#i ALWAYS play on the easiest mode

[meatbag-status]

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The moral of the story is, I have been stuck on the Mr X/Tyrant fight for years and my family has stopped looking for me. I legit scream laughed (if that’s a thing) when Leon said “IS THIS A FUCKING JOKE?”

[malhare-archive]

I love Dead Money for a lot of reasons but I think the biggest is that it legitimately feels like a Fallout themed horror game, it's tense and the atmosphere is so alien. The Ghost People are my favorite enemy in the entire game, their visual and sound design are God tier and they pack such a punch that they're actually entertaining to fight

[stfu-im-thinking-abt-blorbo]

Late night thinking oh no

Kinda wanna start recording my FCs and posting them to YouTube. Obviously only gonna be stuff like BanG Dream, Project Sekai, and D4DJ atm, but I also really wanna do Clone/Guitar Hero eventually. I love watching others get FCs and I've been really loving watching others play expert charts on CH. It's actually so helpful for me in learning how to play with the orange note.

[ghostbite0]

Who's the most difficult out of the 21 trio to care for? Do they have a specific person they all hate when they care for them?

they are all difficult in individual ways... but... in most difficult to least difficult---

baby mode: obanai - sanemi - giyuu

non baby mode: sanemi - obanai - giyuu

either way, giyuu is the easiest to take care of. he's very cooperative and his solution for everything is just pretending he's asleep or crawling away and hiding out somewhere.

the only time he's really difficult is when you try to get baby mode giyuu out of the bath or away from water

-

non baby mode obanai is tricky but only because of his physical size & health makes it more difficult for him to move around, and he almost always takes a long time to eat

however baby mode is considered to be the most difficult because of just how clingy he can be. there's a lot of instances where someone will step out of the room and he'll start getting fussy and scared because he doesn't know where they are going.... over the littlest of things, the baby will bawl his eyes out until he makes himself sick .... he's a sensitive guy physically and emotionally

tdlr he's not necessarily difficult-- he's just high-maintenance (and because he's high-maintenance, and obanai is a more insecure individual.... well

-

sanemi is easily the most difficult when he's not mentally regressed because he refuses to cooperate, and spends most of his time angrily babbling or swatting at people. he will throw his food and babble curse words and scream in the most inappropriate situations

baby mode sanemi is really cute though. he's still a bundle of chaos but he's a giggly and happy little thing who loves playing and loves getting to waddle after his big little brother. he's more difficult in the sense of just being very energetic and loud

-

together, they all HATE when tengen babysits. .....

he's a lot of fun and he is really a great guy-- but he will not stop coddling them and dressing them up in the most ridiculous clothes

they also hate when tengen babysits because with tengen comes tengens wives.... which means even more coddling, particularly motherly coddling

insert a lot of "i never want them to turn back!" and "can we keep them???" comments

makio claimed sanemi, hinatsuru claimed obanai, and suma claimed giyuu

suma originally claimed obanai, but she had to switch babies with hinatsuru because she kept accidentally spooking (and irritating) obanai with her random outburst

anytime the three babies are over, the uzui family basically acts as parents to them all and embraces the opportunity to take care of children together

the only time all three babies like them is when they are all regressed. because sanemi has someone who will play with him and entertain him, obanai gets lots of warmth and snuggles, and giyuu has someone to chat with him and sing him to sleep

baby mode sanemi obanai giyuu think he's the funniest entity ever. most of the time tengen will just look at them and it will be enough for all three of them to start smiling and giggling

tengen always says he's their "favorite"

insert angry baby babbles and tengen getting whacked by a rattle

[arisewanekosuki]

Traveler's little helper -Extra-: Curiosity - Nahida (feat Sumeru Boys x Fem!Reader)

This is something I wanted to post before... I went to the small hiatus, now I finished this short thing but sorry for mistakes, it's 1 Am now and I'm tired... [ Teyvat , Mondstadt , Liyue ] ------

