I have just been introduced to Bloc Party through the joys of sneaker-net, and this song has been bouncing around my head.
They have a website and can be found on iTunes.

Pioneers - Bloc Party:
If it can be broke then it can be fixed,
If it can be fused then it can be split
It's all under control (x4)
If it can be lost then it can be won,
If it can be touched then it can be turned
All you need is time (x5)
If it can be broke then it can be fixed,
If it can be fused then it can be split
It's all under control (x4)
If it can be lost then it can be won,
If it can be touched then it can be turned
All you need is time (x3)
All you need is ...
We promised the world we'd tame it, what were we hoping for? (x4)
A sense of purpose and a sense of skill,
a sense of function but a disregard
We will not be the first (x3),
We won't
You said you were going to conquer new frontiers,
Go stick your bloody head in the jaws of the beast
We promised the world, we'd tame it, what were we hoping for? (x4)
Breath in, breath out (x3)
Breath in ...
So here we are reinventing the wheel
I'm shaking hands with a hurricane
It's a colour that I can't describe,
It's a language I can't understand
Ambition, tearing out the heart of you
Carving lines into you
Dripping down the sides of you
We will not be the last. (x10)

As far as powers go I'm not entirely certain, but the lyrics seem to hint at destruction/construction over time. So perhaps the rapid decay of a structure (or structures) in his AOE, or the resurrection of a previously decrepit building to like-new status.
-Terry
-Terry
-----
"so listen up boy, or pornography starring your mother will be the second worst thing to happen to you today"
TF2: Spy

From the animated Tim Burton movie The Corpse Bride come a number of brilliant musical numbers, the one I'm putting forward is The Remains Of The Day, sung by the amazing Danny Elfman (Yes, the composer of the first two Spiderman movies) Here's a clip from Youtube containing the song and dance number,
www.youtube.com/watch?v=B...ed&search=

Reamains Of The Day - The Corpse Bride
BONEJANGLES
Hey! Give me a listen you corpses of cheer
Least those of you who still got an ear
I'll tell you a story make a skeleton cry
Of our own jubiliciously lovely corpse bride
BONE BOYS
Die, die we all pass away
But don't wear a frown cuz it's really okay
And you might try 'n' hide
And you might try 'n' pray
But we all end up the remains of the day
Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah
Yeah yeah yeah
BONEJANGLES
Well our girl is a beauty known for miles around
When a mysterious stranger came into town
He's plenty good lookin', but down on his cash
And our poor little baby, she fell hard and fast
When her daddy said no, she just couldn't cope
So our lovers came up with a plan to elope
BONE BOYS
Die, die we all pass away
But don't wear a frown cuz it's really okay
And you might try 'n' hide
And you might try 'n' pray
But we all end up the remains of the day
Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah
Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah
Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah
Yeah yeah yeah
(instrumental)
BONEJANGLES
So they conjured up a plan to meet late at night
They told not a soul, kept the whole thing tight
Now her mother's wedding dress fit like a glove
You don't need much when you're really in love
Except for a few things, or so I'm told
Like the family jewels and a satchel of gold
Then next to the grave yard by the old oak tree
On a dark foggy night at a quarter to three
She was ready to go, but where was he?
BONE BOYS
And then?
BONEJANGLES
She waited
BONE BOYS
And then?
BONEJANGLES
There in the shadows, was it the man?
BONE BOYS
And then?
BONEJANGLES
Het little heart beat so loud!
BONEBOYS
And then?
BONEJANGLES
And then baby, everything went black
Now when she opened her eyes she was dead as dust
Her jewels were missin' and her heart was bust
So she made a vow lyin' under that tree
That she'd wait for her true love to come set her free
Always waiting for someone to ask for her hand
When out of the blue comes this groovy young man
Who vows forever to be by her side
And that's the story of our own corpse briiiiiiide!
BONE BOYS
Die, die we all pass away
But don't wear a frown cuz it's really okay
And you might try 'n' hide
And you might try 'n' pray
But we all end up the remains... of... the day!

