50 Questions - for Headcanons · 11:22am Apr 11th, 2014
I get bored easily - and this seems quite interesting. So all hail bookplayer for thinking this up.
The Princesses
1. How old are Celestia and Luna?
That is a tricky question. I like to think of them between 1,500 and 3,000 years, though. It all sort of depends on what I'm writing, more or less, because world-building and... stuff. But no matter what, Celestia is ten years older than Luna, I stick to that much.
2. How old is Cadance?
Twenty-six. It seems to suit her.
3. Were Celestia and Luna always alicorns, or did they ascend?
They were born that way.
4. Are Cadance and Twilight immortal?
No, my headcanon is that if a pony is turned into an alicorn, then they're just given the extra magic and / or wings. They don't get the immortal ticket too, that only comes if you get the alicorn gene at birth.
5. Have there been other alicorns in the past?
Yes - King Solaris & Queen Galactica. They were Celestia and Luna's parents. (But they got killed during the Equestrian Rebellion a long time ago.)
6. How much authority do Celestia and Luna have in Equestria?
Pretty much all of it. They meet with delegates, pass laws, help with crisis, etc. Cadence and Twilight are more or less second-in-commands, they don't do that much, but they do show up at really important meetings and stuff.
7. Does Shining Armor rule The Crystal Empire along side of Cadance?
Yes, and no. He's got the title of Prince and he does do some things, like show up at meet-and-greets, but Cadence does all the big stuff.
8. Other than Twilight, Luna, and Cadance, what relationships have been important to Celestia in her lifetime (students, close friends, lovers, family)?
• Galactica: I can see Celestia being very close with her mother.
• Discord: ...do I really have to explain this one?
• Starswirl the Bearded: I like to think he was Celestia's first student.
• Sunset Shimmer: I could write a five-paragraph essay on this backstory, but long story short - Sunset was an orphan on the streets, Tia took her in, and then you guys know the rest.
Those are the only ones I can name off of the top of my head.
Ponies and Equestrian Culture
9. Are there still cultural differences between earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns, or are they homogenous by the time shown in canon? Are there cultural stereotypes (positive or negative)?
No, I think stereotypes / cultural differences between the three pony types faded away a long time ago and now, if it is brought up or recognized, it's labeled as old-fashioned and kind of taboo. (Example: The definition of an inter-racial couple in Equestria used to be something like unicorn x earth pony. A lot would frown upon it, but now, it's normal. Those who do still think everypony should stick with their own race kind of get strange looks.)
10. Are there foods or items native to Cloudsdale that are uncommon on the ground? Are there foods or items on the ground that are uncommon in Cloudsdale?
No, everything stays the same as on the ground. However, meat and fish sometimes end up in Cloudsdale once in a while, because of the griffons.
11. Can all unicorns learn all spells, given the time and effort spent practicing them, or is magical talent usually limited in some way?
No, so long as they are born as a unicorn, they can learn anything. They just need to be a study freak like Twily.
12. Earth pony magic: Does it exist? What is it?
It's not magic, per se, but I like to think earth ponies are naturally stronger than pegasi and unicorns.
13. Some pony families we’ve seen seem to have naming conventions (the Apples, Twilight’s family) and others don’t appear to (Rarity’s family, Pinkie’s family), which is more common? Are there reasons for one or the other?
I guess it works like in families on earth too. Some families like to keep tradition, while others not so much.
14. How much formal schooling is an average, middle class pony expected to complete?
Up until junior high. High school / university is not mandatory. Some ponies only go if they wish to pursue a career of sorts.
15. What’s the average lifespan for a pony? At what age is a pony expected to be independent of their parents?
Eighteen is the legal adult age. Lifespan is anywhere between seventy and ninety.
16. Are there roughly an equal number of male and female ponies?
It depends on the city / town.
17. How informed are most ponies about things that happen in other parts of Equestria? What about other parts of the world?
There are televisions, but they're too expensive for the average pony to own. They do, however, have them in malls and hospitals. They're black and white. Equestria also has radios, and newspapers. Think of it as America in the late 1940's, I guess.
The Main Characters
18. How old are the Mane Six? Spike? The CMC?
• Twilight Sparkle: 21
• Rainbow Dash: 20
• Pinkie Pie: 18
• Fluttershy: 19
• Applejack: 20
• Rarity: 22
• Spike: 13
• Apple Bloom: 10
• Sweetie Belle: 11
• Scootaloo: 9
19. Did Fluttershy remain on the ground after getting her cutie mark? Were she and Rainbow Dash friends all along, or did they drift apart for a while?
