Aurora Comic

A fantasy webcomic!

[comicaurora]

A Quick FAQ

Hello! This is the tumblr blog for Aurora, a fantasy webcomic that updates MWF. Sometimes I post other things that breach containment.

You can read the comic HERE.

If the site is misbehaving, I have the whole thing mirrored starting HERE. The latest page can be found at this post HERE.

I get a decent number of asks that either I’ve already answered or I can't really answer for various reasons. Let's round 'em up and categorize them for efficiency and future reference!

What program/tablet do you use for the comic?

I use Clip Studio Paint EX. It’s great, but a little expensive. The drawing tablet I use is a Huion H610PRO.

Can you tell me everything there is to know about {thing/people in world}?

Short answer: No.

Long answer: No, because it's likely that, if it doesn't matter to the story, I haven't fully worldbuilt it out, and I don't want to lock something in that might become a problem later as the story develops. I'm writing a story, not a wiki, and to an extent I want to keep my options open so I can come up with Cool Stuff in future without opening up plot holes. And if it DOES matter to the story, we're most likely gonna find out anyway, making this Potential Spoiler Territory.

What kinds of things exist in this world? Does {thing} exist in this world?

Same as above. I'm writing a story, not a wiki. If it matters, we'll see it eventually. If it doesn't, it's probably not super fleshed out right now. I don't want to lock in absolute answers to questions I haven't fully considered. Also, on the most basic level, this universe works totally differently from reality, so there’s no reason to expect that familiar things from our universe would have easy parallels in this universe.

Can you give me details about the language of this world?

No, because I didn't build an actual conlang, because I tried once and got bored in five minutes.

Why doesn’t {thing in world} conform to the real-world laws of physics and/or thermodynamics?

Because it’s a fictional fantasy world, and I didn’t spend years working towards my math degree so I could spend my relaxing writing and art time doing more math.

Can you give me spoilers?

No. What? No.

[comicaurora]

2.7.32 - Aurora

you should really hang onto one of those messenger things. it’d make everyone’s life a lot easier, except of course mine

un-splitting this party one dramatic rescue at a time

[comicaurora]

We know ferin can be paladins, but this guy is acting like he's never seen a ferin before. Is he just particularly prejudiced, or are ferin still just not that common as paladins?

You know that thing where someone can be very tolerant in theory and have plenty of friends of assorted identities, but as soon as someone they don't like has a marginalized identity they take it as license to go full throttle on the slurs about it?

[comicaurora]

2.7.31 - Aurora

tbh I find I also get a lot less chatty when there are sharp things near my eyeballs

👀

[xiaq]

One of the best things about being a writer is thinking of something small you can add to your work that’s just. Devastating. Like you’re sitting there going. Oh. That would be diabolical. People would get really riled up about that. Exquisite. Let’s do it.

[comicaurora]

Hey Red! Sorry if this has been asked before, but some of us on discord were discussing and I wasn’t sure. When the Paladins use their telepathy, it always looked to me like the person sending the message was still speaking the words out loud and the recipient would hear it in their head. So anyone standing around them would hear the message, but not the response (à la dnd sending spell). Is this not the case?

To that point, some were saying that at this moment:

Falst had somehow hacked into their telepathy with his mysterious light powers and heard the command (hence his reaction and the light in his eyes), while I thought he heard the command because the Recten still spoke out loud, and that the light in Falst’s eyes was the reflection of the light whip, and his reaction was because they didn’t know the Paladins could make light whips.

Is it alright to ask which is which, or is this a wait and see?

That style of speech bubble indicates it's being heard in the head, not through the ears.

We do have (brief) prior precedent for someone communicating telepathically without speaking aloud.

[comicaurora]

2.7.30 - Aurora

be vewwy vewwy quiet

uh-oh!

[comicaurora]

2.7.29 - Aurora

the last few times they did this “spin around and shoot” thing it was a lot less impressive. mostly just startling wild animals and in one c

whoosh!

[comicaurora]

My mom now hates your voice after me binging your videos on our TV

I think she kinda hates you now

skill issue, my mom still likes me and I've been annoying her for WAY longer

[comicaurora]

I'm imagining the conversation in the ice went something like

Now might be a good time to flame on.

I can't ignite it's to cold!

You're out of fire? You can't be out of fire, I thought you could use the heat in the air?

There is no heat in this air!

I considered showing what happened in the bubble but I didn't want to slow the pacing down by zooming in so suffice to say it was a very panicky couple seconds for our boys

[comicaurora]

you understand my vision

[comicaurora]

How is Erin still inside an unbroken ice dome if Crucible-Dainix got out? Did he break out without melting the ice around him and Erin?

tunneled out and down so he wouldn't free all the air - that's why there's seawater in the bubble now

[comicaurora]

The last panel of today's update (2-7-28) truly has your boy Erin looking like the soggiest paper bag, or perhaps the sickliest Victorian love interest. I feel like your joy at drawing him slumped and shivering against the ice bubble with one foot dangling into the ocean and Stressed was tangible through my computer screen.

I must say I was positively gleeful to showcase our boy in his natural habitat (Suffering Consequences)

[comicaurora]

Hello Red, I know you two regulary say that we should not to cite you as sources in our papers. BUT. I am currently writing my bachelor thesis on digital science communication as a tool for lifelong learning and I am looking for an example of the shift away from dry communication to embracing and utilizing jokes, sarcasm as a tool, and so on.

I am strongly considering using "An impending fistfight with a terrifying, murderous giant is no reason not to party" as a strong contender to drop in there. Would you be cool with that, or is there a joke from your summarized videos you are specifically proud of you would like me to use instead?

:)

That sounds fantastic! I can't believe we found a way to cite me without it being academic malpractice

[comicaurora]

2.7.28 - Aurora

how can this be a pyrrhic victory when we’re underwater

finally a kaiju fight in its natural habitat

[comicaurora]

I just learned I landed a voice role (two, actually) in an indie game one of my friends is developing, but my recording setup...isn't exactly the best. If it's not too much trouble, what kind of setups (mics, sound dampening stuff, etc) do you and Blue use?

For a mic, I use a Shure SM7 that plugs into a Focusrite Scarlett preamp. You don't need these exact specs, but a mic with a preamp is, as far as I know, industry standard for professional voiceover, as opposed to a USB mic which is plug-and-play but has lower audio quality.

For the space, I set up in a closet with a soft rug, acoustic curtains on two walls and acoustic paneling on the bulk of the rest of the exposed walls. The goal is to break up the echoes by minimizing the number of hard, flat planes - it's not flawless, the ceiling is untreated, but it's serviceable.

Blue's recording space is more of a spacious study, but he's got a rug down and put acoustic paneling on the walls up near the ceiling, again to break up the echoes.

[comicaurora]

How is la creatura? Any crimes committed recently?

sometimes I think she knows she's adorable