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Watched part of the 2011 Three Musketeers on Friday with the teens a the Youth Ranch. Watching their portrayals of King Louis, Lord Buckingham, and other royals and nobility, I made the comment to the teacher, "At least they did an impressive job of portraying a bunch of inbred, upper-class twits."

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Voted for 2 OCs, but I could see any of the first six happening, with number 3 being least likely.

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Neat!

Quentin looking for a gig in Galen's Row.

Bard Cape and Lute Strap by Minifig Realms.

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Catherine Anne Stamford Born into privilege and raised to be the ideal woman of high society, Catherine spent her entire life hiding the truth about what she is--one of the Marked. Now, branded a fugitive, she's searching for answers about her power, and why she is being pursued by those wishing to exploit it. Smart, stubborn, and a little too curious for her own good, Catherine must confront the legacy she was born into, and decide whether to let it define her or destroy her.

Anne's also been rotating in my mind 😌

Anne's playlist:

OC Masterlist

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Still really like their designs!

The sounds in nature sing a tune, By light of sun or silver moon. Listen well, ol’ traveler worn, For rustling leaves and breeze forewarn. Should you scorn the woodland’s call, No branch or leaves shall break your fall.

What’s a western fantasy without some cryptids and creatures? I’ve been thinking about the magic in this world lately and dipping into American folklore, so I had a go at a scene that’d been nagging me for months now.

I'm still figuring out my workflow and other things, but this was a fun exercise! I don’t have much context for this scene (... not yet) but I definitely want to share some characters and sketches! 🥹

In the mean time, you can find more OC art here!

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Well, I think they're both delightful.

debbie downer and negative nancy inspired by [ this post ] from preheville. gave em a bit of lore cuz they're cute ^_^

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Dashing as always!

Sofia Valdez Sofia is a skilled Hunter who specializes in Marked Bounties. With a sharp aim and sharper instincts, she's been fighting monsters for most of her life. She's driven, fiercely protective, and always looking to turn in the next bounty that just might make the world safer. She doesn't flinch easy and her trust is harder to get than clean water... but once you have it, she's the one you want watching your back.

I've been rotating her in my brain lately!!��

Her playlist:

OC Masterlist

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Tigress Queen is getting a particularly juicy 12 page update soon. I haven't picked a day for general release but $3 patrons can read it all right now!

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Only the Order of Our Martyred Lady are required to have the white hair thing. It is said that during the Age of Apostasy, Alicia Dominca met with the God Emperor under the eyes of the Custodes. When she came out, her hair became white as snow, and she immediately slew the tyrant Goge Vandire and ended the Age of Apostasy.

But because the white hair and bobcut are so iconic, that's why you see only The Martyred Lady Sisters on covers, in videos, and other media. See also Sister Argenta from Rogue Trader. They just happen to be the Ultramarines of 40k in terms of representation.

Oh cool, thanks!

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"Grody" is one of those words whose correct spelling never looks right to me, for whatever reason.

Word of the Day: Grody

(adj) disgusting, very unpleasant.

Found myself in rather grody circumstances when the trash bag I was throwing in the dumpster burst open above my head.

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We believe in you, Tiff!

"The Closet (pt. 18-20 of 22)"

Still have your Sapphic-to-English dictionaries handy?

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Read the previous strips: PARTS 1-3 | PARTS 4-5 | PARTS 6-8 | PARTS 9-11 | PARTS 12-14 | PARTS 15-16 | PART 17

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all RIGHT:

Why You're Writing Medieval (and Medieval-Coded) Women Wrong: A RANT

(Or, For the Love of God, People, Stop Pretending Victorian Style Gender Roles Applied to All of History)

This is a problem I see alllll over the place - I'll be reading a medieval-coded book and the women will be told they aren't allowed to fight or learn or work, that they are only supposed to get married, keep house and have babies, &c &c.

If I point this out ppl will be like "yes but there was misogyny back then! women were treated terribly!" and OK. Stop right there.

By & large, what we as a culture think of as misogyny & patriarchy is the expression prevalent in Victorian times - not medieval. (And NO, this is not me blaming Victorians for their theme park version of "medieval history". This is me blaming 21st century people for being ignorant & refusing to do their homework).

Yes, there was misogyny in medieval times, but 1) in many ways it was actually markedly less severe than Victorian misogyny, tyvm - and 2) it was of a quite different type. (Disclaimer: I am speaking specifically of Frankish, Western European medieval women rather than those in other parts of the world. This applies to a lesser extent in Byzantium and I am still learning about women in the medieval Islamic world.)

