#a point or two off from a stat cap for all stats like that so I did that. but THEEEEN I thought of ANOTHER thing

[saturnsag3]

Study Buddy - will smith x macklin celebrini

summary: this isn’t in the same universe as my other nerd!mack x frat!will blurb but sort of the same vibe

wc: 3,367

The thing about college was—well, okay, there were a lot of things about college that Will Smith didn’t like. Early classes, walking uphill in the snow, overpriced textbooks he never cracked open. But right now, the biggest thing was Statistics 2104.

He didn’t care about z-scores or regression models. Didn’t care about T-tests or p-values or whatever fresh hell was on this week’s quiz. What he did care about was the fact that his coach had just benched him until his grade went up.

“You’re a leader on this team, Smith,” Coach had said, pacing his office like he was delivering a TED Talk on discipline. “You want to play Friday? Show me you can pass your damn class.”

So here he was, sitting in Professor Delaney’s office with an empty water bottle, an even emptier brain, and just enough charm left in the tank to try and convince her not to ruin his life.

She peered at him over her glasses. “Will, you’ve failed the last two quizzes. Your attendance is spotty. Your last submitted assignment—” she held up a stapled packet with what looked like red blood all over it, “—was missing three of the assigned pages and cited TikTok as a source.”

Will cleared his throat. “Technically, it was on the STEM tab so—“

“I’m assigning you a tutor,” she cut him off. “You don’t get a say in it.”

“I wasn’t gonna argue,” he said quickly. “Actually, I—yeah. No. A tutor sounds... great. Productive. Go team.”

She raised a brow. “Macklin Celebrini. Pre-med. One of my top students.”

Will sat up straighter. The name sounded familiar—he was pretty sure they shared a row in lecture.

“The guy who sits across from me?” he asked. “Dark hair, kind of quiet?”

Delaney nodded. “That’s the one. He already agreed to help you.”

Will exhaled, half in relief, half in... something else. He didn’t know Macklin, not really, but he’d noticed him. Always early, always prepared, the kind of student who probably had color-coded notes and didn’t miss a single lecture. The kind of student Will needed if he was going to survive this class.

“Okay,” he said. “Yeah. I can work with that.”

Delaney didn’t smile. “Library. Four o’clock. Don’t waste his time.”

---

Will was late.

Not by much—five minutes, tops—but enough that he had to jog the last stretch to the library and burst through the glass doors like he was arriving at a frat party instead of a study session. His hoodie was half-zipped, one earbud still in, sunglasses perched cockily on his head like he hadn’t realized they were indoors now. The tail-end of someone’s coffee order announcement trailed behind him as he spotted the table near the back.

There he was.

Macklin Celebrini.

No laptop screen could hide the fact that he was objectively good-looking, and unfortunately for Will’s ability to focus, the kid looked way too composed for someone voluntarily hanging out with a failing jock. His brown, straight hair sat fluffy and light on his head, a single AirPod sat idle on the table next to his tea, and his notes were already spread out in neat rows—highlighters uncapped, stats textbook open, a few post-its stuck to the top margin.

One of them read: WILL, in sharp, all-caps pen.

Will pointed as he slid into the seat across from him. “You made me a place card? That’s kinda cute.”

Macklin didn’t look up right away. “I wasn’t sure if you’d show up, so I figured I’d at least get something useful out of this and work on labeling things.”

Will grinned. “You label your friends?”

“We’re not friends.” Macklin replied flatly.

Ouch.

Will put a hand to his chest, feigning offense. “Damn. Cold start.”

“I’m not here to warm you up,” Macklin said, flipping a page in his notebook. “I’m here to help you not fail. So let’s focus.”

Will leaned forward, resting his chin in his palm, eyes very much not on the textbook. “I’m focused.”

Macklin didn’t look up, but his pen paused mid-sentence. “Staring at me doesn’t count as focusing.”

“I disagree,” Will said smoothly. “You’re clearly the smartest guy in this room, so I figure if I just absorb your aura or whatever, I’ll magically learn the difference between a mode and a median.”

Macklin exhaled through his nose, unimpressed. “You’re literally going to fail.”

Will shrugged. “Not if I have you.”

That got him a look. Macklin finally glanced up, slow and measured, eyes scanning over Will like he was solving for X and the answer was deeply disappointing. “Flirting won’t fix your GPA.”

“Is it flirting if I’m just being honest?” Will shot back, smirking. “You’re kind of famous on campus, you know. Pre-med, full ride, on first-name basis with every professor. You walk like you’ve got somewhere more important to be.”

Macklin blinked once, then turned his laptop so the screen faced Will. “Do you know what a mean is?”

Will smiled, unbothered. “You don’t have to be so mean about it.”

Macklin didn’t so much as twitch. “Wow. A stats pun. That’s original.”

“You wound me, Mack.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“See, this is going well already,” Will said, propping his feet on the empty chair next to him. “I’ve learned your name and a boundary. Next time we might even get to standard deviation.”

Macklin closed his notebook, slow and deliberate. “You’ve been here seven minutes and you haven’t absorbed a single number.”

“I’ve absorbed plenty,” Will said, eyes very obviously dropping to Macklin’s hands. “Mostly visual.”

Macklin’s jaw flexed. “You know this isn’t a date, right?”

“Yet,” Will said, and winked.

It earned him silence. Not shocked silence—just the kind that came from someone who was very used to being hit on and very used to not caring.

Still, Will thought he saw it—just the slightest twitch at the corner of Macklin’s mouth. Not a smile. Definitely not. But something... almost amused. Almost.

“I’ll quiz you,” Macklin said finally, turning the notebook back to himself. “If you fail, we’re moving to the basement study rooms where there’s no one to perform for.”

Will’s smile widened. “So you are looking at me.”

Macklin didn’t look up. “One more word and I start charging you by the minute.”

“So, the mean,” Macklin began, tapping his pen against the textbook like he was trying to summon patience from its pages. “Is the average. You just add all the numbers and divide by how many there are.”

Will didn’t respond.

Macklin glanced up. “Will.”

Will was already looking at him—had been, actually, this whole time. Chin still in his hand, elbow on the table, eyes dragging unapologetically over Macklin’s face like it was more interesting than anything numbers had to offer.

“What?” Will asked, all faux-innocence.

“You’re not listening.”

“I am listening,” Will protested, straightening up a little. “Mean equals average. Add, divide, boom. Got it.”

Macklin narrowed his eyes. “Then give me the mean of these five numbers.”

He scribbled them down on a post-it and slid it across the table.

Will didn’t even glance at it. “I’ll calculate it if you smile.”

Macklin blinked. “Excuse me?”

“One smile,” Will said. “Just a little one. Then I’ll do the math.”

“I’m not a vending machine. You don’t insert charm and get expressions back.”

“Worth a try.”

Will leaned over the table, reaching for Macklin’s pen. His fingers brushed Macklin’s knuckles—on purpose—and lingered just a half-second too long before he pulled the pen back and uncapped it with his teeth.

Macklin stared at him. “You have your own pens.”

“But yours looks smarter.”

“That’s not how pens work.”

“It is when you use them,” Will said smoothly.

Macklin said nothing, just looked vaguely toward the ceiling like he was regretting every life choice that led him to this exact moment.

Will finally looked at the post-it. “Okay, so—five numbers. Add them. Divide. Easy.”

“Not if you take forever doing it.”

Will pretended to scribble something down, then paused and looked up again. “You smell good, by the way.”

Macklin’s pen froze mid-word. “What?”

“Didn’t think you’d be the type,” Will continued, leaning back and drumming his fingers against the table. “But it’s subtle. Clean. Like—you just did laundry and read for pleasure.”

Macklin blinked. “What does reading for pleasure even smell like?”

“Vanilla and rubbing alcohol.”

“...Are you high?”

Will grinned. “No, but you’re starting to sound like my type.”

Macklin huffed and looked back at his notes. “I’m not your type.”

Will tilted his head, genuinely curious. “How do you know that?”

“Because I know you.”

That gave Will pause.

Macklin didn’t look up when he said it—didn’t act like he’d dropped a bomb or anything—but the words hung there, heavy and real.

“You know of me,” Will said slowly.

“I know you,” Macklin said again, more evenly this time. “Will Smith. Greek life king. Wing night champion. Campus hockey god. Very good at pretending nothing matters until it suddenly does.”

Will stared at him, surprised.

“And now that your season’s on the line, here you are. Failing statistics, flirting with your tutor instead of learning the material.”

Will opened his mouth, closed it, then leaned forward again—this time more serious, less performative.

“Okay,” he said. “That was... a little hot.”

Macklin rolled his eyes, but there was definite color rising in his cheeks now, high and pink and fast.

“You’re exhausting,” Macklin muttered.

“I’ve been called worse.”

“Do you ever stop?” he asked, flipping a page aggressively.

Will tapped his pen against the table. “You could make me.”

Macklin gave him a long look. “How?”

Will leaned in again, close enough to make Macklin’s shoulders go stiff.

“Tell me to stop and mean it,” Will said, voice low.

Macklin didn’t answer right away. For a second, he just stared, expression unreadable.

“Do the math problem, Will.”

Will smirked. “What if I get it wrong on purpose so you’ll yell at me again?”

“I swear to God—”

“I like when you’re mean to me,” Will said, smug.

“Try me again and I’ll make you do flashcards,” Macklin threatened, standing his ground.

Will put both hands up in surrender. “Okay, okay. No need for violence.”

He finally leaned back and actually looked at the numbers this time. Macklin watched him from the corner of his eye, like he didn’t trust him to even attempt the problem without saying something ridiculous.

Will scratched something down. “So the mean is... 12.6?”

Macklin blinked. “That’s actually correct.”

Will lit up like a kid who just got goldfish and a sticker. “Look at us! Learning and bonding.”

Macklin just shook his head, but his mouth twitched again—almost smiling, almost giving in.

Will leaned across the table again, sliding Macklin’s pen back toward him with two fingers. “You’re really good at this, by the way.”

“Tutoring?”

“No. Looking unimpressed. It’s hot.”

“Jesus Christ,” Macklin muttered.

Will grinned. “You’re thinking about smiling, I know it.”

“I’m thinking about faking a medical emergency so I can leave.”

Will leaned in once more, voice dropped low, like a secret. “Just so you know... you already make stats my favorite subject.”

Macklin didn’t respond. But  when he looked up, there was a definite smile tugging at the corner of his mouth—and he didn’t even try to fight it.

---

By their third session, Will had stopped pretending he hated statistics.

Not because he liked it but because he liked the way Macklin’s expression twitched every time he said something just dumb enough to be funny. He liked how Macklin always showed up early, already halfway through a green tea and flipping through his meticulously highlighted notes like he hadn't spent the last two hours prepping for a tutoring session he claimed not to care about.

Will noticed everything.

The way Macklin tapped his pen against the side of his mug when he was thinking. The way he curled his hand protectively over his notes when Will leaned too close. The way he tried very hard not to laugh whenever Will made some inappropriate joke about frequency distributions and one-night stands.

It was slow—painfully slow—but Macklin was cracking.

Just a little.

It started with the eye rolls. Then the muttered "You're impossible"’s. Then, the fifth session in, Will made some dumb pun about regression and Macklin actually laughed. Like, a real, startled huff of a laugh that caught both of them off guard.

Will had blinked at him. “Was that a giggle?”

Macklin had gone red instantly. “Shut up.”

So of course Will spent the rest of the session trying to make him do it again.

He started taking the tutoring slightly more seriously—not enough to stop flirting, obviously, but enough that Macklin stopped threatening to quit every ten minutes. Will showed up (mostly) on time. He answered practice questions with slightly less whining. He even—once—brought Macklin a green tea before he could get one himself.

Macklin stared at it like it was poison.

“You memorized my order?” he asked, flatly.

Will grinned. “What can I say? I’m observant. Also, the barista said you go there so often they thought you lived upstairs.”

Macklin tried not to smile, and failed.

“Don’t read into this,” he warned, taking the cup anyway.

Will just leaned back in his chair, laced his hands behind his head, and said, “Too late.”

Their sessions kept going like that: Will making jokes, Macklin pretending not to like them. Macklin explaining concepts, Will interrupting every five minutes to ask why he smelled like vanilla and pain suppression. Somehow, amidst all the chaos, Will’s test scores climbed. Not by much, but enough.

And Macklin... stopped acting like he hated being there.

He didn’t say it, of course. Would probably deny it if Will ever asked. But he didn’t flinch when Will leaned in close anymore. Didn’t move his hand when Will’s brushed his under the table. Didn’t sigh as loud when Will texted him outside of tutoring hours.

In fact, by week four, Macklin texted him first.

Just once.

Just a curt: bring your notes this time. and try not to smell like gym bag + cologne. see you at 4.

Will had smiled at his phone like an idiot for a full ten minutes after that.

---

Will practically burst into the library like he’d just scored the game-winner in double overtime. He didn’t even try to hide the shit-eating grin on his face, practically jogging over to their usual table with a paper clutched in his hand and his backwards cap hanging off one ear.

Macklin didn’t even look up. “If you’re about to show me a meme, I’m leaving.”

Will slapped the graded exam onto the table like it was a trophy. “Seventy-seven.”

That got Macklin’s attention.

He blinked. Then again. “Out of... a hundred?”

Will snorted. “No, Macklin, out of a thousand.”

Macklin’s brows shot up. He leaned forward, snatching the test and scanning it like he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. “Wait—this is actually... wow.”

Will beamed, obnoxiously proud. “Say it.”

Macklin frowned. “Say what?”

“Say I’m a genius.”

“You got a C.”

“A strong C,” Will corrected. “A C with ambition.”

And then—just for a second—Macklin actually smiled.

It was quick, and it wasn’t cocky or sarcastic or tight-lipped. It was genuine. His whole face lit up, eyes crinkling, like he couldn’t stop it even if he tried.

Will saw it.

“You’re proud of me,” Will said, voice sing-songy.

“I’m—no.”

“You are.”

“It’s just—” Macklin floundered, pushing the paper back across the table like it had burned him. “I didn’t think you’d break 70, so... congratulations, I guess.”

Will leaned his elbows on the table and tilted his head. “That was dangerously close to a compliment.”

“Don’t get used to it.”

Will smirked. “Too late.”

Macklin tried to recover, but his ears were pink, and he was avoiding eye contact like the test score had personally offended him.

Will, of course, couldn’t leave it there.

“So,” he said, stretching casually. “What happens if I get an 80 on the next one?”

Macklin raised an eyebrow, wary. “You get a slightly better grade.”

Will shook his head. “No, no. I mean, what happens between us.”

Macklin blinked, already regretting everything. “Nothing happens between us.”

Will gave him the look. “You smiled when I said ‘77.’ That was basically second base.”

Macklin rolled his eyes. “You’re impossible.”

Will leaned forward, grinning. “If I get an 80 on our next test, you have to let me take you out.”

Macklin stared.

Will held up a hand. “No games. Just one date. Could be coffee. Could be dinner. Could be that weird farmer’s market you pretend not to like even though I saw reusable tote bags in your car.”

“You went through my car?”

“I didn’t go through it. I walked past it. Noticed things. I’m observant.”

“You’re annoying.”

“And yet you keep tutoring me.”

Macklin hesitated. He was quiet for a second too long, and Will knew he was considering it. Like, actually weighing the pros and cons of Will asking him out.

Finally, Macklin sighed, slow and dramatic.

“Fine,” he said. “Deal.”

Will blinked. “Wait. Seriously?”

“If—and I mean if—you get an 80 or higher.”

“Oh, I will.”

“But—” Macklin added, holding up a finger. “Rules.”

Will grinned. “Lay ‘em on me.”

“One: no bragging to your friends. Two: it’s not a date, it’s a hang out. And three: if you’re late, I walk.”

Will laughed. “That’s... actually reasonable.”

Macklin shook his head, but he was smiling again—smaller this time, secretive. Like part of him really did want Will to get that 80.

Will sat back, already plotting flashcards and study sessions and possibly bribing the professor (kidding—kind of).

“Better clear your schedule, Macklin,” he said, eyes bright with promise. “I’ve never wanted an 80 more in my life.”

sages thoughts⋆˙⟡: i love this dynamic so much and if you guys want you can send me requests for them, i hope u enjoyed!!

[dimiclaudeblaigan]

I just got Shinon for the first time in this file. 🤣

[cindol]

thinks about cowgirl!mika who has a bottle opener belt yeahhh….. would link where i saw this but unfortunately, i’ve searched and searched and haven’t found that wonderful butch woman who did that. ( drabble . )

mikasa ackerman x black fem reader because i said so .

cw — eren too, is in this drabble but… bro is irrelevant here, suggestive,

cowgirl!mikasa always has her bottle opener belt on at all times since she found it in a thrift shop. In her own mindset she never knew when she needed it since she purchased it last week at that thrift store in case of opening a bottle of milk or any bottled beverage for those who needed help.

when you worked in a bar mikasa knew you’d always need help opening bottles that were too tight and honestly, she looked forward to that when she’d come to this local bar and see you grunting and hissing at the pain of opening the damn beer that always had way too tight bottle caps.

when she saw you coming over to her pout her attention that was on her partner eren talking to her about some crime he busted without her it shifted to you.

you came over already with your glossy red lips curled in a pout with furrowed brows and sat the plate of bottle of beers onto her table. “could you be a darling and crack these bad boys up open? Gotta get these to a table stat.” you subtly pointed your thumb to another table, a group of some rowdy young men in plaid shirts and raggedy jeans, all rambunctious and loud.

mikasa smiled, nodding and getting up entirely and for the first you saw her new shiny bottle opener belt, making your lips part in a curious way. “new belt?”

she hummed, nodding. “got this fancy ass belt that can open bottles up from that store down the block.” in the center of the belt she tapped what was the bottle opener buckle. “just grab one of ‘em and put it there.” mikasa had a slight pink tint on her cheeks from explaining, her stupid dirty mind definitely was thinking of how different her words would be if you two were doing this in a not so appropriate place.

listening to her instructions you inserted the top of the unopened beer and just like that, it made a hissing sound, squirted out some beer making you giggle.

the entire time mikasa had a flustered face while you opened four beers on her belt buckle. Each hiss of the beer signaling that they’ve open and how you chuckled at each beer squirting some of it’s liquid squirted on your employee jean skirt.

once you were done you dusted yourself off and held the platter of beers in one hand. “well guess i’ll be off. I definitely will be getting a handful from my boss about my jean skirt buuuuuut… it’s whatever.” with that, you walked off, making a beeline to another table.