This is one that could go a number of ways depending on where Doug hears it, under what circumstances, or perhaps even what mood his subconscious is in when he hears it. Now depending if Doug will have heard the song in context, I.E watched the movie somewhere on the walk (maybe with Sana? It is meant to be a kids film after all), I think it'll cause the best case scenario of giving him the ability to summon packs of 'Bone Boys', IE skeleton soldiers, able to re-assemble their bones into other forms, such as weapons or useful tools (I.E forming themselves into a sword, shield and armor set made of bones for him to use, or if he summons enough, forming a bridge of bones to cross giant gaps or make paths for others) as well as fight or provide very versatile backing dancers. These'd obviously be useful in a number of ways during battle, both for fighting, as decoys or just plain terrifying the enemy.
It could also end up transforming him into a skeleton form as well, with the ambidextrous reshaping and abilities of the ones in the movie, or possibly any number of useful Necromancy related abilities.
Now if he hears it outside the movie and thus is unable to acquaint it to the characters in the film, it could possibly,
Summon up a simulacra of the Corpse Bride, but since Doug won't have seen the film and known the really rather lovely Emily, the titular bride, it would probably summon a more graphic corpse bride, a decaying ghoulish monster in a wedding dress. While this could theoretically be useful if he could control it, it'd probably be a disaster. He might also get necromancy abilities this way as well, but again due to lack of context they'd probably be warped, evil versions, which I doubt he'd be willing to use (I.E desecrating corpses)
It could make him the 'Groovy Young Man' in the song, thus making him utterly irresistible to all female undead. Yikes.
Summon up a simulacra of the Groovy Young Man, thus giving him a decoy able to draw the attention of all undead nearby,
And there's probably quite a few ideas I'm missing. So people, any thoughts?

'Human' Rights in Fenspace, or, A Loose Definition of People
The simplest definition of 'person' in Fenspace is widely accepted to be "An emotionally active entity that can disobey".
Of course, it's not that simple. The definition of 'emotionally active' commonly attached to that statement runs several hundred K of suggested testing methods, lists of AI and constructs that pass, and why, and a shorter list of same that have failed.
'Disobey' is just as complicated, though it lends itself better to simplification than 'Emotionally Active'. One of the prime requisites for sentient classification is that a being must be capable of disobeying a direct order, upon that being's better judgement. "Fly into the Sun" you say, and your expert system or human interface computer says "OK!" and things start to get very very hot. An artificial _Person_, on the other hand, tells you off, calls your mom, and offers a nice valium from the medicine chest.
Human or near-human beings generally pass these tests as a matter of fact. Parentage, inheritance, emancipation, responsibility, are all outside of the parameters of this document.
Any large or well-known settlement is capable of stating that an AI or other nonhuman intelligence is, in fact, sentient. So far, there is no overall governing body for this function, though most major stations and bases keep a copy of a database of sentient AI. Wire Geek - Burning the weak and trampling the dead since 1979Wire Geek - Burning the weak and trampling the dead since 1979

This caught my eye -
The prospect of all-female conception.
And I admit that it did so largely because of the Meltrandi in Macross and the anime Gall Force.
The other bit mentioned almost in passing in the story that the process in question would allow men to produce sperm if for mechanical or glandular reasons they couldn't produce it normally.
Taking all of the above into account along with emerging cloning technology and purpose grown bio-mods seem not too unlikely even with "dane-tech".
How much more powerful and robust the various processes would be for wave-tech I leave as an exercise for the reader as well as the implications of same.

-Logan
-----------------
"Wake up! Time for SCIENCE!"
-Adam Savage
-----------------

Tom Petty - Free Fallin' Lyrics
She's a good girl, loves her mama
loves Jesus and America too
She's a good girl, crazy 'bout Elvis
loves horses and her boyfriend too
It's a long day livin' in Reseda
there's a freeway runnin' through the yard
and I'm a bad boy, 'cause I don't even miss her
I'm a bad boy for breakin' her heart
Chorus
And I'm free, I'm free fallin'
All the vampires walkin' through the valley
move west down Ventura Blvd.
And all the bad boys are standing in the shadows
All the good girls are home with broken hearts
(Repeat Chorus)
I wanna glide down over Mulholland
I wanna write her name in the sky
I wanna free fall out into nothin'
Gonna leave this world for awhile
(Repeat Chorus)
My idea for this one was that when it's playing, Doug chooses a target in line of sight and that target looses all flight capability. Whether it uses wings, aerodynamics, magic, superpowers or whatever, it's suddenly falling like a brick.
On the down side, this also tends to effect Doug and people/vehicals carrying him, so it's not something you want to use in an aireil dogfight.
********************
Tom Petty - I Won't Back Down Lyrics
Well I won't back down, no I won't back down
you could stand me up at the gates of hell
but I won't back down
Gonna stand my ground, won't be turned around
and I'll keep this world from draggin' me down
gonna stand my ground and I won't back down
Chorus
Hey baby, there ain't no easy way out
hey I will stand my ground
and I won't back down
Well I know what's right, I got just one life
in a world that keeps on pushin' me around
but I'll stand my ground and I won't back down
Hey baby there ain't no easy way out
hey I will stand my ground
and I won't back down
No, I won't back down

