#[ i'm fine really. i'm absolutely fine actually. ]

[tousey-mousey]

"If you had no rules, you'd have nothing to roleplay about" is the most This Is The Autism Website thing I've read in a while actually. Like.

If you're running a campaign based on exploring a world trying to get Something Specific done, who cares what, then the rules are "can we achieve this thing, given that we live in a society?"

Like. Okay, let's imagine we're running a campaign in... hmm, let's say the present day, a world most people are familiar with (I can't say everyone, because I have met humans before you see).

You're tasked with trying to do something challenging but eminently possible. Let's say... escape a major city while being pursued by the mob. It's certainly not impossible, people do it all the time, but people also fail to do it all the time.

You have absolutely no ruleset. Go with god.

HOWEVER!

You need to convince everyone around the table that your planned action for the next however-long-everyone-lets-you-have-a-turn-for is sensible.

"I hijack a car"

Okay then, mate. Walk me through this process. Because I feel you're probably assuming that hijacking a car - that is, stopping a moving vehicle, getting a driver out, getting inside unstopped, and driving away safely - is as easy as you think it is. And it's really not! So... let's do it.

When you go to attempt something, someone might say "I mean that feels like your plan is basically 50/50", so someone else says "let's say if they succeed based on a coin flip!" and if everyone agrees, cool then you do that. There's no strict rule, but it works so go for it.

If someone says "I use my mind powers to make them stop", then most people will probably go "I am desperate to hear how you have mind powers" and if you can talk them round, cool! Now mind powers exist, you have them, and you get to roleplay about them. If they DON'T exist... You have just, in character, stared at a guy really hard and muttered "I am using mind powers..." under your breath while your friends start getting concerned about your sanity. That is also a fabulous chance for roleplay.

Literally none of that requires written rules. Combat? Also does not require written rules: you can negotiate EVERYTHING.

"I fire a gun"

Cool, we can all agree she definitely hits him right? Okay, you've fired a 9mm at a guy's... where did you aim?

"That'd be for his body, chief"

At a guy's trunk. You hit him... I dunno, someone name a bodypart?

'SPLEEN'

At a guy's... lemme google this... "splenic ruptures can cause life-threatening internal bleeding causing shock", jesus okay. You hit his spleen and he screams like you have shot him, because you have shot him. Hmm... I think he's probably gonna collapse, and when he collapses he'll bust the shitty shaky floor out under him as he falls into the room below.

FUCK I needed his keys, okay okay does anyone have rope?

Kay we are wearing pyjamas why in gods name would we have rope??

I dunno babe, worth a try.

Uhhh, we're in an abandoned living room yeah? I'm gonna look around for an electrical device.

Hey chief, can I take this one?

Yeah sure.

You find an old-ass lamp, also I do NOT like where this is going and am SO desperate to see it.

Wait hang on, a LAMP? In this ABANDONED TRAP HOUSE?

Everyone's gotta see, I'm taking the lamp. I could fish around in the walls for the internal wiring if you like, I've punched through drywall before it's not that hard.

No, no, good point, go off

Okay. I am using my knife - y'all remember my knife, we've been through my knife before - to slice off the power cord. I'm gonna say 1.2m sounds around right, I've seen lamps with that.

Sure.

So. Kay, do you wanna... you know...?

JESS ARE YOU SUGGESTING I ABSEIL DOWN A HOLE IN THE FLOOR ON THE END OF FOUR FEET OF ELECTRICAL CABLE?

...Yes.

ABSOLUTELY NOT.

Oh come on it'll be fine.

MEANWHILE as you two dipshits bicker over who is the biggest moron, you hear sirens outside.

F U C K

Folks I'm gonna suggest we hurry this up?

No, yeah, nah, yeah, good point.

She's right, we're good.

Cops are about 15 seconds away from breaking into the room, who's doing what?

