Re: [GRIMDARK] Fallout Equestria: Project Horizons Discussion

[SilentCarto]

Spoiler:

EC-1101. She was showing signs of obsession with it in the previous chapter, and I guess she just had to know whether it was still in there.

I sort of had the impression that the sword was buried with BJ, but I could be wrong. Anyway, Sweetie just threw it away when she was done, so BJ would have had ample opportunity to retrieve it.

[O. Hinds]

@CD:

Spoiler:

I was thinking too hard.

:)

Oh. No, I don't remember. I see it now, though, kinda glossed over.

Sorry.

Also, after having overnight to noodle it, I've decided that the hovering dust in the Astrostable is a sort of 3-d blast shadow of the stable residents when they got hit by Tom's annihilation beam.

Interesting idea.

Kinda weird to think that the epilogue takes place as long after FoE as FoE was after the show.

Well, not quite as long, but I suppose.

[Scienza]

After letting my thoughts on the last chapter and epilogue stew for a few days, I thought I might as well do a thought dump.

Ch. 77 and Epilogue:

Somber and editors,
I already had my sappy post, but once again, thank you for these last few years. I haven't cared this much about a cast of characters in a very long time, and this story has brought me so much happiness and heartbreak in these four years that I don't know what I'll speculate about now that it's gone. Thank you so much and best of luck wherever your stories take you next.

[Evilgidgit]

Another little moment I was a bit confused by:

Spoiler:

[Icy Shake]

Spoiler:

Bwuh?

SilentCarto and I had been asking about the cutie mark story for a little while. Giving your fans what they want is pandering and unacceptable, obviously, especially when it's something anodyne you were probably going to do anyway. And this and most fandoms are filled with drama queens.

Ah.
Feel free to thank Hinds profusely.

Thank you, Hinds!

Icy Shake, thank you so much for your thoughtful analysis.  I hope you saved them all somewhere.  I'd love to have them as a collection.

You're welcome, and welcome to them.
Thoughts on new releases
Currently existing thoughts on archive dives
I was also planning on getting them to Fimfiction as blog posts or something at some point.

Holy crud, wow, you almost make me feel bad for throwing away the vast majority of what I write.

Speaking of, did you have a post-Epilogue skit about Rampage wanting a castle and Blackjack basically saying she was a hobo who lived in an old rusty sphere, or was that just a product of my not having slept at all Saturday into Sunday? Or someone else?

Spoiler:

So, some questions:
Did Blackjack get her cutie mark back during the epilogue? If so, was it brought back by her soul affecting the clone body, possibly while she was still in the coma, or did she need to do something to earn it again? If not, does she do anything to hide the fact she's an adult blank flank?
Obviously various starmetals have some different properties. Presumably the sword doesn't do the Enervation thing, and stuff made out of EoS starmetal doesn't inspire you to violence and domination. Are there any characteristics common to substances from many or most stars?
I tended to find Homage more tolerable in PH than FoE. Is that just because of different circumstances, like not needing to focus on the relationship between her and Littlepip, or did you perceive yourself as writing her differently in some way, for instance due to development we never really got to see in FoE from after she got separated permanently from Littlepip after Cauterize started? Did you do anything like that with other FoE characters (not counting, for instance, Lionheart, who didn't really have a character in FoE)?
Did anything need to be done about the Enervation rings and EoS starmetal generally, or are they inert without the Eater to send captured souls to? Or somewhere in between, like maintaining some of the nice properties (strength, malleability/being shaped by magic/thought/vibration) and creating Enervation when under power, but not capturing souls?

[O. Hinds]

@Scienza:

Spoiler:

You're welcome, and thank you; I'm glad you so enjoyed the story. :)

Another little moment I was a bit confused by:

Spoiler:

Spoiler:

Thank you, Hinds!

You're welcome. :)

Speaking of, did you have a post-Epilogue skit about Rampage wanting a castle and Blackjack basically saying she was a hobo who lived in an old rusty sphere, or was that just a product of my not having slept at all Saturday into Sunday? Or someone else?

No, I remember that too. :)
Where did you see it?

Spoiler:

Hm. Interesting questions.

Nah, I wrote a thing, but it was dumb.

I remember it being funny. :)

[SilentCarto]

Of course, since it didn't happen, it means I could still use "bringing everyone back to life" safely as the plot for a "Project Horizons the Movie" story, heh.

