2013/05/17 [DMFA #1402] Newsflash! The universe still hates me!

[xom]

Well I can't say that I didn't foresee this happening. 

What can you do when you're a cubi that can change your shape at will?

[VAE]

Cubi diplomacy is to diplomacy what a strait jacket is to jacket.
As a consequence I'd fit right in.

[The Game Freak]

Well I can't say that I didn't foresee this happening. 

What can you do when you're a cubi that can change your shape at will?

yea i didn't see this coming but we should have seen it coming if you think about it. i was thinking we get to know more about her but that's not happening today XD but really i am laughing my butt off at this. Mab did a great job and i honestly hope we see more of her and her friend in the near future with Dan

[Ganurath]

Cubi diplomacy is to diplomacy what a strait jacket is to jacket.
As a consequence I'd fit right in.

ISWYDT

Also, Facey Face has the mark of Kish'ta, the Nightmare Clan. Probably not the sort you wish to anger.

[The Game Freak]

ISWYDT

Also, Facey Face has the mark of Kish'ta, the Nightmare Clan. Probably not the sort you wish to anger.

and i could speculate mister dainty eye lashes is from the taun clan. just guessing mostly by the looks of his armor and his bat wings (taun do only get bat-like wings)

[AmigaDragon]

Stepping away from the gender confusion for a moment... What are those face-hands covering up? What's under the hood?

[Ganurath]

Stepping away from the gender confusion for a moment... What are those face-hands covering up? What's under the hood?

If Abyss is anything like her clan leader, a fleshless skull.

[VAE]

Stepping away from the gender confusion for a moment... What are those face-hands covering up? What's under the hood?

If Abyss is anything like her clan leader, a fleshless skull.

No. More hands. A carpet of fingers.

[e_voyager]

considering that mink is there i think they may be one of just many ambiguous trios in that school

[Venalitor]

This page has been a long time in coming. I'm glad its finally here.

[Wanderer]

Highly experienced diplomats. Do not try this conversation at home. 

[Lying Foo]

...did anyone else think the last line had been Dan's?

[LoneHowler]

I wonder if these two now knowing each others gender might hook up.
Or does the nightmare clan get picky on appearances and want to breed to get a more creepy/nightmarish look

[Anri]

All I have to say is: bwahahahahahahaha!

[Tapewolf]

I wonder if these two now knowing each others gender might hook up.
Or does the nightmare clan get picky on appearances and want to breed to get a more creepy/nightmarish look

I for one would not want to see Abyss naked.  And that's assuming that she's not like the Weavers in Loom, where seeing them without their cloaks destroys you.

Jerry would probably want someone more canid-looking anyway.

[e_voyager]

well i did ask about a face that kills but still this is more proof that dan didn't ask about gender then again he did ask mink right out what his gender was. it's cute seeing mink using his invisible watch.

[mithril]

Well I can't say that I didn't foresee this happening. 

What can you do when you're a cubi that can change your shape at will?

this actually brings up a very interesting question about Cubi gender identities..
and it answers one i'd thought of but hadn't asked yet, about whether Cubi could somehow sense the real identity of other cubi.. guess the answer is "no". though i suppose it is possible that cubi could still sense another cubi in a more abstract fashion.

still, i love the way that they still seem to use physical gender cues instead of having some sort of metaphysical ones..
and i would imagine Cubi could alter their voice as well.. otherwise changing form to imitate someone else would not be a very useful talent.

[Tapewolf]

and it answers one i'd thought of but hadn't asked yet, about whether Cubi could somehow sense the real identity of other cubi.. guess the answer is "no". though i suppose it is possible that cubi could still sense another cubi in a more abstract fashion.

Chances are it would be rude, like thought-reading all and sundry.

i would imagine Cubi could alter their voice as well.. otherwise changing form to imitate someone else would not be a very useful talent.

Given Merbel and Biggstania, I would say that's pretty certain.

[mithril]

and it answers one i'd thought of but hadn't asked yet, about whether Cubi could somehow sense the real identity of other cubi.. guess the answer is "no". though i suppose it is possible that cubi could still sense another cubi in a more abstract fashion.

Chances are it would be rude, like thought-reading all and sundry.

i'd imagine that thought reading could do a degree of identification.. but with thought shields being an option, it wouldn't be reliable. and i'd imagine thought shields would not be a cubi specific thing.

i'd just wondered if they had some sort of other extra-sensory ability to sense another cubi, beyond just thought reading.

i would imagine Cubi could alter their voice as well.. otherwise changing form to imitate someone else would not be a very useful talent.

