rename barrier -> magic_barrier

BUR #5008 has been rejected.

rename barrier -> magic_barrier

While trying to find a tag for traffic barriers (I still haven't done so; what is it, if there is one?), I found that a number of the newer posts tagged with simply with barrier depict traffic barriers. However the wiki entry for the tag says it is only for transparent magic barriers; from back when Danbooru was like 70% Tōhō art and there weren't many examples of things like cityscapes to confuse the tag's use case with. If anything, 'barrier' used as a tag without an extra contextualising word should be intuitively considered to refer to mundane physical objects before fantasy stuff, right?

Further, if there aren't tags for traffic barriers, will naming it traffic_barrier suffice or is a distinction between types (eg. Armco vs Jersey) desirable at all? It's not liable to be a very populated tag, so I suppose not, but there are tags for different types of fences, for comparison (eg. chain-link vs picket).

Seems like there are a few under roadblock but the posts tagged are a mixed bag, and the name is somewhat ambiguous as well.

While the wiki definition states "magic" as the cause of the barrier, I think it'd probably make more sense to call it an energy_barrier to better describe it and not be bound to only magical energy as the cause of it.

NWF_Renim said:

While the wiki definition states "magic" as the cause of the barrier, I think it'd probably make more sense to call it an energy_barrier to better describe it and not be bound to only magical energy as the cause of it.

Agree with the name change and energy instead of magic. Doing a quick browse I see Splatoon, cyberpunk, and mechs.

NWF_Renim said:

While the wiki definition states "magic" as the cause of the barrier, I think it'd probably make more sense to call it an energy_barrier to better describe it and not be bound to only magical energy as the cause of it.

energy_shield already exists and it appears this may be the intended tag for technologiocal examples of energy barriers, but there is no wiki entry for it. That said, a typical sci-fi 'bubble' energy shield isn't really a straight wall-like barrier as is more common in magic examples, so I agree with you and suggest that energy_shield refer to '3D' bubble shields (including more close-fitting ones like in the Halo franchise) and energy_barrier refer to flat wall-like examples.

However, just to add to the confusion, there are also energy-based shields that resemble physical handheld shields rather than bubbles or walls (see: post #4213374, post #3844102). I suppose these are distinctive enough to have their own tag as well, but I have no idea what to call it. Maybe just having energy_shield/energy_barrier and shield both applied to the post together would be sufficient.

Unbreakable said:

Seems like there are a few under roadblock but the posts tagged are a mixed bag, and the name is somewhat ambiguous as well.

While I think in some dialects people do refer to individual Jersey barrier segments as roadblocks, I think they actually mean "road blocks" (note the space) as some concrete barrier structures are indeed simple cubes. I'd say roadblock is more of a tag for the way the barrier elements are arranged, rather than being for the structures themselves; but if we are going to add extra tags to distinguish types of barrier structure, I dunno.

Nell said:

energy_shield already exists and it appears this may be the intended tag for technologiocal examples of energy barriers, but there is no wiki entry for it. That said, a typical sci-fi 'bubble' energy shield isn't really a straight wall-like barrier as is more common in magic examples, so I agree with you and suggest that energy_shield refer to '3D' bubble shields (including more close-fitting ones like in the Halo franchise) and energy_barrier refer to flat wall-like examples.

However, just to add to the confusion, there are also energy-based shields that resemble physical handheld shields rather than bubbles or walls (see: post #4213374, post #3844102). I suppose these are distinctive enough to have their own tag as well, but I have no idea what to call it. Maybe just having energy_shield/energy_barrier and shield both applied to the post together would be sufficient.

I think we should redefine and organize the tags in a manner that would make them more consistent with the naming of some of our other tags. Energy shield for example should probably be made to match energy sword, and thus be defined as a shield that utilizes or is composed of energy. Example: post #3931417, post #3844102

Energy barrier doesn't need to be defined as referring to a flat wall-like barrier, and in tagging there have been many examples where people have tagged the bubble as a barrier (post #2127062). There is though also a force field tag, but I think for naming consistency energy barrier or energy field would be good for any sort of barrier/field composed of energy. Of particular note force field typically implies a defensive usage of it, but many types of attacks are also simply projecting outward a wall of energy that both repels attacks and injures those around the caster (example: post #1567242).

If we need to further subdivide by shape, it would probably be best to simply start with the spherical energy fields and tag them as an energy bubble, that is a bubble or sphere of energy that surrounds the caster or target.

In terms of parent/child ordering the tags should be something like this:

• energy barrier or energy field
• energy shield
• energy bubble

The force field tag would be aliased to energy barrier or energy field, whichever name we decide to go with.

I agree with that ordering and say energy barrier would be the better of the two.

energy field actually has four images and could be partially removed and partially moved over. My RPG brain hears "field" and thinks it could be an AoE DoT attack or something.

BUR #5054 has been approved by @evazion.

rename barrier -> energy_barrier
create alias force_field -> energy_barrier
create implication energy_shield -> energy_barrier

BUR for my proposal on naming.

Can do a BUR for energy bubble later if this approved and it becomes worthwhile to make the tag and can include an energy_shield -> shield implication after the tag has been cleaned up to only being depictions of shields.

Would it make sense to make magic barrier a subset of energy barrier, or make an umbrella tag to separate sci-fi from magic?

Username_Hidden said:

Would it make sense to make magic barrier a subset of energy barrier, or make an umbrella tag to separate sci-fi from magic?

If we have a need for a magic barrier tag, I would suggest making it a subset of energy barrier. Pretty much going to define energy barrier as a barrier composed of any type of energy, including magical and psychic energies, that prevents or impedes movement through it.

I think we have some force field bridges and platforms. That doesnt feel like "barriers" to me. +1 on the rename though.

The bulk update request #5008 (forum #182751) has been rejected by @evazion.

The bulk update request #5054 (forum #183034) has been approved by @evazion.

How should I tag the energy platforms in post #1506260?

Are those energy barriers?

I would just go and make an energy_platform tag for those, along with floating_platform, similar to the extant floating_island. It seems some floating islands are very small though, so I suppose the distinction between platform and island would be whether it looks earthy and 'natural'? It's surprising that floating platform isn't already a tag; maybe I'm missing something there.

The post is already tagged energy_barrier. Maybe that should be removed? A floor surface isn't generally considered to be a 'barrier' that protects or prevents entry to somewhere, but it is fundamentally just a horizontally-aligned energy barrier.

I suppose energy_bridge should be a separate tag, same as conventional platforms and bridges have their own.