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An Abandoned Step
An Abandoned Step
#1
I've mentioned this over in the "public knowledge" thread, but late last year I started, then abandoned, a Step that put Doug in the world of Harry Potter.
Why did I give up on it? Three reasons. One, it was a violation of one of my primary rules for fanfiction -- don't do fics in live franchises. Harry Potter is still going strong, and looks to keep going that way for a few more years yet. There's always a chance that fic'ing a live series or show can have unexpected negative effects on it; I'd rather wait until the story's done before adding my own encrustations.
The second reason is after I finished reading Goblet of Fire, I wasn't sure I liked the direction things were heading, and grew increasingly unsure of where I could fit Doug in.
And the third? Too much of what I had written, instead of gently satirizing SI excesses as I do elsewhere in the Walk, actually were SI excesses. Doug beating up Lucius Malfoy and Professor Snape, for example, because I didn't like the characters. Unforgiveable. Until I can approach those two with the kind of viewpoint with which I came at Katherine Madigan (for example), I'm not going to do the story properly.
Anyway, here are a couple of passages from what would have been (and may yet be) called Harry Potter and the Man From Otherearth.
-- Bob
(Edited to correct Malfoy's first name. He is not Luscious Jackson. )
"You see, in most worlds where magic exists, it's well known andmages spring from mundane stock all the time. In fact the mostpowerful wizards are usually mundane-born -- hybrid vigor, youknow."Hermione nodded sagely while Ron just looked puzzled. Harrythought suddenly of Lord Voldemort's Muggle father, whileColonel Sangnoir went on."The thing is, in most worlds, the mage gift is a very trickything. Yes, it can run in families, but it's a recessive trait --which means it can appear in and disappear from bloodlines allthe time. The only way to guarantee its continual presence is torisk a fair amount of inbreeding, which has its own dangers." Helooked thoughtful. "You said that the dark wizards and theirsympathizers are big 'pure-blood' fanatics?"Hermione scowled furiously. "Yes," she spat.The Colonel nodded. "Then they're probably inbreeding as closelyas the European royal families did in the 19th century. Damnshame." He shook his head. "I wonder if it's even worse thanthat. Hermione, you mentioned that Draco's mother is named'Narcissa'?""Yes, sir," she replied."Did she look much like Draco's father?""You know," Ron mused, "she did... enough to be his... sister?"He thought of himself and Ginny, then stuck his tongue out."Eew. That's sick."The Colonel chuckled. "Some cultures didn't think so -- theEgyptian Pharaohs married brothers and sisters all the time,supposedly to keep the 'power of the gods' they embodiedcontained within their bloodline. That's part of the reasonthere are no Pharaohs any more," he added almost as an aside."But I was thinking something even worse, since even in wizardingsociety I don't think they'd allow incestuous marriages. Iwonder if she's Lucius's anima...""His what?" Harry asked."His female nature, given separate form and life," Hermionerecited, then made a face. "That's even more sick."Colonel Sangnoir nodded seriously. "Yeah, it is. But for afanatical racial purist, it'd be the perfect solution to keepingthe bloodline pure -- after all, no racist thinks his genes areanything but the purest, and an anima would have identical genes,except for the double-X chromosome, guaranteeing a child ofunparallelled 'purity'. Bleah," he growled. "Fanatics, you knowI hate'em.""The double-X what?" Ron asked.Hermione looked about to launch into an explanation, but theColonel cut her off. "Later, Hermione, later. It's notimportant." He frowned. "You'd think he'd've given her a bettername, though. 