#love working lore into game mechanics <3

[rare-prism-s]

hiiiiiiii idea for summonable chaldean/goetia 

(skills and np under cut)

[shepscapades]

DBHC [Detroit Become Hermitcraft] AU MASTERPOST

This is a compiled list of links to every major dbhc post, including links to art, a list of tags that I use to organize everything for this au on my blog, character tags, and any other content for the au that you may want to specifically look for! I will do my best to update this Masterpost with every new major post I publish, so feel free to keep checking the original post (not reblogs, which will not retain edits) for new content! (Likewise, if you stumble upon a link that doesn't seem right, please feel free to let me know!)

Everything is organized below the read more by an Overview of information about the au and content organized by character. Within each character's section, posts are organized in a narrative chronological order-- NOT the order in which the posts were published. Most characters are organized in groups so links do not appear more than once.

Thank you for reading and enjoying my silly au! It's baffling to me how many people have found an interest in or love for this project, and everyone's support, encouragement, and general insanity means the world to me! <3

OVERVIEW

Dbhc, or the Detroit Become Hermitcraft AU, is an au that started as a joke and very quickly stopped being a joke LKFJGDG It’s called Detroit Become Hermitcraft, but not really because it has anything to do with the base game DBH– really, I only yoinked the android mechanics and inserted them into the minecraft-based world of hermitcraft. It’s an au that starts in Hermitcraft Season 8 (aka, many of the first androids were built for the beginning of s8 in this au), meaning that the seasons prior in this au do not technically have those hermits as part of their history. The Life Series are canon to this au, but like earlier hermitcraft seasons, 3rd Life is missing all of the android hermits due to it having taken place prior to HC Season 8.

GUIDE TO ANDROIDS - An official guide to how androids function, for those unfamiliar with dbh androids!

TAG LIST

#dbhc – any and everything dbhc! #dbhc art – any art, comics, or silly doodles that feature the dbhc characters #dbhc ask – any response to an ask or submission that I answer related to dbhc– could be silly asks or asks related to lore! #dbhc music – any art or asks in which I speak about the music on the dbhc playlists or use the songs as inspiration for art of the narrative #dbhc fanart – any dbhc art not made by me! #dbhc fanfic – any dbhc writing not written by me! #dbhc writing – works of writing that either I’ve done or works that I consider canon to the au! (see below for links to each of these works) #dbhc sillies – these are usually asks I’ve answered that include ridiculous doodles or humorous references to more serious or angsty lore posts #dbhc theories – not a consistent tag, but something I decided to start using for asks that have interesting theories that I don't want to confirm or deny. Also used in general for large theory-based asks/my reactions to them #dbhc mechanics – any explanations related to the way the androids function [i'm still currently in the process of going back through everything and working this tag in!] #dbhc ref – official reference sheets for the characters

CHARACTER TAG LIST:

Character tags will be listed as #dbhc [name]. They contain both art of those characters and any mentions/discussions of them from asks. If a character is discussed or shown in any capacity, those posts should have the respective character tags! I believe these are all of the characters discussed/referenced so far:

#dbhc beef || #dbhc bdubs || #dbhc cleo || #dbhc cub || #dbhc doc || #dbhc etho || #dbhc false || #dbhc gem || #dbhc grian || #dbhc hypno || #dbhc impulse || #dbhc iskall || #dbhc jevin || #dbhc joe || #dbhc joel || #dbhc jimmy || #dbhc keralis ||#dbhc mumbo || #dbhc pearl || #dbhc ren || #dbhc scar || #dbhc skizz || #dbhc tango || #dbhc wels || #dbhc xisuma || #dbhc zed

CHARACTER POST LIST

Since Tumblr has a link embed limit of 100, I had to move every character section to it's own post :[ Which is a little annoying, but giving each character group their own post will hopefully prevent any issues going forward as I continue to add to the au without fear of hitting a link limit.

As mentioned above, the below individual posts are organized by Characters or Groups of Characters. Within each section, drawings are organized by NARRATIVE CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER (Not the order in which they were posted/published).  These links contain links to posts/art specifically centered around the characters they're listed under. All posts that have a collection of characters, moments, or drawings not centered around any one specific character/characters will be found under "Other Drawings!" Stuff from Secret Life, Decked out, and other silly drawings can be found there. Character's are often cameo'd all over the place, so if you're looking for all of the content of a specific character, your best bet is perusing their respective character tag (listed above)! The posts below are to present a better/more cohesive idea of the ordered narrative of each character.

ETHO + BDUBS

MUMBO + CO.

DOC + CO.

IMPULSE + CO.

TANGO + CO.

JOE + CO.

SKIZZ + CO.

XISUMA + CO.

OTHER DRAWINGS [GROUPS/COLLECTIONS]

WRITING WORKS

Canon Events. To Me <3

[x] @tunastime Gear of the Heart, Turning [ethubs] [x] @tunastime Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? [docsuma]

Fanfic Works I consider closely adjacent to canon:

[x] @bruhman745 [ethubs first kiss!] [x] @bruhman745 [s9 reset etho re-deviates] [x] @drachis917 [Impulse meets Gem!]

[tugoslovenka]

i love baldur's gate 3, truly i do. i find it one of the most wonderful games in recent times and the work that larian has done in trying to emulate a dnd-like video game is commendable bc they have done some good work with the lore and mechanics. but i really, really would like it if larian would for once in their goddamned fucking existence released a full game on launch day. i know games will always need patches to address some issues, but releasing info abt the upper city as a hub area weeks before release only to completely scrap the idea altogether? having NO ending, literally no actual epilogue or anything that adds to the story after the fight, just this random black screen and no proper epilogue? the half-baked encounters against orin and gortash after making them out to be on the same level ketheric's fight which actually felt like a boss? making dark urge this entire ~special origin story without actually allowing a player to do a true evil run without losing out on like 2/3 content? there is no punishment or reward for not taking/taking the tadpoles, it literally means nothing in the grand scheme of things. also for a multiplayer game, there's a resounding lack of actual story progression if you have all four slots covered, like it straight up locks you out of a lot of companions' stories bc you can never take them with you. this isn't even getting into the horrendous bugs and performance issues that straight up fry PCs by the end of the game. also adding fan service without any actual plot like - halsin's completely useless existence in act 3? also nonsense like gortash being lorded in the middle of wyrm's rock, the literal first fortress to the city that would not house the new lord of baldur's gate under any circumstance? gale starts the game with a TRUE RESURRECTION scroll that can be used to solve a myriad of problems, including, i dont know, curing karlach entirely by killing her then reviving her? having to go to cazador's palace through a random tower in the middle of the city? the emperor just deciding to abandon you and join the elder brain after spending years fighting its influence if you decide to go against him? like these are all unfinished parts to a "full" game. i still have nightmares from DOS2 and what a fucking mess that was and the fact that you need the "definitive edition" to make the final act work is straight up predatory... honestly fuck y'all for making ppl pay twice for the product they should have gotten the first time. anyway the game is great but larian needs a kick up the ass for some obvious bullshit that would not be tolerated if it were any other studio!

[ohno-the-sun]

Spoiler heavy fnaf ruin dlc rant up ahead

I am so fucking proud of steal wool they really took every criticism from the original game and fixed it and even added more

Like Cassie actually acts like a human being?? And like her knowledge of the original characters and cute little comments on every item are so endearing there is so much detail going into this.

The fact that they expanded on one of the fan faves Roxanne and giving her a great arc I’m in love I’m so happy

They honestly gave more depth to all the animatronics too like we finally see Bonnie’s design and get and get a taste as to what happened, also that poster Freddy gifted him I’m crying they are so cute and gay I love them

😭😭😭

Also the whole dark ride section with Monty is so fascinating like is that narrative kind of true or is it just fabricated by fazbear inc to cover up the decommissioning of Bonnie

Why replace Bonnie with Monty?? Why not make a new Bonnie model?? With the prototype label on Freddy it may be confirmed that they make multiple models (well we already kinda knew that with Freddies comments but oh well)

Also Freddy?? Like is that our Freddy or a different one?? They very clearly highlighted the prototype label so they want to emphasize it, but then the head is still missing like in the princess quest ending so what is the truth??

Feel bad for chica fans tho she really was sidelined hard

Aaaaa and my baby boys!!! There’s 3 now aaahaga

I was really not expecting eclipse to be the way they were, very… normal? Is that the right word?? Like obviously a little delusional on when the daycare is gonna open again, but in the right mindset of like this child needs to leave this place is not safe. It is interesting to me that both he and Roxy thought that it was Cassie’s birthday, maybe that was the last day before she left the plex? Or maybe that was the day the plex caught fire? Or maybe most depressingly we are playing on Cassie’s birthday so the animatronics have it in their systems what her birthday is and wish her a happy one (if they are in the right state of mind lol)

Some peeps are upset moon is a little too villainous

I think you can still say it was mainly the virus but I would argue even if it’s not the virus I feel like moon is kinda justified here. Like sun has been shutting him away for a long time before this (if the books are to be believed but also in general) so when he finally gets a chance to roam free of course he’s gonna take it. And idk about u but if my alternate personality was constantly trying to shut me out and I finally got control, I probably too would try and keep my control for as long as possible. Also from what I have seen so far, not even moon is all that aggressive? Like he grabs you at the beginning, but I think that’s just his very ineffective way to get kids to sleep and other than that he just kinda stays away

Poor sunny baby is stuck in the ar world 🥺🥺 I didn’t notice at first but yeah everytime you talk to him it’s only in the ar world. And the end part where you switch them out for eclipse if you do that in the ar world, he says not for me it’s for moon.

