#(and that’s not even to mention the mana limitation too)

[kg-clark-inthedark]

out here doing the lord’s work (well actually-ing in yt comments bc a game analyst used dark vision in dh as an example of stealth games encouraging players to spend the whole time covering up a beautiful game with an “ugly lens” to see through walls)

[jals-stuff]

Hihi! First of all I LOVE your writing and thank you for feeding us hungry Orter fans with your work (I have been STRAVING for his fic) so if you don't mind, I have a little request! So I imagine in a what if Orter has a crush on someone (aka us and ofc we gotta like the sandman back) who's always on a dangerous mission due to how strong they are who is ALSO his partner time to time and one day, they just went into a coma from overusing their magic. MAYBE when they woke up, the two will confess to each other or?? Idk I will let you cook 🧑‍🍳

(Sorry if my wording is a little confusing!)

good day/evening anon! your wording is just fine no worries

first of all, thank you SO much, this brightened my day by a lot, you have absolutely no clue what kind of serotonin torrent you have unleashed. I am glad at least some people like my writings, that's why I'm doing it.

I don't think this is 100% close to what you described, but I hope you'll like it regardless-

Should be gn!reader if I didn't mess it up...

warnings: SLIGHT SPOILIES, bit dark, mentions of death, bit of despair... not proofread I am so sorry.

word count: 2.8k

note: I apologise for any dumb mistakes because I physically cannot proofread myself at 6am but if I don't post it now I won't do it ever. please don't hate me anon

What if...

As much as he hates to admit it (to himself, of course), Orter had grown a little bit too fond of you. The way you greet him whenever you come back from a mission, or the way you always make sure to respect the rules and act logically while also protecting everyone around you when the two of you would go on missions together. 

The way you whine when your legs are tired after walking long distances, the way you always bring him a little something to eat when you know it’s going to be a long trip. You’ve always been good to everyone, much opposed to the cold man; but it wasn’t the only difference between the two of you.

Everyone has their own logic and, as much as you respected your own, his was quite different. While you wanted to take every single possibility into consideration, he preferred not to overload his mind with useless statistics and just think of a solution when the time comes.

However, a lot of things aren’t affected by logic, such as feelings, and how could the dense sandman guess that you were absolutely enamoured with him? These were variables he would’ve never imagined, even though he was painfully into you as well. 

Of course, he was your top priority, and protecting him from harm even though he was a rather powerful mage was of the utmost importance. He should’ve known that when the two of you recklessly charged into enemy territory in an attempt to weaken the devil’s quintuplets before they would be on the move.

Orter was a man of many things, but “what if''s were not part of his usual reasoning, and that was the biggest mistake of his life. However he only realised it too late when you had to break your own limits to make sure he’d go back safely. It was time to retreat, but the two of you had been completely cornered. 

Having a dormant god inside of your wand had many benefits, but Psyche was not an entity to be trifled with. The Soul Goddess would, each time you requested even a fraction of her power, take a huge toll on your stamina and sanity, and this time it was more than critical.

You were already exhausted from using so much of your mana, and now you were completely surrounded by Innocent Zero's sons. Unleashing your Psyche Inclination and ordering all of the quintuplets to sleep immediately surpassed your own boundaries.

You knew what would happen if you pushed beyond your limits with your personal magic, but it was completely worth it. After all, what was the point of living anymore if the only person you loved was dead? 

All of them were immensely powerful, and neutralising such strong enemies was not a meagre task. As soon as the last one fell to the ground in blissful slumber, you felt something rupture inside of you; like a used rope that suddenly lets go, your breath hitched and you collapsed to the floor. 

It was all pitch black, and your consciousness kept you company just long enough to let you hear Orter’s panicked voice calling out for you. Yet somehow, despite the fact that you were falling into the pitch-black abyss, you felt relieved that he, above everything and everyone, was safe.

But anything beyond the confines of your darkened mind was unknown to you and despite your multiple attempts to open your eyes and wake up, everything went silent.

“No, no no…”

Had you been awake, you would’ve been astonished at how Orter had never been that distressed before, at least not in front of you. The loss of his dear friend Alex Elliot had taught him a painful lesson not to get attached to anyone and to simply stick to the rules, but he had let himself fall for you, and now he was experiencing the trauma once more.

“Please, no… not them…” 

Not only were you unconscious, you had done this to yourself for his sake. He was aware of that fact; had you not decided to literally put yourself through such an ordeal, the two of you would be dead already.

But unlike his deceased junior, your heart was still beating and there was still time to save you. He had never run so fast in his entire life, carrying you carefully in his arms to bring you back to the Bureau’s infirmary, laying you down as gently as he could as the nurses rushed to assess your state.

You weren’t hurt, so to say, but the abusive usage of your personal magic had plunged you into a coma, and it was unsure if you would ever wake up from it. 

It looked like you were peacefully asleep, maybe dreaming of a better place you would possibly join soon; unmoving and slowly breathing, as if nothing had happened. Orter knew you could possibly open your eyes anytime, and it kept him distracted every time he would fill his paperwork or go on a mission.

Whenever he had free time, he would rush to the infirmary to check on you, make sure you’re still breathing, or even talk to you. It could help you come back to your senses, or so the nurses said, and as ridiculous as he felt when he talked to your inert body, he would’ve done anything in his power to bring you back, as slim as the chances were.

But then it suddenly hit him. What could he possibly tell you if you ever woke up? He would for sure apologise, but other than that? How could he face you after you had quite literally sacrificed yourself for him? He wasn’t even sure he could look into your eyes again.

Did you resent him for this?

Would you forgive his recklessness?

Would you give him this warm smile he had gotten so used to?

And would it be time for him to finally admit his feelings? You were right here, in front of him, yet you weren’t there. He missed you so dearly, the sound of your voice, the shit eating grin you’d give him whenever he was wrong and you were right, the way you’d laugh at his disgruntled expression afterwards…

All of these interactions he thought annoyed him were now severely missed and he would’ve given anything to even just see the colour of your eyes one more time. 

And see he didn’t, for what seemed to be an eternity. Everyday, when he’d come to visit you, a small part of him hoped your eyes would be open and you’d greet him the way you always did, but every time, he was met with your inanimate form, comfortably laid in the infirmary bed. 

His hope of hearing your voice ever again gradually vanished with every one-sided conversation he had with your unconscious figure, swallowing down his emotions with every word he said. He was slowly accepting the fact that you might just never open your eyes again.

The more this thought settled into his mind, the more desperate he grew, and suddenly, his usual mindset faded away and his brain filled with “what if”s. 

What if he had taken some time to listen to your suggestions, what if he had thought of a plan B like you always had? What if he had ever told you about his feelings, what if you loved him back? What if you didn't? What if you never woke up?

Dread took over on his other emotions and suddenly, it wasn’t hope that drove him to visit you everyday; it was despair. What if you never opened your eyes again? How could he ever live with your presence replaced by this horrifying feeling of guilt for letting you die in his place? 

You were surely powerful enough that you could’ve ran away on your own, and left him behind if needed; it would’ve been the logical, reasonable thing to do. But the heart has its reasons which reason knows nothing of. Of course, he should’ve known that you would never leave him behind, but precisely because it was completely illogical, it never occurred to him that you would willingly let yourself be hurt if he had a chance to make it out alive.

Now he was sitting at your bedside and kept hoping you’d wake up, just open your eyes and talk to him, greet him and say everything was going to be fine, just the way it was before… it seemed like he hadn’t heard your voice in an eternity, and it was weighing on him the whole time. Like a burden he would have to carry forever if you didn’t wake up from this coma you had put yourself into for his own sake.

His eyes never left your figure as he spoke to you kindly, as if you were still awake. Of course, occasional visitors would look at him like he was a lunatic, talking to someone who was obviously not here to answer, but it didn’t matter to him anymore.

Orter was ready to abandon his image for your sake, sometimes even skipping work and breaking his own principles so he could hold your hand for another minute before going on yet another perilous mission. 

The thought of you dying peacefully in your sleep haunted his mind every single day, and his sorrow was great enough that, more than once, he did consider exhausting himself enough so he would be defenceless enough for an enemy to just take him out of his misery.

For weeks, months, his mind was plagued with the thought of you leaving him forever, of not being able to tell you about these feelings he thought were completely unnecessary. Shame and rejection didn’t even matter to him anymore and he just longed for the day you’d wake up and even just look at him. 

He was on a mission, the day he heard that one of your fingers had merely twitched. Breaking protocol was far from his usual behaviour, but he needed to see you. That is how he accidentally drowned an entire area in sand, catching both enemies and harmless monsters in his Antlion’s Nest. 

The rules didn’t matter to him anymore, it was a physical need to see if you were okay and to maybe, just maybe hear your voice. 

However, he walked in on something completely different. Many of the other Divine Visionaries were gathered around you in religious silence, observing you. He had to push through the crowd and his heart stopped for a second when he saw you. 

You were sitting up in your bed, slightly confused as to why everyone was staring like this. For you, mere seconds had passed but in reality it had been literal months. As your eyes travelled amongst the crowd, you saw Orter, who was also staring at you in utter disbelief. 

The infirmary was completely silent, and no one was moving, as if time had suddenly stopped. Ryoh threw a glance at the others and they just silently left. Now it was just you and Orter, looking at each other in both confusion and shock. He stumbled towards the chair that was resting near your bed and he slowly took a seat.

“Well… you look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

Upon hearing your voice, he let out a sigh he didn’t know he was holding. It was like all of his burdens were suddenly lifted off his shoulders and his head and arms simply collapsed against the mattress, much to your confusion. You raised your hand to reach for his hair and upon seeing how your nails had grown so much, you realised something probably happened.

“It’s been months! I thought you’d never wake up! I thought I wouldn’t hear your voice ever again. Why on Earth would you do such a thing? No, no... it was all my fault. I'm sorry, (Y/N), I'm so, so sorry.” 

He sounded angry, but he really wasn’t. You started connecting the dots and it took you a bit of time to understand that you had been unconscious for the past few months, worrying the poor sandman to death, though right now it didn’t matter at all. 

“I’m glad you’re alive, Orter.”

Although you had been unconscious for literal months, seeing the Desert Cane unharmed was such a huge relief for you. However, not everything was swell inside his mind. He still felt extremely guilty that you nearly died for him, and nothing could possibly pay back this humongous debt he thought he owed you. 

But seeing his relieved expression when he looked at you was enough of a payback. He had watched you wither away for months and now you were finally back to the world of the living, eyes focused on him and him only. 

You tried to stand up but as soon as your arms attempted to lift your form, they gave out and you started losing balance. Orter immediately stood up from his chair to catch you, wrapping his arms around your now weak body to support you, but even after you were back to your spot, he wouldn’t let go. He simply sat on your bed next to you, not letting go. 

