#arcana discourse

[animatedapostasy]

Lisa's crush on Tatsuya works more than all the other Persona girls who are also hopelessly in love with the protagonist because P2 kind of operates on the assumption that it is unrequited and her character is built around that. Lisa's crush doesn't feel like self-insert wish fulfillment (cough cough Rise). it's actually something that deeply informs her character.

rejecting Lisa has her state that she hopes one day she'll be the girl of Tatsuya's dreams and that she'll still love him, just because. even a rejection feels like it hits the peak of her character development. every other girl when rejected pretty much just runs off and forgets about it the next day.

[deirdra-hearts-nadia]

I've been thinking about the fandom for The Arcana, and I have come to the conclusion that it's weird as hell. In my 20+ years participating in online fandom spaces, I've never seen a fandom quite like this one. I've seen drama, sure, but the core of most fandoms is a large community of people who love the same media and come together to celebrate it.

The Arcana fandom is not like that. From the very beginning we're more fractured, more factional, more fragile than most. You just have to look around at all the posts lamenting the death of the fandom every 2 weeks to see that something is really wrong here.

And I think a lot of it has to do with the nature of the canon. I am not saying this to criticize The Arcana, the devs, Dorian, or my fellow fans. I have just noticed that, as a piece of media, this game occupies a very unique space that is reflected in the way its fans interact with canon and with each other.

Welcome to the TED talk ain't none of y'all asked for.

Part of what makes this fandom unique is the evolution of fandom as a whole in the face of new types of media. As gaming becomes more mainstream and games themselves become more complex, the way we engage has necessarily changed in response.

Books/ movies/ shows are slightly more static in terms of canon than video games; canon is what it is and how you interact with what is there is largely to do with who you are. Everyone has the same base material to engage with, and that results in a certain amount of constancy. You can't interact with The Princess Bride in a way that changes the movie, only in ways that change your own perception. There isn't a whole lot of room for OCs without rewriting canon, so fans tend to consume OC-based fiction and art with the assumption that it's likely to be self-insert wish fulfillment fantasy time. That isn't always true, but there is a reason the term Mary Sue was coined.

Otome games and other choice-based video games make a very different fan environment, because the way you interact with canon is completely different. You have to build a character in order to interact with the story, and your choices directly impact your experience of canon.

But most western choice-based games are in the context of a larger RPG universe, e.g. Fallout or Dragon Age. There is a lot more to the story than the romance plot and so there's a lot more world to experience, contextualize, and build upon. There's certainly plenty of unhinged ShepxGarrus erotica, but there's also an abundance of fanworks that engage with the plot, the worldbuilding, and the canon characters with relatively little of the player's character needing to be on the page at all.

By contrast, most otome games that make it to English-speaking fandom spaces are Japanese. The romance is the point, but we also start from a place of wariness of our fellow fans. Because there's a huge difference between "harmless weeb" and "orientalist fetishizing creepo," and you know going in that both ends of the spectrum are possible, there is an amount of caution. We curate our space, looking for the creators who align with our expectations and values before we ever begin to interact.

The Arcana falls in a very unique and odd space because it is an otome, but made by Americans, with an attempt at a diverse fantasy cast. It's intended to be for American/ English-speaking audiences and is marketed as such. But making a romance game in America is challenging. Our way of approaching online media, especially smartphone-accessible media, is super fucked up, right? We are constantly trapped between the dichotomies of moral duty (Must Protect The Children) versus appealing to the customer base (Boom Anime Babes with Tig Ol Bitties). Because this is a mobile game, the developers can't make money if the game is removed from the app store, so they want it to be rated teen at the most. But the enticing bit, the thing that captures a potential fan's attention, is the flirtation and sexy implications. So from the jump they're in a weird space purely because they chose to make a mobile game instead of an indie video game released on Steam or similar.

So now you have an inherently split audience: mature adults who know they're getting into a potentially explicit romance game, and young adults/teens who have grown up in a more insulated internet culture where normal words are replaced with Orwellian doublespeak, like "unalive" and "spicy time".

