Wizard Wednesday Recap, 2023-08-30
After the team's introductions, Elf asks Bearsnake why he has been in an exceptionally good mood lately.
Intro
Bear says, "It's great when plans start to come together." Dotta says, "Bear's news, as usual, is secret...but we should have some things closing this year. So, that's exciting." Elf notes they can't talk about it yet, but Bear's work is probably going to move Forgotten Runes more than anything he or Dotta do.
Bear says:
"It's not a ridiculous statement. I'll take the compliment...I can't do my job well unless the both of you do your job well."
Burning Man & The Return of BlackSand Pony Racing
Elf then notes that it seems a lot of the community is at Burning Man and wonders why they didn't send Bearsnake. Bear says he's bummed he's not there and that he's never been, but he says if someone could create the perfect environment for him, it's probably Burning Man. Bear says it would be fun to get to a place where they could build a Wizard Art Car for Burning Man. Elf jokes they should go and recreated The Great Burning. He says he knows he and Bear would have a good time, but he says he has a feeling Dotta would love Burning Man. Dotta says he isn't sure if Elf is being sarcastic, but he would love to go to Burning Man and that he has always wanted to go. Bear says Dotta is the kind of person that would completely shock them, and the festival would bring out a side of Dotta that they've never seen.
BlackSand Racing Returns
Then, Elf jumps into the show and notes that BlackSand Racing is back with the Elysian Circuit. He notes a few changes to the races including the inclusion of racing teams along with a Wizard Baby collaboration. Elf says he's using Baby Dotta to ride his Mecha Pony.
The Shadows, Inscribed
Following the BlackSand discussion, Elf asks if Dotta would like to give an update on the Shadows Ordinal collection. Dotta says the team quietly inscribed the Shadows this week, noting there are 666 Shadow Ordinals inscribed on sats from Block 666. Elf says The Shadows can be seen as the minions of the original 10 Shadow Hats, and they are just emerging from the Quantum Shadow, which is a very disturbing development. He says this is particularly concerning to the White and Purple Hats. The grand design is yet to be seen. Dotta notes the team worked with a group called Luxor to inscribe the collection. He says The Shadows are split up into 10 different bodies — one for each Shadow Hat they are subservient to. He says the satoshis are from a very old Block (mined January 2009). Dotta says sats from Block 666 aren't particularly rare, insofar as there are a lot of them. He says he believes the Block reward in those days was something like 100 BTC.
On-Chain Summoning Circle
Dotta notes that though these sats aren't rare, they also weren't exactly straightforward to obtain. Dotta also mentions that The Shadows' inscription process paints a picture on-chain with the idea of The Summoning of these Ordinals. He says they will have more visualizations, but when plotting the transaction graph between of process, it creates a decagram inside a circle. Dotta says they will provide a visualization where the transactions can be replayed to showcase the summoning circle being recreated on-chain. He says this process was done through moving each Shadow Hat to its own wallet which then contributed its own sats to the Summoning. Dotta mentions that The Shadows' summoning process may seem abstract, and reiterates the team will put together illustrations for better understanding. He says the team took great care to mint the collection in a very artistic and specific way that is only possible on-chain.
Bear asks if this is the first time transactions have been used in this way to create an image on-chain. Dotta says it is the first of its kind, as far as he knows. He also says he would be remiss not to mention Niski, who put together code for efficient recursive inscriptions.
Elf asks Dotta when The Shadows will go up for sale. Dotta says, "We don't know. I think probably closer to the halvening is probably a good idea, but who knows. Maybe folks will sort of be so enamored with the process and the collection that we'll end up doing it sooner." Elf says that the team will probably bring the Luxor team on Wizard Wednesday soon. He notes he likes that they aren't just Bitcoin maxis, but rather they're interested in using Bitcoin in really innovative ways, which made them a great partner for Forgotten Runes.
Cult Questions
Wizard Eye Color & Wizard Factions
After The Shadows conversation, Elf launches into Cult Questions. The first question is regarding Wizards' eye colors which match their hat colors, and if this means that Wizards are born into their factions. Elf says that he doesn't believe that is the case. Elf says that the Runiverse color factions are like any other political or religious affiliations that people can join in a myriad of different ways. That said, he imagines that once a Wizard joins a faction, depending on zealous passion, Magic changes their eye color over time.
The Runiverse In The Multiverse
The next question is concerning the Runiverse's status as part of a multiverse, and if it does belong in a multiverse, why does the Runiverse matter? They continue: If it is not part of a multiverse, how is it possible there are Chronomancers? Elf says the Runiverse is definitely part of a multiverse. He says he thinks all worlds are part of a multiverse. Elf says this includes the scientific descriptions of multiverses (e.g. inflationary multiverses and parallel universes) and worlds created by artists and writers. Elf believes these fictional, theoretical, and perceived worlds form a meta-multiverse.