Almost out of instinct, you rested your head on his shoulder and let out a long sigh, your arms raising up slightly.

“Please, just rest, you must be really exhausted.”

But his words just didn’t reach you, you needed this. After a while and a lot of effort, you managed to rest these weak arms of yours against his shoulders, on the sides of his neck, and he fell silent. You had no strength at all but he could feel you use all of your willpower to embrace him, and you also seemed like you wouldn’t let go.

He seemed fine with it as he slightly nuzzled your neck and closed his eyes, finally relaxing a little after this emotional rollercoaster. It felt so comfortable to finally be in his arms after such a long time spent longing for him, as if you were finally where you belonged. 

“I missed you.” Orter said quietly, close to your ear. His arms tightened around and you would've probably cried hadn't you been so exhausted. Your words were stuck in your throat and you could only nod and hum softly, your voice cutting inside your throat. 

His arms tightened around you further, holding you into a comforting hug, one of his hands gently going through your hair and keeping your head close to him. You exhaled again, wanting nothing more than to keep holding him. 

“Just don't let go. Please.”

Your voice was muffled by his embrace but you were close enough to his ear for him to understand your words, and you could've sworn you heard his breath hitch for a second as his arms tightened even harder around you.

“I won't.” He sighs into your neck, comfortably seated on the side of your bed, and you wanted nothing more than to lay back down and have him hold you, but you were still in the infirmary and it would've been very problematic to be seen like this.

“I won't, ever. I can't.” He held you even closer now, like he was trying to merge with you, your chest and his pressed against each other as if to share your heartbeats.

Although you had never seen Orter being this close with anyone before, it all felt very natural. Just like the way his hand slid from your hair to your cheek, like the way he moved away from you slowly, his usually cold gaze now soft and filled with something you weren't quite used to.

Just like the way he couldn't take it any longer and gave in to the physical urge to softly press his lips to yours. You didn't pull away, of course; the moment too precious to let surprise ruin it. 

You returned the kiss, your eyes now closed to take in the pleasant, wholesome warmth his embrace brought to you, after you'd been so cold for literal months. 

As nothing lasts forever, your lips and his slowly separated, but his eyes were now on yours again. 

“I won't let you fall again, (Y/N), I promise.”

You couldn't help but give a soft chuckle and his expression turned slightly puzzled. Of course, you two didn't share the same braincells.

“I've already fallen too hard.” You breathed out.

His eyes widened for a second before he regained his composure and brushed a few hairs away from your face to place them behind your ear.

“Then I guess we’re both down now.” he finally admitted, his expression just a little softer and his lips almost curved into a smile. 

You were suddenly thankful for Orter holding you so close, lest your heart would've jumped out of your chest. 

“I love you, just… in case it wasn't clear enough.” He awkwardly added, and you thought it was just adorable. Another chuckle escaped you with a nod.

“I know. I love you too.”

He hummed softly and sighed deeply in relief. 

That was one “what if” finally satisfied, and probably the first of a long list.

[anintrovertedechoe]

QUESTION QUESTION QUESTION

what nicknames / terms of endearment do you think the brothers would call MC ?

to all the people who sent in prompt requests im so sorry it’s the illness i swear-

BUT ANYWAYS

Pet Names the Brothers Call MC

Lucifer

heart’s dearest

okay so i read this in a fic once and it’s a guilty pleasure of mine now i absolutely adore this pet name and fully believe Luce would call you this it’s canon guys there’s no room for objection

flower

you bloom in his presence and he will nourish your growth with everything he has to make sure you never wither away

darling

this one i think would be for either softer moments OR when he’s fed up with you and he’s like ‘darling, please get Cerberus off of you, he’s over 400 pounds it’s not safe for you to let him sit on you like that’ and ur jus like ‘hehe ouppy’

honorable mentions: dear/dearest, precious, dove, angel (teehee)

Mammon

treasure

cmon guys we all know that he would call you this it’s basically canon I AM IN LOVE WITH THIS MAN RAHHH 🗣️🗣️‼️ he’s so sweet my baby mwah mwah. I can’t see him calling you jewel or ruby or anything like that it’s too formal for him. maybe diamond ??

birdie

yk how crows are his familiars? yeah. plus whenever he looks at you he feels his heart soar and he thinks not even the sky is the limit when it comes to the two of you. you just make him so happy bro :(

sweetheart

once again i think this could be used for softer or sadder moments BUT also when he’s like being silly or cheeky w you hes so babygirl coded he so meow

honorable mentions: darlin’, babe/baby, angel (he would also call you this but it’s less intense and more casual), human

cmon u thought I would forget? ur always gna be his human :)

Leviathan

let’s be so fr he would be so HESITANT to call you anything he’s so cringefail (affectionate) but let’s see hmm

player two

he wouldn’t be like ‘my player two :)’ but he would call you that affectionately while talking to you he’s a gamer he can’t help it !! ur always by his side, the best teammate he cld ask for :(

star

he calls you star whenever he’s like super excited like if you defeat a really hard level for him or together WITH him it’s really cute but he gets all embarrassed afterwards dbsjskjebe

sunshine

okay so ik what y’all are thinking, no way mans has the guts to call you this BUT HEAR ME OUT. he’s feeling vulnerable and sad and youre like the sun for him! he (lizard style) feels like he can bask in your warmth and you brighten his days. you’re comforting him while he’s resting his head on your shoulder and after a while he feels better, offering a shy smile and a, “thanks, sunshine.”

honorable mentions: henry, mana (u recharge him !!), oyster (he tried calling you pearl once but blurted out oyster instead. he doesn’t call you this but you refuse to let it go and he hates it #loserboy(affectionate))

Satan

kitten IM KIDDING IM KIDDING

my heart

cmon have you never heard his song ‘read my heart’ ??? you taught him how to love; you have such a tight grip on his heart that it might as well be yours by now

beautiful / gorgeous

this man is so smooth sometimes WITHOUT EVEN TRYING he genuinely finds you breathtaking he’s not even trying to be slick this is a genuine nickname for you,,,making kissy faces at him rn.

love / lovely / my love

he loves you send tweet. but he’s honestly so sweet and genuine about it. he has this precious small little smile on whenever he calls you it in public and he looks so boyish and sweet how can you not fall for him??? he left you with no choice

honorable mentions: my light, my fire, ladybird (regardless of gender)

Asmodeus

precious

you’re genuinely precious to him. this man adores you with every fiber of his being. you jus mean ??? everything to him???

cutie / cutiepie

ur just so adorable to him like LOOK AT THIS LITTLE HUMAN ??? adorable. when he’s feeling especially overwhelmed by you he pulls out the cutiepie and pinches your cheeks and sometimes it kinda hurts :(( dw tho he’ll treat you to an exclusive all inclusive asmo night just for the two of you if you let him know, so…no complaints here!

jewel

he may have been the jewel of the heavens but you’re by far the most precious jewel he has come across. he treats you like you’re priceless—only makes sense that the name fits the action.

honorable mentions: darling, sweetheart/sweetie, honey, lovely

Beelzebub

sweets

okay so he loves food but he doesn’t wanna call you something that’s OBVIOUSLY food related because he loves you in a different way he loves food yk??? and he wants you to know he sees you as more than that. so he calls you sweets because just thinking about you makes him feel like sugar’s melting softly on his tongue

flame

spoilers! yk the life candle incident thing? yeah. you basically are his life force with what you did. he’ll never forget that. you are his driving force, his life, his flame <3

bear

IT SOUNDS SO WEIRD AT FIRST but just listen okay 😭 it started off as teddy bear when he first started to try and come up with pet names for you but he didn’t like how that made you sound because yeah you may be human but you are the strongest being he has ever had the honor of meeting ?? you make him feel so capable and strong but the fact that you also have his back makes him feel…strange (he has butterflies guys)

honorable mentions: buzz (bees make honey plus based off a hc of what MC calls the boys), baby, fire

(i had such a hard time with him guys 😭)

Belphegor

bug / lovebug

LISTEN. THIS BITCH IS SO ANNOYING. (affectionate) he started calling you bug and you didn’t know where it came from and so you asked and he said ‘like a bedbug. bc ur annoying.’ he’s so mean i hate him :((( but he’s always been a bit of a brat what can u expect…definitely not him adding love to it. he called you lovebug when your guard was down and when you looked at him in shock the absolute cutest most sweet smile took over his face??? this is not fair cmon

bip / bips / bippy

it started as ‘personal body pillow’ bc belph is an entitled little mf and eventually got shortened to ‘bp’ pronounced ‘bip’ and then it evolved. complain all you want but you enable him by letting him use you as a personal pillow man. hes so cute when he shuts his mouth tho you can’t help it :((

bunny

he thinks its a cute nickname send tweet. but in all honestly belphie is sweet when he wants to be and he thinks ur super cute ! he usually calls you bunny when he’s teasing you but the name will slip out in an occasional moment of vulnerability <3

honorable mentions: babe, mommy (gn), buttercup, the first initial of your name

hopefully ygs like this i started struggling after a while 😭

parts of these come from bits of canon from my own inner world but honestly the boys all love you and are really sweet so ☹️🫶

beel and belphie were especially hard because i really think they would mostly just use variations of your name but I TRIED MY BEST HOPEFULLY IT WAS TO UR SATISFACTION

send an ask over if you want me to do the dateables or alternatively, what MC/you call the brothers!

[kyokutsu-sama]

Hello it's me again with another super specific idea

Headcanons and a small scenario if that's fine for the squad captain's reaction to finding a some with the exact opposite problem to Asta where instead of having no magic they have too much magic to the point they need to wear a special Seal that blocks most of their that magic because it's overwhelming and hurtful for the people around them

You'll probably getting lots more requests from me I just love your work

Hi @weebwith-problems!! OMG THE PIC IS SO CUTE I LOVE THEM❤️ They look so smoll and cute🤏🤭

I'm glad you like my work it motivates me a lot. Thank you😊

A/n: Well, I preferred to write some headcanons for the captains. I didn't write about everyone and I'm sorry if I delay with your request but this week was a bit difficult for me🥹

_____________________________

Yami :

He would easily accept this person into his squad since he always looks for people to bringto his squad. He would still find it interesting since it's the opposite of one of his magic knights.

He would like to test their skills and train them, he will ask them to push past their limits even if it means breaking the seal that blocks their Mana.

He will constantly be telling them not to hold back against him, he would kill them if they did (the typical Captain Sukehiro threats). If it's a woman, he will be impressed since he likes strong women.

He will brag to other captains about having someone so powerful in his squad, especially to his rival Jack.

He is proud of his squad and the way they always work together so having another person working alongside them is something he admires.

Fuegoleon :

If there's one thing this captain admires, it's strength and determination.

After seeing their magic, he knows that "staying weak" doesn't apply to them, much less "being weak".

