dreamcrystals | A Matter Of Opinion

Sender: Moxxie
Subject: re: Armaments, traditions, and customs, vis-a-vis names

Reverein, I need a little help in resolving a minor dispute on a matter of opinion. And weapons. Namely, the naming thereof. Now, I've always had a mind for the classics in both music and literature, and giving a weapon a name all its own is a way of establishing personal significance, identity, and legacy, to say nothing of gravitas in recognition of or anticipation of the deeds ascribed to it. What, pray tell, would be Der Ring des Nibelungen without Nothung, the accursed sword of Siegfried? What would be the Arthurian legends without Excalibur or La Chanson de Roland without Durandal? I would assert, therefore, that the practice is timeless, and has a well-earned place in the modern day, and with modern weaponry besides; that something like, for example, a shotgun can have enough significance to its wielder and within its deeds that it is no less worthy of being given a name than the weapons of old. HOWEVER, in contrast, a certain colleague of mine does not share my views on this matter and describes the entire practice as, and I quote them directly, "Cringe, T B H". Which to me not only shows a lack of dramatic appreciation but also ignorance of the proud tradition upheld by the act of doing so. Thus I put it to a vote in a public forum before my fellow dreamers: Is the practice of naming weapons really just a relic of a bygone sentimentality, or is it a timeless practice honoring the tools of the world's second-oldest trade?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I don't think it's a relic of bygone sentimentality. In the world I'm from, it was very common for swordsmiths to name the swords they forged, either after themselves, or their school, or after special moment like a sword slicing through five corpses or a candlestick.

If anything, it's rather sad for me to think about all the swords that were forged and were never named.

Even though the era of swords is over in my world, I still think it's only fair to name the weapons or tools you either create yourself or personally use. Otherwise, they weren't really loved, were they?

Hold on. Can we circle back to those 'special moments' you mentioned? They seem oddly specific. I can envision a weapon being named for some mighty feat or boast, like Sharur or Tonbokiri, but cutting corpses or a candlestick doesn't sound particularly epic.

Maybe it's not impressive to you for a sword to cut through that many corpses, but it is in my world. Even just cutting through three corpses is pretty impressive, but I know things like guns could probably do more damage.

[ It's very difficult for him not to outright say that one, he knows Tonbokiri and two, Tonbokiri is definitely an admirable yari. ]

Slicing through a certain number of corpses is actually one of the ways people used to test the authenticity of swords, you know. And while being named after cutting corpses, or cutting through candlesticks, cabinets or beards might not be impressive, it still meant something to the sword's master, and that's what matters.

You know what, that's fair. When you come from a world where precision-tooled weapons are almost strikingly commonplace, it's easy to forget that a modern baseline standard for quality was once an extraordinary feat of craftsmanship. Especially given how fragile swords could be in some parts of the world.

Yeah.

[ He knows it wasn't, but that last line feels like a personal attack anyway. ]

Finely crafted swords are, of course, very sharp. But the thing is, a sharp sword has to compensate in other areas, so usually a sharper sword is more brittle and likely to break like you said.

But proper maintenance can, for the most part, prevent that.

Since you sound like you come from a modern era with modern weaponry, I take that to mean you prefer weapons like guns instead of swords? Aren't more modern weapons impersonal?

Impersonal is a good word to describe it, but in my line of work that isn't necessarily a bad thing. When I use weapons, it's seldom for a reason I would describe as personal. Besides, don't you agree that being able to land a clean kill in one hit from a safe distance is simply practical?

It's safe and practical, sure, but I think it's also cowardly. If you're going to take the life of someone, it's important to be able to look at them in the eyes clearly before you do it. Surprise attacks, back attacks, ranged attacks without any warning -- I think they're all dishonorable.

That doesn't mean I don't get where you're coming from, though. It's just not a way I could live. I recognize that also means I might not live as long as someone else who prefers to take down their opponents from afar.

What's your line of work, though? Are you a mercenary?

[Ooookay. How best to smooth this over... perhaps focusing on the present would be the best angle for now.]

Well, in Reverein, I've become part of an esteemed troupe of what you could call nightmare-hunters. And if you're going up against Noctaere that can teleport, bend the laws of physics, and casually bisect people with a swing of their pinky finger, you need to take every advantage you can get, right?

Ah, I see.

[ He had meant what his profession was back home, but in all fairness, he didn't stop to consider that his profession might be different here. ]

You're not wrong. It's a little humbling to be in Reverin for me. I was pretty good with a sword back home, but I'm not very good at dreamotion and a lot of the things here are very magical and a little out of my league.

So you're really able to combat all of that with your weapons?

[Oh, Moxxie was well aware. But declaring that he was, in the most polite terms, a 'contract killer' back home would probably be a bad first impression.]

Well To be honest, one of my first big missions showed just how difficult it can be. We barely kept pace and kept alive, and I could scarcely land a hit with how my target was moving. That fight was the first time I'd managed to accomplish anything big with dreamotion, too, though I haven't been able to do anything like it since. If anything it seems like anything impressive I manage by way of dreamotion is strictly involuntary. But at least I know I'm not the only one who finds it difficult to use.

At least you were able to use dreamotion when you really needed it. It probably could have been much worse if you hadn't.

But I think you're right that, about dreamotion use being involuntary. I've tried a lot, and I can't consciously do it. Even when I get frustrated by my ability to do it, that doesn't even help like I thought it might.

Either way, I'm going to have to learn to get better at it because a sword isn't going to solve every problem here. I might find myself in a situation where I'd ~~break~~ be killed if I can't get a handle on it.

Wish I could offer you some tips on it, but I don't have any obviously. Maybe one of us will get lucky and figure out the secret?

A Matter Of Opinion

Sender: Kashuu Kiyomitsu

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