It’s in pain, not because of Kendal, but because it was mutated, and as “Life’s Vessel” she can feel all of the pain and agony, this aberration of everything she stands for.
Seems like the life mage with an inexplicable connection to presumably Life themselves finds the chimeric abomination, created by warping a living being On Purpose, offensive. It’s a mystery. I wonder if her tears are because of Life pushing through or if she feels a sort of empathy towards it.
Her reaction is definitely connected to the Life primordial. Her eyes and birthmark are glowing. If it was entirely hers, I don’t think they would behave like that
Definitely connected to the Life primordial, but I’m wondering if that connection is granting her an empathetic feeling of the chimera’s unnatural life and its pain and wrongness. Alinua does imply that she can “feel out” life in another being (in the context of healing, but we also see her seem to scan life in her surroundings at the end of ch.3), so maybe that carries over to chimeras too. I worded it unclearly, but that was what I was thinking.
Alinua is a pretty emotive character, and she’s cried before. I’m wondering if those tears are based more in Life channeling through her, upset with the unnatural misuse of the magic or in her own empathy and horror at the wrongness she can sense and understand, with her Life magic getting worked up as she does.
Life magic isn’t meant to screw up a creature like that. The body and soul actively resist mutations, and a Chimera of this severity could presumably ONLY really exist on purpose. It stands to reason that Alinua would be horrified, and Life (if they’re pushing through) would probably see it similarly.
I was about to say that it’s entirely Life’s reaction, but then, when I thought about it further… Alinua has likely never seen a chimera before. She wasn’t around to see The Collector’s creations, and chimeras in general are probably pretty rare, considering the high skill barrier it (usually) takes to create one (deliberately). Not only could she be reacting this way because, frankly, mutating a creature (or creatures, if we’re going by the classic definition of chimeras) like this against its will is a HORRIBLY amoral thing to do, but she could be experiencing some lingering fear and emotional trauma; she could’ve accidentally, easily, created something like this when her Chimeric Plague case wasn’t under control, and since this is likely the first time she’s seen a chimera, she’s having to process this all at once.
This theory has been brought to you by my initial inability to understand her reaction
TBH if I didn’t read the hover text I would have thought she was talking about Kendal, not the dragon/chimera.
Is it really a chimera tho? If not, why Life/Alinua doesn’t like it? “Natural” monsters like this should be pretty common in this world…
I’m pretty certain it’s a chimera.
It has glowing green eyes, multiple tongues, and a habit of crashing through the forest knocking down trees like they mean nothing. I’m willing to believe that even some natural creatures of this world a somewhat destructive, but this thing should probably be more concerned about the trees it’s wrecking if it really is a native resident of the forest.
But what about Kendal’s statement:”this is not her [the Collector’s] handiwork”?
Is he trying to fool himself just to evade the “I can’t beat her, nor her machinations” mental attitude?
The Collector is not the only person capable of creating chimeras. Any life mage is capable of doing so, but it’s highly illegal. Kendal implies that the Collector has to be a life mage *because* she made chimeras, and the Chimeric Plague is directly linked to life magic.
What seems to be the case is that strong life mages can warp and mutate creatures to create chimeras, but the act of doing so is deeply unnatural because the body inherently resists magical changes that are going to hurt it. That’s probably what Alinua(/Life? Possibly) is reacting to here. Life magic ISN’T supposed to be used like this. It isn’t supposed to create abominations or mutations or work against the body in such an unnatural way. It CAN be misused, because magic is a bit finicky, but it’s not supposed to work that way.
Alinua’s magic, due to her deep connection with Life, is pointedly different than normal life mages as evidenced by her conversation with Erin before Kendal returned, as it seems she intuitively “feels out” the life in the body to get it to perform its natural processes. She’s possibly reacting to the unnatural life magic that caused the chimera we see to exist.
