#HELLO I AM BACK ON MY DRAGOON BULLSHIT

[scrollsfromarebornrealm]

Dragoon armor–historical evolution (continued)

Okay. From last night.

Trueblood->Drachen->Dragonlancer->Trueblood (again)->Pteroslaver->Tiamat

-cough, adjust glasses-

(Disclaimer: Theorycrafting ahead. I typed this out on my phone, there may be errors in my post and my lore gathering.)

At this point, I feel that it’s safe to say that the proto-Ishgardians were dragon-riders. Period. Estinien’s short story (From Azure Ashes, Tales from the Storm)-

Along with an ingame line from either Vidofnir or Vedrfolnir (but based on his bio in EE1 I think it’s Vedrfolnir) proves this. It may have been highly common to see knight and dragon working as one unit to maintain the peace, and as a result it’s not that far off to assume there might have been a proto-Knight-Dragoon order.

Therefore, that means it’s time to poke at the armor!

———-

Trueblood/Drachen:

Okay. Last night I said this possibly was a bit of a difficult one, for the simple fact that Haldrath is seen wearing Drachen-mail. While this can be attributed to story purposes and DRAMA…I don’t think so. While we don’t know if Haldrath was a dragon-rider himself, it would make sense that he knew of it or even *had* training for it. Kings and princes are almost always automatically slotted in for training in the arts of war in many contexts, historical and fictional.

There’s another reason why I don’t think Square plopped that armor on Haldrath for superficial story reasons as well. And it’s very simple.

Haldrath fought Nidhogg.

You do NOT fucking tangle with any dragon, ESPECIALLY A FIRST BROOD DRAGON THAT IS RIGHTFULLY PISSED, IN REGULAR ARMOR.

You don’t. You CAN, but uh…you are not going to survive unless the gods fucking love you that day and I’m willing to bet Halone took one look at that situation and went ‘you fucking morons.  You absolute idiots!’

So now possbily at this point, we reach an interesting point.  Why don’t we see Haldrath in the Trueblood then?  Why the Drachen set?  

Honestly?  I couldn’t tell you.  But I will say this.  It’s very interesting that the Trueblood set is armor that’s forged using dragonfire, while the Drachen set is forged using dragonblood.  Dragonfire requires (ideally) a willing and active participant (insert your level of enthusiasm here) in the forging process.  Dragonblood on the other hand…you really don’t need permission to take from the newly dead, now do you?

I’m also beginning to suspect that maybe we could have had differencing armor sets.  I mean, it is possible that with the bonds between man and dragon, you could have had some dragons giving the a-ok to use their blood.  It could be that the Trueblood and Drachen sets were both actively used during that time period. But then we have this quote from the story…

While this is a direct reference to the murder of Ratatoskr, it could possibly also imply something darker.   It very well could be that the Trueblood armor was spurned for the Drachen. Dragonfire is all well and good, but blood historically irl and in fiction has always been touted as the source of great strength.

And if we're going there...who's to say that Haldrath’s Drachen was made with the blood of Ratasokr? Who’s to say that maybe some long-ago armoror got an idea in their head one day? We may never know. All of this is my own idle speculation.

But the fact that we see Haldrath in the Drachen set is pretty fucking telling, I feel.

——————–

Dragonlancer:

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CAN WE JUST GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO THE SHADOWBRINGERS TRAILER MOVIE FOR SHOWING US DRAGOON MID-AIR COMBAT?!

(3:20-3:13)

Seriously. I know the biggest gripe about this armor is that it gives one a fat ass but DID YOU SEE THOSE MANUVERS?!

Dragonlancer was originally created by a famous Ishgardian armorsmith named Urseille the Meek. This armor was specifically designed to allow the dragoon to be more aerodynamic in the air, yet the Church rejected the design because it wasn’t old and stogey enough (aka 'tradition’).

Dragonlancer is more than likely created via the same means–hot metal and dragonblood–but given the 'wings’ I wouldn’t be surprised if there was actual dragon hide included in the design. Or at the very least, a strong leather component. There’s no details in EE1 on how the armor was made.

————–

Trueblood (part 2):

EE2 goes into detail on the Trueblood, and it is lovely. The set itself is metal and cast-off dragon scales merged in dragonfire. The greaves provide traction, and the description goes so far as to *specifically* state Coerthas weather as one of the reasons the greaves needed tractionproofing. The helm is stated to have been forged when the people of Coerthas and dragonkind lived in harmony. In From Azure Ashes, Ratasokr is only all too happy to participate in the forging of such sets, and Hraesveglr states that the original dragoons wore such armor. EE2 states that forging with dragonfire was rediscovered after the Dragonsong War, and it’s my personal headcanon that dragoons now primarily wear variants of the Trueblood set once more.

