Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha Character Creation and Discussion (second reincarnation)

[synaesthetic]

Fanfiction is serious business.

[AdmiralTigerclaw]

Just remember that Dojins are essentially drawn fanfics... and those guys actually manage to make money off them.

So, yes... Yes it is.

[synaesthetic]

How is that even legal.

That just screams copyright infringement to me.

[AdmiralTigerclaw]

Don't ask me how they manage it in Japan, but Dojins get SOLD at those Cons.

[Keroko]

Japanese consider them both fanart and free advertisement. They make zero loss of them, as it is not a product they created, and therefore has cost them nothing, but increased profit as people can get interested in the original product by reading the doujin. They are also a way to scout potential mangaka.

Too be honest, it's the western attitude that keeps surprising me. Saying no to free advertisement like that.

[LimitedEternal]

Originally Posted by Keroko

Japanese consider them both fanart and free advertisement. They make zero loss of them, as it is not a product they created, and therefore has costs them nothing, but increased profit as people can get interested in the original product by reading the doujin. They are also a way to scout potential mangaka.

Too be honest, it's the western attitude that keeps surprising me. Saying no to free advertisement like that.

Well, the attitude over here involves suing the living crap out of someone if you think you can make so much as a cent off them...go figure. I think we take intellectual property a lot more seriously over here than most places.

Then again, the point of creating something is to make yourself filthy rich off of it, right? :\

...

No, I'm not dead...just been busy and lethargic recently. Can't summon the energy to do a real breaker.

[Wild Goose]

Have been away due to no internet access in my area. Also, my grandfather died on Friday.

Will be more away for a bit more.

[MeisterBabylon]

Originally Posted by Keroko

It depends on preference, really. I personally am a stickler for canon when it comes to my OC's. I find the challenge of writing my characters in the story while keeping the same plot flowing and avoiding my OC's hogging all the spotlight a challenge. It's AU by the sheer base of characters that never where there being there, but it still adheres to the canon plot.

On the other hand, writing pure AU fics that completely diverge from canon like that 'let's send you to the time of Quint's death' thing in FFT isn't any less fun.

And look what it has spawned. Like Touhou, I dare say Kerokanon is a latent industry by itself. It's even gone international, seeing that FFT has gotten in on the piece of the pie as well.

FFT has a knack for producing, and receiving well, AU fics I noticed. I can't comment why cos I suck rather bad at it; look at the reception of my concepts for the most part.

That said, I'm still producing several because I love the ideas, just need to make sure it's the-all-end-all in being definitive. I'd like to see myself as creating an expansion pack for Nanohaverse, coloring in blanks and adding stuff that weren't there. As long as it is not been stated to not exist, as long as it's existence does not contradict another canon existence, and it adds to the flavor of the worlds, I don't see why the hell not really.

I guess the bad point is that I end up in the middle of nowhere. The AU people think I'm canon, and the canonites think I'm AU. There's a whole lot of grey in my work it seems, no matter how much I explain.

Originally Posted by LimitedEternal

Well, the attitude over here involves suing the living crap out of someone if you think you can make so much as a cent off them...go figure. I think we take intellectual property a lot more seriously over here than most places.

Then again, the point of creating something is to make yourself filthy rich off of it, right? :\

Makes you wonder why people still consider Japan more stifling for artistic development than say America or Europe.

[Wild Goose]

Reason Japan is considered more stifling is because new ideas aren't so accepted as much as in the west. Take Kamen Rider Hibiki: it was an attempt to try a different direction with Kamen Rider, removing much of the traditional trappings of the franchise while suceeding in capturing the essence of a Rider hero (Hibiki is the best rider of this decade. Only other Rider to match him is Black, but Black was Showa). It grew on everyone and was well-liked.

Then Toei execs ordered a retool around Episode 30 and the series jumped the shark. Everyone hated the retool: fans, cast, production crew, even the guy whose job was to get beat up each week. Hosokawa was particularly scathing.

Thus your example of stiflement, Troll-kun.

[MeisterBabylon]

My bad then. The world is screwed either way.

[Sheba]

You can not compare Touhou and Kerocanon, come on! A gap the distance between Earth and Andromeda separate the both of them.

[MeisterBabylon]

Metaphorically speaking, not in exact terms.

[Nya~n]

Originally Posted by Sheba

You can not compare Touhou and Kerocanon, come on! A gap the distance between Earth and Andromeda separate the both of them.

Vivio goes RAN RAN RUUUUUUUUU~

[MeisterBabylon]

In before Colonel Sander's 999 Hit Combo!

