Cultist Simulator - Get Yer la la's Out

[tgb]

From my time with the pre-release build could a real-time card game be (I'll say it)-my GOTY?

Very possibly.

[LordMortis]

You sucked me in to another cultist GOTY (Cults and Daggers) before and it got about two hours game play and since then your last cultist GOTY that that I held off on got pretty meh reviews universally. Your gaming ADD will not hold sway over me this time!

I am not going to totally pretend I don't see them selling Sunless Sea as a selling point.


[fingers in ears]ngyngngyngngyngngyngngyngngyngngyngngyngngyngngyng

[tgb]

Other than Cults & Daggers (which I still go back to on occasion) what cultist game did I ever recommend?

Anyway, it's getting good reviews so far.

[Paingod]

I sometimes break out Eldritch Horror and play it in solitaire mode.

I think I could enjoy this.

[LordMortis]

Other than Cults & Daggers (which I still go back to on occasion) what cultist game did I ever recommend?

Anyway, it's getting good reviews so far.

I don't own it so I don't remember the name. It was pretty and it look like it played like a tablet game for a single gaming session and then you'd put it away. You were trying to find disloyal members in each house of a central community and sacrifice them to the coming of your God or some such thing.

[GreenGoo]

From my time with the pre-release build could a real-time card game be (I'll say it)-my GOTY?

[Holman]

Thread title FhTagnW!!

[tgb]

Other than Cults & Daggers (which I still go back to on occasion) what cultist game did I ever recommend?

Anyway, it's getting good reviews so far.

I don't own it so I don't remember the name. It was pretty and it look like it played like a tablet game for a single gaming session and then you'd put it away. You were trying to find disloyal members in each house of a central community and sacrifice them to the coming of your God or some such thing.

I know the one you mean, but I can't think of the name. Shrouded Isle, or something like that. It made a good first impression, but I doubt I ever considered GOTY material.

[Smoove_B]

This info is buried on the game's STEAM page:

Buy in the first week to get Perpetual Edition, granting free DLC for life!

We'll release DLC after launch with new roles, characters and legacies, most likely starting with new Priest and Dancer roles.

Perpetual Edition will be removed from sale, NEVER TO RETURN, at 7PM BST on Thursday 7th June 2018.

[tgb]

This info is buried on the game's STEAM page:

Buy in the first week to get Perpetual Edition, granting free DLC for life!

We'll release DLC after launch with new roles, characters and legacies, most likely starting with new Priest and Dancer roles.

Perpetual Edition will be removed from sale, NEVER TO RETURN, at 7PM BST on Thursday 7th June 2018.

Didn't see that. Cool. I assume it also applies to those of us who bought it off itch.io way back when.

[Sepiche]

Regardless of how the game itself plays, I will say that I love Alexis Kennedy's writing. I played Fallen London for a long time, despite how grindy it is, just to see more of his work.

He also wrote some fantastic storylines in Stellaris that my friends and I just ran into the other night in a game we were playing.

[LordMortis]

This info is buried on the game's STEAM page:

Buy in the first week to get Perpetual Edition, granting free DLC for life!

We'll release DLC after launch with new roles, characters and legacies, most likely starting with new Priest and Dancer roles.

Perpetual Edition will be removed from sale, NEVER TO RETURN, at 7PM BST on Thursday 7th June 2018.

IMNOTLISTENINGNYINGNYINGNYINGNYINGNYING

[Smoove_B]

IMNOTLISTENINGNYINGNYINGNYINGNYINGNYING

First review I'm seeing, from RPS:

It’s difficult to go into too much depth without spoiling the sense of discovery and surprise that makes it so intoxicating. Be prepared for longer play sessions than you might be expecting. The single-save feature and pleasingly rhythmic pace might lull you into a false sense of brevity, but there’s a great deal to uncover here. It’s also the first game in probably a decade that’s made me draw a map. Or, more accurately, scribbled notes detailing the results of various concoctions. Not that it isn’t intuitive, just so vast that it’s almost overwhelming at first.

It’s often tempting, when a game hijacks our attention, to use terms like addictive, or compulsive. Cultist Simulator is something else. It’s seductive. It captures the looming threat of utter annihilation played against the transcendent bliss of unravelling mysteries wrapped in enigmas wrapped in other really, really weird shit. It’s excellent, put simply. The cosmic horror and occult subject matter isn’t just set dressing here – it’s expertly woven into the core of play, and the result is completely absorbing. Oh, and the music’s really good, too. I couldn’t find anywhere else to mention that so I’m putting it here, which conveniently saves me having to come up with a clever joke to end the review.

