Chris Sims's page

I see the reference to Dawn of Flame there.

I dig this encounter a lot and want to find a way to fit it into a game.

I'm glad that tiny reference was clear to someone. :)

awesome chris. thanks for the additional effort. u mentioned your email adress. are we allowed to send u more questions to aballon, triune and androids in general?

It's better to ask 'em on the forum—spam filter is likely to capture them otherwise.

Sulis have low-light vision. The racial trait sidebar inline header is an error.

10) How 'big' are the cities listed in PW for Aballon. Striving is listed as having a population of something like 152 million residents, but without a idea of what part of the map comprises all of Striving, I'm not sure what to make of that? Is it Hong Kong sized? or Texas sized?

11) Are the other 'cities' on Aballon in the same ballpark population wise, or is Striving meant to be where the bulk of the planet's population lives?

12) Any plans for an AP centered around Aballon that you can discuss? We know about DoF and AotS, but it would be really interesting to have a Pact Worlds centered AP after that that visits more of the (as yet) unexplored parts of the PW setting.

10. I don't know the exact scale, but those cities are more California or Texas than Hong Kong. That's still a lot of people, considering Cali has a population of about 40 million.

11. Striving is the biggest city, but the other cities likely have a similar population density.

12. Can't talk about products that haven't been announced.

6) Was Epoch an Anacite, or a disembodied AI like Casandalee, or some other form of construct?

7) Playable Anacites?

8) Has Anacite's capacity for artificial evolution and natural selection created new forms of nature magic? Are there Anacite technodruids who commune with technological ecosystems? What do Xenodruids think of artificial ecosystems, and Eoxians?

9) Does Carsai the King secretly control Endeavor?

6. My read is that Epoch once existed within extensive hardware within Striving but now exists as part of Triune. More like Casandalee than an actual construct.

7. I'd likely use SROs.

8. These are all cool ideas, so why not? Some xenodruids would likely respect an artificial system complex enough to resemble an actual ecosystem. The Xenowardens, however, seem to distrust anacites if the information on Frozen Nelumbo is any indication.

9. No, the Last One does. ;)

5) Tying into that: how much does Aballon rely on that sci-fi/fantasy trope that artificial life tends to form "hive minds" that find consensus super quickly? How much individuality is there among anacites, for that matter? I get that they're not the Swarm or the Borg or whatever, but it'd be interesting to hear how much uniformity of thought or purpose there is among anacites.

Anacites are a varied species, and the sapient units likely have divergent personalities and thinking, especially over time and given differing stimuli. It's clear from their factionalized culture that similar machines have come to differing stances on their purpose and fate. However, I'd bet units such as the Insight Array do use computer speed hive mind to reach consensus.

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1) Since Aballon is the prime example can we talk about the wonky populations numbers in the Pact Worlds book? 13 million humans on Aballon vastly outnumbering their compatriots on any other planet hived in some bleak robotic warehouse? Really?

2) Are Anticite taboos about some of the areas where the First Ones ruins lie a 'belief' or an aspect of their 'programming'? When playing Anticite or SRO characters how much should the idea of programming affect their motivations? Are charm and enchantment effects on these characters to be interpreted in this light?

1. The anacite cities have atmosphere and amenities one assumes humans would like just fine. Anacites seem to care about the comfort of the people on Aballon, so it seems likely they'd make it nice for their meaty citizens.

2. From the evidence, and assuming I know what you mean by "belief," I'd say it's a belief. Some anacites have rejected this thinking. When playing an artificial life form, "programming" can be taken in the same frame as any other life form's thought structure and identity. These sophisticated AIs are capable of altering the framework based on stimuli, just like creatures with "natural" intelligence.

since dan did not ask all my questions (i think they were only a few. a humble request for some small questions) i ask all my left over questions here:

Q: are the anacites themselves the first ones without knowing?

Q: how big is the biggest mass fabricated anacite?

Q: can u rly not build near the first one cities like the myriad accident showed or was that a coincidence?

Q: whats inside ubiquity?

Q: what is the biggest secret of aballon?

Q: why didnt the first ones left some kind of culture?

ps: thanks for aballon, triune and androids. they are BY FAR my favorites

1. Maybe. Nothing we've published makes that impossible. I'd say it's unlikely, however.

2. At least as big as a Huge starship.

3. The First Ones cities all seem to have unusual defenses, and the tremors that occurred near Myriad could be that. The majority of anacites don't want to build near those cities, and it seems likely that the Myriad incident made the Insight Array unwilling to experiment.

4. No one knows. In fact, no one knows if there is an "inside Ubiquity."

5. I'd say the biggest "secret" is who the First Ones were, followed by why they came to Aballon, and why they left.

6. Their motivations are unknown. The anacites themselves have factionalized based on this very question. And all they have is speculation.

Huh. Chris Simms just confirmed Anacites don’t have souls on Starfinder Wednesday (as per Distant Worlds), with a qualifier: maybe they got souls during the Gap. So the debate continues.

Yep, Pathfinder Distant Worlds (page 7) says anacites lack souls. That said, I think it's a point that could even be an in-galaxy debate.

Chris Sims, the comic book writer and podcaster?

No, I'm not that Chris Sims (the-isb.com) but this Chris Sims (chrisssims.wordpress.com).

I just wanted to publically state that I changed my address with you guys right before I moved, and I didn't miss an issue. Great job and many thanks! :)

I don't think complexity matters, except insofar as the DM enjoys creating and using a villain.

The villain my players hate the most is a simple, neutral evil enchanter. He started out posing as a bard and befriended the heroes before betraying them. It's all in the personality. They still haven't caught him.

In fact, this guy's lackey (war 1/enchanter1, LE) stood down a party of 4th-level characters by himself with sheer charisma.

I think they were victims of their own metagame thinking, my players, probably believing one guy = impressive stats. But hey, metagame thinking usually has similar rewards in my campaigns, though I seldom contrive to make it so.

Back on topic, though, complex or simple, memorable villains always have flair and usually have staying power.