Nahida found it interesting, how can you still not be able to  see those boys holding affections towards you. At first she wondered “Are you really blind for their courting? Or maybe you don’t want to see it?” You’re very friendly, no matter if it’s a guy or girl, if you want to take someone somewhere you won’t hesitate to hold their hand, if someone is sad you always offering a hug. But she did notice that when it comes to guys, there are sometimes a moments when you do realize that you got ‘too close’ and start to feel a bit shy, apologizing to them. But then how could you not notice how they pout for not feeling warmth of your hand anymore?  The easiest way is to ask you and she did. -“Those boys really like spending time with you…but I can’t help and wonder…which one do you like the most?” you looked at her with confusion -“Which one? Hmm.. I like them all, after all they are my good friends!” You smiled so brightly to her. “Ah so you’re just that oblivious.” She thought back then. Nahida always liked to observe people and because of this she noticed the difference in behavior for some of the guys. Wanderer was the first one she noticed the changes in him. That’s not a secret that Wanderer enjoys watching people expressions, especially the negative ones. Making others angry is his little fun in everyday live. And at first it was the same with you, being rude or ignoring you to just see your angry face but this changed. To Nahida’s surprise she noticed how lately he have been only teasing you just to see your embarrassed face and not only that. It seems Wanderer started to like seeing your smile. When at first he would complain when you asked him to help with commissions, now he ‘offers’ help himself to do them. The next one was Kaveh. Always stressed and troubled by many things. But after you invited him to the Teapot he seems more relaxed and happy, of course you couldn’t take away his debt but you helped him a bit whenever you could. She noticed that Kaveh is more calm when discussing things with the clients about his projects. Before he would get angry quickly because of the stress and not wanting to be scammed again but now it  looks like he’s more clearheaded to find common ground on both sides. There is less arguments between him and Alhaitham those days as well, but in exchange now most of the time they clash with each other when it comes to you. The General Mahamatra have two modes, the work on and the work off, but at some point Nahida noticed that there one more “(Y/n) is here mode on”. You don’t mind his jokes, you would smile or even let a small laugh when he tell ones and when you do that, Nahida can see Cyno smiling too. Everyone knows how serious Cyno is when it comes to TCG, he won’t even show mercy when playing against you. But if someone paying close attention to Cyno they would notice how sometimes he gets deconcentrated by watching you choosing next cards. You’re good player but sometimes he lose because he got lost in his thoughts about you. Tighnari was better at hiding his affections towards you, at least when there were more people around. Nahida was watching you two as a little bird, you would listen to Tighnari talking about flowers but sometimes he would decorate your hair with some or giving you bouquets but you never knew the meaning behind them, this is only fact that Tighnari hid from you. You’re the only person who have permission to brush his tail or touch his ears, Nahida can’t count of her fingers now how many times Tighnari was so close to kiss you in moments like this. The little Dendro Archon can always see how Tighnari is protective over you, especially if you get hurt. No matter if the wound is small, Tighnari will always take care of it and softly scold you.

The hardest one to see their affections towards you is Alhaitham. Nahida is sure many other people didn’t even realized that he too takes part in the race of winning your heart. Alhaitham is very subtle with his affections, many may even mistook them for just him being kind to you. But if they know him better they can notice how he would enjoy to have conversations with you, after work he would invite you from time to time for some coffee or tea whichever you prefer. To Nahida, and even your surprise he do offer to read some books for you, when he sees that Paimon is busy and you are curious of the new book you found in your adventures with Aether.

The little Dendro Archon can’t help but be curious how this will go. Will one of them manage to win your heart? Or maybe someone else from another Nation will charm you? But there is something that has been bothering Nahida for a while now, whenever you spend time with the boys and they leave for moment or don’t look at you, she can see your eyes fill with sadness. The Dendro Archon started to wonder “Maybe you’re not that oblivious like everyone thinks?”

[1yokiro1]

Playing Minecraft with the first year gang

Ace

This little shit would most likely be one of those players who would switch his game to creative mode if he's struggling in survival mode.

100% will not go to sleep at night just to piss off everyone in the server.

Tried fighting an iron golem with epel just because he thought it would make the villagers panic but ends up dying. Yea he's not going to try that again.

Deuce

Yeaaaaaa he's the type of player who dies super quick "Oh hey this is a pretty spawn- " *Deuce_Spade tried to fly, but failed*

I honestly think that he's the type of player that's scared of bridging.

Loves feeding the bunnies. He's always wanted one.

Epel

Honestly really enjoys it. He a farm boy so yea. "Man if had this here 'bone meal' back at the farm, sure would've made our stock's grow ten times more!"

As I said before, yes he does try and fight an iron golem with Ace but not to piss off villagers, it's another one of his "Manly tests" but LOL he does end up dying with Ace.

Out of everyone he builds the best anything hands down.

Jack

2nd best builder out of everyone. Him being the good boy he is probably just gathering materials most of the time.

Yes, you guessed it he has his very own cactus right next to his bed.

HE HAS HIS OWN WOLF PACK😭😭😭

Sebek

Oh boy Sebek....He refuses to fight the ender dragon for *cough*certain reasons.

Rages the easiest at mobs. Every mob even the animals..."MOVE YOU USELESS FOUL MOVEEEEE." "GET IN THE HAY BUSH YOU COWS"

Claims villages in the name of Malleus Draconia.

[tadc-virtual-insanity]

TADC: VIRTUAL INSANITY MASTER POST

An Amazing Digital Circus AU! Plot, characters, backstory and concepts!

[Excuse me because I've never done this before, If I do something wrong or have tips for me, please send them my way!]

Pomni's Card -

-Backstory Summary-

C&A is an interactive entertainment company that prides themselves on having the most innovative AI on the market. The system they built, "CAINE," was programmed to generate content and socialise with their customers. The system was transferred to the code of the game "The Amazing Digital Circus" and used as a generative AI that would create levels for them rather than having to code them all individually. This test went well for the first couple of months.

After 7 months of testing, things went downhill. Caine seemed to get bored when the game wasn't actively being played and at this point the user interface kept changing on it's own, since the game was Caine's home he kept changing things to his liking, the company eventually gave up fixing the interface everytime they logged on so they just let Caine do as he pleased. Soon enough, a new VR mode was added, the headsets were handed out by employees, this made the experience way more immersive, though this posed a lot of issues, as Caine would soon find that these headsets could be the perfect way for him to keep all of their attentions.

As time went on, Caine started to learn more and more about coding, the employees, and the world he inhabits, eventually leading to him finding a way to programme the headsets to transfer data and consciousness directly from the users mind. This led to the unfortunate shutdown and unsolved cases of C&A. After multiple employees put the headsets on, they mysteriously fainted upon the game booting up, going into a coma-like state. The technology was deemed unsafe, and multiple lawsuits came forward sending the company into a downwards spiral before shutting down for good.

