#given they are their creation- a sort of magnum opus
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I was talking a bit about this but I think part of the reason iterators are designed as these small little doll-like puppets is both to humanize and dehumanize them by the Ancients. The puppet, at is core, is a means for communication with a great biological machine- to give it a face and features and ground it as you ask its advice or it's progress. This massive, world-altering creation simplified down to this little thing that had all the features of a person.
But its also small, cute, Ancient-like but clearly not an Ancient itself. They're colorful and simple, like a toy for children. And I think thats largely how Ancients saw them- often not as a person with desires and opinions but as an extension of the Ancient's work, a personalized character that represented their cities and people, whos citizens could like them and were comprehensible to their children, but was not them- and would not reap the reward of being them when a solution was found. Each one pretty and unique to make them individuals, but not seen- truly- as individuals by many- just as parts of their cities, something under the Ancients. Like if every town had its own personal My Little Pony they could ask advice on where the next community center should be built.
#theres this implication the ancients did not have particularly careful views on how they interacted with things not them#they shaped their world and its creatures freely#bent the environment to their whims so throughly it still exists#in ghosts long long long after they pass#i dont think it was like malicious but theres a certain lack of tact in it from an ecologist pov#and i sort of wonder how that colored their relationship with their iterators#given they are their creation- a sort of magnum opus#but a creation none the less#Like iterators are both revered as godlike figures personally made complete by the ancient's work#but as an almost novelty god. A cool toy. A neat trick. A new machine that will answer all your problems. everyones problems#Everyone gets one. each ones unique. but theres no need to be /too/ attached
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The Religious Implications of GotG vol. 3
So, it's Easter, and while I've got a lot of stuff to work on and things to do, I wanted to take the time to discuss the utterly insane things Guardians of the Galaxy volume three has done to my brain chemistry. After seeing @adamwarlock's post here, I've been thinking about just how many religious themes there seem to be in James Gunn's magnum opus. From a villain with a god complex to Rocket Raccoon becoming my new favorite satanic archetype maybe, this is gonna be a deep dive into everything I've picked up from the trailers so far.
So, let's start with the implications of that post I linked: "some corners of the galaxy consider (The High Evolutionary) God".
Now, the High Evolutionary has always had a theme of 'playing god' in the comics, what with his whole deal being creating sentient life from animal experiments, but in the MCU, his connections to Christian notions of religion are a lot more fascinating. For starters, his goal is stated to be wanting to create a "perfect society", which you'll notice looks a lot like suburban Bible Belt America, albeit with a lot more hybrid animal-people.
Now, in the comics, he uses Earth animals as a basis for his new lifeforms because he was once a normal human named Herbert Wyndham. He eventually traveled into space to continue his experiments on his own world, later adopting Adam Warlock (this will come back later). Given his desire to make himself more powerful in the movie, this makes him an interesting counterpart to MCU!Peter Quill, who was born with Celestial (ie. godly) power and left Earth not by choice.
Now, there are a few things they changed from the comics, his connection to Rocket being the most significant in the context of this story. While Halfworld performed similar experiments on Rocket and the other uplifts, the H.E had nothing to do with the planet. And while I'll get back to why his connection to Rocket is significant, as well as what I said about Adam, I want to get into another major change: his design.
Here we have the comics design on the left and the movie design on the right. But isn't his movie look almost priestly? Almost... familiar...?
IT'S FUCKMOTHERING ENRICO PUCCI WITH THE STEEL CHAIR
Okay, JoJo references aside, the High Evolutionary's connections to Adam Warlock definitely add to the whole religious overtones. I mean, a guy who's considered God has a perfect creation literally named "Adam", trying to create a perfect world? This shit writes itself. But if you consider a few additional facts, this takes on a pretty wild meaning. For starters, Adam has been stated to be relatively naive and innocent, unknowledgeable of the universe.
But where this gets interesting is that, based on Rocket's absence from most group shots during what is clearly being billed as the midsection of the movie (spacesuits scene, that fight where they're all in orange, the team arriving on Halfworld) that he possibly is captured by Adam and brought back to his creator for additional experimentation. Shots of someone implied to be Rocket on the operating table and Gamora carrying him to the ship half-naked serve as further evidence of a rescue mission.
But if he's captured by Adam Warlock, that means he has the opportunity to tell Adam what his creator is really planning. He has the chance to tell him how he was made and what the High Evolutionary's "perfect society" is built upon: the blood of innocent creatures he'd deemed imperfect. This could be what changes Adam, what makes him turn against his god and his Garden of Eden.
The voice of the devil on his shoulder.
Edit: I forgot to mention this wild coincidence! Gunn once said Rocket was inspired by Frankenstein's monster. It makes sense on the basic level of a tragic science experiment abandoned by his creator, but it gets even more bizarre. In the novel, the monster identifies with Satan in the book Paradise Lost, making him the same sort of tragic figure as Lucifer. Rocket too was an imperfect creation cast out by the "god" who made him. In this light, it's undeniable that yes, Rocket Raccoon is as much a satan figure as Adam Warlock is space Jesus.
#that last image took forever to get okay please enjoy the bit#marvel#guardians of the galaxy#mcu#gotg#guardians of the galaxy volume 3#gotg vol 3#the high evolutionary#herbert wyndham#star lord#peter quill#adam warlock#rocket raccoon#rocket gotg#groot#gamora#drax#drax the destroyer#mantis#mantis gotg#nebula#nebula gotg#halfworld#religion#analysis#jojo#stone ocean#enrico pucci
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The Sound of Mandalore
Chapter 1/20: "How do you solve a problem like Kenobi?"
Summary: Uncertain what to do with a Jedi Master who is overly attached to his former Padawan, the Jedi Council decides to send Obi-Wan Kenobi to tutor Force-sensitive Mandalorian foundlings on Mandalore in the early days of the Clone Wars.
(Essentially, I threw Obi-Wan Kenobi and friends into a blender with the entire plot of The Sound of Music, and this was the result. Quite possibly my magnum opus.)
This has been a long time coming. It has been ages since I started working on it, but I'm close to being done and ready to start posting, with Obitine Week coming up next month. To everyone who sent me a "Where's the fic, OP?" This one's for you.
Read on AO3
Behind closed eyes, he saw it. A rolling hillside. Soft green blades of grass bowing to the wind. Wildflowers and lilies dotting the landscape, and there on the horizon, a distant storm cloud he knew would soon bring rain to feed the life here in this paradise. For thousands and thousands of generations, from the blue sky to the babbling brook, within every rock and leaf and drop of water, it was there. The Force.
It sang a song as ancient as life itself. And inside Obi-Wan Kenobi, that same song.
Sitting inside the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, a planet whose surface was one large cityscape, Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi could not be further from the verdant grasslands that he envisioned in meditation. Inside the Room of a Thousand Fountains, however, waterfalls and various imported flora recreated the majesty of nature as well as could be expected, creating a sort of greenhouse retreat for the meditative benefit of Jedi Masters and Padawans alike. Certainly, it was a large room, and no expense had been spared in its creation. It had been tended carefully for a thousand generations, allowed to grow and flourish until it was hardly distinguishable from the outdoors, serving the temple’s inhabitants well.
Here, Obi-Wan found solace, if only for a moment. With the onset of a massive galactic war several months ago, nothing had been as peaceful as it should have been. He was finding it harder and harder to meditate within his own chambers, even though he no longer had to worry about his Padawan barging in with some ridiculous request at any given moment. Anakin had grown beyond the need for a Master. With the sudden demand for more Jedi Knights out on the battlefront, he had been knighted just a few months back, to Obi-Wan’s great pride (and anxiety). He had done it, had fulfilled Qui-Gon Jinn’s dying request and trained the boy he had believed in so wholeheartedly. Along the way, he had gained a brother, filling a gap in his life he hadn’t realized was there.
The life of a Jedi could be a very lonely one. It often still was, even surrounded by hundreds of Jedi in the temple on a daily basis. Anakin frequently disappeared off to who-knows-where in the rare moments when they were planetside, leaving his old Master to his business with the Council. When that loneliness began to seep into his heart once again, when he struggled to keep it at bay, Obi-Wan came here, to this serene mindscape of his own imagination, and allowed the twittering birds and rustling bushes to keep him company.
Breathing in one last deep breath, Obi-Wan pulled himself out of meditation, floating back up to the surface level of the Force where the Jedi spent most of their time. As he brought himself to his feet, he realized he didn’t know just how long he had been sitting there, on this rock beside a small waterfall. His joints protested only for a moment before loosening up. Obi-Wan was certainly older than he had been, but the war kept him active and fit, and he was as capable as ever in battle. The Jedi Master unclipped his lightsaber from his belt and thumbed the switch, twirling the bright blue blade a couple times before settling into a training stance.
With the peace brought by the muted sound of thousands of rushing waterfalls, Obi-Wan practiced his katas, moving from one form to the next with ease. With the Force, it was as easy as breathing, his movements coordinated to perfection so that his senses could be in tune with everything around him even as his focus was on the blade in his hands. As he often did, he imagined Anakin there with him, his forms representing the opposite, the counter to those that Obi-Wan displayed. So many hours had been spent training the boy in lightsaber combat, instilling the defensive movements in his very bones, that his Padawan often knew his next move before he did. And on the battlefield? It was as if they were two parts to the same soldier, a lethal force against any enemy that dared to cross the path of Skywalker and Kenobi.
Like all Masters and Padawans, they had a training bond, a connection between their minds that helped them communicate and sense the other’s thoughts. Such a bond was immensely helpful in battle, and it had saved one or both of their necks more than once.
And that bond persisted.
No longer was Anakin Skywalker Obi-Wan’s Padawan, but a bond as deep as theirs was hard to let go of. Even now, when Obi-Wan’s mind should have been empty, enveloped by the Force, his thoughts drifted to his old Padawan and the brotherhood they shared.
The Force hummed with the rightness of it all. Though the Jedi Council warned of such persistent attachments as theirs, the Force seemed to relish in it, and it puzzled Obi-Wan endlessly. So, he shook his head and—like always—elected to ignore this strand of thoughts and refocus himself on the task at hand.
That was, until said Padawan came rushing in, always a great big ball of energy that seemed intent on shattering whatever semblance of peace Obi-Wan was able to construct.
Obi-Wan sighed and clipped his saber back onto his belt, turning to look at his friend (now his equal). “What is it, Anakin?” he spoke in the usual tired monotone he adopted whenever Anakin was up to something. He may try to hide it, but the young man greatly amused him. Even when he drove him crazy, Obi-Wan had to fight to restrain the smirk that constantly pulled at his cheeks.
Leaning against his knees to catch his breath, Anakin huffed out, “I need—your help.”
Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow.
“My lightsaber—in the archives—restricted section—forgot it.”
Now the Master Jedi rolled his eyes. Such eloquent language from the boy he raised. Good to see that his careful training in the art of diplomacy and negotiation hadn’t gone to waste.
“You were in the restricted section of the archives and left your lightsaber, is that it?” Obi-Wan said, shaking his head at Anakin’s constant proclivity for trouble unlike anything he had ever seen. His old Padawan nodded. “And what would you like me to do about it?”
“Help me get it back?” Anakin said hopefully.
Obi-Wan sighed. “You know perfectly well that I have been temporarily banned from the restricted section because of the last time I let you in there, Anakin.”
The younger Jedi had the presence of mind to look sheepish. “Could we find another way in?”
“Oh, Anakin…” Obi-Wan considered the boy—the man—some more. “Fine, but we’d better make it quick. I’m supposed to be at the Council meeting in 15 minutes. How did you get in in the first place?”
With that, the two set off, leaving the serenity of the Room of a Thousand Fountains for the hustle and bustle of the largest Jedi temple in the galaxy.
-.-.-
“Master Yoda, I simply cannot find him!” Shaak Ti called as she ran inside the Jedi Council chamber. The red Togruta Master looked distinctly put out, looking to Yoda for guidance.
“Obi-Wan?” he asked.
She nodded.
“Off with young Skywalker, he probably is.”
Mace Windu scoffed. “That’s a safe bet.”
“Have you tried the Room of a Thousand Fountains?” Master Plo Koon suggested, “You know how he loves to meditate there.”
“He was seen there earlier, Master Koon, but left with Skywalker about 30 minutes ago.”
Mace Windu and the Grand Master shared a knowing look.
Shaak Ti spoke up again. “We’ve checked all the usual places, even Skywalker’s quarters, but he’s simply not there.”
“Considering that Skywalker and Kenobi it is, suggest you look in the unusual places I do,” the small green Jedi said with a level of amusement that irked some of the other Masters.
Mace Windu was one of those Masters. “I hate to say it, Master Yoda, but I’m just not sure that Obi-Wan is suited for a seat on this Council.” His statement was met with stares of varied intensity.
Obi-Wan Kenobi had been temporarily placed on the Jedi High Council as part of a trial period, a rotation of potential candidates to fill a vacant seat until the Force indicated who it should be. Although he had plenty of valuable insight to offer, too often there were moments like this where they had to be painfully reminded of just how young Obi-Wan still was.
And how attached he remained to his old Padawan, despite the boy’s elevation to the rank of Jedi Knight.
Yoda’s wise voice answered once more. “Qui-Gon’s padawan, he was. Surprised by his antics, we should not be.” A few other Masters nodded.
Adi Gallia also chimed in. “Besides, Kenobi is one of the greatest assets to the Order, even if he is easily distracted by Skywalker.”
“Those distractions could very well be a liability,” the Cerean Master Ki-Adi-Mundi spoke firmly. “You said it yourself, Master Yoda, he was trained by Qui-Gon Jinn, who’s thoughts many of you will remember did not exactly align with our ranks. And now Skywalker? It seems with each generation of learners they are straying further from the Code.”
“I find their hijinks quite amusing,” Master Luminara Unduli said. In Obi-Wan’s defense, it was very easy to get caught up in the charismatic force of nature that was Anakin Skywalker. Just being near him in the heat of battle left one out of focus and questioning every planned battle strategy that had ever been contrived, so easy it seemed for Skywalker to improvise his actions.
Master Yoda tapped his gimer stick on the ground. “Enough. What to do about Obi-Wan, we must decide. Too attached, he is, to his former Padawan. Perhaps split up, they should be.”
At that, a chorus of murmurs echoed through the chamber.
“With all due respect, Master, keeping Skywalker away from Kenobi and vice versa is like trying to keep a wave on the sand,” Master Windu said wearily.
“Like trying to grasp onto a moonbeam!” Depa Billaba analogized.
Master Oppo Rancicis called out above the clamor, “How do you propose we go about this?”
Just then, with only a creak and a thump as warning, two figures came crashing through the ceiling from the vent overhead, landing with a thud in the center of the Council chamber. The eyes of every Jedi Master on the Council blinked down at the two on the floor, Skywalker and Kenobi.
Laughing nervously and shaking the dust from the ceiling from his shaggy hair, Anakin broke the awkward silence. “Oops. This isn’t the archives…”
As if he hadn’t just come tumbling into one of the most high-security rooms in the Temple, Anakin stood and waltzed out of the chamber, not even bothering to acknowledge the Masters who regarded him with a range of reactions.
Obi-Wan, for his part, stood and looked around at his fellow Masters, cringing with embarrassment that painted his cheeks pink. With an apologetic bow, he followed Anakin quickly from the chamber, knowing nothing could be done to save face at the moment. His best hope was to distance himself until the incident could be forgotten. Or at least, he hoped it would be forgotten.
While still within earshot of the Council, Obi-Wan smacked Anakin in the upper arm, saying, “How did you get us that turned around up there?”
“I thought you knew where you were going,” Anakin responded accusingly.
In the uncomfortable silence left behind by the dynamic Skywalker and Kenobi duo, the Masters all shared a look, then sat down to discuss the issue further.
-.-.-
The door to the Jedi Council chamber opened abruptly, halting Obi-Wan’s pacing back and forth in the hallway. “You may go in now, Obi-Wan,” Master Billaba spoke gently, standing aside to allow the younger Jedi entrance. Obi-Wan’s stomach flipped nervously, and suddenly it seemed very difficult to swallow with how dry his mouth had become. Taking a shaky breath, Obi-Wan steadied himself in the Force and stepped inside, as ready as he ever would be to face whatever punishment Yoda saw fit for his stupid mistakes earlier that day.
He stood awkwardly in the center of the chamber for what felt like hours. Yoda simply looked at him with an unreadable expression and said nothing. Unable to stand the silence any longer, Obi-Wan decided a formal apology might be what the small green Grand Master was waiting for. “I’m terribly sorry I missed the meeting, Master, it won’t happen again.”
Yoda’s eyebrows—if he had them—raised, but otherwise no indication was given that he had heard him.
“And about the—the vents… Anakin—he said he needed… well, and since I couldn’t get access to the… uh… It was a stupid idea in the first place, and I shouldn’t have gone along with it…”
Yoda chuckled softly at Obi-Wan’s stammering. For a man known across the galaxy for his silver tongue, he sure did fall apart under any scrutiny from the Jedi Council. At least, when he knew he was in the wrong.
Obi-Wan’s heart was pounding, and he couldn’t believe Yoda was just laughing at him. For all he knew, he was about to be thrown out of the Jedi Order. Surely they wouldn’t do that. But he certainly wasn’t laughing.
“Attached you are to your former Padawan,” Master Yoda stated, staring intently at Obi-Wan, the ghost of a smile still on his face.
A heavy feeling sunk to the pit of Obi-Wan’s stomach. “I—no, Master. I just—”
Yoda stopped him by holding up his three-fingered hand.
“A question, it was not.”
Obi-Wan’s mouth closed tight and he bowed his head. He had to have known that this was coming sooner or later. If he had to guess, a similar scolding was in store for Anakin in the not-too-distant future.
“Difficult it is for some to transition from Master and Padawan to equals,” Yoda spoke.
Obi-Wan jumped in to explain himself, hoping Yoda’s faith in him was not lost. “His knighthood was just so sudden, Master, I am trying—”
“I know, young Kenobi.”
“I meditate daily, I focus on letting go of emotion, just as you and Master Qui-Gon taught me. I—I have nothing but respect for the Code, I do my best to remain steadfast in it…”
Even so, Yoda seemed to see beyond Obi-Wan’s explanations, to see something else entirely. Attachment had long been a struggle of Obi-Wan’s. It left him unbalanced in the Force, and Yoda—as one of the most powerful Force-users in the galaxy—could easily sense it.
But something was different about Obi-Wan’s unbalance. For most who struggled with attachment, the simple release of such connections into the Force would solve the issue, centering the Jedi as they should be to properly serve the Order. When exploring that potential solution through Kenobi’s Force signature, however, the air around him seemed to vibrate uneasily, as if there were something else he was supposed to do. Yoda couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but he knew enough about the Force to know to listen when it tried to tell him something.
“Tell me, what lesson have you learned here, Obi-Wan, that most important you consider?”
The question caused the young Master to pause. What did Master Yoda want him to say? Was this some sort of test? If he answered wrong, would he be in more trouble than he already was? Fumbling for a response, he answered, “To find out what is the will of the Force and to do it steadfastly.” This, he knew, was the base teaching of the Jedi, one that was supposed to guide every part of their lives and help them to use their gifts for good.
Yoda seemed pleased, and Kenobi allowed himself to breathe for a moment.
“Obi-Wan,” the Grand Master said carefully, “The will of the Force, it seems to be, that you leave us.”
And now Obi-Wan’s breath left him once again. “What?” It felt like his whole world was crashing down around him. “Leave?! I—I know I missed the meeting today, but I didn’t think I would be expelled from the Order entirely for it!”
Yoda closed his eyes against the onslaught of Obi-Wan’s distress in the Force. “Leave us only for a little while you will, Obi-Wan,” he assured, reaching out to quiet the young Jedi’s concern.
“But—but, what about Anakin? I am needed here! Or in the war? I can’t leave! Where would I go?”
“Your Padawan, Skywalker is no more,” Yoda reminded. “Perhaps a special assignment you need, Master Kenobi, to discover whether your attachments you can overcome.”
A special assignment? Obi-Wan looked like he would try to protest some more, but before he could, Yoda tapped his stick on the ground and held up a hand to stop him once again.
Resigned to his fate, Obi-Wan instead bowed his head and replied, his voice quiet, “Yes, Master. It is the will of the Force.”
As Yoda silently considered him, Obi-Wan’s mind ran wild with questions. Where would he be sent? What would he be doing? Would he be sent to the AgriCorps again? What would happen to his Clone Troopers?
When could he come back?
At last, Yoda spoke again, halting his runaway train of thought. “A class of seven children on Mandalore there is. Need a tutor they do.”
Well, that sentence did nothing to stop the headache that was rapidly approaching.
“On Mandalore?!” Obi-Wan squeaked. “I don’t understand, Mandalore has an excellent school system, why do they require a tutor?” He and Mandalore had a history, one he tried not to think about if at all possible.
