#I don't support the players actions here to be clear

[coral-island-player]

Coral Island dlc idea - Pufferfish/evil route

I have an idea for a future update or dlc - one when you can join Pufferfish. Now, I know that what they're doing is evil, but I think if handled correctly, it would be a good addition. Long post, because apparently I can't make short posts like, ever. Also I think if it was a dlc, part of the benefits could go to charity? To show that while you can do evil things there, the devs don't think it's good.

Now, I think with the way the game currently is, you don't have a choice - your character has to be good. Which is great but I don't feel very satisfied with it. Of course my characters are doing good things, they don't have a choice. It'd feel better if I had the choice, you know?

So, in how I imagine it, after the initial cutscenes of Karen arriving at Coral Island and Mayor Connor explaining the situation to you, the next day you encounter Karen. She asks you to join Pufferfish and help them take over the island - I mean, help save it.

If you decline, the game progresses as usual. Only then you get the mysterious dream, the museum opens to you and Ling asks you for help. The only thing that changes is that when you talk to Karen, instead of (very poorly) trying to convince you to join them, she's a bit passive aggressive and upset with you for not joining her side. Maybe slight changes happen, like Karen and Raina having schedules and some more events. Possibly a bit more features, to make the dlc worth it for people who aren't interested in joining Pufferfish. That is, if it's a dlc and not an update.

If you do join her, that's when some things happen. You get some benefits - perhaps you get some funds from Pufferfish? Cheaper things, maybe some free sprinklers once in a while? I don't know what it might be, but basically it's technically easier for you, if you look at it from the benefit point of view. Much easier.

You pay to unlock higher town ranks and benefits you'd get for completing bundles, but as you pay, Karen's plans she tells to the townsfolk are more and more fulfilled. There are more and more oil rigs around the island. You never get the dream, Ling never asks you for help, you don't even get the chance to see the museum because it's immediately turned into the storage. The ocean only gets more polluted, though you get free kelp from the Pufferfish. Who knows what happens to the merfolk? You wouldn't know they exist, same with Giants. You can mine, but you can't free the Giants. The sacred trees get cut down. Maybe the temple gets cleaned and turned into a tourist spot. It's made very clear by the game that you made the morally wrong and selfish choice. And you miss out on so many parts of the gameplay! Maybe instead of enchantments, you get "tech upgrades" from Pufferfish (of course you pay money instead of gems and fossils).

And the townsfolk aren't thrilled by your actions, either. Word spreads fast that you're the one who sponsors Pufferfish and many hold it against you. It requires more points for you to make friends with the characters. The degree of the debuff might vary with some characters, Ling and Surya for example would resent you more than let's say, Mark or Chaem that were never that against Pufferfish to begin with. Some characters might even outright refuse to date you ("I'm sorry, *player name*. But I simply can't date someone who endorses Pufferfish. I hope you understand." Maybe that could be Scott, Surya, maybe Millie? I don't know how many, but some would). In some dialogue they mention how the changes affect them. Everyone's life is generally worse, except for yours which is actively better. Maybe some characters move out, like Ling, Surya, Scott...

Perhaps there are some slight changes on festivals, meaning Tree Planting and Beach Cleanup festivals ("I'm surprised YOU'RE here, *player name*. Last time I checked, you didn't care about the environment did you?").

You never get to meet and befriend the merfolk, obviously. Instead, you can befriend and romance Karen, Raina and Derek (yep, he's romanceable there. Sounds a bit more appealing now doesn't it?). You get heart events, and they're generally likeable characters, and in this path easiest to befriend. Even Karen has a soft side for you and genuinely cares about you, even if she is kinda evil. So are you in this path, though... While Raina and Derek are generally good people, just a bit misguided (possibly also romanceable after reaching town rank A in the good path? So really this path is only necessary if you wanna date Karen or want to speedrun it).

Maybe you do a little good though, like convincing Karen to make the work conditions at Pufferfish a bit better. Or pay to get the amount of trash in water reduced (you don't care about pollution. You just don't like it when you're trying to fish and there are flyers all over the water). But the bad you did still outweighs the good.

So, your life is better. Farming is easier, but everything that makes the island and the game what is is, is gone or destroyed. You feel guilty every time you pass by the place when the trees once were, the temple, or see the oil rigs, or when one of the townsfolk makes another passive aggressive comment to you, or just won't go up that one another heart. It's quite depressing, really. Was it really worth it? It makes the good path more satisfying in contrast, though. Knowing you could do the wrong thing, but didn't.

Maybe I made the consequences too severe, or too light. It is a bit depressing. Feel free to tell me what you think.

[noctvrnal9999]

Ascended Astarion, Cazador Szarr and how they are NOT alike (at all)

Some of you probably saw this coming already, that I would go out of my way to talk about the whole "Ascended Astarion is Cazador 2.0" thing because it's such a ridiculous notion. Here it is, my personal take on why I disagree.

First and foremost I will address the whole: "Oh my GOD Astarion follows the Four Rules right from the beginning!" mindset. Here they are, the rules as Vellioth passed them down onto Cazador:

First, thou shalt not drink of the blood of thinking creatures.

Second, thou shalt obey me in all things.

Third, thou shalt not leave my side unless directed.

Four, thou shalt know that thou art mine.

Rule one is pretty obvious - don't drink blood of thinking creatures. That's one of the tools Cazador used to keep his Spawn subservient and demoralized. We don't get any in-game information that Cazador went back on this rule in any instance whatsoever, seems it was very much set in stone for him. Ascended Astarion (which I will shorthand to AA from this point on) breaks this rule the moment he Ascends with his Blood Bride/Groom. Not only he gives player character his blood (willingly, I will mention), he speaks also about drinking PC's blood and they drinking his:

Already breaking the very first rule he himself had to obey for two centuries. And in-game mechanics support this of course, PC can use Bite action on anyone who is not classified as undead (like Astarion, for example, PC can freely chomp on him if they wish so).

Rule two is also obvious - Cazador compelled his Spawn through his bond as their master. That is evident in the scene where Astarion's siblings attack the camp:

They have no choice but to obey Cazador's command even if they struggle. The only reason Astarion is free because of the tadpole. We could apply same logic to Bride/Groom PC, that Astarion cannot compel PC only because of the tadpole. However, PC can ask Astarion about this:

To which he replies:

The implication here is that he thinks he can compel PC but he's choosing not to. Now, whenever you subscribe to the theory I presented before that he can't compel PC and is lying or not, it's up to you, but if we're taking this line at face-value only it's very very clear - AA is not going to compel PC, to him it's a ridiculous idea (Why would I need to?). He trusts that PC and him are on the same page (and personally I read the second part of his sentence as being cheeky, but maybe that's just me.)

Rule three, just like first two, is simple and easy to understand - don't leave your "master" unless directed. Cazador sent out his Spawn to lure victims for two hundred years, however, Astarion, if we believe he can compel PC, is not even attempting to make PC stay by his side (or send them away, for that matter). All he says is this:

And this is in conversation about not being able to walk in the sun, which is about his newfound powers being extended to PC. Nothing in any dialogues (that I can remember) suggests that he commands PC to stay by his side. The only such dialogue option appears in the epilogue (keep in mind that epilogue was added later) and if you legitimately argue with AA (I would never do it but there's some crazies out there, stay safe xoxo) but to be completely honest you can ask for your freedom:

To which he replies:

Even if we take this as "daunting" as some people portray it to be, we still see AA acting more like a brat-tamer than a cruel master Cazador has been. Try putting these lines into Cazador's mouth and tell me they work lol.

Rule four is self explanatory. And this one we can definitely apply to AA. From the moment of Ascension he insists confirming to PC that well, they are his, but he also emphasizes that he is theirs in turn (if blood drinking line is anything to go by). Vampires by nature are possessive, it makes sense that AA feels the need to speak about it. PC is the only person he ever loved, now he's expressing that love, albeit maybe a tad intensively (according to some).

But on the flip side, where AA can be seen as possessive as Cazador, AA does 180 and shares his power and status with PC. There's an incredible amount of lines in the game where he speaks about being equals, sharing power and standing side by side, unlike Cazador.

And these are just couple from same conversation, there's so many more, but pay close attention how many times he says "we" or "you and me". PC is not just a spawn to him, not someone to be controlled but a true equal, sharing power, wealth and goals.

Which leads me to another point that needs addressing and emphasizing - AA is still a vampire, just like Cazador. Yes, these two creatures are power-hungry, that's in their nature, in any vampire's nature. I'll draw attention to the fact that even as a Spawn, Astarion is hungry for power and freedom. Once he has freedom, his goal still remains power. While Cazador's goal was to become Ascendant, AA's is well, world domination, basically. He surely has the time if not power to try and achieve that. However, this doesn't make him "just like" his former master, it just makes him a vampire.

And let's not forget that even before becoming a vampire Astarion was already power-hungry, which is clear from his choice of career as a Magistrate. Albeit a far shout from world domination, he still sought positions of power even while alive.

So to summarize before this becomes too lengthy - AA is simply a vampire. Not a reflection of his former master. They share some traits because they belong to same caste by the end of Astarion's personal quest, but that doesn't make him any more similar to Cazador than any other Vampire Lord or even Strahd.

