I have no idea what I'm doing. This is probably gonna be a less triptastic counterpart to What If... that actually tries to be a cherrypicked comment-driven story. Just a place where I could write whatever's on my mind without having to always make it funny.
Think of this as a sort of mirrored What If that focuses on the more serious things then comedy, and actually follows a plot instead of throwing everything at the wall. 
This story is very heavily comment-driven, and is very much a writing experiment.
Suggestions are currently closed.
Chapters (12)
Where does any well-t-do adventurer start their story but in a forest? Not the Everfree, of course, but maybe something a bit tamer, possibly Whitetail woods. How would he, or maybe she, or even possibly it get there? I do not know.
The Griffon awakens. He doesn’t know who or what he is. All he knows about himself is he has an orange-red coat with grey feathers on his head and wings. His coat is rather shaggy for a griffon. He knows one thing: he needs to go speak with someone important.
(Add in the starting from this comment:)
9878602
Why not start somewhere like Tall Tale, that place is pretty much a blank slate besides the fact that it's a large city (yes, this is a real place in Equestria)
Another place we can start if you want to start at a different time is around the time of the founding of Equestria
Yet another place we can start is around the beginning of the world, back when the races were just starting out, before the princesses, before Discord, heck, even before the three tribes era. (this one is my favorite of the three)
As for the race, I want it to be something that's not done that often in stories, maybe something like a hippogryph or a centaur. Just something that you wouldn't see very often in other fanfics.
Well, for gender we have the three basic options;
Male
Female
And genderless
Yeah, I dont care which one it would be considering this has very little impact on the story... probably
Hmm... what about the name. well it's like the story said, a name could represent many aspects of a character, and this is especially true when you consider the fact that this is probably Equestria, where naming conventions both don't make that much sense to us and somehow predict that character's entire future. So for now, let's continue leaving them nameless, who knows, maybe that could be a future plot point.
Edit: We could also just make Voidtrotter their name instead of just a title
9878602 9878763 9878838>>9879183
The first chapter will focus on the Voidtrotter being a griffon that has run across an early Earth Pony settlement in pre-tribal Equestria. This settlement is built at the edge of a forest, and is an early farming center.
Changes to the original comments being made in the chapter:
The name of Cookie is what popped into my head
9879011
I like it. I’m excited to see where this goes!
Poor, maybe a little run down, they all live in shacks or tepees. Basically, the typical building you would expect to see at the beginning of civilization
None, yet. Again, they are at the beginning of civilization, they have yet to make different cultures.
Maybe the various flora and fauna that live in the forest
Hmm... I’d like to think primitive, but not in a “they’re dumb” way. So, developed, but only just slightly.
Maybe very agricultural based, so they honor the sun and moon. This could be where the later (assuming there is a later time eventually) civilizations got the idea from.
Well, seeming as that guard was quick to jump out at Cookie, I’d assume that’s because there are other tribes constantly being attacked around them. You could take this and make Cookie the only one able to make peace between the settlements.
Also, just for general lore, I’d like to think that these other tribes are also Earth Ponies, and that they’ll come together to form a civilization. Building on that agriculture idea, they could have a moment of realization when they realize that they all believe in the same things. I feel like I would enjoy reading that.
Just a thought though.
A settlement near a forest...
Lessee... there may be timberwolves in the forest, or just normal wolves. Equestria has to get domesticated dogs from somewhere.
The animals of the forest would be familiar with the earth ponies, but none of them would have ever seen a griffin before and so some might be curious what “Cookie” is, or possibly how they taste.
9879938
9880187
9881023
Here's what I'll be using in the next chapter:
Lets have him come with two other timberwolfs. There all aggressive and the ponies are getting defensive. Right as shits about to go down, a feminine voice tells the three timberwolfs to stand down. Then another timberwolf comes out, this one is notably taller and slimmer, and sits right beside the original timberwolf that showed up (we will call him Woody to make things easier to explain). Woody looks at (and we will just call her Sap, to also make things easier to explain) and gives a grunt/growl. She doesn't even flinch, and just gives him a glare. Woody rolls his eyes and sits. Sap looks at the ponies and explains "hey, sorry for the trouble. Me and these guys were scouting out the area, and this little mut broke protocol. But we are going to have to report you guys to the alpha." (Don't actually use that dialogue, it was bad) and with that they leave back into the forrest before any of the ponies get a reaction in. But this creates some conflicts, like: tribe rivalry, or they try to work together but the timberwolfs and the ponies don't get along. I don't know, but I thought this might help to give some structure to the story, but in the end its up to you.
