Ripple Recovery Author's Note

[wanderingaddict]

So... yeah. Not really sure which forum to post this in, so I guess this one? Just following the rules as they're revealed. If you're not familiar with WoW, but don't mind m/m give Ripple a shot I guess. Otherwise, w/e.

This is just a short summary of some of the thoughts behind and the influences of my Ripple Recovery. Just in case you guys were at all curious about why I chose to do what all I did. On top of that, I pride myself on lore and so there’s also a list of all the sundry NPCs, items, and questlines that I used here as well. You know, just for funsies. Also, I should probably send the biggest shout-out in the world to Fawnheart who sticks through everything with me like glue. You all should give her a shout-out too, because she filled in like, half of this after I sent her the outline and all my notes- wow- more than a year ago! Then she sent it back and because I’m stupid and, well, me, I cut it all up, moved everything around and added another freaking 40,000 words. Haha, sorry Fawnheart! If I’d just listened to you this would have been finished a year ago!

Anyways. In-game References:

Locations:

Quel’Danil- The in-game Quel’Danil is just a small lodge on a forested lake. It’s suitably nature-like, with a number of scantily-clad Rangers and Outfitters and Scouts wandering around the outside of it. It is, essentially, the Rock River lodge I named in my story. Just pretend there’s a city behind it, out there in them hills.

Sunchaser’s Camp- A couple of tents up in the hills above the Quel’Danil lodge. There’s a drunken dwarf named Rhapsody up there too, but I just dropped him outta the picture completely. Gilvarin really does seem to live there all year round, a little bit removed from his fellow elves.

The Broken Keel- The name of the Ratchet Inn. Of all the Inns in the game, it does look pretty cheap and sleazy for an actual, legitimate establishment.

The Griffon Pass- Maybe it’s got a name, maybe it doesn’t. I don’t care. This place is, without a doubt, one of the epitomes of early Alliance favoritism. See, way back when, Blizzard used to do (and often still does) this thing where they poop out a ton of elite, high-level mobs in an area frequented by low-level Horde. Back in the day, before expacs and etc, this was the home to two fucking elite, named, level 40 griffons that patrolled back and forth. And, of course, to top it all off they were Alliance friendly, and would brutally slaughter any level 20 to 50 Hordie that happened to wander past. Coincidentally, this pass is also the only low-level overland route into the Hinterlands (although, at the time, there wasn’t even a Horde base in the zone period, not that quests still didn’t send you there). Honestly, it was a horrible, miserable affair that is just another piece in the puzzle of why the Horde are bitter and spiteful bastards and the Alliance are all little molly-coddled pansyass cunts. Fuck griffons, seriously…

NPCs:

Jalinde Summerdrake is a (formerly elite) rare spawn mob that can be found wandering around the Quel’Danil lodge. Given her greater armor and named status, there are several suggestions that she holds some sort of high rank among the elves of the Hinterlands.

Auric Sunchaser is the commander of the Allerian Hold, the high elf stronghold of Outlands.

The Reek is a named slime that spawns in the old Horde encampment that Gilvarin sends you to. It is undoubtedly the “master slime” he mentions before sending you off.

Dran Droffers is an ornery old bugger located in The Drag of Orgimmar. He’s a cheap bastard, skimping adventurers on reward money and spends a lot of time haranguing his long-suffering son. Together, they run the Droffers and Son Salvaging Co., sending adventurers out to find junk that they can repair and sell to higher bidders.

Gilvarin* Sunchaser is a rather easy-going elf that’s quite liberal and open-minded in his approach to other races, being friendly with both Horde and Alliance forces. He can be found outside his tent, with a half-drunk glass of wine clutched in one hand. The elf has a decidedly strong dislike of Malton’s father, but speaks of the orc quite fondly and will tell you, the adventurer, to tell Malton that the two of them need to get together and go drinking again.

* actual name is “Gilveradin” Sunchaser. I’d copied it down wrong in my notes, sorry : (

Malton Droffers is a rather put-upon young man who often seems to do a lot of the smooth-talk and paving over in his father’s deals. Where his father is short and rude, Malton is polite and actually pretty helpful. There’s also some fun emote dialogue between the two of them from time to time that seems to imply he plays a simpleton just to egg his father on.