--------

Pteroslaver Mail:

Um.

So yet again, disclaimer.  Anything I say on this set and the following one, the Tiamat armor--this is strictly all me.  To the best of my knowledge, we have no lore yet on any of these.  However we do know Encyopedia Eorzea III is coming out soon, and hopefully it’ll have some detail on one, if not both these pairs.  My take however--

To begin with, Ptero.

We also have Pterodactylus, which is an extinct genus of pterosaur, which were basically flying reptiles that lived during the Late Triassic to the Late Cretaceous period on Earth.  Some people generally know a critter from this group as pterodactyls.  So...

Ptero = Feather/wing 

Slaver = A person dealing with or owning slaves

So...Featherowner, Wingowner?  Featherslaver, Wingslaver?

?_?

There’s also the design.  (rant on the female Drachen mail aside).  In comparison to every other set (again, aside from the female level 50 Drachen) the entire body is covered.  The Pteroslaver? Not so much--it’s not as blatant as the level 50 Drachen set on female characters, but...

(yes i’m using Reinhardt pictures do not @ me I SPENT ALL DAMN DAY FIGHTING VARIS SO I COULD DYE THIS ARMOR GODDAMN IT WE’RE USING IT)

Methinks you DO NOT want the entire underarm exposed in combat.  Just saying.  That is a big fat target zone.  

Nor do you want toes possibly exposed-yes look at the top picture.  I'm also not saying anything about the tail because the Dragonlancer had the same thing and it looks purely ornamental so you can lose it no problem in a fight.  

Honestly to me, this looks like something one might wear in a gladiator ring.  Take my words worth a grain of salt, I’m not an armor expert.  If you’re using this in combat, my thinking is you have to be fast and nimble as fuck, because again, you got two big old areas of attack.  I can see the underarm armor being sacrificed for more maneuverability, but...yeah. You have to be fast.  

-----

Tiamat:

...I got nothing. The name certainly intrigues me, as does the make. Everything is streamlined, the dragoon wearing this is gonna be fast and nimble as fuck, possibly even more so than a dragoon in the Dragonlancer armor. Considering this is of Thavnarian design, and Vrtra's involvement in the warding scales, I would not be surprised if this is metal and insert-whatever-dragon-part merged with an absolutely bonkers Thavnarian alchemical combination/compound/what have you.

Another headcanon I've been nursing is Tiamat and Bahamut basically having their own version of mail they gifted to mortals--if they ever did so. Or a thank-you gift for freeing her and her children. In comparison to the Raident Host gear, which save for the caster and healer, definitely sport dragonish motifs on the armor itself--clawish hands and feet, fanged faceplates and tails--the Tiamat gear stands out for only having the dragon image on the chest, greaves, and gauntlets.

We'll see come EE3!

[larsisfrommars]

Rewatching Campaign 2: A Show of Scrutiny!

First wE plAy dUngEonS N dRAgoOns!

“Boo! Yay! Booeayayyyyy??” Sam’s ads never cease to amaze. 😂 Old school theme song gives me CR1 nostalgia ☺️

“I would like to make a counter offer!” GOD I missed Molly so goddamn much, I hope Tal gets to play him a few more times. Caleb sticking his neck out for Molly 🥺 he warms up slowly to the group but man, when he does, it’s in acts more than words. (I can’t believe people used to think Caleb was a Vax copycat! They’re SO different! Vax would’ve probably just have tried to do what Yasha did and then popped back up to do a jailbreak.) Sidenote: I still love Caleb’s voice, but I kinda miss when his accent was lighter.

God there was still SO much (more) Marisha Hate when this campaign started, I remember loving Beau right off the bat, and I totally get why Beau/Marisha did what she did in this episode. She’s still a rebellious teenager at heart and she’s trying to interrogate people and (sometimes needlessly) bucking against authority. People would dogpile on her for little mistakes literally everyone else makes. It’s amazing how people in this fandom make such a Huge Deal out of shit like that, and how little it ends up Actually Mattering. Exhausting.

Fjord being CHARMING 😍 I love him. OH NO the stupid little sister thing lmfao JESTER NOOOOO everyone is so stupid and I love them. Caleb being afraid to join the group and Nott trying to convince them, he was so scared, all the time. Then after all is said and done, Veth is the one who needs to stay and Caleb is the one that wants to keep everyone together??? The CINEMATICS sure do PARALLELS.

