Kobold King

Welcome to Oregon! I love those two Epics--they're sure to be fascinating additions to this epic tale (ba-dum-tiss... two can play at the pun game. ) Any idea on what factions you might be joining up with, if any? (I'm not hinting or anything, but the Empire of Light has dinosaurs. )

Precise enough to have come out of David's notebooks. Speaking of which: Aldo in particular is likely to notice this. Shall we call it a plan?

See? No one passes through the Dark Alley without a few "souvenirs."

I would say Edge makes the most sense as the next Museum player. Voidgaze hasn't been given a chance to respond to Lightwards' ranting yet. I should definitely wait for the Voiduses in the shack, and I don't have anyone in Thoughttown at the moment. That could definitely work for me. Just let me know when, and I can start getting them onto the streets to meet her. Any specific ideas on how they might encounter her? (Aldo and Cricket may become instantly elevated to "Better Than Nighthound" status in Lightwards' hierarchy from this. )

Out of curiosity, whose turn is it in Oregon?

Ending such an awesome series with such a lackluster ending would be... calamitous.

Calamity is told exclusively from Calamity's point of view, and the narration consists entirely of the phrase "I am an evil supernova" over and over again. Steelheart deleted epilogue, in which David is knocked unconscious in the final explosion:

I like to imagine that a particularly popular series would be "honored" with a surprise cameo from Steelheart in the final episode. Steelheart would swoop down, briefly chat with the main protagonist, and then brutally massacre the entire cast.

This is very interesting, and I have an idea of what that ephemeral quality is. Hatred. Hatred and contempt are what drives an Epic, and nowhere is it more apparent than in High Epics like Steelheart or Nightwielder. It is also the most notable Epic-like trait that separates David from Tia and the other Reckoners. Throughout the novel, David is shown to be consumed by his loathing for Steelheart. If hatred truly is a fundamental characteristic of Epic powers, then it only makes sense that a particularly hateful person could use a gifted ability with more skill than anyone else. Hatred is also one of the most-stressed traits that David has in common with Prof, who is a High Epic. I would be genuinely surprised if the mental act of hatred did not turn out to be very important in Epic-ology.

But fortunately Joss Whedon became a powerful High Epic and took the main actors hostage, relaunching the series from an undisclosed location on the west coast. It does show off the fact that Steelheart was a clever dictator above and beyond the likes of Deathpoint. He understood that there was more to keeping an empire than just fear--keeping the populace occupied is also essential. "Bread and circuses," as the Romans would say. I do tend to wonder how much propaganda was flushed into the average program. Was there a branch of Steelheart's bureaucracy devoted to writing sitcom and soap opera scripts? Was there a death penalty attached to any scriptwriter who poked fun at Epics in his story lines?

1. Muahahaha. I know just where to begin. 2. I forgot that he couldn't gift healing. And I think there are circumstances in which Nighthound might gift without seizing control--the threat of Funtimes burying him under sixteen tons of confectioner's glaze might be sufficient. 3. The plot thickens. 4. We can only hope so.

1. I can't tell you how tempting it is to start sneaking Megan into posts as a "Where's Waldo" easter egg. 2. Gifters are very definitely the exception to the rule. (Nighthound can gift to people without taking control of them, right? I wonder if any of Funtimes' vanillas could be persuaded to take his strength and healing in the event of a dangerous battle sequence.) 3. Wait, Cody mentioned that he had to kill an Irishman to get his four-leaf clover... did Cody kill Purple Phoenix? 4. Since David mentions that two of The Coven are twins, I'm hopeful that we'll see them in the future. If Brandon Sanderson has planned them out in such detail, we've got to see them eventually... right?

