'Connected stories' Glossary #1: vocabulary for the lost. · 7:55pm Sep 17th, 2013
At this point in the writing of the --
-- look, I know it's arguably my best hope of getting that cherished TVTropes reference, but I still feel like using the word is a terrifying next step which I'm not quite ready for --
*sigh*
-- 'verse...
(brief pause for intense nausea)
...a number of terms have appeared which I've had to define or refer back to in several different tales. And so it seemed time to create the first partial compilation for some of those words, along with their definitions and ways they're used within the stories. I'm not going to define everything here as some stories still have a few words in partial shadow, other natural ones haven't been reached yet, and I may just forget a few. (If you can think of a term I missed on first pass, let me know and if it's not meant to be hiding something, I'll edit it in.) It's going in as a blog post because I suspect submitting such as a story would get me very justifiably laughed at -- although a complete version could still wind up being added as a final follow-up should Triptych ever be finished.
So...
Abeyance The period of Nightmare Moon's imprisonment.
Air path A sky road, manipulated by pegasi using techniques for extra safety. Typically has permanent favorable air currents, some resistance to bad weather, and can occasionally include built-in measures against intruders, if only as permanent cloud encampments lying in wait for use.
Backlash The disruption of active unicorn magic through hard or sharp physical contact with the channeling horn. Comes in four stages, tied to the level of active corona being used when the contact occurs, which are as follows:
Stage Zero: partial corona, basic everyday manipulation. Field winks out, objects drop or very minor spell is canceled out. Talented casters can ignore this with enough very disconcerting practice. Deliberately inflicted in unicorn schools so students can learn what it's like and try to deal with it.
Stage One: full primary corona. Channeled energy is not only disrupted, but briefly flows against unicorn. This causes variable minor to moderate injuries which increase in severity according to the raw field strength of the caster. In general, the effects of a Stage One on a unicorn of average strength will heal in a day or less, although exceptions occur. Extremely skilled casters can continue through this, but the damage will still be done -- although rumors say the Princesses are resistant to this stage, as might be a few other talented individuals..
Stage Two: double corona. Disrupted energy starts to do real damage: this is the point where spontaneous bone fractures can come in. With powerful unicorns, random minor to moderate magical effects may appear in surrounding environment. Injuries can take a week or more to recover from and typically result in immediate loss of consciousness. Only the Princesses are believed capable of riding it out and keeping a working going.
Stage Three: triple corona. Fatal.
Between, the The realm unicorns move through when they teleport. Largely unexplored, as teleporters can typically only stay there as long as it takes to complete their journey -- and attempts to remain longer have resulted in ponies being lost. (Time passes during a teleport, but it's a tiny fraction of what the trip would take by hoof.) Could be described as the universe's largest sensory deprivation tank: most ponies will find themselves reliving memories during travel just to shield their minds from the sheer amount of nothing surrounding them.
Booster drugs Chemical-herbal concoctions which can temporarily increase field strength. Typical boosts range from five to fifty percent of the user's original raw power (most provide about fifteen), with the danger increasing steadily as the number goes up: the user is putting a considerable strain on their body and the highest mixes, even in the best-possible quality, still stand a chance of killing the pony taking them when it all wears off. Typically last no longer than thirty minutes, generally with visible side effects: the most common unicorn mix known turns the whites of the user's eyes to black. Mixes are known to exist which work for unicorns and pegasi. No race can use a mix meant for another: illness is the most common result -- and none are publicly known which work for earth ponies. Due to the dangers involved in consumption, all booster drugs are illegal.
Canterlot Archives The multiple buildings which store books, artifacts, and spell notes vital to the history of Equestria, along with just about every other piece of information they can get their hooves on, including census data. Generally resent being reorganized by lavender unicorns every other week.
Caps Hard shells of translucent tissue which cover unicorn horns and pegasus wings at birth: respectively, they protect the mother from internal wounds and the newborn from wing damage caused by the pressures of the birth canal. Will fall away on their own a few days after birth or can be soaked away with warm water. Occasionally saved as a birth memento, although that tradition is dying out. Capless births are rare and never without consequence. (Snowflake is an example of a capless wing birth who survived.)
