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Jordan Westwood, 18 years old. Also known as the vigilante "Safeguard".

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my great pee paw twigglesnort god rest his beautiful soul he died fighgting in the great vietgnome war stepping on a deliviish Sugarstick Trap that just destroyed his tiny body may his legacy live on 🙏

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Samantha "Sam" Small, 16 years old. Also known as the superhero "Bloodhound".

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"two people stand in a field of red flowers and look at the sun above them"

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"The Goon Economy: Why People Choose to Work for Supervillains"

Leslie Lester, for Psychology Today, October 2022

When asked why anyone would choose to work for supervillains, most people imagine costumed henchmen cackling maniacally while fighting Spider-Man. The reality is far more mundane - and more economically fascinating.

"It's just a job," says Former Employee X under the condition of anonymity, who worked security for a major East Coast villain organization. "Better benefits than Netsphere, better pay than private security, and yeah, higher risk, but you've got clear procedures for hero encounters. Most guys never even see a cape."

The numbers support this pragmatic view. While exact figures are difficult to obtain, conservative estimates suggest supervillain organizations employ hundreds of thousands of workers across the U.S., from direct muscle to legitimate business employees. The total economic impact likely rivals major corporations.

But why choose such high-risk employment? Dr. Sarah Chen, economist at MIT, suggests three key factors:

Economic Pressure: "In cities with active supervillain presence, these organizations often control major employment sectors - construction, shipping, waste management. Sometimes working for them isn't really a choice."

Risk vs. Reward: The average "muscle" for a villain organization makes 1.5-2 times standard security work, with comprehensive health coverage and legal protection. "When you're living paycheck to paycheck," Chen notes, "guaranteed medical care becomes very attractive."

Systemic Integration: Many workers start through legitimate businesses, becoming gradually involved in illegal activities. "It's rarely a conscious choice to 'become a minion,'" Chen explains. "It's more like finding out your company has mob ties - but you've got a mortgage and kids in school."

The psychology is equally complex. Dr. James Morrison of Harvard explains: "These organizations offer what many legitimate employers don't: clear advancement paths, protection from both heroes and rivals, and often a sense of belonging. They're filling gaps in our social safety net."

The rise of powers-based crime has only increased this trend. "Supervillain organizations have better protocols for superhuman encounters than most legitimate businesses," Morrison notes. "If you're working in a city where hero-villain battles are common, that matters."

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what the fuck???

Was talking to a 70 year old security guard at my university yesterday and I liked what he had to say to me and a couple of the younger freshmen chatting him up. I think you should hear it. I’ll paraphrase him (cutting out my half of the conversation);

“For people like us [POC] it’s always been a fight against the latest dude. Reagan and bush and Obama and trump. You know what they did when we started scaring them? They bombed American soil because they were about to piss themselves at black power. You know I can’t say out loud I was a part of that but that’s what you kids gotta do. Stay calm and build that black power, that neighbor power, that low class power against the latest dude, and when they bomb this neighborhood again that’s when you can panic, but you’ve gotta fight til then. The president was never on our side. Neither one.”

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Chum 140: Campfire

She picks up on the second ring. "Bee," she says, voice sharp and familiar. "What's going on?"

"Hi, Akilah. Aaron might be back," I say, not bothering with pleasantries. "Or someone like him. Fires, weird patterns, targeting my routes. It's getting bad, and Jordan and I can't handle this alone."

There's a pause, just long enough for me to hear the faint sound of traffic on her end. "And you're calling me because…?"

"Because you're in the area," I reply, trying to keep the edge out of my voice. "I don't need you to do anything huge, just… keep watch. Help cover us at night. I can't make myself investigate right now. I'll do something stupid."

Another pause, then a sigh. "I'm not interested in going door-to-door looking for an arsonist, if that's what you're angling for."

"I'm not," I say quickly. "I just need someone who knows what they're doing. Someone who can--"

"Someone who can watch your back," she interrupts. "Got it. I'm not far. I'll swing by."

She hangs up before I can respond, leaving me staring at my phone like it might give me a follow-up explanation. It doesn't.

