Paul // he/him // EN/UA/RU // cryptid rights advocate // slightly nutty, with good texture // sometimes I draw, but then I eat sand
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~ DA: deviantart.com/decalais
What do you think the others in Greenfinger's position were like? Do you think there *were* Floran leaders on the massive scale that Greenfinger is before he came into power?
And this one I'm using as a peg to hang more of my self-indulgent art studies in Floran design and culture on.
I'm still trying to marry the way I'd like them to have been portrayed with the way they've actually been portrayed. We're getting somewhere. The wheels are in motion, bulb. They're in slow motion, because I'm in a war zone, so my digital art times are limited to when we're allowed electricity, and there aren't any chores that require it, and I don't want to simply kick back and relax after a long day of managing work and household in subpar humanitarian conditions, but the wheels are moving. Be patient with them.
Anyway, as for the question.
I really don't think there's ever been anyone else in Greenfinger's exact position – that is, rubbing elbows with Big A-tier players in the cosmic arena and essentially speaking on behalf of the Floran as a whole. I would've expected Florans to be somewhat better integrated into the space community by the time the beta lore opens up, if they'd already had at least one well-connected influential Floran representative of similar scale prior to Greenfinger. Even in the release, where they're part of the Protectorate, their standing feels somewhat shaky, what with all the ssssstabbing and the constant focus on how primitive they seem compared to literally everyone else, even the Avian.
Still, there definitely would've been massive leader figures within the Floran society before Greenfinger (the individual). I just doubt those would've been greenfingers (the plural). I mean, someone had to lead the invasion on the Hylotl, but that role requires slightly different skills and mindset. Greenfinger's Notes: Treetop Dwellings mentions tribesmasters, and it would make sense if those attained leadership based on actual physical strength, battle prowess and hunting technique. I imagine the earlier Floran leaders would've been exactly that, vicious and experienced fighters powering the expansion effort. Later, as greenfingers started to gain more authority, tribesmasters would either have to lead side by side with them, sharing tribe management and dividing responsibilities, or gradually cease to exist as obsolete. At least, that's the current system I see in which beta and release work together the best.
The thing is, the role of a greenfinger as a tribe's diplomatic representative and education provider only has merit as long as their people actually feel the need for diplomacy and education. The former clearly wasn't their priority for a good while, as evidenced by their history with the Hylotl and various bits and segments of both release and beta; and the latter, according to beta, only managed to begin en masse with the arrival of the Glitch, whom the Floran couldn't bite through for metallic reasons.
And, curiously, Greenfinger (the individual) supervises the process while keeping rather eloquent notes. Where did he get his education from, if it wasn't from the Glitch missionary campaign? Who knows. Perhaps he's got no formal education at all. The first educated Floran, at least by and according to the Glitch, is my boy Treeio Floorstab.
One way to explain it without throwing any extra conspiracies in the mix is that greenfingers are distinct in their exceptional command of plant life, which allows them to reverse-engineer and replicate other races' technology (on this note, if greenfingers already existed during the expansion stage, the research and adaptation of alien tech for use in battle might've been their main purpose). And Greenfinger (the individual) is a distinctly exceptional greenfinger who very well could've reverse-engineered heaps of data from various salvaged devices and taught himself everything he knows.
Although the differences between beta and release create a bit of a chicken/egg situation concerning Greenfinger's name/title. Like, is he just one of many greenfingers, as I've assumed above, and he simply got extra lucky, and has an actual name in there somewhere? or is he the pioneer of plant/tech interaction who propagated the method, so his name became a title for those who followed in his footsteps (and is probably a direct Glitch translation from Floran, which is why it sounds Glitch instead of Floran)? I mean, Dr Lax claims in passing that he's centuries old, which is kinda crazy, but would also explain his level of authority. He could've been the one who reverse-engineered a crashed spacecraft and launched first Florans into orbit, for all we know, but this is just pure headcanon territory, so settle on it at your own risk.
A piece I've had to finish before it's all assorted alien hullabaloo in here, otherwise it'll forever sit half-done in my art folder, being mildly sticky and gathering lint like a neglected year-old mint candy at the bottom of a bag.
Anyway, shout out to Makin' Magic NPC cast for being a thing that exists. They're my favorite subject matter whenever I want to test where I stand in terms of my brain-to-canvas accuracy, and I'm mostly glad that I locked in and got through four of them this time, instead of stopping at just the flamingo lady.
Makin' Magic was truly the expansion pack of all time. The Sims in general was a phenomenal game. It's odd that there's never been another game in the series after 2013, but maybe it's for the best. Just imagine the bullshit modern EA would've done to it.
Bed/Wed/Behead Greenfinger/Thornwing/Big Ape
(This one is a joke dont take it seriously)
I'll start with the joke one because from here on it's only going to get hoooo boy, and because every joke is only partly a joke and we can still find things to discuss here, and because joke's on you, my headcanon for the longest time has been that at least one head should fly / should've already flown off with how things are set up.
Ideally: Behead all three. The universe will be grateful.
Less ideally: if I have to assign each option to just one, then it's...
Bed Big Ape. I feel like with him I'd run the lowest risk of getting claws/beaks/fangs/talons in my tenderloins. Some of you may be into that. I'm not.
Wed Thornwing. He's already divorced from Kluex, so he shouldn't be too religiously annoying, and he seems like the most manageable of the bunch.
Behead Greenfinger. Really. Just behead him. He's my favorite, but I'm also making the responsible choice of acknowledging that he's got the most levels of potential ominous global-scale threat about him, and everyone's better off with his head off.
But actually: the one who's most likely to get beheaded in the story proper should be the guy whose in-game presence is already that of a detached head. A really big detached head that flies around and shoots rockets and shit.
