#though martyn... this man im so excited

[sadagios]

my right hand man.

+ some really really rough sketches of duos for the au. if you cant figure whats going on with the sketches, dont worry, i cant either.

[thecoolerliauditore]

big post now that the adrenaline is cooled down a bit. thoughts on each team so far.

overall: ohh I really didn't think I would be enraptured again I really didn't think I would be. Like don't get me wrong I'm not one for wanting the series to end or anything but I was very, very happy about the year long break after Secret Life because it was feeling like quite a lot of content to the point where it was overwhelming.

That break was crucial, I think, to the vibes since I don't know if it's just me but the players just feel like they have so much more energy and excitement for the new season. Etho and Mumbo especially are so quirky this session.

The new mechanic is. shrugs. Really no way to judge it yet seeing as we've pretty much barely seen what it can entail. The fact that everyone has six lives though is making me think some of them are gonna be crazy in future sessions cus that's a ridiculously generous number otherwise and I assume Grian doesn't intend for this season to be twice Third Life's length.

EIGHTEEN PLAYERS! EIGHTEEN PLAYERS! Lizzie, Mumbo, Rendog, Gem 🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹 I don't have much to add I'm just so happy we're finally getting a season with All of Them. Rendog Ren Ren Diggity Dawg I'm so happy. I'm so happy.

The lag on the server looks um ..... ? Aternos lookin ass. I hope it doesnt impact them too much beyond this episode and they get that fixed cus whoagh that is um bad. Joel being soooo fucking angry about it is so funny please never change Joel.

~

Renwood Mound: First of all horrid name but I would be disappointed by anything less sexually suggestive. Second of all please check up on your Treebark mutuals this is a difficult time. Refeeding syndrome might just kill a couple of you I'm so sorry.

I'm not a big Ren/Martyn understander but my dash has been more celebrating their reunion than crying tears of anguish like the other toxic rebounds (ethubs, tango, pearl) that have popped up so I can only assume it's going to be okay we're all gonna make it.

If they do stay as a duo this season is going to be crazy for Martyn specifically I think. He's already gotten the betrayal he wants, he's already achieved the villainous role he so wants to play, and now it's just him and Ren together with no Dogwarts to lead. I genuinely have no idea where this one will go. o7

~

BAM Boys: I really hope the "boys" part stays in the name despite Lizzie joining them at the end for my very specific Lizzie headcanons. It would tickle me.

Anyway we're finally freed from the grasps of blue man and get the Scar/Jimmy team up this time with added Lizzie flavour. I'm very excited and like. I've seen a lot of people doubting this team will go far which confuses me because I don't know if you guys are aware but Scar won last season. And Lizzie, despite her early death in SL, really is no pushover either (she had one of the highest body counts in LL and I wish more people talked about that).

Scar specifically is in a great spot with pretty much full diamond armour already. He gets all giddy while mining and says to himself something like "ooh I get to share some with Jimmy!" which is so sweet to me.

Scar remaking the reputation board from Third Life is actually insane. What is he doing.

All this to say I think this team looks wholesome and I'm optimistic for their future. This could be Jimmy's Mounders. Or it could be Fairy Fort 2 idk let's see.

~

I think Bigb's possessed again.

~

The Hobbits(???): Hilarious to me that they stole Flower Husbands' original branding. Anyway Grumbo is back idk if I know them well enough to make a statement but I'm mentally chucking them into the toxic rebound box in my head just to get the number up.

This is the POV I've seen the least of but they seem fun. I wonder if being out of the horrific environment that was the Southlanders will do any good for Grumbo's relationship. Skizz being there also tends to bring the mood up 400% (unless it's Dogwarts).

~

Joel & Gem: IM SO EXCITED. This is pretty much the Bdubs/Joel team-up I wanted originally but now we get Ethubs too which is even more awesome for me. Very cringe take from me but they are both shounen anime.

Despite what Scott says I really don't think they'll "spontaneously combust". They're both high energy and aggressive but historically loyal to the people who accept them, the sample rate for Gem is not exactly scientifically viable but. Vaguely gestures to all of Secret Life.

I kind of wanna see Gem kill Pearl.

~

Whatever the fuck the Ethubs + Tango team is called: Why.

