Well of Souls Forums

So, Alex indeed spills the beans about Earth's location... And it hints towards that the humans have much more detailed maps about that particular region of space than the Loroi. There's no shame in it - the Loroi didn't see practical reasons to venture out that far when there was more low hanging f...

Krulle wrote:Also: Human imagination and resourcefulness bein an asset?
And you're falling for the "Fuck yeah, Humanity!"-trope.

To an extent, perhaps. But on the other hand, everyone else is more imaginative than Umiak, who are simply copycats and copyright violators

You could say the same thing about human females in the military, and yet that doesn't stop all sorts of say, sci-fi or fantasy soldier women being held up as attractive. Actually, it had been an issue with women on the front lines - her being injured often enough triggered protective instincts in ...

Mind you, if it comes to that, humans would have nothing to lose anymore. Stuffing a run-down, obsolete freighter with the needs to build at least a stable outpost, if not a full colony and repopulate would still be better than doing nothing at all. In a more extreme case, they could hide themselves...

Historically speaking, they've almost entirely been novelties or rarities rather than a military/combative mainstay. Point is, we have plenty of stories about attractive warrior women. Maybe the Loroi have something similar kicking around the backs of their minds, even if socially it's out of left ...

You guys do realize that Tempo probably made sure Alex was seen & acknowledged by the Barsam & Historians *exactly* because she wanted them to know & prevent any "accidents" or "cover ups"? On the other hand she did cut him off before too much had been said. But I think it was more on Alex's behalf...

Heck, I would be surprised if Humanity isn't equipping and sending out as many colony ships as possible on secret deep colonization missions as insurance against 'glassing' too. Possible. That just asks for an AU fanfic where a run down colony, erected in haste, is all that is left of humanity, and...

The prospect of public backlash didn't deter the Loroi the first time, nor the second time. So why would one think that the third time would be any different? Add to that, the Mannadi were wiped out just because of their natural resistence - that was enough to doom them as a species, and they were e...

I think in the Loroi perspective, Alex is too "feminine" for most females to be attracted to. Arioch has explained that pair-bonding and attraction for Loroi doesn't follow human norms anyway, but even if there were to be such a thing, he's decidedly not "masculine" from a Loroi point of view. Bery...

hi hi The use of telepathy does bring up an important notion that I hadn't really considered, with regards to Loroichess. If the Loroi are accustomed to using their telepathy to pick up hints from their opponent, his resistance to that might give him an edge even as a beginner. Interesting point. S...

hi hi Given what Alex knows of the Loroi, I would think it is a real possibility that the Loroi government might decide that the existence of humans is inconvenient . He has no assurances that once he reaches his destination, that the Loroi chain of command won't say. "Nope, we're with Stillstorm o...

hi hi Never giving away the location of the homeworld really isn't the only alternative to giving it away as soon as possible. I've personally worked with companies that were dealing in proprietary material. Yes, handing over the material was necessary, but they made very certain that all the contr...

There is nothing useful that the tribal elder can negotiate -- trade agreements, non-aggression pacts, territorial agreements, alliances, requests for aid of any kind, or even just a request to be left alone -- without revealing the location of his nation. If he wanted his nation to remain anonymou...

hi hi It's space opera, you can expect the actors involved to act and react in relatively human ways. Not as much risk as when negotiating with unnameable elder things with totally alien motivations and intent. I mean, I still might try to secure some sort of declaration of intent to establish dipl...

It'd be more like "I'm still not sure whether you or the shells would be the better choice for us, so I'm trying to keep as many of my bargaining chips to myself for now as I can." Of course, he wouldn't say that outright... He actually tries to be forthcoming to establish relations (pg. 106, where ...

I'm pretty sure they've all been harshly trained not to reveal it, but to reveal a contact solar system, where the delegates are invited to come to. But the planners of the military who planned these expeditions surely had a worst-case scenario in mind, where the Loroi would've gotten this informat...

hi hi I think it's been stated that control of access to males has been a significant part of Loroi culture, especially in times when they weren't desperate to replace losses. I'm pretty sure Loroi women don't have the same kind of requirements that the men do. Sound reasoning. With a gender ratio ...

I just imagine it: Alex: "Name of the game is five card stud." Talon: "I am sorry, I seem not to understand. What would have males to do with this particular game? Or is your gender an essential part of it?" Alex: "Uh..." Well that's just screaming for a strip poker joke. I was tempted. But plannin...

Another good point. Loroi are used to have telepathic cues to how other people - Loroi or not - think. They are accustomed to it. So the experience of being "left out" must be quite jarring. Especially for Beryl with her voracious appetite for new knowledge. Add to that, she did sort of attach herse...

I get the feeling Alex has the brains for Loroichess, the question though is how fast he'll pick it up. First game upset, or a few weeks of waiting in his cell? :P Of course he has. First, everyone on the crew is trained and authorized to initate First Contact to an extent... though having an Ensig...