---

Like. You can do A LOT with no rules. Roleplay can be enhanced by rules or hindered, it really just depends who you are. Some people NEEEEED structure, others rebel against it. It's just a thing.

Everyone has gotta stop treating TTRPGs like there's this dial between "rules" and/or "combat" and "narrative" and/or "roleplaying" and as one goes up the other must go down.

[wonderfull-star]

I know @ilid already wrote about this but I'm going to write it shortly anyway. I know it was done for fun but DAMN the way people mostly portray Kris's relationship with Berdly and how it is in the game are TOTALLY opposite. Kris NEVER hated Berdly. Heck, they're probably the only ones who actually care about spending time with him. Whereas even Noelle isn't that interested and sometimes spends time with Berdly to avoid upsetting him.

Kris usually shows their displeasure with the chosen by player’s option by closing their mouth and mumbling something or by biting hand. So yeah, with the option with or about Berdly they are absolutely fine with it.

So. What if Kris was closer to Berdly than Noelle herself all this time? I mean, we only know about the relationship between Kris and Noelle or Noelle and Berdly as children. But we don't really know about the relationship between Kris and Berdly as children.

[burningcheese-merchant]

So uhh about that Erik not being on the stream thing. They actually didn't invite him and he didn't even know what that is and when people were sad on his Discord server about it he answered with "what is that and how do I do it?" Which is really sad with the context that before that he said that he really likes Burning Spice and wants to do more for this role

Wait so he actually wasn't invited??? They actually legitimately just left him out on purpose??? What the fuck dude. That's some mean girl shit lol. Sure fine leave the best Beast VA out of your dumb little party. What was even the reason? Did Erik do something wrong? Do they just not like him for whatever bullshit reason? Do they not like the character he portrays and thus extend that dislike to him personally? (It better not be that istg. I am so sick and tired of Burning Spice getting crucified while the other Beasts are endlessly doted on and excused. Like they're not all equally reprehensible people. Fuck off with the double standards!!) Wow I'm actually mad about this lmao. What a bunch of petty bullshit. No doubt they hurt Erik's feelings by doing this. Justice for Erik, he didn't deserve this at all

If by some strange miracle Erik Braa actually sees this... You, sir, are fantastic. You absolutely NAILED your role. You are PERFECT as Burning Spice. It makes me really happy to know that you enjoy the role and the character and would like to do more with him, because I could never get enough. You provide one of the only English voices I actually like in this game. If not for you and a handful of others, I would not turn the English dub on ever; I would keep it on the Korean or Japanese dub permanently. You are a very talented voice actor and you did a wonderful job with this character and you deserve recognition!!! Don't let any of this get you down, you have fans who love you and your work, in Cookie Run Kingdom and elsewhere! Thank you for helping to bring the best Beast and one of the best characters to life!!!

[lovelikedestiny]

My take on The Old Guard 2

Before I begin my rant, I simply want to stress that this is my opinion on the second movie.

If you liked it, that is perfectly fine :) If you didn't like it, that is perfectly fine either :) If you agree with me, that is fine :) If you don't, that is fine too :)

To start on a positive note, here are things I liked about The Old Guard 2:

the fight choreography slapped

most of the time, the fighting felt like flirting, especially between Andy and Quynh, or when Nicky and Joe fought against the baddies together (Joe shoving the dude down on Nicky's blade with his foot? chef's kiss)

the usage of ancient weapons

I know we already see Andy, Joe and Nicky use their weapons of choice in the first movie BUT I loved how Nile took this thing of the wall and just went "That is my weapon now" or how Booker chose the saber-thingy, showing that he actually has fighting abilities in this area too (I mean come on, he fought with Napoleon!! And I liked how we got to see a glimpse of that), also Quynh's and Tuah's weapons, suiting their characters so well

the Nicky-Joe-banter

it felt good to see them joking around so much and laughing (not just smiling but full on laughing), stressing that they are not only their significant other on a romantic level but also their best friend

the team as a family

joking around during a mission, snippets of their history together, the post-mission drinking and eating, laughing, simply amazing

