#How To Increase Your High Jump Height

[justcuriouspolls]

*Just you/the person answering this poll, not the entirety of humanity

Health bar: Shows how much “hp” you have, compared to you at maximum health. Lower hp=closer to death. Has a list of temporary ailments (diseases, injuries etc) affecting you, how much damage they deal, and how long it lasts before going away. If you have a chronic condition that affects your health/will stay with you most/all of your life, max hp (compared to current hp) is reduced. Also shows a stamina bar as well

Quest menu: Guides you on how to do things, from lifechanging achievements to everyday activities. Detailed step-by-step instructions, accurately prioritized, and a “hint menu” in case you get stuck

Checkpoint: From here on out, you can set one “point” (a specific date, time, and location- you must be at that point when you set it) that you revert to when you die, retaining the exact state you were at but with the addition of knowledge that you have at time of death. Once you set the

point you cannot change it, and you must revert there when you die. An extra life, essentially

Inventory Slots: You can store items (you must be able to physically hold them/carry them with ease) in a pocket dimension, and take them out/put them back at any time. Space is limited but is based on diversity of items vs number of items. Carrying bags, purses etc increase how many inventory slots you have

Damage Resistance: A single strike from a sword won’t kill you, tripping and falling won’t send you to a hospital, what would instantly kill the average person would typically just be an inconvenience to you. (You are not immortal, you just now have Video Game Logic ™ applied)

Rapid cooking/eating: You need a method of cooking and the required ingredients, but for some foods you can cook them instantly (it is still perfectly cooked and safe to eat) and you can instantly eat things (you can’t sense the texture/flavor, you still get nutritional benefits/detriments, foods eaten in this manner cannot harm you from overeating (but you are still restricted from eating further/you have a sense of fullness))

Skip Cutscene: If you have had the same conversation multiple times, or have a task that you do repetitively, you can skip it once a day

Fast Travel: In addition to the location where you wake up (if your sleep schedule is irregular, the location where you are at during midnight), you can select three other locations to teleport to. You can teleport three times a day. You can move around your teleport markers, but you have to physically go there to access them/move them

Double Jump: Self explanatory, you can jump twice, with slightly less height but half the stamina used as your regular jumping ability, and timing your second jump properly can significantly reduce the damage taken from high falls

[cokou]

𝐇𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒 OCT 2: DESIRE # Trafalgar Law┆Fem! Reader

Request ✉* Good evening, afternoon, or morning:) May I request trafalgar law x fem!reader for Oct. 2?

Warnings ✉* Somnophilia, a bit non-con, Shit writing

WC ✉* words┆ characters

In far, far lands, somewhere around mysterious places, is where your body lies. A tower, thats' height seems so endless when looked upon a far view. A tower where, it reaches the sky. Your body, unconsciously sleeping on a bed for nearly half a decade, the roses that seemed like it was given to give their utmost wishes for you to wake up soon, has faded it's life and rotted on the bedside. How unruly and upsetting.

Until he came, Trafalgar D. Water Law. He could save you, if he wanted to, if his heart yearned for it, if his heart planned it. Oh yes, he plans such a thing, such adventurous personality where no one could ever stop him, made him end up finding your whereabouts. He climbed, step by step, in the agonizingly long and high staircase.

The journey through the tower was long, every step of his had so much memories. As he climbed up, and up, remnants of flower petals that seemed to rot and crush up into tiny more parts had been revealed. Daggers, knives, and even broken up plates, it seems that this place was likely an eventful place somewhere in history.

Tower was so old it grew moss inside, grasses by the floor and cobwebs by the corner, making Law sneeze as dust particles enter his cavity. He coughs as the dust spreads, and so he covers his nose with a little hankerchief.

There it was, he reached the top, only to find a big room provided by tons of cabinets, tables, and finally a large bed that lies your figure. He steps on a bouquet of roses that crushed up together, making aloud crunch sound that made his heart skip a beat. Preparing himself for the worst of a possible person jumping on him suddenly, he unsheaths his sword, wuickly examining the features of such delightful face.

The gloomy walls starts emitting dust even more, making Law sneeze once again. As you suprisingly not wake up, Law had questioned if you even are alived. Yes, you were, he placed his ears onto your chest.

"Badump" "Badump" "Badump"

His curiosity got the better of him as he dragged his hands along your skin, which made you receive unknown goosebumps all over your skin. He rubs his calloused fingers along your curves, then your cheeks, giving them a light squeeze. Not awake, how was this possible? An idea clicked inside his head, but it must've been not a good idea.

Law runs his fingers over the long skirt you were wearing, tracing your thighs then your legs, all the way to your feet. He gently rises your skirt, enough reveal your pair of thighs, and yet he wasn't satisfied. And so, he lifts them up all the way to your stomach, still not awake. By this point, your underwear was revealed, your legs and thighs. It only made him more curious.

Moving your panties to the side, he sneaks a peak from your cunt. His cheeks behin burning, telling everything in him that what he was doing eas incredibly wrong and that he should stop, but that wasn't what he did. Instead, he continued, nudging his nose into your clit. Earning no absolute sounds from you made his heart beat so much faster, he wasn't sure if he should continue or not.

The temperature of the room increases as Law began sweating so much more whilst admiring the delicate curves of your legs, and your hole. Law takes the step further and latches his mouth onto your clit, he holds your legs to spread them apart, earning the silent sigh coming out of your deep slumber as you began furrowing your brows from the sensation Law was giving you.

His pocket watch ticks louder, he could feel his heartbeat jumping out of his chest. The time slows down as if the day were a time loop of yesterday's. Law's actions had significant effect on you, yet, you seem like you won't wake up any sooner. And so, Law takes upon the chance to satisfy the curiosity he was led to. It was a bit too early to stop, yet stopping would make him earn for more.

He sticks his tongue out and licked a long strip of your pussy onto his mouth, the saltiness taste of your essence take over his taste. He lifts his face from between your legs, and examines you again. No reaction, no movements, were you dead? No— it's impossible, your heart was beating. Law decides to proceed, unwrapping his belt from his waist and put it silently on a chair besides the table, and so he pulls down his bottoms and reveals his thick cock.

It felt wrong— no, it was wrong. He wasn't sure what came over him to do this to such a peaceful lady, he thought of just turning you in into the nearest medical centers of the town's square. Moments of rethinking later, he makes rhe decision to do it, just once. Then he would turn you in for the sake of your health. His cock was practically begging for attention, it was leaking pre-cum and was such a tickled pink colored. It almost looked shy.

Law holds his cock to steady it infront of your entrance, smearing the pre-cum over your saliva-covered pussy. His shaft practically sliding in so easily with the wetness of your hole. It was impressive how your body acted towards him as you were unconsciously sleeping. Thrusting his hips forward, the bed silently shook.

He thrusts in out out of you at a steady pace, bothering his mind if you would wake up in any second and kill him for his acts. He would gladly take the punishment for the exchange of your well-being. Law was shaken off as he heard you sigh deeply in your sleep as your brows furrow once more, his thrusts becoming faster in order to finish quickly.

The deep feeling in his abdomen was about to snap, his cock felt like it was being bullied to it's max, which it was. His cock flushed a deep pink by the sensation caused, his sweat dripping down his forehead and neck, wiping it off using the sleeves of his clothes. Law was about to snap anytime soon as he felt the heat drizzling him off.

In one fast whip inside you, he accidentally spills his seed inside as he was lost in ecstacy. Feeling deeply troubled, he grabs his hankerchief and immediately starts wiping you down, his lost of mind didn't bother seeing you silently rose from bed with eyes wide open from the man cleaning her for the very first sight she'd saw for 6 years ago.

"What..are you doing?" Law shoots up and feits his teeth as he was caught.

"I— was cleaning you..." Law exclaims, he earns a subtle smile from you.

"Why thank you! Though i do not understand why you muct clean from down there, I—"

"Forget it! If you're gonna imprison me and let the town's square that i should be beheaded then do it!" Law yells. You shot up a curious impression, tilting your head to the side.

"Why would I do that? You were cleaning me! And..woke me up! Why shall I imprison such a nice man?"

"Woke you up? What do you mean?"

"Oh, my sincerest apologies sire..I for sure was in such an unconscious state, yet i hear everything around me. Once you had stepped in, i already knew that it were you who was to save me!"

"Wha—"

"If you agree, then i shall marry you!" "W—..What even is going on..?" Law scratches his mind as tons of stories from you came up.

General M.List┆Hentober 24 M.List

©Cokou 2024, all works belongs to me.

[thevoidscreams]

Magnus read the eldar version of Kama Sutra ,leaving him very inspired

This will require some research

Day 24 Year 2:

Some unexpected stuff came up and today's prompt is a bit short.

Warnings: Multiple sex positions, getting filled up with cum. Magnus being curious about your body.

Word count: 1085

"There, hold that position." Magnus ordered, and you tried very hard, but the bed was too soft underfoot and you couldn't quite stretch your leg that high up. The only thing you could liken it to was a ballerina's standing split. Which was not as easy as the pictures in the book made it seem.

"Maggy, I'm trying." You huffed, he just smiled and took hold of your thigh keeping you in the upright position he needed to make it work. His other hand was setting the book aside on a stand so he could dip his fingers into the jar of oil by the bedside.

Taking his oiled fingers he pressed them to your entrance, sliding them in as he began to work the oil in enough that he would have sufficient lubrication to fuck you. "You are doing well, don't worry." He praised softly, the sound of his fingers obscene as they stretched you open for him.

"Yes, very good indeed." He grinned, the way your body seemed to drag his fingers back in when he pulled them out. You had absolutely no idea where Magnus had found it but the book he'd brought back a week ago had been full of absolutely mind boggling positions and ideas about sex. This was one of the more tame positions.

Magnus stroked his cock as he lined it up. With you on the bed and him standing on the floor, you were at the perfect height to try this. He held you under one hip while his other hand continued to support the thigh pressed against his chest.

You moaned aloud and shamelessly as he filled you. This position seemed to allow him to slide in even deeper than normal. His pelvis pressed flush to yours as he bottomed out. His groan met your own moans as he waited for a moment to gather his thoughts. "I believe this will be a good position to revisit."

