Drasvin

The poufs originally had a practical purpose.  Poodles were bred for hunting and retrieving in water, and the poufs around the joints provided warmth and protection from objects hidden under the water, while shaving the rest of the body wherever that extra protection wasn't needed kept the dogs from getting water-logged while swimming.  They have a lot of fur, and it can get pretty tangled if not properly cared for.
Or at least, so goes the story.  There are some people who believe that's an explanation invented after the fact, and that the haircuts actually come from poodles that performed in circuses.  They are a very intelligent, athletic, highly trainable breed, large enough to see from the back of a crowd on risers, so they were a favorite of circuses.  So by that theory, the haircut still served a practical purpose, but in this case it was the same purpose as spandex body suits and clown costumes.
But really, almost all poodle owners get them a much more practical cut, usually trimmed fairly short all over every couple of months.  In that case, the most difficult parts to trim short end up poufier than the nice smooth body and upper legs.  Again, really a practical haircut rather than fashionable.  The poufy top of the head is probably the most popular cosmetic choice, and given that humans often choose the same thing for themselves....

Lol. It was originally a project just for myself. I'd been doing it for a while before I thought to put it up on the forums in case anyone else was interested.

Another amazing crackpot plot theory? How do I do it? How can you stop me?
This one is that what's involved in the magic change will have include a change for Immortals. This whole mess started with Immortals messing around in ways that exposed magic to humans in a way that had to be more spectacular and widespread than the Fire-Throwing Horde that set off the last Change, and it was the Immortals that did the world-wide exposing. Voltaire must be aiming for a change in the rules--but it won't be the change he had in mind.
I also think that Voltaire will be joining the debate.
And I think by the end of The Fate of Magic, the Will of Magic will take on a perceptible form which will be a very large surprise. But I won't tell you what I think that form will be.
True, but I said "just as likely". Anyway, as I posited in the comments for Monday, I don't think that Tedd, Arthur, and Van are "really" wherever they are, in body, and I don't think they are actually speaking with their lips or hearing with their ears. They are perceiving things outside of time and the reality of the material plane, something like Tedd's little talk with the whales. If there is more diversity, I would expect everyone to seem to be speaking English to us. The "Mum" may just be a way to communicate Britishness, or another curve ball from Dan.
Or maybe actual subtitles will magically appear. Ellen would really like them when she hears Nanase speaking Japanese.
I'll go for the nice(r) explanation.

This isn't going to go smoothly is it?
And Tedd and Van being half-sibling would be the safe bet. On the other hand, if I bet against that and they turn out to not be siblings, then I would get all those cookies. Decisions decisions...

This isn't going to go smoothly is it?
And Tedd and Van being half-sibling would be the safe bet. On the other hand, if I bet against that and they turn out to not be siblings, then I would get all those cookies. Decisions decisions...

Nah, I'm not trying to refer to her in Japanese. "Mamase" is a perfectly good portmanteau word based on "Mama" and "Nanase", and it's clearly understood by most participants in this forum. We wouldn't refer to her as "haha" because we aren't laughing at her.

"I'm hear to give out toys and smite heretics, and I'm fresh out of toys....."
 

Okay, supposing they all go to the local college, who would stay at their parents' places, and who would move out to dorms, apartments, etc.?
I think Nanase would be eager to move out, and would go with dorms if she couldn't afford anything else.
Susan doesn't have any problems with her Mother that we know about, but she does like to be independent, so she'd also probably consider moving out. I doubt she'd settle for a dorm, however, so she'd need a job that would pay enough to afford an apartment or some other housing that didn't leave her sharing her space with a stranger. (Although if she could arrange to share a space with one of her friends that might also work.)
One the one hand Ellen and Elliot are laid back enough they wouldn't mind continuing their current living arrangements. On the other hand it would probably be good for them to have a little more space, and depending on how the finances work it might be less of a burden on their family if they moved out. (Or does the money Mr. Verres arranged to support Ellen put them in a better position than they would be without her? In that case, that would be incentive for her to stick around a while longer.)
Tedd would be torn - on the one thing he has a little bit of friction with his father, and would probably enjoy having a space where he could be himself without worrying what his father would think. On the other hand, he'd have to either recreate or go without his lab, and there's the question of if he would be able to keep the TFG and other alien or government tech if he moved out.
I'm pretty sure Grace would go or stay wherever Tedd went.
Anyone else have any thoughts? 

