#islanderscaper

[islanderscaper]

This piece was originally supposed to be for a vocal challenge, but I missed the deadline for it…oops?

I'm kind of enjoying writing this little reflection on my relationship with Anne of Green Gables though, so I think I'm going to finish it and post it anyway.

Until then, there is an excerpt available for supporters on my ko-fi!

[dungeonofthedragon]

Ttrpgs for Palestine: duo edition

Your regular reminder that you can get this incredible bundle of 195 titles for $15 and help kiddos in need in the process!

I wrote a post on some of the solo games in this bundle, but what about duos? Games you can play with a partner, a bestie, or a sibling? I live with just one other person, and ttrpgs are the major thing we bond over. Fortunately, this bundle contains many, many games I look forward to playing together. Below I've spotlighted four five examples of GMless two-player games in this bundle!

A Court Divided by Carlin Wednesday

(Bitter- Dramatic- Magical)

Build a fey domain together through a series of questions, and then break it apart as you play fey monarchs going through a divorce. You must negotiate how your court and assets will be divided between the pair of you. This game can be played in a single session, perfect for an afternoon or evening of dramatic roleplay.

Hearts Unmasked and Hearts Unrivalled by Islanderscaper

(Superheroes- Pining- Lightweight)

Superhero romance? Count me in! Hearts Unmasked is about two heroes trying to balance duty and their feelings for each other, while Hearts Unrivalled is an enemies-to-lovers hero/villain narrative.

The rules for each game fit onto a single page, so they're very quick to learn!

Lovers in the Apocalypse City by Paladin Kite

(Intimate- Intense- Futuristic)

Neon-soaked apocalyptic letter writing for two. I was immediately hooked by this game's gimmick: mailing letters to one another. One player draws a card from a standard deck, finds the relevant prompt on a table, and writes a letter to the other player based on this. Obviously, you can do it without actual letters, but the act of physical letter writing does add something to the experience. As I write, I'm mentally going through friends considering who would most enjoy playing this one with me.

Pale Dot by Devin Decibel

(Enchanting- Exploration- Aliens)

Hoping to play this one tonight! Two (or more!) players travel the cosmos as adorable alien astronauts. There's a good selection of locations with short, evocative descriptions and questions inviting players to further develop them as they explore.

[rollwithitap]

Throwback Moodboard!

If you remember our Big Gay Roadtrip arc, this is a moodboard for @islanderscaper's character, Lola.

And if you haven't listened to it yet, check it out wherever you get your podcasts!

[theinvulnerabletide]

✨when u get this, put 5 songs u actually listen to, publish. then, if you're comfortable, send this ask/tag 10 of your followers 🎶✨

Oh gosh it has been so long since I've done one of these. xD

but ty @svartalfhild for the tag~

Here's a cross section of songs that have been weaving through my head lately:

T.M.I by Meet Me @ The Altar - this has been stuck in my head on and off for weeks and the chorus gives me so much serotonin. It's made its way on to at least a few character playlists.

Fake Out by Fall Out Boy - I have been listening to this whole album nonstop since it came out but I will resist just putting the entire album on this list. This is the one that has cemented itself inside of me right now: "Love is in the air/ I just gotta figure out a window to break out" hits my brain just right.

Skipping Stones by Mutual Benefit - I heard this song played during one of the plays in Infinite Wrench on Friday and I was so enamored I memorized two lines so I could find it later. "I'm so afraid to fall in love again/ I know how it ends."

Hymn of Acxiom by Vienna Teng - I refound this song recently and suddenly found myself down a rabbit hole of a capella versions. It is so gorgeous and haunting and I know it's basically about corporations compliling and selling your data but that makes me love it even more.

Rattlin Bog (Traditional, this one is by the Irish Rovers - so a few weeks ago I ended up talking about this song and songs we learned in elementary school for a while with some friends and then my brain decided the serotonin was stored in this song for like a week straight. And it keeps popping up. So here see if your brain will do the same.

And I'm tagging all you nerds. Do it if you want, I'm not your parent/guardian:

@islanderscaper , @godsgamefreak @living-deciduously , @thechaoticsuper , @saintguard , @ohhcaptainn , @mechanoelle, @thechavanator, @muchalu4ever, @crimsonblackrose . <3

[morris-wayts]

Last Line Challenge rules: In a new post, show the last line you wrote and tag as many people as there are words (or as many as you feel like).

