#>dev disposables

[ratxklng]

sorry this isnt art this gif i captured from the special is just glued to me like a leech its sucking everything out of me. hes so pathetic to me. girlfail. thats all. back to your daily shceduled posting at a later time

[fisheito]

yeah..................

[yappacadaver]

or maybe he did cremate literally everyone but david??? why....

[cubbihue]

Cosmo. Cosmo, buddy. Peri’s twenty two. The difference between him and Dev is about the same as Hazel and her BROTHER. He cannot take a child. He’s not even that good at the ‘child care’ part of his job (no offense Peri).

Peri could barely handle his very first Godchild as a Fairy! There's no way he's equipped to fill that role as a father once Dev has magic at his disposal. Sorry Peri.

Though it does make you think. Why did Peri get assigned Dev as his first godchild?

Bitties Series: [Start] > [Previous] > [Next]

[dekarios]

I'm at your disposal. Von Lycaon 🤍 ZZZero (2024) dev. MiHoYo

[felassan]

Some things in BioWare's transcript of the August 30th dev Discord Q&A are a lil different to what was actually said in the Q&A. not only editing to tidy up and be concise etc; some of it seems to actually be new/additional (or updated?) information. this post is just a quick summary of the new or different things I noticed when comparing the BioWare transcript to a word-for-word transcript (or at least the ones that stood out to me anyways). DA:TV spoilers under cut.

This post is a mix of new snippets and rephrased answers to things that were rephrased in a way that stuck out to me or interested me. nb, it doesn't highlight changes if the change was something not being included in the BioWare transcript (there was some of that too).

John Epler: "I don't know if any of [the Evanuris] consider [tea] a favorite beverage"

[re: hugging Assan] Assan "always appreciates the attention. He's got a sharp beak and he'd let you know if he didn't."

Variation of the WEWH question answer:

"There's always going to be politics to some degree - there are a number of different groups with different priorities, and not all of them are going to be immediately disposed towards trusting you. But while the Inquisitor had an organization and an army (and even Hawke and the Hero of Ferelden spent more time moving in political circles), Rook's situation is a little more desperate and immediate. Their approach is therefore a little more direct, and so while they may occasionally find themselves in the political sphere, they're not trying to assemble an army or build consensus amongst nation states."

[on companions' ages] The part of this where they described the companions' age range has been changed from where it said "early-mid twenties" to just say "mid twenties". Also, Taash was said to be "early twenties"; she is now simply "the youngest".

New sentence on the ages: "We don't usually nail down a specific age, unless it's something that comes up in their content, but we want to have an idea as to their general age range as we're writing them."

If no side characters stand out as a good candidate for a 'light' romance, this is never something they want to force

Griffons as half-bird half-lion - it now reads half-eagle half-lion

"Thedas has always been filled with extraordinary people, and in DATV you're trying to save the world. It stands to reason that the people you're bringing on board are going to be people with extraordinary circumstances of their own."

On the Veil not being in great shape and having been deteriorating in recent times/the intervening period between games, a more specific figure is given: "things in general have been slowly getting worse over the past decade and a half"

Lucanis and Bellara find out they have a lot in common and develop a "really fun" friendship, even though "it's hard to think of two companions who feel more different on the surface"

Neve and Bellara's friendship "kind of evolved organically as we were writing them, and finding out all the opportunities we could to throw little tastes of it into dialogue was a blast"

when enemies are slowed due to Slow Time, Rook stays moving at full speed

Rook's weapons and companions' gear can also be transmogged in addition to Rook's armor gear and casualwear

New sentence: "I've built Harding as a Support Character one run, and a DPS the next run. If you want to use Davrin as a DPS, you can do that."

"But each Companion has a gift that you can purchase from vendors in the world, and then give it to them." - it sounds like there is only one unique gift that you can give to the companions each?

"In general, something like a short story anthology is a volunteer thing - we ask people what they want to write and, generally, people tend to gravitate towards character ideas and concepts they already had in mind for a companion."

