Dusk Guard Q&A Answers! · 8:05pm Sep 20th, 2019
Hey readers! Viking here with a bunch of answers for the Q&A!
I'll admit, I've been looking forward to answering each one of these as they popped up in my feed. It's been a long time since I've done a Q&A, and I'd forgotten how fun it is! In fact, I think I'll do one for Colony next. Which is fitting as Jungle draws closer with every day, and I need to start upping the hype for it.
But that's another universe. You're here to hear about the Dusk Guard. So, let's talk about the Dusk Guard! Q&A answers away!
Okay, our first question comes from Mugen Kagemaru, who asked:
Hain refused to let Luna use his real name for reasons that, while understandable, were utterly bullshit. My question is, will he ever get that stick out of his plot and finally be able to live with himself?
There's two sides to this, so depending on how you look at it yes and no. If you're wondering if he'll ever go by his old name again, well ... no. Hain is who he is now, whether he wears that with shame, pride, or both. He is Hain. He may disagree with the cause behind it, but at the end of the day his culture and his honor (and his word) is valuable to him. Other griffons exiled for similar reasons may continue to go by their name, or even take on a new one entirely, but that doesn't mean Hain will. He's dedicated to his honor, and he knew what would happen when he made the choice he did. He still stands behind it.
But there's also a yes. When Blade found him, it's pretty obvious that he had very little idea of what to do with all that honor aside from waste away his days in Ruffian's Wharf doing odd jobs, drinking, and maybe every so often putting down a fight somewhere or deflecting some violence. Not exactly the kind of life a commander of Hain's stature could have aspired to. And that bit of his exile was mostly self-imposed. The exiling just kicks you out, not says you have to live a lousy life afterward.
Joining the Dusk Rogues has, in that regard, only been good for him. He may be old, but he's getting a chance to go around making a difference again. getting paid well for it, and maybe just keeping an eye on a very strange bundle of dangerous trouble-seekers who could use an experienced guiding claw (and both he and Blade know it). And shed some of the bitterness that years of voluntarily going past the point of honor in his exile had burdened him with.
So Hain will be Hain until death, in his mind. That badge of shame (or honor, depending on who you ask) is his to bear. But the lifestyle he'd sunk into? That wasn't, and with the Rogues, he's gotten his chance to break out of it at last and start being who he is again: a commander.
Thanks for your question, Mugen, and I hope the answer brings some clarity on things.
Next up, we've got a question from DoomManta, who had an interesting question posited by real-life events:
Inspired by the trauma first aid course I did recently:
Dawn is an exceptional medic and all, but what's the plan if she's the casualty? Or is she's significantly separated from the casualty (like right now with Hunter's team)?
Said differently:
Nobody else has had any on-screen medical training, so does that mean that they don't have any, or that it just wasn't worth spending words on?
This is an excellent question, and one definitely worth addressing. But I'll ease your mind first and foremost on this point: Dawn is the team's medical professional, but she's not the only one on the team with medical training. The other characters all have, in some form or another, familiarity with emergency medical care. Hunter, for instance, actually does get a line somewhere in either book one or one of the side stories, I believe, where he points out that all Rangers are required to take what are basically EMT courses, which makes sense given that the organization is often used as search and rescue. Steel would have similar training, as a soldier you send into combat who can't at least stop themselves or a fellow soldier from bleeding is a lot less useful over someone who can at least slap a bandage on it.
So Hunter and Steel, while not trained and experienced medical ponies on Dawn's level, are more than capable of doing a little bit of emergency triage if needed and applying the necessary measures.
Now, that leaves Sky Bolt, Sabra, and Nova. And the answer there is ... Also yes. You're right that's it's never addressed directly in the story, but a commander like Steel would never let his team go out to battle missing a horseshoe. In Rise when he talks about getting them familiar with the basics, basic medical care for battlefield triage would fall under that (and IIRC, he does allude to Dawn having classes to teach, which would be that exact area).
Now, moving forward, you'll see more signs of this in the future books. One of the updates to the armor the team has in the future will include a personal emergency medical kit (this is yours, for when you get hit), as well as some interesting medical spelltech collaboration between Dawn and Sky. But for now, if Dawn isn't around, rest assured that the other members of the team have been trained to at least know enough to try and make someone as stable as possible until she or another medical authority can get there.
