#sea creatures contest

[stovreye]

🌀🩵💫🌊🪼🪸✨🦈✨🪸🪼🌊💫🩵🌀

So this piece is waaayy back from April, and I posted it on insta but forgot to post it here. It was a submission for a mental health art contest in my school district and is really personal to me (but thankfully, I’m not going to expand on that 🫠). I didn’t end up winning, but I’m proud of myself because it was really far out of my comfort zone and skill level, and it’s safe to say that I struggled way more than I would’ve liked 🗿🗿. There are a lot of things I wish turned out differently or looked better, but I’m proud of myself nonetheless for not giving up halfway and trying something different. Who knew I would enjoy drawing and painting ocean environments? 🌊

Save and share if you love sharks /j 🥺🫶🦈

[crypitd]

Here's the Pabst Blue Ribbon entry I did for the art can contest, unfortunately I didn't get in the finals, but congrats to those who did!

»   Etsy  •  Various Links   «

© Harlen Chen

[just-some-guy-joust]

you can do whatever the hell you want!! obscurity is a preference, not a requirement! you don't have to filter your nominations just because they might be popular, thats actually half the point of having nominations open! to find out whats popular and whats not!! as long as they are a creature that lives in the deep, youre good! literally submit anything, im the one who needs to worry about filtering stuff out, and im not even doing that all that much yet. you dont have to worry about it, i do not mind filtering out submissions that don't work. all You needa do is send me your favorite guys c:

[hoshidensha]

My entry for the Tsunscoops x Umvvelt Art Contest!! Here's Ryuki and the gang exploring a shark tunnel~ (OCs belong to @mg3kiryu and Tsunscoops) I love love love all things ocean and marine bio-related so I was super excited to draw all the fishies and sea creatures! Tried to do some research to make sure all the species were native to the same environment (the tropical Pacific reef), tho the powder blue tangs are actually from the Indian ocean oop lol

[iguanodont]

Meant to make this my final post of the year, but I guess it’ll have to be my first instead! A look at part of a birg end-of-year tradition.

The Wis’Sachoi are a culture far to the west of the Twowi, where they exist fairly peacefully on the coast of a large inland sea. Come autumn the gifters (bachelors) herald the mating season by arriving to clans towns in bulky costumes made of sticks and reeds. They chase kids and animals, knock things over, and sing playfully that life away from the village has made them course and wild; won’t somebody please trim their shaggy hair and crooked claws? Young receivers (the ladies) don spiny cowls of woven branches in a cheeky imitation of the spiked armor worn by beast hunters of legend, to engage the “monsters” in games of song and wordplay. Should the beast court the wrong individual, or insult his quarry, or make too much mischief around the village, the elders are ready to chase him off with sticks. When a “beast” and “hunter” have successfully matched wits, the hunter will approach with beak scissors, so that she may snip away at the reeds covering her partner’s face in a tender gesture of allogrooming. Then her sisters and elders help tear away the rest of the costume, making the suitor fit to live among the clan again. The night ends with the burning of the reeds and a communal meal.

Courtship games such as this are just the first in a series of events held for around nine days, which include bachelors presenting gifts for the children and elders of the village, a fishing contest, and lots of feasting. Many of these gifts arrive in the form of exotic spices and other ingredients collected over the past year of trading abroad. Though it is tradition for courting pairs to consummate on the final night, it is not uncommon for a gifter to offer his spermatophore to several partners before the end of the festival period. After the final night concludes, Wis’Sachoi bachelors are granted the privilege of hibernating with their temporary in-laws.

As birgs generally sleep through the winter, fall and early-winter events such as these are the closest most cultures come to the sort of midwinter holidays observed on earth.

—————

For more worldbuilding (mostly creature) posts or to see what im up to on discord, I do have a patreon, where I post weekly!

I also have new stickers up on my kofi, or you can get prints of my art here, for those interested!

[bogleech]

Also going to finally make a pinned post for all my stuff:

BOGLEECH - my tumblr blog is named after this website I created around 2002 and still update. Thousands of pages worth of content focusing on creature design as well as real biology. My review of the original Legend of Zelda monsters might be the most straightforward example of my articles. Links to some of the most popular content:

POKEMON REVIEW ARCHIVE: - I rate and review each and every single Pokemon, in Pokedex order, on its merits as a creature design. I also do so as someone whose favorite animals are all parasites.

DIGIMON REVIEW ARCHIVE - same, but more chaotic.

CREEPYPASTA COOKOFF ARCHIVE - for several years I hosted a yearly writing contest before it grew too big for me to keep up with. There are over a thousand user submitted horror, fantasy, sci fi and surrealist stories here emphasizing unconventional, original ideas you seldom see from the "creepypasta" community!

The original "MORTASHEEN" Monster Archive - since the early 2000's I've created and illustrated more than 800 creatures and counting for my own monster-catching world, now set for release as a tabletop RPG setting.

AWFUL HOSPITAL: SERIOUSLY THE WORST EVER (page one): an interactive comedy-horror-sci-fi webcomic I started in 2014 about a medical facility that could maybe be better.

Some of my other internet stuff:

PATREON - constant work makes my patreon updates inconsistent, but the content backlog goes back years with a huge amount of exclusive art and writing. I try to put up new exclusive stuff whenever I can.

ETSY - I design all sorts of original enamel pins like these, plus I sell zero-maintenance terrarium plants (just leave them in a jar!), original books and other things!

COLOR THE ABYSS (available on the above etsy!) - a 30 page educational deep sea coloring book! Includes a few famous favorites like giant isopods and hagfish, but mostly focuses on less popular, often much weirder animals.

