Ketran Fix the Ending Game

[alaois]

Hello... I've lurked around here for a bit.  Had an idea for an interesting topic\game... it's not quite fan-fic or role playing, so I hope it fits here.

Basically, lots of folks aren't all that satisfied w/ the ending, right?  So here's the game: you're the Ellimist and you get to change the ending.  There are three categories to get scores in.

First Category: you get "points" for being as minimalist as possible like you're playing the old Ketran game (so throw out what you'd usually suggest to change the ending, because it's probably too big a change).

Second Category: you get "points" for the feasibility of what you say the result would be of your small change.  No changing the flow of a butterfly's wings in Japan to create a tornado in California that destroys the Pool Ship.  

Third Category: you get "points" for how satisfying the result of your change is to the average fan.  

so basically, to play the game you give a BRIEF description of your change and what you think its effects might be.  then anyone can quote-reply to you and give you their scores in each category.  The points in each category are on a scale of 1-10; and scores of below 5 in the 1st or 2nd categories are basically saying "disqualified".  Scoring's just informal w every1 just giving their opinion, but eventually we could pick the 'most popular ones and put them in a poll to vote for a winner.

Post in this format to play the game:
Change:
Effect:
[small paragraph for each]

Post in this format to judge:

Change:
Effect:

First Category: x/10
Second Category: x/10
Third Category: x/10

[Chad32]

This sounds kind of interesting. I'll give it some thought.

[warren_bearclaw]

Can I change (or "influence") people's action, or can I only mess with the environment?

[Chad32]

Wow. I completely forgot about this thread, and my post was back in July.

Change: ensure that Jake's parents get rescued along with the other parents.

Effect: Jake wouldn't have that mental breakdown and go all General Ripper. He'd find a way to keep everyone alive like he always does. Tom may be rescued too, though I'm not sure.

I haven't read 49 in forever, but I think Jake's parents got captured because Tom's yeerk just decided the time was ripe. I would either change his mind, or change the father's mind about that day being the day to get a new lawnmower.

[patric]

Wow. I completely forgot about this thread, and my post was back in July.

Change: ensure that Jake's parents get rescued along with the other parents.

Effect: Jake wouldn't have that mental breakdown and go all General Ripper. He'd find a way to keep everyone alive like he always does. Tom may be rescued too, though I'm not sure.

I haven't read 49 in forever, but I think Jake's parents got captured because Tom's yeerk just decided the time was ripe. I would either change his mind, or change the father's mind about that day being the day to get a new lawnmower.

i like this a lot. this was actually far better, and simpler, then what i was trying to do.

[warren_bearclaw]

Change: While activating the shrinking ray on the Helmacron ship, Ax realizes that the shrinking ray easily detaches.

Effect:The Animorphs acquire the Helmacrons, then squish them, and take control of the Helmacron ship and shrinking ray. Powered by the Morphing Cube, the Animorphs are able to shrink their enemies. Any Controllers that they want to starve the Yeerk out of can be held captive easily, particularly Tom, Visser One, and Visser Three. Enemy ships (the Bug Fighters, the Blade Ship, and the Pool Ship) could be shrunken and rendered useless, or at least less effective. Armies of Hork-Bajir and/or Taxxons could be reduced to squishable sizes and be taken captive or, well, squished. The Helmacron ship(s) would not be tracked by the Yeerks,  and if they were taken after their first encounter, the Yeerks would never be able to use one to track morphing energy (in other words, no buffa-human). The morphing cube itself could possibly be shrunken down to a size that easier to carry or hide. The shrink ray is able to return people to normal sizes... perhaps it could be altered to enlarge people as well (Giant Rachel Grizzly Bear lets loose on Yeerk Pool!!!) The Helmacron ship apparently has a tractor beam of sorts, which has many possibilities. No one knows of what other technologies the Helmacrons have/had that could be made useful. Apparently, there are more Helmacrons somewhere in the Universe, but the opportunities far out way the risks, at least in my opinion.

**"Ram the Blade Ship"?!? Heck no, "Shrink the Blade Ship"  

[MoppingBear]

Action:  Take the pemalite crystal out of the ocean, and give it to Jake.
Effect:  Having damn powerful androinds on the side of the war effort would probably be a good thing.

