#there was intrigue and cool characters and a backstabber and a love interest

[coelakanths]

bookcase & library card?

bookcase: out of all your wips, which do you think would sell the best?

ohhh probably werevamps. it gets ppl most excited when i talk abt it. it’s about a werewolf and a vampire who accidentally turn each other so they’re both hybrids now and both kinda furious about it but they end up falling in weird love a little and they’re also being hunted at the same time so they kinda have to work together. i don’t have all the details fleshed out because it’s a newer idea but it’s a really fun one :-) the main characters are hawkins (a sexy sexy vampire, she loves women and eating them yes all ways) and sydney (a werewolf whos kinda ashamed of the fact she’s a werewolf)!!

library card: what’s the first genre you wrote?

ok i was a very avid writer as a kid so i had to think hard about a definite first genre. most of it was modern fantasy— i remember one about a guy named silas and his magical wolf indigo living in the woods, one about four kids in a music-less world discovering these instruments but they’re also weapons, one abt some teenagers who have to save their small town from a beast that’s been systematically killing everyone for thousands of years, etc etc etc. that last one, aka crooked star (the earliest story with a name!), is technically my longest wip clocking in at like 60k. there are a lot of drafts. ones on wattpad (the first) while the rest are in my google docs. i wrote a lot abt it for nanowrimo when i was like…. thirteen? it’s a little crazy lol but ive recently scrapped the whole idea because there was a lot i needed to work out and the concept just doesn’t rlly appeal to me anymore it kinda lacks substance

it would be uncouth of me not to mention the great story writing contest from when i was eight between me and my two older siblings who would’ve been twelve and fourteen at the time— we had a month to write a story about a prompt picked by someone else. my sister wrote a post apocalyptic story, my brother a romance (i picked that LOL), and i had to write sci fi. i wrote about this kid on mars getting kidnapped or something. he eventually went to earth with his two friends i think? they were all named after planets. it was really bad and nobody voted for it iirc. absolutely devastating. but i moved on very quickly because i always had another story to write— preferably in genres i was more familiar with !

[onewingedsparrow]

8, 10, 12, 17, and 19 for the ask game!

(They’re all amazing; it was hard to narrow it down. 😂)

Thanks for the ask, Nova! <3 Lol yeah I loved all the questions too :D

From this ask game!

8. Which tf character has the most different personality from you? Uhhhhh that’s a good question. Maybe RiD’15 Drift? He’s very rigid and not likely to have fun for the sake of having fun. Also most iterations of Shockwave are far more logical than I like to be. Sure, logic is important, but Shockwave seems to go overboard in my book. 10. Which tf character do you think you’d get along with really badly? Probably Starscream, any continuity. He's such a backstabber and I value loyalty; he's super narcissistic and people like that are quite annoying to me. Plus he's generally not very fond of humans and talks down to them, and I'm very feisty so our interactions would probably go much like Miko's and his in TFP. Many insults, mutual disgust. I can appreciate his character in a show but I know I could not stand him in real life haha. 12. List a piece of art not from transformers that you think fits a tf character! Hmm this took me a bit of digging...there wasn't one that came to mind instantly, but it was interesting to consider! Reposting is BAD kids(TM) so here's direct links to artists’ works instead! ;)

First off: this beautiful ocean art by Kazami is really inspiring to me. Most people probably don’t think of the ocean when they think Transformers, but...put simply, it reminds me of the ’Waves ;) I have AU versions of Shockwave and Soundwave occupying my mind, their designs inspired by the sea. And the depth in this particular piece is absolutely gorgeous. The brighter colors are reminiscent of neon, which also makes me think Wavebros, and the darker colors add to the ominous, frightening feel of the deep ocean, ever fitting for those two Decepticons.  Oh! You’d probably like this as well! There’s a Fire Emblem character whose design I am absolutely in love with. He’s so spooky!!! His name is Líf and I haven’t reached his chapter in the story yet, but I’m so looking forward to that day because his design alone intrigues me. 💜 What does this have to do with Transformers? Well, he reminds me of Soundwave the most, but his “lightning antennae,” lol, remind me of both Soundwave and Optimus, which is a very interesting combination. Líf’s design gets me thinking about the uncanny ways Soundwave and Optimus are similar, something I hadn’t really considered in depth before. It’s quite fun. Here are some cool Líf fanarts so you can see his vibe! - By Lynarc (my absolute favorite that I’ve found so far) - By Bhai Kun - By Kalkkopf - Screenshots from a trailer (?)

