#they stand head to head for so long so i have more than 1000 screenshot just how they stand

[mrsfitzgerald]

tallinn 💖 video: @derwahnsinn

[br-disaster]

nie mingjue’s outfits appreciation post

This is way longer than I expected oh gods, please forgive me for it. 

 It’s a well known fact that Jiang Cheng has the best wardrobe of all CQL characters, I’m not here to argue with that, but I think it’s time for us to stop sleeping on Nie Mingjue’s absolutely fantastic fashion sense.

I mean have you seen him?? The man is out there serving looks even with the Nie sect limited color palette. Please let’s ignore the context here and just look at his robes

I wasn't sure if I should rank them, so I’ll just ramble about them in order of appearance:

1. The gray “I’m the boss” one

That’s the first time we ever see him and what can I say? He does leave an impression. We see him using these robes two times, in episodes 10-11 and on the beggining of Fatal Journey, as the first picture shows, which makes me wonder: Is this his stay-at-home set of robes? ‘Cause damn

I don’t know how I should comment on the particular details of his robes but I really appreciate how wide this extra fabric layer makes his shoulders look.

Really imposing and powerful look.

2. The Sunshot incredibly beautiful "this is how you win a war" one

Look, this one might be my favorite, it has EVERYTHING

Shoulder game is strong here, and this bronze-like color goes really well with his belt. Now let's talk about his outer robe for a moment, just THE COLOR I mean it's the prettiest shade of gray I've ever seen.

Also Long Sleeves

And a CAPE. A f**king CAPE. I'll never get over this look and I'm really glad the costume department let this king wear a cape again in Fatal Journey, he was made for it.

Next comes the inner layer that's not really a robe, as you can see when he's standing, but the silver pattern is what really does it for me, guys. It's probably the first thing you see once you look down from his face, 'cause I know we all get lost on that beautiful mustache, and it's perfect.

You can’t lead a war campaign if you don’t look good, I see.

3. The "I didn't really want to be here but I’m looking good anyway" one

It's so dark, it probably reflects how he was feeling during pretty much all the scenes he's in while wearing it.

Once again he accentuates his shoulders with an extra fabric except this time his sleeves are not long at all. I personally think he looks even more handsome like this, it makes his arms look bigger. What is it called? I don't know, but it matches his belt as well.

( Is it really a belt, guys? I don't wanna disrespect but I don't even know where to start looking for names nor I know other english names for belts)

The subtle golden/bronze details on the outer robe and on the inner robe's collar contrasts really well with the black and dark gray

Sad thing he looked really miserable wearing it :c

4. The "big event he seemed ok with attending" one

Dark again. But he didn't look as depressed as in the previous one, he actually had fun that day, which is good. Enough of tears and betrayal for now.

May be the wider sleeves he ever wore, perfect for clapping his hands like a happy toddler. There's also a lovely flowery pattern on the darker robe that you can easily miss if you don't pay enough attention.

For the first time his shoulders are not accentuated by fabric or shoulder pads and it's really nice to see him like this. We all love a buff Mingjue, but CQL Mingjue is not that buff and I love him just as much.

Really elegant, not as imposing and he has every right to want to look civil for once. It may be the series' way of telling us that he's not dressed for real combat or war, who knows.

5. The "all this just for a flashback?" one

Listen, this one right here is just AMAZING

I don't understand why they dressed him so beautifully for what? 10 minutes of a flashback. I wanted to see it for more than a couple os scenes!!

Everything here is different, so this will take time.

First: His inner robe, the first one, is not the usual black, it's light gray, it's lighter than his robes actually, and we don't see him wearing it like ever again since chronologically in the series this is the first robe he wears. Does it secretly mean that all went wrong from the moment he met MY? who knows

Second: The outer robe is fancy. There’s so many details to it and it may be the lighting of the scene, but it seems to be a warmer shade of gray, doesn’t it? The golden\bronze thin strip around the silver larger strip is perfect. It kinda has the opposite effect of his shoulder pads, since it makes his shoulders look a bit smaller but it’s so very elegant.

Third: The upper part of the inner robe. I mean who gave him the right to look that good ??? It’s dark but it has golden little shapes in it!! And it kinda looks like there’s a zipper in there because of that mid section. And oh to be a single jewel resting over Sect Leader Nie’s chest...

Fourth: The bottom part of the robe is also something new. We see pleats on Huaisang’s main robes, but never on Mingjue’s until now, that’s why I took the last screenshot, nothing to do with the bloody Baxia at all. I wish we could have seen them in pretty pleated robes together.

It probably contradicts what I said about his shoulder things being a code for battle, since the first thing we see him doing with this outfit is killing some guy/puppet; but for the rest of the time he wears it is peaceful

Honestly, imagine how Meng Yao felt. It was some fairy tale thing, wasn’t it? You’re a nobody eating bread and drinking water and then this king pops up out of nowhere and defends you from bullying and offers you a job and takes you home with him?? 

6.The “kick your local murderer down the stairs” one

I don’t really know what to say about this one. The context kind of ruined it for me, but let’s try.

 It resembles the fourth outfit since it’s a really dark inner robe and a lighter and patterned outer robe. Except this one has this nice and shiny thin strips around the sleeves and the waist.

It’s pretty but not especially pretty in my opinion. If I were to rank the outfits, this one would rank last.

7. The “fighting qi deviation and needing emotional support” one

Fatal Journey, baby.

I know what I said about the second one, but this might be my favorite.  It’s practical, no long sleeves or heavy outer robes. It’s also appropriate for horse riding, wich is great. The simple, sleeveless light gray outer robe is really nice.

There’s a cape again!! And I have to say the cape looks even better now that his sleeves are tighter, the way it falls gracefully on his back is perfect. I love the way it seems to be attached to the shoulder pad too. 

The robes are simple but the thing is: The accessories are not. 

His belt is now silver and if we ignore that the production team just painted it, we can assume he has two sets of identical waist belts, one is bronze and the other is silver. Now the final touch: The shoulder pads. This is what makes this outfit the most extra of them all. It’s silver and just so, so pretty I wanna cry everytime I look at them. I mean, the layers, the dragon\beast entire head makes him look so fierce and ready for the fight.

 I wonder how comfortable they are tho.

10/10 would rank first place.

bonus: Baby Mingjue

We love a consistent king after all! Has he been wearing dark robes since he was a baby? We will never know. I love this dark yet translucent outer robe tho.

1000/10 the cutest and best dressed child out there.

Conclusion: Nie Mingjue is a fashion icon! 

* Do not take this too seriously, I did zero research and english is not my first language. If there’s any terrible grammar mistakes, point them to me and i’ll edit it. If I’m somehow disrespecting Chinese culture, please also point it to me and I’ll apologize, edit or even delete the post.

[delfts-purple]

Saints Row Reboot Thoughts

So originally I had a massive ass post of my SR5 wish list sitting in my drafts but since that's now useless, gonna do this. For some context I have been playing since 06, when I was way to young and I fucking hated 4. Now lets go!

My Wants and not wants:

Reboot after SR2 or SRTT. No hate, SRTT was alright but it may be easier and better to reboot from SR2. I seriously do not want you to redo 1 and 2. They are very good games that can stand the test of time and deserve their place. I may be more pissed if you retcon 1 and 2 than I was at 4. Like I guess I could live with a remaster if it was a graphical and control scheme overhaul only. I do hear you young fans, we did have clunky controls back then but they were normal so I don't get put off by it.

It looks to be the case we are going back to the roots and my god are we overdue.

Lets talk clothing. Basically the entire clothing system from SR2, that is what I want pray for. It was peak customization that I have not had another game match.

BIG PHAT GOLD CHAINS PLEZ. I know its probably not fashionable anymore but hot damn it looks so good.

Body slider/Gender slider (idk what to call it) from SR2. Not only is it great for our Trans homies. It was just a great, nah, amazing tool. Really before its time.

Please, make it so I don't have to be a body builder. Like skinny Bosses need more love. My boy Ty was always skinny till 3 and 4 forced him to be bulky. Skinny boys need love tooo!!!!

Honestly like a hybrid of the character builder from 2 and 3 would work. The color, make up and feature diversity of SR3. Paired with the fine tuning of SR2. Its just like chefs kiss.

Custom walking styles, I always loved that my and my friends boss not walk alike.

Two tone hair again maybe? I just think its neat.

Honestly just all the fucking activities from SR2 and SR1. I loved them all, well except Heli assault but people liked that to so let them have it.

Tagging, please, I love tagging.

GOLD/PLATNUIM WEPON UNLOCKS! So gangster like hot damn.

BOOZE AND DRUGS! Like I have had 100s of hours of fun fucking about with that. Like if we had the variety of SR1 in booze and drugs, I would die and got to heaven.

I mean if you can find a way to not make romancing a bastardization I guess you can keep it.

JUST DON'T! Don't bastardize that charaters.

Can we maybe have back some of that grit? Like SR2 was a prefect balance of grit and humour. SRTT felt like I was a toddler been mollycoddled by shallow humour. Not enough grit and felt like it was wrote by a 10th grader tbh.

Make the Boss... them again. Like non of this 'he hu puckish rouge' shit. I don't play a gang game to be a fucking hero. I know, shock, horror. I play it to be a sociopathic bastard. I got 100 fucking games where I am the good guy, sometimes ya boi needs a break. A evil, going to hell for this, I do question my mental status when I laugh at this, break.

Mission and cut scene replay. One of the reason SR1 and 2 save files can rack up into the 1000s of hours for me is this feature. If I want to play one mission, I don't have to replay the whole game. I can give in to whims. I do not have a word for it in English but it is maximum happiness with fun.

More cut scenes. Like there felt like there was less of them in 3 and 4.

Idle animations. My Boss just been like 'yep, Delfts gone, time to go fishing or drinking or smoking' was just great.

Look Gat was never some weird immortal, unbeatable guy until you made him that way in 4 onwards. He was the kinda hot headed, asshole, who got him self into trouble over it, guy who we adored. Bring my boi back.

A photo mode. I mean I got very, very good at cropping screenshots and clipping my camera of walls but, my Boss deserves better! He his my handsome little killer and people need to know that.

MKUltra elevator nightmare shopping/wardrobe/garage screens, you know the ones, fucking scrap them. Go back to how it was in 1 and 2. I do not need to be subjected to CIA brutality while playing SR. I got enough of that thanks.

Keep the phone menu, that shit was tight. Real immersed me and I love seeing the Bosses phone. I mean I have bought and made replicas of them ffs.

Make hazel eyes behave like the did in the remaster. Like damn. Just. I have a whole post on this shit thats how good it was.

I know you guys are good for it but keep them fun af cheats. I spent to long as a massive af beating up super small people as it rained corpses. Oh and the gravity was gone.

Don't have dual wielding as a fucking upgrade. My Boss just dual wields, let him, like you did in 2.

Weapon skins, like in SR4, that was alright. I wouldn't mind that one.

Keep the Bosses back story vague still. I haven't wrote and perfected his back story over the last decade or more so you can piss on it.

Jackets and hoodie, stop the putting my hair in a ponytail. Last time I put on a fucking track jacket I didn't have to tie my hair back, It didn't happen in 2 so why 3 and 4?

Respect and Missions. Can we either have a return to the old style respect system to make people play the side missions or just not make people play them by force. I fucking hate Heli assault and all that flying shit, so been forced to do it made me want rip my hair out. Like if they are there people will play the ones they want, I do not want to be made to do it by the main story. THX

Bring back the day/night cycle. I could play for much longer when it wasn't so monotone. Also it made me think about what I was doing when. Like I wouldn't got to the night club at 10am.

Bring back Nightclubs. Tyde want's to party and so does Delfts.

Stop making the character hollow 2D’s of their former selves.

A varied city, like Stilwater. Seriously, feels like a real city and I have lived or worked in over 6 in my life so I know. Steelport felt like what some Vatnik Babushka (Boomer Grandma) in rural Siberia would describe the city, dull and unrealistic.

Have the gangs act like actual gangs. You know, go around doing crime and harassing NPCs like they did in 1 and 2.

NPCs, make them like you did in SR2. They acted like real people, did the most random and weird shit. Felt real. They also all look different or their was such a wide variety in base models I didn’t notice repetition. SRTT and SRIV they were like 5 NPCs. I had occasions where there was 10 of the same model and I was like, two or three is okay but fucking 10?

Make them drive the way they did in 1 and 2 too. I have drove in a city for a long time and that shit was so real. People are dumb sometimes.

Bring back Freckle Bitches!!!!!!

If I think of anything else I will add it but feel free to add your own and disagree with me. I kinda want to here how all you others be feeling about this. I feel fear and happy. Also can you tell I blasted this out at like 4am.

[aion-rsa]

15 Strongest Pokémon… Emotionally

https://ift.tt/2TyXgQ6

The world of Pokémon is a hard and cruel place. It takes a tough Pokémon to stand tough and survive, which doesn’t make it a suprise that some of the most celebrated Pokémon could also be considered the strongest.

For all the lessons of friendship, Pokémon Centers, and jelly donut flavored rice balls, it’s not easy living in the world of Pokémon. In fact, it can be downright cruel for some. That’s why we want to honor an elite selection of Pokémon that are the most powerful, toughest, unassailable, and strongest…emotionally.

Because let’s face it, any Pokémon that can survive fear of death, rejection, imposter syndrome, or questionable hair choices can almost certainly beat Eternatus.

Charmander

Death comes for us all, but Charmanders have it especially rough. It’s been said that a Charmander dies if the flame on its tail is extinguished. That means that a Charmander must live in constant fear of anything that could put out its flame. Water, strong winds, and sand (coarse and rough as it is) kill up to 2000 Charmanders a year (we presume). If only there was a way to donate Pokémon pennies a day and help Charmanders everywhere live free of the fear of death.

Jigglypuff

Rejection. We can all remember times we’ve felt it. Maybe it was a lost crush, not getting that job, or never getting to control the playlist in the car because you once made the mistake of letting “Misty’s Song” play on a road trip and your friends never forgot it. Jigglypuff gets that. Every time it attempts to sing, its audience falls asleep. If a Jigglypuff sings a song and no one is there to hear it, did it ever make a sound?

Dugtrio (Alola Version)

Keeping your hair well maintained is tough even on the best days. Now imagine your defining trait is that you use your entire body to dig out of the ground. How are you supposed to keep those luscious locks full and silky through such a process? I’m bald, so I genuinely have no idea, but Alola Dugtrios have somehow mastered the art. How? If we ever learned their secret, all wars would probably end, all criminal organizations would dissolve, and at that moment, we may understand the secrets of the universe. Or they’d just let us know the name of their stylist.

Team Rocket’s Meowth

How far have you gone for love? Did you walk 500 miles? Did you ride on a piano for 1000 miles? What did you do? I can guarantee it wasn’t anything close to what Team Rocket’s Meowth did when he became the only Pokémon to learn to speak human to impress the lady Meowth he loved. And what did he get for it? He was called a freak.

Team Rocket’s Meowth may fail every week, but he goes on despite the pain. Every day he does, he’s stronger than all of us.

Abra

Multiple years in therapy have taught me you can’t run from your problems; you have to face them head-on. Sure, you can avoid sadness by avoiding problems, but in the process, you run the risk of avoiding happiness. I think about Abra in therapy sometimes because all it can do is escape via teleportation. That its only significant power. The mental walls it must have built up can surely withstand any attack, physical or emotional.

Unless, of course, you play M2M’s “Don’t Say You Love Me” from Pokémon: The First Movie’s soundtrack. That could make a grown Tyranitar cry.

Electrode

One might think that Voltorb could easily share this slot with Electrode, but there’s a key difference. Voltorbs are young and innocent. They haven’t lived enough life to know how sad it is when it all self-destructs on you. Electrodes know. They’ve loved, they’ve lost, they have families, and they have careers. But to self-destruct is what an Electrode must do, and it does it well.

Cubone

Everyone and their Rattata knows that Cubones wear the skulls of their dead mothers. What people fail to consider is that every single Cubone in the world shares that same backstory. Why are all Marowaks eventually killed? Is it the birthing process? What immediately deteriorates their skulls for Cubones to wear? Whatever it is, a Cubone becomes tough as rocks from the moment it’s born, and no one can stand up to a Pokémon that can handle that level of grief.

