[GRIMDARK] Fallout Equestria: Project Horizons Discussion

.700 Nitro Express rifle called Wild Bore. Guns send ponies to the morgue. This sends ponies to hell. Could use it for hellhound hunting.

Last night I was thinking about people whining about Blackjack's angst and whining.

It isn't angst at all really, it's realistic. How could anyone be fine in a foreign environment and you're forced to brutally murder fellow beings to survive. If you aren't a complete sociopath, that shit should eat at you HARDCORE. I think we're just so used to badass heroes that having a realistic character that can't murder without feeling remorse or personal fear is jarring.

Now that I remember this, I think this is the first real thing that I appreciated about PH, because it's grounded in some sort of psychological reality. Hell, In FoE, Littlepip is basically a huge whimpy dork who almost instantly becomes an almost remorseless defense killer after holding a weapon for the first time. BJ however is trained to kill yet verbosely feels the power of taking a life.

More attention should be paid to this, people who complain about the angst and negativity don't seem to realize that there are consequences to murder even in fiction.

Caoimhe wrote:Last night I was thinking about people whining about Blackjack's angst and whining.

It isn't angst at all really, it's realistic. How could anyone be fine in a foreign environment and you're forced to brutally murder fellow beings to survive. If you aren't a complete sociopath, that shit should eat at you HARDCORE. I think we're just so used to badass heroes that having a realistic character that can't murder without feeling remorse or personal fear is jarring.

Now that I remember this, I think this is the first real thing that I appreciated about PH, because it's grounded in some sort of psychological reality. Hell, In FoE, Littlepip is basically a huge whimpy dork who almost instantly becomes an almost remorseless defense killer after holding a weapon for the first time. BJ however is trained to kill yet verbosely feels the power of taking a life.

More attention should be paid to this, people who complain about the angst and negativity don't seem to realize that there are consequences to murder even in fiction.

This is what happens when people who aren't well taught or well read look at the best fanfic ever. They bitch about stuff that's over their heads.

That or people expect because it's based on a video game that it should play out like a video game and have an enormous body count from the protagonist and catch phrases and firearms fetishism non stop. AbH

On another note: I just saw those Pony Thread Simulator videos. Someone should make a PHCC simulator. It'd be terrifying

Caoimhe wrote:That or people expect because it's based on a video game that it should play out like a video game and have an enormous body count from the protagonist and catch phrases and firearms fetishism non stop. AbH

On another note: I just saw those Pony Thread Simulator videos. Someone should make a PHCC simulator. It'd be terrifying

Especially if it was the page where I attempted derail and Kipper succeeded.

Caoimhe wrote:That or people expect because it's based on a video game that it should play out like a video game and have an enormous body count from the protagonist and catch phrases and firearms fetishism non stop. AbH

On another note: I just saw those Pony Thread Simulator videos. Someone should make a PHCC simulator. It'd be terrifying

One better:

This video sums up the thread perfectly. I'm the scout.

Caoimhe wrote:

It isn't angst at all really, it's realistic. How could anyone be fine in a foreign environment and you're forced to brutally murder fellow beings to survive. If you aren't a complete sociopath, that shit should eat at you HARDCORE. I think we're just so used to badass heroes that having a realistic character that can't murder without feeling remorse or personal fear is jarring.

Thing is there is a certain percentage of the population (5% roughly) who are sociopaths and can MDK all day long without issues. As for the rest, let me just say this.
Every kill after first gets easier, when your in the shit your in the shit. What Littlepip lacks (And Blackjack lacks) is that long term damage because neither of them leave the shit. For example in early FoE the first time Littlepip fights an Alicorn she nearly dies three times over and think she is going to die. That should dwell on her.

Caoimhe wrote:
Now that I remember this, I think this is the first real thing that I appreciated about PH, because it's grounded in some sort of psychological reality. Hell, In FoE, Littlepip is basically a huge whimpy dork who almost instantly becomes an almost remorseless defense killer after holding a weapon for the first time. BJ however is trained to kill yet verbosely feels the power of taking a life.

Which we see in Happyhorn sorta, we see the deaths that mattered to Blackjack, the things if she ever gets a calm year should start triggering the flashbacks and the panic attacks.

Caoimhe wrote:Last night I was thinking about people whining about Blackjack's angst and whining.

It isn't angst at all really, it's realistic. How could anyone be fine in a foreign environment and you're forced to brutally murder fellow beings to survive. If you aren't a complete sociopath, that shit should eat at you HARDCORE. I think we're just so used to badass heroes that having a realistic character that can't murder without feeling remorse or personal fear is jarring.