- Bonus: Official art from the wiki because they’re all just so cool

I really like this dude in case it wasn’t obvious by how many of these I’m sharing 17. Which piece of music from a tf media is your favorite? I'm so glad you asked this question!!! I was hoping someone would 😊 This would have to be, hands down, "Did You Forget Who I Am" from The Last Knight. The Bayverse is full of terrible, terrible elements, but Steve Jablonsky’s score is not one of those. All the soundtracks are incredible. And this scene from TLK is so iconic that, every time I listen to the music, I can hear Optimus' voice fill in that beat of silence with the mighty, chilling line that Peter Cullen delivered so well. 💙 It also has a special place in my heart because...I can’t help but see a connection to my faith :) This scene and therefore this song are good reminders for me when I’m having a bad day. Side note: The fact that this song surpassed the TFP theme to become my favorite Transformers piece of music really says a lot about its impact. 19. Which depiction of cybertron in a tf media do you most want to live in? Does the answer vary depending on if you’re human or cybertronian? Lol okay so gut reaction would say "G1 Cybertron" because 1) humans can apparently breathe up there without issue (and not be harmed by acid rain, so that's a huge plus), and 2) while the Autobots and Decepticons were bickering on earth I could just go hang out with Shockwave, who's all alone just chilling 😂 But if oxygen wasn't an issue? Definitely post-Predacons-Rising Cybertron. I would love to rebuild the planet along with Team Prime and listen to their stories as they began to heal emotionally from the long conflict. I would also love to see what elements of the planet they repaired true to the original design, and which elements they rebuilt completely to start off on a blank slate, and the implications of each decision. It would be cool to live in a revitalized Cybertron and watch refugees return and new sparks be forged gradually over time until the planet was bustling again. And if I could show up a bit earlier and be present for Bumblebee's Warrior knighting ceremony that would be pretty cool too. 💛

[auncyen]

So, my thoughts on bd2 so far (still not done) are both spoilery and...a little salty, so under a cut they go.  I’ll get the good out of the way first.

BDII is pretty nice as a return to the brave/default battle system and asterisk system.  The controls are pretty fluid (once I realized I could press zr to unbrave in the middle of commands lol).  Music and visuals are both nice.  THE CHARACTER THEMES ARE DISTINCTIVE AGAIN (I still like BD1′s set the most, but in BD2 I can tell you which theme is which character’s and uh.  I wouldn’t be able to do that with b2nd’s).  “A Hectic Moment” is very fun.

And then like.  Both the story and parts of the game design are baffling to me.  I was not surprised by the prologue feeling dry because.  BD game.  Partially because it was a BD game I half-expected Sloan to defy his death flag parade and simply be forced to retire due to a wound or something similar but ok, he died.  And first chapter made me hopeful!  I don’t care at all for Orpheus (even as “love to hate” he just ends up kind of “meh”) and Anihal and Bernard felt a bit one note at first, but the twist with Castor where it seemed like his flaw was prejudice and then it was oh no backstabber was good.

The maniacal laughter kind of ruined it a bit, but still, good.  (On this note, Castor and ...pretty much every ch. 2 asterisk holder had me thinking for a while that the asterisks handed out by the woman might have been tampered with and were driving people nuts, but at this point, seems firmly not to be a case, Castor was ax-crazy on his own.  Okay.)  And a later flashback about Anihal and Bernard made me regret a bit that the latter had died.

But like also at this point I’m kind of concerned that there hasn’t been any inner party conflict.  Or like.........internal doubts.  Or anything.

Ch. 2 was initially a bit funny for everyone having The Accent but eventually I got properly into it and, yes, all three people grieving a lost child was pretty touching.

Screw those woods though and why is the institute set up like that??? I know this is an RPG but guys.  Guys.  they’re supposed to be brilliant at that institute, at least one person would have set up the bare minimum of a rope ladder so they didn’t have to deal with the nonsense in between floors.

And then there was Folie.  Folie’s dungeon is AMAZING.  Her job is good.

Her boss fight is utter bs when you’re punished for using two different mage jobs and the character in general is just.............idk.  I kind of preferred Mona’s death being accidental because it seems rather odd for someone like Folie who does not seem particularly attuned to others’ emotions to be like “ah yes, let me kill zis little girl and zen all of these people will be emotionally vulnerable for me to give zem my paintings” --yes, I also hated the accent.