Or it’s all a big scam. If you look closely, the skull Cubone wears is not an exact replica of a Marowak. What are they trying to hide, huh? Is Mr. Fuji trying to drive tourists to Lavender Town? If that is the case, then Cubones have been running an incredible racket for years and deserve to be on this list solely for the power it takes to deceive everyone in the Pokémon world.

Read more

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Chansey

“A Machamp who thinks it’s strong has never been a Chansey in a Pokémon center.” – Pokémon proverb (probably).

Chansey must heal hundreds, if not thousands, of sick and injured Pokémon a day. The mental strain they endure must be immense, but Chansey does it all with a smile. That’s powerful. It also has to handle customer service at Pokémon Centers, and that might make it even more powerful. After all, the only thing that’s harder than a battle with a Palkia is dealing with the ninth person today asking to see your Nurse Joy manager.

Staryu

Every time Staryu emerges from its Poké Ball it screams, “HYAH.” Is this a battle tactic to frighten its opponents… or is it something deeper? A cry for help? A plea to stop this senseless conflict? Perhaps Staryu screams hoping the eternal void will scream back.

Mewtwo

Oh sure, you can catch one at level 70 and it already knows the Psychic ability, but that isn’t why Mewtwo is powerful. It’s powerful because it’s burdened with teenage angst. “WHY WAS I CREATED?” it asks. I don’t know, Mewtwo. Put it on your Xanga, I’m trying to play Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater.

When Mewtwo grows up it’ll take some serious time to scrub all that cringe from its social media profiles.

Marill

The year is 1999. Leaked screenshots of a blue Pokémon can be found all over the internet and tales of it spread to schoolyards around the world. Marill, the Pokémon pictured, is excited! It wasn’t sure if it’d be accepted after the unprecedented success of the first 150 Pokémon, but people already love it! It sneaks into the back of an elementary school class to hear the good word of mouth about itself.

“I can’t wait to catch Pikablu!” says nearly every child in the classroom. Marill’s blood turns cold. Marill tries to stop the rumors, but it’s too late. By 2001, the excitement is long gone. Children spot Marill and greet him with scorn. “Oh, that was all just a rumor. Marill sucks.”

To this day Marill can take a blast of Thunder right to its face because no pain can match the blow to its self-confidence that it received during that horrific time.

Shuckle

Here he comes, rougher than the rest of them. The best of them, tougher than leather. You can call him Shuckle, unlike Squirtle, he doesn’t chuckle. He gets on the dance floor and shuffles.

Being a Shuckle is hard, man. Look at those little legs.

Jirachi

Wish granting. It’s an ability with limitless potential, but Jirachi does not grant wishes for itself. No, it must grant wishes for others. That means it has to put up with adults desperately wishing their parents didn’t throw away their old Pokémon cards because they swear they had a 1999 First Edition Mint Charizard Holo that they could use to finally pay off their crippling student debt. Please, oh please Jirachi make my wish come true.

Putting up with that takes a mind of steel.

Rotom Pokédex

The internet is filled with “Who’s the strongest of X franchise?” debates. In those debates, people discuss strength, speed, defenses, and more. What they fail to consider is that the most powerful force is often information. You can’t beat someone who knows your every weakness. You can’t run from someone who knows your past.

Rotom Pokédex is living information. The moment it sees you, it knows you. What does it know? What sins can it see? Maybe forfeiting the fight is better than the possibility of your dark past being revealed to the world.

Ash’s Pikachu

All Ash’s Pikachu wants is to grow, but he can’t. It would hurt the brand. Kids love Pikachu! He can’t evolve!

“Please!” Pikachu begs. “I don’t want to evolve but please let me grow! If you won’t, I’m leaving!”

The Pokémon Company looks down on him and shakes their heads.

“Sure, Pikachu,” they say. “You can leave, but you know, our profits would go way down and we’d have to lay off half the staff. You don’t want that to happen, right? Sonia’s got five kids at home. What will they think when she tells them she lost her job because of Pikachu?”

So Pikachu carries on, the weight of responsibility on its shoulders every day.

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The post 15 Strongest Pokémon… Emotionally appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/2UHUYyD

[rinnnyxr]

I’m happy I’m sad I’m motivated I’m unmotivated I’m sick I’m taken I have a crush I’m in love I’m single I’m brokenhearted

I want to sleep I want to study I want to go out I want to stay home I have school today I have work today

I’m afraid of spiders I’m afraid of being alone I’m afraid of snakes I’m afraid of flying I’m afraid of failure I’m afraid of clowns

I took chemistry classes in high school I took math classes in high school I took English classes in high school I took geography classes in high school I took biology classes in high school I had gym in high school I took art classes in high school I took science classes in high school I took history classes in high school I took physics classes in high school I was in the theatre after school program in high school I had some sort of music classes in high school I had some sort of dance classes in high school

-

Bold the things you’ve never done.

I’ve never gone to Disney World. I’ve never been out of my home country. I’ve never kissed a stranger on the lips. I’ve never read a book over eight hundred pages. I’ve never painted a picture on a canvas. I’ve never sang in front of a large crowd by myself.

I’ve never had braces. I’ve never learned French. I’ve never had a fight with my dad. I’ve never updated my status through my phone. I’ve never used Nair. I’ve never cut my wrists. I’ve never wanted plastic surgery. I’ve never drank organic regular milk. I’ve never learned Chinese. I’ve never blew up a balloon. I’ve never changed a baby’s diaper. I’ve never lost my phone for good. I’ve never lost a friend through death. I’ve never met one of my grandparents. I’ve never met someone with my exact name. I’ve never dated someone with red hair. I’ve never put on eyeliner for myself. I’ve never took a dance class. I’ve never tried weed. I’ve never tried drugs. I’ve never cooked dinner for my family. I’ve never had anything besides my ears pierced. I’ve never had a tattoo. I’ve never went to the beach to tan. I’ve never kissed anyone on the lips that was younger than me. I’ve never dumped someone. I’ve never stepped in something nasty barefooted. I’ve never cheated on someone. I’ve never waxed anything on my body. I’ve never dyed my whole head a different color. I’ve never kissed anyone who was above the age of seventeen. I’ve never kissed in the rain. I’ve never gone a day without laughing. I’ve never got held back a grade. I’ve never stolen anything over twenty dollars.

-

Aries

Waiting until the last minute TL;DR (too long, didn’t read) Angry crying 4 am seamless Big flirt Hot yoga “Why are you so upset? I’m over it now” No filter Cutting in line at the store Skipping to the “good part” Ignoring the speed limit Tinder Shoplifting Exclamation points!!! Bad tattoos Caffeine addiction Toned AF Muay Thai “Don’t touch me” Breaking a bone Spelling errors Picking fights for no reason Lowkey really sensitive Skipping breakfast 7/24

Taurus Falling asleep on the subway Going barefoot Using hands as utensils Calling in sick Materialism Tree climbing Cuddling Controlling the aux Great British baking show “I deserve to treat myself” Aesthetics Spending the whole day in bed Anything that says “natural” on it Long-term relationships Expensive sheets Picnics in the park Essential oils Sex as exercise Tender Wearing the same outfit 3 days in a row Says a controversial opinion and then “I’m not going to argue” Calm, cool, and collected Silk everything 5 meals a day 7/24

Gemini Giving unqualified advice 50 different tangents “Prove it” Playing Devil’s advocate Can’t keep a secret Scamming Carrying a book around Arguing for fun Always knowing the latest gossip Adderall Spilling guts to the Uber driver Rationalizing emotions Lying to be more interesting Most active in the group chat Anxiety Telling the same story 10 times to perfect it Philosophy 1000 ideas per minute Sardonic sense of humor Full of interesting facts 23 best friends Internet memes Forgot how to cry Living a double life 4/24

Cancer Screenshots Same friends since high school Sleeps with a stuffed animal Vintage clothes Cries when yelled at Going home early Nesting Holding grudges Mood swings Drinking tea Supporting others’ chaos Social anxiety HGTV Super protective of loved ones Accidental emotional manipulation Cooking for friends Likes animals more than humans Meeting someone and immediately planning their whole lives together Empathizing with film protagonists Vivid childhood memories “Mi casa es tu casa” Serial monogamist Good emotional memory Big hugs 8/24

Leo Mid-day outfit changes Giving out compliments Taking an hour to get ready Accidentally flirting Making friends in the Uber pool Using a window as a mirror Passionate emotional outbursts Lowkey insecure Creating drama to avoid boredom Opening up after just meeting someone Going to the spa Needing to make opinions known Large but fragile ego Wanting recognition for your generosity Making a scene Pretending life is reality TV Giving really subjective advice Overdressed for the function Creative genius Social media as therapy Trying something and being instantly good at it Can’t take a joke Self-care Urge to stand out 7/24

Virgo Over-analyzing friendships Fact check Knowing a little about everything Helping people get their shit together Very specific tastes Fixing it or making it 10x worse Personal projects Health routines Pretending to have your shit together Repeating a task over and over until it’s perfect On good terms with your trash exes Stretching self too thin Stuck in negative thought cycles Noticing little things no one else notices Needs to quit like 3 things Nitpicking Self-sacrificing Hyperfocus Reading 3 books at once “Sorry for the late reply” Functioning on 3 hours of sleep Can’t turn brain off Neurotic Putting yourself last 17/24

Libra Fomo (fear of missing out) Saying yes to every opportunity A little bit of suck up Fear of being alone Flirting with everyone but your crush Tossing a coin to make big decisions Easily influenced Art films Strong sense of right and wrong Torn between being social and having much needed alone time New crush every day Going to museums Overthinking romantic relationships Truly admiring all your friends Adopting others’ hobbies and mannerisms Overdraft fees Showing up late or not showing up at all Avoiding conflicts at all costs Talking about past romances on the first date Gossipy but with good intentions Panicking when someone raises their voice Trying to see both sides Unable to end a bad relationship Pretending to hate drama 9/24

Scorpio Resting bitch face Keeping the right amount of secrets Has a “hit” list (either meaning) Needing to have control in relationships Knowing what you want and exactly how to get it Disappearing at parties Morbid thoughts Believes in “energy” Attractive Staring from across the room Stalking crush’s social media Fascination with cults Still in an emo phase Breaking hearts but sad about it Trust issues All black Existential angst Silently walking away from uninteresting conversations Chaotic emotions behind a calm mask Craving emotional intensity “What am I gonna gain from it?” Seeming intimidating, actually really sensitive Friendships of utility Loves crime 12/24

Sagittarius Losing interest and quitting anything that doesn’t come easily Giving opinions without being asked No inside voice Arguing as foreplay Backpacking trips Talking over people Stating opinions as facts Corny jokes Took one philosophy class and is basically Nietzsche now Always having the last word Using big words to sound smart Speaking more than one language Fueled by laughter Calling friends on their BS Asking for advice and then not taking it Needing to change activities every 30 minutes Telling it like it is Correcting people Unwaveringly optimistic Laugh can be heard from across the room Talking about a book after only reading the Wikipedia synopsis Learning a lot from travel Periodically getting rid of all your belongings Pulling out a party trick 9/24

Capricorn Fear of not living up to potential Overcommitting Anything ‘rustic’ Favorite song is the NPR jingle Has real, tangible goals Repressing trauma Always on time Slow and steady Minding your own business Prefers on one hangs to group hangs Work/life balance Putting more money into savings than you take out Acting 20 years older than you actually are Is prepared for the worst-case scenario Never asking for help Reading for fun Is actually normcore Taking care of business Taking things seriously Motivated by stress Minimalism Hanging out with the same 3 people Bashful around crush Holding friends to high standards 9/24

Aquarius Lowkey superstitious Obscure music David Lynch Weird makeup Self-given haircuts Bad at flirting Feeling like an alien Reding conspiracy theories on the internet Estranged from emotions Experimental poetry Martyr complex Being called a free spirit Abstract concepts Making plans and canceling them Intellectual superiority A little arrogant Loves an underdog Using a thesaurus Activism Fuck the rules Intentionally provocative Highly ethical Queer theory Niche knowledge base 1/24

Pisces Head in the clouds Misplacing keys Unofficially moving in with friends Easily overwhelmed Empathizing with plants Existential crisis #3 Really long showers Leaving clothes in a pile on the ground Using fantasies as an escape Romantic drama Need for constant validation Acts either 7 or 70 Incredibly active imagination Cripplingly self-aware Over-apologizing In love with 10 people at once Binge drinking Giving good advice but can’t apply it to yourself Secretly writes poetry Crying in the bathroom at work Can’t take criticism Mind reading #NoBoundaries Saying something deep out of nowhere 12/24

I am most like a Virgo (my actual sign)

-

You have an ex You don’t wear glasses You have blue/gray/green eyes

You’re pretty tall

You can drive a manual transmission car

You know how to change the oil

You know all about cars

You have a serious passion for photography

You’ve known your best friend since middle school You’re close friends with someone since elementary school You prefer Quiznos over Subway

You’re in a relationship You’ve had a rebound before You’ve been in a relationship for five years

You’ve cheated before

You’ve dated someone who was Asian You’ve dated someone who was Hispanic

You’ve dated someone of your own ethnicity You like to sleep a lot You were born in winter Your birthday is in February

You’re the oldest in your family

You have a younger sister You have a cat You don’t have step-parents You often work the night shifts at your job

You can play the drums

You know a lot about flowers

You’re allergic to shellfish

You like garlic You like a lot of cheese

You get real Christmas trees

You’ve been in a car accident before You’ve snuck people over to your house You’re part Hawaiian

You’re a Pisces

You have no tattoos You have no piercings You have brown hair You have a Steam account You don’t have a Twitter

You’re hardly on any networking sites

You have an XBox360 You don’t like Playstation products very much

You have relatives in Alaska and/or Hawaii

You have a Toshiba laptop

You love German Shepherds You love Welsh Corgis You are Republican

You are Methodist

Your room is rarely ever clean

You’ve drunk dialed someone

A nasty rumor has been spread about you You’re in college One of your parents was at one point enlisted in the military

You are close with your family You like paintballing

You don’t smoke You don’t do drugs

You have a habit of keeping things you borrowed longer than expected

[ivisite]

DRAGONBORN 30 DAY CHALLENGE

Day 13 - Thieves in the Ratway  

Did they join the Thieves Guild?: 

She officially joined as a member when she was 20 after impressing the senior members with her skills while tagging along with Brynjolf on his jobs. She was around long enough to get to know several of the more esteemed members but wasn’t there long enough to get close to many of the “entry level” recruits.  

She returned at 27 (she was with the Companions a few months and her birthday passed) and since she never “left” the guild, technically she was still a member. Albeit she was in debt and kind of just doing the work for the sake of paying off what she owed rather than for the hell of it. Mercer very sarcastically applauded her when she followed Brynjolf into the Cistern running a few jobs after, stating that “I’d be impressed with your feat had you not put us in more debt then we were already in” and even scoffing and saying “You know, it takes a certain kind of person to be a thief, but it takes a special kind of person to be a thief of thieves.” 

If yes…

How did they feel about their fellow guild members?:

As a younger person, she was more concerned with the likes of Bryn, but when she returned she found herself rather comfortable with the rough rabble of the Flagon. Something about everyone being a societal reject or odd-ball made her feel right at home. Despite her and the other local red head of the guild often bickering and arguing upon her return, she was rather friendly with everyone else. More often than not, specially after getting a few jobs under her belt, the others started warming up to her and she ended up the center of the Flagon with her stories of her travels and her past with the guild. 

She warms up to Brynjolf, too, but only after they get stuck on a heist job together because Delvin claimed “You’re in charge of her debt, Bryn, you ought to make sure she can even do the jobs. Go on and go with her.” It almost went bad (because they started bickering mid-job) but they managed to reluctantly work together and get what they needed and get out without getting caught. Afterwards, they were hyping each other up but realized that they were being civil and [ tsundere bagpipe mode ] kicked in and they started bickering out in the middle of Morthal’s swamps until it got so heated they kissed. Went to Morthal, got drunk and caught up afterwards and managed to work things out that night. Delvin got 1000 septims though, having been in a bet with Vekel and Dirge about the two getting back on good terms.  

How about Maven Black-Briar?:

From the beginning, she’s always kept Maven at arms length. They’re both terribly good at speaking and dancing around words so the conversations between them are always short. She respects that she’s a strong woman but also thinks that she could use something or something to keep her power balanced out. Another powerful person moving to town or something. Too much power never ends well, after all. They are neutral, at best. Maven doesn’t like Saoirse for being so “good at making coin” and drawing people in and Saoirse doesn’t like that Maven thinks she’s some sort of goddess on Nirn. Money talks though and both enjoy money, so at least they have that common ground. 

