Random Thoughts Thread

[Gradius]

I’ve already said it a bunch of times. Nobody wants to or cares to read any external documents as supplements to what is already a tough sell: a StarCraft fan fiction. I know StarCraft canon and so does every StarCraft player so I’m not going to crosscheck any of my plot with somebody else’s fanon or “use it as the basis of my campaign” when I’m going to be imagining an alternate universe of my own design anyway. Having to adhere to a secondary canon is more restrictive on the other hand. There’s absolutely nothing that can be fixed about that...

Alright, how about this. How do you know Annhilation or Ignos or Perfect Soldiers wasn’t set in Enumerate? And if it was, what would have been different? Would anyone have really cared about whatever minor detail would have been changed? I say no, not really. It’s still StarCraft at its core. Going with Enumerate is redundant and a waste of time if you’re making your own AU anyway. Feel free to make a campaign and prove me wrong.

[Mislagnissa]

I’ve already said it a bunch of times. Nobody wants to or cares to read any external documents as supplements to what is already a tough sell: a StarCraft fan fiction. I know StarCraft canon and so does every StarCraft player so I’m not going to crosscheck any of my plot with somebody else’s fanon or “use it as the basis of my campaign” when I’m going to be imagining an alternate universe of my own design anyway. Having to adhere to a secondary canon is more restrictive on the other hand. There’s absolutely nothing that can be fixed about that...

You still haven't explained how it is restrictive. Did you read the timeline? Enumerate is specifically designed to be as open as possible. I cannot think of any situation that it would restrict unless you are really going out of your way to defy the Starcraft premise.

Alright, how about this. How do you know Annhilation or Ignos or Perfect Soldiers wasn’t set in Enumerate? And if it was, what would have been different? Would anyone have really cared about whatever minor detail would have been changed? I say no, not really. It’s still StarCraft at its core. Going with Enumerate is redundant and a waste of time if you’re making your own AU anyway. Feel free to make a campaign and prove me wrong.

That is precisely my point. Those stories were set outside the Koprulu sector precisely because the canon is so restrictive. Enumerate provides a better framework than canon. Those campaigns can be easily fit into Enumerate without adjustment, and that is a strength. You cannot do the same with canon.

When I made an AU it ended up being Enumerate all over again. It is already everything I wanted to do. Using it saves time rather than making everything up yourself. It is intended to save time and keep everyone on the same page.

The point of using Enumerate, again, is that all those stories can appear to take place in the same universe by referencing the same points of reference even if the authors never collaborated. They don't all have to be completely isolated as they are currently. That makes the setting feel more alive and populated.

I don't have the time or resources to finish a campaign anytime soon. I've never even finished my first BW map yet because the engine isn't really designed for objectives more complicated than "get from point A to point B" or "kill enemy forces." (I have to use a dozen triggers to implement a ridiculously simple objective of "hold X territories at locations Y".) To illustrate my point, I will just dump my current Enumerate-based timeline and you can tell me it if proves anything to you.

---

First Age or “Lost Age”
Under the guidance of the xel’naga, the protoss build a highly advanced galactic empire on the other side of the galaxy from Earth. Although the xel’naga were masters of protogenetics, the protoss ultimately surpass them in most other sciences. Among other things, they develop warp gates which enable vastly faster travel than conventional warp drives and instant communication with anywhere else inside the network.

Aeon of Strife
Due to nationalism and the flight of the xel’naga, the empire collapses into a state of civil war that lasts for countless millennia, scars the galaxy and regresses most technological advancement.

Second Age or “Golden Age” (continues through present era)
Khas unites the protoss under the Khala and they begin reclaiming and rebuilding the territory and peoples formerly part of the Old Empire. Due to the Aeon of Strife, historical records are spotty and the first age protoss are often conflated with the xel’naga. The New Empire succeeds in reclaiming roughly an eighth of the territory held by the Old Empire, covering hundreds or thousands of worlds across the galactic rim, a region of space also known as the Protoss Expanse.