"So it's rare that we write a character that isn't intended to be a companion and then think 'oh wow this character would be a great fit', but it's not unheard of either."

"Ultimately we wanted to be sure that The Veilguard could be a good entry point to Dragon Age for new players and people who know almost nothing about the universe. But if you're the kind of player who wants to catch the most references, I'd suggest reading The Missing (most recent comic series) and Tevinter Nights. The former is a direct narrative setup for the beginning of the game" while Tevinter Nights is "less of a direct narrative tie", though it introduces "characters, concepts and story elements" that show up in the game

New sentence and info: [John Epler] "The Archon's Palace floating was something we came up with midway through writing Tevinter Nights and I had to furiously rewrite a few things." - the Floating Building is the Archon's Palace?

"Mae is a character that means a lot to so many DA fans" (<3)

Crow politics are now described as "complex" as well as deadly

"Some romances allow you to express interest without 'committing'" - so it sounds like not all of them allow this? - "but all romances eventually end up being exclusive"

"With each specialization we wanted to explore, both visually and through gameplay, what a specific class member of that faction might look like. Spellblade, for example, is our answer to the question 'what does a mage assassin look like'."

Our ability to save PCs so we don't have to start from scratch in CC each time was very important to the devs

"the feeling we want to evoke over the course of the game is one of growth, both in yourself as Rook and in your companions as they overcome their own problems with your help. These problems are often external in nature, but they are always tied, at their core, to the conflict that the character carries within them. And they are, also, always uniquely Dragon Age problems on the surface, but still relatable."

The difference in the answer to the is Lucanis possessed question interested me.

Original for the sake of comparison:

"So, again, spoilers, everyone has been warned, fairly warned. So Lucanis Dellamorte is also known as The Demon of Vyrantium. And, he has spent a lot of time killing Venatori, who are mages, and who do know a lot about demons, so. Yeah, somebody decided that it might be a good idea to make that nickname stick."

New:

"There's definitely something going on with Lucanis - and before you hired him, he was known as the Demon of Vyrantium. Might be that someone took offense to that nickname, especially since he earned it by killing Venatori."

New sentence in the answer to the is Thedas a southern continent question:

"Of course, nothing says that distance to the sun is the only factor impacting weather."

.. [probably reading too much into this don't look at me ik many factors influence weather irl hhh] magic? the Veil? the deteriorating Veil? the risen Gods? the Blight? Thedas is experiencing global warming? :D

"As part of our attempt to make the companions feel like they have their own lives outside of just Rook, we asked ourselves what pairings made the most narrative sense and then talked about how they might actually unfold in the game. And even before companions get together, you can see that interest starts to develop. Which is, I think, one of my favorite things about the companions. They don't just fall in love with each other, they become friends, confidents, and even rivals at times"

It takes Davrin a while to trust others. He can be a little standoffish, but eventually he warms up to anyone who shows that they have his back

As a monster hunter a lot of Davrin's hobbies revolve around that

"a lot of elves go around shoeless, and that's in part because they believe it brings them closer to nature. What better way to understand what the world and ground are saying than to walk directly on it? but not every Dalish follows this custom" [...] "The Veil Jumpers, in general, are a little more likely to wear boots and shoes, as they're far more likely to end up in dangerous places and fighting unsettling creatures than the average Dalish"

On Bellara's boots: "you never know when you're going to find a broken artifact with a lot of sharp edges."

