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Wed, May 14, 2025

8:45am EDT

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The Book of Masks Homepage

by Seuzz

Rated: 18+ · Book · Other · #2156493

A hub for the "Book of Masks" universe.

The Interactives
"The Book of Masks"

: A high school student discovers a grimoire that can make magical disguises.
"The Wandering Stars"

: Sequel to "The Book of Masks."
"Student Bodies"

: A high school student is turned into a blue goo that can possess people.

For non-WdC Members
"The Book of Masks: Archives"

: Dodges the "Servers Busy" barrier!
"The Book of Masks (Abridged)"

: Introductory storylines for new readers.

Community
"BoM/TWS Message Forum"

: Community for readers of the interactives.
"BoM/TWS/SB Wiki"

: Notes and documentation for authors. Spoilers!

Current Polls/Contests
5/12: "BoM Poll: The Boys to Come"

[Closes Wednesday, May 14, at 12:00pm ET]

The Latest
5/12: Interactive: "The Boys to Come"

5/12: Public: "The Boys to Come"

Special Update
4/26: Interactive: "Fröhliche Momente mit unbekannten Menschen"

and following
4/26: Public: "Fröhliche Momente mit unbekannten Menschen"

and following

Show Recent Comments

10 Most Recent Blog Comments:

Seuzz

May 7, 2025 at 10:46am
In response to "Photofinish"

I should clarify a bit on the "one more GP vote."

The way the math works in the GP voting, you can get some counter-intuitive results. For instance, one voter sent in some last-minute GPs to support "Great idea," but because he sent so few, it actually had the effect of decreasing lead that "Great idea" had. That's because "Great idea" had a strong Free Vote lead, and this lead was bolstered by the value accorded each Free Vote by the GPs voted for it. That small GP vote had the effect of knocking down the value of the Free Votes, which had the effect of diminishing the value of the lead that "Great idea" in the Free Vote, and this diminution was greater than the value of the GPs voted for it. Hence, dropping a small GP donation onto "Great idea" diminished rather than enhanced its overall lead.

There was something similar with the "one more vote" anomaly. I thought (at first) that adding one more GP to "Weird" would push it over the top because it was so close. In fact, adding one more GP would work because it would have knocked the value of "Great idea's" Free Vote below the 50% threshold. Moreover, to affect the value of the Free Vote, that one extra GP would have had to come from a new voter. If one of the other GP voters for "Weird" had voted one more GP vote, that wouldn't have affected the outcome significantly.

I know that this makes the GP vote sound weird, and it is. But (1) the weirdness is under the hood and invisible to the voters. The only thing they should be worried about is trying to support their favored choices. And (2) the only outcome that matters is the final outcome, not the changes that occur as votes come in. The weirdness that I note above is visible and makes a difference only if you watch the dynamic vote process unfold, and the actual process of percentages adjusting as votes are added is irrelevant to the final outcome. Had the votes been sent in a different chronological order, the observed weirdnesses might not have happened.

Wordsmitty ✍️

May 6, 2025 at 12:21pm
In response to "Photofinish"

Ok folks. you need to up your bidding.

Wordsmitty ✍️

Mar 13, 2025 at 8:22pm
In response to "Another Upset"

Understand. Would really like to see Blackwell torment/play with Will some more. Let me see if there's somewhere else it could happen or an option added.

Seuzz

Mar 13, 2025 at 5:57pm
In response to "Another Upset"

No, the quick ending stays. Every interactive needs an instant ending somewhere near the start, as a prank on the reader.

1 Like

Wordsmitty ✍️

Mar 13, 2025 at 3:54pm
In response to "Another Upset"

I would like to suggest that Slippery Sale Option Three be treated as a blank and get replaced with a new chapter that eventually finds Will being affected by the book. It was too early for a dead end in my opinion. Also it allows for anyone who is looking to start a new line early in the story.

And, no, it wasn't me this time that dropped the GPs.

Seuzz

Mar 11, 2025 at 12:54pm
In response to "Let's Have Some More Polls"

I keep forgetting to reply to the suggestion above.

I add new choices to old chapters on an ad hoc basis: usually when I am working in that branch, and I see a nearby chapter, or an earlier chapter, where I would have wanted more choices originally. I don't go looking for places to increase the number of choices.

But if someone knows of a chapter that could use more choices, and would like to see them added, just drop me a line.

