#but it’s so easy to fall in love with different dungeon meshi ships

[ticcitavvi]

while I obviously have my own favorite ships, the fact that I can STILL legitimately understand and even route for other ships/dynamics in dungeon meshi is such a testament to how well it’s written.

Like, All of the characters have such consistently fantastic chemistry, I really can’t think of any pairing that I can honestly say would have absolutely 0 appeal.

[sulphurwrites]

Cracks knuckles, this is my brand of autism, let me go in. I picked the big guy/girl, or what I usually refer to as the tank. I'll get into that in a moment, but let it be known I was SAD to see it as the least voted option amongst the five traditional roles. Regardless, as someone who almost exclusively writes whump in a five man band setting, let me get into why EACH role is great for whump. The hero/leader This role *can* be the main character, though personally I believe they shine the most when viewed from the perspective of another character. The Hero is a self sacrificial character, whether for a cause or for their found family or what, they are decisive. Due to their capacity to lead, the are AMAZING for hidden injuries, exhaustion, and general "brave face" whump. Favourite Tropes: human shield!hero, martyr!hero, hidden injuries On the other hand, the Hero is also an amazing perspective for angst in general, especially survivors guilt. Please write more heroes with survivors guilt, and then tag me cause I WANT TO READ THAT!!! The Lancer/Sixth Ranger

Do I know that these are separate roles? Yes. Do I think that, most of the time, they share the same purpose? Also yes. The Lancer is in opposition of the Hero, while still being a team. They challenge the Hero's actions, beliefs, yadda yadda, and in the end it makes the whole team stronger. Shame is a great tool when whumping a Lancer, whether that be shame in themselves, or an "I told you so" moment after someone (maybe even them) gets hurt. **EXTRA NOTE** Heroes and Lancers get shipped a LOT. They just kinda have that dynamic. Lancers are very fun caretakers too, imo. Like, imagine a bitter Lancer patching up a Hero after they did something stupid (read as: self sacrificial) and then imagine the difference in tenderness when they patch up, say, the Heart. They're also amazing for holding in captivity. There's a really common trope of the Brain getting captured and the angst around that, but personally I think it hits even harder with the Lancer, because all the Lancer does is argue with the Hero (in their perspective), why would the Hero spare any resources to save them? I'm a sucker for Lancer whump haha. Still not my favourite though. The Heart

Listen. It is SO easy to fuck up the Heart, like, character development wise. It is hard to make a character genuinely so likeable that it makes sense why an entire group would fall apart without them. I know this because there are so many Hearts that don't work. This section is about Hearts that do what they're supposed to for the narrative. Easily, the most impactful character death you can implement is the Heart. The Heart is there to get the group through emotional hardship, so by taking them away, you are leaving your characters without their usual coping mechanism for distress, loss, and mourning. I'm not the biggest fan of whumping the Heart themself, moreover I love using them as a tool in the whumping of the other group members, to demonstrate the ways the group needs to grow into the loss. Without the Heart, characters are rash, aggressive, not thinking straight, and that is a beautiful recipe for whumpy disaster. If you're familiar with Dungeon Meshi, Falin is the heart. She is the drive of everything that party goes through. That is where I believe the Heart shines the most. The Brain

Typically, the Brain is not my cup of tea in most sci-fi/fantasy iterations of the Five Man Band, so let me first go over a couple other ways the Brain can manifest: - The one with the most common sense - The one with the niche, but important information - The one with the most emotional intelligence - The one with the most analytical approach The Brain can be anyone from an engineer at a space station to a bimbo who knows everything bit of gossip about everyone. Regardless, their importance to the group is based almost solely in what they can provide, which is ALWAYS a great starting place for angst.

Erase their memory. Hold them hostage for information. Gaslight them. Make them stop believing they're right about anything. On the other hand, throw them into a situation where they are completely out of their element, or expose them to a trigger from their past that completely unravels their logical ways of thinking. Turn them into someone unrecognizably insecure. The Tank

Of course, I saved my favourite for last. Oftentimes, the Tank is depicted as being a very physically imposing character. This isn't a requirement of the character archetype. What really matters is dynamic with the other characters. The Tank is always hit first. The Tank is always hit hardest. This is why, in my opinion, they make for amazing whumpees, because maybe they can handle that at first. Maybe the first few fights, they shake it off. But then they start getting chronic injuries. Then they start taking longer and longer to heal. Then the nightmares from the fights creep in and deprive them of sleep. The Tank is the first to take a hit, and the last person anyone expects to fall, and nobody knows what to do when they *do* fall. It's glorious. Anyways, I was just beyond surprised that the big guy/girl was the least voted for out of the roles, so I had to share!