Celest An old measure of height: the distance from the ground to the Princess' front left shoulder. Seldom used.
Celestia Meter (Adjusted) Measures raw field strength as applied to unicorns, ranked from 0 (magically defunct) to 10 (Celestia herself), and so rates the sheer amount of power any given caster can bring to their efforts: certain minimum scores are required to make given workings operate at all. Is not strictly arithmetic: the gaps between whole numbers increase as the scale goes up. The average unicorn comes in at a 3: most students in the Gifted School start at 6. Those weaker in sheer power can make it in if their field dexterity scores are exceptional -- or they're pushed through the system's cracks. As far as anypony knows, field strength is fixed at birth and never improves.
Cornucopia Effect The universally-recognized part of earth pony magic which allows virtually any kind of land to be used for the growing of any crop -- regardless of how poorly that land is suited towards that vegetation. With enough earth ponies living in an area, it will eventually radiate out beyond the land being worked and allow the other races to attempt gardening on their own: otherwise, pegasi and unicorns are limited to what the area will naturally produce. The Effect is also known to accelerate plant growth somewhat with team effort, and a few earth ponies are known who can put that in reverse and raise bonsai. For crops, however, it's slow to take hold with a final radius related to the total local earth pony population, still partially dependent on climate -- misplaced crops in a tundra need heat coming in from somewhere -- and if the earth ponies in an area leave, the Effect will eventually fade out. Ponyville with that portion of its citizens all simultaneously departed would have two years before reversion to wild zone.
Corona The visible display of active magical effort being made by a unicorn as indicated by the appearance of energy around the horn. Comes in four stages: partial (everyday manipulation of light objects and very minor spells), full primary (more significant effort, typical workings), double (heavy exertion), and triple (commitment of all internal resources until success or total drain). Appears as layers of energy, with the base moving from the caster's original hue towards white as effort increases. Does not indicate raw strength in any way, simply the amount of effort being channeled.
Counter Attempting to negate unicorn magic through using one's own to disrupt. Only works on the magics of a unicorn's own race.
Device Technically, any inanimate object either being powered by magic or which invokes magic on something else. Sometimes also called a convenience if it's an item which actively assists the owner or makes their life easier.
Differentiation The near-universal unicorn inability to use their field for moving any object which is fully inside another. (The field coats the exterior of what it manipulates: reaching the interior doesn't happen.) Unicorns have been known to fully exhaust themselves in the attempts, and there are consistent rumors of worse. Generally applies to manipulation of anything within a solid: movement of solid through liquid is possible, but too much liquid mass represents a barrier on the level of a solid. Only one exception exists to the differentiation rule, and it is used in obstetrics.
Equestrian Magic Society A supposedly-nonprofit organization dedicated to the study and improvement of unicorn magic, mostly consisting of Gifted School graduates. Organizes several sporting events and competitions, gives out monetary awards for spell invention and improvement, and assists the Canterlot Archives in tracking the history of such magic, although the actual relationship often comes closer to quasi-friendly competition -- when it doesn't turn into low-level war. Has a considerably closer relationship with the patent office and helps them determine which devices are truly new.
Feel Each race's sense for the active use or lingering traces of their own magic. Used as a generic term by all three races simply because they can't pick up on the workings of the other two and there isn't much need for comparison. (Terms like 'airfeel' do exist, but seldom appear simply due to lack of need and mostly turn up in rare scholarly works.) As with other senses, the quality varies by the individual, with some able to detect at greater ranges and in stronger detail than others: however, most ponies can improve their feel through practice. Generally appears in fillies and colts well before the active working of magic itself and is considered a necessary first stage to learning.
Field The aura of magic within and around a pony's body. In unicorns, this is channeled and projected through the horn, appearing visually. For pegasi, it's strongest in wings, hooves, and eyes, with traces in the skin. Earth ponies generally have it evenly distributed throughout their bodies, with some extra focus in the hooves. However, the word itself is typically only used with unicorn workings.
Freezer Any elaborate system of physical confinements meant to stop pegasus techniques through the complete immobilization of the pegasus. In an emergency, this can mean 'rope'. Ones used in law enforcement prevent just about all movement beyond blinking.
