#dungeon master diary

[elisabethbgrace]

i'm watching the apothecary diaries and (spoilers ahead) the episode with the shrine of choosing? the whole red-green colorblind solution? It would be a perfect dungeon labyrinth puzzle -

You set your players up so they know the legend, an ancient mythic ruler created a labyrinth so that only those of their bloodline can pass through.

This ancient ruler was known to have poor eyesight, but could see clear as day during the night. On a high enough intelligence check, you can let a pc recall that this can happen when people are red-green colorblind, a hereditary trait.

After that, you set it up just as they do in the show, with solutions that make no sense to someone who's not colorblind, (e.g., "Do not go through the red door", with the options being red, green, and blue. To someone with CVD, they can only be certain that the blue door is not red).

It's simple enough that with the right clues, they could figure it out on their own. But it's also able to be brute-forced if need be. A perfect puzzle.

[characterdevelopmentobsessed]

Winter 2025 Anime That I’m Watching

There are WAY too many on this list so I know I’m going to need to drop some 😂. It’s a funny lineup this season where there are a few I’m super psyched about and then a bunch of mediocre shows that all seem oddly similar 🤔

Bogus Skill <<Fruitmaster>> ~About that time I became able to eat unlimited numbers of Skill Fruits (that kill you)~

Even Given the Worthless "Appraiser" Class, I'm Actually the Strongest

Honey Lemon Soda

I’m a Noble on the Brink of Ruin, So I Might as Well Try Mastering Magic

I Left My A-Rank Party to Help My Former Students Reach the Dungeon Depths!

I May Be a Guild Receptionist, but I’ll Solo Any Boss to Clock Out on Time

Link Click: Bridon Arc

My Happy Marriage

Possibly the Greatest Alchemist of All Time

Promise of Wizard

Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- Season 3 Part 2

Sakamoto Days

Solo Leveling Season 2 -Arise from the Shadow-

Tasokare Hotel

The Apothecary Diaries Season 2

Toilet-bound Hanako-kun Season 2

ZENSHU

[voiced-and-animated-by]

Today's GENDER is voiced by Xander Mobus and animated by OLM Inc

(Specifically in Smash Bros Ultimate and the Wii U/3DS versions)

-

-

Being an American today is making me feel very...creature

[nene-san49]

Fri-Saturday Anime Line Up

It has been a productive Spring Vacation so far! We got the whole dining room done except for my desk and figure shelves AND half the back porch which is a really big job! I am exhausted but it is a good exhausted. 😁

Squeee another character voiced by Sakurai-san! *ahem* My bad. Anyway, also went out to lunch with my Sis in law as I mentioned in another post, got treated too which was a surprise. We went thrifting after too and even though I was a bust, my daughter landed three binder like sports bras and a pair of basketball shorts for less that $40 for everything!🤯

Then since I was treated to lunch, I treated frozen coffee from Ready Coffee which is 10 times better than Dunkin crap as well as a better price. Now relaxing after I turned a $12 chuck roast into steaks for everyone with curry rice, spinach, and sautéed onions and mushrooms...I watch my last anime while eating too, it is time for my anime watch list for the day!😋

Kusuriya no Hitorigoto 2nd Season

Technically I watch this on Friday, but I don't have another anime that day so I'm popping it in here. Speaking of popping...Jinshi is popping off with Maomao a lot more. He is super excited that she needs him and just beams when she has to ask him for help. In the end though, he just wants her to wear the hair pin he gave her in S1.🤭

Since the Precious Concubine is my best girl I am worried about her right now but with Maomao bringing in her personal GOAT I feel so much better.😌

Anne Shirley

Falsehoods, friends, and school...well maybe no school were crammed into this 23 min ep and I was shocked that is flowed so well! We all knew that Anne was not guilty and I was waiting to see how that was going to unfold. Then she finally made friends and established herself as intelligent only to have an upstart possibly ruin it for her...well Anne is a bit of a drama llama but we get you Anne and it is frustrating.😫

Katainaka no Ossan, Kensei ni Naru

I'll be honest I was doing several things at once while watching this ep so I know I missed a lot, but for the most part it was the background of another one of Beryl's students that became semi famous becasue of his teachings. I at least remembered it was the busty red head.😆

Kowloon Generic Romance

After today this made the 3 ep cut cause I laughed so hard at this ep! Between sanitizing eyes, forked tongue, same room but two different personalities, and wait...he kissed her but he has him? Yeah this one is in like Flynn.😲

Oh and can I just say how much Sugita-san's voice gives me chills when he speaks cause he can be a fool one second and seductive the next! I feel for Reiko so much.😳

Black Butler: Emerald Witch Arc

As A reader of this manga I know things...yeah I did that, but no I do and I forgot that part of what I know, and the others that read too, showed up in today's ep but seeing it animated made it so much more real than it is at the volume 33!🧐

A-Rank Party wo Ridatsu shita Ore wa, Moto Oshiego-tachi to Meikyuu Shinbu wo Mezasu

Why are creepy dudes even creepier in fantasy anime when they think that they can tell women what to do when clearly the only way they would get a women in if they paid for them and even then I would put a bag over this man's face.😒

Hibi wa Sugiredo Meshi Umashi

I mean its a food anime so it makes the cut but the first ep I wasn't sure if there would be food. Fortunately the second ep the food was established so I have my dinner anime on Sat now.😄

So that's it for me and man that is enough! Well I am still short from last season on Thursday but there is still one that could make the cut but it needs a push over the 3 ep cause I am still on the fence. Anyway, I'm done for today! Oyasuminasai mina! Mata ne!😘

