Turncoat Chronicle (political fantasy) - updated 24-APR-23

[Hazel]

To both @Bubbleegum and @geldar, thank you so much for your thoughtful and articulate criticism. You’ve both made very good points, and I see merit in both of your arguments.

Regarding the MC’s personality, I do think I need to telegraph some of their inherent faults and foibles better, earlier on in the game. This is a delicate task to manage, and I will have to give it some thought. However, I definitely plan to make this change.

Regarding allowing the MC space to express sex-neutral asexuality, I think it’s important to make room for this choice. I need to dig deeper into some research and figure out the best way to go about this, because I still want to allow the player the possibility to opt-out of any kind of sex, preferably as a one-and-done without bringing the subject up over and over.

Clearly, both of these changes require some deep contemplation and solid planning on my part, but I’m absolutely committed to doing them justice.

Thanks again to both of you for taking the time to share your thoughts. I appreciate it a lot, even if my tardy responses make it seem otherwise.

[Wilma_Wang]

This story is really awesome! I really like the way mc who was raised as an heir interacts with the people around , looking forward to its completion!

[Jeeshadow1]

@Hazel

Most recently, I was working on an (optional) scene to introduce Lux or Kidia to the MC’s younger brother, Belinon. Those who were previously interested to learn more about the younger prince will be happy to learn that there are now four or five scenes written for him, although most of them are optional. His first appearance is late in chapter 3.

Oh my gosh that is awesome! Can’t wait to meet the little bro and also the greatest threat to our family which we are planning on marrying. I am sure he will be thrilled!

[Jimmy_Jones]

[Hazel]

Today is supposed to be the day of my monthly progress update, but I’m a little bit sick, so I might skip this month’s post. I’ll be sure to come back and update you all, nice and early next month.

[Valixon]

Just focus on taking care of your self

[Jeeshadow1]

No worries and hope you feel better soon!

[Hazel]

I am happy to report that I’ve recovered completely.

I’m also happy to link again to my World Anvil account, which will be receiving a few interesting updates about the world and characters of TC. Of particular interest, you can now read about the founder of the Kidia heir’s dynasty here. You can also find Madara’s map there, now.

Of course, writing meta articles does not come at the expense of working on the game itself. Today, chapter 4 reached 40,000 words, so that’s a fun fact.

[Hazel]

April Update Post

Welcome to spring! That wonderous season, filled with alternating heatwaves and cold snaps, not to mention pollen allergies. Spring is also the season of some of my favorite holidays, including Pesach, which is coming up quite soon.

Friends, it’s been a while since I wrote a proper progress update for Turncoat Chronicle. I’ll be honest with you, the reason for that is that progress has been slow. Partly due to real-life events which stole into my schedule and nibbled on my writing time like an improperly-sealed cookie jar. Partly because I am currently working on the post-climax scenes of the final chapter, and I am eager to make the game’s payoff rewarding for the player.

So, here is the update, in short: the two main tasks I’m working on in April are code cleanup, which is invisible to the players, and writing the coronation scene. Rather, I should say, coronation scenes, since there are three separate scenes for the different end-game scenarios. Players who choose for their MC to rule jointly with the Kidian heir will get a different scene than players who killed the heir and inherited alone, and that’s just the first of many variations.

If April’s tasks progress well, in May, I hope to shift back to editing and improving the earlier chapters. This includes two edits in response to comments I got from players. Naturally, changes of this sort require a lot of forethought and planning, and in some cases, research. These are background tasks that I’ve been making progress on when I wasn’t writing, but I hope to soon move them into the implementation phase.

My intent, as ever, is to finish the game and submit it for publication before the end of 2022. For the moment, I’m still on track to do that.

I hope you all have a marvelous spring, except our antipodean friends, who are hopefully having an excellent autumn.

The game’s current word count is 161,402 words (with code). Chapter 4’s word count is 42,234 words (with code).

[Zkrkhey92]

it’s going to end up badly for the father no matter route i chose lol but what about the consort hmm ?

[Yen_Lag]

Excellent

[Hazel]

Who wants a teaser while I’m testing chapter 4?

Image text

Lux is unruffled as they enter the room to make your brother’s formal acquaintance. Not too long ago, they would have balked at speaking to a prince. Their royal training has taken well. Their glossy black curls, unbound, catch the sunlight at every turn. A sash of embroidered red silk brightens the simple cut of their midnight blue robes.

Belinon is waiting for you there, with a tray of refreshments sitting on the elegantly carved wooden table beside him.

[Hazel]

May 2022 Update

It’s a new month, so it’s time for an update post!

When I worked out my schedule for spring, I treated April and May as a single unit, because of certain external factors. That means that unfortunately, I don’t have any visible updates to show you.

My main task for the spring is returning to the first half of Turncoat Chronicle to test it again. Having done a great deal of work on the game’s climactic scenes, I’m hoping the new insights will allow me to edit and finesse chapter 1 to create a smoother, more satisfying game experience. It’s satisfying to return to the text and code that I wrote nearly four years ago, and see how much my writing has evolved and changed.

In May, I intend to devote myself to this task even more, instead of splitting my writing time between editing and creating new scenes. I still have some important scenes I want to work on, but I’ll be returning to those once I’m satisfied that I’ve gotten chapter 1 up to code, so to speak. I also have some important non-writing tasks in May, so those will be taking up my time, as well.