The wolves are natural inhabitants of the forest. They are different from the timberwolf. Timberwolves are guardians of the forest that have a connection with the common wolves, sometimes calling them for help when an intruder came. Cookie is a perfect example of an intruder. The ponies, a relatively new addition to the forest, are also counted as intruders.
The gem is a crystallized form of ambient magic, becoming solid for its high concentration in the earlier days before civilization. The crystal now holds the leylines together and is an intricate part of keeping the ambient magic usable by biological beings in the area. They are the reason timberwolves exist, thus why they are protective of it, and why being around them is a really bad idea.
Some ponies don't get it, and there are tribes that collect these gemstones and wonder to the Sun and Moon why they get so many timberwolf attacks. At least, before they got devoured.
The Timberwolf has companions much like in the other comments, however because of the massive amounts of magic the crystal carries the female wolf can cast a simple form of telepathy showing images and different colors for emotions to be interpreted by VT. The wolves being an early predecessor to the ones in the show are actually good and wish to help and teach the ponies what is safe to eat and what isn’t in the forest, but since the earth ponies are not receptive to telepathy don’t know what the wolves want. VT now feels like it is his/her responsibility to act as a translator between the two groups and help them live in coexistence and survive together.
Maybe a bear or two might show up now and again
I'm going to say that the Timberwolves started out here, but when the windigos appeared they migrated to the place that is now the Everfree Forest
Well if we're not going to follow show canon, it's the Tree of Harmony, but if we are, then I have no idea what it's supposed to be
Manticores, cockatrices, tatzlwurms, hydras, ursas, ya know, the usual suspects
Although, I feel like parasprites would make a major threat in this point in time when you consider that the ponies are just getting started and have limited food
Its wherever the three tribes era took place... so, not in Equestria
9882541
9882897
9883040
9883696
Next chapter:
9883156
Sorry, you kinda lucked out this time. Let's see what you've got for the next chapter!
9884716
I am enjoying your writing style. This story is kinda relaxing to take part in
9884739
Thanks! It's a mix of the writing style I've used in stories like Pony-Me and Worlds Reset combined with random things I've been picking up from my AP Literature class! I wanted to experiment a bit, so I went ahead and tried to imitate the writing style of some of the books we read, while keeping the same touches of intentional vagueness that I've used throughout my previous stories.
Battle with the forest creatures
Let go of me!
No, sir!
I have to tell them! I have an idea!
Sir, no! Let others get a chance!
Hey stop dragging me away!
Its for your own good!
I will be back, you hear me! Noooooo
I liked it. I have more ideas but I want other people to get a chance to take part. Good luck!
Ooh! A sneak attack! The wolves leave The Voidtrotter alone for now, but when the ponies least expect it, the wolves attack. You mentioned that they use the power from the crystals on their crops, right? Makes me think that would only make it easier for the wolves to fight back, because they could probably link a connection between the pieces. Maybe where The Voidtrotter does something, probably while trying to figure out what’s happening, and accidentally shows the timberwolves how to connect them.
Typo.
Cookie's form is still unstable. Every day or so for the next week, he is forced into a new identity at the crack of dawn. However, it's painful to switch established forms: the more details he gained, the more it hurts. Maybe the Earth Ponies have met someone like this before?
Voidtrotter goes back to the Earth Pony settlement while being very cross at them for destroying the crystals
9878838
https://www.deviantart.com/keenkris/art/Map-of-Equestria-And-Beyond-790278917
camo.fimfiction.net/zHSR08WmoKEN1Lp5n0c-cN2rR3BFHz9Y4GnYXaQk9Tc?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimages-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com%2Ff%2F733244e2-7d50-491a-8276-d918b46ae75a%2Fdd2if45-a10b8f99-deae-49d6-94c5-d1180c2e6591.jpg%2Fv1%2Ffill%2Fw_1095%2Ch_730%2Cq_70%2Cstrp%2Fmap_of_equestria____and_beyond__by_keenkris_dd2if45-pre.jpg%3Ftoken%3DeyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7ImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9NTI4MCIsInBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzczMzI0NGUyLTdkNTAtNDkxYS04Mjc2LWQ5MThiNDZhZTc1YVwvZGQyaWY0NS1hMTBiOGY5OS1kZWFlLTQ5ZDYtOTRjNS1kMTE4MGMyZTY1OTEuanBnIiwid2lkdGgiOiI8PTc5MjAifV1dLCJhdWQiOlsidXJuOnNlcnZpY2U6aW1hZ2Uub3BlcmF0aW9ucyJdfQ._TRYQcGPbq5BzgnqtF_VTYJI56hF-dsr1WNuZlxjToY
Can Voidtrotter/Cookie be female, but... would be a a "father" in the Future
9885626
What about it?