Poor Adrian.  He's lived such along time, and his mother was the one constant, the one person who's been there the whole time.  Even when they weren't seeing each other, he knew she was out there.  He may even have wanted her to reset, although he never said anything to imply it.  And now, she's gone, and she's likely told him all about resets and that she'll basically forget him, that his mother will be gone if she resets.  He's an orphan now.
Which is basically what happens to every child who outlives their parents.  Even if they're eighty and their parent was a hundred.  Does multiplying those numbers by ten or twenty make any real difference?

I think the connection Zeus mentioned is the connection between the two halves of the EGS-universe, the dam she set up. She couldn't remove the dam herself, because that would be depowering Moperville, but since she's breaking laws anyway...

Jerry was going to offer Sarah a magic mark, so I would say that the magic marks don't count as part of the Immortal's power as Jerry wouldn't want to mess up his reset(His next life wouldn't be a very useful ally to Susan if he messed it up). Though an Immortal might run into trouble if they try to give a mark in the same moment their reset finally triggers, as I imagine it take some of their power to bestow the mark, even if the mark itself isn't part of their power.
Besides, as Kazzellin points out, Immortals gather their power when doing a proper reset, which a forced reset is not.

She can't summon another Sword right now, as Dan states in the commentary:
So she's currently unable to kill any vampires whether she wants to or not, besides, she's already killed one in this battle so that should negate the question of her being squeamish.

*scratches head* We now have a confusion of goals. In-game we had a group of NPCs whose objective was to keep their temple from being robbed. Out-of-Game we had the objective of everyone having fun.
In-game, the NPCs clearly achieved their objective. The players wanted loot and experience. They got half of that.
Out of game we all just wanted to have fun. Given how the players facepalmed and howled with laughter once they realised what had happened, I'd say we succeeded.
All of that is why I like good roleplaying games. They are not zero sum. And even losing in game does not equate to having lost in general.

Understand your goals. If your goal is to defend a certain target, you going in and killing the enemy is only one of many possible ways to achieve that goal. In fact, if the enemy can be dissuaded from even attempting to take/attack the target, that's a complete success. Even if it happens while you're busy taking a nap.
Check with Sun Tsu for details.

Obviously. It's not like there is any conflict between those two. There can be all sort of unexpected fruitful results obtained while trying to make the bad idea good, it's just unlikely to MAKE that bad idea good.
The Nazis research in astrology was especially good idea in this regard. Considering astrology was PROVEN to not work in ancient Greece (or Rome?) already.
Sir Isaac Newton was one of most inventive researchers, likely genius etc. He lived in time where it wasn't exactly clear if magic does or doesn't work but he was very interested in understanding the world. He did enormous amount of research in fields of optic, gravity, mechanics, astronomy, alchemy and natural philosophy. He is known for his breaking discoveries in optic, gravity, mathematics and mechanics. That was NOT because he didn't spend time or effort on alchemy - he did, he just didn't get any results.
If magic would prove to be more effective to use but harder to understand the world through it, there would still be technology research. If magic would prove to be effective in understanding the world, the technological research could build upon understanding based in magic.
Sure there would be differences, however it would be hard to predict which ones. I don't think that any area would get significantly behind BECAUSE lot of technology builds upon older technologies - like, they might get to something from different direction than we did but not so much later. The differences in what technology would become commonplace would be bigger.
 
 

PLAYTESTING!

Pandora seems to be limited to either omniscience or being sane and caring about the welfare of her family.  If she let her sanity slip away, she'd likely be able to predict there being more aberrations, and maybe even who hired them and why, but she might wind up not caring who won the fight as long as it was entertaining.

Based on how Heka told Pandora "You're actually a perfect example of why they did", I would guess fairies have a strong tendency to become deeply invested in familial ties. And her threatening Zeus to make him protect Susan and Diane reinforces that perspective. It's simply too dangerous for a fairy to get that invested in a bloodline, especially as the bloodline grows larger.

