#art fight event drama

[artfoold00k]

Art Fight summary

For my own performance

POSITIVES ☉ Good creating speed ☉ Learned and tried new things ☉ Tested/created different tools for inking ☉ Mostly good feedback from recipients ☉ New connections, more exposure ☉ Proud of my custom assets

NEGATIVES ⨷ Applied unnecessary limitations (style, theme, quality) ⨷ Not enough diversity, no creature OCs ⨷ Not enough male characters ⨷ Half of the expected number of finished works ⨷ Overthinking and outperforming ⨷ Technical issues with Clip Studio software ⨷ Poor mental health days, draining

· • —– ٠ ✝ ٠ —– • ·

My plan was to try new art things with each drawing I make, learn new tricks, and apply/practice them. By doing this I increased creating time by a lot and so it wasn't wise to continue. Not when quantity is more important than quality.

I'm very glad that I didn't push myself too much and didn't burn out from this experience.

➽ Let me know which of my July's artworks is your personal favorite. Leave a comment, tell how you see my art, and what you value in it. I'd appreciate the feedback.

· • —– ٠ ✝ ٠ —– • ·

Regarding Art Fight event management itself. Disappointing and bad.

🅧 Frequent maintenance in the first days indicates that admins were not prepared well. Assets were provided with delay. 🅧 Some small parts of the website are still broken as many years before. 🅧 The whole freaking drama unraveled among the staff in the only month everyone needs them to do their work well! Scam, staff shifts, owner change, negativity. Toxic and unprofessional. 🅧 Changes made to the event DURING the event. For example, team points calculation, changes to the search filter, and more. All the changes should be made BEFORE the time. 🅧 Bad Discord server maintenance. Poor structure, boring, immature. I expect more from Discord partners, for an old event with a huge community. I don't see a reason for me to be a member of their server in this situation. 🅧 Artists delete/archive their characters during the event. It's irritating at least. What if I'm in the process of drawing? I won't be able to submit my attack.

· • —– ٠ ✝ ٠ —– • ·

When time/energy allows, I plan to create TikTok content from all the speedpaint recordings I made during July.

[artfightdramaconfessions]

Man I wish Art Fight could be free of drama, it’s such a fun event, I always have a nice time drawing for people, but there’s so much shit happening all the time in the community lol

Outside of the latest stuff happening, which is actually serious, most of it is petty or just easily avoidable if people acted as decent individuals

.

[raredrop]

im glad i havent run into the tiktok drama artists on art fight

ive never really noticed anything the few years ive been doing it outside of maybe my ocs getting misgendered (they SHOULD all be labeled with their pronouns) or that time a child character was given boobs

perhaps they just havent seen me or the fact that im most likely older than them makes them nervous

[teeto-peteto]

Exactly. Cyberpunk city has so many interesting stories in it if you just output in a little legwork, but Riot would rather add more “rebels vs evil corporation.”

haha thats so funny cause riot is a corporation writing about an evil corporation. What a coinkydink.

[blughxreader]

platonic yandere batfam thoughts...

how you end up integrating into the family.

I think we often forget how insidious the long-term effects of kidnapping are. Your whole world narrows and you have nothing fulfilling outside of them.

Realistically, how many weeks straight can you do nothing but look at your phone/watch TV? I know we do this every day, but we have school/work/friends/family to provide actual fulfillment and joy. But when you take that away? And have to decide whether you should scroll through monitored social media or talk to your captors?

Especially because the TV doesn't distract from the cold, hard gaze of the surveillance cameras in your room.

Even if you read and craft and cook, it's so difficult to keep your mental health in-tact without having a positive interaction with another human being.

It would start small.

It's morning and Cass smiles at you from across the breakfast table. Not wanting to be rude, you smile tightly back.

Jason wordlessly slides you a book. You take it.

After a few months, you feel slightly more comfortable about taking up space in the manor. Alfred is out of town for the weekend, so you make a sandwich with Tim.

Bruce talks to you about the new scientific breakthrough at Wayne Enterprises and keeps you relatively up-to-date on major world events. You begrudgingly learn more interesting facts than public school has ever taught you.

Soon, you've watched everything good on Netflix. You exhausted your tolerance for social media. You've given yourself headaches reading so much. You've hit an art/writers block like never before because your input has run dry.

With no other source of entertainment, you become more attentive to the Bats.

Of course, you've always watched them out of fear. But as months tick by and you've learned their hearts (and delusions), it's obvious that they would never hurt you. Furthermore, operating within their expectations is easy enough as long as you never challenge them, so the constant danger-sense slowly turns off.

However, because you don't have any outside noise to occupy your mind, drama in the house becomes almost life-and-death to you.

Peace is so fragile, and it's all you have.

Damian and Bruce return from patrol in a rage one night. Damian's furious echoes bouncing upstairs, followed by Bruce's low, indistinguishable scorn.

Fuck, you think. Now your and Bruce's talks are going to be stilted and uncomfortable. Now Damian is going to sulk in your room for hours, unwilling to talk about what happened yet wanting some kind of reassurance.

You can't keep them from fighting, but you want to protect your peace.

When you first arrived in this dreadful manor, you never would have imagined you'd offer them kind words and affection. However it's the only thing you can do now.

There's conflict. The house is tense--your world is tense.

Should you call Dick? He has a day job again, so he can't come over until tomorrow night. It's up to you to ease the tension.

So you do, slowly, with homemade food and Bruce's favorite coffee blend and Damian's favorite hot chocolate. You sit with them individually, shoulder to shoulder (much closer than you would normally sit), and pretend everything is alright. They're surprised but very quick to snap back into a good mood.

The house is suddenly back in order and you did it all by yourself.

And with these vigilantes, conflict is ripe. There's always people coming and going, fighting and playing, and you're unwillingly the most in-tune with the well-being of everyone's relationships.

You protect your peace. You protect the house.

this shit makes me gnaw at my enclosure. if you're fem, it's worse because ✨ stereotypical woman archetype ✨ anyway this has been on my mind because i've been taking care of my baby chicks and cooking dinner most nights, so i'm like 💁‍♀️ i could be a captive house wife click here for my yandere batfam masterlist

[phenakistoskope]

There is a difference between Bollywood and Bombay cinema?

listen, subcontinental cinema began in bombay; the very first exhibition of the lumieres' cinematographe was held there in 1896, a few months after its debut in paris, 1895. this event predates the discursive existence of bollywood and hollywood. shree pundalik and raja harishchandra, the films that are generally considered the very first subcontinental features were also exhibited there first.

subcontinental cinema under british colonialism was produced in certain metropolitan centers such as lahore, hyderabad, and calcutta; bombay was just one of them. in 1947, when the indian nation state was formally inaugurated, the idea of a "national cinema" began forming, but given the cultural and linguistic heterogeneity of the indian union, this was quite untenable. regional popular cinemas flourished well into the 1950, 60s, 70s, and 80s and various art cinemas began taking shape alongside.

under the economy that i'm going to completely elide as "nehruvian "socialism"" bombay cinema focused on broadly "socialist" themes, think of awara (1951), do beegha zameen (1953), pyaasa (1957), all of which focus on inequality in indian economy and society from different perspectives. these films were peppered in with historical dramas, and adaptations from literature, but the original stories tended towards socialist realism. reformist films centering the family generally waxed poetic on the need to reform the family, but i haven't seen enough of these to really comment on them.

the biggest hit of the 70s, sholay (1975) was about two criminals, posited as heroes fighting gabbar singh who was attacking village folk. deewar (1975) also had two heroes, and the stakes were the two brothers' father's reputation; the father in question was a trade union leader accused of corruption.

"alternative cinema" included mani kaul's uski roti (1969) and Duvidha (1973) both of which were situated away from the city. then there's sayeed mirza and his city films, most of them set in bombay; arvind desai ki ajeeb dastan (1978), albert pinto ko gussa kyun aata hain (1980), saleem langre pe mat ro (1989) which are all extremely socialist films, albert pinto was set in the times of the bombay textiles strike of 1982 and literally quotes marx at one point. my point is that bombay cinema prior to liberalization was varied in its themes and representations, and it wasn't interested in being a "national cinema" very much, it was either interested in maximizing its domestic profits or being high art. note that these are all hindi language films, produced in bombay, or at least using capital from bombay. pyaasa, interestingly enough is set in calcutta, but it was filmed in bombay!

then we come to the 1990s, and i think the ur example of the bollywood film is dilwale dulhania le jayenge (1995) which, in stark contrast to the cinema that preceded it, centered two NRIs, simran and raj, who meet abroad, but epitomize their love in india, and go back to england (america?) as indians with indian culture. this begins a long saga of films originating largely in bombay that target a global audience of both indians and foreigners, in order to export an idea of india to the world. this is crucial for a rapidly neoliberalizing economy, and it coincides with the rise of the hindu right. gradually, urdu recedes from dialogue, the hindi is sankritized and cut with english, the indian family is at the center in a way that's very different for the social reform films of the 50s and 60s. dil chahta hai (2001) happens, where good little indian boys go to indian college, but their careers take them abroad. swadesh (2004) is about shah rukh khan learning that he's needed in india to solve its problems and leaves a job at NASA.

these are incidental, anecdotal illustrations of the differences in narrative for these separate eras of cinema, but let me ground it economically and say that bollywood cinema seeks investments and profits from abroad as well as acclaim and viewership from domestic audiences, in a way that the bombay cinema before it did not, despite the success of shree 420 (1955) in the soviet union; there were outliers, there always have been.