[jayparked]

go big or go home | lee heeseung / nishimura riki

PAIRING:pitcher!heeseung / batter!riki x concession worker!female reader GENRE: comedy AU: strangers to ???, love triangle, baseball RATING: 18+ (my blog is 18+ but this is sfw) WORD COUNT: 4.2k WARNINGS: strong language, riki is kinda an egotistical jerk LOL, old man heeseung with creaky joints, good ol rivalry (i might be missing more) A/N: SURPRISE!! i kept staring at the photos when the boys visited my home town and went to a mariners game and then boom this idea bloomed in between writing my other wips! also omg what snail posts a fic that isn't just porn without plot??? craazzzyyyyy. anyways i love baseball, i grew up going to mariners games (maybe jay and i were at the same game at one point sfjkaldj) anyways i'm rambling this is a different writing style than what i normally do but thought i would experiment a bit! i hope you enjoy it ♡ SPECIAL THANK YOU TO: @sungbeams for making this sexy banner and for helping me figure out some details in this fic ily always

It's the bottom of the fifth inning and Heeseung cannot wait for the day to be over. It's hot, more so than ever before and it feels like he has to wipe the sweat off his forehead every twenty seconds or so. Soon enough, he won't be able to see where he's pitching.

Spitting out a buffalo flavored sunflower seed to his right, he re-positions his cap, nearly taking over his eyebrows. It can't possibly go any lower and he's wasting valuable time stalling with it.

The catcher has been throwing out basic plays that Heeseung has seen and done a million times. The kid knows his pitcher can't throw a decent changeup or slider anymore due to years of muscle strain and poor self care habits. Hell, it’s even difficult for him to throw an accurate knuckleball now. His specialty has switched to a ninety-seven mile-per-hour fastball. At least, that’s how fast it was two years ago.

The mitt smells sour against Heeseung’s nose as he finally nods his head, accepting his teammate's suggestion for a basic splitter. The catcher, Yang Jungwon, readies himself, rocking his body slightly as his knees adjust, giving his own mitt a few playful smacks as he does so.

Deep breath, the roar of the crowd stills into a faint white noise in the pitcher's mind as he lowers the mitt and the ball to his chest. As a pitcher, it's important to have a signature move. Something subtle, yet eye-catching that drives the fans crazy. Some have claimed his technique is too predictable; but those who comment, aren't usually the ones on the field.

Heeseung rocks back his left shoulder, his right rolling up towards his ear before making a rowing motion with the mitt and ball back to the right, the ball in his left hand leaving the comforts of the mitt. Left knee kicking up in front of his body, Heeseung releases his breath and winds up, the last of his energy exploding as the ball leaves his hand and spirals down towards home.

"STEEEEERIKE THREE! YOOOOU’RE OUT!"

Stomping feet of the fans in the stadium and the inspiring roars of his teammates from the dugout fills Heeseung's ears all at once. When he was first starting out in his career, all the excitement would make him jump right there on the mound. Now, the noise is comforting and he smiles fondly to himself. At this point, it's hard to concentrate without it.

Two batters down. One to go.

The next player that approaches the plate is someone Heeseung has been excited to compete against. With stats higher than any fresh new recruit the league has ever seen, Nishimura Riki is a force to be reckoned with. It’s midseason of the kid’s first year. Riki has never struck out. The batter struts out of the dugout with the bat over his shoulders, taking long, slow strides towards the plate with his chin held high.

The breeze picks up as Heeseung uses his mitt to hide his face, discreetly popping in some more sunflower seeds into his mouth, concentrating hard on Riki's broad, wide, confident stance. The kid is glaring right at Heeseung, the bat now held just next to his left ear, raising an eyebrow with a smirk.

Rolling his shoulder a couple of times, Heeseung tries to ignore the growing ache inside his joint or the way his smile is naturally pulling into a frown. It helps to see that Yang has a newfound fire in his eyes, his first-hand signal is one Heeseung hasn’t seen in a very long time. And oh, does that simple hand signal excite the fuck out of the pitcher.

“Let’s take this newbie back old school style.” Heeseung chuckles to himself, his mitt covering his mouth as he gives a short nod to Yang.

The ritual restarts.

“STEEEEERIKE ONE!” The umpire hollers. The crowd screams as the tension builds in the stadium. Riki has had strikes before, so Heeseung isn’t phased by the hype of the crowd. Unless he smiles, they think that he will be the pitcher to knock the kid down a few pedestals. Riki did have a delayed swing reaction for that first pitch which isn’t how he usually reacts at base.

Yang quickly tosses a new ball to Heeseung.

Wasting no time, he winds up again, this time with a little more gusto and confidence laced in his fingertips.

"STEEEEEERIKE TWO"

Pride swells quickly in Heeseung's chest, how could it not? Riki grimaces, stepping back from the plate and hitting the end of his bat against his cleats. This time, he swung too early. Heeseung watches as the batter rolls his neck, shaking his upper body before comically bouncing up and down - the same way Heeseung used to do. Stepping back up to the plate, Riki sticks his tongue into the side of his cheek and narrows his eyes at Heeseung.

Another ball is tossed to Heeseung who catches it casually and without much effort, barely even giving it a glance.

The sun feels warm at the nape of Heeseung's neck and on his forearms. He’s definitely walking away from this with a wicked sunburn and he just knows the long bath he’ll sink into later will feel so nice on his aching bones and singed skin. It's the perfect weather for a game. It's the perfect weather to win a game.

And, for the final time (he hopes), Heeseung winds up to pitch. Every muscle in his body feels relaxed and ready as he eyes his target: the center of Yang's mitt.

Right as Heeseung is about to release the ball from his hand, there's a yell in the crowd.

"COTTON CANDY! GET YA COTTON CANDY HERE! FIVE SMACK-A-ROONIES! COTTON CANDY!"

For just a moment, Heeseung looks to see where the noise is coming from. A girl is waving around blue and pink bags of cotton candy above her head. By the drastic movement of her jaw, Heeseung guesses she's chewing a big wad of gum. She tosses a pink bag towards a man in the middle of a row and collects the money promptly. Something about her energy is captivating, hell, the way her voice was even able to carry out all this way past the roar of the crowd is something Heeseung has never seen before in all his years on this mound.

And then, she turns towards the field.

It feels like time stills as Heeseung notices her features. With long hair swooped up in a messy bun, held captive by a home team baseball cap, the craziness of all the wisps floating with the breeze somehow makes the features of her face stand out even more. She’s smiling wide with each short interaction with the customers around her, glancing to the field every now and then to see the action going on. Every time she turns to the field, her eyes glisten slightly and that smile widens.

She's absolutely beautiful.

He feels it– the quiver throughout his body making him lose his focus. The baseball leaves Heeseung's fingertips all too soon as that quiver offsets the direction of the pitch. Riki watches the ball confused as it thumps against the green tarp just about five feet to the left of home base.

Silence.

"Raaah!" Heeseung yells and kicks at the mound, coughing instantly as the dirt rises up to his mouth. Everyone in the arena is confused as to what just happened. Heeseung has thrown walks before, sure, but nothing even close to this drastically bad.

Then suddenly, Yang calls for a timeout and runs up to the mound to meet Heeseung.

"Dude, Lee, what the hell just happened? Is it your shoulder?" His voice sounds muffled behind his catching mitt that covers his lips.

Words escape Heeseung, but his mouth moves anyways. Inaudible sounds manage to sneak out and Yang stares at him with a concerned look in his face before waving one of their coaches over.

Mitt also in front of his face, the coach tries to find his words before blurting, "What's going on? I've never seen a pitch that bad since we tried you out for pitcher." The coach laughs as he bumps shoulders with Yang who only grimaces back.

"I don't know, Coach, I think he's having a stroke or something." Concerned, Yang sticks out a finger and aims to poke at Heeseung's nose.

Heeseung shakes his head and grabs Yang's finger, pushing him away, still not meeting the younger player's eyes.

The coach follows Heeseung's line of sight and immediately smacks the pitcher on his non-throwing arm. "A girl? You have got to be shitting me right now. You are not being paid to ogle at stadium workers! Acting like a real rookie right now, Lee. Get your shit together, you’re about to make history!"

Heeseung barely feels the smack. He's too busy looking at the girl juggling massive bags of cotton candy like a professional. There's a wave of grace as she rolls a pink bag of fluff down one arm and into her hand, only to flick it towards a customer seconds later. Fascinated, Heeseung has never seen anything quite like it. She’s not like the other concession workers he’s seen throughout his years; one’s that always have that dark cloud following around them as they sluggishly drag their feet around the stadium rows. Strands of hair from her bun are coming undone, the wind slowly untangling the strands with each gentle push.

Finally, she turns towards the field again.

Underneath his team’s cap, her eyes flick to meet his.

She doesn't stay facing them long, yelling about cotton candy left and right, customers eagerly trying to get her attention. As she spins around, Heeseung feels like fainting seeing his name painted in bold letters on the back of her baseball jersey, his lucky number 49 also printed largely on the back.

The air suddenly feels stiff and musky. Heeseung feels sweatier than before and can't seem to focus on the words his coach and teammates are saying to him, a smile blooming on his face meanwhile his cheeks start to burn, and it’s definitely not from the sun.

"AYO, Lee!"

Heeseung shakes his head and turns his attention back towards home base, instantly annoyed at the sight of the batter, Riki. The newbie has his shiny oak bat resting on his shoulders, one hip casually jutting out, looking bored as ever. Heeseung can see from the mound how flat Riki's eyes look as the younger man smacks his bubblegum.

"We gonna play some ball or something?" Riki waves a hand up in an annoyed fashion.

Clenching his jaw, Heeseung nods his head, prompting Yang and the coach to head back to their spots.

Two strikes. One ball. It's an easy out at this point. Heeseung has the rage fueling him and he always throws faster and harder when there's something to target. Plus, it would be pretty cool if he could strike out the un-strikable in front of the pretty girl.

Stealing one last glance, Heeseung sees the cotton candy girl leaning against the metal banister upfront and close to the field. She's focusing hard on Heeseung with an intensity he has never seen before. It's clear she's looking at him, waiting for something to happen.

Gulping down a lump of nerves, the angry fire that was bubbling within quickly becomes dormant.

Wind up. Breathe.

Release.

Riki swings, catching the baseball with the tip of the bat. Instead of going forward, the ball spirals behind him. A perfect foul.

Two balls, two strikes.

When it comes down to the wire like this, Heeseung feels his strongest. And the intensity coming from Riki only reminds Heeseung of how it used to be when he was first starting out in the league: exhilarating, adrenalizing, a never-ending insatiable hunger. Heeseung sees that same drive in the batter in front of him. It’s rejuvenating to see that raw emotion can still exist in the newcomers. 

Hopefully, for the final time, Heeseung winds up and prepares to strike out Nishimura Riki’s ego for good.

It couldn’t have been a more perfect pitch. The baseball leaves Heeseung’s fingers tingling with the sheer force of the throw. When his leg kicks up from the momentum of the throw, Heeseung can feel the speed of the ball as it barrels in a perfect line towards Yang’s mitt.

So, imagine Heeseung’s anger and confusion when the ball sinks into the catcher’s mitt and the umpire is dead silent.

Uproars from the home team fans go crazy with insults as replay after replay shows on the jumbo screens. 

“Timeout! Timeout!” The coach of Heeseung’s team yells furiously as he runs onto the field. The coach grabs Heeseung by the arm and drags him to the dugout, quickly thrusting a water bottle into Heeseung’s hands and puts an ice pack on his shoulder. Heeseung winces at the impact, his sun kissed skin not prepared for the harsh contrast so quickly.

“Fucking umpires I swear they’re out to protect this Nishimura’s reputation. That was a strike if I’ve ever seen one! A textbook, picture perfect strike!” The coach enunciated the words with his pointer finger jamming into his other palm, and continues to grumble as he applies more pressure to Heeseung’s shoulder.

The cold does feel great against his joints after a moment, but sitting inside the dugout does not feel ideal. He’s not meant to be a bench warmer, especially not in the middle of an intense moment. Walking away from the mound has anxiety bubbling deep within his chest. He’ll rest after all of this is good and over with, no matter the outcome. So, wordlessly, Heeseung waves his coach off, takes the water bottle, takes a long swig, stepping back onto the field wiping the corners of his mouth with the back of his hand.

The feeling of the ice-cold water going down his throat felt more refreshing than he was expecting as his eyes gaze around the field, casually trying to find the girl from earlier.

Unknowingly, Heeseung walks closer to home base before finding the cotton candy girl just a few rows away. She looks beautiful as she smiles at the customers, the pinks and blues of the cotton candy bringing out the blush in her face and the sparkle in her eyes. Heeseung leans against the padded wall, reaching into his pocket to pop a few more sunflower seeds into his mouth.

Following Heeseung's glance, Riki scoffs and turns back to him. "Really? The cotton candy girl? Buddy, friend, you do realize what kind of people we are right? We have million-dollar contracts. She makes minimum wage. Those classes don't mix."

Heeseung has never been more grateful and proud of his own self-control than in this moment. If he were any other place, he would have socked Riki right in the jaw with as much might as humanly possible. Preferably right in the spot where the edge of his smile forms a lined dimple. Instead, he spits out the sunflower seed shells as close to Riki as he can without it being called unfair sportsmanship. The kid doesn’t even notice.

"Despite the class difference, I guess she is kind of cute," the younger boy continues, "I wonder if she's ever dated a baseball player before." There's something hidden behind that seemingly harmless statement, challenging almost, and Heeseung has a weird feeling, enough to make the hair stand on the back of his neck and his nose to scrunch.

Wordlessly, Heeseung looks back and forth between the cotton candy girl and Riki.

"What's it gonna be, old man? Do you really think she would pick you over me?" The kid laughs and adjusts his helmet to fit over his ear better, squaring up to bat and locking gazes with the pitcher. 

Unspoken words thrash across the field between the two players while Heeseung walks back towards the mound, tired of waiting for his coaches to be done bickering with the umpires. He can't decide if he wants to call the rookie's bluff or not.

Actions speak louder than words, Heeseung tells himself and casually throws the ball into his mitt a couple of times, finding a rhythm that feels right. Riki is still waiting for him, the umpire now back in place and Heeseung’s coach fuming against the railing in the dugout.

Quiet.

Suddenly, the ball is no longer in Heeseung's hands.

It's like he blinked and didn't even feel his body move. But Yang has left his crouched position and is picking up the baseball on the far, far right side of home plate.

Heavy groans arise from the sea of fans, growing louder and louder as their doubt in Heeseung sets in more permanently. There’s a faint sting in his wrist that makes him want to shake it vigorously.  That wouldn’t go unnoticed by the coach, though, so he refrains. 

Looking at the sky, Heeseung immediately notices a change in the weather. The sky is now filled with dark purplish clouds, casting a dark shadow over the field. At first, it seems that the universe is mocking him, telling him that his wonder years have officially come to an end. But then, a flash of white lights up the sky, and Heeseung’s melancholy attitude fills with annoyance.

“God dammit!” 

Maybe it was a one time strike. Maybe no one else saw it. If there’s lightning they will cancel the game immediately. And that means he won’t be able to see the look on Riki’s face once he finally strikes him out.

For a few moments, nothing happens and it seems like the perfect chance for Heeseung to wind up again. As quickly as the thought came to mind, another streak of lightning hits the sky, this time, more noticeable than the first. To make matters worse, Heeseung is hit in the forehead with a juicy raindrop, the contents sliding down his nose and across his cheek.

“Everyone, due to unforeseen weather, we will have to postpone the rest of this game. Please evacuate safely to your vehicles. Updated game information can be found on our website-”

Shaking his head, Heeseung walks off the mound and heads towards the locker rooms. 

Up ahead, he sees Riki leaning against the wall with one elbow, his other hand placed on his hip. There’s a look in his eyes that makes Heeseung follow where the rookie is looking. Devastation hits when he sees that Riki is flirting with the cotton candy girl.

Jogging over, Heeseung can feel the rain increase in intensity, his jersey starting to cling to his skin.

“This lighting is way too dangerous, babe. Why don’t you and I get out of here? I’ll keep you safe.”

Heeseung wants to gag at Riki’s words. The younger generation just has no problem being so blunt these days.

“Have a little class, rookie,” Heeseung grits his teeth before turning to the cotton candy girl, “I can walk you to your car. You’d probably be safer with the lightning than with this guy.”

“Says the old geezer,” Riki laughs, “she’d be walking you to your car if anything!”

Tired of the old man jokes, Heeseung can’t help but jut his lower lip forward as he says, “I’m only a few years older than you, you know. Just because I’ve been in the game longer than you’ve held a baseball means nothing.”

Taking his elbow off the wall, Riki faces Heeseung fully, setting his shoulders back as he sizes up his opponent.

“You’re just mad that I got to Y/n before you did. Yeah, that’s right,” Riki crosses his arms over his chest and takes a few more steps towards Heeseung with a newfound smugness on his face, “I learned her name before you could even guess it.”

“Oh, yeah? If you think you’re so in, then why is she wearing a jersey with my name and number on it?”

The next five minutes are a blur of insults and jabs between Heeseung and Riki, the cotton candy girl long forgotten while the rain comes down harder. Heeseung has never been in a fight with someone like this before, and, in the back of his mind, he’s kind of worried about if Riki is the type to get physical or not. Heeseung definitely can’t afford to injure his shoulder more than he already has throughout his years in the game. Even just bruising his knuckles would throw him out for the rest of the season. 

Their voices increase with the sound of the thunder.

“You two!” Heeseung’s coach yells from the other side of the field. “Quitcha arguing and get to safety! I’ll be damned if my best pitcher gets electrocuted on the field!”

Smugly, Heeseung turns to Riki, raising an eyebrow as he soaks in the unintentional praise from one of the world’s most decorated coaches. Success hits when Riki furrows his brow, his mouth tightening to a white line with frustration.

Victory won in his own mind, Heeseung turns to say something to the cotton candy girl, only to find that she’s long gone.

