Re: [GRIMDARK] Fallout Equestria: Project Horizons Discussion

[RoboRed]

IT BEGINS.

[Meleagridis]

Detonation in 10... 9... 8... 7... 6... 5... 4... 3... 2...

Tell my family... just tell them.

[HillBilly-Drew]

well i was ganna sleep tonight. ..... so worth it!!!

[WavemasterRyx]

Got my copy saved, now just to wait the 4+ hours until I can read it in peace.

*hugs Somber, Hinds and Bronode gently in turn*

[Moodyman90]

Still reading. I feel cold... the kind of cold that simply doesn't go away. The cold that you feel in the center of your spine because it's in you brain.

Seriously, spoilers for Chapter 58.:

[Vergil]

Aaaaaand so much for sleeping.

[O. Hinds]

Still reading. I feel cold... the kind of cold that simply doesn't go away. The cold that you feel in the center of your spine because it's in you brain.

Seriously, spoilers for Chapter 58.:

This chapter actually managed to get to me a bit in a few places.

[Katarn]

It's good thing that it's morning here and I can read it, while I'll be at work, so time will 'fly' faster for me.

[Valikdu]

It's good thing that it's morning here and I can read it, while I'll be at work, so time will 'fly' faster for me.

This for me too

[Derpmind]

Spoiler:

Thank you again Somber.

[Downloaded Skill]

Commentary:

[Moodyman90]

I needed this chapter. I needed to read it. In ways I can't say. Despite my doubts and fears I stated here a few weeks ago about the events of this chapter, I knew if anybody could pull it off Somber could.

And, in my opinion, he did.

Heh, read it all in roughly two hours... but that's neither here nor there.

I'm just going to sit back and enjoy the ride now. I may have some more things to say later on when my heads a bit... clearer for lack of better term of how it might be from where it is now.

I'm not cold anymore. Quite warm actually. Just... wish it was for a slightly different reason.

[Downloaded Skill]

From my understanding of it The Goddess basically stripped everything from BJ that would make her want to fight the Goddess. If Blackjack doesn't know why she should resist, she won't. Blackjack is still vaguely herself, but the Goddess fully controls her body through the connection. The connection allows the Goddess to impart some of her intelligence and calculation onto BJ, since that is all the Goddess has. The Goddess restored BJ to her previous state because BJ can't calculate what Pip will do in that state and the memories mean nothing to the Goddess because it isn't personal to her. Someone else's experiences don't mean anything to her, only the skills.

Thats just my take away at least.

[Somber]

"Facts and figures I recite with ease.  The square root of five hundred and forty-six is twenty-three point three six six six four two eight nine one zero nine."

[Downloaded Skill]

Well if the Goddess wore away at BJ's personality to the point where Blackjack would become a drone and the Goddess can channel her personality through her drones then BJ is forced to adopt a different personality and thought process. BJ is only there as an afterthought. She possess her skills, but not much else of her original self.

[Downloaded Skill]

Well I find this an interesting point of discussion because honestly I don't know why it's different. I will freely admit my knowledge of PH is spotty because I haven't reread at all. I can only speculate about how the Goddess controls her drones. Was the Goddess more invested in controlling BJ during that moment several chapters ago? Was how BJ thought when she had her personality stripped how all the Alicorn drones think? It seems like when The Goddess speaks through a specific drone she assumes control of that drone and relinquishes her ability to strongly influence her multitude of drones. In tightening her grasp on one she loosens her grip on others.

 Since the Goddess was completely dominating BJ during that event several chapters ago we see a stronger presence of the Goddess's personality. However where there is just the regular domination we see the influence of several other personalities on the drones, mostly Twilight's. There was no grandiose language that defines Trixie's / The Goddess personality. I'm speculating that in channeling more of herself in a single drone The Goddess can not strongly influence her other drones. This is where her other core personalities come in.

Since The Goddess is dead we'll likely never know in story and Somber would have to give tell us exactly what is what.

[StoneSlinger88]

Well if the Goddess wore away at BJ's personality to the point where Blackjack would become a drone and the Goddess can channel her personality through her drones then BJ is forced to adopt a different personality and thought process. BJ is only there as an afterthought. She possess her skills, but not much else of her original self.

Back when Blackjack was knocked out and the goddess possessed her body, Blackjack acted far differently. Fairly comically, even. That was the goddess's personality in BJ's body, not this cyborg.

 That was the Goddess directly controlling BJ; BJ was still in there, just suppressed. The Goddess in 58 actually made her a part of Unity, where she acted in unison with the other members.

[Guest]

Glory can't wait for you to be in back in your body either. Noticed more mistakes then usual through out, but from my xbox/phone makes them too difficult to point out

Also their was no genital mutilation, just pointed that out because it seems to happen at least once per chapter recently.

Overall I liked this chapter. Not excited about Lancer.

[Somber]

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13757612280A72204100&page=1#8

I had a moment.  Wonder how long it'll last till it gets taken down

[Kippershy]

I don't really have anything to say, but you pulled the chapter off.

[WavemasterRyx]

I'll try to write my actual commentary later, once I've stopped crying, so it may be a few days, sorry, Somber. It was a very well done chapter though, I don't care what anyone else says.

For now though, I think I can sum up all my thoughts on the chapter with this.

Spoiler:

[Harmony Ltd.]

(disclaimer : this is the comment thread, so I won't bother spoilering spoilers. Be warned.)

So, I'm not one to usually do commentaries and such, it's not really my style. I prefer to read the damn thing, first thing first, and then discuss it with other who read it.

This said...

