#there’s definitely some part of his affinity with the entity of knowledge too. knowledge at a cost whatever he must pay

[zeb-z]

Cellbit who holds his shit together, pieces together the clues, and solves the issue while walking on a tightrope, where if he cannot correct for the mistakes made, the fallout would be catastrophic. He cannot fail to solve the case, he cannot fail to cure his friends, it isn’t an option in how desperate the situation has gotten.

He’s relied upon by everyone as the leader of the order, shoulders heavy with the burden. He is intense when he needs to be, gentle when a soft touch is required, and keeps his head when the situation is so intense the others are speechless.

He gets through Forevers stubbornness, reassures Pac in his sorrow and indecisiveness. It’s a fucked up scene and he handles it well because he has no other choice.

He doesn’t cry until it’s all over. Just for a second, when the moment is over, and he can take a breath of air. And even then he leads the rest of them through clean up. He makes sure Pac gets home, gets Forever to a proper place to rest, ensures the rest of the group is okay after what they just witnessed.

Then the moment he leaves the others, he finds another critical clue that he can’t just ignore or put to the back burner.

Another mystery, another crisis, another billion clues he’ll have to organize and follow up on and solve, because he’s the investigation guy, the leader of the order, and the island is counting on him. The kids are counting on him. He doesn’t get a chance to truly breathe. To fully sit down and let himself crumble, let someone, anyone, else be the strong foundation, because if he can’t solve this, who will?

Even with his family returning to him, it’s no wonder he feels so alone. Out of the frying pan and into the fire, I guess.

[mllemaenad]

Hi Mllemaenad! I was just reading one of your posts on Tranquility (this one: /post/151051248435/youve-frequently-written-to-a-really-brilliant) and there is one thing I take issue with. You say that the Seeker Rite of Tranquility is "crude" and that Wynn had no need of such "nonsense", but let's remember that Wynn was contacted by a Spirit of Faith after a Near Death event. That's hardly a safe or reliable method, had the spirit not visited her, she'd be dead! Tranquility is (relatively) safer.

Hi Anonymous person!

Okay, for reference, because that’s a post from 2016 and I didn’t remember what it was about either, this is what I said:

No one has investigated this and established that Tranquillity is good for its victims. Kind of the opposite, actually. While we don’t know exactly how they stumbled upon the idea, the earliest known use of the Rite of Tranquillity is as part of a Seeker initiation ritual. For the Seekers, the whole point of Tranquillity is the cure. It is a trial of faith: a crude way of making contact with a spirit of Faith (note that Wynne had no need of such nonsense, ‘sinful’ mage though she is; the spirit was drawn to her naturally). A Seeker who survives the Rite becomes a mage (I’m sure they’d object to that definition, but guess what, Cassandra, setting someone’s blood aflame is doing magic) without the social stigma associated with being born a mage. If you stay Tranquil, you’ve failed. You’re lost.

– Ask post on Tranquility

Your contention is that Wynne’s contact with the spirit is unsafe because it occurred at the point of death. Except ... that’s simply not true. Wynne has known that spirit her whole life.

Warden: Why did the spirit choose to help you?

Wynne: I have always had an affinity for the spirits of the Fade. As a child I never feared my dreams, because I knew they were there.

Warden: What about demons?

Wynne: I could sense the demons too, and their presence frightened me. It was the kindly spirits of the Fade that took the fear from me. I’ve always been able to feel the spirits, even if I never saw them. And as I nurtured my talent in the Circle, I became more sensitive. I began to notice, every time I was in the Fade, whether it was in a dream, or in magical practice, that I was being watched.

Warden: Do spirits watch people like that?

Wynne: I suppose they must. It is these benevolent spirits that create our dream worlds in the Fade. Sometimes I would see it ... a glowing, nebulous form. Most times I would just feel its presence – gentle and comforting, but somehow alien. I think it is a Spirit of Faith. They have never been seen before and perhaps I am wrong, but something tells me I’m not. It always felt like the same ... entity. This one spirit was curious about me and was ... guarding me, for want of a better word.

Warden: You mean it protected you?

Wynne: There were times, when I was in the Fade, that it seemed to stretch forth to shield me, keeping me safe. And I think it gave me strength in my most terrible battles, Ostagar being one of them.

Warden: And also in your fight with Petra’s demon.

Wynne: I don’t know why I was chosen. Perhaps it knew that there was something more that lay in store for me. I like to think that I was given a rare chance, and I’m going to make the best of the time so generously given to me.

– Wynne Dialogue

This spirit of faith was Wynne’s close companion, her friend and her ally in many battles. It had aided and protected her on several previous occasions. Wynne’s possession, taking place just before the start of the Broken Circle quest, was a last ditch effort to save her life when nothing else would work, and the spirit chose to do that because it already knew her.

