Access to The End of Time

[chronotriggerfreak]

That means that having a new party member who has never come in contact with a gate before does not affect whether the party will travel to the EoT or the gate's intended location in time.  So considering the context of that event in the game, the party must choose where they go.  They want to see what is on the other side of that gate, and if you go to the Mystic Mountain gate, you will end up at the EoT, with or without Ayla.  At this point I really do think that the party makes the choice.

What are you talking about? If they enter the gate to 12,000 B.C., they wind up there, with or without Ayla, because the first condition of my theorem is not met. If they cheat the system and go through Mystic Mountain, Ayla has surely already been told of the End of Time, and so both conditions are met, landing them at the End of Time. If you're not willing to believe that, then don't make up crap about not going immediately to 12,000 B.C. when it's obvious the party would not even entertain the idea of wasting time and taking a detour to Mystic Mountain.

V_Translanka is addressing the real deal, and presents another possibility to add alongside what I had already proposed. Clarifies it, really, if you put the two together--the path to the End of Time is sealed before the party can run through it because the Gate is sealed before they can get there, forcing them out the straight path.

[Faulce]

oops, sorry guys, my mistake.  Yes, Schala sealing the gate would force them to the Lair ruins because the entire gate itself is locked. okay so I guess we can safelyish say that the Three Articles of Gate Networking are correct.

[chronotriggerfreak]

For once.

(I don't have a habit of making fairly plausible theories that are actually important in any way, shape, or form.)

[doulifee]

The sealing of the Gate as they passed was probably the cause of such an anomaly; as they passed, the entire path--all three entrances to the network--was closed by Schala's magic, and therefore they were forced out one end. Why? That is a good question, but it's difficult to answer without another consistent example to draw a fully supported theory from. For now, at 1:00 in the morning, I can only say that it happened.

maybe an equilibrium law. rejected from the zeal era the traveller lands at the other end of the time tunnel (and you can consider the end of time like a fulcrum)

[Faulce]

But not to worry.
   All time periods connect here...

   You can visit your friends whenever
   you wish! But you can never travel in
   groups greater than 3...

Once you've been through a Gate,
   you can always use it to come here.

Gaspar uses the word CAN. He never says that the party will always come to the EoT.  He had stated the Conservation of Time Theorem right before that. You would think he would explain to the party that they would always appear at the EoT from then on from the gates they have gone through because of..blah blah blah.  But he doesn't...

1) Gates must be travelled at least once to allow passage to the End of Time; otherwise, the path will not be ready and open.

2) One must know of the End of Time to reach it, with the exception given by the Conservation of Time Theorem.

3) If both the above conditions are met by Gate and traveller, a traveller will always arrive at the End of Time directly from the Gate, and vice versa.

I think the will always arrive part in the third statement should be altered.

[chronotriggerfreak]

Why? Just because Gaspar says "can"? If he said something more definite, he would be suggesting that they had to come back and visit often. Why would he do that? He can't really force them to return. He used "can" because he wasn't in a place to dictate their schedule of arrival and departure from the End of Time. He's impartial at that point, considering them just a few more travellers lost in time.

Anyway, if by "can" he meant that it was a choice, then why does the player seem not to have such a choice? I mean, there are many dozens of times when I'd prefer to just skip through to the direct time period. If the mechanics of the Gate are such that they alter destination based on a person's whim, why can we not affect this? Why must it be so inconvenient? Personally, I think there are ways to explain it, but unless you can throw some definite flaw in my theories other than Gaspar's use of the word "can," I see no reason why it isn't completely plausible.

I'd feel perfectly fine to be shot down, though, with good reason.  

[The Unknowuser_]

Hi everyone, it’s been a while!

Well, I think that the Entity is who decides when the party must go to the End of Time:

Conservation of Time Theorem
Gaspar
When 4 or more beings step into a time warp, the Conservation of Time theorem states that they will turn up... ...at the space-time coordinates of least resistance. Here. [End of Time]

Support:
When Crono, Marle, Lucca, and Robo travel through an Entity-made Gate, they arrive at the End of Time.

ZeaLitY: Note that this applies to Entity-made Gates only. The warp effect at Magus' Lair brought about by Lavos did not send Crono's party and Magus to the End of Time, and likewise the Ocean Palace disaster disperses several beings through time:
65000000 BC: Nu at Laruba Ruins
600 AD: Janus
1000 AD: Melchior
2300 AD: Belthasar
End of Time: Gaspar

But can Robo be counted as a “being”? After all, Robo is just a machine, with no real life within it.

The real destination of the gate at Proto Dome is never revealed, but we know that there was another gate at the End of Time besides the 9 pillars, the one that leads to the Day of Lavos. That could be the counterpart of the gate at Proto Dome.

If that’s the case, the Entity, knowing that Lavos was too powerful to Chrono and co., lead them to the End of Time. Gaspar, who foresighted the up coming of Chrono and co., made up the Conservation of Time Theorem to make things easier for the party to understand.