Her daughter is nice though. After buying Honeyside to avoid sleeping with the skeevers in the sewer, she often takes trip down the the Apothecary shop and talks alchemy with Ingun. 

Was Mercer Frey’s betrayal a shock to them?:

She never liked that old codger, even when she initially joined when she was younger so it wasn’t too terribly surprising. Dodgy as he was and terribly bitter all the time, she figured he must have been up to something. After he tried to kill her though, she was a little more upset. It’s all fun and games until it gets personal and then she gets mad, so to speak. (scared, really, but that’s another story) She’s not reluctant about helping Karliah out at all, trusting her and standing her ground on the matter when confronted by the other guild members and Brynjolf. When Karliah states she knows how to get to Mercer, Saoirse is ready to squad up. 

How do they feel as a Nightingale?: 

She’s not terribly into religion, Aedra or Daedra, so the whole “doing it in the name of Nocturnal and serving the prince in life and death” thing weirded her out. Herself and Brynjolf were both a bit turned off from the idea at first but eventually shrugged it off and gave in, if only to get the guild back on the right path. The armor is neat, though, at least.   “Y’know Karliah, Bryn and I always joked we were a match made in Sovngarde with the irony being that neither of us would ever get to go there.” Saoirse said thoughtfully with a short chuckle. “...Aye, I suppose birds of a feather will always flock together though.”

Will they make a good Guild Master?:

Once again, I kind of sway from canon with this but it’s still lore friendly. After she does the main quest of returning the skeleton key, she still keeps her base of operations in Riften while going about the Dragonborn destiny with the Greybeards. While out traveling all over Skyrim on that journey, she keeps up with the guild and continues doing jobs to count towards her debt that she insists on paying off, regardless of all she’s done. Eventually, she manages to get all the special jobs and when offered the title, she takes it for exactly two days and then gets Brynjolf really drunk and romances him real good one night and, in his drunken stupor, tricks him into taking the Guildmaster title. After he’s tuckered out and fast asleep, she returns to the Flagon, tells Delvin of Brynjolf’s new title and that he’d be down tomorrow morning to get started on the books and officially “gives up” the rank before heading back out to Ivarstead for more Dragonborn-ing. To say the very least, when Bryn made it down the next day all full of himself and hung-over, he wasn’t sure what to make of Delvin dropping the Guilds’ books and finances onto his table at the Flagon and carrying on about “Good luck, Guildmaster.” Once she pays off her debt and talks the now sober Brynjolf into “just dealing with it like he promised”, she takes her leave from the guild but stays in touch, of course  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Late but better than nothing OTL

I like to think that Saoirse would insist on “Nightingale Squad Casual Fredas” meet ups to drink and hang out with each other. 

Also, the drunker she gets, the more you can hear bagpipes playing aggressively in the distance, canon.  (background is screenshot because I can’t draw Rift scenery to save my life)

----

“You know...I think Ulfric just needs to get himself a good Dunmer lass to bed him.” Saoirse said after a long moment of thought. 

The comment earned her a snort from the Dunmer nearby and an inquisitive nod from Brynjolf next to her. 

“W-Why say that?” Karliah asked, her attention split between sipping as slowly as possible on her drink and watching the two red-headed Nords as they both heartily drank their own drinks. 

She wasn’t very prudent, so to speak, but in comparison to her Nord friends, she seemed rather stiff about it all. She didn’t think little of them, of course, and in fact was rather amused by her two associates across the way. Having been in hiding for so long, the comradery was of the welcomed sort.

“Listen, he’s an ol’ codger in the worst way- ought to get bedded once real good and who better to knock some sense into that thick ‘ead of his than a strong Dunmer lass? The irony of it!” Saoirse said, holding her bottle of mead out and pointing it at Karliah. 

Brow raised and mouth curled into a confident pout, the red head took a sip from her bottle and chuckled.  “It’d be funny, at least. Make him feel like a right arse for how he keeps Windhelm divided.” She grumbled. 

“Right awful of him, the old bastard. Ne’er met him but I don’t think I’d want to, ya ken?” Brynjolf finally spoke up after finishing off his Alto Wine.  “I ‘ave, at Helgen. We were in the same wagon. He’s very tall. I dinnae ken if it was just the outfit or his presence but he was intimidating to stand by.” Saoirse cooed, gulping down the last swig of her mead. 

“Helgen?” Karliah asked, catching Saoirse off guard a bit.  “Aye, I was almost executed. Unfairly, too. Of all the things I’ve done in life thus far, and they try to execute me for swapping potions for arrows at a Stormcloak outpost I came across.” 

Her tone was amusingly dry as she spoke, rolling her eyes mid-sentence and Karliah couldn’t help but laugh.  “Ya’know, I think we should do this more often.” Brynjolf spoke up once again, having discovered the emptiness of his bottle. Scoffing in disdain, he dropped the now empty bottle behind him. 

“Need to bring more to drink next time though.” He continued, making the two women snicker at his flushing cheeks. His brows furrowed some at the reaction but he tossed an arm over Saoirse’s shoulders and gave Karliah a hardy pat on the back never-the-less.

“Ah, you two can pick all you’d like. I suppose I’d rather it be you two than Ol’ Delvin.” He cooed. 

[thesummerstorms]

Rev Recaps Hard Contact (Chapter 4)

CW: Main character directly killing someone, some implications of food insecurity, animals destroying a corpse. LONG ASS POST beneath the cut.

TL;DR Recap: Niner regroups with the rest of Omega, and is upset by Atin’s perceived callousness towards Darman’s fate. (Although the callousness is actually heartbreaking if you know the entirety of his backstory.) Etain observes the crash site and realizes Republic forces have landed. Darman has his first negative reaction to killing someone.Also, the blogger begins the Kal Count (tm) in this post. 

Starting Kal Count: 0. Ending Kal Count: 2.

So we start off right after Darman’s crash landing into some trees with Niner’s reaction to Darman literally shoulder charging him off a crashing airplane space ship. Rather than being (rightfully) angry, Niner sees the transport they had been on explode, and his immediate thought is that Darman must be dead. But he’s in sergeant mode, so he hurries to gather up what equipment he can and regroup with the rest of Omega.

The g’dan (which again are supposed to be like a foot tall but I’m still imagining as venemous, furry, sharp-teethed gizka because that’s the imagery my brain decided on) do attempt to eat him in the process which gives me one of my favorite small/throw-away lines:

It is really interesting to me how quickly Omega makes character judgements about each other. Niner decides here that Darman would have found the g’dan fascinating (not knowing of course that the g’dan are trying to eat Dar, too). Later Atin tells Etain that Dar is fussy about the wiring on his explosives, which is likely accurate, but also comes after a very short window of association. You could dismiss Niner’s line as projection, but together I think it just kind of drives home how closely clones are able to read one another and how attuned to very small behavioral clues the have to be, having grown up on Kamino the way they did.

Anyway, Niner is slightly distressed by the fact that he’s just lost another squad member, so in what’s going to become an unfortunate pattern, he flashes back to the Words of Wisdom of Kal Skirata. Hard Contact is the only Republic Commando novel not to have a Dramatis Personae, but if it did, it would have to list Kal Skirata even though he physically is elsewhere and uninvolved in the plot. 

Thus begins my Kal Count. We currently stand at 1 Flasback/Words of Wisdom. The immediately after we get:

I wasn’t sure to count this as a separate entry in the Kal Count. But it is a separate memory and topic, so I went ahead. We currently stand at 2 Flashbacks/Words of Wisdom. Also, incidentally, google says that Niner is carrying “nearly” 165 pounds at the moment. The commandos could pick me up and carry me, I’m just saying.

Anyway, Niner is pissed about the grey armor’s lack of disguisability in a rural setting. He meets up with Fi and Atin, and updates them about Dar.

Notice Niner stressing that he didn’t see Darman jump but he didn’t abandon him either. After his conversation with Fi and given his worries about being abandoned in True Colors and Order 66, I really think this is a major hang up/fear of Niner’s.

But Atin is a good deal less... emotional, I guess? about the situation that either Fi or Niner are comfortable with. It’s all an act, but we’ll find that out later in his arc.

Seriously, Niner has a thing about abandonment.

On the other hand, if you’re someone who’s already read Triple Zero and knows that Atin was raised by Vau and knows what Vau did to Atin immediately before this mission and that Atin lost a squad in training as well... this is kind of heartbreaking.

Because he just lost everything, again, his sergeant cut his face open for not being good enough and “wallowing” about the loss, and he remembers what happened when his squad tried to rescue him. The guilt from both incidents has to be terrible- and this is his attempt to deal with it, because what if Vau was right? But neither Niner nor Fi know that yet, so they’re upset with him and he’s not getting the firm shake on the shoulder he needs to let him know that it’s Vau who’s wrong.

Anyway, after that upsetting realization I just had, we skip to Etain with Birhan investigating the crash site of Omega’s transport. 

Today in worldbuilding things that annoy the shit out of Rev: this is the only time Qiilura having its own language ever comes up, and all the characters speak perfect Basic for the rest of the novel. 

“starved”. I’m just saying, Etain is called “gaunt” and “starved” repeatedly through out this book, so... whatever happened in the three months she was on Qiilura before Omega got there, she probably still needs some therapy for it. But at least it makes some sense here, unlike when she’s back on the planet as a General in True Colors and only weighs 100 lbs while pregnant.

Again with the mention of food. Also I 1000% do not blame her for being paranoid at this point, but I’m just saying, Qiilura is probably the place she goes back to in her nightmares. Also probably not the best place to send her while already anxious/afraid/pregnant, even just looking at it from a mental health stand point rather than a “it’s an active fucking battle field” pov, but what do I know.

She sees the remains of the commando’s R5 droid with its republic markings and knows Birhan was right: it’s the Republic. The scene then cuts to Darman, who is waking up from the first of many unfriendly landings involving trees. :)

He’s survived his hostile arboreal encounter and chased off the g’dan who want to eat him, but is realizing that he tore a muscle or tendon somewhere in the leg above his right knee. I am unduly pleased by this specificity because I headcanoned him having a leg injury later in life and now I can just headcanon it as him re-injuring this same spot. I don’t know why that pleases me.

Minor quibbles here: why is it Kilo and Delta first using the HUD with live ordinance when Darman was Theta squad, and he’s recounting his own experience with learning the system? Also, I’m not sure whether to read this as “they got the HUDs and later were trained with them using live rounds which is when it sunk in” or “they got the HUDs and got shot at with live rounds on the same day”.

Anyway, Darman is trying to hide off the side of the road, but the path made by the g’dans who wanted to eat him gives him away, so injured and disoriented, he’s forced to kill two of Hokan’s Weequay militia. I’m not going to screenshot the actual death, but it is important to know that while he head shots the second one, the first he initially attacks by shoving the vibroblade in the Weequay’s throat. The g’dans start eating the second Weequay’s body, because the g’dans are just a thing at this point. Like the sewer smells KT is so fond of in this book.

But anyway, the chapter ends with this fairly emotional scene:

“And he hadn’t managed a clean kill. It was wrong. They had drilled him to kill, and kill, and kill, but nobody had thought to teach him what he was supposed to feel afterward. He did feel something, and he wasn’t certain what it was. He’d think about it later.”

There’s a lot of really great characterization and thematics in this scene. It’s very quietly heartbreaking, but not in a way that calls attention to itself. It also really mirrors a scene Darman gets in the third novel, True Colors, which kind of drives home that this is an ongoing struggle for him.

What I don’t get is why it also directly contradicts a scene later in the book where Etain is struggling emotionally after sending Guta-Nay to his death. In that scene, Darman asserts that he’s already killed people as part of his training (which... really isn’t consistent with the timber of this scene?) and that he’s never had time to think about it. I guess you can handwave it to yourself as Darman refusing to acknowledge what he felt upon killing the Weequay, even to himself, as a result of fear/the values reinforced on Qiilura.

 But Darman is the viewpoint character in that scene, and even though he’s immediately protective of Etain, he doesn’t empathize with her, and it comes off as the narrative yet again being harsh towards Etain and all her failings.

I don’t know. We’ll see if I have more thoughts when we actually get to that chapter.

[per-ineptia-ad-astra]

starhearth: episode two

First Month of Spring, Days 5-7

With a new morning dawning it’s time to really start getting this colony underway. Our motley little crew are still flush with the spirit of pioneering (very Star Trek of them) and have supplies to last a while, but they won’t be satisfied with sleeping on the ground and eating plates of berries around a campfire forever. They’ll be needing beds, and a roof over their heads, and more food, preferably before all those plates of berries run out.

[ID: A screenshot showing a small patch of trees by a lake with a square boundary marked, within which are a few cages.]

First off, Uhura is assigned a little patch of territory near the stockpile to do her trapping in. This will at least supply us with a considerable amount of dried jerky, which will keep the crew from starving if all else fails.  Then it’s time to consider our first building.

Stonehearth comes with a few pre-made building templates, but by and large you’re expected to design your own; once designed and placed in the world, your hearthlings will construct them from your stockpiled materials. I’m not exactly what you might call good at designing buildings, but fortunately hearthlings aren’t too picky about architecture and even I can manage to stick a few walls and a roof together. This first building is basically just one big room with a couple of smaller rooms attached, which is meant to eventually serve as a kind of tavern/dining hall, but more immediately will give everyone a place to sleep and eat inside until we can build some individual houses.

The finished schematic (such as it is) calls for a bit more wood than we currently have, but there are some trees in the way of where I want to put it anyway so that works out alright. A few people are sent to cut down those trees; in the meantime, Kirk studiously patrols around the camp, while McCoy crafts himself a Herbalist’s Workbench, which he’ll need to craft other things.

Once the trees are down, the building is placed in a spot close to the lake, next to a young chestnut tree. The chestnut tree isn’t strictly necessary. It just seemed nice.

Time to start building! It’s going to take rather a while, though, because Trappers, Herbalists and Footmen can’t build, so it’s just Scotty and Sulu working on it for now. And with Scotty initially busy making the doors and windows, it’s left to Sulu alone to begin laying the flooring. Unfortunately, he’s chosen to do this while drunk.

[ID: A screenshot showing a close-up on Sulu’s character bar, with a small icon on the side showing a mug of beer, with an accompanying description window which reads: “Light-headed: Having a merry time! Maybe a bit too much...Oh, well. Courage is increased. Diligence, Willpower, Speed and Stamina are slightly decreased. Crafting takes longer and has less chances of producing high quality items. This hearthling is less menacing to enemies. This hearthling will want to engage in conversations and sleep a lot more than usual.”]

Kids! Don’t try this at home. Combining carpentry and alcohol rarely ends well.

Then he falls asleep on the spot. Oh well, that might be for the best. At least now he won’t wind up nailing his own hand to the floor.

[ID: A screenshot showing Sulu, laying fast asleep on a partly finished floor with a couple of Z’s coming from him.]

Having finished his workbench, McCoy goes to gather some herbs and edible mushrooms, starting a makeshift garden next to the stockpile. Meanwhile, Scotty has finished building all the furniture for the tavern, which has raised him up to Level 2. With that done he can start helping Sulu build the actual structure.

The next day brings us a couple pieces of welcome news. The first is that a passing explorer has happened by and they’ve got an offer for us.

[ID: A screenshot of a message box titled ‘An Explorer Approaches Your Town.’ Below that, the text reads, “Hello Enterprise! I am an explorer from far to the east who deals in various amounts of trade and collection. Recently I found 2 Autonomous Cricket Golem just sitting next to the road. I’m not sure who left them there, but they’re quite helpful at cleaning up! I don’t have much use for them myself, but a nearby village said they are in need of 5 Wooden Window Frame. I will be relaxing nearby for 5 days...would you be interested in a trade at that time?”]

This is a stroke of luck, especially so early on. Cricket golems will haul items, meaning hearthlings have to spend less time doing it, which is especially helpful given that hearthlings kind of suck at cleaning up after themselves and tend to drop things all over the place. Also, they’re super cute. We definitely want these, and Scotty can easily crank out those window frames in time, so the offer is quickly accepted.

The other good news is our Daily Update. The Daily Update checks your town’s total net worth and your total amount of provisions, and if both are high enough, a new villager will come to stay. And today, we’ve got enough!

