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Nettle Soup posted:That's a really interesting idea. Suddenly those "moon-sized" demons we heard of make a LOT more sense as to where they might come from!
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Jan 7, 2024 14:06
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I personally think it's probably centered on a large forest on each planet. Ch 91 quote:A quartet of people were sitting on the floor while clouds of the stuff settled around them. They were having a discussion about how Anesidora ought to be allowed to purchase a “vacation territory” somewhere on Earth. “Somewhere tropical,” said Rebecca. “With animals.” “The Amazon. The Artonans are already paying the South American countries not to develop it. We could hang out there.” The Artonans have gone out of the way to stop all development of the Amazon and leave it wild. And we know how important forests are to some of their magic with the knight's rapport and the wooden bowl that Alden lost an authority contest with. I think the leaf from the Rapport that Alden is currently using as a bookmark is a part of Mother.
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Jan 7, 2024 14:17
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cant cook creole bream posted:What was going on at that Norway trip? I was moving to Norway, and part of that was setting up my business. The government went "Please appear in person in the tax office a week from today to prove you exist so we can OK your business", so I hopped on a plane and off I went. Cost an arm and a leg, but the entire thing was for business purposes (setting up my ability to work there), so it's deductible. nrook posted:Huh. Am I reading those tables correctly and seeing that non-KU Amazon revenue exceeds KU revenue? That’s quite surprising to me. Thanks for sharing. You're not misreading it, but it doesn't tell the whole story - you're seeing it on a big launch month OR on a wind up month. Look at July as a good example - I got 14k KU revenue, and Amazon was 11.5k... *revenue*, of which I got 70%, so closer to 8k. 14k KU >> 8k ebook. December was a huge launch month, so yeah, it's going to crush KU since I do immediately go onto it. Megazver posted:That's really cool, I am very jealous! I am still curious about this, circling back to when we were discussing if taking books off KU to get more RR readers again was worth it: Was not worth it. It was a fun ego flex.
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Jan 7, 2024 16:23
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Thanks for sharing those numbers with us. Makes the decision by some authors to stub their stuff for KU more understandable.
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Jan 7, 2024 16:27
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Is the person who gave you $31 Patreon dollars at the very, very start still a Patreon-er? I am always curious about the really early adopters and whether they stay forever 
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Jan 7, 2024 16:30
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Selkie Myth posted:You're not misreading it, but it doesn't tell the whole story - you're seeing it on a big launch month OR on a wind up month. Look at July as a good example - I got 14k KU revenue, and Amazon was 11.5k... *revenue*, of which I got 70%, so closer to 8k. 14k KU >> 8k ebook. Ah, I see. Makes sense. That's how I follow your series, actually; I don't pay for KU or Patreon but I buy your ebooks when they're released. I always thought I was pretty unusual but it seems like a bunch of people do this. An interesting thing is that if you weren't on KU, you could put BTDEM on other ebook retailers (Nook etc). However a bit of googling suggests Kindle has over two thirds of English sales so this would probably be a mistake. I'm sure you've thought about it, though.
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Jan 7, 2024 17:12
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nrook posted:Ah, I see. Makes sense. That's how I follow your series, actually; I don't pay for KU or Patreon but I buy your ebooks when they're released. I always thought I was pretty unusual but it seems like a bunch of people do this. And 95-99% of litrpg sales. It’s not even close, and frankly I’ve accepted that Amazon owns me
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Jan 7, 2024 17:57
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SS 121: Well that escalated quickly. Good chapter, I have lots of thoughts about it. I thought Manon and her meddling were going to become a new twist to the Velra story... but not like this, with Manon dead immediately. Years of scheming, a mastery of her own skill and all it took was one blow by a B-rank with some strengthing wordchains. I think it's even justifiable self-defence, given Hazel's beliefs about the situation. And shows how *panicky* people get around Sways. “I’ve been working on the Triplanets for years. I think I understand more about the real world than most people.” This line does say alot about Hazel's beliefs about the world and upbringing - and it makes sense, she's seen more of them than most of Earth. I wonder if she'll enjoy her exile eventually?
