Adrian Tymes wrote:
Benjamin Goldberg wrote:
Kyhdin@aol.com wrote:
Ever since that damned Jusenkyoin had smacked him with that damn
virus, Saotome had spent half his life as a woman and as he did now
whenever he thought about them, took a moment to curse the entire
genomancers guild.
Given that it's a geno*mancer*'s guild, which sounds like it means
genetic magic, why is his gender-changing caused by a virus, rather than
a spell? Not to mention, a mere virus can't add and remove body weight;
that would have to be done by magic.
Genomancer as in technomancer, perhaps: it's technically all science,
but the technology is, as the sayiing goes, sufficiently advanced. At
least from enough peoples' views to let the term catch on as slang. As
to plus or minus body weight, get/lose the mass from water vapor and
other things in the air nearby.
The problem with this is the matter of time -- how quickly can one change
size/shape that way? I would expect it to be quite slow and painful,
whereas with magic, it could take place instantaneously, without pain.
A genomancer, if limited by mere biological processes, can't make any
kind of instant change... but with magic, or with whatever tech Wahsuu
uses to turn people in to kappas, it can be done fast.
Very interesting, fun fic, which I'd like to see continued.
Ditto, so long as it isn't a mere retelling of The Three Musketeers.
Some silly questions...
Why you don't set it in a culture where real horses would be used?
After all, there is magic (I think), which *usually* implies a medival
level of technology.
Again, technomancers. A high-tech version allows the Church to be a
latter day Big Brother (among other possible touches: the all seeing eye
on its holy symbols are usually wireless cameras hooked into an AI
housed at the local church, the sole duty of which is to watch through
all the eyes and alert the higher-ups of significant events) or similar
nasty, with perhaps the real government fighting for the people it
represents.
Considering Kagato as a high priest, I would expect/want the church
to be a more tenchi-universe-ish thing.
I would probably go with the church being dedicated to Tsunami, with
Kagato secretly being a member of the Cult of Tokimi. The Church's
origin as being dedicated to three goddesses would have been lost in the
mists of time, thus allowing Washuu to travel the world without being
worshipped. Yeah, I know, this kind of background has been used in
numerous TM fics, but not so much that it's been overused.
Ranma's "Horse" vehicle isn't described, except to say that it makes a
roaring sound when moving at high speeds, and kicks up leaves. What
kind of machine is it? It could be something as boring as a motorcycle,
or as cool as a Star Wars speeder bike.
One gets the impression that, to residents of the Star Wars universe,
speeder bikes are as boring as motorcycles are to us, though a
motorcycle would be as exotic (if antique) to them as a speeder bike is
exotic to us.
True enough, but IIRC, The Three Musketeers involves some fighting on
horseback. While it's easy enough to imagine a swordfight on speeders,
I believe that the amount of concentration needed to drive a motorcycle
makes that a non-option.
Oh, and the Star Wars universe, though high tech, has many planets with
decidedly low-tech. So a motorcycle wouldn't necessarily be antique,
but an observer would wonder what backwater planet it was acquired on. :)
Where's Ryo-oki? Are they not partners in this fic? As cool a person
as Ryoko is, it would be much more plausible for Ranma to get into a
formal duel with <...>; Ryoko would want to fight then and there, and
not put it off for a specific scheduled time. (I was going to suggest
Ayeka, but she *is* after all a princess, and doesn't get into duels...
maybe Nagi?)
Ayeka would get into duels if she thought she could win. Other Juraian
nobility certainly had no problem with duels. And certainly she was not
afraid to duel Ryoko, over and over and over again.
That's not what I mean -- you need a princess to *rescue* -- she's not
allowed to be one of the rescuers! :) Hmm... not unless she's going out
to go rescue a *prince*.
Or to put it more sensibly, yes, she's got the right personality, but
how would she be in the kind of place where Ranma would meet her, in
order to get into a fight which would result in a duel? If she's a
princess, she's going to be in a palace, unless circumstances are a bit
unusual.
If she's not a princess, then ... what's her background? There's nothing
wrong, imho, with making her a [former] pirate in order to fit
Porthos's role. Weren't the first Jurians pirates?
That said, time with Tenchi did seem to teach Ryoko some things about
honor. As to Ryo-ohki, well, who says Ryoko's horse didn't have a
name?
A horse which goes Miya? Heh.