If you’re walking in the mountains, perhaps.
Not if you’re driving through London.
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Egads! You’re right! I don’t know how my brain never made the connection…
I think I need an Atlas to map out the synapses in my brain 
I thought the same thing when the game was revealed and they mentioned the Atlas stored your discoveries. Whoever folded that map obviously was really into Origami 
No idea, I just drew on them during long family drives to a beach with miserable weather. Not rotating the map and doing the logisitical orientation in your head certainly seems a lot more normal than drawing karate men all over them and making it unuseable for the next lost adult 
European Cities should have a contextual GPS voiceover that gets nauseous as they direct, due to all the winding turns, roundabouts and one way slaloms.
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Ah, I see. No, not when driving. But then, it is my firm belief that reading a map while driving is a recipe for disaster. One should definitely stop to read the map!
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Ideally, the driver drives, and the passenger reads the map. Not always possible, but that’s the way to go.
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That’ll be 3.99 for the maps, 6 for the petrol… I see you’re a lone driver, we also rent out “buddies” for an extra ten. They’ll read the map for you so you don’t crash and die like those idiots every other week. Don’t worry bout return policies, they hitch their own way back to base.
Now our best buddie is out at the moment but we got a new batch of interns from the clown college and they are DESPERATE for work. I mean, they might even throw in some favours I didn’t discuss beforehand.
Is the 70’s as wild as I imagine it?
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As I said. Recipe for DISASTER!! 
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There is a certain amount of pride in knowing where you are on a paper map and which way you are pointed then being able to know we need to go left or right ahead. Turning the map is for the feeble-minded. Those who’s brains function only on 1 plane of existence.
I have been with people who did not believe me when I said go left. And I had to stoop to their level and turn the map 
to prove to them we did indeed need to go left…
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I updated my post with the Atlas Rises document link above to address it’s current bloated state and some ideas I have regarding structure, then rambled into much future discussion that I figure I should actually make a new post about.
I’m looking into how to split the story into Volumes or sections and I thought I’d see if anyone has any better ideas or suggestions on how stuff post-Atlas Rises should be grouped…
Volume 1 - Atlas Rises, this includes NPC base quests, Computer Archive lore, and Boundary Break/Rememberance will act as an epilogue.
Volume 2 - Abyss/CommunitySeason01&02/ (ariadne disappearing etc)
I want to call this volume Waking Titan as it’s the first time we start to have direct interference from “her” and it fits well after “Atlas Rises” and season 02 of the ARG took place in this time too.
Volume 3 - Living Ship/ Whale Song/Desolation Logs/ Voice of Freedom
Volume 4 - Trace of Metal/ Singularity/ They who return
Volume 5 - Omega/Adrift/liquidator/Aquarius/Cursed/
I wanted to avoid including Expeditions and keep them seperate as they are, but these latter few seem important and almost like we are getting to see what the void is up to while we are busy base building and taking photos of dumb animals in our main. Liquidator and Aquarius could be given the chop from the volume version as it’s essentially just repeating motifs and instilling a pattern.
No name ideas for later volumes so those are also welcome, I’d love to have everyones input on how these are presented at least, I’ll do the nitty gritty work, you can do the fun branding
Oh and as for Computer Archive Lore, this was introduced after Atlas Rises so I’m not sure whether to include it during the story, or after. It feels right to include it during since it is now experienced this way, but I thought that might be one of those areas where there is contention between people,.
edit:
Dox myself to share an anecdote? Sure why the hell not I aint got any shit to steal…
I'll just blur it... and hide details... It'll be fiiiine
My surname is Gaynor and when I started holidaying with friends in late teens through early 20s I got the nickname Navigaynor whenever abroad. Because I could read the map without needing to rotate it or turn myself in a circle like a dog thats about to sit down.
This was JUST before we all got handy sat navs in our pockets. I remember a friend having a phone with WAP capabilities and thinking, if thats what the phone thinks internet is, it’s never going to take off. Thankfully someone revolutionised handheld devices and wireless internet infrastructure.
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That should totally be your name in game 
Docs sound good. I have been wanting lore arranged this way for a while. On my current save, I am mapping out where I am when I get bits of lore. Nothing so detailed as what you are doing. Just scribbled notes here.
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You’re talking to somebody that doesn’t even exist on half a plane of existence, then. My orientation is exactly zero. I managed to take the wrong way out of a gas station not once, but twice. I can do with a compass and a map, and enough time in the same spot to make sense of them. Navigating in a moving car… you might as well let your goldfish do it. 
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I’m nearing the end of Act 2 on the organisation and this was fun to do a find and replace on.