[ID: A screenshot showing a message box titled ‘Daily Update.’ The box reads “Immigration Report: Day 7 of Bittermun, 1000. Enterprise population: 5. Next hearthling requirements...” Below this are two icons, both with a green checkmark on them, one a basket containing a pumpkin and one a chest containing some gold. The icon is labeled ‘Food 117/50’ and the second is labeled ‘Net Worth 545/275’. Below that the text reads, “A new settler would like to join your town!”]

New villagers will have randomly generated names, appearances, stats and traits, and while you can freely change their names at any time, the only way to get new stats and traits is to save immediately beforehand and then reload until you get one you want. Which I...may have done. A few times.

In the end (I’m gonna decline to comment on exactly how long this took) we’ve got a newcomer with 4 mind, 6 body, and 3 spirit, with two traits: Animal Companion (this time, the animal is a fox) and Storm Chaser (which...I’m not actually sure what that one does, but my best guess is that it gives them a happiness boost in stormy weather).

By default in Stonehearth you’re not able to change the appearance of any hearthlings aside from your starting five. In the interests of having everyone look somewhat remotely recognizable as themselves, I employed a mod that lets you change the appearance of new villagers. The downside to this is that the town quickly wound up becoming remarkably homogeneous, but, well, that’s TOS for you.

At any rate, our new villager has the stats to be a good combat unit, and we’ll need an archer eventually, so I decided to make this one Chekov. Because...firing phasers is kind of like firing arrows...look, just go with me on this.

[ID: A screenshot showing a hearthling with brown hair and brown eyes standing next to a fox. Below him the description box reads “Pavel Chekov—Worker.”]

For the moment, however, we need more hands to build the tavern more than we need an archer, so Chekov won’t be taking up his job for a while yet. While he gets to work helping Scotty and Sulu, McCoy harvests some nearby berry bushes and makes some healing potions—more because he needs the experience than because we need healing potions, but hey, they might come in handy.

With the additional help the floor of the tavern is soon finished, and work begins on putting the walls up. But it’ll still be a while before it’s done and in the meantime, sleeping on the ground is making everyone grumpy, so Scotty’s made some extremely basic beds, which are put out near the fire. Before all the beds are even placed, Sulu and McCoy have passed out in a couple of them.

[ID: A screenshot near the campfire, showing two beds placed in a row, with the outlines of three beds still to be placed. McCoy and Sulu are each sleeping in a bed while Scotty sits nearby eating some berries.]

Apparently it’s been a tiring day.

[asmolbirb]

for the writing notes: 5 E, pretty please? :)

Prompt:

Anon I’m gonna break into your home and replace all your silverware with sporks

This prompt was SO HARD to fill, because I had, like, NOTHING in the note, literally what you’re seeing in that screenshot is ALL I HAD, and it’s surprisingly difficult to write 1000 words on nothing

Nonetheless! I’m super proud of what I managed to put together! I’m sure literally all of these tropes are overused but I don’t care because I put them together in this order all on my own! Excerpt + further commentary under the cut

Word count: 1105

Excerpt: When the spring rains triggered the first rockfall on the mountain that loomed above the village, sluicing away boulders and shrubbery to reveal a piercing eye twenty times the size of a human’s, the chieftain spared only a moment to sigh in resignation before sending Lana to assemble the Council.

“The bindings are weakening. The curse of the Fallen Ones rears its head once more,” the chieftain said in a low voice that evening. She was hosting the Council in the central courtyard around which the house had been built, but her voice carried easily to where Lana sat in the bedroom, mending a torn tunic. “It is time to begin our own preparations.”

“How long do we have? Do we have any hope of victory?”

“No more than a moon,” replied the chieftain. “And this is not a matter of hope - we must emerge victorious, to secure the safety of our children and our children’s children as our ancestors did for us.” The fire flickered, setting the Council’s shadows dancing across the sliver of floor visible through Lana’s door. She looked away from her mending and fancied she could make out her mother’s figure within the amorphous darkness. “Tomorrow morning, I will ride to seek the help of the Casters. Greta, mobilize the archers. We’ll need to prepare arrows strong enough to puncture stone…”

As the talk devolved into discussion of strategy and inventory, Lana lost interest. She finished with the tunic and clambered into bed, but sleep was a long time coming, her head abuzz with thoughts of giants and battles and arrows streaking across the sky.

She woke the next morning when her mother pressed a kiss to her forehead and swept her hair away from her face. “I’m leaving for some time, sweetheart,” she murmured.

“To fetch the Casters,” Lana replied in the same low tone, her voice scratchy with sleep. “I heard. What is the curse of the Fallen Ones? Are the Fallen Ones the ones in the mountains?”

Briefly, Lana’s mother’s lips stretched into a frown, before settling back into a neutral expression. “The Fallen Ones were cast out from God’s kingdom eons ago,” she said slowly. “They were halflings, not fully divine and not fully human, and so they were deemed impure. They sought refuge with the ones who had cursed them with existence, the mortal mothers and divine fathers, but both turned their backs. Their resentment grew, and they declared war on God’s kingdom. For their insolence, they were punished; they sought war, so war they received. God sent divine forces to fight the Fallen Ones, knowing fully well that the Fallen Ones had no hope of victory. Once the Fallen Ones were teetering on the edge of extinction, God relented, allowing the remaining Fallen Ones to fall back and recover under the guise of mercy. But when the Fallen Ones created their own society and regained their strength and numbers, God sent the divine forces once more to lay waste to them an the children they had birthed. It is a war that has been passed down among the generations, each seeking revenge for the ancestors who were needlessly culled in ages past. Every century, we battle the giants, and bind them again to the mountains, in a cycle of destruction and hatred as old as time.”

“All for wanting a home?” Lana asked, aghast. “Surely there’s a way to end the bloodshed!”

Her mother didn’t reply. Instead, she smiled softly and pressed another kiss to Lana’s forehead. “If all goes well, I’ll return in a week. Let Bridget know if you need anything, and stay out of trouble, you hear?”

One final kiss, and an “I promise” from Lana, and the chieftain was gone.

Over the next few days, their once sleepy town erupted into a gale of activity. Every morning, the archers and swordsmen could be heard running drills in the far fields. Construction began on barricades and simple weaponry. A watch was set to keep the Council informed on the progress of the unearthing of the giants.

By the second day, the eyes of four other creatures had been uncovered. Their gazes remained fixed on the village, never moving, never blinking. On more than one occasion, Lana wondered if the creatures were truly alive, or simply stone carvings. On the third day, the first hand was revealed, with fingers thick as tree trunks; the fifth day brought an avalanche that left in its wake glimpses of still more giants, some standing, some crouched as though preparing to shoot into a dead sprint. When the chieftain returned on the eighth day with a cavalcade of cloaked Casters trailing behind her, a dozen giants were painted in sharp relief across the mountain face.

(Transition)

The cavalry was lined in rows facing the giants, and the archers stood behind them, bows strung and arrows knocked. The Casters gathered in a tent near the command post where the chieftain and Lana were stationed. They had already begun incanting in the language of God. The strange words unsettled Lana, though she didn’t know whether this was because of their unfamiliar sounds or because of the power imbued into the chants by the Casters.

They watched the giants shake off the last of the dirt and unfurl to their full heights. As they rose, the giants spoke to each other in rumbling tones that mimicked the sound of earthquakes and rockfalls, the words as foreign to Lana’s ears as the Casters’.

As the sun reached its zenith, silence swept across the field. Then, as one, the giants attacked.

The frontline of giants swept through half the cavalry in their first rush. Though they carried no weapons, their limbs were powerful as bartering rams, and they simply swing their fists and feet in devastating arcs through the army. The archers rallied then, letting go of volley after volley of arrows, but they were largely ineffectual, simply bouncing off the giants’ sturdy bodies.

The chanting emanating from the Casters swelled in volume and intensity, and finally the giants slowed in their assault. They began to strain as they pushed forward, as though grappling with an immense backwards force. But even as the magic began to take hold, swaths of villagers fell victim to the giants’ sheer brute force.

Lana watched the carnage unfold in horror. “You said we would win,” she couldn’t help but whisper. “You said they would be decimated, left to lick their wounds for another century.”

The chieftain smiled, but it was a grim facsimile of her usual kind expression. “They aren’t the Fallen Ones, Lana. We are.”

Director’s cut commentary: Inspired by the concept of nephilim, more specifically the following line from wikipedia: “The word [nephilim] is loosely translated as giants in some Bibles and left untranslated in others. The "sons of God" have been interpreted as fallen angels in some traditional Jewish explanations.” 

And then, me being me, I had to find a way to subvert the idea of the giants being the nephilim/fallen angels.

I’d originally challenged myself to write a piece of microfiction that didn’t exceed 1k words, and this was my attempt at that. Clearly, I failed (lol), but I think I could a completed version of this down to 1.5k, so it’s not a total disappointment. Still, this is far from my best writing, probably because it’s 4:30 am and I only started writing this 2 hours ago because I couldn’t sleep. I’d like to add more details/descriptions, and I definitely need to flesh out the lore, and I’d like to find a way to eliminate the clunky expository loredump. But for a 2-hour word vomit session, this isn’t half bad imo.

Anyway, I hope this meets your expectations, anon! Thanks for the challenge, and for forcing me to stretch out my creative muscles!

[amidnightstar-blog]

International Women’s Day and Dating Update 2019.

Hey guys!  Its been a long time, but I’ve decided it’s time for an update.

Time to write the truth and unravel some nasty and disappointing things on dating. 

In the past 3 months, I have met and tried out some dating apps. Tinder, OkCupid, POF and Bumble. These are great dating apps, but the people on there are not. 

Today society seems to believe that meeting someone is only through online dating apps. 

Do not get me wrong! I believe that too because were limitless towards going out and finding someone. 

If you approach someone:

you are creepy.

you come up offensive.

your judged within 5 minutes. 

In the past couple of months, I’ve had some more messed up dates. 

Let’s start story time ! 

1) Rab. 

This was an on going chapter for 3 month’s. We went out and off, but because of working 247 we couldn’t be together. We would pull away and try to keep touch again. He always tried to portray it as physically relationship, but I never let it happen. 

You know it’s not right when someone is trying to rush you into something or only talk about sex only with you. 

Why is it that because your nice girl, guys think they can get in your head. When you stand up and don’t go in their bed then your the bad guy? Your the odd one out? 

Yet these are the people who will come running back into your life, saying that their sorry and begging for another chance to start over. 

NOT ME! I have the the 3 rule strike. 

Mess up 3 times and your out ! Within those couple months it happened ! 

2) Dip. 

This was a short chapter of a friend. We met, again he was a busy guy. Building himself and career. However, he has no time for himself, which instead he wanted a caretaker than a girlfriend. 

Omg..... you know the term man baby... yuppp that’s him. 

Stay on the phone, vent about life, only want to talk about them, they need support, they need help.... 

Any mention about yourself he would reply something needy like this:

“aww... but cmon today I ate an apple and i hated it,” (whaaaaaaat !) 

I decided to end that fast. 

3) Ramin. ( I’m leaving the real name )

The most recent and obsessive one. Within a week asked me out on a date and a relationship.

I have to admit, I have faults in this one believing in him way to fast. EVERYTHING WAS TOO FAST! 

Within a couple days we talked uncontrollable. We were relatable or so I thought. Within time the crazy came out. 

I’m talking about obsession, controlling, abusive, manipulator, begged for money, making you feel isolated from everyone, leaving around 1000 messages in the middle of the night about how your not good enough, and threatening voicemails. 

Within a week I ran! 

Never have I ever been harassed by someone so bad. Not even any of my ex’s. 

This guy used personal information about my insecurity with weight to verbally put me down. Physically harass me. Mentally get into my head. 

He would insult me and call me back saying sorry.

“About how much he missed me. That he wouldn’t find another girl. Messaged and called saying I’m a cow and disgrace,”  the list goes on.

His friend passed away, he blanked me out. Understandable. I offered to take him to the funeral and be there he blamed me for his death.... 

WHATTTT! I ONLY OFFERED YOU A RIDE. I DID NOT SAY ANYTHING.  

Another time, he asked for my help in school. When I texted him only 4 texts asking him about the important dates I got: 

“You embarrassing me, stop texting me so much, I’m not stupid, I don’t need you” 

I only messaged 4 times and spaced out asking what time was the exam, what exam, email me the text book names and if your okay.... WHATTTTTTTTT! 

He need money for school, he became desperate for it. It wasn’t more than 50 bucks, only to find out he was a pot junky that needed money to get it. Even though he swore to pay me back. He kept using that as a way to keep in contact and make me not leave.

The cycle would repeat.... guys I left this guy 5 days ago and never messaged him. Yet he was having this conversation on his own....

Texting me non stop and leaving voicemails. I didn’t want to block him, because I wanted my money back. Eventually this harassment was not even worth that 50 bucks. I got over 100 text messages each night and voicemails being blocked up with cursing, verbal abuse and an apology and it would then repeat. harassed, cursing, verbal abuse and an apology. 

I blocked him on everything and kept it all the voicemail and screenshot the messages. I finally sent one text warning him to leave me alone, before I got the police involved for harassment. 

Today is International Woman Day... 

The reason I’m telling this story is because woman are victims to pig headed mens like this. I refused to feel ashamed or be quiet about unfortunate disgusting acts. 

Do not get me wrong, not all guys are like this. But some will put a woman in such a place where she wonders what she has done wrong?... what she can do to be better?

Today I’m saying this WOMAN WE ARE STRONG. WE HAVE NOT BEEN WRONG. WE HAVE BECOME TARGETED VICTIMS. WE ARE BETTER. LOVE YOURSELF AND BE BRAVE! 

The real award is walking away and knowing better.

The best award is making others aware. 

Walking away from someone toxic like that. 

By staying away from other mistakes like that. By forgiving yourself and accepting mistakes by learning from them. By Making sure woman out there know, this is nothing to be ashamed about, instead be proud you faced it and moved on from it. 

Don’t let anyone put you down or put you in such a place again.

You are stronger. You are wiser. Your are one step closer. Believe, dream and be you ! 

I’m letting go of the anger, the past, the hate, I’ve decided to be the bigger person and move on. 

Let it be a learning lesson a bad dream and never let history repeat itself ever again. 

Guys and Girls please respect each other. End the games and be truthful, karma and problems will catch up to you and let me tell you it won’t be pretty. Happy International Women’s Day ! 

[s2he-gamewalkthrough]

Part 12: In the Clouds

The part of the game where Tensho has to complete some finicky and very specific game requirements to progress the story.

If you don’t know what this is about, please refer to this previous post.

[Any new comments by me will be designated by brackets.]

[Oof, this chapter’s one of the messier ones... I’ve cleaned it up a lot from the original LiveJournal post, but it still jumps around a lot in places. Apologies for that.]

Before I get on with the plot of the game, I found some upgrades!

Tensho:

Lv 2 --> 3:

Tenka:

Second listed item, Lv 1 --> 2

Youzen's:

First listed item, Lv 1 --> 2

First listed item, Lv 2 --> 3

Second item listed, Lv 1 --> 2

Second item listed, Lv 2 --> 3

[I uh. Really hope these combinations are still correct as I am unable to test them out in the old saved game I have. I highly recommend upgrading paopei/weapons whenever you can because it helps to make all future battles significantly easier.]

Oh, I forgot to mention before, but you should have gotten a few equipable items by now. Those are marked with stars (in the item description) in the inventory menu:

You can equip them to characters by selecting the third “word” in the menu screen:

Some equipment items affect certain stats, while some I guess negate status ailments. If you don't know Japanese, then finding out the effects pretty much comes down to trial and error. (I won't be listing the specific effects of all the equipable items--Sorry!)

Cavechan was nice enough to translate the character stat screen for us in part 1, so that should be a big help when you're messing around with equipment. (Thank you again to Cavechan!)

In the end, I had to equip Tenka with an item to boost his attack because it was pathetically weak.

Also, I've recently found out that you can't use HP-restoring potions on doushi/senin. I have no idea why this happens. This means that if you want to heal these characters while in a dungeon, you have to use a character that has a healing move. Man, that's going to be annoying in a pinch.

Anyway, time for more level grinding in the Houshindai!

I will only be unlocking two senins in the Houshindai today because the monsters on the lower floor are getting harder and harder to beat.