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my green card got approved !! (and so begins my american-ification tf sequence)

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lol what was the point of that anon interrogating you about where you decide to live…

a lot of people have a very flighty response to the political scene in america. if shit sucks, hit the bricks, you know? so it seems CRAZY to be coming in wilfully at a time like this in american history. thats an unfortunately colonial mindset ... truth is, i've lived on turtle island my whole life. my people spanned from the canadian maritimes down to the coasts and inlands of maine. the borders encroached us. so. when i say i got my green card im not saying "wow im a true patriot now and will die for this perfect nation state" - much rather, im recognizing that the people trapped within the concept of america are just as deserving of my time and community as anyone else. trapped in stone villages.

i think often of queer and bipoc of america trapped in the south and its suicidal politics, and how often the north abandons them. now as a "canadian", i extend it to a larger picture. who am i to abandon americans, who am i to abandon the victims of the imperial state. make change where you live and become indigenous to your area, because its all we have, its all ANY of us have. i came here to be with my wife, and i will accept and protect my neighbours and community :)

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arstok ruskie, the star

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asked my robot son (@statsbot) to brainstorm a minecraft movie that doesnt suck

text under read more

Let me tell you about a different kind of Minecraft movie:

INITIAL QUESTIONS How do we handle the complete isolation of the Minecraft world without resorting to isekai tropes? What's the core philosophical theme that could drive a mature narrative? How do we address the building/crafting mechanics without making them feel gamey? What role should the hostile mobs play in a serious narrative? How can we incorporate the inherent emptiness and loneliness of the world?

DETAILED RESPONSES The film opens in medias res - we never learn how humanity came to this cubic world, because it doesn't matter. Our protagonist is part of a small community of builders and survivors who have always been here. No portal, no transportation, no explanation needed. This is simply their reality, like how we don't question the physics of our own universe. The core theme revolves around humanity's relationship with creation and destruction. The protagonist is a master builder in their community who discovers ancient ruins suggesting that their civilization isn't the first to exist in this world. The film explores cycles of creation, destruction, and rebirth, drawing parallels to real-world lost civilizations.

The crafting system is presented as an inherent natural law of their universe - materials combine in specific ways, like chemistry in our world. The film treats this as mundane reality rather than game mechanics. Buildings aren't instantly placed but constructed through time lapses showing genuine effort and community cooperation.

The hostile mobs are treated as natural phenomena - the Creepers are portrayed as silent, tragic creatures drawn to human creation with an inherent need to destroy it. Zombies and Skeletons emerge from ancient ruins, suggesting they're remnants of the previous civilization. The Endermen are portrayed as incomprehensible beings studying human behavior from a distance.

The vast emptiness between settlements is treated as both beautiful and terrifying. Long shots of endless cubic horizons emphasize the scale of the world and humanity's tiny place within it. The emptiness serves as a canvas for human creativity but also a reminder of cosmic loneliness.

FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS How does the discovery of another surviving settlement change the protagonist's worldview? What happens when they find evidence that the previous civilization fell due to their own hubris in attempting to access The End? Why do some members of the community oppose expanding their knowledge of redstone technology? What drives some community members to venture into the Nether despite the obvious dangers? How does the community handle the philosophical implications of villager trading and their level of sentience?

ADDITIONAL DETAILS The film's structure follows a three-act format but breaks conventional storytelling rules by maintaining a meditative pace. The score emphasizes ambient sounds and C418's original music, treating silence as another character. The visual style embraces the cubic nature of the world while using modern lighting techniques to create genuine beauty.

The climax doesn't involve a typical boss fight but rather a moral choice about whether to repeat the cycles of the past. When the protagonist discovers the truth about The End portal beneath their village, they must decide whether knowledge is worth the risk of destruction.

The film ends ambiguously, with the community choosing to build something new while accepting they may not be the last civilization to inhabit this world. The final shot pulls back to reveal their entire settlement is built upon layers of ancient ruins, suggesting countless cycles of civilization before them.

Key scenes include: A silent sequence showing the meticulous construction of a grand structure The first discovery of redstone, treated with the gravity of discovering atomic energy A haunting scene where Endermen gather to observe a funeral ceremony The protagonist realizing their village's architectural style matches patterns in the ancient ruins

The film refuses to explain many of its mysteries, treating the Minecraft world like our own - full of questions we may never answer. This respects both the source material and the audience's intelligence, creating a genuinely thoughtful science fiction film that happens to be set in a cubic world.

