#nomadic firs

[ebysse]

sev…now in 3d.. (was made for art referencing but went overboard)

(you can view the model here !! )

[mesapies]

Canon lgbtq+ avatar characters

Korra and asami - bisexual

Kya - lesbian

Kyoshi - bisexual

rangi - lesbian

Zeisan (sozins sister) and her lover Rioshon - sapphic (I think zeisan is a lesbian but I'm not 100% sure)

Mingxia and her gf Melin - sapphic

Zenko (left) and his named husband - gay

Katara saved zenko and their daughter chio from a fire nation attack

Akuudan and tayagum - gay

Akuudan and his husband tayagum were water tribe warriors that helped avatar yangchen

Hua and Rose - sapphic

from the avatar legends the roleplaying game - core book. Rose was a wealthy girl who purse was attempted to be stolen by Hua a firebending criminal but they later fell in love

Dalja Rose - trans(I think)

from the avatar legends the roleplaying game - core book. Attended fire academy fir girls when they realized they didn't truly feel like a girl.

Jiang - gay

From adventure booklet: the burning fuse. He's a detective from republic city who gained airbending through the harmonic convergence

Junyi - gay

from the avatar legends the roleplaying game - core book. He was a earth nation Outlaw during the time of roku. Hes was swordsmith who fell in love with one of his clients. The two men were set to run away together, but his lover's wife, the mayor of the town, discovered their affair. She had her husband killed and pinned the crime on Junyi. (Messy as hell)

Makittuq - trans woman

from the avatar legends the roleplaying game - core book. She's northern water tribe girl from the tims of roku who knew she assigned the wrong gender since birth. When her family didn't accept her she connected with sports who did

Massak and nyn chei - sapphic ex lovers

from the avatar legends the roleplaying game - core book. During the time of roku, Massak was a swt boatwright and inventor and he ex lover nyn chei was a fire nation inventor and engineer who'd inventions helped create the new fire navy coal fuled fleet.

Mayu - trans man

from the avatar legends the roleplaying game - republic city. From republic city him and his friends Yuka and Saya ran away together after mayu came out to his traditional fire nation family who didn't accept him.(im think Yuka is non binary as well)

Mosi and his husband sayako - gay

From adventure booklet: pirate of crimson sails. From a fire nation colony as a earth nation guy. Mosi as an adult became a pirate working to go against azulon. He later fell in love with a firebender, sayako. They married and had a daughter, lily

Sunlin - non binary

from the avatar legends the roleplaying game - quicksart. They were a joyful and idealistic orphan from Harbor City, and a former member of the Fire Finches during the late stages of the Hundred Year War

Wen - non binary

From avatar generations. Wen was an Earth Kingdom archaeologist broadly interested in relics. They explored the four nations in pursuit of their studies.

Netxflix Oma and shu - sapphics

Aiwei (left) - said to be gay but I couldn't find anything confirming

Jargala (right) - her artist said that she's pansexual but there's nothing confirming it

Unnamed gay air nomads and fire nation sapphics(getting arrested) from when kya was explaining to Korrasami the different views on gay ppl in the different nations

[ratsoh-writes]

What kind of meals/food can you only find in Ebbott? (And be specific! Don't just say "magic" Ratsoh)

lets start with a list of all old (and some new) ebott only crops and animals:

Powder shrooms: these are gears favorite mushrooms. It’s a small honey colored mushroom with a black circle on the head. They have a very nice buttery taste and can be eaten raw but are best as stuffing for savory dishes. They get the name because they dry fast and the powder was used as flour for the nomads. They also grow like weeds and are easy to maintain

Snap root: it was showcased in the 1k event. It’s a spiny purple skinned root with a brown flesh. It gets its name from the way the vines “snap” up when sunlight hits it. The root has a lovely taste like a cross between pumpkin, sweet potato, and nutmeg and is mostly used in pies and sweet dishes

Crab “apples”: a fruit shaped like a crab. It’s technically not an apple despite the similar taste. It’s the most common fruit of the underground and the farmtale valley. The fruits are slightly sour and rarely larger than the palm of a small hand. The most common shape is the crab shape, but they also come in ducks, pyramids and spirals.

Flossy sticks: it’s a celery like vegetable. The plant looks like a normal leafy bush with very long stems, but as soon as you cut one stem off, it explodes into thousands of tiny floss like strands. They can be boiled into pasta, dried and powdered to be used as flour, or eaten raw. They have a crisp lemon and basil like taste.

Twigs: nobody knows why the vegetable is called this because it looks nothing like a twig. It’s a large orange long cucumber like vegetable. Normally about 3 feet long and 6 inches wide. It has a woodsy tea leaf taste to it. Also puréeing the flesh and mixing it with alcohol is what makes drinks that can temporarily change hair and eye color.

Lion lily: the fruit is named after the striking maned flowers that come before it. The flowers look like lilies but at the base of the flower is a fluffy golden “mane” of cotton strands. The fruit is the size of a tangerine and is golden and perfectly round with a large pit in the middle. It has an extremely sweet taste and soft juicy flesh. It’s so sweet it often doesn’t need sugar added when used in cakes and pies.

Golems salad: a massive fkn head of kale. Like this thing is freaking the size of a car. It’s a magical variety that grows when eight heads of kale are planted in a circle, and carefully nurtured by a golem monster each day. The result is that monstrosity. Overnight the kale comes together, morphing into one plant and will grow to monstrous sizes. It’s said the bigger the salad the stronger the golem

Tumblers: it’s identical to a normal cabbage and tastes like a normal cabbage, but if you wait too long to harvest it, it will literally jump out of the ground and run away at the vibrations of footsteps. It also hisses.

Sweet salt: a spice from the underground that is ground from the seeds of the fir trees that grow in snowdin. It’s very sweet and is described to taste like a blend of brown sugar, cinnamon and black pepper. Tastes like gyftmas

Gyftmas ornaments: the same seeds you can get from snowdins fir trees can also be peeled and pickled. They make a lovely sweet sour treat and are usually dyed to match gyftmas colors.

Tarotile: a flat leaf from a magical plant related to poison ivy. The plant is toxic to humans but delicious to monsters. It’s banned outside of ebotts shores, and has to be labelled very clearly before being sold. Monsters describe it as tasting like a delicious wild berry blend but with a leafy texture. Makes a delicious tea and is wonderful in sweet salads

Sea eggs: an ebott only variety of seaweed will grow these pockets of soft cucumber like fruit in the stalks. Reportedly all the sea monsters have seen and harvested this plant before the crash. It tastes a bit more sour and citrusy than a normal cucumber but has all the texture and water content of one. Weirdly enough there’s nothing magic about this plant. It just likes ebott

Cattails: not to be confused with the non magical reeds that grow near water, cattails is a popular vegetable grown in ebott. It prefers dryer land, only wanting water every few days. It resembles a golden long grass, and when it’s ready to harvest, the grass ends open up to reveal a fluffy thick fiber inside. The result is a pretty feathery plant resembling a cats tail, hence the name. Pull the fibers and on the ends are little grains that are boiled to use a porridge, a flour substitute, or the binding agent of ebotts famous lion jello.

Heartyheads: a thick leafy bush, what makes it classed as magic is that it literally turns into rose quarts when exposed to fire. But it’s not reliable as a source of quarts since it slowly turns back when cooled down. The young leaves can only be eaten raw but are an amazing source of iron and are said to help with inflammation. This plant can only be killed by being dug out of the ground and left to dry out.

Fizzlers: a tomato like plant that grows small baby tomato sized pink, purple and blue fruits (ornamental ones only for blue) the fruit is a key ingredient in fizzy drinks in place of carbonation. The fruit produces lots of bubbles when exposed to water. They’re delicious and taste just like that fake grape flavor humans love

Gauzeberries: a berry that came from the outer-AUs. They all say they found the mysterious bush growing on the asteroids of the asteroid belt they orbited. The bush has silver white leaves, is very small, rarely growing higher than 2 feet, and produces small white berries encased in a gauzelike silk pouch. The plant only grows in cold temperatures and must be kept in fridge rooms with natural sunlight any month except winter. The berries have a crisp grape like taste and when eaten, causes one to float a few inches off the ground for an hour

Rougish grapes: this is a grape variety developed by two monsters from birdfell, and the rights bought by harpy. It’s a very large crimson red grape, each individual fruit nearly the size of an apricot, and is able to be harvested from summer to fall. The grapes have a sweet but peppery taste and are best fermented into wine. They are also proven to be amazing with hair loss.

Baited breath: a small thistle-like herb that grows beautiful thorny blue flowers. The flowers when they open in the mornings make a sighing noise, like someone exhaling. The seeds of this plant are sweet and aromatic, so are often added to a wide variety of dishes. They were also historically chewed on to clean teeth and are known to help humans and monsters alike recover from cavities

Dragons breath: the larger cousin to bated breath, this large thistle like herb grows to five feet and can make thorny black flowers the size of a humans head. The dragons breath flowers let out a brief puff of flame when they open in the morning, and their seeds are large and spicy in flavor. A very popular snack through all of ebott. They are also ground into a spice called dragons hoard.

Whimselites: this is a small bundle of leaves on a whimsot plant, a low growing vine. It was found in every underground au, and continues to be grown and harvested in the underground. If new leaf growths aren’t harvested, eventually the little bundles open up and pop off the mother plant to start a new one. They go great in salads and taste a lot like rocket leaves.