Bellara is a big fan of pan-frying anything she can (re: food)

Lucanis has the refined palate of an Antivan Crow

Getting the beards to work with all the armor variations that they have was especially challenging with dwarves because they "tend to be" shorter

Those beards that were designed with dwarves in mind can alsobe used for humans and qunari (I wonder then if elves cannot have beards in CC? Like I know they usually don't have them or have it in CC and that lore says they don't but there are a also a few lorebreaking instances of it and I wasn't sure which way this one would go given how 'free choice/options for all' the CC in this game has sounded like it has been designed to be)

"You'll see more on this as we showcase character creator in our runup to launch"

For this question "Since you can choose to be a part of the same faction for most of the companions, will that give you an advantage when trying to befriend them?", the answer now reads that in addition to the unique dialogue same-background Rooks have with the companion of that background, it can also "change the timbre of your relationship a little bit"

John Epler: "one of my favorite things about this group of companions is how much time they spend with each other"

[on the companions] "They're a family, and like a family, they don't always get along"

"A lot of Solas' relationship with the player is personal. He sees a lot of himself in Rook - both the good and the bad - and largely talks only to you, as you're the one he has a connection with."

"Not to mention at least a couple of followers who would likely love to ask an ancient Elven god some questions."

"a common complaint we've heard in past games is that many players disliked always feeling like they needed a Rogue to be able to lockpick, so fortunately Rook finds a method to use these exploration abilities even when the associated Companion is not in your party"

An example of a companion's unique exploration ability is that Emmrich has an ability to briefly reanimate skeletons to open gates

Qunari not wearing helmets and only vitaar allows more flexibility when it comes to horns customization in CC

"yes - there will be some pretty obvious Act breaks. Not all content fits neatly into these buckets, as it's more a way of breaking up the critical path (companion and other side content follows a different cadence), but there are some pretty obvious Acts built into our game. A lot of the missions, though, we want to make sure players have the freedom to decide what they do and when they do it, so while they may have internal acts (follower missions form their own arcs), they don't conform to the overall main quest arcs"

The difference in the answer to the is Assan the only griffon question confirms that Assan was specifically one of the baby griffons that hatched at the end of Last Flight. (as opposed to another clutch that was laid in the last decade)

Old:

"So, again, just to be clear, spoilers, but yeah, Assan has brothers and sisters, so Assan is not the only griffon that shows up in Dragon Age The Veilguard."

New:

"If you read Last Flight, you'll know that Assan isn't the only griffon from that clutch of eggs, so he's got brothers and sisters. And if one griffon is good, a whole family of them is better, right?"

"We briefly experimented with other options for last names but it became unwieldy as we do refer to your Rook by their last name on several occasions, and accounting for 6 potential last names is already a lot of complexity."

Variation of the 'what goes into bringing back old characters' question answer:

"We always - both for Morrigan and any other characters we bring back - think about what they would've been up to since the last time anyone saw them. These characters should feel like real people, and the last thing we want to imply is that their stories stalled out while they weren't directly in the player's adventuring party. So we look at their arc before the time skip, and then think about where that arc would've taken them. In the case of Morrigan, she's coming to terms with a lot of truths about herself and about her mother. There are elements of her past that she's come to terms with, which is why she wears a version of Flemeth's crown. Ultimately you want the world to feel like it's real. And no one's the same person today that they were 10 years ago. That's stagnation, and it's bad in fictional characters as it is in real people."

The orb part of orb and dagger is called an Elemental Orb

Variation on the Dalish Elf vs City Elf question answer:

"While I think 'city elf' vs 'Dalish elf' is a useful distinction in the South, there's a lot more nuance in the North. Rivain, for example, has Dalish settlements intertwined with other cities. There's just not the same separation, so each of the factions has a unique approach to your lineage. You can define some of that further with choices you make in conversations - we really wanted to leave a lot of that open to players to RP."

[localization question answer variation] "Games are so complex and have so many moving pieces that you need to be in regular communication or things get missed. And a lot of that is because ultimately localization is more than just a straightforward translation. Jokes, metaphors, sayings - even specific lore terms - aren't just a matter of finding the equivalent word in another language. Every writer has a story about a time they had to explain the specifics of an off-color joke they wrote so that localization could properly capture the intent."