there's also a lot to say about narrative and style in bombay cinema (incredibly diverse) and bollywood cinema (very specific use of hollywood continuity, intercut with musical sequences, also drawn from hollywood). essentially, the histories, political economies, and aesthetics of these cinemas are too differentiated to consider them the same. bombay cinema is further internally differentiated, and that's a different story altogether. look, i could write a monograph on this, but that would take time, so let me add some reading material that will elucidate this without sounding quite as fragmented.

bollywood and globalization: indian popular cinema, nation, and diaspora, rini bhattacharya mehta and rajeshwari v. pandharipande (eds)

ideology of the hindi film: a historical construction, madhav prasad

the 'bollywoodization' of the indian cinema: cultural nationalism in a global arena, ashish rajadhyaksha

the globalization of bollywood: an ethnography of non-elite audiences in india, shakuntala rao

indian film, erik barnouw and s. krishnaswamy (this one's a straight history of subcontinental cinema up to the 60s, nothing to do with bollywood, it's just important because the word bollywood never comes up in it despite the heavy focus on hindi films from bombay, illustrating my point)

[sh0jun]

Ikemen Sengoku Modern AU

Boys as various university professors or teachers--

I'm not elaborating it much for now

Maybe there would be updates idk--

Oda forces

→ Nobunaga Oda (Academic Head/Economics teacher)

He's gonna have a separate drawer in his office FILLED with candies

That drawer has a lock on it all the time (he doesn't want Hideyoshi to find out about it)

→ Hideyoshi Toyotomi (history teacher)

Really looks up to the department head

Very patient with all the students and will help each and every single one of them :)

You'd see him in the halls A LOT

so be careful. If you get caught breaking the rules you WILL be lectured by him

He keeps a check on every teacher's health too- also he would tell you to take it easy if he sees that you're not well

Also pretty good at giving motivational speech

→ Mitsuhide Akechi (computer science)

Okay hear me out. This man will be GOOD with computers and technology.

The event stories prove it

He's the teacher you'll go to every time there's something wrong with your iPad

And he WILL tease you endlessly

→ Mitsunari Ishida (Maths teacher)

For obvious reasons.

Our clumsy but very smart angel.

He'll be very kind. And calmly teach you if you're having trouble with a math problem no matter how many times you come to him

But no matter what you do, you won't be able to get his attention if he's reading

The janitor has caught him several times in the library reading books in a secluded corner when it's late in the night

Librarians sometimes have to kick him out

→ Masamune Date (food tech)

Yes.

I think it's self explanatory (I don't have anything to say about him I'm sorry-)

You'd always. ALWAYS. catch him at the farmers market.

→ Ieyasu Tokugawa (Biology/ chemistry teacher)

Yes.

He knows his stuff when it comes to plant and medicine

He'd be very cranky if you come to his with a question but he will answer it in full detail

He does NOT like the math teacher

The math teacher and the physics teacher seem to constantly fawn over him which he does not enjoy.

→ Keiji Maeda (Drama/music teacher)

Pretty self explanatory this one.

He and the literature teacher are good friends :3

Best friends in fact.

He's the cheery teacher. Very enthusiastic.

→ Ranmaru Mori (teacher assistant)

The principal's assistant to be more specific

Running around doing errands for Nobunaga. Looks very cute and is very helpful

The students love him

Kasugayama forces

→ Kenshin Uesugi (specialist PE teacher/sports department head)

Martial arts. Fencing. Horse riding. Swimming. Sword fighting. You name it

This guys knows EVERYTHING

he trains students in these sports for competitions.

The group sports activities go to the other gym teacher

Very cold. And seems very rude and icy. But will teach you if you ask for his help

Also do NOT expect him to go easy on you

It's your first time learning judo? Will TOO bad. You will be thoroughly beaten up by this guy

→Shingen Takeda (DT/department head)

The hot teacher who's at the carpentry workshop

Many students attend the workshop JUST to see him

Very nice. Flirt to everything that breathes

Loves sweets just like the academics Department head.

But doesn't like Nobunaga at all

→Yukimura Sanada (PE teacher)

The worst PE teacher you'll ever have 💀

Doesn't know how to talk to students or teachers which result in him getting some pretty snarky comments

Is in charge of preparing sports teams for sports competitions

Does not like Kenshin's guys but has to put up with them

He's best friends with the physics teacher and they sometimes show experiments together (yuki is the lab rat of course)

→Sasuke Sarutoki (Physics teacher)

That fun physics teacher that shows experiments in the class

Uses memes in his lectures

All his lectures are extremely fun

The students are often confused as to how does he always has a straight face

The PE teacher is his guinea pig at times

The sports department head has some beef with him for some reason

→ Yoshimoto Imagawa (Arts teacher)

The guy LOVES art and appreciates it to his fullest

This job was MEANT for him

Will appreciate your art and also give you pointers if you ask for it

Very charming

Students fawn over him

Has a very soothing voice along with a pretty face

→ Kanetsugu Naoe (Literature teacher)

Teaches English along with Japanese

Very strict

He's pretty and has little fangs but the students are afraid of him

A very good teacher

But also does some very strict marking in tests

Do not try to fight with him cause he will point out all the grammatic errors

Lone forces

→ Kicho (linguistics teacher)

Teaches other foreign languages

Like French, Chinese, Korean, Spanish, German, arabic, Russian. You name it.

This guy is a genius

He and the computer tech teacher are cousins

Seems very tired always (cough blackholes cough)

→ Motonari Mouri (portugese teacher)

Yes.

No comment on him.

Those who know him well will probably get it.

Will teach you every single curse word there is >:D

→ Kennyo (History teacher/ religious studies)

He does not like how modern studies are taking over

No phones allowed in his class

Very calm but also hella intimidating

Uhhh- does not put up well with the Computer tech teacher's antiques

Usually eats alone outside with cats.

Animals love him <3

Mai

→ Mai Mitsuzaki (Textiles teacher)

Das right. Mah girl gets her own category

The most fashionable teacher on campus

Everyone loves her

Shingen, Masa and she are the DT trio

Will teach you all there is to know about clothes and fashion

Designs the best clothes

She should be a designer.

Tags: cause idk who wants to be tagged--

@ikesenanigans (we came up with these together<3)

@rubia8 @bakersgrief @nightvers @ginshoujo @y2ashlee

UHHHH IDK WHO ELSE :(

Anyways Enjoy :D

This is my first hc that i wrote--

Leave in the comments whatever else you want to add? Idk how this works bro- (　-̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥᷄◞ω◟-̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥᷅ )

[tswaney17]

Some Perspective

The drama surrounding Elain Week is utterly ridiculous, and I cannot believe I'm having to write this, but for some unknown reason, people just can't seem to grasp the purpose of the "no abusers" rule set by the event team. So, let me break this down for you.

First off, this is not a shipping event. Elain Week is about (surprise!) Elain Archeron. It is a week designed to celebrate the love of her character. There is one prompt that is specifically designated for relationships. However, that can include her relationships with her sisters, her friends, and yes, potential love interests. The week is not supposed to be focused on those around her. It is supposed to be about HER.

Now let's address the whole ship thing. This rule has been in place for several years now. It is not new. So, why is it now such a big deal? After several years of having this rule in place, why is it only now becoming a big issue? Does it really bother you, or are you just looking for a fight?

But why was the rule put in place to begin with? Elain is one of the most hated characters (if not the most) in the ACOTAR fandom (for reasons I cannot even fathom). Is it because she's a traditionally soft, feminine character or because the fictional male you like actually has shown interest in her? Either way, Elain is often shipped with CANON DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ABUSERS such as Tamlin or Beron (or Flynn's DV father from Crescent City - yes, I have seen this) to make her "interesting" or to "make him better" (incase you have forgotten: women are not a rehabilitation center for broken men). Or, she's shipped with them to dehumanize her, to demean her, or even degrade her. Again, let me reiterate that this week is about positively celebrating Elain's character. So, why would the event hosts want to share art or fics or creative content that does the exact opposite? Why should those that truly love Elain be forced to watch you rip her apart during HER appreciation week? How is that fair?

Is it possible that there are some people who truly ship Elain with DV abusers with good intentions? Yes, absolutely. But is it fair to ask the event hosts to have to search through every single post and make a determination whether it's positively or negatively reflecting Elain's character? No.

If they decided to do that, and made a decision to not share some content that was determined to not attribute positively to Elain's character, would you still be throwing a fit? - Do I need to actually answer this one because we know what it would be.

So, they made a choice to set a boundary to 1) protect their DV victims who have voiced concerns in the past and 2) to ensure that this appreciation week for Elain Archeron actually stays positive. They are not saying you can't ship who you want. They have not said you cannot create whatever content you want for this event. They are only choosing to ensure that the pages dedicated to Elain remain clean of Elain hate and slander.

Ship who you want, have appreciation weeks for whatever you decide, it literally doesn't matter. But don't come at the event hosts for striving to keep things positive for a character that nine times out of ten, is negatively spoken about. If you don't like it, you are more than welcome to host your own.

Which brings me back to my earlier question... Those that are up in arms about this rule and who are bullying the event hosts (don't deny that you are, I've seen some of things being said. I've scrolled through the tags. You are indeed, bullying and harassing the hosts.), tell me - were you actually going to participate in Elain Week or are you, as I mentioned before, just looking to pick a fight?

