The Oracle Paradox

I will confirm that this is the case. In fact there is no little disagreement over what is "virtuous" amongst the team ourselves - including between Richard and myself. It makes for interesting conversations.

(usually about cannibalism or child murder)

 

Since I'm going to be doing a pass on Oracle dialog this release anyway, here's an experiment - and I'm not guaranteeing you she will have a clear answer for every question - but if you could ask the Oracle a question she currently does not answer, please ask it here and we'll see what we can do...

 

Sure thing! I asked 'Are you a machine?' and it couldn't answer me

 

"What is your worldview?" and I would expect that The Oracle tells me something about the virtues as they are followed over all of New Britannia. Perhaps it's the same as asking about yourself, only taking the entire world into account. I think you mentioned there was a limitation to collecting data only from players in-scene, but I imagine that if a SQL job were run every few hours over the general population, it could dump the data somewhere The Oracle could get it.

Maybe it would be dull after behavior reached equilibrium and it only ever spat out one type of answer. But there's a chance that it could offer interesting responses. I don't know what kind of data you track or plan on tracking, but if any of it can be examined with a recency bias, that would be good too. Something like only the last week's worth of virtue changes, but I imagine you'd have to actually track the changes and then it gets more complicated.

Anyway, something along those lines is what I was thinking.

 

Fred looked up from his beer, hesitated for a moment, then blurted out, "I need gold."

I had suspected as much and was hoping that he wouldn't ask to borrow any. I wasn't exactly rich myself, and my sword was starting to show signs of wear. It would soon need repair, and that wouldn't be cheap.

"Have you tried the Oracle?" I replied, attempting to head off any request for funds.

"Aye," Fred replied. "It did not go well."

"Really? I found it easy. What was the problem?" I asked with renewed interest. Fred frequently demonstrated what could delicately be described as some unique thought processes, and I was curious to learn how the Oracle had responded.

"Well, it started off alright. She asked if I sought her counsel and the Blessing of the Virtues, or whether I had come seeking advice on her protection. Then she offered to test me on my knowledge of myself. I wasn't ready for the test just yet, so I told her I was seeking her counsel. That's when things got a little weird."

"Oh?" I responded. "We all know she spies on us. That should come as no surprise."

"Oh, it's not that." replied Fred. "She offered me her advice on any of the virtues that I may have forsaken and also offered to answer as best she could regarding anything I have encountered in my travels. Well, I didn't really need any help in forsaking the virtues - I've done that all my life and consider myself something of an expert. So I said, 'In my travels I have found that the most direct route is often the most difficult, and that it is usually easier to stick to the clearly marked but more circuitous path. Is this a metaphor for life?''

I suppressed a smile and listened with renewed interest as Fred continued to recount his experience with the Oracle.

"The Oracle responded, 'By the path of the virtues, I speak of the path that you are on, Fred. Your arrival has been foretold in prophecy, and the road that you travel is also preordained, and it will shape all of those that you meet on your way.' Well, as you know, I'm a great believer in the duality of freedom and responsibility, so I didn't take kindly to the Oracle's claim that my actions were preordained!"

"I can well imagine!" I agreed.

Fred continued, "I responded with the question 'If the road I travel has been preordained, does that mean I lack free will?' All the Oracle could come up with was, 'I don't understand. Could you explain?' So naturally I continued saying, 'It's simple. If my future is preordained, then I have no personal responsibility for my actions. Therefore I am no more capable of being judged virtuous or otherwise than a rock.' That's when she told me to leave."

"You're kidding!" I responded.

"For real. She said, 'Do not waste my time with idle chatter. Please leave so that the next in line may proceed.' Pretty damn rude if you ask me. And I didn't get any gold.

"Oh, is that the time?" I said as I bounded out of my chair. "Sorry, I'm missing an appointment. Gotta run."

And with that I rushed out the door.

 

1. What is the source of your power?
2. Why are you protecting Avatars from fighting one another?
3. How do I return to Earth?
4. Is there land beyond Novia?
5. Who decides what is virtuous?
6. Who is your master?
7. Who is the real Avatar?
8. Who is the least virtuous Avatar?
9. Who is the most virtuous Avatar?
10. Who is the most powerful mage to ever live?

 

1. What is your name?
2. What is your favorite color?
3. What is the air speed velocity of an unladen swallow?

4. Is this world real, or am I just inside a computer game?

 

When I was just a newbie girl
I asked the Oracle
What will I be
Will I be pretty
Will I be rich
Here's what it said to me...

 

Who are the Titans?
What is (name of astronomical oddities we come to know later)?
Where is (key story dungeon name)?
Where is (key story NPC town name)?
Where are the Cabalists?
Where is the nearest Titan (name) monument (for buffs)
What is the nearest vendor for (name of X item)?

 

All I know is I'd like to be able to break into the back of her head and run off with the piles of gold she's clearly sitting on, player after player walks out of there with 500 gold a person every day :3

Make this possible @Lum the Mad :3

 

1 - To what extent do you shape your own destiny ? (questions that might irritate the oracle because they implicitly don't trust her can be fun for many)
2- Does nature shape our destinies ? What shapes our destinies ? (basic questions like this help understand if the oracle cares about such important things as the environment you evolve in, which makes the character more believable)
2.1 - Were you ever young ? 2.2 - What makes you, you ? 2.3 - Who defines good and evil? 2.4- Who should I fear the most ?

Thank you so very much good sire... I'll consider this as another of karma's blessing, because when we have a consensus on the root then the fruits will survive surprise frosts

We are bound to respect everyone's point of view so by taking this step by step we can grow enough trunk to pump enough juice to give peace of mind to the artists.

What role does honor play in our society ?
How do you know your perceptions are real ?
Do something happen when we die ?
Do we have a soul ?
Do aliens exist ?
Does observation alter an event ?
Is mind or matter more real ?
Am I a brain in a vat ?
What is time ?

 

Do Novians have souls, or are they just computer algorithms that respond to keywords?

 

its already fun AND funny, even tho we haven't begun

 

Well, I asked it the ultimate question and the response I got was "I'm not sure what you mean." The giant talking microwave face is clearly not a fan of life, the universe, and everything.

 

For those that didn't get the reference,
and for those just feeling nostalgic.

 

People will be rude to the oracle, so I think its proper that it'd be rude back, it indeed has no time to lose, but it still has the ethics to let the avatar know what he thinks he needs to learn. Delicate balance, but don't skip the funny part of it : let it be super ultra rude

 

A snarky Oracle would crack me up... also, an Oracle with knowledge of earthly internet memes would be hysterical. Any knowledge of earthly literature that could be used in her responses would also be welcome.

 

I disagree, somewhat. The Oracle doesn't judge us (yet) on what we do; it only reports what it 'sees' and asks us how we think we're doing. It would seem to me that cold/unfeeling responses to rude behavior would be more appropriate.

BUT, perhaps rude behavior is recorded.

 

@Lum the Mad It's kind of difficult to frame a question concerning Virtue and the Prophecy because of the keywords. However, some of the things I try to ask the Oracle to no avail (and understandably so) is:

• Why do I have to be on a path of virtue if others are forsaking it and still leading productive lives?

• Who is the Chosen One? Does the Chosen One seek to gain control of the world? Are you trying to determine who the Chosen One is? Are you trying to help or hinder the Chosen One? Am I to help or hinder the Chosen One if I am not the Chosen One?

• Why do you need me to visit you so often? What/ how does my virtue or lack thereof contribute towards the Prophecy? Why are you paying me gold; is it to incentivize my visiting you? Does it not dilute my virtuous intentions by creating false virtue just as false modesty is not the same as humility?