Page 1736…
Happy Monday!
Okay… I know what you’re thinking… HYDRA? What happened to CHIMERA???
Let me first say… my son Logan is equally upset.
Here’s what happened:
We modelled the Chimera 4 years ago (2009) and… well… we lost it.
Here’s what it would have looked like (they tend to look pretty boring without me posing and lighting them)
So here I am last Thursday scrambling to find a replacement monster and found the Hydra on Turbosquid.
It needed some work… but I think it’s going to work out okay.
All I need to do is go back to the 3-4 times I mention Chimera and fix them. Fortunately it’s only in these last 2 chapters (not in any of the previous books).
So. That’s what happened. What do you think?
I’m having a 20% off Sale on everything at my Etsy store!
Just use the COUPON CODE: ILOVEFALL
Honestly, in default mythological/fantasy interpretation, hydrae are FAR scarier than chimeras, so I’ll go with this being a fortunate failure, aside from the necessary retconning.
Aside: The dictionary says that chimeras is correct, but it sure seems like chimera (or something else more interesting) should be the plural of chimera.
The Hydra! Cut off one head, and two more will grow in its place! Topple a humongous rock spire onto it, though, and all that will be left in its place is a large, hydra-shaped stain… you gotta use the natural advantages of the landscape! >:=)>
Chimerae?
I agree with Marc, a hydra is way more scary (eg nightmare stuff) Unless of course you want to give the kids nightmares about Azlan being not very nice at all …
The thing is, you technically don’t even have to “fix” it per se. We don’t know what all is lurking in Detroit. Chimeras, hydras, David Caruso’s career… so it does not mean that Nastajia actually had to run into the chimera. We would not have known it was a problem had you never told us and probably just assumed she was fighting the beasts in her way back to Dreamland as the Chimera was in assumably the opposite direction.
A bunch of small chimaræ could be chimeritos!
C’mon, Scott, you can tell us the truth. Paul Taylor’s lawyers sent you a “cease and desist” letter, signed by “Senior Director Brandilyn Oduya”.
Reasoning is sound – why rebuild in a hurry if you have something kicking around to use anyhow? Only twinge I feel is that in classical mythology the hydra is essentially a beast, while a chimera is an intelligent being. It bothers me but I’m a “book purist” and have trouble watching movie adaptations because of it, so I’m probably a pretty small subset of readers right there.
Well the design of the chimera looks interesting, while the design of that hydra is less. So it’s the pity that the chimera was lost.
Okay, the snake head looks too cute to live…
and that hydra looks badass.
The loss of the chimera is unfortunate, as I really think it’s the superior fit for a land filled with children’s nightmares. And speaking as a reader and gamer, a hydra doesn’t really seem as scary to me. Even if it actually poses more danger to Nastajia, I still know exactly what it’s capable of and expect Nastajia will be able to figure a way to defeat it after learning its primary trait. On the other hand, I have no idea what the Chimera would have done, and I had honestly been savoring the mystery since we heard about it.
With that said, you gotta use what you have to work with, and a hydra is still a pretty decent choice. But hopefully you have all the hydra models available to rewrite the action appropriately. Because if this hydra gets slain without one of its heads being chopped off and growing back double, I think I’d have to label that a “nerd crime.”
It’s a good thing Alex isn’t here. He’d probably start chopping heads off willy-nilly without any regard for mythology. Hopefully Nastajia’s a bit smarter than that.
Although my favorite method of dealing with a Hydra comes from Order of the Stick, which is to keep cutting off it’s heads until it has too many for even its oversized heart can supply blood to, so it falls unconscious.
Nice one, LazerWulf!
To Scott: I think its destiny calling. Hydras are indeed far scarrier than Chimeras. Bút: where Hydras are fierce protectors of their own habitat, out of their borders Hydra’s are no troubles. Chimeras however are non-territorical creatures, and tent to be false to the very tooth. No word they say can be taken for granted, and when you oppose his lie, it will attack, till you believe him.