'Narcissa' is just *so* obvious. Overconfidence,I suppose." * * *"Ow!" Harry drew up short as he stumbled into Ron and Hermione,who stood stock-still with surprise in the classroom doorway."C'mon in," a man's voice called from within, a familiar tenorvoice with a clearly American accent. "I'm not going to bite."Peering around his friends' heads, Harry realized that behind thelectern at the far end of the room was the traveler."At last," came a snide voice from behind him. "A teacher whodoesn't know about Harry 'I'm So Famous' Potter."Harry didn't have to turn around to identify Draco Malfoy, so hedidn't. Instead, he simply followed Ron and Hermione to theirusual seats...."Good morning, class," the traveler said once everyone hadsettled down. "My name is Colonel Douglas Sangnoir, and I amyour new instructor in the Defense Against The Dark Arts. Assome of you may already know, I am a native of another universeentirely. Those of you with so-called 'Muggle' backgrounds willbe familiar with the concept of the 'superhero.' My world lacksthat word, but I have been assured that I am one. As a result, Ipossess perspectives and experiences that Headmaster Dumbledorethinks you can make use of." He paused to survey the class. "Iagree. For a magically-active Earth, your world is a relativelycalm and peaceful one, and as a result, you are..." He smiled."Well, if I were instructing a band of new recruits, I'd bellowin your faces that you were soft and weak, drill sergeant-style."A few members of the class laughed nervously. Colonel Sangnoirwalked around to the front of the table next to the lectern andseated himself on it with a hop. With another smile heacknowledged the laughter. "What you are, though, is remarkablyprivileged. Most worlds with as much magic as yours faceterrible threats -- active demonic infiltration, eldritchcreatures the sight of whom can drive men mad, hundred-metermonsters strolling through cities. My own home world, which isrelatively weak in magic, was the target of a massive, concertedinvasion of vampires that we only barely fought off."Not a sound could be heard through the classroom now, and Harryshivered at the thought of an army of vampires slowly taking overthe world. He shuddered at the sudden image of the Dursleysturned into vampires. Lord Voldemort seemed almost comfortableand friendly in comparison.Sensing the mood of the class, Colonel Sangnoir nodded gravely."It was quite touch-and-go for a while, and my wife was almostturned into a vampire in the process. But we won, finally. Idon't want to get into it right now, but later in the term Ipromise I'll tell you something about that campaign." He hoppedoff the table again. "Which probably has you all wondering,what's this guy going to teach us, right?"A murmur of assent swept through the class, and Harry foundhimself contributing to it. A quick glance to either side showednot only Hermione but Ron as well watching the Colonel with wide,interested eyes.The Colonel stepped around the table, picked up a piece of chalk,and stood at the board. "What we're going to cover this term arethese points -- you might want to note them down, as they're keyconcepts," he noted, at which two dozen pencils hovered over twodozen notebooks. "First, the nature of evil. Second, evil andmagic. Thirdly, strategy and tactics." He scrawled each topicon the board in an unrestrained hand, underlining each one, thenturned back to face them. "This is *not* going to be a 'recipeclass'. You are not going to learn a list of 'if-thens' here --'if confronted by a blue-tailed eyebiter, then throw salt at it.'You are going to learn about the nature of evil, how it works,how it thinks, why it does what it does. You are going to learnhow to identify it at work even when it's disguised, how to spotits tools and deflect or break them. When it comes specificallyto evil magic, you will not learn just simple countercharms. Youwill learn how defend against any evil magic, without knowingwhat it is. You will gain reflexes against it, become able toreact and defend before you consciously know you've beenattacked. If I can, I will even teach you how to transmute evilmagic -- which is a quick way of saying that you'll learn how tosteal its magical energy to fuel your own spells while justincidentally killing it in the process." He leaned forward andraked his eyes over each and every one of them in the class. "Iwill be teaching you techniques developed by mages in worldswhere every single day is a struggle simply to survive againstlegions of sorcerous monsters. I will teach you not only how todefend against evil, but how to hunt it down and destroy it."The room was absolutely silent. Then a single voice in the backranks whispered loudly, "Cor! All that in one term?" A wave oflaughter crashed over the room, releasing the tension that hadgrown during the Colonel's monologue. Even