'Break my stride' turns Doug into an irresistable force. This song makes him an immovable object.__________________
I bet that if you cooked an elephant, you'd have a lot of leftovers.
___________________________
"I've always wanted to be somebody, but I should have been more specific." - George Carlin

DO we have some specific nights when I'd be best off coming on? While I'm not really into teaming, I like having people to talk to, and I'm always into TFs if I have the time.--
Christopher Angel, aka JPublic
The Works of Christopher Angel
"Camaraderie, adventure, and steel on steel. The stuff of legend! Right, Boo?"

As of 4/13, the following group members have exceeded 120 days of inactivity:
Terrence King (147 days)
Warlock Wolf (136 days)
Lincoln Memorial (133 days)
If you play any of these characters, and you do not wish them to be removed from the Legendary, please log in at least momentarily with them to reset their inactivity counters sometime in the next couple days.
Thanks!

-- Bob
---------
The Internet Is For Norns.

Here's what M. John Harrison, author of Viriconium among other things, has to say about world-building:
"Every moment of a science fiction story must represent the triumph of writing over worldbuilding.
Worldbuilding is dull. Worldbuilding literalises the urge to invent."
Rest of the entry is from his blog:
uzwi.wordpress.com/2007/0...ry-afraid/
-murmur

Yes, its me asking a bunch of meta questions again, for the Writers Guide... but at least this time Ive pulled together some of the scattered data in various
threads in an effort to turn it into information. (Including the first nine pages of the original Plotbunny thread, which means theres probably more to come.)

Quote: Quote:

---

The Blue Blazer Irregulars




Followers of the teachings of Buckaroo Banzai, as set down by Earl Mac Rauch in The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai: Across the
Eighth Dimension and by W.D. Richter in the movie of the same name. The term Blue Blazer refers to the dark blue jackets that
members of this faction wear when in public and on duty. Even when not wearing the jackets, Blue Blazer Irregulars (Blue Blazers or BBIs for short) wear
either a patch or cloisonne pin depicting the back-to-back Bs of the Banzai Institute for Biomedical Research and Strategic Information. Blue Blazers are
known for their discipline and diversity of talent and knowledge, as well as their loyalty to Buckaroo Banzai. The Blue Blazer Irregulars are closely
affiliated with the Pulpers and Supers, but on the whole, are congenial with all factions.




Noted BBIs include Blackstone (captain of the World Watch One) and Jonathon Helscher (captain of
the Inelegant Truth).




The Banzai Institute for Biomedical Research and Strategic Information is a non-profit organization that handles business concerns for the Blue Blazer
Irregulars in the Danelaw. The Institute concerns itself with altruistic pursuits as simple as literacy and as complex as disaster rescue and relief. The
Institute is also developing a global network similar to what is in the DC comic book Global Frequency
. The Institute coordinates local agents and global experts to solve problems using a massive and widespread thinktank - if something
is going on, the Institute will be drawing upon the expertise of Blazers and consultants across the planet and in Fenspace, via satellite and Interwave
communications. Blazers report situations in their area or are called upon to investigate, based on their abilities. If something crosses the Institutes
radar, theres a possibility that anyone (Blue Blazer or not), anywhere, can get a phone call that starts, Good afternoon, (person's name here), this is
Buckaroo Banzai, and youre on the Global Frequency...




The Banzai Institute is registered in both the United States and the European Union. Its mailing address is listed as a P.O. Box located in Dallas, Texas.
Both the P.O. Box and the email domain, banzai-institute.org, are registered under a shell corporation, managed by a woman known only as Mrs. Johnson.

---

Quote: Quote:

---

Ninjaburger




The second-most profitable venture of the Village Hidden in the Asteroids, and one of the few subculture references physically implemented in Fenspace that
is properly licensed with its owners in the Danelaw.

