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Post by alleywaycreeper on Sept 25, 2017 9:27:50 GMT
Heh, actually doesn't that kind of fit with what I'm saying? Like, if the star WAS the Green Sun making it a star threw you off the scent, at least. That's what confuses me. What sense does it make to make a Homestuck reference, then try and hide it from the people that would catch it? Who masks their foreshadowing in that way? I'm not following the logic here is the problem. Relevant to some of this is optimisticDuelist's classpect theory on Joey Claire, which I shall link here.I think the thing is, the Green Sun was always going to look like a star from somewhere because....well, that's what stars are. But there was never a place in Homestuck where that was the case. So this suggests, if it really is the Green Sun, that the vantage point is from somewhere in the Medium, but possibly not a part of it comic readers would be familiar with. Which, along with the key, gives us some hints and/or foreshadowing about Joey's mom and/or just the world of Hiveswap and Homestuck that could come into play later in the story. And even if it's NOT the Green Sun, it's still provocative as all hell, given what Joey says about the stars' positioning and what we know the key does. In either case, it definitely strikes me as something that we're going to, or at least could learn more about later, and I for one can't wait. On another note, I'm interested in the idea of the Js being Light. The flashing light in the tree house and its description are somewhat suggestive, and it was pointed out to me that it's the creature in the water in that one painting that makes Joey nervous, which could be an allusion to Cetus. But I'm surprised this is the second time I've seen someone suggest Joey's class could be Maid when her reactions both at home and in Dammek's Hive seem to be a cheeky indication that that's exactly the class she's not. She refuses to clean when you prompt her to in the house, she says none of them like doing dishes or taking out the garbage, repeatedly states that the mess in Dammek's hive is not her problem and, most explicitly, says point blank that she is 'not Dammek's maid'. Also, the person in that link claiming both that they know what Sylph's do and that they're paired with Maids is annoying as fuck. I'm of a couple of minds about the kids being Light. On the one hand, seeing more classpects with a familiar aspect would be neat. On the other hand, it's still kind of frustrating that the kids would be an aspect we already know a good deal about compared to aspects like Doom, Blood, Mind and Rage which I would love to know more about. On the other hand again, because we don't' know much about those, it's probably better to go with something that's more familiar, as if there are hints to that in the game, they'd be easier to pick up on. Eh.
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Post by Gab on Sept 25, 2017 15:07:47 GMT
On another note, I'm interested in the idea of the Js being Light. The flashing light in the tree house and its description are somewhat suggestive, and it was pointed out to me that it's the creature in the water in that one painting that makes Joey nervous, which could be an allusion to Cetus. Actually, though he does not yet have a post on it to my knowledge, I feel like I've heard him say somewhere before that he thinks Jude could be Seer of Doom? I might have heard that somewhere totally else, though. On the one hand, it does make sense siblings would share aspects, that does kind of go along with the dancestor thing for instance. On the other hand, it's also perfectly reasonable for them not to share one if they are sufficiently different, as Jude and Joey clearly are. One could bring up the strilonde examples, with the notable detail that the aspects are connected in some way. Light and Void are complementary, and Time and Heart at least have cosmetic connections that are noticeable since both Striders make identity a big deal with them. I don't think the class is meant to be that kind of Maid, and they've pretty much never been associated with housekeeping at all, outside of one reference Aradia makes. The word more likely refers to "maiden" as you'd hear in a classical story, to fit in with the general aesthetic of the Class naming scheme, and then shaved down to a single syllable. optimisticDuelist holds that the Maid is in fact a very active creation class, and cites numerous allusions to this theme, like Joey's proficiency with the lite brite. He had something to say about that line as well. Joey is indeed not DAMMEK's maid. She's a Maid, but not for him. I guess he does come off a little conceited. Actually, he has done a whole series of posts analyzing the Classes and arranging them into a table. I personally find it pretty compelling and subscribe to this system. It's obviously a lot to read, but perhaps he will sway you on his logic with the Maid and Sylph? If you happen to be interested.Either way, I do see your point.
