#btw the actual in-game models are even worse

[stack-of-fjarnskaggl]

sooo new WoW xpac dropped and not only are the players fighting a city of nerubians that have pledged loyalty to a new old god (the only bug race in warcraft that was previously specifically known to have rejected the old gods), but bliz has made what has got to be the most boring, generic, marvel alien-looking humanoid ""nerubian"" subrace ever created

if I search for nerubians anywhere and see anyone making an OC of one of those things I'm blocking them immediately

[lfghughes]

Could you do a one shot with Trevor Zegras where the reader and the Trevor broke up and the reader is famous model so she comes to one of Trevor’s games because her best friend is dating Jack. And Trevor’s new “talking stage” starts causing a distraction so Trevor notices it and the reader is completely unbothered.

a/n: thank you so much for requesting this, i loved this idea!

This was not your idea, this was actually so far from your idea but you were a good best friend. Good enough of a best friend to go to your exes hockey game because his team was playing against the team that your best friends boyfriend played on. “You’re so lucky I love you.” You told her as you threw on one of the jerseys she had with Jacks number on it. “Isn’t it weird that I’m wearing your boyfriends jersey?” You asked and she shook her head. “Well, you have to go in a jersey and I don’t have any others plus I’m not letting you support the Ducks or him.”

You rolled your eyes at her, you knew her dislike for Trevor came just from the break up and not because she had actual hatred for him. But she made it known to him every time she had to hang out with him because Jack invited him to something. “You look good in red, you sure you don’t want Jack giving you John or Nicos number? Then maybe we’d see each other more often.”

“Again I love you but no, I have to focus on my career and I’m busy all the time.” But the truth was you just weren’t ready. The break up took a lot out of you and recently you had seen Trevor had been talking to someone new. It definitely stung seeing that on social media. At the game you were instantly reminded that you missed nights out like this. Maybe if you did end up moving to New York you could see your best friend more often at least on the weekends.

Your thoughts were interrupted when a few seats away from you, Trevors new girlfriend or whatever she was took her seat. Clearly you weren’t the only one who had recognized her because the look on her face showed she knew exactly who you were. “Look at him! My baby.” Your best friend squealed next to you as Jack waved up at the two of you, blowing a kiss to your best friend.

Again there was that ache of missing something like that. As the game got started you concentrated on it and cheered every time the Devils scored, you definitely were not going to upset your best friend by cheering for the Ducks tonight at all. It was all fine until Trevors new girl started causing a scene on purpose. It only got worse when she pointed her attention to you. “And everyone knows you only used Trevor to get far in your career. How’s that going for you? Just a washed up influencer model.”

The words didn’t cut that deep, instead you ignored her because you had nothing to add. Your best friend on the other hand tensed up immediately. “Hey do you mind? We’re watching the game.” Your hand went to her arm, knowing she could easily get heated when people attacked the people she cared about. “Careful, I’m sure she’ll go after your man in hopes of getting more fame.”

“Ignore her, watch the game and she’ll shut up.” You warned your best friend and you could tell it was taking everything in her to not do something. Of course you were slightly irritated for the rest of the game. Your good night had been slightly tarnished and you hated that. After the game was over you passed on going out for drinks, mostly in fear that Jack would invite his best friend who would in turn bring the girl he was seeing.

As you laid in bed you thought over about the whole night when your phone buzzed. “You look better in my jersey btw.” The text was from Trevor and you felt your stomach tie itself in knots. “I’m sure your girlfriend would love hearing that.” You quickly sent back and it didn’t take long for your phone to ring. You picked up the call “Not my girlfriend especially after what I saw tonight and from what Jack told me.” Trevor hadn’t even waited to completely jump into conversation.“I also thought you’d come out at some point with us so I could tell you in person to never wear Jacks jersey again.” A small laugh left your lips at his words. “Didn’t want to run into your…friend.” You corrected yourself before you called her his girlfriend again. “Well, I’m actually on my way to your place and I’m really hoping you let me in. I even have a jersey with my name on it for you.”

[mapsareforbraindeads]

spam headcanons plzzzz 🧍‍♀️

i did promise that didn’t i… well, since you asked for general hcs last night and are also usually asking for lawmane spam… you get BOTH HAHA!

lawmane

i have a feeling that L would be FURIOUS about the outcome of misa’s parents’ murder case. in an AU where kira never existed, he would make sure that he got jailed for life or worse.

if someone ever tried flirting with misa in public (which they definitely would, she’s a model after all), L would probably loudly clear his throat and announce his presence in that way. he’s not outwardly jealous but can get a bit insecure about his place in misa’s life. they both kind of have that problem

L has a dad sneeze. that is all.

L’s hands are always cold. misa’s hands are usually warm. do you get what i’m saying

matsuda is a huge supporter of their relationship! he got them huge wedding gifts, visits regularly… he’d definitely be the godfather of at least one of their kids

when they got together, light was furious that his “weapon” had left him for L of all people. he was probably screaming at them (mainly misa) before L shut him up. verbally? physically? you decide!

general

light never got his driver’s license. not even a permit. he said it was because taking the train was better for the environment and that he would prefer more outside time, but he doesn’t really care about that. he’s just scared of driving. (i need to flesh out my mad ones AU)

L is lactose intolerant. does he care? absolutely not. he only survived that long through pure determination

ryuk mains princess peach when he and light play games together. light mains mario because 1) main character energy, and 2) mamoru miyano. also terraito i guess

light 100% had a repressed emo phase. he couldn’t actually do anything about it because of his “perfect image” he had to maintain, but it happened. he’d spend all day at school smiling and “working hard”, but then as soon as he got to his room, he’d put on black eyeshadow and scream about how much he hated his family. this lasted about a month until he decided he could “do better”

all of these are canon btw, ohba and obata told me /j

[dykefever]

hellooo laura. I have just gone through a transformative experience also known as finishing the fleabag au so I infinitely thank you for that. but the little flash forwards (if they can even be called that) led me to wonder what wolfstar in your other stories are doing years down the line. so, if I may, can I know how sawn-off shotgun wolfstar are doing rn? little windows into their lives?

hello!!!!! first of thank you so much xxx and secondly i was having a little think about what these guys are up to so sorry it took me a second to get back to you xxx

here is how a sawn off shotgun r/s n co are doing:

so i think currently they are taking a break from touring and recording after their last album n how insane it was once they were confirmed together. they were soo inappropriate on stage all the time and it made the news a lot they were in a scandal about whether teenagers should be allowed to go to their shows and how they're corrupting the kids etc and well. r and s sloppy made out on stage in response while s wore a harness and collar. peter and james had a little smooch too on stage just for fun <3

r and s immediately moved in together after the tour in a place they bought together in london. they also have a place up in scotland countryside that they often visit and is often where they go for writing retreats when they're getting serious about the next album. currently it's mainly r/s that go up there to have sex all weekend and write sickening songs together + go on cute little hikes. if u think what s was writing before was horny well this is now worse. lily + james are living together also in london while lily is an intern doctor. james is being such a good malewife and sometimes reg visits and he often joins them for a threesome and he's accidentally but not really become a third in their relationship x (sorry everyone this was calling to me i had to.)

peter my beloved has just released a solo project that is doing v well and now everyone is a bit obsessed with him not just his extremely dedicated fanbase of wolf moon peter-truthers. he's also been hanging out with sam smith a lot and they are rumoured to be dating xxx no one in this band is safe from queerness x peter is going on a small tour soon so nothing will happen with wolf moon until he's finished up with that!!

sirius has started getting into a bit of fashion n modelling (slut) which all started because remus had been photographing him for a while after getting into film then digital. remus released a set of photos on instagram of horny pics (after half a year of absolute nothing on ig - last photo was of their final show on tour) of sirius and they went quite viral. set off both their little side projects of photography/modelling. talks of r doing an art show soon. he's not sure whether he'll do it because so many of his best photos are of s :-) sirius has just done his first shoot with comme des garcons as a celebrity ambassador guy idk is that what they're called? he slayed btw.

r and s also have this little game that they mainly played on tour but sometimes do during their break where one of them flirts with a stranger at a club (who are very excited to hook up with the famous cunts from that band even if they have a bf. and then well.) and sees how far it'll get before the other loses their mind with jealousy and they fuck nasty in the private bathrooms. is it healthy? not exactly xx but they're having so much fun xx

there is talks of them convening in berlin for the summer to write their next album although they're thinking of slowing down on the coke and maybe just heading to the tried and true scotland to do mushrooms n acid etc x

that's all i've got for now!! i actually had so much fun thinking about this !!! if anyone wants to ask more questions about this or other fics go for it hehe

[poselyssgeekos]

RESIDENT EVIL OPINION 4

RE1remake - RE2remake - RE3remake

RE CODE VERONICA X

‼️SPOILERS AHEAD‼️

- Quite goofy since it was done in 2000 right after RE3:Nemesis

- Love that we play Claire!

- Steve is as annoying as I was told…

- The game doesn’t really have music, you only hear it during intense fight sequences, cinematic or the save room (love the save room music 🫶)

- why did Claire send a email to Leon so someone could come get her??? Like, lore wise, how would she know that send an email to, LEON? Like once they separate she immediately goes back to searching for Chris, so how do they even keep in touch during the months in between RE2 and code Veronica???

- The map in this game is SO ANNOYING, it’s really hard to figure out what the rooms are sometimes, and the colour scheme is not the best….