I am of the opinion that there is no bad VA in this game (thus far) but goodness, the direction some of them were given.

Ch. 3 was interesting intrigue wise and the reveal with Adelle was GREAT but it also hinged very heavily on this being a BD game, since they made it obvious from the start of the chapter that, hmm, there’s something funny about her.  (Honestly my guess had been shapeshifting dragon, so I wasn’t quite surprised by her saving Martha, though I WAS a little surprised by Martha not SAVING HERSELF BY JUMPING AWAY BECAUSE SHE WAS A FREAKING DRAGOON.)  The party’s surprise at this is dealt with very quickly.  Elvis’ reaction is kind of cute but it also just...........seems to cement that there’s never going to be any inner-party conflict, and there doesn’t seem to be any internal character conflict either, so it’s kind of just.  Guys.  Pls.  Something interesting.

Coming back to world design: this religion feels so dumb and poorly-designed (Martha is in DIRECT CONTACT WITH THE LORD OF DRAGONS BUT ISN’T TRUSTED TO KNOW HIS WISHES???  THE FAIRY TRIALS ARE A ‘TRADITION’ BUT ALL THE DRAGONS ARE COOL WITH ADELLE???) and why is their holy hall full of crumbling walls and is, in fact, the only place I’ve found so far to “smash rock”?  Yes, it has been bugging me.

the highlight of ch. 4 was Lonsdale, because he might not be the most original character concept, but it was interesting to have an antagonist with morals who has a friendly drink with Seth and warning for him at the tavern.  (Also Seth’s piss-poor job at pretending to be just recovered from a cough for all of one sentence.  And, in my game, while wearing heavy armor.)  The low point was finding out how absolutely pointless Adam is.

It’s just....been very mixed and somewhat mediocre with the story, and lbr bd and b2nd both had issues with story too, but bd had an endearing cast that b2nd heavily borrowed from.  The BD2 warriors of light seem very obviously inspired by bd crew but Seth never grieves his lost crew or misses his hometown or shows any uncertainty about the question of him living again.  Gloria welcomes Elvis and Adelle easily even though they’re both clear about working in self-interest and there are never any trust issues even when Adelle’s concealed identity is revealed.

I’m not saying they should have had the exact same issues (esp since Gloria didn’t have any set up for mistrusting fairies) but they don’t have ANY issues.

I may now be at a point where Gloria does have an issue but it’s just kind of...1) there should have been at least a couple tell-tale hints about this sooner, it could have been as subtle as the king of Halcyonia gently suggesting she consider the marriages which would have painted him first as possibly evil, then as possibly just sexist or out-of-touch, and then finally you realize oh he knew and was hoping they could find other solution and trying to get her to consider a future that wasn’t dying (I think he knows.  or at least I hope because if they gotta do this every 200 years then Gloria????? who knows to pass this down????  were you gonna teach your traumatized companions the secrets of being a vestal-lite as you were dying? because you didn’t.) 2) it’s just kinda.  too late.  A part of me is checked out.  I know there is more and that the bd-style tweeest is finally starting, but this was the end of ch. 5 and both the main crew and story just haven’t been that interesting.  If this wasn’t a bd game and I hadn’t gotten impatient enough about wanting to know about one detail that I spoiled myself for it being a fake ending, there is a high chance that I would have watched the credits, gone “well, okay.  that was the game” and just set it aside.

And then maybe a few days later gone “wait they never explained the book was it buried in some request” because there is SO MUCH buried in requests and reloaded the game, but yeah.  I still wanna fill in the gaps of what I’m missing, but I’m probably going to be slowing my pace and I really doubt I’m going to be active in the fandom because none of the characters have really grabbed my interest that hard.

[vorthosjay]

Let’s Talk About Chronicles of Bolas: Blood and Treachery

The latest Magic Story is here! It’s really good! Let’s go!

Dragonlord Atarka by Karl Kopinski

She slouched forward to join the old orc. Why did Grandmother always keep Baishya beside her when Naiva was the better hunter and could protect her if anything went wrong? It just wasn't fair.

"Young Naiva joins me today, with keen, quick eyes to shade my age-whitened orbs," said Fec as they headed out through the jumble of boulders. His limp was pronounced, but he used his staff skillfully, like a third leg, to negotiate the uneven ground.

