#data pearl

[dravikso]

Mostly out of curiosity, what's your preferred theory on how reincarnation works in Rain World?

I personally lean towards the first two options I listed because they break the least other things (like evolution) but i've included revival as well since I've seen it a fair bit. I'm not aware of any other theories so I'm sorry if i've missed some obvious ones out! If a lot of people write 'other' I'll redo the poll.

1. Timeline Fracture: after a creature dies it wakes up at some point before it died in a new timeline. It remains the same individual as it was before. The creature stays dead in the original timeline. This is the most literal interpretation of the games mechanics combined with lore.

2. Classic Reincarnation: after a creature dies it is born in a new body of the same or a different species in the same timeline. This theory is more in line with the spiritual inspirations behind the game's lore.

3. Revival: After a creature dies, it wakes up again as the same individual in the same timeline at a different point in time and/or a different place.

Preferred theory? Read above for detailed descriptions

Timeline Fracture

Classic reincarnation

Revival

Other (reblog/comment if able)

Can't choose/like multiple options equally

Voting ended onDec 6, 2023

[dravikso]

Iterator puppet design trends headcanons

[Image ID: A drawing with Looks to the Moon standing on the left and Five Pebbles on the right; LTTM is labelled as an early generation iterator and Five Pebbles as a late generation iterator. Neither are wearing clothes. The text to the left of LTTM describing early generation iterators reads: "More realistically proportioned, but still doll-like. Tend to be taller. Often have static (or limited motion), single antennae pairs. Feet privileges." The text to the right of FP describing late generation iterators reads: "Exaggarated, unrealistic proportions, usually with proportionally longer lower arms and legs when compared to their upper counterparts. Tend to be shorter; about the height of an adult slugcat (not including antennae). Often have articulated, double antennae pairs. Tend to have exposed mechanical parts, particularly at the neck. Feet privileges: revoked." End Description.]

I finally got around to finishing that headcanon sketch of what I imagine the differences between Early and Late gen iterators are.

This is obviously not a set rule for every iterator even within the headcanon, there's a lot of variability intra-generationally and it just happens to be more noticeable inter-generationally given the sheer amount of gradual change over a long time involved. A bit like fashion, a lot of iterator puppets were built in line with the stylistic trends at the time but didn't always stick to them.

I like to imagine that mid-generation iterators in particular tended to have a huge amount of variability; late gen iterators I feel came at the point where there was growing disillusionment with the whole iterator concept and tend to be more uniform in design, and early gen iterators came a bit too early for pushing the envelope on designs.

Anyways I'll probably clean these up and whack some clothing on them and put them into my general canon iterator design work at some point, especially now that I have a better grip on how I want to draw iterators from different generations. Speaking of, Is there in game dialogue suggesting around when SRS, NSH, and GW are from? Because I don't. Remember.

[dravikso]

Image ID: A speculative monochrome halfbody sketch of an Ancient facing right, holding up their left arm while the right arm depicts the upper arm only. The sketch generally outlines musculature as well as notable features, such as the thick tubelike hair. It is humanoid in appearance, however having only three fingers and a slightly longer snout with a mouth set lower than in typical humans. The nose and mouth are catlike with a cleft lip. End ID

Uuuuah Ancient doodle, I was messing around trying to get something that looks both unique and suitably un-human like because humanlike aliens are my number one gripe with sci fi (but with proportions similar enough that like, the design philosophy of their iterators actually makes sense) and uh. Yeah I couldn't think of anything that didn't look a) weird or b) that didn't diverge too much from the canon proportions.

Anyways I thought this doodle looked cool so. Posting it

And remedying the 'too human' thing by telling myself that ancients almost certainly modified the HECK out of themselves so most probably didn't even look like they belonged to the same species a lot of the time, unified only by cultural customs and garbs

[dravikso]

Is anyone else mildly bothered that adult slugcats are, well, called slugcats but slugpups aren't called slugkits

or is that just me

[dravikso]

Why Five Pebbles is called Five Pebbles (RW Theory)

Uhhhhh it's been a very hot second since I last posted something here. So here's this little theory I wrote up like back in September on Five Pebbles' name (me when I start thinking about a weird niche thing in a video game that probably doesn't matter). Literally copy-pasted from where I originally wrote it, but enjoy anyways lol (and yes big rain world spoilers for the people following me for hk)

First things first, Five Pebbles' name feels like a bit of an outlier among others in being just a number and an object. There's Seven Red Suns, sure, but unless I'm missing any all of the other names in the game tend towards an implication of personality or action (and of course we don't really know the reasoning for their names either, but I am only focusing on Pebbles here). Something that I've found interesting for a bit is how oddly similar the name feels to the name of "Six Grains of Gravel, Mountains Abound" (who is hanging out on top of FP lol; and we know echoes are tied to places important to them).

In a brief (relevant) tangent, this name alludes the creation or achievement of something larger from smaller constituent parts. You could make many arguments about the specific ancient society implications initially meant by giving this name but that's not super important (I'll get to it sjjs). The name itself alludes to aspiration.

We know that echoes were often the result of ancients being tethered to the world often from arrogance or ego, these qualities often linked to those in positions of power. So. The thought that crossed my mind was: what if this guy named Five Pebbles in a manner which plays into meaning their own name and thus the wider goal of what ancients were trying to achieve? Essentially a metaphor. In this case the gravel would be the iterators and the solution to the great problem their mountain.

Given SGoG,MA's assumed power, the name Five Pebbles could've been chosen specifically to allude to being part of this mountain, five pebbles to the collective effort of all the iterators' purported final hurrah. You could probably also make an argument about a plural being chosen in this case to suggest that this specific iterator would contribute more, but that's more of a side-thought. And of course, using the message of your name to inform the name of a great project such as an iterator is certainly a show of ego lol