I don't think Fluttershy moved to Ponyville until after she graduated school, so during childhood - yes, she stayed friends with Dash. However, after Flutters moved, I think RD kind of drifted everywhere for a while until she finally ran into Fluttershy again and they found a place to stay together as friends again.
20. Rarity and Applejack both seem to have grown up in Ponyville. What were their interactions like before the show?
I like to think of them as the two kids who knew each other, but weren't really friends, and whenever ponies saw them together, they were always screaming in each other's faces. Then, when junior high rolled around, everypony thought they were total enemies - when they really just didn't like each other. As they grew up and became adults, though, they found time to tolerate one another.
21. What do Twilight and Spike consider their relationship to be?
Big sister / little brother. While I like the mother / son thing, I just don't feel it.
22. When did Pinkie move in with the Cakes? Is she a worker who rents a room, an apprentice, or is there some other relationship?
She moved in when she was a little younger than a teenager. It wasn't long after she got her Cutie Mark, and her Granny Pie died. Her entire strict family clouded Pinkie's mind and she didn't like the way they were so somber and mistreated her. Maud was the only relief, but Pinkie knew her life was beyond rocks, so she ran away. She somehow found herself in a small town called Ponyville, where everypony was super duper nice. However, she had no home, and she was temporarily stealing food from Sugarcube Corner to live. One night, the Cakes caught her, and she spilled everything. Feeling sorry for the kid, they took her in. Pinkie still keeps in touch with her family via letters, even though they frown upon her leaving. Maud is the only one who really ever cared.
...i should seriously get up off my lazy ass and make that a story.
23. Who among the Mane Six had the best parents growing up? The worst parents?
I've been called crazy for this theory - but I like to think Rainbow Dash was raised by two dads, and an aunt Firefly (who was actually her birth mother). Her life was fun, wild and quite memorable. She did get teased for having two fathers, but her macho Dad (Rainbow Blitz) taught her how to beat up the bullies, so she was good after that. Her family was kinda chaotic, but in a good way. Before her aunt died, Firefly was a Wonderbolt, so she inspired that dream.
Applejack got the short end of the stick, though. I think AJ's mom was a gypsy who didn't like being tied down, so she often ran off wherever she wanted and one day, she never came back - while her dad was an alcoholic.
24. Why didn’t the CMC hang out more / know each other before Call of the Cutie?
Sweetie Belle used to be super shy before she met Scootaloo, so she didn't really hang out with anypony else. Apple Bloom thought Scootaloo was a show-off before they got to know each other.
25. Is Scootaloo an orphan? Will she ever be able to fly?
Scootaloo does have parents - she just doesn't like bringing them up because it would give her unwanted attention. (Her parents are Spitfire and Soarin.) She will be able to fly, one day, but she had a birth defect that slows down the growing of her wings, so that explains why she's not at the same level of other pegasi her age.
26. Will Apple Bloom’s cutie mark involve an apple in some way, even if it’s unrelated to farming or baking?
Probably. It runs in the family, apparently.
27. How is Sweetie Belle’s relationship with their parents different than Rarity’s was?
Even from a young age, Rarity thought of her parents as embarrassing so she often distanced herself from them. Sweetie Belle, however, doesn't mind.
Side and Background Characters
28. Is Mr. Cake the father of the Cake twins or not?
Yes. Though, there is the event that this could be the case as well...
29. Are Big Mac and Cheerilee an item, romantically?
Nope.
30. How did Prince Blueblood get his title?
He's Princess Celestia's nephew. I think he's adopted as well. The only reason he didn't become an alicorn, unlike Cadence, is because Celestia didn't deem him worthy of that.
31. Is Silver Spoon equally as bad as Diamond Tiara?
Not at all - Silver Spoon is actually very sweet. She only hangs out with Diamond Tiara is because those two have been friends practically since birth, so Silver Spoon finds it kind of hard to walk away from somepony who is basically like a sister to her. As Diamond Tiara grew up, she got spoiled and mean. Despite also being rich, Silver Spoon doesn't like to really show it off. She only does it when she's around Diamond Tiara so they can look supposedly cool.
32. Is Zecora’s magic common among zebras?
More or less. Like unicorn magic, you can learn to study beyond the basics if you want, but it's not necessary. Since she lives on her own, Zecora thought she should learn all she could.
33. Why does Daring Do publish her stories as fiction?
She wants to share her story with everypony else.
34. Do you have a strong headcanon for any non-speaking or one line background ponies that you want to share?
Vinyl Scratch is cousins with Twilight Sparkle and Shining Armor.
