Whale-N

[aspectabund.livejournal.com]

I believe a slight explanation is required. I tend to spell the "Whalen" part of Mwt's name wrong. After pondering this for a while, I had a revelation that it was because I was thinking of Michael Whelan, the well-known fantasy illustrator. That figured out, I now had to make myself spell Mwt's name correctly. So, whenever I'm typing Megan Whalen Turner, I stop for a sec and think, "Oh yeah, like the mammal."

Somehow, through thinking this and by bringing to mind the only picture of Mtw that I've seen, they combined to form Megan "Whale" Turner.

And might I add: what a pretty whale she is. 8D

EDIT: Oh, hey, now that I'm here anyway: what sort of armor would Costis and Aris and Teleus and co. wear? I ain't doin' no hoplite armor, except perhaps for a 300 spoof. Right now, I'm thinking a conquistador-ish breastplate, light chainmail underneath (hah, oxymoron), helmet with ear-flappies, knee-high boots, leather breeches, and longsleeved collared shirt. Detail-wise, I have no idea yet though. *nomnom* My words are delicious!

EDIT #2: Checkers decided to be all canon about it and check the books. Lol. So now (for guards):
-breast and backplate
-cloak (!!! Yay !!!)
-kilt
-chain skirt overtop
-undershirt
-leather tunic
-shin and shoulder guards
-sword
-'tis blue and yellow
-it doesn't spell it out for us, but the way Costis has to hold his scabbard when he's running so it doesn't whap his legs leads be to believe the sword is attached like it usually is, like this: http://static.hcrhs.k12.nj.us/gems/booknook/sabriel.jpg
-although it doesn't mention this either, one would assume they wear helmets. Checkers? 8D

Soldiers would wear something similar except:
-with big-ass shields (Maybe? Yes? No?)
-quilted tunics instead of leather tunics
-definitely wear helmets
-no breast or chest plate, quilted armour covers this too.

And everyone wears blue and yellow. :)

Does anyone have anything to add?

EDIT #3: Ahahaaha! They should totally wear this: http://www.flickr.com/photos/gouldman44/112821534/ and this picture also, so you can see the shoes: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Changing_the_Guard2.jpg  Lolol, not. I wouldn't make Costis do that. I mean, at least the Vatican Swiss Guard get pants. XD

Comments

[checkers65477.livejournal.com]

1. O_O OMG

2. Your icon ROCKS.

3. Hm, I'm trying to remember here. Seems like in QoA the guard wore quilted uniforms, because I remember the Eddisians making ones like them for Gen and the others to wear when they went to steal the queen. Then in KoA they had a metal breastplate, sandals, um...a skirt thingy? Maybe something like this (http://images.buycostumes.com/mgen/merchandiser/21615.jpg)? But not so gaudy.

I'm not sure. What does everyone else think?

[aspectabund.livejournal.com]

Lol, that's basically hoplite armor, m'dear. Although tackier. Wikipedia article on hoplite: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoplite . Anyway, the reasons I don't want to go with hoplite armor are:
1. That it SCREAMS "GREEK!" and while Queen's Thief is Greek-influenced, it would burn too great a chasm of Greekness into people's minds.
2. One of the main elements of hoplite armor is the shield, which I've never read as being in existance in Gen-land.
3. I would not be able to take Costis seriously if he was stamping about in a skirt. Srsly.
4.The stuff's like a bajillion pounds. It's used mainly on the battlefields where you're in constant danger of being impaled, so it wouldn't really be practical if you need to run around saving kings who are, for example, getting ambushed by hedges and going on midnight battlement-hopping sprees.

What's a quilted uniform? I'm thinking of "quilts," as in the things your gran makes, which is clearly not what you're talking about. Did you mean kilted? If you did, see aforementioned comment on dorkiness of skirts. No offense to the Scottish, because they can probably beat me up.

Anyway, problem is I don't want to make it too Western either, which I KNOW I'm doing. Bah. It'll probably be a mishmosh of things.

[kilerkki.livejournal.com]

Since the soldiers in Attolia-world are using guns as well as swords, shields wouldn't be terribly practical. Nor effective.

Chain mail is even heavier than the glued linen the Greek hoplites used, so if weight is your objection I'd throw that out with the bathwater. A quilted jerkin under the breastplate would be much more comfortable (and you'd need to have the padded clothing under the chainmail anyway, unless you want little ring-shaped indents all over your flesh).

[checkers65477.livejournal.com]

That link I posted is more like Roman armor than Greek. *sigh* Ok, you forced me to pull my books out. Now I'll be reading them all night. What a shame. :)

From QoA:

"In the capital the women and men too old for fighting sewed the quilted tunics that were the uniform of the soldiers." p. 197 eos paperback
"The townspeople stared incuriously at the soldiers in the heavily quilted tunics that were their uniform and their armor. All of them were colored the celestial blue and yellow of Attolia's army." p. 220
"He was not quite her height but with his hair cropped short under his helmet..." p. 235
...hm, the Mede soldiers wear crested helmets and carry shields. Eddisian soldiers are snatching up their handshields on p. 260.

Ok, now on to KoA: from the eos paperback.
"Costis got dressed. He pulled on his undershirt and a leather tunic, a leather kilt under the chain skirt that hung from his waist. He had guards for his shins and shoulders and a breast and back plate that hung from his shoulders and buckled together under his arms." p. 26
"Costis belted on his sword after he had pulled it from its scabbard to check its edge. The chain at the collar of his cloak hooked to his shoulder guards, so that the cloak hung down his back without tangling his arms." also p. 26

Dude, like I said, he's wearing a kilt-thingy. With a chain mail skirt. Smexy.