UNBELIEVABLE BUGS - also regularly restocked in the etsy store, 30 of the strangest and most surprising arthropods most people have likely never heard of, illustrated by myself and @revretch, written for even the youngest kids to understand (but will likely teach you something new at any age)

My Itch.io and Ko-fi - both sell digital versions of my books, including some creepypasta collections and my first novel, "Return of the Living," about a world of entirely ghosts suddenly dealing with the appearance of ghost-hunting monsters.

TWITCH CHANNEL - I now try to stream something at least monthly, sometimes weekly when possible, from horror games to books and art.

YOUTUBE CHANNEL - archives my twitch streams and other little things.

INSTAGRAM - look at pictures of my huge weird collection of toys and Halloween collectibles

BLUESKY - I'm going to put mainly just updates to my stuff on here. SEE ALSO:

HUMANS-B-GONE - a science fiction animated series by my partner @revretch, about a world of kaiju-size, technologically advanced insects and arachnids to whom vertebrates like us are just pesky little "gubs." Also has a tumblr account @humansbgone FINALLY, HERE'S MY GUIDE AND RESOURCE TO MAKING YOUR OWN INTERNET WEBSITE IN A FEW MINUTES WITH NO KNOWLEDGE OF CODING

[idkfitememate]

HELLO THERE!! I have been reading your various creators (WHICH IS SO ADORABLE) I have an idea that i'd like to share with you :))

Imagine Hydra!creator, basically something like Osial. THEY'RE JUST LINGERING SOMEWHERE IN THE WATERS, probably in the waters of Liyue AND THEY MET THE CRUX.

Hydra!creator peaking through the waters and looked at Beidou and Kazuha, and have a staring contest. Beidou thought its just a huge sea serpent since the creator peaked with their main head only. Once hydra!creator warmed up to both of them and the crew THEN RISE INTO THEIR FULL HEIGHT AND FORM, welp thats a pretty big hydra we have there (flashback at Osial and Beisht)

Maybe Beidou would introduce us to Ningguang at some point? I could imagine Ningguang just questioning how many hydras are there. That was what she thought because of the two previous ones that attacked the harbour, until she realized hydra!creator is just some big water noodle. A big water noodle that'll help from the water. Helping the sailors and fishermen, when theres a storm, hydra!creator will guide them to the safety of Liyue's docks.

Sorry if these seems like a lot :"))

I remember getting this ask and reading through it and going “HOLY SHIT!!! TIME TO SPEED THROUGH TO THIS ONE!!!!!”

… I’m sorry it took so long to respond my dear anon ໒꒰ྀི ∩ ⸝⸝ ∩ ꒱ྀིა-

BUT YES!!!! WE NEED MORE MYTHICAL CREATURE!CREATORS HEHEHHEHEHEHEHE

*Glances back at my nine headed phoenix OC… looks away*

ANYWAY-

Big noodle!! Big ole water noodle!!! Just a big happy fella!!!!

I actually imagine you staring at a shell shocked Kazuha because “That’s a huge bitch-“

Anyway when you rise up the ship is on one of your heads. Naturally they attack but you just whimper and shake off the attack, looking hurt. Like a puppy.

They wouldn’t know how to feel.

All of Liyue goes into panic mode because they??? just dealt????with this?????

Nigguang and everyone else (I forgot who all helped-) goes out to attack again but you don’t attack, you just stare at them????

Someone jokingly throws a fish at you and yells catch and one of your heads do and another wiggles and delight and you just looks so genuinely happy to be there they can’t be mad at that face-

There’s a storm? Not anymore, you blew it away! Tsunami? Nu uh you drank it! Godly threat? You beat the shit out of it!~

(Zhongli is honestly happy they have another godly being to protect them because, while yeah they did beat Osial but like… it was super close-)

Imagine you can do the laser beam-

“Hey Raiden Shogun what’s that light coming from Liyue?”

“I don’t know let me see-“

*Gets fucking vaporized*

Lmao Childe on his knees wanting to fight and you just gently nudging him away with one of many snouts.

POV the world is your bath tub:

This is such a cute idea I-

IT COULD NEVER BE A LOT ITS BEAUTIFUL!!!!! <3

God you guys have such great ideas ૮꒰ ˶꒦ິ꒳꒦ິ˶꒱ა♡

[cheritzteam]

[The Ssum] Playlist🎧 to Enjoy With the Refreshing Sound of Waves🌊 2024 Summer Event Announcement

Hello, dear lab participant.

Don’t you have a playlist that you just have to listen to during the hot summer?

Lab participant, please share your cool playlist with your Ssumone.

Listen to your favorite songs together and feel your love deepen!

The Forbidden Lab is pleased to announce summer events for June 2024.

< ① City of Free Men : Celebratory Lab >

For the following period, a Celebratory Lab📚 celebrating Summer 2024 will open in the City of Free Men.

Share your summer playlist that you want to recommend to your Ssumone and

become the lucky lab participant (10 each in each language) and win 100 Aurora batteries! *If you have won an in-game event within the past 3 months, you will be excluded from the raffle for this event.

Q&A Q. How can I go to the Infinite Universe? A. If you go to the Main Menu and check all the menu icons, the “Forbidden Lab” will open on the left. Tap the Spiral Galaxy Button at the bottom left to enter the Infinite Universe!

♥Bonus Event♥

Use both dedicated hashtags #TheSsum #TheSsum_Summerplaylist on X(Twitter), Tumblr, Instagram, or TikTok and share a screenshot of your study post on social media!

