#It was a really good night for prog.

[zylphiacrowley]

Ooooooh my god if my static leader clips this recording of our DSR prog tonight I'm posting my fucking wild "I should've died" moment from tonight.

[mellotronmkll]

I kinda miss when progressive rock music was my big fixation like I miss the long nights on progarchives which have been replaced by long nights on tmbw but the beautiful thing is that it will always be there for me when I'm ready to return...and that's a fact

[skrunksthatwunk]

ayooooooo spring recap just dropped

[shamelessdisplay]

Had a pretty bad week of prog last week for our last Aloalo Savage clear, really hoping to get it this week, and more hopefully today 🙏

[rosewaterandivy]

symptoms of the culture

Summary: Last call at the bar and you’re still here? Jesus Christ girl, get yourself together!

Pairing: e.m. x f!reader

W.C.: 1.9k

A/N: a continuation of our meet cute with eddie ☺️

Meeting Eddie at the bar was like something from a romantic comedy, and unlike everything you’d experienced before.

He did end up letting you buy that drink after all, which turned in to him buying you a drink because “it’s the polite thing to do.”

Your friend checked in maybe once or twice before deciding you could handle yourself, if it came to that (she didn’t seem to think that would be the case though). The crowd had dwindled down to mostly the regulars and friends of the bartenders, and you didn’t realize how late it had gotten until someone bellowed, “Last call!”

Eddie’s deft fingers traced the rings of condensation on the wooden table, dragging droplets of water into various shapes. Enthralled, you quickly realized that you could watch him do something like that all day, if you weren't careful.

“Shit,” You say, downing the last of your beer, “I didn’t mean to hold you up for so long.”

His lips kick up to one side, dimples prominent despite the low light. There’s a glint in his eye as he looks you up and down, a slow assessment that has you shifting in your seat.

“Riddle me this, sugar,” He says drumming his fingers on the table, “You really think there’s any place I’d rather be?”

And with that, he leaves to pay the tab, leaving his question hanging in the air.

Not that you could have formulated a semblance of a response anyway. Grabbing your jacket from the back of the chair, you shove your free hand into your purse to scrounge up your card to cover the tab as you sidle up beside him at the bar top.

Eddie’s got two bills in front of him, one large hand over each so you can’t figure out which is yours. Going to pluck either one from his grasp is useless, and after the second attempt, he simply holds it above your head and out of your reach.

“Try me, short stuff,” He taunts with a huff of a laugh. “Besides, your money’s no good here.”

Thinking twice before you could potentially demean yourself by actually jumping up to steal the bill from him, you turn to the bartender with a smile instead to ask:

“Can you print another bill please?”

And once you’ve supplied your last name, it should be a done deal. You expect him to reply with a nod and a ‘you got it’, accompanied by the familiar sound of a receipt being printed.

Instead, it goes a little something like this:

The bartender turns to glance at Eddie, and he gives the bartender some sort of look— which, what would the bartender need approval from a patron? Then, he shoves both receipts into the jar by the register and leans against the bar top and props an elbow on it as he faces you, like he’s waiting for something.

“Can’t do it.” The bartender sighs, “The bossman says you’re money’s no good here, them’s the rules.”

You try, and fail, to keep your jaw from dropping.

“Y-you own this bar? You’re that Eddie?”

“In the flesh and at your service.”

A beat of silence passes between you as the bartender clears his throat and begins closing preparations.

“Well, technically,” Eddie allows, with a twist of his lips, “I co-own it with a buddy of mine. This and couple of other places around town.”

And, well. For someone who dresses like they should be in a biker gang or fronting a prog-metal band, Eddie sure didn’t strike you as a real estate mogul.

“That’s cool,” You say with a nod, hand shoved into your purse once more. Rifling around a bit, you come back with a glorious fist of cash and shove it into the kitty near the register that simply reads, Alms for the pour.

“Soooo,” He drawls, the awkward end of the night coming upon you rapidly. “You good to drive or…?”

“Oh, no worries,” You say flippantly, quickly debating whether your should call an Uber at the hour of just suck it up and walk home. You could cut through campus and maybe shave five minutes off of the journey, anyway.

“I can get you an Uber—”

“No, it’s fine, really.” You adjust the shoulder strap of your bag and grab your keys, “I live just off the campus, it’s walkable from here.”

Eddie’s fingers loop around your wrist before you can say your goodbyes and high-tail it out of there. The silver of his rings glints in the light and the cool metal contrasts with the warmth of his hand as it engulfs yours.

“Nuh uh, not happening.” His tone leaves no room for discussion. “I’m not gonna let you walk—”

“It’s not even a mile!” You interject, “I cut through campus and skirt the park and I’m golden.”

“The park? At three in the morning?” He shakes his head, fingers forming a bracelet around your wrist, “Not even sorry to say, that is unequivocally not happening.”