Another of the Juunisen, and In Hon's master. His name's Seki Seishi. (Also, he apparently talks A LOT.)

I also unlocked In Cho's master! (Kou Seishi)

Their bonus is:

They both sell things for something other than cash. One seems to sell potions while the other just sells combo upgrades. I suppose it’s decently useful?

While training in the Houshindai, I messed around with some of Youzen’s new moves.

After having beaten Chou Koumei (yet again), Youzen can now transform into him (4th move, second option.)

Sadly, you only have one attack Chou Koumei (a whip-like attack) and it frankly sucks because it does such a small amount of damage. I think this form is balanced out with all the supporting moves you have at your disposal, though I admittedly never utilized Chou Koumei’s form much.

And oooh, the 60 EP move (unlocked from the cutscene between Youzen and Gyokutei) allows Youzen to go into yokai form!

His ultimate attack (costing 40 EP) does A TON of damage.

(For reference, I was only doing about 1000 points of damage with Tensho and Tenka at this stage in the game.)

Anyway, time to head to the new location, finally. It looks to be someplace up in the clouds?

Hmm, that kid looks familiar...

Hey, it's kid-Tensho!

...Wait, what?

Yeah, this is actually all just an illusion. Those treasure chests scattered about are actually real, but you’ll have to find a way to get to them yourself because... Well, you’ll see why soon enough. 

After the short convo, kid-Tensho beckons you to follow him, and he’ll move a few steps along some kind of invisible path. You have to follow kid-Tensho’s steps EXACTLY. Otherwise you'll fall off the clouds (Hitou saves you from falling to your death) and have to re-do the path all over again. This “invisible path” is ridiculously long, which is why they included a guide in the form of kid-Tensho. You have to follow him about six times. You can save at any time in this area; so if you're the type that has trouble following an exact path, then you might want to save in the middle so you don’t have to keep restarting all the way at the beginning if you make a mistake.

Also, don't follow too closely behind kid-Tensho, otherwise you might accidentally walk ahead too far when he turns. This happened to me many, many times. [I’m not going to give a guide on how to grab any of the treasure chests in this area, because honestly; I haven’t been able to figure out how to grab most of the chests myself.]

After all of that trouble, Tensho finds himself in a quant little village in the clouds. (It's actually a small village on top of a very high mountain, if you've read the manga.)

I'm going to just say this now for lack of a better place to bring it up: when you exit, you'll immediately leave the place. (You won't have to go through the invisble path in reverse or anything.) But you'll have to do the walkway “puzzle” again every time you try to visit the village. Really quite annoying. The next time you arrive, you'll be given three options on how to do the puzzle--slow, medium, or fast. This refers to how quickly kid-Tensho walks along the path. If you have amazing memory and want to save time, then you can choose the medium or fast option. I always go with slow, because it's the turns that get me...

The cameos in this village include:

The Village Chief guy with a strong aura.

And surprisingly, an un-possessed Chuu Ou. I have no idea how he got here or even what he’s doing here, but I get the feeling Shinkyohyo had a hand in this somehow.

And of course, there’s Taijou Roukun (a.k.a. Roushi) sleeping amongst the sheep.

[Alright, this part... You’re supposed to talk to Taijou Roukun but he’s not an easy guy to get in contact with, as he’s almost always asleep. Even now I still don’t know the EXACT requirements on how you activate the next part of the game’s plot, but I have figured out a rough guideline... sorta.

Talk to EVERYONE in this location ONCE.

Yes, even the sheep. But ONLY once. If you talk to the same sheep twice by accident, the next cutscene won’t activate. This is an extremely specific set of requirements, I know.]

After having talked to everyone and every sheep ONCE, go up to Taikou Roukun and try talking to him. After the usual sleeping noises Roushi makes, Tensho will say something.

I "think" after doing EVERYTHING you possibly can do, Tensho figures it out and does the same thing Taikoubou did to talk to Roushi... Sleep.

No BGM plays in this mini-cutscene. That means important stuff. Too bad I can't read Japanese. You're given two different dialogue choices in a row. I don't think it really has much effect on the storyline, but I don’t have any real way of confirming that (due to my lack of Japanese language knowledge). 

[I have no idea what this says but it’s probably important.]

In case you're wondering, I just went with the first choices for both “choose your dialogue” moment in the convo with Roushi. In this game, the first choice tends to be the better one, it seems.

After that mini-cutscene...

Hey, you're--!

Nentou Doujin! (By the way, his BGM is AWESOME.) Talk to him, and you’ll get treated to a loooong conversation. After that, leave Taijou Roukun’s place. The dot over Mount Kongrong’s location should be flashing, and all your party members will be gone. Don’t worry--this is only a temporary thing.

To continue the plot of the game, you'll have to bring Soushou along to the village in the clouds. (His room is the back right one, on the first floor.) Then head back to talk to Nentou. I can’t remember if it was ever officially confirmed (or if I’ve already mentioned it in this guide), but Nentou is Soushou’s master.

After another long convo, Soushou stays behind, I guess to train under Nentou. You get the rest of your party members back here.

Like master, like disciple.

BONUS MATERIAL TIME (a.k.a. some extra stuff that I didn’t know where to put so it’s going in this post whoop whoop)

At this point in the game, some locations on the overworld have changed a bit. If you go back to the water cave area (the one with all the arrows), you'll find Sengyoku and Dokouson there now.

I have NO idea why they're even standing here. Maybe to guard the place? Maybe because Sengyoku thinks that it's a romantic spot?

Anyway, if you want to initiate a rather humorous scene; first have youzen transform into this:

Second, talk to Dokouson.

In case you're wondering who Youzen just transformed into, it's Hekiun, one of Ryuukitsu's disciples.

Dokouson starts drooling over her and his wifey gets mad.

There’s some pounding noises and the screen shakes.

You can also now find Mokutaku and Kintaku at the old battlefield area.

It took me a long time to figure this out, but Tenka’s “action button” allows him to bust through certain walls:

Apparently the one-off “Tenka as a construction worker” joke from the manga was so funny to the game creators that they included a special face portrait of Tenka in a hardhat.

Anyway, if you head back to Tensho’s hometown after finishing the Taijou Roukun cutscene, you’ll be given a lot of dialogue choices if you talk to the villagers. This doesn’t seem to do anything too important. 

But if you choose the second dialogue option on one of the old men, he begins frantically running around the whole town. It's... somewhat amusing in a morbid kind of way.

The old dude freaking runs at the speed of light. I had to block him like this to get a screenshot of him.

Going back to Genshitenson's place briefly...

A grave has been built for him. I think Hakutsuru built it?

Inside Geishitenson's hut, if you look at the right pot at the back of the room, Hitou will say something. THIS IS IMPORTANT. He doesn't do it when you look at the other pot (on the left) so you know something's up. We will return here later.

[That’s all for this post. I hope you guys enjoyed it, despite it being a bit of a mess.]

To be continued.

[stillness-in-green]

Gundam IBO Odds-n-Ends (1/2)

 Being the first part of an essay commemorating all the interesting, odd, and just plain funny screenshots I saved on my rewatch of Gundam IBO.  I offer it in the spirit of shared fandom, as interesting information for the consideration of fellow fanfic writers, or simply meta for those who enjoy reading such things.  

I have split these photos into three major categories: Worldbuilding, Characterization, and Hilarity. The first category is the largest, and makes up this first post.  It consists of pictures that illustrate aspects of the show’s setting, and is further subdivided into Locations, Society, and Language & Arts.  If any of those sound interesting to you, hit the jump!

Worldbuilding: 

  Locations: Screenshots of the various locales of the series, both to point out interesting things about them, and, about as often, to highlight hilarious signs. We begin, as the show does, on Mars.

I think it’s very easy to think of Chryse as kind of a dirthole in the show.  We so often see it from the perspective of people like Tekkadan—whose base is located outside the city—or Atra, who grew up in a very poor area. Obviously there are some nice places, like Kudelia’s home, and there is a kind of dusty, sunny appeal to even some of the poorer areas, with their colorful signs and graffiti, but by and large, up until we start seeing locations like Admoss Company, it doesn’t seem much like a major planetary hub.

I think that’s because we don’t get a lot of high-angle views.

Here is Chryse as established in the very last episode, free from Earth meddling and finally self-governing.  We’re clearly in its more affluent downtown area, given the government building (bearing the flag of The Martian Union) in the middle of the picture.  It’s possible that it looks worse up close, of course, but notice the broad walkways, and the light-to-the-point-of-being-nonexistent traffic.  Notice the splashes of blue, green and red in the architecture.  Notice all the trees, both lining the streets and blanketing the city in broad swathes that would seem to indicate an unusually large concentration of lush parks.  In the far, far distance, you can just see the mountains that surround the city on all but its north side.  

All the evidence we have suggests a pretty awful class divide on Mars, but man, Chryse’s downtown area is still really nice.  Kudelia probably spends large amounts of her professional time in areas like this.  

Here, you can see that we’re far closer to the outskirts—note the slopes climbing rapidly into mountains—and are definitely back in a poorer area of town.  The ground is bare, and there are no trees.  At least the streetlights all work!  Kassapa Factory is located in an area much closer to this than the gorgeous downtown, to judge from the proximity of the mountains in that final shot of Yamagi in the epilogue.  

Moving on out of the city entirely—I’m thinking to the north, assuming the geography of Chryse is roughly analgous to that of Chryse Planitia, the Martian plain it takes its name from—one would find the Sakura Farm and associated holdings.  We’ll stop in there later, but in the meantime, I did want to include this picture.

Though it’s never referred to by name in-series, this is the actual orphanage Kudelia founded at Sakura Farm.  The photo is one of several in Kudelia’s Admoss office showing her company holdings—there’s also a picture of the mines—and was presumably taken not long after the building was built, judging by the lack of the art that would eventually come to decorate all its exterior walls.  Derma and Dante work here in the epilogue, but Atra lives on the farm as well, so one can assume Akatsuki is never lacking for other kids to play with.

We move now to Jupiter—or at least, one of the colonies orbiting Jupiter.  Saisei, where McMurdo Barriston lives and reigns, is home to an extremely healthy little shopping district, and it is just full to the brim with interesting or hilarious storefronts.  Lets look at some of them!

First off, Saisei is loaded with bars.  Seriously, the one the boys stop in on their first visit, Pub Someday, is one in a string of at least three—it’s sandwiched between Public House (‘public house’ being the term that the word ‘pub’ actually derives from) and Pub Always.  I think Naze probably recommended Pub Someday to them, and I think that largely because, left to their own devices, I’m sure they would have gone into Pub Always instead. Why?

Note the neon red and white fleur-de-lis hanging on the side of the establishment (which they’re standing around in front of the entrance to because they’re a bunch of ill-mannered yokels).  My god, how did they not go into this place?  It has their logo just right there on it.  

There are marginally less alcoholic portions of Saisei, however, like the one Lafter and Azee go do a touch of retail therapy in after Naze’s memorial service.  They pass a store just called Delicious, but I think my favorite was HOUSE STORE, seen below.

What does one buy at this store, I wonder?  Furniture? Furnishings?  Knick-knacks?  Oh, perhaps it’s actually an office front, and this is where one comes to rent/purchase an apartment or other living quarters at Saisei?  

Down the way from HOUSE STORE, of course, is the ill-fated Bear Factory.  I want to look at the place next to it, though, because it has caused me some serious confusion.  

So, the imagery here—the slightly frosted glass, the gold lettering, the delicate wrought-metal window decorations—suggests something like a high-end coffee shop, or perhaps some manner of light, ritzy soup-and-salad-type lunch café.  If you run a Google search for “cocotaso,” however, the primary thing you’re going to get is something that does not at all match this building’s elegant exterior.

At least so far as the English-speaking world is concerned, “cocotaso” is a Hispanic-by-way-of-the-Caribbean slang term for when someone (often a parent) strikes you on the head with their knuckles; it’s usually in the context of a disciplinary hit, like a kid in the US might describe getting a ruler rapped on their knuckles, or “dekopin,” the forehead flicks you see in anime sometimes (in IBO itself, even—Naze drops one on Orga early on).  

Now, I did manage to dig up another possibility, one that’s definitely the more likely reference, if by far the less popular Google result.  “Coco” by itself is the Spanish word for “coconut,” and it’s possible to find some bottles labeled “cocotaso”/”cocotazo” advertising coconut water or coconut-infused brandy and the like—mostly by running the term through Image Search instead of a straight Web Search.  I have no idea what the taso/tazo is indicating there, unless it’s just colloquial—particularly in the case of the booze, it’s no different than calling a drink a Screwdriver.

So, if I had to guess, I’d assume this lovely storefront is yet another bar, one of a vastly different cultural influence than we see in literally any other place in the show.  I find it alternately hilarious and rather confounding.  

Anyway, Saisei is really great to me, you guys.  It’s like the space Mall of America except there are 1000% more bars and it’s run by the mob.

How about anything else around Jupiter, though?  Saisei is literally all we ever see of the Jupiter Sphere, which is a bit disappointing when you’re wanting more worldbuilding.  Well, I did spot one image that might be giving us a look at something else in that area.  Specifically, in Naze and Amida’s flashback, we see them in a nice hotel room following a successful delivery, with Naze asking her to stay on with him more long-term. There’s a brief moment where the camera looks out the window, and gives us this vista:

You can compare this to the scenes that take place outdoors on the Dort Colonies; the structures running down the center right of the picture are clearly of the same general design.  A close analysis, though, suggests that it’s definitely not one of the Dorts we’re looking at here.  For starters, they’re huge. Compare the 4-to-5-storey buildings on Dort to the huge office buildings here; they come up to about the same height relative to their respective pillars.  There are also the lights up the center of the structures, suggesting some absurdly expensive offices or apartments available to rent—the pillars in Dort don’t have anything like that. Consider too the fact that in outdoors shots in the Dort Colonies, you could always see either the central pillar or the curve overhead of another part of the colony, often both.  While it’s nighttime here, the way the whole town is lit up suggests that, if this colony were the same size as Dort, its sky should be full of “stars”—the lights from the buildings on the other side of the ring.  But the sky is black and empty, without even a suggestion of the central pillar, much less the other side of the colony.  

No, I’m inclined to think that this our only look at an actual colony in orbit around Jupiter—not an enormous ship like Saisei, which is technically classified as a “large planetary cruiser,” but an actual permanent colony.  It’s one of the most metropolitan-looking places we ever see in the show, and certainly offers a fascinating glimpse of a place in the Jupiter Sphere unattached to Saisei.  

One last look at a planetary location, in one of my favorite bits of accurate but poorly deployed English in the show.  This shot is from Edmonton, during the Season One finale.   

I direct your attention, not to the perfectly acceptable roadblock signs, but rather, the large bank on the left side of the road.  You can tell it’s a bank because it’s been helpfully labeled as such.  Twice, even, in case you missed it the first time.  I mean, I guess you could say that this reflects the fact that Earth is divided up primarily by business interests.  After all, normal banks are named after people, or regions, or types of trees, or major industries in the area—something sort of pleasantly descriptive of their history or business aims.  But as Earth is run by divisions literally called ‘economic blocs’, you certainly can’t get much more descriptive than BankBank.  

Meanwhile, out in the vast reaches of space…  

Possibly this was obvious to everyone but me, but in the interest of sharing the information with people who share my lack of experience with a) sci-fi and b) mechanical thinking, I offer a pair of pictures of the bridge of Rustal’s ship, Arianrhod’s flagship vessel.

Like, compare those working areas, that raised, rear bridge area to the same layout on the Isaribi. I’m pretty sure just half of that back area would fit Tekkadan’s whole bridge.  Tekkadan’s bridge has five positions counting the captain’s seat—the halfbeak here seats—what, like thirteen?  Cripes.

Speaking of things that are way bigger than I had initially assumed, my last photo for this section is of one of the Ariadne beacons.  

That tiny little lifted bit crowning the Isaribi is, of course, its bridge, where Orga and company hang out all day on their space travels.  Compare it to the beacon in the background.  I had no idea the Ariadne beacons were so huge until I went looking for a picture of one.  I’m pretty sure just the lighting array on that thing is taller than a grown man, and that’s with the beacon still fairly well in the background of the shot.  I have no idea why anyone might need this knowledge to write fic with, but I did think it was interesting, so there you have it.