I will say though I noticed the voice acting for them changed a little this game, like both have a higher pitch and are more goofy sounding? Like more gremlin energy than evil villainy. I wonder if that was on purpose? Both of them sounded more like the other so maybe that was the reason? Interest interest

Also their mouth moves?? Sort of?? That’s so silly to me they have a whole working mouth system and their face mask doesn’t work with at all 😭

Does give me lore intrigue tho cause like why do their mouths move but not anymore?? Did something happen?? Are they just not maintained enough?? They also move outward instead of up and down (at least from what I saw) so is the mechanism different?

Also the way that sun and moon talk about eachother is so interesting. Like moon says the light hurts “us” and sun says “no the other me” like they seem to almost consider eachother more connected than we first thought, like they’re not just coworkers or strangers they are almost like two sides of the same person. It’s very interesting and I wonder where people will take this.

Overall great job I’m so excited to comb through the game and find every little secret (especially regarding the dca) aaaa

Ok ok update moon does have a jump scare but it’s ridiculously hard to get and I’d still argue he’s not as vicious as he was base game. I mention in another post but eclipse being as kind as he is and being (presumably) a combination of both AIs, gives even more evidence moon is supposed to be kind and caring like his posters suggest but something went wrong. Also Cassie’s comments on their plushes show that there were kids who truly liked the daycare.

[xamiipholia]

okay y'all seemed to like the last one so here's a few more Horizon 3 thoughts:

Aloy won’t die. It would completely upend the series’ themes and just be really nihilistic.

Since Nemesis is a gestalt entity I think it’s a safe bet that we’ll see Sam Witwer, Carrie-Anne Moss, etc again. I’m curious how they’re going to do it because at least structurally, it’s basically a reaper. Maybe it’ll use different Avatars when communicating like the Leviathan in ME3. 

It's gonna take some work to make a flashback/dream/vision not contrived but I would love to see Varl and Rost again. I think we deserve that.

Minerva is gonna have its work cut out for it blocking access to both the dormant Faro Swarm and the ZD terraforming system. 

I wouldn’t be surprised if Nemesis has some sort of corruption function that becomes the equivalent of the corruption in HZD. It would be a really fun tech showcase if GG uses Zenith nanotech for machine corruption and leans into mechanical body horror.

If we’re going to Ban-Ur I really really hope they do the work to make the Banuk less problematic and more fleshed out as a culture. A quasi-Spartan society absolutely would not survive in an extreme environment, *especially* without megafauna to hunt. The Banuk characters are lovely and well-written; they deserve a society as well thought out as the Utaru or Carja. I’m honestly fine if there’s retcons or revamps to the cultural lore because the whole “outsider barges in and becomes chief” is rooted in racist, colonial tropes and we just don’t really need that imo.

The most recent footage of Death Stranding 2 (also running on Decima) has me SO excited for the visuals. GG’s gonna knock it out. The facial rendering and animation that Kojima Productions are doing looks industry-peak and I’m sure GG’s gonna match that. Aloy’s Gay Panic™️ scene on the beach in HBS is already top-tier nonverbal storytelling through animation. Digital Foundry actually just posted a really cool tech breakdown of the current Decima engine. I’m especially excited about the environmental stuff. The ocean simulations in HFW are already incredible and I hope they increase verticality in the world. I can’t wait to see the Sacred Lands in current gen graphics. 

I really love Kotallo’s DIY arm and it’s so so important to his development but Beta and Gaia now have access to Zenith nanotech, maybe give your buddy a sick upgrade hmm?

Speaking of, I can’t wait to see Beta come into her own. She’s one of the best parts of HFW and Aloy’s character absolutely shines in a sibling dynamic. 

I wouldn’t get your hopes up for a romance mechanic. Everyone’s feelings on that aside, it would be really odd from a game development perspective to just overhaul part of how the narrative develops Aloy’s character in the last act of the story. Yeah, there are flashpoints but I would argue that the presence of choice in Horizon is smoke and mirrors- cosmetic at best. Kentucky Route Zero (which you should play) does something similar where the player is given a certain amount of control over the substance of individual conversations and scenarios and it does absolutely nothing to alter the plot, by design. I think it’s the same here - this isn’t really a choice-based RPG, the flashpoints don’t really affect anything plot-wise or for Aloy’s character development. Olin is still out of the story, Nil lives, Regalla still dies one way or another. Aloy’s character development is pretty firmly on rails (think Jin Sakai, not Shepard - you get to guide some momentary character reactions but that’s it). I don’t think HBS is a testing ground either - If they were gonna introduce a romance mechanic I think they’d just do it, and not spend two years making a direct continuation of HFW’s main quest and establishing a specific romance hard-baked into the plot, complete with multiple leitmotifs for the character relationship (which is something they haven’t done before afaik) just to introduce a side quest mechanic coming in 5 years. I genuinely can’t think of any game or dev that has beta tested a major alteration to upcoming game mechanics that way - it doesn’t really make any sense in terms of developer resources, and these games are extremely time-consuming to make. I know this is a thing a bunch of people want and I can totally empathize with that! I just think it’s probably not on the table. 

I would bet money the series will bookend itself and the epilogue will involve a) the naming of Zo and Varl’s kid and b) Lis’ pendant. 

Mostly I'm just looking forward to being surprised. One of my favorite things that Horizon does is use carefully established elements in the world to pull the plot in unexpected directions and keeping the world grounded while they lean into speculative science fiction. I can't wait to see what Guerrilla is cooking up

[sloshr]

After watching through Side Order... I have a Few Thoughts.

[Spoilers ahead]

My Review of the Side Order DLC - Its little more than Gameplay.

Initial Opinion

- - - - - - - - - -

Overall; I like the gameplay mechanics initially, but the story absolutely feels lacking to me, imo. It feels like they were really banking on Side Order being Hard but... multiple of my friends finished it on their 2nd or 3rd run through the Spire.

That in itself isnt a problem! But... everyone felt sort of unsatisfied? There were no developments in the story, as we, Agent 8, were just assigned the task to Get to The Top of the Spire -> The Player Does That -> You beat a Boss -> Credits Roll (?)

On my watchthrough I literally said Please Say Sike 😭 because, dont take this poorly, but they were advertising Side Order as;

• Difficult (stated Multiple Times in basically every Trailer)

• Story Driven (You Uncover things as You Climb)

• Character and Lore Intensive (as shown by the trailers with all the concept art as well as promo art)

I dont feel like it was wrong to expect more based on how it was advertised.

But... if you complete the DLC in 1-2 runs, which is Very Much Possible, no buildup happens at all. The story was banking on the player struggling, and putting all the content behind repeat runs, which falls through and Doesnt really work/feel satisfying if the main goal is achieved in such a short time. I Feel like anyone who regularly plays Salmon Run will likely have a similar experience. And I feel kind of cheated? Because what we got was something that was Tell Not Show rather than the Show, Not Tell formula. And in my opinion, it really doesn't work as well at all. It puts all the major lore that the game has set up behind repetetive climbs (which never change btw, despite each climb being generated differently, its the same after a while) and you get about 1 Sentence of Exposition, with a Modlog from Marina if you are Lucky.

Side Order was (to me), after watching it all;

• Not Difficult, But Repetetive Gameplay (This easily runs people down, which would be fine if the tower had more than 1 setup or phase)

• Inital Story Setup with no complexities or stages. You climb the first Tower, Save Marina, Climb the Second Tower, Beat Order, and the credits Roll. In its most complex, you could fit what Side Order's Story is in 2-3 Sentences. Rather than Lore being revealed During the story, it feels Pushed to the Side as all of it is either in Text the player may never see (different climbs) or care to read (Marina's Mod Log)

• Use of Character Drops with no explaination / mention (The Agent 4 Boss, Anyone?) (This felt very Bait-y, with No Payoff)

Rating

- - - - -

If I had to give Side Order a Rating

4/10. At Best.

I am a bit disappointed with this as I feel like I was promised more, Storywise, and honestly a bit gameplay wise. I think it fails where other DLC has succeeded Due to being Built in such a way where anything engaging is stuck behind barely changing gameplay. It is not built in a way where the experience cant fail to show you whats important to the characters and the worldbuilding. It relies too much on telling you whats happening rather than the world showing you. Its too Simple, and It Doesnt Work, personally, in a series that contains Octo Expansion.

