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ardenttheories · 4 years

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Can I have a Prince of Mind and a Knight of Mind? Thanks

Prince of Mind

The Prince of Mind is someone who Destroys Mind, which is Rationality, Decisions, Thoughts, a lack of Bias, Indifference, the Outer Self and every Potential.

Princes of Mind are Passionate Players with a lot of Love to give. They Feel everything strongly, likely to a degree that isn’t exceptionally healthy, and don’t give a second thought to their Impulsive actions. They are true Romantics at heart, and likely believe there’s One True Love out there for them - regardless of that person’s actual feelings towards them.

They follow their Heart above all else, letting their Passions and Desires overwhelm everything they do. It doesn’t matter if it isn’t Logical, if it won’t work, or if the idea itself is horrifically stupid; the Prince of Mind will charge in headfirst, with a sort of “you can’t tell me what to do!” mentality. They’re stubborn bastards, to put it simply, and once their heart is set on something there’s really no stopping them.

Princes of Mind struggle with keeping their own Biases out of things. Every choice they make and everything they do is based heavily on what they Feel and what they Think, and there is no neutral ground for them. If they hate something, then it’s wrong; if they love it, then it’s right, and no amount of trying to convince them otherwise will work.

This can easily set them against people; the Prince of Mind is very unlikely to realise when someone is lying to or using them if they trust that person indefinitely. They’re just as unlikely to realise that their friends are trying to help them by exposing that person’s flaws, and may become irate and angry at the mere concept that their Super Best Friend is a bad person.

In line with that, they also can’t remain Indifference. They always have an opinion on things, they always take sides, and if you disagree with them then you’re the Enemy. They might take that literally depending on how Passionate they are and how involved they are in the subject in question. They’re very black and white like this, and they can even go down the “you’re either with me or against me” route over something minor if they are Emotionally attached to it.

They may tend to react to things in an over-the-top way. I’d say they really do feel these things, but that some of the emphasis of it might be an act. The fact of the matter is that they just can’t stop themselves from Feeling, from getting Attached, from getting Involved, and they can suffer greatly for it. They’re bleeding hearts and wear their hearts on their sleeves, and it’s just right there, out in the open, for anyone to prey upon.

Of course, this can get silly. If you break their favourite mug, by accident or not, they’ll hate you forever. If they watch a sad scene on TV, they’ll be sobbing over it for days. If something good happens, they’ll get so happy they might start physicaly bouncing/vibrating, all big beaming smiles. Honestly, you can read them like a damn book. They just don’t hide anything.

The full brunt of their Emotions can also encapsulate the full brunt of Love. I’m not sure they’d be 100% yandere, but they might get close; they could fully convince themself that this one person is who they’re meant to be with, and get jealous if they show romantic feelings with anyone else. They might get legitimately upset if the person they Love pulls away or seems put off by them, and might not even realise how strongly they’re coming on.

They might want to spend every moment with them, might feel so fightfully wonderful with them that they try to chase that feeling as much as possible, might think about them at every moment. It wouldn’t matter if that person didn’t love them back; they’d still think that they were meant to be, somehow.

They wouldn’t get violent - not unless the person really broke their heart, or if they were rejected and then their crush got immediately with someone else/revealled that they’d been dating someone the entire time - but they might have a sort of “I’m their true love, I just have to wait for them to see it” mentality about it.

What this means, of course, is that Logic doesn’t motivate them. They’re not logical beings, and I would say to some degree that they might also just be a little… stupid? That they just can’t comprehend a lot of things and therefore don’t even try, which might be something they’re horrifically embarrassed over. Pointing out flaws in their own Logic will probably prompt an enraged response as a result.

They might also be “mindless” - a little flighty, a little forgetful, a little absent. They don’t have plans for the future, instead living day to day because why even bother figuring things out that far in advance? They’re more than likely to change their mind by that point - or already have done several times.

There’s no Logic behind what they do; they just do it. There’s no Logic that they’ll listen to, because they honestly don’t care about it. Plans won’t vibe by them if, at the time, they think something else needs to be done. Telling them what to do will backfire horrendously. If they even tried to plan something, it’d look scatterbrained and almost incomprehensible, especially compared to the more complex plans of other Mind Players.

If this all seems very one-sided and internal, then it is! Princes of Mind ghost Heart as their natural opposite, and Heart is a very internal thing. A lot of what they do is based solely around themself, and they have the potential to be incredibly narcassistic as a result.

Because they’re not a true Heart player, they might not always consider other people or their Feelings when it comes certain events. E.g. if the Prince wants something, it doesn’t matter if someone else needs it - the Prince’s want trumps the need.

In Destroying Mind, then, the Prince leaves only Heart behind, whole and untempered. This may seem wonderful in some ways, but can be genuinely horrific in others.

The Prince has the ability to completely Destroy a Player’s Mind. They can crush every Logical thought, every plan, every ounce if Rationality from their brain.

They can Destroy the ability for someone to remain Indifferent or Apathetic. While this can be put to good use - someone that had no interest in the session or in being a team Player would suddenly have the motivation they need to create a successful session - it could also be terrifying.