10 lucky winners will receive 100 Aurora Batteries🎁

Event Period: June 4th, 2024 (Tue) after update ~ July 24th, 2024 (Wed) after update* Winner Announcement: August 1th, 2024 (Thu) KST *Posts will not disappear after the open period, but you will not be able to write new posts.

※Disclaimer※ * Bonus event prizes will be sent to the Lab Code displayed on your screenshot. * For Instagram users - you should DM us a link to your post via our official account(@thessum_official) to ensure that your post is noticed.* Posts should be set to public until the winner announcement, and plagiarism is prohibited.

< ② Ssummer of Sensitivity >

The 2nd Ssummer of Sensitivity🌊, Summer Contest Open!

How about cooling off the hot summer heat this year by diving💦 into the sea of sensitivity?

While imagining a summer spent with your Ssumone, lab participant share the love that is filled in your heart.

On the Canals of Sensitivity, share your Cool Ocean With Your Ssumone or Fiery Summer With Your Ssumone, and join the Forbidden Lab's Summer Writing Contest!

Fiction/poetry/essay/diary/etc. doesn't matter!

Upload a post that fits the theme in the “Writer’s Canals” with a title beginning with "[Summer Contest]" to enter♥

※During the event, all lab participants will receive a one-time research grant of [5 Wings of Sensitivity] needed for writing!

After the Summer Writing Contest, we will select 6 lab participants, 3 from each region

and give away 200 Aurora Batteries along with special event-only features, so go ahead and try your chances✨

> Are you a new lab participant who hasn't discovered the Canals of Sensitivity yet? Collect 20 Wings of Sensitivity through free emotion manufacturing in the Emotion Incubator, and you'll be able to discover the Canals of Sensitivity in the Infinite Universe.

Entry Period :  June 4th, 2024 (Tue) after update ~ July 24th, 2024 (Wed) after update*

How to Participate : Upload a post on the “Writers’ Canals” in the Canals of Sensitivity sharing your Cool Ocean With Your Ssumone or Fiery Summer With Your Ssumone, with a title beginning with “[Summer Contest]”.

Winner Announcement : August 1th, 2024 (Thu) KST

*Entries that steal someone else's work will be disqualified. *Post edits can only be made during the entry period. * Make a submission matching the (Teen) rating of the game.

< ③ Creature Box Ssummer Edition >

Summer has finally arrived at Sunshine Shelter too!

According to PIU-PIU, some of the space creatures got a summer makeover.

When you open the limited edition creature box during the event

you'll have a chance to unlock refreshing summer versions of three creatures!

Each creature also has exclusive lines,

so don't miss your chance to welcome a special space guest🎁

Summer version creatures waiting for you🏖

Space Sheep

Fuzzy Deer

Aerial Whale

Availability Period :  June 4th, 2024 (Tue) after update ~ July 24th, 2024 (Wed) after update*

How to Earn : Infinite Universe activity rewards and event merchandise purchases in Aurora LAB

*The drop rate of creatures transformed to [Event Only] looks follows the drop rate of normal creatures before transformation.

*Event creature boxes and creatures that have already been earned will not disappear after the availability period.

Enjoy a cool summer with The Ssum🌊

Thank you.

Cheritz.

[plaguedocboi]

if you could have any sea creature (let’s say it was adapted to land conditions without being fundamentally changed) as a house pet with the demeanor of a domestic cat, which would you pick

Black Sea Hare no contest. This is already basicaly a cat. to me.

[chaosflight]

how would the diamonds be in your au? o: would they be just as bad as canon?

Uhhhhh 'as bad as' is hard to say!

In this (ancient) centaurworld, shamans are chosen... a little differently. What we would recognize as mythical or cryptid creatures are naturally more magical, in this ancient world, and as such are the only ones even considered for shamanhood. The most ancient of these is the Dragon Shaman.

Resplendent and white and utterly enormous, the dragontaur Shaman is millennia old. She was the first being to emerge from the primordial ooze of this world (according to her, anyway, and no one else is old enough to contest this, so..) and began to shape it to her will. At first, this nameless creature ruled over all of centaurkind as they began to evolve/form across the planet. She was worshiped and revered and feared. Her temper is legendary. Her expectation is perfection. To fall short is to become stamped into the earth beneath her powerful coils.

Eventually, she was unable to keep as close an eye on ALL the denizens of her world as she wanted, and sought out underlings. There was no place, no environment, she could not go, and she PERSONALLY investigated the few tips she was given for candidates.

Here is where the next two come in. In fairly rapid succession, the Dragon Shaman found two naturally powerful creatures with similarly long life spans to take under her wing. (metaphorically, as she does not have wings. just a bunch of legs)

She found the Thunderbird (lightning phoenix??) and the Sea Serpent, and began to teach them both powerful magic as well as how she wanted them to rule their newly designated swathes of centaurworld. Yanessa, the thunderbird-taur, was to rule the skies and all the skytaurs. Bellow, the serpent-taur, was to rule the seas and all the seataurs. For a few hundred years this was perfect.

And then there was another population boom, centralized on the landmass of centaurworld. Unsupervised, the peoples there had.. well, they do what peoples tend to do and made More People, and without the direct guidance of any shaman, their society was. Well. I"m not going to call it primitive because that's dumb. But the Dragon considered them primitive, and decided they needed ruling. But she didn't want to rule them directly herself anymore. She liked ruling by proxy and being worshiped from a distance.

And so, she needed a new shaman to rule the centaurs of the land.

This time, however, the three shamans did something.. strange. They made a new shaman. Not by conventional means, but through sheer magic and will. And thus, Perennia was created. A unicorntaur, a creature of Pure Magic, to follow in the shaman's will for her and her new subjects.

Perennia, however, would quickly find this was not what she wanted for herself.