Their surreal amount of mana is also tiring for them even though it is sealed. He will make a point of following their training so that they gain more resistance and become strong so they can handle it better.

He will be very present and very proud of this person and the results of the efforts they make every day.

Bonus: Mereoleona will take them to train because she loves strong people and she wants to help them control that power.

Nozel :

Even though he is a serious and cold captain most of the time, he admires knights who are strong and who know how to represent the silver eagle's uniform.

Someone who has an excess of mana and is naturally strong is something he will be interested in and will definitely want to have in his squad.

He doesn't train them directly but he will want that person to train a lot to be able to deal with the amount of mana they carry.

After knowing that there is a seal holding all this power so that it is not exhausting for them and others, they will want that person to continue evolving until there is no need for a seal and they are able to control this power unconsciously.

Just like Yami, he will brag a little about having someone like that in his division and will mention it to his rival Vermillion just to see his reaction (plot twist: this one is canon🤭)

William :

William undoubtedly admires all the members of his squad without making distinctions and he is sure that someone with that power would arouse his interest and desire to meet that person.

He would quickly wish he could see this power of them and would be very proud if they showed him on the battlefield as they fought to defend the Clover kingdom.

He trusted them a lot and likes to see them trying hard to control their own mana.

He would be happy if one day he could see that they can already fight, controlling their power without restrictions.

William would also be willing to train with them to witness their progress and since he is a captain, breaking the seal would not have much of an effect on him.

[eyedoeluhn]

I haven’t mentioned the other Celestial (x)s before, so let’s actually run through the three main ones as well as what the Celestial Forge even is. I’m not counting ones like the Celestial Bakery because that’s tiny it’s like eight perks. The CM is my favorite, the CF is…actually not that bad. The CG….

The Celestial Forge is a collection of Jumpchain perks loosely (emphasis on) based around crafting.

A jumpchain, for the uninitiated, is a story prompt game thing where you write a character (most commonly self inserts or ocs) as the ‘jumper’ someone who travels fictional universes at the behest of a random omnipotent being’s entertainment or whatnot. unsurprisingly, I’m not the fondest of them. The power system is in collections of Jumpchain documents which lay the rules ( perks, drawbacks, items, settings, etc) of each universe. These are made independently and are not explicitly balanced. This balance gets more and more wildly out of wack the more jumps you do and the explicit end point of a jumpchain is to become comparably powerful as a ROB by finding a ‘spark’ perk (used to be a specific one but now there are multiple). Sure, jumpchains can end at any point but most people enjoy numbers go-up too much. My favorite wildly unbalanced jumpchains are things like random sitcom shows because oh my god you will find the wildest powers in there. My personal favorite is a free perk that allows you to take command of a vessel and instantly everyone inside or on that vessel will do everything you command no matter what, which is honestly pretty tame but extremely funny.

The CF is a bunch of these Uber powerful perks mashed together into one document. It’s unbalanced, it’s not great for a narrative, its most popular work is BCF, it doesn’t have the greatest PR in my eyes. However I don’t think it’s completely unsalvageable. Some tweaking of points, ignoring powers that ruin your story,and an author who is discerning enough to focus on plot rather than word count could make a fine fic even if it has yet to be done. Also I would prune a lot of powers to make it an actual focus on tinkering.

also, side note, why the fuck are there so many versions on google docs? I understand Jumpchain documents are usually docs but they’re like five pages and some pictures not like eight hundred pages of text. Christ.

The Celestial Grimore is a collection of ‘magic perks’ which are so extremely unbalanced Im not sure how this would even be written. There’s a section devoted to rolling entire near universal compendiums of all knowledge of fictional universes. Basically any magic system, ki, chakra, mana, is in there and it’s terrible. Magic is already a really esoteric and broad power system to bring in OOC especially and putting basically no limits on it and ascribing a million ways to use it doesn’t help. The magic parks of the Forge are its weakest because the technobabble is at least hypothetically interesting and I have no real interest in the Grimoire. Also Got The Grimoire Now What…it did not leave a good impression on me. While at least it’s in a spreadsheet it’s not that readable and looking at it for a minute was enough for me to say it would need extreme pruning or a strong specific central narrative. This is probably the least salvageable of all of the celestials.

The Celestial Menagerie is the odd one out of the bunch. It drops the perk system entirely to be a summons based power where you primarily roll for creatures from real life or fiction. Well I wouldn’t call it perfectly balanced it is the hardest C(X) to become setting breaking imo. It’s the neatest as well, being a pretty google sheets with a built in dice roller and color coding. Well I would make some edits, generally to the powers section to preserve the squishy summoner, you start with limits on how far your summons can get away and how many you summon at once and so on. It’s also my favorite because it allows for some very funny builds, two of my own personal favorites are a guy who has no summons for several thousand words but knows a lot about farming, and on a more punishing rule set a guy who can summon one (1) flea.

The Celestial Menagerie also has the current best C(X) fic, Brocktons Zoo of Myth and Legend. My god do I love BZML. I read it in one sitting, live reacting with my Buddy and we genuinely could not guess where the plot would go next. It’s hilarious and the author makes several extremely respectable choices and values the plot over useless powerwank. It has its problems but in this genre…also most of those problems were extremely endearing anyways. I’ll probably make a post about it at some point but I would recommend reading it blind.

There’s also another c(x) that me and said friend have been playing with that’s deeply stupid on purpose but I’ll wait for some context posts before pitching it.

[deckofflora]

Wizard101 Combat/Game Mechanic Head-Canons * Note, all quotes are fan-written in-universe flavor-text, and any mentioned events that differ from canon are due to the fact that these exist within my AU's storyline

Health

“Enveloping every entity within the spiral, exists an aura unseen by the naked eye. This aura, often referred to as an individual’s ‘Health’, protects the body, spirit, and mind against attacks.” “Originating from the ‘antibodies’ of Raven, Bartleby, and Spider’s inflictions in the Primordial Nebula, ‘Health’ provides a means of preventing the full force of magical or physical damage.” “‘Health’ withstands the attacks of spells and weapons, the body remaining unscathed.” Despite its wonders, ‘Health’ is not a means of invulnerability. It can be worn down, pierced through— stolen. It is merely nothing more than the byproduct of their environment, this Spiral they inhabit. The will of a wizard or the power of a pirate is enough to break down this barrier, have they not the strength of their own to persist and triumph. Once the barrier has fallen, the individual is vulnerable to the full force of an attack, leading to possible unconsciousness, illness and/or injury, or fatality. The natural ‘Health’ of an individual is dependent on their physical health, mental health, and most importantly: their willpower. Those with injuries, illnesses, or mental health concerns are often deemed to be unsuited for combat, due to their lower ‘Health’. Fortunately, health can be replenished via rest, healing spells, and ‘Health’ wisps found throughout the spiral. The practice of increasing one's ‘Health’ is often done via self-care, meditation, and physical training; it is common to see a variety of practices throughout the worlds of The Spiral.

Mana

"A permeating energy that separates our Spiral from what lies beyond the veil. This force- This 'Mana'- indiscriminately seeks to fill the space it occupies, even imbuing itself within spellcasters." "Those whom open their mind, body, and spirit to Mana's flow- spellcasters- have the unique ability to pull upon this energy within, casting their own intentions forward." "Mana is the fuel for the very spells we cast." 'Mana' exists virtually everywhere within The Spiral; it can be compared to the air our words flow through. It acts as both the canvas and the paint for spells. Despite the wonders that can be achieved, those with reliance on this energy often find themselves needing to manage an appropriate intake and outtake of this force. Too much mana within The Self leads to symptoms of magical outbursts and overflowing instability, while too little mana often shows symptoms of fatigue and inability to spell-cast. Fortunately, these ailments can be both prevented and amended. Cases of mana-drought can be cured via rest, stored-mana consumption, and 'Mana' wisps found around the spiral. Those experiencing mana-overcharge can expel this energy via spellcasting, mana-pulling, and other grounding techniques. The practice of increasing one's 'Mana' limit is achieved through meditation and magical training; it is common to see a variety of practices throughout spellcaster-inhabited worlds of The Spiral.

Duel Circles

"Historians say the circles originated from The Titan War as a manifestation of conflict itself, though in my opinion… only them prissy spellcasters from them fancy schools use 'em." "The tampering of them things, now that's what's scary, there be these so-called 'rules', and man… you don't wanna be around when one of them circles go off." "We don't play with them rules 'round these parts, why 'r askin' 'bout such things?" An unintended consequence of The Titan War, Duel Circles are manifestations of pure Conflict. This energy, often theorized by scholars to be a direct counterbalance to Harmony itself, acts as a catalyst for 'resolving quarrel' within The Spiral. Despite it's namesake, origins, and typical-use, these catalysts can manifest themselves for many types of interaction, acting more as a compromise between two opposing ends. Duel Circles define their own laws of magic when called upon, the 'rules of combat' being appointed beforehand- whether verbally or as a subconscious middle-ground between participants. Once the participants enter the ring, there is a short grace period before the battle commences, this 'planning phase' is known to occur between each round of action, each member getting their own turn. The variation of appearance and mechanics makes this ancient construct a great tool, able to provide a stable environment for spells, confine the impact of magic to a closed space, limit the effects of combat on non-participating individuals, and enforce a fair fight. In spite of it's accomplishments, Duel Circles have a concerning impact upon Mana and Health. It pulls upon the bounds of an individuals Health, stretching it to fill a larger confine, any adverse or beneficial side effects of this are unseen. These perimeters also take a heavier toll upon a spellcaster's mana, seemingly feeding upon excess mana from spells that otherwise would have recycled itself into the caster's system. The existence of rules subsequently creates the desire to test their elasticity: a practice known as The Arcane. Followers of this discipline hail back to the Titans themselves, known to force their own ideals upon the field. They manipulate and act between the laws of the Duel Circle, cheating the battle to their favor. Like all rules, they have consequences when broken. Due to the nature of Duel Circle's impact upon Health and Mana, destabilizing these battlegrounds can lead to fatal consequences; including, but not limited to, complete depletion of health and mana, physical and spiritual deconstruction of one's self, combustion of organic and inorganic matter, and unconfined spell-impact; affecting participants and surrounding onlookers. The diversity of cultures within The Spiral lead to many variations in how Conflict manifests between worlds, even mana-lacking societies opting to not utilize them at all. These disparities often open the doors for magical institutes to be founded for their respective teachings of combat and methodologies of spellcasting.

[itjazzbicch]

Keeps Me Breathing

Pairing: Magna Swing x Reader 

Summary: FIRSTS THINGS FIRST! THERE ARE MANGA SPOILERS! SO HERE'S YOUR WARNING BEFORE YOU CONTINUE!