Someone who uses Apathy as a way to cope with trauma would no longer have that crutch. They’d have to face the full brunt of everything they’ve repressed, without any sort of help or guidance. A character that was Apathetic in a good way - such as someone who’d never picked sides but may have been swayed to the enemy side - would no longer be able to stay out of anything.

They’d expose the full brunt of Emotion to a Player. This could be controlled if they were really trying to focus in on it; they could Destroy just enough Logic to expose a person’s deepest Fears and Doubts so that enemies wouldn’t be able to attack, or to stop someone (e.g. Vriska) from going out on their own and putting everyone in danger.

If they didn’t, however, then… they could destroy every boundary between a person’s Emotions. Players might start acting out of place, laughing when they should be crying, being too-happy or too-sad at any given time. They might be unable to control their Desires and become greedy, outright attacking other Players in order to get their hands on anything they want. Cycles of revenge would literally never end.

They can Destroy a person’s Options and the Outcomes that would come as a result. Someone could pick a thousand different Options, but still come out with the same Outcome - e.g. someone could go through ten cartons of different flavour juices, and yet all of them taste like orange - or they could just be completely unable to pick an Option that isn’t what the Prince wants.

This can be great, naturally. If a Player (Vriska) is going to go out and do something dumb, then the Prince can just take that Option away. They can outright Destroy any potential for that Option or Outcome to even be.

What this can be, of course, is that a Prince of Mind may Destroy something vital when you combine this with their general lack of Logic. They might not even know that something like Godtiering exists, and thus the Option for it just… never happens. People would be completely obscured from understanding what the Quest Beds are for.

If the Prince did know about it, then their destruction of Logic could completely break the game. They’d ruin the Logic behind Quest Beds, the basic functionality of them, and cause some wild and whacky things to happen during the Godtiering process. For instance, Players might wake up on their Lands instead of Skaia, or might wake up on another Player’s Land, or might wake up in someone else’s body. Anything would be possible if the Prince destroyed the Logic surrounding it enough.

Of course that means they can flat out Destroy Logic, too. This thing is Logical and makes sense? No it’s not, it doesn’t, and you now can’t understand a fucking word of it. Logically the sun must rise if we see it set, right? Nope. Then how does it work? … You don’t know.

Which is great for enemy encounters! Imagine them not understanding how swords worked, or what the pointy thing on the end is for, or why it hurts when you poke it too much - or just not even understanding why they’re fighting at all. Might as well just… go home. But it can have the same effect on their own Players if they’re not careful.

Princes of Mind can also Destroy a person’s facade, their Outer Self. This can be a good thing in some situations. They can expose enemies for what they truly are, and can force especially stubborn Players out of hiding. They can frequently reveal who the “one pulling the strings” is, and can probably even cause voice changers or text colour changers to stop working.

But it can have drastic consequences, too.

Destroying the facade of a Player who isn’t ready yet - such as a Knight - would expose everything they are, everything they’ve ever been, to the world. It’d be like stripping Dave of his cool guy persona and all we see beneath is this traumatised kid who panics every time he hears metal on metal, and can’t go anywhere near his Land as a result. This would cripple his development, and set him back so, so far.

They can essentially Destroy every front a person holds up and reveal the raw essence of who they are - which might be a really good way to force someone to attain the Ultimate Self, or might just cause that person to come crumbling down under the weight of their own Soul. Or, it might make the Black Queen realise that she is a mother, and her children are dying, and she’s got no idea why she’s continuing this stupid fucking war.

With all of that said, how does a Prince of Mind become realised?

It’ll be a very hard process, and one that most Princes struggle with (if not fail outright). They have to accept everything that Mind is - the Logic, the Rationality, the Options, the Outcomes, the Indifference and Apathy, the facades - and recognise that sometimes these things are okay.

They have to learn not to focus just on themselves and to be a team player, to recognise when their wants and Desires are going to actively cause harm. They need to recognise when they’re going over the top, when Emotions won’t be helpful and when plans have to be followed, when Impulsivity will ruin everything they touch.

They need to attempt to make plans, or at least to follow through with those that are made for them. Not all the time, naturally, and they’ll quickly be able to tell when an Impulsive or gut action is necessary/acceptable (such as charging before the signal is given because an unaccounted for threat appeared).

While I don’t think they’d ever make a facade, per se, they’d definitely get a wrangle in their own emotions. They’d still feel them as strongly as before, but be able to Rationalise them; “this event makes me feel angry, but I know it was an accident, and I just need to take a step away to calm down”. They’d recognise their own limits and work with them much better, but they’d still let themselves feel if that was the best course of action.

They’d also likely still be brutally honest, but they’d know when things need to be left alone, when they need to be Indifferent, when someone needs to be Apathetic. It’d be hard - they still Feel strongly and think it’s best to get Emotions out rather than keep them in - but they’ll come to terms with the idea that people cope in their own ways, and that some things just need to be left alone.

