Addendum

"Tidal fantasy" refers to how the tides have shifted in various ways, but there will definitely be giant whales that eat whole ships in it.

Q&A Corner

Q. How do I get across that my setting is full of magic and grand deeds?
A. Slivers of dead gods are a standard currency.
Q. How do I get across that my setting has dragons in it?
A. Here's the first line: "That was the day I saw a dragon."
Q. How do I get across that my orcs are noble and cool and stuff?
A. Here's the title: Neo-Fantasy Is All Out of Ideas
Q. What comes after neo-fantasy?
A. Rachet fantasy, then palin-fantasy, then intimate fantasy (intasy), then tidal fantasy.

Hero of Competence

Five men met at a crossroads and one slew the other four. That was common enough, but strangely, he said this.
"Each of those men committed a crime. The first was weakness, the second incapability, the third powerlessness, and the fourth clumsiness. Until now you have regarded trivialities as sins and ignored the true transgressions. Correct your behavior."
Everyone who heard the story reconsidered his way of life, not wishing to be killed by a powerful warrior. In the end, the people as a whole concluded they ought to hunt him down and kill him rather than be found wanting by his standards instead of their own.
They confronted the man, but he simply laughed. "Don't you know? The men I killed are the north, the south, the east, and the west, for everyone in every direction is at fault and will die someday until you realize your own incompetence are what keep you from immortality. As for me, I don't represent anything. I'm just the first to figure it out."
The people of the world stabbed him for hours without killing him, at the end of which they admitted they were bad. He told them that was the foundation and left. From that day, true sages began to appear in the world.
Finis

Future Automotive Aesthetics

In World War II, people tried out all kinds of tanks, but now they're more or less all the same. Will that happen to cars? Should our science fiction settings have personal car, bulk cargo car, armored car, and nothing else? Or will they have more varieties than ever because improved industrial capacity will make more particular designs possible? I think the former, but I don't care about cars at all.

Addendum

That's just an exuse, though. It never even played Smite.

A Failed Bet

I thought AI would kill us all before Smite went into maintenance mode, but it turns out AI is going to kill us all because it's mad about no more Smite updates.

Addendum

Relatively speaking, of course. An empire can't be counted upon for reliable law enforcement across all its possessions, territories, client kingdoms, and so forth. What you really want is a mage judge.

Speaking of Law Enforcement

You know what you want to cut down on theft? Non-evil empires.

The Transfer of Brilliance

You think stealing is good to do so long as you aren't caught? Listen to this story then. Formerly the sun resented the moon's greater brightness. It therefore went to all the animals, telling them, "Take away the moon's cloak and give it to me! I will reward you for it."
Of all the animals, only Salmon, Herring, Trout, and their relatives were stupid enough to listen. They entered the bower where the moon rests during the day as easily as laughing, for the moon was not on guard against such foolishness. They hurried back to the sun with the stolen cloak.
"Put it on me right away! The honor of doing so is the first of your rewards."
The silly fish did so, and forthwith the cloak gave forth radiance and heat too great for any animal to bear. The fish screamed and ran. They didn't stop even after they jumped into lakes, rivers, and oceans to relieve their pain, and they swam so far that they lost their legs. Now they can't come back on the land. The moon never caught them, but do you envy their fate?
Finis

The Character of February

Short and cold. Does Valentine's Day fit in here? It does not. Maybe that was when he died or was born or decided to throw a party, but let's pick one of the other ones and move this over to May-July. To fill the gap, we'll have a day to celebrate the imminent end of February, on the 25th or thereabouts.