Discussion: Pedias, Great People, Tech Quotes, etc.

[cfkane]

Happy Birthday!

 

[Moogi]

Thank you! Yesterday, I had a late birthday party, in which I went to a theatre to see a production of Christopher Marlowe's Doctor Faustus.

Which makes me think that we should include Faust in the mod somewhere. Perhaps as yet another Great Person, or even as a hero (well, anti-hero, at any rate). The story of the deal with the devil is a classic, and I think we ought to reference it, at least a little. Maybe we can add a line or two to the German pedia to mention Faustus' exploits- the playhouse I attended refers to the Holy Roman Emperor encountered in the play as Charles V, so perhaps we can use that as a reference. Even if we don't add this to the pedia, I think I'll work it into the next timeline update.

Some further observations, for future pedias:

I got a copy of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies from my girlfriend for my birthday. I think it would be hilarious to include a reference to a zombie outbreak in England during that time period for the mod. We don't have to include the ninja aspects of the book, but if we did, we could tie it into the Adventures of Dr McNinja. I think online material, such as webcomics, constitute pretty much the only medium not represented in this mod, so I think we should work in a few references.

Speaking of webcomics, I'd recommend adding references to Gunnerkrigg Court. It's my favourite non-comedy webcomic, and I think the Court would make for an awesome Wonder.

Oh, and if we're going to add online characters, we really need Jenny Everywhere. Since the character supposedly exists in every reality, it makes sense that she'd live in the one we're creating.

I also read the entirety of the third volume of Atomic Robo last night, and it involves several things that I think should be added to the Yuggoth pedia, once it gets written. The third volume of the comic involves a decades-long battle with the 'Shadow from Beyond Time'- a Great Old One-like alien trying to devour the Earth. Perhaps we could link it to one of Lovecraft's existing creations? But that's not all. The backstory states that in 1908, Nikola Tesla, Charles Fort, and H.P. Lovecraft used a prototype energy weapon to defeat the Shadow from Beyond Time over Tunguska in Siberia- causing the Tunguska Event. Interestingly, Fort mentioned that they also worked in a League of Extraordinary Gentlemen-like organization along with Annie Oakley, Harry Houdini, and others. Anyway, the alien, rather than being destroyed, took refuge inside Lovecraft's mind, inspiring his writing later in life. The beast breaks free from his mind in 1926, but is defeated by Atomic Robo (who really needs to be a Hero unit). It then re-appears in 1957, 1971, and 2009, fighting Robo each time.

Should we add references to the Percy Jackson books to the Greek pedia? I haven't read them, but I saw the movie (I broke my usual rule of not watching the movie until after I've read the book because the theater wasn't showing Alice in Wonderland, and I wanted to treat myself to a movie). I liked what I saw, though I am told that the book is very different, but I'd be interested to see how we can work these in.

Finally, I've been thinking about the Polynesian civ I suggested in the Civs and Leaders thread. While if it is added to the mod, it won't be for a while, I thought I'd mention some of the things we'd have to add to continuity if we went with my leader choices.

The first leader I suggested was a character named Mau from Terry Pratchett's novel Nation. Mau is a boy of about thirteen who becomes the only survivor of his tribe after a tsunami during the 1870s. By the end of the book, he has managed to rebuild a small civilization with survivors from other islands, and is able to treat with the British Empire diplomatically as a sovereign nation. The tricky part comes into the fact that, over the course of the book, a 'Russian influenza' epidemic sweeps through Europe, killing nearly all of the British Royal Family, resulting in an obscure aristocrat (who was about 137th in line for the throne) becoming king. We could actually use this to our advantage- the new king can be the first Wyndham monarch (the Royal Family as depicted in the already-referenced film King Ralph), since we can assume that Victoria was killed by the epidemic.

The second leader I suggested was Jacob, a character from Lost. I'd like to explain the character in detail, but the show hasn't been entirely forthcoming with that information as of yet. If we add Polynesia and Jacob to the mod, wait until after the current season of the show concludes before starting the pedia. Actually, if you like the idea of adding Jacob, I volunteer to write his pedia entry myself once the season finishes. I've already got a few (ambiguously canon) Lost references in the timeline, but I'd love to see my favourite show added to continuity.

Actually, JJ Abrams once stated that he thinks that all of his shows and films take place in the same universe. Since Abrams directed the most recent Star Trek film, this does imply that Lost could fit into our little 'verse.

 

[Dibukk]

Do you like exploding tennisballs? Is it true that you like giant rubber bands? Are you fond of catapults hurling anvils at running birds? If you say yes, then you'll enjoy the following pedia.

Spoiler :

A.C.M.E.

A.C.M.E. (alternatively spelled Acme or ACME) is probably one of the most unusual companies of all time. It was founded in 1886 in Minneapolis by the businessman and notorious prankster Marvin Acme. While at first it seems obvious that the company is named after its founder, in fact Marvin Acme renamed himself Acme after its foundation adopting his company's name. Prior to this his name was Marvin Sears. In fact, Acme is both a Greek word meaning peak, zenith or prime and an acronym meaning either "American Company Making Everything" or, which is the generally accepted version, "A Company that Makes Everything" - a name that perfectly resembles the company's policy.

A.C.M.E. was a rather inconspicuous but more or less successful mail-order business until Marvin Acme decided to move its seat from Minneapolis to Fairfield, New York State, in 1893. This would let Acme slide more and more into public attention as its range of goods slowly began to deviate from normality. The establishment of the ACME subdivision "Acme Jewelery Co." in 1922 and the invention of "Acme Sodium Bicarbonate" in 1936 were major successes and would be the forerunners of the wide and unusual range of goods that would soon be characteristic for A.C.M.E.

In the following years the company's incomes skyrocketed. Acme turned into a conglomerate which produced everything and anything imaginable, no matter how elaborate or extravagant. The label A.C.M.E. represented a tremendous variety of outlandish and downright dangerous products that, some say, tend to fail catastrophically at the worst possible times. Goods such as the ACME American Wrought Anvil, the ACME Extra Strong Blackpowder, the ACME Jumbo Disguise Kit, the ACME Electrical Chair and the ACME "Learn How To Box" manual are just some of the company's major successes. But while some of their products left much to be desired, Acme delivery service, on the other hand, were second to none; Many customers praised (or, in some cases, cursed) Acme's ability to deliver the requested products in mere seconds after dropping the order into a mailbox or entering it on a website. Only a heartbeat and the customer had the (usually dangerous) product in his hands - or on top of him, as it sometimes happened with the delivery of anvils.

