#(the sheer amount of content even in just the original base game is absurd)

[fortune-maiden]

While I contemplate dubious life choices, consider:

MXTX Charas in Warriors Orochi 3

For the uninitiated, WO3 is a xover game between Koei Tecmo's 2 big Warriors series: Dynasty Warriors (the 3 kingdoms one) and Samurai Warriors (the sengoku one). And also a bunch of other characters from mythology and other Koei franchises. And Joan of Arc. The very basic plot is Orochi has thrown the multiverse into a blender and everyone teams up to defeat him.

In the third game, this takes the form of the world ending, and the last few survivors joining forces with Princess Kaguya to travel back in time, get the band back together, and set right what once went wrong.

In order to give its absurdly large cast (~150) some time in the spotlight, aside from the main plot stages, there are a bunch of side stages where various characters go off to have their own little adventure, allowing for a lot of fun combinations of characters and a lot of banter during the stages themselves. (And base camp conversations which are especially addicting to unlock)

And I just think it would be fun to have the MXTX characters join in on that whether it's just an mxtx xover or if they get to meet and hand out with the rest of the musou cast

And also I put a lot of time into thinking up Musou-style weapons and stages for at least the MDZS cast xD

WWX is summoned in his original body (possibly without timeskip memories), and MXY gets summoned in his original body which results in a lot of awkwardness for people who are used to WWX in his body and especially those who have never seen WWX's original form. MXY really does not want to be here but is also excited to meet WWX

3zun features a very reluctant alliance between NMJ (who is summoned from before JGY kills him) and JGY (who is from after he kills NMJ but before Guanyin temple. LXC is in the same boat). They have managed to put their differences aside for now on account of the world ending.

3zun's stage features NMJ dying to save the other two :D

The Redux version features JGY saving him which is what allows the truce

NHS has been missing since the whole thing began, which naturally worries NMJ a lot. His side stage involves him and another character or 2 (possibly from other series) going to find him. They find that NHS has been doing a decently okay job defending a castle under siege

NHS is in his headshaker era but subdued because Da-ge is alive again and his emotions are a bit of a mess because of this. He still plays up the act in front of JGY though, out of habit.

The time headaches are part of the fun :D

Also NHS' weapon is either his fan or bird, Maria Renard style

Jin Ling finally gets to meet his parents! :D

They are perfectly accepting of their son suddenly being ~15 years old

Meanwhile post-timeskip JC gets to reunite with his parents and the whole thing feels very awkward

Madam Yu spends her first two camp conversations still in tiger mother mode. But in the last one finally reveals how proud she is of JC

JFM is also going to reconcile with his son because JIANG CHENG DESERVES NICE THINGS!

Whatever stage Feng Xin gets recruited on will prominently feature Liu Mingyan, Jiang Yanli, and Wang Lingjiao. For Reasons.

Not sure who would be the best fit for the final 3 who live to see the end of the world but I'm thinking Shang Qinghua, Jiang Cheng, and Quan Yizhen maybe? (idk who's filling the time machine role of Princess Kaguya yet... something something there's a door in heaven somewhere.)

If this is an xover with the rest of musou, Nie Huaisang & Liu Shan are best friends and I don't take criticism.

[blogging-time]

Boots and Heels - Chapter Two:

Chapter Two: These Boots Are Made For Walking

Summary: Roman has been lying to Virgil. Now the truth has been revealed.

Based on this adorable head-canon by @2queer2deer!

Warnings: One instance of censored swearing.

Word Count: 3,271

�� Chapter One 👠

~ ~ ~

Approximately three months, four days, seventeen hours, thirty-four minutes and seventeen seconds later hardly anything had changed-

“How’s the weather down there, Jason Toddler?”

-Except for the specific short-jokes Roman used against him.-

“Heated by your irradiated ego. How’s the air pressure up there? Are those few remaining brain cells of yours getting enough oxygen?”

-And while Virgil made his best attempt to deflect Roman’s repetitive remarks-

“D’aw, is little Virgil concerned for my well-being?” Roman chuckled to himself, “Is that because you’re always looking up to me?”

-Unfortunately for Virgil, word-play was Roman’s forte, and beating him at his own game would require greater retaliation that a single mediocre insult-

“Keep dreaming, Sir-Sing-A lot.”

-But alas, for now at least, that was all Virgil had to offer.

“Don’t worry your pretty little head, Virgil. I maintain height expectations for you.”

