RKMBs Forums .::Important::. Writer's Block Vanguard Europe Story Ideas

The other day The Grimm (that's what he is to be called from now on. That or Boo Boo Kitty Fuck. He likes that.) and I were sitting around our local Books-A-Million being cheap and reading stuff off the shelves instead of buying them. I had a magazine about mysteries (ghosts, UFO's, time travel, magic, and even just regular missing persons stuff) that brought up the discussion of how reading stuff like that gave us interesting ideas for stories and/or characters.

So, in a round-about way, I'm asking if there are any story concepts or plots that you guys would be interested in doing with the Vanguard Europe crew? Where are you getting your inspirations for writing?

Since the Strikeforce is superheroey, and Vanguard is closer to adventure stories, I think in V.E. we should try stuff closer to sci-fi. I don't mean space adventures and such, but stuff like the ones you mention: ghosts, UFO's, time travel, magic... We could get closer to Paranormal Investigators than to a Superhero/Adventurers Team. I don't know if I'm right, but I think that's what you tried to hint at with the description of the first mission.

I'm not really sure what all influences my writing, truth be told. I'm a melting pot of just about everything I've seen/heard, from movies, comics, music, TV shows, etc. I'm personally really interested in mythology, films like Memento and The Usual Suspects, Alan Moore and Neil Gaiman comics, and things of that nature...

Hope this helps...

I mentioned out of the blue...evil Amazon bitch is always an interesting option.

I had another idea, but I forgot it. I'll try to remember later tonight...

Since vanguard means to lead or the leading persons.... why not have them be geniuses, mythical folk, and humans with more psi/paranormal abilities? Make them be not just a team, but also dabbling in politics (not so much like the Authority, but more conspiratorial), being socially conscious, and also winning wars and battles that need to be won?

I don't know the name should mean something more than just a name. Make them be the forefront ...or something.

"they are the posthuman supersoldiers of the 21st centuries new cold war. . .on the forefront of a new dawn for humanity. . ."

I think Piggie's got a point, here. It's one thing to use a phrase like that one, but it's quite another to make that phrase true.

I wouldn't use the phrase if it meant nothing. Do you not remember our discussions about how the MBL name didn't have a meaning in the HR universe?

To me, that phrase symbolizes what Vanguard is, no matter the location, lineup, or application of it. They're at the forefront of the burgeoning movements in this world, particularly the surging metahuman cultures. VE is going to be exploratory and experimental. Not just playing at superheroes, although I'm sure that will happen at times.

Welly, welly, well, Pig Iron. Nice to see you in here. As I've said to the others posting in the VE stories, The Grimm, Pro, and I have an urging to do less stories with a JLA feel and more of a Planetary style more centered on character development and interaction than fighting the bad guys with bare fists. I think the diversity of the team we've got does allow us to go either way. We've got brains and muscle to handle about any situation.

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the position of greatest advancement; the leading position in any movement or field [syn: forefront, cutting edge]

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That's the definition of Vanguard that I think applies here. Like The Grimm said, this team will be at the front of many things that aren't just limited to metahumans (hopefully). That doesn't mean that they'll get JLA or Avengers type of recognition. Hell, they might not ever been noticed at all; but they will still be pushing into new and unexplored areas of this universe we're creating. Boo Boo Kitty Fuck also points out that our writing will be an experiment for us. So I think the name Vanguard will have a good meaning for us as writers as well as our characters.

Mxy, I had, nor have, any plans on where to take this first story. I just saw on the Discovery (or TLC, I can't remember) a program that showed cargo ships and oil tankers frozen in the Artic. I thought that would make a good beginning story since it would have a fixed and isolated location. I set it up to be open without any indication of it going in any direction. I wanted everyone else to decide if it were ghost/demons, UFO's, a science experiment gone wrong, or some angry, frozen tundra meta pissed at the world because of his permenant case of blue balls and taking it out on the rest of society.

The main point of this thread is not only to get out story ideas or a direction of the group, but I wanted to give us a place where we can talk about what we're interested in in general. This way, maybe, we can get a good idea of what state of mind everyone is writing from to better help us understand posts by others and how to work that in with our own writing styles. And, Pig Iron, if you see anything that might interest you, why not give writing with us a shot.