So, two Shoggoths walk into an opticians…

[Paingod]

IMNOTLISTENINGNYINGNYINGNYINGNYINGNYING

First review I'm seeing, from RPS:

...intoxicating...longer ...pleasingly rhythmic...just so vast that it’s almost overwhelming at first.

...It’s seductive... transcendent bliss...absorbing....

Fixed that for LordMortis.

[MonkeyFinger]

This info is buried on the game's STEAM page:

Buy in the first week to get Perpetual Edition, granting free DLC for life!

We'll release DLC after launch with new roles, characters and legacies, most likely starting with new Priest and Dancer roles.

Perpetual Edition will be removed from sale, NEVER TO RETURN, at 7PM BST on Thursday 7th June 2018.

Didn't see that. Cool. I assume it also applies to those of us who bought it off itch.io way back when.

Or Kickstarted it? I'll have to check.

[Holman]

How replayable is this?

Do you know most of the secrets after you win it once, or is there more to it?

[Paingod]

I'm now a perpetual cultist. Hopefully I won't have to eat too many of my associates. Time will tell.

[tgb]

How replayable is this?

Do you know most of the secrets after you win it once, or is there more to it?

My understanding that there are so many card combinations leading to different results, plus a certain amount of randomness, that replayability is pretty high.

[Sepiche]

How replayable is this?

Do you know most of the secrets after you win it once, or is there more to it?

After one game: Seems pretty replayable. Multiple paths to go down and lots of randomness in the cards.

It is in many ways it's the core mechanics of Fallen London, but with an interesting new package.

[Paingod]

So I work the mundane job, I get absorbed in strange things and explore them. I dream about other worlds, I see visions of other lives. I hunt the racks of an occult bookstore, looking for clues. Pieces of the puzzle. I forget to eat, obsessed with the unknown. I die.

I work a mundane job, I dream of strange things. I'm curious, fascinated, and eager for something new. I work, I sleep. I explore the town, seeking but only finding snippets. I'm hungry for knowledge, but life keeps sucking me back in. I wander too long, lost in thought, exploring the feeling of something beyond. My boss doesn't understand and fires me, I can't give up the search and need to work. I beg for my job, hating myself for it. I'm in despair, lost and needing. It intensifies, I can't shake the feeling of loss. I catch glimmers of other worlds, my dreams filled with bizarre visions. Someone's stalking me, I'm not sure why. I sink further into despair. I die.

Dammit.

The most helpful thing I've found is the pause button. I want to read and enjoy the details, but can't with a clock ticking down and every second actually seems to matter in the long run.

I can see myself spending a lot of time on this one. It's like Call of Cthulhu had a baby with Maze and it was a card game.

[Sepiche]

So three games now under my belt, and I can safely say this game is pretty fun. It's odd in how it plays, and I don't think there's a tutorial, but honestly I think that's intentional as the game ramps up slowly and, as long as you read all the descriptions and use a little logic, it's pretty easy to figure out the basics.

My first game I was doing splendidly until I started getting restless which increased my dread, and the overwhelming dread led to a despair that killed me. Too many dark mysteries for one poor mortal.

My second game I successfully tracked down a dangerous criminal gaining the favor of the powers that be, and I won a minor victory by securing a position at the suppression office.

In my last game things were also going very, very well, but I took money from someone who asked something of me and when the time came I failed to deliver and was sacrificed.

The most helpful thing I've found is the pause button. I want to read and enjoy the details, but can't with a clock ticking down and every second actually seems to matter in the long run.

Yup, I pause constantly... no shame son. In fact there are a lot of cards that will go away or change if you let a timer go down, so occasionally pausing to make split second plays is required.

[Holman]

I'm in! I like it!

And I'm confused, although I understand that this is part of the process. (I found a "First Hour Guide" on YouTube which is good as an orientation without providing any spoilers.)

I'm also very frustrated with the interface, which is just fiddly enough to really get in the way.

1) I want my cards and events to stay where I put them.
2) I want the windows that open on events to all be in a consistent location. If I move the first one to the lower left, let them all open there.
3) I want the highlights to activate when I mouse over a card rather than only when I click and select it.
4) I want a hotkey to close windows rather than having to precisely click the tiny "X".

Most of all, is there any reason for this game to be timed rather than turn-based?

[Sepiche]

Yeah, definitely a few janky things with the interface, but nothing too bad that I've seen.