[Nya~n]

Remember lowe doing a post about an OC-fied Hell's Gate back in this post? We talked about it over at the IRC for a while, and then I realised it was perfect for one of my OCs to write a short, and before I knew it, I started writing his fic even before I started writing his profile.

And, if you know your Chris Wooding lore well, you'd be pretty familiar with some of these terms.

Spoiler for Nailing the Gate: Phase 1 - the Infiltration:

I sit at the other end of the conference table, getting briefed over the details of the mission, as the on-site lieutenant drones on about the complex region that I am to infiltrate.

Not that I need to be briefed anyway. I had looked through the file, and read through the file I was given. Snitch some other Lost Logia that the Bureau needed out of civilian hands, lest it go berserk or used against the Bureau itself. Just like any of my assignments where I have to pinch off of some underworld lord or another.

The only catch this time, is that said Logia was in the hands of the Eskarans – a highly influential network of mercenaries, and what made the job even trickier was that the relic was now situated in of one of the infamous Hell’s Gates. This one was going to be tricky, and it had nothing to do with what the lieutenant might think would be the catch.

I look up from my musings to see the officer staring at me.

“What?” I say flippantly, earning him a twitching eyelid from the lieutenant.

“As I was saying, Investigator Strandale, the Gate is immensely difficult to get into, and it’s even worse trying to survive in there. I’ll need to brief you about the techniques our researchers have deve-”

“I’ve got it covered, Giulietta” I said, earning a quizzical look, but he lets it pass.

“Ok, let’s say you know how to get in there and live, how are you going to stay below the radar?”

“I don’t.”

“Wait, what are you going to do? Just waltz in and be chummy with them Eskarans?” Giulietta says, taking a deep breath and continuing even before I can cut in, “Ok, fine, let’s say you do, it’s said that they all speak in different manners, a strict code of speech that’s so instinctive in them that tells their status apart in the caste system.”

He takes in another breath. I just let him blabber on again. I’m not exactly interested in this case to get into the action anyway. “They have their own rituals! The common people have their own dialect, the soldiers have their own, the elite Cadre have theirs… They’ll sniff you out in an instant.”

“I’ll deal with it.”

“How?” Giulietta says, exasperated.

“I’ll deal with it,” I assure him.

I proclaim the briefing over, tell the pencil pusher that I need a few days to make preparations to start the mission, and go straight to the scene. Or close to it anyway. You can’t get into a Gate without the right conditions.

The Gates are mysterious – an extraparanormal phenomenon where a whole area in a world is rendered unreachable, unliveable. The laws of physics and conventional magic do not apply within their region; an area filled with complete randomness that could drive one insane. They render the landscape desolate, and only the hardiest of survivors struggle to keep safe and sane from the dangers. The Bureau has been trying to solve the mysteries of these Gates since time immemorial, but even the recently commisioned extraparanormal division EXCOM has been unsuccessful in finding out anything new.

I survey the area around the local Gate. Or rather, as local as the only one within this area in time-space. The Gate’s chthnomancers should have left signs all over the perimeter of the Gate directing the other Clans to the entrances should any of them find the need to visit, or for their own people to venture out.

I spot one and take note, then I return to the local base and make my preparations.

-------

I return to the same area half a week later, now prepped up for the mission. A large coat that provides me protection against projectiles with a layer of metalfibre, not unlike glass fibres in concept, layered in; a small set of knifes and wires; my device; and a small cache of supplies tucked neatly in the pockets. This is my usual gear, and also happens to blend in well with the Cadre of Eskara.

I see a group band around one of the abandoned buildings whose face has crumbled and stalk up to them.

I sneak up closely enough, then tap a loose stone so that its clatter will alert them to my presence, and they react almost immediately, with such speed it was almost as though they were waiting for the stone to mysteriously shoot off long before I arrived. I'm not dealing with a bunch of amateurs then. These guys are good at what they do.

The soldiers close in around me, their weapons at the ready, surveying me. I look around. Just a bunch, whatever was left of the squadron after coming back from their Masters’ bidding. No Cadre around. Good, that means I can worry about my cover after I get in. And speaking of getting in…

I glance over their shoulders to look at the rest of the group. The soldiers look ready to pounce, but they don’t. My body language tells them they shouldn’t, and that I won’t. The Captain certainly could tell that, and that’s why he hasn’t called the order. I continue to look around anyway.

Ah, there he is, that rugged cloak trimmed with runes, the chthnomancer. The Mystic looks at me, surveying me, judging. I hold my hands up, and slowly spreading my fingers out so that they see runes bonded between them. A look of recognition dawns across most of their faces, except for the Mystic’s, whose face remains in the shadow of the hood, but they remain silent, and they lower their weapons and relax. I’ve passed. What must be said, will be said once the chthnomancer creates an opening.