Hell, In FoE, Littlepip is basically a huge whimpy dork who almost instantly becomes an almost remorseless defense killer after holding a weapon for the first time.

Indeed. Littlepip just seems to get over it extremely quickly, and becomes a killing machine to boot--mostly because she's always got friends around to fix wounds and her constantly-being-upgraded-and-found-randomly S.A.T.S., weapons, and TK. (Or, maybe, she gets those enhancements because she's a PipBuck tech and knows how to upgrade a S.A.T.S. matrix. TK because she doesn't have any other spells, or whatnot.) But when Monterey Jack is executed, she flips shit because it was her fault for bringing up his attempt to rob her. Yeah, and who else's death was her fault? A whole lot of ponies. Raider or not. That's my major gripe about Littlepip. Blackjack, though, is a security pony. She is trained to kill, yes, but doesn't like it. Y'know, like any police officer.

It'd take a lot of guts to shoot and kill someone, no matter the case. Both Littlepip and Blackjack have to do so repeatedly and often. I know of no sane psyche that could simply handle that easily, if at all.

One name. Simo Hayha. True badass warriors are few and far between however so I agree.

Ironmonger wrote:One name. Simo Hayha. True badass warriors are few and far between however so I agree.

The only thing I can say is - for him, it was a job during a war.
Not saying that BJ or LP aren't doing a job in a warground, hell, it's survival in a lifestyle...
But Simo did it out of necessity in a way which is a lot easier to handle than the 'casual murdering just to survive... every day you'll ever live from now on' the other two go through.

(Because you know, come any result, there's ALWAYS an end to war.)

Kippershy wrote:

Ironmonger wrote:One name. Simo Hayha. True badass warriors are few and far between however so I agree.

The only thing I can say is - for him, it was a job during a war.
Not saying that BJ or LP aren't doing a job in a warground, hell, it's survival in a lifestyle...
But Simo did it out of necessity in a way which is a lot easier to handle than the 'casual murdering just to survive... every day you'll ever live from now on' the other two go through.

(Because you know, come any result, there's ALWAYS an end to war.)

I've read his wikipedia entry. There is truth in your words. I got the impression that Simo was unfazed, like he never gave a damn.
At the risk of sounding like a jackass due to the fact I haven't been to war yet, personally I'd just be aggravated with the living conditions. Killing would be routine, they shoot at me so I shoot them back. The wasteland needs more Raid for them bloatsprites...

Caoimhe wrote:scootaburger is best poni

Don't burgers have beef? That looks more like a chicken sandwich to me.

(Yeah, I just had to go there.)

Ironmonger wrote:Once I slipped up and said "Everyf*ggot*" in a Micro Center.

...I probably shouldn't have laughed at this as hard as I did.

Erumpet wrote:I'll admit, I read birdshot as birdshit the first time through, and didn't notice until Kipper said something.

I did the same thing.

With the amount of people who've read my post as "Birdshit", you've triggered another bizarre idea. Coffee can full of fecal matter in a cannon. And birdshot.

In America, shit hits the fan.

In Equestria, shit brutally tears you apart from long range.

IncoherentOrange wrote:I just wrote some more of my new fanfic project, up to two thousand words on my first chapter. (and could use a pre-reader, if anyone's interested.) Now that I'm in a literature-y mood, I'm going to go read some Fallout: Equestria. Oh, it feels good to write again.

Well, more writers in the world is almost always a good thing. I'm not an editor by any means, but I should probably have some time the next couple days to go through what you have, point out any errors glaring enough for me to see them, and probably overanalyze things you weren't even thinking about?

WavemasterRyx wrote:Oh I wasn't saying I'm a bad artist (though I am)

Lies

CamoBadger wrote:You should hear me when I play FO3. "Steel Rangers", "pipbuck/stealthbuck", "Tenpony Tower", etc. Yeah, I'm special.
It also carried to class at one point...I said 'everypony' without even flinching while I was making an argument in Sociology class. I didn't notice until someone asked "did you just say 'everypony'?"
Yeah...awkward...

It's not an uncommon phenomenon; I remember back in Kkat's old comment thread on EQD, at one point an employee at Bethesda accidentally said Pip-Buck instead of Pip-Boy during serious business discussion. Personally I can hardly remember the names they actually use for chems in NV; I always use the pony names. And I've made several everybody/eveypony mistakes and a couple of hand/hoof errors IRL.

Ironmonger wrote:At the risk of sounding like a jackass due to the fact I haven't been to war yet, personally I'd just be aggravated with the living conditions. Killing would be routine, they shoot at me so I shoot them back. The wasteland needs more Raid for them bloatsprites...

