#they lacked in so many areas of diversity

[z3gler]

i love to praise ever after high for being one of the first doll lines to even tease a sapphic relationship on screen (i only say one of the first as roxxi and nevra from bratz were not confirmed until 2020), but the reality is ever after high was such a product of its time because even then, with an entire on screen kiss… they completely pushed aside any sort of development between darling and apple in favor of daring and it really sucks.

i LOVE daring, and i absolutely adore darabella. i love his arc in epic winter and i think it’s such perfect character development for him. what i don’t like, however, is that darling was such an important character in dragon games. like, the entire ending of dragon games was due to her character arc and her discovering her destiny, and… they barely show her on screen during epic winter. she gets maybe ten seconds of screentime in the background of some shots, and her and apple never even speak.

mattel had the best opportunity to give darling and apple some much needed discovery and closure during epic winter, especially after daring went through his own character arc and found out that he was destined to be with rosabella. i think it was in part that so many parents probably complained about the kiss (which is also why the “it was cpr” or “it was a friendship kiss” theories are so popular) so they pushed darling off screen in order to make parents happy, but it still drives me absolutely bonkers.

in general, i actually sincerely hate how mattel treated the charming children. it was obvious who their favorite was (daring) and i can’t fault them for that because i really do enjoy him and his arc, but dexter and darling were both routinely pushed aside and it drives me insane even all these years later.

[seraphdreams]

omg back to white people. I’ve literally grown up around white people (my family’s white) and it just gets so….

my brother compared me being Asian to him being like. 30% Italian. + so much more. general culture erasure and shit I’m-

no cause growing up in a predominantly white area/with white family is so ,,, idk how to explain it. it feels like your culture/experiences are invalidated based off the fact that you weren’t around many people like you.

[probablyasocialecologist]

And so it makes sense that these are now the places where fascism grows; that’s what these places were designed for. The suburbs were invented as a reactionary tool against the women’s liberation and civil rights movements. The US government, in concert with banks, landowners, and home builders, created a way to try and stop all that, by separating people into single homes, removing public spaces, and ensuring that every neighborhood was segregated via redlining. The suburbs would keep white women at home, and would keep white men at work to afford that home. These were explicit goals of the designers: “No man who owns his house and lot can be a Communist,” said the creator of Levittown, the model suburb. “He has too much to do.” The reason Target has become the locus of today’s particular right-wing backlash is the same reason countless viral TikToks attempt to convince women that they’re at risk of being kidnapped every time they’re in a parking lot. It’s the reason why true crime is one of the most popular podcast genres in America, and why many refuse to travel without a gun by their side and shoot people if they set foot on their driveway.

[...]

It is of course true that these mass hysterias are part of an organized right-wing movement that is attacking human rights across the country—through legislation banning abortion, gender-affirming care, and books, and making it illegal for educators to teach American history accurately. But the shape this movement has taken is not coincidental; it is in fact the product of the unique shape of public life in America, or lack thereof. Suburbanites do not have town squares in which to protest. They do not have streets to march down. Target has become the closest thing many have to a public forum. We often hear that urban areas are more liberal and suburban ones more conservative, and we’re often told that this is because of race. That may be partly true, though cities are whiter than ever and suburbs more diverse than ever. Instead, it may be that suburbanism itself, as an ideology, breeds reactionary thinking and turns Americans into people constantly scared of a Big Bad Other. The suburban doctrine dictates that public space be limited, and conflict-free where it exists; that private space serve only as a place of commodity exchange; that surveillance, hyper-individualism, and constant vigilance are good and normal and keep people safe. It is an ideology that extends beyond the suburbs; it infects everything. Even cities, as Sarah Schulman writes in The Gentrification of the Mind, have become places where people expect convenience and calmness over culture and community. What is a life of living in a surveilled and amenity-filled high-rise and ordering all your food and objects from the Internet to your door if not a suburban life? To make matters worse, the people who have adopted this mindset do not see it as an ideology, but as the normal and right state of the world; they, as Schulman writes, “look in the mirror and think it’s a window.” So when anything, even a gay T-shirt, disrupts their view, they become scared.

[headspace-hotel]

A lot of people don't know about why lawns are so disliked outside of how they are a waste of water, so here:

carbon emissions put out by lawn mowers (and other devices like leaf blowers). Lawn mowers produce significantly more greenhouse gases per hour of use than cars, and majorly contribute to smog.

Fertilizers get into bodies of water and cause algae blooms, converting all the diverse water plants to homogenous green slime.

Pesticides kill fireflies, bees, and all sorts of other beneficial insects, and many can kill or harm fish, birds and even humans.

Herbicides can have negative effects on the wrong targets too, but they are also causing common agricultural weeds to evolve resistance faster, increasing our dependence on pesticides.

Watering lawns does waste a lot of fresh water.

Lawns replace areas that once could have contained 100+ plant species with monocultures of frequently invasive species. Butterflies can't find host plants this way. Bees can't find food. Thousands of insect species rely on specific plants for food, and no other plant will do. A huge amount of the land is taken up by these wastelands.

Lawns also create dead, compacted, lifeless soil that is hard to grow other things in or near. The root systems of turf grasses are not robust enough to allow water to penetrate in. No matter how much nitrogen and phosphorous you dump on a lawn, it will still be lacking in the organic matter needed to create lush, absorbent dirt.

Dirt is supposed to be full of fungal mycelium. Scientists have discovered recently that the vast majority of all plant species are dependent on a network of symbiotic fungi attached to their roots for 80% of their phosphorous needs and 90% of their nitrogen needs.

Yes, this means that when you put a fungicide on your lawn, you've just nerfed that plant's ability to absorb nutrients by up to 90%. And you've also devastated its ability to absorb water, because plants are partly dependent on their fungi to get water out of dirt.

But fungicide isn't the only problem. Every plant in a natural environment is attached to multiple species of fungus, and most fungi are attached to multiple species of plant (though some are specialists). Trees literally use this system to send nutrients to other trees. We discovered recently that trees in deserts in California can survive extreme drought because they're attached to fungi that can break down rocks and extract water from the rocks.

If you don't have a good variety of plant species and rotting leaves and sticks and stuff, it doesn't matter how much fertilizer you put on it, your soil isn't "healthy" because it's not alive.

Vegetation that has been cropped extremely short doesn't hold in water, so a heavily maintained lawn is likely unnaturally dry for your climate, and a flower or bush in the middle of a lawn without tall grasses, shrubs and weeds nearby is getting pounded by the sun much harder than it's meant to handle.

Yeah, gardening isn't hard, most native plants are falling all over themselves to grow, it's just that the standard suburban backyard is ridiculously hostile to life.

Of course at this point you may be wondering

"What do I do instead?"

Well, here you go:

Stop weeding, spraying and fertilizing. Seriously. Stop it!! Stop it!! Chemical intervention in your lawn traps you in a vicious cycle of creating problems that need to be solved with more chemicals.

"Weeds" are a perfect example. Plants commonly considered "weeds" are adapted to take over areas that have been cleared out of other plants. Many "weeds" are actively harmed by the fungi that other plants depend on, meaning they can ONLY thrive in disturbed or devastated areas. The harder you work to eliminate biodiversity in your yard, the harder nature is going to bomb your yard with weeds.

By the way, google the "soil seed bank." Seeds can stay dormant in soil for years or even decades. If you want a "weed-free" lawn, get ready to apply herbicides for the rest of your life.

Mow less often. You really can't go wrong with this one.

Don't try to grow grass where grass doesn't want to grow. Lots of shade? Try moss. Extremely dry? Try drought-adapted plants. See what wants to grow there and let it do its thing.

It's fine to have a lawn area that you actually use. But if no one walks or plays on a stretch of your lawn, it should be something else. A wildflower patch, a stand of prairie grasses, some large shrubs, a grove of trees.

By the way, the idea that shrubs or flower beds are higher maintenance than lawns is wrong. The neat thing about native species is that once they've gotten settled, you literally just do nothing.

People think flower beds are high maintenance because people almost always underpopulate them. They think that there should be big spaces of mulch in between each plant. In a full sun flower bed that's actually filled to capacity, you shouldn't be able to see the ground. If your plants aren't babies anymore and there's still space, more plants.

if you live in an area that was once forest, PLEASE, plant some trees, and not just one tree. Trees are somewhat like guinea pigs, actually, they don't want to be alone. They send each other nutrients through their roots and screen each other from wind damage.

By the way, the "mature spread" of a tree as told on websites means when you plant it by itself. Trees can generally be planted 6-10 feet apart and be perfectly happy, they'll just grow taller and straighter instead of spreading out. (Look at pictures of forests.) HOWEVER large trees like large oaks should really be 25+ feet from structures and septic tanks

(Trees pop up by themselves in lawns. Constantly. Search for them in a woodland biome and you will likely find baby oaks and maples and other cool guys.)

Trees introduce competition for light into the areas you plant them, helping eliminate the "weeds." You know how fast your lawn grows up and gets weedy when you don't mow it? Yeah, that's partly because it's getting a CRAP TON of sunlight dumped on it with reckless abandon.