the Colonel himselflaughed, Harry noted with some relief."I'll try, at least," he said, still chuckling. "Which means weneed to get started right away." He clapped his hands together,raising a small cloud of chalk dust. "Right! Before you candefend against evil, you must be able to identify it. So. Whatis evil? Define it please..." He searched through the students,ignoring Hermione's vigorously-waving hand. "...Mister Malfoy."Draco Malfoy smirked. "The opposite of good, sir," he answered,the barest hint of mockery in his voice.Colonel Sangnoir -- Harry couldn't imagine calling him"Professor" -- apparently heard the barely-there mocking tone,and raised one eyebrow. "I see we're a sophist, Mister Malfoy.That was a classic no-answer answer. While technically correct,it is devoid of meaning and thus unacceptable." His jovial tonesuddenly chilled. "Smart aleck responses will gain you no favorsin this class, Mister Malfoy. Minus five points to HouseSlytherin."The Slytherins in the class fumed, while the other studentsgiggled, murmured and chuckled among themselves. Behind hisglasses, Harry blinked. He glanced at the Slytherin boy.Malfoy's usual reserve cracked and a look of pure fury blazedacross his face for a moment; then he noticed Harry watching himand recomposed himself, and returned Harry's interest with abaleful, reptilian stare. Harry snorted and returned hisattention to the instructor.The Colonel's voice had gone back to being friendly. "You'llfind I'm easy to get along with, if you understand this: I amhere to teach you things that will save your lives, the lives ofyour loved ones, and possibly the lives of untold innocents. ButI have a limited amount of time in which to do so. I don't mindwrong answers, if they're sincerely offered. I *do* minddisruptive behavior, sniping at myself or other students, and badattitudes. For those of you who can't think of it any other way,consider this: I could easily tutor five or six promisingstudents instead of teaching an open class. If an atmospheredevelops that makes this class impossible, then I *will* switchto tutoring. That will mean the students I select will have anadvantage -- one literally unavailable elsewhere in this universe-- over those who are denied the tutoring." His voice went coldagain, and Harry realized that his eyes rested solely on DracoMalfoy. "Do I make myself understood?""Yes, sir," the class replied in a chorus of desultory murmurs."Good. Now, where were we? Right. The definition of evil.Does anyone else have any *useful* ideas?"Hermione's hand was waving so hard that Harry thought it coulddrive a windmill."Miss Granger?"Hermione stood up. "Evil is selfishness," she said primly.Colonel Sangnoir nodded. "Good. Very good. Anyone else?""Bullies!""Murderers!""People who hate!"The whole class began shouting out all manner of despicablebehaviors, as Colonel Sangnoir nodded. Harry kept silent,thinking about the evil he come face to face with over the pastfew years, and tried to figure out if there were a common elementto it all. Next to him, Hermione hmphed in annoyance as theanswers offered began to dip into the trivial and silly."Objects," Harry suddenly blurted."What was that, Mister..." Colonel Sangnoir consulted theseating chart on the lectern. "Mister Potter?"Harry started; he hadn't realized he'd spoken aloud. He tried toignore the flush of embarassment he felt climbing up his face."Um. Objects, sir. All the really evil people I've ever mettreated people like... like *things* you could use up and throwout without a care."A broad smile broke across the Colonel's face. "Exactly. Onekey identifying characteristic of evil is that it sees all otherliving creatures -- sentient beings or not -- as objects to use,abuse, and discard in order to achieve its goals. Empathy isalien to it; it has no care for others' feelings, except when itdelights in their manipulation. Most of the other attributes theclass was suggesting, especially Miss Granger's suggestion, are*symptoms* of evil. Very good, Mister Potter. Five pointsto..." He scrabbled for the seating chart again. "What's yourhouse, Mister Potter?""Gryffindor, sir." Harry couldn't help but smile slightly; Ronand Hermione were less restrained."Right. Five points to Gryffindor." He scratched a few lines onthe seating chart with a handy pencil, then looked back up."There is another key attribute of