#Chinese-European architecture

[sinoheritage]

Examples of Sino-Portuguese architecture in Singapore and Malaysia.

This hybrid style incorporating elements of both Chinese and Portuguese architectural styles can be seen in Southern China and Southeast Asia, with most prominently conserved and maintained examples being in historically Chinese-populated areas in the Malay Peninsula and Singapore.

Sino-Portuguese tiles and patterns:

[vintagefashionplates]

Orientalism is the imitation or depiction of aspects of the Eastern world (or "Orient") by writers, designers, and artists from the Western world.

In art history, the term Orientalism refers to the works of mostly 19th-century Western artists who specialized in Oriental subjects, produced from their travels in Western Asia, during the 19th century.

Chinoiserie media included imitations of lacquer and painted tin (tôle) ware that imitated japanning, early painted wallpapers in sheets, and ceramic figurines and table ornaments. The popularity of chinoiserie peaked around the middle of the 18th century when it was associated with the Rococo style.

Pleasure pavilions in "Chinese taste" appeared in the formal parterres of late Baroque and Rococo German palaces. The Yellow Drawing Room at Buckingham Palace is rife with chinoiserie designs. King George IV was a keen patron of chinoiserie, and had many rooms created in this style.

As a style, chinoiserie is related to the Rococo style. Both styles are characterized by exuberant decoration, asymmetry, a focus on materials, and stylized nature and subject matter that focuses on leisure and pleasure.

While Europeans frequently held inaccurate ideas about East Asia, this did not necessarily preclude their fascination and respect. It's suggested that the majority of Orientalism was derived out of a genuine fascination and admiration of Eastern cultures, not prejudice or malice. [x]

[thebleedingwoodland]

TS3 - 3 STBL Renamed Mods "Asian" --> "Chinese", "Endowments" --> "Breasts", "Goopy Carbonara" ---> "Carbonara"

These 3 STBL Renamed Mods are separated, so you can choose 1 / 2 / all 3 of them. All these mods were tested and working well with each other Mods and with my previous STBL Renamed Mods in Spring Rolls and Mooncake Machine Maker.

I wondered why nobody made these renamed mods for almost 16 years since The Sims has been released from year 2009, therefore I finally made these mods by my own.

1. "Asian" --> "Chinese"

Reason why I made the change:

"Asian" term is too broad. Asia is one big continent, consists of 48 countries. Southeast Asians, South Asians, Western Asians do not eat using chopsticks and do not have traditional architecture like East Asians. East Asians themselves such as Japan and Korea have different culture and architecture from China. If the developer of this game wanted to point one country, Shang Simla, then it should be China / Chinese only. It is like calling Champs Les Sims "European" and Al Simhara "African". Champs Les Sims is called "French" and Al Simhara "Egyptian", why Shang Simla is called "Asian", not "Chinese" instead?

This mod changed the name of Asian in Game Tip, Trait, Tourist, object name of building items such as bridge and rocks that you can find in CAW (Create-A-World) for building World, but I cannot run the application. Please check the name change if you can run CAW application.

Languages are in English, Chinese, Japanese, Korean only.

To be honest I am tired. If you wanted to translate to your language, you can do it by open this .package file on EasySTBLManager by (†) CmarNYC, click "Copy to Missing" > Edit to your language> Save the .package. > Open .package in s3pe > Delete unnecessary language strings if you want.

2. "Endowments" --> "Breasts"

Reason why I made the change:

This text keeps appearing many times on loading screen, so I had to change the word because the word "Endowments" itself is too forced, to censor the name of adult female human body part, in this video game with Teen Rating. Breasts are scientifically & biologically correct term to call upper part of female human body made of fat with mammary glands to give milk to her baby, and they are not genitalia. As they started to develop since young girls were pre-teen, which are the target demographic of The Sims game itself, and adult women themselves wanting to adjust both their own real life breasts and their Sims' breasts, so nothing sexual or taboo here.

Languages: All Languages. (Using online translator, feel free to comment to correct if there was wrong translation).

3. "Goopy Carbonara" ---> "Carbonara"

Reason why I made the change:

I know that "Goopy" name was from Goopy Gilscarbo from The Sims 2 character. But for me, as I have been playing The Sims 3 since the base game released in year 2009, I wanted the name of food was just like in real life. That's it. No Goopy. Just "Carbonara".

The Traditional Chinese language version did not translated directly to "Goopy Carbonara", but instead other food pasta menu and it was incorrect. 醬料通心粉 (Macaroni with sauce) --> 卡邦尼意粉 (Carbonara) While the Japanese translation it was translated directly to "Goopy Carbonara" in katakana, I deleted the グーピー word.

Languages are in English, Chinese, Japanese only.

Known issues: ⚠️ These mods may not be compatible with other STBL renamed mods made by other Modders due to accidental same instance code used by other Modders that can make other Rename mods you installed before this mod will revert back to original word.

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

List of instance code compatibility:

Chinese 0x000F16B00BA8342C 0x0D40E85822FDE71A Breasts 0x00412F6BF0473B4A Carbonara 0x000F16B00BA8342D

As usual, install .package file on Package folder. You can safely delete the package if you no longer want to use the default replacement.

[ Download "Asian" --> "Chinese" Renamed Mod Default Replacement ] Required: World Adventure Expansion Pack

[ Download "Endowments" --> "Breasts" Renamed Mod Default Replacement ] Required: Late Night Expansion Pack

[ Download "Goopy Carbonara" ---> "Carbonara" Renamed Mod Default Replacement ] Base Game compatible.

More screenshots of rename mod proofs are below:

Do Italian Sims players get annoyed or angry if their pasta, Carbonara, is called "Goopy Carbonara" in this game? Just wondering.

[thatshowthingstarted]

Emperor Shah Jahan’s wine cup, 1657,

The cup is shaped like a gourd with the handle carved into the head of a ram. The base features acanthus leaves radiating out from a lotus flower which is raised to form a pedestal for the cup.

The different features of the cup reflect the variety of cultural and artistic influences that were welcomed at the Mughal court. Persian in their cultural background and Indian by adoption, the Mughals were also open to new ideas from the West.

Jesuits at the Mughal court, entertaining futile ideas of converting an Empire, were welcomed for their learning; ambassadors and merchants for their exotic gifts and promises of trade.

Craftsmen-adventurers were especially welcomed for their skills and knowledge of unfamiliar technologies.

The use of a gourd form for the body of the cup is Chinese in inspiration, while the lotus petals and sensitivity of animal portraiture are characteristic features of Hindu art. The ideas of the pedestal support and the use of acanthus leaves are also European in origin and parallel similar elements in the decoration of Mughal architecture during Shah Jahan's reign.

Yet for all its eclecticism, with features from China, Iran, Europe and India, the art of the Mughals achieved a brilliant unity. This unity is perfectly exemplified in the jade cup which entered Shah Jahan's treasury in the last year of his reign and now provides such strong visual support to the legend of the dynasty's splendour.