Simply put - AA is a monster. Vampires are classified as monsters and they are Lawfully Evil aligned in DnD. Just because he has unpleasant traits, it doesn't mean he took them from Cazador. It just means that he has unpleasant traits. Make the man accountable for his own flaws (or just generic vampire traits), after all, as Ascendant, I'm sure he take it :)

[pablitogavii]

Protector

Summary: You and Gavi want to keep your relationship away from public eye but when a man disrespects you, he is quick to protect you.

Pairing: Pablo Gavi x Reader

Warnings: none/ cute jealous!Pablo

You came to watch one of Pablo's games knowing how much your support means to him and finally being able to find some free time from school.

"Excuse me, can I get to my seat?" you said to the much older man who was taking up all the space for himself drinking his third beer and hiccuping drunkly.

"Only if you let me buy you a drink first, hermosa?" he smirked and you felt your stomach flip not really knowing how to respond but thankfully another lady told him to move so you could pass.

He certainly shamelessly checked your ass and kept staring at you for the rest of the game.

When Pablo scored a goal and the whole stadium cheered, he rushed to where you were sitting kissing his jersey and smiling up at you.

Even at the distance, he could tell something was making you uncomfortable since your arms were crossed around your chest like you were hiding from someone.

"¿Estás bien?" he mumbled with a thumbs up which camera clearly caught and you just smiled nodding your head not wanting to bother him with it right now. He had a game to focus on.

He sent you a kiss and you smiled hoping that man caught it as well and was going to stop staring you down now that he knows you clearly have a boyfriend.

He didn't stop and instead moved to an open seat besides you when a lady left before the end of the game. You just swallowed hard keeping a focus on the game until he placed his hand on your shoulder.

You flinched away turning to look at him in disbelief. Who was he thinking he is to touch you like that!?

"How about that drink after the game princesa?" he was smelling like beer mixed with god knows what and you just shook your head hearing the whistle and getting up quickly.

"Don't call me that. I need to meet my boyfriend after the game. Excuse me." you said politely but he mocked how you were lying and there is no way you are dating one of Barça boys.

You left shortly afterwards and sat at the bar waiting for Pablo to meet you there after he changes and celebrates victory with his teammates.

"What would you want girl?" a kind bartender asked and you smiled at her ordering a strawberry lemonade with some mint leaves in it.

"And I thought you were meeting your imaginary footballer boyfriend here? Please, put that drink on my tab doll. Don't worry princesa, I might not be a footballer but I certainly have money like one..." he winked disgustingly and you cringed turning away from him hoping that would be a clear sign that you were not interested.

"Are you ok? Do you want me to call security?" bartender asked and you shook your head really hoping Pablo will arrive soon so you can go home. You didn't want to make a spectacle and get public attention back on your relationship.

"Who did you want to call security on huh!? Girl clearly wants my company! Don't you princesa?" he touched your chin this time and you pulled away about to scream when someone pulled the man back and stood tall in front of you.

"Don't call her that! Are you alright, princesa?" Pablo's familiar voice calmed you down and you stood up holding onto his arm as he pulled you closer instinctively.

"No way! If that isn't the infamous Barça Golden Boy? Pablo Gavira. I mean, the slut really opened her legs for a good bank account!" man spoke while laughing clearly drunk out of his mind to control his actions and you felt Pablo's muscles tense up as he pulled away from your grasp and marched towards the man getting into his face.

"Say that again!" Pablo was yelling into the man's face angrily

"You owe her an apology, hijo de puta!" Pablo was fuming mad as the man grabbed his collar pushing him back but Pablo quickly came back and then all hell broke loose as they were throwing punches at each other.

Security guards quickly came as well as other players and ofc cameras were flashing everywhere capturing the whole scene. Pedri quickly spotted you in the crowd pulling you out and doing what his best friend would have wanted and get you somewhere safe and secluded.

"Please, go get him! He will get in trouble!" you were crying and Pedri made you sit down with a glass of water promising he was going to go and get Pablo out of there when you calm down.

"I can talk to him!" Peri was pushing past the crowd and the security guards let him through as he pulled on Pablo's arm making him turn away from the man and face him instead.

"That's enough, hermano! Let's go" Pedri held his face and Pablo started to calm down brushing blood from his mouth before nodding his head and walking away from the man who was dragged out of the stadium by security guards.

"Where is she!? Is she okay?" Pablo asked looking around frantically but Pedri reassured him that you were safe and waiting for him in the changing room.

"Thank you for getting her out of there. Disgusting, hijo de puta!" Pablo said and Pedri nodded his head tapping his friend's shoulder.

When he entered the changing room, you quickly rushed to him hugging him tightly as he returned a hug reassuring you that everything will be alright.

"¡Dios mío! You are bleeding!" you say touching his eye and he took your hand kissing it and telling you that he will be fine.

"Just a scratch princesa" he said with a smile although you could tell that it was hurting him right now.

"You can leave through the back door, there is a cab waiting for you." Pedri said and you smiled walking hand in hand with Pablo towards the exit.

When you arrived home, you made him sit down on the sofa while you brought the first aid kit and got ready to clean his wound. He pulled you onto his lap and you smiled putting some alcohol onto the gauze before placing it on his eye.

He winced loudly and you apologized reminding him that you must clean it so it doesn't get infected.

"I'm so sorry this happened, amor. I tried to get away from him.." you spoke while finishing up the cleaning and he pulled you closer capturing your lips into a loving kiss.

"Not your fault, mi princesa linda" he said and you blushed feeling his lips leaving small kisses on your cheeks and nose.

"You're my protector.." you smiled laying your head on his chest and he cradled you kissing the top of your head gently.

"Yes, I am!" he said proudly and you both smiled taking a moment to finally relax.

[hero-deserves-to-be-happy]

Let Kel Be Sad: An Analysis on Kel’s struggles to express his negative emotions

Like Hero, Kel is also a “fixer”—he would bend over backwards to solve his friends' problems and stop the world if it would make them happy again, and both him and his brother are such big hearted and generous people who would much rather be the emotional support for others rather than talk about their own problems and make a situation about themselves and their feelings. For Hero, this often involves burying his own feelings and faking happiness, but I don’t think it necessarily means this for Kel, even if he struggles to express his negative emotions.

To me, Kel’s happiness and positivity is genuine, but he dismisses, discounts, and often runs from his sadness when he does experience it.

Let's discuss under the cut.

[Mod Sprinkles made the joke that in another universe I (mod Acacia) would also run a blog called "Let Kel Be Sad" so here are some Kel thoughts. Thanks for indulging my ramblings! 🧡]

Disclaimer: These are just my personal opinions, perceptions, and headcanons about Kel (and Hero). There are a lot of ways his character can be interpreted, and one of the great things about fandom is getting to see different points of view and differing interpretations of characters we all know and love. I know I speak for both Sprinkles and myself when I say we have a lot of respect for that, and for that reason, I want to be upfront that, while I do genuinely believe Kel struggles expressing negative emotions (thus the "Let Kel Be Sad" title), I don't personally view Kel as someone whose happiness is "fake" in the same way as Hero's. I can see the appeal of this interpretation and can understand why people interpret his character in this way, but it personally does not vibe with my personal interpretations, perceptions, and headcanons of Kel and his character, so if you perceive/headcanon Kel in that way, this post probably won't be your cup of tea. Please keep that in mind.

Warnings: OMORI Spoilers and discussion of game-relevant heavier topics such death, trauma, and grief.

Kel wears his heart on his sleeve, but this doesn't mean that he is shallow. He is a big-hearted, deeply empathetic, and incredibly loyal friend, and it cannot be stated enough that one of Kel’s biggest strengths is his ability to use his natural positivity and resilience to lift up those around him. He’s really the hero of the game because none of the healing would have been possible if he hadn’t continued to believe in his friends even after all of this time, hadn’t encouraged them, and hadn’t built them up just by being Kel.

And while I do think Kel does struggle to express vulnerabilities and negative emotions, I don't personally think of Kel's unwavering optimism as a mask. In my mind, Kel is not an emotional repressor or burier in the same way as Hero. In fact, because he wears his heart on his sleeve, he would probably really struggle to fake an emotion he wasn’t feeling (even if it was something positive like happiness). If Kel doesn’t want to express an emotion, I imagine he runs from it and avoids it, since it’s not natural or easy for him to “replace” or “bury” it with a fake one. Whereas Hero is much more reserved and private about his feelings, no matter what they are, so it’s much easier for him to convincingly mask pain and suffering under layers and layers of fake happiness. I just don’t think Kel would be able to hold back those emotions for very long. His negative feelings would eventually just kind of explode out of him without thinking and/or they’d become so apparent from his expressions and/or actions (since he does wear his heart on his sleeve) and everyone (including the player of the game) would know that he had so much negativity under the surface.

This isn't to say that Kel is perfectly fine. He isn't. He has suffered a terrible loss just like everyone else, but I think the game makes it clear that Kel has the most acceptance surrounding Mari's death and that he has made peace with what happened more so than the other main characters. Please keep in mind that this is only relative to the other main cast. Kel may seem "well-adjusted" in comparison to his brother and his friends who are, quite frankly, barely keeping it together, but he would not necessarily be considered well-adjusted in comparison to the non-traumatized townies. I genuinely believe that Kel is still in the process of healing, but relative to the other main cast members, he is farther along in that journey than they are.