[wizards4for20]

If I don’t live to see tomorrow, it’s because my dnd players know where I sleep

[notsurewhattonamethisbuthere]

First time DMing

It’s 2:10 am and I finished my notes for the game tomorrow

Idk man I just wanna play pretend

[fairylights-throughthemist]

Recommended fics (still updating <3)

basically just me tracking what i’ve read and what i loved

Eddie Munson

by @elegantpaperoperatormaker

Fucking Bitch

Eddie and his unintentional boners

Eddie is a stage 5 clinger

Are You Now or Have You Ever Been

Glitter Girl

Whatever You Want

That’s Just My Babydaddy

by @keeryhours

this fic

do you wanna come over?

obey your (dungeon) master

Pussydrunk Eddie

by @wheels-of-despair

Evil Woman, Don’t You Play Your Games With Me

The Proposal

Knock

Moment of Truth

Insatiable

by @eddiesghxst

Are You Bored Yet?

this fic

by @roanniom

On the Line

Compliments

by @georgeweasleyslostearhq

HC’s

ALIBI

by @lovebugism

Eddie x Cheerleader!Reader

”I was expecting a written apology but this is so much better.”

this fic

this fic

by @munsonsmixtapes

Rockstar!Eddie x Reader

Billy still doesn’t know

by @oneforthemunny

hold my heart and watch it burn

Boxer!Eddie x Reader

by @creeksandsocks

Boyfriend Eddie HC’s

Splash

by @punkrockmlchael

Alcohol, Beer and Pool

Enemies with Benefits

Caught by @ashwhowrites

crazy-mad for you by @bangaveragewhitewine

hot n’ heavy by @chelseeebe

Say Anything by @earthlyangelbby

Happy Birthday by @eddiesvixen

asking dealer!Eddie to take your virginity by @electrosuite

the hat rule. by @ghost-proofbaby

snoop by @heart-eyed-love

Tender Lover by @i-hate-people-1

Sugar by @losingmygrasponreality

captured moments by @loveletterlore

Modern!Eddie by @munscavi

ice cold by @munsonify

tickle by @mylliy

“Do The Things You Said You’d Do To Me” by @scarlet-bitch

Possessive!Eddie x Reader by @scoopsahoy

Jerk Off by @spookyscarydemonbabe

All revved up and ready to go by @strangerstilinski

Tangled by @taintandviolent

mean mouth by @urhoneycombwitch

Full of Surprises by @vampireimiko

brothers best friend!Eddie reading your diary while he's balls deep inside of you. by @whoahoney

(i had to divide these into writers because i can’t tag more than 50 people 🥹)

[0hmanit]

There is a post in r/dwarffortress I always think about from time to time, it shows a maze the poster made for a minotaur they caught. It's a neat project for your fortress, you can use it as a dungeon to throw any prisoners into it and watch them struggle to navigate until their inevitable demise, pretty fun stuff. The post also shows the Minotaur's attributes and skills, and she is described as a Grand Master Observer (which in Dwarf Fortress all Minotaurs are) and also "good with language" traits which often Scholars have. A comment suggested as a joke making some office space for her and supplying her with writing materials. Minotaurs can't write (not that I've checked myself), but the concept alone is hilarious can you imagine? being a fearsome minotaur, and going by your day smashing people's skulls and stuff and then writing in your little diary about it? or writing about your existence serving the sole purpose of killing people the little bearded men throw down there simply for entertainment, you know just a cow-girl doing cow-girl things. I swear Dwarf Fortress produces top-quality writing material sometimes

[bunkoos-mole-enthusiast]

Weekly Jungkook Fanfic Recs

Some fine JK fics for your reading pleasure. 🔞 Please show your appreciation to all the wonderful authors :)

Over The Odds: Billionaire CEO Jungkook makes you an offer you’d be a fool to refuse.  https://jungk0oksthighs.tumblr.com/post/682441385035644928/over-the-odds-collection-completed-ceojungkook

Dungeons & Dick: Your DnD group meets weekly and this time your DM, who also happens to be your boyfriend, plans on killing one of your party members until you thwart his plan leaving him pissed off and embarrassed. But Jungkook is not so secret about how much it turns him on when all the others have left.  https://jungkookiebus.tumblr.com/post/190268088251/dungeons-and-dick-jjk

Just Friends: The transition from best friends to best friends with benefits is never easy, especially when there’s a daddy kink involved. https://kinktae.tumblr.com/post/172263702969/just-friends-m