evil. Any guesses?"The room grew silent as thirty-five youthful faces scowled inintense concentration. Harry, without realizing it, was amongthem. He dug through his memories of his confrontations withLord Voldemort in his various guises, from the youthful TomRiddle to the murderer of his parents whom he could not reallyremember, and tried to find something in common among all ofthem."Anyone?" the Colonel asked of the quiet classroom.Harry bit his lip as he thought of a possibility. Hesitantly, heraised his hand."Mr. Potter?" The Colonel's tone seemed slightly amused, but notmocking.Harry swallowed. His answer didn't seem to make sense, but itfit the facts... "Evil... it seems to think it's *Good*, sir."Another brilliant smile broke across the teacher's face and henodded approvingly. "Very good, Mr. Potter." He turned hisattention on the rest of the class. "Evil -- *real* Evil -- isconvinced it is Good. It is, in fact, *far* more certain that itis Good than Good is -- and that's how you can often tell thedifference. Good doubts itself -- it's a necessary mechanismthat *keeps* it Good. Evil never doubts itself, its motives orits methods. It deludes itself, or lets itself be easily deludedby others, that it is always in the right. It is alwaysconvinced that what it does is Good. Of course, it usuallyredefines 'Good' to mean 'what *it* wants'."He sat back down on the edge of the table. "If you ever havedoubts about the rightness of a course you have set yourself on,you are at the very least redeemable. Only the irredeemably evilare ever *absolutely* sure of their actions." He folded hishands together except for the forefingers, which he held to hislips in a gesture that seemed solemn and reverent. "Take thisfrom someone who once held a dying demon in his arms as shebegged for forgiveness and tried to reconcile herself to Heaven."...As the classroom emptied, Colonel Sangnoir called out, "Mr.Potter, a moment before you go, please." Ron and Hermione tradedgrins as Harry halted at the door and turned back to stand by thepodium.The Colonel carefully waited until the room had emptied, thenstudied Harry intently. "You've faced true Evil in some form,Mr. Potter," he said without preamble."Yes, sir," Harry replied quietly. "A few times, sir.""And you've come out on top, I presume?""So far, sir. With the help of my friends," he added truthfully.Colonel Sangnoir snorted. "And you're how old, Harry? Fifteen?Sixteen?""Fifteen as of July, sir."The teacher frowned and shook his head. "That young." Onceagain he studied Harry, but this time his eyes seemed to unfocus,and Harry felt a strange shiver go through him, like someone hadrun a cold finger down his back. "Your aura doesn't showanything strange, Harry," the Colonel continued, "but I'll layodds that you're a Hero.""Sir?"The Colonel slid behind the podium once more and slammed a bookshut. "You remember what I said about tutoring at the beginningof today's class? I will be giving you some. I'll arrangematters with your other teachers and your Quidditch coach so Idon't step on anyone's toes, but you will be getting some privatelessons from me after regular class hours.""In what, sir?"He paused and studied Harry once again, and Harry felt as thoughthe gaze of those blue-grey eyes were sifting through his soul."Magecraft, boy. Not the formulaic wand-waving they teach here,but true wizardry. You don't have the strongest magegift I'veever seen, but it'll do." He chuckled suddenly. "Oh, yes, it'lldo." He laid a hand on Harry's shoulder. "Prepare yourself,Harry. What I'm going to teach you will rock your world."
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
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Re: An Abandoned Step
#2
I know why you're not continuing this one right now, and I won't get into the argument over whether you should or not, but I certainly would like it if you continued this one. As I've said before, there's no reason you have to follow the existing stories - adding something to the middle and dropping what comes afterwards is a perfectly reasonable method of writing fanfiction [Image: smile.gif]
And just for reference, there's apparently an "official" Harry Potter fanfiction portal on the HP web site, so at some level HP Fanfic is at least tolerated...
In any case, I like what you have so far, and I hope the muse someday comes back and you finish this one.