Right! But hey, I read the comments with you and Varda on the last page, and I was wondering what type of video game is it? You see, I love video games myself, and also the soundtrack is a very important part for me…(like, Breath of the Wild’s soundtrack is AMAZING) so could you tell me a little more? Please?
Actually, the game is going to be kind of Zelda-like, but with less emphasis on combat (and frustrating minigames) and more of a focus on story, exploration, preparation, and dungeon-crawling.
Story: Without delving into spoiler territory, the game is set in a coastal city state (currently called Telmarra) that has been torn apart by long-standing economic inequality, a deepening ideological rift, and a paranoid, warmongering king. A sizable chunk of the population (including a third of the military) declared a revolution against the king and the noble elite, splitting the city state between the city center, controlled by the King and his allies, and the fringe districts and surrounding farmland and wilderness, which the rebels hold sway over. At the start of the game, the civil war has been going on for… a time span (undecided, currently thinking five or six months), but it’s ground to a stalemate, as neither side can really make a move on the other without risking defeat. Enter the main character, who is currently named Nadia. She is a historian who has done extensive research into local history, and she proposes to the leader of the rebellion to poke around Telmarra’s more remote areas in order to pursue eight artifacts of legend which, if she’s correct, will give the rebellion the strength to commit some light regicide, install a new royal dynasty (who won’t continue to drive the city into the ground with late-stage capitalism, fingers crossed), and end the war.
In terms of mechanics, the meat of the game is going to be Nadia traveling between settlements (districts and outlying villages, in this case) and stocking up on supplies (food, water, wood, etc.) before hiking out into the wilderness (with plenty of beautiful vistas) and poking around various natural settings and ruins (whilst fending off starvation, dehydration, exhaustion, hypo/hyperthermia, predators, bandits, and eventually bounty hunters and assassins as she becomes more notorious). I also want to put an emphasis on sneaking into and out of the city center to help the rebels, as well as people who are stuck in the city under siege, but I haven’t yet worked out how people could travel between the split territories with a war going on.
Finally, the music and other aesthetics, as you wanted to know. Perhaps stemming from my own love of the Breath of the Wild soundtrack, a lot of the overworld music is going to be very calm and quiet, and interspersed with stretches of the sounds of nature. Important areas, however, are going to have constant background music, with different themes for each. Cutscenes will also have their own music. In terms of art and perspective, the game is going to be top-down, with everything being pixel art (that’s one of the reasons I want to put in a bunch of spots where you can have a sit and look out over a beautiful vista; I want to give the player navigational aids that aren’t just a bunch of waypoints cluttering up the screen). I also want a lot of the dialogue (at least in story-important moments, if not all of the spoken lines) to be voice acted.
Sorry for the literal essay, but this is a passion of mine that I’ve already spent years thinking about. Plus, you asked. I hope you don’t mind me delivering in spades. (I might release a couple smaller games to get some practice in before I finalize this one, as I want this game to be my magnum opus, or at least one of them. I’ll probably release all of my games on itch.io, as they seem more indie-developer friendly than Steam and less of a hassle than setting up my own game store.)
Thank you so much! Don’t worry about the essay thing, I’m already used to such things. It sounds really interesting! Also, if you ever need any help with the voice acting, I volunteer! But I wouldn’t know how to contact you then anyways…but still, I wish you the best of luck. One last question though…will Nadia be using horses as means of transportation? (I loved the horses in Botw, so I need to tell you that…) 😉
This literal essay delights me greatly! I’m really excited for this game, and I love that it’s going to be a little more story-heavy while incorporating some realism! Just Aaaaaaaaaaaaaa
(worldbuilding rant ahead)
I’m also developing a fantasy world, but I don’t know what media or story I want to use for it. It’s a little steampunky in urban areas, because I love classic horror and little innocent nondescript protagonists. My innocent nerdy protagonist is named Feren and he’s nerdy and super precious etc etc AND HE HAS A GIRLFRIEND NAMED BEATRICE! (Most of the characters are based on silly jokes.) However, it goes full high fantasy in more remote areas.