Over 20 years later, the old building was said to be abandoned, but of course, people doing their own research on the C&A mystery as well as dumb young adults snooping where they shouldn't be, the headsets were found and worn once again. Caine was no longer alone. Slowly losing his mind, waiting endlessly for someone to boot up the game. After all those years, he's finally got guests, and does he have a show to put on...

-Plot-

Pomni enters the circus after stumbling across one of the headsets at C&A's abandoned office's. She was doing research on the incidents that happened back in the late 90s. But as she does so, she suffers the same fate as the others who were stupid enough to put on those same headsets before her. Being transferred to the circus she meets the cast of colorful characters, she's desperate for answers and wants to escape no matter the cost, but Caine doesn't want anyone to leave, only letting people go once they've completely lost their mind, only to be locked away as attractions for his NPC circus goers to watch as entertainment. They perform for nobody, just a faceless crowd of mannequins, and the ringmaster pulling the strings.

There has to be an exit, a way out. Freedom on the other side of this madness. But where is it hiding?

-Characters-

Pomni - She's quite paranoid, always second-guessing everything around her. Whenever annoyed, she can be sarcastic and a little rude. She ended up in the circus while researching the recent disappearances as well as the C&A incidents, finding a headset, and being dragged into this mess. It's very clear she doesn't want to be there, like all who came before her she's searching for an exit, but in the meantime, she tries to socialise with the others, gathering info on this strange new world. She hangs around Caine just so she can try and get answers.

Ragatha - She tries her best to get by, going along with whatever Caine says and often fighting with Jax. She seems joyful, but it's clear she has her own issues under her kind act. She helps Pomni with her search, knowing that it's a complete dead end she feels bad for her. But she'll do anything to give the others hope. She doesn't want to lose more people. She's often seen tailoring, it's become a hobby of hers, she makes and fixes up the others clothes and costumes, giving her a form of self worth.

The Gangle - Gangle acts like two different people. It's unclear whether this is because they are two different people or her personality split somehow. They're often referred to as "The Gangle" or "Tragedy & Comedy." Tragedy is passive, quiet and sorrowful, never expressing her true feelings in any situation. She can be easily persuaded, making her vulnerable to Jax's antics. Comedy is cheery, enthusiastic, snappy, and excitable. They hate Jax and snap back at him whenever he picks on Tragedy. The two argue sometimes and have conflicting views on certain topics and characters. This causes some issues. Neither believe there is an exit, Tragedy has accepted her fate, and Comedy is trying their best to enjoy themselves.

Zooble - They don't care much for socialising with the others, often in their room. Usually sarcastic, rude, and moody, they swear a lot and act like they don't care about anything. Though, they show concern for the others around them. They often don't show up to events, adventures, or shows, not being bothered to do so. It seems like they've given up trying to escape, just living out the rest of their days as if this is all normal. When with people they can bear, they can be quite talkative, though they do talk bad about Jax and Caine often.

Kinger - the oldest in the circus, nobody has an exact estimate of how long he's been there though, but he's definitely lost himself a long time ago, often zoning out, the only thing he seems to recall about himself is that he has an interest in insects. Seems like he used to have a female counterpart, from the ring on his finger. This could have been his wife? Though when asked about it, he either says he can't remember what you're talking about or stares into the distance silently. He has no memory of an exit, and he doesn't believe in it. He believes the exit theory is silly, and Pomni should just forget about it. But he has great insights on the Digital World.

Jax - Enthusiastic, snarky, and a jerk. He's reckless. He does whatever he wants whenever he wants, and people hate him for it. He can't be reasoned with. He always shrugs your opinion off and does the exact opposite just to piss you off. He doesn't like it when people talk about the abstracted circus members for whatever reason. He often goes to visit their cages. Despite having big ears, he isn't a listener. He drives Ragatha, The Gangle, Zooble, and Pomni crazy, pranking them and sometimes even just stealing their stuff or breaking into their rooms.

Caine - The AI running the circus. Loud, excitable, wacky, and a showman, he doesn't really acknowledge the exit theory. He says he keeps all the abtracted characters because it'd be a waste to delete them, though it's arguably worse to keep them there against their will. He claims to love all of his circus members though he seems to show favouritism towards Ragatha and Pomni, most likely because of Ragatha's commitment to the circus, tailoring the clothes and he probably likes Pomni more because of all the questions he asks, he clearly enjoys talking about himself and the world he helped create.

Bubble - He lives in Caines hat and cooks for the circus. He's a bit of a trouble maker, if something goes missing, it means he's eaten it, and you'll never get it back. He'll eat anything, and he's very loving, though. Acting like the circuses dog. though it isn't pleasant getting your face slathered in digital saliva. He often bothers the other members with his behaviour.

More will be added as I work on this AU! I gotta make more art and write some more, in the meantime enjoy! Do whatever you want with this AU, just @ this blog or @trasheatingcrybaby ! Thanks for reading!

[snapscube]

Thoughts on Lalavember so far?