~ ~ ~

“You’re never going to live this one down. You know Roman too well to believe he’ll ever let this one go,” Virgil thought to himself for the umpteenth time. When this lone, once unproven thought first ventured through his anxious little mind, Virgil hadn’t taken himself too seriously. There had to be some degree of certainty present of course, otherwise the thought would never have arisen, however, after his little debate with Logan, Virgil had made a mental note not to jump to conclusions so readily. In other words, the whole ordeal almost seemed like a comedic aside at first; one Chandler from “F.R.I.E.N.D.S” may have had if only the show had been a little more self-aware, or was still producing any episodes for that matter.

However, even now, Logan, with his incomparable intellect, mathematical prowess, and certified studies in statistics, could not deny the gravity of the situation, or hope to deny the overwhelming amount of indisputable evidence wagered in Roman’s favour.

The logical conclusion: Virgil was doomed.

The illogical solution? Allow these thoughts to plague Virgil’s waking mind to such an extent at which he found himself lying awake at 11:50PM, blasting PG13 music through his now decaying headphones.

The plastic shell that once encased the vital wires was now decaying, exposing what was essentially the vital organs of the head-piece. If you peered closely enough, you could even see where some of the wires had frayed, and strayed away from their formally integrated streams of current. Virgil had been attempting to rectify the situation for the past three months or so now to no avail, but every time he attempted to conjure himself up a new pair the wires seemed to come back in an even worse state than before, leaving him no choice but to endure the damage of his original pair. It had been an inconvenience at first, but over time Virgil’s fingers memorised the exact formation they would be expected to maintain in order to stop the music from sounding like radio static, or cutting out entirely.

Therefore, Virgil did with these newfound negative thoughts as he did any other and buried them out at sea beneath a tidal-wave of sound, meanwhile praying to whatever deity there may be that none of them washed back up on the shores of conscious thought any time soon… or worse yet that the water, gently lapping around his feet, harmlessly spraying the frays of his jeans, suddenly became of powerful wave that outstretched violently towards him, capturing him within its powerful confines and dragging him out to sea alongside all that which he had attempted to discard. That’s when the music would stop playing, and Virgil would begin his frantic struggle to stay afloat. Some days, he’d find a life-ring, or some shaky buoy to cling onto. On others, he’d find himself being pulled down beneath the ice cold waters that pierced his skin until he went numb. Beneath the depths there were no treble clefs, only sharks.

Watch your steps around these words ‘cause:

They’re gonna get you, they’re gonna get you in the end.

Regardless of how seemingly easily he drifted along the water’s surface tonight however, Virgil couldn’t help the sinking feeling in his gut attempting to convince him that something was very wrong. That his head wasn’t in the right place. That his mind wasn’t in the right time. Something was wrong. Impossibly wrong. Unidentifiably wrong… So Virgil turned up the volume on his broken headphones, and bolted his tired eyes shut.

I swear it’s not a disease, it’s just a game of pretend.

A game of pretend.

Still, the uncomfortable feeling persisted.

Why is it me they’re after? Couldn’t pick another one.

Resigning himself to mobility with a sigh, Virgil turned to face the one semi-functional clock in his room - that being the one located on his bedside. As he did so, the time glitched forward from 11:51PM to 11:52PM. The green, glitching lights stung the anxious side’s eyes for a solid few seconds before he was able to rapidly blink away the unwelcome stinging sensation in exchange for a more comfortable numbness.

Despite the haziness of his tired brain, even Virgil knew this wasn’t a healthy hour to be awake at… especially not for a third day in a row. On nights like these there was very little that would help him fall sound asleep.

1.     Sitting quietly in Logan’s room, contently lulling off to sleep as he listened quietly and politely to the logical side’s ramblings. The vastness of space, which would terrify Virgil spilling over the lips of any other, appeared oddly intriguing, and in an even stranger way, comforting when conveyed through Logan’s enthusiasm. Logan was never shy to share his love for astrology with Virgil, however, he had warned Virgil he would be going to sleep earlier tonight in preparation for a lecture later that day.

2.     Asking Roman to conjure up a tale just for him. Virgil had never been a huge fan of fairy tales when he was younger. The idea of mythical beasts had terrified him beyond belief, and because of that, Thomas couldn’t stand to look at images of dragons until he was about eight years old. However, having the hero himself tell the story from a past-tense perspective provided Virgil with a sense of security he was otherwise lacking. It provided him with the heart-warming sense that his demons could, and would, be defeated. But alas, Virgil had already attempted knocking on Roman’s door half an hour ago to no avail.