No like seriously Tango I thought you hated these bitches why are you third wheeling them. He's also surprisingly Bdubspilled like he sides with him on the horse thing and tries to warn Bdubs about Etho lying later. Like, don't get me wrong I really don't think Tango has spite for Bdubs comparable to like. Pearl for Scott for example but he certainly isn't fond of him after he um Fucking Murdered Him and was completely unapologetic.

I'm not really a Tango guy so I can't speak on what's going on inside his head regarding that it's just. Interesting to observe. At least the brief ranchers interaction was cute (and really funny to see in the background of ethubs yelling at eachother).

Anyway Ethubs are insane. It's so funny to me that their horse argument literally lasted an entire in game day.

It's fun for me specifically because I always viewed Secret Life as somewhat of a soft end/reboot point for the series for multiple reasons - the year long hiatus, scars win bookending things really well, pearl and scotts arcs wrapping up (oh how naive) and, of course, the conclusion ethubs reached.

I think I've made a post before about how beautiful of an ending SL is for Ethubs. The distance allowing them to overcome their own personal issues with Bdubs learning he's capable and to care for people who aren't himself or Etho and Etho learning relationships don't have to be minefields, leading into HC10 where Bdubs moves into the rural countryside away from everything and Etho hanging out with his new coworkers at the post office. They can still talk and visit, of course, but the time away from eachother does them wonders and adds a bit of hope for how they will be in the future.

So how should I even fucking feel about Etho pulling a Limited Life and almost killing Bdubs for a prank. Or Etho asking Bdubs what he's done for him. Or Etho in general being a little shit about the horse thing and Bdubs being equally stubborn.

Bdubs even kinda?? Talks like they're a couple who've gone to therapy with the "I should express how I feel and how I feel is.." and the way he catches himself when he's halfway through yelling. Like I'm not insane you guys hear it too right.

Like don't get me wrong I'm very stuck in my ways of insisting Ethubs isn't really toxic, at least not anymore, but I can totally see someone else being horrified by them and I would cheer them on for it. This episode is especially going to be horrible for that person. At least for me it seems like Bdubs' character development is very real i.e. him rejecting Etho's chestplate with the classic "I can take care of myself", a stark contrast to LL/DL Bdubs and he bites back when Etho is weird.

I have hope for Ethubs is what I'm trying to say and it's totallyyyy not because they're my first ship and I'm biased. I need to figure out what's wrong with Etho and why he's doing this. I saw a post that theorized Etho wanted Bdubs to get mad at him and kill him this season which I'm rotating a bit but I'll have to keep watching. Ethubs girls we're in for it we really are. Tango girls I'm um sorry.

~

PICS / the Islanders: My 13th reason why.

Trying to not repeat too much here from whatever happened to me emotionally last night but this is what hell looks like. It's what I expected but like. DAMN. I wasn't expecting it to be. That bad.

Seeing a lot of people say that the team is just. Pearl, The Horrors and Impulse who is just 🧍‍♂️and I don't think that's completely wrong or anything however ☝️I must say that Impulse continues to frighten me and him being here is making me personally shake like a chihuahua. Like I can't really explain his character if you put a gun to my head I just think the guy might have some issues communicating emotions and prefers to hold grudges/be passive aggressive like with the psychological horror that was the impdubs DL POV and I can't imagine him being particularly Good for Pearl. Also he's done several insane things in the past e.g. the Bdubs grudge, laughing at Tango when he tries to kill himself in SL, being excited(??) for gem to kill him in SL, trying to kill Skizz in SL wow wait maybe it's just proximity to gem and scott that fucks this guy up. Idk though I don't trust his ass.

Anyway. Yes like we are all Martyn Inthelittlewooding it up for Pearl in here. I have so many somewhat misogynistic fantasies in my head about her being saved by Gem or Bdubs or Joel or Bigb for that matter. Emotionally that's what I would want. HOWEVER I don't think that would actually be anything that would help Pearl in fact I think she'd just run back to her team because she's loyal like that. So now I kind of just want to see the consequences of her actions. Whittle her down to nothing 💥💥💥💥💥It would break me it genuinely would.

Cleo fucking catching herself and correcting "trauma" to "damage" mid sentence is insane can we kill. can we kill them.

