#shield hero abridged

[howlingday]

Neptune: Hey, Jaune~!

Jaune: What's up?

Neptune: I gotta ask... You and that rabbit girl with the antlers... You two an item?

Juniper: Excuse me?!

Jaune: Dude... No... She's like my kid!

Neptune: Oh, so she's available~!

Jaune: TOUCH HER AND I'LL FOLD YOU LIKE AN OMELET.

Jaune: Oh, c'mon! Don't cock-block me!

Juniper: (Growls, Kicks Neptune sky-high)

Jaune: ...Good job, sweetie~!

[satanickpanick]

“It was nothing personal, Normal.”

Catchy one-liners were kinda Hermie’s thing. Quips were masks, cheesy pickups were shields, and answering a question with a question was as good as a magic forcefield. Hermie was a master deflector, even when he could admit that mayyybe he should’ve been a little bit more serious. Moments like this, when his sort-of-best-friend-practically-blood-rival-totally-not-crush caught him red- (or, perhaps, green-and-white-) handed in the act of finally, finally taking what he’d come for.

Teeny the Teen had achieved almost godlike status by the time Hermie had set out on his mission. A relic of immense social power, its foam head and sweat-stained jersey were the stuff of legends at Chaperell. At least since Hermie’s eighth-grade visits to the CHS theatre department’s special behind-the-scenes performances, and very evidently far, far into the past, Teeny had been coveted for his heritage at San Dimas Public, and his longstanding rivalry with CHS. The funny thing was that the closer Hermie’d got to his goal, the deeper he’d gotten into the… everything that he had been totally unprepared to face in his subterfuge, the more he’d forgotten about Teeny. The idol that was the mascot had taken a backseat to actual idols, new worlds, new wounds, new friends- and to the man who wore the suit. He’d been poisoned, burned, fireballed, ignored… and he’d made friends, he thought. Real friends, sort of, despite- well, everything. Taylor at least thought he was a worthy (ha) sidekick, and Normal- Normal encouraged him. He sided with him, he spoke to him like an equal. That was more than Hermie could say about his colleagues in both CHS and SDPHS theatre. And- well, Normal had thought that the Hermie he’d pecked on the cheek in Hell had been real. That had been nice to think about, just a little. And when it came down to it, Normal was always the first to say hey, let’s see what Hermie thinks! or where did Hermie go?

Ah, the Romeo and Juliet, the Musical, Abridged of it all, Hermie thought as he landed assfirst, cushioned by Teeny’s head, in Sparrow Oak-Swallows-Garcia’s hydrangeas. Two high schools, both alike in dignity, in fair San Dimas-Earth-Faerun-Hell where we lay our scene… Fuck, he was in wayyyyy too deep. How was he supposed to recover from this? How was he supposed to go back to CHS, where he’d be a hero- but alone? He’d fooled himself, when he’d started this particular piece of chicanery, that things would be different when he returned to his home turf with Teeny the Teen held high. That he’d be Hermie the Worthy, the hero, the star. But he’d had some time to reflect, to change, to figure out who he was- and it wasn’t that.

It really wasn’t. And well- seniors were gonna senior. They weren’t gonna respect him any more than they respected each other. How was he supposed to go back to the way things used to be, now that he’d literally been to Hell and back? He couldn’t, not after what he’d seen and done, alongside the enemy, at that. He hugged the mascot (that smells distinctly, nastily, comfortingly of Normal) (Normal who definitely found his school ID and definitely hated his guts for this) close.

No, it wasn’t personal. Not at first.

But what was he supposed to do now?

[illarian-rambling]

Happy WBW!

(I'm working to the response to your questions, it might take a couple of days. I'm trying to do an abridged version (2,600 years), but the file is already 5 pages long.)

Since you asked me about symbolism, I'll ask you the same thing. What sort of plant and animal symbolism exists in your setting?

I mean, take all the time you want :)

A lot of common symbolism on Illaros has to do with religious and mythic figures. Given that each Illarian god has a mental and physical domain, they tend to be linked symbolically. For example, a river reed is commonly used to express fidelity, while a tree is frequently found on signs for libraries and other places of study. This is because Loqang is the god of both rivers and loyalty, while Maza is the god of forests and wisdom.

Sometimes, symbols from a particular god end up applying to many things over time. Doshu is the god of caves and treachery, and is sometimes also known as the god of the damned, as he is a phychopomp for evil souls. His most well-known symbol is an eye with two pupils peering out from a black circle. While originally, the eye of Doshu was just a ward against betrayal priests would sometimes draw, by its connotation, it has grown to be a symbol for anything unsavory. It's like the obligatory skull and cross bones of Illaros.

Some symbolism is less direct. Or, at least, it used to be more direct but important context has been forgotten.

Most Illari literature comes out of Skysheer. The mountain elves have a long history of storytelling and the arts. Many of the most famous paintings and influential novels are Skysheerian. Some thousand years ago, novel-writing Skysheerians included a lot of religious symbolism, much like their Janazi (at the time, the Illarian religion was practiced only on the Janazi Archipelago) counterparts. However, the Skysheerian religion was wiped out in the War of Conquest. Yet, even if their gods are dead and forgotten, a lot of symbolism remains behind as an echo. Many classical Skysheerian heroes have ears of gold. A spider in a painting signals impending doom. Dragons as hoarders of gold is a trope that comes solely from Skysheer. The scream of a lynx is often used in theater during moments of desperate emotion. The reason for these symbols has been lost for generations, yet they remain nonetheless. Given the widespread appeal of Skysheerian culture, many of these symbols have been adopted for wider use.

Going back even further, the sun is pretty universally a symbol of good, even in nocturnal cultures like goblins. Murals dug from the sands of Araun feature rays of sunlight shielding people, so this trend is at least several thousand years old. Many religions feature the sun as some sort of god-home or final afterlife. There could be many reasons for this, including the prehistoric influence of the Araunian Empire, but also, the people of Illaros have a tiny piece of the divine in all of them, granted by a being that lives in the sun. So, just maybe, a little part of them recognizes where they came from.

In a more meta answer, I, as the author, like to use stars as a symbol of Bad Things Happening, because stars on Illaros are kinda wack. So if a character remarks on how bright the stars seem, it's probably not a good sign. I also frequently associate magic and fabric (likely because of Twenari and Astra's particular connections to both of these things), so yeah, lots of metaphors there.

Thanks for the ask, I hope this is as entertaining to read as it was to write!

[theoutcastrogue]

Bravado on the gallows

[abridged excerpt from V.A.C. Gatrell's The Hanging Tree: Execution and the English People 1770–1868, Chapter 1.1: “Dying Bravely”, emphasis mine]

the most iconic depiction of a procession to the Tyburn gallows, with the condemned on a cart going through excited crowds: William Hogarth's The Idle 'Prentice Executed at Tyburn, from the Industry and Idleness series (1747)

In theory, a Londoner growing up in the 1780s could by 1840 have attended some four hundred execution days outside Newgate alone. If he was unimaginably diligent he could have watched 1,200 people hang (and there were such obsessives). The sanction of the gallows and the rhetoric of the death sentence were central to all relations of authority in Georgian England. But the gallows were also embedded in the collective imagination, the subject of anxiety, defence, and denial, of jokes, ballads, images, and satire, and of primal gratifications too.

Even today we take comfort from an exuberant and cheering fantasy of what public hangings were like, and hence blur the memory of what the noose really did to people. A pleasant myth shields us from the reality of the process. It is not that the myth was without basis. It is what it concealed that is in question.

Central to the fantasy is the memory of the felon’s procession to Tyburn before 1783. To surface appearances it all seems rather jolly, and in certain dark senses it was so:

As clever Tom Clinch, while the rabble was bawling, Rode stately through Holborn, to die in his calling; He stopped at the George for a bottle of sack, And promised to pay for it when he came back. – J. Swift, ‘Clever Tom Clinch going to be hanged’ (1726/7)

From Newgate prison the condemned were conveyed in open carts along Holborn, St Giles, and Tyburn Road (later Oxford Street) to the triangular gallows at the foot of the Edgware Road. The major stations in this parodic progress to Calvary were at inns like the Bowl on the corner of St Giles’ High Street, or the George in Holborn, where the condemned would be offered wine; then Tyburn itself; and then again at Surgeon’s Hall at the Old Bailey, where murderers’ bodies were displayed and dissected.

Thief, escape artist, and folk hero Jack Sheppard taking his last drink at St Giles

Playing as best they could to the crowd’s admiration and engaging in parodic dialogue with it, some felons on their way to their doom constructed the illusion that they were the masters of the ceremonies, and not the City marshal, under-sheriff, priest, constables, and javelin-men who were meant to impart solemnity and security to the procession. Lord Ferrers’s composure on his journey to Tyburn in 1760 ‘shamed heroes’, Horace Walpole reported. Hanged for murdering his servant, he bore the procession ‘with as much tranquillity as if he was only going to his own burial, not to his own execution’. Plebeians also put on fine displays:

The vilest rogues, and most despicable villains, may own a thousand crimes, and often brag of the most abominable actions; but there is scarce one, who will confess that he has no courage... The further a man is removed from repentance, nay, the more void he seems to be of all religion, and the less concern he discovers for futurity, the more he is admired by our sprightly people. – B. Mandeville, An enquiry into the causes of the frequent executions at Tyburn (1725)

When Lewis Avershaw was hanged on Kennington Common in 1795 he appeared ‘entirely unconcerned, had a flower in his mouth, his bosom was thrown open, and he kept up an incessant conversation with the persons who rode beside the cart, laughing and nodding to acquaintances in the crowd’. He was afterwards hanged in chains on Wimbledon Common, and ‘for several months, thousands of the London populace passed their Sundays near the spot, as if consecrated by the remains of a hero’. ‘Sixteen-string’ John Rann in 1774 wore a peagreen coat, a nosegay in his buttonhole, and nankeen small-clothes tied at each knee with sixteen strings. At the gallows he sustained the demeanour of his last dinner-party in Newgate, where the company had included seven of his girls and ‘all were remarkably cheerful’. Thanks to the crowds and the convivial exchanges en route, a popular daredevil like this might take two hours to travel the couple of miles to his Tyburn death.

The Newgate Drop in action, 1809

Nor did this festive tradition die when the scaffold was removed to Newgate’s exterior in 1783. At Holloway’s and Haggerty’s hanging in 1807 both men ‘conducted themselves with the most decided indifference’. Holloway ‘with an affected cheerfulness of countenance... jumped upon the scaffold when he had ascended the ladder, his arms being pinioned with a rope behind... got his hat between his two hands, and as well as he was able, bowed to the crowd repeatedly... with a view to show that he died game, as it is expressed.’ He announced his innocence, refused to pray, and told Haggerty to ignore the clergy-man. Ascending the Newgate scaffold in 1829, Thomas Birmingham ‘was instantly greeted by a vast number of girls of dissolute character in the mob, who called out repeatedly—“Good bye, Tom! God bless you, my trump!” In the 1830s the ballad of the condemned Sam Hall conveyed the tone of these scaffold exchanges:

I saw Nellie in the crowd, And I hollered,—right out loud— ‘Say Nellie, ain’t you proud— Damn your eyes’ .

These mocking postures were mainly metropolitan but not exclusively so. Before his execution at York in 1739, Dick Turpin employed five mourners to follow his cart to the scaffold.

Self-parody and the display of courage was one way of dealing with terror. Defiance was another. An agricultural worker executed in Kent for arson during the Swing disturbances in 1830 declared his innocence to the last and ‘refused to pull the cap down over his eyes, saying he wished to see the people’ as he died. Others spurned God and his priests. When the highway robber Norton died game in 1827 he refused religious consolations. When a schoolmaster in Newgate sought to persuade a condemned man that there was a future life, the reply got to the truth of it: “Why you too gammon on as well as the parson! They take your life away, and then they think to make amends by telling you of another and a better world; for my part I am very well satisfied with this, if they will let me stay in it.’

Thomas Rowlandson, Malefactors on Their Way to Tyburn (c. 1776–1827)

Then there was the determined care about dress. Best clothing was worn by those who could afford it. Few men now dressed as Lord Ferrers had in 1760, in his wedding suit of white and silver, or paraded symbols like the white cockade the burglar Waistcott wore in his hat in 1759 ‘as an emblem of his whole innocence’. Male dress was becoming sober. Hatfield wore a black jacket with waistcoat, fustian pantaloons, and white cotton stockings; Fauntleroy ‘a new suit of black, silk stockings of the same colour, and light pumps’. But women continued to affect sartorial gaiety. Elizabeth Fry found that the ‘chief thought’ of nearly every condemned woman in Newgate ‘relates to her appearance on the scaffold, the dress in which she shall be hanged’. When Christian Bowman was hanged and burnt outside Newgate in 1789 she was ‘drest in a clean striped gown, a white ribbon, and a black ribbon round her cap’. In 1815 Eliza Fenning wore the dress she was to have worn for her wedding, a ‘white muslin gown, a handsome worked cap, and laced boots’.