So mostly variations (as in rephrasing) and things, but some of the new info that particularly stood out to me was things like the description of Emmrich's exploration ability, the mention that the Floating Building is the Archon's Palace (iirc this was speculated before but not confirmed?), the new lil details or insights on Assan and Davrin, the bit about Assan being from the Last Flight eggs, etc.

[thankskenpenders]

It's a bit late, but I figure I have to touch on the big news from today, which is that for an (early) April Fools celebration Sega went and released a free visual novel about Sonic getting murdered

Here's a thing you should know about me: I am deathly allergic to ironic visual novels, and the related trend of announcing dating sims (which are synonymous with the medium of visual novels as a whole to many people) on April Fools

Aside from an incredibly small selection of titles that have seen wider success, it feels like much of the game industry is only willing to acknowledge visual novels as a punchline. And said jokes about dating sim stereotypes have been done a million fucking times by now. They're parodies of parodies of parodies. Even when these prank dating sims actually go and get made rather than just being a few fake screenshots, it feels like it's just because VNs are seen as cheap, disposable entertainment compared to "real" games. Companies can afford to commission some bullshit like the KFC dating sim and write it off as a marketing stunt. And it works. These games will get widely reported on for being so ~wacky~, while devs pouring their hearts into doing sincere, interesting work with the medium of visual novels are usually out of fucking luck. It's so, so tiring. The fact that this happens like clockwork every year has made me come to dread April Fools Day

So imagine my surprise when The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog drops out of nowhere and it's actually one of my favorite Sonic games in years

Aside from the intentionally tongue-in-cheek, attention-grabbing title (and Sonic doing the Family Guy Death Pose), there isn't an ounce of irony here. It's just a straight up whodunnit VN set on a train, albeit a lighthearted and pretty easy one. It's still a Sonic game, after all, and Sonic games are for kids. But it's so clearly made out of a place of love, both for the characters and for murder mysteries, rather than being a parody that's constantly winking at the camera and going "haha, isn't this absurd that this even exists at all?" Forget that. This wants to tell a genuinely good little Sonic story. Not to mention how gorgeous all of the artwork is throughout, with character illustrations from IDW cover artist Min Ho Kim (AKA deegeemin)

Like, for real. I've wanted the Sonic games to explore the supporting cast more for years, and I can't believe the game to finally do it is a murder mystery visual novel released for April Fools. This might be one of the best showcases of the cast... ever, in the games? The script from Ian Mutchler is so, so great, with fun and cute moments for everyone involved. And, smartly, you see the cast through the eyes of a new character (I named them "Blorbo") who isn't necessarily familiar with things like Blaze being a princess from another dimension, making this a surprisingly valid way to introduce people to the supporting cast. I'd say more, but it's a short game, so I think everyone should just go out and play it if you haven't already

There is still part of me that wishes a Sonic visual novel like this could've been greenlit for release any other day of the year, rather than being yet another April Fools visual novel. But regardless of the excuse they used to make it, I'm extremely happy that this exists

[galedekarios]

elminster & gale

more datamined dialogue, this time idle banter between elminster and gale. as the dev notes indicate, these were supposed to take place at the beginning of act ii when elminster reveals the charge given to him by mystra for gale:

elminster: it took some doing, finding you. gale: well now you've found me, perhaps you can share your purpose. (node context: some impatience) elminster: have mercy on these old bones, m'boy. a short respite will not harm us.

elminster: i am glad to talk to you again, m'boy. even under such circumstances. (node context: sincere) gale: as am i. (node context: sincere) elminster: it is important to cherish everyone conversation as if it were the last - for it could very well be the last. (node context: considering that this may be the last time he ever sees gale)

elminster: it comes with age. along with some less-desirable traits... gale: please. i do not need to hear of your joint aches and privy sorties again. (node context: 'not this again') elminster: very well. not everyone finds such matters as fascinating as i do... (node context: slightly displeased grumble)

gale: you may be proven incorrect - time is not on my side, i fear. (node context: a little grim) elminster: i know what you mean. trust me - for the moment, all is well. or at least acceptable. (node context: reassuring) gale: oh to have but a thimbleful of your confidence at my disposal. (node context: wry)

once again, i find this (very, very sadly) seemingly cut content fascinating. it's very sad it wasn't included in the release version of the game because it shows the deeper bond that elminster and gale share despite gale's impatience and, as it's phrased here, not-this-again attitude. it speaks of knowing each other well, and of the affection between them from both sides.