Good question! Thanks for asking it!
All right, next up we have Bugsydor, who asked a question directly of Sky Bolt. Which means I need to pass the keyboard over and— No, you can't keep it. Or take it apart.
You're wealthy now. Buy your own.
No I don't know what the exchange rate is. But bits have some gold in them. Gold is rarer here.
That's right, you're even richer here.
Please don't skyrocket our aluminum markets. Question, remember!
To Sky Bolt: Have you ever seen Sabra do something cool and thought, "I need to make a mod that does that"?
Alternatively, where do you get the ideas for your mods?
oh this is so cool
hang on
Aha Gotcha
..........there.
This is so coll!
Okay okay, so Im wait. I'm, there it is, supposed to answer a qwuestion for you all. Please escuse the mistakes. I'm not quite used to this keyboard thing yet. It's different from ours, but if I tilt my hoof just right, and use my wings ...
Okay, looking better. Okay, so, what was the- right! Sabra giving me ideas for mods. Well of course he does! I mean, there's that whole thing with his cutie mark, if I could make a mod that did that can you imagine how cool it would be? Bats do something similar-reminder ask Night Guard captain if she can-and I read a book once about sailors on ships that could do it with the sound of waves hitting the hull of the boat. If I did that, but with a mod, and with noises that no one else could hear, maybe ...
In the pile.
Anyway, aside from his cutie mark, Sabra has a lot of good ideas and insights on things. He's always listening and thinking, and I'm not sure whether that's because of the monk thing or if it's just hjim, but when he talks, he means it. I can bounce ideas off him, talk about all sorts of things, and then he'll just say the one thing that I needed to hear, or come at it from a completely different angle. It's not always helpful, he has no idea how basic metallurgy works, but he still means well, and when he talks you can tell that you've got his complete attention and ...
Right he's really good at it. Talking. About my work.
Anyway, I guess that kind of only half answers your question. As far as watching Sabra do something and getting ideas for it, kind of? It's more stuff that he says than anything he does. I mean, I did have that idea for a really flexible mod, but after looking into it wouldn't really do much. The utility of being suddenly far more flexible seems possible, until you factor in the armor, which has limits of its own the spell won't be able to affect. Honestly, a lot of ideas for the mods come from looking at what the armor can't do that it could do - yes got those both right- or looking at what most ponies or Guard call 'utility' spells. Stuff like strength enhancement, invisibility spells (still working on that one) old magic spells that were made by explorer or adventurer unicorns to replace heavy kit, things like that. I've borrowed a few from that book of Nova's too, which thankfully worked because with my job I can actually schedule a meeting with Princess Luna to go over details and maybe figure out why some part of it isn't working.
I guess they just kind of come from anywhere. Anywhere I can see a need. Shields are always going to be useful, and I never knew how many different kinds there were before I started working here. Enhancements that can make a pony move faster or quicker or climb up walls or even warmer in cold places are going to be useful. I've got an idea for one that lets you breath longer in areas where you can't breath, in case of a deadly gas or smoke, though that one's kind of limited.
They just come from all over. Ideas are like that: from everywhere. I just have to make sure I'm paying attention so I see them when they come.
And the human says I have to give him his keyboard back. I need to ask him if he's got a spare I can take apart. And maybe another one of these "computer" things I can get Dawn to take apart and examine for me, if its as small as he says ...
Right, Viking here. Back at the keys once more. Thank you Sky Bolt for taking the time away from your workshop to answer that, and thank you Bugsydor for the question. And onto the next!
And this next one's actually addressed to me, not any of the Dusk Guard. Fair enough, Gloaming! I didn't actually specify whether or not I counted as a character, and it does relate so ...
You talking about burying yourself in editing work made me curious:
When was the last time you took a vacation from writing? I mean one where you didn't work any other jobs either.
And is that even something you'd want to do? Not thinking about your stories for a week or two?