“Keep at it with the plasmas, scare them good. But they must stay in one piece, so don’t you fuck up their shields!” You are it! @islanderscaper

[godsgamefreak]

Tagged almost a week ago by @islanderscaper oops lol

A scent you love: Foresty pine stuff, and campfires (I don't wash my sweaters for like weeks after I've been camping)

What's something you're looking forward to this week? - The weekend I guess, I've kinda just been on cruise control right now. I wanted to run a new TTRPG this weekend but I think all my friends' lives fell apart at once and we had to cancel lol

What's a book you're currently reading? - Nothing right now, but I think the next book I'm gonna read is Percy Jackson? Or whatever the first one was, Lightning Thief?

What's a game you're currently playing? - Mostly FFXIV currently, but I've been dipping into some Pathfinder: Kingmaker, still need to finish FFXVI (just haven't been on the PS5 lately), and ofc my mobile games Star Rail and Cookie Run Kingdom.

What's the most recent movie you watched? - Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. This was like two weeks ago, I don't watch a lot of movies.

Are you watching anything on TV or listening to any shows? - Finishing Dimension 20's Mice & Murder this very moment, just started their new Mentopolis season, will probably move into another D20 campaign after Mice & Murder. I was also watching Bleach on D+, and looking forward to Ahsoka. I have an episode of Dungeons & Daddies to listen to too, but I've been obsessed with Mice & Murder right now.

Favourite season? - Fall by far, I'm ready for the cooler weather. Just not Winter. I wish Fall lasted longer.

What's something you've learned recently? - That the word for supper comes from "soup time". Some mushrooms can store electricity.

Have you had any water lately? - Yep, been drinking a lot of it lately, finally. Not being so lazy to refill my water bottle the last little bit.

I don't know who else on here I can tag so if you see it feel free to fill it out!

[saintguard]

Thanks for the tag, @islanderscaper!

A scent you love: Freshly-baked bread

What's something you're looking forward to this week? I've got a few TTRPG sessions I'm looking forward to! Heart is coming back tomorrow after a break, in which we poor souls are delving through a dead city that takes physics as a neat suggestion. On Friday, I'll be part of a session zero for a Fallout game, where the best character idea I currently have is an incredibly average but also extremely lucky Vault Dweller. Last, after a vacation hiatus and a cancellation on account of sickness last week, I'll be GMing my Scum & Villainy game again, in which the crew is currently at war with two of the most powerful factions in the game following an entire space station disappearing.

What's a book you're currently reading? Comic books-wise, I'm currently going through Spider-Gwen: Ghost-Spider and Sandman Mystery Theatre. I haven't really read Spider-Man (or adjacent) comics before, so it's a mostly sight-unseen experience switching off with the far more noir Mystery Theatre. Novels-wise, I'm reading Perdido Street Station, but it's been a while since I've actually sat down with it.

What's a game you're currently playing? I've been playing FFXIV almost daily, but I want to mention Suzerain! Suzerain is a political narrative game in which you play Anton Rayne, the newly elected president of the Republic of Sordland, a country in a fictional world that's situationally and aesthetically like the real world 1950s. It had its 2.0 release a few days ago and I'm very interested to go through it again with all of its new features and content.

What's the most recent movie you watched? Depending on what recent you're looking for, that could either be Nimona (the latest release I've seen) or Moulin Rouge (the last movie I've seen). Nimona was essentially unknown to me before I saw it, but I loved it. Meanwhile, Moulin Rouge was (kinda as expected) a fever dream. A very nice fever dream with Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman singing, but a fever dream nonetheless.

Are you watching anything on TV or listening to any shows? Both! I usually have something on one of my screens while I'm working or gaming, and my go-to background show has been a rewatch of M*A*S*H, one of my favorite shows on TV. I'm on season 7 currently. For listening, my podcast of choice is Mobile Suit Breakdown, a show where the hosts watch and discuss all of Gundam in chronological order. As of this evening, they're on episodes 3 and 4 of Gundam Double Zeta.

Favorite season? Autumn, especially back when I lived in Boston. Fall in New England is a treat.

