Domino Quartz's Delightfully Quaint Random Banter Thread #248

[Bartmanhomer]

Just out of interest what makes them dragoons? Because last time I checked D&D still made firearms and optional rule.

They're not really dragoon at all. I name their last name Dragoon because I thought it would be a cooler last name. They're really a huge human family worship different dragon deities and bonus points their first name have been inspired by dragon deities.

[Peelee]

Well for one, predatory behavior correlates with intelligence. For two, IRL the only confirmed sapient life form to exit is an omnivorous apex predator.

For one, correlation is not causation (in either direction), and said correlation is not absolute in any event - elephants being a fine example of a highly intelligent herbivore (and, as previously stated, one with no natural predators).

For two, you're taking most of your abilities from Marvel or invented wholesale - why arbitrarily stick to IRL restrictions randomly?

[Anonymouswizard]

There is a correlation between trans diagnoses and autism diagnoses, does this mean I should assume Rater is trans?

Anybody who said yes really needs to take a stats class.

Honestly I don't really care, but Rater? If you want your ultimate bestest lifeform fantasy to be a predator it's fine to admit that.

[Rater202]

There is a correlation between trans diagnoses and autism diagnoses, does this mean I should assume Rater is trans?

Define trans.

No, seriously, I'm comfortable with the pronouns I was assigned at birth but I've admitted to being curious about what it would feel like to have a female body and I think the entire concept of gender is kind of bull****. Also, a few years ago Zodi seemed reasonably certain that I might be nonbinary. I'm not committing one way or another on that, but will admit that a couple of Enby Meme videos have left me feeling very called out.

@Peelee: At some point the conversation switched from MArvel to "Ultimate Life Form" in general.

If my explanations for it in general so far aren't enough there's the old stand by of "being able to eat what you kill is efficient." Or how about ust a general "top of the food chain" thing?

If you want to dial it back to Marvel specifically, anything that could be reasonably classified as an ultimate life form in Marvel, assuming it isn't a high-order cosmic entity, is likely to be symbiote-derived, including my example, and while symbiotes aren't technically apex predators* in an of themselves... I mean, what would you call an organism that's adapted to hunt, kill, and feed on gods, cosmic beings, and others of that ilk?

*Admittedly, I think the writers have forgotten about the xenophage. The current Carnage series repeatedly states that Carnage only has one weakness left and it's not the venom of a xenophage it's focused on becoming immune to.

[Anonymouswizard]

Define trans.

I'm not going to because I don't think it matters. The point was that I shouldn't assume you are, FWIW you strike me as non-binary butI should listen to whatever you say on the topic. If you say you're the most male male to ever live I should except that.

Although if you put a gun to my head and forced me to answer 'is uncomfortable in the role or body of the sex they were assigned at birth' is a good enough definition for now. Inclusive or by the way, or else I would know a lot less trans people.

[Rater202]

I'm not going to because I don't think it matters.

It matters because I was making a point: Words, even words that seem pretty clearly and strictly defined, can actually be pretty murky.

Like, I get what you were going for but part of this debate hinges on how strictly you define "predator."

[Peelee]

There is a correlation between trans diagnoses and autism diagnoses, does this mean I should assume Rater is trans?

OH. MAN. I love oddball correlations. I love how this dude is still at it.

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Honestly I don't really care, but Rater? If you want your ultimate bestest lifeform fantasy to be a predator it's fine to admit that.

Oh, for sure. I was just originally commenting on that it the wording was "must" be predator.

Speaking solely for myself, i not only am excited for synthesized meats, but i also wouldn't mind synthesized fruits snd vegetables either. Can't imagine it being economical, but short version, i would be all about the Star Trek replicator for ethical consumption.

[Rater202]

I believe I said "would be" not "must be" and I could have sworn that the entire discussion was framed as a debate of opinion rather than one of facts.

[Peelee]

I believe I said "would be" not "must be"

Fair, but that's also a distinction without much of a difference.

and I could have sworn that the entire discussion was framed as a debate of opinion rather than one of facts.

Your insistence that "predator" is an opinion rather than consensus was part of the discussion, yes, though i don't recall anyone agreeing with you on that.

Anyway. Dragon with a replicator. That, to me, is the ultimate life form.

[Rater202]

Your insistence that "predator" is an opinion rather than consensus was part of the discussion, yes, though i don't recall anyone agreeing with you on that.

That wasn't a matter of opinion, that was arguing semantics.

[LaZodiac]

Anyway hey, my friend Fury got me a cool hoodie from a queer arcade bar near where they live.

Here I am wearing it!

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They also drew some art I just need to get access to Dad's scanner before I can share those.

[Peelee]

Anyway hey, my friend Fury got me a cool hoodie from a queer arcade bar near where they live.

Here I am wearing it!

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They also drew some art I just need to get access to Dad's scanner before I can share those.

Neat! Looks pretty nice!