Although many protoss unite under the Khala, others reject it or the judicators’ laws (such as the outlawing of all other religions). Pogroms are taken against the pagans, heretics and apostates. Adun is one of the few who speaks out against the slaughter, and ends up becoming a martyr for his cause (to the point where the Judicators rewrite history to depict him as a genocidal “hero” rather than admit he disobeyed them). The survivors are forced to flee and live out their lives in secret enclaves, such as the Nerazim, Tal’darim and Idu’ran confederations.

The New Empire is only a pale shadow of the Old Empire, in both expanse and technological advancement. Although the exiles remain an infamous part of their history, there remain a number of other enclaves within the unreclaimed territories such as the Kharnikhan Empire and the Slayn Stratocracy.

The Empire also hosts a thriving trade economy and client states populated by various alien civilizations. On the bright side they are comparable to the Federation from Star Trek, on the dark side they are comparable to the Covenant from Halo.

Because the Empire relies on the warp gate network for the vast majority of long-range transportation, the Expanse is not a contiguous region of space but a series of islands connected by the psionic matrix. Expeditions into unclaimed territory are ongoing, such as Tassadar’s expedition.

ATLAS arrives in the Koprulu sector 60k ly from Earth, carried by naturally-occurring warp currents after becoming hopelessly lost in warp space. Koprulu is located in the galactic rim, on the frontier of the Protoss Expanse and well within the former territory of the Old Empire; in terms of real astrogeography it is located in either the New Outer Arm or the Scutum Centaurus Arm. A number of planets in Koprulu are littered with ruins and relics of the Lost Age, including some really dangerous stuff like terraforming devices and superweapons. Some ruins are currently under investigation by archaeologists.

The protoss send token forces to monitor terran activities from afar, but for the most part humanity remains unaware of the aliens as anything other than the long-dead builders of ancient ruins. At of that changes in the twilight years of the 25th century.

Antebellum
The zerg vanguard arrives in the Koprulu by at least 2487 AD, after traveling for 60 solar years, and subtly infest the fringe worlds and outer colonies. This brings them into conflict with the Confederacy and the recently formed Umojan Protectorate, who immediately take notice of and start studying the mysterious “xenomorph” presence. The Umojans quickly deduce that the xenomorphs are an invasive and hostile civilization of some kind and begin developing countermeasures. By contrast, the corrupt Confederacy attempts to breed and weaponize the xenomorphs regardless of the obvious dangers. A protoss warfleet on the border of Koprulu, led by executors such as Andinunn, notices the xenomorph activity and starts interfering.

Back in the Protoss Empire, one of the expedition fleets notices that a number of space-dwelling organisms on the borders of the Expanse have begun a massive migration toward the Koprulu sector. Upon further investigation, they discover that these organisms are actually deep space probes of some kind that were engineered by either the xel’naga or another species who studied khaydarin and protogenetics (such as the protoss themselves, dun dun dun!). Executors such as Oong and Tassadar are assigned to investigate the aliens’ activities in Koprulu and exterminate them should they pose a threat.

The situation in the Koprulu sector begins spiraling out of control. The Confederacy laces water supplies with “cholera” to conceal the xenomorph presence, provoking a mass exodus from the outer colonies. Experiments with psi-emitters attract more xenomorphs and inquisitive protoss. As the xenomorph presence increases, it becomes clear that conventional tactics are ineffective and the Confederacy resorts to nuclear weapons to halt the advance.

The protoss warfleet, added by reinforcements sent to investigate the xenomorphs further, starts purifying infested planets in December 2499. This throws the sector into open war and civil strife as the civilian populace becomes aware of the presence of two hostile alien races.

The Great War

The pirate militias, such as the Sons of Korhal, Umojan Protectorate and Kel-Morian Combine, try to take advantage of the Great War to overthrow the Confederacy.