I have no idea which moster is most scarrier. But in this moment, the Hydra is an unwilling opponent, since Nastaja is in some kind of hurry, this a face to face with a Hydra is not helping at all.
I like the story so far and I can see what you meant with that you didn’t like past few pages. But lets hope for the future! (grin)
Wait, why are we in Detroit?
If *I* got a letter from Brandi, *I* sure the heck would pay attention! 🙂
I think the model of the Hydra is way scarier looking than the chimera model you had. The only down side is that the Chimera are usually more intelligent than the Hydra and since the story is already written, will you have to rewrite it so there is at least one chopping off of a head on the Hydra?
Because one or more readers decided that the Nightmare Realm reminded them of Detroit. 🙂
LMAO! I agree with eee…I’d pay attention to that letter…and pretend that I never heard of a Senior Director of anything. 😛
I’m totally cool with the change. 🙂 I hope you find and correct all of the chimera references without much trouble!
Dammed! I wanted to write the OOTS thing by myself!!!
– I love that one 🙂
I’d rather have a chimera waiting elsewhere for another day. Does she have to meet the boss right now for some reason? Won’t a sub boss do? Kind of like what Exxos said…
There’s just one problem with a Hydra in your story – a Hydra is a water creature, hence the name from Greek I believe.
The problem is that there is no water where the hydra can live in your rocky desert.
Which means that this hydra must not have lost more than two heads in its lifetime.
@Peter Berger: Ever … ever in your life … encountered this group of words: “Artistic freedom”? If Scott wants a Hydra in Abaddons but so sweet Nightmare-Realm, then so be it. ^^ I for one do not intend to be unhappy. Not in the slightest. Got me?
Besides – this is the Nightmare Realm. Anything possible, innit?
As has been said, you COULD just set up the story so that the Chimera still exists, but she never actually meets it, and this Hydra is simply a different Boss Battle. 😛
What OTHER legendary monsters should inhabit Dreamland? Maybe Moth Man? Owl Man? what???
Are you SURE you lost it, or do you think you might find it if you look for it for a bit? Because I personally wouldn’t mind too much if you put the comic on hold to do it right.
That being said, I don’t know what you actually have planned for it, so maybe there really won’t be that much of a difference.
Thank you all!
MY MODEM JUST DIED! So if there is no page tomorrow… this is why.
They are sending me a new one and hopefully it will come in the morning.
But I am writing this from my phone and wanted to let you all know.
Sorry
Scott
It’s DREAMLAND. ANYTHING can happen in DREAMLAND.
The Hydra scared your modem!
I’d say…don’t retcon a thing. Keep it all as is, except change Nastajia’s statement to a question. That way you could claim she was expecting The Chimera and was surprised to see The Hydra instead. Then we could learn that The Hydra had just over overthrown him only a short while ago- which explains why nobody knows yet.
Well..Godzilla could certainly be stomping around the Nightmare Realm. But then you’d need Gammera Friend of All Children to aid the rest of Dreamland…
Maybe she can take a ride on the Hydrafail!!
I hope you get the pun.
If she’d faced the Chimera, do you think she would say, “Sneak attack” while shooting it, then roll initiative, then say, “Sneak attack” again, doing extra damage with her arrows both times?
“Can you tell me where I might find the hydra? Is he wearing a familiar face? Does he still live below Seventh Avenue with the princess dipped in lace?”
/obscure?
Then, pages from now, Scott has Alex running into Detroit swinging Excalibur, thus confirming that Detroit is actually just the hemorrhaging rear entrance of the Nightmare Realm on Earth.
Connectless.
I’ve long been under the impression that a chimera is two things blended together, lion-based or otherwise. In that sense the hydra is a chimera too, isn’t it?
By the way, I think this works a little better psychologically. Anything lion-based seems too noble to me for sinister applications, but maybe that’s a western ideology trope?