THEN you add in the fact that the developers tried to build a diverse fantasy world, which is a fantastic idea both from an inclusionary standpoint and a broader audience standpoint. But because they didn't employ any actual sensitivity readers (did they think they didn't need them because fantasy can't have racism? Did they justify it as not being in the budget? Would love to know what's going on there) they fell right into a lot of the classic traps. We've been over these time and again, so I won't get into them here. Suffice to say, there has been Discourse. The presence of those issues means that more experienced fans will see those things and call them out, and that criticism causes even more of a split: the zealous apologists versus the critics. And critics can fall into two further categories: those who love the canon and want to see it do better, and the bitches who just love having something to bitch about.

Unfortunately, this combination means that there are inherently factions to this fandom, with staunchly opposed approaches to the media. So even before you enter a fandom space, it's already wildly fractured simply because of the nature of base canon.

THEN add to that the fact that this game is a dating sim. And to engage with a dating sim, you have to build a character and make choices based on that character. Some people will approach this work as storytelling, and some will approach it as an escapist expression of self. Neither of these ways of engaging with canon is wrong. Enjoying a dating sim as Me But Better is fun and completely valid! Engaging with a dating sim as a storyteller collaborating with the developers is fun and completely valid! But the two approaches are opposed in purpose, and that can make it difficult for the two types of fans to engage with one another's work.

Storytellers will well and truly invest in building a character. They may even build out communities, countries, cultures, and languages to make their world all the richer. They are investing hours of blood, sweat, and tears into Their Craft, pouring themselves into an opus of quality fanwork. Unfortunately, this can sometimes lead to big feelings. Fan artists and writers may feel underappreciated if all they get out of their hard work is 2 likes and a gif of a wolf making AWOOGA eyes. They may feel that critique of their work is unwarranted, or that there's no point creating if no one will engage.

The romantics will engage with canon and fanwork from the perspective that "this is my fantasy romance time". Their OC isn't so much Original Character as Optimized Characteristics--that is, their perfect self. They are here for wish fulfillment fun times in the relative privacy and anonymity of the internet, and good for them! But that may mean that criticism of canon or their fan work feels excessively personal--it is very hard to detach the ego from the OC when that OC is a projection of your best self. They may view any critique as a personal attack as opposed to a good-faith attempt at engagement or conversation. This can lead to defensiveness, or to leaving the fandom outright if it feels too hostile.

Unfortunately all of these factions cause rifts in the community. This sometimes turns into fandom vigilantism, where people begin to see any fan who doesn't wholeheartedly agree with them as an enemy. I've seen friends experience bullying and cruelty over their OCs and their art. I've seen predators use the isolated nature of the fandom to further isolate and prey upon already vulnerable individuals. I've seen some really shitty stuff.

But I have also seen beautiful community flourish. I've made friends who feel more like family than my actual relatives. I've seen people work through struggles and overcome deliberate attempts to tear us apart, finding forgiveness and friendship along the way. I've seen myself and others grow because of the community and inspiration we found here. And I saw all of that because I found my people. And I hope, Arcana fandom, that the rest of you can find your people too.

[rubinaitoart]

There’s a lot going on here that I frankly don’t have the energy to cover, but here’s some food for thought.

I’ve been thinking about the current state of the fandom, and the actions Dorian has been taking. It’s been putting me off because for the most part, there’s a gray area in which fandom operates in any piece of media; and Dorian is effectively meddling with that gray area in a way that is driving fans away. It’s been bothering me on a level I couldn’t really put my finger on.

And then I remembered, Dorian may be the copyright holders and owners of the game. But they aren’t the creators. This is where the disconnect is, and why they’re overstepping.

Legally they are within their right to do (most of) of what they are doing. It’s cruddy and violates a lot of the unspoken rules that exist between the fans and the creators, but they can do it. It’s very obvious that it’s targeted right now but that’s an entirely different topic that I don’t think I can comfortably discuss.

It’s interesting because there is another fandom I know of that is seeing (if it hasn’t concluded already) a slightly similar problem. The Undertale fandom has recently flocked around a fan game, Undertale Yellow—which used music from the original game. As far as I’m aware, the creator—Toby Fox—was fine with it. However, the copyright holders were not. Materium Music’s CEO did not want to allow the release of UTY’s album on YouTube and other streaming services even though Toby Fox approved of it. The soundtrack had many original elements but reused motifs and other fragments from Undertale’s soundtrack.