A shade garden gets "weedy" WAY slower, and unlocks all sorts of gorgeous flowers that don't thrive in a full sun garden. Fallen leaves serve both as compost and mulch. If you live in the right area for it and have room, you cannot go wrong with trees.

[makingspiritualityreal]

12th House - Saturnian Slowness

Planets in the 12th house will naturally have Saturnian characteristics, as Saturn is the Karaka for the 12th House. As a result, if we have natal planets in the 12th house, these areas of our lives will develop extremely slowly. In these areas, we will feel like we are behind the average of our age group, even if the average doesn't mean anything spectacular. Sometimes it's circumstantial, sometimes, it's our understanding of it, mostly it's a mix of both. Naturally, the planet and the sign involved will determine what takes the most time to grow.

Sun in the 12th House - Will be slow to understand their impact in the world. Will be slow to understand what they are building through their actions. Will be slow to build up integrity and accountability for what their behavior caused and will have many regrets as a result. Will be slow to get their affairs in order. Will be slow to appreciate themselves. Will be slow to understand they have a place in this world, no matter how small.

Moon in the 12th House - Will be slow to simply understand oneself. Will be slow to know how they truly feel in the moment. Will be slow in ability to have spontaneous reactions. Will be slow to develop an ego. Will be slow to connect to a life on this Earth. Will take Earthly experiences for granted, and derive wisdom from them slowly.

Mars in the 12th House - Slow to defend their interest and protect their territory. May let a lot of people step over them in early life. Slow to learn how to say no. Slow to learn their dislikes, even slower to express them. Slow to communicate their opinion, because they don't realise what they stand for. Will miss out on a lot of opportunities to make a stand as a result, because they don't understand their own beliefs, and they're slow in forming opinions.

Mercury in the 12th House - Slow to make friends and connections. Slow to develop their intellect, even slower to appreciate it. Slow learning process, may be behind with their knowledge of basic facts. Slow but persistent skill learning. Slow to learn a variety of objective perspectives, as intellectual narrowness was prominent in household. Slow to learn how to discuss using objectivity. Slow to learn how to enter into profitable exchanges, or even if they are in one, they don't understand what they are gaining and giving. Often only appreciate exchanges once they leave their life.

Venus in the 12th House - A good position, as it takes time in life to develop comfort and build solid relationships. Will be slow to have a good social circle, but it will be a quality one. Will have delayed romantic experiences. Will delay their own pleasure and gratification for the best moment, which is why this is a strong placement. Will delay sexual encounters, and avoid unnecessary ones as a result.

Jupiter in the 12th House - Slow to understand a general perspective of the world due to lack of opportunity, that makes their early experience narrow. Was forced to grow in a small minded environment and not given chances to travel and broaden the mind. They become very wise as they grow up, however, being self taught and having a very broad and diverse perspective. Ultimately, the world opens up to them gradually, at its own pace. Slow to believe in the hand of the divine in their life, because it takes so long for everything to finally pay off and make sense for them. Feelings of genuine inspiration and faith are slow to appear and be proven, but solid once discovered.

Saturn in the 12th House - Its natural position, because it embodies a gradual, patient approach to growing up itself. Simply put, the native understands growing up takes time. That makes for a very smooth transition from childhood into adulthood (if no afflictions) and the person is able to grow up and make their mark on the world very naturally without feeling like they need to rush it. They also have amazing precision with their goals and the tenacity to build them up over time.

Rahu in the 12th House - Will be very slow to break out of their comfort zone. If there is a planet attached, it will be greatly delayed, as the North Node brings anxiety of the unknown. Will have a great delay in being able to follow their desires. Will be timid in having an approach that is unfamiliar to them, but most conducive to their growth. An extremely stubborn an impatient person, a walking contradiction that wants to grow but doesn't. They need to be pushed very far to surrender to change, but they are slow to do that too.

Ketu in the 12th House - Another comfortable positions, as they are able to completely surrender to the flow of time. Slowness of life doesn't phase them at all, as they allow it to proceed at its own time, while they pursue the opposite in Rahu instead. The definition of "let go and let God", subconsciously, as they believe things will take care of themselves while they pursue more practical goals. The flaw here is being extremely slow in developing a deeper philosophy of spirituality and analysis. They miss out on more significant conclusions regarding what happened in their life until a very late age, and may accidentally miss out on something deeply important to them as a result, while they were chasing something completely else.

[puzzled-pegasus]

wof headcanons but theyre oddly food and substance related for some reason

Although I understand why Tui didn't include very much info abt alchohol or drugs in a kids book there is an extreme lack of culinary related world building so here are some ideas I had while on this train of thought :)

SeaWings tend to be foodies and are generally given cooking classes in school. Which if you think about it, is rather important, because like 60 percent of the creatures in the ocean are poisonous and the rest have parasites and nasty germs so they need to know whats up when it comes to food safety.

SeaWings use a lot of citrus in their food and drinks and they also use it for fragrances and stuff they just really like it

SeaWing nobles commonly eat fugu and there have been assassinations where a chef was bribed to not properly take out the poison so the dragon eating it would die

SeaWings drink to taste. SkyWings drink to forget what century it is.

SkyWings typically eat their meat raw but on special occasions they will barbecue it and put some spices n stuff on it. They don't eat much else besides meat but they do like spicy things like peppers and they also like strong onion or garlic flavors. The little masochists. Anyway,

SkyWings don't really like sweet things and many of them can't even taste them so they're like wtf is a dessert

man do they love them some olives tho. Olives everywhere. In their drink. Out of the jar. On their meat. Oil on their scales. Oil in their hygiene products. They started trading them from the Sand and SeaWings millennia ago but theyve selectively bred ones that grow in the mountains

This one's more drugs than food but SkyWings will sometimes take some kind of stimulant before battle like a beserker so they're all fired up heheh

MudWings are excellent meal preparers and sibs like to all cook together so they'll make a big pot of stew or something

They like bread and desserts, they have easy access to sugar cane being along the east coast and they also use a lot of honey. They're re into canning stuff too, they have a lot of raspberries and blackberries and strawberries in their temperate forest areas and they grow them to make jam and wine and they use honey to make mead

basically they are Cottagecore(TM) and I love them

They also eat lots of freshwater fish and crawfish and whatnot

And they also eat a lot of tatoes

Vanilla grows in the swamps, they use that in their cakes

MudWings deserve some appreciation goddamnit their kingdom is biologically diverse and beautiful

SandWings have tequila because. Yknow. Cactus.

They eat a lot of bugs and lizards, they don't really need to eat every day so it's not a huge deal

they do like coconuts tho and they use coconut oil in a lot of their hygiene products as well as in their cooking

They deep fry a lot of shit. Idk where i got this but trust me. They love things with lots of fat in it bc they need all they can get

Really sticky sweet desserts and candy; enjoyers of those one lollipops with the mealworms or whatever tf in them

also canning stuff like bone broth is very important

pickled cactus as well

rhey probably have a festival when cactus fruit goes in season

what even is IceWing cuisine.

Well way up north where there's nothing but ice it's pretty bad and the dragons have to eat just plain ass meat and seafood, but down into the tundras there's some pretty good stuff like cinnamon, pines for tea, honey berries, and other foraging as well as more diversity of meats

They would probably eat sushi

All the other tribes like to make fun of them and rightfully so bc their food is so plain

they make good honey berry wine tho

Maube that's why theyre so damn grumpy

RainWings are expert foragers ofc but they don't really feel the need to prepare their food in any way

They are, however, in constant dire need of sodium because they get absolutely none from their fruit

So anything salty is wow

Maybe rhey have a place near the mud kingdom border where they can grow some asparagus for salt

they are also the only tribe besides Night that can eat chocolate but forgor 💀 how to make it so the NightWings and them have to re figure it out together

Salted dark chocolate bing bang boom instant delicacy

NightWings used to be able to cook really well, especially desserts and pastry, but they forgor while they were trying to not die on the volcano

[sitronsangbody]

