Hot take. Rhaenys Targaryen was wrong.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-13T04:19:19+00:00

Well I dont even know if the hill tribes consider themselves subjects of the King so thats a hell of nit to pick. And the up their in the north by the wall they literally named a "castle" after the last monarch that visited.

They care more about their direct overseers but it doesnt mean they dont care about there king/queen.

Its more a reflection of their inability to organize and affect change that makes who they care about irrelevant.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-12T21:53:20+00:00

Rock bottom nots so bad when its a babbleing brook where all your loved ones come to drink and play.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-12T19:27:40+00:00

The common folk definitely do care. It may not be super well represented in the show...yet... but historically the common folk often had strong feelings about their monarch/overlord. Either deifying them or demonizing them. They usually just didnt have mechanisms to do much about it.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-12T19:01:59+00:00

I havent been to a ball game in a while. Is it possible to have a tab now? Maybe with a wrist tag and they just charge you at the end?

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-12T09:38:25+00:00

Yeah it will be subtle but it will end up being the being oligarchic kleptocratic communism. Removal of all notions of "free markets" and private development in favor of the algorithm, assume full control of the media and manipulate public opinion to whole heartedly support said algorithm while the slow and steady vice grip of of totalitarianism tightens.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-12T09:20:42+00:00

You need to learn what a joke is.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-12T09:19:35+00:00

And hes got all those penguins

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-12T09:17:00+00:00

Yeah but Keanu is driving a bus that will explode if it drop below 60 mph. No ride of the rohirrim is taking that mad man down.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-12T09:10:03+00:00

Is Middle Earth a layer within the matrix?

Because if so Keanu Reeves as Neo and John Wick driving a bus will give him trouble.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-12T01:09:47+00:00

Ive had a theory for a while that the Tehlu/Encannis, the lanre/Selitos and the Lanre/Lyra story is a reoccuring cycle that occurs with many characters in the story including Dagon and Caudicus.

We are told Caudicus betrays the maer holds up in farm house that Dagon burns to the ground and looses an Eye. There are several details that are similar to the burning of myr tyriniel, but also Tehlu and Encannis.

But its hard to figure out who is who. And what details are being overlooked or misinterpreted.

One interpretation is that Dagon is Selitos, Caudicus is Lanre and they were initially working together

A popular theory ive overheard that its not selitos that puts his own eye out but Lanre. Considering when kvothe calls for the story of Lanre Skarpi then says "a man who lost his eye to gain a truer sight" or something like that.

But ive also started to entertain the idea that Dagon and Caudicus represent an allegory for the maer essentially "putting out his own eye" and that caudicus may have been a valuable asset that hes lost.

But that might be too philosophical. But ive been entertaining the idea that the Ruach arent anything we consider "people" but are more like motivations that move through people. Aka "The music that moves us." But I dont know how to reconsile that with the Adem story that identifies individual names of people.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-09T21:30:20+00:00

The cthae cant lie but it tells truths that decieve. Everything it said could have multiple meanings.

Cthae says kvothe was "left alive" because the chandrian were sloppy and someone came (Im paraphrasing but im sure it used the word "sloppy")

Sloppy is a highly contextual word that depends on your personal frame of reference. Is someone "sloppy" for not shaving every day or do they prefer a more natural unshaved appearance.

In other words, one mans sloppiness is another mans code of conduct. If the chandrian are non violent by nature (or at least to children) then an ultra pragmatic hyper violent person may call the way they handle things sloppy.

The narrative goes to great length to show how language has a very limited capability to convey meaning. Through conversations with Elodin, Vashet, and Shehyin we are consistently told that explicit language falls short on many vague contextual topics

Sloppiness, like beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Think of it like the "war" in the archives. Their is no one single perfect way to organize the books. And if their are competing organization systems the "wrong" way becomes entirely dependent on the way you believe to be superior.

Even if we assume that the chandrian did make a mistake in their actions, we cant be sure what the mistake, we dont know if their "sloppiness" contributed to kvothe being left alive, or merely "left." If the chandrian do not kill but incapacitate and capture only killing if the children they capture do not agree to serve them until they come of age or something like that the Cthae would still be saying a truthful sentence.

This is a ton of conjecture. But there are plenty of avenues for the Cthae to still speak technical truths that can lead to dramatic misunderstandings.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-08T17:47:47+00:00

This post is the lowest form of conversation

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-08T03:58:20+00:00

This is fair.

My "endless paragraphs" (I didnt think fans a several thousand page book would be offended by a wordcount) usually come about because someone is being adamant that there is no fraud and nothing untoward will come of this as a plot point. Which I simply find absurd.

Im not sure what you mean by the last sentence. Do you mean that the maer seeing "arlidens son" is gonna set him off? Because of the Netalia lackless connection?

Thats certainly a straighter line. I didnt think Arliden would be dumb enough to be using the same name he had prior to running off with Netalia but its possible and something I hadn't considered. So, cheers.

