#variety of input and experience…

[rouge-fauna]

Hi! I wanted to ask, do you have any tips in doing research for a essay? like how to identify truthful sources or detect strange sites? I always saw how well researched your essays are and i wondered if you have any tip on this. Hope you have a good day

In general I like to go straight to the source. For dsmp research, if possible I watch the actual stream and watch a good bit around it to get the context of the situation. As for non-dsmp research, I follow similar rules to how I was taught to do research in school. Firstly, keep in mind that .gov .org .edu (with .gov probably being the most preferable and .org being the more questionable) will typically be better sources than .com, anyone can own a .com so just something to keep kn mind. Secondly, if possible try and go to the most official information you can whether that’s the National Health Organization, the CDC or Department of something. Government sources, or international or national organization websites are the probably the best sources. Everyone one else is gonna typically reference them, so might as well go straight to the source if able. Thirdly, (if it’s not about politics so you aren’t dealing with bias in that sense), then articles from like Forbes, New York Times, The Guardian, Washington Post, Economic Times can be good sources as they are written from actual reporters and often site their sources in their article so you can see for yourself. Britannica Encyclopedia can be a good source to consider as well as more academic websites like Science Direct which has a collection of scientific essays and documents if that applies. In general, I’d also recommend reading multiple sources if possible. You can do a little fact checking on your own this way to see what people are saying. Is it consistent is it or not, can you compile all the info to form a reasonable picture. Even looking at Quora or Reddit questions and answers can be interesting to get first hand and personal experience with things, which you can then compare with the other information.

Depending on the subject and seriousness of needing to be super factually correct, you can always ask ChatGPT or Gemini to see what they say. They are compiling all the information on the internet which can be helpful, which you can then always fact check yourself and even ask for its sources. I mean AI is flawed and has certainly given me false info before but it can be helpful, so just use it wisely. Over all, read multiple things, probably ignore the sponsored websites at the top who paid to be there, don’t be afraid to click to the next Google page, and if you need scholarly sources, going to Google scholarly can be helpful. Also, change your wording, searching things is like a game if you don’t find what you need, try to reword and search again to see what you get. Maybe do that multiple times. It’s not a perfect science by any means and can be very frustrating and sometimes you don’t find what you’re looking for, but these are just the strategies I keep in mind. I swear googling things didn’t used to be so hard but now I feel like the first page is all sponsored and it’s hard to find what you need.

As far as strange sites go, I know there are websites that actually check for you whether they are a scam, sometimes you can kinda just tell by adds or whether you browser gives you an alert, hopefully you have some vpn or online security on your device. I typically don’t make accounts, subscribe to anything or give information to websites so if they are asking for that then even if they were reliable, I ain’t doing it. If it seems more like an website with articles vs some blog or whatever, like Psychology Today, while not my favorite source I might give it a read to see what they say.

Hopefully that is some helpful tips. As an aside, legal things I have found to be one of the most annoying things to research as it’s so freaking hard to find consistent information and like more legit information. Also, as word of advice if you are researching torture methods and things of that nature, be advised that the real world is a dark place and I have learned things I really wish I hadn’t. Sometimes fantasy should stay fantasy and it’s best not knowing about the facts… anyways good luck :)

[arofluxblog]

have a friend who just came out to me as aroflux! Is there anything I should generally be aware of or do to help support?

I'm so sorry I somehow missed this ask. A bit of time has passed, so idk if this is too late, and I'm not sure I actually have a lot of advice. Given that 'aroace' is in your username, I'm going to assume you know a decent amount about being aroace, and that it is complicated and no one's experiences are the same.

I think a struggle with arospec identities, especially if you do feel some amount of romantic attraction, is often feeling like you don't particularly understand or identify with aro or alloromantic people, or feeling like you're being bad at one or both of these things. I don't know your friend's situation, but I think my catch-all advice is to just not be judgemental and not assume what your friend wants out of life/relationships/etc. Which, if you're going out of your way to try and help and support your friend, I don't think it's super likely you would, but that's really the only advice I have.

I think the best thing to do is try and see what your friend feels about this. Did they tell you as like a "oh here's an interesting thing about myself that I already have figured out" or is it something they're struggling with?

[shego1142]

I super recommend Colleen Christensen for more info on eating without food rules and eating intuitively!

Her videos are helping me unravel a lot of issues I have struggled with regarding food!

Just the simple act of not shaming yourself for craving and or eating specific foods can be so powerful and beneficial to your life/mental health (which in turn affects all of your health)

"craving a food means your body needs something that food can offer" now what the fuck does my body need with an ice cream

[ms-spkhd]

Part one

Admittedly, Eddie feels really fucking stupid about it in retrospect. Jeff tells him, in that soft and placating way he tells him anything, that he should stop worrying about his hindsight bias. Yeah, right. Hindsight bias doesn't apply for Steve Harrington dangling himself in front of Eddie's face like the metaphorical carrot on a stick.

It feels like a kick in the head, if anything. One that rattles his brain against his skull like the ricochet of a bullet. Or a maraca with a single, tiny bead in it, if he wants to be more technical about it.

But that's beside the point. What's important is that Steve Harrington is, like, into Eddie--which definitely throws all of his preconceived notions about boy wonder with serial monogamy problems of the heterosexual variety out of the fucking window and past the goalpost--and Eddie's been farting around for the past few months twiddling his fucking thumbs about it.

Well, it's not definitive.

The more that Eddie ruminates on it--and he spends several nights ruminating on it--Jeff's theory that Steve might be tipping the Kinsey scale sounds like...well. A theory.

It's the doubt that comes rearing its head that stops Eddie in his tracks from actually doing anything.

("Wow," Jeff grumbles as they hotbox in the back of Jeff's hand-me-down olive green Pinto a week after their stunning revelation, "trust Virgin Supreme to self-sabotage when someone is begging for you to climb on his lap and--"

"I told you that in confidence," Eddie spits as he digs through the glove compartment for a cassette to replace the oft-abused Kill 'Em All tape that's been blaring on repeat for the past two hours. "You're really mean when you're high, you know that, right?"

Jeff shrugs and takes a hit of the blunt they've been sharing. "I'm releasing my inhibitions. You can't silence me.")

Eddie trusts Steve. Of course he'd lay down his life for the man that dragged him out of hell without a single look behind like a preppy fucking Orpheus. But there's always the lingering thought that, despite everything they've gone through together, Eddie loving Steve would be the tipping point that ruins everything.

He finds himself balancing the line of keeping it in, too scared of the risk his heart will pose on their friendship, and fully committing to the pipe dream of Steve Harrington possibly wanting him back.

And, in Jeff's wise words, Biblically.

"Hey, Bird," Eddie asks Robin one night at the drive-in theater when Steve's out buying their snacks--medium popcorn loaded with cheddar powder and butter for Eddie, since he just popped a Lactaid ten minutes beforehand, and Milk Duds for Robin--"What would you do, hypothetically, if you think someone is really into you--"

"Here we go," Robin sighs, leaning back in the passenger seat. Eddie can't help but feel miffed at her dismissive attitude, but he knows for a fact that she's all ears.

"--And you, hypothetically, really like them back, but you don't know for sure if they actually, hypothetically, want you, or if it's just wishful thinking on your part?"

"Any you mean this totally hypothetically?" Robin says as she turns to face the rear seats where he's sitting and chewing at his cuticles.

"Yeah. This is a theoretical situation that I want your input in. Think of it like a...thought experiment."