Sound familiar?

But while UTY had the original creator helping fight for their rights as fan creators, we do not. And so the copyright holders, Dorian, are doing what they can to protect the assets they own with very little thought for the creations outside of their own platform. The time and effort that goes into creating. The beautiful dedication to the game that, while they own, they did not create and as such they cannot appreciate it fully.

[lavenditsy]

asra alnazar

being in the arcana fandom in 2019-2020 (which i had no business being in since i was like 12-13 LMFAO) was so crazy because i remember the insane discourse around asra...

personally their route was my absolute favourite (i'm soft for the white-haired ones..) and in the friendgroup i was in at the time they would all be caught up on their 'emotionally manipulative behaviour'

dude... if someone you had loved for years died and you had the chance to bring them back and help them return to who they were before you lost them and despite all you did they chose someone else wouldn't you be a little distraught too !?!?!

ESPECIALLY !! if they got with their / your ex situationship ?!?! (for julian route) or the guy whos the reason behind their death via the plague !??! (lucio route)

idk.. reminiscing on discourse from way back then ..

[rozpach]

Does anyone think Muriel could have ever forgiven Lucio?

Edit: At this point I wanna know if anyone at any corner of the world thinks yes?

[juliandevoraksbignaturals]

I am incredibly disappointed to learn about how much toxic shit has been going on behind the scenes in this fandom recently. Not that every fandom doesn't have its issues, naturally, but some of what's come to light is just ridiculous.

To those involved parties who have been the ringleaders of this 3-ring shitshow, shame on you. Feeling not only the need but the justification to slander people based upon a distaste for a fucking fictional pairing, or a person's career choice, when you yourself are responsible for curating your own internet experience, is childish at best.

You guys are in a fandom full of wonderful people who take time out of their lives to provide you with Free Content. Expecting that content to cater to you personally all the time shows a sense of delusional entitlement that indicates that perhaps you aren't mature enough to get to play in fandom spaces, since you can't behave like a responsible adult.

To those that were caught up in the whirlwind of lies and conniving plots, I am incredibly proud of those of you who put your foot down and said, "Enough is enough." I commend you for putting together the receipts and evidence, and presenting it not only to those you've wronged but to the fandom at large. It takes courage to admit wrongdoing and to think critically enough to realize you've been played.

Finally, to those who have been the target of these attacks, to @asrabounding , @drakonishe , and many others, I would not only praise your strength and resilience in the face of such a shitstorm, but also, I would like to take the time to thank you for all the work you've done, and continue to do, for this fandom. You've never written off the fandom as a whole due to the idiotic actions of a choice few, and you've continued to work on multiple demanding projects in the meantime. I've had the pleasure of speaking to @drakonishe during this Arcanacon, not about this incident specifically, but as a friend, and I've been treated with nothing but respect and welcoming vibes.

We, as a fandom, yes, but also as people, need to start being kinder and more grateful to the people who take time to use their talents to bring us joy. How wonderful that we can say we have enough variety in the art and writing produced by this fandom to have content to cater to a variety of preferences! How delightful that we, as fans, can come together to discuss different viewpoints and outlooks, and to share our love for a cast of characters and stories that have captivated us all! We are so lucky to have such talented artists and writers and creators of all kinds in this fandom, but we stand to lose that if we can't be civil and grateful to those that create such delights in the first place.

In all, take a step back, take a breath, and reflect on the wonderful things we have as a fandom. Then go and tell your favorite creator how much you enjoy the things they make. Go tell your friends you appreciate them. Hug your freakin dog or cat. Put some good out there, and remember that behind every username is a person. Lead with kindness, with an open mind, and don't be afraid to admit it when you're wrong.

