VN Ren'Py Karlsson's Gambit [v0.8.1 Part I] [Grym Gudinna Games]

[MilesEdgeworth]

I have no proof, but I'm still 100% certain it's Cole. He is the 7th member, exiled, but still on the Board.

This and the fact that Cole thinks Callista is gone pretty much debunks that theory

Spoiler

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[Stan5851]

Hmmm....fair points...fair points....

That only leads me back to the board room conversation/meeting with Olivia though. Unless I'm misrembering, when Uvette mentions the missing member, there seems to be a palpable thivkness in the air and with the rest...over it. Like (to me, the impression I got) is they know where/why (which is why I assumed the seventh was Astrid...Elana was still a board member then).

Yet only Dominique knows about his fate/where he is....(specifically and importantly, not even V who would be the most use to him).

Yes, I too think the 7th council member is Astrid, and what you described fits into the logic of what's going on and the timeline. As for Dominique and Cole's relationship, I somehow feel like Veronica may very well know about these conversations, we just haven't been shown that yet. I'm guessing that what Cole is doing may well be part of Veronica and Dom's overall secret project to revitalize life (restore flora and fauna) on the mainland. In which case, why would Dominique hide Cole's botanical research from Veronica? Hmmm...

Sure, we can assume that Dom and Cole have a personal secret arrangement, but what could it be? Dominique passing off Cole's accomplishments (research) as her own? Well, that's pretty ridiculous and childish... Some sort of secret partnership in exchange for Cole's future release (forgiveness) by the Board? I'm not sure...And as we can see, the Board blames Cole for a lot of trouble..(they still blame you a lot for our companies being at such odd). So I doubt Dom alone can help Cole make peace with the Board...Anyway, as usual, more questions than answers..

 

[Maviarab]

Anyway, as usual, more questions than answers..

Hahaha indeed...annoying yet oddly satisfying and fun to try and pick at them and see what we can try and figure out.

 

[Stan5851]

Wow, the thread got resuscitated after the arrival of Tess. Lots of activity.

Stan5851 For that highly controversial scene with Veronica, I've always believed this was a carefully constructed play.

If you look closely at the renders, you will see a slave hearing Veronica's shoe drop and then going to lick her foot. That wouldn't be possible if they were deaf. And it was her mother saying that they were deaf. I think it is because she wanted Elena to believe they were in a safe environment so Elena would speak openly. And it was one of these slaves who later leaked the information of V supporting Olivia to Dominique. And this was all part of Veronica's plan- her way of testing Olivia, whether she can tackle the dual assault of Dominique+Juliette.

But now that Tess is here, we can get this cleared once and for all.

Did the "hearing loss" situation become clearer to you after Tess' response?
For me, no.. I think it's gotten more confusing, hehe. And now the question of why Vi lied to her mother has really come up (as MilesEdgeworth rightly pointed out.). And if in regards to Elena you explained the possible logic of what's going on, now we have Yvette as well. At least, if Veronica really would have deafened all her servants, there would be no point in giving such an ornate answer to such a simple question, right?) Uff..We need Sherlock Holmes, or better yet, TessSadist, back from the office.

 

[DampAnkles]

It was already posted and also maybe you should put a spoiler tag on this pictures? YW

Deleted

 

[drdiver3]

So to leak a game without getting caught, you need to be smart? Didn't expect this from you actually.

Your words means nothing on f95 or any other pirate site actually, the first to leak a game is always a hero. I don't get it myself but it is what it is and your effort will be fruitless to the point that even your game's hardcore fans will enjoy it in a hiding or openly.

Crazy people tends to say that others are crazy, for a hard working Dev, you sure waste too much of your time saying that "I am a hardworking dev", while most hardworking people tends to be humble.
Also it's been 9 months since the previous release what are you "hard" working on?


Thanks, btw who are you?

Don't you have anything better to do than harassing someone who has been more successful in life than you?

 

[Mr. Chatty]

Don't you have anything better to do than harassing someone who has been more successful in life than you?

Lol you presume too much, and those weren't harrassments rather facts, if you think it's harrassment, it's on you.

Why did the developer stop visiting here with her official account? I think she just used this site to popularize her game. She now earns in excess of 5,000 dollars a month. It all seems so unfair, just look at the membership levels on her Patreon page. People are ready to literally throw money at her for nothing, and she still shows petty behavior like taking down the links to the test version. Why not just let us poor people enjoy the game? What a money-grubbing bitch!

Turns out Dev is also a blackmailer but she backed out from it as soon as I called her out for it.

I've taken the unusual step of signing back in -- I can't stop leaks and have been generally ok with them but I just want to be sure that people understand ahead of time that if I shift to Anais' game very soon in the future and let this go -- who specifically was most responsible for this decision. I hope all are doing well!

