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Messages - Avernite

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1
DF Spoilers / Re: is Nicodemus Archleone *the* Nicodemus (from the Bible)?
« on: September 15, 2025, 05:41:31 AM »
If they were the same Nic, as Kurtin suggested Nicodemus could have been a very common name.  It doesn't matter if he was important at the time or not, but somehow he got tied both to the noose and one of the silver coins with one of the Fallen entrapped inside.  Jim is either leading us down a rabbit hole of implied meaning, or Nic somehow has direct or indirect ties to Judas.

There is indeed one historical Nicodemus outside the bible, apparently (though some scholars suggest they are the same, I think that's reaching... the first was accomplished around the year 30, the second Nicodemus was active around the year 70). And wikipedia mentions it's not sure if the name has Hebrew or Greek origins. So trying to answer which Nicodemus, and why, seems to risk a rabbit hole...

2
DF Spoilers / Re: Speculation thread: How did that happen?
« on: September 07, 2025, 07:28:09 AM »
The is a legend about a centurion at the cross cursed to live until the end of the world. The discussion about Nic always bring it back to mind, Not saying that's Nic but i think the legend probably inspired jim.
In Universe i think that he was probably a roman who was in the region at the time a got caught up in events and was lucky(unlucky) to come across the noose and coins.

That influence does seem likely, given that this Centurion is said to be Longinus (of the spear of Longinus/Destiny) by the gospel of Nicodemus.

However, if Jim read that story, it would be rather twisted, because this centurion A) is said to have been killed, relics and all, and B) is venerated as a saint. Obviously Nicky would appreciate that, but I am not sure he has managed that deep a con.

3
DF Spoilers / Re: Out Law, novella (?)
« on: September 07, 2025, 07:15:51 AM »
  No, I think the whole Denarian thing will end up going against Marcone's grain.  Andruiel pulls it off with Nic fairly well, Nic still believes he has an equal partnership with Andruiel.  Lasciel tried to convince Harry that that was the kind of partnership he could have with her if he accepted the coin.  However thanks to his inadvertent soul gaze early on when we first meet the Denarians he knows that the host is really the slave of the fallen trapped in the coin, or he feared that.  Based on that knowledge Harry stanchly refused to accept the coin.  I don't think Marcone likes to be or wants to be a servant to Namshell, at the moment he maybe convinced he is in the driver's seat, but I think a day will come when Marcone will realize he isn't in charge of anything,that's the day he will regret his choice.

Regret it, sure.

But I feel the seductiveness of the Fallen would suffer if that regret were sufficient for Marcone to slip the noose and ditch the coin. We already saw Nicky almost redeemed, Harry and Sanya got out... adding a succesful Marcone redemption just feels like it needs way too much buildup. Unlike a Marcone who, like in Battle Ground, works for good despite still being in the clutches of the Fallen.

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DF Spoilers / Re: Harry's force rings
« on: April 26, 2025, 09:21:06 AM »
Put them in a bingo wheel and start spinning! ;)

5
DF Spoilers / Re: Choices
« on: April 21, 2025, 11:11:09 AM »
I am relatively-confident Mirror!Murphy will be alive; simply because of the vast opportunities it gives Jim to further torture Harry.

Early-books Harry was still giving Murphy lots of stay-alive info (albeit limited/incomplete), and I expect that didn't stop completely when he made the Choice.  Remember that Murphy got so deeply into the supernatural because of Harry.  Without Harry there, opening the doors he opened, Murphy's likely to have had shallower, less-dangerous encounters. 

Alternatively, maybe Mirror!Murphy teamed up with Michael, who -- while (mostly) not as clued-in as Harry -- had much more info than Murphy!

If torturing Harry is the point, obviously Murphy will be happy and safe, and be absolutely murderously angry when she sees Harry.

So yes, teaming up with the Knights of the Cross to actually deal with supernatural threats Mirror!Harry doesn't deal with properly, cleaning up his mess... that would sound just the kind of torturous that Harry needs to see. His Choices have Consequences, and maybe even the RIGHT choice in GP has a BAD influence on someone he loved.

6
  And that is mentioned at the end of Peace Talks when Vadderrung and Company try to devise a defense strategy for Chicago.  That the Fomor reign supreme under water and none of the powers at the Peace Talks has much knowledge and no influence there.  So in that sense it is easy to see why they would be totally hoodwinked by the Fomor.
Of course they say so, but it seems in Ghost Story/Changes Mab has some power over the cold and dark of the deeps.

So I suspect the Fomor have the home field advantage, but various powers did know SOMETHING was up with the Fomor. They just didn't know what. And as per Skin Game, sufficiently powerful beings can provide serious magic screening to prevent even Angels-of-espionage looking in. Presumably Ethniu is on the level where she can do that too, to depowered Deities-of-espionage.

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DF Spoilers / Re: “All of Winter” in Proven Guilty
« on: February 27, 2025, 06:41:50 AM »
I don't recall reading about her. She wasn't in Mab's Sidhe legion that got glamoured, she wasn't in Molly's reinforcements.