He says,
"We get to interact with all of these different worlds in the multiverse in various ways through different Doors."
Elf says these worlds matter because you and the ones you love are in them or interact with them. He thinks the question of why anything matters is relative and can only be answered by You, because the state of mattering is defined by You. On the existence of Chronomancers, he isn't sure how much time manipulation affects the multiverse. He supposes different forms of Chronomancy exist in both the camps of 4-dimensional spacetime and the psychological perception of Time. Elf says he leans more toward Chronomancy existing in the realm of psychological Time and notes Einstein's theory of general relativity, which involves gravity as the force that curves the geometry of spacetime. This might suggest Chronomancers use gravity to manipulate Time.
Elf says he believes Chronomancers using gravity for Time manipulation seems too powerful, though he posits there may be a few Chronomancers with this type of ability.
Dotta Rides A Photon
Dotta then speaks about his understanding of relativity and brings up a point he has been struggling with. Dotta says that the perception of Time from the photons' perspective is that it moves instantly. He notes how when we look out to the stars, we see light that may not even be there anymore — the star might have blown up billions of year ago and we're looking into the past. Dotta says that if one were able to "ride the photon," from the star, the perception would be instant.
Madotsuki jumps in to say that from the perspective of a photon, nothing can move faster than the speed of light, and at that speed, everything collapses to a single instance. Mado says that a theory for quantum entanglement, which involves particles with the ability to communicate data over vast expanses, is that particle manipulation happens in the past and the future simultaneously.
"Time makes less and less sense the closer you get to the speed of light."
Elf says,
"Chronomancers are kind of OP, which is why I put them in the Riviera and had them only use their insane power for partying and staying young. You'll never convince a Chronomancer to do anything beyond that...or at least it would be very difficult."
Elf says this is what he loves about Forgotten Runes — its intersection between Science Fiction and Fantasy. He says if you dig deep enough in Fantasy, it becomes Science Fiction and vice versa. Some Science is so wild that it seems like pure Magic and Fantasy.
Is Magic Machine Buying Wizards?
Then, another question comes from the community, asking if Magic Machine has considered buying Wizards at the current price or if the price drops further. Elf says, "Yeah, we do." Dotta says, "Why would you think we haven't?" Elf jokes that they did not keep enough Wizards Art for themselves at launch. Dotta replies, "We've got a nice bag now." Elf says the most infamous example is that Dotta doesn't even own his Dotta Wizard. Elf clarifies Dotta's Wizard was minted and Dotta didn't sell it.
Battle For Goblin Town
Next, Elf address a question: "Wen Scree?" which he interprets as asking about the launch of Battle For Goblin Town. Dotta says he doesn't think the team can talk about all of the exciting things with Goblin Town, but they can talk about how they're actually going to launch it. Dotta notes that he didn't expect the launch of Goblin Town to take a year, but he thinks the team has had breakthroughs in terms of tokenomics and in terms of the gameplay loop and game economy.
There is still no launch date, though Dotta says the trailer is mostly done.
Elf Talks BasePaint & Falling For His First Crypto Scam
After that, Elf speaks briefly about BasePaint, which is a new project on Base. The premise is that there is a blank canvas on which multiple people are allowed to draw. After 24 hours, the final artwork is minted, and then the canvas is wiped for the next day. After the BasePaint mint, the proceeds from the mint are divided among participating artists. Elf says a Cult member DM'd him saying that Forgotten Runes should organize a drawing. Elf says he isn't going to organize this, but notes there is interest in doing so.
Dotta says he has really appreciated the art that has come from BasePaint, and that it looks good, which makes him think there is no way that it is publicly open to anyone.
Elf Falls For A Scam
Elf then tells of falling victim to his first crypto scam. He asks if anyone remembers the collection "The Boys of Summer" He says he was unable to get on the mint list, but received a DM on Twitter from the project's account saying they were opening mint to their followers.
Elf says:
"Like an idiot, I immediately clicked the link, went to this 'mint site,' and it said — this should have been my first tip off — 'Buy two, get one free.' Who does that? But I thought it was real. So I immediately tried to mint 2, sent $400 of ETH, and waited."
Elf says after sending his ETH he waited, and no NFT showed up. Then, he went back to the original DM and saw that it was clearly from a fake account with 0 followers. "I felt like a moron, because that's the first crypto scam I've ever fallen for in I don't know how long." Madotsuki asks if the scam Elf fell victim to was a drainer. Elf says it wasn't a drainer, but once he realized it was a scam, he started transferring NFTs to his cold storage. "Luckily they didn't drain my wallet. They just took the ETH that I sent."
