Plotting/Discussion Post
Potential Barge Changes
General Barge Changes & Warden Expectations
The purpose of this post is to outline some new game mechanics and IC rules (meaning, rules for the characters, NOT the players, to allow for more plotting, interactions, consequences, and rule-breaking fun). Now, bear in mind that NONE of these changes are official yet. The general changes/warden expectations are in the “almost certainly going to happen” category-but we still want feedback to work out the kinks!-while the potential changes are still in the idea phase. Now! Moving on:
Death Toll
So, you know how characters have a tendency to die, then pop back up in the Infirmary feeling a bit put off, but generally okay and totally uninjured? You know how sometimes it’s easier to just go “fuck it” and die because that way you don’t have to deal with injuries anymore? That’s about to change. In order to create more of a penalty for dying, and to give the people in the Infirmary more RP stuff to do, we’re instituting a Death Toll.
Effects of the Death Toll:
1. Automatic revival 8 to 24 hours after death (Wardens only; Inmates still need to be vouched for)
2. Fatigue for at least 72 hours;
3. General malaise for at least 72 hours;
4. Ghost pains of the injuries received prior to death for at least a week, decreasing in severity as time passes. These should reflect the injuries you’ve received prior to death and the way you died! The rule of thumb is: severe injuries (such as severed arm/leg/head) will create more intense ghost pains for a shorter period of time (example, a severed leg will cause intense pain at first and probably a limp, but won’t cripple you for a week), while minor injuries (such as a broken arm/leg/neck) will generate less intense ghost pains (for example, you’d be sore, but it wouldn’t impair your ability to move) over a longer span of time. Poisoned/drained by vamp/bled to death? Then you’d probably feel light-headed and fatigued longer;
5. Nausea/inability to hold down food for the first few days;
6. Headache lasting from 24-72 hours (longer if desired);
7. Dizziness lasting from 24-72 hours (longer if desired);
8. Impaired motor skills for at least 48 hours; and
9. Lack of control over bodily functions for at most 48 hours (OPTIONAL).
Note: The severity of the death toll and how long these effects last are also dependent on the character. If the character has enhanced stamina, strength, endurance (read: if you’re a human and you don’t have powers that give you enhanced stamina/strength/endurance or aren’t an Olympic athlete, it’s unlikely you fit into this category), then he/she will probably overcome the Death Toll faster than somebody who doesn’t have any enhanced physical capacities.
Now, one thing we’re trying to work out is how/where characters become restored. Should they wake up in the Infirmary? If so, do they have to be dragged there, or magically poof out?
Level 0
Level 0’s been an experimental sort of thing, and we’re still trying to work out the kinks to make it less of a deus ex machina and more of another environment for characters to interact in. So, without further ado, here’s a REALLY REALLY GIMPY LAYOUT FOR LEVEL 0 (not to scale LOL):
Now, you’ll notice that I didn’t specify how many cells there were. That’s because I’m lazy. I’m thinking it’s something like 10 - 14, that way… PEOPLE CAN BUNK UP AS THE ADMIRAL INTENDED. As for the rest of the map and other Level 0 changes:
Sentencing - Wardens can no longer appeal to the Admiral to toss Inmates into Level 0. They will now have to haul the little jerks into the cells physically. Now, this can be a potentially huge problem for our smaller/weaker Wardens, particularly those with big, strong Inmates, but the point of this is to encourage… WARDEN TEAMWORK! Go on, guys, help each other out!
Or, like, you could give your Inmate more incentive to behave and go quietly yourself.
Opening the Cells - Wardens’ items act as keys to the cells. So long as the Warden has their item on their person, they can open a cell. Unoccupied cells can be opened by ANY WARDEN. That way, if an Inmate’s acting up like crazy and their Warden isn’t around (or has been drugged or killed or something), somebody else can deal with them temporarily. If the Warden comes around later and goes “HEY I DIDN’T WANT THAT TO HAPPEN!” then they can easily run down to Level 0 and let their Inmate out themselves.