Striking in all this is the victim’s effort to maintain dignity to the last and to die well, by drawing on a supportive vein of cynicism which ran deep in popular culture. Also striking is the authorities’ tolerance of these efforts. Those with money could spend their last days in Newgate in dissipation, as John Rann did, along with the highwayman Paul Lewis in 1763 when he entertained guests in the condemned cell by singing bawdy songs and vilifying the parson. On the scaffold likewise, custom had long entitled the condemned to address the crowd as they pleased, seditiously if they chose. Although every effort was made to force them to public professions of guilt and penitence, they were not checked if they betrayed that role. Jacobites had betrayed the role spectacularly, some making seditious speeches ‘plainly calculated’, as Dudley Ryder had observed, ‘for nothing else but to incense the people against the government... A rogue cannot be hanged but he must become a saint upon the gibbet.’

Dr Johnson lamented the abolition of the Tyburn procession: ‘the old method was most satisfactory to all parties; the publick was gratified by a procession; the criminal was supported by it. Why is all this to be swept away?’ This comment is usually taken to indicate bluff Augustan heartlessness. But its key word was ‘support’, and the generosity of Johnson’s observation is clarified in Adam Smith’s amplification of it:

A brave man is not rendered contemptible by being brought to the scaffold. The sympathy of the spectators supports him, and saves him from that shame, that consciousness that his misery is felt by himself only, which is of all sentiments the most insupportable... He has no suspicion that his situation is the object of contempt or derision to any body, and he can, with propriety, assume the air, not only of perfect serenity, but of triumph and exultation.

Johnson’s and Smith’s insights take us at last beyond the jolly surface of these rituals to the bleaker truth which social memory has censored—that most felons went to their deaths in quaking terror. In this light the abolition of the procession and the long shift towards the privatization of execution, commonly understood as a progressive and humane movement, was the reverse of that. To kill felons without ceremony and in private was to deny them the only worldly support they could hope for in their last hours. As evangelicals had their cool say on the best chances of bringing the felon to penitence, the felon was to be left alone with his death, that his spirit might break. [n.b. The author does have a point here (it’s truly horrible to die all alone, without an audience and without your loved ones, at the hands of cops, priests and bureaucrats), but this take ignores that the crowd’s support was not a given; for some they cheered, but for others they cursed, heckled, mocked, threw mud etc]

While public executions lasted, many knew that outward bravado did not speak for a felt reality, and that the powdered wig, Holland shirt, gloves, and nosegays which some flaunted on their last journey was the only resort they had to ‘meliorate the terrible thoughts of the meagre tyrant Death’. The man who did contrive to conduct himself bravely was often actually drunk out of his mind:

But valor the stronger grows, The stronger liquor we're drinking, And how can we feel our woes, When we've lost the trouble of thinking?

— V.A.C. Gatrell, The Hanging Tree: Execution and the English People 1770–1868 (Oxford University Press, 1994)

[housano]

A completely "abridged" and unhinged Virtual Festa Royale summary

Part 1

MC: Virtual Reality Battle Royale?

Ryekie: Virtual Reality Battle!

Akashi: MC I want to be on your team

RNG: NOT ON MY WATCH

MC: Well sucks to suck Akashi

Akashi: 😭

*Enter the virtual reality world*

Terminal: Hey Mary Sue/ Gary Stu, here's your team, Sarah from Gumbal- I mean Cerastium, Shaft, Toshundere and some random try hard

MC: Okies

Cerastium: OMG your in Justice's office. Tell me! What are his hobbies? What does he smell like? Does he like boiled bunnies?

MC: Boiled wha-

Cerastium: Oh hey new people!

Toshu: hello

Shaft: If you close your eyes, you can pretend I'm Shennong!

Try hard: I'm reXer. I am the god of video games and I will carry you to victory. Winning is everything and that is the plotpoint for me.

MC: Why?

reXer: That's in Part 5

Shadow figure enters vr room in the real world. dun. dun. DUUUUUUUUNNN

Part 2-3

reXer: 🎶 I'm the best. Around. Nothing's ever gonna keep me down🎶

Terminal: You're dead fucking last

reXer: *shocked pikachu face*

Toshu: * Proceeds to verballly eviscerate reXer*

Shaft: Teamwork

Ceras: Justice

MC: Availability for flirt option in LIVE A HERO!

*Meets Ryekie's Team and Pubra-chan*

MC: Omg Pubra-cha-

Ceras: JUSTICE-SAMA! Give me your justice!

Ryekie: It's my justice! Not yours!

Ceras: Dejection!

Ryekie: I'm off to where I hope nothing bad happens to me!

Part 4

Kouki: Alchiba is annoying

Alchiba: Why am I with children?

Rutilix: Where's my king?

Anon:.....

Round 1 fight

Anon: Cheat codes!

Toshu: Ack water!

Ceras: My shield, like my dogma is shattered!

Shaft: I'm useless until I get my alt.

reXer: I'm still standing!

Anon: That's why you're daddy dead

reXer: !

Anon: Dead as hell.

reXer: .....

Anon: What shoes he got on? What shoes he got on in his casket?

reXer: *starts tearing up*

Anon: That's why your granny ain't go no knees and she can't pray to Jesus bitch. How about that? She can't double dutch.

reXer: Get out of my match

Anon: That's why your baby has a glass eye that when he cries you have to clean it with Windex.

reXer: GET OUT OF MY MATCH

Anon: I'll get out of your match. Fuck.

reXer: Get out of my match......

Part 5:

Flashback

reXer?: Dad's the best

reXer: I'm the best!

*One Kaibutsu buffet later*

Everyone: Who? Is that a new fragrance line?

reXer?: If you don't remember my dad I'm going to make you all!

Flash forward

reXer?: I'm sad and not reXer.

Team: Don't be sad. We're cool with it!

reXer: I'm no longer sad.

Part 6:

Toshu: I hate water, so I'm going to try to swim without the kiddy inflateables

reXer: K

Toshu: Ok got the hang of it

*New form, "Put the 'fun' in fundoshi'"

Toshu: .........

Shaft:.........

reXer:........

MC: I consent

Flamier: I consent

Toshu: I DON'T

Part 7

Anon: I must fuck with this team again as Ryekie

MC Team: Prepare for Battle!

*Not Ryekie appears*

Toshu: You're way too quiet to be him

Shaft: You look too pissed off to be him

Ceras: The marks are not there! More importantly the back fur tuft should be 2mm shorter from when I clipped a piece from earlier today

Everyone else: ......

*Fake Ryekei bonks Ceras and runs away with her*

Shaft: It's my time to shine. In the next part.

Part 8

*Shaft acquires cyclist pants*

Shaft: Okay let's go all aboard!

*Everyone gets on his back*

Anon: I am Giansar a hacker and I'm going to take over your virtual form.

Ceras: Oh noes!

*Everyone else bonks Giansar*

Giansar: No fair!

Part 9

MC: So how did you get Ryekie's form

Giansar: I said I was part of security and that his account has been compromised and need all his personal informations that he was happy to hand over. He now works as a maid in the inn.

MC: Me and the himbo are going to have a long talk when we get home.

Giansar: I still hold the winning hand and can take you all hostage!

*Kaibutsu invade*

Gansar: I no longer hold the winning hand.

Part 10

Flashback

Giansar: I didn't get to be a hero

Vulpecula: Be a villain!

Giansar: Okay

Flash forward

Giansar: I'm hacking the boss and then yeeting off to the next event.

Everyone: Okay.

reXer: It's the finale and time for my epiphany

MC: Which is that you need to carve your own path instead of following your father's verbatim?

reXer: You got it and I get the final blow!

Part 11

Tourney cancelled but hey we get a celebration

Ceras: I found my justice

Ryekie: Did I hear justice!

reXer: Hi

Ryekie: Omg your dad was the best

reXer: Omg validation! I'm going to carve my own path

*Hero form awakens and is exactly like his father's

MC: Eh, poor Musou doesn't need to draw a second suit if he's not payed for it.

Epilogue

MC: I'll see you around

*reXer kisses MC*

reXer: See you at my place

[arty-achilles]

A dumb au comic where the heroes travel together ( Base on SAO abridge )

[theinsanecrayonbox]

i read the marvel multiverse rpg book!

ok so highlight notes of the marvel multiverse rpg;

rolling 6-1-6 is a crit success

rolling all 1s is a crit fail

the 1 on the “marvel die” is a 6 unless the other two are 1s

if you do get  the marvel 1, it’s fantastic which is not a crit but is still a win even on a fail

on action checks you can fail at the action (didn’t roll high enough to meet or beat the save) BUT if you rolled a fantastic you succeed with hijinks

(this “minor crit” rule is gonna be confusing...)

“edge” is rolling with advantage and CAN stack and is optional you do not have to spend it automatically 

“trouble” is rolling with disadvantage and is forced on you to use it by a secondary party, it can also stack

you can also use stacked edge/trouble to reroll the same die multiple times

edge/trouble do cancel each other out

“rank” is character level

“archetype” is class, there are 6 of them

Blaster: ranged Bruiser: tank Genius: INT Polymath: elf rogue Protector: paladin Striker: DEX fighter

ability scores average at 0 (=10), and cap at +4 unless archetype says otherwise

Might: STR Agility: DEX Resilience: CON Vigilance: WIS Ego: CHA Logic: INT Focus: Will Save Karma: cross between Hero Points and Luck/Grit/Panache points

Karma resets after a long rest, and any extra granted to a PC is lost (so use it or loose it)

Initiative comes from  Agility or Vigilance

all chars automatically get run, swim, and climb

Speeds can be odd numbers...(so what is the grid size scale???)

the max dice you will ever need to roll at one time is 3

the marvel die counts as a regular die when its dealing damage; you cannot get edge/trouble on damage

“backstory” is basically traits, and well, unlocks specific traits you have access to

a round of combat is 5 seconds, so 12 rounds is a minute

combat order is pretty much the same as Pathfinder’s; initiative order, everyone takes their turn in that order

Vigilance checks work like Perception checks

size penalties only apply when interacting things of different size categories; so a tiny pc vs an average one has penalties but a tiny vs a tinny has no penalties

(oh a that’ll be confusing)

you cannot crit on Initiative

BUT if you roll a fantastic (1 on the marvel) initiative you get a surprise round

actions to take on your turn/ in combat; Easy Action, Standard Action, Movement Action, Reaction

Movement can be spent in parts

Reaction is only on someone else’s turn

you can Hold your turn, but it changes your Initiative number permanently?? (uhg why)

holding your action is called “Reserving an Action”

Easy Actions:

talking

certain powers

simple item interaction

standing up without enemies in reach

Standard Actions:

exchange for an extra easy or move action

certain powers

aid an ally; give them edge

attack

dodge

break grapple

grapple

complicated item interaction

prepare: give yourself edge on your next standard action

throw something

Move Actions:

certain powers

carry something

move 

stand up with enemies in reach

Reactions:

certain powers

interpose; block an attack on an ally by becoming a human shield

skulk; block an attack on yourself by using an ally as a human shield

attacking is pretty much the same; roll to hit within range, deal damage, some weapons have damage typing

there’s throwing mechanics i’m not abridging here, but they make sense

you can combine movement types; if you do use the lower speed for your full movement speed (ie start underwater (swim 30) then run on land (speed 25) you only have 25 movement)

sneaking moves at half speed

fall damage is 1d6 every 10 ft for the first 30 ft, then an additional  +5 for every 15 ft up  to +150 (that 3d6 limit is enforcing excess math lol)

wait if you roll fantastic on damage you knockback your opponent? (uhg this minor crit thing is confusing)

you can cause Focus damage as well as Physical damage...so Focus is mental health score

and you can he physically attacking but doing mental damage??? uh...

Damage Reduction seems normal, and actually more clear than PF’s

when you hit 0 HP you go unconscious; you die if your HP goes negative your max

when you hit 0 Focus you are demoralized and have trouble/disadvantage on everything; if you got negative max you’re shattered and frozen in place by fear

you can choose to use a weapon’s attack modifier or your own, whichever is higher

no need t keep track of basic ammunition

short rests give back HP and Focus rank per hour spent; long rest (sleeping) doubles that

if unconscious/demoralized, outside of combat an ally can stabilize them to 1; if not they stabilize in 1d6 hours

ok so Traits are like feats in you can gain more as you rank up

the Backstories and Traits options are pretty extensive and have lots of room to them too

the Powers section is also extensive but less so? also Powers trump rules

i feel like homebrewing Powers will be prone to being broken more than homebrewing Traits

ok 5-ft squares it is, and you round your weird Speed numbering to fit (so both 28 and 32 speed = 6 spaces)

so there really is no experience point based leveling, it’s all milestone if you level up at all

a glossary/index AND a cheat sheet of actions and tables! ooooo

so overall...i think...i might be able to run this. it’s just the overwhelming amount of math on paper that is frightening...i have been very spoiled by hero lab ^^;

[waspfit]

MCU Rebooted

Abridged Version (Full Version Coming Soon)

1983 - 2012 (Ant-Man and The Wasp & The Avengers): Janet became an 'unlikely' hero when the death of her father inspired her to become The Wasp. With the help of Dr. Henry Pym, aka Ant-Man (and Goliath), she spent a few years fighting crime and otherworldly threats as an independent duo. Janet also knew Tony Stark before he was revealed as Iron Man, as they ran in the same circles during childhood. Hank was contacted by SHIELD for his scientific discoveries, while Janet continued her other dreams of building a fashion empire. Janet and Hank were then both contacted by Nick Fury to join the "Hero Initiative", later renamed the "Avengers Initiative" by Janet.

