The Free Company Tavern & "OOC" Thread: Book IV

[Craig Ashley]

I wouldn't get discouraged by the so called "insane warrior" reputation. If no one expects much out of you, it's much easier to surprise them. Plus, I feel Abdul adds a bit of unpredicability to the FC.

Faeelin's right when he says that tactics that were effective in Arabia may not be so effective in Thrace. There are two ways your characters can react to this. 1) stubbornly cling to their existing methods 2) try to adapt their tactics using their general strategic outlook and traditional strengths. Either is realistic, and most men would likely do the first before the second.

If/when you adjust their fighting style, remember to keep it realistic. For example, Rooster is never going to suggest a lot of cavalry tactics because he has little knowledge of such things. He would also be very reluctant to ditch his beloved pikes, because that is what he is used to and what his men have trained with their entire careers.

Another thing is Abdul is never in on the pre-battle discussions so when he makes a sudden charge or movement, no one else has any idea what he is doing. Getting him a little more involved in the tactical discussions may clear up his reputation. Though I personally enjoy Abdul as we see him now. He's seems to be very brave, stubborn, a little reckless, and also blunt. Like I said he adds a sense of "what's he going to do next?" Abdul can be the weak link in one battle and the hero of the next. I think that makes him rather intriguing.

 

[J. Passepartout]

I think the main difference between Arabia and Thrace is that the Bedouin aren't able to hide in the desert. No one goes out very far in the desert, so the Bedouin could fade away into unhospitable territory, and then reapper somewhere else. It's hard, for a Bedouin, to hide anywhere else. Otherwise, tactics are adapted for terrain, just like any soldier, however stupid, would do.

I thought of my other post when I was reading one of LD's posts about the battle I'm currently in. Kent said that we were acting foolishly. I had been under the impression that Captain sent someone telling Ali to do that, behind the scenes, judging from one of his previous posts.

 

[Faeelin]

I think it's impotant to remember viewpoitns will differ. This could lead tto a flashpoint later on. I could easily see one of the Moors mocking the Bedouins for being barbarian hicks who don't know how to fight a war, while the Bedouins see themselves as the ones who are always leading the charges.

And let's not get into what the Bedouins say about the decadent Granadines...

 

[Craig Ashley]

I disagree that any soldier would automaticly adapt his tactics to terrian. History is filled with many failed generals who refused to do that very thing.

Secondly as Faeelin points out, our character's viewpoints play into how we perceive the other characters. Take Shur'tu and Yusuf. Whenever I've had Shur'tu mentally or verbally compliment the Moors, he immediately follows that by noting some perceived flaw or shortcoming. It's sign of his arrogance and Shur'tu's belief that there is no warrior greater than a Mongol warrior. Keep in mind that because Yusuf and Shur'tu have worked closely together some mutual respect has formed between them. Even this has not prevented Yusuf from believing the worst about Shur'tu in the rumors swirling around him. (I believe Faeelin mentioned that here in OOC and not in the actual story thread)

The Bedouins have pretty much kept there distance, so it would be easier for someone to get a negative impression of them. Not to mention you and I have privately discussed the possibility of a growing rivalry between Abdul and Shur'tu. I'm sure most people are trying to role play their characters and are going off what they have read. If I could give you a bit of unsoliciated advice, it would be to embrace this perception and play it to your advantage.

 

[Lord Durham]

Originally posted by J. Passeportout
I see the Bedouins are getting a bit of a reputation. Remember this. Raids on towns and tribal warfare by bedouins didn't stop until the 1920s. It doesn't happen much now, but still happens. Also, the Bedouins were very good fighters, and would scare the heck out of any soldier who knew anything about them, and was in Arabia.

My take on events is quite simple. Yusuf and Ali were dispatched to try and locate Kent and Shur'tu. Meanwhile, the latter two came across the Turkish landing site. The two men put together a quick strategy, then before they know it Ali is charging hell bent for leather into the Turks without so much as a 'by your leave', or even a moment of interaction with Shur'tu or Kent. So, obviously Kent is going to roll his eyes and say 'here we go again'. Your character did the charging, so I had to write it from another perspective to maintain continuity.

 

[unmerged(6528)]

Actually I think its very interesting the way the internal politics of this incarnation of yhe company are turning out. All of the previous books (with the exception of parts of the 2nd) have had sort of a "Company vs. the world" mentality. There is a distinct difference in this book, and its affecting the way the story reads and flows a great deal.

First, it sort of requires everyone to keep track of what everyone else has said to each other so we know how everyone (within available character knowledge) is acting toward each other.

Second, this company has more individual units than any other incarnation. The Moors, the Bedouin, the Mongols, The German pikes, the Swiss pikes, the Welsh....you can see where I'm going with this. In the old compnay yes there was units, but not this many, and they sort of merged to become part of their regiment, and the company as a whole.

