#there's also something to be said about how they're often mages

[isnt-it-pretty]

There's something to be said about how disability rep in fantasy is more often than not in found in characters that are more than a little evil. It has to do with our perception of disability and how it relates to morality, but somebody smarter than me could probably write a whole essay on the topic.

That being said you can take classic fantasy characters like Raistlin Majere and Elric of Melnibone out of my cold dead hands.

[hijackalx]

GALE NSFW ALPHABET

A = Aftercare (what they're like after sex)

gale will insist on doing the clean-up himself. like cleaning up both u and him. it's just his gentlemanly nature 😇 i think he also will ramble about stuff completely unrelated while doing it too 😹😹 like while he's wiping off ur face or something with a warm rag he'll be saying shit like "hm. i wonder where tara is, haven't seen her in a while. probably off eating pigeons, i suppose" STOPP IM IN LOVE WITH HIM

B = Body part (their favorite body part of theirs and also their partner's)

i think he's pretty proud of his shoulders. they have good width to them and idk they just look nice and stronk 💪🏻 as for his partner, he is a thigh man. he lovvessss thighs. will kiss and squeeze them while u sit on his face. also, if ur AFAB, he will not ever hesitate to grab a titty 🤭

C = Cum (anything to do with cum,

basically)

not getting any specific places where he likes to cum. i think he will cum anywhere as long as it's on/in u. waitttt he probably does like to cum in ur mouth doe. and maybe to smear it on ur lips a little like some lip gloss 😊 LMAO

D = Dirty secret (pretty self explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs)

lowkey think he's a little bit of a voyeur ooohhh nasty boy. idk like i think hes into watching/hearing other ppl fuck but he is deeply ashamed of this so dont ever bring it up 😹😹

E = Experience (how experienced are they? do they know what they're doing?)

dawg. nobody can convince me his first wasnt mystra. sooo.... not SUPER experienced in terms of like... numbers...... but him and mystra was doing some freak shit....... i just know it.......

F = Favorite position (this goes without saying)

ugh this is a good question. i think he likes cowgirl. u have to hold his hands tho and make eye contact with him or just forget it gurl 🙄✋ he likes to admire ur body and watch u use him to get off

G = Goofy (are they more serious in the moment? are they humorous? etc.)

okkk gale can be a little silly sometimes but are we surprised ?? HES ALWAYS SILLY !! i think he switches between serious and goofy. he takes mess-ups and embarrassing moments pretty well and will never make u feel bad over them 🥺 like he'll use humor to make u feel comfortable and safe I NEED HIMMMMM FUCK

H = Hair (how well groomed are they? does the carpet match the drapes? etc.)

yeah hes pretty hairy. i dont think his hair is EXTREMELY thick tho. like he has fine, kind of curly kind of straight body hair? not a lot on his chest but he does have a happy trail, pubes, ARMPIT HAIR 🤤, and leg and forearm hair. i think it looks rlly good on his forearms too eugh.......

I = Intimacy (how are they during the moment? the romantic aspect)

he can be really romantic if he wants to (which is most of the time) but like i said he can also be unserious. but that doesnt make it less romantic i guess ???? anyway yeah he'll even plan everything out. like the type of dude to light candles and lay rose petals and shit 😹😹 probably likes to have some wine beforehand to get yall in the mood better too

J = Jack off (masturbation headcanon)

he will but i dont think he does often. if ur an option he prefers that. if not theres like a 50/50 chance he'll beat off. lowkey feel like he might debate on whether or not its too much work and if he should just go to sleep instead LMAO WAIT PAUSSEEEEEE MAGE HAND ????? yeah...... yeah gurl. if hes feeling lazy thats how its gonna go. prolly will close his eyes and pretend its ur hand

L = Location (favorite places to do the do)

normally somewhere secluded like in a room together on a bed but if hes feeling spicy then somewhere with the possibility of getting caught 😏 maybe on a balcony somewhere or IN THE FUCKING SKY

M = Motivation (what turns them on, gets them going)

i think hes pretty sensitive and in tune to teasing glances or accidentally-on-purpose touches. wordddsss too bro. loves dirty talk so much. especially if ur the one to talk dirty to him. ugh ok gemini vibes yall? yes or yes? anyway whisper things in his ear or say suggestive things in front of other ppl, like innuendo shit 😹

N = No (something they wouldn't do, turn offs)

uhhh... umm.... uh

jk he wont do any noncon roleplay or anything like that. not sure if theres anything else tho 😭

O = Oral (preference in giving or receiving, skill, etc.)

wants to give and receive but has a preference for giving head like its probably his fav sex act 😭😭 yall know hes good af at it too and probably says nasty shit while hes doing it

P = Pace (are they fast and rough? slow and sensual? etc.)

he'll adjust depending on what u want. but if ur riding him he likes when ur more sensual that way he can admire ur body a little better

Q = Quickie (their opinions on quickies, how often, etc.)

doesnt seem like a quickie guy to me. like i said he likes to plan it out most days.

R = Risk (are they game to experiment? do they take risks? etc.)

😐

yes. hes a freak yall

S = Stamina (how many rounds can they go for? how long do they last?)

if he does most of the work then he wont want to go another round but if its u then he probably will. i think it just depends on his mood too. if ur not satisfied yet tho he will use mage hand or projection gale to help 😹😹

U = Unfair (how much they like to tease)

i think he likes to tease a generous amount. he can dish it out but cant take it tho he gets flustered pretty fast lol

V = Volume (how loud they are, what sounds they make, etc.)

not extremely loud but will moan/whimper whatever. hes not afraid to make noise like not ashamed at all but i dont see him being obnoxious lol. mostly just talks tho LMAO

Y = Yearning (how high is their sex drive?)

hes pretty much always thinking nasty but not always horny. he just like me fr. prolly not trying to smash often tho cuz he likes to plan ahead and make everything perfect. will fuck maybe 3 days a week unless ur really raring to go 😭

Z = Zzz (how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)

will prolly catch up on a book afterwards for a while before going to sleep. this is so comforting to me tho like what? imagine being all fucked-out and snuggy while ur bae reads their lil book and looks after u while u sleep.... need

[mysteryshoptls]

SSR Sebek Zigvolt - Platinum Jacket Vignette

"Happy 100th Anniversary"

[Land of Dawning – National Museum of Art]

Sebek: That pedestal there is a reproduction from the King of Beasts' bedchamber, and that teacup yonder is ceramic wear with a Queen of Hearts motif.

Sebek: Heheh… That's right, my preparatory research is completely perfect. With this, there shall be no opportunity for me to embarrass myself due to a lack of artistic knowledge.

Sebek: There is no way I can allow myself to appear unsightly now that I've been appointed a supporter of the Land of Dawning National Museum of Art.

???: Hm? What's with this green light in the middle of the painting…? Oh, it's just a bonfire flame.

???: Those fairies look like they're having a blast partyin' like that, I wonder if something good happened.

Sebek: How dare you claim them to be "partying." This is a painting depicting the Thorn Fairy's men extolling her grand exploits!

Ace: Ack, Sebek… Looks like I got caught by an annoying one. So what, you're tellin' me this painting's got something to do with the Thorn Fairy?

Sebek: Exactly. It is often said that these men were as proud of the Thorn Fairy's achievements as if it were their own, and would express their joy with their whole body and soul.

Sebek: Anyone should be able to infer how magnificent the Thorn Fairy was just from witnessing these men's unwavering loyalty.

Ace: Uh-huh, okay. Kinda just looks to me like they're just partyin', maybe masking it as a celebration for the Thorn Fairy.

Sebek: Don't you dare liken them to superficial humans like yourself. Each one of those fae that appear in this tale are all diligent folk.

Sebek: Back in my hometown there are many stories of the Thorn Fairy and other fae passed down for generations. We even have special functions held to emulate their greatness.

Ace: Sure. Can't see those functions as being anything other than boring, though, if it's attended by lame, "diligent" faes～

Sebek: Heh, curious, are you? One such event that has been around for a long while now is a dress color changing competition. Whosoever is able to magically dye the dress to the color closest to the provided example is the victor.

Ace: Ugh, that pisses me off that it's actually kinda cool-soundin'…

Ace: But I guess the whole having to use magic for it just shows it really is an event in the fae-rich lands of Briar Valley.