[sleidog]

GW2 artists!

i'm hosting an art fight-esque guild wars focused event in july, running in tandem with art fight [I am unable to budge on this, please do not ask] https://discord.gg/bj6s3AtYJy you can join here! :> you must be: over 18 primarily a guild wars creator [art, writing, crafts, etc] willing to create for your fellow creators! able to leave any interpersonal drama at the door [I will not tolerate it] consider this to be like a month long art party that isn't bound by server zones or when you have time off work! this server will only be active for 3 months of the year. june through to august, with the game itself happening through july. we'd love to have you, and this will be our first year running and the event's success [or lack of] this year will affect whether or not we run it again, as it's a lot of work!

[small-sinclair]

Headcons of Slasher Band!au (House of Wax)No One Asked For

By: @arkunder

Lester has a bag of Hot Cheetos by his drums. During the show when Bo is talking, he munches on them.

Jonesy comes out on stage sometimes. She is the official #1 Fan of the fan club. Out of them all, she has the most fanart along with the raccoon (see below out that).

If the stage has a cat-walk, Bo uses it to his advantage to flirt and drive girls crazy. He’ll kneel in front of a group, his hand touching someone else’s, and he’ll take her hand, kiss it, wink, and keep singing. He loves it.

They once bought Girl Scout cookies in the middle of the show.

Lester ordered food in the middle of the show and asked what the other two wanted. During break, they are cheese fries and burgers in front of fans.

Vincent likes looking at fanart. He’ll sign the signs and art if he has the chance. Sometimes, if the art is really good, he’ll buy it if the fan or get information from them (like kofi or something) and commission something.

When Bo is drunk, he starts singing “I Wanna Dance With Somebody”. They have an unofficial cover of that song.

Lester has little raccoon charm for luck. He also has the raccoon squashmellow sitting in front of the drums. The fans worship the squishmellow raccoon. There’s merch, fanart, tattoos— this raccoon has a grip on the fandom.

Vincent has a base that is clear and made from glass (which he made), and he has one that looks like wax melting.

Bo once stopped the show and had the lights turn on because there was a guy trying to force himself on a girl. It ended with Bo himself dragging that guy out and threw him in front of a moving car.

At the end of certain shows, the brothers go off stage and meet up where there’s no cameras or fans, no eyes or anything, and do a group hug. Lester in the center of the hug, Bo on the right, Vincent on the left, they do one big hug to celebrate their hard work.

Whenever Bo lets Lester sing, Bo lets him sing a sad/slow song. The crowd absolutely loves to hear him sing and will actually go silent to hear his hypnotic voice.

It’s not a kid-friendly show, however, if their is a kid in the front and one of the boys sees them, they’ll give a pick or drum sticks.

Before the show, they play a video/psa going over crowd safety. There’s this part:

Bo: Make sure you look for your nearest exit if there’s an emergency, you dumb fucks.

Lester: And, please, don’t fight people. It’s not nice and is a crime in every state. :D

Bo: Unless you fight me. Then it’s not a crime.

Vincent, signing: It’s still a crime.

✨Bonus✨

All the slasher bands have a week where they play at a venue. It’s called Seven Bloody Nights. During this, the bands raise money for children hospitals, homeless shelters, animal shelters, crisis relief programs, mental health services and community, cancer research— it’s a great event with horror and gore and music!

Going off that, the last night, all the bands play together and make a masterpiece BANGER of a song. They put aside their hatred for each other and drama to play something that Vincent, RZ!Michael, and Brahms wrote. Jonesy even puts help into with her paw print, the Approval Mark. Even the legendary Michael Myers (Grandpa Myers), the one who started this event in memory of his sister dying to cancer, plays with the bands!

[thealexandriaarchives]

'Oh I'm Really Dune-it Now!' Masterpost

Welcome to the blog, the usual mishmash of nonsense will continue but for anything I'm creating myself lately it will likely be for the Dune Fandom, mostly a hodgepodge of Villeneuve Movie & Book Canon.

If you want to opt-out of this, all my original posts related to Dune will be tagged #duneposting for blacklisting.

Finally, add me on twitter @montager7 & Discord as montager if you use either for fandom stuff. I'm trying to get a feel for the size & shape of the Dune fandom, I think we can get writing & art events going in hiatus!

My Live & Updated Fiefdom of Dune Creations:

Dune Meta Rants, AKA:

Dune Fandom, We Need to be Hornier About Fluids

The One Where I Scream About Sand and Balance in Dune's Rigged Fights

Brian Herbert's Bitchy Dune Messiah Intro

The One Where I Talk About Feyd-Rautha's Introductory Scene and How We Were Too Distracted By Rizz to See Trauma UPDATED: The DEFINITIVE Version With Duke Leto (2.0) (New)

(Optional Alternate Early Cut): (1.1) Where I Went Back & Had Even MORE Traumatic Realizations about Feyd-Rautha that later got validated somewhat by Villeneuve's interviews confirming he wanted the final fight to be a 'consummation' of what never was.

Hey Do You Guys Remember in the Book Paul Was Going to Let Gurney Halleck do War Crimes on Feyd-Rautha? (New)

Meta Coming Soon - Yell at Me in DMs:

Heavily Academically Source-Cited Essay on Why Blacking Feyd-Rautha's Teeth was a More Insane and Correct Decision than Even Villeneuve Could Have Probably Considered.

Pollution, Shaving, Hierarchy of Nobility, & Gendered Clothing on Giedi Prime

The Detailed Breakdown of Bullfighting Imagery & Metaphor in Villeneuve's Dune 1 & 2.

The Impassioned Defense of Why Villeneuve's Feyd-Rautha Actually Might Like Rabban, Siblings in Abusive Homes, the Relationship Therein, and Fandom Mischaracterizations.

Dune Memes & Misc Shitposts:

The Arrakeen Royal Ballet AU (Fair game to write or draw) (New)

FeydPaulChaniIrulan needs to be called 'The Paulycule' (New)

Dunewave Exists, It Fucks, and I Need You All To Listen To It (New)

Paul Atredies, Cinnamon Roll Evolution (New)

Dune: MerMay Edition (New)

"Feyd-Rautha is a Cannibal"

Focused Feyd-Rautha Meme

RIP NoHo Hank i know you would have rocked just the sluttiest little couture Feyd-Rautha Halloween costume

Dune Fanvids / Crackvids

Big New Feelings Paul Atredies & Lady Jessica w/ PaulChani & FeydPaul Comedy/Crack - 2:41

Family Secrets Always Come Out... (1.0?) Lady Jessica & Paul Atredies/Muad'dib & Glossu Rabban Comedy Crack/Character Study? - 0:50 CW: Canon-Level Emetophobia & Violence

[BIG WIP - REDACTED] (Coming Soon) Kwisatz Haderach General / Drama - 3:30+

Dune Fanfiction:

Detailed Outline Stages, yell at me to stop making low effort memes and write.

[kimberbohwrites]

IT'S HERE -- SPECIAL TWO CHAPTER RELASE Hope for the Gate Chapters One and Two Word Count: 6,089 Rated: Explicit -- MDNI! READ ON AO3 (or continued below)

CHAPTER THREE> Please don't forget to kudos/comment/like/reblog <3 Rolan x Tav art by @ ORANGEKITTYENERGY on tumblr

Summary: Eight months after the events of 'All I Wanted' (my first Rolan x Tav fic [see series]), Tav and Rolan’s relationship is tested by tragedy and turmoil. There will be drama, romance, political intrigue, action, and of course — smut. Is our favorite tiefling strong enough to handle it all and hold on to the girl? Tags/Warnings: Rolan (Baldur's Gate), Tav (Baldur's Gate). Post-Canon, Fluff and Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Smut, Porn with Feelings. Porn With Plot, Tiefling Biology (Dungeons & Dragons), Tieflings (Dungeons & Dragons), Rolan in Rut, Anti-Tiefling Racism (Dungeons & Dragons), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Eventual Smut

A cool breeze drifted in through the opened window in his study, and Rolan steadied the scrolls on his desk before him with a groan. On the wind came the sweet smell of flowers that now grew in the boxes outside his office windows. Tav had installed them here and outside the bedroom and kitchen windows. He’d designed garden beds for the large terraces around the tower for her to work in as well.

She called them “Sylvanus’ Blessings” the flowers, fruits, vegetables, herbs, and other plant life that she thrived on sustaining. He wasn’t sure about all of that — but what he did know was that Tav loved them and he loved Tav. The breath still caught in his chest most mornings when he awoke and saw her face still asleep in the bed they shared. He still couldn’t believe she was his. Nearly each night when they slept in the same bed it would be at Ramazith Tower where they both had obligations and responsibilities. Some nights they watched the stars go down in the solemn little clearing in the woods where Tav’s homestead blossomed. The nights he hated were the ones where they slept apart. Luckily, they were few and far between now that he’d improved a more permanent portal between the Tower and her home in the woods outside the city. For that, Rolan was grateful. 

Tav’s presence in his life is a blessing and one he is still fighting to fully understand. How the most beautiful woman he had ever known could actually love him was still a question that nagged at the back of his mind. Despite his lingering fears, he’d managed not to mess up things with Tav since they’d made things official. It had been nearly 8 months since the night of Astarion and Gale’s wedding, since they’d confessed their love and agreed to work through their challenges and be together.

The bracelet he’d given her which could portal two people between the two locations was no longer necessary. He noted that she still wore it everyday and he barely managed to hide his moon-eyed smile every time he saw it on her wrist. While the red stones had originally been picked to match the dress she’d worn the night of that fateful wedding, he’d come to think of it differently over time. Deep down, he now felt a sense of possessive pride that the red bracelet against her wrist so closely resembled those moments when his tail coiled around the same spot. Something he took great pleasure in doing as he kissed her and as he took her desperately on the nights where he felt that possessiveness arise in him once more. When his self doubt was the loudest.