The protoss in the Koprulu sector experience a schism between those who wish to protect the terrans and those who consider them expendable. The former faction is led by the Akilae tribe, the latter by the Ara tribe. In many cases this erupts into open civil war, such as when Judicator Syndrea turns against Executor Andraxxus for his refusal to purify the Brontes system.

Warbands from the exiled protoss tribes appear in the Koprulu sector, having also followed the zerg probes. Their motivations are even more variable than the Khalai. Some seek to test their warrior mettle against the zerg, others seek to protect the humans from the zerg and the “evil” (in their eyes) Khalai empire, and yet others see the terrans and zerg as attractive slaves.

While the terrans and protoss are occupied with their own politics, the zerg abduct countless terran psychics and spirit them to remote hive worlds for experimentation. Over time, this produces psychic signals that grow in strength until they are eventually felt over interstellar distances and attract unwanted attention.

The presence of the zerg provokes the formation of cults such as the Fist of Redemption and the Shifters. These cults believe that the zerg are saviors from the Confederacy’s oppression and seek to help them or become zerg themselves. While the zerg initially take little notice, the more intelligent broods discover their activities and (with difficulty) open contact with the cults to manipulate them.

The zerg’s invasion is not without internal problems. When Incubus brood attempts to assimilate a cell of the Fist of Redemption led by the mad ghost Atticus Carpenter, the brood is infected with his madness and secedes from the Swarm. The protoss and terran science divisions actively attack the hive mind with disruptors or hijack control of broods.

Fearful of the terrans or protoss uncovering relics of the Old Empire, the zerg send crusades led by broods like Sennith to claim the ruins in the Koprulu sector and other regions of space. This sometimes has its own grave consequences, such as the accidental awakening of a mysterious robotic race known as the purifiers (basically necrons).

At great expense, the zerg acquire intelligence which enables them to prepare a massive invasion of the Empire. They learn the location of most of the worlds currently claimed by the khalai and the exiles. They develop electronic warfare against the psionic matrices that power protoss technology and plot to harvest fresh khaydarin crystals to further this. Most importantly, they figure out how to hijack control of the warp gate networks that enable much faster transit than conventional warp drives, enabling them to begin the offensive within a matter of weeks or months rather than decades or centuries (during which the protoss would have the advantage). Once they have spawned sufficient numbers of assimilated terran breeds such as psyolisks and psi colonies, they blitzkrieg the Empire to surprise the otherwise superior protoss war machine.

At the same time there are tentative alliances between some groups of protoss and terrans to halt the zerg advance in Koprulu, but the protoss are unable to offer much assistance when most fleets across the galaxy are recalled to defend the empire. Conflict between the terrans and protoss is more common due to outrage over the genocides.

---

This timeline is a glorified list of plot hooks designed for authors to take advantage of. I've referenced the novels, licensed expansions and some custom campaigns as examples. It is a sandbox campaign setting in the style of tabletop roleplaying games.

Having all those details and all those campaigns occurring in the same setting makes it feel more alive. You don't get that feeling from a bunch of custom campaigns which are restricted to their own isolated bubble universes.

Does anything there strike you as restrictive? Why?

[Gradius]

How do you still not get my point? It's not the content of Enumerate that's restrictive, it's having to worry about an alternate canon, as opposed to freestyling your own universe. Why should an author compromise his campaign to match some detail of Enumerate, especially if it doesn't service the specific story he wants to tell?

That is precisely my point. Those stories were set outside the Koprulu sector precisely because the canon is so restrictive.

When I made an AU it ended up being Enumerate all over again. It is already everything I wanted to do.

Then what is even the point? If nobody can tell the difference anyway then it's a waste of time.

Using it saves time rather than making everything up yourself. It is intended to save time and keep everyone on the same page.

Having to adhere to Enumerate instead of the manual you and everyone else has already read in no way saves time. Like Turalyon said, the SC1 manual is sufficient in this regard. To me, bending over backwards to fit some shared universe is only cool and gratifying if it matches actual canon. Otherwise, you should have the freedom to do whatever the heck you want and not have to worry about "being on the same page" as some other rando's fanon.