Also a continuation of New Motivations:

Magna's and the reader's plans are jammed up due to their current enemy arising, the reader sacrifices themselves for everyone, unable to hang on, thinking it's the end, but Magna keeps them breathing...

Warnings:  Mentions of blood, near-death experience

Word Count: 1.3k 

Well, it looked like this was it for me.

Taking on Damnatio while already roughed up was a challenge, but I had to. So, Asta could get to who was behind all of this, Lucius.

Forming my mana zone, I pushed past my limits. Creating the heaviest form of gravity to keep down and that came with a great cost.

His body was next to mine, probably knocked out, maybe even dead, as he was as stiff as a tree.

I wasn’t in great shape either. Using what little magic I had left to keep the rocks above us hovering, so I wouldn’t get crushed.

The gravity that I used to take him down was so heavy that I practically buried us alive. Gravely injured, blood all over me, and horrible couldn’t even describe the pain I was feeling.

Every second that passed, it got harder to breathe. I wouldn’t be surprised if all of my bones were broken and my organs were crushed.

“OVER HERE!!”

Looking up, I could hear voices, the rocks making it hard to tell who it was.

Pebbles started falling, some light peeking out through the top.

Captain Yami? Magna?

“Y/N?!”

I tried to speak and blood came out, coughing and it made the pain so much worse.

“Oh my god,” Magna came sliding down the rocks with Captain Yami, limp when Captain Yami picked me up.

“Just hang on tight, kid,” Captain Yami hauled me out, sitting me against a big rock, looking to see the rest of our squad running over, even if they were beaten up, Magna panicking but trying to help:

“Yeah, Mimosa is on her way, so she can-“

“That’s okay,” I whispered ghostly, she was too far away, and so, I accepted my fate, “Not ‘ough t-time.”

“Don’t you talk like that!” Magna instantly started crying at my words, “It won’t be much longer, I promise!”

I wanted to tell him that I was sorry, but I could feel what little oxygen I had being clogged, the tiniest amount keeping me conscious.

Everyone stopped around us, seeing Vanessa fall to her knees, tears in all their eyes, even Captain Yami’s.

They were the best part of my life, and I loved them. From barbecues, training, and all the crazy things we’ve done and accomplished. I wouldn’t want to live a life without them.

“Y/N-“ Vanessa was crying as they all came closer, seeing how my eyes were starting to drift off.

I managed to lock them on Magna as he took my hand, barely able to hold back his sobs as he kept trying to encourage me:

“You can’t die here! We still have our date! There’s so much we still have to do together.”

Everyone else kept trying too, mentioning our goals of becoming captains together, any little detail that came to their minds.

Starting to lose feeling, I did feel the tears streaming down my face, but smiling as much as I could, eyes still locked into Magna’s.

“L-Love you,” The last bit of air I had, I used to let them know how happy they made me, trying to squeeze Magna’s hand, “S-So ‘uch.”

Not fighting the sobs anymore, all their hearts were breaking together, Magna being the one to cry back to me:

“I love you too.”

Hearing that made me smile more, heartbroken that this was my last moment, but grateful that I had them and that I wasn’t alone.

My eyes started drifting off again, looking to the sky, cold and able to hear the last faint beats my heart had left.

Suddenly, I felt something warm. Realizing that Magna was hugging me, everything started going black, the last thing I heard was his cries, his sobbing plea echoing off into my mind:

“You can’t die on me! Please! Y/NNN!”

—————

Was I dead?

Everything was still dark but I could hear some birds chirping.

Gradually, some figures were visible but it was still dark. Trying to look around, my vision was blurry, but I saw a window?

The moon. A full moon that was glowing.

The realization smacked me hard that I must’ve been awake, trying to sit up and I slammed back down, crying out in pain.

That pain was enough to know that I was alive, sobbing at how everything hurt, screaming when I suddenly heard:

“Y/N!!!”

Looking to my side, it was Magna, who scared me. Falling out of his chair to his knees next to me.

His eyes were so red, dark circles under them like he hadn’t slept in days, crying more:

“You’re awake. Thank goodness, you’re awake.”

Reliving the end of judgment day, all I could think about was him hugging me. Sobbing and fighting the pain, I took his arm, crying with him, but cooing:

“Come here.”

I could only hug him with one arm, but I hugged him as much as I could, finally getting to say:

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry I scared you like I did. I just-; I had to defeat Damnatio somehow.”

“It’s okay,” He swallowed down, picking his head up to look into my eyes, smiling through tears, “I’m just so happy you’re still here.”

I was too. Smiling back and asking:

“Were you here with me all this time? How long have I been out for?”

“A week,” He mumbled, explaining to me, “You broke some bones and some of your organs got crushed and because of your gravity, it made it hard to heal. I’ve been here, ever since they’ve been trying to heal you.”

Just as I expected, my magic was unique and since I change gravity in ways only I know how, it can make it difficult for others to adapt to the changes it makes.

Either way, I was just happy that I was alive. I was touched by how he’s stayed with me.

“But don’t worry,” Trying to stay optimistic, he also informed me, “You only have two big injuries right now and they’re working to get it healed as quickly as they can.”

“That’s good,” I breathed out, closing my eyes and admitting, “Because I feel like shit.”

“I bet,” He sighed, fighting some tears again, “I’m just so relieved.”

Pushing some of his hair behind his ear, wiping his tears away, and promising:

“I am too. And the second I’m out of here, we’re going on our date.”

“I can’t wait,” He smiled, kissing my forehead and making quickly, “You try to relax. I’m gonna go tell Owen that you’re awake.”

When he came back with Owen, we learned that they were close to getting me patched up. It was just a challenging task with the kingdom still recovering.

I wasn’t in any rush really, but not even a week later, they had me fixed like new. The squad came to visit in between and kept me occupied. Unfortunately, Magna and the squad weren’t there the day I was released, but that gave me a good chance to surprise them.

Celebrating with everyone, and getting some of Charmy’s food to fuel up, I rushed because Magna still wasn’t back yet, so I got changed into one of my cutest outfits.

The look on his face was priceless when he came into his room, seeing me sitting on the bed, kicking my feet:

“Bout time you showed up!”

“Holy crap, you’re back?!” He rushed over, tackling me on the bed with a hug, making me squeal and giggle, but playfully scolding:

“Hey! I got all dolled up for our date! Don’t mess up my outfit!”

His head shot up so quickly, blinking for the reconfirmation that I gave him:

“I told you as soon as I was back we’d go on our date! Let’s go!”

Giggling at him stuck in place, I was shut up with a kiss, the both of us getting lost, but tapping him before it turned into a full-blown make-out session:

“Ah, ah. You’ll get kisses later. I wanna go have some fun.”

“I just needed that,” He pulled back smiling, running off to get ready, “Be back in a flash!”

“You better!” I giggled, making sure he knew, “You and I are gonna have a lot of fun today!” 

2023 © itjazzbicch — do not repost or translate my work. Likes, reblogs, and comments are always welcome 

[thecurioustale]

Art Begets Art and the Law Should Respect This

I believe in the tradition of folk art, which is to say: Borrow liberally and lovingly.

It's a practice we've been mostly sterilized from embracing in our modern corporatist society, where all of the big-name, commonly-recognizable "IPs" are imprisoned behind layer after layer of obnoxious lawyers with nothing better to do than torment the innocent. It's a terrible thing, a deprivation of our cultural oxygen—a crime against art and ethics.

As an artist myself, I often have to thread the needle of building upon the inspiring works of others while still remaining within the letter of our outrageous IP laws. It's something I think about a lot.

In Galaxy Federal, for instance, I mentioned last time that the name "Galaxy Federal" was inspired, among other things, by the mention of the "Galaxy Federal Police" title screen of the original Metroid game. When I was settling on this title for my series, I also found that Galaxy Federal is the trademarked name of a bank. I spent considerable time and mental resources, years ago, to determine to my satisfaction that it is permissible under the law for me to use this title.

I have to do way too much of this bullshit, and I know it'll still be for naught: If I ever do become an even remotely successful author, I'm sure I'll be sued anyway, probably for something I never even realized was an "infringement" despite all my vigilance. Because, at the end of the day, for big corporations and for IP trolls, our IP laws are just a racketeering scheme—a side hustle. I mean, Best Western trademarked the word "seniority." If someone wants to sue you, they're gonna find a way.

I am not really a "from scratch" writer. I don't sit down at a blank page and just come up with prose from first principles. My art is almost always inspired by things that I experience in my life, or by the ideas that result from those experiences. Sometimes—frequently, even—my inspirations come from things that are copyrighted or trademarked. I have written in the past about the influence of the video game The Secret of Mana on me as a kid. Among many other inspirations, that game has a neat sandship in it, and that's why the desert easts of Relance are prevalent with sandships.

Over the years I've become a pro at reinterpreting IP-blocked inspirations into usable, original ones—both in terms of the legal research I've done and the skills I've developed at transforming an IP-blocked inspiration into something usable. I've also become more knowledgeable about what I can get away with quoting directly: Certain things cannot be copyrighted, and trademarks have a finite zone of applicability.

It's all a very needless and skill-intensive ballet to achieve something that should be directly accessible. Obviously, there do need to be limits. As an artist myself, I am keenly aware that I wouldn't want to have no special claim to my own work. But if I were to rewrite our outrageous IP laws—and over the years I have amassed considerable material for a book on this—I would make it vastly easier for artists and the public in general to "borrow liberally and lovingly" from the sources that inspire them. Our current IP laws are like a crime-ridden police state: The security is in all the wrong places and just doesn't work. We could relax the laws considerably without hurting artists, and potentially even tighten them in other respects to better combat trolls and thieves.

But in the meantime, here's my advice: Don't let it daunt you. Dance the friggin' ballet. Get good at transformation. Liberate intellectual property from its prison in spirit if not in substance. And, when you're fearless and/or sufficiently obscure, just straight-up pirate. I think society has a duty to reject unjust laws through word and deed.

I don't usually don my pirate's hat, but I do sometimes. When I published the Prelude in 2015, for a limited time I also published a free companion soundtrack consisting entirely of, gasp, copyrighted music. Nowhere is the horror of our modern IP laws more evident than in the realm of music. What I did was basically create a curated playlist, to help set the mood of the story. I don't know if anyone even availed themselves of that soundtrack, yet for me to license all of those pieces to make my limited-time links lawful would have cost me thousands if not tens of thousands of dollars! All for something that it's possible nobody other than me even listened to. That's a crime against art. And it's a crime against artists. Our draconian IP laws hurt small artists the most. If I had had thousands of fans, I'd have been able to pay to play—and I would have done so, or perhaps I would have spent the equivalent money to hire composers to write an original soundtrack. But, as a nobody-artist and a poor person, whose own Curious Score musical compositions are long in the making, the lawful avenues are all unassailably closed off to me. This too is an injustice, of another sort.