But what about health?? Fine, let’s talk about The Health. Here’s everything I think some of you should know and keep in mind when it comes to health: SOME MYTHS AND MISCONCEPTIONS: - You can’t know someone’s health just by looking at them. You just can’t. And it’s probably not any of your business. - Size is not a reliable indicator of health. There is currently no evidence that being fat in and of itself is bad for you. - Health is not a moral category. - Your body doesn’t need to be The Fittest It Could Possibly Be. What matters is where you need it to get you in life, not some theoretical physical potential. SOME STUFF NOBODY SEEMS TO GRASP: - Health is SO individual. Bodies are complex and incredibly diverse. They come with all sorts of needs and limitations and these fluctuate depending on so many inside and outside factors. We do not all need the same number of calories, the same number of steps, the same amount of rest. And we’re not all supposed to look the same. - More stuff than you probably think is genetic. - Mental health is just as important as physical health, and the two very much impact each other. - Our health is impacted by an array of societal factors beyond our individual control. - Some people will never be healthy for whatever reason, and that doesn’t make them less valuable in any way. SOME STUFF THAT IS ABSOLUTELY NOT HEALTHY: - Hating yourself. Fat people are constantly encouraged to fight against our weight and size, and it’s statistically a losing battle. One that wreaks havoc on our mental health. - Starving yourself and shutting out your body’s hunger cues. - Minority stress. Discrimination, marginalization and exclusion is not good for you. It impacts you both physically and mentally. In other words: shaming someone does less than nothing for their health. If you’re shaming people because “you worry about their health”, you are actively causing the kind of damage you claim you want to prevent. - Seeing doctors that don’t know enough about the body you have and how symptoms manifest in it. A very real occurrence for many black people, trans people, fat people, disabled people - the list goes on. - Not having universal health insurance SOME THINGS THAT ARE INDEED HEALTHY: - Eating regularly. Eating a variety of foods and food groups. You should find and eat food you like if possible. - Some level of movement regularly. A lot of us already get it at work et cetera. You should move in a way that you enjoy, that does not cause pain. - Staying hydrated. - Getting enough sleep. The amount will vary from person to person. - Resting when you need it. - Brushing your teeth. Wearing sunscreen. - Not overdoing it with drugs and alcohol. - Fresh air. - Being - and feeling - safe. - Love and community. - Being kind to yourself. NOTE: not everyone has access to all of this. People are busy. People are poor. People are sick. People lack accommodations they need. People live in dangerous areas. People are abused and controlled. The world around us has a huge amount of power over our health.

[y-rhywbeth2]

Lore: Baldur's Gate #1

Link: Disclaimer regarding D&D "canon" & Index [tldr: D&D lore is a giant conflicting mess. Larian's lore is also a conflicting mess. You learn to take what you want and leave the rest]

The City | Demographics | Administration & Government | ??? - WIP

Might as well start compiling lore on the namesake of the game...

Featuring the city aesthetic (the depiction of it in-game wasn't nearly grey, damp or claustrophobic enough) and a mostly complete overview of the city and its major areas: the Lower City, Upper City, Outer City, Undercellar and Undercity.

Cultural titbits: like why you can't have animals bigger than peacocks; that you shouldn't live here if you have claustrophobia; how the Patriars clearly have it out for people with hay fever; the constant mould problem; where to go to get a glowing tattoo, a fake tan and the magical equivalent of a plastic surgeon; and why, in fairness to the Banites, the city requires very little effort to turn into a nightmarish police state under the control of an evil deity.

And if your Dark Urge is a sewer gremlin then that's a life choice they're making, not a Bhaalist thing: the Undercity isn't in the sewers.

-

The city state of Baldur's Gate is one of Faerûn's more important ports, situated geographically between the massive trade centres of Athkatla and Waterdeep. It began its life as a fusion of the early fishing hamlet of Loklee (formed around 0 DR) and the pirate and smuggler hub that formed nearby. It was a popular port with a shipyard and visitor's wharves by 204 DR. The natural harbour the man-made harbour is built on is one of the only places in hundreds of miles that's safe for ships to dock at.

Due to the lack of nearby settlements to form competition, the trade hub attained city status and import early in its existence. It briefly fell under the early kingdom of Shavinar, though this was mostly a technicality and the settlement continued to govern itself and continued to do so when the kingdom fell in 277 DR.

The area was first officially recognised in the history books as the city of of Baldur's Gate in 446 DR.

The primary spoken language of the Gate is Chondathan, however during the Spellplague the city attracted enough refugees to become one of Faerûn's most populated cities, and it's a diverse enough location that many people are at least bilingual (not counting Common): many speak Chondathan, their native/ancestral language and a third.

As a major port the city has always been something of a melting pot and encouraged a policy of tolerance - you don't want to drive away merchants and trade, after all. Likewise, in the interests of encouraging trade, the city has enforced a stance of political neutrality and refuses to be drawn into international problems.

Officially, the city prides itself on being welcoming to all ways of life, to the point where anyone and anything goes as long as they obey the laws and don't rock the boat; even the open worship of the majority evil gods is completely unremarkable - what if you want to trade with a place where those gods are a major religion, after all? While Umberlee is worshipped everywhere near the sea (under threat of tidal waves and drowning in retribution for not worshipping her), Baldur's Gate is one of the few places she has an actual temple.

A shrine to any god - regardless of what their faith does or preaches - can be established in any of the temple districts for public worship, and the law will pay it no mind.

This reputation for tolerance and neutrality means it tends to be one of the first choices for refugees and immigrants looking for a new start. The city is extremely crowded, with many people packed into tight spaces and narrow streets, and its population numbers surpassed the metropolis of Waterdeep decades ago; standing at 42,103 people in the 14th century, it has likely more than doubled since. Visitors often find it incredibly - possibly intolerably - loud and busy, while locals consider them to be backwater farmers who don't know what civilisation looks like.

While the city doesn't discriminate legally against any groups, its reputation for tolerance is somewhat overexaggerated. Peoples who are viewed as monstrous by the Realms at large, such as orcs and other goblinoids, or drow, can expect to feel unwelcome as with everywhere else. The recent wave of unwanted human refugees from Calimshan have a strained relationship with the established Baldurians, who view them as foreign and wish they'd just assimilate and start speaking Chondathan already. The city is a human settlement by culture and demographics, retaining its historical human majority, and while the demihuman minorities are part of mundane everyday life, there have been incidents such as in the early 14th century, which saw the rise of The Sure Helm: a human supremacy group who had an issue with the non-humans in their society and were known to carry out hate crimes on the likes of half-elves and half-orcs if they thought they could get away with it.

On a slightly saner note: you have the freedom of religion to worship a god who demands slaves and blood sacrifice, but it's a bad idea to advertise that... Or get caught slaving and murdering, unless you're a very high ranking priest.

--

Local bards tend to refer to the city as the Cresent moon in their lyrics and poems, after the shape of the city layout. The musical traditions of the Gate focus on "brassy-voiced tenors" and "delightfully smoky altos".

Baldurians frown on drunk, debauched and disorderly behaviour in public: there's no space for this nonsense and you're keeping everybody on the street awake.

The gate has an array of cosmetic services available in the markets of the Wide, where - as well as mundane tattooists and piercers - one can hire wizards in the market to perform cosmetic alterations with transmutation magic: glowing tattoos and other strange illusions, tans, magically affixing gems and jewellery like pieces to your body, changing hair colour, texture and style, changing your eye colour, altering your height or your weight or your sexual dimorphism, etc etc.

It's considered bad luck to harm a cat. Many of the animals moved into the area by hitching a ride on sea traffic, and as they're extremely useful for keeping vermin down both on land and at sea, Baldurians are fond of them.

If you need help carrying your shopping or finding somewhere in the city, most street corners have youths known as "lamp boys" and "lamp lasses" you can hire - so called because of the lanterns they carry at night. With the founding of the newspaper you can also find them hawking the daily papers.

The trade the city brings is the lifeline of the Sword Coast (South), and the only place one can buy foreign and luxury goods in the entire region. That said, these goods come at a significant mark up compared to the prices you'd find in Waterdeep or anywhere in Amn.

The majority of silver trade bars (bars of metal used in place of coins, for ease of transport) are made in the Gate, and the city sets the standards for this form of currency.

-

The city has always been heavily policed, and is known for being quiet and one of the safest cities in Western Faerûn; Baldurians don't expect much if any major disruption to the city's day-to-day life.

The city has its own City Watch - member of the watch being readily identified by their black helms, bearing a red stripe down one side - however the Flaming Fist Mercenary Company is the first thing that comes to mind when you mention law enforcement; you can barely go more than an hour without seeing at least one uniformed officer.

The City Watch used to be the city's police force, however by the end of the 15th century the Fist has taken on much of their role, and the Watch now functions purely as the private law keepers of the Upper City. They are permitted to live within the Upper City, and positions in the watch are now mostly hereditary.

Even when the Watch was the official city police the Fist boasted an army a thousand strong. By the start of the 15th century the Fist had taken over city patrols in a semi-official capacity. The two groups also overlap, and many of the Watch are also secretly members of the Fist. One in ten people in the gate - Watch or otherwise - are spies and informants for the mercenary company.

They may not be fully reliable as a police force however, as they are known to chose not to deal with some problems, declaring it a problem for the watch to deal with. Notably they do not police the Outer City and refuse to touch anything involving the Undercellar.

The Flaming Fist also has outposts in other realms, where it guards the foreign trade interests of the city, such as Fort Beluarian (a hamlet of 313 people) in the jungles of Chult on the Southern end of Faerûn. Being mercenaries, they are available for hire for any purpose that isn't considered flat out evil.

Of course the heavy policing and massive police presence, to anybody who cares to look closer at the city's outward appearance of security, is a giant tip-off that the city has a thriving underworld. The Thieves Guild is an ever-present force, and the religious tolerance means that there are a lot of other organised crime syndicates (ie the priests), murderers and extortion rackets running around. Such organisations keep close diplomatic ties to the Grand Dukes and the commander of the Flaming Fist.