The solution to your problem is simple: just pretend all these campaigns take place in the Enumerate universe.

I don't have the time or resources to finish a campaign anytime soon. I've never even finished my first BW map yet because the engine isn't really designed for objectives more complicated than "get from point A to point B" or "kill enemy forces." (I have to use a dozen triggers to implement a ridiculously simple objective of "hold X territories at locations Y".) To illustrate my point, I will just dump my current Enumerate-based timeline and you can tell me it if proves anything to you.

Making a SC1 campaign is 100x easier than making a SC2 campaign, and you can still make a basic "destroy the enemy base" campaign with an in-depth story.

This timeline is a glorified list of plot hooks designed for authors to take advantage of. I've referenced the novels, licensed expansions and some custom campaigns as examples. It is a sandbox campaign setting in the style of tabletop roleplaying games.

I like it, but it's basically the same premise as the manual with some details changed. I like that the protoss have a whole empire and that there are more factions to work with, which seems to be its main advantage.

Having all those details and all those campaigns occurring in the same setting makes it feel more alive. You don't get that feeling from a bunch of custom campaigns which are restricted to their own isolated bubble universes.

I see what you're going for here, but again, the manual is sufficient for this. If your campaign touches the background events of Enumerate, you're restricting yourself to someone else's canon and shouldn't be forced to "be on the same page" and fact-check when all you wanted is to write a story with different planets/factions. But if your campaign could just as well be a sequel to the SC1 manual then Enumerate just becomes redundant and a waste of time. Nobody needs to read it to understand your story and it doesn't "save time" by creating details that aren't even in the campaign.

[Mislagnissa]

How do you still not get my point? It's not the content of Enumerate that's restrictive, it's having to worry about an alternate canon, as opposed to freestyling your own universe. Why should an author compromise his campaign to match some detail of Enumerate, especially if it doesn't service the specific story he wants to tell?


Then what is even the point? If nobody can tell the difference anyway then it's a waste of time.


Having to adhere to Enumerate instead of the manual you and everyone else has already read in no way saves time. Like Turalyon said, the SC1 manual is sufficient in this regard. To me, bending over backwards to fit some shared universe is only cool and gratifying if it matches actual canon. Otherwise, you should have the freedom to do whatever the heck you want and not have to worry about "being on the same page" as some other rando's fanon.

The solution to your problem is simple: just pretend all these campaigns take place in the Enumerate universe.


Making a SC1 campaign is 100x easier than making a SC2 campaign, and you can still make a basic "destroy the enemy base" campaign with an in-depth story.

I like it, but it's basically the same premise as the manual with some details changed. I like that the protoss have a whole empire and that there are more factions to work with, which seems to be its main advantage.


I see what you're going for here, but again, the manual is sufficient for this. If your campaign touches the background events of Enumerate, you're restricting yourself to someone else's canon and shouldn't be forced to "be on the same page" and fact-check when all you wanted is to write a story with different planets/factions. But if your campaign could just as well be a sequel to the SC1 manual then Enumerate just becomes redundant and a waste of time. Nobody needs to read it to understand your story and it doesn't "save time" by creating details that aren't even in the campaign.

The manual (and whatever supplementary materials that don't contradict it) only go as far as the Great War without really altering the politics. It does not really give a guideline for the overarching story of the Koprulu sector beyond skirmishes and alliances for the fate of the sector.

Enumerate provides broad guidelines for major events that affect the setting, like the Umojan/Dominion War and the Zerg/Protoss War. More accurately, it divides the setting into specific historical eras which are still very big sandboxes.

There aren't that many fact-checks. The chronology is supposed to be kitchen sink, so you only need to fact check what little isn't possible. I dropped the zerg/dark templar deus ex machina and added protoss necrons without making a big difference, so this isn't hard.

[Gradius]

There aren't that many fact-checks. The chronology is supposed to be kitchen sink, so you only need to fact check what little isn't possible. I dropped the zerg/dark templar deus ex machina and added protoss necrons without making a big difference, so this isn't hard.