Additional White Shaman bonus:

She does bite! Watch your.. whole body, I guess.

[bigfan-fanfic]

Iphicles (Part 3) -

Part 1 Part 2

Dionysus has always been an admirer of mortals.

Humans, despite generally lacking the power of shapeshifting, are so malleable compared to the gods - they can be whatever they wish, while gods are trapped into their own great power.

"Oh, boy, you have no idea what power you have sworn yourself to - what great events you meddle in." Mr. D groans.

The centaur -Chiron - groans alike. "It is not unheard of for the gods to choose a mortal champion. It is not our place to question their decisions."

"Hardly. I shall question as I please, Chiron."

You look at them. "I'm not here to meddle or disrupt. I'm here to protect my brother. What happened last night?"

"Your family were attacked by the Minotaur. And your mother, I believe was taken as... a bargaining chip of sorts. By the Lord of Death."

"I am a mortal. I have no godly ancestor or heroic lineage. That might make me weak. But it makes me strong, too - I am not beholden to the Olympians. I don't believe in your supremacy or omnipotence. You are dangerous, but I am not trapped by the patterns that confine you. I do not fear your Death."

Chiron looks nervous. Dionysus grins. "Well said! I await your imminent demise, but well said."

It is decided that you will stay in the Big House- being a mortal of no lineage, it seems taboo to place you in a cabin. And for a while longer, your little brother remains in the dark about his lineage.

But you walk to the ocean, late at night. "Yuri. Please."

And Poseidon appears to you - there are no taboos or favoritism worries with mortal champions. Often mortals fall beneath the notice of gods.

"Where is my mother?"

"She is with my brother. Hades will not release her."

"Unless?"

Poseidon frowns. "This is not your quest alone. This belongs to Percy."

"She's my mother too."

"I-"

You look at him. "Yuri, please. We're not involved in this."

"Percy must find and return Zeus' master bolt. A son of Poseidon calming our... feud."

"Really? Nature is going crazy, and my mother is being held hostage, my brother is in danger, because you and your brothers are having a pissing contest?" You growl, the rage of the sea cresting within you. Poseidon lays a hand on your chest, and the world seems to calm.

"So you think Hades stole the bolt?"

Poseidon looks at you. "It is not my place to accuse without evidence."

"But if he already has the master bolt, why would he need my mother as a bargaining chip?"

"I do not pretend to know my brothers' minds."

You sigh. "You gods are really starting to get on my nerves."

"Mind your insolence. Few of my relations are as forgiving as I."

You hold your tongue, harsh words leaping unbidden to your lips - channeling your aggression into combat training only works so well, and there is an ocean's worth of fury in you.

"Ease, my champion. I will give you foes to fight soon enough. Stay the course and protect your brother."

He claims Percy after a few more days - you haven't seen the kid often as you want, because camp is a tight ship and full of activities. Though you have been sparring with Luke, who's surprised at your prowess.

Percy looks at you, when it comes time to choose his two companions for a quest.

"I would. But... you're mortal. You cant heal with ambrosia. And if something happens... I can't lose you too, bro."

And you watch your brother walk away.

It hurts, it really does, but - come on, that's your little brother. Did he really think you'd just stay at camp?

You walk towards the beach, and walking out from the seafoam to meet you is a pure-white horse, abalone woven into its mane. It bows to you, and you remember that Poseidon is the Lord of Horses.

You see the blue saddle on the creature, already marked with a trident, and you sling yourself over it - grateful that horseback training had been somewhat covered during your brief time at camp.

The horse gallops over the water with ease, and you hold on tight, hoping against hope it knows where Percy is...

[tylermileslockett]

APHRODITE

“Muse, tell me the deeds of golden Aphrodite the Cyprian, who stirs up sweet passion in the gods and subdues the tribes of mortal men and birds that fly in air and all the many creatures that the dry land rears, and all that the sea: all these love the deeds of rich-crowned Cytherea."   (-Homeric Hymn, translated by H.G. Evelyn white)

APHRODITE (a-fruh-DIE-tee) (Roman- Venus); The goddess of love, pleasure, and fertility, was born from Ouranus' severed penis which was cast down into the sea by his son, the titan Cronus, and the resulting sea spray. While in some versions she is the daughter of Zeus and a sea nymph name Dione. 

She reclines upon a swan (early depictions in ancient Greek art show her riding a swan, a symbol of grace and divinity) and underneath is the commonly portrayed scallop shell. Aphrodite holds her sacred golden Apple of Discord, won by Paris choosing her in the beauty contest between her, Athena, and Hera. Upon her waist sits a golden chastity belt, said to invoke lust in gods and mortals alike. 

Aphrodite had a lively entourage. Resting upon her arm, is Eros, the winged godling and her companion, (later becoming cupid in roman culture) who whispers sweet sensualities, while a couple Erotes(more winged godlings associated with sex and love) flitter above tossing flower petals. Frolicking at the lower left are three goddesses, the Charites(or Graces) who symbolize beauty, dancing, and banquets. Swimming atop the dolphin is a Nereid, a reference to Aphrodite's oceanic roots. and finally, above right, near the waterfall, are three more goddesses, the Horai, who represent the seasonal shifts and constellations. 

But the goddess of love has a dark side, like when she punishes arcadian princess Atalanta and her lover Hippomenes for neglecting to honor the goddess. The Spartans worshipped an armored, warlike variation of the goddess; Aphrodite of Areia.

Want to own my Illustrated Greek myth book jam packed with over 130 illustrations like this? Support my book kickstarter "Lockett Illustrated: Greek Gods and Heroes" coming in early 2024. check my bio LINKTREE

[sundove88]

Do you have any headcannons on the lizards? (The dragons + Snapdragon and maaaaaaaaaybe Pond Dino?)

