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Moon to Sun.

Sun to Moon.

I've been working on my art skills again, and I've kind of devolved back to basics asap. The little art guide has me drawing eyes, but I figured I draw a sphere in a sphere and there is no better sphere than Sun and moon.

I'd love to redraw this. Maybe I should turn into something proper, although I still have my ways to go. The sun half looks like an orange a uv death orb.

On the whole, it's fascinating that cultural interest and depictions of the two tread a similar and yet nuanced line of thought. ..

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There are no demons in Niflheim~

Summoned to Gralea, Ashtarte presumes she is here to merely inform Niflheim of the wedding preparation. Her position as a diplomat for Accordo, a neutral country, places her in a slight pinch.

Authors notes: This isn't the full piece I had in mind but I figured I was better off posting something than nothing. Been meaning to work on my impression of the illustrious Ardyn for the fic idea in mind since I felt it needs work but ye just me getting something other. This has been a funny drabble.

Feedback is more than welcome.

Content warning: gaslighting, manipulation, threats.

Concept: While we know much about the political positioning of Lucis and Niflheim in canon there is much about Accordo we don't know. Was Accordo familiar with the prophecy that the Hydraean would destroy half their civilization? Did they come to a democratic discussion about staying and keeping the truth from civilian? Were they desperate to host the wedding as to ensure their safety? While canon indicates Accordo as a neutral nation, neutral can amount to a moral grey. Was the glaives attempt to liberate Lunafreya pre wedding foiled because spooky Ardyn magic? Was the Magitech invasion seamlessly planned without inside help?

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The cold of Niflheim was far more scornful than she thought it would have been. Back in Altissia, there were a good few traveller's from Niflheim that spoke rather fondly of the country.

The snow akin to a fluffy white blanket draped over the land. A softness, an astral blessed tenderness found in the quiet.

The mourning of an Astral for it's lover was clearly not as pretty, or rather after what Nifl had done to the Astral's sleeping body- that the  fury of the Glacian, was not to be scoffed at.

The land felt worn to the bone with Gralea- picturesque as it was, akin to a metal splint barely holding together the land let alone a society.

Although she was tucked away in one of the many highrises Gralea had with a thick glass window keeping the deep winter out- Ashtarte couldn't help but shiver as her fingers touched the glass pane. The cold numbed her digits, her palm  and her whole right hand rather quickly.

If humans couldn't survive in this climate, could demons? She squinted as she drew her gaze to the snow border of the city.

If .

If she walked.

How many demons would she find?

Frozen and forgotten in the snow. Claws furled and huddled, or flat and buried beneath piles and piles of eternal snowfall.

A knock at the door disturbs her thoughts.

There in the reflection of the glass is a shape most unfamiliar. A man with red head and in a collage of blacks and whites, lace and leathers saunters in, step by step. Without turning around it is difficult to discern his shape. Her lips thin to a line, whoever he was, he must have been distinguished in the least.

"Enjoying the view, are we?" He asks.

Ashtarte wanted to scoff. She keeps her eyes on the window, watching the reflection of the window as he sauntered slowly over. Were it Altissia, she'd have ever right to call out his blatant disregard for courtesy, but in the maw of Niflheim-  she could risk questioning the stranger in disbelief, but there was more than her own head to lose...

She frowns as she continued to look out the window. She did her best to hold herself fast and proper without tugging at the cuffs of turquoise overcoat.

"Its.. quaint." She says simply, slowly turning around to face the man. "It is a pleasure to be at your regard, Chancellor of Niflheim."

"Chancellor Izunia-" The Chancellor corrects with a grin. "Even Ardyn is enough... Please, at ease..."

He settles in a chair, crossing a leg over another.

"It is simply wonderful that Accordo has agreed to host the wedding of our dear lady Lunafreya and Prince Noctis of Lucis. We wouldn't want his royal highness to catch a cold afterall..."

Ashtarte took a short sharp breath, before moving to sit across from the Chancellor.

"I must say I wasnt expecting company so soon." Ashtarte says slowly.

She straightens her posture as she gently poirs a cup of tea for herself. The chancellor taps the table, expectantly wanting to be served. She pours him a cup of tea.

"We of Accordo are humbled by Niflheim and Lucian interest in a wedding of this grandeur. Although I must ask why I have been called, a mere delegate working on the garments-"

She pauses as she sees his lips purse as he grasp his cup, he places the cup down in thought.

"I'm afraid that we demand more than a good show." Ardyn murmurs. "I suppose a fondness to the Lucis is expected, prophecy and what not. But we had hoped to be more than fast friends to Accordo. It's left the emperor rather disappointed."

"Surely this is a misunderstanding, we've been just as terse with both sides over these matters..." *

She says firmly.

"And yet I have proof of your nation's infidelity..." Ardyn says amused, his lips thin to a line, a dangerous smile on his face. "And here I thought imagined that one with such birthright would stoop to deceit."

Ashtarte couldn't but frown, she had imagined there were no daemons left in Niflheim.

But, if that were true that Niflheim would surely be... Peaceful.