Fringe The transition area between settled zone and wild zone: also what most ponies think of when they think of wild zones at all: the border realms where the risks aren't too high, at least during the day. Fluttershy's cottage is right next to the edge of Ponyville's fringe. Some ponies will go into fringe areas if the reward is high enough (or on a dare), but most try to avoid living beside them. Nearby land prices, however, tend to be much cheaper.
Gallop A measure of distance based around the typical amount of ground the average pony can cover on hoof by trotting in the course of a single day. Canterlot and Ponyville are about one gallop apart.
Gromway's Combiner An advanced unicorn working which allows different unicorn fields to put their efforts into the same spell. Extremely difficult and requires a Luna Meter (Adjusted) field dexterity score of at least 7 to reconcile disparities between the casters' fields: anything lower is begging for disaster. Can be used by up to three unicorns who are taking extreme care. Also tends to let resonance go back and forth freely between the users, which can be the hardest part to deal with. Must be used either (preferably) before the conjoined spell begins or (with risk) in the earliest stages: once a double corona comes in, it's far too late.
Hidden field A twist on a unicorn working which allows magic to occur without a visible corona or field effect. Generally only holds up to a full single corona layer: after that, the energy involved disrupts the concealment all by itself. Difficult to learn plus it can have nasty side effects for any spells it's used on, as it tends to make them operate in ways they normally wouldn't -- and is thus seldom used.
Invocation To swear by or on the name of a Princess, frequently with a body part referenced in doing so -- Celestia's mane, Luna's wings. Can also refer to actual prayer.
Luna Meter (Adjusted) Measures unicorn field dexterity: fine manipulations, the ability to keep multiple dissimilar objects under telekinetic control, splitting of attention into multiple workings, and the most delicate of refinements. As with the other meter, is not strictly arithmetic and a 4 is more than a single standard increment away from a 3, with the gaps increasing as the numbers go higher. Ranges from 0 (can't do a thing) to 10 (Luna), with the average unicorn scoring a 3. High field dexterity is required to make the most finicky workings operate at all: it doesn't matter how much raw strength you have if you can't direct it properly. Unlike field strength, field dexterity can be improved through practice and certain refinement exercises, and so there is no bottom-line minimum score for getting into the Gifted School -- although ponies tend to give 1s and 2s a wide berth until they move up a little.
Lunar & Solar Courtyards The open-air assembly areas used for press conferences by each member of the Diarchy. The Lunar Courtyard is always under full moon during the night and total eclipse during the day. The Solar Courtyard in day has perpetual dawnlight: no word currently exists on how it operates under Moon.
Manifest Old term for the moment of a cutie mark's first appearance. Also sometimes called awakening.
Moon When used as a measure of time, indicates the cycle from new to full and back again.
Murdocks Press Corps The newspaper voice of the Loyal Opposition in Equestria, comprising multiple publications across the continent. It's probably best not to ask where being loyally opposed to the Diarchy puts their own belief system.
Nightscape The realm of dreams.
Recoil The random-direction movement which results when a teleporter arrives in a spot occupied by any solid which isn't exceptionally small, thin, or fragile. Never goes into the ground, but will send the pony in any other direction until they find enough open space for their body to arrive -- and the farther they go to find that space, the faster they'll be moving when they arrive, which can cause injuries and worse all by itself. The central reason unicorns who can teleport only do so to places they can see or truly know by heart.
Resonance The emotional intent behind a spell. Generally only detectable at the moment of casting and each race typically only picks up on such resonance in their own magics: however, some exceptionally powerful resonance can occasionally briefly linger in an area after initial casting, and there are many workings which use resonance itself as a vital part of the spell. (Example: Want It-Need It is the deliberate placement of want into an inanimate object.) Otherwise, experiencing resonance typically requires the subject to be targeted by the spell or be close by when it's cast. Extremely strong resonance can briefly put the target in the same emotional state as the caster -- which isn't always a benefit. Casting resonance-free workings is possible on certain spells, but difficult and requires a great deal of emotional control. And with other castings, the wrong resonance can disrupt, ruin, or warp the final result.