Eddie tugs you with him as he passes behind the bar and down a small corridor to the back office.

“You good closing on your own Matty?”

The bartender, Matty, you assume, nods with an easy smile.

“Sure, Ed.”

Eddie releases your hand to grab a backpack and a helmet. He tosses the bag to you saying, “Throw your purse in there, you don’t mind wearing that on the bike, right?”

“I really am fine walking home, I haven’t fallen or stumbled in years,” You say as he turns back around, “That’s how good I am.”

“It’s not your walking capabilities I’m worried about here, sugar.” He holds the black helmet in his hands, fingers drumming on the closed visor. “It’s the creeps.”

“This from you, the man that very nearly creeped me out earlier tonight?”

Matty fails to stifle his laugh from the desk.

Eddie rolls his eyes in exasperation, “Yeah, laugh it up newbie.” Taking you by the shoulder, he steers you toward the service entrance and you find yourself not even trying to come up with excuses anymore.

Well, except for:

“Oh, you meant bike as in motorcycle.”

He snorts from behind you, finishing the job of zipping the backpack, now containing your purse, and looping the straps around your shoulders.

“Well it’s certainly not a pennyfarthing, if that’s what you were thinking.”

“I’ve never been on one before.”

“No time like the present.”

Clapping you on the shoulder, he turns you around to face him and pries a hair tie from his wrist. You take it from his outstretched hand, your fingertips brushing for a fleeting moment. Without much fuss, you throw your hair into a loose bun at the nape of your neck.

“May I?” Eddie asks, presenting you with the helmet.

After you nod, he deftly flips the helmet around and takes a step closer to place it on your head. It’s not a perfect fit, but it’ll have to do. He has you shake your head left and right, then up and down before he’s satisfied you won’t crack your skull on the pavement.

In a few strides he’s near the bike, and mounting it in one fluid motion. His legs are long and pretty fucking perfect for, oh you don’t know, maybe straddling later yourself.

But now you’re just getting ahead of things.

You follow his lead and step toward the bike; taking his offered hand as you find your seat behind him.

“So,” Eddie says leaning to start up the bike, once he’s satisfied that your feet are on the foot rest. “All you really gotta do is hold on.”

Your hands go to his shoulders and you can feel them rise with his soft chuckle.

“That’s cute,” He says, taking both your hands in his and moving them to his waist, which causes you to bridge the few inches of space between your bodies to accomodate the movement.

I mean, there are worse things than having your tits smooshed up against some guy’s back on a motorcycle, right?

“You good?”

And you can barely hear him over the rev of the engine, so you nod and raise your voice to rattle out your address. He half-turns toward you, eyes finding yours through the visor of the helmet and giving you a wink.

He grips the handles, pulls the clutch, and kicks off.

“Alright, sugar, let’s get you home.”

Holding on for dear life, you quickly learn that as he leans, you lean. There’s a lot of movement on a bike that you hadn’t anticipated, so much so that Eddie’s shirt, at some point, rides up his abdomen. Too busy gawking at the sights and sounds of your first motorcycle ride, you don’t notice the subtle warming of your fingertips against his bare skin until it’s too late.

You were confident that the sound of the engine would drown out the unfortunate squeak that escaped your mouth, but at the feeling of Eddie’s stomach muscles contracting in what could only be laughter, and the shaking of his shoulders, now has you second guessing yourself.

Oh, well.

Rolling to a smooth stop in front of your apartment, he kills the engine and helps you off the bike.

Back on solid ground, you slough off the backpack and unzip it to grab your purse and keys. You pass it back to him and remove the helmet, mourning briefly the soft scent of tobacco and clary sage— his cologne, maybe?

Hooking a finger through the hair tie at the back of your neck, you pull it out, and shake your hair from its confines before offering it back to him.

Eddie just smiles with a shake of his head, “Nah, keep it— I gotta million of ‘em.”

He stays seated on the bike, eyes whiskey-warm and crinkling at the edges. With a shrug, you push the elastic up and around your hand to settle on your wrist.

It’s relatively quiet for a winter’s night around the campus, all the undergrads gone home for the holidays and not expected back until mid-January. A brisk wind blows and a shiver runs through you, one hand rubbing furiously along your arm, while the other grips the helmet resting against your hip.

All the while, Eddie simply sits there to drink you in. Eyes roving across the full of your cheeks, the elegant slope of your neck and the necklaces strung there. Your hair wild and waving in the breeze. And even if it’s cold outside, he can’t bring himself to notice— not with you looking like that standing there before him.

“Hey, Eddie,” You say, stepping toward him. Taking the helmet in both hands, you put it on for him and have half a mind to make him go through the head shaking nonsense he was adamant over back at the bar. But it fits him perfectly, just your luck.

