Is it possible for someone to do a mission or sporking of that 'Mission #1'? I was doing fine, except for the plagiarism, until they identified Galadriel as both the Lady of the Golden Wood--which is quite accurate--and as Queen of Lothlórien, which very much is not. Mind you, this is their Character Analysis Device's identification, not someone mistakenly saying it. So. Possible?

I suppose it doesn't actually fall under PPC jurisdiction for missions, but it's pretty galling to find not only huge amounts of plagiarism partially masked by adaptation, but also inaccurate details purporting to be Tolkien's canon. I just...I thought perhaps I should bring up that it's not just plagiarism, it's also inaccuracy; and while that's not something that Wikia needs to worry about, it's something that I, for one, find extremely annoying. Kind of the icing on the cake, really.

(Also, um, that's not just Tolkien and the Original Series being mangled/ripped off. It's also the Suethor's story--dialogue and details have been changed. For example, Galadriel? She's supposed to be Arwen. Galadriel didn't appear in Rambling Band, at least not that I remember. Furthermore, this is misrepresenting the Suefic as worse than it actually is, in this case by adding the charge of Galadriel being in Rivendell without explanation. At least Arwen was in the right place, if not in character or in her rightful position.)

Back to reading sources for my essay now. I just...that needed to be shared. It really did.

Thanks for listening.

~DF

Some background information: The Protectors of the Plot Continuum was originally a series of stories by Jay and Acacia written mostly in 2002. A community sprang up around the series, and others began to write spin-offs of the series with Jay and Acacia's permission. Over a decade later, we're still going strong, with our main community hub being the PPC Posting Board (founded in 2003). Our wiki was founded in 2007 to give us a central point to collect information about our community and its works (we'd previously been relying on a series of LiveJournal entries, private webpages, and people's bookmarks).

The PPC has always been on friendly terms with Camilla Sandman, the author of "The Official Fanfiction University of Middle-earth," which has similarly grown a fanbase and many, many spinoffs, including "The Hogwarts Fanfiction Academy" by Meir Brin. Both Meir Brin and Camilla Sandman participated in the PPC community in the past, and several concepts that have since become iconic to the PPC originally come from OFUM or HFA with the full blessings of their creators.

The Anti-Cliché and Mary-Sue Elimination Society is a similar but thoroughly distinct group. We're not affiliated, though we've been in communication with their members in the past. I've included links to their wiki where I can for the sake of being thorough.

I've organized this list of copied pages by the name on the FCA and/or PPS wiki. Links to the plagiarized page(s) are first, then links to the original articles or other sources. I've included notes where I feel clarification may be helpful.

\* = original article

View the list in PasteBin, since it was too long to include here. The paste will expire in one week.

That should be thorough enough for anyone, but let me know if I've missed anything big.

~Neshomeh

Please take a look through this page: http://sect.wikia.com/wiki/Alternate_Universe

I'm boggled, just boggled. Can you guys help me sort out what bits were taken from where? I mean, I could probably figure it out, but my brain hurts.

H E L P M E

~Neshomeh, starting a list now, because this is gonna take a while.

Now, I know I'm hardly a board regular- my post career here is minimal to say the least. And these days, I look at the board and I see new people, and my lawn chair cane combo starts to look pretty good right now.

However, I'd like to remind y'all of a pretty basic thing that I think has been forgotten by some of our more excitable members. Aelin and company? They're just kids. At the time that these wikias were made, they were like, 13-14ish, and maybe now are 15 at the most.

Yes, Plagiarism is wrong. No quibbles about that, but namecalling? These are kids with a bad idea and had the ability to execute it, not Sauron and the gorram ring wraiths.

I can understand getting all upset and flail-y because this is our stuff being stolen, and our stuff being plastered without care for our efforts, BUT.

They are still people.

We are still people.

Stuff like this? This is stuff we get called out on, next time someone decides to paint our community with a less than kind brush. This is the kind of stuff that makes us look, as a community of writers and readers, pretty bad.

And you know what? Unless this kind of thread goes completely uncontested? They're totally right to go after us for this. I'm not saying be Happy or Super Duper Ally Ooper Cheerful that our stuff got ganked. I'm saying be civil.

Alright? While yes, article 27 of the PPC Constitution is important, Article 2 is as well. Righteous Anger =/= name calling that can lead to bullying.

Earlier, Phobos noted that the FCA wiki hasn't been updated since May, or their blog since March. The PPS, as observed by the Irish Samurai, was last updated in September.

As you may remember, I've been collating information about the Board. AelinTheAmazing is in that data (of course): she posted for six months. Specifically, March-August of this year.

Which means that all the time she was hanging about, welcoming what seems to be every single newbie, and talking about how she might eventually ask for Permission, she was simultaneously ripping off the Wiki and Rambling Band.

I've just glanced over all her posts (yes, really), and can't find any mentions that she was doing anything of the sort - or even any vaguely-worded questions asking if it was okay. The only thing that comes close is the thread where she asked whether it was okay to adopt abandoned agents, and listed a few whose authors hadn't been around for a couple of years.