2015 (Age of Ultron): As the two continued to fight with the team, Janet was finding it hard to balance celebrity and business with superhero duties. The strain on Hank was evident, for he created Ultron, an experiment in artificial intelligence. Janet proceeded to have a solo battle against Ultron at one point due to an obsession the robot had with her (Hank Pym's brain patterns used a basis for their programming). The team eventually defeated the A.I. and added Vision to the team.

2015 (Ant-Man and The Wasp 2): The creation of Ultron took a strain on Janet and Hank's marriage. The two drifted away for a few months, Janet chose to stay on the team and Hank decided to take a leave and focus on his science. The duo was brought back together when the Van Dyne/Pym residence was broken into and one of Hank's beta suits was stolen by ex-con Scott Lang. Clashing at first, the 3 heroes faced off against a common enemy and Hank agreed to pass the name of Ant-Man along to Scott. Janet and Hank rekindled their love, and Hank rejoined the team as Goliath.

2016 (Captain America: Civil War): After the destruction caused by the Avengers in several cities and countries, the United Nations created the Sokovia Accords to regulate the activities of enhanced individuals. Janet and Hank were in favor, Hank due to his guilt in creating Ultron, and Janet because of her desire to be transparent and collaborative. Scott, on the other hand, was against the Accords. The team was divided and ultimately ended in Captain America's Anti-Accords team being imprisoned and Iron Man's side 'winning'.

2018 (Infinity War): The team unites once again to fight Thanos. In a freak accident to shrink herself down to a size never attempted before, Janet enters the quantum realm, where time doesn't pass. She is stuck here during the rest of the battle and during the Blip.

2023 (Endgame): When the Hulk snapped his fingers with the Infinity Gauntlet, Janet was brought back with all of the other heros that disappeared during the Blip.

2024 (Ant-Man and Wasp Quantumania ): Wow idk the plot for this how about you come write it with me!

[onesheeptwosheepandachicken]

48 reasons to like rwby

Let’s talk about why we like rwby

1.       Female protagonists

2.       None of that defeat=friendship

3.       No power of friendship plot armor

4.       No interrupted fight scenes with internal dialogue

5.       No super-dense protagonist

6.       NOT a harem anime

7.       Females equal to males in strength, intelligence, and skill

8.       Women do not exist as servants or love interests

9.       Old women who can fight

10.   Allies cooler than protag who DO NOT DIE

11.   People who are on either side both attractive and smart

12.   Men and women with muscle

13.   Characters sound their age, unlike anime and funimation

14.   No power levels or screaming power up

15.   Gays not treated as creepy stalkers, neither are lesbians

16.   Unlike marvel/dc/Naruto/dragonball/fairytail/bleach…no repeated retcons and plotholes.

17.   Lgbt relationships allowed

18.   Abusive men acknowledged as creeps

19.   Deadbeat mom aspect acknowledged over deadbeat dad

20.   Women are NOT man-hungry or super-greedy or gold-diggers in RWBY…anime, however

21.   Pervertedness dropped

22.   Women are actually fully-clothed and have pockets

23.   Female antagonist resulting out of gods being dicks

24.   Positive half-sibling relationship

25.   Positive politician (Robyn Hill)

26.   Multiple people of color, especially men. (anime only has several POC women used as ship bait or fanservice)

27.   Protagonist is not a goku or natsu (Superstrong dumbass causing Anakin level drama)

28.   Honorary Uncle Qrow (like Black Widow in MCU, although she’s given NO relevance or importance given it’s Disney we’re talking about, they don’t treat women wel)

29.   They don’t try to kill off women or POC for shock value as quickly as Anime, Marvel, DC, and Hollywood (X-men First Class)

30.   People of color are not treated as poor citizens but put into places of power and position which most anime and especially Hollywood does not.

31.   NO INCEST tropes which Anime seems to like.

32.   Netflix and Hollywood do “passion of christ” “Avatar Live-Action” “Death Note Netflix” “cutie” “dragonball evolution” “sucker punch” and somehow THOSE are considered good writing compared to RWBY?

33.   Pokemon being plot hole epitome and plot armor epitome

34.   Naruto being the master of treating women lesser than men to the point the writers explicitly state that sarada, the one single female Uchiha, has the title of weakest Uchiha.

35.   Fairy tale references WITHOUT genderbending people into harem ships like the Fateverse

36.   Much more realistic  behavior than anime, and no karma Houdini

37.   No Hacks, no Worf Effect (spiderman vs silver surfer) (deathstroke vs justice league)

38.   No throwing fights (Lobo vs Wolverine, Wonder woman vs storm)

39.   None of that stupidity of mindset code (batman no killing) (let evil live) (forgive those that fuck you over “frieza and tienshinhan”)

40.   Dozens of fancomics, fancomic dubs, fan animations, and fanmade video games means an invested fandom.

41.   Does not require dozens of filler arc or character flashbacks

42.   Fights do not have to take 5-10 episodes

43.   People other than the protag have “healing/recovery” powers

44.   Sexual harassment is not glorified, downplayed, or joked about like in anime, manga, or tv/movies

45.   CWRBY is invited to conventions

46.   RT puts their shows on their youtube, while Toei Animation sues Team Four Star to the point of shutting down the abridged.

47.   Unlike Shield Hero and Fateverse, no pedophelia.

48.   No calling out attacks

[digitaldreams0801]

Frontiers Unexplored AU: Alitia

The one where I cross over two of my written stories for funsies.

Alitia World Building

Basically, this section catches people up to speed on the basic world building of Alitia in case they haven’t read it. It’s very heavily abridged for the sake of being timely, and better details can be found in Alitia itself on my Archive of Our Own profile.

There are two types of people: mages and leaths. Mages have outward magical abilities that allow them to use magic (duh). Leaths have passive manifestations that give them prodigal strength in a given subject (tactics, swordplay, communication, etc.) and are stronger in that matter than any mage ever could be.

There are two types of magic: Light and Dark. Light is more focused on control and then working up to power while Dark is raw power with less control at first. Mages pick if they want to be Light or Dark when they first start coming into their magical abilities around the age of 16-18. Light has the added ability to heal others while Dark offers access to magic revolving around symbols and glyphs. After becoming particularly strong, Light mages can start using symbols while Dark mages can start healing. It takes a long time to reach this point though. 

Mages and leaths fall into two categories: winged and wingless. Having wings or not changes the way one uses magic both transformed and in civilian form (different regulation of the magical core). Wings are often found in feminine people but gender is fake anybody can have them. This is a choice made at the same time as the Light/Dark decision at roughly age 16-18 and can be both passive and conscious. 

There are exceptions to the binaries of wings and Light or Dark. Shapeshifters lie on the center of the spectrum involving having wings or not since they can change that at will. Shapeshifters are rare and often have a wide range of magical abilities. Light and Dark magic are opposites with Blends (mages with two types of magic rather than one) being between them. Blends are particularly rare (.01% of the population or so) and are known for being inherently powerful from birth.

There are six types of people with these factors taken into account: Mage/Wings/Light: Enchantress Mage/Wings/Dark: Witch Mage/Wingless/Light: Wizard Mage/Wingless/Dark: Cantor Leath/Wings: Heroine Leath/Wingless: Hero

The Millennium Six are schools centered around each of these types of people, and they train the next generation in matters of combat to defend their realms: Alitia: Enchantresses Sacred Heart: Witches Angelwood: Wizards Sierra: Cantors Acadia: Heroines Ridgeview: Heroes

There are two main religions: the Churches of Starlight and Moonlight, named for the creators of the world. The two gods (Starlight and Moonlight) have Keepers that act as modern proxies of their power. Keepers are reincarnated and have the power of their partnered god. Every church is led by a specific archbishop, and the churches take place on the primary planets of the gods (Starlight’s being Amity while Moonlight’s is Enmity). Starlight is essentially light magic while Moonlight is dark magic (same sort of vein as canon Digimon Frontier and Frontiers Unexplored). Keepers can grant Blessings of their power to others. The closest companions of the Keepers earn their places among the Sealed Ones, trusted fighters working for the sake of peace across the universe. Sealed Ones are twelve in number per generation and based on the twelve zodiac signs. They are selected as Sealed Ones when they confirm their resolve to their cause in a moment of immense strife either inwardly or outwardly. Markings of the zodiac signs can be found on the bodies of the Sealed Ones outwardly to show their positions. 

There will be other technical details mentioned below such as planets, but we’ll cross that bridge when we get there. For now, let’s get into the crap that’s specific to Frontiers Unexplored!

History

The previous Keepers and their respective team of Sealed Ones went off to battle against one of the darkest forces known to recent history: Luce. He was once a powerful sage working for both the Churches of Starlight and Moonlight to keep the peace throughout all realms, but he turned away from both of them after gaining too much power and allowing it to go to his head. He came to view living creatures as beneath him, prompting him to turn against the light and start to advocate for nothing short of complete destruction. 

The Keepers and their Sealed Ones marched towards Luce, intent on killing him to save the world. In the end, the team managed to seemingly destroy Luce, but in a final blast at the hands of Luce, the team was wiped out. The Keepers and their Sealed Ones were all killed in one fell swoop, leaving behind no protectors for the universe. The Keepers were reincarnated into a new generation, and Luce was widely presumed to be dead. 

The Keepers and the Sealed Ones are named after the Ancient Warriors of Frontiers Unexplored. The previous Keeper of Starlight was Garuru while the previous Keeper of Moonlight was Sphinx, for example. The final two were Wizard and Silphy of Cosmos and Energy respectively (since those two are original Digimon and only appear in FU). 

Koji Minamoto: Keeper and Wizard of Starlight (Light)

Koji is the Keeper of Starlight and a Wizard originating from the planet of Amity. He’s known to be somewhat detached and bitter when it comes to addressing others. He is looked after by the archbishop of the Church of Starlight, Kousei, though the two have a volatile and difficult relationship at best due to Kousei’s emotional immaturity and focus on increasing Koji’s strength. Koji gets along much better with Satomi, a high-ranking priestess of the Church of Starlight and treats her as his confidant. He struggles to make connections with others because of how isolated he was from the world growing up, a byproduct of Kousei’s obsessive protectiveness. Rumor has it that Kousei once looked after the previous Keeper of Starlight, Garuru, as well, but their connections ended after an angry confrontation that resulted in much anguish on both sides. Garuru died shortly thereafter, hence Kousei’s difficult treatment of Koji. 

Koji fights with swords in battle, something that he learned at Kousei’s instruction. He came to fight in his own style though, often combining it seamlessly with his Starlight magic. High expectations were placed on him from a young age because of his position as the Keeper, and he came to master his element as quickly as possible as a result. Koji lacks an affinity for healing unlike most other Light mages though, prompting him to be primarily involved with combat during battles. 

Koji is the Sealed One of Scorpio among this generation, and his marking can be found on the back of his right hand. He came to attend Angelwood when he was of age, falling under the category of Wizard because his Starlight magic forces him under the discipline of Light. There, he met Takuya since the two were roommates at school, and despite their frequent butting of heads due to stubbornness, they came to get along well over time. 

Koichi Kimura: Keeper and Cantor of Moonlight (Darkness)

Koichi is the Keeper of Moonlight and a Cantor. He grew up on Enmity and is on the quiet side, choosing to keep to himself more often than not. He was raised by Tomoko, a leath woman and the Archbishop of Moonlight. Tomoko did what she could to shield Koichi from the rest of the world and its cruelty, but because of the turmoil that followed the deaths of the previous Keepers, there was only so much that she could do, leading to Koichi becoming emotionally rundown despite his attempts to put up a facade of peace. He’s on the passive side and has a talent for talking out matters with others, making him well-liked among those that he knows, if not a bit quiet. He can be found reading a lot of the time, using fiction as a way of escaping the harsh reality that awaits just beyond the book’s pages. 

Koichi uses a staff as his preferred weapon, though he tends to use magic more often than not due to being much more proficient in it. He has completely mastered his power despite the raw magic that comes with the Dark practice, and many have stated him to be a Moonlight prodigy, much to his chagrin. He is strong with symbols and glyphs with a special talent for healing as well, something unusual among Dark mages. 

Koichi is the Sealed One of Aquarius. His symbol is located on the back of his left hand. He left for Sierra as per tradition of Keepers, and he met the rest of the group there through inter-school activities among the Millennium Six. He and Koji share a birthday and a common thread of appearance because their predecessors were killed on the same day, leading to them fostering a surprisingly close connection among Keepers. 

Takuya Kanbara: Wizard of Fire

Takuya is the first prince of Etruna and a Wizard of Fire. The Kanbara family looks after Etruna, the world of fire and ice, from its palace on the center of the realm’s halfway mark between the two magical types. Takuya is the older of the two princes, the younger being his brother, Shinya. Despite being a prince set to take the throne one day, Takuya is headstrong and passionate regarding the topic of adventure. He loves the idea of finding a quest all his own and tends to be somewhat reckless in his search of something beyond the status quo. Takuya is a natural-born leader, and he’s close with Chihiro. Because of his role in Chihiro’s departure from Igni’s elite, Takuya is notably protective of them and would do anything to keep them safe. He is charismatic and confident, never yielding in the face of danger for better or worse while still remaining human and relatable to others.

Takuya fights with fire magic above all else, and when he does use physical weapons, he tends to rely on claw attachments to a set of small gauntlets. He prefers to get up close and personal during battle, and his recklessness shows with his proficiency in combat. He’s not the best with healing magic unless he brings the constant activity of his mind to a halt and concentrates on something that desperately requires his attention. 