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Jan 7, 2024 18:30
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Supsup 121: guys I need advice I'm thinking of badly mindcontrolling an unstable superhuman. Any reasons not to? Waiting anxiously online for responses. I didn't particularly enjoy the way this one was written but drat. and hey, way to go Alden, two problems solved at once!
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Jan 7, 2024 18:32
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Nothingtoseehere posted:SS 121: Wow you guys are fast. (SupSup 121) I think in a way Manon contributed to her own death. Hazel kept noticing one of the many signs she was being kidnapped by a crazy woman, so she'd use a chain for self protection, but then Manon would make her forget about it, then it would happen again and she'd use another chain, and so on. That was foreshadowed back in the chapter when Hazel got mad at Lute and we were told she was "stacking" so many strength chains she could kill someone. Bremen fucked around with this message at 19:09 on Jan 7, 2024 |
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Jan 7, 2024 18:40
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Supsup 121 Hazel went from petulant child to victim of mind control who kills the super villain one chapter. Hazel is the new hero.
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Jan 7, 2024 18:41
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Bremen posted:Wow you guys are fast. Yea, Manon couldn't change the fact that eventually the thing that made Hazel's environment most comfortable was removing Manon from it. Especially since Manon didn't know Hazel knew she was a budget Sway, so once that thought came through Hazel was going to snap, as you'd probably do if you realised you were a victim of hostile mind control. Manon would have at best known the thought would make the environment uncomfortable for her, but not what it was.
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Jan 7, 2024 18:47
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(SupSup 121) I'm pretty sure Alden Thorn's magical connection to Aulia Velra is that whenever he appears in her life, one problem is soon replaced with another, bigger problem. That was the most appropriate possible end for Manon, really. Environment Tailored successfully.
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Jan 7, 2024 18:49
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So, fun little bit about SupSup 121! (Spoiler, obviously) Go back and read the second paragraph of the chapter. What I'm left wondering is... where does the story go from here? It feels unlikely that the arc is just going to vanish into thin air with no direct action on Alden's part. He doesn't even know what happened and it's unclear if he's going to find out. I honestly have no idea what the next few chapters will bring.
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Jan 7, 2024 19:00
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SS121 Hazel did absolutely nothing wrong, and despite it clearly being something she came up with at the moment, she was a vulnerable child abducted by an adult who was magically drugging her. Manon deserved everything she got
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Jan 7, 2024 19:03
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SupSup 121: Hazel confirms the thing I had suggested about why it was such a big deal revealing her skill:quote:The ability was only useful on Earth if people didn’t know she had it. And she wasn’t required to get consent before using it like so many of her relatives needed to before they used their own skills. It was a privilege she’d earned for herself, a product of her giftedness and her effort. Her one solace for the rank disaster. Of course, that's a bit of a lesser concern for her now, lol edit: I think this comment might be onto something about how this will affect Alden: quote:I'm pretty sure Alden gets a huge load of discomfort. Somehow the murder will be revealed and the pamphlet send to the boaters leads to him and Hazel. And if Alden knows who killed Manon he will think he did something wrong. If people suspect what happened (which is possible since Alden's actions already put Hazel in a bigger spotlight than normal, they'll probably link him to what happened. Not in the sense of "suspecting he did it," but it'll just bring unwanted attention towards himself. Ytlaya fucked around with this message at 21:20 on Jan 7, 2024 |
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Jan 7, 2024 21:07
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SupSup 121 It was also Manon, not Hazel, who Alden felt target him last chapter! I had that sudden "ah ha!" moment when I got to her looking over the party from above.
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Jan 7, 2024 21:13
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Bremen posted:So, fun little bit about SupSup 121! (Spoiler, obviously) Go back and read the second paragraph of the chapter. Probably some awkward conversations with police? ...Also most important detail: looks like Alden picked a good present!
