#if i can finish at least 3 then i'll release them

[dr-spectre]

Guess what game I just finished!!!

I dont have a lot to say on this because I think over the past 20 years people have already said enough.

But... MY GOD! The level of variety, creativity, and fresh ideas each chapter brings holy SHITTTT!!! One moment you're going underground with a cute goomba girl, then you're fighting a dragon, then you're playing a World 1-1 recreation with BOWSER! Then you're playing as Peach who has this deeply emotional and sad relationship with an AI (Tec is the goat, I love that ai. Top 10 ai in fiction idc), then you're doing a tournament arc AND THEN YOU'RE DOING A TRAIN MYSTERY OH MY GOODNESS!!!!

The combat is really fun and charming, THE DIALOGUE IS SO WELL WRITTEN AND I LAUGHED MULTIPLEEEEE TIMES!!! I love the characters, I love the world, I love the art style, i love most of the boss fights, the music is banging (I played with the original ost), God there's so much to love.

I will say, the final chapter of this game did kinda drag on, and there's so many points where I was thinking "okay NOW I get to fight the final boss!" And it takes another hour to get to them.... there's so many obvious signs of padding (copy and pasted hallways, a trash "pick the right door" puzzle, etc.)

I also didn't like how when you swapped partners that counts as a turn, i feel like you should be able to swap without wasting a turn because it would help with the flow of combat and make using Goombella's tattle less of a fucking pain...

Also....

VIVIAN IS SO FUCKING CUTE!!! I LOVE HER SO MUCH!!! SHE'S MY FAVOURITE PARTNER BY FARRRRR!!!!! Goombella is really cute too and she has amazing dialogue. I love the storyline of Admiral Bobbery too and that stuff made me cry... but...EEEEE I LOVE VIVIAN!!!!

GOD I JUST WANNA HUG HER!!! I WANNA PINCH HER CHUBBY CHEEKS!!! I WANNA RUB HER BELLY!!!! Nintendo I need a plushie of her yesterday. Come on. Please... I need one...

I shall leave my partner rankings as well, i wonder if I got any hot takes or not...

6. Flurrie.

No. Just... no I don't like her. Her design creeps me out, I don't give a shit about her moves. I never used her. Get her away from me.

5. Goombella.

Although very cute I found her more of a hindrance and i kept going, "ugh I gotta swap to her to get the tattle..." At least her design and personality are cute. Plus, she's more useful than that creepy ass Flurrie....

4. Koops.

I like him! He helped me out a LOTTT in the final battle, his later moves that you can unlock make him pretty damn good. Although I am jealous that this wimp has a girlfriend....

3. Admiral Bobbey.

Honestly I think the reason why he might be this high is because of his story. I really felt bad for him... his design is also killer, I LOVEEEE Bob-ombs so much!

2. Mini-Yoshi.

The fact that you can name him is really funny to me idk why. He's got some very helpful moves and his ability to help you move faster in the overworld is really nice. I like how he calls you Gonzalez too. What a fun character man.

1. Vivian.

I already said why I like her earlier but I'll go on further.

I LOVE HER STORYLINE TOO!!! I LOVE HER DESIGN!!! I LOVE HOW SHE'S TRANS AND THE REMAKE DIDN'T GET RID OF IT LIKE HOW THE ORIGINAL NORTH AMERICAN AND EUROPEAN RELEASES OF THE GAMECUBE VERSION GOT RID OF IT!!!

God.... I love her. I wanna kiss her on the cheek. She's so cute. Her moveset too is fire!.... wait..

Also btw I didn't know that this RATTTT was an optional party member... oops...

[eggmeralda]

thumbnail that says "staying in my band until I feel appreciated" and the video is 3 years long

[cheswirls]

oh i totally forgot in the being-out-of-town hype that turned out to be my birthday weekend but i DID finally secure copies of pksp hgss 1 and 2 AND got the last full volume of xy so hopefully i have all of xy in physical form now since the epilogue isn't in the magazine-release mini volumes :) if there are any add-ons to earlier xy chapters or bonus chapters (the one where y gets a sylveon tho there must be more) in other full volumes then i'll get those eventually but for now!!! aaaaa!!!!!! my heart is full

[todayisafridaynight]

class was Basically cancelled today so im looking at the next two sabu ttm movies i wanted to watch and i stg sabu really does love putting ttm in bad situations <- this is a good thing

[niya-writesshit]

call me so i can see?

patrick x fem!reader x art (on the phone)

TW: smut MDNI - oral (f receiving), p in v, masturbation, one bit where he slaps her- patrick is kinda a perv idk, mentions of vomit, swearing

word count: 1637

¡! ❞ a/n: au where they all go to stanford and tashi doesn't exist ig (love her js could not incorporate her!)

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"show me what you're wearing, baby," art mumbled. you picked the camera up from where it was resting on your vanity and switched the view to show him your little pink skirt and grey tank top through the mirror.

"and then i think i'll wear these white panties," you hummed, flipping up your skirt to show him the lacy white underwear, turning round to show him the back. "d'you like?"

art looked almost pained on the other end, eyes dark and jaw slightly slack. "you look gorgeous," he grunted. "why does patrick get the white ones?"

you sighed and placed the phone back on the desk as you finished curling your hair. "they're his favorite."

"they're my favorite too," art whined, brows contorting in a way meant to make you feel bad for him.

"liar," you huffed. "you like the blue set," you said, shooting him a glare through the screen.

"i like all of them," art complained, raising his arm so it was balanced behind his head while he watched you get ready. "can't you guys just wait until i get home?"

you finished the last ringlet of hair, examining yourself in the mirror. "you want me to go 2 more weeks without any sex?"

"well, i don't want patrick to have you all to himself."

"you get me all to yourself all the time, don't be selfish."

"will you at least call me? i wanna see."

your lips curled into a smile at art's blatant voyeurism. "sure," you smiled. "okay, baby, i got to go. love you!"

art responded with a kiss through the air, puckering his lips and planting them on the camera, leaving the view blurry and slobbery.

"gross," you giggled, hanging up on him and heading out your dorm.

✭✭✭

patrick was incredibly horny. in fact, he had jerked off 3 times today, once to a picture of you and another the second he saw you walk into his crowded dorm room, palming himself through his pants in desperation.

he knew that the only reason you were at this grimy college party was to fuck him - causing his dick to rise even higher as he realised your tiny little skirt and perfectly curled hair was just for him. and with art out of town, it meant he got your pretty pussy all to himself. you locked eyes with him across the room, smirking at the firm position his hand had on his crotch. you tilted your head to the door after scrunching your nose at the pool of vomit that had already been released onto the floor. patrick nodded with a crooked smile, pushing himself off the bed and making his way to the door.

patrick's eyes practically crossed with need as he watched you bend over a little to grab a beer, flashing your lacy panties - his favorite set. his breath hitched in his throat, he maneuvered his way through the sweaty throng of college students towards you.

"hey, sexy," he murmured, hand immediately gravitating towards your ass as he led you towards the door. "i like your underwear. great choice."

"all for you."

patrick internally groaned at your low, purring tone, lips latching onto your neck the second you were out in the hallway of the dorms. he led you to a familiar dorm- art's.

you let patrick slip off your skirt, watching his eyes turn pure black as he surveys your bottoms hungrily. you fumbled with his belt buckle as he ripped off your shirt, lips locking with his sloppily. your panties stayed on even when patrick's fully erect cock came springing out of his boxers. patrick's mouth travelled down your torso, nipping and sucking at your tits before moving down to your thighs.

"wait," you panted. patrick looked up at you with furrowed brows. "i told art i'd call him."

"call him later," patrick huffed, going back to attacking your thighs, marking the soft flesh with love bites.

"no, i told him i'd call him now."

patrick groaned loudly and pushed himself off the bed, searching through your discarded clothes for your phone. "here," he growled as he tossed it you. as you fumbled with the screen, tapping on art's name, patrick pulled your panties off and latched his mouth onto your cunt with fervor.

art picked up immediately, and you angled the camera so he could see patrick in between your legs, sucking and tugging on your clit, eliciting loud moans from you.

"fuck," art said lowly. patrick looked up at the phone with a deathly glare. you got the hint, moving the phone away from your face and balancing it on the side table near your head so you could see art and he could - very clearly - see the two of you.

patrick could see your face now too, and he took immense satisfaction in the way your mouth hung open and your eyes fluttered as he pleasured your pretty little pussy with his tongue. you shuddered under his mouth, reaching out to tug at his hair. his hips rutted against the bed in an attempt to ignore his own erection, because he won't even think about fucking you until you've cum on his tongue.

art watched through the phone, eyes low and burning with jealousy as he watched his favorite boy eat out his favorite girl. he clenched his jaw while he slowly pumped at his dick, saving his orgasm for when the real action started.

patrick began to suck and lick and swirl faster when he felt your legs clench around his head. "shitttt, patrick," you moaned almost pornographically, whiny and loud. "please, please, please, please," you whined, fingers tangled in his hair and head thrown back against the headboard.

you didn't even have to voice that you were finishing, because patrick knew - from the way your thighs shuddered and your cunt began to tighten around his tongue. art knew too - as he watched your eyes begin to cross and moans became louder and louder. once patrick's chin was slick with your release, tip of his nose shiny, he lined his throbbing cock up with your entrance.

you were still completely fucked-out, eyes fluttering open and closed while you panted heavily. as patrick spat on his hand and ran it painstakingly slow down his length, you glanced up at the phone, taking in art's dick, which was out in all its glory. his tip was glossy with pre-cum and he was still slowly jerking himself off. he gave you a crooked grin as he watched your eyes travel towards him. "focus on patrick, baby. he's got you all to himself today."

you nodded compliantly, shifting your gaze to the massive cock that was brushing your entry. "need it real bad, pat," you whined, rutting your hips so you could feel the tip on you.

