- Location
- washington
Wow this comment is weirdly prophetic from what I've seen.
-
Going forward, links to content from Twitter (now X) will no longer be embedded. Pre-existing links should not be affected.
Path of the Immeasurable Swarm [Worm/Cradle]
- Thread starter derivativeoflife
- Start date
- Crossover
- Location
- washington
So reading past comments there any reason Taylor didn't develop any original icons? Seeing as they can apparently be about anything and there are things that are probably far more apt for what she does like will or control?
To get yourself a weird icon you would probably have to do it intentionally. Most of the time the icon you get is just a type of Madra you use, just like Taylor landed with shadow. It is unknown if you could make an icon with concepts from outside Cradle.
Fencer
Writer
- Location
- 2nd shift
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Icons are fundamental concepts of reality. You don't create new ones. You might discover one that is very unusual for a human to embody but that's still unlikely given the amount of time cradle's been around. Those concepts are not finite. Which means a lot can fall under an overarching banner.
Hammer can represent someone who fights with blunt force attacks or a smith for example.
- Location
- washington
Well I didn't mean create so much as if there are apparently a whole bunch of icons why didn't Taylor get one that fits her more than just the power she's using? Like ozriel when a mortal apparently had a whole bunch of icons from what was said.
Fencer
Writer
- Location
- 2nd shift
- Pronouns
- He/Him
She's been alive a little over two decades and resonates with two fundamental concepts of reality. I've been around for three and I doubt I would manage one unless my love for fiction and writing translated, which not the weirdest thing cradle's ever seen, so maybe, but the point is there are sacred artists on cradle who spend centuries failing to connect to an icon. This is stupid impressive.
Honestly shadow fits her really well thematically. If there was a swarm icon in canon I don't think it would even be up for debate but there wasn't, and it's always an iffy prospect for a writer to just create a super cool thing for the protagonist when you're writing fanfiction it's a good way to get pushback. So working within the established system is generally safer.
- Location
- washington
Yes but others have said basically anything can be an icon and there are definitely things she fits more.
Dantalion
Insight: 368
- Location
- A Guest Room at the Brass Embassy, dying of Frenzy
- Pronouns
- Any
Icons do still need to actually be, well, an icon. As in, a thing regarded as a representative symbol.
Going back to your original question, what would 'Will' or 'Control' actually look like as a symbol? Marionette strings might work for control, but she doesn't really embody what that would imply (eg, a scheming chessmastery sort who knowingly manipulates everyone around them to some self-guided purpose). And 'Will'? The word fits her, but it doesn't exactly paint a picture.
- Pronouns
- He
I think what Icon you connect to also is influenced by how other people perceive you and they are more likely to do that by comparing you to other thing they are familiar with reduces the number of likely icons unless you are really trying for a new weird one like Broom.
- Location
- western US
if it is true that what icon you connect to is defined by how others percieve you, then taylor's not going to connect to something based off her parahuman history--its pretty self-evident that taylor has chosen to (partially) re-write herself.
but even if not, again, upon taking this path she chose to re-write herself so of course her past prior to even *starting* would not contribute very much. its the narrative equivalent to wiping the slate.
but even if not, again, upon taking this path she chose to re-write herself so of course her past prior to even *starting* would not contribute very much. its the narrative equivalent to wiping the slate.
- Location
- washington
I'm mostly done with this conversation but previous talks didn't mention the how others perceive you where I'm at. Also you know xianxia is usually about personal stuff rather than others so I don't think it would. Though cradle is clearly made to be different to most of the genre in a lot of ways.
- Location
- Goose Land
So the thing about Icons is that they do have an external perspective factor to them in canon, though how important that is isn't strictly defined in canon as you do still need a personal revelation/enlightenment set up to pull it off.
I highly recommend reading the Cradle series and seeing the first on screen Sage Advancement we see as that and the build up to it should demonstrate the process pretty well.
It all comes down to the underlying Personal Power mechanism of
Authority
- Location
- washington
Yeah like I said where I'm at it wasn't mentioned so I wasn't like your wrong bitch. More just plenty of talk where I'm at on the thread about icons but not anything about that yet.
The thing people are missing about icons is that it has to be something you live with and do every day. It also has to be something personal. While controlling all of her bugs is something she does every day, it's not really personal. It was just another limb after she got powers. Seeing through all the bugs though is personal, it took her effort and will to learn to do, and she really appreciates it as the best part of her abilities, hence why she is connecting to the oracle icon. The shadow icon is a much more personal connection. She was bullied and tried to hide in the shadows, otherwise known as the bathroom, to escape it. She didn't like her home or school life so she hid herself in shadows and went heroing to escape it. She met villains and hid herself in their group to try and bring them down. She became a villain in truth but then hid that part of herself and became a hero to stop the end of the world. Her power works best when she is in hiding and people can't see her. Even fighting scion was done from a distance in the shadows, she used portals to keep her distance and control her minions. Hiding herself metaphorically and literally is something Taylor does every day. That is why she got the shadow icon and is connecting to the oracle icon and why she didn't connect to something like will or escalation. Those are things she demonstrates in the moment but not something she does every single day.
Taylor
A brief update: The next chapter is 99% done and just needs to be edited. But I started the chapter after that and hit a wall almost immediately, which is usually a sign that something about the plot isn't working. I'm probably going to need to spend at least another week or two poking at it, especially since my writing time is still more limited than I'd like. In the meantime, I've been able to do a lot more with AI lately due to building a new PC (guess what I was doing with all my free time in December 
), so here's a much-improved image of Taylor which looks almost exactly like I imagine her:
), so here's a much-improved image of Taylor which looks almost exactly like I imagine her:
- Location
- Salt Lake City, UT, USA
You don't even know the half of it. At the upper echelons your average "jade beauty" is basically supposed to be so beautiful just looking at one's face can cause a man to die of priapism. I've read actual xianxia using this concept for gag-effect, but yeah.
It's all those black sludge impurities being cleansed and all that.
- Location
- washington
wow she has five fingers amazing!
In more or less the right places even!
- Location
- washington
The wonders of cultivation never cease a woman growing from four fingers to five! Will wonders ever cease?
I just want to say thanks for exposing me to cradle. Never really paid much attention to the series, though i've seen it here and there over the years, but after reading your story i got interested and after like a week i'm on book 10 now and am going to be done with the series in a few days. And i'm interested in the other series's written by the same author that are part of the same multiverse.
- Location
- Padded cell with a view
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Glad to know I wasn't the only one who immediately went to check.