Catching the Research Bug

Yeah, I caught the research bug. It’s a mutation of world building disease where you are trapped in an endless cycle of research material. In my case, wikis, lots and lots of wikis. I go off in an endless wiki walk.

What is a wiki walk?

I’ll show you.

For example:

Xenia: The Greek concept of hospitality. Simple enough, but then there is a link to Zeus, which leads to Mount Olympus which in turn leads to the Twelve Olympians.

Looking at ways mortals become gods leads me to Apotheosis, divine (divinity), theology,Imperial Cults, Ancient Egypt and on and on.

The end result looks something like this.

Not pretty, not at all.

And what am I doing spending the balance of my weekend trolling wikis until the explode all over my browsers tab section like shrooms on cow shit?

Data mining. Looking for concepts, names, that sort of thing. This is not in-depth research (I mean wikis, really). I just want enough to give my current project some depth beyond the standard Medieval fantasy fare.

The risk of all of this is that I start “showing my research” or worse show that I did not do enough of it.

Oh well.  At least I am writing while I research otherwise I get trapped in world building and get nothing done and that would be a real shame.

The Tao of Ancient Weapons

Or ancient weapons as status symbols in fiction and mythology. The short answer is that Asskicking equals Authority but there a bit more to it, of course. I’ll talk about a few of these weapons, their history and how they can apply to your next work of speculative fiction.

1. Swords:

From Excalibur to Lightsabers, swords rule supreme in fantasy and science fiction. Part of it comes from the strange mixing of anime, D&D and Star Wars, but these sources simply barrow from earlier mythology. Almost every mythic arc known to man has at least one sword of legend Roland had Durandal, Japanese Hero Emperor’s had Kusanagi, the Persians had Shamshir-e Zomorrodnegar and so on.

Swords appeared in the bronze age as the first true weapons. It has always been associated with elite warriors for multiple reasons. The first is cost. Other weapons do not require as much metal, time or expertise to craft. The second is skill. While other weapons cost less  swords are wasted on anyone not properly trained to use them.

Their status grew  (ironically enough) as firearms made them obsolete on the battlefield. Calvary men (successors to the mounted knight) still used them until the onset of WW1 as did the Samurai (who traded their mounts and composite bows for katanas) until the Meiji/Restoration period.  Swords also became linked to dueling in Europe and Japan as well as symbols of authority. Only noblemen/gentlemen could afford to carry and train in the use of the rapier family of swords and in Japan only Samurais could carry the two blades as a symbol of their authority. Which such a rich history connecting swords to figures of authority is no wonder that they remain the number one weapon of choice in speculative fiction

2. Spears

While the sword goes hand in hand with nobility and authority, the spear predates it by several thousand years and it reaffirmed itself over on the battlefield even as guns broke the back of  the sword. Spears were popular for a variety of reasons. Made mostly of wood they were cheap to make. Almost anyone could wield one (pointy end toward enemy) and it served as  a melee weapon as well as a projectile.  Plus it doubled (and it some cases) tripled the reach of the wielder.  As an added bonus they could be set against a mounted charge. Horses maybe animals but they don’t like to rush into obstacles (thanks to their I’m-not-that-stupid gene), they must be trained to do so.

Several mythic figures have favored the spear above the mighty sword, among them the Celtic hero Cú Cuchulain (the foot launched gut wrenching Gaé Bulg),  Odin (Gungnir), and the Spear of Destiny (or Holy Lance/Spear of Longinus).

War being the ultimate social Darwinian experiment (with ever predictable results) that while the spear started as an adaptation of a primitive hunting tool it dominated the battlefield in the hands of elite warriors such as the Spartans (of 300/Thermopylae fame) and the Swiss mercenaries (who still survive as the famed Swiss Guard of Rome).  The sword may be the weapon of nobility but the humble spear was the weapon of choice for the hardened combat veteran.

3. Axes, Clubs, Daggers and Hammers:

I put these three distinct weapons together because they have one thing in common,weapons that double as tools.  Stone axes and clubs separated the  hairless apes from their ancestors. Not only could they wield multipurpose tools but manufacture them as well.

Axes were the first tool created to shape the landscape which also served as a handy weapon in case of an emergency. Feeling trees gave man a source of fuel, arable land and building materials. Didn’t take much to time or energy to master an axe and it’s combination of weight and broad blade meant that while not as precise as sword where ever it hits it would hurt.  Minoan priest’s used the double headed axe (labrys) as a religious symbol.  You can thank the Vikings and the Saxons for the image of the axe wielding barbarian.