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Jan 7, 2024 21:17
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SupSup 121: One thing I'm unsure about (and that I haven't seen many other people commenting on, even though it seems pretty significant). Hazel describes being able to sense unevenness in seemingly the same way as Alden. Is this from her Skill, or from whatever special talent she has? edit: That chapter also confirms that my assumption that Manon's Skill actually does (well, did) directly influence people was accurate. People had suspected it was just social engineering (her saying/doing things that change peoples' thoughts), but she actually does directly magnify or reduce peoples' feelings (though she doesn't actually know exactly what those feelings are). edit2: Wanted to share this amusingly dumb comment I saw (about Aulia): quote:I think she genuinely feels love for Jessica for example, as well as empathy. So perhaps a sociopath rather than a psychopath. 
Ytlaya fucked around with this message at 21:32 on Jan 7, 2024 |
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Jan 7, 2024 21:26
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Bremen posted:So, fun little bit about SupSup 121! (Spoiler, obviously) Go back and read the second paragraph of the chapter. I'm absolutely certain Manon's death will come up in Lute and Alden's investigation into the Velra crime empire. Ytlaya posted:SupSup 121: One thing I'm unsure about (and that I haven't seen many other people commenting on, even though it seems pretty significant). Hazel describes being able to sense unevenness in seemingly the same way as Alden. Is this from her Skill, or from whatever special talent she has? She had the ability before affixing, though she doesn't mention unevenness specifically as one aspect of it, though the buzzing might be a reference to it: Ch 23: quote:“Everyone says you’re a prodigy,” Alden noted.
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Jan 7, 2024 21:44
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Ytlaya posted:
aulia would not be nearly as dangerous if she was a socio/psychopath. She is a zealot. She is someone who genuinely cares about you and does what she thinks will be in your best interests just, yknow, what that is depends on what she thinks the universe is telling her 
A big flaming stink fucked around with this message at 22:29 on Jan 7, 2024 |
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Jan 7, 2024 21:46
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OddObserver posted:Soup 121: (More SupSup 121, unspoilered because unspecific) Also jesus christ that escalation felt like it came out of nowhere! I just love how this story handles going off the rails, it feels so deliciously realistic. You can tell something will go wrong and why, but what happens is still surprising enough to give you a jolt. My final thought, whoever said upthread how what Hazel did says a lot about what Anesidora thinks of Says? So on point. And given how incredibly reckless Manon was being with her ability, I'm not sure they're at all wrong. I feel like that's going to be the other part of the fallout; when it comes out that Manon is dead, if there's any inkling of the truth (murdered by teenage girl out of self defense) there's going to be a panic about what high level skills could extend to thought manipulation for sure. Kind of makes me wonder how Sway stuff is handled on the triplanets and elsewhere. From the way Joe was allowed to teach his class, I feel like what's viewed as dangerous is pretty different from what Anesidorans would expect. A big flaming stink posted:aulia would not be nearly as dangerous if she was a socio/psychopath. She is a zealot She is someone who genuinely cares about you and does what she thinks will be in your best interests babydonthurtme fucked around with this message at 21:51 on Jan 7, 2024 |
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Jan 7, 2024 21:47
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A big flaming stink posted:aulia would not be nearly as dangerous if she was a socio/psychopath. She is a zealot. She is someone who genuinely cares about you and does what she thinks will be in your best interests Yeah, though that post is just funny because it appears to be operating off of some bizarre definition of "sociopath" where it means "a lesser psychopath who cares about other people."