- The Steve sequence has no real purpose 💀…HE has no real purpose

- I play with a friend on her ps4, and to me it’s really challenging to play it on the ps4 with the controls, so she plays, and I help

- Love how goofy the antagonists feel (Wesker and Alfred)

- hm the INCEST??? Why did they feel like that was necessary?

- Alfred having a split personality disorder… he dresses up like his sister and becomes her sometimes while she was in her coma, like he loves his sister so much he… ???uncontiously??? Becomes her…

- Enemies are cool ig, just regular resident evil enemies…

- The Tyrant boss fight on the plane was SO DIFFICULT it took at least 10 fucking attempts

-talking about planes… how the fuck does the 17 year old know how to drive a cargo plane?

- The Antarctic part is hell, we had to go and find a walkthrough….

- Nevermind the Chris part is worse 🗿

- Please Capcom I beg you, do a remake!!! You can make some things better!! Please!!!

- Too many rooms that don’t really have a purpose other than give you ammo or plants, with too many objects to collect to be able to move forward in the game

- AleXIa???

- Chris’s hair is BAD in the cinematics that are supposed to look better than the in game models and “low” cinematics

- actually Chris doesn’t really look like Chris…

- Alexia looks like some jenovah wanna be during her first phase

- Alexia obviously has to still look like a woman after mutating…. 💀

- I wasn’t the one playing but it sure looked a bit annoying

-They had the opportunity for Wesker and Chris to have to unwillingly work together against Alexia… and they didn’t

- they could also have made Chris and Claire fight Alexia together but obviously they didn’t

- once Chris arrives Claire becomes the damsel in distress 💀 like come on she went through Raccoon City

- you play Chris a bit more than Claire

- Like it was supposed to be HER game

- And you play her just ONCE more after Chris arrives and it’s 2 seconds, then she cries about Steve and then Chris has to save her AGAIN

- also he’s the one who fights Alexia…

- I mean at the beginning of the game I felt that she was “badass” and independent, so reminiscent of her in raccoon City kinda

- And, again, once Chris arrives….like we french people say, MISKINE! Like her energy completely changes, the man arrives let’s let him do everything 💀

- it’s so weird when the game before this one was re3: nemesis, with Jill as the main protagonist trough out the whole game AND Girlbossing her way through the game… Claire deserves to girlboss too…..

- Steve’s design after the mutation is uh… not the best design we’ve seen

- The ending??? Like my friend said “looks like the ending of a power rangers episode”

- My friend who is used to rating games gives it a 12/20

Notes: Oh! Here’s how we did btw, keep in mind I touched the controller for a few minutes, but kept cursing and getting angry because of my inability to play 💀 so my two friends took turns playing

[ghostowlattic]

Heyo mate,

I really love your art, happy to find you at tumblr. I'm just wondering, are those digital or real creations? Your art looks so real but also seems like digitally created. You haven't used any tags for this information. Btw your art is amazing and really magical, thanks for existing ^^

Have a wonderful day and sun & moon keeps bring you good luck! Farewell :3

-Lona

Thank you much! I wrote some replies to this, all which ended up rather long winded, so instead as short as possible reply for you and others.

I really just love making music. I'm mostly a musician, songwriter, composer. Piano/keys but I play a lot of musical instruments or use things for soundmaking. I do have many sorts of visual arts posted but I'm 99.9999% certain you mean the recent deluge of AI assisted images I've been sharing which, are a blend of AI, diffusion/Midjourney, personal images, photos, but those are not real objects as far as all those terrariums etc go.

I try to actually tag anything I use for the most or just add 'generative'. Anything that doesn't pick up crypto peeps really. Anyhow, it's all more of a dreaming visual diary for myself and others. Or a bit of visual reflection of my musical brainscapes. I often use a mix of my own photographs images, fed into an ai model or two. But I don't promote myself as an artist really. I don't even mind selling prints of mine for the sake of health care and rations but, otherwise it's for just ideation, inspiration, dreams. People can enjoy it any way they want.

There's a lot I could say about it all and the good and terrible of ai or tech in general but would take up too much space here, I'm really not much of a tech bro person either, but I don't hate machines. We are an entire universe of jiggly energy so, whatever. At very least I like the notion of infecting such things with as much love and beauty and good ole weirdness especially if some is unstoppable for better and worse. This is all for the sake of it. Really, a ton of those images are already made so, vs just leaving them in a folder I figure I may as well share some for others to see.

Anyhow, thank you kindly Lona - and anyone else, if you like the images/blog feel free to check out my bandcamp or soundcloud or my music/video posts here. I think its rather visual and odd beautiful in its own ways also. Sorry for the longish reply but it's also for others who wonder or who send me inquiries lately.

I do like this Glenn Gould quote on art, 'The purpose of art is not the release of a momentary ejection of adrenaline but is, rather, the gradual, lifelong construction of a state of wonder and serenity.' – Glenn Gould

I love 'art' being for personal expression or communication of things which go beyond language and reference, for music at least. Yet I also love the romantic notion reflecting things which leave us in a state of wonder that seem larger, Nature, etc. VS just self expression and human stuffs. I guess to me I don't see much point of personal expression if it doesn't include a bit of awareness of not being the center of the universes.

Most of all I'm a biopheliac and sound lover. Very open always for collabs of artistic natures as well. Music, arts, film, games, public expressive dance terrorism, whatever.

[hidingoutbackstage]

Okay aside from my hatred for how it treated Eveline, the DLC also just, wasn't great? And didn't matter? Spoilers below the cut

Okay so getting big thing out of the way: The DLC takes place before the 8 epilogue of Rose at Ethan's grave. Meaning that everything we see doesn’t matter. Rose was never going to lose her powers, she was always going to escape the mold mind palace (btw I’m gonna call it “mold mind palace” this whole time) and it just felt cheap to have the ENTIRE epilogue shown at the end. Like just show her on the bus, we know this scene. I kept waiting throughout the scene to see if they would show us anything new or different, but they didn't. That ending was pointless.

K was also such a nothing character. I speculated that it could be John, since the two characters' faces are similar, but it wasn't. Rose calls him K. John's HWS name is Lobo. If it were Dion she was meeting, that nickname might make sense (K9. There's actually a file in 8 that refers to Canine with that shortened nickname so it would've been possible) but Dion obviously doesn't look like this guy. Not to mention the reveal that he was never there doesn't do anything for us. We knew nothing about this guy, had no attachment to him, so Miranda tricking Rose the entire time means nothing to us. If it had been an actual former HWS member, or, hell, CHRIS then we might have felt something.

Also just the insinuations that 1) Chris is STILL leading HWS 16 years later 2) they're inviting more people to be part of HWS 3) HWS hasn't been shut down yet despite them having been a rogue team when we saw them operating in 8 and they went straight to BSAA HQ, meaning they probably would've received some consequences for going rogue and 4) they've asked Rose, a 16-year-old, to join their team, are all absurd

The DLC is also just really lazy. They recycle ideas, like Miranda using illusions to trick someone into seeing a person that wasn't even there, they recycle models, like seriously Evie looks exactly how she did in RE7, and her model there wasn't great and was still super clunky here and she wasn't proportioned like a child, and they reuse her tantrum animations from 7, they recycle locations just making things more messy or adding the new bloody mold goop to indicate this is the mind palace and not irl. They're lazy with Miranda's motivation too, like there's no reason for her to need Rose as a vessel for Eva anymore. If Eva's consciousness was truly in the mold like Miranda believed, then great! You're in the mold now, Miranda! Go find her! Why are you wasting time with Rose?

The "Michael" mystery was stupid. There was no real reason for him to not reveal himself to Rose right away. It wouldn't "complicate" anything, in fact she'd be more likely to trust you. He kept telling her to turn back, meaning if she had listened, they never would have gotten to speak, which is kind of what Ethan wanted. He wanted her out of the mind palace, safe, even if it meant he never saw her again. She probably could've taken solace in speaking to her dad, even if it wasn't face to face. Also the wording of "Not an enemy" was sooo dumb. Say you're a friend! Say you're family! "Not an enemy" makes her even less likely to trust you, because you aren't being anything reassuring to her right now

The game also tries way too hard to tug on the heart strings, and it doesn't work. I'm gonna bring up Evie here a bit although I'll do my best not to. I do not feel bad for Rose. As a long time fan and player of most games in this series, I can name more characters who have been through worse shit than Rose has than I can count on my fingers. Actually I will, this is my post, fuck it, feel free to skip the list

Sherry was orphaned at 12 and was infected with a virus that nearly killed her, then was held captive in a strange man's house for eleven years, that's 5 years of her adult life still in captivity, before gaining a false semblance of freedom by being forced to become an agent, on one of her missions was kidnapped and tortured for 6 months, and oh yeah her body stopped aging at 20

Manuela was infected with a disease that should have killed her, lost her mother at 5 years old, nearly died several times during DC, became an orphan at 16, and was locked up after being rescued because she still had powers and was still infected. Despite controlling her powers, she was not given any freedom, because the government was cautious (KEEP THIS IN MIND FOR LATER)

Claire, Chris, and Leon are all orphans, Leon definitely when he was a child, Chris and Claire it's up to speculation. The three of them went through the horrors of the early games as young adults, Claire only being 19.