An Inmate’s cell can only be opened by their Warden, and only if the Warden has their special Warden item with them. This means that if you steal a Warden’s item to break your pal out, it won’t work. If you appeal to one of the dumber Wardens to open the cell for you, it won’t work. For Inmates who DON’T have a Warden, the Warden who sentenced them to Level 0 will be the one who can let them out. Note: Could be subject to change due to possible unfairness. Maybe any Warden can let un-paired Inmates out?
Visiting - Inmates can’t visit their pals in Level 0 without a Warden’s supervision. The door to the level just won’t open, sorry.
Observation Room - A private place that, much like the cells, has to be opened by a Warden who has their item on their person. This is a place where Wardens who're going to stay down in Level 0 to guard/watch their Inmate can rest while keeping the cells in sight. So, it a sort of stand-alone room with a big plexiglass sort of window, a bed, private toiletries, etc.
Interrogation Room - ANOTHER private place that, much like the cells, has to be opened by a Warden who has their item on their person. This is where Wardens can drag an Inmate they need to question in person, where they won’t be interrupted by naysayers, troublemakers, etc.
Warden Network
In light of Rayne’s voice post to the Wardens, we realized: HEY. That’s a really good idea! So now Wardens, for ease of communication, will now have the means to do voice posts in a Warden-only channel so they can coordinate/communicate easier in situations where they can't sit down and write stuff out. The standard will just be a small, hand-held communication device, but you can specify something different that may fit your character better (like a wrist com-link or a walkie talkie or whatever!). Olde timey characters will get to enjoy trying to master more modern technology.
Wardens & Security
All Wardens are expected to act as ‘security’ to some degree, although some will have more of a focus on security than others, based on how much/little time they need to spend with their Inmate and how qualified they are provide security. Wardens have limited authority over all Inmates, so while patrols are not strictly necessary (for assigned Wardens), Wardens are expected to watch over Inmates and put a stop to any shenanigans they see. This is particularly true for any unassigned Warden, since you guys are the ones with enough free time to watch over Inmates and patrol. However, it’s up to the Wardens to decide how their policing system will work.
Food/Supplies
As part of our ongoing attempts at paring down “Barge Magic,” we’ve decided to detail some changes in food and medical supplies, just for the sake of keeping everybody on the same page. Food and medical supplies are “replenished” at the beginning of each month, and there’s enough to last the month each round. This means if you aren’t careful or people are sneaking around for too many midnight snacks, you CAN run low on food, or at least certain food items. We don’t want to decree what food is being delivered each month, but just know that it may vary each month and that special or fancy things like sushi, raw oysters, and filet mignon, to name a few, are not going to be regular occurrences.
For those characters whose cabins have fridges/mini-fridges/pantries in them, you basically will have whatever food was in there when you left your world for the Barge, and it, too, will replenish at the beginning of each month. Enjoy a looping supply of the same stuff.
This also goes for medical supplies. The way med supplies work is that stuff like Band-Aids, gauze, over-the-counter medicines, and other basic supplies will be available in greater abundance than things like morphine, which will be scarce.
Because it affects EVERY OTHER CHARACTER IN THE GAME if your character decides to destroy the food supplies, you absolutely cannot do any large-scale tampering with the food supplies without 1) receiving mod permission, and 2) putting up a plotting post PRIOR TO THE EVENT so that other players can give feedback on whether or not they’d enjoy a plot where they all have to starve to death because of one person’s actions. Now, things like characters sneaking in to make a romantic dinner, people nicking midnight snacks, and minor tampering (like swapping the salt with the sugar, pranky stuff) are certainly permissible without mod permission. If you’re drugging or spiking any food, you should also talk to a mod and put up a post in the OOC community to let people know what’s going on BEFORE you do it.
Furthermore, with the addition of inventory positions and a set kitchen crew, know that somebody will VERY LIKELY be noticing if food/med supplies regularly start going missing. But if you get caught or show some initiative, you may be able to make deals, and that’s part of the fun.