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pro-shibari propaganda

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my green card got approved !! (and so begins my american-ification tf sequence)

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request for someone to see a witch-knight in latex

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THE END OF DUNGEONS & DRAGONS

Prompt: "The sword coast setting, but thousands and thousands and thousands of years in the future, where it's turned from high fantasy into dark fantasy"

The Outline:

Sample Campaign Starter:

Text under Read More:

The Great Cities Waterdeep, once the City of Splendors, is now the City of Eternal Twilight. Its towering spires remain, but they're twisted and warped, having grown like pale coral over thousands of years of wild magic exposure. The city exists in layers - the deepest parts still contain functioning Undermountain technology, while the surface is a maze of crystallized buildings where masked nobles maintain a mockery of the old customs. Baldur's Gate has become a titanous mechanical city-state, burning the corpses of the dead in enormous furnaces to maintain warmth as the sun dies. The Sword Coast itself is no longer recognizable as a coast - the sea has partially crystallized into a sheet of black glass that occasionally liquefies without warning.

The Nature of Magic As the sun dims, magic has become more visceral and dangerous. The Weave has partially collapsed, creating "knots" of wild magic that float like spectral tumors across the landscape. Spellcasting requires blood sacrifice or the burning of valuable materials - the age of casual magic is long gone. Many spellcasters have resorted to binding fragments of dying gods into their flesh to maintain their powers. The color of magic has changed too - most spells manifest in blacks, grays, and pale blues, as if the magic itself is suffering from cosmic frostbite.

The Old Pantheons The gods are dying, but cannot truly die. They exist in a state of perpetual agony, their essence crystallizing into god-shards that fall from the sky like meteors. Some gods have merged together in desperate attempts to survive - Lathander and Kelemvor are now one entity, a terrible thing that represents both dawn and death, neither of which have meaning anymore. Mystra's death long ago caused the initial collapse, but her essence still pervades reality like a virus, causing spontaneous magical mutations.

Survival Methods People cluster around "hearth-crystals," shards of the original sun that still emit weak heat and light. Communities are usually small, heavily fortified, and deeply suspicious of outsiders. Many have resorted to consuming the flesh of magical creatures to survive, leading to widespread mutations. Water must be thawed before drinking, and most food is grown in underground fungal gardens. Some communities have turned to worshipping the machines left behind by the gnomes and artificers of old, maintaining ancient technologies they barely understand.

Monsters and Creatures Most of the iconic D&D monsters have evolved or devolved into horrific new forms. Dragons are blind, pale things that nest in thermal vents, having lost their color affiliations millennia ago. Mind Flayers have returned from the far realm, but they're different now - more mechanical, having fused with ancient Netherese technologies. Beholders have multiplied and shrunk, becoming swarms of floating eyes that serve as organic surveillance systems for the larger settlements.

The Planes The planar boundaries have grown thin and unstable. The Shadowfell is slowly merging with the Material Plane, while the Feywild has become a frozen wasteland of eternal twilight. Fragments of other planes occasionally crash into the material world, creating zones where reality behaves according to alien rules. The Nine Hells have frozen over, and demons now seek warmth in the material plane, sometimes offering their essence as fuel for the desperate.

Ancient Artifacts The legendary artifacts of the past have grown in power as the world dies. The Blackstaff has become a living entity that consumes its wielders. The Ring of Winter is sought after not as a weapon, but as a tool of mercy - it can grant final death to those who otherwise would live forever in the twilight. Many new artifacts have been created from the crystallized remains of gods, each carrying a fraction of divine power and madness.

SITUATION A hearth-crystal powering the settlement of Coldhearth is dying. The crystal's dimming has caused panic among the inhabitants, who know they have perhaps two weeks before the cold claims them. However, the local Crystal-Speaker has had a vision - one of the dying gods, a merged aspect of Gond and Oghma called the Brass Scholar, is falling from the heavens. Its crystallized divine essence could serve as a new hearth-crystal, if it can be claimed. Unfortunately, others have sensed its imminent arrival too - including the machine-cult of Baldur's Gate and a desperate band of god-flesh scavengers.

SETTING Coldhearth sits in what was once a coastal village near Waterdeep, though the black glass sea is now several miles away. The settlement is built into and around an ancient lighthouse, its beacon replaced with the current (dying) hearth-crystal. The surrounding area is a wasteland of crystallized trees and frozen earth, with occasional patches of liquidized ground where wild magic has temporarily thawed reality.