Something blatantly rotted beneath the veneer of diplomacy and decorem.

Perhaps the daemons never left.

Perhaps they grew clever and sharper in tongues, and the sharpest of all being none before her.

She thought about it for a bit longer, the minister had surely sent her to discuss the wedding arrangements. She swallows although it does little to dissuade the rising panic.

"The emperor is more than upset," Ardyn continues. "Furious even."

"This is a momentous occasion, that harm to the beloved groom and bride simply can't be tolerated... Why," Ardyn grinned and gave a short burst of laughter. "It certainly has no benefit to Altissia."

"I imagine there is reason to speak with an Accordo official like myself..." She says.. eyes flicking from his grasp on the cup to his smug face.

"Why don't you just speak plainly."

"My dear lady, that ruins the fun." He says softly. "The empire has been gathering information on the Astrals. Little do we know about the leviathan and the other gods of sea..."

He picks up the cup of tea and takes a proper sip.

Ashtarte looked at him sharply and couldnt help but raise her voice as she slammed down her cup. "Last Niflheim acquired information about an archaean they desecrated-"

"What benefits you more. Your vanity or the lives of Altissia mmm?"

"I..."

"Lady Ashtarte of Belonore muster the effort to have a proper chat wont you?" Ardyn chided.

"Niflheim may not be as to so fond of Accordo but we are certainly interested in you. We have much in common afterall."

Her breath caught in her throat. Her? Similar to him? They couldn't be more than different.

Ashtarte surely gave him a look in distaste which made him chuckle again.

Everything she had done was to keep Altissia safe. Had she not tipped off Niflheim, Lucis would have surely barred the wedding. And if the wedding was barred, this fragile peace would surely disturb and wake the sleeping god of waters who would destroy their nation as prophesied.

She sighs.

"What do you want to know?"

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Wondering yet again, why, of all the vegetables out there, Noctis is forced to grow the carrots he doesn’t like and that cannot be used in recipes? And why this gimmick is introduced when I’m crossing the ocean and leaving this area behind?! Also, why, when I ask Iris to look after the garden, does she hand the seeds to Noctis?! Did someone translate this wrong? He’s said numerous times he doesn’t like carrots but aye grand lets grow a field of them, the crown prince will love it.

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In commemoration of the release of Episode Ardyn, the FFXVJP twitter posted this animation by Shinichi Kurita, animator of Episode Ardyn - Prologue and Brotherhood: Final Fantasy XV (x)

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I remember getting this fire glitch in 2019 and the fire wouldn't go away 🤣

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Blorbo arrived!

If go on another losing streak at Magic the Gathering tonight at least I have my pretty boi to look at XD

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We do love the ridiculous details in Ffxv. I keep coming back to this fandom yearly since I've played the game. Cries in buying card art.

Man. FFXVhas so much required reading, it’s insane. And nearly all of it has some crucial plot or character detail that isn’t talked about in the other bits of media, so it’s almost impossible to get a clear picture if you just consume one or two things.

Like. I get wanting Noctis to act regal and kingly, especially since he does just that post timeskip (the timeskip is still stupid), but like. Per Brotherhood, Noctis had exceedingly little training in how to act like a king, or even a crown Prince. This was intentional, even! Regis knew Noctis’ fate and wanted his son to have a normal life, and it’s heavily implied that that decision only came about due to the Marilith attack.

Yet the only indication that the game gives you of this extremely important bit of characterization is when Noctis attempts to negotiate with Altissia’s first secretary Clauatra. And even that scene is heavy handed branching choice convo where Noctis acts awkward and barely in his depth, and also can rely heavily on Ignis. For the player, it’s a decent scene, and most people probably don’t think about it. But for Noctis himself, he should be able to comport himself in a much better manner, as well as know all the backstory that’s being fed to him via the conversation.

This is also the only real time any of Noctis’ supposed kingly leadership comes about prior to the timeskip, because the game cares very little of Noctis actually becoming king.

But like. If you never watched Brotherhood, you’d never know any of it! Maybe you’d think the scene is a little weird, the lack of king stuff an odd choice, and move on. But no, this major backstory element and characterization that informs So much of how Noctis acts is relegated to the ova.

Augh. Required reading.

mumble grumble games are supposed to be fun goddamn it (I unfortunately find this fun)

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Who's your favorite character in XV? What endears you to them? Was there anything they did that made you like them more? Or maybe you have a headcanon that made you like them a lot? Feel free to gush about your faves!

