Ravages Custom Expansion Plus

Before I move on to the main point of this post (basically I would like to map out what an ‘expanded universe’ for The Ravages of Time would look like), let me provide a few exasperated, desperate reminders.

First off, one factor – and a rather crucial one at that – as to why Ravages is not flourishing as much as, say, Kingdom or Game of Thrones or Legend of the Galactic Heroes (at least outside of Chinese and other ‘Asian’ spaces, whether online or offline) is that for some reason or another the fans themselves are not doing enough to promote and discuss Ravages. Of course all of us are preoccupied with various other engagements, but this trite observation by itself hardly explains the absence of at least a small dedicated core of avid English-speaking readers (not counting this blog, the various sporadic individual posts and pages, and the unmatched contributions of the main unofficial translator) investing resources and effort to collectively and constantly maintain a decent enough portal for Ravages. Perhaps it may be the case that I just happen to arrive at a particularly unfortunate ‘hibernation period’ when all the Anglophone cadres are busy and with only a dwindling number of casual – and mostly silent – readers remaining (after all, the TV Tropes entry for Ravages had sprouted and grown long before I decided to join the fray and go beyond mere lurking), but this only pushes the question back to why there is lack of continuity and torch-passing to begin with. Notwithstanding the various complaints about Ravages (or its style, or its scanlation), what is it about many of its English-speaking partisans that they have not yet consolidated and collaborated to form things like discussion groups and active threads and fleshed-out wikis? Where can a lively Ravages community be found in the Anglicized nooks and crannies of ‘the internet’?

Now to those who would meet my complaint with the retort that I better ‘put up’ and ‘deal with it’ and ‘walk the walk’, let me just politely say that this very blog already constitutes my own attempt to make Ravages great again outside the virtual Sinosphere, albeit with mixed and unclear results so far. And this brings me to my other point, in that various individualized efforts simply aren’t adequate when it comes to disseminating information and propaganda about Ravages. I still dread the day when, God forbid, the translator burns out and no one steps up as a capable replacement. I worry that someday things would change from there being substandard scanlations (provided by a lone Indonesian who hasn’t quit yet, Alhamdulillah) to there being none at all. One way out of this precarious predicament would be if the scattered fans finally link up and collaborate to establish a hub of some sort. Frankly, I’d be quite happy to shut up and tone down and lay low and fade out (and return to silent lurking) once the ‘golden age’ of wide and sustained international acclaim for Ravages arrives.

To be fair, it may be the case that I haven’t exerted enough effort – especially in the matter of persuasion – to reach out to other Ravages fans (but then again it is not my intention to lead the revival, but merely to pave the way with my small contributions and encourage others to go beyond). I can also be rightly accused of not going the extra mile and try to master written Chinese (but then again this only deflects the issue of cultivating an Anglophone fan base for Ravages). And yes, I also acknowledge various external factors at work that somehow contribute to the current dismal state of affairs (but then again surely they don’t totally prevent those that are already fans from trying to change things and work together).

Having whined my discontent to my heart’s content (for now), I would now like to make a gesture of good will by inviting people to join this blog effort – as ‘likers’, as ‘followers’, as ‘respondents’, and even as contributors and authors. To those interested about the latter options, feel free to comment. And oh, please do keep in mind the tips in the ‘What is to be done?’ after-post widget.

Consider the above paragraphs as my way of conveying the wish to see an expanded Ravages fandom, in a roundabout manner. What I am about to type below would fall along the category of unsolicited advice on how to expand the story world of Ravages into a much larger playing-field.

1. The first proposal would be a thorough remake of Ravages, keeping intact the basic plot points, but adding a whole bunch of historical domain and fabricated characters, inserting more scenes of battle and scheming, and featuring more campaigns in a more in-depth fashion.
2. The second proposal would be the making of more side stories focused on particular Ravages characters and their own schemes and adventures. Some nice examples to look into and feature would be the following:
   • The travels and medical exploits of Hua Tuo and his associates, Black Jack style with a wuxia twist
   • The daily lives of certain low-level bureaucrats (whether serving the Han empire, one of the warlords, or one of the three kingdoms) as they assist in solving cases and ensuring smooth trial proceedings
   • Slice-of-life school stories about the Eight Geniuses and the other students of the School of Water Mirror
   • Childhood vignettes of famous personalities
   • The debates and research of the devotees and scholars of other schools of thought, including the Way of Taiping
   • Business struggles of the Sima clan and the other merchant families
   • Imperial harem intrigues (preferably without much titillation)
   • The travails of unnamed soldiers and officers from various factions
   • The scams and ruses of ‘commoners’ across the territories of Han
   • The stratagems and tricks of neighboring and distant non-Han polities
   • The misadventures of criminals and miscreants and corrupt elites
   • Underhanded missions of various mercenary gangs and assassination groups
   • Tales and dealings of foreign visitors
3. The third proposal would involve the sponsorship of narrative spinoffs (not just games and merchandise items) and fanfiction and parodies.
4. The fourth proposal would be the production of meta-fictional accounts that allude to or even feature Ravages as an in-universe text.
5. The fifth proposal would be to construct a sprawling saga covering the events of a multiverse where Ravages is ‘situated’ in a way that befits the style and substance of Ravages. In other words, an entire cosmic history full of convoluted plotters and philosophical debates and references to various classics, with the events in Ravages being reduced in importance to only a tiny fraction.

WORK IN PROGRESS