So yeah um I'm excited for this season

[c0nnn1e]

i’ve written a snippet of the treebark fic i fear!!!! if it’s probably like. lifeless-ish and rushed i got too excited and wrote this at midnight 😭 but i hope you somewhat enjoy!!!

Martyn thumbed the instrument that faintly stuck out of his armour. The pad of his finger met a cool, flaky surface while he firmly pressed against each key that he could reach. Nimble fingers wrapped around the rod, only squeezing.

It was bestowed to Martyn from Ren; simply on a lazy afternoon warmed by fireflies. The two cleared chests from the past in search of resources. As Martyn tidied his own area, separating his junk from a few emeralds, he had turned to see Ren’s hands cupping something.

Somethin’ from me mother,” he recalled before Martyn could ask, cornflowers eyes still settled on it. Despite his sharp nails, the man almost cradled it to his chest.

“A trinket, I suppose. She always urged me to do anything but read all day.” A soft chuckle. “She despised the tragedies I read. Too solemn for her liking.”

Martyn studied it from where he stood. “A bit old, don’t you think, my liege? What do you suppose we do with it?”

Ren hummed. He then held it out of towards the other. “You should keep it.”

Martyn blinked. As sharp his brain was moving, his syrup filled mouth couldn’t seem to follow.

Ren still held out the flute.

“Er…” Words. “Are you sure, my king? You’ve had it for years, a-and you probably want to hand it to someone else. I’m sure BigB would appreciate it.”

“I’m quite positive in this decision,” Ren confirmed. “What’s a better idea than to give it to someone trustworthy.”

“But—“

“Please,” Ren said, a twinge less soft and more…Martyn couldn’t put a word on it. Demanding? Pleading?

“You swore an oath to protect my life. The least I can do is show me gratitude to me favorite hand.”

Martyn’s hand reached for the instrument. “What other hand do you have, my liege?” he quipped. 

Ren hummed once more. “Exactly. You’re me first and only.”

Martyn took the flute.

Though the metal tinted brown with age and a few notes wheezed as they were played, Martyn promised his king that he’d make good use of it. 

Every now and then (which was more often than he’d admit aloud) he would feel a part of it. It grown to become a way to ground himself, he guessed. A reminder of who he was really with.

OH MY GODDDD EMMMMMM IM KICKING MY FEET AND GIGGLINGGGGGGGG im so normal over them!!!!!!!!!!!! You have their mannerisms done really well too! I love love LOVE your writing em!!!!

[mcybree]

I always feel a little bad when I write a long response to posts on the internet because I feel like it intimidates people so HI. DONT BE ALARMED. IM HARMLESS SOURCE TRUST ME. Anyways:

^^ OP tags ^^

Honestly I think he’s just afraid to get too close to people. He’s never going to say that but it’s like he has trouble connecting on a genuine level with pretty much anyone. He was extremely close with Pearl but (gestures to DL) I do think that scared him. There’s a sort of vulnerability required to foster a genuine connection with someone and last life forced that vulnerability by starting him off on two lives. But in every other season it’s like he cant figure out how to really truly love like he should even though he does want to and. Does? To an extent? It’s complicated.

What I’m trying to say is that I think it’s such a gray area in whether or not to read it as pride or love because it’s a gray area for him, too.

I don’t think he means to win every time as much as he has built an internal system which makes it impossible for him to fail. This internal system unfortunately relies heavily on him remaining in control of his own emotions, something he doesn’t actually know how to do so he just shelves them entirely and pretends he doesn’t care when shit happens (my favorite example of this is the entirety of third life, but examples specifically in relation to this subject: him not giving a fuck about both martyns limlife betrayal and gems zombie betrayal.) This stifles his ability to feel love or express it in a way that isn’t purely transactional; it’s not impossible for him to do so but it is very difficult for him to see people beyond a basic “I give you this, you give me this,” and he determines his standing with people based on how much they owe him or very rarely vice versa (scott hates feeling like he owes people. He says this outright in an SL episode but he’s also hesitant to give out IOUs unless it’s for sure a good deal and parameters are discussed beforehand). This is more observable in how he acts with people that aren’t his direct allies tbh but he does also still do this with his direct allies (see: SL session 9, scott telling gem she cant prioritize other alliances because he let her kill him), it’s just less strictly material debts. He gets along well with Cleo because I think Cleo functions similarly on a surface level but Cleo also has a self awareness and an emotional core that makes relationships more than just a series of transactions that Scott lacks. Points to their SL interaction where Scott tells Cleo to kill Etho for extra hearts, and Cleo doesn’t even consider it.