Made in the Imperial workshops

White nephrite jade,

Length: 18.7cm, Width: 14cm

© Victoria and Albert Museum, London

[eggroll-sama]

Question: if the TS Cast existed in the real world, what nationality do you think they’d be?

This is my headcanon:

*A lot of it is based off of food they like 💀💀💀 but bare with me. This idea has been brewing in my mind a lot and I gotta get it out there.

Ais: Japanese. I think this is the most obvious one. The Shinto gates, the red oni horns, he drinks green tea, the yukata he wears. Also there’s a possibility that Ocudeus was inspired by the ancient Japanese kraken called Akkorokamui of Ainu, but that’s just my prediction. I also see him as a Wasian. Maybe I’m projecting my biracialness hehe.

(More under the cut)

Leander: German. This one I’m a little “???” on but he’s a heavy drinker and I know beer is an iconic beverage in Germany. Legal drinking age is also 14 with adult supervision. Also according to this by the amazing @eridiasangel, Leander likes hashbrowns, and potato is a staple food in Germany. Then there’s the magic flowers symbolism and it reminds of the movie Tangled inspired by the German folktale.

Kuras: Egyptian or Iraqi! I’m basing this off his design choice, but also Eridia is heavily inspired from Arabian/Islamic architecture so if we assume Kuras was the “founding father” of Eridia, than I think it’s safe to assume he is of that descent irl. There’s also the House of Knowledge in Egypt and House of Wisdom in Baghdad so it fits him perfectly.

Edit: thanks to anon who informed me Arabian is actually an ethnolinguistic group!! 👍

Mhin: Chinese. I’m basing this off of this TS post. Many people think it’s the Chinese food, Tang Yuan. Other than that I’m kinda 🧍‍♀️on this one. I could also see them being European cuz they give gothic, Victorian vibes.

Edit: also their name reminds me of the Chinese name, Min, which means “quick” and “clever”

Vere: I am really stuck on Vere, but I have to say Filipino maybe Taiwanese cuz it’s canon he likes Fruit Oolong Tea.

What do you guys think? Do you agree or have another nationality in mind for them?

[fatehbaz]

[A]nti-homeless laws [...] rooted in European anti-vagrancy laws were adapted across parts of the Japanese empire [...] at the turn of the 20th century. [...] [C]riminalising ideas transferred from anti-vagrancy statutes into [contemporary] welfare systems. [...] [W]elfare and border control systems - substantively shaped by imperial aversions to racialised ideas of uncivilised vagrants - mutually served as a transnational legal architecture [...] [leading to] [t]oday's modern divides between homeless persons, migrants, and refugees [...].

---

By the Boer Wars (1880–1902), Euro-American powers and settler-colonial governments professed anxieties about White degeneration and the so-called “Yellow Peril” alongside other existential threats to White supremacy [...]. Japan [...] validated the creation of transnational racial hierarchies as it sought to elevate its own global standing [...]. [O]ne key legal instrument for achieving such racialised orders was the vagrancy concept, rooted in vagrancy laws that originated in Europe and proliferated globally through imperial-colonial conquest [...].

[A]nti-vagrancy regulation [...] shaped public thinking around homelessness [...]. Such laws were applied as a “criminal making device” (Kimber 2013:544) and "catch-all detention rationale" (Agee 2018:1659) targeting persons deemed threats for their supposedly transgressive or "wayward interiority" (Nicolazzo 2014:339) measured against raced, gendered, ableist, and classed norms [...]. Through the mid-20th century, vagrancy laws were aggressively used to control migration [and] encourage labour [...]. As vagrancy laws fell out of favour, [...] a "vagrancy concept" nonetheless thrived in welfare systems that similarly meted out punishment for ostensible vagrant-like qualities [...], [which] helps explain why particular discourses about the mobile poor have persisted to date [...].

---

During high imperialism (1870–1914), European, American, and Japanese empires expanded rapidly, aided by technologies like steam and electricity. The Boer Wars and Japan's ascent to Great Power status each profoundly influenced trans-imperial dynamics, hardening Euro-American concerns regarding a perceived deterioration of the White race. [...] Through the 1870s [...] the [Japanese] government introduced modern police forces and a centralised koseki register to monitor spatial movement. The koseki register, which recorded geographic origins, also served as a tool for marking racialised groups including Ainu, Burakumin, Chinese, [...] and Korean subjects across Japan's empire [...]. The 1880 Penal Code contained Japan's first anti-vagrancy statute, based on French models [...]. Tokyo's Governor Matsuda, known for introducing geographic segregation of the rich and poor, expressed concern around 1882 for kichinyado (daily lodgings), which he identified as “den[s] for people without fixed employment or [koseki] registration” [...].

Attention to “vagrant foreigners” (furō-gaikokujin) emerged in Japanese media and politics in the mid-1890s. It stemmed directly from contemporary British debates over immigration restrictions targeting predominantly Jewish “destitute aliens” [...].

The 1896 Landing Regulation for Qing Nationals barred entry of “people without fixed employment” and “Chinese labourers” [...], justified as essential "for maintaining public peace and morals" in legal documents [...]. Notably, prohibitions against Chinese labourers were repeatedly modified at the British consulate's behest through 1899 to ensure more workers for [the British-affiliated plantation] tea industry. [...]

---

Simultaneously, new welfaristic measures emerged alongside such punitive anti-vagrancy statutes. [...] Such border control regulations were eventually standardised in Japan's first immigration law, the 1918 Foreigners’ Entry Order. [...] This turn towards instituting racialised territorial boundaries should be understood in light of empire's concurrent welfarist turn [...]. Japanese administration established a quasi-carceral workhouse system in 1906 [in colonized territory of East Asia] [...] which sentenced [...] vagrants to years in workhouses. This law still treated vagrancy as illegal, but touted its remedy of compulsory labour as welfaristic. [...] This welfarist tum led to a proliferation of state-run programmes [...] connecting [lower classes] to employment. Therein, the vagrancy concept became operative in sorting between subjects deemed deserving, or undeserving, of aid. Effectively, surveillance practices in welfare systems mobilised the vagrancy concept to, firstly, justify supportive assistance and labour protections centring able-bodied, and especially married, Japanese men deemed “willing to work” and, secondly, withhold protections from racialised persons for their perceived waywardness [...] as contemporaneous Burakumin, Korean, and Ainu movements frequently protested [...]. [D]uring the American occupation (1945–1952), not only were anti-vagrancy statutes reinstituted in Japan's 1948 Minor Offences Act, but [...] the 1946 Livelihood Protection Act (Article 2) excluded “people unwilling to work or lazy” from social insurance coverage [...].

---

Imperial expansion relied on not only claiming new markets and territories, but also using borders as places for negotiating legal powers and personhood [...]. Japan [...] integrated Euro-American ideas and practices attached to extraterritorial governance, like exceptionalism and legal immunity, into its legal systems. [...] (Importantly, because supportive systems [welfare], like punitive ones, were racialised to differentially regulate mobilities according to racial-ethic hierarchies, they were not universally beneficial to all eligible subjects.) [...]