Yes: I’ll happily grant that being attacked by demons in the Fereldan Circle was not in itself safe, but Wynne was probably the safest person there. Certainly safer than the Tranquil mages you encounter being attacked by demons:

Tranquil: Thank you. That was an uncomfortable experience.

A hypothetical Tranquil Wynne would have lost contact with her spirit friend when her connection to the Fade was severed. Had she been in the Fereldan Circle in that condition there would have been no one to protect her, and she would likely have been tortured, forcibly possessed, or killed.

Wynne is a spirit healer, and notes that honing her skills made her better at perceiving and dealing with the denizens of the Fade. Likewise her son, Rhys, also a spirit healer, develops a close and unusual relationship with the spirit Cole. Anders, again, a spirit healer, has a close relationship with Justice that is largely hampered by his Circle-taught fear of becoming an ‘abomination’.

Mages, broadly, are good at dealing with spirits. ‘Spirit healers’, specifically, through honing that talent, are very good at it and tend to bond with specific spirits.

The Orlesian Empire, and its Chantry, needing people to oversee magic and deal with Fade-related crises when they arose, did not give this job to the people best suited to it – i.e. mages. Instead, they chose to create ‘mages’ who were not mages by inflicting a kind of magical brain damage on individuals without their knowledge or consent, and then just ... hoping that a spirit who did not know this random person would deign to reverse the damage.

They then used it to prevent actual mages from doing what they’re best at: dealing with the Fade. And along the way, they caused enormous trauma to numerous people in their care.

So nope: I stand by what I said. Tranquillity is a crude ritual for contacting a spirit of faith and terribly unsafe. It is ‘necessary’ only in the sense that Orlais has an intense prejudice against mages and has thus created workarounds to produce people with magical ability who don’t ‘count’ as mages (Seekers and Tranquillity; templars and lyrium) to police magic use and deal with demons.

Wynne’s way was infinitely safer. She just bonded with her spirit naturally. And it protected her from everything the world threw at her.

Note: I’ve tried to be civilised and put this under a cut, but for some reason Tumblr won’t let me. Other posts yes. This post no. So – apologies for the length.

[surge42-blog]