Given Merbel and Biggstania, I would say that's pretty certain.

which of course just reinforces the question of gender identity. in a being that can look however he/she wants, gender would be mostly a mental attitude.. are there cubi who are born one gender, but decide they prefer being another and thus use their shapeshifting abilities to switch? or is shapeshifting something that requires specific effort to maintain, making their birth form their default no matter how they consider themselves?

hmm.. tangential thought on that.. how extensive can cubi shape-shifting get anyway? could one born a biped shift to be a Taur, or vice versa? if Ms. Abyss wanted to, could she have a normal being type appearance, and could someone like Dan shape change to look like Ms. Abyss?

[Tuyu]

I wonder if these two now knowing each others gender might hook up.

Considering that up to now, they each thought they were both the same gender (he thought she was a he, and she thought he was a she), that could bring a certain awkward perspective into their past relationship that could work against it. Or for it, for that matter.

[Tapewolf]

I'm kind of curious how she managed to do that if she's known him for decades, on account of his name.  But then, maybe she only ever heard it in short form and made assumptions.

[Amber Williams]

I try not to invest too much into names implying gender for the most part.   Considering there are characters named "Mink" "Quill" "Dimanika"  and so forth...naming a kid a gender specific name tends to be something more associated with beings than creatures.  So Abyss would likely have assumed he had a being in his family tree before assuming gender.

[Tapewolf]

I try not to invest too much into names implying gender for the most part.   Considering there are characters named "Mink" "Quill" "Dimanika"  and so forth...naming a kid a gender specific name tends to be something more associated with beings than creatures.  So Abyss would likely have assumed he had a being in his family tree before assuming gender.

Right.  That's something that was non-obvious because you've got a lot of counterexamples, e.g. the Soulstealer family.

EDIT: (In fact I had considered that as a theory myself and discarded it...)

[Amber Williams]

Oddly enough, I didn't intend for Kria to be an effeminate name. Hers was more a random mismangling of letters I smashed against a keyboard that I later found out was an actual name.

I usually go by the "end a name with a vowel usually means feminine" principle on a few things.  Which may in fact what tripped up Jerimiah there, his name has an "ah" sound at the end.

[Tapewolf]

Oddly enough, I didn't intend for Kria to be an effeminate name. Hers was more a random mismangling of letters I smashed against a keyboard that I later found out was an actual name.

I've done that too.  What I did kind of pick up on was that the older, more traditional Creatures seemed to have more unusual, archaic or alien-sounding names, which led me to things like Daryil.  Niall was an accident - I wad already found a degraded form of the name and ended up altering it back into its proper spelling.  However, it is pronounced wrong and I'm sticking with that ;-)

I usually go by the "end a name with a vowel usually means feminine" principle on a few things.  Which may in fact what tripped up Jerimiah there, his name has an "ah" sound at the end.

This morning I discovered that the feminine form of Jeremiah is Jeremia.   But folks who know him well are liable to call him Jerry which is ambiguous anyway.

[mithril]

what is the blue wolf's name? i don't think it has been mentioned in the comic yet.

[Zebra Bug]

Abyss is my favorite character now. She is so unique. And....I think she has nothing at all beneath the hood. Or not much that is tangible at least. No one would probably want to see it whatever it may be though. Being from the Nightmare clan and all.

[Tapewolf]

what is the blue wolf's name? i don't think it has been mentioned in the comic yet.

At the risk of looking like I'm crowing over it, he's actually a cameo.  Merlin originally created the design as a background character in the "Taun Christmas Party" special in Project Future.  I thought he looked kind of neat and began fleshing him out to use as a minor character in the sequel to PF.  Then a thing happened and he ended up in DMFA.

It's hard to know how much to say without stepping on Amber's toes, but his name is Jeremiah and he's actually a Siberian Husky.
In my head-canon he enrolled at SAIA around 1400 (while Jakob was entering his final century there) so he'd probably have graduated 2-3 centuries prior to present-day DMFA.  I'm deliberately trying to keep things a bit flexible.

[VAE]

Abyss is my favorite character now. She is so unique. And....I think she has nothing at all beneath the hood. Or not much that is tangible at least. No one would probably want to see it whatever it may be though. Being from the Nightmare clan and all.

Well, she does come kinda handy.

[Zebra Bug]

Abyss is my favorite character now. She is so unique. And....I think she has nothing at all beneath the hood. Or not much that is tangible at least. No one would probably want to see it whatever it may be though. Being from the Nightmare clan and all.

Well, she does come kinda handy.

I have to hand it to you, that was a good one.