E.L.F, Extraterrestrial Lifeform

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Blackhole1 said:
I never understood how anyone could've thought that was a good idea. 'A triumvirate-tier parahuman? Let's pressgang her? Nothing could go wrong!'

Honestly, you'd think an organization like the PRT would've figured out that you can catch way more flies with honey than with vinegar. The hard sell is never a good idea because it doesn't foster any real loyalty to your organization. The moment the hold you have over your target disappears, they're gone and you now have a stupidly powerful precog with a grudge against your organization on the loose. What are you going to do? Kill her? Like that won't backfire...

Honestly, I was kind of hoping for someone in that discussion to speak up and carefully list all the reasons why trying to forcibly enslave S-class capes in any way is an apocalyptically bad idea. Rather surprising that that didn't happen. I mean, there has to be at least one person on the PRT Board of Directors that has something resembling common sense, or at least a sense of self-preservation.
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There's a reason why the one to say so is a PRT side division CIA equiv and not any of the Directors that work with the Protectorate. The meeting isn't quite over yet as well :)
 
It must be completely obnoxious for PTV to have to take a powerful precog like this into account.
 
So I thought recently that the Entities were basically C'Tan. The multiple parallel worlds thing being the biggest difference and that can be fudged. I wonder if that will come into play somehow.
 
Strange Aeons said:
So I thought recently that the Entities were basically C'Tan. The multiple parallel worlds thing being the biggest difference and that can be fudged. I wonder if that will come into play somehow.
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I doubt it. The Entities are, once you get past all of their outrageous abilities and dimensional shenanigans, creatures of flesh and blood (and biocrystal).
The C'tan on the other hand are nigh-deathless beings of pure cosmic energy that are almost as old as the universe.

There are similarities in that both possess reality warping abilities, varying degrees of dimensional hax and usually exist as groups of Shards (albeit unwillingly so in the case of the C'tan). But at the end of the day they are two very different types of creatures.
 
Haha. It only keeps getting better.

Also @Shujin this seems to be an incomplete thought/fragment.
Shujin said:
In other words, at this point no one cared if she was actually a Trump or a grab bag who managed to grab all the Thinker powers and then went back for seconds in ridiculous.
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Either those two are extraneous or there is something missing. 'in ridiculous amounts' perhaps?
 
It's saying she went back for seconds in the "ridiculous" category of powers. Maybe a little awkward, but people don't always (or even usually) actually think or speak in perfect grammar, so I let it pass and kept reading.
 
Czlyydwr Llrngwl said:
It's saying she went back for seconds in the "ridiculous" category of powers. Maybe a little awkward, but people don't always (or even usually) actually think or speak in perfect grammar, so I let it pass and kept reading.
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Huh, Ok that makes a bit sense. A bit awkward to me, but I can see it. Thanks Czlyydwr!
 
Shujin said:
There's a reason why the one to say so is a PRT side division CIA equiv and not any of the Directors that work with the Protectorate. The meeting isn't quite over yet as well :)
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One thing that still bugs me about this interaction - Taylor has pre- and post-cognition. She gets access to information by looking at people. In a worst case she gets information by looking at people who are only peripherally involved. Unless she never interacts with any of the people in the meeting (oh, wait, she's going to interact with Piggot) the odds of her eventually finding out that they wanted to press-gang her or effectively enslave her out of fear are quite high.

So.. why are they having this conversation? Wouldn't their briefing materials have included those little tidbits? Or are they just really, really incompetent?
 
Nicholai said:
One thing that still bugs me about this interaction - Taylor has pre- and post-cognition. She gets access to information by looking at people. In a worst case she gets information by looking at people who are only peripherally involved. Unless she never interacts with any of the people in the meeting (oh, wait, she's going to interact with Piggot) the odds of her eventually finding out that they wanted to press-gang her or effectively enslave her out of fear are quite high.

So.. why are they having this conversation? Wouldn't their briefing materials have included those little tidbits? Or are they just really, really incompetent?
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They probably just can't wrap their mind around Taylor's display power or it didn't set in yet as well as being blinded by the shiny.