[amiibo-king]

i think the other thing that bothers me about the whole "asra/mc is power imbalanced" take that bothers me, besides the kind of ableist implication that mc having the magical equivalent of a TBI makes them basically a child, as well as the pretty flagrant mischaracterization of asra and general disregard for canon, is that it kind of pushes a specific characterization of MC that feels very presumptuous.

what i mean is, you can certainly argue that the mc and asra's situation *has the potential* for an unhealthy, imbalanced dynamic. certainly, all of the routes have that potential, its part of the point of their reversed ends. but, when it comes to two adults with equal political/social authority, whether or not a dynamic is unhealthy relies heavily on the personalities of the people involved. Just because a situation has the potential for an unhealthy dynamic doesnt mean one is automatically going to be there, and whether or not one forms is going to depend entirely on how both parties' personalities interact. in the same sort of way you can get an upright or a reversed end depending on the kind of mentalities you choose to encourage in your LI.

now, i would thoroughly disagree with anyone who claims that asra exhibits any sort of power over or manipulative behavior towards the MC even in his reversed end! but even putting that aside, the fact that the health of a dynamic is dependent on both parties personalities means that whether or not your MC's dynamic would be unhealthily balanced is going to vary from person to person.

Everyone brings their own personality to the MC, and I dont know about anyone else, but I personally have my own ways that I mentally bend the canon actions and reactions of the MC in my head as I read to better fit how I would react to things (because often i think, i would not react that way, but instead this other way!) and I think everyone does that to some degree. and I think where the people who make this argument are probably coming from is that they look at asra, and they look at their own MC, and they think, well, my MC would not have a healthy dynamic with them. which is fine, and they are allowed to feel that way! I frequently feel that way about Nadia's route because I have some discomfort with the idea of dating someone with that level of political power. but the problem is, instead of realizing that that is a function of their own MC's personality, and saying, "his route is not for me" they project that onto everyone else's MCs as well, and assume that everyone else's MC would have the same dynamic with asra that they personally would have.

And that bothers me, because you're welcome to have your own interpretation of the canon, even if I disagree with it. And you're allowed to have your own idea of your own MC's personality and dynamic with the LIs. But I would prefer if you didnt then try to tell me what the dynamic between *my* MC and their chosen LI looks like, because you can't know that.

there's more i could talk about, like the fact that the entire plot of asra's upright route revolves around mc and asra learning to flourish as individual equals, (to the point that i have to wonder if the people making this argument read his route all the way through) or my confusion about why the fandom latched on to asra/mc as the supposedly inherently unhealthy one when there are other routes with much worse potential for such imbalances, but this post is already so long as it is, so i'll end it here.

[doctowdebowak]

I didn't want to make this post on my main art account @vairow so I chose to put it here, where I posted most of my Arcana art, but...

While I am still proud of what I created, my work as Admin on the Fandom wiki, and even of Fields of Vesuvia, I will not be returning. Please do not expect for me to draw any more art from TAG or post about it anywhere.

I'm coming to terms with the fact I was abused by members I met from said fandom, and seeing my art made for and with those people puts a very bad taste in my mouth now, to the point I am debating removing my original posts.

I may not remove them simply because I see people still actively finding interest in them, but I hope those of you reading this understand<3

[omamervt]

I think the thing the "Arcana Check" discourse from a week or so ago has really revealed to me is that it's not just that a lot of D&D 5E players never bothered to learn the rules, it's not just that they see the rules as antithetical to roleplay rather than the thing that turns the roleplay into a "game." It's not just that the culture has taught players to think it's acceptable to push all the work of managing those aspects onto the DM, and taught DMs that this is the correct way to play.

These people all have active disdain for the game aspect in its entirety.

I forget who it was who said these people would all be happier doing Improv Theater even though not a single one of them would make a good stage partner, but they are absolutely right. The single most generous take I saw given under the Arcana Check post, that genuinely tried to offer some understanding and grace to the people who invoke mechanics without any action like that, and even THAT got some absurd pushback.

like, you claim to LOVE roleplay so much, you LOVE when the game "gets out of the way" to LET you Roleplay, but GOD FORBID you do the BARE MINIMUM amount of roleplay to invoke some mechanics.

[valtsv]

not sure if you’ve answered before, but what is your favorite video essay?

i have a collection

Control, Anatomy and the Legacy of the Haunted House by Jacob Geller (self explanatory but even after watching all his other video essays i still find this one the most compelling to return to over and over again. kind of like a haunted house you can never truly escape. i love the way that he blends media analysis and like. cultural and sociological history and discourses in general.)