I liked this chapter. And given my own character, and the theme of the story so far, I liked the fact that even the Goddess was able to find Redemption at last, as with some sense of inner peace (somewhat, this can be argued...). I've not, like some others, felt really sad or happy from the events in this chapter, but this may be because I'm somewhat emotionally dulled. Or because I wasn't reading the chapter in the best of conditions. (do note that after finishing reading ch. 33, I had to go to the store and buy a bottle of 20 years old whiskey to cheer for Blackjack, for the end of her suffering... Just to give you an idea of the emotional impact that one chapter had on me, I almost never drink, and that was the first time I bought alcohol.)

Speaking of dull... "émoussé". Means nothing in the context you used it in (the word only has meaning in the sense of "a dull blade" or "dulled senses"). In proper French, the adequate term would be either "ennuyeux" (boring) or "commun" (common). In the context of the paragraph, you can simply replace "émoussé" with "commun" without losing anything, the meaning here would be the same as "dull" in English.

Also : "Bah.  I left that name with the stage, chere" => "Bah.  I left that name with the stage, ma chère"

"Brava, Trixie! Très bon!" => "Bravo, Trixie! Très bien!"

"laughing uproariously.  “Brava!”  He levitated his" => "laughing uproariously.  “Bravo!”  He levitated his"

Now on the other hand, if the goal was to show that the old buck was a pretender, it works. Kind of like the nonsensical "nonpareil" bit of the Flim-Flam song.



Concerning the extremely precise estimate of combat time in Blackjack's mind in that other scene. I didn't think anything of it personally. But let's imagine it's a problem.

What's the purpose of that tidbit ? I'd say, to show the cold, detached and calculating aspect of Unity, once people are stripped of everything that makes them individuals is removed. Question, is there another way to portray this aspect in the context of this battle ? Rather than a precise calculation of the duration of the battle, maybe show in Blackjack's thought the precision and detachment of her thoughts in this battle ? Almost like some kind of dance pattern or something, but completely cold and devoid of emotion ? I don't know. Just a possible suggestion, should this bit be edited. the dance-pattern idea could even be a foreshadowing of the later bits with Lacunae ("I danced"), and some sort of fridge horror for the reader in retrospect, because these dance pattern would in fact be inspired of the dance lessons she got from Grace, while having forgotten everything from her.

I dunno, throwing shit at the wall here.

[Harmony Ltd.]

All quotes are from Swicked's previous post (fuck this quoting tool in the ear).

Question: Weren't there more lockers with known codes to them?

I'm not sure, but I think Lacunae's may have been the last of them ? Or maybe there was a few others left ? I don't know. Wasn't it Jetstream who was sent to the sanatorium ? I doubt she would still have a locker at miramare after that. Though this beg the question of why Psalm would still have one there after having been reassigned to the OIA. I guess she went to deposit Penance in the locker during her Last Trek, but then the question is still there : why did she still have a locker ? And Doof as well ? And "Gorgon" ?

It may have been explained already and I forgot it. But why would the Marauders still have lockers at Miramare so long after the unit got disbanded ? I think in the end the only one who was "left" of the unit was Twist, Applesnack having been reassigned to a rear-guard duty in Zebratown.

Question: Oubliette? Dictionary gives... “a dungeon made so that the only way in or out is through a trapdoor at the top”?
THAT is what Blackjack thinks her name would be?

Oubliettes were, at least in the popular imagination, holes in which you threw away people you didn't want to hear from anymore, and left them here to rot until you forget them ("oublier" => to forget => "oubliette").

It had been already brought up in previous chapters, I think it was even the Goddess who suggested this as a possible name for Blackjack-in-Unity ; in the context of turning Blackjack into a new Lacunae or something similar.

Question: Blackjack's augmentations would still fit her new alicorn body and its completely different dimensions? And wouldn’t at all melt when they hit the dip, too?

It would probably all melt, but Blackjack doesn't necessarily know that. So it's here imagination working her.

Question: If the goddess shutters doubt away inside Lacunae, how does she form plans? Just the first thing that pops into her head?

*shrug* It's probably more subtle than that in practice.

Question: how do you figure the distance on Littlepip's temple though all that building in the way? You can't sight her. This would be one heck of a hard headshot...

The scope is said to be magically enchanted to allow seeing through rubles and buildings. Don't ask me how it works and how it knows when to stop, I have no idea.

Low: Goddesses arguing with selves. Ugh.

Can you develop that line of thought, please ?

Low: Long, long, long reminiscing. Ugh.

Ditto.

[Somber]

To Harmony: Fixed the french.  If you thought the reminiscing at the end was bad, why?

To Swicked: What do you think I should have done, then?

[Harmony Ltd.]

@ Swicked & Somber : No, I meant "ditto can you explain your reasoning for that thing you said as well ?". Basically asking the same question as Somber here.  

[Somber]

I'm not trying to make you sad.  I'm doing two things.  One, I'm showing you that Blackjack is finally acknowledging her death emotionally.  It's part of the grieving process.  Two, this story has been going on for 2 years and probably 1000 pages.  It's a final tribute to the high points that we had in the story.  But I hear what you're saying.  Next of her friends die, no reminiscing.  It's good.

[Guest]

What I Did Instead of Working, grumble grumble grumble:

[Somber]

Right now I'm in extreme pain from a bad tooth.  Take everything I say with that in mind.

[Downloaded Skill]

I have to admit though having Rampage's body still move and attack while headless left me more confused than anything. The idea itself is darkly humorous, but it contradicts earlier actions in the story. Blackjack stopped Rampage's freak outs by shooting her in the head. If Rampage's regeneration was like this, the head shots wouldn't matter at all.

[Harmony Ltd.]

Right now I'm in extreme pain from a bad tooth.  Take everything I say with that in mind.

So if we annoy you are we going to get a chewing ? :D

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