Bitchin': The 80s were a time of choices. Which perm was right for you? What color neon would you wear next? None of these choices, however, were more questionable than a certain deal you made with Jeon Jungkook. https://kinktae.tumblr.com/post/185646704844/bitchin-m Blackjack: Bangtan is one of the most vicious mafia on the West Coast, only six members are known by name though, with a mysterious seventh member dubbed as "The Shadow". You become indebted to the worst of the worst - how to get out? https://kpopfanfictrash.tumblr.com/post/165138875526/blackjack-master-list Ember Burning: The dragon riders of Duret Ghal are known across the continent: fierce warrors who take to the skies on their winged beasts led by their king Jungkook. You are the last dragon queen of Ashya, ruler of a dying species able to transform from human to dragon. When a foe emerges threatening both kingdoms, you find yourself forced to broker a peace with your former enemy. https://kpopfanfictrash.tumblr.com/post/643137431841947648/ember-burning-m A Holiday Snowdown: The Inn On The Hill is in trouble, you need money and you need it fast. Namjoon proposes a weeklong social media blitz with celebrity guest Jeon Jungkook: two-time Olympic gold medalist, world-class snowboarder and the nation's sweetheart. You happen to have met Jungkook before and sincerely hoped you'd never see him again. https://kpopfanfictrash.tumblr.com/post/671401371365507072/a-holiday-snowdown-m Paralian: A very loose retelling of The Little Mermaid. Pirate x Merfolk au. https://kpopfanfictrash.tumblr.com/post/186345871706/paralian The Monogamy Diaries: Namjoon is getting married and somewhere between the laughter and drinks, everyone has the same realization: Jungkook has never been in a serious relationship. In the name of all that is holy it is decided to find Jeon Jungkook a girlfriend. https://kpopfanfictrash.tumblr.com/post/190709693371/the-monogamy-monologues Love To Hate: Your mother ropes you into a blind date with playboy billionaire Jeon Jungkook. He stands for everything you loathe about the world you left behind, but you can't deny the spark of attraction between you. Intrigued by the promise of mutual satisfaction, you agree to one night in bed… and quickly realize you're in far, far deeper than you ever intended. https://kpopfanfictrash.tumblr.com/post/661587797603401728/love-to-hate-master-list

[laurmaupilled]

Hello this will probably be super niche but i have thought about this a lot so i now present an au i am calling

Dungerons and Diaries

and this is my first, possibly only post for it, so i give you...

Diaries characters if they were in Dungeons and Dragons

starting with:

Aphmau

› lvl 3 / protector aasimar / light domain cleric

› time-lost traveler background

› to preface: aphmau will be the lowest level character in this post, but in an actual story, it would not stay that way for long. her aasimar-ness comes from something very similar, if not identical, to actual MCD – or if you want a DnD comparison, something similar to midnight and mystra. she's not irene's direct reincarnation, but someone created to carry on irene's legacy (in this case, irene is part of a pantheon of gods that i will eventually get around to working on). like i said, it's basically the same case as in Diaries.

› i chose her time-lost traveler background for a few reasons. while there are some others that may work in this case, in this AU aphmau, although created or "born" in the story's modern day, has a mind that is – sort of – from the past. carrying irene's essence, she also carries parts of her memory, and suffers from intense & frequent flashbacks of a life she never really lived, hundreds of years ago. she struggles to understand the world she's in & the modern problems it faces and may even know & reflexively follow older customs and social standards.

› finally, although she is a cleric, aphmau's powers don't come from actual worship, but from the inherent divinity present inside her. she functionally is a divine power nepo baby.

Laurance

› lvl "10" / human / battle master fighter (8) + pact of the shadow cabal warlock (2) /

› knight of the order background

› laurance's... well, everything is pretty self-explanatory. being a knight of the order really just means he trained at a school to be a guard & is now a part of an association of guards/knights. most guards in the world would have this background. notably, laurance is the only human in an adoptive family of elves, which is a fact he's had to reconcile with many times in his life, as they will live much, much longer than he will.

› although the level 10 may make him look higher level, laurance would be level 7 at his introduction, with his levels from warlock coming in only after his time in the nether. for most of season 1, levels would be put into his fighter class, not warlock. i chose pact of the shadow cabal because it's easily the closest fit to the shadow knight organization, with the warlock's patron being a group or council seeking power rather than one being. in this case, it would of course be the shadow knights, who torture laurance into making a pact. a life of serving the shadow lord in exchange for powers of his own, (eventual) eternal life, and (relative) peace from their torment.

Garroth

› lvl 8 / high elf / oath of the crown paladin, protection fighting style

› noble background

› despite the name, oath of the crown paladins are dedicated not necessarily to royalty or a kingdom, but to society, civilization, and upholding the law. of course, in this particular scenario, the society garroth is sworn to protect and uphold is phoenix drop. i chose protection style fighting for him, because, well. he's a guard. he protects.

› though i still think multiple backgrounds could fit garroth, i ultimately settled on noble. although he is a guard, and has clearly been removed from his noble upbringing for some time, my thought is that isn't the sort of upbringing you just shake off or forget about. he would still carry ideals, skills, and possibly connections from his past.

› in this au, garroth doesn't flee o'khasis to avoid an arranged marriage, but to escape the corruption running unchecked in his family and in the city. it was when he reached phoenix drop and swore himself to the village and the lord there that he took his oath as paladin, vowing to protect his villagers from corruption and harm. of course, in his mind, he has failed at this goal several times, but has still never given up.

Dante

› lvl 5 / human / wayfinder ranger

› haunted one background

› this one may surprise people a bit, with the ranger aspect. partially i was just trying to avoid making a bunch of fighters, but also i felt ranger fit him better, considering the way he's introduced – previously wandering aimlessly, searching for someone to protect, then saving donna when they're captured and leading her to safety... it all feels very ranger-y to me. wayfinder rangers in particular specialize in guiding others through dangerous wilderness, which i thought was a more interesting interpretation than dante just being a guard looking for a random village/lord to protect.

› the haunted one background might be a bit more self-explanatory. dante is haunted by the loss of his family, the loss of his brother, the loss of his village, and the fact his brother decided to leave only his memory intact. imo this background fits dante perfectly. one of the suggested "harrowing events" for this background almost even describes dante – "a monster that slaughtered dozens of innocent people spared your life, and you don’t know why."

