classicassiopeia

[classicassiopeia]

okay so a Poptropica FNAF AU has been picking at my brain for a while (since I love putting my fixations in a blender) so here are a couple of first concept sketches I did of the Binary Bard/Mordred!

I want to credit @thegoldensungoddess for making the original AU many years ago that I’m now putting my own spin on. I have a vague idea for a timeline and lore so feel free to ask if you’re curious!

Close-ups under the cut!

The first concept I drew at 2 in the morning and a couple of color swatches

They also built the Binary Bard! I sure hope nothing bad happens to them…

I also like to imagine that they can squeeze through the vents.

[classicassiopeia]

AHHHHHH this is so so so good!! Genuinely going crazy over this rn

For @classicassiopeia’s poptropica au.

I made this real fast when I remembered this scene in Gravity Falls and knew what I had to do.

[classicassiopeia]

I wonder what they’re talking about…

Me, a yuri enthusiast, posting Poptropica yaoi for once? insane

[classicassiopeia]

How Mordred lost his sanity to become Binary Bard?

HIIII okay this is actually a REALLY INTERESTING QUESTION and one im going to ramble about a lot a lot a lot so!!! more under the cut <3

ALRIGHT! SO! the question of how mordred turned into binary bard is actually one ive been thinking about for a while now! when i first started writing him, i was really stumped on his transformation, especially since its a really popular fan interpretation to say that mordred lost his sanity in space and turned into binary bard as a result!

so, i started researching if people really do "go insane" or if that was just an insensitive mental illness trope. one common explanation of insanity that i found is when a person experiences something that doesnt have a societal explanation for it. for example: imagine if you constantly heard a ringing in your ears but there was no diagnosis for tinnitus so no one knew what it was. youd probably feel crazy.

a lot of people headcanon that mordred probably has an undiagnosed mental illness as a result, and thats what caused the shift to binard bard (either that or like brain damage after the crash)! and TO BE FAIR, i do too to an extent (i think he has BPD) but! idk! i dont think he's insane if that makes sense

me personally, i kind of have trouble writing the classic "insanity" trope. its hard to track character motivation and what's going on inside their head (i feel like most writers just make the character do weird shit and write it off as them being "insane"). i also had a discussion with a friend about this and they brought up a VERY interesting point that a character "losing their sanity" kind of implies that their mental state is PERMANENT. that there is a line between "before insane" and "after insane" that they can never cross. which idk! i dont want to imply that a character is broken forever and can never change

additionally, i looked into what poptropica wrote for binary bard, like how he's portrayed canonically. and like. ngl. i dont think he's insane! i think he's within his right mind. i think he is evil and knows what he's doing! astroknights is a story that revolves around his hubris, how he was a greedy scientist who sought fame and glory and could NEVER be satisfied (his book literally has the caption "avarus animus nullo satiatur lucro" which translates to "a greedy mind is satisfied with no (amount of) gain").

^^ like to me this is the cadence of someone who knows what they're doing

PLUS. IN MY OPINION. it is a far more interesting character arc for mordred to become a villain once he isnt constrained by societal rules (hes in SPACE. he can do what he wants now) instead of insanity! in the former he KNOWS what he's doing and knows how his actions have consequences

essentially, i write Mordred as someone who felt very constrained and trapped on Arturus. He was limited by the whims of the King and Queen, unable to follow his passions and invent what he wanted to. I imagine he was under much scrutiny not just from the royal court, but also from townspeople! He hides away in his study a lot. He's strange to talk to. What he does is unnatural. He was treated like an outcast by everyone even before he was thrown to jail

(i also headcanon mordred as autistic so he's taught himself a LOOOTTTT of social cues in order to Fit In and gain the King and Queens favor)

Compare that to when he's in space! Yes, he is very much scared and alone and has to essentially rebuild himself after the plane crash, but also he's free. Free from Arturus, free from the king and queen, free from society. Once he's in space, he starts to realize how much he limited himself to appear "socially acceptable." Now that he's alone in space, he starts to embrace his ambitions and seeks revenge against the King and Queen for wronging him.

From Mordred's point of view, he is completely in his right mind. In fact, he's even more sane as Binary Bard!

TLDR: Mordred low key was always a dick and finally became Binary Bard once he was freed from societal expectation

[classicassiopeia]

Last minute, but here’s mine! https://artfight.net/~classicassiopeia

Hey so if any of you out there are doing art fight and have Poptropica ocs, PLEASE drop the account. I wanna attack as many Poptropica ocs as I can

[classicassiopeia]

A little last minute, but I’m joining artfight this year!!