A small incident after which Ape's ever-present background paranoia went into overdrive, and he insisted on showing up anywhere public only through a holographic projection from the perceived safety of his quarters. This, of course, didn't save him; but it did save Miniknog some effort in their ensuing task of replacing Big Ape with his virtual Minisoft-run copy. After all, a figurehead doesn't actually need to be alive to keep doing its job.
The simplest way to wed together the beta lore, in which Ape is very much a real ape, and the release lore, in which he's but a state construct, is to assume that he used to be alive, but now he isn't. And I'm not pointing fingers at Greenfinger. I still genuinely don't know who did him in.
Hey hope you dont mind but I felt the sudden urge to bombard you with Beta Lore questions so im gonna do it. I' have most of beta lore memorized've read the beta lore a few times over myself so most of these are just theoretical and (hopefully) fun thought experiments as opposed to queries, but im not discounting that im forgetful
I don't mind at all, however! how much patience have you got for me? because if you've got some to spare, then I'll prefer to turn your bombardment into an art plan for myself for this summer and draw even more beta stuff, as well as my magnificent unparalleled combined beta-release bullshit
Starbound and all its related ideas and headcanons have a very vivid visual presence in my mind, and I feel like typing out all my thoughts as an in-one-go wall of text won't do it proper justice
There are flowers that mean 'I love you', there are flowers that mean 'I'm sorry', and then there are flowers that mean 'you're about to have a catastrophically bad time'.
~~~
I can't help but wonder if the characters of the beta lore would've been allowed to leave the confines of codex pages and enter the gameplay proper, had it been decided to proceed with the initial storyline. Which roles would've they assumed in relation to the protagonist? to each other? to the new faces that popped up after the rewrite?
Thing is, with some careful handwork, the legacy and the release versions can actually fit together quite nicely. The hero could have fled under the Protectorate's wing from whatever issues had been plaguing their people, only to land themself right on track to watch Earth get expeditiously Xipe Totecked some months or years down the line.
Greenfinger is curious to see what came of this fiasco – great, I wouldn't put it past him to wriggle into the hero's favor to secure inside scoops on the Protectorate's and Earth's fates. Shouldn't be hard at all, he's a real charming and friendly fellow. Just remember to place the codices in which he apparently puts a hit on his own bestie somewhere closer to the end of the story, just so you can accumulate your own collection of red flags about him before the grand reveal.
[Incarcerus Notes]
[Loose Ends]
[Blog of a Lab Assistant]
Delightful. I do feel sorry for Lax, but let's be real – when you willingly offer your intellectual services to entities that are so dismissive of others' lives that they freely run abhorrent experiments on their own people, it's natural that they'll only value your life as long as your usefulness exceeds the risk you pose.
And shoutout to my man Ambrosio for playing the part of the protagonist for this one. He's a modded race and isn't technically a protector, but who can tell under that cape. Anyone can find themself under that cape if they remember to jump up and press E.
Ah, I'm so glad to see that the character I've invested so much time and effort in has finally received proper interest and recognition from the fandom. Now I can finally wave them a peaceful goodbye and continue my journey to somewhere else because I know they'll be in safe hands...
*shoots a look at the tag*
*the character is confidently being dragged through the shipping AU mental illness hell, kicking and screaming, bumping their head on one traumatic experience after another*
...as I've said, they'll be in safe hands and there's nothing to worry about
You know what. I'm laying my claim on the Starbound Beta AU and taking the story away from here. Who's going to stop me? You? Or maybe you? Greenfinger is basically my original character at this point, and the legacy lore is long abandoned. Squatters' rights baybeee.
I saw this fellow in a dream a few nights ago. He cut a very striking image even through all the dreamy haze, so I've been putting him onto canvas ever since, in case I might need him later. His name was... something with a C, I think. Connor? Conrad? Something much more humble that one would expect.
He was one of the last truly good people in the world, and it showed in his erratic proliferous body. He was also one of the luckiest ones, all things considered. At least he still had his legs.
At some point, for whatever reason, each one of them walked off the face of the Earth, and was never seen again.
~~~
Inspired by that time my TS3 game unrouted little Bella Bachelor, because of course. Who else.
I used to be fascinated by the stories of unexplained disappearances as a child, and I think it still carries over a bit. When looking for characters to pay special attention to, I follow the smell of lingering questions. Where did he go after I'd done what had to be done? Why did they do this to her? Was it intentional? Is it significant to the story?
I'm talking about Viola, of course. I haven't been that interested in Bella for a long time now. She's too well-known of a mystery. She's JFK of The Sims, and everyone's already poked their nose in there – and I prefer to poke my nose into places rarely poked.
However, she's also the prime candidate for when I need to lose a sim in space (that I have lovingly drawn by hand, thank you), so up and away she goes. Goodbye, girl!
No but really, who needs true OCs when there's a whole trinity of abandoned pre-release characters, and together they make for an exceptional can of worms
Like, each one of them is terrifyingly competent at being evil, but at the same time, that meeting minutes entry exists where they're collectively talking shit about why you don't date a hylotl and half their lines had to be censored. A bunch of universal bully buddies where each one would happily throw the other two under a space bus. What a treat!
(Greenfinger is the one who secretly arranges for The Bus incident; Ape receives Miniknog intel prior to the gathering that The Bus is coming and is present as a full HD colored hologram; Thornwing gets hit by The Bus head-on and full-force)
I've been doing a lot of leisurely stuff at a leisurely pace lately. In particular, rediscovering my love for games of cubic nature. There's something undeniably lyrical about putting together all the right things in all the right sequences, until they unite into impressions and feelings. So think of this piece as my poem about how every Minecraft world is, in a way, a poem about its creator, because I know exactly whose world I've been referencing.
germansingergirl
discoholicmusic
baratheonpilled
titsay
snowghoul
gummygunk