His hips pulled back and rolled forward again. He was so deep you felt it in your chest. Which you weren't sure how that was possible but you did.

Magnus was glad he'd held you up, already your legs looked shaky and he didn't want you collapsing before you were done.

The steady rhythm of deep thrusts was how it said to do it in the book. He liked how close you were and how deep he could be. His fingers gave you a soft squeeze.

He loved how yielding you were for him. And his eye fixed on you with a deep affection as he brought you pleasure that was so very apparent on your face.

"Are you having fun down there?" He asked with a smug expression.

"Yes sir." You gasped and a thrill ran up his spine. Though he never wanted to admit it, he loved when you drew attention to his station by calling him things like that.

"That's good, because we're just getting started." His hand moved from your thighs and up your back. The book and different recommendations for different species as lovers. And to his lasting delight, that included baseline humans.

In the book it pointed out a cluster of nerves near the lower back that would cause additional stimulation and increase pleasure for both parties.

He found it and pressed his thumb into the spot. Your body jumped and you 'Ooo'd' loudly, your muscles tightening as you wiggled fruitlessly. Magnus gasped as you jiggled and clenched around his cock. "Steady." He soothed, easing up a bit. "What was that!?" You squeaked. "Something I intend to investigate further." He chuckled, his finger pushing back into that spot, you were expecting it and braced yourself, but then he began to gently massage it and your undignified squeaks and hoots returned. "That's it starshine, let it out."

"Magnus!" You came so suddenly that there was hardly any time to properly enjoy it. Magnus kept up his pace, to elongate the release. He pulled out and grabbed you as your leg became too tired to hold you up.

He laughed sweetly and held you in his arms. "How was that?" He asked, kissing your face. "I don't know what you did but my body just turned on me without warning...do it again please."

He sat on the edge of the bed, giving your legs a break as he had you straddle his lap. "Alright." He slid back in with ease and groaned his satisfaction. Your arms circled around his neck and he held your hips. His fingers easily found the spot as you settled on a rhythm, riding him in a way you were more familiar with. The gentle pressure egged you on and Magnus watched as you, still sensitive from your first orgasm, trembled with the continued pleasure.

He hooked his chin over your shoulder and watched, pressing one finger in a bit more, and felt the corresponding clench. It was so fascinating to watch that he didn't realize he was panting and close to his own edge until you came again, your inner walls squeezing his cock hard enough to make him cum a few bounces later. He held your hips down, pumping his load as deep inside as was possible. You pant with each pump feeling it fill you to a near impossible amount. His smile never faltered, watching your fucked out expression turn to a sleepy one. You leaned back and he held you, just in case you became too relaxed after both orgasms. You had done so before and nearly fallen off once or twice. He kissed your cheeks and neck. "That was wonderful. You did so well for me, starshine." He murmured. Pressing his face into your hair and taking a deep breath."Thank you. You were pretty damn incredible yourself, my love."

He laid back with you on his chest, his heart still beating hard from his excitement and orgasm. Still he wondered. His finger simply grazed over the spot and you jumped. "Noooo." You whined and he laughed whole-heartedly. "Very well. Next time I shall have to explore more of those spots." He raised the book with his powers and brought it over to browse more thoroughly as you began to drift off to sleep. He found a few more positions to try, there were plenty that interested him, it was a very thick book, but he was certain that you two would have some fun new ideas to try out for a good long while.

[benchspkmnirlhub]

Senturion

An in-universe game in the mainline Pokemon universe, thought up by Melmy of @fated-furret.

All credit goes to Melmy for thinking up this in-universe game.

Background

Senturion is an indie game released in 2018, the sequel/rehash/major expansion of a 2013 Flash game of the same name. It's a 2D dungeon crawler/action-platformer, similar to games like Hollow Knight and Neon Abyss. You play as a Sentret you name at the beginning of your adventure.

Moveset

At first glance, the movement... kind of sucks. Both your snail-pace waddling and jump that barely gets you above your ears' height leave much to be desired. You can sprint on all fours to get to a somewhat reasonable speed, but using it tanks your Stamina bar. It seems like this is going to be quite the boring game...

Until you realise that if you aim at the floor and use the aerial version of your tail-slap (Left Click, goes towards the mouse), you go absolutely flying. Further experimentation reveals that extending your tail (Hold Right Click, goes away from the mouse) lets you bounce like a pogo stick in a similar fashion to the hammer from Getting Over It.

Using these movement options together (along with exploiting certain levels' mechanics) is key to defeating enemies and traversing through rooms.

Inventory

You get various “Tail Armours” as you progress through the game. These are Pokémon-themed equipment for your tail that affects how your tail-based movement works. Here's a few examples!

- Ditto: Your goopy tail can compress into a wall if extended at high velocity, sticking you to it and slowly charging a super-bounce for when you release.

- Nidoran: Direct damage is only dealt via headbutts. Swinging your tail shoots a burst of poison darts and boosts you forward.

- Chikorita: Reduced damage, but vines on either side of your tail increase its length and add a powerful sweetspot to the end of your tail swings.

There's also Trinkets! You have a few slots for passive Trinkets and a single active Trinket, which can be swapped out with ones in your inventory between Sections (see Levels).

Passive Trinkets are your accessories, and some effects include:

- Increasing base stats

- Health regen after clearing a room

- Increased loot

- Modifications to movement too general to be a Tail Armour, such as decreasing gravity or increasing impact force

They all come with upsides and downsides though, so you need to consider carefully which ones you equip.

Active Trinkets have an effect upon pressing the Use Active Trinket key. Every Active Trinket has a cost to use, and this can be almost anything. You think of a number, changing it can be the cost of an Active Trinket.

Some Active Trinket effects include:

- Spawning a wall at your cursor facing the Sentret that takes away your Stamina

- Throwing a bomb, but you can only use it once per room

- Giving you extra max health for the rest of the dungeon, but the boss at the end of the dungeon gains 20x that

- Making you invincible but slowly increasing your gravity while the button's held

You get Tail Armors, Trinkets, and other items from chests, bosses, shops, and as drops from rare variants of certain enemies.

Levels

Levels have the standard dungeon-crawler layout: floors (referred to as ‘Sections’) consisting of rooms that you can only exit once every enemy inside is defeated, culminating in a bossfight at the end. The rooms are big, and can be mostly vertical, mostly horizontal, or all kinds of wacky shapes.

The group of levels associated with each individual faction (more on that later) all have a gimmick that ties them together. For example, a volcano level could have lava that bounces you away but damages you if you touch it without the right Trinket.

Story

The story begins in a cute little forest village full of young forest critters (the parents of all the critters had disappeared a while ago), soon having you go to the task board and accept a mission to collect apples from a nearby patch of apple trees. It serves as the game’s tutorial, giving you the opportunity to learn to use your movement options to pick the apples from a series of high trees that culminate in a tricky chained bounce up a cliff to get to the tree with the best apples. But as soon as they’re in sight, an attack from offscreen knocks you tumbling back down. With your tail sprained, you’re left to run back to your village from a group of Pawniard, Bisharp, Escavalier, and other mediaeval-themed Pokémon, instantly passing out from the shock once you leap through the open gates.

The next morning, you awake to see that everything’s changed. Huts are caved in, farms are destroyed, and everyone’s working together to figure out what to do in their parents’ absence. They’re all young and scared, but they've managed to band together into a tight-knit resistance.

The main gameplay begins here, similar to the flow of Pokémon Mystery Dungeon. You take quests to go through levels to get loot, progress the story, and develop close bonds with the other critters. 

As you progress, though, you realise that there's another group trying to invade the mediaeval Pokémon. And someone doing it to them, and doing it to them. Turns out the entire region's covered in nations trying to invade each other, all being supported from the shadows by a mysterious Pokemon called ‘The Oracle’.

You return home as fast as your tiny legs can carry you burst into the war room for the forest critters and tell everyone about this just before one of the Oracle's messengers arrives. Thoughts of "liberating" land from other factions have been slowly gaining popularity amongst the forest critters throughout the game, but you put a stop to it and convince everyone to focus all efforts on defeating the Oracle.

You then go through a level consisting of one floor from every faction's buildings you've been to, until you reach the Oracle's Spire. It's taller than anything anyone's ever seen, and it's made of a strange smooth material with angular channels of light pulsing throughout. As you climb up it, it's full of strange Golurk, Rotom, and Porygon. At this point, the player realises the twist…

…It's a massive supercomputer. (Important note: This is the first thing anywhere near modern technology you’ve seen in the entire game. Everyone else has only just figured out advanced smithing.)

Turns out there's a small group of Pokémon that's been advancing incredibly quickly but not sharing their developments with anyone. The Oracle is their magnum opus, an AI that disguises as a prophetic wizard-guy to pit the rest of the nations (once almost completely at peace) against each other. The plan was to have them all weaken each other so they could sweep through and take all the land and power for themselves.

You then have to go through the last floor of every dungeon again, but this time without hurting a single enemy so you can tell their leaders everything. You all turn on the Oracle, and with the help of all of the enemies you’ve faced you’re finally able to reach the AI for an epic final boss battle. It’s incredibly difficult and takes everything you’ve learned to its uppermost limits. 

You go into the "control room" after the fight to come face to face with these horrible dictators, but…they're all weak first stages? They begin a long monologue about how the world’s ‘unfair to little guys like us’, but it’s quickly cut off by the now-released parents of the forest critters pinning them down and dragging them away.

The credits then roll. A cutscene plays beside them showing the Oracle's Spire being dismantled and the leaders of the rest of the nations work together to spread the hoarded advancements to everyone.

Overall, it's a commentary on how powerful figures aim to gain power by dividing the people, and how technology can either be of great benefit or terrible detriment to society depending on the people controlling how it’s used.

Completing the story unlocks Freeplay Mode. It’s pretty much just “continue the game as normal except you can redo the story-exclusive dungeons with a 4x loot multiplier” and was very much an afterthought, but it mainly serves as a playground for tinkering with builds and practising movement tech.