› lastly, i put dante at a lower level because he's newly graduated from guard school in the series, and is almost certainly nowhere near on par with someone like garroth or laurance (although, the two of them being next in line for the jury of nine probably means that few people are). still, they both talk to him sometimes like he's a kid, so it's not a leap to assume he's younger, and it's just fact that he's less experienced.

Katelyn

› lvl 10 / half-elf / spellsword swordmage

› athlete background

› for katelyn i decided on swordmage, again because i was trying to avoid a bunch of fighters, but also because there's definitely a magical aspect to the jury of nine, and i thought it would be interesting if i had katelyn especially lean into that and make it part of her fighting style. she primarily uses spells to enhance her weapon attacks, to make getting close for weapon attacks easier, or to make herself harder to attack. this means she is almost never using a spell as an outright attack – although she does love a good fireball. she also has a "bond" with her gauntlets, so to speak, and is extremely attached to them.

› athlete background is pretty self-explanatory, i think

› frankly, it's tough to figure out more details for her until i decide how things like the jury of nine would work in this au, so for now i'll leave her alone, but if there's more interest i can expand later when i work on the details a bit more

Aaron

› lvl 7 / human / order of the lycan blood hunter

› faceless background

› i chose a lycan blood hunter for aaron for a couple reasons. the lycan part, i suppose, is obvious – he is a werewolf in mystreet, he's introduced hunting werewolves, a lycanthrope hunting lycanthropes is thematic, i guess. another aspect was the 'becoming the evil to fight the evil' thing, which i think is very fitting of aaron, the whole trying not to lose yourself to the darkness while battling it. i honestly dont like aaron very much and dont find him very interesting but i didnt want to just cast him aside, i wanted to make him interesting to me. and i think an aaron who lost his family and is now going to VERY extreme lengths – extreme lengths like becoming a blood hunter and taking on the curse of being a werewolf – to track zane down is just infinitely more interesting to me than the bland edgelord we got (sorry, aaron fans).

› on that note : in this world, aaron of course did still lose his village and family to zane (although even that i would change, because the way zane wiped out falconclaw seems really weird and convoluted to me?), and the idea of vengeance consumed his entire life. undergoing a ritual forbidden in much of the world to become a blood hunter and a lycanthrope, briefly part of an underground blood hunter order before going rogue, aaron spends each and every day tracking zane, stalking him, waiting for his opening to strike. almost every waking moment dedicated to thoughts of getting his revenge, overtly aggressive and violent at times, aaron definitely teeters the edge between fighting the monsters and becoming them.

› the faceless background is pretty spot on for his character in diaries, honestly. after he lost his family, he simply ditched his past identity – wanting to separate from his past, not wanting to be recognized. he has no persona, he is simply nameless, identityless. to him, everyone who needed or deserved to know who he was, is gone.

Travis

› lvl 7 / tiefling / hellfire sorcerer

› legendary lineage background

› travis hails from a very small village deep in the mountains of gal'ruk. on his mother's side he comes from a very long line of revered warriors who hunt devils, and, in his grandmother's case, make deals with them to cure their sick daughter. in exchange for the good health of travis' mother, a powerful devil 'infected' their bloodline, for lack of a better word, and travis was born a tiefling – despite being the product of two perfectly normal humans, he inherited both a fiendish appearance and fiendish powers from the devil. his mother dedicated the rest of her life to hunting the devil, and travis was mostly raised by his grandmother, the only villager who wasn't scared of him or just plain nasty toward him.

› despite being shunned by his village his whole life, travis was the one who took up the mantle protecting it when his mother lost her fight against the devil after hunting him for many years. his grandmother was the one who helped him master his powers, and although he was eventually cast out of his village, he continues to guard the surrounding areas and fight off dangers before they can reach the people.

› although friendly, travis is hesitant to trust people for several reasons. after a lifetime of mistreatment by people for his appearance and powers, both things out of his control, he generally expects to be distrusted and thus inherently distrusts others in return. besides that, he was taught by every relative who was willing to speak to him (not many) that devils are tricksters and liars by nature, and will cheat anyone to get what they want, meaning travis is also constantly on the lookout for that. of course, most of his family also considered him a devil, so... if he picked up a bit of a manipulative streak, who's surprised? (although my version would never use it for something as creepy as we see in his diaries intro).

and that's it for this post, which ended up being super... super long to be honest. quite a few people seemed interested though! so if any of you read this all the way through and want more i would loooove love to make another post. the characters in this post i consider the "main group" of diaries, but i also have character ideas for like, nana, lucinda, Zane, nicole, zoey, etc... i would also make a post about what spells/weapons/attacks everyone has or go more into detail about their classes and things like that if anyone would be interested :)

[sulphuricgrin]

WIP Wednesday

tagged by @skyrim-forever @captain-of-silvenar and @theoneandonlysemla thank you!

no pressure tagging: @hircines-hunter @firefly-factory @dirty-bosmer @saltymaplesyrup @pocket-vvardvark @madam-whim @moriche @sunlightpassingthroughthewater

@scholarlyhermit @illumiera @yansurnummu @truth-01001001-liar @silly-little-diary @pinessydr @oblivions-dawn @yewphoric @lobo-inu @zuutiomi @moogaiashe @gamevoidartblog

--

So I took what we've got of Apocrypha (in ESO and Skyrim) and the Ciphers Midden (in ESO) and made it weirder? Because Oblivion should be weirder. Also touching on the culture among the Ciphers. Fun fact: did you know Miraak's highest stat in Skyrim is Speech? 👀

As always, if you see a mistake, no you didn't. ;v;

--

The Ciphers Midden is a settlement only in the loosest sense ― a precarious mass of architecture and obsession, rising in defiance of both gravity and reason. Built upon itself over uncounted centuries, millennia, the Midden is a layered sprawl of leaning buildings, swaying bridges, stilted walkways and chambers made from warped stone, blackened timber, and entire walls of ink-slicked tomes. Born from the first scholars who swore fealty to Hermaeus Mora, every addition is constructed atop the bones of the last, a patchwork of necessity shaped by the growing ranks of mortal ciphers. 