It’s almost strange how well she fit into his life and the lives of his siblings — Cal and Lia. They’d always been content as a trio and he’d often worried about how difficult things might be when that dynamic changed. But Tav’s closeness with them had eased his fears and only served to make him love her even more. Tav had already been close with Lia,  they were truly the best of friends and often co-conspirators in various schemes and plans. To Cal, Tav had become something of another big sister. Only partially to Rolan’s chagrin as Cal already seemed to hold Tav’s opinion in higher regard than his own.

It has always made him uneasy, the idea of introducing a new dynamic into their lives. He had been responsible for Cal and Lia since their mother’s passing and while he’d done his best by them, he understood that he couldn’t be their only family forever. He’d always believed it would be Cal or Lia adding someone to their group that he would inevitably hate. He’d been partially right in that regard, Lia had started seeing Dammon just before Tav and him had gotten together. But Dammon had always been a part of their lives, since they’d grown up in Elturel. The blacksmith had gone by a different name then, one they’d all long since forgotten.

Sure, having Dammon now dating his sister was new territory but even Rolan had to admit that Dammon was a good man. Bringing Tav into the fold had been something new entirely. Not because Tav wasn’t good, in fact Tav was almost too good. It was an undeniable truth that the three of them would most likely be dead if not for her. Hells, Dammon too. It was her who convinced them to stay with the rest of the refugees on the road, who had rescued his siblings from Moonrise Towers and him from himself, and Tav who had helped overthrow the former master of Ramazith Tower after she discovered his many transgressions and abuses of power.

Of course any time he had attempted to point out her many contributions, she waved it off or pointed out how Rolan was also the hero in their story. He’d actually caught her once, telling a group of children all about how he’d been a hero when the refugees had been cornered by the absolute. She’d caught them, having snuck into the shop to see some magic with their own eyes. Instead of tossing out what most people would see as street urchins, Tav had sat them down and spun a tale of heroism about the Master of Ramazith Tower. That was just who she was.

He’d happened upon it, toward the end of the story when she told the kids how the brave man who had rescued refugee children, then helped overthrow the cruel former Master of the tower.

“But — but I thought the new Master of the tower was grouchy!” One child had interrupted.

“I heard he’s like me!” A little tiefling girl had added with excitement and a swish of her little tail.

Her statement had been met with boos and groans from the other kids and Rolan had almost made a hasty retreat before Tav spotted him. With her radiant smile and an outstretched hand, she had summoned him to her side.

“He is” Tav had said to the Tiefling girl as she put an arm around him warmly and placed a light kiss on his cheek.

The children had scattered away with peals of laughter and other sounds of glee, disgust, and excitement that came from seeing two adults express affection for one another. Even though he had helped raise his siblings, Rolan had never been great with small children and was always nervous in their presence. Meanwhile, Tav seemed to exude a natural warmth and light that children found magnetic.

He snapped back to attention as he noticed himself daydreaming and worrying again instead of focusing on the pile of scrolls in front of him on his desk. Dragging a clawed hand over his face with a groan, he shifted to a more comfortable position in his chair. While things with Tav were great, the pile of responsibilities and anxieties in front of him was ever-growing. Tav had her own troubles as well and his heart was still weighed heavy for her.

Wyll had returned to back to Baldur’s Gate a few tendays after Astarion and Gale’s wedding with the darkest tidings. His fiancé, Karlach had perished in Avernus leaving him in a dark pit of grief. In a stroke of cruelty, the archdevil Zariel had destroyed the plans and the architect behind Karlach’s infernal engine, eliminating their hopes of being able to permanently stabilize the device. Tired of fighting off the inevitable, she’d chosen to return to the mortal plane to allow her engine to combust and her along with it. Wyll had even apologized to them through bleary eyes for not telling them sooner, explaining that she didn’t want anyone else to see her at the end. 

Rolan really only knew Wyll from their brief time at the Druid Grove, but it was clear the man he saw delivering the devastating news to Tav was a shadow of himself at the loss. He couldn’t blame the young noble — at the thought of losing Cal and Lia he’d come undone and tried to drink himself to death. The thought of losing Tav, well, he couldn’t even bear to consider that.

Rolan wasn’t known for his emotional depth, but he’d tried to be there for Tav as she grieved the loss of her dear friend while attempting to also support Wyll. It was just like her to stretch herself so thinly to support everyone around her. She’d done her best to stay strong in the tendays that followed the news of Karlach’s passing. He knew that he couldn’t force her to start the grieving process, but it worried him to see her so eerily okay. After about a dozen days she’d broken down sobbing over the sight of a child with a stuffed bear.

Rolan had held her close as the tears began to fall, whisking her back to the Tower so she might have some privacy. 

He was honored to be the one supporting her, it was a duty he took seriously, trying to remember to place her always above his other responsibilities. It was hard. As Archmage of Ramazith Tower he has his work cut out for him. But he wants to be more than just a great wizard. He wants to be a great brother to his siblings and a great partner to Tav.

And Tav — well she’s already impacted him more than he would like to admit it. He had never found himself caring much about the things and people outside of his immediate circle, until Tav. The world had been a largely cruel place in his repeated experiences. But there was something about the way she cared so profoundly for the world around her that warmed parts of him he thought were long dead. Thus, he found himself listening to Tav’s stories of the refugee’s needs and reading the paper more to stay informed about the city he now called home. Hells, he’d even went with her quite often to deliver the produce she grew into the hands of the Gate’s most vulnerable citizens.

Both he and Tav had thought that with the defeat of the absolute, the death of Archduke Enver Gortash and the reinstalment of Grand Duke Ulder Ravengard to leadership of the city, things just might improve. The opposite had proven true. Rolan didn’t understand the politics at play within the city and neither did Tav, but to them it seemed like every one of Duke Ravengard’s best intentions was being undone behind the scenes.

Neither Rolan nor Tav were quite sure how to help. It had only been about 7 months now since Karlach’s passing and Wyll was understandably still grieving. Neither of them wanted to approach him about political matters. Tav had a hard time ignoring the growing signs of what she called “a rot” within the City. Intent to leave Wyll out of things, she had confided her suspicions with Rolan. He’d begged her not act rashly, to include him. In truth, he’d have asked her just to leave it alone but he knew she wouldn’t. 

If that wasn’t enough, things with Cal and Lia were also heavy on his mind. Lia and Dammon had been together for some time now and she was now over at the Forge of the Nine more often than he saw her around the Tower. He was happy for her, he was sure of it — but the change was hard. It made him uneasy as he often found himself anxious about what would happen if she moved out, they’d never lived apart before.

Cal on the other hand was a different stressor completely. While Lia was essentially the General Manager of Sorcerous Sundries, Cal hadn’t been interested in working in the Tower with his siblings. It had been a hard conversation to have, Rolan had been angry at first but in the end he’d understood. Cal’s interest seemed to lie out in nature lately, he’d begun taking the stable portal that Rolan had made for Tav out to her homestead. While Tav was around Tower more, Cal helped to keep up around the farm and he actually seemed to enjoy coming home at the end of the day covered in dirt.

Tav went on about what a natural he was and before long, she paid him to maintain the crops and orchards while she saw more patients at the Tower. When the harvest came, there had been a notably higher crop yield that Tav attributed solely to Cal. He’d had an idea about what to do with the extras and so Lia and Dammon had built him a handsome rolling cart that he pushed around the upper city. With Tav’s blessing, Cal planned to sell the extra fruits, vegetables, and flowers from her farm.

Admittedly, Rolan hadn’t been thrilled about this idea when he’d first heard it. It’s not that he didn’t support Cal in his endeavors— he just worried. Baldur’s Gate had just barely allowed the Tiefling refugees within its walls and there was still a lot of small minded people who called the city home. He wasn’t sure how well a Tiefling selling produce would go over in the upper city.

Worse, it turned out his worries weren’t completely unfounded, for the very first week Cal wasn’t able to sell anything despite his best attempts. Before Rolan could get upset and storm off to the upper city to curse out the first posh person he found, Tav had volunteered to go with Cal the next time he went out. He was sure that having the “Hero of Baldur’s Gate” might help and if it didn’t, it didn’t hurt that Tav was prone to bursting into the form of a massive owlbear when provoked.

He smiled to himself as he thought about the only time he’d ever seen her in that form. He’d assumed the lovely Druid was simply a powerful spellcaster like himself. The unassuming human had always seemed so calm and patient, almost gentle. That was until she pieced together where the bruises and cuts all over his face had come from when they reunited in Baldur’s Gate after surviving Moonrise Towers and Last Light Inn.

Lorroakan had called him “boy” as he shouted his orders and threats to Rolan, during his former master’s fatal attempt at caging the Nightsong and gaining immortality. That had been the very last time the sham of a wizard had used that word. A howling screech had pierced the air and where the mild-mannered Druid had stood just a moment before, there was a full grown and very angry owlbear. Rolan had found himself staring, mouth agape as Tav took a vicious swipe at Lorroakan that had sent the sham of a wizard sprawling across his study.

Yes, Rolan was well aware she could handle herself but he still worried for her. Maybe that’s why he found himself so wistfully lost in thought today. He had felt a little under the weather as of late. Combined with waiting for Cal and Tav to return, it’s left him more distracted than he’d like to admit. But he hadn’t seen anyone running terrified through the streets of the city, so he assumed his beloved had gone unprovoked.