Somebody obviously watched Jay and Silent Bob on Comedy Central recently. . .

My story ideas:

Lords of the NU (already partially setup in Gaunt's subplots and working in collusion with Void.)

The Deconstructionists (This is the idea I mentioned in the old story ideas thread some time back.)

Brood XIII (New idea I had recently based off of nature and metagene theories I've been pondering.)

Where I pull from:

Comics, mythology, music, film, LIFE, weird phenomena, literature, damn near everything. . .Example: The introductory post for Gaunt was directly inspired by a passage in a book I've been reading. This passage was a quote from a prosecutor to Elizabeth Bathory (The infamous Hungarian blood countess) and Gaunt's dialogue came partially from that. Another section of the book has inspired some stuff I'm working on with Ludlow and the evil MBL.

I was thinking at work tonight (a dangerous pasttime, I know) and thought of something that I thought would be a cool idea for VE to tackle eventually. If you've ever read the Superman/Man arc of Mark Waid's JLA, this is an idea I adapted from that story. In that arc, the JLA separates from their alter egos so that they are two different entities. There is both Batman and Bruce Wayne, Superman and Clark Kent, Plastic Man and 'Eel' O'Brian. They all have to work together to fight these creepy alien things and eventually remerge themselves. Dig?

However, as Grimm pointed out, the members of Vanguard Europe don't have alter egos. Which is why I'm proposing that VE not meet their 'alter egos'... but their creators. I propose we write ourselves (i.e. - Steve, Jackie, etc.) into an issue of VE.

I've been wanting to do a story like this for a while, and I figured that VE would be the best option for telling such a story. It could be the work of some interdimensional trickster (i.e. Mr. Mxyzptlk) or Grimm mentioned tying it in with the Deconstructionists he thought up. Or it could be something else. I don't really care how... I just think it would be fun.

However, if I'm the only one who's into this, we can scrap the whole thing. I've no qualms with that at all. So, Grimm suggested I post the idea here and ask for feedback.

So... feedback, anyone?

I would be very glad to do this story, although having Euro met me before, he would be at an advantage (maybe, or maybe not).

Just, being my character not in VE, I would like the story to be done in VI.

Is this any good? I just did it, and these are my 2 characters... Vigna and Lazar.

Give me some critical analysis and if you guys still want me to join in your troop I will.....


" They live, yet we were the ones who suffered. We alone suffered for discovering the secrets of life. " His hand pauses, clenched tightly it hesitates for an instant.

His hands glide through the dark water as he contemplates the ramifications of what he is about to do. He looks upwards towards the glistening surface of the ocean and closes his eyes. His feet stand upon ancient tiles that were created by magnificent artisans. Created in a time when modern man was still scurrying across the grassy plains running from tree to tree looking for a chance opportunity to eat, or discover a new tool.

" This island, this wondrous island has been decaying at the ocean's floor for too many millennia. " He thinks to himself, eyes closed tight.

They murder each other, worship wealth, kneel before matinee idols and media stars; and live a life of gluttonous self-assuredness. His people did nothing less and surely more than modern man. Why were his people, his island home to suffer the wrath and judgment of a God who is dead now, more so than he ever was in the past? His people lived alongside the natural world, and embraced the mathematical and scientific brilliance of their own creation. They sought knowledge and wisdom, but in this man's eyes they were seeking truth- the secrets of their creation. He has been down here nearly two hours talking himself through what he is about to do. He has envisioned what the future will bring and the consequences of what he will do this day. The air around him thins. Air trapped inside an electromagnetic bubble that even the ocean's pressure cannot breach.


" Let it be done. " His hand rests atop an ancient pedestal and touches a dark orb.

There is silence and he cannot even hear his heart beat. The orb rises his hand still firmly grasping its curved shape. For a second he gratifyingly thinks he has the world in the palm of his hands. And then a bluish white light breaks through the darkness of the orb. It flickers and whirls with power. A power similar to what now surrounds him now only more ancient. At the same time, unseen by his closed eyes, across the submerged landmass hundreds of encrusted megaliths shed their plankton covered shells in a violent display of power. Atlantis ascends, and this man Vigna looks up eyes wide open, and a wry smile forms across his face.