Takuya is the Sealed One of Leo. His mark can be found on the front of his left shoulder. Takuya roomed with Koji when the two went to Angelwood, and while it took a while for their relationship to iron out its issues, they became rather close. Takuya and Chihiro have remained best friends despite attending different schools among the Millennium Six. 

Tomoki Himi: Wizard of Ice

Tomoki is a Wizard of Ice born on Etruna as a commoner. He is the youngest son out of the Himi family with his older brother being Yutaka. Tomoki’s brother saw few restrictions growing up due to his prodigal status as an ice mage, leading to high expectations being heaped onto Tomoki’s shoulders. On top of that, Yutaka took the power he possessed to be a reason to pick on Tomoki for being inferior, leading to an imbalance of power that had Tomoki abused by his brother throughout his youth. This caused Tomoki to grow up as a sensitive and easily-frightened individual as he struggled to escape the bloodied shadow that his older brother left behind for him. Yutaka’s prodigal status gave him the chance to escape all consequences for his wrongdoing, and while Tomoki’s parents were aware of what Yutaka was doing, they were unable to stand up to him either due to not having magic as strong as his, making them likely targets of Yutaka’s ultimately volatile temper. All of this caused Tomoki to be fragile emotionally, easily overwhelmed and introverted. 

Tomoki’s magic is based in ice, and he has an incredible proficiency over it because of how much he’s pushed himself to practice. He uses axes as well, his way of setting himself apart from Yutaka’s strength in lances and swords. Tomoki is a decent healer as well because of his heavy bias towards using magic in battle. 

Tomoki is the Sealed One of Pisces, and his symbol can be found on his lower back. He tends to hide it where possible because he fears the reaction his brother would have. He and Yumiko became fast friends due to their similar sense of distrust for the world. He’s a year below Takuya and Koji, and he came to admire them both from afar within Angelwood. 

Izumi Orimoto: Enchantress of Wind

Izumi is the oldest princess of Hiloft and an Enchantress with dominion over wind magic. She has come to be idealized as a perfect figure by her people and those who surround her, causing her to develop a strong persona through acting. She is kind and caring but seems to lack any depth, often throwing on a mask to keep people from finding out about how insecure and self-loathing she truly is. Izumi’s younger sister, Masae, looks up to her immensely, and Izumi is incredibly protective of her, coming to look after her sister after their mother’s death by assassination. Their father is distant due to his work as the king of the realm, causing Izumi and Masae to be heavily dependent on one another. Despite how close they are, Izumi refuses to yield with her practiced mask even around her sister, wanting to be a good role model no matter how much it hurts her in the process. 

Izumi’s weapons of choice are claws similar to what Takuya uses, though she has a heavy bias for her magic. She is a strong healer, though nowhere near as much so as Yumiko or Hinoka. Izumi is a potent fighter and knows how to defend herself, though she hates battle simply for the sake of battle and does it mostly out of a sense of obligation towards those she cares for. 

Izumi is the Sealed One of Cancer with her mark being on her right forearm. She is a student at Alitia who, much like Yumiko, has the potential to be well-liked and popular, though she keeps to herself instead. She is part of the Keepers’ year. 

Junpei Shibayama: Cantor of Thunder

Junpei is a Cantor with the ability to manipulate electricity. He was born on Millennia and grew up there as well. His parents are well-known mages and teachers at the Millennium Six (with his mother teaching at Sacred Heart while his father is part of the Ridgeview staff). Junpei was often bullied throughout his childhood, particularly at the hands of students at the Millennium Six who looked down on him with scorn for struggling with his developing magic. He started to develop a fiery temper as a result, and his spite towards the rest of the world grew incredible and became part of his mindset. Even after Junpei was able to get help to make sure that this stopped, he retained this mindset for better or worse. He is a very polarizing figure in personality, being both overbearingly positive by putting on a mask of endless optimism and notably pessimistic because of his nihilistic views of the world at large.

Junpei’s fighting style revolves around his use of a pair of gauntlets that he has engineered to be able to shift into a ray gun at a moment’s notice. His magic is the most likely to go out of control as a result of his temper issues, leaving his power somewhat unstable and prone to explosion for better or worse. He is strong with glyphs and symbols contrary to what his uncontrollable magic would suggest, a talent he shares with Saki. 

Junpei is the Sealed One Gemini, and his symbol is on his left bicep. He came to be unlikely friends with Saki since they were enrolled at Sierra at the same time, and he was the first person to figure out their mission before they revealed it to the rest of the group. He’s a year older than the Keepers. 

Chihiro Ayumu: Cantor of Earth

Chihiro is a Cantor who was born on the planet of Igni. They have influence over the element of Earth. Their parents were high-ranking noble mages on Igni, a planet known for its discrimination against leaths. During a meeting with the royalty on another planet, Etruna, Chihiro met Takuya, the oldest prince of Etruna. The two got to know one another, and as soon as the chance came, Chihiro used the trip on Etruna to run from their parents, who treated them poorly as a result of their magic taking an unexpectedly long time to manifest in full. Chihiro returned to the palace after their parents left Etruna, and they have been living as an unofficial third sibling of the Kanbara royal line ever since then, making them notably close with both Takuya and Shinya despite their first appearances of bitter defiance towards any who dare to get close to them emotionally. 

Chihiro is physically strong in many ways, resulting in them finding power with many weapons. They can use hammers, axes, and the like well, though their preferred weapon is the gauntlets. Chihiro’s physical strength is unparalleled, and when combined with the raw force that comes with their earth magic, they are a defensive and offensive terror on the battlefield to match their stubborn nature. 

Chihiro is the Sealed One of Aries, and their marking can be found on the back of their left shoulder. They set out for Sierra at the same time as Takuya, and through him, they were able to become fast friends with Koji. It took a bit longer for Chihiro to fall in with Koichi despite attending the same school as him, but they eventually grew to be notably protective of him and the rest of their team. 

Yumiko Mihara: Enchantress of Wood

Yumiko is an Enchantress with the power over Wood, including plant life of all breeds as well as vague abilities regarding life and death. She was born as the princess of Fortunia, a planet known for its traditionalism. Her parents were often detached from her life because of their royal endeavors, and they paired her off with a noble of the planet for an arranged marriage from a young age. Yumiko defied the wishes of her parents, though this only led to continued harassment from both her fiance and the other nobles who sought her attention and the power found in her family. She came to hold reality at arm’s length, keeping it away from her where possible. Yumiko is said to be pleasant at a first glance, a way of defending herself from the rest of the world. She holds quiet scorn towards those who have hurt her, though she masks this as a way of ensuring that she is not infringed upon again in the future. She came to attend classes at Alitia as a way of escaping the plans that her parents had laid out for her since they were dismissive of her pain at best. She left in search of a new start and hopefully companions who she could rely on to not abuse her.

Yumiko is a notably potent healer. She can patch up just about any injury out there, and her healing powers have earned her the title of a prodigy, though she often denies this in favor of fading into the background. Yumiko manipulates plants in battle, often using a magical bow and arrow to further her abilities in combat.

Yumiko is the Sealed One of Taurus with her marking falling across her chest where her collarbones meet. She is a year below the Keepers in classes, putting her in the same class as Tomoki, Mayumi, and Haroi. She tends to keep to the social circle of the rest of the Sealed Ones out of fear of being hurt by others despite her grace and ability to connect emotionally with others. 

Hinoka Sakatami: Enchantress of Water

Hinoka is an Enchantress of water born on the planet of Rivergold, the realm of water. Her mother was of Loduke while her father was from Rivergold. After a messy split between her parents, leaving her mother emotionally unstable, Hinoka moved to Loduke with her mother. There, she found herself suffering because of her closest companion: a boy named Emon. He was the first to accept Hinoka following her move, reaching out to her despite her sticking out for having the notable traits of Rivergold’s people (patches of scaled skin, for example). Emon’s personality soon shifted towards hatred though, and he came to abuse Hinoka by exerting his power over her that came with being her sole source of companionship. After Hinoka and Emon dealt with a toxic relationship of three years, Hinoka was accepted into Alitia, and she went there in search of a fresh start. However, her history remains clear in her demeanor, as she is fidgety, anxious, and soft-spoken unless she feels safe around the people in her vicinity. 

Hinoka fights almost exclusively with magic, and her sole weapon is a staff with a magical gem mounted to the top of it to boost her influence over water. Hinoka is an amazing healer as well, using her staff to augment her natural affinity for helping others. She has notable curiosity towards glyphs as well even if she cannot use them well with magic. 

Hinoka is the Sealed One for Virgo, and her marking can be found on her left ankle. She generally avoids others under most circumstances with Izumi being her first notable friend. Hinoka is in the same year as Junpei and Saki. 

Saki Fushida: Shapeshifter and Blend of Metal

Saki is a shapeshifter and Blend with specific influence over metal. Their magic is highly focused around matters of telepathy and other types of mind magic as well as influencing metal. They have incredible intuition and have been noted by others to be as shady as it gets. Saki is a master at manipulating situations to their every need, and they use this to their advantage to work under Cherubi, Seraphi, and Ophani in the search for Luce. They operate as a spy within the shadows for the sake of the three mages, ever in search of definitive proof that Luce is still alive somewhere. 

Saki was born on Enmity to Wise, one of the Sealed Ones of the previous generation, and their partner. They lived in the Church of Moonlight since Wise was heavily affiliated with Sphinx and acted as the tactician of the Sealed Ones and their Keepers. Roughly one year after Saki’s birth, Wise was killed alongside the rest of the Sealed Ones in the final battle with Luce. Wise’s partner started to investigate, believing that Luce was still alive, only to be struck down during the search. Saki, left orphaned, was ultimately taken in by Cherubi in the chaos that followed. Cherubi, Seraphi, and Ophani were close friends of the Sealed Ones, and the three of them are also convinced that Luce is still alive. Saki grew up in their custody before deciding to use their unorthodox magic to become a spy in search of the truth behind the past. Later, they enroll at Sierra as a Cantor in search of clues that could lead to Luce, keeping their mission secret from all. 

Saki has a varying fighting style because of the fact that they are a Blend. They shapeshift for the sake of their work but are known to take the form of either a masked vigilante known as Lyra or an unnamed dragon. They tend to use mind magic that comes with their shapeshifting abilities often in tandem with metal magic. They are strong with a rapier as well, and this is their weapon of choice. They tend to hide their shapeshifting unless they have to reveal the truth to others, masking as a regular Cantor (since they would only be outed as a Blend if their shapeshifting magic was known). 

Saki is the Sealed One of Capricorn, and their mark is found within their right eye. They hide the symbol with their mask when in the form of Lyra if they aren’t outright using magic to shield it from sight. They are in the same class as Junpei and Hinoka at the Millennium Six (a year above the Keepers).

Mayumi Reiku: Witch of Energy

Mayumi is a Witch with the ability to manipulate energy. She was born as a commoner of Hiloft, a planet known for its wide variety of magical types. Her mother abandoned her and her father when she was young, something her father considers to be a good thing due to her abusive tendencies. Mayumi lived on Hiloft for many years before her father was offered a chance to research the world of N-Yx, a planet with a particularly powerful connection to Moonlight. Mayumi followed with her father, which is where her family settled down with Haroi and his mother. The four became a happy new family with Mayumi becoming notably close with her new stepbrother. Despite the dreary circumstances behind her birth, Mayumi is upbeat and cheerful, easily able to attract the admiration of others. She can be prone to mood swings at times, but her good intentions cannot be denied no matter what. 

Mayumi’s magic is more volatile than most others’ because of her not having much formal training. Her lack of emotional regulation does not help in the slightest, and her mood swings can randomly drain the energy of herself and others if she is not careful. She fights with retractable claws in combat and struggles with matters of glyphs. 

Mayumi is the Sealed One of Sagittarius, and her mark manifests itself on her right calf. She is close with Haroi even though they attend different schools, and she falls within the same year as him, Tomoki, and Yumiko at the Millennium Six. 

Haroi Tsurumaki: Cantor of Cosmos

Haroi is a Cantor with the ability to influence the cosmos. He was born on N-Yx, a realm with heavy ties to Moonlight as a result of its many temples dedicated to magic. His mother is a priestess at one of these temples, and she raised Haroi within them after his father abandoned them. Haroi is naturally a frail young man, causing him to be somewhat secluded due to his inability to leave for long periods of time. He found admiration and whimsy in Mayumi, his stepsister, because of her endless energy and penchant for adventure. Their blended family means everything to Haroi, filling in the gaps of loneliness and yearning that he used to struggle with when growing up with only his mother and those at the temple by his side. Haroi is an introverted yet empathetic young man, highly in tune with the emotions of others despite his quiet demeanor. He is intelligent as well, loving to learn more about magic and how it manifests itself outwardly and passively in mages and leaths. 

Haroi’s weapon of choice is a staff, though he rarely uses it in battle. Instead, he prefers to use his magic when given the option. Haroi’s influence over his magic is impeccable because of the fact that he was raised in an environment meant to boost such strength. He is incredibly potent with symbols and glyphs and researches them when he can. 

Haroi is the Sealed One of Libra, and his symbol can be found on the back of his neck. Haroi is close friends with Mayumi due to their years of connection as siblings before they came to attend classes at the Millennium Six. He shares a year with her and is a year below the Keepers. 