We Need to Talk About Game of Thrones I Guess and The Last of the Game of Thrones Hot Takes by Lindsay Ellis (just... really good and hysterically funny critical analysis of how badly you can fuck up a story by not understanding its themes, worth a watch even if you've never seen a single episode of game of thrones in your life)

MsScribe: The Harry Potter Fandom's Greatest Con Artist by Eldena Doubleca5t (a brilliant deep dive into the msscribe incident which provides historical context for everything that happened and is also extremely funny; the tarot major arcana chapter break formatting is fucking genius)

Born Sexy Yesterday by Pop Culture Detective (had a massive impact on me and made me think more critically about media - in a good way!)

All of Overly Sarcastic Productions' Trope Talk videos are also very enjoyable and not too long

[rubinaitoart]

Alright I’m joining the complaint bandwagon here.

I’ll be honest I was fine with the Community Tab and I could handle the pop-ups at the start. I get it, Dorian wants users to check out their app. There’s plenty of advertisement for it, I’m sure it works well.

So why are they adding two new links to NON-DAILY events to the Dailies screen? These could fit perfectly as a regular pop-up, or in the community tab.

I also want to touch on the change to the Tales button. They swapped it so that Tales is the smaller one and the larger one takes you to Dorian. It irks me, a lot.

They said they wouldn’t touch it. Now it’s being turned into an advertising platform and losing the charm and magic that it originally had when I first got it.

[etherealsworldvision]

What’s Your Current Energy and The Energy You’ll Come Into?

[ With a Bonus Mini Letter from Your Inner Self ]

Before I begin the reading I’d like to take a moment to talk about: Monterey Bay Aquarium. They’re a non-profit organization that aims to inspire conservation of the ocean. If you’re interested do check them out and if you’d like to further support them click donate.

Divider Credit: @animatedglittergraphics-n-more

New song discovery for the reading: Ecstasy by Anna Tsuchiya

1. 2. 3.

🚨 P.S.A 🚨 : I do not give personal readings! Disclaimer: this is for entertainment only!

Added Description: all my readings are timeless and meant to reach those who resonate to the messages.

[ General Messages: 3; Secret Circle; Rings; Chesapeake Bay; Pink and Purple; “Pick Me”; Uses this :3 text emoji; Slow Burn; Gradual changes; Relationship Content; Insecurity; Free things; DnD; WhatsApp; Comparison; Anticipation; Lana Del Rey; Coquette & Cottegcore; Becauseimmissy content ]

Pile 1

Cards: 6 of Swords; The Chariot; 2 of cups ®; 9 of Pentacles ®; The High Priestess; 2 of Pentacles

[ Messages: Izana Kurokawa; Temperament; Full Moon; Sagittarius or Capricorn Moon; 222; Strength; Unconditional Love; Diluted; Akon (?); Jealousy, Jealousy by Olivia Rodrigo; Heal; 19 or 22; “Silver-Spoon”; Kyle; Craving; Fanfics; 66; 9; June 6th ]

This is oddly specific but Kyle kept popping up…so idk if you are or dealing with a person with that name. It may be an extra confirmation.

Your Current Energy:

You may have moved on from a romantic connection (I’m not getting platonic), I’m getting the sense that you’re in a good place right now. It could have been a big accomplishment because we have the chariot (major arcana). You might’ve experienced a traditional connection that ended up being what you imagined.

For some reason, I keep thinking about relationship advice on tiktok and twitter (discourses). It may have placed a negative effect on your perception of what a relationship is supposed to look like. For a few, you may have grown up around traditional relationships and (might subconsciously) sought for that. Overall there is an emphasis on Traditional relationships regarding gender roles and stereotypes. I feel like it doesn’t help that there’s also a new-age agenda of approaching (new) relationships (mind games) as well as isolation.

After experiencing that you might’ve thought, “Why does everyone want this?” Or “Relationships aren’t all that great”. There’s this sense of having a nihilistic view in love because of media and personal experience. Which, I don’t blame you.

I don’t know if you recently stumbled on a post or something about love but I feel like it challenged your stance on it. Which leads to you wanting a better mindset of love & connections despite what you’ve gone through. Currently, you may be trying to find the balance in your connection (with yourself and other people) and getting to really know yourself.