Which is Sad to me!! It had so much wasted potential and I really hope this isn't the last we're going to see of the concept, we get to see ideas actually built into the story, and... maybe find Agent 4.

Conclusion

- - - - - - - -

Tldr; Side Order had a good concept, but failed in execution for being simple and gameplay dependent, which was ultimately disappointing due to it being advertised as something more for all involved.

It was an alright attempt. The experience will just be known to me as... well. Baby's First Rouge-like. Nothing worldbreaking.

(PS, this isnt meant to be mean spirited or overly critical, I just love the Splatoon Series so I give it Tough Love. This is just my personal view on the DLC)

Thank you for Reading! Feel free to share or add any thoughts!

[pheavampire]

Astarion, Cazador and D&D vampire lore

Let’s talk about D&D vampires and some lore inconsistencies in Baldur’s Gate 3.

BG3 is not a game about vampires. It was obvious we won’t get a playable character who will be 100% vampire spawn from the handbooks - the mechanical balance would be disturbed in comparison with other characters. But we can list some weird stuff and missing aspects. For fun, for fanfiction, for nerdiness.

I still wonder why Cazador even asked Astarion if he wants to be turned. Sure, he could do that, so he could say later „ha ha you asked for it!” but still - weird. Anyway, a vampire lord doesn’t need to ask - he just bites his victim, kills it by drinking its blood and boom, a vampire spawn is made. Almost made…

… because at first the victim needs to be buried and layed in the ground before it rises. That’s the next question - how the hell did Cazador make 7000 spawns? Theoretically he needed to bury them all, dig them back/wait until they dig themselves out or something and transport them to his dungeon without being noticed. His servants could do that for him, but it still is a pretty big thing to cover. Besides…

… accordng to D&D 3.5 edition: "At any given time a vampire may have enslaved spawn totaling no more than twice its own Hit Dice" which means it was impossible for Cazador to create 7000 spawns. Sure, Baldur's Gate 3 uses 5 ed rules, but I'm sure they didn't change this one that much. (BUT! We can interpret this rule as: a vampire lord can create as many spawns as he wants, but the number of enslaved ones is limited. That's all right in this case).

That being said, Astarion is surprised when he discovers that all Cazador’s victims are spawns now. One of his dialogue options is „I thought Cazador was feeding on you”. Well yes, he had to feed on them to make them spawns Astarion, I thought you noticed that yourself 200 years ago. But let's say I understand your confusion, 7000 spawns mean Cazador's hit dice is 3500. Lol.

As a vampire spawn, Astarion should be able to regenerate even without biting someone. To be precise, he should get 10 health points at the start of every turn until he gets killed. But ok, this one doesn’t work in the sun, so let’s say it’s justified… unless the party is in the underdark, shadowlands or other dark place. But yeah, that would be too OP.

Astarion should be afraid of holy symbols, mirrors and garlic. That would be quite irritating, as he wouldn’t be able to even get near Selune's stuff or Lathander’s temple (Lathander HATES the undead, just ask poor Jander Sunstar). But let’s say the tadpole gave him immunity.

Spider climb. Imagine Astarion climbing walls or even ceilings like a damn Spiderman - this is what a regular vampire spawn can do. If the tadpole took away this ability, that’s not very nice of it.

Claws. Astarion should be able to transform his fingers into claws at will. That’s right, it works like another melee weapon.

Coffins, graves et cetera - bunk beds in Cazador's palace are a very anti-canon idea. Because D&D vampires have really traditional weaknesses, they always have to „sleep” in the ground they were buried in to recover - just like Cazador. Jander I mentioned earlier invented an un-lifehack, as he was traveling through Faerun by keeping some of the dirt from his grave in his pocket. He was scattering it in the place he wanted to rest for some time.

A vampire spawn can be controlled or banished by clerics like any other undead. That's right, when Shadowheart casts this one, Astarion should roll the dice, or else he will have to run away from her like those zombies you banished during your playthrough.

Last but not least, vampires get damage if they are in the flowing water, for example river, but you already know this one from the early access Astarion. Shame they removed it, in was a bit irritating but I loved it. It reminded me Astarion is a vampire not only in the dialogues.

That's all I can think of now. My knowledge is a mix of 3.5 and 5 ed, do with it what you want. I wouldn't mind more lore accuarte Astarion fanfics though.

Shocked Astarion reading D&D Monster Manual. Or Libris Mortis.

[infinitestarsdev]

Devlog 2024-02-09 (Episode 4 - Part 1 is out NOW!)

It's Friday! And this is a special Friday because it's a RELEASE Friday!

That's right! Episode 4 - Part 1 is now live!

Update Edit: It's also a sad day for my family. I lost someone dear to me this morning, someone even dearer to my loved ones, and my heart is aching with them for our loss. I wish things weren't the way they are. I wish I could do more to ease their suffering.

Project Details:

167,666 words in total. (That's roughly the same length as the first two Harry Potter novels combined)

825 possible choices.

Patrons can get their version over here (win|mac|lin) or here (android), and everyone else can get the full game on Steam or Itchio!

Episode 4 - Part 1 continues the story after the dramatic conclusion from Episode 3.

It introduces several new characters, several new and redrawn backgrounds, several new portraits, several new music tracks, an overhauled story controller, a new free-roam mechanic, a new star system navigation interface, a lore gallery with unlockable entries, a system for players to load custom-made stories written by other players into the game, a seasonal event (Spooktober Heist), and nearly 40K additional words of content (some being intimate content for Kiaria, Lochem and Khalil).

It also includes two very special player portraits! Thanks to the amazing ladies from Wanderlust Games, you can now play your Mah'Abeu as a younger version of Damon or Ayame from Andromeda Six! (Seriously, if you're hearing about Andromeda Six for the first time– You're about to fall in love. Go check them out and support them if your wallet allows!)

We've been working extremely hard to bring this release to you, and while we've added a ton of new things, we would have loved to add more. Sadly, we had to draw a line in the sand and release what was available.

Some of the things that we could add before the deadline that were requested by our beta testers:

MC is more knowledgeable about the Cephilusk.

Added a location hint during free-roam sequences.

Made Kiaria more Kiaria when dealing with current events.

Your Mah'Abue now crafts the notice being sent to the crew.

Several more personality options (with more on their way)

Most free-roam scenes now have the crew members touching on or hinting at the current situation.

Fixed some logic bugs with Sonia's scene.

Adjusted Andreas' scene with an additional choice if he becomes too much.

Added some additional logic and checks to the response you can give when the crew/your LI asks about how you are coping. (Might still expand on this.)

Your Mah'Abue now has more control over how they handle Nikau.

Added Lindi's music track.

An additional intimate scene for Khalil

Some of the things that we couldn't add before the deadline that will be added very soon. (over the next week or three):

Implementing some more of the Beta Tester feedback requests.

The start of Tabitha's character arc.

A free-roam scene for Lebeny, along with an additional intimate scene.

Adding a semi-intimate, more risque scene with Matthias.

Adding additional character expressions to some of the free-roam content.

Additional music tracks where there is only silence.

Missing Lore Descriptions, replacing the WiP notice with actual content.

The new trailer for Episode 4.

Some of the things that we couldn't add before the deadline that will be added down the line. (more than a month from now)

Additional backgrounds and characters.

Continuing Episode 4, including the much-anticipated Matthias Elevator scene.

Additional Lore items to unlock.

More free-roam content, more character content (Reyna and more), more intimate scenes.

Character relationship arcs (and intimate scenes) for Raymond, Matthias, Veera and Tabitha as a prioity.

Character relationship arcs (and intimate scenes) for Cephilusk, Andreas and TBD a little further down the road.

As always, despite the hours and hours and heaps of financial resources poured into the project, Infinite Stars is still entirely free! If you like what we are doing and can afford to show your support, please consider joining one of our paid Patreon tiers!

Infinite Stars wouldn't be nearly as cool as it is without the support of our amazing Patrons who believe in us!

If you can't afford to support us, that's cool. We still love you, and having you enjoy our game fills our hearts with joy! If you like the game, share it with your friends or give us a positive review to help with the visibility algorithms.

Have a peaceful weekend, enjoy the release, and go hug one of your loved ones!