Additionally this isnt like. DIRECT evidence and is also a bit of a tangent, but since last life scott is sort of the exception I think examining him and pearls interactions in that series gives some insight, because while scott genuinely cares about her it’s like he keeps trying to talk to her in “his language,” assuming she works similarly in relationships being strictly transactional (“I was thinking you should give me a life because we have a better shot at winning if we’re together” after joel kills him VS what I think he actually means, “can I have a life because we’re friends and I want to stay by your side”). He doesn’t understand why Pearl does anything for him when he technically owes her, so when she does nice things for him anyways he gets all giddy and excited about it which. Sorry guys I know I love to be a scott hater on this blog but I do have lots of clips saved to my phone of him just being really cute with pearl. it makes me emotional man. they really were best friends it’s agonizing to think about with how he treats her later BUT WHATEVERRR WHATEVER I DONT CAAAARE im fine its cool its cool its cool

tldr I think he uses his allies but I don’t think it’s malicious as much as it comes from the combination of a lack of understanding of how relationships work + a high self standard resulting in a personal inability to fail

no let’s talk about cScott’s strategy in the life series being the social game. Let’s talk about how he’ll just kinda play nice with everyone and get to very high placements as a result. Do you wonder if his past allies feel used by him? If they feel like they’re just part of the strategy of his own game? Did you realize how rarely Scott has recurring alliances? Do you think they wonder about if they were just someone Scott could get to a higher result to feel good about? Or someone that could get him the win? Or are you normal

all I’m saying is usually we go on lengthy talks about Scott being nice and sweet and wholesome but this guy (character) is good at the murder game! Really worryingly good! Let’s delve into that some more!

[birdsong-18]

i’ve been off tumblr for the day because i had to miss the lore stream so no spoilers and i’m gonna watch later but MCC PRIDE TEAMS

what i love:

Red Rabbits is going to be so chaotic omg. Also Scott Smajor? putting dnf team into OUR pride event? that man knows what’s up. also KARL!!! asexual spectrum king i love the representation. i honestly love that foolish??? is the implied token straight even though, to our knowledge george is also straight that’s how much power dream has over the internet, i guess.

Orange Ocelots hehe hoohoo. im excited to see the group dynamic because i don’t watch any of them often but i know enough to know it’s gonna be fun. also martyn inthelittlewood token straight yes i love it.

Yellow Yaks (aka the girls, the gays, and the grian) omg omg omg omg omg omg omg. this. team. YES. it’s got the full spectrum of variety and my CRUSH GEMINITAY GORGEOUS. also grian being the token straight of this team is so good and iconic of course he is it’s the girls, the gays, and the grian.

Lime Llamas i don’t know super much about anyone on this team other than eret, but again super gay!!! the first fully lgbtq+ team!!!! i’m excited to see how they do because i know it’s a lot of strong players.

Green Geckos. again, i don’t know much about any of them other than the fact that this will be the money making team. suuuper big twitch streamers who are consistently making large amounts of money is gonna be so great for raising money for charity. not gay team (that i know of it don’t really watch any of them enough to know), but i honestly don’t mind for charity :)

AND THATS THE FIRST HALF OF TEAMS!!

i’m honestly so happy to see so many large streamers who are out as part of the lgbt community, and i’m loving the “rolling with the lgbt” token straights on very team. right now i’m probably gonna watch Yellow (aka The Girls, The Gays, and The Grian) first because i almost screamed when i saw it okay bye.

[arch-i-techs]

Hey! Im obsessed with your excitement over "watcher lore" but idk what it is. I would love to know more! I Understand if its too much to explain tho.

Also, your art is amazing!!!

Oh! Aw man Anon, not gonna lie, I'm probably not the best person to answer this question, but I'll try my best to explain!

So, before Last Life and even before Hermitcraft, Grian created/co-created an SMP called "Minecraft Evolution" or "EVO" for short. It was a series where the Players would go through each update of Minecraft from the beginning.