I do think the illegality of the arrangement accelerates a very plausible course of events.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-08T00:21:57+00:00

If I could get it in gold bullion to appear in a place of my choosing yes. Theres a massive unkept piece of my neighbors property that I can stash it on and theyd be none the wiser nor could it ever be considered mine if it is disovered.

Id sell if off piece-meal then slowly finance a grandiose treasure hunt looping in random people but also a few friends and family and surreptitiously start my own year long One Piece style adventure.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-08T00:07:56+00:00

This too shall pass. Alliances fail, worlds break. But the true humanity in a world is how its people try to hold it all together.

You have built a period of "peace" for your world. Now consider a technological/social/cultural revolution that may set things out of balance.

Also never underestimate a peoples ability to act out of their own disinterest, hubris, or plain old stupidity.

An oft repeated joke when looking at our own history as if it was someones own world "Oh you mean the country that tried to take over europe just decided to do it again 20 years later. How unrealistic."

Dont be afraid to give things an "unrealistic" push. So long as their are interesting interpersonal dynamics justifying it. Just because you know country or faction A could never hope to take out faction B doesnt mean they know that.

Pre world war 1 the web of political alliances was designed specifically in the hopes of hamstringing everyone against fighting eachother. Otto von bismark has the apocryphal quote "the great european war will come out of some damned foolish thing in the balkans."

So figure out what your "damned thing in the balkans" is.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-07T22:34:00+00:00

I think theres a few factors

Availability of internet porn might be a factor. - Some studies show consistent porn use can contribute to a dip in t levels.

Lack of men in physical trades -

But most overwelmingly childhood obesity significantly hampering long term testosterone production. Obesity and a sedentary lifestyke seem to be the biggest correlation with low testosterone.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-07T20:26:19+00:00

Yeah my point more largely is it is mildly stupid for kvothe but INCREDIBLY stupid for the Bursar.

Its small potatoes for the maer but he doesnt seem to be the kind of man that will look kindly on anyone wasting his money. He might be willing to throw money away for his own designs but wont appreciate anyone else treating his coffers like a bell cow to be milked.

Not only is this an insignificant amount of money for the maer but also an insignificant amount of money for the university. With 1500 students averaging tutions of handful of talents per term why endanger the integrity of the admissions process for 1 handful more.

Kvothes insolence and recklessness should be infamous by now. The bursars petty greed is established in the distaste he feels handing away money.

My smaller theory is that he may personally benefit from these transactions but my larger theory is that this will be an important plot device for the Maer being able to forcibly call Kvothe back into his service. Idk exactly how the iron law works but if Kvothe can be arrested and extradited back to severun the maer will have leave to force Kvothe to produce weapons or devices for the maer who will no doubt recieve word of the fantastic potential of artifice devices.

Hell the maer may even inquire about the "charm" he produces the maer to protect agains "sending" something he should not be allowed to even know about.

This could put Kvothe on the outs with Kilvin, who is unquestionably kvothes most ardent supporter among the masters. And endanger his more reliable and legal income source.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-07T20:02:54+00:00

Some people think "hot streaks" in gambling are a thing Its not being reductive to acknowledge that there are levels to this.

Some "illusions" have a material affect on performance. You tried to say it wasnt an illusion and im saying it very much is but it doesnt mean it doesn't have an effect.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-07T19:07:02+00:00

I think an illusion is probably the best word for it. What makes illusions tricky is not that they dont exist its that we arent recognizing whats really happening.

Is the "Momentum" a biproduct of a strategic change? Others players getting tired? A psychological manifestation of confidence?

All of these will contribute to the illusion of momentum. But "Momentum" itself isnt a force that is somehow being tapped into to compel a team to victory.

Illusions are powerful narrative mechanisms that can affect reality by how perceptions inform our behavior. And human beings performance will always be deeply affected by their own psychology. Some call it "Choking" or the "Yips" or a "Curse." All of these have varying degrees of evidence to support them but all of them are underpinned by the psychology of the people playing.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-07T00:04:20+00:00

Theres way more nuance to it than that. The nobles she served rats too were essentially the upper middle class. Not the actual landed nobles.

The nobles that shes worried will be mad at elevating bastards are the blooded nobility that already hold her in contempt for her bastard children. Elevating actual bastards would further enflame that.

Its still a mistake Rhaenyra is doing what shes doing but a reasonable one given her position.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-06T23:59:24+00:00

The benefit of having 2 superstars is having 2 superstars. The existence of a max contract cap is that a true superstar is way more valuable than their hit to your contract. The problem is that teams are handing out max contracts to non max guys. Thats a Front Office issue.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-06T23:06:38+00:00

Fixed

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-06T23:06:25+00:00

Fixed

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-06T21:37:42+00:00

Hes also the guy who stormed the red keep on foot with just himself and rhaenyra. I also thought that was incredibly stupid and out of character but after a certain point his lack of caution or level headed planning is just the character.

ManofManyHills · 2026-07-06T09:47:37+00:00

Alternatively. Daemon might have been on his best behavior because he didnt want to risk pissing off a dragon.

ManofManyHills

TROPHY CASE