Drunkard's Walk Forums

Full Version: Powers from mistakes?
You're currently viewing a stripped down version of our content. View the full version with proper formatting.

Stephen Mann

Bob,
You've said in the past that Doug's powers come from how he interprets the song, not necessarily from what the song actually says.
Now, given that many rock singers slur their words when singing, people often misunderstand exactly what was said/sung.
www.kissthisguy.com/
So, does Doug have any powers that come from misunderstood lyrics?
... and would they change if he ever got his hands on the actual lyric sheet and found out what they really say?
-Z, Post-reader at Medium
----
If architects built buildings the way programmers write programs, the first woodpecker to come along would destroy civilization.

Ace Dreamer

Would this encourage Doug to listen to J-Pop, and other strange uses of "Engrish"?
--
"It is the business of the future to be dangerous" - Hawkwind
You know, I hadn't really thought of this, but it probably is the case. I could make a good argument for the possibility that it has happened already -- the reason the Bangles' version of "Hazy Shade of Winter" is more potent than the Simon and Garfunkel version might be because the line "carry your cup in your hand" sounds a lot like "carry a gun in your hand" when they sing it...
Okay, yeah, that's a little lame. But still, yeah, there are possibilities. All kinds of stuff like this are possible. I know for a fact that he has one song whose power is derived from its video rather than its lyrics -- and no, I won't tell you which, as it may be the core of a really cool/funny scene in an upcoming step.
And Doug already listens to J-Pop and "Engrish". Have you never listened to the background singers in "Konya wa Hurricane"?

-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
Oh, and as far as changing when he got the lyric sheet, no. Once a song is "set", it's "set".

-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

Stephen Mann

I know for a fact that he has one song whose power is derived from its video rather than its lyrics -- and no, I won't tell you which, as it may be the core of a really cool/funny scene in an upcoming step.
Yeah, like the video for Aha's "Take On Me" leads me to visions of mirror dimensions than whatever the song is actually about.
And Doug already listens to J-Pop and "Engrish". Have you never listened to the background singers in "Konya wa Hurricane"?
Hmmm, I haven't listened to it in a while, but the version I listen to mostly has the background singers follow the lead singer.
Oh, and as far as changing when he got the lyric sheet, no. Once a song is "set", it's "set".
Idle curiosity; does he look at lyrics at all? We know he club hops, does he ever follow up with sheet music?
Kinda doubt it. From what I understand of Bob's explainations, it's the way Doug's Subconcious interprets the songs that create the effect. It's why he's somewhat of a 'wild mage', despite having harnessed it.
For example, Eye of the Tiger. Doug's subconcious processed it as giving doug the "eyes of a tiger"... so it gave him the eyes of a tiger by turning him INTO a tiger for the duration. not exatly a true interpretation of the actuall lyrics in this case.
As far as reading the lyrics later? wouldn't affect it. Once Doug's sub C has set a song's effects, they remain that way IIRC."I was an Otaku before those kids came along and changed the meaning of the word."
-- HM "Howling Mad" Wilson to more than one team-mate.
Hear that thunder rolling till it seems to split the sky?
That's every ship in Grayson's Navy taking up the cry-