Riki is also looking around him, annoyance evident on his face as his tongue pokes the insides of his cheek, his jaw muscles setting a little stronger than usual.

“You…” Riki growls and swiftly reaches for Heeseung’s jersey, fisting the material tightly as the younger player tries to find the right words to express his anger. Defensively, Heeseung grabs at Riki’s biceps, trying his best to hold him at bay. He really doesn’t want to fight in the middle of a lightning storm over a girl who isn’t even around to witness the outcome.

As more players are leaving the field, making jokes at the two guys about to pummel each other, Riki loosens his grip, his gaze focused on the other side of the field.

Heeseung barely sees you walking away from the field with someone else beside you.

Riki still holds onto the front of Heeseung's jersey, but Heeseung has since dropped his arms to his sides as he sees one of his own outfielders reach for the cotton candy girl's hand, lifting it, and pressing a soft kiss to her skin.

"She's...laughing..." Heeseung pouts, his shoulders drooping slightly. Another crack of thunder booms lightly in the distance, closer than the previous one.

Riki finally turns around, promptly releasing Heeseung from his grasp. "Damn," he mutters as watches, “guess she does date baseball players.”

"You guys didn't know?" Laughs one of Heeseung's teammates. "They're engaged, bro. Have been for a couple of months now." He pats Heeseung and Riki on the back simultaneously before walking off, not even turning as he waves his hand goodbye.

Disbelief and embarrassment overwhelm Heeseung all at once as he watches you leave towards the stadium doors with Jongseong. Before this point, Heeseung had barely paid any attention to the outfielder. His skills were average at best, his batting stats about the same, he wasn’t great enough to be a fan favorite, but also not bad enough to be the outrage of the fans and team. They’ve never really connected on a personal level either and have just kept things professional these past few years. And it just doesn’t make sense how someone as average as Park Jongseong could find love and not himself.

Noticing the cease in your bickering, the cotton candy girl turns back to them with a wide smile, “Now you guys can walk each other to your cars! Be safe!” She yells and winks, turning back to her fiance.

“Maybe she’s allergic to greatness,” Riki tuts, shaking his head before adjusting his hat. His hair is greasy from sweat and rain, curling at the ends. 

Wordlessly, Heeseung begins to walk towards the locker rooms, Riki following close behind despite having his own team’s locker room behind him. The first few trickles of rain glide down the nape of Heeseung’s neck, leaving him feeling chilled and uncomfortable. Something about what Riki said keeps playing over and over again in his mind. And the more he thinks about it, the angrier he gets.

“If she’s happy, let her be happy. Maybe he’s great in her eyes and has more going for him outside of this stupid game.”

Riki scoffs and laughs, barely stopping before he continues towards the locker room.

“Whatever helps you sleep at night, old man. Just know the next game, I won’t be going easy on you. And there sure as hell won’t be any lightning or girls to stop me.” He turns to flash a toothy grin at Heeseung, who can’t help but laugh in return. There’s a fire in the kid's eyes, one that Heeseung remembers he himself had when he first started out. It’s become more of a rare thing to see; genuine passion from newbies who are in it for more than just fame, money, and status.

With that realization, Heeseung can’t help but feel some sort of respect for the obnoxious guy.

It’s too bad he’s on a rival team, Heeseung thinks. Imagine the chaos the two of them could have created if they were on the same team, how well they could push each other.

“Until next time! You better bring it!”

“Only if that’s a promise, old man!”

♡ pls like, comment, and reblog if you enjoyed! ♡ masterlist ♡ all rights reserved jayparked 12/14/24 do not copy, repost, or translate

[queenshelby]

The Peaky Role (Part 26)

Pairing: Cillian Murphy x Reader

Warning: Age Gap, Best Friend's Dad, Smut

The following day, after you already completed an entire morning of intense scenes with some of your co-stars, Nina and Ciara arrived on set with Cillian who still had to get into character for the day's scenes.

You spotted them from across the bustling set, the chatter of crew members weaving like a backdrop to their dynamic energy.

"Is that Y/N?" Ciara leaned forward, surprised by your costume and make-up.

"Yeah, that's her," Nina grinned before she pulled her sister towards you.

"Hello stranger," she called out, her voice bright against the background noise of the set.

You turned, a smile breaking across your face as you caught sight of them.

"Hey! What are you two doing here so early?" you asked as Ciara bounced on her heels, her eyes wide with excitement.

"Well, apparently it takes an hour to turn dad into Tommy Foocking Shelby," Nina teased, rolling her eyes as she pulled Ciara in closer, who couldn't help but stare.

"I suppose the makeup and wardrobe team really get into it," you replied, chuckling, and glanced over your shoulder to spot Cillian chatting with a crew member before, finally, disappearing to get changed.

"You look really hot in that," Ciara blurted out, her eyes shining with unfiltered admiration and you couldn't help but laugh, feeling the warmth of the compliment wash over you.

"It's all make-up and costume. It's ridiculous really," you replied, brushing off the praise while adjusting a loose strand of hair as you felt your cheeks warm.

Nina nudged you playfully. "It's not all make-up, Y/N. You have always been pretty," Nina remarked, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

Ciara chimed in, her excitement bubbling. "And you totally rock that outfit!" she told you just before you were called on to set again by Steven, in order to film another quick scene with Barry.

"Y/N! We need you on set, stat!" Steven's voice cut through the chatter, pulling your attention.

"Be right there!" you shouted back, quickening your pace to join your co-stars while Nina and Ciara took a seat, watching with eager eyes as you did three takes with Barry who, much to Nina's surprise, was much more charming in real life than on screen.

The scene was wrapped up within forty minutes and not long after that, Cillian finally appeared, dressed as Thomas Shelby, his hair slicked back, the trademark flat cap perched precariously atop his head, and the flicker of mischief in his eyes.

"Oh god, dad loos so out of place," Ciara chuckled, shaking her head as she nudged Nina. "It's like he's playing dress-up," she said, having never seen her father like this, other than on screen.

"You guys can hang around here, but you need to be quiet, okay?" Cillian said as he pulled Nina and Ciara closer, lowering his voice.

"Relax, Dad. We're pros at being invisible," Ciara responded and, with a roll of his eyes, Cillian couldn't help but chuckle.

"Good, because if I catch either of you chatting during a scene, you'll be out of here," he warned, his lips barely curving into a smile as he pointed a finger at them.

"Understood, Mr Shelby!" Nina screeched, stifling a laugh.

Cillian shot her a mock glare, then turned towards you as you, Steven and Barry as he approached.

Steven beckoned for your attention, clipboard in hand, eyes locked on you.

"Alright, we will reshoot the entire scene between you two first and then Barry steps in," he began, his tone brisk and focused. "Cillian, you'll need to bring that intensity back. Y/N, remember your character's desperation," Steven said as he focused on you, eyes sharp as a hawk.

"You got it," you replied, inhaling the scent of the set—aged wood mixed with stale coffee.

"Cillian, bring the tension. We need the audience to feel your character's internal struggle," Steven gestured emphatically, his eyes narrowing. "You two have a connection that's palpable. Use it. Y/N, you need to show fear, and Cillian, harness that anger," he went on to say as you nodded, the weight of his words settling deep within.

"Got it," you replied, your heartbeat quickening as you exchanged glances with Cillian.

He tilted his head slightly, an unspoken understanding passing between you.

Steven and Barry then stepped back to give you space and take their positions while Cillian shifted his weight, his gaze intense as he assessed the scene, his posture radiating authority now as he shifted into character.

"Let's reset," Steven commanded, his eyes sharp as he glances between you and Cillian and Cillian rolled his shoulders, readying himself. "You alright?" he asked you, his brow furrowing as he caught the flicker of tension around your lips.

"Yeah, just... nerves," you admitted, your voice barely above a whisper.

"You've got this," he whispered back as his expression softened before Steven clapped his hands loudly.

"Action!" the director then called out and Cillian's character flared with intensity.

The scene started off by you approaching Cillian without saying a word. The focus was on your eyes as they locked onto Cillian's in a silent battle of betray and desire.

Your hand brushed against his cheek, and then you ran your thumb over his lips, the heat of the moment swirling around you both even before you leaned in for a kiss, which had an intensity to it that even the cameras seemed to capture.

The kiss was electric. Raw. Completely authentic. You melted into him, the world around you dissolving until there was only this moment, this character, this connection, which was something that, unbeknownst to you, disgusted Nina and her sister.

Just as the kiss deepened, Nina grimaced, whispering to Ciara, "This is so wrong."

"I know. So gross!" Ciara huffed, her brows knitting together as she turned away from the scene until, suddenly, the demur of Cillian's character changed.

Nina and Ciara watched on as Cillian pulled away and pushed you against the wall, his grip steady yet fierce.

"You think you can play me, don't you?" he growled, his eyes narrowing as they held yours, the tension thickening the air.

You inhaled sharply, your heart racing as you replied, "I'm playing for my life, Thomas."

Cillian's grip tightened, his blue eyes blazing with intensity.

"Your life?" he challenged, voice low and threatening as his thumb moved to your lip with a fierce brush as you bit him lightly, running your tongue over the spot, a teasing challenge in your eyes.

"You think this is a game?" Cillian's voice dropped low, heat radiating between you. "You have no idea what you're risking," he growled, his breath warm against your skin.

"I know exactly what I'm risking, Thomas," you shot back, locking eyes with him. "But I'll take my chances."

The tension crackled, thicker than ever, leaving the entire set silent as Cillian then grasped your throat.

"I've risked everything for this, Tommy," you countered, holding his gaze, the air crackling between you as he held you firm and it was then that Barry stepped on to the set.

"That's enough! You are hurting her!" his character exploded, his voice cutting through the tension like a knife.

Cillian's grip faltered, eyes snapping to Barry, a mix of annoyance and disbelief flashing across his face.

"Stay out of this, Duke," he warned, the fire in his gaze unwavering and, it was then that the director called cut.

"God that chemistry is off the charts," Steven remarked, shaking his head while Nina and Ciara looked on, eyes wide with a mix of horror and fascination.

"Disgusting, right?" Nina mouthed to Ciara, who nodded vigorously, unable to pull her gaze away.

Cillian stepped back, adjusting his cap, breath still heavy from the intensity of the moment while you couldn't help but blush, suddenly aware of the crew's eyes on you.

"Y/N, you alright?" Cillian asked, concern etching his brow as he stepped closer.

With a nod, your heart thundered in your chest as you focused on his intense gaze.

"Really, I'm fine," you assured him, forcing a smile despite the lingering adrenaline while Nina and Ciara exchanged glances, the tension in the air palpable.

"Don't worry girls, it's just acting," Barry mumbled, brushing off their concern as he stepped back, wide-eyed and amused by the fact that both Cillian's daughters were there to witness this scene which, almost surprisingly, only took one take to shoot.

"It's still weird seeing my dad kiss one of my friends, even though it's only for the screen," Nina muttered, crossing her arms with a dramatic flair as she watched you, her father and the director discussing the shoot.

"Yeah, it's like watching a car crash in slow motion," Ciara chimed in, causing Barry to break out in laughter.

"Well, you girls might be in for a surprise then when you see the entire movie," Barry grinned, leaning back casually against the set wall. "Because this scene had nothing on the first one, they filmed together," he went on to say before stepping back on to set so that you could finish off the next scene, involving a fight between Cillian's character and Barry's.

Once filming of the scenes was done, Cillian and you walked off set into different directions.

You caught sight of Nina, her expression still caught between bewilderment and amusement while Ciara had disappeared, back to the apartment.

"I can't believe you really just tongue-kissed my dad," she gawked, her eyes wide with disbelief. "It's so... wrong on so many levels!"

You chuckled nervously, brushing a stray hair behind your ear.

"What can I say? It's just acting," you replied, your gaze flicking to where Cillian stood in conversation with Barry, tension lingering in the air.

"Yeah, but you used your tongue. It's gross. Ew," Nina wrinkled her nose, shaking her head as if trying to expel the thought from her mind.

"It's called acting, Nina. We have to make it believable," you shrugged, attempting to brush off her concern. "Besides, it's not really that bad. It's just a kiss," you told her, but she was still distraught by it.

"Just a kiss?" Nina's eyes widened. "Y/N, this is my dad we're talking about! It's like watching a train wreck."

"Look, it's all for the role," you countered, feeling the heat rise in your cheeks as you glanced at Cillian. "It doesn't mean anything," you lied, knowing deep down inside that the thrill of those stolen moments lingered.

"Well, I am glad it doesn't, because ew, I will have nightmares now after watching this," she chuckled before finally changing the topic and, luckily for you, the rest of the day went uneventful.

After spending another hour on set, you went to dinner with Nina while Ciara had some one-on-one time with her father.

At dinner, just across from the hotel, Nina had a few pints of Guinness and, just as she usually would when she was a little tipsy, she let loose about all the things that were bothering her in her life.

It went from her last unsuccessful date with a fellow student to the frustration of dealing with her mother's antics which, since the separation, had become worse.

"I swear, my mother is losing it," Nina scoffed, rolling her eyes.

"Last week, she had another episode about dad finding a new place and leaving her and it really sucks," she said as she downed her pint and you had to bite your lip, not wanting to pry, but the worry lines on Nina's face pulled you in.

"But their marriage has been on the rocks for ages, right?" you tried to argue, wanting to pin down the timeline, shifting slightly in your seat. "So, maybe it is for the better if they find their own paths?" you went on to say, knowing very well that this was what Cillian wanted. He had spoken with you about this before and he believed it was time for them to separate for the sake of their happiness.

But Nina shook her head, her expression a mix of frustration and confusion. "Yeah, but she's still holding onto the idea that they'll fix things," Nina replied, her eyes narrowing. "And maybe they can. Maybe they just need some help, you know?" Nina leaned forward, her brows furrowing in thought.

"Help? Like couple’s therapy?" you asked, raising an eye and Nina nodded.

"I thought they tried this," you countered, shifting in your seat as the pub buzzed around you.

"Oh, they did. But mum's convinced that there is another woman, and I am not so sure anymore. I honestly think mum is just being paranoid," Nina said as she leaned back in her seat, fiddling with her pint glass. "And she always accused him of cheating, but there is no proof, you know?" she went on to say as she took a deep breath, her brow furrowing as she glanced at you.

"It's hard, Nina. I know. But sometimes people grow apart, and you really just need to let them sort it out," you replied, knowing that Cillian had moved on, but not wanting to upset your best friend/

Nina nodded; her brows furrowed. "I know," she mumbled, glancing down at her pint. "It's just hard watching them fall apart."

You leaned closer, studying her face. "Hey, I get it. It's messy and confusing. I've been there when dad got divorced, but you know that sometimes, letting go is the only way to move forward," you urged, meeting her gaze with warmth. "And that counts for you too. You need to let go and let them work it out," you finished, and Nina sighed, her shoulders slumping.

"I know. You are right," Nina took a deep breath, her eyes searching yours for reassurance.

"But it doesn't stop it from being bloody hard, does it?" she retorted, a flicker of determination shining through her frustration.

"Not at all," you nodded, knowing that was the truth and you felt guilty once again for the whirlwind of emotions that churned between Cillian and yourself, which was clearly adding to the chaos on hand.

"I was actually thinking about moving in with dad," Nina then confided, her voice low as she took a sip of her pint, her expression serious.

"Really? Just like that?" you asked, gulping slightly as you knew what this meant for you.

"Yeah, I've considered it," she replied, her eyes darting over the buzzing pub. "Mum's been getting crazier; Dad's got a better handle on things."

You leaned back, letting her words sink in while knowing very well how this would make things much more difficult for you and Cillian to keep your secret.

"That's a big step," you replied, keeping your tone steady, even as your heart raced. "Have you talked to him about it yet?"

Nina took a deep breath, her expression wavering between determination and uncertainty. "Not yet, but I will. Soon."

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[nylqnder]

MORE THAN DISTANCE BETWEEN US TEDDY STIGA

pairing: fem!reader x teddy stiga

summary: when you fail to remember yours and teddy's post-game phone call, teddy begins to question where the two of you stand.

warnings: long distance couple, everyone kind of sucking in this, made up gf for james hagens, couple of swears

wc: 3.41k

notes: this is dedicated to my girl celly ( @crazy4smitty ) who provided crucial info for this fic and who is also teddy's biggest fan💓💓

Teddy stormed into the dorm, yanking the straps of his backpack over his shoulders before hurling it at the closet door. It hit with a loud thud, rattling the frame and causing the wooden panel to bounce open slightly. His shoes followed suit — one landing against the wall, the other skidding across the floor and stopping just shy of his roommate’s feet.

From the doorway, James watched the whole display with raised brows. He didn’t need to ask what was wrong; Teddy’s mood spoke for itself. Still, he tried anyway.

“I take it you’re not in the mood for Cassie’s sorority thing tonight?” His voice was careful, like he was testing the waters before diving in.

Teddy scoffed and turned away as he pulled off his dress shirt, throwing it into a growing pile of laundry without caring about how wrinkled it would be in the morning.. “Yeah, I think I’ll pass on the privilege of getting drunk with your sorority girlfriend and her frat boy entourage.” He didn’t even bother looking at James as he said it, looking through said pile of laundry for a pair of sweatpants.

James exhaled sharply, already regretting the conversation. “You’re moody.”

“And you’re observant.” Teddy shot back, voice dripping with sarcasm as he sat on the edge of his bed.

James ignored the jab, stripping off his dress shirt and tossing it onto his desk chair before pulling on a sweater. “So what, you’re just gonna sit here and sulk all night?”

Teddy exhaled slowly, leaning back against the wall. “I’m just not in the mood to drink with a bunch of airheads.”

James froze mid-motion, eyes narrowing. “Dude, watch your fucking mouth.”

The tension in the room thickened instantly. Teddy knew he had struck a nerve, but he wasn’t in the mood to soften the blow. Cassie wasn’t an airhead — he knew that, and so did James. But her friends? That was a different story. Still, he didn’t have the energy to defend himself tonight.

“Just go,” Teddy muttered, rubbing a hand over his face. “I’m staying.”

James let out a sharp scoff, grabbing a ball cap and stuffing a change of clothes into his backpack with more force than necessary. He slung it over his shoulder before turning back to Teddy with a pointed glare.