[ladybacen]

How to input a Potemkin Buster in 5th Edition Dungeons and Dragons (2025)

Hello to you all. I am a recovering Potemkin addict. I must warn you, do not main him. Landing your first Pot Buster grants a high that never really leaves your mind. Day in and day out, all you can think about is landing the next one. Every other experience in your life will be diminished by virtue of not being a Potemkin Buster. The only thing that could possibly be more euphoric than a Potemkin Buster is a Heavenly Potemkin Buster. Suffice it to say, it's addictive, and I warn you to abstain unless you're prepared for your whole life to change. Anyways, I bring this up because you can't play Guilty Gear 24/7. Sometimes you'll want to play other fun games, like Dungeons and Dragons. This method will help any Potemkin addicts to get their fix even while not playing Guilty Gear. The method is as follows: Setup: You'll need a level 4 character. Race: Any medium-size (Aasimar preferred, but not necessary). Class levels: 4 in monk (any subclass, whichever is your preference). Stats: Again, allocate to your preference, but make sure either Strength or Dexterity is your highest. Strength is a lot better if you're trying to build Potemkin himself, but Dex is more optimal for monks. You want this so you can grapple your foes, and the monk class lets you use either stat. Feats: Any origin feat, but take Grappler at level 4, and use it to increase strength or dex, whichever you picked earlier. Additional equipment: You're going to need a pair of Boots of Striding and Springing and be attuned to them. Just as Potemkin has his gauntlet things, you'll need some special equipment too. Any of the Belts of Giant Strength would help a lot in raising your grapple DC, but you technically don't need one.

The execution: Essentially, you're going to attempt to grapple your opponent, that's step number one. At level four, you'll have two chances to do this (once with attack, once with your bonus action attack, twice if you flurry of blows). Once you've grappled your opponent, then you can use 10ft of movement to jump 30ft straight up using the boots. You might be able to use the monk feature step of the wind to double this distance, but that depends on how your DM rules that interaction. Mine said no :(. Thanks to Tavern Brawler, none of this movement should be halved as long as your opponent is medium or smaller. Once you're in the air you can either drop them or hold onto them. Either way, you'll both fall 30ft, taking 3d6 damage from it. If you want to use a reaction, you can use slow fall to reduce your fall damage. It'd be up to your DM as to whether or not you can slow fall while grappling without reducing the fall damage of the creature you're holding onto. But yeah that's a Pot Buster right there :3, you grapple your opponent, jump into the air, and then get some damage on them when you both land.

How to do a Heavenly Potemkin Buster: For this, you're going to want to use the Aasimar feature celestial revelation to gain a flight speed for a minute. You could also use anything else that allows you to fly, like if you can get a friend to cast fly on you, or if you have wings of flying or something. On round one get that flight speed as a bonus action, round two you grapple your medium-sized opponent, then use 10ft of your 40ft speed to use the boots to jump 30ft into the air, and then keep flying up with whatever movement you have left. Then dash as a bonus action with step of the wind and fly another 40 feet up. Once you reach max height, drop them. You'll probably want to slow fall for this. This should deal 10d6 damage under ideal conditions. You'll only be able to use celestial revelation once per long rest, but I think that it's limited use nature reflects that of a Guilty Gear overdrive. Also I think the Aasimar being angel people adds to the "heavenliness" of the buster.

That is my guide, I hope it is satisfactory, and hopefully this will be of use to someone :3

[castorcasting]

Jason Todd x Vampire!Reader

Little Vamp

Note: This doesn’t follow any comic canon. :D

Warnings: Slight bit suggestive

Lately there have been more sightings of vampires around Gotham, with the rise of vampires. Vampire hunters also increased in numbers. 

Jason was recently tracking down these ‘vampire hunters'’. He didn’t really believe in vampires but then again, he was brought back to life by green water so who was he to say what’s real or fake. He’s been keeping tabs on Penguin, Penguin has been hiring assassins to find vampires - since there’s an old legend that says a dead vampire's blood has properties of immortality, or whatever. All those reports led him to you. You're the most important vampire listed in Penguin's list. Jason had a few options in mind, it was to either kill you, or save you. He has no idea if you're a good or bad vamp. He'll find the answer to his question soon enough though .

It was in the dead of night, you were hunting. Silently stalking a creep in a dingy alleyway, that creep has been staring at some young drunk girl. You growled softly in disgust, you had class. You didn’t like to drink the blood of the low, you liked ‘normal’ blood; Preferably blood of non-creeps, though you can't be picky, especially since you had a decent moral. Which is to not hurt innocent people.

The guy slowly went up to the drunk girl, holding her waist and trying to sweet talk her into having a good time. The girl, despite being drunk, rejected him. The man didn’t take the rejection well, leading to him groping her. You had enough, you jumped in. Pushing the creep away with your enhanced strength, he fell to the floor, scurrying away as he's been caught. The girl ran away when it happened, but you panicked when she started darting towards the road. 

Deep down, you aren’t a bad person. You have the title of a vampire, and vampires have a bad rep. You killed the guilty and saved the innocent, however all that killing has rightfully messed with your moral compass. You abandoned the creep who was your meal for the night, and ran towards the girl who was inches away from the busy road. 

You ran and ran, as fast as you could. The problem was, you had super strength, and super hearing only. You didn’t have superspeed, and for some reason that drunken girl was faster than you. “Hey! Stop-..” You heaved in a deep breath. “Stop running!” Reaching your hand out to grab her, luckily you caught her by her hair. You yanked her and she came stumbling to you. The girl cried out for help and apparently god was at her side today. A red batarang came flying towards you; the whooshing sound alerted you. 

You let go of the girl and dodged the batarang. Looking up you saw a guy, covered by his red hood. “Preying on innocent people? Looks like vampire stories are true.” The stranger shouted out to you. You felt your bloodlust increase as your hunger rose, a sign that you needed to feed or you might go feral. Okay maybe the stories about vampires are not far off from the real thing. 

“What little vamp can’t speak?” He mocked. Jumping down from the high building he stood from, holding onto a metal pipe to slow down his descent. You watched cautiously as he approached you, you finally got a closer look of him. His muscles and his height intimidated you a bit. You backed off slowly when you heard the sound of a gun clocking. “Look, there have been sightings of you killing off criminals..I respect that but, that's not the way to do things.” He lifted his arm and pointed a gun at you.

“Wait don’t!-” You shouted out, using your arms to shield your face. Jason watched you, he was having second thoughts about killing you. You didn’t seem all bad, sure you killed but it was only criminals, something which he supports. Plus he did kill as well. He lowered the gun, he was still on guard. Thinking that you could be using his emotions to play with him. He observed you through his red mask, the way your body shivered in fear and how your breathing seemed uneven. There’s no way she could be faking all that? If so she could be a damn of an actor. He thought to himself. Jason carefully walked over to you, he couldn’t see your face. He looked at you up and down, trying to find any weapons on you. Nothing, however.. the way your body looks..Jason closed his eyes and just took in a deep breath. Not the time for that now. He scolded himself. 

You slowly put down your defensive stance and looked at him. He just kinda stood there, frozen in a walking stance. “Uh..? Hello?” You waved a hand to his face, he snapped out of his trance and jumped away from your hand. Jason and you stood a few distances apart, he was thinking about what to do with you now. You clearly had good strength, he was watching when you pushed the creepy dude who was twice your size away...It clicked, you could be a useful ally to have. “What’s your name, little vamp?” 

You tilted your head at him, “Why do you want to know?” It was odd. A stranger wanting to know your name after threatening to kill you, there’s clearly a catch to it.

Jason pondered for a bit, he knew that Penguin is looking for you - more specifically, your blood, or DNA. whichever does not matter. If your DNA gets into the wrong hands, it’ll be a catastrophe. The world has enough clones, it doesn't need more. “You could be of use to me.” Jason said in a monotone voice, he saw how your face scrunched up. Cute..It was odd, he just met you and yet he feels an attraction to you...But anyways, Jason saw how your once confident body language became closed off. Crossing your arms and you glaring at him. He must've hit a nerve, he quickly backtracks on what he said. 

“I mean like, you’re a vampire. Penguin is hunting for you..I could offer you protection and you could help me out. Fair trade?” You scoffed, your pride getting the better of you. “I don’t need a simple human to protect me from humans.” You didn’t believe him, because who would protect you? You’re a vampire, feared by humanity and will always be labeled as a threat. But then again..Your heart is aching, you want to believe that this stranger will protect you. Naive little vampire.

You’ve been used before as a weapon, a test subject, and a bait. You just want to be normal, as normal as a vampire can get. No more fighting and killing. Just a mundane life is all you ever hoped for. 

Jason knew what you were feeling when you stayed silent. He may be dense when it comes to emotions but he isn’t oblivious to it. “Look vamp. I get it, you feel like you can’t trust me. I wouldn’t trust me either if I were you.” He slowly walked to you. Looking down at you from his looming height, Jason crouched slightly to be face to face with you. “Just trust me alright…I’ll be honest, I see a lot of myself in you, (not like that.) untrusting, prideful. And all that other bullshit, I get it.” 

Your gaze softens and your breath hitches, you couldn’t help but want to trust him. Furthermore, his gaze made your face feel warm. Your head was indecisive but your heart has made the decision. “I’ll meet you in the Batburger restaurant nearby.” You tossed him a tracker that you made, it was in a bat symbol. Not for Batman, it’s for the fact you’re a vampire. You know, the myths of vampires being able to turn into bats. “I’ll find you tomorrow night.” Jason tilted his head in confusion.

 “Vamp..You could just come with me right now. You know that right?” You turned around and walked away. The sway of your hips commanded his attention, he looked at you up and down once again as you spoke. “I need to hunt. I’m a little vamp after all.” Your teasing tone of voice was like music to Jason’s ears. He’s entranced by you. Supposedly all stories of vampires are true to some extent. You’re beautiful in an intimidating way, just like how vampires are described to be. The way you talk and act. He’s a goner. Jason would’ve offered himself as your meal right then and there, but he didn’t want to scare you away. So he watched you jump away on rooftops, blending into the city lights. Jason is eager to see you again. He stared at the tracker you gave him, a smirk forming behind his red mask. See you soon..Little vamp. He thought, as he went on with his night as Red Hood.