The basic premise of the world is that humans are one of four races who subsist on different liquids. Humans/ Lumabreith drink water (although they’ve adapted to supplement it with solid food more than the other races have), Pharnabreith drink blood (Our Vampires Are Different: they are neither undead nor Always Evil), Tolebreith (a druidic race resembling wood elves) drink tree sap, and Velibreith (the smallest, but still medium-sized; they resemble elves) drink nectar. Any extra information will come only upon request, because I’ve invented so many random things (including pests that are basically evil magic mosquitoes disguised as flowers).
Hot take: the chimera turns out to be a tragic victim like a dragon or something that was forcibly mutated into a monster and maybe Alinua can somehow heal it
Erin continues to be astounded by Kendal and Alinua because he thinks he knows everything, and they keep pulling ancient primordial magic out of nowhere.
TL;DR: Corpse floof is superman with a Sword 5S Pro. The sheer extent of the plagiarism and lack of quality of the ripoff chimera makes Pink floof cry.
Why is she crying? Maybe the monster is some sort of abomination (unlike any seen on earth)?
It’s in pain, not because of Kendal, but because it was mutated, and as “Life’s Vessel” she can feel all of the pain and agony, this aberration of everything she stands for.
a brutal and twisted mutation (unlike any seen on earth)
Oh I get it she’s doing the laughing crying emoji while saying “Who did this?”
She’s trying to get into early 2010s clickbaiting.
Seems like the life mage with an inexplicable connection to presumably Life themselves finds the chimeric abomination, created by warping a living being On Purpose, offensive. It’s a mystery. I wonder if her tears are because of Life pushing through or if she feels a sort of empathy towards it.
Meanwhile, hey Erin, ready for more surprises?
Her reaction is definitely connected to the Life primordial. Her eyes and birthmark are glowing. If it was entirely hers, I don’t think they would behave like that
Definitely connected to the Life primordial, but I’m wondering if that connection is granting her an empathetic feeling of the chimera’s unnatural life and its pain and wrongness. Alinua does imply that she can “feel out” life in another being (in the context of healing, but we also see her seem to scan life in her surroundings at the end of ch.3), so maybe that carries over to chimeras too. I worded it unclearly, but that was what I was thinking.
Alinua is a pretty emotive character, and she’s cried before. I’m wondering if those tears are based more in Life channeling through her, upset with the unnatural misuse of the magic or in her own empathy and horror at the wrongness she can sense and understand, with her Life magic getting worked up as she does.
Life magic isn’t meant to screw up a creature like that. The body and soul actively resist mutations, and a Chimera of this severity could presumably ONLY really exist on purpose. It stands to reason that Alinua would be horrified, and Life (if they’re pushing through) would probably see it similarly.
I was about to say that it’s entirely Life’s reaction, but then, when I thought about it further… Alinua has likely never seen a chimera before. She wasn’t around to see The Collector’s creations, and chimeras in general are probably pretty rare, considering the high skill barrier it (usually) takes to create one (deliberately). Not only could she be reacting this way because, frankly, mutating a creature (or creatures, if we’re going by the classic definition of chimeras) like this against its will is a HORRIBLY amoral thing to do, but she could be experiencing some lingering fear and emotional trauma; she could’ve accidentally, easily, created something like this when her Chimeric Plague case wasn’t under control, and since this is likely the first time she’s seen a chimera, she’s having to process this all at once.
This theory has been brought to you by my initial inability to understand her reaction
TBH if I didn’t read the hover text I would have thought she was talking about Kendal, not the dragon/chimera.
Is it really a chimera tho? If not, why Life/Alinua doesn’t like it? “Natural” monsters like this should be pretty common in this world…
I’m pretty certain it’s a chimera.
It has glowing green eyes, multiple tongues, and a habit of crashing through the forest knocking down trees like they mean nothing. I’m willing to believe that even some natural creatures of this world a somewhat destructive, but this thing should probably be more concerned about the trees it’s wrecking if it really is a native resident of the forest.
