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Post by Casey on Jun 5, 2009 20:38:39 GMT
Yes, but it would be kind of creepy to jump suddenly out of bed, and turn around to discover the bed has made itself as the sheets fell.
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Post by wanderer on Jun 5, 2009 20:54:45 GMT
Maybe it'll turn out that it's a trap set by the Jupitor Moon Martians and the "mission complete" text'll go all "I wanna be the guy" on them and try to crush them. I don't think Dr. Disaster really wants to kill his students. Given that I Wanna Be The Guy is like the ultimate death course, a live simulation of it should never be inflicted on anyone other than your worst enemies. Immovable object meets unstoppable force. All existence crashes. Abort Retry Fail?
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Post by bisected8 on Jun 5, 2009 21:43:42 GMT
Maybe it'll turn out that it's a trap set by the Jupitor Moon Martians and the "mission complete" text'll go all "I wanna be the guy" on them and try to crush them. I don't think Dr. Disaster really wants to kill his students. Given that I Wanna Be The Guy is like the ultimate death course, a live simulation of it should never be inflicted on anyone other than your worst enemies. Immovable object meets unstoppable force. All existence crashes. Abort Retry Fail? It's a simulation, (presumably an actual simulation, not one that kills you if you die in it like the matrix), I doubt they'd put the students in a computer program that had the slightest chance of killing them once a month. Also, wouldn't Smitty and Zimmy be more; matter + antimatter --> Kaboom
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Post by ethelmercaptan on Jun 5, 2009 21:48:06 GMT
Anyone ever played the board game Clue?
I once guessed the suspect, the weapon and the room on the very first turn.
I did in fact feel like Smitty here. And everyone else playing reacted like Parley.
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Post by Rasselas on Jun 5, 2009 22:26:26 GMT
I bet the disappearance of the artifact will bring down the wrath of the inhabitants of the terrible castle, whose ancient heirloom it is.
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Post by wanderer on Jun 5, 2009 22:49:42 GMT
Also, wouldn't Smitty and Zimmy be more; matter + antimatter --> Kaboom I don't think so. Matter and antimatter's problem is that they interact a little too well, causing all of the potential energy in their molecules to be released at once. But, assuming Zimmy's power is in fact to "bring chaos" like Smitty "brings order," their powers can't interact at all. They're simply not compatible. Bringing them together couldn't result in an explosion like that because neither power can combine with the other. It might, however, cause reality to shut down due to the conflicting instructions it'd be getting. More likely, however, is that their powers really aren't opposites like that, and Smitty being near Zimmy would just result in her clothing becoming clean and straight, her hair unknotted, her shirt buttoned up, and all the nobodies she sees lining up in neat and orderly little queues. ...Which, I have to say, would be rather creepy in and of itself.
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Post by bisected8 on Jun 5, 2009 23:24:53 GMT
Also, wouldn't Smitty and Zimmy be more; matter + antimatter --> Kaboom I don't think so. Matter and antimatter's problem is that they interact a little too well, causing all of the potential energy in their molecules to be released at once. But, assuming Zimmy's power is in fact to "bring chaos" like Smitty "brings order," their powers can't interact at all. They're simply not compatible. Bringing them together couldn't result in an explosion like that because neither power can combine with the other. It might, however, cause reality to shut down due to the conflicting instructions it'd be getting. More likely, however, is that their powers really aren't opposites like that, and Smitty being near Zimmy would just result in her clothing becoming clean and straight, her hair unknotted, her shirt buttoned up, and all the nobodies she sees lining up in neat and orderly little queues. ...Which, I have to say, would be rather creepy in and of itself. I see your point. I guess opposing "powers" make more sense in terms of force rather than matter.
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Dentrala
Full Member
"I absolutely did not expect thiiiissss!!"
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Post by Dentrala on Jun 5, 2009 23:27:51 GMT
I agree, I think Zimmy's world would simply become orderly.
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Chrome
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The Shiny One
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Post by Chrome on Jun 6, 2009 2:42:01 GMT
Anybody read Larry Niven's Ringworld series? Of those people, who remembers Teelie and her "luck" powers, which Smitty's abilities strikingly remind me of right now.
In which case, I'm thinking his ability to order things include an ability to essentially manipulate (or perhaps eliminate) luck in a situation. And that ability would also affect the outcome of situations for anyone close to or around him as well. Order doesn't just affect the one person: it affects a lot around him or her.