A lot of people think they could kill casually under the right conditions. But in reality, not being deeply affected the first time you directly end someone's life (regardless of who they are, what they're responsible for, and what they would have done if you didn't) is a sign of something strange in your head. Not something wrong necessarily, and certainly something useful under terrible circumstances (bad warfare, the Wasteland), but something that sets you apart from the 95% of people who are traumatized by the experience, and probably something that would be defined as a psychological disorder if you ever got properly examined.

Completely true. I'm just going by the fact I joke about murder and manslaughter all the time and in public, I admit there is an error margin the size of Fat Albert.

Unrelated: We just made my dog's official nickname "Piss fight". Somehow it fits.

*Bursts through the window*
SUDDEN DYNAMIC ENTRANCE!!!!

So many new friends since the last time I posted...

Before I get down to business, I believe I have some explaining to do, or does no one remember me? I only posted a few times before going AWOL so I wouldn't feel bad if I've been forgotten. That is if anyone cared that I ever existed in the first place.
______

Also, have we lost anyone within the last few months? I feel terrible, I've missed an entire era of the community...

...Holy Hell Camo and Robo are admins now

Hey. Yeah, I remember you, Mr. What's-your-face with the squiggly lines in his username! (Seriously though, I do remember you posting here in the PH topic before. Good to see you back.)

Yeah, I'm just as surprised as you are.

Yeah, I miss him too. Where is he? I know he went and changed his name once, but I can't remember if he followed us and changed it again during the move to Cloudsville.

Admiral Stoic Rum wrote:umm you know what the best part about being the artist is? swicked can write the comic you just illustrate it... if I am not mistaken swicked has the best okmake...

While having someone do the writing is indeed helpful, it doesn't remove the fact that the drawing is still difficult on its own.
Though yes, swicked really does do the best skits.

Kippershy wrote:

Ironmonger wrote:Bonus: Scene idea for whoever
wants it, somepony loads a ton of birdshot into an old cannon and fires
it into a horde of ghouls.

Birdshot? I'm not familiar with the
term.
...However... MINE!
Crimson would LOVE to do this. No word
of a lie. He... kind've hates ghouls, more-so feral ones but he can just
about tolerate sane ones for the right cause.

Well, they use larger ordinance than birdshot, but this does actually exist. It's called "grapeshot" or "canister shot" and it indeed basically turns your cannon into a giant shotgun. It's really effective too.

Sindri wrote:

WavemasterRyx wrote:Oh I wasn't saying I'm a bad artist (though I am)

Lies

1 Gauge shotgun, full of birdshit birdshot.

EDIT: I knew about canister shot, but a cloud of lead sounded more amusing to me.

WavemasterRyx wrote:

Kippershy wrote:

Ironmonger wrote:Bonus: Scene idea for whoever
wants it, somepony loads a ton of birdshot into an old cannon and fires
it into a horde of ghouls.

Birdshot? I'm not familiar with the
term.
...However... MINE!
Crimson would LOVE to do this. No word
of a lie. He... kind've hates ghouls, more-so feral ones but he can just
about tolerate sane ones for the right cause.

Well, they use larger ordinance than birdshot, but this does actually exist. It's called "grapeshot" or "canister shot" and it indeed basically turns your cannon into a giant shotgun. It's really effective too.

Well, effective enough to play an important role in advancing the career of one of my favorite historical figures, thanks to his devastating defense of the National Convention against royalist insurgents. Who would have guessed grapeshot-loaded cannon are even more effective when used in defensive positions in city streets?

RoboRed wrote:Hey. Yeah, I remember you, Mr. What's-your-face with the squiggly lines in his username! (Seriously though, I do remember you posting here in the PH topic before. Good to see you back.)

It's good to be back, the reason I suddenly left so long ago was because College had started, and I devoted time getting adjusted to that, then I started playing a game called league of legends, and I devoted time to that, I even went through driving school during the late summer, then about a month or so later, I was all set to start posting again, but then I saw that you guys had already gone through another thread so I decided to try and read all of that thread before I posted again so that I could make educated and relevant posts, but then I fell behind because I didn't put enough time or effort in. Then you guys went through another thread, and I vowed to read through that one too, and eventually I just fell so far behind in keeping up with the community that began to feel hopeless and I couldn't figure out how to join the community again without coming off as really awkward, like I was trying to fit into a place I didn't belong in anymore.

Then finally I realized something: Project Horizons, and it's community, had given me something to do. More than that though, this had all given me a purpose, not a purpose like schooling or work or any of life's necessities like that, all this had given me something to do of my own volition, something that I could put my thoughts and abilities towards that was always growing, always changing, giving feedback and having it be looked at and scrutinized by important people. For the first time that I could remember, I felt like I was finally a part of a grand project, rather than simply observing these wonders as I always had.