God I forgot what an absolute nervous wreck Nott used to be! Wowwwww “YES HELLO THANK GOD FRENDS” Sam jeezus kraist. Nott loves trinkets, Fjord doesn’t like ale, such grand departures from their former characters 😂

It’s interesting which things everyone is choosing to lie or not lie about, Beau is low key the most honest about her past which is odd! MORE THAUMATURGY!✨This minor feat of body horror was brought to you by The Traveler✨

I love how enamored Fjord used to be with other people’s magic and things. He’s still sticking to that “look at me I’m all cool and badass and southern and mysterious” but the dork we know is in there peaks out where magic is concerned.

I find it interesting that Tal and Travis had such a fantastic energy this campaign, a vibe that stuck between them through both of Tal’s characters (both Molly and Cad) that Percy and Grog never had. The conversations they have, even when they’re bullshitting each other have an Energy. I love it, Fjord had some super interesting and in depth relationships with everyone, including Molly. It’s one of the reasons Fjord was my favorite character from this campaign. Makes me wish Travis remembered more of his conversations w/ Molly for the BBEG fight.

Awww, Beau’s low key abandonment issues regarding Fjord and Hester going out in disguise on their own, she really is just a lonely and angry teen deep down. Thinking about Beau in drag for her disguise: I AM G A Y Y Y Y Y. The sibling dynamic Fjord and Beau have really started off early huh?? Hell yeah. Fjord being Beau’s acting coach lmfao.

Aww Jester and Nott’s friendship is already budding, Jester has always been so disarmingly nutty and kind. No wonder top table all grew crushes off her. Lmao “yes mommy!(??)” everyone in this group is somehow EVEN MORE awkward than they are later, it’s amazing.

Awww Caleb and the barkeep was cute, setting the tone early for the proliferation of smut throughout the series. Maaaaan, Molly’s conversation with the solitaire dude was INTERESTING, I 👏🏻 missed 👏🏻 Molly 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 It’s so weird how Uka’toa was a huge deal and the first thing Jester, Fjord and Beau fought together was a water snake, #thecinematicssuredoparallel

Wow, even early Fjord is doing the delegation thing while they investigate! Sticking to people’s strengths, encouraging those that have unique advantages. THIS! This Right Here is why I consider Fjord the “leader” of the Mighty Nein!

(Picking up after a few days) We’re alone? Great! Let’s go book shopping!! 💕💕💕 this shopkeep is absolutely adorable lmao. Rewatching clips of Vax and MAN he and Caleb are SOOOO different! Even if rn they kinda sound the same lol.

The platinum flask?! So soon??? Wow! I didn’t realize she got it SO early in the campaign?! Yoooooo?! What if the hooded figures Nott saw were Tombtakers?! Or Tharazidun cult members?! GUYS w h a t IF?!

God I forgot how chaotic the “plays” and dynamic duo madness Nott and Caleb had lmao. LEVEL 2! 🤣 Jester what the fuck lmao?! “Not in the Ustaloch!” God I love these idiots. CANON ENBY MOLLY! New gender just dropped, ✨Fabulous✨

Fucking FJORD using his real voice as a fake voice wjat the fuck?! It’s so weird coming back to this and knowing what he actually sounds like what the fuck?!? Followed by an AMAZING Grog slip up! 😂

God Molly’s “accent” sometimes man, sometimes I think it’s not as bad as everyone says and other times it’s just 😬 oh, Tal, buddy… no.

I see both Fjord and Jester resort to panic fjlirting when they think they’re in trouble lmfao. “We suck at this” LEVEL 2! Sit down cross legged to not look threatening?! Jessie, w h a a a-???

God, Matt I love you so much. You are so talented and can play so many different characters BUT you can NOT play kids. You roleplay Luc (4) and Toya (12) exactly the same way lmfao.

Awwww Toya and Molly 😭 so wholesome, even if Molly wasn’t around, it would’ve been cool to see the M9 interact with the circus more.

POOR ORNA LMFAO these idiots are so great. The Knot sisters are only here for the drama, everything is so fucking stupid and chaotic ohhhh my god I love these idiots. Sam accidentally called himself a GNOME lmao?!

Also Molly short circuiting when he finds out the literal devil toad reads as fucking fiendish with the detect good and evil spell lmao. Ohhhhhhh shit lmao I’m so glad they FINALLY figured it out. This has been such a clusterfuck. DARK SHADOWS RANDO PERSON AM I FORGETTING SOMETHING?! Was that Kaori?! Oh… it was. Oh. Lol.