1) I want my cards and events to stay where I put them.

Haven't noticed anything moving from where I place them, unless you mean when they get put back onto the game board after being returned from an action?

I tend to line my actions along the bottom of the play area, and put my cards, grouped by rough type, above.

2) I want the windows that open on events to all be in a consistent location. If I move the first one to the lower left, let them all open there.

They open based on the location of the action block that fired them. I kind of like it that way as it's an underscore of where the event is coming from.

3) I want the highlights to activate when I mouse over a card rather than only when I click and select it.

Agreed. The same goes for the card slots within the action blocks... you can click on them to see what cards can be used there, but it would be nicer if that happened on mouse over instead.

4) I want a hotkey to close windows rather than having to precisely click the tiny "X".

Agreed.

Most of all, is there any reason for this game to be timed rather than turn-based?

Looks to me like it probably allowed them more control over card balance without having to run through a hundred turns where nothing happens as you wait for actions to finish. With the pausing it really doesn't bother me, although an auto-pause after actions complete would be nice.

[Stefan Stirzaker]

Bought played and returned. I like the idea but wasnt what i expected with the good reviews. Might get again on sale for 50% off when niggles are fixed

[baelthazar]

I am really liking this (although, like the Fallen London stuff before it, the prose gets a bit heavy handed).

That said, in my current run I somehow burned up my sole Passion card (I think it was with painting).

So I have a question about that (in spoiler tags for those who do not want to see.

Spoiler:

Since you need passion to get glimmering to make more passion, does anyone have any suggestions to getting at least one more passion? You have a hard time recruiting without passion.

[Sepiche]

Spoiler:

Since you need passion to get glimmering to make more passion, does anyone have any suggestions to getting at least one more passion? You have a hard time recruiting without passion.

Spoiler:

IIRC If you study passion back to back it won't dim the passion and will give you 2 glimmering in time to get another passion. Same goes for reason and erudition.

[Max Peck]

Spoiler:

Since you need passion to get glimmering to make more passion, does anyone have any suggestions to getting at least one more passion? You have a hard time recruiting without passion.

Spoiler:

IIRC If you study passion back to back it won't dim the passion and will give you 2 glimmering in time to get another passion. Same goes for reason and erudition.

Spoiler:

I've never seen a task result where passion is outright destroyed. I have, however, seen an issue where exhausted ability cards sometimes get stacked under other cards when you complete a task, so you might want to manually move your cards around to see if the missing one is hidden under something. Failing that, I believe you have a chance to get glimmers without using passion by exploring

Spoiler:

Streets Strange by Moonlight

[Paingod]

Failing that, I believe you have a chance to get glimmers without using passion by exploring

Spoiler:

Streets Strange by Moonlight

I abuse the heck out of that card, treating it like a Golden Age in Civilization. I use it to

Spoiler:

push my Imagination to level 3, gaining 3 passion as I go.

Despite having invested a few evenings in this game, it still feels cryptic when I get beyond day to day survival. I've upgraded cards, but only have a vague recollection of how I did it. My best previous 'run' so far involved getting Sensation to level 2. My current 'run' is going very well; I have a pile of books and the skill to translate them, and have passed through three dream voyages to unlock concepts - but my Ambition is basic and unchanged.

Something that some may consider a Spoiler, but it was a purely frustrating thing that you can avoid - The Detective should -never- "Work" the Case File you start with. Doing so will cause you to never learn to Dream. You can survive a while without it, but will eventually die in Despair. Always Study the Case File.

Some tips I've found, which, given the nature of the game, could ruin it for you - or help if you're feeling frustrated.

Spoiler:

• If you're playing the Detective, you can kind of game the system for a little early build-up by not pushing to Work the Damning Evidence. You can generate it again and again by Working the Tentative Evidence received from Working the Suspect.
• "They" say you can quit your starter jobs eventually. The only alternate task I've made money with was Painting, but that was pretty inconsistent and generates a lot of other issues. As such, I've never not kept working my day job.
• The Physician has no timer on their base "Work" which provides for 2 Funds and has no cool down timer or burn timer. I think this is as close as you can get to an "Easy" mode.
• If you find a winning combination of cards, write it down! More than once, I've surprised myself with the results of an activity and couldn't remember exactly how I achieved it. Added bonus: Not all results are consistent. Sometimes they will, sometimes they won't.
• To gain Health: Work Health or Skill: Strength & Health to get Vitality, Study Health to get Vitality. It's pretty easy to get to Skill: Strength level 2 with this.
• To gain Passion: Explore using Health or a Minion to randomly find the Streets Strange by Moonlight, and then repeatedly explore this every 30 seconds (one of the rewards is a Glimmering). Study Passion for Glimmering.
• To gain Reason: Study Reason to gain Erudite. Easy enough to get to Tier 2, but this is probably the hardest to get to Tier 3 skill as Erudite seems very randomly granted.
• To "Hold" a card you need, put it in a placeholder Verb. For example, if you need 2 more Vitalities, put your Skill: Strength into Study and stick your other Vitalities in there with it. The timers on them will freeze and you can continue working your Health to gain Vitality. An alternate is to "Talk" to someone about something you want to keep. It'll stay frozen there for as long as the talk is going on, but you'll need to refresh it and deal with the outcome. This becomes a nuisance, but seems to be the only way to stop valuable cards from expiring.
• Pause quickly when a Verb finishes. As soon as a Verb runs down and completes, the timers on the cards inside start to run down again.
• Beware Fascination and Dread. These will kill you. Fascination is brought down by Dread, Dread is brought down by Contentment. Dream with Funds to get a Contentment, or explore Streets Strange by Moonlight as Contentment is a possible reward. I haven't found a reliable way to generate Dread.
• Painting with Notoriety & Mystique generates more of the same. Using rare subject matter also generates attention.
• If you explore the Bookstore enough, you can find books to translate Greek and Latin. After that, you can Study those guides to become a Scholar in those languages. From there you can Translate a book by Studying it with the appropriate Language and Book. The reward is a copy you can read.
• Don't make cash deals for future favors with little old ladies unless you've got a minion to sacrifice. I was doing really well in exploring by myself without having founded a cult until the toll came due and I was shuffled off the mortal coil.
• If you ever really badly need a Corpse, spend some time working as a Clerk until your boss gets on your nerves...

[Sepiche]

Something that some may consider a Spoiler, but it was a purely frustrating thing that you can avoid - The Detective should -never- "Work" the Case File you start with. Doing so will cause you to never learn to Dream. You can survive a while without it, but will eventually die in Despair. Always Study the Case File.

Actually...

Spoiler:

You can solve the case and earn an easy minor victory

Some tips I've found, which, given the nature of the game, could ruin it for you - or help if you're feeling frustrated.

Spoiler:

• Beware Fascination and Dread. These will kill you. Fascination is brought down by Dread, Dread is brought down by Contentment. Dream with Funds to get a Contentment, or explore Streets Strange by Moonlight as Contentment is a possible reward. I haven't found a reliable way to generate Dread

Spoiler:

Safer to spend funds at the club you should find pretty easily. It gives a contentment about 90% of the time without all the side effects of opium. There's also a fair chance of getting a contentment by dreaming with reason.

Spoiler:

• If you explore the Bookstore enough, you can find books to translate Greek and Latin. After that, you can Study those guides to become a Scholar in those languages. From there you can Translate a book by Studying it with the appropriate Language and Book. The reward is a copy you can read.

Spoiler:

On the topic of the bookstore, I've found that's another, much easier way, to get your passion and reason up... you'll occasionally come across books that will give you reason and passion simply by studying those books with 2 glimmering or erudition depending.

[Paingod]

I consider minor victories losses in this game because you just quit chasing the dreams and return to the mundane...

I'll keep that in mind about studying books. I think you mean the Essays and Poetry, right? For some reason I thought those were one-and-done. Can you find more than one in each game?

[tgb]

I am so pissed off. I had a family function this weekend back East, so I was unable to play. My flight home today was delayed and I just got in. I have a little time tomorrow, but Wed-Sun I'll be working my home show.

No la la's for me until next week.

[Paingod]

I'm growing weary of the grind some of it takes, and have had to hunt online for answers to let me proceed twice now.

My current character is functionally immortal, so far. Working as a physician, I've read every book and explored every corner I can find. All that seems to be left is to actually apply everything I've collected, though I've lost at least one minion (maybe two?) permanently to failed missions. Now I use my minions to find Hired Thugs instead, and expend them on failed location hunts.

I say I'm immortal only because I've got 35 Funds in the bank, 6 Reason, 5 Passion, 4 Health, a pile of Rites of every kind (some up to Tier 4), can translate anything I find, and have managed to successfully beat every investigation, ailment, dread, and fascination trial that's come my way. I've dreamed three times, but am stuck on the Stag Door - which I had to search online to answer. Now that I have the answer, it made me go and now I'm grinding research to try and find the right answer.