[classicassiopeia]

Another sketch in less than 24 hours? It’s more likely than you think!

Okay, so for context, while drawing something for @comical-icicle’s birthday, I realized that our Mordreds are drastically different heights. So I decided to draw them together.

I like to imagine Nervous Heart and Thea are standing in the background, hoping these two don’t try to tear each other apart.

[classicassiopeia]

EAH AU Designs

Hello!! I feel like it’s been awhile since I posted art on my main page- BUT I’ve recently finished designs for the main trio of my Poptropica Ever After High AU.

For context (because I haven’t talked about it on here): this AU came about because I like putting two of my favorite things from childhood together and making AUs out of them.

So this AU takes place in a dying Poptropica which has only survived (supposedly) by retelling the same stories over and over and over again. As a result, an academy emerged to help the teenage heirs of Poptropica’s villains and heroes (and all characters in-between) follow their destinies.

Mordred functions as our protagonist as the heir to the title of the Binary Bard who refuses to sign the Book of Legends on Legacy Day (a day at the beginning of the school year when the seniors declare to the world that they will follow in the footsteps of their parents). Chaos and shenanigans ensue.

That is a very brief synopsis of the AU, so feel free to ask questions!

Notes on each of the characters and closeups beneath the cut!

Harvey:

I like to imagine he has a LOT of sweaters/sweater vests in his closet that he wears regardless of season

His rolled up khakis are a “fashion statement” according to him

His knee-high socks are actually pink! They’re a gift from his mom, Dr. Harriet Hare.

His round glasses are a reference to his goggles as Dr. Hare

Charlotte:

She looks taller than she actually is because of her platform boots

Her leather jacket was a gift from her mom, there’s a black widow patch on the back

Her hairstyle is based of off of Chief Inspector Veuve Noire’s hair (I love her hairstyle)

She always keeps a sketchbook and a drawing utensil on hand (art runs in the family)

Mordred:

Their pointed ears is due to their fae heritage (however, it’s something they’re self-consciously about so they tend to cover it up with glamour)

I like to imagine that they hand-embroidered the constellations onto their vest themself

They have a satchel as a little nod to the fact that they’re the protagonist of this AU (like how the player has a satchel)

Still immensely sleep deprived at 17 (yes, they’re actually the youngest out of these three!)

[classicassiopeia]

Ahhhhhhh!!! This is so good!! I love her outfit!

AU design-

Okay, so uh- first of all, eah poptropica au belongs to @classicassiopeia, this au has been living in my head rent free for a while so I decided to draw a design for Nervous.

So… here’s Norah, the next paranormal investigator of her island.

[classicassiopeia]

EXTENDED HIS STAY YOU SAY?? 👀👀👀 PLEASE DO GO ON

I'm also curious what Mordred's feelings on the pewter moon inhabitants are! Does he like them? Find them annoying? More complicated????

AHHHHH yes!! I’ll talk about his relationship with the Pewter Moon aliens first since it leads to his extended stay in space

Everything’s under the cut because this ended up being a lot longer than I thought!

So for the 15 years that he lives with them, Mordred actually befriends the Pewter Moon aliens (after getting over his paranoia and anxiety and his natural inclination to not trust anyone)! They literally saved his life after all, and after he was released from their hospital, he ended up integrating into their community as the “odd human that lives in the workshop on the edge of town”.

Initially, someone suggested sending him back home to Earth and he just went “NO no I’m good here”, because why would he want to go back to a place where he’s a wanted criminal? Sure, on Pewter Moon, maybe he’ll be stared at and at worst, be talked down to (which 1. grinds his gears because of his pride and 2. is really funny to imagine because I like to think most of the Pewter Moon aliens are shorter than him), but it’s a lot better than being under the threat of execution for treason.

Plus, he’s FASCINATED by all their technology (considering he came from a place where he had to invent EVERYTHING himself) and spends much of his time studying it, shadowing engineers and technicians, keeping a second journal of all his discoveries. It’s not long before he’s proposing changes to make things more efficient (quite frankly I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the first day he’s discharged from the hospital). He learns about space travel and how it’s actually super common here and he’s dragged on trips to the nearby planets.

And since he spends FIFTEEN years with them, you can’t tell me that he didn’t develop close relationships with any of them. At the very least, he has 2 or 3 people he becomes close with. He cares about the Pewter Moon aliens because they treat him better than the people back at Arturus ever did (well, besides his sister*. He really misses her). They’ve given him a safe environment to pursue his passions, and in return he helps them and, on the VERY rare occasion, confides in them.