Offsides
Drunkard's Walk Forum Moderator and Prereader At Large
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Re: An Abandoned Step
#3
Ack. I just realized that there's a spoiler in there for other Steps that I forgot to edit out. Oh, well... I could go back in and edit it, but enough folks have no doubt seen it already...
Josh, what's the official HP site's URL? I wouldn't mind checking out that fanfiction section and seeing what the terms, etc. are. As you are hoping, I may change my mind. But HPATMFO is going to be a low-priority project for the nonce.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
Reply
Re: An Abandoned Step
#4
I was wondering about that, but it didn't quite hit frontbrain until you moentioned it [Image: smile.gif]
I'm not certain of the exact URL, but I believe tha base is www.harrypotter.com. I only know about the fanfic part because a friend of mine told me that she has a fic up there. One of these days when I have a reasonable net connection I may try to navigat to it, but right now it's just to hard on my dialup (bad lines yield a typical speed equal to a 28.8K modem [Image: frown.gif] )
Offsides
Drunkard's Walk Forum Moderator and Prereader At Large
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Re: An Abandoned Step
#5
> www.harrypotter.com
Well, damn. How do they expect people to find the site if they obfuscate the URL like that?

> but right now it's just to hard on my dialup (bad lines yield a typical speed equal to a
> 28.8K modem
Sounds like my usual connection.
-- Bob
(heading to Potterland...)
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
Reply
Re: An Abandoned Step
#6
I've really got to turn off that auto-signature thing. It's more annoying than useful.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
Reply
Re: An Abandoned Step
#7
BTW, in case you haven't seen it, the online comic strip Sluggy Freelance did a wonderful parody of Harry Potter over the past few weeks -- www.sluggy.com if you're interested.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
Reply
Re: An Abandoned Step
#8
You know, reading the classroom sequence and the definitions of evil made me think of something else to add to the discussion, if possible. This could come up in another sequence. In fact it would be better if it did.
One of Doug's defining characteristics is that he is a clown in the sense of "a Warrior who fights Gloom". I could see him making a self deprecating joke or even something bordering on a pratfall to relieve tension or to open up a class - in order to set up the following point -
Another defining element of Evil - true Evil - is that it cannot laugh at itself. The only humor it knows comes at the expense of others.
Good people can enjoy a laugh at their own expense, they can even specifically make jokes about their own weaknesses. True evil admits no weaknesses, so cannot abide jokes about itself.
Ah - good example - excellent example, in fact - would be the climactic sequence in the movie "Batman Beyond - Return of the Joker", when Batman/Terry outjokes the Joker. The Joker has plenty of fun at others expense, but cannot take a joke at himself, and completely loses his cool when Terry turns the tables on him.
If an otherwise evil creature is capable of even a little bit of self-deprecating humor, it could be taken as a sign that it is not totally irredeemable.

-Logan
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Re: An Abandoned Step
#9
Quote:
One of Doug's defining characteristics is that he is a clown in the sense of "a Warrior who fights Gloom". I could see him making a self deprecating joke or even something bordering on a pratfall to relieve tension or to open up a class - in order to set up the following point -
Another defining element of Evil - true Evil - is that it cannot laugh at itself. The only humor it knowscomes at the expense of others.
Hmmm. I like that, that's a good idea. I think I'll paste that into the Harry Potter file for possible future use. Thanks!
(After editing the Harry Potter file.) And oddly enough, this led me down the path to a way to rescue some of the Snape/Doug interaction without deleting or editing it heavily... thanks again.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
Reply
Re: An Abandoned Step
#10
Glad to help out!
BTW, I was trying to picture Doug teaching the class, and wondering what he was wearing at that point. His duty uniform or something more appropriate to Hogwarts? Somehow I think his duty uniform, helmet and gloves off and collar loosened casually, with one of those loose robes over it might look cool. Almost Jedi-ish. I guess he'd keep his helmet close by, sitting on the teacher's desk behind him at the front of the class.
Ooh! Love to see his reaction to a Quidditch game!
