average-mako-enjoyer

[average-mako-enjoyer]

If you ask me, I'll tell you that she would have an OnlyFans account, but she would post only mirror selfies and random videos taken with her phone; no tripod, no staging, plenty of awkward angles. Sometimes, the phone even falls out of her or her partner's hands and onto the bed or on the floor. And this shit is still wildly popular, brings her big bucks, and she's definitely proud of it.

As always, I'm asking the most important questions.

Reblog for sample size.

[average-mako-enjoyer]

Garrett deadlifts his Mabari on the Daily and it’s why he’s the only Mage in Thedas who is ABSOLUTELY JACKED

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As always, I'm asking the most important questions.

Reblog for sample size.

[average-mako-enjoyer]

Another point to add to this thread is that the speed with which Circles across Thedas have rebelled since the destruction of the Kirkwall Chantry speaks volumes about the influence Elthina and Meredith held over the Marches. It also speaks to how closely Orlais's political stability is tied to its main religious institution, as well as how dependent the country is on the economic profits from local forms of slavery.

Gaspard only confronts Celene after both the mages and elves start to rebel.

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I just read one of the most hilarious Sebastian-defending posts of my life, which both begs people to see nuance in the characters and claims that Sebastian never tried to convert anyone, only tentatively proposed rat-ting Merrill and Anders to the Templars, and is absolutely justified in demanding Anders's death.

God, the irony.

[average-mako-enjoyer]

for hawke and LI ask game... 15 or 35 🥹

I can do both!

Hawke LI ask

15. If Hawke were to ask advice to someone else about romancing their LI, who would they go to and why?

To Varric, but mostly because Varric is the only other person in their group who is close to Anders, and because Garrett feels that Anders is sometimes more open with Varric than with him.

Garrett usually gets Varric more or less drunk and then goes, "Can you help me figure out why my boyfriend is upset?" Varric thinks it's hilarious.

35. If Hawke were to wear something to represent their love interest, what would it be?

It's a boring and pretty obvious answer, but gold and feathers, and they definitely get themselves matching outfits at some point at Garrett's insistence. Unfortunately, he's one of those people who would proudly wear a "Return to [partner] if lost" t-shirt in public. Lmao.

[average-mako-enjoyer]

For your "Hawke LI " asks 13 & 25 🫡

Hawke LI ask

13. What is the biggest source of conflict in their relationship and how do they handle it?

It's the fact that Garrett is a noble, and being nice to other nobles and those in power is basically his job (and also his duty to his friends and family).

Anders hates the parties, and the afternoon teas, and the letters, and how smarmy everyone is, and all the hushed whispers about his and Garrett's relationship, and the fact that Garrett can't say no to Meredith when she decides to use him as an errant boy.

Like, the first time Anders found out that Garrett does shit for her, was the only time he actually yelled at him.

For Anders all of it mostly feels like he has no part in Garrett's big and important life. Or like he's an accessory: cherished now, but to be mercilessly discarded later, and Garrett's inability to communicate to him that it's not the case doesn't help the situation in the slightest.

So like, Anders is depressed, and Garrett is panicking because he doesn't know how to fix that, and he also doesn't realize that he's part of it. Garrett thinks that he just must make all these sacrifices to protect his family, and he tries his best to shield Anders from this part of his life. Meanwhile, Anders is hurt by the wall Garrett has put up between them, and he also feels guilty because he believes that their relationship is preventing Garrett from taking advantage of all the opportunities available to him because of his Lord Amell status. He believes that he is ruining Garrett's life.

In short, the Chantry explosion essentially saves their marriage.

25. How does Hawke handle the Arishok and Isabela situation, and how does their LI react to it?

Ooof... Garrett fights for her. Mostly out of obligation, because Bela is family, and that's what you do for your family. And also because he's really pissed at Arishok. Garrett's like, "What the fuck, Arishok? The coup? In my city?? I thought we were best pals! I liked you, dude!"

So, they fight, and Garrett thinks he can win without revealing he's a mage, and he gets wounded because of that and is forced to use magic, but he still almost gets killed, and it pisses Anders off so much that he doesn't know how he didn't explode on the spot.