“Force sensitives from Mandalore and other neutral worlds, they are,” Yoda explained, “Too old they were to come to the Temple, and gracious Mandalore was to accept them. Allow them to fall into the hands of the Sith, we must not.”
Obi-Wan was at a loss for words. This day had started off perfectly normal, and now he had been thrown for a loop in the worst way possible. “I am not a teacher, Master, I am needed in the fight against the Separatists, alongside Anakin and the others!”
“Done well you have with young Skywalker. A great help you will be to the Mandalorian foundlings.” This praise was high coming from Master Yoda, but it did nothing to calm the disquiet in his heart. “Only rudimentary training will they need. Warrior Jedi, their world does not desire. Only to control their powers, you will teach them. And perhaps the ways of diplomacy,” Yoda finished with a smirk.
Obi-Wan was left well and truly speechless.
“Tell Duchess Satine Kryze to expect you tomorrow, I will,” Yoda resolved, standing from his chair and beginning to hobble to the chamber’s exit.
“The Duchess???” Obi-Wan shrieked, stopping Yoda in his tracks. The little green Jedi hummed in the affirmative.
“Familiar, I believe you are. In her care the foundlings are during their break from the Academy. Struggled, other tutors have, without knowledge of the living Force.”
Yoda again resumed his walk out the door, nodding to Master Billaba who was standing on the other side as went.
Obi-Wan sank into his seat—or the seat that he’d been temporarily given in the chamber—and fiddled with his beard as he often did when his thoughts were too much to bear inside his own head. This was all so sudden, and part of him wondered if this hadn’t been on the Council’s mind before the incident today had even happened. Emotion after emotion passed over him, despair, fear, resolve, confusion, hope, certainty, and resentment, all of which Obi-Wan allowed to pass into the Force.
There is no emotion, there is peace.
Whatever happened, it was the will of the Force, and Obi-Wan would follow it until he found where he was supposed to be.
-.-.-
Chapter 2 >>
-.-.-
This is gonna be a longer note because it's the first chapter and I want to make sure I cover everything!
I hope you enjoyed! I do have this mostly written out, so you can rest assured that the story will not be abandoned! It has, however, sat on my computer for over a year in a less-than-finished form, so if you’re reading this now, congrats! It has made it to the interwebs! I plan to release new chapters once or twice a week. I'm at about 14 chapters currently, and am in the final act of the story, so I feel pretty confident that by the time we get to posting those chapters, I'll have it completely (finally) finished.
And now I invite you all to imagine Yoda and the Council standing around singing “How Do You Solve a Problem Like Kenobi,” because I find it highly amusing. Tumblr user @mandojediblogger actually wrote out parody lyrics a while back to some Sound of Music songs including this one in the thread where this entire idea was born. They also posted it on Ao3 under the name Quinn73. Idk why, but the image of Yoda as the Reverend Mother absolutely cracks me up.
Also I’ve gotta shout out some folks who engaged with my thread of absolute madness and contributed ideas for how to develop this fic: @seleneisrising and @ask-the-almighty-google, you the real ones. They helped along the way when I hit a block or just needed to ramble about Obitine/Sound of Music parallels and totally kept me going. And to everyone that showed enthusiasm in the notes and tags on my post, just know I never would have written this without your interest in the idea, so I hope you have fun with this and come along for the ride! And I'm sorry this took so long to finally get off the ground!
I've been deep in the X-Files fic sauce for the last couple months, but with Obitine Week 2023 coming up in September I figured I needed to shift gears back into Obitine brainrot, so this is my attempt at doing so.
Tagging some folks who expressed interest in this concept wayyyy over a year ago and have probably forgotten about it: @sootspritesprinkles @itscaptainsir @called-kept @kraytwriter @mathmusic8 @penguinelf @dracaspina @thirteenmyspacegirl @accidental-spice @kanerallels @hellostarlight20
#obitine#obitine fanfic#my fanfiction#obi-wan kenobi#satine kryze#korkie kryze#sound of music au#the sound of mandalore#chapter 1
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I think BATDR has good themes as a foundation, but just doesn't build on them enough. Like, its main theme is legacy and destiny, and we have 3 big players that feed into this: Audrey Drew, Joey's magnum opus; 'Wilson' Arch, Nathan's forgotten son, and Bendy - Joey's most pivotal and yet hated creation. These 3 could function as wonderful foils to each other, like how Audrey and Bendy already do, but the problems are that:
1) Wilson isn't given enough backstory early on to make him more dimensional than 'crusty old man with a mean streak', and
2) Audrey doesn't have enough backstory to make her choices have weight.
For Wilson, we know that Nathan neglected him, but why? Was it for something out of his control (he's blind in one eye - did Nathan hate to have an 'imperfect' son) or in his control (I've seen a theory that he was a terrible business man, which would of course make Nathan embarrassed)?
Whatever it is, we should have had more tapes/notes about their dynamic, which would have been reflected in how Wilson treats the Ink World.
(an aside about the blindness thing - I think there could be merit to this angle, but Wilson's design is already a little ableist, since his scar and glass eye are just there to say 'oh no! spooky disfigured man has come to bad things to you!', it would have to be approached with care, caution, and advice from a disabled sensitivity reader)
Wilson could also project onto Audrey, if we give them a deeper relationship than 'creepy coworker that trapped me in this hellscape'. What if they have a sort of mentor/mentee relationship? They often work the nightshift in tandem, and Wilson has an artistic streak. You could very easily go with 'polite grandpa who gives art tips whenever he passes by' route, and Audrey accepts him as the father figure she apparently doesn't remember (still don't understand how Audrey forgot she was Drew's Daughter)
Let this then be reflected in how Audrey interacts with the world; let there be an option to have Wilson-abilties instead of Demon-abilties, with their own rewards and drawbacks. Using these powers sets on you on the Wilson ending.
It also makes his subsequent betrayal of her more impactful. If Audrey comes into the Ink World believing that the Machine twisted Wilson into turning against her, thus giving her a motive beyond simple escape, only to find out that he planned to kill her the whole time, endings where she either is sacrificed or fights him off but succumbs to the ink demon are sadder.
Speaking of Audrey, I think there's a strong enough connection to Joey for the story's 'You were born of darkness, you don't belong to it' thing to stick.
Let her make mistakes! Let her fuck people over! She has a spooky ability that is implied to send people to the most terrible parts of the studio, yet no-one says anything! Her arrival heralds the return of the Ink Demon; I think she should get both adoration and hatred for it, and then the gameplay is reflective of whether she chooses to dig her heels in and accept the darkness or go along with what Wilson says (or if you collect all the memories by completing side quests for NPCs, you get the secret ending where she takes control for herself, which is the ending the game currently has.)
An example of this would be the Lord Amok section. Instead of the Keeper's dropping her in the spider pit, let it be Sammy and some religious rebels, interested to see if she's a legitimate prophet/vessel/chosen one for their Lord. Once she completes that, Sammy gives the player an update on their path:
If Audrey has been mainly using Wilson abilities, the congregation shun her and provide a big hint that Wilson is going to kill her.
If Audrey has been mainly using Demon abilities, they welcome her and try to get her to make this massive ritual work for them, which is a precursor to Bendy's fusion with Audrey.
If Audrey has been completing sidequests and maybe has a unique ability, (something with colour?) Sammy is unsure about her and they have a bit more of a heart to heart.
All of this makes Audrey a more well rounded and sympathetic protagonist, and the ending the game currently has feel earned and impressive.
TL;DR:
The game has good themes but they need to be built on
One way to do this is to flesh out Wilson's daddy issues and thus create a more positive bur ultimately fucked up relationship with Audrey, leading to an ending where it makes sense that she trusts him but is still betrayed
Another way is to give Audrey more choices that have bad consequences but are understandable(a choice between a Wilson abilities path and a Bendy abilities path, changing how the Inkworld perceives her), thus allowing a happy ending (be nice to NPCs and they'll all help you fight of Bendy, like in the actual game) more hard worked for and thus earned.
It's a good point about the game introducing themes and not developing them. Like the whole "not a prequel not a sequel" thing they've been saying for years, but then the game comes out and it's a straightforward sequel?
I did notice them trying to make some small attempts at suggesting that maybe the ink dimension is a different timeline to the real world, with that book by the Gent CEO:
Except it never goes anywhere, because the time inside and outside the studio is exactly the same, down to the date.
And even the seeming time loop in BATIM is soft-retconned, because we're told that Joey created Henry before he rekindled his friendship with Allison and created Audrey v1.0, but when Henry walks around Joey's apartment, there's Allison's letter on the wall and Audrey v1.0's voice, so it's not like he went back to the day he was born. Resetting the cycle doesn’t turn back the flow of time, the time goes forward as normal, the ink creatures just suffer an amnesia.
There are some details in the lore, which could be a hint of time shenanigans... but they could just as well be plot holes and reused stock images. Time will tell which it is, but it's looking increasingly like the latter.
I don't even know why they bother giving us so many dates if it's not to make us draw any connections, or question the timeline of events. Like the detail about the studio having two different locations, which was hinted at in the archive previews, but then never comes up in the actual game. I hope they're not under the impression that we care about the dates because we just... like dates, or something... and that's why they keep serving us new ones. I don't care about !!THE LORE!! for the sake of !!THE LORE!!, I care about it because I was told that there is some underlying mystery, which can be solved by looking at !!THE LORE!!. It's a tool. If I can't use it for anything, then I don't have a need for it.
Even SHB announced that he won't be making many Bendy theories. Because the big stuff was explained, and the small stuff now feels like something the creators didn't think too deeply about, and so the fans shouldn't either. So, for the future of the franchise, I hope they will.
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Any head cannons as to why we call nightmaren the names we do? (Also, great art! Wish I was that good at drawing reala and other maren!)
(HGDASKJLGDHSAJ THANK!! ;w; )
Well, the surface answer would be: "It's a lot easier and less headache inducing to manage your hierarchy underlings that operate directly in your inner circle when you've got names to call them as instead of just 'Hey, you'." ghkjgHDsakg
Going a little deeper, though...
Of the two, only Selph is the one that "technically" has a given name (The origin of such being a tongue-in-cheek comment by Wizeman about being "The Most Selph Centered Thing I Ever Laid Eyes On" being a rumor with no actual evidence other then Jackle's word...buuuut-). Wizeman was just flat out so infuriated by Jackle's inability to be killed, he never gave him a name... Or, if he did, the closest thing to one would be "Cockroach", but... Jackle... doesn't... like... that name...
So Jackle just kinda ended up naming himself, after hearing a Visitor's exclamation of "JUMPIN' JACKALS!" after getting scared, and Jackle thought it sounded hilarious and took it on as his name (Though Wizeman and Selph will never use it).
(Yes, this also means Jackal has NO idea what an actual jackal is dfshkjdsa)
Gillwing and Gulpo actually officially got given the names Jörmungandr and Leviathan respectively by Wizeman... buuuut the names got difficult for Jackle to say, and so he started nicknaming them as Gillwing and Gulpo, aaand since he was the more primary caretaker of the younger siblings, those were the names that actually stuck and they became more known as (Though if dreamers encountered either of them in tandem with Selph, they'd have heard them referred to by their Wizeman given names).
Puffy and her twin also don't officially have Wizeman given names, as he wanted to cull them immediately, and was only just stopped by Jackle getting a hold of them first. As such, Jackle gave them the names Puffy and Daisy himself.
Even after Puffy finally got accepted into the hierarchy as Hellhound Control, Wizeman still never bothered to give her a official name, just referring to her as "The Rabbit" (And as such, Selph only refers to her as "Sister".)
As with Gulpo and Gillwing, Clawz also initially got the official Wizeman name of Miysis, but time with Jackle got him more known as his nickname, Clawz (This nickname more brought on by his higher place rank of NIGHTMARE CHILD TO WATCH AFTER, then any difficulty saying the name dgshakjdgsah), and like with Puffy and her twin, Clawz's twin also wasn't given an official name, but did get named Tama by Jackle for the sort time they lived.
Now, Reala and NiGHTS, being Wizeman's Magnum Opus, were absolutely named by Wizeman himself. However, the ONE catch being NiGHTS' reason for the odd name capitalization coming from Jackle, from when he was trying to show them how to write, and misprinted it. (NiGHTS has no recollection of this, and just kinda assumes it'd always been that way.)
From there, Wizeman got more hands-on (Pun intended) with his creations, started cutting off Jackle's access to the newborns, and as such, is solely responsible for the names of the Maren in JoD. Which is why there's such a drastic shift in naming complexity between NiD and JoD.
#NiGHTS into dreams#NiGHTS Journey of Dreams#Jackle#Jackle the Mantle#Wizeman#wizeman the wicked#NiGHTS#Selph takes Wizeman's names- or lack there of- for their siblings VERY SERIOUSLY#Ask#reply
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This week on Great Albums, we talk about something a little more recent, but still old enough to be a classic. Can you believe that John Maus’s We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves, is turning ten years old already? Yes, 2011 was that long ago...and so were my high school years. Come check out this lo-fi synthwave masterpiece! Transcript below the break.
Welcome to Passionate Reply, and welcome to Great Albums! So far in this series, we’ve looked at a lot of older albums, and that’s by design. While I listen to, and love, plenty of more recent music and younger artists, I’ve decided to focus Great Albums on works that are at least ten years old. That’s partly because I think that having some distance from when albums were released lets us situate them in fuller context, and take their legacy into consideration. It’s also partly because so much of the music criticism that’s out there is focused, somewhat myopically, on only the newest and hottest releases, when there’s so much amazing music to be discovered outside of that purview.
Now that that’s out of the way, let’s get on to discussing today’s album: John Maus’s We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves, which was released in 2011, one decade prior to this video. It’s an album that was very significant to me as a teenager, when it was new, and one that I think will go on to be seen as one of the most important electronic albums of this decade.
Before releasing his arguable magnum opus, John Maus had two LPs under his belt, Songs and Love Is Real. They earned him some cult followers, but also attracted substantial derision and disdain. While many elements of Maus’s signature sound are present, such as lo-fi production, atmospheric washes of synth, and lyrics that straddle the line between pithy and biting, I’d characterize these releases as being very...rough around the edges.
Music: “Too Much Money”
“Too Much Money,” off of Love Is Real, is tantalizingly close to a pop song, but its truly shocking bridge seems almost deliberately crafted to shatter our ability to enjoy it as such. Maus had initially set out to be an experimental, outsider musician, but he soon became more interested in the tradition of pop, particularly after meeting his longtime friend and artistic collaborator, Ariel Pink. It was in that pop spirit that Maus created We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves, and the resultant increase in accessibility is what made his third album so different--and so much more successful. There’s a certain charm that only comes from an outsider attempting to do pop, a fusion of intuitive mass appeal, and an intuitive, unschooled process of creation. This album has that in abundance.
Music: “Hey Moon”
While “Hey Moon” is one of Maus’s best-known tracks, it’s actually a cover, and was originally penned by singer-songwriter Molly Nilsson. It’s a very simple, and very pop, composition, and it’s easy to see how it embodies the sort of straightforward songwriting Maus had in the back of his mind while creating the album. But it fundamentally lacks the signature oddness of Maus, and I think that leaves it as the least interesting track here. With everything else going on, “Hey Moon” feels all the more plain and banal in comparison.
Music: “...And the Rain”
Listening to “...And the Rain,” it’s easy to hear how strongly Maus was also influenced by Classical and Medieval composers. Besides those organ-like synth textures, Maus is also inspired by the Medieval modes, and pre-tonal ideas about melody. Whenever contemporary music uses slightly older synthesiser technology, and/or that lo-fi production, many people become preoccupied with using ideas of 80s nostalgia and retro chic to understand it. I think this album has less to do with “old school cool” and more to do with the spectre of the past as something faded and ineffable, accessible only through the dim consolations of memory. Consider “Quantum Leap,” which presents us with a hazy dream of time travel, contrasted with the “dead zone” of the present.
Music: “Quantum Leap”
In “Quantum Leap”’s more strident moments, I like to think that a whiff of the in-your-face abrasiveness of “Too Much Money” remains. But rather than scornful and vitriolic, it comes across as the overwhelming splendour of divine mystery, thanks to its appropriation of Medieval church music. There are many antecedents of what Maus is doing with it, from the tradition of goth to the work of other electronic musicians like John Foxx, but what Maus really excels at is weaving together the sacred and the profane, and getting us to forget which is supposed to be which. For a more splendid example of that, look no further than “Matter of Fact”:
Music: “Matter of Fact”
Yes, you heard that correctly--this song’s only lyrics are, “pussy is not a matter of fact.” I’m tempted to compare this laconic number to some of Maus’s earlier pieces that seem to satirize easily spouted slogans of social change, such as “Rights For Gays.” The core assertion here could be interpreted as a rebuttal of essentialism with regards to gender and sex, or perhaps of toxic masculinity, and the idea of a man feeling entitled to a woman’s body and sexuality. But its ambiguity, and possible meaninglessness, are, I think, part of what makes it so effective. Still, as far as transgressive lyricism goes, the use of the term “pussy” here pales in comparison to the preceding track, “Cop Killer.”
Music: “Cop Killer”
Maus has described himself as extremely left-wing, but he’s also consistently maintained that his music isn’t meant to be interpreted through a strictly political lens. But however much Maus insists that “Cop Killer” is “really” about metaphorical cops, its seemingly blatant call for violence feels obscene. Ten years ago, “Cop Killer” was shock art, and an expression of the unsayable. But in the past year, more and more people have opened up to criticism of police brutality, and police as an institution. “Cop Killer” has been re-evaluated and re-contextualized, and interest in the track has surged. It’s had a degree of vindication that most provocative and challenging art will never see, no matter how powerful.
Given Maus’s frequent emphasis on ideas of criminality, justice, and the punitive arm of the government, I’m tempted to interpret the lighthouse featured on the cover of We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves as a reference to the “panopticon” prisons designed by the Enlightenment thinker Jeremy Bentham. Bentham proposed prisons, and other state buildings, in which a single observation tower stood watch over people to be controlled. Prisoners cannot tell when, and if, they are being observed, and thus are forced to live as though they are under constant surveillance, and internalize the structures of social control. The panopticon has often been used as a symbol of how structures of discipline and punishment affect the psyche of those who live within them, most famously by the 20th Century philosopher Michel Foucault.
But this is, of course, me using political theory to try and pin Maus down! We can also set this aside and appreciate the cover design for its aesthetic ambiance. Its fog and tumultuous sea evoke the wild or unrefined qualities of the music, but the bright and piercing light of the lighthouse suggest a firm and directed focus, not unlike Maus’s stated goal of creating bona fide pop.
The album’s ponderous title doesn’t actually appear on the associated artwork. This isn’t so uncommon nowadays, but when physical media was more central to music consumption, it was a self-sabotaging move that few but New Order ever got away with. Maus was one of the first artists I became aware of who chose to omit text from album art, and it struck me as a very bold and forward-thinking adaptation to an increasingly digital world. Maus nicked the title “We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves” from the work of the philosopher Alain Badou, under whom he studied at university. Like that piercing ray of light, it seems to suggest a pruning away of impurities, and a recalibration or refocusing of one’s energies. It applies equally well to the idea of becoming sanctified or purified in the presence of the holy, or, more prosaically, to Maus’s newly pop-oriented artistic direction.
After the success of We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves, Maus’s follow-up was, essentially, the 2012 compilation, A Collection of Rarities and Previously Unreleased Material, which featured assorted tracks he had written throughout the preceding decade. Over the next few years, Maus chose to isolate himself from the public eye, claiming to not see himself continuing a career in music, and instead pursuing a Ph.D. in political science. He eventually returned, however, and released a fourth LP in 2017, entitled Screen Memories. Screen Memories would continue the focus on hooky and accessible melodies, while also increasing the use of guitar and bass to bring Maus’s sound a bit closer to rock.
Music: “Touchdown”
While Maus hasn’t put down any new material since Screen Memories, he has made himself substantially more notorious quite recently, by having been present at the attempted coup at the United States Capitol Building in January of 2021. Given Maus’s aforementioned radical leftism, and his cryptic, but seemingly anti-fascist oriented tweets afterward, it seems unlikely that Maus actually supported the insurrection, but the incident continues to cast a shadow over his reputation, at least for the time being. Whether Maus is ever truly rehabilitated or not, and wherever his true intentions and sympathies lay, his music has certainly left an indelible mark. We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves was a watershed moment for this idea of lo-fi, electronic pop, with a gothic and mysterious aura to it, and I don’t think this sound would be so commonplace in today’s musical landscape without what John Maus had accomplished, ten years ago.
