Lord of the Rational
A rationalist re-imagining of Frodo Baggins proves the ring has no power over anyone through tl dr math formulas in this boring exciting tale for ages 13 and up.
Frodo Makes Tom Bombadil cry then cease to exist, proves not only that Gandalf is a fifth level wizard but all his spells are parlor tricks made to prey on the ignorant, and finally Frodo is crushed into paste by Sauron so he can reclaim his ring and rule Middle-Earth for all eternity.
Does it get better after the first chapter?
edited 18th Jul '10 4:17:56 PM by Pipman
@ Pipman
Aside from that I enjoyed this story. It was a lot of fun to read, and I enjoy the scientific diatribes. In my opinion that's what the author set out to do.
I hate quotes. Tell me what you know- AnonymousThis is a pretty interesting chapter. Zabini's got the fate of the winner in his wand hand.
My FF.net accountIt's Goldstein! The First Enemy of The Party!! How Could We Miss This One?
EDIT: My Hovercraft Is Full of Eels indeed!
EDIT 2: Ooooh, the Drill Penetration Technique... who the hell do you think Draco is?
EDIT 3: I AM LOST!!!! This is worse than Primer. Somebody please draw a diagram!
edited 25th Jul '10 8:24:50 AM by RawPower
'''YOU SEE THIS DOG I'M PETTING? THAT WAS COURAGE WOLF.Cute, isn't he?^^ Surely you'd mean a tertiel?
So?
'''YOU SEE THIS DOG I'M PETTING? THAT WAS COURAGE WOLF.Cute, isn't he?No, I mean truel, because that's what it's actually called in game-theoretic terms. Here's a page on them from LessWrong, a site created by the author of this story.
In a truel, among other things, the least otherwise competent player is often in fact more likely to win.
^^^^Well, here's what happened as best I can figure out.
1) Before the game Blaise manages to convince both teams to wipe out sunshine as Sunshine. This keeps the two teams as even as possible, so they both end up executing their traitors as Sunshines, keeping Sunshine in the game long after they've been wiped out.
2) At the beginning of the battle, Blaise leaves with 6 other Sunshines who will defect to Dragon in the middle of the fight after the rest of Sunshine has been wiped out. This group includes Paravti Patil.
3) Harry has set an order not to attack either Blaise Zabini or Parvati Patil. With all the Sunshines dead, and safely members of dragon, no one has any reason to shoot at them, almost assuring they will both make it to the endgame.
4) Parvati assasinates and replaces her twin sister Padma, a high ranking member of Dragon.
5) The players alive at the endgame are Harry, Draco, Parvati disguised as Padma, and Blaise. Draco doesn't trust Blaise so he takes his wand, but turns his back on Parvati, and gets shot.
6) Harry celebrating his victory, turns his back on the two sunshines, and gets shot.
7) Blaise shoots Parvati, ostensibly because he doesn't trust her not to betray him. Blaise, now a Wild Card, does whatever the hell he wants.
Huge Batman Gambit to be honest, and I think it requires a bit more than 3 things to go right. Impressive though.
I've been Bluelinked
Hopefully Harry learned something out of all that. A game that chaotic is never over until there is no concievable way of losing. If people you trust could still betray you, you have not won. If you could be placed under the Imperius curse and forced to throw the game, you have not won. If the entire Sunshine army was only faking death, you have not won. Seems like an odd mistake for a meta-gamer to make, but I guess Harry is supposed to be rather stupid despite his knowledge base.
Draco using a plan that he thinks was made by Harry, then not considering that Harry wanted him to have it? That is why he can't win. Idiot.
Australia The country with a 2 party system But all the power with independentsI still feel completely Left Behind, but game theory usually has this effect on me: htat's why I quit Liar Game.
'''YOU SEE THIS DOG I'M PETTING? THAT WAS COURAGE WOLF.Cute, isn't he?I only have one problem with the fic so far, and it's this. What the main page lists as "kick the dog" seemed more like a Moral Event Horizon to me, and that clearly was not the intent of the author.
I'm feeling strangely happy now, contented and serene. Oh don't you see, finally I'll be, somewhere that's green...Keep in mind Draco Malfoy hasn't actually done anything yet. It's more of a moral event horizon for his society that could bring him up that way than for the guy himself, who is only 11.
Legally Free ContentI guess you're right. Back to reading then (at Chapter 21)
I'm feeling strangely happy now, contented and serene. Oh don't you see, finally I'll be, somewhere that's green...And Rose Of Versailles is even worse.
edited 27th Jul '10 4:34:56 AM by RawPower
'''YOU SEE THIS DOG I'M PETTING? THAT WAS COURAGE WOLF.Cute, isn't he?The only problem I have with this story is Hermione. Her personality is two dimensional (SUPER SUNSHINE POWERS AND HAPPINESS AND CAREBEAR LESSONS AWAY!!!1) and she's just a dull character.
I hate quotes. Tell me what you know- AnonymousWhat weirded me out about the rape discussion was that it just seemed like the sort of thing that an eleven-year-old would not talk about in that manner. I mean, sure, I get that a kid of that age would happily fantasise about horrible things happening to other people, but that as your first choice? I'm just not seeing it.
Yeah, yeah, I know, weirdly unchildlike behaviour in Methods of Rationality, news at eleven, but it was one of the first and starkest examples I encountered from someone who wasn't Harry, which was what kind of threw me.
edited 28th Jul '10 11:12:51 PM by Iaculus
What's precedent ever done for us?I'm not seeing it either, but I agree with Iaculus on the rape discussion; it just didn't sound like a characteristic thing for an eleven year old, even with Malfoy's upbringing, to say.
...eventually, we will reach a maximum entropy state where nobody has their own socks or underwear, or knows who to ask to get them back.I don't think much of what the main characters say is characteristic of 11 years old boys. Even if they're really smart. The awesomeness of the plot, as well as the fact that his fanfic is constrained by the novel where Harry just happens to go to school at that age, just increase my W So D on that matter.

Start teaching them as soon as possible. Experimentally proven by László Polgár.
edited 17th Jul '10 11:07:59 AM by aRIS
Live forever or die trying.