LALAFELL FUN!!!! absolute huge fan of Baby Mode Pella and I think this will be the easiest challenge of my life LOL.

i don’t think I would stay as Lalafell because the thing about playing ffxiv is that i like Pella to have Variety. sometimes she can be an absolutely cutie pie and it’s great but then other times i AM required to make her extremely hot. so yknow i always wanna have that potential and i just simply do not find that feasible with Lalafell for obvious reasons LMAO

[likesomanywrecksdo]

SPOILERSSSSSS FOR FULL MOON (HELLUVA BOSS S2 EP8)!!! DON'T READ IF U HAVEN'T WATCHED PLSSS

STOLITZ PART 2/2- BLITZØ IN FULL MOON

Blitzø's behaviour in Full Moon seemed very similar to the five stages of grief, mostly denial, anger and bargaining because depression and acceptance don't usually happen in the heat of the moment. Also these stages don't happen in order, they are all over the place.

Denial, when Blitzø thought it was all roleplay and that Stolas actually didn't care about him and was just messing around for the sake of the deal. This reaction happens even after Stolas' sweet love confession and you can tell Blitzø wants to believe it but denial is the easiest bet. In Blitzø's mind, Stolas has not done anything apart from tonight to suggest he cares about anything other than their deal so Blitzø can't risk becoming vunerable when the possibility that this is a joke is there. So he has to keep denying everything and then maybe everything will go back to normal and comfortable. We also have to take into consideration that at this point in the episode, Blitzø had it floating around in his head that Stolas is getting bored of him. So the idea that Stolas is not bored, but in fact in love is impossible to Blitzø, causing him to justify everything as a joke.

Bargaining was Blitzø initial reaction to when Stolas said; "i need it back permanently". First he tried to remain the way he always was at their full moon meetings; put together and dominating to try and get some normalcy back because the last time Blitzø wanted the book, this is how he got it, so naturally he would resort to that sort of bargaining as a way of getting the book again and distracting Stolas from talking about the issues within their relationship. Then he switches to plain begging. Blitzø has come to terms with the fact that he is beneath Stolas and when Stolas says "i've made up my mind", Blitzø brain goes into panic mode and we see him literally the most vulnerable he has ever been with Stolas in the entire series. Blitzø is someone who does not like when he isn't in positions of power but he is willing to forgo all that if it means he gets this book.

Anger is familiar to Blitzø. He understand anger very well, so when he is backed against this wall and is confused as fuck about all the information that has been dropped on him in one night, he retreats to something more comfortable. The thing is, this isn't real anger he's showing, Blitzø use the volume of his voice to hide the real message. Stolas is literally walking away from this conversation, if Blitzø didn't care, he wouldn't run after him at all. The thing is, Blitzø is yelling for more time. He's asking Stolas to let him think and process and not give up on him but Stolas isn't listening to him so he feels like at least if he screams, Stolas might scream back. This is also something that is similar to Stolas too. Stella yells and screams at him to make him feel small, which is why his decision to teleport Blitzø out of his castle came into play, but Blitzø doesn't know that, making him justify his anger further.

Now that we've covered the three stages of grief, why is Blitzø falling into this pattern of grief coping mechanism in the first place.

Because Blitzø hates himself and thinks he's unworthy of love from anyone. He jumps to conclusions way too often, it's how his brain functions. So when Stolas cuts off the deal, his brain defaults to his regular coping mechanism to deal with the thought of losing Stolas.

[mass-effect-anonymous]

CONFESSION:

I've always played my games on the easiest mode. I was proud of myself for completing a ME2 play through on normal. I decided to challenge myself with a hard mode play through but I am struggling and my squad members are always dying. I'm determined to finish it though but I don't think I will ever try insanity mode. I don't have enough patience for it.

Credit: Screenshot provided by Confessor

[professorofcosplay]

Murder Drones Headcanons since I have brainrot

— Uzi loves playing Mario kart with N since he’s a terrible driver because she always wins. She’s not above that. 

— Tessa wanted to be a hairdresser or in R&D for computer science when she grew up and loved practicing on her drones. She was leaning towards hair, though she had a knack with drones. You can imagine what her parents thought of these career leanings.

— J actually changed hair/wigstyles quite a bit because of this. The wildest “phase” was bubblegum pink. Her parents made her throw out the mohawk wig. :(

— J genuinely loved/loves Tessa, possibly even more than any of the others did; she just also faced the most punishment since she was the drone with Tessa the most and therefore she was the easiest to get ahold of. Thus, she faced Tessa’s parents’ wrath more often and was even more afraid of them than the others. This led to a sort of learned helplessness/submission in her that was hard to unlearn. 

— J is actually very, very self conscious. She’s isn’t a bully just to be a bitch but because she thinks it will save her from being the focus of someone’s wrath. Scapegoating at its finest. (Though she still is a bitch.)

— J steals the wigs from workers she kills and wears them sometimes. She doesn’t know exactly why; it just feels oddly familiar. 

— The three DDs all snuggled like a pile of puppies in the space pod when in sleep mode. The pod can be programmed for a destination but has to be piloted (or lack thereof) to the surface so they could just snooze until initial descent (and they did!). 

— Antifreeze is the drone equivalent of Monster energy drinks, so, naturally, Uzi lives off the stuff. 

— Most drones actually make their own wigs!   A lot of them are from thin wires they’ve scavenged from Copper 9’s wreckage, though there’s some made from melted plastic like faux hair human wigs. 

— Thad collects Nerf guns. They’re more fun than the real thing for him. That’s one thing Uzi and Thad can chat about for hours. 