Sebek: …In my youth, my elder brother and sister took me to witness one such competition and I was struck with amazement.

Sebek: I was completely taken in by everyone's astounding magical prowess to turn a dress vivid blue or pink in the blink of an eye…

Sebek: I remember how excited I was to learn magic as soon as possible so I may also take part in this contest.

Ace: Guess even you have adorable moments. So, what place in the competition did you get once your long-awaited magic finally manifested?

Sebek: Don't be absurd. Color changing magic is a course of study that human mages only learn in their courses at an arcane academy.

Sebek: This was merely something I found enchanting as a mere child. Obviously I would not take part in such a contest now.

Ace: You suuure? Sounds pretty fun to me. Oh hey, then how about you and me have our own little contest with color changing magic back at my dorm sometime.

Sebek: Why would I set foot in Heartslabyul…? Wait.

Sebek: Surely I am mistaken, but… Were you intending on shoving your rose-dying tasks onto my shoulders?

Ace: No way, I wasn't saying that at all! C'mon, don't you think it'd be a great little competition to have with a fellow freshman?

Sebek: Your excuses will not work on me! I know for a fact that you constantly complain over having to paint the roses.

Sebek: The only contest I had any interest in attempting was the dress color changing competition in Briary Valley. Do the tasks assigned to you on your own!

[Land of Dawning – National Museum of Art]

Ace: Oh hey, I know this one. It's a painting of a girl and some talking flowers.

Sebek: According to the legends, the flowers native to the country the Queen of Hearts' presided over had the ability to speak.

Sebek: Who would have thought that the flowers cultivated there would be able to speak or sing as such. I'm sure it was disturbingly loud in the Queen's country.

Ace: Sure, probably. But hey, probably a lot less loud than your voice can get.

Sebek: …Perhaps if you were to cease your own impudent retorts, I wouldn't have a need to raise my voice.

Ace: Reeeaaally, you think? 'Cause to me it feels like you're always angry about something.

Sebek: Of course not. I simply find the uncouth antics of you humans to be utterly aggravating.

Sebek: I know there is a time and place for everything. I myself would never do something as rude as to throw a damper on enthusiastic festivities.

Sebek: In fact, I attended a performance at a live music club just the other day and I did not chide the audience for their overjoyed shouting one bit.

Ace: …Eh. What did you just say? YOU WENT TO SEE A LIVE MUSIC PERFORMANCE!!!???

Sebek: Why would you react as such?

Ace: I mean, come on, didn't strike you as someone who'd go to something like that. So, like, what was the live show you went to go see?

Sebek: My latest venture brought me to attend a small show that showcased a collaboration between bands that primarily performed heavy metal music.

Sebek: This was all due to Lilia-sama, who imparted on me that this was the best way to train my imagination, and that listening to live music is an important part of life.

Ace: Aaah, that makes sense now. But hey, do you even listen to heavy metal?

Ace: I mean sure, you can kinda get into it once you're at the concert even if you don't know the songs, but if you don't even like that kinda stuff in the first place, ain't it tough to actually take in?

Sebek: "Get into it once you're at the concert"? Don't liken me to someone like you. Of course I went to the show after doing my due diligence in research.

Sebek: If I were to attend the show without a full understand of what I am to partake in, it would be an absolute disservice to Lilia-sama's recommendation.

Sebek: I studied everything from the exact times the music club opened their doors and how the audience would be filed into the venue, to the established rules on refreshments, to the proper cheering behavior utilized by the crowd near the front of the house…

Sebek: I believe it is called a "mosh pit." Prior to attending the performance, I made sure to carve into my body and soul the different techniques and proper etiquette as well.

Sebek: On that day, I purport that I banged my head back and forth much harder than anyone else there, shouting and cheering alongside them.

Ace: Don't think I've ever heard of someone practicing to mosh before. But I guess it sounds like you had a pretty fun time, though.

Sebek: Indeed. Although, I did run into slight trouble.

Ace: Huh, what kind of trouble? Cause some mischief, did ya?

Sebek: Absolutely not! I'm not sure if they lost their footing during the show or what, but the performer fell forward towards the audience.

Sebek: I immediately caught the performer and returned them to the stage. After that, the show continued smoothly until the end.

Ace: PFFT! You seriously returned the performer to the stage!?

Sebek: Obviously. I could not allow this concert that Lilia-sama had recommended to me be cancelled merely because the performer had become injured!

Ace: Bwahahaha! Looks like all that prepping you went through didn't help at all. All they wanted to do was stage dive, too.

Sebek: A stage dive…? Hold on now, don't tell me that was part of the performance!?

Sebek: I suppose the performer did look rather stunned when I returned them to the stage… Ghurk, what a blunder…!

Ace: Oh man, that's so hilarious. Wish I was there to see it. Hey, let's hit up a show together next time.

Sebek: SHUT IT! WHO WOULD EVER GO ANYWHERE WITH YOU!?

[Land of Dawning – National Museum of Art]

Sebek: This is a painting of the hyenas who served the King of Beasts, I see. Their countenance depicts an atmosphere overflowing with trust from their liege and confidence in their own abilities.

Ace: Yeah? To me it just looks like they're up to something.

Sebek: Isn't that due to your own wily tendencies?

Sebek: I have seen you multiple times in locations outside the gymnasium during what should be basketball club hours.

Ace: Hey, it's not like I'm slacking off or anything. C'mon, I'm a freshman, right? Sometimes I get saddled with odd jobs from the upperclassmen.

Ace: But, man… Sometimes I do want to skip morning lessons on cold days. Hey, aren't there times you don't want to get out of bed when it's way too cold out, too?

Sebek: It's true that back home it has happened that I couldn't get out of bed in the morning. However, that was not because I wished to skip my training!

Ace: W-Woah, really? I thought you woulda hit me back with another "Don't liken me to you!" or something.

Sebek: I could not help it. I was thoroughly chilled to the bone that morning. It was so cold that there were numerous icicles dangling from our roof, as well.

Sebek: I did not even wish to fathom the temperature outside, but… I somehow forced myself out of bed to begin my morning training.

Sebek: Perhaps it was due to not having slept well, but I could feel my eyelids start to droop. So I decided then to attempt to wake myself up further with the bitter taste of coffee.

Sebek: I swallowed down the strong black coffee and believed myself ready to go. But that was the last thing I remembered.

Sebek: I ended up falling back asleep on the couch and when I finally woke up, it was past noon… An absolute blunder. This is a blot that I will carry with me forever.

Ace: Hey now, that's pretty normal, c'mon. Pretty steep to say you'll carry that forever.

Sebek: No, you are just weak-willed. I, however, strived through trials and tribulations to overcome the bitter cold of mornings and finally found "that" thing.

Ace: What're you acting so pompous about now?

Sebek: Heh, of course you'd be curious. I suppose I can tell you. The thing I am talking about is… A HOT WATER BOTTLE!

Ace: A hot water bottle…? You're seriously using a hot water bottle? Even in this day and age when we have air conditioners and heaters!?

Sebek: Do you seriously not understand? That thing is a fantastic item that warms your entire body without fear of causing a fire or desiccation.

Sebek: Cold winter nights not only diminishes my ability to fall asleep, but also affects the quality of sleep I am able to get. In turn, that makes it difficult to rise from bed…

Sebek: However, a simple hot water bottle prepared at bedtime can warm my body and lull me to sleep even in the coldest winters!

Sebek: The temperature can even be easily adjusted by wrapping it in a towel, or adding water to the bottle. A very convenient item.

Ace: Huh, interesting. I mean, sure, it might not use electricity, but I'm surprised you're using a "human" item.

Sebek: I received this hot water bottle from my father. Back when he had just arrived in Briar Valley, it apparently was very useful in keeping him warm even without magic.

Ace: Oh, so it's a hand-me-down, huh. And here I thought I'd get to hear another hilarious story or something～

Ace: Since it sounds like there ain't gonna be a punchline anymore, I think I'll go check out the shop. Byeee―

Sebek: YOU ASKED THE QUESTION, HEAR ME OUT UNTIL THE END! Good grief, I can't stand that human. …Hm?

Sebek: This is… A painting depicting a the human chattering along with animals. I've read this story in a book my grandfather gifted me.