Doing the companion soundtrack was the right thing to do in the tradition of folk art. None of those other artists (or, let's be real, the corporate goliaths that hoard most of this "content" in their treasure-vaults) was deprived of a single penny; in fact that's one of the great lies of the IP lawyers and their corporate masters: Cultural interchange usually improves income for people whose work is quoted by others. Borrow liberally and lovingly—and give credit where credit is due.

That's the way it should be.

And, one day, that's how it will be again.

[bakawitch]

dark magician girl as the final ultimate villian headcanon?

Not exactly Dark Magician Girl, but I always liked the idea of Mana overthrowing/being the reason Seto's rule came to an end. Like the girl could literally be Zorc/Yami B's first host after TKB, since she does inherit the Ring after Atem's sacrifice. Idk, I just really like playing with the idea of Mana growing resentful of Seto because he turns out to be a shit ruler, and the kingdom is in bigger shambles than Atem left it in and Seto just refuses to listen to anyone. This eventually leads to her losing all hope and opening her heart to darkness. She'd finally start listening to the ominous whispers from the Ring, entertaining the treacherous harmful ideas a little more seriously. From this point on, she might have it in her to commit treason by herself, but if not, Yami (Sheut?) Mana could always just come to the rescue! She might succeed, she might fail, but I'd like to think she does. The situation already sucks pretty bad in Egypt, but after Seto falls, we'd truly start seeing the fall of the empire. Mana and the priests pick a heir that they can just puppet around as long as they stroke his ego (Abidos the Third, who I kinda hc as Seto's kid XD). While Mana thinks she's finally doing what Seto couldn't, the palace and the land is actually just going more corrupt, but she refuses to see this.

If we go the fanfic route, Abidos might start seeing how he's actually not really doing much as a Pharaoh by some random insistent friends of his, and he'd start hearing rumours that there's a demon hiding in plane sight within his court. Sceptical, he'd try to look into it with what limited power he has, and he'd start seeing evidence of a demonic presence. He'd probably think it was the wrong person, though. Why would it be Mana? She just wants what's best for him, and she's always been like a motherly/older sister figure to him since he tragically lost his father. So he tells Mana. He tells Mana that he thinks his High Priest harbours a demon god. And Mana, like the Saint she is reassures him that she will take care of it. So the next day, the High Priest is publicly executed without a trial. All "evidence" against him was the Pharaoh's word and Mana's testimony of finding Shadow Magic residue on him. Abidos should feel relieved that it's finally over and things are finally going to change. But he doesn’t and they don't. He's still just a sitting duck, but now he's more paranoid than ever before. He can almost feel that it's not over yet. One night, when he goes to sleep, he sees a shadow over his bed. Before he could even react to what's happening, his ka summons itself and blocks a magical attack. Running on adrenaline, he tries his best to take on his assailant, but they're too strong. He sneakily manages to take the fight before his court and priests, where the assassin is revealed as Mana. Since she's been exposed with nothing else to lose, she casts a spell that turns her into a weird cross between Zorc and Dark Magician Girl, Necro(phades) Magician Girl, and she tries to destroy everything and everyone who's seen her so she can rebuild the monarchy from the ground up again. Despite everything, Abidos somehow manages to overcome her and seal her away into the Millennium Ring with TKB, adding another ingredient to the Yami B stew. He'd might end up sacrificing himself in the process (kinda like Atem) but his soul and body would be saved by his priests so he could make his canonical appearance in GX.

Anyway, Mana/DMG being one of Zorc's hosts, is a headcanon of mine that's actually a part of many of my aus, I just don't really have any posts where I get to mention it XD Also the thought of Necro Magician Girl literally has me melting! She'd get such a cool demonic design XD

[felassan]

Some more snippets of interest and insight from Mark Darrah, from an older Mark Darrah on Games YouTube video where he was livestreaming playing Dragon Age: Origins some months ago -

Chat asked "Do you think they'll ever explore why Dwarven Darkspawn can use magic?" and Mark replied "Maybe, I doubt they will explore that too much. I mean it's sort've, the question is is like, are genlocks all dwarves, or are they some dwarves and some 'something coming from a broodmother that aren't really dwarves anymore'. I guess that would be one out."

[source]

He also talked more generally about DA:O and the franchise and things in general. These bits are collected under a cut due to length -

"I do wish one of the factions in DA:O had their shit together so they could help you immediately, like just an extra throwaway one that's like 'yeah, we got our stuff all packed'"

Chat asked "Do you remember any other game studios in particular that BioWare studied and took inspiration from to make new games? I heard dragons in DA:I were inspired by Skyrim". Mark replied, "Every game is influenced by the space around it. DA:I is influenced by Skyrim in that open-world games were kind've the expectation of RPGs at the time, and if you're making an open-world game in the early 2010s Skyrim is certainly the one to be paying attention to. We definitely looked at it, so the answer to that question is everything. There are certain games that I would argue had very little influence, the ones that you would think might, things like Wind Waker and GTA. These are games that are either so expensive (GTA) or just took so long (Wind Waker) that they're way less influential than you would expect them to be, largely because game devs look at them as being un-replicable."

Did the Ash Warriors survive Ostagar? "Pretty sure that's an unanswerable question"

Chat asked "Did the DA team remove many toggleable abilities in later games? Noticed DA:O has an ABUNDANCE of them". Mark replied "Yeah I think we got rid of them because, stamina and mana are kind of a weird thing because I personally find it very awkward that you're limiting power usage based upon two things. So you've got a cooldown on individual powers and then you have a pool of mana/stamina. But so, it's been kind've a thing that's kind've fallen in and out of favor with the combat team there."

Chat commented "Was it intentional game design that on PC DA:I has only 8 abilities? I was real sad that even the focus abilities took a slot. Lots of cool combos I couldn't do Q_Q''. Mark said "I don't think it's intentional, I don't know why there's only 8 on PC. I mean it was balanced to that for consoles, but I don't think it would be, it's likely just a UI, like 'how much time we spent on the UI' thing. The shower answer is because 8 is the number on the consoles, but I don't know that there was any particular reason why it couldn't be more on PC other than just not having to worry about rebalancing. I'm pretty sure it's 8 on consoles so it defaulted to 8 on PC, it could have been more but then you have to also do balancing to see if it affects the combat balance and it just introduces another vector, so. Its's just less variables"

On the end cards/epilogue slides in DA:O - "DA:O was originally envisioned as being a one off, so there was a lot of timebombs set up in there, for example Orzammar is supposed to be in a civil war about now, now-ish, so like there's a lot of mess left by DA:O's cards"

"I was thinking yesterday about all of the intelligent races that've been sort've introduced in the background of DA:O, you know like the tree ents, and the ghasts and the giants, that've just kinda been introduced as kinda one-offs and then never brought back in Dragon Age." Here chat mentioned the lizard people. "That's right, we do have the lizard people in the paintings"

Chat asked "Would you agree that elven history is basically them Tevintering before Tevinter could Tevinter? They had magisters, and slaves, and wars". Mark replied, "I mean the elves as-presented are basically yeah, pretty much, the Tevinter are pretty much echoing many of the things the elves have done, and picking up their bits of discarded garbage and doing bad stuff with them, so yes I don't think the elves, I don't think ancient elven lore is anything to be super excited about in terms of not being terrible"

Chat asked "Can you speak as to why the healing spells weren't brought back for DA:I?" Mark replied, "Healing spells and regenerating mana mean that every single combat needs to be a threat on its own, which means in an open world, you can't basically do an open world with regenerating mana and healing spells because the combat in the open world is pointless, it's just a series of increasingly tedious road blocks because you can't make every single encounter with some bandits be a threat to your life. If you had non-regenerating mana or you had some sort of damage mitigation, then you could do damage mitigation, same kind've problem but at least it's sort've preemptive so you can kinda whittle away, or you could do no regenerating mana and then make that be your limiting factor"

Chat asked why DA:O wasn't turn-based. Mark said "Because Baldur's Gate isn't turn-based either, DA:O was definitely trying to evoke BG from a combat perspective, which is pause and play". He continued "one thing that I've always found frustrating with turn-based combat is it can, without some sort of auto-resolution it can make the minor combat really tedious, like 'I am definitely going to beat you, but I still have to go through five turns of combat because that's just how it's balanced'. Whereas way back in BG1, the thinking with pause and play was if you can massively overpower the combat you just don't pause, if you need to think more you can pause, so that's really where pause and play came from"

Chat commented that DA:O "does have a lot of rough edges that don't exactly puzzle together well in later games because they hadn't realized it was necessary". Mark said "Oh for sure there are rough edges around, both DAII and DA:I are actively trying to clean up the mess left by this game. There are too many.. DA:O has the problem of magic comes from a bunch of different sources, but yet it's not very well-defined, so since DA:O there's been an effort to kinda bring them together into something that forms a cohesive understandable metaphysics. You can have infinite sources of magic which you see in some fantasy where magic just comes from magic, which is fine, but that's not what we have in DA:O. We have blood magic and we have lyrium magic and we have the Ashes and spirits and darkspawn and the Taint and it's sort've, it doesn't know what, how these join together and that's been a thing that sort've loomed over the franchise. Better honestly to have had just, magic comes from magic, and not have to worry about it, but instead kind've had to slowly collapse the space into something understandable as time went on"

On teleporting in DAII: "I think it tries to explain itself through lore as being just moving really fast, I don't know if we bothered to do that in DA:I or if we just let it go. But yeah in DAII it's definitely presented as just moving really fast. The no teleporting rule is for two reasons. It's basically David Gaider putting a restriction into the IP because teleportation is, D&D has a, if you think about it, has a couple of really big problems. If you can teleport, what does defense look like? And if you have low level mind control how would society react to that? So blood magic is the response to the mind control, and the no teleportation rule is a response to how we deal with that, but I think, honestly you need to keep the door open. And in a computer game as opposed to just a tabletop game, you don't have to deal with some of the stuff, you can just make it incredibly rare as a solution. There are problems with the way things have been presented in DA, even in DA:O, that would introduce problems that are very similar to teleportation - you move through the Fade, that's like moving through the ethereal plane or the plane of shadows of what have you, which introduces exactly the same problems as teleportation. I do think that the presentation of how society views magic in DA, at least the background presentation (people are pretty much fine with you doing it), is probably pretty accurate to how society would view it. It's a tool, you're not gonna necessarily just go murder everyone but you're definitely gonna try to control it in some manner, especially in a society like this"

"Everything in Dragon Age is presented from the perspective of shining a light on things, but you can never draw a one-to-one connection with anything in real life. That's always going to be a restriction or maybe even an intentional thing to allow the conversation to exist. Doesn't mean there's not room for commentary but yeah it's not, the Dalish draw inspiration from a bunch of different places"

"I think one of the main reasons that sylvans never showed up again is that the models wouldn't have worked in future versions. That doesn't mean they couldn't have recreated them, but that's part of it. I think that part of the problem was getting the artists excited into making them. They are a custom skeleton, I mean you might be able to make them off of, say, the giant skeleton, they would obviously be different than the ones in DA:O, but yeah, there certainly would be a use for them but they would have to be rebuilt because the ones from DA:O are too old. You might be able to make something work on the Behemoth"

"The Behemoth is definitely an example of 'thing that was created because an artist was excited about it'. It's got a lot of weird shapes, so it's got a lot of trouble reaching things, so it's actually problematic from a gameplay perspective, but sometimes Art makes something and you work with it, sometimes Design makes something and you work wit it. I like that kind of back and forth, where the leadership on a specific feature can move around a little bit"

DA:I has a lot "going on so the mages and templars are kind've being pushed into the background [there] for sure, somewhat intentionally"

Chat commented "It just occurred to me that the monstrous spider model must've been made after this for DAII since there aren't any in DA:O". Marl replied "That's probably correct. Most of the models, despite the short development time, way more was rebuilt for DAII than makes rational sense"

[source]

(pls note that in places there is a bit of paraphrasing of the info, the best source is always the primary source with full quotes in their original context)

[inventors-fair]

Hey, folks. Let's look a couple approaches to this week's contest!