Dotta says, "If you don't have a minting wallet set up separate from where you keep your value, that's your cue." Elf says, "That's a good point."
Ozzz Talks BasePaint
Then, Ozzz steps up to speak a little more about BasePaint. He says CheddaaBob let him know about the project, and he's been painting for a couple of days. To Dotta's earlier point, Ozzz says that you are able to mint a "brush," which allots the minter 100 pixels to paint with. Ozzz says in the 24 hours for each BasePaint canvas, you are able to paint anywhere, including over someone else's painting. He says invitees to the project are awarded a "bronze brush" which allots the holder 500 pixels rather than 100. Ozzz notes that even if your pixels aren't showing on the final canvas by the end of the 24 hour BasePaint period, you are still considered a participating artist for the split of the mint funds. Ozzz also notes the pixels renew everyday. Ozzz says that BasePaint bronze brushes are able to paint in the final 20 minute period, whereas normal brushes cannot.
Madotsuki asks what the invitation process is like and asks if Ozzz submitted a portfolio. Ozzz says he doesn't think it's too difficult to get invited. Ozzz says that CheddaaBob tagged him and he thinks the BasePaint team just looked at his profile, saw his pinned artwork, and got invited. Dotta jokes, "Oh, so it's so easy! You just have to be as good as Ozzz and they just let you right in. Super. Easy."
Dotta says that BasePaint is a really fun idea and he loves it. He also says it seems that there is a fixed palette for each day. Ozzz confirms each day has its own palette and theme. Dotta says, "This is such a good model for creative collaboration." Dotta mentions his interest in collaborative Runiverse maps — a subject he's breached quite a few times — and wonders what that might look like if multiple people were collaborating on not only an image, but the layout of a town.
Dotta says:
"One of the things I love about crypto is when people discover these new ideas, there's all sorts of variations on those ideas that then become possible — well, we realized what's possible, I suppose."
Quest 64
Following that, Elf invites a special guest, Mike from the "Quest 64 Official" Twitter account, to come onstage. After some connection issues, Mike joins the conversation.
Do You Really Like Quest 64?
Elf says he has a bunch of random questions for Mike and begins by asking if he actually likes Quest 64. Mike says that Quest 64 is legitimately his favorite game and notes a post of his that shows a curio cabinet with a bunch of different copies of Quest 64. Mike says, "That's in my living room at my house...it's been my favorite game forever."
Elf says the memes from the Quest 64 Official account are very irreverent, and the character, Brian is an avatar for the jokes while also being the butt of the jokes, so he couldn't quite tell if Mike was a mega-fan or someone making fun of the game. Mike says he's not making fun of Quest 64, and says it has garnered a dirty reputation over the last 20 years, noting its average reviews on release.
"Between the way Google algorithms works, and popular YouTubers needing to dump on games...Quest has kind of taken a fall."
Mike says instead of convincing people to play the game, it would be easier to manipulate the way the internet views Quest 64 without telling them to play the game. Dotta says, "That's so amazing. That's so smart."
An "Official" Account & Mike Tries To Buy Quest 64 IP
Elf mentions the name of the account is "Quest 64 Official" and the average Twitter user might think it's the official account. Elf wonders about Mike getting into trouble with the developers of the game over the account. Mike says nothing like that has happened. Mike says Imagineer, the developer of the game, doesn't even reach out to acknowledge the game. He says, if anything, it would be a micro-victory to have them submit a cease and desist, because that would require them to admit to still owning the rights to the game. Mike says that he has attempted to contact Imagineer in attempt to try and buy the Quest 64 IP, but he has never received any response. Elf asks what he would do with the IP if he ever acquired it. Mike says he has friends who are remaking the game in Unity.
Mike says they're going to continue working on the fan remake until someone tells them to stop. Bear says he's happy to help "with any IP stuff." Mike says there's not much anyone could help with.
"Imagineer just keeps making fitness boxing games for the Switch."
The Internet of the Past
Elf says that 5-10 years ago the internet just felt more weird, interesting, and unique and now it doesn't. He says now it feels cleaner and more corporate and commercial. He says he feels accounts like Quest 64 Official were something seen regularly in the past.
Elf asks if Mike shares these feelings of the past internet. Mike says he's probably older than a significant portion of the people who consume his account.
"I remember when 4chan was prominent and we were all hanging out in Yahoo Pool and Cribbage lobbies doing weird stuff."
Mike says he's been doing the Quest 64 thing for about 10 years, just not on Twitter.