Restraint Any device which stops unicorn magic by fully covering the horn and preventing the field from being projected. Typically hollow cone-shaped weavings of metal. Available in different quality levels. Generally must be metal: except in the weakest cases, wrapping a unicorn's horn in fabric or coating it in mud just annoys the unicorn. Heavy wood can work, but it's easier to break with outside force and most unicorns will just try to ruin anything weaker using impact: as horns themselves are virtually unbreakable and don't conduct vibration well, ramming a restraint into something harder than the confining material is fairly safe.
Return, the Overall, the recovery of Luna and the resumption of her role in the Diarchy. More generally used in talking about the event itself.
Return Day Holiday used to celebrate the Return, held three days after the Summer Sun Celebration in order to give Luna her own separate time. Still catching on in some parts of Equestria, although most ponies at least relish the day off. Since the second anniversary, has been marked with the joint Diarchy creation of a total solar eclipse.
Secured To use magic on an object in order to make it resistant to further magic. For pegasi, it's a fairly basic technique which is used on their homes in order to keep them stable and allow only the owner to make changes. With unicorns, it's much more advanced and typically prevents anypony except an object's owner from moving it telekinetically, thus making theft that much more difficult. In both cases, it can be countered or unwoven, but doing so can be extremely difficult.
Settled zone Any area, land or sky, where at least a small town's worth of ponies has taken permanent residence and started enforcing their magic on ground and weather. Comprises at most about six percent of Equestria's land mass and slightly more of the atmosphere.
shadowlands The pony term for the realm of the afterlife. Virtually always uncapitalized. If anypony's explored this, they aren't talking.
Signature The distinctive feel of a particular pony's magic. This is unique to each individual and thus serves as the pony equivalent of a fingerprint -- but it can't be read unless magic is actively being worked or lingering traces are present. For unicorns, this signature is partially visible as rendered in their field's color and means are known which can distort a signature -- but doing so requires a field dexterity score at the rightmost portion of the Luna Meter (Adjusted) chart: at least an 8 is required to even think about the attempt.
Surge Largely-uncontrolled first appearances of magic in newborns which can occasionally be the initial signs of where a pony's talents might eventually lie. Isn't parenting exciting?
Techniques Advanced uses of inherent pegasus magic. Unlike unicorn spells, it's theoretically possible for any pegasus to learn all of them, but they may not work if the individual's field strength is too low. Typical techniques include lightning triggers, cloud creation and disruption, wind creation and manipulation, and temperature control through heat shifting. The Sonic Rainboom is suspected to be a recovered one.
Thaum A unit of measure which gauges the amount of energy being placed into any magic.
Thaumaturgy The science of magic.
Trick A unicorn's personal spell: generally used as accepted slang.
Unweaving The disruption of a pegasus technique through opposing magic.
Wild zone Any area where pony magic is not actively controlling the environment: nearly 93% of Equestria. Home to wild magics, some of the other intelligent races, monsters, and worse. Seen as 'unnatural' by most of the populace -- falsely.
Working Any use of a unicorn's field beyond simple telekinetic manipulation. Typically a substitute word for spell and generally used by researchers.
...that didn't help anyone at all, did it?
*waits to hear what I missed*
Well I, for one, found this very interesting.
Very interesting and very well made. Some of them are now in my own canon
Useful
I like the idea of caps. I'd assumed newborn horns were blunt, but I had never considered the issue of wings. On the other hand, I have to question the name of the Luna Meter; did nopony wonder about that prior to Nightmare Moon's return?
(Sorry if Triptych answers that. It's on my Read Later list, I swear!)
It's interesting to see that there's no earth pony analogue to technique and working, but it makes sense. Earth pony magic just isn't that flashy. However, it seems there's no real way to keep it from working, either...
You know, you could add this glossary now. Any new chapters would just need to be moved before it, and that's easily done.
Bah, I ramble. Suffice to say, very interesting.
I wish some of these would work their way into canon. There's a clear need for vocabulary to talk about various aspects of life that ponies deal with that we don't. I may find myself at some point wanting to steal a few of these terms, unless you'd prefer they only be used within your setting, which would be a perfectly reasonable request.