Poor Koschei. Clearly he needs some quality time with Slaughterhouse to cheer him up. So, having read all of Steelheart in a single sleepless night, I have compiled a list of canon details relevant to this RP. 1. Megan is said to have "grown up" in Portland, and describes Oregon as being completely reduced to rubble and fallen-down trees.The way she talked about it made me suspect that she personally witnessed parts of the destruction. 2. The single defining trait that all active Epics share is contempt. This feature is brought up over and over again--Epics in use of their powers seem completely incapable of having a decent conversation with anyone else, stopping to deride their enemies and allies alike at every opportunity. CorpseMaker, Altermind, and Lightwards all fit in with this accurately, but our more Affably Evil Epics are a little more inexplicable in canon. 3. The only known Epic laboratory mentioned in canon had a particular interest in kinetic energy Epics, and apparently blew themselves up shortly before the novel's events. Considering Purple Phoenix's gadgets are very similar to Rick O'Shea's power, I strongly suspect some form of connection. 4. The southern states are apparently led by a team of six Epics called The Coven. Not so much relevant as it is sparking awesome.

She looks awesome. (And now I'm hating Koschei even more. ) Möhound was one of our earlier and more popular ships.

I have stuffy sinuses from a cold right now, so I ended up staying up all night re-reading Steelheart. In addition to other things which I might go into later, this part from Chapter 32 intrigues me. I'm putting this in spoilers just in case there are people viewing this who haven't read the book. It makes sense considering the infrastructure we see in Newcago, but it still strikes me as odd--and potentially humorous--that citizens of Newcago have access to a hundred different TV channels dedicated to their amusement. What precisely is shown on these channels? Sitcoms? Soap operas? Mostly reruns of pre-Calamity programs? I mean, if Steelheart was still producing new episodes of Doctor Who, then maybe Megan was right and bringing him down was a bad idea.

Indeed. There's something pretty compelling about the concept of humans considered far beneath an Epic's concern ultimately bringing them to justice. And Remington's courage in the face of a far more powerful adversary, compared to Lightwards' "Imma run as far as I can so she'll never find me" approach, just speaks of how much of a better human being he is. On to more pony matters: Kathy "Flamethrower" Flearson, Mark I: Making ponies for other players' characters is a much more hit-and-miss affair than making OC ponies. It's a lot harder to hit the personal pictures people have in their heads. Thoughts? Criticisms? Accusations of Soviet espionage?

I foresee at least one Lightwards/Funtimes confrontation once it becomes clear they have different goals. Whether or not it actually comes to blows will be up to the future us. One thing that amuses me is this: Möbius dislikes Lightwards and will do extra work to see him dead, but overall... she doesn't care. He's pretty much just "that guy who had the lousy blog." Lightwards' relationship with Remington echoes that. He'd love to get the opportunity to kill the man, but all in all he's far too preoccupied with larger matters to do much about it. In short, Lightwards fiercely despises an oblivious Möbius, while Remington fiercely despises an oblivious Lightwards.

Clearly none of these "Rangers" have spoken the right oaths yet.

I was that kid, but I always had a well-reasoned explanation for it. ("Obviously if we're in a world where the floor randomly turns to lava, everyone would be wearing lava-proof boots everywhere. Why aren't you wearing any, ya nitwit?") Remington Springfield is a man born in the heart of our madness, carrying its awesomeness across the canon. See, Lightwards doesn't despise Altermind any more than anyone else. He's a bit paranoid around him, but he does harbor a hope that he'll be able to absorb Thoughttown into the Empire without having to completely destroy it. His relationship with Funtimes is far more adversarial, at least on his end. It's Altermind who really carries the brunt of the arch-enmity.

Green necromancer pony re-engaged. (In real life I'm more like Lightwards than I am Earl Greyback... take that any way you like. )

I'm sure Lightwards would be pleased to hear your opinion of him. "Think I'm a monster, eh? Look on the bright side: I'm not Nighthound. Also, bang, I'll be the Emperor of your afterlife now." Yes, I think making Lightwards into Remington's ArchEnemy was a brilliant move on your part. They compliment one another very well in so many ways. Give me a moment, my good fellow, and you shall see my more civilized side. Those would all make great comic scenes!

That's kind of the idea. I wanted to make sure Lightwards crossed the Moral Event Horizon pretty early on, and murdering a sweet married couple was just the ticket. And of course giving them lovable ponies only helps his Complete Monster characterization. I can't wait to see the Laurie pony!

Indeed. Here's Mr. and Mrs. Sadry as ponies:

"Oh look, it's a stallion riding a unicycle while wearing a Darth Vader mask! Right behind that large prop that Funtimes inexplicably put in front of him."