[storysims]

HORSE RANCH - GAMEPLAY REVIEW 🤠

Confession time, I actually dislike horses in real life! I have been known to dramatically call them 'vehicles of satan' when pressed, so I was a little concerned about this pack's appeal for me specifically.

But considering I never really wanted horses in the first place, I'm happy to say that I mostly enjoyed my time with the pack! Buckle in, this review turned out to be an especially long one.

I was provided with an early access copy of Horse Ranch to review via the EA Creator Network! Software was not final at the time of my gameplay.

(quick preface - if you see any extreme typos or letters in random places, no you don't! my bird has developed the habit of crashing her little body into my keyboard at high speeds for fun. 😂 catching the typos and fixing them has definitely become a challenge for me! thanks in advance for the patience!)

The easiest place to start both this review and gameplay is the ranch community board! Much like the boards in other packs, this object is scattered throughout the world and contains a wealth of information about new content and events. Important options on the board are also available elsewhere - for example, calling the animal exchange to purchase animals can be found on feeding troughs and horse competitions can be entered from the equestrian center in town. While there isn't a traditional new career included in the pack, ranching has proven to be a full time job. However, options like community jobs and competitions can earn your sim more than enough to keep the ranch running. I was able to easily earn §250 to over §1,000 a day with only my test sim and her horse, and that's not accounting for nectar making and mini sheep + goats!

I chose to start my ranch with a foal and sim fresh out of create-a-sim, but horses of all ages can be purchased from the aforementioned animal exchange! Foals, when compared to full grown horses, have a slightly limited set of interactions and skills. In my opinion, this didn't detract from the experience of having a foal whatsoever! My sim was still able to bottle feed her foal, teach her to eat hay from both the trough & patches of wild grass, and give her lots of loving attention. Of the four available horse skills, foals are only able to progress in the temperament skill! Temperament is a skill built by interacting with and caring for your horse. As their temperament increases, horses exhibit less "undesirable" behaviors, like bucking. Horses with a high temperament skill will have additional social interactions, such as your sim being able to come to them for comfort while in a sad mood. As all of the horse skills go up to level ten, I would highly recommend focusing on temperament with your foals. Foals with a high enough temperament skill even receive a bonus trait after aging up!

After aging up, horses gain access to their remaining three skills: agility, endurance, and jumping. Each of the skills work together to create a well rounded horse, especially for competitions.

Agility - affects how quickly and easily a horse can move. horses with high agility are better at using training barrels, completing certain community jobs, and competitions

Jumping - horses with high jumping skill love to reach for new heights! they are better at using training jumps, completing certain community jobs, and competitions

Endurance - all about how resilient a horse is! a horse with high endurance skill will become fatigued less often, and do better completing certain community jobs, and competitions

Once your sim is able to mount their horse and start riding, they'll begin building the horse riding skill. Don't expect a smooth ride - from a sim's visible discomfort in the saddle to being bucked off, an unexperienced rider will definitely face some difficulties. However, sims with a high enough riding skill will find they can no longer be bucked off horses! Sims are able to go for a ride with their horses at three different speeds - a relaxed, energetic, or intense ride. Much like sending your sim for a jog to build the fitness skill, going for a ride will build your horse's endurance! The more comfortable your sim becomes in the saddle, the faster they'll be able to direct their horse - both while riding for skill and traversing the world.

While the horse riding and endurance skills can be built virtually anywhere, training jumping and agility require two new objects - training barrels and jumps! These can be found dotted around the world or placed on your home lot. As your horse's skill progresses, so will the training options! Sims can add additional jumping rails, direct horses to train alone, or train intently with the horse themselves. Intense training is a great tool - it builds skill faster, but also tires your horse out at an increased rate!

With horse skills covered, it's time to compete! Normal competitions take place every day from 7am to 7pm at the rabbit hole equestrian center in the Historic Appaloosa neighborhood. You can compete in four different competitions - Barrel Racing, Endurance Racing, Show Jumping, and Western Pleasure. Each competition has four levels of entry - beginner, intermediate, expert, and master. As your horse rises through the different competition levels, different skills will be required for entry. An expert barrel race, for example, will require both agility and endurance. Sims aren't exempt from skill requirements either! They'll need to meet the required horse riding skill for each competition. Every Saturday in game, the Ultimate Horse Championship takes place at the equestrian center. This challenge will require both you and your horse to have maxed all the new horse related skills.

Placing at the Ultimate Horse Championship is a requirement for the aspiration, so any aspiring champions will want to make sure they're in the best possible position to win - especially since this is a once a week activity. Prior to competing in any competition, I found it especially helpful to initiate the 'encourage training' interaction with my horse. If all the horse's needs are met, they will become confident! Confident horses do better in competitions. After completing the Championship Rider aspiration, your sim will receive the Grand Champ Trainer trait. Sims with this trait are able to train horses faster, build more fun while riding, sell horses for a higher price, and give competition advice to new riders.

In addition to purchasing horses, your sim can also rescue a horse! Rescue horses come at a reduced cost (§250 vs §1000), but also tend to have more negative traits, like being aggressive or defiant. The game even goes as far as to warn you about the 'difficulties' of rescue horses before choosing one, but that absolutely shouldn't be a deterrent. Difficult traits and all, there were few differences in training up my rescue. He needed a bit more reassurance during training, but he became a champion regardless.

Two horses of the opposite sex are able to breed, provided their relationship is high enough! Much like with cats and dogs, sims will have the option to encourage the horses to interact and eventually breed. Horse pregnancy in game was astoundingly fast - just hours after breeding, a notification and a small baby bump confirmed the pregnancy! Pregnant horses cannot be ridden or compete in competitions.

Pregnant horses will labor for a handful of in game hours before a foal magically appears alongside them. Foals born in game have the ability to be born with unique traits, such as curious, playful, and hardy! Horse genetics matter! If one (or both?) of the parents have won competitions, foals can also inherit the Champion Genes trait. This trait allows for faster skill building and a higher sale value for the horse.

Let's talk about unicorns. While they do actually sparkle in game, unicorns are unfortunately not a new occult in this pack - they're just normal horses. A unicorn horn can be applied to any horse from the 'head' category and will remain on the horse through outfit changes - much like tattoos or skin details for sims. Foals can also be unicorns, albeit their horn is a bit different! Until they age up into an adult horse, their horn will be a tiny nub.

Mini goats and sheep are the real stars of the pack in my eyes! Not only are they incredibly cute, they provide help in the garden and help your sim earn money! Most importantly unlike the livestock in Cottage Living, the minis aren't tied to an object. Fill your pockets full of sheep or goats and take a community job. These little guys will host a goat yoga class or even a sheep sleep study! Sheep and goats also provide wool and milk, respectively. Without Cottage Living installed, these are instantly sold for simoleons. With a high enough relationship, your sim can ask for help in the garden - sheep eat weeds and goats eat bugs! (Full disclosure, I did have some issues with this in early access. Maybe my lot was too big, maybe they don't like planters! I've seen a sheep eat weeds though, so who knows?) Additionally, if your rancher is feeling a little sleepy during the day, find a fluffy friend and talk to them about counting sheep! You'll have a quick (and adorable) power nap!

Sims can now make nectar! This skill goes up to level five and even has an aspiration to match. While leveling up in the nectar skill is a slow process, it pays off! If your rancher has the time to make nectar, it's a great somewhat passive source of income. Nectar needs to age to become profitable, which means you won't be selling your freshly made nectar any time soon. Store your unopened nectar in the new storage rack to start aging! While the storage racks can be placed anywhere, nectar will age faster in a basement. In addition to increasing profits, aging nectar also enhances any benefits associated with it. Different types of nectar provide different perks, which are listed below!

Apple Nectar - helps sims feel inspired. if nectar is at least lightly aged, inspiration persists after nectar wears off

Grape Nectar - helps sims feel confident. if nectar is at least lightly aged, a confident feeling persists after nectar wears off

Strawberry Nectar - helps sims feel flirty. if the nectar is at least lightly aged, a flirty feeling persists after nectar wears off

Potato Nectar - helps sims feel especially happy, or the opposite if they overdo it. if nectar is at least lightly aged, the consequences of overdoing it are significantly reduced

Prairie Grass Nectar - helps sims feel happy and reduces tension. surprisingly filling! if nectar is at least lightly aged, tension and hunger reduction is stronger

Trash Nectar - helps sims feel happy while making them a bit smelly. animals seem to react quite positively. having nectar that is at least lightly aged will improve the smell

Energy Nectar - helps sims feel happy and staves off sleep for a short time. if nectar is at least lightly aged, sims get more energy and happy feeling persists after nectar wears off

Vitality Nectar - helps sims feel happy. extends vitality for the living by a little, and for the dead by a lot

Berry Nectar - helps sims feel happy. if nectar is at least lightly aged, happy feeling persists after nectar wears off

Fruit Nectar - helps sims feel happy. if nectar is at least lightly aged, happy feeling persists after nectar wears off

In addition to these, there's three additional nectar types that can be made with different packs installed. I was not able to make them, even after having access to all of the packs. They were unlisted in the nectar maker. In the interest of including a full list, the missing nectar types are:

Plasma Nectar (requires Vampires) - helps vampire sims feel happy and refreshed. non-vampires should avoid. if nectar is at least lightly aged, vampire refreshment greatly increases

Valerian Nectar (requires Realm of Magic) - helps sims feel happy, with a little something extra for spellcasters. if nectar is at least lightly aged, spellcaster effects increase significantly

Moonpetal Nectar (requires Werewolves) - helps sims feel happy. werewolves may enjoy an increased sense of calm. beware, any werewolf who drinks too much will surely struggle to maintain control...

I'll be the first to admit - it was a bit of a bummer seeing another single step aspiration, especially one where I viewed the §100,000 goal as completely unattainable. Spoiler alert, its not. I've never made more money in this game than I have selling nectar! By the time my early access period ended, I had made just shy of half a million simoleons. After completing the aspiration, your sim will be rewarded with the Nectar-Know-It-All trait. These sims have the ability to craft pre-aged nectar, a stronger bladder while drinking nectar, and their negative emotions have less influence on their current mood.