Jill was kidnapped, brainwashed, and forced to become a murderous slave for a genocidal maniac who she sacrificed her life to try to kill

Ashley was kidnapped multiple times, infected, and had her body taken control of by another person against her will

Natalia was an orphan (WHO WATCHED HER PARENTS DIE BTW) who was isolated from her peers, kidnapped, tormented for months by Alex, experienced hallucinations, had an adult woman try to take control of her body, and despite having seemed safe, apparently is still suffering ptsd or worse from what Alex did to her. She was adopted by a normal family and treated like a normal child, but she was still safely monitored and there's no indication she had a normal social life (KEEP THIS IN MIND FOR LATER)

Lisa Trevor was kidnapped at age 14, became an orphan when her parents were killed and she was infected with a virus, and went mad as she was continually tortured and experimented on until her death at 35 years old

Alexia and Alfred Ashford were given a life of comfort, but were still an experimental vanity project that their father enacted because he was in love with one of his ancestors, which they learned of at only 12 years old. Alexia willingly infected herself at age 12, Alfred was forced large political power at that age, and went insane without his sister there to support him, and when Alexia woke up from cryo sleep, the first thing she saw was her brother's dead body

Eveline was created to be a bioweapon. She was never given a choice as to if she had these powers. She was younger than her ten-year-old physical appearance, because she was aged up artificially, she was tortured, abused, forced to kill people with powers she couldn't control, and denied any source of comfort despite having the wants and needs of a child, and she was murdered by a man who called her a little bitch as she cried and lamented why the world seemed to hate her.

Now. What struggles does Rose have? Why, her dad is dead and kids at school call her a freak, of course! Now Isn't that sad? Don't you feel terrible for her and can't wait for her to pick off Eveline, who was taunting her, like a bitter child would?

Also yes you read that right, kids at school. Rosemary Winters, who shows physical proof in public that she is an actively infected person who cannot control her abilities, is allowed to attend public school and receive childish bullying. Un-fucking-realistic. Such bullshit.

Like I said, they lay on the pathos thick. There is an entire section, with no real gameplay, as you walk around the house from the beginning of 8 as you get to hear Ethan's voice and Rose's commentary on things her dad said because wahhh isn't it sad that Ethan died? They tell you how Rose feels through dialogue instead of allowing the character to feel for the obviously forced pathos. The letter was also written way too on the nose to try and tug at some heart strings. The ending where Rose talks to Ethan (while still HILARIOUSLY obstructing his face) goes on for too long and not a single line isn't something sad/sweet/sappy to try and get in the audience's feelings. (Also Rose bringing a physical object of Ethan's ring out of a MOLD MIND PALACE makes no sense but w/e)

Okay but is the gameplay at least good? Nah not that either. You get two weapons, a handgun and a shotgun, the occasional pipe bomb, and Rose's freezing powers. Now I know that this is a DLC and of course there doesn't have to be a lot of content, but this was pathetic. There are only two real puzzles either. The playthrough I watched was 3 hours long. The only part I thought was really scary was running from the Mia mannequins, but gameplay-wise they're like super easy to defeat.

The story jumps forward 16 years for no real reason. We don't get any insight into this new world Rose is living in, 16 years from the current furthest point in the timeline, we meet no new characters except for K who we can't really assume told us anything real since he was an illusion. This story was unnecessary, a mess, none of the gameplay was spectacular, and it went out of its way to torture and villainize a character who had already suffered in life, not even giving her peace in death. Really shitty DLC, really bad time.

[horsyunicorn]

I've been playing d1 and it's remarkable how much more rewarding gameplay feels. I get to upgrade my weapons based on how much I use them. My armour unlocks upgrades when it absorbs damage and protects me. My blue (rare) auto rifle has like 9 different perks, that can only be unlocked through use (i.e. xp) or motes of light - it's not even legendary and it's amazing.

D1 also feels more rewarding because you can tell most of the green (uncommon) rifles (and, weapons in general) aren’t absolute dogshit but actually have models and responsiveness like Halo battle rifles, auto rifles or pulse rifles. Even if you find a blue (rare) rifle which you like better and which has better stats, responsiveness and model, you would only pick that because it’s better, not because the greens are bad on their own. I’ll admit getting generic world-drop armor isn’t as rewarding because the in-game models aren’t crafted as uniquely as rares and legendaries in D2 (also, rare and legedary gear drops much more often in D1), though the range of armour sets is much greater in D2 and some are much more strongly repulsive or attractive, and I prefer only a few styles of Hunter armour in D1 - 3/4 or full-length capes, flowing smooth fabric instead of weird pointy textures, and just a bit of a hood with no huge high collars - so I’ve spent quite a lot of time looking forward to level 40 / TTK/Rise of Iron armor sets (essentially free-to-play non-strike PVE endgame content) instead of enjoying what I have.

Thankfully, it’s not like D2 where you might as well throw out most rare weapons because you can’t infuse them (light level creep is stupid btw and sunsetting is worse) or they look or feel like shit. (There are exceptions: for example in D2 I like the Cuboid ARU, the suros kinetic auto, and the suros elemental auto rifles, and there’s nothing wrong with the Plemusa-B grenade launcher, with its static auto-loading perk).

Everything in D2 feels more solid and also more...bulky and newer and more generic. Every time I go back to D1 I feel like I’m smarter cos I learn the types of rifles and can recognise my fav ones by name first and icon second. It feels like a more unique game. (In D2 I look at the icon of a blue weapon and I almost immediately scrap it cos it’s just not as good as a legendary. I learn the individual weapons instead of the weapon types, which is good in terms of a memory exercise but less interesting in terms of the process of recall. It also highlights exactly just how many weapons the D2 team has had to import or create which are then almost never used because they can’t be infused or don’t have good perks found on legendary weapons and thus are discarded in favour of lengendary weapons. It’s to the art/asset team’s credit that they made so many weapons that look and feel unique and it’s sad that the gameplay/sandbox team have a system which obfuscates that effort.)

Don’t get me wrong, D2Y1 does have a much better story, because the Red War returns guardians to a place of struggle against a much more powerful force - the Red Legion - and that’s much better than D1, where you get rezzed and make your way to the Last City, and the storyline of Crota/The Black Garden Sol Divisive IS there but it just doesn’t feel impactful AT ALL. The Tower is a big shining example in the Last City on Earth of... I have no idea what. The House of Wolves expansion is ...okay. There is very little characterization to differentiate the different Fallen houses and I just don’t care. The Taken King is good, and Rise of Iron is good, but they all still suffer from everything being imparted through lore and voiced radio communications, instead of being shown on screen. (That’s why Forsaken is so good - it shows you working with Cayde and Petra on screen.)

On an entirely separate note, I only picked up D2 in season of the undying at the end of Shadowkeep, but I did as much of the Shadowkeep campaign as possible (i.e. not including the black garden and pit of heresy) and I'm glad to find I'm not the only person who thought the storyline started and then went absolutely nowhere. (People who are on PC or have paid subscription and who have done the strikes and dungeon agree that the campaign story starts and then goes nowhere.) You enter the garden, see yourself and the pyramid and the pyramid shard, and that's it. It was supposed to be an introduction to the arrival of the pyramids and the contact with the Darkness in Season of Arrivals which itself is a prelude to the second Collapse (the loss of most of the planets) and the beginning of the Year 4 to Year 6 trilogy, Beyond Light/Witch Queen/Lightfall; BUT Shadowkeep actually mostly had a “revenant Hive” theme (for the missions, excluding the raid) and was kinda empty once you finished it, unlike Forsaken, and quite like Beyond Light, which has a “frozen Fallen” theme (for the patrol spaces, excluding the Vex content). Both also stray away from the greater theme. I guess the intent is to drip content slowly and flesh out side-characters and make a more interesting filled world instead of just dropping huge plotlines, but, it kinda sucks.

On another entirely separate note, in D1 you get introduced to darkness zones where you can't respawn (to make it more challenging for gameplay). Since they're always populated by large numbers of enemies or a few very powerful enemies, I always got the impression that the Darkness as defined in the Destiny universe literally exudes from those individuals who operate by Sword logic ie that they'd rather kill races different to their own than greet and extend the hand of friendship. Thus in some physical spaces such as the lair of a particularly powerful Hive boss, you can’t respawn in that space, because they are so powerfully evil. In a similar way, the guardians spread light by exploring and gaining knowledge and pushing back the enemies of humanity (like how the jedi figuratively spread light by doing good deeds with the force) although light can’t be used to suppress minions of the dark from resurrecting (normally - Hive are a special case) because the inverse is untrue; the Darkness doesn’t automatically resurrect dead individuals, whilst Ghosts using the Light do.

But in D2 we meet the pyramids who are literally the embodiment of the Darkness, and with beyond light, we learn they can literally take planets away. This is such a big difference in both storytelling and lore implications.

They don't themselves create races that then spread across the universe and operate by Sword logic (as far as I know which is not every much) but they're just sort of there. It seems terribly inconsistent. I mean yes the whole of Destiny is stupid. Planets disappear and no one gives a hoot actually. Characters die or are killed off and there are few lasting repercussions because our character can’t (can’t die). Characters are used or ununused on the basis of their voice actors’ availability, not story or lore. It’s so inconsistent, like, yes, bad guys exist and can kill you but not permanently. But then gods also exist but you can kill them, sometimes permanently. Hive bosses definitely you can kill, you’ve just got to do it twice before sunset (once in the normal world and once in their throne world). But then also para-causal beings exist but and they can harm you but never permanently really.

