#but with all the options of incantations in er … there’s so much to have fun with

[sadlazzle]

tbh i already kinda wanna do an incantation build after im done w the blood build. bc im doing bleed & blood now, im thinking maybe specifying again .. perhaps dragon communion incantation run ? who knows

[catboybiologist]

😩 I struggled with int builds in ER. STR FTH for Great Shield with the Treespear was my jam. Until holy damage became garbage mid/late game 😭 then it was Lance or Blasphemous.

Uh, right, ask.... How many playthroughs you on? Reroll or NG+++++?

Int builds are so weird in Elden Ring, especially in how they're treated by the community- they're simultaneously the "cheating omg easy mode" type build, and also the "piece of shit glass cannon build no wonder you can't beat this boss just level vig" type build.

I'm doing a str/fth build right now, and I personally am finding it much harder than my int build (even without comet cheese). You have to change your mindset quite a bit- battles are often grueling and long, and you *need* to keep your distance, hyperspecialize in damage, and accept that you need to maintain full health at all times otherwise you'll be oneshot (or will even be oneshot without that).

As for NG+, here's my hot take: NG+ isn't worth it (at least for me). A huge part of the fun of Fromsoft games for me is the very well tailored level curve for trickling in the right amount of tools for every build at the right moment, which breaks down when you have a lot of things from the start. I've beat Elden ring three times now, but never in NG+. I like seeing builds at all of their power levels- what are the incantations I am limited to early game, vs being dropped in with a respecced character that has everything? It also helps me learn the rhythm of different builds if I slowly build my toolkit and see how it works instead of having a lot of options straight away. And if you're NG+ing without changing your build significantly or respeccing... well I don't see a point LOL

[babywarg]

untitled genderbend ironstrange (with some light froststrange) fic

Note: I’ve mentioned that there are no gendered pronouns in my native language, right? Well…I did my best to keep the gendered pronouns consistent in this fic, but please alert me if I missed anything.

***

Loki recently discovered that taking on the form of a seductive female Earthling made mischief somewhat easier and more fun to manage.

Somewhat.

There was just one big hitch:

Earth had a precocious Master of the Mystic Arts who was wise to her pranks.

And when Loki transformed into a seductive female Earthling, she got only 9 full Earth hours of fun before she was caught, restrained, and turned over to the Avengers.

By someone who pulled the exact same trick that she did.

Loki really should have known better than to underestimate humans. They had super-powered beings on their side now, and at least one of them was bound to be smarter than the rest.

But Loki saw a female in a gray T-shirt, a simple black jacket and slacks striding toward him, and her first thought was simply: “Is this comely creature offering herself as my consort as I take over the Earth?”

She didn’t have time for a second thought.

The female made a few gestures with her scarred, shaking hands, mumbled a few incantations - and Loki was trapped in magical red bands she could not escape from.

That was the only time she realized whom she was up against.

“Strange,” she slowly purred.

She had not recognized Strange in this form. The failing was hers, Loki acknowledged; she would have to be on her guard against pretty human females advancing toward her, next time. And not presume they just wanted to jump her pretty bones.

The female did not acknowledge this. But the color of her eyes, the scars on her hands, the touch of white on her temples - all were dead giveaways, upon a second look.

“You’re a mere Earthling,” Loki thought aloud. “Not even Sorcerer Supreme. How could you have acquired the power of the gods?”

The female stepped up closer to Loki, brushed strands of hair back from one of Loki’s ears, breathed a sigh.

“Well,” she answered, in a higher tone than Loki was expecting - but still low, still mercilessly sensual, “as we say here in Earth - ‘To know your Enemy, you must become your Enemy.’” She stepped up even closer and whispered into Loki’s ear, “In case it hasn’t been clear: you really don’t want me as an enemy, Odinsson.”

***

What Strange didn’t tell the Avengers was, the shapeshifting spell took only hours to cast…but it lasted for weeks.

While riding it out, Stephen locked herself in the Sanctum. She restricted her consultations to phone, online, or magical-reflective-surface interactions.

This was a puzzle to everyone, including and especially the women in the team. “Is he ashamed of becoming a woman?” Natasha had asked.

Tony Stark set out to find the answer to that question.

Because he was smart, he contacted the Sanctum prior to his visit and asked the caretaker, Wong, what he could bring its Master as a gift.

Without hesitation, Wong answered “Chocolate. A lot of it. Please.”

So, brushing aside the weirdness of that brief exchange, Tony knocked on the doors of the New York Sanctum in his best suit…with a box of chocolates tucked under one arm.