@loreholdlesbian graced me with this Bantian benediction. Angel of the Shardic Empire has a lot of implications about the mechanics of this set:

Ability counters may or may not be present, and we're getting a new kind in the form of exalted counters; exalted, then, is probably gonna be back in the set!

Converge is working as flavorful glue here as well as a mechanical highlight. Presumably, all shards/factions are going to have access to converge in their own unique ways. This rewards multicolor deckbuilding.

And at the same time, the muticolor theme isn't going to be about permanents as much as it is exploratory deckbuilding through spells, mana bases, etc. In the same way that Alara cared about general multicolor, we're back to a similar kind of base without going as hog-wild as Alara Reborn.

As a rare as well, this is a top-end limited all-star for sure. Swinging for 4-8 damage in the air the turn after this comes out is no joke, and you can hold it back to spread out your damage elsewhere. Presumably there are gonna be a few other fliers, so we have that going for us as well. Bant-themed aggro!

The flavorful aspect of this card can be found in its dedication to rigidity despite the Conflux. The angels of Bant are eschewing vulnerability or exploration and, at least on this card, the determination to keep the hierarchy is important. From chaos, to order. From Conflux, to empire. Lorehold mentioned a slight antagonism to this angle, and I can buy it. I don't think this would be a strict villain-hero dichotomy throughout Alara in the same sense; there are good actions and bad actions, sure, dangers and survival, but everyone's trying in their own ways. Some (like Sedris) are definitely a little more on the villainous side, but it ain't great to be of a lowly caste in Bant either.

~

This morning, I had a few random ideas, but I wanted to share one more nostalgic/micro-view of a planar possibility. I don't know if this would necessarily be a winning kind of card, but it's a part of the limited exploration that might help some folks.

Mechanically, it's a removal spell for small things that then becomes a combat boost later in the game with aggressive possibilities. In retrospect, I might even have given it flying and deathtouch for that much mana—no, wait! Oh, that's fun. Okay, so, now I'm imagining deathtouch and menace, as a throwback to Kederekt Creeper. Ah well, too late in the day now. But regardless, that's one aspect: a common cycle (like the common cycle of spells from original ALA that gave benefits to massive color-themed cycling) of spells with minor boosts later in the game post-exile.

I suppose I was more looking to the flavor side of it all—because fleshcrafting doesn't stop just because worlds collide. The wizards and humans of Grixis have to rely on some smarts and scavenging in order to retain their power. Sedris made for himself a wicked empire, no doubt, but these living are indeed living. Mostly. Somewhat. Who's to say when and where it's safe to go out? Zombies are a hot commodity.

This is my favorite Zombie token of all time (in the link). It's horrific, it's experimental, it's imaginative, and it shows what one can do with the craft. What if the muscles underneath brought out the instincts of those from whom the flesh was taken? Not everyone can reanimate a dragon, but picking up new ways to eat and scavenge... I suppose that I wanted to show the ways, just like Lorehold, that reactions to change are different. These cards speak to a choice of inhabitants: "The world has changed, but I will spread my cause out to it" vs. "The world has changed, but I'll change with it here" deal.

So there we have it. Enjoy! -@abelzumi

[teleportationmagic]

More of the demon Lolopechika thing because I have niche interests. Or: Lolopechika talks to Undine about sunsets, trade school, and immortality.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lolopechika circles, always, but somehow she always ends up back here.

Undine meets her at the border, first. There’s something tender in her eyes, even as she fusses loudly over how unkempt she is, how much dirt has caked itself onto her limbs.

And then she dumps a bunch of water on her head.

“Undine!“ She squeaks as rivulets trace their way down her face.

“Better.“ She says, her lips pursed. “But you still need a bath. Come on.“

And Lolopechika follows.

There’s shampoo in her hair, a scent that’s so familiar she has to hold back the urge to cry. The soap, the smell of damp stonework, the glass door that she pushes aside - she is home. Finally.

When she steps out, dries and changed, Undine is nowhere to be seen. She’s likely preoccupied with whomever the new priestess was, anyways.

Lolopechika swallows, then settles. She waits for the sun to set in the sky as it drops from it’s place half perched, above Heart’s mountain’s and forests. The trees glint a light green before the colour deepens, as the sun makes it’s way down. She watches as the horizon lights up in a million different colours, splaying across the clouds and reflected in the waters below. The colours hang there, a golden mural, before it goes a dim orange, then pink, the sun barely peeping up over the horizon. A couple minutes later, it’s gone too, and Heart rests under the darkening navy sky.

“Lovely, isn’t it?“

She nods. Because it is true, Heart is lovely. And it will always be her home.

“How have you been?“ and she goes to answer before a hand wraps around her wrist.

Her lungs fill, inexplicably. And she’s crying, again - crying and crying until she feels wrung out as Undine brings her close, her hand cupping her head like Lolopechika was a child again.

Her lungs haven’t abated, somehow. The whirling pools of Undine’s mana play across her skin in impossible patterns as she tries her best to breathe.

“You should stay here.“ Undine says, her hair falls across her’s.

And Lolopechika wants to. She dearly wants to. But she remembers her magic, remembers the rot it spread whenever it touched Heart’s trees. Remembers watching Noelle and Mimosa leave as their obligations spurred them home, remembers her own obligations falling to dust around her. Remembers sitting here and waiting because there is nothing for her to explore or learn, nothing to grow, nothing that she knows enough of to be able to carve out someplace that she can help the people that used to be her’s.

“I sat here for six hours, waiting for you,“ she says instead, “because there is nothing here for me to do.“

And Undine’s face crumbles, bit by bit, her forehead dropping to lean against her’s, softly. And she can feel - Undine traces patterns on the back of her hand, foxes and boars and something with teeth. She can’t give her an answer. Of course she can’t. She had hoped - but if she couldn’t find an answer after turning it over for hours, how could her maybe-mother?

She moves her limbs gently, and a blanket flies into her hand. They turn, and Lolopechika rests next to her mother, warm water seeping into her skin like it had when she was so much younger and scared of the dark. They sit there like that for a while as she leans against her, and they watch the sun come up.

“You should go to trade school.“ Her maybe-mother says the next night, when Lolopechika is fitting her boots back on.

And she nearly falls at the mention. She hadn’t even thought - well, she knew how specialized every field could be. Most people who went already had a magical disposition towards whatever their applied to do, and she was rather limited in that regard.

“I don’t know. It seems... “ difficult, she wants to say, but it’s not just that. She doesn’t... she’s never really sat among her people before. She’s always had a little bit of distance. She’s never - the market could get so loud at noon, is the thing, even though she only ever heard it second hand.

But Undine’s smile doesn’t so much as waver. “Learning new things is a new opportunity, Lolopechika! Don’t run away from it.“

An ungrateful part of her wondered how much of that had to do with the boots. She strangles it, before tilting her head. “But there are carpenters with wood magic and ironsmithes with fire magic and everyone finds a purpose using what they have. I...“

“You have time enough to learn to be better at anything you might apply yourself to.” Her face goes a little bit sombre at the mention, and Lolopechika doesn’t know why. “I believe in you.“

“I mean, I suppose with all my free time...“ Lolopechika doesn’t need to eat, to drink, to sleep. She has nothing but time.

“Ah that! Yes, but also, time.“ There is something a little bit jittery in her tone, before she goes smooth. The currents slow below her hands. “Lolopechika. Time. Centuries, even. Millennia possibly.“

Time. Time because she is - oh spirits below, she’s immortal. She -

Everyone here was going to pass before her.

“Breathe.“ She commands, a hand in her hair. “Lolopechika. Breathe.“

And she doesn’t need to, she doesn’t, but impossibly it helps anyways.

“They’re going to die.“

And Undine’s lips part for a moment before going tight. “Yes.“

“Everyone...“ Except her, demon as she is. “How...”

Undine had trained every priestess before her. How. Undine had safeguarded Heart for the entirety of their history, for twenty five generations and only now does it strike her what that means.

“How?“ She asks, because Lolopechika doesn’t want twenty five generations of grief.

And Undine thinks about it for a moment, her eyes glistening in the weak morning sunlight. “I - well, I learned to keep my heart cold. I couldn’t give all of it to anyone, couldn’t ever, because I had too many obligations to let it break.”

“But I don’t want to!“

“I know. But it will tear you apart otherwise.“ Her mother’s palm stroked her cheek absentmindedly as her eyes stare right into her soul. “I don’t want you to drown in your grief, when everyone falls away.“

She feels crushed, once again. Vanica, first, the curse up and down her spine, then Gadjah, resolute and firm, his organs pressing heavy against her arm. Then falling, an everlasting grief that threatened to swallow her whole, as Megicula sprouted like a parasite, the dull black of her magic making a home in Loropechika. Her own arms, afterwards.

Gadjah’s funeral.

The new priestess.

Lolopechika wants to go back to the lake, and sink there. It had been impossibly serene, even in the thunderstorm.

“I am going to give you one reassurance.“ Her mother says, and Lolopechika whirls back.

“What can you possibly tell me?“ She couldn’t subject anyone else to this. Anyone who would take it shouldn’t have it. Her thoughts curl against each other like paper left on the side of a stream.

“You won’t be alone.“ And the simplicity of it steals her breath away. “Lolopechika, I promise you will never be alone.“

“Oh.“ She says, and suddenly it occurs to her who bore those twenty-odd centuries of grief. “Oh Undine.“

She’d never - Undine had been there, all her life. She couldn’t imagine, having every single person she’d ever love leave her, again and again and again. Gajah left her hollowed out enough.