With the markets exploding, Acme introduced several subdivisions. Most importantly, there was the semi-independent Ajax Corporation: founded in 1937, Ajax's range of goods was more down-to-earth in nature, such as paint, bubblegum, and light bulbs, with its most successful departments being Ajax Ghost Exterminators, Ajax Locksmiths, Ajax Lost and Found and Ajax Broadcasting Company. Other subdivisions that were closer to A.C.M.E. itself - both regarding its management and its unusual policy - included ACME Labs, ACME Detective Agency, the already mentioned ACME Jewelery Co, the V.I.L.E. spy network, ACME Rocket-Powered Products, Inc. and ACME Cola, a knock-off version of the much more popular Buzz Cola.

In the 1930s and '40s Marvin Acme used his quickly growing wealth to support the film studios of Vinewood by funding Toontown - a settlement housing the Toons, a new generation of surreally comic-like looking anthropomorphic creatures working as actors. With its connection to Toontown A.C.M.E. became a major contractor for many Toons, both in the filming business and in private life. Acme's most important Toon customers include Woody Woodpecker, Elmer J. "Egghead" Fudd, Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Sylvester J. Pussycat, Speedy Gonzales, Roger Rabbit and, by far ACME's best customer, Wile E. Coyote. Alas, Toontown would not only be a passion of the prank-loving Marvin Acme it would also be his death. In 1947 he was murdered by the super-villain Judge Doom.

Following Acme's death, the company was taken over by an ominous and somewhat villainous businessman known only as Mr. Chairman or The Chief. Under The Chief A.C.M.E. influence spread even more turning it more and more into a major player in virtually every branch of economy. In the 1950s the first ACME Catalog appeared, staring the slogan "Redefining pain for over 60 years!"

In 1974 ACME finished the construction of the ACME Tower just outside Fairfield, making it not only the highest building in the USA but also the company's new headquarter. In the following decades a company-controlled city called Acme Acres grew around ACME Tower housing many hundreds of ACME employees - both human and Toon. But Acme would soon exceed the zenith of its success: inspired by the "Coyote vs. Acme" case of 1990, a wave of accusations hit A.C.M.E. damaging the company while the harsh international competition was no advantage, either. In a final attempt to defend its place as the world's leading expert on, well, anything A.C.M.E. went public - but it was too late. The financial crisis of 2008 would deal the deathblow to the crumbling Acme Corporation which would be divided among its rivals. Most importantly, the CEO of BMW, Michel Beloit, bought up large parts of his former competitor and used it as a basis to form the industry tycoon and the next century's arguably most successful company, Saeder-Krupp, in 2010. However, Acme wasn't extinct: a few hundred people from Acme Acres used their company's remaining resources to create the stellar colony of Acmetropolis.

And thus A.C.M.E. will always be remembered as the world's number one provider of exclusive goods such as trebuchets, oversized anvils, giant rubber bands and explosive tennis balls - because Acme indeed is a company that makes just about everything.

Spoiler :

* Looney Tunes - ACME, Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd, Daffy Duck, Sylvester J. Pussycat, Speedy Gonzales
* Who Framed Roger Rabbit - Marvin Acme, Roger Rabbit, Judge Doom
* Beep, Beep - Fairfield, ACME Rocket-Powered Products, Inc.
* Grandma's Boy - Acme Jewellery Co.
* Follow the Fleet - Acme Sodium Bicarbonate
* World of Warcraft - ACME Jumbo Disguise Kit
* South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut - ACME Electrical Chair
* Egghead - ACME "Learn How To Box" manual
* Disney universe - Ajax Corporation
* Pinky and the Brain - ACME Labs
* Carmen Sandiego - ACME Detective Agency, The Chief, V.I.L.E.
* The Simpsons - Buzz Cola
* GTA: San Andreas - Vinewood
* The Woody Woodpecker Show
* The Road Runner Show - Wile E. Coyote
* Looney Tunes: Back in Action - Mr. Chairman
* The ACME Catalog
* Tiny Toon Adventures - Acme Acres
* Legal humor - "Coyote vs. Acme" case
* Shadowrun - Saeder-Krupp
* Loonatics Unleashed - Acmetropolis

Plus, I've got another Pedia Collection for you. Surprise! By the way my thanks go to johnny for doing the last one. Great job! Now, here is the changelog:

Spoiler :

New pedias: Superman, Cervantes de León, T'Challa, Arthur Curry, Huitzilopochtli, ACME

Updated pedias already posted in the forum: Rome, Vikings (both by Johnny), America

Changes:
* Big Brother: unified form of writing IngSoc (instead of sometimes Ingsoc and sometimes IngSoc)
* Scudder: added slight reference to Tracy Chapman's song Across the Lines to the Blackland revolt
* Hynkel: mentioning Meccania and its "inspiration" for Hynkel

* Cervantes de León: it's León, not Leon - don't forget the diacritic
* Cyberdyne: fixed the dates of the Terminator II part, added The Matrix

* America: the UCAS (from Shadowrun) are now fully merged with Gilead, finally cleared out the Watchmen reference, using the connection between the Strangelove Incident and the return of Golovko (Metal Gear) drawn by Moogi
* China: added reference to the ancient Hyborian name of China - Khitai
* France: added reference to the French microstate Groland
* Japan: as pointed out, Kenji Nobunaga a nonsense real name - thus he is renamed Oda Kenji
* Zulu: rewrote section regarding Zamunda and the Joffers

View attachment updatedpedias.txt

By the way, parts of ACME are based on the real-word company Sears that is related to ACME.

Now, there are two other things. First of all, there is the famous quotation "Heinrich, you disgust me!" (might be translated differently, though) from Goethe's Faust, so would you mind calling the Great Scientist Johann Heinrich Faust? Yep, I'm just nitpicking, but it's a very famous expression - at least in the German area.
Secondly, I think I've got a nice quote from the excellent movie Lord of War for the Assembly Line:
"There are over 550 million firearms in worldwide circulation. That's one firearm for every twelve people on the planet. The only question is: How do we arm the other eleven?" - Yuri Orlov

EDIT: There was a problem with uploading the file and thus it was not properly displayed. Now everything should be fine.