 

[Spacy7]

is the test version out, if not then is there any estimate date for test version?

 

[Kxca]

Did the "hearing loss" situation become clearer to you after Tess' response?
For me, no.. I think it's gotten more confusing, hehe. And now the question of why Vi lied to her mother has really come up (as MilesEdgeworth rightly pointed out.). And if in regards to Elena you explained the possible logic of what's going on, now we have Yvette as well. At least, if Veronica really would have deafened all her servants, there would be no point in giving such an ornate answer to such a simple question, right?) Uff..We need Sherlock Holmes, or better yet, TessSadist, back from the office.

I'm confused now, as well. I thought it was Yvette saying that the slaves were deaf and she was in the know. But as Miles pointed out, it was Elena who stated that fact. So there's 3 possibilities here: (1) Veronica & Yvette are playing a long con to make Elena believe that what she knows is true (2) Veronica has even kept Yvette in the dark to ensure that everyone believes that the slaves are deaf (3) The cleaners are indeed deaf and V is a monster.

Keeping aside that little interaction I have highlighted before, any of these can be true. Only Tess can answer this since only she knows what the characters have or have not done off-screen.

 

[Sharpshooter890]

Why is it Alessandra? That doesn't make sense to me at all.

When White-Tips and The Gambit Queen are talking they say things like:



How does Alessandra have board votes? From what I understand it's Julliette and Dominique that have three votes each, right? And Veronica is the one that refuses to help either of them.
(Also, this conversation takes place well before Dominique and Juliette decide to 'team up' during the boat scene when they realize Olivia has a real shot at taking over the company. So it's not like they're talking about 3 votes for the Dominique + Julliette alliance and 3 votes for Olivia)

White-Tips, during that conversation with Gambit Queen also says:



Alessandra is actually pushing for Olivia to take over the company, so why would the White-Tips (Ms. Grym Gudinna) be concerned about Elena not supporting them over Olivia if White-Tips actually is Alessandra?
Alessandra's support for Olivia is shown later on the boat scene:

Spoiler: 3 votes for, 3 against

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I thought it was Yvette saying that the slaves were deaf and she was in the know. But as Miles pointed out, it was Elena who stated that fact. So there's 3 possibilities here: (1) Veronica & Yvette are playing a long con to make Elena believe that what she knows is true (2) Veronica has even kept Yvette in the dark to ensure that everyone believes that the slaves are deaf (3) The cleaners are indeed deaf and V is a monster.

Spoiler: Yup, V is a monster

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[BurgRoyce]

Hhmmm... I missed the chance to ask Tess if we'll have some leverage over Alessandra's sister killing plans, or that will be decided "offscreen" (depending on certain variables or something like that).
Besides that, maybe she could shed some light about that mysterious 7th board member

 

[Stan5851]

From the scene to me it seems Yvette is just a good woman, unlike her daughter. And she is shocked by her daughter's actions. Personally, I see no reason for any of them lying about the slaves being deaf, it serves no purpose. If Veronica wanted to leak the conversation to 3rd party, there are easier ways to do that - bugs, cameras etc. Not some random slave that is supposedly deaf, but in reality is listening in on the convo, and whom we never see again. I think Occam's Razor is the way to go here - it's just the nature of the world they live in and Veronica is so past caring about human life and dignity that she (and everyone else for that matter) would deafen a person just because she can.

But then why would Tess give an answer that allowed for different interpretations?

Err got a sec on my way out to office now so not able to respond again but it might be relevant who said who was deaf and who else was in the room. (I hope I am remembering this correctly heh I was being very precise with it from memory but it's been a while)

After all, if Veronica really did deaf all of her servants, it would make much more sense to give a one-word answer like "She did it." Wouldn't it?

I'm confused now, as well. I thought it was Yvette saying that the slaves were deaf and she was in the know. But as Miles pointed out, it was Elena who stated that fact. So there's 3 possibilities here: (1) Veronica & Yvette are playing a long con to make Elena believe that what she knows is true (2) Veronica has even kept Yvette in the dark to ensure that everyone believes that the slaves are deaf (3) The cleaners are indeed deaf and V is a monster.

Keeping aside that little interaction I have highlighted before, any of these can be true. Only Tess can answer this since only she knows what the characters have or have not done off-screen.

Yeah, I wish I hadn't asked Tess about that. Now we're even more confused. But you're right, there are only three options.

 

[Sharpshooter890]

But then why would Tess give an answer that allowed for different interpretations?

Well that's easy to answer - to mess with us and watch us squirm, that's what I would do if I were in her place. You know, watching neckbeards on a porn forum exhaust themselves with all sorts of theories might be something Miss Tess would do. Or, as she said, she was in a hurry and perhaps misremembered or didn't phrase the response correctly.