But what about Kendal’s statement:”this is not her [the Collector’s] handiwork”?
Is he trying to fool himself just to evade the “I can’t beat her, nor her machinations” mental attitude?
I get the feeling that more people than the Collector can make chimeras
The Collector is not the only person capable of creating chimeras. Any life mage is capable of doing so, but it’s highly illegal. Kendal implies that the Collector has to be a life mage *because* she made chimeras, and the Chimeric Plague is directly linked to life magic.
What seems to be the case is that strong life mages can warp and mutate creatures to create chimeras, but the act of doing so is deeply unnatural because the body inherently resists magical changes that are going to hurt it. That’s probably what Alinua(/Life? Possibly) is reacting to here. Life magic ISN’T supposed to be used like this. It isn’t supposed to create abominations or mutations or work against the body in such an unnatural way. It CAN be misused, because magic is a bit finicky, but it’s not supposed to work that way.
Alinua’s magic, due to her deep connection with Life, is pointedly different than normal life mages as evidenced by her conversation with Erin before Kendal returned, as it seems she intuitively “feels out” the life in the body to get it to perform its natural processes. She’s possibly reacting to the unnatural life magic that caused the chimera we see to exist.
(what they said)
Alinua is probably upset that there’s apparently another jackass running around misusing Life Magic (and possibly doing so while channelling Life).
We did establish these chimeras as not the work of The Collector, right?
Not yet completely established, I believe Kendall concluded that it was probably unrelated.
I love Erin’s reaction in the second panel
Right! But hey, I read the comments with you and Varda on the last page, and I was wondering what type of video game is it? You see, I love video games myself, and also the soundtrack is a very important part for me…(like, Breath of the Wild’s soundtrack is AMAZING) so could you tell me a little more? Please?
Actually, the game is going to be kind of Zelda-like, but with less emphasis on combat (and frustrating minigames) and more of a focus on story, exploration, preparation, and dungeon-crawling.
Story: Without delving into spoiler territory, the game is set in a coastal city state (currently called Telmarra) that has been torn apart by long-standing economic inequality, a deepening ideological rift, and a paranoid, warmongering king. A sizable chunk of the population (including a third of the military) declared a revolution against the king and the noble elite, splitting the city state between the city center, controlled by the King and his allies, and the fringe districts and surrounding farmland and wilderness, which the rebels hold sway over. At the start of the game, the civil war has been going on for… a time span (undecided, currently thinking five or six months), but it’s ground to a stalemate, as neither side can really make a move on the other without risking defeat. Enter the main character, who is currently named Nadia. She is a historian who has done extensive research into local history, and she proposes to the leader of the rebellion to poke around Telmarra’s more remote areas in order to pursue eight artifacts of legend which, if she’s correct, will give the rebellion the strength to commit some light regicide, install a new royal dynasty (who won’t continue to drive the city into the ground with late-stage capitalism, fingers crossed), and end the war.
In terms of mechanics, the meat of the game is going to be Nadia traveling between settlements (districts and outlying villages, in this case) and stocking up on supplies (food, water, wood, etc.) before hiking out into the wilderness (with plenty of beautiful vistas) and poking around various natural settings and ruins (whilst fending off starvation, dehydration, exhaustion, hypo/hyperthermia, predators, bandits, and eventually bounty hunters and assassins as she becomes more notorious). I also want to put an emphasis on sneaking into and out of the city center to help the rebels, as well as people who are stuck in the city under siege, but I haven’t yet worked out how people could travel between the split territories with a war going on.
Finally, the music and other aesthetics, as you wanted to know. Perhaps stemming from my own love of the Breath of the Wild soundtrack, a lot of the overworld music is going to be very calm and quiet, and interspersed with stretches of the sounds of nature. Important areas, however, are going to have constant background music, with different themes for each. Cutscenes will also have their own music. In terms of art and perspective, the game is going to be top-down, with everything being pixel art (that’s one of the reasons I want to put in a bunch of spots where you can have a sit and look out over a beautiful vista; I want to give the player navigational aids that aren’t just a bunch of waypoints cluttering up the screen). I also want a lot of the dialogue (at least in story-important moments, if not all of the spoken lines) to be voice acted.
