Where to begin

MikeVanPelt · Post by **MikeVanPelt** » Fri Apr 21, 2006 10:19 pm

The JAM wrote: If any society on Earth had a globe in 1492, history would have been rather...much more interesting from that point. Sad thing is that Aristotle (I think) composed a globe, not very accurate, but a globe nonetheless, and no one seemed to be interested in it.

This is a misunderstanding -- popular folklore is that people in Columbus's day thought the world was flat, but that's not true. It was known since at least the Ancient Greeks that the Earth was round; Erastosthenese (I think) measured the diameter pretty accurately.

The dispute was the diameter of the Earth. Columbus had been listening to some crackpot who had botched the measurement, and thought the world was only 6000 miles in diameter. The educated people knew the Earth was 8000 miles in diameter, and that there was no way that the ships of the day could travel the distance. (Atlantic + Americas + the Pacific)

And they were right, Columbus had a hard enough time crossing the Atlantic. If not for the pure dumb luck that there was a continent in the way, he'd have sailed on and never been heard from again.

But if you go where no one had gone before, you may find things no one has found before -- even if you are a crackpot.

Which may be Quentyn's future -- he may find something completely amazing, and completely unrelated to any reason he or anyone else has for looking beyond the mist wall.

Madmoonie · Post by **Madmoonie** » Fri Apr 21, 2006 10:31 pm

MikeVanPelt wrote:This is a misunderstanding -- popular folklore is that people in Columbus's day thought the world was flat, but that's not true. It was known since at least the Ancient Greeks that the Earth was round; Erastosthenese (I think) measured the diameter pretty accurately.

The dispute was the diameter of the Earth. Columbus had been listening to some crackpot who had botched the measurement, and thought the world was only 6000 miles in diameter. The educated people knew the Earth was 8000 miles in diameter, and that there was no way that the ships of the day could travel the distance. (Atlantic + Americas + the Pacific)

And they were right, Columbus had a hard enough time crossing the Atlantic. If not for the pure dumb luck that there was a continent in the way, he'd have sailed on and never been heard from again.

Very true. Basically, Columbus did not think that the Western continent existed.

Catherine_Puce · Post by **Catherine_Puce** » Sat Apr 22, 2006 12:48 am

First, I will recite a quote: " In the realm of blind the the one-eyeds are kings." Humans can't do magic so hire a black ribbon is like hire a powerful magician for them. He can probably do quest for the humans. Remember that humans could be less advanced that we thinking and that barterning was popular even during the Renaissance. I doubt that all human will negociate with coins.

About the first panel, I really wish that someone draw it. Knowing how much reality can be twisted the result will be probably look like the first drawing of our favorite tea rag.

Il n'y a rien de mal à embellir une histoire.

S.P.P.

BlasTech · Post by **BlasTech** » Sat Apr 22, 2006 3:42 am

yay, Rillcreek to the rescueeee!

Tom Mazanec · Post by **Tom Mazanec** » Sat Apr 22, 2006 10:09 am

The globe looks a little like it is centered on the Atlantic. Airth almost has to at least resemble Earth...it has Jesus, which implies a Holy Land, which implies a Middle East...

The JAM · Post by **The JAM** » Sat Apr 22, 2006 4:23 pm

I stand corrected. Sorry about that.

StrangeWulf13 · Post by **StrangeWulf13** » Sat Apr 22, 2006 7:13 pm

Catherine_Puce wrote:First, I will recite a quote: " In the realm of blind the the one-eyeds are kings." Humans can't do magic so hire a black ribbon is like hire a powerful magician for them. He can probably do quest for the humans.

Yeah, there's a problem with that... namely, that the humans are not the best judges when it comes to magical things.

Quentyn could, if he were a little more evil, convince a single human village out in the boondocks that he was a great and powerful demon or god, or at least a sorcerer. Just like the fakirs back in the old days when they were like gypsies.

See, even if he tries to tell them different, the humans might see Quentyn doing magic and think he's incredibly powerful.

Then insist he go and fight the evil human sorcerer up the mountain, who's the equivilent of a walking WMD.

With Quentyn being something along the lines of a BB gun or .22 rifle.

Hope you like your heroes well done...

Squeaky Bunny · Post by **Squeaky Bunny** » Sat Apr 22, 2006 7:58 pm

BlasTech wrote:yay, Rillcreek to the rescueeee!

Maybe he's gotten a foldbox like the ones in Heinlein's "Glory Road"?

(Another great story about a quest to recover an artifact)

Bengaley · Post by **Bengaley** » Sat Apr 22, 2006 10:45 pm

Tom Mazanec wrote:The globe looks a little like it is centered on the Atlantic. Airth almost has to at least resemble Earth...it has Jesus, which implies a Holy Land, which implies a Middle East...

Since when does Airth have Jesus? I know it has a church that seems to borrow alot from the Christian faiths, but any monotheistic religion done by RH will have that =D

And Jam? About the globe thing? I am VERY disappointed in you. When I saw that, I was hoping that someone would correct it, and when I saw that you had posted, I thought - Oh, joy! The JAM will correct them!

You made me cry. ;_;

Tom Mazanec · Post by **Tom Mazanec** » Sun Apr 23, 2006 2:35 am

Yeshu is the correct pronounciation of Jesus.

TMLutas · Post by **TMLutas** » Sun Apr 23, 2006 9:45 am

Tom Mazanec wrote:Yeshu is the correct pronounciation of Jesus.

More like that's as close as you're going to get in english. As anybody who's visited a synagogue can tell you, there are sounds the human mouth, throat, and lungs can produce that has no real way to written properly in english. You can just get in the same neighborhood.

Bengaley · Post by **Bengaley** » Sun Apr 23, 2006 11:16 am

I stand corrected, then. *shrug*