Boko: Hero of Tactics

Boko is an assistant to Seraphi known for his affinity in tactics due to his manifestation. Since Seraphi is a teacher at Angelwood, Boko acts as the librarian of the school. He greatly looks up to Seraphi, and his curiosity is learned from his mentor. Boko was born and raised within Millennium City on Millennia, and he is vaguely aware of Junpei since they are both connected to teachers of the Millennium Six, though the two can hardly be considered close. Boko often looks after Nee, the other assistant of Seraphi, out of obligation to ensure that his friend stays out of trouble. He lacks the ability to fight since he chose to not train in such matters out of choice, preferring to offer tactics from the back of a group of fighters. 

Nee: Hero of Charisma

Nee is Seraphi’s other assistant and a close friend to Boko. His manifestation allows him to easily attract the attention of others through his words, though this is something that he struggles to channel due to how slow he can be on the uptake at times. Nee is notably emotionally intelligent despite this, and he is able to cover the bases that Boko misses in terms of communicating with others. He looks up to Seraphi just like his friend does, though his admiration is much less profound than Boko’s is. Nee is the one person who seems to know how to catch Saki by surprise, likely because of how strangely his brain seems to work in comparison to the strong majority of Saki’s targets within their line of work. 

Seraphi: Wizard of Sun

Seraphi is a teacher at Angelwood and a Wizard with the ability to manipulate light. He received a Blessing of Starlight many years ago from the previous Keeper of Starlight, augmenting his power and making him a fighter to be feared. He, Ophani, and Cherubi work together to make up the Three Angels, a trio of powerful warriors who once worked as allies of the Sealed Ones. He settled down as a teacher after Luce’s supposed defeat, though he thought that Luce was still alive somewhere. From there, he took in Boko and Nee as his apprentices while carrying out secret research into what had truly happened to Luce in the aftermath of the previous conflict. Seraphi is a kind and caring man who seeks only peace, making him a strong mediator in times of turmoil. 

Ophani: Enchantress of Spirit

Ophani is a teacher at Alitia and an Enchantress with the ability to channel foreign types of magic. Her powers allow her to bring in the spirits of deceased souls to temporarily contribute to her magical strength, and she uses this as a way of defending the peace alongside Seraphi and Cherubi as one of the Three Angels. She also received a Starlight Blessing many years ago from Garuru when he was the Keeper. Ophani is a charismatic woman and the unofficial leader of the Three Angels, easily able to pull in the attention of others and use it to her advantage. Her weapon of choice is a spear to contrast Seraphi’s sword and Cherubi’s bow. Ophani rarely takes nonsense from anyone, knowing how to put others in their place without going too far, and she is a terror on the battlefield. 

Cherubi: Cantor of Shadow

Cherubi is a teacher at Sierra and a Cantor who can freely manipulate shadows. He is the final of the Three Angels alongside Seraphi and Ophani, but unlike the other two, he received a Blessing of Moonlight from Sphinx many years ago. While researching Luce’s fall, he learned of what happened to Saki’s parent who did the same thing, and he offered to take in the young Saki soon afterwards. Saki decided to follow in Cherubi’s footsteps to learn more about Luce as a way of avenging the deaths of both of their parents and following in the path they had left behind. Cherubi is somewhat distant and aloof at first, struggling to speak his mind the way that Serpahi and Ophani do. Deep down, he is a kind soul, if not a bit paranoid and prone to bouts of emotion, especially if he believes his protege may be in danger. 

Susanoo: Wizard of Heaven

Susanoo is a figure of pure legend with their last noted appearance being years ago during the final battle against Luce. There is no way of confirming their existence beyond the rumors that have stated that they do exist in some form or another. In truth, they are the manifestation of the Sealed Ones pulling their magic together after fostering a close enough connection as a group. They are an amalgamation of all of the Sealed Ones both in personality and physical appearance, and they bear the symbols of the Sealed Ones scattered across their body in the proper places to match those who have combined to forge them. Their magic is stated simply to be ‘heavenly’ due to blending so many different types of magic, though it lacks an official title. 

Luce: Blend of Heaven and Hell

Luce is a Blend with the ability to fuse both light and darkness together. His magic is polarizing as can be, coming from the far ends of the spectrum of power. His strength is difficult to harness and stated to be highly volatile when placed in the wrong hands. He once found himself in a place of influence due to his natural charisma, but he broke free of that when the power got to his head, and he started to want complete control over others. Luce would go on to try and enforce this power through sheer force, though he was stopped by the Keepers and their Sealed Ones roughly sixteen years ago. However, Luce managed to survive the attack after the Keepers died, and he retreated to restore his power until the time was right. He sought revenge against the new Keepers and Sealed Ones for their predecessors defeating him, and he used immense attacks of magic to figure out who they were before striking. 

Age Guide

This is as of the time that the story starts. 

Tomoki, Yumiko, Mayumi, Haroi: 15 Takuya, Koji, Izumi, Koichi, Chihiro: 16 Junpei, Hinoka, Saki: 17

Plot

The group of twelve come to attend classes at the Millennium Six, each going to their respective schools to match their status of discipline and wing status. They meet in passing but do not get close with one another yet. After the Three Angels uncover information to reveal that Luce is truly alive, they prepare for an attack from him. Rather than being met with Luce himself, the Millennium Six are attacked by waves of magical soldiers made by Luce so that he doesn’t have to face them directly. The main cast is brought together by circumstance through these miscellaneous attacks, and they bond in an unlikely friendship based on their shared experiences. Their Sealed status is revealed along the way, allowing them to play right into Luce’s hands without even knowing that this is part of his plan. Through Saki, they meet the Three Angels, Boko, and Nee. The truth about Luce being alive is revealed, and the group begins to prepare to stop him. They train together, becoming Sealed Ones at their own paces throughout the process. Eventually, they find themselves faced with Luce himself, and in a magnificent battle, they are able to fuse their powers together to become Susanoo and defeat Luce once and for all, retaining their companionship all the way through. 

And that’s about all that I’ve got! I don’t know if I’m going to be coming back to this AU at any point in the future, but for now, I absolutely love this AU. If you haven’t already, pleeeeeease read Alitia and Frontiers Unexplored; they’re both on my Archive of Our Own, and I think that they are very good (and other people do too). I’ll see you for my next big rambling post, but until then, farewell, dear readers!

[the-backspin-alchemist]

2, 4, 5, 17, 18, 20?

2. first anime crush

Technically speaking, prolly Kagome from Inuyasha, but in fairness I was like 8 at the time and it was one of the few anime cartoons on early enough for me to watch.

Otherwise, prolly has to default to Riza Hawkeye from the first time I watched through Fullmetal Alchemist, since that was my gateway drug into anime.

4. least favorite anime character 

Black Star from Soul Eater.

Gods, he’s such a good example on how NOT to writer a good character. He never learns, never changes, the one time it looks like he’ll have some character development, it’s ignored, and he never sees any consequences for it.

EXCALIBUR was less annoying than he was.

5. list all anime you have ever watched

Ah hell. Uh let’s see here…

Fullmetal Alchemist

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

Durarara!!

Baccano!

ufotable’s Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works

Fate/Zero

Fate/Apocrypha

Ajin

Knights of Sidonia

Polygon Pictures’ Godzilla trilogy

Code Geass

Neon Genesis Evangelion

Sword Art Online

Fairy Tail (incomplete)

Naruto (incomplete)

Darker Than Black

Mushishi

Mobile Suit Gundam: Unicorn

Trigun

Inuyasha (incomplete) (need to fix that)

Soul Eater

Rise of the Shield Hero

B: The Beginning (incomplete)

Pacific Rim: The Black

Deltora Quest (look I was like six at the time)

Outran High School Host Club

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure

Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet

Revisions

Psycho-Pass

Moribito: Guardian Of The Spirit

Kill La Kill

Aldnoah.Zero (first season only)

BNHA (incomplete)

BNA (incomplete)

Dragon Pilot

Matantei Loki Ragnarok

Castlevania

Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans (incomplete)

Deadman Wonderland

Devilman Crybaby

Cowboy Bebop

One Punch Man

Steins;Gate

Noragami (incomplete)

Sonic X

17. biggest anime crush

Proooooobably Celty from DRRR!!

Otherwise it’s likely Saber from UBW.

…okay, badass women with kickass weapons and a strong moral compass are my type, okay?

18. 10 worst anime you have watched

Uh…hmm.

Okay I’ll list some of the ones I’ve quit, then, in no particular order:

Burst Angel (sorry @charlezarrd, but it was too much of a mess)

Elfen Lied (the opening episode alone speaks for itself. No fucking thank you. Not touching that with a ten-foot pole.)

One Piece (fucking Luffy’s the most irritating character ever, he’s worse than Naruto in my eyes)

Bleach (I tried, y’all. I tried hard with this one, too, but Ichigo’s just too damn boring. He’s better in the live-action adaptation where he can actually emote)

The Seven Deadly Sins (if they’d made Meliodas less of a creep and Elizabeth more useful and less of a standard damsel I’d have moved this series, but no, Meliodas had to be That One Character and it ruined everything, every time.)

Hellsing (made the mistake of thinking it would actually be amusing like the Abridged version, but no, it’s just bloody and kinda not great in terms of writing)

Attack on Titan (this is gonna make people mad, but the twists were obvious, I called the Titans as weapons of war instead of natural disasters, and Eren as a character is boring as heck outside of his powers, and I just couldn’t keep running with nothing to keep me interested for the first season. Levi, Eren, and Mikasa’s characters are frankly all wasted on that series, IMHO)

Blood of Zeus (seriously, they did NOTHING INTERESTING WITH THIS SHOW and had Zeus BE THE SAME HORNY BASTARD HE ALWAYS IS and somehow STILL FOUND A WAY TO MAKE HERA THE BAD GUY like WHAT the FUCK even Elias Toufexis as the lone sensible villain couldn’t save this series!)

Fate/Extra: Lost Encore (this falls prey to being Fate fodder. Sure, Cassandra Lee Morris as Nero is great…but also NERO is supposed to be the good one somehow, which…like…okay now the Saber twist isn’t even a twist anymore, it’s just you turning famous figures into blonde anime girls because it worked that one time. Aside from that there’s also very little actual PLOT for me to grab onto, and like…c’mon. It’s like they barely tried.)

Also I revisited Deltora Quest at one point and…I have no idea what 6-year-old-me was thinking. It’s terrible. Like. REALLY bad.

20. least favorite anime ships

I tend not to bash people for their ships, really, but like…I dunno something really rubs me the wrong way about the few folks I saw shipping Mao and CC from Code Geass.

Oh, and anyone that pairs Gilgamesh and Saber from UBW. The two despise each other. They would not make for a good pairing. Either Gilgamesh would need to acknowledge Saber as his equal (which he won’t, he refuses to the point of death in the series), or Saber will have to willingly become his plaything (which we ALSO see her resist to almost the point of death in the series), so I don’t get why people think that makes textual sense?

But again, I try not to actively bash people for shipping stuff. AUs are always a thing, after all, so…yeah. Whatever man. As long as nobody is hurting anyone over it, you do you.

[shadowedfye]

So I know that I have made a post about how I want a reading the fic story about YUTS, but I want to add to that. I love reading the story well stories and sometimes I love it when characters in that world read the fanfic that they are in. I am going to post a list of fandoms that I want these in and if anyone has or knows of any stories in those fandoms please I am begging you to rec/send them to me, so that I can read them. PLEASE.

BNHA/My Hero Academia - For this one I will take recs for both the cannon story, but also for any fanfic worlds (EX. The story Reaction to Dreamer where the cannon characters read the fanfic Dreamer) This was also mentioned in my last post when I wanted a reaction fic to YUTS. In this Fandom I actually prefer reading reactions to fanfic worlds over the cannon world.

Bungou Stray Dogs - I know that there are one or two reaction fics out there, but I may have missed some, so I wanted to add it to the list.

Katekyo Hitman Reborn - Like the BNHA one I prefer a reaction to a fanfic world over cannon, but I will take what I can get.

Artemis Fowl - I prefer reading cannon world over reading fanfic world, but again I will take what I can get. I would also prefer if it was the books and not the movie.

MDZS/Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation(plus all of the other names it has) - I have no preference of cannon over fanfic and I have read at least two fics with this premise, but I want to see if I missed any.

Natsume Yuujinchou/Natsume’s Book of Friends - I prefer cannon for this and I did find one, but it was never really completed or even really started and I want to see if there are any more out there.

Noragami - I prefer cannon and for this one I would love it even more if the part that they are reading goes into Yato’s past.

PJO/HOO - If it is a part of Rick Riordan’s mythology series I want a reading the story fic. I prefer cannon and if there are any that center around Blood of Olympus and the Battle of Manhattan then I would love them even more.

Seven Deadly Sins - I prefer cannon

DGM/D. Gray-man - I prefer cannon even though cannon is a little confusing right now.

Castlevania - I will take both cannon (Netflix series) or fanfic readings. I am not the most fond of the most recent season so I am good if it stops after the defeat of Dracula.

Angels of Death - I prefer cannon only

Assassination Classroom - I prefer cannon only

Durarara!!! - I prefer cannon, but I will also take anything that centers on Izaya. For the fanfic ones I love Shizaya and I am not fond of X2 so the fic doesn’t have to include that. I did love the twins though.

Fullmetal Alchemist - I prefer cannon only. I also prefer FMA: Brotherhood if you are using an anime or the manga.