Before stepping back and retreating into your apartment, he takes your hand in his and gives it a slight squeeze. You can feel the heat skittering under your skin, terribly welcome in the cold morning air.

Squeezing his fingers back in return, you part with a soft, “Happy New Year.”

He watches as you open the front door of your ground floor apartment, giving him a shy wave as a dog barks from somewhere behind you. He can see your lips moving as you turn back to say something to the dog, smiling as you bend to greet them.

Kicking off as the door closes and the lights flick on in your home, Eddie cruises down the deserted street with a smile on his face.

And maybe, this could turn out to be his year after all.

[bg-brainrot]

Hello, I am writing Astarion fanfic with no signs of stopping 👋

Note: All Astarion x Tav, all written with gender-neutral pronouns and from second-person POV. Will continue to update this! This blog is all BG3 + Astarion

Love at First Knife

Rogue!Tav and Spawn!Astarion

This series is based on my double-rogue playthrough. Tav is an assassin rogue, chaotic neutral, chooses mostly good options but a ton of options just for the laughs or the money. Astarion remains unascended. Everyone shows up sooner or later, though main group includes Karlach and Shadowheart.

The Trap is Set: Two 8 strength rogues get stuck and need to wait for rescue; one of those rogues doesn't like being trapped underground

Failed a Dex Save and Fell for You: the gang plays Truth or Dare and Tav starts to realize their feelings

Healing Threads: Astarion is an expert at embroidery -- Tav finds this out through an injury. They later find out *why* he’s such an expert

The Night They Slept Together: Tav pines, and their relationship with Astarion shifts ever so slightly. (They literally do just sleep) [Tumblr]

One Small Bedroll, Two Confused Hearts: oh no, one bed! But both Astarion and Tav are scared to admit they're catching real feelings

Failed Every Insight Check and Fell all the Harder: Astarion POV, he begins feeling some new feelings. It's only after Moonrise Towers that he can put a name to them. [Tumblr]

Stolen Hearts: Tav "picks" Astarion over Karlach (Tav and Karlach were never really together but oh well, semantics)

NEW! To be Known: Astarion reads a book and wonders what it means to be known. [Tumblr]

A Stolen Moment: Tav and Astarion are on a thief date

The Rogues that Slay Together Stay Together: Tav goes down protecting Astarion, Astarion has never been this worried

A Pair of Penguin Pebblers: Both Astarion and Tav love stealing, they steal through a shopping episode and go on a date afterward

The Smut Peddlers of Sharess' Caress: the group finds smut written about Astarion and Tav [Tumblr]

A Bad Counterfeit: Tav is replaced by a doppelganger and Astarion immediately notices something's wrong, some angst as he comes to term with being a "hero"

Hugs for a Vampire: Rogue!Tav and Astarion's romance as told through hugs [Tumblr Masterlist]

More than Vampiric Charms: After some banter between Jaheira and Astarion goes too far, Rogue!Tav reassures Astarion [Tumblr]

Would You Still Love Me?: Rogue!Tav asks the question everyone wants to know the answer to "would you still love me if I was a worm?" [Tumblr]

Of Bets, Bluffs, and Briefs: The gang plays strip poker, though it seems like not everyone (Astarion) is playing by the rules [Tumblr]

Brawls Fair in Love and War: What starts out as a scuffle turns into a full out tavern brawl for the gang [Tumblr]

Alone in a Crowded Camp: Astarion reflects and realizes that company isn't so bad. [Tumblr]

Their First Winter Together: Astarion and Rogue!Tav enjoy a lot of winter firsts in this fluff-filled extravaganza [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12]

Unraveling Plan Meet Immeasurable Insecurity: Tav tries their damnedest to propose, only to be rebuffed by Astarion at every single turn. [Tumblr]

(smut) The Thousandth Time: Astarion and Rogue!Tav make love for the thousandth time. In a bathtub. [Tumblr]

Random post-game rogue!Tav headcanons

A Star in the Dark

Evil!Dark Urge and Ascended!Astarion

Evil!Dark Urge and Astarion have a tumultuous relationship, make dubious choices, and become a power couple. *This playthrough scares me so I'll update this sporadically hah

(smut) In My Head: Dark Urge has an all new kind of daydream after Astarion approaches them

(smut) A Bloody Sacrament: Astarion licks Dark Urge clean after they bathe in a pool of blood [Tumblr]

Other

Tav x Astarion fics that don't belong to a series

IN PROGRESS When He's all but Forgotten How to Love Again: Elf-Tav reincarnation story, they dream of him in their reverie, and go out to find him once they reach maturity [Tumblr Masterlist]

IN PROGRESS The Consequences of Convenience: Tav enters a marriage of convenience with their unromanced, best friend Astarion-- feelings ensue.

Spicy Astarion Headcanons (both A!A and Spawn!A)

Horny Astarion Headcanons (both A!A and Spawn!A)

If you're looking for some more fics, check out my fic recs here!