The energy you’ll come into:

With the high priestess here, you may be learning how to be in tune with your emotions and your gut when it comes to people/connections. I feel like, because you’re getting to know yourself better and starting to understand what you want you’ll have an easier time seeking balance.

Compromise and balance is being emphasized in this reading, so maybe that’s the thing you’ll be focusing on (healing). What is your relationship with Compromise and Balance? How did it affect you? I also see that this will come once understanding nuances instead of having an “extremist” view. Another thing is that you crave for a stable relationship and seek it by finding someone who is stable.

Which is fine but there’s this big need of: them having to be “the (perfect) one” before entering in a committed relationship. You may have gotten fs readings/astro stuff because of this. The funny thing here is — in order to be in a committed relationship is to be okay with the unknown and trusting yourself. I know it’s easier said than done but that’s what I’m getting.

Another thing I’m getting is how you’re challenging yourself to be more focused on yourself in terms of finances, health, and basically practical things. There’s this sense of being grounded; how you want to treat yourself via materials and consumption.

Letter from Your Inner Self

“Who said we have to be rigid to be treated like ‘royalty’? Look at Simba! He's fun and outgoing — he’s still a well respected king and with the love of his life! We need to loosen up a bit, be more courageous when it comes to stepping out of our comfort zone. The longer we stay in our old ways we’ll end up living with regret, that’s worse than living with consequences! How about we do the first thing we were scared of? If we get a booboo on our knee that’s fine at least we did it. If they don’t show interest then that’s okay too, we can continue to sail. All I’m saying is we should have the courage to go with the flow and live our life to the fullest instead of wallowing or through the screen/fantasies. Let’s embrace the unknown and hope for the best, yeah?”

Alrighty pile 1 that’s all I have for you today. Thank you so much for sticking through until the end, I greatly appreciate it. I’m giving you virtual hugs 🫂 and shooting hearts at you! 🧡🧡🔫 *Pew Pew*

Pile 2

Cards: Knight of Swords; King of Pentacles; Empress ®; 10 of Cups; Knight of Cups; The Devil

[ Confirmation Messages: Rollercoaster; Lilo & Stitch; “Inner Demons”; Renaldo from Los Espookys; Camera; Water and Earth Placements; San Francisco; Fear; Amusement Parks; Kali Uchis; ‘Take a Seat’; Road-trips; Night Drives; 333 ]

Your Current Energy

Okay Pile 2 your current energy is stable in terms of finances (as well as materialistic things) and you’re well grounded. You may be looking into how you can better your current financial stability or just being more responsible by getting your needs met especially in money matters.

Another thing is — there’s this sense of caution in regards to spending money. Now, I can’t give financial advice (it’s not my forte) but I can give reassurance. If there is a bit of wiggle room to spend on a snack or on that t-shirt you like then it’s okay to get it. I feel like there’s this sense of shame in regard to spending despite being able to afford things.

I used to feel this way as well and I remember talking to my cousin about it. They would tell me, “Whenever I feel guilty about spending on things I like, I think about the amount of hard working hours I put in to be able to afford it.” To lessen the guilt or shame of buying something that makes us* happy. This doesn’t have to apply to huge spends — can be minor ones like an album or that pint of ice cream you’ve been eyeing at the store.

There’s just this sense of guilt of spending which leads to a bigger guilt of not being able to nurture yourself in the way you want to. I feel like there’s this blame you have towards yourself for wanting things and punishing yourself for not doing it (the “damned if you do damned if you don’t” situation). Based on your cards I don’t see money issues (currently going on) but I do see the trauma linked to it. I don’t know if this stems from childhood or recent experiences.

(If you can, talk with someone you trust. They may have some insight that you need or just connecting with someone in general.)

The Energy You’ll Come Into

What’s funny is: there’s this sense of “fuck it we ball” vibe. I don’t know how it got to this sudden shift but it’s reminding me of one of the reasons why this acc exists. So maybe a tiktok or reel will piss you off into buying something for yourself with zero shame.