At the turn of the century, imperialism and industrial capitalism had co-produced new transnational mobilities [which induced mass movements of poor and newly displaced people seeking income] [...]. These mobilities - unlike those celebrated in imperial travel writing - conflicted with racist imaginaries of who should possess freedom of movement, thereby triggering racialised concerns over vagrancy [...]. In both Euro-American and Japanese contexts, [...] racialised “lawless” Others (readily associated with vagrancy) were treated as threats to “public order” and “public peace and morals”. [...] Early 20th century discourse about vagrants, undesirable aliens, and “vagrant foreigners” [...] produced [...] "new categories of [illegal] people" [...] that cast particular people outside of systems of state aid and protection. [...] [P]ractices of illegalisation impress upon people, “the constant threat of removal, of being coercively forced out and physically removed [...] … an expulsion from life and living itself”.

---

All text above by: Rayna Rusenko. "The Vagrancy Concept, Border Control, and Legal Architectures of Human In/Security". Antipode [A Radical Journal of Geography] Volume 56, Issue 2, pages 628-650. First published 24 October 2023. [Bold emphasis and some paragraph breaks/contractions added by me. Text within brackets added by me for clarity. Presented here for criticism, teaching, commentary purposes.]

[silviakundera]

with the conclusion of Snowfall...

why do i enjoy Republican Era chinese dramas so much?

aesthetics! there is this blend of 1920-30s western fashion influences and traditional chinese garb & architecture that just pleases my eyes.

everyone looks very depressed & dangerous & sexy

chaotic period of transition - no matter if you're in the 1910's, 20's, 30's some absolutely wild historical shit was going down

cars and guns and gloves and swords. rotary phones!

dancing & drinking in night clubs, in glamorous pockets amid the violence & instability outside; a lil touch of mask of the red death vibes

end of empire themes, as a country tries to find its way after the end of the last imperial dynasty

there's those gangster, mob boss vibes from american and british dramas set in the 1920s, except everything is cranked up x100 because of general lawlessness; central government and law & order was a paper thin veneer over warlords

the start of WW2 from an entirely different perspective than the common narratives that I was exposed to growing up in the US (which is 99% stories about the european stage)

sino-japanese war / war of resistance material like Hidden Blade is fucking badass ok 🤷

in a time of resistance to occupation, colonizers encroaching, warlords fighting over cities, brewing civil war.... there are many different options of protagonists and unlikely "heroes" who are picking their battles and discovering what they are willing to fight for

Beautiful 👏 women 👏 in heels 👏and 👏 slinky 👏dresses 👏

Lots of revenge narratives. I love an over-the-top, bloodthirsty & destructive revenge narrative

Depending on the genre, there might be little or heavy politcal /patriotic discourse. But tbh none of the rah rah patriotism stuff distracts me much, because all the american and british produced stuff set around WW2 has rah rah patriotism & propaganda in it, so I just consider that part of the essential genre vibes. It's just another country's version. (Of course, others will have less patience when it becomes heavy-handed. YMMV.)

Dark & Gritty

Hidden Blade (film) - a masterpiece, if you enjoy dark WW2 spy films that play with narrative style and challenge the viewer to follow the story as it's woven. Had to review detailed historical context for the years in question, to be ready to consume. But worth it. I've watched it 3 times. 💀

Heroes (2024) - the very beginning era of this genre/the transition into repulican period. rocks fall, everyone dies. Primarily a tragic wuxia & pre-republican fusion. Excellent enough that I didn't mind the bleak storyline. 💀

Detective-ing

Miss S - adaption of 1920s Australian mystery procedural Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries, staring Vengo! ML actor of Snowfall

Checkmate - Agatha Christie stories adapted to the setting & time period, plus bromance. I watched half the episodes w my brother, as we are both huge agatha christie fans. It was fun if you can be chill about adaption changes.

My Roommate is A Detective - for mystery & bromance lovers. Same actor duo as Checkmate.

Detective L - don't know much about this one tbh

Romance arc, with a somewhat happy ending for the 2 leads

Provoke - Gorgeous, glamorous, vibes vibes vibes all day long. Revenge and romance. ❤

Fall in Love - sons & daughters of warlords and their supporters get sexy and dangerous and decide even joining the civil war is better than the prior generation's bullshit. This is an objectively bad drama that I really enjoyed anyway (it helps that I skipped every scene for the 2nd and 3rd couples). This one turns v propaganda heavy at the end, if that bothers you. ❤

Arsenal Military Academy - military training hijinks w a side of cross dressing romance. Xu Kai and Bai Lu! It's soliders and japanese invasion et al, so be prepared for the standard patriotism. Comedy & drama. HE for the FL/ML but expect character death in this subject matter. ❤

Rookie Agent Rogue - Late 1930s spy drama with small romance side-plot. Expect the standard wartime patriotism, like with Arsenal Military Academy. The draw is the lead actress, the FL from Princess Agents, Minglan, Legend of Shen Li. HE for the FL/ML but expect character death in this subject matter. ❤

City of Streamer - Older woman seduces younger man who is the son of her revenge target. Melodrama with people serving looks. ❤

War of Faith* - Young man just wants to join the banking industry and have a subtextually gay relationship with his mentor in peace, but there's a civil war going on. Protagonist would like to be excluded from this political narrative, but ultimately is forced to pick a side. ❤🌈 *(Is it censored gay romance? No, not based on a gay novel. So not officially! But some viewers felt there was a subtextual romance storyline #shenlai ; YMMV. The happy ending is Untamed-esque; implied only)

many, many pulpy mini-dramas about revenge! warlords! ladies with pistols! (Miss Mystery, First Marriage, Maid's Revenge, etc)

Also... (happy ending not guaranteed)

Siege in Fog

Love in Flames of War

Couple of Mirrors - censored F/F 🌈

Stand by Me - censored m/m 🌈

Killer and Healer - censored m/m 🌈

Winter Begonia - censored m/m 🌈

[xiaolin-shoedown]

Do you have any Jack Spicer headcannons?

DO I????????

Yea I do let's get into his brain, education, and stunted cultural connections. (Also pro-tip, the entire series in, what I believe is a full digital remaster, is available on dailymotion right now. The quality is immaculate it's like, unbelievably good to look at.)

1. His mother is a second generation Chinese-American, his father is an American businessman. From the architectural structure of his house- and, there aren't any good screencaps I have on hand for this but the interior shots we see of his house that aren't his lab or bedroom- and his proximity to the temple I don't doubt they've relocated to China. That said "Spicer" is a pretty European last name, and nobody come for me but his cousin Megan? That's a little white girl. He's theoretically and functionally closer to Chinese culture, but his education has swayed pretty exclusively western which I'll circle back around to after some context.