Misc:

Alar- The “Phoenix God,” or at least, that’s the raid-boss’s title, so I’m just expanding on that and making into some sorta minor oath or deity the elves invoke when frustrated.

Witherbark, Venombranch, Revantusk tribes- three of the major troll tribes in the Hinterlands. Of the tribes, only the Revantusk were willing to ally with the New Horde.

Curiously Tasty Omelets- made from Raptor eggs commonly found in Stranglethorn Vale. A delicacy, perhaps?

Dwarven Stout, Port, Kodo Stew and Mul’gore Bread- Just a light sampling of the many delicious foods found in WoW. There’s a real-life cookbook for some of those recipes too.

Moss-backed- an epithet. The forest trolls actually have a thin layer of moss growing on their skin. This refers to that.

Kim’jael- It’s the real Thalassian word for rat. Or, at least, “something like it.”

Blue Child, the White Lady- Azeroth has two moons. A huge white one the night elves call Elune, and the tauren call the Left Eye of the Earthmother. There’s also a smaller, blue-green one called Blue Child.

And, of course, the Horde “Ripple Recovery” questline two of the aforementioned characters give. Ripple wine is a rare commodity these days, and Dran Droffers wants to capitalize on the opportunity. He sends you, the adventurer, to the Hinterlands, with the orders to talk to “one of Malton’s idiot friends,” who’ll then tell you how to find some Ripple even though it’s not made anymore. Gilvarin, for his part, doesn’t want to help you, but out of respect for Malton he’s willing to tell you what to do, as well as prepare the wine in some of its original packaging (although that last bit is also because he respects the wine, and “there’s nothing worse than jostled Ripple”). All in all I’ve always thought it was one of the more different Horde questlines, since it’s witty and clever and doesn’t seem to consist of “*grunt**grunt* You kill stuff there now kk *grunt**grunt*.”

+--+ About the Characters +--+

Malton: I like to think of him as being from Thrall’s generation of Horde apologists. He’s from the same brew that turned out a wise and gentle leader like Thrall and the other Far Seers, the ones who aren’t all “Grunt-grunt KILL grunt!” The whole noble savage thing, bound in glory and honor and war? Yeah, that’s not his thing. He’s educated. He’s intelligent and kind and really not very warlike at all, because he would have been old enough to see the effect that the decimation, capture, and subsequent confinement of the Horde to the concentration camps had on all those same proud warriors, who suddenly had to come face to face with the fact that they were now stranded on a foreign world where every single other race loathed them. Before the orcs, there were wars from time to time between the human nations, or the humans and the trolls, and perhaps even the humans and dwarves (I don’t know about that part), but on the whole, the humans, elves, and dwarves wouldn’t even try to exterminate all the trolls. It just wasn’t in their system. Everyone, for the most part, stayed in their little area, until the Horde rolled out and mercilessly slaughtered everything and everyone it came across, regardless of age, rank, race, and gender. Everyone.

So yeah. Malton is the type of guy who, while he doesn’t believe in the “sins of the father” or anything else so trite, still is conscious enough of who and what he is to recognize that a mere twenty years is not enough to make anyone forget about the horrors that the orcs- the orcs, not anyone else, just the orcs- inflicted on the world of Azeroth, not to mention their own homeworld of Draenor. Unlike many of the other bumbling retards who see a return to battle and bloodlust and killing everything as the answer to the finding a new place in the world, Malton, like Thrall and I imagine many of the others of his generation, is much happier to just find a place to live and let live. Unfortunately for him, this is considered something of a pathetic and pansy-like view by the less intelligent members of his race, hence the two big, strong-armed bodyguards his father provides.

Beyond that though, one of the reasons I thought he would be perfect for writing a story about is the fact that the dialogue he has with you and the way he interacts with his father are… heh, well, honestly some of the best quest text in the entire game. His father, who is an ornery old coot who treats you, the player, quite rudely, is also equally rude to his son, who he also has some rather colorful comments for. Malton typically responds to anything his father says in a very stupid and very oafish manner, which seems to justify his father’s temper.

