I don’t even know how many times I’ve played this WIP, it’s become the go to thing for me whenever I need some comfort. Thanks so much @jeantown, I’ll be one of the first people to buy this as soon as it comes out
No matter how many times I play, I can never get to be the cold and heartless Guen. I’ve tried so hard but Arthur is just too sweet that I just give in.
Evil Guen: Sleep on the floor
Arthur: sure, I know it’s hard for you being in an arranged marriage
Evil Guen: spontaneously forms a heart which then melts NOOOOO SLEEP ON THE BED PLEASE
@jeantown You might be interested to know, but Hanako (of Hanako Games) even mentioned Guenevere as something to keep a close eye on. On a Steam thread, I made mention of Hosted Games (since they were unlikely to get on Steam), and Hanako said: While it’s not finished yet (rather, it’s part of a series and not all the episode are done yet), Guenevere is pretty great.
If you’re interested in other Jean’s works i highly recommend reading her New Arcana books on wattpad: http://www.wattpad.com/story/18361582-new-arcana-book-i-vocation They are really great and if you liked writing in Guenevere you sure will like them too.
@Finian Thank you! Arthur will never completely lose his hope for a better world, but it will be possible for Guen, and events, to toughen him up a bit (aka “hardening” in Bioware terms). The first opportunity will be at the end of part 2, when he’ll be feeling guilty about chasing after the wrong queen, and Guen will (if she wants) be able to tell him that he needs to be more careful. Finding out that Guen is cheating on him, depending on how it’s handled, could also be a blow to his innocence, and Mordred’s conception will be another big one. But Guen should, if she wants, be able to keep those things from darkening Arthur’s optimism as much as they might otherwise.
Games-mania, probably not so much, because there will always be outside threats to deal with, but at the moment I am planning to have a major tournament (in which Sword Guen would be able to compete) in part 5.
@kayfin I’m so happy that you’re finding it comforting! I’d very much like for the game to have that effect. Obviously some dark things will happen in the story, but I want the reader’s overall experience to be positive and empowering. And oh, poor sweet Arthur, sleeping on the floor… (:
@Lys Wow, thanks for telling me! I don’t spend a lot of time on Steam, so I probably wouldn’t have seen that on my own. I was thrilled when Hanako tweeted that they were playing Guenevere, and now it sounds like they really liked it. That totally makes my day! (and maybe explains why I’ve gotten a lot of new tumblr followers lately?) Anyway, thanks again!
@Ponku Thank you, as always. It took me a long time to get New Arcana book I on Wattpad, but I think NA II is going to go up more quickly – at least one chapter a week. @Lys and anyone who checks out NA: Guen readers may notice some shared themes/motifs/characterization/etc., though NA is kind of a different thing (it gets somewhat darker than Guenevere will ever be, and deals with some social issues that will appear in Guenevere only minimally or not at all).
@jeantown Thanks for the explanation! I was definitely curious about the Games-mania part because of how much of a toll the whole idea took on Arthur in The Once and Future King.
Hardening Arthur (love Bioware games btw) sounds like an interesting concept! Would you do it with some of the other characters as well?
@OtherGrimm I can’t say the thought of an NA-verse game hasn’t crossed my mind. (: Oh, for all the time in the world… Anyway, I’ll try to give Guen a good range of things to say to Arthur when they see each other again.
@Finian I have to see how things play out with the other characters… Since Morgana will have a lot to deal with emotionally in the years ahead, it seems like Guen really ought to be able to influence her, too. I’d like for Guen to be able to affect all three main characters’ personalities; I’ll just have to see how the implementation goes.
Oh boy, taking into account all of those choices that are possible sounds like a lot of work! This is going to an amazing game by the time it is done! The characters you have created are so realistic and have developed so nicely to be quite honest. Good luck with the rest of it!
Yay! I have four different Guens currently, and I think two (maybe three) of them would probably be upset enough that they’d want to hit him at least once. For different reasons, though.
Queen Guen - I can’t believe you couldn’t tell the difference between me and a fake! Morgana and Lance knew I was me! T_T
Strategist Guen - …Right. Perhaps you should be more cautious next time, instead of charging off without a plan, hm? -_-;
Paladin Guen - I am NOT a damsel in distress who needs you to rescue me! You should know better!