we get to see this, too, in the gale origin. elminster's visit remains much the same as it is an origin tav playthrough, yet there are slight variation in how elminster treats gale (a softer voice, calling him 'dear boy', etc.).

and that affection he has for gale, gale holds for him, too:

"his disappointment cuts deeper even than mystra's." is so significant considering just who mystra is for gale. gale is hurt by having had elminster witness him as he is now. a shadow of who he used to be. he has disappointed him. he once more wasn't good enough.

elminster, who not only saw potential within him, but "plucked" him from obscurity and offered his guidance, who had become a mentor to him, and a figure to look to for guidance.

as a side note, i can't help but wonder if elminster was perhaps responsible-or at least helped-to have gale attend blackstaff academy:

Blackstaff Academy was a loosely organized group of elite apprentices and students who studied under the Blackstaff at Blackstaff Tower in the 14th and 15th centuries DR. The school was made up of an everchanging roster of about fifty apprentices and students to the Blackstaff, with new arrivals always ready to replenish the ranks as graduates moved on.[2] Acceptance to the Academy was predicated on either demonstrating extraordinary magical aptitude (those who could not cast arcane spells were very rarely admitted) or having a particularly compelling personal history. Joining the Academy was free, however monthly dues were required to continue attendance. These fees started at 10 gp per month and increased as a student gained seniority and required more advanced tutelage. In addition, it was a requirement that any new spell that was discovered or researched by an apprentice had to be added to Blackstaff Tower's library. [source]

anyhow. this bond between the two is also reflected in the aftermath of the visit. elminster sneakily breaks mystra's order, by having tara deliver a letter written by him to gale, trying to reassure gale and make him see that there is another way out of his predicament than the one mystra commands him to follow:

i cannot stress enough that elminster is ready to defy direct orders from mystra for gale. he obviously cares about him and his regreat at having not said more when he was there is palpable in his letter. gale acknowledges this as well:

to a lesser extent, the same is shown in a custom protag playthrough:

gale knows this isn't something elminster wanted to do and elminster himself admits as much, too. yet he is forced to, obligated to, by his status as chosen and the mission he was given by his goddess.

we can later ask gale about this once more:

and here we can also infer just why mystra sent elminster and not anyone else: "for mystra to have sent him... the severity of her bidding could not be clearer. or weigh more heavily on me."

it shows that this was a very much calculated choice-mystra must have been aware of the bond two of her chosen shared-and so it helps to achieve exactly what she intended it to: gale accepts the charge that he is given.

i think all in all, even though the situation is bad enough already as it is, this makes what was asked of elminster by mystra even worse.

[rhapsodynew]

Beach style from The Beatles.🏖

a rare record..

"Spiritual Regeneration"

I suggest listening to a song that has become "random" in the Beatles repertoire and demonstrates the ease with which they created and disposed of their material. "Spiritual Regeneration" was written during the group's trip (joined by the Beach Boys) to India to guru Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in 1968 and served as a congratulation to Mike Love, who turned 27 at that moment. This is a two-part musical jam: in the first, the musicians sing the words of thanks to Guru Dev (Maharishi's teacher), in the second, the singers switch to the traditional "happy birthday to you" addressed to Michael Love. The song is played on acoustic guitars and is based on common techniques in the spirit of Chuck Berry. The vocals and backing tracks have great similarities to the "Beach Boys" style.