*Side Note: Mordred and Elyana are adoptive siblings in my au! I won’t talk about them much here since their relationship needs a whole other post, but know that Elyana’s the older sibling and this obviously means that Mordred didn’t kidnap her to marry her in this au!

Of course, not everything is sunshine and rainbows despite Mordred being in a better environment. In the first few months of living on Pewter Moon, like I mentioned at the beginning, he is immensely paranoid and distrustful, resulting in him being incredibly aloof. But he warms up to the aliens over time.

He suffers from enduring consequences of the crash which include: PTSD, struggles with and adjusting to being a cyborg, and dealing with the effects of a traumatic brain injury**. He also has thoughts of vengeance against Arturus for his exile and when his impulsivity gets the better of him, he starts acting on those thoughts.

**Side Note: I actually think about this one a lot as a psych major, and while I won’t get deep into it here (I can, but that’ll be another post), just know that due to his TBI, he suffers personality changes (including significant mood swings and impulsivity) along with other effects that causes him to be more reliant on his robotic side (such as blurred vision and difficulty speaking).

BUT because he has essentially found a support system in the Pewter Moon inhabitants (even if he’s not at all aware of it), it makes his struggles manageable. He has people to turn to when he’s not feeling like himself. He has people who check up on him and will sit with him when he has a depressive episode. They’re his voice of reason whenever he starts to spiral.

Because of them, I like to imagine that Mordred generally had a happy-ish 15 years on Pewter Moon… but we both know how this story has to end.

While on an expedition on his own, he comes across an asteroid with an odd crystal formation on it. (This is actually a piece of the Nexus, but he doesn’t know that.) He discovers that it actually houses a portal and, because of a combination of his impulsivity and curiosity, goes through. Unfortunately, the portal shuts behind him, leaving him stranded in the middle of nowhere in space, in what he originally assumed to be his own universe***.

***Side Note: since it was a Nexus crystal, the portal actually took him to a complete other universe devoid of any sentient life, but he doesn’t figure this out until MUCH later.

He panics a little, but surely someone would come looking for him…

…right?

And so he waits. And he waits. Maybe he explores a bit here and there to survive in this universe and maybe he tries to get home on his own. And that asteroid is somehow always following him, haunting him. Taunting him.

And one day after who-knows-how-long in this alternate dimension, he comes to the realization: no one is coming for him. He’s been abandoned. And he SPIRALS (which leads to him becoming the Binary Bard).

Now, how did I extend his stay in space? Well, time in the new dimension that he’s stuck in doesn’t work the same way as time in Poptropica. So while only 5 years in Poptropica passed, for Mordred, he’s been stuck for a much longer time. Originally I said 200 years****, but now I think I’m settling for another 20 years due to implications with Elyana.

****Side Note: for context for this, my Mordred’s not entirely human! He’s actually half fae (on his mother’s side) which allows him to have a longer lifespan, along with other fun abilities that probably explain why the aliens called him a “wizard”

So… that’s 20 years that he spends spiraling, stewing in his hate, rage, and loneliness, screaming into the void, planning his revenge, and building the fortress from which he shall rule (which, if you think about it, he’s technically the King of that Universe as the only sentient being).

Anyways, uh, can you tell I think about this guy a lot?

[classicassiopeia]

Of course!! Hopefully with summer here I can finally get around to writing it!

I desperately need to hear more headcanons (whether it’s of the main 4 or any other villains)

GLAAAAADLYYY!! you're in luck actually I have a lot of other villain art that I haven't posted yet that relates to my headcanons!

raven is really into robotics/mechanics! I mainly headcanon this because of his HUUUGEEE raven machine that he has on monster carnival. WAAAYY under utilized in my opinion. so I decided to give him a mech! which is why he is SO HUGE!!! he's got a whole mech under his cape

similarly, hes good at making potions! in my version of poptropica, alchemy is like a legitimate science so he dabbles in it every now and then

when he isn't using his mech (which he only wears at the carnival to fully encompass his Ringmaster persona), he uses a cane to help him walk! I'm stiiillll fleshing out the logistics of this (if it was an injury or just how he was born, id need to research) but yeah I think raven is a cane user!!