“You won’t be alone.“ Undine promises, something like steel in her voice. “I promise you that.“

Lolopechika knows it’s a promise they’ll keep.

[copperdaisy]

Yu-Gi-Oh! OC Week Day 1: Introductions

Fifteen hours later I'm back to post the actual prompt fill for day one. I actually sat down and completely scrapped all but the first line of this ficlet because I realized that I didn't like the original 1.2k words I had written for it. Whoops.

Anyway, here we go!

(@ygoc-week)

Day One - Introductions Word Count: 1, 716 Characters: Sanura, Mana, Mahaad Rating: G

When Sanura was a child her father often said that she possessed a nation's worth of curiosity. There was rarely a week where the hired help did not have to collect her from a tree or off a roof or out of a neighbor's field. The adults would scold her and she would vow to be more careful next time. She never promised not to do it again. The world was too full of amazing things waiting to be discovered for such binding words. Things like what the scuttling bugs were doing and where the pretty birds landed and what was buried by the soil and sand. Were the answers worth the risks undertaken to learn them? Sometimes. Were there easier ways to learn? Yes. Were those other methods half as satisfying? No. Knowledge was sweeter when she earned it the hard way. It was an opinion that shaped her life even as a wiser adult.

Not that she looked particularly wise at the moment. Standing at the intersection of three hallways, a frown on her lips and her hands planted on her hips, she studied each corridor in turn. Her amber eyes narrowed. All of them looked the same. Wide open spaces with high ceilings supported by giant pillars, lit by squares of sunlight streaming in from the gated windows set near the top of the walls. The only differences she could see were small variations in the reliefs painted on the columns. None of them were directions on where to go. Scrunching her nose Sanura clucked her tongue in frustration. What a predicament.

It was her own fault. A week was hardly enough time to memorize the sprawling complex that was the palace. The layout was designed to confound would-be troublemakers with its maze of near identical pathways. Honest souls getting lost was a necessary evil to preserve the security of the royal family. To her credit Sanura had not meant to wander into an unfamiliar sector. She had blundered into it while attempting to return to her own room using a shortcut one of the local girls had mentioned. Looking back on their conversation she was half convinced the girl had intended for her to get turned around. There was still friction between the new arrivals and the long established servants so it was not outside the realm of possibility.

Brooding over it was not helping her either way. Nor was standing there hoping for rescue for that matter. She had not crossed paths with anyone for a while. Strange; one would think that there would be a guard roaming on patrol. Maybe there was and she had just missed them? Then again, perhaps it was a good thing she had not been found. What if she was in one of the sections that was off limits to the rank and file servants? The guards would probably not be happy to find her if that was the case. She cringed at the thought of what might happen and gave her head a little shake, her long hair tickling the middle of her back. There was no good choice to be made but she had to make one.

Right; when in doubt she always turned to the right. Doing so had saved her from winding up in the jaws of an angry dog when she was seven and had become a habit in the years since. As she walked she began to craft an excuse to use if she were found. It never hurt to practice the explanation a few dozen times, just to be safe. While she had a genuine reason to be lost she knew that nothing sounded like guilt quite like tripping on one's words. The amount of times she had been grounded when she was younger had taught her that lesson. By the time she saw the next intersection she had found an excuse she liked. She just hoped that her phrasing would be good enough to get her out of potential trouble.

Sanura was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she failed to hear a pair of voices drawing closer. Upon reaching the intersection she turned right again and –

– immediately plowed into something solid and sharp. Her own momentum caused her to bounce back. Winded and startled she missed how she ended up on the floor, but end up there she did. It took a few seconds for her wits to return. When they did she found herself staring at the equally shocked faces of a man and girl. No one moved a muscle. Then, finally, the girl clamped both of her hands over her mouth to physically stifle an eruption of giggles, green eyes sparkling with mirth. The man beside her breathed a quiet admonishment before he knelt and offered a hand to Sanura. Sunlight glinted off the golden bands on his arm and she squinted against the glare as she accepted the help.

“My deepest apologies. Are you hurt?” The genuine concern in the stranger's voice somehow made the situation worse. He pulled her up without much effort and waited until she was steady on her feet then put a more polite distance between them. A groan caught in her throat as she got a better look at him. A man wearing that much gold had to be someone important. The large circular pendant he wore around his neck certainly implied as much. The long tines hanging from it must have been the something sharp she had run into.

“Only my pride,” Sanura assured him with a forced chuckle. Gods, how embarrassing. She watched his brows knit together as he looked her over and opened his mouth as if to say something before thinking better of it. He turned his attention to his companion instead to scold her for laughing. The girl straightened and lowered her hands to her sides, doing her best to rein in her amusement.

“Sorry, Master. Are you sure you're okay?”

“I'm fine. I should be the one apologizing.” Try as she might Sanura couldn't remember the eloquent excuse she had decided on. It had been knocked clear out of her head. Fingers tangling in the charmed belts looped around her waist she went with what she had. “I, uh. I got lost and it has been a while since I… ran into anyone else...”

She grimaced at her choice of words even as she said them.

“Oh! Are you new here? I've lived here almost all of my life and I still get lost!” That time the girl's laughter was directed at herself. Clasping her hands together she leaned forward and cocked her head to one side with an easy smile. “My name's Mana.”

“Sanura, and yes, I only arrived a few days ago. I was trying to return to my room using a shortcut someone told me about and ended up here, wherever here is.” The tension in her shoulders slowly eased, enough for her to shrug. A self deprecating smile twitched at the corners of her lips. “I must have taken a wrong turn.”

“Let me guess: someone told you to cut through the kitchen stores and take a left at the statue of Bastet, right?” Mana deadpanned, her expression falling into one of exasperation. “It was probably Kemat. She does that to all the new girls. She's so –“

“Mana!” The man interrupted her and Mana quieted with a squeak. Frowning at his – student? – he sighed and shifted his focus to Sanura again. “Arrived a few days ago… Are you part of the entourage the Prince's betrothed brought with her?”

“I am. I was supposed to be meeting with her after I retrieved something from my room but, well, I got sidetracked.”

“I see...”

“We can take you to her! She's with Teana right now,” Mana chirped, sounding excited by the prospect. Before Sanura had the chance to take her up on the offer it was shot down by her teacher, who shook his head and folded his arms across his chest.

“You have studying to do. I will take her.”

“Aww. Okay.” Mana's pout lasted for all of two seconds before she was grinning again. “See you later, Sanura! Don't take any more advice from Kemat!”

With that the brunnette waved and carried on in the direction she and her teacher had been traveling, humming a little tune to herself as she went. Sanura blinked and gave a half hearted wave in return, not sure what to make of her. The ensuing silence of her absence hung in the air before the other broke it by awkwardly clearing his throat.

“Shall we?”

The walk back to the kitchens was relatively uneventful and at first silent. It did not take long for curiosity to get the better of her. Thankfully the man was tolerant of her carefully asked questions. She learned that his name was Mahaad and that he was a magician. Mana was his apprentice; they had been on their way to the library when they met her. She also learned that he was one of Pharaoh Akhenamkhanen's advisers. He must have seen the apprehension on her face for he rushed to assure her that she was not in trouble, either for running into him or for getting lost. It was the earnestness in his tone more than his words that convinced her that she was not going to be tossed to the streets, or worse.

“Do you know the way from here?”

Sanura was almost disappointed to realize that they had reached the kitchens. There were easily a dozen more questions she wanted to ask him. She resisted the impulse to ask them all in a single rush. She had already taken up enough of his valuable time.

“Yes. No more shortcuts,” she answered. “Thank you. I'll be more careful next time.”

“It was my pleasure.”

Sanura bowed her head and let him take his leave, sneaking a glance at him as he walked past. All in all he seemed rather nice, if a bit awkward around the edges. Definitely one of the more interesting people she had met so far. Maybe she could convince him to answer the rest of her questions sometime.

After all, she hadn't promised not to get lost again...

[glyphreader]

Veiled Ascension (Murders at Karlov Manor Commander No. 18, Illus. Domenico Cava)

The afterlife is an area of Ravnican afterlife is an area that's surprisingly unexplored. Sure, we all know that the souls of many people get bound to the Orzhov and continue to hang around as indebted ghosts. And in the past, there used to be the pocket plane of Agyrem (also known as the Ghost Quarter), which led to even more ghosts being around (since the Mending, this has since been resolved).

However, beyond all the ghost-related stuff, the lore is pretty vague. Is there an underworld or heavenly realm that people go to after they die? There are angels on Ravnica - but then again, in Magic, angels are first and foremost constructs of pure white mana and not necessarily messengers of some kind of god.

So what is happening in the art in Veiled Ascension? The people depicted here don't seem to be ghosts - they're very much made of flesh and blood, not wispy smoke or bright glowing spirit energy. Considering this, the illustration seems to show some kind of rapture event, where people are literally (and also metaphorically?) lifted into heaven. However, since it is shown on only one card and happenings like this don't get mentioned in the story or anywhere else, it can't be that big of a deal in the grand scheme of things.

The card doesn't have any flavor text, but maybe we can extrapolate from the rules text a bit. The mechanics care about disguised and cloaked creatures. Aside from disguised criminals, face-down creatures in MKM are also flavored as regular people/nobodies. So the people depicted here are probably guildless commoners.

Another point worth noting is that the rules text doesn't mention the graveyard. The name and the imagery make it feel very afterlife-y. But there's also the possibility that this ascension isn't related to death. Based on these observations, I think there are two possibilities:

The card depicts living commoners that are being given wings as some sort of magical favor.

The card depicts the dead bodies of commoners being exalted and lifted into some sort of heavenly afterlife.

Either way, it seems like this event is not connected to any kind of guild activity. It's too benevolent / non-profit oriented for the Orzhov, and too peaceful for the Boros. Given the absence of "celestial gods" on Ravnica (opposed to the Old Gods of the earth associated with the Gruul), my conclusion for now is that Veiled Ascension represents the white mana of Ravnica acting on its own, as an ambient natural force, to reward the good deeds of commoners who have gone unrecognized. If they are dead, maybe they are lifted towards the sun and merged with the white mana of the plane. If they are living, maybe a flight on magical wings represents the turning point in their life, when they are freed from their hardships.

White mana "erratically" acting on its own, without any focus or agent, would also explain why the cloaks-turned-wings are so unsymmetrical and messy. White mana is manifesting, just like it does when angels are created - but in an uncontrolled, imperfect way. Going by this interpretation, it couls also mean that the artificialness of the plane has warped and transformed its mana flow, which has limited its abilities to affect the world "naturally."

Random side note at the end: While a lot less scary, the figures in this art strongly remind me of the Pilgrim Butterflies in the Dark Souls games. Not only are there some visual similarities - similar to the butterflies, they're also not explained and left open to interpretation. I think Fromsoft-style indirect worldbuilding works really well in Magic.