Just as you are about to pass through the portal going into Act 3, you summarise your journey thus far (much like sean before dropping an update… so proud of this team… look at how far we’ve come…)
Choices Puzzle
The language files have 9 variants, laid out like this…
NPC_CORE_ACT2_26_DESC_CHUNK1
NPC_CORE_ACT2_26_DESC_CHUNK8
NPC_CORE_ACT2_26_DESC_CHUNK3
NPC_CORE_ACT2_26_DESC_CHUNK4
NPC_CORE_ACT2_26_DESC_CHUNK2
This one below is very small…
NPC_CORE_ACT2_26_DESC_CHUNK8
NPC_CORE_ACT2_26_DESC_CHUNK6
NPC_CORE_ACT2_26_DESC_CHUNK2
Because it’s the bleakest one I guess…
Apollo walked through the portal and became lost within, trapped by the dream of the Atlas.
And Artemis… I allowed Artemis to die rather than place their soul within a simulation. I would not wish such a fate on any being.
I do not know if I was right to do what I did. I do not know what I have become as a result of my actions. The Atlas awaits me, should I choose to step through…
It was interesting to see how the game compiles the variance at the end when bringing our choices together.
@sheralmyst Since you are on a fresh playthrough maybe you can help me with something I am confused by.
Grah! You are late! You were supposed to arrive minutes ago.
Interloper, the price has been paid. Leave here at once and lay claim to your new base. From this stronghold, you will be able to explore the universe and return from any station.
Ask for the base location
I ask for the base’s location and am provided with coordinates.
Say you will find your own base
The Vy’keen grows enraged, claiming they have spent hours cleaning the base ready for our arrival. They give me the coordinates regardless, saying that if I wish to find my own base instead, I’m welcome to do so.
I don’t recall the initial start for building a base having a choice like this and I have no idea what happens if you choose the one where they claim to have one set up for you (is this from the early days of single bases maybe? I think I already had a base for Atlas Rises update so its possible I never seen this then either.)
This might be old entries no longer used but if you recall seeing them on your fresh playthrough let me know,
there are variants of it for each race too but the Vy’Keen one made me laugh the most.
Korvax Variant
Lifeform! You arrived later than anticipated. Data has been obtained, exchanged, utilised. A new base awaits you, as instructed.
From this base, you will be able to explore the universe and return from any station. May the light of the Atlas watch over you.
Ask for the base location
I ask for the base’s location and am provided with coordinates.
Say you will find your own base
The Korvax becomes perplexed, claiming they have spent hours preparing the base for my arrival. They give me the coordinates regardless, saying that if I wish to find my own base instead, I’m welcome to do so…
Gek Variant
Ah, friend! You have arrived as scheduled. All the proper permits have been filed, and your new base is waiting for you!
From this base, you will be able to explore the universe and return from any station. May the light of the Atlas watch over you.
Ask for the base location
I ask for the base’s location and am provided with coordinates
Say you will find your own base
The Gek becomes irritated, claiming they spent hours cleaning the base ready for our arrival. They give me the coordinates regardless, saying that if I wish to find my own base instead, I am welcome to do so…
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I have just begun the Base Building part of the main story. I will watch for this. I am thinking it has to do with the VyKeen you hire at the weapons terminal and not hearing from their family. You are tasked with getting a message to his family and you find out they were kidnapped…but will double check that.
In the meantime, this has to be linked to the expedition we just played.
the voice that kept speaking to us throughout the expedition…
Just met Apollo
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I’m currently sorting out the Atlas Judgement conclusions… Thread carefully with Apollo now
Iteration: APOLLO followed you through the portal and survived due to your guidance. You saved them from the fate of ARTEMIS<>.
Iteration: APOLLO followed you through the portal, becoming lost just as ARTEMIS became lost. You failed to help them, failed to warn them...
Iteration: APOLLO did not follow you through the portal. You denied them the right to see what you have seen, the right to risk their life in the pursuit of knowledge.
I’m thinking “A Voice” from the cursed expedition, as I’ve said before, is left vague on purpose, and as they stated in the update notes, it is up to players to decide who it belongs to.
Different players will have different attachments to Apollo and Artemis and any Traveller lost to the glass for that matter; Leto, Ariadne (debated) etc… so it leaves room for the player to project their favourite ghost pal onto A Voice (a voice which speaks on behalf of all lost travellers)
I’ve taken to calling the two Apollo “living” variants as “Safe Apollo” and “Portal-Adept Apollo”.
This is the last we hear from “Safe Apollo” which with foresight, made me chuckle.
But you know what? If we’re going to die anyway, I’m going to go through that portal and see what you saw. Maybe we’ll be able to have a drink together before the apocalypse, after all.
So long as it isn’t water, Apollo
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I also see that Nada doubts if Artemis is the ‘real’ iteration because they do not remember Nada so Nada refers to False Artemis and False Atlas
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A lot of what I’ve been coming across is stuff I remember well or stuff I was rediscovering or had forgotten completely about.
This is something I was not aware of at all, and I feel like it’s something maybe a lot of us are unaware of because we don’t die all too often, we seem the risk averse sort.
Did you know there are Death Messages that aren’t just from famous Sci Fi authors? At some point (added with Atlas Rises) the game will start disaplying death messages from other Travellers
To save you all going out and drinking the Kool Aid I will share them here 
I M//AY NOT HAVE G~NE WHERE I INT-/DED 16 GO,
BUT 16 THINK 16 HAVE END~D UP WHERE 16 NEEDED TO BE.