 

[cfkane]

Fun! Two things though. First, I'm not sure the chronology between Judge Doom and Dr. Doom works. If Judge was active in the 40's, how could he emulate Dr. Doom, who first became active in the 60's

Also, do you know Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? I believe the detective agency that tracks her down was also called ACME.

 

[Dibukk]

Fun! Two things though. First, I'm not sure the chronology between Judge Doom and Dr. Doom works. If Judge was active in the 40's, how could he emulate Dr. Doom, who first became active in the 60's

Oops, my bad.

Also, do you know Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? I believe the detective agency that tracks her down was also called ACME.

Well, I don't know it myself, but thanks to the allmighty goddess of wisdom, Saint Wikipedia, the ACME Detective Agency is already listed with the other ACME departments and is ment to represent Carmen Sandiego.

 

[johnny139]

Ha, cute. I've always loved cartoons and, thus, have been thinking a lot about them in Fictionalziation. Cats Don't Dance and Tiny Toon Adventures being two aspects I'd like to see played up, but that'll wait until Toon Town or what have you.

Also, if my lack of updates haven't been indicative enough, VERY busy lately, and on top of that, research is tough for Transylvania. I can see why Dibukk was drowning in vampires - there's a LOT of stuff out there, and it's hard to tell which are the "core" stories and which are secondary. I think I might go with a Dracula bio first, and use that as a skeleton.

 

[Dibukk]

Also, if my lack of updates haven't been indicative enough, VERY busy lately, and on top of that, research is tough for Transylvania. I can see why Dibukk was drowning in vampires - there's a LOT of stuff out there, and it's hard to tell which are the "core" stories and which are secondary. I think I might go with a Dracula bio first, and use that as a skeleton.

Beginning with the Dracula bio sounds like a plan. Personally, I was going to write a pedia treating vampires in general and afterwards go into detail with Dracula, Transylvania and Nosferatu. Perhaps this overly general approach was the reason I failed?
If you want, I can translate and send you some of my notes and ideas. For instance, I used the 2004 movie Van Helsing as a basis on the Van Helsing clan vs. Dracula war (the film takes place in 1887, ten years before Bram Stoker's novel and I think the movie's Gabriel van Helsing might be the elder brother of Abraham van Helsing). Plus, the film links Dracula and Victor Frankenstein and in the movie Dracula calls himself Vladislaus and his dates of birth and, well, "death" are given with 1422 and 1462. Note that the historial Vlad Draculea lived 1431-1476.

Now something differently: I totally forgot to comment Moogi's rather long (that's why I'm not gonna quote it) comment from some days ago.

Don't worry, Faust is already added as a Great Scientists and mentioned in the German pedia. I don't know if Marlowe's Doctor Faustus is similar to the versions I know but I'm going with the traditional Faust folklore combined with his possibly best known incarnation: Goethe's Faust.

Heh, modern-day England is already cursed with several pandemics - both zombie and normal - so Pride and Prejudice and Zombies might be weaved into the Rage virus part from 28 Days Later.

I agree that webcomics would be a nice addition to the mod but there are so many that it's hard to say which are relevant. Jenny Everywhere sounds fine to me, though.

I am far from familiar with any of Lovecrafts works (a terrible sin, I know) but I suppose Atomic Robo's Shadow from Beyond Time would work well as a Yuggoth deity. I think we could weave a connection between the Shadow's death (=the Tunguska Incident) and the creation of the Chimera virus. Perhaps the Chimera are not an alien mutation pandemic but a virus transforming humans into Yuggoth-like creatures?

Percy Jackson...well I already considered adding a final sentence to the Greek pedia the entire Greek history following Roman occupation (similar to the very last sentences of the Eyptian pedia), so why not?

As a great fan of Polynesia I'd be glad to add it to the game! Mau seems like a perfect choice and if Polynesia is added we just have to add him, too!
Personally, I'm no fan of Los but if it fits into the continuity, why not? However, I'm a bit uncertain about Jacob. I mean, he doesn't really rule anything apart from a rather desolated island, doesn't he?
Furthermore, Polynesian myth is far to rich to be left out and we can't add a Polynesian civ without a mythological Polynesian ruler.
Anyway, IMO we should finish the civs we got so far befor we add new ones.

By the way, I'm considering Mahmoud Daryaei as my next project. He will certainly be based on Iran's current Ayatollah, Ali Khamenei. I'm going to add references to Executive Orders (that one was obvious), Qumar, the Baji terrorists, an Iranian superhero team whose name I can't remember right now, Khaled Al-Asad and his ties to the Global Liberation Army, Iraqi resistance in the form of Ra's al Ghul and Abu Abdullah al-Rashid al-Baghdadi, Tintin characters Bab El Ehr and Mohammed ben Kalish Ezab of Khemed and perhaps to Shadowrun's Great Djihad leader Sayid Jazrir. Any other suggestions?

 

[Moogi]

Beginning with the Dracula bio sounds like a plan. Personally, I was going to write a pedia treating vampires in general and afterwards go into detail with Dracula, Transylvania and Nosferatu. Perhaps this overly general approach was the reason I failed?
If you want, I can translate and send you some of my notes and ideas. For instance, I used the 2004 movie Van Helsing as a basis on the Van Helsing clan vs. Dracula war (the film takes place in 1887, ten years before Bram Stoker's novel and I think the movie's Gabriel van Helsing might be the elder brother of Abraham van Helsing). Plus, the film links Dracula and Victor Frankenstein and in the movie Dracula calls himself Vladislaus and his dates of birth and, well, "death" are given with 1422 and 1462. Note that the historial Vlad Draculea lived 1431-1476.

Don't worry, Faust is already added as a Great Scientists and mentioned in the German pedia. I don't know if Marlowe's Doctor Faustus is similar to the versions I know but I'm going with the traditional Faust folklore combined with his possibly best known incarnation: Goethe's Faust.

Heh, modern-day England is already cursed with several pandemics - both zombie and normal - so Pride and Prejudice and Zombies might be weaved into the Rage virus part from 28 Days Later.