They might even learn to lose their Bias. They’d pay more attention to Logical and Rational thought, and would make a genuine effort to take it all in. They might not be master strategists, but they’ll at least be able to understand how and why a plan works, and follow along with it. They’ll also be much better at recognising when the Greater Good has to be accounted for, and will take a step back from drama if they realise they’re being too biased for/against something.

In other words, they’d just chill out a little, as most Princes do. They’ll still be highly Emotionak, but not over-the-top; they’d still have Biases, but they wouldn’t let it overwhelm them; they’d still act on Impulse, but recognise when they have to listen and stick to plans, too.

Knight of Mind

I’ve done a full True/Realised/Failed analysis right here for Knight of Mind!

To add some more basic understanding, though, a Knight of Mind is one who Protects/Exploits Mind, which is Rationality, Decisions, Thoughts, a lack of Bias, Indifference, the Outer Self and every Potential.

A Knight of Mind is one who can Exploit Plans and find their weakspots, often because they know exactly how to make that plan fall apart. They have a fairly good grasp on what most people will Think when a situation is provided, what Options they’ll choose in response, and thus they become brilliant strategists.

For instance, if a group of Imps are charging towards them, the Knight of Mind can Exploit every single move the Imps are going to make - carefully but purposefully directing them to act or move in ways that will lead to the Outcome the Knight most desires.

They can do the same thing to their friends, too; if they know a friend is more likely to go somewhere they need to be because of X motivation, they’ll ensure that motivation is used. Something as simple as exploiting the fact that a friend is more likely to listen to one person over another, or that they’ll follow after a random leaf and be distracted from something that might have killed them, comes under this territory.

Essentially, they can Exploit the very basics of a person’s thought processes. If you see a Very Big Rock rolling towards you, you’re going to run. If they know that one Player WON’T run, because they’re an idiot and will try to Fight The Rock, then they can do twofold:

1) They can Exploit that stubbornness for later in the session when they’ll need to make sure someone doesn’t run away or will stubbornly fight

2) They’ll make sure that specific Player avoids being in that situation to begin with so they don’t Die By Rock - or will Exploit it by ensuring that Player dies and can then be taken to their Quest Bed for Godtiering (especially if they likely would have refused to Godtier under normal circumstances).

On top of that, they can Exploit Rationality by just… talking. Which sounds pretty lame, in a way, but they’re the most likely to be able to talk someone out of something by using Logic. It wouldn’t matter how long it takes, because the Knight can Exploit the Player’s Biases and Logic to get them to come around at the end. E.g. “I know you hate working with x but if you go with them, you’ll be able to show them up and prove to them that they’re wrong about what they think about you, right? And you might not care what they think but you’re trying to befriend/flirt with their BFF, so you’ll be able to influence what the BFF thinks about you”.

On the other hand, they could also Exploit Rationality to make something else seem Very Logical even when it’s not - which is a good way to divert Bad Player Attention away from the main Plan of the session. For instance, misinformation. They could easily make anyone believe something by just taking it out of context or putting it in a Logical framework that appelas to the Player in question.

Exploiting Mind can also be taken literally. It’s a bit more watery, but they can Exploit the literal Mind of a Player or thing, essentially having a very light form of mind control. It isn’t much, but I could see it working a little like the Narrative Prompts do - that so long as the person isn’t aware that their thoughts/suggestions are coming from the Knight, then they’ll go along with them without fail.

Of course, a lot of this would be to Protect Mind. So, in some ways, maybe controlling people like this will protect the integrity of their Thoughts, or will protect an overarching Plan that the Knight is desperately trying to put in place. Maybe it’ll stop a brainwashing event from happening, or maybe the Knight can break such brainwashing with their own form of it.

In some instances, if someone is brainwashed, the Knight could Exploit that to their benefit by using the person’s actions as a way to figure out what the brainwasher is trying to do ahead of time. They’d not be able to tell who or what is doing it, but checking the brainwashee’s motivations/goals while brainwashed would be a good way of figuring it out.

E.g. Latula could have been able to tell that Kurloz was controlling Meulin using Chucklevoodoos. Not because she could see it, but because she’d eventually pick up that Meulin is doing things that are for the Messiahs, and she really only knows of one clown in their session.

I think they could even go so far as to Protect things like Sanity and a person’s Options. They can Exploit it, too, and they probably would (if, for instance, Gamzee’s Rage was necessary for a specific event), but I think they’d be more for protecting the Sanity of their Players, since Sanity is a very fickle thing that could easily get out of hand. Options less so, thankfully, and they’re probably very good at nudging people towards certain Options or using the Outcome from an Option to their advantage.

Knights will always have that facade up that protects them from everything and everyone, and this is much more prominent with the Knight of Mind. They are determined to keep their own Mind safe, and refuse to let people see who they really are. They might even go through several different facades, layers upon layers to hide their deepest Inner Self. They just need to let this go. Let people in, let them see who they are, and be okay with that.

Hiding for too long will make the Knight indecisive and they’ll very quickly lose their way.

#knight of mind #prince of mind #classpect analysis #ardenttheories #Anonymous #long post//

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