Maegwyn
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Mutant Gods and Journeys of Discovery
By Eukara
There are two things that I love in this world,* and those that know me well could probably tell you without hesitation that they are dragonflies** and mythology. As to mythology, I have loved it since I was in middle school. I found the stories intriguing and different from anything I had available to me in my meager farming-town school library.*** Gods, mortals, creatures, adventures, challenges... the literature opened up an imaginative world for me to explore. Soon enough, I had gone through every Greek and Roman book. The Egyptian selection was scant, but I read what I could. By the time I was done with High School (and that slightly larger library) I knew more than most people did about Greek myth and ancient Greek history.
In College, I studied the ancient texts (translated, of course) and found more fuel to build my passion for ancient cultures. Now, I teach mythology classes to homeschoolers, who in turn, share my love of the ancient stories. But what is it that makes us love them so? Why are we compelled to look at the stories and fall in love with them? Perhaps it is the wonder of times gone by, or even the thoughts of "what if?". Maybe we like to laugh at the absurdity of the gods and goddesses as they make fools of their divine selves.**** Or, maybe we see our own struggles in their lives. Either way, we are pulled towards these tales.
Amazingly, I have found a home amongst people who play games that have mythology included in the game play. For example, AdventureQuest uses Norse nomenclature for items, weapons and armors.***** Mechquest has references to Greek mythology (Zeus' arms and the Centaur shadowscythe). AdventureQuest Worlds, though in its beginning stages, already shows promise through the mentioning of mithril and the Medusa Curse helm. Sounds like a mythology lover's dream.
So, as this wonderful tradition pervades all AE Games, does it surprise anyone that DragonFable finally has a quest that parodies one of the greatest Greek adventures? Probably not. What may surprise us is the return of an April Fool's Joke. Though, in all honesty, I doubt Zeuster finds this a joke.
The chickencow... that wonderous joining of fowl and bovine. What a comical scene that was, the first time any of us laid eyes on it. And the armor! What dignified warrior wouldn't wear that into battle.****** But, it seemed the novelty wore off and the wondrous creation was stashed away in the recesses of our memories. But just why did we get a glimpse of that finery? I believe divine intervention played a part.
Enter our otterly awesome Admin, Alac. It was she that became the conduit of revelation. Apparently, shortly after New Year's, she prepared for bed as usual. As she began to drift away into the land of dreams, her busy mind continued to hum.******* Now, I don't know about you, but what follows seems awfully suspicious. Her mind wandered through a few various possible DragonFable chain quests. Alac admits, "Thinking about things that were not fully explained led me to think about a) chickencows and b) element bacon. Which made me kind of hungry, and breakfast wasn't for another 8 hours. So I decided it would be fun to combine the two ideas, and <plot exposition removed for spoilers>." It is obvious to me that someone, or something was orchestrating this.
I asked Alac to talk about her initial plans for this chicken cow/bacon idea and wondered if she had intended for it to become such a large project. "In the beginning, the chain was only going to be a few quests long. At least, that was the plan until I talked to Cysero! I was planning on parodying one of the Labors of Hercules in the chain, and so when he thought it would work better if my reclusive hermit-mage chickencow (who was going to reveal the secret of element bacon to you) was actually a chickencow god, I was all for the change in plans. The chain is going to be just a bit longer than originally planned, though, so I hope people are in for some fun!"********
So, it seems that an innocent idea planted in a half-asleep admin brain became all consuming. And suddenly... we have a deity! Zeuster, the almighty chickencow god. I don't believe in coincidences, and after this, neither should you.
Now, ideas are good things, implementing them is another basket of crazies. Enter, stage right, AE Staff members. Apparently, "the idea for Zeuster's current appearance appeared to Cysero in a dream. He decided it was a sign, and that he must work to realize the vision he was sent, which is why he volunteered to do the art in Ghost's place." I believe you will find the following conversation quite enlightening.*********
(Alac)I started planning out what art and animation I'd need after talking to Cysero. At one point, Cysero, Ghost, and I were in an IM meeting talking about what Zeuster should look like. (Zeuster, by the way, is a combination of Zeus and rooster. It seemed fitting.) Some funny dialogue from our IM conversation follows:
Ghost was planning on doing Zeuster's art one day, but also had to work on the Elemental Avatars' art for geopetal.
