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Common headcanon about changelings includes ability to sense emotions. This, actually, is an excellent justification for them being fundamentally better towards each other, than ponies (and humans and any other race), as they don't need to guess and account others feeling, they need to learn to ignore them. From perspective of such creatures ponies, being food source or not, are fundamentally socially inferior and deserve pity and charity at best and mercy kill at most, depending on details of the culture. Given that, changelings taking over ponies could be good for ponies. Think about it: aristocrats (i.e. wealthy bigot as they mostly portrayed) gone, most management positions taken by people who knows if you like your government or not and so on. This opens entirely knew possible viewpoint to write changeling invasion.

In response to this post.

Attempts to justify the invasion using historical parallels are mostly bullshit. Both ponies and changelings are too different for this to work. Still, if we play the card, the most common real reason for invasion would be decision of leaders. It does not matter what masses think about it, once leaders set course, they will justify invasion and its form, be it Drang nach Osten, invasion of Iraq, or Black Ships. Anyway, the point is that culture and views of the invaders are secondary to decisions of their leaders. Once a decision is made, propaganda (be it truthful or not) can be used to manipulate masses, and people in general are quite easy to manipulate.

The reason for invastion from leaders' perspective falls into three categories: personal gain, gain of invading people, gain of people being invaded. I'm a cynic and honestly believe that two latter are very rare, but in case of changelings because of common headcanon it may be different.

Now, another possible justification for the invasion starts with changelings using absolutely alien ethical framework (insert appropriate framework here), either because they are completely different (hive mind and all, may result in assimilation plot) or live in very different environment (Badlands where survival of the many depends on absolute dedication of everyone, may result in totalitarian utilitarian). Writing alien mind is very difficult, so mostly this results in quite bad quality. Of course, effort counts and I would like to see a good fic with absolutely alien changeling, but writing one requires at least basic education in anthropology and really hard work in worldbuilding, and most writers are not ready for it, even if their other writings are good.

Comments

[Ghostfriendly]

If Changelings can sense Pony emotions, that doesn't mean they care about the ponies (much like the psychic Festum in Fafnir anime). Propaganda idea is interesting.