I agree that webcomics would be a nice addition to the mod but there are so many that it's hard to say which are relevant. Jenny Everywhere sounds fine to me, though.

I am far from familiar with any of Lovecrafts works (a terrible sin, I know) but I suppose Atomic Robo's Shadow from Beyond Time would work well as a Yuggoth deity. I think we could weave a connection between the Shadow's death (=the Tunguska Incident) and the creation of the Chimera virus. Perhaps the Chimera are not an alien mutation pandemic but a virus transforming humans into Yuggoth-like creatures?

As a great fan of Polynesia I'd be glad to add it to the game! Mau seems like a perfect choice and if Polynesia is added we just have to add him, too!
Personally, I'm no fan of Los but if it fits into the continuity, why not? However, I'm a bit uncertain about Jacob. I mean, he doesn't really rule anything apart from a rather desolated island, doesn't he?
Furthermore, Polynesian myth is far to rich to be left out and we can't add a Polynesian civ without a mythological Polynesian ruler.
Anyway, IMO we should finish the civs we got so far befor we add new ones.

I like your vampire ideas. I was recently on a Dracula kick, so I was thinking of suggesting incorporating Van Helsing anyway. Speaking of which, when we go into Dracula's 'soul-clones', we should reference the Dracula from Buffy and also Elizabeth Kostova's novel The Historian (For the latter, we can have a soul-clone who retreats into seclusion and starts collecting books. That was actually the first book about 'Dracula' that I ever read, and I still like it a lot for being a more subtle take on vampires.).

I'm actually not familiar with Goethe at all (which is unfortunate, given my love of all things literary), so I can't say how much his take differs from Marlowe's.

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies takes place in the early 1800s, not the present. Still, I think it would be funny to place a zombie uprising at that time period.

If we're going to do webcomics, I think at the very least we should do Gunnerkrigg Court- it has an interesting take on mythology and the 'magic vs science' debate which make it a good fit for the world we're making.

I'm not hugely knowledgeable about Lovecraft either, gaining my information through pastiches and other osmoses. But I think the Shadow From Beyond Time works pretty well as a Yuggoth beastie. And I LOVE the idea of connecting the Shadow with the Chimera. I was iffy about including Resistance into continuity before, since it kind of messed up the early Cold War, but now that we can link it to Cthulhu and Atomic Robo, I feel better about it. Robo makes everything better!

The Polynesia idea wasn't intended to be worked on immediately, but just as a thought for future versions of the mod. But I think, if we do it, that Jacob still works. In the show, there are several implications that Jacob's group controls a lot of resources off of the Island. In any case, I just desperately want references to my favourite show put in the mod. I know that's selfish and petty of me, by the way. I do agree, though, that if we do eventually add Polynesia, we'll need a mythical figure as well.

I don't know anything about modern Iran, in fiction or otherwise, so I don't think I can help with this one.

EDIT: For johnny, I hate to add another thing for you to research, but I recently purchased a book called Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (by the author of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies), which is a fictionalized biography of Lincoln- except he also fights vampires. I haven't gotten a chance to read it yet, so I can't give any input on what actually happens in the book, but it might be fun to put in a bit about vampires during the American Civil War. Just a thought.

Speaking of vampires, I watched Nosferatu the other night. It was... kind of a let-down. I know it was made in the '20s, but I didn't think the film aged very well. Now, The Cabinet of Dr Caligari, on the other hand, now there's a timeless classic.

 

[johnny139]

Blah, blah!

Spoiler :

COUNT VLAD TEPES DRACULA (1062 – 1999)
King of the Night, Prince of Darkness, Lord of the Vampires, Son of the Devil

For centuries, mankind has feared the name “Dracula.” Perhaps the greatest vampire of all time, Vlad Tepes Dracula – simply one name among many – has existed for over a millennium, terrorizing mortal men. It is possible, even likely, that he will continue to do so for centuries more.

The first recorded mention of the name Vlad Dracula is from the early 1100s, a name taken by the alchemist Mathias Cronqvist. Born in 1062 somewhere in northern Transylvania, he was a deeply religious man, fighting in the name of God alongside Baron Leon Belmont. A brilliant tactician, he spent much of his life on the battlefield. However, in 1093, he returned to find his wife, Elisabetha, had died. Not long after Sara Trantoul, Belmont’s fiancé, was kidnapped by the vampire Walter Bernhard. The two set forth to slay Bernhard, and after a perilous journey, did. However, Trantoul was infected with the vampire’s curse – to avoid her fate, she choose death. Cronqvist disappeared into the night, and Belmont chose to spend his life hunting vampires.

However, before doing so, it was revealed Cronqvist was the origin of the entire plot. Forsaking God and wielding the Crimson Stone, he required the soul of a vampire to become one himself. Before vanishing, he asked Belmont to join him. The baron refused, and his family was cursed to “forever hunt the night.” Having taken Bernhard’s soul, Cronqvist became a vampire himself, and left this land, eventually taking the name Dracula.

For the next few centuries, Dracula, a skilled alchemist, looked for ways to extend his life indefinitely. Eventually, he found one – after death, his soul would live on, and could be born again into a younger body. On average, every century he would inhabit a new form, and again reclaim his manor, the great Castlevania in the region of Wallachia. Castlevania, originally Bernhard’s castle, is central to Dracula – it is his homeland, and though it can be summoned to remain alongside him, the vampire cannot survive far from it. During one of these periods, in the late 14th Century, he wed a girl by the name of Lisa Farenheights, and the two produced a single child – Adrian Farenheights Tepes, later known as Alucard.

During an inquisition in 1431, Lisa was executed as a witch. For the second time, Dracula’s wife had been killed, once by God, and once by man. One could call this his birthday, for it was then he found his true purpose. Yet again forsaking both, he declared war on humanity, which would continue as long as the vampire still lived. The vampire grew in power slowly, taking the name Vlad Tepes and conquering most of Transylvania. Not long after, he made alliances with forces such as Death and the Devil himself. Repelling Turkish invasions and slaughtering all those who disobeyed him, he was renowned as a cruel ruler, “Vlad the Impaler.”