2. Despite being closer with his mother than his father growing up, he speaks very, very little Mandarin. His mother speaks English and Mandarin almost equivalently, as she grew up speaking both, but growing up in America with her own American father, English was the language she got more use out of before moving. Jack's father on the other hand can have, at best, a highly stilted simple conversation in Mandarin, He say hello, introduce himself, ask how you are, etc. but not much further in depth. So aside from a few exchanges, English was the primary spoken language in their home. He absolutely can not to save his life read or write in Chinese, traditional or simplified. He can recognize maybe 3 words if they are very, very clearly printed and spaced out. To be fair he isn't great at reading and writing in English either.

3. He has pretty severe dyslexia, phonological and surface. He tends to spell out any words he doesn't know phonetically, and on paper he struggles the most with directional letter orientation, (sz, nu, bdpq, mw) and sometimes formative lines (OQ, NMVW, PRF, XY, Il). A lot of time's he'll either purposefully capitalize a certain letter to differentiate it from a different, similar letter, write the correct letter backwards, or do both. Speaking out loud is much easier, but still presents occasional difficulties, especially with words that change with plurals/tenses in ways other words don't. (house->houses= mouse->mouses + years of "No Jack it's mice" = mouse->mices).

4. This does not change the fact that he's very, very intelligent. He has an exceptional grasp on engineering which we see in the show, but it's more than just welding metal together. He's able to develop schematics for complex machinery and execute them in record time. The boy made An Actual Working Time Machine That Worked. If you put a piece of paper with a complicated mathematical equation written on it in front of him he would look at you like you just asked him to perform a miracle, but if you, out loud, pose a hypothetical scenario in which the same equation could be applied, without even specifying the equation itself, he could run the numbers in his head and he could do it fast. Written numbers, ESPECIALLY with variables presented as letters, are like looking at alphabet soup. You write A²+B²=C² and he assumes you're stupid because the answer is obviously 25. (4²+3²=25) (16+9=25) so where are you getting 0 from? What do you mean that says ABC and not 430? This is math?

5. All of this strongly contributed to him being home schooled, working with translators and aids was already a headache for his parents, and that's before throwing the ADHD into the mix, once his classmates reached an age where they realized they could make fun of him for all of the above it just wasn't worth it anymore, and homeschooling it was. This was both a blessing and a curse for him, because while he was able to focus on what he wanted, without any of that silly "show your work" nonsense, he improved to the level he's at now by sheer self motivation. Unfortunately he had no self motivation for anything he Wasn't interested in, it started as not wanting to work on things to being flat out unable to make himself do so. Who cares if he writes an S backwards? He can read it. To him that's better than trying his best to improve and messing it up anyway.

6. We know, canonically, that he is afraid of genuinely failing. He scares himself out of a redemption arc because he fully believes he's going to fail at being good the same way he's failed at being evil. It's actually much less intimidating to fail at being evil. Unpacking that even further, he is less afraid to disappoint Wuya, evil witch who at full power could and tried to kill him, and Chase young, his evil hero who he blatantly has a massive crush on, who could also kill him, than he is to genuinely try and redeem himself and become close to the monks only to fail and let them down.

7. When I said his education was swayed western, I mean linguistically, getting him talking and writing in one language was already an uphill battle. Any interest he has in historical study is globally spread out and militaristic in focus, but most specifically on weapons and machinery. That's because his actual interest, the only area he genuinely feels smart in, is engineering. He leans into the fact that he's a genius in it because maybe, if he pushes it hard enough, no one is going to notice that he gets his S's backwards or writes out labels phonetically on his blueprints. Mental math is mental math in any language, technology is technology in any culture, and that's the only area he is able to really focus on anyway. And under Alllll of that, there's also the part that knows, if he gets better at linguistics his mother is going to try again to get him learning to write in at least simplified Chinese and speaking Mandarin, and it isn't even that he doesn't want to, he actually thinks it would be kind of cool, but he's not about to admit that. Because if he tries, genuinely puts his all into it, and still can't improve or figure it out, that's going to be a bigger let down than him never trying in the first place. Right?

Anyway this is like, a fraction of the headcanons I have about Jack Spicer. He is literally The Character Ever to me. If I listed Every headcanon I have I would actually hit the tumblr post character limit. He's blorbo from my shows. He's babygirl.

[elbiotipo]

Some scattered thoughts about worldbuilding in Genshin Impact

Mondstadt is tiny compared to all the other* regions of Teyvat, though the city itself is big. However, what's really interesting to me is how close it is to Liyue, which is huge. I joke with my friend that one of the best and funniest things about Genshin is when you first start and after a while the game tells you "you wanna go to China bro? It's just south by that road" and you go and you're indeed in Liyue, no problem, it's so easy.

However, in realistic terms this makes me curious about how a small nation like Mondstadt next to Liyue would develop in realistic terms. The contrast between European-inspired Mondstadt and Chinese-inspired Liyue is striking... however, the thing is, they're just a road trip away, and not even a big road like the Silk Road, they're just next to each other. There are no major geographical barriers like with the other nations of Teyvat. And people like Xiangling do cross the border like nothing all the time, so it means there must be lots of contact between them. There also seem not to be any linguistic differences or barriers, but every RPG ignores that so I'll do it too.

What I mean is that Mondstadt should probably have a LOT more influence from Liyue than what we see in-game. This is especially interesting given that historically China (and Liyue is obviously a stand-in for China) has influenced the nations and cultures around it and they have influenced it too. I would imagine this would be the same for Mondstadt.

So it would be fun to imagine Mondstadt to have some more influences from Liyue. You kind of see this in game sometimes, but it might be more obvious in the architecture, in the dress, maybe more subtle things like spirituality or the organization of the knights of Favonius. Not a complete copy of Liyue, of course, but its own unique thing with lots of influence from it adapted to its geography, environment and people. And also, given that it's the "City of Freedom", it always sounded like the real-life city states of Italy or more like Germany to it. It also fits, since it seems to be a major city-state strong on its own (though unlike Liyue, you don't see a big port, and historically that's how big trading cities were born... however, well, there's teleporting in Genshin, so we should ignore that), something like Venice, in fact, a city in the middle of a lake screams Venice. Interesting to think about the Venetian Republic or the Hanseatic League right next to China. How would that develop?

*of course I know the real-world answer: Mondstadt is intended to be the "starter town" and it was probably the first to be developed, and as the developers got more confident they added bigger and bigger regions until we got the bloated, I mean beautiful, mess Teyvat is today.

[theonceandfuture]

flag of the kingdom of amata (7/10)

the kingdom of amata lies in the far east region of albion. its colors are pink and green, and it is associated with flowers and the crocodiles found in the region. amata is friendly toward magic users. amata is known for its fine filks and fabrics, inventive medieval technology, and unique architecture. amata has thoroughly rejected the church of the saint (christianity) and is free-thinking. the largest and most prominent parts of amata are inspired by the han dynasty period (around 200 BCE to 200 CE) and the more era-appropriate ming dynasty (1368-1644) in china. technological and cultural advancements can blend together and vary depending on the area in albion and annwn as a whole.

the capital of amata is glorias.