The Glass scientists - This is a webcomic, so I haven’t been able to find must fanfic for this in general, but if there are any fics for this out there I would love to find and read them. I prefer cannon on this one.

Inuyasha - I will take either canon or fanfic worlds, but just be warned that I am not a big fan of the Inuyasha x Kagame ship

Iris Zero - I haven’t found much for this fandom in general, but I would love one of this type

Kuroshitsuji/Black Butler - I prefer cannon, but only Manga cannon. I am not a big fan of the Anime cannon

Irregular at magic highschool/Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei - I now that a lot of people have issues with this series, but I really love it and want to see the characters react to the awesomeness that is Tatsuya. I prefer cannon.

Rising of the Shield Hero - I prefer cannon with little to no shipping

Warrior Cats - I prefer cannon. It can start wherever in the series, but I like the first set with Firestar and I like the sets that have Jayfeather in them best.

Yu Yu Hakusho - I prefer cannon

The Ancient Magus’s Bride- Again not a lot of fanfic, so lets see what we can find

Blue Exorcist - I prefer Manga cannon

The Saga of Tanya the Evil - I prefer cannon

How to Train Your Dragon Books - Cannon if you can

The Lunar Chronicles - I prefer cannon

Black cat (Manga) - I prefer cannon

Good omens - I prefer cannon

Sword Art Online - I will take cannon, but I would love it the best if there was a reaction to SAO Abridged fanfic.

Bleach - I will take canon or fanfic

Solo Leveling - Cannon

Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint - Cannon

This is it so far, but I may add more on later. I am so excited to see what fics show up so that I can read them and enjoy all of that hurt/comfort goodness that come with reading/watching fics.

Another side note is that for the reading/watching the fic stories if you go onto my AO3 account (under the same name as this account ShadowedFye) and you see the fic saved under bookmarks then I want a reaction fic of that story. At this moment this means that there are roughly 3,862 stories that I want reactions to.

[danwhobrowses]

Why Star Wars: The Last Jedi Deserves More Respect

So after a handful of posts I think it’s time to bring back this one, the conflict was that I was considering reviews for Pokémon Sword and Shield as well as a review for Rise of Skywalker, but the latter made me think that this is an opportune moment to talk about the previous entry.  Like The Last Jedi, Rise of Skywalker has had divisive opinions, frankly I liked the film but I think TLJ was the best of the sequel trilogy, and I am going to explain why

Fair Warning, within this there’s gonna be spoilers for Rise of Skywalker, possibly Mandalorian, maybe Solo and definitely The Last Jedi...this will also be very long

So I know straight away that this is gonna get heat, there has been constant times where me saying that I liked TLJ has been considered trolling or ‘bait’, honestly I find myself baffled that people can hate it so vehemently, believing that the story is and I quote ‘the worst sequel ever’. While it is clear that Johnson had a different vision to Abrams, that was not a bad thing, a lot of the criticism the film gets are quite hypocritical in contrast to the Original Trilogy which is held to so much esteem, so to start I’m going to break that down. Small Disclaimer before I do: People are allowed to dislike things, not saying that if you do dislike it you are doing something wrong, just pointing out that it’s not wrong to like the film either. Disowning before Watching The first thing I think turned people off of TLJ was the interview Mark Hamill had before the film came out, people misconceiving his comments that it’s not the journey he expected seeing of Luke to mean that this is not a film he would approve of. The same almost happened with RoS with Abrams comment which was abridged to imply that Abrams disowned TLJ as well - he did not - but in a society where we want to home in on flaws and criticize before even seeing that was too wide a door left open. So without fault, TLJ already had a group of people set on disliking the film because it would be different to how they and Hamill wanted it to be and because it’s not exactly like the decanonized ‘Legends’ continuity - despite people being fine that Jacen Solo and Ben Skywalker had been merged to make Kylo Ren in The Force Awakens. It’s easy to point out that if you go into something adamant to dislike you’re going to get your wish, so the first point of order is to give something a chance to impress you, you can’t criticize something because an actor didn’t think it’d go that creative direction, Hamill did not hate this movie and people disliking their content does not automatically make it bad, Stannis from GoT hated the show, Alan Moore hates everything but that doesn’t mean Watchmen was bad, the actors for C3PO and R2-D2 hated each other but that doesn’t mean that when they acted their bond wasn’t great.

The ‘Luke is not Luke’ Criticism Hamill’s comments ease nicely into one of the main critiques that fans felt that Luke was not the same character he was in Return of the Jedi. People criticized his disconnection from the force which included tossing his lightsaber away in the opening scene, the Rashomon sequence where Luke considered striking down his own nephew - a move that ultimately turned Ben to the Dark, drinking green milk and that his last stand was a projection rather than a solid encounter. You know what I say to those criticisms?

They are bollocks, absolute nonsensical criticisms made to try and dismantle the best character of the movie. Hamill delivers his best for Luke in TLJ and his character arc is brilliant. I watched Blind Wave (a great youtube reactor channel) react to TLJ and the members noted how it was great that Luke had a character arc, something I wholly agree with. Luke was around 23 in Return of the Jedi (since the galaxy uses the standardized dating of Coruscant which has the most earth-like cycle), if you expect a 23 year old to have no room left to grow in the next 30 years of his life then I don’t think anything’s gonna get through to you, Luke is meant to be different, because since Jedi a lot of shit has happened. Luke’s discarding of the lightsaber shows his disconnect with the Force, something that had allowed the First Order to paint him as a myth and rendered everyone near-unable to find him, only tracked by the galactic map to Ahch-To from his past days of discovering remnants of Jedi past. Next let’s bring down the Rashomon sequence, the 3 tales of Ben’s turning. Initially, Luke painted a picture that he sensed that the darkness was too late, Ben woke and attacked him. Later Ben paints that Luke is lying, and that when Ben awoke Luke was there with his Lightsaber drawn with intent to kill him. The third story admits that both are correct, Luke drew his lightsaber in sensing the darkness, and Ben awoke to see it and retaliated.

This story peeves people mainly because they say that in Jedi ‘Luke was willing to fight for a single hope of light in his Father but was willing to kill his nephew for a bad dream’. A ridiculous comment that waters down and ignores the bigger picture though. For one, while Luke wanted to save his father and sensed good in him, he still ended up cutting his dad’s hand off, the indication that much like his father Luke - as he had always been in the Original Trilogy - was still susceptible to his emotions, including the negative ones. The other reason this statement is foolhardy is because they don’t listen to Luke’s narration, where he explains that it was a fleeting moment of panic and arrogance, his ego as ‘Luke Skywalker, Jedi Master’ took over when he sensed that Ben was already turned by Snoke, and it was only for a split second which he immediately regrets. It’s this moment that snowballs into why Luke disconnects himself from the force, his ego as a saviour to Jedi led to the downfall of his nephew - which led to his best friend and sister separating, the rise of the First Order being like a second Empire and the massacre of most of his other jedi students, he realised that this was the same ego that led to the previous Jedi’s downfall to Vader and Sidious and thus came to the conclusion that maybe the Jedi way is not the right way. Not only is this a brilliantly done tragedy for the character but it’s a progression that identifies with public opinion of jedi ways and the pompousness that led to Anakin’s turn to the dark side as depicted in the prequels. The use of Rashomon also connects to the Jedi/Sith connections to Samurai which was a great touch by Johnson. The green milk scene was a weird one I’ve seen being criticized, like people are fine with Calamarian fishmen but a Tatooine/Naboo humanoid can’t drink green milk? I think I need to remind you that Luke drinks blue milk on Tatooine, he is a moisture farmer as well, the ‘green milk’ scene was a depiction of how Luke survived on Ahch-To as Rey followed him, his lifestyle disconnected from the force as he lived as basically a farm boy. I don’t know why people got so mad about the colour of milk but you can’t expect those nuns to have fed him roast porgs every day The final criticism is his last stand, something I will touch on a bit later as well. In terms of Luke, people were disappointed that it wasn’t Luke actually there and while yes it would’ve been great to watch Luke tear down AT-ATs luke the EU, but he literally says that he won’t do that

it’s not a matter of can’t, it’s a matter of him strutting up to the army of the First Order will not end the war, most people don’t even know if he exists. Showing up will have inspired the resistance yes but if Luke was shown killed or captured that hope would then be instantly diminished, and Snoke and Ren would definitely be going for Luke’s head to make that so. This is why Luke goes via projection, instead of his ragged hermit self where he’d likely die similarly to how Kenobi did, he demonstrates a highly advanced force power to display himself as a clean-cut warrior who shrugs off the full might of the First Order’s arsenal and humiliates its brand new Supreme Leader, while disappearing. That stand does the Resistance far better than him showing up in person, because now the legend of Luke Skywalker lives longer than he does, he inspires a new wave of Jedi who understand his sacrifice and rebels who have just seen how one man can expose the weakness of the First Order. Luke’s last living gesture is one that inspires hope, before he becomes one with the Force at peace. If anything that is as beautiful as it is tragic of an end for Luke, but by no means is that bad. The Rose Tico ‘Issue’ Luke wasn’t the only character to get on the wrong side of criticism, undoubtedly Kelly Marie Tran got it the worst. Despicable people flocked to harass her over her character, throwing about racism just for that added content of being a horrid human being. Her character, Rose Tico, was a newly introduced character from the Resistance who joins Finn and Poe’s arcs, her main non-racist criticism is her act of saving Finn from the Laser Battering Ram ‘She has this stupid speech about saving people with love while a laser battering ram breaks down the door to kill a bunch of people’ A common theme seems to be that people are taking things the absolute wrong way. Rose’s journey with Finn is an interesting arc where she seeks to make sure her sister’s sacrifice - caused by Poe’s rash personality - is not in vain while accompanying a ‘hero of the resistance’, what she is unaware of is how her assistance relates to Finn’s journey as he tries to live up to the esteem she sees him in, he had always considered himself a defector rather than a rebel. Rose (and DJ) open his eyes to a reality that not everything is black and white, he left the First Order in TFA because he believed that they were ‘wrong’ and so by default the resistance had to be ‘right’ but TLJ challenged Finn to see both sides and make a choice for himself, a choice that is made thanks to Rose. However, his embrace of being a rebel is why he is adamant to try and sacrifice himself for the laser battering ram. I have to point out that until Rose stepped in I thought Finn was gonna die, I thought it really ballsy and a little disappointing that they were gonna kill him off, I also knew that the ship would not stop the battering ram so it was actually a relief that Rose did save him.

I think people dislike it for that reason though, they felt that Finn dying would’ve been a more shocking narrative turn and because Rose saved him she is to ‘blame’, I also believe that people didn’t like the relationship because Finn was clearly still on Rey and not everyone was on the Reylo boat or it got in the way of FinnPoe being more than just a bromance (side note, at the start of RoS I thought they were sailing on the ReyPoe for a moment, though I’m not mad about how they went), but again, that shouldn’t be the fault of Rose’s character. Rose clearly was inspired by Finn’s reputation and grew fond of his personality the more time she spent with him, likewise Finn found himself wanting to earn her esteem and taking care of her, it’s actually a shame that Rose’s role gets heavily reduced in RoS, because I do feel like Rose could’ve filled Jannah’s role (nothing against Jannah or Naomi Ackie of course) with the Canto Bight horse-things instead of the Kef Bir horse-things. So to conclude this section, Rose was good in this film, she served a purpose to grow Finn as a character and most constructive criticisms against her revolve around things either out of her control as a character or without would diminish her character role completely. The Communication Issue between Holdo and Poe Alright, let’s throw some hands up before I rub them together. I agree that Holdo should’ve told people the plan, I do dislike it when a movie creates conflict made by a lack of communication. But, he will say rubbing his hands together, this does not ruin the film. It’s worth reminding that Poe is recently demoted for reckless behaviour, the Resistance’s entire offensive fleet was destroyed due to Poe wanting to destroy one Dreadnought Ship. A reasonable punishment for Poe on his arc to realise that being a leader is more than just winning a battle, but more on that later. So Holdo comes in, new squadron she barely knows because she’s taking over for Leia, she has a plan that she and Leia know but are the only living members who know now. So why doesn’t she tell Poe? It’s quite simple, not only does the novel imply that she’s figuring out if there’s a mole - which is understandable because the First Order must’ve watched Star Trek: Into Darkness and thought ‘hey we could track ships in hyperspeed too!’ - but she’s also trying to enforce Leia’s punishment to Poe. Poe is in this shit because he refused to listen to orders, so Holdo is basically telling Poe to listen to orders, something he refuses to do and starts a mutiny. It is frustrating yes and we side with Poe because he’s the more familiar character, but had Poe just proved himself a trustworthy person who is learning from Leia’s last decree before she went into a coma she would’ve told him. This also transitions nicely into the next criticism people have Canto Bight and the Cryptographer Goose-Chase Poe’s plans of mutiny starts with sending Rose and Finn to Canto Bight, at the behest of the massively underused Maz Kanata, to find a Cryptographer so that they could disable the hyperspace tracker. People hate this scene mainly because it segue’s from the plot, it’s high on CGI and reminds them of the Prequel Trilogy

Now I can’t really contest the CGI but it was nothing bad, CGI still gets used well and the visit to the Casino aided in time for Rose and Finn to establish a relationship, have some lightheated BB-8 moments, introduce DJ the speech impediment ‘wrong hacker’ and continue to drive the shades of grey theme Finn is about to learn about. People never seem to criticize that they put their faith in the wrong guy because it leads to a more interesting conflict, so it’s strange that they hate this transition so much. The Brevity of Snoke and Phasma Two characters introduced that promised to be big deals were killed off in The Last Jedi, the nature of them both was a brave scene that many felt dropped the ball on these characters. And while I am inclined to agree on Phasma at least, Snoke’s death was actually a great turn. Before RoS we were none the wiser on who Snoke was, now we’ve seen it we know that he was basically a mass-produced puppet by the emperor...not the best of closures I’d admit but the anger towards Snoke being killed off is actually hypocritical ‘All Snoke does is sit in his chair and die’ You know who else sat in his chair and ‘died’, ol’ Sheev Palpatine. People are quick to criticize that Snoke was hyped up but barely got to show anything when Palpatine only really demonstrated the force twice in the Original trilogy before being thrown into a pit of apparent death, we allowed the Emperor a pass because we learned more about him through novels and future movies, and that’s something we eventually find out from Snoke as well.

