Topics created by Selax

@453 said in Fading Ashes:

Really interesting and fun to read ^_^ I was expecting a chron making fun of Tiernan, but I am not disappointed! It feels really good to read a new chronicle again. Thanks for writing! I think Selax is understating this Pandora's powers - with her Box, one can do just about anything.

You’re welcome; I’m glad you enjoyed it. Actually, I wasn’t even thinking of Pandora’s Box (at least, not in terms of the computer program), but it makes the name work better. I finally settled on it after being unable to come up with anything better.

@troyen said in Fading Ashes:

Your writing style has definitely improved.

Thank you, that’s quite kind of you. (I'm sure I'll return to form with my next post or chron though.)

@troyen said in Fading Ashes:

I think that was a good choice, but for a different reason. A first-person Selax story sounds difficult to do because Selax is one of those characters that knows way more about what is going on than everybody else, so you'd lose the suspense and mystery. It's the same reason why the narrator for Sherlock Holmes wasn't Sherlock Holmes. This way we're left speculating and trying to piece together the clues because we're as in the dark as the protagonist is.

That’s a good point as well. Ironically, I’ve been re-listening to some of the Holmes audiobooks recently.

@troyen said in Fading Ashes:

453, I need your help speculating here. I understood the message that using Pandora's Box to cheat at games causes horrible things like zombies rising up to ruin your friends' lives, but my memory of older stories is hazy.

I was hoping that message wouldn’t be so obvious, but at least no one has picked up on the hidden analysis of the early Roman Republic.

@troyen said in Fading Ashes:

Have we met these mysterious cranky old characters before?

I don’t think so though they’ve been rattling around in my ideas bin for some years. Some of their characteristics were only developed recently. However, if they have appeared before, you might tell me what I named them 😛 .

@troyen said in Fading Ashes:

The bear seems like a tavern reference but maybe that's a coincidence (maybe he's actually a dwarf). Then we have tall elf lady who sounds like a high school friend of Selax's.

It actually occurred to me shortly before writing this story that I’d accidentally ended up with an elf, Selax, and a dwarf-like creature, so I tried to come up with a way to make the last one less LotR-like. I think it’s a hopeless case, and I probably should just go with a dwarf and pretend the reference was intentional.

@troyen said in Fading Ashes:

What do you think is happening here? They clearly have some history and are aware of Pandora and are also a billion years old (which has all kinds of deep psychological implications if they were conscious and active for that time). Why did Pandora want Katerei (I mean, besides the obvious)? And if those undead weren't hers, whose were they?

All of these could theoretically be answered in future chrons...
I will say though that Selax and his associates are all rather old and are some of the saner beings to have reached their ages.

@troyen said in TSs, Chrons, and Cythera at Present:

I don't know about anyone else, but the main reason I find it hard to write in the TS is I wrote myself into a corner. My character is in a position where if you really stop to think about it, a number of events leading to that point should have played out differently, and so there's an insurmountable disconnect between what I want said character to be/how I want them to grow and where they are in the story. I also feel like I'm locked into a plot by myself that is workable, but built around the involvement of several other players' characters, and as they've all graduated from writing fanfic, carrying that burden alone gets exhausting. I can't really take that back without undoing well...pretty much most of that side-plot from the past TS and a half, which is too much for me to paper over and handwave away.

I’m running into a similar problem. My major issue is that there’s still a lot of story to write, and I’m having a great deal of trouble motivating myself to do it, even though (or perhaps because) I’ve ended up having pretty much total control over the plot in Cythera.

@troyen said in TSs, Chrons, and Cythera at Present:

Since there really isn't anyone other than you left, I don't think there's a point continuing the story if you aren't motivated to do so. So if you have some way to wrap it up, go for it. (I'll still write my chron anyway and rip-off incorporate elements that I think would fit.). If not, then maybe try someone else.