 

[Stan5851]

Well that's easy to answer - to mess with us and watch us squirm, that's what I would do if I were in her place. You know, watching neckbeards on a porn forum exhaust themselves with all sorts of theories might be something Miss Tess would do. Or, as she said, she was in a hurry and perhaps misremembered or didn't phrase the response correctly.

Hmm, at least, Tess has never done that before and either understated (if it's a spoiler), or answered quite directly and specifically (if the information in her opinion could already be revealed)..So, I'm inclined to your 2nd option. Well, I can try asking about it on her Discord when Tess has time to chat there.

 

[Kxca]

From the scene to me it seems Yvette is just a good woman, unlike her daughter. And she is shocked by her daughter's actions. Personally, I see no reason for any of them lying about the slaves being deaf, it serves no purpose. If Veronica wanted to leak the conversation to 3rd party, there are easier ways to do that - bugs, cameras etc. Not some random slave that is supposedly deaf, but in reality is listening in on the convo, and whom we never see again. I think Occam's Razor is the way to go here - it's just the nature of the world they live in and Veronica is so past caring about human life and dignity that she (and everyone else for that matter) would deafen a person just because she can.

I found this after going through some very early chapters. The "right now" feels like the deafness was temporary. So either Elena didn't understand it properly (or I didn't). This could have given Elena the impression that V's slaves are permanently deaf while they're only temporarily devoid of hearing. Otherwise, how does Elena know of this, but Yvette doesn't? Making dozens of slaves deaf would be a big operation. Yvette was surprised since she had not heard any of this and just learned from Elena's (erroneous) interpretation. English is not my first language so it could be me misunderstanding here.

Spoiler

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And getting information via bugs against Veronica will be far-fetched. Why would Veronica have bugs in her own room and leak that? Wouldn't it immediately alarm Dominique or Juliette about who bugged Veronica if it was neither of them? And why they are leaking that, and whether they could trust info from such sources? Using a slave to start a rumor is much more subtle than electronic evidence.

While the simplest solution looks to be the most straight-forward one, this isn't necessarily true in KG. There's a lot of layers to what characters do or say

Yeah, I wish I hadn't asked Tess about that. Now we're even more confused

Unless she gives a clear answer or this is cleared later in the game, I doubt we will be able to close this

 

[Sharpshooter890]

I found this after going through some very early chapters. The "right now" feels like the deafness was temporary. So either Elena didn't understand it properly (or I didn't).

That's a very interesting observation, I missed this on my recent playthrough.

English is not my 1st language either, and I believe it's true for Miss Tess as well. So, even though the writing is excellent (both narrative and grammar), mistakes may happen on occasion. No work of art is infallible (and yes, I do consider games to be an artform).

To sum up my position on the whole deaf slaves business - I think we are ultimately looking for details that are simply not there. I believe the scene serves as an exposition for some plot points as well as a characterisation of the women in the room. Veronica doesn't see slaves as human beings, but only as tools for her wants and experiments, Yvette clearly didn't expect such actions from her daughter (which leads me to believe that her alignment is Good), and Elena simply admits that that's the state of the world they are in.

 

[Maviarab]

I found this after going through some very early chapters. The "right now" feels like the deafness was temporary. So either Elena didn't understand it properly (or I didn't). This could have given Elena the impression that V's slaves are permanently deaf while they're only temporarily devoid of hearing. Otherwise, how does Elena know of this, but Yvette doesn't? Making dozens of slaves deaf would be a big operation. Yvette was surprised since she had not heard any of this and just learned from Elena's (erroneous) interpretation. English is not my first language so it could be me misunderstanding here.

Spoiler

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And getting information via bugs against Veronica will be far-fetched. Why would Veronica have bugs in her own room and leak that? Wouldn't it immediately alarm Dominique or Juliette about who bugged Veronica if it was neither of them? And why they are leaking that, and whether they could trust info from such sources? Using a slave to start a rumor is much more subtle than electronic evidence.

While the simplest solution looks to be the most straight-forward one, this isn't necessarily true in KG. There's a lot of layers to what characters do or say


Unless she gives a clear answer or this is cleared later in the game, I doubt we will be able to close this

That's a very interesting observation, I missed this on my recent playthrough.

English is not my 1st language either, and I believe it's true for Miss Tess as well. So, even though the writing is excellent (both narrative and grammar), mistakes may happen on occasion. No work of art is infallible (and yes, I do consider games to be an artform).