And in that way, the game doesn't really give us a moment where Kel is overwhelmed by grief in the same way as the rest of the characters. Yes, there is the scene (one of my personal favorites) where Kel shares about his fight with Hero, and it is incredibly vulnerable and gives a lot of subtly and nuance to his character, but I don't think it's necessarily evidence that the player can't accept Kel as he presents himself to us at face value in the way that we can't accept Hero as he presents himself to us at face value. As I recently discussed in this post, the scene where Sunny finds Hero crying alone at Mari’s piano on the night of "Two Days Left" tells the player that Hero's attempts to appear well-adjusted and "fine" are, at least to a certain extent, all for show. There isn’t a Kel equivalent of this scene which, I personally think, is meant to tell the player of the game that Kel is the most well-adjusted member of his friend group (key words here being "of his friend group") and the one who has the most acceptance surrounding Mari’s death. Additionally, Mod Sprinkles actually made the point that Sunny is extremely perceptive and sensitive to his friends’ feelings and emotions. If Kel was still harboring a lot of negativity surrounding Mari’s death, Sunny likely would have picked up on that and been more hesitant to go outside with him in the first place.

This isn’t to say that Kel doesn’t ever have any negative feelings and that he doesn’t struggle to express those sometimes, but I think this struggle to express “the bad stuff” doesn’t stem from a pressure he feels to be happy all the time. That said, I do wonder sometimes if he is a little scared of feeling sad. He wants to be happy and wants everyone around him to be happy, and I think there is this certain helplessness that he feels when he can’t cheer other people up. We see a little glimpse of that in his account of his & Hero’s fight after Mari’s death. I think watching someone he loved so much go through such a deep and debilitating depression at such a young age probably permanently affected him, and he might have some worries about getting “stuck” like his brother, wallowing in that sadness and grief if he allows himself to feel it.

However, this is an unwarranted fear because Kel and Hero are very different. Even though Kel might feel sad, and his feelings are absolutely valid, I don’t think he’s prone to that level of despair and depression that we see in Hero. Understanding that his experiences and emotional responses are different than his brother’s is a big part of growing up so it might take him a while to realize this, and in the meantime, I could see it possibly manifesting itself as a sort of avoidance of sadness.

Everyone grieves differently. This is a difficult concept for even adults to understand, so I can't imagine how hard it would be for a 12-year-old like Kel. Because Kel didn't grieve Mari in the same way as Hero or his friends and didn’t spiral into the same level of despair and depression as the others, I think he struggles with invalidating his own feelings to himself sometimes--writing them off as shallow and dismissing them to himself as "just not deep enough." Again, I think this goes back to the one (1) fight that Kel and Hero had. We don’t know exactly what they said to each other in that fight, but it’s my personal headcanon that Hero lashed out at Kel for “not understanding” for he felt. From then on, I think Kel really does struggle with this fear that he just doesn’t understand emotions and because of that, any attempts to help his hurting loved ones will only make everything worse.

I’d really like to see him reach a place in which he can accept that even if his feelings and his grief are different and perhaps not as lingeringly overwhelming as the others', that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have them and that doesn’t mean he didn’t care about Mari or his friends. In my mind, Kel’s hesitation and worry at expressing his negative feelings and his happy-go-lucky personality can both exist at the same time. I don't think they are mutually exclusive, and I tend to think of Kel as someone who naturally looks on the bright side of things and is genuinely optimistic and uplifting. To deny this feels like a disservice to (my personal perception of) Kel, but I think it is also a disservice to pretend he never feels sadness or any negative feelings at all. There has to be a balance.

Let Kel feel sad when he needs to but recognize that he doesn’t actually need to feel sad all that often.

[utilitycaster]

Could you expand on Ideology re: Narrative in your Grand Theory?

Is it the thing that the player bases the character’s actions and arcs on, like the thing they focus their attention on when making choices?

Not sure if this counts as a good question, feel free to ignore if not.

Yeah, it's sort of a combination of how they make decisions and what they appear to be most comfortable with/what their strengths are. It's not prescriptive by any means. I should also note: this is specifically in the main campaigns in longform. I think Sam and Laura, for example, are way more comfortable taking a big risk in one-shots or miniseries (Arlo in Candela Obscura is perhaps the most clear example here), and I think Liam, Marisha, and Travis tend to play support/background in those.

To some extent, it's really hard to have character development while actually in the spotlight - that always necessarily has to come later - but Laura and Sam are really comfortable and skilled with their characters always working in their story as a consistent background theme, with scattered episodes of focus. I also think they're least comfortable being in a Big Spotlighted Arc; they both absolutely can do it but it's not what they tend to aim for. They do make big decisions sometimes, but they're often not decisions that put them front and center, and I say this with no judgment (and indeed, with a lot of respect) for those who do place their characters more front and center. I also find them both relatively risk-averse.

Travis and Taliesin tend to have very little aversion to risk. They make characters with pretty clear narrative hooks and are willing to leave quite a lot up to the DM, and will push big red buttons and deal with negative consequences. This is good, and frankly, while I think obsessing on your fave having A Briarwoods Arc (TM) is pointless (different characters need different things; Vex's story simply does not need that kind of central, concrete focus) it's also true that the reason Travis and Taliesin tend to get those is because they make characters for whom this is a natural thing to have, and because they are willing to put their characters on the line. I think Ashley is building up to this; she necessarily couldn't do so as easily when she was frequently away from the table, so Pike and Yasha have a lot of work in the background, but with Fearne she's been taking some pretty big swings. It's a style that requires a lot of confidence in your backstory and a lot of trust in the GM and a strong ability to pivot.

Liam and Marisha tend to have milestones. Marisha skews the furthest towards this; Liam can be a Big Red Button guy and he absolutely has the GM trust/willingness to lose that requires, but he's a little too controlled in his character's goals; I'd say that like, the spectrum here is Sam and Laura as the most background development, Ashley falling between background and big red button, Travis and Taliesin clearly in big red button, Liam between big red button and milestone, and Marisha solidly in milestone. The best way I can describe it is usually their characters have clear tasks to achieve, and they don't really change until the end. Keyleth is the clearest version of this, with the Aramente steps, but Beau's intermittent meetings with the Cobalt Soul also count. The other way I described it is that Big Red Button has the risk first and then the character development as they deal with consequences; Milestone has a big moment as a capstone to the development that's been happening. This style requires a pretty thorough character backstory because it needs to be proactive - it works best for a very driven character, and also requires someone who's willing to talk to the GM out of game to make sure they're broadly aligned (again, nonjudgmental; I think that communication like this is a good thing).

[lilacura]

Court side drama

Pairing: Lalisa Manoban x Reader

Word count: 610

Tw: no tw

Summary: "Courtside Drama" follows (Y/N) and Lisa's loving relationship, disrupted by Yeji's attempts to woo (Y/N). This tale of love, rivalry, and secrets leads to an intense showdown with unexpected twists.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You couldn't help but feel the energy pulsating through the gymnasium as you, (Y/N), stood at the edge of the basketball court. Dressed in your vibrant cheerleader uniform, you watched the game intently, your pom-poms ready for action. The star of the team, Lisa, was a force to be reckoned with on the court. She dribbled the ball with grace and precision, her quick reflexes making it seem like the basketball was an extension of her being.

Lisa was not only a talented basketball player but also your girlfriend. Her charisma and friendly nature had drawn you in, and you both had become fast friends and eventually, much more than that. However, tonight, things would take an unexpected turn.

As you cheered for Lisa and her team, you noticed a tall figure from the opposing team making her way over to you. Her name was Yeji, and she had a reputation for being a player. You tried to be polite, offering a friendly smile, but your focus was on the game.

"Hey there, (Y/N)," Yeji said with a confident grin, leaning against the bleachers. "You look incredible in that cheerleader outfit. You know, I've always admired cheerleaders."

You blushed, feeling somewhat flustered by her attention. You weren't used to this kind of forwardness. "Uh, thank you, Yeji. We're here to support the team."

Yeji chuckled, looking over at Lisa as she made a fantastic slam dunk. "Your friend Lisa is amazing out there. She's got quite the talent, doesn't she?"

You couldn't agree more, but you couldn't help feeling a bit uneasy about the way Yeji was eyeing Lisa. You replied, "Yes, she's an incredible athlete, and she's my girlfriend. I'm lucky to have her."

Yeji's expression shifted from confidence to surprise and disappointment, realizing that you and Lisa were together. She awkwardly cleared her throat and retreated, her earlier charm evaporating.

Meanwhile, Lisa noticed the interaction from the court and decided to take matters into her own hands. During a timeout, she approached the sideline and spoke loudly enough for Yeji to hear. With a sly grin, she quipped, "Well, well, well, (Y/N), it seems like Ms. Smooth Talker here thought she could just waltz in and whisk you away from me. Newsflash, buddy, this cheerleader is very much taken, and I don't share. So, you might want to reevaluate your game plan."

Yeji looked taken aback as Lisa continued, her voice dripping with possessiveness. "I know you're impressed with my skills, but (Y/N) and I are a package deal. You might want to back off."

You couldn't help but smile at Lisa's bold declaration. She wasn't one to let anyone encroach on what was rightfully hers. Yeji, feeling the tension in the air, retreated quickly, deciding it was best not to pursue any further.

As Yeji made her hasty exit from the gymnasium, her disappointed expression shifted into a sly smile. Unbeknownst to both you and Lisa, she had a few tricks up her sleeve, and she wasn't one to back down easily.

