acrossthegorge

[acrossthegorge]

Reblog and Tag with your ocs' Names

<b>And then for every name you get in your askbox, you must fill out the following character profile for said oc:</b>

Full Name: Gender and Sexuality: Pronouns: Ethnicity/Species: Birthplace and Birthdate: Guilty Pleasures: Phobias: What They Would Be Famous For: What They Would Get Arrested For: OC You Ship Them With: OC Most Likely To Murder Them: Favorite Movie/Book Genre: Least Favorite Movie/Book Cliche: Talents and/or Powers: Why Someone Might Love Them: Why Someone Might Hate Them: How They Change: Why You Love Them:

[acrossthegorge]

Troll Signs

Okay so I was thinking about how signs are actually assigned??? And then I headcanoned. Because I have nothing better to do with my life than consider the inner workings of a pixel planet.

So we know it’s pretty unusual to share a sign with someone else, hence why ancestors are considered largely mythical in canon. However, that detail also inherently means that:

1) There’s presumably a very large supply of signs to be chosen from for every new troll (or almost every new troll if you’re like me and got set onto the signmate headcanon by your friends) 2) There’s some type of organization system that leaves room for someone to potentially get the same sign as a genetically similar troll (AKA, their ancestor) while preventing 80 people from walking around with the same sign as, say, Nepeta. As nice as living Nepetas are, there can only be One True Nepeta. 

So I had fun coming up with a neat little headcanon about it: The Circle System

Keep reading

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And speaking of Lahiri, her ancestor is my only rainbow drinker and she’s p spooky

Commission info!

[acrossthegorge]

Plant Zombies: An Introduction

As we all know, every life form on the cradle of trollkind is worth researching, but the family of the blood plants (devorator sanguinis) is one of its most fascinating ones, and therefore also one of its most disputed. As one of the multitude of causes for zombyism and unable to grow without a supply of troll- or animal tissue, yet still able to photosynthesize, it’s widely argued that they’re��hemiparasites, although their actual relationship with their host body after death is more mutualistic – the plant keeps the troll’s body seemingly alive, and protects them from all sorts of other illnesses and parasites by filtering their blood. It’s therefore hard to draw a clear line in the fine beach stones, and the term forced mutualism has been proposed as a compromise in more recent sweeps. 

(AN: That term really started more arguments than it ended.)

Spread and progression of an infection

For zombification to take place, parts of the plant need to first be inhaled, which means that D. sanguinis is exclusively airborne. Once a flower has been pollinated, either through bugs or manually by two hosts, it starts releasing its microscopically small, hooked seeds. Think of cling plants, and then imagine them infinitely smaller and hurled at you at half the speed of sound.

An extreme closeup of two seeds. (x)

Once inside a suitable host and in contact with the soft tissue of the breathing system, these seeds will then dig their hooks into it and begin to grow their roots, so called haustoria, in search of blood. Here, d. sanguinis will then release a highly potent toxin, designed to stop the host’s blood pusher before the left over white blood cells can get rid of the little saplings. Symptoms at this first and only stage include fever, nausea, vomiting, chest pain, and, of course:

Death

Once the host has drawn their last breath, the plant springs to action a second time. Without white blood cells to remove them again, it begins to draw its fine roots along blood vessels and through muscles, forming a network through the entire body.

Wherever these roots find skin, they will break through and begin sprouting leaves for photosynthesis, which is one of the clearest signs of infection to the inexperienced beholder. The most common places for this are the wrists and the neck, or any surfaces that point towards the sun, such as shoulders or parts of the face.

Examples of different forms while in bloom. Left, d. s. mimosa, right, d. s. rafflesia. (x, x) (AN: I hope whoever took these was vaccinated.) 

Once it has gathered enough nutrients, the plant begins stimulating the roots around the host’s lungs as well as their heart through rapid plant movement – the body starts breathing and having a pulse again.

Next, the plant will perform a miracle of evolution: It will release a surge of adrenaline straight into the blood stream, which will startle the troll ‘awake’ and kick-start a myriad of other processes.

Thanks to d. sanguinis constant filtering and antibacterial properties, there are rarely any signs of decay at this point, but the victim’s thinkpans being without oxygen for nights, sometimes even weeks, means that the infected might be moving again, but aren’t alive in the widest sense of the word. 

(AN: Yes, your quad is dead. Get over it.)