-

The weather conditions are typically rain, sleet or fog depending on season and time of day, and the streets and buildings are almost constantly wet either from the weather or the sea. The architecture is almost entirely stone, as it's less likely to rot. The streets are often slippery, and straw or gravel from the river is sometimes thrown over the cobbles for grip. The citizens take advantage of the moisture and damp to use their cellars to cultivate edible fungi. Damp, mould and mildew are a common menace, but it did lead a wizard named Halbazzer Drin to make his fortune by inventing spells that banishes mildew (12gp per casting) and dry out an area without damaging anything (10gp), so services exist if you need to hire them. The spell is not known outside of the city; Drin refused to sell knowledge of the spell to anyone for any price or offer. Due to the damp, the streets have no banners or other hanging fabrics around.

Buildings tend to be tall and narrow, with shuttered slit windows placed high up, which will be firmly shut at night and all day in winter, to keep out the gales and invading gulls looking for places to nest. The extremely narrow streets of the Lower City are full of window planters and hanging baskets of flowers, providing the sole spot of colour amongst the grey. As the city streets are so steep and narrow, the city has a ban on allowing animals larger than a dog into the city (it's too difficult for them to navigate and likely to cause traffic issues).

Boxed in by its thick, heavily fortified city walls and with no space to expand the city has largely built upwards, and the streets are filled with stone buttresses and arches supporting the upper floors.

Due to its stony architecture and frequent overcast, the entire city is often referred to as the Grey Harbour by residents. (This is also the name of the actual city harbour)

The city is built into the chalk white cliffs around the harbour, growing in elevation until the settlement stops at the outermost walls.

By the 15th century, the city was firmly divided into the Lower and Upper Cities, the latter of which is built into the highest elevation, cut off by a wall. In the population boom that followed the mass immigration of Spellplague refugees, many people were forced to make space for themselves outside of the walls, building the Outer City. Beneath the city lies the Undercellar

Descending from the Undercellar is a labyrinth of tunnels leading down into caverns buried beneath Baldur's Gate; housing the ruins of a forgotten era, where the Temple of Bhaal stands over the ruins, surrounded by the restless spirits and walking corpses of undead residents ancient and brand new.

-

The Lower City houses most of the city, crafts and trade.

With the narrow spaces, cliffs, tall buildings and arches, the city can get rather dark at night. What public lighting is available is maintained by the citizens themselves. The wealthier parts of the Lower City, like Bloomridge, use oil and wick copper bowls, while poorer areas make do with candles in tin lanterns, usually such things are mounted on the walls and ceilings of the darkest corners; but when you want to navigate at night you'll usually be hiring lamp lads.

The Grey Harbour is one of Toril's most famous and best ports, frequented by legitimate merchant captains and pirates alike; many of the families living on the docks are the families of sailors. The area is very industrialised, sporting the shipyard, multiple cranes and railway tracks used to facilitate the moving of goods. The most notable structures are the Harbourmaster's Office, a tiny building with barred windows that deals with all trades and taxes - and the Water Queen's House at the end of the pier, which everybody with a brain makes offerings to and nobody looks too closely at whatever the Umberlant priests get up to in there, because the vast majority of people like breathing.

The Gate has little in the way of large fanciful festivals, but specific streets in the Lower City are prone to a centuries old tradition of "cobble parties", where the people living on a street pull up some chairs, benches and barrels and gather outside to share a mild drink, tell stories and chat. An ongoing cobble party can be recognised by the bright rose-red torches that are hung up along the street walls - these torches are made at Felogyr's Fireworks and can be bought almost anywhere in the city.

Bloomridge is as close the Upper City as you can get without actually gaining access, and houses the Gate's middle class. It was initially built in elevated platforms cimbing up the Upper City's walls using magic and Gondian engineering. It's various attractions - including fanciful architecture, florists, artisanal boutiques, fancy open-air kaeth houses (cafes) and dining houses (restaurants; also known as "skaethars" or "feasthalls"), and elaborate hanging gardens and floral arcades - made it attractive to those with wealth but no pedigree.

The district expanded as those who could afford to do so began purchasing and razing the original, less fancy buildings in the vicinity and building estates on the ground where they used to stand. Those who can't quite afford that instead opt to live in high class apartment buildings and flats over the local businesses. Buildings here often have rooftop gardens and balconies with pleasant vistas.

-

The Upper City is located in the oldest quarter of the city, the Lower City being built outside of the walls and stretching down to the harbour and then having the lower city walls constructed around it. The only gate connecting the two halves is the eponymous Baldur's Gate, the first of the many city gates constructed. It's also heavily guarded and the only gate by which outsiders may access the Upper City; there are numerous smaller gates, but they are exclusively used by patriars and those bearing family livery or bearing a letter of employment signed by a patriar. This district houses the Gate's oldest and most powerful families: anyone who isn't a patriar is either a servant or a watchman, who will most likely be a member of a family that has served a patriar family/the Upper City for generations. The exceptions tend to be a handful of the most successful and affluent business owners whose businesses have become popular enough with the nobility to be welcomed in. Every business and city service in this district exists to serve the upper class exclusively.

It's the most open and colourful part of the city; the shutters and doors are painted in fresh, vibrant paints. The streets are broad and well lit with ornate enchanted lamps; the terrain is mostly flat, unlike the streets of the Lower City, which can often resemble giant staircases.

Businesses that would cause unpleasant smells are banned from the area, and the Upper City maintains many gardens, windowsill planters and trellises where flowers bloom and fill the air with pleasant scents (unless you have hay fever, anyway). Wandering minstrels provide ambient music as they wander the streets - usually a singer playing a lute or harp accompanied by a flutist and perhaps a drummer who may provide a chorus.

They've also got drains, so the streets are less inclined to flood or turn to mud the way the rest of the city is.

There are no inns or alehouses here: a noble who wishes to drink will either host a party, attend a private club, or go slumming in the Lower City.

The Upper City houses the High Hall, also known as the ducal palace; the administrative building that provides a place for feasts, court hearings and government meetings. The meeting rooms are and have always been open for public use, however there is a rule that states you cannot rent a meeting room there twice within 48 hours (to stop people from monopolising the rooms). The High Hall used to be a more grim, military building but has since been renovated to appear more bright and friendly as a PR stunt following a giant riot over taxes.

The other two of the city's temples are located in the Upper City, the Lady's Hall - a Temple of Tymora - and the High House of Wonders, the temple of Gond (who is near enough the city's patron god). The building serves various purposes: a temple, workshops, factories and laboratories. When something deemed ready for the eye is released it can usually be viewed in the Hall of Wonders: a science museum across the street to the temple.

It's also where the Gate's largest marker - the Wide - is situated. It's the only large open space in the city, and the only open air market. Outside of festivals, performances and music is banned in the area. The Wide is usually packed with people forced to stand shoulder-to-shoulder, and those who are hired to perform deliveries in the Wide are always tall and large, capable of seeing over the heads of the throngs and pushing their way through. Goods are carried atop tall poles that are strapped to the deliverymen's chests or backs. Prices are lowest in the Wide compared to anywhere else, and any transactions that cannot be performed within a licensed store must take place here by law.

Permits to rent space in the Wide for the day are limited, and they usually go to whoever has the money to bribe the bailiff, watchmen and other officials who have sway in over the market's administration - which is usually the merchants of the Upper City.

As well as the usual fare of goods, the Wide offers a large range of cosmetic services including the mundane body modifications and stylists that one would find on Earth, and more esoteric concepts that can only be accomplished with magic; such services and the artisans who provide them are seasonal and ever changing. The Wide is the most colourful spot in the city, and the only place that's the exception to the lack of banners and other hanging fabrics. Historically the Wide was open all day and night, but in recent times the watch has been closing the area at dusk - nobody except for the patriars may have use of the Upper City after dark.

The Wide is only closed if the area must be used for something else, such as public Highharvestide festivals... or because a patriar decided to close it off for private use, such as a ball or wedding.

Just outside of the market area is the rest of the Upper City's commercial area; stores, insurance offices, trade guildhalls, Ramazith's tower and the public entrance to the Undercellar - a flight of stone stairs leading down to a pair of heavy oak doors at the southern edge of the market. The doors are shut, but the Undercellar never closes and if you knock somebody will open them and usher you inside.

-

The Undercellar is a maze of underground passages lying beneath the city - mostly vaulted stone chambers created from the interconnected and abandoned cellars of the old Upper City, with hidden exits all over the city. Those who know where these exits are tend to guard them jealously, but may be willing to allow the Thieves' Guild access for coin or service. The Guild itself controls a fair few of these exits, and has been working on expanding the network.

It's also the playground for the criminal underworld of the Gate. The Undercellar's public image is that of a rather unprincipled festhall (a specific form of adult entertainment venue in the Realms that serves as a fusion of casino, bar, lounge, spa, brothel, playground, BDSM scene, LARPing club and so forth), which in a way, it is. Due to its dangerous reputation, it's incredibly popular, especially with those who are trying to look edgy and dangerous (particularly teenagers).