Sebek: This young lady speaks of her dreams to these critters… Does she truly believe that her wish will come true without any effort on her part? What a lazy creature.

Requested by Anonymous.

[an00dleb00]

In Defense of Magnificus

A very very long rant by me. Originally from a rant I posted in a discord server in 2022, modified to be a little more concise. I have to apologize if some of this stuff is incredibly outdated, I haven't really bothered to catch up with newer stuff about the game outside of the game itself yknow... Like twitch streams from the dev and such.

I saw a theory that Magnificus was originally intended to be the villain of the original, in lore Inscryption, but through the rush of making the game as a coverup and developers like Kaycee not making much progress on the development because of said rush, he didn't get finished. And I think if you really analyze his character, everything about him FEELS unfinished.

His character design is super simple compared to the other scrybes. His deck is weak; there are not a lot of hard hitting cards aside from the Stim Mage, and the Magiks system itself feels wonky, as if they didn't have enough time to balance it out. His tower feels empty (Specially that damned bathroom. It haunts me.) His letter stops before its completed, he suddenly disappears mid-sentence... He's the only scrybe to not get a proper 3D version, as the game was mostly deleted by the time we got to him in Act 4, and he might've been the only scrybe that never became hegemon. We don't get to finish his battle, and he doesn't even get a handshake.

And going back to originally being a villain? Maybe that's why he was made to be so cruel to his pupils. P03 is also mean to his subordinates, but they're robots, they're not mean to gain as much sympathy from the player. Meanwhile, Magnificus is established to be mean and perhaps downright evil by the dialogue we get through Act 2. Rebecha speaks about him by saying he's mysterious, stating "Some say he wants... No, it's too terrible to say." But we never know what that refers to, and if it's coded dialogue or her own speech.

Outside of the CODED IN lore behind his pupils suffering, we don't see him being evil AT ALL. In Act 1 he is practically our savior; his throughout preparing was able to get us the film roll, and if we take too long he sends the player VISIONS to guide us in the right way. In Act 2 he attempts to warn the player about P03, his paint leads around to secrets to clue in about the OLD_DATA as well as perhaps serving as warnings for it. At the end of the game he is the only one who is distraught about everything being deleted; Grimora and Leshy accept their deaths, but Magnificus REFUSES to.

But wouldn't a villain rejoice about people dying? About, in his own words, an entire world being destroyed? It's like the original plan for his villainy was there, but he doesn't WANT to be one.

Now as to why he seems to continue to treat his pupils badly. I think it's just.. guilt. I believe he didn't have a choice in making them suffer, they were all just coded into what we know of Act 2. They were all created with the pupils being in torturous states and the game code telling them "It's Magnificus' fault". I think he himself believes this. I believe he could have tried to fix it before. But the thing is that, even if he ever did fix it, if he stopped their pain, it would all be for nothing... because the game resets. The only times it doesn't do this is when a scrybe takes over, which is something he has supposedly never been able to do. And if he were to help them outside of being hegemon they'd just go back to their original state once the new game card was used. I think he simply gave up upon realizing this and instead chose to bury his own grief that comes from it by playing into the character he was originally meant to be; the villain. That, and I think he just doesn't want to look at them... It hurts him to. I believe this is why he painted bleach over Goobert's painting.

I think him being originally an unfinished villain plays into him always being prepared. As I stated before, people often forget how helpful he is- it's due to his preparations that we are able to leave Act 1, he warns about The Great Transcendence in Act 2, warns Luke about the OLD_DATA, and warns him about the fate he'd encounter if he looked upon it. I think Magnificus wants to make up for his "villainy" by being the one the other scrybes and npcs can rely on in a time of need, so he spends every hour of everyday getting ready for the worst, and foreseeing what is gonna happen next.

Thing is that, he never stops anything from happening. He prepares a way out of Leshy's hegemony, but he can't stop it from happening in the first place. It's very probable that he was the one that planned how to stop P03 in Act 3, as we see he has been preparing since at least Act 2. But not only does the P03 hegemony happen, but he is ultimately unable to stop the Great Transcendence once it is in progress. Same thing for the game's deletion, which I believe it is at that point he truly panicked, because he couldn't foresee it or plan for it beforehand. It all feels like... An unfinished character arc. He never got to do anything he wanted.

I think he feels powerless.

Magnificus is often regarded as the worst scrybe. But in a sense, there's no real reason why that should be the case, at least not compared to the others. Like... Leshy took over the game and put the other scrybes into cards. He had good intentions, sure, but that doesn't mean his actions were good. Magnificus lost his eye, Grimora lost her memory, P03.... Was having a bad time...

Hell, the reason people hate Magnificus so much so often is because of the treatment of his pupils... But Leshy isn't all innocent there either. He puts Goobert in a bottle (At least, maybe he does. It's not clear whether it was him or Mags), which we know Goobert REALLY doesn't like, and he also put Goobert's description in the rulebook as "Failure". He also threw the bottle into the river as stated by himself in Kaycee's Mod.

P03... I don't gotta explain this one we know it is an asshole.

...And Grimora deleted the game, which basically killed everyone in it. While she had good intentions, it really only led to the discovery of the OLD_DATA and the subsequent assassination of Luke.

Now, what did Magnificus do? Nothing. Like... Really. He didn't GET to do anything. People dislike him because of his treatment of his pupils, but as I talked about before, I really don't think he can do anything about that, even if he wanted to.

So why do people so easily hate him? Circles back to the theory: Because he's unfinished. Everything about him is unfinished. The other scrybes are loved because we got to finish their arcs... We get to know why they each do what they did.

P03 not so much, but... P03 is a villain of sorts, people like villains and don't need them to be "good" to like them, which I agree with cuz villains are fun! P03 does have some sympathy points somewhere, though, which I'm not gonna go into here.

I'm gonna focus on Grimora and Leshy instead. Their farewells were perfect closure:

Grimora spoke about why she chose to delete the game, and we as the player come to understand her. It was right after her doing it in the first place, so we didn't even get to really build anger towards her. She talks about it being a necessary action- perhaps something we can agree with after knowing everything about the OLD_DATA. She laments not being able to play more with us, but she accepts her death and says goodbye.

Leshy talks about just.. wanting to play. That's all he wants, he just wanted to give us a good story. The original Inscryption is rushed and weird- Act 1, his hegemony, was his attempt to make it better and enjoyable (Which, considering it is the Act people love most, he succeeded.)

The player probably misses him by this point- playing cards with him feels somber, sad, and nostalgic. At this point we consider him a friend. And then he gets deleted after complementing our past deck, speaking about how much he enjoyed his time with us, and saying farewell. It's not something that leaves us with any possible anger towards him.

Magnificus though... He doesn't get that. We never get to talk to him properly, he never speaks about how he feels or why he does things. In Act 1 he spends most of the time in the clock, in Act 2 he gets cut off when trying to speak to us, Act 3 he only speaks a few sentences, and in Act 4..

His farewell is different than the other two. Leshy and Grimora accept their deaths... Magnificus doesn't. He doesn't talk about his feelings or justify his actions, because if you have been holding in your feelings, that is something you do when you can no longer do so. You let them go when you know you're going to die soon.

But he doesn't want to. He doesn't want to die, he can't accept it.

The game he played with us wasn't complete- the scales were gone, so we weren't even supposed to play against him. It was his opportunity to just say what he needed to say before he was gone, but he refused to accept his upcoming death. So instead he tried prolonging the process by using unrealistically high numbers instead of scales (The bigger the number, the longer the game will take, right..?). Even as he felt himself getting deleted he refused to end the game, or even talk to the player properly. For once, he couldn't prepare for the worst, and he was in denial- he was completely powerless and he didn't want to accept it. Instead, he speaks to us about the game deleting. He blames the player for it. He tries to guilt us; "You even allowed my goo mage to get deleted... I thought you two were becoming friends!"

And he doesn't get a handshake. He tried to push his deletion away for so long that he ended up not even being able to finish the match or get the same, proper farewell that Grimora and Leshy got.

I think by now I've said what I needed to say, but I wanna add that... Yeah, I think he's one of the most tragic characters in the game. I think he spends a lot of time being anxious- we don't get a clear answer on if he can see the future or if he is just able to predict it, but either way he lives with a lot of anxiety because of it.

