worldbuilding
Reader JonS asks: Is there a ComicCon-esque event in the Eldraeverse, and if so how good is the cosplay there? (Has nothing to do with my wish to be at ComicCon, even WITH the crowds.) Oh, definitely. (Almost certainly several: the Worlds are, after all, a big place, but I
Imperial Security Executive
ISE SECURITY ADVISORY 4420-116 RESTRICTED (INFRARED) Note: This document replaces ISE Security Advisory 4112-11. It is applicable to personnel of all levels of the Imperial Service and Imperial Military Service, and to all external contractors of the Imperial Service and Imperial Military Service, and all other individuals whatsoever endorsed with
trope-a-day
Precursors: Played straight – but not completely. The species generally referred to as the Precursors got the name for having some of the most extensive local influence, and for being the species that made the eldrae, but in practice, they’re most notable for (a) being one of the oldest (but
Trading Free
(This is the first in a series of character introductions for my next planned longer work, working title “Trading Free”.) Lairh hinGastref winced again at the sound of the raised voices emanating from the station manager’s office, and wished that his auditory palps weren’t quite so sensitive in
trope-a-day
Precious Puppies: As a guide to just how straight the eldrae play this particular trope, even where their giant wardogs are concerned, it should be noted that under the list of special cases that is the Ungentlemanly Behavior Act (47, As Subsequently Revised), the consequences of literally kicking the dog
trope-a-day
Well, I’m back from my holidays, in the same place as all my source material and, possibly most importantly, my big screens and comfortable writing chair. Normal service should, therefore, be resumed as soon as possible. Or tomorrow, anyway. Power Glows: Technically, it doesn’t have to. Regular vector-control
Power Fist: The cestus, yes; the spiked gauntlet, yes; the electro-zappy-glove, yes. The true power fist, however, as seen in Fallout, et. al., generally comes attached to a set of Powered Armor, or at least a power torso – in the interest of not ripping your arm off when you try
So, I was invited to submit a story of mine to this site’s contest, which I have therefore done. If you liked it when you read it, or if you haven’t, when you do read it, I’d very much appreciate it if you’d head on over
Post Mortem Comeback: As in Dead Man Writing, the leftover personal and fiduciary AI systems, smart contracts, etc., left behind by the deceased are all still running, and since smart contracts aren’t automatically terminated by death, it’s not all that hard to make sure that some of your
exosciences (also xenosciences) (n.): Including exogeology, exogeography, exoclimatology, exobiology, exoecology, exosophontology, exomemetics, etc. An archaic series of terms referring to the various sciences when applied to off-planet phenomena, usually used with reference to the speaker’s homeworld. This terminology fell into rapid disrepute after the first full conference of the
In today’s entry in this series, the reality show that is basically a cross between Scrapheap Challenge/Junkyard Wars and Survivor: Mars, made possible in the science-fiction future by the wonders of noetic backups: In which we dump our hapless contestants onto a raw eutalentic-class (Mars-like) planet with a
Possession Implies Mastery: Generally averted, as the very large pile of incomprehensible elder-race artifacts sitting around in museums and the vaults of companies like Probable Technologies, ICC would demonstrate. Some of them have been there for centuries, or even millennia, and are still no closer to being understood. Played straighter