[axedance]

gaming should not be a luxury afforded only to those with tons of disposable income! hack your 3ds! download roms! learn to pirate and torrent safely! support indie devs! support indie retailers! support preservation efforts! buy secondhand! check your local library! doxx the ceo of electronic arts! hack your wii u!

[ratxklng]

hello, i am the creator of verdelites, coals, hemimorphites, and richterites from gem galaxies

and recently, you may have heard that my gems have been pulled out of the game; this is my decision

due to recent events that have made me uncomfortable to keep sticking with the game, i’ve since then decided to disassociate from gem galaxies. this includes my own gem type designs for the sake of my comfortability and moving on. i’d also have to address angelite 5 as a character, as the angelite gem type is from gem galaxies. i will still be posting it and it will still be an angelite. its lore will not be changing, but it will not be associated with the gem galaxies au. i will still continue to credit gem galaxies for the angelite gem type out of respect. this goes for all of the gem ocs i use that are gem types from gem galaxies

there may be a time where i redesign 5 as a character to separate it from the angelite gem type and my other characters from their respective gem types, but currently i’m too attached to their current designs to think about that atm

i deeply apologize to those who are attached to my gem types having to see them go from the game, but i will not disallow usage of my gem types outside of it. if you want to continue to use my gem types, please credit or refer to me instead of gem galaxies. thank you

if you have any questions regarding these gem types and their departure, i will answer them to the best of my ability so dont be afraid to contact me

[ur-local-demon1]

ISAT isn't in a modern setting because the devs, the Change God and the Universe knew Sif would be too powerful if they also had Vine quotes at their disposal on top of their puns

[rorschachisgay]

Saints Row and in particular Saints Row 1 and Saints Row 2 had enormous impact on me and have an irreplaceable spot in my development and history. one of my biggest tattoos is a Saints Row tribute. the franchise shaped a lot of my teen and young adult years. i know for a lot of people it was the goofy comedy series but it mattered to me profoundly.

It has been a long time since any of the people who were heading those games have worked at Volition, but knowing how the company was treated over the years, having it suddenly tossed into the gutter like this is crushing. hundreds of good people losing their jobs because their parent company was scrambling to recoup costs from a shitty failed business decision.

it's unfair. all of the entertainment industry is brutal, but video games are a fucking machine made to chew people up and spit them out again like disposable tokens, only good for extracting as much monetary value as possible. you release one game that performs just ok, not great but not terrible, but because you didnt meet the impossible imaginary goalposts of people who frankly know nothing about your company or your work outside of numbers on a screen, thirty years of history is just gone. like that.

how fucking miserable. Volition had such a rough fucking deal the last ten years, bouncing from one parent company to another and still, somehow, being expected to produce games in that. and they fucking did, too. i still remember the devs of saints row the third and iv talking about how they were making saints row the third not knowing if their parent company was going to live long enough to see it be released. how saints row iv was the way it was because they were under such time and money constraints that the budget didnt exist to do what theyd dreamed of.

it's horrible. and i can't help but wonder what's going to become of idolninja's pc patch as well. just rot in embracer's archives somewhere? what a fucking waste of a mans legacy.

It's all so fucking brutally sad and unnecessary. Volition were entering a new era, they could have done so much more. i can only hope that the hundreds of people let go can find new jobs soon, since embracer group also stiffed them on medical insurance as a final fuck you.

just furious and heartbroken for the games i loved and, more importantly, the people who were horribly fucked over by the evils of corporate greed yet again. fuck embracer, fuck the video game industry.

[artfightdramaconfessions]

im gonna be honest, i dont think any amount of site stabilization is going to completely stop the day 1 crash. there's just such a massive and sudden influx of people compared to the small dev team and resources at their disposal

.

