Too Like The Lightning: A primer
The following contains spoilers.
The world of Too Like The Lightning is near a utopia. The primary governing bodies are the Seven Hives Alliance, and the bash.
What's a hive? To best explain the Hives, let us start with the six-hive transit system. The six hives who participate in the transit system are:
-- Humanists, who believe in maximizing the human capability and maintain the transit car system.
-- MASON, the Empire.
-- Cousins, who help others
-- Europe, which is all those who value location.
-- Mitsubishi, who value land ownership
-- Gordians, who are psychologists
The Hive not participating in the six-hive transit system is:
-- Utopia, who knows cars sometimes crash and is unwilling to accept the failure rate.
Choice of a hive is a personal choice made when one passes the adult competency exams; the different hives have different rules for entering and leaving.
And what of those who do not choose to join a hive? Three options, they:
-- Blacklaw, who accept only the seven "universal laws", and, in addition, have adopted their own eighth law: do not anger the Leviathans.
-- Greylaw. All minors are greylaws until they pass the adult competence exams. They follow the seven universal laws plus adopted "consensus laws"
-- Whitelaw: Follow all laws of the greylaws, plus accepted "character laws".
What, then, is a bash?
-- A chosen family, of 5 to 50 or so adults and their children before their children choose a Bash. Can be entirely one Hive, but more commonly a mixture.
Every adult has:
-- A bash
-- a Hive, or has chosen to not have one
-- a home for their bash
-- a home food-tree, that grows all sorts of plants and meats
-- free access to the six-hive transit system, which can take you from Spain to Tokya in hours.
-- a job of some sort. For non-vocatuers, about 10 hours a week. For those who are vocatuers, work as long as they like.
Every child has:
-- bash parents
-- everything in a bash
-- the protection of the Cousins and the Greylaws.
Religion: Discussion of religion by three or more people without a sensayer present is a violation of the First Universal Law, as it is likely to end with massive loss of human life as it did during the Church Wars.
What, dear reader, do you think of this world?
Monday, January 8, 2018
Saturday, January 6, 2018
Too Like The Lightning may be the great novel I ever have read.
Too Like The Lightning may be the great novel I ever have read.
Or, it might be terrible. I'm halfway through the third book of the series, The Will To Battle, and I still don't know.
I'm lost about a quarter of the time. Does the novel challenge me, or is it itself confused?
The protagonist has discussions with the Young Reader, Master Reader, and Thomas Hobbes. Is this a poor trick, or is it an expertly used knife searing away avarice and distrust?
The social structures in the novel are nearly as foreign to my eyes as to The Visitor, whom the novel often addresses as The Addressee. I do not know to what extend this is intentional, to what extent I fail to live up to the novel's beliefs of it's readers, or if it is a byproduct of the Author taking more upon herself than any of our dear Hobbes's Leviathans ever could.
There are exchanges in this novel that, when I reread them, I feel the turn of the ages and the swelling of humanity. I do not know, dear reader, if this is merely a product of my own dreams and faverstate, or if this Author has written a poem worthy of the Visitor.
In short, this novel is either among the greatest that I have ever read, or it is a foolish endeavor that has momentarily deceived me. I knowest not, and pray you would help me understand.
Also, no spoilers.
Or, it might be terrible. I'm halfway through the third book of the series, The Will To Battle, and I still don't know.
I'm lost about a quarter of the time. Does the novel challenge me, or is it itself confused?
The protagonist has discussions with the Young Reader, Master Reader, and Thomas Hobbes. Is this a poor trick, or is it an expertly used knife searing away avarice and distrust?
The social structures in the novel are nearly as foreign to my eyes as to The Visitor, whom the novel often addresses as The Addressee. I do not know to what extend this is intentional, to what extent I fail to live up to the novel's beliefs of it's readers, or if it is a byproduct of the Author taking more upon herself than any of our dear Hobbes's Leviathans ever could.
There are exchanges in this novel that, when I reread them, I feel the turn of the ages and the swelling of humanity. I do not know, dear reader, if this is merely a product of my own dreams and faverstate, or if this Author has written a poem worthy of the Visitor.
In short, this novel is either among the greatest that I have ever read, or it is a foolish endeavor that has momentarily deceived me. I knowest not, and pray you would help me understand.
Also, no spoilers.
A conversation that happens often!
A conversation that happens often!
Individual: William, I used to play D&D and would like to again. You play games! Will you teach me D&D?
Me:...
Me: I'm not competent to do that. Can we talk about what you love and hate about D&D?
Individual: Sure! I love a group getting together, talking about cool, hot, hard adventurers travelling across the world overcoming monsters and taking their loot. That's so metal, and D&D does that.
