#search reference

[mejomonster]

You know how Google now gives tons of ads as the first results when you search, and sometimes gives nothing fully relevant to what you searched at all?

Solutions:

1. The quickest, switch to Bing or DuckDuckGo which so far don't use the direct you to ads method as much, and should give results about as relevant as before Google went to shit. There will still be ad results, but the results will be somewhat closer to what you were actually searching for

2. Please check out searx.space and just try ANY of the linked search sites, bookmark this searx link or any of its search sites that work for you. I found search.ononoki.org through it, and ononoki is life changing to me. Suddenly I search and get an actual answer for the top result (not an ad thats only semi related to my search terms), and I get a ton of other results that actually are about the terms I searched, and I get a list of suggested search terms that may give me things I'm looking for. I tried looking up specific method language learning materials on here, and got Exactly the kind of sites I actually needed (and the books I was looking for but needed to find again) whereas on Google last week I couldn't find Any of that information. I was also able to sort by if I was looking for sites or specific files! I'm begging you if you want good relevant search results that actually give you something you're trying to find, consider checking out the search sites linked on searx.space

[rigelmejo]

以前我看了其他人说中文没有文法，废话！ 多的文法！我看了有的文法本书，我也必须看更次！我更学习，我更有问题！这个写满的错字！

Anyway. A useful word for you for searches: 推存 tuicun, recommendation. 

If you are for example looking for a horror ximalaya recommendation, you can web search “恐怖喜马拉雅推存“  恐怖 kongbu is horror genre,  喜马拉雅 ximalaya,  推存 tuicun recommend. Or you can look up danmei 耽美 novel  小说recommendations like “耽美小说推存”。 灵异 lingyi is supernatural genre, 儿童 ertong is childrens stories, 武侠 wuxia, 仙侠, xianxia,  科幻 kehuan science fiction, 现代 xiandai modern setting, 都市 dushi city setting, 言情 yanqing romance, 言情 qingchun youth, 耽美 danmei boy love, 百合 baihe girl love, 纯爱 chunai pure love (I’m not sure what makes it different than  言情). So there’s some genre words to help with searching for stories.

[callisteios]

Hi, feel free to take my new uquiz to discover what kind of vampire you are!

[thunderboltfire]

I have unwittingly witnessed a new level of the absurd. Behold, the AI-generated equine anatomy models.

Ah yes, my favourite parts of the equine body. Paster and... *looks at the smudged writing on hand* boob. At least this one looks purely decorative and the being actually looks like a horse. But don't worry, it gets worse.

If we completely ignore the hipopotamus musculature of this one, there's still a lot of things that don't make sense in this one, like a tail that ends in a series of bone spikes and a complete lack of molars. You could make a cool pokemon on the basis of this, but it's not even in the realm of being an actual anatomy help.

I'm firmly convinced this is not a horse, this is something that really, really wants you to think it is a horse. The more you look, the more things look... wrong. The more details turn out to be shifted, bones crammed in to fill in the familiar form, its shape merely implied so that the human mind fills the gap. Of course the text seems like gibberish, because its anatomy is incomprehensible. it's either a parasite or a monster and in each case, it's an eldtrich body horror. I'm kind of angry at how well this joke writes itself.

[bluegiragi]

he keeps his promises.

early access + nsfw on patreon

[meziniart]

Don't mind me, just out here, thinking of them in this fine year of our lord 2024

[regular-gnome]

a new addition to the house

first | previous | next

[bowi333]

bug bugging his boyfriend

[bre4yd]

Gaslight, Gatekeep, Girlboss, and (Gem is) Great

Long ago, the 4 Gs were together , but everything changed when we realized.. THEY ONLY GROUPED UP ONCE FOR THE APRIL FOOL'S VIDEO T^T

Brighter version under the cut

The Girls and the Gays (and pearl)

[butch--dean]

hi besties <3

the other day I decided to be the change I wished to see in the world and finally figured out how to make the supernatural transcript search engine I've been dreaming about since I started making amvs a year ago

the only pages it draws from are transcripts posted on the spn wiki page!!! it's been really helpful for doing research on specific themes/phrases used throughout the show & to figure out which episode a quote came from. If you use it I suggest using boolean search terms to make things a little easier!!!

[vorestarr]

ascended astarion and vampire spouses

so I've been reading the dnd 2e manual "Van Richten's Guide to Vampires" for fic/game inspiration, and there's this really interesting chapter on vampire brides and grooms. after reading it, it's very clear to me that Astarion didn't turn Tav into a typical spawn, but into a vampire spouse, which are two very different rituals with very different outcomes.

the typical vampire spawn creation process is exactly what Astarion describes happening to him: a painful death, a painful rebirth into undeath, fighting his way out of his own coffin, and Cazador's complete control over him. this is described pretty clearly in the guide to vampires:

According to most related tales, a vampire can create another simply by killing a mortal either with its life-energy draining power (draining all the character's experience leveIs) or by exhausting the mortal of his or her blood supply. If the victim's body is not properly destroyed, it arises as a vampire, under the control of the creature who killed it, on the second night following the burial. [...] Most vampires remember the instant of their death and the nature of their killer, and understand immediately their new nature. Certainly their new hunger gives them a good idea of what they have become. They must immediately free themselves from their grave. either by breaking it open from within or by assuming gaseous form and diffusing out.