Did she spend time in the IRC while she was around here? If so, did she talk about it at all there?

hS

PS: AddiePenguin, the other name mentioned here, also posted to the Board; from what I can tell, she made her intro post and never said anything else.

I don't know why these guys thought we wouldn't find out that they're stealing our stuff.

The SEP Field page is partly my work, by the way, and I imagine a lot of you folks are annoyed that they have taken your work, too. I did *research* on that, darn it!

I don't know whether these people are deliberately stealing our stuff, or whether they don't know what plagiarism means and don't realize it's wrong; either way, let's try not to bite their heads off too hard, okay? They're still fellow human beings. If they're of the ignorant variety, maybe they are even willing to learn.

I just... Damn. I don't really have anything to add to the conversation that hasn't been said below either, but... God damn, what's up with that?

Are we on friendly terms with the Anti-Cliche and Mary-Sue Elimination Society?

...that hasn't already been said. It's inexcusable that this has occurred. It offends me as a writer, as a reader, and as a fan of the arts.

I'd like to quietly direct you all to the page "EggplaNet" .

And then quietly to the episode list.

I'd like to imagine the creator of this page hadn't been overly familiar with our canon nor it's inhabitants.

It's an infant organization, all right, but it follows PPC… everything to a T. Yikes.

The one question is, what do we do? I would suggest contacting these people and (*nicely*) telling them what's going on. We could figure it out from there.

I couldn't find Aelin or Addy's e-mail addresses or any other contact information, but I have left a message on their talk pages on both wikis asking for them to get in touch. They haven't really done anything on either for months, but they should receive a notification about my message and get back to me if wikia works like I think it does. Hopefully this can be resolved without any huge drama.

I just had a horrifying revelation.





The 2 societies we speak of might be Doppelganger Sues.

The Emperor... Protects...

That's not the only place we're being plagiarised, and yeah, it's pretty damn clear that the FCA is a case of plagiarism.

I was looking round their wiki, mostly for my own personal amusement/entertainment (in a weird sort of way, I'll admit), to see just how many instances I could spot. For reference, as has been pointed out by others, there are a lot - although the most egregious one that I found is a direct reference to the PPC. Quoting from the FCA's Rules:
'346. Thou shalt remember that during the PPC's Quidditch matches, that accidentally taking out Juniper is not a good idea. It only makes her think thou dost like her.' It's also possibly worth noting that this 'Juniper' was in fact Luxury in the original version, and there a few other references to Juniper that I recognise as originally refering to Lux.

Anyway, that's not actually the bad bit...

While browsing, I noticed that one of the other FCA Admins is also active on another wikia site: the Plot Protection Society, or PPS. Now that seemed suspicious enough for me to check out, and when I got there I found a list of stories produced (apparently) by this society. The first mission, titled Not For Harp features three agents going in to Middle-earth to dispose of the Sue, Laurel. That name seemed sort of familiar to me, and after a quick check of our very own wiki, I discovered that I had indeed seen the name Laurel before: that's the name of the Sue from 'Rambling Band', the first ever PPC mission.

From the PPS:

Either way, the music was... not that good. Call Me Maybe just wasn’t meant for the harp. It wasn’t even as if they had anything to drown it out - all three had been forced to turn off their Analysis Devices, or risk being deafened by the now-constant shrills.

Upon the last chord, Emma sighed with relief, and then noticed that Gandalf had stood up and taken Laurel's hand.

"You are quite a special young woman, lady Laurel. You have woven a spell over us all with your wit and beauty. Are you sure you possess no magic?"

Laurel smiled demurely, and Emma tried not to retch. "The little brat even messed with Gandalf," she muttered. "If anyone deserves what I'm going to do to her..."

It was then that Laurel wandered off towards a moonlit balcony, and Boromir following, with a lovestruck expression on his face. Jason, realizing his partner hadn’t noticed, poked Emma in the arm, and pointed.

Emma stared in utter confusion, then realized what was going on and hurried off to a vantage point beneath the balcony.

When Jason reached her side, Emma's teeth were gritted, and she was glaring venomously at the balcony.

"But you told me the bint was after Legolas-”

Jason hurried to correct her, hoping she still had the self-control to restrain herself from murdering him. “Both of them, I said. Remember?” Oh, no.

It was only then that he noticed her hand scrabbling for the strap of her quiver.

"Are you mad?" demanded Jason, snatching her bow away and hoping his partner wouldn't just try to throw the arrow like a dart.
“I don’t think so, but whoever came up with this Sue is! Look at this!" She waved her Device frantically in Jason’s face. "They've just about made up an entire new character and named him Boromir, I am not standing for this, give me back my bow!"
"Not until they're out of Rivendell, remember? You were the one who had to tell me that!" Jason protested. On his shoulder, robin-Harriet twittered in concerned agreement, then jumped when a beep erupted from Jason's pack. He pulled out his Character Analysis Device, which was shrilling strangely.

From the PPC:

It... wasn't that good. Led Zeppelin just wasn't meant for the harp.