Snails Bane: the plant looks like a rock, but if you step on it, it’ll squish down secreting a snail like slime. It’s also very toxic to snails and should never be kept near them. The plant when cooked, is cut open and left to dry in the sun, before being sliced and put into stews as a flavoring agent. It tastes like chicken and is a favorite among ebotts vegetarians.

Loomy runners: a small magical radish that has two large roots at the end of its bulb. When exposed to fire, the radish will stand up on its roots and run away like a wobbly baby learning to walk. It must be cut up in pieces before being eaten, and sometimes the radish pieces will still flip around in the oven so covered baking dishes are recommended

Garwins Gourd: a large twisted gourd native to farmswap, garwins gourd is an attractive flamingo pink color when ripe and has a sweet taste not unlike a sweet potato. It can be cut up and puréed for pies or stews, boiled and mashed, or sautéed, but it cannot be eaten raw as heat is needed to bread down the thick fibers of the raw vegetable. The gourd also can be dried and is used as a cute storage container by many farm monsters. In recent years, fans of the plant have been able to grow yellow and orange varieties

Bloodroot: edible by monsters, but must be strained several times to be safe for human consumption, bloodroot is a thick large carrot like root that “bleeds” a crimson liquid when cut. The root eaten on its own tastes like a woody earthy grape mixed with a parsnip. It strangely smells like beef until cooked. The reasons for this is that the plant uses an animals digestive tract to strip the thick outer coat on its seeds. And when they come out the “other end” they can safely sprout when freed from their confines. Carnivorous animals are drawn to the root

Claymore mushroom: if directly stepped on by something heavy, this large blue grey mushroom will explode into large chunks catapulted into the air at speeds of up to 15 mph. It’s native to the factory monsters and farm AUs. The farmtale monsters made a winter sport of catapulting the mushrooms before the crash. The mushroom can be safely harvested by cutting it at the base of the stem, rendering it non-exploding.

Triangle of the coast: a magical cousin to broccoli and cauliflower, the triangle is a triangle shaped broccoli like growth that grows directly in the sand of beaches, and is farmed along a section of ebotts coastline in the winter months. The vegetable is a yellowish green color and tastes just like young broccoli. And for some reason, when picked, it secretes a pheromone that attracts crustacean sea creatures. so it’s also used as fish bait and a vegetable

Ferris-weeds: a cousin to the yarrow herb, Ferris weeds are a magical variety native to the farm and Drake AUs. It’s a tall growing herb, reaching up to 10 feet in height, and has a beautiful pale pink flower in the spring and summer. It’s mainly used to line fences as decor, but the flowers can also be eaten raw, pickled, or sautéed. What makes it magical is that it’s known to provide a full days worth of vitamin D in one meal, no matter the amount of flowers eaten. No one knows how the plant accomplished this

Pygmy pomegranates: this trees only been an official breed in the last five years. Developed by a monster from farmtale, Pygmy pomegranates are a cross breed between crab apples and standard pomegranates. They are perfectly dome shaped with a circle top and a completely flat bottom. The fruit is small, onky the size of a child’s fist, and full of orange pomegranate seeds with a purple skin. They taste just like a normal pomegranate

Deaths pearl: a small bundle of leaves, found deep in the ocean. The roots and lower halves of the leaves are pitch black, while the tips are a transparent blue. The vegetable gets its name from seafell, where a fraction of monsters fought to the death with a sea creature for a patch of the plants. This vegetable is completely edible from its roots, leaves, stems and seeds. It tastes very similar to celery mixed with cucumber. Nowadays it’s cultivated by sea monsters all along ebotts coast and is considered a staple vegetable due to being able to grow year round.

Star seeds: contrary to the name, this is not from the outer AUs but was an underground crop. The seeds of an echo flower are the plants only edible part, and are ground into a fine iron filled flour. They’re rather bitter though, so bread made from them nowadays is often paired with cheese to flavor it.

Spiderbloom: pollinated only by spiders, this plant flowers in the fall and produces fruits in the winter. It creates an eerie black and purple blossom who’s pollen only sticks to spider silk in order to pollenate. The fruits have a soft flesh and taste a bit like figs and blueberries.

Golden flowers: a favorite of the royals, and ebotts national flower and crop. Golden flowers are a beautiful gold magic buttercup that can be dried and turned into tea. They have a lovely effect of softening the hair and skin, and humans claim the tea helps with acne. It’s delicious, sweet and has small hints of lemon in the taste. The flowers are mostly indoor plants as they burn up in direct sunlight.

Mandrakes: a four point magical root that screams when unearthed, the mandrake root is extremely popular for its soft potato like flesh, and the large lineup of nutrients it holds. It’s often mashed, used as a potato substitute, or thrown into stews and soups. It’s a popular baby food as well as its mild taste is comforting for kids, and the quality of it helps parents ensure picky eaters get what they need in a meal

Frog stool mushroom: a large aquatic mushroom resembling a lily pad. It’s found in shallow freshwater areas like lakes and larger parts of streams. This large mushroom is nutty in flavor and is often planted in ponds by farmers for not only its flavor, but also to filter the water on their property to make it safe for the animals to drink. It’s recommended to only eat the small young ones as the large ones after so many years of filtering are more waste than nutrients.

Fishweed: a seaweed that grows along the seaside cliffs of ebott. It’s named after its strong fishy smell. It’s dried and cut into strips and eaten as a snack like jerky or chips

Pearwood tree: this tree has a beautiful bark pattern in the shape of sliced pears. When dry, the bark begins to chip and is easy to peel off. The bark can be infused into drinks giving a crisp grape and lettuce flavor, and has the magical effect of making harmless sparks come out of one’s mouth when they speak. Because of the attractiveness of the trees bark, and the pretty pale green fir spines as leaves, it’s also a popular garden ornament plant as well as a crop

Cinderpetals: a small magic herb with red tipped star shaped leaves. This plant as a defense mechanism will burst into flame when the leaves are picked off. Don’t be alarmed though, the fire is harmless and even adds to the flavor as many monsters say. The leaves have a crisp almost citrusy flavor and are put into potions, drinks and energy tonics due to their natural caffeine content.

Boarberry: it was only seen in horrorfarm and drakefell before the crash. It’s a wild berry bush that parasites off of trees, growing on the sides of the trunks. The berries are a creamy pale green and taste like a bitter plum. They were traditionally used to flavor meads, and were made into jams, pie fillings and baked into breads.

Honeybeans: a climbing magic bean plant that only grows near beehives. It will grow around the hive protecting the bees by secreting pheromones that deter would-be predators, and in return it feeds off the honey as well as the soil near the hive and sunlight. Because of this, the beans are deliciously sweet, tasting like caramel but with the buttery texture of a Lima bean. What makes this plant magic is that when seeds are planted, it seems to summon bees to it. Bees will abandon hives to start building around the bean, or if that’s not convenient enough, the bugs actually uproot the plant itself and Carries it to the hive in an amazing show of teamwork

Silver bells: a droopy vine with silver tipped leaves. It grows a berry like vegetable that resembles a tomato, but with a blue grey skin and a deep purple flesh. The magic fruit entices one to eat it by “calling” its harvester with a tinkling bell noise. The vegetables when hitting each other sound like the light clinking of metal. The vegetable is rather tasteless save for a faint cabbage flavor. It’s very beneficial to bone growth though and is highly recommended that young growing children and the elderly eat some every week.

Ground cherries: a strange magical fruit tree that grows its fruit beneath the soil. The very tip of the small cherry sized fruits are visible peeking through the dirt when they’re ready for harvest. They taste like blue. Some college human students say it’s the closest they’ve ever gotten to the taste of blue Gatorade in ebott

Ebott-only livestock:

Greater turkey: like the name suggests, this is just a massive variety of turkey. The birds can reach the size of cows. Naturally they’re a breed made by the farm AUs. They’re slowly becoming more popular as a holiday food for larger families. Last gyftmas broke the record of greater turkeys slaughtered and sold in one season. Thankfully for the farmers, these birds were bred for temperament as well and are quite gentle and docile

Jimmy crickets: they were previously called roasting crickets, but one witty monster renamed his after Disney started streaming in ebott, and the rest copied him as the bugs became a popular food for kids. It’s a magical variety of cricket that was cultivated underground. They eat moss, and are high in iron, copper, and folate. They’re brightly colored, most normally a bright red. They taste a bit like bacon bits.

Struggle grubs: like the name suggests, this bug was cultivated to be cheap, year round and plentiful. It’s a comfort food for many underground monsters who lived through poverty before the crash. The grubs will eat anything hence why they were labelled as “poor food” as underground they were fed mainly trash. Nowadays farmers feed them much healthier foods and the grubs are much better quality.

Riding/battle boars: funny enough, this type of domesticated hog was only found in horrorfell and drakefell before the crash. Many think that there’s a special connection between the two AUs cause this isn’t the only thing they share. In drakefell they were known as riding boars and were used to pull carts and plows, for eating and dairy, and battle of course. In horrorfarm they were only war animals, used to sniff out enemies and ram through enemy lines. The boar is intelligent like a dog, easily trained, and has an amazing sense of smell. They’re still used as farm hand animals to help plow and de-bug fields. The females can be milked and the cheese made from that milk is very heavy and fatty. They taste like pork, but because of their sacredness to the drakefell monsters and humans, it’s considered a big dishonor to eat one that didn’t die of natural causes.