No GOAT

Hello there all,here's something that has become the topic of the ages in hip-hop.....the status of The G.O.A.T THE GOAT: For those unfamiliar with this term,G.O.A.T is an acronym for Greatest Of All Time. Right now as you're reading you're probably thinking Tupac and Biggie aren't you? Well it's quite difficult to come up with a formulaic approach in unearthing the true, and singular entity of...The GOAT. This status is often attributed to the many artists and it seems no one can agree on a singular GOAT in the rap game mostly because we are just too subjective in our approach. -The Debate- Who are debating these things? no really,think about it. We have Backpackers who seem to be more inclined on towards the underground spectrum,we have the indigos and spiritualists who have an affinity for psychedelics,philosophy, and the third eye amongst other things,we have the trap heads who dabble in money,cars,clothes,women,and the selling of drugs which has been the stereotype for hip-hop to various onlookers(fake cough mom and dad fake cough). Of course there are many others in between such as Christian and Muslim hip-hop or Pop Rap(shout out to Drake and Nicki). The bottom line here is that there are just too many kinds of people with too many differing interests many of which are SUBJECTIVE. Oh let's not forget the Stans or as their derogatorily called d***riders,but we'll get to them shortly -The Artist- Ah the main man/woman,the person who this is all about...the artist as it should've been obvious above is definitely on one spectrum of hip-hop or another, sometimes hybrids. Genre-wise we have the Cloud Rap of A$AP Rocky,the Acid Rap of Chance The Rapper(or raper as some people without autocorrect say....I'm playing lol),the Alternative Rap of Danny Brown(not sure if he says Cha! or Check!),and the Gangsta Rap of Jay Rock. But let's move away from genre right now and delve into the actual rap structure Punchlines: Punchlines come in many forms,some corny,some awesome,some nasty,and some downright outrageous as I say it in a faux British accent. Punchlines are either metaphors or more regularly as similes like Childish Gambino's line from Arrangement which goes like "Bank account looking like when little kids break s***". Vocabulary: This is the artist's word bank right here. Statistics say right now the current artist with the most extensive vocabulary is Aesop Rock(don't confuse him with the cloud rapper). Language: Of course the language in rap by default will have to be mostly the jargon of hip-hop such "homie","stunt",or the one that white people use to feel more black is the timeless classic "nah mean". Lyricism: The actual artist's use of metaphors,wordplay,double entendres(or more),and all the lot. Flow: Is the artist's mastery of rhyme scheme. Subject Matter: The rapper's topic of discussion....that was a quick one lol. -Criteria- Again may I note that G.O.A.T is something that should be viewed in the most objective of forms but that's virtually impossible if we think about it. The GOAT is the guy or gal who is the best to have ever done it as some or most would say. Many of the names thrown in were those most revered in the rap pantheon such as the iconic Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G,Immortal Technique has been thrown in there,Eminem as well(he has literally been given the moniker of King Of Hip-Hop or more recently The Rap God). This artists are all too different in my eyes...or rather my ears lol,so what criteria do people use in their rationing? -The Stan formula- The d***rider formula is basic and is merely off of pure emotional investment in artist.... like it's so bad that even if their favorite artist were to intentionally make a bad song the artist nonetheless can do no wrong in the stans opinion. The Stan's lack of musical variety doesn't help the situation either. Stans have been prevalent over the years and often are on side of an argument from the Tupac vs Biggie,the Jay-Z vs Nas,the 50 Cent vs The Game,all the way down to Kendrick vs Cole.....Cole even says "Get off my d***" and stans ride his d*** heavy nonetheless lmao. Basically the Stan formula has always been flawed. -Non Stan Formula- Finally we're getting somewhere right? Well wrong! This one is also very difficult because of people's general interest. I once overheard a group of girls playing a Kendrick Lamar song...King Junta to be precise. One of the girls voiced here interest in the song and here disdain for the first single 'i'....these are both the same artist's songs and both are jazz rap/funk right? So what went wrong? Well I know the chick so i know she just wants a song she can dance to with her gal pals and at a clyb so 'i' in that respect lost her favour cause it was something your grandaddy might dance to(coolest grandpa ever am I right?). Another Cocoa Butter Kisses by Chance The Rapper....your girlfriend has the song unbeknownst to you,it's smooth,it's catchy,it's loveable off the bat but some might praise that song and hate on "Angels". These people are more interested in the sonic aspects of rappers. Some would prefer subject matter as the main argumentative basis in the case of Tupac's anti establishment and thuglife stories being put over...I dunno....Drake's raps about exes we don't know of nor care about lol,no shots at Drizzy. Others like storytelling, others are more inclined towards metaphor and punchlines,others might just prefer relatabilty to an artist. -The Sound- I often come across these situations...a trap song comes out,people play it like there's no tomorrow,and I ask...."What is he saying?"....they wouldn't know the lyrics aside from the hook but in their defence they would say that "the beat is sick though". This can lead many astray from the actual rap. Of course the beat is essential to the music like how I like the "Waves" beat by Joey Bada$$ which induces such irrational nostalgia or how the "Bonfire"beat of Childish Gambino gets me turnt or how "The Book of Soul" beat by Ab-Soul can get me in my feels....someone please hand me a Feels Guy meme. At end of the day we're judging rapping prowess. -The Untouchables- There are certain "elite" groups which have released timeless classics to the public that now challenging their GOAT status is considered blasphemy. Often this are artists that unleash the inner Stan hidden in most of us. Tupac and Biggie being center stage at all of it,with practically everyone else taking second place to them in the hierarchy.... Some people who lack the knowledge of hip hop just assume these two men impregnated each other and birthed hip hop. Although they have been essential to the evolution of hip hop it was not really a two man job. Others such as DMX,Snoop Dogg,Wu Tang Clang and more also did their part in shaping hip hop in it's golden ages and many are arguably in Pac and Biggie's league. I bet a will be crucified for this part lol so let me end it there. -Sales- Let me get to it......Sales don't mean jack!!!!! This is perhaps one of the most absurd arguments out there. An artist's record sales are not representative of their skill things such as the formerly famous now infamous J.Cole "double platinum no features" accolade have clouded people's judgment and they make it out to be Cole's only suit of armor of relevance. Or Drake's "Views" which was by far hot steamy garbage and yet look it went 4x Platinum. The Sale's argument has been buried alive by the increase in internet streaming and Chance The Rapper's 3 Grammy awards with not a single copy sold. Granted such accolades or ones similar are impressive but many seriously great artists cannot be judged by the accolades or lack thereof......if we had to then that would mean Illmatic is also hot steamy garbage cause it took years for it to turn platinum and that would mean Kevin Gates' album which also went platinum with no features(not the deluxe edition) is greater than illmatic....right? -Conclusion- Music has and always will be subjective. The search for the G.O.A.T is just too hard and futile. Unless somehow the gods send us a hip-hop Jesus(not Slim Jesus),one who has all the flow and lyricism in the world and is able to function successfully every single subgenre of hip-hop...and yes that includes dabbling in both Christian and Muslim rap....as contradictory as that may be. I dunno what your thoughts on this might be,I might get challenged and called a fake fan of hip hop or something.... I'm mean real recognize real right? As the slogan goes. Peace