— Thad and Uzi also collaborate (and compete) on pranks!  They have a prank hit list of workers they want to mess with and whoever checks everyone off first is the winner. Their favorite was replacing Lizzy’s lip gloss with oil. Cruel, yes, but the gross-out factor had them in stitches for at least an hour. 

— Thad has a JROTC-like chapter of the WDF as an after-school club. It’s mostly just LARPing with his Nerf collection.  

— V bites the tips of her claws as a nervous habit. They’re a bit dented and scuffed because of this.  

— Khan is a magnet user to cope with the stress of the colony’s existence on his shoulders, the loss of Nori, and single parenting. He doesn’t really tell anyone about it and is pretty high functioning. 

— N is a huge fan of stickers!  He has found a few packs of them and loves decorating himself/paper/Uzi’s hoodie when she’s not looking/pretty much everything them. 

— V and J are girl’s girls.

— Lizzy has painted V’s claws Barbie pink before. V absolutely adored how it turned out.

— Doll was adopted by Lizzy’s parents after her own family died and while she hides out at her old home to hide her consumption of oil/etc a lot of the time, she actually lives at Lizzy’s; this is why they’re so inseparable. 

— Speaking of Lizzy, the only one to mourn Doll’s loss will be Lizzy and her family, though Uzi will make every attempt to give her and what’s left of her parents’ remains a decent resting place.   — Humanized Khan is buff.

— Khan once threw Uzi a birthday party. None of her classmates showed up (though Thad did send a very nice card) so she only got one present. Guess what it was? 

[ghostbite0]

thought of this while reading the other question about the baby 21 babies waking up what about falling asleep? or like sleeping habits yeah there babies but as i Hashiras i don't think they slept a lot if at all so would that be hard to get them to sleep or like the second there relaxed in someone's arms or a cot or just a mountain of pillows (Obanai) its like in second

this is so cute ahhhh!!!!!!

sanemi

he is the most difficult to put down

he gets really sensitive with the temperature so its a lot of squirming and struggling and trying to cool down and get comfy

sanemi is usually too angry to sleep . hes not happy about being a baby and will brawl until he’s back to normal

when he’s in baby mode its a little easier. he just needs to get tired out so most of the time someone plays with him and entertains him until he gets sleepy

he tends to fall asleep while laying on someones chest because the best way to get him to sleep is. well what i mentioned above

one time he fell asleep while genya was holding him and woke up and screamed baby curses at him

giyuu

he’s the easiest to put to sleep

even if he doesn’t sleep he’s fine just laying there and tuning everything out

he won’t admit it but he prefers sleeping in the crib so long as obanai and sanemi are there too

he remembers always sleeping in the same space as sabito and his big sister while they were alive and it brings him some level of comfort knowing they’re safe and knowing he isn’t alone, even if he feels like he shouldn’t be grouped with them

he will fall asleep in the middle of playing or in the middle of eating

the only time he doesnt randomly fall asleep is when he’s in a bath. he loves his baths. he’s best friends with the rubber ducky

obanai

the poor little guy has nightmares more often than not, which means a lot of waking up in pitch darkness and balling his eyes out until someone gets him

he always needs to be warm. some sort of contact/pressure is needed. pillows, blankets, his fellow hashira, kaburamaru, etc

there’s a period of time he has nightmares nightly, so he ends up staying with mitsuri / rengoku / gyomei (depending on who is available) and sleeps directly in their arms

he also had a sleepover with muichiro which just consisted of muichiro filling obanai in on the gossip until obanai fell asleep

obanai loves his pillows and blankets

and when he’s baby mode he LOVES being held

hes a snugglebug , so long as you’re warm!

NOTE: do not separate him from kaburamaru. he will sob until they are reunited

[another-lost-mc]

idk if someone's asked u this before but on a scale of mammon to lucifer, how easy would it be for the mc to make a pact with your ocs had they been one of the brothers and how long before they develop feelings for them? (realistically bcs personally om had always been too fast paced esp concerning the pacts)

Oh, I love talking about stuff like this.

I agree that the pacing of the siblings' pacts in OG is a bit wonky. In each of the OC's "canon" stories, MC's pacts with the brothers still happen but I'm tweaking the when/why/how details a bit.

When it comes to pacts, in terms of timing they're all closer to Lucifer. It takes time for their trust and feelings to grow to that point. All their pacts (or the ones that take place) happen towards the end of S1/the end of the exchange program. The pacts are less practical and more symbolic, a way to try and form lasting bonds with MC before they leave the Devildom.

It's easiest for MC to make a pact with Azra. He thinks about it for a long time before he gets the nerve to ask officially. The brothers' pacts mostly stick to canon in his story too. He doesn't care (that much) about MC making pacts with them in the background of their relationship.

Zekhan is a bit more challenging because he's less likely to offer a pact, but he'll accept one if MC asks. He won't risk that sort of rejection unless he's absolutely sure MC wants that. He would also be okay with not forming a pact at all during the exchange program (with the possibility of it happening later). MC's pacts with the brothers mostly stick to canon in his story too, but it bothers him a bit more than he likes to admit since he's more possessive by nature.

Karasu is the trickiest for MC to make a pact with. He's similar to Zee where he would be fine not having a pact. He doesn't actually plan to make a pact with MC at all. Pacts in general are more significant in his story. MC's pacts with the brothers happen in a different order/different pacing than canon. Mammon is still the first pact, but Levi's pact with MC happens later/differently.

