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[Raonar]

You know, I wonder why he gets so easily upset. Ah well...



I wonder what he'd say to me if I suddenly blurted that Bhelen disgusts me. I never put him on the throne because, honestly, the dwarves don't need another murderer (as if anyone could EVER need a murderer). And really, even if Orzammar falls to the darkspawn, there are a whole lot of surface dwarves so the race won't go extinct. If the dwarves can't clean up the act, they'll have to bear with the consequences.



Of course, I am aware of the fact that. while an idealist as well, my protagonist does not actually share my views, since he actually wants to REDEEM Bhelen (though of course, the fact that Trian is still alive is THE reason why the DN hasn't lost it already...)



Yes, I know I am rambling. So what?



*heads off to try and actually write that chapter 23*



sigh

[maxernst]

Sarah1281 wrote...

Raonar wrote...

Since I really dislike Bhelen, I approve of the chapter

Seriously though, it was well written. I submitted a review full of my ramblings already, I hope you don't take it the wrong way.

I knew you thought that some people were a little too confident of Bhelen's abilities even if he is the dwarven messiah but I honestly wouldn't have guessed that you disliked him. Maybe it'll become clearer when he shows up in your story again.

Of couse, after not crowning him myself I'm sure people who aren't on the BSN would be surprised to find out that I'm a fan.

I don't think people would like Bhelen so much if it weren't for the ending cards.  Realistically, Bhelen is a revolutionary and it can certainly be argued that Orzammar needs a revolution, but revolutions only happen when they're needed, and most of them fail anyway.  Even successful revolutions generally produce a lot of instability in the short run.  I could imagine a scenario where Bhelen was great for the Dwarves but failed to help you much during the Blight because he was too busy trying to keep things under control in Orzammar.  Or because he just didn't feel like it--once he's king, he doesn't need you any more, and you have no reason to trust his promises.  Bhelen's a riskier choice than Harrowmont--yes, if he's a successful ruler, the Dwarves benefit much more from him, but it's not hard to imagine him failing bigger than Harrowmont, too.  The fact that being the King's only surviving son isn't enough to get him half the assembly's support makes me wonder about his diplomatic skills.

Modifié par maxernst, 14 octobre 2010 - 11:13 .

[nos_astra]

Maybe Costin's comment could mean that Aunn's motivation isn't all that clear? I haven't read the story, so I don't know if his complaint is valid.

Why does Aunn choose Harrowmont? Why does she side with Cairidin? What is her motivation? Is she too soft for an Aeducan? Is she not interested in politics? Is she a naive, spoilt child? Is it revenge on Bhelen (and does this need for revenger override everything)? Does she support the caste system?

Maybe it's a perfectly natural decision for someone like Aunn and he simply didn't read all of the story and missed out on the characterization. Or it's a hint that Aunn is too generic and that's reason he's tempted to read his own take on the Aeducan origin into her?

Just my 2 cents.

Edit: maxernst above is also right. Knowledge about the ending cards is certainly a problem when writing about an unpopular decision.

Modifié par klarabella, 14 octobre 2010 - 11:39 .

[Miri1984]

LupusYondergirl wrote...

You can't seem to type five words without him finding a reason to complain, though. Seriously, it's like he just reads so he can complain.
He's... special like that, apparently.

I would totally, completely ignore it.

I am sooo pleased he's never chosen to read any of mine. I'm far too lightweight for him. The few times I've tried to defend others about fics he's ripped into I've just thrown up my hands in despair. He has a certain way of looking at things and if you don't agree he thinks you suck. So yes, Sarah, ignore him.

[LupusYondergirl]

Really, it is EXACTLY the same thing as the people who are all "You should make a luuuuuvvvvv triangle!" "How could she turn down Alistair!1!1!!! Fix it!" or "Why doesn't she want to be Queen what is wrong with you??" or whatever. Just someone who wants to see every Warden make the decisions "their" Warden would make.



Definitely falls under "write your own damn story" territory.

[jackkel dragon]

LupusYondergirl wrote...

Really, it is EXACTLY the same thing as the people who are all "You should make a luuuuuvvvvv triangle!" "How could she turn down Alistair!1!1!!! Fix it!" or "Why doesn't she want to be Queen what is wrong with you??" or whatever. Just someone who wants to see every Warden make the decisions "their" Warden would make.

