2018-12-17 [DMFA 1888] - "We help people to help themselves"

[Tapewolf]

Shouldn't that really be 'Yes please'...?

Quite cleverly done since we still have no clue what the Boon actually consists of.  Though presumably it's helped make Biggs a gangland boss.
Clearly there are limits because he's depending on Jyrras to build the weapon, and waiting for Dee to turn rabid and destroy him.


"Let's just say... we help people to help themselves."
--Sylvia from The Box of Delights, trying to recruit a wayward child into her crime gang

[GreenReaper]

If it's "I'll turn you into a boy, because boys have all the real power in your community", I suspects feminists might be a tad ticked off.
(Mab is secretly implanting a testosterone diffuser into Bridget's paw in the last panel!)

[e_voyager]

The power to change the world just not all at once. Have to admit this is something freaking awesome I was not certain which way this was going to go until it got here.

[keybounce]

I find myself thinking of "I ... I cannot fail". And wondering if there would have been someway to turn that one word response into 4 without destroying the touching moment.

[Jasonrevall]

Perhaps the boon is something along the lines of being able to make oneself and potentially others completely invisible to the powers in control right now? Perhaps Bee's boon disallows even Hizel from scrying on him? This would explain how he got into power and why he can't take on the big boss's without help. It's an incredible power to be invisible but one that would need to be used with thought and care.

[HaDDea]

If it's "I'll turn you into a boy, because boys have all the real power in your community", I suspects feminists might be a tad ticked off.
(Mab is secretly implanting a testosterone diffuser into Bridget's paw in the last panel!)

I suspect that if Mab is responsible for actually transforming Bridget into Biggs, it was only as part of the boon - a portion of the power needed to change the world (if only because abrupt, complete overthrows of social and cultural norms seldom work to create enduring change - incremental changes seem far more effective). In truth, it wouldn't surprise me if Biggs went and sought the procedure out himself after the boon was granted, as it has been confirmed to exist in this world, and as he had noted, he'd already been discussing it with his mom and Wildy before the incident. Either way, the conferral of the boon seems a good time to make some major changes (Biggs makes his appearance and Bridget disappears into obscurity), though if the physical change wasn't part of the boon Biggs may have had to wait until he had amassed enough wealth and power before he could undergo the procedure proper.

What exactly IS Biggs' power? The fact that Biggs is presented as the only known ruler of the whole of the Twink Territories, the warehouse full of Natural metal, His rather casual connections to the Rulers of Zinvth ( I assume among others) and the destruction of Tri-wing Owonna are all a testament to his power, but what does it actually consist of? is it magic? information? some kind of Silver Tongue or sway over people? a combo of those three? something else? I tend to lean towards some kind of supercharged info gathering ability, as he was able to locate and off Owonna (who was by nature very secretive), but obviously he's got people working under him (he didn't do the hit personally). How did Biggs cotton onto the whole "natural destroys magical" anyway? And know about Jyrras producing weapons?

I find myself thinking of "I ... I cannot fail". And wondering if there would have been someway to turn that one word response into 4 without destroying the touching moment.

Nice reference. And I hope that Mab isn't that kind of agent in this world (though she definitely could be). Mab does seem to be a benevolent fae in the realm of Furrae. (Although, again - what are the overarching goals of the Dragons and Fae? how do the Subjects of Direlamyl and Shazarelamyth propagate their respective deity's will in a given realm, even one as backwater as Furrae reportedly is?)

[Cassi-kun]

If it's "I'll turn you into a boy, because boys have all the real power in your community", I suspects feminists might be a tad ticked off.

wut

[Gamma]

I tend to lean towards some kind of supercharged info gathering ability, as he was able to locate and off Owonna (who was by nature very secretive), but obviously he's got people working under him (he didn't do the hit personally). How did Biggs cotton onto the whole "natural destroys magical" anyway? And know about Jyrras producing weapons?