Lesser deer: a small goat sized deer only found in ebott, they were originally found in the nomads forest. They’re very passive creatures and easily domesticated. Many farms are beginning to add them to livestock because of the delicious soft meat on the animals, and their varied diets.

Rolland’s horned snail: a large cow sized snail bred by the Rolland family from farmswap. The snails on average are the size of draft horses and can weigh nearly a ton. They’re bred purely for their meat and the shells are also sold as decoration, or ground as a binding agent mixed into cement. The snails are fed mainly sawdust, dried grass, and weeds. It takes nearly 20 years for one to reach full size though.

Pearled salmon: a freshwater salmon native to ebott, it can be caught wild or bought from a hatchery. The scales look like pale pink and white pearls underwater, but turn grey when dry. The salmon has a white flesh and the taste is subtler than normal salmon.

Ice pips: this is a thin needle like magic fish that loves cold temperatures so much it creates its own chill. Any room the fish is kept in stays just cold enough to freeze the top of the water in its tank, but not so cold to freeze the whole tank. It is a farmers essential for any farmers who want a proper freezer basement or shed. Almost every farm monster owns a tank of them as it’s much cheaper to feed a few fish crickets every couple days than it is to pay electric for a large shed/room. Rancher and peaches have a tank of pips in their basement, and harpy has a whole massive storage shed cooled by her own tank.

Gremlins: small quail sized ugly little creatures that resemble a cross between a toad, gopher and pug, with wrinkled faces, round bodies and bumpy hairless skin. These little creatures are extremely easy to train and are used on farms to control bug pest levels. They are also slowly gaining popularity as a household pet because of their friendly natures. What makes this animal magic is its tongue which can stretch and shoot out nearly 12 feet at a time in pursuit of a big. Which is clearly magic as the tongue is only a few inches long when resting in the body, and when (gently) pulled by an outside force, it barely gets out of the mouth. A gremlin is edible as well, tasting like chicken by most reports, but farmers who raise them dislike eating the critters as they often can’t help but start viewing them as family.

Land shrimp: it’s literally a shrimp that survives on land. They’re fast breeders and must be kept indoors to prevent an outbreak. They’re fed a mixture of grain, oats, bone, and unwanted meat cuts. The magic shrimp will resort to cannibalism if not fed on time, so require dedication to raise. And yes, they taste like normal shrimp

Smithers basilisk: a long bodied lizard that’s roughly the size of a basset hound, the Smithers basilisk’s true origins are unknown, but have been a common livestock animal for generations among the Drake monsters and humans. The large lizards have a poison sack behind the eyes that are removed after they hatch for safety purposes. They’re raised for a number of reasons: their scaled hides make great leather, the eggs are large and females can lay year round if there’s a male in the pack, and they’re great ratters. So many farmers keep a few to help control the pests on their farm.

Jeweled scarabs: both an animal raised as livestock and a popular pet, these palm sized beetles have stunning shells in a beautiful glossy array of colors looking just like crystal. They’re raised primary for the shells which are harvested when the beetles die of old age. The shells are broken and polished to be used as jewelry, decoration, tile and even used in pottery and glazes. They have a short lifespan of just 2 years sadly, hence why they don’t beat out snails as the most popular pet. The bodies of the beetles are also ground and used as feed for other animals needing protein in their diets.

Roc birds: a poultry bird native to the bird AUs, this was a fat flightless bird that is accustomed to living on rocky cliffs. It has very strong talons and legs in order to climb and move around safely. And a huge oversized beak strong enough to break rocks. The birds are about the size of a duck and have grey speckled feathers. They were bred for their eggs and meat, the hens laying several a day. But they’re difficult to raise as they’re aggressive.

Wooly snails: these snails are about the size of a standard goose when fully grown, and the shells grow a thick fur that needs to be peeled off every few weeks to keep the snail comfortable and mobile. The pelts are then throughly washed and used for clothing, pillow filler, and all other kinds of things. The snails come in a variety of colors with white being the most common, but also a powder blue and lilac. They’re raised mostky by monsters at the top of ebotts mountain range as the snails need cool temperatures to be healthy

Dwarf rock bees: ebott’s special bee variety, the only bee known to be underground. The dwarf rock bee resembles a black fluffy bumblebee, but is so small it can barely cover Abraham Lincoln’s face on a penny. The bees will only create hives in stone structures (or around a honey bean plant) and hives can host millions of bees at a time. The tiny fluff balls are stingless and extremely prone to predators as they had very few underground. When alarmed, they make a shrill buzzing noise together, and copy a frequency that they know scares animals away. For most hives, that means turning their buzzing into a car alarm. Some enthusiasts of the bee keep them indoors in smaller controlled hives and have even trained the bees to copy songs that are repeated often around them. And of course they make honey

Alrighty! There are three ways one can make magical food!

1: it’s a learned magic to add intent to food. Every monster learns it as children. It’s just one of those things your parents are supposed to teach you, like driving or how to clean.

Intent affects the foods taste and sometimes even gives it mild healing properties. So someone making a batch of cookies with a lot of love and passion can make some hecking fine cookies. However there’s a limit. Pour too much passion (or any type of intent really) and you’ll burn the food. Even if you’re not using heat to cook.

This is why undyne regularly nukes her kitchen

2: plants can become magical after several generations of being exposed to magic. That’s why the underground was able to host so many plant varieties despite the lack of sunlight. This can’t really be controlled since it happens randomly. Any food cooked with the plants has magical properties as well

3: the farmtale monsters have perfected earth magic over the centuries. Any native born farmtale monster has the ability to bond to the land they own and produce much higher quality, quantity, and magical produce. This includes animals too. They become more docile, intelligent, and produce more. The magical skill of bonding to your land is seen as familial magic and can only be passed down through blood

And finally, some famous drinks and dishes only found in ebott!!!

Gauzeberry freeze: the expensive but delicious drink consists of milk, shaved ice, honey, blueberries, coconut and of course gauzeberries. It’s sold only in special occasions like national holidays. Otherwise the only way to get it is to make it at home, which is quite difficult due to the nature of gauzeberries. It does make one float a few inches off the ground for an hour after drinking

Fries and bits: mixed bugs, most commonly crickets, are cleaned and fried with potato wedges, and in fancier dishes, onion rings and fried artichoke hearts are added. It’s a greasy but delicious meal and many fried fast food places sell this dish

Boars honor stew: a dish coming from drakefell. When a drakes boar dies, whether from old age, an injury, or sickness, never intentionally slaughtered for food, their burial ritual for the animal is to stew it in a massive pot filled with potatoes, other root vegetables, blood root, boar berries, dragons breath and a load of mushrooms. The boar is carefully cleaned, and the blood used to fertilize the drakes, or communities crops. Then the animal is put in the pot whole and stewed for around four days before being passed around and eaten. It’s a dish meant to be shared, not bought. So to be offered some is a great honor

Roc on rocks: it requires a roc bird for the traditional version of the dish, but chicken will do too for a close substitute. The breast meat of a roc bird is thinly sliced and marinated in an orange citrus sauce for a few hours. Then traditionally a flat rock is heated up, and the thin slices are cooked on top, then laid on a bed of cabbage and thinly sliced carrots before being served. However pan frying is a safe at home substitute if one doesn’t have a big rock and outdoor campfire

Golden pearwood tea cake: goldenflowers and pearwood bark are dried and made into tea. The tea must be strained and left in the fridge to chill while the cake base is created. It’s preferred to use a nut flour like almond or hazelnut. The cake flour is then moistened with the tea, and a light honey glaze is added on top when it comes out of the oven

Cinder-spark: a popular energy drink brand made in ebott from cinderpetals. It comes in three flavors: jalapeño, spicy strawberry and electric orange. All flavors are spicy with electric orange being the mildest. Never drink more than two a day

Treasure chests: a shiny beautiful salad dish of heartyheads, leafy greens, beets, sea eggs, deaths pearl, and topped with cooked pearled salmon. It’s a beautiful colorful dish and a favorite at seafood restaurants along seashore. And it’s extremely nutritious

Snaproot pockets: like the name suggests, it’s a little baked pouch filled with puréed snaproot. It’s created with either mochi flour or cattail flour, the little flour pouch is filled with mashed or puréed snap root, and is topped with seeds like sesame after being baked. This dish can also be made with pumpkin and garwins gourds instead of snaproot.

Lions jello: made from boiled cattails, and infused with goldenflower tea, this is ebotts national desert. The cattails make an attractive milk white jello with a light airy taste, and the goldenflower adds flavor and speckles of gold inside. It’s a beautiful dessert and is a favorite of many of the royals

Snail pie: ebotts national dish: this is a pie filled with cubed snail meat, pearled onions, garlic, many spices to taste, and spinach. The pie is baked like a normal pot pie and is usually topped with seeds for better looks. Mini versions are sold at festivals and food trucks, and kids in public school get mini snail pies on Fridays for lunches.