Robin nods with narrowed eyes, like she sees through the bullshit with an all-seeing eye. "Right. Thought experiment. Is this hypothetical person a queer or not?"

"It never crossed your mind," Eddie confirms. "She looks like the posterchild of suburban heterosexuality, but she's gotten very invested in your very gay sex life out of the blue recently."

"So which one of you is the man invested or tell me about what eating out is like invested?"

"Tell me what eating out is like invested."

Robin hums in thought, tapping her index finger against her chin like the situation is really vexing her. "That sounds pretty gay, Eddie."

She is right, that does sound pretty gay. But it doesn't help him in his predicament at all, since Steve seemed to back off about the 'so do you play rock paper scissors to find out who gets it?' questions after Eddie frustratedly admitted that 'DnD club president and metalhead virgin at almost twenty' wasn't exactly a hot item in Indianapolis, much less Hawkins.

"Okay, new layer," Eddie says, leaning forward and resting his elbows on his knees. "What if, say, instead of asking you out--which you think is her next move--she starts trying to set you up with a bunch of girls you don't know."

There's muffled chatter from outside the Beemer's windows. Cars rev in the distance as they pull into the lot. Eddie watches Robin in contemplative silence as she thinks through her answer.

"That is difficult," she concedes, and Eddie is feeling more desperate than ever. "Can't imagine that ever happening to me."

Eddie mumbles, "Thank God it's a hypothetical."

"But if you think about it, it's either some misguided attempt to put me out there, or it's a Hail Mary to get me to realize I like her."

"Okay, well. Both options seem pretty hard to differentiate when you don't know what the fucking context behind the action is."

"For what it's worth," Robin says, her expression softening ever-so-slightly, "I think it's the Hail Mary. It's not my place to tell, but you should really give up the idea that it's wishful thinking and give it a shot."

Eddie's a millisecond away from asking, is it that obvious? before there's a sharp knock against his window. He yelps, head whipping around to find Steve with that sly grin slapped on his stupid, handsome face.

Eddie rolls down the window and tries to school his expression. He doesn't need to, really, because Steve shoves the popcorn into his hands and declares, "A medium sized popcorn with cheddar powder and lots of fucking butter for you, my friend. Bone of a teeth."

"Just fucking say it regularly," Robin groans as he yanks open the drivers seat door and tosses her a box of Milk Duds. "I know you can, you jackass!"

Steve laughs, full and hearty, as he turns to look at Eddie in the rear seats. He's like bottled-up sunshine contained into the shape of an American heartthrob. He's like Venus as a boy.

Eddie feels like he's staring down the barrel of a gun.

Another week of ruminating goes by, this time with Robin's words echoing in his head like a reverb pedal, and Eddie keeps that yellow pick near his heart the entire time. It's a real push and pull type situation, he realizes. His heart goes one way, his brain goes the other, which is fucking typical.

He doesn't talk to Jeff about it, because he knows he'll get the same answer, and he doesn't dare talk to Robin about it again. He feels she knows too much, and he has know idea how much she's accidentally telepathically transferred to Steve.

Eddie is about halfway through debating shaving his hair off as a way of regaining control when he finds Steve standing on his doorstep like a fucking Mormon.

"Eddie, man," Steve says with zero preamble, "my cousin's boyfriend has a roommate that I think you'd like."

"Nice weather we're having," Eddie responds blankly. Frankly, with the way things are going, he's getting sick of it.

But he can't help the way that Steve still looks beautiful as his eyebrows bunch together and pretty pink lips pinch into a thin line.

"Come on, man. I think this'll be a good start for you. I think he's into the same bands as you. I think Kathy said he was a Skid Row roadie, or something like that."

"I'm not that big of a Hair Metal guy," Eddie admits, and Steve deflates a bit.

"Well, if it helps, he kind of looks like me.' Jesus Christ. "Devastatingly handsome and all."

Eddie's damn near about to snap like a worn-out Stretch Armstrong being mauled by two pitbulls. He feels like he's about to blow a fucking gasket in front of the guy he's been holding very ill-advised affection towards since his sophomore year of high school. The very same guy who's been trying to set Eddie up with literally everyone with a functioning penis with exception of himself, the only guy Eddie has wanted. Ever.

There's no way Steve is that dense, right?

Eddie knows that the guy's smart, despite everyone telling him otherwise. Steve can definitely do mental math better than Eddie can dream of doing--since Frankie Gershwin passed down the sacred Hellfire DM calculator once Eddie took over Hellfire after he graduated--and he actually graduated on time, unlike yours truly.

But Eddie doesn't fucking get it.

"Steve," Eddie blurts, rather unceremoniously, "what are you doing?"

Steve blinks. His smile wanes dangerously low. "...I'm setting you up with a handsome dude."

"I don't understand why you're doing this though. Are you fucking with me, or something?"

"No, dude, I just..." Steve's expression shifts. His shoulders sag and he rakes a hand through his hair. He looks devastatingly earnest. "I just want to see you happy."

"If you want me to be happy," Eddie snaps, "then just ask me out yourself, since I've fucking been in love with you since April."

Steve freezes, hazelnut eyes like full moons on dinnerplates.

Eddie's hand flexes on the doorknob as he resists the white-hot urge to slam the door shut on Steve's shocked face. Maybe he should take a vacation down south to Mexico. Perhaps change his name and never come back. Hopefully there'll be sweet and earnest boys with olive skin and luscious hair waiting for him on the beaches of Cancun. Holy shit this is a fucking disaster.

"Oh," Steve says.

"Yeah, oh."

"You love me?" Steve asks, eyes sparkling like the rural sky. He draws closer to Eddie, raising a hand that begs to touch him.

"When have I not?" Eddie admits as leans into Steve's touch against his shoulder and laces their fingers together.

I guess I was, uh. I wasn't expecting it." Steve smiles softly and gazes at their intertwined hands.

"Do you?"

"Do I what?"

"Love me too?"

"Oh God." It's like Eddie's staring straight into the sun, with the ways Steve's smile grows more intense with each second. He wants to have it burned into his retinas. "Of course I do. It feels so stupid how much I'm obsessed with you."

"You know, you have a weird way of putting it, what with all the setting me up with guys I don't know," Eddie chirps. Steve chuffs and shakes his head like a guilty dog.

"I guess I wasn't expecting you to want me back. I wasn't sure you'd go for guys like me."

For jocks hangs heavy and silent in the air between them, as if Steve hasn't quite jumped over that hurtle of guilt over the person he was in high school. Sure, he was king of the letter crowd, but he's nothing like the douchebag from '83. Steve would never shove him into a locker or be a general chest-beating moron around Eddie, because he's not a moron. He's sweet and dorky and a little misguided, sometimes, but he has the heart of the size of a mack truck and a kindness to show it.

The thought of Steve talking Eddie's ear off about Sportsketball and the works sends an excited little shiver down his spine.

"I would," Eddie says, completely and utterly honestly. "God, I would for you."

He brings Steve's hand to his lips and smacks a wet kiss over the soft skin. "And the necklace..."

"That was my Hail Mary," Steve admits with a bashful shrug of his shoulders.

"I haven't taken it off since you've given it to me."

Steve releases his grip from Eddie's spindly hand and brushes his fingertips against Eddie's collarbone, tugging at the chain of the necklace until it untucks itself from underneath Eddie's shirt. Eddie watches the way that Steve lights up like a fucking electrical surge at the hint of sunshine yellow against his pale skin. It makes Eddie flush a bright red.

And when Steve's palm flattens against Eddie's chest and pushes him inside Eddie's new government loaned trailer, he lets himself be pushed against the wall and kissed.