Wouldn't that be the one where Shia LeBuffalo's grandfather discovered the lost AllSoul and he has to keep the Eater of Souls from consuming it and becoming all-powerful while giant cyberponies duke it out in downtown Manehattan?

I'd make a further comment about robot testicle jokes, but, well... those kinda figured into the story more than one would have expected, didn't they?

I will say that my biggest complaint for the chapter so far is that I do not believe for a second that it's taken place in well under half an hour. That's obvious bullshit, especially since it had to take some time to select people, get their shit together, and get to wherever they were at the start of the chapter. There were some similar but less definite issues during the visions of the battle, but not this extreme.

A minute can be an absolute eternity in a firefight. I totally believe it took ten minutes to take the rail car down here and another five for the fight.

One drifted against me, and for a moment I smelled Mom’s mane.

Hadn't her mother's soul escaped Hoofington, though? Did it return from space?

Eh, Gin Rummy met her in the afterlife that first time (...sheesh...) so it's not like she's not hanging around. Figure she could make the trip to see off her daughter (sort of), assuming the awakened Eater wasn't actually snagging souls out of the sky in the first place.

Though I'm still not sure how Blankjack has BJ's memories.

[SilentCarto]

“This is Noctilucent,” Whisper said, unable to stem the flow of her own tears and not sure if she even should.  “I call him Nocti.”

I like the name. Sounds good, and "Night Light" is a great pony name.

Well, noctilucent clouds are a thing. It could have been the name of a Raptor!  
I do like how it combines the traditions of bat ponies and pegasi, though.

By the way, Hinds: "From behind Whisper emerged a colt.  His yellow coat had a dusky, mustard hue.  The mane was an uncanny copy of his father’s down to its deep purple hue."
Probably ought to change one of those to not say "hue".

Everything, all the way to the last moments following the Eater’s death, struck me in one colossal torrent.  
Wow. I was not expecting her to get through to the Eater part, just up to the moon or so. Still cool, though, and I suppose an artifact of the moonstone connection?

Oh... OH! I didn't realize this was Blankjack receiving all the memories for the first time! I thought she'd been in some kind of fugue state and "forgotten" all the stuff that happened. There I go overthinking again... I wonder if that means they've been keeping the blank in BJ's old room, or (more likely) that the first dribble of memory caused Blankjack to stumble out of Medical (or wherever they were keeping her) and into "her" room to sleep.

But how long has she been out?

Well, just long enough to rebuild Megamart into some state where they could begin conducting business. A few weeks, maybe? Months? I don't see Bottlecap letting that lie fallow for too long.

Bright sunlight played across the crops spreading out along the hillside.

Okay, looking like probably after Gardens, but the question is how much.

I don't know... the Hoof naturally gets enough rain that they wouldn't need to irrigate, no matter the state of the water table. With the Enclave cloud cover and enervation removed, I'd kinda think they'd be able to start planting right away.

Though I could also see the Elements having something to do with her memory returning.

“Hey, let’s be fair.  You did find Whisper like the others.  You just used her to liberate Apex, and since we’re being fair, everypony including her thought she was the second coming of Twilight Sparkle.  It’s not your fault she went batfuck crazy when it failed, nearly killed the other Bearers, and almost turned Gardens into an Equestria-wide radiation and taint generator,” I said, getting a flat look in return.  “Oh, I lost at ‘liberate Apex’, didn’t I?”

This sounds like quite a thing.

Yeah, of all the story hooks, this is the one I'm most interested in! ...even if I know the end now.

Interesting.  I may be forgetting something, but Lionheart strikes you as especially generous?

Eh, I'm bucking for Charity, myself.

So, was Hatches BJ's sister? I mean I did wonder, but then BJ unambiguously uses the word 'sister' while mentally apologising.

I think that was Luna. BJ has spoken as Luna when under stress before.

[Vexd]

Sad Panda:

[atikin]

Wow, I just don't know what to say! I won't be the first to say that was a really long and pleasant ride, although I wasn't there to enjoy it from the beginning. The story had been accompanying me for about a year and few months, and I've been participating in the thread for about 5 months, but it surely was a hell of a ride! 

Just as before, I won't be creative saying how much I thank you, Somber, and all the editing team, for making such a great input in our community. Your story led me through many things in my life, good and bad, and I have always found some rest and peace of mind while reading it. I'm both sad and happy about the fact it's completed, but I suppose everything ends eventually. I just hope, Somber, you won't stop here and continue to develop your amazing writing skills in other fanfictions, or original stories. I'll be glad to see more of your works! 