Looks like I’ve arrived just on time too, because chthnomancer is already leading us towards the weird bubble that separates the Gate and the rest of the world. And then the chthnomancer starts working the mojo.

It’s always mesmerising to see a chthnomancer at work. They alone, amongst all the Eskarans that have sought sanctuary within the boundaries of the Gates against their enemies and the Bureau, have learnt the art of manipulating the flow of randomness in the Gates. They call it an art and not a style, because the randomness of the Gate itself means that every attempt at invoking chthnomancy runs the risk of failing.

The chthnomancer continues to draw a sigil somewhere near what one might call the surface of the bubble, since technically, it has no surface. The Ward of Opening is continually drawn mid-air, until you see a dazzling effect on the Gate.

Flows of Random Factors start flowing towards the sigil, whirling around it. The Flows converge as they centre in, flowing past one another and overlapping, creating a wonderful show of colours and light, until the centre of the whirlpool blackens, and expands until it is large enough for us to pass through.

The chthnomancer jerks a head towards the opening, and the group of us shuffle into the dangerous world of Hell’s Gate.

I’m already running chua-kin chants through my head, and it feels foreign doing it in a Gate itself. The chants are designed by the original dwellers of the first Gates, and further improved over time by the Eskarans so that they can survive in here. Here, you can already see the random formations, and the chants have to be maintained at all times until it blends into your subconsciousness that allows you to keep your sanity, namely from experiencing stuff like standing in an inverted world, for instance. Or to encounter a dimensional rift where you can see yourself on the other side, except your gender’s been reversed.

The chthnomancer notices my discomfort, and slows down to walk by my side.

The chthnomancer sketches the Form of Venerated Camaraderie in the air. I remember Giulietta’s warning about rituals and language. They’ll sniff you out in an instant, he said. I panic for while, but I have to respond now, and then I sketch the same sign with my hand ritually.

~My brethren, ’tis an honour to see a lost brother around these hallowed lands~, the chthnomancy says. My step pauses for the barest of seconds, but the chthnomancer doesn’t miss that.

~My brother, is there any matter whatsoever that troubles you?~ the chthnomancer enquires, looking up to me, and I finally see the face under that hood. Voids, she’s beautiful, I tell myself.

~Dear brethren, ‘tis nothing much, there is not much that will leave a humbled me troubled~ I reply. ~’Tis just been a times when I have not journeyed into our domains~ Good, at least I still remember. I take a glance at her again. Seventeen or eighteen, I’m guessing. It is rare to see a qualified chthnomancer this young.

This girl would have been Bonded to her master and sent off to apprentice under the chthnomantic arts when she was old enough to learn. She should have been allowed to play around with the other girls in the Clan instead, not suffer her youth under the watchful eyes of the Loremasters.

There is something about her that entrances me. Dusty pale skin, auburn hair that pools in the hood, and the blue eyes. I settle for the blue eyes, because they remind me of Sylphy. And then slap myself inwardly. She’s still waiting for me back at Mid-Childa, having left her once again at the apartment.

~O’ Revered Kinsman,~ the Captain calls, now by my side, sketching the Form of Venerated Camaraderie, ~My simple self has recognised those marks you bear upon your prized hands~

~What of them, my humbled brother~, I reply, once again sketching the Form in return.

~O’ Kinsman, is that not the esteemed mark of the lost Clan of Caracasa we have seen before? This shall be the first time we, the esteemed Clan of Massarol, open our hospitable arms to a lost Caracasa, is it not, O’ Venerated Maestro?~ the Captain enquires, the second question directed at the chthnomancer.

The chthnomancer continues strolling, now leading us around another derelict lane littered with debris. ~Indeed it shall be, my fellow kinsman, for we have not received one of the esteemed Caracasa amongst us since the tragic Breaking, as I have been informed by my distinguished Masters~

The survivors of the Clan Caracasa must really be stretched far and between, if this is anything to go by. The Massarol clan is prominent in this region, and most stranded Clansmen would have rallied around the Clans with more power. A Clan will never reject a stranded seeking refuge, after all.

~A’, how insolently rude of me to have forgotten to introduce my servile self,~ I say. Time to start breaking the ice. ~Such offence cannot be pardoned, for we are the brothers of our brothers, and you, O’ Revered Mae’stro, are the sister of our sisters. Allow humble my humble self to establish my vile name as Vero Mthk’n Kyne of Caracasa and I beseech my fellow kinsmen to refer to me as such~

The Captain, as I come to know, goes by the name of Ginshuu, and the priestess Rethka. Within the safe boundaries of the Gate, we are given the privacy to talk about matters relating to the Clans and their individuals – to speak of those outside is discouraged lest a wayward ear catches wind.