So now I think it's time for me to actually put forth that effort and time, and keep posting regularly, no more half-ass'ing it, no more falling off the wagon, I owe it to Project Horizons, I owe it to Somber, and I owe it to you guys for giving me one the few things I have to look forward to when I get up in the morning.

I'm going to be looking for a way to contribute to the community beyond posting as well, maybe fanart, maybe something else, all I know is I'm going to try to do more than just make posts.
_________

By the way, what's this I hear about an AI? You mean like Artificial Intelligence? Was he like an OC of sorts? I wonder what he was like, that must've been pretty interesting to have conversations with and stuff, to say the least. Hopefully he'll come back someday, I'd like to meet him as well, maybe then I would finally have someone (or something I suppose) to share my love of anagrams with.

_________

Also with the cannons firing grapeshot, maybe it would be even better if you coated the pellets or grapes or whatever they're called with petroleum jelly or napalm, that way you have fiery, incendiary shotgun cannon blasts! Everything is better with more burning added to it.

OBS.GS.§S wrote:

RoboRed wrote:Hey. Yeah, I remember you, Mr. What's-your-face with the squiggly lines in his username! (Seriously though, I do remember you posting here in the PH topic before. Good to see you back.)

It's good to be back,

I daw'd

Dynamic entry is usually the best way to enter if it has been a while... everyone here is far too forgiving to hold it against you

Sindri wrote:

IncoherentOrange wrote:I just wrote some more of my new fanfic project, up to two thousand words on my first chapter. (and could use a pre-reader, if anyone's interested.) Now that I'm in a literature-y mood, I'm going to go read some Fallout: Equestria. Oh, it feels good to write again.

Well, more writers in the world is almost always a good thing. I'm not an editor by any means, but I should probably have some time the next couple days to go through what you have, point out any errors glaring enough for me to see them, and probably overanalyze things you weren't even thinking about?

I'd be glad to have your help, and I'm sure you'll be of assistance. I'll send you (and stringtheory) a PM with a link and such when I finish the initial release quota; the first two chapters at a minimum four thousand words, probably more. I do not require an editor; I'm a grammatical reviewer and small-time editor myself, but of course, authors make their own worst editors. Doesn't have to be absolutely perfect, though.

If you're wondering what the subject matter is, it's a human in Equestria story, space opera of my own design, about a colony ship and its senior officers, and their encounters with the locals. It's been really fun to write so far, but I'm still testing my writing style outside the first person, which is where my 'strength' used to lay, and I could use the help. Thanks for volunteering.



Cannister shells, etc.: Well, 120mm smoothbore cannons like those in the M1A1 Abrams and Leopard 2 have a shell that fires many tungsten pellets, for use against light vehicles. You definitely do not want to be hit by one of those.

HOLY CRAP!!!!!!

just found this little audio drama and the VA is pretty good

no really really really good

http://theprincesscadancediaries.tumblr.com/post/30396206518/deeper-into-darkness-part-1-cadancehttp://theprincesscadancediaries.tumblr.com/post/30396206518/deeper-into-darkness-part-1-cadance

OBS.GS.§S wrote:

snip:

Eh, don't worry too much about it. Pages grow at an alarming rate, and I stopped doing my reviews long ago. About all I contribute now still is the music playlist for each chapter.

The AI was a user who went and commented on each chapter, using the persona of a rogue AI unit trying to learn humanity/understand emotion/something like that, and occasionally converse with other users. He would type messages with a machine-like style of writing, and made frequent use of odd characters, "zalgo-style" characters, and other stuff. He did this for a while, disappeared, then went and dropped the persona and just talked with us as a regular user. Nice guy, can't remember what happened to him. Said he might bring back the AI again at some point.

So yeah, I guess it could be counted as an OC of sorts.

RoboRed wrote:The AI was a user who went and commented on each chapter, using the persona of a rogue AI unit trying to learn humanity/understand emotion/something like that, and occasionally converse with other users. He would type messages with a machine-like style of writing, and made frequent use of odd characters, "zalgo-style" characters, and other stuff. He did this for a while, disappeared, then went and dropped the persona and just talked with us as a regular user. Nice guy, can't remember what happened to him. Said he might bring back the AI again at some point.

So yeah, I guess it could be counted as an OC of sorts.

Either that or he's actually a slightly glitchy AI who managed to figure out enough about humanity to successfully pose as one for an extended period. It's a bit ambiguous.

Yep.