[creepling]

i had a eureka moment the other day and now i have a theory about potential killers and maps that may or may not come to the tcm game.

so yknow you have the radio/news broadcasts in the loading screen before a game, and they can sometimes be heard during gameplay. there is a lot of clues talking about crime that has happened within texas and especially in Newt or near it. this is where we know about johnny killing a college student and being attacked by her friends. they don’t say his name, but describe the killer as “late 20s, dark hair and eyes and multiple scars on his face and arms”. the devs confirmed this when they said how he got the scar on his arm.

we also got hints of nancy before her release in these broadcasts. strings of men dying in unknown circumstances and had poison in their system. this seems to fit nancy’s “black widow” characteristic and we know she has a hand for poison and hallucinogens.

this is when my theory comes in. surely when it comes to killers, not all can be part of the slaughter family. big families exist, but say the game does really well and it has years on running, getting new dlc third monthly. that becomes a lot. so why not open to have killers loosely related to the family but not blood related. neighbours, other insane families. what about the people the cook work with at the gas station? (seen in the movie, ie the guy that cleans the van), or maybe nubbins is part of a community of graverobbers that know each other?

here are potential characters and mals that might be in the game. sorry if i get names or details wrong, im doing it by ear:

martin wembley is mentioned in the broadcasts when his home was raided by police confiscating his animal jars. some were human remains, which he claims to not know about and thought it was “just regular animal stuff”. is this a potential killer? or someone buying nubbins’s weird oddities? either way, his hobby is questionable and can be linked to the family, especially nubbins. the broadcast ends saying he is held for questioning

a male body found near devil’s river off highway 163, SW texas, found by a hunter. this is also the location two female bodies were found supposedly a year before this event. all bodies have evidence of stabbing and strangulation. in gameplay nancy says “have you ever heard of devil’s river?” and i am guessing this is where nancy disposes unwanted bodies that johnny kills to ‘clean up his mess’, as the method of murder is very similar to his. devil’s river would be a very unique map and i hope we get more info about it.

there is also hints johnny may have been caught by police but let off due to lack of evidence. when cops followed a lead to a motel they found 36 year old Kelsy Keo (sp?) being subdued by a man ‘whos named is withheld’. it seems that he talked his way out of it, saying kelsy agreed to it during intimacy. he denied being the infamous killer that cops were looking for, and with the current timeline, it seems johnny was let off. could this kelsy be a potential new victim in game?

three youths are vandalising Lexington, TX. their work has been described as depicting ‘famine and the macabre’, similar to how the texas chainsaw massacre is described. authorities think 2 of the youths are sisters, but cannot confirm. could this be a possible duo that might be new characters? or is the string of animal bone vandalism painting a bigger picture to potential new maps?

justin austin is another name mentioned when he was arrested after a case of food poisoning was linked to his meat factory. he admits some of the meat was “tainted” by a rat infestation. he awaits trial for his carelessness and lack of food hygiene. could this hint to the slaughters possibly selling their meat is make ends meet? are there more people turning to cannibalism due to lack of resources and steady income like the family? with a game about cannibals, it’s hard to believe rats are causing this problem.

a high school dance was intruded by two men, Hackett Wayford and his son Grant and they attacked the teenagers with bladed weapons. the football team managed to tackle the men before they caused more harm. one boy who tackled them said they were “freak strong, like bulls or something”. they say nothing about their motives, but their mention of strength is interesting as it would make for good potential new killers. the use of freak also implies their strength was inhuman, so can the powder in game also be used as a performance enhancer later on for potential new killers? if it can give nancy visions, it’s not that far fetched.

“the terror of I40” is the murders committed by sissy on her hitchhiking journey from california to texas. it says it took place between 1971-1972 so in canon sissy returned to the family sometime in ‘72. with a razorblade, she attacked a man in his home but he was able to fight her off. sissy fled the scene, but the man never reported the incident right away for an unknown reason.