Nile being the kick-ass-lead woman

I loved that for her because it really suited her well

Copley's integration into the team

I was incredibly happy to see him actively participating in their missions and also him kicking ass too

Now, just as a warning, if you don't want to read my ranting, you can stop here :)

What I didn't like about the second movie - basically everything else. Okay, jokes aside, here are some major points that annoyed me:

the characters all felt somehow extremely flat and not at all like their scharacters from the first movie

I especially noticed that with Nicky (he is my favorite character and I'm always hyper-focused on him, and I don't know if it makes sense, but I was really missing the emotional warmth and his kind, philosophical self? I don't know how to describe it, but all the characters didn't feel like themselves at all for me

Discord and Tuah

they literally popped up out of nowhere, didn't get any reasonable explanation, and Discord??? At first, I thought I had misheard because watching in English still is difficult from time to time, so I was like "Did he say Discord?" and my friend was like "Yup", and I tried so hard to contain my laughter because Discord??? Seems like Facebook and WhatsApp were too occupied to join the fight, and although Tuah seems like a nice guy, he too was missing substance

the whole shit with the first and last immortal and the fucking legend and what not

just no... if they had given me any good and logical explanation, then maybe, but they didn't, Tuah was just like "There is a legend" and Discord (*throws up for using this bad name*) was like "You are the last immortal, Nile", and that was it

they fully threw the dream-thing overboard (like Quynh's iron maiden and my expectations) and IT MAKES NO SENSE???!?!?!?!

if they hadn't explained it in the first movie, it could have worked (maybe) but they built a fundament on the "We dream of each other. They stop when me meet" and just chose to absolutely ignore this shit in the second one. No one knows Tuah before they meet him? Dreams?? And even if they had met him unknowingly, it is sooooo wild that Nile only dreams of them at the beginning of the second movie instead of in the first one, where she literally dreams of all of them???

the handling of Booker

oh, DON'T GET ME STARTED!!! I loved his character in the first movie because there is so much to Booker but in the second one he seemed to get downgraded to "Depressed, only wants to die, dies" and I fucking hate how they robbed us of any chance of reconciliation between Nicky and Booker or NickyJoe and Booker as a whole, and character development of Booker. Him and the team didn't have one significant scene in the whole movie and the only one who did get an impactful moment with him was Andy who he then saved (logically) but oh BOY HIS DEATH was SOOO stupid??? and the whole thing with "This is my expiration date" no, nooooooo, Andy could have killed all the guys he killed (while he got himself killed) with ease but they tried to show his death as some kind of heroic act and in my opinion it absolutely wasn't. I know that depression has a lot to do with how you act around people and how you treat them but you cannot tell me that Booker, who lived with this found family for like 200 years, laughed with them, cried with them, bonded with them, wasted no thought on saying some kind of goodbye to Nicky and Joe ???

the way they absolutely gave no fucks about Copley at the end

I know he betrayed them in the first one, but they can't just show us how he became some kind of team member, only to never get mentioned again after hearing some gun noises over the radio and him struggling against enemies, (Is he dead? Is he alive? Did he get kidnapped too?)

no kisses

okay, kisses are not always necessary, I get it, but when you have a healthy, gay relationship that has been existing for more than 900 years, I expected some more intimate gestures. Especially when Nicky held that beautiful little speech, they could have exchanged a quick kiss (listen, they don't even need to make out, okay?), but no, they shuffled quite awkwardly toward each other to make a forehead bonk (i like forehead bonks but I was missing a kiss). You want to tell me that two immortal warriors that have been together for more than 900 years wouldn't even kiss once during this whole fucking time?? Especially considering that Joe was like "I'm afraid we're gonna die"

the missing depth

one of the things I LOVED about the first movie was the emotional depth it had, this underlying melancholy, the pain and history of the characters, the great impact their actions had and still have on them - this one felt rushed, shallow, out of character, had logical errors and plot holes so big I could've fallen into

I have to say all the actors put their whole heart into this, and gave amazing performances (without them it would've been waaaaay worse to watch this movie), but I still felt my heart rate spike after the first twenty minutes out of sheer frustration and utter disbelief.