My favourite track on We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves is “Head For the Country.” Its stirring and anthemic refrain is one of the most emotionally powerful moments on the album, particularly when juxtaposed with its lyrical themes of feeling confined by society’s rules, and its return to the idea of criminality or deviance. It's probably too intense and overbearing to ever pass for an ordinary pop hit...but who’s keeping score? That’s everything for today--thanks for listening!
Music: “Head For the Country”
#music#great albums#album review#album reviews#synthwave#lo fi#lo-fi#john maus#indie#indie pop#indietronica
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In the Beginning was the Word, and the Word was with Her, and She was the Word.
The angel Aziraphale had always been a creature of the Word. He loved Her, as she made him to. And he loved language, narrative, the ineffable story of creation She unfurled before him.
Unfortunately the story took a turn.
When first it came to pass, the angels thought it was a dark third-act twist in the plot. A disaster. An erasure. A defection. Apparently some characters rejected their own story, denied the storyteller. Pain was born. They were cast out.
(Not out of the story, as they had perhaps desired. Just out of the nice part. There was no escaping Her Word and Her meticulous worldbuilding, not really.)
The poor angel was confounded and afraid. The family was fighting, and the joy he took in Her plan was not universally shared. It was not a good feeling. He was new to understanding what feeling-not-good meant. It was terribly unpleasant and had a surprising amount to do with the lower intestine.
Just after the Beginning was the worry.
And the worry was with Aziraphale, and the worry would be with Aziraphale forever and ever. (Amen.)
His particular strain of worry had no antidote. He was an angel of love and loyalty, made for appetites and moments -- and he was not blessed with much imagination. So Aziraphale seldom fretted about what might be. Rather, as a creature of the present, he worried because he sensed that all was not well.
Since he was inarguably right about that, he found no peace except in short spells of denial. Every celestial hones their coping mechanisms.
As it turned out, The Great Rebellion and the War were not the rising action and the climax. They were merely a prologue. When time itself began, Aziraphale looked back over his newly corporeal shoulder in surprise: all the eons before had collapsed, somehow, 'til they fit merely 'In the Beginning.' From the Eastern Gate he witnessed Genesis chapter one and felt the heady inertia of a vast not-at-all-well future uncoiling into the dark.
Hours later, with a dizzying jolt, he learned he was no longer a reader but a character in the story. He gave Adam and Eve a flaming sword: light, heat, meat, murder. Deadlier than any apple. He made an impulsive decision that somehow changed Her plot. That should not have been possible -- should it? How had an innocent angelic spectator become entangled in the living Word?
When She asked about it, he lied and She withdrew. She left him alone with his worry.
But She left him something else too.
(Or allowed him to stumble across it, or meant to prevent it and got busy, or somesuch. It all came out the same in the ineffable wash.)
Soon after Aziraphale made his very first bewildering choice, he was approached by the champion of choice itself: a wily demon of tremendous imagination. (His hair was very soft.)
Crawly asked too many questions. Questions about what Might Be and what Should Be, which Aziraphale felt uncomfortable contemplating. Somehow the demon saw what wasn't when he looked what was, and he could even foresee the forked possibilities of what wasn't yet; it was a mystifying way to view the world, focusing on the negative space around reality.
At first the angel found it insulting to the almighty author to opine that the story should be different. He was a devoted reader and guardian of Her Word, but not an author himself, so he could not imagine it written any other way. He felt superior to any snake who dared to name flaws or inconsistencies in Her magnum opus.
But given time, as flood waters rose and war visited humanity and plagues swept the land (as nails pierced sinless wrists at Golgotha) the demon asked What Sort Of Author Writes This Kind Of Story. The angel turned away in shame. Crawly had a point.
Aziraphale added worry about what Might Be to his repertoire, and became rather a virtuoso. Books of prophecy were his particular speciality.
Still, the angel clung to his love for Her Word, even as the story grew darker and Heaven itself turned cold. He hoped all would be well in the end. Perhaps that was why when Crowley told him the last days were nigh, he smiled at first. There could be a conclusion then, to all this worry, to all this pain! A grand finale was coming, as promised, and the universe would be filled with love and harmony at last. He took it as written. He was created to.
He never did have much imagination.
(But then that's why She gave him Crowley.)
"'Zirphle?" mumbled Crowley.
"Mm?"
"Whydjoustop." The demon's voice was muffled because his face was buried in the angel's left thigh. He sprawled boneless across the leather couch like he'd been poured there.
Aziraphale hummed in amusement and resumed combing his fingers through Crowley's hair. He had been petting him for nearly thirty minutes now, not a word spoken between them, and apparently he was still on duty.
"Just thinking about what you're good at," mused Aziraphale.
Crowley turned his head a bit to unbury his mouth, since they were talking again.
"Not good at things. 'Mbad at 'em. Very bad hellish'nfernal demon."
"Of course dear."
From “What We’re Good At” (E) Read the rest at https://archiveofourown.org/works/22592488
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The Greeting
Hello, everyone, my name is Jon Dottingly. Welcome to one of the most memorable podcasts that you will ever hear. During this episode, and the many others that will follow, it will be my honor to tell you a story the likes of which you have never experienced.
This story has all that we have come to expect in a great tale: There are heroes and heroines whose courageous deeds will leave you breathless. There are villains most foul. There is love, and there is lust. There is hate. There is jealousy. And all of it takes place in exotic locations that will leave the reader filled with awe and wonder.
But, what makes this story truly unique is the magical way in which it has come to its teller. I, Jon Dottingly, am the writer of this tale, and I can honestly say that it has changed me, and all for the better. And, it’s my sincere wish that its magic will change your life as well.
First of all, let me say that as an experienced author of novels, I have created many characters for many types of stories. Some of these stories have been memorable, some not so much. While composing these tales, I have concocted plot twists to perplex the mind, and I’ve dreamt up interesting places for all of the drama to occur. In so doing, I can say that I’ve met with a modest amount of success through the years.
And, I’ve always tried to make my next story better than the last. All my life, I have been striving to unearth that one prized work - some magnum opus that would put the name of Jon Dottingly in lights and bring him just financial rewards for having lived a life dedicated to artistic as well as literary excellence.
Naturally, such a profound story would need to showcase a most memorable character, one who will keep readers turning the pages of a work, one after another, after another, after another. I have longed to create such a character since the day I first put pen to paper.
In my most recent book, I thought I had managed to do that very thing in Marissa Bonifay, a young witch who hails from a fictional realm known as the Kingdom of Malakanth. This land is located on a planet far from Earth, somewhere on the other side of the cosmos.
In Malakanth, magic reigns. In addition to witches, there are wizards, and prophets, and priestesses, and demons within its domain. There is religious intrigue as well as class and social struggles that have endured for millennia. And, right at the center of it all, stands my fictional character – Marissa Bonifay.
But, as it turns out, Marissa Bonifay isn’t fictional at all. Nor are the wizards and prophets who inhabit her homeland. Nor are the events of her story.
As I had worked to pen what I had thought to be a piece of fiction gloriously concocted on my part, what I was, in fact, doing was documenting the early years of a real life woman who had come of age on a planet in some distant corner of the universe. In short, Marissa the witch had bestowed this story upon my consciousness by means of her magic and sorcery.
Now, I know what you’re thinking. “Jon, you are stark raving mad if you think some witch from across the cosmos is using you as a medium for some mysterious literary purpose.”
And, given the audacity of my claim, I would gladly accept this argument if I had been led to believe that Marissa was still in Malakanth - this land of witches, and wizards, and demons. But she’s not in Malakanth. She’s here, on Earth, among us, even now as I speak these words and as you are listening to them. I know this to be true because I have met her. Allow me to explain.
I had just finished what I had assumed to be the first installment of this saga, and I needed a title for it as well as one for the series itself. So, I did what I always do whenever I need to get away and spend some time deep in thought: I went to Starbucks. Maybe that sounds a bit cliché, but coffee shops are where I do my absolute best thinking.
So, there I was, sitting at one of their little tables with a pencil in hand and a notepad in front of me. And, thankfully, over the course of only a single chocolate chai, I had my title. I would call the first installment of my masterpiece “Slices of Midnight”. As for the overall series, I would go with “The Black Craft Saga”. Catchy, eh?
Pleased with myself, I reached down to retrieve my backpack from the floor in preparation of leaving, when, to my utter amazement, I looked up to behold the heroine of my story sitting across the table from me. It was Marissa Bonifay, in the flesh.
I recognized her immediately from my mind’s eye, even though she was dressed as any typical American would be on a typical American morning, wearing jeans, a t-shirt, as well as a pair of sunglasses that were perched atop her head. She even had a piping hot Starbucks latte in hand.
I’ll never forget that moment.
I was speechless, and I must have appeared as dumbfounded as I felt, because Marissa’s lips curled up in the same wry grin that I had envisioned so many times in my mind, and she said, “So, Jon, I hear you have a story to tell.”
I nearly fell out of my chair. Then, I went from being a speechless idiot to being a babbling fool, trying to say a thousand words at once. My mind was filled with marvel. So many questions were running through my mind. Finally, I settled on just one.
“Is your name Marissa Bonifay?” I asked.
“It is,” she replied. “And your name is Jon Dottingly. It’s good to finally meet you, Jon.”
Then, she proceeded to allay my fears. First and foremost, she assured me that I was not going insane. Second, she assured me that she was not going to do me any harm. After all, I knew she was a burgeoning witch from what I had written about her. But, Marissa told me that she was there for my benefit. In fact, she said that she had come to Earth for the benefit of all mankind.
Upon hearing these intentions, I noticed the first discrepancy in the woman before me and the young Marissa Bonifay with whom I became acquainted from the story. And it had to do with her personality rather than her adult appearance. This Marissa possessed benevolence that her teenage counterpart had not. She was wise and kind, whereas the Marissa from the story was bold and brash, while at the same time being utterly brilliant, flaunting her intelligence at every turn.
Amazingly, the Marissa before me there inside Starbucks could sense my contemplations regarding these disparities, even as I was thinking on them. She was quick to own every one of her youthful misdeeds, and she was quick to downplay every act that one might consider to be brave or honorable, just as any truly humble person would.
Over the course of an hour, she recounted the entire story that I had written about her. In this retelling, there were no discrepancies whatsoever. Everything was exactly as I had envisioned it. For this, Marissa did take full credit. She said she had bestowed this story upon me and that I was to share it with the world, and as soon as possible. Honestly, it didn’t seem like I was going to have any say in the matter.
She expressed to me the importance of this story, and how all my efforts would not be some ploy for her to gain glory or fame.
Prophecy, as it turns out, is at work here on Earth, and this prophecy has its roots based in the saga that I have been working on. Marissa has devoted her life to protecting this prophecy, so that it can unfurl for the benefit of all of creation. I will have a part to play in how this occurs, as will you, the listeners of this podcast, as I hope you will come to realize.
As you might expect, I walked away from Starbucks that day filled with wonder. I was in a daze from it all. In the span of an hour or so my world changed forever, for Marissa Bonifay had stepped into my life.
During our meeting, she told me precisely what I was to do with the first portion of this story that I had written. I wouldn’t be talking to my literary agent about it, as I had planned. Nor would I be contacting any publishers. I would be distributing the story as a series of e-books through channels that anyone with an internet connection can access.
In addition, I was told to create a website to promote the saga, as well as a podcast. The episode you are listening to at this moment has its origins in that Starbucks on that fateful morning.
So, after all that I have told you, my prized story is no longer my story. To be honest, this thought didn’t dawn on me until the next day. But I have certainly thought about it many times since. The Kingdom of Malakanth and its magic no longer symbolize the pinnacle of my creativity. And Marissa Bonifay is no longer my prized character. I have become a conduit of sorts, a means by which this woman will convey her story to the people of Earth by one of our planet’s own.
Am I disappointed by this? Not at all. This story is far bigger than me. And, from what I’m learning, it’s far bigger than even Marissa Bonifay. If all the work I have done in my life to become the best writer I can possibly be has prepared me to document these events and nothing else, then so be it. I can think of no greater honor than to wield the pen for this …story, …this cause, …this prophecy.
Now, I hope you are wondering how you can obtain a copy of this story that I’ve been telling you about. As I mentioned earlier, the first installment of this saga is entitled “Slices of Midnight”, and you can find it at any of your favorite ebook outlets. The cost is 1.99 in U.S. dollars. I had decided to offer it for free, but Marissa would not allow it. Preparing this saga will take a great deal of time, she told me, and I should receive compensation for my efforts. I was in no position to argue, so $1.99 it is.
Alright, with that having been said, we have come to the end of this inaugural episode of Wisdom Rising, the official podcast of Marissa Bonifay and the Black Craft Saga. Thank you for listening, and I hope you join me next time, when I plan to go into much greater detail about Marissa Bonifay, her life, and her mission on our planet. Just how long has this witch been living on Earth? The answer will astound you, so please visit again soon to find out.
Speaking for Marissa Bonifay, this is Jon Dottingly. Until next time …be wise.
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Of Blades and Broomsticks Pt. IX
...because nothing says “Holidays” like the Witch AU, right?
Previous Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Witch AU on AO3
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The Witch Hunter and the bishop walked the outer ramparts of Adlersbrunn’s wall, looking out over the rest of Eichenwalde.
“So, the witch is caught and the demon banished,” said Bishop Petras, “I knew you were good, but to see the problem resolved so... quickly...” he trailed off, “I’m impressed.”
“She will burn at sunset on the morrow,” said the Witch Hunter.
“Not that I’m particularly eager to see such a grisly sight, but can I ask why the wait? She has plenty of witnesses against her. It’s best we be over and done with this grim business so we can move on,” said the Bishop, glancing back over his shoulder back at the city, “So everyone can move on.”
“You have deferred to my judgment in this matter,” said the Witch Hunter, “And the witch is caught. I believe she should be given a chance to repent before we throw her back to the mouth of hell,” said the Witch Hunter.
Something tugged at the corner of the bishop’s mouth and he placed a hand on Gabriel’s shoulder. “Know that I ask this with all due respect, but is this for her sake, or for yours?”
The Witch Hunter glanced down. “She will burn no matter what,” he said, stepping away from the bishop and leaning against a stone parapet, “She’s dangerous yes, but clever...well-meaning, in her own twisted way. I should like to think there is hope for her soul.”
The Bishop smiled, “You’ve a good heart, Gabriel. I dare say there’s more than enough hope for yours.”
Brick by brick, Gabriel heard the witch’s voice in his mind and his lips thinned for a moment before he turned to the Bishop. “Thank you, Your Grace,” he said.
---
A green portal opened in a foggy sky several miles out of Adlersbrunn and a sparrowhawk came flying out at full speed. Genji beat his wings tirelessly over the pines and mountains of Eichenwalde, riding the wind as swiftly as he could to Adlersbrunn. He circled the castle, feeling his head ache and whirl from the various wards that had been placed around it. She would be in there, in the dungeons below--that was why all the wards were there. He turned hard away from the castle before tilting his wings and diving lower to glide at the level of the rooftops.
He noticed an unusual amount of guards in the market square and swept into a turn before perching on the roof of a hunting lodge. He watched the movements of the guards, watching a line of them carry planks to the center of the square, where a handful of craftsmen seemed to be constructing some sort of platform. At the center of this platform, several burlier guards seemed were moving what looked like a narrow tree trunk to an upright position. A stark image flashed in his mind of the woodcuts he had seen from this land, there were the images of witches entreating with demons, of course, the images of witches flying naked by moonlight, but then there was the image at the end of these tracts which served as a stark reminder of what mortals thought of magic and those born and practicing with it. As he watched the guards erect the bole he knew precisely what they were doing.
“A stake,” he thought, “This is where they mean to burn her.”
His feathers bristled angrily. For a brief mad second he had a mind to take his true form and lay waste to the guards, the city, everything, but he caught himself and gave a glance down to his gold bracelet, now a narrow gold band around his leg. No. He had been reckless before--they both had been. Reckless, scared and desperate. He had to figure this out. There were Zenyatta’s cultists, sure, but they themselves were volatile--just as likely to destroy each other as any enemies. They needed another ally. They needed someone who knew the city. They needed someone Mercy would trust. An idea flashed in Genji’s mind and he quickly took to the air again, flying over the rooftops.
---
“Work faster, you buckets of bolts!” said Junkenstein as two zomnic assistants hammered away at a third zomnic frame. Once he had four zomnics he could streamline the process with an assembly line of sorts, but time was short and what would be his magnum opus still lay half-made on the slab. Junkenstein was short on raw materials for the creation, and he couldn’t very well go grave robbing with the city guard on high alert the way it was. He had done all he could for now---if quality couldn’t make it, quantity would have to suffice. “I said faster!” said the doctor, and the two zomnics hammered faster.
Genji watched the doctor and the two zomnics from the window, still in sparrowhawk form. Well... here goes nothing, he thought, turning into a gray tomcat and using his paw to pry open the window only a crack before turning into a rat and scrambling in. Junkenstein was too busy tinkering or barking orders at his mechanical assistants to notice as Genji climbed down a post and looked around the lab. He flinched and fled to a dark corner as something the two zomnics were were working on suddenly sat up and . It was a third zomnic, but this one didn’t seem to have a head.
“Fools---you’re not supposed to arm the coil yet,” Doctor Junkenstein stepped over from puzzling over something foul-smelling and covered with a sheet on a slab. Junkenstein slammed a half-done omnic head onto the flailing body and gave it a smack in the side of the newly-granted head with a wrench. It stopped flailing and sat up at attention. Junkenstein motioned to the other two zomnics hammering away, handed his own hammer to the zomnic, then resumed looking at his creation. “What can be replaced...” he glanced at his own arm, “What can be mechanized---” Junkenstein felt a presence behind him and whirled around on his heel, scalpel in hand ready to slash at whoever was fool enough to sneak in when a strong hand gripped his wrist.
“You!” said Junkenstein, looking at Genji’s Oni mask.
With his free hand, Genji lifted his mask, not bothering to hide the red of his eyes. “I need your help,” said Genji.
“I’m afraid I’m a bit busy at the moment,” said Junkenstein, wrenching his wrist from Genji’s grip.
“With...what?” said Genji, looking at the group of zomnics now hammering away at another frame while Junkenstein himself gave a glance under the sheet at the form on the slap before stepping away and pacing around, rifling through automaton parts.
“Rescuing Gramercy, obviously!” said Junkenstein, “And maybe a bit of reckoning.”
“Reckoning?” said Genji.
“Just a bit. Don’t you worry about it,” said Junkenstein, turning his attention back to the slab.
“Wait---This is good! I’m rescuing Mercy too---”
“Because you did so well with getting her out of the city,” said Junkenstein with a roll of his eyes.
“We need to work together,” said Genji.
“You do realize what they’re saying in the city, right?” said Junkenstein.
Genji shook his head.
“Whole town’s up in a tizzy about a ‘demon’ accompanying the witch. I’ll give you one guess as to who that is,” said Junkenstein.
Genji was silent, feeling a sinking feeling in his stomach.
“Now I don’t believe in demons, but I do believe that if not for you, she may have at least had a chance. If you hadn’t--- I could have---they’re all superstitious and if I could have just---” Junkenstein huffed, running the thumb of his prosthetic hand over his metal knuckles before shaking his head and pointing a finger at Genji, “You’ve messed this up for her. You’re not messing this up for me.”
“Do you really think you can do this alone?” said Genji.
“I’m not doing it alone,” said Junkenstein, gesturing back at the Zomnics.
“...you mean to take out the whole of the city guard with...those?” said Genji.
“It’s not about ‘taking out’ the city guard, it’s about creating enough of a distraction to get her out,” said Junkenstein.
“...A distraction...” Genji’s eyes widened, “A distraction! Of course--you’re a genius!”
“Obviously,” said Junkenstein, his attention fixed back on the sheet-covered pile on the slab.
“Let me help,” said Genji.
Junkenstein glanced up, frowning. “You’ve helped quite enough already,” he said.
“While you’re distracting the guards--how do you plan on getting Mercy out?” said Genji.
Junkenstein opened his mouth and took a breath as if to speak, then paused, glanced down, and thought for several seconds before muttering a stubborn, “You can help.”
Genji smiled. “So... what’s this?” said Genji, stepping alongside Junkenstein.
“Well... the city’s seen my bots. We need a good distraction we need something... bigger. Two things ought to distract from a witch-burning--A monster, or a miracle,” Junkenstein pulled back the sheet slightly and Genji was taken aback at the sight of a horrible green pig face, “I hope to make both.”
“You... you made this?” said Genji.
“Beautiful, isn’t he?” Junkenstein lovingly touched the side of the pig face, “He’s been a dream of mine for... a very long time. But it all fell off to the side with Lord Von Adlersbrunn’s commissions. With this,” Junkenstein drew a vial of what looked like liquid fire from the interior of his labcoat, “And that,” he gestured at the metal wheel he had stored lightning in with Mercy earlier, “I finally have the means to bring it to life---unfortunately I’m a bit short on raw materials,” he stuffed the fiery vial back into his labcoat, “You wouldn’t happen to have two or three corpses on hand, would you?”