Snapping him out of his thoughts for good, Dammon strolled through the doors of the shop, his eyes searching the familiar space.

“Ah, Dammon! Lia is off at the market, you just missed her!”

“I know, actually, I was hoping to catch you and Tav for a chat, actually.”

“Oh? Well Tav should be back shortly — is everything okay? Is Lia okay?”

Rolan couldn’t help the edge of panic that laced his last question. He also noted how flustered Dammon appeared.

“What? No I mean, yes! Lia’s okay, she’s great”

“Then what’s this about, Dammon?”

Dammon sheepishly looked down, as if the answer to Rolan’s question were written on the floor of the Sundries.

“Well I —“

The laughter and excitement approaching the opened shop doors were the only warning the two men got before Cal excitedly dashed in and up to Rolan. Dammon’s sentence left unfinished, blessedly saved by the interruption.

“It went so well, Rolan! We sold everything for the day!” Cal blurted out with glee.

“And someone met a girl.”

He raised his head from Cal at the sound of his Tav’s sweet voice, she was just walking in the door and coming to stand beside Dammon.

“She’s not a girl! She’s a woman!”

Rolan shook his head at Cal as he walked around him to put his arm around Tav. His tail coiling around her ankle before he was even aware. Lately he couldn’t seem to be close enough to her, like no amount of skin contact would satisfy. It’s not that he wasn’t usually affectionate with her, but in public his affection was careful and calculated whereas lately it seemed almost impulsive, desperate, regardless of the location.

“Although technically, she’s a monk!” Tav laughed as she leaned into Rolan’s touch.

“One thing at a time, please!” Rolan said holding a hand up in defeat.

“Well Dammon was here first,” Tav laughed.

“Alright, I can be patient! Like a monk! I’ll go upstairs and wash up” Cal said as he retreated for the stairs.

Tav moved to leave as well but found his tail still coiled around her leg, with him unaware.

“Would you mind staying? Dammon wanted to talk to you as well,”

“Is that a request or a demand?”

“What? Oh! Sorry!”

It was his turn to blush as she spotted his tail where it was currently latched to her thigh and released his grip. He felt a sweat rise on his brow at the lack of contact with her.

“It’s fine, love, I’m just messing with you. What can we help you with Dammon?”

Tav turned back to the blacksmith who had used the time Cal had unconsciously bought him to steady his heart rate and steel his nerve.

“I was wondering, if we might talk in private? Please?”

Rolan lead them a private office off the main floor of the Sundries and shut the door behind them, trying to shake off the fluttering feeling in his stomach and the heat rising on his face.

Rolan and Tav sat together on a couch while Dammon leaned nervously against the desk. Silence permeated the air.

“What’s this about, Dammon?” Tav said sweetly, clearly sensing the man’s nervous energy.

His answer came out all as one word, blurted in a near-shout to the surprise of everyone in the room, Dammon included.

“IWantToMarryLia!!!”

CHAPTER TWO

“I… I want to marry Lia.” Dammon tried again, calmer and more collected.

When the blacksmith finally got the nerve to check the reactions to his news he found Rolan staring at him, jaw dropped. Tav watched Rolan closely, her eyes anxiously looking between the two men. Silence hung in the air like the smothering heat from an opened oven. Rolan felt the start of sweat forming on his brow and noticed his tail had once again wrapped around Tav’s ankle as if it had a mind of its own. Tav finally broke the silence.

“Dammon that’s great news! Isn’t it Rolan?”

“Why are you telling us!?”

Rolan’s question cut through the air with a sharp edge to it that was unmistakable. Not an angry tone, but certainly an irritable one. He felt Tav’s hand on his shoulder, both a gesture of support and a warning of his temper. He took a deep breath and reached up to touch her hand in acknowledgment.

“Well, I know we’re not in Elturel anymore and there’s not much left of home, but I wanted to be old-fashioned about this. I wanted to talk to her family first.”

Dammon blushed but he held Rolan’s gaze steady as he answered. Tav couldn’t help but smile.

“That’s so sweet! But wait, why am I here?” She asked.

“Well, Rolan is the oldest and you two live together so I thought it made sense to talk to both of—“

“We don’t live together” Tav interrupted.

“We don’t?!”

“You don’t?”

Dammon and Rolan’s responses came at the same time. The former’s was laced with anxiety and confusion and the latter with anger and confusion.

“You think we live together? You never even asked!” Tav snapped at Rolan, momentarily forgetting Dammon.

“I just assumed…”

“Oh Rolan, no.” It was Dammon who groaned the words and reminded them of his presence, wilting a little as both sets of their eyes fixed on him.

“Right, we’ll talk about this later… Dammon that is exciting news!”

Tav’s tone and smile seemed happy but both Dammon and Rolan noted the look of frustration in her eyes.

“Thank you for talking to us Dammon,” Rolan cleared his throat and awkwardly refocused the conversation back to the original topic, “I can hardly believe you’re being old fashioned now, you basically live together and you, erm, bit each other ages ago — could have gone without having to know that by the way but Lia had to put the mark so high on your neck, Gods, I can’t believe this is happening—“

“You’re rambling, Rolan”

Tav’s reminder was both loving and angry sounding at the same time.

“Right. Well, Congratulations are in order I guess.”

Rolan stood and exchanged an uncomfortable handshake with Dammon.

“Be good to her, please.”

Dammon smiled in response, his eyes a little misty. Tav stood next and gave Dammon a tight hug, tears were in both their eyes.

“And yes, do be good to her please. I’ve defeated the avatars of the Dead Three and I know where you live.”

Tav smiled sweetly when she pulled away and issued her threat. The Blacksmith gulped as the Druid made for the door and exited the office without acknowledgement of the other man, leaving the two alone in the cold wake of her exit.

A pain throbbed in Rolan’s side suddenly and he sat back down on the couch, wiping at the sweat on his brow.

“Getting to be that time, brutal,” Dammon said after taking stock of his appearance.

“What?”

“Oh, um, never mind.” Dammon pushed off the desk and made for the door.

“I was going to wait a little longer to ask, I wanted everything to be perfect. So, if both of you could keep a secret — Cal is such a blabbermouth,” He continued as he reached the door, turning back to look at Rolan on the couch he added, “I’ll wait a few weeks, you might need it”

Before Rolan could ask what he’d meant the blacksmith was out of the office with the door shut behind him. By that point a layer of sweat covered his entire body, causing his clothes and hair to cling to him uncomfortably. Another stab of pain throbbed in his gut.

“Fuck” He muttered to himself as the answer materialized before him. What Dammon’s cryptic words had meant and why he’d felt so off lately. It had almost been a year since his last and he and Tav had never talked about his ‘cycles’. He wasn’t even sure she knew about Tiefling mating cycles and he’d been too nervous to ask.

The timing couldn’t have been worse. There was so much to take care of and so little time before he’d be forced to take time off. By the feel of it he had a day at best. Standing with a groan he crossed the room to sit at his desk and pulled leaves of parchment from within the drawer with a well-practiced motion. He began writing notes to each employee of the Sundries with instructions for what to do while he was indisposed. Thanks to his hard work in the just over a year’s time since he’d taken over the Tower and his own instruction, he’d grown much stronger at magic than even he could have anticipated. What used to be complicated was now just a simple spell he would use to deliver the missives at the correct time and place.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- A few hours later, it is Tav who wakes him after drifted off into a feverish sleep at his desk. With the letters and spells completed, he’d begun getting ahead of the higher-level matters that required his attention. The first thing he’d noticed upon waking was her delicious smell. She’d always smelled amazing to him, like cedar and cinnamon, but this was something more. Her eyes are bleary with sadness.

“I’m sorry for just storming off and leaving earlier, I didn’t want to fight.”

“Me either”

“Rolan, you can’t just decide things without telling me. We have to have a conversation about these things”

“I didn’t just decide I simply thought we were living together, we’re always together and I just thought…”

Rolan trailed off with a frustrated sigh. Even as terrible as he was feeling he could see now where he’d missed the important step of asking Tav.

“Zurgan”

He ran his hands down his face, the gesture is one of both frustration and self-soothing.

“Tav I - I’m sorry”

His apology must have come too easy because she is immediately suspicious. Moving to take a closer look at him and bringing her intoxicating scent so close it was nearly unbearable.  His tail swished behind him with agitation.

“You’re sorry?! Are you feeling well? You look terrible, my love. Can I make you a cup of tea?”

He groaned. Zurgan, she smells amazing, she’s so beautiful, focus on her words you dolt. He could actually feel himself salivating in her presence and not over the thought of tea.

“Tea isn’t going to help this, my dear”

She sits down on his desk, next to where he’s working and glances at the discarded drafts of his notes and back to him. Does she know how beautiful she looks? Gods. It’s all he can do not to lunge at her and take her right on his desk.

“Rolan, are you…” She sighs, “Are you in rut?”

His mind is sent reeling in surprise and he makes an audible choking sound. How could she possible know about that?

“What?! How do you even know about that… Lia”

Rolan answers his own question before Tav could even open her mouth. Cursing his sister in silent frustration.

“Yes! But I’m also a healer, remember? Plus, you can hardly blame her. Awhile back, Cal literally vanished for two weeks after coming down quite ill and you acted like he’d gone on vacation. Honestly, I would have been angrier at you for never talking about it with me— but I guess I understand how talking about what your brother might be going through with me would be weird.”

