What an amazing honor! · 3:48am Jun 20th, 2015
So, how do I feel about this?
Humbled, really. And excited, I won't deny it.
I started this whole project out as just an idea in early September of last year. I read Fallout: Equestria and Past Sins back-to-back after my motorcycle accident (which incidentally happened on June 20th exactly one year ago today). I had never read ponyfic before, and I was captivated by the story (and captive by the hospital I lived in for five days). Seriously, this was me.
I had never known that such stories existed. For two solid months I was sitting at home healing my six broken ribs and collar bone, engrossed in these stories and their characters. When I finished, I felt this great sadness that the story was over. Fo:E was amazing and gut-wrenching emotional for me. I identified very strongly with Littlepip, and the story drew me in more than I ever would have expected. Then, Past Sins was super-sweet and adorable with Nyx being such an interesting character. Pen Stroke really nailed it with the idea of reincarnating Nightmare Moon as a small innocent child. The exploration of one destined to be evil but choosing to be good was very satisfying.
And yet, when it was over, I still felt that the story was not finished. Pen Stroke set up an amazing character and then... ended the story as if to say "this is just the beginning". Luna restores her and she is given back to Twilight, and the story just ends. I wanted more! So I read his sequels like Winter Bells. Then I read RealityCheck's very cute Nightmare Night & Nyx. That was when I realized that other people can continue a good story. What I really wanted was to see Nyx grown up. I wanted to know how it all turned out. The most impacting moment in Past Sins for me was in the Judgement chapter when Nyx was submitting herself before the royal sisters. It was where Nyx said this:
"I can be bruised, battered and beaten but, as long as there is still breath in my lungs, I will continue to protect ponies."
This was truly inspiring. It showed that Nyx was not just some sensitive, helpless filly who would forever be hunted by vengeful ponies because of her legacy, always having to keep disguised and be sheltered. No, what this said was that within Nyx beat the heart of a hero. Someone who would never stop defending others no matter how difficult or what the personal consequences might be. This statement, along with her cutie mark, to me, meant that Nyx had a destiny of protecting ponies. That somehow, Nyx would be destined to engage in some sort of epic struggle that ends up saving countless lives, and that she would continue to selflessly do this as long as she lives.
That's what Past Sins meant to me. Yes, the rest of the story was great, and filly-Nyx is just so adorable... But then I searched around for any example where I could read about Nyx's heroic deeds as an adult. Where were they? There were none! Not one. What do? I decided that since no such story existed, that I would take a stab at it! And what better setting, I figured, than the great zebra war from Fallout: Equestria. So I made my rough outline, drafted a couple rough chapters, and met some good friends on fimfiction who thought it was a cool idea, and the rest is history!
When I first started, I really just wanted to read the continuing stories in Nyx's character arc. To see what she would be like as that hero she was promising to be at the end of Past Sins. I figured I'd give it a shot, and I remember how cool I thought it would be if somehow Pen Stroke and Kkat would one day notice the story and it would bring a smile to their faces. What an honor that would be. So... yes, I'm very humbled that even while the story is only about ten percent published, that it has been noticed.
This is an incredible motivation to continue and finish the story. Many ambitious projects never get finished - especially projects that take more than a year to complete. But this is a labor of love for me, and I intend to see it through to the end. Many thanks to all the fans, and especially to Pen Stroke for this recent honor. Many thanks to all my friends who have helped in the story's development, and pushed me to write as high a quality story as I can.
Oh, also I need to send thanks to AnY Pony, for it was his Youtube reviews which originally turned me on to both of these epic stories!
Hey, congrats on having Pen Stroke favoriting and endorsing your story! I myself am looking forward to seeing where this goes.
Congrats! That is so awesome!!!!!!
*bows in respect*
Your story is a little different from how I got into FOE and Past Sins, but it is still an awesome story and I think it is awesome what you take away from it. Kind of what I take away too, from both Nyx and Little Pip. I was kind of in the same boat when it came to writing adult Nyx.
Again, great job
Congrats, Recon. A grand honor indeed, Pen must have been out looking for some stories when he stumbled upon yours. It is a grand story so far, looking forward to the rest of it.
Congratulations! It's always great to gain the approval of those you look up to.
I'm noting, too, that apparently you're the only one to have achieved the particular honor of having written a Great Story Involing (sic) His Characters. So congrats on that, too.
I never got into Fallout: Equestria, mostly due to apprehension, because the setting is apparently much darker(rather, bleaker) than the actual Fallout CRPGs. I *do* read RealityCheck's Nyxverse stories, but still haven't actually read Past Sins, as I started reading them because I read the guy's webcomics(Incidentally, I'm a forum regular on his website). Which all a just long-winded and irrelevant way of asking "Would you recommend Fallout Equestria to me despite my reservations?"
3165082 Absolutely, I would! Fo:E is an emotional tour de force. It's not what I would call "depressing" though. It is uplifting becuase of the incredible character of the ponies in the story. It's inspiring.
Yes, all the characters make some pretty terrible mistakes at some point during the story. Yes, there are horrific tragedies in the story. Yes, there is immorality and violence. But it is such an adventure! It is so worth it. There are times when you scream at the monitor for the author to just give the characters a break. So many things happen, and it can be fatiguing at times simply because you want the characters to be able to rest. Again though - it's worth it. Also, the story gets better the farther you go. About half way through, it really dawns on you how epic the story is.
Watch the youtube review I linked in the above blog post. It gives a pretty good indication as to what you're in for.
Congrats on involing his character in your good story!
I'll bet my story's not on that shelf...3165407
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3167435 I'm sorry, we have no idea what you mean...
3167435
shh :V
Hot damn! That's way cool Recon!
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Matching avatars ftw.
lol yeah. I ain't gonna tell him.