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Jan 8, 2024 03:43
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Dang, Tailor Environment is so cool. Rabbits really are OP. SupSup 120
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Jan 8, 2024 05:00
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awesmoe posted:Supsup 121: She ain't in exile yet and she knows a guy who is good with boats so watch this space. Also my prediction for where this arc is going: knights stack shitloads of wordchains and fob them off to volunteers via chainer avowed (and the only knights Alden has met were not on combat duty so he's never had a chance to gremlin them yet). This has been pretty firmly foreshadowed. Hazel is going to use her skill on one of the two knights we saw and it's abomination time babyyyy I know it's slow at times but drat if SS isn't the only web serial that's ever grabbed me with speculating and wondering about its world building like this. In a real (published in one go) novel authors are free to just go back and insert foreshadowing and references whenever they want but in web serials you can't really do that in the same way. Instead SS is just planned incredibly well. Every throwaway sentence suddenly becomes relevant to some critical plot detail. I don't know how with its glacial pace it can feel so constantly dense like it does. In terms of the overall plot of the whole series it seems pretty clearly to be a Madoka to me. That even had a whole half-baked justification that it was all happening because of entropy running out which SS's chaos seems like a more thought though (and adapted to be similar to our global warming) version of. gonadic io fucked around with this message at 16:44 on Jan 8, 2024 |
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Jan 8, 2024 14:26
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gonadic io posted:She ain't in exile yet and she knows a guy who is good with boats so watch this space. I've been thinking something similar about how this arc will end but your theory has legs.
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Jan 8, 2024 15:15
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gonadic io posted:In terms of the overall plot of the whole series it seems pretty clearly to be a Madoka to me. That even had a whole half-baked justification that it was all happening because of entropy running out which SS's chaos seems like a more thought though (and adapted to be similar to our global warming) version of. It is a safe comparison to make, contracts, aliens and magical people who might explode into demons, it checks out and Bearer is typecast for A Madoka style ending, too. I think in stories like this the "chaos" works just fine, and often better, if it is less clearly explained and detailed, I if it is understood emotionally rather than clinically.
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Jan 8, 2024 17:54
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gonadic io posted:She ain't in exile yet and she knows a guy who is good with boats so watch this space. Could you elaborate on where you got the idea that Knights stack a bunch of wordchains? Or that having those chains "called in" by Hazel would lead to an abomination. Not disagreeing, just haven't really considered that. On one hand it makes sense that they'd take advantage of that source of power, but on the other it seems like a big unnecessary risk for a "routine execution" like this. Completely subjectively, I doubt anything too major on the "Knights and chaos and poo poo" front will happen too soon, since such an event is likely to involve out-ing Alden, and I don't see that happening until at least after his next affixation (or at least until he's had some sort of direct conflict with other human Avowed). Could definitely be wrong though; this is just a guess entirely based on vibes and the pacing of the story so far.
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Jan 9, 2024 00:11
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Ytlaya posted:Could you elaborate on where you got the idea that Knights stack a bunch of wordchains? Or that having those chains "called in" by Hazel would lead to an abomination. Not disagreeing, just haven't really considered that. On one hand it makes sense that they'd take advantage of that source of power, but on the other it seems like a big unnecessary risk for a "routine execution" like this. More SupSup patreon stuff. Stuart does say that his family, at least, makes use of the palace of unbreaking and he'd be a hippocrite to disparage them when he was talking to Alden about the nobility of chainers during his day-long skype call with Alden. I don't think we've seen any indications that chains can lead one to becoming an abomination though. They are a completely separate kind of magic from Authority based magic in spells or affixations. Normal people can use chains. Alden's mother worked at a house of healing where they use those to heal people.
