Author Topic: I would have wiSSSShed... what is missing from SSSS?  (Read 23447 times)

lwise

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Re: I would have wiSSSShed... what is missing from SSSS?
« Reply #150 on: March 16, 2022, 05:21:21 PM »
I am disinclined to regard anything as canon unless it appears in the comic.  After all, most readers probably don't see anything but the comic.

I'm especially disinclined to regard anything as canon when it clearly conflicts with the comic, which this claim does.
« Last Edit: March 16, 2022, 05:34:49 PM by lwise »

thorny

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Re: I would have wiSSSShed... what is missing from SSSS?
« Reply #151 on: March 16, 2022, 08:12:20 PM »
It even seems to conflict with itself.

I also was thinking that asking Minna anything seems risky, if she's just going to throw out things off the top of her head without thinking whether they make any sense.

lwise

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Re: I would have wiSSSShed... what is missing from SSSS?
« Reply #152 on: March 16, 2022, 10:11:28 PM »
I also was thinking that asking Minna anything seems risky, if she's just going to throw out things off the top of her head without thinking whether they make any sense.

Yes.  It does seem like she's burned out on the whole project (and I honestly can't blame her after a grueling schedule for eight and a half years -- I would have burned out earlier).  I think she continues to participate because it's essentially her job, but her heart isn't in it and she's not paying attention to details.  It may be that she never did pay attention as some of the more obsessive fans do.  Best not to ask questions, and stick to fan speculation rather than perhaps create "canon" that makes no sense.

JoB

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Re: I would have wiSSSShed... what is missing from SSSS?
« Reply #153 on: March 17, 2022, 04:46:39 AM »
This case actually put me off asking some of my questions. I would love to know what she had or has had properly planned (she has said she has forgotten some), but I don’t want her to just whip up something because of being asked, and then call it canon.
Yeah, sure, seconded. We do not want to prompt the author to turn into a loose canon. 8)

One of the more interesting point in the entire mum / great fire discussion was that Minna mentioned that “the research facility” was burned. What research facility? Did we know of this?? Hmmm? Hmmmmmmm?
... hm. Nope, not that I remember; the only "research facility" we've seen in the comic proper was Sivs workplace, supposedly near Mora, while Emil was born and grew up in Östersund.

Two thoughts off the top of my head, though:
  • They wouldn't put a high risk "research site", like the one Siv worked at, that close to residential buildings (assuming that Emils dream does, in fact, correctly depict that fire), would they?
  • "Research facilities" do not typically generate notable income. I'd still suspect that Emils dad ran a business, and found his vocation in getting himself particularly involved in its research department.
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thorny

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Re: I would have wiSSSShed... what is missing from SSSS?
« Reply #154 on: March 17, 2022, 12:26:12 PM »
Do we know that there were other residential buildings there, besides Emil's family's house? Maybe they had founded or funded the facility, and either donated some of their land, or wanted it close because one or more of them worked there.

Of course, we also don't know what type of research; maybe it wasn't considered high risk.

JoB

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Re: I would have wiSSSShed... what is missing from SSSS?
« Reply #155 on: March 17, 2022, 04:59:30 PM »
Do we know that there were other residential buildings there, besides Emil's family's house? Maybe they had founded or funded the facility, and either donated some of their land, or wanted it close because one or more of them worked there.
No, we have just the info from the three dream scenes, and only this one panel and a half showing the outside. It's definitely not downtown, but on the other hand, if the facility came later, why would Emils family, officially living "in Östersund", have a house away from the rest of the settlement? Sure, it would be possible that the generation building it were a tad off the hermit side, but.
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NightMareMage

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Re: I would have wiSSSShed... what is missing from SSSS?
« Reply #156 on: April 07, 2022, 05:47:55 PM »
Something I think is missing is a grief from the cast. It's there for Onni and it's there at the start for Lalli but it's not there for the others. On one hand, I don't think Adventure II should have been dreary but with Tuuri being killed off... it feels off. Even more so when she came back. Maybe it's just me but with how it is written Tuuri dying and coming back works as a plot device but not on any character level.

I think there could have been a balance or a mostly fun story with a with a sad undercurrent or something IDK. Just a since of lost from the other characters may have been enough.