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Post by alleywaycreeper on Sept 25, 2017 22:12:57 GMT
I don't think the class is meant to be that kind of Maid, and they've pretty much never been associated with housekeeping at all, outside of one reference Aradia makes. The word more likely refers to "maiden" as you'd hear in a classical story, to fit in with the general aesthetic of the Class naming scheme, and then shaved down to a single syllable. optimisticDuelist holds that the Maid is in fact a very active creation class, and cites numerous allusions to this theme, like Joey's proficiency with the lite brite. He had something to say about that line as well. Joey is indeed not DAMMEK's maid. She's a Maid, but not for him. That's why it's cheeky. If you didn't know anything about Homestuck you'd think she was just not keen on cleaning up other people's messes, but for those of us who know about the class it could very well be a hint. Plus, similar hinting towards the Alpha's classpects were more....neutral and/or positive, not to mention far more subtle. The fact that she just straight up says she's not a Maid feels as subtle as a brick to the head in comparison. I think it's a reason to be skeptical that that would be her class, at least. Also, I don't want to get into classpect stuff here, but I for one don't think the Maid class is active, plus it's feels like it's far easier to see the stereotypical 'Maid' connotations at work in Aradia's story in her cleaning up doomed time lines. (I'd argue you can see it in Jane's too, but her aspect makes things a little harder to parse and again, don't want to get into that here.) Not necessarily saying I'm right, but just that not everyone will agree with optimisticDuelist's assessment of the class.
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Post by Niltal Mahner on Sept 26, 2017 2:25:08 GMT
CrackTheory: Joey will be instrumental in helping defeat Trizza, because she will act as veterinarian to Feferi's lusus.
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Post by alleywaycreeper on Sept 26, 2017 3:05:49 GMT
CrackTheory: Joey will be instrumental in helping defeat Trizza, because she will act as veterinarian to Feferi's lusus. Well, I mean...Feferi isn't around yet I don't think, and her Lusus is Trizza's/Condy's right now.
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Post by Niltal Mahner on Sept 26, 2017 3:48:59 GMT
Oh, that's right...less crack theory than broke theory.
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Post by Gab on Sept 26, 2017 22:59:52 GMT
A post from the same guy about Xefros' classpect. Page of Time! It's very brief, as well. Check it out.
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Post by alleywaycreeper on Sept 27, 2017 0:54:02 GMT
One more note about Joey's mom and the key. If you use the key on the paper in the attic, Jake (it's pretty obviously Jake based on the vocabulary) has written (paraphrased) "Where's the key!?" on it. This means Jake knew about the key, which opens up a couple of possibilities.
1) Jake knows there's supposed to be a key to the machine but never found it. 2) Jake had the key and gave it to Joey's mom, but he had no way to know Joey later took it from her mom's jewelery box. 3) Joey's mom stole the key from Jake.
EDIT: OH! And one more thing! I think this game answers the question of why Jade's Grandpa was so obsessed with hunting. When you examine the pic of Jake and Halley, Joey suggests the idea of a betrayal but then immediately dismisses it. Which of course, because this is Homestuck world, basically confirms that is indeed what happened. Which would then lead you to wonder how and why that would have happened....and then you realize...Condy. Didn't she, after all, gain the powers of animal communion?
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Post by Gab on Sept 27, 2017 20:03:33 GMT
That's an interesting point. Not sure what Halley could have done, or been made to do, but that's more likely than my working theory, which is that he was "betrayed" by Halley being an ectobiological component to create Becquerel.
Related to the last point, I remember one comment somewhere saying something about Joey's Pa "proving his victory over nature." This brought to me thoughts about the coming apocalypse, and the alternate universe Jake may or may not be aware of him where all his friends are the same age and friends in not unhealthy (for the most part) relationships. Maybe part of the reason he keeps killing animals and making them into ridiculous trophies is some small way he can get back at the forces of inevitability. And, related to that, the Condesce perhaps.
Food for thought.
