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(don’t mind the shit grammar I edited this right after waking up)

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TS Demo Thoughts on MC as a whole below… Very OPINION BASED. If you don’t agree with me, that’s okay!

Alright. This might get me flamed but I think the new “Hermit” origin fits the theme that the devs have had with the rest of the backgrounds. I think the point is that MC has been cut off from society in different ways (i.e. the Unnamed was sheltered and lied to by their monastery/church, the Alchemist was, in my mind, hidden away from society so that their caretaker could perform implied experiments and maintain trust, and the Hermit was a literally an outcast). Therefore, they could be somewhat socially inept and particularly vulnerable. I’m not here to dictate what you think about that, but that’s my take.

The Hound was cool, but it never personally appealed to me, so maybe I’m biased.

I feel as though the statement that MC is “weak” without being a Hound is a little off. I will acknowledge that the Hound was the only background that implied combat knowledge — and some people want that. But, personally, I understand why fighting the soulless gets you killed. We are strong, but we’re not that strong. I can also confess that I wish the Hermit got to show off their Soulless knowledge in the demo, and that it could’ve paid off in the encounter. I can only hope that will be patched in the future. But I digress. Soulless are different than human beings, and to me, it stands to reason that they would be killed differently. Or maybe they can’t be killed by traditional means. It’s mentioned that Mhin has a cool knife (I can’t remember by who), so maybe it’s a special metal that allows for it? I don’t know. Regardless, MC is just human, with the cursed hands that imply something greater. They are vulnerable, especially emotionally within the setting of the game.

I also think MC has the capacity for attitude regardless of the background, so weakness in terms of personality doesn’t track for me.

Sorry, I know this has been a lot of rambling, I just personally have a lot of thoughts. In summary, my thoughts are:

MC is not extraordinarily weak or frail. Just human. (With the acknowledgment that the Hound background would establish you as physically more capable than the average MC)

We are SUPPOSED to be emotionally vulnerable, and I think that makes for a more interesting dynamic.

MC doesn’t act like a punching bag. They have the capacity to sass/retaliate in most scenarios. This is specifically in reference to dialogue, not fighting.

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more of these things for u

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—Touchstarved 2.0 Update Spoiler

I JUST NEED A QUIET PLACE WHERE I CAN SCREAM HOW I LOVE YOU!!!!

[someiicecube]

So, about Mhin—

—Touchstarved 2.0 Update Spoilers

Maybe I'm just not getting what the writers are trying to tell, or I may be interpreting dialogue different from how the in-game MC does (that or I'm stupid, always a possibility). But Mhin saying: "I grew up here", when MC comments on the fact they know the streets well. And also Leander and Kuras stating in their own lines about Mhin that they're a recent arrival.

After sitting down, drinking some water, taking some headache medicine, and replaying the demo to actually read the dialogue properly as I write this down, I think it's still possible that Mhin is lying, but alas, we have but a demo on our hands with too little to gain answers from. Because Leander and Kuras don't know much about Mhin either; Kuras saying: "I know them better than most...but not as well as I would like", and Leander, well, he's obviously not a friend of theirs. But given the writing style—and how heavy-handed Leander's re-written path was—you'd imagine the dialogue would point how out strange it is for these two to say something completely different to what Mhin told them only a few hours ago.

Again, it is only a demo giving us a glimpse into this world and mysteries following each haunted love interest and to build intrigue around them (or at least give some of us a headache).

My personal theory, based on everything given by RSS on the blog, is that: Mhin was one of many researchers who travelled to Lovent [Ref: Mhin Character Bio], and like many before them they 'disappeared' into Lovent's Fogfall. What Fogfall actually does to a human specimen? That goes unanswered for now. Only things we really know about Fogfall is that monsters and Soulless alike gather and pass through where the boarders between realities are the thinnest, and that they also scare everyone shitless. Definitively, we can say:

—"Though some humans have ventured into Fogfall to find the Shroud, there are no documented cases of them surviving…"

[Ref: Lore Question]

That paired with the uncertainty around Fogfall and its effects on a human wouldn't matter for right now, because either way Mhin endured and actually survived that expedition—by their sheer resilience, most likely. [Ref: Mhin's Flower]

But to also point out:

—"Mhin is a relative newcomer to Eridia,"

[Ref: Mhin Character Bio]

—Relative to what? If they grew up in Eridia, knew the streets with ease, silently mourned the Eridia of the past—even saying: "It wasn't this bad before...", always talking about a before, something they knew way back to whenever-the-fuck [Ref: Lowtown Guide: Mhin]—you wouldn't be called a newcomer, unless you gave that impression to people who barely knew you, or they simply finally saw your pert butt finally roaming the streets and turned more than a few curious heads.

(Knowing the streets can always be a fluke, they are a freelance hunter, they should know the lay of the land so they would have the advantage over their target. But we're leaning into Mhin not actually lying to us as it's all simply a ploy for losers like me to make long-winded theory posts like this, regardless—!)

Again, offset this by the next sentence in the character bio link above:

—"Like you, Mhin has come to Eridia in hopes of finding a cure."