It's not hard but it's not worth the effort. These tiny changes add absolutely nothing to the plot or one's enjoyment of it. This trivial worldbuilding minutiae doesn't matter in a fanon universe that doesn't have to adhere to canon or fanon. If I'm going to make my own AU, the whole point is to let my imagination run wild and therefore I'm not going to give two craps what Enumerate thinks. Nobody cared that Annhilation or Perfect Soldiers didn't have the amazing benefit of a "shared universe".

[Turalyon]

The manual (and whatever supplementary materials that don't contradict it) only go as far as the Great War without really altering the politics. It does not really give a guideline for the overarching story of the Koprulu sector beyond skirmishes and alliances for the fate of the sector.

I think I'm getting it now. It seems like you want the setup to essentially spell out the mainline story for you. That can cut both ways because if one generally knows how things are going to turn out and feels safe about it, it doesn't really motivate one to follow a staid and pedestrian narrative that this setup sort of invites. I suppose there can still be surprises in such a thing, but they can't be too big a surprise because things have to be the same/meet the "guideline".

Personally, I prefer how the manual is just treated as a general setup with no specific expectations as to how the mainline story unfurls. The narrative can be made to go to interesting places without being restricted by some invisible guideline that way. Sure, the mainline story that we ended up may not be to ones liking but that doesn't mean it was also totally divorced from the setup/manual as well. You don't need to change the setup we already have to get the mainline story you want, since the initial setup is broad enough to encompass it. There's no need to create or adhere to an alternate setup for one to rewrite the mainline story.

Also, one can ignore the mainline story and still be happy with the universe in which it's set. Case in point for me is some of those short stories. They feel more Starcraft-y to me than the game story more because they get the atmosphere and tone one would expect from that universe right even though some of the stuff maybe less/more adherent on the canon side of things.

[Mislagnissa]

I think I'm getting it now. It seems like you want the setup to essentially spell out the mainline story for you. That can cut both ways because if one generally knows how things are going to turn out and feels safe about it, it doesn't really motivate one to follow a staid and pedestrian narrative that this setup sort of invites. I suppose there can still be surprises in such a thing, but they can't be too big a surprise because things have to be the same/meet the "guideline".

Personally, I prefer how the manual is just treated as a general setup with no specific expectations as to how the mainline story unfurls. The narrative can be made to go to interesting places without being restricted by some invisible guideline that way. Sure, the mainline story that we ended up may not be to ones liking but that doesn't mean it was also totally divorced from the setup/manual as well. You don't need to change the setup we already have to get the mainline story you want, since the initial setup is broad enough to encompass it. There's no need to create or adhere to an alternate setup for one to rewrite the mainline story.

Also, one can ignore the mainline story and still be happy with the universe in which it's set. Case in point for me is some of those short stories. They feel more Starcraft-y to me than the game story more because they get the atmosphere and tone one would expect from that universe right even though some of the stuff maybe less/more adherent on the canon side of things.

Yes, that is why I like Enumerate. It provides a broad outline for numerous authors to use as a guideline to tell stories in a shared universe with an advancing timeline without intruding on their creativity.

Your argument against it feels like naysaying for the sake of naysaying.

The same applies to any custom campaigns that try to adhere to canon. The benefit of enumerate is that it offers vastly more freedom compared to canon even with its major setting-shaking events due to the massive scale. You don't have to ignore the major political events because they are not obnoxious like Kerry taking over all the zerg or various retcons like the UED or Amon or primals.

If, say, there was an infested terran ("Kerry Sue") who used psi tech to control a brood, there is a snowball's chance in hell they would be able to control all the zerg in the galaxy. If, say, there was a rogue protoss replicant ("Duran Routhe") from the lost age who assumed the identity of a terran ghost and started manipulating various people to inscrutable ends, there's a snowball's chance in hell this would make any noticeable difference to the rest of the sector. If, say, there was an evil emperor, he's essentially a figurehead ruler given that the government is so huge and sprawling to the point that half of it is composed of multiple different conspiracies to overthrow him. There's no way that only one person can make a difference and take over an entire political bloc, unless you're the Overmind and spend literally "countless millennia" consuming countless planets and preparing an army of quadrillions. So you never have to write your story around the poseurs.