“Just because you’re having issues with your girl doesn’t mean you need to take it out on everyone who is happy with theirs.”

Before Teddy could snap back with a sharp retort — or better yet, take a swing at him — James was already slipping out of their dorm, pulling the door shut behind him.

The silence that followed felt heavier than the tension that filled the room before.

He sluggishly turned off the harsh fluorescent lights, casting the room into darkness save for the faint glow of a streetlamp filtering through the blinds. With a heavy sigh, he sank onto his bed, slumping against the headboard. His muscles ached, but not from exertion — from frustration. He tilted his head back, staring at the ceiling as if it held the answers he so desperately searched for.

College wasn’t supposed to be this difficult. The classes were demanding, sure — lectures that stretched on forever, assignments that piled up faster than he could get through them — but he could handle that. It was the hockey that weighed on him. Teddy had always been the best, the kind of player who made everything look effortless. He was used to dominating, skating circles around his opponents, racking up points like it was second nature. But now?

Now, he had 27 points in 32 games. To anyone else, that was an impressive stat line, especially for a freshman. A solid season. But to Teddy, it wasn’t enough. It didn’t feel enough.

Because every mistake felt magnified. Every shift felt like a battle he was losing. He could still hear the way the puck clanked against the boards when he failed to corral it earlier that night. The way his stick felt just a fraction of an inch too short when he reached for a pass he should’ve caught. The way his legs felt sluggish, like he was skating through quicksand while everyone else flew past him.

He was getting torn apart — by himself, by his own thoughts, by the invisible expectations that had followed him here. It didn’t matter that he was still producing. It didn’t matter that his coaches weren’t on his case, that his teammates weren’t questioning him. In his mind, he was failing.

Teddy didn’t know how long he laid there, letting his self-deprecating thoughts get the best of him, before he realized his phone had been lying on his chest, completely undisturbed by notifications since he’d been back at his dorm. He glanced over at the clock on his nightstand, seeing the time read 12:47. 

Normally, by now, his phone would have buzzed. Normally, he’d hear your voice — soft, steady, grounding.

You always called.

It had become tradition, an unspoken ritual in the months since you’d both left for college. Win or lose, you’d be there, giving him an escape from the game, from the noise in his head. Sometimes you’d talk about the play that made him proud, or the one that pissed him off. Other times, you didn’t talk about hockey at all, letting the conversation drift to anything else. It was how you stayed connected.

But tonight, the silence stretched on.

Teddy exhaled sharply, pushing himself upright. He flipped over his phone, the screen lighting up the dark room. No missed calls. No texts. Not even a dumb meme or a casual hey.

A tightness formed in his chest, something he refused to name. Maybe you fell asleep. Maybe you were in the shower. Maybe you just forgot.

But you never forgot.

The longer he stared at his screen, the more his frustration twisted into something sharper, something raw. He swiped to his messages, his thumbs hovering over the keyboard.

Hey, you still awake?

Would love to hear your voice.

Teddy hesitated before hitting send, staring at the words until they blurred together. A lump formed in his throat as he exhaled, pressing the message through before he could second-guess himself.

He knew you had your own life at Michigan State — classes, friends, obligations. It wasn’t fair of him to expect you to drop everything for him, but you always had before. That’s what made this hurt in a way he hadn’t expected.

The minutes ticked by. Each second that passed without a reply gnawed at him, feeding the unease he had been trying to bury. He tried to shake it off, rubbing a hand over his face before pushing himself off the bed. Maybe pacing would help, maybe grabbing a water, maybe doing something other than staring at his phone like a lovesick idiot.

But the thoughts followed him, relentless.

Long-distance had started out manageable, exciting even. The calls, the FaceTime dates, the late-night texts that carried the two of you through lonely nights — it all worked for a while. But lately, the effort it took to keep the connection strong felt like trying to hold onto something slipping through his fingers.

Because calls got shorter. Responses got slower. The inside jokes that once felt like second nature now felt forced, like they were grasping at a familiarity that was slipping away.

Teddy clenched his jaw, staring at the glowing screen as if sheer willpower could summon a response. It was well past one in the morning  now, and his message still sat unread.

Maybe you had really just fallen asleep. Maybe sleep got the better of you before his game finished.

But then why did this feel different?

His thumb hovered over your name before he tapped on your contact, bringing up your location. It wasn’t something he checked often — if ever — but you’d both agreed to keep it on for emergencies, a quiet reassurance of each other’s presence, even from miles away.

But tonight, instead of your dorm or somewhere familiar, the little dot next to your name pulsed in a location he didn’t recognize.

Teddy frowned.

The name of the place meant nothing to him. It wasn’t a bar or a restaurant he could immediately identify, not a library or a campus building either. His stomach twisted as possibilities started running through his mind. He tried to ignore the irrational pang of jealousy creeping in.

Was it a party? Had someone invited you out? Were you with someone?

He exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair. He didn’t want to be the kind of guy who jumped to conclusions. He trusted you. But trust didn’t make the unease disappear.

Before he could stop himself, he was typing again.

Where are you?

He stared at the message, debating whether to send it. He knew how it looked — controlling, paranoid — but this wasn’t about that. He just wanted to know you were okay. He just wanted an answer.

His fingers tightened around the phone before he sighed, deleting the message. He shoved his phone onto his nightstand, face down, and forced himself to lie back.

This was ridiculous. He was exhausted. He should sleep.

But sleep didn’t come.

Instead, he lay awake, staring at the ceiling as the minutes dragged into hours, his mind caught in a loop of what-ifs and worst-case scenarios. He’d never gone a night without hearing from you — not like this, not without explanation.

It wasn’t until sometime around 3 a.m. that his body finally gave in, exhaustion dragging him into a restless sleep. Even then, the unease never left him.

When Teddy woke up, sunlight was already creeping through the blinds, casting streaks of dull gold across his rumpled sheets. His mouth felt dry, his limbs heavy. He blinked blearily at the ceiling, trying to shake off the restless fog of half-slept hours — but the ache in his chest remained, gnawing and persistent.

His phone was still facedown on the nightstand. He hadn't checked it since he'd forced himself to stop spiraling the night before, but now the urge gnawed at him like an open wound. Maybe you'd texted him while he slept. Maybe there was some simple explanation waiting for him — something that would make him feel stupid for letting his mind run wild.

With a slow breath, he reached over, flipping the phone in his palm.

Nothing.

The tightness in his throat returned instantly, wrapping around his ribcage like a vice. No missed calls. No texts. The message he'd sent hours ago still sat unread — a bright blue bubble glaring back at him.

Teddy's heart sank.

It wasn't just about the missed call anymore — it was what it represented. The one thing tethering the two of you together, the one piece of your relationship that felt untouched by the miles stretching between you, had been slipping through the cracks without either of you meaning to let it.

He could feel it happening — the slow drift. It had started small, in ways that were easy to brush off at first. Shorter calls. Conversations that used to stretch for hours now wrapped up in twenty minutes. Nights where one or both of you were too tired to talk at all. You were both busy, he reminded himself. You were both trying your best.

But last night… last night had felt different.

Teddy dragged a hand down his face, his heart squeezing painfully. He hated this — hated the way the doubt curled inside him, how easily it took root. He'd never wanted to be the jealous, insecure boyfriend. That wasn't who he was. He trusted you. He trusted you with every fiber of his being.

But trust didn't always quiet the little voice in the back of his head whispering that maybe... maybe you were learning how to live without him.

Maybe you already were.

The thought made him feel sick.

He sat up slowly, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. The dorm room felt smaller than usual, the walls closing in around him. The weight of last night's loss pressed down heavy on his chest — but it was nothing compared to the hollow ache blooming underneath it.

Teddy's fingers hovered over his phone again, his thumb tracing the edge of the screen. He could text you again — something casual, something light. Pretend he wasn't still waiting. Pretend he hadn't spent half the night staring at the location dot blinking in a place he'd never seen before.

He wanted to hear your voice. He wanted to know everything was okay.

But more than anything, he wanted to stop feeling like he was losing you.

Instead, he locked his phone and dropped it onto the mattress beside him, scrubbing his hands over his face. Teddy forced himself to go about his day as if everything was normal. He went through the motions — woke up, got dressed, made it to his classes. 

Lunch with his teammates was quieter than usual. They filled the silence with the usual banter, chirping each other about practice, about assignments they were procrastinating, about the upcoming game. But Teddy barely touched his food, pushing it around on his plate, his mind elsewhere.

His teammates noticed. Of course, they did.

They saw the exhaustion in the way he carried himself, the restlessness that lingered in his every movement. But no one said anything. They didn’t need to. They knew.

They knew about the pressure he put on himself, about the weight of expectations that never seemed to lighten. And they knew about you. About the long-distance strain, the unanswered texts, the calls that weren’t as frequent as they used to be. They knew because they’d seen the way he used to light up when his phone buzzed with your name — how now, more often than not, he just stared at it, waiting.

And maybe they didn’t say anything because they knew there was nothing they could say. Nothing that would fix it. Nothing that would make the distance feel any smaller.

His phone remained in his pocket, but he checked it constantly, his fingers twitching to unlock the screen every few minutes.

Still nothing.

By the time he reached his last lecture of the day, the frustration had settled deep in his bones. He sat through the lecture, but he wasn't really there. His notes were half-scribbled, his mind elsewhere, caught in the loops of unanswered questions. It wasn’t until the vibration of his phone in his pocket made his heart stutter that he finally snapped back to the present.

Your name lit up his screen.

His breath caught in his throat. Without a second thought, he pushed back his chair and stood, ignoring the glances from his classmates as he strode out of the lecture hall. The second he stepped into the empty hallway, he swiped to answer, pressing the phone to his ear.

“Hey,” he said, voice rougher than he intended. “Are you okay?”

There was a pause before you responded, confusion lacing your voice. “Yeah… why wouldn’t I be?”

Teddy exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair as he paced the quiet corridor. “Y/n… Come on. You didn’t text, you didn’t call… nothing.” He paused, looping back around at the end of the hall. “I mean, we do this everytime, we call after every game. But last night? Did you forget?”

Another pause. A beat of silence that felt heavier than it should have.

“I just got caught up,” you said finally, your voice light, casual, as if it was that simple. Maybe for you, it was. But for Teddy?

For Teddy, it had been an endless spiral of overthinking, of wondering if something had changed, if he was the only one feeling this slow, creeping shift between you. His grip tightened around his phone as he tried to push down the resentment bubbling in his chest.

“Right.” He forced a breath through his nose, swallowing back everything he wanted to say. “Okay.”

“Teddy…” There was something softer in your voice now, as if you could hear the frustration he wasn’t voicing. “Are you mad?”

He should’ve said no. He should’ve let it go, should’ve convinced himself that it was nothing. But instead, his silence stretched long enough to be an answer of its own.

“I just—” He let out a heavy exhale, stopping in his tracks. “I don’t know. It just—it felt weird, okay? Not hearing from you at all.”

“I didn’t mean to worry you,” you said, and he could hear the sincerity in your voice. But that didn’t stop the lingering ache in his chest, the one that had been there since last night.

He closed his eyes briefly, leaning against a bulletin board. “Where were you?” The question slipped out before he could stop it. He wasn’t sure why he asked — it wasn’t like he had the right to know your every move. But the words had already left his mouth, hanging in the air between you.

You hesitated. Not long, but long enough for something sharp to twist in Teddy’s stomach.

“I was just out,” you finally answered. “Some friends wanted to check out this new place off campus.”

Teddy inhaled slowly, nodding to himself even though you couldn’t see him. “Right,” he said again, voice hollow. “Got it.”

“Teddy,” you said softly, almost pleading now. “It wasn’t anything—”

“I know.” He cut you off, rubbing a hand over his face. “I know that.”

Another silence. This one stretched longer than the rest, crackling with things neither of you knew how to say. You weren’t arguing, not really, but it didn’t feel like the two of you, either. It felt like something else. Something heavier.

Teddy sighed, tilting his head back against the wall. He didn’t want to be this guy. He didn’t want to be the boyfriend who kept tabs, who made you feel like you had to explain every little thing. But God, he hated this distance — hated the way it felt like you were slipping away inch by inch, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.

“I should get back to class,” he muttered finally, not knowing what else to say.

“Oh,” you said, surprised by the sudden shift. “Yeah. Okay.”

He could hear the hesitation in your voice, like you were waiting for him to say something else, to fix whatever was hanging between you. But Teddy didn’t know how to fix it. He wasn’t even sure if it could be fixed.

“I’ll call you later,” you added, but it sounded more like a question than a promise.

“Yeah,” he murmured, already lowering the phone from his ear. “Later.”

The call ended, and Teddy just stood there, staring blankly at the screen.

It should’ve made him feel better — hearing your voice, getting an answer, knowing you were okay. But all it did was leave him feeling hollow, like he’d been bracing for impact this whole time and still wasn’t ready for the crash.

With a slow exhale, he pressed his phone into his pocket and turned, walking back down the hall. His footsteps felt heavier, his thoughts louder than before.

By the time he made it back to his dorm later that night, he was glad James wasn’t there. He didn’t have the energy to deal with him, regardless of how understanding he would be if Teddy simply told him the truth. Exhaustion had settled deep in his bones, making the simple task of a conversation feel like dragging a rusting anchor through sinking sand.

He simply kept the lights turned off, sinking back into the refuge that was his bed. He willed sleep to take him once again, but the rest never came. 

Instead, his mind churned restlessly, replaying every moment that had led him here. The quiet darkness offered no comfort—only the hum of his thoughts growing louder, pressing in from all sides. He exhaled sharply, rubbing a hand over his face before turning onto his side.

Eventually, exhaustion won, though it wasn’t restful. When he finally drifted off, it was to the distant echo of your voice still ringing in his ears, and the sinking feeling that, somehow, you were already slipping away. And for the first time in a long time, he let himself admit it — he was scared. Scared that the distance between them was becoming more than just miles, scared that, maybe, just maybe, he was losing you.

[chillzygalaxy]

SPUD

STATS/MECHANICS WAHOO

EXPLANATION

———————

Passive: HEROIC HEART

Something I noticed about the Dandy’s World mains (excluding the event mains) is that they each correspond to a different 5 star stat. Of which, correlates with a color seen on the rainbow decor, dandy’s petals, etc.

Orange Skill Check is Shelly

Yellow Movement is Pebble (no yellow text :()

Green Stamina is Sprout

Blue Stealth is Astro

And Purple Extraction is Vee!

With then leaves the Red Stat as Health!

Also i’m gonna share that i reckoned Spud/Bud being an event toon. Provided his lore i thought it wouldn’t make sense. So now he was back to being a regular main like Shelly, Vee, etc. But then…that’d create an imbalance with the main stat rules, where each main (excluding special ones/events) have a 5 star stat in a unique category to correspond with Dandy’s petals

So I thought ….What if for Spud, to also parallel his red cap…he was the main with 5 stars in HEALTH?

Main toons are meant to only have 2 hearts with 16 stars to distribute (in total 18 “points” to distribute between the 6 stat categories). So to balance this, Spud starts off with 5 hearts with 13 stars to distribute through the other stats (poor kid-). SO, the first three lost hearts are unhealable (not by sprout, medical items, healers, not even cards, NONE. For balancing purposes!) HOWEVER, “Heroic Heart’s” ability functions similiar to Looey. In where, the each time those hearts are lost, they go into Stamina! Unlike Looey, it’s towards stamina and the change is PERMANENT. Hence why the first three lost three hearts are unheable, they went into stamina!

Spud’s last 2 hearts function like a regular main toon. These 2 hearts are heal able AND he now has 5 stars stamina. At two hearts he’s like the other mains!

But to also not make this ability useless after he loses his 3 extra hearts, a permanent feature of Heroic Heart’s is also every time Spud gets hit, his stamina refills! (I have it listed to max but I might change it to just regenerating by 50+? Have to decide on that)

AND FINALLY TWO THINGS

As an easter egg, at one heart Spud’s mushroom cap comes off! Hinting at his true identity of Dandy’s lil clo- I MEAN son! Son. Budicus ‘Bud’ Dancifer. Once Spud is healed back to two, there is a POOF and Spud’s cap is back on

Twisted Dandy still is a one hit for him regardless of hearts. That OR like have it to where the first hit from Twisted Dandy removes all three BONUS hearts. And then the second hit is it. But I know Dandy being lethal is heavily important so I lean more towards the former? But who knows after all Bud is Dandy’s son . . . smiles-

——————

Active: GETAWAY

Simply? Spud uses the slingshot he crafted to fling smoke bombs at people! They function just like the item found/bought except you use them on other people who are getting chased!

See Vee getting chased by a twisted with her low stealth and speed? ✨SMOKE BOMB! ✨

A lower stealth toon accidentally takes the twisted off the distractor? ✨SMOKE BOMB!✨

The distractor has to distract Pebble and Panic Mode hits? ✨SMOKE BOMB! ✨

HOWEVER, to prevent multiple Spud’s running in and just going ham there is a catch. . . .

For each extra Spud = Increased cooldown for ALL Spuds! Right now I have it listed to be by 15 seconds though considering increasing this . . .

[a-concert-just-for-me]

The significance of 9, 99, and 999 in Asriel’s letter

Or: a disjointed analysis of Chara’s obsession with power vs. Asriel’s obsession with friendship and novelty.

Disclaimer: I haven’t played the game in a while, so some of the information may be misremembered. I tried my best using clips/screenshots for reference.

Disclaimer 2: I am also a Chara sympathizer!!!!! I changed the wording a bit to reflect this.

Chara loved the number 9 because they believed that in reaching the highest number, they’d become invincible. It’s implied in-game that Chara didn’t have a good past with the humans, so when they fell into the underground, the concepts of being safe and having power were likely novel experiences to them. They found comfort in the finality of “making it to the top” and staying there.

Asriel was just happy to have a friend.

Chara used to fill up their glass to the brim. Not necessarily because they were all that thirsty, but because it was “the most efficient way” to do things. Asriel followed their lead. There was a lot of spilled water in the house.

Chara, regardless of if their motivations were altruistic, neutral, or vengeful, wasn’t fully satisfied with their life in the underground at some point towards the end. They utilized the influence they had over Asriel to strong-arm him into a plan he voiced becoming uncomfortable with on a couple different occasions.