Silver broth: made from boiled silver bells and bones, this broth is a popular soup base because of its mild taste, and is highly recommended that parents use it when cooking for their children as it promotes healthy bone, teeth and ecto growth. In winter months too, it’s sold alone as a savory drink with sliced dried mushrooms and spring onions as an alternative to sugary hot drinks

Wailing baby mash: it’s a terrible name but parents seem to think it’s funny. Mandrakes are mashed with other veggies (and often a bit of silver broth is added) to make a soft baby food safe for monsters and human babies old enough for solid food. It has a mild taste which is pleasant for kids. Many parents used mashed mandrakes in place of mashed potatoes well into their kids childhood as a healthier and cheaper alternative

Goths on toast: another terrible name, Asgore really sucks at naming things, and he’s to blame for this one as the creator asked him to endorse the dish. A delicious spread is made from the fruit of a spiderbloom, blackberries and dark or ground cherries. The fruit spread is spiced with a hint of cinnamon and nutmeg and spread on bread as a sweet morning breakfast. It’s often paired with fancy cheeses and is served as a dish to show off your class. No charcuterie board in ebott is complete without this spread

Pigment potion: twigs mixed with alcohol creates a magic drink that can change the color of one’s ecto, hair/fur and eyes. The more diluted the drink, the shorter the effect. And to control what color the drink becomes, it needs to be hand made with a certain color in mind. A drink of magic, intent and booze. Any sort of alcohol does fine so usually cheap wine is used. And in festivals, watered down versions are allowed to be sold to children as long as a parent is present

Gyftmas cookies: of course they have to be baked with sweet salt. These brown cookies are made with the sweet salt spice, molasses, plain flour and honey. They’re decorated of course and are part of a popular gyftmas tradition called the cookie trade. At parties, each family shows up with a plate of cookies, and they go around having to swap one of their cookies on the plate for one from another’s family. By the end of the party, they go home with a plate from multiple families.

Crabby patties: this name was popular way before SpongeBob was introduced to ebott. There was a fierce legal battle between Marcelo and Nickelodeon for him to keep the name of the popular dish sold at his grocery stores. He just barely won, and the name is only allowed to be used with free reign in ebott lol. Crabby patties are smoked crab apple thinly sliced and pickled, then placed on a slab of either cooked snail or cooked hamburger patty. The bun is traditionally wrapped cabbage leaves, but bread buns are more popular on the surface these days. Every hamburger place has a crabby patty burger on their menu.

Fae floss: pasta from boiled flossy sticks is topped with a thick brown sauce made from goats cheese, powder shrooms, and finely chopped herbs. Other mushrooms are added to the pasta and often bugs like grubs, chopped beetles or worms are added. If bugs aren’t your cup of tea, shredded chicken is fine instead

Mead of lady magic: this mead is flavored with pomegranate seeds and honey beans to make a rich mild drink. It was also used in rituals by the temple monsters before the crash, and is still considered a holy drink by them. Only made and drank on sacred days.

Sun therapy: this light sandwich is made with pickled Ferris weed flowers, salami and mozerella cheese. The sandwich is toasted and topped with more cheese. A delicious meal full of vitamin D

Tarotile cheesecake. A plain slice of cheesecake, colored a deep forest green by adding Tarotile to the cooking process. The cake tastes like a wonderful wild berry blend according to monsters, but is highly toxic to humans and mages. Any one who dares sell it to a human without signed consent can be arrested and held for trial on attempted bodily harm.

[willtheweaver]

A writer’s guide to forests: From the poles to the tropics, part 1

Writers, aspiring writers, and all others who happen upon this, I give you all a big thank you. For those of you that have been following this guide, or have done independent research, I’m sure that you now have a grasp of what makes up a forest, and how one can weave into your story. Now I’d like to get into specific forest types. We’ll be going into detail, learning about each specific region, from the extreme limits, to the equator. So, let’s get into it, shall we?

Boreal forest (the Taiga)

The northernmost forest, it forms a circle around the pole.

Location- at or just below the Arctic Circle in North America and Eurasia, extending as far south as the Amur river basin and the Great Lakes region.

Climate- Polar and Subpolar, with conditions tending towards being wet year round. A day can be as long as 16-20 hours in summer and a short as 3 hours in winter. Winter temperatures fall well below freezing, and fallen snow can linger well into the summer months.

Plant life- Mostly conifers, with spruce, pine, and fir dominating. Aspen and birch mixed in, with oaks, larch, and maples in the southernmost regions. Lichens and moss cling to trees. Shrubs and dwarf willow can be found even beyond the tree line. Trees tend to be small as the growing season can be as short as 3 months.

Animal life- Sparse. Conifer needles are unpalatable to many species of herbivores. Deer such as moose and woodland caribou are among the few that live here year round. Bears and wolves can also found,but generally the animals that live here are small. Voles, lemmings, and hare are preyed upon by foxes, lynx, and various weasels, the largest of which is the wolverine. Many birds live here for part or all of the year, with owls being the main predators. Winter can be especially quiet as many animals either migrate or hibernate.

How the forest affects the story- Any society will have to endure winters that are 7-9 months long. Do people stay in one place, or are they nomadic? Is there some form of limited agricultural or are they hunter-gatherers? Are there any domestic species that aid them, or do your characters do all the labor? How do the seasons affect movement? Areas frozen in the winter can turn to marshland or even rivers in the summer. What kind of structures do your characters live in? They may be temporary or permanent, able to keep one warm in the winter, and can be built out of turf, wood, fur, or snow. Are the beliefs of your characters in any way ,shape, or form influenced by the world around them? How would you best describe all this to anyone not familiar with the environment and its people(s)?

[zarya-zaryanitsa]

Tale of Kurent

All people died in the flood with the exception of one, and he was from Kranjska. He fled higher and higher, but finally the water covered the mountain as well. The poor soul saw how the fir trees and the oaks were covered by water, and the only thing that remained dry was a grapevine. He ran to it and gripped it tightly, although not in hope but in utter terror. How could the grapevine, so thin and weak, help him? Kurent saw the man, for he used the grapevine as a stick whenever he was wandering around the world. He was glad to see that the man sought help from him. To tell the truth, Kurent was a jester but he also had a mild temperament. He was willing to rescue anybody who was in trouble. Upon hearing the man’s wails, Kurent smoothed his grapevine stick, extending it higher and higher, until it reached beyond the clouds. After nine years, the waters receded and the land dried once again. The man saved himself by hanging on the grapevine and living on its grapes and wine. When everything was dry again, he climbed down, highly praising Kurent the rescuer. Yet this was not to Kurent’s liking. “It was the grapevine that rescued you,” he said to the man. “Praise the grapevine instead. Make a contract with it and swear by yourself and by your descendants that you will celebrate it and love its wine more than any food or drink.” The grateful man immediately swore by himself and by his descendants. To this day, his grandchildren have kept his faith, as the story goes, and love wine more than anything else, merrily remembering Kurent, their old benefactor.

(…) The Kurent of the above-mentioned Slovene tale rescues the man from Kranjska from the Flood. According to Ivan Grafenauer, Kurent is a malevolent lunar deity representing the Slavic deity of wine and pleasure. He is the lunar primogenitor and an evil demi-god akin to the Keremet of the Votyak people, with origins in the pre-Slavic nomadic pastoral culture. According to a Votyak belief legend, Keremet taught the first human in Paradise how to make kumiss, an intoxicating drink made from mare’s milk. He also seduced the first man and woman to disregard the command of Inmar the Creator not to drink it. In addition, the Votyaks also claimed that Keremet was the “younger brother” and opponent of Inmar (Juma), the Supreme Being. Mordvian tales mention a similar mythical being named Šajtan, who seduces the first human. Ivan Grafenauer also compared Kurent with the demi-god Erlik known to the Altaic Tartars. Schnapps, which is called Erlik’s drink, was named after Erlik, who is depicted as a rosy-cheeked god of joy. Kurent was originally interpreted as a god of unleashed joy, a Slavic version of Dionysus in Greece and Bacchus in Rome. Anton Tomaž Linhart called him the god of pleasure (Gott der Schwelgerei), Davorin Trstenjak compared Kurent to the Indian Shiva and Matevž Ravnikar-Poženčan with the ancient Priapus and with Bacchus, Trdina and Navratil also compared Kurent with Bacchus, and perceived him as the god of debauchery and merrymaking.

- Supernatural beings from Slovenian myth and folktales by Monika Kropej

[full-on-sam]

Hello! You said you'd be accepting WBW/STS asks, so: here's an ask! Happy WBW!!

What's art like in your WIP's world? How does it differ from place to place, what form does it take, what subjects does it portray, etc.? You don't need to answer all of these, just ramble to your heart's content!

And, if you don't have a lot of worldbuilding around art, tell me about your world's language(s)! I'd be just as interested in hearing that!

Let's pretend it's still Wednesday please. And thanks fir the ask! I really missed these exchanges, they were my life all summer and I'm super sad it kinda died down and that I disappeared. But I'm trying to get back on track! So!

As for art, I am kinda in a slump right now, because that is a part of the worldbuilding I jave absolutely not flashed out. I think I will try to stay true to the historical settings, but maybe adding some more fantasy elements here and there.

As fir languages OH BOY. I love languages. I am studying them, and their mechanics 24/7. I made that my uni major. I feed on linguistics, all the throats movement to articulate the sounds. The structures of every sentence broken down. The language learning aspect.

I am pretty sure this book is born 69% because I wanted an outlet for all that.