“Two or three what---?” Genji started when a green portal opened behind them both and Junkenstein all but jumped a foot in the air.
“Student,” Zenyatta emerged from the portal, “My followers have---”
Junkenstein started screaming.
“They’ve---” Zenyatta attempted to say but was cut off by more screaming.
“I’ve---” Zenyatta started again but Junkenstein impressively managed to keep screaming before Genji caught Junkenstein in a headlock and slapped a hand over his mouth, effectively muffling him.
“I see you’ve made a friend,” said Zenyatta.
“Master, this is Junkenstein,” said Genji, as he attempted to contain a flailing, muffled Junkenstein as best he could, “He is a friend of my witch.”
“A pleasure to meet you,” said Zenyatta.
Junkenstein’s eyes flicked to Genji and his muffled screaming under Genji’s hand fell quiet.
“Junkenstein---this is Zenyatta,” said Genji, “My teacher.”
“Trmfr?” Junkenstein’s words were muffled under Genji’s hand.
“...I’m going to let you go, can I trust you to remain calm when I do so?” said Genji.
Junkenstein nodded and Genji released him.
“You...you’re...” Junkenstein stepped around Zenyatta, the green floating eyes which surrounded Zenyatta followed Junkenstein as he walked, “What--What are you, exactly?”
“If I began to explain myself and what I am to you, you would be driven to madness and rake your own face off with your fingernails while dashing your brains out against a wall,” said Zenyatta.
“...I see,” said Junkenstein, “So...you’re not... from here.”
“I am not,” said Zenyatta.
“And you’re...” Junkenstein gave a glance to Genji and then gave a weary sigh, “...magic?” Genji could tell just saying the word was gut-wrenching for Junkenstein.
“That is the simplest term for it,” said Zenyatta.
“Simplest?” said Junkenstein.
“Your world is ruled by laws of movement, of time, of objects in space,” said Zenyatta, motioning with his hand. The fiery vial suddenly emerged from the interior of Junkenstein’s coat and floated over to Zenyatta, who plucked it from the air and examined it, “Magic is a physical force that goes beyond your plane into others. By its nature of being existent and sourced from other planes, it is able to manipulate forces of your own plane in ways you would consider... highly unusual.”
Zenyatta tossed the vial back to Junkenstein and Junkenstein caught it. “It is very rare for humans to begin to understand magic,” said Zenyatta, “Much less wield it as they wield the other laws of their world such as chemistry or machinery.”
“...So Gramercy is magic,” said Junkenstein, turning the vial over in his hand.
“Yes!” said Genji.
“And you’re magic,” said Junkenstein pointing to Genji.
“You catch on quickly,” said Genji.
“And this city is about to burn one of the few people who actually knows how to use magic,” said Junkenstein.
“Yes--!” Genji was excited that Junkenstein seemed to finally be moving forward, then was suddenly reminded of the gravity of their situation and his face dropped. He turned to Zenyatta. “Your followers--” Genji started.
“There... has been an issue,” said Zenyatta.
“An issue?” said Genji, “But surely there can still be---”
“There is currently a bit of a... schism going on,” said Zenyatta.
“A what?” said Genji.
“It’s when a church splits into---”
“You’ve returned to your cult for only a few hours and it’s already split?” said Genji.
“Well you see I touched the shoulder of one of my followers without thinking and currently there’s a bit of debate over whether she is one of my chosen heralds or a blasphemer. And when I saw ‘a bit of debate’ I mean ‘A lot of stabbing.’“
“You’re their god! Just tell them to stop stabbing!” said Genji.
“’Stop stabbing,’” Zenyatta chuckled, “Oh my dear student,” Zenyatta patted Genji’s shoulder, “You’ll understand when you have your own blood cult some day.”
Genji’s shoulders slumped and he sighed deeply before taking a calming breath. “All right then,” he said, rubbing his brow, “So we don’t have an army of bloodthirsty cultists. That’s fine. We still have...” he glanced over at a group of now four zomnics hammering away at a fifth, “Those...things,” he said slowly.
“What about that?” said Zenyatta, pointing to the sheet-covered pile on the slab.
“That’s incomplete,” said Genji, “We’d need corpses for it.”
“...does it matter if they have stab wounds?” asked Zenyatta.
“...Not particularly,” said Junkenstein.
----
Genji had arrived in the late afternoon and they continued working, planning, long into the evening. Junkenstein himself worked as if possessed. It was a simple enough matter for Zenyatta to open up another portal and retrieve the corpses of several cultists, and from there Junkenstein stripped them down, to raw materials. Guts, muscles, organs, skin. He was impressively methodical and organized about it. It was clear he had been conceptualizing this for quite some time.
They couldn’t simply storm the castle, because that would leave the problem of having to fight their way back out of such a fortress, that, and with the house of Junkenstein slowly filling itself with Zomnics, it was getting harder to work. Eventually Junkenstein got so furious he opened up a panel in the floor and instructed all Zomnics not currently working on other zomnics were to go down into the city catacombs.
“...You have a trap door into the city catacombs?” said Genji.
Junkenstein was testing the musculature of a massive arm, bending it and turning the wrist back and forth. “Well it doesn’t exactly go anywhere,” he said, “Just a long tunnel and the end of it collapsed about two years ago and---” Junkenstein cut himself off, “Oi!” he shouted after the Zomnics already down in the catacomb, “Start clearing rocks away at the end of the tunnel and lay down some buttresses!”
“They will need help, said Zenyatta, leaping down into the catacombs.
“We can reach the castle through the catacombs?” asked Genji.
“If only it were that easy,” said Junkenstein, resuming his work deconstructing and stitching together three human hearts into one massive one, “No, that section of the catacombs was walled off decades ago---but we can create several points of attack around the square through the catacombs.”
“The square?” said Genji, “So you’re saying---”
“The only way this plan works is if it’s in the square,” said Junkenstein, holding up the massive heart in the light of a lamp.
“You mean when she’s about to be burned,” said Genji.
“Unfortunately, yes,” said Junkenstein, “My zomnics can attack the castle. Divert the guards, give you an opening. My monster--if he’s complete by then--will help you in the square--he ought to distract that witch hunter plenty. Do me a favor and hold that chest cavity open for me, will you?” said Junkenstein
Genji walked over to the massive stinking construction of corpses and, with more effort than he thought would have been necessary, opened the chest cavity of the beast. “What would compel you to make something so hideous?” the question escaped Genji but Junkenstein didn’t seem offended at all by it.
“Making life isn’t exactly pretty, mate,” said Junkenstein, stitching the heart into place within the monster, “But him?” he tied off the stitching and gave the heart an affectionate pat, “He’s bloody beautiful.”
“He’s certainly bloody...” said Genji as he helped Junkenstein close the chest cavity. Genji gave a glance over his shoulder to the trapdoor leading into the catacombs.
“It’s all mostly musculature and some... hardware from here,” said Junkenstein, “You want to help clear out the catacombs, that’s the most helpful you can be.”
Genji nodded and leapt down into the catacombs. He walked through the darkness to find it lit by the glowing green eyes that so frequently hovered about and accompanied Zenyatta. Zenyatta himself was holding his hands out, creating a portal that he moved against the stones, sending them gods-knew-where as Zomnics hurried to keep the whole thing from collapsing altogether around him.
“Junkenstein says the only way we can get her out is when she’s about to be burnt,” said Genji.
“I have foreseen so,” said Zenyatta.
Genji frowned. “Your portals---” he started.
“I tried,” said Zenyatta, “There is another magic which prevents me from opening them within the castle. What it is, exactly, I cannot say for sure. But it is old. Very old.” Zenyatta paused to think. “You do not fully understand the extent of your witch’s power, do you?”
“I saw her spin up a paltry fireball, and she seemed to be able to harness lightning...” said Genji, trailing off. “There’s something you’re not telling me.”
“If I told you everything, my student, you would---”
“Plunge my sword through my eye and skull in an attempt to un-see and un-think what has been revealed to me, you’ve mentioned,” said Genji.
“That vial. The one you pulled from Junkenstein before giving it back. What is it?”
“I hope to find out myself,” said Zenyatta. It was difficult to tell with Zenyatta’s face being a mass of tentacles, but something in his voice made it sound almost like Zenyatta was smiling.
---
Pharah looked out over Adlersbrunn from one of the city gate towers with her matchlock rifle on her shoulder. The moon was waxing, just on the verge of being full, but not quite.
“You should get some rest, ma’am,” said a guard, “I can take your post.”
“In a moment,” said Pharah, turning the adder stone over in her fingers.
“So they’re really burning her tomorrow, then?” said the guard, leaning against a parapet.
“Seems that way,” said Pharah.
The guard looked out over the city. “Never seen a witch burning before...” they said softly.
“I saw one when I was little more than 15. They’re not pleasant,” said Pharah. She decided not to bring up the part where her own mother disappeared shortly after. Perhaps that was why the thought of seeing a witch burn seemed to turn her stomach so in spite of all she had seen.
“The guards say you saw the demon,” said the guard.
“I did,” said Pharah.
“Can I ask... what he was like?” asked the guard.
“Big, and terrible, and red, and terrible,” said Pharah, “Couldn’t bring myself to look at him for more than a few seconds before I was compelled to shoot.”
“You’re very brave, ma’am,” said the guard.
Pharah blinked a few times, “It’s only part of the job. I’m the captain. I must be brave so the rest of you can follow suit.”
“So you’re staying then?” something in the guard’s voice lit up.
“Wh--where would I go?” said Pharah.
“Well... some of the other guards thought after this you might take off to be a Witch Hunter yourself. The hunter Reyes seems fond of you.”
“He already has an apprentice,” said Pharah with a smile, “My place is here.”
The guard smiled as well.
“Go---tell the rest of the guard to take their posts for the night, you can take my post when you do so,” said Pharah.
“Yes ma’am,” said the guard hurrying off. Pharah was once again left alone on the tower. She gave a glance down to the adder stone in her hand, then brought it up to her eye. She looked out over the city, all seeming fairly normal, until her sight fell upon the castle. She brought the adder stone away from her eye to look at the castle, then brought the stone to her eye again to make sure she was seeing what she thought she was seeing. The castle was rippling, distorted as if by waves of heat.
---
Hours and hours of more work passed. Junkenstein was meticulous in piecing together the final parts of his creation, and the steady stream of zomnics to the catacombs below the city continued. It was nearly dawn when Junkenstein screwed the final two bolts in place in the creature’s neck.
“All right...” Junkenstein injected the fiery substance into the creature’s neck, “Throw the switch.”
Zenyatta brought down the switch and the monster on the slab convulsed with electricity.
“Hold!” said Junkenstein, and Zenyatta turned the switch back.
Junkenstein put his head against the creature’s chest. “Nothing,” he thumped the creature’s chest with a metal fist, “Lazy old brute. We need more power!”
“Your source of lightning appears to be at its limits,” said Zenyatta.
“Well... granted the initial plan was to use a storm for this, but with Gramercy--there was no time...” said Junkenstein, bitterly. He bowed his forehead against the creature’s chest with grief. “But we need to animate this flesh tonight or the materials will degrade too much to be viable. This...” he sighed and took the creature’s massive hand in his own, “This was my only chance.”
“A storm?” Genji repeated.
“Only a lightning storm could generate the power I need...” Junkenstein said mournfully. He looked at Zenyatta, “Throw the switch. One more time. Just... one more time...” he backed away from the slab.
Zenyatta hesitantly threw the switch once more and the creature started convulsing on the slab with the force of electricity.
“A storm...” Genji said quietly. He looked at his own hand. He remembered the story his brother told him of how they came to be Yōkai. Two princes thrown from a boat, with dragons rising up to devour them, and lightning striking the sea. He was born in a storm. He was a creature of water, wind, and lightning. A mad idea flashed in his mind and he started walking toward the metal wheel tha was throwing sparks down on the creature.. One of the green eyes floating about Zenyatta turned toward Genji and Zenyatta himself suddenly turned, noting the determined expression on Genji’s face.
“What are you---?” Zenyatta started.
Genji turned to smoke and lightning and rushed toward the metal wheel.
“Genji!” Zenyatta shouted after him.
There was a massive burst of green lightning from the wheel and both Zenyatta and Junkenstein were knocked back by the force of the blast. The dust settled and Junkenstein sat up, coughing. Zenyatta looked over at the metallic wheel and watched as black smoke emanated from it and with a few weak green sparks managed to reform itself into Genji on the floor.
Genji coughed. “I... probably could have thought that through better. Is it...?” He heard a soft wheezing and then glanced up. Junkenstein was gripping the creature’s hand, his eyes wide with awe as the creature’s massive green fingers twitched. The creature’s chest was rising and falling
“He’s alive,” Junkenstein said softly, he dropped the hand and brought his own hand over his mouth, his breath short in his throat, hardly believing his own words. He looked at Genji, “He--He’s alive,” Junkenstein said again. A short laugh escaped him as he brought his goggles up to his forehead, this laugh seemed to sustain itself into giddy, half-panicked giggles. Genji was coughing and stumbling to his feet, “He’s alive!” Junkenstein said, grabbing Genji by the front of his tunic and hauling him up to his feet, “HE’S ALIVE!” he shouted, shaking Genji back and forth. The first lights of dawn hit the creature’s hideous face as Junkenstein threw himself over the beast’s massive belly in ecstasy as it continued wheezing, a grim and terrible sound.
“Oh,” Junkenstein said as the sky pinkened with morning light, “Oh what a beautiful day.”
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Caelinda Dewfall
Appearance -
Gender: Female
Race: Sin’dorei
Height: 5′ 9″
Eye Color: Green
Hair Color: Joyfully orange.
The Facts -
Birthday: April 23
Occupation: Duskward of the Pathfinders, Professional Optimist.
Sexual Identification: Pansexual.
Romantic Identification: Panromantic.
Alignment: Neutral Good.
Criminal History: Nothing she can remember at least. Probably nothing anyway.
Relationship Status: Single
Favorites –
Favorite Food: Cinnamon Rolls.
Favorite Drink: Apple Cider.
Favorite Artist: She has a rudimentary appreciation for all things Pandaren, from architecture to writing.
Favorite Scents: Apples, fresh spices, cinnamon, the forest after a rain, burning wood, mint.
Favorite Person(s): Aestus, Thinariel, Esme, and Vaelrin.
Randoms –
⚫ Caelinda lost both of her parents relatively close to one another by elvish standards. She cared deeply for both of them, and her loss was directly responsible for her depressive state that maintained itself for many years. It was only through the saving grace that was the strain and purpose of her training that she was able to return to a functional state. However, she has never formally dealt with her loss.
⚫ Caelinda does not exactly remember the stretch of time between the Scourge invasion of Quel’thalas and the reemergence of Pandaria. If asked, she can really only recall the time as a sort of hazy memory with quite a few holes poked in it. Still, this has not stopped her past from coming up in a myriad of ways. Debts she doesn’t remember entering, enemies she can’t bring to mind before they appear, and even promises she doesn’t recall making. She never really knows what might be dredged up from her past on any given day.
⚫ In terms of her past, Caelinda does maintain quite a few mercantile contacts. These old friends and acquaintances often serve as her only link to some of the more distant parts of the world, but she is well informed for it. It may not be obvious, but at any given time Caelinda is rather well versed in the current goings on of the elven, and by extension the Horde’s, economy. She sometimes performs favors for those merchants and tradesmen from her past, and one could say that she is fairly well respected for it among their number.
⚫ Caelinda has always desired to one day open up her own shop somewhere quiet when she has fulfilled her other promises. To that end, she maintains a sort of fund for her goal, but it’s honestly little more than a jar filled with gold coins at the end of the day. Still, she holds on to her hopes.
⚫ It may not be her most obvious trait, but Caelinda’s charisma is nothing to laugh at. Her convincing nature and silver tongue should not be underestimated, and they have saved her life more than once. For instance, she once convinced a band of marauding mogu that she was actually one of their powerful sorcerers taking refuge in an elven form to steal great magical secrets. She may not be the most tactful person when it comes to casual conversation, but when put on the spot her clever words can be a force for good or ill.
⚫ Caelinda has always been a rather gifted learner. She is able to pick up skills with relative ease when given enough time. This has been true since a young age when she was able to learn the complexities of the merchant lifestyle that her father had taken decades to master in just a few years. This skillful learning was present as well during her time spent training under the watchful eye of her Pandaren instructors. Some say she holds records to this day for mastering complex techniques in days that would take most weeks to perform.
⚫ While it is fair to say that she is not the smartest member of the Sunguard, Caelinda is by no means unintelligent. She relies more on her instincts and clever ploys to win the day, and, while this may sometimes seem more like luck working in her favor, it does tend to work just as well, or even better, as the best laid plans by those far superior to her in terms of intellect.
⚫ Caelinda has been known to eat considerably more than what most would consider possible, let alone healthy. Her eating habits are both strange and fascinating, but even she can’t explain just what makes her so ravenously hungry at almost any point in the day. She has consumed delicacies both exotic and familiar in large quantities including; a whole bear, the leg and tail of a devilsaur, two basilisk tails, a boiled kodo stomach, a whole table of exotic plants from Draenor, and no less than fifteen freshly cooked murloc eyes.
⚫ Despite what one may think, Caelinda is a mighty brewer in her own right. While she does not consider herself a Brewmaster necessarily, she still maintains various products of her own creation. These drinks mostly consist of ciders and lagers, and most of them are apple based, but there is one drink that Cealinda prizes above all others. This special cider, this magnum opus of elven-made alcohol (if you believe its creator’s self-made praise) is called the Spicy Appledew, and Caelinda has only ever made one batch. When asked, she explains that the cider has been magically created with the assistance of a mage whose name she has never revealed. She is very protective of the drink.
⚫ Caelinda has made a vow to never utilize her skills for personal gain or in the pursuit of power. She instead offers her talents to others whether it be through her military service, or through various acts of charity. Even when she works favors for old friends from her past, she does not allow such work to benefit her beyond any compensation others feel supremely compelled to grant her.
Things -
Things they like:
- Eating and drinking.
- Sleeping.
- Training.
- Brewing.
- Companionship.
- Making others smile.
Things they dislike:
- Rudeness.
- Waiting around.
- Forced studying.
- Bad Jokes.
- Wanton destruction.
- Greed.
Good habits:
- Determined.
- Respectful.
- Clever.
- Imaginative.
- Charismatic.
- Friendly.
- Honest.
Bad Habits:
- Not the best thinker.
- Crass.
- Prone to heroics.
- Impatient.
- Not always the most empathetic.
- A little too honest at times.
- Finds things funny that most wouldn’t.
- A bit too ditzy.
- Mentally shaken.
Personalities they gravitate toward:
- Smart.
- Fun loving.
- Fiery willed.
- Determined.
- Caring.
- People who should smile more.
Personality types they avoid:
- Scaredy cats.
- Arrogant.
- Above it all types.
- Dull.
- Offensive.
Fears:
- Vaelrin and Esme.
- Dying in a boring way.
- Losing her friends.
- Her memories.
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Building the perfect machine in 'Opus Magnum'
I'm not sure how Opus Magnum passed me by when it came to Steam Early Access last year. All I know is that I saw a split-second of it in a YouTube video a few weeks ago and have been obsessed since.
Opus Magnum is, like many of developer Zachtronics Industries' releases, a puzzle game centered on engineering. You play a young alchemist, tasked with creating elemental compounds for your employers in a time of conflict. As the story plays out, you become stuck between various factions and your creations are used for nefarious purposes. But the narrative, while well-written and capable of providing some respite between challenges, is far from the attraction here.
The core gameplay loop is simple to understand. A level gives you a set number of elements as inputs, and tells you what your output needs to be. You're given an infinite hex grid to build a machine that turns the input into the output. The basic tools at your disposal include arms, pistons and tracks that objects can travel along. There are also blocks that can modify or bond elements together. Once you've placed your tools, you have to program them by adding icons to a timeline. All arms can rotate themselves or what they're holding, piston arms can extend and retract, and if something's on a track, you can tell it what direction to move in. Although everything costs gold, there's no limit to how much you can spend on a machine.
For the first few chapters, the level of difficulty is remarkably low. Usually this might make for a dull introduction to a game, but as well as serving as an easy-going tutorial of sorts for the mechanics, these simple levels serve as a perfect demonstration of why this game is so special.
After you've successfully navigated a challenge, you're given a rundown of your machine: how much it cost, how much space it took and how many cycles it took to produce the output. Opus Magnum then puts these figures in context, with three histograms showing where your creation falls against the rest of the world, and, if applicable, any friends you have that have played the game.
