Prufrock451 ROCKS!!!!
There's this little subreddit over at reddit.com about a question.. no.. an idea!... not quite polished but the formings or premise of a great story....
Prufrock451 posted a what if storyline wherein he pits a modern US marine battalion against the very best of the Roman Empire (The Praetorians). His story telling style can be considered flash fiction and fits right well with the fast paced action he is going to deliver.
He pits the two team in the home turf of the Romans... in a yet unexplained phenomena, the 35th MEU was transported to the Roman times, in the time of Augustus, bringing with them a few thousand soldiers consisting mostly of US marines, some afghan soldiers some Italian soldiers and some ground engineers, tech people and a few scientists. They have fuel that would last a few months as well as food that might last them for weeks. They also have a number of artillery as well as a few tanks and 3 fighter helicopters.
The Marines: Appearing out of nowhere, the US Marines people consisted of 2,200 Marines. With them are about 150 Air Force maintenance and
repair specialists. There are about 60 Afghan Army soldiers, mostly the
MEU's interpreters and liaisons. There are also 15 U.S. civilian
contractors and one mystery man. They have the weapons and the technology. On a quick glance, given the time period, they can be considered the most powerful force in the world...
The Roman Empire: Being in their home turf, they number in the thousands... and they have the praetorian guards... the elite fighting force of the Roman Empire. These praetorians are said to be so bad-ass that they kill their own emperors if they dont like him.
With the advance military hardware at the Marines disposal, could they topple the Roman Empire? Common sense should say that this would be a one sided fight... and maybe it would be... at first. But if the fight wears on, the Marines know that the bullets will not last, that the fuel will not last, their food, will not last, however good the are, they rely far too much on modern gadgets and weapons.
The Romans on the other hand, have the advantage of terrain plus those army of praetorians who have never known the comforts of air conditioning, heaters, cushions on seats... have fought and won wars with nothing but the armor they are wearing and the swords in their hands. Under a hot sun, in the cold grasps of winter, they have experienced it all and fought on with nothing but grit.
Prufrock451 have posted a great story which garnered the interest of many. So much so, that he was approached by someone from that board to polish the story even further and then pitch it to some of the big wigs in Hollywood.
As of this writing, Prufrock451 has sold the premise to Warner Bros. and is in the process of finishing a script to be approved to be a major motion picture!!! Which is a surprise because the trend in Hollywood right now is sequels and remakes and more remakes. Quite refreshing to know that they are also interested in doing original movies.... heheh.
Great Story. Great Writer. Great Medium. The internet is truly an awesome place.
You can still read the first 7 days of the story over at Reddit.com. Here is the link : http://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k067x/could_i_destroy_the_entire_roman_empire_during/c2giwm4
Reddit user Prufrock451, who is more commonly known as James Erwin, is apparently a "two-time Jeopardy winner". As of this writing, Warner Bros. has asked him to stop redditing with regards to the storyline anyway...
Mumbling my awe at the great story unfolding...
awesome!
ReplyDeleteI know! Right?
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