The island lurches forth from the sea like an oxygen bubble breaking the surface. A deafening boom of mass and power fills the open ocean. The electromagnetic bubble around him dissipates, but his eyes still gaze skyward in the grandeur of defiance. Gulls fly overhead like they were floating in wait for an ancient breeding ground hidden in the genetic memory of their ancestors. His hand draws back from the orb, but it still floats and breathes heavy with the same energy. He turns swiftly his cape coils behind him like a whipping flag in the wind. He looks down from what is now revealed as a hilltop structure upon the remnants of his people. Monuments, palaces, obelisks, pyramids, statues and megaliths are still evident through their thick coatings of silt and sea life. He hears footsteps behind coming from a man who was there all the time, a man who is always behind him in resolute silence and obedience- A slave that has known no other purpose than to serve his Master for thousands of years stands towering above Vigna in awe and stark devotion. In ancient times he would have been described as a Rephaite or something like the Biblical Goliath. This is a description that would be fitting and vaguely true, but completely missing the genius of his creation. A genetically altered clone would be more appropriate. For God or nature had not made this man, but he was created, created by the hands of the master standing before him.

" Lazar, can you not see it magnificence under the muck of filth and time? Do your eyes not cry for our people and the memory of our land? " The Master's eyes well with sadness and joy.

" My lord, Vigna, the water rolls and floods from this land into the sea like the aftermath of a torrential flood. Somehow that seems fitting. When it is restored to it's former glory I will cry in gladness. I will not cry for the thing that stands before me now, because what I see before me is the tomb of Atlantis. " Lazar's massive face curls in as if in pain. " It will be returned to you like an offering, a penance for our people and the wrong done to them, a gift from the Cherubim. " His hands outstretch and point to a scene of hundreds of seabirds preying on the sea life trapped on the newly risen island, a feast of fish and urchins, a banquet in celebration of this glorious day.

The idea I have is sort of a ghost story. Someone who's dead tries to take revenge on a member of the team, just not in the "normal" way of someone coming back from the dead. I know for sure that Grimm already knows what I'm talking about and I might have mentioned it to nsomeone else on AIM. (My memory's going with old age. I'm turning 31 on Monday.)

I like the characters meeting us idea. I'm just afraid Drake will kick my ass for everything I've put him though...

Ya know, joe mama, just explained to me what AIm was..I'm so clueless i had no idea.....

I like Chewy's idea. For some reason I think it would fit VI better than VE, though. Don't know why, it's just a feeling.

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Pig Iron said:
Is this any good? I just did it, and these are my 2 characters... Vigna and Lazar.

Give me some critical analysis and if you guys still want me to join in your troop I will.....

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Critical analysis: Whoa.

With a couple of requests my character's primary motivations are probably as follows...

I think of their motivations as restoring their place as the top culture of the planet. While there may or may not be only 2 left I believe their intentions are not to destroy mankind, but to belittle them in a way. To crush many beliefs that modern man has, and they think it is a noble endeavor.
That is not all they are, but I think after thousands of years lying in wait there patience has been dwindled to nothing.

That's a solid intro, Piggie. Well done!

Thanks, maybe I would be more productive sober....

Doc's made a habit of posting drunk. No shame in that (to the best of my knowledge)...

It's not a habit. It's a prerequisite.

It's true I suppose....

Ok, I think we can get a good barometer of things to come from what we've already posted here and in the story.

• 1. The strange and unknown seems to be the direction we want to explore right now.
  
• 2. Pig Iron needs to join the group...... OR DIE!

Chewy, I like your idea and really want to do it; but I think we need a few more stories to get everyone used to their characters before bringing that one in. It's definetly something we need to plan on doing somewhere down the line.

If you are going to do a story with Chewy's idea I ask permission to be in that issue. It's a too fun idea to not allow posters to partecipate.
But I think it should be a special, not a regular issue of any of the HR Universe series.

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1. The strange and unknown seems to be the direction we want to explore right now.

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Remember to always expose, explore, and explain. . .THE FORBIDDEN!

Why are you so intent on exposing and exploring yourself?

Well, it's not like anyone else wants to. . .