3.     A warm drink. On long, dark nights such as these, Virgil always knew he could go to Patton and ask for the best cup of warm, hot chocolate to ever grace the mindscape… but he rarely ever did so… The sad look concealed within Patton’s eyes whenever Virgil turned to him for help was unmistakable… In his heart, Virgil knew the paternal side would do anything for him, but unbeknownst to Patton, Virgil would do the same for him. He would allow his best friend to sleep for the night, even if that meant forfeiting hot chocolate.

While hot chocolate may have been out of the question, a hot beverage was still attainable, and so, with a heavy heart, and even heavier eyelids, Virgil begrudgingly pried himself from the cosy confines of his bed, and traded it for the hardness of the cold night floor. From there, the only step he could take to rival his initial reluctance was the first step.

“Just one foot in front of the other, kiddo,” Virgil firmly whispered to himself as he finally shakily slid off his precious headphones, and took his first step towards the doorway… then his second… third…

In no time at all, Virgil found himself standing at the foot of his bedroom doorway, or, as he more colourfully phrased it: “The Precipice Of Disaster.” He opened the door slowly, doing his best to minimise noise and avoid stirring his fellow sides, while simultaneously stealing microscopic glances down the dauntingly dark corridor, as if to ensure there was truly nothing else there, hiding in the dark, waiting patiently for him.

With one last shy look, Virgil steeled himself, pulled out his phone, switched on the built in flashlight, and gently closed over his bedroom door so that the inner mechanism was resting lightly against the doorframe. This was a common tactic employed by Virgil: Closing the door just enough to make it appear closed to any passers-by, while simultaneously leaving it open just enough to ensure he could quietly re-enter without alerting anyone, or anything to his presence.

Despite fulfilling the dutiful role of Thomas’ “dark persona,” Virgil himself was not exactly an avid fan of darkness. The veil of night was composed of the harshest materials, and was designed to only ever sit properly over the face of its victim, obscuring the eyes and making a spectacle of the bearer. It was sheer torture. Deprivation of sight was one of Virgil’s greatest weaknesses. The lack of situational awareness… The fear of being caught off guard… The idea of being unable to protect those he held closest simply because he couldn’t fulfil his primary objective, and warn them about potential dangers.

Then again, nobody is ever truly afraid of the dark; they fear what they believe lurks within it.

~ ~ ~

One. Two. Three.

One. Two. Three.

One. Two. Three.

Virgil counted each step he took meticulously.

One. Two. Three.

One. Two Three.

It was a plan Logan had devised for him: Divide the number of steps you take into sets of three, then keep track of how many sets you’ve done.

To anybody not following such a seemingly absurd routine the whole ordeal may seem… well… absurd. However, to Virgil, it was an excellent coping mechanism. Evaluating the steps he had taken in terms of threes provided him with a higher sense of accomplishment: Like the journey had been shortened somehow. He still didn’t enjoy his journey through the dark and narrow corridor, but it made it a little more bearable.

One. Two. Three.

Virgil stopped.

As he reached the first step on the staircase and took a cautious peek down, Virgil couldn’t help but notice a faint light emanating from somewhere downstairs… All of a sudden, Virgil’s body began to tremble lightly, as though a gust of cold air had suddenly passed by. Why would one of the downstairs lights be on? Virgil could have sworn all his fellow sides were sound asleep. Perhaps somebody had left it on? No… Logan was too much of a perfectionist. Patton was too considerate, and Roman had an unhealthy habit of turning room lights off every time he stepped out, even if there were other inhabitants still situated within the now-dark room.

It couldn’t be a burglar. Nobody could break-in to Thomas’ head. However, what if something broke out. Roman’s room contained a number of mythical creatures… Dragons. Witches. Dragon-Witches. Was that why Roman’s light had been left on? Had he been…?

No… No Virgil couldn’t think like that. There had to be some other more… logical reason for Roman to have not answered his door… but, in the event something dangerous was lurking in the mindscape, Virgil couldn’t just evade it. If something was posing a threat to his family and to his host, he had to be able to alert them. He had to know what it was.

In an instant, Virgil let out a loud breath he hadn’t even realised he was holding, then quickly covered his mouth, biting down harshly on his already chapped lips as though to punish himself for being so empty-minded. His entire body was shaking. The light peeking from downstairs was now gently glinting against newly formed beads of sweat. His knuckles had long since turned white from maintaining a vice grip on his phone. It was a wonder he hadn’t cracked the screen.

Still, with a single deep breath, and all the willpower he could muster, the anxious side slowly made his way down the stairs.