So, a retcon? Probably, probably not, but what does rewriting years old character lore do for a writer? (I mean, we already know how a lot of people feel about losing the hound route, but this isn't the post for that lmao.)

Going back to my personal (totally not unhinged) theory; so, Mhin was cursed and became this grotesque monster, bursting at the seams of their slight frame, and them knowing—intimately understanding even—that they are a monster and threat that they never truly considered heading back to Eridia until something forced them to act (—what? Hell if I know. I made this all up).

And when it comes to them being called an outsider, the meaning of that would depend if you believe Mhin is lying about being Eridian or not. Believe they're lying? It's literal; Mhin and the main character, they're just two peas in a cursed pod coming all the way to their last bastion of hope hidden within a spiralling tower reaching into the heavens.

But believe Mhin is being truthful? Then it's figurative; they've always been alone, from what we can see—it's what they prefer, it's the only way they can keep themself and others around them safe. Having a whole monster inside your small body isn't exactly relatable to other people, just saying.

So, in conclusion: my head fucking hurts. I'm more inclined to believe Mhin isn't lying about being from Eridia and that it's just a mystery we have to unravel once we begin their route. This whole yap session wouldn't have been had if the writing pointed out the dichotomy between Mhin's answer vs those other two's—because I know the writers are always deliberate with not only their writing choices but with what morsels they decide to impart on us. I'm ending it off here cause I do not need to add more to my word count right now.

[someiicecube]

...demo spoilers [Mhin]

WHAT. THE FUCK. DO YOU MEAN.

DID THE DEVS JUST--- MADE A WHOLE ASS FANDOM THINK MHIN'S FROM LOVENT??? LIKE, WE ALL THOUGHT THAT?? AND THE WHOLE TIME THEY WERE LAUGHING AT US TT-TT

I want ya'll to know I got up from my chair, tripped over, rolled onto the floor for a good amount of time while being dangerously close to the staircase, got up, did some gymnastics and sat back down.

"Mhin is new" "Mhin is an outsider" "Mhin was born in Eridia"

CHOOSE

please and thank you?!?!

What, did they go to Lovent for research, Fogfall happened and now they're back? That means, though, that Vere was in Eridia before Mhin left and Kuras came AFTER

[someiicecube]

[Touchstarved Game Spoiler? Kinda I guess??]

Version 1 Sprite [Edit] vs Version 2 [Official]

he didn't have his own blushing sprite, so I had to do it myself 😤😤😤😤

[someiicecube]

Luke is around ten-twelve years old, Mephi's little brother is said to be much younger than Meph so we can assume he is ALSO around that age, and Mammon's unnamed daughter is ten years old.. they should all be friends. Luke has like no friends his age 🤧 Meph's little brother loves sweets and Luke loves to bake and the three of them could make treats and learn from Luke with Barbatos supervising.. Solmare do you hear me.

[someiicecube]

if you don't know how to tag spoilers / block spoiler tags on tumblr:

users can block tags in settings. typical spoiler tags are things like #touchstarved game spoilers, #spoilers touchstarved game, etc. you never know what specific tag someone is gonna use so it's always safe to include variations in your tagging + filtering!

just go to:

settings ⚙️ > account settings > content you see

here you can add tags you want to block.

remember to block as many variants you can think of! and if you're posting: USE THESE TAGS! use the system tumblr has provided for us. this is tumblr etiquette and it's what users expect, so if you aren't tagging spoilers, people will see them.

tagging is #this not just writing spoilers! to be clear. a break/keep reading also helps a lot but isn't a catch-all as those posts will still show up in the main tag, and we don't always notice a warning before clicking a read more. they made it very tempting nobody can blame us ↓↓↓

i suggest any of these #touchstarved spoilers, #touchstarved demo update, #touchstarved game spoilers, #spoilers touchstarved game. even just a #spoilers is better than nothing.

but whyyyyyyy?

so you can keep posting all you want in the touchstarved game main tag and not ruin someone else's playing experience. we want everyone included in the excitement!! so please keep having fun while also being mindful of your fellows okok thank youuuuu 🩷🩷🩷🩷

[someiicecube]

GUESS WHAT SPRITE THIS GUY NOW HAS

he didn't have his own blushing sprite, so I had to do it myself 😤😤😤😤

[someiicecube]

oh lordt

[someiicecube]

ahem, I also bring you transparent HQ edits of 3/5 LIs the devs have given us so far on their socials

[someiicecube]

MHIN, YOU'VE AGED CONGRATS—*gets stabbed*

I totally didn't lose track of the dates or anything aha.........

[someiicecube]

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Reference Sheet

For my own ease of use, I'm compiling all of the infographics about the main five Redspring has posted so far into one place, and I've decided to share.

Character Bios

Relationship Charts

Character Bios pt 2/Monster Silhouettes

Flowers

Character Lore

Stat Charts

[someiicecube]

look at these two characters…wouldn’t it be a shame if they…tenderly rested their foreheads together…

[someiicecube]

hot take

I understand this is a Diavolo blog, but I'm looking at Obey Me cards and here's the thing:

Barbatos is hotter than Lucifer.

I said what I said.