I think the worst part is the deletion of the game and his farewell. He isn't able to let go because he's scared to, and because he has spent his whole life trying to prevent bad things from happening; trying to help his friends to get out of bad situations they caused themselves. But this time he's not able to, he can't do ANYTHING about it, and he's terrified because that means his whole existence and work is just... Gone. He spent all his days preparing for the worst scenarios, only for it all to be thrown away. He WASTED his life for nothing. And it hurts me that the fandom never saw that.

Or maybe I'm overthinking all of it. Maybe this has all already been directly disproven. But I still wanted to share this.

[green-ray-blog1]

Dagger being a weird white mage

Back when I played FF9 for the first and second time, I was annoyed at how Dagger's a pretty clearly inferior white mage compared to Eiko. Eiko gets full life, esuna, dispel and holy, all awesome spells that Dagger just can't learn. I guess the idea is that Dagger has the more offensive summons but even then it's not like Eiko's summons are bad, and her final one is pretty op.

But replaying the game again, some of that is making sense to me. Dagger's pretty cool, really, and she's kind of a mess.

Like okay, the trope of the white mage who actually kicks grown men's asses appears in other Final Fantasy games. Aerith roughs up some dudes in Don Corneo's house, and I'm pretty sure I remember Yuna knocking out some goons offscreen in FFX. Dagger doesn't seem to hit the same notes, though.

I don't think she ever physically overwhelms another character during the game, which doesn't stop her from jumping from towers or ditching half of the party when they don't want to take her along. She also doesn't have the same kind of enthusiasm about her that the other two try to project. When I used to play FF9, I didn't pay enough attention to her name. She was just Garnet with a fake name, but it's more than that. Aerith and Yuna want/try to be world saviors, but Garnet, for half the game mostly wants to save her mother, and it doesn't go well. I think she feels overwhelmed by Brahne's dedication to go commit worse and worse crimes. So she needs to become something more than the princess bound by her social role. She needs to become something dangerous, like a dagger. Someone who will poison the fuck out of her buddies and run ahead if they don't take her to the frontline. Obviously, Zidane's into that edgy shit, I mean look at Blank (lots of potential slash I previously had no clue about with this one btw).

Dagger's also kind of entitled, for a while ? Which, duh, she's royalty. There's the whole poisoning incident, of course. But during said incident, she doesn't poison Steiner because she knows he'll do what she says, even if he might protest at first. Worse case she can just put her foot down and shut him up. She really does take Steiner for granted. And again, what I find really cool is that it ends up being pretty subtly written (maybe in part because it's often played for laughs but not just that). Steiner doesn't mind being taken for granted. It gives him purpose, even when it's tedious as fuck. It's interesting that they're never really that close and their relationship is mostly a power dynamic.

The first trip to Treno might have lots of layers. Both Dagger and Steiner are having some personal crises. Dagger gets really into the whole plot to rob someone to save Blank (she gets to be dangerous and edgy and rub elbows with bandits, and she doesn't even need Zidane anymore hah), which is a sidetrack from saving her mother, but it does feel right too (and at least that one is successful). Steiner keeps trying to convince himself that Queen Brahne must be right and he shouldn't think too hard about her motives, but gets stung by Baku calling him out for having no thoughts of his own. In French, he asks himself "Am I a puppet?", which feels more direct than the english version. And yeah, dude, maybe you are ? You're also being roped into all sorts of business you wouldn't do because you're at Dagger's beck and call. So when they're back in Alexandria, when he finally opposes Brahne, shortly after, he also decides to stop following her to stay and fight with Freya and Beatrix. In retrospect, maybe that was a well earned vacation for the guy.

But yeah, all in all, maybe I shouldn't be surprised Dagger isn't an S tier white mage, and is more into the big damage summons, including the horrific robot from another planet with a completely excessive animation that does darkness damage.

[drizztdohurtin]

I've always said that babies + toddlers are just living, breathing suicide attempts. It seems like they're try to end their lives at every opportunity. Also, it's a common phenomenon that second-born children are crazier than the first. So, I can see Rolan's firstborn son being a little angel. Sweet, docile, never getting into any danger or trouble, always wanting to be near his parents. His very nature is what convinced Rolan that a second child would be a grand idea.

But that second-born daughter? Rolan is convinced she exists to humble him. Absolute menace to society, even at a very early age. I feel like Rolan has half a head of gray hair by the time his second child is two years old.

Rolan looked away for five seconds? The girl is wobbling on unsteady, chubby little legs on top of the dining room table.

Rolan and his wife stopped to say a quick "hello" (literally all they get out is "hello") to someone in the market? The adorable little terror is haphazardly sprinting toward some horses & already fifteen feet away. (Rolan questions how the hells that's even possible, because at a walking pace, the girl is wobbly, yet if she's running, she's fast as can be.)

Rolan is busy making dinner while the tot wanders around the kitchen? When he turns around, his little princess is standing on the handle of a drawer to reach higher, aaalmost wrapping a fat little fist around a gigantic knife atop the counter.

The amount of times Rolan has had to use mage hand to catch his darling daughter from falling, doing something dangerous, or running into danger is positively astronomical before she's even three.

But she's also SO FUCKING CUTE. Chubby cheeks, big eyes, light brown hair in little pigtails, and executes all her chaos in big, frilly, pastel dresses. She has Rolan wrapped around her finger without even trying. (As does his firstborn, of course.)

As a secondborn child, yes!

(you unknowingly just ordered a large yappuccino)

Summary: baby #1 is what makes Rolan realize how badly he wants more kids and baby #2 is what makes him consider getting a vasectomy. if there is a baby #3, they either came about on accident or after you succeeded a DC 25 persuasion check

Baby number one, a beautiful boy whose appearance mirrors his father's, is just an angel. He never cries except when he's hungry or uncomfortable, he always wants to be held by his dad, and he never gets into trouble - even in his terrible twos. He always wants to be close to his dad, and is very interested in everything he watches Rolan do. Once he gets a little older and can understand language, he always asks Rolan to read to him, tell him stories, or teach him about anything that comes to mind.

As his son gets older, despite how he very much still clings to his father when he's being put to bed for the night or how he asks him to hold him while he cooks dinner for the family, Rolan still misses the times when his son was tiny. The times when he got to hold his infant on his chest and feel him cuddle against him, his tiny tail wrapping around his wrist. So he asks his wife for a second child.

Then baby number two arrives, and I could absolutely see this one being either a boy or a girl (I think my brain normally leans toward a boy). Another beautiful red baby with features from both their mother and father - and boy are they a lot of work. They give Rolan a run for his money, but he would never dream about having it any other way.

They're a colicky baby, spending much of their first year alive crying for hours in the night as their father does everything in his power to comfort them. He often becomes discouraged when nothing works, feeling horrible when they're only able to sleep because they exhausted themselves by crying for so long.

Once they're old enough to move around on their own, Rolan becomes quite dejected when he realizes they don't want to be held and cuddled like his first did. It would take him time to get used to how independent they were, wanting to explore without him and not paying much attention when he spoke to them.

Baby number 2 makes up for baby number one's lack of terrible two's - and it's exactly how you described. They're quite happy during the day, just running around, exploring, and always getting into trouble. I think Rolan would learn pretty fast how to keep them safe, but they still always had him on his toes. He'd allow them to explore near him, keeping the end of his tail wrapped around their waist in case he needed to keep them from falling or sprinting off.

Eventually, he learns how to do all of these things with them in a way that doesn't discourage them from being independent, that way he can still keep them safe as they play and explore their surroundings. I think they'd remind him a lot of Lia when she was little, and it would be incredibly endearing to him, despite how often they give him a heart attack.