Jobs
YES. FINALLY. JOBS! This section will explain what the jobs are and what to expect; this is not a job sign up sheet! That will come later.
Now, before we begin: some people have been playing out job functions IC, and it wouldn’t be fair to swap them out for people who beat them to posting here on a first-come, first-serve basis. So, people who have been, in character, playing out or making references to working in one of these positions gets priority assigning to the job function they’re in (this does not and will not apply to any inventory positions). Of course, if they don’t want it, they can simply request another one. And no, this does not apply to people who, after this post goes up, try to say that their character has been working in “insert position here” all along, without there being any IC stuff to support it.
Also, the mods are the final decision-makers on job placements. If two people want the last slot in a position, we’ll give it to the one whose character is a better fit for the position and whose player will run with it for plots. In addition, be mindful of the fact that certain characters will NOT, under any circumstances, be placed in certain jobs, based on their past behavior in the game or intervention from their warden. Remember all that stuff about IC actions having IC consequences? This is just one exciting place where it comes into play. For example, if your character has a persistent history of violence, you’re not getting in any job that gives you access to sharp things. So, jobs in the Infirmary are more likely to go to Inmates who’ve shown good behavior, and jobs in the Kitchen are more likely to go to Inmates who are level-headed enough not to stab the first person who angers them.
It should be noted that in certain jobs, such as the library and infirmary, it’s assumed that people will be there on different schedules, not that every inmate working there is hanging out at the same time. Still, we’re not going to set up a strict schedule for those, so if you want to say you’re on the same shift as one dude one day, then another guy the next, it’s fine. Just work it out amongst your ‘co-workers’!
Another note: remember, jobs are for Inmates, as Wardens technically already have a job: BEING WARDENS. Still, there are some positions for Wardens open in the jobs. Supervising Warden positions are tentatively filled in with characters who’ve been playing their job functions IC, but none of them are tied down to those positions if you want to change!
And now, without further ado: JOB POSITIONS. If you have any ideas for job functions we haven’t touched upon, please bring them up and we’ll take them into consideration.
Inventory
These are going to go to the most trustworthy, responsible Inmates, or at least those who’ve been good at faking it. If no Inmate appears to be suitable for the job, it’ll have to go to trustworthy Wardens. As the one in charge of inventory, it’s your job to keep a thorough list (made at the beginning of each month, when stocks are replenished) and check up on supplies ideally once per day to make sure people aren’t sneaking around and stealing crap. The Supervising Warden of whichever department you’re in (kitchen or infirmary) will be expected to double-check your work intermittently, but it’s up to that Warden when or how frequently they’ll be doing it.
The inventory person in charge of the kitchen gets to have the additional workload of reviewing and approving each week’s menu, comparing it to available stocks to ensure that it can be made. Still, despite this additional work, you’ve also got additional power and influence. After all, if you’re the sort who’s inclined to, you could make or accept deals with others to overlook certain things and fudge the numbers.
Same with the med guy, since you can basically be a drug dealer.
Kitchen
The kitchen requires the most coordination, teamwork, and manpower to keep going, so naturally it’s going to have the most people assigned to it! Duties of the kitchen include: prepping the food, cooking, cleaning, dishes, serving, and trying not to stab your fellow Inmates. Pretty simple stuff, but it takes time, and you have to listen to the supervising Warden, or whoever he puts in charge of the shift. Kitchen’s split up into Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner staff, each with a shift supervisor (who can be Warden or Inmate).
Supervising Warden - Rube
Library
Reshelf books; learn the Barge’s bizarre dewey decimal system; help people find things; keep track of who’s checking books in and out; follow up on returns; make sure nobody goes on a killing spree in the library.
Supervising Warden - ?
Infirmary
In the Infirmary, your job is to basically do whatever the supervising wardens tell you to. Assist them. Primarily, you’ll probably be tending to recently-deceased or the injured, and you should ideally have some intelligence or knowledge in medicine.
EDIT: Jobs can be divided into direct medical care and supportive care. So, those Inmates with a background in medicine, or at least decent first aid skills, will be helping the supervising wardens with direct medical care, and the support crew would basically take care of Death Toll'd individuals and others recovering from stuff.