---

Quote: Quote:

---

Conventions




I should probably elaborate some more on the Convention, since the whole thing was my idea in the first place. So:




The Convention is fandom's big experiment with direct democracy. The vast majority of fen come from the western liberal social tradition, so they by and
large don't automatically view government as a bad thing. (There are exceptions, such as the neo-Heinleinian & Discordian anarchist movements that
haunt the Main Belt, but those are another story.) The problem is, fandom is spread out all over the solar system with only an intermittent FTL
phone/internet system to keep it tied together.




The fractions provide a localized solution, but one that only works within the confines of their organization. Any attempt to expand, say, the Starfleet code
over the entirety of fandom would be met with resistance by the other fractions. The fractions also can't provide a solid framework for the independents
& other free agents who make up about half of the total population of Fenspace. So, the Convention was born.




The Convention was (ICly & OOCly) based loosely on Worldcon. Most folks think of Worldcon as the biggest SF-related party of the year, and they're
right about that. What a lot of folks, particularly those who've never been to one, *don't* know is that Worldcon is also a major business occasion
for the attendees. Worldcon plays host to the SFWA annual meeting (when the con's in the US) as well as voting for the Hugo Awards, providing attendees
the chance to network with publishers, and so on.




When a Convention is called - usually once a year, time and place determined at the previous Convention - as much of fandom as can arrives at the designated
area. There aren't a lot of places in Fenspace that can hold a quarter-million fans (and rising; between births and immigration Fenspace has a pretty
respectable growth rate) which means that sometimes Conventions are held partly on the station and partly on a cloud of spaceships surrounding it.




(As a note for the current storyline: Phobos Station is on the list of places capable of holding the entire Nation at one go. And now back to our feature
presentation.)




The first day of the Convention involves arrivals, sometimes opening ceremonies with the appropriate amount of bombast, drinking, dancing and networking.
Nobody is expected to *work* opening day, since most folks are tired enough from the trip in. On the second day, once the hangovers have cleared, the actual
work begins.




The next two to three days are filled with panel discussions. If you've *ever* been to a con, you know what this means. Panels at the Convention tend to
feel a bit more like Senate committee hearings, though. This is where the initial groundwork in setting rules & regs is done. Evenings are generally like
regular cons, with plenty of night activities for the general attendees.




Once all the panels have been concluded, all the information is carefully collated and sent to the organizers, who then spend a day or so transforming rants
and raves into something resembling laws and government. This annual constitution (because that's really what it is) is then distributed to the masses
for review before the vote. That usually takes another day or two.




Then, they vote. The vote is done by traditional means on the floor (usually by ballot, though sometimes voice if the measure's simple enough) and
electronic means for attendees who can't fit onto the main floor. The votes are then tallied and the results read out to the membership. Another night of
partying after the vote, and the fen wander back to their old lives.




The key thing to remember here is that whatever is voted on by a Convention is binding on all
members of the Convention, which is why the Nation makes it such a big deal to get the entirety of fandom together each time. No major fraction avoids the
Convention, and each enforces the rules enacted at the Convention. The alternative would split Fenspace, and (so far) the SMOFs have agreed that unity in the
face of the 'danelaw is better than trying to go their own ways and being crushed.




Almost forgot. Worldcon has a thing called "non-attending memberships," which means even if you don't get to go, you still get to vote on the
stuff open for membership vote. Since the Convention evolved from Worldcon, it has the same thing for non-attendees. Non-attending members only get to review
& vote on the final document; they have no input. This cuts down on the number of fen and "fen" who think they can do whatever they want
because "the government doesn't apply to me!" (It's kind of like an EULA; acceptance of the document means you accept the terms of the
agreement, even if you never bother to read it. Sort of a dirty trick, but it does help establish Fenspace authority through the system.)




So, what does all this verbiage have to do with Haruhi's Convention?




Not so much, really.




Traditionally the Convention only comes together once a year, but there's a clause in the commonly-upheld constitution (not even fen are nutty enough to
completely revise the entire body of law every year) that allows for a Convention "to be called by any group during a time of extreme crisis." The
point of the clause was to provide for something like a wartime government; at the time the authors were worried that the mundanes might try to attack the
fledgling Fenspace as a terrorist threat or somesuch.




Haruhi and her SOS Brigade are willfully - you might even say gleefully - abusing the crisis clause for their own benefit. This particular Convention was
called to address a single initiative, under the logic that if a Convention agrees to the initiative, then it becomes fannish law.




What's the initiative?




I'll tell you once I figure it out.




In the meantime, it's all the party without the governing work.

---

Heres a Combat Group of Cars (and other Vehicles) that could be 'Waved'.
I give you The Road Squadron