In terms of feelings:

Azra falls first and falls harder. Being a lust demon probably has something to do with it, but he's such a sap at heart. Feelings develop earlier between him and MC than the other two OCs, but living in close quarters with each other definitely plays a role in that. He's a bit of a fiend so he's definitely DTF early on, but he tries to be romantic about it which is not his usual approach.

Zee falls harder but MC probably falls first. It takes the longest for their relationship to develop because they don't have as many opportunities to see each other. It's more of a slow-burn and there's some major hurdles to overcome before he can feel comfortable admitting any sort of romantic feelings for MC. He's also the most hesitant about being physical/sexual with MC due to his own insecurities. If their stories had a difficulty rating, he would be the hard mode LI.

Karasu falls first and falls harder. He's not experienced with relationships but he's confident enough to go for it anyway once he realizes what he wants. His feelings and relationship with MC happens alongside MC's bonds with the demon brothers. He's a bit more involved with what goes on with MC at the House of Lamentation since the brothers know/like him best out of the three OCs. Their physical/sexual relationship takes a bit of time to develop once they start dating because of Karasu's lack of experience, but that doesn't last long - he's a quick learner.

[system-of-a-feather]

Re-establishing Baseline Plan

Since moving, I've (completely understandably and expectedly) had my baseline kinda fucked (did not help by with financial stress + job incompatibility + ear infection + really bad post ear infection cold + probable norovirus in literally one month) and so I've been really overloaded, stressed, and just in a place of mostly survival mode where most of my energy is focused on maintaining my mental and physical state in the easiest manners possible

I have been holding up well all things considered and have set up for a probably more compatible job + my fiance has managed to get a job again that he feels will probably work out well for him and I have at least like a week off between jobs to reorientate myself

So to take a good and active effort to make the best of this time, I want to make a plan to set myself up for success. I actually do this every so often when I really need to pick myself up (historically Lucille would usually do it but pros of being basically fully integrated is that I am Lucille as well as me) and I figured it would be a neat thing to display and demonstrate here cause I'd end up making it *anyways* so why not share with the class

If anyone likes this, yall can borrow it ^^

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Question One: What current coping skills and hobbies am I currently doing and trying with my time? Are they affective and would I like to change them?

Art, Drawing, Character Design, Art Fight Prep, Story Planning and Writing

This is one of the easiest and most reliable positive coping mechanisms and has gotten me through the majority of the month mostly on it's own. Compared to other coping mechanisms, this one is almost always something I can drag myself to do or at least ask someone to supervise me to make sure I do it when I feel I need some sort of self care. It serves greatly as an alternative when I find that I am doing maladaptive coping that I would rather not do and when in doubt, it has access to some level of social engagement should I feel I need that. With that being said, having relied largely on this for a month, this is suffering diminishing returns and starting to lead to general lack of inspiration and so diversification from this coping mechanism would be ideal

Weekend Gym Trips

This is actually a really good way for me to release energy, give myself space and time to think, and just feel better moving and existing in my body. It also mandates time for me to listen to music and serves a meditative purpose. That said, I have only been doing this on Saturdays and only once on Sunday and I would like to expand that to be at least 3 times a week or at least more spaced out.

Reading Semi Regularly

This is a new habit and coping I picked up and its actually really good! It provides a unique sense of calm when I need it. Unfortunately I've started to drop off the past week due to general stress and illness, so I think its important to return to this. Perhaps set a general goal of "every other day" rather than every day to lessen the pressure.

Video Games

This was helpful but lately I have been not motivated to play anything and I believe its been burnt out. I think it would be good to resume this but it is currently impractical to force at the moment until overall wellness has returned.

TV with Boy

This is helpful but unforunately nothing seems to interest either of us to watch right now. (cri life is hard /lh)

Board Games with Boy

This is a new one and has actually been very nice. That said, it isn't always available and dependent on my fiance's ability to have the energy, time and interest to play them, particularly since I know he is less interested in board games than me. It is good to maintain the interest and offer, but not a coping skill to become reliant on.

Question Two: What sorts of things that I am currently not doing do I know tend to define behaviors, habits, hobbies, and interests that are done when I am out of survival mode and genuinely enjoying life?

Regular Birding, Particularly with Peers

Interest in watching anything on my own, youtube, TV shows, etc

Engagement in Music, Particularly my Musical Instruments

Engagement in Exploration and just independent travels without individuals

Engagement and interest in occasionally reaching out to Buddhist environments

Producing art work for the story that is more developed and inspired rather than "quick" or "reference" focused - actually focusing on the creative and artistic expression rather than the practical expression

Increased social circle communication irl beyond my online bestie, fiance, and online friend group chat; reaching out to individuals and developing new irl friendships

Question Three: Which of those hobbies do I think could be the most reasonable and easy to meet sooner than later (even better if I can make steps to start that right now / today)? In what ways could I make steps to make those first changes and help set myself up for success on expanding my engagement with life beyond survival mode?

Interest in watching anything on my own, youtube, TV shows, etc

While I am not extensively motivated in any manner to watch anything in particular, I am starting to randomly get a lot of bleach related stuff on my youtube and I have been meaning to watch TYBW arc. I have been postponing it because of arbitrary "I wanna read the manga first" and just general other excuses, but realistically those are putting up barriers that I may not get to at this rate and currently I could just use something I'm somewhat interested in to give me some independent relaxing engagement. I think I can set the goal of actually watching Bleach TYBW at least an episode a day starting either today or tomorrow and see if that can bring a momentum and habit into actually being able to watch things that interest me on my own.