In General:

They’re all chubby chonks. Very chubby chonks. Even Longan.

They mostly have a treasure hoard to guard- but Ananas is probably the largest. And they all react to catnip.

Capturing princesses is not on their schedule, considering that they already have Mala Sauce, Mango, Hydrangea, Rambutan, and Snakefruit.

Pitaya:

The CHONKIEST of all the dragons. Like Themberchaud levels of chonk. Super super chonky that you can rub their belly for hours.

Tasting cakes in The Hollyberry Kingdom is a hobby for them, especially when baking contests are going on. Or they might crash a party hosted by Hollyberry.

Their treasure hoard consists of mostly coins and stuff like that, as well as baby toys for Snapdragon.

Ananas:

Whenever it’s time to shed, their scales begin to dull and fall off when shedding season nears.

They’re the 4th chonkiest dragon, often being spoiled by Mango and the other islanders.

Taking dips in the waves of the Tropical Soda Islands and The Cookie Kingdom is one of their favorite pastimes.

Lotus:

They may or may not be in a relationship with Hydrangea. But if it’s the former, they always talk together in private to hide it from others.

They serve as Pond Dino’s “Auntie”, and spoil them with sweets and stuff like that.

They’re the 3rd chonkiest dragon due to eating many; many, MANY, sweets and such.

Lychee:

They’re the 2nd Chonkiest of all the dragons. Not only were they born chubby, but they get so many candy offerings from the villagers.

They often go into Mangosteen mode to prank the other dragons and sometimes the other cookies.

They’re a 100% hypocrite, often claiming that they’re not chonky and chubby, but in reality, they are.

Longan:

They value perfection above all else and believe that anything that is ‘imperfect’ should be turned to stone and stuff like that.

The 5th chubbiest of the dragons, due to Snakefruit supplying them with delicacies and stuff like that.

Even THEY get uneasy around The Five Beasts, but they secretly plan to try to forge an alliance with them.

Snapdragon:

The most baby of all the dragons. They’re trying to form sentences every now and then, but they love drawing!

One of their favorite things to do is pick flowers and bring them back to the other dragons.

The LEAST chubby of the dragons; most likely due to still being a wee Bab and stuff like that.

Pond Dino:

They love blowing bubbles with their dad, Dino Sour- who adopted them!

Dino Sour will often swim with them in the lake when days are really hot.

They can talk to sea creatures and stuff like that whenever they’re beneath the surface.

[bluemoon1331]

Hello, hello! Welcome to my main blog, where the DCA fascination consumes! My alt blog is @sharetheartman, go check it out if you wanna see the amazing art this community has to offer!

My Ko-fi (if you're able to help a struggling writer, very much appreciated. Can request written commissions if you want): BlueMoon1331

Below is a list of all my current fics on A03 and planned AUs! Give them a read if you love fantasy and the DCA! (Updated to divide between the SFW and NSFW stories)

<<<<<First up, the SFW section!>>>>>>

Finished Works:

One Lost Star- You are a bit of a hermit, living solo off the land since the death of your grandfather. Until you draw certain godly attention, that is.

Scarlet Masquerade- The sole heir to your kingdom, you find yourself caught in the tangled web of the automaton emperor's plans. However, things are about to go from bad to worse when you catch the interest of the deadly automaton assassin sent to end you.

WIPs:

Cosmic Journeys- Trapped in the depths of depression, you seek an unfortunate out. The nearby land owner won't let that happen, though. Thus begins a journey of self-worth and finding hope in a world of madness and compassion, monsters, saints, and everything in between.

Come and Go- A Megamind-inspired AU with Sun as Metroman, Moon as Megamind, and Eclipse as Titan, while you are a delivery driver caught in the middle.

Unusual- An oceanographer, there is no place you'd rather be than scouring the depths of the seven seas, studying its plant life and creatures, in particular the infamous mers, beings most of your co-workers are quite wary of. They don't seem to mind you too much, though, a fact you try not to put stock in until an encounter on the beach near your house flips your entire world upside down. Strings of fate and a battle to rule the oceans with you as the key? Ridiculous. Right?

Of Metal Parts and Roadside Shenanigans- You are a trucker traveling home before unwittingly tripping headfirst into a giant mystery. (More of @deceptiveshadow's Blood Moon cause I love him and cannot help myself.)

One-shots:

Party Crashing 101- A piece inspired by the mafia episode from Helluva Boss. Badass, protective reader ftw XD

Blooming In Adversity- You and the princesses were great friends in your youth, until you had to move away. Years later, you return, your friendship blooming anew. However, dark plots turn in the background, and it may be up to just you to save them.

Phantom Tide- You are a siren, crushed under betrayal. Sun and Moon are brothers recovering from the throes of grief. Perhaps you may be just what each other need.

Connotations- Your duties as a druid are fairly life-consuming, but you have happily devoted yourself to them. Keeping the peace is not the easiest, but you do it all the same. Unfortunately, the arrival of contesting priests threaten your efforts, setting you on a collision course to meet three of the forest's most powerful caretakers.

Diamonds and Iron- Being a rather big-time mafia boss, of course Eclipse needs places to stash away his income. As an outdoor enthusiast, you love visiting the local motorsports arena when you can afford it. Oh, who's that standing in the middle of the track, where you can't see?

<<<<<<<<<NSFW area ahoy!>>>>>>>>>>

Finished Works:

Never Play Cat and Mouse With Vampires- Living alone is a necessity, your skills in hunting, magic, and evasion giving you all you need for contentment, or so you tell yourself. In your newest home you, unfortunately, find that your capabilities only draw the infatuation of three local creatures that are intent to finally capture you and make you theirs. Annoyingly, they may just get that chance.