Yes, institutions like the Confederacy, Protoss Empire and Zerg Swarm exist and the galactic wars will redraw the political map, but that doesn't prevent you from telling any kind of story against that backdrop. There are few stories that you cannot tell against a backdrop of galactic war.

Unless your specific story is meant to have an epic scale where the cast are demigods rewriting the galaxy and all its 400 billion stars to their whims, which is a completely different genre from grimdark military scifi and so ridiculous on its face that I cannot take it seriously, the enumerate chronology is not going to restrict your ability to tell a story. It essentially recapitulates the recurring conflicts of canon (terran rebellion, zerg feasting, protoss whining), and I've seen no custom campaigns which defy those recurring arcs. Annihilation is essentially a recreation of the premise of Rebel Yell and Ignos is essentially a recreation of the premise of The Fall. Virtually every custom campaign can be categorized that way.

You have yet to explain how Enumerate's chronology is the least bit restrictive. You keep saying so, but you never provide any concrete hypothetical examples. I have provided numerous examples of how canon is unnecessarily restrictive whereas Enumerate offers the freedom to do loads of stuff unthinkable in canon and of how most existing custom campaigns can be easily folded into a historical era of its version of Koprulu. What, specifically, is restrictive? What major events are restrictive and why? What stories do they prevent?

I am totally open to feedback if that feedback provides example of what the problem actually is rather than making vague statements. If the current chronology too restrictive? Okay, let's make a branching chronology so everyone who wants to can share the same setting. Timeline A has the Confederacy restructured into the Dominion with the Umojans and KMC as client states secretly working to overthrow it again. Timeline B has the Confederacy not falling as a reference to the fact that the Confederacy's fall was not planned from the start but written well into development. Et cetera. (Although I seriously doubt anyone cares enough to use those.)

Ultimately, I think your argument is unfounded. Enumerate is a toolkit, a sandbox that refines everything great about Starcraft while discarding the silly parts. It gives you a broadly sketched chronology of major events, a bunch of ideas and plot hooks to draw inspiration from, and asks you to tell a story about Starcraft without the idiosyncrasies of canon weighing you down.

Sure, it might be restrictive in some way I cannot see but you can. I seriously doubt that makes any difference to creators based on the content of custom campaigns which already exist. Unless a story is specifically about Kerry or Duran, who are specifically excised from Enumerate, then I don't see how enumerate restricts grandfathering in existing stories much less fostering new ones based on the unique ideas it introduces like the protoss galactic empire, the assimilated terran breeds and the terran conspiracies. Even then I came up with a few rationalizations to re-introduce Kerry and Duran as petty tyrants with no actual power to effect change on a noticeable scale (although I still think they are too silly to use and this is just to grandfather in custom campaigns which use them).

[Gradius]

Sigh. The restrictive part of Enumerate is having to care about a secondary canon. Why is this hard to understand? :/

First Age or “Lost Age”
Under the guidance of the xel’naga, the protoss build a highly advanced galactic empire on the other side of the galaxy from Earth. Although the xel’naga were masters of protogenetics, the protoss ultimately surpass them in most other sciences. Among other things, they develop warp gates which enable vastly faster travel than conventional warp drives and instant communication with anywhere else inside the network.

I want my campaign to have warp gates be made by Xel'Naga. I also want to adhere to current canon and make a reference to stone-age protoss during the Aeon of Strife.

Due to nationalism and the flight of the xel’naga, the empire collapses into a state of civil war that lasts for countless millennia, scars the galaxy and regresses most technological advancement.