Supervising Wardens - Libby and Peter
Security
This should primarily be made up of Warden volunteers; however, Inmates may, with approval from their warden and the supervising warden, also work security. Individuals working security just need to patrol and keep the peace. Of course, some Security folks may not be too interested in that, and you can have wild ‘police corruption’ shenanigans if you so choose.
Supervising Warden - Angel
Custodial
This means you suck and nobody likes you. Seriously. I have no idea how this would even work for gameplay options. I’m just wasting space here. Got any better suggestions? I’d love to hear it!
EDIT: Custodial, rather than being a job, will be punishment duty for troublemaking Inmates (particularly if they damage the Barge!)
Level 6 Room
So, uh, you know how every floor has a special room except for Level 6, which just has a big “LOL TBA”? Well… we really need to change that. So, right now, here are the two options that have been floated around.
1. No more magically self-cleaning laundry. BARGE LAUNDROMAT.
2. Move the pub there.
Now, the Barge Laundromat could be fun for some silly interactions, giving characters a new place to meet up with folks they’d otherwise avoid, and… forcing characters from the distance past and the far future to adapt to other technology, but maybe there’s something better that could be stuck on Level 6? Chime in with any ideas you have, or you’re probably getting a laundromat!
Potential Changes
Now, while all of the changes listed above are also technically ‘potential,’ these are EVEN MORE potential! Basically, I’m just going to throw out some ideas that have been tossed about, haven’t been totally fleshed out yet, haven’t had any kinks worked out, and you guys can pitch your own ideas, discuss them, etc.
Mainly, these potential changes are designed to create a greater distinction between Wardens and Inmates, create more of a ‘prison’ feeling and less of a ‘pleasure cruise’ feeling for the Inmates, and give characters more rules to break and areas to have weird interactions. Of course, some may like the pleasure cruise setting, so don’t be afraid to speak up. That way, we can better identify a happy middle ground.
Some of these ideas are a bit on the stupid/silly side, so… yeah, don’t need to take them all seriously!
Curfew - Inmates have a curfew! Which will just make them mad, plot against wardens, and rebel. Also, watching for people breaking curfew might give Security crew more to do.
Suggestion: Institute it as a temporary, Inmate-wide punishment whenever one of them gets rowdy and murders somebody.
Communal Bath/Shower Areas - Separated by sex. Wardens, obviously, keep their bathrooms and all; this would just be to rob the Inmates of their own fancy bathrooms. They get to just have their bedroom and nothing more. Now, this would probably be designed to be more dormitory style, less prison LET’S ALL HANG OUT NAKED TOGETHER style. Unless, uh, you want that for some reason. Awesome shankings and awkwardness can happen here. Potential problem: people will just have an orgy.
Above-Deck Levels/Warden-Only Areas - Expand the Barge upward! Thinking about adding/moving some rooms above-deck and making them accessible by Wardens only (again, Warden needs his/her item to get in). These would include: Warden meeting room, the pool (maybe), the pub, and… I dunno, something else.
Warden Meeting Room - Think of it as a sweet conference room, where Wardens can all get together and meet and argue with each other about Barge and Inmate stuff. Wardens can do some team-building stuff here.
Awesome Pool Table - It should totally exist.
TV Room - Too many potential 4th wall problems; what programs would they get? Would basically only exist so people can fight over the remote.
Barge Theatre - All the world's a STAAAAGE, darling! That's right, I mean a stage theatre, not a movie theatre. Inmates can... put on plays?
EDIT: - If this happens, it'll probably just be a gimpy stage in the dining hall.
BIODOME - What, it speaks for itself. Could also give Inmates more job functions. A nice, natural place that mirrors the 'real world' (PROBLEM: Real world is subjective), top floor of the above-deck levels; place for the Wardens to go, and Inmates can, too, if they earn the right.
That’s all, folks!
Go ahead and, as usual, post questions/comments/ideas/plots/etc. here.