  Society: Pictures of stuff in the world, things that illustrate local color, shadows of unnamed organizations, bits of home furnishings, and other such things that influence what you might loosely call the setting’s ‘lifestyle’.  As before, lets start on Mars.  

One of the things we see, if I recall, fairly early on with Atra is that she knows how to drive. This crops up periodically throughout the series, with probably its best showing in the season one finale, but my favorite scene of Atra driving is probably in the first episode of season two. Why?  Well, because in season two she has her own car—and you can tell its hers by the vanity plate.  

“ATR” for Atra, “16” for the year (most of) the show aired in, see?  I’d also peg the 016 as indicating Atra’s age at the time she did the paperwork for the vehicle registration.  Kudelia is sixteen when we first meet her (per Gjallarhorn’s info), and Atra being two years younger than her feels about right.  This would also make Atra sixteen or seventeen when she and Mikazuki make a baby together, which is in line with Japan’s prefectural laws regarding the age of consent.  

The vanity plate lettering aside, this does also tell us that cars need to be registered with someone in this world, which further implies the existence of a Martian DMV, which is just delightfully terrible.  

It’s probably so terrible that when people get done, they really feel they need a drink.  Well, luckily the setting has loads to offer on that front.  Consider the following:

(What do you suppose happened to all the booze in Maruba’s office?  I’m inclined to think Orga didn’t have time to do much with it just after the coup, and by the time he got back, he’d had the experience of getting trashed at Pub Someday and decided to cultivate less vomit-inducing vices.)

So, one thing to note is that, at the official bars in the setting, you tend to see a pretty high amount of repeat bottles, especially at that Earth-side bar Galan and Radice are meeting at.  I’m altogether certain that the meta reason for this is just duplicated resources—setting designers have only got so much time to slap together alcohol label designs—but it is a little interesting to contemplate in-universe reasons.  If so much of Earth was destroyed, how much is really suitable for cultivating the sorts of plants you need for alcohol?  Is vineyard destruction why so few of these bottles look like wine instead of amber liquors like bourbon, brandy, and rum?  

Moreover, is Pub Someday considered to be a “fancy” place (per Lafter) because it has Earth booze? Note that you can see some label overlap between the first and third pictures if you look closely, whereas the stuff in Maruba’s office doesn’t match anything else.  Do they manufacture alcohol on Mars?  Are there any local specialties?  Is import and export very restricted?    

The “Gift of Nature” there is, if I’m reading the label right, a brandy—though a cheap one, according to Amida.  It’s Naze’s favorite, the one he and Amida drank at their first meeting (though the label on that bottle looked different—perhaps a redesign has happened in the, what, 10+ years it’s probably been since then?).  From an American perspective, this is pretty amusing to me—brandy is one of those drinks with a very posh, moneyed kind of image about it. That Naze buys Amida cheap brandy—a poor man’s rich man’s drink—really just says everything about where he was in his life at the time.  

But talking of money: I mentioned this some time ago in one my Human Debris Masterpost installments, and at least one fic I wrote for Yuletide last year, but: we do actually have a canonical shot of what denomination this setting’s money comes in. 

Two possibilities here. The obvious one, phonetically, is that the money in this setting is literally named after its biggest police force, Gjallarhorn.  This is both funny and deeply depressing, but either way, illustrates Gjallarhorn’s power in the setting.  It even makes a certain amount of sense, if Gjallarhorn is nominally there to arbitrate between the economic blocs—you would want a common currency, and wouldn’t want it to be too tied to any one bloc.  

There’s also a Norse myth that’s relevant, though, and given how accurately the Vidar reference was deployed, it’s worth looking at what ‘galar’ could indicate in that context. 

Fjalar and Galar were dwarf brothers, distinctly murderous ones, and their main claim to fame is the murder of a supernaturally wise man, Kvasir, and use of his blood to create the mead of poetry, which grants wisdom, knowledge and creative inspiration.  Using Galar as a name for money is an ugly little metaphor, I think, and one I could certainly see some very smug—or deeply jaded—scholar coming up with.  Money buys all manner of things, of course; artists can have patrons, put money in, get art out.  But because the denomination isn’t named for the source of the inspiration, the murdered man, but rather one of his murderers, there’s an undercurrent of violence, a suggestion of blood money.  No matter what you want, throw enough money (violence) at it, and results will blossom beautifully.  Guys, I’m pretty sure whoever named this setting’s money lost his entire family in the Calamity War, or something equally morbid.

As to its value, I think one galar is probably far closer to one yen than one dollar.  Why? Well, while I can’t remember where I pulled this shot from (Atra’s flashback to meeting Mikazuki, maybe?) we do see bills in this exact same denomination in one other place in the series—the cairn for Tekkadan’s dead after the fight with the Brewers.  So, yes, I think the bits of money that a bunch of underpaid orphans were able to scrounge up out of their pockets to literally shoot into space are likely to be very low value indeed.  I imagine most major transactions are just handled electronically.  

One other thing: I think this is the back of the bill.  If you compare it to the reverse-side of the same denomination, the other side has the more elaborate design, the more visible numeral, and higher general visual clarity.  It also has a big old picture of the African continent on it—perhaps other denominations also feature geographic regions?  On the reverse side, meanwhile, are an indiscriminate blur of what I think are meant to be people, presumably some manner of historic group or another.  

While we’re talking about emblems and the setting’s peace-keepers, I want to point out something I noticed in the epilogue—I think Rustal’s done away with the Seven Stars logo? Like, it’s still on all the flags at Vingolf, but there’s a new one on the Reginlaze standing behind him when we first see him in the epilogue and find out he’s become the new head of Gjallarhorn.

On the old emblem, six stars surround the central star; on this new one, the top and bottom stars have been removed.  I wouldn’t think it was to honor the fallen members—the Seven Stars as a governing body were retired, first of all, so they shouldn’t be on the logo at all anymore. More to the point, though, the group lost three families, not two—Issue, Kujan, and Fareed.  Perhaps the new arrangement is a reference to the four economic blocs, with the cental star now representing Gjallarhorn itself?  

Still talking about emblems, here’s a screenshot from way early in the show:

So, as far as I can tell, this is the emblem of Gjallarhorn’s medical branch—you can see the same uniform on the doctor getting yelled at by Gaelio about Ein’s prognosis, later on.  And that’s all well enough as it is—I wonder what the logo is meant to represent, in an organization so built around Norse mythos?—but we do see it in one other, somewhat more interesting place as well.

First-aid kits!  So I guess we can assume the logo fills in the place of our world’s red cross.  Of course, in our world the red cross is a legally-recognized emblem that can be misused or misapplied, in use the world over (with different variations in use in other countries, most prominently the red crescent), not bound to any particular government.  Unsurprisingly for the Iron-Blooded Orphans world, their red cross is affiliated primarily with Gjallarhorn—no different than their money, I suppose.  I wonder, very much, if the economic blocs have tried to keep their own currencies and the like that struggle to remain valid under the supremacy of Gjallarhorn?  

But, enough about institutions!  Who wants to look at home furnishings??  

Specifically, the furnishings in what I’m assuming is the Fareed apartment on Vingolf, as we see McGillis and Almiria here repeatedly in season two, and it’s the place where Almiria stands her ground as McGillis’s wife against Gallus coming to take her back home.  It’s an interesting mix of fairly standard looking furnishings—nothing too futuristic or archaic, just a modern-looking space, airy and warm, if perhaps with one too many chairs in it.  There are only two things in it that stand out to me on a technological level.

While I’m pretty curious about where those stairs hiding behind the potted tree go, given the stretch of building visible outside the sliding doors, what really caught my eye here was the speaker system tucked against the bricks, above McGillis’s head. It looks like such a perfectly real-world device, so much so that I wonder if it’s some kind of antique, or built to resemble one.  I’m pretty certain we never see anything else like it in the show, and it makes me wonder about the role music has in this setting, especially recorded music.  

Is it a thing for the very rich only?  Are there Martian radio stations?  Are there subtle variations between the genres of music popular around Jupiter’s moons? What about live music?  Does anyone busk on the streets with hand-me-down musical instruments?  How much would the Seven Stars pay for live entertainment at one of their important parties?  Are there still famous musicians that hold blow-out concerts on Earth?  How much cultural exchange is there between the planets and colonies in the system where their music is concerned?  

Moreover, what kind of do you suppose McGillis likes?  Myself, I’d guess big Wagnerian operas with convoluted plots and a lot of tragic-yet-noble bloodshed.  I feel like it’d appeal to the same moral binary in him that the Gundams do.  

The other thing in this space that caught my eye is the fireplace.  What’s that?  You don’t remember there being a fireplace?  Well, that’s because…

This—this can’t be very safe, can it?  I mean, it’s basically one enormous heating coil, like someone super-sized an electric stove and plopped one of the heating elements down in their living room.  But, again, it’s huge.  I have no doubt it can heat that whole room; what I question is the idea that any of that furniture wouldn’t be much too close for comfort.  To say nothing of the carpet!  

Also, if you’re not going to have actual open, dancing flames (or at least an image thereof), why bother with the huge recessed space for it?  And does that space lead to a chimney?  Is this just the world’s most bizarre space heater design?  I am just—so totally baffled by this thing.  

Lets look at someone else’s living space.  

I saved this first with the thought, “Man alive those are some huge bricks; where did he even get them?”  I have since realized that, duh, they’re certainly stone tiles, not huge bricks, but still, they are pretty ginormous, and lend a chilly, austere severity to Jasley’s room.  Most of the wealthy seem to prefer warmer spaces; McMurdo Barriston and Nobliss Gordon’s offices are all wood and warm brown shades (even though Gordon likes to sit around in the dark), maybe accented with cool furnishings here and there. Likewise McGillis’s apartment, above; the enormous purple rug in the middle of it is the one cool touch in a mostly neutral-warm palate.  

This certainly contrasts Jasley, who is, I’m pretty sure, one of the financial moguls of Jupiter—he heads J.P. Trust, which sounds very much like a bank name to me, and we know finance is one of Teiwaz’s corporate activities.  Does he just has unusually spare tastes for a rich man in the setting? That seems unlikely, given his loud coat and paisley-decorated battleship.  Or is the loud stuff for a public face, while privately he prefers the more stark sensibility?  (Of course, it’s also possible that it’s mostly a meta choice, to remove any warmth from around the character, as he’s not a man the audience is meant to feel warmly towards.  But I always want to look for the in-universe reason first, for a project like this.)

Also, Jasley, you’re so rich.  Get some more comfortable furniture for you and your goons to sit on, jeez.

Lastly, to stay with Jupiter for a moment longer, I offer some flowers.

This is the arrangement Jasley sent to Naze’s memorial service.  I wondered for a bit where these come from—imported, for maximum braying display of wealth and power?  Local, because trying to transport fresh flowers across the expanse of space sounds like an enormous pain in the ass when you could just build a greenhouse locally? It seems to me that these are probably local—local to Saisei, even.  All the other flower arrangements in this scene look like they contain mostly the same sorts of flowers, just in far more modest numbers.  That suggests to me that there’s probably a florist in Saisei’s shopping district who occasionally gets ludicrous amounts of money from some mafioso or another who wants to swagger a bit at a rival’s memorial.  What a life, eh?

Lets look at a little more ‘in-the-life’ stuff for the setting.

    Language & Arts: A short section on, as it says, language and arts.

So, while of course the series is voiced all in Japanese, overwhelmingly, the written language of the setting is English.  The signs, text from Gjallarhorn/Ariadne databases, newsfeed scrolls—all of it is in English.  Given the cultural mishmash the Earth and its outer orbit colonies have become—look no further than Mikazuki Augus sitting alongside Biscuit Griffon!—I’m inclined to think English is just the language that survived as the dominant written text, and is probably the language everyone is “actually” speaking (see Translation Convention).  There are a few places where others crop up, though!  They are in exactly the places you’d expect.  

I can’t make out the full title on the book kidlet!Gaelio has here, but I do see “Im” and “Wald,” so it’s “In the ____ Forest” in German.  I can’t imagine the organizations’ members on the whole speak the language—we see English on all their screens—but it’s not at all surprising that the leaders of the organization would have some exposure to it, though German is not, itself, a linguistic descendant of Old Norse.  (Of course, if associating Norse myth with the German language is as close as IBO ever gets to the UC’s fascination with Nazi stand-ins, we should all count our blessings.)

The other language in the show is the more obvious one—Teiwaz is the place in the show where the yakuza/mafia trappings dwell most openly.  The first time we see Japanese in the show is in their brotherhood ceremony, and they are where it crops up most regularly.  There are a few places I’d like to mention specifically, though.

So, that thing I mentioned earlier, where I said the language on screens was always English? This is the only exception, and it’s really cleverly deployed.  Teiwaz may or may not conduct all their internal business in Japanese—their ceremonies use it, but English is still the dominant written language in Saisei—but Radice uses the language for all his accounting.  We know that, not only did Radice betray Tekkadan to Galan Mossa, he had also been engaged in the more mundane crime of embezzlement, and who would ever have caught him at it?  No one in Tekkadan reads the language, even if they did understand accounting well enough to follow his tracks—Merribit was, I suspect, the only person in the organization who had even a chance of figuring it out, and she was on Mars. Radice is a rat bastard, but not an un-clever one.  

The other places we see the language in the show are unconnected to Teiwaz, save perhaps through discreet family alliances.  We see Iok practicing some calligraphy during his mid-season “exile,” and we know he has a longstanding family connection with Teiwaz, so him playing around with the language is eyebrow-raising, but not all that shocking.

The other place is a little weirder, though.  

Okay, so, Makanai Togonosuke—that is a seriously Japanese name.  I think he’s actually the only example in the show of someone who has a Japanese family and personal name.  He was the Prime Minister of the economic bloc that had its capital in Edmonton, Canada, but that’s not so strange—the economic blocs encompass huge, improbably strata of geography, after all.  The weird thing is that Arbrau isn’t the economic bloc that actually includes Japan—Japan is in the Oceanian Federation.  Arbrau has all of Russia, which certainly gets it very close to Japan, but it does make me very curious about Makanai’s early history.  

Did his parents emigrate? They must have stayed fairly connected to their Japanese heritage—despite being a leader of Arbrau, Makanai never lost his grip on Japanese culture.  It’s not just his name, but his clothes and his housing, too.  Of course, his island exile might have been around Japan; if he maintained strong ties to the country, and remained fond of it, why not live there while in exile?  This would certainly match with having to travel over water to land in Anchorage. Perhaps this strong connection factors into whatever scandal it was that got him ousted in the first place?  

In any case, it seems Japanese culture certainly survived the Calamity War and on into the future, where we can still find calligraphy practiced as an art, and bonsai trees tended as a hobby.  

What about more traditional art?  Well, certainly you can find examples of paintings all over the show, in offices and halls and homes.  I wanted to turn my eyes to two specific examples of things we see framed in the show. The first is not a painting, but actually a photograph. 

Specifically, it’s a black and white photo (maybe two of them) hanging up in the store where Atra worked at the beginning of the season.  Now, a black and white photo hanging in a store wouldn’t seem so strange in a modern setting—it’s the town founding! Or the store opening!  Or just some generic decoration!—but it does seem pretty weird in a futuristic setting long, long after the development of color photography!  We know color photography still exists—the show’s last ending sequence is a slow pan-out from an in-universe photo, after all—so what possible reason could there be for the set of black and white photos here?  People work in monochrome for artistic reasons sometimes, but this photo is just a bunch of buildings—it really does look like a “founding of the town” kind of photo, save that, again, this is a far-future sci-fi setting that has no reason to have been limited to black and white photography any time within the last, what, four to five hundred years?  

Suffice to say, I find it pretty bizarre.  

On the topic of pictures of places from long ago, though, what does everyone make of the painting on the left here?

Specifically, what are those spires on the left side?  They don’t look like any kind of object I can make out, nor any sort of architecture with which I’m familiar.  They’re not ship masts, nor do they match up with Gjallarhorn’s HQ ship-island, Vingolf. I sort of like the idea that we’re looking at some kind of very early spaceport facility, though the geography on the right side is a little prominent to be landing a big shuttle on. It almost has to be some kind of old Earth structure, though, given the painting’s location in the private home of a member of the Seven Stars.