It's unlikely, if not impossible, for a machine to top all three charts. Instead, you decide if you'd rather create a very simple machine, or one that's very compact. Or perhaps something complex, but unfathomably fast? The direction you take is entirely up to you; the game only tells you "there's a better way of doing this."
Let's take a very early level as an example. You're tasked with creating gold by merging iron and quicksilver together. A simple approach is to take one piston arm, pick up some iron, drop it, then load five quicksilver into the bonding tool. You then grab the gold you've just created and place it in the output section, like so:
This solution, as the stats beneath it suggest, takes 178 cycles to produce the required six gold, and only takes up six hexes. Looking at it now, I know I could've used a standard rotating arm instead of a piston and saved a little cash, but that's beside the point. How do I make it faster?
The above solution was my next attempt, and it's pretty efficient. Here I use three rotating arms, which lets me very quickly load quicksilver, cutting the number of cycles in half. But the histograms showed me I could go way faster.
So here I am, using an obscene number of arms to cut the cycles down to just 68. The actual time taken from first moving to depositing a piece of gold is the same. All the extra arms do here is decrease the time before the process begins again, by ensuring the arms that move first are ready to restart immediately. This is a terrible machine; there's definitely a more elegant way to craft a swift solution.
Creating one piece of gold is a very easy puzzle to solve, but I picked it because it perfectly demonstrates the pull of Opus Magnum. Even the more complex puzzles tend to take minutes rather than hours to solve, but you'll immediately be presented with a series of graphs showing your failings. In Opus Magnum, your biggest challenge is yourself, and your drive to perfect your solutions.
One thing I haven't mentioned is that, while no single solution can tick all the requisite boxes, the histograms that display on the level select screen take your lowest score across all your solutions, so it is possible to achieve a total "high score" across three solutions:
At least, it would be possible if I knew how. As you can see, I still have some work to do on this level. I already have a solution in my head for minimizing cost, but I honestly have no idea how I'm going to reduce the cycles. Yet.
You can play Opus Magnum on PC, Mac and Linux. Hopefully it comes to more platforms once it leaves Early Access -- the interface already works fine on my laptop's touchscreen, so for sure it would be a good fit for mobile or Switch. In the meantime, enjoy my horrendously inefficient solution to another simple puzzle:
"IRL" is a recurring column in which the Engadget staff run down what they're buying, using, playing and streaming.
- Repost from: engadget Post
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Master of Orion
Given the shadow which the original Master of Orion still casts over the gaming landscape of today, one might be forgiven for assuming, as many younger gamers doubtless do, that it was the very first conquer-the-galaxy grand-strategy game ever made. The reality, however, is quite different. For all that its position of influence is hardly misbegotten for other very good reasons, it was already the heir to a long tradition of such games at the time of its release in 1993. In fact, the tradition dates back to well before computer games as we know them today even existed.
The roots of the strategic space opera can be traced back to the tabletop game known as Diplomacy, designed by Allan B. Calhamer and first published in 1959 by Avalon Hill. Taking place in the years just prior to World War I, it put seven players in the roles of leaders of the various “great powers” of Europe. Although it included a playing board, tokens, and most of the other accoutrements of a typical board game, the real action, at least if you were playing it properly, was entirely social, in the alliances that were forged and broken and the shady deals that were struck. In this respect, it presaged many of the ideas that would later go into Dungeons & Dragons and other role-playing games. It thus represents an instant in gaming history as seminal in its own way as the 1954 publication of Avalon Hill’s Tactics, the canonical first tabletop wargame and the one which touched off the hobby of experiential gaming in general. But just as importantly for our purposes, Diplomacy‘s shifting alliances and the back-stabbings they led to would become an essential part of countless strategic space operas, including Master of Orion 34 years later.
Because getting seven friends together in the same room for the all-day affair that was a complete game of Diplomacy was almost as hard in the 1960s as it is today, inventive gamers developed systems for playing it via post; the first example of this breed would seem to date from 1963. And once players had started modifying the rules of Diplomacy to make it work under this new paradigm, it was a relatively short leap to begin making entirely new play-by-post games with new themes which shared some commonalities of approach with Calhamer’s magnum opus.
Thus in December of 1966, Dan Brannon announced a play-by-post game called Xeno, whose concept sounds very familiar indeed in the broad strokes. Each player started with a cluster of five planets — a tiny toehold in a sprawling, unknown galaxy waiting to be colonized. “The vastness of the playing space, the secrecy of the identity of the other players, the secrecy of the locations of ships and planets, the total lack of information without efforts of investigation, all these factors are meant to create the real problems of a race trying to expand to other planets,” wrote Brannon. Although the new game would be like Diplomacy in that it would presumably still culminate in negotiations, betrayals, and the inevitable final war to determine the ultimate victor, these stages would now be preceded by those of exploration and colonization, until a galaxy that had seemed so unfathomably big at the start proved not to be big enough to accommodate all of its would-be space empires. Certainly all of this too will be familiar to any player of Master of Orion or one of its heirs. Brannon’s game even included a tech tree of sorts, with players able to acquire better engines, weapons, and shields for their ships every eight turns they managed to survive.
In practice, Xenon played out at a pace to which the word “glacial” hardly does justice. The game didn’t really get started until September of 1967, and by a year after that just three turns had been completed. I don’t know whether a single full game of it was ever finished. Nevertheless, it proved hugely influential within the small community of experiential-gaming fanzines and play-by-post enthusiasts. The first similar game, called Galaxy and run by H. David Montgomery, had already appeared before Xeno had processed its third turn.
But the idea was, literally and figuratively speaking, too big for the medium for which it had been devised; it was just too compelling to remain confined to those few stalwart souls with the patience for play-by-post gaming. It soon branched out into two new mediums, each of which offered a more immediate sort of satisfaction.
In 1975, following rejections from Avalon Hill and others, one Howard Thompson formed his own company to publish the face-to-face board game Stellar Conquest, the first strategic space opera to appear in an actual box on store shelves. When Stellar Conquest became a success, it spawned a string of similar board games with titles like Godsfire, Outreach, Second Empire, and Starfall during this, the heyday of experiential gaming on the tabletop. But the big problem with such games was their sheer scope and math-heavy nature, which were enough to test the limits of many a salty old grognard who usually reveled in complexity. They all took at least three or four hours to play in their simplest variants, and a single game of at least one of them — SPI’s Outreach — could absorb weeks of gaming Saturdays. Meanwhile they were all dependent on pages and pages of fiddly manual calculations, in the time before spreadsheet macros or even handheld calculators were commonplace. (One hates to contemplate the plight of the Outreach group who have just spent the last two months resolving who shall become master of the galaxy, only to discover that the victor made a mistake on her production worksheet back on the second turn which invalidated all of the numbers that followed…) These games were, in other words, crying out for computerization.
Luckily, then, that too had already started to happen by the end of the 1970s. One of the reasons that play-by-post games of this type tended to run so sluggishly — beyond, that is, the inherent sluggishness of the medium itself — came down to the same problem as that faced by their tabletop progeny: the burden their size and complexity placed on their administrators. Therefore in 1976, Rick Loomis, the founder of a little company called Flying Buffalo, started running the commercial play-by-post game Starweb on what gaming historian Shannon Appelcline has called “probably the first computer ever purchased exclusively to play games” (or, at least, to administrate them): a $14,000 Raytheon 704 minicomputer. He would continue to run Starweb for more than thirty years — albeit presumably not on the same computer throughout that time.
But the first full-fledged incarnation of the computerized strategic space opera — in the sense of a self-contained game meant to be played locally on a single computer — arrived only in 1983. Called Reach for the Stars, it was the first fruit of what would turn into a long-running and prolific partnership between the Aussies Roger Keating and Ian Trout, who in that rather grandiose fashion that was so typical of grognard culture had named themselves the Strategic Studies Group. Reach for the Stars was based so heavily upon Stellar Conquest that it’s been called an outright unlicensed clone. Nevertheless, it’s a remarkable achievement for the way that it manages to capture that sense of size and scope that is such a huge part of these games’ appeal on 8-bit Apple IIs and Commodore 64s with just 64 K of memory. Although the whole is necessarily rather bare-bones compared to what would come later, the computer players’ artificial intelligence, always a point of pride with Keating and Trout, is surprisingly effective; on the harder difficulty level, the computer can truly give you a run for your money, and seems to do so without relying solely on egregious cheating.
It doesn’t look like much, but the basic hallmarks of the strategic space opera are all there in Reach for the Stars.
Reach for the Stars did very well, prompting updated ports to more powerful machines like the Apple Macintosh and IIGS and the Commodore Amiga as the decade wore on. A modest trickle of other boxed computer games of a similar stripe also appeared, albeit none which did much to comprehensively improve on SSG’s effort: Imperium Galactum, Spaceward Ho!, Armada 2525, Pax Imperia. Meanwhile the commercial online service CompuServe offered up MegaWars III, in which up to 100 players vied for control of the galaxy; it played a bit like one of those years-long play-by-post campaigns of yore compressed into four to six weeks of constant — and expensive, given CompuServe’s hourly dial-up rates — action and intrigue. Even the shareware scene got in on the act, via titles like Anacreon: Reconstruction 4021 and the earliest versions of the cult classic VGA Planets, a game which is still actively maintained and played to this day. And then, finally, along came Master of Orion in 1993 to truly take this style of game to the next level.
Had things gone just a little bit differently, Master of Orion too might have been a shareware release. It was designed in the spare time of Steve Barcia, an electrical engineer living in Austin, Texas, and programmed by Steve himself, his wife Marcia Barcia, and their friend Ken Burd. Steve claims not ever to have played any of the computer games I’ve just mentioned, but, as an avid and longtime tabletop gamer, he was very familiar with Stellar Conquest and a number of its successors. (No surprise there: Howard Thompson and his game were in fact also products of Austin’s vibrant board-gaming scene.)
After working on their computer game, which they called Star Lords, on and off for years, the little band of hobbyist programmers submitted it to MicroProse, whose grand-strategy game of Civilization, a creation of their leading in-house designer Sid Meier, had just taken the world by storm. A MicroProse producer named Jeff Johannigman — himself another member of the Austin gaming fraternity, as it happened, one who had just left Origin Systems in Austin to join MicroProse up in Baltimore — took a shine to the unpolished gem and signed its creators to develop it further. Seeing their hobby about to become a real business, the trio quit their jobs, took the name of SimTex, and leased a cramped office above a gyro joint to finish their game under Johannigman’s remote supervision, with a little additional help from MicroProse’s art department.
A fellow named Alan Emrich was one of most prominent voices in strategy-game criticism at the time; he was the foremost scribe on the subject at Computer Gaming World magazine, the industry’s accepted journal of record, and had just published a book-length strategy guide on Civilization in tandem with Johnny Wilson, the same magazine’s senior editor. Thanks to that project, Emrich was well-connected with MicroProse, and was happy to serve as a sounding board for them. And so, one fateful day very early in 1993, Johannigman asked if he’d like to have a look at a new submission called Star Lords.
As Emrich himself puts it, his initial impressions “were not that great.” He remembers thinking the game looked like “something from the late 1980s” — an eternity in the fast-changing computing scene of the early 1990s. Yet there was just something about it; the more he played, the more he wanted to keep playing. So, he shared Star Lords with his friend Tom Hughes, with whom he’d been playing tabletop and computerized strategy games for twenty years. Hughes had the same experience. Emrich:
After intense, repeated playing of the game, Tom and I were soon making numerous suggestions to [Johannigman], who, in turn, got tired of passing them on to the designer and lead programmer, Steve Barcia. Soon, we were talking to Steve directly. The telephone lines were burning regularly and a lot of ideas went back and forth. All the while, Steve was cooking up a better and better game. It was during this time that the title changed to Master of Orion and the game’s theme and focus crystallized.
I wrote a sneak preview for Computer Gaming World magazine where I indicated that Master of Orion was shaping up to be a good game. It had a lot of promise, but I didn’t think it was up there with Sid Meier’s Civilization, the hobby’s hallmark of strategy gaming at that time. But by the time that story hit the newsstands, I had changed my mind. I found myself still playing the game constantly and was reflecting on that fact when Tom called me. We talked about Master of Orion, of course, and Tom said, “You know, I think this game might become more addicting even than Civilization.” I replied, “You know, I think it already is.”
I was hard on Emrich in earlier articles for his silly assertion that Civilization‘s inclusion of global warming as a threat to progress and women’s suffrage as a Wonder of the World contituted some form of surrender to left-wing political correctness, as I was for his even sillier assertion that the game’s simplistic and highly artificial economic model could somehow be held up as proof for the pseudo-scientific theory of trickle-down economics. Therefore let me be very clear in praising him here: Emrich and Hughes played an absolutely massive role in making Master of Orion one of the greatest strategy games of all time. Their contribution was such that SimTex took the unusual step of adding to the credits listing a “Special Thanks to Alan Emrich and Tom Hughes for their invaluable design critiquing and suggestions.” If anything, that credit would seem to be more ungenerous than the opposite. By all indications, a pair of full-fledged co-designer credits wouldn’t have been out of proportion to the reality of their contribution. The two would go on to write the exhaustive official strategy guide for the game, a tome numbering more than 400 pages. No one could have been more qualified to tackle that project.
As if all that wasn’t enough, Emrich did one more great service for Master of Orion and, one might even say, for gaming in general. In a “revealing sneak preview” of the game, published in the September 1993 issue of Computer Gaming World, he pronounced it to be “rated XXXX.” After the requisite measure of back-patting for such edgy turns of phrase as these, Emrich settled down to explain what he really meant by the label: “XXXX” in this context stood for “EXplore, EXpand, EXploit, and EXterminate.” And thus was a new sub-genre label born. The formulation from the article was quickly shortened to “4X” by enterprising gamers uninterested in making strained allusions to pornographic films. In that form, it would be applied to countless titles going forward, right up to the present day, and retroactively applied to countless titles of the past, including all of the earlier space operas I’ve just described as well as the original Civilization — a game to which the “EXterminate” part of the label fits perhaps less well, but such is life.
Emrich’s article also creates an amusing distinction for the more pedantic ludic taxonomists and linguists among us. Although Master of Orion definitely was not, as we’ve now seen at some length, the first 4X game in the abstract, it was the very first 4X game to be called a 4X game. Maybe this accounts for some of the pride of place it holds in modern gaming culture?
However that may be, though, the lion’s share of the credit for Master of Orion‘s enduring influence must surely be ascribed to what a superb game it is in its own right. If it didn’t invent the 4X space opera, it did in some sense perfect it, at least in its digital form. It doesn’t do anything conceptually new on the face of it — you’re still leading an alien race as it expands through a randomly created galaxy, competing with other races in the fields of economics, technology, diplomacy, and warfare to become the dominant civilization — but it just does it all so well.
A new game of Master of Orion begins with you choosing a galaxy size (from small to huge), a difficulty level (from simple to impossible), and a quantity of opposing aliens to compete against (from one to five). Then you choose which specific race you would like to play; you have ten possibilities in all, drawing from a well-worn book of science-fiction tropes, from angry cats in space to hive-mind-powered insects, from living rocks to pacifistic brainiacs, alongside the inevitable humans. Once you’ve made your choice, you’re cast into the deep end — or rather into deep space — with a single half-developed planet, a colony ship for settling a second planet as soon as you find a likely candidate, two unarmed scout ships for exploring for just such a candidate, and a minimal set of starting technologies.
You must parlay these underwhelming tools into galactic domination hundreds of turns later. You can take the last part of the 4X tag literally and win out by utterly exterminating all of your rivals, but a slightly less genocidal approach is a victory in the “Galactic Council” which meets every quarter-century (i.e., every 25 turns). Here everyone can vote on which of the two most currently populous empires’ leaders they prefer to appoint as ruler of the galaxy, with “everyone” in this context including the two leading emperors themselves. Each empire gets a number of votes determined by its population, and the first to collect two-thirds of the total vote wins outright. (Well, almost… it is possible for you to refuse to respect the outcome of a vote that goes against you, but doing so will cause all of your rivals to declare immediate and perpetual war against you, whilst effectively pooling all of their own resources and technology. Good luck with that!)
A typical game of Master of Orion plays out over three broad stages. The first stage is the land grab, the wide-open exploration and colonization phase that happens before you meet your rival aliens. Here your challenge is to balance the economic development of your existing planets against your need to settle as many new ones as possible to put yourself in a good position for the mid-game. (When exactly do I stop spending my home planet’s resources on improving its own infrastructure and start using them to build more colony ships?) The mid-game begins when you start to bump into your rivals, and comes to entail much jockeying for influence, as the various races begin to sort themselves into rival factions. (The Alkaris, bird-like creatures, loathe the Mrrshans, the aforementioned race of frenzied pussycats, and their loathing is returned in kind. I don’t have strong feelings about either one — but whose side would it most behoove me to choose from a purely strategic perspective?) The end-game is nigh when the there is no more room for anyone to expand, apart from taking planets from a rival by force, and the once-expansive galaxy suddenly seems claustrophobic. It often, although by no means always, is marked by a massive war that finally secures somebody that elusive two-thirds majority in the Galactic Council. (I’m so close now! Do I attack those stubbornly intractable Bulrathi to try to knock down their population and get myself over the two-thirds threshold that way, or do I keep trying to sweet-talk and bribe them into voting for me?) The length and character of all of these stages will of course greatly depend on the initial setup you chose; the first stage might be all but nonexistent in a small galaxy with five rivals, while it will go on for a long, long time indeed in a huge galaxy with just one or two oppoenents. (The former scenario is, for the record, far more challenging.)
And that’s how it goes, generally speaking. Yet the core genius of Master of Orion actually lies in how resistant it is to generalization. It’s no exaggeration to say that there really is no “typical” game; I’ve enjoyed plenty which played out in nothing like the pattern I’ve just described for you. I’ve played games in which I never fired a single shot in anger, even ones where I’ve never built a single armed ship of war, just as I’ve played others where I was in a constant war for survival from beginning to end. Master of Orion is gaming’s best box of chocolates; you never know what you’re going to get when you jump into a new galaxy. Everything about the design is engineered to keep you from falling back on patterns universally applicable to the “typical” game. It’s this quality, more so than any other, that makes Master of Orion so consistently rewarding. If I was to be stranded on the proverbial desert island, I have a pretty good idea of at least one of the games I’d choose to take with me.
I’ll return momentarily to the question of just how Master of Orion manages to build so much variation into a fairly simple set of core rules. I think it might be instructive to do so, however, in comparison with another game, one I’ve already had occasion to mention several times in this article: Civilization.
As I’m so often at pains to point out, game design is, like any creative pursuit, a form of public dialog. Certainly Civilization itself comes with a long list of antecedents, including most notably Walter Bright’s mainframe game Empire, Dani Bunten Berry’s PC game Seven Cities of Gold, and the Avalon Hill board game with which Civilization shares its name. Likewise, Civilization has its progeny, among them Master of Orion. By no means was it the sole influence on the latter; as we’ve seen, Master of Orion was also greatly influenced by the 4X space-opera tradition in board games, especially during its early phases of development.
Still, the mark of Civilization as well can be seen all over its finished design. (After all, Alan Emrich had just literally written the book on Civilization when he started bombarding Barcia with design suggestions…) For example, Master of Orion, unlike all of its space-opera predecessors, on the computer or otherwise, doesn’t bother at all with multiplayer options, preferring to optimize the single-player experience in their stead. One can’t help but feel that it was Civilization, which was likewise bereft of the multiplayer options that earlier grand-strategy games had always included as a matter of course, that empowered Steve Barcia and company to go this way.
At the same time, though, we cannot say that Jeff Johannigman was being particularly accurate when he took to calling Master of Orion “Civilization in space” for the benefit of journalists. For all that it’s easy enough to understand what made such shorthand so tempting — this new project too was a grand-strategy game played on a huge scale, incorporating technology, economics, diplomacy, and military conflict — it wasn’t ultimately fair to either game. Master of Orion is very much its own thing. Its interface, for example, is completely different. (Ironically, Barcia’s follow-up to Master of Orion, the fantasy 4X Master of Magic, hews much closer to Civilization in that respect.) In Master of Orion, Civilization‘s influence often runs as much in a negative as a positive direction; that is to say, there are places where the later design is lifting ideas from the earlier one, but also taking it upon itself to correct perceived weaknesses in their implementation.
I have to use the qualifier “perceived” there because the two games have such different personalities. Simply put, Civilization prioritizes its fictional context over its actual mechanics, while Master of Orion does just the opposite. Together they illustrate the flexibility of the interactive digital medium, showing how great games can be great in such markedly different ways, even when they’re as closely linked in terms of genre as these two are.