If you're wondering which Hozier songs fit which pairings, check them here!

[urfavsecretgirl]

can we all agree that arctic monkeys are definitly one of the best today's artists ever? and here are so many reasons

their music taste - they are inspired by amazing artists, such as the beatles, rolling stones, the strokes, etc.

sound - in every album, they have different sound. and they clearly don't care about what other people want them to do yet they do what they like. their first album being a prog punk, garage rock. and you can feel how it looks like being a teeanger. then fwn being a little more heavier indie rock sound. then you have humbug, dark, witchy, psychedelic. and it's giving harry potter vibes sm. sias being like you are in wild west during christmas time. really melancholic, soft indie rock, but again psychedelic sound. i love it sm. am being sexy, cool. like you are 80s rockstar writing your love diary. tbhc being atmospheric, really david bowie influenced. like you are in 80s sci-fi movie, having a great time in some luxury hotel, at night. and at the end, you have the car. really funky, soft melancholic sound. which makes you feel like you are at the balcony, in the middle of spring. it's sunny day. and you are smoking on balcony thinking about your past and future.

lyrics - i mean, we all know that alex is amazing songwriter. and even better than that. look at the lyrics of tbhc. also alex's work in submarine. knee socks, etc. he is really creative

about fame and awards - they NEVER CARED about being famous, getting awards, etc. i already mentioned that they don't care about what people want from them yet they do what they like. so basiclly, they give 0 fcks about people's opinions about their music. it's like "you like what you like. everyone has different taste". and that's what i REALLY love about them as a artist. they live for music, they make music for themselves, not for others. and that's why they don't care about awards too. i mean, they only ince attended grammys while being nominated multipate times in different years. alex's speech for brit awards 2014 says enough. also, 3 out of four members never used social media so that says enough (again)

alex's vocals - ok, he is not the best singer but again his vocals are really good. and the way they change in every album

instrument skills - they are good tho, but not the best. also matt during pretty visitors>>>>>>

creativity - very similar to theme about them changing sounds. you can see that they are really creative about it

they are unique, specific, and iconic rock band. and no one can change my mind.

[flavia-draws]

i feel like it's extra embarrassing to be this obsessed with the velvet underground because theyre like coolness level 1 theyre where it all started it's like im obsessed with something really basic even though thats totally not true. like when i was obsessed with prog i would know all these people who kinda vaguely knew about prog but didnt care too much about it but now its the VELVET UNDERGROUND and everybody whos anybody knows about them (except i meet way too many people who don't know who they are and i hate it) i guess the good side to all this is you get five million references in the right places if you know where to look which is something i never really got since pink floyd which was three years ago now. listen i wrote a song about this LAST summer the FIRST time i was obsessed with the velvet underground and i wrote it in the middle of the night in my moms friends apartment in nyc which is like the most appropriate setting ever and its called dont pick the flowers and its about the catch 22 of if you dont know anything about the vu then you're not cool but if you're obsessed with them then youre closed-minded and obsessed with the basically first punk band ever instead of getting into other punk bands. which is right i need to get into more punk bands! but either way dont let me be embarrassed about being obsessed with the vu because thats ridiculous

[hananoami]

[08/04] Deepspace Trials Prog

[07/29 to 08/04] WEEKLY KEYS USED

☆ XAVIER : 9/9 keys ; going on Stage 148 on Monday. ☆ ZAYNE : 9/9 keys ; going on Stage 148 on Tuesday. ☆ RAFAYEL : 8/9 keys ; going on stage Stage 147 on Wednesday. ☆ SYLUS : 6/9 keys ; going to Stage 25 on Tuesday. ☆ OPEN ORBIT : currently stuck on Stage 150.

This is the first week of the new version, Opposing Visions, where my Deepspace Trials progress was a bit skewed. This was partly due to my negligence of forgetting to do a daily orbit run as well as not being able to use up all 3 of the daily allotted keys on certain days. It was a good win streak while it lasted, but this is more reasonable as you can’t win them all without gaining more resources to build up your teams.

𝚇𝙰𝚅𝙸𝙴𝚁

My post clear write up + VOD for Xavier’s Directional Orbit: Light - Stage 140 will be written soon. A link to that post will be included [here] at a later time.

When MC says Lumiere really is the best she wasn't kidding. His kit is not only really fun to play with, but it's also broken af. I didn't have any trouble using his companion.

9/9 keys used this week. Hopefully we'll be seeing his final Stage 150 on Monday!