So

There are actually a lot lot lot of languages. First of, the one that is called Common. Is a superlanguage that is kinda spoken all around Unyon'he. Obviously though not everyone can speak it properly. Think Latin in the middle ages. It was spoken by ecclesiastical people and whatnot, but commoners could not speak it at all. Except that at least 4/5 of my charachters have recieved higher education so they can. What makes it worse though, is that all the countries that spoke Latin where of the same linguistic roots, that us Indo European.

My five countries instead speak all different languages, based on real world Arabic, German, Chinese, Portuguese/Spanish, and Finnic/Swedish. So all of a different root. At this point I think I should reconsider Commin language as a whole core concept because it is just so fucking difficult.

Unless I make it a god given language which yeah. Could work.

MOREOVER! Think about dialects. So each country is divided in regions, and more or less they all have different dialects. And what about all the nomad merchants in Tijara? Yep. Complicated.

And then there are sign languages of course, which are very important bc Nayeli is very much deaf, thank you, and it is the only way she can communicate with the rest of the Squad.

So how many languages are there? 30/40 I guess. Yay for me!

[thefourpoints]

Follow the compass West to find honor.

In the western part of the region lives a group nestled deep within the towering pines of the Ironwood, dedicated to an orderly life of neatly defined expectations and the satisfaction of being dutiful.

Are you a lost wanderer, looking for somewhere to call home, but needing a certain kind of strictness to keep yourself in line? The Empire beckons you West.

At a Glance

Deity: Loyalty/Fierceclaws Element / Season: Earth, Autumn Main Teachings: Duty and Honor Lifestyle: Strict and very orderly - very miltary-like Education: Trainees begin their education at 15 moons and are trained by the most senior soldiers Leadership: Military dictatorship - one General in charge, whose orders are expected to be followed; strong, centralized government Naming: PrefixSuffix system; either the prefix or the suffix is given at birth and the missing half is earned at graduation; intimidating names are favored, with nature themes common; ex: Silkweaver, Ironteeth

Territory

Region: The Ironwood Camp: The Iron Stronghold Environment: Dense coniferous forest, thick underbrush, shadowy, lots of water Flora: Shrubs/bushes, trees (mostly pine, some spruces/firs/aspens/cedars) Fauna: Large ungulates (elk, moose), squirrels, rodents (voles/mice/shrews), birds, wolves, mountain lions, foxes

The Empire Throughout History

The Founders (Years 0-13)

Founded by Ironteeth and his ragtag, nomadic group of rogues. After they settle in the Ironwood, they begin being attacked by a neighboring pack of wolves - Iron turns all able-bodied members of his group into a force to be reckoned with, after Fierceclaws visited him in a dream, and became the first General.

The Age of Sucession (Years 14-27)

Ironteeth has died. Several cats vie for his position, which ultimately leads to violence. Only one survives. Silkweaver has become the new General and declares the Empire as entering into a new era. This also solidifies the changing of leadership within the Empire as their infamous coup d'etat.

The First Compass War (Years 28-34)

The Empire, under the guidance of the blood-thirsty Silkweaver, begins pressing into Wing territory for better hunting. Despite the Wings confronting them, rightfully upset, the Empire soldiers do not take them seriously. Silkweaver's convincing remarks on the weakness of the Wings and the Empire's superiority have taken grasp within the soldiers.

As tensions with the Wings turn to violence and the Empire launches an attack on Goldenleaf Grotto itself, the soldiers slowly become disillusioned with Silkweaver's leadership. They are losing sight of their motivations, and there now have been too many Empire deaths to forgive. Murmurs of dissent begin to come from Silkweaver's ranks.

The emergence of what is now known as field medics keeps the death toll from getting too high, but Sagesifter becomes one of the most outspoken dissenters against the War, their newfound position as a battle-healer giving them an authoritative edge many soldiers find themselves following - especially because Sagesifter likely saved their life.

The Empire faces off with the Wings, and the Clowder, one last time, only to be shocked and horrified when Loyalty moves to strike down Silkweaver; however, the sister of a since-murdered Feather emerges from the river to rip her apart instead. Upon vanishing again, after declaring that the War is over, the sister gains the moniker Estelar and becomes the first ruler of the Fury.

The War of Flames and Flood (Years 35-39)

The Empire hides away post-War, ashamed and in disarray. The effects of the War have been felt strongly by the soldiers, many of them either guilt-ridden or struggling to unlearn Silkweaver's propaganda.

After a period of recovery, Iceheart becomes the new General.

The Golden Age (Years 40-47)

The Empire emerges from their self-imposed exile. Iceheart has chosen to focus on the Empire's improvement, abandoning the group's previous vie for territory gain.

Trade is established between the newly-four groups, and Iceheart has put in effort into helping repair relationships. The soldier training process is also solidified.

The Second Compass War (Years 48-52)

The Empire knows nothing of Scorch's plans to frame them for the murder of the Fury's royal family, until Scorch's mother informs all of the leaders after his murder. Iceheart is livid, and agrees to head north to help clear up the confusion with the other leaders; however, they end up encountering a Fury on the way by the name of Wynather, alongside the Wing assassin's mangled body. Wynather waves off the other leaders, claiming that they knew the truth of the assassinations and no harm was done, and announced themself the new Monarch in the North.

The Council of the Four Points (Year 53)

Iceheart comes up with the idea to meet every moon to discuss grievances and any other updates between groups to avoid miscommunications. The other's agree - nowadays, the leaders often skip the meetings and entrust their Ambassadors with the honor.

The Wolf Queen (Years 54-Present)

[STAY TUNED.]

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───

Four Points is an upcoming semi-literate, 18+ roleplay that will be hosted on Discord. More information can be found at @thefourpoints.

Send in an ask if you have any questions about the Empire and Co.!

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───

Timeline || General Information || Character Creation || Rules || FAQ || Maps || Allegiances || Application

[paganimagevault]

Ancient Udmurts by Val'ko Töd'y

"BUDINI, an ancient nation in the N.E. of the Scythia (q.v.) of Herodotus (iv, 21, 108, 109), probably on the middle course of the Volga about Samara. They are described as light-eyed and red-haired, and lived by hunting in their thick forests. They were probably Finns of the branch now represented by the Votiaks and Permiaks, forced northwards by later immigrants. In their country was a wooden city inhabited by a distinct race, the Geloni, who seem to have spoken an Indo-European tongue. Later writers add nothing to our knowledge, and are chiefly interested in the tarandus, an animal which dwelt in the woods of the Budini and seems to have been the reindeer (Aristotle ap. Aelian, Hist. Anim. xv. 33).

-1911 Encyclopædia Britannica, Volume 4

...

The Budini are a great and populous nation; the eyes of them all are very bright, and they are ruddy. They have a city built of wood, called Gelonus. The wall of it is three and three quarters miles in length on each side of the city; this wall is high and all of wood; and their houses are wooden, and their temples; for there are temples of Greek Gods among them, furnished in Greek style with images and altars and shrines of wood; and they honor Dionysus every two years with festivals and revelry. For the Geloni are by their origin Greeks, who left their trading ports to settle among the Budini; and they speak a language half Greek and half Scythian. But the Budini do not speak the same language as the Geloni, nor is their manner of life the same. The Budini are indigenous; they are nomads, and the only people in these parts that eat fir-cones; the Geloni are farmers, eating grain and cultivating gardens; they are altogether unlike the Budini in form and in coloring. Yet the Greeks call the Budini too Geloni; but this is wrong. Their whole country is thickly wooded with every kind of tree; in the depth of the forest there is a great, wide lake and a marsh surrounded by reeds; otter is trapped in it, and beaver, besides certain square-faced creatures whose skins are used to trim mantles, and their testicles are used by the people to heal sicknesses of the womb."

-Herodotus, The Histories 4.108

[pageofheartdj]

Wow a whole Avatar AU came to my mind while I was freaking falling alseep, like usual xD

Takes place in 100 years old as in canon. Basically goes the same.

Except the Ozai/Iroh is BI and he is actually not very enthusiastic about continuing the war. His wife died while giving birth, so he has only his little son, King, the one and only prince and heir. But Belos, trusted advicer and non-bender, assasinated him to get the throne. Under premise of ‘I’ll just sit here and lead our nation, you know me, I am cool. We are still searching for little prince!’ He is not, he meant to kill him too, but he manages to escape. Well he is a toddler, but there comes Eda! She was a general, but felt how everything is sus and when this shit happened, she took a kid and bolted. Sadly she couldn’t explain it to Lilith so now she thinks Eda is a traitor(who was always better at everything despite being youngest and not as interested) and tries to capture her herself so she won’t get heavy punishement. Eda is worried Lily is too loyal to Belos and will rat the kid out. Caleb tried to stop assasination(non-bender) with his wife, but they were killed by Belos who then proceeds to grieve for the same thing(how dare he betray me like that). Belos is left with a nephew who he is... not the nicest to, canon basically. Hunter is non-bender but is great at fighting with weapon and close fighting.

And with the whole Avatar shtick and lost prince, he, Lily and Kiki(the only one who knows what’s up) are on their search.

Collector is the Avatar. Of course he is. He is very talented, learns air bending with ease, despite not being very air nomad like xD Sure he likes jokes, but jeez kid stop making air bending so scary xD He has a mentor, basically that other titan, who is strict but caring. When Collector was revealed to be the Avatar at age of 10(cause of course you make 10 years old fight), he threw a tantrum and ran away and got the same fate as Aang.