[evilweasel]

Fucking???? Blows my mind that people buy things regularly, or have things bought for them regularly. Like new video games every two weeks, new accessories or clothes/shoes every month, art supplies, even getting regular coffee or lunch out in supermarkets. I have a friend who constantly spends on shirts, sparkly rocks, cool notebooks, shoes, figures, pokemon cards, a sunglasses collection. Stuff she just sees and goes "I want that" and GETS it. She doesn't save to the endless void like I do. Doesn't hang on to every fiver, every pound coin, because she's going to need it for this big Future Purchase that never comes. Another friend, she gets money to buy lunch. She doesn't automatically get the cheapest food so she can save better. Why not? Aren't you worried you're going to need that? A third friend, she's in a wealthy tax bracket and gets money from her parents whenever she wants and spends so much on genshin and models and plushies it makes me wince because it's so much money to me. She has the balls to ask money from her wealthy parents and doesn't feel shame about it. Which, GOOD. THATS HOW IT SHOULD BE. WHAT THE FUCK THOUGH.

No shade to these friends btw they are genuinely the most generous people I ever met and I honestly aspire to be their level of generous. The amount of times the first 2 friends have bought me snacks, energy drinks, coffees, donuts (don't know the 3rd friend as well but she's also super generous to her gf). And all I can think is do you know. Do you know i will not be able to repay your kindness. My company isn't even that good im so shit at conversations and can barely stutter out a thank you because I'm super grateful but super embarrassed that I can't return the favour, maybe ever, because my brain just Save Save Saves, so why did you buy me coffee when this could have gone to YOUR Big Future Purchase. I aspire to be their level of carefree. Not to have to force myself to get McDonald's to fit in when everyone else is, and even then it's just a medium milkshake. To never have to weigh up the pros and cons of getting a coffee on a day you're super tired. To not count up the days you got a 3 pound meal deal 3 days a week. 9 pounds a week for every week of term adds up. Don't get me fucking started on things I actually want and don't need. I genuinely cannot buy a thing for myself without giving it 2 to 3 weeks of thought over whether I actually need it or can I Save Some More. Thinking constantly thinking about old purchases and whether they were justified or i went mad. I got that thing and don't even use it that often. I bought that game and haven't had the opportunity or spoons to play it yet, that was 20 quid wasted and i can't buy anything else until I've played through everything else. I bought those books and haven't read them yet. I got a mystery bag at comicon and didn't particularly like what was inside. All this stuff proves i can't be trusted, so I don't need that new video game, I have minecraft. I don't need new clothes, I don't like my current ones but they still fit me. I don't need that book. I can reread. I'm not hungry, I'll eat at home. Other people have it worse. Some people can't even afford to have the heating on. If I'm not Super Ultra Careful, I'll end up like them. It's like an eating disorder but instead of counting calories im counting pennies.

I'm not even working class. Our house has a kitchen island and a double fridge. We always have enough to eat, enough to turn the heating on. When I was a kid I got everything I asked for and the nice birthday presents. So why am I so scared. Whats been ingrained into me to make me scared. My dad tells me I'm so stingy. He told me when I was 5 I was told to put a pound coin into the charity spinner and I wouldn't do it bc that would mean I wouldn't have the pound coin. I didn't want to spend it on something else. I just wanted the pound coin bc I knew it might be able to get me something, one day. When I was 10 and went away to Cornwall, my uncle gave me 10 quid to spend, but told me if I didn't spend it then he would take it back because at this point everyone knew I had Spending Troubles. And I couldn't do that either. I looked around all the shops and dithered because there was nothing I wanted more than the tenner just to save it up and put it away. I was ten. What was I saving for??? A house??? A car??? A uni fund??? At the time i wanted a drawing tablet more than anything, but I knew even if I hung onto this tenner it wouldn't make any difference and ten year old me would never be able to get that on my own. I never spent any birthday money. Any Christmas money. At 14 I had enough to buy half a drawing tablet and got my parents to get the rest of it when it was on sale and they STILL only took half my money and paid ¾. Money im still hanging onto now, at 17, when they paid most because they wanted me to get something I wanted more, they didn't think I'd actually save for a drawing pad myself. I still haven't spent it. I'm terrified I'll think ill of myself in a month for it.

My friend had a birthday recently, and she always gets me nice gifts. She's gotten me promised neverland manga, a frog pin, homemade friendship bracelets and homemade jewellry made out of rocks ane crystals she's bought, alongside sweets and choccies she knows I like. Most of this wasn't even birthday stuff, just regular stuff. I am so LUCKY to have her as a friend, someone as honest and kind and generous and talented and helpful, so I wanted to get things she also wanted. She's been going through a big pokemon phase and I KNOW her favourite pokemon is leafeon, so I got her a little leafeon plushie, and as an added bonus a magnetic ponyta pin because she also likes my little pony and the galarian version looks like one of the old my little ponies. 21 pound total, three weeks ago I still remember because its the biggest purchase I've made in months. And the thought kept crossing my mind "you didn't need to give her the pin as well. The plush would have been fine", or even "she would have loved a card, you could have just gotten her a card and then you'd be 21 pounds richer". And I just feel disgusted with myself. Because she gets all her little gifts for me so unthinkingly, so willingly, and she never regrets them. I always tell her she doesn't have to, but she wants to, and she does it for all of her friends. Between me and her other 2 close friends, that's so much spent. I'm terrified. I'm in awe. I hate myself for not being like that. Hate myself for regretting when her reaction to the ponyta pin i almost didn't even give her was "OH MY G O SH I love the little Pikachu ears on the back oh its magnetic???? I don't think ill be able to wear this, ill lose it". I cherish her reaction. So why do I still feel such dread at the money I spent. What is wrong with me. It was 21 pounds. I wasn't gonna spend it. What I have in my bank account isn't enough for the PC I need for my college course, or the new art tablet I need because my current one is breaking for my college course, or the new phone im going to need soon bc this one is on the fritz. Today, I was at another friends birthday. Shes gotten me donuts more times than I can remember. We don't make a habit out of getting each other gifts on birthdays, just funny cards. I just gave her a card. Why didn't I get her a gift too?? Two of the others did. She has difficulty accepting gifts like me, but like, who cares?? It would make her happy. I don't want her to get things for me in return I want to see her face when I get her a badass notebook with an eye on the front, or a custom dnd dice set, or a sickass writing pen for her diary. I want to be able to make her happy like that. But the deep rooted well of dread at spending money is so fucking much and I hate hate hate hate hate hate hate hate that I can't fucking ever return their generosity. Why do they continue to get things for me. Why do they value me so much. I'm so terrible at conversations, at hosting, at gift giving, at affection, at having enough spoons to hang out most days. I'm not charismatic and I'm not worthy or all this stuff. All I've got going for me is I'm a great listener and can remember random details and im not even that good at that and cover it up most times because it's weird to hang onto too many innocuous details about a person. I love my friends so much and they'll never know because I can't show it, not physically (im too awkward for hugging or high fives) or verbally (im too awkward for compliments I say what I can but it always comes out so stiff and insincerely) or with gifts (can't spend) or quality time (no spoons most days) or anything anything anything anything.

You can't put a price on people but I have. I've literally put a price tag on everything. Even myself. And I get so confused when people give me more than the 30p I think I'm worth. Hate it. Hate it. Disgust myself. What the fuck.

[james-fun-in-the-sunderland]

yeah sure every q for the ask game for mr. abel unless u like hate a q then u can skip but. and you know what !!!! 👀 and 💌 for vicky !!!!!! thats right so many q's

every day when i rb an ask game zee sees if he can send me as of them as possible bc its his love language 💖

link back to the ask game bc i have other ocs to aske about if anyone wishes

going under a readmore immediately bc wow. so many qs.

for abel:

🥵 : Is your OC perceived as physically attractive to others? Is it at first glance or is it something that takes more time to reach fruition?

I think abel is definitely physically attractive to others! he has a very 'aged like a fine wine' type of look that i swear isnt just my own biases i swear i swear . i really do think he would 100% be flirted with by like . everyone. but especially men. i think its first glance also BTW, maybe taking more time for people who arent into how big or hairy he is? but those are cowards. 💦 : Is your OC’s attractiveness based on looks or a more intangible aura?

looks. but also abel has a very charismatic aura to him as well! he speaks very casually or more formally depending on the people he talks to and finds it easy to figure out how to push the right buttons in a conversation to make someone like him so its just like alot. 💪 : What is your OC’s most physically attractive attribute? 

face for sure, hes got the beard and a bit of a smoldering look to him that makes him even hotter when he takes off his glasses, plus if he dresses up he looks VERY nice and his body in general IMO is quite nice. 🧠 : What is your OC’s most mentally attractive attribute?

like i said before he has a charisma to him that makes him very attractive and just nice to in general but he also is veryyy intellectual! being a nurse and all. he did very well in school and i think people could be into how he can rattle off obscure medical terms. 👀 : Does your OC believe they are attractive? Do they use that to their advantage?

very interesting question actually bc ive never thought abt this hmmmm.... i think he does ? but only because people have told him, i think otheerwise its not like he wouldnt like how he looks or anyhing he just would be very neutral on it. suffice it to say he doesnt use his appearance at all. 👃 : Does your OC smell good? Do they have a signature scent?

i think he would! hes very well groomed and probably often takes showers and probably wears cologne to dates. probably smells a bit woody but with some notes of fruit and like . other smels... probably also has like a slight scent of like blood and stuff since he works at a hospital and which like is worse after he gets home from work but THATS what COLOGNE is for BABEYYY 👂 : Does your OC have an attractive voice?

yes. abel has a deeper voice than vicky IMO its very chill and calming. the only turn off would possibly be that it is very american. vicky winces sometimes at abels accent but hes like whatever .... ill accept it bc ur voice is hot on is own. but yeah guy who could put u to sleep but also? 😳 🚲 : Does your OC enjoy playing the field? Or are they more monogamy-minded?

i think mainly he is much more monogamy minded but knows that its mainly due to pressure from his parents to like settle down and find one person (who he COULD have had kids with if he were straight, they are upset abt possibly no grandkids but he doesnt have to worry abt that anymore <3) but i do think that in his younger years he played around with multiple guys and if it werent for vicky being extremely monogamous, he might in his older years as well 😍 : What does your OC find irresistible in others?

good anatomy /gen. his ideal partner looks like a scientific model in his textbook with visible musculature, this is why hes particularly into mr skin slight muscle and bones vicky. he also likes it when his partner can get him out of his head, bringing him out of his worries or obsessive thinking in general is like a #1 requirement for being anything long term with him 💘 : Is your OC a very good flirt? Are they charming?

