Author Topic: Rebalancing the Faerie Courts  (Read 3284 times)

Offline Jcarlson171

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Rebalancing the Faerie Courts
« on: August 26, 2018, 12:13:31 AM »
Curious if anyone has a thought on how Jim will fix the balance of the Faerie Courts as right now it seems like Summer is on the short end of the stick. Personal belief but I think Harry takes Fix 8 or 9 out of 10 and Molly takes Sarrissa 6 or 7 out of 10. Id say Mab Titiana is a draw and I pick Mother Winter over Mother Summer. My guess is that a new Knight of Summer is about to be chosen with special anti wizard powers, or Titiana might retire and shake up the whole board.

Thoughts?

Offline Avernite

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Re: Rebalancing the Faerie Courts
« Reply #1 on: August 26, 2018, 07:19:38 AM »
Cold Days answered that, to me.

It was never about direct equivalence; it's about Summer being strong enough that Winter's spare power is insufficient to take out Summer. With the Outer Gates heating up and an unexperienced young Lady, Winter is busy enough against the Outsiders that they need a bit of extra apparent power.

Offline wyltok

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Re: Rebalancing the Faerie Courts
« Reply #2 on: August 27, 2018, 04:25:29 PM »
Don't underestimate Sarissa's value: compared to any other alternative,  the odds of Mab being willing to allow her harmed are slim to none. She's as much a hostage as an enemy combatant.
Every time you do something, somebody says: "(gasp!) That has this implication and this implication and that implication!" and you go like: "No, what I really meant was, the curtains were blue."
- Jim Butcher at Space City Con, 2013

Wizard Sibelis

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Re: Rebalancing the Faerie Courts
« Reply #3 on: August 27, 2018, 09:05:18 PM »
Don't underestimate Sarissa's value: compared to any other alternative,  the odds of Mab being willing to allow her harmed are slim to none. She's as much a hostage as an enemy combatant.
I hadn't thought of that until you put it like that, but it reminds me a lot of the old practice of giving your child to your enemy to ensure fealty and such mutual exchanges. Seems more than coincidental to happen to the group that holds esteem the 'old ways'(to humans atl)

Offline Cozarkian

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Re: Rebalancing the Faerie Courts
« Reply #4 on: August 27, 2018, 09:18:50 PM »
There is also the nature of Harry as a balancing factor. Yes, he's probably higher on the power scale than many Knights, but he is far more focused on Winter's role as a gate guardian than on attacking Summer. If he gets corrupted by the mantle and turns cruel, then Summer might need a stronger Knight, but right now Harry isn't interested in doing things that Summer needs to stop.

Wizard Sibelis

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Re: Rebalancing the Faerie Courts
« Reply #5 on: August 27, 2018, 09:41:46 PM »
There is also the nature of Harry as a balancing factor. Yes, he's probably higher on the power scale than many Knights, but he is far more focused on Winter's role as a gate guardian than on attacking Summer. If he gets corrupted by the mantle and turns cruel, then Summer might need a stronger Knight, but right now Harry isn't interested in doing things that Summer needs to stop.
summer doesn't stop Winter, it balances it. Summer needs to balance winter through equal action/reaction

Offline peregrine

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Re: Rebalancing the Faerie Courts
« Reply #6 on: August 27, 2018, 09:46:22 PM »
That's not what the books have said.  For instance, Fix's job is not to kill the enemies of Summer, but rather to keep alive the people Winter wants dead.  Likewise Titania's ultimate job is not to counter Mab, but rather take her out if she goes astray.  Not to go astray the other way or whatever.

Wizard Sibelis

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Re: Rebalancing the Faerie Courts
« Reply #7 on: August 27, 2018, 10:25:42 PM »
That's not what the books have said.
Balance. Like thinking Harry should kill her daughter because he killed Titania's. The 'things the books have said' are things Fix has said', Fix and his fixation on Winter Knight as evil incarnate.
Quote
For instance, Fix's job is not to kill the enemies of Summer, but rather to keep alive the people Winter wants dead.
That not really a provable translation. Notice Fix got no orders to protect Maeve specifically after all.
Quote
  Likewise Titania's ultimate job is not to counter Mab, but rather take her out if she goes astray.  Not to go astray the other way or whatever.
No, it's really to act as a counter balance, hence why any time one acts the other acts in balance, sometimes in unison IN that balance. Titania is capable of taking Mab out to act as a counter balance.... this specifically is in connotation to nuclear deterrence, which is in fact based wholly on the idea of counter check/checkmate. She is literally the counter balance. The Scales that Marcone comments on, THAT is a mechanism for balance.

It's really quite simple though, the courts balance themselves in reality so as to not give the dark inversion of of our reality purchase to act... go read up on the Jewish cabbalistic order of Seraphim, it explains the base mechanics well enough, even how Satan was later replace by his 'wife' and easily meta's into Nemesis the actual Planet that's a dark mirror of ours thought to have brought about major extinctions on our planet. You could easily take the retirement of the original MS to be the original creator, who came down in human form as TWC and became a different role in reality later. This leave MS able to take over the abdication and the mirage to take on a female duplication... though I assume at some point it was male/female dualities, and that should be coming back around in this variation.

Offline Con

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Re: Rebalancing the Faerie Courts
« Reply #8 on: September 04, 2018, 08:38:36 AM »
Keep in mind up until recently the Winter Court was the one out of balance with a tied up Winter Knight, and a Winter Lady who was Nemfected. While Summer had both Lily and Fix. Now admittedly both Mab and Titania are a bit unhinged, but arguably Summer is more prepared what with Sarissa's centuries dealing with Fae.

The Balance between the Courts has been precarious at best over the series. Still don't know their motivations in Proven Guilty.

Still I think Summer is more prepared then people think.

Offline Fcrate

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Re: Rebalancing the Faerie Courts
« Reply #9 on: September 04, 2018, 10:25:22 AM »
There is also the nature of Harry as a balancing factor. Yes, he's probably higher on the power scale than many Knights, but he is far more focused on Winter's role as a gate guardian than on attacking Summer.
Um. Maybe his own Power, but so far I don't think we've seen him do anything that he couldn't have done before becoming a knight. Well, other than physically exceeding his limits, and Butters already theorized that it's all that it appears to be.
Fix wasn't a magic user, and after becoming a Knight, he was nearly a match for Harry, and that with both Harry's power, and the WK upgrade. The only difference was experience.
هل أخذت الغاب مثلي منزلاً دون القصور
فتتبعت السواقي وتسلقت الصخور
هل تحممت بعطره وتنشفت بنور
وشربت الفجر خمراً من كؤوس من أثير

Offline morriswalters

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Re: Rebalancing the Faerie Courts
« Reply #10 on: September 04, 2018, 11:54:59 AM »
That not really a provable translation. Notice Fix got no orders to protect Maeve specifically after all.
Technically, Maeve wasn't people.

JB talks out of both sides of his mouth on this topic.  He has Bob saying that eventually who holds the mantle won't matter, the mantle will shape them to reflect what it is.  On the other hand we are told by both the Queen and Mother Summer that the holder can retain their identity./shrug/

In terms of balance I tend to picture it like a listing ship.  When the Courts are in balance they walk about the boat and fight off foes like the Reds.  With both Lea and the WK out of action, Winter's people are leaning over the rail trying to keep the boat from capsizing.  With the WK and Lea back in action the boat is again level and the players can move on the decks without fear of overturning.  Which makes it payback time.  For instance, putting the smack on Nicodemus for flaunting the Accords or tax collection.