Me: ... And what do you hate?
Individual: Oh man, I remember doing spreadsheets for the math. So much math. And the books were always hard to find the numbers I needed. And why oh why is a magic weapon boring?
Me: Can we talk about a game called Dungeon World?
Individual: ::Suspicions:: What's that?
Me: It's a love letter to dungeon and dragons. Let me print out the character sheet right now....
Individual: THIS IS METAL!
This happens to me almost once a month. Highly recommended.
The conversation can go other ways, of course. Sometimes, they want D&D AND THEY MEAN IT, and I cannot help them. Sometimes, they want a different genre and I recommend a different game.
But, by and large, in my experience, people only know one option. Opening up other options shows them that the bonds and chains they have accepted are only in their own mind.
This applies to other areas of course, too. Sometimes -- very rarely -- it is the first time they'e become aware of a chain that isn't real. Then I have to be really careful.
Is this just me?
Individual: William, I used to play D&D and would like to again. You play games! Will you teach me D&D?
Me:...
Me: I'm not competent to do that. Can we talk about what you love and hate about D&D?
Individual: Sure! I love a group getting together, talking about cool, hot, hard adventurers travelling across the world overcoming monsters and taking their loot. That's so metal, and D&D does that.
Me: ... And what do you hate?
Individual: Oh man, I remember doing spreadsheets for the math. So much math. And the books were always hard to find the numbers I needed. And why oh why is a magic weapon boring?
Me: Can we talk about a game called Dungeon World?
Individual: ::Suspicions:: What's that?
Me: It's a love letter to dungeon and dragons. Let me print out the character sheet right now....
Individual: THIS IS METAL!
This happens to me almost once a month. Highly recommended.
The conversation can go other ways, of course. Sometimes, they want D&D AND THEY MEAN IT, and I cannot help them. Sometimes, they want a different genre and I recommend a different game.
But, by and large, in my experience, people only know one option. Opening up other options shows them that the bonds and chains they have accepted are only in their own mind.
This applies to other areas of course, too. Sometimes -- very rarely -- it is the first time they'e become aware of a chain that isn't real. Then I have to be really careful.
Is this just me?
Tuesday, January 2, 2018
In a post a few days ago, I inadvertently caused emotional harm to people I care about.
In a post a few days ago, I inadvertently caused emotional harm to people I care about. If you don't know what this is about: great, good! If you do and the following is insufficient, please ping me privately.
To start: I apologize. I screwed up.
Folks harmed have created games that have, among other things, made me laugh, cry, sing, dance, prepared me for a promotion, expanded my empathy and perspective, made me a better person, man, and husband.
That what I was said was taken as not valuing that took me by shock and surprise. Those conversations have deep and abiding meaning for me. I left the thread for real world concerns, and did not reopen it as I needed to process that. I read everything.
The truth of what I was talking about is one I discovered real quick is one that my friends are vested in in a way I don't really understand, and I'd prefer to have you all as friends than to investigate the truth of the statement.
I don't have to understand it -- and may not be able to understand it -- to know that my relationships are more important to me than being right.
To start: I apologize. I screwed up.
Folks harmed have created games that have, among other things, made me laugh, cry, sing, dance, prepared me for a promotion, expanded my empathy and perspective, made me a better person, man, and husband.
That what I was said was taken as not valuing that took me by shock and surprise. Those conversations have deep and abiding meaning for me. I left the thread for real world concerns, and did not reopen it as I needed to process that. I read everything.
The truth of what I was talking about is one I discovered real quick is one that my friends are vested in in a way I don't really understand, and I'd prefer to have you all as friends than to investigate the truth of the statement.
I don't have to understand it -- and may not be able to understand it -- to know that my relationships are more important to me than being right.
Monday, January 1, 2018
Joshua Fox
Joshua Fox
You have hit all my buttons at once. I want your game. Help me get it?
https://twitter.com/rabalias/status/947938399545102341
Thanks to Misha B for the link share. She knows my buttons.
https://twitter.com/rabalias/status/947938399545102341
You have hit all my buttons at once. I want your game. Help me get it?
https://twitter.com/rabalias/status/947938399545102341
Thanks to Misha B for the link share. She knows my buttons.
https://twitter.com/rabalias/status/947938399545102341
This may be the greatest thing I've ever read:
This may be the greatest thing I've ever read:
It does us no favors to imagine that we can ever become immune to darkness. Fear, hatred, and jealousy will always come back for us, and we will always, sometimes, fail to resist.
Star Wars spoilers in comments.
It does us no favors to imagine that we can ever become immune to darkness. Fear, hatred, and jealousy will always come back for us, and we will always, sometimes, fail to resist.
Star Wars spoilers in comments.
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