He was found in Southern Tribe. By chief’s son, prodigy waterbender, Gus and his best friend non bender Luz. Camila plays the role of Gran-Gran, and let’s them go on their journey(except not everything goes the same and she doesn’t know the kid is freaking avatar, Luz just helps to get the lost kid home jhsg xD). Gus’s dad, Perry, isn’t the most fighting type, but he is smart and Gus looks up to him, despite not really wanting to take over leading the village. His mom died Katara’s mom death. Luz’s dad died in the same fight protecting the village.(wonder if i should make Vee Luz’s lost twin sister jsh xD)

In Northern Tribe the royal family are the Blights. Technically Alador is the leader, but Odalia basically manipulates him to do what she thinks is the best. She wants Amity to be perfect little princess, learn healing and get married. Amity wants to fight. She trains with Emira and Edric, who prefer to use their water bending to pull sick tricks xD (but Emira still learns a bit of healing with her ‘friend’ Viney).

In Earth Kingdom Terra(earthbender of course) is both the ‘King’ and that shady secretary. Keeps her ‘garden’ oblivious to the outside world, all pretty and untouched. She leads Dai Lis. Raine, earth bender, is a teacher in the university and learns about the lies and wants to reveal the truth to people. Carefully. Bump is a teacher in a school and wants to oppose Terra too.

Willow is an earth bender but a late bloomer and was bullied for it, cause everyone in her family are always earthbenders. I didn’t get to think too much on her xDD

OH. I didn’t think much on Earth Kingdom, but I think a bit on Air Nomads, yes they survive a bit but eeeeeehhhh. The one temple where Aang found out the truth is the same. Collie finds bones of his mentor. The one with Guru is the same. The guru role is taken by Bat Queen and her little children. She protects the Air Nomads culture. The one with machines now are with Titan Trappers. They lost their air bending ways, and very antagonistic to outsiders. The one in Fire Nation did not in fact lose their bending, and not as antagonistic, but they are too ‘everyone for themselves’. Adrian is one of them.

I think that’s where I fell asleep xD I think I made Darius fire nation general on rebelion side, like in canon. He and Eber are fire benders.

Boscha is bully in elite fire nation school, to learn better. Skara is elite in Northern Water Tribe, a picked friend for Amity. She’ll come around too. Barcus and Jerbo are students in Earth Kingdom school. Kids are all benders.

Oh, and kids are aged-up just a bit. Collie is 10, King is 8, Gus is 13, Luz and Amity are 15, Willow is 16 and Hunter is 17.

I think that’s it xD

[booksandwords]

The Kite by N.R. Walker

Read time: 1 Day Rating: 5/5 Stars

The Quote: “You and me; double hit. They want us dead. You’re a kite, and your government just cut you loose.” — Asher Garin

Warnings: N.R. provides two in The Kite. “on-page physical and gun violence. Reader discretion advised." and "This book is intended for an adult audience. It contains graphic language, explicit content, and adult situations.”

Let me say the story of Asher Garin and Tim “Harry” Harrigan is not cute and fluffy despite the grump/sunshine trope, okay it is cute. N.R. Walker provides readers of The Kte with two different warnings. "Caution: on-page physical and gun violence. Reader discretion advised." and "This book is intended for an adult audience. It contains graphic language, explicit content, and adult situations." Note the character's jobs before reading, an Australian government mercenary and a nomadic assassin. These are strong, hard, ruthless men, who have absolutely few qualms with taking lives for money and certainly none for self-preservation. Asher isn't entirely hard, Harry kinda is. They are great characters. Suiting their tropes, societal positions and feel like Walker's writing as I have come to know it. That said even if you like N.R Walker's writing this may not be for you. I do recommend this if you want your grump/sunshine dynamic with a little more bite. It's a pleasing take on assassins in love.

Asher Garin is an enigma. The more information he reveals about himself the less it feels like you know. His lack of history and his statelessness are both intriguing. Four is devoted to him, loyal to a fault. He almost feels like a prism, he shows you only what he or maybe you want to see. His natural charm and charisma are offputting, they prevent both characters and readers from thinking too much. I do have two favourite elements of him he was a language prodigy (be still my heart) and his guns are his family. There are two great moments of Asher with guns. “Hello, pretty baby,” he said. “Christ,” Harry mumbled. “You always talk to your guns like that?” (Asher and Harry). This is Asher talking to his MP7, which is a whole other thing, that is not a small gun. "He handled those weapons like a well-versed lover. It was hot." (Harry) I may not like guns, but I do love competency. I usually have a preferred hero in novels, in this one it was Asher, he made me think as such I can write much more on him than Harry. sorry not sorry

Tim “Harry” Harrigan (referred to nearly exclusively as Harry) is an Australian mercenary. He is angry, and hurting and just wants revenge. He wouldn't mind some answers as to why he's been doing the kills he's been doing for the last handful of years but he can take or leave them but he wants revenge on whomever he can get his hands on for making him work for the bad guys. He grew up in a decent family until the inevitable happened... homophobic parents + gay son = disowned and beaten son. The funniest moment to me as an Australian was the moment with Harry, Asher and the tattoo. “Is that some kind of kite tattoo?” Asher asked. Harry, with his permanent scowl, looked down at his chest. “It’s not a kite. It’s the Southern Cross, the stars on the Australian flag. And I’m not a kite. For fuck’s sake.” The Southern Cross made sense. “You are a kite,” Asher said. “Whether you like it or not.” Only an Australian author would write this. Southern Crosses are a big thing in Australia a sign of pride or rebellion (or both). Honestly, he kinda feels like everything an angry Australian fighter should, just with some brains and an eye for short-term strategy. told you this would be so much shorter than Ashers

Their grump/sunshine dynamic is fun and goes to places I didn't expect. Asher knows how to push buttons and likes to do it just to provoke a response. Honestly, there is something seriously fitting though perhaps bizarre in his lovemap. Arguments and violence as foreplay and almost brutally violent sex, at least the first time he's with Harry. This is so confronting for Harry especially when he caves and just gives Asher what he wants, the guilt is immense. I appreciate the contrasts in support bases, family lives and backgrounds. With Asher, I'm not sure I've ever read a true nomad or stateless character, what we do see of his background is heartbreaking. Those who are close to him he trusts with his life. Harry similarly has few people in his life but trusts no one, his family are awful. I find the choice to make Asher the more measured one, the cold one, the distance shooter is right. Harry has the emotion to burn, is that an Australian thing? That passion we picked up over the years. He is suited to closer combat, not a brawler per se which implies a loss of control, but just a more personal style. Even their take on the endgame reflects their personalities.

Some quotes and comments and there are a lot of them.

It had been so long since he’d set foot on Australian soil, he’d almost forgotten what home felt like. He longed for a life that wasn’t his. Wasn’t this. At first the longing was fleeting, no more than a whisper, but it sang a little louder now. In the quiet darkness of night or the patient wait for a kill. — This is such pretty phrasing. Harry and his slight homesickness is one side of their home coin. But this is also quite an Australian vibe to me. (Harry)

Seeing his eyes flash with recognition, with steel, had been unexpected. Pressing him against the wall in the dark was another bonus. Dangerous, exciting. Hot. — This is Asher's response to Harry's reaction to being saved. He does admit he's always found Harry attractive (feeling mutual). Asher has a slightly seemed up lovemap. But to be honest Harry's was "The fact he was pointing a gun at Harry’s head didn’t help. Harry shouldn’t have found that so hot . . .". These are men who live around guns, who are comfortable with them. Honestly again on the whole competency thing that is what I find attractive.

“When we got old.” Harry’s gaze cut to Asher’s. “Old? I’m thirty-six. How old are you?” Asher shrugged. “Thirty-three.” More or less. “We’re not old.” “That’s retirement age in our industry.” “Is that why they’re retiring us?” “Probably.” Asher sighed. “Been in the game too long. Know too much, seen too much. We don’t move like we used to. We become a liability.” — I don't know why I like this line so much but I do. It just feels like a brutal truth that is hitting them. Though Asher feels older than he is, he doesn't even know how old he is. (Asher and Harry)

“Are you done checking me out?” Asher looked him over once more. “No. Damn.” Harry cocked his head. “You like what you see?” “The fuck is not to like?” — Asher is shameless and I love him. But seriously down boy. Inappropriate timing. (Harry and Asher)

And yet, there was Asher sampling every country’s culture that he visited. In between sniping people, that was. Harry was having a little trouble reconciling the two personas: touristy Asher, the guy who loved the food and the people, and the Asher who could pop a target from a mile away with a twenty-knot side wind. — The dichotomy of Asher. The gorgeous tourist and the seriously competent killer. Not to mention he can switch languages like most people change shoes. Honestly, it's all kinds of appealing to me as a reader. (Harry)

Harry was every bit his type. And he didn’t mind playing flirty games with Harry. He was easy to rankle, and it excited Asher to have Harry glare at him the way he did. He could just imagine Harry stalking toward him, furious and demanding . . . Asher had to wonder just how far he had to push Harry to make that happen. He was thinking it wasn’t far at all. — Asher's mind. I like the way in which Walker has chosen to write him. Light playful and loving life. Teasing. (Asher)

