Of mathematics, figures, unicorns, and moving celestial bodies... · 10:26pm Jan 20th, 2023
So... as those who read the summary of Chapters of a Revamped Tome know, my AU in general is meant to retool parts not only of the animated series (both My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and Equestria Girls), but also certain parts of expanded media elements.
And well... I know this may seem a bit of an unusual one to pick, but an element I'm choosing to interpret a bit differently for my AU is the element that, up until Celestia took hold of the Sun (and Luna took hold of the Moon) both of those were moved by unicorn mages, and doing so permanently disabled their magic, which is referenced both in the Season 8 episode Horse Play and in the book A Journal of Two Sisters.
Part of it is admittedly so I can incorporate a certain bit of fanon that I happen to quite like, even though it doesn't line up perfectly with the animated series... but another part of it is because I don't think that, as presented in official media, the figures make much sense from a long-term sustainability point of view.
To show some figures explaining what I mean... I don't know what were the numbers given for A Journal of Two Sisters, but Horse Play mentions that it took five unicorn mages to raise the sun every day, and doing so drained their magic permanently. Very possibly, that means it would take another five to lower it (which would total ten unicorn mages per day), and the effects may have been similar. That makes 3,650 unicorn mages permanently drained per year (and 3,660 in leap years). If one were to assume that a unicorn can become a mage at 18 years old (the human legal age, which seems to be how it works for Equestrian ponies given the later seasons), that's anywhere between around 65,700 and 65,880 unicorn mages to keep the rate going. And one must remember that, going by the series, unicorn mages seem to be a very small minority of the population, considering that basic levitation and some magic associated to their specific talent (according to Boast Busters) seems to be all that most unicorns manage.
And all this doesn't even take into account how many unicorns would be needed to move the Moon, or whether that task also drained their magic permanently, at least as far as Horse Play is concerned. Also, I will admit I may be overestimating these figures a considerable deal, especially if unicorns of old Equestria took the age of majority less seriously than today's world does or that modern Equestria seems to. But even without taking the moon into account, it still doesn't seem like a sustainable rate to me, especially considering that, meaning this in the most respectful manner, not every unicorn would have the knack for being a unicorn mage even if they all had the physical potential to become one (and going by what the show itself presents, it seems to be the case that the average unicorn doesn't).
As such, this is an element I will adapt slightly for my AU. I won't completely do away with it (it will still be true that Celestia and Luna took over the Sun and the Moon from unicorns, and that unicorns did those tasks at the time the three-race conflict exploded) but some of the exact particulars will be a bit different.
Hopefully, they will both make sense and be found enjoyable once I share them.
Thank you to all who took the time to read this. :)
As always, I hope all is well with all of you.
Best regards, and take care. :)
I've given that a little thought myself.
According to the book, Star Swirl the Bearded was joined by five unicorns in raising the sun, and another five unicorns in raising the moon. It's possible that six unicorns (Star Swirl plus five others of sufficient magical strength) per celestial body was simply the minimum, something that the unicorns kept to themselves until Equestria's founding forced it into the light. As for draining their magic, it would do so slowly, but still at an unsustainable rate. A tiny part of me wonders if Star Swirl somehow manipulated Celestia and Luna into taking up the task of manipulating the sun and moon, given how they were portrayed as having assumed those duties.
In any case, I look forward to your take on it.
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First of all, thank you very much for providing a figure of how many unicorns it takes to move the moon as well. :) It already helped me when it comes to more fully defining how those mechanics worked during the time the unicorns were controlling both. Also, as a bit of a side note, I find it interesting that Star Swirl managed to aid both groups and apparently kept his magic going rather than having it drained (whether instantly or over time), but I guess that goes to show why he is so exceptional when it comes to magic.
And well... not being sure of how detailed a response I can give without spoiling too much of what I have decided, I will say that I did establish for my version that there is both a minimum and a maximum amount of unicorns that can properly move either the Sun or the Moon, and both are largely dependent on a unicorn's magical power, for lack of a better term.
As for the question about Star Swirl manipulating Celestia and Luna to take up those tasks... well... without having read the novel, I can't answer, but I confess that Star Swirl already comes across as questionable enough to me without having done that... but at the same time, I can't say I would view it as out of character for him. Should you decide to go for it, I think it would come across as far more believable than it should be, considering what Star Swirl turned out to be like.
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Glad that I could help. Time will tell.