August spoiler Q&A

Spoilers for the end of the alpha - on the endings where the puppet is the one caught in the crash, Ortega calls you from the hospital and asks to see you. I don't know if I totally misread this scene, but it didn't feel like there was any ulterior motive for this, they just wanted to see you for like, emotional support? If this is true, isn't this super rare coming from Ortega? Sidestep acts pretty blasé about it, so I don't know if I read too much into it os if 'step is just that thick lmao

Oh Ortega had an ulterior motive alright, but one that Sidestep is not aware of. And to be fair, Ortega has probably called Sidestep a lot off screen, but I do not chronicle every single interaction.

will there be more consequences for our heroes’ (potential) actions down the line? as it stands, neither argent nor blaze seem to face any sort of repercussion for killing civilians. were the events that well covered up, despite the witnesses, or are people that desensitised to it even when the perpetrators are heroes? is there more to chen’s decision to not reprimand argent further at the end of retri? 

There are a lot of liberties that comes with a badge and a position of power (as can be seen with the police in our world), and what consequences there are, is seldom public. Sidestep is not aware of everything. But, that being said, people are rather desensetized, and the ones that disapprove have no real outlet. It takes something as brutal and publicized as what Five Pennies did to make people react. As for Chen, he might think that Argent was not careful, but he doesn't think she would willfully murder someone.

What was chen’s immediate reaction to finding out sidestep was a regene? was the reaction initially more focused on sidestep or on the people operating? 

A combination of pity, horror, and the feeling that he had been right that something was off. 

what would Jake have done if sidestep was at the penthouse while he was visiting? 

Introduced himself in his cover identity and see what he could learn.

what kind of decor does hollow ground decorate with? do they have a lot of personal effects or do they decorate more simplistically? 

More on the lavish side, but not especially personal. They save that for their office.

Our MC can "disguise themself a bit" when invited to meet Hollow Ground? How good of a disguise is it? What would Sidestep use to disguise themself?

Not an expert disguise by any means, even if Sidestep had skills in that direction they have grown out of habit. Too used to rely on telepathy. It was mostly dressing differently, since they can easily blur their face into neutrality.

Regarding HG's sibling that died in police custody did HG or their family ever look into the situation? Mainly because the sibling in question was a minor. If so did HG or other family members try to revenge on those involved? 

Oh yes, there were more than a few dead officers after that.

What would the mob boss crew think if they saw the similarities between HG and Sidestep?

You'll have to wait and find out.

What would HG’s powers have looked like if they had been more force based?

Wouldn't have worked. This power is only for subterfuge.

Has there been any particular disagreements between HG and Nocturne on how to deal with certain people/problems/opportunities? How do they settle any disagreements between them?

There have been some friction, but Nocturne tends ton win the arguments. They talk things out.

What had HG's youngest sibling been like? What differences/similarities did they share with HG? 

Spoilers.

Does Jake ever talk about his family or his home with Nocturne and/or HG or does he prefer to keep it more private?

He's pretty open with Nocturne, and slightly more guarded with HG.

Did either HG or Nocturne have a particular moment when they realized they had fallen in love with one another? 

I honestly don't know, I will have to think about that. Love tends to be gradual in the way I think about it.

Had Dr. Finch been a therapist for HG’s youngest sibling?

No.

How would the farm go about recreating the conditions to get powers like Hollow Ground's or Jake's?

That would be hard. Jake's might work if you restrained the subject uncomfortably.

If the characters from the main cast where offered one chance to use the regenerator, would they take it? Would they use it on themselves or offer the chance to another character?

Argent would use it 100%. Steel would as well, though if he learned the truth about Argent, he would offer it to her. Ortega and Herald don't feel the need.

Could we use the regenerator on the puppet to try and restore them back to a conscious state?

It doesn't really work that way, it repairs physical damage, it can't restore minds.

Is Ortega's ethical code more rigid when it comes to murder than that of the rest of the rangers? Argent and Steel will break Step out of the hospital even if they're a killer and even with Herald you can at least have a conversation about if you've regretted killing people, started saving them etc. and even if ultimately it isn't enough to sway him, it does seem that what you say makes a difference in his mind. Ortega on the other hand seems to draw a harder line than everybody else at killing.

I would say that it has less to do with Ortega's ethics, and more with their disappointment with Sidestep personally. It will take some time to deal with that.

If Sidestep hadn't personally been a victim of the Farm, would Dr. Mortum still have disapproved of what went on in there? 

Oh yes. Very much. Dr. Mortum can overlook much in the name of science, but that is too much. 