Life after death

Once the plant is done growing, it has usually used up a big part of the nutrients of its host, and even the carbohydrates that it discharges back into the blood stream cannot stave off the hunger that the freshly deceased will wake up to once they’re back to unlife.

To direct this hunger towards the preferred source of food, namely trolls, d. sanguinis releases some of the emergency rations it saves in bulbs in the body, together with ghrelin, a hormone that suggests hunger to the body, and beluanine, which seems to be unique to organisms like d. sanguinis or the infamous zombie fungi, and triggers an extremely specific craving for troll flesh.

Another change is that plant zombies can detect other members of its species from up to two miles away, and will gravitate towards them so they can form a horde. While trolls are largely solitary outside of their quadrants, zombies seek out other zombies to bond with, and they hunt, eat, and sleep together. 

Simplified distribution of zombies in a West Alternian area, exact location omitted. Note how none of them are solitary. (x)

It’s even theorized that these hordes can communicate among themselves through certain smells and plant pheromones, although scienterrorists are still in the dark on how exactly these pheromones are decoded by the hosts.

One possible theory is that this happens through hormones, which d. sanguinis normally replicates to ensure optimal conditions for itself. When a plant gets enough sunlight and nutrients, for example, it will excrete serotonin, dopamine, and even oxytocine. When the host or someone else damages the plant or the tissue around it, it will excrete adrenaline.

Eventually, the host will learn to associate satisfying the plant’s needs with being satisfied themself, and d. sanguinis can start releasing these hormones in much smaller quantities. Instead, it will focus its energy on growing blossoms, so that the cycle can start anew, and more trolls can be assimilated into the shambling hordes of the undead.

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Oops! First Interactions

Send me a symbol for our Muses to meet when the following accident occurs…

♔ - one Muse hits the other while opening a door too fast/forcefully ♕ - one Muse gestures wildly and smacks another passing by ♖ - one Muse shoots the other (non-lethal…probably) ♗ - one Muse trips the other ♘- one Muse drops a bucket of ice water on the other, mistaking them for someone else ♟- one Muse spills something on the other ♙ - one Muse gets thrown into the other during a fight and injures them ♚ - one Muse saves the other from a dangerous situation, only to end up in danger themselves ♛ - one Muse runs into the other with their bike / skateboard / golf cart / etc. ♜ - one Muse attempts to assassinate the other after mistaking them for their target ♝- one Muse accidentally casts a spell on the other

[acrossthegorge]

>Zefyra. Pester Hemoanon Ally

(Pesterchum RP with @succ2nite, thanks again!)

[01:35] -- reniassanceAeroplane [RA] began pestering veraciouslyCarnivorous [VC] at 01:35 --

[01:36] RA: -(+)- Sʘ... yʘu're nʘ7 a fan ʘf 7he empire righ7?

[01:37] RA: -(+)- I cʘu1d use sʘme 7ips fʘr er, s7aying under 7he hemʘ1ʘya1is7s' radar

[01:38] VC: :O im trying to find out mys≡lf, fri≡nd

[01:38] VC: i stay anon!:-)

[01:38] RA: -(+)- ʘʘʘf we11 shi7. Guess 7ha7 makes 7wʘ ʘf us!

[01:39] VC: Two of us? You ar≡ anon, fri≡nd?

[01:40] RA: -(+)- 7wʘ ʘf us 7ryin 7ʘ s7ay ʘu7 ʘf 7rʘub1e wi7h 7he empire. Nʘ ʘne suspec7s me ye7, perks ʘf bein' cʘba17 I guess. 

[01:40] RA: -(+)- I migh7 have bus7ed a friend ʘu7 ʘf 7he he1msb1ʘck.

[01:41] VC: :O oh my

[01:43] RA: -(+)- I cʘu1dn'7 1e7 7he navy 7rʘ11nap my mʘirai1 Ʃ8/

[01:44] RA: -(+)- Pʘʘr guy s7i11 hasn'7 recʘvered frʘm 7he imp1an7s 7hey s7uck in him :(

[01:46] VC: implants?? what implants

[01:49] RA: -(+)- 7ʘ cʘnnec7 7ʘ ʘne ʘf 7he bigger warship rigs. He was gʘnna be made in7ʘ a hyperdrive ʘr sʘme7hing! 7hey gʘ77a dri11 in7ʘ yʘur 7hinkpan 7ʘ a77ach em Ʃ8/

[01:55] RA: -(+)- Sʘrry, 7ha7 was a bi7 much wasn'7 i7

[01:59] VC: :-O no it wasnt!! i didnt know th≡y ≡v≡n did that

[01:59] VC: :-( did you r≡mov≡ th≡ implants?