As for the ending itself, I'm not that good of a reviewer, but I think you've done pretty well! The ending has covered all the opened conflicts, and together with the epilogue is a great success! BJ's death left me feeling depressed for a while, but after reading the epilogue I've actually laughed at the fact you wouldn't allow her to die after all. 

However, I've still got some issues that wasn't pretty clear for me and would like to get an answer from you guys, and Somber in particular:

1. What was P-21's cutie mark supposed to be? 

2. What's the real meaning of BJ's cutie mark after all? What's her special talent? It couldn't be victory, now could it? 

3. What's the real name of Bastard?

4. How exactly did BJ's blank get back all of her mind and memories from the cyborg one (because the blank had only her soul in it)? 

5. Why would BJ choose to live all by her own and never reveal the fact she survived to the people, and not even to her friends (well, at least some of them, like Whisper)? Didn't she think it'll only bring pain to them thinking she died? And didn't she want to rise her children by herself?

6. I know you probably left this one open on purpose, but what is your headcannon about what happened to Scotch Tape and the zebras? 

7. I don't remember the original FoE mentioning that LittlePip was immortal. As far as I remember she'd only stayed alive and in good condition thanks to one of those preservation capsules she's been put in inside the SPP. So how is it possible for her to stay alive for so long after the tower itself stopped working? 

I think I had more questions in mind, but apparently I can't remember all of them now, so I suppose that's enough for now. =) 
Thank you once again!

[Scienza]

3. His special talent is guns, he hates his real name with a passion, it starts with "Ro" and I am the one that named him. I wonder if that's enough for someone to guess it...

Rocket
Rotary Cannon
Roller-Delayed Blowback
Rotating Bolt
Roger
Robohorse
Robb Stark, King in the North

[atikin]

1. So his special talent, I suppose, is some kind of revolution? 

3. No, I suppose it's not that easy to guess. Would you mind to reveal this secret?

[DotRook]

Posted on Reddit, poked around the old IRC but I guess here is the best place after all. 

*Pops confetti and streamers* 

It's over!  

*Blows party horn.*

....  I still feel weird knowing that it's over.

[O. Hinds]

It could have been the name of a Raptor!

It was; the Noctilucent was a Raptor Spike fought at Neighvarro.

Probably ought to change one of those to not say "hue".

Thanks for spotting and reporting that.

I wonder if that means they've been keeping the blank in BJ's old room, or (more likely) that the first dribble of memory caused Blankjack to stumble out of Medical (or wherever they were keeping her) and into "her" room to sleep.

They were keeping her in Blackjack's old room.

Well, just long enough to rebuild Megamart into some state where they could begin conducting business. A few weeks, maybe? Months? I don't see Bottlecap letting that lie fallow for too long.

I thought it was a few years? Possibly over a decade. I might be misremembering there, I suppose. swicked, do you remember what Somber said on this?

@Vexd:

Spoiler:

@atikin:
You're welcome. :)

7. I don't remember the original FoE mentioning that LittlePip was immortal. As far as I remember she'd only stayed alive and in good condition thanks to one of those preservation capsules she's been put in inside the SPP. So how is it possible for her to stay alive for so long after the tower itself stopped working?

7. Littlepip apparently got some perk at some point that extended her lifespan a ton as a result of exposure to taint, so she's not immortal, only Blackjack is.

Quest Perk added: Touched by Taint (3) – Exposure to Taint has further altered your physiology. You are 20% faster and stronger whenever you’re basking in the warm glow of radiation. Your Action Points regenerate faster and faster the higher your level of radiation sickness becomes. Your natural lifespan has increased dramatically.

@DotRook:
Welcome to the forum!

[SilentCarto]

Even with Grace's justification, it's sad to see Blackjack's children will never know who their mother was, and who their real family is.

I'd object that they know exactly who their mother is, and their real family is the one they grow up with.

That said, this chapter was fucking gorgeous.

You can say that again! I forgot to do an "overall thoughts" section at the time (perhaps for the best, having now had a day or so to process.) This was a fantastic climax. The action was epic and exciting, but the breathers where we had time to reflect and prepare weren't given short shrift. I loved that BJ was such a gnat compared to the EoS, but still played a central role in finishing the fight. The "raising the moon" thing was just... gah, so perfect.