Acacia made a face at the sound of the music. It wasn't even as if she had anything to drown it out—she had finally been forced to turn off the sound on her Analysis Device, or risk being deafened by its by-now-constant shrills.

As the music ended, all of the canon characters beamed at the band. Jay winced as Strider and Gandalf cheered... even Elrond and Arwen were smiling interestedly, although Elrond's smile looked a bit forced. Ah, thought Jay, sharing a glance with her friend. The man's no fool.

Acacia smiled faintly, but resumed her grim expression as she aimed her Analysis Device at each canon character in turn and read the rather depressing results. Jay couldn't help noticing the ridiculous number of times it was pointed at Boromir, always with the same result: basically, that he was so far out of character he couldn't poke the canon with a very long pole.

Jay patted her friend's arm comfortingly. "It'll be all right..." She turned her attention back to the Council.

Gandalf had stood up and taken Laurel's hand. "You are quite talented, young lady. You have woven a spell over everyone with your song. Are you sure you know no magic?"

Laurel smiled demurely at Gandalf. "I am positive. I didn't write it, so it is not my magic."

Jay tried not to retch. You even affected Gandalf, you slime mold. You richly deserve what you've got coming...

It was then that she noticed Laurel wandering off towards a balcony... and Boromir following, with a dazed expression on his face. She poked Acacia in the arm, and pointed.

Acacia's jaw dropped. "But you said that Legolas—" she began, then hurried off to a vantage point from the bushes under the balcony.

Jay followed hurriedly. "BOTH of them, I said. Remember?" Oh, dear.

When Jay caught up with her, Acacia was not glaring venomously at the scene on the balcony, but had the slightly unfocused expression that meant she was looking at the words that made the world, and in fact reading ahead of the here-and-now. Jay shook her gently, and she focused again, and now started glaring at the balcony.

And scrabbling for her quiver.

"Are you crazy?" demanded Jay, snatching Acacia's bow away and hoping Acacia wouldn't just try to throw the arrow like a dart.

"No, but whoever came up with this Sue is. And look at this." She showed Jay the Device. "It's even worse than at the Council, they've just about made up a whole new character and named him Boromir, I am NOT standing for this, give me back my bow!"

"Not until they're out of Rivendell! NOT UNTIL THEY'RE OUT. We'll be able to save him then." A faint beep erupted from Jay's pack. She pulled out her Character Analysis Device, which was warbling strangely.

And there are various other instances like that.

So yeah, it's gone beyond just stealing from random pages of the wiki - they're stealing stories too. Which comes under 'Not Cool' as far as I'm concerned.

I've done some further digging and it seems that the two main people in the FCA have not updated their wiki since May. No one has posted on their blog since March, or on their message board, either. So, it is entirely possible that they have given it up. That being the case, it is important that we let them explain themselves. So, let's put the knee-jerk reactions down and let them do that.

Aelin/Impossible, if you are reading this, this would be a good chance to give your side of the story.

-Phobos

Firstly, their Armoury is located right off of a Escher room. Sound familiar?

Secondly, the concept of a Black List for dangerous fandoms is directly ripped off from the ACMSES list, right down to slightly-altered descriptions.

Thirdly, their console design is a Google Doodle commemorating Douglas Adams' 61st birthday (it's interactive!).

Fourthly, their HQ's design is a blatant rip-off of the ACMSES Library, with choice edits, of course.

There's like, zero originality in is organization.



...I'm now tempted to have Gaspard run into his copypasta clone whilst on mission.

They have a Code Of Laws that lists "4. Thou shalt not steal from others." That's fun, isn't it. That is just above the list of 454 selected entries from "Things I Am Not Allowed To Do In The PPC" which have been edited (poorly) to take out references to the PPC. They still mention some PPC agents by name, though.

-Phobos

And yes, I'm pretty sure AelinTheAmazing was a Boarder a while ago. If I recall correctly, she (... she was a she, right?) had decided to spork badfics on her own, with her own "agency", instead of affiliating with us, which is fine.

But... well, I'm afraid she's copying the PPC a bit too much.

I mean if you look in their FAQ: For Rookies one of the questions is thus

I've found loads of badfics, but I can't write reports for all of them! What should I do?

List them on the Unclaimed Badfic page, which you can also use to look for a badfic to use in your next mission...

Now they don't even have an 'Unclaimed Badfic' page, which really makes you wonder doesn't it.

My favourite mistake they've made though is in their very first question on the FAQ page.

What's the difference between a department, a subdepartment, and so on?

Departments deal with more general topics, while subdepartments and below are divisions of the departments that deal with more specialized issues. For instance, if there are technical errors in a fic, the Department of Technical Errors will be contacted. They will then look up the errors and decide which subdepartment to send agents from.

For those who haven't looked at the site yet, let's just say they miss a Department of Technical Errors.

Although whilst they do seem to largely be a rip-off, they seem to have different goal to us in that they are trying to 'educate fanwriters about writing goodfic' so they are slightly different if they try and focus on that more.

Storme Hawk
The guy who loves to pick holes in things.