As the weeks passed, Yeji remained relatively quiet, seemingly accepting the situation. But behind the scenes, she was hatching a plan to catch your attention once again. She knew that she couldn't compete with the strength of your relationship with Lisa on the basketball court, so she had something entirely different in mind.

What Yeji had in store for the next time she saw you would not only test your loyalty to Lisa but also leave you questioning your feelings and decisions. The game was far from over, and the suspense continued to build, setting the stage for a dramatic showdown that would change everything.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

pt.2 🤔

[jonillaa]

hi!! can you write something about high school basketball player!jo being overprotective of his gf in front of his teammates? thank you ~~~

SLAM DUNK ┊ asakura jo

PAIRING ┊ jo x f!reader

GENRE ┊ fluff (very very slight angst if you squint)

WC ┊ 520

WARNINGS ┊ bullying , ending is kinda cringe erm.. , lowercase intended!! (lmk if i missed anything!)

SYNOPSIS ┊ being the girlfriend of your high school's heartthrob, jo, felt like a dream come true. however, the constant name-calling and teasing from his teammates began to take a toll on your self-esteem. jo, unable to bear seeing you hurt, takes matters into his own hands, even if it means quitting the team.

A/N ┊ hii did you guys miss me 😋😋 bye let’s not talk about how the title doesn’t match up with the drabble at all.. SHHHH I literally don’t know what else to put ☹️ anyways short drabble for bae jo becuz I miss him and i don’t wanna be dead anymore haha!! 😆

you never expected to be the girlfriend of the most popular guy in school, jo. he was the star basketball player, with his handsome visuals and long legs that seemed to effortlessly glide across the court. but what drew him to you was the shared art class you had together. he had always had his eyes on you, even before you started dating.

at first, being jo’s girlfriend felt like a dream. he was sweet and caring, always there to comfort and reassure you when the relentless name-calling from his fan girls got to be too much. you didn't mind it at first, but as time went on, their words slowly chipped away at your confidence.

but just when you thought things couldn't get worse, jo’s basketball teammates started picking on you. they would whisper comments about you into his ears, teasing him for dating someone like you and saying he could do better. their words hurt more than anything the fan girls could say, and it felt like a betrayal coming from his own teammates.

one day, during basketball practice, the teasing reached its peak. jo’s eyebrows furrowed with anger as he listened to his teammates' snide remarks. he had had enough. without hesitation, he walked up to you, his usually awkward demeanor replaced with a determined expression.

"hey, let's get out of here," jo said, his voice filled with a mix of protectiveness and frustration.

confused but intrigued, you followed him as he led you away from the gym and into a quieter hallway. once you were alone, jo turned to face you, his eyes filled with a mix of concern and determination.

"i can’t stand seeing them treat you like that," he confessed, his voice laced with anger. "they’re supposed to support me through everything, it makes me wanna quit the team. you deserve so much better than this."

you couldn't help but feel your heart swell at his words. his sudden overprotectiveness was both surprising and attractive to you. you had always admired his strength and skill on the basketball court, but seeing him stand up for you like this made you fall for him even more.

"i appreciate you standing up for me, jo," you replied, your voice filled with gratitude. "but i don't want you to quit because of me."

jo’s expression softened as he reached out to gently cup your face, his touch sending shivers down your spine. "i would do anything for you, even if it means giving up basketball. you mean more to me than anything else."

his words left you speechless, your heart pounding in your chest. you never expected jo to be so open and vulnerable with his feelings. it made you realize just how much he cared for you.

from that day forward, jo’s teammates never dared to say another word about you. the anger in his eyes and the determination in his voice had made it clear that he would not tolerate any more disrespect towards you. his actions spoke louder than any words could, and his teammates finally understood the depth of his feelings for you.

[vashtijoy]

on canon

So here's the deal:

No work of fiction has a single interpretation. There are as many interpretations, pretty much, as there are people, and that's because the job of fiction is to tell us about ourselves—about others too, yes, and about the world around us, yes. But primarily, a work of fiction is a collaboration between the author and the reader/viewer/player/etc.

What does that mean, exactly? Surely the creator is the one who gets to say what a character is? Well, no.

Let's take a character (call him... idk, something nice and generic, like "Boro"). The creator wrote Boro with certain ideas in mind. But Boro doesn't really come to life until he reaches the viewer—when the creator's concept interacts with the viewer, to create something new. And there are a lot of viewers.

A work of fiction is as much what the viewer sees as it is what the creator intended. It's what we all bring to it, as much as it's what the creator wrote. Art is not dictated; it's not a straitjacket, with rules and diktats that must never be broken. Art is released into the world. Because art is nothing without an audience.

What Boro (or his frenemy Ben, or their close lookalikes Bight and Bell, or any characters or canon you want to name) are is as much about how you think of them, and what you see, and what you personally bring to them, as they are about their dialogue and visuals and the events of their plot.

on fanfiction

This means there is really no "bad" fanfiction. We all create and write to our own vision—we draw on our ideas of the original work, on the inspiration we personally drew from it. We take the things that spoke to us—that moved us, or obsessed us, or that we just found funny—and we create things we love, using the original work as a source. Plus, we're all learning our art—some of us have been writing for twenty years, and others have just started. That kid writing today will write the epics of tomorrow. So don't bite the newbies.

Sometimes our shared universes overlap, and that's great! Sometimes nobody else agrees, which can be kind of lonely—but doesn't make your vision somehow less valid. We are not painting by numbers; we're creating a palimpsest of slightly different (or very different) visions.

Why start fights because someone else doesn't share your artistic vision? Make your own thing that you like. We're a flock of birds singing, not the Borg.

digression: so why do you spend so much time talking about canon

I'm more of a researcher than I'm a writer. And what became clear to me very early on was just how much I'd missed on my playthrough of P5R—and just how well the story hung together, when you scratched a little below the surface. Those things interest me. I don't like the feeling that I misunderstood things, and I like unearthing connections, obscure text chats that are easy to miss, cockeyed correspondences that don't necessarily mean anything, and so on.

For me, canon is our shared baseline. It's the light outside before it hits our retinas, before we get into the detail of whether the blue I see is really the blue you see. I find digging into canon can spur ideas; a close look at it can support interpretations that are often ridiculed ("Akechi feels remorse for his actions" would like a word).

Ultimately, everything I blog about is my interpretation. I hope it's accurate and I'm glad when it speaks to people! But it's not the law. And if people are creating things that don't agree with it? Good. That's exactly how it's supposed to be.

tl;dr

Write your story. Sing your song. Tell your truth.

[barilleon]

Building Dungeons that Tell Stories

One thing I've been hired to do a lot lately is to write a dungeon that's meant to fit into a larger adventure/product. For example, I wrote the Ivory Tower for Sarah Morris's The City Lost to Dream. I'm writing another one now, for [redacted], and I thought it'd be cool to talk through my process as I build the outline.

You can find a Notion template for my dungeon outline here! But this blog post will talk through it.

First, a disclaimer: This isn't the definitive way to make a dungeon! In fact, not all dungeons need to tell stories in this way. But the vast majority of mine do, because they're attached to one-shots, and I like the narrative completeness this style of dungeon creation affords. There's a narrative throughline to this kind of dungeon, where each room serves a purpose and allows the players to piece the story together. At the climax, the characters can use this information to make an informed decision about how to proceed.

This style is heavily inspired by the environmental storytelling found in games I've enjoyed like Bioshock and Pokemon. Every bit of the environment, down to the smallest aesthetic choice, links back to the main idea in some way. When you put all the pieces together, the image becomes clear.

So let's dive into it:

The Dungeon Thesis

The Dungeon Thesis is the story told by traversing the dungeon. What happened here? What will the party learn from each of these rooms? Every room in the dungeon should be a supporting argument for this thesis.

If you've read my adventure The Workshop Watches (get it here for free!), then you'll recognize the strong thesis there: S.A.M. is a sentient workshop who accidentally killed its creators. Every room inside S.A.M. supports this thesis, by providing more insight into Illumar's research and S.A.M.'s actions since its creation.

The Dungeon Background section can help you with this thesis. Who lives in this dungeon now? Why was it originally created? What conflict is created by the disparity in the answer between those two questions?

While your final draft probably won't have a section labeled "Dungeon Thesis," the entire thing should have echoes of what you put here in your outline throughout.

The Dungeon Gimmick

Not every dungeon needs a gimmick, but it is a great way to make this encounter stand out. Maybe the corridors shift, or the characters are running on a timer. Maybe your dungeon is sentient and very, very curious. When coming up with a dungeon gimmick, also consider the other overarching features of the dungeon. How are the halls lit (and who made it that way)? Are there doors? Do they lock?

When adding a gimmick to your dungeon, make sure you introduce it right away. I'll cover this more in the entryway section, but it's a good idea to establish the gimmick as soon as possible, and keep reinforcing it, so it sticks in the GM's mind (and therefore their players' minds). Here's the gimmick from The Workshop Watches:

Individual Rooms: Purpose, Challenge, and Reward

The meat of a dungeon is, of course, its rooms. I have a three-pronged approach to coming up with the rooms: purpose, challenge, and reward.

Purpose

Why is this room important to the overall dungeon? What can the characters learn from traversing this room that will lead them closer to the thesis? Does it establish the ruthlessness of the villain, betray a secret weakness of your enemy, or provide more context for what's going on here?