That's it for today. Thank you for listening to my rant🌼

[airas-story]

https://archiveofourown.org/series/3645652

Prompt open! Whooo!

First I want to ask if you're still continuing this? I really loved this series! Who am I kidding I love all your work! Thank you for helping keeping the fandom alive 💜

I have 2 prompts actually, you can choose whichever you like 🥰

1 - a snippet of continuation if that's possible?

2 - just a snippet of what if it was only Tony who was returned to the past. And him just wanting to get a glimpse of Stephen of the present (still a doctor with no idea of their million lives). It's up to you if you want them to meet or not but Tony POV please (Tony sorry for doing this to you bb 😭🤣)

Haha. I do fully plan on continuing all of my works in progress, no matter how long it has been. But there are just a lot of them and my brain has focus issues. I am forever impressed by people who start and finish something straight out. However, if I did that I'd never post anything and that'd make me sad, so alas, readers have to suffer my inconsistency. As for the prompts, I think i've decided I'm willing to do snippets of missing scenes, etc. for published/ongoing stories, but not just random continuations becaues that makes me feel blocked in when writing for that story in the future.

As for prompt two, I did fill it, but just for future reference, I don't want to create a whole AU of a story I'm already writing, unless under specific circumstances (that being the muse). I'm fine with an individual prompt, but I just don't want it to become a series. And now, with an answer longer than the fill itself... I present the actual fill:

“You are not supposed to be here,” came the voice behind him.

Tony glanced over as a woman took the seat next to him. “You must be the Ancient One.” She certainly fit the vibe Tony had picked up from all the times Stephen had described her. “Would you believe me if I said it was an accident?”

She arched an eyebrow. “Your presence here in the past? Or your presence here in this cafe, three tables away from a man who doesn’t know who you are?”

Wow. Tony felt called out. “Technically, he absolutely knows who I am. I’m Tony Stark, and I kind of saved New York like… a week ago.” He looked over at Stephen who was getting a quick meal with Christine post-hospital shift. He looked… happy.

Tony had wanted to see that.

“Will you be approaching him?” the Ancient One asked, tone telling Tony nothing about what she thought of that. Though Tony had suspicions. He doubted she wanted him interfering in Stephen’s life. 

“No,” Tony said finally. He wanted to. But this Stephen… He didn’t know Tony. Hadn’t shared millions of lives with him. Most certainly hadn’t fallen in love with him. “He’s got his own path. I just… wanted to know he was happy. I’ll be keeping my distance, after this. Better for my own sanity. I’ve got six years to fix the world.” He looked over at the Ancient One. “I don’t suppose you feel like helping?”

He’d do it alone if he had to…

He’d just rather not have to.

[phantomchick]

Look fanfic isn't written in a vacuum for all that it can be experienced in one.

I remember back in the days when for example a hp fic where Harry was a girl and getting sexually abused by Vernon Dursley would come out and people would be like 'why would anyone write that' and I would sometimes be in a position to have talked to the author and know, she was processing some shit.

Yes fanfic is absolutely a fun place to analyse characters and their relationships especially in the context of the source material and high level literature can be found there but like, I feel like sometimes we forget, it's also a writing form that lends itself to escapism in a big way?

Who cares if someone writes an x reader fic because they want to fantasise about a world where someone they admire loves them? Who cares if someone's writing a Mary Sue original character saving the avengers from themselves? Who cares if someone's writing an incredibly ooc fic where everyone sides with the mc against their abuser the moment the truth is revealed about what's been happening to them? It's fanfic, it doesn't always have to be a 1:1 with their canon characterisations or settings.

