#Ryn plays Honkai Star Rail

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sometimes I think about Ratio gifting Aventurine a weighted blanket, specifically to help with nightmares. it’s not as helpful as having another person there, but it’s not as if there’s many people Aventurine trusts enough to share a bed (currently the list only includes Topaz and Ratio)

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Ratio/Aventurine can go two ways:

1. Ratio viewing Aventurine as…not a science experiment, but something interesting pull apart and study, enabling his worst behaviors just to see the consequences, whatever they may be

2. Ratio refusing to let Aventurine burn himself out, treating him with care because no one else will (including himself and excluded Topaz)

In either case, Ratio’s attention is firmly fixed on Aventurine because he’s smart and can actually hold an intelligent conversation with Ratio. He may not be able to explain in minute detail how something works like Ratio can, but he knows how to get the results he wants and practical knowledge is still knowledge. A gambling fool Aventurine might be, but never an idiot or stupid

Also, Ratio realizing he likes Aventurine and being Mad about it is so funny. Aventurine may realize he cares about Ratio, but it would be hard for him to accept and admit his own feelings because he feels guilty for any comfort he finds and doesn’t think he deserves it unless there’s an edge to it

I like to think they had a…relationship of sorts going into Penacony, because it makes things a whole lot more painful. It balances out afterwards though, because we don’t know if he’s entirely free of the IPC, but the less Aventurine is attached to the IPC, the less he has to keep up his facade and the more Ratio gets to see the man underneath, whether he goes by Aventurine, Kakavasha or a different name entirely

[skitterjitter]

the start of Aventurine and Ratio working together was likely a forced partnership

for all his charm and honeyed words, Aventurine does not like to play nice with fellow high ranking members of the IPC (though it seems like he's made an exception for Topaz)

Ratio has never had time for fools and idiots, but unfortunately for him, he's still a member of the Intelligensia Guild, and what better way to foster a good business partnership than signing off on the use of the services of one of their best and brightest?

turns out they work surprising well together, because despite their clash in personality, nobody can deny the results see Penacony

also I firmly believe that if there's one thing they can both agree upon, it's that they can't stand idiots and stupidity. except where Ratio seeks to eliminate ignorance, Aventurine exploits it for his own gain, which is a source of their mutual frustration. though it's Ratio who gave in to Aventurine's methods because Final Victor made it pretty clear who won that encounter and in Penacony it was Ratio who played his part in Aventurine's plan not the other way around

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Aventurine does not say he loves Ratio. instead, he smiles and says “a kiss for good luck, doctor?”

Veritas says he loves Kakavasha, but Dr Ratio kisses beneath each eye and whispers “tibi optimam felicitem volo”

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unsurprisingly to me, my favorite characters in Star Rail as of Penacony are Dr Ratio and Aventurine

Ratio because I too am an autistic in academia who wants knowledge to be widely and freely available. he might be cold and rude, but he genuinely wants to help people

Aventurine because I like characters with facades. pulling them apart and seeing what's underneath that mask is always Very Interesting

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I don't think Dr Veritas Ratio currently wants to be a member of the Genius Society. he almost certainly wanted to join their ranks when he was younger, but at some point that changed

members of the Genius Society view themselves as different from the average person, they're often secretive about their work, or outright hermits. the Nous Temple requires a key get in, and once you do, you don't come back out

this is entirely counter to Dr Ratio's stated beliefs and actions. his character details outright say: "Firmly believing that intellect and creativity are not confined to geniuses, he seeks to distribute knowledge to the entire universe to cure the persistent disease named ignorance."

he calls himself a Mundanite, clearly placing him within the same level as your average, everyday person. he's doing it deliberately, because he wants to be part of general society, unlike those of the Genius Society. he's recognizing and acknowledging the effort most people have to put in to be smart

his lightcone Baptism of Pure Thought shows him in an intimate and vulnerable setting, vastly different from what we see in Ruan Mei's Past Self In Mirror or Herta's The Birth Of The Self

Dr Ratio is a professor, his second character story says: "According to statistics, Ratio has taught 52 courses during his tenure. The courses, known to be harsh and challenging, have a completion rate of no more than 3%. Almost all the students who made it to the end have become experts in certain fields." he's not looking for quantity but quality in those he allows to pass, but it also doesn't seem like he intentionally bars people from taking his classes, they're just difficult and demanding

he's also a member of the Intelligensia Guild, and he's worked on public projects like the anti-planetary weapon that got him noticed by the IPC, so despite his distaste for fools and stupidity, he's still working within the realm of the average person

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if I had to pick a track and field event for Ratio it would be javelin

honestly the biggest reason is probably that his posture when he throws chalk for his talent is triggering just reminds me of going to track meets to watch my sister’s event

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very excited to see what Star Rail has in store for the Doctors of Chaos. because “chaos” is often only thought of in terms of the negative and destructive. however, the Doctors stand as an opposite of the Self Annihilators — they strive to prove to IX THEMSELF that life does, in fact, hold meaning. in this way, the Doctors of Chaos are leaning towards the more positive and creative aspects of “chaos”

this more positive aspect can be seen all over the world and most often tied to water, which can be seen in the Nihility Aventurine finds himself in

he too has looked into the Abyss and (with help) came away with a renewed desire to live, and though we know precious little about the Doctors of Chaos, I’m gonna go out on a limb and say that Aventurine gaining some sort of association with them would be quite fitting

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given how convincing Ratio's act on Penacony was, alongside some stuff in his kit that is related to Apollo (a few examples being his eidolon 'know thyself' and his association with both medicine and truth), I think that at some point, he did theater. he had some natural talent and he might have at one point considered getting a degree in performance art -- however, doing so would likely bring him into contact with Aha's Masked Fools and he has no desire to entertain their inane absurdities

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no, no listen, listen -- Penacony but through the lens of Plato's Republic and the Allegory of the Cave. the heads of the Family can be placed in the philosopher king role, and the Dreamscape is the noble lie they use in service of the Harmony. but what is a dream but a shadow play, cast in reflection but never holding any true substance but to those that allow it to do so?

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if we ever get more information about Veritas Prime, it's probably going to lean more into the Roman Empire, but I foolishly cling to the hope it'll be Republic. I'll even take late Republic or early Augustan even if I'm so fucking tired of it

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Penacony is my current favorite arc in Star Rail. kinda want to do an analysis of the first quest, A Long Day's Journey Into Night, because there is so much I could dig into regarding the play and the symbolism of fog and Penacony's Dreamscape, but alas I have finals to deal with and then going down to Florida to visit my sister for her graduation...

setting all that aside, if I did end up writing an analysis I'd need to reread the play since it's been a while since I last read the play and I must admit I do not look forward to that idea. not because it's a bad play (far from it) but it deals with some pretty heavy topics that I have a hard time handling on a good day...and I'd need to reread it for quotes...

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I don't know what the fuck happened -- I had 3 10 pulls for Aventurine today, and I either hit pity or something said "yeah you can have him today. as a treat" because he came home in the first 10 pull

I'm happy for Luka, but I'd rather've gotten Lynx instead of Serval 'cause I'd like to have another healer besides Natasha...

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I'm avoiding starting the Penacony story arc in Star Rail because I don't need to know spoilers, the current quest I have is titled Long Days Journey Into Night so I already know I'm in for some heavy and stressful shit and I am not ready for it