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Another thought occurred to me... - David Lewis - 04-07-2021
So another random question - It says in the FAQ that Doug has to understand a song's lyrics to gain powers from it, would this work on a foreign language song if he had read a translation of the lyrics before hand? Does he need to be at least partially fluent?
The reason I ask is I was perusing song ideas and thought about the classic Duel Of The Fates from the Star Wars prequel trilogy. I thought the lyrics were in Latin, but it turns out that it's actually a old Welsh story/poem loosely translated into Sanskrit.
The reason it gives me pause is because the poem (Cad Goddeu - The Battle Of The Trees) itself screams Power Song to me - it's about the old Welsh folk hero/mythological figure Gwydion animating a forest full of trees into an army of warriors to fight for him (amongst a lot of other random things).
But in the hypothetical 'gain powers by learning the lyrics beforehand' scenario, would Doug get the 'Turn Trees Into Fighters' powers, or would his subconscious be more likely to go towards 'Song Lyrics+Star Wars Association = Jedi Powers'. It could go either way for me.
Another wrinkle is whilst the song is based on the Battle Of The Trees the actual (loosely) translated lyrics in the song don't actually mention trees - it's mostly just variations of the words speak, dreadful and give. This goes into another question - it says in the FAQ that Doug goes by what his subconscious is drawn to by a song rather then the literal meaning in the words - would the hypothetical knowledge of the original poem make his subconscious focus on that, and thus get the proposed Tree power, or the Star Wars=Jedi power? Or no power given the lyrics in context are kind of gibberish?
A link to the song for people wanting a reminder.
RE: Another thought occurred to me... - classicdrogn - 04-07-2021
It would be funny if the original song gave him tree army powers ala Hamlet or LoTR, but Duel of the Fates engages as a remake and the "make the words sound cool" shoddy translation means he gets, like, a single animated shrubbery or something.
But it's an eeevil shrubbery! With thorns! And poisonous little bright red fruits!
RE: Another thought occurred to me... - Bob Schroeck - 04-07-2021
No, it has to be a language Doug speaks well enough that he doesn't have to take the time to translate either on paper or in his head -- basic conversational fluency at a minimum. Just remembering what a set of lyrics means when translated into English will not suffice.
The languages he currently can use for songs are English, French, Japanese and Valdemaran. For simplicity's sake I use songs in English lyrics almost exclusively in the narrative.
RE: Another thought occurred to me... - Ebony - 04-08-2021
(04-07-2021, 03:47 PM)Bob Schroeck Wrote: No, it has to be a language Doug speaks well enough that he doesn't have to take the time to translate either on paper or in his head -- basic conversational fluency at a minimum. Just remembering what a set of lyrics means when translated into English will not suffice.
The languages he currently can use for songs are English, French, Japanese and Valdemaran. For simplicity's sake I use songs in English lyrics almost exclusively in the narrative.
It'd be an interesting test of fluency for Doug for music in a language that he was learning suddenly triggered his powers, when it hadn't before. It probably happened to at least once.
Doug (watching an explosion of magical energy spring into being): "Welp. Guess I'm not listening to Edith Piaf anymore...."
RE: Another thought occurred to me... - Bob Schroeck - 04-08-2021
Heh.
RE: Another thought occurred to me... - Labster - 04-09-2021
And that's how you cook Rice Piaf.
RE: Another thought occurred to me... - Bob Schroeck - 04-09-2021
Actually, I have a particular favorite Edith Piaf song which would suit Doug perfectly and almost surely wouldn't blow up.
At least not on that scale.
RE: Another thought occurred to me... - jonathanlennox - 04-12-2021
(04-07-2021, 03:47 PM)Bob Schroeck Wrote: The languages he currently can use for songs are English, French, Japanese and Valdemaran.
Oh! I didn't realize that Doug spoke French.
That means a Miraculous Ladybug step is possible...
RE: Another thought occurred to me... - Bob Schroeck - 04-12-2021
Well.... the official itinerary of the Walk is pretty much locked down, but there's always room for a fan-written Stagger. Or even just a nanoStep.
EDIT: And yeah, he has to speak French, as it's still one of the official languages for the UN and its various subsidiaries, along with other international organizations. At the time I created the character, I believe it was still the official language of international diplomacy, but things have changed somewhat over the last 35 years.