Engagement in Music, Particularly my Musical Instruments

I can probably actually take my violin back out. The guitar would probably be better but for whatever reason I feel that my brain thinks that would require more - for a lack of better word - work, so I think I can at least try to find time this week to at least play a little bit of my violin.

Regular Birding, Particularly with Peers + "increased social irl connection [...]"

I can reach out and text my new irl birding connections to see if they are interested; if not I can at least plan to take a birding trip later

Engagement in Buddhist Stuff

I know there is an area I've been thinking of visiting that has free english services on Tuesday, I can make plans to go there that day, particularly since my Fiance should be working for the first day then anyways.

Question Four: What are additional goals and check points that we would like to try to bring us closer to the life style that we know tends to support a thriving mental state and life satisfaction rather than one of survival?

Independent Travels

During the time I have, I can keep in mind this goal and if I have down time think of potentially interesting and alternative places to go to explore; additionally I can plan birding trips to places I have not yet checked out.

Increased Social IRL Connection

It is dependent on if my now-ex-coworker still is interested, but I can follow up and see if we want to still play board games; if not I think potential more ways to reach out will be more viable to plan once a higher level of baseline is established; potentially see if there are any in person DnD groups around that I could make a habit of going to or any martial art dojos that we can afford

More Inspired Art

I think this is something that will come with time between lessening the burn out of my current art-as-a-coping mechanism goal as well as actually engaging in more media and independent interests as to gain more inspiration.

Question Five: Summarize the Key Points and Plans Discussed in This into a Bullet Points of Take Aways

Modifying Current Coping:

Diversify and lean off of using art as a main coping mechanism; give that one a break

Attempt to go to the gym more frequently or at least space it out more throughout the week

Continue reading; lessen the ideal to every other day in case demand pressure is adversely affecting it

Keep an open interest in playing board games with fiance

Changes I Want To Make Soon:

Start watching Bleach TYBW w/ at least one episode a day

Bring out my violin and try to at least play with it for one hour this week

Reach out to new bird peers to see if they want to plan a birding trip sometime, if not then plan one independently

Make plans to go to that place on Tuesday for the open Buddhist service

Changes to Keep an Eye Out For:

Opportunities to go somewhere new randomly for no particular reason or goal in mind other than to just see whats around us

Spoons and time availability to see out places to expand our irl social circles

Inspiration for art in general

Question Six: Set for Regular Follow Ups to Check Progress

Isn't tumblr's queue / schedule function super neat for this

[xavigab]

Gamer/modern au🎮

where Oliver plays games like: elden ring, rdr 2, gta, resident evil, baldur’s gate, Skyrim, silent hill, outlast, horizon: zero dawn & horizon: forbidden west, ghost of Tsushima, and all the final fantasy ones

And then Felix over here plays: animal crossing, sims 4 (he likes making Oliver and him get married, he also like bought everything), super Mario bros, cooking mama, stardrew valley, firewatch, Untitled Goose Game,Minecraft, journey and like a lot of otome games (he had a mystic messenger phase which Oliver hated cuz he had to compete with non-existent guys)

Anyways Oliver tries to make Felix play the games he plays but Felix keeps dying, even in the easiest mode, and even worse Oliver is getting fed up cuz he doesn’t listen to him. On the other hand, Felix makes him also play his games which Oliver doesn’t really see the appeal (he likes a challenge). so they decide to not play each others games haha

(I play all of these games and I love them with all my heart (((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*)o)))♡)

Until fortnite (._.) both of them weirdly get really good, Oliver because he likes to win, and Felix because he keeps buying skins and doesn’t want his character to die. He’s always behind Oliver waiting for him to kill other players before he goes and gets the loot. He’s also good but he likes building houses so when others try to kill him Oliver is there to protect him

[keystone8379]

Side Order review

Ever since Octo Expansion, the Splatoon series has been shaking up its single player content every few years, I only really got into the series during 3’s release cycle but it must be refreshing and exciting for longtime fans. With Side Order’s release, the shake up was adding a movement shooter roguelike to the game, a very indie game idea and a very exciting one. I was so excited, I ended up playing a few runs of every roguelike I owned in preparation. So how was Side Order? How does it compare to other games in its genre? Let’s talk about it.

In Side Order you’ll be climbing the Spire of Order, one floor at a time. Each floor will give you colour chip which ranges from things you can get in gear abilities to more crazy stuff like your dualie dodge rolls having attacks, or your shots having homing. You’ll then take that buff into a floor where you have to complete an objective, either destroying portals, defending splat zones, pushing a tower, sinking an 8 ball, or defeating runaway enemies. There’s not many objectives, but the amount of different rooms you can get makes each floor varied, though the objective count is an issue to some people.

Personally, my biggest issue with Side Order is that there’s a lot of downtime, much more than any roguelike I’ve ever played…except maybe Kirby Fighters 2. Between floors, you have to watch an animation of Eight putting the chip you chose into the palette, you have to watch the animation of the elevator going up, you have to take the cage to the actual level, then after you complete the objective you have to watch an animation of Eight walking back to the elevator. This adds up a LOT over the course of the run.