If one is openly carrying weapons, you can expect the armed guards stationed in the room to start following you closely; otherwise they'll leave you be. The guards are unlikely to care much about any disturbances, so long as they don't start disrupting everybody's business. Customers are not to venture further into the Undercellar without permission and an escort.

And behind that edgy, but mostly harmless veneer visitors play at and never see past is the real Undercellar, which is every bit as dark as its rumoured to be.

The Guild has its offices down here, and other rooms are used for varying purposes by other criminals. Want to put a hit on somebody, watch somebody get murdered in a Bhaalist red room, smuggle people or whatever crimes against humanity you feel like seeking out, this'd be the place to do it.

The Undercellar is policed by nobody except the criminals who do their work down there; whatever might take place down there, neither the Watch nor the Fists have any desire to know about them if you try and bring them to light. Want to avoid bad things? Don't get involved with the Undercellar.

The sprawling, pitch-black maze - if one knows how to navigate it - is a good way to get around the Upper City without detection. Somewhere down there is a passage that goes deeper, leading further into the earth and into the Undercity.

The Undercity is, clue in the name, the dead remains of a city buried beneath the living Baldur's Gate (specifically the original city that became the Upper City). At its heart is the Temple of Bhaal, and the city is inhabited by Bhaalists, alive and dead; the original, now undead, inhabitants of the undercity and any victims of the temple that have joined them.

-

The Outer City, Cliffgate and Blackgate are not technically parts of the city, being constructed outside of them.

The soil surrounding the city is little use for agriculture, but it is sufficient for grazing, so most farmers are the likes of shepherds and cattle farmers. As livestock and large animals are not permitted inside the city, cattle markets, stables and such businesses will be found there. Many of the less pleasant businesses, such as butchers and tanners, have relocated here to spare the rest of the city the smell and mess.

Much of the structures are semi-permanent in nature, and the areas are not subject to official oversight or in possession of any particular infrastructure. They aren't policed by the Fist or the watch, the area is near enough lawless, and crime is frequent. "Security" tends to be overseen by the Guild, and while the government doesn't tax outside the walls, residents still have to pay their dues to the local thieves and thugs.

The Outer City is as crowded as the Lower City, but less sanitary or orderly: these places are dirty, loud, smell a lot and tend to be quite dangerous. Many of the residents are farmers, criminals and foreigners and immigrants of varying generation who can't afford or find a place in the city proper.

The Blackgate is the historical slum area, and grew around the inland-facing Black Gate to the North West, growing around the Trade Way connecting The Gate to Waterdeep.

The Tumbledown district, located in Cliffgate outside the city gate of the same name, is the middle child of the expansions, leading down the cliffs. The land was owned by the Szarr family generations ago, before they were all (supposedly) slaughtered by a rival family in the night. Tumbledown is an extremely foggy area, full of graveyards and tombs, and rumours abound that the ghosts of the dead Szarrs haunt the streets there and steal people away. People do disappear there, but most people are sceptical that it's due to ghosts.

The Outer City is a newer, larger slum that grew around the Basilisk Gate and spread along the Coast Way - the road between the Gate and Athkatla - as the city population exploded at the end of the 14th century.

Immigrant communities have taken the opportunity to build their own settlements in the Outer City, styled in their own architectural styles, such as Little Calimshan; a tenement on Wyrm's Crossing is exclusively occupied by halflings; Whitkeep houses a gnomish community who does most of the city's tinsmithing; half-orcs lodge in Stoneyes; a shield dwarven community is located in Shieldgate.

These communities are considered outsiders by most Baldurians, and generally there's no love lost between those inside the walls and outside.

[writingwithcolor]

Historical romance with Black woman, without including racism

Anonymous asked:

I write regency romance and I have a female character that I have written as having a mother who is black Antiguan and father who is white British in 1819—he’s a Viscount so they are highly placed. I want their daughter to have a typical romance arc…and that’s it. I don’t plan on making any of her problems about race or even mention it other than describing her as black and a brief backstory on how her parents met. In ignoring this aspect of her—whatever problems might have presented themselves, what conflicted feelings she might have about British white high society in that era—am I wrong? If I am wrong but still don’t want the romance to be about race and class, how to do that in a respectful way? 

Or, is it okay to tell the story of romance without race being an issue at all?

Yes, yes, and yes. And it’s not so much about ignoring any racial conflicts in the era. Although, the history and treatment of Black people was not the same in the European regions as it was in the Americas (feel free to do some research, for context).

It’s about whether the issue matters specifically to: 

your story

the specific area 

your character’s narrative

to those around her, or specifically the people she interacts with, including the lover, his relatives, friends, and so on.

And it’s okay for that answer to be no. You do not need to make racism just * not exist* but rather, not make it a matter for the people in the story. This is the case whether you write a story set in 1819 or 2025!

Black people should be allowed stories, especially with romances, that aren’t about racist conflict and being dehumanized. The regency romance genre lacks Black women protagonists in love, and BIPOC in general. And these Black women and people do not need to only be mixed race or light, either.

Steps to diversify the genre starts with just letting us exist in history without fears of being “historically inaccurate.”

As discussed many times here:

Black people existed (and exist!) in Europe, and not only as enslaved or oppressed people. 

Arguments against historical accuracy are usually only served to keep inclusion out, not to bring it in. The same historical accuracy is not called for when including fairies, ogres and dragons in historical settings. 

Therefore, if supernatural creatures can exist in this era as upper class and royalty, so can Black people, period. But again, they did! So.

Not including racism doesn’t mean ignoring reality 

Now, if one were to write a story about a Black person today and not include any racism, are they somehow doing Black people a disservice by not putting them through traumas and racism they already face on a regular basis? I would say absolutely not. In fact, it’s what I personally go for. Escapism should exist for us too. These heavy-hearted books have their place and can be sought out if desired. 

Colorblindness

On the same note, colorblindness is not ideal. You mention that you’ll still describe the characters, which is good. But being Black or another race or ethnicity, but leaving out the anti and ‘isms doesn’t mean you’re removing an essential part of them. A welcome part of representation is to acknowledge their looks, culture, food, languages…aka the things that make them who they are. The narrative doesn’t need to obsess over differences, but simply accept them as natural. 

Some people have this fear of race. As if to talk about, mention or even notice race is to be racist. “Black” is a whispered word. 

Avoid all talk of “despite of race” or “not seeing race” because that’s 

1) simply not true and is 

2) another form of racist erasure. 

We can see and acknowledge differences between you and me. And they can simply be embraced and accepted, not ignored.

Ways to acknowledge diversity without racism in romance

There are many ways to do this. Here are just some ideas, some vague and some specific. 

Describe and mention the character’s looks

Include physical descriptions of your character’s race. Whether you show or tell, you should make it clear that they’re Black, or the given race you’re writing. It doesn’t have to be a big deal for the plot. It should be something that is at least apparent to readers. Without clear indication, the character will likely be seen as white. Book covers help avoid this white-as-default assumption, too.

You can thread descriptions and reminders, short or longer, throughout the story.

Examples

She had rich brown skin and even darker brown eyes. I lost my breath when she tucked her chin, only to bat her heavy lashes my way.

Thick curls spilled around her face, black coils against golden brown skin.

I attribute my looks to my Antiguan roots - dark brown skin, umber eyes, and a small, rounded nose - all traits that I got from my mother. 

She tucked a thick coil under her bonnet

Comparisons also work, particularly if the people are not used to seeing people of this race. Now, these comparisons should not be about exalting one race or putting down the other group(s). Pointing out differences does not need to be a battle of what or who is better looking.

More examples

Lance couldn’t keep his eyes off of the beautiful woman stepping off of the boat. Her skin held a warm brown hue. He’d never seen skin this rich in color – all of his friends and neighbors were pale or only slightly tanned from the sun.

She had dark skin, her brown shade much deeper in tone than the other humans he had met so far on his ventures through space.

Her brown skin, black hair and dark eyes contrasted with those of the pale, blonde women in the room.

“I hear the Duke is courting that young Moorish woman.” “The woman’s name is Emilia Watson,” Sarah said, resolutely.

He admired the stark contrast of their skin, brown and white, as they walked hand in hand.

Add culture, not racism

Culture is many, many things. So there’s many ways to show hints of it throughout the story. 

Consider things like:

Food

Holidays

Clothing

Religion, beliefs, myths

Language, phrases

Mannerisms, values and habits

Superstitions

Family roles

Traditions and customs

Art

Food

A special mention to food, but perhaps because I’m hungry writing this. Food can be culture, and a very important part of it, I think it’s also an easy and fun way to incorporate it into a story, without needing to mention racism.

Examples

The characters makes her partner or the family a traditional dish. He / they could also share their favorites with her.

She shows him how to make a dish passed down throughout the family. 

Something she makes him is so spicy that he runs to find water for relief, which could be a funny and cute moment.

They celebrate a special holiday or tradition by making a meal together.

They visit a market that sells food or produce from her homeland that they try and enjoy.

In summary

Please feel free to write historical romances with BIPOC, minus the racism. I promise that there’s an audience for it!