YES!! as said before hes very good at the game of conversating but i think in general hes very good at complimenting someone and getting them flushed with double entendres, abel isnt afraid to be crass in a flirtatious way and that definitely gets alot of people on board with Doing Stuff with him. however. sometimes he can be so smooth that it can pass over peoples heads. (vicky) 💋 : Is your OC a good kisser? How do they do it?

actually, i think not really! i know ive been saying abel is great at EVERYTHING romance here but i do think this is where hes lacking a bit! he doesnt have many skills with his tongue despite how often he kisses lads... he just needs more practice ig :/ 🦴 : Does your OC have much sexual experience? What are they like?

yes! well he does with men, i dont think abel has actually ever had any kind of experience with women, kind of knew since he was a kid what he liked and everything. in bed he tends to be much more submissive, preferring to focus on making sure his partners are comfortable and feeling good, though hes not afraid to be more forceful if he really wants something. also as far as top vs bottom. hes a switch so. 💞 : Do they treat sex casually or do they view it as something with a lot of emotional weight?

depends on the partner honestly, i think most of the time with casual partners ofc obvs he treats it much more casually, but with more serious partners it typically carries more weight as hes not afraid to be much more vulnerable with them. but i think that he doesnt prefer one way or the other, he enjoys casual hookups as much as he does more emotional and vulnerable intimate nights with his boyfriends. 🔥 : What’s a surefire way to make your OC get flustered?

probably being very blunt and crass. like not even flirting just like just . you know, just completely no smoothness nothing just going right for the throat metaphorically and maybe literally (like no teasing no nothing just outright desire). it really trips up his game and makes him not really able to counter in a way thats productive and leaves him just kinda like ummmm o/////o... 🧸 : Into public displays of affection or are they more reserved?

oh abel LOVES pda. he loves kissing and holding hands and being sickly sweet in public. he also apparently after taking a look at his nsfw preferences page on toyhouse enjoys other stuff publically as well. so yeah. not reserved in the slightest. 💌 : How would they plan a romantic evening for a significant other?

oh he plans this shit way in advance and has probably several little romantic ideas lined up when he dates someone. sometimes its because he wants to do them and sometimes its bc his partner has mentioned them wanting to do something and so he takes it into account for a future romantic evening. however, this isnt to say he like suprises them or anything, he typically discusses it with them quite a bit in advance before they do anything 💐 : What is their courting style? How would they woo someone?

mostly flirting and doing extreme calculations to see if the person is returning any kind of response even if unconscious. outside of that he does not do anything <3 moreso if they give him no real response to any flirting. however if they do he just dials up the meter and will maybe even invite them over!! 👙 : What kind of underwear do they use? Is it pretty or functional?

Abel wears tighty whiteys, briefs that keep everything in nicely, much more functional than it is pretty but he does make sure not to mess them up or anything and to replace them if theyre looking a little worn. hes a bit vain in that way lol

for vicky:

👀 : Does your OC believe they are attractive? Do they use that to their advantage?

i dont think vicky thinks hes attractive deep down but boys got issues so you know hes deeply projecting that he thinks hes soooo hot and awesome and epic. he'd be so embarrassed if people made fuckin . fancams of him (in a modern au) but he'd play it off like ahhh of course smile, im so hot ofc people want me. also he does use this swagger tthat he projects to his advantage, especially if he detects that a girl is into him (unfortunately this ONLY will happen if its a woman bc if a man is into him at all he will just melt into a puddle)

💌 : How would they plan a romantic evening for a significant other?

see. i dont . think he would. bc i think fundamentally vicky is a bit nervous to fuck everything up. see but thats only with people he really cares about. this is probably how you can tell youre more of a casual hookup with vicky honestly is that he doesnt worry and actually tries to do a romantic evening with you instead of just being sooooo nervous that hes gonna mess smth up and make u hate him forever. anyway real answer for people he doesnt care about and plans these things for: he will make sure its a nice suprise and try to do the most stereotypically romantic things imaginable. heart shaped stuff, things in red, rose petals, etc, the type of stuff that only would really happen or be used in valentines day commercials and romance movies. bc thats what he thinks a romantic evening is :) <- guy who has never had a genuine connection bc he has . been going out w women performatively his whole life.

[xspace-spectrumx-blog]

HCs for the all animatronics reaction seeing 2 kids getting into fight and how they would break it up? Btw how’s your new been so far? Also Sorry for asking this 2 in the morning

Hello, and its quite alright. My new years have been going well, thanks for asking c: Hope this is what you're looking for!... ---------------------------

HC’s for seeing 2 kids getting into a fight

Glamrock Freddy:

Would be a little shocked, but it's not the first time he’s seen children fight.

Definitely would pull the 'I'm a father' role

He would want to hear both sides of the story as to why they’re fighting.

After hearing each end he’d most likely try and encourage the children to make up and say sorry to one another.

'This is not how we act towards each other, apologise right this instant'

'I'm not happy with you, superstars. We do not fight here.'

He’d be disappointed, but would try his best to move it onto a different topic.

If another fight ever broke out with the same children, then he’d make sure to keep them away from each other.

He might even end up closing the show early, he wouldn’t want to ruin it for other children.

He’d still want to play ‘dad’ and make sure children are happy though, even if the fight ruined his mood..

If anything, he'd look for the actual parents in the end.

'I'm so disappointed it had to come to this...superstars'

Monty:

Sure he trashed his room that one time out of anger, but he didn’t want that type of behaviour to seen with kids.

He was there to entertain, not deal with this.

Dealing with kids fighting was not his skill.

Lots of angry grunting as he tries to calm them down.

He managed to pry one away until the kid hit his glasses off.

He seriously wasn't happy about that.

‘Hey kids, ENOUGH!!’.

With now more angry growls, he tried his best to keep his cool but clearly that wasn’t going anywhere.

He ends up yelling loudly with rage, causing other children as well as the kids who were fighting to run.

He never meant to get that mad…

At least the fight stopped, right?

A massive rip to his already destroyed room, however.

Chica:

‘ If you kids stop fighting…I’ll give you cannndy’

I see her try to stop the fighting by bribing..

Of course she'd be surprised to say the least, but would be quick to offering rewards for them to stop the fighting.

She might not be the greatest ‘role model’ to stop fights, but she's still trying her best is she not?

Perhaps she’d also offer free pizza to the kids if they say sorry to one another

It seemed to have worked well.

Until when it comes to pizzas another fight breaks lose with the pizzas, creating a mess.

Resting the urges to eat [considering what she did to that one bot] she quickly ushers the children to stop and clean up.

So the pizza party didn’t work out… she tried her best though.

Another offerment for a pizza party or a chance to play other games seemed to have work though.

Bribing wins this time round...

Roxanne Wolf:

This of course was not the first time she’s seen kids have their little arguments.

Perhaps she's a bit smug about it too.

‘Ah fighting about me… it's alright though you can both think I’m the best’

Was that really necessary? Of course not.

Sometimes she can’t help herself with her insecurities getting to her.

Seeing how this made things worse, she would end up changing her tune.

‘Hey, enough’ She tried to be firm.

That didn’t seem to work, she seemed to be unheard

‘Didn’t you hear me? I said cut it out!’ Would speak a lot louder

Still nothing…? This was getting irritating.

Eventually it, pushed her past the limit as she got ready to pounce at them before it got out of hand. - ‘KNOCK IT OFF YOU BRATS’ she’d lunge at them, yanking them away from one another.

To say the least, it seemed to have gotten quiet after she had yelled.

She didn’t care who started it, she simply wanted the fight to end.

Whatever the reason was, to her it was pointless.

Sundrop:

He’d be very horrified to say the least.

Probably start panicking seeing two kids get into a fight.

Would try get them away from each other.

''No no no! This is not how we act to eachother!!''

Would plead for them to make up and try to distract them by offering other things for them to do.

‘’F-friends, Please don’t fight!!’’

‘’D-don’t you want to do something else??? I-I have glitter glue! Googly eyes!! anything you want to do!!'

He’s never dealt with children fighting like this before.

Would try and encourage them as best as he could for them to stop.

