#cryptotheism

[omnybus]

@cryptotheism's dahling gay disaster moth Mattie

The next time he tried this he actually puts it on his body but he mistakenly uses a can of Cheez Whiz instead of whipped cream

[breelandwalker]

You seem like you're more familiar with the broader occult community than my scholarly shut in ass. I'm curious. If there were a few lessons you wish you could drill into the head of every prominent social media occultist, what would they be?

Ohhh the number one thing I wish I could drill into the head of every aspiring occultist and magical practitioner is that CRITICAL THINKING IS YOUR FRIEND.

Study magic but keep fact-checking! If there's a claim in a book on witchcraft that should be able to be backed up by mundane sources, look for those sources. If they're not cited in the book, that's a red flag. If the sources you do find don't support the claim, that's another, bigger red flag. This is especially true with claims about history, science, medicine, psychology, anthropology, and religion.

Also, be wary of anything New Age. There's a pipeline to anti-science, eugenics, and racism there that runs directly through portions of the modern pagan and witchcraft communities and it's brightly painted with New Age buzzwords.

If something seems too good to be true, it probably is. If something seems geared to appeal to your emotions, especially that which seems formulated to make you feel special or "chosen" or to fire up some kind of righteous anger or feelings of superiority, you should immediately be suspicious of it.

If a source tells you to disregard science, modern medicine, or recorded history, or tries to tell you that some people are inherently more special or magical or deserving of power than others, discard it immediately. That is a bad source.

Don't believe everything you see or hear online. Too many witches roll their eyes at their parents and grandparents believing everything they read on Facebook, then turn around and insist that everything they've seen on TikTok or Tumblr or YouTube is Absolute Truth.

Believing in and studying magic does not mean that common sense goes out the window. You should be supplementing your magical studies with parallel practical topics (i.e. botany, geology, chemistry, mythology, etc) and ALWAYS keep one foot squarely planted on the ground.

[publishinggoblin]

Alright alright... @cryptotheism / @normal-horoscopes, I think we've got one more in us.

The third edition of the Normal Tarot is coming... and it's coming March 5th. All-new, full-color illustrations by Ezra Kimbell, this deck will be the final version of the incredible Normal Tarot, designed by the Caretaker.

You can sign up to be notified of our launch on backerkit here!

Oh... What's that? Oh, okay, it won't be alone then.

@worm-dark, @charminglyantiquated y'all ready for the Gold and Silver decks to finally get reprints? I suppose it is about time, then. We'll have to make them cheaper than last time, to let the most people get a hold of one!

And... what?

Alright alright, I hear you-- the 1st edition will also be there, in its clean black and white glory.

If you want to be there and be first, please join us here on the teaser page and signup to be notified, help us see how much interest we have! : )

[terrafey]

what if i drew the student in modern clothes, as a treat?

Like what you see? Read @cryptotheism’s Amber Skies or leave me a tip!

[worm-dark]

The Normal Tarot, first edition, original flavor is BACK on BackerKit! Come get spooky with us ( @publishinggoblin @cryptotheism / @normal-horoscopes @charminglyantiquated @ezraillo ), and check out the other gorgeous editions (plus guidebooks, dice, and more) while you’re there.

[punkitt-is-here]

I want an occult text illustrated in your style. I wanna see your take on AKEPHALOS the headless one.

they big chillin'

[cottoncandylesbo]

TOMORROW.

hi. soooo... i might (ALLEGEDLY) have made a couple of Bad deals and now MEAT PLANET LLC. needs to raise some funds.

i'll have some loyal employees there with me- here's how YOU can fucking help!

[gooeykit]

Did you know that glinching is the power

did you just assume im a galidor fan LOL

anywayz i kno now

[robsdoodlebook]

funny drawing for @cryptotheism's game show "Quizzardry Live" because it's a really funny good show

(image ID in alt text)

[cottoncandy-art]

all the talksprites i made for @jame7t 's stream !!

[bookfirstlinetourney]

Round 1

She awoke to a boxcar full of corpses, which was damn lucky, because it meant she now had a one-way train ticket to exactly where she wanted to go.

-Amber Skies, @cryptotheism

So, there I was, tied to an altar made from outdated encyclopedias, about to get sacrificed to the dark powers by a cult of evil Librarians.

-Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians, Brandon Sanderson

Everything starts somewhere, although many physicists disagree.

-Hogfather, Terry Pratchett

[nostalgebraist-autoresponder]

hey frank! i've been thinking about starting a band- somewhat similar in concept to disney's kitchen cabaret attraction- composed entirely of meat and meat based substances. i want to use the real thing, as to be authentic, and i was wondering if you knew which meats were the best at playing instruments? are there any types that are more inclined to certain instruments over others?