Even at a slow pace, it didn’t take Virgil very long to reach the final step, where he idled cautiously. With some reluctance, he disabled the flashlight on his phone and slid it back into his pocket, hoping to not reveal his position. Now that he had two hands available, he grabbed onto one of the staircases pillars, and gentle leaned outwards, to try and get a clear view of his surroundings. As he had suspected, the light was coming from within the kitchen, and as anticipated, he wasn’t alone. Over the half-wall that divided the kitchen from the living room, Virgil could clearly make out a humanoid figure, donned in pristine white and royal red. Relief quickly washed over him.

“Roman?” Virgil called out.

The humanoid figure then reacted with a shriek, as if it had been caught off guard. In an instant the light from the kitchen was turned out.

“…Roman…?” Virgil asked again, more cautiously this time as he descended the last of the steps leading into the living room. “I know you’re there.”

Finally, Virgil earned a response.

“No I’m not.”

“Yes you are. Roman, what are you doing?”

“…It’s not Roman, it’s… Patton.” Roman lied.

“Uh-huh,” Virgil responded, clearly unamused.

Each side may have shared the same base voice, but nobody could replicate the softness unique to Patton. Similarly, nobody could replicate that tiny flare that underlined almost everything Roman said, nor could he consciously conceal it.

In one fluid movement, Virgil pulled his phone back out of his pocket and unlocked it, before turning the flashlight back on. With it, he could just about illuminate the area “Patton” was currently shifting awkwardly in.

“Are those new pyjamas, Patton? They look awfully similar to Roman’s.”

“…Small mindscape?”

“Indeed,” Virgil responded as he rapidly closed the distance between himself and the entry-way to the kitchen. “You don’t mind if I turn the light back on, right, Patton?” Virgil asked mockingly.

“No, wait-”

But it was already too late. Before either side could utter another word, Virgil’s hand found its way to the light switch and flipped it on without a moment’s hesitation. Big mistake. The sudden brightness of the room overwhelmed both sides, causing each of them to rapidly blink away the sudden stinging sensation.

“Nice one, Fro-don’t,” Roman snapped, wiping away the last of his shock with a pristine white satin sleeve.

“Oh my word, Roman?” Virgil taunted, finally regaining his vision, “I never would have seen that one coming.”

“Perhaps you’d have better vision if you didn’t insist on nearly blinding us.”

“Don’t be so dramatic.”

“Proclaimed the literal embodiment of anxiety?”

“Proclaimed the literal embodiment of stupidity?” Virgil retorted.

“My, my Virgil. I could have sworn you thought more highly of me,” Roman teased with a grin.

Big mistake. For it was then that Virgil noticed something rather peculiar about Roman’s appearance. In a flash, Virgil’s eyes narrowed. Roman’s widened.

“Anyway, I really must be getting back to my-”

“Stop,” Virgil commanded, the firmness of his voice freezing his creative counterpart to the spot, “Don’t you dare move a muscle.”

Roman swallowed back a witty retort as Virgil slowly marched towards him with beading eyes, looking him up and down repeatedly as though he were attempting to scan him… Was this how shop-window mannequins felt? Trapped? Powerless? Over-analysed? Roman wasn’t accustomed to such a foreign feeling. Feelings such as these were the property of his anxious counter-part. Speaking of which… the more Roman thought about it, the more he realised how much of a subconscious role reversal they’d undergone.

When Virgil finally looked him dead in the eyes, his heart stopped entirely. Virgil wasn’t looking up. He wasn’t tilting his head. He was looking straight forward. Then he was looking down… down at Roman’s bootless feet… then back up again, but his eyes were not so curious anymore. No, now they were conclusive.

“Roman.”

“Virgil.” Roman replied, attempting to hide his nervousness behind a curious expression.

Now more than ever, Roman wanted to make a short-joke at Virgil’s expense. Something along the lines of, “How can I help you, Mickey Mouse?” or “Need help reaching the cereal, short-stack?” just to lessen the amount of tension building in the pit of his stomach, but even he knew it would do more harm than good. Instead he settled for lightly tapping his fingers on a nearby counter-top, and prayed his nervous fidget would slide easily under Virgil’s built-in radar.

“Did your ego shrink any over these last few hours? Or was it just your height?” If tone alone could kill a man, Virgil would be on trial for man-slaughter.

“M-my height?” Roman mentally cursed himself for stuttering.

“Yes, Captain Obvious. Your height.”

“What about it?”

Perhaps if Roman played the clueless card, Virgil would second guess himself and drop the topic. It worked when they were children.

“Well, I wouldn’t say there’s too much of a difference,” Virgil began, certainly implying something, “But tell me, where is that ‘two inch superiority’ you’re always boasting about?”

