Stories are people

And people are stories.   Dark Garden is a unique story generation machine.   To accomplish this, each NPC will be a stand-alone state-based story segment generation machine: The actions they take, reactions they display, quests they offer, and conversations you have with them will all be based on various states.   In general, they will have two paths they take, one good and one evil, but their inclination to take one path or the other will be based on a variety of factors. Even good people make the wrong decision based on character shortcomings such as fear or greed, and bad people still sometimes make decisions that help others. These decisions will both affect the NAPOX existence and Nephesh for that NPC and the people they interact with.   Because all of the aspects that can change the core aspects of an NPC are malleable, every story not only can be different but will be different unless the player makes the exact same decisions, in the exact same order, and at the exact same time. In addition to this, having the player choose from a list of "main mission targets" at the beginning of subsequent playthroughs will ensure that a strategy that is successful in one has no guarantee to be successful in the next.   Further variety can be added with a random seed that nudges all of the median values of every NPC's attribute slightly up or down each playthrough.   What is reliable is that all characters will react to the same inputs the same way, because human nature is universal. What is unreliable is predicting what the butterfly effect will be of the player turning their attention and assistance to one NPC while ignoring others. Who will get mad and kill who? Who will become an on-fire zealot and spread righteousness to others while another becomes a woeful degenerate and preys on the weak? ____ Example: Martha is a good Christian who wants to help others but is crippled by a fear of the Nazis. She is at a tipping point. The player decides to interact with her and guide her to sources of strength and courage, and should she respond, the effect is immediate.   Subsequent Effects: If presented with an opportunity to help someone, Martha will take it. Because she takes it, her resolve will improve, and her chances of retaining some of that extra dose of courage more permanently with it. NAPOX effect: Martha takes risks to help others. They are helped, which has a butterfly effect on their lives, but she may be persecuted, imprisoned, or killed for the help she provides.   More detail about How The Story Works