It was in 1476 that the first battle would occur. Vlad Tepes “died,” and Dracula publicly came forth as a vampire. Slaughtering his own people, the public began to seek a champion. Trevor Belmont – descendent of Leon Belmont and an exile from the region – rose to the challenge. Along with a group of allies, such as the rebellious Alucard, he was able to slay Dracula for the first time in history. Exactly century later, Dracula would rise again, only to be defeated by Christopher Belmont. Fifteen years after that, in 1591, he would attempt to return in the body of Soleiyu Belmont, Christopher’s son, only to be slain yet again. The most famous battle would be one century after that, in 1691, when Simon Belmont arrived to stop Dracula. Simon would continue to battle Dracula, for in 1698 the vampire’s curse was sapping Transylvania of its resources. Gathering the various body parts of Dracula and burning them, Simon was able to slay the vampire permanently – or so he thought – and free the land of its curse.

Similar resurrections would occur multiple times throughout the next two centuries, always premature and always unsuccessful. Dracula’s great power was in high demand, and a cult worshipping the vampire arose, gaining great influence in Transylvania. Over time, some groups would come to see Dracula as a god-king, beyond the bounds of life and death. His legend began to grow in some regions, stretching as far as Africa, bringing many (including the king now known as Blacula) to seek his favor. Despite this, the growth of vampire slaying groups such as the Order of Ecclesia, along with the continued interference of the Belmont Clan, forced Dracula to flee his homeland after one botched revival in the late 1800s.

Weak, but still living, Dracula instead chose to obtain strength from behind the scenes, funding scientists such as Victor Frankenstein to gain new minions and an even greater army. In 1887, this plan collapsed, and Dracula was nearly killed by the vampire hunter Gabriel van Helsing – the first of many run-ins with this particular clan. Narrowly escaping, he fled to London, England, he slowly grew in strength, and in 1897 felt powerful enough to resume his war - his plan was to absorb Queen Victoria into his family, become prince consort, and thus, rule over Britain and eventually the world.

As often is the case, Dracula’s weakness was women. Mina Harker and Lucy Westenra were his primary targets, and, in part, it was Lucy’s transformation into a vampire that resulted in suspicions of the count’s true nature. Abraham van Helsing, Jonathan Harker, and Quincy Morris (tangentially related to the Belmont Clan) destroyed Dracula’s link to Castlevania – crates of soil – eventually chasing him to Transylvania and slaying him. However, Morris was killed in battle; his son would go on to battle Dracula yet again in 1917, revived by Elizabeth Bartley, better known as the Countess Elizabeth Báthory.

Báthory is considered both the cousin and niece of Dracula, and possibly a lover as well. It is uncertain, but during his many revivals, it seems Dracula took many concubines and wives, known collectively as the “Brides of Dracula.” His relationship with them is likely incestuous in nature, leading to the conclusion that figures such as Báthory would be of multiple relationships to the vampire. Báthory seems to be primary among them, though, taking hold of Transylvania and having an involvement in the assassination of Alexander Teasdale at the outbreak of World War I. She lived on for thousands of years – much longer than Dracula himself.

Premature revivals of Dracula would occur again in 1944 and 1999. The latter was the final battle of Dracula – Julius Belmont, last of the Belmont Clan, was able to slay Dracula, sealing him and his castle away during an eclipse. The battle was a costly one, however, and many lives were lost to remove Dracula’s soul from this world. Despite this, many would attempt to return Dracula to Earth; one attempt, evidently, succeeded. In 2035 Soma Cruz, a Japanese student believed to be the reincarnation of Dracula arrived at Castlevania. Yet, rather than follow in his forbearer’s footsteps, he fought against the forces of evil.

Though Dracula himself was killed in 1999, over his many centuries of life, he had created “soul-clones” to live on in his absence. Some followed almost directly in their namesake’s footsteps, such as the Dracula of 1913 and the Spanish Dracula, seen both in 1809 (where he dueled the famous Zorro) and 1931 (where he attempted a similar coup to the original's). Some would attempt to replace the original after his death, such as the corpse that appeared in Louisiana, and the Dracula of Sunnydale, who intended for Buffy Summers to be among his first new brides. While some would remain in and around Transylvania, terrorizing the public in his absence, many others fled for far-off places, such as China, the American West, or even the moon. England, being the birthplace of many vampire enemies, was of particular interest, during the 1960s and 70s.

While most were similar in demeanor to the original, some took very different paths. One found love in New York City, while another rather buffoonish Dracula at the end of the 19th Century. Often, these traits were exaggerated aspects of the original’s, such as the bookish nature of one Dracula in the late 20th Century or one individual, show to have all the strengths of the original, multiplied tenfold. For some, control of blood – and the spilling of blood – was the only goal.

Similarly, many descendents of Dracula would become marginally famous. Alucard, his aforementioned son, spent centuries battling his father’s army and clones. Boris Tepes Dracula would become a famous shaman, while Sam Dracula, despite having delusions of actually being his ancestor, would make great steps forward in science. Victor von Doom claimed to be descended from Vlad Tepes Dracula. A relative of Dracula would even become a high-ranking member of the Republican Party of America. While the terror of Dracula is his greatest claim to fame, his name did – in the end – do some good.

Sources:

Spoiler :

* History – Vlad Tepes, Elizabeth Báthory
* Dracula – Count Dracula, Events of 1897, Brides of Dracula
* Castlevania: Lament of Innocence – Mathias Cronqvist, Leon Belmont, Walter Bernhard, Origin of Dracula
* Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse – Alucard, War on Mankind, Trevor Belmont
* The Castlevania Adventure – Christopher Belmont
* Castlevania II: Belmont’s Revenge – Soleiyu Belmont
* Castlevania – Simon Belmont
* Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest – Dracula’s Curse 1698
* Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia – Order of Ecclesia
* Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust – God-King Dracula, Báthory Living for Millennia
* Blacula
* Van Helsing – Funding Frankenstein, Gabriel van Helsing
* Anno Dracula – Plan for England
* Castlevania: Bloodlines – John Morris, Elizabeth Bartley/Báthory, Involvement in Assassination
* Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow – War of 1999, Soma Cruz
* Wold Newton Stories) – Soul-Clones
* Dracula (1979) – Dracula in 1913
* Dracula versus Zorro – Spanish Dracula in 1809
* Dracula (1931 Spanish-Language Version) – Spanish Dracula in 1931
* Dracula 2000 – Dracula in Louisiana
* Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Buffy vs. Dracula) – Dracula in Sunnydale
* The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires – Dracula in China
* Billy the Kid vs. Dracula – Dracula in the American West
* The Adventures of Dr. McNinja – Dracula on the Moon
* Dracula AD 1972 – Dracula in England in the 1970s
* Love at First Bite – Romantic Dracula in New York City
* Dracula: Dead and Loving It – Buffoonish Dracula
* The Historian – Bookish Dracula
* Tomb of Dracula – Super Strong Dracula
* Sword of Dracula – Blood-Centric Dracula
* Shaman King – Boris Tepes Dracula
* The Munsters – Sam Dracula
* ULtimate Marvel – Droom from Vlad Tepes
* The Simpsons – Republican Dracula