He recorded the two of them talking about their plan. He kept the lens cap on by accident at first. Then on purpose. Then, when he took it off, Chara instructed him to turn off the camera.

Asriel valued having Chara in his life. The thought of his friendship with Chara having a an expiration date was terrifying to him. He decided somewhere along the way that if he wanted to hold on to every single good memory they shared, he’d need to ensure he had enough space for them.

Asriel’s “highest number” in the letter went from 99 to 999 in the same letter. Maybe he could just keep adding more 9s to his memory counter. Maybe if he didn’t keep an eye on the numbers, he could stay with Chara forever…

When Asriel didn’t do what Chara said— when Asriel said he didn’t want to kill the humans on the surface, Chara tried to take control. They couldn’t compromise on what they wanted. It killed both of them.

Asriel later gained the power to reset. He couldn’t feel anything for anyone anymore, but out of curiosity, he tried every combination of actions available.

It became boring. He wanted more. He wanted Chara.

If he squinted his eyes really hard, he could pretend that YOU were Chara.

In the normal ending fight with Asriel, his stats became infinite. You felt the space in your inventory becoming smaller and smaller, filled with “Last dreams.”

Through determination, the dream came true. You were able to heal yourself. Nothing could hurt you anymore. You were invincible.

He still wanted to defeat you. He still wanted control. He still wanted to reset and bring all of your memories back to zero. He told you that determination, the power that let you get this far, was going to be your downfall.

It was for him, after all.

Yet as the player, you were still able to come back from death, so long as you stayed determined. It frustrated him. He told you he was fighting to keep Chara around because he cared about them.

He told you he didn’t want this to end. He told you he didn’t want to say goodbye.

When he became a monster again, he made a choice of his own: he wanted to break the barrier and let everyone to free.

He sacrificed his own happiness to let everyone else be free. He accepted that he needed to let go. He accepted that you need to continue on in the timeline without him.

Still, you as the player have the option to undo all that progress, if you feel the desire to. Just like Flowey, you can start seeing experiences and friendships as just numbers too.

On the neutral/pacifist run, Chara never fought for control over the player. But once you started killing in the genocide, they gained power and sought to use it by the end of the story.

In the genocide route, Flowey begged Chara to let him help. He thought up a plan to go to the surface and then live there. He was tired of the resets. He wanted stability with the one person he found interesting.

And then that person killed him.

Unlike Asgore in the scene before, there were no 9s above Flowey’s head when he died.

(I’m not 100% sure of the implications there, but it feels like a loaded detail, now.)

At the end of the genocide run, Chara wants to be your partner now. They have you trapped in the void. If you don’t do what they say, you’ll be stuck here forever.

If you want to keep playing the game, you have to agree. They kill you. Your screen floods with more 9s than you can count.

It wouldn’t be surprising if Chara’s next goal could be to conquer YOU.

(But. No one can hurt anyone anymore)

Chara’s next goal may just be to stop you.

But again: Overall, YOU still have the power to reopen the game. YOU have the power to play around with everyone’s lives. No matter how much control the kids fight for, they’re at YOUR mercy, at the end of the day.

There’s a highest number for you, too, though, isn’t there? Eventually, you’ll get bored and turn off the game.

But maybe not. You can always turn on the computer again and meet with Flowey at the beginning, like nothing ever happened.

Maybe Flowey was right when he said that determination would be your downfall.

[wildlife4life]

Seven (+) Sentence Sunday

Tagged by the very lovely @rainbow-nerdss, @fortheloveofbuddie @wikiangela @evanbegins and @daffi-990. Thank you! Can't wait for all your upcoming works!

In honor of the NFL regular season coming to an end today and the beginning of the playoffs, I'm sharing a part of a fan favorite. That's right ya'll, its an NFL Buck snippet! WOOOOO! (And I know this wayyyyy more than seven sentences, but are ya'll going to complain about extra NFL Buck?)

Eddie wasn't lying when he told Chimney he loved football. He just didn't say how much. When Chim invited the newest member of the 118 and his son to a kid friendly sports bar to watch the Rams play the Colts in Indy, he was expecting to be turned down. Hen encouraged it, "He needs friends that enjoy what he does. And I really can't listen to another rant about football stats or how Dustin Watson isn't taking the Texans to the tournament." "Deshaun Watson." Bobby corrected from the kitchen, "And its the playoffs." Hen rolls her eyes, "Whatever. You both have Sunday free and Buckley is playing, Christopher's favorite player." "How do you know the Ram's quarterback is playing, but not the name of the man who got Buckley kicked out of Texas?" Chim teased. "Denny." His friend answers simply, "You know he likes all things LA Rams." "Then why aren't you inviting Eddie and Christopher to your place to watch the game with Denny?" "Because Howard," Hen remarks a little sharply, "I'm not off Sunday and Karen has yet to meet Eddie, so it would be uncomfortable for everyone to have him in our home without me. Why are you arguing about this? You were just complaining about how Eddie and I are all buddy-buddy the other day." "You two have a lot more in common and somehow I always seem to stick my foot in my mouth whenever I talk to the guy. I freaking outed the dude!" Chimney reminds them. Bobby steps away from the stove and joins the two paramedics at the marble island, "Eddie wasn't making it easy for any of us to get to know him. Hen was just braver than most to actually approach him. Now its your turn and football is a good jumping point." Chimney opens his mouth to try objecting again, "And it will help in making up for the whole outing incident and interrogating his kid."

Cap had him there "And you'll pay." Hen demands and when Chimney arches a brow of slight disagreement she just shrugs and states, "It'll help dispel some of the notion of being his boyfriend's sugar baby and his birthday is the same week, making this an easy gift." And Hen made the kill shot. So Chimney awkwardly approached Eddie in the locker room at the end of their shift and invited him and Christopher to watch the game. He was happily surprised when Eddie said yes and brought an equally ecstatic Christopher with him without hesitation. Chim was additionally surprised with Eddie's total enrapture of the game, even more so with his undivided attention to the Ram's new quarterback, Evan Buckley. Every play the man made, Eddie was on his feet making some sort of comment. Good plays came with shouts of, "Good boy Buckley!" and "Great throw man!". Poor plays, interceptions, or missed opportunities, were met with, "Shake it off Buckley!" and "You got this Evan!" And any missed or bad calls from the refs... well Chimney knew foul language when he heard it, no matter what language. "We have a swear jar at home. It gets donated to Evan's charity at the end of the season." Christopher explains when he catches Chimney's questioning side glance after his father's latest f-bomb. Ah well, at least there's some sort of consequence to cursing in front of a child. "I have to pay up too if I say anything like my dad does, but I've never come close to his number." Chris adds on with a giggle and Chimney joins him with a low chuckle of his own. A niggle of curiosity has him asking, "And what about Buck?" The younger Diaz gives all his attention to what remains of his fries and shrugs with one shoulder, "Um... well I've never watched a game with Buck, but he does always double the jars total when we donate it." Chimney really wants to push on the whole matter of Eddie's partner of 10 years never once watching a game with the kid, but he knows interrigating Chris (again) about Buck (who is off limits unless otherwise brought up) would probably put an end to Eddie and Chim's burgeoning friendship. So he goes for a joke, "He must live with soap in his mouth if your dad is to go by." Earning a full belly laugh from the teen and Chimney counts it as a major win when Eddie glances back with bright grin.

I feel like Eddie and Chim have the whole, I'm friends with you because of a Buckley and because we work together thing. So take away the Buckley and its a bit of an awkward friendship, which I wanted to highlight and improve. Hope you all enjoyed!!!! More NFL Buck can be found here.

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[pepsi-al]

So, I've been playing the original NES/Famicom version of Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light. I downloaded it on Switch sometime ago, and I've put it off for a while, and caused it to collect digital dust until fairly recently. I've had a pretty fun time playing it, and will put much of my impressions about the units here. I will be using "NES" as a synonym for "Famicom" for simplicity's sake. And so far, my impressions are as follows. Spoiler warning for those who haven't played. Though this is a 35 year old NES game. And I apologize for any repeated information throughout this blog post.

The trading and convoy systems both suck. Big time. One literally isn't trading. It's just one unit giving items to another, one. At a time. And if that's not bad enough, you're charged 10 Gil for every single transaction you make at the convoy, be it withdrawing an item or depositing one. Also, you have a Convoy capacity of 50. So chances are that, even if you're pretty conservative with your resources, you're gonna need a spare unit to act as a makeshift item storage. (Maybe that's why some units have such poor growths?) Thank God that these two mechanics got reworked and streamlined.

Res caps at 7. On top of that, Pure Waters, Parthia as an item, and the Barrier staff, all temporarily raise Resistance, with the amount raised dropping by 1 every turn, just as they always have done. But the difference here is that they don't raise Resistance past the cap, unlike in future titles. I even tried testing this out when I had given Linde a Talisman to boost her durability when fighting against Gharnef with and later having Wendell use Barrier on her, only for the Barrier staff to have no effect.

There's no battle forecast. Meaning that you have to make battle calculations yourself if you want to be sure that your units will come out okay. You also won't know if an enemy will drop an item or not unless you have previous knowledge like from personal experience from a previous playthrough or a guide like on Serenes Forest or the Spanish Fire Emblem resource called "Fire Emblem: Wars of Dragons", which does have an English Language option for most of its pages. (That's literally what it's called. Abbreviated as FireEmblemWod.)

Marth is undeniably a great unit in this. However, he's not invincible. 7 base physical defense, and 18 base HP can only get you so far. Luckily, that 18 base HP has a 90% growth. So, he's almost guaranteed to get more health. But still. You never want to give him more than he can chew. That same 7 Def has a growth rate of 20%. Which is not great, but also pretty par for the course in terms of Def growths and bases for most units in this version of the game. He's the only unit who can use Rapiers, which are surprisingly common in this game. Making him a great unit to eliminate Cavaliers, Paladins, and Armor Knights with. At the end of Chapter 6, he'll get the eponymous shield, the Fire Emblem, which lets him function as a Thief without the ability to use Master Keys. In Chapter 18, after speaking with Est, he'll get Mercurius, which boosts his stat gains, albeit by a random increase on level up. Which is a 25% chance to grow 2 points in one stat in all of the stats he gains on a level up. It's pretty solid, but not very consistent. (Why Mercurius is locked to him in this, I'll never know. But, at the same time, it's probably good that it is in this game, considering its effect.) However, this highlights a flaw of Marth's that prevents him from getting notably stronger than most of your units, that being that he can't promote. Most other units in this game have access to about another 10-20 levels, depending on when they promote. Marth has only 19 levels throughout the whole game to level up through, and his growths aren't high enough to help make up for his lack of promotion. (I can see why he was given 10 extra levels on DS.) He's also the only unit who will have the easiest time against Medeus. (More on him later.) But you need to defeat Gharnef in order to ensure that. As Gharnef will drop the Falchion. Speaking of, yes it can't break. But contrary to what you might think, it only prevents Marth from being countered by anything that isn't a Manakete in this game, on top of being effective against Medeus, specifically. It doesn't negate all non-manakete attacks, and in fact WON'T prevent Marth from being attacked at all. (It's also not effective against enemy Manaketes other than Medeus, unlike in later titles.) And it can be used like a Elixir, which is always a plus, and way better than the 10 HP recovery in the DS version. It also has 10 Mt, though, which isn't spectacular. While a nice weapon, it's not on the level of, say, Ike having Ragnell towards the end of Path of Radiance, or Sigurd having Tyrfing towards the end of Genealogy of the Holy War's first part, Dimitri having Areadbhar, or Edelgard having Aymr. I genuinely feel like Falchion had better outings on Super Nintendo, the 3DS, and in Engage. (And Gaiden and its remake, if you want to count them.) Definitely feed him stat boosters to help ensure ease against Medeus. But still a very solid unit without them. Undeniably one of the best units in this game, even if a tad overrated. Joins automatically in the first chapter, and is your main character. He dies, and you have to restart the entire chapter.

Caeda is easily your best Lance user, bar none. Her only downsides are that she's on the frail side to an extent, and her physical Strength is practically non-existent, being a 3 base and a 20% growth. Her ability to cap Speed easily makes her the best user of Silver Lances in particular. In fact, she'll likely cap Spd before she ever reaches Lvl 10. But without a Power Ring or two, she will struggle to kill foes at some point. Thankfully, her combat and her durability get a boost once she promotes. Still, a solid unit. Though she has better outings on the Super Nintendo, the Nintendo DS, and in Heroes. Her high Mov also means that she's the first to visit shops. Joins automatically in the first chapter.

Cain and Jagen are effectively two copies of the same unit. The most notable differences being that Jagen has more movement, durability, and can use more weapons, and Cain does get faster without stat boosters. That is at first. Jagen's growths generally don't let him grow any higher than his bases. (Unless you're lucky.) If you're not using stat boosters on him, what you see is what you get with him. But growths alone do not make a unit. And this fact is why I refer to him and Cain as copies of each other. Without stat boosters, however, Cain will undoubtedly surpass Jagen. But at the same time, unless you give him too much more than he can chew, Jagen's rarely going to die from things in this version of Shadow Dragon. If you give him a Speed Ring, he'll be doubling most enemies (14 Spd is no joke in this game), and giving him a Power Ring will drive his Atk with a Silver weapon to 25. Stat boosters really go a long way in this game, it's Super NES remake, and its Super NES sequel. Both join automatically in the first chapter.

On the note of Jagen's growths not letting him get any higher than his bases without stat boosters, I should mention that his poor growths are pretty much a way to discourage using him too much. Especially since EXP growths are all the same for everyone across the board, regardless of level: whatever the enemy gives you. For you, the EXP stat shows you how much EXP a unit has. Their level, as expected, goes up by 1, whenever you get 100 EXP. However, you'll notice that enemies have an EXP stat as well. What that generally means is that is how much EXP you'll get upon defeating one. No exceptions. It doesn't matter what level your units have, or if they're promoted. What you see is how much you'll get.

Speaking of promotion, your units' levels all truly reset after promoting. So there's typically no real incentive for using growth units over prepromoted ones beyond potential stat boost that vary from level to level and aren't even guaranteed to raise upon a level up. Adding salt to the wound, promotion gains on your unit are pretty wonky. They work like this: If your unit, at the time of promotion, has stats that match or surpass the base stats of the class they're promoting to, they basically get zilch except for movement, and access to another weapon type in the case of Mages and Clerics. If at least one of their stats are below the of the class they're promoting to, their stats will be adjusted accordingly to match that of the class they're promoting to. In Caeda's case, for example, on top of a level reset, a promotion for her behaves like, at most, 2 Dracoshields and a Power Ring. So that's worth considering. What units you promote is at your own discretion.

Abel is the only Cavalier you get who has a Strength growth above 40% until Arran joins. He's otherwise as useful as Cain and Jagen. And his growths, like with Cain, will let him surpass Jagen provided Jagen doesn't get stat boosters. Especially in Str, which he edges out over Cain. Both aren't lacking in the Spd department, which gives Abel a slight edge. Joins automatically in the first chapter.

Draug is there to help you form choke points and nothing else. Joins automatically in the first chapter.

Gordin is there to help you deal with earlygame fliers and nothing else. If you can get him up to Level 10 before you get that first Orion's Bolt, more power to you. Joins automatically in the first chapter.

Wrys is only valuable as your healer until Lena joins. Bench him afterwards. Recruit him in the first chapter by having Marth visit the westernmost village. Neat that he teaches you about the possibility of recruiting characters in villages.

Ogma is basically a Cavalier without a horse and without the ability to use Lances. Solid outing for his first time. But if you're playing through this game quickly, he will struggle to level up. Joins automatically in Chapter 2.

Barst is the best one among the three axe fighters that accompany Ogma. Unfortunately, like Marth, he will never promote, and axes have almost no variety in this game. They don't even have a legendary weapon. It says a lot when the strongest axe in the game is the Devil Axe, which has a base 21% chance of hurting its user. On that note, Axes can be pretty hard to come by at certain points. Like Ogma, he will struggle to level up without a mount. He also has the semi-unique niche of having a 50% Def growth, interestingly enough. The only other unit that shares that niche is Bord, who sucks. Joins automatically in Chapter 2.

Bord, as mentioned before, sucks. Cord also sucks. Don't bother with them. Both join automatically in Chapter 2.

Darros manages to be somehow worse than Bord and Cord. Bench him if you recruit him. Even though he has the unique niche of being the only ground unit who can swim effectively, he's not worth it. Recruit him with Marth in Chapter 2, will likely recruit himself to your team. I like that he teaches you about recruitable enemies, though.

Castor for a while is marginally better than Gordin, with the emphasis on "for a while". Recruit him in Chapter 2 with Caeda.

Julian oddly has solid growths despite being a Thief. However, he cannot promote, like Marth, and he's not important to bring into the final battle in this game except to open doors. And since he has no Weapon Level growth, he's not wielding Silver Swords without Manuals. On that note, Rickard is just Julian but joins later, has worse bases, has worse accuracy, and is less important. I've so far only ever used them to open doors and chests in this game, anyways. Julian joins automatically in Chapter 3, and Rickard joins after speaking to him with Marth or Julian in Chapter 6.

Lena is going to be your main healer throughout the game apart from Wendell and eventually Boah, Merric, and Linde. However, Priests and Clerics in this game have this odd mechanic that only ever lets them gain EXP if they manage to take a hit from an enemy and survive. Ugh... So glad that this was fixed in the Super NES remake and sequel. But yeah. In this game, don't bother leveling her up. Just use her as your healer and that's it. Thankfully, she eventually gets Hammerne, which is her Prf. And it can be used to fix some of your weapons and staves. So there's that. The only downside is that Hammerne cannot be used to repair Mercurius, Gradivus, Parthia, Excalibur and Aura. The most valuable of things to repair are Warp, Barrier, Physic, and Fortify staves. Keep that in consideration as you're using it. There's also a lone manual that you can get in the game. Since she can't level up without tanking hits, she's a solid candidate for it, opening possibilities of her using staves like the aforementioned Fortify and Barrier. There's not much competition for it, either, since Jeorge could possibly use it so he can use Parthia, he can take a few levels to reach that kind of capability anyways. So Lena edges out in competition in this regard. Joins automatically in Chapter 3.