[CounterInstinct]

^
As far as i can remember, the Permalites do not want to alter their programming. Only Erek decided to go gung-ho, and regretted it soon after. Jake may get the crystal, but would be unable to use it.

[Red]

^
As far as i can remember, the Permalites do not want to alter their programming. Only Erek decided to go gung-ho, and regretted it soon after. Jake may get the crystal, but would be unable to use it.

They could have trapped the Chee into altering their programming, like how Jake convinced Erek to go along with his plans at the end.

[Chad32]

There's no way Jake could force Erek to do anything he didn't want to do once he was reprogrammed. That just wouldn't happen. Unless Jake took away his free will, which I don't even know if he could do.

[MoppingBear]

^
As far as i can remember, the Permalites do not want to alter their programming. Only Erek decided to go gung-ho, and regretted it soon after. Jake may get the crystal, but would be unable to use it.

they were a minority, i forget which book it was but a female chee did mention wanting to do more for the war effort.  and heres the thing about not wanting to alter their programming, that can be reprogrammed.  and even if jake was unwilling to do that, even finding one chee willing to help would have made a major difference to the final battle.

[alaois]

ha, this thread finally took off!  took it long enough lol.  alright, I'm gonna put in my scores, but anyone can score...

Wow. I completely forgot about this thread, and my post was back in July.

Change: ensure that Jake's parents get rescued along with the other parents.

Effect: Jake wouldn't have that mental breakdown and go all General Ripper. He'd find a way to keep everyone alive like he always does. Tom may be rescued too, though I'm not sure.

I haven't read 49 in forever, but I think Jake's parents got captured because Tom's yeerk just decided the time was ripe. I would either change his mind, or change the father's mind about that day being the day to get a new lawnmower.

First Category (minimalism): 7.7/10... pretty good, pretty small change... but it'd be better in the Ketran game if you made sure there was a nail on the road on the way to the lawnmower store that morning giving them a flat tire and thus buying the time Jake needed to save his parents.
Second Category (feasibility) : 10/10 Totally feasible that Jake's parents could've been saved
Third Category (satisfaction of change): 8.5/10yeah, changing Jake's tone at the end would be pretty satisfying, but I think there definitely should be some stress and some tragic hero stuff in there, so I'm not sure I totally like this change.

[Chad32]

Yeah, putting a nail in the road or having some other tiny thing happen to the vehicle would be smaller than changing a person's mind.

I actually understand what the writers were trying to do. They wanted things to be as bad as possible to add tension and drama. However they did it poorly with jake holding the idiot ball in 49, and both Cassie and Jake not thinking clearly at the end of 50. If it had been done better, it would have been less annoying.

26.2 out of 30, if my math is right.

[alaois]

haha yeah, that's my score for ya... you fare much better in my book that the pemalite crystal plan...

Action:  Take the pemalite crystal out of the ocean, and give it to Jake.
Effect:  Having damn powerful androinds on the side of the war effort would probably be a good thing.

First Category (minimalism): 7/10; again, decently minimalist... but think like a Ketran.  I'd improve it by shifting the tides just right so that it ends up jammed in the very whale that saves them one time so that they end up finding it at another time and figure it's fate so they keep it (I hope I have my timelines right, if not, just have the tides wash it ashore at just the right time).
Second Category (feasibility): 3/10 from me, the whole point of the Chee is that they don't want to fight, and those that did at one time had their minds changed when Erek actually accomplished it.
Third Category (satisfaction): 2/10... yeah it'd be nice to have them win the war for them, but I would actually pretty much hate animorphs as a series if they were able to get such a powerful ally who actually helped them, it'd lose all the charm of 5 kids and an alien kid up against a powerful alien empire.

[CounterInstinct]

^
As far as i can remember, the Permalites do not want to alter their programming. Only Erek decided to go gung-ho, and regretted it soon after. Jake may get the crystal, but would be unable to use it.

They could have trapped the Chee into altering their programming, like how Jake convinced Erek to go along with his plans at the end.

And even if they force Erek. Erek would have the capability to pulverize Jake. And the Animorphs. And the Earth itself.


Change: Five Aux-Anis go with Rachel to kill Tom.
Effect: Rachel lives and Ax doesn't have to get assimilated! But the Auxes would might want to have revenge for the other Aux's mindless destruction.