It might take some time, but he eventually gets the job done after persuading them a lot with different activities to do.

Perhaps he’ll keep them apart for now but will still keep an eye on them whilst he entertains other children

Surely they’d behave, they don’t want to get banned from the daycare…right? He hopes it wont come to that..

Moondrop:

He is not a fan of kids fighting at all.

Why now out of ALL times?

Its supposed to be bedtime and they’re making a racket??

Like Monty… he’d most likely scare them.

Bad children must be punished, right?

Bringing fear is most likely not the smartest idea, but it was past bedtime and he didn’t want the other children being woken up.

‘’Naughty children…making so much racket. You must be PUNISHED.’’

He'd creepily walk up to them, chanting how naughty children will be punished

That seemed to have stopped whatever fighting there was.

It also caused them to run in fear, [not like it was the first time he's made children upset.]

Its not like he’s actually going to kill them of course.

He simply makes both of them sit in separate corners for a ‘time out’ after finally catching them

When timeout is over, he expects them to apologise, it's best not to make Moon any more annoyed than he already was.

Now its about getting them to go to sleep…. Oh boy. It sure was going to be a long night after he just terrified them.

[jawanaka]

⭐!

Gaah, choice choices.

One thing I'd like to talk about is political idealism (wait, wait, it gets interesting I promise). In the game, Ciri's reasoning for taking up Emhyr on his offer are not extremely clear. She mentions to Geralt that "if she wants to change things she has to do it from Nilfgaard". There is mention of a letter from Emhyr and if she appears in Toussaint she randomly refers to the man as papa (please refer to our subject expert @andordean on why this is horseshit, just make sure there is nothing breakable near) and that she doesn't want to be anyone's puppet, which fair enough.

So what is it that Ciri wants to change? There is lowhanging fruit like "don't start another war of conquest" (though even this isn't that easy: alot of people have grown fat on this policy). But what else? Certainly she cannot dismantle the empire, the powers that be would never let her and there is no real reason that this would make it better for the avarage citizen: indeed for mages and nonhumans, it might even make it worse. And she cannot do everything on her own, she needs polical support. Ciri is impatient, passionate and occasionally rash but she is far from stupid and she has had the opportunity to learn from the best. No not Emhyr: let us be honest in whom Ciri would actually treat as as role model when it comes to ruling.

(BTW the only part of The Witcher Netflix I unapolegetically stan)

No Calanthe was no saint either, no matter which interpretation of the character you follow. She fought her wars and certainly backstabbed a few dudes and surely there was both one or three people who didn't like her. But she tried to protect her people and ruled well, for a long time (which would have been longer if not for a certain son-in-law but I digress).

But lets be honest, Ciri was also raised by Geralt and Yennefer, perpetual outsiders or semioutsiders who both believe, deeply (even against their own intentions) in doing whats right and sacrificing everything for others. (In the game epilogue they credit Ciri's combination of political acumen and sense justice to Emhyr and Geralt but Calanthe and Yennefer has just as much if not more influence here).

So back to political idealism. Ciri, it should be noted, does not have to take the throne. Certainly she owes nothing to her birthfather and she has already saved the world once. Furthermore, she could, literally tear a hole in reality and sip wine in actual Camelot for the rest of her days.

Ciri takes the throne of an empire, knowing that she cannot change the fact that that is what Nilfgaard is. And she doesn't just want to rule just cause is fun (it isn't) or her destiny (it isn't). No she wants to do something with it, make the world into a better place something which someone with her upbringing has a unique perspective on. And as this ask was about a directors cut, here is the scene where she lays it out (to Triss, as it happens)

I ran with a gang once, did Geralt tell you?” said Ciri “Down in Geso, smack dab in the middle of the Korath frontier, all while half of Nilfgaard were looking for me. What a merry gang of young highwaymen we were! Thieves, murderers, brigands. We would ride were we wanted, take what we desired, kill anyone who protested. Sometimes we killed just for the cheer joy of it, the power of holding a life in your hand." Her fist clenched around the flower pedal. "I’ve tried drinks aplenty, fisstech, elven drugs you wouldn't believe but that power? Greatest high I've ever had."

Triss sat still. "Geralt never told me."

"That your little sister is a bona-fide murderer? A petty thief like those Morvran decorate the trees with? I suppose he didn't." She took a deep breath, air heavy in her lungs as she slowly unclenched her fist. "The point Triss, is that those people I rode with were damaged. Evil little bastards all but not from birth, well, not most of them. They were, what did you call the people in the Putrid grove, the refuse thrown up onto the docks. Only they ended up in Geso and instead of begging or selling their bodies for scraps they became the very thing they had ran from. And so they did more evil and more evil until the local baron to rid himself of them brought in a man you don't even want to think about. And thus, the violence and evil spreads. That’s the logic of empire."

She looked at the sorceress, green eyes meeting blue. "I can never atone for the things I did in Geso, no matter how many hospitals I open or orphanages I fund. But if I can avoid restarting that cycle again I will do everything in my power to do so."

Triss put her hands on her shoulder. "And I shall do what is within my power to help you. But if you take responsibility for every possible disaster in the empire you are going to spread yourself mighty thin."

"I don't know how to live any other way anymore. Avallac'h told me I was needed to save the world. I guess I never figured out how to stop."

"Imperial logic is not the white frost."

"Yet it is as merciless. And far more insidious." Ciri said.

(People really need to show Ciri's time with the Rats as more formative then they do)

Ciri wants to end the cycle of war and conquest, of rebellion and suppression and the only way to do so is from within Nilfgaard, the biggest player around (especially after the third war). Is it morally right? Doesn't the north deserve its freedom?

Well maybe, and thats where political friction and the dark side of political idealism come in. But Ciri makes her choice to be empress out of idealism and a large part of what I write about, when I write Ciri anyway, is that choice. Its not the happy choice, it might not even be the right choice. But its her choice and this, I think, are the reasons for it.

Thank you @poeti-kat for the ask! Its here in case anyone's interested :)

[birdsareblooming]

Y'know what, fuck the internet; Sonic Boom Rise of Lyric is a good game. Not because of the story writing, but because an enemy dodged Sonic's spin attack once and he just had an existential crisis right there on the spot and it was so fucking funny for some reason.

Rise of Lyric is an interesting case. ESPECIALLY when comparing it to 06.

RoL I could see being a good game if given so much more time. Like, an entire other year in development before release. It had ideas but not enough time to flush them out or even think about doing it well. You can tell there's so much they wanted to do and couldn't. There's opaque models of collectibles you can't collect, and voice lines for Shadow (And Perci and Sticks also I think) like drowning sounds that imply that they were supposed to be playable.

Also, RoL didn't really know it's identity. You can tell that by playing/watching it. It's not sure what it is. The DS games and the show are infinitely better in this regard because they fully know what they are. The show is a workplace comedy but with Sonic characters, and the DS games play into that. Cutscenes from RoL are incredibly different from DS cutscenes and the show (which are very similar) That understand that these characterizations are for comedic purposes, and although stakes are allowed it's never taken too seriously by anyone. In RoL they treat lyric like Darth Vader, in Shattered Crystal Sticks and Amy separately joke and threaten to make him into shoes, and the game ends with Shadow kicking him out of a plane. RoL tried to be too serious and it didn't work with the characterizations. RoL is very different from the show where we cut to Sonic and Tails eating a comically large sandwich and Sonic calls it a "comically large sandwich" after hearing Eggman was suing him. Meanwhile the DS games (Which were actually finished btw) keep that same feeling of Boom.

The difference between RoL and 06 is 06 had less of a chance of being a close to flawless game in my mind. Yes oh I WISH we got it finished, but unless they wanted to redo a bunch of shit, we'd still have the weird age gap human girl romance and making a 15yo choose between a 17yo and a 12yo. And honestly, that part is what weighs the game down so much. Not even Elise as a character (tho I wish they expanded on her more) just that weird push for a romantic part. Honestly other than that, it's mostly gameplay. The story is interesting and Silver fucking rules, but it's sometimes almost impossible to play (See: It's No Use) Either because of glitchiness or they just didn't care enough to make it easier.

Both of these games aren't talked about how they should be. It's always "lol they suck lol" or "oh they suck bc they're sonic games" when that's not going deep into it at all. Looking into why the games aren't great not only can help the developers in the future, but makes a good understanding of why, instead of just saying "oh bc it's a sonic game"

I can't call them good games, but I can't call them bad games either. Unlike some bad games I've seen, RoL and 06 had the opportunity to be great, it was just the studio that forced them to rush it out that made them how they are. Which is why people saying "lol it just sucks" isn't really giving it it's due. I've seen... so much worse games. I've seen Frogger the Great Quest, I've seen the fucking smarties game, Fuck, the new fallout game is probably just as if not MORE glitchy than 06 and boom.

They're interesting studies in not just Sonic games, but games as a whole, and how even though these are clear examples to take time making games, even still companies don't listen.

[wisteria-lodge]

snake primary + slightly burnt snake secondary (some kind of built secondary model)

Hi hi hi!! Hope you’re well!! So tell me, is there a way to tell whether you’re a lion or a snake secondary beyond the actual “textbook” definitions? I think I’m pretty burnt, and I’m on my way to fixing that, but it would help to know where I’m supposed to be heading lol

(Btw, I’m a Sam coded Dean girl. I don’t think it’s relevant I just thought that system was both useful and hilarious and I’m so glad you posted that)

I also really liked how that turned out.