"you're gonna get it, baby. be patient," he looked up at the phone, making eye contact with art and shaking his head. "look at our girl, art. being so needy."

art hummed in agreement as patrick reached out for a condom, making a visible (and slow) display of the way he stretched it over his cock. he teased your cunt with a finger, pushing back your folds and smiling as he examined the slick hole. "turn around," patrick commanded, watching you with low eyes as you turned onto your belly, sticking your ass up into the air and looking back at him expectantly.

"pleaseeee," you whimpered.

patrick couldn't resist, and he grabbed you by the hips to line himself up just right. with one fluid movement, he snapped his hips against your ass and plunged his cock inside you, making you moan loudly. his thrusts were deep and frantic as slapping sounds filled the air, making art practically salivate.

he felt as if he was watching porn - the way you cried out so erotically, and the intense motions of patrick's hips. your ass stuck up in the air perfectly rounded, and he was pissed at the fact he didn't have the view patrick did, positioned behind you. his hands began to quicken on his dick at the sight of your breasts bouncing up and down against the mattress as patrick relentlessly pounded into you.

as if hearing his thoughts, patrick reached out to grab the phone, flipping the camera so he could see your beautiful cunt, all filled up with patrick. art's breathing quickened, moaning loud enough for you to hear. you snapped your head back, flashing him a large smile and sticking your tongue out. maybe you were a pornstar in another life or something, because holy shit. art and patrick both groaned at the sight and patrick's pace inside you began to quicken.

unable to hold it in any longer, he placed art back on the side table and thrust into you even more passionately than before, hard enough that you could feel it in your fucking stomach. art was moaning too, right along with you and patrick, furiously stroking at his dick. all three of you seemed to come at once - you squirting all over patrick's cock, art shooting ropes of cum all over his hands and the phone, and patrick (unfortunately contained within the condom) releasing inside you with a loud keening sound.

"that was very hot, you two," art praised, panting.

"thanks," patrick replied, still buried inside you. "it's gonna have to happen again, 'cause there is no way i'm going another two weeks without this."

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¡! ❞ © niya-writesshit 2024

[infamous-if]

Dec ✮ 12 ✮ 2024 – update

Part of me hates doing these mostly because it's a whole lotta nothing and me just repeating everything I said the last update (lol) but I do like doing it because I like keeping people updated, even if it's a non-update. I may sound like a broken record (pun not intended) but I know a lot of people don't catch my updates every time so it's nice to just keep people informed yk yk

✮ — Part 2 + rewrite

Fun fact: I had written an entire essay about my excitement for the rewrite and chapter 3 and beyond but it got too long!

It boiled down to me wondering why I'm so excited for this rewrite and realizing it's because I feel comfortable enough to approach it with complete creative freedom. I wrote the first iteration of the demo with the constant worries swimming in my head like "I hope people understand what I'm trying to say here" and "I hope this situation is being read the way I intended for it to be read." And I think I sort of had those thoughts tenfold while writing Part 2. If you paid attention, you can probably see where I was trying to shut down certain discussions in the narrative lmao

Recently I had a tiny epiphany and reminded myself that it's not always about what I intend to write, but what is being understood by each reader. And yes this is basic writing 101 but let me have this moment of clarity okay. Embracing that means I can proceed with Infamous without holding back and sticking to my guns in regards to what I want for this story aka I'm just going to write what I write and like....not worry about the rest you feel (while of course integrating the common critiques and suggestions and improving on the things Infamous falls short in—I am not Shakespeare lmao)

ANYWAY my point is that I'm excited to fix up the demo !!! and just go back to it with complete confidence in myself and write whatever the heck feels right to me (and write the rest of the story lolol) and return with a better story than I have now for everyone!!

✮ — December will be for

planning what I'm going to improve and squeezing that in a reworked outline so it can flow much better narratively.

Outlining Chapter 3 and hopefully have the bare bones first draft drafted up which is mostly just be writing blocks of descriptions

I'm not sure I'll have anything substantial to justify looking for beta testers so soon yet but maybe!

work on my spice writing babey writing/reading spice makes me actually physically recoil but im determined to get better! which reminds me to finish the 6k follower gifts!

And also take a small breather because I am moving!

✮ — Patreon

I've already mentioned this on Patreon and a few times on here, but I do want to reiterate that Patreon content is coming out in bulk this month, in case anyone was wondering why I'm not posting as frequently. The content is still the same in terms of the quantity, it just won't be released every few days! thank you guys for being understanding of that <3

✮ —

My activity has is decreasing little by little due to my move but I do read every question and try to at least answer one question a day. I get quite a few mentions lately so I have to sort through those since I do get tagged in things, but I miss them due to my notifications. Usually I hope for the best and hope tracking the tag puts it on my dashboard <3 im not ignoring anyone!

That's all for now! Hope everyone has a happy December and Happy Holidays!

[bikiniarmorbattledamage]

Baldur's Gate 3 (Part 1 - Introduction)

It's a great time to be an old school Dungeons & Dragons player, you get to smugly observe millions of people realizing the game is good actually... or at least that the game can facilitate heart touching romances with imaginary, terrible people.

(To be clear, I'm not judging you - these two are, but I'm not)

As one of the biggest AAA games of 2023, it's unsurprising that it's big and complicated - and there's a lot that can be talked about with many aspects of it - including female armor and costumes. Indeed, there's already a lot of commentary on it and community activity, from the confusing, to the life affirming.

It has also been the topic of how corporate practices continually reward those who participate in the creation successful art with notice of dismissal.

And of course, both Dungeons & Dragons and Larian Studios have histories that we've touched on before - and I can confidently say it represents a huge improvement in quality, style and attitudes. Plus sometimes their advertising is just gay.

There's good, there's bad, there's inspired and there's missed opportunities - so it'd be impossible to sum it all up in one post.

Also, now it's finished... I can feel safe commenting on it and not being told "that's changing next week" - that's the excuse I'm using for being so late to the party on this one.

It'll also be impossible to avoid talking about it without some spoilers. So I'll try to cover as much as possible spoiler-free, then put spoilers below a read-more break.

-wincenworks

In General

It's pretty good. Most of the costumes and armors are essentially gender neutral and the ones that do change seem to do so in response to social conventions, rather than a desire to sex shit up sexy - but where you can sex shit up sexy, it applies equally across genders. (Seriously, Lae'zel's lingerie looks amazing on Gale (nsfw 🖼️) and he's not the sort you'd think could rock it).

Looking at the artbook that I have because I'm one of those people who buys deluxe editions - it looks like there might have been a few early stumbles in concept but these were smoothed out before release.

There are some amazing examples (Minthara), and some baffling designs (all Githyanki armor), some interesting (Orin's) and some that are complicated (Dame Aylin's).

But overall it's pretty good and I would certainly like to see more fantasy media take it's lead from these sorts of designs.

So let's start with a few examples of how everything is complicated.

Why goblins have sexy armor?

The goblins in Baldur's Gate 3 are disgusting, sadistic raiders who are primarily interested in killing, torturing and enslaving all other races. They don't seem to have any crafts people of their own, preferring to steal and adapt.

So it's puzzling that, statistically, when most players encounter them they get this cutscene to showcase a goblin in sexy leathers.

Now, these goblins don't have a sense of shame - or at least not one related to things like nudity taboos. They're not exactly tactical masterminds or great crafts people.

So there's no reason for her to have masterwork armor, or hide her body... but this particular piece looks like pretty lovingly crafted lingerie made specifically to be sexy and flaunt as much skin as possible.

And the couple of goblins that have this, stand out among the rest of the goblins... who are mostly wearing scraps and bits and pieces they've cobbled together with nowhere near this level of craftsmanship.

Obviously, this outfit is not ideal with the sharp bits poking out... but it's pretty intimidating and it'd make it things more difficult for an enemy trying to stop Zurga from killing them so it works.

The end result is weird… but also oddly foretold.

Great armor, terrible disguise

Now, this is great armor - a little flashy with a lot of extra doodads - but from a fantasy perspective, it conveys the message and that the wearer is a pragmatic person prioritizing their own self-preservation.

Honestly this is one of the best examples of armor that is designed to be fancy without becoming completely unworkable, like it is real armor that's been adapted for ceremony. It has layers and while you would expect it to quickly become damaged beyond recognition, if you needed to be ready for a surprise scrap - it'd do the job and do it well enough (a cosplayer friend advised the breastplate is a little prone to being bumped but otherwise she didn't bump into anything)

(Though as a random reminder, if you're going for the very realistic approach - helmets should be a top priority. We accept that doesn't happen in video games like this though because we want to see those emotive, sexy faces - judging us for loving them.)

But Shadowheart is a priestess of Shar, and if you accept her as a companion she will happily tell you all about that and how an important part of being a priestess of Shar is secrets and concealing your faith from the masses...

There is also an explanation for why she happened to be in her ceremonial attire... but for most of the game, she demonstrates no awareness that she was in vestments when you met.

Now I understand that a lot of these choices are due to various experiments, iterations, etc. Shadowheart being an "authentic" priestess of Shar is not as important as her being an interesting companion in a fun game.

And now that I've definitely made sure nobody is going to "well actually" about the armor design or Forgotten Realms lore... a conspiracy theory:

Karlach's outfit (#freethenipple)

So when you meet the tiefling muscle-mommy known as Karlach, her default outfit indicates that she does not partake in bras. (She's barbarian which is a class in D&D that protects themselves not with armor, but by getting so angry weapons do less damage to them... just go with it...) and despite the forced sexiness of this design - it kinda fits her backstory:

So, she has a definite look, and apparently does not partake the wearing of bras... good for her! She's literally so hot that fire flickers off her, the boob sweat has got to be epic.

Interesting, Karlach is one two female characters who's "camp clothes" are listed specifically as "trousers".