Warrior Guen - I hate you, why the hell would you try to save me, I’d RATHER be captured by a giant than be rescued by you, UGH!! >.<
Also, I know what you mean about time. I just suddenly had an urge to play a DnD campaign in the New Arcana setting, and the idea of there being a CoG in that world just sorta hit me. Maybe after Robin Hood. ^_^;
@kayfn Lmao, that was also what I did the first time I made him sleep on the floor. Couldn’t do it. Needed time to harden myself.
@ponku Yes, seconding that everyone should read them! They’re great!
@jeantown I wonder why Arthur went after that particular Guen. I’m interested in seeing why- because Guens and their relationships with him are so varied, he’d need a reason that is either not Guen-related or works for all Guens. Or maybe his reason does change. I think I might know what it was though. AND YES TOURNAMENTS. Ladies competing in tournaments in modern day Arthurian adaptions is sadly lacking, despite seeming like an obvious new thing to play with.
@OtherGrimm Ahhh, I love the range of reactions for your Guens! I think for me, canon!guen probably is the same as your queen guen, while my ace!guen is mostly like ‘you literally woke up next to me. you even told me not to leave. so why did you chase after someone else.’
I seem to remember that as well. And my canon!Guen is a healer/strategist so it would make sense that she wouldn’t really be able to get back and Arthur would have to go after her. I don’t think she would have hard feelings about the mix-up.
Sign me up for the smack Arthur option, although I think that’s more me the player than my Guen, who’s mostly just hurt. I mean, really Arthur? You’ve been happily married for three years and still can’t tell which one’s the real Guen, despite them all having different personalities? So getting couched and/or dumped for Lance.
@ponku@finian He ran after one of the guens he saw taken from the window, but I’m pretty sure that wasn’t the Guen that went to Michaelsmount; I remember him yelling because they lost a couple Guens? I think he had chased after a few of them, then decided one he saw was the real one.
Still going strong @jeantown. Sorry that it been months of silence but I needed a new phone and rl kept throwing things in my way. But now I am back. Nice idea with the fake Guens with their different personalities.
@Finian Thanks! It is indeed going to be a ton of work, but I know I’ll enjoy writing the personality variations for Arthur, and I hope I can make it work for the other characters, too.
@OtherGrimm ahahaha I love all your Guens’ reactions! They’re genuinely useful to hear, and I’ll see how many I can work in. (: A friend of mine actually started writing a rule system for an NA-verse RPG. It was interesting to think about how some of the different elements might be quantified, and it helped me clarify some things about the magic system for myself. Who knows, maybe someday!
@thesunfloweramazon@Ponku@Finian@KelaSaar By the time Arthur chases that particular doppelGuen through the gates, he’s interacted with several of them. It’s not the same one he saw from the window, but he does have a reason for believing it’s the real Guen, which he can talk about later. (:
@JanusVonDul Welcome back, and I’m very glad you like the new(er) material!
@thesunfloweramazon Yeah, from what I’ve read of your Canon Guen, my Queen Guen is very similar. Very in love with Arthur, but…a little bit of an airhead.
@jeantown I aim to serve. …Well, I aim to assist. I’m not really the ‘serving’ type. ^_^;
I welcome any and all new New Arcana stuff. Books, games, art, engraved pencils, I don’t care. I want it all.
That said, I don’t mind it being on the backburner to this. This is awesome, too. Maybe someone should cast the duplication spell on YOU, so there can be dozens of you working on everything at once!
I agree with @OtherGrimm! You need a duplication spell!
@jeantown I also wanted to thank you for taking the time to do this, because its thanks to your writing that I started getting back into art again, something thats done me a lot of good. So thank you!
Arthur will never completely lose his hope for a better world, but it will be possible for Guen, and events, to toughen him up a bit (aka “hardening” in Bioware terms). The first opportunity will be at the end of part 2, when he’ll be feeling guilty about chasing after the wrong queen, and Guen will (if she wants) be able to tell him that he needs to be more careful. Finding out that Guen is cheating on him, depending on how it’s handled, could also be a blow to his innocence, and Mordred’s conception will be another big one. But Guen should, if she wants, be able to keep those things from darkening Arthur’s optimism as much as they might otherwise.
It took me a long time to get New Arcana book I on Wattpad, but I think NA II is going to go up more quickly – at least one chapter a week. 
)