I’m pretty sure I’m an improv secondary. I think I’m bad at it, hence the burning, but it’s what comes naturally to me and what I would feel most proud of.

I end up planning for a bunch of things, and in some cases I don’t hate it.

Damning with faint praise.

Like if I’m giving a presentation, I open a word document and write down what I’m gonna say verbatim, even the language tics and pauses and hesitations and such, so it’s like I’m actually living it. Then I repeat the whole thing multiple times, amending it whenever I change something, until I feel like I’ve sort of gone through the experience already.

That is… the weirdest way of hacking an improvisational secondary. Because that’s what’s you’re doing. Improvisational secondaries need to be “in it,” so you get as close to that as possible in the prep work.

Then I scrap the whole thing and improvise when it’s actually happening – the result is often pretty different from the word doc

of course.

but I’m a bit more in my element because I’ve done it already and I know I can do it.

This is honestly a really good strategy to make yourself more comfortable with improvising? I can tell you’re unBurning, this feels very much like… training wheels, to me. Heck, I think I would recommend your method to another burnt Improvisational secondary.

I’m not sure, but I think that sort of thing is more built than improv?

Like, kind of? I’m autism spectum, and when I was younger I built a Bird model to help me feel more confident accessing my Courtier Badger. That’s what this feels like.

But I definitely feel like it’s a model I’ve developed to deal with social anxiety and my fear of failure lol. I didn’t do stuff like that before it got bad, and if I could deal with not doing it, I would.

I hear that.

In most other situations, though, I tend to jump right in and go with the flow. I really don’t think very far ahead. I guess I can if I try, when it’s just a matter of logic, but things like my life plans, my relationships, or even more short-term things like plans with friends or what I’m gonna eat or how I’m gonna deal with a task, I really can’t project into the future. I can’t really make decisions or see a situation clearly until I’m in it. Then I tend to make decisions very quickly, kind of on instinct, or whatever feels right in the moment.

You’re definitely an improvisational secondary.

(Actually maybe that’s a primary thing? I’m a snake primary, but I do have a very prominent lion model, and a bit of badger as well.)

Nah, that’s definitely an Improvisational secondary thing. I am curious about your primary though, because you say you don’t have too much in the way of life plans… and *that* is more where a primary would come in. You feel like a safe Snake to me (that is, a Snake whose people are safe) so there is a little bit of… what now? What is the Lion+Badger model you wear over the top interested in?

Point is, I prefer being spontaneous, even if it’s something important. Making plans and having to stick to them makes me feel trapped. I’m not the most constant person, and I like that about me. I want to have room to grow and change, even for the smallest things.

Completely, entirely fair.

Anyway, I feel like I’ve talked more about limitations and things I don’t want so far, but I guess that’s a burnt thing.

I mean, sure you’re a little underconfident, but you seem pretty far along to me.

I’ve seen you mention what’s really useful in determining a secondary is what you actually enjoy, so here goes. I like being in the moment, and I like being able to come up with ideas and solutions on the fly, by taking in the situation and using it to my advantage.

That’s very Snake secondary sounding language.

I think there’s a bit of a separation in my mind between “people things” and “being clever things.”

For “being clever things” (like… I don’t know, an escape room, a problem with an administration, a paper I have to write, video games, some kind of mystery…) I like to rely on being observant and quick-thinking, and if I can find loopholes or outsmart whoever I’m facing to win in an unexpected way, that’s even better (but really more for my ego than anything else, I guess finding the “normal” solution is okay, as long as you get there, it’s just less fun).

Hilarious. Yeah, you sound like a *confident* Snake secondary to me.

For “people things” (drama with family or friends, or if someone is being an ass, or if someone comes to me for advice on interpersonal things), I prioritize being straightforward and honest. If I have time to plan or if I’m giving advice, I might come up with something more sneaky and elaborate, but if I’m in the moment, I’m most likely to be really confrontational, stubborn and unyielding, even if it makes things more difficult for me.

Hmm. I am reading this as a Snake who likes being Neutral - especially those words “stubborn” and “unyielding.” There’s a reason Neutral Snakes are called “the unmovable object.”

If I catch myself, I try to avoid it, but that just means staying silent and removing myself from the situation – I can’t bring myself to make compromises if it feels like I’m betraying myself.

Okay, now that’s sounding more Lion.

To be clear, that’s almost exclusively with people I’m close to, or who are supposed to “know me”.

Oh okay. This is your secondary interacting with your primary. Actively lying to and misrepresenting yourself to Your People would be immoral to a Snake Primary.

With friends who aren’t in my inner circle, or acquaintances, or complete strangers, or authority figures, I might get upset internally if I’m perceiving a slight or injustice, but I can keep up the mask I need no problem. That being said, I don’t have a lot of patience for drama, so if whatever it is can’t be quickly resolved with a convenient lie or saying what works for me in a way they won’t mind hearing, I just stick to what I’m actually thinking and/or my neutral state (I’m not sure it’s accurate to use snake language here, but it feels like it and it’s convenient).

I think it’s highly appropriate and accurate. All that is reading very Snake.

I’ve seen a bunch of people say lion and snake secondaries are sort of at odds with each other, but I don’t really get the contradiction between them yet (as in, I don’t see why people can’t be both those “contradictory” things at the same time). I do mask a lot, and I enjoy it – I think it’s rewarding, and honestly it just makes sense – it’s what works best in that moment, and it feels natural to shift that way. I just don’t feel it’s a misrepresentation. The whole “it’s not cheating, it’s being clever” thing just feels a little too dishonest. Cheating is cheating, no need to be so smug about it. It’s not wrong, though, at least not always. If it’s hurting someone who doesn’t deserve it, then it’s wrong (might still do it if the alternative is worse, but that doesn’t mean it’s suddenly an ethical choice to make, it just means I’m okay with being immoral in that instance).

All that being said, I don’t think masking is being dishonest about yourself. I don’t think anything that comes out of my mind is “not me”, it just doesn’t work that way. The personas I have with different groups or people in my life are all genuine, it’s just that different sides of me are brought up. And if I’m acting in a way that’s actually not genuine, that mask is still my creation – if someone else were to come up with a mask for that same situation, it would be different, because their mind works differently. Everything you do is a reflection of yourself, and even if you were to try your best to be honest all the time, you’d never be able to show your true and complete self to someone else. You can’t even see that yourself.

Oh man. This is why I love writing these, and this is what I mean about Lion and Snake being so incomprehensible to each other. Because Lions fundamentally do not think this way, every word here is dripping with Snake.

It might be helpful to think of Lions as static. That’s how Shakespeare (who definitely seems like a Snake secondary…) writes about them, and he sees them as sort of tragic. Lions really do have a “core” persona that feels more true than all the others, and they really do exist in it as much as they possibly can. And feel good and moral about doing that.

And a mask’s point may be to deceive or to gain something, but being blunt and straightforward can be used in that way too.

You are literally thinking of “common Lion secondary presentation” as another useful mask, and it’s so Snake, and so fantastic.

I’m thinking this sounds more snake than anything else, so I’ll focus on why I thought I might be a lion too now. I guess the reason I’m on the fence is because these two are presented as “either you think the only way is through, or you’re looking for a way around it”, and I’m not comfortable saying I favor either.

That is *a* way to think about the two secondaries. But those are symptoms, not causes. The reason a Lion secondary feels that the only way out is though is because a Lion secondary must be themselves, or die.

My first thought was to say that I get more satisfaction from finding ways around a problem because it makes me feel cleverer and it’s more fun, but that’s because I’m zeroing in on certain types of situations (people giving me some intellectual challenge, debates, or video games). But there were also a lot of times where I stuck it out and kept going with pigheaded stubbornness, and got a lot more satisfaction out of that (physical challenges like obstacle courses, disagreements with my parents, winning over certain people).

Here’s where I think the confusion is. You’re a Snake secondary, and one of your masks looks very Lion. Note how you talk about using this “pigheadedness” with certain people, who you know will respond well to it.

In fact, I remember my father telling me one day “yeah, you’re never here to compromise, you just make decisions and inform us, and keep going while you wait for us to accept reality,“ and I actually can’t describe how proud and smug I was about that. Kind of insufferable, but I just get so euphoric when people see right through me and show they get me, even if it’s about the more annoying or bad parts of me.

I think that’s just a human thing. The mortifying ideal of being known is how you feel loved.

I remember a conversation I had with my ex after we broke up where she cut right through all my bullshit and discarded my whole mask to get right to my inner self and the core of certain issues, and even though I was still mad and upset, and kind of embarrassed that she could see me being vulnerable, I couldn’t help but be happy about it, because I felt known.

Yeah. <3

I don’t interact much with people outside of my inner circle, so I can’t tell if it’s entirely specific to them, but I really vibe with the “honesty is their strength” part of being a lion. That’s why my people trust me and rely on me so much, because even though they know how sneaky I can get and how fun I think tricking people is, they also know I default to telling the truth and saying what’s on my mind more often than not, because they’re my people.

I think that, as a Snake primary who mostly only interacts with Your People, you’re in a kind of unusual position. I know that the presentation of a Snake who feels safe can be blunter, can be more Lion-y. My experience with Snakes is… yeah, sometimes I know I’m being manipulated, or having my buttons pushed in a specific way. But I’m fine with it, because I’m one of their people, and I know they would never hurt me. That’s where the certainty is coming from.

