Eightball autonomous mix-in behavior spec notes

3.21.03

This document contains the spec notes for the dialog of the eightball autonomous mix-in behavior (amb).

If the eightball amb is active this session, Trip tends to pick up the eightball shortly after the first post-greeting beat. He will hold on to the eightball for most of the experience, allowing him to fiddle with it and read it on a regular basis.

Here are the following types of activities for the eightball:

• Picking it up – happens just after a beat ends, as the next beat begins; no additional behavior/reaction occurs besides just picking up the eightball

• Shaking it – as the beats are being performed, Trip will often absentmindedly shake the eightball. This is cool lifelike behavior that mixes well with beat performance. There are three types of shakes he can do:
• happy shakes – an upbeat happy style shake of the eightball; occurs early on in Tension-Level-1, when Trip is speaking and is in a good mood
• nervous shakes – the eightball is held lower and shaken in a more muted, nervous way; occurs when Grace or Trip is speaking, when Trip is in an anxious mood, especially when his mood changes from non-anxious to anxious.
• lower it – similar to nervous, but instead used when Trip is angry

The shaking behavior occurs up to once per beatgoal. It wait on the occurance of SetMood behaviors in Trip, and possibly in Grace (as described above). It always occurs on a mood-change boundary; otherwise occurs with 50% chance for every SetMood occurance, with a 100% chance if it has happened yet by the third SetMood for this beatgoal.

• Read it – we want up to 3 readings per session (more than 3 would probably get to be too much). The 3 readings progress in intensity:
• Reading 1 – occurs during the middle of Tension-Level-1; an upbeat message from the eightball; when reading it, Trip is a bit tense, but trying to be happy.
• Reading 2 – occurs during the end of Tension-Level-1, perhaps at the transition between Tension-Level-1 and Tension-Level-2; Trip is more tense and uncomfortable by now
• if Grace-Player-Affinity, a very upbeat message from the eightball; Trip dislikes this
• if Neutral-or-Trip-Player-Affinity, a challenging/questioning message from the eightball, which he gets nervous about, then laughs it off
• Reading 3 – occurs at the end of the first Tension-Level-2 beat, followed by Trip putting down the eightball; by now, Trip is unhappy, and Grace is angry
• if Grace-Player-Affinity, a very upbeat message from the eightball; Trip feels betrayed by his eightball
• if Trip-Player-Affinity, very downbeat message; Trip feels betrayed by his eightball

Readings happen up to once per beat, and can occur in these two ways:

• during the beat (in-between beatgoals) – this happens rarely, since it tends to be more effective for Trip to read the eightball after a beat’s txn-out has occurred, as commentary on the beat.
• at the end of the beat – more common, and always occurs this way for the final reading, at the end of the first Tension-Level-2 beat.

Special case: the drama manager may choose a special beat for performing a transition from Tension-Level-1 to Tension-Level-2. If the eightball amb is active this session, the beat may take advantage of the eightball amb and cause a “Reading 2” type reading, even if a Reading 2 type reading has already occurred (ie, up to two Reading 2 type readings could occur in a session.) If Trip happens to not be actually holding the eightball at that moment, Trip will instead say “where’s my advice ball” and simply go pick up the eightball, and Grace will do her same Reading 2 reaction in response.

• Putting it down – Trip tries to hang on to the eightball until the final reading, after which he puts it down. Here are reasons Trip would have to put down the eightball before the final reading:
• Fixes drinks. If the fix drinks beat occurs, when Trip goes to the bar, he will put the eightball down, fix the drinks, carry the drink to the player, and then go pick up the eightball at the next opportunity.
• Leaves room. If Trip leaves the room at the T1 -> T2 transition, he puts the eightball down in the kitchen, and does not continue with the eightball amb anymore that session.
• If at the end of the first Tension-Level-2 beat, if the DreamRec amb occurs instead of the eightball amb, then Trip should put down the eightball during the DreamRec amb.