Rolan rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. Not sure what to say next and grateful when Tav pressed on.

“We should probably finish this whole debate on where I live once you feel better. It’s like getting really sick, right? Who will take care of the store? I need to help you”

“Lia’s more than ready to handle things without me, plus just in case I’ve left detailed letters with instructions and suggestions on how they might conduct themselves while I am away.”

Tav threw her head back and laughed at him. He used to hate it when she laughed at him. Before he’d ever worked up the nerve to kiss her all those months ago. After that moment he’d begun to love the sound of her laugh. But now, the sound of her laugh reached out and grabbed him by the heartstrings and tugged. The feeling reaching from his chest down to the deepest reaches in his gut where a fire was already smoldering.

He groaned at the sound of her laugh, biting his lip and tasting copper as he restrained himself in her presence. She studied his face from where she sat on the desk just above him in his chair, a look of concern on her beautiful face. Ever so softly, she reached out her hand to stroke his jaw and he groans in response. His tail immediately whipped out to wrap around her wrist to hold her close. She gasped in response.

“So, you know… everything?” He gritted out as his eyes searched hers with a desperate hunger. He rubbed his cheek into her hand, so needy for the contact. A blush had formed on her cheeks and stretched down to her chest where her breast heaved unconsciously at the charged question.

“I wouldn’t say everything… I know it’s a mating thing and that for some it’s rut and for others it’s heat, and that’s its really kind of painful and can be really disruptive to day-to-day life.”

“Is… Is that it?” He panted out, never taking his eyes off her.

“That’s not everything, it’s easier, less painful if you have a… partner to satisfy your… urges.”

Rolan could feel the heat rising to his cheeks as she explained. He needed her so badly it was already driving him crazy, and his rut hadn’t even fully started yet. Her thumb traced a gentle pattern on his cheek that felt as if she were working the very Weave with fingertips.

“And there are some… anatomical changes as well,” she added awkwardly while glancing away.

His tail had lowered her arm to her side and moved to coil around her waist to pull her closer. Her eyes widened as he drew her face to his.

“I hate to say this, but you should probably go back to your place until I can think straight again.”

Tav laughed right in his face. That beautiful devastating laugh reaching down into him once more and fanning the flames within.

“I thought you were supposed to be the smart one. I’m not leaving you, my love”

“But…”

“That is unless you don’t want me… I don’t wish to intrude.”

Gods, she’s so good right down to her core. She is honey and sunshine, and I am the miserable wretch who craves her sweetness.  Her kindness only served to fuel the fire within him. He feels delirious with need, but he tries to steel himself. This isn’t true desperation; he knows desperation is what will happen once his rut has fully begun.

“It’s not that… I don’t want to hurt you”

“Hurt me?”

Her eyes widen in surprise, her breath is cool on his face relative to the heat that pours from his skin.

“You don’t understand, it might be dangerous for a human — I don’t know if I can be gentle with you under those conditions.”

She considers his words for a few moments before she responds. His mind is left to wander. All he can think about is fucking her, filling her over and over until one of them can take no more. Then he sees a light as if she’s realized something and he fills with dread — the Druid has always been abnormally astute in her observations of him.

“Have you ever gone through a rut with someone, Rolan?”

She says it nervously and glances away like she knows the truth and is giving him a moment of privacy. He can’t help but let out a sigh.

“No, I haven’t”

She looks back at him when he answers. The truth doesn’t cool the atmosphere like he thought it would, if anything she looks more interested, almost turned on by that thought.

“I trust you Rolan”

He’s on her in a second, closing the gap between their mouths with a hungry kiss. Using his tail around her waist, he draws her near so she is straddling him in his chair. It’s like bathing himself in her scent and it pushes him closer to the threshold of madness. His hands reach up to grab the sides of her face roughly, dominating the kiss. Their tongues meet with a savage energy and moans fill the once quiet room. Using the last reserves of sanity in his mind he wills himself to pull away.

“Tav…”

“Rolan if you want me, I’m staying”

She doesn’t even let him finish before she pants out her argument.

“Gods, I love you”

“I love you too”

She leaves a sweet kiss on his forehead, right between his horns — a place she knows will melt him every single time. How can he resist her?

“What if we head to your cottage? It can be just the two of us”

He suggests it as he mouths kisses on her neck, trailing up to her ear. A rush thrills through him when he hears her gasp of joy, and his tail tightens around her at the sound.

“Really?”

He nodded. Tav had wanted to take a long stay away from this city for some time and had talked about it many times. There had been a few opportunities where it looked like they might be able to — but between tragedy and obligations every attempt had failed. This would be his first rut he experienced with a partner — a special occasion in the life of any Tiefling and he wanted to make it special for her too.

“Of course, just give me a few more hours to finish up here and pack some things. You might want to give Cal the week off too, I’m sure Lia could use him around the store and…”

He trailed off when Tav winced as his point was well made. They wouldn’t want Cal around to hear or gods forbid see what they would be doing for the next week.

“Of course,”

The next forehead kiss she leaves made him wince, but the reaction is not one of pain or discomfort. As her lips connected with his skin it feels as if a jolt of pure energy radiates across his body from that very point. A near euphoria washes over his body unlike anything he’s ever experienced before. Hells, it feels good.

“Zurgan, Tav”

Rolan filled his lungs with a deep breath of air. Making one last desperate attempt to master himself, so he might have a shred of a chance of accomplishing what needed to be done before their “impromptu vacation.” It’s a mistake. The scent of her overpowers him and something primal is released as a result. “Mate, my mate” His mind screams it, but he refuses to give in, not yet. When he continues its forced sounding - through gritted teeth. 

“I need you to stay away from me until we leave. I can’t— “

Mate, my mate, so beautiful, need her, fuck her, fill her. He closes his eyes and struggles to continue.

“— I can’t think clearly when you’re around right now. I’m sorry.”

She dismounted his lap slowly. Peeling his tail away from where it was wrapped around her waist was a struggle -- he is reluctant to let go even if he needed it. Only after he heard her carefully cross the room, did he open his eyes once more. To find her by the door looking shy. A sense of emptiness filled him, her touch had eased some of the symptoms even in that short time and her absence was felt keenly.

“I’m sorry Rolan,”

“No need, love.”

Before she departed, they agreed to meet again at dusk ready to depart for their stay at her home outside the city. Awakened once more, Rolan still found himself struggling to focus. The sweet scent of his beloved is left behind on the desk where she had sat. As he works getting ahead on accounts, he caught repeated wafts which seemed to keep him in a constant state of arousal. Mate, my mate, fuck, fill, mate. His hardened cock strained against his pants as he worked. An uncomfortable and constantly nagging presence to deal with as he calculated costs and revenue projections in the ledgers before him.

When the accounts were finally finished, he sat back shakily still willing himself to ignore the constant presence of his arousal. After consideration, he had added a note in the book for Lia to double check his figures before they were finalized. Though he’d always prided himself on his brilliance in a way that some thought bordered on arrogance, he wouldn’t risk his responsibilities for any reason. Usually, he hardly required (and would sooner die before asking) anyone to check on his accounting. But there was a first time for everything. Humiliatingly, he was certain Lia would discover upon double-checking that most of the math he’d done today was in fact, wrong.

[chaifootsteps]

hey chai, long post incoming--i'm slowly chipping away at a draft of a vivzie drama masterpost i'll be phrasing as "why are people mad at vivziepop" for new-comers. i'll be including screenshots where i can and small summaries for things. that said, this is my rough list, have i missed anything that you can think of, or any specifics you think outta be mentioned?

VivziePop General Issues - Some from the Past that still happen in the Present

Inability to Handle Criticism / Confrontation

Transphobia

Misogynistic Tendencies

Issues with Improper Crediting / "Stealing" Ideas

Liking Tweets of Fans and Otherwise Who Agree with Her / Praise Her / Defend Her

Most of both her series’ “charm” is thanks to people other than her

Despite having two "LGBT+ friendly" series she primarily focuses on gay men and hasn't been the most LGBT+ friendly in other areas (acephobia, transphobia, lack of rep for queer women/wlw, thinks polyamory is just an excuse to cheat)

Conflicts between Vivzie putting forth an image of a struggling small-time creator who pulled herself up by the bootstraps and made it VS. circumstantial evidence that she is very well off financially and always has been; had her schooling paid for, spent a summer in Paris, takes expensive trips, makes expensive purchases, and lives in a million dollar house with multiple bedrooms and a pool

Testimonies of Ex-Employees and Friends

Erin Frost

KenDraws

Salem

VivziePop “Canon Events” of the Past and Present (20??-Present)

The Snake Tub & Creepy Fanart

Blaire White Fanart

Nazi Sausage Party Fan-Characters from blog “i-hate-jewce”

Starvader Drama

DollCreep / JayJay/Jiji Drama

Viv guilt-tripped a Patron for trying to get at least a partial refund for a financial emergency--many feel that while Viv was in the right for not wanting to refund the Patron, she handled it extremely poorly

Viv's 2018 "Apology"

Support of Angel Dust x Valentino as a “r*pe ships”

Her sister apologized on her behalf to someone she cyber bullied and her sister cited Viv as “having a problem” cyberbullying people. [Kedi's consequent reaching out to the sister having heard she was being a mediator for said person resulted in Viv saying Kedi was stalking her family.]

Viv kicking the original Hazbin Hotel pilot cast after saying she’d fight to keep them onboard [Michael has stated it was not a union issue and explained how he was even willing to shoulder the cost of having him on the show but was still let go.]