Directional Orbit: Light Protofield Stellactrum

139: 4 amber, 2 pearl -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

140: 5 emerald, 1 ruby (team 01) + 5 amber, 1 pearl (team 02) -- rewards: 4k gold + 40 💎+ 1x Empyrean Wish

141: 5 amber, 1 ruby -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

142: 5 amber, 1 ruby -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

143: 5 amber, 1 ruby (recharge beacon) -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

144: none -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

145: 5 amber, 1 violet – rewards: 4k gold + 40 💎 + 4x bottle of wishes: sr

146: 5 amber, 1 violet -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

147: none -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

𝚉𝙰𝚈𝙽𝙴

My post clear write up + VOD for Zayne’s Directional Orbit: Ice - Stage 140 will be written soon. A link to that post will be included [here] at a later time.

I usually try to save all of my post clear notes for the x0 stages for their respective write ups, but I really want to make note of it here too that my game decided to freeze and crash while I was about to enter the second half of the fight with team 2.

Not that it was an issue or anything. We cleared just fine, it was just a small hiccup that was out of my control that really dampened the mood before the fight.

Zayne used all 9 of his allotted keys for the week as well. Making really good progress so far. We'll be challenging his final Stage 150 this coming Tuesday, hopefully!

Directional Orbit: Ice Protofield Stellactrum

139: 4 ruby, 2 amber -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

140: 5 sapphire, 1 pearl (team 01) + 5 ruby, 1 amber (team 02) -- rewards: 4k gold + 40 💎+ 1x Empyrean Wish

141: 5 ruby, 1 pearl -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

142: 5 ruby, 1 pearl -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

143: 5 ruby, 1 pearl (clusters) -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

144: none -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

145: 5 ruby, 1 emerald – rewards: 4k gold + 40 💎 + 4x bottle of wishes: sr

146: 5 ruby, 1 emerald -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

147: none -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

𝚁𝙰𝙵𝙰𝚈𝙴𝙻

My post clear write up + VOD for Zayne’s Directional Orbit: Ice - Stage 140 will be written soon. A link to that post will be included [here] at a later time.

I wasn't able to clear his Stage 144 on Saturday (08/05). There is no protofield stellactrum for that stage, and I was having trouble clearing out the first wave. It left me around 45 seconds to clear the second wave and yeah... that wasn't going to happen with 2 tanky wanderers and their two protofield shields. So I slept on it for a night to think of what I could possible to do clear it on Sunday.

Well, come Sunday I was able to clear it after reassembling my team to use the highest leveled memories and protocores centered around God of the tides. I also had a friend watch me prog and help with my rotation. Apparently I wasn't utilizing his kit to its full potential, but now my eyes are open and I think I have a better understanding of how to play with his companion better.

Lesson learned?

More or less, don't spam the active skill to summon those spirits. You'll run out of charges quickly and won't be able to use your resonance when it comes up from cooldown. Also figure out a timing to use your active skill for his buff before using resonance skill. The increase in DMG buff only last for 10 seconds.

Directional Orbit: Fire Protofield Stellactrum

139: 4 pearl, 2 ruby -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

140: 5 violet, 1 amber (team 01) + 5 pearl, 1 ruby (team 02) -- rewards: 4k gold + 40 💎+ 1x Empyrean Wish

141: 5 pearl, 1 amber -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

142: 5 pearl, 1 amber -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

143: 5 pearl, 1 amber (tower defense) -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

144: none -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

145: 5 pearl, 1 sapphire – rewards: 4k gold + 40 💎 + 4x bottle of wishes: sr

146: 5 pearl, 1 sapphire -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

𝚂𝚈𝙻𝚄𝚂

Ahh... I'm a little embarrassed to say that I forgot to do Sylus's orbit on Tuesday because it was such a busy day with me focusing on other games. So I'm a day behind in terms of his progression, and lost 3 keys out of the possible 9 available.

My post clear write up + VOD for Sylus’s Directional Orbit: Energy - Stage 20 will be written soon. A link to that post will be included [here] at a later time.

Directional Orbit: Energy Protofield Stellactrum

19: 1 emerald, 1 sapphire -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

20: 2 pearl, 2 emerald (team 01) -- rewards: 4k gold + 40 💎+ 1x Empyrean Wish

21: 3 pearl -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

22: 3 pearl -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

23: 3 pearl (clusters) -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

24: none -- rewards: 2k gold + 20 💎

𝙾𝙿𝙴𝙽 𝙾𝚁𝙱𝙸𝚃

Currently stuck on Stage 150!

[ronthedunedain]

Warning: Long post

Went through my Royal Roads list of webnovels that I liked and it's a sea of endless litRPG/prog trash. Trash I enjoy, but trash nevertheless.

A few standouts that were actually really good:

Palus Somni by Ohmwu

Name of the Rose, but set in a ruined world covered in Lovecraftian monsters. Prepare for the main cast to suffer. Very Bloodborne.