Apocrypha itself is alive in a way that defies Nirn’s natural order. The realm sometimes shudders and sighs, like some vast, sleeping leviathan dreaming beneath its own surface. There is a rhythm to it ― but not one that can be charted or predicted. The terrain groans and slides, shifting with no warning or pattern, following only the whims of its master. Bookshelves rearrange themselves. Dungeons surface for days, then vanish into the fog. Whole wings of the Midden might even vanish for a century and then return unchanged, as though time had simply forgotten them. 

And yet, the Midden endures. 

Somehow, through all of this chaos, the pseudo-capital survives. Not untouched ― but adaptive. The ciphers learn to live with the realm’s moods. They tie their bridges loosely to allow for movement, do not keep sentimentality to libraries that might disappear, and leave sigils to guide them when the land reorders itself overnight. What looks like madness is in fact resilience ― an evolving architecture of obsession and reverence, shaped by mortals who have accepted that certainty is not a luxury Apocrypha offers. 

To walk the Midden is to feel the weight of eras pressing in from all sides, to hear whispered secrets humming in the wall, and to know that you are a guest in a realm that thinks ― and watches. It is a place built not by masons, but by scholars too deep in Mora’s service to remember the difference between structure and scripture. 

The floor creaks beneath Miraak’s boots, though whether it was wood, paper, or something in between was impossible to say. It shifts ever so slightly as he walks, like the Midden was breathing again ― exhaling a long, low sigh that stirs the edges of nearby scrolls. Above, distant walkways crisscross like veins, some sagging with age while others were newly hammered into place, fresh ink still drying on their signs. Far below, through a gap in the floorboards, the glimmer of older fires and deeper whispers remind him what waited beneath: the sunken level, where half-mad ciphers, so close to becoming Hushed, mutter to themselves in libraries that threaten to collapse in on their own knowledge. 

He passes beneath an arched platform of blackstone where two ciphers converse in murmurs. One notices him. The conversation breaks. No words exchanged, just a glance as Miraak moves on. They were smart to keep their words to themselves. 

Ciphers came and went like tides ― fresh minds plucked from Nirn and dropped into the Great Eye’s library. They came expecting clarity, or freedom, or enlightenment. They learned quickly ― besides the one that watches, there were no masters in Apocrypha. No laws. No kings. No coin, not really. 

Even Miraak, who had once killed dragons, was no exception. 

In Apocrypha, you had freedom to study what you wanted, but were also free to starve, to become corrupted. In Apocrypha, secrets were the only wealth. And everyone was both merchant and thief. 

Some secrets were traded openly ― bits of myth, pages of lost prophecy, names of forgotten rulers. Others were bartered behind ink-stained curtains: the bloodlines of powerful mages, the passwords or keys to sealed ruins, the hidden shame of rival scholars. Exclusivity defined value. Power determined cost. The stranger the secret, the more it was worth. 

A new cipher, fresh from the mortal world and still blinking in awe at the horizonless stacks, might earn food or protection by swearing to share future discoveries. A more seasoned one might buy labor with a whispered scandal from a Jarl’s court or a piece of a spell once hidden. Some trafficked only in obscure things ― relic blueprints, daedric phonemes, ancient lover letters. Others amassed knowledge with ruthless specificity, curating lifetimes of research on just one topic. 

Miraak, of course, had plenty to offer, but gave sparingly. Secrets could not be spent twice. And trust was thinner here than paper left in the rain. 

To most ciphers, Miraak was a myth made inconveniently real. They whispered of his age and occasional temper, the way he sometimes bartered like a scholar and other times like a tyrant. Still even he couldn’t cut lines through Apocrypha’s culture. 

Authority was transactional ― measured in secrets traded, promises banked, leverage carefully kept or burned. True, Miraak had the thu’um and could bend another’s will, but so very long ago he learned there was a limit. A limit on the mortal mind and how much it could handle being turned inside out. The shout he learned from Hermaeus Mora had…unintended consequences. Not to Miraak, not directly. Because the shout worked much like normal spells, it did eventually wear off. So naturally he had been liberal in its usage, keeping some new ciphers in Apocrypha under his constant control. But then came the problems ― it eventually would make their minds like books riddled with book mites. It made them slower in their work, forgetful. 

They never had to worry about Apocrypha corrupting their minds, for he was doing it for them. And in doing so, he was burning through usable hands, losing access to the potential of some coveted sliver of knowledge that might be uncovered by some poor scholar. 

So he was forced to change tactics early. He could not force his way, instead fell into the use of a silvertongue and patience. He would start with small favours, asking for the retrieval of books in exchange for gold. A translation and in return help the cipher with their own ambitions. The more they worked with him, the easier to trap them into plots, to blackmail them, to make it harder for them to say no. Though on occasion he could make loyal ciphers, they would eventually succumb to time, or to Apocrypha, or worse still, to him. 

Another option was using the title of Champion or First Servant, but he did so sparingly, knowing where it would hold weight. Even rarer to share that he was Dragonborn, for that secret was worth more than a dragon’s weight in gold and hid what he could do. A wound to the pride to hide it, but in time, Nirn would remember the first Dragonborn. 