Viv saying redesigns are "disrespectful"

VivziePop Opinions of Other Artists

“I could destroy her” and everything else shitty she said about Kyra -- Kyra’s "Wolf in Sheep's Clothing" comic & tweets People Suspect Are About Vivzie

Calling Tracy Annoying

Ashley (Creator of Far-Fetched)

- Viv wasn’t happy with Hunicast’s popularity (mainly run by Ashley) and was mad people were mistaking Ashley for the creator of Hazbin Hotel despite Ashley always making sure to correct people. - Viv learned something personal about Ashley that she used to make fun of her behind her back. - Allegedly one of the reasons Viv kicked most the original VA cast of Hazbin Hotel were due to them associating with Ashley. - Allegedly didn’t like that Ashley was leaving to work on her own indie pilot (Far-Fetched)

Bullying KediKatzen for having a similar art style, accusing Kedi of stalking her and her family, cyberbullying Kedi

SpindleHorse Related (VivziePop’s Animation Studio)

Rushed, Disorganized, Unprofessional Productions

Favoritism by Viv

“Cliquey” Behavior from Executives

Tight Deadlines

Underpaying

Working on other projects / working multiple jobs was generally frowned upon and discouraged.

In at least two instances Viv actually went out of her way to try and keep people from being hired elsewhere. - In one she told Ashley that Erin was "mentally unstable" - In another she told Nico Colaleo (Ollie & Scoops) not to hire “her artists” aka people working on her project(s).

VivziePop Criticisms Specific to Her Writing

Being Known to Skip Development to “Get to the Good Stuff”

Revealing / Confirming Story and World Lore via Liking Tweets, Making Tweets, or Behind a Patreon Paywall, instead of writing them into the series itself

Adding New Ideas Just Because She Likes Them, with Little Regard for how they Affect the Story

Rushing Characters’ Development and/or Retconning Characters to fit New Plots / Ideas

Apparent Lack of Research, Or At Least Poor Execution, of Her Ideas, Resulting in “Wasted Potential”

Concern over Mis-Management of “Morally Gray” and “Abusive” Character / Relationship Dynamics

Concern over apparent increasing themes of Inc*st in Helluva Boss

VivziePop Criticisms Specific to Her Art / Character Design

Over-Detailed Character Designs

Confusing Character Designs

Character Designs with Too Many Colors

Art style / designs that are “not animation friendly” --As well as her personal quality of art deteriorating over time

Animation is jittery, moving too much, or moving too fast

What Happened with Lackadaisy

VivziePop allegedly wanted to be on the Lackadaisy production in the past, but didn’t get hired

VivziePop has called Lackadaisy Creator Tracy “annoying” for “being active” in an animation channel on Discord

VivziePop tweeted a screenshot of a $5,000 Pledge to Lackadaisy’s backer-kit [which would’ve given Spindlehorse an Associate Producer’s credit on the future Lackadaisy productions]

Lackadaisy Crew Member ZeBirdBrain passive-aggresively replied that “since Medrano couldn’t be bothered to share the donation link, here it is!” And that money amount didn’t matter, every little bit counts.

It was revealed by SH Animator Mel in reply to ZeBirdBrain that the donation came from multiple team-members at SH (VivziePop did not mention this in her donation tweet.)

ZeBirdBrain deleted her original tweet.

ZeBirdBrain was harassed by VivziePop fans to be fired

Fans found tweets in ZeBirdBrain’s likes that appeared to be transphobic

One of ZeBirdBrain’s friends, a trans man, spoke up in defense of Ze, that Ze had known them since before their transition in 2013 and had been nothing but supportive.

Lackadaisy Co-Creator Fable, a trans masc, chimed in that they were made aware of the tweets, they looked into the matter, and were satisfied with the explanations they were given and hoped that would be enough for everyone.

[Fighting continued between fans and Lackadaisy crew members but the general consensus from the Lackadaisy crew seemed to be that they knew Ze to be a supportive ally, the liked tweets were a debated subject even in trans circles w/trans folk on both sides of the argument, Ze uses/used her likes as bookmarks rather than using the bookmark feature, and the reason Ze wasn’t saying all this herself was out of fear the rabid fandom wouldn’t take her word for it and would instead slander her further.]

Later, Lackadaisy’s Backer-Kit campaign ended, at which point Backer-Kit begins processing all the payments.

VivziePop posts a screenshot that “Spindlehorse’s” donation was denied.

Tracy replied to Viv’s tweet professionally, saying they had explained to SH the reason for the denial in private.

Viv’s fanbase became increasingly volatile towards this, claiming Tracy was “unprofessional” and “just should’ve accepted the money” and everyone should “boycott Lackadaisy”

Tracy, on one of her servers, not only elaborated more on the Ze incident (repeating much of what had already been said), but also revealed they had actually reached out to Spindlehorse in private, well before the campaign ended, and requested that they withdraw their donation. Spindlehorse refused.

i think that's about it--and obv where screenshots are available they will be linked in the full post i eventually make.

This looks amazing to me, and also you're doing god's work; something like this was insanely needed.

[drarry-mini-bang]

Title:  On Our Side

Author:  PhantomGrimalkin

Artist: @sweatersinthesummer

Rating: M

Content/warnings: Getting Together, Pregnant Draco Malfoy, Angst with a Happy Ending, Hogwarts Eighth Year, Black Family Feels (Harry Potter), Mention of Eating Disorders, Child Neglect, Discussion of Abortion, mention of bullying, Childhood Trauma

Summary: The war is over, and Harry is trying not to be obsessed with Draco Malfoy.

Which would be easier if Andromeda’s desire to reunite her family didn't result in Harry and the Malfoys being invited to the same events. After a few months without insults or fights, Harry recognizes his attraction and figures out how to ask Draco on a date. Their relationship is surprisingly easy, unfortunately Harry’s life is still complicated.

They're stuck navigating past traumas, the press, Black family drama, a child that no one knows exists, and a quirk of wizard biology that was left out of his sex education.

Length: 46k

Link to fic on AO3: HERE

Link to the art: HERE

[miniwrites1]

Fraternisation - Sebastian Sallow (Part 1)

Requests are open!

Word Count - 1176

Themes - Fluff & Angst

“Promise you’ll write over the summer?” You asked Sebastian with a small smile. He nodded, agreeing to write to you at least once a week while you were away from Hogwarts for the summer holidays. After spending the year practically attached at the hip, you found it hard to say goodbye to him. He’d quickly become your best friend after your duel in defence against the dark arts and to everyone else, you came as a pair, wherever he was, you were and vice versa.

The year had passed incredibly quickly, between all of your extra assignments for your classes, fighting Ranrok and trying to help Sebastian find a way to reverse the curse on Anne, it felt as if you’d had no time to relax and step away from all of the excitement and drama that the year had brought. You hugged Sebastian tightly, your arms around his neck, and his slipping around your waist.

“I’ll miss you (Y/N), maybe we can meet up over the summer?” Sebastian asked, you nodded in agreement, it would give you something to look forward to while you were at home with your parents. As much as you loved them, they didn’t understand you the way that people in the wizarding world did. Your parents were muggles, so when they found you one day able to make objects move without touching them, they were concerned. Since then, they had become very protective of you, especially after the events with Ranrok in the past year. You’d be surprised if they let you out of their sight over the summer.

You set a date for the third week of the summer holidays, planning to meet in Hogsmeade at the Three Broomstick for a butterbeer. It was something to look forward to, almost like a date. The thought made you blush which Sebastian noticed. He smirked.

“Something you want to share before you go (Y/N)?” He asked, you laughed but shook your head. He didn’t need to know what you were thinking about. Your eyes flicked to his lips then back up to meet his gaze. He noticed that too.

You said your goodbyes and as you turned to walk away you felt him grasp your hand. You turned back to look at him.

“Um, do you mind if I do something?” He asked, you laughed and raised an eyebrow but agreed anyway. It took him a moment but he placed his lips firmly on yours in a short peck. It surprised you, which must have showed in your expression. Sebastian laughed, before pulling you into a hug.

“Take our outing to Hogsmeade as a proper first date.” He said confidently, making you laugh again but agree none the less. Saying goodbye again after that was harder, you felt a surge of sadness as he walked away from you. But you’d see him again soon, you just had to keep telling yourself that.

----------------------------------------------Back home----------------------------------------------

After four hours of travelling with your mother by car you’d finally arrived back at home, a little cottage in the countryside. You’d told her all about your year, what with the extra assignments to make sure you could catch up, and all about how well you’d done in your O.W.L.S, leaving out some minor details around trolls, Ranrok and trying your hand at being a curse breaker.

“It sounds like you had an exciting year!” She exclaimed as you were pulling into the driveway. She smiled at you as she put the handbrake on the car before opening the boot. You both got out of the car and began unloading your things. You dragged your heavy trunk into the cottage and put it down inside the door, your mum following, bringing your owl and broom inside.

“Is that you (Y/N)?” You heard your father call out to you. You walked into the living room and greeted. It had been too long since you’d seen your parents. You informed your father about the year, giving him the same details as you did your mother. He smiled, glad that you’d had a good year at school.

“Oh, I made a few friends too. I was planning to meet up with a couple of them over the summer.” You said as a passing comment, secretly hoping that your father wasn’t listening and would just agree. His brows furrowed.

“Who?” He said simply. His one word answer made you nervous, your father had always been particular about who you would see and what friends you’d have. He had specifically said no boys before you left for Hogwarts that year.