The other one is always in pants and bra on female characters (but not male), but for some reason Karlach's trousers include this top that... just doesn't match the rest of her style and is nothing like her underwear (which also doesn't match her style):

So it seems this seems to be an odd case where in a game where you can access full nudity easily, and they gave her sexy armor... they did a last minute cover up to prevent the woman who would have the epic boobsweat imaginable walking around camp topless... and her model has a lot of detail that gets hidden by that top and her armor. (nsfw 🖼️)

And I know I am not the only one (nsfw link) who has had this idea.

Unless you just go into inventory and take her clothes off..., then toggle so she's always in "camp clothes" and always nude. It's just weird that the players are fully able to make her a nudist, but the game seems to have stopped at the last minute at making her go casually topless.

-wincenworks

[olomaya]

Sludge Be Gone! Toddler Food and Snacks

2-Sep Update: Thank you @jeebeehey for the French translation. Please redownload if you'd like them.

25 July update:

Fixed an issue where the Trail Mix was resetting Sims. One of its components got lost when I was merging all the objects together so it kept giving an error when trying to pull it up. It should now not happen for either the high chair or the activity table. Redownload both the MAIN and the merged Objects file

24 July update: Thanks to @simdreams and @zanynka for the Brazilian Portuguese and Czech translations! You can redownload at the links below.

(Update: I forgot to include one of the files in the Objects file. It's just a little piece of food that toddlers pick up when eating snacks. If you downloaded both files already, you don't need to redownload anything, just download the file and add to your game.) (Just download the updated Objects file)

They literally call the baby food "sludge" in the game files. EA really did TS3 toddlers dirty.

This was actually originally part of my Quickie Food and Snacks mod and I abandoned it (this seems to be a theme with me). But then I came back to it after TS4 Growing Together came out. I still haven't played that game but I know there's a preference/taste system in the game for baby food, which is really cool!

So this mod adds two interactions to the high chair to feed toddlers meals or snacks. There are 11 meals and 5 snacks. Similar to Growing Together, toddlers will love, like or hate certain foods. This preference is based on their favorite food (see more after the cut).

The foods work somewhat similar to recipes in that they require ingredients to be available. However, you only need to have at least 1 ingredient. Whatever ingredients you have will be used for the meal/snack. The icon images will tell you which 3 ingredients are required.

Teens+ can serve toddlers and they will stay and watch to make sure the toddler eats like a good little girl/boy.

There was a second complementary mod to close out this little series that would allow toddlers to eat their foods and snacks on their own on little tables but I probably won't have the time to finish testing it before I go on my summer holidays so I'll release it sometime end of next month when I'm back.

Credit/thanks: The food tray and bowl is from @aroundthesims. All other assets are from EA (TS3 and TS4). Icons are from Freepik.

Download HERE / Alternative: SFS

Enjoy! I'll be totally offline starting 1 July for about 2 weeks so do let me know before then if you run into any issues!

More info and details on features after the cut

Meal/Snack recipes: Each meal or snack requires 1-3 ingredients (either in your fridge or personal inventory) to be available. Again, you only NEED 1 of 3. Some of the ingredients are from the Store or cc (Icemunmun's Baker's Basket or Hot Chili) but if you don't have it, the game will just ignore it. If you have none, it won't be available.

Food categories/preferences: Preferences are based on the toddler's favorite food and along 4 categories: Sweet, Savory, Veggie and Cheese. So based on what their favorite food is, you can tell what their food preference category is. If you change the toddler's favorite food after playing with the mod, it will adjust to their new tastes BUT will keep whatever food they liked or hated before.

Category Preferences:

Sweet hates Veggie

Veggie hates Sweet AND Savory

Savory hates Sweet

Cheese is chill and can give or take anything

Here is the detailed breakdown below (if you want to be surprised and figure it out for yourself in the game, you can stop reading here):

SW - Sweet, SV - Savory, VG - Veggie, CH - Cheese Store - TS3 Store BB - Icemunmun’s Baker’s Basket HC - Icemunmun’s Hot Chili

Snacks: Trail Mix (SW) - Banana, Walnut (BB), Pecan (Store) Cheese Crackers (CH) - Cheese Apple Slices w. Almond Butter (SW, CH) - Apple, Cheese, Almond (BB) Cucumber Tuna Bites (SV) - Cucumber (Store), Tuna, Tomato Pita Chips w. Carrot Hummus (VG) - Chickpea (HC), Carrot, Lemon

Meals: Chickpea Salad (VG) - Chickpea (HC), Carrot, Watermelon PBJ Sandwich (SW) - Strawberry (Store), Almond (BB)  Pancakes and Sausage (SW) - Any fruit, Sausage links Chicken Nuggets (SV) - Chicken, Carrot, Blueberry (Store) Fishsticks (SV) - Any fish, Potato, Carrot  Meatballs w. Yogurt Sauce (SV) - Patty, Cucumber (Store), Tomato Mushroom Omelet (VG) - Egg, White Cap mushroom, Onion Fried Plantains (SW) - Banana (I considered making a custom plantain ingredient but too lazy), Tomato, Onion Falafel w. Yogurt Sauce (VG) - Chickpea (HC), Cucumber (Store), Tomato Cheese Ravioli (CH) - Cheese, Tomato, Strawberry (Store) Mac and Cheese (CH) - Cheese

So for example, the toddler in the photos, Duncan. His favorite food is Fried Peanut Butter Banana Sandwich (oh, America) which is in the Sweet category. So I know he will eat any of the sweet category foods. He tossed the mushroom omelet when I served it to him but he likes mac and cheese.

@kpccfinds @pis3update @s3cc-finds

[myimaginedcorner]

SCALES OF JUSTICE - PUBLICATION SET FOR JANUARY 2025

Hello my dear readers,

WE DID IT! After a few weeks of wait and talks, I can finally announce that Scales of Justice has been officially accepted for publication, both on Hosted Games and on Steam! The current publication date is set for January 2025; however, if that changes, I will update you with new information.

You can now wishlist the game on Steam! Here's the link -> https://store.steampowered.com/app/3089710/Scales_of_Justice/

I am so, so grateful to everyone who has been here for me during these past 3 years. What began as a shy attempt at dreaming has grown into a marvelous project that taught me so much, brought me so many new experiences and skills, and is going to end with my first publication as an author. I cannot be more grateful and excited. I hope this is only the beginning of an amazing journey.

I am currently finishing my degree and working on preparing for the release; however, I will soon be posting a little more of my thoughts about future projects (including SoJ 2), continuing Torn Page, and being a bit more active around here. Until then, please, spread the word, and let's celebrate this together! ^^

DEMO DESCRIPTION:

Scales of Justice is a fantasy story that takes place in a world afar – a place called Therania. Albeit there was some interaction between Therania and other worlds a long time ago, now it’s solely a tale from their lost past… or, at least, that is the most common belief. Regardless, this story does not focus on extraterrestrial connections: its plot revolves around the people of Therania and their lives, their history and – what’s more important – their ‘determined’ future.

There are plenty of species living together in Therania, yet the human race is currently split in two: the one known as Hero kingdom, which is ruled by ‘heroes’, and the one named Vannais kingdom, controlled by ‘villains’. Both nations hate each other - here, the fight of ‘good’ and ‘evil’ is something that happens on a national level. The game is focused on lore, character development, and the player's choices: perhaps, your MC just wants to live a peaceful life... or maybe they want to save the world.

Or even rule it, if you’re into such things.

THINGS TO DO IN THIS DEMO:

Set off on a new adventure towards Neutral Lands, to meet a mythic creature of all answers - The Visionary.

Play as a woman, man, or non-binary - straight, gay, or asexual.

Gather up to 3 companions to help you in your quest - befriend, romance, or rival them, the choice is yours.

Buy a horse - we know you want one.

Fight, conjure, support, speak or think - choose your way of handling a tricky situation.

Explore the kingdom of Hero up to Menai's shores, in search for someone - or something - to aid you in your journey.

The DEMO version of the book runs up to Chapter 5 and contains 276K words overall.

USEFUL LINKS:

If you want to know a little more about this project and read chapters 1-5, I'll leave the link to the game here -> https://dashingdon.com/play/myimaginedcorner/scales-of-justice/mygame/

If you want to discuss anything on CoG's forum, I'll leave the link for SoJ here -> https://forum.choiceofgames.com/t/wip-scales-of-justice-new-project-announcement-and-demo-release/101088/16

If you want to send me a more extensive feedback, here's my email -> feedbackscalesofjustice@gmail.com

RO DESCRIPTIONS:

Shoren/Seile → Heir to the Hero kingdom’s throne, right where your journey starts. Also, your old friend who’s very attached to you. Likes to read and practices magic, enjoys adventure and heroic deeds. A recognised “hero”, with blonde curly hair, pale skin and a pair of sapphire eyes.

Robert/Reina → Order’s Paladin, defender of Hero and Knight of Fate. Brave and honourable, determined to protect the people of the kingdom. Very loyal to friends and very dangerous as an enemy. Has short brown hair, tanned skin and an athletic build.

Valerius/Venis → An Outworlder caught by cultists in the Wicked Woods. Gracious, elegant and charismatic. Has long dark brown hair with a silver streak, olive skin and golden eyes.

Arion/Aria → Leader of Vannais, a recognised “villain” who escaped from Hero and now rules the enemy kingdom. Serious but temperamental. Prefers action over words and so, is always present on battlefields and amidst negotiations, even if in an unofficial manner. Has short blonde hair, pale skin and emerald eyes.

[diaryofanidiot]

The Neverland Curse

Summary: MC is on the receiving end of a strong curse. They've been reverted back to a child until they can earn a meaningful memory from each of those they care about. It's up to the Demon Brothers & co. to care for them until then.

Cw: de-aging, demon bros being demons, MC being a Chaotic child lol

Chapter List: Prologue 1 <2> 3 4 5

Taglist: @avatarofstars @letsblazewolf @your-next-daydream

Not proofread, feel free to lmk of any mistakes

Diavolo was, in fact, not scary. Just... reeaally loud. I covered my ears as his laugh boomed for the 100th time since he arrived. Lucifer was trying to explain everything despite Diavolo's intrigue at my "current state"... whatever that was.