- ITERATION #27263651
More Trave//er Death Screen Quotes
WE // ARE // IMPOSSIB~~~~LITY IN AN //--POSSIBLE UNIVERSE.
- ITERATION #998261G
THE MYS..TERY OF [~~~] ISN'T A PROBLEM 16 SOLVE,
BUT ~ RE//LITY ./ EXP...=IENCE.
- ITERATION #133449L
WE L/VE ON 16 P--//AD .SL~ND OF IGN-R~NCE //N THE M~DST
OF 16 16 16 16 16 IN~~NITY, AND IT W/AS NOT ME/AN/T THAT
WE SH16LD VO~//AGE FAR.
- ITERATION #34711P
I S~~ THE BLACKNESS. //.RSE THAN SP16E,
[WORSE~THAN~ANYTHING]. UTTERLY BLACK,
AND 16 SWA//.WS ME W../E.
- ITERATION #148876Y
ST//.//ILI~Y 16 THE BEGINNING OF 16END. WE O~~Y
WALK 16CONTINUA~LY BEGINNING 16FALL FORWARD.
- ITERATION #989817
RE-.LITY IS [----] BY THE //ORCES TH~T DESTROY IT.
- ITERATION #134467G
HERE LIES [---] FROM A DIS../T STAR, BUT 16 SOIL IS
16 ALIEN TO HIM, //~R IN DEATH HE B~~~NGS TO THE U.//~/NRSE.
- ITERATION #2276555L
I wonder how many players have seen these death screens? They almost feel intrinsically tied to what we have experienced with The Cursed, so it is a strange feeling uncovering them for the first time now.
I also wonder what the condition is? Are the death screens cyclical or do these kick in after a certain point in the story?
edit:
I was able to make some sense of when things were added. A few things of note were a new Abandoned Lore log added with Atlas Rises (The Voice) and the final 10 Boundary Break logs were added with the Nexus Update (Beyond; I always miscontribute it to Next)
One of the more immersive things I find with this game, being a long standing player, is that with every update, change and refresh, I relate more and more to Nada and Polo and their nostalgia of having done it all before but differently.
One thing to keep in mind also is the Rememberance terminals were there at launch, and that used to be the big end game reveal with a hopeful ending, depending how you interpret the Atlas simulation of its final moments.
The First 20 Telamon logs were added with Atlas Rises and became like a second secret ending that added a new dimension to the Atlas and set things up for the future.
@Polyphemus below
Ah they must have been from the ChatGPT Iteration of the sim where all Travellers were plagiarised. The Atlas was letting an intern AI have a go for a few millenia.
more edit
The Atlas path proves another tricky point to navigate. While it’s not important to the Atlas Rises plot, there is an alternative dialogue if you plead with the Atlas at the end of Act 2 that references the Star you birthed together.
So I would like to include the Atlas Path somewhere, layout wise I will either punish the reader and have the default anomaly encounter, followed by all but the final atlas path interaction (saved for later) happen at the very beginning as a prelude, before going into atlas rises act 1 proper. Alternatively they will both be moved to the end as a further reading section that will already contain Traveller Graves and Freighter Logs added with Atlas Rises (they are all Traveller related)
I’m working on piecing that stuff together now but it’s proving it might be a bit too much this late in the evening. There are 3-4 versions of the Atlas Path encounters within the game files, one in partcular being very recent, and the game still seems to pull from some of the in between stuff…
The 700+ page story dump document is still there for anyone who wants to read through the rest of the stuff post-atlas (up to as far as trace of metal as of posting)
I have started moving things over to what will be the final stand alone document for Atlas Rises. This will be much lighter on loading and a lot smoother alternative, I will be stitching in the UI guidance to it tomorrow and hopefully have it structure complete.
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Some of those death screens are definitely quotes. “The mystery of life isn’t a problem to solve, but a reality to experience” is from Frank Herbert’s “Dune”. “We live on a placid island of ignorance in the midst of the black sea of infinity, and it was not meant that we should voyage far” is from H.P. Lovecraft’s “Call of Cthulu”.
I suspect the others are also quotes, but I don’t know them.
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Expanding the Base missions really bog down the game and add very little if anything to the lore.
The Base Computer Archives can be interesting as it gives you the events of what came before
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Well, assuming that the passenger can read a map well. When my wife and I traveled, I had to get AAA TripTicks, which used a “straight ahead” view.
She did, on long drives, delight in reading aloud tidbits about towns and POIs we were passing. It did break the boredom.
For shorter trips, I used a tabloid sized map collection relevant to the area. I’d read the map, drive off, stop, read the map, …
Oh how I love my current phone (and a separate) GPS.
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I have to admit, I now use my car’s built in GPS and let the lady tell me where to go. But I still keep the map locked. None of that rotating business. It throws me completely off.
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