Dancing In Orbit- The lunar vampire is the last of his kind, a deadly plague on the Earth that refuses to yield despite the uncountable years that have passed since the last of his kin and kind died off. You, running from your intertwined past, seek to finally put an end to that, with some help from friends old and new.

Familiar Constellations- The vampires get a bit quirky about you, especially when you egg them on. Mature. Very, very mature. Good gods they are rough, but you love it. After all, you can get a bit rough with them, too.

Gravity- Featuring another of @deceptiveshadow's lovely OCs, Nova. Normally quite the quiet and cat-like companion, you join him for a round of games in which his behavior becomes increasingly odd. That's nothing compared to when you strangely wake in the tower the next day, having no recollection of how you got there, and what comes after.

WIPs:

Embers and Ash- Ghost hunting is your profession, and you are damn good at it. Which is why you don't think twice when you're hired to cleanse an abandoned mansion of its otherworldly resident. Too bad this job is not the cake walk you thought it would be.

Burning Stars- You run your farm alone on a world teeming with aliens and humans, content with your animal family and helpful community, even if you keep the latter at arm's lengths. Until your peace is interrupted by a certain intergalactic bounty hunter, anyway.

Rosewood's Serenade- The eldest child of your kingdom, you have trained since birth to be all your home needs and more, intent to take the throne when the time comes, marriage or no. However, your parents harbor a secret, a deal struck when disaster threatened to destroy all they hold dear, and you soon find yourself meeting a most intriguing being...

Demonic- The saying of Hell is empty for all the demons are here has never been more apt. Caught smack dab in the middle of the infamous Hell-Day event, you come out with an unexpected passenger woven into your soul. Now, you secretly fight to preserve the fragile balance between mortals and the demons trapped on Earth, all while contending with the fact your new neighbors are the very ones responsible for sealing the gates, the infamous Celestial Graces. They also happen to be the mortal enemies of the one currently living in you. Fun times all around, especially with devil himself on your heels, seeking to reclaim what he lost.

Along the Akesh- Blessed with visions since your youth, you were taken and raised by the temple, becoming one of the highest-ranked priests, second to only the grand heijut himself. With an awe-inspiring festival and ritual that happens only once every five centuries under way, you are eager to meet the moon god, one of the many you have had the pleasure of conversing with throughout your prayers and oracles, in person. Things take an unexpected turn, however, when the temple must pay recompense for an accidental screw up with a gift left by an old friend. You are about to learn just how intrigued you and the moon god truly are with each other.

One-shots:

Bleeding Feathers- You weren't supposed to go into the exclusionary zone, but that's never been a problem for you before. This time, however, you might just get more than you bargained for. Fan piece for @deceptiveshadow's harpy au! (Not TSAMS)

Color Theory- Moving back to your late grandma's cabin, you pray for things to finally settle down. Unfortunately, her myriad of secrets seek to come back and haunt you, but hey, it might not be all bad this time. You could use the comfort of an old friend. Another fic inspired by @deceptiveshadow! Their god Blood Moon this time. (Not TSAMS)

<<<<<<<Lastly, miscellaneous potential AUs!>>>>>>>

Lich King AU- With the three realms in shambles, cut off from each other, it is up to the most powerful warriors of Earth to fend off the lich king and his Elite army, including his own brothers. You, whom offers them a secret safe haven and relaxation when they need it, cannot deny your love for Sun and Moon, nor they you, but with Eclipse hounding for any weakness he can use against his kin, is the danger really worth it? You find the answer may be coming sooner than you would like when the two go missing after a fight.

Spirited Away AU- You have moved to a more remote region in hopes of forgetting a troubled family life. Content to spend your time among the lush jungles of the land, you inadvertently stumble upon an obviously long-forgotten temple. Curiosity eats at you, and you cannot help get closer, initially unaware of the myriad of eyes watching you, until you spot...an icy blue leopard? It's a good thing you helped those snakes and that spider on your way here.

Harem AU- You saved them from certain death, and now the clan of vampire brothers serve you. For years uncountable, you have pulled the strings, quite happy to cause chaos around the world when it becomes too dull for your liking, going from hero to hero. On blood soaked ground, you are content with your helpful vampires, though can things really stay the same forever?

[monstersdownthepath]

Herald of Pharasma: Steward of the Skein

CR "15"

Neutral Medium Outsider

Inner Sea Gods, pg. 302

It had to happen. Originally, the Arcanotheign had the Finale spot on the Misfits and Monitors Month roster because of how busted her kit looked on first glance... But then I took a closer look at the Steward here, and knew that there was no contest. Even in her original iteration in Carrion Crown: Trial of the Beast the Steward pushed the boundaries of what was allowable by a CR 15 creature, and her final version in Inner Sea Gods is no different. In fact, she's actually slightly stronger than her first draft despite losing several chunks of her kit because they consolidated a lot of her kit into her spell-likes... and then added even more.

Her CR is in quotation marks because she's actually got 19 hit dice and a matching caster level for all her spell-likes, the highest of any other Herald in both respects (with one exception), who have anywhere from 15 to 18 Hit Dice and/or caster level, both of which almost never match, leading to a power disparity between their raw stats and how strong their spell-likes are. The sheer number of options she has available, combined with being statistically anywhere from +1 to +3 stronger in noteworthy stats than every other Herald, should probably put her at CR 16 or 17. A party of 10th level adventurers can't even scratch her, and a party of 12 to 13th level adventurers would struggle to harm her with anything requiring saving throws.