After a few more minutes of this going on, his face finally got serious.

"As amusing as this is, cursed books are meant to be in a separate room in the library. Very few have a key. I'll have to figure out who's negligence caused this..." He patted Lucifer's shoulder and smiled. "I'll trust they will remain safe in your care?"

"My Lord," Barbatos, who I was introduced to earlier, cut in. "Is it wise to let them continue attending RAD in this state? A grown human is one thing, but a child is another. Not even mentioning the subject matter is well above their mental capacity right now."

Diavolo stopped in thought. The brothers seemed to wait anxiously for his verdict. I looked around in confusion, hoping anyone would would give an explanation. It quickly became clear this conversation was 𝘈𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘮𝘦 rather than 𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘦.

I played with the tassels on my clothes while Diavolo motioned Levi over. Quietly listening but not fully interested in the adult conversation.

"Leviathan, there are days you take online classes rather than attend, correct? Is there anyway we could set that up with the elementary level classes as well?"

Levi nodded and glanced over to me. "I mean, that's simple. Will their grades still affect them though? I mean, with the curse in effect we won't know how they'll do."

Diavolo pondered this. "Slack will definitely be alloted for their mental age right now but I read that structure is essential in human children. More so than Demon Younglings."

With that, Lucifer began assigning tasks to each of his brothers. I felt myself lifted into the air and looked behind me to see who it was.

"Bee!" I grinned and hugged him tight, kicking my feet lightly. His twin moved behind him and tapped my nose.

"Looks like we got babysitting duty, Beel." Beelzebub nodded at his brother's words.

I heard Asmo shriek for them to wait as the duo carried me up the stairs.

"I need their measurements. Lucifer's sending me shopping for clothes. You can't possibly expect them to stay in that uniform the whole time. " he scoffed, holding my arm out next to some measuring tape.

"Already? I mean, we'll likely break the curse soon. Is a shopping spree really necessary?" Belphie rolled an eye, receiving a glare from the queen of fashion himself.

Besides the dirty look, Asmo ignored him and began fussing over me. Beel stubbornly refused to put me down, making the whole process ten times harder. It was all too much.

Asmo finally finished his task after a few agonizing moments of being measured and quizzed on my favorite colors. I squirmed in Beel's hold to be let down.

"Bee, down please..." I asked, finally being released. Once we got to the top of the stairs, I took off as fast as my legs can carry me. Finally I could explore!

"No ya don't." Belphie grabbed my arm, keeping me next to the two.

"No faiiiir," I whined. He flicked the back of my head playfully, causing me to give him the biggest meanie look I could muster.

"This place is big. You could get lost."

Beel nodded in agreement and knelt down to my level. "We can give you a tour, but you gotta at least stay in the same room as us. No running off until you get a feel for this place."

I grinned and wiggled my way out of Belphie's grasp. "I won't! I promise!"

The tour was fun, but the twins had a way of hovering over me that soured my mood. My every step was directed as if I'd get hurt if their eyes were off of me for a single second.

"There's a lot of stairs here? Think you can make it?" Beel asked, offering to carry me. I leaned over and looked up the winding staircase before pointing up.

"Where we going?"

"Up there's the attic. It's where we... er, Beel and I usually hang out." Belphie chimed in. "Last stop on the tour, then we'll show you your room."

I nodded and reached up to be carried by Beel. Stairs are hard.

The attic looked like the coziest room ever. My eyes flicked around the room before landing on the massive-

"PILLOW FORT!" I shrieked, kicking my legs til Bee put me down. I sprinted towards it and flopped down onto the pillow fort bed. I feel a weight on the mattress and look up, grinning at the twins.

"You like it?"

"Mhm!" I nodded eagerly. Belphie rested his hand on top of my head, holding the other behind his back.

I peered around him curiously before leaning back due to a soft object placed over my face. My expression made the two laugh as it took me a moment to realize what happened.

In Belphie's hand was a fluffy stuffed bear, with purple fur and galaxy ears.

"You wanna borrow this?"

I nodded eagerly and reached out for it. Belphie gave a shit eating grin and held it above my head.

"Hmmm..." He contemplated in mock thought. "Still not sure if you should."

Frustrated at the object of my desire being held up too high, my eyes began to well up, and I gave the biggest pleading look I could muster. While Belphie wasn't as easily swayed from his teasing attitude, Beel certainly was.

He reached up and took it from his twin. "Just let them have it. No need to taunt them."

Belphie rolled his eyes and flopped back onto a pile of pillows with a yawn. "Alright, Beel. Ya softie."

I hugged the plush tightly, happy with the first toy I've seen in this big house. Beel smiled at me after looking away from his brother.

"You know, I got that for Belphie but I don't think he ever gave it a name..."

Belphie, with his eyes closed, let out a "nope" popping the "p".

"So do you want do name it?"

I looked at the bear in deep thought. This was a very important job of the highest honor.

Taking a deep breath, I made my proclamation. "His name is Bloo!"

I heard a snort from Belphie but couldn't tell if it was an asleep or awake noise. Beel seemed to approve, though, much to my happiness.

"It's fitting." He leaned over to shake Belphie, who was now letting out quiet snores. "We should probably go show them their room."

Belphie huffed and turned over in a stubborn manner. I scooted closer and poked his cheek.

"Wake uuuppp! It's not bedtime!" I said before glancing at the window. Just then, did I realize how dark it was outside. "Wait, is it?"

Beel took a moment to sort through why I was confused. He seemed to have realized as he took my hand and guided me to the window. "Nope. It's not night yet. It's just always dark here."

I blinked in confusion. Always dark? Sounds scary.

"It gets darker, though later on."

"Darker? But it's already nighttime!" I struggled to wrap my head around what he was saying. How is there a place with no daytime? It sounded silly.

He cracked a smile and scratched his head, seemingly wondering about something.

"Don't laugh!" I huffed. Now he was just being a meanie by teasing me.

"...He's not lying." A new voice sounded behind me. I turned around to see Lucifer in the doorway. "I figured you two would bring them here."

"Don't make fun of me toooo" I whined, upset he was joining in on the joke.

"I'm not." he assured, kneeling next to me. "I guess it'll be harder to walk you through it this way."

He pinched the bridge of his nose in concentration. "The place we live in doesn't have a sun. I guess only remembering the human wor-"

He stopped himself short and scanned my face with his eyes. "I mean, where you come from has a sun and moon cycle. This place doesn't."

Instead of trying to understand, I focused on his fumble. "Human world?" I giggled. "You mean earth, silly. I thought grown-ups were smart."

Lucifer looked up at Beel before sighing. "I'll explain later. Have they shown you to your room?"

I shook my head. "Bee said we can go there last."

Beel reached under my arms and lifted me to his hip. He always seemed to want to carry me. Not that I minded... until he took forever to let me down again.

Lucifer looked at the sleeping Belphie in the pile of pillows and rolled his eyes. "Figured that might happen."

He sounded irritated, but his expression betrayed him, showing he wasn't really all that bothered. We started down the stairs and down a long hallway. This place seemed like a maze to me. It's no wonder the twins didn't want me running off alone yet.

"This room is yours. If you forget, you can ask anyone here, " He said, opening the door. "Hell knows it's become the new common room since your arrival"

He muttered the second part under his breath and I didn't catch much of it, not that I cared once I saw my room.

I took a deep breath and shrieked. "THERE'S A TREE IN MY ROOM!"

Beel winced at my volume, considering I was right next to his ear. I wiggled out of his grasp for the umpteenth time and ran up to it, touching it to see if it was real. My jaw dropped once I realized it was. I bet nobody else in the whole world got to have a real tree in the middle of their room.

I heard Lucifer huff a tiny laugh at my reaction while Beel smiled and sat on the plush bed.

"It was actually put in here specifically for you. You're used to more oxygen." Lucifer explained, "We weren't sure how you would adapt to here. Plus, it's native where you're from, so we figured it'd be a reminder of home."

His big words only confused me more, so I tuned them out and cradled Bloo to my chest with one arm while the other picked a leaf off the tree. This was the coolest room ever.

"Hungry." Beel mumbled, glancing up at Lucifer. The latter dismissed him.

"Asmodeus should be home soon. Do you have any more questions?" Lucifer asked, walking up behind me and placing a hand on my shoulder.

I racked my brain. I had a lot of questions, but there were too many to choose from. Where was my family? How did I get lost in the library? And why did I now have a room here?

Lucifer's gaze was too analytical of my expression for me to feel okay with asking all of them. My thumb prodded at my mouth while I shook my head.

"Nu uh."

The door swung open once the words left my mouth.

"Oh (MC)!" Asmo flitted into the room, multiple bags on his arms. He placed the bags down on the floor and reached in, holding up a shirt my size. "Ready for your fashion show?"

Uh oh...

I'm officially in for it.

[crescencestudio]

๋࣭⭑ Devlog #42 | 6.25.24 ๋࣭⭑

tis the season of Kayn

HAPPY SUMMER!!

Hope you're all doing well and keeping cool <3 I know for me it's started getting to.... the Hot Season. To celebrate the start of Hot Girl Summer (and the beta route going live), I of course had to draw the hottest girl, Kayn.

we must stay cool brothers

Now that we've paid respect to The Hot Girl, let's get into the devlog!

Writing has been fun this month. A lot of it has been dedicated to Etza edits and writing Kuna'a's route. We're getting to about the halfway mark with Etza edits, so we are definitely chugging along!