I understand we can’t have many spoilers about the imposter…. but. without revealing their identity, could you give us a sentence or two from their pov of something they’ve actively thought? maybe when they left Sidestep’s body during the crash?

Nope, that is very much spoilers. And, it might vary depending on the path.

What was Argent's reaction when she first saw the potential kiss on the fridge? Did she rip it off and destroy it? We already know she assumed it was Herald, but why did she think it was him to begin with? Has this happened before?

Of course she ripped it off, and ripped it apart as well. She jumped to the conclusion that it was Herald, because she took it as a barb aimed at the fact that she wouldn't kiss him for the magazines.

Is the child in the moray memory actually HG's sibling? Is HG the one singing?

Good question. Not going to answer it.

Since anathema helped ortega with HG sometimes, were they privy to ortega's thoughts about who sidestep actually was? 

No. Ortega was very quiet about that. Nobody knows.

Is HG gonna help us out against the Rangers if we’re allied?

That might be arranged.

What did Josh think of Sidestep and Daniel picking them as his favourite hero? 

What's the point of picking a weak sidekick? 

How old was HG when their siblings died? 

They didn't die all at once, so it varies. I haven't set exact years or ages to it yet.

Was the person who killed Marshal Hood the same person who shot Chen and  sniped at Ortega?

Sounds likely.

Alpha spoils, Was the person responsible for bombing ortega's apartment the same as the person who behind the sniper at the end of retri?

Nope.

If Ortega has thought since before Heartbreak that Sidestep was HG's sibling... after HB, did they use that as fuel for their revenge quest at all. Or is it still only Hood?

Oh you bet that Sidestep was a big part of it too.

If we removed the red thread from Nocturne’s mind, what would happen? Would she regress to her normal agoraphobia or would it be worse, considering her dependency on it?

I honestly have no idea, but it won't be pretty.

What do the girls think about the imposter in the puppet’s/Sidestep’s body at the end of Retribution? Have they noticed the difference? 

Spoilers.

You mentioned sidestep's line was entirely made up of a series of genetic clones, and that they were the only one to survive to the end of the vetting process. Did the other ones land with different boost powers? Were they rejected because sidestep ended up being the only telepath of the line up, or were they "defective" in other ways?

They were defective in various ways that rendered them unusable to the Farm's purpose.

Retribution Ending option question If we stalked HG to their little vacation home could we perhaps leave a hint or address on a certain Electrical Outlet’s desk

Oh you will have some options at the start of book 3.

Ace's mind had been eaten by Shroud, and was potentially "brain dead" by the time Sidestep came along. I've a few questions about this:

1) was Ace actually brain dead - meaning they had zero brainwaves activity, and their brain was not receiving any oxygenated blood?

Zero brainwaves, but it still received blood. The braindeadness was not caused by a stroke or similar.

2) If Sidestep had chosen another brain dead patient - say, as a result of a car crash as opposed to Shroud's victim - will the same "signs of brain activity" begin to show in them?

It depends on how physically damaged the brain was. If it had localized damage, it might have been possible. And if the brain had been too damaged, it would be hard for Sidestep to have any fine control.

3) In this manner, if (1) and (2) are true ... can telepathic body hoppers potentially reverse brain death?

It is not as simple as that, but just as keeping the heart beating and the lungs working long enough for the body to heal enough to do it on their own, things can happen.

Will Sidestep’s main stats impact the impostor’s “essence”?

Yes.

Does Sidestep’s mind “leaks” into what it touches telepathically? By fragmenting itself towards others, does it leave an imprint behind, as sort of “copy” of itself?

Anything that happens leaves memories.

Alpha spoils? Could the rat king unthread step?

No.

Bouncing off that a little.. can HG thread non-human minds? Could they thread the Rat King

Good luck being able to physically touch their little brains...

Are we going to be able to body hop during a fight? I'm sure the Rat King could do a good job at keeping our body safe for us while we're someplace else 

There's already been some experiments with that.

Alpha spoils? Theoretically, could a threaded puppetmaster figure out how to pull the leash from the other end,  so to speak?

Good question. Most likely not, but with Sidestep, who knows?

How would Blaze react to the Rat King being huge excitable fans of him after saving Step?? Would he be endeared/flattered or freaked out? Especially if they wanted his autographs + pets + wanted to (telepathically) cuddle with him? I am just struck by the image of the girls being really excited and happy to see him again and I can’t get it out of my mind. 

I think Blaze would be confused and slightly flustered as he realizes what is going on. But yes, they would be very happy to see him.

If step was able to stay with argent in her apartment, how would the nightmares affect her and her little friends?

There is a reason why they don't.