[tenebrare]

Death Stranding - Higgs /sketch

Death Stranding: "Mail delivery - the game". While interesting narrative, I bailed out before reaching "Wind Farm" (location inside so called intro area) as I slipped down the cliff and not being able to fight "monsters" yet, I found I have no time to constant sneak and V spam while the monsters can just make my cargo drop and I have to run around tree and then wait and micro manage my cargo with spray and whatnot. I factually decided to bail out of the game, when I was told to that i also have to deal with a baby stress levels besides all the other micro management. This is interesting game, but not quite for me. I still think people should give this walking simulator a try - as it is unique game in many ways and online mode has come unique mechanics how other players actions can save your life (it IS single player game, but ... it is related to games lore ... about being connected and I really loved how other players even had left signs which route is safer to take or placed ways to cross rivers. there are NO other players in your game, but their actions can have impact to your world in positive ways). Would have been curious to find out the story, but .... I am one of those people, who just do not work well with all the constant "stop all your doings and press this button because X happened in game world" - Press 3+click to drink, press F to rock your baby, press left-right to balance your cargo, drop cargo to spray it, press Q to scan, press C to sneak and press ALT to hold breath, tab to read mail, press 5 to like, press F to eat a worm, press Q to scan again, press F to pick your metals, do not forget to press arrows to balance cargo and oh... try to find shelter because rain bad. That happened in span of 10 minutes, just right after i built a bridge... yeah, got to build stuff too. Fun game to those, who like micromanaging each their step, but I am more of a Dishonored kill-simulator-kind-of-player. Still I recommend to at least try it. It's... very different from the mainstream empty-shell games you get promoted by AAA nowadays. PS! See I can STILL doodle something else than Hellraiser ..... at times!

[the-passenger-if]

hi Pime! Is it too early to ask questions about your new project yet? ROs and characters and setting and stuff? Sorry if this sounds pushy, that’s not intended!

Not at all! I enjoy talking about my IFs <3

Since I'm working on two projects I'll give you a quick rundown of both of them. First,

❆❆❆Leesangre❆❆❆

This game is set in the southernmost tip of South America in a distant future after a cataclysm wipes out most of humanity and the Earth turns into a big snow globe.

The main character travels in a caravan along with their family/clan which are also the only people they have ever interacted with, 1. because there aren't a lot of human beings around, just small settlements, and 2. because their family doesn't want other people to know about the main character. The lack of contact with other human beings and their constant dependency on their family has made the main character very sheltered.

The game starts after the death of the matriarch of the clan just as the main character's big brother becomes the new leader and everyone is feeling very uncertain about the future. The family consists of the main character's father (a huge mother-hen to everyone but mostly to MC and MC's niblings); the main character's brother (who has a strained relationship with MC); the mechanic of the caravan (the best mechanic in the world, or at least that's what they proclaim); the "shaman" of the caravan (a woman the caravan adopted when she was nine, she's in her late twenties at the start of the game); the main character's nephews, two teens who are also the clan's hunters, and the preteen nibling who has yet to find what role in the clan they will fulfill (these three were given to the clan when they were six, five, and one year old and they are presumably children of another big brother MC has never met); the main character's five-year-old niece and four-year-old nibling (they are the children of MC's brother and the mechanic). The clan also adopts a guy they find passed out in the snow at the start of the game (something neither the clan nor this guy really wanted but is forced onto all of them after he finds out about the main character).

The romantic options are:

Heco (they/them) — the clan's mechanic. They are thirty years old and they prefer to be maintaining the caravan than interacting with others but they don't mind people sitting in a corner and watching them work if they aren't too distracting and promise not to touch their tools. They're also the parent of MC's youngest's niblings, but they aren't in a relationship with MC's brother and never have been. It's a bit complicated.

Mo (she/her) — the curandera or shaman of the clan. If Heco is the hands of the caravan, Mo is its soul. It's impossible not to know where she is at any given time because she's a talking machine and also the type who loves to make people laugh. Of course, her jokes are hit or miss now that everyone is mourning the clan's matriarch but Mo's sense of humor can be like a runaway freight train if she isn't paying attention. (Mo is also my attempt at the friends-to-lovers trope)

Gil (he/his) — the guy the clan saves from certain death. He's in his early twenties and speaks a language that's more common in the north of the continent, so what was he doing completely alone so down south? Even though not much is known about him, he is friendly and quick to adapt to his new life in the caravan.

This game is a trilogy and I will add a few more ROs in the next books.

Project 2 is called,

˚.༄˚.༄A Song of Sirens and Soulmates (ASOSAS)˚.༄˚.༄

ASOSAS is set in modern times (2024∼) in an alternate timeline where Sirens appeared in the fifties changing the world forever. The game starts in New York but the main character and their buddy are thrown into the Siren realm around the first or second chapter so don't expect a lot NY lore.

In this alternate timeline Sirens are considered THE beauty standard with tall and toned bodies if they are male and petite and graceful figures if they are female. Also pointy ears, cavernous black eyes, and wide mouths full of sharp teeth.

Although they prefer to live in their own dimension it isn't rare to see Sirens as movie stars, runway models, and musicians. Most humans won't ever interact with this larger-than-life creatures but a few lucky ones will get claimed by the Song of the Siren, a red dot that shows up just above a person's belly button and marks them as a Siren's soulmate. Sure, leaving the human realm means never coming back but most people will take the opportunity if it means marrying and forming a family with these impossibly beautiful (and rich) beings.

Unfortunately, the main character of this game isn't interested in any of that and has been on the run since they were twenty and they were claimed. Seven years later, their betrothed finds them in a prison cell after they and their road buddy are detained at a punk show. MC is able to convince the Siren to bring said road buddy along and off they go into the Siren realm. Now MC and their ally must come up with a plan to escape before MC's wedding day befalls them.

The romantic options are:

Spook (ze/hir) — MC's ally in this mess. They met a month before the start of the game and decided to travel together for the time being. Spook is a thirty-three year old crust punk that can't stand Sirens and the power they wield over humans. Ze's also half-human and half-Siren, something ze carefully hides behind masks and dark shades. (Non-binary RO)

Verna/Vernon "Vern" Harley (she/her or he/his) — Twenty-four year old Vern is on the same boat as MC; they are a Siren's soulmate who has just arrived to this realm. Unlike MC, however, they've completely bought into the Siren fantasy and can't wait to marry and form a big family with their betrothed. Vern might not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but they are a sweetheart and painfully candid. They are a breath of fresh air among the sneers of the Sirens. (Gender choosable RO)

Camille Abadi (she/her or he/his) — In their mid to late thirties, Camille has been married to their Siren for a longer time than they've been single. They speak with the tiniest trace of a french accent, which is hard to notice when they so seldom speak. They are very polite and attentive but a hard person to get to know on a deeper level. (Gender choosable RO)

[lokorum]

Pls rant about non romance cole…he’s my favorite character in anything, ever and it feels so sad that we never got to have a deeper relationship w him. Like the mechanics/possible lore of having a romance with a spirit are so tantalizingly interesting but no…also doubting we will see him in veil guard which leaves me so so broken …

*looks at their pile of unpacked feelings about cole*

so ૮( ◡̀_◡́)ა where to start....................

first of all uh! im not good at talking! that's why i draw phphp but i'll try my best to resurrect my memories from 2014 and share it with you!! sorry if it will sound weird, english is not my native language! 

well WELL from the begining then. i remember spending hours  more like days hhhh thinking about how weird and cool the recruiting scene with cole is? later when he is already with the inquisition, our party is either on guard around him or kinda treats him like he is helpless and needs special attention or guidance or something like that? demonising someone like him or framing them as in need of help are like textbook behavior ofc and im not here to be a hater, i just noticed it? moments with solas and varric fighting over him like a divorced couple are super cute for sure!!

but i remember being confused because excuse me, out of all of them, this guy??, this feral bat that is chilling on the ceiling like it's a lounge-zone inside Lucius' head, created especially for him?

he is confident. also a little bit nervous, a bunch mysterious and just ghostly cool. but also confident. (im not saying this confidence is not misplaced sometimes btw x) he even tells you that if you'll leave your head you'll die! what a jokester (҂ ꒦ິヮ꒦ິ)

and the whole quest with templars and envy are soooo horror coded, i love it!! it looked a bit silly, sure

(even after so many years im not able to get rid of the image in my brain phphphp) 

but it's still a very interesting quest!! dorian is ✨the bestie✨ but i'm always picking templars bc the implications of the story are just so good

1. its placed at the beginning of the game and your character is probably confused and anxious and dont yet worked out the routine of how to deal with their new title\powers + not every inquisitor character would want to be in the spotlight.

imagine you suddenly got yourself into position where a lot of people looking up to you, listening to what you saying, placing their hopes on you or waiting for you to fail? this is terrible! id 1000% just jumped out of a cliff!!! a small one, but still 

2. you meeting the guy who basically came from a place you now have unlimited access to.

he is: a) almost as confused as you are b) possibly came to this world without knowing consequences of that decision c) along the way he is figuring out how to be himself in the environment that is nothing like where he used to live. wow thats just like forced immigration *nervous laugh*

3. and let's not forget that you are meeting him inside your head and you can say to him "you look familiar".

dont know about you but apparently i dont need much to start screaming ¯(ツ)/¯

also can i just spend the moment to say that this is three (3) identical dialogue options??????????

the screenshot is from here btw

how awesome would it be to be able to figure out stuff together? to find comfort in someone, with someone who barely experienced it this way? to build on your strong sides? like "hope" for cole and i guess "unhingedness" for the inquisitor? i bet they would ground each other easily as well: cole distracting inq by being unintentionally mischievous and inq would have a notepad with cole's "firsts ____" or they would just read together. oh im such a sucker for hurt\comfort\some things cant be healed stuff uaaaaaaaaa