And kissed, and kissed, and kissed.

Sufficed to say, when Eddie wakes up the next morning with Steve drooling against the back of his neck and his warm hand splayed against the skin of his naked chest, Eddie vows to always take Jeff's word for it.

____________

holy shit i was not expecting for part one to get that much fanfare. to be honest, i was totally intending for it to be a one and done to explore eddie and jeff's friendship, and believe me, my heart is so warmed by the reception it got. i recently have gotten myself out of a months long slump and have been swamped with college work, so i apologize for my writing being so few and far between. thank you all and i hope this is the resolution you were waiting so patiently for! :)

@grtwdsmwhr @eyehartart @bananahoneycomb @notasmoothman @colidamae

[genderqueerdykes]

being poor is so mind numbingly boring. you can't afford hobbies, leisure activities, games, books, music, transportation for going to places, some people can't afford internet or a phone. entertainment is seen as a complete and total luxury, but what people don't realize is that people need to be entertained.

there is nothing left to do for fun that's completely free. parks are tiny and meant for dogs, mostly, they're unsanitary as hell because there's mostly just dog waste everywhere. getting to the park costs money. kids and adults alike cannot just go "play outside". adults aren't even allowed to "play," we gawk at adults who stop to play with bugs or look at small animals. adults aren't allowed to play pretend it's seen as weird. kids don't have anywhere to go- they're considered "loitering" or an annoyance if they hang around anywhere for too long. not everyone can go to bars.

it is necessary for our mental health to have things to keep ourselves entertained with. people often get caught up on a poor person having one nice thing for themselves, but after a while, that 1 nice thing gets boring, too. people need variety. we need stimulation. we need input. we need to experience the world, too

i was told by my own therapist and case worker that people need entertainment and happiness to survive. humans are not wired to suffer 24/7, no one has to earn entertainment. if you think i'm pulling things out of my ass, i'm not. multiple mental health professionals in my own life have confirmed that people need to have fun or their health will suffer. mental health is connected to physical health. you know nothing if you think this is factually inaccurate.

poor people shouldn't be relegated to boredom and never experiencing life and what the world has to afford. the entirety of entertainment should not be paywalled. people should not have to pay entry for every single event in their area, or try to find free events and struggle to pay for the transportation. it's not good for your mental health.

[starsworldd]

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐚𝐮𝐫𝐮𝐬-𝐒𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐩𝐢𝐨 𝐚𝐱𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐬

PLEASE READ:

long post - thank you for 2k! i apologize for the wait but this took me a longggg time to prepare.

it’s also important to note that planets in taurus/scorpio will effect how you resonate with the interpretations below

reminder that readings are open! i’m now selling persona chart readings of planets/angles as well

take with a grain of salt

1st (scorpio) - 7th (taurus)❤️: relationships are a source of comfort and wisdom. scorpio risings’ experience of reality has to do with trust, hard truths, and taking back your power but their relations with others often bring a sense of peace and value into their lives. people may perceive you to be useful and smart in these similar qualities as well. your partnerships help to balance out the chaos and even insecurity you face at times with your identity and precense in the world

2nd (scorpio) - 8th (taurus) ❤️‍🔥: you are powerful in your resources/skills and in the way you support yourself overall. in this lifetime, how you find worth and appreciation for yourself and what you have (skills, physical resources, etc…). you may feel suppressed or face much controversy for what you value or for how you choose to support yourself monetary-wise or as a person. your biggest comeback story in life may have to do with self-esteem and with how you accumulate worth and value (physical or moral/mental) into your life and goals.

although there may be much turbulence and important realizations/truths that are found in how you support yourself and your goals, the transformations and scary things you face in life ironically enough can bring you lots of support if you choose to make good use out of it (which taurus is naturally good at). of course, this is the house of fears and traumas so a big part of your life story may include building your own sense of independence by learning from times of distress.

3rd (scorpio) - 9th (taurus) 💋: you could be especially sensitive to input from others and be able to pick up undertones and double meanings from others easily. communication, creativity (especially having to do with hands or written words), is your superpower. you grab others’ attention easily with your stories and artistic output when you learn to harness your fears/limitations effectively. this also makes you very intelligent of your community + gossip because scorpio rules over extremes as well

while in your everyday communication and daily life you may uncover and discuss skeleton’s in other people’s closet and may be doing a lot of activities that use a lot of your energy (scorpio is ruled by mars, planet of action), this makes you very comfortable (taurus) in being able to adapt to different environments and perspectives (9th house). having taurus in this house can make someone very wise because they find value and meaning in variety.

4th (scorpio) - 10th (taurus) 💄: people with scorpio in this house have usually had some sort of significant event or trauma regarding their family or childhood or may have regrets as to their actions in the past. these people could be born out of either extreme poverty or wealth too. these people’s sense of safety/privacy can be very important to them or they could feel like this aspect of their life is being compromised often (mars = conflict) but you could also find safety/comfort in curiousity or things that are “off-limits”.

if the private/emotional life of the native is exacerbated and transformative for them the career and reputation for the native is where they feel appreciated and most creative. having these signs in this house-axis can be indicative of a strong comeback story (extreme poverty to extreme wealth or even the other way around). the career-field can be very fulfilling (emotionally or monetary wise) and where you are grateful or feel lucky for the events your work presents.

5th (scorpio) - 11th (taurus) 🌹: feelings of creativity, romance, and happiness are taken to extreme lows and highs throughout life. if you’re a cancer rising, i believe this is where the “moody” reputation for us comes from. like leo rising, there could have been significant changes or revelations during childhood that changed your way of deriving happiness and familial support. these people may crave for luxury and overindulgence and can do so by turning their pain into power. scorpio in this house can make someone very grateful as well.

if our sense of happiness and luck undergoes significant change and gives us our “comebacks” throughout life, the 11th house is where we have already found peace and prosperity with our place in society. we encounter valuable experiences when polishing our individualism (5th) within our community (11th). we can find personal contentment and growth in accepting our individual, unique role amongst the people around us. you may like to surround yourself with confident people as well.

6th (scorpio) - 12th (taurus) 👠: these people can feel very unlucky or trapped throughout life, with the 6h ruling bad luck + burdens and scorpio relating to extremes. scorpio is a smart zodiac i’ve noticed as well, so these people usually have a certain way (especially that requires much energy) of doing their work and job that could defy others’ expectations. extreme focus on a certain obstacle or insecurities is also possible and can take awhile to finally figure out what makes you feel secure and satisfied with how you manage your burdens.

if your everyday burdens and responsibilities test your strength to the max in this lifetime, your imagination, creativity and solitude is where you find peace. it could also be that these people do unusual things to satisfy their need for pleasure and wholeness, because the 12th house is where we are easily misled. these people are internally comfortable with their thoughts and ideas, regardless of how odd they may be because it takes them to a place of stability from their scorpio 6h.

7th (scorpio) - 1st (taurus) 🍒: these natives’ partnerships/commitments make the native have to look more deeply into their underlying intentions or feelings with said partnerships/commitment. this can bring a lot of disturbing but also very eye-opening and insightful experiences that affects the native’s identity and ambitions going forth. scorpio can also be a curious sign so there can be a little bit of investigative or persistent approach to your partnerships and this is where your power can derive from.

it may seem like your partnerships “destroy” parts of your identity, because you approach the world from a sense of wholeness and peace. at least, these are circumstances that you are ambitious to achieve in your life. pleasure and steadiness are big life themes and at first it may seem like life is rather dull or boring, but similar to scorpio in its opposite function, taurus asks us to dig a little deeper into the simpler things in life and to find enjoyment.