Other Species
35. Does Equestria differentiate between speaking and non-speaking species, in terms of respect, rights and legal responsibilities? Is there some other line or scale used? (For example, how are cows classified? Diamond Dogs? A chimera?)
I... uh... I dunno how to respond to this. I'm kinda lost and confused here.
I still don't understand why this thing speaks anyway. 
36. Do other speaking species form their own nations, or are all nations largely integrated, with some having larger populations of a species than others?
Horses, zebras, minotaurs, dragons and buffalo are the only other species who have their own nations to live in. All the rest don't count as a species big enough to live on their own or whatever. That's just my mindsight.
37. Are minotaurs related to cows at all?
I'm gonna say no.
38. Do all zebras rhyme?
Only the females. I think it's a tradition for female zebras to do that once they turn eighteen and up until they find a husband.
39. Do zebra cutie marks work the same way as pony cutie marks?
Zebras don't get cutie marks - they're tribal markings. Totally different thing, they get them tattooed at birth.
40. Do any species have types of magic, other than ponies and zebras?
Dragons breathe fire, but that's it.
41. Is the lack of buffalo presence in Equestria cultural, or simply because most pony towns aren’t built to accommodate a full grown buffalo?
It's an endangered species.
Headcanon and You
42. Do you consider official sources other than the show (comics, card game text, movies, novels, etc.) to be canon?
Comics and movies - yes. I've never read the books, and I don't own any of the cards, so I can't say anything on those two.
43. Do you have one headcanon that you always use, or do you switch depending on projects?
It depends on the character.
44. Can you easily accept the headcanons of different writers? Do you prefer when stories match your headcanon?
I love it when people have different headcanons than me, because it's really neat looking into the minds of other writers. Besides, a lot of the things I've read can be quite interesting, so there's no excuse not to believe some of the stuff you hear.
45. Is there a part of your headcanon that you wish was more popular among writers?
Um, Rainbow Dash has two dads, Vinyl Scratch is the daughter of Sapphire Shores, King Sombra was partly to blame for Luna's ascension into Nightmare Moon, Cadence's parents were in the Royal Guard, that's pretty much all I can name off of the top of my head.
46. Is there a popular piece of headcanon that other writers use that you dislike?
While it does sound interesting, I do not like the idea of Celestia and / or Discord being Spike's parents. It's a nice theory, but I just can't quite grasp it.
47. Have you ever written a story or blog-post just to explain some part of your headcanon (other than this one)?
Of course! Why wouldn't I?
48. Does your headcanon influence things like your favorite pony, ship, or episode?
Most of my love of Vinyl Scratch is built off of the headcanons I have for her.
49. Would it bother you if the show proved part of your headcanon wrong? Any specific piece that would really bother you to lose?
No, not really - because most of the headcanons I have probably won't even be mentioned in the show. However, if they never mentioned Dislestia in any sort of way, I might crack. Y'know, just a little.
50. Is there something that wasn't asked about here, but you feel like you need to explain to everyone?
Rarity was a total dork in high school. That's all.
If you bothered to read this entire stupid thing full of my fangirl ramblings, thanks. Here's your prize.
Did we, perhaps, read the same fic about Vinyl being Twilight's cousin and coming to visit her, that gave us both this headcanon?
1999972 I think I have it in my Read Later list somewhere...
I will not claim my prize until I have also managed to speak about every issue you have listed.
For that, I must first finish work and get home.
It may take a while, but I will come back to you within the next few hours with my own responses.
Yes, your HCs are legitimately grandiose enough to make me think of responses. Kudos to you.
1999978
I read all this, got my reward and it felt good!
You didn't belive in Cheerielee x Big Mac, so exactly who do you ship them with?
1999984 I really like Big Macintosh with Zecora.
As for Cheerilee, I don't really like her enough to ship her with anypony.
1999992
I really like Big Macintosh with Zecora.
I must confesse that I HATE that shipping, but, I won't judge you, cuz you're not me!
As for Cheerilee, I don't really like her enough to ship her with anypony
Fine by me, as long as I don't have to hear any of that mushy Twilight x Cheerilee stuff!
Okay, here comes my long-arse response that will almost rival your own blog for sheer size. Maybe.
We know for certain that they are (at the very least) 1020 years old or more. I would put Celestia and Luna at around 1084 and 1066, respectively. My own series (Flowers, Keeper, Pendant) addresses this ideal. If you ever decide you might like to check them out, you will see why, for the most part.
Okay, I'm done with my shameless plugging, I promise
100% agree.