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Post by sandjosieph on Jun 6, 2009 5:35:59 GMT
Of course, Zimmy's powers may also neutralize Smitty's powers a bit. But that may only occur if Gamma isn't there with her as well. From what I can tell, Zimmy's power is actually quite strong so Zimmy's world may become orderly, but still be full of nightmarish images.
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Dentrala
Full Member
"I absolutely did not expect thiiiissss!!"
Posts: 156
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Post by Dentrala on Jun 6, 2009 6:05:40 GMT
Possibly. But they would be symmetrical nightmarish things. ;D
I wonder if Gamma could help Smitty "tune out"...
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Post by Chromeleon on Jun 6, 2009 10:24:17 GMT
I'm half-hoping that monday is the start of chapter 24.
(That said, I'm with Parley on this one. I was looking forward to another Dr. Disaster chapter.)
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Post by todd on Jun 6, 2009 10:38:59 GMT
I'm half-hoping that monday is the start of chapter 24. It can't be. There was no antimony symbol at the bottom of Friday's page. Also, even if there was one, next Monday's page would have to be the Bonus Page for this chapter.
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Post by Chromeleon on Jun 6, 2009 12:50:37 GMT
I don't think that either of those physically prevents Tom from saying "okay, chapter 24 now!" if he really wants to, you know. It would certainly be a break from his established pattern, yes, but sometimes the surprise of it is exactly the reason to do such a thing.
(Also, I think you're taking my statement far too seriously.)
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qmarx
Junior Member
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Post by qmarx on Jun 6, 2009 13:34:28 GMT
It would be like doing another story about Kat falling in love with a boy who's turning into something.) I'm sorry, but the first thing I thought of when I read that was the cliche "This is a story about how a boy became a man," opening.
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Post by sinewmire on Jun 6, 2009 16:44:23 GMT
Well, if the whole medium thing doesn't work out he could get a job as a stylist.
I'm looking forward to seeing more of Parley and Smitty, through Annie's eyes of course. They're both highly entertaining, especially when they can rebound off each other, so to speak.
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Post by Max on Jun 6, 2009 22:58:42 GMT
I'm interested in the range of his powers. I mean, this was a simulation, so maybe the controlling computer was right near by. But could he sort his clothes in his room while eating dinner in the dining hall, for example?
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Post by Synesthetic Soul on Jun 7, 2009 1:55:06 GMT
I'm with Parley here. It looked like a great start to a cool adventure and then-
Wouldn't Smitty and Gamma's "powers" just neutralize and nothing happens? That's how I would see it anyhow. This should be tested. >:3
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Post by Babble-jargon Bill on Jun 7, 2009 15:43:49 GMT
I think Andrew's powers are limited by the amount of concentration it takes to perform the activity. For example, stacking and sorting a deck of cards is easy, but completing 10 rubix cubes simultaneously would not. Either way though he could still do an activity with his body while doing this, he would just have to make sure nothing distracted him enough to break concentration. At least, that's my take on it.
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Post by bisected8 on Jun 7, 2009 17:04:34 GMT
My take was that things just started to follow patterns around him, sort of like how reality goes crazy around Zimmy. For example when the cards were thrown they landed in a pile and in order, rather than more randomly.
IIRC didn't Tom say that he hasn't got any conscious control over it (which would remove the possibility of cencentration).
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mjh
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Post by mjh on Jun 7, 2009 17:14:03 GMT
I think Andrew's powers are limited by the amount of concentration it takes to perform the activity. Does it look like taking any conscious effort on his part? To me it doesn’t. I suppose he still has to think about the issue at least (“So we need to restore the Ancient Artifact to where it rightly belongs … <CLONK> Dammit, there it is!”), since otherwise (and if the scope of his power of creating order out of chaos was unlimited) he couldn’t help but create order everywhere. But I am wondering about the notion of Zimmy having any kind of special power – except her telepathic abilities, that is. Being involuntarily transferred to some nightmarish ghost town doesn’t look like some sort of power to me; quite on the contrary some power seems to be playing with her. The ghoulish inhabitants of Zimmingham leave her effectively paralyzed, yet Gamma and Annie (and maybe anyone else) can dispell those creatures easily. And when Annie suggested she might learn to control this phenomenon, Zimmy made it quite clear that she saw herself as the victim, not the originator of all this. In fact the only thing pointing to Zimmy having some sort of special power was Reynardine’s remark that he wouldn’t dare to touch anything Zimmy had created. But why he was afraid of her he did not explain. It can’t be just spiders or a lack of personal hygiene.
