Is this feature going to be an ongoing thing?, once a character gains a desire or property will they later want more? The reason I ask is because once we get to 50+ characters in our settlement i'm going to feel like a slave myself trying to fulfill the whims of every individual in the settlement. Does fulfilling desires of characters make you the think of the Sims? except instead of a family, it will be an entire community.
Maybe everyone will have basic desires like bed ownership, (which would be easy to fulfill for the masses) but the more complex long term ones would only apply to the middle and upper class. That would help fulfill the design goal of having us only need to keep close track of a certain number of "major players" in the game in order to tell emergent stories--without everyone getting lost in the crowd noise.
The trait system offers a mechanism for adding such rules, in the sense that it allows characters to be exempted from them. Of Criminal Element colonists may well not consider whether a given item is claimed before claiming it, leading to Disputes. The notion of making the desires of the lower class more simplistic and general sounds reasonable, but I would like to see a new trait to go with it: Ideas Above One's Station, allowing the lowest of plebs - or even overseers - to have ambitions more at home among the eccentric upper class.
I think the Sim vs. Clockwork Empires comparison is an interesting one in the context of fulfilling character desires - in one Sims house, you can plausibly expect to fulfill everyone's desires and keep everyone happy, all the time. I don't think that should be the case in a town of 50 or more people - at that scale, characters are going to have conflicting priorities even if they aren't insane cultists - think of your municipal government and how nobody can agree on the police budget versus the education budget. Consequently, the Sims is about managing people, whereas Clockwork Empires is about managing a town. Some people would love beer, but more people will benefit from beds, to give a hypothetical example. Personally, I think there's some really interesting decision-making ahead when the things that are good for your colony are inherently not good for individual colonists.
We already have examples of conflicting desires with respect to fish-person policy... it is going to be a fun ride while they balance out the effects of additional happiness/unhappiness drivers...
I'm thinking it'll be more like.. if they have this certain item they really like, they'll get a positive thought, but it won't give them a negative if they don't have it? Sort of like how its done in Dwarf Fortress I guess? I remember I had this monarch who really loved goblets, so he went around the entire fort confiscating and squirreling away every one he found to his room, till his bedroom was just covered in cups. I think it'll start feeling more tangible once theres actual 'stuff' for colonists to hoarde, like clothing and tools, which aren't tracked at the moment. Or even other things that the colonists trade with others. ...if trade is gonna be a thing.
can people arguing about military spending vs child education be a thing, i would love that. wait a moment. We need children for that.
That depends... are our children being given a proper education on the many correct and precise ways in which they can participate in our glorious empire... or will they be taught such despicable lies as 'fishpersons deserve respect'... and 'thinking for yourself is good'?
I'd like to see this of course. Right now people just sleep and do whatever, so giving people personal desires is good. I wonder if class will effect it? I.e. perhaps the higher classes will not wish to share as much as the lower?
While children are an interesting idea, I don't want to lose the ability to control the size of the population.
Well Trifler, that's why you take all your newborns out to deathwurm valley. If they're still where you left them, then they're strong and are permitted to enter society.
"I am Muad'Dib, and I will lead you to..." *MUNCH* Martha Cogsbottom: "Did you hear something?" Cornelius Brazenwit: "Just some munching and crunching. Why do you ask?"