Perhaps something like -
"After watching for only a few minutes with my head whipping back and forth, trying to keep track of the action, I came to the conclusion that if you crossed Rugby with a bit of Polo, Top Gun and a Formula 1 race you might get something close to Quidditch. I'd never seen a more insane game! I loved it! I'd have to remember to save some space on my helmet computer and copy some notes and rules down.
Maybe I could come up with some variant of it for home? There's plenty of flying metas who'd go for something like this! I wonder if Dwimanor might be able to help out? Surely he'd know someone who could enchant some equipment?"
-Logan
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Re: An Abandoned Step
#11
That's just crazy enough, it just might work! I think that abandoning this story would be a pointless excercise. Besides, by the time Doug's ready for the Potter universe, the book series will likely be done with. (note: I am not trying to insult your writing speed.)
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Re: An Abandoned Step
#12
Quote:
BTW, I was trying to picture Doug teaching the class, and wondering what he was wearing at that point. His duty uniform or something more appropriate to Hogwarts? Somehow I think his duty uniform, helmet and gloves off and collar loosened casually, with one of those loose robes over it might look cool. Almost Jedi-ish. I guess he'd keep his helmet close by, sitting on the teacher's desk behind him at the front of the class.
Ooh! Love to see his reaction to a Quidditch game!
Both good ideas... (cut'n'paste, cut'n'paste...)

-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
Reply
Re: An Abandoned Step
#13
Quote:
I think that abandoning this story would be a pointless excercise. Besides, by the time Doug's ready for the Potter universe, the book series will likely be done with. (note: I am not trying to insult your writing speed.)
Oh, no problem, I understand. I'll be the first to admit that this past year has gone much more slowly on the fic-writing front than usual, and for many good reasons...

-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
Reply
Re: An Abandoned Step
#14
So I'm wondering - does Snape get the Madigan treatment in this story? Seems to me from what I've read (the first 3 books) that he's not exactly evil per se, just very very bitter. One wonders how he got that way...
-Logan
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Re: An Abandoned Step
#15
To avoid giving spoilers for book 4, I'd say my closest analogue to Snape is Tommy Lee Jones' character in The Fugitive - it's not that he's a "bad guy", he's just a stickler for the rules and doesn't necessarily care about what's right...
If you want more details and/or spoilers, ask me offline...
Offsides
Drunkard's Walk Forum Moderator and Prereader At Large
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Re: An Abandoned Step
#16
Quote:
So I'm wondering - does Snape get the Madigan treatment in this story? Seems to me from what I've read (the first 3 books) that he's not exactly evil per se, just very very bitter.
In the DW Step? Hard to say; it's really still just a cloud of uncoordinated ideas at the moment. You're right, Snape isn't really evil, not in the way the Malfoys are -- he's more like (to use D&D terms) Lawful Neutral with a few long-standing grudges.
Quote:
One wonders how he got that way...
Well, Prisoner of Azkaban explains part of the story. I suspect that N years of being passed over for DADA professor has had its effects, too...

-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
Reply
Re: An Abandoned Step
#17
I always got the impression that Professor Snape was the quintessential example of the old joke: "Why are academic politics so cut-throat?" (Answer: "Because the stakes are so small"). He's a man who is demonstratably one of the more qualified practitioners of his art (despite his prickly nature, a number of people go to him for potions and the like in the first three books), who has also been teased by his peers for his aloof nature and lack of humor for many years. I got the impression that he became a teacher because he wanted people to respect him and sees the rejection of his application for the Defense Against the Dark Arts chair as more of the same persecution that he's endured for years. He's not evil, just neurotic.
Disclaimer: I haven't read Goblet of Fire yet, so my opinions are only based on the first three books.
Ebony the Black Dragon
aka Draco Draconis Ebenium
known to Harper Press as Aaron F. Johnson
Senior Editor, Living Room Games
www.lrgames.com
Ebony the Black Dragon
http://ebony14.livejournal.com

"Good night, and may the Good Lord take a Viking to you."