Also 100% agree. My stories—*SLAP!*
Agree 90% here. I will be different and say that I don't actually believe the royal sisters to be immortal. More like they have the magical power to be able to recast age spells on themselves, perpetuating their youth (for the good [or not] of Equestria is yours to decide).
It is my personal belief that there was another alicorn: the ancestor of Cadance, the first Crystal Princess. Of course, there may/not have ever been a former alicorn, but I do like the idea.
Agree 100%
Matriarchy ftw! Agree 100%
Discord: Nothing other than a villain. I don't buy into the whole "past romance" or "Discord=Starswirl" theories. He had to be stopped, she did so. Quite possibly he may have terrorised the Crystal Empire before meeting her.
Starswirl: Either her mentor, a close friend, or even one of the very first ponies to pioneer the use of magic, even before her own time.
Sunset Shimmer: I do believe that she was trying to train Sunset to be the one who found friendship and defeated Nightmare Moon, restoring Luna to her former glory. Of course we know that things didn't work out and Celestia was forced to find another superior student.
I am okay with this.
This is honestly something I have never considered. Of course, I would draw the conclusion that apart from things like slushies, ice cream etc, Cloudsdale would have to import practically all of their food, unless they had their own floating greenhouses or something. That would be interesting to see.
I would imagine that there is some limit/threshold to the strength of a unicorn's magic, much like there would be a physical limit to an Earth pony's strength or a pegasus' flight speed. I cannot see Twilight being powerful enough to raise the sun, for example. That is Celestia's destiny/special talent.
Agreed. I mean, look at Maud. F
k she's powerful.
Honestly not something I can pin down. I can sorta get behind Rarity having the surname "Belle", though I'm not sure if it's a family name. Come to think of it, "Sparkle" isn't really a family name either, otherwise Shining Armor would have it. Even "Pie" isn't a family name, if Cloudy Quartz and Igneous Rock are anything to go by.
Agreed. I consider Equestrian education to be more about just learning the basics of life and then discovering your own destiny.
Assuming human years, yes, this is pretty legit. Although there is that plothole between Winter Wrap Up and Family Appreciation Day with Granny Smith being hundreds of years old.
I would imagine so, however it is not difficult to imagine the female population at least partially outweighing the male.
Pretty similar opinions here. I'd go with 1950's though.
• Twilight Sparkle: 22
• Rainbow Dash: 21 (she has 21 candles on her cake in Pinkie Pride)
• Applejack: 20
• Rarity: 23
• Spike: 13
• Apple Bloom: 11
• Sweetie Belle: 12
• Scootaloo: 11
Accepting this because I've never thought about it.
I can't see them having ever really gotten along until Twilight showed up. They may have been pleasant in general, but never real friends.
Indeed.
HC accepted.
Best parents? Definitely Twilight Sparkle for the win. Her parents were the most supportive you could possibly hope for. They would have given her everything she needed to succeed, without spoiling her.
Worst? Fluttershy. Honestly, where the hell are they? It would be nice if they visited her at least once. Perhaps they're still up on their cloud house, number 9 Brumby Avenue or something, having forgotten she even exists.
I can dig it.
She must have parents, I mean she lives in a house, right? Though perhaps they are adopted parents. Spitfire and Soarin, though? Doubt it. They've never been shown to be more than team mates; Spitfire even tried to replace Soarin in Rainbow Falls. One would think that she would not blow off a partner like that, even if it meant the competition.
I'm going with her bucking the trend, honestly. I'm sure she wants to be something different, even if she doesn't really know what yet exactly.
Sweetie just loves them because they'll eat her burned breakfasts and drink her burned juice without complaining. I agree with the Rarity assessment.
Unless Mrs Cake is a better liar than Chrysalis, I don't dispute it at all.
I disagree. The correct quote is "E-nope."
I like to think that there was some other royal family before Celestia and Luna ascended the throne. When they did so, they promised to keep a member of the former royal family close to the throne at their sides, in the event that they should ever abdicate / die.
100% agree. You should also check out this amazing tale if you haven't already.
I believe they practice shamanism as a species. Would be nice to have this confirmed (we need more zebras, seriously).
Fiction sells better than autobiographies, unless you were already famous to begin with.
Never did dig the "Octavia is a cousin/sister of Pinkie Pie" theory. I do like to think that Golden Harvest (Carrot Top) and Applejack are friends, not rivals like many fanfics make them out to be.
Magic works in mysterious ways. I have no idea.
And mine, too.
Ditto. Unless a human came through the enchanted mirror, remained a human and had their way with a cow... yeah, I've already straddled that line too far
Dunno. Would actually be sorta nice to see another one rock up in future and not rhyme. Many fanfics would be destroyed.