8th (scorpio) - 2nd (taurus) 🍫: when dealing with other people’s problems (financially, intimate connection, debts, etc…) it brings about experiences that require you to fix what’s wrong or holding you back in life in rather uncomfortable ways. this can indicate someone who is afraid to acknowledge psychological blockages or who lacks the necessary bravery/instincts to attack underlying problems. you could earn valuable assets (tangible or not) from others when you engage with activities that are “gross” but healing/heroic.

this native survives on feeling complete. having a sense of wholeness is very important to these people and makes these people very resourceful because they are able to make the seemingly mundane valuable and able to work in their favor. these people are good at feeling in control of their life, future, and choices because they are committed and secure in their abilities. these people place much importance on authenticity, diversity, and self-sufficiency.

9th (scorpio) - 3rd (taurus) ❤️: when achieving mastery/global knowledge, and self-discovery it may have to do with bringing up topics that you ignored or swept under the rug especially having to do with your identity/precense (in context of the world and society). your global approach and experiences have to do with dealing uncomfortable topics in order to achieve better awareness and understanding of all aspects of the world. how you navigate foreign environments and your sense of flexibility is your strength.

if foreign experiences provide you with strength through perseverance, your intuition and familiar environments provide you with strength through growth (tangible or not). although it may seem like the everyday social rituals and ideas (including intuition), can appear mundane, this setup of houses gives an opportunity to grow a garden that provides roots, beauty, and good taste in the way you perceive and express yourself local environments.

10th (scorpio) - 4th (taurus) 🪭: these people have to have a ton of intiative when working in their career and towards their big goals in life. it may feel as though these people have to start from a bad hand of cards (compared to everybody else) in order to make it to the top or that their working conditions and/or responsibilities throughout life may feel difficult to complete or deals with high stakes/status. but even though there are difficult tasks they have to be done and you have drive/resourcefulness to do it!!

if the workplace is where you see the thorns in your garden (where you have to get rid of them) your home life and condition is where you see the roses. taurus is good at being able to attract good circumstances for themselves because taurus is very representative of wholeness and the feeling of completion. there’s probably more opportunities for you to setup and manage your domestic life the way you like. wisdom may be found through your domestic life too.

11th (scorpio) - 5th (taurus) 🧨: your surrounding communities/people who support you seem to try to pick you apart. you may feel as if the people who you’re around with don’t actually support you or that there’s something incomplete or “wrong” with the circumstances and people that made you successful, imposter syndrome possibly? your supporters/friends could show you things you couldn’t see before, likely for the better although they may reveal this in dramatic or difficult circumstances.

if you feel incomplete about the people/circumstances that support your public achievements, your creativity and lust for life is where you find contentment. these people feel most stable and appreciated for their talents and way of enjoying themselves. for these people, they find stability, growth, and satisfaction when they engage with activities that bring them happiness. they find beauty and appreciation from others for their self-expression/creatvity.

12th (scorpio) - 6th (taurus) ♠️: your drive to feel complete is what can you mislead you in life. this may be because you feel as if there’s always something missing or not being to shown to you but you are persistent in finding what that something is. this same energy can make the native very wise because they have to overcome their demons over and over again throughout life. but at the same time, you could also feel like your sense of resourcefulness and strength fails to manifest in reality.

if there’s conflict/determination in trying to protect yourself from things that induce bad energy, then there’s likely to be tranquility and acceptance in doing activities that can put your life back on track. the 6h is known as the house of bad fortune in astrology so these people are good at being able to find the most reliable way out of a difficult situation. and while these natives could be good at finding solutions, slacking off and overindulgence can lead to oversight with tasks.

once again thank you for 2k!

hope you enjoyed🥰

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

hey, could I request a fic for ena dream bbq? Ena x reader who's a slightly funky version of a mars rover.

They look like the spirit/opportunity rovers for the most part, with the whole robot head and solar panel wing thing going on. But, their wheels are floating just a little off the ends of their leg thingies, and they can separate into individual pieces making up hands/feet, and their body and legs are a bit more articulated, so the reader can stand up in a more humanoid shape if they so choose.

And on their head, they have a small screen near their cameras, which they use to show emotion using emoticons, because it's a low resolution screen that pretty much only displays a few characters of text. So they just kinda go :] <:D >:/ :P BJ X0 ;3 ':2 c: D8 ',:) :7 (individually not all at once) when they are talking to people. Sometimes they display a word or a few symbols instead tho, like "there's a 37 percent chance of that happening" and their screen says 37%, or they go ??? When confused or something.

They usually stay in regular rover form while traveling, driving on their wheels, and go humanoid when they need to carry something, talk to people, or generally are in a situation where hands are useful. They do have one arm that isn't one of their wheels, but it has somewhat delicate scientific equipment in it, so they don't use it as much for everyday stuff. They also turn off their screen when they aren't actively trying to convey emotions, so usually only when alone or around people they know well and trust.

theyre working together with ena, and on the side just casually taking soil samples and pictures of interesting things. Write whatever you feel like, one shot, hc, anything, whatever you feel inspired to write. Preferably platonic, but if you wanna write a romance I won't stop you. (If you wanna add any other characters like coral glasses or Kane or something that could also be fun, even someone from the series like classic ena or shepherd, but that makes things more complicated so you very much don't have to)

Have a nice day! :D

(sorry this ask is so long and probably goes into unnecessary detail, im a rambler and decided to give a whole character description for some reason ':∆. You don't need to write this if you don't wanna)

This is a cool concept! I don't mind the extra details! Hope hcs are alright

..........

While you don't recall when or where you were built, you do know your purpose: take pictures of intriguing subjects, steal soil and rock samples, etc. etc. Everything you've once done in space, you do here on this world.

But it felt less like a job and more like a hobby. Something that stimulated your circuitry and allowed you to experience "joy" (which you once thought was strictly reserved for living organisms) in everything you found.

Your creators have long since forgotten you...or maybe they all died and didn't think you'd outlive them. You had no orders to follow. No signals to relay. No real mission to accomplish.

So you took it upon yourself to join Ena and Froggy's group, wanting to have some sort of directive, even if it meant helping them accomplish whatever business called for them to do.

Some days, you'd be in the Hub, assisting Coral Glasses with her work regarding the Horse Door, faxing her blood samples and other interesting specimen you've picked up, or she might print a picture of something bizarre she found and ask for your input.

You weren't programmed with a voice (which she doesn't mind since she's not a fan of social interactions and lengthy chats). Instead, you communicate through a screen next to your cameras, which display a variety of emoticons, emojis, and symbols. It's not the greatest resolution, but it gets your point across.

Some icons are indicative of approval, some of disdain, and others...would be confusing for the average person to understand.

For Froggy? He tends to mistranslate what you're trying to say and has the nerve to ask why you made a >:( face.

For Kane? He gets it half the time.....but he's more worried about getting his coins stuck in your wheels again.

For Ena? It's no problem. She knows exactly what you mean every time, acting like she's been there since your construction, while also respecting your autonomy.

When your new and current directive became "eliminate the smoke", you thought the tasks leading to its completion would be simple.

But with Ena, it turns out to be anything but that.

In the Lonely Door, you noticed that the Uncanny Streets had a dry deserted terrain. You had a phobia of dust storms and your wheels getting stuck in sand traps, but thankfully the conditions here don't permit such occurrences. And your solar panels are always keeping your batteries charged, as it never gets dark, either--so in short, travelling around would be the least of your concerns.