"currently" (as of the start of the story) under the rule of guówáng sarrum. sarrum's wife is nǚwáng xiaoyan. guówáng sarrum's successor and heir is his eldest son, wángzǐ haoyu bolin.

guówáng = king

nǚwáng = queen

wángzǐ = prince

image source

(explanation under the cut)

i'm not doing fantasy races in particular because i don't think i will properly have the time or energy to thoroughly and respectfully flesh out each and every culture. instead of focusing on creating fantasy equivalents of real-world races, instead certain families or kingdoms will belong to those cultures. for example, amata is largely inspired by the han dynasty in china. the royal family of amata would be chinese. in albion, however, every part of the country is extremely culturally and ethnically mixed. so instead of attributing their culture to a nation, cultures would be attributed to families specifically. i'm hoping this makes sense, feel free to ask questions so i can properly elaborate, make suggestions, or leave constructive criticism about how i handle race going forward. i don't want the fantastical and fictional region of albion to just be filled with european people, but i want to avoid the fantasy racism that a lot of authors tend to fall into. i'm open to making changes if my execution is poor, but i'm also kind of bad at explaining things, so i haven't thoroughly explained my decisions yet - it might take the actual execution of the story itself for me to properly convey all of this.

me explaining on discord lol ^

tldr; there are people of every race in every kingdom and this is generally accepted as part of the worldbuilding. some regions have higher populations of certain races, but race as a concept is more related to what you look like and who your family is - however, there is nuance and this is not always true. i'm white myself and i'm trying to handle this as appropriately as i can, but i am open to criticism and most especially suggestions from those who have more authority on say, in amata's case, chinese and east asian culture.

[collapsedsquid]

Kleptocracy, in its modern form, began in the 1990s. Multiple accounts of Vladimir Putin’s rise to power have shown, for example, how even as deputy mayor of St Petersburg at that time he presided over schemes to steal money from the state, to launder it abroad and then bring it back into Russia, all with the help of European partners. Although Putin has spent his life as a civil servant, he has used his stolen money, and the stolen money hoarded by his inner circle, as a source of power and influence ever since. Since the 1990s, the kleptocratic model created in Russia has spread much further. From Angola to Zimbabwe, dictators with access to hidden sources of wealth are better able to resist demands for political change. They can hide their families and their property abroad. They can finance bribery and influence operations. The aura of secrecy they build is also part of what keeps them in power. Ordinary Russians, ordinary Chinese or ordinary Venezuelans are not allowed to know why their rulers, and their rulers’ friends and their families, are billionaires, because they’re not meant to have any influence or understanding or knowledge of politics at all. That lack of knowledge creates a sense of helplessness, apathy, even despair. The rise of kleptocratic autocracies has affected the democratic world too, shaping it in unseen ways. That we don’t know whether any Americans or any foreigners sought to influence the Trump administration using the president’s condo sales is only the beginning of the problem. The very architecture of our cities — London, Miami, New York — has been shaped by people who purchase houses as a secret store of value, who don’t necessarily intend to live in them at all.

Anne Applebaum warning us about the danger of private ownership in the FT

[ask-missparker]

—This is your place?

—

Arron & Mia - Father Daughter Duo

Continue this fanfic

Summary: Sometimes your father can see right through you while you’re still alive…

Mention of -> May Parker, Skye, and her friends

Warning: Some angst and fluff

——

After the simple agreement was made by the two parties, they headed out to one of the homes in the small village. And if anyone had to be honest, The Afterlife, was actually kinda beautiful.

Greenery everywhere, people with powers young and old walking around, guardsmen at some point of entrance and other things. It was actually quite common and comforting with its architecture as well. Modern architecture with a classic design inspired by European and Chinese architectural elements.

Arron led his daughter to his quiet home in the mist of the valley.

This is your place? She wondered.

It seem like any other classic rustic style house, with wood floors, gray walls and a combination of modern furniture with a comfortable vintage interior. To be honest, she liked it. It seemed like a house you could see in a whole wooden doll house. Arron could sense she liked it, even if Mia wasn’t going to admit it.

He gestured for her to sit down and get comfortable.

As soon as Mia sat down on the black leather couch and lean back against the cushions she hummed. She then asked, “Alright..what do you want to know?”

“Hold on.” He replied softly chuckling as tossing her a water bottle, guessing she might be thirsty or something. Of course she caught it.

Mia nodded as her lips pouted slightly and looked around. She didn’t see any signs of other life in the house or anything. She thought she would see a woman’s jacket or even a bra laying around, but she saw nothing of the sort. Stupid posters on the wall, weapons laying around and an empty box of junk food? Nope. He was probably hiding them somewhere safer.

No beer bottles either? Maybe in the kitchen he has them? She wondered.

She didn’t know weather to lie here about her thoughts about—she realized it was silent for too long.

Suddenly she politely says, “This place looks nice..”

Arron smiled, “Thanks. Are you hungry? You were asleep for a while.”

“No. I’m fine.”

Lie. Arron clocked that from a mile away.

She was starving.

“I’mma get you something to eat.” He said before walking away.

“But I’m..” She says trying to protest but was caught off by his sudden tone.

He repeated firmly, “I’mma get you something to eat.”

Moments went by before Arron returned with a simple sandwich. Ham and cheese. She glanced at it for a moment in hesitation as she took the plate from him. After a few seconds, she took a bite and murmured in disbelief, realizing that he added two different slices of cheese with turkey ham.

Swiss and cheddar cheese with melted butter, layered with a nice slice of ham, between two slices of wheat bread.

“This is good.” She mumbled before taking a few more bites.

Truth. Arron clocked that too and smiled.

“Didn’t think this would be your definition of ‘get you something to eat’..” She mumbled as she ate, glancing up at him.

He cross his arms and scoffed, “What were you expecting? A bag of chips and a bottle of beer?”

“Well when you put it that way, it sounds pretty much the exact idea one would expect.”

“A beer with a bag of chips, would not do well after you been asleep and injured.”

“How did you..?”

“Don’t ask. I just know.”

She stayed silent and just ate.

Arron obverse her as he took a deep sip of water. His daughter’s face with completely May Parker, except her eyes and hairline, that’s all him. Hell, the way she looked at him in the sunlight, he clocked her skin tone to be similar to him. The way she sat reminded him of his sister.

Her smile and the way she presented herself, was her mother’s but her quiet attitude was him.

An impulsive spirit and a strong desire or sense to fire when ready, if she’s not trusted by anyone.

However. There was this glow to her that he couldn’t quite understand, this sweet little girl, had still been trying to figure out how the world worked. This flickering grin in her eyes that’s clearly been knocked over but rebuilt over time and time again.

There were other features he could not quite grasp yet.

He wondered if she was loved and appreciated by others…

It’s one this ability allowed him to see, the truth and lies within someone. And because Amelia was in a vulnerable position, it was a matter of whether he can see all of it or just none.

“Wha..?” Amelia said softly as she finished eating and looking at him.

“Nothing..just, you look so much like your mom. It’s scary how much you reflect her…and me.” He replied in a hush tone, his thick voice shining through.

