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Is Laythe a nod to Lethe in Greek Mythology?


Diddly Feelerino

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Just my thoughts; many of the celestial bodies in Kerbol have analogies in real life (i.e. Duna/Mars, Moho(le)/Project Mohole, Joolean/Jovian etc).

As a classical historian myself, I was looking at Laythe and thought; could its name be a nod to the River Lethe in the Greek underworld?

To clarify; the River Lethe was one of 5 rivers that ran in the Kingdom of Hades (the Underworld); according to Hesiod (I think) people who had served their time in the underworld would then drink from the river and be reincarnated in the world of the living in whatever shape or form.

So how is it relevant to the game? Well, the River Lethe gives life/is a symbol of second life; and Laythe, being an oceanic Kerbin-like moon has arguably similar properties (in that it is a second place for "life", so to speak).

What do you think? Just a bit of food for thought here..... "smokes pipe"

PS - Sorry if this analogy has been suggested before!

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Just my thoughts; many of the celestial bodies in Kerbol have analogies in real life (i.e. Duna/Mars, Moho(le)/Project Mohole, Joolean/Jovian etc).

As a classical historian myself, I was looking at Laythe and thought; could its name be a nod to the River Lethe in the Greek underworld?

To clarify; the River Lethe was one of 5 rivers that ran in the Kingdom of Hades (the Underworld); according to Hesiod (I think) people who had served their time in the underworld would then drink from the river and be reincarnated in the world of the living in whatever shape or form.

So how is it relevant to the game? Well, the River Lethe gives life/is a symbol of second life; and Laythe, being an oceanic Kerbin-like moon has arguably similar properties (in that it is a second place for "life", so to speak).

What do you think? Just a bit of food for thought here..... "smokes pipe"

PS - Sorry if this analogy has been suggested before!

You might as well say that Laythe is a reference to the Battle of Leyte-Gulf, the largest naval battle in history. Cause Laythe is the most epic moon in the game, and covered in oceans and islands, just like the Pacific!

Edited by Edax
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You might as well say that Laythe is a reference to the Battle of Leyte, the largest navel battle in history. Cause Laythe is the most epic moon in the game, and covered in oceans and islands, just like the Pacific!

I always thought that the Battle of Ecnomus in the 1st Punic War was the largest (at least in terms of people involved); on paper nearly 300,000 men fought that battle.

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I always thought that the Battle of Ecnomus in the 1st Punic War was the largest (at least in terms of people involved); on paper nearly 300,000 men fought that battle.

Wikipedia says the Battle of Leyte-Gulf maybe the biggest, on rival with Battle of Red Cliffs and the Battle of Salamis. I don't think "largest" is strict about manpower, but also including tonnage, armaments, how many resources were involved in the battle (battleships being more costly then triremes).

Edited by Edax
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Wikipedia says the Battle of Leyte-Gulf maybe the biggest, on rival with Battle of Red Cliffs and the Battle of Salamis. I don't think "largest" is strict about manpower, but also including tonnage, armaments, how many resources were involved in the battle (battleships being more costly then triremes).

Surely manpower is a resource, and the most important one at that?

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Surely manpower is a resource, and the most important one at that?

Thing about ancient battles, their historians had a nasty habit of inflating the numbers of soldiers and ships involved to comical levels.

- - - Updated - - -

This typo made me laugh.

I was once cursed by the typo gods.

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Wasn't Lethe specifically supposed to be the river of oblivion and/or forgetfulness? e.g. you drink from it so you will forget all of your past life before you get reincarnated?

That was Mmnemosyne or something.

Correction, you are right (Mmnemosyne was to actually remember I think); but yet Lethe's main purpose was to bring you back to the living world from Hades.

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