Navarre in this is basically Ogma with slightly worse bases, but better growths. Either one is good, though they lack mounts and ranged options,. Just don't expect either one to be dominating. Recruit him in Chapter 3 by talking to him with Caeda.

Merric is your best offensive magic user, period. (At least until Linde joins.) However, with the way offensive magic works in this game, Str is wasted on him, Wendell, Linde, and Boah. Every tome's Mt is the magic user's attack power, no exceptions. But Skl has some value in determining crits, even though accuracy is similarly calculated by the tome's Acc and. Furthermore, he does come with Excalibur, which is strong enough to work as a boss killer as well as a deleter of problematic enemies such as Wyvern Knights, Armor Knights, Generals, Ballisticians, and Fire Dragon Manaketes. (Mage Dragon Manaketes are immune to magic, unfortunately.) It's worth noting that Excalibur in this game has no effectiveness against fliers and otherwise has almost identical stats to Thoron. So it is effectively replaceable at some point. And, of course, he's a prime candidate for Starlight and thus fighting Gharnef. Also, he gets staff utility after promotion. Meaning utility for things like Warp, Physic, Barrier, and Fortify, which is amazing by itself. Solid unit. Worth using him. Recruit him in Chapter 4 by visiting the northwestern village, by the squad of Cavaliers.

Matthis sucks. Bench him if you recruit him. He can be recruited by having him speak to Lena in Chapter 4.

Hardin is an amazing Cavalier to use right off the bat. Silver access at base. Solid bases. And good growths. He definitely deserves the moniker "Coyote". I've heard that some people call him "Jagen with growths", and I can definitely see why. Joins automatically in Chapter 5.

The same, however, cannot be said for his squad. The best one among them is Wolf. But that's not really saying much, seeing as he requires investment to use anyways, and you're not gonna get much long term use from his growths. His Skl growths prevent him from being any more accurate with Bows beyond what his Luck and his weapons themselves allow, and his Spd growth limits his doubling abilities. Sedgar sucks. Vyland sucks. And Roshea sucks. Don't use them any more than you have to. Especially in regards to enemy fliers in Wolf and Sedgar's case. They all join automatically in Chapter 5.

For Wendell, remember Pent? From Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade? This guy pretty much laid the foundation for Pent later on, though he joins earlier in this game and their remakes than Pent joins in his game. His bases are solid, especially his SPD, which is amazing, and his Weapon Level lets him use every single time and staff that isn't a Prf. His offensive utility depends on what tomes he has, so you won't be able to see him one round most enemies until he gets stronger tomes. Because of this, you're definitely gonna want him to weaken enemies. Alternatively, he can use Warp, Physic, Barrier, and Fortify staves no issues. With regular use, he should be able to do pretty well against Gharnef. Though he'll have lower HP than a promoted Merric or Linde, the key word here is "promoted", and he's still solid even after Merric and/or Linde promotes. Easily one of if not his best outing, here. Recruit him in Chapter 5 with Marth or Merric.

Bantu is easily your best tank throughout your entire playthrough until Minerva joins. Bantu outright benefits from the +12 defense the Firestone gives, due to himself having a 3 base Def and no Def growth. It also gives him 18 Atk, and no way to boost it without boosters. Making him pretty much a pure damage sponge for any enemy that doesn't use magic. (Enemies that can use magic are pretty much ripping through him, unfortunately.) Shame he got nerfed after this game. It's worth noting, however, that getting his Str to max gets him to 36 Atk; 4 points higher than the highest attack one can reach in this game with a Silver weapon. And that he's one of 2 units you can play with that can break the 20 Def cap, reaching up to 32 Def when maxed out. Which I would say is awesome, but impractical. Especially since he gets nothing from EXP. And you generally don't want anything with Def past 20 in this game, anyways. Recruit him in Chapter 7 in a closed off village near where you first see Minerva.

Caesar and Radd are essentially Ogma and Navarre with even worse bases, and lower availability. Casar also seems to have the worst growths of the mercenaries in this game. Don't bother with Caesar, use Radd only as a replacement. They join automatically in Chapter 8.

Roger sucks. Bench him if you recruit him. Recruit him with Caeda in Chapter 8.

Jeorge is your best bow user in the game. Sure, his growths are nothing special. You really want him, however, for his bases. He can use Silver Bows with no investment, and is a points in his own Weapon Level away from being able to use Parthia, which one-shots Wyvern Knights, and can be used as a Pure Water to prepare for Mage deletion. Definitely use him to delete enemy fliers and weaken or perhaps delete enemy Bishops. You can recruit him by visiting the northeastern village in Chapter 9, but you have to be quick about it, as there's a Thief looking to destroy it.

Maria is basically a replacement healer, and nothing more. One interesting point about her is that she can use every staff except for Hammerne (which is exclusive to Lena) and Aum (exclusive to Elice) right off the bat. But when you have guys like Wendell and eventually Boah do the same thing and with the ability to defend themselves using Tomes, you'll find that she doesn't have much use beyond being a replacement. She'll be locked up when you first see her. Unless you really need her for something, just have Marth recruit her so Minerva can recruit herself to your team, and that's it. Open her cell in Chapter 10, and then have Marth talk to her to recruit her.

Going back to Minerva, she's easily your best mobile tank, boasting 14 Def on top of 10 Mov. She's essentially an Armor Knight on Wyvernback. And that 9 base Strength gives her solid attack. However, that 6 base Speed with a 40% growth isn't particularly great. Meaning that she's behind your other units, offensively, for quite a while. But she's still a decent unit. Even if only to serve as a meat shield. Or Arena Abusing. Just keep her away from enemy Bishops, Archers, Snipers, Hunters, and Horsemen. To recruit her in Chapter 10, recruit Maria first, then she'll track Marth down to recruit herself to your army.

Linde in terms of gameplay pretty much laid the groundwork for later-joining female mages that tend to have their own benefits compared to their male contemporaries. Like Tailtiu, Tine, Lilina, Ilyana (PoR), Miriel, Nyx, Ophelia, Lysithea, etc. And it's nice to see where this idea has its roots. In her case, she's essentially a nuke, not unlike Micaiah in Radiant Dawn. Aura is that freaking strong in this game. 20 Atk and nothing that enemies can defend against it with? Yes please. Don't ever feel bad about using Aura. Definitely comes in handy in that chapter with all the Ballisticians. And useful against Wyvern Knights, Armor Knights, Generals, and Fire Dragon Manaketes, as well. Once she's trained up, she's essentially a second Merric. With liberal use, she'll even end up faster and more accurate than Merric, but more frail as a tradeoff. In fact, she'll likely cap Skl, Spd, and maybe even Luck, before you even see your first Bishop's Ring. Promote her or not, she's a solid candidate for Starlight. And if you promote her, she'll even be able to do everything that Wendell and Boah can, meaning utility for staves including but not limited to Warp, Physic, Barrier, and Fortify. Very solid. Recruited in the village in eastern town in Chapter 11.

Jake is literally a weaker version of Jeorge in this game. Stuck to 2 range and 4 Mov. Situationally useful against Wyvern Knights thanks to his Arrowspate. But that's about it. To recruit him in Chapter 11, talk to Anna in a house to the east near where you recruit Linde first, and then have Caeda to talk to him to recruit him.

Boah is pretty much a replacement for Wendell, should Wendell perish. Or to act as a second Wendell should the actual Wendell be carrying too much stuff to use the Tomes and Staves you want him to use. Also, he can double most enemies at base. Dude has quite a lot of utility in this game. Thanks to his bases, mainly, his growths are horrible otherwise, but still. Joins automatically in Chapter 12.

Midia is pretty interesting in this version of the game. The influence she has on Isadora from The Blazing Blade shines pretty greatly here, even gameplay-wise. Mostly identical bases to Jagen. Might not stack up to Cain, Abel, or Hardin, assuming you've been regularly using them. But still very solid. Especially since Paladins are so good in this game. Could use a Seraph Robe to bolster her durability. Joins automatically in Chapter 12.

Dolph and Macellan are a couple of jokers. Don't bother. Especially not with Macellan. Both join automatically in Chapter 12.

Tomas is a filler unit. Joins at Level 8. But his growths are horrid. Thankfully, there's not much competition for Orion's Bolts, since Gordin is the only character that could actually use one. Speaking of Orion's Bolts, I wish you could sell them in this version of the game.

Beck is the second of your Ballisticians, and just as situationally useful as Jake. He comes toting the Thunderbolt, the only weapon with effective damage against Ballisticians. But since Ballisticians have 4 Mov and 2 range in this game, it's better to use a Mage or Bishop to take care of enemy Ballisticians. He's recruited in a village along the middle of the three paths.

Astram is basically a replacement unit. Solid, but nothing more. If you have been using Ogma or Navarre by this point, he's pretty much a benchwarmer. If you haven't, he serves a nice use on your team. You definitely want his Wyrmslayer to deal with Manaketes, especially Mage Dragons, later on. Recruit him with Midia.

Palla will be nearing promotion when you first see her. Her bases are quite solid, just about a point away from being able to double most enemies. 7 Str is pretty par for the course for units that join you when you get her, and she has a 50% growth in that. So she's not exactly lacking in offense, even with her terrible Spd growth of 20%. However, she's competing with Caeda for that first Skydrake Whip. But it is understandable if Caeda's 20% Str growth turns you off from giving it to her, making Palla a solid alternative. Doesn't help that enemies in this game grow alongside your own units. And even if you don't promote her, Palla is still a solid and flexible unit. Like Astram, she too has the valuable Wyrmslayer, making her excellent against enemy Manaketes, especially Mage Dragons. She recruits herself to your team by speaking with Marth.

Catria, on the other hand, joins underleveled, literally Level 3, in the middle of the game. Her bases are also pretty low for that point in the game. Even though she does hover around her older sister's bases at Level 8, the issue is getting there. Not exactly hard to set up, but not exactly a breeze, either. Especially since you're getting about 35 or so EXP from each kill. Meaning there's not much EXP to go around for her if you're playing quickly. Decent filler, but not much else. Like Palla, she recruits herself to your team by speaking to Marth.

Arran is pretty much in the same boat as Midia. That said, his growths are pretty impressive, sans Def. But he'll be nothing more than filler or a replacement. You can recruit him by visiting the western village in the northwest quadrant of the map in Chapter 16. But recruiting him locks you out of recruiting Samson. It's up to you if you value better growths and movement (Arran) or better bases (Samson) in a replacement/filler unit.

Samson is likewise in a similar boat to Astram. But in his case, it's his bases that carry him. Unfortunately, he has worse growths than not just Astram, but Arran as well. Still. He's solid if you want a replacement unit or a filler unit. You can recruit him by visiting the eastern village in the northwest quadrant of the map in Chapter 16. Everything that I said about recruiting Arran and what you prefer from either one applies here as well.

Xane is, full stop, essentially a copy of your strongest unit. No investment required. Free to use right off the bat. Just place him next to your strongest unit, and have him transform into it. You don't even have to heal him in this version of the game after he starts mimicking your units, unless if the unit he's mimicking is already hurt. The only drawbacks are that he requires his own equipment, and that his transformation can only last 5 turns. Neither of which are a significant issue. Especially the 5 turn transformation, since keeping him next to your team is pretty easy. He cannot gain EXP when mimicking an ally, though, not that it matters. He won't ever need it. And a little bit of a funny thing about him in this game. He can mimic allied Manaketes, but has no real way to use Dragonstones without being given one. Perhaps that's foreshadowing about his true identity that early on in the series? You recruit him by speaking to him with Marth, in Chapter 16, in the jail on the east side of the map.

Est manages to join with slightly better bases and offensive growths than Catria. But she suffers from much of the same problems as her, but worse due to her later join time. Don't expect her to nab that first Skydrake Whip even if you spoon-feed her kills. At least she gives you access to Mercurius as soon as she recruits herself to your team just like her sisters 4 chapters ago.

Tiki is an actually useful example of "Magikarp Power". However, due to how high her Def is anyways, WITH her Divinestone BTW (20 Def, literally the cap every non-manakete unit can reach), you're not gonna want to give her Dracoshields at least. Maybe just one Seraph Robe, because some enemies won't even attack her if her Def is too high. (Especially since the Divinestone boosts combined with stat boosters helps her outright break the Def cap.) This isn't to say that she's useless. Far from it. Just, like with anyone else, be careful with how you use her, and she should be alright after some time being spoon-fed kills. She shouldn't have much trouble with enemy Manaketes, not even Mage Dragons, thankfully. Except maybe Medeus's bodyguard, but how quickly he goes down depends on how high Tiki's Str is. In fact, she can one-round the majority of Manaketes in the penultimate chapter with base stats alone, even Xemcel, the chapter boss. Oddly, in this version of the game, she can't do anything against Medeus, himself, even with stat boosters. As that she has no bonus damage against him whatsoever, and her Divinestone without bonus damage is just as strong as a Silver weapon. This means that she can only ever reach 32 Atk against him. She's not even denting him. She also cannot promote, just like Marth and the Thieves. Unlike Marth and the Thieves, her growths are generally high enough to cover for this downside. The only growth that she has that doesn't is in Str, and a Power Ring or two can fix that. She's definitely worth your investment should you use her. Especially since she's deleting enemy Manaketes without much effort. Recruit her by having Bantu speak to her.

Lorenz is a filler unit meant to fill the same niche as Draug. Solid bases, but not much else. His movement is his biggest weakness. Also worth pointing out is that, in this game, Generals are locked to Swords, and are considered a separate class from Armor Knights as well. Recruit him by speaking to him with Marth or Caeda.

Elice is mainly there to give you a means to revive a unit that died that you want to badly bring back. Could come in clutch, but it requires specific circumstances. Also, Aum in this version of Shadow Dragon requires Elice to be in a specific building. Which is actually where the Aum staff is located in the remakes. Other than that, she's a filler staff user.

Gotoh is pretty much mainly there to help you beat the game. Pretty solid durability, as well as capped Skl, Spd, Weapon Level, and even Res. Just have him use staves and delete high Def units and that's it. I also find it kinda funny how he tells you that he can't do anything to Medeus. This extends to every Bishop you have, as well. More on that later.

There's going to be secret shops towards the end of the game, one in Chapter 21, I.E. the one with all the Wyvern Knights and that one boss that, in the DS remake, looks like Ocelot, and another in Chapter 24, I.E. the penultimate story map in the game, that sell stat boosters for your units. On one hand, you're given a crap load of money to spend on them, on the other, you're still limited. I would recommend just giving stat boosters to your most important units such as those you're going to use to fight Medeus with. This means that you should focus mainly on Marth, any Wyvern Knight or Paladin you have that can use Gradivus, Linde or Merric, and, assuming you've been using him until now, Barst. Anyone else, you decide at your own discretion.

Medeus. Hoo boy. He's a doozy. First off, 35 Def? Yeah most of your guys aren't gonna scratch him. Even going back to the Awesome But Impractical 36 Atk Bantu, given that Medeus is on a throne, he's healing any scratches that particular Bantu would do on him. Secondly, his Earthstone has the ability to negate magic and ranged attacks. Not only does this render your Bishops, including Merric and Linde, useless against him (Gotoh wasn't kidding when he said that he can't do anything to scratch Medeus), it also eliminates the possibility of using Bows against him. Maxed out versions of Wolf, Sedgar, Castor, and your Sniper of choice wouldn't do anything to him with Parthia, anyways due to him being on a throne and having high Def. With Parthia and maxed Str, you're looking at 2 damage per strike. If you actually manage to miss the Starlight tome, and thus were unable to defeat Gharnef, then your best bet against Medeus is using either Barst with the Devil Axe (technically, any axe user could work here, but Barst is the only one whose growths give him long term viability), or a Paladin or a Wyvern Knight with capped Str toting Gradivus. But if you did indeed defeat Gharnef, then Medeus is pretty much a cakewalk, as you just need to park Marth next to him, equipped with Falchion, and wait a few turns. How long this takes depends on how high Marth's Str is, but it should be high enough regardless. On average with no stat boosters, you're looking at 10 damage per phase, same as with stat boosters force fed to either of Barst with the Devil Axe or the Paladin or Wyvern Knight with Gradivus. With stat boosters, 30, which no other method can match. Alternatively, and this will take the longest to do, you can use Barst with the Devil Axe, or a capped Str Paladin or Wyvern Knight wielding Gradivus, and hope for the best, given that he or she is doing 5 damage per attack, which translates to about 10 damage per phase. (Also, it's pretty funny how a Str capped axe user with the Devil Axe, or a Str capped Paladin or Wyvern Knight with Gradivus, both do as much damage to Medeus with a crit as a Str capped Marth can do with Falchion but no crit.) It's clear that the Falchion is the intended method, given the ease of use in trying to defeat him with it, assuming Marth has capped Str. At any rate, if you don't have the Devil Axe, if Gradivus broke, AND you haven't gotten Starlight and defeated Gharnef, then you're pretty much SOL and have to restart the entire playthrough. So make sure you defeat Gharnef and get Falchion, get the Devil Axe, and keep Gradivus intact, and give the units that can use them stat boosters until they max out, if you have the money for it.

And now, my breakdown of each class; how I feel about each unit in those classes is independent from this.

Pegasus Knights and Wyvern Knights

+ Access to Swords and Lances

+ High movement, 8 MOV for Pegasus Knights, 10 MOV for Wyvern Knights.

+ Unhindered by most terrain

+ Playable Pegasus Knights can potentially obtain a significant Def boost if their Def stat isn't high enough before promotion.

+ They can also get a Str boost upon promotion, but Caeda's the most likely one who will see that.

- Weak to Bows and Arrowspates.

- Wyvern Knights are also weak to Wyrmslayers.

- Cannot take advantage of terrain bonuses besides the healing effect of Forts, Gates, and Thrones.

- Lances are generally heavier than Swords, and thus are situationally useful as a result.

From a class standpoint, this is the best one in the game, no contest. The drawbacks listed here are generally nothing to worry about in most situations. They will generally have solid offense. And once they promote, they will be able to serve as effective baiting and chokehold units on having solid offense. But they're not invincible. Be smart with them, and they'll reward you.

Cavaliers and Paladins

+ Access to Swords and Lances.

+ High movement, 9 MOV for Cavaliers, 10 MOV for Paladins.

- Weak to Ridersbanes and Rapiers.