I can see it all in 4K: a huge puddle of blood, Isabela sitting in it, holding Garrett's hand and stroking his hair, and there's Anders, and he is glowing because he's so terrified and pissed that, for the first time, he and Justice unite for an act of healing instead of fighting.

Isabela had been Garrett's kind of girlfriend for almost two years at that point, and she fucked Anders on occasion, and he had learned to accept this entire situationship, and then she does THIS?? He wants to tear her apart, but Garrett is dying, so...

Anders never really repairs his relationship with her after that.

These questions were so much fun! Thank you!

[average-mako-enjoyer]

Not enough people give James Vega love. They see a big ol' himbo with a goofy sense of humor who gives people silly nicknames. And I'm not even referring to the travesty that Bioware gave us with his "romance" either because wtf was that?

I mean James Vega, formerly James Sanders — a young mixed man who changed his last name to distance himself from his criminal father and take on his mother's maiden name. It's also his uncle Emilio's last name, who James looked up to enough to join the Alliance Marines because Tio Emilio was a marine.

I'm talking about the James Vega that was dropped onto Fehl Prime with his team, with little known intel about the hostage situation happening there. The same man whose CO went down in the field and he assumed command to not only save his team, but the whole colony. The same man who went toe-to-toe with a Krogan Blood Pack lieutenant and won.

I mean the James Vega that hunkered down on Fehl Prime for 2 years because those were the orders. He may not have liked them, but he followed them. Not blindly, not without silently questioning the mindset of his superiors and the Alliance brass, but he did it.

Same James Vega that geared up when the Collectors hit the colony while they were outside the settlement's perimeter and snuck his way back in to try and save the civilians. He was also the guy exhibiting extremes of humanity in the emotional sense when faced with choosing to save the data that Treeya Nuwani had in her possession in order to win the WAR, not just the battle, as opposed to getting the colonists to safety (I have more feelings on that, but I'm a believer in the fact that his affinity for Treeya absolutely did factor in to his decision, but that he WAS ultimately playing the long game for the good of the galaxy). This is also the guy that carried the guilt of sacrificing all of those colonists in favor of preserving the data on the Collectors because, guess what? He's HUMAN and he MAKES MISTAKES. He also took furlough on Omega to drown out the guilt for his decision on Fehl because if you're gonna make bad choices, Omega's the place to do it.

Same man who served as a glorified babysitter of Commander Shepard for 6 months before the Reapers hit Earth. He then stuck it out with Shepard & Co. when the reality of the war hit like a ton of bricks. After threatening to get a ride back to Earth from the Citadel, he saw how Shepard moved and understood that sometimes, battles are fought in war rooms, not on the field. Same hombre who got an N7 commendation and didn't immediately accept, but tapped into his self-consciousness and brought it to his Commander who talked him through his own potential and the possibilities she sees for him (yes, Shepard is a woman).

The James Vega I'm talking about is a closet optimist, slightly jaded, and borders on insubordinate when given a radical order (see the beginning of ME3 when they're leaving Earth to go to the Mars Archive). He is loyal, strong, insecure, funny, and one of the most genuine people. If you're a friend, you're one for life. He voices his opinions and remains true to himself. He would 10/10 die for his people without question or hesitation. He could also be classified as a Krogan in Human form.

In short, this is a James Vega house. He is imperfect. And that makes him wonderful and relatable and I will never shut up about him.

[average-mako-enjoyer]

Can I reblog this with your original tags, because you just voiced my exact feelings on Sera?

#she's so neat as a concept but. ouugughhg. #at any given time the writer is just like “i need her to say something quirky/politically disaffected/crude/contrarian #and that's it #regardless of whether it makes sense with anything else... #she could be 90% the same and if they just #had her actually bring up the situation in denerim it would actually make sense #and now you might say “but sunlight-shunlight. that's implied ☝️😌” No It Isn't!! #unless you played dao you have no idea any of that happened lmao. it's not brought up at all 😭 #so i don't think the writer was considering it in the least #her writer was just badly shadowboxing with an anarchist he made up the entire time ;-; #like she's so fully detached from anything in the setting... girl what do you MEAN you think gaspard would be “fun to hang out with” #he would be using you as target practice. that's chevaliers' notoriously common hobby 😭 #the sheer vindictiveness that bioware has towards the dalish for like #“being a little rude” or “wanting to preserve culture after nearly being eradicated” is wild #canadiancore(derogatory)