Quick math-geek question on the C/L scales: what kind of nonlinear scaling are we talking about? Are the scales exponential (e.g. numbers of 1, 2, 3…10 represent actual values of 1, 4, 9… 100) or logarithmic (e.g. numbers of 1, 2, 3…10 represent actual values of 1, 10, 100…really big)? The Richter scale for earthquakes is an example of a logarithmic scale, where the difference between a 6 and 7 goes from scary to destructive, and from 7 to 8 goes from destructive to catastrophic.
Exponential scales can still be scary based on what sort of exponent you're talking about (a simple n^3 means that the Celestial 10 is still worth 1000 1's), but E vs. L is the difference between alicorns being superheroes and alicorns being gods.
Also, what are Celestia and Luna on each other's scales?
Really well thought out! I love when authors post up their head-canon. :D
I confess that I've been calling your work a verse for a while now. But I've been doing the same for my own, far less proliffic work as well.
But thanks for the terms. That helps. I've actually started using a couple muyself. They're useful. Though I came up with the term "techniques" independantly ages ago.
One thing I don't get is why Luna is used as a standard when sh'e only been known about for a short period of time.
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That's the reason for the 'Adjusted' tag on each meter. Prior to the Return (huh -- should that be in the glossary?), it wasn't two separate meters, but an awkward double-axis graph without Luna's name on any part of it.
(Triptych notes that at least one invocation of Luna survived the abeyance -- that might be another glossary need -- and was used during it, but the majority of ponies thought it was just an old name for the Moon.)
Umm...
It's so easy, a three year-old could do it!
...someone find me a three year-old...
Part of Celestia's attempts to work her back into pony society post-Return. Also, in this setting, her score (for unicorn workings) actually is higher.
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Just let me know which ones in advance? It's not as if I'm not perching on a shoulder or two here.
(Dear gawds, that came out awkward.)
Sorry about the appearance of quote mining there.
Without going into math better suited to games along with those who can handle it -- not to mention refusing to commit to a number before I truly need it -- it's somewhat closer to exponential on the first scale. The Princesses are powerful -- but not invincible, although a lot of ponies and those outside the realm have fallen for that latter illusion. Hard.
For power, they both top out -- depending on the time of day. For these stories, Luna is slightly weaker under Sun and Celestia loses an equal amount of strength under Moon. Most ponies would never notice -- but it happens every time.
Luna has more field dexterity than Celestia -- for unicorn workings. (Call it 10 vs. nine-point-something.) However, Celestia is somewhat superior with pegasus magic, as evidenced on a few of the occasions when Luna gets seriously irritated.
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I'd better get a new bucket because I can't change rivers for a while... Thanks a lot, Mr. Messner-Loebs.
*moves downstream*
if we come up with the same term in one other place, it's gonna get weird.
Any interest in including 'horning in,' or has that not been referenced enough for it to be necessary?
Also, this is really cool! I'm probably going to refer to this a few times; heck, I'll probably read it just so I can see the compilation of the Estee Headcanon! I was surprised to see that Luna defines the "dexterity" scale. I didn't know she was more skilled than Celestia in the Triptychverse.
Good to know, thanks!
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abeyance at the very least would be a useful addition, and Return just to balance it out. And those remind me: unless this gets into the "words in partial shadow" thing, definitions for the Princesses' before and after would also help.
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*nods* Added abeyance and the Return, along with Return Day as a natural adjunct.
before and after just need the right story paragraph to make clear -- one that is currently out there -- and as they're one of the little twists around here, the open definitions have to wait.
1356248 I've always thought of Twilight Sparkle as rating a ten (1) through special circumstances, because if you create the scale with Celestia on the the top end, there's a long empty space before you reach 'ordinary' unicorn powers. I'm not quite convinced that multiple unicorns acting together is quite as hard as he has it here, because of the Hearth's Warming play making canon that groups of unicorns used to do Celestia's job. It would be an interesting concept if Equestria ran on a 'Magitocracy' where the most powerful were on the throne back in Princess Platinum's days, and that unicorns had been slowly losing their power ever since...
(1) Only because the exponential scale stopped at ten. Her evaluators at school tended to rank her somewhere between twelve and let’s go get a drink, I’m buying.