When Malton actually speaks to you though, he’s polite, friendly, and wildly different from the bumbling idiot that doesn’t even know what a knuckle sandwhich is. This, in my opinion, is what made him startling and memorable, and much different from the other 2D questgivers who are just too lazy to go get a book or rescue their wife on their own. What’s even more unique (and what some of you have already commented on) is that Malton is an orc; you know, one of those bloodthirsty bastards I mentioned above, yet here he is, mild-mannered and intelligent and actually quite refined. So in fleshing him out enough for this ridiculously long one-shot, I had to think a lot about the kind of reception an orc like that would receive, particularly in the light of the biggest, most inept WoW piece of shit to ever put on armor (well, aside from Arthas, but that’s a different story), Garrosh Hellscream joining the Horde.

Probably not too well, right? My guess is that he’d have a little trouble relating to many of the people around him (those people being orcs, btw). Hence his attachment to guys like Gilvarin. He doesn’t need much, just a friendly smile and some witty banter every now and then. Plus, in writing this now, I can’t help but feel that he likes ‘Varin because ‘Varin likes to needle him just as much as he likes to needle his dad. That surprises me, because I hadn’t actually thought that out before I wrote this, and yet here I am, and here the story is!

p.s. something that occurred to me during the sex was that most, if not all, of the other orc stories I’ve read deal with their tusks cutting and scraping, or being otherwise unwieldy. this has never made sense to me- if you’re born with two bones sticking out of your face, you’re aware of how to use them so as not to hurt someone, much less bones are not naturally filed to cutting points. I decided that sure, that can happen, but most orcs aren’t exactly using them in that regard (having switched to forged weapons ages ago) so they remain a bit blunt. in case you were curious >.>

p.p.s. also, I invoked “Author’s Prerogative” and arbitrarily say that orcs and elves- having hardier constitutions than humans- do not suffer from ‘whiskey dick.’ for those of you who do not know what that is, it’s a tendency for men who a really, really, really, really drunk to not be able to maintain erection. haha, maybe I think too much about this stuff.

Gilvarin: Gilvarin Sunchaser is the guy Malton sends you to at his father’s request. Malton refers to him as one of the few good elves of the Hinterlands, not like the others (who kill Horde on sight), and a pretty good friend overall save for the fact that he loves the hooch. Indeed, Gilvarin is a pretty laid-back guy, living in a little tent out in the hills by himself, save for the company of a single drunken dwarf. It’s only for Malton that he’s actually willing to help you though. He has a deep and decidedly strong dislike of Malton’s father, whom he finds to be boorish and overbearing. For Malton though, he’ll tell you were you can still find some of the good vintages (only in an old abandoned Horde base), and he also gives you the friendly warning to look out for the slimes that live there. When you leave, he tells you to give his regards to Malton, and to also tell the orc to come visit him more often.

Now, Gilvarin’s character probably took a different path. In fleshing him (and the story) out, he somehow ended up with a rather strong disdain for people who put him and anyone he likes below them. This, in part, probably stemmed from the contempt with which he talks about Malton’s father, but then it evolved into a wild, fearless temper, an acid tongue, and the ability to remember every slight- no matter how small- from the day he was born.

So how could I keep that in the story that has little to no action, and with a character who has almost no interaction with anyone save for Mal? Well it just pretty much ended up being and attempt to show how fiercely loyal he is to those he loves. Dunno how well it came across though. Hopefully clear enough? Or at least not so much that it’s a total shock. I can set my standards as low as you want!

What I was really looking forward to writing about the most though were his interactions with Mal. He loves the orc, he really does. Malton is one of those pillow-soft people who are willing to forgive and let go, but not in that terribly overbearing manner where they do it because it’s “what’s good” or anything. It’s just what comes natural. So, in that sense, Malton is actually the one who plays the role that’s usually played by the ‘female character’ (as much as I absolutely loathe saying that). It’s that of the caregiver, the one who gently holds back the raging beast with nice words and reminders of kindness. If Gilvarin had a class, he’d be a blackhearted rogue with one dagger and one fist, and incredibly good at kicks. If he was a player, he’d be the guy who tracks down someone in every zone they flee to and ganks them again and again and again for killing his low-level alt until they log off in tears. He may have grown up as a coddled merchant prince, but at his core there’s solid steel.