Nectar is plenty profitable when sold normally, but this man is completely responsible for my unreasonable amount of early access wealth. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, the Mysterious Rancher will appear in New Appaloosa and offer to buy your nectar for above face value - he claims nectar is in high demand every time, even though I surely singlehandedly ruined the nectar economy. For comparisons sake, I took 6 bottles of nectar to the rancher. In my sim's inventory, those bottles would have sold for §15,834. The Mysterious Rancher, however, paid §19,795. All of my sims are about to be incredibly rich.

As I said before, ultimately I did really end up enjoying this pack! For me personally, enjoyment doesn't always mean I would recommend something. If you love horses, I truly think this pack will be a great experience for you! My personal opinion is that I found the gameplay extremely repetitive. I don't see myself playing with horses again any time soon, and you will absolutely never catch me entering the Ultimate Horse Competition again. Ultimately, while fun, this just isn't a pack that I would pay full price for.

[tiredsurvivoronmain]

Hi!! I love your Lycan Chris art omg. LFMSLKJ was wondering how'd he become a Lycan in your mind? Or some Lycan!Chris headcanons in general?? Feel free to ignore just curious! Ty!

Thank you!! ;w; I haven't figured out how he became a Lycan yet; maybe sometime before the events of RE8 when he and his team were investigating the village Chris gets jumped by a Lycan and bitten however because he's been dealing with numerous BOWs for nearly 25 years his natural resistance for viruses and genetics has mutated, his body is capable of tanking the virus and is compatible with it. There may be a connection to Wesker and his enhanced immunity but I'm working on it.

When he doesn't fully turn he goes to look for Rebecca to consult her privately (to avoid the BSAA finding out). She takes blood samples to analyse and create a vaccine or a suppressor so he doesn't fully turn and lose himself to the virus.

But for now he has to deal with it on his own.

His height increases to 7ft and can move on all fours when going full 'beast' mode; he sort resembles a hybrid of a lycan and a Varcolac

He can't always control the transformation but he's still mostly in control of his thoughts, emotions and actions, but the urge to bite someone and pass on the virus is still there so he has to be fully aware of what he's doing at all times and not accidently bite someone.

The way he transforms acts the same way as a cat extending and retracting it's claws; his finger nails grow into claws and back to fingernails, fur grows rapidly all over his body (the neck in particular has thick fur like a wolf's) and sheds, excess enamel grows (making the teeth pointed) then breaks off, ears become pointed then rounded again, muscle mass increases and decreases etc.

Has high speed regeneration and can survive a headshot

Can run up to 25-30mph

His strength increases drastically; strong enough to throw a truck 30ft

When in beast mode his bite is strong enough to remove heads and tear off limbs

His sense of smell and hearing is enhanced which can make it difficult for him to concentrate (overstimulated by sounds and scents)

Stroking the fur on his neck has a calming effect on him (should someone think to do that)

Becase his body size increases he will usually take his clothes off to avoid ruining them. He'll try to keep his underwear on if he can but sometimes he'll have to resort to going nude. Thankfully the fur gets thicker around his crotch so his bits are mostly obscured.

[sailtomarina]

One Favour for Another

“To what do I owe the pleasure of your summons?”

Draco sat across from her in the private meeting room she had reserved at the Leaky, one leg crossed over the other and his hands folded neatly as he waited. If Hermione hadn’t known any better, it would look as if he were the one to request her presence instead of the other way around. She admired the way his shoulders filled his tailored suit and how his sharp jaw clenched, revealing his inner tension.

“I’d like to offer you an opportunity.” She tried not to smirk at the way his brows jumped at her statement. Her core throbbed in anticipation.

“What makes you think I’d be interested?”

Oh, but she knew him. She saw the way the Adam's apple bobbed in his throat, the whitening of knuckles as they clenched at his knee. He might be all carefully polished lines, but the past few years as his superior had been time well spent. Hermione knew his tells. She knew he wanted her just as much as she wanted him.

“There’s an opening in the department for a position that equals my own. We would work alongside each other, but head our own teams. I think you would be perfect for the role.”

His eyes widened at the news. She knew there was no way he would have heard about the shuffle in management; she had been the only one informed thus far and given a short period of time to make her recommendations for the role that would work so closely with her own.

“Who?”

“Harry.”

Now she knew had him. Harry had been Head Auror for years and was in what one might consider the height of his glory. Hermione’s position as Head Investigator meant she trained many of the investigation technicians below her, as well as the aurors who planned strategies and were first on crime sites. Together, they’d forged an enforcement team with the highest-rated public approval rate, as well as increased the ratio of closed to open cases.

“You asking me here out of office and other eyes means you have something…less than professional…to suggest, Granger.”

And now they were at the crux of their meeting. Hermione had been waiting for this moment ever since she first learned of Harry’s early retirement. 

“I’m here to beg a favour in exchange for your name being the only one I offer to Gawain.”

“What makes you think I need your help? Robards already has a pretty high opinion of me.” He dared Hermione to respond, leaning forward for the first time in his chair as if taunting her.

“If you’re willing to give me what I want, then I won’t use my influence to keep you where you are. Gawain might like you, but he adores me.”

The assurance in her voice underlined a fact they both already knew to be true. Long gone were the days of Hermione’s regrettable fashion that hid her curves. She dressed to kill, knowing exactly the effect her tight skirts and dagger-sharp heels had on her surroundings. Multiple of their coworkers walked straight into walls after she passed by, and it wasn’t just the men. Somewhere over these past several years, Hermione had also become an expert at befriending other women, including a previously hateful Pansy Parkinson. That was just her physical effect. There was no arguing her intellect and the respect she had quickly earned both within the Ministry and among the general public. Hermione stood with the world firmly under her stable heel.

Malfoy took a deep breath and held her tawny gaze as he spoke. “What do you want?”

Hermione stood and rounded the table, noting with interest the way he straightened. He didn’t turn his head as she walked behind him, didn’t flinch as she bent to whisper into his ear. He merely sucked in a sharp breath at her next words.

“You.”

From outside the room came the sounds of laughter and clinking glasses. They could hear everything from inside the room, but charms ensured that any sound from within wouldn’t make it out.

“Me.”

He still didn’t move, opting to wait for her to make the first move. So, she did.

Stepping around to the other side of where he sat, she waved her wrist and sent his chair scooting back just far enough for her to rotate in front of him. She leaned up against the edge of the table, crossing her ankles and tilting her head in an inviting smile.

“I’ve been single for a long time now, and even though I haven’t been lonely, I admit to a certain degree of…curiosity.” The smile on her face widened as he licked his lips in an uncharacteristically open tell.

“I make you curious?”

“Mhm.” She hummed in a cavalier manner that completely belied her entire proposal. Hermione knew what she was doing was tantamount to blackmail. She was banking on Malfoy giving in to the tension that hung over them almost every time they shared a room. The man was so tightly wound that she felt this the fastest way to force his hand.

“What does wanting me and curiosity entail?” His eyes had darkened to a stormy grey to match the lowering of his voice. 

Hermione bent low at the waist to whisper in his ear once more, knowing full well the low cut of her blouse showed off the midnight green lace she’d chosen just for him. She felt every one of his exhales at her collar bone and imagined his lips pressing into the hollow of her throat.

“I want to know if you fuck as amazing as you look.”

The moment the words left her lips, she let loose a surprised yelp as his hands landed firmly on her hips and yanked her forward into his lap.

“I promise you, I am more than just appearances.” He ground her down atop him with a prominence that suggested she’d be sore for days.

“Is that a yes?” She squeezed his shoulders where she gripped them, hoping with all her being that her play for what she hoped would be the best lay of her life was about to pay off.

Because, truth be told, she was tired of the dating scene, the delicate way others pandered to her and treated her like fine china. She wasn’t some easily breakable maiden, and she sure as hell didn’t want to live the rest of her life chasing orgasms by her own hand. She wanted a man who knew his way around a witch’s body, one who wouldn’t be afraid of fulfilling every one of her fantasies. Hermione craved a mind as inquisitive as her own, one that thirsted for praise and was willing to go to extreme lengths to obtain it.

She’d heard the whispers about Malfoy’s prowess. He seemed just as free flowing as her, neither of them holding to any particular witch or wizard in recent memory. She was positive she could show him a thing or two that he would have never dreamed of and make him insatiable for her. She’d get her fill of him until she couldn’t take anymore, and then she’d cut them both loose. Before the neediness. Before the request for commitment.

“Yes, Granger, I am more than willing to fuck.” He spat the words at her like they were filthy to him, but his hands holding her against him proved them to be true.

Grounding herself one more time into his lap before jumping back up to her feet, she winked and jerked her head towards the door.

“Well then, let’s get started.”

WC 1278

DHRMonth Prompt: Week 2 - Bonds, September 9 - Favours/Debts

Cross-posted on AO3

I tried to make Hermione more sexually confident than I usually write her, since I tend to read more works where Draco is the more experienced one and she's just sort of along for the ride. There are exceptions of course, but I kind of like the idea of a grey Hermione out there to take what she wants, and she may or may not catch feelings along the way.

[ultraericthered]

2020 Memories: Love Live! Sunshine!!

I said in my last Love Live!-related post in this series that I'd watched Love Live! Sunshine!! in early 2018. It was a really cute, sentimental, wholesome, fun to watch anime for me, but by year's end it kind of faded into the background of my mind. I'd liked it. I'd been very endeared to it and its cast of characters. But I'm not sure I loved it.

Obviously, this changed in 2020, where I rewatched the show now with the full context of its predecessor about u's. The second season of that show had already soared to heights that its first season hadn't reached, and I could now see just how brilliant the first season of Sunshine!! was coming off of that, reaching those same heights and then some. The second season didn't quite have that same radiance, but like Aqours themselves, it all added up to something that shone brilliantly by the very end. And then I got to watch the Sunshine!! movie, Over The Rainbow. That clinched it for me. I fucking loved this series and I fucking love Aqours. Jukki Hanada truly one-upped himself here, and it was the last time in the franchise he'd do so.