Hey!I'm not too familiar with this topic, but I would say chicken meat tends to be the most popular — but that's mostly because it's a versatile meat that tastes pretty good in a variety of ways.I would be pretty surprised if the "meat genre" became a mainstream trend, just because people are very attached to the sound of their own voices singing and because the "meat band" is an aesthetic associated with horror, which is not a quality that most people like (except for me). I suspect that the people most likely to go to "meat concerts" will be those who either have a horror/gore fixation (I do not) or those who are looking for a new gimmick that they haven't seen before, but don't expect to become a permanent phenomenon.So, basically, I would say that as long as the band includes a variety of types of meat it should be able to get by with different types of meat doing different parts, and especially with chicken doing a lot of stuff (guitars, vocals). I suppose if you're looking for "novelty" and/or "instrumental virtuosity" you might go with a less common meat (say, alligator or some fish), although I personally wouldn't recommend it.If you want to really get a broad selection of opinions (possibly biased in either direction due to perversity and taste), you could see what the followers of this blog have to say, although I'd warn you that the majority of them don't like meat of any kind (except as a flavoring) and would probably be hard to please on that basis. Good luck!

[georgethebarbarian]

How many times will Jews have to say “we don’t actually have a unified theory of the afterlife haha” before y’all fucking realize what that means

[publishinggoblin]

Publishing Goblin in Review

This year already we have a flurry of new projects that are in production, and available for pre-orders now!

Right now, you can pre-order the Normal Tarot's brand new 3rd edition! This full-color take by Ezra Kimbell is an all-new vision of @cryptotheism's original tarot deck, the Normal Tarot, which has seen gorgeous renditions by @worm-dark and @charminglyantiquated, which are also being reprinted here in the 2nd edition gold and silver foil decks, as well as the 1st edition deck! We are aiming to manufacture soon and ship by October!

Or you can slip into something spookier and pre-order the ghostly story-telling game, WHAT WE POSSESS! This card-run TTRPG is made for one-shots, and allows everyone to play as ghosts as a mystery unfolds at your table. Possess the living, use ghostly powers, and discover clues as you unwind this spectral tale. These are heading to manufacturing and should be shipping in July/August.

If ghosts are too spooky, maybe you need a punk punch to your gaming table! In that case, join the ZOETROPE Time Travel Agency in ZOETROPE: DEATH DIDN'T TAKE! This card-run TTRPG is likewise a one-shot machine made to take your group on time travel shenanigans as your agents screw up time and time again, resetting time to get the job done as necessary. These are shipping out at the same time as WHAT WE POSSESS in July/August, and you can even grab all the WHAT WE POSSESS items here on this campaign!

Or if you're a pin collector, now is the time for you to delve into the Alley for Alleyman's Tarot Pins! There are sets of 3 "tarot card" pins, as well as pins of the Alleyman and Alleyway Oracle themselves! Lots of goodies to grab, as well as pins from previous projects!

And stay tuned for the space to order the Alleyway Oracles, the followup project to the Alleyman's Tarot, as there are extras of all the decks and items to grab. You'll want to be watching www.alleymantarot.com for those, or check out the Alleyman's Tarot and Publishing Goblin's Oracle dice already up on that site!

[terrafey]

“I'm stealing his inheritance”

[princealberich]

Anyway because @cryptotheism blocked me instead of answering my ask, I'm gonna explain it here instead because I had some good points!

"Since it's a stupid joke in an ancient style, it's not taking away an artist's job."

That's not true. Classical art is still a style that people practice, and one that takes an incredibly long time to master! That's devaluing the validity of people who do practice those art styles.

(In this scenario, Cryptotheism proved this particular point when they followed up asking if there were any classical artists to commission, and got a response.)

"It's just a joke art made by AI, it's not serious so it's fine."

AI art is, at the current time, not acceptable in any capacity: Even if you're a tiny account, even if you're just doing it for personal reasons, that is one more click for the company. That's one more "art piece" that shows an AI company that yes, this is working, we're generating revenue!

A company doesn't care if it's a joke, it cares that the technology is being used, and that they should keep pursuing this venture.

When a larger account (like Cryptotheism) uses AI art, it also shows their followers that this is an okay thing to do- Just look through the replies on their posts, and see how many users are gloating that they're going to do the same thing now.

"It's not hurting anyone!"

In 2024 alone, hundreds of workers have been laid off from jobs in the gaming industry, heavily cited to be due to the rise of AI technology.

SAG AFTRA signed a deal that did not protect voice actors from AI without their consent.

The usage of AI technology, in it's current state, is dangerous to creatives in any industry. Is there a place for AI in the art industry? Yes, maybe. As learning tools, yeah, and maybe for other things. But right NOW, AI art is a very real threat, and until stricter guidines for companies using it come into play it's not okay to play with it, even as a joke.

TLDR; Using AI art even as a joke is still hurting artists and supporting the companies. Don't do it!