Love her as a concept, adore her romance, but god, she doesn't fit in her own setting like AT ALL. It's so funny.

imagine if they'd actually written sera as having her internalized elf racism issue as being directly a consequence of seeing [everything happening in denerim/the alienage during dao] as a child, and therefore deciding that the elf culture stuff was useless, since clearly the traditions did nothing to protect them. and then getting raised by a heavily andrastian human noble for a few years, which entrenches this mindset, makes her associate the chantry with a sense of stability, and makes her think "ah, see, if i do this, i don't get hunted for sport! skill issue for other elves, they're just too obsessed with history". this makes her even less able to relate to the other city elves. and it also combines with her fear of magic from seeing the tevinters running around in the alienage.

and then, she has that "why didn't the dalish Simply Come Save Us? must be bc they don't care" attitude, like briala had in the masked empire (the dalish can't do anything bc they literally don't have an army or any large numbers).

maybe as a consequence of her unique upbringing, she's capable of passing as a human (bc she's so tall for an elf) and mimicking noble etiquette to infiltrate and rob places, while still not feeling at home in either.

and then, what if her quest and high approval dialogue related to these themes, which actually integrate into the setting. instead of the somewhat incoherent "i love the little people (except mages or city elves or dalish) so much!! yea i got a bunch of them killed after telling them i'd help them. what about it? this stuff happens. don't be such a drag by telling me to be more careful 🙄" and "while the alienage was experiencing attacks/kidnapping/lockdown/slavers/darkspawn... i was really having trouble too. bc my adoptive mom said a baker was racist. but he wasn't actually 🥺" girl WHAT.

no i do not think "the city elves have arranged marriages" is like. a coherent reason for her to dislike them, bc arranged marriages are set up between families and are expensive and take effort! she's an orphan, no one would be bothering to do that for her!! makes VERY little sense.

the "ahh but she TRIED to meet the dalish and got cruelly rejected!" idea is also like. so completely offscreen and never even addressed in her dialogue? how did she get from denerim all the way to the forest to find a dalish clan? what happened? why did they reject her? never explained, and yet considering the sheer amount of beef she has with their culture, it should be? she's far more harsh about the dalish than she is about human nobility, despite the dalish having... no capability to do anything besides being rude at most? which is again, interesting as a character trait, if it doesn't just come off as an awkward mouthpiece for the writers' own Dislike for non-christian beliefs lmao.

also i find it wild that she's somehow operating as a red jenny in val royeaux when you find her? and yet she's so obviously fereldan, doesn't make any attempt to hide her accent or blend into the locals, and when talking to other companions, is... pretty bad at arguing for her points beyond "i don't like it/that's weird" when she disagrees? how is she getting any of the orlesian servants to trust her and not immediately turn her in to the authorities? i think any fereldan elf trying to commit crimes in orlais would have to be like the most charismatic and smooth and chamelon-esque person to do that, but she's very much not? fjdhgjdg

[average-mako-enjoyer]

Really love how everyone on my dashboard is united in their disdain for the poor writing surrounding the whole 'Tranquil Solution' thing. Meanwhile, I'm doing this

[average-mako-enjoyer]

The Sun and The Moon

more of the self-indulgent experimentation with the cosmic knights, heheh <3

[average-mako-enjoyer]

NO ONE wants to make all mages tranquil. and if someone does, i will be the first to tell them they’re a bigot. all we’re doing is looking at possibly expanding which mages can be made tranquil and which can’t, under the law. especially since there seem to be a lot more of you being born lately. i mean at the end of the day you have to look at the physical reality and admit that your existence poses a real question of safety. nothing personal, i’m sure *you’re* perfectly nice. but surely you can compromise on a few things? especially when society already spends so much time and money accommodating and treating people like you?

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[average-mako-enjoyer]

it feels like people don't endorse mods as much as they used to

it can take multiple weeks for my mods to reach even ten endorsements, much less anymore than that...

endorse mods you use, please. it's a metric that's used about as often as downloads to show a mod's "popularity" or "quality"

[average-mako-enjoyer]

I think the context in which all this is happening is extremely important.