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Re: An Abandoned Step
#18
I can see that too. Read book 4, it'll explain a bit more (and it's a good read [Image: smile.gif] )
Offsides
Drunkard's Walk Forum Moderator and Prereader At Large
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To Horror in the begining dinner
#19
What tould happen if his metagift triggered on the hogwarts song, the one that everyone sings in the opening dinner? just think hundreds of the the same song all sung to a diffrent tune. Chaos anyone?
oh did you have anthing else for the step that you would be willing to post?
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Re: To Horror in the begining dinner
#20
Quote:
What tould happen if his metagift triggered on the hogwarts song, the one that everyone sings in the opening dinner?
Well, nothing, actually -- first, as I recall, it's all a capella, and Doug's power requires music and lyrics to trigger. Secondly, two or more different pieces of music playing cancel each other out and don't cause any power to manifest at all; iif everyone's singing a different tune, Doug can sit there and grin and not have to worry about it.
Quote:
oh did you have anthing else for the step that you would be willing to post?
Nope. What's above is about all there is that I'm comfortable with sharing at the moment. Remember, this is currently a low-priority Step, almost zero priority. Even the half-hypothetical Sailor Moon Step gets more brainshare than this one does at the moment.

-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
Reply
Re: To Horror in the begining dinner
#21
Quote:
Doug's power requires music and lyrics to trigger.
Interesting. So he'd have no problem listening to a Baptist Choir, so long as someone unplugged the organ. Huh. Does his talent care if the music and the lyrics go together particularly well, or can I read "Tyger, Tyger" with William Tell playing the background and set of Doug's gift?
-Z
----
If architects built buildings the way programmers write programms, the first woodpecker to come along would destroy civilization.
-Z, Post-reader at Medium
----
If architects built buildings the way programmers write programs, the first woodpecker to come along would destroy civilization.
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Re: To Horror in the begining dinner
#22
It specifically needs to be a song -- the words must scan, must fit the rhythm and meter of the music. They don't need to rhyme -- there's no shortage of interesting, good songs that have odd or non-existent rhyme schemes -- but it must be something singable, sung with appropriate music.
Oh, and as thrashed out long ago, different versions by different artists have varying effects, although they all tend to cluster around the same general "theme". Different versions by the same artist, as long as the orchestration/arrangement doesn't change dramatically, have identical effects. "Canon" example: As noted in chapter, um, 2, I think, Doug prefers to use the "bootleg concert version" of "On The Dark Side" instead of the album single because, among other reasons, it lasts longer; both have the same effect, though.

-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
Reply
Re: To Horror in the begining dinner
#23
Quote:
Well, nothing, actually -- first, as I recall, it's all a capella[/a], and Doug's power requires music and lyrics to trig
Doug's your character, so you get to make the rules about what affects him, but I will take exception to the above statement as fact. A capella[/a] simply means "unaccompanied", meanin that all of the music is produced by the singers' voices. Lyrics without music is speaking, which would obviously not trigger Doug's gift. [i]A cap[/i] songs can be quite powerful in their own right, often because there's nothing to take away from the natural harmonies of the singers.
Doug's gift may require both vocal and instrumental music with lyrics, but that's not the same as what you said.
Offsides (can you tell I'm a singer? [Image: smile.gif] )Drunkard's Walk Forum Moderator and Prereader At Large
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Re: To Horror in the begining dinner
#24
Quote:[Image: grin.gif]D"> oug's gift may require both vocal and instrumental music with lyrics, but that's not the same as what you said.
It is, however, what I meant.

-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
Reply
Re: To Horror in the begining dinner
#25
Quote:
Offsides (can you tell I'm a singer?)
And just how can you tell when you have a singer at your front door?

He can't find the key, and doesn't know when to come in!
(RIMSHOT)
Thank you. Thank you. I'm here all week. Try the veal! ^_^
-Logan
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