Lastly, I wanted to showcase something that I wish I saw paid a bit more attention to in all the post-series Ride drama—the young man’s artistic streak.  I can’t prove he’s responsible for every one of the works below, but it does seem in line with what we know he did—the Tekkadan logo, which Orga asked him for, and no small portion of the Isaribi’s interior graffiti, which we can see him working on in the second closer.  He has an eye for fun shapes and mural work, and if he’s responsible for all or even most of the paintings we see around Tekkadan and Tekkadan-adjacent properties, art clearly consumed a huge portion of his time.  Of course, for all the hugely colorful work on e.g. the orphanage, we don’t see Ride doing anything artistic in the second season.  In retrospect, I wonder if this is some early foreshadowing of the darker path he’s headed down—that he puts down the paintbrush to focus on mobile suit training instead.  

In any case, here are a few screenshots of, presumably, his stuff that caught my eye.

It’s a little thing, but the sunburst here is pretty, its curves and use of color somewhat more delicate than a lot of Ride’s stuff.  A lot of his stuff is big and bold, using large amounts of red, orange and gold—this is softer than that, though it still speaks to a certain brightness of image and hope.  It even kind of matches the bridge’s color palate!

 This, on the other hand, is much more in keeping with his usual stuff.  It also confounds me, in that it certainly looks like calligraphy, but I can’t make heads or tails of any Japanese characters that might be hiding in there, and it certainly isn’t using the English alphabet.  I’d dearly love to know what, if anything, it’s saying, though.  If it isn’t a rendition of any particular writing system, I wonder if it was inspired by Teiwaz’s big brotherhood ceremony banners? Ride wasn’t at that particular ceremony, but enough people were whom Ride might have pestered for details about what it was like that I could see him hearing about it—and that’s assuming he didn’t just see some around Saisei or the Turbines ship at some point between Tekkadan’s first joining up with Teiwaz and McGillis and Orga standing around having this conversation.  If that is the source of the inspiration, I wonder what Ride was trying to communicate with this?  What words he thought he was writing?   

Lastly, I turn an eye to this fountain of feathers.  This is the least likely to be Ride’s work of the three, especially if it’s chalk instead of paint, but if it is his, I wonder where his mind was at when he drew it? Wings, for freedom?  Feathers, for angels, for death and/or the afterlife?  It’s a piece that looks perpetually unfinished, or perhaps restless—I like to imagine it is his work, but it’s from after Orga and Mikazuki’s deaths, but before Ride has cut ties with his old gang, when he’s still wrestling with what to do and, perhaps, still waiting on the older boys to come up with a plan he can stomach the idea of.  

And with that bit of shameless speculation, I draw this portion of the essay to a close.  

The second half of this essay will contain the other two categories mentioned at the start: Characterization and HIlarity.  The second category will consists of pictures that illuminate or provoke questions about the show’s characters.  The final category contains pictures I just thought were funny and wanted to highlight. If you got through this whole post and still want more, keep an eye out!

[fandom-imagines]

Jealous? Castiel x Reader

Masterlist: X

Tag list: X

So, this actually happened to me and my friends today. You can see the actual screenshots here if you want: X

It also shifts into your pov sometime, I got distracted but yeah oh well

Warnings: Smut smut smut smut

Words: around 1000

-X-

Castiel looked over at you giggling for what was around the 5th time in ten minutes. To say he was jealous was an understatement. He had no idea who you were talking to and what you were giggling at.

He knew he could ask, or just peek into your mind but he didn’t want to.

Sam and Dean must have noticed this as they started looking at Castiel every time you laughed.

“Hey, Y/N?” Dean called, placing his drink back onto the ground before walking over to you.

“What’s up, Dean?” You asked, not even looking up from your phone, a slight smile plastered on your face.

“What’s so funny?” Dean chuckled, leaning back and placing his arm around your shoulders, just to annoy Castiel even more.

“My friend.” You laughed, quickly sending a reply to your ‘friend’.

“You have friends?” Dean joked, looking towards you, watching as your smile grew.

“Of course, I have friends, I’m a very lovable person.” You shot back, laughing.

Dean smirked slightly, before grabbing your phone and standing up.

“Dean!” You yelled, standing up attempting to grab your phone. Dean laughed at your failed attempts, scrolling through your messages.

“Oh, YN. What have you been doing?” He chuckled, as he finished reading your messages.

“Shut up.” You replied, grabbing your phone and going back to your previous position.

“You know, it’s not good to do that. It’s dangerous.” Dean joked, glancing over at Cas who had his fists clenched.

“One second.” You said, excusing yourself as your phone began ringing.

“What was she doing, Dean?” Sam asked, an amused smirk on his lips.

“It’s a secret.” Dean smirked back, walking towards the door to attempt to listen into your conversation.

“I want some of it” You laughed, not noticing Sam and Dean stood beside the door, watching you pace bac and forth, a smile on your face as you talked to your unknown friend.

“You want me to suck an Indian man’s dick? Okay” You giggled, running a hand through your hair.

Footsteps sounded from behind Sam and Dean, causing them to look and see Cas walking towards them.

“He’s literally like ten minutes away!” You laughed, biting your lip causing Cas to tense up and Sam and Dean to laugh.

“Yeah, okay I’ll read the rest in the chat, see ya” you laughed, hanging up the phone, running a hand through your hair while Sam, Dean and Cas headed back to their seats.

“So, what is she actually doing?” Sam asked, taking a sip of his drink, looking towards Dean who was doing the same.

Dean chuckled, before responding.

“Her friends sold her to an Indian man who thinks she’s 17” he paused a moment, before bursting into hysteric laughter at Sam and Cas’s face.

“What’s so funny?” You asked, walking back into the room, on your phone.

“Why does that man think you are seventeen?” Cas asked, looking up at you.

“Were you listening to me on the phone?” You asked, looking at the guilty look on their faces. You let out a small laugh, before returning to your seat.

“It’s kinda a long story” You shrugged, typing out a message on your phone.

“We have time, I wanna know” Sam laughed, looking over toward you.

“Okay.” You shrugged, walking over to them. What harm could it do?

“So, my friend messaged this group I’m in asking for someone to be his fake daughter so he could get $120. So, I volunteered.” I shrugged, grabbing Deans beer and taking a sip.

“And?” Sam asked, signalling me to continue.

“He sent the man a picture of me, and the man messaged him asking how much for me. My friend said $120.” I continued.

“You’re worth more than that.” Cas interrupted.

“I know right.” I laughed, flipping my hair, making Sam and Dean laugh.

“So yeah, I got sold to an Indian man who’s like ten minutes away from here.” I said, coming up with an idea.

“Actually, I might go now” I said, grabbing my keys and heading to leave.

Before I could leave, I was pinned up against a wall with Cas’s hands either side of my head and his lips on mine.  

“Where are you going?” Cas asked, his hand on the door, acting as if I was actually going to leave.

“Out?” I joked, earning a growl from Cas as he pushed his lips back onto mine.

“I don’t think so.” He smirked, lifting me up, wrapping my legs around his waist.

“Oh really?” I smirked, biting my lip.

“What are you gonna do about it?” I asked, leaning closer towards Cas. Cas let out a long sigh, before pressing his lips back onto mine and walking back towards my room, kicking the door open in the process before placing me back down on the floor.

My hand gripped his tie, pulling him down towards me, his lips still attached to mine as we stood at the foot of my bed. Cas let out a satisfied grunt as my hand tugged on his hair.

“I’m the only one allowed to touch you, not some random man your friend found” He groaned, pushing us both onto the bed, his arms either side of me, holding his body above mine.

“You understand?” He asked, his lips moving down my neck, occasionally biting, being sure to leave a mark. I nodded, letting out a quiet moan as he bit my sweet spot.

I felt Cas smirk against my neck as my hands moved up his body to remove his trench coat. Within seconds his trenchcoat, shirt and tie were on the floor.

Cas’s hands wrapped around the hem of my shirt, quickly lifting it above my head and throwing it somewhere onto the floor.

My hands ran down Cas’s body, before reaching his belt swiftly undoing it and discarding it on the floor along with the rest of his clothes until he was left in his boxers.

Cas quickly did the same to me, leaving us both barely clothed.

“I love you” Cas muttered into my neck, his breath tickling me.

“I love you too” I panted, my hand tangled into his hairs pulling him back up towards me, pressing my lips on his as his hands ran down my body, reaching my panties.

“Hey guys do you want-“A voice sounded from the door, before a scream rang throughout the bunker.

At the door, stood a terrified Dean.

“What’s wrong?” Sam asked, before freezing at the door.

“Fuck sake” I muttered, letting out a slight laugh as Cas smiled at me.

“We should probably, um” Sam stuttered, before him and Dean walked back down the hallways to go knows where.

Cas let out a chuckle, before moving to lay beside me, all previous desires gone. His hands ran through my hair, undoing any knots which had previously been there.

“I love you.” He breathed, a small smile on his face as he played with my hair.

“I love you too” I replied, placing a small chaste kiss on his lips.  

Y’all sinners

[japanessie]

Professional Drummer Series with Kid'z Part 1

This is the first of 3 parts series on the work of a Professional Drummer which is actually from an old interview Kid’z had with Osaka School of Music a few years ago. Sadly, the original interview somehow was removed from the school’s website, I don’t know why. Thank you @10969takahiroki for giving me the screenshots (sorry it took so long because I got tied to other things). So now, I can share the contents with the fans. Read on to find out how he started and got the gig with nano.

Original Japanese text & photos from Osaka School of Music (OSM). Translation text & photo edits by me. Sorry in advance for any mistakes.

プロミュージシャンの仕事 ~ ドラマー Professional musician's work ~ Drummer

幼少時からドラムを叩き続け、 夢を叶えた。ドラムというポジション ならではの視点があります。 Continuously hitting the drums since childhood and got his dream come true. He has a unique point of view from the drum position.

 「幼稚園の頃からミュージシャンになりたかった。」 “I wanted to be a musician since I was in the kindergarten.”

Q:音楽業界を目指し始めた経緯を教えてください。 Q: Please tell me the background of how you started aiming at the music industry.

「4歳の時に缶を並べて叩き出したのがドラムの発端です（ 笑） 。幼稚園の頃 からミュージシャンになりたいと言っている子供でした。幼稚園の年長からドラ ムのレッスンに通うようになり、親がサプライズでドラムセットを買ってくれれ たのもあって、幼い頃からずっと叩いていて。現実的に考えるようになったの は、 高校に入ってからですね」 "When I was 4 years old, my beginner drum was tin cans laid out side by side (laughs). I was the child who said that he wanted to be a musician since he was kindergarten age. From the older-aged kindergarten (time), I got to go through drum lessons, and I got a surprise drumset which my parents bought for me, and I had been beating it for a long time since I was a child. Realistically thinking (about becoming a musician) was since I entered high school."

 Q: 進路の舵取りは、 どういう形でしましたか？ How did you steer (towards) your course?

「 業に足りないのは経験だと思ったので、 専門学校に行こうと考えたんです。 最初に体験入学に行ったのがこの学校だったんですが、直感であ、ここだと感 じたんですよね。先生も学生も明るいし、みんな笑顔で雰囲気がよかった。だ からすぐ決めちゃいました」 "I thought that experience was not enough for work, so I decided to go to a vocational school. It was this school that I went to the entrance exam for the first time, but (my) instinct, I (just) felt it was here. Both the teachers and the students were bright, everyone was smiling and the atmosphere was good. So I decided upon it immediately".

 Q: この学校で学んだことで、 良かったと思えることは？ Q: What do you think that was good that you learned at this school?

「 まず、人間関係ですね。僕はもともとスポーツをやっていたので、上下関係 や人を敬う大切さは学んでいたから苦労��しませんでしたが。ドラマーに必要な のはスキルだけじゃない。スタジオに入ると指揮者の立ち位置になるから、いい 空気を作っていかなきゃいけないんです。ちょっとビリついていたら笑わせて 和ませるのも、ドラマーの仕事。そういうドラマーを目指して頑張ってくれ と、講師の先生に言われたのが印象的でした。もちろんスキルで勉強になったこ ともたくさんありましたが、先生たちの言動を見ては“素晴らしいな"と感じてい ましたね。 この教えは今も現場でしっかり守っています」

"First of all, it is human relations. Originally I was playing sports, so I did not have any difficulty because I was learning (about) relationships and honoring people. Skills are not the only necessary (things) for drummers. When entering the studio, since (you) will be in the position where the conductor is standing, so you have to create a good atmosphere. If things are a bit down, bringing about laughter and calm, is also the job of a drummer. Trying hard to aim to be such a drummer, and as said by my teacher's instructor, was something impressive. Of course, there were a lot of things that I learned with my skills, but when I looked at the teacher 's actions, I felt it was "wonderful". Even now, I still strongly abide by this teaching in this field".

Q: 卒業してすぐプロになったそうですが、 そのいきさつは？ Q: It seems that you graduated and became a professional soon after, but what is the whole story of how you got here?

「 この学校で組んだバンドでPVを作ったんですが、それをたまたま見た現在の 事務所のマネージャーがドラム好きな人で、僕のドラムが気になっていたみたい で。学校の卒業を間近に控えた時期のライブに来てくれて、挨拶をしたら"近々、 空いてない？ ” と誘われたんです。それで翌日食事に行ったら“個人のマ ネージメントをさせてもらえないが"と言われました。いきなりそんなことを言 われたから、本当にびっくりして。でも聞いた感じ、リスクは少なそうだから お願いすることに。 “一緒にやりたいアーティストはいる？ " と聞かれて、 " nanoさん、いいですね"と伝えたら、 その場でnanoのディレクターに電話して “いいドラムがいるから使ってくれ"って。僕からしたら、何のこっちゃわから ないですよ（ 笑） 。 “ 来週レコーディングだから行ってくれ"と言われて、頭 の中が？マークだらけのまま1週間後に参加したら気に入っていただけて、 そ のまま参加させてもらうことになった感じです」 "I made a PV with the band that got together at this school but by chance the manager of my current "jimusho" who saw that is also someone who likes drums and he seemed interested in my drumming. He came to the preparation of the Live for my (at-the-time) upcoming graduation and when he greeted me, "Are you free soon?" I was asked. From there, when I was going for a meal the next day, it was said to me that "You're not being individually managed,". Because such a thing was suddenly said to me, I was really surprised. But the feeling that I heard, since the risk was pretty small, so it was very much welcomed. "Is there any artist you would like to work with?", he said to me and I told him, "nano-san would be nice,". Right on the spot, he made a phone call to nano's director and said, "There's a good drummer for you to use,". From my side of it, I didn't understand what was that about (laughs). "There's a recording next week, so I'd love you to go," he said, and (you know) what was in my head? It was full of the feeling that if he could be pleased to be able to have me participate just like that in just one week's time, so I would be glad to participate just like that."

* 事務所 / jimusho / talent agency

Q: 現在、 プロのドラマーとしての具体的な仕事内容は？ Q: What is the specific work content as a professional drummer now?

「 レコーディング、 ライブPVの出演レッスンの講師ですね」 "Recording, instructor of live PV's appearance lessons."

 Q: お仕事は最初から順調でしたか？ Q: Have you been going smoothly from the beginning?

「 プロになって1年目は波がありましたが、 2年目の今年は安定しています。今 年からレッスンの講師を始めたのもあって、ありがたい事に1年先までスケ ジュールを頂いてる状態です」 "Although I had ups & downs in the first year after becoming a professional, I have been stable in the second year which is this year. I also started teaching lessons from this year, thankfully, I'm in a situation where I got a schedule up to one year ahead. "

 Q: 今までで一番印象的なお仕事は？ Q: What is your most impressive work so far?

「 台湾でのライブですね。 海外で初めてのライブだったのと、 規模も1000人 超えという大きなものだったので。海外のお客さんの勢いは、すごかったで す。お客さんの声量で、 カウントが聞こえなくなるくらい。しかも出待ちの人 達が、キレイに1列に揃ってるんですよ！ （ 笑）それを見た時は“ 文化が違う な"と思いました」 "It was a live performance in Taiwan, because it was my first live performance overseas, and the scale was also bigger than 1000 pax. The momentum of overseas concert-goers was amazing. You couldn't estimate the number of people from listening to the volume of the concert-goers's voices. Moreover, the people waiting outside were in line neatly! (Lol) When I saw that, I thought that "The culture is different, eh?" ."

  「若さがあるなら、 それを武器にするべき」 “When there is youth, you should use it as a weapon”

Q: ギャランティは、 歩合制 ですか？ Q: Is the guarantee a commission system?