I'm kind of this mind about it too. Though I think it's more of a plan and support. Some of the Fae are in on some part of this whole plan no matter what. They most likely can basicly tell the future of a world when they don't limit themselves, would be easy to come up with a plan that can be elastic and nudge things around given enough time. The end goal has to appear as though normal beings made this change occur, either by an inciting incident causing a chain reaction across the beings, or a whole large event as we've almost assuredly been led to believe is going to happen.

Mab and company probably just steer events towards the plan's end goal, such as the shiny bracelets for Jyrras with that large setup and potential payoff they wanted, but it all must appear authentic to stick. I think we might be going for a Watchman type event, but with a setup that holds more water over the course of history, ideally anyway. It could just turn sideways.   

[Shakal]

Frankly I've wondered for a long time exactly what the power of the Twinks were in general. Heading there was expected to be a major and dangerous quest, but what can they actually DO? I remember the term 'power=gaming twinks' in my MUD days (similar to the Furcadia that inspired DMFA) that were RPers that would just change the rules whenever it suited them/they were losing, so do they have some kind of reality-warping abilities?

[Cassi-kun]

Frankly I've wondered for a long time exactly what the power of the Twinks were in general. Heading there was expected to be a major and dangerous quest, but what can they actually DO? I remember the term 'power=gaming twinks' in my MUD days (similar to the Furcadia that inspired DMFA) that were RPers that would just change the rules whenever it suited them/they were losing, so do they have some kind of reality-warping abilities?

Twink is also a WoW term for a character with an experienced player behind them, whose stats and abilities have been carefully selected through the use of prior knowledge in order to maximize their performance

[Tuyu]

I suspect that if Mab is responsible for actually transforming Bridget into Biggs, it was only as part of the boon - a portion of the power needed to change the world (if only because abrupt, complete overthrows of social and cultural norms seldom work to create enduring change - incremental changes seem far more effective). In truth, it wouldn't surprise me if Biggs went and sought the procedure out himself after the boon was granted, as it has been confirmed to exist in this world, and as he had noted, he'd already been discussing it with his mom and Wildy before the incident. Either way, the conferral of the boon seems a good time to make some major changes (Biggs makes his appearance and Bridget disappears into obscurity), though if the physical change wasn't part of the boon Biggs may have had to wait until he had amassed enough wealth and power before he could undergo the procedure proper.

I'd go further and say that unless there's something about the boon that requires Bridget to become Biggs, the change is unrelated to the boon, just something Biggs wanted to do along the way.

[Lemarc]

Frankly I've wondered for a long time exactly what the power of the Twinks were in general. Heading there was expected to be a major and dangerous quest, but what can they actually DO? I remember the term 'power=gaming twinks' in my MUD days (similar to the Furcadia that inspired DMFA) that were RPers that would just change the rules whenever it suited them/they were losing, so do they have some kind of reality-warping abilities?

Twink is also a WoW term for a character with an experienced player behind them, whose stats and abilities have been carefully selected through the use of prior knowledge in order to maximize their performance

It predates WoW, or Furcadia. It was coined in tabletop RPG circles, but means the same thing in computer game circles. A twink is a minmaxer, a powergamer - someone who manipulates the rules to maximise their character's power. The word's derogatory - used by people who are more interested in roleplaying to refer to people who are just "in it to win", which in RPG circles is obviously a faux pas. Interesting implications for Biggs, especially given this latest comic.

[Mermidion]

It predates WoW, or Furcadia. It was coined in tabletop RPG circles, but means the same thing in computer game circles. A twink is a minmaxer, a powergamer - someone who manipulates the rules to maximise their character's power. The word's derogatory - used by people who are more interested in roleplaying to refer to people who are just "in it to win", which in RPG circles is obviously a faux pas. Interesting implications for Biggs, especially given this latest comic.

The last part made me laugh. oh Yeah, you better believe he is "in it to win" his whole (new) life is all about that i would say.