Zeus seems to be at the edge of panic, if not diving full into it. Diane is going to be the death of him, either figuratively or literally.
While in modern day, Zeus is most remembered for his infidelity, He did have dominion of other things that made mortals appreciate him. Such as the rule of law and xenia(sacred hospitality, very important in a time which travel can take multiple days and things like hotels didn't really exist yet). Breaking xenia was possibly the fastest way to make Zeus extremely angry.
I doubt Pandora knows about Magus's plan. She would have warned Adrian before this if she did. Even if she wants Magus out of his situation, she's not going to care more about that than Adrian. And she's been more self conscious about her actions recently, so I doubt she would risk his safety like when Adrian fought Abraham.
I agree Pandora is likely referring to herself when mentioning only one is in danger. She knows direct action would be against the rules, but she's willing to sacrifice herself to save Adrian, Susan, and Diane (She probably doesn't care about Zeus outside of his ability to keep the others alive and he's an Immortal. He can take care of himself)
I think it might be a case that she doesn't want a forced reset, but is willing to accept that if that is what it takes to keep people she cares about alive.

Based on how Heka told Pandora "You're actually a perfect example of why they did", I would guess fairies have a strong tendency to become deeply invested in familial ties. And her threatening Zeus to make him protect Susan and Diane reinforces that perspective. It's simply too dangerous for a fairy to get that invested in a bloodline, especially as the bloodline grows larger.

Heck, in a story I'm writing (what's done is published on the Wapsi Square forum) I have a couple of characters eating in a certain restaurant in Minneapolis. I mention what they are eating. You could walk into that restaurant with a friend and order the same thing. It's real.
(I use that to shoot down the "it's all true or it's all lies" crowd, because that part of the story IS true, as are a number of other details such as typical driving time between the university area of Saint Paul and the nearest Wal-Mart, but as for the overall story... well, while eating at that restaurant in real life you won't have a pair of centaurs eating at the next table, and I'm pretty sure there aren't three werewolf art-school students renting a basement apartment near the university.)
While it's possible I've passed through Minneapolis/St Paul once or twice, I can't say for sure that I have, and I've definitely never been there in any meaningful sense.
The internet is very helpful to writers.

Well, Mary of Exeter didn't have any problem with archers, at least as far as I'm aware, but she did get into a fight with some hawks the Germans kept. They wounded her in the neck and right breast, but she was able to return to duty after two months.
On a later mission she had a run in with someone with a scatter gun, got her wingtip shot off and several pellets in her body.
She was eventually retired after being hit by shrapnel, tearing her neck muscles badly, but still she got through. Her owner made a leather harness that allowed her to keep her head up even though the muscles were just so much minced meat.
Her retirement was however not to be as pleasantly quiet as a Lady with her merits deserve as in 1942 the germans managed to drop a bomb on the loft where she was spending her days. But once again she pulled through and survived even this, though a lot of the other pigeons in the loft were killed.
She was presented with the Dickin Medal in November of 1945, and eventually died in 1950. 
With no dropped packages she had a pretty good record...

I can understand why Susan never took sword lessons, well there are probably numerous reasons.
1) No one in Moperville trains in the usage of long swords, at best as some state, only Fencing, which isn't the same. Closest thing might be to join an SCA group but dunno how that would work.
2) Some suggest that she should have no problem getting training because she's rich, but Susan might not want her mom to pay for everything, Susan has a job, I'm certain that Susan bought her car with her own money from her job, so if she wanting to get professionally trained, she'd probably pay for it herself, but she might not have the time to invest between work and school.
3)She probably wanted to forget the whole vampire incident and didn't believe she'd ever have to deal with that sort of thing again, we know she didn't want to look at her spellbook after her awakening, she probably didn't want to use a sword until the goo fight. My guess is she kept swords in her summoning chest more as a deterrent if someone tried to mess with her.
4)She might not have wanted her mom to suspect anything happened to her in France, it'd probably be concerning if your daughter came back from a school trip requesting to take swordfighting classes, even if the excuse is that they were told about Joan of Arc.
I never said he had a chance of succeeding.

Yeah, I wish him good luck with that. >.<

Well, wait for Susan to go through some upgrades to her spell, and perhaps she'll get closer to Mjolnir. 
Argh, a smart villain.  Yeah, he was definitely already shaping up to be the one to watch out for.  He seems to have opted for a more low key aspect of Aberration-hood, and also seems more concerned with tactics and evaluating his enemy.  I am concerned as to how his monsterness will manifest, given how calmly he threatened the big beast aberration.  He is disdainful of fancy magic; he could have something more straightforward but potentially very dangerous, stealth and speed for example.