The epilogue hit all the points that I wanted it to, and a few I didn't expect, like taking care of Celestia and Rarity. It was a lot longer than I'd expected, what with heading to the moon and all, but that's not a bad thing. That adventure felt just the tiniest bit strange to me just because it came after the meeting with Glimmershine, which at the time seemed like the wrap-up to end the story, but it was also good to get the more personal wrap-ups and to see BJ being proactive and still having adventures, still having a life, not just drifting around living in the past like Pip seemed set to do. Her story is over, but she's not done having stories, I guess.

[Tacoman587]

It's interesting that Blackjack will be pretty much immortal now if the deals Pythia made with the stars will make it so. Which makes me wonder how Blackjack will cope with that in the long run. The only constants in her life seem to be Boo, LittlePip, and Rampage (But she's mortal so...) for right now and who know how long they will survive for. Blackjack even speculated that LittlePip would probably die before she would. Also, who knows how long Boo will last being what she is now. 

It seems that Blackjack's going to be in the same position as Legate was if the deals with the star are similar (Would this make her invincible from harm too like he was or just stop her from dying of old age?). Eventually though she might just be going on her own for a very long time. I wonder if she would be strong enough to keep herself together or would she turn into something like Legate and try to end the world, or worse. Especially when she might not have anyone to help her off the mattress anymore.

She does know what can happen with evil like that and has shown not to take the easy way, so there's a chance that Blackjack can keep being Blackjack. 
 


Also, unrelated;

[3) If you actually had "real names" for P-21 and Hatches, what would they have been?

I actually have no idea.  I couldn't even think of a fake name for p-21.  He never rejected his old name.  That was why the Eater couldn't even make up a name.  Nothing would fit.

I know these were directed at Somber but I feel like P-21's real name would be something worth discussing amongst the editors. I have ideas.
As for Hatches, without even her cutie mark to go on, I have no idea what would really fit. Just pick something out of a random pony name generator, I suppose...

Well, I could be of some help.
My name choice for P-21, Todd
Random generator for Hatches, Monsoon Wings
Making names is easy 

@Scootayay:
You're welcome, and thank you.  :)

(And who would want to miss the discussion about equestrian train track gauges.)

I know!  :D

Spoiler:

[SilentCarto]

* This ending is so fucking good that it's a satisfying conclusion to both PH and the original Fallout Equestria.

I LOLed. Then I thought about it and nodded. It actually is...

I guess that works, anyway... and yeah, it probably does look pretty badass.

More than that, though. Didn't think of it at the time, but she started out as Flutterbitch. Now whenever she flies she's Flutterbat.

*cough* *choke* I was drinking when I read that!
I hadn't even thought of that. Oh my god.

Twist’s body shuddered as her lips curled in a smile.  Her limbs tightened on the red striped filly’s form.

Well... huh. Okay then, objection withdrawn.

Are there any characteristics common to substances from many or most stars?

Indestructability, seems like. The meteor that hit the Everfree just made it go all weird, so that's a third data point that apparently has nothing in common.

Somber wanted the scene with Fluttershy to be heartwarming, but with all that leading up to it... yeah. Fixed

Oof. Yeah, that would have been kind of... bleak.

Though I'm still not sure how Blankjack has BJ's memories.

I assume she'd have all the memories up until Blackjack's consciousness shifted back into the cyborg body. She could pick up what was said around her in that state after that and learn more from others later, but what actually happened in the showdown between the Eater, Tom, and Blackjack is probably only understood in general terms.

Not after waking up in the Stable, apparently.
Everything, all the way to the last moments following the Eater’s death, struck me in one colossal torrent.

It was; the Noctilucent was a Raptor Spike fought at Neighvarro.

Oh. Well then!

They were keeping her in Blackjack's old room.

I see. Now that you say that, I think I vaguely remember someone saying so back in 75 or 76. Eh, whatever.

Spoiler:

WOW. What'd the poor kid do to deserve that? Rough pregnancy or something?!

Edit: I'd like to point out that if you were saying this aloud, the first syllable would be "Roo", not "Ro".

It seems that Blackjack's going to be in the same position as Legate was if the deals with the star are similar (Would this make her invincible from harm too like he was or just stop her from dying of old age?)

Well, first off, the deals are not similar. She doesn't have a stone heart or a dead star sustaining her, and no indication that she's in any way resistant to harm. She just had her life extended.