ALSO THE "FORGET" THING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

the drama the horror the tension!!!!!!!! you can fight me over this but heres the thought:

cole being so stressed that he is erasing\being on the edge of erasing the inquisitor's memories??????

i got the feeling that cole's confidence in the concept of "help" is, among other things, makes him being able to zoom in on something borderline obsessively? or vise versa - dismissively, not noticing "it hurts, its not for the better"? he thanks you when you promise to kill him, he cries when you do not. i swear this man (─ ‿ ─)

+quick addition bc im not entirely sure: so if i got it right, the anchor makes the inquisitor "too bright" to read? so among all the people we know about inq is the one that cole can't truly empathise on this lvl? on spiritual lvl you might say lsdkjflksdjflkj sorry!!!!! but jokes aside,this is like the perfect ground to build both comforting stories 

"someone from the party notices that cole is hanging near inq before inq do, and when asked he explains it by saying something like "dry warm skin. the air is stilled with quiet, easy to breathe. i followed the shining whispers and then i was followed no more" with the most plain face possible? "

and "today for lunch i have glass" kind of stories, like "the inquisitor is cornered and possibly bleeding and probably on the verge of passing out and they know that situation is bad and no one should follow/find them, "it's better to wait it out and deal with it on my own" kind of clown behavior. so they laugh tiredly at how pathetic they are, maybe remembering something similar from their childhood, remarks from their sibling for ex., and just trying their best to not think about how they need cole's help, cole's presence. the sense of safety that comes when he is around" 

uh!!! that wasnt neither quick or painless so i'll go make a tea wait a second please

im back!! so since i talked about the forget thing i must confess - i dont really like cole's personal quest???? again, im not complaining or anything but i remember feeling kinda empty while playing it? like deep inside me, there was something sad, but it was so far away,i coudn't even feel it properly?

both human and spirit versions of his ending made me feel like the distance between you and him lengthened, and maybe you could do something about it before but now? this "something" is missing and you're lost and can't even tell for sure if theres was a chance to do something in the first place? and cole just moved on? its super logical considering he is not a romance option but phphph so, i rarely romance someone in games, partly bc rpg tends to be a little horny and im that kind of ace who is not interested in this, partly bc i tend to pay attention to non-romanceable characters, so when i started to explore last da:i dlc and i saw cole having gf i was like "well ouch".

imagine your inq has a crush on cole but they never were able to say it clearly?

mb it was a melancholic slowburn, and your character was going through too much and felt like burdening cole with their problems would be unfair?

maybe they tried but the timing was wrong, the words felt stupid, and their hands felt too dirty, too guilty?

oh anon its been ten years and its still huuuuuurts!!!! if you following me for a while you know that im an edge lord in poor disguise so its not surprising for neither you or me that i ended up rumbling about inexplicable sadness and crushing existential guilt, but sorry for that anyway!! if anyone would want me to talk about something specific, or to draw something - im here, staring at the wall, listening to cole's banter :') thank you for the wonderful question tho, it was more than just nice to return back to this ship. im so agreeing with you about cole being the fave character from everything, but i also understand that this could mean being very unsatisfied with the way he was portrayed at some points or just with the fact that characters like him are rare so im sending you warm and tight hugs and a little sketch!! <3 

let's collectively accept the fact that dav gonna be a beautiful mess, we gonna love it (passionately), we gonna be hurt by it (not surprisingly) and COLE FOREVER WILL BE THE BEST DA CHARACTER EVER IM NOT GONNA CHANGE MY MIND FIGHT ME

[primojade]

𝐅𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐀𝐂𝐈𝐄𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄.

𝐀𝐂𝐓 𝐈𝐈: 𝐀𝐔𝐃𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐒 𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐔𝐍𝐀 𝐈𝐔𝐕𝐀𝐓. ( fortune favours the bold )

𝐒𝐂𝐄𝐍𝐄 𝐈.𝐈 : 𝐌𝐀𝐆𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐃𝐈𝐗𝐈𝐓. ( the teacher said it )

" anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new. " - albert einstein.

𝐒𝐄𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐒' 𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐘 | As a veteran AR60 player of Genshin Impact, you pride yourself as someone who knows the ins and outs of Teyvat, even studiously completing Spiral Abyss every reset, and having 100% exploration to some, if not all, of the released regions so far. Everything is fun and enjoyable, especially since Sumeru just recently debuted so you still have a lot to do!

All that ends though, when a mysterious passerby pushes you off the building of your university while playing Genshin. But instead of meeting your inevitable end, you find yourself waking up in the very world you were addicted to! 

It's supposed to be a fun dream, right? Something you could laugh at when you wake up? Right?! So, why is that you were back in AR1 with nothing but a dull blade in your inventory?!

…well, at least you still have those 700+ sunsettias and mints, Timmie's fowls…and surprisingly similar game mechanics you used to merely see on the screen before. But what should you do now? Flirt with the Genshin men??? Good lords...

"Welcome to Genshin Impact, Dreamer. Here, we can show you a happier ever after you've never had before…so, ready?"

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐘 | In which you choose to do the World Quest that requires you to meet Cyno, the General Mahamatra himself that leads to a more confusing and maybe…a bit more hopeful ending?

𝐂𝐖 / 𝐓𝐖 | Cursing, Cyno threatening you, mention of injuries but nothing too graphic, spoilers to Sumeru Archon Quest and maybe spoilers in general shskaha. No beta we die like teppei so you would def see grammatical errors. Let me know if I missed anything <3

𝐖𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄𝐒 | I think this route will probably be my most favorite of them all xD probably because Cyno and Tighnari are here lmao. Reblogs and comments are appreciated!

masterlist | prologue: that love is a fallacy | route 1: argumentum ad hominem | (alternate route) route 1.2: argumentum petitio principii

Try as you might to resist the temptation of primogems, your will is as weak and soulless as your AR1 account. Though you didn’t know if the Wish System here works the same as the one in your game, it wouldn’t hurt to be prepared just in case. Plus, you were really curious to see what the General Mahamantra looked like in real life. Tighnari himself looked so real and so unlike his 3D self, so you choose to accept the World Quest that popped out of nowhere. 

Although your caretaker didn’t seem to agree with you in the slightest. “No,” he simply said with a slight frown before tugging you down to the bed when you tried to stand. “You still haven’t fully recovered, you lummox. And you can’t be serious in meeting that man looking…like that.” 

The therianthrope then gave a brief glance at your clothes before rolling his eyes. When you looked down, you realised you were still wearing your school uniform. And so unlike how these Sumeru—or even any of the Genshin—characters intricately dressed themselves. You won't even pass as a scholar of Academia even if you say so with your getup!

It was as if Tighnari was telling you 'you would look even more suspicious in the eyes of the General Mahamatra if you meet him as you are now'. But, no! First of all, you are a certified Cyno simp, and second, you need to do the World Quest for Freemogems. You knew Tighnari was worried you might do something stupid to incur the General's ire, but if you remember Cyno’s lore in-game and how between his reputation and his own personality as what others believed greatly differs, you choose to make a gamble.

Tighnari was probably thinking you were some sort of mad scholar that Cyno was hunting or some random madman, but you knew better. Afterall, you were nearly certain Cyno wouldn't hurt you (since you weren't even a Sumeru scholar or anything that broke the rules) so he probably won't bat an eye on you that much. He would be suspicious, yes, but you have to convince them that you mean no harm.

Yeah, that's a plan! You braved yourself, excited at the prospect of meeting one of your favourite characters. 

“By the way, Tighnari,” you called him, suddenly remembering something important that you should’ve asked him earlier. “Do you know the….uh, Traveller? The outlander?”

He gave you a puzzled expression. “If you were talking about yourself, then yes, I suppose I know you just now. However, judging from your expression, you were referring to a different person, no?”

You blinked, inching close to him. “I mean, the Traveller! You know…the Honorary Knight of Mondstadt? The Hero of Liyue? Swordfish Captain of Watatsumi Island? First Sage of Buer?...Seriously?!”

“Who in the name of the Seven are you talking about?”

Judging from Tighnari’s genuine confused expression, he really has no idea who you were referring to. Which means…“Holy shit…the game hasn’t started yet,” you almost choked at this realisation.

But if the Mondstadt Archon Quest hasn't really started yet, does this mean that the Traveller was still trapped in their sleep? Or it's possible that Paimon was still teaching them speech at this time? Tighnari himself is already a Forest Watcher, which means that this timeline isn't that far from the start of the game. Right? 

Plus, Cyno looked like he's still the General Mahamatra, in contrast to his self-exile during the Sumeru Archon Quest. Meaning, it was possible that he was still loyal to the Academia rules and its Sages, and if he does have his suspicions now regarding the Grand Sage…

Good lord. This would be more difficult to handle. 

First things first, you need to meet Cyno and follow the Quest Chain. Hopefully, these random quests that popping in your Quest Menu would lead to something that could help you go back to your world.