You don't always have to come up with the purpose first. Sometimes you look at your dungeon layout and say, "I need more combat." So build your combat encounter, and then retroactively determine why that's necessary to the story.

That's what I did for The Workshop Watches. I added the greenhouse fight because the dungeon needed more combat. I asked myself, "what kinds of rooms would exist in a wizard's laboratory?" and settled on a greenhouse full of magical plants. Later on, I came up with the temperature control mechanic, where S.A.M. would counter cold damage with fire damage and fire damage with cold damage. A burnt section of the greenhouse suggests that S.A.M. has incinerated something-or someone-before.

Challenge

What are the characters meant to do in this room? This one is the most straightforward, but writing it out can help you keep track of the balance between different types of challenges. Combat, exploration, social, trap diffusion, puzzle solving, etc.

Reward

What do the characters get for completing the challenge in this room? Sometimes the reward is just "passage to the next room." Sometimes it's as explicit as "treasure!" But think outside the box for things your players would appreciate inside a dungeon: new tools, the opportunity for a rest, more lore, a role play opportunity.

There can be multiple Purposes, Challenges, or Rewards in one room, but try not to overdo it! Conversely, you can cheat a little bit and have them overlap or omit one ("The purpose of this room is simply to be a place for the characters to rest -- a reward! The challenge is in whether they'll recognize it or not")

Examples

The template has more questions for special room types. I won't go through all of them, but I do want to share some examples from my outline for The City Lost To Dream. Here's the entryway example:

Later on, I realized that there wasn't enough in the entryway. The final draft has a statue of the tower's founder and clues to suggest you should rub the bottom of her robe, which grants you a boon on a check. A fun reward for a History challenge.

Another example, one of the Laboratory floors:

You can see there's multiple challenges here, but no concrete reward yet. In the final draft, the aboleth can help you in a later encounter, but it also grants you three "knowledge" wishes (basically, three castings of legend lore).

The Climax

The climax of the dungeon - the final confrontation. Most dungeon delving games consider some kind of confrontation to be a great cap to the adventure. Combat is especially popular here. Give your characters something to fight!

But almost as important as the fight is the choice. A question I am constantly asking myself is, "The Characters learned all that information you gave them; now what are they going to do about it?" This is a roleplaying game, after all! When the characters learn the full truth of the dungeon and uncover its thesis, it may change their minds about how to proceed. Maybe they must choose between two potential adversaries, or choose whether or not to fight, or choose whether or not to use lethal force.

And that's the outline! I hope it's helpful to folks who are interested in creating this style of dungeon. Definitely pick up a copy of The City Lost to Dream if you haven't already; it's a fun 5e adventure! And let me know what you think of this method.

[multifandommadnessblog]

Narilamb; an in-depth(ish) study by Rachi that is totally deranged but maybe someone else will like it :) - aka it's her headcanons and stuff (with videos from other creators)

okay so why am i so obsessed with narilamb? uh... look i can explain i swear

Okay first off: my opinions here are probably very similar to many others and I know I'm not original in any way, shape or form. BUT, I like to talk (or type I guess).

SO... why is narilamb so good?? Most of us agree it's kinda pretty toxic. I see it as a relationship that was (heavy on the was) built on unhealthy power dynamics, manipulation and overall nuh uhs. To be clear it's kinda toxic on both sides, Narinder and lamb both at some point in the overall relationship do bad things and that's just how it is. it's complicated

but anyways

Idk how many of us actually chose to spare Narinder versus kill him at the end of the game (I personally spared him) but this is where a lot of these headcanons (and I'd argue the ship itself) starts.

When spared Narinder is escaping the jail that he was held in for thousands of years, but then forced to adapt to a new life in the cult. Which kinda sucks, and most of my headcanons center around Narinder going through some deep character arc (not excusing his previous actions) and learning to live life again basically.

and obv the lamb's personality is supposed to be based off the player since we play them, but I picture them in two ways:

Classic sunshine, happy go jolly. Their "cult" personality if you will - they're silly and goofy and meme worthy

Numb, cold and just trying to get by. Without proper support they withhold all of these negative emotions and experiences. They didn't want this - they just knew this was their only chance at life again (this video by Paper SU conveys this)

Part of me thinks that the lamb never wanted any of this cult business, they probably had a simple life before. The only reason they are here is because they truly don't have anything else. Their cult members don't really have the depth to help them, and lamb sees them more as children to live for than a companion or someone who truly understands their experiences.

then black cat babygirl Narinder comes in and BAM.

The two have been harmed by deep trauma without a proper outlet for it. I picture both having to live with these and just kinda hide that part of them (for Narinder it comes out as anger and falsely guarding himself so he doesn't get hurt again. For lamb they just hide behind this happy facade they put up, Ratau and his folks are the only ones who see some of what the real lamb is like)

When first interacting in the new dynamic (Nari is in the cult now) it's messy to say the least. Lamb finally realizes someone could potentially understand what they had been through for the past uh.... many many years. Ofc, Narinder kinda started it all but he also gave them life again. It's complicated, and lamb's feelings about it are also complicated. Narinder is just sassy and mean like usual, refusing to accept lamb as the new god, still angry from their (and others) betrayal, blah blah blah, kinda wanting to just live his new life but he has lived for so long in anger it would be weird to not...

and for a while lamb thinks it's not going to work :(

But then MmMMMMMMMM THE IMMORTALITY OF IT.

Okay look look, can we all agree that Narinder is canonly immortal (cause of his trait if you spare him) and Lamb ascending to godhood is immortal? Yes? Cool.

I love the idea that these two got literally all of the time in the world to figure out their dynamic and help to heal each other after all of their traumas. Even if they go through rough patches they have all the time to work it out and that just gives me so much hope :,) Cause in the real world relationships can't work like that so I almost feel like there is a pressure on relationships to rush through and never have extreme conflict bc there isn't enough time in life to work through it and still enjoy the time together (existential crisis)

A really great video I watched that (in my opinion) demonstrates this idea is this animatic by Strawdool on youtube! (it's also just really cute please watch it)

So even if these two are as different as can be, both mentally damaged and overall not doing so hot, one is angry as hell, and the other is in denial and just sad THEY GOT ALL OF ETERNITY TO FIGURE IT OUT. They can learn to live together because they know they will always have each other :>

I mean there is a tumblr post i saw where someone complied the official art of Narinder and it shows him just being kinda silly n goofy

i'm sure it's for the sillies BUT PERSONALLY I see it as Nari finally being comfy in his life (maybe a very long time after he is indoctrinated) - finally working on healing and he's just chilling

i wanna thank lamb for that, and i hope lamb also is doing just as good because of nari

please i need to write more of this its so unhealthy all of these ideas sitting in my little brain - for now i must shut up

(also I have SEARCHED FAR AND WIDE for fan content of this ship so if any of y'all are up for fanfiction or fan art reccs hmu I have many)

okay thanks

bye

[shuttershocky]

Out of curiosity, what was the problem with Overwatch’s maps? I definitely found them frustrating at times, but I don’t know enough about game design to tell Why.

I only played the initial selection of maps (if I remember correctly, they were Hanamura, Hollywood, Dorado, Route 66, Gibraltar, King's Row, Ilios, Nepal, Lijang Tower, Volskaya, and Temple), but from memory, most of them—Hanamura, Volskaya, and Dorado especially—were poor fits for the gameplay Overwatch wanted to have.

Many were a series of very simple killboxes, just these big squares of death connected by only 2-3 possible paths, most of which connected close to each other. This meant Defenders only really needed to be facing one way to see everybody coming in, so choosing to go in from one route or another often felt pointless. Most matches would have you spend long periods in a stalemate with very little progress, with you sitting behind your tank as both teams rammed at each other endlessly.

This wouldn't necessarily be so bad: stalemates can be intensely fun standoffs with a lot of action so long as they don't last for too long or progress both positive and negative visibly occurs for a tug-of-war feeling, but this did not fit well with Overwatch having ultimates.

Ultimates were wide, flashy, very deadly moves that normally would serve to keep the game moving, but the issue was that unlike say, the Medic's ubercharge in TF2 where it was only limited to one character and could be stopped by killing the medic before activation, everybody in Overwatch had Ultimates. This meant that these stalemates often just had players attempting to play safer and build their ultimates in order to be the big hero that breaks the stalemate, while the other team was doing the exact same thing. Back then, Mercy's ultimate also revived all fallen allies on the field (this was later removed because even Blizzard realized that was fucked up), so in case one team actually managed to get a clear victory in their skirmish, one character could actually do a full reset.

The combination of the map design with the combat mechanics made Overwatch's battles feel creatively dull. It was all flashiness (sometimes too much flashiness to the point of unreadability when multiple ultimates were popped at once) with very few ways to actually feel engaged in terms of tactics. You need to feel like your decision-making or raw technical skill is what led you to victory, and in many times in Overwatch it could feel like you simply lucked out in that smorgasborg of ultimates.

_____

While I'm here, I might as well point out my complaints with Overwatch's approach to character skill expression as well.

A high range of skill expression is why Lucio was actually one of the better designed and fun heroes: his ability set was simple but flexible, with an incredibly high skill ceiling due to his special mobility passive that let him run horizontally across walls. This let Lucio traverse the maps in ways others could not, and probably in ways unintended by the developers. He could flank the enemy, outmaneuver them when caught, and surprise them in ways like no one else could despite his original intended role being as a support character. For example: in Lijang Tower there's a bridge between two areas that a good Lucio can cheese the enemy team with. By gliding along walls, Lucio can approach the enemy from a completely unexpected angle, then use his right click push ability to shove them all off the bridge and into their doom.