I like the idea that most of the villains on super power island are teenagers/young adults (aside from sir rebral and rat man). idk to me speeding spike and crusher have the vibes that they wreck cars together in the junkyard and do stupid teenage shit. same with betty jetty and copy cat

copy cat scams people online with phishing emails and steals all their personal info. and commits identity fraud (I thought the fact that she went to jail for illegally downloading music was LAAAAMEEE so I changed it so she was literally stealing identities. like a copy cat. lol. plus it still makes her tech savvy)

betty jetty n copy cat are friends and speeding spike n crusher are friends <3

mordred befriended some of the aliens on pewter moon. I don't CAAAAREEE if poptropica tells me mordred was hostile towards them, he spent TWENTY YEARS in space I think he was friends with them (initially)

like cmooonnn he CRASH LANDED on there!! even if he's super individualistic, I think the aliens helped him a toooonnn. and honestly I think they saved his life from the crash! because I KNOW he needed medical attention and no way he was conscious enough to treat himself

uuunfortunately this means they do eventually have a falling out :(( I hc that when binary bard sees how much nicer things are on pewter moon he low key crashes out over how the king and queen treated him and wants to extract revenge on them and ASKS THE ALIENS FOR SUPPORT, but theyre like "yooo this isn't chill" and bard is like super mad that they won't help him and cuts ties 😭

I also think bard has slight hearing loss in his left ear!

less of a villains thing but I also think the suits of armor that the knights on astroknights wear are magical so they protect the wearer from the dangers of space (no oxygen, radiation, cold, etc)

Idk if I mentioned this in a previous post but black widow and the curator are exes and I WILL truth this always

ANYWAY!!! this post is getting pretty long so I'm gonna stop myself here! Enjoy the headcanons <3

[classicassiopeia]

i need you to know that I have a fic in my drafts titled “Mordred’s Adventures in Space” that’s just about him living with the Pewter Moon aliens after the crash so you’re definitely not alone in thinking that they saved his life because they definitely did

I desperately need to hear more headcanons (whether it’s of the main 4 or any other villains)

GLAAAAADLYYY!! you're in luck actually I have a lot of other villain art that I haven't posted yet that relates to my headcanons!

raven is really into robotics/mechanics! I mainly headcanon this because of his HUUUGEEE raven machine that he has on monster carnival. WAAAYY under utilized in my opinion. so I decided to give him a mech! which is why he is SO HUGE!!! he's got a whole mech under his cape

similarly, hes good at making potions! in my version of poptropica, alchemy is like a legitimate science so he dabbles in it every now and then

when he isn't using his mech (which he only wears at the carnival to fully encompass his Ringmaster persona), he uses a cane to help him walk! I'm stiiillll fleshing out the logistics of this (if it was an injury or just how he was born, id need to research) but yeah I think raven is a cane user!!

I like the idea that most of the villains on super power island are teenagers/young adults (aside from sir rebral and rat man). idk to me speeding spike and crusher have the vibes that they wreck cars together in the junkyard and do stupid teenage shit. same with betty jetty and copy cat

copy cat scams people online with phishing emails and steals all their personal info. and commits identity fraud (I thought the fact that she went to jail for illegally downloading music was LAAAAMEEE so I changed it so she was literally stealing identities. like a copy cat. lol. plus it still makes her tech savvy)

betty jetty n copy cat are friends and speeding spike n crusher are friends <3

mordred befriended some of the aliens on pewter moon. I don't CAAAAREEE if poptropica tells me mordred was hostile towards them, he spent TWENTY YEARS in space I think he was friends with them (initially)

like cmooonnn he CRASH LANDED on there!! even if he's super individualistic, I think the aliens helped him a toooonnn. and honestly I think they saved his life from the crash! because I KNOW he needed medical attention and no way he was conscious enough to treat himself

uuunfortunately this means they do eventually have a falling out :(( I hc that when binary bard sees how much nicer things are on pewter moon he low key crashes out over how the king and queen treated him and wants to extract revenge on them and ASKS THE ALIENS FOR SUPPORT, but theyre like "yooo this isn't chill" and bard is like super mad that they won't help him and cuts ties 😭

I also think bard has slight hearing loss in his left ear!

less of a villains thing but I also think the suits of armor that the knights on astroknights wear are magical so they protect the wearer from the dangers of space (no oxygen, radiation, cold, etc)

Idk if I mentioned this in a previous post but black widow and the curator are exes and I WILL truth this always

ANYWAY!!! this post is getting pretty long so I'm gonna stop myself here! Enjoy the headcanons <3

[classicassiopeia]

AHHHHH!!! This is so, so good!!! Fun fact: one of the reasons why I made Mordred our Raven Queen (besides them being purple and favoritism) is because I’m pretty sure they have one of the worst fates out of everyone-

“Hey you know what would make students embrace their destinies-?”

@classicassiopeia, a Legacy Day drawing based around the eah au—

[classicassiopeia]

I recently got sick so I transferred it to these losers.

[classicassiopeia]

[classicassiopeia]

I love love love your Holmes design!!

Guys I REALLY like robots... 😩

[classicassiopeia]