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Post by staircaseofkneecaps on Sept 28, 2017 0:34:56 GMT
It may explain why, even though Dammek appears to have genuine ambitions for his revolutionary ideals, he treats Xefros like such an inferior. I mean, I kind of liked the idea that the system of slavery and control could be such that even Bronzebloods and Burgundy weren't equal, and abuse could be passed down even between the two lowest tiers, and the theory takes a little something away from that. But it WOULD help to explain why an anarchist who wants to dispose of that system can't seem to help be so condescending, maybe without even realizing it. There's also evidence that he wishes he were in Trizza's place, what with that depiction where he's drawn himself over her. And the song Frondly Warning's lyrics always struck me as... oddly personal? May count as another piece of evidence if Dammek wrote the lyrics for Xefros to sing, which is more than possible. Wow, I, uhh. Am interested in seeing where this goes. It's kind of a long shot, but... wow. EDIT: As it was embarrassingly pointed out to me, Dammek does not have fins. So, that'd take some doing. And while he still could be a highblood, a lot of what makes this theory works for me is that he has a relationship with Trizza in particular. So... idk. What if he actually had a relationship with her? Like he's her shameful ex from her days of experimenting but he left before she woke up the night after and she didn't have time to cull him. We don't have his last name because he changed it maybe? That would also explain Frondly Warning being so personal too. But eh, probably not.
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Post by alleywaycreeper on Oct 1, 2017 14:41:47 GMT
On the subject of the kids' classpects, I just realized something. Joey spends a good portion of her time in the house trying to get power back, right? And before she can get to the basement she has to wander around a dark and powerless house. Which one of the Beta Kids found themselves in a very similar predicament?
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Post by legendary on Oct 5, 2017 17:01:08 GMT
That's an interesting point. Not sure what Halley could have done, or been made to do, but that's more likely than my working theory, which is that he was "betrayed" by Halley being an ectobiological component to create Becquerel. Related to the last point, I remember one comment somewhere saying something about Joey's Pa "proving his victory over nature." This brought to me thoughts about the coming apocalypse, and the alternate universe Jake may or may not be aware of him where all his friends are the same age and friends in not unhealthy (for the most part) relationships. Maybe part of the reason he keeps killing animals and making them into ridiculous trophies is some small way he can get back at the forces of inevitability. And, related to that, the Condesce perhaps. Food for thought. One way it would be getting back at inevitability, if he's aware at all about ectobiology or alchemy, is that giving Jade as many dead animals as he can is a twisted version of Noah's Ark, hoping to allow Earth's genetic legacy to survive the apocalypse.
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Post by alleywaycreeper on Oct 7, 2017 22:37:24 GMT
You know, I almost expect some sign of retcon!John to show up at some point. Maybe an arm or some oil or something.
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celestialphilosopher
Juvesquirt
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Post by celestialphilosopher on Nov 2, 2017 17:35:18 GMT
You know, I almost expect some sign of retcon!John to show up at some point. Maybe an arm or some oil or something. I really hope they do that. It would be the perfect in-house reference.
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Post by jeveasy on Jan 17, 2018 14:26:06 GMT
I wonder if Daraya Jonjet is going to be a motherly delinquent.
Daraya clearly has a delinquent theme going on, she has been in detention her entire life heavily implying she's a rule breaker, she has torn sleeves and a spiked bracelet that is described as an Imitation grub horn bracelet, her troll call references a song about delinquency, and her last name is a reference to Joan Jett who is described as a cherry bomb a cherry bomb in this context being slang for a young girl who often gets into trouble.
That said she is also a Jade blood who are described as "Naturally loyal and loving", "If all of this makes Jade Signs sound soft and nurturing, they are" and "make wonderful doctors, parents, and caretakers". Now I know that these are simply the extremely common traits of the caste and therefore not every Jade blood will exhibit all the traits associated with their caste, but they are bound to exhibit at least some of them.
What I've been thinking is what if she lacks the softness and non-combativeness associated with her caste but still exhibits the nurturing side of it despite her delinquency, personally to me that sounds like it would be very interesting.