[Anonymouswizard]

Anyway hey, my friend Fury got me a cool hoodie from a queer arcade bar near where they live.

Here I am wearing it!

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They also drew some art I just need to get access to Dad's scanner before I can share those.

Be careful, you're going to make every poster jealous of your good looks and amazing friends!

Well everybody except Peelee.

Cool jumper though, wish I had one as neat as that.

[LaZodiac]

Neat! Looks pretty nice!

Aw, thanks.

Be careful, you're going to make every poster jealous of your good looks and amazing friends!

Well everybody except Peelee.

Cool jumper though, wish I had one as neat as that.

Thank you aaaa.

Unfortunately you'd have to go all the way to Oregon to get something like this. Not that that's bad at all just, very distant from your present location.

[Rater202]

I have received yet more fanart, from the same person as the last several.

I um... I have to explain this one.

In The Owl House, the character of Odalia Blight is an oracle, that is to say, she uses magic related to scrying, diving the future, and long-distance communication as well as summoning spirits.

In my crossover fanfic, she has had a brief glimpse of a possible future but doesn't have the necessary context to understand that it is a bad future and has decided "yes, this is the one I want."

Spoiler: Credit to Just_A_Ghost

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[Peelee]

Be careful, you're going to make every poster jealous of your good looks and amazing friends!

Well everybody except Peelee.

I regret that i have but one face for the people to adore.

[enderlord99]

So... here's a hypothetical concept for a hamburger shonen story arc.

Spoiler: Specifically a DC one

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Grey lantern Owlman.

...I just checked back and it turns out the first half of the concept is nowhere near official. I'm still gonna post this.

[Peelee]

Andor steelbook disc set came in today. Biggest complaint about the BTS featurettes is i want more of them.

[Bohandas]

Define trans.

No, seriously, I'm comfortable with the pronouns I was assigned at birth but I've admitted to being curious about what it would feel like to have a female body and I think the entire concept of gender is kind of bull****.

Same here. The psycho-social construct seems like so much dross but the physicality intrigues me.

I'm reminded vaguely of the line from Hellraiser 1 where Pinhead states that the purpose of his order is to be "explorers of the further regions of experience"

[BisectedBrioche]

There's formal definitions of the word trans, but gender's a very individual thing.

I'm a binary trans woman, but my key point of frustration is how hard I find it to lean towards a GCN presentation without getting misgendered.

Part of the reason I'm a rogue main is because of the way fictional rogues tend to have that androgyny about them.

[Metastachydium]

they don't always wait to be antagonized, and when there's a non-zero chance of eating the thing you killed later the lines are murky.

Active defense is still just that: defence.

Yeah not every herbivore is like... an obligate "must eat only fruit or die" herbivore. Omnivorous behavior pops up where need, opportunity, accident, and free meat exist, after all. That, plus the fact that herbivores are by necessity more fierce and more prone to fighting than predators, means things like hippos and elephants are gonna **** your **** up worse than any predator if you go in with the idea of being a threat.

That doesn't mean they're like, apex predators, cause that's a very defined term, but it does mean they're a high rung creature in their environment. Hippos aren't indestructible despite how infamously deadly they actually are, and no amount of stompies is going to stop the occasional crocogator from eating one. Elephants are a bit more "apex" in that regard and even then they do get downed and eaten as well. It's how things go and all that.

All this is to say; "apex predator" is a very defined term, but even that isn't like, fully concrete- but it still doesn't really apply to like, hard to fell herbivores, because the operative word is "predator" here.

(to elaborate the "accident" part about; many deer and horses do end up chomping down on smaller prey species because they're just kinda in the way of their eating. Deer especially doesn't mind this since they can actually process meat fairly well, given a big aspect of their existence is devouring the bloody vellum of their own discarded horns.)

Yep yep.

Well for one, predatory behavior correlates with intelligence. For two, IRL the only confirmed sapient life form to exit is an omnivorous apex predator.

It used to be, perhaps. You lot got way too lazy to do that.

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I KNEW IT!

I know that sharks are predators.

Debatable. Whale sharks and basking sharks come to mind.

Listen, sometimes the key to success is in how you define success

Not just sometimes. In military terms, victory is purely a matter of achieving objectives, be them tactical, operational or strategic.

Isn't there also something about how big brains cost a lot of energy, and predation/meat-eating is a great way to get those calories "efficiently"?

Murderizing something that can just run away requires a bit more creativity than what the herbivorous scum does for a living.

OH. MAN. I love oddball correlations. I love how this dude is still at it.

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I see PATTERNS emerging.

Speaking solely for myself, i not only am excited for synthesized meats, but i also wouldn't mind synthesized fruits snd vegetables either. Can't imagine it being economical, but short version, i would be all about the Star Trek replicator for ethical consumption.

You are a Good Dragon.