More reading

Wealthy Black character in historical romance, written by white author

(1800s Western) non-racist White characters interacting with Black and Native people

Historical American Fiction without the Racism

FAQ - “It wouldn’t be historically accurate for my story to include BiPoC.” 

Praising Beauty Without Fetishizing PoC 

~Mod Colette

P.S. If anyone has some good diverse regency romances with WOC, please drop those recommendations. I’m always trying to find more to read! 

[niqhtlord01]

Humans are weird: The place humans dare not tread

Extract from Garth Len’al, chief representative of the Zevalen Union to the Terran Federation Subject: Human Definition of “Death Worlds”

“A “Death World” is considered to be one of our people we think of extreme temperatures or unstable environments. In practice it seems like a standard definition, yet not for every species in the galaxy.

Extreme temperatures mean nothing to humans. It doesn’t matter if it is -100 or 300, they find ways to thrive in these otherwise deadly conditions as easily as one would move through water. Some even go further by using their natural evolutionary traits to adapt and condition themselves. I have seen visual files of humans stripping naked and bathing themselves in snow or laying in the scorching sun like a child in a candy store.

The instability of worlds has likewise not been a hindrance to humanity as had the extreme temperatures. In these situations they see it as a challenge and seek to perform mechanical wonders to tame their new home. On Dorbi II they built massive mobile cities that move between green zones each month to avoid the planets various earthquake seasons. For Timpel Prime they used massive drilling constructs to channel lava flows to create habitable regions for plant life to grow. Most impressive was Havenstead where they were able to artificially induce the coral to grow into massive mountain sized landmasses that reached all the way up from the seas floor to build new settlements on.

So if the standard definitions for a so called “Death World” do not apply, what then do humans considered to be death worlds? Would such a definition even exist in their vocabulary? It would surprise many that humans do have that definition, but it has a much darker and morbid meaning attached that far exceeds our own imagination.

Only one world has ever fit the definition of a “Death World” for humans. It was a world discovered during their golden age of exploration and was found to be full of such nightmares and horrors that all records of its location have been removed from every human archive and data base. It is now spoken of as a legend passed between one human to another, both as myth and warning to never seek it out.

That world has no other name then that of “Garden of Montezuma”.

From all surviving accounts the planet was described as a paradise world. Lush green and bountiful jungles covered the entire planet which supported a diverse wildlife not seen in millennia. Water so pure you could see the bottom of their oceans and skies so breathtaking the stars were said to never have been brighter.

The first colonization attempt was centered on the southern hemisphere with roughly two hundred human settlers to lay the foundation for a colony. The news networks on the human homeworld advocated heavily for the planet and it was expected that within a month of the initial establishment it would quickly grow in size. So when the final day came the colonists were dropped off with all the supplies they would need and a scheduled drop of new materials put in place for one month later.

A month went by and the supply ship returned only to find every trace of the colony was gone.

The area cleared away had been once more swallowed up by the jungles. Vines thick as tree trunks covered the few prefabricated buildings and landing pads that remained making the entire place seem like the ruins of an ancient civilization rather than a month long undertaking. Yet even more perplexing was the complete lack of any of the two hundred colonists.

It was as if the jungle had returned and claimed what had been taken from it.

This brought on a wave of fear for the humans as the sudden mysterious loss went unexplained. Dozens of investigators were sent to the planet while a human fleet did a swing by to scan for human life signs on the planet. Both came up empty and within three months the terran public had moved on to new dilemmas.

Five years went by before a second colonization attempt was made; although this time a detachment of military would also accompany the settlers to the colony. This time a location along the western landmass near the coastline was chosen; far from the original settlement location.

While the settlers got to work on building the settlement itself, the military contingent began work on a series of fortifications that ringed the entire perimeter. By the day’s end the colonists were surrounded in a fortress of fabricated stone, barbed wire, automated turrets, and enough armed personnel to occupy a small city. To add further to this impressive display the original transport ship that had carried the settlers and military forces to the planet remained in orbit and conducted hourly scans of the surrounding area to warn of any potential threats.

Three hours after sunset the transport ship began picking up frantic distress signals coming from the planet. He demanded to know why his scanning officers had not warned him, and to his surprise they were just as blindsided as he was. The scans had revealed no new movement on or within the perimeter for the last several hours when suddenly the communications network was hammered by dozens of distress calls coming from the surface.

They made a direct call to the military commander, Commander Nathan Tole, and demanded an update. When the video feed finally established the captain was saw the commander at the back of his office with two other soldiers hiding behind an overturned desk. The three of them were firing wildly at the doorway, punching holes through the sealed door and making whatever was on the other side squeal in pain.

The roar of sustained gunfire drowned out every attempt of the captain to speak to Nathan, and even if they weren’t the crew doubted he would have answered them anyway. The commander’s eyes were mad with fear as he fired over and over at the shadowy creatures beyond the door.

As the bullet holes became ever wider the door finally gave way and collapsed into the room. Whatever had been trying to get in before now shambled into the room and came within full view of the video feed and made every heart watching the feed skip a beat.

The figures were the colonists they had delivered but they were twisted and deformed in horrific manners. Their flesh had been turned a sickly green while their bones and muscle warped in unnatural positions to make them appear more beast than human. Their uniforms hung from their deformed bodies in rags and shreds, in places their bodies had grown and stretched so violently the growths had burst through them.

Each one was different in their appearance. Some looked almost normal save for their green skin, while others were beyond recognition standing six feet tall and covered in wood like spines.

All of the figures shambled into the room and made straight for the soldiers who continued to fire what dwindling ammunition they had left. Bullets punctured them and green ichor spurted out; yet they kept shambling forward.

The captain watched as one of the soldiers panicked and leapt out the nearby window while another put the muzzle of their rifle under their chin and fired a bullet straight into their head. Only Commander Tole remained as he continued firing round after round until finally the fateful click chimed and the commander was out of ammo.

Flipping the gun over, the commander held it like a club and prepared himself for his final stand. Before the feed went out, he turned to the video screen and said “Do not come here, this place is death”. At the transmissions end the captain began to issue orders for transports to return to the settlement and save the survivors, but his crew informed him that by now it would be too late.

Within another hour the distress signals faded one by one. The captain had his crew tap into the video feeds of the colony and watched the same nightmare play out over and over.  Dwindling pockets of resistance were overrun by swarms of monsters. Several individuals tried to navigate to the landing pads and escape only to be caught and infected themselves.

By the dawn of the next day there was not a single living sole in the entire settlement; and just as mysteriously as the creatures had arrived did they then vanish into the surrounding jungle without a single notice.

From that day forward the planet was listed as officially off limits. To further enforce the restriction a virus was introduced into the galactic positioning net which deleted all records of the star system and its location. Were it not for the recordings the captain made to carry back to terran space there would be no evidence what so ever of this fiendish planet. Yet even now, some sixty years later you still hear stories of humans searching for the lost gardens of Montezuma. The fools know the risk and the tales of horror and yet still go on the quest for it.

Then again, to find the only world that humans ever said was a death world would be a story worthy of tale in of itself.

[darktapufifi]

5566 — Planet Ourea

Classification: Terrestrial Group - Tectonic Class - EuGaian - Paludial Gaian - Bathy pelagic

[See Resources for definitions/explanations, the post I got them from did some amazing work.]

This planet is located outside of the normal solar system, and its current location has been lost to time.

Terrain & Ecosystem: Boreal zone

The planet is almost entirely comprised of mountainous regions, the mountains made completely of rock, assumed at one point in history to have been the tectonic plates of the planet, but the truth has been lost to time. Between the walls of mountains there lies valleys, abundantly filled with life. Many of the valleys are filled with taiga forests and freshwater lakes, however there are some deciduous forests scattered amongst the coniferous taiga forests all over the planet amongst mountains. The mountains however only take up around half of the planet, the other half is an abundant and deep ocean, with some manmade sea stack island, as some of the more aquatic or recluse species and individuals refused to move on land or to live in the mountains.

Social Climate: Democracy

many of the areas inside the openings in the mountains lack any land to begin with, which is why they've probably adapted a way for sea life to get up to said cities, like a water elevator or smthin, or like a water proof teleportation pad

The planet adapted to the mountainous environments by building homes and cities along the mountainsides, where all walks of life lived from the sky to the land and sea. They built systems to get up and down the mountains, and even to get into the ocean from one point to another with ease, allowing ocean stacks to visit the mainland when needed. Due to the abundant resources and knowledge on the planet however, it became a supply point and rest stop, the economy boosted by the visitors coming and going from the planet. It was visited often enough that the space riders had an unofficial station located on the planet for any business they needed to conduct. Strict laws were set in place so the planet was not over harvested for its natural resources, and those laws were passed down and improved upon over thousands of years until they could have easily been considered sacred to the inhabitants of the planet, the punishment of violation often ending in exile or death, though everyone always had a vote in the matter, and all opinions were heard out. Many markets had currency exchange areas to allow those from other worlds to be able to purchase until there was a standardized currency declared and used widespread. Merchants and merchandise were subjected to laws to ensure regulation standards were followed when it came to the buying and selling of goods, but it was also to keep track on the resources heading out so they could abide by the harvesting regulations. They had a bustling economy and a diverse population up till the end.