I've already discussed it in this thread, and I apologise for quoting myself.

Orlais is fucked, and its influence over Thedas is waning. Celene had her big shot with the golden boy, Cailan, but he's dead. So, now, there's a major political crisis in Ferelden, which has also been decimated by the blight. The Empire doesn't control anything there anymore. Celene herself is in a precarious position because she doesn't want to marry, and because her extremely influential cousin, who controls her entire army, set his sights on the throne. Meanwhile, the Imperium is at the height of its power and influence, so what if some of the city-states started turning to Tevinter instead of Orlais? If a civil war is slowly brewing in the Orlesian Empire, the Marches must protect their interests, especially if they have a lot to lose. Like Starkhaven. Xd And we all know how important the Marches are to Orlais. Remember Viscount Threnhold? It wouldn't be the first time the Empire used the Chantry as its army.

The assassination of Viscount Threnhold is interesting because it would never have happened if the Kirkwall nobility had not allowed it. But why did they allow it? Well, because their wealth is based on the fact that Kirkwall is one of the biggest and most important ports in Thedas. When Threnhold decided to close the trade, the nobles started losing money.

Like, the whole reason why Dumar is allowed to sit in the palace for so many years is that he would never do what Threnhold did. Yes, he is Elthina's puppet, but he is safe.

Things get a lot more interesting when he gets killed.

I believe the main reasons Elthina, via Meredith, remained the de facto ruler of Kirkwall for three years are:

1. Kirkwall has just gone through a major immigration crisis, with refugees flooding the city.

2. Kirkwall was invaded by the Qunari.

3. The Chantry has historically held a great deal of power over the Marches.

4. For years, Elthina and Meredith used anti-maleficar propaganda to strengthen their influence over Kirkwall and its citizens.

In short, the nobles don't have enough money to start fighting for the throne because this would require pushing Elthina, along with her pet dog, out of the Viscount's seat. They are also afraid of the blood mages, who are supposedly flooding the city (after the Fereldans and Qunari).

The reason everyone thinks Anders is overreacting is because of the current political situation in Kirkwall. Everyone wants to be centrist and take a break from all the drama. The status quo seems like a blessing to most people in the city, so Anders, with his "Wake up, people! There's an active genocide happening in the Gallows right now! We have to do something!", looks like an insane radical.

The Templars are allowed to become radicalised and brutalise mages because of that political situation. Elthina is allowed to rule Kirkwall because of it. Decades ago, one man, Viscount Threnhold, went against the grain, and everyone is still paying the price because the Chantry and the Orlesians won't relinquish their areas of influence without spilling rivers of blood.

i was thinking about the tranquility quest last night again and its still. so wild to me how the game treats this thing. bc it acts as if the fact that meredith, elthina and justinia all turned down alrik's plan, than theres no reason to for anders to be upset bc its not going to happen. but i dont think they truly understood...what the issue is. bc the issue is that such a thing was even thought of. the fact that it was a plan that existed is the issue. and its like ok so they dissapproved of this now but what about later. what if it had been different people in charge who might have been more agreeable to it? we know alrik is not the only templar who would agree with it. and its also just like ok sorry this guy proposes a plan to essentially lobotomize a whole group of people but just bc it never came to be its supposed to be fine? its a little wild to me. im glad at least hawke can like. agree with anders but the game acting like he's overreacting

[average-mako-enjoyer]

Don’t have any particular compelling reason to write about Amice in act 1 but that conversation at the end of the Fenris recruit quest lives in my mind. Bethany is there. So is Anders. Fenris just called both of them deceitful snakes but now that he’s said it his nerve is waning and he’s realising they outnumber him. Tensions are high. Hackles are up. When Amice smirks and goes, “Oh, speaking of snakes, I have one that’s excited to see you... in my pants.” Indignant squawks from both Bethany and Anders. Bethany like ‘this guy just threatened me and now you’re flirting with him?!’ but she can’t say that aloud because she’s too afraid to stick her neck out. Anders like ‘you were flirting with me yesterday and now you’re flirting with some mage hating bigot?!’ but he can’t say that aloud because he’s too busy with his cause and also grieving Karl and he already told her a relationship with him was a bad idea. Fenris in such a state of shock that this barbaric southern woman shorter than he is just made a dick joke, that he bursts into uncomfortable giggling laughter. Amice is laughing too but on the inside she’s like ‘locked on target’ and is thinking she needs to stay near Fenris and in his good graces so that she’ll have plenty of opportunity to stab him in the back if he turns out to be a threat to her sister or Anders. She spends the next month palling around with him and trying to decide whether or not she needs to murder him before deciding he’s actually harmless and very little-brother-shaped at which point she pats herself on the back for a job well done and emotionally washes her hands of their awkward first meeting. Three years later Bethany is still massively resentful that Amice immediately took this guy in as their replacement Carver. Anders is still massively jealous and suspicious about whether Fenris is trying to steal his girl. And Fenris is still massively anxious about whether or not Amice is trying to recruit him as a fifth for her evil mage polycule with Anders, Merrill, and Lirene.