I want my campaign to adhere to canon and say the protoss started taking over the galaxy during the Golden Age of expansion, not pre-Aeon of Strife.

Adun is one of the few who speaks out against the slaughter, and ends up becoming a martyr for his cause (to the point where the Judicators rewrite history to depict him as a genocidal “hero” rather than admit he disobeyed them).

I want the Judicators in my campaign to revere Adun like in canon.

The New Empire is only a pale shadow of the Old Empire, in both expanse and technological advancement.

I want my protoss empire to be thriving and at its apex.

Ultimately, I think your argument is unfounded. Enumerate is a toolkit, a sandbox that refines everything great about Starcraft while discarding the silly parts. It gives you a broadly sketched chronology of major events, a bunch of ideas and plot hooks to draw inspiration from, and asks you to tell a story about Starcraft without the idiosyncrasies of canon weighing you down.

The manual already provides this. Bothering with a secondary canon is not a "toolkit" it's a waste of time. You've yet to explain how any of this crap will improve my story? Caring about and "being on the same page" as this fanon setup you've got going on here doesn't really bring enough (if any) benefits to campaign creators and their stories to justify it.

I mean I guess if other people started doing it, I probably would have too back in the day. I just get why they don't, unlike you.

[Nissa]

Not to be nitpicky, Gradius, but stone-age Protoss during the Aeon of Strife is an SC2 era retcon.

[Mislagnissa]

Sigh. The restrictive part of Enumerate is having to care about a secondary canon. Why is this hard to understand? :/

Now that you provided examples I do.

I want my campaign to have warp gates be made by Xel'Naga. I also want to adhere to current canon and make a reference to stone-age protoss during the Aeon of Strife.

But the manual states that the protoss build their own warp gates and developed new sciences unknown to the xel'naga. The idea that it is all a magic xel'naga black box was introduced in BW, not SC1. (EDIT: And both could have easily shared their tech with each other or something)

I never said there weren't stone age protoss during the Aeon of Strife. Didn't they nuke themselves to the Stone Age? However, there are several skirmish maps that state they fought on other planets during the Aeon, so clearly they had interstellar nations even in canon.

I want my campaign to adhere to canon and say the protoss started taking over the galaxy during the Golden Age of expansion, not pre-Aeon of Strife.

But they fought on other planets during the Aeon according to canon maps. Clearly they had interstellar nations during the Aeon and it makes sense to assume they had interstellar nations before the Aeon. It makes no sense for anyone to call the Aeon the worst galactic war if it only covered one planet. That's also the only way to have forgotten ruins everywhere. (EDIT: And the galaxy isn't the same place in each historical era, so multiple conquests are not equivalent)

I want the Judicators in my campaign to revere Adun like in canon.

Don't they? I never said they didn't. I don't understand why they would if he disobeyed them and rescued the heretics. It sounds like historical revisionism to me.

I want my protoss empire to be thriving and at its apex.

I never said they weren't. Canon says they are declined from a golden age millennia past. My modern protoss empire is in the middle of a renaissance, even if they have yet to reach the power of their ancestors. That's the entire reason why they would ever be interested in ruins and relics of the lost age. They can't have forgotten ruins with superweapons and stuff and be in their apex at the same time.

The manual already provides this. Bothering with a secondary canon is not a "toolkit" it's a waste of time. You've yet to explain how any of this crap will improve my story? Caring about and "being on the same page" as this fanon setup you've got going on here doesn't really bring enough (if any) benefits to campaign creators and their stories to justify it.

It's only going to "improve" anything if you are invested in telling stories within a shared universe. I can't convince you to adopt anything if you aren't invested in that.

I mean I guess if other people started doing it, I probably would have too back in the day. I just get why they don't, unlike you.

It doesn't matter much now, does it? This forum is probably going to vanish forever by the end of the month since DarkStarLLC closed down on June 1st. It's a real pity because I liked all those interviews and articles and editorials on the front page.

Is the site going to die or will everything be moved or archived somewhere? I suspect we only have until the end of the month.