Most memorable parts of this whole journey would include:

S1, Episode 1: Chika and You try to start a School Idol Club at their school, Chika meets Riko, we're shown how Chika got inspired by seeing u's perform, and we get an instant banger of a first song.

S1, Episode 2: Chika and You successfully get Riko on board with making music for their idol group, and Chika and Riko touch hands.

S1, Episode 3: We meet Mari Ohara and she steals the attention away from everything else in the episode save for Aqours finding their group name on the beach and funny moments with the girls.

S1, Episode 5: Yohane descends and we are so thankful to have her 'cause she is such a precious chuunibyou whose gags are hilarious.

S1, Episode 7: Aqours travels to Tokyo and first meets Saint Snow.

S1, Episode 8: Saint Snow blows Aqours the fuck out and still can't manage to score super high, Aqour scores at the bottom with exactly zero votes from the audience, and it's just a perfect fucking episode.

S1, Episode 9: And as if the previous episode didn't assault your heartstrings enough, this one that explores the Third Years falling out and rekindles Mari and Kanan's friendship is the emotional peak.

S1, Episode 11: You struggles with feelings of increased inadequacy but ends up bonding with Riko, who does her piano recital.

S1, Episode 12: Aqours returns to Akiba to follow the trail of what became of u's, what made them so special, and whether on not their radiance can be recaptured, ultimately deciding on what makes the most sense, complete with more Saint Snow and feather symbolism.

S1, Episode 13: Aqours auditions for Love Live by recapping their history and defining their identity before a large crowd, then they perform probably their best song, wrapping up the season gloriously.

S2, Episode 15: The third years and first years of Aqours have to camp out together for a bonding experience. Hijinx ensue.

S2, Episode 18: A misadventure with Yoshiko and a stray puppy dog helps Riko finally overcome her inexplicable cynophobia.

S2, Episode 19: Kanan trains Chika to perfect a special jump-dance move, and Aqours gets into Love Live with their "Miracle Wave."

S2, Episode 20: Despite Aqours' entry into Love Live, the school could not get the number of new applicants needed, so the shutting down and merger will go through. Aqours has to figure out how to carry on and what can motivate them to find their radiance now.

S2, Episode 21-22: Aqours travels to Hokkaido, where Saint Snow lives and works. Leah and Ruby become girlfriends and it's so precious. The joint Saint Aquors Snow number, "Awaken the Power", is almost as wonderful a Christmasy song as "Snow Halation" was.

S2, Episode 24: The entire school holds a festival in its honor, to cheer for Aqours and celebrate its legacy in the wake of its looming closure, and it's just a beautiful episode all around.

S2, Episode 26: A surprisingly lackluster climax at Love Live is more than made up for with this final episode, which packs the emotional whallops it needs to and actually ends perfectly with no movie tie-in!

Over The Rainbow!: Aqours figures out what their place in their new school is to be now that the Third Years have graduated, get a free trip to Rome to sort out a mess between said Third Years and Mari's mother, and even help Saint Snow get closure on their school idol past and come to terms with their future. It ends as perfectly as the show did, standing as the absolute peak of quality Love Live! anime.

To close this one out, I've only this to say: ZURA. ^^

[rekucchi]

Chapter 2: The Dawnseeing Mansion (6)

You are startled when you hear the sound of heavy bowl put in front of you. All previous ruckus with Aylarik and the lady who wouldn’t even give you her name made you forget that Elena is still here and cooking something for you. She looks apologetic when you jump out of surprise.

“No I’m okay. Thank you, Elena,” you tell her. 

Elena quietly smiles. Does she have a female twin though? You only saw her with a boy who looks like her, but you are seeing another girl who looks like Elena. No, upon closer look, the girl definitely doesn’t look similar to Elena. They don’t even have the same height. Also, the other girl has soft animal ears above her head. That’s a familiar.

Among magics that mages can use there are distinctions in its complexity. With the most simple magic a mage would just need to wave their hand or will it to happen. As you go to more complex magics, you would need to start chanting and even use magic circles. Obviously the mana you need increases too. One of the more commonly known complex magic is Summoning Magic. Not only does it use large magic circles but it also requires high mana consumption. Generally to summon a familiar, a mage’s family generally needs to have around a 300 years of history in magic. On top of all that the summoned familiar also needs to be supplied constantly with magic. This is why mages usually just keep one familiar.

There are also distinctions in the type of familiars a mage can summon. Lower ranking familiars look like animals and they can’t speak. Some of them also can’t use magic or help a mage with their tasks, they are basically fancy pets. As they go higher in ranks familiars will look more human in appearance, they gain more intellectual, and they will also know more magic. In the peak of all is the Mythical Rank familiar.

For the second time, a loud sound Elena makes is startling you. She taps her hand on the wooden table to get your attention.

“Eat. Before it gets cold,” she says with flat voice and expression. It’s hard to tell if she is angry or not.

“Yeah, I’m eating! I’m eating!” you say while grabbing the spoon. The clam chowder she prepared for you does taste better when it’s still warm. Although it has been reheated, you can still taste the freshness of the ingredients.

When Elena finally leaves you alone, you can turn your attention towards the other girl. You heard that the hardest part for familiars when they are trying to assume human appearances is the ears and tails. Only SS Tier can go for a long time while hiding their beastly appearances. The familiar in front of you is completely human sans her ears and tail so despite her being high ranking she isn’t an SS. You assume she is probably an S or A tier.

“..and you are?” you ask her. She opens and closes her mouth like a fish before finally stutters,

“MynameisPennyandtheonefrombeforeismymotherMar—!”

Her speech is cut because the poor girl bites her tongue. Elena quickly comes to rub her back and offer her a glass of water. Hey, she makes you look like a bully now. The familiar girl’s face looks red, her ears folded down and her tail is hanging lifelessly.

“It’s okay. Calm down,” you tell her. She sits down and drinks the water.

“I’m sorry! I meant my name is Penny and the one from before is my mother Marlene! I’m sorry about my mother, she can be a bit brass sometimes!”

Her apology doesn’t move you as much as her introduction.

“Mother you say?”

“Yes, I’m the daughter of the lady you encountered before. She fell in love with her own familiar and that’s how I was born!”

Now this is news.

next: The Dawnseeing Mansion 7

Table of Contents

[freeonlineworkouts]

Arm Workouts for Women

Arm workouts for women are a fantastic way to build strength, tone muscles, and improve overall fitness. Whether you're using weights, resistance bands, or just your body weight, these exercises can help you achieve lean, defined arms. Below is a comprehensive arm workout plan designed specifically for women, targeting the biceps, triceps, shoulders, and forearms.

Warm-Up (5-10 minutes)

Start with dynamic stretches or light cardio to get your blood flowing. Examples include arm circles, jumping jacks, or a brisk walk.

Arm Workout Plan

1. Bodyweight Exercises (No Equipment Needed)

Push-Ups

Target: Triceps, chest, and shoulders.

How to Do It:

Start in a high plank position with your hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.

Lower your body until your chest nearly touches the ground, then push back up.

Reps/Sets: 3 sets of 8-12 reps.

Tricep Dips (Using a Chair or Bench)

Target: Triceps.

How to Do It:

Sit on the edge of a chair or bench, place your hands on the edge, and slide your hips off.

Lower your body by bending your elbows, then push back up.

Reps/Sets: 3 sets of 10-12 reps.

Plank to Push-Up

Target: Arms, shoulders, and core.

How to Do It:

Start in a forearm plank, then push up to a high plank one arm at a time.

Alternate arms for 30-60 seconds.

Reps/Sets: 3 sets of 30-60 seconds.

2. Dumbbell Exercises (With Weights)

Bicep Curls

Target: Biceps.

How to Do It:

Hold a dumbbell in each hand, palms facing forward.

Curl the weights toward your shoulders, then slowly lower them.

Reps/Sets: 3 sets of 10-12 reps.

Tricep Kickbacks

Target: Triceps.

How to Do It:

Hold a dumbbell in each hand, hinge at the hips, and keep your elbows close to your sides.

Extend your arms straight back, squeezing your triceps, then return to the starting position.

Reps/Sets: 3 sets of 10-12 reps.

Shoulder Press

Target: Shoulders and triceps.

How to Do It:

Sit or stand with a dumbbell in each hand at shoulder height, palms facing forward.

Press the weights overhead until your arms are fully extended.

Slowly lower the weights back to shoulder height.

Reps/Sets: 3 sets of 10-12 reps.

Lateral Raises

Target: Shoulders.

How to Do It:

Stand with a dumbbell in each hand, palms facing inward.

Raise your arms out to the sides until they are at shoulder height.

Slowly lower the weights back to the starting position.

Reps/Sets: 3 sets of 10-12 reps.

3. Resistance Band Exercises

Bicep Curls with Resistance Band

Target: Biceps.

How to Do It:

Stand on the center of a resistance band, holding the handles with palms facing forward.

Curl your hands toward your shoulders, then slowly lower them.

Reps/Sets: 3 sets of 10-12 reps.

Overhead Tricep Extension with Resistance Band

Target: Triceps.

How to Do It:

Hold the resistance band overhead with both hands, one hand holding the band and the other holding the handle.

Lower the band behind your head by bending your elbows, then extend your arms back up.

Reps/Sets: 3 sets of 10-12 reps.

4. Optional Finisher (Burnout Set)

Arm Circles:

Extend your arms out to the sides and make small circles for 30 seconds forward and 30 seconds backward.

Reps/Sets: 2-3 rounds.

Cool Down and Stretch (5-10 minutes)

Stretch your arms, shoulders, and chest to improve flexibility and reduce muscle soreness. Examples include:

Tricep Stretch: Reach one arm overhead and bend the elbow, gently pulling it with the other hand.

Bicep Stretch: Extend your arm behind you with your palm facing up.

Shoulder Stretch: Bring one arm across your chest and hold it with the other hand.