so that's definitely what happened to Astarion, but that's not what happens to Tav. after ascended Astarion turns Tav into a vampire, they can ask him what happened, and he describes the following:

Astarion: You are so beautiful... And you will be beautiful forever. Thank you for trusting me. Player: What exactly happened? Astarion: You were drained dry, and at the height of your delirium, I granted you one drop of my own blood. Things will be a touch different for you than they were for me when I was a spawn. I'm imbibed with unfathomable new talents. I am fairly certain I can extend Mephistopheles' blessings unto you. Player: Does that mean I need not fear the sun? Astarion: You need not fear anything. You will be stronger, swifter, sharper, but you won't be different. You were already perfect before. It's hard to improve.

for reference, this is how the guide to vampires describes the ritual for vampire spouses:

To actually create the bride, the vampire bestows what is known as the "Dark Kiss". lt samples the blood of its mortal paramour—once, twice, thrice—draining her almost to the point of death. This process causes the subject no pain; in fact, it has been described as the most euphoric, ecstatic experience, in comparison to which all ether pleasures fade into insignificance. Just as the subject is about to slip into the terminal coma from which there is no awakening, the vampire opens a gash in its own flesh—often in its throat—and holds the subject's mouth to the wound, As the burning draught that is the vampire’s blood gushes into the subject's mouth, the primitive feeding instinct is triggered, and she sucks hungrily at the wound, enraptured. With the first taste of the blood, the subject is possessed of great and frenzied strength (Str 18, if the character’s Str isn't already higher), and will use it to prevent the vampire from separating her from the fountain of wonder that is its bleeding wound. lt is at this point that the creator-vampire's strength is most sorely tested. He is weakened by his own blood loss, and also by his own rapture as the "victim" of a dark kiss. Overcoming the sudden loss of strength and the inclinations of lust, the vampire must pull her away from its own throat, hopefully without harming her, before she has overfed. Should the subject be allowed to feed for too long (more than 2 rounds), she is driven totally and incurably insane, and will die in agony within 24 hours. Once the subject has stopped feeding, she falls into a coma that lasts minutes or hours (2dl2 turns), at the end of which time she dies. Several (1 d3) hours later, she arises as a Fledgling vampire—and her creator's bride.

this to me sounds like what Astarion describes. he drains Tav almost dry, and at the very last moment, gives them a single drop of his blood. (also interesting reading this guide, the single drop avoids the problem of the vampire spouse being driven ravenous with hunger for the vampire creator's blood and attacking them. did Astarion know this and give them one drop on purpose to avoid that and Tav potentially being driven mad by it? or was he being selfish and this is just a nice but unanticipated outcome?)

i kept reading and there's a lot more interesting information about vampire spouses, but the most interesting thing I found related to the game was this:

Although there are some folk tales that describe the bride of a vampire as its slave, in much the same way that offspring are slaves, a bride is free-willed from the moment of her creation. The creator vampire does have great influence over the bride. however although this control is totally nonmagical. When a vampire is created in the traditional manner—that is, when a victim's life energy is completely drained away—the new fledgling instinctively understands much about the vampiric way of unlife, and about its own strengths, weaknesses* and needs. Not so the bride.

so basically, the vampire spouse is not tied to the vampire creator in the same way as a spawn (i.e., not able to be fully controlled) but is still extremely reliant on the vampire creator to teach them how to live as a vampire. the guide goes on to describe that some vampire creators may lie to their vampire spouse about the control or powers they have, in order to exert more control over them.

interestingly, if you ask Astarion if he can compel you the way Cazador compelled him, he doesn't give a straight answer, he just says this:

Player: Cazador could compel you - can you compel me? Astarion: Why would I need to? You're going to be wonderfully obedient.

to me, all of this says that Astarion was telling the truth when he told Tav that they would be different from him as a spawn, and also in emphasizing that they are not a spawn but a consort. he didn't create a spawn, he created a vampire spouse. he married Tav, and because of this Tav also retains their free will.

of course, Astarion doesn't say this. if he knows, he withholds this information in much the way that this guide describes, as a way for the creator to maintain more control over their spouse. but still, extremely interesting implications for the ascended Astarion romance, imo.

other interesting facts about vampire spouses from the guide to vampires:

the married couple has telepathic communication that can span miles -- so Tav and Astarion can potentially have a telepathic bond even after the tadpoles are gone. (another note, this communication has to be consensual both ways for it to work, so you can't just dig around someone's mind if they don't want it.)

the vampire creator is extremely jealous and possessive. (yeah lol)

their life forces are linked, so one suffering a great deal is felt by the other.

the bond can be broken, but the ritual to do so has to be initiated by the creator. to break it, they both spill their blood on the ground and allow it to mix. this dissolves all aspects of the bond (i.e., telepathy and linked life forces), but the spouse stays a vampire.

[cry-ptidd]

Beast

[mammutblog]

well thanks @feyburner for putting hockey player jason in my head ive been microwaving it for 3 hours

[confused-dreamer-wolf]

I saw someone's idea that Wukong keeps Macaques cape as his own. And I tought what if the smell of it made remember his friend and comfort him.

[tagetto]

I AM HAVING SO MUCH FUN WITH THIS !!!!!!

Got a super rough blockout started, this is a super different style to what I'm used to, i've been meaning to get into more toony modelling and animation methods and am loving the expressions I can get out of this thing. hes so cool omg turbo 🥺

bonus mixamo test animation because funny:

[hazstur]

little tos photo dump