Like I'm a Jason Todd fan, I'm always complaining about people reading fanfic of titans tower and assuming Jason ACTUALLY totally tortured, maimed and/or nearly murderised Tim Drake there rather than just knocked him out and how those fic clog up the JT tag so this might sound or even be really hypocritical, but for me, I think it's important to remember not everyone's going to write fanfic with the intent to be In Character and that's ok.

It sucks sometimes/often as a reader to read a story and find everything unrealistic or even ooc but I'm not going to complain about someone writing a rape recovery/aftermath fic of Tim Drake where Jason raped him. I already know Jason would never do that and maybe the author was processing something and maybe they weren't and just wanted Tim to get held while people were righteously angry on his behalf. It's not my taste, it's not how I see the characters but you know what? I just won't read it and that's fine. It's for them not me at the end of the day. It's just shared with me.

[eachuisge-cc]

when I say I don't like how cartoony the sims is I want to be clear my problem is not with the art style. I actually think the art style is ideal for the same reason stage makeup that looks insane in a regular setting does its job perfectly on stage. you spend most of the gameplay zoomed way out and things like the clay hair and stylized shading make it easy to parse things while keeping it visually appealing. It's also a very easy art style to imitate which is great for a game with a large diverse modding scene.

my problem is with the goofy behavior and exaggerated expressions/voices and everything needing to be quirky and silly and low stakes, because all of that really limits the types of stories you can tell. your sims can get into a fight but only via a loony toons dust cloud. we've got a master vampire antagonist who presents some actual stakes for your sims but he wears bunny slippers. the kind of stuff that's funny when players do it but gets old fast when it's the default way things are. especially since TS4 in particular loves to give us random quirky lore that you can't actually do much with due to the shallow gameplay, but that permeates everything in a way that's hard to ignore if you'd rather tell your own story. having freezer bunny in places that make sense for a cartoon mascot is fine. I'm all for having your in-universe mascot collectables or whatever. make plushies and posters of him. but I don't want to see freezer bunny on a coat of arms in my medieval castle build. that's just annoying. you could at least have done a medieval-style rabbit but in pink if you absolutely had to reference him.

and I really hate that our only options seem to be "visually appealing game with fantasy elements that was apparently designed for an out of touch adult's concept of what a ten year old likes" or "game with a more mature tone and the blandest unity-demo-looking graphics you've ever seen in your life and so much realism that you've gone the other direction and made your game blander than real life."

[queersyourgender]

I almost never request stuff but I'm starting training to be an EMT/paramedic soon I can't get the idea of these characters dating one out of my head lol! I'd *love* a multi-character (idc which ones are included!) thing either just about general aspects of them dating one or little moments they steal when they're both on shift and reader drops a patient off! I love ur writing for this fandom sm!!

Mini-Multi — Paramedic/EMT Reader: Cassie McKay, Heather Collins, Dennis Whitaker, Victoria Javadi, Samira Mohan

Notes: WAAAA that's so cool nonnie!! I wish you the best of luck in your studies and endeavors!! If I weren't already a doctor, I would so be an EMT. Shit, who knows, maybe I'll switch!! Anyways haha, I hope you don't mind that I used your req to give some love to some underrated characters!! Enjoy <3

———

Cassie McKay: On one hand, Cassie absolutely loves that she's dating someone in the medical field. Someone who understands the job, its hours, and its woes. On the other, she desperately wishes you wouldn't be on the scene for those horrible things the patients get brought in for. She always believed it was one thing to see the aftermath and another entirely to be at the site of a massacre or a tragedy, and so she can't help but worry about you everytime you bring someone in. You always take a minute to reassure her that you're fine, especially after you've seen her, which she always greatly appreciates.

