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solojo_lasalle has a post here about some logistical questions regarding The Untamed, namely a) swordflight and b) armies and how people make what we see in drama canon make sense from a wider 'universe framework' point of view.Oh how I wish I had one. Ryanair flights would never be the same again.
But here's the question, just what / how much can you fit in there? Do they routinely carry, their secondary magical weapons (Lan Zhan, looking at you), a change of clothes, medical supplies, food supplies, alcohol supplies (hi WWX!), and whatnot in there? How much of it? In @jo_lasalle's post, we are speculating that you can't pack the tents, floors and cooking utensils for an entire war camp in them.
So.. what's the limit? How is it determined?
One theory I once came across and (have made my own because I couldn't think of anything better) is that you can shrink innumerable items to fit in there, but their weight doesn't change, and hence either the pouch can become too heavy to carry, or it'll draw too much on your spiritual energy to keep it... contained? Whatever.
So yeah, you can put stuff in it like you would for a Ryanair carry-on bag, but you wouldn't stuff Little Apple in it just because someone is giving you a ride on their sword.
Any alternative ideas?
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Date: 2020-08-28 03:23 (UTC)My headcanon is that you can stick a tent in there, but not something like the mobile headquarters tent. I think the weight is lightened with the miniaturizing, but that the pouch's effects are based on original volume, and there's a limit (I'm sure WWX was working on a talisman for that, in case the Wen needed to pick up and move again). Also, Eliza and I talked about why LWJ would be walking around Nightless City with his guqin on his back, when he could stick it in his qiankun pouch and be less encumbered. We had a few possible theories, including that the spirit of Wangji doesn't play well with whatever allows the qiankun pouch to work, that even a spiritual weapon needs tuning (after all, spiritual swords need sharpening), and it's better for Wangji's strings not to shrink it down and shove it in a pouch with other supplies, and that LWJ was keeping something else in his qiankun pouch at the time that meant there wasn't room for his guqin. Our favorite of the batch was that a spiritual guqin burned through the miniaturizing effect of the pouch very fast, meaning either a separate talisman had to be applied (and regularly renewed), or the pouch itself would have to be replaced frequently. Better to keep the guqin out whenever possible.
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Date: 2020-08-28 10:48 (UTC)I'd never thought about that before, but yes, that feels intuitively right to me.
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Date: 2020-08-30 08:40 (UTC)I'm sure he was. I love his talent as a inventor and wish fiction did more with it.
That idea of a conflict between spiritual pouches and spiritual weapons is a nice one. But also good point about the strings! Maybe every time he pulls the guqin out of the pouch, he first needs to retune it.
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Date: 2020-08-28 10:48 (UTC)One theory I once came across and (have made my own because I couldn't think of anything better) is that you can shrink innumerable items to fit in there, but their weight doesn't change, and hence either the pouch can become too heavy to carry, or it'll draw too much on your spiritual energy to keep it... contained?
quite convincing and an easy go-to. I do suspect they carry a change of clothes and whatever Lan Zhan needs to keep his hair pretty. For some reason, I'm not getting the vibe that they routinely carry food (or drinks) but I'm not even sure where that comes from. (If you can stick a set of non-magical underrobes in there, surely could stick a set of non-magical rice in there.)
I like ranalore's idea below that the magic of the pouch might interact with the magic of the objects in the pouch, and that basic principle could go various ways...
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Date: 2020-08-30 08:42 (UTC)When they leave Lotus Pier to go to the Qishan indoctrination, Yanli gives them loads of food parcels and none of them seem to get stuffed into a pouch, so maybe there's some etiquette there...
Yeah, I also like the idea that when it comes to magical things, there's an added element of volatility.
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Date: 2020-08-28 20:53 (UTC)I also feel like one of the benefits of cultivation is that you don't need as much as a regular person - you don't need to eat if you practice inedia, if you're a Lan apparently you have magical washing powers to keep your white robes beautifully white, etc. So I wonder if it's a bit gauche, as a cultivator, to bring those things: like if I brought my own chair onto the bus or something.
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Date: 2020-08-30 08:46 (UTC)LOL that could well be! I do wonder if everyone has those magical washing powers or if that is one the Lans developed especially. As for the inedia that seems to be a special thing though and not just randomly 'hey, we're going travelling so let's not eat for a bit'. Lan Zhan and Wei Wuxian are both aware that inedia isn't good for your overall function long term, so I suspect it's more a thing they do when at home and meditating.