What's something you've learned recently? A couple weeks ago, I learned that the takeout boxes we associate with Chinese takeout were first created in 1890s and have been used for Chinese takeout since the 1910s. I also learned that they're called oyster pails!

Have you had any water lately? Yes! I refilled my water bottle and got some tea.

[chasingmyreflections]

Character Development Questions: 2, 12, 22, 38 for Twiggy; 42, 62, 75, 83 for Ester

Twiggy:

002. Do they do anything to celebrate their birthday? 

Nothing too much coming from a pretty simple lifestyle. It’s just about the only time aside from festival celebrations that he indulges in sweets or more lavish meals than usual. He’s looks at his birthday more as a “I made it this far, good.” than anything else.

012. What makes your character embarrassed?

Many many things. He’s not quite admitted to himself some of the things that he, *ahem* may have things for and from that he’s not to sure how to misdirect conversation away from the things that embarrass him. He’s also absolutely useless in front of any authority or female figure so the list is long indeed…

022. What is the most beautiful thing they’ve ever seen?

Twiggy actually finds the most beautiful things are found in nature or are at least naturally occurring on their own. Finding creeks as he travels, finding pretty stones or flowers. By far though he enjoys sunsets and when he is awake enough to see them sunrises. 

038. What bad habits do they have?

Aside from the forgetting where he hides snacks? He does tend to pick at his hands or clothes or the ends of his hair when he’s stressed or nervous. Not that hangnails or frayed sleeve ends are a real concern with the lifestyle he’s taken up but it’s something that’s definitely stuck with him since childhood.

Esther:

042. What is their greatest achievement?

Up to date probably finishing up as much studying as she could before being she out in her own to do work for the church. She’s mastered four languages through study alone and has worked herself to a level of personal relaxation that she can keep her thoughts clear enough to focus on the tasks given to her. Having a scatter brain and a drive for fighting weren’t really things the church had in mind for it’s clergy members, so she is also pretty proud she beat those things down to a manageable level as well.

062. What sort of legacy does your character wish to leave behind?

She wants to make it known that through dedication and self discipline alone one can change their fate and be accepted into the church of Avacyn with open arms. With all the discussion of the issues within the church Esther just wants to paint what little she can in a good light while she can, and as long as she can after she’s gone.

075. Is your character ticklish?

Don’t you dare. She bites…

083. What is the first thing they say and/or do when they wake up?

Once she’s gotten herself up into a sitting position, still not necessarily out of bed or fully awake, she starts her days with a couple short prayers to Avacyn before starting her morning. Usual prayer stuff like to keep her and her lands safe, to guide her purpose, to thank her for keeping her safe while she slept… Then if the sun hasn’t quite risen yet she might lay back down until it’s bright enough to start making breakfast, etc.

[hiccupslovato]

tagged by: @islanderscaper

rules: answer 11 questions, ask 11 more! tag new people to answer the new 11.

1. Who is your favourite superhero?

Probably maybe The Hulk but that’s just because I’m obsessed with Mark Ruffalp

2. What is your favourite song from a musical?

Breaking Free - High School Musical

3. What is your favourite movie from when you were a kid?

Oh my GOD Anastasia 4. Do you collect anything?

Poetry books 5. Where in the world do you most want to visit?

America because of all my american baes (( @potterevanss @chocolatekoalas  and idk alexis’s new url but hey gurl)) and hopefully I’ll be going for my 21st birthday trip??!?!?! 6. What is your favourite animal?

Red pandas are the one 7. What is your favourite book of all time?

Probably Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater which is really not very #inspo but it was the first book to ever make me cry 8. Biggest pet peeve?

PARENTS EXAGGERATING STORIES 9. Celebrity crush?

dEMI LOVATO 10. Proudest accomplishment?

Probably getting into University??? 11. What was your high school mascot?

I mean, I didn’t have one in High School but our University Mascot is a Dragon ((all of our sports teams are “”The Dragons””)) and omg right at the last varsity, we won again for the sixth year in a row and the other university stole the head off the mascot costume and trampled it fuckin BEEF

[islanderscaper]

This month's #KofiChallenge is to share your favourite item from your ko-fi shop.