Third, and this directly relates to the second point in that the "Old Company" writers being Nor, Myself, LD (obviously), and Driftwood (smack me if I forgot someone), sometimes can't post and that slows down the overall company feeling, plus since the more recently recruited aren't doing much to actually join in the company spirit it makes it a very different thing.

Now, please don't misunderstand here I'm not attacking anyone about this, I don't have some inner vision of what these stories are supposed to be like. I just want to point out that it requires a certain...awareness when writing it. The other part of this speech is to let you all know that your free to toos Lochlan in, but I warn you, he is all about the brotherhood of the company, so please take that into consideration when you write him.

Food for thought...

RJ

 

[J. Passepartout]

This little discussion gave me a bit to think about. *Goes back to plotting.

LD, I read a little too much into your posts, and assumed that the tribe was intended to do a bit of fighting.

Isn't it funny how this all happened because I wasn't entirely clear on one of my posts?

 

[Lord Durham]

Some good points RJ. Perhaps it's the nature of the siege that hasn't allowed the proper bonding to happen - in addition to the prolonged absences from certain writers, including myself.

Anyway, I think this is a good time to close the chapter. My closing post will happen on the 22nd of Jan, game time of course. If anybody wants to expand/wrap up/elaborate on certain plot points then now is the time to do it.

At this point I should also mention that I may accelerate the story to finish it up sooner than originally intended.

 

[Valdemar]

Originally posted by Lord Durham

At this point I should also mention that I may accelerate the story to finish it up sooner than originally intended.

Oh no I hope that isn't true?

Seriously, you decide, if you don't feel it is up to your standard, then it is your decision to make

V

 

[Lord Durham]

Originally posted by Valdemar


Oh no I hope that isn't true?

Seriously, you decide, if you don't feel it is up to your standard, then it is your decision to make

V

It will all come down to participation. There's only so much material you can milk from a handful of posters. We'll see.

 

[driftwood]

Well, I've definitely been bad. I haven't had writer's block, which I usually don't get, but I have been busy with pesky RL. Last week, for instance, I was travelling alot for work and then Mozilla ate my one long post ... <sniff>

But speaking for what Rath Jones called the old writers - don't forget MrT, btw - I think it can get fatiguing to write the longer set pieces. I know that's what happened in the Collaborative History of Genoa, although we also ran a bit short on ideas.

In addition, I'm wary of overposting. I deliberately took a supporting role in this book (with Clerk, er, Jacques as Captain's ADC and Murad hovering off in the background) since Guillaume came to have such a ubiquitous presence in past books, which many people disliked. So rather than doing frequent, small posts, I've been trying to do more selective, slightly longer posts. Hence when I'm too tired to do a long post, I post nothing. QED.

And now I need to catch up ... hope to post soon ...

driftwood

 

[TheF]

Sorry guys, my computer broke down and I don't have much time at this computer. I am going to try to reserve some computer-time at the university tomorrow.

 

[unmerged(6777)]

Sorry about my own posting quality and frequency... RL issues have had a significant impact on my ability and desire to write at times, and I'm trying to sort those out as much as I can. I've been, admittedly, preoccupied of late and I will try to get that out of my system ASAP and get back into more regular contributions.

I think perhaps that my posts are obviously not giving the rest of you enough to play off - or I'm being too subtle about it or something. I tried on a number of occasions leading up to this "crossing" to provide you with stuff to "see" and react to and yet almost no one took me up on it so I sat there wondering whether to proceed or not. I'll try to make things less "sneaky" and convoluted in future and throw some straight forward bloodshed at you.

Now where did I put those scaling ladders...?

 

[unmerged(6528)]

But speaking for what Rath Jones called the old writers - don't forget MrT, btw - I think it can get fatiguing to write the longer set pieces.

Well, I meant more the ones who are writing character who were in the company prior, of course MrT counts as one of the old writers, not as old as LD of course, but I think thats a discussion for another thread.

I think perhaps that my posts are obviously not giving the rest of you enough to play off - or I'm being too subtle about it or something. I tried on a number of occasions leading up to this "crossing" to provide you with stuff to "see" and react to and yet almost no one took me up on it so I sat there wondering whether to proceed or not. I'll try to make things less "sneaky" and convoluted in future and throw some straight forward bloodshed at you.

In all honesty (and yes I was a bit afraid to admist this, but what the hell) I didn't really understand the plan of attack. I think perhaps it was the different authors giving their own takes on an obviously unified, yet still complicated plan. As such I at least didn't want to write anything up and screw up who was supposed to be where.

The other problem I'm having is distance, theirs alot of wall in Constantinople and even more city, It's difficult to justify why Lochlan is with X group 10 miles away from his command even though the action is there. Not arguing for a smaller city or anything LD, just commenting my own personal difficulty in writing it.

