-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
You'd have to assume the Pa'anuri already had a nearly working core generator that they just weren't using, though--the idea they could build such a thing within a few years is a bit hard to believe, especially when it's so much more powerful than the Milky Way one.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
They effectively command the resources of an entire galaxy, as far as we know. Petey tries to 'play nice' around his meatspace neighbors, the Andromedans have no such compunctions aside from maintaining what are presumably baryonic slaves to be their workers. You could build a really big project really quickly when you simply through enough effort into it.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Quote:
Originally Posted by
factotum
You'd have to assume the Pa'anuri already had a nearly working core generator that they just weren't using, though--the idea they could build such a thing within a few years is a bit hard to believe, especially when it's so much more powerful than the Milky Way one.
While I can't speak as to why the Pa'anuri didn't have a core generator up and running, the power difference comes from the different sizes of the super massive black holes at the center of the galaxies: ~4 million solar masses for the Milky Way SMBH and 110-230 million solar masses for Andromeda's SMBH.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Battleship789
While I can't speak as to why the Pa'anuri didn't have a core generator up and running, the power difference comes from the different sizes of the super massive black holes at the center of the galaxies
I'm aware of that, but since the Andromeda SMBH is so much more massive than the Milky Way's you'd expect it to also be significantly larger, and thus whatever generator apparatus the core generator consists of will also have to be larger.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Quote:
Originally Posted by
factotum
I'm aware of that, but since the Andromeda SMBH is so much more massive than the Milky Way's you'd expect it to also be significantly larger, and thus whatever generator apparatus the core generator consists of will also have to be larger.
Large in this sense isn't large on interstellar ranges. It's 4+ lightyears to the nearest star, the radius of a SMBH will be less than one light hour.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Quote:
Originally Posted by
halfeye
Large in this sense isn't large on interstellar ranges. It's 4+ lightyears to the nearest star, the radius of a SMBH will be less than one light hour.
Why does something have to be "large in interstellar terms" in order to take a long time to build? Let's go and tell those slackers who built the M62 that they should have taken way less than five years to build a mere 107 miles of road!
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
M62? The globular cluster in Ophiuchus that is about 50 light years in radius?
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Windscion
re: 2019/07/22
Squick!
Yes, what a surprising turn of events. No one foresaw that hookup.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
I'm sure they're just...sunbathing. Yeah.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Willie the Duck
Yes, what a surprising turn of events. No one foresaw that hookup.
Oh I know it was pretty heavily telegraphed, but ... she was dating his Dad, ferchristsake.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Windscion
Oh I know it was pretty heavily telegraphed, but ... she was dating his Dad, ferchristsake.
So Tagon is her type then. Between the medical tech they have and the fact they are now not having physical bodies at all, any age differences stop being an issue between adults.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Radar
So Tagon is her type then. Between the medical tech they have and the fact they are now not having physical bodies at all, any age differences stop being an issue between adults.
It's not that the age difference is creepy- everyone involved is older than 50, the age difference never really mattered in the first place. The creepy part is that we were told Murtaugh might have a thing for Karl, and then once he was out of the picture she decided Kaff was close enough.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Quote:
Originally Posted by
HorizonWalker
It's not that the age difference is creepy- everyone involved is older than 50, the age difference never really mattered in the first place. The creepy part is that we were told Murtaugh might have a thing for Karl, and then once he was out of the picture she decided Kaff was close enough.
Don't see that being all that creepy, to be honest. This trip these mind-states are on (and remember, they *are* just mind-states in a computer, not actual people with physical bodies) has explicitly been said to be one-way. Even if it was not, the Murtaugh mind-state going on this trip would end up in a different body if it ever made it back to the Milky Way, so would only end up in competition for Karl's affections with Murtaugh Prime. That being the case, I think settling for the closest thing that will ever be available is perfectly reasonable.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
It'd also be a lot more troubling if someone found out they couldn't be with their 'One True Lovetm' and immediately decided to go with a 'good enough' substitute. However, this is all still in 'a thing for'/hooking up territory.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
From the very beginning when Murtagh was introduced to the Toughs I always felt she was going to be Kaff's love interest. And I saw Karl as trying to set that up With his "I want grandkids!" talk. Must have missed the flirting between them.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Sunday 28 July 2019
Lily the Mutant Frogozoid
Now, we know their species as Frogozoid.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
"Aliens saved the dinosaurs because a mutant frogozoid tried to eat the stars."