[average-mako-enjoyer]

Happy DADWC day :D how about 'Honor is a game that others play.' for either Vivienne or Nathaniel

thanks :)) little speculation into her backstory here.

@dadrunkwriting

In the winter before she is named an enchanter of Montsimmard, Vivienne finds two of her apprentices- little girls, barely big enough to hold slates and chalk- hiding doves in the dormitory.

"They fell from their nest," the first protests- an elven child, born in the same alienage as their First Enchanter, and prone to hiding behind taller girls. "Heloise says- the babies can't grow without their mother. They won't know how to fly, or feed themselves."

"Enchanter Heloise," Vivienne corrects her, kindly. She gapes, and mumbles an apology, but smiles a little when Vivienne takes her hand. "May I see your charges?"

The two doves, taken from their box, nuzzle into the shirtfront of their savior- the second girl, born and raised on a fine estate built beside the silver shores of Lake Celestine. The comte's daughter, who does not understand that she is a Circle mage, now, and may no longer do precisely as she pleases.

"You have taken excellent care of these birds," Vivienne addresses her little upturned nose- the face, resolute, drawn in a child's impression of cold hauteur- "but they cannot live in the Circle. They are not mages like we are."

"But they'll die," the first protests. The second says nothing. Her chin wobbles.

"They will not die," Vivienne says. Now she knows why the corners behind the prentice bunks have been lined with feather fluff. "They are old enough to fly, and fly they shall."

Perhaps this convinces them; perhaps they are relieved that it was Vivienne who was sent to take their birds away, Vivienne who will not give them to Cook for supper. They troop solemnly behind her skirts, single file, up the tower stair to the endlessly tall windows of the apprentices' library, where the templar on duty allows Vivienne to open that great glazed pane, just this once.

Fresh air streams in. The mincing winds of spring. The perfect sunshine, which makes one little girl sneeze, and the other squint. The doves in her arms rouse their feathers and fly, in a wary burst of wings, to the sill. The breeze ruffles them both, and they begin to coo to one another. Are they, too, blinded by the light? Are they curious, or bewildered, or cold? Do they fear the first plunge?

The little girls shriek when both doves erupt into the sky, caught on a friendly draft that wings them far above the tower, and away. For a moment, that eyewatering view of Montsimmard entrances them- the winding roads, the places where people may come and go- then the templar shuts the window, and they are in the Circle. They are mage apprentices, and late for their studies.

"Most distressing," Enchanter Heloise says, when Vivienne reports the doves have been dispatched. "This is the fifth infraction this month, Vivienne; that girl cannot put on airs, this behavior cannot continue. I do not want to discipline her again."

"Walls have ears," Vivienne says, "and little girls, too. She has heard all the gossip of her father's ruin. Would you not want to right his wrongs, if you were her? To play the Game in his stead?"

Heloise studies her for a long moment, not without pity, over gold-rimmed glasses. Her study, doorless and small as a cloister, is quiet and dark and untouched by time or season. "A mage and a comte do not play the same Game," she says at last, in the same kindly voice Vivienne spoke to her little girls with. "A mage belongs to the Circle. A comte belongs to himself. Perhaps she may understand a little better, when she has lived a little longer."

"It is the loss of his honor," Vivienne says quietly, "that has broken her heart. She is old enough to understand that."

"A comte may have honor." She reaches across papers, studies, proposals, letters- to take Vivienne's hand. "A mage has none."