General Barge Changes & Warden Expectations
The purpose of this post is to outline some new game mechanics and IC rules (meaning, rules for the characters, NOT the players, to allow for more plotting, interactions, consequences, and rule-breaking fun). Now, bear in mind that NONE of these changes are official yet. The general changes/warden expectations are in the “almost certainly going to happen” category-but we still want feedback to work out the kinks!-while the potential changes are still in the idea phase. Now! Moving on:
Death Toll
So, you know how characters have a tendency to die, then pop back up in the Infirmary feeling a bit put off, but generally okay and totally uninjured? You know how sometimes it’s easier to just go “fuck it” and die because that way you don’t have to deal with injuries anymore? That’s about to change. In order to create more of a penalty for dying, and to give the people in the Infirmary more RP stuff to do, we’re instituting a Death Toll.
Effects of the Death Toll:
1. Automatic revival 8 to 24 hours after death (Wardens only; Inmates still need to be vouched for)
2. Fatigue for at least 72 hours;
3. General malaise for at least 72 hours;
4. Ghost pains of the injuries received prior to death for at least a week, decreasing in severity as time passes. These should reflect the injuries you’ve received prior to death and the way you died! The rule of thumb is: severe injuries (such as severed arm/leg/head) will create more intense ghost pains for a shorter period of time (example, a severed leg will cause intense pain at first and probably a limp, but won’t cripple you for a week), while minor injuries (such as a broken arm/leg/neck) will generate less intense ghost pains (for example, you’d be sore, but it wouldn’t impair your ability to move) over a longer span of time. Poisoned/drained by vamp/bled to death? Then you’d probably feel light-headed and fatigued longer;
5. Nausea/inability to hold down food for the first few days;
6. Headache lasting from 24-72 hours (longer if desired);
7. Dizziness lasting from 24-72 hours (longer if desired);
8. Impaired motor skills for at least 48 hours; and
9. Lack of control over bodily functions for at most 48 hours (OPTIONAL).
Note: The severity of the death toll and how long these effects last are also dependent on the character. If the character has enhanced stamina, strength, endurance (read: if you’re a human and you don’t have powers that give you enhanced stamina/strength/endurance or aren’t an Olympic athlete, it’s unlikely you fit into this category), then he/she will probably overcome the Death Toll faster than somebody who doesn’t have any enhanced physical capacities.
Now, one thing we’re trying to work out is how/where characters become restored. Should they wake up in the Infirmary? If so, do they have to be dragged there, or magically poof out?
Level 0
Level 0’s been an experimental sort of thing, and we’re still trying to work out the kinks to make it less of a deus ex machina and more of another environment for characters to interact in. So, without further ado, here’s a REALLY REALLY GIMPY LAYOUT FOR LEVEL 0 (not to scale LOL):
Now, you’ll notice that I didn’t specify how many cells there were. That’s because I’m lazy. I’m thinking it’s something like 10 - 14, that way… PEOPLE CAN BUNK UP AS THE ADMIRAL INTENDED. As for the rest of the map and other Level 0 changes:
Sentencing - Wardens can no longer appeal to the Admiral to toss Inmates into Level 0. They will now have to haul the little jerks into the cells physically. Now, this can be a potentially huge problem for our smaller/weaker Wardens, particularly those with big, strong Inmates, but the point of this is to encourage… WARDEN TEAMWORK! Go on, guys, help each other out!
Or, like, you could give your Inmate more incentive to behave and go quietly yourself.
Opening the Cells - Wardens’ items act as keys to the cells. So long as the Warden has their item on their person, they can open a cell. Unoccupied cells can be opened by ANY WARDEN. That way, if an Inmate’s acting up like crazy and their Warden isn’t around (or has been drugged or killed or something), somebody else can deal with them temporarily. If the Warden comes around later and goes “HEY I DIDN’T WANT THAT TO HAPPEN!” then they can easily run down to Level 0 and let their Inmate out themselves.