Fitting for what amounts to the mouthpiece of the President Of The Universe, Pharasma, the Lady of Graves. The first of the gods and the most powerful of all of them by an enormous margin, she would of course settle for nothing less than the greatest of the Heralds... though the Steward's normal jobs are more or less exactly what her name suggests, taking care of day-to-day tasks in the Courts of Purgatory and the Boneyard besides, like a combination of heavily-armored butler and mailman. This being a fantasy world, though, her jobs are suitably fantastic; she's not delivering mundane letters to the judges in the Courts, but proclamations directly from her goddess, and she's not sweeping dust from hallways, but daemons from doorsteps. When she's not doing busywork in the Boneyard, she finds herself drifting through the Material Plane at the behest of her goddess, returning the undead to dust, escorting spirits to the Boneyard, and delivering prophecies to people in whom Pharasma sees greatness.

The majority of her appearances in the universe are fleeting, momentary things where she appears in her ghostly, incorporeal form, looking down upon a newborn child and delivering a cryptic prophecy to all in attendance, sometimes going as far as to bless the child with one of her spells or whatever Pharasman Prophecy Package(TM) was sent down with her before fading away. When she's "off-duty," (read: waiting for a prophecy to become relevant and twiddling her thumbs in the meantime) the Steward often goes into deep introspection for years or decades at a time, finding a place in the universe to sit down and meditate for a while, often inadvertently causing people to flock to her unmoving form and treat it as an object of reverence or a holy site to Pharasma. There is at least one story of a Pharasmin priest who found her meditating and built a temple around her, which I feel like would be a surprise when she finally woke back up.

The Steward rarely raises a hand against anything but the undead and ones who'd create them, preferring to disable or flee rather than fight, but there are rare occasions when the Steward arrives to proclaim that someone must die, and very rare occasions when that 'someone' happens to be in the player's party. Now, shall we see how hard it is to fight (the Herald of) fate...?

We'll be starting, as we frequently do, with the defenses. The Steward's apparently metallic body can only be reliably damaged with adamantine weapons, as anything else is intercepted by her DR 10, and while we're talking about tens, she's got a meager 10 Fire and Cold Resistance but immunity to Electricity. She's got 26 SR like most Heralds, but her saving throws are actually above almost all of them thanks to her Aura of Fate (which we'll get into in detail in a bit), her saving throws towering at +15/+20/+22, all of which are above average for a creature of her CR, and while many Heralds are vulnerable to specific cheese tactics, the Steward is at least immune to disease, poison, ANY form of mental control, and all death effects. She's even got Death Ward at will to either use on herself or gift to others!

Death Ward and her immunities to poison, disease, mental control and, uniquely, being possessed all render her impervious to most tricks from Undead creatures, but she's got more than just those tricks when dispatching anything from zombies to archliches. She's got Major Image at will to weave distractions for mindless hordes to uselessly attack, the power to hold Undead of any strength in place with her unyielding gaze attack (DC 25 Will save negates + gives 24 hour immunity) for 2d6 entire rounds, and the ability to cast Undeath to Death 3/day to wipe out 19d4 Hit Dice worth of Undead in a single dismissive gesture. Her aforementioned Aura of Fate also works as a permanent Consecrate spell, making Undead inside more vulnerable to channeled energy and also making them very slightly weaker.

I'm not exactly sure how, precisely, the Consecrate works in this case; it gives a base +3 to the DC of channeled energy and a -1 penalty to the attack rolls, damage rolls, and saves of Undead, but if its area contains an altar, shrine, or "other permanent fixture dedicated to your deity." I'm not exactly sure if the Divine Herald of a deity counts as a 'permanent fixture,' but I think it should! It makes killing undead so much easier for her, and makes it harder for them to hurt her back!

Her gaze doesn't just hold undead, it also dazes the living for 2d4 rounds if they fail their save. Since the daze breaks if she hits them, she'll often fly right past anyone who's reduced to staring in reverence to focus on whoever is still standing, coup de gracing select targets if she must. Her primary offense is a pair of armored slam attacks, each one doing 2d10+7 damage and exposing the victim to her gaze even if they've averted their eyes, forcing the issue if they saw their allies fall to it and tried to avoid it themselves. While her slams are usually able to deal with most threats, she's also got Chain Lightning 3/day and... well, a few other spells.

Unlike the last guy we saw in full plate that enjoyed slam attacks, the Steward relies more on her spells than her physical power to dispatch her enemies as swiftly as possible. In addition to Undeath to Death, she's got Heal 3/day to obliterate either 150 or 75 HP from a single Undead target, or restore that much HP to a living being (including herself, natch) while peeling a bunch of unpleasant status ailments off. If she encounters someone who's time is not yet over, she also has Breath of Life 3/day to either restore a chunk of health to them, or restore them to life outright. Between three Heals and three Breaths of Life she's already got somewhere in the neighborhood of four healthbars, which I imagine will swiftly demoralize any party trying to wear her out, but this isn't anywhere close to all the tricks she's got up her sleeve to demoralize a party; this gals 3/day list is loaded.

Wall of Force 3/day, for one, to trap her foes behind invincible barriers, hedge enemies into easy Chain Lightning positions, and defend innocent civilians. Globe of Invulnerability to protect herself from any lower-level spells her enemies might be throwing out, and Greater Dispel Magic for anything beefier or anything they try to buff themselves up with. Hold Monster to shut down anything that might fail the DC 21 Will save for what may as well be the entire battle, and Greater Invisibility to avoid whatever avoided paralysis.