Every night when the sun sets the monstrous Gol, colossal beings with too many teeth, awaken and roam the marshlands. Only those with a faithful heart will be spared. Young acolyte Wille has never seen the walls fail, but when a fellow nun is murdered within their sanctum the very safety of the monastery is thrown into question. Did the Gol find a way to breach their defences, or is there a human traitor amongst them? The answer lies both far in the past and deep beneath the earth, through the maze of ancient catacombs.

SONG of EMBER by Saffron Honey

Don't let the description fool you, this is a doomed, tragic romance between a boy and a siren.

Legends of savage river-folk have been scoffed at for centuries in the valley below Sisters Mountain, but when a young fisherman named Ember sets out to trap a thief, he catches more than he bargained for; a strange acquaintanceship is struck, and when the creature requests his aid to unlock a hidden door in the mountainside, they find themselves trapped within the ruins of an ancient kingdom.

Violent Solutions by Sabaoth

Isekai, but starring an amoral Terminator stuck in a normal human body. Quite gruesome.

A discarded intelligent weapon is thrust into a strange world with little more than a body. The only people he finds shouldn't even be alive. They've been extinct for centuries, killed by their own warlike creations. Yet here they are, as if it never happened, living like they did in their distant past. Creators or not, they are similar enough to the warbreed for his purposes. They have knowledge and weapons that can be stolen or traded for. Their presence can be helpful, and if it isn't, they will be dealt with. They may be hardier than most, but like any human, they can die.

Wander West, in Shadow by CloverCloverClover

A travelogue set in a world where eldritch horrors lurk in abandoned farm houses.

A young wizard journeys west, through dark forests and dangerous lands, searching for something. Accompanied by a wild witch who has secrets of her own, they come across terrible creatures, hauntings, cursed villages, and memories from their past. Who else will they meet along their journey, and to find what he is looking for, how far will the wizard have to wander?

REND by Temple

Worm, but starring a psychopath who does the right things for the wrong reasons.

Erind Hartwell, a first-year law student with psychopathic tendencies and an obsessive compulsion to follow an arbitrary set of Rules, tries to live a normal life in a world where superhumans battle eldritch horrors invading minds. Society frowned on different, and she was content with playing along if the world didn't bother her. That was one of the many Rules she followed. Unfortunately, the world couldn't help but bother Erind's normal life. On the brink of death, an entity offered powers to save her. Left with no other choice, she accepted it, changing into a new form—the first of many that'll allow her to bother the world that bothered her.

[traaansfem]

Can you do a magic spell/silly little dance so that I stop having insomnia?

Best I can do is hold a cavalry saber threateningly against an endocrinologist's neck as I circle him and force him to prescribe you some progesterone. Goodness knows that it fixed my insomnia in literally two doses :3

(Even then, it does depend on your type of insomnia and what drives it- I am hypersensitive to melatonin, to the point that taking a fragment of a 1 mg pill- 0.15~0.2 mg is enough to get me absolutely delirious and then zonked out for hours- however, I just don't really make enough natively to sleep more than once every few days. But prog apparently makes you sleepy after you take it so I count it as a win for my night time meds because it makes me sleep without needing a sleeping pill that makes me SO woozy. But some people who are less sensitive to melatonin, who take 5 mg pills or 10mg pills of it may be entirely unaffected by prog's sleepyness part)

[judgeanon]

I'm late asking this but what was the best and worst of the Progs and Meg in 2023?

I'm late replying but here we go!

For Dredd in the progs, I really enjoyed the short stories. THE NIGHT SHIFTER, SHRINE, FLUSHER and DISCIPLES OF DEATH were all favorites, although I admit that last one was mostly because of the cute Scottish goth girl.

Other than Dredd, I liked THE OUT, THE ORDER, DURHAM RED, the BATTLE ACTION crossover thing, FERAL AND FOE, DEADWORLD and BLADERS. I especially liked ROGUE TROOPER (I'm a sucker for Ennis), VOID RUNNERS (Boo Cook keeps getting weirder and I love it) and AZIMUTH (gorgeous art, intriguing story, and one of those classic 2000AD "You thought it was a new series but NOOOO!" twists that I really dig).

I didn't really like ENEMY EARTH, I think the art just doesn't fit the premise. And JOE PINEAPPLES should've been by all accounts a cool fun heavy metal last goodbye, but it turned into a weird meandering bunch of nonsense (with some cowardly anti-vax shit thrown in for good measure). LOWBORN HIGH and PORTALS AND BLACK GOO both had the same problem for me: strong, very British premises that don't go as far with the Britishness as I'd like them to. And DEVIL'S RAILROAD, I really wanted to like it but it just kinda lost steam very early on.

The big mehhhh of the year was the end of HERSHEY, though. I tried my best to meet it halfway and to its credit it did deliver some cool panels and nice pages, but in my eyes, it really squandered the last chance for Hershey as a character to present her side of her relationship with Dredd, to leave him with any kind of nugget of character development. It didn't do nearly enough with what I think is years and years of truly compelling relationship work and all the great Simon Fraser art in the world can't fix that.