I feed them half-lies that I’ve been surviving on my own as a freelance agent working with the stealthy skills I have learnt from being Clansman. Half true, seeing as my work as a Bureau shadow agent involves doing the same things that some of their Cadre do.

Their guard is still up, I notice, but there’s this glee that’s emitting from them. No doubt the fact that one of their own is found alive in the form of me – the Clans are like one big family to them after all. I almost feel guilty for taking advantage of this. Almost.

We reach the Clan’s home ground after a while, and it’s basically just like any other Base. A mess of buildings, all chthnomantically bonded to the area so that it would not be drastically changed by the Randoms, and a large clearing in the middle of it all, like a town square. Ginshuu sends one of his men ahead of us, to send word of the group, especially me, to the Magnate so that he can welcome us.

We continue down one of the main streets that leads down to the Central, and we’re greeted with stares, no doubt courtesy of me, and the loved ones of the returning soldiers. In a society like the Eskarans’, everyone knows everybody in the local community. I’d stick out like a sore thumb.

The Magnate is already at the square waiting for us when we approach, with Ginshuu’s man awaiting his captain beside the Cadre that surrounds the Clan’s lord. The presence of the significant number of Cadre here tells me they mean business with the newcomer. Namely, me.

The Cadre are the elite soldiers of the Clans. Every single one of them are specialists of their own fields, ranging from frontline combat to espionage and assassinations. Having one of them in the field does wonders for any fight. You’ll have to win them by sheer overwhelming power, unless the Cadre takes out said power first. Or take them completely by surprise, but it works more on those breaking through the frontlines in battle or a common brawl. The stealthy ones are a little trickier to take care of. Most of the time, you don’t come out alive when a Cadre is in the picture.

~Ginshuu, my humble captain, my good man,~ the Magnate calls as we finally arrive at the square. ~It is a pleasure to see you and your men back amongst our midst again. It grieves me to know of the passing of the rest of your men, especially Juth. He is an excellent soldier of yours, is he not? The Clan shall mourn the loss of Her good men.~

~Thank you, O’ Kindest Master,~ Ginshuu returns as he bows, ~My men, living and dead, appreciates the fine graces you have given us…~

“Rethka, O’ Maestro, you have done well to bring our brothers back to us. Please, rest well and dine with us at the table later. I shall send for a Maestro to take your place in other tasks for the day~ the Magnate addresses the young Mystic, and sends an errand boy off, and then he turns to me.

~And you, my kinsman,~ he says, ~it is said you are one of the lost Caracasa. Is it not false, what Chalem has said?~

~O’ Exalted Magnate, ‘tis true, what kinsman Chalem has stated~ I reply, bowing down like a servant who has quite forgotten how to. I straighten myself, and show him the same chthnomantically bonded runes on my that I showed the captain and Rethka outside the Gate.

~Cadre Kyne of Clan Caracasa, at your service, O’ Masterful Lord,~ I say, and the Magnate smiles, and he hold out his hand welcomingly.

~Welcome to Clan Massarol, O’ Distinguished Cadre~

Phase One of the mission cleared. My disguise worked. I hoped it would, because I had doubts about it. Maybe I’ve forgotten the rituals; maybe I forgot the manners; maybe something changed in the eight years since Caracasa was destroyed. But it worked. And that means I'm one of them now.

After all, impersonating a Cadre isn’t so hard when you used to be one.

Spoiler for Notes:

-Ok, fine. So we don't see Nanoverse-style magic in here, but I've been assured the Gates are unorthrodox enough for this unique form of magic work.

Phase 2

[synaesthetic]

Originally Posted by Keroko

Japanese consider them both fanart and free advertisement. They make zero loss of them, as it is not a product they created, and therefore has cost them nothing, but increased profit as people can get interested in the original product by reading the doujin. They are also a way to scout potential mangaka.

Too be honest, it's the western attitude that keeps surprising me. Saying no to free advertisement like that.

<derail>

And on the other hand you have companies like Square-Enix sending out cease-and-desist letters to anyone working on an independent fan sequel to Chrono Trigger. At 98% completion.

Maybe they're only assholes to Americans who offer "free advertising" through doujin and fanworks? After all, Japanese are the most racist people on Earth.