“To, čo by som ti dovolila, aby si mi urobil.” Harry fumed. “I don’t even know what fucking language that was, let alone what you said.” Asher grinned. “Want me to translate?” “No.” “I can.” “I want you to shut the fuck up.” — This is made so fun by the Slovak phrase Asher actually says. It translates as "What I would let you do to me". This after Asher has riled Harry up...again. Asher loves to say things like this in languages he knows Harry won't understand. (Asher and Harry)

He risked a look at Asher, his face pressed against Harry’s shoulder. His olive skin, his dark lashes, his pink lips . . . God, Asher’s mouth was nothing but trouble. Beautiful, talented trouble. — I'm a woman of simple pleasures... this visual is one of them. *sigh of appreciation* (Harry)

As he watched Asher sleep, Harry could feel something under his ribs, something he’d never felt before. A need, an ember to begin with but beginning to burn a little warmer. The need to protect him. — This and the previous quote are actually one after the other. This protective side of Harry is something I didn't expect, they are solo workers. And given how we meet Harry? This was unexpected. (Harry)

Harry wasn’t sure if this was fun or insane. Maybe a little of both. It was also turning him on. The push and pull, the challenge. The physicality. The way Asher smirked, the way he seethed. The way fighting turned Asher on. It was all hot. So yeah, it was definitely both. Fun and insane. — I keep saying Asher's lovemap is a little warped, I think Harry's is too. But unlike Asher, I can't figure out the potential source for it. (Harry)

“Vigilantism, extortion, blackmail. Pretty sure that makes you the bad guys.” Asher laughed. “We’re all bad guys, Harry. You and me, we are the bad guys.” He shook his head, amused. “You kill for your government. I kill for anyone’s government. They might call it service or honourable duty, but it’s all murder.” — One of the two ethical quotes I've included. Both of them are kinda dark but still, the ethical questioning and the idea that they are human is a welcome near necessary inclusion. (Harry and Asher)

“You would let me go in by myself?” Asher almost sounded offended. “Solo. You’d be more solo than Han and the lemon drink combined.” — This is their couple humour, jokes and references and teasing. By this point, Harry is not letting Asher go. No matter what he says. (Asher and Harry)

“Do you think guys like us will ever be allowed to live a normal life? Do we even deserve it?” “What we deserve is up to our makers. It’s not for us to decide. Anyway, who is responsible for the puppet’s behaviour? The puppet or those who work the strings?” “We’re the ones who pull the trigger.” “If we didn’t, someone else would. Always. This game we play has been played for thousands of years. Only the field changes, that’s all. It’s political and dirty.” Asher sighed. “And there are rarely any winners.” — I like the voice Asher has been given. The mind he's been given it iare so appealing to me. These are the two sides of the coin in a way. That we all know this really happens makes me kinda depressed. (Harry and Asher)

🤦🏼‍♀️This review is a hot mess. Thank you to anyone who reads it. But suffice to say I adore this book and I think it may be my fave N.R. to date. 😘

[ezra-iolite]

WIP Game

Rules: Write the latest line from your wip (or post where you last left off in your art) and tag as many people as there are words in the line. Make a new post, don’t reblog.

@hyraxas You son of a- DO YOU REALIZE HOW MANY DRAFTS/WIPs I HAVE!?! 😭 And the fact that I'm a LENGTHY WRITER DOESN'T HELP!!!

=w=' Don't say I didn't warn you.... Also I should be sleeping but I fancied doing this to help me get sleepy again. XD

Pirateformers Joka Ardhi Lore: The Evenstar Church

(Before I begin, just as a quick note, IT'S NOT CALLED THE SAVANNAH KINGDOM ANYMORE!! ASYA NOW COMES FROM JOKA ARDHI!!! ;3; I changed it cause it sounded racist... which actually works out in terms of world building and adding that extra bit of realism to the world and its cultural majority (i.e, Primus and its not so perfect ways). So just to be clear.... In the Pirateformers AU, most noble born or educated Primus natives, and most of the northern hemisphere, call the southern kingdom Asya is from The Savannah.... But the locals and those who actually know about the kingdom itself call it by its TRUE native name.... Joka Ardhi, the Dragon Lands. THAT is what I will be referring to from now on, whenever I mention Asya's homeland.)

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Asya's religion has mainly two names, its native Jokani name and either one of the two versions translated into Primus's native Common tongue. Each refer to the same faith that was properly organized into a widespread "culture and function based" religion by High Priestess Zahara, Asya's great, great grandmother and the second queen consort of Alunnui's reestablished Dragon Monarchy.

Established to help create traditions and comfort within the culture of the desert kingdom, this religious faith is more locally known as Nyotaism (Neo-Tah-Zim), which roughly translates to "Starism", a name very much on the nose in terms of its meaning.

When translated in Common or the language of Primus, it is more globally known as either The Astral Faith or the Evenstar Church, the latter being more referred to when it is translated into the Common tongue by the Jokani themselves.

A massive majority of the Jokani folk follow this religion, hence why Asya will often swear "by the stars" or "by the Evenstar" when she is frustrated or emotional. This is even more heavily impacted by the fact that a Jokani queen, be they the consort of the Dragon Lord or a female heir apparent that ascended to the throne to become Dragon Queen, are vowed upon their coronation to lead the church as its spokesperson or the face of the church, purely due to cultural tradition and how both practical and vital Nyotaism is to those who live both within the cities and as nomadic Dunefarers, where the wasteland of sand between each city constantly shift and the nights are cold and visible only under the dim starlight.

A Jokani queen becoming the face and voice of the church (but NOT a priestess or a church leader) is also due to Queen Consort Zahara, the platonically married wife to Alunnui's grandson, Dragon Lord Mzuri, being its founder, when she chose to change her title permanently to High Priestess of the Evenstar Church.... For she was the one who established the general faith towards the stars and made it into an openly practiced religion amongst the Jokani, one that soon became the backbone of organizational aid to the Dragon Lord's court and has since grown into a means of comfort and festivities for the kingdom, but never to be a power above the law and word of the crown, as written by Zahara's vow.

The diadem she wore has since been reshaped to bear a star ruby on its brow in her honour, and thus it became tradition for those who inherit the same crown to bear her responsibility, not as High Priestess but as the main practitioner and host for the church's traditions.

As many Nyota or Star priests will often preach in their sermons, "For it was the stars that guided the first humans here, lost and without roots to their old ways; It was the stars that witnessed their betrayal to the dragon natives that had welcomed them and asked only for respect to their laws. And in that war a hybrid child born of their secret union swore to those same stars, to his fallen forefathers amongst them, that he would take back what was stolen by the mortal deceivers, to pay for the bloodshed they caused. Those we call family and loved ones who have fallen since the sands were stained red are now above us, watching over us, guiding our way home and to our fates. Never are we lost, for the night will always hold open the path."

And (as a little something in terms of a placeholder/inspiration source for future art), upon the tapestry that adorns the walls of the royal palace lies the royal house emblem... a symbol of the church, the crown and the kingdom's ancestors represented by the three most important gods of the Evenstar Church's pantheon.... Ma'mwezi the Shifter Moon goddess; Usiku the Dragon Elder god, and of course the patron god of all Jokani and travelers, the Evenstar, who is often worn as a symbol of the faith through an eight-point star necklace. And upon the cloak of every royal guard, the pin and necklace of every royal born to the Ruby Lineage of Alunnui, each shall bear this emblem... the symbol of the House of the Dragon Monarchy.

(Legit just found this image on Etsy, it's just a placeholder picture until I can draw the emblem itself later on)

...... Like I said, I'm a lengthy writer. ¬3¬ And this is just a rough draft, as I'm still working out the pantheon and how to best describe who or what the Evenstar is~ In short, it's literally the North Star or the first star that appears at dusk, and it's viewed as like the head of the pantheon, like Zeus or Odin in a way, but it's not the only star based god of the Evenstar Church~

I hope you enjoyed my work so far! Let me know what you think!

[golvio]

I’ve also had some ideas for my personal design for Ganon in my AUs.

I already love the Malice’s…well, malleability. And the golden irises with black sclera, definitely keeping that from the BotW design. I love the implication that, in a more stable body with his soul present instead of astrally projecting into a backup body, his form would be protean, and he could adapt himself at will, but there’s also a little chaos in there since his “prettiest” and most symmetrical form as Dark Beast Ganon was revealed to be full of eyeballs once his forehead split open. It’d also add potential for some neat shoutouts to the Puppet Ganon fight in Wind Waker, as he changed into a spider and a snake in the second and third phases.

But, also, I like how OOT Ganon was a little more chimerical. Based on that and my associating him with water/blood to contrast and distinguish him from Demise’s fire motif, I’d like to incorporate a few touches of animals that aren’t boars, although his design and personality as a monster would still be primarily boarish. I especially like the idea of him having patches of iridescent scales that appear black, but show these beautiful blazes of color when they catch the light just right.

I was a little inspired by the concepts behind Ammit, the beast who’d devour your heart if, when Anubis weighed it on the scales, it was heavier than a feather. Ammit being designed to provoke fear meant she was composed of the three scariest critters Ancient Egyptians could think of: the lion, the crocodile, and the hippopotamus. Two of those three animals are associated with water and are found by riverbanks in a more arid parts of the world, and the hippo is an evolutionary cousin twice-removed from good ol’ Sus scrofa, so they captured my interest immediately. I’m ditching the lion, though, as lion symbolism for characters is way overplayed, and because I personally prefer pigs and feel they’re underappreciated as motifs.