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Post by Gab on Jun 26, 2018 2:17:58 GMT
A while back I made a big post trying to predict how Act 1 was going to go. And now I want to try to predict Act 2! Here's the link, but it's kind of enormous. To sum it up, I predicted the game would be about four "sections" long, exactly twice as long as it ended up being. I did at least guess the first part would be about playing as Joey (and Jude) and getting to the attic, and the second part would introduce Xefros and getting the two to meet. Part of my mistake was in assuming these parts of the game would only take an hour or so for the unassuming player to clear. I underestimated the breadth of the puzzles that were at hand. Anyway, let's get into it! For a start, This piece of concept art seems to pick up literally right off the end of Act 1. The demolished train station is likely was another casualty of Trizza's assault on Outglut. It looks like their might be a trail leading from the train station, which they'll probably have to take, since that's still better than sitting still in the smoldering wreckage of the town, waiting to either get blown up or roasted by the rising sun. Xefros will also probably try to get in contact with whoever they're trying to meet up with to explain the situation. I was thinking it could be Cridea Jeevik (Dammek and Xefros are both in her friendslist and come to think of it, I'm pretty sure "Jeevik" is tucked away in the background in Act 1 so she probably still is in the game. In fact I didn't recognize the name until writing this), though that would be a pretty radical jump up the hemospectrum... It could also be the reimagined equivalent of this tealblooded troll named the "rebel marshall." (no saying they couldn't BOTH be Tetrarchs, one of them coming into play later in the story than the other) I'm going to stake my first tentative guess that getting Joey and Xefros to the tetrarch's hive will be the objective of the first half of Act 2, like getting Joey to the attic (and to Alternia) was the first half of Act 1. It's possible we'll get to play as said tetrarch, and help arrange some sort of safe transport. Though, it's also possible that Joey and Xefros will meet another troll totally unrelated to the rebellion, a stranger outside town who they have to rely upon, if they run out of time and have to get indoors. There's another piece of concept art of a wilderness looking area over a cliff. Traversing this adventurous landscape would surely be quite the series of puzzles! I assume in this Act we'll finally get introduced to some of the Alternian internet culture, which has been built up pretty big by the friendsims so far. To digress a bit, it seems that internet culture is a pretty big deal to trolls, and come to think of it, that makes a lot of sense. This is a planet run by kids set in a world vaguely equivalent to modern times. And it's too dangerous to go out most of the time! So all of culture and society is shaped by what children would think is important. No wonder vlogging is like the most important thing in your life. But like I was saying, we'll probably start seeing Chittr, Scythian, and others coming into play, at least as a way of getting character development (this is probably where we'll be seeing from folks like Ardata), as well as puzzle solving (promotional material shows it's possible to buy items off the web so it seems pretty natural). Anyway, meeting with another member of the rebellion will probably let us learn a little more about their actual PLAN and structure, what they've been doing, and perhaps what Trizza has been doing as well. We might learn what was supposed to happen at Dammek's hive, and what they were planning to do with the "weapon," aka the cherub portal. And more importantly, what they plan to do next! Something else we know for sure will be happening is using the train system to get from place to place, since we see several teasers of this. Joey wearing fake horns to blend in, talking to that disinterested employee. Come to think of it, a conspicuous lack of their lusii. I wonder if they'll be left with the tetrarch for safe keeping. Or maybe there's lusus parking/transport or something. Anyway, it seems like using the train system to get around is a big part of the game, meaning we might be meeting lots of people, members of the rebellion perhaps. Or potentially, trolls who have been targeted for us to indict into the rebellion, or else just steal things from or take out or something, if they're highbloods. I admit, though, going on secret missions like this doesn't quite sound right. We'ld probably end up going on more silly misadventures instead of that, and turning a single simple objective into a big complicated nightmare. That sounds much more adventure-game esque. Obviously want to depose Trizza, and want to upheave the social order, which unfortunately is doomed to fail. There's also the portal to deal with, which is counting down from 11 days, and possibly going to destroy the world at the end of the countdown. Doc Scratch also clearly wants something, and is involving himself in all of this in various ways. The obvious guess is that he wants to take out Trizza as well, but that to me seems pointless, as well as a little easy for him. One other possibility is that whatever he wants involves some hidden true purpose of the cherub portal. The surrounding circumstance are either irrelevant to him, or a means to an end. Joey will end up doing... something. Scratch will make sure she does. But who knows, we probably won't be getting the full scope on that this Act. So, exactly what we'll be doing the second half of this game is difficult to speculate on (yet this managed to get way huger than I intended anyway), but I'd like to think it'll involve more travel and exploration, as well as expansion of game mechanics. Maybe more teamwork, utilizing multiple party members at once. More character development and interaction, more crazy shenanigans. More trolls. Good stuff all around! I am highly looking forward to it.