( I struggle with imposter syndrome, when I saw a YouTube short of someone dropping a 50lb lollipop from a rooftop and called it an “experiment” (it’s just obnoxious food waste! There was no science or anything!). I got so mad that they were earning money for wasting food I ended up saying “fuck this I’m adding to society” and boom here I am lol. )

I’m not saying your financial trauma is going to magically disappear but there is this sense of being fed up with how it makes you feel. If you are (or will be) seeing a therapist you may be working on your relationship with this financial trauma. I think another thing that you will be coming into is learning how spending and financial issues have affected you. I feel like during this period you may be reflecting on your relationship with money while doing exposure therapy.

But yeah the energy you’ll come into is indulgence and emotional fulfillment (however be careful as to not over do it) without zero shame. Despite not having any balance cards besides the King of Pentacles — I do feel like that’s what you’ll be coming into. Working on balancing your wants and needs while regulating your emotions when it comes to money.

Letter from Your Inner Self

“I know we struggled with money but we’ve put in the hard work to make ourselves happy. Why not bask in our success for just a minute? Why not see how far we come by planning something for ourselves? Can’t we at least congratulate ourselves for putting our foot in the door and say “I did it”! Because we did do that! Yeah, yeah we dealt with delays, some difficulties along the way but we pulled through! We did that, baby! We made it happen — we have a job, a career! Let's celebrate ourselves and give ourselves the gratitude we deserve. We fucking earned it!”

Alrighty pile 2 that’s all I have for you today. Thank you so much for sticking through until the end, I greatly appreciate it! I’m wishing you the best! Remember it’s okay to have nice things for yourself! 🧡

Pile 3

Cards: Page of Swords; The World; 7 of Cups; Page of Pentacles; Knight of Cups; The Hierophant ®

[ Confirmation Messages: Astrology; Occult; Investments in Hobbies; Culinary Arts; New Passions; Lack; TikTok; Radios; Seltzers; Renaissance Fair; OktoberFest (?); Young or New Energy; Amethyst Crystal (Pendant); Twilight; Taking a Leap of Faith; Vampires; Vibrant Personality: 3 Body Problem ]

Your Current Energy

Your energy is like the sun after a cloudy day — like it is not like the other two piles. To be honest your excitement feels so contagious (in a good way). So you may have been very patient in the past or passive. You kind of just let life pass you by until something comes up.

When it did come to you and you took that chance it’s as if the world showed itself. There's so many options to choose from and that’s what’s getting you super excited. I feel called to say there are not wrong choices as it can work out with persistence and hard work.

Since you are in the process of accomplishing things or already achieved it — you may be wanting to expand/explore what’s out there for you. Let's say you got your drivers license, now you get to drive to the place you want. Or let’s say you took a chance on an idea then suddenly, you get loads of engagement. Because you took this chance a lot of opportunities are coming your way to the point it’s almost overwhelming.

The Energy You’ll Come Into

Because you’re putting in the work towards something you love — you’ll feel more fulfilled. I feel like whatever you’re working on will be another way to gain connections. It doesn’t have to be transactional connections — it just means you may make friends along the way or collaborate.

This especially applies to people who went the “unconventional route”. It feels like you made a decision that really aligns with you. I think what also really inspired you is seeing how people made their dreams come true, even if it’s by doing the simplest things. There is encouragement to remain open to what’s to come, especially when it comes to your creative skills.

I’m not getting too much on your future energy besides you making an earning from it and feeling fulfilled. I am getting this celebratory vibe that you have done it from the ground up. Through your patience and perseverance you were able to make it happen. I’m also getting a confirmation “yes, do it” to the question you’ve been really really thinking about.

Letter from Your Inner Self

“Listen…I know your intuition and anxiousness is going haywire right now. However, to feel your intuition you’ll feel a strong and I mean a strong pull to do something. I’m encouraging you to do it — do it even if you’re alone. You’ll never know the outcome unless you do it. Yes it’s unconventional but what’s the harm in taking that chance? We did it once, why not do it again and see where it takes us? It’ll make us happier knowing we did it instead of never doing anything. I believe in us, so don’t lose hope.”