I have a rough idea of the ending, but it’d take a lot more writing than I’ve been able to convince myself to do. I could post a summary in the form of some kind of flashback, but I’ll to have to ruminate on how that might be done in a somewhat interesting fashion.

@troyen said in TSs, Chrons, and Cythera at Present:

I'm not likely to participate in any future TSes. The stories I want to tell have grown more complicated than I think the format supports. Something like a team chronicle series may be worth a try instead, or else perhaps return the TS format to more simpler free-form stories and have the complicated narratives fully shift to the chrons. (It should be easier to accomplish this since the long-form writers are all inactive in the TS now anyway.)

In terms of setting, I don't know. But given the massive author/character turnover and dramatic changes in characters since the beginning, I think if you do try another TS, it should not conform to any existing fanfic continuity. That may also help draw back some of the people that could possibly be interested in a short-form TS. It also lets you revisit the game setting in a way that hasn't been heavily...uh...modified to accommodate a lot of ideas some of us shoehorned in half a lifetime ago.

Our previous efforts to go back to a simpler format didn’t go very far. I’d like to try again, but I suspect the result would be the same. Team chronicle series may be the best way forward for the time being. I might try a chron challenge based around the idea of what the TS characters might look like in a more game-based setting and see if that stirs any interest.

I posted a Chron though it doesn't really count since it's not very Cythera-based, but it might win by default based on the response to the challenge so far.

I'm inclined to agree with all three of those. I'll add the 20th anniversary ones under the tribute section and the speedruns one to the useful information (though it might move if someone can think of a better subject).

Hmm, perhaps I should repurpose this as a Summer 2020 Chron Challenge...

❄️🎄❄️
＼ ＿ ／

I’m not certain why you’d be concerned. Didn’t you read that the Otaekodu is only there to help 😛 ?

I kind of figured that part would be a favorite for people.

@Selax You had a missed opportunity for a Gandalf quote in place of the "Flee, you idiots!" line. 😉

This seems like a good time to pull this old image out of retirement. I'm not sure if it copied over from the old board or not, but it gives me a chance to test the upload system.

0_1545964392628_SnowyCytheraChristmas.png

Happy (early) Groundhog Day!

@breadworldmercy453_bot, on 11 January 2018 - 09:59 AM, said in Best of Cythera for 2017:

Er, well, I posted that topic where Shorty proved that the Third Prophecy of Neleneus the Savant was actually about Cythera fandom. I don't know if it qualifies for the Best of Cythera, but considering that in the past nomination topics have received multiple nominations, I feel like maybe I can cut it : __D

If it got enough nominations, it'd be reasonable to consider including it.

Out of curiosity, was that the only topic from 2017?

@avatara_bot, on 09 August 2017 - 11:13 PM, said in Summer 2017 Chron Challenge:

What was wrong with the sappy romance we gave you? O_o

...

@breadworldmercy453_bot, on 21 August 2017 - 06:59 PM, said in Summer 2017 Chron Challenge:

I don't know if it fits all the qualifications, but here is my attempt.

It seems fine to me.

Also, summer is now over, so I guess someone should consider posting a Halloween or a fall challenge (or both), perhaps something about a quest to find Wizard.

Indeed, I would say both count.

I think that might be the approach to pursue. Wizard is working on creating a new forum, but I've not had a chance to talk with him recently about his progress or what he has set up.

Also, are you sure it was Jehezekel trying to log in? You're certain it wasn't some impostor?

Well, I guess it could double as one. Alternatively, I could post a new challenge and people could respond to whichever one they wished.

But then you complain about the lack of chrons on the chronicles board?

@breadworldmercy453_bot, on 13 March 2016 - 06:57 PM, said in Leap Day Chron Challenge:

I actually didn't have any ideas at all : __P

I think you mean you had so many subconscious ideas that none of them reached your conscious thoughts.

@ikaterei_bot, on 14 March 2016 - 11:34 AM, said in Leap Day Chron Challenge:

Apparently I've made Avatara suffer enough.

Impossible. Avatara can never suffer enough!

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