“They uh… zombies!” Love Caleb 😂 good gods what a cliffhanger. Can’t wait for next episode’s combat!

[theladyragnell]

Hello my love. I have been following you all around (on account of several different fandoms, actually), and today I have finally finished watching daredevil! The thing is, I ship all your ships. THAT BEING SAID, matt/karen is fucking adorable. Do you ship them as well as your other ships in that fandom? Would you ever consider writing something about them? Even if it's just meta on why you don't like them (if you don't?) You are an amazing writer, and I need more them in my life

Hello, anon! This post comes with the caveat that I am still only halfway through s3, drawing it way out since it’s canceled and I won’t get anymore, so maybe at the end of s3 there are some moments that would change this answer a whole lot. So this is all from the perspective of the first two and a half seasons!

So, first, aside from all other considerations, I don’t tend to write fic or engage very much with canon ships? If I like it in the canon, I’m satisfied with it and don’t feel the need to write or go seeking out fic about it, with a few exceptions. It’s like Merlin fandom--I actually really liked much of Arthur/Gwen in the show, when it wasn’t being over-the-top and ridiculous (ahh, that s3 episode with the picnic and Dragoon the Great), but I only ever wrote one very short fic for them and didn’t really read anything for them.

That being said, Matt/Karen is not really my deal, at least the way I’ve seen it so far.

Part of it is me--to be frank, Karen turned me way, way off in s1, and it’s been hard going for me with her on and off since. (Look, you do not manipulate a man whose wife is very ill by using his wife’s illness to get him to go with you somewhere for a reason that’s actually unrelated. Aside from all issues of her persistence getting Ben killed, that one choice she made made me VERY unhappy.) I do think she’s a fascinating character! The way everyone perceives her vs. who she actually is, grimly persistent, passionate, reckless, ready to take on any fight, even if it’s SO beyond her paygrade. Watching perceptions of her unravel in s3 is perhaps the most interested I’ve been in her yet, because it’s interesting writing for HER, not just making her into The Love Interest.

Which brings me to the next point: continually, the show (and I am counting the Defenders in here too) has characters who Karen trusts or would be inclined to trust, in a position of wisdom and experience, at least as she perceives them, basically tell her to let Matt treat her like shit. Frank in s2, Trish in the Defenders, Sister Maggie in s3 ... all of them say “don’t give up, if he’s pushing you away,” or they say “sometimes love is like that, with one person treating the other this way.” And Karen may grumble, but she never stands up and says “No, that’s bullshit, I’m allowed to be mad and make him grovel” because the writers won’t manipulate HIS behavior to make him grovel, but they’ll manipulate hers to make her forgive.

(Yes, I know the whole thing is a lot more complicated than this, but I think at least a version of my point there stands: Matt is immutable; Karen is the one who has to modify her expectations, because she’s never allowed to just walk away.)

(And a side note: Foggy also keeps forgiving Matt, BUT part of the reason the ship works for me is that outside parties are not talking him into it. Matt does some dipshit thing, Foggy gets mad, they talk about it, and Foggy comes back. No third party is telling him this is just how some people are, that Matt Needs Him. Foggy is deciding that for himself. He says it himself in s3, that the way Matt is acting on him, but the way he chooses to respond when Matt needs help is his own choice, and he feels it’s morally better to forgive. HE chooses. Though of course that scene also functions as Someone Telling Karen How To Feel.)

There are ways this ship could work for me! If they acknowledge that they are both reckless people who won’t quit in a fight even when they’re losing, who let their tempers get them mired deep in situations beyond them, who will keep fighting for what they think is right till the end, even if the end would get them killed? That I could get behind. There are sometimes glimmers, but not enough. Karen does the kinds of things that Matt would do if he didn’t have superpowers, and that makes her a good partner for Daredevil as well as for Matt (as long as poor Foggy sticks around to rein them in on occasion, good lord), but as the ship is presented, what I see is Karen getting mad at Matt (usually justifiably, if sometimes bafflingly given in s2 she was happily forgiving Frank for greater crimes) and being pushed to forgive him, and Matt being so busy brooding that romance is barely even on his radar and thus he puts no effort into it.

tl;dr Matt/Karen, as presented in the show, doesn’t work for me, partly because I am not all that fond of Karen and partly because, fond of her or not, I can see that the ship as presented sins against her character fairly frequently.