[02:03] RA: -(+)- I cʘu1dn'7 Ʃ8( 7he crania1 ʘnes fuse 7ʘ 7he sku11. A11 I cʘu1d dʘ was unp1ugg him frʘm 7he rig and pu11 ʘu7 7he 7racker in his arm.

[02:03] RA: -(+)- Had 7ʘ ge7 an ac7ua1 surgeʘn 7ʘ 7ake ʘu7 and p1ug 7he imp1an7s.

[02:06] VC: :-( thats so scary

[02:08] RA: -(+)- 7ha7's 7he weird par7. 7he fear hasn'7 hi7 me ye7. We're safe fʘr nʘw because I 1ive far ʘu7 in 7he bad 1ands. Nʘ drʘne has ever made i7 ʘu7 here.

[02:10] RA: -(+)- I'd dʘ i7 again 7hʘugh. I'd a1ways make 7he same chʘice. Nʘ ʘne deserves 7he he1msb1ʘck. Nʘ7 7he ʘnes 7he navy uses- 7ha7's fʘr sure.

[02:13] VC: i hop≡ i n≡v≡r hav≡ to ≡ncount≡r that :-(

[02:13] VC: im sorry fri≡nd :-( th≡ r≡b≡llion will win

[02:16] RA: -(+)- 7hanks! I hʘpe sʘ 7ʘʘ Ʃ8)

[02:18] RA: -(+)- I7'd be nice 7ʘ 1ive in a wʘr1d where mu7a7iʘns are sʘme7hing 7ʘ be prʘud ʘf

[02:21] RA: -(+)- If yʘu ʘr any ʘne yʘu knʘw needs a p1ace 7ʘ hide, I can he1p. 7he sʘu7hern was7es are a gʘʘd p1ace 7ʘ hide!

[02:22] VC: :-O if i do ill l≡t you know!! thank you :-) if th≡r≡s anything you n≡≡d i can try to find, fri≡nd

[02:26] RA: -(+)- 7hanks Ʃ8D I gʘ77a sign ʘff fʘr nʘw, 7hanks fʘr 1e77ing me ge7 shi7 ʘff my ches7.

[02:33] VC: no probl≡m, fri≡nd!! :-)

[02:34] -- reniassanceAeroplane [RA] ceased pestering veraciouslyCarnivorous [VC] at 02:34 --

[acrossthegorge]

Got the first of Nepthy’s sprites done!

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Aww geez poor Laledy :( That kid’s been through so much I just wanna to wrap him up in a blanket and give him hugs.

Also imagine if he met Magohm’s batdad? Would it be sweet and heartwarming or would he turn into a sobbing pile on the floor while Zefyra prods him with a mop?

Would Laledy want to visit their lusus again or would they prefer to leave that in the past?

Laledy dearly misses his batmom, but unfortunately doesn’t have the option of visiting her unless he wants to get captured by the cavern he ran away from and probably culled! He left her behind entirely because he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to take care of her.

If he had the option, though, and neither of those things were a concern: he would cling to her like a little kid if he had the opportunity. There’s a reason he gets weirdly clingy with other people’s overfriendly lusi if they let him! Batmom was pretty much the only consistent source of affection he’s ever had.

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And here's the other side character, Kryken (also known as finbeard). He's an older-timer who's fallen out of step with the empire and would see it and its empress burn (ooooooo👀). I'll be doing his profile after I finish Nepthy's.

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Why who is this? It's the asshole pretty boy, Nepthy! I've started working on his character profile- hope to getit done within the next few days 😊

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Maps!

There’s this neato website called inkarnate that lets you make your own D&D style maps! So I made maps of both the general area of Zefyra’s part of the gorge:

And a map of Hànhǎi, part of @activatingaggro‘s map of the south-eastern peninsula of Alternia:

(did my darnedest to make it to scale)

[acrossthegorge]

Ʃ8)

Reblog for Liliji to judge your trolls

One troll per reblog

[acrossthegorge]

⚜💻✍⚰!

