#which leads to fun and in depth discussions!!

[selfshippinglover]

I don't usually find myself thinking this so I'm trying to enjoy it while I can but I think I'm actually Mr. Puzzles type?

Like, he's a guy that loves media so much he BECAME media

I'm a guy that loves analysing and obsessing over the media and it's characters

We r holding hands <333

[rosesnbooks]

Sagittarius placements

sun in sagittarius: they are passionate about travelling and meeting interesting people. they work to live, not live to work. their free time is very important to them. life feels like an adventure, and they like people who can keep up with their pace. they can get wrapped up in their own thoughts and form strong opinions, sometimes forgetting what it's like to be someone with a different perspective. they may hurt people unintentionally because they're so focused on their goals and having fun that they forget about others or don’t give them enough attention. however, at their best, they can be very caring, and their energy can light up the room. they usually take care of their health and enjoy physical activities. they try to stay optimistic, even when life feels heavy. everyone i’ve met with this placement values humor deeply, and they often use it to cope with their issues; sometimes to their own detriment and to others’. many of them move through life at a fast pace and keep their calendar full, while others prefer to explore their interests more privately.

moon in sagittarius: super funny and magnetic. they are known for their humor—whether it's dry or happy-go-lucky, they’re naturals at it. they’re usually loved by the general public, and they know how to make people feel seen and at ease around them. they’re ambitious and like to go after their dreams. they’re willing to take risks and don’t let fear rule them. they tend to care deeply about people and have a strong moral code. they can be really empathetic and sweet. they value honesty. i think a lot of them seem untouchable—like they’re almost too good to be true, which is why people don’t always approach them or flirt with them. those who are on the toxic side want everything to go their way and may try to push their beliefs onto others. they can say really hurtful things without batting an eye, and they sometimes value power too much. hm, i also feel like there are lots of lgbtqa+ people with this placement. their looks and energy feel very youthful. they’re passionate and unique. many sag moons have wildly different qualities, and yet you can always spot them.

ascendant / rising in sagittarius: people tend to be charmed by them easily. they seem like the kind of person you can have fun with and joke around a lot. they’re independent spirits who dislike staying in one place for too long. i feel like one half of them comes off as a bit mysterious and different, while the other half seems charming and outgoing. they tend to attract attention, whether they admit it or not. they like people who can switch between topics easily and keep the convo light. no matter how approachable they seem, it often feels like they’re hiding their depth from most people—just like many of us do. they show their vulnerable side only to those closest to them, and even then, it feels like they’re still processing things and holding some parts back. their hair usually looks healthy and voluminous, and they tend to have nice skin.

mercury in sagittarius: intellectuals! they tend to keep a positive mindset and have a deep desire to be understood—and to understand the world around them. sometimes, they feel like no one really gets them. they’re smart and know how to use their capabilities in ways that benefit them. some people find them a bit insensitive or dramatic, while others see them as sweet and fun to be around. they can be pretty memeable, and they often talk a lot. some have a chaotic way of speaking—like starting a sentence about dairy products and somehow ending up in a discussion about capitalism; not everyone can keep up. their mind is constantly on the run, filled with innovative ideas. they’re drawn to people and institutions that allow them to explore their desires and seek answers to big questions. they may clash with very sensitive or introverted people because they don’t always understand how those people operate—this can lead to misunderstandings or tension. on the other hand, some of those same people might appreciate them for their attentiveness and how they gently point out when more sensitivity or grounding is needed. they’re often expressive with their gestures and facial expressions.

venus in sagittarius: one word: space. they need it. they dislike people who are too obsessive or possessive. they need room to breathe and to feel like they’re their own individual at the end of the day. they want partners who understand that. they tend to wear interesting patterns and colors, and they often like to stand out. they especially love a good compliment. they’re sensitive souls who want to experience love as something warm, adventurous, freeing, and interesting. they’re drawn to people who bring something new into their world and expand their perspective. they tend to avoid those who feel too intense or emotionally heavy. to keep them interested, little adventures and making them feel heard and cared for can do wonders. sometimes, they feel like they might be too much for others in the long run—so they look for someone reliable and honest. their love feels like the comfortable warmth of a fireplace and the excitement you get at an amusement park. they’re fun to be around, and their minds work in mysterious, interesting ways. if they decide to let you into their close circle, you’ll feel honored. some of them go through multiple partners before finding the right one, because not many people fit their criteria in terms of character and lifestyle. the toxic ones just like to cheat. they’re usually very spiritual and/or religious, and they prefer people who share their worldviews.

mars in sagittarius: these people have such intense outbursts of energy sometimes! especially when they’re talking about something they love or experiencing something exciting. once they start talking or doing something while spending time with someone, they won’t stop until they’ve used up all their energy—or you explicitly tell them to calm down lol. it’s sweet, really. they love learning new things, especially from different kinds of people. absorbing knowledge lights a spark in them. if they like you and think of you as a good speaker, they’ll listen attentively. but if you catch them daydreaming while you talk, they’re either not interested or just too wrapped up in their own thoughts. i haven’t met a person with this placement who hasn’t traveled to a foreign country multiple times, no matter their budget. they usually move out of their native country or at least live somewhere else for a while. their laugh is something people remember—it’s big, endearing, and usually fills the room. they often experiment with their hair and personal style. they’re usually not that direct and tend to act only when you’ve crossed way too many lines. but if you hurt someone they love, they really struggle with self-control, in my experience.

saturn in sagittarius: these people may have a complex relationship with religion and spirituality. despite having a strong desire to travel, things often get in the way, making the process difficult or even impossible at times. they’re very independent and like to do things their own way—which can either help them grow or create obstacles and enemies along the way. they’re charismatic and funny, and they tend to attract a lot of people, forming many connections—but rarely emotionally fulfilling ones. some of them need to learn how to rely on others more and open up when they’re feeling low. life seems to test them repeatedly until they learn to become more open-minded and, in some cases, more spiritual. some struggle in their academic lives, but those who persevere and have the means to work through their challenges often achieve great grades and experiences. they may explore different careers until they find one that truly fits them.

jupiter in sagittarius: very lucky individuals. they have lots of interests and seek adventure wherever they go. they learn from other people and cultures and are curious about all things spiritual. many of them know how to transfer their knowledge productively, so they make excellent teachers. they’re constantly evolving and are naturally good at manifesting. people are usually very drawn to their personalities—whether they’re on the louder or quieter side, there’s something familiar and warm about them. they also have a way with words, so public speaking or writing can be a passion of theirs. they’re often good-looking, have a strong sense of aesthetic, and may even be known for it. i’ve noticed they generally have longer faces and are often above-average height—or even really tall. they can have strong humanitarian desires, and they love to travel. they are truly special people♡

☆disclaimer: i am not a professional, so take this with a grain of salt☆

[stellarsecrets86]

Neptune In Houses Of Groom Persona Chart

[PS: For entertainment purposes only. Have fun.💚]

Other posts you might like:

Masterlist

{Neptune in a groom’s persona chart represents dreams, intuition, spiritual connection, and the potential for idealism or illusion in his approach to marriage and life. Neptune reveals how the groom expresses compassion, imagination, and emotional sensitivity, as well as how he may deal with confusion or unrealistic expectations. }

▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️

Neptune in the 1st House

Neptune in the 1st House makes for a spouse with an immediate, otherworldly magnetism. His dreamy and compassionate nature makes him gentle, spiritual, and deeply empathetic. He may intuitively know what others need emotionally, which could make him very appealing to his spouse. Nevertheless, the fluidity of his identity may make him too fluid in establishing boundaries, and at times, he will question his role in the relationship. This groom often wants to be an ideal partner and may sacrifice or have issues with being authentic. His spouse will find him creative and artistic, but the spouse needs to offer grounding energy to help him through reality.

Neptune in the 2nd House

This placement suggests that the spouse may approach his values and material possessions with an idealistic or spiritual lens. He might prioritize meaning and emotional connection over financial stability, sometimes leading to impractical financial decisions. However, he is generous to a fault and enjoys sharing his resources to create beauty and harmony in the relationship. He is looking for a partner who understands his selfless nature and respects the fact that he tries to bring abundance into the world in ways other than financial. The challenge is to keep financial clarity and not let his idealistic tendencies blur his practical responsibilities.

Neptune in the 3rd House

Neptune in the 3rd House speaks with poetic elegance, and he often views life through a powerfully imaginative yet abstract perspective. His words stir the emotional psyche, and he is a very engaging storyteller or communicator. This placement can indicate that he idealizes communication in his relationship, seeking a deep, almost telepathic level of connection with his mate. He could have a good sense of humour. 😄His creative ideas add depth to the marriage and his compassionate dialogue, yet his tendency to dream on about what was said, misinterpreting details, causes confusing situations. His partner needs to appreciate his dreamy overview while keeping him focused on everyday discussion and life's duties.

Neptune in the 4th House

Neptune in the 4th House seeks a home life that is very much a sanctuary: a place of love, spirituality, and emotional safety. He may idealize family life and dream of creating a mystical ambiance in the house. However, this very idealism runs the risk of leading him to disillusion when the reality doesn't match the dream. This placement would suggest a deep emotional attachment to the family of origin or a longing for an idealized version of it, which might influence his approach to marriage. His spouse must learn to deal with his emotional sensitivity and sometimes escapist tendencies by encouraging healthy communication and keep the family grounded regarding practical matters.

Neptune in the 5th House

Neptune in the 5th House approaches romance with a sense of magic and wonder. He may well be an artistic soul, probably having an artistic inclination for music, painting, or other kinds of creative activities. In romance, he idealizes passion and playfulness, and he is looking for a relationship that will make him feel like part of some kind of fairy tale. However, this idealism can make him vulnerable to unrealistic expectations or disappointment if the romance becomes mundane. His spouse needs to embrace his artistic and playful energy while keeping him grounded with the practical realities of maintaining a relationship. This placement also highlights emotional connection to children, as he may view them as an extension of his creative spirit.

Neptune in the 6th House

This placement can reveal a spouse who is unselfish, serves others, and often incorporates spirituality or creativity into his day-to-day toil. He should be very caring and take much care in whatever kind of responsibility he undertakes, though at times he might be inconsistent or unclear about boundaries in respect to routines. As a husband, he is deeply empathetic and willing to put his spouse's needs first rather than his own. But he should not lose himself in that process or forget his health. His spouse will play a key role in helping him find routines and healthy habits and striking a balance in his selflessness with self-care.

Neptune in the 7th House

Neptune in the 7th House suggests that your spouse is quite dreamy about a soulmate connection and idealizes partnership. He can bring a dreamy, romantic dimension to the relationship, often working at making an intense, almost spiritual connection with the spouse. However, this placement can also blur boundaries, codependency, or lead to unrealistic expectations from his partner. Sometimes, he projects onto a spouse fantasies projected and expects them to live out roles that are unreal. This wife should handle these predispositions by inculcating healthy communication and developing realistic expectations without losing respect for the dreamer/romancer within him.

Neptune in the 8th House

Having Neptune in the 8th House your husband is easily led to enjoy very heavy, emotional depth in intimacy, going into those intimate moments for extreme transformational reasons in a marriage union. He desires a level of connection where souls will spiritually and emotionally connect. This placement suggests a fascination with shared resources, mysteries, and even life's spiritual aspects like death and rebirth. However, this strong urge to change can lead to confusion or secrecy in the relationship. His partner will have to support his spiritual quest but also make sure that everything they do together is clear and trustworthy.

Neptune in the 9th House

It will put him as a person who is highly visionary, constantly pursuing spiritual or philosophical truths, and idealizes traveling, going to school, or religious studies-all of which can be shared with a spouse as part of their crusade. He wants those relationships to widen his vistas and inspire growing; though, he resides so much within ideals he has difficulty focusing on his visions for this life. His wife needs to understand his adventurous spirit and encourage him to take realistic steps toward manifesting his dreams.

Neptune in the 10th House

Neptune in the 10th House describes a spouse who idealizes his career or public image, and he often aspires to inspire or heal others through his work. He is likely attracted to artistic or spiritual professions and may be interested in a legacy that reflects compassion and creativity. However, such idealism causes confusion or diffidence about what he wants out of his work. As a husband, too, he works at balancing aspiration with home-based responsibilities, and he needs his partner to help him connect his vision with practical strategies for achieving fulfillment.

Neptune in the 11th House

This house represents an idealist in friendship and social causes. He dreams of a better world and enlists his spouse to be a part of such visions. That position indicates he may idealize group dynamics but must guard against disillusioning or misplaced confidence in others. His spouse needs to encourage his humanitarian endeavors while helping him maintain discernment in his relationships and goals.

Neptune in the 12th House

Neptune in the 12th House, he is deeply spiritual, introspective, and in tune with the unseen side of life. Thus, he may have an enriching inner life and become a very emotional and spiritual supporter for his wife. However, his introspection may at times turn into withdrawal or inability to state his needs. He seeks something more than material as a husband, but a husband has to help him keep the integrity and prevent things from becoming misunderstood or alienated.

------> Each Neptune placement will show how idealistic, vulnerable, and spiritually-emotionally connecting the spouse is, showing specific ways in which he approaches marriage and the role he plays in marriage.

[riddlemearose]

Linked Universe Combat Guide (part 2)

This is Part 2 of my attempt to make my fight scene notes into a coherent and understandable guide. Lord only knows if I'm being successful on that.

Part 1 can be found here.

General Notes once again:

The additional weapons/equipment is anything outside of the literal sword and shield you get in-game that could be used as a weapon, but does not include bombs, bows + arrows, or boomerangs bc I'm not writing that every time.

7 out of 9 Links are left-handed and this will have an affect on combat if they're fighting against human enemies.

-> any ambidextrous fighters in the group is largely a headcanon but go nuts w/ it.

This is looking at lore-accurate fighting ability bc you can scale down to however you headcanon they fight. Any additional arguments are logical conclusions/presumptions I'm making off of their in-game skills and/or character history.

Once again, researched to the best of my ability but I'm not claiming this has everything in every game. Fact checking is welcomed!

Also here's an article discussing the pros and cons of chainmail vs plate armour, since this group is the more armoured lot of the Chain

Minor update 9 March 2025: added a link to a reblog explaining a note on Warriors' section in better depth.

Upadte 3 May 2025: added more info to Warriors' section, provided by @interlink-au, as well as amended & added to other sections with more info they gave me in their reblog.

Sky

The most important thing in Skyward Sword’s combat is that you are fast. You Are Speed. That is Sky’s greatest advantage.

Feint. Always, always feint; then, when the enemy goes to block the feint, quickly attack from the opposite direction.

Sword techniques*: -> Shield Bash: reflects projectiles and knocks enemies off balance. Requires perfect timing but leaves an opening to take advantage of. -> front-flip slash -> back-flip slash -> jump attack -> fatal blow -> Skyward Strike/Sword Beams *Certain techniques cost stamina.

Unlike Warriors and Wild, Sky is near the start of the timeline, meaning he doesn’t have the same type of modern military-esque knighthood structure that future versions of Hyrule have. Consequently, we don’t see anyone in Skyward Sword really use any weapons outside of short swords, leading me to believe Sky’s main proficiency is really in them alone.

Sky is highly adaptable in a fight. He learns very quickly when enemies will block and when they will go to attack, which means he can deal with them extremely quickly. Arguably this means that he is not exactly built for long-term fights, but he can get through them if he must. I’d almost call him as a Glass Cannon, but he’s sturdier than that, so he gets the Lightning Bruiser name tag instead.

Happily arguing that Sky would be very good at mounted archery, even if it's obviously different to horseback. I know Loftwings can be taught that corkscrew manoeuvre that acts as an attack, but given sword-based combat wouldn't be feasible when you're riding a giant bird so I'm dying on this hill.

Additional Equipment/Weapons: -> whip (pls use this, whip fighting is great. They can deal a lot of damage if you hit someone with the end.) -> clawshots -> slingshot/scatter-shot -> gust bellows -> guardian potion+ (invulnerability, baby!)

Time

Time is fun bc he’s about 20 years older than he was during his adventures, which means you can kinda go ham with what he does and doesn’t know.

To kick things off, Time gets the honour of being the first Link (on this list) to have canonical multiple sword proficiencies: longsword, and short sword + shield. I will very happily argue and die on the hill that Time 100% has some staff proficiency given how Deku sticks can be used in OOT. If you go with this, use European-style quarterstaff techniques instead of Chinese-style bō/gun staffs.

The Biggoron sword isn’t any specific type of longsword, given the sheer weirdness of its blade shape. I think most people seem to agree that it’s a great sword, which at the extreme basics is essentially a longer longsword. I use claymore combat videos to get a feel for writing the Biggoron sword, and have used this specific video a few times.

Given Time’s +20 years from his adventures, we all pretty much believe he's mastered the Hidden Skills he passes onto Twilight, both with a short sword and the Biggoron sword. These are still gonna be listed in Twilight’s segment however, given they feature in his game.

Time also has a magical aspect to his combat, both in terms of literal magic items and then his two combat-focused spells.

Potentially Combat-Focused Masks: -> Transformative Masks: Deku Mask, Zora Mask, Goron Mask, Fierce Deity Mask, Giant’s Mask -> Other Masks: Blast Mask, Bunny Hood, Stone Mask

Spells: -> Din’s Fire -> Nayru’s Love

Important note: as stupid as this reminder is going to sound, Time only has one eye. He has a decreased field of view and decreased depth perception. He probably has a way to compensate for this, but it is a disability that shouldn't be forgotten. My mother is visually impaired in one eye and it affects how she reads things, how she drives, how she uses footpaths etc etc. It's not ableist to remark on Time's partial lack of sight. If anything, how he compensates for it is something I've been meaning to explore - I just haven't been able to get my head to world build it coherently.

Thanks to interlink-au for reminding me I didn't add this, but Time is good at mounted combat. I'm hesitant to say he's able to do mounted archery with his vision impairment though as, if I use my mother's experience (legally blind in one eye but has some vision), his depth perception is probably crap.

Additional Equipment/Weapons: -> powder keg (yes, Time carries TNT) -> hookshots -> longshot -> Deku nut -> Deku stick -> slingshot -> golden gauntlets -> megaton hammer -> Great Fairy Sword (according to info found by interlink-au, this is now likely an arming sword, which is just a fancy word for a broadsword tbh) -> Gilded Sword

Twilight

The Tank™

Most adept at horseback combat. An FYI but the fact that Twi defaults to using a one-handed sword on horseback is extremely telling of this point. For the most part, light cavalry were equipped with polearms/lances and bows with a sabre on the side. I know it's partially an animation thing but Twi being confident enough to get close to an enemy on horseback to use a one-handed sword is huge sign of his skill and proficiency.

Hidden Skills: -> Ending blow -> Shield attack -> Back slice -> Helm Splitter -> Mortal Draw (my beloved <3) -> Jump Strike -> Great Spin

Extremely important to remember how stupidly strong Twilight is. Dude can yeet a charging Goron, only needing his iron boots to stay where he is. This can be showcased in multiple ways: fist-fighting, emphasis of the strength of his shield bash, etc etc. He's likely capable of hand-to-hand combat as well, given his strength and knowledge of sumo wrestling.

Most tanks are slow, but Twi is actually rather speedy, even as a hylian.

(Btw if Twi places a bomb on the ground in front of him and holds his shield up, he will take no damage when the bomb explodes. Fantastic way to kill stalfos and annoy Darknuts.)

Additional Weapons/Equipment: -> slingshot -> ball and chain -> clawshots -> dominion rod (if you're feeling experimental) -> spinner (?????? Somehow????) -> crossbow -> Twi’s weird magic armour (note: crossbows don't actually replace bows; they have their own pros and cons. See this YouTube short for some context)

As a wolf:

This is where Twilight becomes less of a Tank and more of a Glass Cannon. Wolves are very fast and, depending on how much Twili magic you headcanon Twilight has access to, he can get in and out of combat easily.

But most importantly, Twilight has very little defence as a wolf so he can't tank hits nearly as well as he can as a hylian (as the comic has already shown).

Main threat is obviously his jaw strength; Twilight is able to latch onto enemies, usually by biting down on their throats or shoulders. Pls be aware that ordinary wolves can bite through bone if they get the angle right.

Normal wolves don’t attack with their claws bc they’re not cats, but Twilight has human-level intelligence and can do whatever he wants within the confines of his body.

Twi also has a charge spin attack as a wolf. Do with this knowledge what you will.

Warriors

Proficient in multiple weapons and has adaptable fighting styles.

A few of his canonical fighting styles are listed at the end but depending on which era of knighthood you want to take inspiration from, he can also be proficient in lances and pole-arms, long-swords and sabres, and hand-to-hand combat (predominately Greco-Roman style wrestling but don’t let that stop you).

No specific sword techniques shown outside of the spin attack and jump slash. -> Updated info from interlink-au, which I'm just going to copy and paste for ease of access, with minor edits so this doesn't get bogged down: "First off, he is very fast. He needs to get around that battlefield quickly to help struggling allies. Even without the Master Sword, he can do something similar to a sword beam (a disc-shaped air slash). With the Master Sword, his swords beams are ridiculous. He can spam those things left and right and in the air, and send 3 at the same time. He can also do a vertical spin and spin attack into the air, where he can get some normal slashes in while he’s aerial. He can juggle enemies in the air for a second. He has a move where he dodges and immediately follows with a thrust. Its use reminds me of Wind’s parry attack. He also has a shield bash (more like a charge) followed by a sword thrust. Wars' magic rod doubles as a fire rod. The magic rod portion shoots laser beams and controls orbs. The fire portion can send out fire pillars/tornados. He can even send out a stream of fire that flies around like a dragon. He can even transform it into a battle axe for some reason."

Also proficient in combat on horseback but I’m not listing his Epona as a weapon lmao. -> interlink-au added that Wars is good at mounted archery too!

Has an innate passive (potentially magic?) ability to tag enemies with a ‘Light Mark’, which causes them to take increased damage from every attack for as long as his Triforce mark is glowing. This is triggered after a certain amount of enemies are killed and ends a few seconds after he stops dealing damage. Best used in his era but still viable in others.

Also, Wars’ lil inverse-grip upward slash finisher for one of his Master Sword combos? *chef’s kiss emoji* we love to see it -> (reverse grips are technically not great bc of the increased chance of literally breaking your wrist, among other things. However it looks cool as hell) -> Update: for more info on this bc I hadn't explained it well, I've covered it in more depth in this reblog here.

A lot of Wars’ fighting style is best copied from visual mediums, but given that search results generally like to give you Age of Calamity videos, this video is a good one to focus on. interlink-au also points out that his other fighting styles in-game are very useful to study visually, but I'm not going to list them here in-depth. Here are some links to videos for them. -> Ball and Chain (note: power/silver gauntlets should be thought of as separate too and would be very good for intense hand-to-hand combat - think Vi from Arcane). -> Spinner -> Magic/Fire Rod

Full disclaimer I tried to play Hyrule Warriors in December. I got through 5 hours and the game gave me such wicked eye strain I couldn't look at a screen for 2 days straight so I had to stop. But what I did pick up is Wars is not someone to fold quickly under pressure. You do a lot of that game with very few PCs on the map while a LOT of emergencies come at you full-speed. Wars is fantastic at balancing out who needs help literally right this second and who he unfortunately has to delay assisting. These are not easy decisions to make, but they are extremely critical ones that must be made in war or any combat zone.

Additional Weapons/Equipment: -> fire rod -> power gauntlets (from interlink-au, this is used w/ the ball and chain and also separately. -> spinner (again, potentially??? Somehow. I will put this Beyblade into a fight scene one day) -> hookshots -> hammer

Wild

The Ultimate Dodge Tank

BOTW’s entire combat system is literally "Do Not, Under Any Circumstances, Get Hit", to the point where the game actively rewards you for dodging and parrying. This means that Wild’s entire fighting style is based around memorising everyone else’s fighting styles.

Proficient in multiple weapons and weapon-types (i.e. short swords, slashing swords, longswords and spears) and good at using bows in close combat, though he does not get to utilise his champion ability while dodging if he’s holding a bow.

Pls be aware I do actually mean it when I say ‘multiple weapon types’. You DO NOT use a scimitar the same way you use a broadsword, nor a battle axe the same way you do with a claymore. Me @ BOTW’s animations: CHANGE THE FIGHTING STYLES UP YOU COWARDS.

No specialised sword techniques outside of the basic spin attack and downwards slash.

Proficient with all weapon-types while in mounted combat (either on a horse or the Master Cycle Zero), and great at mounted archery too obviously.

Has arguably the strongest Champion Ability next to Urbosa’s Fury, as it’s automatically triggered if the conditions are met and is very hard to block or defend against. And on that topic, let’s begin.

Flurry Rush: -> damage output adjusted for weapon type used (short swords attack x7 times, long swords attack x4 and spears attack x7-10) -> bypasses enemy shields and invincibility frames -> Wild can be knocked out of this (either by being damaged by an enemy or by mistiming the start of his flurry rush – i.e. landing on a sloped surface will cancel a flurry rush before it begins.) -> flurry rushes still affect weapon durability

Bullet Time: -> requires falling from height obviously. -> Your Stamina! It Goes Down! -> also this is the only thing that really changed in TOTK’s combat: stamina is used when firing arrows, not just by entering bullet time itself.

Perfect Guard: -> you can perfect parry literally almost anything, including a bokoblin being thrown at you by a moblin, wolves, and apparently bees. -> negates explosive damage (i.e. remote bombs, bomb arrows, that one Lynel attack) if you manage to consistently get the timing right. I have not, so take this with a grain of salt <3 -> generally only used for Guardians (as far as I've seen from fellow players) and kinda falls to the wayside in TOTK bc there’s no real incentive to use it. -> does not give Wild any actual chance to utilise his champion ability even tho I like writing that it does bc then it would be a useful thing to learn in totk, Nintendo! Shocker!

Additional Weapons/Equipment: -> literally whatever he can get his goddamn hands on -> “You’ve heard of set bonuses, right?” -> Sheikah Slate

[anim-ttrpgs]

Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy Itchio Beta Update January 30th 2025

You can now get a much more polished version of Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy on itch.io! Payment is optional, but greatly appreciated!

I’m proud of this update despite it not really being quite as extensive as I would’ve liked it to be considering the three months in between the last big public update and now, but as if my some act of God, nearly every single member of our team had some kind of personal life issue (moving, illness, etc.) across all of November and December, which really slowed down our progress on Eureka. We were back full steam ahead in January, and that allowed us to at least push one really big improvement through in time for this update: The mystery-writing guide.

It was important to me to release a big public update this month because January 2025 is when we stated on the Kickstarter that Eureka would be releasing. Well, underestimation and unexpected complications have meant that the game isn’t finished yet as of January 2025, but this big update that you can download and play is us making up for that at least partially, it shows our fans that even though we haven’t met our deadline, we haven’t been slacking off, and we do have a lot to show for it.

In addition to new art, new traits, and rules clarifications, the Eureka rulebook now sports an in-depth mystery writing guide. This comes just in time for those of you participating in our mystery module game jam. (Sign-ups are open now, submissions are open from March to April of 2025.)

In addition to a rulebook update, we have released two previously patron-exclusive Eureka mystery modules, “The Eye of Neptune” and “FORIVA: The Angel Game.” You can find them at this link here. Payment is optional but highly appreciated!

Patreon updates will continue monthly as we work steadily on the project.

Oh and one more thing before we get to the full changelog. As many of you know, we run a “TTRPG Book Club” where the club votes on games to play and then splits off into groups to play them (it’s very schedule-flexible), and discusses them as we go. Well, at the time of writing this, Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy is currently in the lead, which means we are very likely to be playing that next. Join the book club during the sign-up period in the next couple of weeks if you want to play Eureka and discuss it with the developers!

Here’s the full changelog!

Copy-editing Progress: Thoroughly copy-edited up to p. 302. Half-ass copy-edited up to p. 322.

We also released Eureka adventure modules “The Eye of Neptune” and “FORIVA: The Angel Game” into free beta on itch.io. Scroll up to find the link and a game jam!

WHOLE BOOK

CHAPTER 1 

Better clarified Unconsciousness. 

Better clarified the penalty negation of Grievous Wounds, gave guidelines for what aid may negate what Grievous Wounds, and made it so that these aids can stack to a penalty negation of up to 4.

Edited and simplified the travel time math when using Ticks.

Worsened penalty for using Medicine on oneself from -1 to -2.

Added some quick fix patches to the Assistance Roll section to make it more clear when Assistance Rolls should and should not be allowed. May end up completely rewriting some parts of this section in the near future to make it so that the divide is less based on Investigative vs Non-Investigative, but instead provide clearer stipulations. One potential issue is we really have to be careful not to write the rules so that every character assisting with every Investigative Roll is the optimal strategy, because that would make the game less fun. 

CHAPTER 2

New Traits: The Truth Comes Out, Poser

Buffed Believer Trait

Nerfed I’m Okay, You’re Okay Trait

Un-Nerfed I’m Okay, You’re Okay Trait

Made vampires and characters with the Arithmomaniac Trait immune to the “Click” Woo Roll effect

Added Crutches to Item List

More art has been added

Buffed Elementary! Trait

Buffed The Ascot Trait 

Buffed The Other Trait 

Buffed Poser Trait

Added Nobody’s Fool Trait 

Added That’s No Way to Feel Trait

Made some clarifications on Tiers of Fear

Made it so there is a flat PM penalty for investigators that are living out of their vehicles. 

Added RVs/campers/trailers to Homes

Lowered the PM of vans and SUVs

Moved Police from Optional to Mandatory on Tiers of Fear

CHAPTER 3

Added a Compromise Armor attack that is also a Movement and can only be done starting from a Grab

More art has been added

CHAPTER 7

Added “How to Write a Mystery” section, a big step-by-step guide on how to write your very own Eureka mystery module. 

Added “Starting an Adventure with Disaster” section

Added more guidelines for Eureka’s tone, setting, and lore.

CHAPTER 8 

Made it so fairies have to make a reflexes roll to be able to spirit away people with extremely brief contact. 

Better clarified some other things about Spiriting Away and “voluntary” skin-to-skin contact.

Added that a Potion of Healing can also cure non-chronic disease. 

Added that more potions than just the curse potions can be made curative by adding an extra Table 3 ingredient, and that curative potions can be bought with WP just like other potions. 

Clarified that gorgons can’t eat rocks.

Clarified that advanced curses can override each other.

Changed Monsters Eating Monsters section to Monsters vs Monsters and made it a more generalized section about all kinds of edge cases that might come up when monsters interact with each other. The section is kind of disorganized right now but will be cleaned up in copy-editing. 

Clarified that all wolfmen have a human form as one of their three forms.

Redid the hunting tables and added the tables for the Bar/Nightclub, Gay Bar/Nightclub, and Gaming/Hobby Store. They are not fully complete but they are at least functional at this time. 

Vampires now have a chance to start partially phasing through objects when they are at 0 Composure.

Changed the standard Stealth bonus vampires have at max Composure from +3 to +2.

Adjusted the mechanics for how to permanently “kill” a vampire. 

More art has been added

Buffed Learning by Example TFB Ability 

Clarified fairies taking voices 

Clarified the animal options for the Curse of Transformation

[chkrschss]

Oh boy oh boy brethren. I got another “I’m venting vicariously through SQH” writing. Warning: it’s not accurate to character prolly. I’m having fun

Shang Qinghua is smart. He’s gotta be to keep everything in order at Cang Qiong Peak and the Northern Ice Palace. He also keeps up a persona of nervousness and fear all the time. This persona definitely leads to people thinking less of him. They assume he’s just bumbling around and barely keeping his sanity (which isn’t wrong per se but not in the way people think).

So it becomes very frustrating when the An Ding Peak Lord is actually trying to be serious. Merchants and foreign adversaries look at him with very low opinions of him. Sometimes, he gets very excited discussing with someone about topics of cultural exchange and philosophies. People around him act as though he’s just making up so bullcrap to keep the conversation going but Shang Qinghua is legitimately ecstatic to be able discuss deeper topics.

Sometimes, Shen Qingqiu is a perfect person for Shang Qinghua to drag into an in-depth discussion about the intricacies of his world.

Most of the time, the author finds someone on his journeys and is able to pick apart their brains and cultures. He’s having a blast.

But then….

He finishes his fun conversation and overhears people complaining about him. Or just blatantly dismissing the topics he was talking about earlier. Comments of how boorish that whole discussion was. Or how they’d much rather enjoy a night listening to musical entertainment than hear Shang Qinghua’s mindless utterances.

Ok. Whatever. Their opinions are none of Shang Qinghua’s business.

If the something happened to some rooms at the inns those people were staying at or some items were suddenly stolen, it was also none of his business, too.

[hugemilkshake]

Okay so I’ve been playing the Cookie Run games for a while and I’m realizing how in most games Gingerbrave should be dead-

Like that sounds bad but in the games, he’s just been born and somehow finds himself fighting god or something

And most of the time, Gingerbrave has a shit ton of bravery, friends. main character privileges and nothing else

Now that’s not a bad thing, Gingerbrave is a very fun and enjoyable character but let me just tell you what I think the differences between each Gingerbrave is and the tom foolery he experiences in each game (summed up since I don’t feel like going in depth)

And if you want to discuss this then feel free! I’m open to theory’s and other ideas :3

This will have spoilers so be warned!

Ovenbreak

Gingerbrave has been born and escapes the oven with some friends, they find a compass which eventually leads him to battling a primordial dragon (with friends ofc)

In Ovenbreak, Gingerbrave seems like a more head on guy, trying to reach his goal while also aiding others along the way

Kingdom

He escapes the witches house, creates a whole ass kingdom and then chases a dog with a crown which leads him to having to stop Dark Enchantress from destroying cookie kind but now there’s these beast cookies who are also going to destroy cookie kind (and there might be something worse coming) so now he has to help prevent that

Gingerbrave seems like more of a support character in kingdom since he’s usually there for moral support (like at the moment, the ancients are facing most of the challenges-)

Witches Castle

Gingerbraves been born and now had to worry about a witch eating you, but before you escape Ginger Dozer aka your little brother figure gets kidnapped so you save him but now have you are going to find all the cookies from the first batch to save a baby and help First Cream Cookie fitful her destiny

Gingerbrave seems to go with the flow in this one, like “you need help? Well I was going to go and escape but I’ll help”

The Darkest Night (the vr game)

Not many people acknowledg this version and I still want to play it but basically Gingerbrave is born and becomes cookie kinda last hope against the dark lord

Gingerbrave in this one I’m not sure but maybe he’s determined?

And now you might be wondering why haven’t I mentioned Tower of Adventures yet? Well thats because ToA Gingerbrave has one little quirk that makes him not seem like he’d die without main character privilege

He’s the Cookie with a Shinning Heart, the cookie of prophecy. He’s able to reverse darkness/ undo damage the oven has caused. While he’s not sure how he can do this, he was able to vanquish darkness.

He literally has a power besides unlimited bravery.

In ToA Gingerbrave is basically hope and is over all hopeful that everything will turn out just fine

Now I love Gingerbrave, he’s a fun character but ToA Gingerbrave is not only my favorite, but built different.

Because, this is just me but Gingerbrave is very much motivated by his friends, ToA brave is no exception, but if his Sugar Star wasn’t kidnapped and his friends lives weren’t at risk from the oven, he would probably just go and vibe on one of the floors. While the other braves seem like they’ll actively go out of their way to aid someone else.

I will also mention Witches Castle brave because he kinda just wants to escape but he literally didn’t have to help out, he could have dipped, and come to think of it, all of the braves except maybe Darkest Night and ToA could have dipped.

But now I’m will say that Darkest Night Gingerbrave could have just hidden away instead of fighting the dark lord.

So basically ToA Gingerbrave is the only one who 100% had to do something and somehow seems the most chill? Like yes, the position he’s in is probably stressful but in dialogue in the levels, you can see that he’s having fun with his friends while he’s on his adventure!

So in summary if I was Gingerbrave I would have become a villain by now-

[nabi-unveiled]

A Few Interesting Breadcrumbs On This Finale Eve

An interesting discussion with @ginnymoonbeam led me to rewatching the flashback scene of Hagiwara and Kaori.

I'll be honest, it's one of the scenes that I don't pay a lot of attention to in my rewatches. I'll have to think about what that says about me.

However, this rewatch led to a few interesting discoveries.

Hagiwara seems to have been in a meeting about the eyelash curler when Kaori/him first met.

This is the product he references when he's talking to Sei at the party. There's not a lot to dig into there, but it's an interesting parallel.

Hagiwara and Kaori BOTH stare at each other when they meet. So they never had the phase of Hagiwara being interested but Kaori not.

She leads/controls this relationship (because he lets her). However, Hagiwara actually DOES initiate physical contact/intimacy with Kaori. She grabs his hand to talk about his nails, but HE is the one that grasps her hand turning it into a handhold.

There's an interesting parallel in the phone call between Kaori/Hagiwara and Hagiwara/Sei. Kaori calls confessing her feelings saying she is restless and wants to see him. Hagiwara says he'll go to her, and they end up having sex.

In the call between Sei/Hagiwara, Hagiwara calls and confesses his feelings (different feelings but still feelings). Like Kaori said about herself in the flashback, he's restless. He doesn't say that he wants to see Sei like Kaori did. (It's actually Sei who in a later scene said he wanted to see Hagiwara.) But Sei says very similar words to what Hagiwara said in the flashback, and they end up having sex.

The difference is that Hagiwara doesn't let Sei come to him. They meet in the middle. They BOTH want to go the other. There's not a one way flow of energy here.

I don't know if I've said it in a post before, but Hagiwara is a mirror.

He's great at reading people, and he's good at matching what people want/expect. It's what makes him so good at his job. It's a great trait for a salesman. Hagiwara tries to keep everyone comfortable. If they joke, he jokes. If they're serious, he's serious. Kaori gives shallow conversation, so he has shallow conversations with her. Sei is more straightforward and personal in conversation which allows him to be more straightforward and personal. He can explore the depths of Tokyo with Sei. He couldn't do that with Kaori.

In e-mail, Hagiwara allowed himself more freedom. But in person? He will suppress his thoughts and deprioritize himself to give the other person what makes them happy and comfortable. It's why him giving Sei sweet coffee and refusing to let Sei out of the room is a BIG deal. (For those watching Perfect 10 Liners, there's some interesting parallels to Faifa here. It's not the EXACT same dynamic, but there are similarities.)

Which leads us to our last fun discovery (and really what started this whole flashback rewatch).

I was overexplaining a head canon I have about why Hagiwara kept asking Sei (in e-mail and in-person) if he had always been attracted to men. Indulging my need to talk about this show, @ginnymoonbeam posed an excellent question about why Hagiwara had become so avoidant with Kaori.

After all, he may not have realized he was attracted to Sei, but he was already initiating with Sei. He WAS attracted to Kaori too. Wouldn't he have shown similar behaviors then? Well, we know they never had the one sided attraction phase. That's part of it. Gender could be a part of it. (I don't think that's it, but going into those reasons would make this post way too long.)

However, Kaori has been subtly rejecting Hagiwara physically all along. When he turns the hand grab into a handhold, she hesitates. And then there's this...

Hagiwara initiates a back hug.

Kaori doesn't REJECT it, but she doesn't ACCEPT it either. And this is when they're "madly in love" and in the honeymoon stage.

As Hagiwara says, she's always indirect. BUT Hagiwara is a mirror, it would only take a few soft rejections like this before he begins toning it down. It says something that he was still trying to initiate sex at all.

Contrast that to Sei who always encourages Hagiwara to open up more and who think its strange that Hagiwara is polite with him. Hagiwara apologizes to Sei any time he thinks he may have been too open, crossed a line, or made Sei uncomfortable. It's a lot.

Hagiwara isn't USED to being this open/direct with people. He's a super genuine and thoughtful person, but he is USED to masking. (Makeup in public analogy - I see you.).

Sei always affirms him though and tells him it's okay to be open. He doesn't accept the apologies. Sei encourages him to let his own thoughts take priority over the mask.

Because of this, Hagiwara learns to directly express what he wants with Sei. This happens at least five times with Sei. "There's so much I wanna talk to you about", "I just want an answer", "I want to have sex with you", "I don't want you to go", and "I want you".

Hagiwara mirrors that accepting energy back to Sei as well. He tells Sei it's ok to be him.

He doesn't judge him for being rude, not having LINE or not liking transportation. He accepts him, rough edges and all. In fact, he doesn't even see it AS rough edges.

Just like they met in the middle, they both allow each other to be comfortable in their own skin. They allow each other to have a personal identity. As @respectthepetty has said in several posts at this point, they BALANCE each other.

Which is why I need them TOGETHER AND HAPPY!

Please, please, pretty please. I don't even care if I don't get the things on my symbols & parallels wish list. Just let them be happy.

[sleeplesssmol]

From the Depths of Space Summary (Ulrich’s Story)

Appearances:

Ulrich

Greta

Windsong

Enigma 

Lucy

Dora (She’s the first casualty of the spell la unua cirklo)

Ulrich’s story begins before the events of Vereinsamt and after Farewell Rayashki. It happened around the time Enigma (Adler) was rumored to have fallen from the 6th floor of Laplace. In reality, he consumed too much expired food and alcohol, resulting in simultaneous alcohol and food  poisoning.

Greta makes an appearance in Ulrich’s story. She is visiting her brother in the rehab center and also wants her brother to quit drinking. You can tell she loves her brother even if he doesn’t always listen to her. Ulrich visited because he wanted Enigma to join the Cryptography Team, but Greta says he’s unfit to work. He needs time to recover.

Madam Lucy is still the director of Laplace. Despite being an Awakened, she takes the needs of “organic colleagues” into account. She employed a policy called Humanitarian Management to take care of physiological and psychological needs of her staff. This is something Ulrich struggles with and he tends to give his subordinates too much work without rest. Lucy is aware of the issue since she received 27 complaints about the issue, many coming from Ulrich’s team. Lucy suggests he take a vacation. Ulrich doesn’t quite understand why, but he accepts her suggestions. He has accumulated over 999 days of unused leave.

During his vacation at another LSCC branch in Plesetsk Ulrich finds a machine that he believes is newly Awakened in his room–it's an oscilloscope. It’s been neglected and left with junk. Ulrich is very respectful to the fellow Awakened and does his best to communicate with it.

Later the LSCC branch tries to throw a welcome party for him but Ulrich thinks it's a waste of funds and gets upset. Ulrich doesn’t drink alcohol either, but there’s only alcohol served at the party. Ulrich ends up ruining the mood and the others call him a buzzkill. Ulrich storms off, where he runs into Windsong. By the way, Ulrich can turn off his sense of smell, which is a neat detail I thought I should include. 

Ulrich vents to Windsong. He came to Plesetsk because he read the activities in the mountains included “resting, gentle walks, and book discussions”. He had no intention of drinking and consuming high sodium foods. Windsong listens to him without interrupting and offers a new perspective on the situation. She mentions how many researchers end up devastated by the Storm and these moments of indulgence are one of the things that keep them going. Ulrich doesn’t understand, but he hears her out. Windsong is a great choice for this interaction since she’s experienced so many failures and lost many things to the Storm, yet she always moves forward. 

After Windsong leaves, Ulrich chooses to stay outside for another hour until the party's over. However, the party is still raging. Ulrich retreats to his room and tries to talk to the oscilloscope again. However, the commotion from the party makes it hard to concentrate. When he leaves his room to tell them to shut up, only Dimitry is left. Dimitry is drunk and leans over the edge of the railing. Ulrich yanks him back by his shirt to save him but this leads to another argument. They’re shouting attracts the attention of the people from the party earlier. Dimitry brings up the oscilloscope and makes fun of Ulrich for thinking it's alive. The crowd joins in and they continue to insult Ulrich. Ulrich snaps and retaliates saying it’d be better if the Storm took them all. The others are stunned by this. Ulrich returns to his room and Dimitry says to the others, “Leave him to his tantrums. He’ll never be one of us.”

Time passes. Ulrich is moved to a bigger room and he’s spent his time trying to understand the oscilloscope. He takes good care of it. Ulrich never disassembles it to see the internal structure and it never crosses his mind (this is most likely out of respect. Awakened like Ms. Radio are terrified of people digging around in them and are very specific about their care.) Ever since the party, he endures people staring at him like an alien when he carries around the oscilloscope. 

Windsong visits him and refers to him as an old friend and brings him cheese and caviar. Ulrich states he doesn’t need them, and Windsong retrieves the gifts saying she’ll give them to someone who does. There is no hostility and she isn’t offended by the rejection. It comes off as an understanding between the two of them. Unlike the others, she asks about Ulrich’s progress with the oscilloscope. However, Windsong isn’t at the branch for a break, she’s here to take shelter from the Storm. Ulrich wasn’t even aware the Storm was coming in less than 12 hours.

As they're talking, the oscilloscope reacts to Windsong's words, surprising Ulrich. When Ulrich starts flipping through pages and papers, Windsong reflexively takes out her pencil, ready to help with whatever he’s up to. Windsong admits she never believed it was an Awakened and Ulrich confesses he started to lose faith too until now. Ulrich decides it’s time to return to HQ and he brings the oscilloscope with him. He also brings back a game console as a gift for his colleagues. He makes the oscilloscope the team’s main priority. Dora suggests asking Enigma to help them decrypt the oscilloscope. They end up running into Greta. 

Greta informs them that Adler is unwell. She also tells them his birthday is coming up. He is turning 28, but she will be on a mission in the Flannan Islands (Marcus). She’d like someone to deliver his gift on her behalf. 

Ulrich and Dora deliver the cake as promised, but things don't go as planned. Ulrich and Enigma end up arguing. Dora sings happy birthday in German hear and it's voiced.

The story then skips to after the events of Vereinsamt during the time Ulrich is on his hunger strike. Enigma is the one who approaches him and he brings up the fact he's been working on the oscilloscope. The oscilloscope is not an Awakened, but it is still unique in that it is receiving signals from a satellite unaffected by the Storm.  This leads to the events of Last Evenings on Earth (2.4).

[twoidiotwriters1]

Chapter 4. The Artist

Summary: If he does not leave his hiding spot willingly and upfront, you will squeeze in sideways to reach him. Masterlist Previous Chapter // Next Chapter Words: 1,446 Listen to: Growing Sideways -by Noah Kahan A/N: Reblog or comment, pls! -Danny

"May I inquire about your family, then?" Benedict stands with both hands behind his back. "Unless you consider it none of my business..."

You smile at his teasing. "Depends on what you wish to know."

"Silly nothings," he leans sideways on the stone bannister. "If you're having fun in London... Why are you in London when you could be in further interesting places..."

"You don't think London is interesting?"

He tilts his head a moment, narrowing his eyes. "I think it's old and damp."

"On both we agree. Although I do not see its age as a bad thing."

"And the dampness?"

"That I do hate," you say with a sheepish smile, "But I had to make this visit nonetheless, I would've never left Genovia on my own, so my family came to support me. I should've started my rounds at social events seven years ago when I debuted."

"You've been postponing this for seven years?" He can't tell if this amuses, or rattles him. "Good lord... I must admit it is somewhat heartening, that a royal admits they dislike these... events. Makes me feel less of an oddity."

"You are a bit odd if you dislike balls," you push a strand of hair away from your delicate brow. "I long for a gathering where I can be myself without bringing my usual mishaps into it. A man such as yourself, handsome, social, and intelligent, never lacks approval."

"Yes, well, that is the problem," he scowls at a point in the distance. "Too many people claiming to like me when they don't even know me. The debutants, most of all. They search for a husband in me, which I'm not. I don't think I'll ever be one."

"A bachelor who wishes to be noticed instead of admired?" You raise a brow. "That speaks of depth. Lady Danbury said you like art, are you an artist yourself?"

Benedict's eye twitches before he adopts a fake smile. "Your Royal Highness, my duty tonight is to entertain you, so allow me to steer us towards our next activity—A stroll around the garden."

"Have I reached an uncomfortable topic of conversation?" You ask bluntly.

"Not at all," he guides you to the steps that lead down to the open grounds. "I don't wish to bore you with a story that has no substance."

"Now I'm more curious," you reply playfully, your gaze on him even as you walk down the steps.

"I want to keep my private life private if you don't mind," he steers you in the direction of a bush of big, red roses.

"And what shall we discuss, the weather?" You steer to the other side of the path to examine the lavender.

"Your Royal Highness wanted to know more about my family," he points out, keeping a respectful distance two steps behind you. "I'd be happy to talk of each and every member of my bloodline if you wish. In fact, I feel obliged to let you know my younger sister, Hyacinth, yearns for a chance to meet you."

"I would be delighted to meet her, is she in attendance?" You respond without looking away from the flowers.

"She's thirteen, but so clever she could surpass any debutante in conversation," he informs you, discretely pulling your skirt out of the bushes with his foot. "She's a precocious little thing."

"And yet not a single hint of chastisement in that declaration," you smile at the daisies. "You're quite proud she is that way."

"Well, you see your sister grow into a lady that will not be swept off her feet by any regular rake, and you can't help but rejoice in it, especially when you're a... man yourself." He stumbles over his words before calling himself a rake.

You notice there are telltales in Benedict's behaviour that indicate he's trying his best to be plain, which bugs you. You wish to speak with the man who stumbled upon you at Hyde Park and teased you like a friend, not this curated version of him. If he does not leave his hiding spot willingly and upfront, you will squeeze in sideways to reach him.

"You have paint on your hand." You say as casually as possible. Benedict looks down in alarm and you laugh. "Ah-ha! You are an artist!"

"You—" he purses his lips before he can blurt out affront. "I'm not! I thought I'd touched something freshly painted!"

"Oh, yes, that is a common occurrence, fresh paint is everywhere," you reply sarcastically. "You're an artist, Mr Bridgerton. I'm willing to be you own a sketchbook. Are you good at drawing with coal?"

"Charcoal," he corrects unable to stop himself. "I burned that wretched thing a year ago. Please—"

"I keep a diary," you continue steadily, "and I draw the herbs and flowers I find in my trips, but I'm not good at it."

"I'm not a teacher," Benedict says promptly, his feet itching to turn away from the conversation.

"You will be now," you give him no chance to refuse, your expression adopting a royal severity you've learned to master thanks to your mother. "You'll be here on Monday at noon to discuss our lessons."

"Are you out of your wits?" His personality slips out as he glares at you. "Or is this your way of punishing me for my impertinence?"

"Neither," you say without reacting to his tone. "I want your company for this season because I find you..." You push your shoulders back and squint as if trying to read him. "Engaging. Your sister Miss Hyacinth is invited, too. I'll write to her in the morning. Now, let us return to the ballroom."

Benedict watches you retreat, barely able to keep his animosity under control.

When the ball ends you reunite with your sister, excusing yourselves for the night and walking together to your chambers. 

"Who was that gentleman you clung to the whole evening?"

"I did not cling, he wouldn't stand close enough for me to do so," you grumble.

"But who was he?" Marie insists.

"My new art teacher," you disclose proudly. "He'll come back this Monday."

"Art teacher?" Marie gives you a look. "Since when do you draw?"

"If I knew how to draw, I wouldn't need a teacher, would I?"

"There's something you're not telling me." Your sister sees right through you nonchalant act.

"Let us get to my room first," you grab her hand and pull her forward.

You kick off your shoes and huddle up on the lounging chair, where she tells you about the dashing gentlemen she conversed with and the debutantes she befriended, the funny incident one of your brothers suffered with a redheaded lady, and how she's made plans for the week ahead.

You listen, and when it's your turn to speak, you don't know where to start. "Well... Yesterday while everyone visited the castle grounds, I went to Hyde Park for a stroll—"

"Y/N!"

"Nothing happened!" You say defensively. "I had a lovely time. This gentleman approached me and initiated a conversation, which I quite enjoyed." You blush. "I didn't know he'd be here tonight, but it's a good thing he was. I do not have kindred spirits in this particular side of London 'cept for him, it seems."

"Oh, you've barely left the castle at all!" Marie huffs stubbornly.

"I'm not completely opposed to meeting more people even if we don't fit," you shrug, brushing off the wrinkles on your dress. Benedict feels like a comfortable risk, something that your parents can see as progress without having to put yourself out there in a real way. "I simply want to secure this acquaintanship."

"Because...?" Your sister prompts, a knowing glint in her eyes. 

"Because he's nice to look at," you reply without matching her energy, "is that what you want me to say?"

Marie rolls her eyes. "Oh, you'll get your sense of humour back soon enough, so I won't take your rudeness to heart. All I ask of you is that you tell me if this becomes something else... or if he's open to one-night encounters with his student's sister," she winks at you and gets up.

You toss a small cushion at her and she exits the room laughing. Your smile fades as soon as she's out and you slump on the chair, taking off the pins on your hair one by one and tossing them to the table in front of you. 

All these effort—you think grumpily as your hair cascades down your shoulders—and no one looked at me... not like he did in the park.

Benedict is an easy target, something to keep yourself busy and ignore all the ways you cannot come out of your shell as a grown woman. Vexing him is better than embarrassing yourself in front of large groups three times a day. 

He's getting paid for all the trouble, so really, what is there to complain about? This will be the best season of his life.

Next Chapter –>

Taglist.

@babypink224221 @Booknerdlife @djsporks @lght-roastcoffee @marii-ren @mythical-goth @omgsuperstarg @creepytoes88 @sarahskywalker-amidala @23victoria @shadowolf993 @squirreljoe @syxtiramishuui @stargirl-mayaa

[adobe-outdesign]

Random Neopets review: Dimensional

(Doing some random reviews because there are no Neopet review requests in the inbox right now. If you have any send them in etc etc.)

Dimensional is a pretty strange colour, as it's not really clear what it's supposed to be. The name is too vague to be useful, and the actual design is...the best way I can describe it is kind of like a neon sign, but also not, which isn't very helpful. Specifically, it makes the pet's outline white, adds a glow effect to it, and then fills in the empty space with a textured color of some kind. It's unique enough, but it's pretty niche and not all that exciting.

Part of the issue is that the colour remains the same for all Neopets (minus some artistic decisions). Consistent colours aren't bad or anything, but there's nothing about this one that's interesting enough to hold its own. It does change which solid color is used for each pet, but that actually can lead to issues—rather than keeping the base dark and changing the glow, it usually changes the darker colour, resulting in garish or just plain ugly pets, with the yellow ones looking particularly, uh, Bad.

I feel like a more interesting direction would've been just to go full neon sign—maybe even make the areas between the lines transparent so people could go ham customizing. It would still be niche, but I feel like that would be more unique and fun to play with at least. Regardless, this isn't the worst colour, but it's definitely not the best.

Dimensional was created after conversion, so there's no pre-customization art to discuss.

Favorite Species:

Koi: The dimensional Koi was literally just released yesterday at the time of writing, and it looks surprisingly nice. What's unique here is that it uses a simple dark purple base with varying hue shifts, but also uses multiple colors for the line glow, including orange and blue. It's very pretty and gives the colour a bit more depth and visual interest than it usually has. The Uni does something similar and also looks pretty good.

Quiggle: The dimensional Quiggle is mostly standard, minus one thing—instead of just making the eyeballs white, they're instead transparent and sit on top of the body. That's very fun, and something that I think more dimensional pets could play around with. The red also works pretty well thanks to the dark-colored base providing contrast.

Eyrie: The dimensional Eyrie isn't anything super special, but it does look good. The dark and light blue contrast is solid, and the lines genuinely look like they're glowing (instead of being a solid white with a glow around them). The glow itself also seems to change width throughout, giving it a good sense of depth, and there's no real texturing on the base to mess it up.

Least Favorite Species:

Hissi: There were unfortunately a lot of contestants for this spot (including the dimensional Usul and Acara), but the Hissi is probably the worst. The body texture is both weird and distracting, and the lines barely look like they're glowing. Also, the pupils are missing, so now what should be the eye highlights look like the pupils and that's just weird and very off-looking. Also also, the color is pretty desaturated. Bleh.

[darkstarofchaos]

Having seen some frankly irritating opinions from both sides of the aisle, I think some of y'all need to chill about the way the Decepticons were handled in EarthSpark.

Decepticon fans are allowed to be upset that the faction's depth and potential for development was tossed aside in favor of "Decepticons are just evil".

However, depth and potential doesn't mean the Decepticons have to be buddy-buddy with the Autobots. Depth is amoral, you can be a villain who resists "redemption" and still be a well-rounded character.

My issues with S2 vs S1 are as follows:

The lack of good explanation for why the sides are fighting again. I am not upset that the Cons are villains again. They have no reason to like or trust any human or Autobot, and gratitude for having your life saved only goes so far. My issue is that S2 literally opens by saying the Cons started the fight again just because that's what Cons do. Obviously the story is from the perspective of the main cast, and there are hints that they could be intentionally unreliable narrators (Starscream refers to them as oppressors, Breakdown challenges Bumblebee about giving up on Cybertron), but we aren't given enough time with the Cons to draw a solid conclusion about the intentions here.

The way the heroes treat Spitfire, i.e. a literal newborn. She was 100% in the right when she said that she didn't know the moral rules she was being expected to follow. But because she wasn't born with morals and an understanding of mortality preinstalled, the heroes condemned her instead of trying to de-escalate and take responsibility for their part in the situation (granted, Megatron was the only flight-capable adult present and he argued against de-escalation. Which tracks because he's Megatron. But someone should have pushed for a peaceful resolution).

How much depth do individual Decepticons still have? Who knows, Starscream, Shockwave, and Breakdown are the only ones with any focus. The others are only seen fighting, causing trouble for fun, or just standing around growling. Twitch - i.e. one of our main characters - literally spends an entire episode in the Con camp and we still manage to see nothing of Decepticon life when they're just hanging out. And yes, I know that the more characters you have in a scene, the harder it is to show their personalities. You can still show them playing cards or arm-wrestling or something. Anything to show that they're actually people and not just a hive mind that exists to fight.

Starscream. Specifically the last 20 minutes of the S2 finale, because everything else in his characterization fit S1 until that point. He literally calls the Autobots oppressors, so of course he's going to fight them. He wants Aftermath kept out of the way (that's a child, so that's perfectly reasonable) and he's frankly patient with Twitch-as-Spitfire, in spite of Skywarp's incredulity that he lets her "get away" with causing trouble (again, that is a child. Patience is the correct response). He even seems to like Spitfire after meeting the real her. The only issue I had with Starscream leading up to the second half of the finale was that his motivations didn't seem to be much deeper than "I want power" (I could be misremembering that point - there may have been an "Earth is going to be our home, let's make it better to live on" when he and Shockwave discussed Cybertron). And then the last 20 minutes happened and I can't see any logical extrapolation from S1 to that. It was just a generic "Starscream goes mad with power", and it came completely out of left field. Not even any remorse about what he "needed" to do or any attempt to justify himself, it was just, "Yeah, I'm worse than the people I called out for being oppressors, isn't it great?"

If there is some big plot twist where it turns out the heroes were unreliable narrators all along, some of my issues will actually be fixed. However, I find that extremely unlikely, for one major reason: all of the non-Decepticon characters who disagree with the heroes are either villains or they "come around". The Quintessons felt betrayed by Quintus? Nah, Quintus was a great guy, you can tell because he tortured a kid for wishing she had never been chosen by him. Prowl doesn't like the Autobots' reliance on children? Silly Prowl, those kids are special, we want them to fight. The narrative never, at any point, entertains the idea that those dissenting voices might have a point. Which means we're probably meant to take the heroes at face value on most, if not all things.

TL;DR: the Decepticons being villains makes perfect sense, even with the context of S1; it's the heroes acting like they're only fighting for power after we had several episodes about second chances and not all Decepticons being the same that makes it feel like a cop-out. And Decepticon fans are allowed to be upset that some of their favorite characters had interesting stuff going on only to be functionally relegated to Voiceless Grunt Number 3 (and yes, several Autobots have also been relegated to Voiceless Grunts. If one of your favorite characters has fallen victim to this affliction, regardless of faction, you have my sympathies).

[dhampling]

one mine, both yours bard gn!reader, 1.6k

‘Is my resident corvid lacking ample opportunity to thieve elsewhere? Surely not.”

His gaze wavers slightly, but his own smile remains firmly wide. He wants information. By right of him finding these pages, he sees himself as entitled to it.

-

astarion's habit of visiting your tent leads him to your hidden pile of sonnets. your secret is out.

word count: 1,675

a massive THANK YOU to the beautiful anon who sent this my way - 'bard reader writing countless sonnets about Astarion, and him finding them' - I had a lot of fun figuring out the dynamics here, so hopefully it's something a little different!

as always, read the tags and decide your fate!

“How long have you been here?!”

You, wholly aghast, pinned at the mouth of your little tent by those playfully accusatory eyes. Loose ink-laden pages in both hands as he flickers them in the air. White scintillates against the amber of the fire outside.  

He sits cross-legged in the corner by your keepsake pack, grinning ferociously; tongue denting with the tip of a fang in pure salacion. 

“I’ve found your little stash, sweetling! How far back do all these go?”

You look to him with a hint of unease you’re aware needs to go. Offer up your own coy grin and straighten your sagging shoulders.

Astarion coughs with the flare of an announcement as you fail to respond.  

“Beneath the moon, we weave a tale,

In weighty whispers, light as lead,’

A magistrate working a courtroom. The quirk of a brow. Not once do his eyes leave you.

‘A silent yearning, a hidden trail,

Those labyrinthine corridors, we now tread.”

“You’re rifling through my things, now?’

Your churlish grin rivals his. Arms fold over your chest.

‘Is my resident corvid lacking ample opportunity to thieve elsewhere? Surely not.”

His gaze wavers slightly, but his own smile remains firmly wide. He wants information. By right of him finding these pages, he sees himself as entitled to it.

You and Astarion have - remarkably - been as thick as thieves since the moment he held a dagger to your throat beside the wreck of the nautiloid. Through your time on the road so far your own banter often supersedes general group conversation, with his quick wit and deprecating humour delighting you in their scathing execution. He gives you a sounding board to tread against whilst out in the relative wilderness of the Sword Coast and for that, you thank the stars each evening. 

You know little of his own background. You know he worked in Baldur’s Gate as a magistrate long ago. You know you offer him your own blood whenever he needs it, and that those who were displeased with his condition were told in no uncertain terms by yourself that they were welcome to leave the party.

He continues boldly on. You watch his performance with silent glee, moving from the mouth of your tent to sit lazily astride your bedroll.

“His raffish laughter, euphony so sweet,

Resounds within, stokes passion's fire’

He stops and holds a finger in the air. You lean in with mock enthral.

“So we know it’s a him.”

“Very perceptive, Astarion. Pray tell - you have considered a career with the Fist, yes?”

He playfully taps you on the leg. You roll your eyes.

‘In friendship's dance, a heart starts to beat,

As adoration emerges, a burning desire.”

Whilst notoriously catty, he has a depth to him which allows for enjoyable discussion. He’s a natural performer - with which you resonate - and yet he has layers that you haven’t quite been able to penetrate yet.

It sometimes feels almost like he’s a little surprised that you want to. That you care enough to show interest in his blatantly miserable background to press him on it. Compassionately, but still insistent. 

He jokes about it. You and your ridiculously unfounded want to listen to him. To hear his thoughts, rattle them about in your own head and give a considered response in return. A gift, he’ll smile and reassure with mirth in those late night discussions; cupping your face in one hand as you bat him away in laughter. 

“Are we quite done?” You interrupt with a smile. He senses your want to move on.

Astarion drops the page from his face and rests back on his palms.

“Did you ensnare him in the end?” 

“Hm?”

He picks up a chalice and looks across to you. 

“The subject. Did you beguile him? Love unrequited no more?”

A beat of silence. 

“I haven’t, no.”

A noncommittal shrug, but a hopeful look in your eye. You’re whimsical, ever-the-optimist; you can survive this.

“You haven’t?”

His eyes are awash with scandal. Leans back, swirls his wine and purses his lips with an impish tut. Scans over the page once more from afar.

“Tentative hearts paired on the floor,

One loosely mine, but both now yours.”

Another beat of silence.

It’s been a fraught time so far, but his company has made it easier. 

You’ve enjoyed multiple messy nights under the stars together, come undone at his hand more than you’d care to regale him with; laughed in the early morning sunrise as he basks in the light and continued on as the closest of wayward friends. Drunk bottles and bottles of fine wine (finessed from Gale’s tent, obviously) all the way from the Emerald Grove to Moonrise, and now back again.

“Well. I liked it. The last full stanza was a little messy, but-” 

“Is that why you omitted it?’

He sniffs. 

"How long have you been sat in here?” 

You’ve caught him out, just as he has you, but there’s no urgency in your voice. No judgement nor malice. He has seen your secrets now. You’d intended on sharing them eventually, but a forced hand is better than an empty one.

“A small while. I came looking for you, realised you were elsewhere; and just found your pack open.” He smiles a little, wiggling his fingers.

“Read it to me, then. The last stanza.” You rest your chin on your palm, elbow on your crossed leg.

Astarion looks at you and surprisingly, there’s no guard. 

No triumph, no teasing in his discovery. Inhales.

“If I read it, then it’s real. Or it isn’t, but you’ll know I’ve read it.’

He sighs, muttering.

Oh.

Oh.

“Go on! Read it.”

He looks at you. Really, carefully looks at you. Inhales once more. 

“In twilight's embrace, where secrets reside,

In the quiet, ardour awoken,

A subtle shift, devotion now bides,

Astarion and I, our bond unspoken.”

“Brilliantly told. You’re a natural.” You smile, tilting your head to him.

Astarion sits and watches you for the longest of moments. Meets your eyes with his own.

“That’s it? You’re not mortified?” He queries. 

You frown.

“Why would I be?”

Astarion looks at you like you’re insane. Completely and utterly insane. His tone remains temperate but his eyes are almost frantic.

“I’ve just found your sonnets - pages upon pages, no less - all regaling our bond. Read one, aloud; to your face. You don’t recoil. You’re not ashamed?”

All bravado drips from his face like a wet cloth. His shoulders sag a little. 

You loll your head back as you sit, reaching for his chalice and taking a big sip as you ruminate. The wine steeps your teeth and tongue in a deep heady nectar. It’s good.

“You’re a good muse, Astarion. I’m fond of you.’

You lean in and whisper.

‘I may even go as far as to call you my favourite travelling companion, but don’t tell the others.”

His lips quirk softly. He’s slow to speak.

“I was looking forward to teasing you about this, you know.” He tuts and shakes his head, face statuesque in the low light.

“Then why don’t you?”

A genuine question. You still nurse his goblet of wine.

“Don’t make me say it, you brute.” 

You look at him with a quiet mischief settling across your features. His gaze remains narrow.

“You already have.’

A quiet sip. A smile.

‘Our bond.”

Gods. He is beautiful. Eyes foxlike in their stasis, defined by thick dark lashes; lingering on the strewn page in contemplation. Hair perfectly coiffed. Lithe fingers frozen in midair as he exhales.

A few beats of silence. 

Outside the tent, insects chirp and the fire crackles. The river floats languidly on. 

“I don’t know how to do this.” Astarion speaks quietly.

“What?”

“Gah- I don’t know. This. Any of it.” He confesses, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“I think we’re doing a good job as we are, no?”

His gaze turns to you, hands reaching to eagerly grasp your wrists in affirmation.

“Yes! Yes. We are.’

He grimaces.

‘I didn’t expect to… I didn’t expect I’d meet someone like you again in my life. Now that I have you here, I’m rather reluctant to let you go.”

“It’s a good job you don’t have to. Provided I never catch you rifling through my things again.’

You take one last sip of your pilfered wine as your eyes meet his in the low amber. 

‘I love you. There’s no rush.”

He takes his chalice from you and downs the remaining contents.

“Minus the very real possibility I’ll watch you succumb to ceremorphosis, or vice versa; I suppose.” He mutters through closed teeth. 

You shove him with your shoulder and sigh.

“Now then. I’ve just been absolutely humiliated by my closest friend in this whole camp. I’m tired, my back hurts, and I need to rest. Can I help you with anything else?”

Astarion’s eyes linger on yours momentarily before skimming over your lips. You swear your heart skips a beat.

“Can I?”

“Gods, yes.”

Your first shared kiss unfettered by the marrings of carnal pleasure alone is beyond anything you’d hoped for.

He cradles the back of your head as his lips press softly against yours, over and over; until he’s verging on hungry with his movement. His tongue tastes of wine and he smells so overwhelmingly of him - herbal with sweetened clinical notes of brandy - that you want to bury your head into his shoulder and spoon him until the sun rises once more. 

“Oh songbird. I couldn’t tire of you if I tried, could I?” His voice heady and deep, forehead pressed to yours,

“Can I test that theory?” You tilt your head, leaning in for another small kiss. 

“Hm?” His eyes are heavy lidded, burning in the low light.

“Stay here tonight. Let me hold you.”

He stops for a minute.

“Just… hold me?”

You hum and nod, bringing a hand to his hair and carding through it softly.

Astarion smiles.

“I’d love nothing more.”

[joojdraws]

Me needs talk about something undiscussed about Rarold that I do find quite interesting to analyze in-depth... Because, I do think he is an interesting character. (⚠️ Spoilers under the cut!!!)

Rarold's motives. As shrimple as that. 🦐

Before I elaborate on all that I have to say, all the way back in September 2022 I had a discussion with a friend that met the BKMN author at a convention... you can of course have your own interpretation on his case... but ever since I heard about it... IT HAS BEEN LIVING IN MY HEAD RENT FREE. And it makes so much sense with what happens in the book once you know this undiscussed detail about him. It makes his character so much more interesting when you know the reason of his actions. And it's why I love him.

In the book, it never is explained what were the reasons he did commit all these crimes... but if you don't know the fun fact he did kill for the sole reason blood would make his crops grow better... I feel like there is some clues there in the book that leads to this information.

We all know Rarold is the "Copycat killer". He doesn't have any original way of killing. (Sorry, Rarold, I love you but it's true... 🐒)

One of my headcanons for him is that he doesn't know how to kill at all. And that his wife most likely is his very first victim, and before that he never killed anyone... ever. Obviously sucks at killing. Which is why he got ideas from both the "Dead Rope Killer 2" movie and from Neighbor's way of killing. For both the ropes and purple threads.

Subtle detail you might miss... but the main character from the "Dead Rope Killer 2" movie most likely is a foreshadowing to Rarold's future crimes... He absolutely is shaped like him! And also, a bit before that part, we can see Rarold standing in front of the theater, and he most likely went to watch this movie for inspiration. (Which is funny to me... Given the fact Neighbor and Wegg were both alone in the theather when they saw that exact same movie, it just is hilarious to imagine Rarold being all alone in there and just taking notes...)

The reason Neighbor kills is related to blood... Hehe. Remember the fun fact I earlier shared in this post? Teehee. Yeah. What if...

WHAAAAAT IIIIIFFFFF... It was also truly Rarold's case...

First time we see Rarold killing someone in the book, is in his cornfield of ALL PLACES... and also, he specifies his corn is "so, so good"... Why would his corn be this good, huh?! Sus if you ask me.

I did some researches about blood and crops... and as cursed as it sounds, it actually is a good fertilizer to grow corn. (I guess that makes sense since blood is... well... organic)

"Anonyme a demandé"... French moment (My first language...) but once someone did ask why the copycat killer (Rarold) only did kill women... the author specified in their post, that it was intentional... and that... THE SEED IS THERE! I know it's a way of saying, but corn grows with seed... and most likely, his wife was the seed. His very first victim. And her blood made her crops grow better...!

Now, I need to talk about the dream/vision part of that one fun fact my friend got at a convention... That would make a similarity between Neighbor and him. Neighbor most likely had a dream about Lady Trudy... Rarold probably had a dream about another sort of deity... and I might have an idea on that deity. Yeah... Lord Calum. Why you may ask...? Well, Lord Calum is bird shaped... and you know what bird likes... yeah! Corn! Believe it or not but a male swan is called a COB. And you know what else is a cob? Yes. Corn on the COB. And a scythe is strangely shaped like a bird when you deeply think about it...

Might be a coincidence but it is interesing to think about... But the way a male swan is called COB and well Rarold's a corn farmer (corn on the COB) that is like... the revelation of the 20th century to me (lol 1974). Another headcanon I have is that Rarold only kills people he was told to kill in his dreams/visions... he doesn't kill any random person. I suppose I told everything I had to say about him and his motives!! Rarold is very interesting to me... Gosh, love the corn man.

Oh yeah, one more thing I'll say... but Rarold did not die. You can see him in the 1975 epilogue chapter... the man is still alive, and apparently not in jail for some unknown reasons... if Neighbor can have a good future despite all the people he killed (Glenn did not deserve his fate btw), I think it's fair Rarold can too. I believe he can be a better person too. Personally I think he regrets what he did, but that's a headcanon of mine! Anyone can have their own interpretation and that's 100% ok. Well here is the end of this post... thanks if you have read everything... I loved to talk about him and it's something I do wanted to share for a while, hehe. 🫶🌽❤️

[zombeebunnie]

Trembling Essence Devlog 1:💙Afternoon route clean up!💙

Hi guys and welcome new followers I hope you're all having a good and safe start into the New year!

This part will contain spoilers if you haven't played through the [Extended Demo], specifically the afternoon route. Here's a link if you would like to play! :]

I want to explain what all was worked on last year up to the afternoon route as a quick recap!

The early start of 2024 was the surprise Trembling Essence [Extended Demo] while the spring/summer of 2024 consisted of me redoing the start of the game leading up to the cabin which included Dialog, CG's, Endings, and the way Noah introduces himself to you.

This was done because a lot of what happened during that segment didn't match what goes on later in the game since my writing and story telling improved. All of it is aboutttt 90% done because I really needed a break from working on it.

Around the fall is when I went through and fixed up the introduction into the cabin.

I added more depth on how the player(Y/N) feels/reacts from being back in the cabin again and cleaned up the different situations you can get depending on your interactions with Noah before he goes to bed along with choices that effects Noah's closeness with the player(Y/N).

"Will the [Extended Demo] receive anymore updates?":

As far as the [Extended Demo] goes, I do have plans on updating it with new/updated content HOWEVER, it will be some time before that happens. I do have a future poll I want to do about this. :[]

Onto the afternoon route clean up:

Midway through December I've been going through the afternoon route and making adjustments as I go! It was a lot of fun to do since I don't think I've played this route since maybe.. the early start of spring? Overall, it gave me a chance to have a fresh perspective of what needs to be adjusted.

I'm still aiming for a meaningful slow-burn build up. :]

I cleaned up the dialog by combining sentences together and slightly removed certain key-words sentences to balance the pacing during this scene. I want some of the talking points the player(Y/N) mentions to happen later in the game since this is still the half of just Day 3. Noah and the player(Y/N) interacting with each other has also been adjusted but not by too much.

The cooking scene:

I wanted the closeness build-up to feel more rewarding so I added 1-2(ish) more choices during the lunch scene and dialed back the dialog so it doesn't drag on too long for both "Chicken" and "Vegetable" choice . I also added a couple of callbacks here too that in canon with how Noah reacts to what you add into the soup! I won't mention any specifics but there is a post or two in the #Get to know: Noah I answered recently that discusses what type of foods he enjoys. :]

The noise scene:

I don't have too much to say about this because not much was changed outside of dialog adjustments and removing key-words sentences to balance the pacing during this scene.

The sewing scene:

I really loved what was already here and it was a lot of fun coming back to this because I was getting better at writing cozy/warm-like scenes around that time. :,D

I'm trying to be very careful when it comes to adjusting this part. The only thing I wanted to do is put a better emphasizes on how Noah truly felt when he caught you sneaking around. In the [Extended Demo], it felt as though you sort-of get punished for picking the choice that shows this because you don't gain any closeness with Noah. In good news around this time my play-tester was able to take a look into what I was doing and did a couple of playthroughs. A lot of good advice was exchanged and it really gave me a better outlook on what to do about this. I still have the original set-up jussttt in case. :,]

This is about where I left off since I didn't get to the final section of this route but I am surprised with how much was completed. I'm really excited about it because that means I'm closer to working on Day 4! :,D

If you like what I create, please consider supporting what I do on kofi [Here]! All donations and tips help tremendously while I continue to work on the game. Since the battery to my computer still dead I might open up chibi commissions through here BUT i need time to figure it out. Thank you to those that optionally bought the [Extended Demo] on itch.io. :,]

Q&A / Ask box is open:

Thank you to everyone that recently sent in asks! I see them and at some point I will respond, I appreciate the small influx of interest! :,D

To know and understand Noah through Asks and random posts about lore, they'll be under #Get to know: Noah ! :]

**Some asks won't be answered if it contains spoilers but I do appreciate what I receive. :]

If you have any questions about Trembling Essence/Noah feel free to ask here or on itch.io please. This makes it easier for me to see and answer accordingly! I enjoy hearing from you guys!

Anywho, that's all I have to share right now. Thank you to everyone's continued support, especially those that have been here since the beginning and have been very patient! I wholeheartedly appreciate it. :,]

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

How do you feel about Felix?

Canon hasn't given Felix enough consistency or core elements for me to have feelings about him. Every time he shows up, he's basically a new character, meaning that I have no idea who he's supposed to be which makes it pretty hard to summon any feelings beyond confusion and occasionally annoyance.

I'm not the sort of person who delights in taking a drop of potential and shaping it into a full character in the context of fandom. I save that stuff for my original fiction. While I do a lot of fix it content, my main draw to fandom is still playing with the established characters/lore/world and so on. I want to create stories and takes on these characters that feel genuine to other fans. That's the fun and the writing challenge. I can't really do that with Felix. Canon has given me nothing solid to work with.

Let's quickly contrast him to Nino since I recently discussed how badly canon has handled Nino and how I had to do a lot of redesigning to make Nino work in my stuff. The core of my Nino redesign comes from canon because it's all firmly rooted in the fact that this guy is supposed to be Carapace, The Protector. Add in the fact that he's Adrien's best friend and Alya's boyfriend - two characters with pretty strong core characterizations - and I'm good to go. Those are strong anchors to work with!

If you removed those elements and Nino was just Adrien's best friend, then I'd probably have no idea what to do with Nino because that's a pretty nebulous role. This is Felix's problem. You can go almost anywhere with his character because nothing about him gives him a clear role in the narrative!

Does Felix care about Adrien? No idea! He's done nothing to help Adrien or make his life better, so my guess is no, but Felix is a good guy now so maybe???

Does Felix actually love Kagami? No clue, their romance is based on nothing of substance. As best I can tell, he just decided that all humans save for his mom were worthless and the show is heavily heteronormative, so he obviously wants a girlfriend and Kagami is kind of his only option unless he makes himself a sentigirlfriend. It's a very weird way to write their relationship. If I were writing this, he'd contact Kagami for some greater plan and fall in love as they worked together, but nope! We get deeply confusing insta love that starts with stalking leading to a kidnapping and ending with them together because this show is incapable of showing healthy romance!

Side note, but with how poorly they've handled Marinette and Adrien's crushes, can you imagine theses writers trying to write a setup where the male lead was actively trying to trick the female lead into loving him (which was the set-up when Felix was the lead)? I think that PV Felix would come across even worse than our current heroes do!

Is Felix okay with people using the peacock? I thought that the answer was "no," but he's happy to use the peacock for pretty mundane things, so who knows? I seriously can't tell you what Felix's attitude towards sentimonsters is. I thought that he was a freedom fighter after that moment in Strikeback where he apologized because I thought that he was apologizing to Strikeback, but now I'm thinking that he may have been apologizing to Ladybug because he was about to betray her??? I don't know, my new best guess is that he only wanted the peacock for protection and that he cares about no one outside himself and those he's deemed worthy. Most sentimonsters are just tools to him. He's basically lost all depth in this area because that would mean treating the sentimonster thing seriously and the show isn't going to do that.

Did Felix care if Gabriel destroyed the world? I don't think so. He didn't really help with Gabriel's "defeat". Felix spent the entire season knowing everything, but didn't tell anyone until it would personally benefit him. That benefit had nothing to do with a fear of Gabriel or even a desire to be a hero like one might expect since he's apparently part of the team now. We didn't even get Kagami making Felix want to be a hero who defends the world or even just a hero who helps his cousin. It was Kagami and Felix wanting to be together more openly and nothing else. Who cares about protecting the world or helping friends? We just wanna be able to go on dates and make out a bit, so can you fix that for us, LB? It's not like you've got anything else on your plate right now!

What a deeply selfish and unheroic motivation for both of our supposed heroes. Remind me, what has Kagami done to earn her miraculous? Because - as far as I can tell - she's really not suited to being a hero anymore. Season five made her look like a selfish, gullible fool.

While we're on the topic of how "heroic" Felix is, I'll also point out that, after this big reveal, Felix disappears. He doesn't help with the final fight or anything like that even though he has all the information on what was going on and a god-tier power set that could be used to free the people being controlled by the rings. Not sure if this is supposed to read as him not caring or just the writers pretending that Felix doesn't exist because letting him fight would undermine Marinette's role since Felix's powers are so much stronger than hers.

Is Felix some sort of genius mastermind? The show seems to want me to say, "yes" to this, but they've never actually written him as all that clever. Much like Lila, his plans really only work because the plot makes them work. For example, he didn't get the miraculous due to clever plotting. He got them because of shear dumb luck. Ladybug could have wielded the dog herself and he'd have been screwed. Same goes for her taking the dog back after he was done using it since he was by no means needed after they took down Risk. I still don't understand how Gabriel was able to open her summoned yo-yo or why Felix waited until the train to check if he had the real miraculous. Basically, the writers really had to warp the show's logic to make Felix's win work.

So who is Felix? No idea! The only thing I can say for certain is that he loves his mom and that's really not enough for me to work with if I want to write a Felix that feels true to canon. Almost any take on him feels true to canon at this point because he's a nothing burger. He has all of the substance of unset jello.

I was briefly excited about his character when I thought that his season four role was setting him up for something big in season five, but then he showed up in Emotion and my excitement died. What even was that episode? It's written like a mental breakdown, but it was foreshadowed in Destruction, so was it a mental breakdown or was this seriously the best plan that Felix could come up with after several weeks of plotting?

To put this in perspective, Gabriel came up with and created the Alliance rings faster than Felix came up with and created Red Moon, a sentimonster that took him all of two seconds to create. I am unimpressed.