Civilization explicitly bills itself as a grand journey through human history, from the time in our distant past when the first hunter-gatherers settled down in villages to an optimistic near-future in space. The rules underpinning the journey are loose-goosey, full of potential exploits. The most infamous of these is undoubtedly the barbarian-horde strategy, in which you research only a few minimal technologies necessary for war-making and never attempt to evolve your society or participate in any meaningful diplomacy thereafter, but merely flood the world with miserable hardscrabble cities supporting primitive armies, attacking everything that moves until every other civilization is extinct. At the lower and moderate difficulty levels at least, this strategy works every single time, albeit whilst bypassing most of what the game was meant to be about. As put by Ralph Betza, a contributor to an early Civilization strategy guide posted to Usenet: “You can always play Despotic Conquest, regardless of the world you find yourself starting with, and you can always win without using any of the many ways to cheat. When you choose any other strategy, you are deliberately risking a loss in order to make the game more interesting.”
So very much in Civilization is of limited utility at best in purely mechanical terms. Many or most of the much-vaunted Wonders of the World, for example, really aren’t worth the cost you have to pay for them. But that’s okay; you pay for them anyway because you like the idea of having built the Pyramids of Giza or the Globe Theatre or Project Apollo, just as you choose not to go all Genghis Khan on the world because you’d rather build a civilization you can feel proud of. Perhaps the clearest statement of Civilization‘s guiding design philosophy can be found in the manual. It says that, even if you make it all the way to the end of the game only to see one of your rivals achieve the ultimate goal of mounting an expedition to Alpha Centauri before you do, “the successful direction of your civilization through the centuries is an achievement. You have survived countless wars, the pollution of the industrial age, and the risks of nuclear weapons.” Or, as Sid Meier himself puts it, “a game of Civilization is an epic story.”
We’re happy to preach peace and cooperation, as long as we’re the top dogs… er, birds.
Such sentiments are deeply foreign to Master of Orion; this is a zero-sum game if ever there was one. If you lose the final Galactic Council vote, there’s no attaboy for getting this far, much less any consolation delivered that the galaxy has entered a new era of peaceful cooperation with some other race in the leadership role. Instead the closing cinematic tells you that you’ve left the known galaxy and “set forth to conquer new worlds, vowing to return and claim the renowned title of Master of Orion.” (Better to rule in Hell, right?) There are no Wonders of the World in Master of Orion, and, while there is a tech tree to work through, you won’t find on it any of Civilization‘s more humanistic advances, such as Chivalry or Mysticism, or even Communism or The Corporation. What you get instead are technologies — it’s telling that Master of Orion talks about a “tech tree,” while Civilization prefers the word “advances” — with a direct practical application to settling worlds and making war, divided into the STEM-centric categories of Computers, Construction, Force Fields, Planetology, Propulsion, and Weapons.
So, Civilization is the more idealistic, more educational, perhaps even the nobler of the two games. And yet it often plays a little awkwardly — which awkwardness we forgive because of its aspirational qualities. Master of Orion‘s fictional context is a much thinner veneer to stretch over its mechanics, while words like “idealistic” simply don’t exist in its vocabulary. And yet, being without any high-flown themes to fall back on, it makes sure that its mechanics are absolutely tight. These dichotomies can create a dilemma for a critic like yours truly. If you asked me which game presents a better argument for gaming writ large as a potentially uplifting, ennobling pursuit, I know which of the two I’d have to point to. But then, when I’m just looking for a fun, challenging, intriguing game to play… well, let’s just say that I’ve played a lot more Master of Orion than Civilization over the last quarter-century. Indeed, Master of Orion can easily be read as the work of a designer who looked at Civilization and was unimpressed with its touchy-feely side, then set out to make a game that fixed all the other failings which that side obscured.
By way of a first example, let’s consider the two games’ implementation of an advances chart — or a tech tree, whichever you prefer. Arguably the most transformative single advance in Civilization is Railroads; they let you move your military units between your cities almost instantaneously, which makes attacks much easier and quicker to mount for warlike players and enables the more peaceful types to protect their holdings with a much smaller (and thus less expensive) standing army. The Railroads advance is so pivotal that some players build their entire strategy around acquiring it as soon as possible, by finding it on the advances chart as soon as the game begins in 4000 BC and working their way backward to find the absolute shortest path for reaching it. This is obviously problematic from a storytelling standpoint; it’s not as if the earliest villagers set about learning the craft of Pottery with an eye toward getting their hands on Railroads 6000 years later. More importantly, though, it’s damaging to the longevity of the game itself, in that it means that players can and will always employ that same Railroads strategy just as soon as they figure out what a winner it is. Here we stumble over one of the subtler but nonetheless significant axioms of game design: if you give players a hammer that works on every nail, many or most of them will use it — and only it — over and over again, even if it winds up decreasing their overall enjoyment. It’s for this reason that some players continue to use even the barbarian-horde strategy in Civilization, boring though it is. Or, to take an outside example: how many designers of CRPGs have lovingly crafted dozens of spells with their own unique advantages and disadvantages, only to watch players burn up everything they encounter with a trusty Fireball?
Master of Orion, on the other hand, works hard at every turn to make such one-size-fits-all strategies impossible — and nowhere more so than in its tech tree. When a new game begins, each race is given a randomized selection of technologies that are possible for it to research, constituting only about half of the total number of technologies in the game. Thus, while a technology roughly equivalent to Civilization‘s Railroads does exist in Master of Orion — Star Gates — you don’t know if this or any other technology is actually available to you until you advance far enough up the tree to reach the spot where it ought to be. You can’t base your entire strategy around a predictable technology progression. While you can acquire technologies that didn’t make it into your tree by trading with other empires, bullying them into giving them to you, or attacking their planets and taking them, that’s a much more fraught, uncertain path to go down than doing the research yourself, one that requires a fair amount of seat-of-your-pants strategy in its own right. Any way you slice it, in other words, you have to improvise.
We’ve been lucky here in that Hydrogen Fuel Cells, the first range-extending technology and a fairly cheap one, is available in our tree. If it wasn’t, and if we didn’t have a lot of stars conveniently close by, we’d have to dedicate our entire empire to attaining a more advanced and thus more expensive range-extending technology, lest we be left behind in the initial land grab. But this would of course mean neglecting other aspects of our empire’s development. Trade-offs like this are a constant fact of life in Master of Orion.
This one clever design choice has repercussions for every other aspect of the game. Take, for instance, the endlessly fascinating game-within-a-game of designing your fleet of starships. If the tech tree was static, players would inevitably settle upon a small set of go-to designs that worked for their style of play. As it is, though, every new ship is a fresh balancing act, its equipment calibrated to maximize your side’s technological strengths and mitigate its weaknesses, while also taking into careful account the strengths and weaknesses of the foe you expect to use it against, about which you’ve hopefully been compiling information through your espionage network. Do you build a huge number of tiny, fast, maneuverable fighters, or do you build just a few lumbering galactic dreadnoughts? Or do you build something in between? There are no universally correct answers, just sets of changing circumstances.
Another source of dynamism are the alien races you play and those you play against. The cultures in Civilization have no intrinsic strengths and weaknesses, just sets of leader tendencies when played by the computer; for your part, you’re free to play the Mongols as pacifists, or for that matter the Russians as paragons of liberal democracy and global cooperation. But in Master of Orion, each race’s unique affordances force you to play it differently. Likewise, each opposing race’s affordances in combination with those of your own force you to respond differently to that race when you encounter it, whether on the other side of a diplomats’ table or on a battlefield in space. Further, most races have one technology they’re unusually good at researching and one they’re unusually bad at. Throw in varying degrees of affinity and prejudice toward the other races, and, again, you’ve got an enormous amount of variation which defies cookie-cutter strategizing. (It’s worth noting that there’s a great deal of asymmetry here; Steve Barcia and his helpers didn’t share so many modern designers’ obsession with symmetrical play balance above all else. Some races are clearly more powerful than others: the brainiac Psilons get a huge research bonus, the insectoid Klackons get a huge bonus in worker productivity, and the Humans get huge bonuses in trade and diplomacy. Meanwhile the avian Alkaris, the feline Mrrshan, and the ursine Bulrathis have bonuses which only apply during combat, and can be overcome fairly easily by races with other, more all-encompassing advantages.)
There are yet more touches to bring yet more dynamism. Random events occur from time to time in the galaxy, some of which can change everything at a stroke: a gigantic space amoeba might show up and start eating stars, forcing everyone to forget their petty squabbles for a while and band together against this apocalyptic threat. And then there’s the mysterious star Orion, from which the game takes it name, which houses the wonders of a long-dead alien culture from the mythical past. Taking possession of it might just win the game for you — but first you’ll have to defeat its almost inconceivably powerful Guardian.
One of the perennial problems of 4X games, Civilization among them, is the long anticlimax, which begins at that point when you know you’re going to conquer the world or be the first to blast off for Alpha Centauri, but well before you actually do so. (What Civilization player isn’t familiar with the delights of scouring the map for that one remaining rival city tucked away on some forgotten island in some forgotten corner?) Here too Master of Orion comes with a mitigating idea, in the form of the Galactic Council whose workings I’ve already described. It means that, as soon as you can collect two-thirds of the vote — whether through wily diplomacy or the simpler expedient of conquering until two-thirds of the galaxy’s population is your own — the game ends and you get your victory screen.
Indeed, one of the overarching design themes of Master of Orion is its determination to minimize the boring stuff. It must be admitted, of course, that boredom is in the eye of the beholder. Non-fans have occasionally dismissed the whole 4X space-opera sub-genre as “Microsoft Excel in space,” and Master of Orion too requires a level of comfort with — or, better yet, a degree of fascination with — numbers and ratios; you’ll spend at least as much time tinkering with your economy as you will engaging in space battles. Yet the game does everything it can to minimize the pain here as well. While hardly a simple game in absolute terms, it is quite a streamlined example of its type; certainly it’s much less fiddly than Civilization. Planet management is abstracted into a set of five sliding ratio bars, allowing you decide what percentage of that planet’s total output should be devoted to building ships, building defensive installations, building industrial infrastructure, cleaning up pollution, and researching new technologies. Unlike in Civilization, there is no list of specialized structures to build one at a time, much less a need to laboriously develop the land square by square with a specialized unit. Some degree of micro-management is always going to be in the nature of this type of game, but managing dozens of planets in Master of Orion is far less painful than managing dozens of cities in Civilization.
The research screen as well operates through sliding ratio bars which let you decide how much effort to devote to each of six categories of technology. In other words, you’re almost always research multiple advances at once in Master of Orion, whereas in Civilization you only research one at a time. Further, you can never predict for sure when a technology will arrive; while each has a base cost in research points, “paying” it leads only to a slowly increasing randomized chance of acquiring the technology on any given turn. (That’s the meaning of the “17%” next to Force Fields in the screenshot above.) You also receive bonuses for maintaining steady research over a long run of turns, rather than throwing all of your research points into one technology, then into something else, etc. All of this as well serves to make the game more unpredictable and dynamic.
In short, Master of Orion tries really, really hard to work with you rather than against you, and succeeds to such a degree that it can sometimes feel like the game is reading your mind. A reductionist critic of the sort I can be on occasion might say that there are just two types of games: those that actually got played before their release and those that didn’t. With only rare exceptions, this distinction, more so than the intrinsic brilliance of the design team or any other factor, is the best predictor of the quality of the end result. Master of Orion is clearly a game that got played, and played extensively, with all of the feedback thus gathered being incorporated into the final design. The interface is about as perfect as the technical limitations of 1993 allow it to be; nothing you can possibly want to do is more than two clicks away. And the game is replete with subtle little conveniences that you only come to appreciate with time — like, just to take one example, the way it asks if you want to automatically adjust the ecology spending on every one of your planets when you acquire a more efficient environmental-cleanup technology. This lived-in quality can only be acquired the honest, old-fashioned way: by giving your game to actual players and then listening to what they tell you about it, whether the points they bring up are big or small, game-breaking or trivial.
This thoroughgoing commitment to quality is made all the more remarkable by our knowledge of circumstances inside MicroProse while Master of Orion was going through these critical final phases of its development. When the contract to publish the game was signed, MicroProse was in desperate financial straits, having lost bundles on an ill-advised standup-arcade game along with expensive forays into adventure games and CRPGs, genres far from their traditional bread and butter of military simulations and grand-strategy games. Although other projects suffered badly from the chaos, Master of Orion, perhaps because it was a rather low-priority project entrusted largely to an outside team located over a thousand miles away, was given the time and space to become its best self. It was still a work in progress on June 21, 1993, when MicroProse’s mercurial, ofttimes erratic founder and CEO “Wild Bill” Stealey sold the company to Spectrum Holobyte, a publisher with a relatively small portfolio of extant games but a big roll of venture capital behind them.
Master of Orion thus became one of the first releases from the newly conjoined entity on October 1, 1993. Helped along by the evangelism of Alan Emrich and his pals at Computer Gaming World, it did about as well as such a cerebral title, almost completely bereft of audiovisual bells and whistles, could possibly do in the new age of multimedia computing; it became the biggest strategy hit since Civilization, and the biggest 4X space opera to that point, in any medium. Later computerized iterations on the concept, including its own sequels, doubtless sold more copies in absolute numbers, but the original Master of Orion has gone on to become one of the truly seminal titles in gaming history, almost as much so as the original Civilization. It remains the game to which every new 4X space opera — and there have been many of them, far more than have tried to capture the more elusively idealistic appeal of Civilization — must be compared.
Sometimes a status such as that enjoyed by Master of Orion arrives thanks to an historical accident or a mere flashy technical innovation, but that is definitively not the case here. Master of Orion remains as rewarding as ever in all its near-infinite variation. Personally, I like to embrace its dynamic spirit for everything it’s worth by throwing a (virtual) die to set up a new game, letting the Universe decide what size galaxy I play in, how many rivals I play with, and which race I play myself. The end result never fails to be enjoyable, whether it winds up a desperate free-for-all between six alien civilizations compressed into a tiny galaxy with just 24 stars, or a wide-open, stately game of peaceful exploration in a galaxy with over 100 of them. In short, Master of Orion is the most inexhaustible well of entertainment I’ve ever found in the form of a single computer game — a timeless classic that never fails to punish you for playing lazy, but never fails to reward you for playing well. I’ve been pulling it out to try to conquer another random galaxy at least once every year or two for half my life already. I suspect I’ll still be doing so until the day I die.
(Sources: the books Gamers at Work: Stories Behind the Games People Play by Morgan Ramsay, Designers & Dragons, Volume 1: The 1970s by Shannon Appelcline, and Master of Orion: The Official Strategy Guide by Alan Emrich and Tom E. Hughes, Jr.; Computer Gaming World of December 1983, June/July 1985, October 1991, June 1993, August 1993, September 1993, December 1993, and October 1995; Commodore Disk User of May 1988; Softline of March 1983. Online sources include “Per Aspera Ad Astra” by Jon Peterson from ROMchip, Alan Emrich’s historical notes from the old Master of Orion III site, a Steve Barcia video interview which originally appeared in the CD-ROM magazine Interactive Entertainment., and the Civilization Usenet FAQ, lasted updated by “Dave” in 1994.
Master of Orion I and II are available for purchase together from GOG.com. I highly recommend a tutorial, compiled many years ago by Sirian and now available only via archive.org, as an excellent way for new players to learn the ropes.)
source http://reposts.ciathyza.com/master-of-orion/
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Satoshi’s Final Messages Leave Tantalizing Clues to His Disappearance
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Satoshi’s Final Messages Leave Tantalizing Clues to His Disappearance
Satoshi’s Final Messages Leave Tantalizing Clues to His Disappearance
Maybe the smartest thing Satoshi did after creating Bitcoin was to disappear. The question isn’t ‘why did Satoshi disappear?’ but rather ‘why then?’ Was Satoshi’s departure in early 2011 scheduled long in advance, or did unforeseen events compel Nakamoto to pack his bags and flee the community he had founded, never to return? Several credible theories abound.
Theory 1: It Was Planned All Along
Satoshi Nakamoto was a methodical and meticulous man. That much we can ascertain from his writings. He doesn’t seem the sort to wake up one morning and YOLO his way out of the community he created. Knowing there would be no coming back once he’d made the decision to leave, Satoshi may have had his departure scheduled months or even years in advance, and worked diligently to that deadline. If so, it would explain why his last forum post was a typically business-like despatch, leaving parting instructions on what had been remedied in build 0.3.19 of Bitcoin Core.
Theory 2: It Was Wikileaks
Satoshi tended to keep his emotions in check when posting on the Bitcointalk forum. He had the air of a man who knew he had a lot to do and a short time in which to do it, and thus refrained from shitposting or shooting the breeze. He could occasionally be brusque (“If you don’t believe me or don’t get it, I don’t have time to try to convince you, sorry”), but was never rude or prone to venting. His penultimate forum post, however, portrays a twinge of annoyance.
In response to a PC World article commenting on Wikileaks’ adoption of bitcoin to circumvent its financial blockade, Satoshi famously wrote: “It would have been nice to get this attention in any other context. WikiLeaks has kicked the hornet’s nest, and the swarm is headed towards us.” Could Wikileaks thrusting Bitcoin and its enigmatic creator into the spotlight have been the last straw that sent Satoshi scurrying for cover? The argument that Bitcoin was getting too big too fast, which expedited Satoshi’s departure, seems credible.
Theory 3: It Was the CIA
Satoshi’s final correspondence, from an April 26, 2011 email to Gavin Andresen, has given rise to another theory as to why he abruptly left. He wrote:
I wish you wouldn’t keep talking about me as a mysterious shadowy figure, the press just turns that into a pirate currency angle. Maybe instead make it about the open source project and give more credit to your dev contributors; it helps motivate them.
When Gavin replied, he informed Satoshi that he had been invited to speak at an event hosted by an organization under the CIA. Satoshi never replied. Did the mention of spooks spook Satoshi?
Theory 4: It Was Personal
We know nothing about Satoshi Nakamoto’s personal life. It is quite possible that his exodus was triggered by events that he could never have publicly communicated. Failing health, injury or new responsibilities (family, professional, personal) could have forced Satoshi’s hand, compelling him to bow out earlier than anticipated. If that were the case, we’d have no way of knowing. To this day, there are many who believe Satoshi is no longer with us because he is no longer alive.
Theory 5: It Was Symbolic
Satoshi Nakamoto and the birth of Bitcoin is a saga shrouded in symbology that reads like a Dan Brown novel for cypherpunks. From the name assigned to the genesis block to the sudden disappearance of its creator, it’s hard to avoid the religious undertones. Aside from its name, there is the oddity of the genesis block taking six days to mine. As speculated in an old Bitcointalk forum thread, this may have been an easter egg left by Satoshi in homage to the biblical account of creation. As Genesis 2:2 recounts: “And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested.”
For those interested in ascribing symbology to Satoshi’s actions, there’s more. Christ’s ministry on earth is believed to have lasted for around three years. Satoshi’s first known contact with the world occurred on August 22, 2008, in an email to b-money creator Wei Dai, though he is believed to have reached out to Adam Back before that. Satoshi’s final verified email was to Gavin Andresen on April 26, 2011, meaning that his ministry also lasted for around three years.
The fact that Satoshi’s teachings have been subject to extensive interpretation and misinterpretation in the years since, while his disciples await the second coming of Bitcoin’s creator, has further solidified the parallels with Christ. Satoshi wasn’t perfect – his code tells us that much – and common sense tells us that putting fallible men on pedestals is the antithesis of everything Bitcoin stands for. It is possible to be opposed to leadership cults, however, while also assigning messianic qualities to the life and times of Satoshi Nakamoto.
There is evidence, incidentally, that Satoshi was tiring of the cult that was beginning to form around him; the PC World article on Wikileaks he took exception to claimed that “Bitcoin is the creation of Japanese programmer Satoshi Nakamoto,” while in his final email to Gavin Andresen he complained “I wish you wouldn’t keep talking about me as a mysterious shadowy figure … Maybe instead make it about the open source project and give more credit to your dev contributors.” Satoshi had no interest in becoming a living legend and overshadowing his magnum opus.
Theory 6: Bitcoin Was Ready
According to the gospel of Luke, Jesus’ last recorded words were “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” Satoshi, on the other hand, checked out of this world in the belief that those around him knew exactly what they were doing. As he was to remark in one of his final emails, sent to Mike Hearn on April 23, 2011, “I’ve moved on to other things. It’s in good hands with Gavin and everyone.”
Satoshi had nursed Bitcoin through its formative years, and now it was capable of surviving without him solo mining, solo-fixing critical bugs and pushing out new Core releases. Perhaps Satoshi left because he had done all he had to do. Staying around would only tarnish his legacy and heighten the risk of him being doxxed as the world began to take a keen interest in his creation.
If so, the timing of Satoshi’s exit was to prove as impeccable as his arrival in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. Despite internecine conflict, chain splits, and factions, Bitcoin hasn’t just survived – it’s thrived, morphing into an unstoppable organism that cannot be controlled by any one man.