Heather Collins: Heather was so thankful that you didn't work at PTMC all the time, because she's not sure she would've been able to stay focused if you were walking around like a fellow resident or attending. She simply wouldn't have been able to keep her eyes and hands off of you, so she settles for those stolen moments you get whenever your ambulance brings someone in.

Dennis Whitaker: He actually believes your job is a lot harder than his, for similar reasons to Cassie but also due to the fact that it was on-field work rather than in a sterilized, controlled environment like a hospital. Everytime you come in, he's always in awe of the phenomenal job you've done taking care of your patient. He thinks your competence is hot as shit, but he doesn't say that in so many words, just kisses you senseless anytime you come to PTMC.

Victoria Javadi: Victoria loves EMTs and paramedics, and honestly? A small part of her wishes she was one. Don't get her wrong, she loves her studies and can't wait to be the head of a department someday, whatever it may be, but God did she love the quick thinking and on-the-move nature of paramedics. She always asks you for details on what you did throughout your day, and you constantly impress her with your work, much of the same way she impresses you. A match made in heaven, wouldn't you say?

Samira Mohan: She really admires and respects your work, because she knows she could never do the same things you do. It was hard enough as it is to move on from every patient so quickly in the emergency room, but the fact that you barely even see yours? The fact that once you admit them to a hospital, you know nothing about them? She could never. She thinks you're an absolute champion, and makes sure you know it if you ever come by.

[wachtelspinat]

what kind of music do you listen to, who is your favorite music artists? :] do you maybe have any recommendations on some good songs/music artists? ^<^ if not that's fine have a great day wachtel!!!!

my taste in music is eeh. idk. i listen to a lot as long as it speaks to me. if there was a counter for every song i've ever listened to... then the song with the highest score would be either a super metroid track or harder better faster and stronger by daft punk, because i've listened to it a billion times when it came out in 2001 and declared it a part of my life's soundtrack back then.

in general and as of right now i think the genres i'm listening to the most are video games soundtracks and 80's pop and rock. i'm not shuffling a lot through new music for my collection tho, because once i find a song that really hits the mark, i listen to that song for 3 months on repeat and then move on. i seldomly sit down all like "oh i gotta check that entire album out by that artist".

i thought about this ask a lot and decided to just provide like 1 album that is very dear and 9 songs that never get old to me (i learned that there is a 10 video limit on posts ToT and i'm not a "i listen to full albums" person, i got mixes and folders with "track 12" and "britney spears toxic" on my hard drive asjkfhaskjfh).

album:

think this is my absolute favorite album ever. since it's release in 1994 this has been a part of my life and when the very first note hits i'm back in a very specific childhood moment. this album is like home to me.

OK NOW SONGS

can't find the studio version of this but the live one is even more gut wrenching so

i know it's kind of a cheesy unrequited love song but something just hits right here. also that cover is so good

it was hard to choose but if i had to decide on one tool song then it's stinkfist

that song is sooooo goooddslkdgs bonus for the video which is NOT the official video.

i just like this song a lot, esp. with volume up

DIO 😩 i got this inner dad in me that i try to channel with dad metal... and it feels so good

i was a HUGE die ärzte fan when i was a teenager. they mostly made funny haha we are clowns music but their musical range is actually insane

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAprodigy my beloved

there is so much more and it PAINS me to end here...

BUT

i'm gonna do a reblog of this with banger video game tracks

[egophiliac]

don't think I'm not still obsessing over 7-12

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Lan Wangji Goes To Lotus Pier AU: Part 3: Enveloping Feelings.

(Part 1, Part 2, Part 4)

[benevolenterrancy]

"But in the end, I... still think... it's so unfair," Yin Yu sobbed. "If I wasn't destined to be perfect, I at least wanted to be perfectly kind. But... I couldn't even manage that. It's really... so unfair. And to tell you the truth, I can't get over it, even now. I can't swallow the fact that I'm dying for this little bonehead, Yizhen. I can't even let go and die without resentment or regrets. What the heck..." "Better than most people huh?" Yin Yu gave a small, arduous chuckle. Then he sighed, and the sound of his last regret passed along with his soul as he mumbled, "But I wanted to be a god..."