So, here are the 2 vital things to remember about women when writing medieval or medieval-coded societies

FIRST. Where in Victorian times the primary axes of prejudice were gender and race - so that a male labourer had more rights than a female of the higher classes, and a middle class white man would be treated with more respect than an African or Indian dignitary - In medieval times, the primary axis of prejudice was, overwhelmingly, class. Thus, Frankish crusader knights arguably felt more solidarity with their Muslim opponents of knightly status, than they did their own peasants. Faith and age were also medieval axes of prejudice - children and young people were exploited ruthlessly, sent into war or marriage at 15 (boys) or 12 (girls). Gender was less important.

What this meant was that a medieval woman could expect - indeed demand - to be treated more or less the same way the men of her class were. Where no ancient legal obstacle existed, such as Salic law, a king's daughter could and did expect to rule, even after marriage.

Women of the knightly class could & did arm & fight - something that required a MASSIVE outlay of money, which was obviously at their discretion & disposal. See: Sichelgaita, Isabel de Conches, the unnamed women fighting in armour as knights during the Third Crusade, as recorded by Muslim chroniclers.

Tolkien's Eowyn is a great example of this medieval attitude to class trumping race: complaining that she's being told not to fight, she stresses her class: "I am of the house of Eorl & not a serving woman". She claims her rights, not as a woman, but as a member of the warrior class and the ruling family. Similarly in Renaissance Venice a doge protested the practice which saw 80% of noble women locked into convents for life: if these had been men they would have been "born to command & govern the world". Their class ought to have exempted them from discrimination on the basis of sex.

So, tip #1 for writing medieval women: remember that their class always outweighed their gender. They might be subordinate to the men within their own class, but not to those below.

SECOND. Whereas Victorians saw women's highest calling as marriage & children - the "angel in the house" ennobling & improving their men on a spiritual but rarely practical level - Medievals by contrast prized virginity/celibacy above marriage, seeing it as a way for women to transcend their sex. Often as nuns, saints, mystics; sometimes as warriors, queens, & ladies; always as businesswomen & merchants, women could & did forge their own paths in life

When Elizabeth I claimed to have "the heart & stomach of a king" & adopted the persona of the virgin queen, this was the norm she appealed to. Women could do things; they just had to prove they were Not Like Other Girls. By Elizabeth's time things were already changing: it was the Reformation that switched the ideal to marriage, & the Enlightenment that divorced femininity from reason, aggression & public life.

For more on this topic, read Katherine Hager's article "Endowed With Manly Courage: Medieval Perceptions of Women in Combat" on women who transcended gender to occupy a liminal space as warrior/virgin/saint.

So, tip #2: remember that for medieval women, wife and mother wasn't the ideal, virgin saint was the ideal. By proving yourself "not like other girls" you could gain significant autonomy & freedom.

Finally a bonus tip: if writing about medieval women, be sure to read writing on women's issues from the time so as to understand the terms in which these women spoke about & defended their ambitions. Start with Christine de Pisan.

I learned all this doing the reading for WATCHERS OF OUTREMER, my series of historical fantasy novels set in the medieval crusader states, which were dominated by strong medieval women! Book 5, THE HOUSE OF MOURNING (forthcoming 2023) will focus, to a greater extent than any other novel I've ever yet read or written, on the experience of women during the crusades - as warriors, captives, and political leaders. I can't wait to share it with you all!

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So are the platinum bobs a regulation cut for certain orders, then? I'd always thought the white-haired gal I was seeing in the art was a specific character.

Sisters Of Battle

by Daniel Batista

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“The judge’s order makes it clear that we cannot judge a book by its cover or a maliciously selected excerpt out of context,” said Stephana Ferrell of the Florida Freedom to Read Project. “This means that the thousands of books that have been prohibited from student access without careful consideration of their value should be returned to shelves immediately. Florida cannot call itself the “freest state” while it blatantly violates the First Amendment rights of our youngest citizens.” Dan Novak, attorney for the plaintiffs, called the decision “a complete knockout. There’s not a single issue that the court did not side with the plaintiffs on,” per the Orlando Sentinel.

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Having a comment on tiktok saying "you get a like, and i get free art for my campaign" as if it's equivalent and as if one of the pieces doesn't LITERALLY SAY "Commissioned piece, do not use/repost"… 💀

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Just a heads up, the YouTube video with the Sister and Dreadnought is using AI art for the thumbnail. It's pretty clear when you zoom in on the Dreadnought and the Sister's armor. That entire channel's thumbnails are all AI gen.

Crud. Thanks for the head's up. I'll look into it.

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Delightful design!