Then again, I also have a “it’s not lying unless they’re entitled to the truth” attitude with basically everyone else. I just don’t think some people deserve to know me that way.

snaaaake

(lions are going to take the truth and PUNCH YOU IN THE FACE with it, and if you can’t deal that’s YOUR PROBLEM)

And “ideally”, as in, if I didn’t have anxiety and a bunch of other issues, I still don’t think I’d just be neutral all the time. Sounds boring. And inconvenient.

Snake secondaries are great.

Ahhh, should I even post this? I feel like my whole thought process before this moment of introspection was “so I really vibe with snake, but I’m also hotheaded and a bit of a bitch, so I MUST be a lion, right” lmao. I just think I’m a straight up double snake at this point.

Yep.

Oof, a long way from my original lion bird sorting back when I first discovered SHC hahaha

Yeah, I used to think I was a Badger Bird.

(For the record, I’m writing this in a word doc, and it’s almost 2k now. I haven’t checked how long these normally are, so I’m really sorry if this is too long!!! I’m like physically incapable of being concise I’m so sorry)

Sometimes I edit or re-arrange these slightly for a cleaning reading experience, but I’m having fun. I was engaged all the way though.

Thanks for reading, and thanks for doing these!! They’re super interesting and I’m sure it helps people a lot, and also it’s really cool to see how different people think. I’m a socially-challenged writer, so it’s useful to have that bit of insight into other people’s minds. Love ya <3 <3 <3

[sds-mod]

Excuse me can I just say, I was just gone a a year and OMG YOUR ART really improved, the mod who drew naruto. The uh black hair girl white eye color lol. Do you use anything fancy like a cintiq? I personally just have an ipad 10.5 😭 but I haven’t been drawing as much, and practicing. Can you share your drawing tips? You use clip studio right? What brushes did you use to color or lineart? My art friends all say, to look up refs, trace, study the anatomy. Cause dear god, listen if you ever have commissions open please please. I would absolutely throw money at you. Sorry if this ended up being long lol. If you have a personal blog I’d be cool messaging you over there instead. Don’t wanna clog up the askbox -art anon

ANON WHAT THE HECK?? WHAT THE HECK????? THAT'S SO SWEET I'M GONNA CRY HHH??H??HHHHHHH??H?

sdkfjhdsfj okay lemme gather uhmm:

- This is my personal blog so you're in the right place :D asks are only at asksds

- I've been using a Wacom Intuos Pro M for years and I'm very happy with it!! I do actually have a Cintiq at work, and it's very handy for what I'm doing there, but for my private art I prefer the Intuos because with the Cintiq I always feel like my hand is in my way haha. That's just me and my preference though! My best friend uses her iPad, after she has worked with a regular drawing tablet and screen tablet, and she's super super happy with it, so it depends on the person.

- I do use Clip Studio, I even upgraded to EX in the last sale because I love it so! Currently my favourite brush for sketches is this one, and I occasionally use it to line as well (like with these Hinata-doodles), but generally I use the basic G-Pen in Clip for lineart, like here. For asks in asksds I use a brush I got from the asset store once called Bird's Lineart Brush, but I think it was deleted ;; it's very similar to the G-Pen though, the only difference is that the stroke-tips are a little more blunt.

- As for tips (this got a bit long so I'm putting it under a Readmore):

1) be lazy. I don't have as much time for drawing anymore since I got a fulltime job (hence why I don't upload a lot), so when I do I just take shortcuts, which is why I love Clip so much. I have downloaded countless brushes in the asset store so I don't have to draw a full plate of macarons 3 times and can just use a brush for it (btw. I counted and I have 67 lace brushes...wow.), and make a lot of use of the 3D-Models, especially for perspective. The bigger comic-updates in sds exist only because I use 3D-Models and rulers and whatnot, and I love them. Fuck the mindset of that being cheating (which I did have myself, I used to be like "But I should just KNOW how to do perspective!"). It gets the job done and you have more time for other art or other things. Win-Win!

2) Using refs, tracing and studying anatomy are all true tips which I also support, but just saying it like that is frustrating and too nebulous as a concept (it always felt that way to me at last), so lemme try to explain why. An excellent tip I read once is that art is like a language - you can't just craft something from yourself, but you need to learn the vocabulary first to get there. Likewise, you need to do those things so you train your hands and muscle memory. If you trace a thigh 100 times, your hand starts to just kinda know how the line is supposed to flow. tbh you could compare it to rhythm games, the longer you play, the more your fingers just kinda take over, and actively thinking about it makes you play worse.

That's not to say that it's some magical fix or you "know" art then! It's just that you don't have to actively think about everything you do anymore since your hands do part of the work, because you trained them for it and they remember.

Using refs and studying anatomy imo are intertwined. What I felt has worked the most for me (and keep in mind that I don't study a lot and I really really should do it a lot more so don't be like me) is actually trying to grasp the basics of skeletal structure and muscle build. There's a really good book called "Anatomy for sculptures", which is WILDLY useful for explaining and grasping muscle structure (you can find it online if you know where to look wink wink), and an app called C.Anatomy, which has a paywall for the full content, but the free version has a really nice 3D-Model of a skeleton which you can rotate and look at. I also really recommend MangaMaterials, she's a pretty big inspiration to me and explains the concepts of studying anatomy extremely well on her Youtube-channel.

Basically, if you know at least the base structure of the body, you start to kind of understand the random bumps and connections on the human body which makes it easier to reproduce them I feel. And again, I don't do this NEARLY enough myself and I make a lot of mistakes still, but even just doing it for a bit helps a lot imo.

HOPE THIS HELPS!! This ask made me so happy skdfhjkj I hope you have a fantastic weekend Art Anon!!

[thehouseoflamentation]

Hi! I just had a thought about the brothers becoming sisters for a week and, of course, they would be in their periods. Like, Mammon pissed off some witch and she put a curse on them. I was wondering if you could do a scenario or a hc about it , whatever is easier for you! Your work is awesome btw, don't let anyone tell you otherwise!😄💘

I’m about to project all my suffering onto these demons just watch. Also if I remember correctly, @cigarettebreath666 wrote something with the same prompt so check them out too if you like.

Lucifer

Like everyone else, he’s pissed about the whole situation. He’s already busy with paperwork and student council duties but now he’s cursed and on top of that has to deal with his period.

At first he thought he could deal with the bodily changes but when the first wave of cramps came shit hit the fan. He could barely focus on anything because of the pain but his pride made him soldier on through student council meetings and other tasks.

He would probably try going after Mammon for causing all this but then again it’s hard to move/run when you’re on your period. Instead he swears he’ll get revenge once it’s all over.

On the bright side Lucifer wears tons of dark clothes so if anything he at least has that advantage.

Mammon

Everyone is mad at him, his stomach hurts, he feels like shit and just wants to lie down next to MC.

It takes a lot of will power to push through with his modeling gigs and other schemes but considering he’s probably been through worse punishments he is able to manage.

He gets even more clingy around MC and doesn’t wanna be left alone. He’ll probably use his suffering as an excuse to cuddle and be around MC more and it fucking works.

He’s gonna need MC’s help to hide him bc once this blows over god knows his bros are gonna be after him as soon as they have the ability to run again.

Leviathan

Tbh he probably didn’t realize he was on his period until he made the mistake of sitting in his bathtub and seeing the water turn red. To which he immediately jumped out and panicked because he thought he was hurt or dying.

He’d probably become even more of a recluse and stay in his room until his period is over.

Playing games and watching reruns of TSL cheers him up a little. He would only let MC in occasionally when he really needs some extra comfort from the pain.

Satan

He’s heard MC say “Satan’s red waterfall” once and for the first time in his life he’s experiencing it firsthand.

He is mad at everything and being on his period is only going to amplify those emotions

“I swear if one more person asks me if I’m moody bc of my period I’M GOING TO [REDACTED]”

Unlike his brothers his cramps actually aren’t that bad but unfortunately because the universe is a dick and has decided that his pain level needs to be balanced he instead has debilitating back pain.

He is suffering all hours of the day and can’t even find a comfortable position to sit and read in because his spine feels like an accordion 99% of the time.

Asmodeus

Asmo the first day of the curse: Ohhh! This isn’t so bad! I wonder what this body can do Ow<

Asmo when he first gets his period: I want off this hell experience

He’s still horny but he’s bouncing between “I wanna fuck!” and “dO noT TOUCH ME!!!!!!”

The cramps are just as bad but the worst part for him is that his complexion also took a turn for the worst when his period started.

He’ll probably start being a shut in like Levi if this goes on for too long.

Beelzebub

The fact that he works out might help with his period a bit but he still gets cramps like the rest of his bros.

Playing sports might be a bit more difficult especially considering he plays contact sports. Still he’s a demon and has probably been through worse but he’d be lying if he said his stomach didn’t feel like it was tying itself in knots.

Once he hears that chocolate helps with cramps he’ll probably buy out every store in the devildom that sells it. Eating comfort foods with MC also helps cheer him up.

Belphegor

He wakes up with chest pain and immediately wants to go back to sleep.

At first he thinks he can just sleep the pain away but he also feels like he has to go to the bathroom every 10 seconds and because of that his life has not known peace.

He isn’t sure if he wants to be left alone until this is over or have MC nearby to cuddle and help him feel better. He ends up going with the second option.

He starts sleeping with a warm bottle of water or a heating pad to deal with the cramps.