- Lances are generally heavier than Swords, and thus are situationally useful as a result.

Another great class to have. Second only to Pegasus Knights and Wyvern Knights. Their only downside in comparison is the lack of freedom over terrain, but they can in turn reap more terrain bonuses. They, however, won't be as durable as Wyvern Knights, Armor Knights, Generals, or Manaketes, however. Meaning that they're mainly used for offense, generally cleanup. Their high movement also helps ensure that they'll get a lot of EXP. They'll likely be ready for promotion by the time you see your first Paladin's Honor.

Freelancers

+ Free copy of your strongest unit.

- Requires his own equipment.

- Transformation lasts for 5 turns.

- Cannot use Falchion

Basically the best of the unique classes because it can be an extra of any unit you need. Just make sure he stays with the group, and he's solid.

Mercenaries and Heroes

+All around solid stats, leaning more towards SPD and Skl.

- Swordlocked, making Levin Swords your only option for ranged attacks.

• 7 MOV.

Best of the grounded classes, besides Manaketes and Freelancers. The key word here is "grounded", however. Since they can't boost their own MOV without Boots.

Lords

+ Can use Rapiers, Mercurius, and the Falchion.

+ Draws enemies towards him, due to the enemy A.I.

+ Essentially becomes a stronger Thief without the ability to use Master Keys once you obtain the game's eponymous object.

- Cannot promote.

- Marth falling in battle triggers a Game Over and thus a map restart.

• Everything about Mercenaries and Heroes applies here.

Great as a unique class, especially when considering that it's Marth's class. Just be careful when using him.

Thieves

+ Can open chests without keys.

+ Can use Master Keys to open doors and drawbridges.

- Swordlocked, making Levin Swords your only option for ranged attacks.

- Generally have low Str at base.

- Cannot promote.

- Cannot use Swords besides Iron Swords without Manuals.

- Low durability.

• 7 MOV.

Good class on paper. But in practice, you're just going to use them to open doors and bridges, and loot chests. Not much else use for them.

Manaketes

+ Weapons have infinite uses.

+ Weapons grant them high Def boosts, which makes them effective tanks, and can potentially make them break the Def cap past 20.

+ Tiki in particular has effective damage against enemy Manaketes (sans Medeus for some reason).

- Weak against Wyrmslayers.

• 6 MOV.

A solid semi-unique class. Like I said, they can break the Def cap, but you don't want to have them do that. Easily the best chokehold class alongside Wyvern Knights. Just be careful with enemies using magic or Wyrmslayers.

Clerics

+ Can use Staves

+ Staves can heal (even from long distances), enhance, or warp units.

- Are generally frail units.

- Requires taking hits to gain EXP.

- 5 MOV.

- Effectively requires manuals to increase Weapon Level.

A must-have for your team. Just don't let them in enemy range, despite the EXP gain. They're nowhere near durable enough.

Mages

+ Can attack enemies from close range or 2 spaces away.

+ Can deal effectively fixed damage.

+ Great against enemies with high Def such as Armor Knights, Generals, Ballisticians, and Fire Dragon Manaketes. Especially in a game where Res can only be boosted by Talismans, Pure Waters, Parthia, and the Barrier staff.

- Are generally frail units.

- Fixed damage means that the mage's offensive power cannot be increased, and that Spd is the only other main factor that determines overall total damage.

- Tomes have fixed accuracy, and thus cannot be influenced by the Mage's Skl or Luck.

• 6 MOV.

Amazing units from a combat perspective. But their uses are generally situational, mainly used to weaken enemies, or in the most extreme situations, delete enemy units. Thoron will be the best tome any Mage can use, overshadowed by only Merric's Excalibur and Linde's Aura. You'll likely be using them liberally to the point where they'll reach Level 20 before you see your first Bishop's Ring. Just try to keep them from being seriously injured.

Bishops

+ Combines the best of both Clerics and Mages.

- Has the disadvantages Mages have.

You'll generally be using these guys to be staffbots and extra chip damage. You can't go wrong with having them on your team, be it a promoted Merric or Linde, or a prepromote like Wendell or Boah.

• 6 MOV.

Fighters

+ Can use Axes.

-Are axe locked.

- Axes are the heaviest Weapon type in the game, being heavier than Lances.

- Axes are also the rarest Weapon type in the game, being carried by few shops.

- No Silver weapons.

- Cannot promote.

- Only Barst has the most impressive growths among the three playable Fighters.

• 6 MOV.

Another class that's good on paper. But they're meant to be used as combat units, making them trickier to use as a class. Doesn't help that only one of them can actually become a truly competent unit.

Pirates

+ Can use Axes.

+ Can cross water

- Are Axe locked.

- Axes are the heaviest Weapon type in the game, being heavier than Lances.

- Axes are also the rarest Weapon type in the game, being carried by few shops.

- No Silver weapons.

- Cannot promote.

- Only 1 playable Pirate in the whole game.

- The only playable Pirate, Darros, stinks as a unit.

• 6 MOV.

Again. Good on paper. But in this case even less useful in practice than Fighters due to Darros's poor growths.

Armor Knights

+ High Def.

+ Access to Swords and Lances.

- Cannot promote.

- Lances are generally heavier than Swords, and thus are situationally useful as a result.

- 5 MOV.

- Playable characters have generally poor growths.

You're gonna be using this class for chokeholds and, whenever possible, bait, and that's it. They're not exactly good to use in the long run due to poor movement and growths, and you end up getting other units that are better at doing what these guys are supposed to do.

Generals

+ High Def.

- Swordlocked, making Levin Swords your only option for ranged attacks.

- Cannot promote.

- 5 MOV.

- Only 1 playable General in the whole game.

These guys, or rather this guy, is basically there to serve as chokehold and baiting filler. Nothing more. Great bases sans Spd, and obviously MOV. But nothing else. Pretty much a worse version of the Hero class.

Archers

+ Can attack enemies 2 spaces away.

+ Every weapon is effective against Pegasus Knights and Wyvern Knights.

+ Very little competition for promotion items.

- No close-range option for offense, limiting their abilities as units and thus their opportunities for gaining EXP.

- 5 MOV.

- All playable Archers have poor growths.

Easily the second worst class in the game. Doesn't help that the units in it don't have much long-term usability. Luckily, they don't have to stick to their MOV, gaining +2 MOV upon promotion. But I heavily doubt that Gordin will be used long enough to be able to use an Orion's Bolt. Luckily, him and Tomas aren't the only Bow users that you can get. And between the two, Tomas is the one who's going to promote to be able to serve as filler, but nothing else.

Hunters

+ Can attack enemies 2 spaces away.

+ Every weapon is effective against Pegasus Knights and Wyvern Knights.

- Cannot promote.

- No close-range option for offense, limiting their abilities as units and thus their opportunities for gaining EXP.

- Only 1 playable Hunter in the whole game.

• 6 MOV.

Basically a marginally better version of the Archer. But not much else. Castor's growths are wasted in this class.

Horsemen

+ Can attack enemies 2 spaces away.

+ Every weapon is effective against Pegasus Knights and Wyvern Knights.

+ 9 MOV.

- Cannot promote.

- No close-range option for offense, limiting their abilities as units and thus their opportunities for gaining EXP.

- All playable Horsemen have poor growths.

Another class that's good on paper. They thankfully can keep up with the rest of your units. But that's not gonna matter when both of the Horsemen you can get have poor growths. Wolf has the best growths between the two. But they're still not high enough to make up for his lack of promotion, or for his bases being comparable to Cain and Abel. Speaking of, this class was made the promotion for the Hunter class in the remakes and sequel for this game. Unfortunately, this is not the case.

Snipers

+ Can attack enemies 2 spaces away.

+ Every weapon is effective against Pegasus Knights and Wyvern Knights.

+ Is promoted.

+ Archers promoting to Snipers gain a substantial SPD growth upon promotion, allowing them to double many enemies, as well as a slight Def boost that would be the soonest seen by Tomas.

- No close-range option for offense, limiting their abilities as units and thus their opportunities for gaining EXP.

• 7 MOV

As stated, this is what Snipers promote to. Among them, Jeorge is easily the best, being 3 points of Weapon Level away from being able to use Parthia, which he's the best user of. And the abundance of Silver Bows immensely helps with any deficiencies in growths Jeorge may have.

Ballisticians

+ Can attack enemies 2 spaces away.

+ High Def.

- Cannot promote.

- No close-range option for offense, limiting their abilities as units and thus their opportunities for gaining EXP.

- 4 MOV.

- Only 1 Ballista is good against Pegasus Knights and Wyvern Knights.

Easily the worst class in the whole game. Good for nothing but filler. Only one of their weapons is good against enemy fliers. The only weapon they have that's effective against enemy Ballisticians is practically useless, given that Mages can do the same thing, and without fear of counterattack. And their MOV, being a measly 4, is pathetic. They have good durability, but that's the only thing that's actually notable about them. Thank goodness that they were reworked in future titles, getting buffs in the DS remake, and being merged with the Archer/Sniper class in the GBA and Tellius games.

On a side note, curse this platform for not allowing more than 10 images in a blog post.

[impossible-rat-babies]

some thoughts below the cut now that I’m many hours into it (spoilers for the first 10-20 hours of the game)

—I haven’t recruited all the companions yet. I’m just missing two of them

—I also went into this thinking it’s gonna be cotton candy for my brain. yeah it’s gonna be tropey and corny, but there’s hopefully gonna be some good heart to it. And there is! there’s a great deal of heart in it, I can see it. I love the companions thus far, even if it feels like there’s….not been a lot of room to process what all is happening. I hope we get more conversations and them opening up.

—I think my biggest gripe is just the pacing right now. it’s so move, move, move one thing to the next to the next. even just in cutscenes it feels like the dialogue moves too quickly. some of the villian interactions could really use space between their sentences, and even their words to give weight and importance to scenes.

—like o said above, I’m sure there are gonna be more companion interactions, but the short little twenty minute scenes with them feel so. short? it’s the same sort of pacing issue as above. I hope to god we get some nice good long conversations with the companions. it’ll be hell on replay, but I still want that. I hope we get there with companion interactions.

—at least with the antivan crows, I like how the game is eager to acknowledge the connections and your role in the faction. it feels nice! I like it a lot.

—I will say that the game has moments of being very self referential, even to its own detriment at times. it’s kinda funny, like the cheese wheel in arthalan during bellara’s quest, but other times it feels…..I can see some of it getting lost on new players.

—I’m just gonna describe my issue: we go to places like Arlathan, and the crossroads and the fade. and there is acknowledgment of these places being fantastical, but not enough exploration into that it’s wild being here. like sure Jan. our home base is in the fade. that’s not utterly bonkers. sure it’s fine, rook. you live in the fade now. you use mirrors to move around from place to place. isn’t that wild? Do you love it when you hardly get to acknowledge how utterly buckwild that is, especially if you’re not a mage.

—the issue with the inquisitor and dialogue have come back to haunt rook. last verse same as the first. im scared to pick dialogue options bc i know I could pick the option that says “hi hello!” and rook could actually say “hi there motherfuckers!” (I’m gonna have to do so much workshopping of eshka’s personality outside of the game)

—the scenery is incredible. the mini maps are dogshit to navigate. horrid. it’s like Jedi the last order kind of dogshit map to navigate. the saving grace are the little dots that will lead you to your objective, but still. the mini maps are Trash

—the various puzzles around Arlathan are fun—I’ve enjoyed messing around in them quite a lot.

—the maps themselves feel like they are gonna open up over time as we collect companions, and move through the story and I’m not sure how I feel about it. The maps themselves kinda feel like. I’m a rat running through a maze. it doesn’t help that the mini map has no real character to it, so what I see on screen v what is in the mini map feel disconnected. It makes me miss Inquisiton map, or even bg3 map.

—in spite of all of this, I know I am early in the game and that there is still a great deal left to explore. I was looking at not spoiler achievements, and you can allocate 52 points into rook’s stats, so just by that I’m guessing there is a lot more. I’m just used to the likes of Inquisiton or bg3 where level cap is 27 and 12, respectively. (to be fair bg3 runs off the dnd leveling system). but considering I’m almost to level 20 and I’m still missing 2 companions, either I have done a great deal of exploring, or I’m on track. Im assuming the former, unless someone else has had experiences like mine

[the-river-delta]

Stat growth in Grimwild, or the lack thereof

There are many things which fascinate me about the design of Grimwild (the "Dungeons & Dragons style of fantasy but told through a drama-oriented storygame ruleset, a Dungeon World for a post-Forged in the Dark world" game I've been obsessing over all month long - you can get it for free here!), but the one I want to focus on for the sake of this post is the way it handles character stats.

We have four of these here, down from the six that fantasy d20 gamers might recognize - Brawn and Wits are our physical stats, while Wits and Presence serve as the mental ones. Unlike where the game emulates the twelve/fourteen D&D character classes, it felt no need to strictly stick to STR/DEX/CON/INT/WIS/CHA (but let's face it, Constitution basically never does anything by itself that shouldn't logically be covered by Strength, and the distinction between the three mental stats is always fuzzy so boiling it down to just the much clearer two is likewise logical); We also have no bespoke skills in here.

The range is cut down to between 1 and 3, a band even tighter than Powered by the Apocalypse and Forged in the Dark games (which respectively let you have a zero or even a negative in a stat, and the latter letting you go up to 4 in most games) - and the four extra points you get to bump them up from 1s during character creation is essentially all you get, save for one (1) talent that lets you bump a 1 to a 2; You do not gain any points when you level up, and there isn't even a way to shift your existing stats around apart from when you transform into animals as a druid (though such a way to re-allocate seems easy enough to houserule in, upon level-up or a period of downtime).

This is a noteworthy departure from a lot of games out there, but it sort of makes sense when you think about it - Grimwild is not a game of vertical and numerical growth basically at all. Yes, you gain more talents as you level up (and your path's core talent likewise improves every few levels), but there is no arms race against numerically-stronger opponents and obstacles in the kind of game that Grimwild.

Moreover, this means that at all points in your journey, your character will have clear "strong stats" and "weak stats" (unless you go for the 2/2/2/2 stat array, but then you also lock yourself out of having a strong stat at all, basically permanently), so there is always opportunity for drama and for the GM to have something to exploit when they force a defense roll on you. (Remember, the GM chooses which stats you roll for in those cases.)

Something like Pathfinder 2e already puts heavy restraints on your character's numerical growth (and of your enemies), the "tight math" you've probably heard the PF2 community bring up a ton - there's always a "weak save" to target since all the math scales around a pretty constrained range of numbers; I think Grimwild takes out even that middleman and simply does not do stat scaling at all, trusting perhaps that a level 6 character with 1 in Agility is still probably as swift or even swifter than a level 1 character with 3 Agility, and your choice of subgenre likely also informs this relative scale of stats (3 Brawn in a Low Fantasy game where your toughest challenge might be a giant boar and 3 Brawn in a High Fantasy game where you might face a demon lord likely translate to different assumptions in those respective milieus!); None of this is spelled out in the book itself though, so I might be totally off on that.

Another thing is that, based on my own prior Forged in the Dark and Told by Wild Words experience (I've run and played plenty of FitD games, and ran both a months-long Wildsea campaign and a short PICO playtest in the past half a year), which use a similar dice pool mechanic, making 3d6 as the baseline cap before the few extra sources of bonuses is good for ensuring that grim and messy results remain consistent, especially with thorns in the mix;

In contrast, by the end of any given FitD game I've been in with my group, many characters would end up rolling 4 dice without much work, and 5 or 6 with only a bit of investment, which is really good odds of mixed success or better (and vanishingly low odds of true failure). Wildsea at least has the cut mechanic to contest these big pools, but most Forged in the Dark games don't, and so we've had a mix of both homebrew mechanics and playtesting a supplement that specifically gives the GM tools to create challenges beyond simply hitting with harder consequences after mixed successes and the sporadic failure.

It also helps with the "ASI or feat" problem (and its FitD cousin that I've likewise experienced) - many people are not the hugest fans of the "get mechanically stronger or gain a cool ability" dichotomy, and it basically does not exist in Grimwild, letting you wholly focus on that horizontal progression, and with no "you're falling behind on the math" problem either. A win-win!

The only thing I sort of wish the game had was a way to shift the stats around (outside of the aforementioned druid thing), but there are not that many ways in which that would be beneficial (without also putting in more encompassing and possibly overcomplex retraining rules for paths and talents also), and it's a trivial enough thing to houserule, as mentioned, so it's not even that much of a flaw at a design level.

I've not played or run the game yet, and currently am only planning it for a oneshot where the longer-term stuff I talk about here wouldn't be applicable, so for all I know all of this is totally wrong, but I sure have been intrigued by this innocuous aspect of the game, how it contrasts with its predecessors, and the impact it has on Grimwild gameplay.

[chipped-chimera]

WIP WEDNESDAY - 21/06/23

(I mean it’s technically Friday now between timezones and spoons but have this otherwise I’ll keep forgetting) My first WIP Wednesday! Thanks @theviridianbunny​ for the tag! I’ve been really getting stuck into modding - as well as falling into my usual mod habit of ‘start like six project at once and end up with a million WIP files' but I guess I’ll talk about the major ones.

Graphic design is my passion ...

(Long) rambling about mods I'm making + things I've learned below the cut~

My V’s tatt project is still ongoing, and I’ve (somewhat begrudgingly) been trying out Substance Painter to work on bits of it, mainly polishing seams between UV maps. It’s definitely got a lot of benefits, especially for graphic placement in really tricky areas (like anywhere in the entire head mesh region for example) but I still think a lot of the heavy work will still be done in Photoshop so I’ll probably be writing up both experiences with them when I do that tutorial I keep hinting at for complex tatt work. I’ve started drafting a tumblr tutorial but I wonder if that’s the best format, maybe a PDF? Google doc? Github wikis look cool? (tho I think I need to pay for that) - if y’all got suggestions for tutorial formats pls let me know!

As for the other arguably overly-ambitious-project-where-I-bit-off-more-than-I-could-chew ...

H A I R.

Hair has been the bane of my existence for about the past week( ... weeks? Maybe two?), most of it involving cursing, a lot of reverse-engineering game meshes and smashing my head against blender. But if not already evident from my monowire post - I am a stubborn bitch with too much time on my hands so even though there were at least two moments where I wanted to curl up on the floor under my desk and just stay there - we got there.