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Locally, the play is sometimes seen as just that -- a holiday fable built around the Hearth's Warming Eve Accords, and the historical vs. fictional status of the characters comes into doubt by those who study what records exist of the actual events. As for multiple unicorns getting the Sun-raising done...
...I have an answer, but that's something I'm going to need a lot of time to reach.
Put it this way: there might be a story after Triptych. And that's part of it.
I'm not placing Twilight's exact score on the Celestia Meter (Adjusted) on purpose, but it's up there. Her field dexterity score is well above average, but Rarity's is higher yet.
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I'll have a ginger beer. thanks.
1356748 Well, the sun had to get up there somehow before Celestia showed up. It's not like it could climb up into the sky by itself, that's just crazy talk.
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Oh, the added entry for Return Day makes me think an entry for (solar) eclipse might also be nice, considering the event's history and significance in the 'verse (even if its definition is little more than "go read A Total Eclipse Of The Fun).
A most excellent glossary!
I figured out all the meanings of the terms I've seen in your stories so far (I haven't gone through your entire lexicon... yet) but then I've been an avid devourer of fantasy and sci-fi (and an amateur linguist) for so long that new terminology rarely fazes me. Even so it was excellent to see the specifics of your definitions and interpretations.
The one that made me grin the most, though, was between, since you use it the same way Anne McCaffrey does in her Dragonriders of Pern series. It's such an exact match that I thought it must be a deliberate homage, but since there's no mention of it here I thought I'd comment about it and see what you thought of it.
Thanks for sharing your writing with us, as well as for this metadata about your 'verse.
Light and laughter,
SongCoyote
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*looks at v-word*
*shudders*
If so, it was completely subconscious. I have a vague memory of glancing at the first book when I was ten, but I didn't read all the way through it -- and later on, I discovered I had...
...call it 'certain points of disagreement' with her and leave it at that. It was enough to keep from from checking out her works afterwards.
So it's possible I lodged the term on a lower level and dredged it up when I was starting to work with the idea that unicorn teleporters could have a middle stop -- and bringing back memories in that place would serve as a potentially decent flashback device. (After focusing on this for a bit, I recovered a possible image of how those dragons enter their own -- a burst of flame?) But I don't know -- and it wouldn't be the first time I independently pulled a bucketful out of the river where the contents ultimately seemed vaguely familiar.
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(Also Pinkie, who is my favorite pony to represent myself, as opposed to my favorite pony to adore, which is Fluttershy. PinkieShy! 
)
Heh... sorry (very slightly ;) about the v-word, but as my nickname says: Coyote!
I completely understand having disagreements with an author's essential premise, apparent background beliefs as projected through their work, etc. I can't stand Piers Anthony for a conceptually similar reason. I also understand about pulling from unconsciously remembered sources; our memories are strange and convoluted at times, and when seemingly new things still seem familiar it can be hard to tell why.
Thanks again for this and other conversations, and have a great day and more!
Light and laughter,
SongCoyote
Having read Triptych, there are two things I'd like to see in either this glossary or the next:
Magic school: What is the curriculum? The class and grade structure? What is the minimum requirement a unicorn must attend, and when is she expected to begin?
Wake-up juice: What's it made from? How is it prepared? How dangerous is it to give any to Pinkie, or has no one dared to find out?
Hope these help.
Wow... just wow.. First off, this is REALY impressive. Second, in my head, I'm going to replace the phrase 'not strictly arithmatic' with logarithmic, because this sounds like what you mean. (sry if you've already addressed this.)
Kind of like, to get from 1 to 2 you'd have to count by ones 1->10, then to get from 2->3 you have to count by tens 10->100. This means that while a 2.0 earthquake may only be ten times more powerful than a 1.0 earth quake, a 3.0 would be one-hundred times greater than a 1.0. (or in other words, it takes the equivlent of ten of the previous value to equal the next whole number.)
Logarithmic scale is great for take LARGE gaps in power and compressing them into a simple 1->10 scale. They use it a lot with sound.
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As seen below (above? What is the default Comments arrangement?), it's closer to exponential. Logarithmic, even with ridiculous degrees of weakness at the low end, leaves too high a power level at the top.
Sweet.
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I, too, would like actual definition, delineation, and description of "wake-up juice". I came here hoping for it, and it is not.