“My friends Poppy and Sebastian.” You said quietly, his eyebrows furrowed even more. It was only a small white lie, Poppy wouldn’t be there. Your father started rummaging through his trouser pocket, he was looking for something.

“Would that happen to be Sebastian Sallow? Headmaster Black wrote to your mother and I about that boy.” Your stomach dropped; Black wrote to your parents? You looked around the room nervously. You nodded, waiting for the hammer to come down. Your father threw the letter at you, you caught it with shaky hands, unfolding the slightly crumpled paper to reveal the letter.

 Dear Mr & Mrs (Y/L/N),

I am writing to inform you that your daughter has been seen fraternising with Sebastian Sallow, a fellow fifth year. I recall that you asked me to inform you of any fraternisation with our male students.

My house elf informed me that he spotted them kissing on the last day of term. I will do everything within my power to cease this behaviour when they return to Hogwarts in the autumn.

Headmaster Black

 You audibly gasped reading the letter. You couldn’t believe that Black had sent a letter home to your parents for a small kiss, and you couldn’t believe that your parents had asked the school to inform them about your relationships with your peers. Your father looked at you, disgusted.

“The answer is no. You are not allowed to meet your friends. You’re grounded until you go back to school in the autumn, which means, no broom and no owl also.” Your father stated. You felt your tears begin to fall. How could they do this? They didn’t even know Sebastian. You stood up and stormed away, slamming every door that you could on your way. Your father was yelling behind you, following you into the hallway. He grabbed your owl cage and broom from where they were placed neatly in the corner and unceremoniously threw them into the nearest cupboard, slamming it shut and locking the door. You ran to your room, slamming the door behind you and locking it quickly before falling onto your bed. You couldn’t believe what they were doing. And now you couldn’t even contact Sebastian or any of your other friends.

You rolled over onto your stomach and shoved your head into the pillow, letting out a broken sob. How would you let Sebastian know that you weren’t going to make it?

Part 2

A/N - Thank you for reading! My requests are open!

[theresattrpgforthat]

Hi! This request was easier to search for, so I see you’ve recommended Hearts of Wulin and Ten Thousand Days for the Sword. Do you have any other wuxia or xianxia game recs?

Have a good day!

THEME: Wuxia Games.

Hello friend, I'm certainly not an expert, but after reaching out to some more knowledgeable folks, I think I have a few!

Jiangshi: Blood in the Banquet Hall, by Wet Ink Games.

This is a collaborative, storytelling RPG about a Chinese family making their living by running a restaurant in one of America’s Chinatowns, circa 1920. Despite societal backlash and anti-Chinese laws, they have turned a profit and their quality of life has recently improved.

Night, however, brings a new terror.

Players take on the roles of members of the Chinese family (mostly from Guangdong province), spanning three generations, who face threats of jiangshi (hopping vampires) at night and racism by day. It has players balancing the responsibility of maintaining their family business with protecting themselves and their community from the dreaded Jiangshi. This is primarily a game about storytelling. Combat is limited, but horror, drama and sometimes comedy are the primary vehicles for driving the game forward.

This game draws quite a bit from boardgaming elements, so I think this one is best played around a physical table, especially since it requires a custom deck of cards. You’ll use these cards to represent the demands of running a restaurant in the day, as well as fighting of a vampire at night. This game is probably on the borders of what I think is considered wuxia, but if you have a horror lover in your group, this might be worth checking out.

Exalted, by Onyx Path Games.

This is the tale of a forgotten age before the seas were bent, when the world was flat and floated atop a sea of chaos. This is the tale of a decadent empire raised up on the bones of the fallen Golden Age, whose splendor it faintly echoed but could not match. This is a tale of primal frontiers, of the restless dead, of jeweled cities ruled openly by spirits in defiance of Heaven’s law. This is a tale of glorious heroes blessed by the gods, and of their passions and the wars they waged in the final era of legends.

Exalted has a number of different sources, only one of which feels close to wuxia, but the stories are certainly expected to give you long, sweeping epics and larger-than-life characters. There are many different kinds of Exalted, including Solars, Lunars, and Dragon-Blooded. Since I’m not a wuxia connoisseur myself, I’m not entirely sure how close Exalted comes to hitting the mark - I’m mostly recommending it because it came up connected to some other wuxia fantasy games when I was doing some searching.

Jiang Hu, by wum1ng.

Jiang Hu is a role-playing game for the wuxia genre. Drawing inspiration from wuxia novels written by luminaries such as Jin Yong and Gu Long, the Feng Yun comics from Ma Rong Chen and the multitude of wuxia movies and television series, this game brings the world of dashing swordsmen, warrior monks, brawling beggars and high-flying stunts to your tabletop. 

Players take on the role of Martial Artists fighting against various threats to the lands of Jiang Hu, ranging from evil sect leaders who have mastered forbidden secret martial arts techniques to megalomaniacs seeking to take over the Imperial Throne by force and the blood of countless innocents.

The Worlds Without Number series by Kevin Crawford has its praises sung by many people, especially folks in the OSR scene, and that is the bones that this game is built on. Your character is built from quite a list of skills, which are differentiated between Combat and Non-Combat. You also have a number of secondary attributes, for things such as Armour Class, Evasion, and Luck, as well as a dedicated space on your character sheet for weapons and martial arts. Expect combat to to take up a bulk of your time!

When you roll for your character background, you also get a significant life event that is expected to shape your character’s past, such as having a loved one murdered, or falling into serious debt. Out of all of the games listed here, I think this game is the closest to D&D, what with the “packages” of skills, items and abilities attached to each background.

The Oath, by brushmen.

"We seek not to be born on the same day, but hope to die on the same day." And with such an oath, Yong, Li, and Ming swore loyalty to each other.

When earthly desires tempt them, and devotions threaten to tear them apart, with or without a hand from uncaring fate…

will their oath endure?

The Oath is a collaborative storytelling game for one Game Moderator and three players.

This is meant to be a one-shot, which borrows the Entanglements system from Hearts of Wulin and the character Keys and Tags from Lady Blackbird. Since this game comes with characters already pre-written, it would probably be very good for groups who have very little time, or who want an easy on-ramp to games or the wuxia genre. I like the fact that the Keys give you prompts and directions for your character’s behaviour; it’s strong statement on how the author interprets the genre, but it still gives you, the player, a choice on what elements of your character will be emphasized, and what elements will take up the background.

brushmen also has another wuxia Lady Blackbird hack called The Escort, about recovering from a violent robbery, this one for four players and one GM.

Four Swords, by ehronlime.

This is a tabletop roleplaying game about being young heroes in a wuxia story, made for the #AsianMartialArtsJam.

You start with your First Sword, which you use to challenge other heroes and villains and strive for mastery.

You will then gain three more Swords: the Second a sword of great pride and regret, the Third a sword of mastery and expression, and the Fourth a sword which is no sword.

You will also struggle between the obligations put upon your by others and what you truly desire from the life of a wandering hero.

Four Swords really zeroes in on the combat mastery part of wuxia fantasy. Your characters will grow into mastery, and battle with rigid codes and rules that structure the world you live in. The game is very descriptive, leaving you with only 4 abilities that are meant to broadly encompass what you are able to do. The game encourages characters to interfere with each-other using a mechanic called Vows, and levelling up gives you access to different techniques, which reinforce the competence of your characters as well as the rigid guidelines by which they might improve.

This game was made for the Asian Martial Arts by Asian Creators Game Jam, so you might find some more wuxi-themed games there!

Blades of the Immortals, by Jagganoth.

Blades of the Immortals is a tabletop roleplaying game inspired by xiānxiá. It uses the Forged in the Dark rules engine developed by John Harper, as seen in games like Blades in the Dark and Beam Saber.

In Blades of the Immortals, you will take on the roles of cultivators, striving for your own ambitions, for the glory of your sect, and for the ultimate prize —  immortality. You'll viciously struggle for scarce resources, compete for the patronage of powerful and influential teachers, gather allies to your banner, and scheme against your enemies. Your cultivators will wield mystical treasures and supernatural spell-arts, mastering the very laws of the cosmos as their weapons, as they become entangled in centuries-long vendettas between deathless wizard-kings.

This game is solidly focused on supernatural abilities and grand increases in strength. You choose from one of 9 different playbooks, and collaboratively create a faction that binds you all together. The sources listed as inspirations for this game include (but are not limited to) Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation, Forge of Destiny, Aspiring to the Immortal Path, and Journey to the West.

Compared to other Blades hacks, this game reduces the standard number of action ratings, ties character growth to a change in your character’s beliefs, and separates your gear from your playbook. Characters can also level up through Realms, which increases your effectiveness and upgrades your inventory.

Mist-Robed Gate, by Shreyas & Elizabeth Sampat.

There are some things that we value more than life.

There are things we're willing to scheme and cry and fight and die for.

That's what wuxia cinema is about— fighting and dying for the things we care about. That's what Mist-Robed Gate is about.

Mist-Robed Gate comes with a full list of movie recommendations, but includes Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and House of Flying Daggers as key influences. I really like the fact that a key mechanic of this game includes stabbing your character sheet with a knife.

Players create factions first, and then take turns creating characters that represent those factions, with elements that represent the hero’s distinctive personality and style. Players also create the different locations that will serve as the stage for your scenes. Play happens over a series of scenes, as their characters push and pull against each-other, sometimes even making terrible demands (which is where the Knife comes in). If you want a game that has a lot of politics in the terms of actions having large ramifications over big groups of people, and if you want a game that is extremely dramatic, you might want to check out Mist-Robed Gate.