Other imagery with baby number two:

rolan always having to fish gross crap out of their mouth bc this baby's favorite thing to do is put things in their mouth

which includes their tail, his tail, their older brother's tail, and absolutely anything they find on the floor

literally always climbing on shit

baby is a hilarious sleeper - always in goofy positions or with their mouth hanging wide open, drool going everywhere (Rolan doesn't even care if they drool all over him if that's the price he has to pay to be able to hold them)

they were a colicky baby but once they get a bit older, they rarely cry - even when they're in pain, which is a little worrying to Rolan

they think literally everything is funny, and is extremely ticklish

they're one of those babies that's always in just their diaper and a shirt because they get dirty so often or they are so hard to change that you just kinda have to let it happen

Literally is the messiest eater on the planet and while it's kind of adorable it still nearly sends Rolan into orbit

[sapphim]

speaking of varric's nicknames, doesn't he outright admit in banter with merrill that he only ever calls people by their nicknames to annoy them? or at least, he admits to calling isabela "rivani" to annoy her specifically? i just thought his tendency toward nicknames was merely his love for being the world's most annoying dwarf, or something.

Oh 100% the annoyance factor is real and true and shouldn't be dismissed. Like, what's the explanation for "Junior", besides that Carver is easy to get a rise out of and Varric is, at heart, an obnoxious little troll? But I don't think it's as simple as a broad "he's doing this to be annoying" all the way across the board. Like, conversely, where's the annoyance factor in how he addrresses "Sunshine"?

Hell, Aveline and Hawke both give Varric shit about not being given a cute nickname. Can't win! Also an indication that the annoyance factor of nicknames is specific and/or individual, and not all-inclusive. (Although Aveline is absolutely just complaining to complain. Again, can't win, grass is greener, etc.)

Aveline: Blondie, Sunshine, Daisy, Rivaini… what am I? Varric: Beg your pardon? Aveline: You don’t call anyone by name except for me. Where’s my nickname? ... Varric: Haven’t thought of a good one yet. What do you think of “Red”? Aveline: Too common.

That said, Varric's near obsessive avoidance of given names does prompt open annoyance from certain companions. Notably not Isabela (or even Carver, that I know of, though Carver gets annoyed about pretty much everything else Varric says, so). Fenris probably grouses about it most often, which is fair, considering. Anders, Fenris, and Merrill all get into it with him in some content cut from Varric's romance reaction conversation.

Varric: You and Whatshisname, that mage, seem to be getting pretty close. Anders: You’d think after three years the dwarf would learn my name. And I’m standing right here! Varric: Right, I see you there, Blondie. Don’t worry.

I love pretty much all of those reactions, except, I kind of really personally hate Merrill's bit?

Merrill: For the hundredth time, my name is not “Daisy!” And I’m right here, you oaf! Hawke: You’re just encouraging him, you know. He’s doing it on purpose to make you squirm. Varric: It’s true. I only do it because I love the way the points of your ears turn red when you get mad.

I just don't believe, given the whole sum of their interactions throughout the game, that Merrill has spent the last three years believing that Varric is being an oaf and getting upset about being called Daisy. Some people like this bit too, idk. Me, I don't buy it!

And at this point it's worthwhile to delve into Varric's development as a character. Gaider has said that Varric was originally supposed to be an "untrustworthy," "sleazy, slimeball" kind of guy, but that as development went on they found they "needed a character that stood up for you with all the opposing personalities in the party." He's more recently described Varric as "that 'slimy car salesman' character we'd planned."

Gaider has also said it's the case that, because development time on DAII was so insanely short, that "Everything was going to be a first draft... A lot of what we’re putting out is going to be raw. We’re not going to get the editing we need. We’re not going to get the kind of iteration we need."

So, all right, here's my extremely tagential onion, that was not asked for? I got a bit of a bug up my butt about the exchange above and a related one in Varric's rivalry path where he says "Don't call Daisy an ogre! You'll make her cry." Because they are just, kind of stand-out odd lines, to me. And so I checked to see when various lines of dialogue were written. We can do this! Every line of dialogue, when it's saved to the talktable, is saved with an ID number (the string reference), and they're saved in chronological order. If a line of dialogue is completely rewritten in a later revision, this number won't reflect that, but we also know that DAII did not have development time to allot for major revisions. So.

Here's what was written first, for Varric's dialogue: Act 1, Questions and Answers. Act 1, A Business Discussion. Act 1, his introduction. Act 2, Friendly Concern. And then so on and so forth etc. Mostly chronological order. Both of Anders' "whatshisname, that mage"s are comparatively early lines. But the banter, which is where a lot of defining character interactions take place, were all written fairly late in development, kind of in one big lump, after the vast, vast majority of Varric's general quest dialogue.

And that's interesting, right? You can kind of see echoes of Varric's concept drifting over time away from grimy car salesman toward your friendly neighborhood friendbuddyguy. You could even kind of read it as (not entirely intentional) organic character development over time, if things didn't get kind of muddled between acts which are, after all, supposed to take place three years apart, not that they really had the dev time to really nail that down and make you feel it.

Anyway! Sorry! Tangent! Circling back to the banter in question!

Merrill: Do you ever miss her? Varric: Isabela? Of course I do. Merrill: You called her by her name. I’ve never heard you do that before. Varric: No fun in calling her Rivaini if she’s not here to be annoyed by it.

It's interesting! Because like, first of all, it's wrong. Varric calls Isabela by her given name more regularly than he does any other companion, including Aveline (who he has not even given a nickname to). So, clearly Merrill's not been paying attention. (Not that I expect Kirby to have like kept a tally while writing Varric's dialogue lmao I just think it's funny.)

Secondly, he's deflecting. Because he misses her! He misses herrrrrr. He's a softyyyyyy. The two of them really got on. And, he's deflecting.

(Thirdly, if he is only deflecting, and not both deflecting and lying through his lying teeth: does him calling Isabela by her name fairly regularly mean that he only wants to annoy her sometimes? As opposed to, say, Carver and Fenris and Sebastian, who he is more than happy to needle all of the time constantly? I could see it tbh.)

Although, again, if Isabela is annoyed—and she would not be wrong to be! albeit she is an inveterate nicknamer herself—she's playing it pretty close to her chest.

Isabela: You’ve a nickname for everyone. Varric: That’s true. Rivaini. Isabela: But everyone just calls you Varric. That’s hardly fair.

Which is to say! Yes! Varric is the world's most annoying dwarf, and he loves it. But I think there's ~nuance~ as well as a lot of room for interpretation!

[bardcore-jaskier]

♡My immortal Jaskier headcanons♡

So here are my headcanons, because I refuse to believe that our ball of sunshine has an expiration date...

So, I know Lauren said that Jaskier not aging in the show was just a filming mistake, something they simply forgot to do and on a completely logical level I am fully aware that in canon Jaskier is completely human, 100%. And I also know that they're not gonna change it, no matter how much some of us may wish they did (Although why not? They already strayed so far from the books and made so many changes, might as well go the extra mile)

Realistic-ish headcanons:

- Jaskier is part elf, perhaps quarter elf like Yennefer, it is an entirely justifiable headcanon, theoretically, Jaskier's human father could have married a half elf commoner woman (who may or may not have had the pointy tips on her ears cut off with a knife to avoid human prejudice)

- Jaskier has a fae ancestor, somewhere many many generations back in his ancestry, so his entire family is suspiciously long lived but nobody cares because Lettenhove isn't politically important and therefore doesn't catch the attention of the prejudiced Nobles farther up the royal court chain.

- Jaskier unintentionally drinks the same elixir mages/sorcerers drink to prolong their life. I read that chaos wielders don't have naturally long lifespans, they semi-regularly drink an elixir with mandrake roots in it to slow the aging process. According to Witcher Wiki, you can only buy mandrake root in Lindenvale and my headcanon is that Jaskier experiments with many different tea blends to see which one is more effective for soothing his throat after singing. So at the age of 29-30, he wanders into Lindenvale and buys some dried mandrake to make a tea, after one sip he felt more rejuvenated than ever and since that day, mandrake root tea has become his number one go-to, he drinks it as often as he can.

More fanfic centric, less canon possible headcanons:

- Jaskier is a Dryad. (Yayyy trans Jaskier headcanon) Since Lettenhove is so tiny, it isn't even on the Witcher continent map, but a simple Google search says that it is Located somewhere in Kerack. Kerack borders with Brokilon, so it's kind of a nifty little loophole for fanfic writers to use and place Lettenhove somewhere near the forests where Dryads live.