Well, who am I kidding? Even Hoyoverse themselves said they don't plan to have an endgame yet. You scoffed.

Anyhow! Onto the Quest!

It was truly a Spartan feat for you to convince Tighnari that yes, you were fine now, and yes, you wanted to go out of this confinement and meet the man of your Quest. He even becomes frighteningly insistent that you stay in bed for a few more hours but eventually, it was all thanks to an NPC Forest Ranger whose name you can't remember calling out to him that gave you the chance to escape by diving through the door. 

While Tighmari was certainly faster and physically stronger than you are, your will and determination to get the primogems and meet Cyno is stronger than him.

"What the fu—!?"

But in your careless hurrying, you accidentally trip and literally flew down the remaining steps of Tighnari's hut. You grunted in pain as your elbow grazed down the balustres. When you looked ahead, you saw the tip of someone's toes in front of you. 

You slowly looked up, frowning, your eyes met a familiar pair of cold crimson ones. Your stomach did quick flips, and your heart nearly burst out of your chest in surprise. You didn't expect to land pathetically in front of the man you want to see today—literally!

"You…" Cyno started, looking down at you as his red eyes flashing dangerously. "...Who are you?"

"—And I specifically told you to stay in bed, but what did you do? You ran off on your own, got yourself more bruises, and had the wounds I treated to open. You even had the audacity to say you’re alright to my face–”

"Master Tighnari, I think they had enough…"

"Oh? Well, I do think they were pretty enthusiastic about listening to my lectures.”

“Bastard, do I look like I did? Ow!” 

Tighnari, who was looking all smug at you, flicked your forehead after he finished tending to your injuries once again. Curse his supersonic hearing even though you were just whispering your complaints under your breath. 

Beside you, Collei attempted to calm you down by patting your back. The girl was truly a blessing, and she's been very kind to you the moment she saw you tumbling on the ground from her Master's hut. Additionally, she looks even cuter in person; you almost want to squish her cheeks.

On the other hand, sitting at the far side of the room was the General Mahamatra himself staring intently at you like a guard dog. You tried ignoring the prickles at your skin, the lump forming at your throat at the intense way he was looking. His crimson eyes were scorching deep, as if trying to discern all the secrets you've been hiding from them. And from the way his expression shifted from nonchalance to wariness the moment he saw you, you knew that lying wasn't a safe option. 

It wasn't like you were here to cause trouble! Or break rules! You're as confused as them, if not more, so you really have nothing to fear! 

"—considering that you were now cheerful enough to dive out on your own accord when I clearly told you not to, I believe it's safe to assume that you don't have any lingering concussion from your fall. Though I suggest you stay for a few more days so I could monitor your condition—unless you want to stay in Bimarstan, that is…are you listening to me, [Name]?"

Your eyes snapped away from Cyno to look at the Forest Watcher, who was looking at you in exasperation. "Wait, I don't have any Mora on me for treatment! Besides, these wounds aren't all that serious, they could heal themselves in time." 

Unfortunately, your million Mora was gone along with all of your stuff in Inventory. Damn it.

"Mx. [Name], we don't charge payment to our patients, so don't worry about that!" Collei chipped beside you. "And when it comes to treating others, my Master is one of the best! So, you can trust him, I assure you."

Your smile becomes crooked. "That's not exactly what I'm worried about…"

Tighnari wisely ignored the both of you and turned to Cyno, crossing his arms. "And how about you? To whom do we owe the General Mahamatra a visit?" 

Cyno glances at you in a calculating way before looking back at his friend. 

"I…uh, could step out for a bit so you guys could talk in private?" You offered, hesitant.

"No need," Cyno immediately declined, for some very odd reason. "I do not intend to keep this a secret anyway, and this peculiar discovery is not part of my job as a Matra—unless it starts to pose a problem to Sumeru as a whole. But for now, any kind of opinion regarding this subject is very much appreciated as much as it was a personal request from me."

"Now, this is weird." Tighnari muttered, sending him a meaningful glance. "Is this about the suspicious domain we discovered in Dharma Forest the other day?"

Your ears perked up. Domain in Dharma Forest? Wait…don't tell me…?

Cyno nodded stiffly. "Yes, I managed to open the domain today. Inside was some kind of mechanism that opens a time trial challenge that requires me to defeat some Eremites. Then, out of sheer curiosity, I tried revitalising the petrified tree inside. It then gave me this…"

Your eyes widened like saucers when you saw what materialised in Cyno's hand. You couldn't believed what you were seeing right now!

"Is this…some kind of flower? Its appearance looked similar to the Fetid Boughs in Withering Zones but…" Tighnari inspected the 'flower' with furrowed brows. "It doesn't have the same effects. It even looked remotely harmless to me."

"Exactly my thoughts." Cyno agreed. "Since you were used to dealing with Withering Zones and this item bears resemblance, I assumed you would know what this is."

The therianthrope shrugged his shoulders. "This is the first time I had seen this kind of…thing, in all honestly, so I have no idea. Have you tried asking the Sages? Surely, they could provide a reliable answer than myself."

After a few moments of silence, the General clearly hesitated, pursing his lips. Tighnari sighed in defeat, but an understanding smile crossed his expression. "Alright, I get it. No need to ask the Sages. This is a…personal business afterall."

"This is an Artifact," you said absentmindedly. "Though I have no idea if this is a four star or a five star artifact…" 

No wonder why your Original Resin was 140/160 when you checked it earlier! It's because Cyno unknowingly used it on a Domain without knowing what it truly was.

Collei, who was silently listening to her elders patiently, looked at you in confusion. "...Artifacts? You know what that is, Mx. [Name]?"

Both of the scholars looked at you in interest.

You scracted your neck, debating whether to tell them about the in-game stuff or made something up. Though you quickly ruled out the latter. Lying wouldn't do any good especially since Cyno could easily tell if you do. It would be safer to be on their good graces instead of making them more suspicious of you.

"Uh…well, this is a part of an Artifact set of Gilded Dreams. And this particular piece is known as a Flower of Life, named as Dreaming Steelbloom." You explained, your expression sour as if you swallowed a lemon. You thank the Archons that there were days you were bored and resinless enough to read actual lore inside those artifacts! 

"You said this flower is just a piece of a whole set, yes? Which means there are other pieces out there?" Tighnari curiously asked.

You nodded animatedly. "Yeah. There are five pieces each set. The Flower of Life, the Plume of Death, Sands of Eon, Goblet of Eonothem and the Circlet of Logos. They could be found in the same domain as the one you got this from. There are another set of artifacts you can get in that domain, too—the Deepwood Memories."

"And what can these artifacts do, exactly?" Cyno's shoulders tensed, waiting for your answer with a glare. He looked absolutely terrifying as if you didn't answer him truthfully, he would drag you across the desert before he reenacted his punishment for you.

"Oh, um, well…" You nervously blinked and you really tried your best to explain the purpose of artifacts, how they work, and even about their set bonuses. As scholars of the Academia that runs on logic and explanation of stuff, you don't freaking know if they even believed your crap, but at least you were telling the truth? 

When you were done, you were extremely out of breath so Collei—bless her soul—kindly gave you a drink to clear your parched throat.

"—But the artifacts domains are absolute trash that runs on pure RNG luck." You muttered angrily, remembering the months you spend on domains crying in frustration just to get trash artifacts. "It would be a miracle to get good stats, and even purer divine intervention for them to roll on what you actually need. Tch."

The three of them shared a look. "I have no idea what an RNG is and what stats are you talking about, but if I guessed correctly with what you said," Tighnari paused, hands on his hips in contemplation. "There are other…artifact domains there are, and not just the one we discovered in Dharma Forest, correct?"

You nodded. "Yeah, but as of now, other artifact domains are located in Mondstadt, Liyue and Inazuma. The other domains I know that were available in Sumeru are the Talent Level-up and Weapon Ascension Domains…though I don't know if they would exist right now."

"What do you mean?" Cyno asked, his eyes narrowing.

Because my Map is not working right now! You cried inwardly, but you just shrugged at him.

"[Name], I'm curious about one thing," Tighnari mused, his ears twitching. "Judging from your expressions, and since Cyno hasn't stopped you yet, you must be telling the truth. But how did you know about all of this artifact stuff in the first place? I'm certain there are no books in the House of Deana about the things you just said, so all of this are new to me, and I could say the same for our General here—which is saying something."

If Cyno himself is not familiar with how these artifacts work, then how did you know? Tighnari seems to ask silently.

"Um," you shifted to your seat uncomfortably, aware of the three pairs of eyes watching your movements like a hawk—or a guard dog. "I…can't tell. At least not yet."

Collei's jaw dropped. "But why?" 

"Because the knowledge tied to these artifacts could cause unwanted chaos should it fall in the wrong hands. And I'm sure you, as scholars of Academia, know how dangerous knowledge of the unknown could be, right?" You groaned. "So, please, just until I figure out stuff I need to do, I should keep as much knowledge as possible. But believe me! I really meant no harm!"