Sorry for the literal essay, but this is a passion of mine that I’ve already spent years thinking about. Plus, you asked. I hope you don’t mind me delivering in spades. (I might release a couple smaller games to get some practice in before I finalize this one, as I want this game to be my magnum opus, or at least one of them. I’ll probably release all of my games on itch.io, as they seem more indie-developer friendly than Steam and less of a hassle than setting up my own game store.)
Thank you so much! Don’t worry about the essay thing, I’m already used to such things. It sounds really interesting! Also, if you ever need any help with the voice acting, I volunteer! But I wouldn’t know how to contact you then anyways…but still, I wish you the best of luck. One last question though…will Nadia be using horses as means of transportation? (I loved the horses in Botw, so I need to tell you that…) 😉
I *might* implement a sparse fast travel system that involves horse carriages, but Nadia won’t be riding horses herself… sorry.
This literal essay delights me greatly! I’m really excited for this game, and I love that it’s going to be a little more story-heavy while incorporating some realism! Just Aaaaaaaaaaaaaa
(worldbuilding rant ahead)
I’m also developing a fantasy world, but I don’t know what media or story I want to use for it. It’s a little steampunky in urban areas, because I love classic horror and little innocent nondescript protagonists. My innocent nerdy protagonist is named Feren and he’s nerdy and super precious etc etc AND HE HAS A GIRLFRIEND NAMED BEATRICE! (Most of the characters are based on silly jokes.) However, it goes full high fantasy in more remote areas.
The basic premise of the world is that humans are one of four races who subsist on different liquids. Humans/ Lumabreith drink water (although they’ve adapted to supplement it with solid food more than the other races have), Pharnabreith drink blood (Our Vampires Are Different: they are neither undead nor Always Evil), Tolebreith (a druidic race resembling wood elves) drink tree sap, and Velibreith (the smallest, but still medium-sized; they resemble elves) drink nectar. Any extra information will come only upon request, because I’ve invented so many random things (including pests that are basically evil magic mosquitoes disguised as flowers).
So coo!???
Why thank you, I’m rather proud of my race system and evil magic mosquitoes 🙂
Erin: I went to college, I know everything!
*something he didn’t study happens*
Erin: WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?!?!
I absolutely love that he can simultaneously manage to be so smart and so stupid.
The title of Pompous Nitwit reaches fulfillment
And we’ve offended the life mage! Cue unending rage in the next strip!
i really feel for erin in this page. everything is happening so much
Erin is suddenly like… oh these self-sacrificing dumbasses are multidimentional? And powerful? I thought I was the protagonist!
I suspect our lovely author is deliberately putting off the moment of explanation for Erin, just because she likes to torment him.
That sounds like a perfectly valid reason to me.
🙁 She sad 🙁 I don’t want her to be sad 🙁
I think Erin is about to learn that he may not be the heavy hitter on this team.
Hot take: the chimera turns out to be a tragic victim like a dragon or something that was forcibly mutated into a monster and maybe Alinua can somehow heal it
Erin continues to be astounded by Kendal and Alinua because he thinks he knows everything, and they keep pulling ancient primordial magic out of nowhere.
Is anyone else here active on TV Tropes?
Suuuuuup
Hello fellow troper!
I’m ready to bash some heads in who tf made Ali cry???
TL;DR: Corpse floof is superman with a Sword 5S Pro. The sheer extent of the plagiarism and lack of quality of the ripoff chimera makes Pink floof cry.
Alt text: oh, the backgrounds? I’m glad you noticed! I’m really starting to get the hang of them- oh you meant the abomination my bad
Image source: what
Erin’s confused by Kendal’s strange way
And the state of the beast causes Ali dismay