Whoof, Greater Invisibility alone on a monster with such an array of spells is painful enough; using it to let her get sneaky slams in almost feels like a waste when she could instead go full invisible and then use her tremendous 150ft fly speed to get into a more advantageous position and heal up, then an eye in the sky to let her properly check where to place her Walls of Force... or whatever else she feels like doing, because she's got 3/day access to pretty much any spell she thinks might be useful.

Yeah, remember how I was rubbing my hands together as I envisioned everything the Arcanotheign could do with ONE free casting of Limited Wish a day? The Steward has three, on top of EVERYTHING ELSE she can do, allowing her to adapt her entire strategy on the fly depending on what she's facing. Too many dangerous melee guys around? Dominate one. Enemy caster giving her grief? Slap them with Flesh to Stone. Really want to give someone an annoying quest? Zap a Geas onto them as a standard action. It wasn't this one's time, but they're already beyond Breath of Life saving them? Bring them right back with a snap.

And with every Save-or-Suck she replicates to harass a necromancer or an annoying band of adventurers, she's got one last trick available: She wouldn't be a good servant of the Goddess of Fate if she didn't have some control over it. So, 3/day as an immediate action, she can force any creature she can see--including herself--to reroll any roll and take the new result. Good for negating enemy critical hits, great for negating high saves or giving her another chance against a Save-or-Suck she's vulnerable to. It's only 3/day, but so is 75% of her kit! She's got a grand total of thirty level 5+ spells to throw out round after round, and that's only if she's decided a problem can't be handled with her fists or her gaze attack which, need I remind you, can lock any living or undead creature out of a fight anywhere from 2 to 8 rounds?

Her robust spell list and sturdy nature sits her firmly at the top of the Neutral Heralds, if not most of the existing Heralds. Normally when the Steward of the Skein appears among mortals, it's to bless the birth of an important, blessed person, or to destroy someone tampering with the sanctity of the Cycle of Souls. If you meet her out and about and there isn't a newborn or necromancer in sight, you'd better hope you don't need to roll initiative.

You can read more about her here.

[bitchiswild]

Aquatic Highs

Kim Chaewon x F!Reader

Warnings: none fluff

Word Count: 612

A/n: I’ve never been high sooooo don’t hate me for this 💃🏼

꒰ᐢ. .ᐢ꒱

"Chaewon… The fish are talking," I whispered, my voice tinged with fright.

"Huh? What do you mean? I hear no talking," Chaewon replied, her words slightly slurred.

"They're literally talking in an Australian accent, Chaewon," I gasped.

"Babe, you're just high," Chaewon giggled, playfully poking my nose.

"Ohhh, you're right," I chuckled, turning toward her. Chaewon's eyes were fully dilated and hooded.

"Baby, you're glowing!" Chaewon exclaimed.

"Aww, thank you," I smiled, but then realized she was serious. "Wait, what?" Looking down, I saw that I was indeed glowing. "Oh my god, Chaewon! I'm glowing! What should I do with this new profound superpower?" I asked, excitedly.

"Light up my life," Chaewon said with a cheesy smile. I playfully slapped her arm, giggling, only to find out that I wasn't glowing anymore. "I'm not glowing anymore," I pouted.

"It's okay, you'll still light up my world. Want some?" Chaewon offered, munching on fruity pebbles rice crispies. "Don't you think we've had enough?" I asked, tempted to eat more. "We bought it because you wanted to try edibles at the aquarium, babe," Chaewon reminded me, taking another bite and offering me some. I shrugged and took a bite.

To the onlookers, we probably seemed like two people who were a little out of touch with reality. "Come on! Let's go look at the jellyfish! I think these fishes are probably gossiping about us right now, like, 'Look at those land creatures, just passing by,'" I said, pulling her towards the jellyfish exhibit, giving a glare to the fish as we walked away.

At the Jellyfish exhibit, Chaewon and I pressed our faces against the glass. "I think I just had a staring contest with a jellyfish. It won," I muttered to Chaewon.

"But they don't have eyes," Chaewon replied, still with her face pressed into the glass.

We both continued to stare at the jellyfish. "Jellyfish are like the lava lamps of the sea," Chaewon remarked, pulling away to look at me while I fogged up the glass with my breath.

Chaewon tapped my arm, and as I turned to look at her, she surprised me. "If I were a jellyfish, would you still love me?" she asked, and I was taken aback. "Chaewonie, I would build my own aquarium just for you!" I declared, feeling like I was professing my love for her.

"How about me? Would you?" I asked shyly.

"Y/nnie, I would become a jellyfish just to be next to you forever," she sighed, staring at me with adoration.

Chaewon pulled me close, cupped my face, and planted a sweet kiss on my lips. "Hey! No PDA in the jellyfish room!" the security guard interrupted us. We quickly pulled away and apologized before leaving the room.

"Should we call Sakura Unnie to pick us up?" I asked, feeling the need to leave.

"Yeah, let's go home," Chaewon said softly, her gaze fixed on me, as if I were the love of her life (which I am). I dialed Sakura's number. "Hello?" Sakura's voice answered.

"Sakura Unnie! Chaewon and I are ready to be picked up now!" I exclaimed.

"But you guys were there for only 20 minutes?" Sakura questioned. Chaewon and I glanced at the time, surprised to realize that it felt like we had been there for 2 hours, but only 20 minutes had passed. "Oh… umm, can you still pick us up?"

Sakura sighed. "Alright, I'm on my way." We said our goodbyes and waited for her.

"I felt like I was on an underwater safari, but without the safari hats... We should've brought safari hats, Chaewonie!" I chuckled, thinking about our eventful visit to the aquarium.

꒰ᐢ. .ᐢ꒱