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Jan 9, 2024 00:30
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For the first part (SS patron) it's been repeatedly shown that stacking wordchains makes you OP. The reason I think that knights do it is both what NO says about Stuart's comments and also speculation about how did they fight chaos before the system made knights what they currently are? If the situation was truly so dire they would use every tool at their disposal and also knights are shown as getting unlimited personal resources so that could include wordchain use (E: I happen to be rereading 59 and there's a comment made about "the reverence and extraordinary support they enjoy from the rest of wizarding society"). Lute even keeps offering Alden only the good half of chains. Regarding the second point, we've certainly been told that something really bad happens if unhealthy chains don't get paid off suitability and also that some chains can have some really brutal debt so what if somebody dies before their debt is fully paid? What if there were so many chains stacked that it's impossible and never intended that the knight could pay their own debt but that's fine because they just visit the temple before things come due. Regarding why, maybe this year is a difficult year due to various chaos related happenings, maybe they are just well prepared just in case. It's probably quite routine at this point because as long as they get to the temple in time, what could go wrong? I admit it's definitely pretty speculative on my part, but it fits the facts we've been explicitly shown and it also fits the foreshadowing that Selyca likes to sprinkle around IMO. I think it's really unlikely to happen before the visit to Stuart where Alden reveals that he's a knight and begs Stuart not to go through with it to no avail (which when he can't deal with it leads to them finally using that bone fragment to sacrifice Stuart's authority in Gorgon's rite to free him from the burden without him dying but that's far far in the future (but then he gets killed by his father anyway because the break from tradition and the authority destruction is abhorrent to atonians (and is why Gorgon's race was genocided) and that (and the knowledge that artonan society causes chaos somehow as a global warming analogue) is what leads Alden to destroy the big-C Contract and sacrifice himself to take the universe's chaos burden)). If you're going to make wild guesses, go big or go home IMO. gonadic io fucked around with this message at 01:25 on Jan 9, 2024 |
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Jan 9, 2024 00:53
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Have we actually seen chains make anyone "OP"? We've seen Hazel achieve a level of superstrength that isn't anything that amazing. Meanwhile we have an Avowed like Arjun who just effortlessly turns people into red mist. It seems like the biggest source of power is just raw authority growth. They're still obviously very useful (the self-mastery one is a superpower in its own right), but I don't get the impression they're a path towards great individual power. I also think Knights and Skills existed pre-System - they just had their authority bound magically. Systems just add some sort of magical AI to organize things, but all the stuff they do is still just magic. So I don't think "Knights used wordchains before binding their authority" is likely at all.
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Jan 9, 2024 02:01
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Speaking of Super Supportive foreshadowing. The very first scene on Anesidora, in chapter 3, has a random Avowed practicing their skills in the background of one of their scenes. Just like was discussed in the most recent RR episode. Similarly, Alden's stuffed wombat, Wummy, is in the very first chapter. I'd been assuming it was a teenager stuffed animal, but no. It's from when his parents were alive. It's almost certainly the last gift he has from them. Well, that and a regular stipend from their life insurance, but that hasn't been relevant since he started getting paid in argold.
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Jan 9, 2024 02:05
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Alden needs to weave his auriad into Wummy and cast spells by manipulating Wummy's body.
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Jan 9, 2024 02:18
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Ytlaya posted:Alden needs to weave his auriad into Wummy and cast spells by manipulating Wummy's body. 
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Jan 9, 2024 02:20
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Super Supportive, tangent from recent Patreon chapters: I wonder what Burden of Chain does exactly? Just taking on burden, or can it freeze them as well, or maybe something totally different?
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Jan 9, 2024 03:21
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OddObserver posted:Super Supportive, tangent from recent Patreon chapters: I wonder what Burden of Chain does exactly? Just taking on burden, or can it freeze them as well, or maybe something totally different? A good question. I think burden of chain might actually be really loving good. At a minimum, taking that while having the defogging package and the gremlin would probably make Alden more talented at word chains than Hazel.
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Jan 9, 2024 03:50
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In the Mother chapters she specifically states that the skill designers really went for flexibility. So, how many other classes/skills can it make obselete?
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Jan 9, 2024 10:05
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Do you want to read a game of Dwarf Fortress? https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/76164/the-mine-lord-a-dwarven-survival-base-builder
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Jan 10, 2024 19:17
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Yes i loving do
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Jan 10, 2024 19:33
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Boatmurdered is art, so that does sound intriguing.
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