Mare ruled !
They the first and only ponies that eat fish
Ponies VS D--dogs
they thing pegasus are GODs !
It was Dark, magic,
a pony had a wolf as a pet, but it was killed,
so the pony planted a tree over the wolf's dead body
that try to use Dark magic to make it the wolf come back to life
and now.. timberwolf
It's what make normal ponies, into ALICORNs
D.dogs, Changelings, and Buffalos
Caracows
camo.fimfiction.net/zHSR08WmoKEN1Lp5n0c-cN2rR3BFHz9Y4GnYXaQk9Tc?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimages-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com%2Ff%2F733244e2-7d50-491a-8276-d918b46ae75a%2Fdd2if45-a10b8f99-deae-49d6-94c5-d1180c2e6591.jpg%2Fv1%2Ffill%2Fw_1095%2Ch_730%2Cq_70%2Cstrp%2Fmap_of_equestria____and_beyond__by_keenkris_dd2if45-pre.jpg%3Ftoken%3DeyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7ImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9NTI4MCIsInBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzczMzI0NGUyLTdkNTAtNDkxYS04Mjc2LWQ5MThiNDZhZTc1YVwvZGQyaWY0NS1hMTBiOGY5OS1kZWFlLTQ5ZDYtOTRjNS1kMTE4MGMyZTY1OTEuanBnIiwid2lkdGgiOiI8PTc5MjAifV1dLCJhdWQiOlsidXJuOnNlcnZpY2U6aW1hZ2Uub3BlcmF0aW9ucyJdfQ._TRYQcGPbq5BzgnqtF_VTYJI56hF-dsr1WNuZlxjToY
https://www.deviantart.com/keenkris/art/Map-of-Equestria-And-Beyond-790278917
How about...
If then Earth-pony ... a crystal,
They stats to change into a Crystal-Pony !
9885635
It's a Map !
9885639
I only consider comments on the newest chapter, since the story is comment-driven.
9885664
But y tho?
9885665
You can stell keep it, and use the ideal later
or add that later
9885696
We'll see. It depends heavily on how well they can work with other people's comments as well.
9886072
None of those characters have even been mentioned yet in this story. Please at least make your suggestions relevant to the current state of the story. It's less of a headache for me to figure out how to use your comments that way.
9885163 9885532 9885605 9884892
Sunbro4life - battle against forest creatures
Howzdozit - sneak attack by timberwolves
Shadow_8472 - Cookie's form is unstable
Zapper frost - Voidtrotter returns to settlement cross at ponies for destroying crystals
The Voidtrotter returns to the settlement, unaware of the battle that is still going on. Much of the forest animals have been pushed deeper into the forest for the time being, and the main part of the village is calm. They bring up the topic of the crystals being used in the farms, to which one pony responds that the gems have allowed the crops to grow at speeds nopony had ever seen before, and assures the Voidtrotter that the crystals' energy is returned to the earth with every use.
Later that evening, a surprise raid is launched by the forest creatures, spearheaded by the timberwolves in an attempt to destroy the crops that they saw the ponies sprinking the crystal shards over. The Voidtrotter, unfortunately, is unable to help, flickering more and more often between his current griffin form and a strange, misty-grey fog, the latter of which is unable to physically interact with the world at all.
9886449
Sounds like he is turning into tear gas. He moves between the combatants, separating them until he stabilizes into a new creature and can talk again.
Lighting storm rolled in and a bolt of lightning hit the tree
a FEman D.-dog
Set fire to the houses
and tock the mares for them self
And have them clean there house and other things.
The tree has to cut down to make an other timber-wolf
9886998
Huh?
I'm not gonna touch that idea. This story is rated-T with no warning tags. I'd like to keep it that way.
9887127
Jest wanted to make sure that you understand
FEMALE
He becomes a She.
9887127
I was thinking that they are asked to ... Clean there nest ans other things.
9887260
The Void trotter is established as genderless.
As far as the second part goes, in still not sure about using it.
9887278
I know that why I think his/her body should change gender each time
I understand
Sorry
9887317
It's alright. This is a comment-driven story after all. I'm just trying to keep the story going as smoothly as possible, so there's bound to be some rejected suggestions.
9887338
What about the gender changing each time ?
9887384
I think I'd prefer to keep the Voidtrotter genderless the entire time. It makes for an interesting way to write the story .
A wallaby
Complete destruction
Why not a hydra