⚜how many blogs you run

JUST THIS ONE, UNLIKE SOME PEOPLE, YOU HEATHEN.

For fantroll RP, anyways. My main blog is anonymonster, and I have a few other defunct sideblogs for stuff like Flight Rising and inactive fangem roleplay stuff.

💻platforms you use/ have used

Crunchyroll forum groups back in middle school for THE ANIME RPS, haha, and then Flarping which was a facebook-eque website specifically made for Homestuck RP which fortunately (for me and my growth as a human being) doesn’t exist anymore, aaaand Tumblr! I like sticking to one thing at a time where I can conglomerate and organize everything, so my temporary foray into Dreamwidth and chat client RP like Pesterchum did not and do not last very long.

✍long posts or short posts

Medium-length posts!

I am para-rp4lyfe all the way, but when things start turning into 12-para monsters my RP rate slows way down because of the amount of energy those kinds of replies take, especially considering that I typically have around 20 active threads and binge-reply about 5-10 replies at a time! Give me RPs that are 4-6 paragraphs in length so that I get my para kick and can pop them out in no time, and I’ll be happy forever.

⚰favorite type of plot

Totally same as you, tbqh. I like angst/hurt-comforty character-driven drama!

Impaling Kit wouldn’t be nearly as fun if it didn’t result in FEAR-NEGGING, which also wouldn’t be nearly as fun if Sipara wasn’t busy gnawing over Kit piling Pheres, the fluffiness of which wouldn’t have been nearly as fun if it didn’t result in the betrayed feelings of wrong numbers and Kit having slept with Pheres’s boyfriend, etc, etc! I really love plots that connect and interweave between multiple characters, and my enjoyment of everything else (adventure shenanigans, character-wrecking angst, w/e) ultimately comes back in large part to that kind of thing!

[acrossthegorge]

For every "★" I get, I will post a fact about my characters.

You can specify any number of characters you want. You may also specific something you want to hear about, but not too specific. :>

ex: ★ Fears 

[acrossthegorge]

Rude. And you thought Mag could be facetious. You think you’ll just knock his ass out so he’ll shut up and drop him off back on the nearest part of the road, but Mag elbows you and quips, “Chill Zef it’sss going tibia okay- it’s not like he has a bone to pickkk with us!”

Oh no. Oh no.

“Whatsa matter Zef, am I getting under your skkkin? Can’t take a good ol’ ribbing from ya pale pal?” He continues to talk under his breath “Be nice, the kid’ss not lookin’ for trouble.’Ssides I think he’s kinda humerus.”

You can’t help it- snort- you wheeze a little while Mag continues to talk.

“As yummy assss you lookk friend-o, I think I’ll stick to eating insssects- you ain’t the right kinda cruntchy.” You stop snickering and give Mag a little punch in the arm.  

“We’re close to the Kuikiro mountain range, ‘bout 20 miles from head of salt river. Mina’s 43 miles east.” you grunt.

“There’ss a trail jusst past the area that’ll take ya back to a main road near a railway, that should put ya back on trackk ta’ Port Mina- right Zef?

You give his hand an affirmative squeeze. The two of you walk towards him and you gently tap the jade’s arm. “Follow.” 

Sensing his nerves, Mag reassures, “C’mon now, don’t worry! Zefyra’s the best seeing-eye troll this side a’ the wasste! They’re the optical travel guide.” 

Pffffffffft

>Zef and Mag. Investigate.

[acrossthegorge]

A sketchy-sketch of Mag after he was forcibly conscripted into the Royal Alternian Navy as a helmstroll-in-training. Shortly after he gets busted out by Zefyra in response to his SOS and they abscond to Zef’s hive in the wastes (one day I will write more about this plot point, but today is not that day).

[acrossthegorge]

RA: -(+)- ʘk I gʘ77a be hʘnes7... I rea11y wan7 7ʘ pap his face.

RA: -(+)- Ya 1ʘʘk 1ike a chi11 and apprʘachab1e guy. 

RA: -(+)- 1ike I'm nʘ7 much a fan fʘr 7ʘuching un1ess i7's my mʘirai1 bu7... if 7his dude hugged me I'd be cʘʘ1 wi7h i7. Ʃ8)

RA: -(+)- 10/10 wʘu1d pap

INSTead of my son judging ur trolls. reblog w ur trolls judging my son