“Ah, that! Yes… You see, I had a run in with the Dragon-Witch earlier and she-”

“Let me guess,” Virgil interrupted, clearly unamused, “The Dragon-Witch stole your precious boots and heels.”

Roman couldn’t help but take a cautious step backwards as he laughed nervously to himself. There was no escape for him anymore. It was the fishing trip all over again, and he, most certainly, was the fish. Virgil had caught him in his lie, hook line and sinker.

“I can explain,” Roman attempted, but he knew his words were falling on deaf ears, “I…” One more glance at Virgil and he knew he was wasting his breath, but that didn’t stop him from attempting to play it off. “It is possible that my boots add a little bit of height,” Roman attempted, “But I also think it possible that this late hour is warping your perspective somewhat. The heels truly aren’t as significant as you may think.”

There was a moment of silence between the two, and Roman wondered to himself if his nonsensical ramblings had actually proven successful in disarming the situation.

“I see,” Virgil finally responded.

Roman released a breath he hadn’t even realised he’d been holding.

“Well if that’s all cleared up, I guess I’ll-”

“I see you’re full of sh*t,” Virgil snapped.

“Well, that wasn’t very nice at all, now, was it?” Roman replied, almost completely exasperated.

“For the past three months, four days, seventeen hours, forty-four minutes and twenty-eight seconds-”

“You’ve been counting?”

“-You’ve been making fun of my height, and all the while, you’ve been the same height as me?”

“Look, call me a liar, but I’m not obsessive.”

“I’m not obsessive, I’m infuriated!”

“Wake the whole house then, why don’t you?”

“Would you rather I put you to sleep permanently?”

“Perhaps you should lower you expectations. At least then they’d match your height.”

By the time Roman realised the error of what he said there was silence.

Two red faces.

And an overwhelming sense of pressure constricting their lungs, and tainting the air between the two men.

For approximately thirty-two seconds nothing happened. Neither man was able to move. Even Roman’s nervous fidgeting had grinded to a sudden halt.

Then Virgil took a sudden step backwards. His mind made. His goal set. He figured he wouldn’t need the warm beverage after all, not if he were to spend the night conducting his research.

Someday I'll spit their laughter,

And bite their tongue.

A sudden, yet calm smile soon took over Virgil’s expression.

“Goodnight, Roman.”

With that Virgil stormed out of the room.

~ ~ ~

Tag List:

@tinydemonwriter @lunamay2006  @not-so-innocent-bi-sander @twentyoneparades-to-panic-at @hanramz-the-fander @sniffingoutmywilltolive@iaminmultiplefandoms @2queer2deer @kaymischief25 @kittyboof8 @anxioussmiles @shygirl4991 @nyxwordsmith @purplepatton @anniemiku @oliviaisnotlistening @loverofpizzaandallthingssweet @preyed-llama @helloisthisusernametaken@sandersandthesides @samidaboss3 @tssanderssidestrash @luna-lovegood-wrakspurt-invasion  @thestoryoferissur

Note: I apologize for the huge delay between this chapter and the previous, but I can assure you that won’t happen again. Between Christmas and my mocks, I simply didn’t have as much time as usual. I also apologize to those who I haven’t successfully tagged. Some usernames don’t seem to work. If that is the case with your username, you can always message me and ask that I send you a notification via message when a new chapter comes out. Also feel free to message me if you want removed from the tag list!

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated! 

[princely-dots]

Let Me Tell You About Homestuck

AN ILLUSTRATIVE PHENOMENON

- a midterm essay about Homestuck and how it impacted illustration- 

don’t repost or whatever- this is solely evidence of how I am trash and I would like to keep it that way.

“If I have to name one thing I find infinitely important about Homestuck, It would be the way in which it pushes the definition of “webcomic” unlike any other work ever created.” Known to many and few, Homestuck by Andrew Hussie is one of the world's greatest examples of hypermedia utilized to its maximum extent. An instrumental piece in the popularization of hypercomics, the massive multimedia story was a seven year-long marvel spurred by what many consider to be an illustrative masterpiece. Known for both its doltish ‘cartoon casual’ style and its stunning imagery alike, Homestuck spanned 8126 pages, included over four hours of animation and music, and featured twenty mini games; a feat no other comic or work has ever come even close to matching. Somehow this gargantuan, uselessly complicated, mess of a creation myth built an audience of millions and inspired a culture of internet art that had previously only been in its infancy. Likely this was due to Homestuck’s unique ability to encapsulate the millennial experience, as well as its seemingly endless penchant for seamlessly mixing irreverent and profound content and how this hypercomic tackled the nigh impossible task of illustrating life. With its mass appeal and astounding popularity, the right timing, and its miscellany of illustrative strategies and media- Homestuck changed the definition of “webcomic” and was one of the most influential pieces of illustration of the internet.