</derail>

[DezoPenguin]

Originally Posted by Keroko

It depends on preference, really. I personally am a stickler for canon when it comes to my OC's. I find the challenge of writing my characters in the story while keeping the same plot flowing and avoiding my OC's hogging all the spotlight a challenge. It's AU by the sheer base of characters that never where there being there, but it still adheres to the canon plot.

On the other hand, writing pure AU fics that completely diverge from canon like that 'let's send you to the time of Quint's death' thing in FFT isn't any less fun.

I'd like to point out something from my own personal opinion on AUs that extends beyond fanfiction and into real fiction:

When a story steps into a complete fantasy world, I find that I'm willing to offer a lot of latitude to the author. Working magic? Sure. Scythes as effective combat weapons? Go for it. Faster-than-light space travel explained with a handwave--or even without one? Fine by me.

But the closer a story is to the real world, then the more annoyed I get with those breaks with reality. For example, when I'm reading a mystery novel ostensibly set in the real world and suddenly psychic powers, crystal healing, and similar New Age crap appear without any explanation. It's not an urban fantasy alternate universe, it's not advertised on the back cover, it's just there and I'm expected to adapt to it.

In short, it's a break to the Willing Suspension of Disbelief. It jolts me out of the story and makes me very aware that I'm in my seat reading the creation of some author.

The same goes for fanfiction, except that for the problem being the difference between the real world and the book world, it's the difference between the original canon and the fanfiction canon.

So if I read a piece of fanfiction--say, Satashi's "Saved By The Bell," and I see that the description is "Nanoha <3 Fate as students in a normal high school!" then I'm not going to be jolted when I see something like Precia being alive and not a psychotic monster or Nanoha getting a tattoo. (Of course, I'm also not going to read past the summary if the author wasn't Satashi if the description's like that, but that's a different problem). On the other hand, if the story is something like "what happens in our characters' lives if Vivio suffered permanent Linker Core damage when the Relic was removed from her body in the Cradle" then I'm going to have a problem when other canonical details--stuff that would not change because of the one twist--start going wrong, like Nanoha's choosing her career path at a different time than the manga and Sound Stages show her doing so (and yes, that was something I got called out on for "Stahlkonigin," which is why I mentioned it--it annoyed me that I'd gotten it wrong, and it would have bugged me if I'd been the reader and seen it in somebody else's fic). The closer the fanfiction is to the original canon, then the more that I'll be bothered by minor errors/changed, particularly when those differences are not described up front.

I'll also note that if the fic's just plain goofy to me, then I won't waste my breath raising all the minor objections I might have because that would be giving the whole thing more time than it's worth (which might answer one of synaesthetic's questions as well).

[Evil Rick]

Originally Posted by Keroko

Too be honest, it's the western attitude that keeps surprising me. Saying no to free advertisement like that.

No to mention how expensive it is to put your work in the rights of author and give it a legal protection in any case of steal, meh, with all the doujinshis out there I had never hear about a legal matter over an artist for using a character that belongs to a company.

I guess that for the big franchsides it's free plublisity.

[FlameSparkZ]

Originally Posted by Keroko

It depends on preference, really. I personally am a stickler for canon when it comes to my OC's. I find the challenge of writing my characters in the story while keeping the same plot flowing and avoiding my OC's hogging all the spotlight a challenge. It's AU by the sheer base of characters that never where there being there, but it still adheres to the canon plot.

On the other hand, writing pure AU fics that completely diverge from canon like that 'let's send you to the time of Quint's death' thing in FFT isn't any less fun.

Yep, I find that amusing to do too :3

Originally Posted by LimitedEternal

Well, the attitude over here involves suing the living crap out of someone if you think you can make so much as a cent off them...go figure. I think we take intellectual property a lot more seriously over here than most places.

True...just like that joke story of an old lady suing a microwave company because she used it to dry her cat (which died) and there were no warnings about it on the instruction manual

Originally Posted by LimitedEternal

Then again, the point of creating something is to make yourself filthy rich off of it, right? :\

For greedy people, yes...but there are those who create stuff and share them with the world for the sake of it.
But yeah, money is needed to support such activity

To be honest, I'm aiming for such a life...but I still find my skills lacking something, so I'm "studying" (aka watching anime, reading manga, playing games) to see all kinds or art styles there are out there.

Once I reach a satisfying level, I'll start posting on Pixiv

[Saint X]

Originally Posted by FlameSparkZ

Once I reach a satisfying level, I'll start posting on Pixiv

No, you don't need to reach a "satisfying level" as that will take forever to take.

What you need is to START POSTING IN PIXIV NAO

*runs*