[johanna-swann]

"911's most intense season yet!" - According to whom???

[humming-fly]

what do you think would happen if shadow and greed met?

pfsdklTKL asking the real questions now aren't we XD

hmmm I imagine it'd entirely depend on the locations and circumstances of their meetup-

in FMA? Greed would probably just assume shadow is some sort of particularly fucked up chimera and treat him as such

in Sonic? Assuming greed isn't running around advertising himself Shadow would probably just think he's a typical if sleazy human and ignore him

if they somehow met in a weird liminal space and knew who the other person was/their respective plot relevancies? extremely weird shared looks. maybe a "that's rough buddy" on greed's part if he's feeling charitable

[deoidesign]

Wait wait wait, I saw in your tags that's Time and Time Again is ending soon? But I've only just found it! (through the animation you did, it and your comic are so well done)

Ah, yeah.

So by "soon" I really mean "sooner than I think I would like" and it feels much sooner to me as the writer than I think it will to you all as the readers.

But, Time and Time Again is pretty much exactly 2/3 of the way through right now. Webtoon gave me the end date before I even finished my first season, and I've been trying to fit in all the things I wanted to get into the story before it ends...

It's why my hiatus has been taking so long, I'm trying to write to get as many moments and as much development as I possibly can, with really limited time! And... also admittedly to prolong how much longer it's sort of "around" in my life.

Because I know once it is over, I'll move on to the next comic! and 3 years just doesn't feel long enough to have Adam and Steve in my life haha

But, yeah. it's getting "close" in a way that it's starting to make me sad. like this time next year it'll probably be over.

It's okay of course, it's the nature of stories that they will end. I'm working really hard to make it satisfying despite Everything, and I'm really proud of everything I've done so far.

And my next comic will be even better for what I've learned here!

So, sorry to everyone, but I promise I'm gonna make it worth it.

[oyeicher]

Unknown Language Notes

This post is inspired by @thisonelikesaliens 's post & @luthienmpl 's tags on the post. If you've ever taken a Mandarin class you probably know all of this already, but for those who don't speak any Mandarin, it might be helpful to familiarize your ear with these words✨

Note: all audio clips are from episode 2

小遠 xiǎo yuǎn [xiáo yuǎn] lit. Little Yuan

Here, 小 (xiǎo), which means small/little, is added in front of 遠 (yuǎn) as a diminutive term. It's pretty common for parents and older relatives to add a 小 in front of the last character of a child's name as an affectionate nickname. Note: In case you're wondering why I've included a second pronunciation in square brackets, it's because the first pronunciation is the one you'd find in a dictionary and the second one is the actual pronunciation of 小遠. This is due to the tone change rule known as "tone sandhi". Basically, when a third tone is followed by a third tone, the first one becomes a second tone.

魏之遠 wèi zhī yuǎn Yuan

魏 (wèi) is his surname. In episode 1, the gang boss says that Wei Xiaoyuan is a bad name and suggests 魏之遠 Wei Zhiyuan (literally Wei's Yuan, Yuan that belongs to Wei) instead. Note: While 小 (xiǎo) is often used in nicknames, it's no longer common in to have this character in one's legal name. You can still find people with names including this character in the older generation, but such names sound uncultured and uneducated to most native speakers (*cough* classism *cough*)

魏謙 wèi qiān Qian

弟弟 dì di younger brother

哥 gē older brother (akin to phi in Thai and hyung/oppa in Korean)

The first audio file is from the scene in which Yuan hands Qian a graduation bouquet, and if you speak Mandarin, you can probably tell that he sounds extremely soft here. I would upload a clip of the scene, but I haven't had much success uploading video clips in the past, so a gif will have to do.