As should be somewhat obvious, I based it heavily on Castlevania, because I'm already vaguely familiar with it and it has a REALLY REALLY BIG TIMELINE. On the whole, I think it turned out... alright... but it feels kinda lacking. Any input would be great.

 

[Moogi]

I like it, actually. I was wondering how to fit Castlevania into this, and I think you did a good job.

A few things that wouldn't hurt to add, though:

Dracula once fought Zorro in Spain. Never read the comic where that happened, but it still sounds awesome.

In the Ultimate Marvel comics (which aren't canon to the main Marvel Universe, but this idea is too cool to pass up), Doctor Doom is a descendant of Vlad Tepes. Perhaps the von Dooms can trace descent to a child Dracula had before becoming a vampire?

Mention Dracula's overall plan for being in England the first time. In the book Anno Dracula, his goal is to turn Queen Victoria and become Prince Consort. Of course, in that book, he succeeds, rather than being defeated, but it's still worth a mention.

For extra laughs, you can mention one of Dracula's soul-clones having a castle on the moon. This is referring to The Adventures of Doctor McNinja, one of the finest webcomics online.

EDIT: Oh, and make Count Orlok from Nosferatu one of the soul-clones. The film takes place in 1838, so perhaps this clone went renegade against the original Count's wishes? Also, maybe a young van Helsing witnessed Orlok's plague in Bremen, and that was where he decided to learn about fighting vampires?

 

[johnny139]

EDIT: Oh, and make Count Orlok from Nosferatu one of the soul-clones. The film takes place in 1838, so perhaps this clone went renegade against the original Count's wishes? Also, maybe a young van Helsing witnessed Orlok's plague in Bremen, and that was where he decided to learn about fighting vampires?

Actually, Nosferatu - while based on Dracula - is distinct enough, if you ask me, to be unrelated. Plus, being a unit, he'll probably get his own Pedia entry and a good chunk of Transylvania on a whole; I'm DEFINITELY mixing in Shadow of the Vampire when I get there. Such an interesting premise!

Other mentions have been taken into account.

 

[Midnight-Blue766]

I don't think we've had a pedia for a Wonder yet. Well, the Alliance with the Cyclops may count, but whatevs. Here's one I whipped up.

Xanadu

Xanadu (also spelled Shangdu) is a landmark structure the town of Kaipeng in northwestern China, built by the decree of Kublai Khan between the years of 1252 and 1256. Located near the Alph River, it served as the Khan’s summer capital after moving the seat of government to Beijing. The most famous architectural feature of Xanadu is it’s famous “pleasure-dome”, the great geodesic bubble that covers the entire ten-mile complex. It manages to capture the light in a way that gives the entire structure a sunny ethos, which is itself an architectural miracle, since the heat it captures has little to no effect on the ice caverns inside. Incense was grown inside, and the surrounding forests provided the noble denizens of the dome fine leisure grounds.

In addition to its majesty, Khan’s palace also haunted him. In his writings he was said to be haunted by the screams of women in passion with demonic lovers, and when a nearby geyser would erupt from the caves that spat forth from the Alph River, Kublai was said to have heard the voices of his ancestors speaking of war.

The complex is also notable for being the meeting place of Kublai Khan and Marco Polo, where they shared secrets of each other’s travels. In fact, it is only from records of their conversations do we know of many cities now lost to history. Nowhere else in the travelogues of Marco Polo do we hear any mention of cities as miraculous as Ersilia, Aglaura and Octavia. Perhaps Marco felt the strangeness of these cities could only be conveyed to an audience dwelling in a palace as magnificent and wondrous as Xanadu.

The Chinese Xanadu is not the only complex to bear this name. A short lived Los Angeles roller disco bore the name in the 1970’s, but the most obvious descendant of the original Xanadu is Xanadu, Florida, built by the American media magnate Charles Foster Kane in the 1930’s. It boasts a similar size to its Chinese counterpart with a large menagerie and an extensive collection of sculptures. The structure now serves as an art gallery and garden, making it the first of central Florida’s many famous tourist attractions.

SOURCES

Spoiler :

Kubla Khan; or, A Vision in a Dream: A Fragment - most of the imagery
Invisible Cities - Marco Polo and the cities of Ersilia, Aglaura, and Octavia
Xanadu - the roller disco (forgive me)
Citizen Kane - Xanadu, Florida

Great! Would it be possible to add Kublai Khan back into the game so we can have someone to build Xanadu?

 

[Moogi]

Hmm... I was thinking about the way we've handled the God of War storyline in the pedias. I just watched all the cutscenes from God of War III on YouTube (I love the story for that series, but I don't really feel like playing through the whole games), and I think we'll have to severely fudge the game's ending. The game ends with SPOILERS: most of the gods dying and the world being more or less destroyed. Obviously, this makes things difficult for the history we have already established. But I really like what we have- the third Titanomachy being brought to an end by the Hero of Helos (from Titan Quest), the gods deciding to withdraw from mortal affairs, and my (completely non-canon, until approved by the other writers) idea of Quirinius/Romulus and Kratos killing each other (Romulus was, after all, the son of Ares, and having him face off with Kratos is suitably dramatic in my mind).