Alrighty Pile 3 that’s all I have for you. Thank you so much for reading until the end, I greatly appreciate it! I’m so excited for you and wishing for things to go smoothly! Best of luck! 🍀🧡

[feelingthemode]

arcana posting!!! (i'm unwell)

no discourse or you'll explode (i'll block you)

what flags are these?

julian - bi, genderqueer, ptsd, bpd

nadia - bi, aceflux, npd

muriel - bi, demiromantic, autistic, ptsd

portia - bi, demiwoman, adhd

asra - bi, nonbinary, adhd

[utilitycaster]

Not to harp on that anon as well, but man, the reason the inter PC dynamics were so tepid and lukewarm (outside of like 1 or two imo) was because they were allergic to confrontation. A good portion (not all ofc) of the C2 discourse came from things happening within the Campaign and people arguing which blorbo was right (crollgate, bowlgate, etc) and later campaign was more ship based iirc, C3 discourse was more about people saying "hey it's kinda fucked up that Imogen kept pressing the button to incinerate the other party during the heist" and the response was mainly "you are attacking Imogen for displaying #girlpower, you are attacking my blorbo and, in turn, me, i see that misogyny and homophobia is still rampant in the fandom", there was little engagement to what the things discussed actually, and more about "fighting" character assassination for the pretend people

So like, if you agreed to the general opinion of the fandom, yeah it wasn't that toxic ig, careful if you like any other character however

So on the one hand you are right in terms of the tenor of the problem - it really was "I cannot bear to see the fandom speak ill of my blorbo at all, no they are TOTALLY flawed it's just YOU CAN'T TALK ABOUT IT because you haven't passed my personal purity tests, ie, being exactly like me" and so on and so forth, and yes, overidentifying with the characters and demanding you be nice to the characters to be nice to them, which is not unique to Campaign 3 but was certainly far more prevalent.

I think however it's notable that like...it was the holders of specific opinions - not even the general opinion of the fandom. like, I have consistently been open about thinking that Taliesin and Liam have no unique chemistry, that no pairing of their main campaign characters has ever had anything I've found worth exploring, and you know what? no one's made death threats towards me over that or asked me why I like Fjord and Jester even though Molly and Caleb have more fics, and Imo/dna fans have repeatedly done this. I was lukewarm-to-overly harsh on Veth and Vax (to give some examples) for a long time before realizing I was being overly harsh, openly didn't care for Molly, and pretty complimentary towards Beau and yet I have gotten zero shit from Veth and Vax fans (at most I think people may have quietly blocked or unfollowed) and about the same amount of shit from Molly stans and from Beau stans over time. Like, I got the same amount of people getting on my ass over me saying "I didn't want Molly to come back in episode 140 and I'm glad he didn't" and saying that Caleb was better than Beau at arcana, an objectively true statement.

It's not the fandom opinion; it's fans of specific characters or ships who do not take out the trash and indeed defend it.

[slashwhores]

Someone actually needs to make a video essay on Arcana because the amount of discourse over the past few year is genuinely insane.

[kirbyofthestars]

thank you!!! i appreciate the ask :>

i’ll answer this in two parts bc it’s gonna get long otherwise! first, for mister jesus is my virtue but judas is the demon i cling to (i cling to) I’m not as Mahoroapilled as many of my friends are but I have written him on a handful of occasions so I’ll give it a shot.

I’m of the opinion that he represents a sort of synthesis between the two warring factions of the Ancients that Hyness talks about - if Susie represents science and technology and Taranza represents magic and arcana, Magolor blends the two seamlessly; he’s equally savvy with both. His fluttery wizard robes have a gear motif and he’s the captain of a sentient starship.

Also, according to the Epilogue, his magic straight up runs off of a combination of ingenuity, creativity and trickery, which I find REALLY cool to contemplate. He can summon black holes that smell like cinnamon (why? why not!)

He’s so endearingly affably evil and it’s not even a façade or anything, it’s just How He Is - even when he’s possessed by the Crown, he’s downright charming and genial. He’s your best friend, after all! Even if he’s a backstabbing bastard, you really can’t help but like him. He’s just charismatic like that. And he genuinely does see Wave Zero / the Dream Team as his friends and feels remorse over betraying them! lol get attached loser

Speaking of the Epilogue, I find the “is Magolor from Halcandra or not” discourse in the wake of RTDLDX to be really funny. was he lying? was he lying about lying? is the related to or descended from the Ancients or is he just kind of a weeaboo? who knows!

also to top it all off hes kity. 11/10 beast no notes.