Sneaky peeky of a recent edit

For Kuna'a's route, I said I wanted to have his first draft complete or almost complete by the next devlog, and I'm VERY PLEASED AND PROUD to say their first draft is In Fact almost complete! This is, of course, the very, very first draft so I'll be going back in to flesh some scenes out here and there and rizz him up even more. But I'm happy with the fact that at least the very base draft is done ^^

This month, I did quite a bit of drawing actually! I finished rendering two of Kayn's CGs, meaning 8 out of their total 9 CGs are finished YYYEEEAAAHHHH!!!!!

it feels so good to see the ending cg titles ouuggHHHH

Because Fenir's beta will be going out soon, I wanted to make some headway on his CGs. This month, I ended up finishing 3 of his CGs and sketching two. I'd really like to get 5-6 of his CGs finished so that it's a similar amount to Kayn's beta, so here's to praying!

baby girl

I also finished Senja's (they/he) sprite and base expressions. His outfit was designed by very talented bestie @saffein-e so please thank them for doing god's work o7

Finally, this past month we worked mostly on Kayn's beta route and getting Fenir's beta route ready for Patreon access!

If you'd like to try out Kayn's beta, you can get access to it if you subscribe to my Patreon (tier Hydra). Beta access to Kayn's route will close as soon as Fenir's beta goes up which will be early July, so if you want to experience Kayn's beta, definitely make sure you subscribe before it ends!

Player feedback for Kayn's route so far has been really positive, which has been a relief, especially since Kayn's route is the first one I wrote so is arguably the roughest (I have a big soft spot for it and like it, but I'm obviously Biased). So I hope you're all looking forward to it!! <4

beta feedback: so real

I also have started the voice acting sessions for the characters, which is EXTREMELY EXCITING!! That's the last asset I need basically, so the fact we have finally entered a stage where we can start recording is crazy. Our current session is for Kayn's route, but in the coming months we'll be moving to the next routes similar to how beta-testing is going :')

Aside from Kayn's route, I've also been working on coding Fenir's beta route. Rereading his script and he's... a cutie, I'll admit. So I hope the Fenir fans are excited for his route to enter the beta phase!

LET'S.......... GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Last thing, but I also ran a poll on Alaris's release, basically asking whether you all would prefer a full or segmented release. The results were basically 50/50 LMFAO and that's the vibe I've been getting in general. So while I don't want to solidify anything yet, just let it be known that Alaris may end up having a segmented release, where the first four Central routes are released first, and the Fae routes a bit later. I'll see how I start feeling as the year goes on and where Alaris stands, but thank you all for the support and understanding for the poll <3

I was pretty busy this month, so I didn't have too much time to do market research :cries:

But............

I did see the new Haikyuu movie..................... And I am the biggest Haikyuu fan. Quite literally if you want to know everything about who I am as a person and creator, watch Haikyuu and you will understand who I am to my deepest depths.

obviously I had to draw baby

But aside from that, I want to give one last shoutout to our Hot Girl Summer cross-promo! If there are any games you haven't tried out in this little set, I highly recommend giving at least 1 or 2 of them a peek! All of the games are so charming and have some similarity to Alaris, whether it's a personality mechanic, hot Fae, or a fantasy/ adventure story :')

Links to each game can be found on the Alaris Game page under the magic and mystery otome section!

I'm pretty happy with the progress we made this month. While there's still a lot to do, it's satisfying to see Alaris come more and more to life with each month. See you all next month with hopefully more exciting progress!

[thesimulationswarm]

Double Shot

Joel Miller x f!reader x Tommy Miller

Pairing: pre-outbreak!Joel Miller x f!AFAB!reader x Tommy Miller Rating: explicit, 18+ MDNI Summary: A gorgeous man walks into your coffee shop and introduces himself as Tommy Miller. Then his equally gorgeous brother shows up. You can't decide which you like better... but maybe you don't have to. A/N: This will be in four parts, building up to the smut. Hopefully released daily. It's dumb filthy shit I couldn't get out of my head, okay? Then I'll be back to my ongoing serious series. Word count: 1.5k warnings/tags: threesome, shameless flirting, sibling rivalry, PWP

Part 2 , Part 3, and Part 4 are available now.

Part 1

“It’s going to be another hot one out there today folks— topping out at 105 this afternoon. Remember to drink lots of water, stay in the shade, and of course, wear sunscreen!” The opening beats of Everybody’s Free (To Wear Sunscreen) followed, and you whacked the radio off in annoyance.

You were sick of this summer. Sick of the record-setting heatwave. Sick of the shitty little building you’d found for your coffee shop, which had seemed so cozy in February but turned out to have the world’s lowest-output air conditioner. Sick of sweat staining through your t-shirt as you worked the morning rush.

You were proud of your business, sure. You’d started from nothing and managed to get it off the ground. Now you had a steady clientele that came for their morning coffee but also for your homemade pastries— your pride and joy. But to keep things afloat you worked like a dog. And this summer was killing you.

The flow of customers finally let up for a minute and you sat on your stool, leaning into the breeze from the countertop fan. 

You let your eyes flutter closed, dreaming about the ice cold Lone Star you’d have when you finished tonight. You could almost feel the condensation on the can as you pulled it from the fridge, could hear the crack and hiss of it opening…

You just about jumped out of your skin when the front door flew open, chime tinkling.

“Sorry to interrupt. Looks like a well-earned break, sugar.”

The man standing in the doorway was tall, bronze-skinned, with thick dark curls tumbling around his face. His biceps were visible below the sleeves of his gray t-shirt, his thumbs hooked on the belt loops of his jeans as he stared at you. He was smirking, and then— when you met his eyes— he fucking winked at you.

You raised your eyebrow at him. “It was, as a matter of fact.  Been at it since 5am. But what can I do for you?”

The man ambled over to the counter, inspecting the chalkboard menu on the wall. “Well, I heard this is the best place in the neighborhood to get a coffee and a little breakfast. And I’m going to need both to start my day.”

He ordered an iced latte, double shot, and one of your cinnamon buns. You set to work preparing them, only too aware of his eyes on you as you moved behind the counter. You got a lot of flirts in here, men looking for a little ego boost on their way to work, and for the most part you didn’t mind—as long as they don’t take it too far.

There are times, though, when it’s not just about not minding.

Times when you decidedly enjoy the attention.

And this would be one of those, because this man is fucking gorgeous.

You feel your hips swaying more than usual, and you wish you’d worn something more alluring than jeans and an old t-shirt. At least this pair of jeans does a good job of highlighting your ass, especially now that the denim is clinging to your sweaty skin.

“So is this a summer job, or do you work here year round?”

“Honey, I don’t work here. I’m the co-owner,” you reply, whipping around to set his drink down in front of him. You were vaguely aware of the door chime tinkling as another customer walked in, but at that moment you only had eyes for this one.

The man let out a low whistle. “A business owner and a beauty? Color me impressed.” He leaned forward against the counter, looking around at the pastry case, the neat racks of cups, the espresso machine.  From this distance you could appreciate his freckles, like a dusting of brown sugar over his sculpted face. “You know, I’m in business myself.”

“That so?”

He held out a hand to you and broke into a wide smile. It was dazzling. “Tommy Miller, of Miller Construction.”

You were about to shake hands with the beautiful Tommy Miller when you were both interrupted. The customer you’d been ignoring had materialized at his side, and smacked him— hard— on the arm.

“Tommy, quit your bullshit!”

“Jesus, Joel, I’m in the middle of somethin’ here!”

You watched with interest as the two turned to face each other. The second man— Joel, apparently— was about his same height, but looked a little broader through the shoulders and a little older. He had a strong jaw, painted dark with stubble, and an impressive mustache. 

Jesus Christ, it was hot enough in here already.

“You’re in the middle of wastin’ precious time, is what you are,” Joel scoffed, before turning to you. “I’m sorry about my brother, ma’am. He thinks he’s god’s gift to the ladies.”

You laughed, looking from one man to the other. You could appreciate similarities now— the dark curls, the strong but trim bodies, the deep eyes you could get lost in.

“And you should know,” Joel added, “It is Miller Construction, but I am the sole proprietor. Tommy here works for me.” Then he held out a hand across the counter, with a close-lipped smile that was less flashy than Tommy’s but no less devastating. “Joel Miller. Of Miller Construction.”

Tommy glared daggers at his brother as you reached across to shake. Joel’s big hand swallowed yours, his grip firm and warm. You felt something electric go down your spine, the hairs standing up on your arms.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Joel,” you said, looking into his rich brown eyes. Then you turned, and held out your hand again. “And it’s a pleasure to meet you, too, Tommy.”

Tommy’s hand was smaller than Joel’s by just a hair, but it was softer, too. You looked at Tommy as you shook, but out of the corner of your eye you could still see Joel— watching you touching Tommy.

The dampness you were feeling between your legs— it wasn’t just sweat anymore.

It was mid-afternoon and the cafe had started to feel like the ninth circle of hell. There weren’t many customers after lunch, so you used that time to work on baking for the next morning. The problem was the ovens, which put out way more heat than your crappy little AC could counter. You had about 30 minutes left before you could pack it in for the day, but you thought you might just spontaneously combust if you stayed inside.

So you grabbed a paperback and a cold coke from the drink case, and went outside. Your place was on the corner of a little strip mall in South Austin, and it bordered on a gravel lot with food trucks and picnic tables. Everything was closed up this time of day, but that was all the better to have a quiet moment to yourself.

The sun was fucking brutal, but you sat in the shade of a live oak, and you could feel a little breeze lifting the hairs on the back of your neck.

You looked around at the sun-baked street, watching people come and go. Mostly in cars in this heat, but some brave souls were walking or on bikes. Next door, a work crew was taking a break from the building frame they’d been erecting. You watched the men downing gatorades and wetting bandanas to tie around their necks. Now that was a tough job on a summer day.

Then you noticed something.

Off to the side was a makeshift table, papers spread across a piece of plywood balanced on two saw horses. Two broad figures stood beside it, looking down.

Joel and Tommy.

This was goddamn Miller Construction.

You knew you shouldn’t spy, but you couldn’t help watching. The brothers looked deep in conversation— Joel with his arms folded across his chest, Tommy with his head tilted to one side. Tommy pointed to something; Joel nodded, and then pulled a pencil out from behind his ear to note something down. Tommy said something else and Joel shook his head, tapped his finger on one of the papers emphatically.