While your screen initially displays nothing as you scan the environment, Ena somehow knows what you're thinking and pats the top of your head.

"This will be a great opportunity to gather vital intel and ask invasive questions!" Salesperson grins. "I can smell the opportunities from up here, my friend. Don't you?"

":U....<:)"

"That's the spirit! I couldn't have said it better myself! I vow to get to the bottom of this mysterious Gen--bAthR00M."

"🚽?"

"Ew! I didn't need to see THAT!!!" Meanie pretends to retch. "Go take 300 pictures of that cloud for me, you hunk of metal!!"

Funny enough, you don't take her demands as an insult. Your storage is like a bottomless pit, so you could hypothetically take 300 pics of one singular cloud if its shape and placement in the sky intrigued you enough.

But you'd rather stick with her and assist her with the different jobs she's been given.

You can shift between your primary vehicle mode and your more humanoid one for easy interactions with folks--although you being taller than Ena in that latter form leads to Meanie pouting and grumbling under her breath when she thinks you can't see her.

Too bad for her, as your camera/eyes can see 360.

While she talks to people (which is really them messing with her and claiming to be the boss, insulting her species, and eventually giving her something to do), you're just taking pictures of things like the giant melded into the building, the black tree without leaves that's wandering about the outskirts, or the alienlike Wanderers in the sky.

Rescuing Shoryo's pets/babies is easy, as you're able to maneuver around tight spaces and let them rest on your platform, driving them back to the horselike entity.

He felt flattered that you "delivered them to [him] on a silver platter"...which left you wondering if he intended to eat them.

Before you can question it, there's an explosion and you see Ena and the Shaman outside of the now-destroyed Seal House.

After she's given the humanboard, you discover fertile soil deposits around the streets, learning that the head can grow into a full body and help her reach higher places.

The ribcages buried within the dirt intrigued you, but oddly enough...she didn't want you to take any bone samples.

All you wanted to do was perform a light brush, a gentle abrasion on the surface. Just enough to get a microscopic calcium extract so you could determine how old it is.

You had no idea what overcame Ena when her clawed hand latches onto your delicate arm unexpectedly, threatening to damage your analyzers, drills bits, and other scientific equipment embedded into it.

It sets off internal alarms, red lights flashing across your vision, but you silence those in favor of staring at her. "🦴❌?"

"I just....don't want you to do that. It might hurt him.." Meanie's voice drops into a low whisper, something extremely uncharacteristic of her, as her mitten hand trembles and cradles the humanboard closer to her chest. Like some maternal instinct had overtaken her. "Please.."

Your screen goes dark, but you comply and leave the soil alone.

Perhaps not everything needs exploration.

[mathmodder]

GetWildMOD & OceanLifeMOD Launch FOR FREE on my Patreon

I'm thrilled to finally announce the official release of GetWildMOD & OceanLifeMOD, after lots of testing and fine-tuning!

Get Wild Mod: Unleash the untamed beauty of the wilderness with the "Get Wild" mod. This mod transforms your gaming environment by dynamically spawning a variety of animals, from graceful birds that soar through the skies to fascinating ground-dwelling creatures. Immerse yourself in a vibrant ecosystem as you explore the map, encountering wildlife in unexpected and breathtaking moments. The "Get Wild" mod breathes life into your gaming world, creating a dynamic and immersive experience. Know more clicking here

Ocean Life Mod: Dive into the depths of your virtual oceans with the "Ocean Life" mod. This mod introduces a stunning array of marine life that populates the vast waters surrounding your in-game world. From majestic whales to colorful schools of fish, the oceans come alive with the addition of this mod. Explore the depths, witness the beauty of underwater ecosystems, and encounter the wonders of oceanic biodiversity. The "Ocean Life" elevates your gaming experience by adding a new layer of realism and excitement to the aquatic realms. Know more clicking here

What's New:

This version brings fully optimized spawners, so animals now appear much more efficiently! The best part? It's 100% compatible with Smooth Patch, meaning no more CAS issues or lag. While I may still need to tweak a few small details, the mod is ready to enhance your virtual worlds starting today!

How to Install:

Main Files:

Place the file "GetWildMod & OceanLifeMod Override Folder (Math Mod)" in the Mods/Overrides directory.

Place both "GetWildMod and OceanLifeMod Animals Package File (Math Mod)" and "GetWildMod Spawner Package File (Math Mod)" in the Mods/Packages directory.

Optional Addons:

For additional features, you can also install the three optional addons:

GetWildMod Addon 1 - Enhanced Butterflies spawns Wildlife too!

GetWildMod Addon 2 - Enhanced Will-o'-the-wisp Butterflies spawns Wildlife too!

GetWildMod Addon 3 - Enhanced Fireflies spawns Wildlife too!All optional addons should be placed in the Mods/Packages directory as well.Important: If your PC doesn’t have a lot of memory, I recommend not installing all optional addons at once to avoid performance issues.

Support My Work:

If you enjoy the mods and would like to support me in continuing my projects, please consider subscribing to my Patreon. Your support motivates me to keep creating and improving these mods, and it helps bring more content to life for all of us. 💖✨

Important Note:

Though this is the full release, I still appreciate any feedback or reports on issues you may find. Your input helps refine the experience for everyone! Feel free to reach out to me on Tumblr or Patreon.

I can’t wait to hear your thoughts and see how GetWildMOD & OceanLifeMOD brings your worlds to life! 🌿🐠✨

Head to my Patreon to download the official release now for FREE!

Math Modder | The Sims 3 Mods and MO-MO-MORE! | Patreon

[insomnova]

Do you have any tips for writing Obi Wan or any meta in mind with his characterizarion?

hmmm sure why not! i'll give a few tips on how i'd write obi-wan. mind you this is how i interpret the character, so ymmv.

i truly do not like it when fics have obi-wan voluntarily leaving the order. like it's so out-of-character for me in my head that the premise of the story + the writing would have to work triple-time to get me to stick around. now if he's been removed from it by an EXTERNAL SOURCE (not the order. i cannot stress this enough: the jedi kicking obi-wan out is so jarring to me i'll leave the fic in an instant) or somehow unable to return to the order for whatever reason, all is well.

not a prodigy, but a genius. obi-wan is an incredibly intelligent person with an absolutely staggering knowledge base in a wide variety of topics, but all that knowledge was earned through blood, sweat, tears, and time. he sat down with his game face on and put in the work. that's also why he makes an excellent teacher: he knows what most students will struggle with because he struggled too, and knows through experience how best to overcome them. i headcanon that it contributes to why he's such a good negotiator: he's really good at stripping down information to the essentials and communicating that information effectively and efficiently to others because of his intense study habits.

humble, but not ignorant of his skills. it's pretty impossible to fully divorce yourself from pride in your achievements, and i don't think it's healthy to not feel any pride at all, so i think obi-wan has a very clear understanding of his skillset and how best to use it. i don't think he'd be ignorant of how good he is at something, especially since the direct consequence of his aptitude led him to being a member of the jedi council. pretty hard to be blind to your strengths when you're being asked for your input on topics that directly draw from that knowledge.