Tips for Success

Start Light: Use lighter weights or resistance to focus on proper form, then gradually increase as you get stronger.

Control Your Movements: Avoid swinging or using momentum; focus on slow, controlled movements.

Rest Between Sets: Take 30-60 seconds of rest between sets to recover.

Consistency: Aim to do this workout 2-3 times per week for best results.

Pair with Cardio and Full-Body Workouts: Incorporate cardio and strength training for other muscle groups to achieve a balanced fitness routine.

This arm workout is perfect for women looking to tone and strengthen their arms while improving overall fitness. Remember, consistency and proper nutrition are key to seeing results!

[smolljester]

hey, want some more of my personal Splatoon lore that you didn't ask for? no? too bad, you're getting it anyway!

ever wonder how the Kraken Special came to be? every Inkling and Octoling child knows at least one story of the many-limbed Kraken that inspired the Special Weapon, but what if i were to tell you that they really exist?

despite their incredible rarity, Kraken variations of your average Inklings and Octolings do exist! about 1/10,000 Inklings and Octolings are Krakens. when they're young, it's difficult to tell a Kraken apart from the rest of the crowd. it's only when they get older do they become more identifiable.

before we get into that, however, it should be known that the mother of a Kraken has a high chance of dying before, during, or shortly after having them. but should the mother also be a Kraken, the probability of their death is decreased drastically.

unlike your average Inkling or Octoling which have ten and eight limbs respectively, Kraken variations have a far greater amount of limbs than both. while they still have two arms and two legs like everyone else, records show that Krakens can develop up to fifty, sometimes even one hundred, tentacles on their mantle! of course, unlike Octolings, Inkling Krakens have 'clubs' just like their regular counterparts. but unlike regular Inklings, their Kraken variations have four 'clubs' on their mantle.

Krakens are also vastly bigger and deadlier than their counterparts. the average height of a Kraken is double, sometimes even triple, the height of ordinary Inklings and Octolings. along with their height, they're armed with claws, fangs, and hooks on their suckers. and just like the Special, Krakens are immune to all forms of ink damage. because of this, special rules and equipment have been made in recent years for Krakens to participate in Turf War.

a 'timeout' buzzer is pinned onto their back and chest before the start of the match. the buzzer is activated when an opponent's ink makes contact with the buzzer. the buzzer is NOT activated by friendly-fire.

after the buzzer is activated, the user must Super Jump back to their appropriate Spawn and wait five seconds before re-entering the battle.

hyper-resiliant gloves, mouth guards, and mantle caps are to be worn to protect not only teammates, but the opposing team and Kraken as well.

inability to follow these rules will result in temporary or permanent suspension from Turf War.

back in the old days of Inkling and Octoling society, a Kraken would traditionally be the leader/protector of their Shoal. in modern society, with rapid advancements in technology, the reliance on a Kraken's protection has declined. nowadays, they are seen as elder siblings to the younger members of their neighborhoods and even maternal figures to any orphaned members. though there still some communities that exist who rely on the protection of a Kraken.

however, on rare occurrences, a Kraken will enter what is known as a 'feral' state. the circumstances in which this occurs varies, though some common causes include: the harming of something or someone of importance, high blood pressure, rapid increase of adrenaline, etc. while in this state, their sclera changes colour and they become only a harbinger of destruction. there are three known ways to bring a Kraken out of this state: a good whack across the face with a blunt weapon, direct contact with low-tide ink, or to have a close friend/community member/partner console them. once out of their feral state, the Kraken will suffer from a gap in memory with no recollection of having gone feral.

but, and while it is incredibly rare, a Kraken can enter a permanent feral state. when this happens, they lose all sense of self and rational, acting out only on their primal instincts. Krakens that have turned primal become incredibly dangerous, as there are no known ways to revert them back. by default, for the safety of all citizens everywhere, primal Krakens are wanted for the death. extreme as it is, until a way is found to bring their minds back, it is the only way to keep everyone safe.

now you're probably thinking, "How do you kill a Kraken if they cannot be harmed by ink?" well, there are strict laws that exist in regards to the use of real weapons. one such law permits the use of such weapons in times of emergency or in the execution of dangerous criminals.

despite all this, Krakens are revered as being pillars of strength and regality in both Inkling and Octoling communities.

[da-mous]

How to design movement tech? I am thinking about a titanfall like grappling hook mechanic for a minecraft block game, where i want everyone to be able to express themselves the way they want, so having a good movement system and allow players to play on other maps kinda like mario maker is important, the camera is 3 person and with splatoon reticle, its just a project for now, how do i mix a grappling button, jump, crouch and run button

And how could be expanded by item usage or block placement, it could be so cool but i have no idea of what i am doing

never played Titanfall but I looked it up and the grappling mechanic looks sick

I've never made anything like what you're describing so my two cents might be more like once cent, but here's what I think

Minecraft is all about the environment you're in and your relationship to it. the ways you navigate it, break it down, build upon it, reshape it, etc. the way you move in Minecraft emphasizes that relationship. you're meant to feel small compared to a big world, so you can't jump that high or far. exploring forests, plains, oceans, rivers, ravines, jungles, mountains. they're all different experiences because of this

once you get an Elytra and some fireworks, the world suddenly feels a lot smaller. forests, plains, oceans, rivers, ravines, jungles, mountains, they all blur together and lose meaning when you just fly over them. it's a freeing feeling, but it comes at the cost of the level of intimacy you previously had with the world. even your own creations can start to feel small and insignificant when you fly over them

however, when you enter a cave, the environment forces you to respect it by increasing the risk of flying around with elytra. it's generally safer and more practical to go on foot... unless you're a thrillseeker, in which case caves are probably the most exciting and rewarding place to fly in

of course, the elytra are a really extreme example of a mechanic that cheapens one of the main appeals of a game, and I don't think the Titanfall grappler would be quite that extreme (to a certain degree it could actually bring out a cool dynamic with the environment, where you benefit from finding good spots to grapple off of) but I think it's still worth considering how you want to approach any potential conflict between these two appeals of freeing, expressive movement and an intimate connection with the environment

do you want to de-emphasize or even completely ignore one of these appeals in favor of strengthening the other, maybe by nerfing the grappler or just not going for the same kind of intimate connection that mc goes for? or do you want to find a way of making them work together, maybe by increasing the risk of using the grappler, or by giving the grappler some limitation that different environments helps you overcome in different ways--maybe grappling the floor doesn't really get you speed and height the way it does in Titanfall, but grappling onto stuff above you is where it's at? maybe then players start building grapple points as infrastructure to cross plains/deserts/oceans? that could be cool!

there's lots of ways to approach mashing these two things together and resolving (or avoiding!) the conflicts that arise from doing so, but hopefully I've helped give you stuff to think about!!

[sanctuaryoftheodd]

Chapter 11: Good vs Evil

"Let's do this team!"

I stomped my way towards the Marine Knight. The area quickly turned into chaos as people were being thrown around. The mage was sent high up in the sky while the martial artist was tossed clear down the street.

"Looks like it's just me and you, little snot ball." The man said, his voice so deep that it practically resonated through his suit like it was a subwoofer.

"Looks like it." I responded.

"It seems like I'm the lucky one of the three of us. I'm not sure if I would have survived those other two. But you, you're barely balancing on those tree branch legs of yours.

I'm sure it looks that way, but after 18 years of walking this way, I've gotten used to it. I'm the balancing master!

"How about this, little snot ball: I'll let you take the first shot."

Don't mind if I do! I gave my arm the tensile strength of diamond, but I kept my arm flexible and light. I sacrificed my other arm to increase my arm's length and I threw it behind me. Then one flick of my shoulder, I lashed it at him like a whip. The kinetic energy of my swing traveled down my arm and increase along the way until-

CRACK

It hit him at several times the speed of sound. That and considering its hardness and the fact that it had a much higher surface area than a whip, meant he was in for a bad time. The impact threw him into a nearby building, collapsing it instantly.

He climbed out the wreckage, his power armor partially destroyed. If he hadn't been wearing that thing, he probably would have died horribly.

"Okay, kid's gloves are off." He pulled up his shotgun and blasted me with it. Several holes were pierced into me as bits of myself splattered behind me. He saw that he did some damage and grinned. He pumps his shotgun and fires another round but I duck out of the way this time. He pulls out a handgun and takes aim, but I ran towards him in zigzags making myself a harder target. He must have hit me one or two times, but I made it close to him. I turned my arm into a diamond bat and jab the top of it into his gut.

It breaks a bit of his armor and he falls in a supine position. I throw myself onto him and make myself super heavy at the height of my jump. Even with his armor, I could feel his ribs breaking. Then as I was weighing him down, I turned my body into acid and started to ooze into him. He screamed in agony as some of my arm seeped through his armor and onto his bare skin. He managed to free the arm that was holding the handgun, and he immediately took the opportunity to shoot me directly in the head.

The immediate loss of brain matter knocked me out of my senses and I fell onto the ground beside him. He took the moment to climb back to his feet and shoot me in the head again.

What remained of my brain swirled. "S-stop that!"

He lifted up his gun again, but this time I didn't accept that. I turned into a me-shaped puddle of water, trying desperately to keep my brain intact. I slivered over and absorbed back the bits of brain I lost as he tried to shoot me while I moved around at high speeds.

The bits of my brain rejoin the whole. I became solid again and quickly got back up. However, my opponent was looking away.

"What?" I could have taken the opportunity to attack him, but I had to ask. "What's the matter?"

"Little snot... How dare you show me your indecent form like that."

"What are you talking abou- oh" I looked down. Sotakeh's sweater already took too many hits from the bullets and the acid, so it all completely fell off when I turned into a liquid. I really needed to find clothing that can withstand this stuff. If I didn't quell this trend, I'd very quickly become the fan service character of some anime or something.

Still, felt like teasing the guy a bit. "What's the matter, do you not like what you see?" I said while making my approximation of a sexy pose.

"I mean, you're a little young for me."

"Oh, that's honestly completely reasonable." He certainly failed the "harem anime protagonist" test. Good for him.

"Also, I wasn't expecting you to be so... detailed. I was told you were some kind of puppet?"