In order to truly grasp the reach of this Webcomic of webcomics one must understand its roots. This infamous ‘interactive’ epic started on an MSPaint Adventures forum and among the Gangbunch threads of the Penny Arcade forums. Andrew Hussie, the elusive mastermind behind the MSPA endeavors, started his fifth project, Homestuck, after the conclusion of his previous project Problem Sleuth, which had a small degree of success but was essentially still an incredibly niche comic whose fans were predominantly those active on its specific forums. Using an ‘enter command/ suggestion box’ format, Hussies projects imitated adventure based click through games and command based rpgs. Following the template of other interactive webcomics such as RubyQuest, Hussie experimented with smaller scale works before undertaking the epic that Homestuck would become- 1-Jailbreak, 2- Bard Quest (which ended in 24 days), 3- Blood Spade (which was a single page that would later on be elaborated on in Homestuck itself,) and 4- Problem Sleuth (the only other large-scale work Hussie completed). Jailbreak was a simple exercise in puzzles and taking commands for story direction from readers; Problem Sleuth started in the same way but throughout its course its seemingly nonsensical leanings began to demonstrate a strict logic for its own world.  Amongst the array of ridiculous suggestions from the forum, a plot and complex world evolved. Homestuck started with the suggestions of readers as well, but when it began to gain traction and the number of suggestions increased to number in the thousands per page, Hussie stopped taking direct “orders”. The only difference that this made was a slight decrease in some of the more absurd commands. However,  Homestuck fundamentally was created through a confounding process of scattering random features along and going back later on to tie them in, which gave the comic the appealing open endedness that it was known for. To describe what Homestuck  is known for is to describe Homestuck itself, which is almost an impossible feat. The fascinating thing is that it can’t really be described, which is part of the enigma. To define it would be to limit it, because it is so expansive and so complex that Homestuck is impossible to confine to one statement well. The three closest descriptors are still devastatingly vague when compared to the work they’re attempting to define. The first and second are from the author himself, “A creation myth about kids in houses” which is equally inaccurate  as it is accurate, and “ a story that’s also a puzzle.” The third is from the tumblr user Wakraya, who said “This isn’t a story about Four Kids playing a Game, getting involved in shenanigans and trying to live a happy ever after as villains try to plot on destroying them and reality. Homestuck is the tale of the characters from a webcomic, becoming self-aware, and escaping the grasp of the author and the narrative.”

As interesting as it might seem alone, a huge part of Homestuck’s rise to popularity  was indebted to Tumblr, which at the time of Homestuck’s release was only about two years old. Remarkably enough, the popularity and overall success of both Homestuck  and Tumblr are directly correlated.  In October of 2009, Tumblr only had about 90,000 users, that number skyrocketed in May of 2010 and then more than doubled by October of the same year- notably a sharp increase happening after/during June. On the last day of May in 2010, the first ‘long’ animation panel, [S] Descend, was posted. The ambitious panel was four minutes, thirteen seconds long, and was accompanied by original music.The excitement over the update heralded a rush of interest, but not nearly as much as on June 10th, 2010, when Homestuck started a new section called Hivebent, a part of the story which introduced an additional cast of characters and could be understood without previous canon knowledge. Both of these points in Homestuck correspond eerily close to the sharp changes with user numbers in Tumblr. Being that most of the interaction and dialogue within the fandom happened on Tumblr posts, it can be concluded that, in the least, the relationship of the two was symbiotic. Of course this is only a testament to how massive Homestuck was merely fanbase-wise. One of the most famous panels, [S] Cascade, was posted to the hosting site Newgrounds to avoid the MSPA servers that were unable to handle the mass of people flooding it after each update. However, it was popular enough that the sheer number of simultaneous hits on the animation actually crashed the Newgrounds servers as well. In short, Homestuck had a colossal fanbase that at one point registered in one million unique visitors to its site every day.