NO QUARTER!!!
-- "No Quarter", by Echo's Children
the reason the Bangles' version of "Hazy Shade of Winter" is more potent than the Simon and Garfunkel version might be because the line "carry your cup in your hand" sounds a lot like "carry a gun in your hand" when they sing it...
I think the Bangles' do sung ".. carry a gun..." since they did the cover for Less Than Zero...
-Z, Post-reader at Medium
----
If architects built buildings the way programmers write programs, the first woodpecker to come along would destroy civilization.
Quote:
Yeah, like the video for Aha's "Take On Me" leads me to visions of mirror dimensions than whatever the song is actually about.
It's funny that you should cite that particular song, as that's the one I was talking about. Except the video's more clearly about crossing into and out of comic books -- which I thought would be a great hook for a kind of teleportation.
Oh, hell, I might as well tell what I had in mind. This is intended for the Sailor Moon Step, although I really don't have anywhere in its skimpy plot to place it. Basic set up: crisis brews up, but Usagi's home sleeping off something, won't respond to communicators or phones. Doug has noticed she and Rei have the same issue of the "Ranma 1/2" tankouban; he uses "Take On Me" to dive into the copy in Rei's room, and pops out of the copy in Usagi's (in the process, he has to run through a scene inside the manga, disturbing the Ranma characters when he "pardon me"s his way past them and jumps into the front window of Ucchan's). He wakes up Usagi, gets her to transform, and then drags her back into the book (the song's still playing). As they run across the scene again, Usagi recognizes where she is, and Akane recognizes Usagi from her manga. Usagi breaks away from Doug and does about 30 seconds' worth of Self-Insert Engineering ("He loves you. She loves you. Oh, and Ryouga is P-chan.") and then runs off with Doug into another window and out into Rei's room.
Quote:
Hmmm, I haven't listened to it in a while, but the version I listen to mostly has the background singers follow the lead singer.
There's a part where they sing stuff like, "Did you love? Did you dream?"... about four or five different things like that.
Quote:
Idle curiosity; does he look at lyrics at all?
Oh, certainly -- you've seen it in the story -- he has the lyrics for everything in his helmet in a database that he can search and project on his HUD. Most songs do follow their lyrics (or at least key parts of them) for their powers, so this is useful to him. It's only a few oddballs that are seriously disjointed from their literal meaning.


-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
Quote:
Kinda doubt it. From what I understand of Bob's explainations, it's the way Doug's Subconcious interprets the songs that create the effect. It's why he's somewhat of a 'wild mage', despite having harnessed it.
That's right, and that's why sometimes a song does something really odd -- you never know when some subconscious association is going to throw a zinger into the mix.
Quote:
As far as reading the lyrics later? wouldn't affect it. Once Doug's sub C has set a song's effects, they remain that way IIRC.
Exactly.

-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
Quote:
I think the Bangles' do sung ".. carry a gun..."
It's hard to be sure; I've never seen a lyric sheet that confirmed this, and the way it sounds, it could go either way depending on what you're expecting. For lack of evidence to the contrary, I believe they're singing "carry a cup" (as opposed to the original lyric "your cup").

-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

Stephen Mann

Yeah, like the video for Aha's "Take On Me" leads me to visions of mirror dimensions than whatever the song is actually about.
It's funny that you should cite that particular song, as that's the one I was talking about. Except the video's more clearly about crossing into and out of comic books -- which I thought would be a great hook for a kind of teleportation.
Wow. Interesting scene. Out of idle curiosity, have you ever read Galatea in 2D by Aaron Allston? Using the comic book as a teleporation device resembles something the hero did in that book. If you haven't read it, you should. There's some great ideas in there.
Quote:
have you ever read Galatea in 2D by Aaron Allston?
The title sounds familiar, but I'm pretty sure I haven't.
Quote:
If you haven't read it, you should. There's some great ideas in there.
If I see it, I'll get it, but I have an "unread" stack that's a bit too high as it is.
Thanks for the recommendation.

-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

Stephen Mann

Galatea in 2-D involves an artist who discovers he can bring to life the objects he draws and paints, and has some control over them. In addition, he can "enter" the landscapes or scenes he's created and move around in them, even to places off the screen (not shown in the original artwork). He can also "go into" one painting and "come out" of another, giving him awesome teleporation and infiltration abilities.
Of course, the big fly in the ointment is that a rival artist discovered this same ability years before the hero, and is now actively trying to kill the hero to protect his monopoly.
For the Hero gamers reading this, Aaron gives some ideas on the powers needed to use this ability in a Hero/Champions game here:
www.aaronallston.com/faqg...l#galahero
Yet another thing to stash on the "to be read" pile/list. (Which is currently loaded with Garth Nix books. If y'all out there haven't read Sabriel and his other books, do so. You'll have to look for them in the Young Adult section of your bookstore, but do not be fooled; these are not books for kids.)

-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
RE Hazy Shade of Winter - the Bangles vrsion s on of my favorite songs, enough that I bought a tape with it on it and played it till it wore out and snarled in the deck. Because of that it's a long time since I looked at the fold-out ultra fine print lyrics sheet on the inside of the label insert, but I do beleive they're actually meant to sing 'carry a gun in your hand.'
- CD
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows
Interesting, CD. Thanks for that bit of info. I'm going to have to try a google search on "carry a gun in your hand" to see what comes up, now.

-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.