I’d agree with this, except that Scott essentially has his story written, and adding extra pages just to explain why she encountered Hydra when the real reason was a computer issue…well that’s a lot of extra work that doesn’t in any way improve the story. If we were dealing with a monster that had been referenced from the early days of the story…or if this wasn’t a comic with a set ending…then there would be more of a “retcon” problem. As it is, he only needs to change a couple of brief mentions of the beast, and that’s it.
Sometimes easier is better. 🙂
That’s actually a pretty good point. For a lion-ish creature to really come across as sinister or evil…well it would take clever artistry (even Scar looked kind of noble in a dark way). Not that Scott and his designers aren’t capable of that level of creativity, but a lot of folks have a strong atavistic reaction to lizards and snakes, so the Hydra may be a bit more fear inducing for people. 🙂
Yes! Godjira!
I dunno…you add a snake and goat to that lion and he comes across pretty creepy to me! 🙂
‘Hydra’ seems to be used about any lizard creature that has three heads or more. It appears to be a common misconception of the name.
And there is nothing barring that misconception being used for the Dreamland story. Personally I’d make this ‘Hydra’ breathe fire to fit in with the Nightmare Realm. 😉
Indeed, anything is possible.
Still waiting for my DSL.
Thank you all for your patience…
Patiencia virtua est. No probs there. If the friggin modem is broken (I’d rather use a stronger word, but you surely wanna keep this kid-safe, so no strong language here) it can’t be helped. Thing needs to be replaced, and until that ‘s happened, we gotta have to duke it out. ^^
That may have been only the Lernean Hydra…
I’m with you. Easy is best in this case.
Not so much. A hydra has many heads–but they are all the same. It’s basically (traditionally) a many-headed lizard or dinosaur or dragon. A chimera has different heads: goat, lion (griffon) and eagle.
Patience is a virtue, how true. However (to use a modified quote from Animal Farm) “some are more virtuous than others”
But with these technical issues, there is nothing us mere men can do but wait it out. Getting upset over it and calling the device names doesn’t help – I know from personal experience :p
Well, there’s something that will ruin your day….
i like your thinking about the chimera’s intelligence, as this would pose a sharp contrast to the mindless beasts she’s just escaped. like out of the frying pan and into the fire…but let’s have some empathy. poor Scott. it didn’t sound to me like Scott had the Hydra ‘kicking around to use’ but rather, had to pay for, then adapt it to work here….worse, Scott must be so disappointed after having commissioned the chimera designed and preparing it several years ago for this purpose! THEN to lose your internet…a bad day indeed Scott, so sorry about that. Let tomorrow be brighter!
I imagine it is going to be tough for Nastajia to cut off a head with only arrows.
Scott may surprise us, though.
While it’s true that a Hydra may be a water creature…I’ve never seen it portrayed as such. The Hydras I am familiar with are from the Disney’s Hercules movie (in which it lived in a mountain) and Dungeons and Dragons (in which you fight them in a castle). So, I see no issues with the Hydra being in a non-watery area, because I’ve never heard them to be water creatures.
King of Nightmares: So, you’re telling me that only one of the hydras in existence actually does the “two-for-one head replacement deal” – and THAT ONE ISN’T IT?! Yeah, yeah, I see it, two missing heads, no replacements yet, but… by all that’s dark, can’t you trust ANYTHING these days?! You’ll be telling me next that isn’t the real Brooklyn Bridge over there… (strokes Dreamland portal) At least I know this is genuine. …hold on… This is PLASTER! How?!
Kiwi: Ha ha ha ha haaa!
Felicity: You snooze, you lose, sucker!!! >:=)>
And a burrito filled with Chimera meat might be called a Chimichanga?
Seems like Dreamland won’t be much of a cryptozoologist’s dream?!?!?
On this world, Hydras are indeed water creatures–if small. Little tubes attached to things with half-a-dozen or so tentacles.
sorry to be super late and off topic, but why does Nastajia look depressed at escaping the crazy undead in the 1st panel?
So, as I am now re-reading this, I just wanted to point out that you never did go back and change the text from Chimera to Hydra….