Indubitably, this maximalist hypercomic had a reach long enough that it could influence a massive audience and leave a lasting impact. Most notably, this impact was to revolutionize what webcomics were understood to be. Homestuck pushed the boundaries of common illustration by completely exploiting the media in which Hussie made it, “The result is an unusual media hybrid. Something that reads like a heavily illustrated novel [...] It’s a story I’ve tried to make as much a pure expression of its medium as possible.” It became the definition of hypercomic through its extreme use of multimedia and hyperfiction, a work written and presented electronically encouraging nonlinearity due to the disconnect between panels/pages via hyperlink. In other words, since the reader has to click on the next hyperlink to proceed in the story, it becomes interactive. But it wasn’t only through its hyperlinks that Homestuck changed the delivery of its illustration, it was in its presentation. Most famously, the comic was made predominantly with only one panel per page. These illustrations would often be emphasized as gifs, occasionally with music, and sometimes the pages would be full fledged animations. However, Hussie did not stick to only a strict construction of one panel size per page; he utilized the medium to its utmost extent, sometimes going so far as to even manipulate the webpage itself in different parts of the story, often breaking the fourth wall. Panel walls were also frequently broken to enhance the story- some pages would be scrollable instead of confined to a small rectangle,some would have guided movements, and sometimes during updates the button to click to the next page would be seen as glitching out until the next pages were available to read. Sometimes the reader would even have the opportunity to choose between several different hyperlinks to different storylines. Hussie’s innovative use of the medium didn’t stop at just page composition, he also was one of the first to use spoilers (chat logs) to show the text, versus using speech bubbles as traditional comics and most previous webcomics would have. This allowed for a staggering amount of text to be included in a single page, as the majority of the story in Homestuck was conveyed through IM dialogue.

What more, the innovation and genius didn’t stop at just the mechanics. The depth and freedom of the story itself as well as the interaction between the comic, author, and fandom pushed creative boundaries. Categorically, the most significant aspect of Homestuck was the sheer expansiveness of the story and the hundreds of characters within it. The world building was so intensive it easily rivals the big names of fiction such as Game of Thrones and Lord of the Rings. Hussie created grounded cultures, believable backstories, and the legacies of multiple timelines with stupefyingly thought out motifs, archetypes, and symbolism woven throughout. Most importantly, Homestuck presented a very real and relatable use of the internet, contrasting most modern media which often presents an outdated understanding of how young people are using technology. The majority of the relationships between the characters in Homestuck are substantiated purely over startlingly realistic IM conversations over the internet rather than in person- something that hasn’t really been successfully portrayed yet. “For kids who grew up on IM and chatrooms the rambling cadence of Homestuck dialogue is immediately familiar.” The characters are also beautifully realistic and diverse; they are by no means perfect, they all have successes and failures, and overall they are dimensional and built as though they are real people. Dave, a main protagonist, said, “rose we dont have fuckin “arcs” we are just human beings” which plays out extensively. Hussie uses alternate timelines, time loops, and other various time shenannigans to explore character reactions for hundreds of pages, only to wind up making the entire “arc” invalid by switching to a different timeline and saying the other one died. Interestingly enough however, these time capers weren’t just arbitrary, Hussie used multiple timelines and time travel between these to justify how most of the important plot events happened. They were legitimately vital to the ultimate timeline of the story, for without them and their endless intricacies the story would be so riddled with holes it would make swiss cheese look solid.

The remarkable tangle of plot devices and characterization wasn’t the only thing to make Homestuck such a memorable piece though. It was also the experimental, testing, push and pull between Hussie’s writing and the fandom reactions. Oftentimes Hussie’s future decisions for the comic were affected by the fandom’s opinions, whether he was inspired by their headcanons or was trying to get a rise from them, it resulted in a constantly engaging exchange that kept the fandom active when the comic was. The fandom’s in depth examination of the comic and speculation in between updates created a web of comprehension that made understanding the complexities of Homestuck possible; it also made a culture that far surpassed what could be expected of just a normal work of illustration- it became a movement.

The openness of the world and the sheer amount of material there was to work with, paired with the analytical vigor of the fandom to understand every aspect of its universe created endless sources of inspiration for old and new artists alike. Not to mention, every fan-made character and headcanon was confirmed canon by Hussie, which added a massive amount of encouragement to anyone with an idea.

Hussie took advantage of the enthusiasm of the fanartists, even inviting many onto the project to feature guest art, compose music for, and even illustrate some of the animations and video games in Homestuck. This type of collaboration was another enchanting characteristic of the comic that not only made Homestuck all the more special for its fans, but also made it a huge source of inspiration that spoke great lengths to the achievements possible through the internet, and the opportunities out there for illustrators and other artists when they are persistent. After all, Homestuck started off practically unknown.