Cyno stood up from his seat and approached you, his crimson eyes narrowed into crescents. "You…do realised that once the Academia knew about this, they could force us Matra to interrogate you whether you 'figured out stuff' or not, right? This is a dangerous gamble you were taking, outlander."

At his silent threats, chills run down to your spine and goosebumps rose from your skin. But to his mild surprise, you persevere and decide to meet his cold gaze headon. "You won't do that."

"What makes you say that so confidently? You must be aware of my position in the Academia, and the power I hold." He challenges again.

You shook your head, scoffing. "Yes, but you were doubting the Academia now, right, General? Otherwise you would report that 'suspicious domain' to the Sages instead of going to Tighnari for help. Even more so about asking our opinions, especially me who you barely know."

You realised this earlier. Even though the 'game' timeline hasn't started yet, or at least, the Archon Quest of Sumeru is not yet happening, Cyno had his suspicions about the Academia already. His loyalty was starting to falter (or in better terms, his own sense of justice is being tested by the same people he served), and he wasn't sure if he could still trust them with an unknown discovery, so in his confused state, he had gone to see one of his most trusted confidants—which is this Fennec Fox therianthrope here.

This is where you were confident. Cyno, as his lore in-game said, would only hunt those who rulebreakers of the Academia. And only a few of them were even more worthy of his visit. 

Though you weren't quite sure if your knowledge about 'artifacts' would be considered as 'getting his interest'. In any case...

His emotionless eyes looked more of orange than red up-close, and it was beautiful despite them glaring at you. 

"Okay, that's enough for you two." Tighnari holds his hands up tiredly and gently pushes Cyno away from scaring you further. "We will not question you for now about the origins of these artifacts, then. Just be aware that Cyno might not feel the same as I do, but rest assured I'll talk to him later." He rolled his eyes.

The young man huffed, crossing his arms before ignoring his remarks. "In any case, we need to investigate these other domains. And you…are coming with us."

"What." You deadpanned.

Tighnari ignored you, too. "I agree. These domains might pose a threat later, so it's much safer to conduct investigation as much as possible as the first ones who discovered them. And we need to prepare a lot of things if the other domains have challenges awaiting for us as well."

"Wait—!"

"It would be best if we split up. It'll save us some time covering all areas in the desert and the rainforest tracking their location." Cyno added thoughtfully, glancing at you. "It's best if I take this person with me. I could keep an eye on them and their actions well enough if were together."

"Hey, stop ignoring me—!"

"Are you seriously planning to drag them across the desert?" Tighnari gave him a disgusted look. "They were better off with me in the rainforest. Besides, they were still injured. They needed to rest first."

"Oi, does my opinion don't matter here at all?"

As the two scholars banter back and forth about who you should go with, the Paimon Menu lit up again. And you saw Quest Complete at The Fox and the Jackal World Quest. Followed by a series of rewards that went tumbling down your Inventory when you checked. 

[Username]

(No Signature)

Adventure Rank: 2

Adventure EXP: 20

World Level: 0

OMG! YOU'RE FINALLY OUT OF THE AR1 JAIL! Is this for real?!

But before you could celebrate your apparent victory, a new quest suddenly appeared again. And this time…it was quite different than the others you've seen before.

"Huh…?" Your jaw dropped when you read its contents.

The Fox and the Jackal II

4m

Choose who to Obtain between the Verdant Strider "Tighnari" and Judicator of Secrets "Cyno" to your party. Choose only one.

Quest Chain Rewards: 250 Adventure EXP, 150 Character EXP, 2 Hero's Wit.

You could obtain them to join your party?! Here?! For free?! Is this freaking true?!

How the hell does this game really work now? They're giving out five stars characters like this so easily? Holy shit.

Route 1.1.1: Go with Tighnari to the domains in the rainforest.

Route 1.1.2: Go with Cyno to the domains in the desert.

TAGLIST (open! Send a dm or ask to be added :3) | @xinii , @maehemthemisfit , @abvolat , @crazypriestess , @ghostsaysno , @kittence , @unabashedlyminiaturetyrant , @xiyanin , @toasterinabathtub , @sketcheeee , @fuoon , @luvwukong , @salty-salty , @rosebatsc , @inky8 , @thegeekact , @almighty-raiden-shogunate , @isuckat-avery-thing , @perhapsabitgirlypop , @2cuteforyourlies , @stxrgxzxr , @elsoleil , @tsukkinoyya , @mkaella , @celi-alika , @tiffthescales , @blurr3db3rry , @messyserver , @shadowmist0706 , @chin-chii , @observation-subject-753 , @clovers-anxiety , @shizunxie , @lleoll , @shoujishu , @uwu-panic , @forgotten-blues , @chaneylovesfangirling , @enma-reblogs , @cookielovingalien , @iruiji , @samarill , @definitionofsad , @spynerr , @bigcandlesmolbrain , @universal-rose , @feverish-dove , @inlovewithwaffles ... (if ur username is bolded, it means i cant tagged u :(( maybe its in ur settings? Also lmk if i missed anyone cause im such an idiot sometimes shsh)

[fuji-sen]

Just played WuWa (Wuthering Waves)

Personal opinions ✨:

— Gameplay: I love the gameplay since it's so fun and based on other overworld gameplay from other games, it's different. I'm definitely going to use Genshin to compare WuWa, not cause I want to, but it's honestly the other game I know of the same genre, of course GI and WuWa aren't the same but still same genre and similar mechanics and goal.

WuWa has a three person team, you can easily switch over them even while gliding! and in-battle, it's actually recommended to keep switching characters. WuWa has a fighting mechanic where you use echoes, sometimes to deal damage by turning into monsters for a few seconds! or sometimes to deal support and stuff like that.

— Characters/Character designs:

Scar 💕 nothing else (cause legit, clothes, hairstyle, color scheme, the scars, his eyessss it's just- *chef's kiss* also just a sucker for two-toned hair!)

Fem!Rover is pretty cool. 👑 tho personally I think it would be cool if she didn't have that pony tail or awkward long hair at the back, short haired girls are badass (of course long haired ones are too!)

Though looking at Male!Rover, I think the clothes could use a bit more work or maybe changes.

NPCs don't feel like your usual standard npcs, everybody doesn't look copy-paste, there's no generic body shapes, cause there's an npc with muscles, a more lanky one, the clothes aren't similar to the point of copy paste -or maybe I haven't noticed- but there's that guy with the yellow top, clothes are different in terms of aesthetic, there's that cultural look, somewhat sci-fi or modern look, and cute aesthetic like virina and stuff, I just can't find the right words today-- sorry

— Lore:

Hard to judge the lore since there's only one arc and it's the first patch and all and I genuinely want more lore to compare it like maybe 3 updates worth?

But WuWa has an interesting premise or idea, considering it uses vibration in the story and gameplay.

The Story is interesting, especially with that one village where Scar tells u that creepy ass story.

[yanderes-galore]

Hiii! Love your works a ton <3 Can I request a yandere concept for my boi Levi from fear and hunger?

Looking into his lore is sad because all he's ever known is war/trauma and now he has to deal with... the festival- What's worse is he is only about my age too :( But yes, I'll see what I can do for him! I enjoy writing Funger despite how dark it is, lol

Yandere! Levi Jořdán Concept

Pairing: Romantic/Platonic

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Obsession, Trauma, Unhealthy coping mechanisms, Drug use mention, Violence, Murder, Stalking, Mentions of war related trauma, Blood, Apathy to death, Corpse mention, Death, Overprotective behavior, Dubious companionship, Jealousy mentioned.

I already feel like, regardless of his intentions Levi is going to come off cold and distant in his obsession.

He is one of the youngest contestants of the game and most of his life was literally as a drafted soldier at a young age.

Not only that but his father killed his mother and he was put in an orphanage before being drafted.

He actually grew up where the Termina Festival takes place, too.

Levi is a character I imagine would come off rather broken.

It would take time before he could cling to anyone, be they friend or romantic partner.

However he isn't going to be as hostile as Pav, just distant and out of it.

The drugs running in his system all the time doesn't help either.

Although at the same time he's just so scared.

You're most likely a contestant too and find him cowering in a house, expecting you to kill him.

Yet once you show you have no intentions of harming him he'll decide tagging along with you may be for the best.

While I do think Levi is distant at times, trying his hardest to ignore the voices in his head like you, he wants to be able to rely on someone to get through this.

He's solitary but appreciates the company... safety in numbers.

He struggles with friends and struggles to talk with others, including you.

Not only that but he has some self worth issues to top it all off.

Levi wouldn't understand why you pay attention to him.

He appreciates it but doesn't get why you try so hard to protect him.

Although he is happy he doesn't have to attack you.

In terms of the type of yandere Levi would be I can see him as clingy, paranoid, and protective.

The moment you become party members he feels obligated to keep you alive as long as he can.

With his skills in firearms it shouldn't be too difficult... hopefully.

Levi struggles to hold long conversations with you but slowly gets better at it as you encourage him.