averse to healthcare. listen i enjoy obi-wan whump just as much as the next obi-wan stan (the desire to put him in the cosmic salad spinner comes with the territory, i fear) but as a character who grew up in an environment that deeply cares for the well-being of all, and knowing that you cannot help others unless you yourself first have the ability to do so, i can't really see him ignoring injuries outside of combat scenarios. like on the battlefield he's got more pressing concerns than a pesky little shrapnel wound or five, but once the battle's over?? he might not be first in line to the medics but i can't see him avoiding them entirely. an army without a general is working at a sharp disadvantage and i don't think he'd risk his men by neglecting his physical health in that manner. note that i said 'physical'. make of that what you will :)

duty. obi-wan is the definition of a paladin. he takes an oath and by the force he's going to keep it. train the boy? absolutely, qui-gon. whether or not anakin chooses to respect that training is another matter, but he did definitively get knighted! refuse to kill anakin? listen he's handed vader his own ass to him twice post order 66 and each time he did it he did it nonlethally. that takes skill. that takes dedication. exile yourself to tatooine for 19 years and then decide fuck it, we ball, and die after Once Again Deciding Not To Kill Anakin Skywalker? step aside casper, there's a new friendly ghost in town. every time obi-wan commits to something the man COMMITS. you GOTTA respect that grind.

flirty but in the sense that he's going to match the energy someone brings to the table. like he's a negotiator. he knows how to read people and figure out the Vibes. if he thinks the other person will be 1) 100% receptive and 2) will respond with a delightful wit, why the hell not? obi-wan's highest stat is charisma and he's got expertise in persuasion. whether they're allies or not does not factor into this equation. he can have a little flirtation with morally dubious and potentially hostile characters. as a treat.

this has nothing to do with his character but i firmly believe that he and quinlan vos had at LEAST a fling when they were padawans. there is zero evidence to back this up aside from a few comics where they were being goofy teenagers together but i stand by this. it is an unshakeable aspect of obi-wan to me that has only gotten worse with the kenobi show.

no matter what, no matter how terrible or devastating or downright apocalyptic it gets, obi-wan kenobi will never fall to the dark side. never. it won't be easy, but that is a line he has never, and will never cross. i will not hear any "obi-wan touched the dark side during the theed generator fight" slander. if that was true tell me why the force theme was playing during his moment of triumph!!! Would John Williams Lie To Us Like That?? to our face?????

anyways i could go on forever about obi-wan because he is My Ultimate Blorbo but this post is getting super long so i'll leave it there. hope this helped even a little or at the very least was entertaining for you to read <3

[transmutationisms]

why do people experience the symptoms of bipolar in the pattern described by the DSM? i am not trying to argue, just wanting to understand an alternative to what I've been taught

bipolar qua psychiatric terminology is a specific taxonomic box through which a clinician interprets, into which they categorise, and via which they bill insurance for a wide variety of patient behaviours ('symptoms'). that the taxonomical output of the medical chart is definitionally always the same has zero bearing on the degree to which any experiential input ever resembled either the clinical handbook description or any other patient's history, experiences, and/or behaviours. psychiatry tag be upon ye

[catboybiologist]

Oh hey since I mentioned sci hub again

I'd love to hear people's stories about small things that radicalized them in benign ways. I'll start.

I was already pretty leftist at this point, but being associated with academia so long means I've gotten free access to a variety of scientific journals, software, and more for... Basically my entire adult life. On campus, all of those systems have automatic logins. But off campus, usually there's janky, half-functional systems associated with actually inputting your credentials into these sites. Scientific journals especially are really and at tracking logins, and oftentimes have to link back to your uni's generic login page, which they're bad at pinging. Software installation usually requires

So instead of using services that the university had already paid for, for me to freely use, like adobe, journal logins, and Microsoft products, I started using free equivalents. Sci hub, gimp, libre office, Ubuntu... Not because I was invested in open source and free access mentalities at the time, but because they were literally quicker and simpler to use.

And then I started thinking about all of the little bits of tech infrastructure I was using to access my "free" stuff.

Someone coded those systems.

Some tiny portion of a server is devoted to handling those pings an login requests.

Someone spent hours upon days of work moving office 365 and adobe from actual pieces of software that fully live on your computer into stripped down versions of themselves that now have to verify

Someone made the payment system for Nature.

So. Much. Wasted. Labor. Just to block people from already existing services. That have alternatives. That are as good. For free. And they can be free largely because they don't have all of the bullshit associated with locking them down and keeping them proprietary.

Tech and science are of course what I have the most experience in, but I feel like once you start realizing that in one sector, you start seeing it everywhere.

Anyways this is a barely focused unmedicated ADHD ramble but I'd love to hear other examples

[demifiendrsa]

MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls | Announce Trailer

Developer Diary: From Japan to the World

MARVEL Tokon: Fighting Souls will launch for PlayStation 5 and PC (Steam, Epic Games Store) in 2026.

Screenshots

First details

PlayStation Studios, Arc System Works, and Marvel Games have joined forces to realize the latest in tag team fighters, MARVEL Tokon: Fighting Souls! Experience the Marvel Universe like never before with reimagined characters and stages, a heart-pounding soundtrack, intuitive gameplay mechanics, and jaw-dropping visuals that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Whether this is your first fighting game or you are a veteran of the genre, Arc System Works has incorporated gameplay controls and mechanics that are easy to pick up and play, and yet still offer the depth and versatility for high level competition.

“From the beginning, we aimed to make MARVEL Tokon: Fighting Souls a title that could be enjoyed by a wide variety of players,” explains game director and lead battle designer, Kazuto Sekine.

“Generally, a team VS fighting game requires the player to learn multiple characters, but for MARVEL Tokon: Fighting Souls, you only need to master one character in order to play the game. We have designed the mechanics in such a way that you can perform a variety of actions with either traditional fighting game inputs or simple inputs. With the press of a few buttons, multiple characters can appear on screen to provide backup or attack together—creating a new and exciting team VS battle experience.”

“Since day one, our long-time and trusted collaborators at PlayStation and the team at Arc System Works have poured incredible amounts of talent and passion into reimagining the Marvel Universe in a way that only they can,” said Michael Francisco, Senior Product Development Manager, Marvel Games. “MARVEL Tokon: Fighting Souls demonstrates that they are absolute masters of their craft and are true Marvel fans at heart. Players are in for a wild ride.”

Characters

Enter the fray with iconic Marvel heroes and villains such as Captain America, Iron Man, Spider-Man, Doctor Doom, Storm, Ms. Marvel, Star-Lord, and Ghost Rider (Robbie Reyes)—each with Arc System Works’ unique twist on their character designs and gameplay styles.

Arc System Works Producer, Takeshi Yamanaka, states, “There are so many amazing Marvel characters that it was quite a struggle to choose our roster, but we did have some criteria for the selection process. First and foremost, we wanted to include characters who we feel to be the ‘face’ of Marvel. At the same time, we also needed to select characters that would give us a balance of battle types and styles. Lastly, we wanted to sprinkle in a few surprises and leave room for characters who have never been playable in a fighting game before.”

Yamanaka-san continues, “Early on in the project, we experimented with a shader to recreate a more western comic-book visual style, but the Marvel team expressed a desire for us to lean into something more [Arc System Works]-like. It was then that we switched our approach to the game’s visuals and began to lean more into the Japanimation style [Arc System Works] is known for.”

Gameplay Mechanics

From short-ranged jabs to the cinematic Ultimate Skills, each character features a bespoke set of Normal, Special, and Unique attacks inspired by their abilities and powers in Marvel lore. Arc System Works has gone to great lengths to ensure that gameplay style, movement, and feel of these legendary characters is fresh, new, and wholly unique to MARVEL Tokon: Fighting Souls.

But it’s not just the individual gameplay of the characters that has been enhanced; significant dedication has gone into reimagining and redefining what it means to be a tag team fighter.