I still bought a print of that one cover tho'.

For the MEG, I liked almost everything. STORM WARNING, SURFER, DREADNOUGHTS, LAWLESS (fan-fucking-tastic last chapters), MEGA CITY 2099, all good stuff. I also enjoyed the shorter Dredds in the second half of the year, like RATINGS WAR and FITTING THE DESCRIPTION, but ONE-EYED JACKS... I dunno, neat premise but it went on a bit too long and wasn't super exciting either. Didn't really grab me. Same with Dark Judges.

That said, the most important 2000AD thing in 2023 for me was not in the prog or in the meg. It was here:

Molcher's I AM THE LAW is a monumental book, one of the most thorough if not THE most thorough look at Dredd in its context. It's also heavy as all drokk, a real gutwrencher of a book, the kind of shit you can't read more than one and a half chapter without getting utterly depressed, ravenously angry, or both. It's a bleak, tough book but also a necessary one. That it's an official Rebellion product, to me, serves as a line in the sand, a very explicit statement about how they perceive Dredd. In a time where companies are running over themselves to claim their works are "not political" and "only want to entertain", Rebellion publishing Molcher's titanic work and advertising it next to their Case Files collections is something worthy of respect.

(Also, I may be a little biased on account of being in the Special Thanks for the book...)

[spiralcloudpassage]

your favourite SOTE music themes ranked from worst to best?

oh whew. whoever always asks me about music on anon thank u i love these.

1. divine beast dancing lion. divine beast. dancing lion. divine beast, dancing lion. divinebeastdancinglion. it's a good track. every time i read his name i do the FMAB commercial break. i like how immediately predatory it is from measure 1 like the flutes open with 16th notes and the whole symphony swings up.

2. messmer. so good. i'm really harsh on how I feel about messy because he's the flagship i mean mascot of SOTE so like, he's gotta be good! you're lady maria. you're artorias. no one will ever be sister friede sorry. strong track though, i love the surge of the main theme in phase 2. it kept me excited when I was fighting him.

3. romina. such a pussianna boss like i Gasped when i saw her and realized what she was. if only there was another blue fairy..... oh wait! i'm a carian! the riff from malenia's theme made us all clap.

3. midras, lord of frenzyflame. i miss bloodborne.

4. rellana, twin moon night. i missed ds3.

5. metyr, mother of fingers. guys i Really miss bloodborne

6. promised consort. it's fine. i'm glad all miquella can do is follow in the footsteps of others. typical twink know-it-all gifted kid boygirl with asthma. radahn needs to not even try it we loved his set in caelid but we aren't streaming to prog rock right now. never impressed when all a bassist can do when improving is repeat old melodies. maybe theyre perfect for each other..... ):

7. those united in common cause. also Fine but i think it could be better. the swell in phase 2 is good but then it doesn't go anywhere! maybe it would've been more impactful if I knew about Leda.

8. putrescent knight. a good track forgettable but fine boss. i'm glad it stays quieter for the duration and doesn't get crazy for phase 2.

9. bayle the dread. typical dragon ost. none of the ost is Bad but this is certainly one of the weaker ones, i wish it had been a little more deliberate and dangerous. maybe something inspired by Jaws. i like bayle a lot otherwise! the leadup to him is Intense.

10. scadutree avatar. it's okay. did not particularly Strike me. much like its boss fight it drags on. similar to Leda maybe I would find it more moving if we'd been given more insight on the scadutree? but truth be told this track doesn't hint that theres much to be missed.

i think that's all of them. if i'm forgetting something take the hint. it's a good ost! strong heavy hitters but also to be expected from fromsoft.

[go-go-devil]

So........... thoughts on prog songs that fit the patho (or dark souls) characters?

By golly have you come to right person for such an ask!

As you probably already know, the character playlists I made for the three healers (Bachelor, Haruspex, Changeling) all have sprinklings of progressive rock songs in there, though one I genuinely feel encompasses ALL of them together is "No Self Control" by Peter Gabriel:

The "Gotta get some food - I'm so hungry all the time" and "Gotta get some sleep - I'm so nervous in the night" instantly remind me of the unforgiving hunger and exhaustion meters in-game, with the repeated "I don't know how to stop" reflecting how these characters often bring themselves close to disease and death just to achieve their goals day by day. Plus the song's overall intense, dismal tone just fits super well with Pathologic's vibes.

Speaking of Prog Peters, this one Peter Hammill song, "The Comet, The Course, The Tail" also gives me intense Patho vibes, mostly coming through the (very verbose) lyrics:

It's hard for me to really describe right now. I'd recommend looking up the lyrics alongside giving it a listen and see if you understand what I'm saying.