You would obtain his obsession by slowly encouraging him out of his scared shell.

You're both scared, yes, but finding comfort in one another soothes you both.

This connection as teammates would cause Levi to view you in two different lights, depending on your preference.

Levi can either see you as a partner to fight alongside and a friend to aid him in hopefully surviving this festival (Platonic).

Or Levi can see you as a romantic interest, someone he didn't think he'd ever have the chance of having.

Levi also appears to be someone who has a chance to be a horrific threat when he finds his obsession.

I imagine before he even met you he felt drawn to you and followed you before hiding away to be found.

Plus with the constant mental strain of the voices, his trauma, and his fear... he'd be desperate to keep the one he loves safe and may even hurt other contestants.

He says he doesn't want to hurt anyone.

But he won't hesitate as much when he sees another contestant try to take a shot at you.

His response is simple.

*BANG*

The blood doesn't affect him, the corpse doesn't either.

All he knows is you could've been torn from him like so many others.

The voices only encouraged him to stop that from happening.

Levi is ashamed when you catch him try to... "relieve his withdrawal symptoms"

It's just that he's had no other way to cope with his pain-

Although... you don't judge him.

Based on what he's told you, he's been through a lot, especially now.

You instead try to help him through it.

His urge to take the needles lessens when you distract him.

But he can't give it up completely.

As a romantic yandere I imagine Levi struggles with affection.

Yet like a drug, when he first hugs you he craves for more.

When you're alone and safe, Levi encourages you to hug him.

He doesn't really to let go... ever.

Levi would also be hesitant to kiss you but would do so for the same reasons.

If he just sees you as a friend he's less affectionate but certainly still enjoys hugs.

Killing for you to protect you soothes the voices in his head just a bit.

The Festival makes him yearn for the death of his fellow contestants.

Protecting you... satisfies such an urge.

Plus, it keeps you and him safe...

So he'll head into battle if it means the survival of both of you.

Losing you in the Festival may break Levi.

He becomes overcome with the urge to avenge you and the voices become too strong for him.

It wouldn't be that surprising if he got rid of the rest of the contestants if they took you away.

Another thing to think about is if you became Moonscorched.

Levi would struggle with the idea of that... he'd also struggle with the idea of himself becoming Moonscorched in front of you.

Levi doesn't want you scared of him.

You trusted him enough to accept him into your party.

He's going to try his best to prove his worth to you because of that.

Plus... he loves you, one way or another.

If you had other party members then Levi may cling to you more.

Even more so if you picked him as your first party member.

He doesn't trust them but will fight beside them because they're following you.

Levi is loyal to you.

He'd kill to defend you as an ally and would do anything to see you trust and smile at him.

He hopes you'll reciprocate how he feels towards you.

Be it his feelings of companionship or romance.

If not... then he can hope that changes, right?

You don't have much time in this festival... so maybe make the best of it? With him?

Levi would never want to turn his guns on you.

He doesn't want you to hate him, either.

Levi would be a yandere who feels he should give you everything he has to offer.

It means a lot to him that you haven't decided to kill him... instead choosing to help him through everything...

In return, he'll kill for you like he's your weapon... because in the end he feels he's yours to use.

[linkito]

HI HELLO HI. dumping these here :3

🎨🌓🌿

THIS IS SO LATE LOL BUT—

🎨 favorite piece of fanart? link it!

Oh god. Oh geez. That’s so hard to judge. I’ll just judge it based on what’s saved on my phone.

Obviously I adore applestruda’s art, it’s always so stunning. This particular piece of Scar from sl has been my phone background since the finale. I absolutely love it.

Next is this piece by skimmeh of stareater au Scar and Grian who I ADORE. I love their Grian he is so creature and pesky. And this specific piece is just so cute. I love the hug under the jacket specifically, the clinginess of it. (it reminds me of how I hug my own bf lol)

And then this particular frame from doody and maruu’s ddvau — I am such a sucker for civilian Grian in this comic. Something about him having a regular, adorable, mundane crush on his coworker Scar amidst a literal superhero chaos au is just… so precious to me?? and this frame of him dreaming of being happy and in love is so— aughhhhh. I use this as my pfp in a few places. I love it.

and then of course general love to some of my other favorite artists like ange whose art always emotionally destroys me and looks so dang soft, plume whose art I just recently found and im obsessed with their expressions, and nox and jas for always spoiling us with desert duo every day and undoubtedly more artists too agdjdhdjfk

🌓 opinions on the watcher lore?

oh I love watcher lore. I specifically love when it’s not overt, when it’s sprinkled in and subtle. but I also love the overt stuff don’t get me wrong.

for personal headcanons, I usually imagine Grian as an escaped watcher-in-training with all of the evo members carrying their own sort of trauma related to watchers. BIG fan of everything Martyn does in the life series too. I literally cheer when the dramatic voice starts playing hehe

🌿 any favorite interpretations?

hmmm this is vague so I’m not sure exactly what it was meant to ask but…

One of my favorite things is the way time is interpreted in @lovesick-x-prince’s Nobody Feels Like You?? if that makes sense??

the fic takes place in third life and I believe it’s written like the events took place over the course of about a year? and the space between places is vast, takes several days to travel across the whole server. and minecraft mechanics are seamlessly worked in, with things like insta-breeding animals and inventory management being minecraft-adjacent but not strange at all. it’s a game but it’s also very realistic and brutal and intense and I seriously love it.

but it’s something about the time specifically, about it being so long, like a lifetime away from home (although they don’t remember home in this fic). I really like that.

And then on a completely unrelated note, I just generally love the headcanon of Grian, Pearl, and Jimmy being siblings. Not even necessarily blood-related, but found family, found flock. It fits them all really well.

ahem OK WOW THAT WAS LONG SORRY IT TOOK FOREVER TO REPLY LOL

[thesmumbo]

Smumbo's top 10 games he happened to play in 2022

Not necessarily games that were released in 2022, just my favorites that I played for the first time last year.

10: Night in the Woods (2017)

by Alec Holowka, Scott Benson, and Bethany Hockenberry

Peak fall vibes game. Night in the Woods features a compelling mystery and some great spooky moments. The setting and characters really resonated with me, so I got a lot out of it.

9: The Pedestrian (2020)

by @skookumarts

Pleasant puzzle game inspired by the signage that surrounds us in our day-to-day lives. Some of the puzzles were quite difficult, and I kind of dislike the direction the game took in its last act, but it was still a very fun and unique experience.

8: South of South Mountain (2022)

by @colorbomb

Cute & hilarious visual novel with a fantastic art style. I could not stop laughing throughout the whole experience.

7: Portal Reloaded (2021)

by PORTANIS

From a pure gameplay standpoint, this was a very satisfying sequel to Portal 2, and it's possibly the closest we'll ever get to a Portal 3. Portal Reloaded introduces a third portal which allows you to travel to the same place at a different time, so certain things have been moved/removed. It gets really complicated, and I’m amazed this was able to be created as a free standalone mod for Portal 2.

6: Frog Detective: The Entire Mystery (2022)

by Grace Bruxner and Thomas Bowker

Approximately 3-4 hours of pure, unadulterated joy and whimsy. I can’t believe it took me this long to play Frog Detective, but I’m so glad I did. Everything about these games resonated with me strongly.

5: OneShot (2016)

by @girakacheezer, @nightmargin, and Eliza Vasquez

A transcendent experience. Explores the unique ways in which video games can tell stories, and the nature of free will. Features some interesting meta game mechanics which require you to interact with files outside of the game. The visuals and soundtrack are spot-on as well. Weird how there’s so many great RPG Maker games which work so well in spite of the engine.

4: Scorn (2022)

by Ebb Software

An incredible audiovisual experience. I liked the gameplay too, even though it seems like a lot of people were disappointed by it. I'm amazed that a game like this even exists. Absolutely oozing with atmosphere and symbolic meaning. The story spoke to me on an incredibly deep level despite lacking words, or even any semblance of humanity.

3: What Remains of Edith Finch (2017)

by Giant Sparrow

One of the greatest games ever made. All of the vignettes and set-pieces throughout the game are flawlessly paced, with a wide variety of gameplay and visual styles. Packed with detail, made with love, and so emotionally resonant. I loved this game.

2: Bloodborne (2015)

by From Software

For years, I would try to play Bloodborne whenever I had access to a PlayStation 4, but I wasn’t able to do a full playthrough until 2022. It lived up to the hype. This is my favorite From Software game, and it’s already one of my favorite games of all time. I really hope this gets a remaster/PC port some day. It’s a masterpiece.

1: SIGNALIS (2022)

by @rose-engine

One of the greatest horror games I’ve ever played. Amazing visuals and atmosphere, fascinating world and lore, and a captivating, mind-blowing cosmic horror sci-fi story. I especially loved the evocative UI designs throughout. Highly recommended if you like Silent Hill, Resident Evil, Dead Space, PS1 style games in general, or if you have even a passing interest in survival horror. This is my #1 game of 2022.