Hellum’s Ranch is a location mentioned when police arrived at the scene from a report about cattle abuse. instead, they found men dressed in white clothes and sun glasses poisoned and slumped in chairs. some where holding King James bible, which has association with the KKK. one man also held an item which the police described as a ‘manifesto’. it is unknown why these men poisoned themselves, but the police found large quantities of the substance in the area. is this ranch a potential new map, linked to a dark past? to me, i think this could lean more into a Jonestown situation than a KKK one. with the men holding bibles, poisoning themselves, wearing clothes similar to the Jonestown cultitist, it’s uncanny.

there is also a random mention of the Marfa Lights in the broadcasts. how this is linked idk how, considering the theories of them are linked to UFOS. Marfa, TX and its setting could be a new map in the future, but that’s the only thing i can think of.

Omar Parly (sp?) is a man mentioned for multiple offences in different counties. he spent 5 years in prison and continued crime after his release. his current whereabouts is unknown. potential new killer?

Gerrard Gaines found a burning truck on ‘his back forty’ (idk what this means sorry). on inspection he found the burnt body of an unidentified male and a large bag of money 30 feet away. i find this one VERY compelling as this man shares a surname with Danny. who is the unidentified man? why is there money? and is this man related to danny? if that’s danny in the car, and gerrard is related to him, is someone paying him for his troubles of losing a relative? if so, who? im completely stumped on this one and my assumptions are far fetched.

personal belongings are found to be linked to a missing couple, Tim and Tiara Divine. they disappeared during their roadtrip through the country of texas. their IDs where scattered near a river assumingly to be disposed of if they are previous victims of the slaughter family. since they are missing, maybe they are still alive and being held captive by the slaughters, hinting to potential new victims?

[felassan]

hey fel, as always i'm so appreciative of the work you do to aggregate info for the fandom! you're the first place i look for all news, and once i have disposable income i'm totally going to send you a kofi.

i've been confused by the companion classes for days and i'm hoping you can help me out—i keep seeing taash with dual wield axes, which, given information that warriors have only 2h weapon and sword and shield as weapon options, suggests she's a rogue... but that leaves only davrin as a warrior? surely not, right?? we have three mages in neve, bellara, and emmrich, and harding is of course a rogue, lucanis being a rogue would make the most sense but i'm not sure it's confirmed?, davrin has a sword and shield so he must be a warrior, and then taash....??? help have classes been confirmed somewhere i'm so confused

hello! ◕‿◕ tysm for the lovely message and feedback, and that is super kind but pls don't feel obligated to do so, it's all good either way!! We know that Bellara, Neve and Emmrich are mages. Based on DA:I Harding is a rogue. it's assumed Lucanis is a rogue and Davrin is a warrior (agreex2). Taash is assumed to be a warrior (also agree). dual-wielding as she does could easily be part of her unique skill tree/abilities or something**. also, there is this comment from Trick Weekes: "I'm a little gun-shy on confirming anything that hasn't been said officially, but please assume we would not give you a game with only one warrior companion. Somebody has to draw aggro for my Mage Rook." [source] so we will definitely not have only one warrior companion. by process of elimination as well it looks like that other warrior would be Taash. so the class breakdown seems to be:

Harding, rogue Bellara, mage Davrin, warrior Lucanis, rogue Neve, mage Taash, warrior Emmrich, mage

hope this helps. :)

** it was said in the Discord Q&A that:

Q. Will the companions have unique specializations? A. The “companions will have abilities that are truly unique to them, but also, they do fall into the archetypes of mage, rogue and warrior. For instance, because she has a bow, you might be surprised to hear that Bellara is in fact a mage, and I love that”. The bulk of the companions’ abilities are based on their own unique ‘personality’. For example, Neve is the only mage that is an Ice Mage, so she has related abilities that are distinct to her, but because she is a mage she does have access to abilities that all of the mages share, like Time Slow. The devs are really happy with this balance, a good mix of representing their archtype, their class, and also their distinct "specialization or personality, whatever you wanna call it.” “Each of these characters exists, each of these characters have a history, has a story of how they became who they were. Part of that was finding the intersection between narrative and gameplay”. They want to serve the needs of gameplay but also allow the characters to breathe as their own people both in conversations and out of conversation.