A little Keeper speculation... and some questions... (SPOILERS !) - by Petike the Taffer
Petike the Taffer on 19/1/2009 at 13:38
The Keepers are heavily based on real world monastic orders.
They have a similiar ranking system too : Novice, Acolyte/Scribe, Elder, First Keeper, etc.
What always bugged me is : Do they have an oath of celibacy as well ?
There are both men and women in the order and they apparently live and work side-by-side without any great restrictions for moving around the compound and communicating with each other on a daily basis...
This egalitarian approach doesn't suprise me, but what does, is the fact that they don't fear that any of their members might become romantically attached to another. Wouldn't any of them fear, that being attracted to another person would render them "unbalanced" and shake their efforts of being as neutral as possible ? Yes, maybe they have utter self-control of themselves and thus evade such things... but, people being people... :p ;) Or maybe they regard the membership for both sexes in their order as more natural, and more balanced than the much more restrained model of celibacy.
I'm still baffled by this, though...
Another strange thing that I thought of, is the biology of the Keeper Assasins (a.k.a. Enforcers). These guys are clearly glyph-altered in some way, and wear special bandage-like underclothes and masks, that cover their entire bodies. If you take a better look, the only non-covered part of their faces are small eyeholes in the masks. We also know the Assasins communicate only via telepathy, which is apparently meant to give them an advantage while seeking their prey or outsmarting others. So, here's the question : How much are they still human in their biological needs ? I doubt they ever eat or drink (or visit the toilet :cheeky: ). It's probable, that the glyphs literally "feed" the Assasin's bodies through the weird energy they emit into their immediate surroundings. The Assasins might therefore be a much less powerful version of Gammall :
You think you can snare me trap me with your secrets? I am secret, kept for decades! You scratch out glyphs and think you have them - but I wear them drink them breathe them know them far better than you. I am glyphs, now and for all time. ("Gammall revealed" cutscene).
What do you think ?
jtr7 on 19/1/2009 at 20:33
I haven't worked it all out for myself, but here are some ideas to toss into the mix, mostly non-canon:
They are celibate, or have protocols for coupling, and may use glyphs or alchemy to control fleshly appetites.
Caduca is Garrett's mother.
The Enforcers' bodies are bandaged and they wear brass masks and are unnaturally altered? So are the Masked Servants. Same concept, different application, one voluntary, one imposed torture. If Karras could do it, it can be done, and the Keepers would know best how to work with it, or would forbid it. A blending of a combat-bot and a human: "Slaves of copper and brass that hunt & kill at [their masters'] bidding".
The Enforcers are for fighting fire with fire, unbalanced to fight the unbalance, yet with a kill-switch. Gamall has discipline, like Karras, but she is insane, like Karras, and glyphs are her tools. The Enforcers are too specialised, and therefore are less powerful than they could be, while Gamall sets no limits on herself except to remain hidden until the right time.
:p
seventyfour on 19/1/2009 at 21:22
It almost sounds like I've seen other Enforcers than you have seen...
Where can you see the "underwear" of the enforcers?
I thought that they where always wearing those black hooded clothes.
And are the masks really made of brass?
It almost sounds like you are describing Karras slaves* except for the things about glyphs and telepathy.
(*The masked ones from T:MA)
Maybe I just understand things in the wrong way...
Petike the Taffer on 19/1/2009 at 22:57
All right, I know my description was maybe a little far-fetched. I just simply got the impression from TDS, that the eerie masks the Enforcers wear are actually something like "their second skin". Essentialy, permanent bandage-like underclothes hiding their frail, glyph-altered bodies. Think of the Enforcers as "mummies". Who knows if they aren't horribly disfigured underneath ? Imagine one of them taking of his mask and revealing a fleshy, leprous-like skin slightly glowing with glyph energy; eyes with bizzare colours; a severely atrophied mouth and a partly reduced nose. :ebil: :wot: Something similar to a Guild Navigator from Dune altered by the spice gas in the course of many years - just not that drastically... The Enforcers are still humans, not alien-looking creatures, but they are... sort of mutated by the direct exposion to a very powerful type of augmentive glyphs... :erg:
Of course, this is all just fan speculation, nothing else.
It doesn't much change the fact, that the KA are just a bumbling and paranoid medieval SWAT team shooting scythe-boomerangs at everyone they meet... :laff: ;) :rolleyes:
As for Caduca being Garrett's mother :
I doubt that. Garrett's at least 35 during the events of TDS, while Caduca is something over 40, or maximally 50. She looks old just because of her role as Glyph Translator. Either that... or she had Garrett while she was only a teen ! :joke: :cheeky:
Queue on 19/1/2009 at 23:46
Quote Posted by Petike the Taffer
... Either that... or she had Garrett while she was only a teen !
That's pretty hot.
Petike the Taffer on 20/1/2009 at 00:43
Quote Posted by Queue
That's pretty hot.
Ummm... seriously... :rolleyes:
jtr7 on 20/1/2009 at 02:03
Who said it had anything to do with consensual sex, and since when is it uncommon for a teenage girl to get pregnant? She had to let him go, and she's gifted and admired in her own way. It's not far-fetched, really, and there's great potential for a heart-wrenching story. She keeps saving his life, and this is the line that sparked the whole "Heeeeyyy... What if--?":
[INDENT]cad_crime_hurtother1: "Garrett, you turn your own blood against yourself..." :D[/INDENT]
She's the only character that uses the words "your own blood", or even "own blood", and she's speaking to Garrett, if she even uses that line in-game at all. Keep in mind I'm absolutely making stuff up.
Queue on 20/1/2009 at 03:02
See... I told you it was hot.
Dante on 20/1/2009 at 04:18
Quote Posted by jtr7
It's not far-fetched, really, and there's great potential for a heart-wrenching story.
*Stares expectantly at Eidos*
Jarvis on 20/1/2009 at 04:44
Celibacy in the Keepers? Interesting. I hadn't given that concept thought. I suppose I'll throw in my two cents.
What would they do in the name of balance? The Jedi avoided romance because of its inherent selfishness and greed/selflessness and weakness. Have you ever met a balanced couple? Probably, but it's damn rare isn't it? All the ones that I know manage it through knowing how to provide the proper distance and space from the other when necessary, and knowing when to provide caring and how. It's a very difficult thing to do. I would think that the Keepers would be fully aware of this.
I don't think celibacy is out of the question. I don't think it's required either. I would think that it's perhaps an option that's looked favorably upon. You know, sort of like how the FBI is a gun culture... the ex-law enforcement, the guys from the streets who made arrests, tend to get in power over the agents straight from college. Perhaps it's sort of an unwritten rule for positions of leadership, or hell, maybe it IS written.
I think there would be very strict guidelines for fraternization though. I doubt if couples are allowed in the Order very often, and if they are, I imagine they are kept in separate roles. One a scribe, and another a street walker... something like that.
Do you think relationships would be allowed outside the Order? That seems risky in its own right. I doubt it, in the name of secrets. MAYBE, if the family is brought to a Keeper compound where they earn their keep as cooks, cleaners, and other necessary and more mundane tasks. Always kept away from secrets. Always watched.
This is really interesting to think about. Good questions. Thanks.