[jade-sabre-301.livejournal.com]

Incredibly smexy. Oh my. *fans herself*

[emerald-happy.livejournal.com]

*grins, offers icon*

[aspectabund.livejournal.com]

YES! I was hoping someone would look to save me the effort. 8D I'd been wondering about shin guards - legs seemed rather naked. I would assume that that soldiers and guards wear different uniforms, though, so I doubt Costis has to haul around a shield.

Kay, so for the guards we now have:
-breast and backplate
-cloak (!!! Yay !!!)
-kilt
-chain skirt overtop
-undershirt
-leather tunic
-shin and shoulder guards
-sword
-'tis blue and yellow
-it doesn't spell it out for us, but the way Costis has to hold his scabbard when he's running so it doesn't whap his legs leads be to believe the sword is attached like it usually is, like this: http://static.hcrhs.k12.nj.us/gems/booknook/sabriel.jpg
-although it doesn't mention this either, one would assume they wear helmets. Checkers? 8D

[kilerkki.livejournal.com]

If the Eddisian/Attolian soldiers are fighting with swords instead of spears, their shields probably aren't huge--they need to be pretty nimble, as we see from the Eddisian style of swordplay. (Though I guess that says nothing about the Attolian style, so forget I said that.)

It also sounds like only the guards get breastplates; the soldiers have to make do with the quilted tunics for both "their uniform and their armor."

If we're going with a blue and yellow theme... Is his metal stuff gold-washed/gilded, so he has very shiny breastplates and chain mail? The leather could be dyed blue and would overall have a pretty cool effect. If rather reminiscent of my high school.

[jade-sabre-301.livejournal.com]

1. ...

That is a strangely accurate picture. I mean it would be if Megan was a whale. I mean she's not a whale. But if she was a whale, that would be her. I also like the colors you used. ...*claps nervously*

2. I'm thinking Checkers's picture has the right idea. At least as far as the skirt goes. I veto the hat through.

[aspectabund.livejournal.com]

*See reasons for not using solely hoplite armor above*

I'll probably still use hoplite-influenced stuff. I definitely want to use those, those, hangy-down things you see on Trojan armor that's a bit like a skirt. Hang on *finds a picture: http://www.weaponsemporium.com/WE-Greek%20Armour%206071R.jpg *

If she was a whale, that would be her.
Loooool. Did you notice that I was trying to write a description that did not actually call mwt a whale? It was hard.

[jade-sabre-301.livejournal.com]

yeah! that's the kind of skirt I'm thinking of.

Uh as far as quilted goes I think it pretty much is just like a quilt--like patches filled with fluff? I always saw it more like...this: http://www.moosejaw.com/moosejaw/product.asp?s_id=0&dept_id=10227&pf_id=PMMPAHDCIJDBMANJ&ad_id=csenextag

Where it's padded to give protection? Kinda like...it's what the poorer soldiers would wear, y'know? Like how the knights could afford armor, and the other guys got padded armor. Oh, like...this: http://www.retromud.org/armor/paddedarmor.html

[aspectabund.livejournal.com]

Lololol that's so hobo! Econo-armor, I love it! 8D I must look into this padded armor thing.

[rowana.livejournal.com]

Wow. I remember someone saying here once after a meet-up that Megan had talked about using the picture of herself on the backs of her books to identify herself in a library. Wouldn't it be cool if that were the picture on the backs of her books? "No really, it's me. You can't see the resemblance?"

I think she makes a lovely whale.

And I don't think I can beat the eco-armour for ideas, but the link you posted replying Jade looks about right to me.

[emerald-happy.livejournal.com]

I have nooo idea about the armour stuff. I tried to work it out myself and just couldn't pull together a mental image from the books. I'm supposed to be making dolls of them, y'see.

*plots*

Also: I do love your icon.

[checkers65477.livejournal.com]

The only mention of helmets that I remember is that the mede soldiers wore crested ones and Eddisians didn't wear them, and the when Gen was pretending to be an Attolian soldier, Attolia didn't recognize him with his hair cut short under his helmet. Don't remember anything at all about shields. If they used them, wouldn't you think they would use them when they practiced? Maybe what they did was more like fencing than hacking away with sword and shield.

[aspectabund.livejournal.com]

Really? Thought it said something somewhere about shields. Did you mention shields? Did I make it up? Is there even such a thing as a, a, shield? I swear, someone, somewhere, at some point in my life, said the word "shield" in the vicinity of my person. Curse them!

Oh, and I think I ought to mention this for anyone who could be thinking the opposite of the following statement and who just so happen to be reading this: guards and soldiers are different. They serve different purposes, wear different uniforms, have different weapons, use different deodorant, etc. Unless mwt has changed it all in Gen-land, to which I say, "mwt, you are sneaky and make me feel silly."

I could, quite possibly, be adamant about this because of Terry Pratchett, and his character Vimes. I really do like that man's books. Here's an excerpt from Jingo, to tell you about guards and soldiers:

"'Oh, Commander Vimes,' said Mr. Burleigh, smiling. "As a military man yourself, you must-'

Sometimes people can attract attention by shouting. They might opt for thumping the table, or even take a swing at someone else. But Vimes achieved the effect by freezing, by simply doing nothing. The chill radiated off him. Lines in his face locked like a statue.

'I am not a military man.'

And then Burleigh made the mistake of trying to grin disarmingly.

'Well, commander, the helmet and armour and everything... It's really all the same in the end, isn't it?'

'No. It's not.'"

[jesusphreaq.livejournal.com]

ZOMG IT LOOKS EXACTLY LIKE HER. O_O That's lovely. ^______^