♣

As for the whole strategic dietary perfection thing, predatory behavioyur is overrated. ANYTHING THAT CAN'T MAKE ITS OWN NUTRIENTS FROM INORGANIC MATTER AND AMBIENT ENERGY IS A LOSER.

[Anonymouswizard]

Thank you aaaa.

Unfortunately you'd have to go all the way to Oregon to get something like this. Not that that's bad at all just, very distant from your present location.

You have no idea where my present is located!

But yeah, Oregon is a bit far, and I'm not up for all the fording rivers and hunting it'll take to get there.

There's formal definitions of the word trans, but gender's a very individual thing.

Yeah, and IIRC there are some potential issues with how formal medical definitions were defined. I'm actually kind of glD that most people I know are somewhat suspicious of this gender thing

Part of the reason I'm a rogue main is because of the way fictional rogues tend to have that androgyny about them.

I believe it's spelt "'sexy sexy androgyny'. Personally since coming out I've started to veer towards tieflings and elves as good justifications to just avoid standard genders and sexes entirely.

Heck, elves in my settings are now sequential hermaphrodites. Young elves are women filled with wanderlust but eventually they grow beards, settle down, raise the kids, and make toys.

[Peelee]

You are a Good Dragon.

I try.

As for the whole strategic dietary perfection thing, predatory behavioyur is overrated. ANYTHING THAT CAN'T MAKE ITS OWN NUTRIENTS FROM INORGANIC MATTER AND AMBIENT ENERGY IS A LOSER.

Inorganic? INORGANIC? My chlorophyllic friend, I have it on good authority that your kind need carbon dioxide, which is like two parts organic to one part inorganic. ok, so a little less 2:1 ratio by mass or volume, but only losers count mass or volume as opposed to elementary composition.

You have no idea where my present is located!

Non-Jedi don't, no, but i command the Force. I felt your presents.

[Metastachydium]

Inorganic? INORGANIC? My chlorophyllic friend, I have it on good authority that your kind need carbon dioxide, which is like two parts organic to one part inorganic. ok, so a little less 2:1 ratio by mass or volume, but only losers count mass or volume as opposed to elementary composition.

Huh. This is probably the first time I see CO₂ be called an organic compound. Heck, from a chemical point of view, any claim to organicity would probably derive from having carbon, rather than oxygen in its composition.

[Peelee]

Huh. This is probably the first time I see CO₂ be called an organic compound.

Just don't tell any chemists I said it. They lack humours. The biologists told me so.

[Form]

As for the whole strategic dietary perfection thing, predatory behavioyur is overrated. ANYTHING THAT CAN'T MAKE ITS OWN NUTRIENTS FROM INORGANIC MATTER AND AMBIENT ENERGY IS A LOSER.

Yeah, but why would I do that when I can get other organisms to do it for me and then just... eat them?

[Bartmanhomer]

I'm on a roll creating my Monster Rancher 2 Monsters as Pokemon. Today I created Dragon and Centaur at the Arts & Crafts subforum here.

[BisectedBrioche]

You have no idea where my present is located!

But yeah, Oregon is a bit far, and I'm not up for all the fording rivers and hunting it'll take to get there.



Yeah, and IIRC there are some potential issues with how formal medical definitions were defined. I'm actually kind of glD that most people I know are somewhat suspicious of this gender thing



I believe it's spelt "'sexy sexy androgyny'. Personally since coming out I've started to veer towards tieflings and elves as good justifications to just avoid standard genders and sexes entirely.

Heck, elves in my settings are now sequential hermaphrodites. Young elves are women filled with wanderlust but eventually they grow beards, settle down, raise the kids, and make toys.

I mean, my tief cosplays have made it clear I look a lot better with horns...

[Anonymouswizard]

I mean, my tief cosplays have made it clear I look a lot better with horns...

I was going to make a bunch up f jokes, but they range from just creepy to outright fetishistic.

But honestly I'm sure people express gender envy whatever you're wearing, horny or not.

[Bohandas]

Define trans.

No, seriously, I'm comfortable with the pronouns I was assigned at birth but I've admitted to being curious about what it would feel like to have a female body and I think the entire concept of gender is kind of bull****.

I'm actually kind of glD that most people I know are somewhat suspicious of this gender thing

It was a bad idea to design society around two ridiculous, commedia dell'arte-esque character archetypes and then just build that into absolutely everything.

Tangential point - I believe the unthinking assumption and expectation for it to be everywhere is a big part of what keeps us from moving foreward on other aspects of how we're handling it. The angry public contention about who is allowed into what institutions could be solved in an instant if people would just step back and ask themselves "do we really need separate institutions?" and "do they need to be separated along these specific lines?". Every time I read about where people are arguing about who's allowed in which sports teams I find myself shouting at the screen "organize the teams by weight class!"; but nobody on either side of the argument ever comes to that conclusion because nobody on either side has bothered to question the underlaying assumption that the division will necessarily be that there will be a men's league and a women's league