As for Dark Souls, one song that instantly came to mind when I finished playing the game for the 1st time was an all-time favorite of mine, "Ashes Are Burning" by Renaissance:

Obviously the name of the song works extremely well with Dark Souls, but the instrumentation and many of the lyrics fit nicely with the game's tone and themes for me personally. "Changing the order slowly / Leaving the mists of time / Fingers are holding, fragments of mine" particularly stand out in making me think of the Chosen Undead gradually collecting the Lord Souls to take on Gwyn, only aided by all the imagery of ashes and embers burning away.

I could add even more, but these are some good starters for prog recs for Patho/Soulsborne fans I'd say!

[zeemczed]

So, if I wanted to get started listening to prog rock, where should I start?

Full disclosure, I'm asking because I keep returning to the RWBY soundtrack as my ongoing background noise and that's always described as prog

My friend... you've picked a good berk to ask.

So the gateway I usually suggest is Dark Side of the Moon, by Pink Floyd. It's very approachable, and there really isn't a bad track on the list.

Or, barring that, Rush's Moving Pictures.

Or, for a less morally repugnant choice, Genesis' Selling England by the Pound.

Past those you have my favorite - The Moody Blues' Long Distance Voyager. Really, most of their output was gold, but LDV was my lullaby every single night when I was in junior high, so I'm biased.

The Court of the Crimson King is, according to the Venture Brothers, capable of pushing a super-scientist to supervillainy early in their career. I believe it. This one's polarizing as HELL, either you love it or you hate it.

Tommy is the first rock opera, and it arguably fits in here.

Other seminal prog albums: Aqualung by Jethro Tull The Yes Album by Yes Trilogy by Emerson, Lake and Palmer Crime of the Century by Supertramp The Trick of the Tail by Genesis Leftoverture by Kansas

And lastly, the TV Tropes page, which has ALL kinds of info on the genre and breaks it down into subgenres with examples.

[repldemiurge]

I went to a few concerts this summer season (though not nearly as many as my partner) and I never take pictures at them, but today since it was an outdoor lawn venue I found it easier and got a pic of each band

Unearth was fine. Generally the highest praise I can give a -core band unless they later go on to have a more interesting career (a la BTBAM or TDEP) I think them being slightly older than most bands in that scene helps a lot? It gave them more of just a melodic thrash vibe that they then still botched with knuckle-dragging breakdowns, in case you forgot they were a metalcore band and started to enjoy them. And yet, I might try a couple albums

Then Kerry King came on. Who the fuck cares.

(Forming your own shitass slayer wannabe band when slayer reformed without you after 5 years because you're too much of a fucking tool is. Sad.)

The only track the crowd got into was Raining Blood. Lol.

Mastodon did all of Leviathan, and like. It's Leviathan it's good what do you want. Honestly, the biggest downside to this was that they played Blood and Thunder to open the night, when by rights that is a made-to-be-an-encore song. Instead we got More Than I Could Chew and Steambreather. Idk I just. Still hate those last two albums. They teased that a new record will be out 2025 and my God I hope they decide to quit it with the fucking hard rock crap.

Then Brann came out after and told a very cute story about the first time he saw Leviathan on sale at best buy, good fodder for a 20th anniversary show like this.

OH they also played Circle of Cysquatch and had a tokusatsu. This thing was pretty cool.

‐-----------------

Then Lamb of God closed doing all of Ashes of the Wake. I had really only heard Redneck, Laid to Rest, and Grace by these guys, on account of the rock I live under. (And Grace only because of the girl who did a hurdy gurdy cover of it. And that's the track I like the most!)

I. Get why they occupy the position that they do. Solid blend of existing hardcore and metal styles while never adventuring into anything *too* experimental or niche. Really solid technique and fantastic stage presence from their front man. Kinda sad I didn't see them before Chris Adler left? I've had respect for him as a drummer for a long time. Overall, good album and solid live performance. I think I liked the first half a fair bit more than the back half, but the instrumental title track near the end was a standout. Did a little bit of moshing during Redneck because I wanted to have a *little* fun tonight, and I knew people would go apeshit for it. Uh, moshing on an angled lawn in the dark is a, *different* fuckin experience than on a venue floor lol. Only stayed for like half the song I guess.

Then I ate a hot dog and chili. Good night.

Anyways what's up with all these tours of bands playing entire albums now? I feel like this wasn't a thing 10 years ago. Maybe it's just that we're hitting a lot of anniversaries for 00s prog-metal boom albums and they want to show their Concept Vision in Full, but I feel like I'm seeing non-progressive bands (Lamb of God???) do it as well, so.

It's not even a bad trend per se, it's just one that feels kinda weird to me. I'm not the world's biggest showgoer though, maybe this has been a thing for a long time and I just never picked up on it.

I should listen to Slaughtersun by Dawn again (Good Black Metal bands do north American tours and stop in Detroit 2025 pleaseeeeeeee)