We know dr halabi has treated regenes for the special directive.  Has she consulted on/heard about any serious infections back at the farm?

No.

The gates seem to protect something. If that’s the case, when they’re closed, are they protecting the outside world from Sidestep, or protecting Sidestep from whatever wants to enter them? Or both? Or does the protection start when they open? 

I am not going to tell you that!

Alternatively if not above, are the gates a defense mechanism to protect sidestep from memories/experiences/something else within themself that they're subconsciously repressing?

Not going to tell you that either! You should have known.

Does the Core’s function hinge on regenes, on telepaths, on both, or on neither?

Telepaths.

Could Hollow Ground use their threads to make it so a person couldn't see them? Like they'd see Nocturne and Jake but not the person standing between them?

Yes.

How would Blaze react if a male villain (pretty wholesome: no kill, save civilians) he found attractive flirted with him? 👀 (Like, actual interest flirt? Not just banter flirt?) 

I am not adding more romances.

Has Blaze ever burnt off his eyebrows

No. You're thinking of Lord Ember.

You said in the latest qna that Sidestep's entire batch was genetic clones of them. Has the farm since tried to make more genetic copies of Sidestep?

There has been similar batches, yes.

Are Sidestep’s nanovores technically in another telepathic plane (another dimension) since they’re in the void cage? If not, how does the void cage work to contain them? How does Argent contain her nanovores?

Yes they are. Argent's nanos are her friends, she talks to them.

Okay, so Sidestep can leave little… commands, almost, ala the Sword of Damocles, and could feasibly influence people along a slightly more HG route if they trained that direction. But could Sidestep potentially turn people into sleeper agents? 

Not to the same extent, but on a smaller level, yes.

When sidestep achieves the "protected" variable, is hollow ground aware that they're "protecting" sidestep?

Nope.

Okay, so Herald has been incredibly blasé and not-really-sorry about his lack of boundaries in Retribution. Can we have a Serious talk about that?

Sidestep doesn't really have the best idea of what boundaries are either, but we'll see.

If sidestep was a hero back in the say, Hollow Ground knows their face and name. Obviously they originally took interest because sidestep was an up and coming figure in the hero/villain scene, but did they also make the connection back then that Sidestep might have been their missing sibling? Were they intending to make contact in some capacity to confirm? What were their thoughts once heartbreak happened?

Hollow Ground never saw Sidestep's face, nor was very concerned with them.

If you manage to get a sample from Argent, does she know some of her nanovores are gone since they're her friends?

No, the hair is dead, shedded shells.

Will regenerator actually help Lady Argent with her.. condition?

A piggyback: Was it the first time Lady Argent tried to get her hands on something that promises to help her? Does Ortega know (to some extent) about Lady Argent’s interest in healing/regeneration technology? 

You know I will not answer contents for book three. And yes, much like Sidestep, she has done other research, but nothing else has worked. Ortega has no idea.

When Argent wears the Oryx costume, is it fully what the real Oryx would have worn or did she add anything to it? Did she get the costume when she "removed" Oryx?

It is Oryx costume, she got it after Oryx disappearance.

Can HG thread someone who's unconscious?

No.

What does Blaze think of Chen? What does Chen think of Blaze? 👀

You'll have to find out in game.

When/if argent calls you after puppetwreck, how did she get step's number?

She aksed Ortega's phone.

I don’t remember if it’s ever been asked: can Argent talk to our AI chip?

You'll have to ask her.

Could Sidestep use their telepathy to make her [briefly] forget she’s a technopath?

That would be very hard, but they managed to get her to forget to breathe so it is possible.

Alpha Spoils Does Argent’s ‘blackouts’ from losing control over her vores correlate with her hunger? 

At times, but not only.

In Jake's Mitchell post, what did Nocturne mean by 'bribes'?

You don't know.

For an innocent ending Step both living above and using the business base, would it be possible to bring somebody back home? Cover wise you just live above your workplace, not all that suspicion, so if you're already using it as a cover, could we commit? 

It would be possible if you want to take the risk.

If we are puppetstuck are we going to be able to change our appearance like we could as Step?

Yes.

At the farm, could doctors be handlers? If yes, in what circumstances, and what did that double status entail? If not, what would warrant doctors being very hands-on with a specific regene? 

Yes they could, and a Re-Gene would have many handlers at different stages of their life.

Was Step given anything to occupy themselves while in their cells back at the Farm? 

Probably yes, that is calming for people. 

If they behaved or did well were they rewarded with anything? Were their vices ever used as incentives? 

There were rewards, and maybe that was where some of the vices were picked up.