Agreed.
Yes. The Cockatrice can petrify with a glance. The Timberwolf can reform. Phoenixes can breath fire and regenerate from death. Dragons can also breath fire and grow at a greatly accelerated rate, as well as possess a far lengthier (but undetermined) lifespan.
I like it.
Yes. The only thing I'm really stuck on is whether or not the idea of the Nightmare Forces has any credibility.
HCs are HCs until proven otherwise.
As long as a writer is reasonable with their writing and plays out a premise that cannot be disproved by the show, I am open to adopting certain headcanons. Why, I've taken some of yours as it is because you come across as intelligent and rational.
Definitely the idea that Luna is not a biological little sister to Celestia, but is in fact a remodeled clone of her. My fics—*SLAP!*
That Octavia is an upper-class elitist that will somehow be romantically involved with a lower-class casual DJ. Or that they are in a relationship at all, like ever.
Also, I despise the idea of Sombra and Luna having ever been romantic.
Actually, no. All I've ever done is talk about my own stories but in a story sense.
I go by the show strictly, unless the comics do not contradict. And no, my HCs play no part in why ponies have certain relationships / interactions with each other.
Any sign of the royal sisters having any parents ever would destroy my fics' universe (it's okay, my stories are relevant to this question).
Not off the top of my head.
...
READ MY TRILOGY!
*Kicked to the next dimension*
...Phew, that took a while. But it was fun. Now, what's this prize?
*opens prize from next dimension*
*loves you for introducing me to Pinkie Pie, who luckily brings me back to reality here*
2000171
Breath in, breath out...
So *twitch* you don't like OctyScratch???
*twitch* *twitch*
I'm totally *twitch* ok with that
No but seriously who do you ship them with?
I enjoy sticking other rival shippings on my dart bor-I mean I enjoy hearing other peoples opinions.
*twitch*
2000243
I generally do not do gay shipping. Not because I'm "one of those people" but because I cannot ever see it happening in the show.
I do enjoy fan content with the two, though; indeed, one of my fav stories on this site is University Days by fellow Aussie, DawnFade. And some of the animations aren't terrible either. I don't mind them being friends, but shipping them is too much for me in most circumstances.
As for who I do ship? Nopony except Big Mac with either Fluttershy or Maud. I really can't see any other ships. I don't normally read it and it's not something I ever think about.
Edit: SoarinDash is plausible, but Rainbow would definitely wear the pants in that relationship.
2000171 WHY CAN'T I UPVOTE THAT MORE THAN ONCE
2000352
You could totally give me upvotes in other places
...
That sounds dirty, doesn't it?
Glad you approve of my ideals. Anything in particular that stood out to you?
2000365
It was proven in a book - Twilight Sparkle & The Keeper of the Crystal Heart - that Cadence is from a small town with mostly earth ponies and she was adopted by Celestia, but ... you know, having Cadence in a mistaken identity sort of thing where she was given up or kidnapped or something would be pretty cool.
You know, like this-
derpicdn.net/img/view/2012/11/14/151732__safe_exploitable+meme_princess+cadance_make+it+happen_movie_what+if_anastasia.JPG
-'cause perfection.
*cough* Moving on.
I agree, I don't think that pony families really have last names - they just pass on themes, like the Apples do. The theme in Twilight's family is the night sky mostly. As for the other four of the Mane Six, eh. I guess their families were give or take more or less. I do think that almost all ponies have secondary names, but some choose not to use them. (Like, Rarity Grace, Octavia Melody, etc.)
*whispers loudly* i never said they were married or together - i think Scootaloo was the result of a one night stand
I agree - I've heard a few fanfiction readings where someone is doing a killer voicing of Zecora and when she drops the rhyming, she actually sounds better.
Oh, you~
Fair enough.
"He's got the title of Prince and he does do some things, like show up at meet-and-greets, but Cadence does all the big stuff."
*trolololololololololololo face* Shining is a trophy wife =}
2001271 Pretty much.
Also, can I have the full-size of your avatar?
2001274 sure, I don't own it
2001280
Link, if you can?
2002900 sorry, I don't have the link:( but maybe if you go on to google and look up ummm.... Maybey 'Luna and celestia in the morning' ??? Maybe. sorry I couldn't be of any help!
-a3:
2003664 It's cool.
2003674 there was supposed to be a . in between maybe and sorry
Huzzah! I win snuggles!
I've been writing one of these myself, actually. SO MUCH TYPING.
I would have gone with Galaxy.
What, no griffon kingdom? That's unusual.
2007217 GAH, I forgot.
Yeah, them too.