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My final fantasy mtg pulls! I did get prompto i just forgot to take a photo

And yes im gunning for every ffxv card

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Ah yes ffxv, when gods are truthfully squishy and get annoyed when their player character dies for the tenth time in a row. Honestly, the gods dont have much chill for humanity. Ramuh is the closest we get to respectable and he doesn't really help much.

kind of a passing thought that i do want to properly analyze one day but like.

the Astrals are weak, right?

like yes, they are literal dieties. yes, bahamut was far too ready to fucking annihilate the earth. yes their powers are immense but...

they could not eliminate the starscourge on their own without massive losses of life. ardyn LITERALLY daemonified ifrit. noct can do insane amounts of damage to the gods if need be. it takes the full power of 5 of the 6 astrals to bring down the wall around the citidel. bahamut is unable to kill a daemonified ifrit. we have to weaken ifrit itself so that shiva can deal the finishing blow.

honestly the implications seem to be that the powers of the starscourge and the lucii are outright stronger then the astrals especially when you look at the ending of DotF which kind of makes their whole plan to get rid of the daemons even more horrid in my opinion bc they really went "well, we can't handle this without getting rid of all life on the planet. let's just doom these two people to destroy each other without considering the lives they were meant to live"

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HEAR ME OUT

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an ode to the funniest man in ffxv

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intro to the FFXV Eve Party Mystery Disc special, featuring Noctis rushing to rescue Prompto and Gladio doing push-ups with Ignis on his back = w =

(note: the full half hour video of the event can be found here, and the OP has been credited in the source of this post.)

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Magic the gathering: wayfaring with Ardyn.

Incensed by the arrival of Cardyn, I figured I'd make a small post about the intermingling of mtg and ffxv as a crossover.

For those unfamiliar, 'magic the gathering' world is a multiverse, where of which some folk may acquire a spark and will jump from world to world. Such folk are known as 'planeswalkers', and in the world of magic the gathering there have been many wars.

In this, Wizards of the coasts (the makes of mtg) can integrate other intellectual properties as other worlds to visit...

What makes this interesting is the positioning of the player or 'summoner'. There are some cards that regard us as a planeswalker classed entity, a being that can't necessarily travel across planes but is able to illusively interact with entities.

Although the ip worlds are indeed, not canonical, it's very much possible in the current setup to casually get Noctis and Ardyn to beat up bahamut with the gang... An ending where Cardyn becomes godking or something lmao.

I sure hope I can slot him into a deck sometime soon. ^^

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Muahahaha I got an Ardyn.

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Write Characters with Deep Emotional Wounds

(Without Making Them Walking Tragedies)

╰ Start with the scar, not the stabbing. Everyone talks about what happened to your character (The Big Trauma) but honestly? It’s the aftermath that matters. Show me the limp, not the bullet wound. Show me the way they flinch at kindness or double-check locks three times. The wound shapes them more than the event ever did.

╰ Don't make them "Sad All The Time" People with deep hurts aren’t just dramatic sob machines. They make bad jokes. They find weird hobbies. They have good days and then get wrecked by a song in a grocery store. Layers, my friend. Pain is complex and it sure as hell isn’t aesthetic.

╰ Let them almost heal and then backslide. Real healing isn’t linear. One good conversation doesn’t erase ten years of bottled-up grief. Your character might think they’re over it, and then one tiny thing, a smell, a phrase, a look, knocks them right back into the hole. Make them earn their healing. Make us ache for them.

╰ Give them armor and show the cracks. Maybe it’s sarcasm. Maybe it’s perfectionism. Maybe it’s taking care of everyone else so no one notices they're broken. Whatever mask they wear, show us the hairline fractures. Let us catch the moments where they almost drop the act.

╰ Don’t turn their trauma into their only personality trait. Yes, they’ve been through hell. But they also love spicy chips and bad reality TV. They have dumb crushes and secret dreams. A tragic backstory isn’t a substitute for a full human being. Let them be more than the worst thing that ever happened to them.

╰ Let their wound warp their decisions. People protect their wounds. Even badly. Especially badly. They might sabotage good relationships. Or push away help. Or cling too tightly. Make their past live in their choices, not just their flashbacks.

╰ Don’t make the world validate them for existing. Not everyone is going to understand your wounded character. Some people will misunderstand them. Blame them. Get frustrated. And honestly? That’s real. Let your character find their people, after facing the ones who don’t get it. It’s so much sweeter that way.

╰ Wounds can make them kinder—or crueler. Pain changes people. Some become protectors. Some become destroyers. Some do both, depending on the day. Let your character’s hurt make them complicated. Unpredictable. Human.

╰ Don’t heal them just to tie a neat bow on your story Sometimes the best ending is messy. Sometimes the healing is just starting. Sometimes it’s just hope, not a full recovery montage. That’s okay. Healing is a lifelong, terrifying, brave process—and readers feel it when you respect that.

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I imagined that my post and contribution to the small thread of Ardyn would be a little more glorified, been really trying to write a fanfic but it's taking time. Instead! I offer thee fun trivia. While as of 2025, the mtg and final fantasy collab has brought some love back to the series itself.. Did you know that Final Fantasy has it's own card game line? Better yet the arts were based off of the actual game assets and follow closer and a touch more faithfully to the series.

LO and behold the smug bastard! (It is with great sadness that I inform this card is not in that box) While I will likely attempt to acquire the physical mtg cArdyn's and ffxv characters... Finish the fanfic wip and maybe ramble a little for what it means for ARDYN to be a summonable monster in the canonical verse of mtg and it's planeswalkers....

It's hard to justify but... per starter set there are 3 ardyn's. Just saying that's alot of Cardyn's lmao