And while most Dryads treat any man that enters their realm as a mere sperm donor, Witcher Wiki does also mention that some Dryads can form emotional relationships and fall in love with humans and/or elves, but in the end, all Dryad born offspring is AFAB. So imagine this, Jaskier's father falls in love with a Dryad, she falls in love with him, they have Jaskier, Jaskier notices early on that he feels like a boy and his rich Viscount father hires a mage to help Jaskier transition early.

- Jaskier is a higher vampire, higher vampires are a HIGHLY secretive society, even in canon, part of the reason why even Witchers have so little information about them is because they prefer to hide in plain sight and are ridiculously good at it. Jaskier doesn't age, has no self-preservation instincts, doesn't buy a horse and yet still keeps up with Geralt on foot for 20 years. Jaskier's personality isn't fake, he doesn't act like someone else, it's all him, but his clumsiness is a little bit of an act, he also purposefully avoids physical fights, it comes across as fear of getting hurt but in reality it's because he's afraid of appearing too strong and exposing himself. Lettenhove doesn't appear on maps, because it doesn't exist legally, it's just a castle hidden in the woods, a safe place for higher vampires, kinda like Kaer Morhen is for Witchers, Jaskier's parents just happen to be the ones who run it.

[tobiasdrake]

Something I like about the cast of Danganronpa V3 is how needlessly over-the-top they can be.

Like. Okay. What sets this group of characters apart is that they were not created in good faith.

What I mean by that is, the casts of previous Danganronpa games often had an interesting backstory to justify how they came to be Ultimates. Some were tragic, some were thought-provoking, but they generally felt like... Like, yeah, okay, this is a fairly believable sort of background that could create a person whose personality is hyper-specialized around this or that activity.

As I said before, the more you get to know these Ultimate Students, the more you realize that this is just a collection of neurodivergent kids and their myriad collections of rocks. Sure, there's a secret clan of detectives or a Fist of the North Star fanfic here or there.

But most of them are just things like. "My grandpa's failings taught me that I should work hard." "I learned about medicine because I was beaten a lot." "My heart disease could kill me at any moment so I devoted my life to inspiring others to live well." "I started programming on my dad's computer and got really good at it."

Most of the DR cast feel like people who could exist right now.

But V3's characters are way over-the-top, and that's by design. As part of V3's commentary on fact and fiction, these characters are created as over-designed, over-complex messes.

Nearly all of V3 characters are like, "I lied about my age to get into the astronaut program but then I was so good at astronaut that they let me stay in the program even though they found out my secret, and also I'm suffering from a lethal space virus that could kill me at any moment but I'm hanging in there so that I can see space."

"I come from a long line of magicians who are secret mages and I trained in magic under an ancient magician master, but my secret magician talents were so great that I surpassed my master. It's all real magic, by the way."

"I was lost in the wilderness as a child and then raised by wolves who inspired me to become the ultimate gentleman and be interested in insects."

"I was an orphan with extremely aggressive habits who was taken in by monks. The head monk trained me in aikido, ironically a martial art predicated on non-aggression but we invented a super secret ultimate aggressive version of it. Then we became a crime-fighting duo, battling the forces of evil to protect women everywhere!"

With just a few exceptions, they're all like this.

Danganronpa V3 characters read like someone who wrote a novel-length backstory for their D&D character before the campaign began, because they didn't understand that the plot was supposed to be what happens right here, in the game.

But. Like. That is exactly what they are. So that dynamic actually fits really well. These are not Danganronpa characters created in good faith; They're actors LARPing their fanfiction OCs. And they read like it.

[crowholtz]

okay I'll talk about Helene and Strahd a little let's go. I'm going to make some bullets of things about them, and I'll put under a read more more detail about how they met. This will have some spoilers for CoS so yeah woo

They have a red thread that links them together that can be seen in the ethereal plane

They both value propriety and politeness, though Helene hates politics

Their hearts literally beat as one. He gave her a necklace with a piece of the Heart of Sorrow but has since used Fabricate to encase her heart with the crystal, syncing her heart with his. He literally owns her heart

They're both huge nerds who like science and magic and poetry.

They write poems for each other

They were once racing horses back to the castle, and he tried cheating by just simply running, faster than her horse. So she cast Daylight (which my DM rules as sunlight) to stop him from running forward but he was running so fast that his momentum carried him into the Daylight and he burned up, turning to mist and flying back to his coffin. Later he was... Playfully miffed at her.

Helene was once tortured by a witch, so Strahd ripped the witch's arms from her body and gifted them to Helene. She loved it

He had his coffin expanded in size so she could sleep in it with him. They have slept in it together (among other things)

They're addicted to each other's blood

They stalk each other all the time. They catch each other stalking the other at the same time they are.

Strahd has gotten her to execute criminals

They once had a snowball fight

He's somehow managed to get Ireena and Helene angry with him, and then when they confronted him together he managed to verbally finesse and talk his way around not only calming them but seducing them. At the same time. All in the same night

He's showed her his secret lab with all his fucked up experiments and they've compared notes

they're both horse girls. They loves talking about horses

Both blood mages. He's always impressed by her talent with blood magic

He (and Ludmilla) have taught her arcane magic and contributed to her taking levels in wizard

Helene composed for him a song on piano

Knowing Strahd often is spying on her, she'll just do something ambiently to taunt, tease, or flirt with him. Once she killed something and mockingly bowed to him

They can mentally talk to each other at all times

One time they were cuddling and she said she wished she could hold his heart in her hand. He said she can and proceeded to rip his own ribcage open and guided her hand inside. She held his heart in her hand, pleased, and they kept cuddling 🥰

Strahd took her ice skating once

They love to fight each other. Literally. Whether it's an actual battle, a game of wits, a sparring match. They love it

Strahd brought Helene to Barovia because she's a cleric of the Red Knight and has a keen mind for strategy, and intended to groom her to be his General

Helene is an ever inquisitive young woman, she has to know everything. She also is the type to absolutely sit down with the most evil, misunderstood, or monstrous of figures to pick their brains. She intended to do this with Strahd as a way to information gather.

They first started in depth correspondence when the party rescued Doru from the church basement. since he was engaged to marry Strahd when he was locked in the basement, they thought to garner good will with Strahd. Helene contacted him and told him Doru was alive and indeed not destroyed, which prompted Strahd to immediately send a carriage to pick up Doru. Strahd told Helene that he owed them a favor for returning his love to him.

Strahd, on his part, also intended to seduce her. They started amicable conversation pretty soon after she arrived in Barovia, with her absolutely fascinated by him. She learned she could pray to him to contact him from a distance

This led to them forming a mental connection in which they communicate through the language of Supernal, able to contact each other at any time, see the other's immediate surroundings and sort of project the image of themselves to each other.

Eventually she started developing very intense feelings for him, an attraction, so he did indeed succeed in seducing her. She fell hard into his web. buuuut also, he fell way harder for Helene than he intended to. like we're talking Tatyana levels of obsession. he's actually very conflicted about it because he feels a little like he's betraying his dedication and love to Tatyana and the duty he feels to constantly chase her.

Their first intimate moment was at the dinner he forced the party to attend with him. He took her aside and had a private conversation, picked each other's brains. they played games of chess for hours, lost in their company of each other. She revealed to him she was a fallen aasimar (something he already knew, but she usually keeps it hidden), and she was always ashamed of her blackened, torn bat wings. but he told her they were magnificent and beautiful, and that sparked the first romantic feeling in her

Helene became very obsessive. she was always contacting him, always thinking about him - she'd done this in past relationships too. girl's unhealthy. she'd always try and spy on him, see what he's up to. and more often than not she'd catch him spying on her at the same time.

The Night It Boiled Over - St. Andral's Bones

eventually, during the fiasco with the bones of St. Andral in Vallaki, Helene was cornered alone by a group of vampire spawn. Strahd showed up and lectured the spawn, angry and annoyed, and then slaughtered them before they could hurt Helene. He quickly checked her over to make sure she was alright, then left. Helene caught up with the rest of the party who were running the bones back to the church. When they walked in, Strahd was there, covered in blood and ash from the vampires.

Strahd told them to hand over the bones. After a tense moment, Helene said "I call the favor." She was calling in the favor he owed them from saving Doru. this infuriated and impressed Strahd. She was playing on his propriety, on him being a man of his word, to directly thwart his plans. He left.