Overwatch, being a character-centric game, needed to embrace more of this kind of combat where characters could pull off feats that no one else could do in spectacular fashion, often without even needing to rely on an ultimate to get Play of the Game. This gave them a unique personality through gameplay, and leaning more into this would have made the game far more enjoyable in my eyes. I was unhappy when Blizzard instead repeatedly nerfed characters with such high skill ceilings to try to bring them down to the line of everyone else.

Did you know that Genji could animation-cancel in the first month of Overwatch? Very high level Genji players like Seagull were pulling off very flashy moves with it early on. You could use his superior mobility to approach weaker targets on the enemy team, and then right click > standard melee > shift in order to do his shuriken spread, followed by his melee attack, which would then be animation canceled by his dash ability. This did a lot of damage, often enough that a low HP character like Tracer would die from the bleed inflicted by the dash, making for a badass assassination combo where you don't even need to look back at the enemy to finish them off: once they realize what's happened, they were already dead.

And then Blizzard was like "fuck that's a lot of damage" and then removed the bleed on Genji's dash almost immediately (no more opponent dying a few seconds after you dash through them, you had to kill them with the dash itself which was much more lame), then removed the ability to animation cancel Genji's melee attack with his dash soon after until Genji was just hopping around throwing shurikens and waiting for his ultimate to be able to dive.

TL;DR - The initial 12 maps were often just a series of killboxes glued together by a handful of routes that were often meaningless flanks. The problem was exacerbated by ultimates, and I did not like the direction Blizzard went for balancing the game.

[petrichorium]

on plagiarism

when all of this began, i confess i never imagined i'd be involved this closely. i've been a bit on the fringe of it, with many mutuals involved and my own name dragged into the fray briefly but ultimately trying to keep my distance. but in a brief moment of curiosity (or weakness, perhaps) i let myself do some digging and discovered that i, too, was plagiarized by a former mutual whose work i admired greatly.

one of the most beautiful things about this community is how collaborative it is. we are a group of people with mutual interests who found each other on the vast sprawl of the internet, and our creativity is something which grows as a result of each of us working together. the kind of plagiarism i discuss today is hard to spot, easy to dismiss, and above all else painful for the victims. it is difficult to express how nauseating it feels to see someone take an idea and run with it without permission, consideration, or credit, all while it remains so subtle that you feel nobody will believe you.

Plagiarism, by definition, is "to steal and pass off the ideas or words of another as one's own; to use another's production without crediting the source; to commit literary theft; to present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source" (from merriam-webster, because wouldn't it be ironic if i didn't clarify?). Note, please, the use of "idea." Nobody is fool enough to think plagiarism must be exact 1:1 wording. If you're claiming that, you're very certainly being purposefully obtuse.

the evidence i present below is clear, in my opinion. i'm not going to leave names out of it—the accused has already outed herself and has claimed to have left her blog, so I have no reason to coddle her, and equally there is no sense in reporting or engaging with it in any way. it shouldn't have to be said, but don't harass her; whether or not her blog is truly abandoned, any asks could still make it to her. Obviously sending harassment at any time is childish, cruel, and reprehensible, and nobody is deserving of it.

The plagiarist is @/shiinleaf. there is another player in this game, @/seoafin, who also fell victim to the same scenario twice. seoafin made her own callout post (politely lacking in names) and shiinleaf made her own response, both of which I will link now.

[seoafin's post regarding plagiarism]

[shiinleaf’s response in defense]

I also want to say, to be honest, I wouldn't give much of a damn about this if not for the context. i wrote a one sentence textpost and shiinleaf made her own imitation a week later, then elaborated upon it. the single sentence (and a few tags) is all that i provided; while the lack of interaction and credit hurt, i wouldn't much care...

if not for seoafin's experiences. make no mistake, my evidence here is intended to support hers; to bolster her arguments and to provide further proof of shiinleaf's actions. While her claims might be subtle, my own are more blatant, and help to establish a clear pattern of behavior which is neither respectful nor considerate of fellow authors. This is further proven by the hate that seoafin received for speaking up—the very reason I’m choosing to come forward. While the initial crime might be something unworthy of speaking about publicly, I won’t stand by while a fellow victim is harassed and gaslit in her own askbox.

anyway. im done grandstanding. I have screenshots and links so let's get into this.

i preface this by saying that while i was vaguely aware of this situation—as i was up until recently mutuals with shiinleaf (xin) and only mutuals-in-law with seoafin (morgan) and, thus, friends with many people with full knowledge of and involved in the entire debacle—i largely made an effort to keep out of the situation, despite (in a situation which i really can't get into) my name being dragged into it in private, resulting in me soft blocking xin.

my interest was reignited last evening, however, after many vague posts by mutuals which made me check shiinleaf's blog out of curiosity. i saw that xin had gone through and reblogged nearly all of her old writing, and near the top a post caught my eye.

the post was a brief textpost about the honkai: star rail character Jing Yuan, later elaborated upon in a followup reblog. This had been posted in July, and something about the phrasing and the timestamp made me pause.

I have made a few posts in the past about characters who "like brats," specifically not "to tame." I remembered making one about Jing Yuan many months ago. So, I went digging in my blog's archive, and sure enough I found it.

Here are the two initial posts side-by-side. My post is dated July 19th at 11:37pm. Xin's is dated almost exactly a week later, July 27th at 5:13am. Additionally, I've provided a screenshot of the first sentence of the followup reblog; note the specific usage of "brats"/"bratty", "not taming," and "likes the chase."

[link to xin's initial post] [link to xin's follow-up reblog]

[link to my post]

As the final nail in the coffin, here is a video of my post with proof that Xin saw it: she gave it a like. Note that this post was reblogged once and had only six likes; it wasn't a popular post whatsoever.

Finally, an interesting thing to note (though not altogether suspicious) is that xin states in the tags of her followup reblog that she has written a "7k word fic" about the concept discussed. She later states in a reblog from the 23rd that this fic was her fic Filler, one which she also has stated that she began on the 19th of July—the same day as my initial post. These coincidences, unfortunately, only keep adding up.

[link to xin's recent reblog of the plagiarized post]

[link to xin's recent reblog of Filler]

(note: the precise timeline of Filler does not line up exactly with the premise that it was created solely due to my post; the screenshots provided of the fic's document predate my own post by many hours. However, I am not claiming that the entire fic is based upon my post. That would be absurd, it's literally one sentence and a few tags. By xin's own admission, however, the fic was based upon many things including the premise potentially provided by myself—it is entirely within the realm of plausibility for her to have begun Filler and allowed my post to impact her writing of it, especially seeing as she, without a doubt, saw my post within hours of beginning the fic)

Now, I'd like to make myself perfectly clear here. This incident, were it isolated, would not make me call someone out. I understand that this community is full of authors inspiring one another. My post was a brief, fleeting idea which I did not elaborate upon; what she potentially did with that idea, to be frank, was absolutely phenomenal, and I am by no means whatsoever taking credit for ANYTHING beyond my initial post. Xin has stated that Filler in particular was a deeply personal fic for her, based upon her cultural and familial experiences—I would never dream of taking away from that. I think it's a fic that she should be proud of, and frankly I’d feel honored if I played any part in its creation.

However, it is abundantly clear in my opinion (from the fact that my post was liked, from the evident timeline, and from my own wording being ripped almost exactly) that xin drew inspiration from me and made no effort to give me the proper credit. This was not collaboration but rather a purposeful choice to use my own idea as a jumping off point and pass it off as her own. We weren't mutuals at the time, but I had seen her in my notifs frequently; had she added to my post, I would have been delighted. And my dms are also open, if she had been concerned about my response she could have asked me for permission. Unfortunately, she did neither of those things, and so here we are.

More importantly, however, I come forward with this—as stated initially—with the intent to defend seoafin (morgan), who came forward with her own post regarding xin's plagiarism. [morgan's post linked here again] please note that morgan took care not to mention xin, her blog, or directly link any xin's relevant fics. However, my own experience only bolsters the credibility of morgan's accusations. Once again, i wouldn't be coming forward if i were the only victim, but morgan has been inundated with asks since she made the accusation and i found it vital to support her claims. From vitriolic harassment to gaslighting to death threats, the response to morgan's post has been troubling, and i (futilely, im sure) hope that my own post will put an end to this. a clearly established pattern has been shown—three instances among two different authors of xin taking inspiration without credit—and i think it's fair to say that my evidence is solid.

i'll leave with another soapbox paragraph to match the beginning. up until this incident... i had been mutuals with xin. i had seen her in my notifs for months before i followed back, including when she chose to steal my idea. i held great respect for her work; i considered her a very talented author, and to an extent I still do—I genuinely can’t emphasize enough that I’m sure hardly a fraction of my impact potentially made it into Filler, and it remains one of my favorite Jing Yuan fics out there. my heart aches at how this turned out, not simply for her plagiarism but for her actions since she was found out. I simply can’t wrap my head around everything that’s transpired these past few weeks.

thank you all reading. i hope i didn't drag on too long. im done now i promise 🫶🏻

[z0-iq]

About LGBT.

LGBT is a much-discussed topic right now, and I thought, why don't I put my five words in on it.