Fec is an interesting character. Why DID Yasova take him in?

"Why did Grandmother shelter you?"

"Shelter a half-crippled orc, do you mean? Yasova always has her reasons."

"Is forbidden talk what got you kicked out of your tribe?" she asked.

"What you call forbidden talk I would call truth-telling. But that is not why, young one." He pointed to his dragging right leg. "In the Kolaghan clan those who cannot keep up are left behind."

"Then why didn't you accept death? Wouldn't that have been more honorable?"

"There are many roads to honor. Many ways to fight, even if my tribe does not recognize their worth." He tapped his brow with fore- and middle fingers. Unlike the humans, he needed no gloves because the tough skin of his hands withstood the worst cold. A network of thin scars wove a harsh pattern across the back of each hand, the mark of no claw she had ever seen. Maybe it was just how orcs got old, like age spots on the hands of wizened elders kept alive by their sentimental children. "Many things worth saving, as Yasova Dragonclaw knows well."

Aaaah. So think about this: Yasova’s hunting party now has former Mardu, Temur, AND Jeskai members.

Yasova is creating the dragon resistance.

The dragon's growl rolled as loudly as the avalanche that had torn away half the snow field on Eternal Ice. With a long, hot hiss, she reached out and closed her claws around Darka.

"A tasty snack!" she rumbled. "Almost as good as bear."

The ainok did not struggle or beg; he was too proud, and there was no point anyway.

Okay, so on the one hand, lol.

On the other hand, poor Darka.

Atarka is great.

Grandmother gestured for the others to remain behind and started walking, alone, toward the distant scatter of boulders where the broodling had deposited the dead Ojutai dragon. Atarka slammed a foreclaw down on the ground in front of the old woman.

"All come. All." A huff of sparks steamed up from her nostrils. "I know your tricks. I will eat all if I am not satisfied."

Atarka is interesting. She clearly knows Yasova was the Dragonclaw. Why has she allowed Yasova to live so long?

"Fah! He smells of Ojutai, that pompous, ice-breathing windbag."

I mean, where’s the lie?

He rubbed at his eyes, shook his head as if to clear it, and muttered, "That isn't the story I meant to tell. Let me try again." 

Intriguing.

In place of the brutal chief, the young dragon was acclaimed as savior of the realm and offered the throne. Those who had once worshiped the drinker of dragon's blood now bowed before the dragon. He ruled according to the precepts he had discussed at length with his brother, for they were ever eager to understand the world's scope and heart. He knew that he could best honor the memory of his beloved brother by acting as he would have done, as he would have urged his brother to do.

So it was that he reigned justly and fairly, with order and peace, for many generations.

Propaganda by Clint Cearly

"In the last days of Shu Yun's leadership," he said, then faltered. His mouth shaped words but no sound came out. Again, he pressed fingers to his eyes as if his vision was failing him. After a moment of struggle his lips opened as if of their own accord, and he went on.

Is Nicol Bolas nearby?

So it was that the young dragon who became known as the second sun. He reigned justly and fairly, with order and peace. The tale of the fall of the dragon killer's dishonorable rulership was handed down from elder to child, generation to generation, and celebrated with a yearly festival over which the benevolent dragon king presided.

Approach of the Second Sun by Noah Bradley

Like their progenitors, they were belligerent and small-minded. Yet even a dragon as magnificent as himself could not defeat them alone. But he was not alone. He had subjects who sang his praises with poems that asked for no higher honor than a chance to prove themselves worthy of his regal generosity and noble perspicacity. He had armies of eager warriors and an academy packed with clever sorcerers he had taught, all seeking to challenge their skills against the mightiest of foes. He possessed the weapons of the long-dead dragon killers.

Note: Vaevictis is the progenitor of Shivan dragons, making these Shivans, probably.

An irritating flash of thought crackled in his mind with the timbre of Ugin's voice scolding him: If it is wrong to kill dragons when the humanoids do it, then it is wrong for us to kill our kinfolk. Or did Merrevia Sal die for nothing, Nicol? Was it never about her at all but only about the humiliation you felt at not saving her?

We need a third piece of art for Tormenting Voice with Ugin whispering to Bolas.