Both men, taken separately, were impressive items. But when they were together, Christ almighty. There was something magical in their practiced ease, their good-natured jockeying for dominance. You couldn’t pick just one to admire.

You heard your oven timer go off inside the cafe, and you reluctantly peeled your eyes away from Miller Construction to head back inside. You hummed along with the radio as you checked on your croissants, suddenly a lot less annoyed by the interminable summer.  With their building site right next door, you ought to be seeing a lot more of the Miller brothers.  You were going to make the most of it.

[crimsonhydrangeavn]

Hi! I absolutely loved the demo of your game—it was amazing! I'm excited to see more of it. I have two questions: First, how would Garret or Teagan react if they were in a room full of yanderes with y/n? Second, I hope this doesn't come across the wrong way, but I'm genuinely curious—how long does it usually take to release a new episode? I'm really looking forward to continuing the game, and I appreciate all the hard work you put into it. I hope I'm not rushing anyone, and I'm truly sorry if it comes off that way. Thank you so much for reading!

Thank you so much for your ask! I'll go ahead and answer your second question first before moving onto the first one! lol

I wanted to start off by thanking you for asking your question in a kind and respectful way, I completely understand where you're coming from and I don't take any offense to it what so ever!

I know I really appreciate transparency when it comes to games/ things I'm a fan of, so I want to do what I can to make sure I'm as honest and upfront with you all as possible.

So I went through my logs and did the math. Day 1 took me about 6 months from start to finish and Day 2 took me almost a full year from start to finish. That being said, Day 1 was 11k words and Day 2 was 24.5k words total. So given the fact that Day 2 was more than twice as long as Day 1, I can see why it took double the time as Day 1. (That and I learned how to add animation into Renpy and spent a little over a month going down that rabbit hole and making a few animations for the game. I also spent some time refining Day 1 while working on Day 2 so that probably made the Day 2 release take longer than it would have otherwise)

The reason why it takes as long as it does is because I'm making this game entirely by myself. That includes the script, all of the art assets, the programming, the audio, and not to mention all of the social media, and patreon content.

On top of that I also have a pretty steady stream of freelance work that usually equals to about 30-50 hours a week. I've burnt myself out in the past and I'm trying to keep a sustainable pace where I'm making progress on CHVN but I'm also enjoying life and taking breaks as needed.

That being said, I do post monthly game updates on my patreon to discuss what I've finished that month, what I have left, and what the current word count is. ( ATM it's longer than Day 1 and I still have a lot planned haha)

I also think it's worth mentioning that this is my first game and I'm learning how to do everything from scratch. My background is in the visual arts so programming and audio stuff is completely foreign to me. That being said, I'm stubborn as hell and for better or for worse once I put my mind to something, I'll get it done one way or another.

Hopefully that answers your question! Once I finish up the script portion of Day 3, I can give a better estimate of how long it'll take me, but until then I really have no idea when the actual release date will be.

Now, onto the easier/ fun part of your question! lol

Garret would play nice at first, however he would make sure that he was never more than a step away from your side. He doesn't trust anyone to behave themselves around you, especially if they're anything like him.

Teagan on the other hand would immediately try to get you to leave the room. They don't deal well with competition and would want to remove you from the situation asap. If you refused/ couldn't leave with them, then they would make sure to talk shit about all of the other Yandere's and taint your view of them. While it would put an obvious target on their own back, at least they'd know you wouldn't talk to or go off with them out of your own free will.

Thank you again for all of your support! I really appreciate it and I can only hope that the next update is worth the wait!

[vioartemis]

I'll die with you (part 6)

(Tara Carpenter x fem! reader)

Summary: After your mom's death, you were ready to kill Ghostface. Whoever it was. At least that's what you thought, before realizing it might be one of your friends Part 1 || Part 2 || Part 3 || Part 4 || Part 5 || Part 6 || Part 7 Warnings: Ghostface stuff, death of a character (English isn't my first language, I'm sorry if there are mistakes or if something doesn't make sense TvT)

Tears were rolling down your cheeks as Gale's body fell to the ground.

You got up, shaking, and punched the button as hard as you could, letting out a cry of despair. The mechanism finally decided to work, and the glass wall started to go upwards.

But it was slow. Too slow to allow you to rush to your mom yet.

As the wall went up, Ghostface looked at you and whipped his blade before turning on his heels, removing what held the stairwell's door closed and running away. You couldn't wait any longer and crawled under the glass.

At the moment, chasing the killer was the last thing on your mind.

You knelt next to your mom and applied pressure on her wounds. But the cut on her throat was deep. Way too deep. Despite all your efforts, blood continued gushing out of the wound.

"I-it's okay... you're gonna-"

"Y/n..." the tone of her voice broke you, and her weak smile didn't help "I'll tell your dad you say hi..."

"Wh- no no no no...! You can't you- don't leave me too..."

Tara was worried about you. Since your mom died, you weren't the same. She could understand that, of course, but you didn't say a word to anyone, including her.

She tried to talk to you, only to be met by dead eyes staring into the void. You weren't responding, even when she kissed you. Sam ended up telling her to leave you alone for the moment, and they both exited the room you were sitting in.

Everything around you was blurred, nothing mattered anymore. Both your parents were attacked by Ghostface, and each time you couldn't save them.

Was continue trying even worth it? You were all going to die anyway. You, Mindy, Lexi, Sam, Tara... Tara...You couldn't stand seeing her suffer again. She was the only thing you had left. The only one.

You couldn't let him take her away from you. Not her too.

The grief you were experiencing since your mom's death was replaced by an overwhelming wrath.

He was not going to hurt her in any way. You would do everything in your power to prevent that from happening. Even if it meant killing him yourself.

Especially if it meant killing him yourself.

Loud voices in the hall made you snap out of your 'trance'.

"I told you it wasn't going to work! Her theory was bullshit, not everything revolves around her!" it was Lexi's voice

"At least she tried to find a plan! What did you do huh? N-O-T-H-I-N-G. Oh no, sorry, you couldn't stop complaining about how you didn't to be the bait! How useful." Tara defended you

"You know damn well that's not true! I tried to tell you all that was a shit plan, that we should- You know what? I don't care. I'm leaving. She can die alone, just like her father."

That sentence made your wounds burn and your rage build up.

Before you could realize it, you were storming out of your room and grabbing the blonde by the collar, pinning her against the wall with force.

"What the fuck did you just say?" you said, teeth clenched

"You heard me perfectly."

You would have punched her on the spot if it wasn't for Tara to put her hand on your arm gently.

"Y/n, she's not worth it..."

You looked at your girlfriend for a second, before releasing the other girl.

"Oof, thank you Tara. Your crazy girlfrie-"

She didn't get to finish her sentence, cut off by Tara's fist meeting her face. She looked offended but didn't try to fight back and simply turned to Mindy.

"You coming with me or...?"

The brunette started following her girlfriend but turned around and mouthed you 'I'll try to convince her', leaving you alone with Tara.

"I thought you said she wasn't worth it"

"Well, I was wrong. Who does she think she is to talk about you like that?" she mumbled

You grabbed her hand gently, thumb brushing over her red knuckles.

"Thank you for punching her, it was satisfying to watch" you said, lips curling up slightly

"Y/n-"

"Where are Mindy and Lexi?" Sam asked, arriving with coffee in her hands

"They left"

"Lexi wants to leave Woodsboro. Mindy said she would try to convince her that it's useless" Tara explained

"And you let them go? Splitting up is the worst thing to do right now!"

"I don't know." you started "Maybe staying only the three of us is the best option."

"What do you mean?"

"Our plan was good; it should have worked. He had no reason not to follow us."

"Are you trying to say that-"

"He knew."

The two girls looked at you with wide eyes.

"He knew...?"

"He knew what we wanted to do. He tampered with the mechanism. He even blocked the doors! That cannot be a coincidence!"

"But how?" Sam questioned

"Someone might have heard us. Or... or one of us is Ghostface"

"Maybe that's what he wants us to believe. He makes us doubt each other and then... He gets us one by one." Tara suggested, way too quickly to your taste

Why did she react this fast? She didn't have that kind of scruples when she accused Damian to be the killer. Why was she being so defensive now...?

You looked at her, eyebrows slightly furrowed. She wouldn't... she wouldn't be Ghostface, right? No, she was with you during every attack.

Which gave her a perfect alibi, said the little voice in your head, speaking for this tiny little part of yourself that thought it might be her.

You were on the verge of slapping yourself for thinking that it could be your girlfriend. It couldn't be her. You hoped it wasn't her.

And if it was her... you preferred not to think about it.

Your phone ringing in your pocket made you snap out of your thoughts. It was a text from Mindy: 'I have a plan. Meet us at the old house near the hospital at 6.'

At the agreed time, Sam, Tara and you were in front of the house, wondering what could possibly be her plan in such a place. The house was decrepit; no one had lived here for a long time.

"Are you sure we're at the right place?" Sam asked

"Yes, there's no other 'old house near the hospital'"

"Couldn't she find a better location...? This house's creepy"

You shrugged. There were rumors in school saying it was haunted by its former owner's ghost. You never believed it, but you had to admit the atmosphere wasn't pleasant.

Maybe five minutes after, Mindy and Lexi arrived, soon followed by... Damian?

"They let you out?" the blonde asked the boy

"I told you I was innocent..." he simply replied

"We still don't know that." Mindy intervened, eye siding him, before turning to you "Why did you brought us here?"

You gave her a confused look.

"What? You're the one who texted me to meet you here!"

"I did not? Tara messaged me half an hour ago telling me to come here at 6" the brunette said, confused

You turned to your girlfriend with a questioning look on your face.

"I didn't text you?"

"Yes you did"

Mindy took out her phone and showed the text. It was indeed from Tara.