Native race/species: Anthropoeidís

Also known as Beast Folk in layman's terms, the Anthropoeidís species is a group of highly intelligent organisms, akin to humans or critters, that originate from the planets oldest living species of animals, and evolved over thousands of years. The history of each different animal is passed down its species line to what was current day before the destruction of the planet.

Status: Destroyed - Necro Gaian

Annihilated by the Prototype. The cult laid siege to the planet, captured any inhabitants possible, then destroyed the planet. First flooded it with red smoke, then completely destroyed into rubble. Disrupted the ecosystem and killed all life.

TLDR: Planet core got pumped so full of smoke that it imploded.

Appearance & Map:

[See Resources for the site used to make the map.]

Space Riders AU by @onyxonline

~{ Resources }~

Planet classification —

Map making —

[hpowellsmith]

Do you think a degree is a good place to start to get into the narrative designer scene? I don't have any sort of degrees and whenever I look at job postings it kind of intimidates me.

You don't necessarily need a game design degree. There isn't a single route into getting a narrative design job and most of the narrative people I've worked with have academic experience in other areas. Classics, publishing, linguistics, screenwriting (and other kinds of writing), film, literature, teaching, computer science, biomedical science, history, and philosophy are all things that come to mind off the top of my head. I personally have an English Literature bachelor's degree and a postgrad teaching certificate.

I do know a few narrative people with game design degrees and they speak highly of that experience - but it isn't essential and there's some ambivalence in the field of games about how much value you get from it. It would really depend on where you were attending and who was teaching it, and so on. Do research the lecturers and their industry experience before signing up to anything!

A lot of narrative jobs will require some sort of degree. Not all! But many will explicitly. Then, more trickily, there's the implicitness of it all: it's rare that I've encountered a narrative person at a studio who doesn't have a degree, and among many other things that's a marker of the lack of class diversity in the field.

That said: a degree is unlikely to directly help you get a narrative job unless it's very specific (eg you're an expert in the Franklin expedition, and the game is about trying to rescue the ships). It will more give you transferable skills. My PGCE helped me learn to deliver presentations and pitches. My English degree helped me discuss art. My PGCE taught me about being rigorous about developing skills and assessing where I'm at and taking feedback. My English degree pushed me to read widely. But none of that fed directly into getting a job in games - when I graduated from my undergrad degree I didn't know how games jobs worked anyway and neither did my career advisors.

Whether or not you have a degree, you need to have examples of your skills and how you've applied them to your work. If you've had jobs in other areas, you can refer to that - you're great at spotting data entry errors? fantastic. you can meditate an argument between a group of crying five year olds? great. And most of all you need completed examples of your writing and your games work for your portfolio. It doesn't have to be massive ambitious projects, but you need to prove that you know how games fit together, what makes them feel good or not good to play, and can apply it to your own work.

Make interactive fiction. Make a small game, or a bigger game, in bitsy. Join a game jam and work with other people on something - that will give you something to talk about in interviews, and teach you about working with other people on a creative project. Finish things! Not only will that give you more to discuss, it will also mean that you have a better sense of the bigger picture of interactive storytelling. I got my first studio job off the back of years of short hobby IF and a completed CoG game; I brought skills from my studies but I wouldn't have got a foot in the door without those projects to show that I could write well, understood narrative design, and could finish games.

Some unsolicited advice:

Be cautious about expensive game writing courses. They can be valuable for networking and pushing your to be rigorous about your work, or they can be a money sink. Remember that in 99% of "dream studios" there will be people working there for whom it's a nightmare. Don't put people on pedestals and remember that studio games are a team effort - but also respect and celebrate your own contributions. Don't dunk on games in public: I've seen a lot of people do that and then turn around and ask for a job from the people they were dunking on. It doesn't make people inclined to say yes. Don't neglect your peers in favour of trying to get in with a crowd that's already established; but if trusted people offer mentorship (such as Limit Break in the UK) go for it. When you are one of those established people, don't pull up the ladder behind you.

Here is a doc of resources from Raymond Vermeulen and another from Adanna aka AFNarratives. Also there are a ton of free talks available from AdventureX, Narrascope, Writer's Guild of Great Britain, and the GDC Vault about narrative which are both interesting and useful.

None of this is any guarantee of anything, there are a lot of people competing for not many jobs and if you find someone selling One Weird Trick to get into the field of narrative design, avoid them. I've seen talented people with a lot of experience struggling to find another contract after one has ended. So I don't want to act like I have it all figured out - but I hope it's helpful.

[saintsenara]

Literary style (rich prose, use of narrative techniques, etc.); strong adherence to the principle of charity (diversity of perspectives/everyone is given the fairest possible shot); thematic focus on death and its effects on the living (particularly, grief); thematic focus on gender; devastating one-liners; emphatically correct Ron Weasley takes; Voldemort having a thing for mirror sex.

thanks so much, pal!

sex/gender/death are in an exclusive triad over here, but what i most appreciate you drawing out here is the principle of charity in writing [also the subject of this meta: fandom is like medicine].

I've seen a lot of posts from villain-enjoyers recently taking against the idea of redemption. and i do get this - there's been such a move in many fandom spaces against any sort of moral complexity in characterisation that i understand the impulse to say fuck it, and enjoy your favourite horrible people as horrible people.

but i do also think that this rejection of theme of redemption often misunderstands the reading that we all owe our blorbos. i think there's a tendency to believe that redemption would require some sort of damascene extraordinariness which would result in the character in question becoming neutered - perfect and soft and lacking the bite which led to us becoming interested in them in the first place.

but not so. redemption can be small, ordinary. it can be accidental. it can sneak up on you. it can exist in some areas of your lives and not others. sometimes little chips of redemption are gradually carved by bringing the man whose parents you murdered cups of tea - and maybe that's not enough to redeem you fully, and maybe it shouldn't be, but it's something - and by him being charitable enough to understand what happened in your life which led you down the path of evil.

one of the real issues with the harry potter fandom [and this is why i am so frequently on my soapbox about how we need to think about the narrative conventions of the series, and how it wants us to do this and how we should work against it] is that far too many people involved in it find themselves on sides. maybe they identify as gryffindors, and therefore fail to offer any of the other houses the nuance they extend to their favourite characters. maybe they think the villains get a bad showing in the series, so they bash the heroes. maybe they loathe a specific character, or ship, or subfandom, and so they dismiss anyone who writes within those confines.

but this is an error. every single character - just like every single person alive - can be interesting and worthy of exploration and worthy of the chance to transcend their canon [and fanon - catch me defending molly weasley against both sirius and percy nation like it's my paid employment] evils if we just give them the chance.

and i'm not just saying this because i have been recently forced to become fascinated by rodolphus lestrange...

i hadn't deeped before now that the 'lord voldemort enjoys watching himself get fucked in a mirror' thing had turned up in more than one piece... and all i have to say is...

[attention-seeking behaviour here]

[kermiethefroog]

Lessons from a Global Ecological Restoration Conference

I know this is not the usual thing I post on here, but I wanted to gather my thoughts in a place I know that I'll check in the future. I hope that this is somehow useful for others and provides insight to work in this field.

1. Ecologists do have hope for the environment!

If there's one main takeaway I've had so far, it's that people working to restore and protect our natural habitats is that they have passion and a deep hope that their efforts will make a difference.

This field is full of so many challenges when it comes to funding and politics, so it was inspiring to see that despite present barriers people from all over the world are trying their hardest to make things change for the better.

2. This conference has set a precedent towards integrating and including the input from Indigenous and First Nations peoples internationally

The entire theme of the conference was to center and uplift voices of Indigenous people from around the globe who are working in habitat and ecocultural restoration.

This is exciting! Many countries do not have formal systems in place to allow Indigenous voices to be major informants and decision makers on projects that occur on their land. It has been and will always be important to include those who are traditional stewards of the land when considering any sort of restoration or land management decisions.

I cannot be sure what the results of this initiative will be. It is a small step in the right direction though and I hope that this conference created opportunities for connections, lessons, and more conversations in the future.

We all have a part to play in recognizing the First Nations Peoples who inhabit or inhabited our land in the past (this goes without saying that this applies internationally) and working toward a future that creates proper access to funding, land, recognition, reparations, and true reciprocity for Indigenous and First Nations Peoples.

If you have not yet invested time in learning, now is a better time than ever. Research your area, connect with community, and raise your voice to make a difference.

3. Collaboration is Key

Most talks I went to and projects I read about lived and died by their ability to collaborate with a diverse group of people who have stakes in each restoration project.

It works best when implemented early, if all groups are equally represented at all levels of decision making, and if factors like environmental outcomes and the human/social dimensions of planning are considered first before the financial.

The most successful projects in ecosystem restoration were only possible due to connections that spanned industries, cultures, generations, and modes of work.

If we want our planet to thrive we need to be willing to have everyone in the room so as many people as possible can have a hand in creating a better future.