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Post by Casey on Jun 7, 2009 17:53:01 GMT
I don't think that Smitty can make things move with his mind. I think he just has an aura that causes things that are already happening to happen in an orderly fashion no matter how improbable. For example I don't think he could think "Room, clean yourself!" and everything would jump up into place. However I think if he picked up a pile of stuff from his floor and threw it towards the closet, it would miraculously land perfectly folded and in place.
The obvious response to that statement would be "yeah, but the artifact appeared at his feet" and I suspect that has to do with it being a simulation. I don't think he could make things appear from far away in real life. However of course all of this is speculation because obviously none of us knows (yet) the exact nature of his abilities.
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Post by Casey on Jun 7, 2009 17:55:37 GMT
In fact the only thing pointing to Zimmy having some sort of special power was Reynardine’s remark that he wouldn’t dare to touch anything Zimmy had created. But why he was afraid of her he did not explain. It can’t be just spiders or a lack of personal hygiene. I interpret that to mean that she is cursed, and therefore anything she creates is also cursed, and that's why Reynardine didn't want to touch it. That explanation dovetails into what you were saying which is that Zimmy's nature is something that has happened to her, rather than it being something she is creating. I mean she's always trying to make it stop, and it scares the hell out of her... that sounds like a curse to me.
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Post by Babble-jargon Bill on Jun 7, 2009 21:19:24 GMT
Well what I mean is that if Smitty was thinking about the mission, that would mean that he would be concentrating on the task of finding the sceptre, and that in turn would make it materialize at his feet. I think that it does require some voluntary action on his part, but not so much that he has to go into something like a state of meditation. I just mean that he couldn't be thinking about soup if he wanted to straighten out his room. He would have to actually think about the task. I hope this makes sense.
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Post by clementine on Jun 8, 2009 0:24:47 GMT
You mean, it works subconsciously?
(So, a personification of his mind during the card trick: Conscious Mind: Oh, look, Parley's making me throw cards over my shoulder. Subconscious: CARDS MENTIONED ARE DISORDERED MUST SORT.)
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Post by Max on Jun 8, 2009 1:58:02 GMT
Yes, I believe that is why Andrew throws them behind him instead of looking at them directly.
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Post by Casey on Jun 8, 2009 3:42:29 GMT
Although you have to admit, it would be pretty darn sweet to take a deck of cards and fling it at the ground directly in front of you and have it go *PLOP!* into a perfectly sorted stack.
Makes you wonder what happens if he spills his drink. Or IF he can spill his drink. Maybe it all "falls" in such a way that it actually ends up going right back down his straw...
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Post by Babble-jargon Bill on Jun 8, 2009 4:06:25 GMT
Andrew has a promising future as a magician and illusionist. That is if Parley lets him do something other than be her sidekick while she goes on another one of her quirky misadventures.
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Post by sue911 on Jun 8, 2009 7:09:33 GMT
CaseyThe liquid will probably just spill on the floor with a perfect circle. Hope Parley will understand and not be too devastated.
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Post by TBeholder on Jun 9, 2009 19:29:17 GMT
I feel sorry for poor Andrew. He looked like he was really looking forward to this mission, and then his power which he can't control ruins it for everyone. More like "looking forward to passing time in Parley's company while she does not tries to do something with his neck". It makes you wonder how Smitty's power is supposed to work out in a real mediation situation. "Uhhh guys we don't have a reason to fight any more since a lot of aggravating stuff sorted itself out at home unexpectedly well see ya." What else does he need to be able to do? To not do it in a situation when it can lead someone's hands to his throat? Could you imagine what would happen if Smitty and Zimmy ever came in contact? Well I can't so I'm just going to leave it at that. Why not? - <BLIP>
- Smitty and others find themselves inside Zimmy's little crapmare.
- "Hey, it's rather dir..." <pfff>. The whole mindscape spontaneously cleans up and becomes something like city-sized sickeningly polished fat-food crapfeteria covered in bright plastic able to cause nausea or hurt eyes (with Zimmy and Smitty as co-authors there's not much options, really).
- Zimmy inarticulately hisses and tries to mechanically block Smitty's access to her imaginary air.
- Parley tries to pull Zimmy off him - because she used to think Erotic Strangulation of this guy is her own unalienable right and now she's bitten by jealousy.
Right? ;D
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