#it's just cool man

[zemnian-newcomer]

It's late in the evening, I'm tired, I have work early tomorrow, this will not be coherent, but I have Thoughts about the beginnings of C2 and C3 and how they differ structurally that will not be contained so here I go.

(This got long so I'm putting it under a read more)

Obligatory disclaimer that this is not a judgement of the quality of either campaign in any way, I absolutely loved the Mighty Nein and am liking Bell's Hells a lot so far (I'm up to episode 30, so no spoilers past that please)

So right from the start, C3 felt much more fast-paced and more... densely plotted, I guess, than C2.

The Mighty Nein in their early days travelled together, but felt like they could have fallen apart at any time. It took until around the 20 episode mark for me to feel like they had grown together enough for it to hold. (Ironically, that was immediately put to the test with the Iron Shepherds arc.) Contrast that with Bell's Hells, who felt like a much more cohesive group from the single digits.

A lot of it, of course, comes down to the characters. While Bell's Hells as a group are a bunch of weirdos, there aren't actually that many "strong" personalities among them, which the Mighty Nein were full of. Think about Beau clashing with both Molly and Caleb, Nott/Veth stealing from Fjord, Fjord holding a sword to Caleb's throat, Caleb acting without communicating, Molly generally being more of a shit-stirrer - with Yasha not being there most of the time, one of the best team players they had was Jester. Meanwhile Bell's Hells generally get along pretty well. The closest thing to actual conflict within the party so far was probably Chetney not liking Dorian, and even that got better within a few episodes.

On the other hand, the plot (as far as I can see it) of C3 involves the characters a lot more than the starting plot of C2. The early Mighty Nein took quests/assignments, but they didn't have much to do with them personally until the Iron Shepherds (and, well, the guy they got some of the assignments from turned out to be Jester's father, but they didn't know that at the time). What eventually turned into one of the bigger plots was nearly just one encounter in the sewers of Zadash. It didn't involve them, they involved themselves. The plot of C3 so far (and from what spoilers I've seen, also going forward) involves several of the characters on a very personal level.

There is also a very big difference in character drives and motivations. Several of Bell's Hells have a mystery or problem they're either curious about or actively trying to figure out, which means they're very likely to bite on plot hooks that seem to be related to that mystery or problem. Meanwhile most of the Mighty Nein were actually running away from their shit, and it took months of in game time for them to grow enough to face it. (Molly being the exception in that he, in a way, successfully ran away from his shit and left everyone else to deal with it.)

Which is what leads me to why I actually made this post, the way different characters' backstories and motivations get weaved together and into the bigger picture. As of episode 30, Orym, Imogen, and Fearne all have an immediate connection to the Ruidus storyline, with Orym and Imogen having followed this thread together for a long time since figuring out that their individual quests led them on the same path.

I don't really have a point to this, it's just cool to see the different ways a story can be built in DND, with C3 so far being a really elegant way of tying character motivations together and using them to further the plot, while C2 was more of a lesson in having the characters lead the way and building the story off of their actions.

[chloesimaginationthings]

Abby isn't scared of any FNAF animatronic..

[punkitt-is-here]

"people shouldn't call themselves x or y because it makes me uncomfortable" well. Get over yourself lol. Skill issue

[nipuni]

Silence in the library

A speedpaint video of this will be available at my Patreon on february 1st!

[mmm-asbestos]

thinking about hospital and university underground tunnels....

there is something about them....

[hyenaa-euphoria]

hope 1/???

more angst!! i am actually building an au around this comic but I’ve never done aus before so like this is new to me!!!

[milk-ducts]

might delete ,, its been fucking ages since ive touched an art program so . it didnt come out as good and im not proud of how the face turned out so wonky 😭

its a quick messy doodle of a buffed out mark w a longer hairstyle <3 begging the showrunners 2 give him these side bangs .. please !! my baby would look so good w them. u could interpret this as an older ver of him,, tho hes still got that baby face

without the shine .. hehe .. he looks better like this .

[mumblesplash]

The Dungeon is ready for its favorite next victim

[stariiberry]

im back!! have wayfinders

[cowboythewizard726]

BLOOD SOAKED FALIN!!! BLOOD SOAKED FALIN!!! BLOOD SOAKED FALIN!!! BLOOD SOAKED FALIN!!! BLOOD SOAKED FALINNNNNNNNNNN!!!

[snarkspawn]

some floating heads of my boy Asher, his guardian and his favourite people to go adventuring with ♥

[the-meme-monarch]

been rewatching hlvrai and drawing along :]

edit i fixed the last one (drew his gun on the wrong arm and it Ate At Me (yes i just flipped the drawing what are you a cop))

[chloesimaginationthings]

FNAF Pizza sim’s plot is just the Afton’s fighting

[arinmoss]

Astarion! Also now as a print here~!

[nipuni]

THE DOCTOR We had a pact, him and me. Every star in the universe, we were going to see them all.

My version of The Master and The Doctor in their Academy days 😊

A speedpaint video of this will be available at my Patreon on april 1st!

[mobius-m-mobius]

Tom on more of Owen's s2 improv (x)