“Team VS fighting games have a long tradition of two-versus-two or three-versus-three team formats, so this is something we discussed in-depth within the development team. We went back and forth many times, from thinking we might be better off making a one-versus-one game or sticking to the established three-versus-three format.”

Sekine-san continues, “At its core, we felt that the appeal of team VS fighting games is the intensity of battles with multiple characters on screen at once. Additionally, one of the appeals of Marvel comics is seeing the vast cast of characters coming together to create all kinds of unique team-ups.”

“With these two ideas in mind, we concluded that creating a four-versus-four team VS system would be the best way to not only create those over-the-top moments, but to further evolve the tag fighting genre.”

Stages

The stages come to life in MARVEL Tokon: Fighting Souls, filled with easter eggs for eagle-eyed fans to find. Most stages also feature multiple areas. These transitions between areas are not just action-packed and stunning to witness, but they also play a strategic role. Check out the screenshots from Marvel’s New York City to see what you can find.

More to Come

Today’s announcement is just the beginning of our journey. From characters and stages to gameplay modes and the online experience. There’s so much more we can’t wait to share with you!

[yuurivoice]

NOT THE EVIL TWIN 😭

Revisiting the point about Boo not having any impending drama coming their way, I really think people are not used to their listener character not be the center of the universe and all of the drama their own. How tired and played out would it be if we ran into some sort of cliche conflict for Boo when we've just got done dealing with criminals, violence, and parental abandonment? Like? What could there feasibly be that the trio wouldn't just scoff at and dunk on, because they've already handled massive levels of bullshit together?

Boo got to be the person dealing with their partner's past coming to haunt them. Trying to brute force them into scenarios where the dynamic shifts towards Boo having the mess to clean up is an exhausting thought from my perspective.

Folks want to experience a variety of feelings and scenarios with their favorite trio, I get it. But when we're talking this particular story, I think it would be ridiculous to try and flip the script when we have significant road left to travel based on what we've already covered.

People will always have that question and desire for that kind of direction, but also...I didn't get this far listening to every whim and desire of the audience. Sometimes ya gotta trust yourself, and limit who you take input from. And unfortunately, I haven't ever managed to find someone to sit under creatively and look up to. As much as I wish I had an OG to look up to and seek advice from in times where I could use a critique, I got here without a teacher. So I gotta trust my gut and what brought me to the dance. There have been dozens of times I wish I had someone who'd been there and done that to bounce ideas off of or get a little extra guidance from, but that was never in the cards.

One day I'd like to be that for people, though. I always try to be engaged and encouraging when creatives of all sorts hit me up for advice or thoughts. I recognize how much that can mean, because I never really had that, and I know how much it would have meant to me.

Anywho, totally not the original point, but y'all know where to find me if you want some advice. I'll do my best.

[utilitycaster]

#critical role#yea#and tbh? these are mostly western white queers#not esxclusively because we def have this type of people here in eastern europe as well. but the whole thing is very western#(not to derail the post but most of attempts to see some charackers as fantasy polish were. uhm. not good. which is very in line with#western fandom way of microdosing on *other cultures*. pick some aesthetic level things and not ask anyone from said culture for input)#(there were some subtle ones that were fine! but most was. like. firstly. why) @gendertrickery (moving this from the post about centering white queer (and frequently middle class & western) experiences above all

GOD what a mood; obviously I am also western, white, queer, and middle-class but I've had a wild (negative) time as a Jewish person in fantasy fandom spaces my entire adult life, with people interspersing posts based on surface-level misinterpretations of Jewish culture they've headcanoned (rather than like. seeking out Jewish characters in other works) and fighting harder against goblins and the word "phylactery" than like, real-world antisemitism. I still think about how one of the people in this fandom who is quickest to claim everyone else is a bigot not only did various character nationality posts seemingly without input but has an entire headcanon involving the most basic Spanish error that literally anyone familiar with Spanish on any level would have noticed.

It really does feel like a lot of people want the appearance of being accepting of diverse experiences but refuse to accept anything that challenges their personal perspectives and hate that this is a contradictory set of desires, and so they only engage through headcanoning characters who aren't sufficiently like them as more like them (often by making characters who are not explicitly textually queer, queer) or characters who are already like them (again, often by being queer) as belonging to other cultures without ever exposing themselves to a variety of perspectives coming from that culture - when they do actually talk to someone it's usually someone they already mostly agreed with and often someone who is fairly westernized. I am genuinely wary around anyone who gets super into headcanons and defensive thereof because while on the surface it's harmless, a lot of them use headcanons as ammunition to prove they are open-minded without ever having to open their mind.

[dredgen-dumbass]

(Disabled) player's guide to making D2 more accessible

because so far (correct me if I'm wrong) I haven't seen one on here, & maybe (hopefully) it'll help someone.

Alright, to get it out of the way, I'm disabled. I have neurological damage from a tbi, and more recently another concussion, and among many many other things it makes gaming a lot more complicated. It can (unfortunately) be difficult to find advice for disabled gamers online that isn't just "get good" or "then gaming isn't for you", so I figure this might be helpful, since it was for me.

I can't speak to other conditions, so this is more about adjustments for specific symptoms, but I can only really speak from experience. That said, I've had to learn quite a bit, so it's sharing time :)

(I play on Xbox. Some settings aren't the same between platforms, just a warning. For that reason, some of this post is going to be xbox-specific.)

This is divided up into menus & subjects of bullet points are bolded to be easier to skim.

Controller settings - (and explanations for some of them in case y'all don't know)

Test out different look sensitivity. The default is 3, I moved mine up to 5. I have issues with spacial awareness and saccades dysfunction, and this has made it easier for me to keep whatever I'm looking at on-screen.

ADS sensitivity- if you don't know, this is the speed when you aim down sights. The default is 1, I have mine reduced to .5, and I've found that the larger difference between the look & ADS sensitivity can really function as having two look settings available when using a weapon that doesn't have a very extreme scope.

The default sprint-turn scale is 0.4, I bump mine up to 0.8 for similar reasons to the look sensitivity increase. (Turning this up makes you turn faster, turning it down makes you turn slower.)

Alternatively, if you have more issues with overstimulation/visual clutter/quick movements/etc, you may want to turn everything down a bit to slow down your camera, but that may make combat harder to keep up with, especially pvp.

Axial & radial deadzone. This helps with stick drift. Stick drift is a pain for everyone but if you have fine motor issues, tremors, arthritis, etc, it's even worse. Finding what works best for your hardware will help make sure you're compensating less, which puts less strain on your hands.

I've seen people recommend turning off controller haptics for the same reason- the vibrations make you grip the controller harder and can cause worse strain. Personally, I leave them on because the sensory input helps balance out the awareness issues, but maybe it's for you! (this one's a system setting, not a d2 one.)

Video settings

Brightness can be important if you have issues with eye strain. I would recommend changing this relative to the lighting in the room, not just your monitor. Turning it up may help with visual issues with the tradeoff of risking overstimulation. Again, all of this is very dependent on the person.

Motion blur- Evil, evil, evil, turn this off. Visual problems or not, it's harder to follow things on-screen with it enabled. Combined with any garden variety problem with eye movements or cognitive strain it's even worse.

Chromatic aberration- I turn this off. It's a nice vfx, but it can wind up just being added visual stimulus and if that's a problem for it's worth losing. It can also make the radar harder to read. Not worth it (personally.)

Film grain- off for the same reason. It's a smaller change, but a clearer view is worth it if it helps you.

