Re: Comment on Chmmr in project6014
proje...@googlecode.com
What about the idea as the Chmmr are falling apart, they realize that the
player is "up to something." The last 'functioning' Chmmr believe that the
player is the cause of their recent degeneration and show up in the
Precursor ship from SC2, demanding that you surrender over the newly
discovered Precursor ship.
If you already have the cure assembled at this point, it could be employed
then and save these attacking Chmmr, preventing a massive fight against the
Precursor ship and their docked ships. Otherwise, you'd have a pretty bad
ass fight on your hands.
Perhaps even, if you are able to save the Chmmr right then, you might have
the benefit of having the SC2 Precursor ship arrive at some important point
later in the game to help turn the tide of a certain situation.
For more information:
http://code.google.com/p/project6014/wiki/Chmmr
proje...@googlecode.com
What about having the Chmmr being "jealous" of the Captain? After all, the
Chenjesu's master plan to defeat the Ur-Quan was supposed to take much
longer than it did. But the Captain sped up the process using the Sun
Device. Also, it was the Captain, not the Chmmr who destroyed the Sa Matra,
and even though the Chmmr destroyed a large number of Ur-Quan many in the
NAFS see the destruction of the Sa Matra the reason for the disruption to
the Ur-Quan ranks that allowed the Chmmr's victories. As such the captain
is regarded as a great hero to all sentients, but resented by the Chmmr
leadership as a possible challenger to their authority because of that
popularity.
Also, with the "illness" angle, why haven't the Chmmr's doctors done
something? Well, why not have it be something like the disease is a stigma,
like AIDS for example. People don't talk about it, shun those with it and
believe that the disease will only strike down the "impure" while leaving
those considered "pure"
proje...@googlecode.com
I think the Chmmr being jealous would make them a bit too ...hmm.
Human-like, I guess. It just doesn't feel Chmmr-y to have such lowly
feelings even in their deteriorated state.
About the illness:
Being the hyper-logical beings that they are, them becoming "mentally
unstable" feels to them something like that as you described. They want to
hide their "illness" not only from other races (to not be forced to give up
their leading role), but also from their fellow Chmmr.
proje...@googlecode.com
I think we should use the CHMMR as a analogy of governments taking too much
control. Loss of Privacy, eavesdropping, harsh laws. I can see the CHMMR
becoming fanatical in their decisions. "For the greater good", and "To
protect us all". You like the CHMMR, they have awesome ships, but at what
point is revolution called for? Have the player decide, "how much is too
much"? There could be some great conspiracy talk (some true, some not) that
gets the player thinking. You can say the CHMMR have already set
quarantines (hyperspace forceshields?) to this area of space to prevent
further Ur-Quan expansion.
The CHMMR are crystal machines, so emotions and freedom are things they
don't comprehend very well. They slave shielded themselves and saw it as
not a problem.
The CHMMR could then slave shield the other species because they are
getting too difficult to control. "To maintain order". You can find out the
reason we have orbiting starbases still is that they are using them to
monitor (aka spy) on communications of the planet.
proje...@googlecode.com
As far as Chmmr music, if TheMisterCat is willing, we can make the tune
less and lees energetic as the Chmmr start to crash, and when we fix them,
return it to normal. Brilliant; huh?
proje...@googlecode.com
Actually, giving the formerly logical Chmmr emotions as they slowly descend
into insanity is a good idea. It'll serve to counterpoint their reasonable
attitudes in the initial phase of the game, especially if they get
conflicting emotions. A Chmmr suddenly professing love for the captain and
explaining why he has to kill the captain because of his love might be the
game's way of saying "Dude, DEAL WITH THIS NOW."
proje...@googlecode.com
can you make it such that we split them back and we have the chenjesu and
mrnhrm again?
proje...@googlecode.com
I like the Chmmr, but I also like the possibility of Chenjesu / Mrrnhrrmm
survivors, which were hinted at in Star Control 2.
I think the analogy to a paranoid individual is a good one, though on a
global scale. The thing about machines is that they cannot - by nature -
understand why their circuitry isn't working. It just doesn't. The Chmmr
also have implied networked intelligence by having them all go offline at
the same time. A networked organization (and remember, your ship is one of
these) has no concept of privacy.
proje...@googlecode.com
Given: The might of the Chmmr Avatar vessels are the primary factor keeping
the Kzer-Za away.
The Chmmr break down and cease functioning.
What's keeping the Kzer-Za from coming back and kicking everyone's asses?
proje...@googlecode.com
Since it was the player character's actions which caused the Chmmr to
emerge from the merging process incomplete, it's his fault that they're now
suffering from a defect. He had a good reason (defeating the Ur-Quan) but
he is still responsible for the equivalent of infecting an entire species
with a degenerative illness. A friendly, highly benevolent species, to boot.
Shouldn't feeling of guilt or the desire to correct a mistake be a big part
of the player character's motivation?
As far as the question of "Why bother fixing them?", the Chmmr's
benevolence is a good one; after all they've done for other species they
deserve better than to just be abandoned in their time of need.
A more practical reason is that even in Star Control 1 the Chenjesu were
described as the backbone and only possible leaders of the Alliance.
Humanity isn't a terribly important species, unlike in most science
fiction. The Alliance NEEDS the Chmmr, and any impulse to the contrary is
misguided.
proje...@googlecode.com
(Why would the player fix the Chmmr when they were trying to incarcerate
the player and his ship? Provide a good reason why the player would do
this, and attempt to make it clear to him (other aliens asking the player
to please fix the Chmmr for some reason or another?) -- jorisvddonk)
Maybe a small group of Chmmr was created before Procyon was slave shielded
as a test to see if the hybridization process, and are therefor uncorrupted
by the sun device. They could assure the captain that if he fixes the Chmmr
they will stop trying to kill him, as well as give him an idea of what he
needs to find in order to fix them. They would help more than that but they
are extremely small and don't have enough resources.
For more information:
https://code.google.com/p/project6014/wiki/Chmmr