He has patience. 

[nene-san49]

Saturday Anime Line Up

I was watching my last anime before posting and a fucking spider showed up on my shoulder, crawled through my hair and went on my chair. I have arachnophobia and I screamed for my kids and froze in the middle of t he room and could not move. Ugh, it was so terrible! I was snotting like a five year old and crying and my son's boyfriend had to comfort me while he killed the spider and got it out the room. 😭

Okay i've calmed down now so let's get to the list...that's a lie i keep looking over my shoulder like a dead spider is gonna come back and get revenge on me.😖

Nazotoki wa Dinner no Ato de

So it took a few more episodes but i am all in on this one now. I forgot how amusing Miyano-san is when he plays a fully dialed up character. i think the last one was from Zombieland Saga. It's been a while since i laughed like that.😄

Anne Shirley

So Anne of Green Gables was written in 1908 and Polly Anna was written in 1913. I can't help but to compare the two heroines since they have similar outlooks on life. Considering the time frames neither author probably knew of each other especially since one was in Canada and the other in the North East. Plus Polly Anna's author passed in 1920 so she was much older when published. Its just kind of fascinating though don't ya think?🤓

Katainaka no Ossan, Kensei ni Naru

I don't know why people think this is a harem anime. Like yeah the Allucia and Surena are into him but the others just revere him like a father figure. He also clearly has no interest in anyone and Beryl is too busy giving life lessons any way to think of romance. Also what a surprise, the church sucks.🙄

Kowloon Generic Romance

Well now. That was interesting. I honestly thought the women in the film was Yomae and she got plastic surgery to look different so she didn't get recognized but it was a whole other reason! I also prefer the fake version of my birthstone, rose quartz, to the real one, opal, because I always thought it shone more.🤔

If you missed it go back and watch after the ED cause holy shit did we get some info and background story that I am still trying to process! Also Kujou B is really nothing like Reiko at all other than slight resemblance. You can tell especially in their personalities and when they smile so why the confusion. They really only share a name.😶

Kuroshitsuji: Midori no Majo-hen

I love when Sebastian does Sebastian things! Also we got that ceiling scene from the manga and mirror!Ciel as it were. There is so much spoiler in that moment if you know what to look for. Oh and seeing the knight piece also reminded me of this figure that i have!🥰

A-Rank Party wo Ridatsu shita Ore wa, Moto Oshiego-tachi to Meikyuu Shinbu wo Mezasu

I was soooo confused in the beginning of the episode cause I don't remember anything happening to Yuki last ep. I even went back to check if I missed after the credits stuff. It was just a weird way to start the ep honestly.😵

I do have to give a big W to the prince though. I thought he was a piece of shit but he kept his promise to Raine and let her go and punished the count for lying to him. That was some simple but tasty revenge.😌

Hibi wa Sugiredo Meshi Umashi

I have a question as to how that pork was cooked for the sandwiches cause it was a little too pink for my taste but that Slovaki recipe? You can bet i'm gonna try that one for sure!😋

Okay so after all that excitement I need to go watch something else. Maybe some reaction vids will calm me down. Anyway haz a good one and hope it's spider free. Mata ne!😣

[meangirls-imagines]

Welcome to the Poly!Plasticsverse!

collab with: @yungpoetfics (my fav bubs in the world)

Regina George

@queenbgina/@callmereginald (she/her)

North Shore's Queen Bee

Soft for her girlfriends

The mom of the group

Basically a sugar mommy for her girls

Lifehack Geek

TikTok hater

Has rational fear of werewolves

Will fight a bitch

Victoria's Secret girly

Female rapper stan (Doja, Cardi, Megan, etc.)

Gryffindor

Lesbian

Gretchen Wieners

@thegretchenw/@greatgretsby (she/her/it (only if ur special))

The second mom of the group

Softest human

Loves playing with her girlfriends hair

#1 Twilight hater

Has a letterboxd account just to leave bad reviews

The level headed one usually, but will snap when she needs

Cuddly as fuck

Loves Fleur du Mal lingerie

Stubborn as Fuck

Wine drinker/expert

Loves vintage music (Elvis, Elton John, etc.)

Hufflepuff

Bisexual

Karen Shetty

@karebearz/@karensheetty (any pronouns)

Ambidextrous™️

Loves Spongebob

Plant Parent

Knows Britney Spears and Lady Gaga choreo

Kpop girly (Blackpink, BTS, etc.)

Lettering expert

Has Funko Pop collection

Squishmallow lover

Ravenclaw

Pansexual

Cady Heron

@cady_heron/@defnotcaddy (she/her)

The third mom of the group

Whispers when angry

Carries bandaids at all times

Always has snacks

Lactose Intolerant (but LOVES cheese)

Cries at Rom-Coms

LOVES hugs

Cannot handle spicy food

Sleeps with a teddy bear

Happy to be here

Friends with everyone's parents

Token vanilla of the group

Has diary (with a heart shaped lock)

Bisexual

Aaron Samuels

@aaronsammy/@atomicaaron (he/him) or (ho/mie)

1/3 of Terror Trio

Y/N's best friend

North Shore's resident Himbo

Will do anything if someone says "I dare you"

Impulsive buyer

Has one brain cell (shares it with Y/N)

Overuses 💪 emoji

Usually confused

1/2 Golden Retriever duo

Can skateboard

Uses Axe body spray

Co-founder of Stuntmares

Dreams of grabbing a teddy in a claw machine (bucket list item)