Oh Sands and Storms ... last Christmas? I've taken small break days for my sanity here and there (like on my birthday) but for the most part, I live, eat, and breathe work.
Why? Well, because I'm financially always very strapped. I have to be working to make ends meet. It's not that I don't love writing, I do. But because I love it, I have to make a lot of sacrifices for it. I work a crappy part-time job because the hours let me write more than most other part-time jobs. I write a lot and work and advertise because eventually I'd like to be able to drop that part time job and have all my income be from selling books. But ... I'm not there yet. In fact, right now I don't even know how I'll pay some of my utilities next month.
So a vacation? I'd love to, but there's honestly a million things to worry about before that. It'd be a staycation for one. I certainly can't afford to go anywhere. I have to get each next book out as quickly as I can, as they're my income. Each new book bumps up the eyes on my work, which increases my profits and eases the financial pressures just a little more. I usually take a few days at Christmas to just relax and have "me time" and I try to make sure I get some relaxation in at the end of each day if I can to play something and let my mind enjoy someone else's efforts for a while but ...
Long and short of it, vacations are something I just can't afford yet. Maybe I'll never be able to. Who knows. But you gotta sacrifice for a goal.
Thanks for asking, though. It would be nice. Maybe in ten, twenty years I'll be on a beach somewhere after Colony has become a hit streaming series, and I'll be able to relax. But until then ... work work work.
Alright, next up we have Charedfirescale, who had a fairly simple question:
Is Chrysalis the changeling Immortal?
So, simple answer: No. To extrapolate, she's very long-lived, but she's not immortal, nor one of the Immortals. We will get more on her in the future, though, so I'll avoid spoiling anything here and simply say that there will be more on changelings in the future. Thanks for your question!
Next up we have Babroniedad with a fairly long one:
I have to admit I like this WAY better than the implication from cannon that Sombra just came back really weak and everything was rainbows and butterflies in the Crystal Empire. It's way more believable that a team of seasoned veterans knocked him down a few pegs and kept him from taking control again. And truthfully, WAY more entertaining.
So the question - Sabra has a lot of inner turmoil going on, that he is mostly just (barely) keeping in check. Good on him for it, but is he going to be able to 'unravel that knot' and use that energy for his growth at some point? Sorry - not really asking for a spoiler, just looking to know if he has to just live with it, or if it will resolve and bring him strength and experience eventually.
First of all, thanks for your enjoyment of Hunter/Hunted. It was a lot of fun to look at what was given in the story and extrapolate backward to what it could have been. Before long here another chapter is going to go up, and I hope you keep enjoying it as the story continues!
Now, as to your question ... SPOILERS! LOL. Sorry, but I can't answer that. You'll just have to keep reading and seeing what happens. But really, the title of the story is a massive clue.
That's all I'll give away.
All right, our last question comes from Cerulean Blue, who had this to ask:
I'm curious how much of your planned outline (if you had one) made it to published work?
It varies, but usually it's about 100%. The reason being that I spend a lot of time going over the outline in my head, building a framework that fits together, before I actually start writing. So when I finally do start writing, a lot of the frame pieces have to be there for any of the later ones to work. Now, that isn't to say some stuff doesn't get modified as I go along and details collide (like how the team would take down the various Order posts), but for the most part the stuff that I've got in my head (A needs to happen to lead into B, so that C can then occur) is pretty much set by the time I start writing.
PHEW! That was a lot of writing. Thank you everyone for your questions, thanks for reading, and I'll see you all on Monday for the next BaBW post. Until then though, I hope you enjoyed reading your answers to this Q&A session, and I hope you enjoy today's chapter of Hunter/Hunted as well.
Thank you for answering them, and thank you for writing these stories
This part seems a bit questionable. Compared to their armor or ship, a dozen IFAKs each with the pony equivalent of a tourniquet and pressure dressing (and maybe some extras) should be trivially easy to acquire, and wouldn't be very bulky. The ones we used in the training scenarios fit on our ankles underneath long pants, so really only about as big as a small - medium sized book.
Either way though, interesting answers.
5124313
That kind of stuff they're already carrying. Bandages are easy and cheap.
Sky Bolt, of course, just sees this as a challenge.