While all the TTRPG products I have in my shop are special to me, Hearts Unmasked remains #1. The concept for it is very Me & it was the first game I designed on my own!

[intelligencehavingfun]

Dear @islanderscaper,

HAPPY POE PARTY REVEAL DAY!!! I am your Secret Santa, and I present to you your mini-fic, fulfilling entirely your very detailed and specific prompt of “Emily Dickinson.” :)

No, this was really fun to write and I hope you enjoy it!

----

This, she thought with a sigh that was equal parts dismay and resignation as she looked around the gloomy kitchen corridor, was all Lavinia’s fault. Emily, go to the party, she’d said. Emily, it will be good for you. Emily, you should get out of the house and see people for once.

Never mind the fact that the idea that getting out of the house and seeing people would do her good went against everything she believed in as a reclusive hermit. She’d told Lavinia that something awful would happen if she left, but had her sister listened? No. She’d not only insisted that Emily go to that ridiculous dinner party, she’d actually talked her into it, and where was Emily now? Dead. Murdered, to be precise.

Because I could not stop for Death, he kindly stopped for me, she recited in her head. The carriage held but just ourselves and the infuriating, bickering spirits of half a dozen other dead authors brutally murdered by a couple of insane, gossip-obsessed sisters and their lying, conniving banker.

She knew the whodunit of the whole evening because she’d been around to watch it unfold, not that anyone had noticed her. But that had been the theme of the evening; why should it change with her death?

No, no, Emily, the calm part of her said rationally. That’s just bitterness talking.

You’re right, it damn well is, argued the other half of her, the part that was really quite upset about how the evening had turned out. And rightly so! We came out to have a good time, and what happens?

She didn’t know why or how she had returned as a spirit. Lenore had needed that Krishanti woman, but Emily hadn’t needed anyone. She’d just appeared, moments after her demise, invisible to everyone. Maybe she had unfinished business, or something like that. But surely any unfinished business would be centered at her bright, warm, sensibly sized home in Amherst, not here in this dark Gothic mansion, and it was the dark, depressing Gothic mansion she couldn’t leave. She’d tried.

So she was doomed, it seemed, to wander the halls, writing poetry in her head and trying to escape the pervading weight of chaotic and unsettled energy constantly spiralling out from one Edgar Allen Poe, who was not dealing with the aftermath of his dinner party terribly well.

Not that Emily could blame him. Nearly a dozen people had been murdered under his roof, one of them by his own hand. It was certainly enough to send anyone into an agonized and paranoid depression, but that didn’t mean Emily wasn’t starting to feel the effects.

Lenore felt them, too, Emily observed. But Lenore had somewhere to disappear to, some secret project that took her out of the house for stretches of time. Emily had no such escape, and finally, one night, she couldn’t take it anymore.

Nights were the worst, because nights were when Edgar dreamed. When he was awake, he could try and tamp down the guilt and fear and paranoia, but when he was asleep, he had no such respite. The nightmares were intense, and they filled the whole house on a spiritual level. The first night Emily had done something about it, it had been mainly by accident. She’d have run mad if she hadn’t done something about the spiky darkness filling his aura.

She hadn’t even known if it would work. But she had to do something, so she’d reached out and just tried to soothe the edges, to tame the fear before it overwhelmed her entirely. The next time the nightmares had come, she’d acted more deliberately.

“I might be more help if I knew exactly what these nightmares were about,” she said one night, reaching for the darkness with a by-now-practiced hand. And that was when something strange happened. When she brushed against the nightmare, she saw what it contained. A rock smashing down on a temple. A body hidden beneath the floorboards. A heartbeat like a ticking clock, ominous and inescapable.

She’d seen the altercation with Eddie. She’d seen what Edgar had done. But she hadn’t known until that moment that Edgar was so haunted by it.

“Dear me,” she said softly. “You’re tormented because you killed that vile man? Take it from someone he killed -- don’t be. He deserved it and then some.”

The energy in the room changed then, like he could hear her. Like he was listening. It was a new feeling for Emily, and she wasn’t quite sure what to do with it. Suddenly flustered and nervous, she twisted her hands in her lap. “I just mean,” she said quietly, “that you were acting in self-defense, and that he would have killed you and felt no remorse. So for you to feel this level of torment over his demise . . . my opinion is that it’s unwarranted.”