Later that night, Strahd asked Helene join him for dinner at her manor (previously Death House). they sat, ate, drank wine. they talked about blood wine, and she wondered if aasimar blood tasted different, and offered to put some of her blood in his wine. he accepted and savored it calmly.

He then asked her about what she did regarding calling in the favor, wondering how she felt about it. He was obviously upset, but impressed by her. She looked him dead-on and told him that she was not sorry for doing it. She achieved her goal. She won that battle.

The tension snapped then, and he moved across the table and kissed her. From there it was... a very enthusiastic, violent coupling. Both of them are kinda freaks.

The Rest of the Campaign (so far)

From there, Helene fell hard. She was persuaded to spend a week at castle ravenloft, during which he spent a fair bit of time (with Escher's help) corrupting her, trying to get her to give into her darker urges, getting her addicted to his blood. He gave her a bride necklace (necklace with a piece of the Heart of Sorrow) and she became engaged to him.

After she left, they've been having rendezvous, and he often tries to get her to give up and just come to the castle and be with him and her 'family' (she'd bonded quite a bit with the brides during her time there). But she knew that'd be a bad idea, she knew she'd end up becoming just another bride in this endless cycle of suffering in Barovia.

She's since officially declared war on him as tensions have only escalated and the party has collected all of the items they need. they love war and strategy, so this is somewhat of a mating dance between them as well lmao.

The more Helene grows, the more Helene realizes that Strahd isn't good for her, and she wonders even when Vampyr is no longer influencing him, will he still be bad for her? She's since leaned into her relationship with Vasili (Strahd's reincarnated soul in our campaign) because he's a better man.

But Strahd still gets under her skin. Strahd is in her thoughts constantly. He drives her insane. They aren't healthy by any stretch, but damn they are in a disgusting amount of love with each other

[yourfaveisclasspected]

how would you discern a mage of mind from a prince of time?

hey there! this was a fun ask :) my interpretation under the cut

interestingly, both prince and mage share the aspect of heart, which makes this breakdown a little easier (even if we dont see too much of meulin in comparison to dirk). by reverse-engineering their relationships to their aspects, we can make some reasonable guesses for these two here.

prince of time

singlehandedly the first thing i think of with princes is destruction. direct, specific destruction both of and through their aspect is the hallmark of a prince. a prince of time, then, destroys time or through time. at their best, a prince of time destroys doomed timelines, failed offshoots of the alpha timeline, etc. at their worst, they lean more towards destroying time, which is obviously Very Bad.

of course, both facets of the aspect have upsides, and honestly delineating between the two is fruitless. a prince can often be seen destroying their aspect with their aspect; eridan destroying the session's hope with his own personal ideals, dirk destroying (or at least, attempting to destroy) the trickster mode kids' false ideas of themselves, upscaled by the sucker, with his own heart; his resistance to the effects of the sucker.

as a result, princes are inherently reactive. a prince of time in particular is very reactive, coming into action once a timeline has already started going off the rails rather than taking action to prevent that in the first place. as a time player, they're also prone to prioritizing the big picture and the concrete over minute details and abstraction. time, along with space, are the most concrete aspects in the layout of the game.

mage of mind

something i want to clarify before we dive in here: this is my personal interpretation of the mage class. mages are fickle, and as one of the 4 classes that we never get a human example of, we know very little about them. that being said, i believe it works something like this;

a seer looks into their aspect and interprets it, they analyze the aspect themselves; a mage's actions are guided more directly by the hand of their aspect. seers literally "see" visions, mages hear whispers. sollux hears the voices of the doomed; meulin is guided by her "feels", her self, and her former matesprit (though that connection is a little looser). at their best, a mage is attuned to their "voice", and they take the best course of action for their group as a whole. at their worst, they uncritically listen to their voice and they or their team suffer (sollux's voices peak when glb'golyb kills the trolls, and he dies; meulin's heart wants to see horuss happy, and she tells him to smile even when he's struggling).

a mage of mind would be guided by mind itself; where terezi scries into mind, into outcomes and decisions, using the outcomes to make her choices consciously, a mage of mind would make decisions less consciously (though still with full intent). a mage of mind is less likely to fall into the trap of uncritical listening, as mind's whole domain is choices and outcomes; perhaps a mage of mind's fatal flaw is instead not considering heart, focusing too heavily in on strict logical choices that they fail to remember that sometimes people make choices without logic; with emotion, or heart instead.

mind tends towards abstraction, little details, and proactiveness.

mage of mind vs prince of time

a mage of mind and a prince of time, beyond their connected purpose in ensuring their team stays on the right path, have little in common. mind is proactive; time reacts to the circumstances in front of them, often needing to "rewind" to do it right a second time. mages don't tend to doubt themselves; princes often struggle with their relationship to their aspect. mind is abstract, time is concrete. mind is little details and intricacy, time is flexible, reshapable; the finer details are irrelevant as long as everything is on track. while you may see a mage doubting their voice, or perhaps a time player obsessed with every single detail, in broad strokes these two shouldn't be too hard to untangle.

[shoggothkisses]

Lore Bites: Furina Drip Marketing

I've been chewing on Furina's design since she first appeared, because it's a lovely hodgepodge of elements designed to evoke a sense of duality: black and white, masculine and feminine, positive and negative, royal and jester. Even old and new: the combination of buckled shoes and ruffs from the Elizabethan age with a Regency dress coat and Victorian top hat suggests fashion from multiple eras. Not only does it look good, but it gives the sense that Furina is (aside from being VERY caught up in appearances) at odds with herself.

Furina's Irises - so far we've met two types of morphing Hydro creatures: Eidolons, and Tainted Phantasms. Technically, "eidolon" and "phantasm" mean the same thing (a ghost/spirit). However, they have different context: "eidolon" suggests the ideal form of said spirit, while "phantasm" suggests falsehood or deception. Furina's heterochromia may be a hint about a "lie" she's currently living as Hydro Archon - or it may suggest that she, like the Hydro Phantasms, is somehow tainted. (Or both.)

As it's been pointed out numerous times since the drip drop (see what I did there?), Furina's art does not have a false Hydro vision at the top of the background. At first I thought this might have to do with Neuvillette's recent leaked(?) voice line about Archons wearing fake visions to better blend into society - if everyone knows Furina is the Archon, she doesn't really need one. But then, Nahida and Ei would also not need a fake vision (everyone knows they're the Archons of their respective nations) - and yet they still have a Vision in their splash art. I'd like to speculate about why this might be, but it'll probably be in another post.

I'm not sure, but I feel like I've seen the word "justice" appear in those quotation marks multiple times. And when I see quotations it makes me think that the real meaning of that word might be just slightly different from how we understand that word. Could "justice" be something tangible? An energetic force? We'll have to wait and see.

N is Nicole, the Hexenzirkel mage who is believed to be the woman who spoke directly into our heads at the end of Inversion of Genesis. She is the "guide who will never get lost," according to Alice, and studies the "direction and order" of events in Teyvat. According to her, all things that happen in Teyvat are preordained:

If this "fable left in someone's dream" is one of N's prophecies, the dreamer (likely Furina herself) is going to be hard pressed to change what's coming for her - even with the powers of an archon.

I tried to do an etymology search for "Furina" as a name, but there's a lot of conflicting info and very few legitimate sources to use, and I'm in denial that she's named that because of "furies." If anything, I'm more likely to believe the "-rina" in her name is supposed to be from the Hebrew for melody, or the Sanskrit for "melting/dissolving." But again, I don't even know for sure if those are the real definitions.

Endless Solo of Solitude is such a sad title - she's not just alone, but double alone. Forever. Jeez.

"Animula" is a diminutive form of "anima," one of the Latin words for soul (as I'm sure many have said already). For some extra trivia, it's not just considered the soul, but the irrational, emotional and sensitive part of the soul. So: a tiny, sensitive, fragile soul. (cries)

"Choragi" is the plural for "choragus," an originally Greek term for someone who lead, or more often financially sponsored, the choirs in Greek theater.

[lettucedloophole]

spoilers for the latest dungeon meshi ep but oh my GODDD i love marcille my pobrecita.. i think ryoko kui wrote sexism's effects on marcille really well, i think it's neat how she's a silly little guy and other people kind of underestimate her and it seems she is often down on herself about her failures or, "burdening" others in a way that feels very authentic to how it feels to be a woman and have that extra pressure of perfection to dispell suspicions of your inferiority. it's just very much the feeling i gather from it which makes marcille so relatable. and then to put another layer on it when it came out that she did black magic, she's literally A Bad Ass she is LITERALLY a Badass which makes her doubt of herself even more starkly inappropriate, and in this new episode despite the Fact that she is A Bad Ass when everyone's being a BIG MEANIE to her she's like a sad puppy when people don't let her help with revivals and like idk if i missed something but she doesn't even push back against them saying they're going to turn her in in like, a threatening way, she is just... scared. which hurt me i just wanted everyone stop being so MEAN TO HERRR my POBRECITAAAA. MY TINY LITTLE BABYY

i also laughed a lot and freaked out catching up on the two latest episodes today. DEVASTATING miscalculation on chilchuck's part to protect senshi when laois has No sense of Social cue. really happy to see laois and kabru meet, they're really funny together and i see why people like them so much as a ship now!! i am ECSTATIC that shuro is out of the game in terms of ehem. courting falin. bro COULDN'T HACK IT gEDDEM marcille. get that red dragon lady.. and omg it made me SOOOO MAD that they tried to blame marcille for that like how could that even b her fault!!! >:((( its obv the mad mage's doing. i dont get it they r just big meanies!!! stop shitting on my girl!!!

i like how kabru is like laios if he had more social awareness and was a litle Conniving... and omfg i thought it was so funny and sweet how shuro and laios just fucking beat each other up 😭 shuro said i hate autistic ppl fr. no but im glad he showed up for laios & co. in the end.. sometimes you just gotta talk ur feelings out over a fistfight lol

it was soo so fun seeing everyone interact .. all these fun characters... i cant wait to see what happens next!!! i love this show literally one of my fav animes EVER now definitely its so good its SOOOOOO GOOOOOOOD!! im terrified not knowing when its gonna end and how im gonna cope when the season ends 🗿 methinks i will have to read the manga instantly after or i will go insane from dungeon meshi withdrawal..

[artificial-radiance]

i only just finished book 5 the other day, BUT I am always full of thoughts, especially when I shower, so have this that I concluded last night on discord [text will be under the readmore]

copy pasted, word for word:

So, it's obvious Grim is named after the Brothers Grimm/Grimm Fairytales. It's thought that Disney's princess movies are based on those tellings of fairytales, so it makes sense that he would be here. It makes sense, in that way, that even if he knows of NRC, he wouldn't recognize the Great Seven; they're so far gone from the Grimm Tales, that you wouldn't entirely be able to recognize them for who they were. He is, of course, also a monster. That also makes sense; the Grimm versions of fairytales are very, well, grim. They often end in the death and suffering of the villains, and feature horrible scenarios for even the heroes and damsels. His design as a cute black cat-like creature reflects what people think of when it comes to fairytales; something cute and child friendly, perhaps a little spooky, and so badly wants to be taken seriously. But when you dig deeper, you find he is a monster, and it makes all the sense in the world that he would enjoy eating the blotted mage stones and comments on just how the story would make one feel by taste, and how he enjoys it. There are also just ties in general to the villains overblotting; it goes back to what I said earlier about what happens to the villains. They do bad things, and their punishment can be as severe as death. It makes sense that Crowley would also want to locate the blotted mage stones as well; he's sanitizing the stories, much like Disney and other corporations did before. This is probs a lil disjointed

[miraakulous-cloud-district]

some asks for Ravonna and her Miraak! how about... 1, 15, 23, 31, aaaand 38? 👀

Thank you so much! ❤️​ The ask game can be found ✨here✨

Also, a bit of a side note here, in WYGTYA, Miraak's name before the Dragon Cult is Fenrik, and I've called him that so much that calling him Miraak almost feels wrong at this point :))

1. Who fell first? Who fell harder?

Fenrik definitely fell first, and Ravonna absolutely fell harder (although Fenrik could argue that he still fell harder). It was more like Fenrik's falling in love was like gentle rain falling on moss, like sliding down a slow waterslide. It was easy, pleasant, natural. The more he knew her, the farther he sunk in. But Ravvy... she didn't realize it, she buried her love deep down inside, denying it, at first because she didn't know what falling in love felt like, and then to protect Fenrik, because she's thinks she doesn't deserve him, and he would never want to love her, not really. But after umm,,, a certain event, well, she will feel like falling in love and it will feel like a violent, tall waterfall. It's sudden and so, so overwhelming.

5. What is something they like to do together?

At this point in wygtya, they just love to sit and talk and get to know each other. They're in the process of realizing that the other's company is very pleasant and that it feels safe. Safe to talk about anything.

Later on, when the relationship is established, Fenrik adores listening to Ravonna ramble like a madwoman about her most recent magical discoveries, and she is always so happy to show off her skills. Her unhinged explanations are very cute and, surprisingly, very coherent and knowledgeable. Also, her future "magic place" will literally be the coolest thing on Nirn. And another thing they would love in the future is Fenrik giving Ravonna books to read aloud. He loves her voice, and as time passes on and Apocrypha's knowledge fades, he's more than happy to be up to date with the latest books! Of course, Ravonna being Ravonna, she will often be ridiculous and read with goofy voices or change the outcomes, but she makes him laugh, and he wouldn't change it for the world.

23. Who said "I love you" first?

They haven't yet, but I have a very strong feeling that Ravonna will be the first to utter the words!

31. How would they describe one another?

Interesting question! I don't think they'd get too much into a detailed description at this point in the fic. If someone were to ask them "Who's that? And what are they like?" Ravonna would simply say: "He's our healer. I didn't know how much we needed one until he joined us, so we're lucky to have him." That's if a stranger asks, if it's a fellowship member, asking what she thinks of Fenrik, she'd be even more avoidant hahaha. Fenrik would say that he's not sure if Ravonna is more bard or mage, but she is "the most brilliant destruction mage he's ever seen."

38. What would be their ideal evening in?

Well, at this very point in the wip of chapter 16, they're on a ship on their way to Blacklight, and they're caught up in a nasty, dangerous storm, so their ideal evening is getting some rest at last. On ground that doesn't sway violently. A good meal, some wine, an easy evening with their friends and tuning in for the night early would be amazing for both of them.

[nihils-trolls]

-excitedly vibrates-

for you, or any one of your guys who would be willing to explain, how does magic work here?

(also hello i think this is my first time sending you an ask hi)

=> A bronze waves at you, trying to get your attention- but also in greeting.

[Hi, I can explain a bit! ... Well, I hope so anyway. It's sort of something I do for a living. I could give you an in-depth explanation if you want, but I'll try to keep it shorter for your sake.]

=> They drop their hands down to their side a little dramatically, hoping that enunciates a little. Then bring them back in front of them.

[Mana, the energy that fuels most magic, is a part of the world around us- sort of a force of chaos that's in everything, simply put. Though, not everyone can tap into this power. Not easily, anyway. It's fickle, and wild.]

[Some living things naturally have an easier time tapping into mana, often storing it within themselves somewhere. It's usually an involuntary process- usually. Call it genetics, luck, or divine providence- all of those can influence one's ability. Once it gets stored in one's inner well, it's filtered from a primordial energy into something slightly less chaotic.]

[A potential energy, that matches the organism's own nature. This manifests differently for just about everyone in two major ways- control- or discipline, and what most of the mages around here will call 'domains.']

[Domains are what kind of magic one tends to have an aptitude for. Sometimes, they're something personal to an individual. These are ideals, elements, or just concepts. For example: order, fire, or space.]

[These don't necessarily limit what kinds of magic a mage is able to use- but some feats may be more difficult than others depending on your natural ability, you know?]

=> They pause scratching the back of their head for a moment.

[... I feel like there's something I'm forgetting.]

[... Right! About storing mana- each individual can store varying amounts that can be increased slowly through various means, like consistent use. That, and individuals tend to have their own tolerance for how much magic they can use at any given time.]

=> The narrator will actually cut him off there, and provide you with this to look at, if you're interested. He said he'd keep it short, and frankly, this is about as short as it's going to get.

=> Though, you're welcome to ask him other questions- and he'll keep talking.