This all started because my favourite hair mod which I cannot split from my V’s identity was acting funky and the shape of it had been altered since a physics update. It wasn’t her anymore. So I needed new hair. I tried editing the existing hair. I tried importing the old hair mesh. I tried so many things and they didn’t work out one way or they threw a million errors or there were an obnoxious amount of verts.

I even tried looking for replacement mod hair. None of them fit, all of them felt too ‘clean’ for my V. So I just concluded: FINE. I’ll make my own damn hair. From scratch. At least then I’ll actually KNOW what’s going on with the mesh, right?

Problem with hair is tutorials are very limited in respect to Cyberpunk, so I had to learn a lot of this by myself and looking at other processes used for building game hair. I’ve had a previous stint in game design at uni but it was very introductory and more broad-strokes concepts not specific stuff like what ‘real time hair’ is and how you actually go about placing hair-cards (there’s a million different ways btw) but after another 3 days smashing my head against blender I finally got shit to work to a satisfactory level using hair tools for blender and the particle hair grooming system (not the 3.5 blender system, maybe more on that at some point).

Putting together the hair cards I was 120% convinced this was going to blow up in my face, primarily through vert count. But this hair tool plugin? Alarmingly efficient. I was frequently checking my work against Alt's hair mesh (one I was planning on rigging to) and here's the final-ish stats -

This is with only Alt's hair mesh selected (no cap) and then only my mesh(s - lots of layering to build it up), and by comparison I felt I'd built up the density of a chinchilla. This is not a brag, this is mostly genuine confusion over how efficient this plugin is, all I did was smack around hair curves. It did all the UV mapping junk on the fly.

Although structurally complete, I still consider this a WIP (yes I know there's a reeeeal fun vert funkiness in that second render, it's been fixed) since I'm having to go back and fine-tune some of the UV's the plugins mapped that I'm not happy with and generally figuring out my density problem because if anything, after putting it in-game it felt too dense.

Because yes, somehow I got it in game.

WITH. PHYSICS.

This may have driven me absolutely up the wall between having to learn blender from scratch then what the heck real time hair is and how that works etc. etc. but ... god, seeing her move back from the mirror and just feeling that instant catharsis of 'IT'S HER!' made it so. Damn. Worth it.

It looks too thick - this might be because I chucked in the 'doubled' feature Wolvenkit comes with because I hadn't spent any time doing backfaces. But it also might be because it's black? That's going to need investigating.

The physics need a lot of work too, I did a pretty rushed weight painting job last night on a merged version of the mesh because I was worried whether it was even viable and I'd already dumped an insane amount of hours into this between trying to salvage the old hair and building a new one (with some more bells and whistles. Mainly - curly). That wasn't without it's issues -

This almost fucking cracked me, given this was one of the issues I was experiencing before trying to fix an existing mesh mod. Turns out I was just being dumb and forgetting to export the armature, which I'd thought I wasn't supposed to do after having blender throw a bunch of errors on other hair attempts. I gave it a try after one last shot and boom. Worked. (I dunno what those errors were about man but now I know armature? very important).

Will I release this hair? no damn clue, depends on if I can get it to a level I feel is 'releasable'. I already know what I'm calling it though - Venatrix her side-handle I've decided on.

I look forward to adapting it into maybe a comb-back version, as well as a tied up version, so I can show off both her undercut + have the option of NOT hiding every damn tatt I've obsessed over placing on her neck haha.

In other news -

My much-needed wacom tablet replacement arrived (as well as other things I was looking forward to 👀) meaning my Wacom Cintiq, workhorse of ten years can finally enjoy her retirement. Her controls were getting funky, she had a few dead pixels but man. I'm convinced they won't make them like her ever again. Either way she's done unfortunately - upgrading my monitor to 2k made this painfully obvious. I don't think it's even running in full HD, it's that old. And with Phantom Liberty coming out this year? I'm probably going to need a new videocard and DVI compatibility isn't really a thing anymore.

So for future I think I'll just stick to the basic tablet set up, invest in screens. Also now I FINALLY know what her hair is gonna look like and with the tablet here, I can get back to work on the tattoo bodysuit.

Anyways, that's it for now! (Jesus Christ did you really read all of this? If you did you're a fucking trooper). Sorry for the extended ramble but MAN I did a lot, I needed to yell.

Till next time Chooms! Thanks again @theviridianbunny for the tag~ <3

Oh shit wait, have the blender renders before I forget because hahah I figured out how to do that too lol -

[sergeifyodorov]

ur top 10 players list made me curious where do you think historical greats like lemieux, jagr, howe and gretzky would rank if they were in their primes today, but didnt have the modern training & tech? like if they were just airdropped into the modern nhl?

generally the closer we get to the modern nhl the easier players would have adjusting, so i think honestly you can kind of... flip the book.

there's a misconception in this ask: jagr did play in the modern nhl. the Modern NHL tends to start in one of two places, depending on where you ask: one, the beginning of the salary cap era (the 05-06 season), which was the sidovi debut year, or two, 07-08 when tracking data was first taken and made available. Either Definition includes jagr, who played in the NHL until his AGE FORTY-FIVE SEASON (2017-18). he just also happened to be drafted in 1990. so we have data for this! he was a 70-point forward at 35 in a year where only 2 players got >100 points (for context, last year about 10 players got that many). my guess is McDavid. Maybe better.

lemieux was a bit older than jagr and played in more of a high-scoring era; adjusting him down, he's probably about Matthews-level.

gretzky is kind of hard, because on the one hand he is a statistical outlier like no outlier has ever lied out, but also he got the bulk of his "What The Fuck" stats in the early 80s, which are even further from today. insofar as he got most of his stats off iq and wasn't a hyperathlete like lemieux was (when he wasn't hurt) or jagr (just. all the time) my guess is... probably mcdavid numbers? Take this one with a grain of salt though.

Howe is also hard because he's the opposite: he WAS a hyperathlete (strong enough retired to hold a door closed on Eric Lindros, one of the known power forwards of our time) but also... the game in the 50s and 60s was basically an entirely different sport, and I don't know how much his skills would translate -- gretzky would be easily able to keep up with his knowledge and skill, but he might get outpaced or outmuscled to pucks. meanwhile gordie could outmuscle anyone, but i don't know if he could keep up in other ways.

also there's equipment changes to think about........

ultimately i also think this is kind of a pointless exercise; gordie howe wasn't playing with composite carbon fibre. the best way to evaluate a player is against their contemporaries. jaromir jagr 4 evar

[prcdo]

have you heard from NICOLAS PRADO yet? back home they’re said to work as a REAL ESTATE COPYWRITER.  before this trip to blackwood pines, i’ve heard that they’re known to be ACTIVE, JOCULAR, AND ADAPTABLE. but on the downside, they’re known to be BRASH, COMPETITIVE AND BLUNT. when you think about them, you’ll probably see JERSEY NUMBERS WORN LIKE MILITARY MEDALS, BURST BOXING BAGS, CRUSHED SODA CANS, TARNISHED TROPHIES, AND KNUCKLES BRUISED TO THE HUE OF BUSINESS SUITS. and because of that, i would say that they’re known to be THE JOCK.

STATS. 

full name.  nicolas meza prado. 

nicknames.  nick is, in fact, his preferred name. nods at variations thereof with the notable exception of nicky.

date of birth.  13 october. 

place of birth.  odessa, texas, usa.  

current residence.  detroit, michigan, usa. 

languages.  fluent in english and spanish.

education.  has an mba from michigan state. paid for by a sports scholarship, of course.

occupation.  real estate copywriter. 

gender.  cisgender male. he/him. 

orientation.  bisexual. 

marital status.  dating, more often than not.

family.  a father, a mother, and two siblings sandwiching him into a suffocating space stuffed with birth order stereotypes.

PERSONALITY. 

the brief.  in one word, nick is winning. not a moment in his life has been spent without incredible drive, nor with any consideration as to local speed limits. he holds his head high and, in the process, can lose track of the bigger picture as easily as he can paint a new landscape of goals with loaded words and laborious action. whether this is concerning or endearing depends on a lot of factors, but he’s not dead yet, so he can’t be too insufferable. or maybe the team just needs some muscle. that’s probably it.

the good.  nick wants to help people. although he’s a primary proponent of self-love, he leads by example and is eager to learn whatever he can from whoever he can – the dumb jock stereotype didn’t pop up without any strict basis in reality, after all – and he’d sooner exile himself to an athlete’s foot locker than force someone to take a risk he wouldn’t seize first. 

the bad.  nick wants to help people with the absolute outlier of himself. he builds his plans around others, if he has any plans at all, yet has shoved his expectations for everyone above the stratosphere to the point where he feels personally degraded should anyone reject his get-pushed-in-the-pool-to-learn-how-to-swim teaching techniques. he does not deal well with having his opinions ignored in any capacity and nurses grudges as well as anyone with a doctorate in self-centredness would.

the ugly.  nick needs to be needed. being disliked macerates his mind into this mush of desperate people-pleasing, even if he knows the only path to justice is the one paved with potholes. if a friend asked him to jump off a cliff, he’d only ask if they wanted to film him doing a flip on the way down.

APPEARANCE. 

height.   5’9. good posture and a gleaming smile had most intramural coaches thinking otherwise.

build.  athletic, with a mean leanness that puts both his obsessive gym-going in adolescence and overwhelmingly green diet in adulthood on full blast. you know, as if he’s not enthusiastic enough about divulging all the sordid, sweaty

style.  comfort over couture. everything in his closet but his collection of immaculate basketball sneakers is best described as devil-may-care. colours stay neutral and t-shirt graphics stay slightly crude. sleeves must be rolled up regardless of weather and whether he’s even wearing something with long sleeves.

notable features.  jet black hair styled with water and confidence. the uncertain beginnings of a bristly moustache. a tattoo of the number one in a compact collegiate font on his right shoulder blade.

BIOGRAPHY.  content warnings for brief mentions of hazing and injury.

tl;dr.  annoyingly smirky middle child stomps his way into acquiring eldest child syndrome + a humiliating defeat to cap off his last collegiate basketball season, and proceeds to do everything in his power to not become the guy who peaked in school. which actually amounts to just throwing himself into work with little regard for sleep schedule or personal relationships, but a quick winter getaway could help him unwind a little, right? right.

first quarter.  nick’s a good kid, but good isn’t always good enough. his parents drill that lesson into his skull as soon as he’s out the hospital and in the prado household’s singular bedroom. they do it unintentionally, which is how they do a lot of things, but however much he wants to play hercules by hurling his weight around the run-down playground, every time he slices one head off the hydra of approval by joining this club or scoring that letter, another two pop up in its place, born of his brothers’ very existence. the one who came before him is their meal ticket making his way through med school, the one who came after him is already on track to become an accountant, and he’s… good at throwing things in hoops. things being homework, hoops being over trash bins. but he’s always been a good-natured kid, so when he secures a spot on the jv basketball team after trying out as a total joke, he soaks up the sugared electrolytes, the electric sound of applause, and the endless opportunities to sink his energy into something until the end of time. or until 6pm. you know, whenever practice ends.

second quarter.  nick’s a good guy. his parents call him the fun one, which might not be a compliment, but warping any and all descriptors into compliments is how nick’s become something of a casanova and kept his name relatively clear of any scandals. that is, until he semi-consciously continues a secret hazing ritual that results in the severe incapacitation of his fraternity brothers and a wicked hangover that, gasp, results in him ruining the next week’s championship game. then he blows his birthday money on veneers of all kinds to coast through police interviews and changes his course from sports officiating to business administration. then he realises that being impressive is way more important to the status of being good than making a squeaky-clean good impression.

third quarter.  nick’s living the good life. sure, he’s got little to no time for recreation, but he’s strongarmed his way up the corporate ladder and isn’t coming down at any cost. also, he can still toss his assignments in the trash can. he’s got a photocopier now. his friends tell him there’s no place better than blackwood pines, and if only to prove them wrong (and maybe prevent himself from getting hypertension at thirty) nick brings himself and a basketball along for the ride to the rockies.

fourth quarter.  nick’s story may or may not have a good ending. aka this is the part where i’ll put summaries of all super important life-changing in-character events so i don’t lose track of them <3

MISCELLANEOUS. 

radio.  beastie boys. no doubt. oasis. rage against the machine. red hot chili peppers.

potential relationships.

childhood friends.  people who witnessed his evolution from tryhard to hard-ass and has, by some miracle, decided to stick around. nick’s definitely drafted up at least one microsoft word nda regarding his tragic past and its secrecy for these folks. whether or not they unblocked him long enough to read the final document is trivial.

college classmates.  nick may or may not be the reason the general public does not desire a 5’9 brown-eyed man in finance. while not as egoistic as he was in his younger years, his enthusiasm for extra credit was well recorded.

former teammates.  while he never went pro, nick’s played basketball for as long as he’s been alive and was a volunteer coach at a couple of summer camps in his must-join-every-extracurricular-ever-or-perish days. whether you knew him as the point guard of your dreams or the gatorade purist of your nightmares, nick was sure to make games interesting.

gym sibs.  they stay hungry, they devour, put in the work, put in the hours, et cetera.

former coworkers/clients/employers.  nick’s had a host of less-than-dignified jobs with less-than-humane pay, including but not limited to arcade janitor, junior assistant dishwasher at a fast food joint, and human directional.

current coworkers/clients/employers.  being a real estate agent isn’t much more dignified when you get to the cold calling, door-slamming phase, but at least nick gets to do it in a fancy suit! and maybe you want to do things in a fancy suit too. or own a beautiful home in the suburbs with so much fluorescent lighting you’ll never think of going to the hospital again.

flings.  nick commits to everything except for relationships. go figure. he’s never lied about what he wants out of a night or two, but he has driven off way more than two dates by insulting their interior decorating skills during pillow talk.

assorted headcanons.  has a southern twang to his voice that gets exponentially stronger on the rare occasion he experiences an emotion aside from pride. says that he bikes everywhere for health reasons but has actually been banned from several buses for playing his super hype playlists without headphones. also hates cars because the smell and sight of exhaust pipe smoke reminds him of his older brother lolol. doesn’t curse much in general but absolutely refuses to do so in the presence of a lady thanks to mami, even if she has a sailor’s mouth of her own. very physically, if not emotionally, protective; will not hesitate to be someone’s meat shield in any given situation.

[pokemon-dungeon-masters]

Charsheet Sunday!

As usual, post your character sheets in the replies.

There's nothing particularly pressing I want to bring up at the moment, so I'm going to go a bit more in depth into the details of the character sheet under the cut today.

Question of the Day:

"Guildmaster's getting drinks for everyone from the Cafe today! Do you want anything?"

What does your character ask to get from the Cafe?

As for Yew the Misdreavus here...

"Get me something as cold and black as the depths of my heart!"

"One hot chocolate with extra whipped cream, then?"

"NO!"

Didn't really have any witty commentary today, so instead I wanted to go through the character sheet.

At the top left are the basics of a Pokemon character. Name, pokemon species, pronouns, ability, etc. Nature in this system doesn't actually do anything mechanically - as with the Mystery Dungeon series, it's purely for flavor. I like to line my pokemon's personality with the stats that would result from it, but nobody's stopping you from having an Adamant special attacker or a Calm physical attacker.

Below that are your Level, Current/Max HP, Status, and Heal Pool. All translate directly from the mainline games aside from Heal Pool, which is our stand-in for PMD's regeneration - rather than slowly regenerating every few steps, our system has players regenerate their entire Heal Pool's worth of d6s every time they enter a new floor. No need to stall next to the stairs to make sure you're in top shape for the next floor.

Below that are the victories required to level up as well as the current number of victories your character has - our stand-in for experience points. Defeat a number of pokemon equal to your level to level up; Bosses might be worth more, while weak minions might not be worth anything at all - up to DM discretion.

At the bottom left, there's your personal type matchup chart. Mod Nines has it programmed to automatically factor in type interactions as well as Abilities, making effectiveness easy to figure at a glance. (Notably, super effectiveness actually only deals 1.5x damage in this system, so a Bisharp player doesn't instantly die from a random Low Kick; 2x and 4x are just useful shorthands. Resistance is unchanged, but super effectiveness and resistance still cancel out.)

Stats are self explanatory, with each one corresponding to a stat in the mainline games. You gain two stat points every 5 levels, but are required to put them into different stats, and can't go past 10. Most attack rolls will add a relevant stat and subtract the defender's defending stat from a 2d6 roll. Boosts cap out at +3, which is enough to almost guarantee a full/partial hit for an attacking stat or prevent incoming full hits for a defensive stat. Boosts also wear off after a few turns, so don't expect to Swords Dance at the start of a floor and then go on a rampage. Such effects are tracked in the bottom-middle area.

Both Items and Relationships are further developed in Dungeons - the former as the DM makes them available, and Relationships as your party members grow and interact with each other. Notably, most items only work within Dungeons - don't expect to demolish the guild with a One-Room Orb.

Finally, moves. Each character has Basic Attack which deals 1 damage, and can equip 4 moves available to them by level up (according to whatever generation last featured them). There are ways to gain access to moves outside your natural learnset, from TMs to Dojo training to Tutors - the more Keen Eye'd viewers might even notice Dirge, a move that doesn't actually exist in the mainline games.

There will be ways to gain access to homebrew moves, particularly for pokemon with poor levelup learnsets - after all, it'd be rather disappointing to have a Mawile character you're excited about only to realize that her only STAB move is Fairy Wind until she hits level 36 for Iron Head... that's over 600 Victories away. Even with how streamlined our system is, that's a long time!

As with the mainline games, moves have Power, effects, relevant attacking and defending stats, and PP. Most are equivalent to whatever counterparts the mainline games have for them, but a few get a bit more creative - for instance, many Dance moves like Fiery Dance can use Charisma instead of Insight, since. You dance. That's a charisma thing.

There's also Dojo Enhancements, ways to further customize moves. Enhancements are unlocked with your party's Rank, and can greatly change how a move is used. Earthquake, for instance, becomes a much more appealing option when you can ensure it doesn't damage your teammates!

The character sheet also has pages for players to manage their Bag, write up their backstory, gauge their personality, view how moves work in our system, and show off pictures of their characters. Here's Yew's!