"I got the same" Damian added, showing his phone too

You showed them what you received too, more confused than ever.

Just when you thought things couldn't get weirder, someone else arrived. Sidney Prescott, your 'aunt'. Why was she here? Wasn't she supposed to stay with Mark and their daughters?

"Sidney? What are you doing here?"

"Your mom texted me. She said you would need my help here and that without me it wouldn't work"

Your heart sank at her words.

"When did she text you...?"

"Maybe two hours ago. Why?"

Your eyes widened and your heart started beating faster.

"W-we need to get the fuck out of here..."

"What? Y/n what are you-"

"She can't have texted you"

"Why?"

"Because I killed her."

The voice made you all jump. You turned around, only to be met by a tall, black figure standing in front of you. Ghostface was here.

It was a trap. There was no way out, he was in front of the garden's exit. The only option you had was going in the house. Into his trap.

He had planned everything; lured you here and blocked the way out so you were forced to go inside. You couldn't escape.

When the killer took a step closer, knife out, you all ran in the house, except for Sidney who took out a gun and tried to shoot him. You didn't know if she got him of not, but she soon followed you inside.

You slammed the door shut as soon as Sidney got in, and Tara and Sam pushed a cupboard against it, keeping it close. Damian took out his phone and dialed 911.

"Shit, there's no network here..."

"What do we do then? We can't call the police nor go outside!" Lexi complained

"We try to stay alive" Sidney said calmly

"And we kill him." you added

"No more 'we arrest him'? Now you want to kill him? May I remind you that last time your plan failed miserably."

If Sidney and Damian hadn't held you back, you would have punched her way harder than what Tara did earlier.

"Y/n calm down, now isn't the time to-"

Sidney got cut off by Ghostface, bursting through the door on the other side of the room and throwing a chair at her. The three of you bent down to dodge the flying object.

From your position, you saw Tara and Mindy running away through the right door. Sam and Lexi tried to follow them, but Ghostface stood in their way, forcing them to go somewhere else.

Damian grabbed your hand and pulled you with him, away from the killer. You tried to pull Sidney with you, but she didn't move, gun in hand.

You followed the brunet across the house, trying to sow your pursuer. You stopped after a minute, out of breath.

"I- I think he's not after us..." the boy said

You nodded, hands on your knees, trying to catch your breath.

You hoped none of your friends was getting killed. At least they were in groups of two... Which could be deadly if one of them happened to be the killer.

What weird groups now that you thought of it. Tara didn't try to get to you like she did before. Mindy and Lexi didn't try to be together either.

Sam and Lexi didn't have the time to get to them, but Tara and Mindy were the first ones to run. They had the time to go with whoever they wanted. Why didn't they try to go with their girlfriends?

Here it was again. The little voice in your head telling you that Tara might be Ghostface. And again, you tried not to think about it.

"Y/n-"

Damian got cut off by the second door opening itself, revealing Ghostface. Maybe he was after you. As he rushed to you, you grabbed the nearest object, a lamp, and threw it to him.

It was your turn to grab Damian's wrist this time, pulling him out of the room and running away. You had no idea where you were in the house. Everything looked the same.

At one point, you end up at a crossroads. You could hear Ghostface running behind you, you had to think fast.

"Go left" you said

"What?"

"Go left, I'll go right. He should come after me"

You didn't let him time to think and pushed the boy to the left, preventing him from getting cut by Ghostface's knife. You sprinted to the right, hoping the killer would follow you.

And he did. He followed you to the end of the corridor. A dead end.

Shit, you thought.

You didn't even get the chance to get to the wall. You felt the blade sink in your back. He was already on you.

You thought he would kill you right away, but instead, he grabbed your hair harshly, knife still in your back.

"Now stop running, will you?"

"What do you want?" you asked, teeth clenched

"You'll see in a minute. Be patient. And stop struggling, I wouldn't want to kill you before the big reveal."

With that, Ghostface guided you to the living room. Six persons were already there. Five of your friends, and one Ghostface.

Someone was missing.

So I was right... There was a mole among us the whole time.

a/n: I'd love to have your thoughts about who you think is Ghostface after reading this chapter, I'm really curious 👀

[Previous part] || [Next part]

[bloody-wonder]

mid-year book tag

1. Best Book You’ve Read So Far in 2024? i have read so many good ones this year but no particular one stands out to me as The Best so i'll name top 5 instead (in the order i read them in): a thousand stitches, doctrine of labyrinths, in other lands, big swiss, my brilliant friend - so, quite a range of genres and tones, as usual :)

2. Best Sequel You’ve Read So Far in 2024? the virtu is definitely my favorite part of doctrine of labyrinths and the tropic of serpents, the second book in the memoirs of lady trent, was just a perfect historical fantasy adventure novel - it's like if jane austen wrote indiana jones except it's also a nature documentary about dragons. last but not least, empire of the damned which came out in march solidified jay kristoff's empire of the vampire as my favorite vampire book series. you might have heard me screaming about it from the rooftops. all three of these sequels, i find, are even better than the previous book in their respective series.

3. New Release You Haven’t Read Yet, But Want To? i'm saving kj charles' death in the spires for the fall since it's a spooky campus murder mystery (i think?) and i also want to read apostles of mercy and so finish lindsay ellis' sci fi series (which i have lost interest in somewhat tbh but i'm nothing if not a completionist lol). i was curious about the familiar but the reviews i've seen don't look too promising so i'm probably not going to prioritize it.

4. Most Anticipated Release For Second Half of 2024? i'm looking forward to kj charles' new romance book, the duke at hazard, as well as the new evander mills mystery, rough pages, but the piece of fiction i'm anticipating the most is actually the radioapple southern gothic au by my favorite fanfic author reminiscentbells. she's going to write the whole thing this summer and start posting in september - i'm so excitedddd😱

5. Biggest Disappointment? emily wilde's encyclopaedia of faeries is the book equivalent of a ghoul wearing the skin of your beloved. i wasn't a fan of a deadly education either😒 was very excited to read gaywyck but the expectations of "jane eyre but gay" which the cover of that book gave me were unfortunately not met🤷‍♀️

6. Biggest Surprise? i didn't think i might be into extreme horror and neither did i fancy myself a sally rooney girlie so i was quite surprised that i liked her conversations with friends as well as the sluts by dennis cooper. will definitely read more from both authors next year. an even bigger surprise however was solitaire which i picked up on a whim after tori came out as ace in the last heartstopper volume. i have a complicated relationship with alice oseman's books mostly due to the fact that i'm years past the target demographic age but still feel compelled to read them bc it seems they're the only mainstream books with prominent aro/ace rep out there. so i didn't expect much and was astonished to discover that tori spring is like looking at a mirror reflection of my 18yo self - uncanny in a fun way. ig i shouldn't be so surprised this turned out to be my favorite oseman book since it's the one with the most mixed reviews lol people like to hate a depressed teenage girl😬

7. Favorite New Author? i have devoured doctrine of labyrinths and the cemeteries of amalo in february so now i can safely say sarah monette aka katherine addison is one of my favorite authors. each of her series has a different tone but there are consistent themes of real or magical disability and non amatonormative relationships which are explored in creative ways throughout her stories. i also like her worldbuilding quite a bit, especially the naming systems and fantasy terminology. i read more books by celeste ng as well as by vale aida - both are likely to become favorite authors too. in the latter's case - provided she writes a sequel to hostis. if not, i shall never forgive her😅

8. Newest Favorite Character? okay this is just impossible to narrow down! first of all, liathe from empire of the damned bc i want her Gender: wearing a porcelain mask and a splendid crimson coat, formally bowing to her adversaries before she beats the shit out of them with her blood sword, referring to herself by the royal we and hissing every time she speaks - character of all time material right there. behold my beautiful girl who has done nothing wrong!🥰

(official illustrations by bon orthwick)

secondly, elliot schafer bc he's the most obnoxious prickly boy in other lands and yet everyone wants him carnally lol. i adore his internal monologue - probably the best i've read in ya. his dialogue too tbh - his cutting repartee game is off the charts. honestly, he's just my favorite type of character: a mean bisexual gremlin who scolds people so creatively that they fall in love with him on the spot. what more can you ask.

finally, i have to mention that to my great surprise i liked mildmay more than felix harrowgate🤯 idk felix is this cunty traumatized savant which is a character archetype i'm used to liking so it was a safe bet. the opposites attract sidekick or love interest of such a character is usually not my cup of tea but mildmay is the exception that proves the rule ig. mostly it's bc of his unusual manner of speaking with those funny slang turns of phrase and just generally the contrast between his expressive internal monologue and his reserved demeanor. as a result, he easily rivals felix as the most interesting guy in the book. such excellent character work! taking my hat off to monette🎩

9. Newest Fictional Crush? i reserve this question for that special kind of obsession only a very particular character can inspire and this year it's alastor from hazbin hotel. which, i know, is not a book but i have read so much alastor fanfic in the last few months that he's basically like a book character to me at this point lol

💕Best Ship💕 elliot schafer and luke sunborn are very cute. i don't usually go for cute but here we are. especially after reading that short story from luke's pov i realized i just need more of these two together😌 felix and mildmay with their unholy magic bdsm union - need i say more? forbidden ship that watered my crops. last but not least, i'm currently trudging through the realm of the elderings bc of fitz and the fool and as of assassin's quest it finally started paying off: i'm being queerbaited and asking for more🥲

10. Book That Made You Cry? a thousand stitches is such a wholesome cozy book and it made me cry multiple times the way that a nostalgic movie from childhood can make you cry sometimes. especially the pug scene😭 the scenes of thara celehar walking the corn maze in the cemeteries of amalo made me cry a lot too. the symbolic depths addison is able to achieve with the labyrinth motif, the exploration of grief and forgiveness and letting go - unparalleled🤌