As always, I am continuing to work on Turncoat Chronicle to the best of my ability, even if there are no visible changes. The plan remains to complete the game by sometime in late 2022, and I am on course for that deadline. I’m so thankful to everyone who has played the TC demo, and even more grateful to the readers who took the time to provide feedback. Reader and player feedback has helped me enormously in pushing this game towards completion.

[Aethelric]

wow, I really enjoyed this so far. I can’t wait for more.

[Hazel]

July 2022 Update

Welcome to summer! July and August are usually the hottest months of the year, where I am. I myself am fresh out of an apartment move and looking at my to-do list, I have a lot of work, this summer.

Turncoat Chronicle is progressing steadily behind the scenes. I have a list of edits and additions that I want to make to chapter 1, and a brand new scene for chapter 3 drafted and ready to code. Once those tasks are accomplished, I’m going back to working on the final scenes of the game. In particular, I’m eager to write all the variations of the coronation scenes – there are three separate ones, depending on which route the player takes.

In June, I spent a lot of time on both testing and research, rereading old code to make sure that the parts of the game I wrote three or four years ago are still up to my current standards, when it comes to the quality of the prose as well as matters of representation. The first chapter of the game contains several subtle cues of characterization that are starting to look too subtle in retrospect, and a few threads that were put down but never picked up again. All of that is on my list of planned edits.

At the same time, I have certain other projects in the wings, mostly things that are in early stages and too soon to speak about publicly. I have work that is not related to my ChoiceScript games, as well. I hope everyone is having a good summer (or a good winter, for our antipodean friends) and I look forward to the work that’s waiting for me, this month.

Crossposted to Tumblr and Patreon.

[Eric_knight]

I like the story thus far, and it is quite intriguing for me to be involved in fantasy political scheme . Most surprising at all, a strange feeling of acting in a chivalrous way while plotting a political maneuver, i am playing the nice guy route while allying with the enemy princess , and at the same time doing my best to gain the trust of her guardian , it will be interesting to see how far would Alme trust a prince of her enemy , but based on text observation thus far , she is not someone who could betray the MC (if it is all up to her own feeling ).

I also like the Spymaster , who really offer all sort of cunning advice to me and i only hope i could trust him without worry…Lol

Interesting to play more of this game

[Hazel]

August 2022 Update

This month’s update is going to be very brief, I’m afraid. The main piece of news is that I’ve recently started a new job. While this is very exciting and important for me, it does mean that I have less time to work on personal projects. My progress on Turncoat Chronicle has been slower, and I expect that trend to continue in August. In the long run, however, the plan remains the same: I still aim to complete TC and submit it for publication, ideally before the end of 2022.

The only projects that are likely to be put on the back-burner are the nascent ones that I’ve been working on behind the scenes, which is something that’s not likely to affect any of my readers directly.

Wishing you all a very happy and productive August!

Crossposted to Tumblr and Patreon.

[Jeeshadow1]

Congrats on your new job! And glad progress is still going well! I remain very excited for this game!

[Hazel]

September Update Post

Happy September! For many in the northern hemisphere, September signals the start of autumn. In our parts, we still have a few weeks of summer weather left, but the hottest days of summer are probably behind us.

August was a busy month for me, and all of that work was going towards external projects. However, those external projects are wrapping up soon, and I’m excited to return to Turncoat Chronicle and pick up where I left off. I have planned a packed schedule of writing and testing, over the next few weeks, ahead of the spate of holidays in October.

At the same time, I’m working on my long-term writing plans, making adjustments in response to changes in my schedule and standing commitments. My first commitment is still to complete and deliver Turncoat Chronicle. While this is months in the future, at this point, I still like to be prepared.

Good luck to those of you returning to school or uni for a new year.

Crossposted to Tumblr and Patreon.

[Hazel]

October 2022 Update Post

It’s October, which means time for holidays, at least for me. On the con side, that means that I’ve been busy with holiday gatherings and have not gotten as much writing done as I would have liked. On the pro side, since I’m currently working on the holiday masque scene, it’s a wonderful excuse to tell you a bit more about the summer solstice in Koth.

Summer solstice is the longest day of the year, due to the interaction of the sun with the earth’s axial tilt. For the sake of convenience, the solstices and equinoxes in Koth’s world work the same way that they do in our world.

More about the solstice in Koth.

Madara’s religion is syncretic and based around the three Disciples, once minor messengers subservient to more senior gods. In Koth, the most venerable of the three is Ariel, the god of war and also the god of the sun. This is why Koth’s flag has a winged lion on it, which is Ariel’s symbol. Because the summer solstice is the longest day of the year, it’s naturally become a holiday dedicated to the god of the sun.

Solstice celebrations in Koth can be extravagant. Special foods prepared for the holiday are usually very sweet or very spicy, sometimes both. In the cities and in some wealthy noble households, red and gold banners are used as decoration. Otherwise, people mostly decorate with red flowers, like poppies and clovers.

The oldest tradition, however, is the Masque of the Sun. This ancient play, which recounts the mythological tale of the sun disappearing and reappearing, has had countless variations over the centuries. Early versions were taken quite literally as the story of the sun god traveling to the highest mountaintop to force the goddess of the mountains to end winter. Contemporary versions are generally regarded as fables or allegories.

The Masque of the Sun is first mentioned in chapter 3 of Turncoat Chronicle. In chapter 4, you’ll have the option to view the masque for yourselves. The MC, as a royal, has a major part in the play.

I hope you enjoyed this little glimpse into the world of the game. Now, it’s time for me to get back to actually writing the masque scene which, naturally, comes in several different variations. I’ll be back again in November with a new update.

Crossposted to Patreon and Tumblr.