions about Murella you raised. As a dev, I can't afford to give detailed answers to future events. Even, purely logical chains, as they too will give away the direction in which I think. But players... You are free to do so. And many of you are thinking in the right direction.

 

[damnedfrog]

The next update will give light on some of the questions about Murella you raised. As a dev, I can't afford to give detailed answers to future events. Even, purely logical chains, as they too will give away the direction in which I think. But players... You are free to do so. And many of you are thinking in the right direction.

Well, I don't ask for spoilers.
Knowing Murella is a love interest is enough for me.
I just hope her route isn't tied to one or two not obvious choices.

 

[Defiant Explorer]

I just hope her route isn't tied to one or two not obvious choices.

I can answer that. No, nothing particularly hidden or non-obvious is planned. Just communicate with her any chance you get. The first such opportunity will be just in 1.5. The outcome of your communications will gradually (not instantly!) affect her.

 

[Exceeder96]

Sweet Murella isn't romanceable for now.

But Defiant Explorer already reply she should be latter. But it will be a long run.
Which totally makes sens with her.
Unlike Cadonis who is a womanizer, and Iolanta who is an experienced woman with an open sexuality, Murella is young and very shy. For what we know, she has no sexual experience at all. And I suspect she never has even a platonic lover (well she could has been secretly in love with someone, but I don't think anyone has express their love to her).
Not to mention that in this world, homosexuality is a major sin. Lesbian love is punishable by 20 lashes.
So, it will take times before she could express her feelings (and probably even just accept them).
Well, I could be wrong, but it's how I see things about Murella for now.

Oops, Defiant Explorer was faster than me

Yeah I am totally fine with long run with her character. And the shunned lesbianism in the game world adds up much more spice and interest to that type of relationships imo, it is more realistic medieval environment so it might be much more fun and interesting experience for the yuri-only walkthrough.

 

[Lord_Momentum]

This is an exceptionally well written game and I absolutely love the RPG elements of it. There are just two "worries" I have:

1. The intro in that village was very well executed, because we got some sort of tutorial in a well contained environment to
learn about the basics of the game, but it does feel a little inconsequential in terms of character interactions:
Will we see the tax collector again? The smith? The boys sitting in the tavern? The woman feeding her children? The high quality of the writing makes me think that these interactions should feel a little more consequential, in order to make a more coherent story and I worry we might "only" switch from hot scene to plot scene without tying one of them to the other.

2. The handling of pregnancies. So the game makes me feel like a pregnancy will result in a quick "game over". Probably even a bad ending, but I personally think that it would omit all of the interesting consequences of such a pregnancy. I hope the game will track who the potential father is and and least make interesting epiloges accordingly, but since I know how much work that would entail, I worry that this is not what we will get.

Just to make clear: These two points would never bother me in a different game on this site, but since it set such a high precedent in terms of quality of writing, I cant help but treat it with the expectations it deserves.

 

[Defiant Explorer]

This is an exceptionally well written game and I absolutely love the RPG elements of it. There are just two "worries" I have:

1. The intro in that village was very well executed, because we got some sort of tutorial in a well contained environment to
learn about the basics of the game, but it does feel a little inconsequential in terms of character interactions:
Will we see the tax collector again? The smith? The boys sitting in the tavern? The woman feeding her children? The high quality of the writing makes me think that these interactions should feel a little more consequential, in order to make a more coherent story and I worry we might "only" switch from hot scene to plot scene without tying one of them to the other.

2. The handling of pregnancies. So the game makes me feel like a pregnancy will result in a quick "game over". Probably even a bad ending, but I personally think that it would omit all of the interesting consequences of such a pregnancy. I hope the game will track who the potential father is and and least make interesting epiloges accordingly, but since I know how much work that would entail, I worry that this is not what we will get.

Just to make clear: These two points would never bother me in a different game on this site, but since it set such a high precedent in terms of quality of writing, I cant help but treat it with the expectations it deserves.

You'll encounter a couple of characters from the 1st chapter again. As for the rest... From unlikely to not.

About pregnancy here.

 

[88Michele88]

i see there no sex scene such images about all the scene. It kind boring just to try imagine something is hard. Give us image which accompany the text.

 

[damnedfrog]

i see there no sex scene such images about all the scene. It kind boring just to try imagine something is hard. Give us image which accompany the text.

It's a text based game...
If you don't have enough imagination, I think it's not a game for you.

I really prefer that Defiant Explorer focus on the story rather than wasting his time making image.

 

[Defiant Explorer]

damnedfrog Oh, my shining knight, there is no need to defend my honor xD Just a little investigation and the clear realization comes that some people are not quite in a position to give any advice. And even having images doesn't help them much.

But your zeal is worthy of reward. Here's a little snippet from the next update.

Spoiler

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Why did this particular piece of dialogue come to my mind in this situation? Oh, well, I don't even know...

By the way, for my patrons here and all who are interested. I'm doing my best to make sure that the next update (1.5) will be ready before the end of this month. Yes, I should post something on my Patreon, but by the end of the day, I usually don't have the energy to write anything else at all... But in the next few days, I'll carve out a moment.