Wordsmitty ✍️

Mar 9, 2025 at 9:55pm
In response to "Let's Have Some More Polls"

Wait! And in this poll I will be posting the entire chapter ... Doesn't everyone always go back and read the previous chapters to refresh their memories?

Question RE: "Invalid Item"

- What's your (Seuzz or anyone) opinion of adding more options to some chapters especially the very old ones that were limited before it was raised to five options? Not every chapter would work to get more, but there are some that another option may have been (still could be) possible.

I haven't gone to look for examples, but I may if I have some time.

Seuzz

Feb 12, 2025 at 3:43pm
In response to ""Looks Like I Picked the Wrong Week to Stop Sniffing Glue!""

This is starting to feel like something to put in the forum. So: "Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: The Official Off-Topic Thread"

Nostrum

Feb 12, 2025 at 1:19pm
In response to ""Looks Like I Picked the Wrong Week to Stop Sniffing Glue!""

From what I've heard from a CC at YouTube, not very good. It's basically forcing you to restart again, except you get a few advantages from your earlier progression. A change for the sake of it, not because it was necessary.

You tell me if that's the case, though. I recall "1MT'ing" with Civ1 on a SNES emulator during college almost through 4 AM, so I know the allure.

Seuzz

Feb 12, 2025 at 12:49pm
In response to ""Looks Like I Picked the Wrong Week to Stop Sniffing Glue!""

I 1MT-ed yesterday for, like, 7 hours into the dead of night. I was so mad at myself.

In my defense, I was trying to get through the "Age of Antiquity" to the "Age of Exploration" because I wanted to see what this new "Age of" mechanic is like.

September 13, 2022 at 2:17pm

#1037669

An Ending and a Return

Today brings the last chapter in the Round Robin.

* Interactive: "Wrapping the Present"

* Public: "Wrapping the Present"

I really liked this branch, and IMO at least, I think we brought out the best in each other. At least, I think Nostrum and rugal brought out the best in me. I wasn't even that enthusiastic about continuing this branch, and was bowled over by the invention and ingenuity the other two brought to it, and from which I derived all the inspiration I ultimately had for it.

Tomorrow, for my part, I will be returning to the branch that I had been working on before we did the Round Robin, the one that ends with "Corporate Strategies"

.

That is the branch where Will conceives a scheme for manipulating the school body by replacing certain key people with doppelgangers under his control, and it inspired two threads in the forums: "Doppelganger: The War Game"

and "Corporate Partnerships in Magic"

. I had already war-gamed out my own answers to the first question before I even posted those threads, and the branch will show the plan I came up with, but I paid close attention to the answers given by other people, and tried to build in choices that would let those alternate ideas develop. So although this branch is not going to be poll-driven, it does rely on public feedback.

Comment

September 13, 2022 at 10:53am

#1037660

Spider-Man Commentary: The Hero or the Menace

"S02E16 "The Hero or the Menace""

This is part three of a four-part story arc, one that basically does the same job as the three-issue "Dying Wish" story arc in "The Amazing Spider-Man": swapping Otto Octavius and Peter Parker, and explaining how Otto comes to adopt something like the ideals and personality of the original Parker. But when you get to the end of this one, long-time Spider-Man fans will recognize that I cribbed most of the story from a different place in the issue run.

Okay, spoiler warning. Go read the script if you don't want things spoiled any more for you.

Are you back? Okay.

This was actually one of the first ideas I had when I sat down to outline this multi-parter. Issues 32 - 33 of "The Amazing Spider-Man" are one of the most famous in the continuity -- lots of comic creators have said it was the storyline that got them firmly hooked on the title when they were kids -- and I saw a way of taking it and turning it to my advantage in my adaptation.

Because the fact is that I don't feel like "Dying Wish" does a good job of motivating Doc Ock to pick up Spider-Man's mantle. Sure, the story says that he's influenced by the residual memories and personality he inherited with Peter Parker's body, but anyone can invent any "reason" for a personality change. The really believable personality change has to come from external and internal pressures that explain why a personality can change and adapt.

By repurposing a famous story -- one that puts Aunt May in danger while Spider-Man and Doc Ock battle -- I thought I could show Otto expressing legit concern for his new relatives, and that would show that he could and would try to fulfill Spider-Man's responsibilities instead of giving them up.

And, yes, there would be an extra twist of irony that in this adaptation the roles of Spidey and Doc Ock are swapped from what they were in the original story.

Comment

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