Emboldened, the great army rumbled into motion, marching, riding, rolling beyond the stoutly guarded border. They pursued the trail of the dragon across the great plains where Palladia-Mors had once hunted, taking supplies from towns and villages they passed. The land grew drier, and soon they reached what appeared from the distance as a wall but which was a stark barrier of rugged hills, twisted gullies, and spectacular pinnacles. Beyond, to the north, rose the grand mountain range where Vaevictis and his brothers laired.

So, obviously geography changes in 20,000 years, but if we’re talking great plains to a giant mountain range, I wonder if those mountains are Shiv? Maybe there was once a land bridge? It’s irrelevant, just a thought.

The three brothers, Lividus, Ravus, and Rubra, bellowed insults as they approached, calling him "runt" and "least born." That their insults weren't even clever just made it worse.

I think we can all empathize with Bolas, here.

"Traitor! Backstabber!" cried Vaevictis, flinging himself at Lividus just as, long ago in Arcades's town, a mild-mannered young man had been goaded to attack and kill his own brother. 

Lol, remember that Vaevictis is eventually killed by Palladia-Mors after turning on her at the behest of Chromium. So this one is ironic.

The young king retreated. The blood-soaked rearguard, of course, had to all be killed lest they pass on the knowledge of how the blood of an elder dragon protected weak humanoid flesh. The sorcerers he allowed to live for long enough to create a smoky mist of concealment that would carry him some ways onto the plains, but he killed them after so there would be no one to talk of how there were bigger, stronger dragons in the world whom his subjects might choose to worship instead of him. 

This is told so greatly. They had to all be killed, you see.

Also note: The blood of an elder dragon protected weak humanoid flesh.

Interesting.

He sought out Palladia-Mors. She remembered him with a dismissive clout to his head, but she listened avidly to his tale of how vulnerable Vaevictis now was.

Oh, this is way cooler than I was thinking. It’s not Nicol Bolas versus the elders. It’s Nicol Bolas manipulating the elders into war.

Cool!

Even the clever Chromium Rhuell took to hiding himself while he pretended to be something he was not, lest he be scorned by the humans he claimed did love him or eaten by the dragons who despised his mealy-mouthed philanthropy.

Bolas shows some really petty in this description.

Sorcerers who sought a dragon-like power through mastery of their magical gifts came crawling to offer their services, for in all the wide world no creature is as powerful as a dragon, not in the beginning of days and never across all the unending span of eternity.

I wonder if this is referencing the Numena, who were human sorcerers who overthrew the Primeval Dragons.

Even the wise Arcades Sabboth, who had scolded and harangued upon the topic of order and peace and the proper way to rule, threw his might into the great war as he listened to the whispers of wisdom that brushed through his mind.

The others will not respect your autonomy or your wisdom. They will come for you if you do not go after them first.

Even Arcades marched his followers against fortresses ruled over by his distant kinfolk. When he had defeated them, he threw their marrowless bones into the sea where the waters churned them into pale sands that washed shores all the world round.

It’s interesting that the other elders aren’t as resistant to Bolas as Ugin was.

So the wars raged, while only one dragon kept faith with those he ruled. He had not forgotten the promise he made to his twin: that there should not be one law for them and a different law for us. There should only be one law.

There would only be one law.

And that law is what? Whatever Nicol Bolas says goes?

Tae Jin broke off and, mouth slack, stared at the ground as if he had forgotten what he'd been saying or even who he was.

If this really is Bolas, is he actively influencing events? Are we going to get a massive reveal to pay off this frame story?

"There is only one law: to eat. This was a good feast. You may keep the outsider."

Haha, Atarka, don’t stop being you.

"What tale was that you told, so like Ugin's story and yet not his story at all?"

"I don't know. I meant to tell the tale of the last days of Shu Yun's leadership. Of the last meeting of the khans and how they fell to the dragons."

Again, he rubbed his eyes, then cautiously rose as if unsure his legs would hold him up. "This other story . . . came into my mind in a whisper. Maybe it's a story my mother told me when I was very young that I have forgotten until now."

Grandmother stood. "This is an ominous turn of events. Once before, a whispering voice sought to alter the events on Tarkir. To my shame, I listened. Ugin's death is partly to be blamed on me. Maybe the visions your master and the windfolk received didn't come from Ugin. But if they did, it's more important than ever that we reach Ugin's grave quickly. First, we must honor Darka for his hunting prowess in life and his unflinching acceptance of death."

Hmm.