Posting in OOC because of potential clutter in IC.
I think we do need to have clearer rules on vetoes from here on out, if only for KJP's sanity. I don't want him to abandon the game because every proposal has a 3 vetoed vetoes that need accounting for, because vetoes as they currently exist really are annoying.
A veto is supposed to be a very powerful political tool to protect the status quo, so I think we should implement Essence costs for someone to veto a proposal, and only the proposal can be vetoed, so no more pyramid vetoes... because that's pointless.
The other thing about vetoes is that there are a couple of different models we can use. In the UN, any permanent member of the Security Council can veto any resolution, so if we adopt this one, anyone can veto anything, but perhaps it should favour the 'older' characters who have more Essence? In this case the Essence cost would be a specific number, such as 10, 20 or so on.
In the US, the president has power of veto over any proposal that is presented to them, except in the case that a 2/3 majority in both houses of Congress override it. In this instance, I think the Essence cost should be a percentage of the character's total Essence pool (I was thinking 50% to represent the power of the tool) to make it fair on everyone. However, if the proposal receives enough support, then the veto is overridden.
If more than one character is vetoing something though, I think the costs can be shared amongst them, rather than them all paying the same cost. Thoughts on this?
Further, different types of vetoes we might consider:
Amendatory veto
Allows a god to amend proposals that have been... proposed. I think we already have this for free though, so perhaps not this one.
Line item veto
Allows a god to remove certain sections of a proposal they don't agree with, leaving the rest intact.
Cost veto
Allows a god to increase the Essence cost of a proposal.
Package veto
Allows a god to veto the entire proposal. Basically the two big examples I have up there.
These run the risk of the game becoming a bit more political than it necessarily should be though, so perhaps just a general overall veto with significant cost, and if you don't agree with a proposal you either vote against it or ask for it to be changed.
I personally favour the type of veto the US president has, with the percentage-based cost.