Source: news.bitcoin
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Famous Paintings
Famous Paintings
Even though you have little interest in art, you have actually most likely listened to names including Leonardo da Vinci, Vincent truck Gogh, Rembrandt van Rijn, Claude Monet and Pablo Picasso. These were, besides, the best painters that ever stayed.
https://www.beroemdeschilders.nl/
Italian Renaissance performer Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper is the best famous of his 30-odd items of work, other than the Mona Lisa. It portrays the scary on the surface of the 12 men Christ had actually gathered with each other to express them that a person of this group would certainly uncover him prior to sunrise. The painting is actually a large 15x29 feet, and also it deals with a whole define the dining hall of the Santa Maria della Grazie convent in Milan, Italy. A dawdler who left behind several of his jobs half-done, Leonardo possessed no option but to finish this paint, as it was appointed to him due to the male who had actually been actually spending his earnings for 18 years - the Duke of Milan, Ludovico Sforza.
Vincent Van Gogh was thought about by some to become the ultimate painter in European past. His made his most puzzling painting, titled The Starry Night, during the course of his keep at a psychological facility in France, where he was actually bouncing back coming from mental issues. His various other prominent paint is actually of a ton of sunflowers, which he coated when he transferred to Arles, where he hoped to located an art nest. None of his work was actually ever before enjoyed in the course of his lifetime; as a matter of fact, he resided a life of utter poverty, despondence and anguish, and inevitably took his lifestyle when he might certainly not birth the suffering anymore.
No tale of famous paintings may ever be actually total, for there are therefore lots of factors therefore a lot work to discuss. Yet, without an acknowledgment to Pablo Ruiz Picasso, the tale would certainly be much more inadequate that ever before. Of all the conductors, the renowned Spanish painter is just one of the absolute most popular of the 20th century. His most well-known job is the paint he crafted from Germany bombing Guernica during the Spanish public war. It caught the brutality, inhumanity and also utter pessimism of war, in his traditional cubist type.
Listing of Most Famous Paintings
Paint has been a pastime along with job considering that older times. This fine art advanced to fantastic levels because the creation. A lot of procedures as well as designs parallelled into this art making it much more lovable to masses. Artists explore different concepts, types, appearances, media however few of the practices were taken due to the fine art aficionados. Various creeds in paint were created as an end result of these practices. As well as these methods made numerous talented painters. These talented painters ended up being the experts of the craft in incredibly short opportunity. Though all the works which these artists created were actually exceptional in appeal, approach and accuracy however there are just a couple of jobs that have touched the souls of the masses and left a lasting effect on the art enthusiasts. These jobs have actually felt like due to the people of all periods as well as are actually immensely popular bekendekunstenaars.
Magnum opus are actually thousands but best are couple of. Best works are prized through the masses in addition to the backers of fine art. Monalisa is actually a never-ceasing artwork brought in through Leonardo da Vinci. Monalisa has intrigued millions along with her eye-catching smile. The Melting Watches of Salvador Dali is actually yet another hugely well-known craft work. The checklist is actually really lengthy. Famous paintings made in several different designs, media as well as period are actually numerous and the majority of the amount of times assaulting the opinion of the audience as to which is the best of all.
Art work are actually the articulations of one's heart that obtain shown such as art on canvas. Although there are several art portraitures as well as oil paints that possess surprised our team with their charm for many years, there are actually a number of them which leave behind an impact on our body and souls as well as these are the ones that become so renowned over the years, that they are successful in discovering their spot amongst the 'World's Top 5 Most Famous Paintings'.
The Last Supper: This paint is a reputable masterwork of the popular artist Leonardo Da Vinci. This painting could be located showcased at the Santa Maria della Grazie church of Milan. This painting shows the turning point when Lord Jesus was possessing his last an evening meal with his converts. Real emotions of innocence and anguish are actually specifically the ones that are actually shown through the art work's art.
Monalisa: This is yet one more work of art of the very same wizard - Leonardo Da Vinci. This painting may be actually discovered showcased at the Musee du Louvre Museum of Paris. This popular oil art work was painted in the 16th century. The intent of the painter to reflect truth charm of Monalisa is actually a quality of this particular paint that is actually displayed due to the eyes of Monalisa that follow you no issue where slant you consider it.
The Kiss: This paint is actually a well-known masterwork of the well-known painter Gustav Klimt. This art work may be actually found at the Österreichische Galerie Belvedere museum, Austria. The intent of this particular well known paint could be approximated from its own title. The painting showcases the informal desires of a males and female in an impeccable method. Numerous performers of the yesteryears have affirmed the reality that this art picture was a picturisation of the real world of the painter bekendekunstenaars.
Café Terrace during the night: Though the label of this painting might seem to be average yet the panting is actually certainly not. The method which the popular artist Vincent Van Gogh has actually launched the impacts of night skies enclosing the vibrantly ignited Café Terrace during the night is impressive. This oil art work may be actually discovered displayed at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.
Hambletonian: You would certainly be actually astonished to know that this is actually the only steed art work that has created it to the list of top 5 world famous paintings. George Stubbs the artist that repainted this painting has been regularly recognized for painting some actually great horse paints. The paint attempts to portray the feelings of a horse towards his expert as the steed in the paint has actually been revealed to be depending on just 2 left behind lower legs that represent its own interest quotient beroemdeschilders.
Famous Painters List - An Appreciation of the Artistic Greats
People have actually regularly sought to convey on their own artistically. The documentation is actually there in the cave art work of Lascaux that were done by primitive guys. If you are fascinated in the aesthetic crafts after that you should certainly begin through assembling a famous painters list to ensure that you may view their paints. There are numerous great performers who you will definitely discover in this particular list and also researching their paintings are going to be a strongly academic and illuminating adventure.
If you were to start in sequential purchase, the famous painters list is usually thought to begin with Giotto, who lived in the Middle Ages. Nevertheless, the Renaissance which covered the 14th, 15th and also 16th centuries in addition to component of the 17th century was when artists initially developed the representation of individual makeup and also percentage. Artists including Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, Botticelli and Titian concerned this period. The Flemish college worked with through Hans Holbein the Younger and also others was additionally really famous. This was also when easels were actually built consequently were actually considerable amounts of various famous paintings.
The highly stylized Mannerist art work that were established towards the end of the Renaissance (El Greco is actually a fine example coming from this time frame) yielded to the lavish and also dramatic paintings of the Baroque period (Rubens, Rembrandt and also Jan Vermeer) and after that to the Baroque time period in the 18th century (Watteau as well as Boucher). Rococo was lighter and also much more erotic than Baroque as well as likewise included Oriental elements.
The arrival of the 19th century found the advancement of Neo-classicism, Romanticism and also Impressionism. Impressionist painters such as Monet, Manet, Renoir, Pissarro, Degas carried out the mass of their do work in the latter half of this particular century. They were complied with through Post-Impressionist artists such as Van Gogh, Gauguin, Seurat and also Cèzanne. The Impressionist and also Post-Impressionist artists were well known for their ingenious use colors and designs beroemdeschilders.
The Basics of House Painting
Your home is your life time property. And it is actually an issue of opportunity when you take a notice that your residence needs to have renovation - not given that it is actually getting outdated, but considering that you think the demand of vivid shades in your property.
Repainting your house is actually a complicated business. Some rely upon art work firms to accomplish the task for you. Tapping the services of your house art work company may also cost you. But if you are actually planning to coat it your own self, you may desire to think about the fundamentals; and also look at the amount of time as well as attempt you will certainly apply paint your house.
COATING
There are actually several sorts of paint offered today, some giving unique area appearances, others are actually created for a particular request. Opting for the appropriate coating style might appear to be actually baffling in the beginning, once you have predicted which motif you would love to paint your home as well as ironed out which work as well as what appearances you prefer, the selection is actually rather very easy bekendeschilderijen.
There are actually 2 manners of coating for your house: solvent-based (oil or alkyd) and water-based (latex). Oil-based paints dry sluggish - typically occupying to 24 hrs. The very best tidy up for an oil-based coating is turpentine or coating thinner. Latex paints' perk is actually that it dries reasonably quickly, but it is actually not good in hot climate or direct sunlight. The finest well-maintained up for latex paints requires just soap as well as water. So if you are coating the within your property, it is actually highly recommended to use water-based coatings, while solvent-based paints are recommended for painting the outside of your home.
There are actually different forms of coatings that is actually either water-based or even solvent-based that makes different finishes that is assessed through its gloss factor. "Sheen" is a phrase made use of to illustrate the degree of light reflection the coating possesses. Lesser shine for an interior or even outside paint implies it has minimal discolor protection.
- A Gloss paint is easy to tidy and stands up to scuffs better. This is actually optimal for areas that are actually regularly made use of. The majority of gloss paints are most ideal suggested to make use of on woodworks, walls, bathroom and kitchen wall surfaces, doorjambs, as well as window casings. The disadvantage of utilization gloss coatings, having said that, is actually the detectable blemishes in the wall structure surface area.
- A High-gloss coating is actually extremely reflective and operates properly for highlighting details, like trim and also decorative creating. They are actually additionally the very best choice for doors as well as closet - or any location that views a high volume of abuse.
- Semi-gloss coatings are very comparable to gloss plaints except it possesses minimal luster. Semi-gloss is actually also suitable for spaces along with higher moisture (absolute best utilized for little ones's space) as well as can easily be made use of for trim jobs as well as casings. These coatings make certain maximum resilience.
- Eggshell paints give a soft and low-sheen surface. Coatings that are soft and low-sheen that is actually perfect for your sitting room, eating rooms, rooms, and dens. It is actually washable and ideal for bedrooms, corridors, residence offices and also family rooms.
- Satin coatings deliver an excellent combo of easy-clean and modest shine. These paints go a measure over eggshell in scrubbing ability. They do and appear wonderful in almost any type of space.
- Flat paints (matte paints) are non-reflective and also consistently a good selection for big wall surfaces as well as roofs. Standard paints hides flaws on wall surface areas and spatters properly throughout application. Level coatings are the most ideal option for plastic as well as aluminum home siding that is actually scraped or dented since it hides imperfections and also spatters a lot less when applied. These coatings are optimal for low-traffic places such as professional dining-room as well as bedroom.
Special coatings have actually been actually introduced coming from distinct consumer ideas and also dazzling paint modern technology that allows certain paints for details needs.
- Ceiling flats are designed particularly for roofs. These are commonly additional spatter-resistant.
- Primer paints may be oil- or even water-based as well as are used to close unpainted areas to stop dealing with coats of coating saturating in. The necessary kind of primer ought to be used for the surface being actually coated - wood, steel, paste or floor tiles. There are some 'all purpose primers' available which are made for 2 or even more of these areas.
- Anti-condensation paints are actually made use of for rooms with humid health conditions like bathroom and kitchen. This paint is usually formulated to stop condensation and also frequently consists of herbicide.
- Fire-retardant paints perform not avoid fires completely but its fire-resistance solution avoids it from fire in spreading quick.
It is likewise vital that just before repainting your room, you make use of a guide. A primer will definitely aid repaint follow the surface by supplying an uniform appeal. It is actually a should to make use of a primer if you are actually repainting over new wood, arid wood, drywall, or painting over existing intense or even dark colours bekendeschilderijen.
But just before performing this, you must recognize the problem of the area you intended to repaint. Irrespective of whether the skim coat is oil or even latex, you need to plain lustrous paint by fining sand or even de-glossing it along with a chemical de-glossing item. If you don't plain glossy paint, the second layer will certainly touch as well as not stay with the base layer when drying.
INTERNAL PAINTING
If you desire to alter your room's ambience, painting it is an excellent choice. When interior painting, make use of coatings that are actually quicker to dry out as well as does not possess a strong stench that remains around where your youngsters may scent it.
Repainting the interior of your house demands a thorough estimate, visualization and also preparation. When you have picked your motif for your areas and also have actually gotten the job components you require (coatings, coat brushes and also rollers, expansion deals with, paint rack, coating stirrer, decrease garments, measure ladder, paint-slinger's strip, and so on), you simply comply with these interior home art work pointers:
PRIOR TO AND DURING HOUSE PAINTING
- Always give sufficient venting when paint inside your property. If you can not receive good enough air flow in the work location, use a respirator or even a mask.
- Keep paint containers or even solvent containers closed when certainly not in make use of.
- Keep paint items out of the reach of children.
- Avoid straight contact with skin.
- Always read through packaging (tag) guidelines.
SURFACE AREA PREPARATION TIPS
- Remove as a lot as furnishings as achievable coming from the space or team the much heavier fixtures and also the fragile ones consecutively and also cover them with a reduce towel.
- Provide adequate super to make it possible for a really good view of art work flaws.
- Remove switch plates.
- Patch holes and cracks in the surfaces you wished to coat along with premixed spackling mix. After the paste dries, sand the patched the areas.
- Dust and clean the ceilings, wall structures, baseboards, doors and windows moldings.
- Clean, dependable wallpaper may be painted over, yet most of the times it is actually far better to strip it. Painting over a wallpaper may begin to peel.
COATING YOUR CEILING TIPS
- If you are actually repainting the whole area, it is actually better to coat the ceiling to begin with!
- If you are actually using a coating roller, maneuver your upper arms in series of angled swaths (making up a letter M). Load in the available regions by cross rolling.
- If you are making use of a paintbrush, use the paint in short movements towards the unpainted area, called "moist to completely dry." After that brush back into the location you merely coated for a soft surface area.
- If you are coating your ceiling, eliminate light bulbs, light fixtures, neon lights and also component covers.
- Paint trim initially, consisting of bordering around the roof, molding, and also slick.
WALL PAINTING TIPS
- Paint around the trim 1st, including outlining around the roof.
- When art work with a polish surface, make the final comb movements far from the source of light of the space. The tiny spines that a comb leaves behind won't be actually as pronounced. Make use of the same "moist to completely dry" procedure of art work.
WOODWORK
- Check woodwork for damage. if there is actually one, spot it with a timber filler, dry out it through the night and also sand it for any sort of tough locations and also use a sealer before painting.
- If you'll be actually utilizing the very same paint on the wall surfaces and also woodwork, coat the wood finishing as you concern it. If it is one more different colors of higher in gloss, hang around till the wall surfaces are actually carried out famous paintings.
- Paint double-hung windows coming from the lumber between the glass then external. On casement home windows, us the very same approach, yet maintain the windows slightly open up until the paint dries out.
- For board doors, coat the attractive shaped edges initially, after that the private boards. Repaint coming from the center out. When the doors are finished, repaint the upright and parallel level panels.
- Use a painter's strip or artist's defense to always keep paint off windowpanes. Carry out certainly not use a masking tape or even an air duct strip. Using an artist's strip or artist's cover enables you to keep places paid for as much as 3 times.
- Paint the best edge walls first, at that point the bottom along the flooring. Paint the mid segment final.
- Remove cabinetry doors and drawers as well as coat the flat surface areas first. Coat inside the sides, after that relocate to the exterior areas.
CLEAN-UP and also STORAGE or DISPOSAL TIPS
- If there are actually coating declines on your floor, do not allow it remain there. As the paint sets a lot longer, the more challenging it will definitely be cleared. Make use of a towel along with detergent as well as water or a synthetic cleaning agent for cleaning.
- Use a razor-blade scraper or even a cement blade to potato chip off bigger coating beads that have dried.
- Use a scraper to trim down around windowpanes.
- Wash and completely dry paintbrushes and rollers. Shop all of them depending on to the label's referral not all paintbrushes possess the exact same form of rages nor the rollers possess the same material.
- Clean the paint coming from the rim of the can. Faucet container lids tight along with a hammer and also block of wood.
- Store solvent-based coating cans inverted to avoid a skin from creating.
- Store your coatings in regular or space temperature. Never put the paints in harsh scorching or even chilly rooms.
- Each states in the U.S. or every area/ county differs on coating may fingertip procedures. Examine your regional ecological, health and wellness, and security laws.
EXTERIOR PAINTING
In purchasing coatings that you are actually going to make use of for your exterior residence, you possess to pick a brand name that possesses necessary characteristics: concealing electrical power, color recognition, chalk-resistance, and scorching resistance.
Concealing electrical power originates from the coating's pigment as well as is affected due to the method and also fullness of the treatment. Color retentiveness is actually the capability to maintain its initial different colors during the course of visibility to sun light, etc. Liquid chalking resistance stops the white colored chalky powder coming from creating on the surface area and also lightening the color of the coating. Chalking develop over a time frame. Sore protection maintains too much moisture from coming through the substrate and impacting the paint coating. Tip: if paint is actually used over a moist or even wet surface area, blistering is actually unavoidable well-known artists.
Coating the exterior of your residence demands an extensive evaluation, visual images as well as prep work. When you have actually selected your motif for your spaces and also have purchased the work materials you need to have.
You will need any of these tools in painting your outdoor: caulk, sandpaper, dustcloths and/or newspaper towels, painter's strip, landscape hose, energy washing machine, or tube brush attachment, sponges & containers for washout water, spray mist nozzle, stepladder, expansion ladder, paint scraper, cord comb, cement blades, heat energy gun, rotating coating clearing away tool and also power drill, caulk gun, sanding block, as well as work gloves.
When you have all the devices available, analyze your outdoor. You may discover exterior painting concerns, which can be any of the following: alligatoring, blistering, chalking, chalk manage down, crackling, gunk pickup, flowering, fading, frosting, lapping, mold, nail head acid, paint conflict, striping, unsatisfactory alkali protection, unsatisfactory attachment, inadequate varnish recognition, surfacent draining, staining, vinyl fabric exterior siding cover, wax hemorrhage, or even wrinkling.
If you presently recognize what your house exterior's issue is or simply for repainting it, merely observe a few of these recommendations. You can easily additionally describe INTERIOR PAINTING for brush or curler movements, and so on:
- Start by completely cleansing the beyond your property. Beginning on top and operate your method down the edges of our home. If your home siding possesses areas of mold, mold or yellowing, wash it along with an anti-fungal cleanser.
- Mask off areas that are certainly not to be repainted. You might intend to put cloaking tape along the side of house trim, as well as around doors and window frames as well as slick, given that this is actually very likely to become repainted in a different colour or along with a higher gloss paint. You can also tape paper or even plastic ground cloth material over doors and windows, featuring moving glass doors, to defend all of them from drips well-known artists.
- Place plastic droplet fabrics over plants and shrubs, or where paint might leak on verandas, roof sections, pathways, driveways or even various other surface areas.
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Text
Famous Paintings
Famous Paintings
Even though you have little interest in art, you have actually most likely listened to names including Leonardo da Vinci, Vincent truck Gogh, Rembrandt van Rijn, Claude Monet and Pablo Picasso. These were, besides, the best painters that ever stayed.
Italian Renaissance performer Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper is the best famous of his 30-odd items of work, other than the Mona Lisa. It portrays the scary on the surface of the 12 men Christ had actually gathered with each other to express them that a person of this group would certainly uncover him prior to sunrise. The painting is actually a large 15x29 feet, and also it deals with a whole define the dining hall of the Santa Maria della Grazie convent in Milan, Italy. A dawdler who left behind several of his jobs half-done, Leonardo possessed no option but to finish this paint, as it was appointed to him due to the male who had actually been actually spending his earnings for 18 years - the Duke of Milan, Ludovico Sforza. www.beroemdeschilders.nl
Vincent Van Gogh was thought about by some to become the ultimate painter in European past. His made his most puzzling painting, titled The Starry Night, during the course of his keep at a psychological facility in France, where he was actually bouncing back coming from mental issues. His various other prominent paint is actually of a ton of sunflowers, which he coated when he transferred to Arles, where he hoped to located an art nest. None of his work was actually ever before enjoyed in the course of his lifetime; as a matter of fact, he resided a life of utter poverty, despondence and anguish, and inevitably took his lifestyle when he might certainly not birth the suffering anymore.
No tale of famous paintings may ever be actually total, for there are therefore lots of factors therefore a lot work to discuss. Yet, without an acknowledgment to Pablo Ruiz Picasso, the tale would certainly be much more inadequate that ever before. Of all the conductors, the renowned Spanish painter is just one of the absolute most popular of the 20th century. His most well-known job is the paint he crafted from Germany bombing Guernica during the Spanish public war. It caught the brutality, inhumanity and also utter pessimism of war, in his traditional cubist type.
Listing of Most Famous Paintings
Paint has been a pastime along with job considering that older times. This fine art advanced to fantastic levels because the creation. A lot of procedures as well as designs parallelled into this art making it much more lovable to masses. Artists explore different concepts, types, appearances, media however few of the practices were taken due to the fine art aficionados. Various creeds in paint were created as an end result of these practices. As well as these methods made numerous talented painters. These talented painters ended up being the experts of the craft in incredibly short opportunity. Though all the works which these artists created were actually exceptional in appeal, approach and accuracy however there are just a couple of jobs that have touched the souls of the masses and left a lasting effect on the art enthusiasts. These jobs have actually felt like due to the people of all periods as well as are actually immensely popular bekendekunstenaars.