An Inmate’s cell can only be opened by their Warden, and only if the Warden has their special Warden item with them. This means that if you steal a Warden’s item to break your pal out, it won’t work. If you appeal to one of the dumber Wardens to open the cell for you, it won’t work. For Inmates who DON’T have a Warden, the Warden who sentenced them to Level 0 will be the one who can let them out. Note: Could be subject to change due to possible unfairness. Maybe any Warden can let un-paired Inmates out?
Visiting - Inmates can’t visit their pals in Level 0 without a Warden’s supervision. The door to the level just won’t open, sorry.
Observation Room - A private place that, much like the cells, has to be opened by a Warden who has their item on their person. This is a place where Wardens who're going to stay down in Level 0 to guard/watch their Inmate can rest while keeping the cells in sight. So, it a sort of stand-alone room with a big plexiglass sort of window, a bed, private toiletries, etc.
Interrogation Room - ANOTHER private place that, much like the cells, has to be opened by a Warden who has their item on their person. This is where Wardens can drag an Inmate they need to question in person, where they won’t be interrupted by naysayers, troublemakers, etc.
Warden Network
In light of Rayne’s voice post to the Wardens, we realized: HEY. That’s a really good idea! So now Wardens, for ease of communication, will now have the means to do voice posts in a Warden-only channel so they can coordinate/communicate easier in situations where they can't sit down and write stuff out. The standard will just be a small, hand-held communication device, but you can specify something different that may fit your character better (like a wrist com-link or a walkie talkie or whatever!). Olde timey characters will get to enjoy trying to master more modern technology.
Wardens & Security
All Wardens are expected to act as ‘security’ to some degree, although some will have more of a focus on security than others, based on how much/little time they need to spend with their Inmate and how qualified they are provide security. Wardens have limited authority over all Inmates, so while patrols are not strictly necessary (for assigned Wardens), Wardens are expected to watch over Inmates and put a stop to any shenanigans they see. This is particularly true for any unassigned Warden, since you guys are the ones with enough free time to watch over Inmates and patrol. However, it’s up to the Wardens to decide how their policing system will work.
Food/Supplies
As part of our ongoing attempts at paring down “Barge Magic,” we’ve decided to detail some changes in food and medical supplies, just for the sake of keeping everybody on the same page. Food and medical supplies are “replenished” at the beginning of each month, and there’s enough to last the month each round. This means if you aren’t careful or people are sneaking around for too many midnight snacks, you CAN run low on food, or at least certain food items. We don’t want to decree what food is being delivered each month, but just know that it may vary each month and that special or fancy things like sushi, raw oysters, and filet mignon, to name a few, are not going to be regular occurrences.
For those characters whose cabins have fridges/mini-fridges/pantries in them, you basically will have whatever food was in there when you left your world for the Barge, and it, too, will replenish at the beginning of each month. Enjoy a looping supply of the same stuff.
This also goes for medical supplies. The way med supplies work is that stuff like Band-Aids, gauze, over-the-counter medicines, and other basic supplies will be available in greater abundance than things like morphine, which will be scarce.
Because it affects EVERY OTHER CHARACTER IN THE GAME if your character decides to destroy the food supplies, you absolutely cannot do any large-scale tampering with the food supplies without 1) receiving mod permission, and 2) putting up a plotting post PRIOR TO THE EVENT so that other players can give feedback on whether or not they’d enjoy a plot where they all have to starve to death because of one person’s actions. Now, things like characters sneaking in to make a romantic dinner, people nicking midnight snacks, and minor tampering (like swapping the salt with the sugar, pranky stuff) are certainly permissible without mod permission. If you’re drugging or spiking any food, you should also talk to a mod and put up a post in the OOC community to let people know what’s going on BEFORE you do it.
Furthermore, with the addition of inventory positions and a set kitchen crew, know that somebody will VERY LIKELY be noticing if food/med supplies regularly start going missing. But if you get caught or show some initiative, you may be able to make deals, and that’s part of the fun.
Jobs
YES. FINALLY. JOBS! This section will explain what the jobs are and what to expect; this is not a job sign up sheet! That will come later.