Thus, I have devised a simple solution to this discrepancy. The story, as told in the God of War games, is not entirely truthful. I think that the story was an epic poem (let's call it the Kratiad ) written after the Titanomachy, which stretched the truth in many ways. I mean, think about it. With the damage done from the war, and the gods cutting themselves off from the mortal world (not to mention Greece being severely weakened and open for the Persian invasion), it must have seemed like the end of the world for the Greeks. It really would have seemed like their gods had been killed. Thus, the Kratiad was written- an epic tragedy lamenting the destruction of the old world order. So, our portrayal of the events is the 'true' story of what happened, while God of War is a somewhat garbled retelling.

Any thoughts on this idea?

 

[cfkane]

Literary Agent Hypothesis. I like it. Keep it.

 

[Moogi]

Literary Agent Hypothesis. I like it. Keep it.

Cool.

I actually have a bit more time for writing than I thought lately, so I may see if I can write down a quick pedia entry or two. They'll probably be a little bare-bones, but any other writers who want to add to them should feel welcome.

I'm thinking of doing Kratos and the Master, but I may change my mind later. If I knew more Lovecraft, I would definitely do one for the Yuggoth.

 

[Dibukk]

Great idea.
I always thought of it like this: Kratos frees the Titans and they lay siege on Olympus while their generals - the Telkines - lead hordes of monsters to bring death and destruction all over Greece, Egypt and Asia while looking for a way to cut off the connection between humanity and the gods - in other words the Titan Quest story. But the Hero of Helos stands against the monster hordes and defeats the Telkines. The stories meet when the Hero ascends to Olympus: there Kratos and the Titans have finally overwhelmed the Olympians defences and now slaughter their way through the guards probably killing some minor gods such as Helios. Now we are at the climax of Titan Quest but only somewhere at the beginning of God of War III when the plots collide: instead of continuing his rampage as in the game, Kratos encounteres the Hero of Helos who battles and defeats him. Thus the Olympians are able to restore order and the Titans (alongside Kratos) are banished into Tartaros. But seeing how this war was both started and ended by a human, they cutt themselves of the mortal world.
I'm sure this could be combined with the Kratiad idea. Perhaps the Kratiad is some kind of literary what-if-scenario where Kratos defeated the Hero of Helos and thus the God of War III plot continued?

Moogi, I'm glad to see you want to join us writing pedias. Help is always appreciated, and from what I've read from you I'm sure they are going to be great.

If you're going to write Kratos, I've just got an idea: has anyone here read Percy Jackson? I, for my part, only saw the film but a friend of mine told me that in the books the Titans are freed once more - or at least partially. If that is true, I think this allows us to free Kratos in modern days, as well, making him modern enough to be a superhero.

 

[Moogi]

Great idea.
I always thought of it like this: Kratos frees the Titans and they lay siege on Olympus while their generals - the Telkines - lead hordes of monsters to bring death and destruction all over Greece, Egypt and Asia while looking for a way to cut off the connection between humanity and the gods - in other words the Titan Quest story. But the Hero of Helos stands against the monster hordes and defeats the Telkines. The stories meet when the Hero ascends to Olympus: there Kratos and the Titans have finally overwhelmed the Olympians defences and now slaughter their way through the guards probably killing some minor gods such as Helios. Now we are at the climax of Titan Quest but only somewhere at the beginning of God of War III when the plots collide: instead of continuing his rampage as in the game, Kratos encounteres the Hero of Helos who battles and defeats him. Thus the Olympians are able to restore order and the Titans (alongside Kratos) are banished into Tartaros. But seeing how this war was both started and ended by a human, they cutt themselves of the mortal world.
I'm sure this could be combined with the Kratiad idea. Perhaps the Kratiad is some kind of literary what-if-scenario where Kratos defeated the Hero of Helos and thus the God of War III plot continued?

Moogi, I'm glad to see you want to join us writing pedias. Help is always appreciated, and from what I've read from you I'm sure they are going to be great.

If you're going to write Kratos, I've just got an idea: has anyone here read Percy Jackson? I, for my part, only saw the film but a friend of mine told me that in the books the Titans are freed once more - or at least partially. If that is true, I think this allows us to free Kratos in modern days, as well, making him modern enough to be a superhero.

Your idea sounds great. I may change a few things around, but overall, it seems good. I am going to have Kratos actually kill a few Olympians, but don't worry- it won't be permanent. After all, Ares (as Mars) was widely worshiped by the Romans, so he obviously must have come back from the dead somehow. Plus, I'm a Soul Calibur fan, and in those games, the Fygul Cestus (or whatever it's called) cult (which plays a big role in the games' backstory) worships Ares.

Speaking of Soul Calibur, Kratos appears as a 'guest fighter' in one of those games. The canonicity of this is dubious (the series has, after all, also had Link from the Legend of Zelda, Spawn, and Darth Vader cameo- all of which are generally considered non-canon for their own series), but I have an idea about how to swing this.

I'm going to tie Percy Jackson into this (I also have only seen the film, but my girlfriend is a huge fan of the books), but I'm unsure in what capacity.

One thing that I'll be doing in both of the pedias I'm planning to write is mentioning Tartarus, which I think of as being a different name for Hell. Actually, I like the idea of Hell/Tartarus being connected to the underworlds of every mythology- if nothing else, this explains how Tartarus can be reached through the Norse and Egyptian underworlds in Age of Mythology.

The Master will probably have a short pedia, since he never got much backstory in Buffy. I have, however, noticed a similarity in his appearance to Orlok from Nosferatu. So, I propose that Orlok was turned into a vampire by the Master. Since there are so many characters that resemble Orlok in fiction, I'd like to connect at least a couple of them to the Master as well.

I also have prepared an awesome little gag for the pedia entry that indirectly references Seinfeld. I've said too much already.

 

[cfkane]

Wait, is this going to be a reference to

Spoiler :

the Buffy/Seinfeld crossover sketch from Saturday Night Live?

 

[Moogi]

Wait, is this going to be a reference to

Spoiler :

the Buffy/Seinfeld crossover sketch from Saturday Night Live?

I didn't even know that happened, actually. I'm actually going to be making an in-joke about the actor who played the Master, who guest-starred on Seinfeld once. You'll see.

I just wrote the Kratos pedia. It's not bad for a first try, if I say so myself. It does involve a bit of a deus ex machina, but I think it works. Also, I've left out a lot of details from God of War II, since they really would've made the entry too long. Also, I've decided to refer to Pandora's Box as Pandora's Jar, since that's actually closer to the original myth. I'm going to do the Master later- it's a lovely day outside, and I don't want to miss it.