Second, why think she'd turn out like Amadi? Celestia was equally long-lived, and she didn't turn into an omnicidal maniac.

Luna... ehhh...

[O. Hinds]

@Tacoman587:
Dolphins? That one I don't remember.
(Also, at first my brain was confused and asking "The track gauges of dolphins"? :))

Oh. Well then!

:)

I see. Now that you say that, I think I vaguely remember someone saying so back in 75 or 76. Eh, whatever.

Sorry?

[O. Hinds]

Edit: I'd like to point out that if you were saying this aloud, the first syllable would be "Roo", not "Ro".

Ah, thanks.

[WavemasterRyx]

Posted on Reddit, poked around the old IRC but I guess here is the best place after all.

*Pops confetti and streamers*

It's over!  

*Blows party horn.*

....  I still feel weird knowing that it's over.

It's been a very long time, DotRook, nice to see you again.

Of course, since it didn't happen, it means I could still use "bringing everyone back to life" safely as the plot for a "Project Horizons the Movie" story, heh.

Wouldn't that be the one where Shia LeBuffalo's grandfather discovered the lost AllSoul and he has to keep the Eater of Souls from consuming it and becoming all-powerful while giant cyberponies duke it out in downtown Manehattan?

I'd make a further comment about robot testicle jokes, but, well... those kinda figured into the story more than one would have expected, didn't they?

No, no giant ponybots, out of respect for Hinds.  There would however be enough explosions to satisfy M. Hay.

Did robot testicles really figure into PH that much though?  I didn't remember...

To answer the other part of the question, there are indeed other planets; they're mentioned slightly in the story.

No, I think that that can still work.  The planets are there; we just don't know much about them.

Ah, well that's good.  I guess I should have just checked instead of asking, I can think of two or three places now where they might have been mentioned...  Too much detail wouldn't really be needed until the second "movie" anyways...  Which I say remarkably like I could actually make anything resembling a first in order for there to be a second.

[O. Hinds]

No, no giant ponybots, out of respect for Hinds.

Sorry. (Though thanks, too. :))
Though giant quadrupedal robots... might make more sense than bipedal ones? Maybe? Magic would help, at least. But still... Eh.

[Vexd]

@Vexd:

Spoiler:

Had they already passed away by the time she "recovered"?

No.  Remember the white pony seen watching them?

More whining:

Shame, but what can you do?

And now for the biggest question of all

The Question:

[RoboRed]

Wow...didn't expect to see Somber start uploading to FIMfic so soon.

[Bootleg]

Also, I want to show my appreciation for the music choice during the Legate fight scene in 77 there. Feuer Frei was the track, correct?

[Evilgidgit]

Not sure if you've seen this but Kkat bosted a blog entry on Fimfiction about PH ending: http://www.fimfiction.net/blog/531483/end-of-an-era

As has Fuzzy (Murky Number Seven) on his Tumblr.

[O. Hinds]

Wow...didn't expect to see Somber start uploading to FIMfic so soon.

Nor did I; last I heard, the plan was to get a definitive version of the story first.
And it's already at the top of the feature box.  :)

Also, I want to show my appreciation for the music choice during the Legate fight scene in 77 there. Feuer Frei was the track, correct?

That wasn't something I selected, but I'm glad you liked it.

@Evilgidgit:
I'd seen the Kkat one but not the Fuzzy one; thanks.

[DotRook]

Thanks for the welcome everyone. :3 I have a silly idea for one last bit of Project Horizons fan art I want to do. May post that here and elsewhere later tonight.

[Scootayay]

Wow...didn't expect to see Somber start uploading to FIMfic so soon.

Nor did I; last I heard, the plan was to get a definitive version of the story first.
And it's already at the top of the feature box.  :)

Aaaaand it's gone again. Just checked because I wanted to upvote it.

[decumos]

Is that "Apex" mentioned in the Epilogue a thing from original FoE or some other FoE sidefiction? I don't recognise that name... Should I, though?

[O. Hinds]

Aaaaand it's gone again. Just checked because I wanted to upvote it.

Well, it's back now, it looks like. :)

Oh, and, looking at a comment Somber left, apparently we decided against major revisions.

Is that "Apex" mentioned in the Epilogue a thing from original FoE or some other FoE sidefiction?

No.  At least, not when Somber wrote that bit, as far as I know.

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