Now, before we begin: some people have been playing out job functions IC, and it wouldn’t be fair to swap them out for people who beat them to posting here on a first-come, first-serve basis. So, people who have been, in character, playing out or making references to working in one of these positions gets priority assigning to the job function they’re in (this does not and will not apply to any inventory positions). Of course, if they don’t want it, they can simply request another one. And no, this does not apply to people who, after this post goes up, try to say that their character has been working in “insert position here” all along, without there being any IC stuff to support it.
Also, the mods are the final decision-makers on job placements. If two people want the last slot in a position, we’ll give it to the one whose character is a better fit for the position and whose player will run with it for plots. In addition, be mindful of the fact that certain characters will NOT, under any circumstances, be placed in certain jobs, based on their past behavior in the game or intervention from their warden. Remember all that stuff about IC actions having IC consequences? This is just one exciting place where it comes into play. For example, if your character has a persistent history of violence, you’re not getting in any job that gives you access to sharp things. So, jobs in the Infirmary are more likely to go to Inmates who’ve shown good behavior, and jobs in the Kitchen are more likely to go to Inmates who are level-headed enough not to stab the first person who angers them.
It should be noted that in certain jobs, such as the library and infirmary, it’s assumed that people will be there on different schedules, not that every inmate working there is hanging out at the same time. Still, we’re not going to set up a strict schedule for those, so if you want to say you’re on the same shift as one dude one day, then another guy the next, it’s fine. Just work it out amongst your ‘co-workers’!
Another note: remember, jobs are for Inmates, as Wardens technically already have a job: BEING WARDENS. Still, there are some positions for Wardens open in the jobs. Supervising Warden positions are tentatively filled in with characters who’ve been playing their job functions IC, but none of them are tied down to those positions if you want to change!
And now, without further ado: JOB POSITIONS. If you have any ideas for job functions we haven’t touched upon, please bring them up and we’ll take them into consideration.
Inventory
These are going to go to the most trustworthy, responsible Inmates, or at least those who’ve been good at faking it. If no Inmate appears to be suitable for the job, it’ll have to go to trustworthy Wardens. As the one in charge of inventory, it’s your job to keep a thorough list (made at the beginning of each month, when stocks are replenished) and check up on supplies ideally once per day to make sure people aren’t sneaking around and stealing crap. The Supervising Warden of whichever department you’re in (kitchen or infirmary) will be expected to double-check your work intermittently, but it’s up to that Warden when or how frequently they’ll be doing it.
The inventory person in charge of the kitchen gets to have the additional workload of reviewing and approving each week’s menu, comparing it to available stocks to ensure that it can be made. Still, despite this additional work, you’ve also got additional power and influence. After all, if you’re the sort who’s inclined to, you could make or accept deals with others to overlook certain things and fudge the numbers.
Same with the med guy, since you can basically be a drug dealer.
Kitchen
The kitchen requires the most coordination, teamwork, and manpower to keep going, so naturally it’s going to have the most people assigned to it! Duties of the kitchen include: prepping the food, cooking, cleaning, dishes, serving, and trying not to stab your fellow Inmates. Pretty simple stuff, but it takes time, and you have to listen to the supervising Warden, or whoever he puts in charge of the shift. Kitchen’s split up into Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner staff, each with a shift supervisor (who can be Warden or Inmate).
Supervising Warden - Rube
Library
Reshelf books; learn the Barge’s bizarre dewey decimal system; help people find things; keep track of who’s checking books in and out; follow up on returns; make sure nobody goes on a killing spree in the library.
Supervising Warden - ?
Infirmary
In the Infirmary, your job is to basically do whatever the supervising wardens tell you to. Assist them. Primarily, you’ll probably be tending to recently-deceased or the injured, and you should ideally have some intelligence or knowledge in medicine.
EDIT: Jobs can be divided into direct medical care and supportive care. So, those Inmates with a background in medicine, or at least decent first aid skills, will be helping the supervising wardens with direct medical care, and the support crew would basically take care of Death Toll'd individuals and others recovering from stuff.
