Ok, dropping in and dropping my shoe to make a friendly reminder/RANT, just so everyone can continue enjoying the game. This is important to note for the future. I'll let that last one slide, but please, for everyone's sake, pay attention to the following.
I would like to ask everyone (no, I'm not pointing fingers COUGHETCHASKETCHMADNESSCHASERCOUGH) to seriously and carefully think about plot devices before they introduce them. This story allows a lot of freedom but with freedom comes responsibility. Think about the following when you're about to introduce a new plot device:
1) Does it have anything to do with the story? Do those pirates contribute anything to the story? No, as far as I can see, they don't. They only did towards the end because I forced some changes.
2) Is it plausible? And here I'm talking 'can there be a huge Sahara-sized sandbox next to small Japanese rural town overrun by pirates and their land fortresses?' sort of plausible. Sure, we have a few jedis, overlords-in-training, the occasional tengen-toppa-gurren-lagaan random deus ex machina....minor randomness like that is sort of ok, and it's definitely allowed if it's conducive to the storyline in some way. But a giant sandbox? Maybe not. If in doubt, perform a reality check or ask one of the GMs.
3) Is it MAJOR? I think an entire fleet of super-fortresses, a gigantic desert wasteland, plus a band of pirates joyriding on a stolen battlecruiser is QUITE MAJOR, don't you think, sort of atomic-bomb-in-the-middle-of-Japan Major? When it is that major a plot device, please consult other players and get their opinion first. Either post a suggestion or go to the chatroom and discuss it.
4) Same goes for events. If pirates are going to suddenly climb out of the drain pipes while we're having a bath, they should at least have the decency to knock first. Same goes for ninjas. If you're planning a major event that will affect a LOT of players, suggest it first and seek some form of agreement from the others.
5) Will it fragment the storyline? This is important. Will it cause multiple random storylines to shoot off on tangents? Things like that are difficult to follow. Try zapping through TV channels and see if you enjoy that. Please, for the sake of comprehensibility, don't fragment the overall storyline.
And next time aliens and Darth Vader come invading in their ohsuperawesome Deathstar from the 5th dimension and turn the mountains next to the sleepy little Japanese town into their personal Tatooine/Dagobah/whateverrandomwastelandplayground for no apparent reason, I'm ignoring them. Pull something like that again and I seriously won't be amused. As for other players, next time you see barney and his army of telletubbies come attack us while we're playing Strip Chinese Checkers, please don't react, because it makes it difficult to salvage the damage.
Hope nobody found that offensive in any way. If anyone does, I apologize sincerely. But this is what GMs do....well, sometimes.
Oh, and Koji, I'll get back to you on your PM. Been really busy, I apologize for not replying promptly. I'll get to it though. If I don't, poke me and demand an answer.