He was calmer after that, his sleep less restless, and she felt a small sense of accomplishment. She had spent the days since her death feeling restless herself, ungrounded and driftless. But helping in this way? It made her feel like she was doing something worthwhile. Meaningful. Substantial. It was a nice feeling. So when the nightmares returned, she slowly learned to speak with more confidence.

And the oddest thing started to happen then. He never saw her when he was awake, never noticed or perceived her in the slightest. But when she spoke as he slept . . . he heard her. He responded, in a way, a shifting of his energy like a silent conversation, images offered up in response to her statements. Each night it became easier for her to read what he was feeling, until her nightly visits to calm his troubled soul started to feel more like genuine interactions than most of the conversations she’d had even when she was alive.

“I think you’re worrying over nothing,” she said a few nights into this. When he responded with a skeptical shift in energy, she stressed the statement. “No, I really do.  How long has it been now since the party? And no one has come asking any more questions. No one is looking for him at all. And no one has any reason to doubt what you’ve said. The Brontes confessed everything; it makes sense that Mr. Dantes would go into hiding.”

He had his doubts. What if someone did find out that Eddie wasn’t abroad? What if it was investigated? What if it came back to the mansion and they found the body---

“Edgar,” Emily interrupted sternly. “The man confessed to killing or having a hand in killing almost a dozen people. If he’d gone to trial, he would surely have been found guilty and been put to death. You simply . . . expedited that process.”

That didn’t sound right to Edgar.

“Then consider it this way -- that man was slimier than an eel. Had he gone to trial, he could very well have wriggled out of punishment and could, even now, be walking free. You dispensed justice, Edgar.”

But that constable had said that even killing in self defense could---

“Oh, are we paying attention to the constable now? The one who had to see a dead body being dragged down the stairs by a ghost before he truly realized anything was amiss? The one who died because he was drinking on the job in a highly unprofessional manner and didn’t notice that his wine had been poisoned? I don’t know that I’d take his word on legal processes.”

Well, yes, Edgar supposed that was true. But what if, mysterious dream speaker? What if???

“Really, Edgar,” she said in a no-nonsense tone. “Worrying about things that haven’t happened is a useless endeavor.”

But the beating heart under the floorboards---

Emily rolled her eyes. “For heavens’ sake. Channel it into your writing like every other author on the planet, Edgar. Really.”

She didn’t visit him the next night. She spent the hours forcing herself to understand how to move physical objects so she could read the short story he’d spent the day frantically writing. She wasn’t interrupted by a nightmare because for the first time in ages, he hadn’t had one.

“It’s very good,” she told him the next night. “Though you are undoubtedly one of the most depressing and macabre authors I’ve ever read.”

He thanked her for the compliment.

Emily shook her head and left him to his more peaceful dreams. She didn’t know what this existence would look like as time went on. She didn’t know if Edgar would ever realize who haunted his house and soothed his agonized spirit from time to time. But she had found in death what had evaded her in life -- someone who listened to her and valued what she had to say. She’d found a purpose, and for as long as she was needed, she would be there to help keep the nightmares at bay.

[islanderscaper]

Now available to supporters on Ko-fi: an update on some writing WIPs, including this month's Author Avengers piece, what I'm working on for Storytelling Collective's comics challenge, and the micro-fiction contest I entered recently.

[islanderscaper]

I wrote this piece inspired by prompts for both Vocal's Misplaced challenge and Storytelling Collective's Tolkien-themed Flash Fiction February prompts.

Write a fictional story from the perspective of a misplaced item.

"I sit beside the fire and think/Of people long ago/And people that will see a world/That I shall never know"

You can also find it posted on my Vocal profile.

[islanderscaper]

Halloween is almost here! To celebrate, all of my games are 31% off on

@itchio for the next week. OR you can get a bundle of all three currently available products for $6.66!

[islanderscaper]

I've added several new options to my commissions on ko-fi including:

Page Layout

Beta Reading

Copy-editing

Proofreading

Character, project, or setting moodboards

Please consider taking a look if you're interested in any of these or help me out just by sharing this around!

[islanderscaper]

New month, new newsletter time!

Available now to supporters on ko-fi.