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DF Spoilers / Re: “All of Winter” in Proven Guilty
« on: February 16, 2025, 09:44:38 PM »
That was Cold Days, and it was Mother Summer who took Harry to the Outer Gates.  The only experience he had before seeing any of Winter's army was in Summer Knight.  One would think that while most of Winter's forces would be at the Gates, there would still be at least a couple of brigades in and around the Court in case Mab needs them.  And in Battle Ground both Mab and Molly were in Chicago fighting, can't remember if they brought troops with them or not, but even so both the Winter Queen and the Lady were in Chicago while supposedly the Gates were under siege with only Rashid to lead the Winter Army, unless there were some other of Winter's generals.
I believe Lea was conspicuously absent, and she's been touted as the placeholder for Mab in other parts of the story.

So presumably Lea was in command of the Gates.

9
DF Spoilers / Re: Mac's Possible Identity
« on: February 16, 2025, 09:42:47 PM »
While I appreciate the idea, IF Morgan knew who Mac was (approximately), his being paranoid about it tends to put an upper limit on Mac's power.

A random Angel that is out? Sure, could see that. A former Archangel who dropped his mantle into something else? Maybe, though a sign of Morgan's overactive paranoia. But literal TWG or TWC? Seems a bit too high up the power ranks to let any threats be about in his demesne.

10
DF Spoilers / Re: What's your favourite conversations in the series?
« on: January 02, 2025, 10:54:43 PM »
Molly's trial isnt high-brow, but it's high-stakes.

The talk that leads to the fight in the Deeps.

And, indeed, the chat in Warrior.

11
Mesopotamia / middle east. See what the Gatekeeper and his fellows have made of the big nasty things that the old tales speak of.
A place like Göbekli Tepe is screaming out for some deep dark ritual. Of course it does run the risk of drawing too deeply on Abrahamic religion to 'paper over' the cracks without having to pick if it's all true or just so from a certain perspective.

The Vatican. See if they've topped Hades - if there's one thing the files have been big on it's comparing humanity to the big nasties... and usually humanity comes out on top, somehow.

Subsaharan Africa. I have no idea of the mythologies of the region, and I think Dresden Files would be a great intro. Even if it would, no doubt, fly in the face of half the themes actually there.

12
DF Spoilers / Re: Harry's full name
« on: November 19, 2024, 07:54:37 PM »
My personal thesis is that, for mortals, a True Name simply makes a conduit between the speaker and the Named. Harry is stubborn as can be, and uses his full being to repel Mother Winter. Against the Outsider, because he's Starborn, his full being is also enough.

Of course if he had used his Name against Mother Winter she could randomly reconnect to Harry at inconvenient times, but Outsiders are Out, and speaking Harry's name on the Outside does nothing. Bit asymmetric, since names of outsiders do call them in to reality, but eh... that's my WAG anyway :)

13
Yes, they do appear civilized, but are they really?  They are cultured, clean, rich, attractive, so they are allowed to thrive, we think of them as civilized.  However these are the same beings who will suck the life out of a mortal by feeding upon his or her emotions. This a group of beings that think of vanilla human beings as "kine" or prey to be fed upon.. This is the group that would imprison the little folk so they can have nice colorful lanterns at their parties.  So as long as they have a source of food, and can create their own "civilized" islands they can thrive in a post apoplectic world as well as the Black Court in my opinion.

Eh, I could see some deluded megalomaniac thinking that, but not the sophisticated strategists that actually lead the White Court. It's easier to prey on a thriving species over one that's marginalized and you have to actively farm.

Humans also started farming fish on a serious scale only when the seas stopped providing quite so plentiful.

14
The problem is, at some point star born Harry is going to have to unite all these factions otherwise they won't have a chance against Nemesis and the Outsiders.

Just a thought, Mab's intentions for the marriage might be a stronger alliance between Winter and the White Court.  However as many of you pointed out, that alliance might make uniting everyone against Nemesis/Outsiders in the coming BAT a whole lot harder because of infighting between the allied factions.. Hmmm... I wonder if this will be an instance where Mab is totally wrong in her planning?  If she is, will she openly admit it?

Alternatively, Mab intends it to blow up because she believes the White Court is fundamentally compromised thanks to Papa Raith's connections. She did also blow up Nicky and the Nickelheads, despite the now-proven value of Infernal power against some dangerous artifacts.

Alternatively Alternatively, the library has weapons so valuable, it's going to upgrade Harry's growing armory more than any downsides.

15
DF Spoilers / Re: Who wanted the Fomor to rise?
« on: September 06, 2024, 06:41:34 PM »
I would caution against seeing too much in the Fomor's abilities...

If only because we saw just how ridiculously outmatched their army was against the Sidhe. It makes the whole 'Fomor buildup' look like the Fomor sent their strength out skirmishing, while everyone else kept to their own skirmishing back. When one side brings the army, the other brings skirmishers, the army looks quite impressive.

And sure that's a sound strategy, kind of an inverse Trachenberg plan - if your ace can win any battle almost alone, why not fritter away your strength on skirmishes while your opponents must remain careful to husband reserves for a big battle.

So to me it's plausible that, in some sense, the Fomor HAD been building up, for something. They then went into overdrive when Changes happened, before they were ready; their skirmishers were strong, but having to put too much in reserves behind it. Then they gathered on Chicago, aiming to bring Ethniu out as an ace in the hole / the only way to win a battle, but with the army too weak to back her up, the defenders managed to keep (just) enough strength out of the battle to pitch it against Ethniu herself.

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