Ghost: (...) If you've got mad planz then just go nuts with him if you like
Cysero: They're not MAD plans but if you're still working on the avatars then I'll just go nuts with the do-nuts
Alac: Sounds good.
Ghost: Now I'm craving donuts and bacon
Alac: Hah, me too. It's ok.
Cysero: My GOD does that sound good
Alac: Yes, yes it does.
Ghost: Bacon-wrapped donuts. This needs to be invented
Alac: And then deep fried.
Ghost: Be still my arteries
Cysero: HA! They'd be quite still
(And there you have an inside look at the craziness that is a DF planning meeting.)
Knowing the idea now had chickenwings, it took off. When asked if Alac, upon starting this adventure, foresaw what the Zeuster story/quest would become, she responded:
"When I first had the idea which turned into the Zeuster/bacon quest chain, I had no idea what it would become, or how much work and fun it would take. So far, Cysero, Ghost, and Tomix have all contributed either background, NPC, or weapon art (or a combination of them). I am writing the storyline and producing the quests themselves (which includes building the quest file that goes ingame, preparing the monsters, and deciding details about the rewards). I enjoy all the aspects of quest development, but I think the best part of the week is on Friday, when the new releases actually roll. It gives you a great sense of satisfaction and accomplishment to see people from around the world playing (and hopefully enjoying) the release you've worked on for at least a week."
Now for anyone who enjoys Greek mythology, the twelve labors of Hercules were very serious tasks set on him by Eurystheus, the king of Tiryns and Mycenae. Hercules was sent to this king by Apollo. The purpose: To punish him for killing his wife and children. Though the madness that pushed him to kill his family was induced by Hera herself, Hercules still had to atone for his sin. So how do you take such a serious story and AE-ify it?
"Artix Entertainment games include parodies of so many things: pop culture, music, anime, etc. I've been bringing a bit of my background in literature and the classics to play when designing quests. I've always loved Greek mythology and the DF-style of gameplay and humor is lending itself well to the combination. In planning, I try to take the essence of the labors and mix them up with DF-style humor. For example, with the labor involving the Stymphmalion birds, they wanted to drive Hercules mad. DragonFable has more than a few bird-based monsters, so I was all set in that respect. I gave it a little twist to bring the Labor's plot in line with what is occurring in the quest chain, and voila, a quest idea is born!
I have a basic sketch of all the Labors that will be going into the quest chain, but a recent thread in the DragonFable General Discussion board has led me to revise some of my ideas based on what players have posted."
Alac says that what she is most proud of thus far is the temple background in the latest Zeuster chain that came out on Friday, February 6. She thought that it turned out much better than she had hoped. I have such an appreciation now for the Zeuster quest chain. Here I sat, playing my heart out, downing the baddies while trying to get the half-n-half to tell me what in Lore the bacon element was. I appreciated the animation and art, enjoyed watching the developing story line that embodied the Hercules tale. My love of mythology is sated for now. But it makes me wonder... just what in Lore will Zeuster do once we are done with him.
When I asked Alac if Zeuster was really as great as he thinks, I was given this reply:
"Zeuster prepared an answer for me in case I was ever asked the above question.
'Is Zeuster really as great as he thinks he is? Yes, yes he is. And don't you forget it. In fact, he's even greater than you think he thinks he is, because mere mortals cannot conceive of just how great he is.'"
Dare we begin to imagine what this overconfident, deity of half-servings has in store for us later? I dare not, for I fear that the revelation about the bacon element is merely his foot in the door to our character's souls.
* Aside from the obvious answer - family.
**Do not believe the AKs when they discuss my obsess- er, love of these winged jewels.
***Seriously, it was small! You didn't have to raise your voice to talk to your friend on the other side of the library.
****Dionysus, anyone?
*****This greatly interests me. I will be exploring this further, do not worry your heads over that!
******I remember talking to one of my students the week that the armor came out, as he played Dragon Fable, too. Apparently, he suspected the AE Staff had had too much sugar the week of the release.
*******It is rumored that our Admin are not entirely human. I'll let you decide.
********Note to self... If you want long, exciting, complicated madness in a project... contact Cysero.
*********If not, run, not walk, to your nearest doctor and get your funny bone checked out.
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