Captain Phasma on the other hand was a sad disappointment, after one brush with death already she returned to basically be killed off again as a symbol of Finn shedding his ties as an ex-stormtrooper and embracing the role of a rebel. This is not really the fault of Johnson though, everyone seems to be more content with the alternate scene where Finn exposes Phasma’s actions for TFA, but that was a choice from the cutting room. While we can be disappointed that Phasma didn’t leave enough of a mark on the trilogy, we can always hope for prequel stuff as we had with Boba Fett, an equally wasted character in his main trilogy who could theoretically be in The Mandalorian (only a theory, nothing is concrete), but if we are willing to love the Original Trilogy despite similar issues we hate on TLJ for then aren’t we being hypocrites? tHaT’s nOt HoW tHe FoRcE wOrKs If you try to pick on Rian Johnson for ‘not getting Star Wars’ directly you would be in for a world of punishment. Two major force powers that get used in The Last Jedi is the ‘Force Skype’ and Force Projection, however both are basically using the same techniques, one is connecting minds while the other is connecting one mind to an individual place. It’s immediately told to us that this is an advanced technique but this is not something Johnson has made up. In the EU this ability is called Simifuturus or just Doppelganger, practiced by Luke, Dooku and Yarael Poof. Rey and Ben’s Force Skype is also used in the EU called Force Bond, Chain or Jedi Kinship, the ability had been fine in beloved Star Wars games Knights of the Old Republic I & II, the Clone Wars and Rebels series and aplenty of novels. For the legitimacy of these abilities cannot be contested. The fact that the ability kills Luke shouldn’t be criticized either, Luke is projecting himself light years away on Crait, with a copy of Han’s dice in a much more polished form, he physically interacts with Leia and takes on a barrage of AT-M6 blasters - turbolasers that can destroy speeders and ships with one hit - and two lightsaber slices, remember Ben felt the impact from Rey’s blaster on their first Force Skype, so Luke carried the feeling of all that damage and strain on his body and maintained his projection. So not only did Luke’s dying moments lead to an incredible display of using the Force but also one that forced him to sustain an immeasurable amount of damage and still manage to bide the resistance time to escape. Leia Poppins Ah yes, the Mary Poppins moment. I dunno how I can explain this one so easily but how about this. Leia is force sensitive, we have known this since Jedi, so to see Leia use the force was a massive moment, but she’s floating in the vacuum of space so there is no ‘up’ she is basically pulling a heavier object than herself in a vacuum, using it as an anchor so she can get to a blast door. As to why she survives in space, you can survive up to 2 minutes in space without a helmet, it is horribly painful though, it’s also worth reminding that Leia is not a human like you or me and if the Force can heal (as shown in The Mandalorian and RoS) then why can’t it keep Leia alive a bit longer in Space? She ends up in a coma anyway so I don’t see why complaints are rife here, she survives barely and it’s not like they knew Carrie was going to die sometime after the film was completed, they obviously had more plans for her so it would’ve been wrong to kill her off there when we were already killing Luke off. Did Disney Ruin Star Wars? This is a statement I’ve heard a lot in regards to TLJ, Solo and RoS, which is weird though, people were fine with Disney doing TFA, Rogue One and The Mandalorian, Mando’s journey with Baby Yoda proving that the utility of fanservice - something the trio get loathed for - can be enjoyable and it bodes well that the director of some episodes is doing an Obi Wan film. The phrase ‘Star Wars Fatigue’ also came about from post-Solo reviews, which I have expressed is dumb because MCU do 3 marvel movies minimum a year. But the reason Solo got low box office figures wasn’t because it was bad, it’s because it was released around the same time as Deadpool 2, it was left to the sharks without a chance to succeed. So no, Disney have not ruined Star Wars, if anything fan perception has damaged the franchise with people hating it because it’s not the Original Trilogy or it’s too much like the Original Trilogy, the same can be said for the EU. RoS is quite similar to Dark Empire but because Disney retconned most of the EU it’s the enemy, but let’s be honest, does anyone want the continuity to be that Chewie gets blown up? I doubt that. So WHY does The Last Jedi deserve more respect I think the mixed reviews of Rise of Skywalker has proved that maybe TLJ got a harsh end of a stick, even with Abrams’ vision back at the helm the film proved to be divisive and personally quite safe. This is probably why I liked TLJ the most, Johnson went to challenge things and build off of the previous movies as a whole, nothing really was safe, it took narrative risks that opened the door to a lot more things.

We explored Rey’s connection to the force and her desires for answers being unable to be sated by it because she’s expecting more from her level of learning, we also have Snoke’s gambit to bond Ben and Rey together to strengthen both, Ben strengthens into a more mature state but continues to conflict in a less whiny way, even relenting from trying to kill his mother. We also got some ‘reverse Jedi’ stuff with both Ben and Rey adamant that the other will turn but instead of turning one another, Ben’s hatred however proves too great for Rey to accompany him which leads to Ben getting a villain promotion to Supreme Leader. We have a solid arc for Finn, Luke and Poe as he finally learns to take care of others, because as Rose was saying, sacrificing yourself is not going to beat the First Order, heroes are great but dead heroes win nothing, protecting others is the essence of the Resistance and that’s what a leader is meant to do. Hell, we even get a little Hux stuff, the way he slowly considers shooting Kylo Ren while he’s down and his constant abuse culminating in the rather obvious RoS reveal that he’s the spy. Unlike RoS, TLJ thrived on giving every major character worthwhile arcs like these which all ended up entwining in the climactic showdown, while tertiary characters did end up getting underused there were still windows for them to do more in the next episode which was taken out of Johnson’s hands, but he laid a lot of groundwork for the story to be taken multiple directions, which is actually quite difficult when you’re midway through a trilogy and on the 8th outing of a saga. In addition, the film provided Hamill’s best performance as Luke Skywalker, giving him a fitting end to his journey which explored almost every dimension of a Jedi’s character; training, temptation, losing faith and redemption.

I also loved how Johnson described the Force in TLJ, it wasn’t about Dark or Light, the Force was the Force, an energy that flows through all that is harnessed by the force sensitive, even Force Ghosts. And using the Puppet Yoda was a great and fun addition, and it makes sense that he can fire lightning, because Force Ghosts are one with the Force, they flow with the flow of nature. We got lore and demonstration of great powers that made the ‘holy shit’ moment of Kylo Ren stopping a blaster shot mid-flow look like novice work. And while we’re talking about ‘holy shit’ moments

You cannot deny that TLJ had some absolutely breathtaking visuals, moments in this film are some of the best moments in Star Wars, a combination of intensity and hype from Luke’s standoff with the First Order to Holdo’s hyperspace ram, Ahch-To’s real-life setting was also beautiful as were the design of Crait from its Icicle foxes to its salt speeders leaving a red path of smoke

This film looks beautiful and the story is multilayered with character development, worldbuilding, good action and gutsy plot twists, you know everything people (rightfully) praise The Mandalorian for. It’s definitely not a film where you’d find yourself bored and when you set aside your fan theories and the illusion that the Original Trilogy was Flawless save for the Death Star plot hole you will find this movie a lot more enjoyable. Now I don’t want people saying it’s a ‘Don’t Question, Consume’ sorta thing, it’s a matter of accepting that there are flaws but not allowing it to ruin the experience, because The Last Jedi embodies a lot of the essence of Star Wars old and new, it is probably the best that the New Trilogy has provided and it is certainly worthy of respect.

[kob131]

have you read the kaguya-sama manga , and have you read the re zero and konosuba light novels (both of which were originally from web novels though the re zero web novel is still continuing and the guy who is writing the web novel is also in charge of the light novel) have you read the one punch man manga. and on bobobo anime I loved that anime too bad it got canceled due to PTA complaints about violence, and the storyline and I cant even read the manga to finish it due to how 1/2

the bobobo anime ended up changing the humor because Much of the humor is untranslatable and based off Japanese pop culture, so most dubs basically rewrote the whole script to their liking Bo-bobo: "I'm trying really hard to fill out this entry form — Buuuuut IT'S IN JAPANESE!!" 2/2

Yes on Kaguya. In fact that's how I started it

No on Re:Zero and Konosuba. I don’t know where to read translated light novels. Believe me, I would have continued Shield Hero.

No on OPM manga but I really should.

And: Yeah, makes sense. Well, judging by that one line, try the Ghost Stories dub. It’s basically an official abridged series.

[dwollsadventures]

TyrantisTerror Prompt: Lesser Drake

You’ve heard of Smaugust, now get ready for… Smovember. Smauvember. Starting on the 31st of October. 

All right, bull-shit aside here’s the deal: Sword and Shield is coming out in 16 days exactly, and I need to distract myself from the leaks, if/when they happen.  To keep my mind free of distraction, I’ve decided to do an abridged version of Tyrant Is Terror’s 31-Day Dragon Prompts. But, I’ll only be doing the first 16 days, firstly because that’s the time-frame for Sword and Shield’s release, and also because prompts 17-31 deal with creatures based around either abstract elements or different popular culture stuff. But, because I am me, nothing is going to be what it seems. Many of the prompts listed give a little description, using the specific names of these creatures to mean a body-plan. Instead, I’ll do my usually thing of diving way too deep into the etymology and history of that creature. Most of these are going to be simpler drawings, in a similar vein to the previous wisps collage, because school. 

The first of these is the Drake. Though listed as a four-legged, wingless dragon, the word drake is ultimately derived from the Greek drakon, which means both dragon and serpent. Both their serpentine bodies and their piercing eyes were considered their defining traits, and through the Romans the word was spread across Europe, appearing even in the Old English Beowulf, where the dragon is referred to as a “draca”. But, because I’ve drawn a lot of drakones, here is a drakaina, or dracaena. Literally the word is the feminine form of drakon, but can also be used to described monstrous goddesses with the bodies of serpents, like Keto and Ekhidna. These seem to be the exception though, as the more common drakaina are more like their male relatives; monstrous and animal-like in their behavior. The drakaina pictured here is Sybaris, a mountainous dragon whose territory included Mount Cirphis. She caused significant damage to the surrounding countryside, until the hero Eurybarus killed her, tossing her from her mountain perch onto the rocks below, making a spring. Dragons are often prone to causing shifts in the environment, as befitting creatures descended directly from the primordial creators of the world. 

also happy halloween

[fuyonggu]

Chen Lin’s Proclamation to Wu (Short Version, No Commentary)

This is the abridged version of this post.

Proclamation to the Generals, Officers, and Subordinates of Wu

By Chen Kongzhang (Chen Lin)

On the first day of the year, the Prefect of the Masters of Writing, Xun Yu, distributed this proclamation to the various generals, officers, and subordinates of the Southland and to Sun Quan's friends and relatives, both near and far:

"It has been said, 'Happiness and misery have no gate by which they must enter, but each man calls the one or the other for himself'. For the man who 'sees his opportunity and acts', rather than remain amidst adversity and peril, has the wisdom of a great sage; he who, faced with danger and pressed by circumstances, heeds the new situation only in the end, deserves the concern of the knowledgeable; and he who only plunges deeper into the muck and mire, never turning aside from doom, merits the annihilation of the foolish. Thus does the refined and superior gentleman consider danger even while at peace, and contemplates future regrets even when they seem remote, while the inferior man is caught unawares by misfortune and laments his loss, and in the end meets with death and destruction. Is there not a great divide between them?

"Now Sun Quan is a mere whelp, and 'unable to distinguish beans from wheat'; he has not worth enough to 'douse the axe' of authority, nor reputation enough to impress anyone. He is a mere hatchling, still growing his adult feathers. Yet he would seek to wander about and do as he pleases, like a dog who barks at his master; he claims that his boats and ships will let him oppose the imperial majesty, and his rivers and lacks shall save him from august punishment. But he does not recognize that Heaven casts its net wide, and he shall be caught in it; he is nothing but a fish in the pot, who will cook when its time has come.

"Has he his rivers to protect him? Yet by the waters of Lake Dongting there remains not a trace of the three ancient states of Miao. Ziyang (Gongsun Shu) had the Jing Gate to guard him, yet he was defeated; Chaoxian (northern Korea) had their ramparts, but they availed them not; Nanyue had their banners, yet they too perished.