Clubs maybe have being the first improvised weapon, but gave way to a wide variety of blunt instruments from the basic polished bone to the modern police baton. Heracles was famed for carrying a club which he used to slay the Nemean Lion. Smaller clubs were easy to use and pack quiet a punch due to the relative speed of impact. They can also ignore armor, as the concussive force transmits directly from the armor surface to the body withing (with perhaps the added bonus of metal plate armor breaking and slashing the skin beneath, ouch).

Daggers are the direct ancestors of the sword and are still in use.  A good all around tool for skinning, eating and killing. Although seen as the preferred choice of the assassin due to it’s small size, it has also served as a back up weapon for soldiers since the dawn of time. Knights would pummel their opponents with swords and then deliver the killing blow with a swift knife thrust to the eye or neck. The lowly dagger did what the gun could not by putting the spear out of business as a practical weapon of war and turning the musket into the Swiss army knife of the battlefield (short spear with the bayonet, plus firearm and club).

Hammers are close cousins of both the club and the axe. Another entrenching tool that served as a weapon on the battlefield. Thor swore by mighty Mjolnir. Although not as glamorous as the sword or feared as the dagger or axe it still proved a potent weapon in its own right.  Due to their construction they could deliver even more force than a club/mace and with a pick like back drag an armored opponent to the ground and serve as a dagger to attack weak points.

As you can see there more to weapons than just the slash and hack of a blade. Next time you’re thinking about arming fantasy army think beyond the sword.

World Building: Da’Rulez

There are three paths to rule creation (and by rule I mean the rules, planks and other staples that support the internal logic of any work of speculative fiction):

1. Strict Construction: The writers has a rule for everything and for everything a rule.
2. Fudge it/Fuzzy Logic: The writer sets the rules as the situation demands it.
3. Thou Shall Not: The writer concentrates on the outer edges of the rules, that is, on those things that CAN NOT BE DONE within the setting/universe.

The first option is one that many a Tolkien/RPG fan takes as the de facto way of building a backdrop for their upcoming epic fantasy story. Worked well for Tolkien, but many a would be writer ends up catching world building addiction/disease and never reach he first page of the first draft.

Others, after spending many hours pouring over every detail of the rules that govern their universe then feel the overwhelming urge to write paragraph after paragraph describing said rules with slavish devotion. Exposition without action is telling not showing. Then you have the writer that gets stuck somewhere on late Act 2 and finds that the reason they are stuck is because either a) the rules don’t cover this particular situation or b) according to the same rules, well, the plot is screwed.

End result: the Ass Pull. Yes, it is as ugly and for the reader, as painful as it sounds.

Strict Construction is a style of world building you work your way into after many a trial and error, unless you are Brandon Sanderson, or Tolkien, or a game designer. What about discovery writers? Discovery writers (like me) don’t have the time, patience (or skill) to engineer everything before hand (no outlines).

So we tend to fix rules after the fact, hence the term Fudge It/Fuzzy Logic. Rules pop up as needed. Great for the writer on the go, but can be murder on consistency. The rule you set in stone in page 14 can bite you in the butt on page 214. Can lead to anything from Fridge Logic to You Fail Logic Forever, especially when you’re trying to apply the Rule of Cool and instead the reader thinks you’re pulling everything from between your butt cheeks (see previous scatological link above).

Solution: Write everything down!

A rule is a rule, is A RULE!

Unless the rule is that vampires sparkle in sunlight.

I know where you live. Don’t make me come to your home and slap you in public.

Ahem.

Where was I?

Last but not least: Thou Shall Not or there are no rules but these rules, conveniently packaged in a stone tablet and numbered 1-10.  This method means that everything goes, and I do mean everything EXCEPT anything in the list.  Gives the writer a wide latitude but can turn some people off plus can end up with a Deus Ex Machina (a A$$ Pull on steroids with frosting on top). No limits means very little in the way of internal logic. Fortunately the same solution that applies to #2 applies here as well.

Of course, you can make a story around breaking said rules, or having the characters work their way around them. Now that could make for some interesting reading. If done right, of course.

Just remember: NO SPARKLING! Thank you!

And now for the video of the day: