#micahdbg

SUMMARY

My idea of the Time Aspect is that -beyond being the Aspect dealing with the “time” in “space time”, its Flow, and all the Concepts associated with Time, like Progression, Order, Linearity, ect- it is the Aspect of Death, Inevitability, Destruction, Rhythm, Repetition, Memories/History, Stasis[2], Decay[3], Change, Tempo, Choice, and Context[4]. That makes it a rather “contradictory” Aspect, and as such it lends itself well to Irony though, as we see in the Strider-Lalondes, a Player can bring Irony to any Aspect with the proper perspective :]

I read Heirs as Being Protected and Passively Empowered by their Aspect, as well as Wielding it for the sake of others(John unknowingly summoning the Breeze to put out This Fire, Equius unknowingly hiding Vriska’s 8-8all, and Mituna taking grievous injury onto himself to divert Doom from his Teammates are good examples I think), though they’ve also done stuff like taking on the form/properties of their Aspect or “Becoming” it in some way.

An Heir of Time, then, would be one who “Embodies Time, Protects/Protects through/is Protected by Time, Influences/ect/ect Time, is Empowered by/ect/ect Time” or, to paraphrase Aradia’s language when speaking about Knights, “one who wields Time and its Flow as a Shield, allowing themselves and inviting others to be protected and kept on track through Time”. Heirs also seem to have an affinity for expressing their Mythic Role through Speech, and first expressing their powers unknowingly and passively. Struggles with self-esteem and self-image also show up in both John and Equius, so that might be another common trait(we’re dealing with a small sample size here though, so take all of this suitably seasoned). deliverusfromsburb tends to read them as focal points for their Aspect, which is another approach you might consider for how you structure your character :)

ARC

We’ve seen a lot of variety in Time Players, and I’d imagine there are, similarly, plenty of ways to “passively embody” Time. One thing they all share to some respect, though, is a preoccupation with the past, or what you might call a central feeling of Nostalgia; Dave has his longing for simpler times, Aradia her archeology, Damara her soft-spot for Rufioh, and Caliborn his obsession with Calliope. Another is music, though Caliborn’s interest in this field is suitably deconstructive, annoying, and kind of insulting to the audience. Another element you might want to include is an interest in and sense for Context. Archeology isn’t just about finding The Thing but figuring out what The Thing meant, Damara’s desire to annihilate her team has as much to do with wanting to escape their bizarre metaphysical situation as platonic hatred, Dave is constantly recontextualizing everything from music to art to himself, and Caliborn is all about making everything about Himself and making sure everyone Knows that(as well as being an art thief and serial plagiarist); so, if you wanted, you could use this interest in Context to tie parts of your Heir’s story and character together.

So, whichever Facet of Time interests your Heir the most, some element of Nostalgia and Context are likely to be important to their involvement with it; either an interest in altering it, or in appreciating and understanding it[5], or both[6]. For example, an Heir interested in Death, Stasis, and Preservation -who expressed this through a talent for taxidermy and embalming- might strive to pose their subjects dynamically, changing the context and meaning of Death itself, or place them outside surrounding normal to them and the Dead so as to give them new meaning. Or, an Heir interested in Music, Tempo, and Change might(as a “passive” musician) prefer improvisation to composition and incorporate structural elements common to historically important genres or composers into their improv, but use them in different genres(making a dirge out of dancehall music, for example), at different tempos and octaves, at different points in their songs(like, using a bridge section as inspiration for the main melody or conclusion), or invert the structure around the scale(low c becomes high c, high a becomes low a, ect), or placing them in a different scale than they were written for entirely.

The central challenges presented to Heirs, imo, are “to Focus, to Recognize their Power, to See themselves Honestly, to learn Control, and finally to Trust Themselves(through first trusting others)”, and given the nature of Time this could be pretty rough on an Heir. Their Time Abilities would likely start off being unconsciously controlled by their Emotions which would probably be pretty confusing, and their “learning to trust themselves from trusting others” might require applying lessons from failed TLs to their-self and their own which could mean watching terrible things happen to their Friends repeatedly(ala Edge of Tomorrow). Heirs also tend to grow through their Aspect in some way which, considering Times attachment to Death, could make that more likely. Less traumatic alternatives are available though: they could die early on and learn much about their Self, their Power, and what they want to do from their time in the Bubbles; or an Heir focused on Change could grow through the novelty and challenges The Game presents; or one focused on Memory and Stasis through holding on to their past, applying its lessons to these new circumstances, and making sure their Friends don’t lose sight of what it means to be... whatever species they are :p More literally, they might unintentionally throw their self through Time early on and begin a “Journey through Time”. As they jump wildly from past to Future to Alternate TLs, helping the Friends and thwarting the Foes they find along the way, they would learn about their Self and the Time Aspect, and from that gain the focus and control they need to travel back to the beginning able to use their powers as they wish(and begin closing all the crazy loops they inadvertently opened along the way :p :p).

So, some Examples :]

HEIR OF FLOW

One type of Heir you could do would be someone who emphasizes Tempo, Beat, Rhythm, Music, Change, and the Flow of Time(direction optional :]). An interest in music -it’s artistic and technical sides(maybe they’d help out other friends with sound-editing, equipment and the like, as well as being a devastating rap-smith >:])- would be an obvious choice, but so could one in Video tech and manipulation. Personality wise they might be the type who struggles to get motivated to do things or to see them through when it “doesn’t feel right” and things aren’t clicking, zooms through them when “the Vibe is right”, but also has a tendency to get a bit over-energetic and carried away with their projects when they’re in that Grove. When “In The Groove”, perhaps complicated tasks would take up surprisingly little time, or fun and comfortable hangouts would seem to take up more time that the clock suggests they did. Maybe their tests and projects always seem to get done “just in the nick of time”, while their empty, boring hours fly by(or not; maybe their feeling of boredom would actually stretch such times out >:|). When out of The Groove they might not be so hot to be around (:/

Early on in their Session, they might find enemies conveniently freezing in mid-attack as if they’d been “paused“, and maybe they’d find, just before some catastrophic event was about to kill them, that their surroundings had been slowed, allowing them to move out of danger, or their life “rewound”, allowing them to avoid or prevent the event. As they gain greater control the Heir might become able to speed their self up or “fast-forward” the TL to check how things play out before deciding what to do or, if more music inclined, “infect” everything with “The Groove”, making Foes move and Events play out to the Heir Beat and Tempo, allowing their unerring sense of Rhythm to carrying them and their Friends along the optimal path.

I’d imagine Focus would be the main challenge for this type of Heir of Time. Someone who naturally trusts in and “Goes with the Flow” like them could easily Lose Themselves to Dance” or “Spirited Away” by the Plot and end up in places they’d rather not be. Direct manipulation of Time is always going to be dangerous, and when one relates to and controls it subconsciously and emotionally that can make it unpredictable as well. So for them, it wouldn’t be so much a struggle to realize What they can Do, like it was with John and Equius, but more a struggle to Do what they Want to Do with it, like John with his Canon(?)Travel. More meta-expressions that may pop up as they approach and snotch their Tiger could be things like... speeding up the pace of the story so as to -entirely coincidentally u_u- gloss over some emotionally damaging development that would have derailed a Friend, or adding in a new Story “Beat” that sends their Team off on a diversion that becomes a detour around some danger the Heir would rather they didn’t try handling. Maybe they could even, for a short time, change the “Melody” or “Genre” of their Story entirely, and what looks to be building up to a dangerous final confrontations becomes a rom-dramedy of manners, or Cheesy Dance-off :p

HEIR TO BE

Another approach could be an Heir of Time focused on Memory, Stasis/Preservation, and more minorly Inevitability. They might have a strong sense of the fragile and ephemeral nature of life and be dire or mournful as a result, or they might see memories as a source of Vitality, feel fiercely that protecting them is a Sacred Trust, and be rather bubbly and go-get-em as a result. In the same way John has a thing for pursuits and items associated with Levity and Equius with social Duty/Inheritance, this Heir might have a thing for Mementos. Diaries, Keepsakes, old Gifts and Ancient Objects. Antiques could certainly be a part of this but gathering together pricey Old Things wouldn’t be the point, to them; collecting and preserving items infused with and representative of Memories and Experiences would. As a result they might also be a bit of a magpie regarding their Friends’ possessions; surreptitiously snatching knick-knacks of sentimental importance from their possession, or taking items of little significance to their Friends but which represent important memories to the Heir. That they preserve them would be important though; unlike with a Thief, their desire wouldn’t be to use these items, but simply to keep them and to think or be reminded of what they stand for.

I think it’d be cool if the big reason they liked such items was because focusing on them actually let them experience the memories and experience the item had been present for or represented, kind of like Psychometry. At first, before The Game, it would just be a sort of feeling; maybe they would even think about it as being a pretend game they came up with as a kid, sort of how Jade sees Furries as this sort of aspirational thing rather than being super serious and in to it. As they begin their Entry process though, and more so once they enter their Session, these experiences and the draw of them would begin to get more intense. Maybe it would seem like they’re about to get crushed by their Meteor because their Totem summoned an item that needs to be broken but no tool to break it with, and they’d start remembering good times with their Guardian as a sort of farewell -being taught how to swing a bat, play golf, or bake, or the first time they ever went Antiquing- and that would summon the item from that memory, allowing them to break the Entry item and take them to the Session. Maybe early on they’d encounter a puzzle -a door or some such that they can’t figure out how to open- and they’d start distractedly playing around with and wondering about some tiny artifact they picked up because it “felt old” to them when they saw it, when suddenly they’d find their self back in a time when the item was new; either allowing them to see how the door is opened, or to block it then so they can pass through it now. Perhaps their Team would need items from their pre-Game lives -things transportalized from the Session like the Last Frog- to progress, and the Heir would be able to help them retrieve those items.

For this sort of Heir, I don’t think Focus or figuring out Who they Really Art and What they Really Want would be big problems, but I do think realizing their Power would be. I think this sort of Heir of Time would be super-prone to thinking the “power” was in the items themselves, and that Events and Memories cannot be changed. In particular, I’d imagine them having a very hard time expanding their power-expression beyond this initial item-based phase; learning how to take what they do with Time through memories and items and apply it directly to Time itself in the way Aradia and Dave do might take them quite awhile, and lots of Friendly pushing. They would need to realize that Choices create events just like our Choices on how to approach a memory impact what it means to us, and from that realize that what is “Inevitable” is merely the product of the Choices people make which they, uniquely, have the power to alter if they wish it :]

NOTES

[1]In this context, a srs face |:| |:|

[2]Dave’s Freezy-sword, Aradia’s Time-Stops, the Temporal “Immortality” granted by Caliborn to his servants, the stunted malaise the Alpha!Trolls make of Dreaming Death, the way many Time Heroes seem to get “stuck” on dealing with their problems, ect.

[3]Aradia’s archeology, but most of all Dave’s SBaHJ art.

[4]Dave’s art and Music, Damara’s influence on Troll History, Aradia’s archeology, but also her role after Cascade; not only a guide for the dead, placing them in their proper context, but also constantly reminding our Heroes of the wider metaphysical situation they find themselves in(as in her convo about Caliborn and the Dreaming Dead with John).

[5]I’m tempted to say Heirs would lean more towards the passive “appreciating/understanding” side of this given John and Equius but there are some possible recontextualizing exceptions: Mituna’s theme explicitly calls him a “cheater” and to cheat means to either abuse, ignore, or change the rules of the game; John’s love and performance of his humor-inheritance implicitly removes the various bigotries of his Ancestor; and Equius’ Soulbot Gambit is an actual attempt to “recontextualize” Aradia into his fantasy of her as a highblood, and her feelings for him into Concupiscent ones.