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Post by Gab on Oct 27, 2020 21:26:05 GMT
I was rolling up to do some theorizing on Act 2 only to see that I already did that, more than a year ago. So I guess I'll play off that along with info we know now. To summarize: What we know from Act 1:The heiress of the Alternian Empire, Trizza Tethis, is running a brutal and deadly regime, against with there is a rebellion uprising, led by Tetrarch Dammek along with, necessarily, three others. Joey arrives in Alternia through some kind of cherub portal, which erects a forcefield preventing her going back through it. She gets swept up in all this rebellion stuff naturally, along with Xefros, Dammek's Moirail, and their lusii, Cornibuster and Zoosmell (default names). They are heading for an ally, presumably one of the other Tetrarchs. Joey has to find a way back home in all of this as well. From latest teasers:I'm going to guess this Act will take place primarily on the train, and the puzzles and obstacles they have to solve to finally reach their destination. I guessed before they might be heading for the tetrarch's place, and I think that's still a decent guess. Another possibility is that they're heading somewhere to find another Key to reactivate the portal, which could theoretically be anywhere, though it would be thematically appropriate to be in Trizza's possession, kind of tying the two plots together into one. Either way, it looks like that Someone they're heading for is Fiamet, as per the most recent trailer. This name has actually come up before, in much earlier teaser material: vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/mspaintadventures/images/2/2b/Prongle_preview.pngThe tone of their conversation suggests to me this probably happens pretty early on, plus Xefros stressing out in the station. Fiamet might serve as a guide to help Joey and Xefros out and guide them in what they need to do. It also looks like they're communicating on an online platform, rather than the secured private connection Dammek had set up. That most likely will come along with the programs that have been teased since way back, Chittr and Scythian and whatnot. That might comprise the bulk of the puzzles in the game, interacting with characters' social media and buying things for people. Since it's a train episode, there's obviously some kind of big mystery to solve, interpersonal dramas to interfere in, solving it all just in time to make some big revelation right as you make it to your last stop. So far Joey has only had a brief taste of Alternian culture, and now she's going to get a crash course on the influence of the caste structure as she starts interacting with the friendsim friends, maybe making her more sympathetic to revolution. Additionally, I imagine the "Hint System" will be a little more active this time around, and as such it will be trying to goad Joey into doing very specific things to put some inscrutable plan of his into place. We likely won't get a full picture on that in this Act, though. And as usual, it'll only respond to Joey. Considering Fiamet's connection to axolotls and the one featured in very early promos, there might be a connection there as well? There's a shot of a building exploding, most likely the, or a, train station. I tried to translate the sign, but I can't get anything sensible out of it. Given the trailer, it seems Marsti, Lanque, and Marvus might have elevated roles of all the friendsim trolls. Other possibilities include Boldir, Tyzias, Mallek, Daraya, and others involved with or sympathetic to rebellion. Past teasers also showed Charun's cave, if I recall, so that's worth keeping in mind. Another candidate for a possible destination. EDIT: It's the one year anniversary of when Hiveswap Act 2 was put on the steam page. "Tickets available soon," indeed. Well, it seems appropriate anyway. I kinda just wanna do some last minute wild guesses based on nothing to see if I get anything right. 1) Not all the friendsim trolls will survive the train. What train episode is complete without a murder mystery? Maybe only one or two will get offed. Hopefully zebruh? But I'm not holding my breath 2) Fiamet will betray Joey to Trizza. Another classic twist. We don't know much about them, but they seem to know a lot and can easily manipulate Joey if they wanted to. 3) Whoever is behind the monsters in Act 1 is on Alternia too, and is connected to the snake portals. That's why something reminiscent of those appears in Act 2. 4) The subject of choice and inevitability will come up again, like it did in Friendsim. Maybe whatever Doc Scratch wants Joey to do will ensure Homestuck happens, and might be the worse for the planet. Maybe he needs her to actually foil the rebellion. But if she refuses, they enter a doomed timeline, and everything disappears. This might be something that doesn't really come up in act 2 tho... Okay that's all I've got for now
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