“In ancient times, the King of Wu, Fuchai, inherited the legacy of his father Helü and the trained army provided by Shen Xu (Wu Zixu), and he stood astride the region of Kuaiji. Certainly he could have been called a mighty king. Yet when he sought to prove whose was the premier state and struggled with Jin for supremacy, his capital city was sacked by Goujian of Yue and his soldiers were put to flight at Huangchi, and in the end his state was toppled and destroyed and his corpse fell into the hands of the Yue army.

“During the Han dynasty, there was the Prince of Wu, Liu Bi, who was proud, arrogant, and overbearing. Out of his ferocity and cunning, he sought to start disorder, for he believed that he had a strong army and a rich territory, and that he was powerful enough to bully the capital. But when the Grand Commandant (Zhou Yafu) led his army down to Xingyang, the armies of the seven states cracked like tiles and melted like ice, and before Liu Bi could even say a word of condemnation, his throat had already been cut by the blade of Dantu.

“What to make of the fate of such men? Merely this: that the might of Heaven cannot be opposed, and those who rebel against its will are great criminals indeed.

"Nor can Sun Quan be secure in the power of his army. After all, it has been nearly thirty years by now since Dong Zhuo first began the turmoil. And during that time, great heroes and talents roamed the length and breadth of the land, territorial as bears and implacable as tigers. The most powerful among them were those like the two Yuans (Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu), and the strongest were those like Lü Bu; for more than ten years, they stood astride several provinces, and they wielded power and commanded respect. Even beyond them, there were many remarkable heroes with passion and zeal, gazing like owls and glancing like wolves, and in this struggle for heroic supremacy there were too many people to count. Yet in the end, every one of them fell under the axe and parted with their heads; the clouds dispersed and the plains were scorched, and not a man remained among them.

"More recently, there were the generals of Guanzhong (Ma Chao and his allies), who banded together to rebel and cause chaos. They blocked the two Huas (Huayin and Huayang), occupied the Yellow and Wei Rivers, led the Qiang and other tribes to charge forward, and pushed their vanguard towards the east. They possessed towering zeal and lofty ambitions, and it seemed as though no one could stand against them. Yet the Prime Minister (Cao Cao) took up the military battle-axe and spread the word, and, sure as wind and blazing as fire, he 'led the way in front' and routed the foe before a roll of the drums. The result was 'a heap of corpses by the thousands and tens of thousands, of flowing blood and discarded shields'. These are things which all the realm well knows.

"Later, when the grand army had come to the banks of the Yangzi but had not yet crossed, Han Yue (Han Sui) and Ma Chao scampered off and fled back to Liangzhou, where they once again sought to caw and bark. The traitor and bandit Song Jian, who had declared himself King of the Source of the Yellow River, formed common cause with their evil; they helped each other as the lips support the teeth. It was the same way with the General Who Guards The South, Zhang Lu, who was confident in his defenses and so refused to respect royal authority. These enemies were all deserving of our royal punishment. Thus the Prime Minister merely reviewed the troops and made a demonstration at the Yangzi, then once again put the royal armies in order and charged to the west on campaign, to inflict the punishment of the realm against these foes.

"What were the results? No sooner had mere subordinate generals crossed the Long Mountains when Song Jian and Han Sui parted with their heads, and their heads and banners were sent ten thousand li to us. The moment that our army entered San Pass, the various Di tribes came to submit to us, and their kings, nobles, chiefs, and leaders all fled in the face of our advance. When we advanced to Hanzhong, Yangping Gate fell before us; Zhang Lu's army of a hundred thousand men was no more than fallen earth or rotting fish. Zhang Lu himself scurried away, fleeing into Bazhong, but then cherishing the kindness that he had been shown and repenting of his transgressions, he brought his whole family and returned to surrender. The King of the the tribes of Ba, Pu Hu, and the Marquis of the Cong tribes, Du Huo, each led their forces to come and submit, presenting up Ba commandary, and these leaders were employed in office. Thus with one blow of the horns and one roll of the drums, these two corners of the realm were all pacified; we reaped the full bounty of the western sea without even a clash of the vanguards.

"Such things as these only come about through the might and wisdom of Heaven above and the martial prowess of the very spirits of state; they are not something that the power of a mere mortal can accomplish.

"And how generous and benevolent the court is; most impartial, fully civil and fully trustworthy, and greatly willing to grant titles as a display to all the realm. Having submitted to the dynasty, Zhang Lu, Pu Hu, and Du Huo were all granted fiefs of ten thousand households, Zhang Lu's five sons were all granted fiefs of a thousand households, and more than a thousand of the relatives and subordinates of Pu Hu and Du Huo were granted titles from minor marquises and generals on down. Thus were the people able to enjoy tranquility, and the Four Professions returned to their livelihoods. But as for those who rebelled, Song Jian and Han Yue (Han Sui) and their ilk were all 'buried under a mound', while Ma Chao's wife and children were beheaded at Jincheng and his parents and infants were executed in the Xu marketplace. These were not merely the whims of the state to inflict misfortune here and bestow blessings there; they were the just fruits of the submissive and the traitorous.

"Before it snatches its prey, a raptor will often first ascend in order to muster its full power. Likewise, before King Wu of Zhou's ultimate victory at Muye, he first withdrew from Meng Crossing. So too have we been clearing the brambles and cutting away the thorns, restoring peace among the tribes and the Xia (ethnic Han), such that now all the territory for ten thousand li around has become respectful and submissive, and there is no military trouble to be found.

"And now (~217) we have brought forth this heavenly army against you, one million strong, bolstered with the support of the Chanyu of the Xiongnu, Huwanchu (Huchuquan), the various tribes of the six commandaries, the Wuhuan, the Dingling, and the Chuge, and the Qiang and Bo tribes of Huangzhong. Like the rolling of thunder and the unfurling of a mat, we have swept south from Shouchun. At the same time, the General Who Conquers The West, Xiahou Yuan, and others are leading forth fifty thousand elite armored soldiers. The Di and Qiang tribes of Wudu and the zealous troops of the Ba and Han regions are marching south to the Wen River and the Yangzi to swiftly occupy the regions of Tang and Shu. The armies of Jiangxia and Xiangyang are also on the move, crossing the Xiang and Yuan Rivers and approaching Yuzhang. Lastly, our great fleet of tower ships is skirting the coast of the sea and heading straight for the regions of Wu and Kuaiji. All along this front of ten thousand li, we march as one, advancing along five routes against us. Sun Quan's fate is now at hand.

"Now the Prime Minister, as the agent of the state's authority, is acting to remove threats to the people, and there can be no salvation for the abhorrent chief criminals; they shall surely part with their heads. But 'the branches attached and the leaves that follow' may yet be spared; though the leaders are doomed, their followers need not be condemned. The imperial edict does not decree that such people must die. On the contrary, every time that the Prime Minister has vanquished a powerful foe, he has never failed to first offer opportunities for surrender and only afterwards execute those who would not submit. He has recruited generals and obtained talents, and all such people found their full use in his service. And in all instances, there have been meritorious ministers who have 'stood on tiptoes and craned their necks', who have heeded the situation and responded to circumstances.

“For example, when Yuan Shu treasonously claimed imperial title and the court executed him and his generals, the Administrator of Lujiang, Liu Xun, offered up his commandary to the court and return to the fold of the state. When Lü Bu caused turmoil and the Prime Minister led the army to Xiapi, Zhang Liao and Hou Cheng led their troops out to surrender. When the Prime Minister returned to campaign against Sui Gu, Xue Hong and Jiu Shang opened the gates of his city and submitted. During the battle of Guandu, Zhang He and Gao Huan (Gao Lan) changed sides and performed great deeds. Later, during the campaign against Yuan Shang, the General-Commandant, Ma Yan, the former Inspector of Yuzhou, Yin Kui, and the Colonel of Archers Who Shoot At A Sound, Guo Zhao, came and surrendered during the fighting. When the Prime Minister surrounded Ye, the general Su You turned against Yuan Shang and supported the Prime Minister from the inside, and Shen Pei's nephew opened the gates of the city and let the army in. After Yuan Tan was executed, the great general of Youzhou, Jiao Chu, attacked Yuan Xi and drove him out, then heeded the situation and came to submit.

"There were hundreds of such people, all loyal, strong, stalwart, and zealous, all intelligent, all benevolent. They all joined with the Prime Minister to advise him and help develop his plans, to break and charge on campaigns against his foes, to root out his enemies and pull up their banners, and to restore peace and tranquility within the Four Seas. They did not take such actions lightly! It was truly an instance of 'Heaven displaying its heart', of them 'thinking deeply and considering the long-term'.

"Consider well the crossing-point between good and evil; understand the division between possible and impossible. Let the brave not die a pointless death; let the dutiful not maintain a meager charge. Bow to the reality of circumstances, for there is only one road by which you may preserve yourself. And if you do so, then you may establish a mountain of achievements and enjoy an incalculable salary. Those who in the morning were hated criminals may become the highest of generals by evening. This is what is meant by 'recognizing the situation in the midst of difficulties and exchanging bad fortune for good'.

"There are those who will say I am only enticing you with honeyed words and trying to win you over with trifling kindness. But such people are merely stuck in the mud; they are already lost, yet they do not realize it. How many people shall continue to go along with the flow and be snuffed out in the flames with all the others? Would it not be tragic to throw away a chance for good fortune?

"A few years ago, when the army was at Hanzhong, the eastern flank of the state was far away from the west, and the garrison remaining at Hefei was not even five thousand strong, while Sun Quan personally led tens of thousands of soldiers against it. Yet he was routed and driven off in defeat. Now he thinks to stand against the rolling thunder. He has little hope.

"One must gain the assistance of Heaven through submission to its will, and the help of the people through the building of trust; to act properly is called righteousness, and to show kinship is called benevolence. Yet though Sheng Xiaozhang (Sheng Xian) was a superior fellow, Sun Quan still executed him, and though Sun Fu was his own brother, Sun Quan still killed him. No one is worse than him in being a robber against righteousness and a ruffian against benevolence. Thus the gods and the spirits judge him as guilty, and the people are united in hatred of him.

"Those who would associate with such a criminal are themselves considered wicked bandits. That is why when, in ancient times, Yi Zhi (Yi Yin) abandoned Xia, he did no injury to virtue, but when Fei Lian died for the sake of King Zhou of Shang, he was not considered a worthy man. Why? Because there are times when it is proper to remain, but also times when it is proper to leave.

"Now the Prime Minister deeply cherishes the longstanding legacies and virtues of the old Southland clans, which have been known for many generations. It was not so long ago that the brilliance of Wei Shuying rose above the highest mountains and his reputation spread all throughout the seas, that the moral principles and indulgent love of learning of Yu Wenxiu were widely regarded, and that the peerless talents and cultivated virtue of Zhou Taiming were known by all. Thus their descendants should 'long enjoy much happiness', and their sons and grandsons should be protected and preserved. Yet Zhou Sheng and all his clan, though innocent, have been executed; the lineage has been scattered and lost, falling into oblivion among the trees and grass. Is that not regrettable? And we have heard that Wei Zhourong and Yu Zhongxiang (Yu Fan) have inherited the legacies of their ancestors, so that 'what the father planned, the son must build', 'the wood chopped by the father must be carried by the son'. So too should the old gentry clans of the Wu region, the Gu, the Lu, and all the rest that have enjoyed high status for generations, repay the virtues of the Han dynasty and glorify the good names of their ancestors.

"Indeed, all the generals and officers of Sun Quan, all his marital relations, are fine treasures and useful tools of our state. Yet they are all pressing one another forward, like rain tumbling from the heavens; they are like an axe-blade without a handle, and how can that be used? They are falling into ruin together. Is that not lamentable?

"Among birds, the phoenix builds its nest high up on a lofty ridge, thus displaying the virtues of a worthy sage. But wrens and shrikes build their nests on reeds and twigs, and when the reeds snap the chicks are destroyed; this displays the delusions of the lowly and foolish. And currently, the Southland itself is no different from such a reed or twig, with many worthy people perched upon it. Truly, they are in great danger.

"The court is generous and magnanimous, tolerant and forgiving, and most sympathetic to the lives of the people. They seek the execution of one man alone, but have no suspicion towards anyone else. Thus they present uncommon rewards, in the expectation of uncommon achievements. Is there not some domineering fellow, some man of passion and drive, who will seize this moment to wrest control of their fate? If so, be diligent! For whosoever can arrange a grand undertaking and perform the greatest of achievements will earn great glory and riches; that would lead to the greatest fortune. Or if you cannot bring yourselves to do that, it would still be sufficient for you to analyze well the situation you face and consider how to exchange death for life.

"Even a tiger will gnaw off its own paw if it is bound by a rope, and even a strong fellow will chop off his own wrist if there is a viper on his hand. Why? Because of the danger posed to the whole body. They see the preservation of their whole body as more important than the loss of the limb. Will you then take delight in your misfortune and think you are at peace, continue your wandering and forget to turn back, be blind to the praises of the Daya poem and ignore the ways in which the past worthies exchanged sides, and turn away from a sure means of safety and prefer to remain on the snapping branch? Shall you live your life only one day to the next, until in the end you are lost? For when our great soldiers are flung against you, then the jade will be smashed along with the stone, and even if you sought to save yourself then, it would be too late.

"Thus I have sent forth these offers to recruit you, to offer titles and rewards and this opportunity to reform yourselves. When you receive this proclamation, carefully consider what I have said to you.

"This decree has the force of an imperial edict."