Sound settings

If you have problems with your hearing/auditory processing, I highly recommend turning the sfx & music drastically down compared to the dialogue, and then just turning up your system audio.

Personally, I often play with music entirely off, but I know that can be a very boring experience to a lot of people, so take that as you will.

(my current settings: sfx 8, dialogue 10, music 1)

if you're playing with an Xbox party or in a discord call, etc, I really recommend messing with the mixing settings there when you first get on to balance out peoples mics, regardless of processing problems.

Gameplay settings

HUD opacity- I turn mine down to high, the default being full. Just another thing that makes it easier to keep track of stuff.

Radar Background Opacity- Opposite here. If you have problems with spatial awareness you're probably relying pretty hard on the radar instinctively, so the clearer it is, the better. I play with mine on medium, you may want to play around.

Subtitles- Are on by default, so that's nice. Let's check out their settings menu for a moment.

Turning on show speaker name can be really good for hearing/auditory processing issues.

You can also change the color for the speaker name/caption text if the clearer contrast will help you.

The best background style for visibility is box, but it won't look as nice. Another trade.

Background opacity may be easier to lower if you switch to box, since the faded style isn't even. A lower background opacity may help you follow things on-screen at the cost of caption readability

If you don't need captions but do need to reduce visual clutter, try turning them off!

Colorblind mode is, obviously, helpful if you're colorblind, but I have also heard it recommended because the color changes can help improve contrast. Not one I've tried, but worth including.

Full auto firing/Full auto melee- Does what it says. Turning this on might help in the same way as turning off haptics/messing with deadzones, ie by changing how much you need to click. You can still fire normally with it on, so if anything it just gives you another option.

Reticle location is slightly below the center on d2. I prefer to center it, though it takes some getting used to. More helpful if you frequently switch between other games that center theirs.

Neutral/targeted reticle color- The defaults are white and red respectively. I prefer black for targeted because I feel like it makes it easier to see what I'm actually aiming at, but you may want to leave it for contrast. To each their own.

Other

Brief overview of Xbox accessibility settings

Xbox has a narration setting. I would assume anyone who needs it is aware of this, but just in case.

If you need more assisted play, there's controller assist where you can combine two people's input

Turning off haptic vibration (as mentioned) is in accessibility -> controller

You can make the on-screen keyboard larger!

There are party chat settings for both text to speech and speech to text

There's also game transcription!

Games that have the function can also do their own read-aloud. I don't know if/how this applies to destiny

Mono output for audio may make things easier to understand depending on your audio setup

There's also high-contrast mode for both dark or light

Colorblind filters are here, too

Night mode! You can change how much it dims/filters your device. If you have problems with blue light or eye strain, or have to limit screens for medical reasons like me, this setting is a lifesaver. The filter will affect how your games look, but personally it's worth the tint. Same is available on most PCs.

Hardware, etc.

The Xbox Adaptive Controller is highly customizable and great for anyone with physical impairments that make the standard Xbox controller difficult to use. Find it here.

I've seen thumbstick extenders recommended for arthritis, might also be helpful for similar conditions

If you have arthritis/fine motor issues/muscle weakness/tremors/etc/etc/etc controller grips might make holding a standard controller easier

If any of those are the case for you, then you might also benefit from a lightweight controller (or playing with a standard controller plugged in & removing the batteries for a lesser weight adjustment)

evilcontrollers also has one-handed controllers and a one-handed controller customizer much like the standard controller customizers

evilcontrollers for hardware accessibility in general

If you play on PC and have muscle or joint issues then you may want to look into different keyboard/mouse shapes. Lightweight, vertical, and ball mice are all options, though there's apparently some argument about using them for gaming. I've also seen good reviews of the Azeron keypad from people with muscular/joint problems. There's also split keyboards, wave keyboards, one-handed, etc etc etc.

If you have problems with auditory processing I would HIGHLY recommend gaming with noise-cancelling headphones. (Hell, do everything with noise cancelling headphones.) I would recommend these for everyday, but they also work pretty well for gaming. The mic is mid, but it works well enough, and there's multiple sound modes + active noise cancelling.

Other other (oh no I forgot these, editing now)

Compression gloves !!!!!

Pause and do hand exercises after a while

20/20/20 rule for eye strain

may come back and expand this as I think of more things

There is a lot that Bungie could do to improve the game's accessibility without causing an imbalance with abled players, but I'll save that for another post. Feel free to reblog this with any other advice/anecdotal stuff/whatever, I'm considering this as opening a discussion.

I don't know of any clans specifically for disabled players but I'm sure they exist? If anyone has recommendations for community stuff, please do throw that in.

As always, my dms are open. Being a disabled gamer can suck sometimes and if you need a space to vent w/ someone who gets it, I'm your guy. If you're just curious how it impacts gaming, I don't mind being asked, I just don't feel like posting about myself that much unprompted.

I think that's all for now. Happy gaming :)

[cripplecharacters]

Hi! So I’m writing a book about three main characters two of which have autism and ADHD. One of them also has a prosthetic leg and a stutter, I’m aware of your no questions about prosthetics but my question is more based around the stereotypes of how I’ve written it so I’m hoping that’s okay.

The book isn’t entirely based around them being disabled, it’s a part of their character but the book is more about overcoming challenges and not entirely based on being disabled, however said character got her prosthetic leg through a car accident where he leg got crushed and had to be amputated. I didn’t really think at the time about how stereotypical that was and now I’ve realised that it is. Is there anything I could do to make it less stereotypical? It’s difficult to change her story since the book is almost fully written but to give more insight into the fact that not all disabilities happen from accidents I could have another character with a disability they had from birth or developed not from an accident?

Thank you :)))

Hello!

Standard disclaimer that we don't have amputee mods right now (follower input welcome as always) so I'll focus on the "stereotype" part.

The Car Accident being the cause of a character's disability is probably a stereotype, but it's not taken out of nowhere. A lot of people become amputees, get spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, etc., from vehicular accidents. I don't think that it's a problem for this to be why your character is disabled. It would be cool if there was more variety in how characters become disabled, but that doesn't mean the "stereotypical" ways are incorrect (they are usually based on reality, and just overrepresented when compared to other things. Where are all the diabetic amputees at, etc.).

That said, there are ways in which you could make it more complex and, by proxy, interesting. The bigger issue with the "car accident" plotline is IMO that it's used as a "default disability cause" and it's just there as a point in the backstory, but it doesn't seem to affect the character at all in the present. Which just ends up being boring because it's just used as a default placeholder rather than an actual backstory event.

Try to think how the accident affected your character, and what other experiences they had because of it. Are they afraid of cars? Or were they, but aren't anymore? Are they very audibly against drunk driving? Did they have any funny stories from support groups that the hospital could've involved them in? Do they struggle with PTSD?

These are random questions obviously, but basically try to think of the accident in broader terms of how it impacted the character outside of the literal disability. That will be both less stereotypical, and more interesting.

As for the last point; it's usually a good idea to have a wider range of disabled characters (it's already great that you have multiple). So if it's possible, it could be helpful to add a character who became disabled in other ways as well. Since one of your character is already a traumatic amputee, they would probably know at least a few other amputees, and (depending on the general demographic) there's a high chance a lot of them would just be diabetics or have other chronic conditions which lead to them becoming amputees. So that's something you could mention, even offhand, just to acknowledge that other kinds of amputees are very much out there too (which might sound obvious, but believe me that a lot of people are unaware that there are other amputation causes than "literally got it chopped off via physical trauma").

Hope this helps,

mod Sasza