No you can't. What if you want to change something in the great scheme of things? You can't do that in the Culture because the Minds won't let you.
What are you talking about? The Minds only stop you from hurting the Culture. If you take some friends and a spaceship you can form your own Culture offshoot and no one will try and stop you.
But can you change anything in the Culture if you want to? Only if the Minds agree to it. They are the ones having all the power. The organics are just there for the ride. That's why Contact and SC is so prestigious, the people and drones in it have some semblance of usefullness, as opposed to the rest of the Culture population. They are promoted from lapdog to guard dog.
I've never read anything about the Minds preventing people from doing things.
But can you change anything in the Culture if you want to?
You can start your own tendancy, which would affect things in the part of the Culture that you occupy. As for changing the Culture as a whole, why should you be able to do that? Nobody wants you to be change anything.
*cough* Zakalwe*cough*Gurgeh*cough*
They pretty much let Zakalwe run around without a leash, up until he started to royally screw up lesser civilizations. Gurgeh wasn't prevented from doing anything that he wanted to do.
I'd pick the Farscape universe, if i could choose, a runaway non-conformist Nebari, picking fights in the uncharted territories. That is, if i could be certain i wouldn't die....i'm a wuss. Else, i'd go for the Culture and just live in a computer simulation of the Farscape universe or something close to it. Also i'd track down Chiana and make her my sexslave.
NecronLord wrote:Is there a choice about who, or at least, what species you get to be? It would truly fucking suck being say, a lesser caste Affronter in the Culture universe.
Oooh that'd be ironic.
Hmm...this will sound weird but if we get a choice of WHO, i want to be in the WH40K universe and i want to be a Wolf Lord in the Space Wolves, who are hands down the coolest motherfuckers in existance!
After the Affront loses to the Culture a few times and host an ambassador, it would probably be possible (though tricky) for a low-medium caste Affronter to expatriate to the Culture.
Personally, I'm about 40% likely to take a jaunt sideways and join the Elench. They seem (from the little we read of them) to be more friendly toward modified humanity, and may have fewer immortality taboos. Personally I'd like to be free somewhere in the Cultureverse to have fun and develop my brain upward via highly invasive cybernetics.
fgalkin wrote:
But can you change anything in the Culture if you want to? Only if the Minds agree to it. They are the ones having all the power. The organics are just there for the ride. That's why Contact and SC is so prestigious, the people and drones in it have some semblance of usefullness, as opposed to the rest of the Culture population. They are promoted from lapdog to guard dog.
You've built yourself a Catch-22 here. The Culture is basically a bunch of Minds with a certain set of attitiudes and people/drones who agree/hang out with them. If you want change you can do whatever you want (including radical surgery. Fairly natural human-shape is in vogue during the time-frame the books are set in, but a few thousand years back people were going around in pretty crazy shapes; the only thing to stop you is Odd Looks.) but if you change enough, your group will emerge
Changing the Culture is like moving water in zero G. If you work slowly and lightly no problem, but if you press hard, you'll pass right through.
Sriad wrote:
After the Affront loses to the Culture a few times and host an ambassador, it would probably be possible (though tricky) for a low-medium caste Affronter to expatriate to the Culture.
The Culture strongly discourages immigration. Given that you're considered chattel and have your nads cut off by the bigger Affronters, no. Just no.
Superior Moderator - BotB - HAB [Drill Instructor]-Writer- Stardestroyer.net's resident Star-God.
"We believe in the systematic understanding of the physical world through observation and experimentation, argument and debate and most of all freedom of will." ~ Stargate: The Ark of Truth
Other cool universes that I didn't think of before would be the Battletech Universe, Exosquad Universe, or the Armored Core universe.
For the BTech Universe, it would be sweet to be from a Periphery State or be apart of a mercenery company. If I could choose a PS, it would either be the Outworld Alliance, for the ultimate in freedom, or the Magistracy of Canopus, for all the delightful hedonism. For mercs, I'd try and get into the Grey Death Legion.
In the Exo universe, yeah, it's kinda hard on humans, but I think it would be interesting to be a part of the Exo-Fleet in some way.
And in the AC universe, I'd definitly try to become a part of the Ravens.
You shall be the instrument of my vengence. Through you I shall scream out my wrath unto the heavens.
"Explosions fix everything" - Nabeshin - Excel Saga
"When you gaze too long into the abyss, the abyss comments on how you have no social life."
"We jumped the shark AND took its wallet" My friend commenting upon our groups dinner conversation. CoVD:We are all but a part of a dream that Vin Diesel is having.
Church of Perverts: As the Lord commands, so shall we do. And do. And do.
Destructionator XIII wrote:I'm going to have to say Star Trek as well. I could be a lazy bastard or go have loads of fun in Starfleet. Hell, I could switch back and forth (people seem able to resign from SF at any time). Even on an outer world, just study up and get into the Academy and problem solved. It seems pretty nice.
If you don't mind being assimilated, or being surrounded by enemies who can make copies of your own guns that preform better than the originals.
Superior Moderator - BotB - HAB [Drill Instructor]-Writer- Stardestroyer.net's resident Star-God.
"We believe in the systematic understanding of the physical world through observation and experimentation, argument and debate and most of all freedom of will." ~ Stargate: The Ark of Truth
sure there's lots of wars and empire building, but when you add in the versions of Oddyssy and Jason that exist in that universe, you get some really interesting cool things, particularly the planet that was inspired by shakesphere's tempest....
The scariest folk song lyrics are "My Boy Grew up to be just like me" from cats in the cradle by Harry Chapin
Stargate Earth, except for the fact they will have a killer virus which makes the Avian Flue look tame in the near future.
But the US is governed so much better in Stargateverse
"Okay, I'll have the truth with a side order of clarity." ~ Dr. Daniel Jackson.
"Reality has a well-known liberal bias." ~ Stephen Colbert
"One Drive, One Partition, the One True Path" ~ ars technica forums - warrens - on hhd partitioning schemes.
