# SCENARIO-MERCHANT-0000 ## The BALNEA Conversation ### Status: Canonical Prologue Scenario Seed ### Layer: OTIVM (Roman Merchant) ### Purpose: Establish the universal opening scenario where the participant encounters Ostia, the six backgrounds, and the logic of economic interpretation through mixed-status conversation ### Repository Path: docs/scenarios/SCENARIO-MERCHANT-0000.md --- ## 0. Design Intent This is the one scenario every participant experiences before divergence. The participant does not begin by selecting a class from a menu. The participant begins by overhearing six people interpret the same uncertain opportunity. The chosen background emerges from affinity with a way of seeing. This scenario exists to validate: - character selection through revealed behaviour - Ostia as pressure field, not backdrop - BALNEA as mixed-status social node - rumor as first economic input - six background perspectives - the transition from observation to identity - the first lesson of OTIVM: the event is less important than what it changes --- ## 1. Canonical Identifier | Field | Value | |---|---| | Scenario ID | `SCENARIO-MERCHANT-0000` | | Title | The BALNEA Conversation | | Token | `balnea_conversation` | | Domain | merchant | | Scenario Type | prologue / background selection | | Repeatable | no for a given participant | | Hidden Truth Variants | yes | | Required Before | `SCENARIO-MERCHANT-0001`, `0002`, `0003` | | Repository Path | `docs/scenarios/SCENARIO-MERCHANT-0000.md` | --- ## 2. Fixed Setting The scene occurs in or immediately around a BALNEA in Ostia. The baths are selected because they plausibly allow mixed-status contact between actors who would not share a dinner table, household, or formal council. Required properties: - public enough for social display - informal enough for overheard speech - mixed enough for status friction - connected enough for fresh rumor - ordinary enough that the moment does not feel staged Alternative adjacent nodes: - changing room - courtyard - entrance steps - oiling area - nearby thermopolium after bathing Primary rule: the setting must allow all six background archetypes to occupy the same social field without forcing implausible intimacy. --- ## 3. Historical Basis Roman baths functioned as social infrastructure as well as bathing facilities. They supported conversation, reputation display, rumor circulation, informal business, and cross-status proximity. For OTIVM purposes, the BALNEA is the ideal opening node because: - the noble can appear without surrendering status - the freedman can speak without formal invitation - the legionary can observe discipline and threat - the failed magistrate can still perform public standing - the camp logistician can hear practical supply talk - the guild scribe can read the numbers behind the words Confidence: Medium. Basis: Roman social practice; Ostian bath archaeology strongest in later periods; structural use as analogue for the default 14 BCE epoch. --- ## 4. Variable Inciting Topic The topic should be variable by world seed, but the default first implementation should use the forge smoke from `SCENARIO-MERCHANT-0001`. ### Default Topic Smoke has been seen from an industrial district of Ostia. Rumor says a bronze forge has burned. ### Alternative Topics | Topic Token | Linked Scenario | Use | |---|---|---| | forge_smoke | `SCENARIO-MERCHANT-0001` | default first run | | capua_timber_shortage | `SCENARIO-MERCHANT-0002` | if Capua event precedes local event | | distressed_contractor | `SCENARIO-MERCHANT-0003` | finance-oriented opening | | warehouse_infestation | future | storage / spoilage tutorial | | delayed_grain_boats | future | port congestion / food price tutorial | | new_tax_collector | future | PORTORIUM / legal pressure tutorial | Rule: the prologue teaches interpretation, not a single fixed plot. --- ## 5. Dramatic Structure ### Phase 1 — Observation Participant enters the BALNEA environment. Immediate signals: - heat - steam - scraped oil - stone floor - wet voices - gossip moving faster than facts - smoke or rumor arriving before certainty No exposition dump. ### Phase 2 — Six Interpretations Each background archetype interprets the same signal. The participant hears not biographies, but methods. ### Phase 3 — First Choice Participant chooses the statement, person, or interpretation that feels most useful. This selects the starting background. ### Phase 4 — Consequence The selected background determines initial parameters, resources, liabilities, and first available contacts. The prologue ends when the participant can act. --- ## 6. Six Background Voices These are not final player-facing dialogue lines. They are design constraints for how each archetype reads the same event. ### 6.1 Former Legionary Sees: - route disruption - guard failure - movement bottleneck - disciplined response or lack of it Typical interpretation: > The question is not what burned. The question is which road, gate, or yard is now blocked. Parameter emphasis: - disciplina - itineris_scientia - periculum_tolerantia Blind spot: - assumes competence can be commanded into civilians Scenario affinity: - logistics shocks - convoy trade - shortage movement ### 6.2 Freedman Trader Sees: - goods respectable men will not touch - quick buying windows - underpriced salvage - ignored customers Typical interpretation: > Smoke makes gentlemen cautious. That is when useful things become cheap. Parameter emphasis: - mercatus_scientia - negotiatio - clientela through practical contacts Blind spot: - elite legal exposure Scenario affinity: - arbitrage - distressed buying - market gaps ### 6.3 Noble Younger Son Sees: - families involved - access points - introductions - reputation consequences Typical interpretation: > Before one buys timber or bronze, one learns whose name is attached to the ashes. Parameter emphasis: - auctoritas - ius_accessus - fama Blind spot: - underestimates operating cost and physical delay Scenario affinity: - partnership - access deals - credit with witnesses ### 6.4 Failed Magistrate Sees: - creditor movement - legal weakness - signatures - delayed permits - public vulnerability Typical interpretation: > Fire is simple. Rebuilding is where men ruin themselves. Parameter emphasis: - ius_accessus - litterae - compromised auctoritas Blind spot: - underestimates how much distrust follows him Scenario affinity: - legal leverage - debt pressure - contract traps ### 6.5 Camp Logistician Sees: - missing replacement stock - hungry labor - cart shortages - supply timing - who will need what before they admit it Typical interpretation: > If the yard is gone, count the carts, not the flames. Parameter emphasis: - itineris_scientia - disciplina - mercatus_scientia under pressure Blind spot: - offends prestige networks with blunt practicality Scenario affinity: - emergency contracts - supply crises - military-adjacent demand ### 6.6 Guild Scribe Sees: - accounts - debts - ledgers - pledged goods - who was overextended before the accident Typical interpretation: > The ashes will tell less than the accounts. Parameter emphasis: - litterae - negotiatio - ius_accessus through documents Blind spot: - physical danger and violent enforcement Scenario affinity: - FAENVS - contracts - debt purchase - collateral analysis --- ## 7. Background Selection Mechanic The participant should not initially see a stat table. Selection options should be phrased as interpretive commitments: | Choice Style | Background | |---|---| | Follow the blocked routes and exposed movement | Former Legionary | | Buy what fear has mispriced | Freedman Trader | | Learn whose name governs the opportunity | Noble Younger Son | | Find the signatures and debts beneath the event | Failed Magistrate | | Count the carts, crews, and replacement stock | Camp Logistician | | Read the accounts before the rumors harden | Guild Scribe | After selection, reveal: - background title - current resources - obligations - first contact - first weakness Raw parameters may remain hidden or appear only in advanced view. --- ## 8. Initial Parameter Effects The prologue selects the starting actor profile defined in `docs/actors/`. | Background | Primary Opening Advantage | Primary Opening Cost | |---|---|---| | Former Legionary | acts quickly under disruption | poor subtle negotiation | | Freedman Trader | notices mispriced goods | low formal standing | | Noble Younger Son | gains elite access | expensive obligations | | Failed Magistrate | sees legal leverage | damaged trust | | Camp Logistician | maps supply chain stress | low prestige | | Guild Scribe | understands debt and records | avoids physical risk | --- ## 9. Prologue-Scenario Relations ```text rumor_signal -> six_interpretations selected_interpretation -> background_id background_id -> starting_parameters background_id -> starting_resources background_id -> first_contact background_id -> first_blind_spot balnea_social_density ↑ -> rumor_velocity ↑ auctoritas_visible ↑ -> speech_weight ↑ status_gap ↑ -> dialogue_friction ↑ ``` --- ## 10. Integration With Existing Scenario Trilogy ### Link to 0001 — The Bronze Forge Fire Default implementation should use visible or rumored forge smoke. The prologue teaches: - the fire is less important than second-order effects - each background sees different opportunity - the participant’s first choice is interpretive ### Link to 0002 — The Capuan Timber Yard Fire If seeded with Capuan timber news, the prologue teaches: - distant events matter when routes connect them - scarcity travels through dependencies - Ostia reacts before Capua fully explains itself ### Link to 0003 — The FAENVS Offer If seeded with distressed finance news, the prologue teaches: - capital can move without ITER - AVCTORITAS and documents can be more valuable than cargo - social cost is a real parameter --- ## 11. Ostia Dependencies Requires substrate from `CITY-OSTIA-0001`: - BALNEA as social node - rumor velocity - mixed-status friction - workshop district - legal nodes - port-city information flow - background-specific city readings The prologue is the first practical test of whether Ostia functions as a pressure field. --- ## 12. Player-Facing Tone Constraints Do: - show six interpretations through speech and gesture - imply status through behaviour - keep the event uncertain - make choice feel like adopting a method - let the city speak through practical details Do not: - display a class-selection menu first - explain all parameters - declare the true cause of the event - force all six into equal-length speeches - overuse Latin as decoration - write theatrical fantasy banter --- ## 13. Data Model Stub ```text scenario_id: SCENARIO-MERCHANT-0000 scenario_type: prologue location_id: ostia_balnea_seed inciting_topic: enum available_backgrounds: [background_id] selected_background_id rumor_seed known_facts[] unknown_facts[] first_contact_id initial_parameter_profile initial_resource_profile ``` --- ## 14. Parameters With Confidence Tags | Parameter Token | Type | Confidence | Basis | |---|---|---|---| | balnea_social_density | social | Medium | bath social function | | rumor_velocity | information | Medium | port-city and bath setting | | status_friction | social | Medium | mixed-status interaction | | speech_weight | social | Low | derived from auctoritas/fama | | background_affinity | actor | High | direct participant selection | | first_contact_quality | social | Medium | selected background dependent | | initial_information_quality | information | Medium | background dependent | | opening_blind_spot | actor | High | background design rule | | prologue_topic_seed | scenario | High | direct scenario state | --- ## 15. Replayability Controls For a new participant, randomize: - inciting topic - order of voices - which actor speaks first - whether rumor is mostly true or mostly wrong - whether elite or low-status interpretation appears most confident - environmental pressure: crowding, heat, smoke, rain, noise For a given participant, prologue should not repeat. --- ## 16. Repository Use Internal simulation substrate. Not player-facing script. Use this document to support: - opening scene implementation - organic background selection - first tutorial logic - Ostia social-node validation - scenario chain entry point - future dialogue drafting --- ## 17. Canonical Success Condition If the participant stops asking: “Which character has the best stats?” and starts asking: “Which way of seeing the city do I trust?” then the prologue is functioning correctly.