He found the Master of the New York Sanctum in the sitting room, looking forlorn and irritable and just a little bit sick.

She grabbed the box of chocolates from under his arm before she even acknowledged his presence.

Tony stuck his hands in his pockets and watched with unabashed wonder as Stephen popped one bit of chocolate after another into her mouth, all the while making ridiculously erotic sounds with her lovely lips.

Tony cleared his throat and remarked, “You’ve been hiding out here a lot.”

Around a mouthful of chocolate, she frowned at him and asked, in a husky voice that might or might not have meant to sound as sexy as it did: “Why is this a concern?”

“I was wondering if you were ashamed of being a woman now.” A terminally attractive woman around his age - maybe a little younger - with features that hit all of his pleasure centers, Tony wanted to mention…but he was going to save that for when they knew each other better, maybe. Then it wouldn’t seem so creepy.

...Not that asking someone if she was “ashamed of being a woman now” wasn’t creepy. But Tony had already taken that under consideration. Facts needed to be established.

“I’m not ashamed,” Stephen snapped. “I’m bleeding.”

Tony blinked, slowly understanding.

Stephen sighed and set the box of chocolates down on the nearest surface.

“It is very…very, very, very uncomfortable,” she tried to explain. “I know we studied this in med school, I know it’s a fact of life, but - how do women do it?”

(Was it a bad time to notice how cute Stephen was when distressed? Tony didn’t have much of a chance to witness this. Stephen-the-man always made an effort to look cool, unflappable.)

“You’re a doctor,” Tony carefully suggested. “Can’t you take something for pain relief?”

“It’s because I’m a doctor that I’m reluctant to take medicine,” she irritably argued. “I’ll need an ultrasound, among other tests, to determine if there are any abnormalities that may be complicated by medicine, even over the counter ones. I mean - this just can’t hurt that much if there’s nothing wrong, right…?”

“Er…” Tony was pretty sure that wasn’t how it worked…but he just didn’t think it was wise to contradict a medical professional.

“I know I can just cast a spell to see what’s going on in the pipes, but I’m honestly damned if I feel like doing that right now.” A sharp cramp hit her, and she winced. “Ow.”

“Well,” Tony said, “speaking as someone who’s had a fair amount of women friends, I imagine the chocolate would help…”

Stephen waited for the cramping to subside, then she answered, in a much milder tone, “It-it does help. Some. Thank you.”

On his part, Tony breathed a silent “thank you” to Wong, who’d advised him to bring the chocolates in the first place.

(Wong must know a great deal about women, Tony surmised, with not a little awe. He made a mental note to take Wong aside to explore that notion, at a later time.)

“When you’re feeling better,” Tony ventured, taking advantage of the calmer atmosphere, “would you maybe think about going out to dinner with me?”

All calm dissipated from the air between them. “In what capacity?” Stephen asked, eyeing Tony warily.

“As my date.”

Stephen’s eyes narrowed.

“You’re just asking me out because I have a vagina right now,” she ventured. “I assure you, Stark, this…condition is temporary.”

“Joke’s on you, I’ve been wanting to ask you out since I first laid eyes on you,” Tony acidly retorted. “Your ‘condition’ doesn’t matter. You’re always so busy, I just needed an excuse to see you alone before I could finally ask.”

That seemed to sway Stephen some to his side. But she still didn’t seem convinced.

“Look,” Tony patiently continued, “when I said ‘when you’re feeling better,’ it could be when you’re back in your male body. Or not. I don’t care. I just want time to hang out with you. Vagina optional.”

A small chuckle escaped Stephen. It almost sounded like a sob.

“Don’t fuck with me while I’m hormonal,” she groaned, holding her head. “Right now, that sounds like the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me, and I think that means I’m not thinking straight.”

Tony stepped up closer to her. “You don’t have to give an answer right now…”

“Good,” Stephen said miserably, “get lost. Let me think about it.”

“…but would it sweeten the deal if I said I was going to work with the Department of Defense to strengthen interstellar monitoring efforts and make sure Loki doesn’t pull weird shit like last time?”

Despite herself, Stephen laughed, heartily.

“I’d be lying if I said it wouldn’t,” she softly admitted.

“Awesome,” Tony remarked, genuinely relieved. “I’ll wait for your decision.”

He turned to leave, and he heard behind him:

“Tomorrow. Seven PM. Pick me up here. And it had better be a place where they serve good chocolate fondue.”

Tony smiled. “Noted,” he answered. He waved his hand without turning, and walked out feeling like a major long-term goal had just been reached.