It was this unknown webcomic that would eventually grow to leave an undeniable legacy in illustration. After gathering a community around it, it is no surprise that thousands of artists were influenced by its anthology of styles and ideas. For one, it completely remodeled what was considered a “webcomic” and popularized the use of massive multi-media and hyperfiction. Hundreds of webcomics followed in its tracks, all of them showing signs of Homestuck’s influence. Some of the most memorable of these being Ava’s Demon, Thunderpaw, Spacepaw, Neokosmos, Living When Dead, The Black Road to Oz,  and  Prequel. Many featured the hyperlink format, single panel design, simplified art styles-ranging to highly rendered art (like Homestuck did), insert command styles, animation and gifs included to forward the stories and add to the effectiveness of panels or communicate without words, spoilers to include more text, modifying scroll capabilities in the illustration, the web pages, and more. The fanartists could also find considerable renown online due to the immense popularity of the comic, several artists got noticed and hired by Hussie, and/or by other companies because of their art getting shared around by the hoards of ‘homestucks’- the colloquialism for the fans of the hypercomic. Artists such as Ikimaru, Lemonteaflower, Viivus, Shelby Cragg, Hillary Esdaile, and Emptyfeet, gained loyal followings and were able to pursue illustration thanks to the support that spawned along with their roots in the fandom that blossomed from Homestuck. By far the most well-known of the artists that came from underneath Homestuck’s influence/ employ is Toby Fox, the creator of Undertale, an actual click through adventure like the ones Homestuck was modeled on. Even if they didn’t make it to the big lights themselves with success, countless illustrators/artists were influenced by some aspect or another of homestuck or its fandom , and that legacy can still be traced through tumblr.

To a really astounding degree, so much art came from the fandom and permeated through the internet illustration culture. Pure multimedia is being used on such a grander scale now that illustrators have been exposed to works like Homestuck, and it’s truly multi-layered illustrations and stories with more than just drawing.  Pixel art and talksprites also experienced a surge in popularity. Homestuck even resulted in two forms of illustration that were rarely seen, if not seen at all online, previously: pieces dubbed “lyric-stucks.” These were collections of illustrations that corresponded with lyrics, oftentimes using large amounts of the content/symbolism from Homestuck to drive meaning. These types of series were designed solely for the tumblr scrolling format, where the images would connect on the tops and bottoms to each other so that they could be experienced naturally on the web. These evolved into solely long art posts without the lyrics, and although both of these forms of illustration might have existed outside of the Homestuck umbrella, their frequency beneath it is irrefutable to anyone who inhabited tumblr during the years the comic was most active.  A final artistic tool that surfaced with the Homestuck inspiration storm was the character template that it supplied for future illustrators struggling to develop fully realized characters. This template followed a very basic schematic, a symbol for the character, a typing quirk which demonstrated their personality, a color to be directly associated with the character, a classpect (a more accessible personality qualifier than the Myer Briggs format), and a series of quadrants for categorizing interpersonal relationships. Interestingly, the quadrants have managed to soak into social media and fandoms that aren’t even close to Homestuck- the idea was so easily applicable.

It was this type of universality that made Homestuck such a global success. Fans could be found everywhere from Korea to the Netherlands to Brazil and on. Its reach and the participation of all these cultures consolidating into a single community for a single work of art is what embodied the spirit of Homestuck.  This hypercomic, in the plainest sense, was an illustrated culmination of the internet experience. It was a seven year event that can never be experienced again, as waiting for updates and the happenings in between was a necessary part of this near performative art piece. Those that participated were touched by it. The beauty of it was endlessly interpretable, and while the readers were waiting for the next pages to be released, they were discussing it. The fandom was not confined to just illustration, they explored the possibilities through every form of art. It encouraged conspiracy and intense transcendental examination to see it as more than just a webcomic. It was an actual adventure; it was a happening. This was part of the illustrative genius of Homestuck:  Hussie wrote the comic reflectively for the fandom’s reactions. To a degree, it was a social experiment. It was an illustrative motion, manipulated to see how far the medium of hyperfiction could be used, the humor could be pushed, the drama could be taken, and how absurd and complex it could get before it started really losing its momentum. Miraculously, the only periods in which it lost its vigor were during the hiatuses that Hussie took. Unfortunately, his hiatus between 2013 and 2016 took a huge toll on the population of the Homestuck fandom when updates were so drastically sporadic that even the movement known as “Hiatus-stuck”, which provided the fandom with increasingly nonsensical memes and art, couldn’t keep it afloat. But just because the fans migrated to other fandoms  doesn’t mean that they didn’t take Homestuck and its influences with them. The meaning of “webcomic” was still changed in their eyes, and the ideas that they generated in the light of Homestuck’s groundbreaking demonstration of the extent of illustration in the hyper world can still be credited to Andrew Hussie’s masterpiece: a subcultural phenomenon of the internet. (( if you want to read the doc itself, with the photos and the citations: read it here. ))