If the Gerudo Desert’s geography is anything like Egypt, then they’d probably have a major river that cuts through the desert like the Nile that a most of the non-nomadic tribes would build their permanent settlements around fir easy access to water and transportation by boat. And, of course, if the wildlife had anything in common with Earth’s ecosystems, there would absolutely be crocodiles and hippos on its banks. And you’d better believe the Gerudo would develop a healthy fear of both critters.

Now, why people would be scared of crocs is obvious. They’ve got big mouths with sharp teeth and a bite force capable of breaking human bones, as well as a body powerful enough to do a death roll to help the bone breaking process along. They lie in wait in the water and among the reeds to ambush unsuspecting animals or humans who stop by the riverbank to drink from the lifegiving waters. When they’re within striking distance, they grab their prey with their jaws and drag them into the water to drown and devour them.

But why would people be afraid of hippos, the unfamiliar reader might ask? Aren’t they funny fat herbivores with goofy buck teeth that prance around in tutus like Fantasia?

No, no they are not.

First of all, hippos are large ungulates. Large even-toed ungulates, which include bison, wild boar, and deer, are all very large prey animals. Now, prey animals evolved to spend their lives protecting themselves from predators. Megafauna like the hippo can’t really hide themselves away from predators, considering they’re huge, so instead they use their considerable bulk and strength to become territorial assholes capable of beating anything they see as a potential threat into a pulp, including humans.

“But,” you might say, “hippos are fat and bulky and sit in the water all day! They can’t even swim! Why would someone be more afraid of being chased by a fat goofy animal than the svelte, majestic lion?”

Because, dear reader, hippos don’t need to swim. You see, hippos can’t swim because they can’t float. And the reason they can’t float is because underneath their subcutaneous fat layer, they are tankards made of solid muscle. When a hippo decides they don’t like the way some jerk off in the distance is looking at them, they can charge after them at a speed of 30 mph on land. Their legs are powerful tree trunks made of pure muscle and allow them to plow through anything in their way that’s not another hippo or a rhino like a Mack truck.

But surely, you say, surely they can’t go that fast in water due to water resistance. And, besides, didn’t you say they couldn’t swim? You’re right in that hippos can’t swim, but they can still move at a respectable 5 mph due to their tree trunk legs. The reason hippos don’t skip leg day is because instead of swimming, they walk underwater due to their density. And that means they can charge underwater, too. Of course, instead of running, they “jump”—letting their bodies sink to the bottom of the river, then pushing themselves up and forward with their muscular legs. They are optimized for living in low-g environments, and the concept of Moon Hippos should frighten you.

“But 5 mph by water surely can’t be that scary in person, can it? Most cars can go faster than that.”

I dunno, you tell me.

A monster with the silver tongue of a man, the cunning and resourcefulness of a pig, the patience of a crocodile, and the strength and tenacity of a hippo would be quite the boogeyman for a desert culture, wouldn’t it?

I can imagine the stories they’d tell of the witch king’s more monstrous face by the campfire—some kind of adaptation of the siren archetype where a woman rowing a boat downriver hears a man’s beautiful singing, or the voice of a man calling for help, from the reeds. Intrigued (and imagining that the mysterious traveler is probably a handsome young man who’ll reward her just as handsomely for her aid), she rows towards the riverbank. Suddenly, a massive creature bursts from the water and slams into her, throwing the captain into the river, capsizing the boat, and scattering its cargo to the riverbed. Whether she just barely escapes with her life or drowns in the waters, the cargo belongs to the beast now, especially precious jewelry and delicious food and wine.

[lightning-storm-studies]

91/100 Days of Productivity 🌠

10.12.2022

I had a driving lesson

Wrote next page in my art journal

Did next lesson from the electronic systems design course

🎧 Nomadic Firs - LVSK

📖 The Summer Book by Tove Jansson

[crungebunge]

Shossa, The Disconnected Lands

CITIES

Floritcher: A very cute and quaint farming town of halflings, kender, and satyrs. Farm plots hold huge pumpkins, squash, and apples - any fruit you want must be here. Tall grasses sway in the breeze and paint the land yellow as far as the mountains. The smell of baking apples and cinnamon fills the air, and the breeze is fresh as laundry. Tall trees break up yellow sunlight into fractured rays, and a babbling brook runs through the town from an old wheat mill. Donkeys and horses carry piles of hay back and forth, and it seems like everyone is outside today.

Indigo: Across the bridge from Catterwalk, lies Indigo. A grey and stony town ruled by a mad and cruel king of Kenku. Surrounded by a dense forest of fir trees. Houses are lifted and birdhouse-like, only birds may enter.

Indus and Revus: Twin-city towns of centaurs, who make beer, ale, and wine. Their strong backs carry flagons and transport grapes, their strong hooves mush grapes and plums and fruit, and their high reach grab fruit from tall trees. On very good standing and know pretty much everything. Surrounded by plains, these centaurs run for miles.

Kipper: A homeland of Leonins, though they are nomadic, this is where their religion takes root. They believe in the 7 Great Warriors, legends from long ago about 7 warriors who overthrew the ruler of Kipper long ago and made a homeland for Leonin kind. They bring offerings, ask to be blessed, get married, and have children inside the city, but live elsewhere. Ruled by Queen Liper, each nomadic tribe has its own leader who reports to her. She is very cruel and cold to outsiders.

Tortuga Bay: A pirate town on the coast full of thieves and robbers, vigilantes and hitmen, criminals and those in hiding. Its a seemingly perpetually-dark, dank city that smells like rotting seaweed and salt. Everywhere, men lay dead or drunk beyond saving. Fights break out in the worryingly swaying bars, people are thrown through windows with panes as thick as ale glasses. Every building represents a different fish - some have long decks with sharp railings like the underbite of an angler, some have fins to withstand the heavy sea winds, and some are outright built in the shape of a massive trout. Nobody rules this lawless land, and honestly, I don't think anyone could.

PLACES:

Purplehart Farm: Vineyard of green, red, and purple grapes that span miles. Inhabited by Halflings and dwarves low enough to pick the grapes.

Grommet Library: A library run by the massive Grommet family, a Harengone family of researchers. It goes several hundred feet into the earth on a cylinder, the center open and the books clinging to the walls as a spiral platform goes all the way down. The top is open in the center, and birds fly in and out.

Lisa's farm: A flower farm.

Forge of the Forefathers: Dwarven forge in the lower center, a huge workplace for the fire dwarves. Red hot and burning lava comes from deep underground and melts iron at molten temperatures. Many weapons are forged here.

Forest of Bones: Dense forest of fir trees and dead, skinny weir-wood trees. Thick with fog, graves, and loose trinkets of those who have gone missing or died suddenly. Huge, spiky rib bones of something massive hang thick moss trails and provide places for birds to nest.

The Sunwood: A sacred religious tree for those who Worship the Goddess of light. A massive tree full of fireflies.

Mountains of Aemog: Huge mountains. Pass of Theodore lets you through, one rickety, decommissioned bridge. Green mountains of dragons, lizardfolk, and moss monsters.

Openlands and Hillplace: Centaur territory, flatlands. Good for running

Forever Pits: pits straight into the earth.

[neversaynotoarainbow]

More late night fanart sketches....

Rereading the Moorehawke trilogy soo FUCKENN GOOODDD

My five fav things about this series

1. Set in fantasy medieval Ireland but has a really global non eurocentric view of things....

2. The main characters talk about contraceptives before having sex and the male character takes responsibility for safe sex and promotes sex education and free choice and that good feminism boi shit

3. The two main love interests do the fake dating trope but are fake married for reasons but then are like Ehhh Good Enough .. and that's it they are married fir the rest of the story...

4. Nomadic Irish pagan tribes *blows kiss* bueautifulll

5. A lot of the story is character driven and like about small moments between character and often unspoken gestures or acts of trust, friendship and devotion...

Sooo yeah I'm a bit obsessed...

Also fun fact i first read these when i was like 12 forgot about then for 13yrs then literally spent 15hrs+ trying find out what they were called.... AND YOU KNOW WHAT CRACKED IT?? I suddenly remembered this character yelling out that he needs to take a shit in Gaelic.... so yeah

The Moorehawke Trilogy by Celine Kiernan 10/10

[depressedhatakekakashi]

I loved the idea of ​​Kakashi as the avatar (since it would be really cool!!) until I remembered that the avatar can be bald, although I think that's only if you're an air bender but still a bald Kakashi came to mind.., I think I'm fine with the fire bender Kakashi lol

Air Nomad’s can be bald, but arn’t always. Like we see Tenzin’s daughter shaved to receive her tattoo’s as an air bending master, but then the next season her hair is grown out again

Also the air bending avatar before Aang had hair though

But even so, we don’t see any of the non air bending born avatar’s with the tattoo’s or their hair shaved, so it’s def an air nomad style only with it being a choice among them if they wish to shave or not

Kakashi can keep his hair, and i’d never have his as an air bender beginning. He’s either earth ir fire, always with a special talent fir lightning bending (i actually have him struggle with fire bending when it’s based on emotions since Kakashi is a pretty emotionally controlled character)