In a nutshell, they are Questers who are voting for getting the shiny without realizing what consequences may follow.
 
Nicholai said:
One thing that still bugs me about this interaction - Taylor has pre- and post-cognition. She gets access to information by looking at people. In a worst case she gets information by looking at people who are only peripherally involved. Unless she never interacts with any of the people in the meeting (oh, wait, she's going to interact with Piggot) the odds of her eventually finding out that they wanted to press-gang her or effectively enslave her out of fear are quite high.

So.. why are they having this conversation? Wouldn't their briefing materials have included those little tidbits? Or are they just really, really incompetent?
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Taylor flatout told Piggot she was a telepath, which got translated to exceedingly accurate cold reading.
She read Alexandria from across the country.
If she meets any of those guys, she's likely to have a good idea of their attitudes if she wants to know.
So what is the point of not discussing it?

Besides, note that the only person actually making high-handed suggestions is the spook.
Every other director at least starts with considerations of her safety in a city where she has been previously attacked.
And none of them have mentioned anything like legal liability.

To quote myself:
uju32 said:
This is internal brainstorming, not actual policy.
If the PRT was a person, these would be the subconscious thoughts and random impulses that never make it to your mouth because it's overruled by the conscious mind which knows better.
Sensible people(see Piggot, Costa-Brown) let the more avaricious talk and get it out of their system before pointing out much more reasonable lines of action.
Emily is hilarious, though.
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Do remember there is more than one agenda in play here.
And that Costa-Brown is a Thinker of some strength and will have considered this.
It may well be to the larger organizations advantage for Taydar to be aware that there are factions in the PRT who do not necessarily agree on how to treat her.

MLK never looked so good to the Establishment if he didn't have Malcolm X to draw a contrast after all.

Besides, I doubt anyone entirely trusts the head of the spook division, not enough to give him effective control over a Triumvirate tier teenager.
So letting him fly his freak flag in front of the girl's father neatly cripples any influence that extended exposure might give him.
 
Nicholai said:
One thing that still bugs me about this interaction - Taylor has pre- and post-cognition. She gets access to information by looking at people. In a worst case she gets information by looking at people who are only peripherally involved. Unless she never interacts with any of the people in the meeting (oh, wait, she's going to interact with Piggot) the odds of her eventually finding out that they wanted to press-gang her or effectively enslave her out of fear are quite high.

So.. why are they having this conversation? Wouldn't their briefing materials have included those little tidbits? Or are they just really, really incompetent?
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Because it's a conversation that has to be had. Costa-Brown can't make unilateral decisions without pushback. You are essentially saying 'Some people might have opinions Taylor will find unfavorable, best not have the conversation at all so she doesn't find out.' Or that they would be given briefing materials proclaiming that Taylor is the thought police, so censor yourself please. That's is not going to fly. There is a point of reasonable caution of Thinker involvement, but the entire point of such a high Thinker rating is that there is no good countermeasure. They would only be crippling themselves for nothing.

None of that was about fear anyway. Richards' whole stance was that Taylor was too useful. Not that he wanted to control her out of fear.
 
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Shujin said:
Because it's a conversation that has to be had. Costa-Brown can't make unilateral decisions without pushback. You are essentially saying 'Some people might have opinions Taylor will find unfavorable, best not have the conversation at all so she doesn't find out.' Or that they would be given briefly materials proclaiming that Taylor is the thought police, so censor yourself please. That's is not going to fly. There is a point of reasonable caution of Thinker involvement, but the entire point of such a high Thinker rating is that there is no good countermeasure. They would only be crippling themselves for nothing.

None of that was about fear anyway. Richards' whole stance was that Taylor was too useful. Not that he wanted to control her out of fear.
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There's a reason the only category that gets a higher prioritization than Thinkers is Trumps, and that reason is that some Trumps will shut down your Thinker, some Trumps will BECOME their own Thinker, and some will boost a lower-rated Thinker to the point that the only safe response is this:

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Pretty much any classification of a cape can become top priority target in fights. The specifics of the individual powers are far more important.
 
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