Can we save that for the next incarnation of the thread?
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
8/2/2019 - Crossed Eyed Unioc
Quite a Metaphor
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Flag Pins? How do you use Flag Pins in a 3D intergalactic surveillance model?
Is the alien that dumb or that much of a genius?
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
A better question is how he's going to have time to do anything with them. A ballpark estimation puts it into over a decade to put down all those pins - 100 million seconds is over three years by itself, and it's going to take longer than a second to put a pin in the correct location. And there are hundredS of million data points. I understand he's immortal, still a lot of time for a project.
Methinks the holographic pins are a much, MUCH better idea.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Quote:
Originally Posted by
tonberrian
A better question is how he's going to have time to do anything with them. A ballpark estimation puts it into over a decade to put down all those pins - 100 million seconds is over three years by itself, and it's going to take longer than a second to put a pin in the correct location. And there are hundredS of million data points. I understand he's immortal, still a lot of time for a project.
Methinks the holographic pins are a much, MUCH better idea.
Presumably, he is not going to personally attempt to investigate all hundreds of millions of data points. Instead, he'll devote whatever amount of time he feels is required per point, and an extra couple of seconds on putting a pin at either end of the process. Or, alternatively, he will centre in a specific subsection of space, and use the pins to devise patterns, groupings or other metastructures in a visual way, because it sometimes does pay to operate in non-virtual environments.
ETA: that is, if it wasn't a con, which it turns it was. But I stand by my general statement, as someone whose best work tends to happen at the pen-and-paper phase of the development.
Grey Wolf
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Grey_Wolf_c
ETA: that is, if it wasn't a con, which it turns it was. But I stand by my general statement, as someone whose best work tends to happen at the pen-and-paper phase of the development.
It's a little strange -- when fabbers have been a thing in the strip for well over a decade and functional immortality has become a thing and the main cast is approaching saving the galaxy from 3 different fronts -- to see someone trying some basic nepotistic graft over a single shipment of physical goods. Reminds me of the earlier hand-to-mouth days for the mercenaries where enough money to eat out at a fancy restaurant was a couple week's plot. :-)
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Now I kind of wonder if they really did expect to find two hundred million ships, or if that was part of the scam.
Besides, they're still paying people to do things. They're in a society that is transitioning to immortal and post material needs, but not, like, tomorrow. If it was announced everyone would live like this in ten years, what would you do until then? Probably still try to make money.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Kornaki
Now I kind of wonder if they really did expect to find two hundred million ships, or if that was part of the scam.
It would be far too easy for somebody else to check that--I assume the professor isn't the only person working on this, after all. Something like requisitioning absurd amounts of office supplies is a few easier scam to get away with, even though he failed to do that on this occasion.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Quote:
Originally Posted by
factotum
It would be far too easy for somebody else to check that--I assume the professor isn't the only person working on this, after all. Something like requisitioning absurd amounts of office supplies is a few easier scam to get away with, even though he failed to do that on this occasion.
Just for the record, the would-be scammer is/was female.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
It took me longer than I would care to admit to realize that Kathryn had a paint brush in her pocket and why she had both it and the cookies.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Lizard Lord
It took me longer than I would care to admit to realize that Kathryn had a paint brush in her pocket and why she had both it and the cookies.
Thank you for pointing that out.
I completely missed that, and was confused.
-
Re: Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Lizard Lord
It took me longer than I would care to admit to realize that Kathryn had a paint brush in her pocket and why she had both it and the cookies.
So that's what the thing is that looks like a fake mustache. Thanks.