「 はい、 歩合制です。一度事務所に入り、 その後に僕に入ります。月によって収入にばらつきはありますが、ちゃんと生活できるように事務所がマネージメントして くれてます。 多く稼いだ月はプールしておいて、少なめの月に分酉己してく れたり。いい事務 所に所属させて頂き感謝してます」 "Yes, it is a commission system. After entering the office once and then entering me*. The income is inconsistent depending on the month, but the office manages (things) to allow you to live properly.Something like, when it's the lucky months you pool (the money) so when it's the months with little earnings, you will manage to survive. I'm grateful to get to belong to a good agency. "

*He meant the agency will take a cut of his earnings as their commission which is a normal practice. Probably from 10% to 20%.

 Q: プロのドラマーになるにあたって、 必要なことはなんでしょう？ Q: What do you need to become a Pro drummer?

「 与えられた責務を、きちんとこなせるかどうか。そのためには“ここまでやっ たのなら、 失敗しても後悔しない" というレベルの努力が必要なです。 さら に、 プラスアルファで何が答えられるか。10を求められて、 10を返していたら 普通のことです。そこからプラスアルファして何が返せるか、 常に考えていま す。あとは、後悔しないこと。失敗するとついしてしまいますが、僕は例え失 敗しても“しょうがないな"と思えるくらい練習に取り組んでいるから、後悔はし ないように心がけています。もちろん反省と修正は毎回ちゃんとしていますよ」 "Whether or not you can do your given duties precisely. For that reason, "If you do it up to here, even if you fail, you will not regret it," that's the level of effort that's necessary to have. Still, what can be answered with a Plus Alpha*? If you are asked for 10, returning 10 is normal. I am always thinking about what I can return with a Plus Alpha from there. Do not be sorry afterward. Assuming that I fail due to being careless, me for example, even if I fail, when things kinda seem like "Shouganai-na / Well, it couldn't be helped, eh?", since I'm working hard on my practice / drills, I try not to regret it. Of course, I will make reflections and corrections properly every time. " * Plus alpha / ~ a little more than usual, something extra

Q: 最後に、 今からミュージシャンを目指す人達へメッセージを。 Q: Finally, a message to those who are aiming to be musicians from now.

「 変に大御所の方々のプレイをマネしようとしても、経験値とスキルが違いす ぎて無理なんですよ。音楽は芸術なので、人生経験がものを言います。一線で 活躍している人達と同じ技で勝負しようと思っても、どうしても若さが出てし まう。それであれば、一線で活躍している人が持っていないもの、若さを武器 にすべきです。 “若いね” という言葉って、悪い意味でもいい意未でも使われ ますよね。いい意味の若さを出せれば、 それが求められる現場はあるんです。 そして、そこが穴場でもある。若いうちにしかできないこと、今しかできない ことを一生懸命 やってもらいたいですね。“若さを武器にすればもっと仕事があるはずなのにな" と見ていて思う人、たく さんいますから」 "Strangely even if you manage to play the big name people, experience value and skills are too different, so it's just impossible, you know. Since music is an art, so you say it's a life experience. Even if you compete with someone of the same skill who has been active in the same line, youth will definitely come out. If that is the case, it's something that the people who have been active in the (same) field don't have, so youth should be a weapon. The word "Young ones," can be used in a good or bad meaning. If we can show a good meaning of (the word) "young", well, there is a scene where it is required. And that place is a good little known place. I want you to do what you can only do while you are young, try hard to do what you can do now. "You should have more jobs if you use youth as a weapon," and because there are many people who see and think that way."

[ciathyzareposts]

Nippon Safes Inc. – A Tale of Two City Names

Written by Torch

The name’s Nuts, Doug Nuts. I’m an electronics genius with a mission. And that mission is… what was it again? Oh yeah, to steal a jade Buddha from a safe in the “Saku-Rambo” Monastery. Only problem is, I have no idea where to find the monastery.

It’s time to check out the rest of the great city of Tyoko! Or Tioko! Frankly it’s getting a bit silly that the game can’t decide on a spelling for the name of the city, so going forward I plan on doing a count of all the city name references I find, to see which one is used most frequently, and will thus be the official name. Check the summary at the bottom to see if your favourite comes out on top. But now, let’s start exploring! And by exploring I mean wandering around aimlessly, clicking stuff until something useful happens.

The city center consists of a number of screens. The exits aren’t always logical or easy to spot, so I hope I’ve found them all. Due north from Honest Chan’s, however, I find this busy street.

“Busy” means featuring more than 2 people

There’s a newspaper salesman who looks kind of familiar.

Um, Chan? Is that you? Why do you have a hole in your teeth?

Is this also supposed to be Chan? Chan’s shop is usually closed until I get near enough… Maybe it’s the evil twin brother Dishonest Chan? He dosn’t try to sell me any newspapers, but I can ask him to buy a ticket to the underground. Doug doesn’t know where he wants to go though, so I can’t buy any. Let’s explore some more, then. There’s an apartment building on the other side of the street. I head there and find…. Doug’s home!

I have no idea what the deal is with the mannequin. Mouseover yields no description

Finally I find out what the key is for, I unlock the door and enter. I guess it makes sense to carry around the key to your apartment. But you never know with adventure games.

Home sweet geek den

Now this might be a good time to vent a little bit about something that bothers me with the interface. I mentioned in an earlier post that mouseover on a certain spot might only show the any text if you have selected an appropriate action. Well, it gets a little worse than that. Take Doug’s storage cabinet, that you see in the above screenshot. If I mouseover with no action selected, almost the entire cabinet will show up as “larder”, both before and after I “open” it. The only other thing that shows is radio, which incidentally I can NOT interact with.

Now compare the next 3 screenshots. I’m pointing at a weird device, that Doug can’t remember what does. When I have the “look” action selected it show up as “Device”. When I have the pick up action selected and point to the exact same spot, it says “radio”, and on the screenshot with no action selected, it says “larder”. Add to this that the radio is actually on the shelf above the one I’m pointing at.

Larder: “A cool room in a domestic house where food is stored, but larger than a pantry.” Well, food or technical gizmos

A bit of a bummer, but hey, there’s a TV! Let’s watch some. Only, hmm… mouseover shows this as a “larder” too. Ok…. Look action? Nope. Open / Take / Talk? Triple nope. Thinking it’s just a prop, I look around the apartment for more stuff and find a remote lying around. Preparing for the worst, I try pointing the remote at the TV, and…

Seriously! (No, it doesn’t matter that the curtain is closed in this shot)

Ok, let’s consider the impact of this. Pixel hunt is one thing (and often criticized), but this is potentially way worse, since I may have to scan the environment once for each action (plus no action), then for each inventory object, just in case…. I sure hope I’m making this out to be worse than it really is. I mean, it IS logical to point a TV remote at a TV, but it would be nice to actually have that area show up AS a TV without me needing to select the correct item first.

Oh well, we’ll see how much of a problem it’s going to be as I progress through the game. Let’s get back to exploring the apartment. Also, I DID turn on the TV. Let’s see what’s on

The only thing on is a news broadcast about a man who’s climbed up the top of the “Tioko Television Tower” and is threatening to throw himself off. Not sure how that plays into Doug’s story, but perhaps we’ll find out. Aside from the remote, I find a wrench in the chest in the lower left corner, which I take. Doug also has some techno-stuff in his “larder” that add some flavour

What passed for a hardcore computer in 1992. Contrary to the rest of the specs, the hard drive size is actually half-decent.

As I head outside again, I notice there’s something in Doug’s mailbox. I open it and find a letter and a package. The package contains a detonator, and the letter explains that some explosives that Doug ordered from Mitsushita were out of stock, so they couldn’t be delivered at this time. I guess we need to find some explosives somewhere then.

Out on the street again, I head north from the newspaper stand and end up where Dino’s intro took place. There’s a “bill dispenser” here, which is the game’s description of a guy who hands out flyers/coupons or “bills”. I can’t talk to him, and I still can’t interact with the Mitsushita building, so I try to head towards the museum on the other side of the street. When I click the museum hotspot, however, Doug instead walks up to the dispenser… let’s just call him “Bill”, and gets a flyer.

Bill, the dispenser. Of bills. He should get top billing, because he’s… er… ok, I’m all billed out.

Ok, that’s a bit strange. It’s the only time (so far) the basic no-action-selected pointer has triggered anything besides making Doug walk. If I click Bill again, I get another flyer. After 6 flyers, I don’t seem to be getting any more of them. For reference, they are:

“SENTO BATHS – Smell has its importance too” “Give a donation to the tennis elbow research fund” “HIROSHIMA BEANS WITH MUSHROOMS” Bonus for tasting free of charge “THE DEAD RAT – Just the haunt for really smart guys” “Due to open soon – KAIZEN-SUSHI RESTAURANT. Grand competition for the opening” “AUTUMN SALES! Come to the Tyoko department store.”

There’s a garbage disposal hatch here. I can dump the posters in there, and then get new ones from Bill. No idea what the point of that is. From here I can head out to the highway again, but that’s a dead-end, so I backtrack a bit and find a new location west of Honest Chan’s. This place looks like a shopping mall. It could be the department store mentioned in one of the flyers, but I can find no way to enter it, despite the entrance showing “stores” when I hover over it.

“In a city of 1.7 million inhabitants, only ONE store can call itself the Tyoko department store” Maybe there’s Tioko department store as well?

West of the mall is a screen that annoys and confuses me.

Maybe I’ll come back with explosives

It looks significant, with the gate, and the intercom and everything, but there’s nothing to interact with, and no text anywhere related to the house/gate/bridge. Is this the monastery I’m looking for? The mall screen exit text calls it “residence”.

Anyway, further west is a park

Uh oh, hope it’s not a maze

Yup… It’s a maze

Yes, it’s a maze. I walk around in the park for a while until I’m thoroughly lost. There are some other people about, including a guy that looks like a monk or something. Thinking he could be one of the “initiates” that are the only ones allowed into the monastery, I try to follow him, but he disappears and pops up again randomly somewhere else. And I can’t talk to him either. After some mindless wandering, I suddenly end up here

Hope I’m not being Punk’d

Now, it’s possible that I’m doing things in the wrong order, but if I try talking to the punks, Doug asks them for 100 yen, and I have no idea why. I still have my 1000 yen, and I don’t know what I’d need another 100 for at the moment. Regardless, they’re not interested, but they seem to want to come off as quite the intellectuals. Remembering my bunch of flyers, I go through them and find the one about a bar or café called “The Dead Rat”. Maybe they’d be interested?

Would “really smart guys” fall for this?

I bet real “really smart guys” would know the difference between a mouse and a rat

Ok, they fell for… something. But they don’t actually leave. They do however “drop” ( if you can drop something 3 meters horizontally ) a comic book. Which I pick up. It’s an old issue of “Beatleman”, whoever that is. Perhaps it’s a long shot, but I’m thinking maybe the newspaper seller would be interested in this. And as luck would have it, he actually is.

I have my doubts when it comes to the Chans’ appreciation skills

After some haggling, I get 100 yen for it. Ok, so now I have a 1100 yen, but no idea about what to spend it on. Perhaps a train ticket, if I could only figure out where to go? Just as I receive the money, the face of a guy pops up on the screen and asks me about the population of Tyoko. This must be the copy protection that Vetinari mentioned in a comment on the previous post. I type in a number I find in the manual, and the guy goes away

Do I count Chan once or twice?

 Oh, and at some point I notice a parking meter next to Bill, the dispenser. Already being a on the wrong side of the law, I try dismantling it with my wrench, and end up scoring another 100 yen. Probably like 4 people saw me, but the police must already have met this month’s quota, because nobody comes to arrest me this time.

Still clueless about where to go, I decide to map the park so as to make sure I don’t miss anything. I find that not counting the entrace, there are 2 areas of interest. The punks and a restaurant called the Kaizen-Sushi. It’s not open (yet), though, their outside sign promises a competition for when they do open.

Despite now knowing my way around the city and park, I’m still a bit unsure what to do, so I just zip back and forth between locations for a while. After some time I end up back at the Hot Sushi. Now, in my previous post, I barely mentioned the 2 guys sitting at the table, drinking. I pretty much dismissed them as an in-game joke, since they’re clearly a manifestation of some of the game developers (one of them talked about how his biggest mistake was creating Nippon Safes Inc.). This time, however I can ask them about other stuff. Not sure when this was triggered.

I just hope I don’t have to draw first blood to get there.

Now at first they don’t really seem very helpful. One says to go on muleback. Then the other says to get a taxi, and the first one replies that there are too many taxis in this game. These guys are clearly all about breaking the fourth wall, but ok. Other than that, they can tell me how far along I am in this chapter (21% at this time). So they do seem like a hint service more than anything, BUT… after this, when I go to the museum/Mitsushita screen, Bill is gone, and the taxi driver from before is there. Not sure if there’s another way to trigger this, and I just chickened out and used an in-game hint(?). Either way, I try asking him for a ride, but he’s not too happy to see me

Cuz you’ve been hurt before, I can see it in your vein.. er..eyes

Guess I have to make it up to him somehow. I try to give him my 1000 yen, but can’t. After I leave the screen, every time I come back, he’s gone, and Bill’s there again. I try going back to the hint guys, and now I have a new question to ask them.

I don’t know, son. Ask your mom. She’s the one who cleans up around the house

Now, whether or not you’ve been paying attention, this “sumo ring” business may seem to come out of the blue, but during the taxi ride from the prison, I could ask the driver about a Sumo figurine hanging in the front window of the car, and he would profess his passion for sumo wrestling. Looking back at my screenshots, I find that he wanted ticket for a match, but they were sold out.

Saya whata?

They won’t tell me the location of the Sumo ring without anything in return. More specifically they want a mug of beer to “help them remember”. Which costs 1000 yen. Which I have, because earlier in the chapter, the taxi driver would rather punch me than get paid. So, here goes.

You know, other people drink to forget

Ok, at least something to go on. Now that Doug knows where to go, the newspaper seller can sell me a metro ticket. It’s 100 yen. How convenient. The metro entrance is on the screen with the Hot Sushi entrance.

This guy is an “oshiya”. His job is to push people onto crowded trains.

Told you

When I arrive at the Kinza district, I meet a familiar character

Excuse me, is this the line for Sumo night?

It seems it’s possible for random people to enter a Sumo wrestling competition and win a grand prize. Dino want to try, but he’s being denied on account of being too skinny. Doug ends up promising to help Dino put on some weight ( in an unrealistically short time ), and in return Dino will get Doug a ticket to the Sumo match. My magic crystal ball predicts that I’ll give the ticket to the taxi driver, and he will take me to the monastery.

Ok, great, I’m on a roll now after some mindless wandering. I remember something about a competition at the opening of the Kaizen-Sushi restaurant. Could it be an eating competition? If so, I could perhaps tip off Dino. I head back to the park to check if the restaurant is open now.

The prize is a jar of mothballs?

Hooray! They’re in business. But the competition isn’t about eating. It’s about guessing how many balls are in the jar on the shelf on the left. Ok, so how do you enter? I try talking to the chef about it, bug Doug just guesses a number by himself, which is nowhere near correct. Guess I’ll have to try something else. Before I can get thus far though, I run into a potentially worrying situation…

On the right is a stack of Hiroshima beans with mushrooms. I remember that name from one of the flyers: “HIROSHIMA BEANS WITH MUSHROOMS” Bonus for tasting free of charge

So maybe I can get some of those beans for free.

I present the flyer to the chef.

Is it just me, or is this joke about Hiroshima and mushrooms (ie. nuclear bomb cloud) in poor taste..?

So far, so good, but…. I check my inventory, and I didn’t receive any beans. Ok, I can probably pick up a can myself…? Not so much. Can’t pick them up. Can’t open them. Can’t “wrench” them. So, is this a bug? Was he supposed to give me the beans or am I missing an item that opens cans? Or did Doug already eat the beans…?

Either way this is as far as I’ll go for this session. I’m not quite asking for assistance yet, but I’m not sure I feel confident that everything is as it should be… Either way, stay tuned for next time, if you want to find out if I’m stuck or not.

Time played: 3h 10m

Tioko/Tyoko mentions Tioko: 7      Tyoko: 5

Inventory: key, empty soda can, 4 flyers, TV remote, wrench, detonator, 100 yen, underground ticket

source http://reposts.ciathyza.com/nippon-safes-inc-a-tale-of-two-city-names/