For Backers Only: Faction #1 Faction Naming Poll

I'm sure the why will come later, once the Commander figures out why it has given itself such a designation.

Unless the writer they have is able to pull out something truly and heroically epic, weaving space romans into a narrative that actually means something; a conflict that actually deserves a fight, then I fail to see any significance in being a Space Roman.

The 'Camp Card' has been played very early on here.

Gooood.

Without the why, without an actual personality to identify with, this poll is nothing more than a popularity contest over pseudo-Roman sounding names.

It could simply be the ideology of the Progenitor that created the base template for the Commander model, Nano!

EDIT: and yes, that's why it's a simple poll. Uber have obviously decided on some kind of a Roman theme, but they want the community input with regards to the specific titles involved.

At which point this Commander has not been shaped by his experiences and cannot explain his thought process, since it's not thinking and, since it cannot remember much of anything from it's experiences due to its electric amnesia, is nothing more than a blank slate.

It's not an advanced AI being with a rational explanation for its method of thinking, nor its ideological views. It just picked a name and symbol from the 'Hat of overused Idioms and Tropes' and carried on doing what it was doing before its amnesia. Why did this Commander even need amnesia from a storytelling point of view, if it's just going to keep doing what it was already doing before?

Nothing changed except for the adoption of a trite nomenclature.

Amnesia doesn't have to be total, hence the ability to recall things that are pleasing to/match up against recoverable data in its databanks.

We can argue back and forth, given that we're edging into subjective exploration of reasoning for a being that we don't fully understand yet.

Feel free to dislike Space Romans. I'm fond of the naming myself, so I'm happy to wait and see.

The only thing that this Commander's selection has told me is that he has little to no imagination and that it thinks names are more important than causes.

so he is alive after all. all these efforts to humanize machines ....

Alive is a subjective term when it comes to Advanced AI beings. However I'd say this Commander isn't really alive as I see it.
It's brain-dead. Should pull the plug. It's the humane thing to do.

Dude needs correcting. Take your Commander and spread the true cause!

Just like the Alpha Commander thread, this is more a concern about such things carrying over onto other Commanders.

As long as Dominus and his Empire is terribly uninspired in isolation that's fine. If this crippling lack of imagination is contracted by the other Commanders, we'll have a problem.

That's just what happens when you try to write a full background story for a character without developing the world and the other characters first

Basic worldbuilding is a hobby of mine... comes with the territory of being a GM really; you've got to have a foundation to lay your stories on top of.

I just can't realise any compelling universe from the lore we've been given so far for this Commander.
It just feels like a campy trope to me, rather than anything more complex or deep.

So we've got two outcomes; either this Commander is indicative of the main direction of the lore, or he's an outlying anomaly.

Either the universe is contrived technobabble there to mask any form of intellectual exploration and falls apart under even the slightest scrutiny, or this particular Commander is a square peg in a round hole.

I think Nanolathe has a point here.
And I think you have to know the story before you are able to choose the "right" name.

You say that like I don't always have a point

Nothing is ever black or white. I'd assume the people they have on lore are vaguely qualified, rather than assume they're a bunch of monkeys trying to recreate Hamlet at this stage.

But then again, I am ever an optimist. Nor do I present my opinions on subjective matters as fact.

Okay. You always have a point. But sometimes you represent your opinion a little too strong. But rather too strong than too weak.

I'll gladly swallow my words if I am proven wrong Gorbles.

I rarely have to do so however.

It's not like TA or supcom were any different.