Actually, the idea of this post came to me after watching the cartoon "Nimona", which I didn't like, to be honest. Before watching it, I saw that it was a very progressive film, but after watching it, I wouldn't say that. I have nothing against people of non-traditional orientation in the main roles, but in this cartoon it is clear that the authors did not want to reveal this topic, but simply added it in order to look tolerant in the eyes of investors, is reminded of this too often and straight .

Some may say that I'm just a homophobe and don't accept people of a different orientation, but that's not true, in my opinion . To prove this, I will give an example of the correct display of people of non-traditional orientation. An example will be from the work of One Piece, namely characters such as Bon Chan and Ivankov. When you see them for the first time, you might think that they are some kind of clowns, and in general, they insult the entire community LGBT with his caricature view . But if you look further, you can understand that Such caricatures were chosen on purpose to show that a person should not be judged by his appearance and orientation, A person should be judged by his actions (same Bon Chan is one of the best and most heroic characters in all of One Piece, who has sacrificed himself for others more than once, even though he looks like some kind of pervert).

My personal opinion is that I don't care about a person's orientation, I will judge him only by his actions, and the same applies to race and nationality, after all, just because a person is a black skin color doesn't automatically make them a gangster, a drug dealer, or a basketball player, just as just because a person isn't German doesn't mean they're a Nazi who drinks beer every day. It is a trivial simple idea that a person is always a human being, after all, we are all of the same kind, he is distinguished from others only by his actions.

The only thing I don't understand is stories where employers, for example, choose a person not by their skill level, but by gender and race. To put it this way: the very division of people into groups, according to the signs described above, breaks the whole essence of equality, because equality is when people do not pay attention to, say, a person's gender, and here we get a situation where people are still divided into groups, giving one of them prioritythat is fundamentally the wrong approach

I also want to say that I think that this whole topic of supporting people of non-traditional orientation in countries like the USA makes almost no sense, because people there no longer reject gays in society and do not consider them somehow inappropriate. But where help is needed is in countries like Afghanistan , where if you are not of traditional orientation, you will face the death penalty.

I hope I've expressed my point well, otherwise I have problems with it. If you want to argue with me, or express your point of view, then the comments are always open, I always try to correct my mistakes.

I'm not gay, I'll clarify right away 🐢

[eaglefairy]

I have no liveblog to offer this weekend, so instead please take 2000 words of Meyneth analysis because I have opinions and I'm no longer afraid to share them. Summary: According to the canon of xenoblade 1, Meyneth is either an existentially less powerful god than Zanza, or her stated morals are in direct conflict with the actions she takes within the plot of the game. I walk through the reasons the former is at most implied by the game while being contradicted by the game's events and lore and what about Meyneth's characterization points towards the latter explanation. Huge thanks to @likestoimagine16 for chatting with me about this and looking this over before I posted it, it was super fun!

(Before we begin, a note: all of the following analysis is based solely on the canon of Xenoblade 1.  I will not be incorporating any potentially relevant information from 2, Future Connected, or Future Redeemed.  Anything from after the first game is just not true to who Meyneth is or to the characterizations of the people surrounding her in 1.)

Introduction For all of her stated importance in-game as the Mechonis's soul, Meyneth really does not do a lot during the game. The sum total of her actions are as follows:

Speaks to Zanza at Prison Island, begging him to cease their war and let the living be at peace

Saves the party from Egil at Galahad Fortress

Briefly acts from within Fiora to guard the party from Gadolt after his boss fight, but does not speak

Reveals herself properly for the first time in Agniratha and exposits the history of the Machina to the party

Saves the party from the explosion and holds them in the air long enough for Miqol to catch them

Battles Zanza at Mechonis Core and dies

At first glance, this doesn't seem too terrible. Zanza also doesn't actively do a ton over the course of the game; in fact, he probably does fewer discrete actions as himself than Meyneth does. There is one big difference between them, though: Zanza is inactive because he has a plan. He's controlling the narrative via the passage of fate, making him extremely active even if the party and player don't know he's there. Meyneth, on the other hand, is almost entirely reactive to what Zanza is doing and gives us no indication that she has any sort of plan to fight him. The most she does directly as a means of fighting him is ask to talk to him at Prison Island (which Zanza immediately rebuffs) and then debate him on philosophy before dying at Mechonis Core.

Option 1: Weaker God I can see two potential explanations for this inaction.  Option one: she’s just less powerful than him, and so any attempt by her to fight him is immediately doomed to fail.  There are some things in-game that support this.  Most strikingly to me, she and Alvis never directly interact.  For a while I was concerned that they never directly acknowledge each other’s existence at all, leaving open the possibility that Meyneth doesn’t know Alvis exists*.  Alvis does have a single line of thought immediately pre-Mechonis Core where he acknowledges that it’s Meyneth residing within Fiora.  However, Meyneth herself never acknowledges Alvis.  If only Zanza has direct access to Alvis’s power in Providence, that would in fact make Meyneth significantly less powerful and extremely disadvantaged against him.

*To be clear, I don’t actually think this is the case.  Based on everything else in the game, it would be absurd if Meyneth didn’t know about Alvis.  Where else could she possibly get her divine power from?  However, I do think it’s notable that the writers didn’t consider it necessary or narratively valuable to show Alvis and Meyneth interacting as an overall indicator of her status in the narrative, so I’m pointing it out here.

However, very little else in the game supports this.  Both Zanza and Meyneth have titan bodies, they seem to be about evenly matched within those bodies given that the battle at the beginning of the game ended in a standstill draw and not Zanza winning right then and there, and both Zanza and Meyneth seem to have created successful civilizations of people on their titan bodies.  

If anything, Meyneth might have been “better” at it, as the Machina worship her directly while neither the Homs nor the High Entia know of Zanza.  The Homs do hold the Monado in reverence as the fabled sword of the Bionis that can cut through Mechon and they have their funerary rites centered on the Bionis, but neither of those require a direct knowledge of Zanza of the kind we see the Machina have of Meyneth.  The High Entia I find even more interesting; while it would make sense for them to have intentionally erased the cultural knowledge of Zanza after the first battle of the titans when they sealed Arglas and the Monado away, there’s no evidence of that cultural knowledge ever existing, considering there are multiple side quests concerning High Entian history and not a hint of Zanza’s presence as an object of worship.  (Would the Valak Mountain War God count as an aspect of Zanza in this sense?  Interesting idea to think about…)  

Additionally, Zanza says “Now that I have both Monados, I should be at one with the passage of fate,” during one of the cutscenes before the final boss fight.  That implies that Meyneth’s presence in this world as the bearer of a Monado interfered with his control over the passage of fate (which is corroborated by Shulk interfering with Zanza’s sight during the final battle).  That in turn suggests that Meyneth had some amount of power over fate as a god, if we believe control over fate to be something that can be divided as Zanza alludes to in his dialogue.  All of this leads me to believe that if Meyneth is a weaker god than Zanza, it doesn’t affect any of her actions in the backstory or during the events of the game.

Option 2: Weaker Writing That leaves the other option: a writing flaw in which Meyneth’s stated character does not align with her actions and morals within the game.  We’ve been through her actions, but what are her stated morals?  She believes in the right of life to self-determination.  She sees Zanza’s actions specifically as directly in conflict with said stated right, and potentially the existence of gods as a whole.  Most of all, she believes in peace to the exclusion of things such as revenge or justice.  She (and the other Machina) want Egil to give up his plan of revenge and live in peace with them to heal from what Zanza has done.  When she’s speaking to Zanza telepathically on Prison Island, she asks him how many more he’ll kill and then tells him she’s there to talk.  Even when they’re battling in Mechonis Core, Meyneth is more focused on arguing against his philosophy and telling him that gods should not interfere with the lives of their people.

This is the heart of the problem.  Meyneth is portrayed as an unconditionally good character, Zanza’s rival in every way who wants mortal lives to be lived in peace, not under the tyranny of gods.  However, her actions and apparent values within the game make her near criminally passive against a god who fundamentally does not care about any of that.  Zanza creates and destroys all life in order to sustain his own existence (and I have to assume also Meyneth’s?  If she’s figured out the secret to divine immortality and hasn’t shared it with Zanza to make him stop that just makes her even worse, so…).  Narrative choices are narrative choices, but that Meyneth would still be at the “I can fix him” stage after who knows how many cycles of this is a narrative choice that strains my disbelief.  

Characters choosing to adhere to their morals even when it puts them at a disadvantage against their enemies is not a bad thing; however, having her hold to pacificism to this extent just makes her seem selfish and callous.  It is simply incompatible with her stated goal of opposing Zanza when Zanza’s actions are so extreme.  And to be clear, her choice to continue to try and talk Zanza down wouldn’t be so bad if the narrative didn’t absolutely stonewall her for it.  It’s very clear that Zanza is not open to negotiation, and Shulk doesn’t win by convincing him that living beings have inherent value outside of the resource they are to him.  It just makes Meyneth look silly to keep trying to talk the genocidal maniac down from doing genocide.