11. Book That Made You Happy? a thousand stitches made me happy! especially the pug scene!!😅 honestly it was like watching a disney movie back when they were good except also more relatable bc atwater's characters read neurodivergent and aspec-coded to me. love how she maintains that the kiss of true love that breaks the faerie curse doesn't have to be romantic. re-reading the three musketeers made me very happy too - it's one of my top 10 favorite books of all time and i was kinda nervous i might not like it as much as an adult. well the joke's on me bc now i can confirm it's one of the best books ever written😊 reading in other lands and big swiss cheered me up a lot too bc they're just so damn funney😄

12. Favorite Book Adaptation You Saw This Year? haven't seen a lot of adaptations so ig dune part two wins by default. twas a fine movie. the wheel of time is also a nice show in my opinion but i didn't read the source material so idk how good it is adaptation-wise🤷‍♀️

13. Favorite Review You’ve Written This Year? my favorite ones are probably the ones i wrote about the three musketeers and in other lands but i think i also wrote some good critical/negative reviews of the mask of mirrors and of the vorkosigan books i read this year (1 2 3)

14. Most Beautiful Cover? behold the cover of the voyage of the basilisk!🤩 i want to frame it and hang it on my wall so that i can gaze at it adoringly and connect with my inner ishmael

(art by todd lockwood)

i also like this vintage romance cover of gaywyck and the uk covers of the farseer trilogy. it's a shame that the books are not as good as the covers led me to believe. especially in the case of gaywyck - this cover is Such A Vibe! but alas

15. What Books Do You Need To Read By The End of The Year? in terms of series i want to finish the memoirs of lady trent, read one more witcher book, at least a couple vampire chronicles and then reread swordspoint and hopefully complete that series too. other fantasy i want to get to at last is fire & blood and the hands of the emperor - both are big and intimidating tho. for my classics challenge i need to finish a couple of tomes i'm reading slowly throughout the year and then also read the name of the rose. american psycho and mona awad's bunny have been on my tbr for ages - maybe i'll finally read them this fall. and i also want to finish reading kj charles' backlist bc the completionism drive is stronger than the fear of having no kj charles to read lol

i never do things a normal amount - every time i take up new media i go all in. so i had a musicals phase, a movies phase, a tv show phase - each lasting a few years and then i barely watched any of these once the phase ended. which is why i've been wondering if my current Book Phase is about to wrap up soon but, given how many books i managed to read since january, it sure doesn't seem that way. instead, it feels like the more i read the better i am at finding books that i'm likely to enjoy - which leads to more reading. and i cannot complain about that tbh😁📚

tagging @magpiefngrl @doh-rae-me @oliviermiraarmstrongs @fugitoidkry @pinkasrenzo @counterwiddershins @figuringthengsout @sugarbabywenkexing @fandomreferencepending @venndaai @weirdsociology @sixappleseeds @theodoradove

please tell me what you've been reading this year (if you want)! one can't have too many book recs👀

goodreads │ old mid year tags 2020 2021 2022 2023

[alicelufenia]

Had a couple weeks off due to life, but back with more Tavierra

I go back to the grove and release Sazza, since this will be my last chance.

Due to a bug with the Sit Out mod the game wasn't letting more than Tav and Karlach fight in the Worg Pens. I sorted it out later, it's a common hiccup.

Of course I knock out the goblin children, I'm not a monster.

Halsin flashbangs my drow ass right in the face, then we break the news to him about Kagha.

Does he?

We deal with Halsin's (somewhat) understandable but embarrassing prejudice.

Oh boy and this is the playthrough where I may even be romancing him! Fun first impression :D

At least he admits it may be unfair of him, and that we may "enlighten" him. Well y'see you're gonna love literally the next thing I do then cause-

But first we talk to Ragzlin, and as this is my first time playing a cleric, this scene can play out different by doing the Speak With Dead spell yourself! Not that Tav would need the scroll as she has the forbidden knowledge of Thay (what can I say she got curious)

I go deal with Gut first. I just have the other 3 active party members sneak in through the back entrance to her room, and with a Silence spell up and surrounded by all of us, she doesn't stand a chance.

We split the party into 2 groups. Tav, Astarion, Karlach and Lae'zel head to Minthara's office (and stealthily clear the hallway outside the Worg Pens) while Shadowheart, Gale and Wyll return for Halsin to go kill Ragzlin and the goblins gathered with him.

Bear time. Hopefully not the last time either.

We meet up with Sazza next to Minthara. I had already spoken to her without Sazza, so I was hoping there'd be a change with this scene, but it's the same as if you met her for the first time with Sazza. In my oc lore, Tav uses Sazza as cover for her "scouting" delay to find the grove.

I get Minthara to spare Sazza. I'm hoping to get her achievement this playthrough, otherwise I'll have to wait til the next one.

Haha what, slaughter the grove that's CRAZY, who would do that their first playthrough? Anyway

What follows was an hour and a half of misadventures as I tried to be cute by agreeing to raid the grove, and then as she's walking out, smacking her with a Tasha's Hideous Laughter, hoping to initiate combat with her rolling on the ground with Emma's insane laughter.

The game claimed Tasha's had a 30% chance to work. In reality it felt like 0.01%, as she kept passing the damn save each reload! (it's almost like Paladins are really good with saving throws, no idea how I'd know that) but are you ready for some quality bullshit?

At one point the combat log said she failed the roll, but she didn't actually get affected! It still treated her as if she'd saved successfully! What the hell game!

So in the end I just start the fight without the Tasha's opener, and beat her unconscious with Karlach's massive unarmed attack swings.

The way this works in the lore is that she merely gets dazed, and Tav's confliction over what to do leads to her sparing her, stripping Minthara of her weapons and leading the others to go join Shadowheart and the rest as they're finishing off Ragzlin.

By the time they're done with Ragzlin, they return to see if Minthara is still there, Tav entertaining thoughts of interrogating her, or trying to contact the dream visitor to see if there's anything they can do. But they're too late: Minthara's already snuck away. Karlach is uneasy about this, but Tav, having to improvise now, reassures her the grove won't come to harm.

By the way, look at the changes to the journal! Back in patch 5, this didn't say "defeated", it said "killed", even if you knocked them out.

THIS screenshot is from December! Notice the wording change. I wonder when this happened, I didn't do as extensive testing at patch 6, so I didn't notice.

After reporting to Halsin, Tav makes good on her promise that the grove will be safe. By leading the party through a secret passage in the ceiling back out to the camp where they proceed to KILL EVERY GOBLIN. Can't raid the grove without an army, yeah?

We use every drow's favorite trick, Darkness, to keep ourselves safe from all the ranged attacks and pick them off as they come to us. It's a total slaughter for the goblins.

And now the fate of Crusher in 3 screenshots

Tragic.

By the way, if you ever want to turn Zevlor's gift down cause you're a good person or whatever, you can still trade with him in the same dialogue and just buy the reward off him. Handy tip so you don't miss this unique helmet!

Everyone back at the grove is in a celebratory mood, except Tav doesn't feel at all like celebrating.

I'm gonna say "It was a hell full of blood and ash" was her exact in-character description of the experience.

At the party she's in such a dour mood despite the energy of the participants that she finds herself even chatting up Astarion.

Oh but that's where you're wrong Astarion! We killed a whole LOT more goblins than there were tieflings! Like 5 times as many! *sigh* and now we get to the heart of the matter and why she feels bad.

Must resist. Urge to. Reload. Not this. Run.

So yeah, Tav's drinking, and seeking distraction. And so is Astarion. Hmm. Yeah sure, fuck it.

And she did.

All sarcasm aside, I am able to appreciate the subtleties of Astarion's romance scene. He can't hide his uncomfortable expression when we say we want to lose ourselves in him. "I thought so." HNGGGG but I have a good reason for this, eventually.

The next morning I have a talk with Halsin, deciding we'll head through the mountain pass (I'm not done with Act 1 yet, but I do want to take care of that area first now that the time-sensitive quests are done)

But first, I make a new main save and then proceed to speedrun to Moonrise Towers. I drink a potion of invisibility to sneak Tav past the Death Shepherds and into act 2, then follow Kar'niss all the way to Moonrise, where we find

She's alright folks! :D And yes, I didn't loot her gear, just her weapons like I said. Y'all should know by now I would NEVER put Astarion in her armor, she's keeping all that!

Back to our main save, we continue to the encounter with the Gith at the mountain pass road, and continue onwards to Rosymorn Monastery.

Damn I just think Tavierra looks good in this shot, lookit my baby stare down a dragon!

Next is, *sigh* Lady Esther. I convince her to take the Owlbear egg, and then have Astarion pickpocket her inventory while Tav distracts with her bard playing. The classic pair! She's not usually one for robbing people, but she'll make an exception for racism.

Speaking of racism:

We explore the monastery, and I manage to find enough of the weapons to solve the Dawnmaster puzzle with just a bit of brute forcing it.

We arrive in the Creche, and I beeline it for why we're here so early:

The two pieces of gear Tav needed.

The lore here is that Tav and Astarion find the githyanki stash of plundered treasures from across Faerûn. Tav has little qualms with "liberating" the stolen goods, and once again distracts them while Astarion cleans out their inventory. He does nearly get caught, but he deceives his way out of it and gets away scot-free.

Now in possession of a stolen artifact dedicated to Corellon, Tav's personal quest hits the next step, as she wishes to seek the favor of the father of elves on this journey, a long shot considering he's basically responsible for the ancient dark elves being cursed to become drow. At least she's got several elven companions to consult, and thus while it's not his main deity, she begins discussing religion with Halsin.

One respec later and her build is now online.

Now that the goblin camp is done, my main stressor for this run is past. What was initially a struggle for survival is turning into a pilgrimage for our Chosen of Eilistraee. And soon-to-be Seeker of Corellon. This is definitely going to be a more religious and gods-focused playthrough than my first one. Next time I'll show off the builds for the rest of the companions, as I've done unique things with at least a few of them, and as the party hit level 6 on the way to the Creche, they're now established enough to show off.