In that series, there was an outside force known as the "Watchers". They, true to their name, watched over the Evolutionists. From what I know, they were a very passive force, and liked to "test" the Evolutionists by giving them puzzles, nothing inherently malicious. I think they mostly helped the players go through an "update" to the new versions.

They're not without personality though, in the specific case of Grian, he's drawn their ire more than once and they retaliated by placing obsidian over his chests.

Anyway, there's not really much known about them, except, at the end of Grian's time on EVO, the Watchers "took" him and made him a Watcher.

He became a Watcher of Evo, while the players of EVO continued on. I think the main idea is that the Watchers are the "admins" of EVO, but that was never confirmed (i think).

Apart from that, I don't think we've gotten any other lore or story from Grian about the Watchers themselves, but the fandom (me) really loves the idea of Grian being some all-powerful and mostly, mischievous little bugger, so the Watcher stuff tends to get added to a lot of fanfiction/fanart/aus/etc.

A lot of the "watchers are evil" type of stuff comes from the fandom since in canon they're mostly really like... a kind of higher being that's watching the Evolutionists like they're test subjects.

That's really the basics of it! I don't think anyone expected Martyn to bring up Watcher stuff, so even if it's not canon, it's still super cool to see!

There's more to the lore like the Listeners, but I honestly don't know too much about them. I hope this explains at least a little bit anon, though I'm sure you can find much better explanations out there.

If I missed something, please let me know!!

[mallowbees]

OUUU SO MANY THINKS

ok so one i LOVE that grian has 3 wither skulls and is not telling martyn about it. absolute chaos gremlin i love it

i love the fact that a wither could spawn on this server because of what it has held on the dsmp- i just think it would bring something similar to last life and i LOVE that thought

also the fact that mumbo is jsut going on a killing spree and like- his intentions are so cruel and evil but like- you talk to him and hes like "oh! pardon me!" or "ah sorry im not very good at pvp haha" and also forgets that he has red life power and then is super awkward about intimidating people. i just think its so charming and cute i love it sm

also poor joel he is just going through it man. the man doesnt know how to make a good trap or it just doesnt work somehow

and scar... doesnt know how water elevators work... bless him. i mean to be fair he did kinda want to be red anyway so like- i dont think its any difference to him- his business is BOOMING. there was like a whole section if his video that was just deals my goodness

also the B.E.S.T.'s like banana split thing where they make a tnt canon in like record time is INSANE like that is racecar track pit stop type beat- thats amazing. like someone could look outside their base and see them- look away- look back and be greeted with tnt in their face

i think thats so cool

also poor lizzie she deserved better

cleo is a girlboss 24/7 and protecting pearl yes queen

and jimmy and lizzie dying to the same trap by the other person is hilarious i love it

all in all an amazing session and the fact that there were SIX BOOGIES is insane i love that

the server chose violence today :)

1. Grian with the wither skulls is So terrifying, if Martyn knew he would be trying to shut that down so fast

2. Mumbo killing rights!!! He's doing great and im proud of him, he almost killed pearl by just pvping her (although in water and she was just running not fighting back but still)

3. Joel sure is, he has many red friends now though!

4. sFsdgdfg yeah he just! does not seem to mind! that he died aside from the initial reaction! Magic mountain is going great and scar is a business man conman wizard first and foremost

5. Team best rapidly building tnt canons is great, with four people your explosions can be done in seconds! :)

And for the last few i havent seen what cleos up to, i feel bad for lizzie but i was so excited when jimmys trap worked, i did not think it would work because i didnt think anyone would come to his exile shack, and i mean, they wouldnt have if he hadnt died, but i guess its a win?