Objections Before I conclude, I want to take a moment to address some objections I could see to what I’ve laid out here so far.  First, as far as her actions go, Meyneth does have Vanea place her into Fiora with the stated intent to get closer to Shulk, but it’s still unclear what the end goal was there.  Was it to counterbalance Zanza’s influence on Shulk as the wielder of the Monado?  If so, Meyneth does remarkably little towards that goal.  The party isn’t ascending the Mechonis because of anything Meyneth said to them, they’re going up to fight Egil.  They don’t even know Meyneth is there until Agniratha, and the exposition there is mostly delivered by hologram.  Meyneth never directly interacts with Shulk about anything, let alone the cycle of war, which I feel is the bare minimum action if her goal is to erode Zanza’s influence on Shulk.

Notably, there are some suggestions in-game that imply peace with Zanza could be possible.  While I wouldn’t believe Zanza’s definition of “friendship” that he says he longed for at the end of the game to be reliable or at all similar to what friendship actually is, Alvis does repeat that Zanza wanted friendship and I’m much more inclined to take him at his word.  After the final battle, Alvis says that Zanza’s future and the desires of the party (and by extension Meyneth) could have coexisted, “but that time has passed”.  However, the game doesn’t indicate exactly when the time passed; the timing certainly implies that it was Zanza’s death that ended the possibility, but there’s no reason it couldn’t have been earlier.  

In addition, we’re given no indication of how likely that event was.  Given that nothing else in the game supports Zanza’s world being compatible with the freedom of mortal lives, I find it likely that the chance was infinitesimally small, something never quite impossible but extremely unlikely nonetheless.  While this does open up the possibility that Meyneth was justified in continuing to try to talk to him, the way it’s tossed in at the last second and is only told to us, never shown in any way throughout the game (through, say, High Entian legends or any kind of relationships between Zanza and his disciples) make me more inclined to believe it’s a last-second effort to add false depth to Zanza’s character.

Conclusion Overall, Meyneth suffers from a lack of focus that is sadly common to many of the female characters in xenoblade 1.  A lack of insight as to her inner thoughts combined with her extreme pacificism make for a narratively weak character who seems to be either fundamentally weaker in-story than her sworn nemesis or so committed to talking to him and making him realize the error of his ways that it literally gets her killed.  I find it most likely that the writers simply intended for her to be weaker than Zanza for unspecified reasons: disappointing, but not surprising.

What gets to me the most is that it didn’t have to be this way.  Even if she were just as strong as Zanza and/or more willing to fight against him, she would still have a significant disadvantage against him that sets the ground for the conflict seen in the game: her care for the lives and wills of mortals.  Her care to minimize collateral damage in the form of mortal lives will always give Zanza the upper hand in battle, whether directly in the form of attacking mortals being another way to hurt Meyneth or indirectly in the fact that Zanza has no qualms about manipulating mortals to do his will, while Meyneth likely would consider such a thing to be immoral and avoid it.  That, to me, would be a far more interesting setup than what we got in-game.

If you made it all the way to the end, thanks for reading! Please drop a comment or leave some tags, I'd love to keep discussing this.

[underburningstars]

Batsup soulmate where first words that are written on the skin. When Superman found his and that is Batman. Bruce Wayne couldn't accept and tried to ignored him

Here you go anon

on ao3

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Pairing : Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne

Tags : Soulmates, Canon Divergence, Denial of Feelings

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When Clark was ten years old, his mom explained to him about soulmates and soulmarks.

Said soulmates are people who understand us the most. Who love us the most. That his soulmate was gonna love him the most.

Soulmarks are the words soulmates first said to each other. No one can see them other than the person themselves until the words are said. Then the words will crave into skin in black. Like his mom's and dad's.

His mom told him to never say his words to anyone. It's a secret we should keep close to heart. No one should hear the words until our soulmate says that.

So, Clark kept quiet. Never told anyone about his words and never asked what it meant. Even though for his ten year old self they made no sense.

My foundations have already stated a statement in support of the books so. Wow, pretty girl, bad habit, do not quote me.

What does that mean?!

He understood its meaning when he was a teenager. At least, he understood the second line. Must be a player, was is first thought. Just my luck, was his second.

When his dad died, Clark found out that the marks turn gray when a person's soulmate dies. It's doesn't really look good on the skin. But maybe that's the whole point.

He meets Lois Lane before he meets his soulmate. She teaches him love before his soulmate. But along with love, she teaches him heartbreak too. He's happy to be able to call her his friend, still.

The day he meets Bruce Wayne, he realizes a lot of things. Bruce Wayne is his soulmate, Bruce Wayne hates Superman and Bruce Wayne is Batman. Great. Just great. At least the mystery behind the meaning of his marks is solved now.

Going home, while he's taking a shower, he sees the letters craved into the skin of his forearm in bold, black letters.

Clark sighs.

¦

As far as soulmarks go, his one was as clear as water.

Mr. Wayne, Mr. Wayne. Clark Kent, The Daily Planet.

As long as he avoided a certain Clark Kent from daily planet, he'd be fine. Bruce always went out of his way to avoid any questions or interview from The Daily Planet. It earned him some odd looks from Alfred. But the butler has long known better than question his actions.

When he was younger, he thought he was lucky. That he would be able to find his soulmate more easily than many. But that was before his parents died.

Honestly, he had a hard time accepting the fact that after working so hard to avoid The Daily Planet, he still met Clark Kent. And for the cherry on top, Clark Kent is Superman. Nothing is his life is ever simple.

After putting Lex Luther in jail, Bruce tries very hard to avoid Clark. But the recruitment of the other metas still bring them in close proximity.

Clark looks like he wants to talk. But Bruce doesn't. Nope. Bruce wants to run and never acknowledge the fact that they're soulmates. He's not even gonna say it out loud. Even though the bold, black writings stare at him accusingly whenever he takes off his shirt.

Bruce sighs.

-

Confrontation was inevitable. Really, Bruce was this coming from a mile away. The determination burning in Clark's eyes. But just because he knew this was happening doesn't mean he wanted this to happen.

"We should talk?" Clark announced

"Should we?" Bruce retorted.

"Yes, we should. It's not something we can avoid forever Bruce."

"We could if you just leave it be."

"No, why would I want to leave it be? We're soulmates," Bruce winced at the word, "and it's not something we can just sweep under the rug."

Bruce sighs, "Clark, trust me, you don't want this."

"Don't want what? The bond?"

"Yes. I'm-I'm not good at this. Y'know the whole relationship thing. We-I will mess it up."

"Why don't you let me decide what I want?" Clark argued.

"No! You don't understand. A soulbond isn't a casual relationship. You can't break it because you're not satisfied with the relationship. You'll be stuck. Forever." Bruce tried to explain.

"Yes, I know what a soulbond is. But you words are on my arm and I want the bond. I want you. And all the mess and drama that you'll bring." Clark affirmed.

"You have no idea what you're saying." Bruce shook his head.

"Maybe." Clark allowed, "But I guess we'll just find it all out along the road." and kissed him.

[ancientagentalien]

I just wanted to get on here and talk about something real quick. It's kind of a vent post, but it has some good topics to cover. I'm sure this can be pointed towards some of you or people you know.

These were responses to a story I posted on my snapchat. Basically, my story was about the genocide going on right now. This just shows me that there are humans who aren't... human. Yknow what I mean?

If you can watch a genocide and respond like this, you are not a person. Not to me, at least. I know that probably won't hold any place in anybody heart, but I feel like it must be said. After a certain line, people are no longer people.

And seriously? "Womp womp"? I beg your finest pardon? This is about MILLIONS of innocent people dying because Isreal can't be happy with what they have. Innocent mothers, fathers, children, friends, citizens. A majority of them are dead now. And for what? Because another country couldn't continue following international laws?

Are you a sociopath, psychopath, or sadist? Those are your only options, and none of them are compliments despite what other people may tell you.

It has gotten to the point where a man from the airforce, Aaron Bushnell, set himself on fire because that was the only way his voice would be heard. And even now, they are trying to silence it. He is a hero, and you don't get to speak if you think otherwise. If he was alive and did this in any other part of history, he would be deemed a hero.

They say he was mentally ilI. I have watched the video, uncensored and past the point where he fell over. This was a fully sound man with conviction. His face, voice, and choice of words made it abundantly clear that he was fully aware of everything he was doing and the lasting effects it would have. If he were mentally ill, Palestine would be the last thing on his mind. He would have just set himself on fire without a care for anything else in the world (also, he would not be in uniform because the airforce would not have employed him). He continued to scream the words "free Palestine" as he burned alive. After it was too much and he couldn't talk, he forced himself to scream it one last time. He then shook and fell over. He died not long after, as I'm sure most of you know. This completely sane member of the American airforce's last words were "free Palestine" and we still cannot find the motivation to do anything that truly helps. What the fuck is wrong with people?

Nothing on this earth will convince me that there is anything good happening or that Isreal is the victim that they're trying to look like. Palestine can hardly create bombs powerful enough to fully take out a full building, and Isreal is a military superpower. To put that in perspective, I give you an analogy: imagine the world's most experienced and skilled basketball player matched against someone with both of their arms amputated. Does that seem fair at all? No? Then why do you think this genocide does?

How many people have to die for no reason before something actually gets done about it? Tiktok sounds and filters aren't going to help. They haven't this whole time. Money won't help. You know what will? Action. Sending people to fight and rescue. We did it when Hitler did his genocide. How is this, at its core, any different. People who don't deserve it are dying because someone else has an ideal that they think is more important than human lives.

Nobody who supports Isreal's actions is a good person. I'm ashamed to be the same species as them.

Genocide for the stupid reason of "you have to do what I want cuz I said so."

Think about that.