Definitely falls under "write your own damn story" territory.

Thank god I haven't gotten those reviews yet. Tayte's going to make some unpopular choices...

[mousestalker]

klarabella wrote...

Maybe Costin's comment could mean that Aunn's motivation isn't all that clear? I haven't read the story, so I don't know if his complaint is valid.

Why does Aunn choose Harrowmont? Why does she side with Cairidin? What is her motivation? Is she too soft for an Aeducan? Is she not interested in politics? Is she a naive, spoilt child? Is it revenge on Bhelen (and does this need for revenger override everything)? Does she support the caste system?

Maybe it's a perfectly natural decision for someone like Aunn and he simply didn't read all of the story and missed out on the characterization. Or it's a hint that Aunn is too generic and that's reason he's tempted to read his own take on the Aeducan origin into her?

Just my 2 cents.

Edit: maxernst above is also right. Knowledge about the ending cards is certainly a problem when writing about an unpopular decision.

Aunn's decision is perfectly logical and consistent within the context of the story. Sarah did an excellent job of laying out the conflicting emotions Aunn was feeling as well as the political considerations at play.

[mousestalker]

Question for the experts: Is there any indication as to just how long Fergus was in the swamps?



I've seen everything from a month to two years.

[Sarah1281]

Fergus: I never made it to the battle at Ostagar. We were still scouting in the Wilds when we were attacked by a party of darkspawn. Most of my men were killed. I woke up two weeks later in a Chasind hut, wounded and feverish. By the time I was able to sneak out of the Wilds, you were already marching to Denerim. I tried to get word to Highever. You can imagine what happened, I suppose.

Far more than a month, it seems, but how long depends on how long you feel the game is which people seem to think is anyone from one year to two. It sounds to me like he was out until post-Landsmeet when he left, heard that you were a Warden and were returning to Denerim to deal with the Blight, tried to let Highever know he was alive, found possibly Howe's men but definitely heard the news of the massacre, and then came to Denerim.

[Raonar]

What Sarah said. it kind of makes it a bit unbelievable that the HN Warden never meets him before the Archdemon fight. Ah well.

[Reika]

Well, when you consider how busy the HN is, I can see why they may not have been able to meet up with Fergus before then. Since they're in charge of 4 disparate armies, trying to coordinate that, even with competent underlings, must be a nightmare for any type of planning. And really there's not much love between any of the groups, so there's going to be bickering over who is going to do what, and that's in addition to figuring out where the heck you're going to be meeting the horde.

[LupusYondergirl]

*drive by b*tching*

For as much trouble as this chapter is giving me I might as well be trying to write entirely in semaphore.

[Miri1984]

AOA or Blue Skies?

[LupusYondergirl]

Blue Skies.

freaking Wynne.

*shakes fist*



It's basically done, just in the tweaking and rephrasing stage.

[Miri1984]

First playthrough I looooved Wynne. Now I just want her to shut up. Mind you her dialogues with Zev and Oghren are hilarious. I hate her because even if I'm on a mage playthrough I still have to have her in my party - she's the only freaking decent healer.



I wonder if that's why they made Anders a healer in Awakenings - if you're going to have one, at least let them be funny.

[LupusYondergirl]

Maybe they worried she gave the entire spirit healer specialization a bad name. "Well, I would give it to Morrigan, but if she turns into a sanctimonious **** too I may need to kill her."  So make the most awesome character ever and give him the specialization.

Modifié par LupusYondergirl, 16 octobre 2010 - 05:29 .

[Miri1984]

Mmm, makes you wonder if the writers actually do take that into consideration when they're doing the characters. Most people want their mages to kick arse in a destructive way, so they're not going to focus on healing, so we better make a healer that actually makes playing the game enjoyable...



I'd love to get into the writing process of games - do they pick the specialisations before they work on the characterisations? Or vice versa? Dream job. *sigh*



I can't programme for **** but I'd love to write. One of my friends writes pen and paper RPGs and actually gets paid for it (eventually). It's just so hard to get work though...

[LupusYondergirl]

Writing video games would be my dream job, seriously.

Also... I got more reviews for my miserable chapter of AOA than I got for the previous two put together. And the highest hits I've ever seen for about four days in a row.



maybe there's something to this misery thing... Shame I don't have the stomach for it.



Chapter... done! Off to upload...