Where this comes from I have no idea. Perhaps the Second War? The Third War? No clue. Both would have been horribly traumatic for an elf, whose nation had largely stayed out of all skirmishes with other races as that was something that “lesser creatures” did. Plus, you know, they’re pretty happy with their little Sunwell out on the coast. They didn’t need too much else.

But anyways, he’s also the youngest of ten sons, the oldest being Auric Sunchaser, the hero-commander of Allerian Hold. The others are unnamed and I never developed any of them. I figured that there would be enough years between each one that they would grow up aware of but not particularly close to one another. There’s still that fierce family pride that binds them together though, so they do make an effort. As the youngest, Gilvarin had for a long time been saddled with being the one who had to travel with their father, who didn’t want to pay for an extra hand. Family labor is free labor, of course.

As mentioned above, his real name is Gilveradin, not Gilvarin. Of everyone who reviewed after I realized my mistake, one person urged change, three said they were torn and the rest ignored the question. So, heh, Gilvarin it stayed.

But it’s not like any of this crap is cannon, even for me! Just my take on these guys, and this story as a whole. If any of ya'll read all this, then leave your thoughts. I'd love to see them.

[Shadowknight12]

It's so strange to see an actual Author's Note! I'm so used to the short, to-the-point AN you see these days that reading all of these was an awesome treat. Reading insights about the way authors craft their stories is one of my favourite pastimes, and yours was exceptional. I'm impressed by the way you handled the lore bits, and how a short, almost throwaway quest inspired you to produce something so amazing. And from what you said at first, it looks like Fawnheart deserves lots of praise, too!

As I said in my review, I'm quite pleased by the way you handled Malton and Gilveradin (btw, I would've gone back and changed his name, but that's just my obsession with details showing through), they're both extremely unique characters and it's always a huge pleasure to read about them.

Gilveradin's character definitely shines through. I picked up on pretty much everything you mentioned about him. The ruthlessness, the loyalty to his loved ones, the fact that if someone gets up in his business, he's going to MAIM the fuckers, etc. His soft spot for Mal is what keeps him from being an unlikeable character. He's also so silly when he's drunk, which helps balance his overall ruthlessness. It's sort of the inverse with Mal. Mal is "soft" and "stupid" on the outside (to strangers and his father, anyway) but inwardly, he's pretty solid and stable, being the grounding rock for Gilveradin's unmeasured anger. The way the two interact is probably the selling point in the story. It's pretty common for writers to just skip ahead to the sex and/or having lust as the main driving force of a relationship. While that's perfectly fine, it's profoundly satisfying to see relationships that bloom from friendships, with people who are comfortable around one another, who trust and confide in each other. It really makes for a whole other kettle of fish to read such stories.

Anyway, I think that's all for now. I'll make an addendum if I think of anything else to say.

P.S.: LOL at the whiskey dick thing. Normally I ignore the fact that it's unrealistic for VERY drunk people to have sex (it also has a similar effect on women, since alcohol depresses the nervous system), since it's pretty ubiquitous in erotica, but the fact that you actually KNEW about this and took it into consideration is just another sign of what a great writer you are.

[wanderingaddict]

holy fuck! you weren't supposed to read this! no one was! at least, not until I finished and posted the final chapter! aaargh! curses, curses! I've foiled myself again!

[Shadowknight12]

Oh, shit! Sorry, dude! Boy, do I feel stupid! It even sort of had the tone of a "finished closing note" or something. I should've known. Once again, terribly sorry. But don't worry, I'll just pretend I haven't read any of this. Your secret's safe with me.

[wanderingaddict]

hah, it's all good. I totally forgot it was even up. so few people even go to or use these forums that I thought it'd be safe till I actually finished the story

[fawnheart]

Haha but if you posted this a year ago without weaving your magic wand on it and turning it into the freakin masterpiece it is now, it'd be crap lol. I like it much better like this, and that's what I thought you wanted me to do anyway, yeah? Fill in the blanks so you could round it out (and really, I hardly recognise anything at all lol)...it's just too good. (I still have palpitations thinking about Varin's pink tongue...)

And by the way...you know how I'm Alliance, are you calling me a molly coddled pansyass c-u-n-t? lol! well, ARE YOU PUNK? lol I happen to LOVE those griffins too, baha!