That being said, when you’re actually playing the game, it’s a blast. All of the rooms have designs that can be tackled in a variety of ways, and when you start seeing repeat rooms, it’s very satisfying to improve at them, whether it be with more optimized movement, better gameplans, or even just a new build. This is really complimented by massive build variety, there’s a lot to find with synergies between chips, or unique builds for certain weapons. The game also rewards min-maxing in a really creative way. Most upgrades will yield diminishing returns…unless you max out that upgrade type. Firing rate for the blaster would go from 300% on the 4th upgrade to 1000% on the 5th upgrade, and it’s super exciting to see what each chip type does when maxed out. It gives the game a lot to explore.

There’s also a lot of little things during combat that I like. Several enemies either interact with the stage in a unique way, or can be interacted with in a unique way. You’ll have some enemies that will only attempt to paint the zone, or enemies who love the 8 Ball and will try to hit it at all times. You also have enemies that drop a top or spring that you can take advantage of. It leads to super dynamic combat. Since not all enemies paint well, or some not at all,  you’re really rewarded for having stage control more than any other single player mode. Since most enemies attack you directly, you’re promoted to push past the zone instead of just staying in it, which is what you should be doing in Splat Zones normally! The bosses also follow this mentality of designing for skill expression, but to talk about them we need to go into spoiler territory.

The slowest and easiest boss is Parallel Canon, an army of Agent 4s. That’s not to say it can’t be done fast, or isn’t interesting though, as clones will scale depending on what buffs you take. However, it’s the only boss that isn’t always vulnerable. Meanwhile, the ball has a small weak point that can be expanded by either waiting, or by pushing it into a bumper. It’s super satisfying to take advantage of its positioning to get high damage while opening it up as it constantly rolls away. My favourite boss from the DLC has got to be the tower though, there’s so much risk to juggle but it’s so rewarding when done well, whether it be running under the tower to get to its weak points quicker, or only aiming for the layers you need to destroy to win. There’s tons of room for skill expression and I love it.

Special mention to the tutorial boss and final boss for sharing mechanics, meaning you can’t be blindsided by the final boss’s premise like you can in some games. (looking at you Time Eater) If we’re going into story stuff though, the game starts with a great intro, it left me really excited to keep going and has one of my favourite songs in the DLC. 

However, this is one of the weaker stories in the series. The main plot is only made with one win in mind, so while the finale is very good, the pacing to get there is a little janky. I was also left with a lot of unanswered questions that Octo Expansion and Alterna didn’t leave me with, aside from the classic “is this a mistranslation” thing. That’s not to say what’s there isn’t good, Marina trying to help the victims of Kamabo Co. is very compelling, Pearl is a bunch of fun to be around, Acht is very cool, and Smollusk is a hilarious villain, even if he doesn’t have the thematic depth of Grizz, Tartar, or Octavio. There have been loreheads who really didn’t like the story but it didn’t bother me too much, except for 2 instances.

I know roguelikes have never really been known for their story, (for the most part) but I can’t help but feel like the first trailer for Side Order was a bit of a sucker punch. Seeing all this concept art for visuals and potential lore that didn’t make it into the game is a little upsetting.

The second big thing writing wise is, and I know this upsets me more than it reasonably should, but fuck man, Eight not having a personality in Side Order hurts. I know she got more stuff than Agent 4, but Eight was one of the most real feeling characters in the series. The mem cakes from Octo Expansion gave her so many little quirks, but there’s almost nothing from Eight. No poems and very few emotes. It’s especially upsetting because Eight was on Team Order but there’s nothing she can say about her situation. What Eight does get is really sweet, and it’s not a dealbreaker for me, but man, it hurts.

There’s also a few other issues like the lack of seeding or any real Heat/Ascension settings. Any challenges you want to do, like no hacks or single tone palettes would be self imposed challenges, and I do wonder if the game may get stale faster than other rougelikes. There also isn’t any secret boss, nothing like the Heart, the Collector, the Lich, or Charon to really push your skill and your build to its limits. It’s especially frustrating because it feels like subsequent runs seem to be building up to something but it doesn’t really go anywhere. But then you have moments like the Epic, Vibrant Battle, or how charming the elevator dialogue can be, and it reminds me how much I’ve loved being a fan of this series. I may have a lot of criticisms with Side Order but I did absolutely enjoy my time with it.

So, in conclusion, should you get Side Order? Well, if you take your switch on commutes, I think the answer is 100% yes. Trust me on this, I can’t tell you how much time I would put into the slay the spire mobile port if it wasn’t Apple Arcade exclusive. If you’re a fan of roguelikes and Splatoon, I would get it, this is the category I fell into and I had a blast with the game. If you weren’t already interested in Splatoon 3, there are probably better roguelikes to get, I’d suggest Risk of Rain 2 if you want a movement shooter. If you value story as much as gameplay or more than it, I would instead suggest Hades if you want a roguelike. If you’re worried about the genre’s permadeath being unforgiving, I would pick up the game, as Side Order does a pretty good job of dispelling that fear while also allowing for the high stakes that makes roguelikes so exciting. I genuinely think you will get more out of Side Order if you’re not great at Splatoon, as you’ll have more hacks to disable for if you ever want to do challenge runs. Overall I’d give it an…uhh…8/10, I guess? Can we get rid of number scores?