"I was supposed to be paying a parking ticket one day, and the paying portal was down. It was the same day they announced you could just buy official accounts."
Mike says he didn't want to buy a checkmark. "I'll just be the Official account and then we'll go from there." He says his Twitter account is only ~ 7 months old, but he's been "doing Quest stuff" on Facebook and all sorts of places for years.
Quest 64 Doesn't Take Itself Too Seriously
Madotsuki asks Mike what his favorite thing in Quest 64 is.
He says:
"I just like the lightheartedness of the game and that it doesn't take itself too seriously. Everybody dumps that it's like a kiddie RPG...it's not easy. It's just being construed wrong."
Elf asks if Quest is the only RPG on Nintendo 64. Mike says there are a lot of RPGs. He notes he doesn't only do Quest stuff on Facebook, but he's also the admin of the Nintendo 64 Super Group which includes N64 history, trivia, development notes, and lost media.
Mike notes that in the US there was Quest 64, Aidyn Chronicles, Ogre Battle, Paper Mario, Hybrid Heaven, Gauntlet Legends. He says Japan also got a lot of exclusive RPGs.
Memes In The Mail
Elf asks how Mike comes up with such funny memes. Mike responds, "I don't know. Just being on the internet for a bunch of year, I guess?" Elf wonders if he's a professional comedian, and Mike responds that no, he's actually a USPS letter carrier.
Mike says:
"While I deliver mail during the day, I just make memes and respond to corporate accounts on Twitter and just mess around while I'm walking."
Mike says he looked at what Forgotten Runes is doing and thinks it's cool stuff, noting he'll be lurking around for a while. Mike says he has time if the team has other questions, though he isn't sure exactly what they want to know. Dotta says:
"I just think what you make is art, and we are interested in artists and RPGs and Nintendo 64 and being funny online. You just check all the boxes for us."
Dotta says he's grinning from ear to ear talking to Mike. Mike says just to know that here isn't much time or effort put into what he makes.
"Very few of them were made on the computer where I actually had to pull up GIMP or anything like that."
Mike says most of his content is made on a meme generator on his phone while he walks.
"If it makes more than 2 minutes to make a meme, then I know I'm putting too much into it and it's going to be less rewarding than just slapping Brian's face on a meme I made 8 years ago."
Elf draws parallels between Mike's Quest 64 content and Forgotten Runes in that Mike has taken the Quest 64 IP, though he doesn't own it, and given it new life.
Bear says he wants to know if Mike has any stories from carrying mail, like how many times he's been bitten by a dog. Mike says it's a lot more boring than it sounds, but he gets to simultaneously touch grass while and be chronically online. Mike says he's never been bitten by a dog, and they're not as big of a problem as people make them seem, though he says he gets attacked by birds a lot. Mike says that the Red-winged Blackbirds in Wisconsin are super territorial and he has to "punch 'em in the bird dick all day long." Mike also says he's delivered live chickens and crickets noting that Harbor Freight uses USPS.
Bear asks Elf who delivers the mail in the Runiverse. Elf says, "Obviously, Mike the Mailman, 1000%!" He asks Mike if he's up for delivering mail in our fictional world.
Mike asks, "What does that entail other than just saying yes?"
Dotta Explores PWAs
Following the conversation with Mike, Dotta talks about an experimental PWA that he has been building, inspired by Friend Tech. He says the premise is that you will be able to buy and sell words. He encourages Wizards who are interested to let him know in the Alpha chat.
Bear says,:
"For all the haters out there, we think there are a lot of things, directionally, with PWAs that are very relevant to the Cult and what we're building."
Dotta says it's an experiment to build a piece of infrastructure for bigger things, but it might be fun on its own.
Sharkchild Reads Lore & Cult Content Review
After that, Sharkchild reads a heartfelt poem about his character Charlord of the Garden. Then, the team reviews Week 32 of the illustrious Tania del Rio's Cult Content Chronicle.
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Pot of bugbear war paint, 2023 by Ozzz
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Starstone Amulet, 2023 by Ozzz
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Ozzz by Daniela Ilustra
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Two Crows by Daniela Ilustra
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Roombor Razer of Devils by Steezy
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DeltaMouse Heroforge Warrior Miniature
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Chronomancer by Deltamouse
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Smol Warrior by Wizardsmol
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Tabitha of the Marsh on the Moon
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Blue Wizard Propaganda by Henboyd
Bear & Nalgene Speak About Comic Pre-Orders
To close out the show, Nalgene approaches the stage for his first Wizard Wednesday appearance. Nalgene and Bear speak about purchasing options to pre-order Forgotten Runes Comic Issue #1. Bear notes the best way to order is through your local comic shop for general awareness.