Ass man

Owns too many grey sweatpants

Kisses his homies (homiesexual)

Has never watched Harry Potter

Watches lifestyle coaches on YT

Can play the ukulele (really badly)

Loves Eminem and Harry Styles (would fuck Harry Styles)

Writes Larry Stylinson fanfics

Kissed Y/N once (regretted immediately)

Bisexual

Damian Hubbard

@hubbarddamian/@damianishubby (he/him/they)

Learned how to sew from Janis

Does drag and has a YT channel (Anita Dick)

Huge Adore Delano stan

Will fight anyone who hurts Janis

Doesn't like Rupaul as a person, but is a religious Drag Race fan

#1 Poly!Plastics fan

Has an 8 step skincare routine

Cameraman for Stuntmares

Earlybird

Lies about having curfew to go to sleep early

Ravenclaw

(Lowkey wishes he was a Slytherin bc it's the "cuntiest house"

Him and Karen watch The Bachelor

Fav movie is Dirty Dancing (did the lift with Janis)

Learned how to twerk from Y/N

Gay

Janis Imi'Ike

@janiisimiike/@imiikenough (she/they)

Secret Barbie girly(live action and animated movies)

Will go straight for Ryan Gosling

Feral chihuahua of the group

Hozier stan

HATES THE KARDASHIANS

Pain in Regina's ass

Anger Issues™️

Secretly loves Olivia Rodrigo

Mentally Ill friend

Emotional Drunk

Karaoke Queen

Tits girly

Leather Jacket lesbian

Getting piercings > therapy

Has a suit collection

Thrifter

Loves her friends

Dog person (secretly)

Quotes niche memes

Kinky af

Middle Child

Lesbian

Y/N Y/L/N (FC: Chrissy Costanza)

@thisbeyn/@reginaslefttit (she/he/they/it)

2/3 Terror Trio

2/2 Golden Retriever duo

Has matching fried egg tattoo with Aaron.

Co-Founder of Stuntmares

"Hi, I'm Y/N and welcome to Stuntmares" *jumps off roof into pool*

Cuts her own hair

Blooper Reel Queen

North Shore's resident stoner

AUDHD (autistic + ADHD)

Playlists range from Beethoven to ashnikko

"IT'S NOT A PHASE. IT'S A LIFESTYLE."

Demisexual

Plays electric guitar

Has slight speech impediment

Gremlin of the group

D&D Dungeon Master

ALWAYS falls asleep during movie night

Power Nap Addict™️

Insomniac

Monster Energy Drink Enthusiast (collects the cans)

Oddly good at Origami

Tweets everything she thinks

Has been banned from Fortnite and Roblox

Married to Gretchen on The Sims (regina and karen were sad)

Anger issues

✨Spicy✨ Latina (do not fuck with her people)

Matching rings with her gfs

Def had one night stand with Cady

Shane Oman

@shaneomann/@omantastic (he/him) or (dumb/hoe)

Loves Old School Rap (Biggie, Tupac, Snoop Dogg, etc.)

Hates Y/N at first but comes to love her like a sister.

Only person who can outsmoke Y/N.

Has a dropped truck with red LED lights under it.

Blasts music walking down the halls.

Always has the zoomies.

Orange cat friend.

Has elevator music playing in his head 24/7.

Challenged Damian to a dance off. (He lost. But he had girls simping over him)

Posts thirst traps on TikTok. (Regina's mom is his #1 follower)

Has a frying pan tattooed to match Aaron and Y/N.

Always on Stuntmares trying to create new world records.

Or eating a bunch of weird combos.

"Oman! Not again!" *proceeds to eat a marshmallow and spam sandwich*

Ralph Lauren man

Whenever the polycule argues, he's a "fuck this shit, I'm out" person.

Professional party crasher

Dine and Dash expert

Has nipple piercings (Aaron and Y/N dared him to get them)

Curses like a fucking sailor (Half of his lines on Stuntmares are just censor beeps)

Talks way too fast.

Knows Italian and Spanish (Him and Y/N talk shit in Spanish)

His ringtone for Aaron and Y/N is the remix of the Windows error sound

Loves t-shirts with offensive prints (Regina tries to make him dress normally)

Has gc with Aaron and Y/N called "Hoemies"

Would fuck Aaron

TICKLISH

Major gossip (Him and Gretchen meet once a week to talk shit)

[felixcloud6288]

Dungeon Meshi Chapter 68

Over this readthrough, I've refused to call Thistle the Lunatic Magician like everyone else does. I don't remember if it was because I didn't like the title or if it was because I wanted to know more before jumping on the bandwagon.

At this point, it's safe to argue that Thistle is not insane or a lunatic or anything like that. He acts the way he does because he can only see the world the way the Winged Lion wants him to.

This chapter is happening concurrently with the last one.

I like those moments where the villains are shown to not be the all-powerful chess masters they appear to be. We saw back in chapter 55 that Thistle is actually pretty weak if he doesn't have his magic. And we're seeing how horribly anxious he gets when he loses control of the situation. He first appeared as this terrifying, unstoppable force. But now he's kind of pathetic.

And he had the equivalent of a secret Tumblr blog from 2014 where he posted his cringe teen emo angst poetry. I bet those diaries are full of self-shipping fanfics with Delgal. And I bet Marcille read all of them and loved them.

The flashback answers a few minor history questions I had asked before. The Winged Lion was worshiped before the kingdom became a dungeon and the ancient elf/dwarf war happened before the kingdom became a dungeon, not because of it.