"Yeah um... I'm not having this conversation again. Are we still fighting or do you want to chitchat?" If we chitchat, that'll give time for Raina and Panchi to finish their fights.

"Please... cover-up...."

I sighed. "Fine."

I summoned my duct tape from my inventory, but I summoned it in a way so it would turn into little duct tape shorts for my bottom half and another duct tape bra like before.

"Okay, please don't shoot at my groin or my chest areas or we'll have to pause again."

"Alright, are you ready, kid?"

"Yep"

He pulled out an assault rifle from his inventory space. I rolled out of the way as he tried to fire at me. He was deliberately aiming for my head now, he seems to have correctly recognized it as my weak point.

He fires a couple of grenades, one to the left of me and the other to the right. I stood in the middle to avoid taking damage, but that seemed to have been his plan. I barely got my arm up in time to catch a bullet, one that would have pierced my head. Then I flick my arm back and flick it forward at high speeds, releasing the bullet his direction. He didn't expect me to fire back so I tagged him in the shoulder, but it wasn't moving fast enough to break skin.

He was distracted so I called up another whip and let it loose towards him. It was slow to prepare, so he jumped back to dodge it. Or more like he had rocket boots and he propelled himself back. My attack failed to land a hit, only leaving a deafening crack in its wake. The recoil of the whip left me vulnerable a bit, so he took a pot shot towards my head. He missed my brain and pierced part of my cheek.

I leapt forward, curling myself into a literal ball and bowled him over like a bowling ball. However, it took a moment for me to reform back so he took some pot shots at me before climbing back up to his feet. As he climbed back up, he pulled out another grenade and tossed it at my feet. I dodged, but to my surprise, it was a flashbang. Suddenly, my eyes were engulfed in white and my ears were overcome by a shrill ringing sound. I stumbled around for a while, blind and deaf before my senses slowly came back to me. When I could finally once again perceive the world around me, the man was gone.

However, I could hear what sounded like an engine in the distance. I considered not following it, but wasn't sure what he might do if I left him to his own devices. So despite my better judgement, I followed the sound.

The sound got louder and louder as I walked down an alleyway. However, when I rounded the corner on the other side, there he was, with a full primed gatling gun aimed point blank at me.

Before I could react, I was suddenly shredded by hundreds upon hundreds of bullets. The bullets tore into me as pieces of me flew everywhere. He never stopped, an unrelenting stream of ammunition. Even as my body was reduced to mush, he kept going. He didn't stop until I was splattered everywhere and partially reduced to vapor. Despite it all, I was barely able to hold on to my consciousness. My brain was all over the place now and it was difficult to think or even to move. I didn't want to go anywhere.

"Resilient little freak. She certainly messed me up. Can't go home to rest though. Got a job to do." He spoke to himself, unaware I could still hear him. He pulled out a piece of paper and looked it over. "Okay, the manor is closer, so I guess I'll blow that up first."

Blow up? I mulled over his words in what little thinking power I had left. Blow up the manor? He couldn't blow up the manor, the others were there.

That gave me just enough willpower to start pulling myself back together. I didn't even have enough in me to fully form, but the little bits of me on the floor, on the walls, all slithered back together into a big pool.

As soon as I had as much of me together as I could possibly salvage, I flowed my way to the man who was walking away from me. I caught up to him and ran up his leg. He felt me and tried to sweep me off, but I made myself very sticky and part of me stuck on his hand.  I moved my way up his body and into the small engine on his back that powered his suit. Then, I turned myself into gasoline.

One spark from the engines' internal workings, and everything went white.

[adacatlovelace]

Some Morrowind thoughts now that I've gotten around to playing it

I love the dichotomy of Early Game being somewhat difficult vs becoming a god of this world shaping it to your whims. It really gives you an appreciation for when you manage to break the game becuase it doesn't just feel like making an already manageable game even easier but instead meeting that challenge the game presents you in a way that makes you feel clever. Like the game straight up feels FUCKING AWFUL until you get your stats up so you actually FEEL the difference from going from slow running and jump basically being useless to VVardenfell's fastest boy who can leap over buildings in a single bound

Speaking of breaking the game, there are an incredible amounts of ways to do so and there are PLENTY of options. Wanna raise your intellect to 60x the stat cap? You can by stacking potions. Wanna make even stronger potions? Well INT affects potion strength and there are potions that raise int. Put two and two together. Low on health/stamina/magicka? Press T as long as you aren't in a town or near enemies and save the potions for combat.

I am incredibly sad what happened to the Alteration school in later entries. Alteration let you influence the world around you including your own body. Open locks, shield yourself, lighten your carryweight, make someone elses carryweight heavier, Water Breathing, becoming jesus and walking on water, levitate, use telekinesis to increase your interaction distance (which is really helpful if you wanna grab something from a position where you are hidden and increase your jump height to ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS AMOUNTS, which combined with a high acrobatics to substantially lessen fall damage makes for the most fun way to traverse and even makes navigating Vivec City much more fun. In Skyrim however, its the most boring class of magic in the game. Yeah paralyze is really funny to cast on people, but A. Telekinesis is basically just the gravity gun from half life and rendered almost completely useless by the ability to just move things around B. Transmute is... neat I guess and can be really useful for leveling smithing but its really tedious if you have a lot of ore to transmute C. Equilibrium is great for leveling restoration but not much else since theres not a lot of situations where it would be good to trade some health for emergency mana (Its a shame its not in Oblivion as it would be a GODSEND for those born under the Atronach sign who don't regen magicka naturally) D. I can kind of see what they were going for with Oak/Stone/Iron/Ebony/Dragonflesh to give a defensive option to those who perfer wearing robes over armor but "Activate ability to temporarily receive less damage" never really feels particularly fun or interesting

Speaking of magic, it really does feel like a core part of the game and I dont think NEARLY the amount of fun I did playing Morrowind if I avoided it

Enchanting is amazing system in Morrowind. Activated Effects, Constant Effects, effects on hit allows for SO much creativity without interfering with spellcasting. After all, why ever cast levitation if you can make a ring with a constant effect of levitation you can pop on and off whenever? The answer is that it is FUCKING EXPENSIVE to have an enchanter make you one or EXTREMELY risky to make it yourself. This sounds like a bad thing but really either A. It provides a valuable money sink so you're never just hoarding a shitton of gold with nothing substantial to spend it on or B. You figure out how to substantially shift the odds in your favor. I really cannot stress how much a GOOD money sink that has substantial rewards in return really adds to keeping the player engaged. Theres doing quests and exploration for their own sake and theres doing quests and exploration while keeping in the back of your mind that there is an 80,000 gold enchantment you are slowly working for so you ALWAYS want to come out of dungeons with as much loot as possible

Spellcrafting fills a similar role, except its for your magic stats rather than your gold. You can make superpowerful spells but you need a superpowerful amount of magicka to actually cast them. This works IN TANDEM with the enchanting system as it can be a great way to boost your stats high enough to cast "Angry Ron's Penile Explosion" (Thank you for letting me name my spells)

Alchemy is kind of tedious (Which thankfully got better in Oblivion and Skyrim, UI-wise) but offers a great way to both make money and temporarily boost your stats, as well as keeping you alive. I also like the little bit of flavor of restore fatigue ingredients usually just being various foods

I've heard mixed things about the fatigue system in general but as much as I hated it early game I sort of grew to enjoy it. I've never really enjoyed "survival" type mods where you have to eat drink and sleep but I feel like the fatigue system is a really good balance between that and just normal regenerating stamina. Rather than outright say "you need to perform bodily functions regularly or suffer for it" It gives you an organic push to take a short rest between large encounters or keep a couple restore fatigue potions on you or maybe take things slowly and walk through the dungeon instead of sprinting everywhere or maybe dont jump unless you need to, all with just a little green bar that says "This is how effective you'll be at everything you do"

The "Fast travel" system is also a GREAT way of getting around thats a good middle ground between "Travel to any location on the map" and the tedium that is walking across the map and back several times over to beat a single quest. By having multiple types of travel, each with their own places they can go, it adds that small amount of required planning in quickly traveling from Point A to Point B to keep it engaging. Stilt striders can take you to landlocked towns while boats can take you to just about any town reachable by water. The mages guild will teleport you to other locations of the mages guild. Bigger cities will have more travel options while smaller towns will have few, if any. Even then you have the two intervention spells which will take you to either the nearest Imperial Cult or Temple which you can CHAIN together. Wanna reach ebonheart extremely quickly? Travel by silt strider, boat or mage guild to vivec, cast Alsimi intervention to teleport to the south end of vivec then divine intervention and BOOM. You're in ebonheart. On TOP of all these options you also have Mark and Recall. Mark will set a place and recall will take you there, which is great for both a quick option to get to your player home OR back to the area you need to return to multiple times over the course of a questline (Looking at you Morag Tong)

10. One of the first NPCs you meet is Caius Casodes. He is a high ranking member of a secret organization of spies for Uriel Septim VII called the Blades and he acts as your sort of handler for most of the main questline. He is a shirtless man in a dingy apartment, he LOVES moon sugar and skooma and basically tells you to fuck off and do the whole "open world" thing for a while multiple times to "give him time to think" which Im pretty sure just means getting blasted. 10/10 character I love him

11. Ahnassi is just a gem. Shes friendly, gives good advice and leads (As well as a discount for the best acrobatics trainer in the game) She has a former partner who's got a skooma addiction who you help and its all very sweet. As you go out of your way to perform various acts of kindness her gratitude PALPABLE and will literally offer you the clothes off her back. Just such a kind, lovable character that makes you GENUINELY wanna help her and give her gifts.

12. I dont really like Crassius Curio (part of it is just the stank of 2003-era homophobia as a character) or anyone who uses their position of power to leverage political favors in exchange for sexual/romatic favors but it is REALLY funny that he actually is the one that wrote The Lusty Argonian Maid and the guy in it is named "Crantius Colto"

Overall Thoughts: Great Game, highly recommend if you dont mind a lot of reading and a steep learning curve that suddenly plummets downward as you obtain godlike power