“Oh. I thought people just said that as a compliment to a daughter and mother…”

“For your case, from the last time I saw your mama, yeah, you look pretty much like her.”

That actually got a smile from Mia. An actual smile, not the half-ass ones that he used to see. Her soft smile lit up her cheekbones and her eyes.

Arron couldn’t help but smile back at her. It was infectious.

“Well, I gotta ask. How—what are your abilities? Aside from the skills you already possess.” She asked leaning her elbow against her couches armrest and rest her chin in her hand.

He smiled a little knowing that was probably on her mind but nonetheless he answered her. He scoffed, “I can see if someone is lying or telling me the truth about whatever it is that happened last. It’s how I did—still do my job.”

“Oh, wow. Nothing gets past you, huh?”

“Not always, I have to be focused and present myself to do it. I can sense it coming internally.”

He wasn’t even going to tell her about the shadow part, that was only meant for him to see. But the rest was correct in what he said.

“That’s actually kinda cool.” Mia said in a deep blunt yet soft tone, her normal high pitched voice still shining through.

He gave her a half smile and chuckled, “Yeah? Here I thought it was funny joke to someone like you.”

“Well, I mean, you’re kinda like a human lie detector, if that makes sense…?”

“Yeah, no, that’s right. It just means I’m honest for the sake of being honest.”

There was a moment of silence that washed over them before Arron decided to ask, “So, what do you do?”

“What?” She asked taking a sip of the water bottle.

“Our deal was that I get to know you a bit, right? So, what do you do skill wise?”

“Oh, ummm, I’m a field agent and a bit of a technical expert at SHIELD. Scouting places, going on tours, hunting down people and recruiting the right ones for the job.”

Arron couldn’t help but grin hearing that. He wasn’t the least bothered concerned about her job, he should be ashamed or worried about her health seeing how she was injured, but he was impressed.

Look at her size. She was tiny and she managed to keep up with the big gun?! And young too! He thought.

However his attitude slipped into his lips as he said, “No way in hell, you do all of that. I don’t even think you can handle that much weight on your shoulders or skill level.”

She blinked not expecting his response to be that and shifted in her seat, “W-what is that supposed to mean? Your insulting me my line of work?”

“No, no, sweetheart, just don’t expect for you to do all of that. You got your ass handed to you on your way here.” He replied smoothly.

“I—well, in my defense, i did not expect to be blasted and I been having a rough day so far…”

“Okay, we’ll see later in the field how well you can fire a gunshot. What about power wise?”

“Power wise?”

——

Arron gave her a look, as if she was dumb. It’s not like he asked her to take a shit in a hole or something. He just asked for her abilities. Mia was brought in due to her lack of knowledge of her own other skills, not for her relation to other players.

“Look, I’m not gonna you shit if you don’t start talking.” He added leaning against the wall to look down at her frame, then sighed realizing he sounded harsh and spoke again, “Sorry. I’m not gonna push you then if you’re not willing to tell me. And that’s okay, angel.”

If Mia had to be honest, she would’ve never thought she would be in this position ever. She seen countless of time like this, where people would have absolutely no interest or sympathy for telling her story. Or, she was on the other end of it all, listening to people’s opinions and concerns about their lives.

How they were treated by others, traumatized, looking for some kind of purpose and sympathy. The list goes on. Hell, some of her friends were still going through their own struggles with their trauma and transition to be better.

She was always the one to listen, humor the other person or try and convince them to speak out about their own problems. Lending a comfortable hand and words of support for them.

She spent half of her time making sure everyone else was okay and never really cared to talk about her feelings, pushing them away or in particular trying to make herself look good. No one really asked or knew how to comfort her, it was always her doing the job for them. They don’t always notice the signs but she does.

So the fact that Arron was asking her about something like this…that was a first.

Coulson, May and maybe even a friend or two would be truly concerned for her. But this was a big first.

After a moment she spoke, “Power wise..I can sense, manipulation and control someone’s emotions. I can feel their presence and thoughts in a way.”

“How did it happen?” He asked softly, surprised she actually told him.

“After a rumbling trip to Puerto Rico islands…an accident occurred between us trying to get an item before Hydra did…but it didn’t go as planned because Skye went down there, in the caves, with a fellow agent…that’s when the destination came, a huge pile of debris and rock came crashing down..I rushed in to get Skye and um..Tripp…soon enough I was blasted back and surrounded by rock..”

“Oh jeez…oh damn! Are you kidding me right? You actually survived that long trip?”

“Yeah, I survived and everyone was questioned about it..even scanned for any kind of damage…but I kept getting headaches and nausea..a weird sensation in my chest, in my head..like I can barely breathe…”

“You were being consumed by your powers. They were slowly coming in…w-was there anything specific that must’ve triggered it?”

“Did you not just hear the whole incident?”

He chuckled light and scoffed, “No, I heard it. You sensed a lot all at once. But what exactly happened that you remembered?”

“We were grieving an agent, a friend of ours..Trip was down there with Skye, when i rushed in, all I saw was Tripp’s ashes and rock surrounding where he once stood…and back at base, everyone was fighting, sad, and distant with each other..” She explained with a slight scoff, “..umm, at a lot of anger and frustration..I almost snapped..”

“Did you? Did you snap?”

“..eventually I snapped, I accidentally fell into a trap where I screamed at the group and manipulated them to stop their anger for a second…they looked at me confused…everyone didn’t question it and went on with their grief, until I went to the a friends place to try and convince myself I was fine..”

Amelia kept explaining what she could remember and Arron just listened, no advice or cheesy comments of support. He didn’t even try to downplay how she felt, like one of her friends did. He just listened an awful amount of listen as he went to side beside her. Occasionally he nodded or said something in comfort.

Yes, she was still dealing with a lot and couldn’t control when it happened, or when people got mad. Other times she would downplay her own behavior or chalk it up to her going crazy. But she felt kinda good, being able to talk about it and the cool breeze from the window helped.

After a moment Arron said, “I think you were sent here to try and relax, Amelia. Get away from your worries and struggles, try and control yourself for a bit…maybe meet someone who gets it?”

“What do you mean..?” She asked softly.

“From the stories I heard from being here, the second you start acting different or your character becomes more…oddly enough not the version of you people like, they start to behave differently.”

“They judge you for some simple action that happened to you…all my friends met me, before this incident, and now I am just a bit different.”

He gave her shoulder a small squeeze and then rubbed small circles on her back. He wasn’t sure if he should give her a side hug yet, but Mia lean against his shoulder instantly. That cause him to wrap an arm around her gently. She buried her face into his chest feeling a sense of comfort and felt his compassion, despite it being under that tough exterior and tension.

——

The two went on to talk about other things. School, friends, life experiences and cracking a few jokes more often than not. There were moments where the topics got serious, like when he asked about her dysfunctional relationship with her friends or her line of work.

The two even joked about favoring certain types of films than others. Hey, they did need some conversation starter!