4. Things are still an uphill battle

While many of the presentations I witnessed were hopeful and fulfilling, perhaps just as many lacked a positive or negative conclusion that could wrap everything in a neat bow. Navigating government systems, changing climates, barriers to accessible and affordable resources for restoration etc. are all things that impacted various projects discussed this week.

It's also without saying that governments themselves, the policies they hold, and the rates they pass legislation will always create a delay in working towards restoration of our environment in order to prevent further harm and degradation. This of course goes for most policy making (though I suppose it depends on the country).

Climate change still presents unprecedented challenges and will impact all aspects of our livelihoods. That being said, no one atteding suggested any of the efforts being made were futile. I know it can be challenging to see any bright future with the way climate change is discussed in the media so I want to approach this subject with some cautious optimism.

Beyond policies and politics specifically, it is clear that so many people care about and for the planet that we live on. So much so that I think that it can be taken for granted at times or looked over. Yes the science is bleak, yes the outcomes are scary, yes things are going to change no matter what. We still have time to determine the trajectory of that change.

Scientists, government workers, NGO workers, nonprofits, citizen scientists, and many more groups of people at this conference had a staggering sense of hope that was unexpected and so refreshing. As one of the presenters I watched said, "It's better that we at least try. If the outcome isn't ideal we can at least say we gave it a shot." and I think that's a beautiful way to approach any uncertainty. In this field or otherwise.

I would be happy to discuss my experiences more or elaborate on any points made. I put this together hastily at the end of the conference to make sure I didn't forget anything important.

[fairuzfan]

I also think the libraries thing isn't something that's just exclusive to USAmerica. I'm Australian and you will notice how different the general vibe, for lack of a better word, is in different areas. The area I grew up in had a much less diverse range of books because it was so much more white, and when you don't have access to things like anti racism literature, diverse cultural viewpoints etc etc, it does get a lot harder to educate oneself. It's not even that those libraries were being actively hostile, it's that they weren't doing enough. Even my current library rarely does things like NAIDOC week, but it does pride week. Which is really saying something about who runs it.

oh yeah for sure, this is a thing in many many places. and yeah sometimes its not outright hostile in like... They Want Money And They Will Exploit You, but there really isn't thought being put into who runs the libraries and why which is still pretty malicious don't get me wrong. Like my community, despite having a huuuuuge Muslim population, is still incredibly Islamophobic and it shows in that they'll do pride week (which they should — just saying that this is considered a given in their program) but they won't like... do something for Ramadan or Eid or whatever unless the librarian is involved with the Muslim community themselves in someway. And that kinda just sucks on a personal level lol like the library is a huge community center for muslim kids we hung out there after school ALL the time growing up and they still don't like... engage with us unless we make active steps to make the first move.

but yeah libraries are still subject to the biases of the people who run it and sometimes people have to be cognizant of that when going into them because there is active erasure happening on a community level that just honestly feels bad.

[gemsofgreece]

I know we often talk about all the regions of Greece plus the Islands, but what about Thessaly region? It's so underrated even though it has Olympus, meteora, beautiful places, forests to go. Not only that but wasn't part of king Aiolou in the Odyssey?

This region in my opinion is not talked enough about it's culture and history i am sure even from ancient times it has given a lot to Greek history.

Yay let's give some love to Thessaly! I share your feelings. I like this region a lot. So let's make a post with cool facts about Thessaly.

But before that I would like to comment on why Thessaly appears to be overlooked. I think the reason is that Thessaly is in between two regions that have attracted so much the interest of historians. It is sandwiched between Argos, meaning all of south Greece with Athens and Sparta and all the load of city states, and Macedonia. It gets more or less the same treatment with Epirus. Furthermore, Thessaly's biggest power is also its weakness. Thessaly is what is considered the "breadbasket" of the nation. An essentially provincial agricultural area, vast as nowhere else in Greece, it did not intrigue as much as the other regions with their drama, polities, conquests or artistic and scientific achievements.

Cool facts about Thessaly:

Despite its later obscurity with historians, exactly because of its vast fertile land, Thessaly had some of the earliest advanced settlements in Europe during the Neolithic period, such as Sesklo (6800 BC) and Dimini (4800 BC).

In the Mycenaean Age, Thessaly was known as Aeolia. The dialect spoken was Aeolic Greek. The Homeric epics are written in a mix of Ionic and Aeolic Greek. Aeolic Greek was considered the ideal dialect for poetry and lyricism. Poets and Rhapsodoi would travel to Thessaly to find inspiration.

Thessaly has paramount significance for the Greek mythology. Mount Olympus is located where Thessaly and Macedonia meet, so this is where the Gods lived. Achilles was born and reigned in Thessaly (his kingdom encompassed Phthia and extended beyond the Thessalian borders into Hellas, the westernmost meeting point of Thessaly, Epirus and Central Greece). Centaur Chiron raised many heroes in Mount Pelion, which is the origin place of centaurs. Jason and the Argonauts embarked for their journey from the city of Iolcos (now Volos). And loads more myths are associated with Thessaly.

Thessaly was somewhere between the world of the southern city states and the Kingdom of Macedon. It was usually a kingdom too or dismantled in a few smaller kingdoms ruled by the tagoi, aristocratic warlords. During the early classical period, Thessaly started being influenced by democracy however after observing the rise of Macedon, the Thessalians essentially invited King Philip to incorporate the region into his sphere of influence and Thessaly returned into having one single powerful king.

It is kinda evident that the Thessalians just wanted to live their lives and were absorbed with their own matters, trying to stay away from most drama. That lack of drama earns them their obscurity. Of course there were microdramas between nobility and kingdoms and all that but honestly nothing in comparison to the southern mayhems or the excessive northern ambition. Despite their low profile, Thessalians were wanted in other Greek armies for their cavalry.

During Roman and Byzantine times, the region was constantly targeted by invaders including Slavs, Avars, Huns etc due to its fertile land. This made the Byzantine emperors often remove or transfer away foreign populations from the area and have Greeks from other regions to settle in, to reinforce the Greek element of the region.

Much like in all other eras of its history, Thessaly was somewhere in the middle during the stages of the Greek Independence from the Ottoman Empire. It was incorporated to Greece after Peloponnese and Roumeli (Sterea Hellas) but before Epirus, Macedonia and Thrace.

Thessaly is a diverse land. It has a core of extended farmland dotted with hills and mountains as well as rivers and lakes, surrounded by a ring of big mountain ranges. At its west it expands to the Pindus mountains and their woodlands, at its north lies Mount Olympus and its east finds the Aegean sea and boosts a remarkable coastline. It also has three major islands, generally considered some of the most densely forested in the country and with beaches often featured in Top lists across the world. Sightings of seals and dolphins are common near its coasts.

Due to its geomorphology, the Thessalian plain gets some of the hottest temperatures in the summer and some of the coldest in the winter.

Thessaly is home to the most significant natural wonder of Greece. The rocks of Meteora. Meteora is a group of massive rock formations dating to the Paleogene era when this area was still part of the seabed, before the sea was pushed upwards and away. Meteora have been inhabited by monks ever since the middle Byzantine period. It has 20 Byzantine and post-Byzantine monasteries, out of which six are still in service. Aside from a natural wonder, the region is also a UNESCO world heritage monument.

After the independence, the region prospered due to being the largest farmland in Greece as well as having the third largest port in the country. It is the third most populous region after Sterea Hellas (which has Athens) and the large Macedonia (which has Thessaloniki). As a result, Thessaly is the only region in Greece with two major cities of about the same population, Larissa and Volos, the 5th and 6th largest cities of the country respectively, in close proximity. Larissa boasts an ancient past associated to Achilles and is the metropolis of agricultural and industrial Greece, all while buzzing with nightlife and a lot of student life. The also mythologically rich Volos is the Thessalian port, ensured with prosperity even during the hardship of Ottoman times, and is very notable among Greeks and those few foreigners who know for being surrounded from all sides by beautiful scenery, including very forested mountains, hills, extended shorelines, peninsulas, islands and numerous beautiful villages which combine tradition with a cosmopolitan flair.

The rest of the region is decorated by the rare outstanding mountainous beauty of Trikala, which also encompasses Meteora, and is one of the towns in Greece more focused on improving the quality of life for its citizens, often becoming a point of reference for other places. Karditsa with its traditional feel completes the quartet, offering access to the beautiful Lake Plastira and Agrafa mountains, some of the most unexplored and undisturbed, both naturally and culturally, regions of Greece.

And now some photos from Thessaly under the cut. Enjoy!

Various regions of Larissa

Various regions of Magnesia (Volos)

Various regions in Trikala

Various regions in Karditsa

Various regions from Sporades islands

All photos chosen randomly in Google search just to give you an idea. I do not own any of these.

Hopefully you enjoyed this tribute Anon!

Also, to anyone wondering "wasn't this supposed to be a farmland?", well yeah, it is by Greek standards. The farmland is indeed very big, it's just that if I showed many photos from the plain I would be running short of mountains and coasts. And also, Greeks typically don't take photos of their plains as often so I'd had to make a more strenuous search.