The enemies in the flashback are dwarves.

The castle was built on top of a Dwarf-style dungeon that used to be a Dwarf town that was later taken over by the elves. So the current dungeon is actually two different dungeons where the newer Golden Kingdom castle dungeon enveloping the older Dwarf ruins dungeon. Maybe that fancy door on the sixth floor was the original entrance to the inner dungeon.

Considering how the dungeons will shift to fulfill desires, maybe worship of the Winged Lion came first and the demon in the dungeon both took on its appearance to seem more trustworthy and placed that statue in the dungeon as bait.

Thistle's eyes became demon eyes when he summoned the monsters to slaughter the invaders. He's willing to fight and kill to protect those he cares about, but his violent nature is from the demon's influence.

Also, there's a thing with spider legs in the group of monsters so giant spiders might be a thing.

B-baby basilisk. Is so dorable and fluff.

That magic curcle looks a lot like what Marcille drew to resurrect Falin. She said it connected Falin to the dungeon so maybe this is Thistle giving the fifth floor its layout changing effect.

Yaad looks just like Eodio when he was little.

Thistle laid out the royal family's bodies exactly like how they sat at the table. He still has the memory of being close to the royal family and is trying to preserve it, but he doesn't remember why it's precious.

They're eating and talking and sharing a meal together, and that's what made this moment a cherished memory.

I looked back at a few chapters where ghosts appear or are mentioned because I was hoping to find Eodio or his wife somewhere. Instead I discovered that the panels in chapter 46 where Yaad talks about the ghosts losing their bodies and the panel where everyone recalls Laios turning them into sorbet were copy/pasted panels from chapter 30 and 11. Anyway, I didn't find a ghost that I could tell looked like either of them.

Yaad was born in the dungeon so there's (presumably) nothing actually stopping anyone from having children now. Either the kingdom people are so dismotivated that they aren't bothering to raise families, or Thistle later blocked their ability to have kids since Eodio wanted to leave the dungeon to show Yaad the outside world.

Thistle's eyes took on a demonic appearance when he ripped Eodio's soul from his body. If not for the lion's influence on him, Thistle may have agreed to have everyone leave the dungeon. It's in the lion's best interest to keep everyone trapped in the dungeon so it can feed on them though.

Confirmed: Hats don't have souls.

Hold up!! Marcille IS a half-elf? I mean, I already speculated that might be true, but it's told so matter-of-factly that I almost missed that detail. And Thistle could tell she's a half-elf so there must be some physical trait that distinguishes her from full elves. The only thing I can tell right now is Marcille's ears are rounded at the end while every other elf's ears are pointed.

Thistle used to wear his mage garbs when he acted as a dungeon lord, but now he wears the jester clothes instead. He even uses his flute as his magic catalyst. Maybe it's because he's stuck in the past. But it is an apt design; the magician is a fool manipulated by the lion.

But similar to what I said at the start of this post, the lion is shown to not be as capable of manipulating others as it seems. At some point, it horribly miscalculated some things and Thistle is completely out of its control. It has to get Laios to bail it out because it screwed up.

Oh. So it really was Delgal who went to the surface. He just did it in Eodio's body. I just really want Delgal to show up in the story cause he's been such an important figure through all this.

back

[seekers-who-are-lovers]

Top 10 lists are gradually coming out now that New Year is upon us. From Spotify Wrapped to even Crunchyroll arc. In Japan they are churning out lists of anime works that the audience likes for the year 2024.

Numan, for example, made a survey and this is the result.

A personal favourite and it seems to be the most favourite among the Japanese viewers is “Bang Brave Bang Bravern.” It is placed on No. 1. Isami and Lewis and friends, you guys bag the topmost award.

2. Oblivion Battery (it was fine and saw the appeal, besides another Youhei Azakami character, so yeah!)

3. Touken Ranbu Warriors

4. Oshi no Ko (just started to watch it on Christmas Day but I saw the live action first and it was good!)

5. Delicious in Dungeon

6. Wind Breaker

7. Delico’s Nursery (dropped it after three episodes, might start again.)

8. Kuroshitsuji/Black Butler(Boarding School/Weston School arc) (another fave)

9. My Hero Academia

10. A tie of the following three works:

Demon Slayer

Yatagarasu: The Raven Does Not Choose its Master (am devoted to this, throughly understand why the book series keeps on winning literary awards.)

Red Cat Ramen

So there it is. The top 10 anime list from the Japanese viewers.

MY TOP 10 for 2024

Brace yourselves!

1. Yatagarasu : The Raven Does Not Choose Its Master (so obvious)

2. Kamonohashi Ron no kindan suiri (again, it is also obvious)

3. Bang Brave Bang Bravern (yep!)

4. Black Butler (no doubt about it)

5. The Apothecary Diaries (curious of the next season)

6. Cherry Magic: Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?!

7. Train to the End of the World

8. Twilight Out of Focus

9. The Boy and the Heron

10. Baku Neko Anzu-Chan

Honorable mentions:

Tadaima, Okaeri

Grandpa and Grandma Turn Young Again

Oblivion Battery

Oshi no Ko

Dororo (I know it was released in 2019, but I binged it this week and I love the fact that Hiroki Suzuki is Hyakkimaru and the story is so beautiful that I cried at the end…)

How about yours? What anime works are you curious of for next year?

I am looking forward to the Emerald Witch arc of Kuroshitsuji next year especially.

Anyway, a Happy New Year to all of you. May 2025 a much better, kinder one and all our wishes (or some of them) will come true.