To sum up my position on the whole deaf slaves business - I think we are ultimately looking for details that are simply not there. I believe the scene serves as an exposition for some plot points as well as a characterisation of the women in the room. Veronica doesn't see slaves as human beings, but only as tools for her wants and experiments, Yvette clearly didn't expect such actions from her daughter (which leads me to believe that her alignment is Good), and Elena simply admits that that's the state of the world they are in.

Right now...in English, would definitely mean...'for' now...temporary.

 

[TessSadist]

I'll leave a few last points but I'm probably not back for a long while to finish this update and other stuff.

I think the next update it will be clear with at least one person who does/does not know about Cole and how that might impact discussion about the Board membership. But might it be fair to say that if at least one Board member does not know Cole is alive, how could he "vote" as a Board member?

Alessandra is kind of a schemer by nature so I wouldn't assume any face value logic with her with everything she does other than that she might have no issues moving around to suit to her needs. (or biding her time to see who is winning)

Also keep in mind people can shift priorities if their knowledge/goals change over time. I know this is a bit nebulous, but just wanted to throw that out there.

Regarding a few other things:

My Patrons have always known how busy I am with other ventures. I've been very clear about that from the very start and have paused Patreon billing three times in the past based on my perception of right/wrong for value. I've never ever deceived anyone about the fact that Karlsson's Gambit for me is a side income stream that doesn't/never will take precedence over my main business and love which I do full-time before I get to KG work. I've also been clear with Patrons to never expect me to turn this into a full-time activity/job, there is simply no way a femdom game of this nature can ever be a financial equivalent to what else I do. I'm also ok with my overall pace -- updates are long but they are pretty big. I don't feel like a bimonthly update of say 500 renders (which is slower than my normal pace I do more than 250 renders a month) is all that useful for getting into the story that well. I have considered a dom/sub split update for a bit of improved speed, but I'm not sure how well that work with Patrons with the side having to wait longer breathing fire on me, hehe.

I will be clear about the piracy issue once and for all -- it's fine to do what you want, I wanted to make clear that a specific poster named Dover is a bad actor that has nothing to do with leaks. He is not a hero because of his character, not because of any leaks he has done or will do. I will not consider any third party leaker a bad actor in that sense. As a PSA, I would still encourage people to make sure at the end they save with a Final Version save even if they play the Test first. (I am telling Patrons the same thing.)

I did leave F95 with what I think were fairly legitimate harassment concerns. The final straw for me was a barrage of messages from someone claiming they would kill themselves if I didn't do X. I think it's fair of me to consider that "crazy" a bit. I've had it much worse on Discord -- particularly with a very specific Chinese guy (who foolishly has given me his real name in a document he sent me which I did not ask for btw) who I genuinely felt sorry for because he was honestly the most sad human being I have met in kind of a "good" (good meaning a combination of background/finances/educational prospects) position in life...I felt great pity for him and really wanted to help him...until the harassment started. But I can't really close down my Discord, so I just have people help me out, etc. I still feel bad for this person to be honest, but I shouldn't have to deal with this either.

I also admit I'm not always a humble person and part of that is how people treat me in day to day life. KG is the one thing that does keep me humble, as it has not come easy for me to do like most things I have tried. But I love the creative process and it helps me in other ways outside of this game...so I keep plugging away.

Regarding the err ears? It's not option 3. There is only one logical reason Elena may have been told this to me? (maybe a minor second one) And would V be willing to deceive her own mother and if so, why?

I have greatly enjoyed reading this thread, it's been a lot of fun! It is unfortunate that I haven't always felt comfortable here, but that has not been the case with anyone posting here recently. (even the critical ones, that is not harassment just opinions)

 

[kinkyshin]

Spoiler: 3 votes for, 3 against

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Spoiler: Yup, V is a monster

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It's very possible that it's Astrid. Cole being the 7th board member isn't just far-fetched, it's impossible because when Olivia is told that Elena will be giving her board seat to her, she is also told that there are a few others who have multiple parents that were founders. None of the girls besides Veronica fits this category. Astrid would too though.

As for 'imbalance of power' multiple people tell Veronica on different occasions that she could easily take control of the company if she wanted.

Tess tells us who grym gunida is. Even if the second meeting with pat could be explained away. The fact that Pat is meeting with her in secret can't.
As for the votes, I assume it's for the gambit. If it was just for the person, the queen wouldn't be talking about Elena possibly getting what she wants since what Elena wants wouldn't be any of the sisters not named olivia winning it.
Alessandra's not supporting Olivia, the only person currently supporting Olivia other than Elena is Veronica and I believe that's only because she's supporting Kane and what he wants.

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[TessSadist]

Last minor thing I noticed -- I may have made a mistake with a number of living sisters in one piece of dialogue, I wouldn't try to read too much into it and I think I will go back and tweak it if I can remember. (oh no...)