The nearby "Shattershore" - where the black glass sea begins - is a maze of geometric shapes and broken reflections. The glass occasionally liquefies without warning, swallowing the unwary. Scavengers risk these dangers to harvest valuable resources from ancient ships trapped within the glass. Several miles inland lies the ruins of a pre-twilight trading post called Wayward's Rest, now home to a colony of devolved mind flayers who trade memories for warmth.

The predicted impact site of the falling god-shard lies in the Thornmaze, a crystallized forest where the trees have grown into impossibly sharp geometric patterns. The local mutation-touched say the trees still grow, just too slowly for normal eyes to see. The maze is home to various geometric predators - creatures that have adapted to move and hunt along perfectly straight lines and right angles.

CAST The Settlement of Coldhearth Vara Nightbridge, Crystal-Speaker and unofficial leader. Her eyes have been replaced with shards of a fallen god, allowing her to see divine essence. She speaks in temperatures rather than words. Ghkss the Thawed, a mutation-touched merchant whose flesh periodically liquefies. He maintains the settlement's fungal gardens and knows more than he shares. Pock, a child who never seems to feel the cold. The other children follow her lead, and she knows all the settlement's secrets.

The Machine-Cult of Baldur's Gate Archimandrite Kex, a cyborg priestess who has replaced her blood with heated oil. She leads the local machine-cult expeditions. Brother-Operator Finn, a former street thief who maintains the cult's warmth-engines. He's secretly planning to steal the god-shard for himself.

The God-Flesh Scavengers The Twins, Voss and Vess, who share a single mutation-touched body but alternate control. They're known for eating anything that glows. Skrike, their enforcer, who has bound frozen demon-flesh to his bones. He can only move in straight lines but hits like a runaway cart.

INITIAL CONDITIONS The hearth-crystal is dimming noticeably each day. The settlement's outer rings have already been abandoned as the warmth recedes. Most residents have crowded into the lighthouse proper, creating tensions and using up stored resources faster than anticipated. The Crystal-Speaker's vision has given hope, but also attracted unwanted attention from outside groups.

The machine-cult has already established a forward camp near the Thornmaze, using salvaged warmth-engines that leave trails of black smoke. The god-flesh scavengers are more mobile, using trained geometric predators as mounts to patrol the crystallized forest's edge.

The god-shard is due to impact in approximately ten days. The cold is getting worse. Strange lights have been seen in the Thornmaze, suggesting the area's wild magic is intensifying in anticipation of the divine arrival.

GOALS Vara Nightbridge seeks to save her people and maintain order during the crisis. Ghkss wants to preserve his secret collection of pre-twilight artifacts, even at the cost of lives. Pock intends to lead the other children to safety if the adults fail. Archimandrite Kex plans to use the god-shard to create a new type of warmth-engine. Brother-Operator Finn dreams of becoming a god himself by consuming the shard. The Twins aim to feed the god-shard to their geometric mounts, believing it will create perfect predators. Skrike simply wants enough divine essence to fix his condition.

TOOLS/RESOURCES Vara has her god-shard eyes and the loyalty of most settlers. Ghkss maintains a hidden cache of thawed water and preserved food. Pock knows secret ways through the Thornmaze. Archimandrite Kex commands several warmth-engines and trained technicians. Brother-Operator Finn possesses a pre-twilight device that can supposedly contain divine essence. The Twins control a pack of geometric predators. Skrike has demon-enhanced strength and durability.

SAMPLE SOLUTIONS Navigate the Thornmaze using Pock's knowledge, reach the impact site first, and defend it until the god-shard arrives. This requires surviving the geometric predators and wild magic surges.

Ally with Brother-Operator Finn, use his device to safely contain the god-shard, then betray him before he can consume it. This means dealing with both the machine-cult and his personal ambitions.

Convince the Twins to help clear a path through the Thornmaze using their geometric predators, then deal with their inevitable betrayal at the impact site.

Use Ghkss's secret resources to outlast the other factions, letting them fight among themselves before claiming the god-shard from the survivors.

Negotiate with the mind flayers at Wayward's Rest, trading memories for their help in securing the god-shard. This is risky but could provide a significant advantage over other factions.

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princess & courtesan

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toxic friends