By saying you are simply playing devils advocate, I assume that you are not in support of the Discord is Starswirl idea. While there is no canonized proof that they are one in the same and subsequently no canonized explanation about what happened to Starswirl in the Hearth's Warming Eve pageant, I have written a fanfic that goes into that. Also, until it is blatantly said I'm the show that Discord is not Starswirl, I well believe it, the coincidences are just too many to ignore.