[Faulce]

Hi everyone, it's been a while!

Well, I think that the Entity is who decides when the party must go to the End of Time:

Conservation of Time Theorem
Gaspar
When 4 or more beings step into a time warp, the Conservation of Time theorem states that they will turn up... ...at the space-time coordinates of least resistance. Here. [End of Time]

Support:
When Crono, Marle, Lucca, and Robo travel through an Entity-made Gate, they arrive at the End of Time.

ZeaLitY: Note that this applies to Entity-made Gates only. The warp effect at Magus' Lair brought about by Lavos did not send Crono's party and Magus to the End of Time, and likewise the Ocean Palace disaster disperses several beings through time:
65000000 BC: Nu at Laruba Ruins
600 AD: Janus
1000 AD: Melchior
2300 AD: Belthasar
End of Time: Gaspar

But can Robo be counted as a "being" After all, Robo is just a machine, with no real life within it.

The real destination of the gate at Proto Dome is never revealed, but we know that there was another gate at the End of Time besides the 9 pillars, the one that leads to the Day of Lavos. That could be the counterpart of the gate at Proto Dome.

If that's the case, the Entity, knowing that Lavos was too powerful to Chrono and co., lead them to the End of Time. Gaspar, who foresighted the up coming of Chrono and co., made up the Conservation of Time Theorem to make things easier for the party to understand.

 Whoa, that actually makes a whole lot of sense.  So the whole flashy electric thing when the 4 of them step into the gate is the result of some forced pitstop or something?  hmm, well if you watch the "Reunion" ending, you see that as a party member steps into a gate, its partner gate (which is conviently opposite the other gate) disappears along with the original gate (example: Frog steps in the 600A.D. Truce Canyon gate; that gate along with its partner, 1000A.D. Leene Square gate, disappear)  so I had the impression that the Proto Dome gate (which is in the center of the 9 pillars) originally led to the EoT.  Just as the gate to Medina is the partner gate to the 65 mil B.C. gate.  I think of it like this:  The Entity has solved all of the "what if..." problems.  In other words, the Conservation of Time Theorem is true, but if for some reason, Robo had not been in the party, Crono and Co. still would have wound up at the EoT.  Just like if some of the people who were supposed to end up at the EoT (i'm assuming from 65milB.C. and 1000A.D. since only those pillars are open) from 65mil B.C. didn't, the party could still go there by going through the Medina gate. (strange how they are partner gates since you have to go to 65mil B.C. right after you talk to Melchior about the Dreamstone)
Also, in Magus's flashback, several small gates appear, not just one gate.  Only at Magus's castle does the theorem not apply, however I wonder if perhaps Magus was sent through first, being in the center of the gate, then perhaps the destination changed, but who knows.

[Weggy]

I think it's mentioned elsewhere, but the Proto Dome gate likely led to Medina Village in 1000 AD.  If you compare the maps of the timelines from each end of a gate, they match up very close geographically.  The Proto Dome is perhaps the best match of all, as it sits practically directly ontop of the house in Medina.  It's odd though that the 2 gates arent opposite each other in the end of time.  But why is the 65,000,000 BC gate there?

Well, I think that its opposite must be the bucket that leads to 1999 AD.  If you think about it, these 2 eras are perhaps the most significant in the the history of the planet.  The date Lavos arrives, and the date he rises.

But as to why the 1999 AD gate is seperated from the others, perhaps its something much more simple.  Gaspar comments that people have been dropping into the End of Time recently.  Perhaps he moved the 1999 AD gate over closer to himself, so he could warn time travellers to avoid that gate.  And he does just that, he warns Crono's group about the 1999 AD gate the first time you talk to him.  I assume he has the power to do this, however it seems logical.  All 3 gurus performed some fantastic feats, Gaspar's being the time egg.  Since the End of Time really has no fixed point in space, perhaps moving the physical entrance of the gates is childs play for someone such as him.  Or perhaps Spekkio did it?  Either way, its still moved.

Though this would be much more clear if the 65,000,000 BC pillar of light and the 2300 AD one simply changed places.

[SilentMartyr]

The 65000000 gate was made when Kino was gated to the Mystic Mountains. Proto Dome is the gate that Belthasar arrived in at 2300.

[GrayLensman]

And the 1000 AD Medina Gate was previously accessed by Melchior.

[Weggy]

Where are the other ends to these gates however?  If everyone including Melchior is able to create gates in the End of Time, we should have Medina: 1000 AD AND Ocean Palace: 12,000 BC

[GrayLensman]

The gurus never used the Time Gate in 12,000 BC.  They fell through separate black-portals which suddenly appeared in the Ocean Palace.

[Weggy]

Which would in turn create a portal heading back to 12,000 BC, or 11,995 BC.  Whenever they fell through.

[V_Translanka]

Not necessarily since the black portals are special. 1) They were created by Lavos & 2) They opened up, sucked in whoever (a Guru, a Prince, w/e), spit them out, and disappeared forever just as quickly as they had opened.