[niuttuc]

New budget Commander cards: Wilds of Eldraine: Green

You know these by now, we'll go color by color, mixing main set and commander set. Reprints can be included if they brought the price down under our bar or are otherwise notable. All the cards presented here are under $2 at time of writing Note that the set hasn't officially released yet, so some prices may still be inflated, and others might spike in the future. Cards will be evaluated as part of the 99, not as commanders. Adventures with off-color parts will be carted off to the multicolor section.

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Let's start with two new enchantress options. Archivist is two mana but will cap at one card per turn, which isn't great for the typical enchantress gameplan of chaining things together, and Lookout is limited to auras. Both of them trigger on ETB rather than cast, which is occasionally worse than on cast, but often better when it works with tokens, enchantment reanimation and such. They're more specific in the kind of enchantment decks they go in than the generic Sythis and Enchantress's Presence, but they definitely have their place in some subsets of enchantment decks.

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They've been cranking the power on these green protection spells in the past few years. This is likely the third or fourth best option in that slot now, behind Tamiyo's Safekeeping and Tyvar's Stand, and possibly Snakeskin Veil. You likely only want it if you have synergy with roles, auras or enchantments in general.

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This is a lot of very fragile power on the battlefield, but these Satyrs love being blinked or copied to fill a board. At 6 mana, you probably have better options, but it's new fun one. Just be careful that your copy effects are clones and not cackling counterparts, because that works less well.

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On its face, this is a worse Eternal Witness, but plenty of green decks trivially generate an excess of lands in hand. If you can get back two or three things with this while not missing land drops, you're already pretty well-off. Particularly interesting if your graveyard is filled, so any deck that's running Life from the Loam will happily run this. Hey, wait, that's in the name!

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A small variation on the theme of green enchantments drawing cards when you do big things. It's only two mana instead of the usual 3, and combining that with the immediate and unconditional cantrip gives this card a pretty great floor. It doesn't trigger on tokens like Elemental Bond or Tribute to the World Tree, but it does trigger on spells with reduced costs, be they force of wills, mulldrifters, Treasure Cruise, or even cascaded spells in an Imoti deck. It'll be great in decks heavy on those, Imoti as mentioned, Rashmi, and others of that ilk, but the floor is high enough any green deck probably can just run it as a cantrip with big potential upside if they have free slots.

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A tutor for literally any creature for 3 mana is actually pretty rare in green, even if the rate overs around that. It's a bit slow, but you do get a decent body immediately too. And then a bit of damage. It's pretty generic, but it's very solid all around. Just don't get board wiped between chapter I and II. If it sticks around, the second chapter can actually tutor up a hex parasite or a similar creature, allowing you to keep this going and tutoring every turn you can feed it tokens. Or you could play a fauna shaman, but sometimes you have more tokens than cards in hand to discard.

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3 mana land ramp is meh, 3 mana land ramp with a body is alright. This is basically a Farhaven Elf ditching the creature synergies with that card for spell and token synergies. Most green decks can more easily either recurr, blink, tutor or cheat out creatures than spells like this, so I expect it to stay a relatively niche option, but in some decks the tokens can be abused.

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Auras that are pure stats have an uphill battle in Commander. Why play this when you could get a Bear Umbra with stats AND a better effect? Well, sometimes you just want opponents to die to commander damage, and 5 mana for +6/+6 and trample and two auras is pretty good at that. It coming back to hand Rancor-style means it's very hard to get rid of it by removing your Voltron commander. It's just a whole lot of damage, trample to make sure it goes through, and self-recursion to make sure it sticks.

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This is very specific. This is also very very good in that specific deck. Food is generally the most harmless of the artifact token types (at least it was, until LOTR and this set introduced fifteen different payoffs and five different infinite combos with it), so it's not uncommon to see a lot of it laying around. When that happens, this enchantment can land, be immediately mana positive, and if you have that much Food might even immediately anthem your team too. Or just sit around doubling your mana thanks to your food. I'd play this in every green Food deck, and in no other deck, you have better options like Jaheira and Inspiring Statuary if you're more spread around between treasures, clues and food. But they're more fragile and don't come with a finisher packaged in them.

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Reprints

Enchanting Tales still doing good things to prices. In order:

Utopia Sprawl is a fundamental and important part of the format, but up until now was hard to get on a budget because of modern play and few reprints. One mana ramp is the gold standard only green gets access to, and having it on an enchantment means it's less likely to go away at a moment's notice because of a board wipe or a random ping. Utopia Sprawl and Wild Growth are both good in this role, even in decks that don't have a ton of enchantment synergies, and they're bedrock all-stars in enchantment decks.

Hardened Scales is still the most efficient way to get access to that effect, even with the proliferation of copycats we have had recently. Multiple reprints have brought it down so that any counter deck can get one if they want it.

Unnatural Growth often gets overlooked, but it's often terrifying. Green already has the biggest creatures around, and this tends to finish games very quickly. It also working on your opponents' turn to block is often overlooked, and it goes nuts with extra combats. With that said, I do admit that the quad-green cost can be a bit scary... But you're in green, you search for lands every time you exhale.

Prismatic Omen has been a bit overshadowed by a dryad of the same effect, but the og is still a good way to get that effect, and as its first pack reprint since Shadowmoor, it definitely needed it.

Nature's Will isn't seen too often, but its friends Sword of Feast and Famine and Bear Umbra are. Might be because it was a Kamigawa card without a reprint before this year. In any case, untapping your lands one more time every turn is, according to my notes, "pretty good", and it also can go infinite pretty trivially with mana-based extra combats, so there's that.

Garruk's Uprising is part of the same family as Up the Beanstalk, caring about big creatures but also giving your team trample. I often find myself cutting it when we have access to cards like Elemental Bond and Tribute to the World Tree that draw cards easier, but it still has a place in some decks, and there's something to be said about the incidental trample.

All the usual enchantress suspects are in the precon, Setessan Champion is always good to see as a cheap constellation enchantress and finisher. Rishkar's Expertise is a great and easy way to shoot lightyears ahead in green, and always good to see more copies of it. As long as it's not my opponents casting them.

[plasmalink]

Asuka Spells Tier List (from a floor 9 player)

Because I can't find an Asuka discord, and barely hear about people talking about the character, I'm putting myself out here to talk about his spells.

warning! long ass text ahead!!!!

S - Mana regen is by far the best spell. It gives you so much more leeway on offense and defense, and easily pays for itself. This is the main reason to go into Test Case 3 IMO. Lets you regain resources just by playing defensively without needing to commit to recovering mana. Green cubes are also fantastic in neutral, usually forcing your opponent to block or commit to something huge. Gives you a moment to breathe, and it catches people way more than I'd expect. Auto Import is also huge, the other half of exodia (the former being regen) that allows you to just go NUTS with your spells. However, it fucks with my muscle memory not needing to redraw spells, meaning I frequently cast a spell, then discard the spell I just got. Oops.

A - All of these are really close. Blue cube is just a really nice, fast projectile that establishes a threat. Accipiter metron is great both if your opponent does or does not read your spells, either threatening or surprising an overhead. The bounce is huge too, giving you plenty of time to confirm into a full combo. I don't think many other characters have fast grounded overheads into full combo. Screamer just WINS round start. There's enough in TC1 to be somewhat consistent about it, too. It's also fantastic at just catching the opponent pressing buttons, or low airdashes, not even mentioning its guard crush. Fire cubes are great, but their levelling system makes them a little bit awkward to use at times. Still, a consistent level 4 or 5 fire cubes would make S tier easy. Terra metron is actually like, way better in the air? Even though it's no longer a low, it just hits at such a weird angle and distance that nobody expects, also with a nice pop-up. Works great on the ground too, but you already have your e-sports 2D in a similar niche, though with less reward. Electric cube I find is a bit worse than the speedy blue cube, but not by much. Fantastic if you're already in a combo, but it losing to a single hit or projectile makes it slightly sad in neutral. Mana discount is store brand mana regen. Similar end result, but while Mana Regen lets you take your time, get you out of mana-less state faster, and even works while you're getting comboed, discount only does anything when you are casting spells. Nice if you've already gotten a solid footing, but sometimes doesn't help.

B - Restock is nice. It's saved my ass quite a few times when I had no meter and no spells. It's also sat on my spell bar doing nothing because I have other spells I don't need to refill (Or worse, I have like two staves I can't find a moment to discard/cast). Tardus metron is mainly an Oki tool, but a very good one. The fact that it still dies in one hit or projectile gives it limited neutral use, but it certainly does lock down an opponent. Also fun when you have a staff down. Teleport is pretty situational, and I think 4 is too many copies of it in TC3. I don't like having more than two in hand at once. It raises Arpeggio and itself both a full tier when you have both, though. Great against people who don't read your spells. Boost zap is kind of a worse screamer? I rarely see it outside of level 1. Still, a worse screamer is still pretty nice. I think it's also possible to combo from midscreen? Though going fullscreen with screamer is also perfectly fine for Asuka. Arpeggio is undoubtedly cool as FUCK. However, it's slow and expensive (24% mana! That's 3 blue cubes!) to cast. Sampler is okay. Copy of the next spell you cast. Also fucks with my muscle memory like auto import. I wish it was in the same test case as Accipiter, it would be very funny for multiple overheads in a row. Aquila kind of sucks but it's also very nice to have, if that makes sense? Your only invincible move, metered or otherwise. Very nice against people who DO read your spells, as they might opt to forgo meaties on your wakeup unless they have a safejump.

C - It's hard to be mad at chaotic option, it does have some nice ass spells, but I'd also much rather just draw those spells in the first place rather than needing to cast this to draw them though. Suck staff is the funniest one, lets you perform the most heavily scaled combos known to man. One thing I'll say about all the staves though, it's annoying to have to actually cast them. They take about as much time as an electric cube, and sometimes my hand gets clogged with them and I need to manually discard them. Fast staff gives you some nice guard crushes, makes your pressure up close very nice and very annoying from afar. Slow staff is worse than fast staff, but it makes people freeze up when they see a wall of cubes, giving you plenty of time to get your shit in order and regenerate some mana. Nice after a burst. Instant mana, I don't like very much. The mana boost is appreciated, but leaving yourself without spells sucks. 53% mana on an otherwise empty hand isn't bad though. Use it when you have 50 meter to go into full order. Random import does address my issue of being stuck with 2 staffs and a teleport in your hand, but the fact that it doesn't import on empty slots hurts it.

D - Repel staff, meh. Don't like it much. Still kind of funny though Down staff: Has that instant overhead with Jump D, but I still struggle to find much use. Up staff: boing! good against may maybe? Or anyone else who really likes jump-ins?

Alright, that's the list. Any other Asuka players, feel free to light me up.