[Miri1984]

I think misery is good in small doses. But I don't have the stomach for it either. I got more hits on my story that dealt with the aftermath of rape than any of my others while I was writing it but I've only gone back to that universe once. It's not fun to write about.



Shades has more followers than Fractures as well - the darker side of things is sometimes more interesting.

[Maria13]

I too am surprised at the yen for misery, I actually described my Alistair execution tale as "misery lit" and got a very high amount of hits... Huh...

[soignee]

Miri1984 wrote...

I think misery is good in small doses. But I don't have the stomach for it either. I got more hits on my story that dealt with the aftermath of rape than any of my others while I was writing it but I've only gone back to that universe once. It's not fun to write about.

Shades has more followers than Fractures as well - the darker side of things is sometimes more interesting.

I think DDW can be pretty miserable in places, and I am aware I got to balance it out with humour (usually at Alistair's expense, oddly) and the occasional shot of optimism (the Missa/Zevran relationship edging forward at a treacle pace.)

I'm niche-y though, so IDK, and I don't have very many stories to compare it to. I often wonder if I made Missa an elf or a human if it would be more popular. Missa Tabris? Missa Cousland?

After DDW has finished I might either give Missa a break and write about my Mahariel, but that's going to be even less popular, me thinks. I need to stop writing obnoxiously hard-to-like characters.

in other news: I'M WRITING DDW AGAIN HOLY CRAP and, more importantly, It's fun to do so again. 

[Aroihkin]

Solution to Wynne: play a healer! It's not like you won't have ample skill points for damage spells as well.

(I know, only works when you're a mage. Spec Morrigan anyway? I usually do when I play my other characters.)

And darkfic does tend to draw more attention. It puts people through the emotional obstacle course far more readily than any happy-ever-after fic, no matter how well-written, although I think too much of either is bad. Contrast and all that good stuff.

*re-lurks*

[mousestalker]

soignee wrote...

Miri1984 wrote...

I think misery is good in small doses. But I don't have the stomach for it either. I got more hits on my story that dealt with the aftermath of rape than any of my others while I was writing it but I've only gone back to that universe once. It's not fun to write about.

Shades has more followers than Fractures as well - the darker side of things is sometimes more interesting.

I think DDW can be pretty miserable in places, and I am aware I got to balance it out with humour (usually at Alistair's expense, oddly) and the occasional shot of optimism (the Missa/Zevran relationship edging forward at a treacle pace.)

I'm niche-y though, so IDK, and I don't have very many stories to compare it to. I often wonder if I made Missa an elf or a human if it would be more popular. Missa Tabris? Missa Cousland?

After DDW has finished I might either give Missa a break and write about my Mahariel, but that's going to be even less popular, me thinks. I need to stop writing obnoxiously hard-to-like characters.

in other news: I'M WRITING DDW AGAIN HOLY CRAP and, more importantly, It's fun to do so again. 

Keep writing what interests you. If you were getting paid for this, then I'd say follow your market, but you're not (If you are, I'd love to know how much, for what and by whom). Recently I had an uncharacteristic emotional spell where I did the "Why am I not popular, no one loves me?" which is completely idiotic when the Int3rw3bz is concerned (I blame work related stress). Don't fall into that trap. Dead Duster Walking is a good story. If that is the story you want to tell, then tell it. Don't tell another story just because you think 3 or 4 more people might read it.

Also, DA:O fandom is shrinking right now. The game has been out for a while and a great many people have moved on to other things. The reader base for any DA related story is smaller than it was nine months ago. I would expect a resurgence of interest in the weeks leading up to the release of DA2.

Disclosure of possible conflict of interest: I love the Missa art, especially with Zevran. Pure selfishness , it is.

[Corker]

Seconding mousestalker, although with a caveat.

I'm all about writing with intention. If [generic] your desire is pageviews and fuzzy reviews, you can write stories that will bring them in by the truckload. If [generic] your desire is to tell a particular story, audience be damned, then go ahead.

I suspect most of us are somewhere in the middle; there's little point in telling story if nobody hears it, and little point in good reviews if you actually believe you're writing drek. But wherever you are on that spectrum, there's nothing wrong with it, and you should write to get what it is that you really want.

[Corker]

Fritzy Internet connection, double post.

Modifié par Corker, 16 octobre 2010 - 02:39 .