Six boogies yeah!!!! Man this session, it was absolutely wild, killing violence killing :)

[thecoolerliauditore]

Ngl, I hated pirates smp, it felt so rigid and boring, but even though im a bit wary, i m excited for rats 2. Rats 1 had this cozy and creative vibe, and such a fun setting, and i feel that type of smps is what pow is good at. We got so many fun moments, fun builds, and the lore was well used and while it was scripted, it was often carried by the players and didn´t feel as suffocating. The rats setting REALLY worked in its favour. Pirates on the other hand... Idk everything just felt so forced. There were some ccs that made it far better by focusing in interactions versus the plot (I remember Oli´s streams were a blast), or doing some very cool side projects (Martyn´s newspaper or Ros´ crazy castle for example. gosh i do hope Ros is in rats 2, she was the mvp of pirates), but the necessity for a story really pushed all of that stuff (the kind of stuff that made rats great) into the background, and I say that as someone who actually really likes lore, and doesn´t usually mind when it´s scripted. I also feel like dividing the players into factions really backfired, bc it killed the vibe of community rats had. The npcs were BORING. Finally, i m sorry, as a certified fan of stories featuring pirates, the set wasn´t being used correctly, there s so many cool ways of using that prompt and they just didn´t know how. Idk, I just hope rats 2 doesn´t follow that same pattern of thinking lore is everything that makes an smp good, when it´s only one of several (and not precisely the most important), and brings back the vibes. I am actually hopeful and excited, but we can only wait and see

At some point I need to join tumblr staff just to implement a feature where I can outsource asks to that megabuild guy specifically before I have to admit I actively dislike empires, rats and pirates. Good news about Ros though!

I think most ppl posting about rats 2 rn are in a similar boat in that they enjoyed rats 1 and feel uneasy about the second season cus of the nothingburger with a side of straight man represented as such that was pirates as well as POW being POW.

me being a hater (like. actually) below

I don't like posting about pirates because it breaks my blog rule for myself to not post about anything I full-on dislike and have no love for whatsoever but it really is kind of fascinating how they managed to mess up pretty much everything. the m in this smp stands for mid. You're so right about the pirates setting thing I could swear by like. the second day half the cast had completely forgotten they were supposed to be pirates (partially to blame I think is the fact that they really didn't have anything pirate-y to do).

Their conception of pirates seems to be more akin to a kids halloween costume than historical fantasy. I will always find it funny how scott once again sets up a character with very clear thematic relevance (classism and parental abuse, in this case) and didn't do anything with it and instead kept talking about his brother and expecting me to feel bad for him or whatever. I'm not surprised at all considering Scott has shown in the past he can't differentiate plot and themes it's just that a pirate story without the societal commentary or the moral greyness may as well be about any other group of motherfuckers on a boat. cruise ship smp. Fucking that squid was the most interesting thing Scott's character did and it wasn't even ""canon"".

I also watched a handful of Martyn's streams at the time and the newspaper thing was actually pretty cool but I also kinda?? felt bad for him?? He spends ages online talking to no one. There was this one stream where he spent the entire time doing parkour courses and trying to find where an npc disappeared to. I'm not saying that he was actively excluded or whatever it just felt really sad to watch him pretty much wander aimlessly for hours and discuss c!martyn headcanons with chat with no actual plot to go with those headcanons. I can't even say no one gaf about his oc cus people DID give a fuck about pirate martyn only for him to have nothing to do in the smp except be pansexual and lie. His vendetta against the urchin thing was funny but the start of it was during an event where there were way too many people in the same place all trying to make the loudest funniest quip and it felt like a mess to watch.

I think it's hilarious that scarian tops the ao3 tag for pirates considering grian isn't in it but also like. I kind of get it when Scar's character had the most sense of intrigue and actual pirate vibes to him (despite him only playing for like 2 streams LMAO). That plus the fact that the rest of the cast minus the two who were involved in horrors at the time had a fucking surburban hell homeowner association style list of lawn care expectations on what you could do with them in your fanart/fic like wtf else are people supposed to write about.

And that's not even getting into like. why this sucked in the first place i.e. like you mentioned the weird chatbot NPCs, the weird faction system that discouraged interaction, the "canon" and "non-canon" streams etc I don't really care about any of the other CCs involved if I'm totally honest (I don't count Cleo cus she didn't really. Do anything. May as well have not been on there) so I can't comment further but. yeah

Also this is very petty of me but the skins are sooooo ugly. Gone is the fun in each skin reflecting the players specific personality and taste aesthetics and all. Idk how they managed to make minecraft skins feel like they have same face syndrome but they did it. We're gonna take the thing that gives the players their own self-expression and usually makes your first impression of the character as the viewer and drench it all in sweet and sour sauce and an instagram filter until you can barely tell who's supposed to be who. At least they were smart enough to keep their hands off of Scar's smirk I would've rioted.