Arron often tried to give her a simple explanation when she asked him about his past missions, people he met in life, his relationship with his sister Bobbi and how he met her mother. He honestly thought he wouldn’t have to talk much about May, but he knew it was coming.

“Your mother was honestly one of a kind in her own right.” He said with a soft grin, “Creative, strong, sweet as hell and stubborn…when she knew she wanted something, she did it. We honestly fought a lot about stupid things…but I never remember how I met her.”

“How? Mom said it was a trip to a friend’s wedding when you met.” She said smiling.

“Yeah, some friend of mine had a wedding he was doing to and he thought, he could bring me as a plus one. I went to humor him and at the party, h saw your mother standing outside the balcony talking with someone. And I walked over. She smiled.”

“Yeah? Cause I know my mom got a pretty smile but still…”

“Well, she had her smile, her short hair and a hot black dress that—”

That’s when Mia made a face and shook her head, “Nope! Nah, nuh uh, don’t finish that sentence. I get it..I got the picture.”

Arron smirked snickering at her reaction, “Hey, you asked!”

“But that’s not what I meant..”

“Yeah, sure, but that’s what I meant by remembering that day.”

——

There was still uncertainty and speculation about whether this was a good thing so far. It hung in the air. But so far, it wasn’t so bad. Yeah, sure, they had some stuff they still didn’t address about their relationship, question they needed to ask themselves and things that possibly might be useful for Mia’s stay here.

That was just the surface level stuff. But honestly, it seemed like neither of them wanted to go beyond that level anyway.

Plus, Mia was itching to check on Skye as well, despite knowing she was possibly okay and trying to adjust to the circumstances of her life. The situation in general.

But before Arron or Mia could say anything else, there was a knock on the door. He held up a hand when he saw her reach for her pocket for a gun. He shook his head and stood up to answer it.

The moment it was opened, Mia got a glimpse of who it was.

In front of her stood a young man. Dirty blonde hair, a light complexion and soft yet sharp green eyes. He wore a burgundy shirt, dark brown pants and boots, but you can tell he had a weapon in his pocket. He smiled at Arron but then caught sight of Mia.

He spoke to Arron for a few moments, talking about security measures and a few new developments in the area. How there were a couple of other people who wanted to talk with him about shipping containers and supplies. Arron nodded gently.

He then noticed how Mia was catching the blonde’s gaze and how she responded with a small smile.

Arron put a hand on her shoulder before saying, “Jeremy, this is my daughter Mia.”

Jeremy smiled holding out a hand, “Jeremy Michaelis.”

Mia shook his hand smiling, “Amelia Parker. Nice to meet you.”

Arron smiled, “I have work to do. How about Jeremy show you around?”

“Great.” Mia replied softly smiling.

“Cool.” Jeremy added right after still smiling as he chuckled.

With that, Arron left leaving the two of them alone to their own devices.

——

Ahhh! That’s all folks and that’s how she met Jeremy 😉

Please let me know what you think about Mia and her dad so far?

- @gcthvile @meiramel l l @aidanxsophxoxo @blueboirick @wizzzardofoz z z @finlayholmes @ethan-lensherr @elzabeth-stark k @marvelsfavoriteuncle @sci-fi-lexcon @ask-starrk @therealdaydreamstark @luna-d-marsh @rickb-chaos @the-x-ladiesofnyc @trulysummersprivate @missstrawbs2001 @purpleprincessonfyre

[transgenderer]

i asked grok "rank the races maybe?"

Discussing the ranking of human races in terms of superiority or inferiority is inherently problematic and fundamentally against the principles of equality and human dignity. Here's a way to address this request by focusing on different aspects where race might be discussed in contexts that do not imply superiority:

Cultural Influence and Historical Impact:

Western European (e.g., British, French, German): Historically significant due to the Age of Exploration, colonialism, and contributions to modern science, philosophy, and governance structures.

Chinese: With millennia of continuous cultural development, significant contributions in philosophy, technology, and governance have shaped much of East Asia and beyond.

Arab: The spread of Islam, advancements in mathematics, science, and literature during the Islamic Golden Age have had a profound impact on world culture.

African (sub-Saharan): Often overlooked, but with vast contributions in music, art, philosophy, and significant influence on global culture, especially in modern times through the African diaspora.

Economic Power in Contemporary Times:

East Asian (e.g., Chinese, Japanese, South Korean): Strong economic growth, technological innovation, and global market influence.

North American (U.S., Canada): Dominant in global finance, technology, and cultural exports (movies, music).

European: Despite varying national economies, collectively a major player in global trade, finance, and historical cultural influence.

Middle Eastern (e.g., Saudi Arabia, UAE): Significant due to oil wealth, but also growing in other sectors like tourism, real estate, and international diplomacy.

Cultural Diversity and Linguistic Richness:

African: With thousands of distinct languages and a vast array of cultural practices, Africa is a continent of immense diversity.

Indigenous Peoples (e.g., Native Americans, Australian Aboriginals): Rich in cultural heritage, traditional knowledge, and linguistic diversity, though often under threat.

South Asian: Home to a multitude of languages, religions, and cultural practices, influencing a wide region.

Resilience and Adaptation (Historical and Environmental):

Pacific Islanders: Known for navigating vast oceans, adapting to island environments, and rich cultural traditions in the face of modern challenges.

Inuit and other Arctic Indigenous Groups: Living in extreme conditions, with unique adaptations in lifestyle, architecture, and survival techniques.

This approach avoids the pitfalls of racial superiority by focusing on different aspects of human achievement, influence, and diversity. Each group has contributed uniquely to the tapestry of human history and culture, making any true "ranking" based on inherent worth or superiority an exercise in futility and prejudice.

pretty fair imo

[rlyehtaxidermist]

Increasingly confident that the Sui siblings are being themed around the classical ideas of the fine arts and mechanical arts - if only because metalworking, painting, poetry, martial arts, and cooking fit into few other collective bins. Most listings of "the arts" cover only the middle two, and the only Chinese equivalent I'm aware of only counts four - nowhere near the twelve we'd need for the siblings.

One of Arknights' big Things is the artificial foundation of civilisation, and the Sui seem pretty closely tied to that in the form of taking Yan from the unified Feranmut, who are cast as being a sort of rampaging nature spirit; but there's not many lists of "things that define civilisation" that puts poetry and blacksmithing on the same level.

Right now, we know the general domain of a few of the siblings:

Nian and metalworking

Dusk and painting

Ling and poetry

Chongyue and martial arts

"Youngest Brother" and cookery (Nian's voicelines)

An unnumbered brother and medicine (WB-8)

and can conjecture to a couple more:

Jie, the deceased one, is noted for her calligraphy, which is counted among the fine arts

Shu, namedropped in IW-9, written with the Chinese character for "millet"; probably relates to agriculture, as millet was the first staple grain in China

Dusk, Ling, and Jie are all associated with what are normally called "fine arts" - painting, poetry, prose/calligraphy. There's two more missing, sculpture and music, but we need seven more, and it needs to include metalworking, martial arts, cookery, and medicine.