Magnum opus are actually thousands but best are couple of. Best works are prized through the masses in addition to the backers of fine art. Monalisa is actually a never-ceasing artwork brought in through Leonardo da Vinci. Monalisa has intrigued millions along with her eye-catching smile. The Melting Watches of Salvador Dali is actually yet another hugely well-known craft work. The checklist is actually really lengthy. Famous paintings made in several different designs, media as well as period are actually numerous and the majority of the amount of times assaulting the opinion of the audience as to which is the best of all.
Art work are actually the articulations of one's heart that obtain shown such as art on canvas. Although there are several art portraitures as well as oil paints that possess surprised our team with their charm for many years, there are actually a number of them which leave behind an impact on our body and souls as well as these are the ones that become so renowned over the years, that they are successful in discovering their spot amongst the 'World's Top 5 Most Famous Paintings'.
The Last Supper: This paint is a reputable masterwork of the popular artist Leonardo Da Vinci. This painting could be located showcased at the Santa Maria della Grazie church of Milan. This painting shows the turning point when Lord Jesus was possessing his last an evening meal with his converts. Real emotions of innocence and anguish are actually specifically the ones that are actually shown through the art work's art.
Monalisa: This is yet one more work of art of the very same wizard - Leonardo Da Vinci. This painting may be actually discovered showcased at the Musee du Louvre Museum of Paris. This popular oil art work was painted in the 16th century. The intent of the painter to reflect truth charm of Monalisa is actually a quality of this particular paint that is actually displayed due to the eyes of Monalisa that follow you no issue where slant you consider it.
The Kiss: This paint is actually a well-known masterwork of the well-known painter Gustav Klimt. This art work may be actually found at the Österreichische Galerie Belvedere museum, Austria. The intent of this particular well known paint could be approximated from its own title. The painting showcases the informal desires of a males and female in an impeccable method. Numerous performers of the yesteryears have affirmed the reality that this art picture was a picturisation of the real world of the painter bekendekunstenaars.
Café Terrace during the night: Though the label of this painting might seem to be average yet the panting is actually certainly not. The method which the popular artist Vincent Van Gogh has actually launched the impacts of night skies enclosing the vibrantly ignited Café Terrace during the night is impressive. This oil art work may be actually discovered displayed at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.
Hambletonian: You would certainly be actually astonished to know that this is actually the only steed art work that has created it to the list of top 5 world famous paintings. George Stubbs the artist that repainted this painting has been regularly recognized for painting some actually great horse paints. The paint attempts to portray the feelings of a horse towards his expert as the steed in the paint has actually been revealed to be depending on just 2 left behind lower legs that represent its own interest quotient beroemdeschilders.
Famous Painters List - An Appreciation of the Artistic Greats
People have actually regularly sought to convey on their own artistically. The documentation is actually there in the cave art work of Lascaux that were done by primitive guys. If you are fascinated in the aesthetic crafts after that you should certainly begin through assembling a famous painters list to ensure that you may view their paints. There are numerous great performers who you will definitely discover in this particular list and also researching their paintings are going to be a strongly academic and illuminating adventure.
If you were to start in sequential purchase, the famous painters list is usually thought to begin with Giotto, who lived in the Middle Ages. Nevertheless, the Renaissance which covered the 14th, 15th and also 16th centuries in addition to component of the 17th century was when artists initially developed the representation of individual makeup and also percentage. Artists including Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, Botticelli and Titian concerned this period. The Flemish college worked with through Hans Holbein the Younger and also others was additionally really famous. This was also when easels were actually built consequently were actually considerable amounts of various famous paintings.
The highly stylized Mannerist art work that were established towards the end of the Renaissance (El Greco is actually a fine example coming from this time frame) yielded to the lavish and also dramatic paintings of the Baroque period (Rubens, Rembrandt and also Jan Vermeer) and after that to the Baroque time period in the 18th century (Watteau as well as Boucher). Rococo was lighter and also much more erotic than Baroque as well as likewise included Oriental elements.
The arrival of the 19th century found the advancement of Neo-classicism, Romanticism and also Impressionism. Impressionist painters such as Monet, Manet, Renoir, Pissarro, Degas carried out the mass of their do work in the latter half of this particular century. They were complied with through Post-Impressionist artists such as Van Gogh, Gauguin, Seurat and also Cèzanne. The Impressionist and also Post-Impressionist artists were well known for their ingenious use colors and designs beroemdeschilders.
The Basics of House Painting
Your home is your life time property. And it is actually an issue of opportunity when you take a notice that your residence needs to have renovation - not given that it is actually getting outdated, but considering that you think the demand of vivid shades in your property.
Repainting your house is actually a complicated business. Some rely upon art work firms to accomplish the task for you. Tapping the services of your house art work company may also cost you. But if you are actually planning to coat it your own self, you may desire to think about the fundamentals; and also look at the amount of time as well as attempt you will certainly apply paint your house.
COATING
There are actually several sorts of paint offered today, some giving unique area appearances, others are actually created for a particular request. Opting for the appropriate coating style might appear to be actually baffling in the beginning, once you have predicted which motif you would love to paint your home as well as ironed out which work as well as what appearances you prefer, the selection is actually rather very easy bekendeschilderijen.
There are actually 2 manners of coating for your house: solvent-based (oil or alkyd) and water-based (latex). Oil-based paints dry sluggish - typically occupying to 24 hrs. The very best tidy up for an oil-based coating is turpentine or coating thinner. Latex paints' perk is actually that it dries reasonably quickly, but it is actually not good in hot climate or direct sunlight. The finest well-maintained up for latex paints requires just soap as well as water. So if you are coating the within your property, it is actually highly recommended to use water-based coatings, while solvent-based paints are recommended for painting the outside of your home.
There are actually different forms of coatings that is actually either water-based or even solvent-based that makes different finishes that is assessed through its gloss factor. "Sheen" is a phrase made use of to illustrate the degree of light reflection the coating possesses. Lesser shine for an interior or even outside paint implies it has minimal discolor protection.
- A Gloss paint is easy to tidy and stands up to scuffs better. This is actually optimal for areas that are actually regularly made use of. The majority of gloss paints are most ideal suggested to make use of on woodworks, walls, bathroom and kitchen wall surfaces, doorjambs, as well as window casings. The disadvantage of utilization gloss coatings, having said that, is actually the detectable blemishes in the wall structure surface area.
- A High-gloss coating is actually extremely reflective and operates properly for highlighting details, like trim and also decorative creating. They are actually additionally the very best choice for doors as well as closet - or any location that views a high volume of abuse.
- Semi-gloss coatings are very comparable to gloss plaints except it possesses minimal luster. Semi-gloss is actually also suitable for spaces along with higher moisture (absolute best utilized for little ones's space) as well as can easily be made use of for trim jobs as well as casings. These coatings make certain maximum resilience.
- Eggshell paints give a soft and low-sheen surface. Coatings that are soft and low-sheen that is actually perfect for your sitting room, eating rooms, rooms, and dens. It is actually washable and ideal for bedrooms, corridors, residence offices and also family rooms.
- Satin coatings deliver an excellent combo of easy-clean and modest shine. These paints go a measure over eggshell in scrubbing ability. They do and appear wonderful in almost any type of space.
- Flat paints (matte paints) are non-reflective and also consistently a good selection for big wall surfaces as well as roofs. Standard paints hides flaws on wall surface areas and spatters properly throughout application. Level coatings are the most ideal option for plastic as well as aluminum home siding that is actually scraped or dented since it hides imperfections and also spatters a lot less when applied. These coatings are optimal for low-traffic places such as professional dining-room as well as bedroom.
Special coatings have actually been actually introduced coming from distinct consumer ideas and also dazzling paint modern technology that allows certain paints for details needs.
- Ceiling flats are designed particularly for roofs. These are commonly additional spatter-resistant.
- Primer paints may be oil- or even water-based as well as are used to close unpainted areas to stop dealing with coats of coating saturating in. The necessary kind of primer ought to be used for the surface being actually coated - wood, steel, paste or floor tiles. There are some 'all purpose primers' available which are made for 2 or even more of these areas.
- Anti-condensation paints are actually made use of for rooms with humid health conditions like bathroom and kitchen. This paint is usually formulated to stop condensation and also frequently consists of herbicide.
- Fire-retardant paints perform not avoid fires completely but its fire-resistance solution avoids it from fire in spreading quick.
It is likewise vital that just before repainting your room, you make use of a guide. A primer will definitely aid repaint follow the surface by supplying an uniform appeal. It is actually a should to make use of a primer if you are actually repainting over new wood, arid wood, drywall, or painting over existing intense or even dark colours bekendeschilderijen.
But just before performing this, you must recognize the problem of the area you intended to repaint. Irrespective of whether the skim coat is oil or even latex, you need to plain lustrous paint by fining sand or even de-glossing it along with a chemical de-glossing item. If you don't plain glossy paint, the second layer will certainly touch as well as not stay with the base layer when drying.
INTERNAL PAINTING
If you desire to alter your room's ambience, painting it is an excellent choice. When interior painting, make use of coatings that are actually quicker to dry out as well as does not possess a strong stench that remains around where your youngsters may scent it.
Repainting the interior of your house demands a thorough estimate, visualization and also preparation. When you have picked your motif for your areas and also have actually gotten the job components you require (coatings, coat brushes and also rollers, expansion deals with, paint rack, coating stirrer, decrease garments, measure ladder, paint-slinger's strip, and so on), you simply comply with these interior home art work pointers:
PRIOR TO AND DURING HOUSE PAINTING
- Always give sufficient venting when paint inside your property. If you can not receive good enough air flow in the work location, use a respirator or even a mask.
- Keep paint containers or even solvent containers closed when certainly not in make use of.
- Keep paint items out of the reach of children.
- Avoid straight contact with skin.
- Always read through packaging (tag) guidelines.
SURFACE AREA PREPARATION TIPS
- Remove as a lot as furnishings as achievable coming from the space or team the much heavier fixtures and also the fragile ones consecutively and also cover them with a reduce towel.
- Provide adequate super to make it possible for a really good view of art work flaws.
- Remove switch plates.
- Patch holes and cracks in the surfaces you wished to coat along with premixed spackling mix. After the paste dries, sand the patched the areas.
- Dust and clean the ceilings, wall structures, baseboards, doors and windows moldings.
- Clean, dependable wallpaper may be painted over, yet most of the times it is actually far better to strip it. Painting over a wallpaper may begin to peel.
COATING YOUR CEILING TIPS
- If you are actually repainting the whole area, it is actually better to coat the ceiling to begin with!
- If you are actually using a coating roller, maneuver your upper arms in series of angled swaths (making up a letter M). Load in the available regions by cross rolling.
- If you are making use of a paintbrush, use the paint in short movements towards the unpainted area, called "moist to completely dry." After that brush back into the location you merely coated for a soft surface area.
- If you are coating your ceiling, eliminate light bulbs, light fixtures, neon lights and also component covers.
- Paint trim initially, consisting of bordering around the roof, molding, and also slick.
WALL PAINTING TIPS
- Paint around the trim 1st, including outlining around the roof.
- When art work with a polish surface, make the final comb movements far from the source of light of the space. The tiny spines that a comb leaves behind won't be actually as pronounced. Make use of the same "moist to completely dry" procedure of art work.
WOODWORK
- Check woodwork for damage. if there is actually one, spot it with a timber filler, dry out it through the night and also sand it for any sort of tough locations and also use a sealer before painting.
- If you'll be actually utilizing the very same paint on the wall surfaces and also woodwork, coat the wood finishing as you concern it. If it is one more different colors of higher in gloss, hang around till the wall surfaces are actually carried out famous paintings.
- Paint double-hung windows coming from the lumber between the glass then external. On casement home windows, us the very same approach, yet maintain the windows slightly open up until the paint dries out.
- For board doors, coat the attractive shaped edges initially, after that the private boards. Repaint coming from the center out. When the doors are finished, repaint the upright and parallel level panels.
- Use a painter's strip or artist's defense to always keep paint off windowpanes. Carry out certainly not use a masking tape or even an air duct strip. Using an artist's strip or artist's cover enables you to keep places paid for as much as 3 times.
- Paint the best edge walls first, at that point the bottom along the flooring. Paint the mid segment final.
- Remove cabinetry doors and drawers as well as coat the flat surface areas first. Coat inside the sides, after that relocate to the exterior areas.
CLEAN-UP and also STORAGE or DISPOSAL TIPS
- If there are actually coating declines on your floor, do not allow it remain there. As the paint sets a lot longer, the more challenging it will definitely be cleared. Make use of a towel along with detergent as well as water or a synthetic cleaning agent for cleaning.
- Use a razor-blade scraper or even a cement blade to potato chip off bigger coating beads that have dried.
- Use a scraper to trim down around windowpanes.
- Wash and completely dry paintbrushes and rollers. Shop all of them depending on to the label's referral not all paintbrushes possess the exact same form of rages nor the rollers possess the same material.
- Clean the paint coming from the rim of the can. Faucet container lids tight along with a hammer and also block of wood.
- Store solvent-based coating cans inverted to avoid a skin from creating.
- Store your coatings in regular or space temperature. Never put the paints in harsh scorching or even chilly rooms.
- Each states in the U.S. or every area/ county differs on coating may fingertip procedures. Examine your regional ecological, health and wellness, and security laws.
EXTERIOR PAINTING
In purchasing coatings that you are actually going to make use of for your exterior residence, you possess to pick a brand name that possesses necessary characteristics: concealing electrical power, color recognition, chalk-resistance, and scorching resistance.
Concealing electrical power originates from the coating's pigment as well as is affected due to the method and also fullness of the treatment. Color retentiveness is actually the capability to maintain its initial different colors during the course of visibility to sun light, etc. Liquid chalking resistance stops the white colored chalky powder coming from creating on the surface area and also lightening the color of the coating. Chalking develop over a time frame. Sore protection maintains too much moisture from coming through the substrate and impacting the paint coating. Tip: if paint is actually used over a moist or even wet surface area, blistering is actually unavoidable well-known artists.
Coating the exterior of your residence demands an extensive evaluation, visual images as well as prep work. When you have actually selected your motif for your spaces and also have purchased the work materials you need to have.
You will need any of these tools in painting your outdoor: caulk, sandpaper, dustcloths and/or newspaper towels, painter's strip, landscape hose, energy washing machine, or tube brush attachment, sponges & containers for washout water, spray mist nozzle, stepladder, expansion ladder, paint scraper, cord comb, cement blades, heat energy gun, rotating coating clearing away tool and also power drill, caulk gun, sanding block, as well as work gloves.
When you have all the devices available, analyze your outdoor. You may discover exterior painting concerns, which can be any of the following: alligatoring, blistering, chalking, chalk manage down, crackling, gunk pickup, flowering, fading, frosting, lapping, mold, nail head acid, paint conflict, striping, unsatisfactory alkali protection, unsatisfactory attachment, inadequate varnish recognition, surfacent draining, staining, vinyl fabric exterior siding cover, wax hemorrhage, or even wrinkling.
If you presently recognize what your house exterior's issue is or simply for repainting it, merely observe a few of these recommendations. You can easily additionally describe INTERIOR PAINTING for brush or curler movements, and so on:
- Start by completely cleansing the beyond your property. Beginning on top and operate your method down the edges of our home. If your home siding possesses areas of mold, mold or yellowing, wash it along with an anti-fungal cleanser.
- Mask off areas that are certainly not to be repainted. You might intend to put cloaking tape along the side of house trim, as well as around doors and window frames as well as slick, given that this is actually very likely to become repainted in a different colour or along with a higher gloss paint. You can also tape paper or even plastic ground cloth material over doors and windows, featuring moving glass doors, to defend all of them from drips well-known artists.
- Place plastic droplet fabrics over plants and shrubs, or where paint might leak on verandas, roof sections, pathways, driveways or even various other surface areas.
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Text
Right, Wrong, and Facebook
The other day I logged into Facebook and saw one of those articles...you know the one. The click-bait with a title so incendiary that there's a magnetic pull between your finger and the screen of your smartphone.
I read through it, and just as I expected, it made me angry. I sat there, hands shaking, stewing over what I had just read. As though I was surprised that I could read something on the internet that would bother me. My eyes slowly drooped down the rest of the page and saw the worst button that exists on the internet...
"View Comments."
I knew right away. I felt it in my bones. My brain screamed down to the nerve endings in my fingers, "DON'T CLICK THAT LINK."
Nothing good comes from comments on articles like that. It's a pool filled with professional trolls, the wildly ignorant, and the woefully undereducated shouting profanity-riddled opinions at one another. A world rife with personal attacks disguised as arguments, underscoring an opinion that the troll cannot truly explain as it was ripped straight from the mouth of their favorite talking head.
So, obviously, I viewed the comments.
As though it were planned, I stopped at one so awful that I think I might have passed out for a second or two. Then I got to work.
I began writing a rebuttal so poignant -- I mean it was downright beautiful -- that surely this interweb-dwelling ne'er-do-well would break into tears, post an apology, and we'd become best friends. I would be heralded as the voice of a new generation. A more understanding, tolerant, and educated world would begin, and people would finally get along on the internet. All because I had the gumption to tell this gentleman that he was wrong, without cussing even once.
About three-quarters of the way through what would be my magnum opus, the rational part of my brain awoke again to catch me in the middle of the intellectual equivalent of yelling at the wind to stop being so blow-y. I stopped.
Did I really think this would change his mind?
This man's opinion, though the words might be stolen from someone else, has been bred through years of misinformation, prejudice, and hate. A malicious mixture of the worst that nature has to offer, and the darkest thoughts that his upbringing could nurture. And here I sit, in pajama pants, trying to change the mind of a person so disconnected from his own feelings that he finds that vile treatment of another human being acceptable.
So I deleted everything. Which was really sort of depressing at the time. I mean, come on. It was beautiful. The kind of prose that would make Fitzgerald jealous. Probably. But in the end, certainly for the best.
That experience caused me to reflect on myself, and my own opinions. How they were formed, how I represent them, and who I become when I disagree with someone else. I mean, certainly I'm better than that guy, right? Maybe. But maybe not.
Of course, I don't speak to other human beings the same way he does, but his thought process and mine seem to start from the same place. A brain that seeks to prove everyone else wrong first, rather than seeking to understand them. His just manifests in an uglier way.
When you look at discourse today, you see a lot of that. Point, counterpoint. And maybe that's how it's always been. Solomon said there's nothing new under the sun, so I'll believe him. But certainly, it is more obvious today. With Facebook, I can immediately tell a complete stranger that they are ignorant (the must-have for any Facebook Debators vocabulary), right in front of the rest of the world.
I can't remember the last time I saw someone ask a question in a discussion. A question that is genuinely meant to better understand someone else's opinion.
So I decided that, as best I could, I was going to walk into nearly every disagreement with this thought on the forefront of my mind --"I could be wrong."
Now, I don't mean to say that everytime someone disagrees with me I'm going to change my mind. Further, there are certainly some things in my life, namely my faith, that are not reversible. But other than that exception, I have to accept the reality that I'm just a 26-year-old man with a below-average amount of life experience, so I could definitely be wrong about a lot of things.
I realize this isn't necessarily a groundbreaking idea. I'm not going to win a Nobel prize for realizing that humans aren't omniscient. And maybe most of you don't struggle with wanting to be right the way that I do. Good on you if that's truly the case.
But I've grown so tired of arguing just to argue. I believe that we are all creations of the same God. All beautifully and wonderfully made, with our own purpose set in His mind. We've all had different experiences, and seen them through different eyes. We have all formed our own inferences, that will, in turn, determine how we react in any given scenario. So how can I tell you, without any honest investigation, that you are wrong? Further, if I treat you with disrespect, am I not also showing disrespect to The One would put you here?
I come from the same sinful nature that we all do, so it seems reasonable that I could end up in the midst of a number of logical fallacies and inconsistencies. Chances are good that I will immediately and fundamentally misunderstand any point you make because I don't think the same way that you do. And those differences were intentional. So why do I try so hard to ignore them?
What am I trying to say here...I'm not really sure. I think this is all just pouring out of an overwhelming sense of frustration and fatigue. As with the comment that initiated this whole story, I don't believe this will truly change anything.
I guess, if this serves any purpose at all, it's to breed hope within myself. Hope that one day, I could read something on the internet or see something on the TV and not immediately feel the need to tell that person off. That I could listen first, and speak second. That I could put some action behind the phrase, "I care about people." That I can stop mistaking variation as villainy. The fact is, you and I can disagree and not be enemies. I'd love it if one day my reflex would be to ask instead of to argue.
And that I'd finally stop forcing myself into fits of Facebook Rage.
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