Lazerbird

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Re: I would have wiSSSShed... what is missing from SSSS?
« Reply #157 on: May 16, 2022, 07:43:51 PM »
I wish we'd gotten to see some finnish mages in action, not just lalli and that one time onni summoned koko, and also maybe some more icelandic mage stuff too from someone who actually knows what they're doing/isn't reynir
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wavewright62

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Re: I would have wiSSSShed... what is missing from SSSS?
« Reply #158 on: May 19, 2022, 10:15:59 PM »
Agreed on the Finnish mages. 
The mage info page stated that Icelandic magic was mostly achieved through inaction (sleep precognition and  protective staves).  Reynir wasn't allowed to learn "real" magic unless he was immune and could go into the military, deployed to Norway. 
I can't really see a troll hunting unit like Sigrun's bringing along a mage who was only 'useful' while asleep?  She (canon states mostly female practitioners) would have to be able to use a weapon as well as staves, but a skilled practitioner would be a highly prized triple threat.  Hmmm (fanfic brain goes whrrrr)
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tehta

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Re: I would have wiSSSShed... what is missing from SSSS?
« Reply #159 on: May 20, 2022, 01:44:33 AM »
Minna did talk about Norwegian mages in a stream, and said that, while they are given a gun just in case, they are not really front -line fighters. (I guess they stay back and manufacture runes for everyone? ) And that Sigrun' wouldn't want to be a mage, for that reason. I can try to find this. (I remember it because I just read the magic parts of the Livestream thread, looking for hints of Swedish or Danish mages.)
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Re: I would have wiSSSShed... what is missing from SSSS?
« Reply #160 on: May 20, 2022, 11:01:21 AM »
Based on what Mikkel mentioned about his experience with mages, one of the things they do is healing.

I wonder how quickly the staves wear out. They can’t be permanent or permanent until disintegration of the medium, or they would be absolutely everywhere by Y90.
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Róisín

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Re: I would have wiSSSShed... what is missing from SSSS?
« Reply #161 on: May 20, 2022, 05:30:35 PM »
If I understand correctly, our-world staves last different lengths of time depending on the medium on which they are formed, the nature of the staves, the intent and the words or song, if any, accompanying the staves. I had been presuming the same about Minnaverse staves.
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JoB

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Re: I would have wiSSSShed... what is missing from SSSS?
« Reply #162 on: May 21, 2022, 02:14:36 AM »
If I understand correctly, our-world staves last different lengths of time depending on the medium on which they are formed, the nature of the staves, the intent and the words or song, if any, accompanying the staves. I had been presuming the same about Minnaverse staves.
At the very least, Sigruns suggestion would promise to shorten their lifetime, too ...

They can’t be permanent or permanent until disintegration of the medium, or they would be absolutely everywhere by Y90.
Certainly not for lack of trying.
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Re: I would have wiSSSShed... what is missing from SSSS?
« Reply #163 on: May 21, 2022, 06:17:45 AM »
JoB that’s exactly it! They may have a lot of sheep, but not so many that she would have to spend her life drawing the sheep husbandry staves, if they were permanent. In that case they would also be painted into the post before building the fence, when the mage could work at a workbench rather than kneeling on uneven rocky ground.

At the very least the Icelandic ships and other equipment would be covered in them. And I find it hard to believe that even the Swedes and Danes would remain skeptical if there were items that clearly have lasting effect.
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JoB

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Re: I would have wiSSSShed... what is missing from SSSS?
« Reply #164 on: May 21, 2022, 08:15:49 AM »
JoB that’s exactly it! They may have a lot of sheep, but not so many that she would have to spend her life drawing the sheep husbandry staves, if they were permanent. In that case they would also be painted into the post before building the fence, when the mage could work at a workbench rather than kneeling on uneven rocky ground.
Also, the reason they're not permanent cannot simply be bad choice of material, because then we'd see them getting carved into the posts before the fence is erected. So, whatever the details are, it's something with the magic involved that limits their lifetime.

... and that's as far as we'll get the matter investigated, since Minna did not ever write down, much less publish, a Complete Guide to MagicSSSS, I'm afraid. Of course, one can theorize that Icelanders might be worried that too much human-made magic could draw the scorn of Iceland's other magic folk ...

At the very least the Icelandic ships [...] would be covered in them.
Hm. Who says they're not - just on the inside of the hull, where they (and those repainting them when necessary) enjoy a longer life?

(The outsides are left to the original staves of the ancients. 8) )

And I find it hard to believe that even the Swedes and Danes would remain skeptical if there were items that clearly have lasting effect.
I guess that raises the question whether the seiður hand magic-warded items to others, or make them only for their own folks' use (which would be greatly "helped" by a short lifespan of the effect). It's simple to disbelieve in stuff you never get to see working in person ...

(Reynir apparently is willing to share, but look what the result of the uninitiated handling the stuff is.)
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