Supervising Wardens - Libby and Peter
Security
This should primarily be made up of Warden volunteers; however, Inmates may, with approval from their warden and the supervising warden, also work security. Individuals working security just need to patrol and keep the peace. Of course, some Security folks may not be too interested in that, and you can have wild ‘police corruption’ shenanigans if you so choose.
Supervising Warden - Angel
Custodial
This means you suck and nobody likes you. Seriously. I have no idea how this would even work for gameplay options. I’m just wasting space here. Got any better suggestions? I’d love to hear it!
EDIT: Custodial, rather than being a job, will be punishment duty for troublemaking Inmates (particularly if they damage the Barge!)
Level 6 Room
So, uh, you know how every floor has a special room except for Level 6, which just has a big “LOL TBA”? Well… we really need to change that. So, right now, here are the two options that have been floated around.
1. No more magically self-cleaning laundry. BARGE LAUNDROMAT.
2. Move the pub there.
Now, the Barge Laundromat could be fun for some silly interactions, giving characters a new place to meet up with folks they’d otherwise avoid, and… forcing characters from the distance past and the far future to adapt to other technology, but maybe there’s something better that could be stuck on Level 6? Chime in with any ideas you have, or you’re probably getting a laundromat!
Potential Changes
Now, while all of the changes listed above are also technically ‘potential,’ these are EVEN MORE potential! Basically, I’m just going to throw out some ideas that have been tossed about, haven’t been totally fleshed out yet, haven’t had any kinks worked out, and you guys can pitch your own ideas, discuss them, etc.
Mainly, these potential changes are designed to create a greater distinction between Wardens and Inmates, create more of a ‘prison’ feeling and less of a ‘pleasure cruise’ feeling for the Inmates, and give characters more rules to break and areas to have weird interactions. Of course, some may like the pleasure cruise setting, so don’t be afraid to speak up. That way, we can better identify a happy middle ground.
Some of these ideas are a bit on the stupid/silly side, so… yeah, don’t need to take them all seriously!
Curfew - Inmates have a curfew! Which will just make them mad, plot against wardens, and rebel. Also, watching for people breaking curfew might give Security crew more to do.
Suggestion: Institute it as a temporary, Inmate-wide punishment whenever one of them gets rowdy and murders somebody.
Communal Bath/Shower Areas - Separated by sex. Wardens, obviously, keep their bathrooms and all; this would just be to rob the Inmates of their own fancy bathrooms. They get to just have their bedroom and nothing more. Now, this would probably be designed to be more dormitory style, less prison LET’S ALL HANG OUT NAKED TOGETHER style. Unless, uh, you want that for some reason. Awesome shankings and awkwardness can happen here. Potential problem: people will just have an orgy.
Above-Deck Levels/Warden-Only Areas - Expand the Barge upward! Thinking about adding/moving some rooms above-deck and making them accessible by Wardens only (again, Warden needs his/her item to get in). These would include: Warden meeting room, the pool (maybe), the pub, and… I dunno, something else.
Warden Meeting Room - Think of it as a sweet conference room, where Wardens can all get together and meet and argue with each other about Barge and Inmate stuff. Wardens can do some team-building stuff here.
Awesome Pool Table - It should totally exist.
TV Room - Too many potential 4th wall problems; what programs would they get? Would basically only exist so people can fight over the remote.
Barge Theatre - All the world's a STAAAAGE, darling! That's right, I mean a stage theatre, not a movie theatre. Inmates can... put on plays?
EDIT: - If this happens, it'll probably just be a gimpy stage in the dining hall.
BIODOME - What, it speaks for itself. Could also give Inmates more job functions. A nice, natural place that mirrors the 'real world' (PROBLEM: Real world is subjective), top floor of the above-deck levels; place for the Wardens to go, and Inmates can, too, if they earn the right.
That’s all, folks!
Go ahead and, as usual, post questions/comments/ideas/plots/etc. here.