I adore this. Writing is short and precise, story unfolds fast enough to never be boring, problems are complex, characters, so far, are interesting.
And playing as 40 year old is quite fun, having story and age behind the character.
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Thank you! I have actually not played that IF, so I wouldnât know. The subterfuge route is more inspired from Crusader Kings, and my goal is to make using a particular stat like that feel different than a more charismatic diplomat with Rhetoric or a blunt general with Warfare for example.
I would say do not neglect any more than 2 stats, certainly donât focus on just one. You can absolutely get by with dumping one stat and probably 2 but no more than that. But you canât like, die in this game. I find death in IF just frustrating and not very interesting because then you have to restart all over. That doesnât mean there wonât be consequences for making unwise decisions, just that theyâll take a different form.
Thank you! I figured that it would be interesting to start with someone more experienced. You donât get to become a chief advisor to an Empire as a twentysomething, at least not without being a royal, which is not what this story is about.
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I like it so far seems really cool canât wait to see more have to ask what is the point of the seating position choosing right or left
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Thatâs more flavor, though I actually am writing a council scene in Chapter II right now where seat placement does matter lol.
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Ah ok lol was really wondering at first i chose the right cause am being the right hand man.
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Willfullness represents Augustaâs strength of character, but itâs not necessarily a âgoodâ stat depending on what your goals for her are. It means sheâll act more confidentially, take action on her own. If sheâs low will, high trust, you can more easily manipulate her, but sheâll be weaker and less mature. If sheâs high will, high trust, she is confident and growing mature, but she will listen to your advice unless it seems obviously self interested.
If sheâs high will low trustâŚthose are going to be some of my favorite permutations to write, not gonna lie. 
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I am on the protector and lover route myself and i must say i will protect my empress and my daughter no matter the cost.
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I only ask for more saves - you write a lot of routes and its shame to only have a few saves to explore them. Iâve seen games with 10 and more saves, surely you can add a few more?
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Done! There should be 10 now.
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Any chance of a cheat menu you know for the power trip playthrough
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Thanks for the explanation.
Honestly my first playthrough will definitely be a mc that loveâs the empress and his hidden daughter unconditionally (in spite of the empresses harsh nature) and is genuinely doing his best for both of them making it little wonder why Julia prefers her lover over her âhusbandâ.
Also will we get more time to spend and develop our relationship with Augusta and time with Julia as well?
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For sure.
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wow thanks
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Itâs quite uncommon to find stories that portray women in positions of authority and power, establishing a society where matriarchy prevails. I am not going to lie that i find it a welcome and refreshing change.
When playing stories with a medieval setting ( since they largely tend to have a patriarchal setting ) as a female MC, i find pleasure in actively defying societal expectations and norms when given the chance. I find it empowering to guide her through a journey of self-discovery and rebellion, challenging the limitations placed upon her by the world.
Which is why I am intrigued by the idea of exploring the opposite perspective and witnessing how the story unfolds when the MC is male, navigating a world where prejudice and inequality are directed towards men.
Given the male MCâs role as a prefect, a respected position for a man in Iudia, and not of easy reach, considering how long it took him to obtain it, as well as with the upcoming opportunities and connections we gain through our chosen skills, I guess MC is already underway of proving society wrong.
But aside from this, what I personally sensed from the story is that MC is quite OK with how the empire and to an extent the church run things and that they seemed quite a believer of the goddess, even though they express ( at least for male MC as i didnât play any other route, maybe i will do a run with a female MC to see the differences ) how unfair it is that he is in his forties, hasnât long to live, and yet he still hasnât made any breakthrough in his life.
Itâs true that power and greed have been options for the end goals, however they feel pretty vague. I would have liked if the narrative through choices outright stated that MC would want to bring change to how men are perceived and treated using their new positions and connections. I wished MC had the choice to either believe or not in this realmâs religion, or even strongly oppose and challenge it or certain aspects of it ( even though itâs not something MC can express freely now, it could be something they are thinking about and working towards ). There is also this little tidbit âLearn the secrets of sorceryâ does it include all MCs ?
I chose to gain the empressâ favour through subterfuge, and let me tell you the family reunion along with MCâs different reaction to it had me laughing, especially since we could be polite to Titus and act all clueless, I even chose to leave when he asked to speak with her, as if to say see ? Itâs all her not me, let the empress be the one to add fuel to the fire between them. I canât wait to see what destruction we will bring to this family, I only wish we can still salvage Augusta before leading it to ruin, but I know that she would never forgive MC for any harm brought upon the empress ( I hope we can put an end to her reign ). So I am torn between playing the loving, proud parent, taking the blame for her mistakes and pulling her strings like a puppet. I guess there is no plan for MC to sit on the throne, since it was stated that we could rule through putting Augusta on it instead ?
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I kinda hope we get the opportunity to romance the emperor too, manipulating both monarchs for the ultimate MAX POWER
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the whole imperial family dancing in the palm of our hand, loving the idea, and if we can get augusta to look up to us aswell? even better
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My male MC didnât express any of that. Thatâs probably optional, because right hand and/or her lover plus father of her daughter of the Empress seems like a pretty big breakthrough especially for a man in this matriarchal empire.
Look at the Emperor (in name only letâs be real), thatâs a definition of a man who hasnât made any breakthrough of anything in his life.
The Emperor doesnât have any real power, he canât even enter her room without permission, the guards dont even listen to him, sheâs even planning to get rid of him.
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â These are MCâs inner thoughts when we set power as the motivation :
You have spent your whole life climbing up the ladder, reaching the lofty position ofâŚrubber stamp and on-demand scribe for a madwoman? No, there must be more. Youâre already 40, and youâre not getting any younger. You know great power is just within your grasp, and all you must do is take it. Itâs what you deserve, you tell yourself. You dismiss your daydreams for the moment, walking down the halls of the palace to your next destination.
â And these with greed as motivation :
You have spent your whole life toiling for the Empire, and where has it gotten you? Youâve just become some put-upon bureaucrat writing down the every whim of a mad Empress. You deserve more than that, you tell yourself. There is so much that you want out of life, and now, youâre going to get it. You dismiss your daydreams for the moment, walking down the halls of the palace to your next destination.
â Knowledge as motivation : ( I just came across this now, I see that learning sorcery also to applies non female MCs, thought is it locked behind the knowledge motivation ? )
You have spent your life toiling away for the Empire, but in your free moments you have often wondered about the higher mysteries of the world. What is there that you do not know? Might there be a chance for you to learn the art of sorcery, so long forbidden for men? There are so many secrets out there with explanations youâve always found lacking. You will do whatever it takes to uncover them.
â Idealism : ( This also leaves wondering how MC can achieve, will it always be through influencing the empressâs or Augutaâs opinion, or would a day come where they can do so more directly )
You have spent your life toiling for the Empire, but it is the plight of the people who concern you most. Many millions live under Iudiaâs borders, over a million in Kyro itself, and they all cry out for someone in power to give a single shit about them. Rare among many officials, you actually do. Itâs a foolish, impossible goal to achieve, but you want nothing more than for the masses to thrive in safety and prosperity.
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I didnât pick any of those though, so my MC wasnât worried about it.
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I mean the more the merrier and to be fair he can make sculptures and paintings for us, I see this as an absolute win
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