RJ

 

[Craig Ashley]

MrT, your last post mirrored my own thoughts. The Bey is going to beat Pasha to the city. Na-na-na-na!

About the idea of factionalism in the FC. If you look at most of the old characters, they are men who joined the FC as individuals. It would be much easier for them to feel and embrace the brotherhood of the FC. The groups we have now, Swiss, Mongol, Moor, Bedouin, Welsh, and Germans are outsiders and already have a group of trusted bothers-in-arms-in each other. Some may find it easier to feel a part of the FC than others, but the fact that they came in as a group means they will probably always see themselves as a smaller group within a larger one. It would be up to the "old school" members to see that they are intigrated into the FC.

I've seen some folks talk about the way the old FC used to dine together and such. Maybe the old members need to drag the newer factions to such a gathering. My mental image has been of the old FC still dining together, but the newer groups - paticularly the Muslims being left to themselves. Please no this is not a criticism of the old members. It's actually a natural turn of events. People have to make a concious effort to include new people in their established groups.

Lastly, I for one always intended on intorducing a bit of mistrust to the mix. Shur'tu's alledged history, his gruff demeanor, and the fact that he is so foreign to European society all add up to make him an outsider.

 

[unmerged(6528)]

Well said Craig, thats what I was trying to get out and ended up dancing around .

RJ

 

[Faeelin]

Hm. Maybe we could use a couple of days (say, til monday) to have some socialization?

 

[EmprorCoopinius]

Hrmmm..it is an interesting problem.

I have to admit I've contributed to it through my posting...I tend to focus on my character and what he's doing/thinking/feeling/whatever. I tread fine line while involving other characters...I want to include them, but I don't want to speak for them or simply throw them in to have an identifiable name in there.

I guess it boils down to too little experience with this sort of project. But let's not cut it short....we need a Company dinner before the attack. Attendance mandatory!

 

[Lord Durham]

Originally posted by Rath Jones


The other problem I'm having is distance, theirs alot of wall in Constantinople and even more city, It's difficult to justify why Lochlan is with X group 10 miles away from his command even though the action is there. Not arguing for a smaller city or anything LD, just commenting my own personal difficulty in writing it.

RJ

I think it's safe to assume that the officers, and for the most part, the majority of the men, spend little time on the walls. That's what guards and patrols are for.

I think most of the 'down' time would be spent socializing, sight-seeing, drinking, trying to stay out of trouble, etc. In other words, boring stuff.

We've never really handled the receiving end of a siege before, so I would suggest you place yourself in you character's boots and ask 'what would I do to alleviate the boredom?' For instance, in the old FC days, someone made a still...

Driftwood, I don't think the problem was with too much Guillaume. It went much deeper than that...

E_C, name-tossing, even for effect, at least involves other characters. Sometimes a throw-away comment will be picked up on by someone else. Rath Jones is a master at name-tossing. He doesn't neccessarily socialize with everyone he names, but he may at least walk past the character and wave, or whatever.

 

[unmerged(6528)]

E_C, name-tossing, even for effect, at least involves other characters. Sometimes a throw-away comment will be picked up on by someone else. Rath Jones is a master at name-tossing. He doesn't neccessarily socialize with everyone he names, but he may at least walk past the character and wave, or whatever.

Thanks for the praise LD, but I learned it from yourself, Sgt. B, Storey among others .

I happen to totally agree with you E_C, as well as your reasoning. Just tossing in a name is like icing with no cake, good for some people, but its not the real deal. For me, there's a few things I like to look at when I'm going to name-toss. Obvious stuff, like what do I know the character would normally be doing, where would I find him, little things. It used to be easier , whenever Lochlan would come back from a patrol he would walk through camp, and I would try and shove a few names in just to show that it wasn't an isolated event. This works on several levels, first it establishes in the mind of the reader that yes we are all in the same place, second, it gives the other writers hooks to write from (and helps alleviate some of writers block), and third it can say alot about your character if you add in small observations or comments about the guy you just walked by.

As for the lack of experience and the not wanting to put words in other people mouths, just go ahead and to it. The other author can always ask you to change/remove it, but were not going to grow as a group unless we take a few risks. I find it too be much more fun reacting and writing about what someone else has Lochlan say than what I have him say on occasion. Also, look at LD's posts, do you think he has any more idea of what were supposed to be like? I rather doubt it, though, characters from the old crew he has a little more to work with somply because they've had time to build more history, but the fact remains he really has no idea what we plan/think/plot about our characters futures. So in short, feel free to write Lochlan in wherever all of you, I promise he'll play nice .

Also, I would like to encourage anyone else who wants to toss up a topic about writing in th thread here. This ooc thread is not only the right place for it, but you can tell how much smoother this book flows because we have it.

and I babble on....

RJ