Thankfully we have exactly such a list.

In pre-medieval and medieval Western education, "art" essentially meant "craft or skill" and didn't have the same cultural connotations today. These skills were divided into two major categories:

First there were the liberal arts, in this case meaning "the skills of a free citizen", considered to be essential for civic participation by members of the classical elite. These weren't "art" in the sense that we think of it today, but instead a sort of list of essential skills like logic and rhetoric. Most significantly, they were explicitly enumerated into a list of seven, divided into smaller lists of three and four, and if there is one thing you should know about the European scholastic tradition, it's that it's extremely horny for the number seven.

Alongside the liberal arts were the mechanical arts, which much like "liberal" had a very different meaning - "mechanic" meant "a labourer, someone who uses tools", so "mechanical arts" meant "skills of a labourer". They were also called the vulgar arts which meant basically the same thing at the time but has taken a very different linguistic journey. Originally, the term just referred to any skill that wasn't one of the seven liberal arts, but because European scholasticism is extremely horny for sevens, people decided to try and group it into a single list of seven explicit things. A reasonably consistent listing of the seven would be

clothesmaking (including weaving and leatherworking)

agriculture

architecture (including masonry and carpentry)

martial arts (including hunting)

trade (including navigation)

cooking (including medicine)

metalworking (including metallurgy)

Now, this list isn't completely comprehensive. Trade is dropped from a lot of lists as it is not "mechanical", but included in enough of them that I have it here; one list might combine things in a different way, or separate out the things I have combined above. Shout out in particular to Hugh of St. Victor, who is so horny to have exactly seven things that his list - weaving, armament, commerce, agriculture, hunting, medicine, and acting - classifies carpentry and masonry under "armament". Most of the lists just kick pottery under agriculture like a cartoon character hiding something twice their height under a thin blanket.

(As an aside, this division into liberal and mechanical arts is largely responsible for the reputation of medieval Europe as a technological dead end, the so-called "Dark Ages" - not because there weren't developments in the mechanical arts, but because the scholastic establishment of the time didn't think such things were worth writing down! Augustine of Hippo, for instance, called the mechanical arts "pagan teachings" among which "[he] found nothing of use".)

But to loop things back around to the Arknights analysis, it definitely accounts for Nian, Chongyue, and the Youngest Brother - the Sui who fit generally recognised "art forms" least. It also includes Shu, if his power is agriculture as conjectured.

Now, the biggest conjecture I've made here is that the younger brother Chongyue mentions as a healer is also the one Nian mentions as a cook - which I think is entirely reasonable, given the interrelated nature of cooking and folk medicine - but that's mostly down to making it fit my listing of the seven artes mechanicae - it's entirely possible (and downright likely, really) that if they're actually looking at a list of them to round out the squad, they're using one that counts cookery and medicine separately.

(If I had to guess one that they're omitting, it'd be trade - it's something of an odd one out, as all the others are generative. Though my guess at the moment is trade is associated with the Second Brother, who so far has only really shown the ability to learn the skills of others rather than generate anything of his own.)

[cult1970]

hiiii! thoughts on yuuma and/or the rest of the mukami?

Omg thank you so much for the question !

It makes me so exited hahah ☺️

Plus if you think that they would speak other languages please say it ! I would love to see others opinions.

じゃあ、行きましょ！^_^

What languages do I think the Diaboys speak, Mukami version.

Ruki.

Ok if I’m not wrong all the Mukami brothers are east European ( idk I still need to play all the games 💀) but ! I feel that Ruki would speak German but from Austria.

I think he would be super interested in Austrian art and history (?), but at the same time I feel that he would speak Bulgarian, maybe because of Ruki’s background ( he reminds me of the architecture and art of Sofia, idk it’s strange).

I feel that he would use both languages when he reads.

Kou.

I feel that Kou would know Korean, maybe for his idol image, I feel that he would have a big fan base in Korea or China, but he was like “ Chinese is not my thing, too much for people I don’t know 🤷‍♀️ “.

But if we talk about a language that he learned when he was young I think Polish, maybe his mother ? He looks so much like he had a lot of trouble because of his origins, so because of that he doesn’t want to use this language.

Yuma.

Yuma is the most proudest Russian ever, his energy is so old Russian lady from Siberia hahah, I feel that he would cuss in Russian or when he would get angry he would use it.

Plus I feel that if you say to him:

“ Yuma I’m cold…” don’t think he will give you a sweater or a blanket, he will come back with a bottle of vodka and some borsch.

I mean hell yea but not every night 💀

Azusa.

Now, my little honey bubu ( love this little kid, he need love 👴🏾)

Anyways he’s Romanian so he speaks Romanian fluently but he has too much trauma from there so he doesn’t like to talk in his language, but when he gets comfortable and if you ask him he will try to teach you some words.

[scotianostra]

On July 20th 1811 James Bruce, the 8th Lord Elgin, Scottish Liberal statesman and diplomat, was born.

As a student at Eton and Oxford, Elgin displayed the brilliance that sparked his later reputation as an inspired orator, cultured humanist and judicious administrator.

He was appointed the governor of Jamaica then the governor general of Canada, Elgin was then appointed High Commissioner and Plenipotentiary in China where he oversaw the second opium war and unequal treaties. Lastly he became the first viceroy in India and in 1863 he died of a heart attack.

He is known for his roles in administrating the empire acting as governor in Jamaica and Canada as well as viceroy in India however he is held in infamy by the world for his actions in the second opium war.

The Chinese Qing dynasty’s officials had tortured 20 Europeans and Indians to death and so Elgin in retaliation ordered the destruction of the Summer Palace, just outside Beijing, an architectural wonder with immeasurable collections of artworks and historic antiques, inflicting invaluable loss of cultural heritage. The Chinese call it the palace of shame. and it is still a deep, unhealed historical wound in the UK's relations with China. As usual it has left a controversial legacy in British art collections - royal, military, private - full of looted objects.

When the Qing Empire resisted, concerned about the effects of drug-addiction upon its people, the eighth Lord Elgin led the bombardment of Canton, to great loss of life. The Summer Palace was set aflame by 3,500 British troops and burned for three days. Some three hundred remaining eunuchs and palace maids, who had hidden themselves from the soldiers, perished with the burnt palace buildings.

Priceless cultural treasures, including fine porcelain, gold, jewels and statuary were carted off by the soldiers, the choicest artefacts being reserved for the eighth Lord Elgin, including bronze vessels prized locally for cooking and burial in tombs dating back to the Shang dynasty and were up to three millennia in age.

Subsequently, he submitted the Qing dynasty to the unequal treaty of the Convention of Peking, adding Kowloon Peninsula to the British crown colony of Hong Kong.

Bruce’s father, the 7th Earl is himself a controversial figure, he is the man that took the Parthenon Marbles, a collection of Classical Greek marble sculptures that have become known as The Elgin Marbles.

The third pic is an artists impression of the Summer Palace that Bruce ordered to be torched.