Spoiler :

Kratos

Much has been written of Kratos of Sparta. Hero, villain, madman, savior, god slayer- he has been all of these things and more.

His birth date is unknown, but he is known to have been a son of Zeus (like many Greek heroes). He is mentioned by Herodotus as having been a minor noble in Sparta. He quickly proved himself to be a capable military commander. It was during his campaigns against the northern barbarians that he caught the attention of the god of war, Ares, who was also Kratos’ half-brother. During a battle with a barbarian king, Kratos made a deal with Ares- if the god would grant him the power to defeat his enemy, Kratos would serve Ares loyally for life. This was exactly what Ares wanted- long jealous of his sister Athena, Ares had begun to plan to destroy her.

Now the arbiter of Ares’ will, Kratos fought against the god’s enemies, quickly becoming the most feared man in all of Greece. Kratos’ greatest victory during this period was at the Battle of Marathon, where he personally slew the Persian Emperor Darius. But tragedy soon followed triumph- shortly after the battle, Ares tricked his servant into murdering his own wife and daughter. Overcome with grief and rage, Kratos forsook Ares, and sought vengeance.

Unperturbed by the loss of his finest servant, Ares decided to go through with his plan of ousting Athena. He launched an all-out assault on the city of Athens, using hordes of ravenous monsters as his shock troops. Athena approached Kratos, asking him to help fight the mad war god. He reluctantly agreed, and he undertook a quest to the Temple of Pandora, where Pandora’s Jar (frequently mistranslated as ‘Pandora’s Box&#8217 was held.

In an epic battle in the Athenian harbor, Kratos opened the Jar, unleashing its power on the world and himself. The Jar gave Kratos the power to destroy Ares, but it also brought with it a terrible curse. Within the Jar was sealed terrible evil, and now that it was opened, it began to infect the gods of Olympus. Slowly, the Olympians became corrupted by this darkness, becoming twisted shadows of their former selves. But the last power from the Jar- Hope- was sealed within Kratos himself.

After the death of Ares, Kratos was made into his replacement as the god of war, being one of only four mortals to join the ranks of the Olympians (the other three being Heracles, Arkantos of Atlantis, and Romulus). But power seems to have gone to Kratos’ head- as the new patron deity of Sparta, Kratos began a campaign of conquest through Greece. Zeus, now thoroughly corrupted by the evils of Pandora’s Jar, took Kratos’ powers during the Battle of Rhodes. Kratos swore revenge once again and embarked on a quest to release the Titans from the dimension known as Tartarus (now more commonly known as Hell). Thus beginning the Third Titanomachy.

The Titans’ armies of monsters, led by the Telkines, rampaged across Greece, Egypt, and Asia, while the Titans themselves attacked Olympus. But after slaying the corrupted Poseidon, Kratos was betrayed by the Titans- their leader, Gaia, used Kratos as her pawn, and now she had no further use for him. Embittered, Kratos fought against both sides of the conflict, slaying both Titans and corrupted Olympians as he butchered his way to Zeus and Gaia.

After killing Gaia and nearly destroying Zeus, Kratos was attacked by the Hero of Helos, the gods’ last champion. Mortally wounded by the Hero, Kratos was approached again by Athena, who told him the truth- Pandora’s Jar had corrupted the gods, and Kratos held within him the only power that could restore them (and the world): Hope. Choosing redemption over vengeance, Kratos committed suicide, and released the power of hope to the world. The destroyed Olympians came back, with that taint from Pandora’s Jar removed. Rejuvenated, the gods were able to seal away the Titans once more. Seeing what damage their fighting had done to the world, the Olympians limited their ties to the mortal world from that day forth.

But Kratos’ story does not end there. None know what became of Kratos’ soul after death. He was never seen in the underworld or Tartarus, implying that he went somewhere else after death. But history remembers Kratos best through the ‘Kratiad’, an epic poem written about his exploits several years after his death. The poem took many creative liberties with history, but is widely regarded as one of the great Classical epics.

In the later decades of the 16th Century, during the wars over the sword Soul Edge, a man claiming to be Kratos was seen seeking the blade. While most historians believe that this was a delusional madman, there is still the possibility that this actually was Kratos. It is interesting to note that during this time, the cult of Fygul Cestus (who worshipped Kratos’ old enemy Ares) was active. Perhaps Kratos returned to destroy his oldest nemesis? In any case, rumors regarding Soul Edge are to be taken with a grain of salt- some of the other figures said to have been seeking the fabled sword include an elven warrior, a demon from Hell, and a cyborg wizard from another galaxy.

When the Olympians returned to prominence in the early 20th Century, so too did the Titans. Rumors abounded about a mysterious bald man with painted skin fighting against both sides, but these, too, are difficult to prove.

Sources:

Spoiler :

God of War series- Kratos, basic plot
Age of Mythology- Arkantos
Titan Quest- Telkines, Hero of Helos
Soul Calibur: Broken Destiny- Soul Edge, Fygul Cestus
The Legend of Zelda- elven warrior
Spawn- demon from Hell
Star Wars- cyborg wizard from another galaxy
Percy Jackson- modern-day Olympians

 

[johnny139]

Well looks like we've got some stuff going. Very nice - glad to see we finally have a capper on Kratos, and an interesting little story at that. Also, more SoulCalibur, which is never a bad thing!

But, speaking of Link from the Legend of Zelda and the whole "media is actually a story" thing, I've wondered how to fit the whole Zelda series into the timeline for a while now - what with the entire thing being incomprehensible and impossible to straighten out. I read a theory that every game is just a retelling of the same myth, more or less - at one point, there was a kingdom of Hyrule, with a princess, a demon, and a hero. Every legend of the Princess Zelda is told a bit differently, and thus, we have all sorts of different Links - some short, some tall, some young, some old, some 8-bit, some full 3D...

So, yeah, I guess that'd be the way to fit it in. I guess. Don't think it matters too much overall because, well, a minor kingdom like Hyrule wouldn't be of much interest in the grand scheme of things.

Still trying to sift through Transylvania, by the way. Nothing solid yet but I think I'm getting there.